Merry Christmas, everyone!

Hard to believe it was almost 80 here a week ago.

I didn't think it would stay, and it probably still won't, because we haven't had any consistently cold temps. But I was wrong. :)
Not sure why the one picture turned blue, other than my phone was cold, I guess, haha!

You all be safe and stay warm. God bless.

I don't know too many places that don't have fire ants any more,

But for the few of you who are blessed not to, I thought I would share this little video. Click on the arrow and see what happens after I picked a pecan (with a picker) from their nest.



You all be safe and God bless.

Around the farm

Click on a picture if you want to make it bigger.
The year is almost over. Really hard to believe.
You all be safe and God bless.

It was pretty windy

While picking pecans Saturday. And noisy, too.



Just push play and I think it will work. I don't do these often, so let me know if this is a fail, haha.

You all have a blessed week, and a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Another post already?

This past weekend, we made plans to go to a couple of flea markets. Nothing new there. We wanted to go to V.Watts, which I think I have posted pictures of before; and a flea market in Mississippi which we haven't been to since last year (because of location) and 'met' the Air Force poser (as in, claiming to be something he clearly wasn't when we talked with him).
Anyway, We stayed at Lakeside RV Park, in Livingston, LA. No pictures, sorry. The trip was one minor disaster after another, which should have been a warning; but we eventually got the trailer set up for the night, and got an earlier start to V.Watts, than we would have if we had started from home.

Saw our friend there, who told me about her husband being sick since June, so if you pray, please add them to your prayers. The Lord knows who they are, and their need. Bought two dozen eggs from her, and then looked around the flea market. Found a mirror for our bedroom, and an old computer game for the middle son; then went back to the RV park, started some laundry in the laundry facility they have there (they have a lot of permanent campers, I think); and packed up the trailer.

The laundry was done by the time we were ready to pull out, and we got started on our way to Mississippi.

Now, our tow vehicle is a 2006 Chevy 3/4 ton Duramax Diesel with selectable four wheel drive, that we bought used back in 2007. It has over 200,000 miles on it. Not really much to a diesel. However, hubby had been noticing that it has started running warmer than it should. On the way to Mississippi, however, it started running HOT. As in more than 213 degrees. We decided to take the next exit; which had a big Sam's/ Walmart center near the exit-- which meant big parking lot and grocery store. While I was in Walmart, hubby used the water pump on the trailer and the water in the holding tank to fill the water reservoir. It took FOUR GALLONS to fill. I bought eight gallons of distilled water and he picked me up out front. He said the good thing was there was no water in the oil, and no oil in the water.

The bad part; where is all the water going?

It took another 3 gallons before we got home Saturday night.

We came home by Louisiana Highway 1. There is a pair of nesting Bald Eagles on the Morganza Floodway. They are listed in some... listing (ha!) for nesting eagles in America. There were dozens of people last year, and I believe I did a post because at the time we were passing through, they had a pair of eaglets in the nest.
Anyway, we have gone past the nest a few times during the summer, and never saw them. Saturday we did.

At first, all we saw was the nest. Then I saw the eagles. It is hard to snap pictures when you can't pull over and stop. But this is a picture of the nest on the left (obviously) and the eagles in the tree on the right. Click on the picture and it should get a little bigger.

And another of just the eagles.

There were vehicles behind us, so we couldn't slow down and there is almost no shoulder to pull over when you are pulling a trailer. I was happy to see this photo. It's almost clear!

As we drove on, we noticed the access road has a marker now; which probably explains about the eagles. I would like to stop and read it sometime when we are not towing something.

According to what I have read, nesting season in the South can occur in the November, December time frame; so there may be eggs soon! One person we talked to last year, had been coming for several years. This pair uses the same nest, probably just reinforcing it and making it a little bigger every year.

That was the highlight of the trip. Other than the weather. It was great weather. Not too hot. Supposed to be mid 80's again, the end of the week.

And last night hubby somehow twisted his back. It hurt him bad enough that he had to sit up until four this morning waiting for the pain to subside enough that he could come to bed. So a trip to the doctor will be in order when he gets up today.

Still, we are very blessed. It could be worse.

You all be safe and God bless.

Just a few pictures from the farm

This is why they call it 'picking pecans'.

We mow the grass really short before the pecans start falling. But once they do start falling, it's hard to keep up enough that you can mow again without mowing pecans, too; so you have to pick them out of everything else that is falling. And pecan trees have a LOT of leaves.

This is the way I like to pick them in the fall.

Just above my head, within easy reach. As the pecans fill and are ready to fall, the branches get heavier, and lower to the ground. :)

We had noticed the last week or so huge brown areas in the pasture. When we went out, we realized it wasn't grub damage, but seed heads. And of course, it is fall. Maybe? Haha. I was joking with someone yesterday that soon Louisiana will have two seasons. Summer and fall/spring. The weather patterns are still adjusting from all the volcano activity a few years ago, that shifted the Earth's axis. Hubby figures it will take a few more years yet for the weather to settle so we can see what the new normal will be.

There are a few flowers still blooming, too. They are small though. :) If you click on the pictures, you can see them better.

Well, that's it for today. You all be safe and God bless.

Saw this little one

When I was out picking pecans a couple days ago. Thought maybe it was looking to build a nest, but it might have just been looking for bugs.
Not sure how many we've picked so far. A couple hundred pounds or so. The rain slows us down. They don't like wet pecans, understandably, because they can fungus or mold. Same if the ground stays too wet for too long.
But we do what we can and it will all be fine.

Now we need to watch the ads for turkey sales.

Have a blessed day!

Thought I should do another update.

The pecan season is upon us.

Pecan prices are the best we have seen since we retired. 80 cents a pound right now. pecans are so so, but the season is just starting.

While we were picking pecans, we saw this out in the pasture.

To give you an idea, I pushed it around a little and put my pecan picker on the ground beside it. The pecan picker is four feet long..

And a close-up of the 'head'.

I feel like it gives me a fair outline of the snake's head/nose/eye area. Or so it seems, haha. It was(is) probably a corn snake or rat snake. If so, neither is poisonous and actually good to have around.
Especially if I don't see it while it is alive. ;-)

The weather has been really nice. We actually had a couple nights in the 40s. Thought maybe "winter" was finally here; but nope. Getting another warmup. Not the 90s, hopefully. I think the last I read in Farmer's Almanac was wetter warmer. We'll see.

Since I never did the other update on our Florida trip, I'll add a couple pictures here. Sister-in-law and hubby took us fishing on a pier. The great 'blue' herons there are not really afraid of people. They will steal your catch or bait right out of your bucket if you're not careful. Some people feed them, which adds to the lack of fear.

Most of the people weren't catching anything. And when they were catching, They caught these little mango- or mangrove snapper, I think they were called.

The evening was gorgeous. Just enough breeze to cool the 90 degree weather. The moon was out early, and as the sun began to set, most people packed up to go home.

And it was just as well we left then, because we were barely into the truck when it started pouring!

But is was a good trip, even if we didn't catch anything.

You all be safe and God bless.

Time to do a post, I think, if blogger will let me.

So the end of September we drove to Florida with our little RV to see a great-nephew Baptized. I think he was a great-nephew? I have always had trouble understanding these. Anyway, it was his nephew's son.

We were able to sit through part of the service - which was Catholic. I have only been to Baptist churches before, so the differences were really quite interesting.

It was a very pretty church, with a lovely stained glass window.

The ceremony was one I had not seen before.

Liam wasn't feeling well, so a blessing was said to make him feel better soon.

There was a lot of family there I had never met before.

I don't remember exactly what this part was, but it had something to do with family members taking responsibility for religious teaching.

And then it was over. A very nice ceremony.

There was a first birthday party afterwards, but the only picture I took, apparently, was of the roast pig --which was very good.

We also went fishing while we were there, but I will share that later.

Be safe and God bless.