Could it be a stampede of buffalo?

Hopefully you can see in this picture what looks to be like a herd of buffalo went through this field behind us but, no, it's what wild hogs have left with their ravaging through the night. It's amazing how these creatures creep in and out doing so much damage to the fields yet no one, to my knowledge, has caught a glimpse of them. It reminds me of the movie Dances With Wolves when the buffalo herd came through and left this huge path. I guess you could say these menacing varmits have left their..

Happy Trails....

Spring Has Sprung

This morning I was looking at the pecan trees and noticing that they were getting ready to bloom, some more than others. In a matter of hours, I looked up and noticed that leaves has burst out from the tips of the limbs. How exciting! It was almost happening right before my eyes. Each time I walked up and down a row, I noticed more limbs showing green.

Then I walked over to the fig trees we planted last year and they have leafed out. It is so much fun to watch this farm bloom. Little by little we are getting there. We are still anxiously awaiting the morning that we can wake up there. It is so awesome to sit out there and take in all of God's glory. Just to hear all the sounds - while some of the birds are singing, others are cackling. Often we can hear a big swoosh as a big flock of birds decides to take flight and go to another part of the orchard. There always seems to be a breeze and sometimes it roars through the trees. There's the hum of the tractors working the fields and sometimes you can hear the big trucks in the distance flying down the FM road. As I walk up and down the rows, I can hear the crunch of the old pecans under my feet. So many of the coons and coyotes (and squirrels) have feasted on the pecans only to leave the shells. Yes, the farm sings and it calls me out there to sit and take it all in. God has blessed us richly. I am truly thankful that I have the ears to hear, the legs to carry me and the feet to walk this great place.

Happy Trails....

Can you hear me?

I was squealing like a happy pig earlier today. I figured somebody in Burleson County could hear me. We have water!! It's been a long time coming - two weeks shy of a year; the electrician came out today and set the temporary lines to the well so this was a welcome sight.

A Pretty Sight

This might look like just an ordinary water well tank but it's a very long awaited ordinary water well tank. Now all we have to do is get electricity hooked up to it and we're in business! Hallelujah! Each day brings us a little bit closer to getting moved out there. We've had some beautiful weather so we've been soaking it in. Last week, Buddy and I opened both doors of the barn and sat in the alleyway enjoying the breeze. We sat and talked and then sat and talked some more commenting to each other how blessed we are to have the farm and each other. Neither of us wanted to leave but dusk made us get up and head home. We are anxiously awaiting the day that we can call the farm "home".

My Men at Work...

We're blessed to have two of the grandboys come stay with us during their springbreak. Our first stop before arriving at the farm was a pair of rubber boots for each of them. As soon as they hit the ground, they headed straight for the "lake". It brings back memories of their father and uncle when they were that age. After only a couple hours, they were pretty much covered in mud.

The pretty weather has made it possible to get some more work done. Buddy was able to smooth out all the ruts in the road and work some more in the barn. Right now we're trying to get a couple stalls completed to be able to put the horses up in bad weather. Hopefully, that won't be necessary with the first day of spring this week. And I've got Spring Fever! I'm ready to order my chicks and am trying to decide on a design for a chicken coop. Time will tell if it's going to be a reality this year.

Til next time,

Happy Trails....

What a Week in Texas

As I sit here trying to gather my thoughts about how to describe this week's weather, I recognize God's awe and glory in creation but also know that God has a sense of humor. My goodness, look at the animals he created - the elephant and the giraffe! But I wonder if God uses Texas to play with for His amusement. I wonder if He sits in His majesty thinking "I'll send Texas some wind and rain... I'll throw in some snow this morning...I'll give this part of Texas a dash of snow and this part a heaping pile of snow... okay, that's enough, I'll send back the blues skies and sunshine." I know God in all His glory has reason for this strange weather and one day, when I get to Heaven, I'm going to ask him about it. I have an ongoing list of questions to ask and people to meet when I get to Heaven.

Despite the changing weather, the barn man completed his part of the barn. Now it's time for Buddy and I to build the stalls and finish out the inside. This is so exciting! We can now move equipment out of the weather and get it under cover. The well guys are supposed to be back Monday to set the tank for the well. We've got a 50% chance of rain but I don't think that will prevent them from their work. After that's completed, we contact the electrician to run power to the well. Then we will finally have water!

Once the rain is over and the ground dries up, our work on the orchard continues. We have about 100 trees that need to be cut down and cut up, plus the ongoing chore of picking up limbs. We need to fertilize and put out ant poison. We are actually looking forward to all this. God has blessed us tremendously with this orchard.

Until next time,

Happy Trails....

Some Quiet Girl Time

Yippee! A Barn Raising

So much has happened since my last post. The barn is going up and the water well has been drilled. The heavy rains that came through this morning will now set us back for awhile but we can't help but be so thankful for all the progress that has taken place. Right now we are back to the mud and muck. As a matter of fact, the well guys were out there this evening to set the tank and were asked to leave until it dries out a bit. They were making an awful mess. Not quite sure but I think the barn will have to be put off a few days too. The concrete got poured last Thursday in anticipation of the rain today. It is going to be so nice to get out there.

Since all the workers have been out there, Jess and Bridget have been in the catch pen and they are eager to get out.

While Buddy and I were out there yesterday, I walked them over to Mimi and Alan's to get some good green grass. We had some girl time. Some of you notice that Prissy is not in the picture. We moved her up to Theresa's last weekend for Theresa to use while giving lessons. Prissy seems to be perfectly content there with the extra attention and not having to deal with Bridget being so bossy.

There has been a varmit hole behind the storage container. I kept thinking it was an armadillo. I fenced off the back a couple weeks ago to keep the horses from getting back there and stepping off in that hole and now this critter has dug trenches back there. We've concluded that it's a skunk. Whew! Now, how do you get rid of a skunk?

We've had typical Texas weather - hot and dry one day and cold and wet the next. We're expecting a low tonight of 34. Daylight Savings time change and Spring are right around the corner. I can't wait! The neighbor farmers have been busy getting the ground ready to plant. The big tractors have been running just about every day. We've been enjoying listening to the geese flying overhead as they head back north. It's amazing watching them and their aerial acrobatics catching wind gusts. Soon, God in all His wondrous majestry, will have the trees budding and flowers blooming.

Happy trails...