It's here!

Well, after a long trip from California (can you believe that???), this little guy was tired and worn out. He was "chosen" at the Waco fair by Hailey's Ag teacher for her to use for her FFA project. We picked him up at the Plano Ag barn this afternoon after school. He's sunburned and scratched up. It must have been a rough weekend!

This little guy wasn't so sure he wanted out of the truck. He squeeled and squeeled and squeeled! Man, are they LOUD!

Hailey made sure everything was set in his new home...a horse stall. See the shavings? Believe it or not, that is like his kitty litter box! Tee hee! It's supposed to cut down on the amount of shavings we'll go through.

Hailey uses some gentle persuasion to get her new little guy into his stall. He wants to make a run for it!

Ok, honestly, we were expecting this adorable little "Wilbur" pig. This guy... well, he's so ugly he's cute.

You can see the scratches on his side from the other pigs. Hmmm... kind of like a cat fight? Kitty litter box? I'm sensing a theme here...

Our new little "Wilbur" settled in pretty quickly and even ate some feed out of Hailey's hand. He's got a nice 10 x10 stall, with shavings, food on demand, and water. He sure likes snorting at Tysin, our LGD (livestock guardian dog), too. They really checked each other out through the hog wire. So, now you know what the surprise was. Betcha didn't think of that one, did ya? Ha ha! And the adventure begins...

Rain!

It's been a long, long time since we've seen some of this! I am praising God we have finally gotten some rain. Seriously folks. The cracks in our pasture look like they go down about 4 or 5 feet into the ground. This can cause some serious damage to an animal who's foot gets caught.

Ah! Looking out onto the pool, you can see the rain coming down. It is such a beautiful sight!

The alpacas stayed under cover while they waited for the rain to end. However, it rained for a good portion of the afternoon. So...they were under the eaves for quite a while. Not that I am complaining!

The chickens are a different story. Usually, when it rains, they stay inside too. However, this time, most of the chickens stayed outside during the rain. I don't know if they are expecting worms to work their way up or what! They were running like crazy from one section of the pasture to the next. Maybe the grasshoppers were more prevalent in the rain? I don't know. They sure looked funny running around in the rain, though!

Ok, here is a hint for tomorrow. It's coming home in this... ooh! The excitement is building!

New animals abound...

I am sooooooo enjoying this fall weather! I head out anywhere between 6am and 8am to do my chores...when it's still just a tad bit chilly. I love it!

The alpacas have finally come out of their stalls to enjoy the new, cooler weather. They've been spending the majority of their days inside the stalls under misters and fans.

The chickens have finally come outside, too. They are enjoying their "dirt baths" in the pastures and have been sunning their feathers. See, even the chickens enjoy the sunshine!

Our cria from early summer is growing by leaps and bounds. She's begun eating grain and has even been known to push the larger "moms" away from their feed bowls. Soon, she will need to be weaned off of her mama's milk.

Our cria aren't the only ones growing up around here! I had to put a shameless mama picture in here of my youngest son. He's seven years old now. I can't believe how fast time goes.

Our oldest son is in Senior High going to homecoming, our daughter is in High School getting ready for her first fall dance, and our youngest is getting THIS BIG! I don't want to even begin to talk about my age. I still feel so young, though! How in the world is it possible for me to have children this old??? Pinch me before it's all over and I've missed it all. Take loads and loads of time to spend with your kiddos. Before you know it, you'll be an empty nester. I know I can hear an AMEN to that!

Upon heading through the pasture, we stumbled upon this particular weed. It's just an ordinary weed of MANY in our pasture. You can tell all of the grass is gone. The drought this summer has left us with nothing except for some sturdy weeds that seem to grow without any nourishment whatsoever. Amazing, huh? Anyway, there was something peculiar about this weed. Upon further investigation, we determined why. Do you notice anything? Look closely...

There is an entire nest of baby bunnies here. We found five baby bunnies nestled closely under the weed bush. What a great place for the mama to hide her young! Last year, you may remember, a mama rabbit laid her young inside one of our hay feeders. NOT a good idea. I believe only three made it out of ten in that one. All five of these bunnies have survived and have finally left the nest. We see them hopping through the pasture some evenings when we go out to do our chores. They are soooooooo cute!

I also want to mention we have had TWO baby opossums in our pasture lately, too. What are the odds? Everything is coming up for food and water! Don't worry! No animals (opossums) were harmed in the catching of these animals. All animals have participated in a relocation program... relocated out of our pasture! :o)

I haven't been the best at posting things lately, but will need to post again this coming Monday. We have a surprise coming? Wanna know what it is? Check back in on Monday to find out how the saga continues... (hint: Hailey is taking on something new) Don't you hate cliffhangers????? Smile....