Easter 2017

Went to the country last weekend. It was Easter & as it turned out, our first mowing of the year. I got up there on Thursday & decided to go ahead & get a head start on the mowing. Greg came up early on Friday to finish up. In one of our fields there is a new (to us) weed.

It's an ugly little thorny bush that you can't pull up & after it's mowed down it looks like some sort of bird has met it's demise.

My Dad said he hasn't seen it before but it's in almost all the fields. Anybody know what it is?

Update: Thistle! Kill it!

Went out to the garden to open up the shed to let the breeze blow through.

I had left a bag of blood meal in one of the buckets under the back lean to & something must have thought it was food. Doesn't appear they liked it after mauling it, as most of the contents were still intact.

And woo hoo, my asparagus is growing!  I planted 15 crowns & all but 2 are showing signs of life.

Greg had brought a load of compost from the city property & as I was using it to fill in the cinder block holes I looked down & saw this on one of the crowns. A stick was put in by each crown so I could tell where they were located.

Isn't that just the cutest little (& I do mean little) thing?

Had a few minor projects to get done in the barn, like hanging blinds, installing handles & locks on doors, etc. As Greg was walking back & forth from the barn to the house he happened to notice this in the grass right by our steps!

It's a timber/canebreak rattlesnake. He was a young one, just 2 buttons. He was 'relocated'.

The next day this guy came strolling across the field.

Not poisonous but if you get too close he will snap your fingers off. He can reach his neck out several inches, as in 6 or more! He is kind of pretty though. After the photo shoot, we let him meander on his way.

Then also noticed these guys by one of the doors on the house.

Why do they always build their nests in high traffic areas? I let them stay if they are out of the way but these were too close for coming & going comfort. They were 'disposed' of as well.

Sorry this post is such a creepy crawly one but that's sometimes life in the country. Here's a couple of feel good shots to leave you with.

Misc Update

Not a whole lot happening these days. My cousins wife had their baby. I think this is the sweetest pic. Big sister has been waiting patiently for little sister to arrive. She came a day early.

Here's the quilt top I made for the baby:

Before quilting & binding

Was headed to the country a few weeks ago & as I was leaving our city house something caught my eye in the front yard.

Yes, this was a turkey in the city. He was still hanging around when I got back but Nelly chased him/her any chance she got & I haven't seen him/her again.

Been busy tying up legal stuff for my mother. My sister & I sat at the SS office for over 2 hours only to be told (by an unhelpful agent) that the paperwork we had received didn't contain the right information & we needed to supply different documentation. Got that taken care of the next week, with an agent that was very knowledgeable & had us in & out within an hour. Part of her estate will go into probate so we'll have to deal with that soon enough. It's a huge run around with government agencies & banks & patience isn't my best feature.

Unfortunately, some of my country friends lost their Dad a few weeks ago. I had the baby shower to attend later in the week so I went up early for the funeral & was able to spend some restful reflective time in the country.

While there, I made arrangements for the counter tops for the barn kitchen to be delivered & installed.

Detail shot.

It's a quartz material which we love. You can set hot pots directly on it & it doesn't require any maintenance. Unfortunately the island measurements were wrong. The guy that measured only measured the width, not the length & presumed it was square instead of rectangular. There is supposed to be a 10" overhang by the sink side (to hide trash can) & 18" on the dining room side to be able to have counter seating. Hope to get replacement in a few weeks. It's aways something!

28" too short & needs trim out done, along w/stove vent.

I mowed grass & then relaxed the next few days while watching birds in & around the pond.

And fought off wasps.

Why do they always build their nests at door entrances?

My peach tree.

The other one, had 1/2 as many as this one & the wasps & birds had bitten into most of the fruit. I harvested about 10 or so over the course of a few days. They were very sweet & juicy. Had one for breakfast each day & brought back a couple to have w/my yogurt & granola for breakfast.

On the last day, Nelly & I were sitting on the back porch when I noticed this pack of dogs down by the pond.

There were actually 5 of them. They splashed around in the water & tried to see if they could get the fish feeder to give them some food. They didn't stay long.

Love the look of a mowed lawn.

Overall it was a nice visit & love the sunsets this time of year.

I'm staying indoors as much as possible these days. The heat is hard enough to deal with but this humidity is overwhelming! I'm going to work on a two separate lap quilts for the baby's brother & sister. One top is done but still cutting fabric for the other one. Will post pics when done.