Where Did May Go?

Dear Oh Dear….Where did May go?
I can't believe sometimes how quickly time passes.   I have taken plenty of photos over the last few weeks with better than great intentions to convert those into blog posts…but life just plain and simple got in the way!
So here we are at the end of the month and I will try and recap with pictures!
Let's started from the long weekend…

Mom and I got all the plants and seeds for the garden.   She spent a lot of her morning planting while I weed whipped.
Here she is…and I am happy to report that now 2 weeks after this was taken almost all of the seeds have sprouted and we will be eating fresh garden lettuce in about another 10 days!   Hurray!

Here is the garden from the other angle.

Mom and I also made it our mission to clean up some brush and old shrubs around the house and along the fence line.  This is the area where are propane tank resides.   It was over grown with forsythia to the point that it never even flowered.  

Before

During

After

Mom and I also chopped the overgrown raspberry bramble that was more that just slightly out of hand!

Before

During

(~~Note that my mom and I got a really good belly laugh going when the 2 of us were trying to light a brush fire with spent racing fuel and a kleenx.   It's a wonder we both still have our eyebrows!)

After

My Dad and DH spent their weekend working at removing the old round pen from the driveway / parking area.   All this dirt is being used to build the platforms that we need for the shelters in each of the pastures.  

Last weekend DH and I removed the old clothes line that was nearly falling over.   It was discovered the posts where only in the ground 18-24" so it was no wonder a full load of wet towels and high winds from living on the hill were ripping these post right out of the ground!   All 4 posts are gone and new posts will be set in soon so that outdoor fresh drying of clothes can begin!!

We got some new windows in the house.   These are the 2 largest window in the entire house.   After the winter that we just had and the extreme, extended cold spell; we knew we had to try and improve the insulation value to reduce the rather big expense to heating the house.    The new windows look great and were installed by a local craftsman.

Back Entrance to Mudroom - After

Front of House - Before

Front of House - After

It's amazing what a difference having a cross breeze in the front room makes now that we have windows that open on that prevailing west side of the house.   Now we need a new front door and a patio!!   :-)

On Victoria Day, I took this picture of the local Robin that has taken up house in the tree beside the pergola.

Here is the nest on May 19th.

Here is the nest on May 29th

My friend Theresa and I have been trying to help each other get our running mojo's back.   After being sick for an extended amount of time without really knowing it…I am finally diagnosed and feeling better now that I am on an iron supplement.  Funny how symptoms in isolation really don't seem to mean much but when you add them all up and lump them together it makes a whole lot more sense!

Lastly, I was fortunate enough to spend the last several days of May with a wonderful group of woman in a clinic with Josh Nichol.    More to come on the clinic in a later post.   For now, my synopsis in a line is that I am very blessed with a lovely little horse and to share time and space with Josh so I could embody his philosophy of training, living and being present in our everyday existence. 

Spring Grass, Water Dogs and Gardening

It's been a blogging hiatus the last several weeks.
Live has been busy and I just haven't honestly made blogging my priority.   Sorry friends and followers…I do care and I have thought often about posts and have taken pictures to share but I just have ran out of steam at the end of my day to sit and type a few lines.
So tonight..here I sit, with Smirnoff Ice in hand, pictures down loaded to my computer and a big plate of chocolate cake and ice-cream for dinner, typing a few lines to the world to let you know life on the farm has been hectic but in that rewarding way that makes you feel alive about something bigger than yourself.

May brought my birthday…Thank you to all those who had me in their thoughts and sent emails, cards and notes via Facebook.   I am truly humbled to have crossed so many people thoughts for the day.   Thank you…much love!

Here is my 8 layer chocolate mousse cake.   Yummy!

DH and I also had a very fun dinner party to celebrate the death of winter and birth of spring!   Cheers to good friends.

With the better weather we also had our first fire last week in the fire pit off the pergola.  I got home late from work and DH had drinks and the fire ready for me.  xo

The horses have also enjoyed the warmer weather and it honestly seems rather odd to look out over the fields and see them outside 'naked'!!   (no blankets)    It seems they have had blankets on for so long I forgot how beautiful their shiny coats look in the sunshine!    Em and Wanda enjoy a grooming now that they are able!

The fields have started to turn a lush green in the past week and the front pasture we have used as the initiation field for the start of spring grazing.   This year is no exception and the horses have went out on grass for a few hours starting this week.   They have full bellies after only a couple of hours and there was hay left in the morning at chores…I don't think hay has it's same appeal (even rich 2nd cut) now that the fresh grass has sprouted!

I could seriously look out my front window at this view for hours!

Wanda has a new human in her life!    We have welcomed Melissa to the farm…she has brought a wonderful new energy to Wed night girls riding night!

I spent some time last weekend cleaning up the south fence line behind the pond.   It's full of scrub trees and weeds and lots of burrs.   It really doesn't look like much but it took a full afternoon to get it to this state.

Before

After

DH and I have a better garden for the veggies this year.   Here's to hoping that I don't abandon ship like last summer.   You can read about last summer's weed apocalypse here!
The garden and the squash patch are pretty well ready for planting…just waiting for it to be a tad bit warmer yet!

With the warmer weather I have also been blessed with wonderful hacking in our woods.   The dogs love to crash through the brush and run along with Izzy.
The wonders of the bush never seem to fade for me.  I was so delighted to find these Dog Tooth Violets and the other little purple and pink violets (not sure what they are called) on my hack this week.   Someday I will have spring bulbs planted along the trails to enjoy.

As for the mutts…aka the wonderful, loving and smart goldens!
These 2 are water lovers!    Which is not a good thing since we have a pond!  They will be spending ALOT of time locked on the back porch drying before they are allowed back in the house.
Today's hi-jinx found these 2 in the pond at least 3 times today!

Molly also treed a raccoon this week at 5am!   Nothing like a crazy dog that WILL NOT come to her name, barking her fool head off at the bottom of a tree.   I give her credit, she has a great nose but at times it gets her into a lot of trouble!