Randy’s Dad and stepmom, Brenda, arrived Thursday afternoon right on time. We spent the evening relaxing, chatting, and making plans for the weekend. When the two of them come to visit their plan is to work around our homestead and help out as much as they possibly can.
We rose early Friday morning I started a batch of bread and then began our day in the garden. We trimmed back our yucca plants, pulled weeds, planted okra, and mulched with old leftover sudan stubble the sheep didn’t eat over the winter. It is a nice mulch/fertilizer combination and holds moisture great. In the afternoon we went fishing (not the best time to fish, but it was fun). That evening we met my parents for dinner at a fun little restaurant in a fun little town near where we live.
Saturday morning we got up bright and early again and headed to the pond to fish. It started raining on us after we had been there awhile, so we decided to call it quits. By the time we got home it had stopped raining, so the girls worked in the garden some more while the guys organized our garage/shop. At noon my dh ran to the dairy for milk. Then we headed to town to get some groceries and tools and to have lunch. When we got home we began working in the flower beds around the house.
Sunday they guys trimmed trees, I planted leftover plants from Mom’s store, and Randy’s step mom, Brenda, pulled more weeds in and around the garden. You probably see a weed pulling pattern and that is because our garden was entirely out of control with weeds. ~Smile That evening our neighbor brought over his wood chipper for us to use, so the guys ran the branches through the chipper and covered our driveway with woodchips so we won’t have to trudge through the mud. Two friends/neighbors stopped in to say hi and visit, my mom, aunt, and three cousins all stopped in also which is always nice, and two co-workers of Randy’s stopped by on their Harley’s on their way back from New Mexico. Very cool! So we had a bustling little day with visitors. Unusual when you live in the country. No one is ever, “just in the neighborhood.” ~Smile
Monday was the last day they would be there to help, so it was crunch time. The guys stretched fence in our lot and made it so the chickens now have free range of a part of the sheep lot. They were in heaven! Brenda finished all the flower beds (3 total) and they look absolutely wonderful. The guys finished chipping the wood and cutting up the larger pieces for firewood. Dh and I are making plans to buy an outdoor wood furnace, so we will have to get some firewood put back. In the afternoon we started to unwind and relax. My mom offered to make us dinner that evening, so we got cleaned up early and headed to their house. Everyone got to love on “Crooked Neck” our special little lamb who was born with a crooked neck (hence the name). She’s precious and you can’t help but love her. We had tacos that were excellent and everyone ate entirely too much. Chores had to be done when we got home. Randy and his Dad shut up the sheep, his Brenda finished packing, and I tended to the chickens. Surprise, we have a baby chick! Woo hoo! Just one and who know if it will live to see daylight, but mama is guarding the precious little thing like a hawk. I put water and food in her nesting box so she can stay with her baby as long as she needs to. The marker worked. We used a permanent marker and drew a line all the way around the egg, so we would know not to collect those eggs. Out of eight eggs we only had two left (not sure what got them), but so far one of them has hatched. We will dispose of the other egg Wednesday evening if it hasn’t hatched by then. I was so excited when I saw the broken egg and then a little baby chick. How amazing and what a feeling to see new life on the farm. By then it was bedtime, and we were all exhausted.
At 3:00 we all drug ourselves out of bed, so dh could take them to the airport and head off to work. We had so much fun with them here and got so much accomplished. They are so wonderful to help us out every time they come to visit. Hopefully they make it back soon!
Luckily it’s a short work week. Dh and I are both exhausted and ready for the weekend again. Back to a normal schedule and sleeping in our own bed again. We will be thankful for both!
Hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend.
A Simple Prairie Life 