Why Do They Call It Cruise Control?

Because I spend a portion of just about every day mowing,

I have mowing stories to share with you.

The upside of mowing is the "quiet" time that it affords one for pondering and reflecting.

The downside to mowing is the fact that it aggravates a little sciatica that I have 

been trying my darnedest to ignore.

The other day while mowing the blueberry field and upper orchard,

where these beautiful flowering crabapple trees grow,

I decided to give my leg a break and try the mower on cruise control.

(Or as Dr. Becky now calls it... "Cruise out-of-control!")

I was mowing along around these crabapple trees when I suddenly lost control of the mower.

Not used to mowing in cruise-control, my reaction time was a little slow 

and I ended up mowing right through the middle of this white poultry fence.

(You see, we put this little portable fence up to keep the chickens from digging up

the mulch and compost that we put around the blueberries...

and also to keep the turkeys from eating the blueberries.

The fence does a great job keeping this field bird-free.)

Back to mowing...

The mower sucked the wire and plastic mesh fence into its blades and immediately shut down.

What a mess!

I hopped off the mower to find fencing wrapped multiple times around the blades 

in a tangled mess and bent and mangled metal fence posts.

Remember that apron that reads "I say bad words."?

Tis true.

 I crawled beneath the mower as best I could and cut each piece of mesh and wire from around the blades...eventually freeing the blades to rotate again.

The mower was fine.

The fence...well, that was another story.

(It's now ⅓ shorter than it used to be.)

So much for quiet time for pondering and reflecting!

***************

Yesterday I once again opened the gate between the pigs and the sheep

to allow a little mingling.

(You might notice that metal grate that is over the door on the first sheep house.

I placed that there to keep the pigs from consuming the sheep's protein block.

I'll remove the grate in the evening when everyone is once again segregated.)

Gracie immediately headed into the pig yard to enjoy the tasty undergrowth of which her own yard had been stripped (by her and the lambs.)

The twins were hesitant to leave the safety of their own little 

leaf-free thicket.

The pigs were happiest of all.

A new area to investigate, complete with friends, gave them much to enjoy.

Because pigs are so smart,

I like to give them as much stimulation as possible.

Opening this gate made for a pretty exciting day for Ginger and MaryAnn.

There was much to explore!

And, according to them, the sheep have much tastier grass in their yard.

As for the sheep....

eventually Faith and Hope joined their Mama and

they all enjoyed their time in the pig's yard...

exploring the pig house...

and snacking on the varied vegetation.

A little variety truly is the spice of life!

"What am I, bland?"  Hubbs just said.

"Don't worry," I answered...

"maybe a little variety in scenery...that's all."

Even with all of the added chores this time of year, I still like to afford myself
a little time for creative projects.

Yesterday's project was these pantaloons...
perfect to wear beneath the apron dresses that I have been making.

And can you guess what they are made from?

Antique pillow cases!
The crocheted trim on the open end of the pillowcase makes for a beautiful hem edge to the pants.

Two extra long pillow cases will make a pair of pantaloons perfectly.
(I had to add a little extra pillowcase fabric that was left over after cutting out the pantaloons
to the waistline area to make them long enough.  But since this part of the pantaloons
is always hidden under the dress, an extra seam is no big deal!)
Easy peasy!