A Tiny Tragedy, and a Budding All-Star

I have not posted in several days, and need to explain what's been going on. 

We are still making up baseball games lost to rain earlier in the season. 

Jax and his teammates had to play in temperatures near 100 degrees, and 

heat indices higher... I admire their pluck! 

And I admire the fact they can still smile after a season of losses... and still love their games. 

Little sister Paiton has to tag along to all the games, so I admire her, too.  She and her other little friends like to play and talk at the ballpark, while brothers play. 

A very serious big brother Jacob helped me again on Tuesday, and we got a LOT done, both at the old house (seen here) and the new.  Jake is going to help us out over the next few weeks before school starts, and I'm very grateful to have an extra set of hands. 

Jacob and I had to stop and laugh at the little calves in my favorite pond, when they saw this 

Canadian goose swim by them.  I have no idea why there was a lone goose there, and it 

was gone by that evening. 

Look who has left the beauty of the henspa for the old hen house and their red sisters. 

Silver and Goldie the Brahmas were brought over with Jacob's help on Tuesday morning, 

to save my going back and forth constantly to care for them.  Jacob took the big weed-eater and cut down the overgrown hen spa yard, and we cleaned the building out. 

The girls are actually liking their new digs, are laying, and enjoying the huge yard the red hens are in. 

Keith and I were talking about it today... despite the terrible temps this week, 

the birds are getting along well.  We attribute this to the shaded yards... 

plenty of water and feed.... and the absence of any other birds and/or roosters.  

This morning, I noticed there was ONE yucca plant... my "June Candles" still blooming at the old place.  I have never seen one bloom this late in July. 

Look who was out on our way home this morning!  This is the mare who 

was so grievously hurt about six weeks ago.  She has been on stall rest and under the care of a good vet, and is healing up.  I don't know if she will ever be rideable again, but her owner 

is very attached to her. 

The dogs and I saw our friends the alpacas as we neared home.  This small farm does not 

have a presence on the web that I know of, but I would like so much to meet these 

creatures. 

And this was our tiny tragedy.  I glanced out onto the deck as I got home from the old place, and saw a little bird that looked as if it were struggling.  I thought for a moment it was a baby bird that had 

just learned to fly. 

If I had looked closer, I might have seen what was wrong, 

though I couldn't have changed the outcome. 

This was the scene about two minutes later... I had left the dining room to talk to Keith about the little bird... and when I came back, this is what I saw. 

See the blood?  

I went out and picked it up with a plastic bag... still mindful that we 

are under a Bird Flu warning here.... and saw that it had hit it's head very hard, and 

was actually bleeding from it.  Our guess is that it was coming in for a

landing, and was blown into the side of the deck instead of making it onto the deck.

Poor little bird. 

Tiny little worlds, all around us. 

We pray tonight for those men killed in Chattanooga today, and 
don't understand why these sad events go on, and on, and on.