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Posts Tagged ‘nature’

16 Feb

Barnyard Brawl

Posted by ivegonecountry in Uncategorized. Tagged: animals, nature, newest additions, tail feathers. Leave a comment

Say hello to our newest additions…..

This is our new Rooster. He is very handsome…if I say so myself.

He has beautiful colored feathers and his tail feathers are long and fluffy. I did happen to notice that he also sports SPURS on his legs. (SCARY)

Roosters have some good and bad points.

He will announce to the girls that he has found food. My neighbor said her rooster will call all the girls together and show them where some worms are. Allowing them eat first….that’s sweet.

He will also protect the girls from predators and fertilize their eggs so they can have babies.

And then of course they have that early morning wake-up call that they are famous for!

One of the bad points is….he could hurt the girls with those spurs.

Another bad point is….he could hurt me with those spurs.

The absolute WORST point is….he could hurt my grand children with those spurs…..and HE DOESN’T WANT TO DO THAT!!!!!

As you know from previous post…. I still cannot tell my hens apart. They all look alike. Well…. now I have 4 more that look just like the others.

So for now….only the rooster will have a name…..and it is Roo.

When I first saw them join my girls I thought they looked slightly different in color. Like they might be more beige toned…..but then again….it could have just been the way the light was shining on them. They started to mingle and go here and there….and before long…I couldn’t tell which ones were my regular girls and which were the new girls.

I was all smiles…thinking…. well now….they all seem to be settling in just fine…….Isn’t that nice.

BUT THEN:

Two of the girls decided to take it out back. They started into one another….and it didn’t take but just one minute and the MAN stepped in and broke it up!

They backed down, walked away and joined the others….

but it was only a few minutes when…..

Two more girls started up again…..

It is pretty interesting how that Rooster runs and gets to them as soon as the fight breaks out. He steps right in there and lets them know that HE is the boss.

Then he strolls or maybe I should say he…..struts….away.

I hope the girls work out this pecking order thing.

I just want them to be one happy family….but…that may take a little while.

So, now we have a total of 10 hens and 1 rooster. One rooster is suppose to be able to handle up to 10 girls.

Good luck ROO!

I don’t mind him keeping order as long as he doesn’t get too aggressive. This breed is suppose to be docile. So far….they have been. However our first rooster didn’t live very long…so I’m not sure how he would have been as an adult.

Roosters tend to scare me….so he better be nice….or he won’t be staying long. We CAN do without him.

Hens can lay eggs if Mr. Roo is around or not. We wouldn’t be able to have baby chicks….but I suppose I could buy some if I really think I need them.

So, Mr. Roo…..watch your step….you may be king of the roost….but Billy and I are King and Queen of the COOP!

12 Feb

Waiting on Spring

Posted by ivegonecountry in Uncategorized. Tagged: gloomy weather, nature, plants, plants flowers, soggy soil. 4 comments

It’s February and around here it is….not really winter….but not Spring either.

The days are getting longer….YOO-HOO. I do love that!!!!!

However, the days are lately….wet….or cold….or both. Lots of GRAY skies and soggy soil.

We need the rain…we need the different seasons….I am truly thankful for all of them. However, we also needed a little Vitamin D….that the sunshine provides.

Sooooo…..we took a little break and got away from the gloomy weather……and headed for places where

the sky was BLUE….and the palms were plentiful…..

The native trees were not the same as they are around our neck of the woods.

The water was green…. and blue….. and absolutely beautiful.

The sand was “different” than I am familiar with….as well as the shore line….

Yet….absolutely stunning.

I love to see how God spread beauty all over the world. God’s blessings are for everyone.

It doesn’t matter if you have a million dollars or not a penny to your name….His creation and all the beauty that goes with it….is for everyone.

Beautiful fruits….

trees….

plants….

flowers…..

and animals.

It seemed everywhere I looked…..I saw God’s amazing creation..proclaiming…. HIS MAJESTY.

I am always just in awe at the detail He put into everything.

I couldn’t help but reflect on this verse.

Romans 1:20

²⁰For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

What a Mighty God we serve…….

9 Feb

A Beautiful Day….

Posted by ivegonecountry in Uncategorized. Tagged: animals, nature, outdoors. 2 comments

Today was a beautiful day. It was the perfect day to be outside. We are supposed to have rain, rain, rain for the next few days…so everyone was outside around here…..enjoying the sunshine.

We had some of our kids and grand kids come out for a walk and to take a peak at the new goats.

We had a bit of excitement yesterday afternoon. Our little baby girl decided to start walking!!!!! I was sooooooo excited.

She has to be on a rug or on certain fabric….but she is walking. Yesterday when she would venture off the rug all four legs would slide in a different direction. Today she could walk on the hardwood a little bit better…but the rug is still her best place…. for now. She drags one of her back legs a little bit….but all in all she is amazing me more and more each day.

We took her to see her mother and brother. Once again I had to set her down and move back. Shortly, her mother came up to check her out. I was so proud of her….she was able to stand up on her own most all day. She even showed her mother how she could walk.

Surely her mother was impressed with her progress…….

Here are brother and sister, aren’t they cute together?…..

You can see that the boy is a good bit bigger…but this next picture will really show the difference in their size.

Isn’t that amazing……

Mothers nurturing is the best….but at least we are trying. Although Mama spent a little time with baby girl it is still obvious that she really isn’t very interested in her. At least not enough to tend to her needs.

Last night Billy and I noticed that baby girl was making a little noise….it sounded as if she was sneezing or something. We both looked at each other like…oh no….that’s not good.

When Billy gave her a bottle he said….it looks like her nose is clogged. Sure enough it was. I applied a warm wet cloth to it….and things loosened. It just might have been dried milk or something. She likes to bump the nipple of the bottle several times before she takes it. Of course she ends up with milk on her snout. Mama goat probably cleans her baby after all that….I don’t know. I do know that once the nose was cleaned good….the sneezing noise stopped. Poor baby. This morning I noticed that one side of her nostril swelled a little….but I think it must feel better all in all.

She also has a little under bite.

I personally think she is just a little beauty…swollen nostril, under bite and all.

She is a brave and courageous little critter. So far she has put up a good fight for life.

Once again we milked Mama and Riley was able to feed baby…

I am so glad the grand kids get to see nature and have a part in taking care of God’s precious creation.

I can’t help but think that these things make God smile…..I know they do me.

Genesis 1:26 (King James Version)

And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

5 Feb

The Baby Goats are here…..

Posted by ivegonecountry in Uncategorized. Tagged: animals, motherhood, nature. 4 comments

You might remember that we had a goat named May that was expecting. I thought that she was going to have them a long time ago….but I didn’t know her official due date. She just kept getting bigger…and bigger….and bigger. Until she was big as a barrel. Saturday….Billy and I said surely she can’t get any bigger, she has to be close.

She finally delivered in the early morning hours this Sunday. She had four babies. 2 girls and 2 boys. One of the girls was still born. I hate to see that happen.

The other three seemed to be doing fine.

I couldn’t believe how cute they were.

Layla and Poo-pa checked in on them and gave them a little love.

They also decided to name the little girl goat that was still born Angelina. They buried her while I checked on Mama goat…May. The babies seemed in pretty good shape, but it didn’t seem like the mama was giving them much attention. She was still trying to pass her afterbirth. I think she was too preoccupied with that to care. We watched them throughout the afternoon, but never saw them nurse. Billy got a rope and as Layla said….Poop-pa Lassoed her. He did a very good job at it too. He’s looking more and more like a real cowboy these days. May has always been very skittish. We bought her back in May…hence her name. And she never has let us touch her. She is getting to where she will get closer to us….but just not too close. Billy gently lassoed her and then petted her while I milked her. The babies must have the colostrum from the mother within hours or they will die. Not knowing if she had nursed earlier or not….we felt we had to try to help.

She produced about 3 1/2 ounces for me. We gathered the babies up in a crate and took them to the house. It was a cold day although it was warm if you were in the sun. I felt like they needed a little warmth and some warm food in their bellies to give them a good chance at survival.

It took a while….but I was finally able to get them all fed. We made the tough decision of returning them to their mother for the night. They were much stronger now and would be able to climb toward their mother if she would lay near them. She was laying down resting and eagerly greeted them when we brought them back to her.

Billy and I couldn’t help but worry about them…..

Yesterday morning bright and early….Billy checked on them. Everyone was fine….whew…what a relief.

A little after nine, I checked on them….things weren’t fine.

The black and white goat who was the biggest of them all had died. He was laying beside the runt of the litter, who is the other little girl. The mother and the other baby boy were on one side of the hay bales and these two were on the other side. The runt seemed alright so I placed her near her mother and brother and quickly grabbed the black one up and tried to revive him. I cuddled him up in a soft towel and held him close to me inside my jacket and brought him to the house. I warmed his body with the warm air from the blow dryer…all while giving him breaths of air and massaging his little chest. But it was just too late.

This is a picture we took on Sunday afternoon…he was a cute little thing.

After working with him I decided I had better go back and check on the baby girl (runt) that had been laying beside him.

(This is the baby girl…. runt…picture taken on Sunday)

By this time about 20 minutes had passed by. She looked very weak. Apparently Mama wasn’t letting them nurse.

The baby boy goat that had been laying next to her must have been the only one she was taking care of. He was very strong and was wiggling his tail….which is a good sign.

(This is the boy…picture taken on Sunday)

I gathered the runt up and once again wrapped her up in a towel and put her inside my jacket. I didn’t have time to try to get colostrum from the mother so I headed to the feed store with the baby. I was able to buy some. She was so weak she could barely hold her head up. She wouldn’t even try to take the bottle. I squirted a tiny bit in her mouth and hoped it would ease down her throat. Little by little I was able to get some in her. Back at home I arranged a bed for her complete with a heating pad under a pad of towels. She laid so still it was pitiful. Every once in a while she would cry out…..sounding like a little baby.

Through the afternoon I pampered her, loved her, held her and fed her. She slowly started sitting up and seemed to be gaining strength.

Finally by suppertime….she started taking the bottle.

She ate real well.

Soooooo…..Last night I went to bed with a box on the floor beside me…complete with a baby goat. I woke up sometime during the night and just had to laugh. The next time I woke up it was to the cry of that baby wanting a 1:30 feeding.

I know……What do you do? I couldn’t let her just die. So even as I type this blog she has given the I’m hungry cry.

I just took this picture while holding her….she is much stronger today.

Thankfully, I was able to also buy some goat milk supplement . She is supposed to graduate to drinking that today.

Meanwhile….we wait for the bottle to warm!

17 Jan

Hmmm. It’s Winter……

Posted by ivegonecountry in Uncategorized. Tagged: nature, rain rain rain, weather. 2 comments

Here are Pokey, Zippy, Jack and Moses enjoying some of the warm days we have had in the early part of January.

Jack is becoming more friendly. We have eased into petting him, whenever we could get close enough. Now, I think he has decided he kinda likes us!

The hair on his forehead feels like a stuffed animals, super soft….just like his father Moses.

This weekend the weather was in the 70’s….and I loved every minute of it. Especially since the forecast was for RAIN, RAIN, RAIN…in the coming days.

Billy and I worked on every outside chore we could while the weather was nice.

And squeezed in a little leisure walk in the woods too!

I love seeing the moss and wild ferns grow on and around the rocks….

Reminds me of lush carpet.

Then the RAIN came….

And it poured down rain for several days. The rivers around here are WAY out of their banks and they haven’t even crested yet.

Poor Zsa-Zsa….

and Brandy….they looked as if they wanted it to stop already…but…. it had only just begun.

It was just about 3:30 or 4:00 when I left the pasture and checked on the hens….but they were not outside….

So, when I went to the front door…I saw all these little wet chicken footprints…..and sure enough….

they had already gone in for the day……I suppose if chickens wore pajamas and robes they would have had theirs on. They had no intentions on going back out in the rain.

But they did leave me a couple of eggs.

They like to use the same little box to lay in…but on this day they spread out a little…

I suppose since they had called it a short day…that is why I only had three eggs. However, they made up for it the next day and gave me 5…all in one box.

The goats haven’t cared much for the rain either….

When I arrived back at the house they all looked pitiful at the fence. It has been a while since I have had a picture showing how much Hoot n Nanny and Jethro have grown. Hoot n Nanny is the one on the far left…Jethro is the one right in front of her. It always amazes me how quick the goats grow. Freddy is the reddish goat in the middle and Pearl..which is Hoot n Nanny’s mother is the white goat on the far right.

Since we had a lot of nice weather before the rain….the Jonquils are popping their heads up a little earlier than last year.

Sooooo…they forecasted that we just might get a ban of snow…..

and as I began to type this post…..it started snowing……

104_3006

it is pretty…..but I hope it doesn’t hang around.

The goats have invaded the dog house….all five of them! They too hope it quits soon.

It is rare that we get an accumulation of snow…the schools have already sent everyone home early. Around here if snow is coming everyone runs to the store for bread and milk….and hunkers down for a long winters nap.

Thankfully, I went to the store yesterday. I have milk and bread…although I am not real sure why everyone wants that to eat when it snows?

I seemed to have lost my touch for cooking….hmmm…come to think about it….maybe I never really had it to begin with. But…thanks to google and all these other ladies that have blogs….and seem to be good cooks…… I am attempting to make beef stew and a new cornbread recipe. Now THAT is comfort food.

It is smelling really good right now!

However, if it turns out ..like everything else lately….we may be having that milk and bread!

11 Jan

A full year….

Posted by ivegonecountry in Uncategorized. Tagged: animals, lifestyle, nature, plants. 1 comment

Christmas marked a full year since I became a . com.

I thought it would be neat to reflect on a few of the things that happened this last year on the farm.

In January of 2012

Our first goat was born.

We named him Jethro…..

and he stole our hearts!

In February….

I reflected on being married for 16 years….

and how we went from”City living”….

to living out an episode of “Green Acres”…and loving every minute of it!

In March…..

Cupid delivered a beautiful baby girl…that we named…Toots

and the very next day….we were blessed with our second goat….

Hoot- n- Nanny….

In April…..

Billy delivered his first calf…..

I suppose this was one of the most beautiful moments we have experienced so far. We had lost a cow named Jett and her calf…black beauty…. in labor just a day before this delivery. It was exceptionally special that Billy and I were able to help Zsa Zsa in her time of need on this particular night.

I love this picture….I just happened to catch an exhausted Billy….. thanking God for a healthy Mama and baby.

Precious…Precious

We named her JOY!

In May….

We had a new dog join us. And of course there was all kinds of new excitement with her.

and as puppy’s do….she grew

and grew….

and grew…..matter of fact…I think she is still growing!

In June….

We picked beautiful blackberry’s from the very bushes we planted a few years ago.

It was soooo exciting to pick containers of fruit each day…. for weeks. But…. man…. those thorns HURT!

I had a very interesting time making my FIRST batch of blackberry Jelly.

Then I made Blackberry Jam and well let’s just say……before long we had many, many jars of jelly.

In July….

Our first donkey was born….on July 4th!!!!!

He is a real beauty…. we named him Jack.

In August…

Every where you looked…you could see the area….was covered in wild flowers

Even the things you see everyday…seem to have an extra beauty about them…..

as the flowers turned ordinary into extraordinary.

even fields that were without flowers….had their own beauty….

In September….

We brought chickens home to their new house.

they seemed to settled right in….

and we have enjoyed them….very much. I never knew chickens had personalities….but they do.

In October….

Beautiful colors came to the mountain…..

and yet….these pictures cannot truly show you just how beautiful the colors really were.

I found that a walk in the woods was the only way I could absorb it all.

In November….

Billy received his Buffalo head mount …..

Billy said it all…. when he saw him…..WOAH…..he’s BIG!

Funny….the animals just don’t look THAT big in the field.

In December….

We celebrated the birth of Jesus Christ….

I love seeing country churches…especially at Christmas.

We also enjoyed a nice country breakfast with our family.

Our neighbors shared their fresh homemade sausage with us.

Billy also cooked up some bacon

and we enjoyed fresh eggs from our hens….

Of course we also had a nice selection of Jelly and Jam to choose from too!

It has been a fun year experiencing all the things that the country has to offer.

Everyday is a reminder of this verse….

I was shocked that the blog had over 7,000 views this year.

I was equally amazed that it is being seen all over the world, places that I have never been to in person. I find it interesting that most people like to just read and not comment. I am that way myself with the blogs I visit. However, I love reading what other viewers think about a post. So please feel free to comment.

Thank you for taking this journey with us this year…I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did.

Have a very Happy New Year,

Billy, Sonya and all our critters!

13 Dec

Then there were six…..

Posted by ivegonecountry in Uncategorized. Tagged: animals, little miracle, nature, photo opportunity. 2 comments

It seems as if there is always something going on since we moved to the land. The other morning I went to the coop and let the girls out. I counted as they waddled out of their little coop opening. Softly cooing as they scampered down the walk board, they are just full of energy in the mornings. I counted only six….as I made my way into the coop I looked for the missing hen. There she was….pretty as a picture…sitting in her little hen box.

She was working real hard, trying to produce an egg. I couldn’t leave….I just had to hang out for a little while…hoping to catch it in action. Sure enough, after a few more minutes, she laid an egg…right there for me to see. I tell you…..it is just a little miracle. Every time I see that happen I stand in total amazement.

I notice that the hen tends to stand over the egg for just a minute while the shell dries….causing it to harden. It is the neatest thing. She took her foot and rolled it over a tad, then exited the hen box. She scooted down the walk board and headed to the feed. By this time several of the other girls had come back into the coop….cackleing….as hens do. It is too cute. They all have such personality. One of them likes to stand at my feet while I scoop out the feed and put it into the container. She likes for me to put some in my hand and offer it to her. She gets all excited when I lower my hand and let her feed from it. I was a little scared to do this the first time…..thinking… what is going to happen if she misses the food and gets my hand? Well….I found out…because that does happen from time to time…but surprisingly enough…it feels like a tug…it doesn’t hurt. So that has become a regular thing and it seems that we both enjoy that time together.

This is a picture from a different day…but our routine is the same.

I love it when the girls stop and give me a photo opportunity….such as this one.

The other night after work I went to check on May, our goat. She is nice and round…I do not know exactly when she got pregnant…but I have a general idea. You can’t go on the fact that they are just…. Round…but taking that and my calculations into consideration….hopefully…. I am at least close to predicting the date. So…I opted to pin her up so I could help her IF she needs it in the near future. Besides, being pinned up is like staying at a goat hotel. She gets a lot of extra’s…..I am not seeing her complain about the accommodations….if you know what I mean.

This picture was actually taken back at the end of November…..before I put her up. She’s a cute little Mama to be.

It’s been about a week since she entered the goat hotel. Thus far, when I go over to the farm to take a good look at her….she just looks right back at me. Nothing happening…..yet. However…..I am anxiously waiting.

It gets dark so early this time of year…it makes it hard to check on everyone in the evenings. Billy and I decided to divide and conquer…the other night after work. I was to check on May…and Billy said he would put the girls up.

May and I exchanged “LOOKS” once again and then I headed toward the house.

Billy was still at the chicken coop. I slowed the car down and saw that he was in the adjoining woods with a flashlight. I stopped and observed….. up and over came one of the girls….her feet hit the ground running as she scooted as fast as she could to the coop door. He stayed in the woods for a few minutes longer. I didn’t have a good feeling about what I was seeing. Sure enough, a few minutes later he came to the car and said….and then there were six.

When you see this….it is NOT a good sign.

It literally made me sick to my stomach. Apparently something reached through the fence and attacked one of the girls.

I’m not sure why the other hen was on the outside of the fence when Billy arrived. Possibly she got frightened when the other hen was attacked and flew over. Billy said she was trying so hard to get back into the fence. She ended up alright…but the other hen….not a good ending.

Possibly you remember that we lost our rooster and a hen while we were on our Mission trip a few weeks ago. The hen disappeared, leaving nothing but a mound of feathers. The rooster lost his head….and many feathers. This latest attack was another one where the head was taken off…..but she was left….laying in a pile of feathers. I spared you from having to see that part. I buried her before taking this picture. It is a very sad thing to have any of our critters die….especially like that.

I made the girls stay in the house the next day. The coop is big enough for them to meander around….but they would rather be outside. I just couldn’t think about having to bury another one. I was also in hopes that whatever had been lurking around might go away if the hens weren’t out for a day or so. Meanwhile, I have been thinking about how I can better secure their surroundings. I know these things are going to happen from time to time…but I sure DON’T like it.

I suppose when you have animals…you have to take all the good excitement along with all the bad excitement.

Even though I never was able to name each hen….because I still can’t tell them apart….I find that I still get attached to them.

Hopefully, we will just have good excitement for a while.

I am on a quest to find more girls to add to the coop…and another rooster.

And I will be busy…. securing their area….trying to make it as safe as I can.

Ah….the ups and downs of farm living.

All life is beautiful…..precious…..and fragile.

24 Nov

And so it has begun….

Posted by ivegonecountry in Uncategorized. Tagged: animals, nature. Leave a comment

The week that we were to leave for our mission trip…..I found this….

I was sooooo excited!!!!!!

But when I looked closer ….I noticed it had a hole in it. BUMMER

However most everyday since then we have gotten at least one egg and sometimes two a day. That is cool.

Chickens tend to slow down and some even stop laying in the winter time…from what I have read. I think I probably just have one or two chicks laying. I’m not sure…but one or two of them seem to be matured a little more than the others. I say that because of their combs.

We have a friend who watches after the dogs and the chickens while we are gone. I told her to keep whatever eggs she gathered….she said she got about 10 while we were gone.

Sadly enough we had some bad news awaiting us when we returned from our trip though.

One of the hens….and our rooster died while we were away.

I do not know for sure what happened to them….I have looked in my little chicken book to see if it could tell me for sure.

The hen…well… she only had a pile of feathers where she had been. The rooster….much grosser. My neighbor said his head was gone….and he left behind a pile of feathers…she gave him a proper burial. I really appreciate her doing that, I was just sorry that it all happened on her watch.

A hawk was seen around for a day or so after we returned…and a fox could have been a culprit too…it could have been several different things. It’s just sad….but it is also bound to happen every once in a while.

I haven’t had any other trouble since I have been home…but one never knows…there are predators everywhere.

I still am a little anxious when I go to close them up for the night. I count them to make sure the others are still there. I have seven hens now….I took a picture of them roosting for the night. It looks like a day time picture…because my flash is so good on my camera.

Here they are settled in for the night

They squawked a little when the flash went off…..the other two were sleeping on the shelf above the nesting boxes.

I saved my egg cartons all summer in hopes of filling them with my own eggs one day….

I finally filled the first carton. WOO HOO!!!!! Aren’t they just beautiful. I love the color variations.

This particular egg carton had a scripture inside….

I like that….

8 Nov

Buffalo Bill

Posted by ivegonecountry in Uncategorized. Tagged: nature. 2 comments

We have friends that have owned a few Buffalo for a couple of years.

Billy and I have always thought that was the neatest thing. It is not common around our area to see them.

The buffalo stories have entertained us. They are extremely strong animals and when they want out….they get out. They have bent and twisted gate after gate, like it was made out of tin foil. They have disappeared for days….and sometimes weeks. I’m not real sure how an animal this big….especially 5 of them…can just disappear for weeks without anyone sighting them. But it has happened….on more than one occasion.

We had a lot of fun one day as we all rode on four wheeler’s through all the back woods and pastures that connect or were even near our friend’s property. We tried our best to find them. We did manage to find some tracks, but never did find them that day. I’m not real sure what we would have done if we had. They are huge animals.

Eventually, they all would come back to their pasture. It was a constant wait and watch game. The “replaced” or “repaired” gate would have to be left open for them to be able to get back into the pasture. Then they would have to check daily to see if they had indeed meandered back home. If they had…they quickly closed them back in. Securing and strengthening their surroundings each time….but to no avail.

The males are the ones who seem to always want to get out and take the girls with him. A few years ago, one of the males, …Bob….was …well…used for food. Bob filled 2 freezers full of meat for the owners. And they were still able to share plenty with others too.

The girls were pretty good about staying in the pasture….without Bob.

One day this Spring I took these pics of them…

Just hanging out.

They don’t look big here…next to each other….but they are really stout beast. These are the girls….and they are small in comparison to the males. One day we saw and heard them run across the field. Wow….. You know in old cowboy movies, they always act like the cowboys could hear the herd of buffalo coming before it got to them…..Well…they probably could. They rumble and make the earth rumble when they take off. And they are surprisingly fast.

One of the girls had a baby boy born about 4 years ago. They named him “Buffalo Bill” for Billy’s enjoyment.

Billy wanted to start buffalo in our pasture. But….after all the escape stories…we decided that wouldn’t be a good idea. We already have a dog that is a master at escaping. We sure didn’t need to add anything else to our “round up” list.

Meanwhile, “Buffalo Bill” grew…and grew….and grew. He too started leading the girls out of the pasture, taking out gates along the way. No matter how much upgrading was done to the fencing….they managed to break through whenever they wanted.

One day around a year ago…he too…blessed many people with his girth.

His meat was used to help many households that were struggling financially. I think that is neat, it is good healthy meat and taste good too.

We did get a couple packs of the ground beef.

Since he was already gone….I figured that I might as well get the head mounted for a surprise gift for Billy. It took the taxidermist almost a year to get the mount ready. I had to tell Billy last year…that his Christmas, Anniversary, Valentine and Birthday gift….all rolled into one was going to take a while to get here.

The taxidermist said it was one of the biggest buffalo mounts he had ever done.

He was delivered the other day while Billy was at work….this was Billy’s first look at him….

WOW….he’s big….that is about all he kept saying. Wow….look at that.

Wow…he’s sooooo big!

He measured 42 inches long at the base, and the mount weighs about 150 pounds.

He weighed over 2,000 pounds when he died. He had his winter coat…which made the hair about 3-4 inches long. Everything is original except the eyes of course. It is both beautiful and creepy at the same time.

The horns are supposed to still have some blue paint on them from the last fence he took out.

It was a job to hang. I helped best I could…but Billy really had to wrestle with it.

It was awkward this week when I fixed Spaghetti with-Buffalo- meat…..

You know…

like someone was looking over your shoulder.

In all sincerity….I am truly amazed when I look at this animal. I am also appreciative for all the food he supplied to so many people.

It is an amazing and wonderful cycle of life.

And….we like having Bill hang out in the den with us.

Billy….is very excited. When someone comes to the house that is the first thing he shows them.

And I….well….I… am wondering how I’m going to dust that thing…….

Since he is part of the decor now…..

I suppose at Christmas…I need to hang some garland around his neck and light up his horns or something.

Of course we also have the Long horns we hung last year. Then there is the eight point deer our neighbor shot with his bow and arrow……that now stares at me while I am working at my desk. Maybe I can sprinkle some tinsel here and there.

I’m thinking we are just about out of wall space around here…..if you know what I mean.

30 Oct

S’more fun…..

Posted by ivegonecountry in Uncategorized. Tagged: food, nature, outdoors. 1 comment

Friday the temperature was perfect….almost hot actually. Just the way I really like it. But it didn’t seem like October. Cooler weather was supposed to be heading our way. Sure enough… by nightfall…. things changed drastically. The temperatures dropped and it turned downright cold.

We already had plans to have bonfire get together’s for some Middle School kids on Friday night and the High school kids on Saturday night. The cold air certainly made it more fun.

We fixed a small fire in the fireplace at the pavilion….

And Billy gathered wood for the big bonfire. Once it was lit…it was perfect warmth for the cold weather. There is just something about a campfire. It smells good and feels great. I love to hear the noises it makes.

The kids seemed to have a blast. Funny how gathering times like these make up some of our best memories when we are older.

We were amazed to find out how many kids had never roasted a hot dog over a campfire. We were glad they were able to give it a try. Between the two events we ended up with about 70 people. Needless to say….I wasn’t able to take many pictures during the events. I was a little BUSY.

But I did take a few pics of these crazy BIG marshmallows before hand. They are probably 3 or 4 times the size of a regular one.

It is hard to tell here….but….

This gives you a little bit better idea of how big these things are! They are GINORMOUS!!!!!

The kids loved them…..

This is an exchange student, one of those, who had never roasted a hot dog on an open fire or ever had a S’more….until that night.

We all had to watch as he experienced it for the first time.

Once he was able to free his mouth up from all the goo of the marshmallow….he told us he REALLY liked it!

I will have to say that the BIG Campfire Marshmallows are fun …..and worth trying.

However, I think I favor the regular sized marshmallows. Golly part of the fun is cooking them….and one of the big ones fill you up in one roasting.

But no matter which one you choose….you just gotta have a S’more before the season is over!

I know Billy and I had one….or possibly two…..(but who’s counting)

It certainly brings out the kid in you……

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I've Gone Country A blog about a city girl learning a whole new world

Posts Tagged ‘nature’

Barnyard Brawl

Waiting on Spring

A Beautiful Day….

The Baby Goats are here…..

Hmmm. It’s Winter……

A full year….

Then there were six…..

And so it has begun….

Buffalo Bill

S’more fun…..

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