Mural

Still plugging away after a few days off on sick leave. Some nasty germ got ahold of us... except for that lucky little boy of mine! Getting ready to head out for groceries but thought I'd post a couple of photos of our progress.

- Joyce Brandon

New Blog

I started a new blog today to post information about our rabbitry. Just yesterday we brought home a trio of Jersey Woolies to start our own little herd. We've joined the American Rabbit Breeders Association (ARBA) and the National Jersey Wooly Rabbit Club (JNWRC). And registered our little rabbitry as the Sparrow Grass Rabbitry.

Drop in to take a peek at our new babies! Click on the above link to Sparrow Grass Rabbitry. Thanks - Joyce Brandon

Swimming With Dinosaurs!

The mural is going well... Charles & Gillian are enjoying helping with the corals & soon the sea weed & kelp. We have here an elasmosarus.

And this is our liopleurodon... By specific request from my son.

- Joyce Brandon

Coyote & Crane

So strange! On a detour from our grocery trip we came across 3 young coyotes in the road (leading from the stream up to our house). When I slowly drove up two of them hopped off into the corn field, but one sat and looked at us and then became distracted with chasing grasshoppers!

I'd stopped the car and he didn't run off so I became worried that he would sit around and a farmer would come by and shoot him. So I got out of the car and clapped my hands at him and tried to shoo him off..

He backed a couple of rows into the corn and sat down to look at me... Like I was just the most interesting and unusual thing he'd ever seen!

I then drove up the hill to our house, picked up my camera, and returned to the bridge and found the following...
One coyote was crossing the bridge and I tried to get a photo, but it vanished into the weeds at the opposite side. We drove on across to where he'd gone & when I looked back at the other side of the bridge there was another sitting at the edge of the corn field looking at me.

Then as I headed back to the car I saw a very LARGE bird. I snapped a few pictures of it, trying to figure out what it was... Probably a heron or crane.

Suddenly, another coyote scurried along beside the weeds at the edge of the stream, then dashed across behind the bird... The coyote was very focused on the bird and didn't notice me at all.

As I returned (again) to the car my daughter yelled out... "Another coyote!!" Sure enough here came another coyote running up from the creek toward the bean field, just like the one I'd already photographed. I wasn't as quick this time and couldn't catch him (her?) in action... But it stopped at the edge of the field to sit down and look at me. So I did manage to get a couple of pictures of it!

It wasn't until I loaded the images on the computer that I noticed that the coyotes weren't the only ones on the hunt today... The crane (heron?)

has a BIG snake in its beak!!!!

What an exciting day! - Joyce Brandon

Mural

Here is an image of one wall in progress what is soon to be of my son's new room...

The theme is "prehistoric oceans" - My son has always loved dinosaurs. I hope to do the theme justice... Even if it is on a brick wall. Ahhhh!

- Joyce Brandon

Remember

I just finished watching the Tonight Show. Jay had on Charlie Rose (who I love) and James Woods. Mr. Woods gave a very touching interview. Today has been a very emotional day. I hope all those dealing with loss are finding some peace. - Joyce Brandon

Weekend?

It sure doesn't feel like Saturday. Cole didn't get home till 11:45 last night (after leaving for work at 6am) and I got up with him at 5 this morning to help him get ready to go back in.

Thursday afternoon the kids and I painted our son's room with the background blue for the ocean. Yesterday afternoon I mowed - after an extremely dry spring and early summer (just long enough to ruin our garden) we have been getting quite a bit of rain and now the grass is going nuts.

While we were having lessons in the morning I left the chickens in their coop... knowing that the mowing would stir up lots of grasshoppers & likely lure them out into the road (the chickens). I believe I mentioned that last year we had a hen get hit out on the road - we do have a beautiful fence but the portion facing the road is made of wood posts and cattle panel. Turns out our chickens are just the right size to fit through the panel grid. :p

Anyhow... Some of the pullets decided that no coop was going to ruin their grasshopper hunt and they started to fly out. So we added clipping wings to our daily chores. The birds weren't pleased... but hopefully it will go a little way to avoiding vehicular homicide. - Joyce Brandon

Ahhhhh...

"...the report of my death was an exaggeration." - Mark Twain

The ending of summer brings us a great deal of relief - from heat, from home improvement projects and from a fearful period where my husband's work outlook was more than uncertain.

Since this spring we have completed construction of a garage, built a fence around our entire property, put a steel roof on our house (and used the remaining pieces for our hen house), insulated our shed, installed a new window in the basement, repaired our stove & purchased a new computer after a lightning strike, and begun painting the basement room which is being converted into our son's room (thus the new window).

Our son wants an ocean themed mural on the walls of his new room - a prehistoric ocean! So in addition to normal daily lessons, the kids will be getting an extra dose of art over the next week or so.

I'm so glad the days are returning to the normal routine. We've really had too much going on and it's stressed us all a bit. I can't believe how long it's been since I last posted here... I can assure you it won't happen again. - Joyce Brandon