Agricultural Art

Nothing like a little creative art to inspire a person. Here is a cool thing to do with license plates. Old agricultural plates in the shape of the state of Vermont.  Other license plates are used as photo frames. Still others are used to frame a small canvas of watercolors. 

Recycling at its best.

In The Eye of The Storm~Mom and Mother Nature

We all barely survived those "hurricane winds" last night.  It was like riding a rollar coaster in this old farm house as it swayed from side to side and up and down. Windows almost blew out and the 88 doors were squeeking and moaning all night.  There are trees and limbs down as far as the eye can see.  My 84 year old mother lives 2 hours away from here and she does not answer her phone.  I suspect her power is out, and maybe a tree down on her house. All my FaceBook friends are not typing updates this morning so I know that the power outage is probably most of Eastern Massachusetts up thru New Hampshire and Southern Vermont.  I have been in several hurricanes in the past and the winds last night were like 20 trains coming through the roof.  The house shook all night and the rafters and windows stretched and screamed.  Several emergency shelters have been set up here in Vermont to accomodate those with no power or heat.    I hope my moms neighbors are checking on her. Last year 2 of her neighbors froze to death in the ice storm because no one checked on them.    That memory is still fresh.
12:10 pm: I was finally able to get thru to ONE person that lives 10 miles from my mom and she is driving directly to my moms house. There are trees and electrical wires down all over town and power has been out since 10 pm last night.   
Times like these, I wish I had a helicopter.
12:15 pm:   My friend is banging on the windows and doors of my moms house and there is no answer.
I imagine the worse.  Trees, branches and wires down in the front yard and some in the back.
12:20pm:  She finds the extra keys and enters the house yelling my moms name.  No answer.
Now I am really about to have a heart attack.
She searches the entire house, every room and the cellar ( lots of water came in from the storm ) and still no mom.  The house is empty.  WHERE is she ?
12:30 pm: I search the Internet for emergency shelters set up in her town--nothing listed.
12:37pm:  I call my cousin in southern New Hampshire to ask her where the nearest shelters would be.
Guess what ?  My mother is WITH her and they are in Home Depot getting batteries for flashlights!!!!!!

Their plan is to return to my moms house and pack a bag and take my mom to New Hampshire to my cousins where there IS heat and power.  Amen.

Lesson for The Day; have a Disaster Plan for parents, if you do not live close to them. I assumed the neighbors would group together and do something.  They didn't.  Thankfully, my smart cousin was able to drive and navigate all the storm's road obsticles to get to my mothers home and get her out and to a place with heat.   I called my brother who is dry vaking his entire cellar because of the huge amount of water he got during the storm and he is relieved that mom is found.  He was on his way up there ( about 30 miles south ) when I called and told him mom wasn't in the house. Saved him a trip and unnecessary worry.
Its tough being the only daughter~!

Love you Mom!

Snowed Inn

We have been hit with a big snow storm today. So far, there is 22-24 inches of beautiful big piles of snow as far as the eye can see. Unfortunately, its the big heavy "sugar snow" that will bend the trees eventually, snap limbs and shut the power down.  I am trying to get all my computer work finished before this event happens.
My 4 flashlights are loaded with fresh batteries and ready for action.
The past 10 days has certainly been unusual. I have been totally house bound with a cast on my leg and struggling with crutches, mostly trapped on the second floor of this very cold old farm house. I haven't been able to walk, drive or even get dressed as my leg is so swollen that I am unable to get into any pants, even my "fat" pants.  Today my truck is literally buried under snow and I won't be able to move it when the plow man comes.  Oh well.  I am sure the entire town has noticed my vehicle has not moved in 10 days.
Took some good photos this morning of the snow. It really is beautiful here in the shadow of the mountain.

Looks like we will get at least 30 inches from this storm.  Another storm is suppose to hit on Friday, so the skiiers, snowmobilers and sledders will all be happy.  My cows love this kind of weather. All snow, no rain and no wind.  Perfect for livestock.  Wish I could go out and really enjoy it.

Raychel Ray

"Ray Ray",  or RR, as I call her, is a coming 2 year old, blocky, mostly red angus with a touch of some magical Simmental in her. She is the great grandaughter of the legendary foundation cow Rabbit. She has the type, color, frame and red ring eyes that I strive for in my herd cows.   RR is due to calve in April.  Her first time.  She is bred to a Registered Polled Hereford known for his heavy weanling weights and high grading carcass quality.  I am hoping for a good size red bull calf. 

I have taken oodles of photos of RR as she has matured.  Here are some from last fall and last week.
Her secret addiction is those dried apple horse treats. She turns her nose up at anything else.

Loyalty

We live far apart from each other. But when ever we are together we adore each other and try to spend as much time together as possible. The time together is too short and then I am on the road again. Some day I hope it all changes.

Winter Windows

The woodchuck said 6 more weeks of winter, and the cows agree.  It's nice that we are not getting the extreme snow that the rest of the east coast is getting. We really need a break.
Living here in the shadow of a large mountain means it snows a little bit every single day.  White-outs are common.   I really do love to watch the clouds encase the mountain as the snow comes down quickly in the early morning.  Sometimes I can barely see the rest of the out buildings on the farm.  Enjoying nature's daily gifts is important for me.  Life is going by faster and faster and I remind myself to cherish those moments of breath taking awe and wonder.

Wordless Wednesday