Memorial day...

I spent quiet time in gratitude for the veterans here and gone who gave so much for our freedom.

Adventure Chicken knows nothing of what it takes to have freedom. She just enjoys the freedom she has.

I planted one little Bachelors Button plant a few years ago, and now they are taking over my garden. They are happy little flowers, (and the bees find them very attractive, too!)

A good bit of the day was spent doing yard chores; yard mowing, planting, working on animal fencing. I also started a project in the hen yard. The dirt there is hard packed and there is very little vegetation. I spread out the contents of last years compost pile, and hauled several loads of horse manure in. I raked all of that out and added an old bale of hay. The chickens were overjoyed, scratching, eating bugs, digging about happily for the rest of the day. If all goes as planned I expect to see a lot of new vegetation come up very soon. I took Chanel out for a ride today. I have not ridden her in over a year, and have never had a chance to ride her here. She seemed excited to be out and about, eager to trot and explore. She even cantered a little, and threw in a few bucks to make life interesting. I stayed on board! It was a wonderful weekend, with a good mix of productivity and rest. An excellent unofficial beginning to summer. And now we are in the process of making our very first ever batch of home made ice cream. Hopefully there will be more about that in the next post!