Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Kitten nest (and other things)...

Looky what I found in the chickens' nest this evening!  And egg....and two new kittens.  I think they belong to our cat, Socks.  She was up there when I came through the door and then she quickly jumped out of the nest.  Socks is a nice cat, but she's not all that friendly.  I expect she'll move her kittens sometime after it quits raining.  Yes, raining!  It's raining here again and we're so thankful.  It sounds like we are going to have a rainy system that lingers for the next few days.  I do hope so because Hubs and I just over-seeded part of our lawn.

I'm trying to figure out why our lawn died out so badly, and I think it was a combination of things.  Last year was terribly dry and we couldn't water the lawn.  We did, however, use a trash pump and watered from the stock pond a few times.  That water was pretty bad and full of alkali which is not good for lawns so I think the drought along with the bad water might have hurt the lawn grass.  The other thing is that we never got a good snow cover this winter.  Grass needs a nice blanket of snow when it gets as cold as it does up north and ours didn't have one. 

I raked and raked the old dead stuff out of the yard and then we did a light tilling.  I did a little research on overseeding with native grasses so that's what we are experimenting with.  My idea is that the native grasses will be drought resistant, bug resistant, and require less mowing, watering, and fertilizer.  That sounds like the perfect lawn to me.  A local seed company made the mix for me:  Cody Buffalo Grass, Sheep Fescue, Fairway Crested Wheatgrass, Dutch White Clover, and Blue Grama.  We'll see if it comes up in a week or two.  In the meantime, we are getting the perfect rain for it.

Yesterday I planted my square foot garden beds.  I wrote everything down on a piece of cardboard so I could remember what seeds I planted where.  The tomato and pepper plants are easy to see, but not those little seeds.  Once everything is up, it will be easy to see what is what.  Perfect rain for the flowers and veggies too.

My upper body is feeling quite puny tonight after my raking and planting workout.  I took a hot bath with some Epsom Salts and felt some relief.  Rest will be the next remedy.

This past weekend our son (#3) was married to JJ.  What a celebration we had!  The whole family was home for it.  It was an outdoor wedding that turned out beautifully despite all the threatening weather that was predicted. We had perfect sunshine and comfortable temperatures.  No coats, no rubber rain boots, no umbrellas --  although we packed umbrellas in our cars, just in case.  JJ was a beautiful bride and our son was a handsome groom.  We are so happy for them both and wish them much  JOY!

Now it is time to head off to bed where I will listen to the rain drumming on the windows and get all cozy and warm and comfortable. You know this little saying, don't you?  I think of it almost every night when I climb into my bed, and I certainly will tonight.

Breakfast in Bed, Mary Cassatt

Oh Bed! Oh Bed! Oh delicious bed! 
That heaven on earth to the weary head." 
~Thomas Hood


12 comments:

  1. May I please have that yellow kitten? I shall drive up to your house to get him. When I was a kid, we used to find nests of kittens in the woodpile. Mousie, the grand matriarch of the golf course cats, would choose our under-the-deck woodpile for her babes.
    Oh, I am SO glad the wedding was wonderful! LOVE!
    Yes, bed is so good. Bill always says, "Oh, I love our bed!"
    I hope the grass grows, Jody!

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  2. I'd never seen that quote before! He's so right. There are nights when you crawl into bed and snuggle in the covers and sink the head into the pillow, and there is no great relief! Congrats on your wedding. It sounds perfect. I'm eager to hear how your lawn does. Sounds like you've looked for a good solution. Hooray for your rain!!!

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    1. I even slept in (until 7 ) this morning. What a comfy bed we have. I will definitely update on the grass growing.

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  3. I've not seen that quote before! Congrats to all of you on the marriage and what an added blessing that the weather cooperated! Hope your rest helped your weary muscles...

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    1. Thank you, Ellen. I'm glad you stopped.

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  4. That picture of the your newly 'hatched' kittens is going to delight my girls!

    Congratulations on the marriage.. Our families grow and grow. This is so exciting to me! Will they live nearby? Always my question. :)

    Blessings, Debbie

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    1. Debbie, I've got another nest of kittens that I'm going to snap a picture of if she's still there. I spied her carrying them across the corral.

      Yes, the newlyweds will live just 2 hrs. away. I'd say that's close. They really want to come home to the ranch. I hope it works out.

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  5. Congratulations on the wedding of your son! Now you have another new daughter to love.

    I hope your lawn is invigorated with the new seed. I've always been intrigued with the natural or native lawn mixes. A seed company in Oregon - Nichols? - used to have one with herbs and various things mixed in - it was supposed to need much less water than a standard formal lawn.

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    1. Another new daughter to love....that's right. And we sure do love her.

      Every time I mow the lawn, I think....Why am I doing this every week. If I could have my 'druthers, I'd have a native lawn with wildflowers mixed in. I have a small patch of backyard that I intend to convert to a mini-meadow.

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  6. So glad to hear it was a dry wedding. Congratulations! And now rain! Perfect. Love those little kitties. So sorry about your lawn. My bed is the best place ever so really love that quote. Yes yes yes! Hope you get some much needed rest.

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    1. I love the photo at your blog right now of your scrumptious, delicous bed. The headboard and the bedding is so lovely. I'll bet your head loves resting there.

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  7. I love that photo. I bet you were sore. Congrats on your son and new DIL how wonderful.
    I am so glad you are having such good rain this year. I hope the native grasses grow very well.
    It sounds really nice to be at your house and listening to the rain on your windows.

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