I Hugged Too Early...

Just a word of caution...the donkeys are NOT ready to be hugged...and I have a nice hoof-shaped bruise on my thigh to prove it.

Donkey Day

The donkeys have had a few more days to settle in. They are slowly learning that humans bring good things like food and treats. Yesterday, we spent the day getting the barn more "donkey-friendly." Since Charles had to hide them for a few days, he just put them in the biggest stall down there and didn't really have time to "donkey-proof" things. The stall they are in is about the size of two or three regular size stalls and happens to have all of his barn tools and yard tools that we use in the pasture. So, donkeys being donkeys, decided to take several tools off the walls each day and bury them in the dirt. They entertain themselves by knocking things around and are very curious!

We decided to give their stall a little face lift, move all the tools, etc. to another stall and basically organize the barn. During this time, we closed off both ends of the barn and had all the stall doors open as we walked around moving things. The little donks had a lot of time to explore the barn, but most importantly located the stall where the hay is kept. It turned into an all-day donkey buffet.

 

We were moving the hay to another stall and as Charles picked up a bale, this little (or BIG) guy was hiding out! He/she picked the perfect spot...it was cold and rainy out so this one was hiding under the hay near the ducks' nest...eating the eggs as they laid them! This was a BIG opossum in terms of opossums. It reminded me of when I was younger and my Grandfather and I would trap opossums on his back porch, only to release them in the morning. They didn't get released until he picked them up by the tail to show me~ha!

So after a few minutes of trying to decide what to do...we tried to guide it out the door of the barn. It took several failed attempts to get him out (he played "opossum" for a while) and one hilarious video to capture the moment, he ran out in the rain towards the pond.

 

 



Cookie Decorating Tradition

We have a tradition of cookie decorating that started just a few years ago, but it has become a very big part of our Christmas Day tradition. What started as merely a fun after event following Christmas dinner has turned into a room of determined, blood-thirsty hyenas focused on winning the title of "Best Cookie" that they can brag about for the entire next year. Ok, so it's not really that crazy, but some of the more artistic family members actually start planning their cookie decor that morning. The rules are:

• You get ONE cookie
• You have 10 minutes
• You have to eat what you make!

This year, we were blessed to have the Snyder's join us and talk about taking the competition up a notch! The kids and adults alike really put us to shame...

Anyways, our winner this year was Grayson with his Santa in the Chimney design! Congrats Grayson~you get bragging rights until next year!!

1. 

The Best Christmas YET!

We had a great Christmas Day which was hosted here at the farm. Besides our parents, we were joined by Aunt Valerie, Uncle Mike and Aunt Nicky, Grandma Joyce, and the Snyder family, who came by for dessert!

We don't have a large room for entertaining so everyone always has to fix meals and just sit where they can find a seat (dining room table, around the coffee table, or in the living room on the ottoman). Although it is a little challenging with the limited space at times, I love nothing more than hosting family gatherings here. It's fun cooking for everyone and just sitting back sharing laughs.

Christmas was so much fun! Charles and I always tend to get each other things that are practical. I tend to ask for some sort of household project to be completed and well, he just gets whatever I come up with! Ha. So, the week before Christmas, I had our electricians come in and put lights in the garage for him. It wasn't much of a Christmas surprise because it was completed by the time he got home from work a week earlier, but I know he had wanted lights over his work area out there for sometime now. Because our house was a foreclosure, all the fixtures had been stolen out of the garage. I did have one surprise for him though, which was an HVAC unit for the warehouse apartment, which is going to be his future music room. He had no idea so that was a fun surprise.

Just as I was thinking, "I did it, I pulled off the air unit as a great surprise," Charles hands me two gifts. One is in a bag and the other is wrapped. They were the last two items under the tree. I opened the bag first, which contained four halters. Two of them were alpaca halters....but the other two were MUCH too big to fit the alpacas. I looked suspiciously at him and he just had a big grin on his face. I opened the next gift, which was a book titles "The Donkey Companion." Of course, I had an idea at that point that there was something in the barn for me. Charles told me to put on a coat for the next part of my present. We walked down to the barn and there were two of the CUTEST mini donkeys I have ever seen~a male and a female, both about six months old.

 Male (darker) in the back and female (lighter) in front

Female and Bob                                                                                   Bob the barn cat-posing for a pic

 



Jessica and Dad-two goof balls

 

 

It turns out that Charles had the donkeys hidden for three days and was just doing everything in his power to keep me from going down there. He did it! I was totally shocked. It was the sweetest Christmas gift ever!

Event Gear

We are excited to have all new event gear for 2013! Here is Auggie modeling the new arrivals.

Our Sweet Golden Girls

The sweet pups, Yogi and Boo Boo, came to us after being rescued from someone's basement in June of this year. They were so incredibly thin and weak when they arrived that we weren't sure that they would make it. Before even coming to PPCA, we took them to our local groomer because they were caked in urine and feces. She soaked them and worked on them for hours. 

We knew that both girls needed a lot of medical care to pull through, so we started a fundraising page. I was NOT prepared for the outpouring of love and support that we received. In just a few days, we had raised thousands of dollars. People from all of the world were sending well wishes for the girls. Call came in from Germany, New Jersey, Alaska and Arizona. It was truly the most amazing animal rescue I have ever been a part of. 

Several days went by, the girls were starting to eat more and seemed to be gaining strength. We went to the vet and they weighed a mere 32 and 38 lbs. Yogi (the white face) was about 11 years old and Boo Boo (red face) was about 10 years old. Getting these beauties back to good health was going to be a huge challenge, but finding the perfect home where these two can live out their "golden" years was going to be even harder. 

In steps Adopt A Golden-Atlanta! They had heard about Yogi and Boo Boo on social media and emails about their fundraising. They offered to help us find these girls their perfect match. We went to many adoption events, but sadly always seemed to come home with no interest. Everyone was deterred by the girls age, although meeting them, they acted just like puppies! 

On Saturday November 3rd the girls were at yet another adoption day. Just like the previous events, we were not expecting much...that is, until Mike and Kellie came along. They had lost their sweet dog Sophie earlier that year and came to the adoption event "just to look around." Well, they didn't look too long before Yogi and Boo Boo snatched their hearts and didn't let go. 

Later that week, we went to their house to do the home check, and the following weekend, they official adopted the girls. Mike is a police officer who works nights and Kellie is a nurse who works during the day...these girls would always have someone home to snuggle with! It was so bittersweet saying goodbye to them, but it really was a match made in heaven! 

 Yogi and Boo Boo in June 2012

 At their new home!

Grandma Joyce's 90th Birthday

We celebrated Mrs. Joyce's 90th birthday yesterday at Park Springs. It was quite a celebration, complete with a kazoo ensemble! Here are some pictures.

Physical Therapy

Just a quick update~my physical therapy has been going well. I have also started seeing an occupational therapist (at the same location) for the popping and cracking in my wrist. I have a custom-made brace that I'm supposed to wear every day for two weeks straight. Two weeks in a brace has been a challenge and I've started my two week stint over several times. Last weeks appointment confirmed that if I don't follow through with my two weeks, I'm going to be referred to a hand surgeon. SOOO, I will be wearing my brace! (I took it off to type this)

Head of the Hooch~Chattanooga

We went to cheer on AJRA in a regatta in Chattanooga. We had a blast! What a fun town.

Helpers

We have a lot of little helpers around here. Just in case Charles needed an extra hand (or paw), Finnegan stayed close by for oil change time.

Fence Painting

We have MANY different fenced areas on our property. We have four large pasture areas and six smaller fenced areas. Our fences have needed some TLC for a while now. Most of the fences are a black stain, but our back area has white pickets, which I love! After a few lawn mower run-ins and rotten pickets being replaced, it was time to get it painted. I have posted a before and after picture. Please ignore the snow in the first picture...it was the only picture I could find of before!

~BEFORE~

 ~AFTER~

Happy Anniversary PPCA!

Can you believe it? Our boarding facility has officially been open for an entire year! It's been a quite a wild ride but we made it here in one piece.  We've learned a lot on this little journey and now have a wonderful full staff that make everything great. We have been completely booked most weekends and even very steady through the weeks. Summer has wrapped up so here's to a toast to a prosperous fall and Holiday season to follow!

It's Their House...We Just Live Here....

Keep On Truckin'

I had my doctor's appointment Monday afternoon and finally left with some ideas and a plan of action. Through a process of elimination that has taken many months, my diagnosis is fibromyalgia. After much reading, I think my episode of extreme pain last week was what is called a 'flare up.' I was in excruciating pain for about four days straight. My pain levels have decreased since last week, but are still very much present.

Next Monday I will be going to my very first physical therapy appointment. I'm really looking forward to hopefully finding some treatments that will ease my pain. Of course, reading information I've found on the web can be daunting and depressing, so I'm just going to move forward and try to keep my head up!

Pit Bulls and Boats

Charles and I joined my parent's in Dad's boat for an afternoon trip. We brought Finnegan and Auggie along as well. It turns out that they really LOVE the water. Although Auggie is not very bouyant, he swam alongside Finn with his life vest. We had a really fun day!

 

 

Tuckered out at home!

I Have To Remind Myself

Answers please!

I've come to despise bed time. My body and my mind are at odds on this one. Most of the day my mind is screaming for sleep, yet my body fights nearly every moment of it. In the last few weeks, my unknown ailment has limited my sleep to a few restless hours each night. The few hours I can sleep I wake up frequently-even a dozen times each night. Before sunrise, I give up hope of falling back to sleep even though I don't feel rested at all.

The pain that started in my wrists early this year has moved to my elbows, my back, my knees, and most recently my ankles. I wake up with my hands and wrists contorted into painful gripping positions. My upper back has searing hot pain which doesn't allow me to stand straight until I have spent at least fifteen minutes in a scalding hot shower. My lower back is tense and feels as if it is bruised from some sort of blunt force trauma. My knees and my ankles waiver between constant aching pain and just a dull weakened feeling as I try to get from my bed side to the shower, merely a few steps away.

Once again I have a doctors appointment next week and I don't have any hopes that I will get an answer as to what is going on. This will be appointment number 7 with doctor number 3. I've finally found a doctor I like so I'm really keeping my fingers crossed I will get some answers.

A Green Alternative

With the summer storms we tend to get, the main play yard for the dogs ofter turns into a mud pit. We have two outdoor play grounds, but the main one gets a lot of wear and tear. We decided to mulch one of the yards and leave the other as grass, but first had to officially kill all the grass. Besides several rounds of Round-Up, we laid newspapers down the morning of the mulch delivery. It was fairly tedious, but really worked well. Even weeks after the mulch was spread, there were only a few small green patches peeking through. Check out our beautiful new maple trees too!

 

 

 

When Fuel Prices Go Up...

Pretty Much