Steady Rain

The rain started last night, slow and gentle. The perfect rain is not a downpour or a thunderstorm, it is a steady, gentle rain that last for hours. I had not watered my plants last night so the rain was very welcome.

This type of rain slowly soaks the ground with moisture and nourishment. It doesn't wash away loose seeds, plants, dirt or gravel, it doesn't cut ditches. This is the kind of rain that we cherish.

I woke up all through the night to hear the gentle rain and it made me happy. It means more grass for the thirty some odd horses that we have, not all are odd just most of them.

It also means more grass for my DH to mow. Mowing gives him something to do in his spare time. I would venture a guess of 47 acres of mowing in his down time, when he isn't working six days a week. Some of that mowing is with a push mower to keep himself healthy.

When I arose from my slumber this morning, I found that it was still raining. I waited for awhile before going out to bring the goats to the barn for milking. After looking at the radar on the internet, I decided that this sweet rain wasn't going to stop anytime soon and that my feet were wet from where the lovely rain was coming through the wall under my computer desk.

Upon venturing outside, I discovered that there was barely a dry spot inside the barn. My milkstand is standing in about two inches of beautiful rain water. Angus' stall is now a marsh area but he isn't there, he is outside enjoying the steady rain.

I have tried to stay positive throughout this post but after just hearing the weather forecast on the radio, I am beginning to have negative thoughts. There is more rain in our immediate future and the possibility of thunderstorms tonight. How could such a lovely summer rain become so annoying?

The Gate

An innocent looking gate you might say. That is what my poor Husband thought this afternoon. A gate that doesn't get much use until he decides to switch some horses around. He opens the gate and a few of the horses go through without any problems but two decide to be difficult.

Somehow, and I am not sure of the sequence of events, but he throws the gate back into the wide open position and something latches onto the top of his ring finger. With the other hand he grabs the offender and dislodges him. Then he notices that there seems to be a swarm of offenders all around him. He then removes himself from the area and looks back with curiosity. That is when he sees the hornet's nest.



He comes to the house and applies a paste of baking soda to the sting and tells me the story. I drag myself from my sick bed, grab my cane and camera and hobble out to the gate, staying at a safe distance. I tell him that he smashed the nest against the gate post and that is why they were so upset with him.



He says, "Yes, I can see that now." He also informs me that a hornet's sting is the worst. Bumble bees cannot hold a candle.

Both of our Sons were stung yesterday by Bumble bees, they thought that they were Wood Bees and the eldest Son accused us of lying to him about Wood Bees not stinging. Since I am sure that I would never lie to him, I am thinking that they have just misidentified the species.

Wood Bees are shiny and Bumble bees are hairy and from what I was told, they had a nest in the ground next to a stump or in the stump. Our youngest Son looked like a prize fighter with his swollen eye.

Anyway, back to the hornet's nest, my DH is planning on dousing the nest with gas tonight and lighting it. I did give him some benadryl and he is out in the hot sun on the tractor mowing one of the pastures. I didn't feel that this was a good idea but just try telling a man anything.

This nest was close to the ground, so that is suppose to mean a mild winter. But I just talked to a friend who said that all of the hornet's nests he has seen this year were up high.

Mowing Pastures

I have always enjoyed mowing the pastures but since we got the new tractor, my DH hogs it all of the time. He tells me that my back couldn't take it but I think he just wants to do it until the new wears off.

He is aways mowing, he no sooner gets one field done and it is time to start on the next one. He is spending all of his days off on that tractor. The thing that worries me is that he goes to sleep while mowing. He dozes off anytime he sits still for very long.

He has also discovered the one thing that he doesn't like about the new tractor and that is that the exhaust comes out the side, so that you get all of the heat blowing right back on you. The side exhaust was my idea, I wanted it because he always likes to mow under low hanging limbs and that tends to knock off top mounted exhaust pipes. I guess I was wrong on this one.

He did get one horse rode this morning. I had someone here on Saturday that is interested in Lulu, she is one of our young AQHA mares. We bought her as a green broke horse a year ago and have never been on her. He didn't have any trouble with her, she saddled nicely and accepted him on her back. He rode her around in circles with just a halter and lead rope for awhile but it was hot and dusty, so he didn't ride her for very long. They ended on a good note, she did very well.

Blossom

Blossom has arrived and I got to drive her today, she is soooo sweet. We plan to keep her for the rest of our lives. She is brand new and her full name is Orange Blossom Special but we are just going to call her Blossom.

She is a Kubota MX5000, hence the Orange inspired name. We have been without a tractor for a good long time, our last one was hauled away for junk. But it was junk when we first got it and it caused us much grief. With Summer quickly approaching and pastures to be mowed, we had to make a long thought out and hard decision. So, instead of buying a new truck, which we need, or building a house, we bought a tractor.