Now back to our regularly scheduled programing!

 It has been a busy and productive summer.  Now to switch from the externals to focusing on my inside jobs!  Those creative ones!

The truth is...

I kinda got excited by this book because, shoot, who wants to give up the staff of life.  vbsigh  I did appreciate the insights and he does say that there are those who really do need to avoid wheat/gluten.  But there are also sensationalized reports and cures on a wide range of symptoms and ailments.  So for a few days and in the interests of science I had a lovely feed of bread, bagels, pasta, ETC. and I must report that for me, gluten is a poison indeed. :(  So it is back to buckwheat pancakes which are quite lovely as far as pancakes are concerned but aren't quite same as a bread in cucumber and tomato sandwiches.   :(   But I must believe that my body doesn't lie.  :)

Monday- wash day!

The question, aside from whether or not the laundry will stay on the line, is whether the raspberries will plump up or not.

The wee but sweet tomatoes have been satisfying my sweet cravings on a steady but regular basis. They are plumping up nicely.  But then they are near the door and get regular watering.

The raspberries were looking promising, very promising.  But then we got fixated on the tree planting and never gave them a thought.  A week of very hot temperatures were doing them in.

I do believe they are gonna plump up!  We have had two days of deluge.  The ditch behind this flower bed is full of water and I expect all these plants to draw it in for quite some time.  :O

The sun is welcome and I hope the temperature heats back up as I've been shivering for two days and looking for extra quilts at night.  :(

It would have been nice to have a few hot days to seal down the new shingles but at least we didn't lose any.  :{  The barn is dry inside and now time to move on to phase two.  Summer schedule is escaping page by page and it'll be back to the regularly scheduled programming in no time. 

Tuesday- To Do List!!!

Briefly...

 Summer is throwing curves

Sometimes very hot!

Sometimes really cool!

Some things adapt amazingly!

But the barn roof is done.  And the trees are all planted.  Now the grass needs cutting  before we start cutting barn boards.  Well, and a quick trip through the flower beds as the weeds like all kinds of weather. lol

Company came and we had a respite from the physical work.  But not from play which for some can be hard work!

Not any sewing but  I did browse through 2 new books and can't wait to move ahead on the series for square in a square.  :)

My gal has her first apartment and we've been fixing it all up.  So fun!  No time for mixed media but we are laying in a few things for the fall and the ideas are percolating!   This year we are focusing on shapes and stories and we'll carry that over into Art 101 with the grand kiddies! 

I always have time to read. It may very well be my premier hobby!   :{  I believe if we feel well,  we do well and I could be doing/feeling better.  So I am back to tweaking my diet and daily supplements.  I have never been actually tested for Gluten Sensitivity but felt better avoiding it on a doctor's recommendation.  I have to own up to some cheating because I'm 'only' intolerant.  vbsigh.  I need to find out for sure because our minds believe all kinds of things. VBSigh.  Why settle for okay when GREAT is better!

Now that I have sorta briefly brought things up to date I need to get ready for some unexpected company. But company is always good, right!  I must tell you that there will be nothing brief about the Rooster's list when we wave goodbye to guests and summer and face Fall!

And that's the news in brief!  :)

Switching up the tools and the footwear!

In the spring we ordered 30 young bare root trees and shrubs.  We potted them up with a lovely custom mix of soil, manure and perlite.  With them all in one spot they got regular watering and some necessary tlc. We lost one (?)  and planted 40!  The Rooster is worried about his mathematical abilities but I slipped a few nursery additions into the plan.  lol 

We have groupings all over the farm as we try to foil the wind from whipping off shingles and depositing snow banks in inappropriate spots.  He swatted mosquitoes as he dug in the last tree and then proceeded to put his shovel down.  uhm?   Of course he'd be delighted to scoop up one wee struggling shrub from last year and move it.  Now he could put the shovel down???  of course but...  That tree in the mosquito haze definitely has to be moved over two feet!  :{  I explained it to him as he removed his work boots.  After all, he was the one who pointed out how close it was to its neighbour!   eek!

So tonight we, well, he, will schlep the poor thing over a bit to the left and then we'll cut all the grass, trim a few unruly spots and admire the yard before the next heatwave hits on Tuesday. 

The pots have worked out great because it gave us time to decide the best places to put them as we worked on cleaning up the yard.  We'll do it again next spring although the man on the shovel thinks we should try for a smaller number.  lol

I will be glad to change my rubber boots for running shoes as we put down the shovels and pick up the hammer so we can tackle the BIG project, the ol' barn.  Oh dear, there I go with the royal 'we' again!   I'm the gofer, hence the running shoes!  ;^)     The Rooster is back at his day job so this will all go a bit slower.

No, it doesn't look like much but the old fences are down and the ground has been cut and awaits further leveling.  The roofer comes this week to tackle the patching.  The replacement boards are all stacked in the barn.  The new front door design has been agreed upon and the windows will be replaced after the painting,  The barn paint will not be bright red but a rusty red.  The pails have been ordered but we'll likely wait for the temperature to moderate a bit.  The repairs will keep us busy at any rate.  

The temperatures for the coming week are all sunny and HOT!  It'll be good to hang out in the barn!  The other good news is that my rubber boots have a serious crack in one sole so I'm looking forward to a new pair of pretty flowered  replacements.   I wonder if I'll get new running shoes after the painting is all done.  I suspect that once this project is done I'll be looking for fuzzy slippers!  :)