Animal Rescue 911

Our home is becoming known as the animal shelter around these parts. All family and friends know that whenever they find a homeless or orphaned creature they can call us. We usually have an extra pen and lots of loving arms to accept just about anything. This all started many years ago when Brad, now 17 years old, wanted to work with animals for his vocation when he grew up. At that time, we lived in a very confining neighborhood so his love for animals was limited. However, since we have moved out in the country things have really changed for him and his passion has spread to the two younger sons. We have raised countless abandoned squirrels, snakes (against their will), opossums, raccoons, dogs, cats, rats, pot-bellied pig, the list goes on and on. I thank the Lord that my boys have a love and respect for God's creation. They have learned so very much about the different animals, insects, and reptiles that He created. We have various resource books with wonderful pictures and information. The pages of many books are worn down by curious fingers searching how to feed or house a particular pet they captured/rescued. This is home schooling at its best!

Over the holidays, we have opened our home and hearts to two more needy pets. On his way home from church one night after dark, Monroe saw a man on the highway near our house. He was pointing to the ditch on the side of the road and was very excited. My sweet hubby stopped to see if he needed help and found that his dog had been hit by a car. There was a language barrier so Monroe wasn't sure he understood the gentleman. After making a phone call to a friend that speaks Spanish, Monroe was able to understand that the man had given his dog to a friend that didn't take care of the animal and had let the dog run lose. That was how the dog got hit. The man wasn't able to care for his pet and asked Monroe if he would take the dog. Of course you know what his answer was! So, we now have a bull dog mix puppy that the boys named Otis. He is a cutie. He is recovering just fine from the accident. No broken bones just a badly bruised hip. I suggested the name "Lucky"! ; )

On Christmas Eve we received a phone call from some dear friends. There was a stray baby goat roaming in their neighbor's yard. They also live out in the country but the owners of the goat neglected it and pretty much didn't care if it lived or died. We learned that the mother died giving birth to this lovable little doe. That is all we know about her. I have no idea exactly how old she is. We are bottle feeding her. We appropriately named her Eve.

I don't know what animal the Lord has for us to shelter in the future but as long as we have the means to feed and shelter it we will say "Yes!"

The Last Christmas Present

It was getting dark on Christmas night as I went out to feed the goats and our pregnant cow, Missy. Everyone showed up for the evening snack except for Missy which is very odd because she is usually waiting for us at the gate each night. I walked out to the pasture to look for her and to my surprise this is what I found. Isn't she beautiful!

I was shocked to see this newborn calf lying in the grass! For a split second I wondered where it came from because we had been outside throughout the day and didn't notice anything different with our cow. The pasture is in front of our house in plain view. I guess our Missy was in labor and we didn't even realize it!

Now let me back up and give some more details on Missy and explain why we didn't know when she was suppose to calf. A "few??" months ago (I have learned how important it is to keep notes) we came home to find the fence that separates our pasture from the neighbor's pasture was leaning in one spot. Hmmm...that was strange until we later saw the neighbor's bull coming to visit our carousing little heifer! Apparently they had a rendezvous in spite of the fence. We wanted to wait until she was at least 18 months to 2 years before breeding her as we were told this is best for the heifer. We are pretty sure she was old enough. Just how old is Missy??? Well, we got her as a calf but we don't know how old she was when she came to us and did I write down the date we got her? Noooo, but you can be sure that will not happen again. I am learning these things.

We anticipated seeing the birth and had planned to invite Hannah and her family over to watch. We have never seen animals give birth except for our dog. We missed this opportunity but next time I will be more prepared!

Now our next farm lesson will be learning to milk our cow (Oh Marcy, how I wish you were my neighbor right about now!!!). Missy is pretty intimidating to me and she looks much bigger when I am squatting down near those powerful legs. We are not going to try milking for a couple of weeks. In the meantime, Monroe is going to build a milking stall. For now, we are taking treats of fruit and petting her. She is very protective of her calf and will not let us touch it. By the way, she had a baby girl...errr...I mean a heifer. We are still trying agree on a name. We want something "Christmasey". So far we have come up with Mistletoe, Holly and Merry Bell (that is Ms. Kay's suggestion). What do you think? Does anyone have any other ideas?

We have some other Christmas additions to our farm. I'll write about that tomorrow.

With a grateful heart,

Pam

T-Bone Wins Round One

I just thought I would share this little story about our first steer that we raised. We got him when he was very young. I fell in love with him right away. That cute little white patch on his nose was too much! Well, we decided to name this little guy T-Bone to remind us why we have this animal. My family has watched T-Bone grow up. Finally the day came to load him up and take him to the butcher. So, one Saturday morning we all went out to the pen with a heavy heart but very confident that we would get this big fellow loaded with no problem. The goal:

Get T-Bone

to go in here

That should be a cinch, right? Now I know for all you experienced farmers and horse people out there you are probably shaking your heads and laughing right about now. But you see, we parked this borrowed horse trailer out in our pasture for a couple of weeks and fed Mr T-Bone in it each evening. He would just waltz right in, get his treat and leave. However, we didn't take into account how intelligent cows really are. You might even say this big boy out-smarted US!

On this particular morning, we put his treat in the nose of the trailer just like always. In he went...ahhh so easy...we should be on our way in no time. Brandon, our photographer, had a birds-eye view on top of the goat pen, out of danger.

Then, as soon as we would walk up to the back of the trailer this is what he did...

We tried repeatedly but each time T-Bone was ahead of the game! After awhile we all were sick of that cute -little white patch-steer. And by the end of the morning, we were frustrated. As for T-Bone? Well, he was so mad that he was blowing at us! He was pretty worked up as you can see here.

A couple of weeks later we finally did get him loaded but in a different trailer, a cattle trailer with open sides. I do miss him. Now we look back and laugh at that Saturday morning and at out mistakes too!

Brrrrr! A FREEZING DAY IN FLORIDA

What a busy week we have had! I love to enjoy this Holy Season unhurried. I have purposely planned to not have a full schedule-infact, my calendar was pretty much clear. However, the Lord has been so good to us and blessed our family with some activities we would have otherwise been unable to enjoy! How could we say no? Here is just one of the exciting days we have had.

We had such a great time at the Gaylord Palms Ice Show! We went with our best friends which made it even more special. This awesome exhibit of ice is really unbelievable. The pictures do not capture the beauty but at least you get an idea of the exibit.

Each year 30 artisans from China are brought to Orlando to the Gaylord to begin the ice sculptures. The results are magnificent! We learned that the "blueprint" involved an ice sculpture of Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer but there was a problem. The crew, being from China, didn't have any idea who Rudolph was. The story had to be explained to them before they could begin. I thought that was an interesting little fact.

The gingerbread house looked good enough to eat. Don't you agree?

It doesn't take long to tell Santa what you want for Christmas when his lap is a bone-chilling 9 degrees!!

And this nativity scene was the most beautiful of all to me! Absolutely breath taking!

An icy walkway.

My boys with the penguins.

And the highlight of the tour was the ice slide! This is as close as we Floridians will get to a sled ride!

At the end of our tour and just in time we found the kleenex dispenser! Hope you are able to read the cute sign the kids are standing by. A nice touch.

What a great day! What a great Heavenly Father to bless us with the "little extras"!

Farm Chores Make Strong Boys

My boys don't get to go to the gym to work out but that doesn't mean they don't get a work out!



I am sure they would RATHER be at the gym but this work out builds character as well as muscle. I have seen a difference in them (character and muscle!) since we have moved here. There are times they tend to get lazy but that can't last for long. There is always a chore to be done! Don't get me wrong, I do have a battle on my hands some days getting them motivated. They know, however, that we can't afford to leave things undone.

One late afternoon, Dad brought home our hay for the winter. We use the hay for bedding in the goat pen until it gets all soiled. Then it goes in the hog pen. I know that's gross but let's face it-hogs are not very clean animals and they don't seem to mind a bit. We also put the hay in the cow pen. On very cold snaps the hogs get fresh hay as well. The chickens need hay for their laying baskets. As you can tell, it is a much needed item on a farm.

Anyway, the older guys had to unload the hay from the trailer and put it in the loft of the barn.



Here they are, so happy to be working at night loading hay. Can't you just see it in their darling faces???

I am very proud of my guys. They have learned many skills that will help them later on when they have a family of their own. Those firm biceps and abs are just an added bonus!!

Have a great day!

Pam

Thanksgiving Hangover

Is this what you felt like yesterday after that wonderful Thanksgiving meal??? I think it depicts my entire family....even the dogs! We truly did enjoy a delicious meal. Monroe smoked our turkey and ham on his new grill (he made it, I will blog about it soon) and it was mouth watering good. After lunch I was able to catch my breath and reflect on the goodness of the Lord! Wow, I could never thank Him enough. He has blessed us with so much. My heart just overflows when I think about how blessed I am. There is always plenty of food on our table to feed our hungry bunch, thank you Lord. I have my precious family, dear friends, our health and....grandchildren!! Now there is something to get excited about!

It was nice to have a chilly day for Thanksgiving. We were actually able to have a fire in our fireplace. That is a rare occasion for folks living in Florida!

Here are a few crafts the kids and I made before Thanksgiving. The two big paper plate turkeys are from our history lesson on the Pilgrims. Each feather has a fact written on it that the boys learned from our studies.

Another time, on our co-op day with Hannah : ) we made name holders for the Thanksgiving table. These were a lot of fun to make and I thought they turned out very cute! Here is all that was left of our "apple turkeys" after our meal. Parker ate one when he discovered they were made of apples, his favorite.

A few days before Thanksgiving, Brent brought me home a yummy looking turkey made of oreos and candy. The girls service club at college made them and sold them as a fundraiser. I saved it (not an easy thing to do) and wanted to try making some myself. Well, lets just say from now on I'm leaving that little craft to the girls service club!! After lunch, Brooke and I sat down for some fun times (we thought) and tried to make some of these little gobblers. HA!

I will show you a picture of our project so you can see for yourself, not as easy as it looks.

Okay, so my turkeys look like they are on steroids! There is a sweet ending to this little experience. After making 5 of these guys we decided to stop making them and eat the ingredients instead! Problem solved!!

I hope you all had as wonderful of a Thanksgiving as I did! I would love to hear about it. For all my family and friends that live out of town, I missed you all and wish you could have been here to celebrate with us. Ya'll come now, ya hear!

Be Blessed,

Pam

Answered Prayer!

Well hunting season is off to a great start for my family!! Monroe has already got a 6-point and Brandon has a great story of his hunting trip with Dad. Before Brandon left for his day of hunting he asked me to be praying for him to get a buck. He has never shot a buck before only a doe. I told him I would surely be praying! So, Saturday morning at 4:00 a.m. Dad and Bran left for the hour drive to the property our dear friends own. They graciously allow our family to hunt there each year. My two hunters sat and waited all day long and saw nothing!

We told Brandon the Lord must be teaching him patience because normally the wildlife is plentiful. They hunting crew came home discouraged but willing to try again the next morning.

Once again they got an early start. It was so very cold but that didn't dampen spirits! Once again they sat and sat and saw nothing. Brandon never stopped praying though. After taking a break in the afternoon, Dad and Brandon headed up the tree stand to try one last time. About 4:00 p.m. they spotted a huge buck headed into the small area of woods. They had a hunch that the deer would come back out before dark. Sure enough, about 5:30 p.m. they spotted him. Brandon was so excited he started trembling. (I don't understand this excitement. Maybe it is a guy thing??) The buck was about 120 yards away and Dad knew it would be a tough shot to make but Brandon was confident he could make it. Dad gave the okay and Brandon took aim, shot and hit that big buck the first time. He never took another step I am told! I don't know who was more emotional, Dad or Brandon!

After a closer look, they realized just how big this one is! He is a 7-point with a spread of 16". According to my guys that is pretty good for Florida deer. So, little Brandon has set the stakes high for the rest of the hunters in my family!! His older brothers look a little green to me. Maybe it is just the light, huh? They haven't had their hunting day yet so we will see....

Dad measured his biggest deer that is proudly displayed in our living room and guess what??

It is not as big as Brandon's deer! Needless to say, Brandon will be getting his deer mounted. He will have to display his trophy buck in his bedroom! There is no more room in the living room for wildlife.

Now there is one happy little boy...errrr...young man, yikes when did THAT happen! I think he is still on cloud 9 around here! Brandon has learned some important lessons about our Lord. He knows that God hears his prayer and He is concerned about every little detail of our lives. He has also learned to be patient and keep praying. He has given the Lord thanks for this great hunting trip! The following pictures are some that Brandon asked me to post. A warning for the animal lovers out there, they are a little graphic. They are taken at our barn where we hang and clean the animals before we process the meat. By the way, no one loves animals more than my family. We care for each and every animal we have, from our pet squirrels to our Missy-mommy to be-cow! We know, however, that this is how the Lord provides for our needs and we are grateful for his provisions.

It's That Time of Year Again

Hunting season is a big deal in our family. But then what else would you expect with a house full of males!! It has definitely given me a "tougher skin". I can remember as a little girl, I cried as I watched TV and saw the wild animals killing and eating their prey. Little did I know the Lord was going to give me a hunter for a husband and plenty of boys to become hunters also! I still can't watch them hunt or shoot the deer and it still makes me a little sad when I see the deer before they are hung and cleaned. I have, however, learned how to process and freeze the venison. The meat for our family has been a blessing. It helps me to know that my guys are responsible hunters and they have a respect for God's creation. They are very humane in their hunting and they have only learned this from their Dad.

This weekend is Brandon's turn to go hunting with Dad. He just found out yesterday and I can't even begin to count how many times I have heard him say, "I'm so excited! I can't wait till Saturday!" He got a doe last year during doe season.

There is quite a story from that hunting trip last fall. Brandon spotted his deer from the tree stand with Dad and then took aim and fired. When he shot this is what he hit...

They had a good laugh over that shot! I am sure he would have a hard time hitting a tree like that on purpose!! : ) He didn't give up though and was able to bring home a nice doe (still kinda sad to Mom...leave the women and children alone!) for our dinner table.

Well, I'll will have to let you know how he did on his hunting trip this weekend. He will have a good time if for no other reason than to sit out in the tree stand and eat junk food! You know, a REAL man with no Mom over his shoulder to say, "Now you have eaten enough of that, son!"

Pam

It always amazes me that this bushel basket of greens will cook down into one large pot which will be just enough for a meal for our family. Okay Ronny, greens will be ready for supper. Ya'll comin'?

Garden Harvest

Our garden is doing so much better this time! I don't know if it was the sulphur we added before planting or better quality seed. There are hardly any bugs. We are trying to grow organic veggies so I am very excited about not seeing many pests. The only bug I saw a lot of was lady bugs and they are a beneficial bug for gardens so I was happy to have them!

Here is one of the "little ladies" now.

Our greens are so plentiful. I have enough to cook fresh for the family and there is plenty to blanch and freeze.

Alright, I have a confession. The first row on the left is a beautiful row of WEEDS! We can grow some healthy weeds, don't you agree? That row was suppose to be spinach but was overtaken with weeds before I could get them under control. For some reason it took longer for the spinach to come up than the other greens.

Breaking News.....

We interupt your very busy day for the latest breaking news in our family!! We are extremely excited to announce that by next fall there will one more family member in the fall scene pictures!! Yep, you heard it here folks. We are going to be the proud grandparents of THREE beautiful children! I must admit we are praying for a little girl this time around but "the Lord knows best." That has become my motto each time I was pregnant and now that motto continues with Brooke ; ) Anyway, how could you resist such precious boys as these two?

Yes, we are a very blessed family, even with all these boys! We welcome our newest addition with open arms and we can't wait to hold her...errr...him? I will keep you posted with due date and sonograms, etc. And trust me, if you step outside one day and hear shouting from our direction, it will be the our family with news that we are expecting a baby GIRL!!!

Thanking God for boys,

Pam!