Its been a while. Well, still holding a crop of oranges and trying to figure how to not have it wasted. Recently learned that it easily can be canned, so that's my plan for today. I have lots of quart sized masons I can fill. Of course, I don't have enough masons to cancel out all the oranges that need to be harvested, but at least I know that I won't be left wanting orange juice later on.
Happy New Years, everyone. Well, I've seen all my family, except my oldest child, which I imagine I will be looking at eventually. She's probably cutting or stitching something or another with her new Singer. DH came over for cabbage and field peas. I also fixed some cornbread muffins....something I seldom do. We didn't kill each other, but its not like he actually complimented me on anything. Oh well, my dog seems to still like him though.
Speaking of which, the neighbors nearly killed her last night with all those fireworks...or bombs or whatever they were exploding outside. The poor dog wouldn't leave my side last night. Seriously. I'd go to the bathroom, she followed me. I'd go in my closet to find my nightclothes, she'd follow me. Anywhere I'd go, there she was; all except if I went outside for her to potty. There she'd be hidding under the table, trembeling. Guess who crawled under the covers and slept by my legs??? Poor Duchess.
Well, its been raining lately, which is good in one way and bad in others. Messy in my neck of the woods for sure. I have a job I want to do that will require some dry weather and I'm so looking forward to pulling it off. I want to jack up my shed, and drop it back down on what used to be my house blocks (higher than the blocks they now on), after having a concrete slab poured. I figure I will buy some treated 4X6's to support the shed, which later on I can use to construct a bridge I now need to replace in the woods. I wanna start doing all this stuff, without DH's knowledge and have it all done before he gets to dish out all his advice and tell me how it won't work.
For the love of God....he is now, as I type, on the phone with DD17, telling her (us) that the asparagus ferns need to be cut down, so that we can begin harvesting in April. He is gone, but still in charge of a few things. Too bad it don't involve sweat, backaches, scratches and getting dirty.
Well, I'm determined to show him that I will make it all work, even if I'm alone. Or maybe I want to show myself that I will make it work. Hard to say which is more true.
I am questioning my RIR roos fathering capabilities. He is old, but is supposed to be show quality. In truth, I've never seen a RIR hold that stance. So I did accept him because I fell in love with the shape of his chest, but I never really see him mount. So recently I learned of a local guy that had a Buff Orphington roo for sale for $5.00....8 months old. Well, I know I can use a BO in a sex-link project, same as I can a RIR because both are on the list of acceptable red roos, so I bought him and transported Gumbo (rir's name) and 4 RIR hens to a smaller pen, for a possible pure bred project. That gives me a better shot at insuring fertility....if he has less girls, I mean and maybe I can get a new roo this spring, with that gorgeous chest....one that will feel more romantic.
Well Goldie came here with a friend. Can't recall the breed, but its lav____er......something or another. Well, he had a black head and tail, but white body. My niece named him Oreo. I could tell that he didn't look right, so I put him in solatairy confinement and he died day before yesterday. I haven't told the origional owner yet, but fortunately whatever was wrong with him, hasn't seemed to affect my flock or Goldie. I didn't have a mate for him anyway.
Well, somehow my Rouens got loose and have had the run of my yard for about 3 days. They must have thought they were in Heaven. All this rain and so many puddles to play in, but today the pen they share with my white geese was empty, cuz those geese were visiting the Toulouse, so I opened the gate and made them go in. I'm thinking of making all my water fowl stay together, except the muscovy and in the empty pen, plant lots of rye, so they can feast later on.
I have so many SS New Year's resolutions, that I will not be sharing with my family, until I am either pulling them off or have pulled them off. I want to finish my fence ASAP.....that will save me big money, esp if I can protect the garden from the chickens and water fowl. I already mentioned the shed and bridge I need to tackle. I have to prepare for whatever orange sales I will have next fall, before I lose the phone numbers. And I really need to start sewing. DD 25 and I will be working on a dance recital. We have 9 costumes we need to make. Hopefully that will help get her more sewing jobs, because the girls will all know who made their costumes and we will take out an ad in the recital booklet. I also (shhhhh) want to start working on a camp, hidden in the woods, made completely out of my scraps lying around in my way. I've got a few ideas about how I will do it. I want to fix it, so as you won't really know what it is, and you can pass right near it and completely miss it. Thats the only way I can see it not being vandelized. If I clean up around it and I'm obviously constructing something, it will draw too much attention.
I taught my 10 year old school yesterday a while and I think I might do so again today, although its hard when publics are all here. Always something to do.
I could cuss him one minute(in my mind) and be buying him something nice the next minute. Funny how that works. The months I was gone from here, I still paid all the bills, grocery shopped, and made sure he had toilet paper. I even occassionally come by just to cook dinner and hang out with DD, who seemed really lonely and mad at her daddy at the time. Rhoda_bruce, I think we may just be a little bit crazy lady! I hope you find peace with your situation sis. It gets easier with time, but it never is truly easy. I know for fact God worked a huge miracle for us, maybe He will for you and your DH too...I'm still praying for it. There's nothing better in life than something that has the honest and true blessing of the Lord put on it, and nothing worse than something that doesn't. And aint a thing He can't turn around if it's in His will to do so. Blessings to you!! 
