The Deer

Just reread my last post, you can tell the pain meds were working...
Typing with one hand is tough, but here are a few pictures from the deer feeder.

This is our granddaddy.  Think these three pictures are of the same daddy deer.

Filling the feeder.  I am not much help with only one paw.

The cows heard the rattling bags and came running up for expected goodies.

After filling, we needed to hoist the feeder up quickly or the cows would have been all over it. Behind the one you see, are 20 more stampeding toward us!

Our simple Christmas decoration.  The cows have done some nibbling and pulling on it but it survives to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

The Time Between

We had a great Thanksgiving. The Grandkids left us with their colds and lots of fun memories!  Prior to the holiday, I had thumb surgery which really knocked me down several pegs, and we had a real gully washer of a rainstorm.

So even tho I was laid up from surgery, I was able to enjoy the tank from the back porch.   I suspect that we got 4-5 inches of rain.
Looks like various family members will be back for Christmas  Hopefully I'll have some use of my other hand by then and will feel up to taking pictures and typing.  Until then, Happy Shopping!

The Grandchildren

For the last couple months we have not had the grandchildren by as we have been digging out from under boxes and trash.  Finally we have places for them to sleep, eat, kid cups, books, DVDs, etc.  We met the Cypress group in Brenham for a quick exchange with their other grandparents and brought them back to the farm for a long weekend.  They had not been to visit since before the house was finished and they asked a lot of questions about whether we had food, a frig., doors, etc.  Needless to say, they were relived to find a home with all the things "they" needed including Goldfish!
We told them that there were lots of farm chores to do including moving the Norfolk Pine tree up to the house.  Here we have a "tree holder attachment" as part of the wheelbarrow.  The "attachment" informed us it "was very prickly!"

Other farm activities included taking the dogs for a walk.  One walker had to be rescued halfway through the walk as her legs pooped out.
Probably the highlight of the weekend was having all four of the grandchildren at the house playing together.  Yes, they were playing together!  "Cousin let's play!" could be heard loudly and often with lots of giggling and some good old horsing around.  A grandmommy goal was satisfied!

Beautiful!

For the last week I have enjoyed a lovely sunset each evening from the porch.  They may last only 2-4 minutes but they have been wonderful!

The Hunt

Had a couple people ask me about how "the hunt" was going.  Well, it is with some sadness that I have to report that I caught one mouse, by the tail, in a rat trap.  It was totally horrible and I will not pass on the details as I am still suffering from PTSD.  I still had mice... So put out the smaller mouse traps, two of them.  Every morning I checked, and every morning they were sprung and empty!

 Whoever this little guy or guys were, they were smart and quick!  Numerous "experts" swore by the glue traps:

So I laid a couple of these out near the hole.  I woke up in the middle of the first night and realized that the mouse would be stuck and not dead and I would once again have to look the little guy in the eye in his misery!  Thankfully when I checked in the morning, I didn't catch anyone.  So I packed up my traps and have called it quits for now.

AH... This Is The Life!

No Aggie is not preparing for a bath.  This is one of her napping hang-outs.  It is like being back in the safety of the kitty-cat womb, I think.   

Of course there is always the old Auntie who volunteers to babysit the kids while the moms go off to party with the bull for the afternoon.  Very sweet picture!

I just love sitting out on our back patio when....THE KABUTA SWINGS BY TO DO A LITTLE PLOWING!!!  Life in the country can include some really close encounters!  I feel kind of guilty that I am sitting around enjoying life!

Just glad I didn't have a sandwich with me or I'd be eating dirt!

Buffalo Grass 609

Our three pallets of grass were delivered Friday around noon.  The delivery fellow was none too happy because he could not drive his semi up the drive.  He had to off-load at the highway and drive his forklift up the road three times with a pallet of grass.  I felt lucky that he didn't just drop the grass off at the front gate!

 Approximately 15 hours later we finished laying it out!  Buffalo grass is not held together by runners so it crumbles as it dries out.  What a nightmare!  Add a late October heat spell of 90 degree plus temperatures and a colony of fire ants residing in one of the pallets and it was @#$$ @$# &%$#!!!!!!

But the finished product in the doggie containment area is quite lovely, AND we have avoided the next mud-puppy rain fiasco!  Besides, look, the doggies love it!

The fire ant bits are worth it, if the doggies are contented and happy, right?  Well, maybe not.

Continued Sleeping Arrangement Changes And Surprises

We continue to settle in.  For the animals, sleeping is an important part of their day.  Here are a few shots:

 Here is Jinxie enjoying Peg's new Lazy Girl chair.  She spends several hours every evening listening to TV and relaxing.

 Aggie hangs out in a cat basket.  It is unusual to find her here during the warm months, but sometimes she likes to crawl in for some wrap-around comfort.

 No one will ever find Aggie here!  If she can't see you, you can't see her!
Beulah continues to challenge the the limits of the sleeping arrangements.  I have found her on every piece of furniture in the house.  She is getting wise enough to jump off when she hears me coming!

Perhaps the most challenging issue I have been dealing with is the dogs running off.  Here Beulah is planning her next escape.  On her last adventure, she disappeared for about an hour and returned with a hind quarter of a large deer.  Not acceptable!  (You can see she is pretty pleased with herself!)

Another issue:  the sun goes down and every shadow and cricket/insect noise gets barked and howled at.  The barking will go on and on.  I have gotten up in the middle of the night to find one or both dogs sitting in the doggie confinement area just barking for the sake of barking.  I am not pleased to say the least!  Other nights, both dogs will sleep all night and not make a sound.  Who knows what motivates their behavior!  Now I am not totally out of it.  When the pack of coyotes comes running through the pasture howling and yapping, that's a good barking/howling opportunity.  If I was a dog, I would bark too!

Changes

As the pets and I settle into life in the country, we are adjusting to sleeping arrangements.  I have to admit that I am sleeping better accept when the wild creatures frolic around the house and the dogs feel the need to howl and bark to get them to leave.  A doggie door is not a plus during these nightly noise-a-thons.  Some of the sleeping choices have not been great:

Here Beulah is snoozing on the dining room table.  She never was known to have done this before.  I have no idea how she got up and I had a real tough time getting her down.  Needless to say, this is not an acceptable choice of sleeping spots!
Here is a better spot:

This bed is hers and is probably the most expensive bed per square inch of any bed in the house.  She needs to use it!
Rooster is so good.  He doesn't like that he can't get on the furniture, but he's willing to go along in order to get along.

Take my word for it, there is a cat in that lump.  With cats you are lucky if you can get them to do anything you want them to do.  We have put all the protection on the dining room table because we can't keep them off it!  I have no idea where the other cat is.  It shows up only when it wants food or some affection from its peeps.  If you are thinking about getting a cat, think again.
Think they can be good mousers?  Think again.

This hole appeared in one of our garage boxes the day we moved in.  The cats are scared to death to go out into the garage and can't get back into the house fast enough if they find themselves out there.

Left by the Pest Company

Soon to be activated by me!

So as you can see, some interesting adjustments being made as we settle in.

Buffalo Grass

We were suppose to have some buffalo grass sod delivered last week so the doggie containment area would be mud free.  Unfortunately the rains came before it could be delivered.  Living with two big dogs with giant feet and mud is a nightmare in every respect.  We are hopeful to get delivery by the end of this week so we can avoid a repeat of "Mud-Puppies With Feet."
The unpacking continues.  The good news is we are beginning to see most of the walls now.  Also, as segmented as this move was in terms of being in bits and pieces, only one framed picture (glass) was broken.  That is a testament to our packing and moving skills!  FYI we have retired and are not available.
Talked to the man who did our Final Inspection yesterday.  He had also done a couple of our other inspections for the bank.  He could not have been more complimentary of the quality and attention to detail of our house.  He said most of the homes built in the country do not meet even the minimum code requirements.  He said Ryan had done an excellent job picking subs and overseeing their work. Yep, we picked an excellent builder!
No pictures today.  Will try to take some by next time.

The Road Was Long, But Now We Are At The Beginning Of The Beginning!

Saturday we loaded the U-Haul and drove down to the house!  It was harrowing at times on the road, but we made it.  We had lots of help loading and unloading so that was a positive.  We headed to the storage unit Sunday morning to empty it.  Unfortunately the local rats had been partying in it for several months.  There were even a couple of rat homicides, which appeared to be unsolved as the bodies were not discovered until we emptied the contents.  Yuck, yuck, yuck!!!!  We have the nastiest boxes, etc. in the garage until we can get up the courage to mess with them.
On a positive note, here are a few pictures:

Notice the dish.  That was placed up there by our internet provider (Farm To Market).  It has to be able to receive a signal, not from a satellite, but a tower.  I did every thing I could to try to avoid just such a monstrosity from being installed and there it is, the first thing people see when driving up.  Our welcome hand signal!

So happy day, we are here!  Come visit; we'd love to show you the sights!

End Of The Road? Moving In?

Sorry no pictures today... We are driving the U-Haul down Saturday, October 4th.  That will mark the beginning of moving in.  I say the beginning because of all the stuff located in the storage unit in Taylor which needs to be transported to the house.
The reason for no pictures is, there were really no changes to report.  Ryan is all over everything but things are still not done.  A few rather significant electrical issues remain, the grading, the drive, the masonry in spots, cleaning, etc.  Peg and I want out of this apartment with all of its issues so will sit in the truck in the drive until the house is ready rather than stay here.

NOTICE!!!!!!!!!!!!
This may be the last posting here for a while as internet service in the country is harder to come by than anticipated.  We had not thought this would be an issue as we are well into the 21st Century, but it is.  So calls and texts will be the only forms of communication beginning October 2 or 3.

What Did I Say About That Road?

It was discouraging to be at the house today.  Although a lot was done from last week, lots of things remain to be be completed.  I will admit that nearly four inches of rain fell due to a hurricane petering out in western Mexico, but that only affected the outside.  On a positive note, we have indoor plumbing.  The Port-O-Potty situation has become a worse and worse alternative to "nature" recently. There really are lots of other things that have been done, it is just that we are so close now, we want it to be finished.  We know we can't force the construction guys to show up but...

A few pictures:

 Looking into the kitchen

 Kitchen sink

 Bath (note mirror installed)

 Upstairs bath

 Peg's bedroom

 Family

 Side of house (note propane tank)

 Hot water on demand

 Side of house

Frontish side of house

After a rain we always have good luck locating nails, sharp pieces of metal from the roof install, screws, etc.  So we spent a bunch of time picking up those items.  Hiding in a mound of dirt, we spotted this little guy.  He was poised and ready to ambush any bug that happened by for a quick snack.  He will be looking for a new hideout when the yard is finally graded, but hopefully he'll stay close so we can watch him in the future.