A Tour of the Farm

I had some friends over today to visit the farm.  I hope they had a good time. Boyd was a tour guide and what a tour we had!  After a lunch at Maddox, we walked around the farm and then hopped in the Bronco.   Boyd took us off-roading up the pasture hill, tried to flip us riding the side of the ditch, and took us for a long ride out towards the Bird Refuge.  I hope they dare come again.

Remembering the Good Old Days

Boyd reminisced about the good old days when they ran cattle on the farm. This would have been the time of year they separated the calves from the cows.  Must have been a lot of work because he isn't jumping at the chance to own cows again. 

Sinks

Boyd found an old sink in the basement.  By the way, he is making great progress cleaning it out!  Anyway, he gave it to me for a potting table.  It is perfect.

We also noticed the patent and manufacture date on the bottom of another old sink I was going to use for a potting bench.

I thought it was interesting.  Just a small sample of the endless surprises being discovered here at the Dismal Land and Livestock Company.

Time for a pedicure

The only downside of owning goats and not having a rugged, rocky cliff for them to climb on is that you have to trim their hooves.  Even this wouldn't be so odious if they would be more cooperative.  I have seen pictures in goat handling books where the person sets the goat on his rump and trims from behind.  I don't see how you can do that and not get gored by the horns.  I am more successful by rolling the goat on its back and holding a couple of legs together.  Neither the goats nor I love this method, but it gets the job done.  They aren't hurt even though they loudly protest.  Let me know if you feel more sorry for the goat or for me!

Jersey getting a little love and sympathy from Sage.

Fauna, the shortest and roundest of all the goats.

Poor Sage getting flipped over.

Thanks to my nice husband for taking the pictures.

Turkeys

The turkeys have returned.  Okay, we saw them yesterday.  They keep a pretty consistent schedule and I wasn't home early enough today to check on them.  Wish me luck on getting a better close-up.

He's 51

Boyd celebrated his birthday by swather shopping and taking a drive thru  southern Idaho.  We ate at Flagg's West in Downey and stopped at the site of an Indian massacre.  Not too long ago, there was some sort of reunion at the site.  A lot of interesting items were hanging from a large tree. 

Flowers

We put flowers on my dad's grave tonight to mark the one year anniversary. 

Anndee's school friend made this for her.  It is ice with a candle inside.

My good friend Brenda had this darling bouquet sent to me at school today.  Isn't she so nice?

Spring Has Sprung

I hope spring is really here to stay, even if it means cleaning out the goat pen.   This was the view from the tractor as I hauled off leftover limbs from the goat pen.  I took it with my phone.

The goats have had some free roaming time the last two nights.  After being locked up all winter, I am sure they loved it.  Funny, they looked for a hole in the fence and ran right back to the apple tree first thing.  Last fall it had juicy apples for them.  Now they are like apple raisins, but they still ate them.  I cleaned half the pen tonight and will get the joy of cleaning the other half some other day.  I really added to the compost pile tonight.  One day I will post pictures of our heaping mound of decomposing goat poop.  Don't die of anticipation!
And, just because it is my blog, I am posting some pics of the goats as babies. 

Aren't they adorable??  

Vern and Mary

My dad and Boyd's mom both died on March 17th.  My dad died last year and Mary passed away in 2005.  
Mary Reeder was an interesting woman.  She didn't take no for an answer and was incredibly independent.  Sometimes Boyd accuses me of being just like his mother.  I always take that as a compliment.  After all, she is the one who tried to get us married for years.  She even took me to Maddox and asked my why I wouldn't marry her son.  My reply was simply that he hadn't asked.  She bribed Boyd with cash if he would just date me, but he refused.  It wasn't until after she died that she really had any influence on him in the marriage department.  You'll have to ask him for the whole story, but he often reminds me that we had to get married to stop his mother from haunting him.  Mary was a dentist and I think the first licensed female dentist in Utah. 

Mary at dental school.

Too many stories to share about my dad.  Of course, I had to put a picture of fishing and camping.  We spent a LOT of family time in the mountains somewhere.  I remember visiting him in the hospital after he had the last heart procedure.  He wasn't complaining about his current surgery, but was wishing instead they would have fixed his casting shoulder.  It hurt and he was afraid he would have to learn to fish left-handed.  He was a great dad and I miss him.

I'm not sure how he got Sybil to dig an outhouse, but there is the proof!!  Every time I see this photo it makes me smile.   Sorry Sybil!

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