WHY IS IT I CRINGE EVERYTIME MY PHONE RINGS......

We have been trying to finish up working in the fields. It's the end of hay season so we have been in the hay field 7 days a week trying to get through. The other day, Jon Brandon and David was in one field finishing bailing. My phone rings, the boys tell me to bring a chain. When I arrive, this is what I seen. As soon as I pull up, here they come a running. Both of them wanting to know if I had talked to my Mom, I tell them no why, they said that she was calling their phones and they wouldn't answer for they didn't want her to know they had buried the tractor and baler. Wasn't but just a few minutes Mom pulls up, seems she was calling to tell them that she was bringing them a snack. We ended up having to get a wrecker out there to pull the tractor out then Jon Brandon had to pull the wrecker out for it got stuck.

TRIMMING HOOFS

I try to keep the goats hoofs trimmed on a regular basis but somewhere along with everything else they got pushed to the side. So.... out came the table, clippers, and trimmers and I went to work. Usually during the summer I keep them body clipped so they don't get so hot. And we know how the temps can climb here in the South. Also when it gets close to the time for them to birth, I try to clip around their, well, their thang.lol I also clip up their tails. On my dairy goats I shave them under their belly so hair won't be falling into the milk bucket. I have found on hoof trimming, that just a good pair of trimmers whether it is garden trimmers or the kind I have , hoof trimmers are the best. I try to make each hoof as even as possible. When one starts trimming , just go at it. It's like cutting your nails. Oh sure, the goat is going to hollar and act like you are killing it but remember goats are drama queens and you are not hurting them. When you are working on their back legs, bring leg straight back never to the side or toward the front for you could break or dislocate their leg. Just keep trimming the nail until you start seeing pink. that's when you stop. The best time to trim is early in the morning after they have been walking on the grass with dew. Sorta makes the nails soft. Believe me, after you have trimmed their hoof, the goats will thank ya.lol

YOU GOTTA DO THIS......

While browsing through blogs, I dropped in on Martha. Yea, Martha Stewart. On her blog , I think the post date was Sept 16, she stated that she was wanting everyone who blog to leave her a comment and then she would pick a few blogs and put them on her show. Ok, bloggers get ready to click on this site , www.themarthablog.com and leave her a comment on that post and maybe, JUST MAYBE, one of you could be the luck one. I tried to put the link where you could just go right to that post but as you all know, I'm not the sharpest blogger in blog land. I hope that I didn't confuse you on where to go .

the final product......

As I last posted, I have been neck deep in making soap. I didn't really know how to package the soap so, being the cheap tail that I am, I took craft paper, hot glued it around the soap, and then stamped them with some little goats stamps that I had. I took a big order over to a store today here in town and they said they would love to sell them in their store. YIIPPEE!!!!! Now, let's just keep our fingers crossed that they sell. I have a few other stores that I'm going to tomorrow to talk to. Again, going to keep my fingers crossed on that too. I recieved my issue of Farm and Ranch yesterday and guess who is in there. My ex-sister-in-law. she wrote an article about her kids and their riding. She has 5 girls and one little boy and expecting , gulp, yup, number 7 this coming spring. Even after the divorce we have remained good friends. She homeschools her kids and believe me, they are great kids. Just wanted to pass that info along and thought maybe ya'll would pick up the Nov issue and read about them.

Blogger being an a##hole.....

I have been trying since Sunday to post some pictures and blogger is being such an A##Hole about it. Ok, maybe the fault isn't completely blogger for I have went to several of ya'll's blogs and tried to comment but it won't let me. HMMM......makes my a## want a dip of snuff. (just an old saying). We have been busy around here with Kasey building his house here in front of us, making soap, trying to do 2 benefits, and sometimes I don't know whether to wind my ass or scratch my watch. I did go and get my hunter and fishing license renewed for the year. So now comes the waiting game for the season to hunt open. My great Uncle passed away and we had his service Saturday and I got to see my cousin from Kodak, Tn. I haven't seen him since his Mother passed away and that was nearly 9 or 10 years ago. My friend Tina over at www.gardengoose.blogspot.com posted awhile back about repainting the inside of her house, well, I caught the fever. I have started redoing the inside of mine. From floors to ceilings, yea, I have lost it.

INTRODUCING.....

I missed posting yesterday for I was neck deep in making soap.lol I would like to introduce ya'll to Brian. Brian will be 21 in October and is a sweetheart. You know how some couples marry and then have blended families, mine, yours and ours. Well, this child is ours. Brian came into mine and Lamar's life after he was grown.lol Nope, we didn't get to share the nightly bottles, diaper changes, or the staying up all night , we recieved our child grown. He is one of the most loving, caring, and kind-hearted guys there is. He loves bull riding (where I might add, he is awesome and can really ride) riding the 4-wheelers, training horses, and just hanging out here at the house. It's funny how God brings people together. He is soo good about helping me here at home. When Brian came to live with us, we thought our family was complete but we was mistaken. He has brought so much love to this house and family. When I got my tattoo, (which has all the kids name in it, yea, it's big) I talked to him and told him, that after this he might walk out on me but I would never walk out on him. He needed a Mom and thank God, he(God) gave me the blessing to fill that role.

THANKFUL THURSDAY........

I'm gonna try every Thursday and do a post on one of my kids. This is Emily , she is the baby of all the kids and she will be 15 next Tuesday. Man, where did the years go.? It's hard to believe that this wee lil one is growing up on me. She has all the older kids wrapped around her little finger.lol Being the baby of the family has it's pro's and con's. The good side is someone always has your back, you get away with more than the older siblings did for they have done broke in the parents, all you have to do is point and say I want and the older ones get it for you. The con's are forget bring boyfriends home for the older ones runs them off, being told repeatly that your too young to do that, wearing hand-me-downs(really a good thing), parents being broke to send you to college for the older ones have done took it all.lol She is really a great kid, and I think she's beautiful. She loves to play soccer and runs on the cross country team. Her team was the state champs this year!!!! WOO-HOO

THE AMERICAN DREAM.....

Has anyone ever told you that you was living the American Dream? I have and I keep looking back to see who exactly they are talking to. Am I living the American Dream? I don't know. What is the American Dream? I believe I read one time where it was to have 2.5 kids. Ok, scratch me on that one, my gosh, there is 6 kids total here, or last time I counted. Anyway, how in the world does one have .5 kids? As far as the A.D. income, ha, I wouldn't even come close. According to the irs, I live below poverty level. I make only a total of 22,000.00 a year and that's on a good year. That's both of our incomes combined. Is that the income for the A.D.? What about cars? How many is the A.D. suppose to have? There is 7 vechiles here. Yup, 7. And sometimes they all won't run at the same time.lol What about houses? What does the A.D. house look like? Mine is just a small 3 bedroom, 2 bath cedar house with clothes, dirty might I add, piled up everywhere. Ok, only in the laundry room but still they are dirty. 3 bedrooms with 6 kids, hmmmm.... can get very interesting around here and some fighting as to who gets the other 2 beds and who gets the couches, recliners and floors. Oh, I have counted 15 people at one time staying the night. Does the A.D. say anything about mucking the stalls, having dirty between your toes, hay stuck in your clothes and hair, goats running everywhere, and I mean everywhere, getting up at 4:30 in the mornings to start the day, milking goats, feeding the horses, then riding the horses, not going out to eat but only and I stress only special occasions? How about having 20, yes, 20 pairs of boots from the back porch to the carport to the front porch to even inside the house? I counted them. What about being out in the field working while everyone else is laying around a pool or some where on vacation? Ok, I have a pool and a hot tub but I don't get to LAY around. Oh what about having 4 boys setting their sights on their guns and scarring the hipie jibbies out of you? Is this life I am living the American Dream? Sometimes I thing it's a nightmare.lol Or a punishment. lol This is the only way of life as I know it so maybe it is the American Dream. I sure don't know any other way of life. Oh sure I dream about having money and going and doing but then reality sets in and I listen and watch other people. I sorta enjoy my life. So if this is the American Dream , damn, I'm doing good.

HURRICANE GUSTAV

As you all know, my son Jon Brandon is on the Coast helping with this hurricane. I haven't talked to him but I have been commucating with him through text messages. He said that they are all bunked in an warehouse with no air or anything. He has been getting up around 3 in the morning and helping with the knock knock program. This is where he goes door to door getting people out of their homes and getting them to shelters. He stated that one man got ugly and told him that he had been their for 35 years and he was not leaving. Last night, they all retreated back to ride the storm out. I do know that they have had alot of tornados during the night and today. My ex- brother-in-law lives down in Gulfport and he lost his house in a tornado last night. His wife and 3 kids were at her parents house in Jackson but he stayed behind. He is fine but according to my ex they lost everything. Jon Brandon sent me a text tonight stating that he was fine and the weather has been rough but everything was ok. They were having some flooding but not like they had thought it would be. He said he didn't know when he would be able to call me but he would just as soon as he has some down time. He said he didn't know when he was coming home but not to worry. Ha, like I'm not going to worry. I'm thankful that things didn't get as bad as they thought. It seems like Gustav was a little calmer than Katrina. I know people down on the coast are still trying to get things rebuilt after Katrina and now it seems like they are having to take several steps back instead of forward. Today the weather here has been cloudy and very windy. We are getting rain now from the storm hopefully there will be no tornados here from it. That's the only thing we have to contend with here where I live is the tornados spawning off of this storm. It looks like for the next 5 days we are going have to deal with alot of rain. Ok, I can deal with that. I think. Jon Brandon, please take care of yourself. I know you are doing your job and I'm very proud of you. I miss you and love you.