Joy

Wednesday, June 23, 2021

Garden and Life Update


We’ve had a few packed weeks!
 

While Bryan was here, he convinced us that we have a great garden area to create a no-till garden like he did in Oklahoma.  He dug around and found that for whatever reason,  this half of the garden area has pretty good, non-rocky soil, unlike the half with the raised beds.  

Right after they left, we got serious about the future garden and got clear plastic to lay down on the area to solarize the weeds and grass that are there. 

I am relieved that this means I don’t have to build and fill so many raised beds.  I do want one more on the bed half of the garden.

I am also building pollinator gardens in various areas to encourage bees. (and to look petty) This is the first and smallest one.   Again, using rocks and materials we find on the land.

 

I absolutely LOVE the garden.

Things grow here! Quickly and easily!   So far we have harvested 18 of these guys! 

And there is no sign that they’ll be slowing down anytime soon.

I made pickles for the first time in my life.   

I haven’t tasted them yet – you are supposed to wait at least two weeks.

Beans,

Peas are finally starting to grow – they have been slow to start.

Tomatoes

Cantaloupe,

Watermelon,

Jack’s Pumpkins!

 

Zucchini,

Basil

Along with solarizing the garden, we had to make it bunny and deer proof.  We put chicken wire all along the perimeter. 

Currently, we are getting the deer fencing up.  Supposedly we need an 8ft fence to keep the deer out. We chose used netting which in it's former life was was a volleyball net to keep balls from going over into the neighbor’s yard.  Here it is has been a cat tap and deer deterrent. 

I like that you don’t really see it.

 

We have had a lot of baking over here.  Claire is the resident cake baker and she makes wonderful chocolate cakes (we don’t let her make any other kind – that would be a waste!) 

Josh and Claire went to camp last week so Joy was able to make one of her own without a big sister to critique her.   She got an air balloon cake pan from the library.   Her cake was delicious too!

Claire made a cake for Father’s day and reclaimed her cake baker position.  Poor Joy, demoted to cookie maker.  

Paige doesn’t bake but she does cook sometimes. 

  She also is the resident postmaster and keeps busy ALL day crafting cards and letters and delivering them.  She is quite the artist/crafter.

Right now, the main project is the kids’ bathroom.  

We demoed it all and not surprisingly, it was disgusting. This is what was under the tub.

  We couldn’t figure out why there were always so many flies in the bathroom,  Now we know they were coming up from under the house, into the walls, and out one of the many holes in the dry wall.   Apparently mice or rats were under and behind the tub too.  Who would put a tub on top of that can of varnish?  Oh, wait, I know who....

Water damage anyone?

My mom and I are tiling the bathtub surround.

   It is slow going – we kept getting interrupted by small people that want to eat lunch and dinner!   Yesterday we had a snake emergency and had to drop everything to see what kind it was. The 3 younger kids were walking in the freshly mowed pasture 

and nearly stepped on this guy.   

He is a king snake. 

But despite the slow progress, it is looking pretty darn good.  We will finish today or tomorrow. Then we have walls, and floors to get done.  The goal is for it to be completely done before my other brother, Steve and his family drive out in 2 weeks. I think we can do it.

My dad is moving their trailer to a different part of the yard that gets more shade.  Unfortunately that means running a new electric and water line to get to it.

 Jack helping tamp down the covered pipe. 

Sweaty! 

It has been in the mid 90’s but the humidity makes is feel a lot hotter.   The thing is though, once the sun starts to set the temperature actually drops!  Imagine that!  It’s only the afternoon that is too hot to be out.   We are having a nice little cold front move through right now.   It was 82 degrees yesterday and right now (morning) it is 52!   It’s the end of June!    Oh. It hasn’t rained for a whole 2 weeks so I had to water my garden.  (hose hooked up to the well) It’s nice that water is free.

Speaking of the well, I think we finally have that situation worked out.  My dad has spent many, many hours crouched in the well house installing a chlorinator and holding tank.  Now the water is getting chlorinated just enough to kill the coliform but not too much that it will ruin the septic tank.  It is so nice to have water come out of the faucet that doesn’t smell like sewer/wet dog!    I am still running water through the Berkey for drinking – now to get the chlorine out, but we are going to get an under sink purifier so that will come to an end soon.





Tuesday, June 8, 2021

The Great Chicken Debacle and Visitors

 

In the past few weeks we have experienced mass chick death.  This event has become known as "The Great Chicken Debacle".

  I was so excited to order 20 chicks online.   I picked them up from the post office, put them directly into their state-of-the-art brooder and within 48 hours 17 of the 20 died. 

  

They literally just passed out each afternoon.  Is it too hot?  Too cold?  If they are too hot why aren’t they leaving the heat lamp,  if they are too cold, why aren’t they huddling under it!?    


I tell you, the living conditions for these chicks could not have been more perfect.  The hatchery refunded me for all 20 of the chicks – which was very kind and I went to Tractor Supply and got 20 more replacement chicks.  Within a day 13 more had died!   All in the evening!   I told Tractor Supply my ordeal and they asked me things like, “Do you have a heat lamp?”  “Do they have water?”  Ugh!  Yes!  I am not a total imbecile!  One guy said “What kind of water are you giving them?”  I stared at him and said “……..water, water.”   He gave me some probiotic and electrolytes to mix into the water.  I did that and I was convinced that they were too hot so I put a little fan blowing down into the brooder.   Ever since then, we have had no deaths.   Yikes!  

  The third time I bought replacement chicks the gal at Tractor Supply sold them to me for only .50 a piece so that was great.


Hopefully The Great Chicken Debacle will not be repeated.


We have been finding interesting creatures lately.

  Frog eggs that Joy scooped out of a puddle and hatched, 

(they are still alive nearly 3 weeks later!)

 

This little prehistoric guy.

 

A poisonous lappet moth hanging out on the wall.

 

A real FROG, not toad, and his slug friend

 

And this guy that is also not one you would want to touch.

But this guy is irresistible to touch and snuggle. 


We have had visitors!

 My uncle Joe and Paula drove up from Houston for Memorial Day weekend.

We showed them around, stuck our hands in the hot springs, 

and went to Garvan Gardens.

 

At night we played one of our family favorite games, Chicken Foot.  Paige was really into it.



The following week my younger brother and his family came from Oklahoma.  It rained much of the time but the cousins had fun regardless.  It is nice to see them more than once a year.

"It's bright! My eyes!"

 

Meeting baby Jovie.

Before we had visitors, we wanted to clear out the trash collections that had been gathering.   We found out that the county was having a hazardous waste day and we were allowed to take as many tires as we wanted for free!  My dad made 3 trips and dropped off 66 tires in one morning!  66!  

There are a few more to go but it was a relief to be rid of them.  Then he went to a regular dump to get rid of all the other stuff.   All that is left now is metals that will be taken to the recycling center.   Hurray!

We went to the library out here and WOW!   What a great library!   They have a section called the “Library of Things” where you can check out life vests, fishing poles, inflatable kayaks,  cake pans,  air fryers,  beading kits, etc.  Claire checked out a cake decorating kit and made a cake for when Joe and Paula were here

 and also a tiered cake.

We also enjoyed checking out movies like Disney’s 1990’s Heidi – because Paige just finished reading the book and also What the Dead Man Heard.   Good times.

This week’s project is going to be the kitchen counter tops!  I can’t wait!