Of this and that

Ticket, the Mouse Slayer, on patrol!!

I tell you, after catching that mouse last night, he was so pleased with himself and keeps wanting to go into the garden/barn area to look for more. For a 105 lb dog he moves pretty quickly. We're not sure of his heritage but he's all ours. We're pretty sure he has some Lab in him but other than that, German Shepherd, maybe? You can't see it well in the picture but he has a very deep, keel like chest, so who knows... We got him after he was dumped near my parent's farm a few years ago. He was skinny and covered with ticks and we're pretty sure he had been abused based on his behaviors. He was making a pest of himself at my parent's farm and Dad was threatening to shoot him before started getting into the neighbor's livestock. There are roving packs of abandoned dogs down there and it always makes me really angry when people abandon their animals. But Tick has got a good home and has shaped up nicely.

J15 tries out her costume for the haunted house.

I'm just not sure angels of death wear ratty Converse.

She has been working hard on things for the haunted house this weekend. This evening she was painting tombstones. In keeping with the idea of making this fun for adults as well as children, some of the grave markers are for the following: D. Jones, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Morgan Stanley.

I've got a bonus evening tonight. I hardly know what to do with myself. Normally Wednesday evenings are crazy times at our house with V and I going opposite directions with different children. But tonight I12 came home from school not feeling well and coughing again, so I dosed him with cough syrup and kept him home from choir practice and confirmation. Which means that I have SPARE TIME!!!!! So, I did a little work around the house and now have some banana bread baking in the oven. We very rarely have bananas last long enough to get to the banana bread stage but this time I was in luck.

Except for the cornstalks, the garden is put to bed.

V mowed off part of the garden that was the worst overgrown. Not ideal but quite effective. When working out there last night I noticed that there were many mouse nests out in the garden. V knows he drove over at least one of the little buggers and hopefully more. Now they don't have as many hiding places. We've got a huge pile of weeds that have been drying out for a few weeks and we're thinking that they have become home to many little rodents. So V is considering a bit of gasoline and a match to solve that problem. I'm fine with that as long as he has the hose handy.

I've been doing measurements for raised beds. I've never done concrete block beds before but I've heard good things about them. And V and I have been talking what to plant in an orchard.

Now, to just wear him down about chickens....