Early this year two new hens showed up at our doorstep looking for a good home:  Lola and Pawhearska (the Osage word for white ears).  Lola has certainly been fun and is bringing us worldwide renown.  Later in the year we lost the Iron Maiden (she just up and died) so we're currently at five head of hens.  And Trish continues to spoil them absolutely rotten.

We expanded the garden around the house this year.  Perhaps due to a very wet spring and then some very hot parts of the summer we suffered an unusual amount of pestilence.  I've been trying to go organic  -- but it's not always feasible.  I guess moderation in all things is the way to go.   The wet spring did help to give a decent hay crop this year.

As usual, we had lots of fun watching the bluebirds.  But we got to watch the "The Great Goose Migration" (which we've known about for a long time) this year.  We rent our pond and island to a pair of geese every spring.  We don't charge much and do it mainly as a public service.  For the first few years we saw the nest and eggs but never saw goslings and we figured something was getting to the eggs.  Then one year we saw goslings, but they were gone the next day.  Oh well, we thought, life is full of hazards.  Then one year we saw our goslings over at the country club and realized that the geese hatch them on our pond and then almost immediately trek them over to the country club (they have a bigger pond).  Talk about a hazardous journey for baby goslings with no ability to fly.  This year we saw the migration, but to a different pond.  We thought at first they were just out for a test walk, then we realized that this was it.  Born just  the day before, we saw them walk from the pond, up the pasture, past our house, and then disappear in the woods.  We sure hope they made it.
 

Construction Report

We painted the front porch and that pretty much finishes up the outside construction on the house.
 

Music Report

We continue to do occasional informal gigs at the local Senior Center.  Our spring rendezvous was pleasant.  Our fall rendezvous was a bit chilly but a great time was had none the less.  We set a record for attendance.   We went to the Big Picking Festival at Winfield again this year.  Had quite a night of excitement at midweek.  A wickedly hellacious storm rolled in at eventide replete with torrential rain, winds keening like a banshee, and tornados (one of which past just a few miles to the east of us).  It was interesting.