Curious J the Mad Scientist Meets a Pokemon ~>

Sunday afternoon we hosted a surprise " Mad Scientist " birthday party for Curious J , he was a happy " Mad Scientist " (LOL).

We tried to get a group picture , but this was about as good as it gets around here.

We did rocket launches with film canisters and alka seltzer tablets , they really enjoyed watching them pop up in the air.

Little Time loved the safety goggles , he looks so much like his Pa.

Dr. Jekyll checks out his chemical reaction.

C. Einstein shows off his chemical gas.

Curious J the Mad Scientist launches his rocket ...... everybody stand back !

Then it was time for the Mad Scientist to meet the pokemon

" Pikachu " !

~ Many Blessings ~

JoyceAnn

A .....Maze .....Ing

Last Saturday night Curious J and Little Froggy spent the night. Curious J wants to create something almost everytime he visits. So Sunday afternoon we created these marble mazes from an idea I found on the Family Fun website.

Little Froggy thought they were amazing , look at that grin.

Yep , you have to tilt your head to make that marble roll ( LOL ).

The game was fun for a few minutes , but pulling the straws off the box was more fun for Little Froggy. As the saying goes " Boys will be Boys "!!

~ Many Blessings ~

JoyceAnn

A Long Hot Summer ...............

It's been a long hot summer , 100 degree temps and no rain made for a very puny garden. Yesterday morning after milking Ms. Jazz , I made my way through the garden and found one cucumber. I've only harvested about a dozen cucumbers this year. The zinnias are trying to bloom , so I picked a few of them and some wild herbs to make a flower arrangement , needed something to lift my spirit.

Then I saw this beautiful butterfly trying to gather nectar from an almost dead red clover bloom .............


And realized the goldenrod is starting to bloom , a sign that Fall will be here soon. I'm looking forward to Fall bringing cooler temps and hopefully lots of rain.


The poke berries are starting to ripen and turn black , another sign that Fall is around the corner.

The sunflowers seem pretty happy , they stand tall and hold their heads high. The heat and drought doesn't seem to bother them much.

And speaking of a Spirit Lifter ....... Works everytime !!

~ Bee Blessed ~

JoyceAnn

He's 7 ....................

Happy Birthday ................................

To Curious J

May Your Special Day Be Blessed

With Love , Peace and Happiness

We Love You !!

Nana & Pa

~ Harvesting Herbs ~

A couple of weeks ago I gathered the ..........................


Lemon Balm and Oregano , it's drying in the outdoor shed.



I've also been gathering and drying red clover , sorry for the terrible pics , my batteries were almost dead. The red clover has almost dried up from the drought conditions , but we've had a few thunderstorms this week that brought some rain and I'm hoping it'll revive the red clover.



Although the sunflowers aren't as tall and the flower heads are smaller , they're still beautiful and I never tire of seeing their brightness shining.





~ Blessings ~


JoyceAnn

Refreshing H2O ....................

I love watching the goats drink water , they make it look so refreshing as they sip it up. With the summer heat around here , we've all been drinking lots of refreshing H2O.

~ Be Blessed ~

JoyceAnn

Mojo Has a New ..........................

Cat House (LOL) !

Curious J was here most of last week with me , their pre-school was closed for the 4th. He decided Mojo needed a cat house , so he went to work creating this home for him.



Mojo seems to be mighty proud of his new house.



~ Blessings ~
JoyceAnn

May You Always .............................

have much for which to be " Thankful " .

~ Be Blessed ~

JoyceAnn

Rainy Independence Day ..................................

But , I was thrilled. I enjoyed the rain much more than I would have enjoyed fireworks. It's been so hot and dry here , the little rain we have received over the last few weeks hasn't helped the garden much.

It's been so hot and dry , I haven't spent much time in the garden lately , we did get 3 cucumbers before ...............................

something ate the leaves off the vine.

We've gotten a few squash , but the vines have almost dried up even though I've been watering them each day.

This tomato vine was full of tomatoes , but something ate them also. I've been slack this year and didn't put a scarecrow out. I guess I need to make one this week and put her to work. It's been a bad gardening year for us , we planted the summer crops late and it got so hot and dry that the plants haven't grown the way they should have. I hope the rain we received yesterday will revive most of the plants , but it may have been a little to late.

Hope you had a Great 4th !!

~ Blessings ~

JoyceAnn

Wishing You ......................................

A Beautiful Day !!

~ Be Blessed ~

JoyceAnn

Around the Farmette .....................................

There's not much going on around the farmette except for the extreme summer heat. Buddy has found him a cool spot though , he spends the early morning hours on the pool deck , then he moves to the concrete pad as the day heats up.


Dh finally dug the waterline and put the spigot up near the chicken coop and goat pen. That is a big help with taking care of the animals during the heatwave we're having.

The echinacea looks beautiful ............

and the first sunflower has bloomed.

I moved my milking wagon ( LOL ) to the shed were the garlic is drying. It's cooler there and less flies to deal with while milking. Hope we get some rain soon , the garden isn't doing so well with the hot and dry weather we're having.

~ Blessings ~

JoyceAnn

May Your Day Be ................................

Blissfully ..................

Blessed !!!

JoyceAnn

Do a Little Dance ..............................

~ Be Blessed ~

JoyceAnn

2011 Garlic Harvest ...............

We planted the garlic back in Oct. 2010 , by Mar it had sprouted and was around 6 inches tall.


We harvested the garlic the end of May .........

It's been curing for 2 weeks now , a few more weeks and it'll be ready clean , braid and hopefully sell some at our local " Grower's Market.

If we do well with sales at the " Grower's Market " , we plan to expand our garlic production this year.

~ Green Blessings ~

JoyceAnn