Throw Back Thursday

Today I am going to throw back to the past,back,back ,back to 1992.

Here is a picture of me and Hubby about a year after we were married.I know,I know,way too much purple eye shadow!

You may notice the lack of decor.That is because we had nothing and we had it for a long time!

When Hubby and I tied the knot he had just come straight off a Westpac at the end of the first Gulf War.As soon as he made port and could get off that ship he flew home and married me.After a week we drove my old car and a tiny U-Haul trailer from East Texas to San Diego.We started having doubts that the old car was going to make it over the mountains but we were meant to be!
The only furniture we had was a two person table and two chairs.We had a basic kitchen set up,pots and dishes.That's it.Oh,and a 6 inch black and white TV without cable!After about 6 months Hubby found us a (yucky)used couch that I cleaned up the best I could.I still shudder thinking about that thing even after all these years!It was too long to go up the stairs so some of his Navy buddies came over and they hoisted it through the second story window.You could always get one of the other Navy guys to help you out,we were all in the same boat so to speak!Trying to squeak by on enlisted pay.
We were married almost three years before we had a bed.We had been sleeping on a palette on the floor up until then!Young bodies can take that sort of thing!
We lived in San Diego for three years and like everywhere we lived we had great adventures.We went everywhere and did everything we possible could while we were there.Gas was cheap and we packed coolers full of iced tea and bologna sandwiches!
I married my best friend and I am glad I did!I know whatever life brings us we will make an adventure out of it together.

Random,Random and Some More Random

I like to wear overalls when I am doing farm chores.Except when it is really hot in the summer.Than I wear shorts,my legs pay the price for it though.They look like a 6 year old's,scraped and bruised!
Anyway,back to overalls.I prefer to get my overalls from thrift shops.Who wants to pay a lot of money for something that is most likely going to be covered with some substance that some how came out of one critter or another.
I don't have a lot of luck finding any because of my...uh...rather busty farm girl built.I need a large or extra large.I rarely find these sizes at the thrift store.Apparently only waif like farm women give their old overalls to charity!
So awhile back I came across Rosies Workwear for Women.
The name is pretty self explanatory.They have woman's overalls.They come in pink,green and tan.Not too bad a price for a new pair.It goes against my nature to pay for new ones,but I am getting desperate.
So... I finally broke down and ordered a pair,the tan.I got them last week.They are nice and comfy .They have zip off legs,tons of pockets and removable knee pads.I love the knee pads!Once you reach a certain age,it seems,the knees are the first to let you know you are not a spring chicken any more!


The only draw back is they have plastic clasp on the straps.I don't have a lot of love for plastic, it isn't durable,except in our land fills.The next thing could be a pro or con.The straps are elastic,which are super comfy.Then that durability thing rears it's head.I keep thinking of shot waistbands in underwear!So I guess I will have to wait and see.For now I like them a lot.I will like them even more if they last for years without me having to replace the straps or buckles!

In other news,life on the farm is not just animals, it's boys too.We spent several hours at the new orthodontist yesterday.When The Boy was 9,he had to have a hersp appliance to stretch his lower jaw and partial braces on the top.We knew he would probably have to have more work done later.Well...later is here.He has to go into the appliance again and have full braces this time for a total time period of almost 3 years! The Boy is bummed!So is Hubby because we used up his life time cap on our orthodontic insurance last time.Good thing Hubby gets lots of overtime!Here is a picture of Hubby in front of one of the rigs they are working on.

It won't be long and he won't look like that any more.It gets cold in China.As soon as the chill hits the air Hubby stops shaving.He says he needs the whiskers as insulation!Hubby is a red head.His beard is a different color of red though,a crazy red.By the time winter is over he looks like some deranged mountain man!He will run his fingers through it so it sticks out every where and walk around that way!This picture is not even at the end of winter!Trust me when I say that monster grew way bigger before it saw a razor!

He absolutely loves this because Hubby loves to mess with people.He is an oddity in China.Not only are westerners a rare sight,a red head is unheard of.He is the only one most people there have ever seen.So this gives him many an opportunity to be a prankster.
He bought this face mask thing.I don't know how he stuffed all that monster beard in there!


He could have got a normal one,but nooo,this is more fun!It does look cold though.Me and The Boy would love it,we love the cold.Hubby hates cold.You can imagine the thermastat battles that go on in our house!
This has been a rambling post,from overals to beards!Oh well,I never claimed to be organized!
Dog update:so far so good with the neighbor's dogs.Animal control paid them a visit and gave them a warning,next offense is a court date.I just don't want to risk the next offense at the well being of my animals. I have my dandy donkeys,so I feel a little better!

Alone again

Well, we are alone again,The Boy and I.We got Hubby off to China.The Boy and I spent most of the day yesterday resting.We go in and stay at a hotel by the airport because Hubby's plane leaves around 6am and it is a long drive from our house in he wee hours of the morning to get him there early enough for all the check in stuff.Because of a lot of things,animals and such,we didn't get there until 11.I never sleep good in a strange place and Hubby had to get up at 5.We had to get up and get back to the farm to do the morning chores.I don't know about you all,but I need 9 hours of good sleep to function! So after chores we mostly rested.Hubby has been working away from us for quiet awhile,but it still makes us sorrowful when he leaves.That emotion makes a body tired and weary also,so I have found it is just best to rest the first day he is gone.

After the evening started to cool we went out and sat with the goaties.This little frog was hanging on the gate to the goat pen.

The goaties are so affectionate and fun to be around no one can be melancholy in their presence!

They have turned out to be our favorite farm animals.We used an old kiddie slide that was here when we bought the place to make them another play thing.

They are having a good time on it,especially Butter Bean and Doodah.They like head butting each other.The two of them were really carrying on earlier but I didn't have my camera then.I did get him and Nibbles latter on though.Nibbles is so sweet and docile she doesn't like head butting hard,she is just too lady like for that kind of stuff!She just gently taps Butter Bean on the head!


It is funny how they all have their different personalities and like different things from food to toys.

They are just too cute!We can hardly wait for Doodah to have her little ones,it's all The Boys talks about and he's still got 2 and a half months to go!
I don't know how any one can be unhappy after spending an hour in the goat pen.Thank you, cute gaotie goats!

Hay

Here is Hubby bringing a big round bail of hay to our little herd.
We don't have a tractor of our own yet.We are blessed to have really wonderful neighbors behind us who let us borrow theirs any time we want.This tractor doesn't have a hay spear so Hubby improvises!Redneck ingenuity!

Hubby could weld up a hay spear easily though,he is one of the best welders you will ever come across.Hubby is a manly man,there is nothing he can't do.He can work on and fix everything.Seriously,I haven't had a new appliance in 18 years.It is a blessing and a curse.Have you ever seen an 18 year old washer and dryer that has been moved 15 times?Yes, we have moved that many times,Hubby was in the Navy for a long time,and we have no problem picking up and leaving if a better opportunity comes along.That's how we ended up here.I did get a new fridge when we move here because we left the old one with our old house.

The horse and cow practically attacked this hay bale before Hubby even got stopped good!They are greedy!You would have thought they were starved down to skin and bones!Goofy things had just finished off a square bale when this one was delivered to them!

This is not a hippo,it is Fiona from behind!She is waddling over to eat some more!

Our goal is not to feed hay.We have the pasture but not the fences.This land was completely unimproved when we bought it.Fences are expensive and take time.It is hard to balance Hubby's time home between working on the land and working on the house and family time.

We are lucky we don't have to buy a lot of hay.Our goal for the winter is to get the fences completed.Then we can get a few more animals.We would like to get another Dexter cow and a bull.That will give us a little herd of 3 cows,we will sell or eat their babies,and a bull.We would like 3 more ewes for our sheep flock also.

Hubby leaves in the morning....sigh.The boy and I will be on our own for 6 more weeks.We do OK,but we sure do miss him.We will stay busy now that the weather is cooling off and that will make the time go buy faster though.The first week and last week are always hard...but we are tough,we are farm folk after all!

What to do with Your Old Front Porch

The Turkeys are in their new home.

Hubby built this nice pen to keep them from getting their little turkey heads bitten off by coons and 'possums.I made the mistake of putting the first batch of baby turkeys in the rabbit hutch.It is high off the ground and covered in tiny square rabbit wire.It was a mistake.In the morning I had only 3 left .A 'possum climbed up an grab their toes and pulled their legs through.I was heart broken.I know that sounds gruesome ,but that is life in the country folks.We,by we I mean Hubby,will put on a real roof later.

This pen is a good example of recycling.Most of the wood came off the super ugly closed in porch that I tore off the front of the house shortly after we moved in.Hubby first used the wood to build The Boy a tree house,but he didn't finish it.Then Ike dropped a huge limb on it.So it just sat there until a few weeks ago,because this is a hillbilly-redneck family,we just considered it lawn decor.The other day I was looking at it and pondering what to do about it.Then it just hit me,like good ideas most often do,turkey coop!

Poor Hubby!He is always having to build something for some critter or another!He is a good Hubby and deserves some kind of medal or plaque or possibly a t-shirt because me and The Boy are always dragging home some new critter!Just the morning before yesterday I woke up and said" I want a milk goat,Boy,look on line and see what you can find."And that night we came home with Doodah!


These are Bourbon Red turkeys.They are a heritage breed.I saw a while back in a magazine,maybe Mother Earth News,where they did a taste test on turkeys.Bourbon Reds were the second tastiest!

Here is a bonus picture that has nothing to do with turkeys.

This is The Boy and Hubby flipping over the goatie house so The Boy can shovel out all the built up goat poop.Then,before putting it back down,soaking the ground in cheap yellow dish soap to keep away fire ants.Just in case you didn't know, fire ants won't stay where cheap yellow dish soap is in the ground,a good safe way to get rid of the little devils with out risking poison around your critters.Time for a Boy Quote.The Boy says"Fire ants had to be created by the devil."I tend to agree with him.

Meet Doodah !!!

Meet the newest addition to our farm...Doodah!




She is a Nigerian Dwarf goat.The Boy and I drove out and picked her up last night.She is hopefully going to give us little Doodahs in about 3 months!Then yummy,yummy milk.
Nibbles wasn't real sure about this stranger at first.She watched atop her barrel and discussed it with The Boy.He assured her Doodah was a nice goat.Butter Bean was doing goatie dances..Yippee!It's another girl Goat!

Everybody had to check out our new goatie!
Anna Belle and Sir Loin are having a calf conference!

And the quack squad stopped by to stare!

Nibbles decided it was safe and hoped down from her barrel.See,she and Butter Bean are showing Doodah their box.





The Boy loves to tell his Nanna,sorry Nanna I have to tell this,That the goaties are her Grand-Kids!She denies being the grandma to any goats,dogs ,chickens of other farm animals.This just delights The Boy even more 'cause he can pester her about it.He gets that from his daddy!
"Nanna,don't you want to pet your Grand-Kids?""Nanna,your Grand-Kids are nahhh-ing for you!"


Nanna informed us she left instructions with other relatives that if she should die,The Boy was not to be allowed to do her obituary because she didn't want it to say she left behind Grand Goats and Grand Dogs and Grand Chickens! I don't think she was joking either!Well,she probably has a legitimate worry,because The Boy would do that.

You don't have to worry about Nana though, she is tough wrapped up in a little package.The Boy all ready towers over her.She made it through raising my,trouble is his middle name,red-headed,mischievous Hubby without killing him or ending up in a nut house.

Just look at that face,you can tell he's thinking up mischief just by looking at him!
He has a brother and sister,but I think they were mainly his victims.The stories that woman can tell!She could probably curb population growth just by telling folks that are thinking about having babies stories about Hubby as a child!The Boy won't do her in, believe me.
Anyway....welcome Doohdah!I know your gonna love it here!

I Love a Man With Smoked Meat

This is Hubby with a big 'ole plate of steaks he just grilled!Yum!

I love when he is home for many reasons.High up on that list is his excellent grilling abilities.The man loves to cook meat.Sometimes we eat off the grill every night while he is home.It's that good.Seriously.Is your mouth watering yet?

I really have to be careful what I say!

We used to travel.A lot.We took long trips,but mostly we would take weekend trips sometimes every weekend.So,when we got this farm it kind of put an end to our travel adventure days.It is hard to sneak goats into hotel rooms.The Boy says it is goat discrimination and he is contemplating legal action!It is a little hard to get used to staying home all the time when you are an adventure person.Don't get me wrong ,I don't regret the farm one bit! It is really good for The Boy, being an only child,to have critters to take care of.And let's not forget the bonus of our own healthy food because,let's face it ,if we knew the story behind most of the stuff we buy in the grocery store it would make us hurl our waffles.Our homemade,sourdough,organic fresh ground wheat waffles!OK,that was unnecessary,all waffles look the same when they are hurled.
So,here's where I am going with this story.I am trying to think of good ways to entertain ourselves here close to home.We practically live on a very large lake.Hmm,I think to myself,we could get a small used boat and go tubing and fishing.So I call up Hubby in China and tel him my idea.
"Really,you want me to buy you a boat?!!?What my Baby wants my baby gets!"
Don't you just love a man like that!This is what arrives at our house!







Apparently I forgot to say"small" when I said I would like a boat!You know how these fellas are,you say you want a new T.V. and you get a 5 foot minnie movie theater in your living room!



But just look at how happy he is!Hubby works hard and is away from us for long stretches of time in a less than luxurious country.So,if this big 'ole boat makes him happy,them who am I to spoil it for him.
Another thing we got to entertain ourselves is a Wii.I will have some picts later of us playing this.This is a great family game system.We are all having a blast with it.I woke up this morning to,now remember Hubby is ex-Navy,oil field worker,to him hollerin' in the living room "Take that **tch!"I go and see who he is talking to.He is playing Wii! So funny!