The Old Folks Home

[Arielle]

Oh Arielle, I remember those sleep overs! It's been a while. The kids just love them.

We have been having so much snow..it didn't stop here for three days..today, is the first morning in several that I haven't had to shovel my way to the coop. But, it's supposed to snow again tomorrow. Oh well, winter IS here. Here in Utah, we don't mind so much when we stop and think we won't have a drought for sure. We do go through those. Those are hard on the ones trying to water their crops. If it's a bad drought, then even folks with lawns are asked not to water as often. I think we will be fine this year!!

We do not need another drought this year. I saw the beef prices jump right before CHristmas. DH bought me a roast beef for my birthday dinner and paid, gulp, 7$ a pound .Holy moly. We need a great corn crop, wheat crop and soy crop, and we need to increase the cattle herd again. At least the poultry producers can react quicker to increased demands if the grain prices fall due to a bumper harvest. I keep thinking how to produce more of our own food economically. Who is planning their garden already?

 

[Cynthia12]

I only have a small area for a garden. When we lived in the town over, I had a great garden area. Since we've down sized in land, I have to put what I can where I can. I've been putting tomatoes and squash, and this year some chard up front at the end of my flower bed. Worked great. If ever needed to, I know my DH could make a great garden area out where the big dog area is in the back. We have apple trees, pear tree, and a cherry tree of our own and the neighbors that is half way over our fence.

We get a lot of fruit during the late spring and fall.

 

[IttyBiddyRedHen]

Ahh....I used to have a life. Right now, DH and I have been dealing with the flu. We have got absolutely NOTHING done these past 2 weeks. We were both up at 2 am this morning, hacking and coughing. He has it the worst, and he's the only employed one of us atm.

 

[7 Biddies]

What a cutie! I'm sorry you lost your boy. Enjoy your baby though. I have only not owned a dog for a very short amount of time in my life and I was miserable and lonely. They helped me be a good kid and were also there for me when I had problems as a kid. I didn't have a very nice stepdad. He did pay me off in cars as I was growing up, but those were so I wouldn't turn him in. If it hadn't been for my dogs, I don't think I would have been a very nice proson or would have gotten into trouble. Then I bought a GSD when I was 12 and the sellers had an Irish Setter, I had trained one I had in 3 weeks and my mom told them about it. Next thing I knew I was training their dog, which they had paid other trainers thousands to do and they sent me owners to train for, so I started off really young. Then I wanted to get into showing, so I trained 2 GSDs and the owners gave me my first show puppy. That's when it all began.

31!!!! OMG! Finally, someone with more than me! I have 28 and now my first great. My oldest grandson made me laugh at the baby shower, He bought all kinds of stuff for the baby and when I asked him if he was excited to be an uncle he said he was just glad he wasn't the first one to have kids. LOL We all cracked up at him. He had a relief wash over him. He's a sweetheart and so soft spoken and mellow, not like when he was younger. He was a sweetheart, but man! My grand daughter is a good mommy. I'm so proud of her. Not thrilled with the choice of daddy, but then I'm not alone with that. She finished up this last semester at college and she can't wait to go back, so that's good and she took 3 months off from work, so I hope she doesn't have a problem when she goes back to school.

I've never had a golden, but my neighbor has a young one, Bubba. What a sweetheart! He runs up and down our street with his stuffed animals, dropping them along the way. I've found his purple hippo in my driveway more than once. He finally lost it, so now he has a large stuffed pink pig that he's proud to show off. I love this dog! They seem so sweet and happy.

 

[7 Biddies]

I only have a small area for a garden. When we lived in the town over, I had a great garden area. Since we've down sized in land, I have to put what I can where I can. I've been putting tomatoes and squash, and this year some chard up front at the end of my flower bed. Worked great. If ever needed to, I know my DH could make a great garden area out where the big dog area is in the back. We have apple trees, pear tree, and a cherry tree of our own and the neighbors that is half way over our fence.

We get a lot of fruit during the late spring and fall.

Hmm. You just gave me a great idea: I'm going to put tomatoes in the rose garden this year. The whiskey barrels they've been in has blight in the soil, so I was looking for a new place. Thanks for making me think of it.

Now, does anyone have any organic methods for killing the blight that's in the soil in the whiskey barrels?

 

[sourland]

We have our third golden - she's going on 4 years old. They are clones of one another. Our 3 from different blood lines (as different as is possible in goldens) all had/have the same personality. The drawback - first two were euthanized in their early teens because of cancer. Sadly enough that is a common occurence with goldens.

 

[gryeyes]

Punkin, one of my two house pullets, followed me outside this morning... But on the side of the house that doesn't lead into the fenced garden where they've been allowed until they're integrated into the flock. Within two minutes there were two young roosters trying to wing-dance her. She found that disturbing. But not enough to send her back into the house... Too many DIFFERENT peck-able things out there! Then one of the BBB turkey hens got interested enough to shadow her. That made her run around to the back of the house and I was able to herd her into the garden. Ahh! Safe!

If the whole flock hadn't just been served BOSS, she might have been rushed by everybody at once, (I would have had a bit of heart palpitations over that scenario.)

She came back into the house and chattered about it to her sister, Beth the BR, who was still snuggled in a fuzzy throw.

They may integrate sooner than I expected.

 

[Arielle]

Quote: Not sure about the blight-- the image that came to mind was cooking the soil in the oven. Or adding vinegar. . . . ortherwise a blight resistant strain, perhaps. Or change what veg is planted in that woil for a few years.

Vegies in the garden can be so pretty too. Really don't need a lot of space for a few squash, or beans or tomatos. ONe year we planted in large nusery pots, and those needed regular watering. THese days insteadof making hill for the squash I dig a hole to catch and hold water. Squash needs a lot of water.

 

[Arielle]

Punkin, one of my two house pullets, followed me outside this morning... But on the side of the house that doesn't lead into the fenced garden where they've been allowed until they're integrated into the flock. Within two minutes there were two young roosters trying to wing-dance her. She found that disturbing. But not enough to send her back into the house... Too many DIFFERENT peck-able things out there! Then one of the BBB turkey hens got interested enough to shadow her. That made her run around to the back of the house and I was able to herd her into the garden. Ahh! Safe!

If the whole flock hadn't just been served BOSS, she might have been rushed by everybody at once, (I would have had a bit of heart palpitations over that scenario.)

She came back into the house and chattered about it to her sister, Beth the BR, who was still snuggled in a fuzzy throw.

They may integrate sooner than I expected.

LOL. Sounds like the day is coming very soon . . . .

 

[Cynthia12]

We have our third golden - she's going on 4 years old. They are clones of one another. Our 3 from different blood lines (as different as is possible in goldens) all had/have the same personality. The drawback - first two were euthanized in their early teens because of cancer. Sadly enough that is a common occurence with goldens.

Yes, that darn cancer is what got our first Golden, we are on number three too. But the first guy had cancer, and, his hips were bad, another thing that they suffer with in their older years. Joints!

Who was talking about the toy the golden had? That's so funny because our first golden had to have a "binky" as we called it. He was this big ol guy with a stuffed animal in his mouth all the time. They love to fetch, have something in their mouths. My second golden, the one that just passed, wasn't like that, and now, our Missy, doesn't seem to care for one all the time. Just our first.
Missy is working out real well so far. She's a smart one. Very willing to please..that's a golden. Easy to train. Knock on wood. We'll see how she does with the barking the first time I leave her outside for a while. Right now, it's too cold for a pup, so I kennel train. She sleeps well at night in it.