MY NEW RIDE!

I've been having trouble getting pictures to load on the blog, so this news has been delayed:

I GOT A NEW PICKUP!!

About 3 weeks ago, we went from a 4-vehicle/no car payment family to "Susie's got a new truck!" Woo Hoo!! I traded in the old pickup and my beloved (and constantly-breaking-down) Jeep for this beauty. It's a 2013 Chevy Silverado, 3/4 ton short bed, loaded! I added replacement bumpers - front and back, a bedliner, and a tool box. I've decided to get fender flares put on, and then I'll be done - except for those pesky car payments!

The new pickup was ready in time for the post-Thanksgiving trip to Arkansas, so it's been broken in pretty well. And I LOVE it! I'm not sure if this is the next mid-life crisis (that's what I blamed the Jeep on) or if it's just more economical not to have to register and insure 4 vehicles. But either way, I'm a happy girl!

Keep an eye out for me in my new ride - and wave if you see me!

RAISE AND RELEASE

Today we released our last hatch of bobwhites out by the windmill.

They were six weeks old, and had pretty much outgrown their home in the brood room - which they've been sharing with about 20 coturnix.

We drove them out to the windmill and opened the cage.

We had to shoo these last three out of the cage. They were very reluctant to leave.

And then all of a sudden, they all took flight!! What a sight to see!

1963 SINGER TOUCH & SEW

My "new" sewing machine - a 1963 Singer Touch & Sew! Isn't it a beauty? I found this at an estate sale in Baytown last week, but had to wait until yesterday to get over there. I kept tabs on the sale all weekend, making sure it hadn't sold. And as an extra bonus, yesterday was 1/2 off day! I am so excited to have found this amazing machine. All the pieces to the craft room puzzle are falling into place!

FREEDOM!

We've been waiting on a shipment of coated chicken wire for some time now - we use it on the quail pens to keep varmints out. I've needed a run for my peafowl, and Big John suggested we use the same wire for it.

But today, I could wait no longer ... I opened the door to the pea pen and set them free!

Beauty immediately flew to the patio roof.

Bo followed right behind her and made it to the top of the goose pen. Then he jumped into the ash tree beside it.

It was quite a sight to see those big birds take flight! I just hope they'll come back down.

The two young peas are being a little more cautious and hanging around the pen. I'm sure they'll head somewhere high before too long!

Ahhh, sweet freedom!

FIRST GREEN EGG

I've been waiting and waiting, and yesterday I finally found it!
The first Ameracauna egg has arrived! Isn't nature amazing?

OH YEAH!!!

OH MY GOSH - a dream come true!!
Look what's sitting in our trap right now...

OH YEAH!
This is a gently-used  Kubota 95 hp tractor - with a CAB, and RADIO, and AIR CONDITIONING!
And a front-end loader.
And a 15 FOOT BATWING SHREDDER!

OH YEAH!
Isn't this a thing of beauty?

So I've gone from shredding with this:

6 feet at a time.

To this:

15 feet at a time.

That's 2 1/2 times more with each pass than the old shredder.

I'll be finished in no time!

What will I do with all this free time?!

OH YEAH!!

"HERB" BED

Originally, this area in front of the building was going to be my herb bed. Big John helped me line it out and put in the edging. I added lots of compost and had the chickens help me till it in. But it just wasn't wide enough to hold the herbs I wanted to plant. So I changed the plan and made this a flower bed - problem solved!

I spent today adding more material and planting. I can grow vegetables pretty well, but I'm notoriously bad with flowers. The fact that I have free-range chickens and geese doesn't help the situation. Over the years, I've come to know which flowering plants geese don't eat. Plumbago seems to do well in the heat and without constant watering, and the geese won't eat it. I decided to alternate plumbago with a pretty yellow-flowering plant that I can't remember the name of - hopefully geese won't eat it either!

I'm happy with the finished product - the flowers dress it up quite a bit. There will probably be a pretty little fence installed (as soon as I find one) to keep the dogs from wallowing in the cool dirt. And there might be more beds along the north and east sides in the future ... in the distant future!