midweek mixtape

a saturday mixtape/ today's plans....

What an AMAZING week. I missed the midweek mix, so here it is in plenty of time for a long weekend drive....

Cloudi got adopted, the weather is teasing us of autumn, and Eddie is bopping around the farm like a puppy again. I also got one of the other dogs I advocate for into a training program - the same trainer I use with Reece, so I am hoping he finds a home soon as well. I do have a lot of stuff I want to do today, but we shall see how the day goes...

I really want to put up my horse fence on the front of the house rather than cut the lush grass I have lazily decided to ignore. It sure would be a tasty treat for my girls....

I also have plans to take Reece to the park, my project pup from the shelter, Jojo, out to visit and play with Diamond Jim (who is in training to be the most best dog!), and I'd also like to get the belt on my mower changed so I can mow a little since it is way cooler than it has been. I also had a very clear dream last night that my garden was tilled and planted with my lettuces and greens, so now I am eager to actually do that so I have have fresh greens soon!

Sipping joe now and waiting for the sun to rise so I can take my boys Eddie & Reece on their morning walks - I don't dare go too far from the house in the dark due to the skunks that live here. They leave us alone for the most part and no one has gotten 'skunked' since Baby over 5 years ago...I try my best to keep it that way.

Anyway, happy Saturday and I will be back tomorrow morning with what actually got done on my list...

Guess what? Cloudi got ADOPTED!!!

what a wonderful transformation to be a part of...... you likely know his story, but if not, you can read all about his beginnings HERE....

.....and yesterday, September 17, 2019, Cloudi officially became Rowdy and is in his FOREVER home!!!!

a few weekend snapshots....

It was Christian's birthday and I made THE MOST DELICIOUS chocolate cake with salted caramel frosting. It was the most time consuming frosting I have ever made (it took about an hour of actual work), but well worth the work!!! I will make this again in the fall when I get back in the swing of the Sunday Sweets and will post the recipe....

...hello little tree frog. 

I also got to take this boy out for a little adventure! Yes, Bruce is one hunk-o-love, and a very good boy in the car.

My mom sent Reece a new toy home. He has a love/ hate relationship with it. It makes the strangest noises....

We drained the pool last weekend... that last storm we had , really did a number on it. :(

Eddie is now the bionic dog in my eyes. I knew for sure he was dying on us last weekend. He has bounced back completely and is totally back to his old self!!! 

Reece is the biggest couch potato. Not even joking. See his sleeping video in my insta here:

I didn't get even half of my to-do list done, but I had fun and ate lots of cake! 

Things are gonna slow down around here reeeeeeaaaaaal soon when the weather cools, so there will be more time for catching up. 

Have a glorious week! 

xo

-s

why, hello there, Friday.....

First, I am SO HAPPY it is Friday!!! 

Eddie is back to normal, he hasn't splatted once this morning, isn't ravenously starving, and all of us couldn't be happier he bounced back. Tomorrow is Christian's birthday and as you can see here the house is already decorated - who cares if these are all left over from my birthday last month? our house is festive all year round. Birthdays last for at least a week, Christmas lights stay up year round, and dessert is a big deal every Sunday.

This evening I am all set to start all the projects I put on hold because of Eddie's little spell. The horses will be grazing on the front lawn, all I have to do is get the fence up. Once the horses are out of their current fields, I will start the very large job of giving their usual field a fresh cutting, spreading all the manure, and getting ready for a bit of rain to get the grass growing in their normal fields, hopefully next week....

This weekend I hope to also do a little bit of detailing where the goats have helped clear behind the workshop - they have put one hell of a dent in the hardest part! Then the actual inside of the shop needs a good cleaning and organizing. I haven't done much actual "work" in the workshop since Reece has been on the farm, but once the weather cools a bit, my inspiration flows heavily and I hope to get back to the grind. 

The Harvest Moon also means autumn is so near and I am ready. I am so ready for fresh greens from the garden, ginger cookies, and soups and chili. 

I will be at the animal shelter for a short time this weekend, but because it is still under quarantine, my time will be extremely limited, so the silver lining there is that I will have more time to play in the dirt. I hope to get the garden ready for all my seeds!!!!

I am off to walk the dogs and then get through the workday at the office - Happy Friday, y'all! 

MIDWEEK MIXTAPE: FALL FELL ON ME AND I FEEL FINALLY

tailwagger tuesday.... Reece!

I have been so wrapped up with the shelter pups and staying on top of the farm chores that I totally forgot to make a post announcing that I ADOPTED Reece!!!!

Yes! I made it official on July 20. I realized shortly after taking him in as a foster, that he would need much more investment than what the rescue could offer. He needed training. He needed hours upon hours of dedication. All things that I could offer personally, but also felt that if I could turn this damaged and 'unadoptable' dog around, it would take a long time, and by then, I would be his person.....

We have such a long road still ahead of us, but every week reveals a softer Reece. If only the world could see how he is with me.... when I took him in, I thought we would have some minor issues with strangers, but quickly realized they were a bit more on the major side...

He loves the farm now, isn't scared of the horses, loves our walks, and looks forward to training. He loves resting on my lap in the hammock... He can walk by the chickens with no issue (leashed of course), and he is really proud of how he can 'place' on various things around the farm like the goat milking stanchion and picnic table..

Anyway, Reece is my perfect walking buddy (poor ol' Eddie just can't do a fast pace), the weather is getting near perfect for morning walks, and now that I have started to get a handle on my anemia, it is time to get back on track and get fit with my rescue pit!! Now that he has had a few training sessions under his belt, I am excited to see what morning walks are like now!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sandice Thrasher (@frugalfashionablefarmer) on Sep 10, 2019 at 6:24am PDT

eh... monday.

While Eddie had a rough weekend, he seems to be on the mend now. No seizures since Saturday night, and he's been eating and drinking as usual, so I am hopeful....

Weekends are usually packed full of animal shelter visits, mowing, little farm projects here and there, and lots of time walking both Reece and Eddie around the property. I had a big to-do list for last weekend, but it can wait - Christian and I took turns completely monitoring our ol' boy to keep an accurate track of everything to report to the vet today. 

The shelter has been closed and on quarantine, so that freed up some of my usual morning time, and for the most part, I just did a lot of envisioning and planning while out walking Eddie and Reece, checking on the goats' progress on clearing the backside of the workshop, oh - and tending to my needy chicken, Blindie. Yes, I got lazy naming her and since she is blind, well, she is Blindie. She is most likely about to expire and she has been setting herself up at night to be eaten by a fox or coyote instead of going back inside the coop.... check her out in this pic waaaaaaaaaay out in the field where she never hangs normally. Reece took notice....

Each night for the last week, with the exception of last night, I have had to hunt her down on the 9 acres and carry her to the coop and put her to bed....Either she was feeling better yesterday or she knew I had my hands full with Eddie and didn't make me look for her last night. 

I did get to separate and pot a few offshoots from my aloe plant and am excited to watch my little plants multiply and grow! 

I also mapped out a little temporary expansion (chock full of lush grass to graze) to rotate the horses into so they can graze next weekend on totally fresh grub. I need to work in their paddocks, giving it a fresh cut and spreading the manure. All I have to do is put up a few temporary posts, put in a new grounding rod, and then put up the live electric rope. 

The farm's chores will all still be there next weekend when the time allows to do them, the shelter will still be off limits for volunteers, and hopefully there will be a little taste of fall in the air. I am ready for all of the land to go dormant so I can make some headway again on the workshop lawn... for now it has returned to a jungle for the most part and I am banking on the goats to help me clear most of it. Yes, it is THAT BAD. 

Anyway, good vibes for Eddie, please. So far, so good and I am hoping this was just a bad spell. I am totally not ready for Monday, but here it is, so have a good week!