Bumper Crop Of Blueberries!

14 Quarts blueberries, 10 Pints Preserves!

I love blueberries, and this year we've had a bumper crop!  Bill has picked almost all of them by himself, the weather has been so HOT this past week!  I cleaned and canned fourteen quarts of them, ten half pints of preserves, and froze sixteen cups.  I'd consider that to be a productive day!  They look so pretty sitting on the counter, I almost hate to put them away.  We will be enjoying and sharing these for a long time.  God is good!  I am so thankful for the food we grow.

Carpe diem! Lil and Bill

Our Keets Have Arrived!

Four day old keets for the farm!

Our keets finally arrived yesterday.  These baby guineas are just the cutest tiny little things ever!  They're about half the size of chicks, such delicate little creatures.  They will be such a joy to raise, and, for me, I can't wait until we can turn them loose on the Japanese beetles in this yard!  Hope they like them.

Carpe diem! Lil and Bill

It's 102F, The Chicks Are Stressed!

Bill Building A Chicken Run

Wow!  It's 102F outside today, and that husband of mine is out there building a chicken run for the very hot and stressed chicks in the coop.  They were all panting so hard that I brought out a bucket of ice for them to lay beside.  After it melted, I gave them the ice water, hoping they didn't go into shock.  They seemed to know to drink it slowly, but they did enjoy the cold.  Here is one picture I took of the run today, more to follow as he gets more done.

Carpe diem! Lil and Bill

The Fence!

Howse Post Hole Digger and Auger on tractor

Aaand, we are off onto yet another project How does one drill 140 holes 2-3 feet deep in this hard, rocky clay?  This is how you do it!  A post hole digger & auger, Bill's Fathers' Day present!  We purchased a Howse Post Hole Digger and Auger from Southern Farm Supply.  He's not thoroughly thrilled with it so far, but we'll see how it performs for him.  Hope it goes as quickly as we think it will.  As soon as we finish this project, we will be bringing home Kahn and Kheli, our Anatolian Shepherd Livestock Guard Dogs from Clear Creek Kennels in Mt. Vernon, KY.  I can't wait!  It will be finished none too soon as the baby chicks are ready to go outside.  I think we need to wait for the dogs to prevent them from being snatched up and carried away by the hawks.

Carpe diem, Lil & Bill

What is this?

Does anyone know what this creature is?  It attacked Bill from a tree today, I've never seen anything like it.  It was about 2" long and 1/2" wide, and it had wings.  It released saliva or something from it's mouth, then hammered the area with it's head (mouth).  Fortunately, Bill was wearing leather gloves.

Carpe diem, Lil & Bill

Peaches!

Peaches!

Peaches!  I love storing up fresh fruit for later in the year.  I used to be intimidated by the process of canning.  But, after doing a little research, and buying a pressure canner, I gave it a go.  The results made a believer out of me! Mmm, peach cobbler, peach pie, peaches and ice cream, you name it, anything is good with peaches!  The smell of fresh peaches is delightful, but the beautiful sight of newly canned peaches is so very satisfying. I now know that I have enough peaches to be able to serve them all year long.  What's next?  Blueberries!

Carpe diem, Lil & Bill