-
Turning the Page: The Sun Sets on the Farm
Hi everyone! I realize that it’s been some time since I’ve gotten around to posting anything. Truth be told it hasn’t been for the lack of endless projects in our neck of the woods but rather, hunkering down and finding the words …and willpower… to write this particular post. How do you say goodbye? Correction: How do you say goodbye without feeling the need to write a sad journal entry (I suppose checkmark #1 actually…) over a glass of wine and wallow as though in the grips of an early 90’s breakup letter? You don’t. I’ve come to realize that reaching the end of a chapter in the novel of…
-
Our One Year Farm-iversary!
Hello hello, everyone! Â Â Â Â So… there’s no getting around it, I have been quite the absentee for months now. Things around the farm have been beyond a bit crazy and have left us working double-time in what free time we have to keep things moving smooth”ish”. While I may be a month behind in posting this I’m beyond excited to finally feel I’ve the time to blog again. As of March 31st, we’d officially spent an entire year in our budding little farm. The amazing thing is how much has happened over the course of one lil’ ol’ year too! Looking back and considering what we’ve learned,…
-
The Adventure of a Second Pasture
Adventure: [ad-ven-chur] Noun. an exciting or very unusual experience a bold, usually risky undertaking; hazardous action of uncertain outcome a commercial or financial speculation of any kind; venture Back on point, the Mr. and I had come to the realization that we would need to build a second pasture for our horses pronto. With limited time, the weather hinting at winter, and our endless ‘honey-do’ list of repairs on the farmhouse…we realized we didn’t have much time to do this one ourselves. Moving forward, we enlisted the aid of a fencing company. In fact, due to the professionalism and quality finish of our last pasture, we elected to go…
-
When the situation changes, queue the back-up plan…
Morning everyone! It seems like only yesterday we were walking the acreage as we mapped out the locations for future horse facilities on the farm. As our horses are only stalled in inclement weather, planning out the location and size of our pastures was our first priority. I am delighted to report that we have been positively ecstatic about our CenFlex pasture that was completed mid-summer last year. It has proven itself a very reliable and horse-friendly material. But in retrospect I have found only one fault, its size. Let us consider this from another viewpoint: Cause & Effect. By permitting too many horses to be kept on a pasture…
-
Where perfection has to settle for practical: Ready, Set, …no??
Evening all, Â Â Â Â Apologies for the absence in posting but as we all know, life just keeps on happening. Darnedest thing, that. So…the short of it is that we’ve done quite a great many projects over the past months and I am at least three months behind in writing this. Moving on! …or is it forward? Let’s settle for onward! (See…I just -knew- there had to be a compromise there.) For those of you that may have forgotten my rough canvas, and I use that word very very very …very literally, here it is once more, what I had to work with: The to-do list: (does anyone else…
-
When southern weather puts a damper in your plans: I smell revisions!
Afternoon everyone! For those that aren’t aware, here at our farm we have somewhat of a menagerie of horses. When it comes to horses, I look for a sound mind, good legs, dependable track record, and seasoned under saddle. Unusual coloration (grullo, buckskin, palomino, oh my!) and coveted bloodlines (I’ve always been a sucker for Poco Bueno and Hancock bred horses personally) are always a nice bonus, but picking your companions on looks alone has…let’s face it, never really worked out for anyone, am I right or am I right? As such, we’ve wound up with a Standardbred, AQHA (American Quarter Horse), as well as a couple paint crosses and…
-
From Jungle to Field: The beginnings of a second pasture.
Would you just look at that. When I tell you it’s a sight for sore eyes… Darlin’, I ain’t kiddin’! With only an electric push mower at my disposal, it was simply inconceivable to attempt tackling this 3.5 acre parcel of grass/thistle/weeds that was nearing 4′ in height. Had the mulching kit on my mower even been capable of cutting it down…I would’ve likely bogged down the blades every 5-10′. (I may know this because at one point earlier on in summer, I tried. I will summarize it briefly: It did not go well.) On a happier note, by mere chance one day, I happened to be home and you…
-
From Shabby to well…Shabby Chic!
Though today is a might bit dreary outside, as the last lingering remnants of Hurricane Irma pass over our little farm, the past month has been anything but! When we first happened upon our home, it had been greatly reclaimed by nature with shrubs and vines covering half of the exterior windows…even those near 10′ up from the ground. Now, while we’re still a constant work in progress when it comes to exterior maintenance of the lawn we have made some progress! (‘Progress!’I always hear that in my head like Bill Nye the Science Guy when he yells out “SCIENCE!”, how about you?) As you can see above on the…
-
Horse Fencing 101: Not Another Horse Fencing Post
Afternoon all! I think the title pretty much sums this one just right on up. Yet another…horse -fencing- post. *dramatic music ensues* Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, I am happy to report that our fence is FINALLY finished. Let me just get that out of my system one more time, I repeat, our fence…is FINALLY FINISHED!!! Where is a rooftop that I can shout this from? …that isn’t ours, as I am PRETTY confident that is the next thing on our ol’ farmhouse that’s going to kick the bucket. ANYWAYS… after two months, twenty-three days, sixteen hours, and give or take forty-five minutes or so…our pasture…
-
When Two Worlds Collide: Lawn care Woes
Good morning all! Â Â Â I realized it has been a quick minute since our last update on the farm. To be blunt, this whirlwind never slows down long enough for my head to stop spinning. Still, no regrets! Now then…as you can imagine, going from 1/3 of an acre to 15 acres is a bit of a leap. In our previous garden home, we actually considered our lawn to be quite sizable, yes…I know, looking back, I feel silly for ever complaining about mowing it. Looking back, it was around a year to two years ago that our hand-me-down mower, a.k.a. the one that was left in the garage…
