Winter blues

I don't know about the rest of you, but I've had it. The last storm did me in. We got somewhere in the neighborhood of 12" or more and very strong winds. Gramma and I were at the annual NRA banquet in town that night and on the way home we had blizzard conditions. Never drove faster than 15 mph. Scary.

I can no longer see the bale feeder from the front window. I'll have to use the bobcat to make a path to the bird feeders so the little birdies don't starve. I was unable to clear the driveway with the snowplow, cause the snow was too deep and too heavy. Had to use the bobcat for the first 1/3rd or so before the plow would work and even then it wasn't easy. I know, "stop whining" right? Longest, coldest, snowiest winter since we've lived here. And now it's back in the freezer again.

In other news, we have never had a squirrel bother the bird feeders before, but when we did, it was a black one. Cool.

Here's a pic of some wooden trucks my B-I-L Stan made. Pretty cool huh? When I first saw the pics he sent I said I wanted to buy some for our grand kids, but after he sent these I realized that they wouldn't last long around any of our grandsons except maybe James, so I'll just keep these to look at. Awesome job Stan. Took Gramma to the airport today. Two weeks in Detroit. Yuck. Oh well, that's two weeks I won't have to put the toilet seat down. Of course it'll take at least a week or so for me to remember. Anywho we'll sure miss her. Be good, be careful and be sure to keep your bird feeders accessible. Ta.

BIRTHDAY!

Today is our "FDL's" birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY SUE! You sure picked a good day for it. Our thermometer read 27.9 degrees below zero this morning. Coldest so far this winter. Supposed to warm up now. Yeah right. Anyway, we hope you have a great day and we love you.

Mom and Dad.

In other news, here is the last jar of syrup.

It's sitting next to the one thing that is was made to be put on. ICE CREAM. Not pancakes or waffles or other undeserving foods. Knock, knock you puddin' heads. Oh well, doesn't look right now that there will be any syrup this year. The snow is deeper than last year and I really struggled getting sap at the beginning. I also cook it down with propane and the price of propane has increased fourfold just in the last month due to a shortage and the cold weather this winter. People are having a hard time getting it to heat ther homes. I'll have to look into making a wood boiler. Anywho, that's about it. Be good, be careful, be warm and be sure to stay out of Georgia for the next few days so you don't get caught in the 1" to 2" blizzard.

Winter

Saturday Gramma and I stopped at Ted and Sue's to drop off 10 lbs. of hamburger which we accidentally received. (This is another story which may or may not be told) While we were there Sue asked if we tired of winter yet. Gramma said she was and I said " no not yet". Well, as of today I have officially changed my mind. Winter sucks. Being without the bobcat has created some challenges. It's not easy starting a 40 year old diesel tractor when it's 20 below zero. You have to plug in the tank heater and then make a tent out of tarps and poly and then put a heater under that and let it run all night. I won't even mention the other problems.  (Are you shedding a tear yet?) Anyway the parts for the bobcat are supposed to be in tomorrow, so hopefully it'll be going by next week. Then we can get the tractor fixed.

The snow is level across the dog pen and the deck from one end to the other.

Here's where I got the plow stuck today. First time I ever slid off the driveway. Had to get Gramma out of her office and into the other truck to pull me out. She did it, but she laughed at me. :(

Here's one of our big puppies.

Here's the other one. I think they're getting tired of winter too. Anyhoo that's about it. Be good, be careful and be sure to keep your plow truck out of the ditch. Here endeth the lesson. Ta.

The Bayou, Aliens and UFO's

Hey, did anyone miss me? No? I didn't think so. Well, shortly before Christmas I went down to Smith Bayou to help them turn the other half of the garage into a bedroom. We also put new siding on the outside too. Everything went well and they finished it after I left and did a great job. They also sent a bad case of poison ivy home with me so, I just want say how much I've enjoyed that.

Here's the older kids ready for the Christmas program at church. They clean up pretty good huh? The program was all music and it was really good.

Here's the whole gang with their old Grampa at Bass Pro. I like to go there and see stuff, but man is it expensive. Anyway we had a good time.

We finally found out who's been making the "Crop Circles" in the snow and it turns out it's not "Aliens", just some deer. Gramma was worried.

We did however find something really strange in the snow by the driveway. As I was letting the dogs out one night, I saw a strange red glow down by the west edge of the driveway. So I armed myself, grabbed a flashlight and went to see what it was.

This is what I found.

This is with the flash on. 

Here it is on the garage floor. A drone. Called our son and he said to call the Sheriff and report a crashed small aircraft. He also said that next time I shouldn't pick it up just in case. Anyway a deputy came out and then another one came out also because they said everyone was curious to know what it was. No camera on it and we decided it was someone's lost toy. An expensive toy. So the next day I was at the neighbors shop and showed him a picture and he said "Hey, that's mine". Turns out he was flying it around his place just before dark and it just took off way up in the sky and then just fell back down. He looked for it out in the swamp between our places, but never thought it would get all the way over to our place. So he was happy. $600.00 happy. Anyway that's it for now, I'll try to post more often. Until next time, be good, be careful and be sure to control your aircraft at all times. Ta.

BRRRRR!

We have two thermometers outside. Both on the north side of the house. This one is under the eaves about 9ft up with a shield around it so the sun never touches it.

This one is outside the bedroom window about 2ft above the ground. Take your pick. I'm going in the middle and saying 22 below.

Here's the plow truck waiting for me to pull the starter out and replace it. Not happening today. Maybe Tuesday.

Here's our reply to "Old Man Winter". Take that old man. Be good, be careful and be sure to wear your long johns and mittens. Ta.

Gramma Update III

Well, Gramma has been saying that she's excited for her foot to heal so she can wear sandals again after many, many years. I guess it's a girl thing, cause I don't really understand. I'm excited when I get a pair of boots that have fairly smooth soles so that the chicken poop doesn't get stuck in so bad.

Anyway, she came out of the bedroom this morning wearing these. A happy girl. Yay Gramma! Ta.

Gramma Update and Turkey's

Monday we went back to see the doctor. Everything is healing fine and he took "The Boot"away. 

Here she is with just plain old shoes and socks. Scary! She's using the cane, but also walking some without it. Doing well, although there is pain, but the doc said it will continue to lessen. Go back again in a month for another x-ray. By summer she'll be running barefoot through the hayfield.

Also on Monday a flock of turkeys came out of the woods and made their way down the west field almost in single file. Counted 18. Cool. Ta.

Grampa Shoots, He Scores

Well, got a buck this morning. The rack was small, but he had a big body. My friend Mike and his son Brian came up to hunt today and I'm glad they did cause they dragged him out of the willow swamp for me. Unfortunately neither one of them got a deer.

My back has been bad lately, so I haven't been out very much. Glad I went out today. Gramma and are having the tenderloins for supper tonight. Yummo! Ta.

Snow Again

Here's what we woke up to this morning.

Had some last month too, but this somehow prettier and more accepted,cause it's November.

Don't know if it will last yet, but it's been awhile since we had snow for deer opener and that's always a plus. On the other hand I was hoping to get in one more round of golf. I've managed to take about ten strokes off my game this summer, so I don't want to quit yet. The course I usually play at is about 16 miles north as the crow flies and they have a live webcam. Checked that out this morning and they didn't have any snow there, but they closed the course last week. Bummer. Not putting the clubs away   yet, cause there's always hope. Be good, be careful and be sure to get your snowplow mounted before the big storm hits. Ta.

Gramma Update

So on Monday we went back to the Doc for a six week checkup. They took x-rays again and he said it is healing nicely. Now she can walk on it with the boot on. Still using the chair, but walking some too. Baby steps, baby steps. Here she is upright, which we haven't seen for six weeks. Yay! We go back again in four weeks and he wants her to try walking without the boot in 3 1/2, cause he said he's going to throw it away when she sees him next. Yikes! Cross your fingers and pray for her.

In other news, the snow melted, but it's still freezing every night. The sun came out for a little bit today, but not long enough.

We have had quite a few deer feeding right up next to the house lately. One of these two was eating the frozen flowers in Gramma's flower pot on the deck rail, but I wasn't fast enough to get a pic. Fun to watch though.

Reckon that's all for now, catch ya on the flip flop. Be good, be careful and be sure to get your boat inside before it gets snowed on. Ta.

Snow?

Well it's started. I'm not ready. I'm usually ready.

Morning.

Early afternoon.

Pretty? Pretty ugly. The boat isn't inside, I've got Jess' lawn mower torn apart on the garage floor, my 4 wheeler up on blocks not running and it looks like I'm going to have to pull the engine on the bobcat to fix it. With the bobcat broken down I can't spread manure on the hay fields and if the snow stays it'll be too muddy to clean it up anyway. Haven't done anything to get ready for deer hunting yet and the dock is still in the lake. Oh well, life happens and the only thing to do is chuckle and move forward. On a positive note, Gramma sees the doc tomorrow and we hope he'll say she can start walking on her foot. With the boot on of course. This will be a major milestone and a welcome event. So cross your fingers and pray for her. Anywho, that's all for now. Ta.

Grampa Bakes A Cake

So Gramma wanted a yellow cake with chocolate frosting. Easy-squeasy, right? Buy a cake mix and some ready made frosting. What could go wrong? Me, that's what can go wrong. There are too many rules in this baking business. Why can't you just brush on some olive oil, salt and pepper and slap it on the grill? That's how things are meant to be cooked. Right?

It actually tasted good, but when I took it out of the pan, it broke. What? Yeah and a chunk fell off of the side. Heidi thought that this was a real baking break-through and should be included in all cooking endeavors, but I think I'll try and skip that part in the future. Anyway I tried to fill the hole with frosting, but it just wasn't fluffy enough. Another baking adventure gone awry. Maybe I'll try sticky buns, or not.Ta.

Dog Sitting

Well on Tuesday Great,Great Gramma (Isn't she great?) Called and told us she was going to Duluth to Linda's and then to the hospital because she apparently had some kind of infection in her sinuses and jaw. They had her in ICU for awhile, but she is in a regular room now. She is doing better and will probably go home on Sunday with antibiotics to take. So Wednesday Gramma and I drove up to Hoyt Lakes (AKA "The End of The Road At The Edge of The World) and picked up her dogs and brought them home. It's been interesting, but going well. The dogs are adjusting pretty well considering the circumstances. Our dogs are too. 

Here's me with Cheeblue the dog that doesn't like anyone but GG Gramma and Gramma. Turns out she thinks I'm pretty cool too. Doesn't everyone?

Guess not, here's Rex who tolerates me and just thinks I'm ok, but not that cool. Oh well, can't win 'em all. Anyway GG Gramma's getting better and we'll take the dogs back up there when she gets home. Ta. I almost forgot, Happy Birthday GG Gramma Scotty. Sorry you had to spend it in the hospital. Ta, Ta.

Grampa Bakes Banana Bread

Today for the first time, I made banana bread. I'm actually a pretty good cook, but I never bake. When I got done putting it together and into the oven I realized I had forgotten the milk. Then I sat down and the dog got in the chair with me and I discovered he had batter on his head. Guess I was a little sloppy.

Ready.

And done.            

Here it is. It actually tastes pretty good too, even without the milk ingredient. So I won't have to feed it to the chickens 'cause we'll eat it. Too bad for the chickens. Be good, be careful and be sure you don't forget the milk. Ta.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRAMMA!

Today is Gramma's birthday.

As you can see she won't be dancing today in celebration, unless she does the one-legged bunny hop. She is doing really well, much better than we both expected. She jumps in the wheel chair and gets herself to the bathroom, lets the dogs out in the morning and yesterday made her own lunch when I wasn't looking. Awesome woman, and cute too. Happy birthday sweetheart.

In other news I need to cut hay again. Here's a pic of our "new baler". It's only 34 yrs old. The other one was from the 60's. Cross your fingers and hope it works. Ta.

Jumpers

We have quite few new additions to the deer herd this year. One set of triplets, at least one set of twins   and I'm not sure how many singles.

The twins.

One of the twins chasing my cat.

The triplets. It was foggy.

We also have a set of last years twins hanging around almost daily. They come up close to the house in the front and back yards. A doe and a buck. Sure has been fun watching them. The twins were checking out a couple of Sandhill Cranes in the south pasture the other day until one crane got tired of it and pecked the one fawn right on the end of it's nose, that made them lose interest quickly. Anywho,  be good, be careful and be sure to keep your chickens cool in this heat. Ta.

More Birds II

So after three months and getting a new computer, (Thanks honey) I think I'm back.

Mama oriole.

Papa oriole. We have been getting young orioles too.

Mr. Rooster.

Grosbeak, house finch, (we call them rosy fiches) goldfinch.

We have a large contingent of humming birds this year. Lots of young ones. I'm constantly refilling the "two" feeders. I've counted as many as ten at one time and it's not easy counting these little speedy guys. Thanks for looking, there'll be more. Be good, be safe and be sure to keep your hay dry. Ta