Well folks it’s official, I’m unemployed. With so much to do here on the farm I decided to quit the off the farm job and get some stuff done before the chickens arrive. Busy as a bee! I’m having so much fun being at home on the farm and with the kids instead of in the factory. I gotta say it’s a lot of work though. I’ve worked almost every day on something. I cut cedar posts for the log house porch and skidded them with the 6000. I’ve cut and split firewood. I finally finished the rabbit cages. I’ve burned brush. I’ve detached the front porch on the double wide and set it on the trailer to move. All the under pinning is now removed. Chainsaws have been sharpened. Now I’m ready to start fencing or working on my tack room in the barn.

I cannot figure this crazy weather out. Just a few days ago there was a dusting of snow on the ground and today temps are right at 70. What preciptation we missed this summer we must be getting now. It seems like every day there is rain. The 6000 is a muddy mess. I’ve been using it to try to keep the drives around the chickenhouses passable. The concrete trucks leave ruts everywhere they go. This building project has been crazy. Every day it’s something. Unfortunately I haven’t taken the time to get back to the local Mahindra dealer and try to hammer out a final deal on a 7010. With all the buzz about a new bigger cab tractor coming in 2008, I’m wondering if I should wait.

The trucks keep rolling in with more peices. Most of the truck drivers are really nice people who don’t want to put you out, but some have been impossible to please. Really it’s not my place to unload them considering this was supposed to be a turn key job, but I’m not the type to rest on my laurels while someone else needs to get going. I’m generally the nicest guy you’ll ever meet, but one truck driver really brought out the bad side of me. I get up early and ready the kids for school and then deliver them because they don’t like to ride the bus. One morning a driver arrived very early and I politely told him I had to take the kids to school, but I would be right back. That didn’t set well with him, but I just smiled and went on. When I got back he flung his truck doors open and said “It’s all yours, I’m not touching a thing”. Half the load wasn’t even on pallets. It was peices of the feed bins and such. I started to climb in and get to work when it hit me. I thought this guy’s a jerk, he needs some of his own medicine. I just stopped and said “you know what, I own this farm and I’ve contracted this job to someone else, they’ll be here soon and they can unload you”. He grumbled his way back to his truck and waited from 7:45 until after 10:30. The contractor finally showed up and unloaded him.

Well the kids are home now and tugging at me to get out and do something with them while it’s not raining. Be sure to check out the pics I’ve added to the site and check back soon! I know we’ve still got a few days to go, but Merry Christmas to all!

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! We had plenty to eat and it was good to take a day and reflect on all we have to be thankful for. The poultry houses are coming along nicely. Once the contractors started they haven’t left except for one day. They did take Thanksgiving day off. They have both buildings under roof now so the rain shouldn’t be too much of an obstacle. Surprisingly little left to do in the actual construction of the buildings. The electrical, the construction of the office, and the equipment installation will take a little while, but it’s looking like we may actually be done around the first of the year. I wish I had a dollar for every person who has driven by here slowly trying to figure out exactly what was going on here. The contractors being around provided me with the opportunity to use a skid steer to clean out the barn. I got the majority of it with the 6000 and the loader, but couldn’t get into some tight places.

Today I finally started building the rabbit cages. I’m figuring out quickly that I’m not much of a carpenter. Hopefully I can follow the plans in the book good enough that they will hold rabbits and keep water and wind out. It’s almost as if the rabbits are laughing at me. I see them over in the corner hiding their faces with their little paws. I figure they have to be laughing at me. Maybe I’ll get the rabbit cages built and get my tack room built in the other barn before we get the poultry houses finished.

We had scheduled the double-wide to be moved last weekend, but had to postpone it due to not having everything packed. The next available date is December. I’m just hoping BJ and the kids can have the things that have to be out packed by then. I know BJ is not thrilled about living so close to the poultry houses when they get birds in them.

I spent a little more time pressuring my local Mahindra dealer for his absolute best deal on a 7010 cab last week. We keep getting closer! I hate the thought of another winter out in the cold and snow feeding the animals. It doesn’t hurt that we could certainly use the tax deduction this year either. I’ll give him another jab one day this week and hopefully close the deal.

Well as always tons to do here so I will go for now. Be sure to check out the pics I’ve added and check back soon. Until next time stay safe!

No doubt fall is upon us now. We’ve had several heavy frosts. This week is modern gun season for deer in KY.. I decided not to hunt this year so I can stay on top of construction of the poultry houses. I’ve heard a lot less shots this year than in the past. The deer population has been hit with a disease spread by biting gnats. I’ve heard a lot are being found dead. Hopefully the frost and colder weather will send the gnats packing. Unfortunately it will do the same to all but the hardiest of flowers. The leaves are really falling now as the winds have picked up. Fall is strange with it’s temperatures varying. Yesterday the wind was out of the south and temps climbed up to 70. Today the wind is calm, but a few sprinkles and clouds have really kept the temps down. The forecast is for a cold front behind these sprinkles.

Construction continues on the poultry houses. It’s odd to see them rise from the ground. So far rain has not been a setback except for today. Really no rain to speak of, just enough to keep them from pouring concrete. So far the contractors have been very busy. Most of the time they are working form daylight until after dark. The kids have been thrilled by all the equipment that is around. Unfortunately BJ has not been so thrilled. Just something about concrete trucks at 6:40 am on Saturday she can’t come to grips with. We have talked to a contractor about moving the doublewide. I was amazed at what it costs to move one of those things. I bet we’ll spend pretty close to $10,000 by the time everything is unhooked, moved, and re-hooked. It seems that finding someone to remove the freon from the heat and air unit is going to hold us back.

With no rain the grass has completely stopped growing. Which has meant feeding hay to the horses and goats. Right now they are getting a roll a week. Besides feeding the hay. I’ve used the loader on the 6000 this week for lots of dragging and moving. I’ve been tryin to level out some rough places in the pastures and keep water from getting inside the doors on the barns. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 truckloads of gravel have been spread so far. A lot of it was spread by the truck, but it still left some for me to get. I got my culvert in below the barn and started putting down gravel. At the moment I am out of gravel. I need to have a couple more loads delivered for driveways and heavy use areas. Overall though I have gotten quite a bit of cleanup done.

Well as always there is tons to do, so I better go do it. Be sure to check back soon and check out the pics I’ve added! Thanks for reading!

We got the opportunity to visit one of the coolest places around this week. Madison’s class took a trip to the pumpkin patch. It was great to see all the kids getting some exposure to the farm lifestyle. They got to see Ducks, Guineas, Lama, and all kinds of Goats in the petting Zoo. I think it’s just great that kids get the opportunity to visit farms. Mattie and Garett were amazed at the giant pumpkin grown there on the farm. It set the state record this year.

Work is still keeping me terribly busy with mandatory overtime due to new equipment installation. I have found a little time to get out and do some cleanup around the farm with the 6000. I had a huge Beech tree removed and we’ve been sawing it up for firewood to burn at the log house. Everything that was too small for firewood I used the 6000 to pile and burn. Then I snaked out the large trunk of it for sawing and splitting later. I’m putting in a culvert to keep an area below the barn dry so I can get through there in the wet months with whatever I need to.

I went to feed Big Red and the rest of the rabbits one day this week only to find Big Red out of his cage. I thought great I’ll never catch him. When I put food in his cage he hopped right back in though. I have got to find time to build new cages. Well tonight is trick or treat night so I hope everyone has a spooktacular time. Be sure to check out the pics I’ve added and check back soon!

All is well here in Kentucky. Wow the skies have finally opened up! I am glad to see it even if it does mean the contractors will be delayed in the building of the poultry houses. We need about 2 weeks of this steady rain, but I’ll settle for the 5 days that are forecasted. I had almost forgotten the sound of the rain on the metal roof. Sure is some good sleeping weather. If only I had time to sleep!

I decided to sell a few of the horses so we could concentrate on our best horses and keeping them ridden. It’s sad to see them go, but I just don’t have the time for them all. I really would like to turn away from horses and more toward cattle or goats. I really enjoy the goats. I have some great places for them too! On the other hand cattle are a lot easier to deal with and it’s hard not to like calves. I geuss we’ll try to get more of both!

The leaves are gradually falling from the trees and the nights are beginning to have a chill. Highs aren’t getting into the 80’s much now and the 90’s are gone. Soon it will be time to light a fire and have cocoa with the kids by the stove. I have a basement full of projects that will need my attention this winter. I’m unsure of whether to sew grass seed in the clearings this fall or wait for spring.

The rain has kept the 6000 on the sidelines, but my mind has been racing about buying that 7010 cab I’ve been kicking around for over a year now. I’m in a better position to buy now and may just do that if the deal is right. Sure would make winter feeding a lot more fun inside that comfy heated cab.

Really not a whole lot happening on the farm this week. I’ve been trying to put more of an emphasis on my fatherly duties for the moment. Having the weekends to spend with the kids was great. Now we are back on regular shifts at work and I am dreading not being able to get out with them this weekend. This Sunday we finally took our hike we’d been planing to the “horse cliffs”. It was a good walk and produced some tired children by the end of the afternoon. It also provided me with some great photos of the kids and the opportuity to teach them a few things. I think it’s important to learn about nature and it’s signs so we spent a good bit of time learning tree names and studying animal tracks. I even got to teach a bit of a history lesson as these rock shelters were used by confederate soldiers to hide their horses as they scouted for sign of union soldiers. I feel very fortunate to have them on our property.

The farm still requires the daily watering and feeding duties. I have got to find time to work with our horses more. They are getting a little out of hand since they haven’t been ridden much lately. I saddled up and rode around the farm for a couple hours one night last week and it is obvious to me if I don’t do something I’m going to be breaking them all over again. Still no rain to speak of here and the dust is terrible. The pad is done for the poultry houses and the building should begin this week.

I have been experiencing a little trouble with both our computers this week, so I bought a new one. Our previous computers had all been Dell for the last several years, but with having to replace the monitor and the modem on the last one at less than 3 months old I went with a Gateway this time. Just seems Dells quality went down lately.

We’ve been selling the topsoil that came from the area the poultry houses will go by the dump truck load. That means the 6000 has seen a pretty steady workout. Dave Rose has been hauling it for us. He couldn’t believe the loader on the 6000 would reach high enough to get over the sides of his big dump truck. He has a Kubota M4900 and the loader will not reach high enough to get over the side. Sometimes I just don’t know how I got by all this time without the 6000 and it’s loader.

Well I think I hear the school bus so I will go for now. As always be sure to check the site for pics I’ve added and check back soon. Thanks for reading!

What a difference this week has made in the landscape of the farm. We continue to clear more land every day. It should wrap up this week. The decision was made not to take a chance on the poultry house site. We moved it to the front of the farm. It will be a little closer to the log house, but the excavation costs will be much less. They began work on the pad for the houses 3 days ago and have already removed all the topsoil and begun getting it on grade. They expect to be ready for the builder by the end of next week. That’s moving on. We will need to move the double-wide and have cleared a place on the back of the property to move it to. It will be at the end of a county road with only one neighbor near it. An older couple. Should be very peaceful. I am amazed at the transformation of the land as it is cleared. I can almost see cows, goats, and horses grazing. It will be a real job to get it all fenced, but worth the effort.

All is well with the kids. Madison and Kaylee stay busy cheering, while Garett is busy with after school programs that help with his reading and homework. He’s going to be a little bookworm. All the children went to the McCreary County Public Library this week and got library cards. Earlier in the week they all had been sick. Everyone had a stomach bug.

We finished up the hay this week. What little there was. I made a deal with our neighbors the Phillips’ to get it square baled and put in our barn instead of rolling it. That will give me a few hundred squares and about 40 rolls to get through the winter on. Hopefully I can get some fencing done and won’t need so much hay. I’d like to buy some cattle this winter if they get cheap enough. I thought I had found a square baler that would suit me, but waited around and let it get sold. I did pick up a New Holland 258 hay rake though. With folks going to V rakes with their rollers there are some deals out there on rolla bar rakes. Since I want to do more squares the rolla bar rake fits me. I will go next week and look at a New Holland 311 square baler. Don’t know much about the New Holland knotters as opposed to what I know about the other designs. I just know I need a square baler that the 6000 won’t be waiting on.

We are heading into fall shutdown at work so I get some much needed time off. We all will be working day shift with weekends off. I can use the time since I’ve been working seven days a week for too long to remember.

Hope all is well for you and remember to check out the pics I’ve added! Better get working on something with this time I have.

Fall can only be just around the corner. The nights are beginning to cool and our streak of consecutive days above 90 degrees has finally been broken. I for one am ready. Fall is my favorite time of year. The leaves turning, cool nights, and finally the smell of wood smoke in the air. I can hardly wait. Again this year I find myself with so many things to do to prepare for winter and no time to do them. The hay must be finished, wood needs cut, potatoes are still in the ground, everything on the farm needs some sort of maintenance, and fencing would help relieve some dependence on hay. That’s just off the top of my head too. I’m sure there is tons more.

On a high note I finally got the remnants of the old trailer cleaned up and hauled away. Thanks to Dave Rose and his dump truck and the loader on the 6000 about 8 hours is all it took. Unfortunately the renter is not keeping his end of the bargain. I gave the folks 3 months free rent to clean up the small stuff and they have not done that. Seems terribly unfair that you try to help people and get taken advantage of. We made the mistake of putting the utilities in our names and now the bills are overdue. Such is life I guess.

I took a trip to my local Mahindra dealer and finally got the parts to fix my mowing machine and brush hog wheel. It’s nice to go look at all the pretty red tractors and dream that if I had one of each model what I could do. I was disappointed that they did not have a 7010 Cab on the lot. I’m ready to make a deal on one, but know the best deal is on what is on a dealers lot. I did see Mahindra implements on the lot though. I must say they seem to be very well made. I’m not sure about the prices, but the quality seems to be good.

After all we have been through with the poultry houses it seems as though the universe is talking to us about them. First off we have already spent quite a bit of money preparing a site and beginning on the pad only to find out definitively we would not be in compliance on that site. I’m disappointed to say that Cobb led us astray in that aspect. They still say there would be no problem, but who in their right mind would take such a risk. We will either change the site or eat the loss. Either way I have lots more productive land now. To me it seems that it’s not meant to be, but maybe I am just too easy to give up. I have always held tight to the notion that the old folks here speak to us. Maybe not in words, but through their past. I can’t tell you how many times I have asked myself what would papaw do, or what would uncle Pete do?

Kingsford will be unveiling a new product soon. We will begin making Kingsford charcoal with real Hickory. Hickory has long been a favored grilling wood and now we are going to put it in and on charcoal briquets. Our first scheduled run is in November, but I believe it is already being made and sold in test markets.

Well lots to do so until next time stay safe and as we say at Kingsford………………………Slow Down and Grill!

My have we all been busy here the last week or so. Last week was fair week here in the county. BJ took the children to enjoy all the rides and exhibits. I stayed home and took a nap. Of course with fairs come beauty pageants and I just happen to have some contestants. Madison won 2nd runner up in her division. Unfortunately Kaylee was grouped together with much older participants and didn’t place.

I have finally finished clipping all the pastures except one. We decided to go ahead and start the second cutting of hay. There will be less than a third of what we usually get. The weather is perfect for square baling. Too bad I haven’t fixed the square baler. I’m ashamed to admit I haven’t even ordered the part yet. I have become quite the procrastinator. Seems I’m always working on something, but seldom get done with anything. I did get a clothesine finished and put in at the new double-wide. Now BJ can hang sheets and towels on the line to dry.

I borrowed a dump truck from the excavator working on the poultry house pad and have slowly been cleaning up the rubble around the rental trailer.The weather remains hot and dry here. There are piles of brush everywhere that need to be burned. I’m afraid to burn anymore after Sunday. I started several piles that the wind was favorable for burning only to have the wind change and one jump into the woods. It’s a good thing I’ve got the 6000. I had to use it to cut a fire line to keep the fire from getting too far out of control.

The kids have accumulated more rabbits. Our friend and neighbor John Bryant brought 3 by to give to the kids. It seems our place ends up home to animals that nobody wants anymore. They are cute rabbits and a whole bunch more tame than the ones we had. Garett and Madison stuck them in the dog kennel on grass until we can get those cages I have been planning to build done.

My dad finally delivered the disc he had picked up cheap. I can tell why it was cheap now. It needs a lot of work. It’s a monster too. Looks to be 10 ft wide. I’m trying to decide what it’s worth most as. We could just cut it up for scrap, we could make 2 or 4 smaller discs, or I could refurbish it. Refurbishing it would probably not be the best use for it. It would take a lot of work and money. I can probably buy one as cheap as I can fix this one.

The garden is done except for a fewer smaller tomatoes. Just right for sandwiches. Nana says she is glad the preserving is over. I don’t think the goats feel the same way. They were still gobbling down every scrap of cull produce. We are trying to decide what to plant for our fall garden. Well I have lots to do so I better go for now…………..Be sure to check out the pics I’ve added.