Sunday Gratefulness

First off, it rained.  Thank you, Lord.

I sat on the porch at 6 AM (remember, I went to church yesterday afternoon so that I could SLEEP LATE) but was so happy to hear the thunder and see lightening, that I went out to watch. The yardlight was still on.  I filmed it, but of course... the video would not load.

At midmorning, I had a visit from these guys, bringing big brother 

 

Nathan home to Grandma's

As you see, the dogs ADORE them. And they love the dogs.  I'm so glad that two of my grands took after my heart!  Paiton is sitting on the steps Hannah uses to go up and down to the dog couch.

When they came, I was just getting ready to do this:

Yes, I cheat.  I was channeling Suzanne McMinn but as Keith said.... "Use the Packets, it's faster!"  Uh, you see, Keith made pickles last year using Mrs.Wages, and they were darn good.  We got seven pints of sweet pickles, and six of dill.  One of the sweets did not seal all the way, so it's going into the fridge.  Nathan took a pint of dills home when he went.

Next week (or one evening this week) I'll make bread and butter.

While I made pickles, Nathan did this:

He does not have cable or satellite in the little town where they live (at their house) so he takes advantage when he comes to our house. He also has hay fever (we suspect) and was headachy and suffering. 

Then I took Nathan home, and noted that it was 13 degrees cooler than yesterday!

When I got back, I told Keith I was going to do chores, then cut grass for a while, then fix us a good dinner.

When I went out to the henhouse, I saw something wonderful and ran back to the house to make Keith come out.

Folks, this hen is six years old, and a Japanese bantam cross, born here at Calamity Acres.  To my memory, she has never gone broody or hatched anything.  In front of her were two tiny puffballs, already dry, (one has gone back under her wing).  Neither made a sound.  There are two other tiny eggs under her, but I don't know that they will hatch.  In contrast, the dog dish I had her food in LOOMED over them.  I removed it, spread a little bit of her feed on the hay, and put the ubiquitous frisbee in the cage with plenty of chick feed in it, and then set the waterer (a chick waterer) down on the wire, off it's brick. 

Yayyyy Teeny!!!!

We could not get over the minute size of these babies, and both of us went back in several times to see them.  We pray they make it.

Here I am with my new PASTEL Homer bucket that Keith got me today!  Lovely chore clothes, too!

Admit it, you want these clothes!  Especially the shoes!

Super nifty new hose hookup that Keith did for me yesterday on the pump that we have NEVER used and only discovered in May was STILL WORKING. NO MORE HAULING 100 FEET OF HEAVY, HEAVY, HEAVY HOSE!   All I have to do is turn on the direction I want, lift the pump handle.... and the hoses are sitting RIGHT WHERE I NEED THEM. 

THANK YOU, HONEY!

It's 9:30 as I write this, and Keith is out closing up the shop after he worked on the new henhouse in the horrible heat yesterday, and for a while today.  We had hoped to lift the first wall tonight, but the he went in to rest as I cut grass, and fell asleep.  While I am typing, I am listening to intermittent thunder in the west... there is a severe thunderstorm warning the next county over.  We expect more extreme heat this week... Keith is prepared to stop as much as he can to do water...and I am grateful to him, and to our Lord who gave us a day of respite in the middle of the heat wave.