Is your house a home?

Last night Cindy, our momma cat, was picked up to try and become a hero to 3 babies whose momma was hit by a car. Her kittens don't need her anymore, so it seemed like a hopeful option. [I'll let ya know if she came through and accepted the new kittens like her own]

So, great ladies from Kitten Krazy came out to my place to pick Cindy up. When they arrived, I was just walking Gypsy out to the pasture....in blue sweats, a green turtle neck {hey, it's windy and in the 50's} and a stained hooded jacket! I am sure I looked real presentable...as many of my family members always remind me. My response is always "hey I wanna look beautiful for my horses" ;)

So, after I get the horses out, we descend into the house to get Cindy. da da dummmmm! The majority of our floors are wood, not carpeted, so living on a farm and having two dogs and an indoor cat, plus shedding season in the barn, I must vacuum daily! I hadn't yet vacuumed yesterday as I usually do it after dinner. I had laundry all over the kitchen table that I was folding from the night prior but then got too tired to put away. I had grocery bags all over the kitchen counters because feeding animals comes first when we get home ;)

Even the kitten room hadn't yet had it's even cleaning. Would they be mortified?! Would they scream and run away? Nah...they know the drill! They understand how it goes.

So I ask, is your house a home? Does your home look lived in? Or does it look pristine and untouchable? My home might not make it into the pages of a Country Living magazine anytime soon, but it is a HOME and that works for me :)

Weekend in Review - Animals in Need

Remember the horse rescue neglect case I mentioned last week? Here are a few pictures of some of the horses we rescued. Sad, Sad, Sad.

This mare is 30-ish years old.

This poor gelding is 8 and that is our barn manager with him.

This is a 5 year old mare on the left and the 8 year old gelding on the right.

Anyone who would like to learn more about this rescue I work [volunteer] with, please visit H.O.P.E. Horse Rescue.

And hubby and I weighed the kittens this weekend. Not quite 2 pounds yet....once they are two pounds, they can be fixed and placed up for adoption. Anyone interested in learning more about the kitten rescue my husband and I foster for can visit Kitten Krazy!

Saturday Evening Etsy 'Vegetable' Finds

Whew.....Finally! I get to sit down ;) Yesterdays horse rescue was a success in that we were able to get the horses out of their neglect situation and into comfortable stalls with hay & water!

Today Allen tilled the gardens while I had to work. We may try to plant our herbs tomorrow and since we are not in the clear for evening frosts, we'll just cover them if one comes through.

So, as we prepare our gardens for transplant, my Etsy finds were uncovered using the search term 'Vegetable'!

First, this adorable vegetable garden bags from Vintage Green Limited. They are hand stamped and wouldn't they be so cute to take to the farmers market with you? :)

How about this piece of stained glass art for your kitchen window - super neat! Check out all the stained glass art at Beged-Dov Stained Glass

This bag kinda goes along with my motto on our orchard website, 'Eat Fresh, Be Healthy, Buy Local'! It's organic and there is fruit ON the bag...what not to like!? Check it out at American Jane Mercantile and you can also friend them on Facebook!

This wouldn't be an Etsy Finds post on 'vegetable' without actual vegetables now would it!? How about these Heirloom Cosmic Purple Carrot seeds? Check out Azure Dandelion if you are looking for heirloom seeds to plant in your garden. You won't be disappointed!

How about this print with a beet in it? Isn't is unique? Something about it just draws me in!
Check out Trumbly Designs for a print to add to your home!

Oy! *Sigh*

Whew - another day bites the dust...just as I am about too.

Today was a 'why me' world in the realm of animals! I had Whinny throwing up god knows what in the morning and came home to ungodly things in the kitten room :/ *GACK* I won't give details, just know I was in tears and swore off anymore kitten litter fosters....until one of the kittens climbed up on Allen's boot, let a leg swing down the side of it and looked up at me with a "I'm sorry, don't be sad" face!! *sigh*

Tomorrow we'll be doing the horse rescue I mentioned the other night. This will all take place after work so it'll be a long day for me. And to top it off, after all the mental exhaustion I have gone through this week with this neglect case, I STILL get emails from IDIOTS who want to get rid of their horse just because they can no longer ride it. NO! TAKE RESPONSIBILITY!! And if the horse has a condition that could cause it pain, do the right thing and humanely euthanize it if it cannot be medically corrected. DON'T threathen me that you will have no choice but to take it to an auction if we cannot save it. DANG PEOPLE *sigh*

So, I need to hit the sack asap to be geared up for tomorrow. Let's end the night with some signs of spring around here on the farm!

Lilacs in Bloom

Tulips are my favorite

Food, Inc.

Who is planning to tune in this evening for the television premier of Food, Inc. ?

I've seen it. I liked it. Some things were real eye openers. Some things didn't surprise me.

Regardless of whether or not you would ever be willing to change the types of the food you consume, i.e. red meat, becoming vegan, etc..., at least watch this with an open mind and consider where you purchase your food from.

At the very least, I hope you watch and are inspired to buy as much FRESH local food as you can. And I don't mean local as in your local super market. (Watch and you will see what I mean) Local as in your local farmer's markets and CSA programs. Those types of avenues.

Like I say on the Orchard's website,

'Eat Fresh, Be Healthy, Buy Local'

Cat Fight Continued

Ok, sorry about that. I just couldn't bring myself to tell a story by the time I sat down last night to type ;)

So, let's 'reconvene' and get back to what I tried to start yesterday.

First things first - all that wonderfully warm weather we experienced a few weeks back pushed our orchard trees 2 weeks ahead of schedule and now, with these terrible evening frosts, we cannot keep on our fungicide spray schedule and the frost is really doing some damage to our blooms :( We don't quite know yet how much of the crop may be lost.

I have been working all week on an urgent case of horse neglect. We (the rescue I volunteer with) were contacted by a local APL group to help with a case of 12 horses in severe neglect....which means I need to find 12 foster homes/stalls asap. I am still working on it, but I must say the networking in the horse community just by me sending out one email and facebook post has been unbelievably wonderful! If anyone reading this has played a part in networking, thank you thank you thank you.

And now, for my husbands nightly drama ;) Of course, anytime I don't come home straight from work, my phone is bound to ring with some kind of "issue". Last night, it was regarding our cats! You all know Savannah - the farm manager, the killer barn cat. You can read one of her latest episodes here.....and most of you know Mag-Pie :) Our newest addition, who is an indoor cat and doesn't like other cats! Or just check out both their profiles here!

I believe I have mentioned on here before that they fight through the patio door. No big deal with the glass between them; a tad more of an issue when I leave just the screen door between them. (My poor screen. I'd be too embarrassed to post a pic of it!) So, as the 'vague' story goes, Allen looked over to the house last night and realized the screen door was open, heard some noise and then looked over to the herb garden and saw black. He realized it was Maggie. Maggie had somehow gotten out of the house AND she was fighting with Savannah in the herb garden. OY!

So, Allen runs over and they both then proceed to run in the house!! Maggie ran behind the couch and Savannah ended up running back outside. Allen tried to check Maggie to see if she was ok and she keep 'sassing' him and wouldn't let him near her. By the time I came home, Ms. Priss, aka Savannah, was standing in stoic form next to Allen in the garage. Maggie was back at the screen door and let me scoop her right up and love her.

All seems fine. *sigh* But never a dull moment.

A 'Cat' Fight

Wow - these days are whirling by...........ahhhh forget it. I am about to try typing with one eye open. I think I will just call it a night.

We'll reconvene here tomorrow for an update on a.) Allen's cat fight, b.) a horse rescue and c.) apple crops and frost damage

Sleep Tight!