The Chicken Necklace*

  “BAAAAD, BAAAAD DOG!!! NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!” I almost didn’t want to set foot into our farmyard. I knew exactly what had happened. I took a deep breath, looked out the window, and saw nothing – they were out of view. Curiosity, however, won the better of my judgment and out I went, peeking around the corner of the smoke house. There was Scott, wrestling with Bear, our formerly all-white Anatolian Shepherd dog.  He was angrily reprimanding the blood-covered dog, with one hand firmly holding him by the collar and the other wearily yielding a formerly living adult hen, now dangling by … Continue reading The Chicken Necklace*

Chloe’s Barn Adventure

The blood-curdling scream rocked my foundation. I couldn’t get there fast enough. It felt as if my feet were stuck in thick mud with each leap forward I took to close the 20-foot gap between us. Chloe just lay there howling in sheer terror with these giant beautiful eyes looking up at me to erase the pain – to make it go away and stop hurting. “Am I going to DIE?” “No honey, you are going to be just fine; you are not going to die, I promise” I said calmly as I held her bloody foot in my hand, … Continue reading Chloe’s Barn Adventure

Adventures in Farming Part III: BONFIRES

Adventures in Farming Part III:  BONFIRES Note:  The following names have been changed to protect the guilty. “BURN PERMIT?!  Naaaahhh…  Just bring some weenies and marshmallows and call it a Bonfire.  You don’t need a freaking PERMIT for a BONFIRE!”  This coming from an anonymous “official source” that should know these things, mind you. “Whatchya plannin’ on burnin’, anyway?” “Just some twigs, slash, small branches and leaves that are laying around all over the place. This farm has been essentially unused for 20 YEARS!  Would you believe that there were 25 foot hickory trees blocking the entrance to the barn, … Continue reading Adventures in Farming Part III: BONFIRES

Adventures in Farming II: The Gluten Free Cookie and the Raccoon

Adventures in Farming II: The Gluten Free Cookie and the Raccoon Tracks & Evidence “We’ve got raccoons.” “WHAT? Where?” “In the barn.” “Oh. Whew – I thought you meant here, at home.” (Thank God they’re there, not here.) “How do you know?” “’Coon Trapper Guy saw tracks.” “You had a “’coon trapper guy” out at the farm?” “No, actually, it was the fence guy.  He just knows a lot about raccoons.” “In the loft part? Are they living in the hay?” Good grief. The KIDS AND I were up in that very same loft just a few days ago! We … Continue reading Adventures in Farming II: The Gluten Free Cookie and the Raccoon

Adventures in Farming, Part I

Adventures in Farming:  Part I January 21, 2012 Avert your eyes dear friends or stop reading now. You have been warned. I guess I will get tougher as the farm and I slowly become one with each other, but alas, only time will tell.  Today was not an auspicious beginning let me say. To date I have set foot on the land a mere 3 times:  once when meeting the original family for the first time about 18 months ago; the second time when Scott told me he had placed a firm offer that was about to be accepted by … Continue reading Adventures in Farming, Part I