Goat life is GOOD Some Days

It is warm and humid, we have so much grass of different varieties our little goat herd roams all over their pastures just "nibbling". The view is the very front of our front pasture - across the road you see a rock building with a metal roof - that is our real estate office. Yes that is a dead tree over there - it is on the highway department's right of way and we have been instructed we cannot remove it (although it is perilously likely to crash down on OUR parking area.)

We let the goats out on the front drive area - they are fenced off from our porch and backyard but can roam around the workshop and up to the gates onto the highway. Ellie and her mother Nubiana are taking a breather from overeating. Ellie is getting stronger and seems to be rallying after her health crisis. She is SO sweet - unfortunately didn't get the "hornless" trait from her mother but if we can keep her gentled the horns won't be a big negative in years to come.

Ellie has a little patch of white just on the side of her bottom lip - it looks like something she ate is hanging there. As her coat darkens - the white markings are more pronounced. She will be a pretty goat -those long ears just delight me.

Must not be meant to do more of this today - just lost some pictures I'd uploaded here and cannot access the files on our network right now. We have our office and home computers networked - makes it easier some ways but others - not so much.

Sit a while and "chew your cud" this week - I'm having some heart challenges lately and working through them - time with my goats helps. Bless you

Summer Skies

Not much to add with words about these pictures - God creates incredible ways to cool us and water the earth. July in Texas is usually a drier time- this year seems that He is refilling the pail and cleansing the earth. "~Rain down, rain down, Spirit of God rain down on me. ~"

Prayer Update Too!

SO sorry - when asking people to pray it is rude not to let them know how the Lord has used that prayer work. Grace - the young woman who had spinal surgery, was at church Sunday and is doing an extensive physical therapy to regain her full mobility - but came through the surgery and recovery well. Toby Pannone is at home last I checked their blog - he has had several complications and a hard time keeping his weight stable. He started the next round of chemo today and of course each round is rough on his small body. Please continue to pray for Toby and his family - they sound like such wonderful parents and he is obviously a bright beautiful child. Thank you -

Staying Busy

It is GREEN here - this oak tree is a favorite of ours - reminding us of that old line "only God can make a tree" - and a mighty fine job He does!

Sorry I haven't been posting for a while now - Praise God we've been busy with real estate and work around the place. First picture is what my" hardest working man in the county" hubby accomplished one morning last week while I stayed in our office to do some paperwork and phone calls. We'd taken down some trees and trimmed limbs and they'd been piled up for a while. With the snake issues this year he decreed it was time to get rid of the brush pile. Rather than burn these large pieces we are pleased to have some firewood cut and stacked for next winter . We are keeping stacked wood further from our house and just bringing up a wheelbarrow at a time when we use the fireplace. Too many insects hide in the wood and many are destructive - with every blessing in the country - you have to use a little sense to avoid the possible problems.

The crepe myrtles here in Texas are stunning this year - with so much rain (another 1.75 inches yesterday) they are growing tall and blooming prolifically. I love this white one - it is close to the native crepe myrtles and has the most beautiful trunks. We also have some raspberry colored ones but they are slower to bloom and a little more finicky about their watering/fertilizing.

You didn't think I'd post without goat pictures did you? When I went out in the pen yesterday the herd wasn't interested in getting out. They are so spoiled by all that green growth from the rain, during the dry season they burst out the gates as soon as we unlatch them. The Lord created these creatures to be food, clothing, companions to us(we don't eat our goats although some are raised for food and sold at market) and with His usual great creativity - He added in complex personalities - some of them are even funny! One shot is of Nubie's "clan" and Flip with her daughter Lucky, standing there demanding some grain. The "goat in a pan" - is the baby of the herd, Boudreaux ,who is one laid back fella! He finds the black heavy feeding dishes just right for sleeping. - they get very hot during the day and he still fits in one if he curls up tightly.

So as you can see - it is all good here in Buhlaland - the Lord provides for us beyond our expectations and gives us enough trial to show us our need to rely fully on Him. Be kind to one another - harsh words wound in ways that never heal.

Mornings are so COOL

We are early morning people. I had the camera with me and my eyes open to this beauty. From our front porch to God's glory - priceless! No rain this weekend so spousal unit had to mow an area for our pets' comfort and the snakes' discomfort. Enjoy - wish you could have a cup of coffee with us on the porch!

Bless you from buhlaland.

Attitude

The tongue flicking doe is Flip - current alpha doe in our herd. Although I'm fairly certain she was licking her mouth - that tongue sticking out still looks a lot like her"attitude"! She was a very sweet natured gal - but since we've thinned the herd she is now a serious contender for top gal. Flip is fairly large and is working up that attitude so she bashes into anyone who might be in her way (not me - at least not so far!).

The very similar looking goat is her daughter from 2006 - Lucky. We bottle raised Lucky so she is quite devoted to us -she was a twin - Flip decided to care for the male twin so we raised Lucky Girl.

Last is Boudreaux
Officially granted herd citizenship(we banded him) and he'll stay with us instead of going to market. What a personality! He is our Cajun goat - let the good times roll seems to be his motto.
All the goats are looking good now - they've had the second series of worming and now due for CDT shots. Always something with animals. They definitely are work but it was a real pleasure to go out in the pasture with them for a while this afternoon while they did their job here on Buhlaland.

Haven't posted in a few days - hard to get decent pictures for the blog with our persistent rain and overcast. So what is posted is NOT quality photo . It isn't hailing - the flash went off due to the low light levels the raindrops show up as large white dots. This is water pouring down our driveway into our backyard. Pictures were taken on June 29 - the week of our heaviest rains. Since July 1 - we've had a mere 3 inches which is nearly 5 times the normal rainfall for July in North Texas. The next picture is the water pouring over a retaining wall making a miniature waterfall caused by the volume of water being more than our drainage pipes could handle . The building in the background is my husband's workshop.

As a good friend says"it's ALL good" and indeed it is. Independence Day celebrations were fun - we were at the home of good friends for a cookout and fireworks. Their home has a panoramic view and we watched literally a dozen different displays of fireworks. Great fun since no one had to worry about setting anything on fire - the ground was so wet some of the fireworks had to be set on rocks to properly ignite!

As always - it was good in Buhlaland.