A day in the garden

I started my day on the computer . Chuck figured out that if we turn the computer with the air stick towards the window it works 10 times better. It's a bit hard to type sideways though..lol. Annie didn't think it was hard at all. After doing the last load of laundry, tending to my " peeps" and watering all the plants around the TT, I headed to the garden. I was determined to finish planting the main veggie garden and my cut flower garden. I did it!!!!! The only thing left to plant is the pumpkin patch and I will tackle that tomorrow. After my planting, I decided to mow the whole garden area. That's a LOT of mowing! About half way through it, I decided that I just might ask for a "riding lawn mower" for my birthday. Now I know why Charlotte has one. Oh! I'm sitting here with the window open and there is a firefly on the screen. It's so funny to see it light up. I didn't think they showed up until summer but they have been around for about a week now. It's so fun to sit on the porch at night and see them all light up in the woods. .....ok...back to today.......Chuck moved about half of the big pile of rock/gravel. He went into town after lunch to mail our taxes. When I asked if the post office was crowded since it was " tax day" he said ..."yes....three people were in there". ha.! I love living in a small town. When he got back, he had a small bouquet of wild flowers that he had stopped along the side of the road to pick, for me. Reason number 22 why I love living in Alabama. Chuck is always bringing me wild flowers. Well, I'm pooped from all the work I did today but it's a " good poop". I'm sure I will sleep well tonight. I have been lately. I don't know if it's because I'm really tired by the time I go to bed or it's just all the clean air ......oops can't be that because the air is full of pollen right now. That will pass soon and then we can wash all the green off of everything. Another fun, beautiful day in Alabama!

Wash day

I did a lot today but never got anything finished. I started out in the garden. I planted the gourd patch and five more rows in the main veggie garden. By the time I got everything watered, it was lunch time. I still have three more rows of veggies to plant and my cut flower patch, along with the pumpkin patch. I hope I can get it all done in the next couple of days. After lunch, I decided I had better start on the mountain of laundry. Since, I have to be in the barn, while doing laundry, I worked on my rain barrel some more. Of course, I have to stop every few minutes to look at my little " peeps" that are in the tub behind me, while I paint. They are growing so fast. Dixie, the largest chick looked like she had blood on her wings and around her neck. When I took her out to get a closer look, it wasn't blood at all. She is starting to get her " big girl feathers".! She is going to be a "red", like I thought when I picked her out of the 100 others in the tub. Well, by dinner time, I hadn't finished the garden, the laundry or my rain barrel. Fiddle dee dee, tomorrow is another day.......

Mystery Trip

I had been looking forward to the Quilt Guild Mystery Trip for a month and now I'm looking forward to the next one for next year. We all ( 20 of us) met at one of the big churches down town and climbed on the cute little bus and headed north. Everyone was guessing where we were going but since I don't know where I'm going half the time, I didn't have a clue where we were going to end up. The scenery just kept getting prettier and prettier. The mountains were in the background and we passed beautiful farms with red barns and bright green fields. It looked like it all should be in a book or calendar and I was seeing it all in person. We were in Tennessee! What a beautiful state!We ended up in Decherd Tn. at a cute little quilt shop. The prices were good and the guy gave all of us 20% off on top of it. When everyone was done shopping, we walked two blocks down the road to this really pretty little restaurant called " The Blackberry Patch". The food was wonderful and as we were eating, the owner came in and talked to us. She was so sweet and she told us the story of how Martha Stewart had been there on Palm Sunday. She even had pictures to show us of her and what all she had cooked for her. Next stop was a few miles down the road. It was an old time Department Store that took up at least 1/2 block. Of course they had lots of fabric also. I found several pieces that I hope will make it into quilts one day. We then headed south but stopped one more time at this mill. It was on a beautiful piece of land with a water fall. They were grinding " grits" while we were there. By the time we got back to Decatur, it was around 4:30. Betty and I told everyone good bye and how much fun we had before jumping in her car for her to drop me off at home. We pulled up to our drive way and we both yelled.." Oh my gosh!!!! GRAVEL!!!!" Chuck had gravel delivered and it was spread all the way up to the barn. I couldn't believe it! What a fun day and ending it with having a real drive way to drive on. Can't ask for anything more out of a day!

A short trip to town...ha

We thought we would just run into town to the grocery store and Home Depot....ha! As always, we end up going to 50 places and spend most of the day in town. First we went to find the main post office so Chuck could get some tax forms ( yep....as always...he will be doing our taxes the night before they have to be mailed....after 40 years, I'm used to it) We stopped at the " welcome center" to ask where the post office was. The welcome center is in an old house that has been refurbished and outside was this beautiful vine with yellow flowers growing up the side of the house. We asked about it and was told it was " Caroline jasmine". It sure was pretty. The lady told us how to get to the Post Office but we were told we had to go to the library to get the forms that Chuck needed. What a neat library! It's big like the main one in St. Pete. They had a big Mark Twain display and was selling " the big read/Tom Sawyer" tee shirts. Chuck bought me one since I read Tom Sawyer and I'm now reading Huck Finn. After leaving the library we came across a new " coffee/donut shop". We just HAD to stop and see how good it was and it was GOOD! After stopping at the $ store and "Fred's" we managed to go to two groceries stores, Home Depot and the electrical shop. There is where I discovered that my phone was broken. While Chuck went in to get the circuit breaker he needed to hook up the dryer, I tried to call Betty to see what time she was picking me up for the " mystery trip" the next day. We had all these groceries in the truck that couldn't sit in the hot parking lot while we spent an hour in Verizon, trying to get my phone fixed so Chuck dropped me off and drove all the way home to put the stuff away and then came back and got me. I ended up having to get a new phone ( of course) and had to learn how to use it. I just hate learning new stuff. It makes my brain hurt. We came home and Chuck hooked up the washer and dryer while I brought the ton of laundry down to the barn. ( we hadn't done laundry since before Shell and Genavive came) Chuck put a " test load" in and it worked. Oh it's so nice not to have to go to the stinky, weird people, laundry mat any more. The only problem is, when I do laundry, Chuck has to run the pipes and the dryer vent hose out the door of the barn....ha. ...real redneck, but hey, it works so that's all I care for now. As the first two loads of laundry was getting done, I worked on painting my rain barrel again. After dinner, I went down to the garden to water things that I have planted. I have a watering can that was my Mom's and it has been hanging on a nail in the shed. Last year, a little bird filled the whole can up and made a nest in it. I took it down the other day to take to the barn, so I could paint it but noticed it was half filled with a nest. I guess the same little bird is filling it up again this year. I still haven't seen what kind of bird that is using it but I'm sure I will soon. Another day on Brambly Pines.....and another project checked off the list. Oh yeah....Chuck made my clothes lines out of wood and I love them!

Busy day

I started the day out in the garden. I got a text from Charlotte and she wanted to know if she could bring the boys over to see the baby chicks. They met me down at the garden so they could see the scare crow and then we went to the barn. They loved the baby chicks. After holding them and petting them for several minutes, they went home and I went back to the garden. I managed to plant the melon garden with nine rows of watermelon and cantaloupe seeds. I sure hope they all come up. I noticed that the corn that Shell and Genavive planted are starting to come up. After lunch, I went to the green house and planted two hanging pots with petunias and then went down to " Bramble Lane and cleaned out and planted flowers in the flower bed at the bottom of the pole. Chuck came down and hung a bracket on the pole for me so I could put one of my hanging pots on it. Now, I just hope " Bambi" doesn't have a snack on my flowers tonight. When I finished with the flowerbed, I came back to the TT and watered all my plants and then washed my two rain barrels. Chuck took them back down to the barn and I started painting on one of them. It took me all afternoon and I'm still not done with it. Maybe I can work on it tomorrow, while I do laundry. Yep! we have water to the barn!!!! Chuck spent the whole day digging the trench for the water pipe to the barn, by hand. I can't wait to be able to do laundry in my very own new washing machine. We have to run to town in the morning for groceries so maybe we can stop and pick up some wood for Chuck to make the clothes lines. Brambly Pines is starting to have all the convince of home. Oh yeah! Chuck said our first hummingbird showed up today. It flew into the barn and couldn't figure out how to get out for awhile. I'm sure we will be entertained by them at our feeders soon.

My little peeps

Since they didn't have any baby chicks for sale at the Ala Chicken and Egg festival (ya think they would have huh?) we stopped at Tractor Supply and I picked out six little cuties to bring home with us. It sure was a hard choice since there were over a 100 in the one tub. You don't know what you are getting when ya don't know anything about chickens. I picked two yellow ones, thinking that they will be white and the other four are yellow and brown, thinking they might be reds. I guess we will see in a few weeks. Chuck went around the store with the cart while I was picking the babies and loaded up on what ya need to raise baby chicks.....at lot of stuff! We got them home and all settled in their new home. Chuck laughed at me and said that I was a mother hen and all her chicks. In a few weeks, Chuck will have to build the chicken coop because we have been told, chickens grow really fast. We are suppose to be gathering eggs in about five months. Lets see.........six eggs a day........that's a lot of eggs to eat so I guess we will be sharing with the neighbors and everyone else we know. This is going to be so much fun....except the part of cleaning out the poop in the coop!

Chicken and Egg Festival

I've been waiting a long time to go to the Ala Chicken and Egg Festival. We were never up here on the land at the right time for it. It's a big " deal" for our little town of Moulton. Thousands of people come from all around to attend. It was mostly arts and crafts like hand painted gourds, a few animals and of course old tractors. Lots of "fair" food and you could get "chicken on a stick and a hard boiled egg" for lunch. The TV news anchors were there from the station in Huntsville. I fell in love with the "alpacas". They had some for sale and I wanted to bring one home. They are so cute and the guy said they are sweet and wont bite or spit. They are much cuter than llamas. Chuck said I can have one but I have to wait until after the house is done. We will have to clear some more land and fence it in so my alpaca will have a nice place to live. Oh I can't wait!