Our first casualty

We set out new pens tonight to give the chickens and ducks more space, and boy do they enjoy it. It was great fun to see the ducks splashing around, with everyone having a good time. But, I noticed that the sheep were acting funny and hadn't eaten much. This is very unusual for them. Our littlest dog, Dax, had really seemed to enjoy the farm. He even liked the sheep and went straight up to them, slept near them, etc. Today, he was sleeping in the yard, or we thought he was. Something didn't seem right, so I went over to check him and found out that he was dead. We're not sure what happened, we think its possible that a hawk might have caught him, or maybe the sheep did something to him. Anyway, we are now without a wonderful little dog who overcame a lot of hardships. He was severely abused when he was a puppy to the extent that we are sure he suffered brain damage. Because of this he never did well with potty training. His bones creaked when he walked because the arthritis was so bad. And he had allergies that caused his skin to itch and become irritated. Despite all of this we loved him dearly. He will be sorely missed by all of us. I was telling John tonight that while I was pregnant with him, we used to get Dax to howl just for the fun of it. He had the funniest high pitched howl you would ever hear. Our dear boy, we will miss your sweet smile. May you be running free of all skin problems, with a clear head that brightens your loping gait that has no pain. We loved you.

Anyone having trouble reading the blog?

I'm having trouble viewing my blog, so if you can, please email me and let me know if you can see it. I may just be having trouble viewing it because the best we get on dial up out here in the country is about 14 kbps. But, all I'm seeing is a white space where text used to be.

Well, we've been here almost a week and everyone seems to be settling in. The cats have made it downstairs a few times, but they stay mostly in the master bedroom area. It sounds like a thundering herd of buffalo up there when they "playing". Of course, it depends on which cat you ask whether they're playing or not.

I now have the daunting task of emptying the other house. I'm hoping to clear out one room a day, which means I should have the house emptied by Monday of next week. But, we'll see. I'm the world's worst procrastinator.

John's MDO is having an awards/graduation ceremony tomorrow, so we are going to attend. He has learned quite a lot this past year there. Its hard to believe its over. He can now write his name, some letters and can read letters and numbers. They also can be credited for getting him potty trained. It sure wasn't me.

On another note, my cousin's daughter is not doing well. She has a young baby and has had complications ever since his birth. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers. Her name is LeeAnn.

Well, on for the next week. Have a good one.

We've moved!

Monday was moving day for most of our large furniture items. The house is still packed like sardines, but all of us are now in residence at the farm. Things are a little different than originally planned. The dog room is currently used as a brooder room for 15 chicks, 9 ducklings, 4 goslings, and 18 quail, as well as the temporary home for all of the 20 adult quail. The babies are so adorable. I've taken pictures but the camera fell in a sinkhole on my desk at the old house and I haven't found it yet.

Our other residents, Tuffy and Tiger the cats, Tipper, Tara and Dax the dogs, and Uno and Dos the Cockatiels are doing fairly well. Surprisingly, the pet that has handled the move the best is schitzo Dax. He likes to talk to the sheep, goes right up to them in his staggering loping way with a goofy grin on his face. They actually looked like they were talking yesterday until one of the sheep butted him away. But, he continues to go toward them. Tipper and Tara seem bored, and Tipper has become quite the escape artist. Tuffy and Tiger have barely made it out of the Master bedroom, but they're becoming a little more bold. Tuffy actually made it to John's room and visited with him tonight. Our birds, Uno and Dos seem to really be enjoying life in the living room. They've been shut away for so long in the old office at the house. We just can't get them to keep quiet. The house still echoes because of the tile and wood floors.

John and I are still adjusting. We have yet to be able to relax and enjoy living at the new house. Every night and day have been spent on something to do with the move. John's schedule has totally been destroyed, so we're working to get that back in shape. He was rolling at 2:00 this morning for at least an hour. He does have a cold and cough right now so that takes care of some of it.

Yesterday was our eighth anniversary. We were married on May 9th at the Biblical Arts Center. Its so sad to think that the lovely place we were married doesn't exist anymore. We celebrated with a sick child. We tried to go to Red Lobster, met with a barf bag, cleaned up, then tried IHOP, met wtih the threat of another barf bag, and finally just got groceries and hubby cooked eggs and bacon. Tonight we ate at a local steak restaurant and had a nice time.

Guess thats all for the update now. My next few weeks will be to get the other house emptied and ready to sell. What a daunting task.

TTFN