Monday, April 12, 2010

While digging in the dirt today....

.... I saw this little guy hopping around.  At first I thought it was a grasshopper and I was about to be totally disgusted that a grasshopper should be out chowing down this early in the spring.  But upon closer inspection, I found him to be a tiny Leopard Frog, the same frog family that sings me to sleep.  I caught him and put him in a jar for awhile until I could take more time to study him.  He is one of the common frogs we have here on the northern plains and it's probably the ONLY frog we have in our area.    
 Here he is in the jar looking out with sad eyes that begged me to release him, which I did.  
I wonder what I looked like to him through the glass?  

See how tiny he is?  About two fingernails in length.

It was a glorious day here at my house -- 70 degrees, partly cloudy with a light breeze.  Perfect weather for working outdoors.  I spent from 9:00 to 3:00 out working in my yard -- smoothing out some patches for grass seed, planting grass, laying down some weed and feed over the lawn, and carrying shovels full of rotted sheep manure to plants and garden beds.   I got a really good workout, one which I know I will "feel" tomorrow.   Raking, digging, shoveling, and carrying all take a toll on my out-of-shape winter body.

When you garden and turn over the soil, do you ever find things?  I do.  All the time.  Mostly I find toys and things that my children were playing with when they were little.  In the past have dug up those green army guys, a yo-yo, multiple Hot Wheels cars, spoons and forks.  When we bring up the manure compost from the old sheep shed, sometimes I find interesting things did not come from my own family.  Old coffee cans and cool-looking bottles or docking tools.  Here's what came up from my diggings today........
An old hand trowel (I wondered where that went!), a jaw bone of a sheep, a pliers rusted wide open which I'll soak in some oil, and a golf divot mender that says it was from Lake Oahe, a place we golfed quite a few years ago.  Funny how these things surface.

I am so, so pleased with my accomplishments today!   I even got the sheets washed and hung on the clothesline to dry.  You know that Monday is Wash Day and I hate to mess up the weekly program.  The only thing I didn't complete was spading  two of the four raised beds.  I just decided it could wait another day.  My arms and my digging foot had had enough for one day.  Now all I need to do is wait for the rain which is promised for tonight and tomorrow and maybe even Wednesday.  That would be just lovely on my newly sown grass and my fertilized lawn.  

Hubs and J. worked on their "tee box" today and over-seeded the grass there.  Our family is a golfing family (everyone but me) and so we have a nice spot close to our house where they like to practice.  They drive  their balls out into a large pasture to the south of our house.  It's kind of a "Willie Nelson Golf Range" but it's pretty darn nice in the spring and early summer.  The guys try hard to keep their tee box in good repair and I do the most of the mowing.  I'm not a golfer, but I like to watch them play while I walk the courses admiring the pretty flowers, the trees and the lush grass.  My kids say I could be good if I'd  "get serious" but I just can't.  I'd rather look for birds and not worry about making eagle, birdie, par or a snowman.  A snowman is what we call an 8 which is something you don't want on a single hole.  Nope.  Just give me my Birks, some sunscreen, my camera and let me walk the course.

Speaking of Birks and walking, I have an excellent product to share with you as you move from your clogs and heavy boots to your sandals and flip-flops.  It's called Corona Ointment (aka:  udder butter).  I buy this product at the local farm and ranch supply store.  We mainly use it when the cows have chapped teats and on horse hooves, but it makes an excellent cream for dry, cracked heels and chapped, hard-working hands.  It's made of 50% lanolin (from sheep wool) and so it's an excellent, protective balm for the skin.  I've even used it on my chapped, red nose when I have a cold.   I don't like the Udder Butter in the green tin that you sometimes find in department stores; Corona is much, much better.  Good stuff.  Get-ya-some.

15 comments:

  1. Love corona cream!! Interesting stuff you unearthed in your garden there )

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  2. Hi Jody!
    The little frog is so sweet. And you have pretty fingernails!
    You are ambitious! Way to go! I hope you aren't TOO sore tomorrow.
    xo

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  3. What a wonderful day you had! I really, really need to get out in my yard and spend about 6 hours out there. There are already weeds everywhere!
    The little frog is soooo cute! How nice of you to let him go.
    Loved this post!
    Joyce

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  4. Loved visiting with you on the farm today. You had quite the finds. Treasure from nature and from man. Sounds like a glorious day to me, chores and all! Be blessed!

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  5. What a beautiful day you've had! I loved reading about all the things you find -- especially goodies from when your children were young!

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  6. What a cute frog! I've been listening to them the past couple of nights! On a weird note, I did have a tiny grasshopper in my yard the other day. I didn't think they would be here yet! Blah!

    Glad you got so much done!

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  7. Well, we got snow this afternoon and tonight...no gardening going on here. Love the little frog, as a kid I used to spend half my summer catching frogs! Hope you get the rain, if you do it'll be so good for the garden. (I do golf...love it but I love nature even more!) Come say hi :D

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  8. What pretty green stripes that frog has on his silver body!

    I've enjoyed your recent bird sightings; not too much here yet. It's good that you can bird while "caddying," too. (I'll have to remember the snowman!) I've found that birding while running can give you skinned knees!

    And I'm so glad you found your stuff in the planter box. You must have been looking for that sheep jawbone everywhere! ;-)

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  9. What a cute frog!

    When we lived in Iowa, we had itty bitty tree frogs. Their feet always amazed me.

    We're only in our 5th year of living here so no toys are ever found. What is always getting lost (and hopefully found) is my husband's favorite weeder.

    It is his "precious" and when he has left it on the lawn... who knows where... it becomes necessary to drop everything and look.

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  10. Once a homeschool mom, always a homeschool mom. I love how you put the frog in the jar to look at him for a while.

    Thanks for sharing your day. Would love to hang out with you.

    We live on my husband's gradmother's property and are familiar with digging up pieces of the past. Once in the garden we unearthed an old scouting pin from the early 40's inscribed with his aunt's initials. "I wondered where that went!" she said.

    Wishing you and yours a happy spring-

    Angie in WA

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  11. Yep...I'm with you walking the course with my camera :0)
    So glad you got some nice weather to dig around in. Can't say I've ever found anything as interesting as you found.
    Have a good week...

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  12. Cute little frog!

    I'll walk along with you - I could never get serious about golf either.

    I have some udder cream too - a different make though. I'll look for your brand.

    Hope you're not too sore today.

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  13. We do use the ointment in the green container, called "bag balm" and it is helpful, but I will keep a lookout for the corona...sounds like it works wonders for dry skin which we all battle after the cold winter months.
    Thanks for the tip,
    Joanne

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  14. Joanne,

    Bag Balm! That was the name of the green tin of ointment with the cow on the lid. I've used it and like it too, but prefer the lanolin rich Corona Ointment.

    Thanks for stopping in everyone!

    Jody

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  15. Your Leopard Frog sounds nothing like our southern frogs. We have several different kinds; some that live in trees and some in ponds and swamps. We also have toads.

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