Spring, farm chores, cleanup, and Copelands

What a privilege to live on this beautiful property!  We love living here. :-)
The joy of spring has begun to fill this place.  Sunshine and warmth allow us to be outdoors more.  And there's lots to be done.
First things first ... goats, horses, and chickens need to be taken care of.
Burnell and Orin have become quite proficient at driving the quad and golf cart around to get their jobs done.

Then, it's time to get the water up and running.  First, the boys set out the main line - which runs from the pump all the way across the field.  Then they attach it via the bendable, black hose to the long wheel line at the far end of the field.

Once the pump is up and the water going, sprinkler heads need to be replaced (if they froze during the winter), and other repairs made.  This year, both motors on the wheel lines needed help, as did the pump for the pond.  We even had a few freezes during the night (which is typical 'round here).

And then there's the daily moving of the wheel lines - which is often a family bonding time.  Dwight gets a partial workout by doing push-ups on the line while it moves. The boys practice their balancing skills while the wheels are turning. And, everyone helps out, gets wet, and gets a fun quad ride.  We love this part of the day as we get to drink in the beauty of the Lord's creation!  And every day He makes is more beautiful than the day before. :-)

Gorgeous sunsets

Lookin' good, babe!  Farm work looks good on you!

New baby animals!

 New baby chicks arrived.  Can't wait for them to start laying! :-)

New baby geese were born on the farm. They've made the pond their home.

And lots of baby goats!  Visit our blog at Bend Soap to see all the new baby goats, too.

And, of course, playing in the hay barn is a regular activity around here.  I'm blown away by how strong their muscles get as they swing and hold their body weight.

Cleanup started this year with cleaning up the valley, filling in some holes, picking up rocks, and then pulling the drag to smooth it all out.  Burnell was our main man for this job, operating the bobcat.  He was able to move rocks and fill in the holes himself with this handy piece of equipment.  I was amazed that he was then able to switch out the bucket and help move some stumps to the burn pile on the upper pasture, too.  Dwight then taught him how to use the green tractor (which he's been wanting to do for quite some time) and he was able to pull the drag.  The younger boys worked to pick up rocks.  Whew!  Quite the accomplishment.  Burnell has mentioned several times that he wants a weedwacker and man tools for his birthday this year. :-)






Part of cleaning up in the spring involves burning.  We lit the burn pile one day and got rid of a ton of junk (YEAH! I hear Mother singing).  The following day, Burnell asked if he could add an old tree to the pile and Dwight said, "Yes."  We had been working up at the goats and left to go in the house for lunch.  What we didn't realize was that there were still coals left in the burn pile which lit the additional brush on fire.  Our field began to burn, and when Derrick and Naomi drove in, there were flames everywhere.  We all rushed to do our part.  Uncle Derrick grabbed a mat from his car and started fanning out the flames. Dwight grabbed the bobcat and used the bucket to smolder the flames.  The boys got their shirts wet and whacked away at the flames.  Naomi and I grabbed extra hoses ... to have if needed.
Then, a fire truck arrived (a neighbor must have called), and the captain was quite impressed that we had the place under control.  We think Quint has the makings of a good fire fighter.  He has lots of "Uncle David" tendencies (like caution!) and he LOVES to build fires!  And, there's Chance ... talking away with the men that showed up.

Is he pulling that truck? :-)The boys thought he was one strong man!

A visit from Uncle Jim and Aunt Denise, James and Sterling Copeland from Colorado!  Yeah! So much fun to be with these guys who we haven't seen in several years. The big boys played for hours with the little boys - teaching them all sorts of basketball moves, soccer moves, and drawing skills.  You guys were sooo sweet to your cousins!  Aunt Denise got to play a bunch with little Vienna and hold the brand new baby goat.  Uncle Jim helped us with our marketing. And, a good time was had by all.