Friday

Well, Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!

I finally got to see the endocrinologist yesterday. Last week I had gone to my PA, who took three days to return my call regarding a resting pulse of 134. She told me there was no medication for my condition and apparently did not follow up on my request to coordinate treatment with my specialist. I was told to go to my PA with the request by the endo receptionist after I frantically tried to get in to the specialist.

Well, the endo put me on two meds! Propananol for the racing heart and screwy BP, and a drug to calm the thyroid. That is not a permanent fix. Most likely I will end up having radioactive iodine to knock the thyroid down and then take a thyroid supplement, thyroxine.

If they did the iodine now it could spike my levels with a flush of thyroxine from the dying thyroid.

At any rate, I already, just since last night, feel loads better! A bit lightheaded and some stomach cramping before lunch, but so far so good.

It was a 2 hour drive each way to the specialist, and he was really nice and said we will do labs locally so I don't have to go that far every time.

I cannot believe how frustrating it was to get treatment! I complained to the nurse and Doc and said, "well, at least I didn't drop dead before the appointment, or then I would have been really mad" LOL, I don't know if they got the joke.

The doc said my thyroid levels (two months ago) were "through the roof" oh, that's nice. I had some more blood drawn yesterday for a benchmark. The thyroid med can cause white blood cells to go nuts, so if I get sick they can draw blood and compare the WBC. Hopefully that doesn't happen, because I really want this to work!

Nice to go into the New Year feeling good! Hope everyone has a happy and healthy 2011!

Monday

LOL I almost put Wednesday for the title.

My thyroid is eating my brain.

Ok, no one wants to accept that as an excuse. I keep trying...lol

well, we had what my neighbor called a monsoon for the last 24 hours. Wheelbarrows full of rain,stuff blown all over, driveway and local dirt roads nearly impassable. Green grass on the lawn-I guess you can have below zero and still have green. but we are well above that today!

The geese were sooo happy to have full goose tubs of water and lots of puddles to splash in! And it was a treat to see the poultry nipping away at what little green they could find on the lawn.

The snowman we made yesterday is just a snowball.

The goats on the other hand, are another story. Mist the last two days at grain time, and the ones that need to be secured first refused to come out of hiding. If a goat lower on the goat hierarchy is tied first, the more aggressive ones delight in beating the snot out of the tied goat when your back is turned. So I don't turn my back, tie the ones that come, shake grain and try and grab the ones that come out of hiding before mayhem breaks out...lol

and then I hayed under the pines for shelter-you'd think three huge pines would fit ten goats, but no, my lovely little wimpy badger came back twice while I was cleaning the rain swept soaked houses, and finally I gave in a gave him some hay...and then his buddy came back and claimed it, so I put out more and then other goats came back and took that...poor sot, he's going to have to learn to kick their butts!

Goats and Snow

This is Moonshadow,aka Moo, Moonie a disbudded 5 year old Nigerian/Pygmy cross wether.



This is Obi-Wan, my 4 year old Angora cross wether.



In the next photo:In the front left is Daphne, aka "Fat Daphne", Daffy, age unknown; To her right,er son, Oberhasli brown wether Derek, one of Daphne's twins(Daphne had twins, his sister not pictured, but easy to see why I had to pull the first during birth. First born was his sister, and she was bigger than Derek!) In the background is Piper, one year old cashmere wether.


Piper, Obi, and Moonie had their hooves done today. I have not been keeping up with hooves;I noticed Moo had a bulge on one of his front clews, and it turned out to be a nasty case of hoof rot. The wall was separated from the sole quite aways up. I trimmed it way up and doused it with Hoof and heel. I'll have to keep after it. The snow should help keep it clean. Piper has good feet, they were just long. Obi had some rot in his curly tippy toes, and needed a big trim.

Happy Thanksgiving

I am thankful for my beautiful children, snug warm house, animals, car, and more food than we can possibly eat! Thanks, God!

Monday

I finally heard from the Endocrinologist Thursday afternoon. They set me up with an appointment Dec 30th!!! I freaked out! No one had even looked at any of the tests I have had. The woman was frankly, an idiot. She finally put me on the cancellation list.

I looked up top thyroid Doctors in Maine to see what they had to say about this doctor. He had been removed from the list. The site doesn't give a reason, but says it was either from too many /really bad comments or a nasty email from the doctors asking to be removed.

Just from my experience with the appointment lady, I could understand why. Still, I felt pretty alarmed.

At the top of the list were Homeopaths and alternative medicine practitioners. I did a little online research and found a list of natural supplements that are supposed to help hyperactive thyroid.

So, I have picked up some oil of Evening Primrose caps, also used to treat pms symptoms, and some vitamin C. Broccoli is said to help slow the thyroid down, so I have been eating that. I have yet to try the cabbage poultice or acquired PABA.

I think the primrose has helped the shakes and irritability. I just started my monthly cycle without have a meltdown the day before. I feel a bit depressed today and have had zero motivation for even the basic chores.

We did get to see the latest Harry Potter last night. 2 and 1/2 hours worth! I found it to be a pretty good rendition of the book so far. Luckily I read the book a little bit ago so most of the details are fuzzy.

But when Voldemort takes Lucius Malfoy's wand, and Voldemort is checking out the wand, and says, "Elm, and the core is....?"

and I burst out in the half full theater, "Dragon Heartstring!" before Lucius could reply, I felt quite the geek! LOL

Student of the Month

Another award! So proud of my big boy!


A few days ago I looked out front and thought, "What the heck is that coming through the woods, dinosaurs?!?"

The dinosaurs were really a flock of wild turkeys. My chickens and geese didn't think too much of that and quickly headed out back.



Still waiting to see an endo. The Firebird qualifies for braces-I just found out it's a 9 month wait! I hope the endo isn't that backed up!

Sunny Sunday

We are having a beautiful stretch of weather! Our Indian summer has arrived. Yesterday it was 62 in the shade.

I did manage to lie still for my thyroid test. I didn't even have to sign in, they sent me directly into the room. I first sat to have my background radiation checked for a baseline, so they knew how much to subtract of the different radioactive iodine I took the day before.

This was done by placing a small bar-shaped sensor on my leg above my knee. My leg trembled a bit. The reading came back lower than the background radiation. The radioactive iodine is meant to be absorbed by the thyroid, so it was good news it wasn't floating around in my leg, lol.

Then I had to lie down on a very narrow curved -well, it wasn't a cot, since I was slid back under the -camera? The first image was difficult, because part of the equipment had to barely touch my chin so it was focused over the thyroid. To lie completely still with a huge camera over your face with the cone over your throat and part of it on your chin was challenging. I kept my eyes closed. I did open them once and quickly closed them, lol.

I swallowed twice. That was hard, having the feeling I had to swallow and fight it and then it becomes a vicious loop- you HAVE to swallow, lol. The tech shrugged and said, "what are you going to do?"

I did get to move briefly after each image was complete ( I made sure to swallow then) I didn't swallow for the next two from each side. I did say, "Thank God!" when the second one was finished!

The tech was very nice. When he first slid me back, I said, "They said there wouldn't be any side effects, but I've had the song, "Radioactive" on my mind all morning."

He was very excited and said they had a program called Pandora and set about to find the song for me. Only trouble was, but the time he had the list of artists (I thought it was Peter Gabriel) booted up, the scan was going, so as he went through the list of artists I could just lie still and flap my thumbs at him in response, lol.

I was very glad to have music, although the tech was a bit fussy and kept turning down good songs or skipping to the next song just when I was getting into it. All I could think of was I hoped his wife kept him away from the TV remote, lol.

Still waiting to see and endo. Looks like Grave's disease.

Tons on the to do list, hope I can focus some of this manic energy!

Wednesday the 10th

I took my radioactive pills this afternoon. I was repeatedly assured that it was harmless, that I wouldn't be shedding radiation or have to take any precautions. But the pill was in a pill bottle in a lead box in a lead lined alcove and I was directed not to touch the pills. She look a little alarmed as I held the pill cup and drank water, but I got them both down without incident.

Those folks at imaging really rock and make my doctor look sooo bad! Both times I went directly to sign in (they had three intake open), and before I signed the paper and got my band there was someone waiting to take me to nuclear or sonogram. There I had a chance to sit and pick up the paper before I was called. yeah, I like that kind of efficiency!

The worse news is that when I go back in 24 hours I have to sit still for ten minutes -three times(!) for images. I can't even beat the birthday cake frosting ten minutes-I go five and say, "good enough". How am I going to sit still for 10 minutes even once?

I am so speedy I pace and bounce my leg a lot. I was relieved when the woman who gave me the pills told me that after her daughter was born her thyroid went hyper. She lost 40 pounds in a week and couldn't make a complete sentence. So I guess I can't bemoan 15 pounds and not being able to comprehend a sentence. LOL.

uummm Tuesday?

The time change was sucked up into this house like no tomorrow. I am still calling to rouse the house at 7am. My days are all backwards! I went into a time warp the last couple of days.

I ran into a friend I hadn't seen in thirty years on Facebook. This is such a small state, I saw a comment from a co-worker on his page. She had friended him because his cousin, who also happens to be my neighbor (!), thought she might want to know an Alaskan commercial fisherman, since she is a fan of the show, "The Most Dangerous Catch". He is a native Mainer.

I have never seen the show.

But I did know the Captain and his family from years ago, and it so happened the fisheries in AK are in the off season. I was lucky to catch him on the last days of his two week vacation.

I had a terrific visit with him. Poor guy, I peppered him with questions about what kind of catch and how do you catch it, since I really know very little about commercial fishing.

I think you've done pretty well for yourself, Captain!

I was in a time zone today, and received a call verifying an appointment for tomorrow that I thought was the 11th! I have to take a radioactive iodine pill and go back the next day for more imaging. The previous sonogram revealed a couple nodules so they want to check it out in more detail.

Still waiting to see an endocrinologist

***

I discovered Derek, one of my wethers, with a 6 foot stretch of four foot high welded 2X4 wire stuck in his horns this afternoon. I desperately tried to stretch it off him-wishing that the strong Captain was still around! I had to run for the fence tool.

Dumb goats! (maybe he'll stop bashing the fence now?)
***

The Firebird just found out he made the varsity basketball team! Stay tuned for pix! :D

Wednesday

Don't I have original titles? LOL

We went to the sports awards ceremony tonight. Cross country and Girl's soccer went first. Both coaches said a little bit about each team member before awarding their certificates. Then each coach selected three players on their team for trophies. The girl's soccer coach awarded the principal the championship trophy.

It was a nice opportunity to hear about the other athletes.

Then it was our turn. Our coach is such a softie he welled up, crumpled up his speech, and, behind his box of tissues, quickly called each of the team for their certificate. He then turned to the trophies, and called Phoenix first! We were very happy!

I did get some of my test results back. Definitely serious thyroid issues. My TSH was <.01. The good news is that my sugar, electrolytes, kidney and liver were all normal. I am worried about my heart though, my resting pulse is 100 and blood pressure 128/48.

I am being referred to an endocrinologist. I can't wait to feel better!

November

The sun is really coming up late! I am actually looking forward to the time change so 7am is not the crack of dawn! None of us are wanting to give up our warm beds at that cold, dark hour!

I had my thyroid ultrasound Friday. Although I have had sonograms in the past, I felt fairly uncomfortable during this one. There is not really anyway to describe having your large, tender thyroid thoroughly manipulated by the sonogram mic (?). I swear at one point I could feel those sonos going right through my head to my brain when she had it angled up at the base of my thyroid.

I had to admit it was not quite as bad as an abdominal sonogram on a full bladder.

Lots of clicking-I knew from previous experience she was measuring. The monitor was over my right shoulder behind my head. I had my eyes rolled up sideways trying to see. I could see the screen but had no idea what the images meant. I could see light and dark places but having trouble telling what she was measuring. "Are nodules light or dark spaces?" I asked.

"They can be either," she answered.

Oh that's great, I'm thinking. I asked her if I should go out and buy my favorite food for supper. She laughed and said, "Don't write yourself off yet."

I bought my favorite food anyhow.

When your immortality gets shaken you start to wonder how many more times you will be able to enjoy things.

So, we had a great time trick or treating! Willow and my hands froze, so we quit earlier than we might have otherwise. At noon yesterday it was 36 with a stiff breeze. It was the coldest trick or treat we could remember!

Happy November!

Was a good fight

but we lost our semi-final game. Our opponents were undefeated and playing on their home turf. The frost had kicked back the thick turf, but last night's downpour left the field a marsh. Everyone on our team had mud on them, some worse than others.

I'm looking forward to basketball season. :D

Monday

Water's back in the well, yay, and more rain coming.

We've had our hard frost, so all the tender annuals are gone. The foliage is still blazing. The Beech and Red Oak have come on strong with the cold- bright orange and red and gold.

I have been having some nagging health issues; racing pulse, short of breath, weight (and strength) loss, trembling. I bottomed out at 112 pounds, and eventually called in for a checkup. They took me in that afternoon.

After telling me that my size was the envy of all in the clinic and quickly changing it to I looked like a concentration camp victim, (shows where today's fashion leads us)
and noting that I am off the bottom of the BMI chart, hyperactive thyroid was diagnosed as the likely culprit. Basically the result is that your metabolism speeds up.

I go for loads of bloodwork tomorrow and a yet to be scheduled thyroid ultrasound in the near future.

Please say a prayer for me, I could use a little strength right now!

Another playoff soccer game tomorrow. We play an, as yet, undefeated team on their home field. Our star forward is out on academic suspension. The coach told the Firebird at practice today he is going to play him as forward and told him to shoot as much as he can.

I took my goats out for a walk on the property today for a little back to nature. The didn't act too ravished-obviously they've been topping off with all the falling leaves. We had a great walk down to the stream. I enjoyed watching their reaction when they saw the water moving.

Cricket has turned out to be the leader, and Badger the lagger. We went up and around the electric fence. I could tell they were happy to get to some of that stuff on the other side! I found a couple beautiful pieces of quartz. One of them was pretty big. I could barely lift it, but I insisted on carrying it to the fenceline.

Then I had one of those nasty short of breath spells where I felt like I was hyperventilating and tried to meditate to calm myself. The same thing happened loading at Home Depot a couple weeks ago and both times I thought "Ok, I going to black out and they are going to find me here."

*draws a little image of a toppled tree*

Thursday

I had an enlightening moment at the farm this morning.

There are two does visiting from New york for breeding. The three are down by the road in a horse corral. When I arrived, there was a nun in full habit. She was from New York, and had brought the does. We had a nice conversation, then I went about my usual routine.

Later, at break time, I had some grain left from the hill, and since the pen was by our break spot, I stuck my hand into the fence with some grain to make friends with the new does.

I had personally installed two strands of three inch electric horse tape over the 3 foot woven sire fencing to prevent the horses from leaning over the fence and destroying it.

Today I was wearing a pair of jeans that had the knee ripped out, and the bare knee was touching the wire fence, and then my chin touched the electric line. I was hit with 10,000 volts from my chin grounding out my knee, and was thrown several feet flat on my back, with a shouted swear. I laid there for several moments wondering if my heart was going to start beating again.

P and R came off the hill and thought the buck was out because they thought I shouted "buck!" ok, you get the idea. I took such a hit, there are three small burn marks on my knee and a good sized swelling along with some bruising.

The Firebirds soccer team made the playoffs and won their game today 4-1 in the rain.

I finally remembered to pull out my cam, but I had the speed settings off so anything moving fast is a little blurry. I sure don't see a future in sports photography! LOL

We are in all blue, the Firebird deetermined to keep the ball on the opposing team's side.


Here he gets some help from our ace forward.



On the way back from a goal! But why are their heads down?



Oh, they're a little winded!

Go Team!

The soccer season is winding down. Our team needed a win away last night to continue to the playoffs. There was no stopping them!

The score was 2-0 in our favor at the half. I wasn't too confident of a win because the last game we were 3-0 at the half and lost. But the team was on fire last night!

3-0, then another quick goal, 4-0, then 5-0! Just a few seconds left in the game, the home team kicked the ball towards our goal, and the Firebird on defense charged up to the ball and power kicked it. From the 18 yard line. Going, going....is it going OVER the goal? Then it dropped and *swish*! In the goal net from 82 yards!

It was an incredible kick! I was jumping up and down screaming. Tears came to my eyes! The whistle blew, our goalie came dashing out of our goal and jumped on Firebird, legs around his waist, thumping him on the back. The rest of the team mobbed him. The coach said it was astonishing. Team mates and parents came up to congratulate him on the way to the car.

Um, I'm not bursting with pride, or anything...lol

The Firebird modestly said the wind took it.

We won 6-0.

A make-up away game tonight, then the playoffs. Woot!

Sunday

A beautiful day! But I am done in, and hope to get up the energy to do some stuff today!

I had a terrible stomach ache last night and went to bed as soon as I served the saplings supper. And slept for 14 hours. I feel weak and shaky!

We worked in the drizzle again yesterday. I wasn't as soaked as I was on Friday. My pant legs were, though. I lost 13 bucks briefly in the woods. We had walked down a dirt road and they went in the woods and were browsing. Next thing I know, Willow says,"the bucks are gone"

I took off through the woods and told the saplings to stay on the road. I went up a mountain* and no sign of them. Finally I found 4 out of thirteen. It was wet and windy so it was hard to tell where the others were. Finally I spotted a couple. Goats stay on the move when they are browsing, so I was crawling under blowdowns and wading through newly filled vernal pools.

I broke through the woods and found myself directly across from Prescott. Those brats! They are not allowed on that side of the road, so they went down the road and in and cut back to their favorite illegal spot.

We got most of them going back, and I started tying them after I closed the gate. Willow pointed out I locked Nibbeola out, so she let him in. Then I realized we were missing Hippolytus. I sent the Willow and the Firebird back down the road where we last saw him. I collared and grained the other twelve, and still no Hippo.

I joined the kids and we walked way down the road shouting, "Hippo, Hippolytus!!" The Firebird went up in the woods calling. Finally I said, let's go back and release everyone else and wait to see if he comes back.

I walked all the way back to Prescott, and there was HIppo up the road. Somehow he got by us and was UP the road, not down. I shook the grain and he came running. Phew. Boss probably wouldn't have batted an eye, but I was a little stressed out thinking I lost 13 bucks.

I think I'll take it easy today.

*not a real mountain, a bit of a rise.

Friday

I finally got my cam going this week. I took a ride to Augusta for 10 bags of Quickcrete and tooks so many pictures I filled my memory card.

Today we finally had some rain. I mean several inches. R and I worked at the farm this a.m.. We were soaked through and through! I was wringing water out of my shirt sleeve and that was under a rubber raincoat- and it was high 40's so we were freezing! The winds gusts were up near 50mph-quite a wild morning!

Calm and mist now. My own goats are out so it can't be too wet! Goats like the wet even less than cats!

Another Sunday

Weeks are flying by!

Yesterday I took care of 71 goats, four dogs, 9 cats, 10 Geese, 15 chickens, a pig, two horses and a rabbit. I hung up three loads of wet wash.

We had scattered frost last night.

I cut about four inches off Willow's hair and trimmed her bangs.

Broke up with my boyfriend.

What's important in a relationship? Sharing of moral values, support, kindness, encouragement, passion; emotional, physical and spiritual.

"The plainest man that can convince a woman that he is really in love with her, has done more to make her in love with him than the handsomest man, if he can produce no such conviction. For the love a woman is a shoot, not a seed, and flourishes most vigorously only when ingrafted on that love which is rooted in the breast of another-"
Colton

Sunday

Lazy lazy Sunday! I'm house sitting for K, so I did manage to be slightly productive when I tucked the five does and two German Shepherds in for the night. The K family is at Fryeburg Fair this week.

Bosses were away this weekend as well; a show in Vermont. Mr Boss took two weanling does in the back of the Subaru; Boss took four bucks in the truck. Three wild ones and a rubbing pissy pest! lmao. (Chris, though I love him, once urinated on a handler at a show. Willow loves to tell that story! You also can't get a collar on Chris without him vigorously rubbing whatever part of you he can reach with his stinky face.) Saturday buck chores were a lot easier with only eleven and the trouble makers out of state. I do favor the yearling Bo out of Bonnie and Zeus. His bright blue eyes and white accents are so charming. He was reticent to go in the truck-I leaned forward and said, "don't worry Bo, you're going to a show, you'll have fun," while he looked at me with those bright blues, lol.

***

Three soccer games this week. Our last game was away and we kicked some serious soccer butt. We won 5-1. The first time we played the team, we lost 3-1, and our one was almost a mercy goal twenty feet from the goal on a hard foul free kick. (ok, obviously don't know proper soccer lingo...lol)

The Firebird was talking about the last game:

"Once I reached out and flicked the ball away as he(the opposing team player) was going to kick it and he kicked my foot instead and went over backwards."

"Another time I put my foot on the ball and stopped the ball and the kid flew right over it."

**

"They started to get afraid of me after that."

The team was on fire! They needed a good win! Yeah!

***
Well's STILL dry. The ground water table is very low! Don't let all those weather reports of torrential rains on the east coast fool you...we had a lot of wind, enough to knock out the power briefly early Friday morning and leaving me stranded on the downstairs couch in the uttermost blackness you can imagine...fumbling my way to bathroom and bedroom absolutely blind, hands out ready to crack a shin or step on a cat...but only a bit of rain late Friday-not nearly enough! Maybe rain tomorrow!

Color is high, although the wind took care of a lot of the early maple and ash.Beech is turning, looks like early color this year. Frost warnings up tonight.

Praying Mantis

R and I were walking the bucks at Prescott and saw three praying mantis hanging upside down on the old clapboards. I thought the bucks might have scared them up to safety, and then R saw this one catch a spider. So perhaps it was just good hunting!

The farm took in 6 bucklings from another farm. They are all sons of our beloved Zeus,who was killed (now the word is perhaps by a BEAR) protecting the herd of does he was breeding. Three of the weanling bucklings are from the same doe! One is a black and white badger with short guard hair. The other two are brown badgers with lighter enormous droopy ears! What a cute trio!

Then there are two white boys with wattles and blue eyes! And the last is a dark brown that looks the most like his sire. Counting recuperating Homer, there are 17 bucks on the hill. 15 mature ones at Prescott. That's a lot of buck!

I am looking for a replacement vehicle. The bank has agreed to loan me some used car money...for 10% interest! I think that's pretty steep for a bank loan considering how low interest rates are supposed to be! But I'll take it and be glad of it!

Haven't had a frost yet, but the tomato plants have expired. Waiting for our pumpkins to turn orange. Praying for a foot of rain. Enjoying being a soccer Mom!

The Firebird saved the goalie at tonight's game. The goalie came out to grab the ball, and it got away from him. The goal was wide open and one of the opposing team was almost in with the ball. The Firebird dashed in, stole the ball, and got it out of there! The goalie was so happy he hugged The Firebird and said, "Thanks, I love you!"

Willow and I were on the bleachers tonight with some other home team parents, and the Firebird came right up to our sidelines trying to steal the ball. He is so tall he was running behind the kid with the ball and reaching his feet around to get the ball. We had a big chuckle out of that!

Our big football type defense player, D, was on the sidelines when we got to yesterday's game, holding an icepack to his face. I later learned that he had collided with a kid from the other team and chipped his tooth into the kid's head. OUCH! I am glad we missed that! D was back in the game today, but he looked a little off and kept taking his mouthguard out.

They don't have another game until Wednesday, so D ought to be healed by then. Yeah, I'm hooked, soccer is a blast!

Missing Post

I posted yesterday and it's gone. Mercury retrograde!

I am officially a soccer Mom. The Firebird had his first game Friday. They lost 1-3. Our team has a lot of potential! I had a great time watching the game! At his age the kids are really starting to show some serious talent! Go team!!!

I finally cleaned the chimney and touched up the roof yesterday. The nights here are down in the forties. I went from having every window in my room wide open 24/7 to BRRR!

Lots to do today but nothing carved in stone. I love those days!

Willow Tree

Courtesy of
Maria Jose Lopez Mendelez 2010

Sunday

I sit here and watch the rising sun chase the waning moon, wondering what the day will bring.

Happy September

Septembers arrival usually means the end of summer here. School has started and all the folks from away with school age kids have gone away.

But the weather is saying summer isn't over yet. Yesterday Bangor had a high of 97. Today looks to be more of the same. I still need to finish some work on the roof, but if I'm getting up there today it better be pretty quick. The sun is already beating down with a vengeance.

Hurricane Earl might give us some rain the end of the week. I am dreading working Sat morning at the farm in rain and high wind. Nothing like the smell of 15 mature wet bucks!

My saplings are back to school. The Firebird is at a larger school, and is trying out for soccer. There was only one other kid in his grade at his last school! A big change but he's loving it.

still august?

Well went dry Tuesday. Hauling water. Rained some yesterday, but it takes a lot of rain and awhile so we'll see how long I'm camping, lol.

I'm working this weekend with my friend K at one of her family's falafel/gyro mobile stands. Hubby and two middle boys are working the Bangor folk festival. Oldest son, wonderful D; K, and I are working a minor venue locally.

D and I are working the cook part, he rolling out the middle eastern flatbread dough and throwing it on the stove for me to bake and flip and then scorch and poof over the open wood fire. Good, I don't need to worry about that hair on the back of my fingers anymore. :D

We are also covering the fryers; falafel and sweet potato fries. and the gyro cookers, with a lamb beef mix on one, and chicken breasts marinated in Italian dressing in the other.

We are also manning last minute prep for the topping station...lettuce, tomato, hummus, cucumber, onion, pickled veggies, pickles, feta or black olives? Shit, the Tahini's empty...or was that Taziki? LOL.

There were a passle of folks running about with wonderful, gut wrenching, OMG I want it, cameras!! You name it, top of the line... I knew Rockport photography must be running an assignment-it's a wonderful photography school.

I caught a couple of the students trying to sneak shots of me running the bread on the woodstove, but it wasn't until the end of the night following a brief rainshower, when I was winding down and sitting on the wheel of the trailer that holds the prep station and walk-in cooler, with Willow in a comfortable embrace, that one photographer candidly took shot after shot. Willow and I, Top Model wannabees that we are,*snickers* obliged.

She stepped closer and closer, finally showing us the last shot, awesome! She said the light was great where we were, and I looked over and agreed. We exchanged email addresses, and she said she would send me some pix. She is in a class at the school, and from Spain! Cool.

Earlier I had a double take when I saw a scruffy looking fellow with a nice cam. I told D it looked like Viggo Mortensen incognito. He looked at me sideways and chuckled. Uh-oh busted! LOL I quickly started talking about bumping into another celebrity to cover THAT infatuation...hehe

So, I am sitting here covered in gritty flour from the dough, and full of woodsmoke from the stove. And wishing I had some pics, but I didn't dare pull out my camera due to peer pressure, lol! I did see a Japanese looking fellow with a top of the line Sony...still, that Canon looked pretty good compared to my ancient Sony!

Hmmm I like the idea of using my earnings this weekend for upgrading my cam-but practical matters should come first. *wrinkles nose*

Running behind

We went to the beach couple of days ago. There wasn't any surf to speak of, so the kids each dug a big hole til they hit water. Then the tide came in and in a few surges the holes were gone. There's a lot of energy in tides!

The fog was almost right up to the waterline, and a couple times I looked up the beach and saw the fog blowing in. The water was freezing!






Worked the farm all week while the bosses were out of state at a funeral. Poor old Balloo, one of the farmdogs, died before they left and we buried him Saturday.

R and young D helped me run some fence to keep the bucks out of the new upper pasture. The neighbors across the street, although they own a couple of Belgian horses, don't like the smell of bucks. Running that upper pasture may have been for naught. The bucks love the new big south pasture, and I just learned that the owner of the property wants it extended even more down through the woods!

A couple of goat injuries this week. My little brown Derek is favoring a front leg. The hoof seems fine, so I think he twisted the knee. Champion Homer at the farm suffered a major rear injury, unknown, up the length of the inside of his back thigh, and a spot on the top of the back- same hip. Willow and I love Homer and wish him a speedy recovery!

So a tumultuous week, looking forward to a great weekend and wishing the same for everybody!

Miss Rubies

Here is my little sweetie Ruby. She is so loving. Her purr is like nothing you have ever heard: I call it "hittin the high notes".

I finally worked on the roof over the Firebird's room. There was a bald faced hornet nest under the eave, but I was prepared, I bought wasp spray. (I make concessions to the pesticide industry for stinging and biting insects)

The only trouble was, those clever hornets had built their nest right above the electric drop. No way was I standing on the ground spraying a stream of flammable aerosol at my electric hook up. So I crept up and did the roof crouching and eyes going different directions. I still was stung twice.

The first time I didn't see it coming and got stung in a vein in my arm, and got off the roof for a few minutes to make sure I hadn't suddenly become allergic. After, it was Friday the 13th.

The second time I was eyeballing a hornet, while I was standing stock still, and then I thought I would be ok to proceed slowly, and as soon as I moved the hornet dove right at me and stung between my ring and pinky finger on my right hand! It happened in the blink of an eye. Those things are vicious!

Overall I was very pleased I was only stung twice and didn't fall off the roof!

Violated

I had my Fourth Amendment rights violated the other day. Caught not wearing a seatbelt by an overzealous state police. I have never met a bigger bully!!!

You find out who your friends really are in a situation like that. I knew I had been spotted just up the road from the farm, so I had pulled into the farm and got out of the car before he pulled in after me...no lights, etc. And the hassle began immediately.

Mr. Boss made an appearance and stayed with me through the whole ordeal, saying wonderful things like,"is that legal!!? "solidarity!!" and sharing bad cop stories. Boss showed up and Mr. Boss told her she was on film and asked if she wanted to make a rude gesture to the camera? So she retreated.

Afterward, the first person I called blamed me!!! Wow! Put that one on the bottom of my friends list! Actually, that one should head the enemy list, right after Bad Cop.

My longtime friend K, with whom I have erratic contact, was the best! As of course were all my family. Thanks and big hugs to all my supporters!

I am already in contact with a lawyer, because I don't think justice is served by a rabid police officer. And if I ever land behind bars with just one phone call, I certainly know who I WON'T call!

Good News Bad News

what's first? hmm. Bad?

My well's about to run dry.

Mechanic said the frame was going and to get another car.

I have to work this morning.

Good:

The sun is rising and I'm here to see it.

Have a beautiful day!

Berry season

We passed this field of blueberries this morning. This afternoon we made our second blackberry trip down to the rock lot.

The rock lot is on the side of a valley, with tumbled granite and roughed out cliffhanging roads. I went barefoot for better purchase.

Every rock piled up is sharp side up, and most of them are wobbly, having just been uprooted and piled or shoved to the side. I found a loaded blackberry bush, berries as big as the end of your thumb, and started picking. As blackberry bushes are wont to do, I was lured around the side, and then over the back, a ten foot drop. I perched among the sweet fern where the berries were especially juicy.

I sidled along, picking, and worked my way down to a huge flat-topped boulder. I picked almost two gallons before the sun started to set. The Firebird and Willow each picked a fat quart. Ten added another two gallons. We are going to make another attempt at jelly. Our first picking yielded eight jars, but it did not set well. I was tired and impatient and disappointed with the sure jell liquid pectin. Still...delicious!

Willow and I picked a quart of blueberries today. We may stop again tomorrow for a few more. Blueberry jam sounds pretty good. I also have 2-1/2 gallons of wild apples that are heading for jelly or sauce or maybe apple butter...yum

Waiting for the Big One

I promised the kids we would make it to the beach again and we went yesterday. We had a big rain the night before, which I slept through,but it must have been quite the storm since there was actually surf!

Usually at our favorite beach the waves just lap at your ankles during the summer months. Yesterday some of the waves were well over four feet. Willow got swamped a couple of times. I bodysurfed and played with her for about a half hour. The Firebird, now a good swimmer and also six feet tall at almost thirteen, was begging to go to Reid, notorious for its big surf and undertow.

Having had him nearly swept out to sea when he was Willow's age at Reid, I politely declined.

So the two played in the water the whole time. The floating seaweed was pretty thick, having been stirred up by the storm and surf. Willow had seaweed matted into her long hair. Once I stood up from a good bodysurf, and had it tangled in my top and bottom, both of which I lost(fell out of) several times- hopefully not to the laughs of the big crowd on the beach.

String bikinis are not bodysurfing equipment.

After we got home, I found the Firebird's swimming trunk pockets both filled with seaweed.

We had a great day!

Happy August

I've certainly been wondering if I'm bi-polar lately: periods of short sleep and intense activity followed by two days of crashing...

The garden is wild! Here is one bed, typically overplanted.


I have two types of beans, yellow wax and Italian flat; two types of tomatoes, Roma and Big Boy; a row of potatoes, and some pumpkins. The beans are producing like crazy, and we have harvested a couple of summer squash out of another bed. The carrots flopped, and the bright lights chard had erratic germination but are finally taking off. I gave up on the few carrots and turned them under this weekend.

I've lost a lot of weight. Remember when the doc was giving me a hard time at 130? Down to 115! Ugh skinny boyfriends will be the end of me! That passionate affair ended this weekend in a great crash and burn , so maybe I will put on a few pound seeking solace in endless tubs of ice cream and cookies. Mmmm.

Saturday running late

A gloomy drippy humid Saturday morning and I have five minutes left of my comp time.

Tired.Trying to get the new pasture finished at Prescott. Boss decided to have us run along the tree line coming back, which added another two days to the job. I had a fit.
"nope, not doing it!"

Luckily I had Ten and R come in on Thursday. so I took advantage of them and had them clear the line. Imagine an overgrown rock wall with old fenceline and rotten posts and trees and poison ivy. Yup, that was a job for the guys.


Yesterday we nailed insulators on the trees. Today I am tired, it's the Farmer's Market so Boss will be heading out for that. Ten and Willow are coming in with me.

Monday we weaned some of the little bucks off their Mom's and took them on the hill. I haven't been up to see them yet, but one or two of them was yelling like they were being strangled yesterday. Can't wait to see the little guys today!

The four -yearling bucks went to Prescott with the big bucks. They are not trained to the electric fence yet. Yesterday Ten and I turned around and we had "Tack Room Baby" standing in the field with us, to be shortly joined by "Jumping Jack". We put them back in and then had to fix fence where they went through. Oh, gotta love goats.

Time's up, time to feed my own ...hope everyone is having a nice weekend!

Friday

Pretty quiet so far this week.

Yesterday was a big day at the farm, at least in my book. Ten had another day off, so I took him in to the farm and R was back again, so Ten, R, and myself headed off to Nash to get more fencing for the Prescott job.

We pulled all the fence (electric) out of Nash yesterday! Huge job! Whew! A good work crew can sure get a lot done!

Ten broke four green stakes trying to get them up! A green stake is a metal fence post about 7 feet long. They are very sturdy. I was wiggling one when I heard a giant *crack* and saw Ten go flying onto his ass. He broke his at ground level. I couldn't stop laughing. I couldn't believe anyone could break one of those stakes.

Then he went on to break three more. I was going to ban him from the green stake pulling but they were ones R and I couldn't budge either.

What a hot job! On the way home we stopped at the Village store and the thermometer in the sun said 107 F.

I was going to work today, but Ten's Dad asked me for a lift to the bus station. He is going to Florida for a month. Ten had a fit and wants his Dad to fly, but his Dad has macular degeneration and said he was more comfortable dealing with the bus than the plane

I said it might be cooler in Florida.

Another Tuesday

We had another busy week. Last Tuesday night we went to Hallowell to catch some live music outside along the river. Not a dancing band, just folks piled around on the benches and under the trees in the little park by the Kennebec. If we go again I think we will take fishing poles and see what we might catch in the Kennebec.

Wednesday we went to the beach for a few hours in the afternoon. It was hot even on the beach! I went into the water twice. I spent most of the rest of the time on my stomach exchanging heated tests with Ten over a huge disagreement. I was wearing a brand new string bikini (the only thing left in my size at Walmart last week)...and I fried my butt. Well, everything but my butt. The tag was sticking up on the bottoms and I had a white tag tattoo on my lower back. I even had the bow from the top outlined in white on my back.

The kids had on 8 hour, waterproof SPF 35 and Willow still got a bad burn on her back. She started peeling last night. So you can imagine my burn with no spf (hardcore)

Willow made this cool sandcastle by dripping handfuls of sandy water.



That night we went to the Walker Brothers circus. I almost nixed it because of the sunburn I was developing. As a result of that and my dark mood in general, I did not enjoy it as much as in previous years, but the kids had a good time. No monkeys this year-or elephants, or dogs even. A short pony run around the ring act and some trained pigs! yes, trained pigs. That was pretty funny. Also Paolo the young juggler grew a couple inches...lol such a small circus you get to know all the performers by name year to year.

The next few days were pretty quiet. I tried to work on taking the fence down at Prescott one day with R (he came back for two days) and the other day with young D. Between the sunburn and chasing snagged line around a huge wooded pasture I just about had a meltdown. Fencework with a sunburn in the sunny nineties...yeah right.

I had a moose go through my own electric fence (in one side and out the other) snapping two lines , breaking insulators, and creating a nightmare of a repair job of my own.

Saturday was a blast. We went to the Strawberry festival and ate homemade strawberry goodies and listened to a nice little acoustic band.

Saturday night Ten and I went to the Blues Festival and tore up Main Street dancing to every band. The night hit an early snag when Ten forgot his wallet and then couldn't get into any of the bars for lack of ID. They were carding pretty heavily, but of course not me..lol how embarassing.

So we did what a lot of other folks were doing, went up to the local RiteAid which happened to sell liquor. I grabbed a bottle of Cuervo Margarita, some cups, and a bag of ice. LOL. We were all set.

Ten and I had never danced, although we both have boasted of our prowess. I felt fairly confident as I have managed to hold my own in bowling, pool, ping pong, and swimming. LOL. We heard a good song and Ten urged me upfront- where I usually prefer to dance...then grabbed my hands and what a disaster! LOL. I have never danced holding hands, and although we both have great rhythm I could not sync up with him.

We had to have a big talk, lol, and after that we danced together not holding hands. Once in awhile he would try and grab me and the disaster would repeat itself with me almost falling on him. Otherwise it was a great time. We left Rockland well after midnight and the party was still going on.

Pretty quiet schedule for this week. I am going to try and do some stuff around here, that sounds familiar, doesn't it? LOL

What Day is it Anyhow?

LOL! I'm a little froggy this am! HOT! and tired. Working and playing to the max!

Boss came to the decision to move the bucks out of Jenny Nash. We were already semi-established at Prescott, but not enough pasture for the boys. The job was moving the fencing out of Nash and establishing a new pasture at Prescott.

P, R, D and I spent a day winding electric rope and ribbon:D pulling the white step in stakes, and then D and I rocking and pulling out the green metal stakes. R told me his planned layout, drove in three green stakes, and then has been out of work since.

D drove the rest of the green stakes with me steadying them. We use a big rectangular metal driver which is more than I can handle on my own. I ran the top ribbon to mark the fenceline for clearing and was then told the loppers had disappeared, the weedwhacker was out of line, and I could use a pair of hoof shears for trimming.

Ha. I spent an hour crawling along the roadside ditch head high with wild roses and other shrubs, blistering my hand on the shears and was about ready to abandon the task.(um...the title of a song came to mind, "take this job and...." lol) Luckily, I found out that my sweets, Ten, had the next day off and convinced him to bring his landscaping tools and give me a hand. He cleared the whole fenceline and then pulled five runs of wire-embedded rope off the winder. Yeah! End in sight!

D and I ran the last ground line, put in all the white step in stakes, and wrapped an apple tree with wire to try and protect it. Saturday it was ready for the bucks.

Still more work ahead there with dividing it and pulling the rest of the Nash fence.

Last night we headed off to Bath for Bath Heritage Days. A terrific Reggae Band, Mystic Bowie, played on the main stage before and after the fireworks. Bath was jamming! Lots of food vendors, roadside carnival, live music...



We watched the fireworks go off on the other side of the river, nice but not as intense as our regular fourth of July spot where they go off right in front of you and ash frequently drifts into the crowd. This year luck was on our favor with the wind blowing it back into the cove. Here's a shot of last night's fireworks in Bath.




Back to last night, after the fireworks we went back to the band and Willow got her nerve up to join the rest of the kids invited on stage to jam with the band. I abandoned my flip flops and danced in the crowd cheering her on. The Firebird even loosened up at the end and started moving.




Lots more summer fun and work in the days ahead! Hope everyone else is having a dancing summer!

Sunday

Ah nearly July! Busy reveling in summer's passion. Happy Summer!

UUreka's kids are doing great, integrated with the main herd. The girl is absolutely adorable! The little buck looks fine, too. Both are brown with black legs and stripes down their backs. The girl has wattles and upright ears and a little splash of white on her forehead. Very petite looking.

We've moved the bucks out of Jenny Nash and down to Prescott. Now we are pressed with the task of pulling all the fencing out of Jenny Nash and putting up more pasture at Prescott. I have reeled a lot of fence! Luckily what we are working on now is the ribbon or rope with embedded wire, not the high tensile wire. Still, hot in the sun pulling line with one hand and whacking the winder with the other. D and I did 5 strands on the back line of the upper section today in about an hour.

On the home front, I saw a ping pong table at a garage sale and was then told it was FREE! with net and paddles. I tied it to the roof of the car and brought it home last Saturday. It's out on the lawn, and we have had a bunch of fun with it! I kick some serious ping pong butt! We had one in the rec room growing up and my sister and I spent many a hot summer afternoon in the cool basement playing ping pong! We cover it over with plastic and it has some flaws and warpage but it's all good fun anyhow!



Sunday and I Willow went to a Summer Solstice drum circle for peace. I took the djembe, and Willow chose a hand carved polynesian drum I picked up many years ago at an antique shop. What I did not realize it that it was a native american based event, but the djembe worked well with it's deep bass. (it's an African drum) I even had a shot at the big drum, where people sit and use a sort of padded drumstick. Most of the dozen people there had obviously been to many pow wows together and drummed through and sang some lovely Indian songs. I lent the Djembe to a woman to lead us in some African rhythms and had my chance on the big drum.

It was a pleasant time, but I prefer African rhythms overall, having had a chance to jam with some African refugees in Portland Maine a few years ago...

The week flew by. Wednesday I got into a bag of double stuff oreos and awoke at middnight with a blinding toothache, Ibuprofen, saltwater, Listerine, Ambesol, Vicodene...nothing touched it. I made an emergency dental appointment Thursday expecting to have the whole upper left row extracted. I hadn't been to a dentist in a VERY long time. I had extensive orthodontic work as a child; three canines extracted because of my small mouth; one cracked right out of my jaw before it had emerged...yeah, I am scared of dentists. LOL

I watched as the Xray's came up on the computer monitor. Yeah, Xrays are instant now, cool! "Wow, those look like good teeth!" I said as the upper right emerged...and right through, with the exception of the bottom molar I broke on a tongue ring three years ago.

Haven't been to a dentist in twenty years and no cavities!?! The doc tapped on them, blew compressed air between them, wiggled them...for naught. The diagnosis? Not so good. I have extensive bone loss exposing the base of the teeth and the nerves don't like that. The dentist was surprised they weren't loose. Yup, getting long in the tooth...yuck. LOL

And that bottom molar? Well, the doctor of pain was consoled with the fact that he gets to pull that one tomorrow. It was originally filled and now broken..well, three years ago, yup, gotta go. The roots looked good though, so I hope he gets that yanked clean tomorrow...Eek, I am scared...:(

We found this salamander yesterday cleaning up some old wood. We found a nice old rotten stump and he gladly crawled into the dark cavities after his photoshoot.

Day Off

Or, a day to spend around here doing a million things or nothing...hehe

Yesterday I worked the farm. Uureka had twins over the weekend, a buck and a doe, both brown and teeny tiny compared to the other raucous babies running around.

I noticed the buckling had a poo stuck on his rear, and I had a pocket full of tissues so I figured I would just flick it off. But it was hard as cement! Uh oh! I told Boss because blocked tushies on babies can be big trouble!

"it needs to be softened," said Boss as she continued cleaning the aisle.

So I grabbed a can of water, ransacked the medical chest for a jar of vaseline and was happy to find a box of blue nitrile gloves! Armed with that and my pocket of tissues, I cornered the little buck and wet the area down with wet tissue and rubbed vaseline around and managed to remove the turd to a gush of foul odor that had me doubled over and gagging in the back stall at 7:50 in the morning.

Now I understand why Boss feigned indifference and let me take the initiative. Ugh.

Crazy week

Ayeh, it's been a crazy week.

Started off with me taking a friend to the ER for an auricular pseudocyst. Then two follow up doc appointments.

Then Willow crashed on her bike and scraped her face, arm and leg.

The four yearling bucklings on the hill escaped into the woods and were on the lam for 24 hours.

Phoenix lost a shoe while riding his bike and caught the bottom of his foot in the gears, crashed and tore open his foot. Six stitches (the second laceration just peeled the skin so there was nothing to stitch)...and the promise of at least a month of his summer vacation with a sore foot.

The warning is up for me-everyone else has been hurt this week. So I drove like a little old lady home from the ER at 1 am..didn't need to hit anything such as the three porcupines, two skunks, three cats and a fox that were running the roads with us last night. (or running across the road, as it were)

Well, we all have a day off today so I think we will try and take it easy!

Fiber Frolic 2010

The Fiber Frolic is this weekend, and today was the goat show. We didn't show any of our own goats, but gave Boss a hand with her two and three year old bucks-the four she selected to bring.

A cashmere goat show is nothing like a dairy goat show! The judge commented that Cashmere type goats are near wild and they are usually half dragged in front of the judge.




Willow called dibs on Homer as soon as she heard he was going. Willow and Homer have a great relationship. I took Bibbles, Boss took Nebeolo, and J. handled Cairn.
Here the judge, Dr. Peter Goth, and I are exhanging the microphone for goat. He takes control of the goat and checks the teeth, feels the chest, barrel and haunches, and then makes sure they have two testicles and two nipples. In retrospect, I wish I had taken advantage of the microphone and done a running commentary on the exam. * evil chuckle*




Nebeolo won first in two year old, and Bibbles second. Homer and Cairn tied for first place for three year old bucks. The judge said Cairn had the best fleece he had ever seen-nevermind for a buck his age, but Homer was the better buck conformation wise. And he gave him a four for personality! LOL! The high score is a three and personality is not one of the traits judged.


The bucks were so fine, the judge didn't bother to call the winners of the doe classes back for the championship. It came down to Nebeolo, Cairn, and Homer for the Champion.

First the judge gave Willow a surprise blue ribbon for showmanship! Then he awarded Homer the Championship Cashmere Goat and Cairn the Reserve Champion.

Snapping Turtle

My oldest took some great pics of this egg laying snapper.




CWR2010

Happy Birthday L

Boss returned from her overseas vacation this week, and sent out a call for a surprise party for her husband upon his return following a stop in Vienna.

We had some discussion about cake-their traditional being a pound cake strawberry and whipped cream combo, but some uncertainty whether K was bringing a cake, and my sudden desire to bring one...(I have a penchant for bringing tricky desserts to gatherings)

Suddenly I recalled a recipe out of my collection en route to the store to buy the best bottle of red I could find-what better gift for a 70 year old well educated genius from old money with a taste for wine?

Strawberry orange something, and I gathered the ingredients that I thought might be in it, and arrived home to discover I was missing almonds and cornstarch...

The recipe from was Gourmet magazine 1991, one that I had clipped but never attempted. Swedish Meringue Cake with Orange and Strawberries. Well it was indeed tricky, involving making meringue, obviously, and the orange filling, and grinding and blending almonds into the meringue. I burnt the first batch of filling prepping the strawberry part. More zest, cornstarch, sugar...I'll never get the origanal pan clean, lol.

Fortunately through out this complicated creation , there were updates about arrival times. First set back was to 8:30. I had Willow in the car and the cake hastily assembled when the second delay came...10:30. But, with the offer to arrive early and eat and drink wine. LOL Never leave the farm help unattended with access to wine.

No, we were good. Well, K and I were bad I suppos; she broke the cork on the first bottle. $37..but manage to re-screw it at my urging. She went for a lesser bottle for the second. The troop of us, K's husband and three of her children, all former employees, P, myself, and C and Willow, laying in wait for...well, it was nearly midnight when poor exhausted Mr Boss sat down to remove his shoes and we all jumped out and screamed, "surprise!!!!!"

Then the party began. Good times, glad I am not working in the morning! This ale tastes a bit sour after all that fine wine...hehe

Stocking Alewives

I saw a truck backing into the pond as I arrived home from the farm today. It had something large and square on the back of the trailer, and I thought, "what the heck is that?" and then I saw the Maine Dept of Fisheries and Wildlife logo on the truck, so I rushed right over.

I knew they were stocking something!!

Fully mature Alewives, three trips, a total of 800 fish, caught downstream. The dam stops their migration, so they put them in to spawn so the young can return to the sea and become a very important part of the food chain. Alewives spawn in the fresh water of lakes and ponds and the babies go to the ocean to grown up and don't return until it is time for them to lay eggs.

Poor guys had made two undisturbed trips and then had me quizzing them on the last one. I thought it was cool! LOL. Wish I had that job! :)

Blood Ties

Busy busy busy! Spending a lot of time at the farm and not enough on my own place! Spring is in full swing!

The farm geese hatched out three goslings. They are pilgrim geese, the only color sexed breed of geese. The males are white- sometimes with gray patches, and the females are gray. The male goslings (2) are yellow and the female is dusky.



I finally snuck a pic of Bonnie's twin bucklings out of Zeus. Still, they were hiding.


My oldest, C, has been working the last few stretches at the farm with me. Here he is with the silly filly, Estrella, who walked right up to my camera and slobbered all over it.


Willow came in today, and had a chance to feed the bottle baby, one of Ursula's twin bucklings out of Nibbeola.



And one more doe yet to deliver, doesn't she look comfy? LOL. Uureka.

Happy Mother's Day

Wow my kids just made me breakfast and presented me with gifts, cards and flowers. I am soo lucky!

Happy Mother's Day!!!!

Yesterday