Happy Tuesday…it is Tuesday isn’t it ??? Yesterday was one of those days best forgotten. Kind of one tough step forward and two rickety steps backward. I had been feeling good ( ish) and had ventured tentatively to reclaim my kitchen, well, my kitchen from waist level up or “grabbable” with my super grab tool. Sadly, my back clearly didn’t feel as well as I did and left me in no doubt where I should be spending my time…and it still wasn’t the kitchen !

So, while my body was teaching me a life lesson I wont forget, the reserve team headed out to a friends property to load up several tons of lumber which will really help with all the construction currently in Greg’s brain’s “going to do” list. The gifted lumber wasn’t going to be re- homed without testing a few muscles and this morning as Ginger munched on her healthy breakfast she confessed to an element of surprise…she didn’t hurt. John, fresh from a night which included a visit to a Crispy Crème vendor didn’t complain as he happily chomped on his deliciously unhealthy sugary doughnut. Greg woke up with his forearm hurting. Apparently he lost an argument with an oil drum and the point of impact was not going to let him forget easily that forearm meets oil drum isn’t going to end well. A quick ferret through our medical cabinet found a tube of anti inflammatory cream intended for equine muscular pain…wonder if that will work ?????

So, the latest batch of newly feathered chicks have been re homed. From the cosy comfort of the warm brooder box the chicks were rounded up and the chicken nursery pen is their new,lighter, more spacious residence. In 5 months, hopefully they will be starting to repay our care with nice big brown eggs. Sadly, the momma hens who have decided to take industrial action, gone broody or just plain run out of eggs will be given a last chance warning or they will be culled in a squawking flurry of feathers. Chickens who look suspiciously chunky probably aren’t laying. Good egg layers put all their reserves into the eggs they lay, meaty moms aren’t paying their feed bill. Old or infertile chickens tend to have faded red combs..not an infallible method of detection but a pretty good indication from past experience. Looks like we will be having another chicken soup day !!
Quatre came home yesterday. I’m sure she had a great holiday between Kung Foo and the Two step but It’s always good to have her back !l

Well, it’s time I listened to my body which is saying “time’s up”… and I’m listening. take care, keep safe. M

It’s Saturday, it started a sleepy Saturday, big brother John was out to play yesterday…and I think he may just have played too hard as it was a weary big brother that greeted us this morning. Happily he soon recovered as he is off out to play again today. I guess we have to allow some time off when I look at the box of 60 little windows that he constructed to cover the 60 little squares of wire that he cut to cover the 60 little holes that he drilled to make the grain bin useable. Yes, I guess he deserves some playtime and he leaves to go back to Wales on Wednesday..he may not come back if we find any more mind numbing projects . Thanks John for your tenacity and patience !
 One of my lingering and painful memories of my early days here on the ranch relates to electric fences rendered ineffectual by twigs, branches or even tree trunks which had inconveniently decided to drape themselves over the electric wire. At the time, with 13 Black Angus cows and a big black bull with attitude,  invariably,  rain, sleet wind and mud, lots of mud….and the electric fence meter with the arrow deep in the red was an indication of a very bad day. It’s ALWAYS bad weather when the fence fails and in the “old days” there was just me, 40 acres of electric fencing, guaranteed yucky weather and somewhere a fault for me to try to find. Those were the days when Greenacres was just a really bad joke !! So, when we had a deluge yesterday,the pond was close to overflowing, John and Malc’s storm drains were being seriously challenged, the wind was blowing and, the electric system was down. Fortunately the 13 cows and the bull with attitude are just a bad memory but Molly Moo, Daisy and Rodney the ram are capable of taking the expedited route back to the barn,..through the fence line if the tell tale tick of the electric fence isn’t discernable….and it wasn’t. Greg and Ginger trudged out into the storm to find the cause of the problem and discovered multiple causes…clearly half the forest had decided to come to rest on the wire and Ginger our intrepid WOOFER got some experience troubleshooting fencing in our first real Winter storm.  A very good way of discovering if farming really is a career move worth considering…but Ginger continued to smile !
Every day here on the ranch brings surprises, some big and some small, Ginger is still enjoying the little anomolies that we have become accustomed to. Whilst collecting the eggs from the nest boxes she was amazed to discover an egg that looked more like a pigeon egg than those already in her basket. To Greg and I it indicates a chicken  heading for the soup pan, to Ginger a 10 on the cute monitor .
Well, I’ve had a potter around the kitchen, discovered a million jobs that I REALLY need to do….but can’t, made myself a million “must do” memos and written my diary. It’s time for a doctors order rest to keep myself out of trouble. Take care, keep safe and well. M

 

What a beautiful morning ! The sky is clear and blue and the sun, though low in the Winter sky is shining brilliantly over the pond and the empty pastures. It's going to be a lovely bright and hopefully dry day.
The troops are sadly depleted for the next few days. Quatre is off until Monday having her “down time” in Seattle. We know she will be back, she left her shiny red truck which we can hold in ransom for her ! smile. We miss you Quatre !! Big brother John was taken screaming and shouting ( NOT !!) for a day off the ranch. He and Ed are having a “man” day and we are not expecting him home for dinner. Hopefully Ed will keep him under control and return him safely to us. We miss him too. Saturday and Sunday have also been requested for escape days and he goes back to Wales on Wednesday. If we paid him we would be obliged to dock his wages !!

Ginger our stalwart WOOFER intern headed down to the barn with Greg for yet another day scooping various versions of poop, avoiding the amorous advances of Macho the buck and loving up little Hol-ley the calf and her partner in crime, Lamb Chop. Somehow, regardless of whatever weather conditions Mother Nature throws at us, Ginger manages to come home with a huge smile and an even huger appetite ! 

The extensive Winter storm we had on Thursday tested but didn’t break our new flood defences. John and Malc uncomplainingly ( well, kind of …??)  dug ditches, built walls and cleared culverts ready for the torrential rain we promised would be coming and fortunately came while John was still here. Grudgingly after careful consideration, he had to admit that maybe, just maybe, the rain, driven by the wind and hitting the ground horizontally might equal ( not beat !!) the rainfall in Dolgellau ( Wales, UK, spelling uncertain). The sheep didn’t care who was winning the rainfall stakes, they just knew it was wet, very wet and it was cold, very cold. They huddle together under the sweeping branches of the Cedar tree practicing (and becoming very accomplished) at looking wretched and forlorn . They would have had more shelter from the Cedar if they hadn’t pruned the tree and eaten every branch at munching level earlier in the year.

The wind howling around the barns and whistling through the trees can (and occasionally does) cause chaos and confusion. From my observation point here at the house I watched a very mournful, very wet and cold looking Lamb Chop on the wrong side of the gate into his field shelter that had been closed by the wind. Food and shelter was on the other side and to make matters worse…his cohort in mischief and crime, Hol-ley was inside, warm dry AND munching. Sometime life is SO unfair !!!

The wind also caused problems for Greg. The sheep were anxious to escape from the cruel wind and relentless rain and return to the shelter of the barn. Bran the border collie was in place, the sheep, fronted by boss ewe Bandit were crowding the gate but each time Greg left an open gate, the wind closed it. Bran was ready but for some reason Dad was running back and forth and the sheep weren’t moving..no fun for a border collie busting for action. Eventually the reserve team came to his rescue and Bandit was able to lead her rowdy ladies home to a warm dry barn and food.

Well, the sun is still shining and Greg and stalwart Ginger are down at the barn, hopefully warm and dry. I’d better do as I’m told or the back police will be on my case. Take care, keep warm and safe, M

Good morning and hello from a VERY wet and windy Washington State. I guess we were lucky to have any ranch hands this morning but all three surfaced for breakfast ready for a testing day if the weather forecast is to be believed ! Today MJ on channel 13, channel 4 and CNN all seem to agree...we are all going to drown!  I was more than a little surprised to see that my super sized, "wedding march"  wind chime was still wind chiming this morning, I fully expected it to be relocated and wrapped around a cedar tree branch or alternatively chimes up in the garbage bin. Our WOOFER interns and big brother John apparently score a 10 on the tolerance chart....I wont push my luck, it will be stored out of sight and sound until the weather is more wind chime friendly !
Big brother John was very happy to complete his latest assignment and  60 little frames have been made to go round the 60 holes in the grain silo that John drilled. On to the next assignment John...who's putting the frames up ??? Now Greg produces a "make it easier" tool !!!! B******** !
Poor Rodney the ram, his honeymoon is over, the "ladies" are all looking fat and sassy and his job is done. Back to the cow stall and re aquainting himself with Molly Moo and Daisy Mae his stall mates for the Winter. Currently it is Rodney that should be concerned, we feel that the artificial insemination failed on both cows and they are anxious for a man...any man.. and Rodney fits the bill. He had better move fast !!
The reserve team experienced a chicken roundup and survived to tell the tale.In the Winter, the chicken pen is generally not the sweetest smelling environment but our intrepid three transferred the now fully grown chicks from the Nursery pen to the grown up, big girls pen without even one note worthy disaster.
Well, the wind is still blowing, the rain is still falling and the reserve team is still battling the elements, maybe we will have to build an ark !!!. It's almost lunchtime and time for me to follow doctors orders. Take care, keep safe and dry. M  
 

Brrrrrrr….it is COLD out there, It was noted that the reserve team were adding yet another layer of whatever they could find to ward off frozen body parts. I have a feeling that the wood stove in the barn kitchen will be getting a lot of attention today as the team try to defrost frozen digits. The horses will be appreciative of their warm Winter rugs, the sheep and Molly Moo and Daisy Mae the cows will probably hunker down in the shelter of the cedar tree branches and Lamb Chop the lamb and Hol-Ley the calf will snuggle up together until the late morning sunshine warms the earth. It’s cold but it is beautiful.
I’m still under “house arrest”, the back police should be giving me time off for good behaviour but Greg isn’t letting up and any slight misdemeanour or apparent infraction and I’m in trouble ! Greg has been amazing, I am unsure just how he has managed to keep everything together but I’m sure that we have the unfailing support of the reserve team, Quatre, Ginger and big brother John to thank for the fact that livestock are still alive and well and the barn is still standing !
Yesterday was a “doctor free” day, quite a novelty lately ! Greg determined that the team would take advantage of the fact that there was no rain in the forecast and they would restore the electric fence around the pasture that is home to Lamb Chop and Hol-Ley. The fence isn’t necessarily to keep the lamb and calf in the field..but more to keep visiting dogs and mangy cayotes out ! The arrival of the reserve team in the pasture caused great excitement and anticipation, people usually mean a bottle and a back scratch for the rapidly growing Dexter calf and always means a carrot or apple treat for treat-a-holic Lamb Chop.. so all buckets and pockets were subject to a detailed search and another, just in case…and again…Since people were in the pasture, Tiger the little ginger cat and self appointed ranch supervisor apparently felt it was necessary to investigate the situation. Since Tiger the ginger cat was in their pasture, the lamb and the calf felt it was necessary to investigate the cat and one dewy little calf nose and one inquisitive ( is it edible ??) lamb nose  sniffed and snuffled the cat from ginger head to ginger tail. Clearly Tiger wasn’t averse to the barnyard introduction procedure and lingered long enough for photographs to capture the moment,… a ten on the “how cute” monitor !!
Big brother John is making the most of his weekend furlough and is off to the San Juan islands today. Judging by Johns previous track record, the Islands can probably expect nothing less than an earthquake, tsunami, blizzard  or all three !!!. Natural disasters seem to be an inevitable result of a John visit…we will keep fingers and toes crossed that this trip breaks the trend, he may even see a whale or two.( yeah, right !!!)
Time to go, I’m just going to check out the activities down at the barn before I treat myself to a cup of tea. Life is tough, smile.
Take care, keep safe and warm. M

Saturday morning and big brother John is escaping for a couple of days. The rest of the team, dressed up like Michelin men in their copious layers of warm winter woollies and various eclectic styles of head wear, make their way to the barn and the start of another day on the ranch. From my vantage point here at the house I can see the swirl of grey smoke rising from the chimney in the barn kitchen where the wood stove is a refuge for freezing bodies when the bitter cold bites. Break time is an institution established when we started getting WOOFERS and is now religiously observed, coffee, tea, milk or hot chocolate and a decadent chocolate muffin….ANYTHING chocolate and the reserve team are happy !!!

Ginger has been assigned caretaker of the chicks who hatched in October and has proved to be diligent and observant to their various complications and needs. When chicks have butt plug, ( yes, fluffy cheeping little chicks can be nasty !!) Ginger is there to resolve the problem. One little chick clearly had issues standing upright and appeared unsure why God gave him two feet…Ginger was undeterred by his apparent handicap and determined, come hell or high water that bird would stand….and, now he does.

Big brother John spent the day making 254 bits of wood to make 63 four and a half by three inch picture frames to surround the 63 holes he made earlier in the week. I am convinced that he is possibly close to brain dead now as cutting copious little pieces of wood to Greg’s spec is hardly stimulating. Don’t tell John…there’s a chance more may be needed.

Quatre took yesterdays “take it easy” afternoon to practice her roping. Since Alice and Chance the lambs were putting their heads into the rope loop they clearly weren’t going to be good roping subjects Quatre has a plastic steers head which was firmly wedged onto a hay bale. Sadly disrespectful of the purpose for which the hay bale had been assigned…Alice and Chance have been munching on the unexpected extra lunch causing the plastic steer head to be less than secure..in fact, wobbly !  By all accounts wobbly steer head or stable steer head I don’t think that Quatre is going to be roping until she can stop her loop roping her…but knowing Quatre, a challenge just makes her more determined and those sheep and cows had better watch out ! 

Time to go, the back police will be on my case ! Take care, keep safe. M 

Good morning and happy Friday ! Well, the “road bump” appears to be a little more of a problem than we first thought and currently I am sitting ( which is good) stuck with a catheter needle (which isn’t quite so good !) to try to drown my system intravenously with antibiotics. I have an infection in the incision in my back and it has got so comfortable it doesn’t want to leave. Apart from that, I’m fine !!

It is becoming quite clear that living the ranch vicariously through the eyes of the team is going to make it difficult to generate enough crazy data to construct my daily diary entries. I am becoming convinced that I am going to have to resort to waterboarding and white noise torture !!! Whilst munching on their breakfast, between chomping on toast, peanut butter and jelly (yuk !!)  I did manage to glean some details of Thursday on the ranch.

It seems that a beautiful rainbow settled over the pastures yesterday, since all the team are still here and working I think that we can disprove the pot of gold theory..though the leprechaun may still be lurking. It may have been said Leprechaun that persuaded big brother John to chip away the cement at the base of a roof bearing post instead of levelling the cement around the post. Ooops !!! remember Greg…no blame policy if the roof falls down !!

Poor John, not sure if he is looking for some time off but he really didn’t have to mallet his finger instead of the nail….I don’t think permanent damage has been inflicted but he did get the sympathy vote! The horse stalls have now been completely dismantled, countless rusty nails, yards of baling twine and some less than solid panels of sheetrock are going to make way for new four star accommodation for our equine friends. Now John has finished pulling them apart…he can look forward to re building them. How much longer before he escapes ??

Quatre went to work with the pressure washer to clean the rubber stall mats. Although she is never intimidated by hard work, we have discovered she does appear to have an aversion to digesting horse poo, pee and mud. Quatra’s quote of the day..”note to self, keep mouth closed when pressure washing rubber stall maps” something tells me that was a life lesson learnt ! Thanks Quatra .

Ginger still appears to be enjoying her farm experience and unfailingly returns from the barn wet cold dirty… and smiling. Her farm experiences before she came to Gentle Giant Meadows Ranch could not have prepared her for handling our wonderful Shires, the flock of sheep that think they are dogs and cows that like nothing more than a back scratch but her enthusiasm and willingness to learn have helped her confidence …I believe she is having fun.

Well, my time is up, the back police will be checking on me so I will go and walk some more circles !! Take care, keep safe, M

Wednesday morning, still icy cold but beautiful to see the white dusting of frost over the pastures and barns.Yesterdays “potential” turned out to just be another road bump, not to be ignored but thankfully Greg’s dedication and love spotted the problem early enough… and before it became a road wreck !!
Whilst we were out becoming, I’m sure, a swear word with our insurance company, the reserve team once again held the fort ( the farm !!). By all accounts, not a whole lot happened and, under Quatre’s leadership the team proved that we weren’t missed a whole lot..in fact, maybe we weren’t missed at all ! DOH !!!
Bran the Border Collie with attitude has recovered from his pouting, I think he possibly recognised that sulking is pretty much ignored around here,…if I can’t get away with prima donna behaviour, I’m pretty sure it wont work for the dog !!! Yesterday he came with us as we embarked on our all day mission. Happily he sat, paws on the back rest of the drivers seat  and cold wet nose in  Greg’s ear. When we left the truck Bran assumed guardian of the truck mode and, sitting upright in the drivers seat warned off not just the unwary who passed close by the vehicle…but every man bird or shadow that caught his watchful eye. He was a happy dog with a mission !
Whilst we were gone, the reserve team completed morning chores. Copious amounts of poo was, as usual, relocated  by a convoy of steaming wheelbarrows  from stalls, empty of their occupants and consigned to the poo pile which is turning into a rich dark smelly aromatic compost just in time for the Springtime and our enthusiastic local gardeners.
After the chores were done, Quatre and John set to work dismantling a "temporary",
 ( how long ??) stall. True to form, the stall is being torn apart…so it can be rebuilt, Greg has construction plans that should keep the team happy playing with power tools for at least a little while.
Ginger is apparently becoming the farm ambassador and cheerfully relates her conversations with the multitude of egg customers who arrive at the farm in the hope that the “sorry, sold out” sign hasn’t been turned. The chickens are apparently still on vacation or have called industrial action. Either way, the  evening egg collection has been reduced to subsistance level, nest boxes are empty and unused or occupied by a chicken with little or no intention of laying an egg. Soup or chicken ‘n dumplings comes to mind !
Well, the back police will be on my case and it’s time to move this broken body so I’ll say take care and keep safe. Thank you for your love and prayers. M

Gosh, it looks COLD out there…the fields are covered over with sparkly white frost and the cedar tree limbs are heavy with ice. Me,….facing another day looking down at the ranch from whichever window I happen to be meandering past. Yesterday found us facing yet another potential problem, but it’s still a potential problem and until we know more….Thank you Greg for your unfailing love and  support, I am SO lucky!!!

Since Greg was busily taking such good care of me, the “reserve team” Quatre, brother John and Ginger held the fort ( or the farm !!). We are lucky to have the support of an amazing network of family and friends who are helping us work through this but particular thanks have to go to our WOOFER team, Quatre and Ginger who have no real reason to accept responsibility here but smilingly take over when asked and big bro John, (THE most unlikely farmer), who,with my amazing sister and her husband have been so supportive.
Enough about me, so, what happened on the ranch yesterday ? Well, I spoke too soon. John had completed his woodpecker assignment and  lovely neat rows of little 2 inch holes graced the grain silo…next mission..you have guessed it, fill in the holes ! So big brother John spent his morning inside the grain silo, breathing in chicken food dust and peeping through 2 inch holes….if John starts to cluck I will know why!
Bran was deserted by us as we tried to deal with “stuff” and he was not afraid to let us know that he was not impressed, not impressed at all ! That dog has been sulking since our return and no amount of sweet talking, biscuits or cajoling was going to make him change his mind. He was going to sulk until he was done, and he did !
So, copious piles of leaves were relocated into big piles of orange gold and yellow and Ginger took a leisurely meander through the creek bed in what was ( I believe) a beautiful afternoon. Apparently none of the animals misbehaved and the chickens are still on partial vacation so nothing new to report. I will try to glean snippets of anything from the team on a daily basis, voluntarily offered up or I may have to resort to torture.

Take care, keep safe, keep us in your prayers.

M

Another day, what trouble can I possibly get into today ? It’s tough trying to be good…ALL day but one infraction and my wonderful back police will be down on me like the proverbial ton of bricks ! The team were hard at work yesterday, big brother John was set to work creating air holes in the chicken grain silo. Much of Johns earlier 2 two weeks was spent digging holes and filling them in…stacking wood and unstacking now Greg has assigned John the task of impersonating a woodpecker and all day he uncomplainingly bored holes. Something tells me, if the boss ( only while I’m gone !!!) changes his mind, the uncomplaining one may very well complain…loudly !

Ginger quietly works ( again uncomplainingly !) from one poo pile to another, she is reportedly enjoying her adventure and Greg is happy to report that our newest Woofer despite her diminutive stature is, so far, up to any challenge. Ginger has been working confidently with the huge Shires and despite limited or no previous experience with our equine friends is unafraid of Mr. Charm, (aka Beauty with attitude) who will undoubtedly have tested her fortitude in her early days here on the ranch. Yesterday Ginger on her own initiative braved the Chicken house; the chickens are generally THE most unpleasant chore in a check list of unpleasant smelly chores. Gingers willingness to face the worst of the worst is a good indication that she will possible be able to cope with anything and still come up smiling. Thanks Ginger !! Just one little question, how do you manage to eat so much and not roll down the hill ? On a good day, I can eat for England…little Ginger has me beat, hands down !!
She’s  back !!!…..yesterday I felt well enough to spend some time in the kitchen and (I think !!) to Greg’s delight reclaimed my empire ! Still fully aware that I am not able to do much, I have persuaded and cajoled the team to do a little “self care”.  Thankfully no one threw the dishes at me and a steady stream of ( willing ?) washer uppers filed to dunk their dishes in the soap suds . Thanks everyone, normal service will be resumed as soon as possible, until then I REALLY appreciate you helping save my wavering sanity !!

Quatre is back home today after  a weekend foray back to the big city, nice to have you home safe and sound. Hopefully the camera will be rescued from the camera case and some momentous (????) moments will be recorded, photographic genius appears to have wavered since I have been under the weather. We need you Quatre !! 
Annie, Greg amended his earlier inexcusable omission and photos of Annie at work are hopefully gracing todays entry.We miss you.
Well, my sitting time is up and my single typing finger is exausted. Time to go, take care, keep safe, M