Critters in the Backyard

When I went out to do chores this evening, this is what I saw:
There's a goat to one side, a couple of llamas, a Maremma LGD in-between, and a rooster. But wait! Look closer! What's on that male llama's back?

Well, look at that, one of the Buff Orpington hens is resting her feet in llama wool.

As a matter of fact, the rooster was on Samson's back too when I first went out, but by the time I grabbed my camera, he'd gone off to see if I was putting out any feed.

Maybe sitting on a sheep or llama's back is like having warm, fuzzy slippers on your feet. Since it was a cool, rainy day, that probably felt good.

I just never know what those critters are going to be up to when I go outside!

Update from the farm...

I'm soooooo far behind on everything and anything these days! Briefly, the facts are these:

1) We're still working on the bathroom. The new (again!) counter/sink was delivered, and this time it is all in one piece, so The Farmer is going to install that tomorrow if all goes well.

2) The place is awash with blooms. There are azaleas blooming, and also coral bells, ajuga, iris, lenten rose, tea roses, tiarella, honeysuckle, geraniums, and all kinds of wild flowers. I have clematis vines blooming in purples, blue, variegated and white.

This particular clematis is on a fence alongside the yard. The blooms are about 6" across.
3. We've got a new occupant in our pond, a great big turtle. That's okay until The Farmer decides to stock the pond with fish. We don't want to buy sushi for the turtle, but for now he can subsist very nicely on frogs and tadpoles. We have a bazillion of those, ha!

4. I still haven't got the sheep shorn. Note to self... set a date SOON!

5. I've also been trying to give away 3 roosters. No luck. They're tearing the feathers off the backs of the hens. They need to go one way or another.

That's the short version. I just don't have time to write about everything that is going on right now. Why? Well, I'm taking a 6-week class, and it is INTENSE. I barely have time to keep up with regular chores, let alone any extras.

So if my posts are sparse, you'll know why!

Look what FedEx delivered!

While I was out doing chores this morning, I saw a BIG FedEx truck maneuvering to get into our driveway. I was trying to think what in the world I had ordered until I saw the HUGE package the guy was taking out of the truck. Aha!
Hooray, hooray! Our new counter and sink arrived in ONE piece this time!!! Guess I know what the Farmer will be doing next weekend. Yes!

It wasn't ME, Mom!

This morning I was sitting at my desktop computer in my office down the hall from the living room. I was concentrating on finishing up the day’s humor mailing so I could get it sent out, and kept hearing Young Son giggling. It sounded just like it does when I’m sitting on the living room couch, and he’s down in his room in the basement right underneath me, laughing at something he’s watching on tv.

It passed through my mind to wonder what he was doing up so early since he doesn't have to go to work today, and what in the world he was watching on tv that time of morning, but I was busy so didn’t think any more about it until he came upstairs a while later.

Then I asked him what had him laughing so bright and early, and he informed me it wasn’t him because he just got up.

Ohhhhhh…. picture the little light bulb going off over my head. If it wasn’t the Geek giggling, then it was our parrot imitating him. Sure enough, I heard the same sound a little while later when I knew the Geek wasn’t in the basement..

Mind you, the parrot stops the minute you walk in the room and gives you that innocent, “It wasn’t me!” kind of look. And she’ll probably never do it so Geek will get to hear it. But she has a perfect rendition of the sound, just like she imitates the sound of a dog barking in a distance. After all, she mimics the sounds just like she hears them.

No telling who I'll hear next.

Yesterday's Visitor

I've seen the little hummingbirds enjoying nectar from the honeysuckle blooms, but yesterday was the first time I saw one go to the feeder this year.

I can sit at our dining room table and watch these little jewels flitting about. They always make me smile.

Update on the Bathroom Project

The bathroom is usable again, but far from finished. We tore out the particle board flooring and found there was a little black mildew even on the bottom layer of plywood. I cleaned the wood as best I could, then gave it a couple of coats of Kilz primer, and The Farmer covered it with a layer of roofing tarpaper, then put a new layer of plywood down on the old layer, another layer of tarpaper, then underlayment board, and finally the new vinyl flooring. It looks fantastic! The “Old World Fresco” faux finish on the walls and the pattern on the flooring blend beautifully together.

The new toilet is in place. It takes a little getting used to. We got one of the taller ones with an elongated bowl, so it’s a little different seating! It only uses 1.6 gallons of water per flush, and the flapper closes back almost instantly leaving half the water still in the tank, so that’s different too. But it does the job, and that’s what counts!

The guys got the vanity lifted in place and it looks lovely. We still need to buy handles and pulls for the drawers. That should make it look even classier once they're attached.

Then after all that work, the big moment arrived to finally see the cultured marble vanity top. I was so excited to finally get to uncrate it and see what it looked like! And what did we see when we opened the box?

Yep, one corner was broken off, so there we were, finally ready to use it and no can do. Bummer. Worse, this is a special order deal, so it’ll be around 3 weeks before we get another. We had to take it back to the store, get a refund, and order a new one. In the meantime, we just put the old top back on. It wobbles a little as this vanity is a different size from the old one, but it’s usable.

There are still a lot of odds and ends to finish up. I have to stain the new door on one side, and paint it on the other. We put the old door back in place for now, so we can use the bathroom.

The Farmer needs to change the hanger placement on the corbels, then I need to stain them. They’ll go up first, then the cupboard over top of the toilet will sit on top of them. We also need to put the medicine cabinet back up, but need the new vanity top in place first so we can see where to place it between there and the light bar over top. The crown molding and baseboard and trim around the tub and surround needs cut and put in place. We need towel bars, the toilet paper holder and light switch covers put up.

Since we have to wait for a new vanity top and we can’t devote another week to working on the bathroom full-time, it will be a while before everything is done.

But it’s gonna look GREAT!

Primal Scream Therapy

This morning when I went out to do chores the peacock was strutting his stuff and screaming.

I joined in.

Hey, I’m not the only person around here that does it. Sometimes neighbors walking down the road scream back, and last week I even heard one of the garbage guys screaming at the peacock while hanging on the back of the garbage truck as it went rolling by.

I figure it’s great therapy, doesn’t cost a cent, and that peacock and I can scream at each other for a good ten minutes before we get tired. And this week I need any stress relief I can get, so Primal Scream Therapy it is.

The problem is that bathroom we’re remodeling. Getting the wallpaper off was frustrating, but that hasn’t been the only problem. (Naturally!) After that, the Farmer had to disconnect the plumbing from the sink, and he and Geek carted the vanity out. No problem there.

However, the commode refused to leave in one piece, as the bolts were rusted in place. The Farmer ended up having to bust the bottom apart to get the commode loose. We now have a dead, slightly fragmented gold commode setting on our front porch awaiting final disposal.

Worse, once the water was disconnected, even though the valve was turned completely off, it wouldn’t quit leaking. We put a bucket under it, but it filled up so fast we had to empty it every hour. The Farmer went to work that afternoon, but thankfully stopped and got a new valve on his way home, and made the repairs that evening so I didn’t have to get up once an hour all night to keep water from overflowing.

Yesterday Geek and I painted all day. We trimmed out and painted the ceiling twice, both coats of “Cool Gray” (white with the barest hint of gray). I couldn’t believe how dingy the ceiling was once you could see the difference the fresh paint made.

Next we worked on the walls. That mess required trimming out three times, a coat of primer, and two coats of our base color of gray. We finished about 5pm, and decided to wait until today to do the faux “Old World Fresco” finish.

That took most of the morning as it’s tedious work. Brushing on lime wash, then color glaze, then brushing them together… the lime wash dried quickly, so you can only do a little section at a time. When we first started I wasn’t so sure I was going to like it, but now that it’s done – Wow! I can’t wait to see how all this looks together.

Of course, we aren’t done with problems yet. We ripped the old linoleum off the floor this afternoon, only to discover there were TWO layers glued together, AND glued to the floor. Part of it came right up off the floor, but part of it stayed firmly attached. We’ve tried various methods of removal, and none have been too successful. Since it’s only a thinner layer of paper and glue left, and we’re putting finish board on top, we may leave it. I’ll have to see what The Farmer thinks of it.

Last but not least, what do you suppose was under the linoleum? Remember, this is a bathroom. You know, lots of MOISTURE!!! So let’s use particle board, right? ARGH! The floor has gotten wet from leaks on more than one occasion, and one end was particularly nasty with black mildew. There are a couple of cracks in the board, but there is a layer of solid plywood underneath, so… once again, we’ll see what the Farmer thinks needs done.

For now, I’m just taking a rest until it’s time to go out and do evening chores and get in a little more Primal Scream Therapy.