Daydreaming while waiting impatiently!

[tortoise]

They're so strange about shearing! Being extra-flighty prey animals, once they're caught, the pretty much just freeze and wait to die. We hire a shearer, so each sheep takes about 5 minutes. You would think that being caught and shearer would be the stressful part, but actually the more stressful part social stress afterwards. They don't really recognize each other immediately after shearing! The rams start ramming and sparring or, alternately, they go crazy with all the "new" girls and start chasing and trying to breed. Takes about 5 minutes for the girls to settle down and it's like nothing every happened. The rams... are less smart Takes them a while to chill out.

 

[Beekissed]

I don't have to say a thing....they watch me from afar to see if I'm heading towards any known source of food or if I have any kind of bucket or similar shape in my hand. Then they thunder across the land like I hold the last morsel of food on Earth.

Same with the chickens, the ducks, the dogs and cats. You'd think they were all starving instead of fat as ticks. I don't say much at all except MOVE!!!!!! MOVE!!!!!! MOVE!!!!! and then, anything still in my way is getting walked on.

 

[Britesea]

Great idea!
I tried to do the Once-A-Month cooking thing, but that took too much out of me. So now I just try to make a couple of extra servings when I cook something and freeze them for those nights when I am too tired or busy to cook. Like tonight- I cooked up some pork neck bones in the instant pot and made Italian Gravy (aka pasta sauce) with the meat. Dumped some ricotta in individual ramekins and topped with the gravy and some parmesan and into the oven. I have enough extra that I can make at least one more family meal or several lunches.

 

[tortoise]

I put up the corner bead this morning. Have started mudding a bit. sort of. We're out of proper mud, but I am using spackle. Have to apply in thin layers and let dry. But happy to be making progress. We also removed a phone jack from the wall next to the toilet. When we bought our house in 2014, DH said that was the first thing he was going to change. 5 years later.... I patched that hole today also.

I found a bag of things from the hardware store I'd lost a few months ago! So very happy to find it! There's a quart of paint for painting a wall in DS4's bedroom. I am eager to finish his bedroom painting and hanging hooks. It's just a repaint to his favorite colors.

 

[Mini Horses]

Yep. A mechanic changed my brakes once. 30 miles later, I see smoke, pull over & see flames. Pulled a beer from grocery sack, shook it, removed top & put flames out with spewing beer.. Called mechanic to come tow me. He advised he was just getting ready to leave, plans for weekend. I said you just got a change in plans man -- be here in 1/2 hr or I will OWN your shop when we leave court. Cop & firemen standing with me by now....and I explained the open beer. Fireman said "good job!!"

Mechanic came. Fixed at his expense and we still speak. LOL Sometimes you just have to make it clear that you are to be respected. Since I was part owner in a mechanic shop for a long time, telling men what to do was not an issue for me! Direct and firm directions.

I am the head mare!!!!

 

[tortoise]

Early afternoon today, the school district announced that school would continue as scheduled. A couple hours later, the governor mandated that all K-12 schools in the state be closed from March 18 - April 6 and the distrcit made another announcement that school is closed until April 6 now. We just had spring break, so kids will be out of school for 4 weeks.

Doesn't make much difference to me - DS12 is homeschooled and DS4 is in public school half-days. DH checked with his employees to see if any needed help with childcare, since the elementary school also operates the main daycare in the area. Seems everyone has family to help out, so I'm off the hook for childcare.

I'm planning playdates since there aren't any cases within 80 miles or so, none in the county here. But trying to be smart about it. My plan A is to volunteer to disinfect the kids' room and toys at the library and then schedule playdates at the library for immediately after I've cleaned.

I visited a horticultural conservatory this week and it left quite an impression on me. I understand why some of my houseplants are struggling. I don't have their growing conditions right. I've been busy researching and repotting my few houseplants that are not African Violets.

I have a huge Wandering Jew which I hope to enter in the county fair. My pot was too heavy for fair restrictions so I had to start over. I cut off all the stems and emptied the pot. I put a plastic pot in upside down to fill up space and filled the pot 2/3 with perlite to lighten it and reduce water retention. (oh! I added a drainage hole too, can't believe there wasn't one before!!). I mixed new soil blend to fill the pot - more vermiculite to retain water to keep the roots compact and to help the cuttings root. Then I pruned, sorted, and stuck the stems/cuttings back in for them to re-root. DH thinks I've lost my mind with this plant. It was very pretty at a glance before, but also leggy and the long leafless stems starting to wrap around in coils. That's not good enough for fair. The only way to make a Wandering Jew into a fair-worthy specimen is keeping it a young, compact plant. I'll be rooting new cuttings into the crown right up until a couple weeks before the fair.

I'm also trying to figure out how to grow a perfect spiderplant. Sure they're tolerant and hard to kill, but it's tough to grow a perfect one with perfect leaf tips. I learned that they're tropical / rain forest plants at the conservatory. I was surprised! I've been doing it all wrong! LOL

I've been treating my Sansevieria wrong too. Turns out I have a soft leaved subtropical variety, but I've been treating it like the hard leaf arid type. Poor thing! I never did my homework after receiving it from a friend. It's my next-in-line to repot.

I'm motivated to get caught up on houseplants because it's almost greenhouse season. And almost lambing season! Spring is here!

 

[tortoise]

My living room rug AND dining table are both clear at the same time. That hasn't happened since...

Probably 2019, TBH 😣

 

[frustratedearthmother]

I'm with you @FarmerJamie - my son was the same way. We tried to hide or lock away snacks to be enjoyed over a week or so - but he'd find them and devour (or hide them from us) every chance he got, lol. It was a constant battle. It was such a struggle that it led to a new holiday tradition for us. For years I fought with my family to stick to better eating habits and save the "bad" snacks for the occasional special occasion. Walking through the grocery store one year before Christmas I was seeing snacks that they would beg for if they were with me. Soooo - I started buying all their favorite "bad" snacks. I bought each of their favorite soft drinks, cookies, candy, gum snack cakes - all the things they craved. I wrapped them up in a huge box for each person, DS, DD and (at that time) DH. You should have seen the look on their faces as they opened those gifts. It was a hit and continued until each of them left the house - (including the 1sh dH).

 

[flowerbug]

He pretends to hate it

My dog is obsessed with Twinkies and Nutter Butters now. I had been obedience training him but it wasn't going well. He was sniffing the Twinkie so I broke off a piece and cued "Finish." Turns out he knows Finish but just doesn't wanna do it, except for a Twinkie. Don't tell my vet, okay?

Nutter Butters are highly addictive to me. i think it is the salty aspect and the crunch too along with the sugar and peanut butter. all of that, yep, i could eat those by the thousands, but we don't usually buy cookies for us to eat as we make so many. i'm glad. i really don't need more temptations around here.

 

[FarmerJamie]

Me too! Me too! but I do remember my dad getting beer in glass bottles in box cases that the tops folded in. Also, remember banana seats on bikes and when it was ok to smoke indoors. I like to think that I am not that old but since I have reached and crossed my half way mark in life, I might be older than I want to admit.

Yeah. This.
Plus in the grocery store during high school and college, I would spend hours in "the bottle house" sorting by vendor.

Don't forget loose Brach's candy on display either