It's Pumpkin Time!!

Gosh, I can't believe that Halloween is almost here.  Naturally, Bob and Pooh had to take Wee Bob to visit the Pumpkin Patch so he could pick out his very own pumpkin!!  I think Bob and Pooh enjoyed the trip also judging by all the pumpkins they brought home.  So many Big, Little, Short and Round Pumpkins!! There is a nip in the air and it's time to break out the long sleeve shirts.  Hooray for Fall!

Pooh, Bob and Wee Bob at the Pumpkin Patch.  That's the Corn Maze behind them.  You can seriously get LOST in a corn maze!! Some corn mazes require a GPS System to navigate.  Or maybe it's just my tired "old" brain that refuses to register twists and turns.

 



Wee Bob enjoying the corn bin.  Wonder how many kernels of corn were found in his socks? .....in his ears?   Wonder how many kernels of corn he devoured before he was caught?

 

 

                                                                                       Big kids like to play in the corn too!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wee Bob as "Old Farmer Brown" with his "moo" cow.  Yes, sometimes I have to resort to snapping pictures off of Facebook because................lets just say that pictures are not always forwarded to me in a timely manner!!  (Hint! Hint!)



                                                              Stop the search! Call off the guards!  I have found .....
                                      "The Great Pumpkin"!




 

 Dad and son heading home.........(Pooh must still be wandering around in the corn maze!)



The next day it was...............

 Carving time!!! ...Let the fun begin!

"Hmmmm....no one is paying any attention to me.  Hey!  You guys go ahead and carve the
pumpkins ...I'm going to turn over this box and......'me and my friend' are going to......

 

STAND ON IT AND JUMP OFF!! Wheeee..."

(Take note of that four legged white "ghost" in the background...he will be in BIG trouble soon!)

 

 

"Now it's time to go up the steps and slide down into a.......

puddle of leaves!!!  Lets do it again!"

 

 

 

 

After many hours of carving, complete with hand cramps and back aches, the end results were amazing!  (Again I  had to resort to a Facebook picture because certain "kin folk" did not send me pictures as requested!!) That night, as the pumpkins were lined up on Wee Bob's front porch, two four legged creatures had a night on the town playing "Bowling Pumpkins" resulting in the demise of Wee Bob's Pumpkin Patch.  Fortunately, the local farmer's market and stores are well stocked with pumpkins this year!   But just the thought of all that hard work being turned into pumpkin pie makes me want to cry..."Sniff".  Wee Bob took it in stride.  Give him a box to stand on and a pile of leaves to land in any day!!

 

Happy Halloween!!



Dogs Will Be Boys!

It is definitely jacket wearing, coffee drinking, chili eating, put the lawn mower in the barn type of weather here in the south!  Our dogs are feeling their "oats" as they put the "dog days" of summer behind.  One of their favorite things to do is to play "King of the Haystack"!  (As long as Wee Bob is not here to reign.)  With three dogs this sometimes turns into a real battle!

This is Bandit and he thinks he is the boss!!

No way is Bandit going to share "his" hay bale!!

He hears the other two dogs tying to sneak up on him......

 

Well, he will just see about that!!!

Bandit has tackled Gypsy and knocked him to the ground.  One down and one to go!

A fierce battle takes place with Bandit's biological brother "Curly Que" or QE as we call him.  Sometimes we call him Bama. He's a dog without a name! 

QE and Bandit go at it pretty heavy for a few minutes..... 

 

 

Teeth are barred and the growling is horrific!!

 

 

 



But in the end Bandit remains "King of the Haystack"!  For today anyway.  He is so arrogant!!!  He just dares his siblings to knock him off!!  Hmmm.....next time Bandit may be the one looking up!! 

 

 

I think we have three dogs to many but what do I know?   They are amusing to watch.  One minute they go at each other like cats and dogs and the next minute they are sleeping soundly next to each other.  Wonder if the R's and D's might need a lesson from my dogs???!!!

 

Well, it's time for me to don my jacket and slip on my walking shoes and get a bit of exercise.  See you all soon....

 

Dee Dee

 

 

 

 

 



Barn Grime and Donkey Time!

After about six weeks of battling the elements and building our barn, the builders have finished their part.  Hooray!!   Now JR, Papa G and Bob are wiring the structure.  That is not an easy thing to do  as the rafters are WAY up HIGH.  It gives me the "stomach queases" to even think about being that high!!

The new structure is on the left and the old barn is on the right.

Once electricity is installed the individual side panels can be hammered in place.  The steel corral fence has been ordered from Kentucky and should arrive within two weeks.  The roof of the barn is mainly metal with clear panels installed to let in light.  See all that red dirt?  JR had extra sand shoveled in so water would not seep into the barn. He is so brilliant!!

I like to walk under the barn and smell the new timber!!  Maybe we should host a "square dance" before the cows move in.  Once the cows enter the picture, the smell will never be the same!

 

 

 

The building was really a work of art........ 

 

Look at all those rafters!!

Everyday brought us closer to completion.

 



Finally, the excess timber was gathered up and placed in a pile by the barn.  Of course not being one to waste even a nail, JR gathered up the excess and saved it because..........well.........,  he might need it one day!!  Silver tin was used on the roof to reflect summer heat away from the barn.

 

I especially like the "skylights"!  JR was so smart to think of that!  Even on a gloomy winter day the barn will sparkle with light.  Oh, those lucky cows!!

 

 

 

 



 

I almost wish I was a cow so I could live in the new barn.....almost.

 

 



This is a side view.  Our dogs think it is just one huge dog house made especially for them!!

 

 

 

Cory and JR rented a "ditch witch" and dug a trench from the old barn to the new barn where they buried the power lines.  Papa G finished work on the power supply yesterday and we now have ARTIFICIAL LIGHT!! 

 

 

 

 








 

Meanwhile, while all the building was going on, JR and I took a trip in search of a donkey or two.  Donkeys help guard the young calves by keeping coyotes and other predators away.  And besides, Pluto needed a buddy.  We came upon a quaint barn and a pasture filled with donkeys.  So we stopped.........

 

 

 

 

JR and the owner had a conversation while I admired the area and took pictures.  The barn was full of donkeys, however, they were not for sale.  Not even one!!  But the owner pointed us in the direction of a farmer who just might want to sell a few of his donkeys.  So we hit the road.....

 

 

 

I love traveling back roads where I have never been before.  I like to get lost and have to search the deserted lanes for a way home.    I like to pretend I am on a wagon train heading out to the wide open spaces of the WEST!!   (Until I need a bathroom and then I want civilization!!!)

Eventually, we found the donkey farm but not the owner.......

 We searched and searched and searched but no two legged species could we see.   Can you find the donkey in the picture on the left side?   There were about 50 donkeys but no humans!!  How do these donkeys survive?  Do aliens visit them at night bringing them food and water?

 

The sun was beginning to move towards the western sky as we started sadly home without the promise of a new donkey to keep Pluto company in his old age.  Soon we came upon the "golden arch" which beckoned us with smells of burgers and fries -- not to mention yummy milkshakes.  Hmmmmm....The day was not a complete loss after all!! 

 

Love,

DeeDee

 

 

Happy Birthday!!

  The guys (JR, Papa G, Bob, and Big A) were having a "work day" on the farm last weekend since the new barn needed to be wired for electricity.  JR's Birthday was near the end of September, so we all decided to get together, while the guys were here, and celebrate. And EAT!  Mama T baked the cake and I put a pork roast in the crock pot and made baked beans, potato salad, deviled eggs, and a new recipe I found for a cheesy macaroni, apple, sausage dish.  It was delicious!!

Wow! Four generations!  And all of us wearing our "work" clothes.  Beware - If you ever visit our farm you will most likely be put to work! Wear old shoes, old clothes and forget about fixing your hair! (When JR says...."Hey, come on down to the barn for a minute and lets look at the bulldozer (or whatever)", you know your clothes are going to get dirty!!  "Barn minutes" usually equal HOURS!)

 

But all work and no play does not a happy farmer make.  So, after a morning of hard work, JR and Wee Bob took time out for a reading break!



 

The guys ate lunch and rested for an hour (A normal hour - not a "barn hour".  That would have equaled a whole day!).  Big A checked his phone for any important messages he might have missed.  When you are almost fourteen, ALL messages are important!

 

 

 

Wee Bob got to try his hand again at basketball. 

YEA!!  Two points!!!

 

When the big guys went back to work ,the "kids" decided to go for a short four wheeler ride......

 

Because the mud puddles were just to tempting to be ignored!

 That's  our donkey "Pluto".  He likes to stare at four-wheelers.  He used to be gray but now has turned almost completely white.  Pluto is about 26 years old.  And being around cattle for most of his life......well, he thinks he is a cow!  Or maybe that should be a bull.  Yes, definitely a bull, Pluto being of the male species. (I think that makes sense???)

 

 

Eventually all the "kids" returned to the house and we proceeded to clean up our lunch mess.  I packed up the leftovers and sent tomorrow's supper home with  Mama T and Pooh.  JR and I still had plenty of food left to feed us for the next two days - maybe three.  I just LOVE to have a big family dinner and then not have to think about fixing food for several days. The men folks continued to work until early evening.  Meanwhile........ we ladies went to our respective homes, took bubble baths, manicured our nails, creamed our faces, colored our hair, and read romance novels!    Oh, what a marvelous farm life we live!!

(P.S. In my dreams!!)

 

Dee Dee