Pond News

Well this morning on my way to feed the chickens I got myself a nice surprise(yes I know "got is baaaad grammar but in this case it suits my needs).
   As you can see we seem to have a tad bit more water in our pond.  As yesterday when we went out to work it was about 1/8 of the way full seeing it at about 1/2 was a big surprise.  A good surprise  but still a surprise.
 Yesterday the pond was not was smooth as it is now in this picture, and as you can see it is only half the pond.  That... unfortunately is due tot he fact that after I fed the chickens I ran back into the house for the camera and got a beautiful picture of the full pond.  Then I slid on the ice and it fell into the water.
 I fished it back out, but as I don'rt know if I'll get the image off of the camera I went and got our old smart phone and used it's camera as I know it has a nice camera on it.  I guess if this keeps up I need to get use to using the phone camera, we should know in a few hours to a couple days if the camera survives the trip into the pond.
 As for the pond itself we are suppose to get more rain today then it changes to snow tonight for the next to days.  So it is very possible we will have a full pond by week's end.  Now we just have to hope it stays full.  If it doesn't we will try Silver's method of "sealing" the pond bottom with clay cat litter.  He says if you get straight clay cat litter and make a slurry of it and coat the bottom of the pond it will seal the "leaks" in it.  Hey, if it works that's good.

 Here is the other picture of the pond.
  The only spot it hasn't done much yet is on the shallow end, which is where my cat tails are going to be growing when the pond is full and it gets warmer.  Though I imagine the blackberry canes that grow on that side of the pond will now wind up HUGE with all the extra water they will have there.
 Pity Paris died over the summer she'd have a blast this summer with a pond in our yard, the two pups do not even seem interested in investigating the pond as it is now.  Neither does Midnight their daddy.  Can't wait to see the cats when it's full of water and try to walk across that log over the middle.
 As for the rest of the water that is in our yard...
 All of our trenches have water in them, also the new septic for the house has a layer of water in it as well.  Funny thing is as I was leaving to feed the chickens and was walking next to the electric trench and noticed the water I thought to myself.  I'd live to see that much water in the pond.  Guess that falls under the "ask and ye shall receive" heading huh?
 We still need to get the piles of mud down a bit, which I am figuring they will work good to "deter" some of the plant growth I don't want in some areas.  We also have to restore the trench that went from the section of woods that line the road to our pond as it was the natural draining area.  I'm going to have to hand dig it.  At least it will ensure steady influx of fresh water though.
 I also did notice that when I watched the water in the pond yesterday that it was still bubbling from the ground up, so it's possible it may stay liquid at the deepest parts in the winter which would be great for raising fish.
 Well that's it before breakfast, which is going to be beef hash (leftover from last night's roast) with eggs on top and maybe some of my fresh sourdough.  While my oven is on the fritz I can only make my "no knead" sourdough bread as it cooks at 500 degrees.
 ..and don't forget today's moral... don't stand on ice above a pond to take pictures with your camera!
 Have a good day all!

 Be Well, Be Safe, and Blessed Be...

I'M BAAAAACK!!!!!!

Well folks, it's been a bit but I am kind of back for a bit. We just “bought” today a “smart” phone that has internet capability. I am for now able to plug it into my computer for some internet usage but it's very limited so I'll update when I can. I also hope to hopefully catch up on my favorite blogs to read if I don't eat our data plan in the process!

OK, so to my updates....

We’ve had such a mild winter this year I have started my plantings. I already have ½ my potatoes planted, some cabbages, dwarf pak choy, edible chrysanthemums, peas, and lettuce planted. Tomorrow I will be finishing my potatoes (had to buy more seed taters), onion (sets and seed), kale, broccoli plants, and cabbage plants. I will be starting my 24 tomato plants as well, ½ will be paste as I am hoping to can a ton of spaghetti sauce before winter; next year.

Our chickens are earning their keep finally as for the last few months we have gotten so many eggs they have paid for themselves. The last month (Feb.) we had just over 21 dozen eggs out of 16 hens. … I can tell you we are starting to get tired of eggs.... I (and the rest of the house) can't wait for some fresh veggies.

I am trying to get some meat rabbits this year, I contacted a breeder today and hope they will get back to me on a purchase order for 2 does and a buck. So we can breed our own meat. We aren't quite ready for a pig/goat/cow yet though I am sure if someone offered we'd find some way to have it pastured.

We now have a full kitchen in our shed home as well as a full size water heater in our bathroom with that pretty bathtub from my last post. Again, Thanks to Little Creek Baptist Church out here you have been a great help!

Oh, on another note my kids are earning themselves a little money. One of the people from the church has them training/fostering 2 hunting labs, and paying them for it. So they are learning a little about how to take care of money.. and how to -not- spend it. They are doing a pretty good job as the owner is very pleased with how well the pups are getting along in their basic instruction. Of course one is learning better than the other, but that happens.

Well that's all I'm updating for now, I hope everyone is safe in this odd weather we've had in this last week, and...

Be Well, Be Safe, and Blessed Be...