Monday, September 14, 2015

New Additions to our Homestead

We are now the proud owners of 3 tractors (small garden tractor not shown)...
Jared and Emily are beside themselves with joy.
Every time Emily looked out the back door Sunday she giggled and/or laughed and when Jared looked out he said something like "We have 3 tractors!" or "What are those nice red machines out there?"
(I don't have pictures of Aaron driving around because I wasn't quick enough getting back out there with my phone)
Have you ever seen happier people?
See the name "Orgill" on the side there?
The Orgills are moving across the valley and when we went over Saturday morning to help pack up the trailer Brother Orgill mentioned they needed to get rid of 3 tractors (small, medium, and large) sitting out in the pasture...
All 3 need new batteries and the cub (medium) needs something done with the starter (?).
Jared was very excited and there was much discussion.
Luckily I had the checkbook in the car.
The son said we had to take two of the lake kayaks too if we took the tractors...
They are in the garage (no picture).
Its an early Christmas gift to the homestead!

It will be interesting to see how much work will be required to keep them running and how much use we will get out of them around our little homestead.  Jared is already planning on driving them around Bluffdale park at Christmas with other local decorated tractors.

Feel free to come visit us and take a drive!

Oh, and as long as I am actually posting... thought I'd include a couple pictures of Ems and Tulip's kids I took a couple weeks ago.  They are bigger now and Buttons is no longer a man (poor thing) but they still are very personable and tons of fun.

Zinny (short for Zinnia) who thinks she is a lap goat...
Buttons (short for Bachelor Buttons)  who is a bit calmer now but really not much..
Spots of course had to get in on the action... Emily must smell good!

Monday, September 15, 2014

A 2014 Summer Update in Pictures


Jamie has asked for an updated picture of our house so I thought I would just put up a post of pictures to update the blog through the summer...

OK, you already know we bought a house in April..

Here Emily and I made banana fudgsicles in the new kitchen.
Mom and Dad came to finish a bedroom for Emily downstairs,

and put in a new post and foundation on the corner of our sagging porch,
 along with a lot of other work of which I didn't take pictures of.  I have one picture of Mom but she was eating and so I don't think she would appreciate me posting it :)

 Dad found some ancestors on memorial day (Mom found some too but I once again I didn't take a picture)
 Emily walked on part of the dried up Salt Lake
We made a to do list for Jared.
 Emily planted a big garden which has since flourished even though it is being taken over by bindweed.
We went to a rodeo with Cathy.
And looked at some art.


We broke the pump off of the washing machine in preparation of putting a new on in...
In our sunday clothes of course.
Then we finished the floor in Gages room...
And then Gage came! (getting ready to go play in the rain).
 Jared and Amy came too
We celebrated with fireworks

Jenny and family came to help too before we all headed to Marble Colorado for a wonderful family reunion put on by Bethanie (picture of silbings and a few spouses... don't have a copy of the big picture with everyone)
We pushed some Marble...
It was really hard. (more on this maybe in another blog post)

We came back home and Emily got a dog named Daisy who has been very sick but seems to be slowly getting better.
We did fireworks again on Pie and Beer Day... you can never have to many fireworks.
Forgot to take pictures of the wonderful Pies Emily made... and of course root Beer.  Sharon brought bacon root beer... I don't recommend it.

Jared cut down a tree with his chainsaw for our enjoyment... oh, and it was dead so it had to go anyways.

We watched Gage face plant into the mud off a sheep at the local rodeo.

Emily got some goats and 4 chickens and a rooster named Pansy (if you haven't yet, look up the video Emily posted on facebook of him trying to crow).
 Jared showed off his karate balancing skills after fixing all the sprinklers, laying pipe, fixing the gates, and putting up fence.
Gage tried too...

Emily made goat butter from the milk skimmings. We have also made cheese, caramel, ice cream, and yogurt. Can't wait to build myself a cheese press!

We put Alec to work planting a couple trees in the fenced off orchard... we have plans to get more (thats Emily's garden in the background). This is where the ducks and chickens hang.
And Jared has been building things using Dad's saw including a milking stand (not pictured... figured u all saw it on facebook),
a shed to replace the tarp covered old dog run next to it..
 After the first day..
 And the second day..

This is what he had built for the goats the week before... all from scrap wood and siding off of KSL. (Most things in our backyard have been painted light blue because we got 2 gallons exterior paint from the "oops" pile at Lowes for 5 bucks... worth every penny!)

And this is what they (Alec and Jared) worked on last week... a soon to be milking barn.

So here is the house now... Amy painted the porch railings and posts.

This is the west side of the front yard... was just weeds.. now lots of pretty flowers and free grass Amy found on KSL (2 seperate loads).  The other side is halfway done with 2 loads but not pictured.

So there you have it. Perhaps I will post more later... perhaps not :) Been a very busy summer!