Summer Is Here...

So, it has been way too long since I have been able to post to this blog of mine. I would like to say I was on some exciting vacation or I was blissfully lounging on a beach far away with no access to internet...but no, however, that is not the case.

These past few weeks have brought about the onset of summer into now full blown summer mode. With that being the case, there has been a lot to do as our little homestead transitioned into this new season. (not to mention all responsibilities of work that is always extra heavy from May to June) So, here is my recap in a nutshell over the last few weeks.

Meet our ladies...

 Louise

Gertie

Lucille

Our chicken area

As you can probably can tell just by looking at them...Louise is our ornery one...Gertie is our sweet one (who I think always likes to do the right thing)...and then of our course you have Lucille. Lucille is our drama queen and she is tends to be a bit of a bully.

As we made our transition to summer type weather, I spent a lot of time making sure my ladies were going to be kept well and healthy. (especially since two are in the moulting process) Summer brings about all kinds of great things, but with those great things it also brings about BUGS. In my best preventative effort to keep my ladies free from bugs, I spent quite a bit of time cleaning out there little coop area, changed out their bedding, and sprinkled DE (diatomaceous earth) all over the place...I then proceeded to give them all a DE dust bath (which Louise was a bit resistant to at first.) In case you may not know, DE is used to prevent mites and prevents worms...and it is ALL NATURAL, completely safe for them and us (make sure it is food grade DE if you decide to use it.) It is not an insecticide...it is "the remains of microscopic one-celled plants (phytoplankton) called diatoms that lived in the oceans and lakes that once covered the western part of the US and other parts of the world. These deposits are mined from underwater beds or from ancient dried lake bottoms thousands of years old." Google DE and you can see all the great benefits it can bring. I am done with my DE spill now.

Needless to say, my chickens are ready for the warm weather and whatever bugs want to come with it...they are DE covered! Now, if I can get Lucille to stop picking feathers off her friend...we will be in business. I am going to attempt at making a chicken saddle/apron for Gertie, I think that will help.

Now to the next thing...

Our garden is in full production...minus the green beans, something went really wrong there...BUT everything else is giving us a bountiful crop. 

Here is from one evening of gleaning in the garden. (there are a lot of hot banana peppers and jalapeños that I forgot to add to this shot) 

We currently have 3 jars of pickles canned from our cucumbers, 3 jars of peppers, and 1 jar of radishes. The zucchini...we have been eating in "oven fried" slices, YUM.

Never in all my days did I imagine all this would be part of my adult life. These are the things I did when I lived at home. Funny how some things just become a part of who you are. I certainly would not know how to do ANY of these things without my mom. She taught me how to do all these things...it is nice to know she is only a phone call away when I need help with any thing...whether it be about the garden, my chickens, Lil' Man, or life in general. Mom, I give you grief...but I love you and love the person you helped me to be. 

In all the great things I am enjoying out here...the work can be a bit overwhelming. Especially with all the rain. Our grass is growing like crazy...which is good, since we have a lot of barren spots. It is keeping up with the mowing that gets to be tiresome. Thankfully John Deere helps out with that. :) In case we ever stop to think of why we keep our lawn so closely mowed...here are a few reminders we have....

 The snake was caught in our garage. I honestly do not know how we caught a snake in a trap that was intended for a sneaky little mouse...but, alas, a snake was caught nonetheless. A word to the wise. When a snake is caught in a mouse trap and appears to be dead, don't assume it is dead. As I released it from the trap, I quickly found out it was alive. He quickly took cover under a tree in some brush that I had not yet mowed down. **my reminder to keep the brush MOWED DOWN** As I was holding the snake and moving him out of the garage into the a different spot, I was very aware suddenly that my 2 year old son was watching. I had to tell him that snakes were yucky and he was NOT to ever touch one. I didn't want him to see me handling one and attempt it himself.

Now here, I have my own nemesis. The spider. This particular Goliath of a spider was reacting to another spider crossing its path. I used my high quality zoom to capture this moment. Do not be disillusioned in thinking I got this close to the horrendous creature. Look at how creepy this guy is! 

Moving on to more pleasant things.

Taking a break from life. Lance and I decided to introduce Lil' Man to fishing a week ago. He LOVED it. We did too. 

                         

   

As you can tell, someone was more interested in his Twizzler than his first catfish.

           

                                                                  Now, he is showing some pride. :)                                                       

                                 

Even I had some success with our fishing endeavor. :)

Somehow, in all of this, we have also managed to:

 Weave in some swim time...

                               

Attend a FRESH BEAT BAND concert!

We LOVE the Fresh Beat Band

He was THRILLED when Kiki and Twist came and waved hi to him.

Dancing to the music while we were waiting for the show to start.

Go to a graduation...

And...spend time with family

Even though we have a lot of work going on...we are enjoying life and having fun together. Now, I hope to incorporate more baking and cooking into my day...I sure have missed it!

We will see what other adventures still await us this summer!