I was doing some yard work earlier this week, and was so happy to see signs of spring poking up through the dirt in my front flower bed. The tulips were peeping their green heads up out of the ground with a fierce tenacity, determined to show forth their beauty in spite of all the cool weather we had towards the end of this week. Along with the cool weather, we also got quite a bit of rain, and (with just a little imagination) you could almost see the grass turning green outside right before your eyes, even as the rain poured down. The pouring down rain seemed to turn the grass from brown to green in a subtle way.
So, I thought I would take a few pictures of how spring is showing up around my house and yard, and share them with you.
We are getting ready to plant! This year, I am trying something different. With my past gardening experience in Texas, we just sowed our seeds directly into the ground in April sometime, and the ground was warm enough then for the seeds to germinate and grow on their own.
After living here in Idaho for over a year now, I realize that method doesn't work so well here.
This year, I am planting my seeds in these little growing pots, and carefully tending them until they are strong enough to sit outside in the sun for a few hours each day, and then hopefully the weather will have warmed up enough, that I can transplant them directly to pots or to the ground. Because of the abundant deer population around here, and the fact that we don't have an 8-foot fenced garden area, I am considering doing just container gardening and seeing how that works out for us.
Some of my seeds have sprouted up already, with the cold-weather loving veggies being the first to show up. The broccoli, argula, spinach and kale were the first ones to germinate.
I've set the seeds in front of the window so they can get plenty of light. I've started all kinds of veggies, and herbs, including the above mentioned broccoli, spinach, arugula, and kale, and of course, squash, lettuce, radish, peas, beans, carrots, onions, and others. I've also started some herbs that include rosemary, oregano, cilantro, dill, chamomile, echinachea, lavender, and basil. If I can find another window to open up to warm sunlight, I may do another batch of these seed starting pots. It is just too much fun! I may have to rearrange furniture in order to do so... so, we'll see....
This is a peek of one of my tulip plants who has bravely stuck its head out of the ground and is steadily growing taller every day. Can't wait until my tulips come into bloom!
Here are my empty pots that I dug out of the woodshed, waiting to be filled with soil, and plants!
The grass in my front yard doing its best to turn from ugly winter brown to bright green. When it started to rain last week, you could almost see the yard literally turning from brown to green. Won't be long and we'll be digging the lawn mower out!
A sure sign that spring has come when you see these brightly colored dandelions! I've read a lot about dandelions, and how good they are for you. These dandelions may end up in a salad soon!
There is a wild rose bush growing out in front of the house. I looked closely today, and you can see the green buds pushing forth to meet the springtime sun and rain. Won't be long, and there will be some beautiful roses growing! There are wild rose bushes that grow all over the hills and roadside here in Idaho. It is an absolutely magnificent sight to see and smell when they all come into bloom.
A picture of the clouds in the sky today overshadowing "my mountain" that I can see from my office window. This is the mountain that I climbed not long ago, where from a 360-degree radius you could see perhaps for 10 -15 miles in any direction. The clouds and sun play games over this hill all day long, and you can look up at any time and see the hillside, trees, clouds, and sun changing colors.... always a magnificent view.
And that is the "taste of spring" that we are having around here. The mud is drying up quickly, tulips are beginning to bloom, roses are budding, and we are hopeful that Spring really has arrived!
So, I thought I would take a few pictures of how spring is showing up around my house and yard, and share them with you.
We are getting ready to plant! This year, I am trying something different. With my past gardening experience in Texas, we just sowed our seeds directly into the ground in April sometime, and the ground was warm enough then for the seeds to germinate and grow on their own.
After living here in Idaho for over a year now, I realize that method doesn't work so well here.
This year, I am planting my seeds in these little growing pots, and carefully tending them until they are strong enough to sit outside in the sun for a few hours each day, and then hopefully the weather will have warmed up enough, that I can transplant them directly to pots or to the ground. Because of the abundant deer population around here, and the fact that we don't have an 8-foot fenced garden area, I am considering doing just container gardening and seeing how that works out for us.
Some of my seeds have sprouted up already, with the cold-weather loving veggies being the first to show up. The broccoli, argula, spinach and kale were the first ones to germinate.
I've set the seeds in front of the window so they can get plenty of light. I've started all kinds of veggies, and herbs, including the above mentioned broccoli, spinach, arugula, and kale, and of course, squash, lettuce, radish, peas, beans, carrots, onions, and others. I've also started some herbs that include rosemary, oregano, cilantro, dill, chamomile, echinachea, lavender, and basil. If I can find another window to open up to warm sunlight, I may do another batch of these seed starting pots. It is just too much fun! I may have to rearrange furniture in order to do so... so, we'll see....
This is a peek of one of my tulip plants who has bravely stuck its head out of the ground and is steadily growing taller every day. Can't wait until my tulips come into bloom!
Here are my empty pots that I dug out of the woodshed, waiting to be filled with soil, and plants!
The grass in my front yard doing its best to turn from ugly winter brown to bright green. When it started to rain last week, you could almost see the yard literally turning from brown to green. Won't be long and we'll be digging the lawn mower out!
A sure sign that spring has come when you see these brightly colored dandelions! I've read a lot about dandelions, and how good they are for you. These dandelions may end up in a salad soon!
There is a wild rose bush growing out in front of the house. I looked closely today, and you can see the green buds pushing forth to meet the springtime sun and rain. Won't be long, and there will be some beautiful roses growing! There are wild rose bushes that grow all over the hills and roadside here in Idaho. It is an absolutely magnificent sight to see and smell when they all come into bloom.
A picture of the clouds in the sky today overshadowing "my mountain" that I can see from my office window. This is the mountain that I climbed not long ago, where from a 360-degree radius you could see perhaps for 10 -15 miles in any direction. The clouds and sun play games over this hill all day long, and you can look up at any time and see the hillside, trees, clouds, and sun changing colors.... always a magnificent view.
And that is the "taste of spring" that we are having around here. The mud is drying up quickly, tulips are beginning to bloom, roses are budding, and we are hopeful that Spring really has arrived!
I'm beginning to relate to this nursery song... I'm wondering how long it will be before I can sing "e-i-e-i-o" to just about every animal in the barnyard .... and find it in my own backyard!
Life has taken an interesting turn here this week. We've never owned "farm" animals. We are animal lovers to say the least. We've almost always had a dog and/or a cat in our home. At one time we took in a hamster. That didn't last long. The smell did me in. My friend who gave us the hamster promised us there would be no smell. I bought the most expensive bedding for the little fellow, but still... every time you walked in that room... the smell... Oh I couldn't stand it. So the poor little fellow found a new home with a friend of ours who had several hamsters of her own.
So, my exposure to "barnyard" animals has been rather limited . Growing up, my parents raised a few dairy goats but that didn't last long either. I can't remember why. I think we had them for several years. Maybe it was because having to milk them every day got to us, I can't remember. I'm sure my mother will check in and refresh my memory.
But aside from a few dairy goats as a child, all the animal exposure I've had has been limited to dogs and cats for the most part.
This week... all that changed. Ginger entered our lives. She caused quite a stir immediately. Running away the first day, having her baby the second. By the way - he's the cutest little fellow... more on him to follow ...
But... apparently that was not to be the end of it. My kids had even grander plans. They are part of a 4H group this year, and their projects are horse, goat, survival and rifle. Animal projects mean you take care of animals for a project, keep notes and a binder full of information about that animal, and then at the end of the summer, there is a 4H fair in the county seat, and you show up with all your documentation of what you've learned, and how you've taken care of your animal. and show off all you've learned, including your interaction with the animal you've cared for.
So, earlier in the spring, when we agreed that the kids could do horse and goat, at first I didn't realize what it all entailed. ... but now... we're finding out.....
I knew we were getting two horses, just didn't know when. The stalls in our backyard had to be fixed and readied for a horse to live in them again. The previous owners had horses, which made it easier for us in that sense. All we had to do were some basic repairs and moving around of the electric fence and move in the horses.
My kids have been next door at our neighbor's learning all about horses, and had been riding quite a bit, and helping out with the chores of taking care of animals. So, they were prepared.
On Saturday, it all came together, and the horses came to live with us. The electric fence was hooked up, water was filled in the trough, fresh hay had been brought and stored behind the shed, and the horses were more than excited to come and live in their new stalls.
So now... I want to introduce you to Wichita and Luna. ... (drum roll please... )
This is Luna. Kinda hard to see, but in the following pictures you should be able to see the half moon on the front of her forehead.
And the horse farther back in the distance is Wichita. She is a mare also.
Luna has a shorter tail. Wichita's tail reaches to the ground!
Luna is a quarter horse paint. She is 20 years old. She is my son's horse.
Wichita is a quarter horse pony. She is 10 years old (we think). She is my daughter's horse.
The horses could care less about coming over to the fence to see us. They were having too much fun in their new surroundings, chowing down on all the fresh grass and hay available to them.
A close-up of Wichita.
A glimpse of the backyard where we are housing the horses. You can see the lean-to that was already built on the property for horses from the previous owners.
While I was outside snapping some pictures of the horses, we had some visitors. The horses perked their ears up when they saw them, but then went back to busily chomping on the hay. As long as the deer weren't messing with THEIR food... they didn't care! These three deer have been hanging out at our house a lot lately. We see the three of them early in the morning, and late in the evening. They have their trails through the woods that they follow every day.
I got a nice shot of Luna looking at me. She was not too happy about my camera, and came over to sniff it and check it out. After inspecting it, and deciding it wasn't food, and posed no threat to her food supply, she ambled away, back to the business of consuming as much hay and grass as possible.
Remember Simba? Poor Simba had been through so much recently, and had been very, very sick. After several weeks, he has finally gotten better, and his little nose is pink again, and healed over. Simba was following us around outside wondering what in the world these big animals were doing in his backyard. He was not real happy about it at all, and just sat there staring at the horses. After a while though, he got tired of playing watchdog, and went off to play in the grass and chase something in the barn. He's feeling so much better, and we are so thankful for that!
And I just couldn't end the day without a picture of our sweet little Rascal (as the kids have affectionately named him). It was a rather blustery, windy day outside, with occasional sheets of rain pouring down. But he was bedded down comfortably right under the heat lamp - smart little guy! I wanted to crawl in there myself, and cuddle up with him, but I suspect Momma Ginger wouldn't appreciate that. She is very, very protective of Rascal and not real happy with us if we try to hold him, just yet. But she is definitely warming up to us. So many new things in her life. This is her first baby too... so we are very patiently teaching her that we love her and love taking care of her. In fact, when she sees the kids coming with the food bucket, I think she even wags the little tail that she has!
Some more pictures of our cute little Rascal.
Well, that is my update from the ole McDonald's farm for today! If you hear someone singing "e-i-e-i-o"... it's probably me... but don't worry about me... I'm just having the time of my life!
Life has taken an interesting turn here this week. We've never owned "farm" animals. We are animal lovers to say the least. We've almost always had a dog and/or a cat in our home. At one time we took in a hamster. That didn't last long. The smell did me in. My friend who gave us the hamster promised us there would be no smell. I bought the most expensive bedding for the little fellow, but still... every time you walked in that room... the smell... Oh I couldn't stand it. So the poor little fellow found a new home with a friend of ours who had several hamsters of her own.
So, my exposure to "barnyard" animals has been rather limited . Growing up, my parents raised a few dairy goats but that didn't last long either. I can't remember why. I think we had them for several years. Maybe it was because having to milk them every day got to us, I can't remember. I'm sure my mother will check in and refresh my memory.
But aside from a few dairy goats as a child, all the animal exposure I've had has been limited to dogs and cats for the most part.
This week... all that changed. Ginger entered our lives. She caused quite a stir immediately. Running away the first day, having her baby the second. By the way - he's the cutest little fellow... more on him to follow ...
But... apparently that was not to be the end of it. My kids had even grander plans. They are part of a 4H group this year, and their projects are horse, goat, survival and rifle. Animal projects mean you take care of animals for a project, keep notes and a binder full of information about that animal, and then at the end of the summer, there is a 4H fair in the county seat, and you show up with all your documentation of what you've learned, and how you've taken care of your animal. and show off all you've learned, including your interaction with the animal you've cared for.
So, earlier in the spring, when we agreed that the kids could do horse and goat, at first I didn't realize what it all entailed. ... but now... we're finding out.....
I knew we were getting two horses, just didn't know when. The stalls in our backyard had to be fixed and readied for a horse to live in them again. The previous owners had horses, which made it easier for us in that sense. All we had to do were some basic repairs and moving around of the electric fence and move in the horses.
My kids have been next door at our neighbor's learning all about horses, and had been riding quite a bit, and helping out with the chores of taking care of animals. So, they were prepared.
On Saturday, it all came together, and the horses came to live with us. The electric fence was hooked up, water was filled in the trough, fresh hay had been brought and stored behind the shed, and the horses were more than excited to come and live in their new stalls.
So now... I want to introduce you to Wichita and Luna. ... (drum roll please... )
This is Luna. Kinda hard to see, but in the following pictures you should be able to see the half moon on the front of her forehead.
And the horse farther back in the distance is Wichita. She is a mare also.
Luna has a shorter tail. Wichita's tail reaches to the ground!
Luna is a quarter horse paint. She is 20 years old. She is my son's horse.
Wichita is a quarter horse pony. She is 10 years old (we think). She is my daughter's horse.
The horses could care less about coming over to the fence to see us. They were having too much fun in their new surroundings, chowing down on all the fresh grass and hay available to them.
A close-up of Wichita.
A glimpse of the backyard where we are housing the horses. You can see the lean-to that was already built on the property for horses from the previous owners.
While I was outside snapping some pictures of the horses, we had some visitors. The horses perked their ears up when they saw them, but then went back to busily chomping on the hay. As long as the deer weren't messing with THEIR food... they didn't care! These three deer have been hanging out at our house a lot lately. We see the three of them early in the morning, and late in the evening. They have their trails through the woods that they follow every day.
I got a nice shot of Luna looking at me. She was not too happy about my camera, and came over to sniff it and check it out. After inspecting it, and deciding it wasn't food, and posed no threat to her food supply, she ambled away, back to the business of consuming as much hay and grass as possible.
Remember Simba? Poor Simba had been through so much recently, and had been very, very sick. After several weeks, he has finally gotten better, and his little nose is pink again, and healed over. Simba was following us around outside wondering what in the world these big animals were doing in his backyard. He was not real happy about it at all, and just sat there staring at the horses. After a while though, he got tired of playing watchdog, and went off to play in the grass and chase something in the barn. He's feeling so much better, and we are so thankful for that!
And I just couldn't end the day without a picture of our sweet little Rascal (as the kids have affectionately named him). It was a rather blustery, windy day outside, with occasional sheets of rain pouring down. But he was bedded down comfortably right under the heat lamp - smart little guy! I wanted to crawl in there myself, and cuddle up with him, but I suspect Momma Ginger wouldn't appreciate that. She is very, very protective of Rascal and not real happy with us if we try to hold him, just yet. But she is definitely warming up to us. So many new things in her life. This is her first baby too... so we are very patiently teaching her that we love her and love taking care of her. In fact, when she sees the kids coming with the food bucket, I think she even wags the little tail that she has!
Some more pictures of our cute little Rascal.
Well, that is my update from the ole McDonald's farm for today! If you hear someone singing "e-i-e-i-o"... it's probably me... but don't worry about me... I'm just having the time of my life!
Wow. The last few days have been exciting ones, to say the least! On Monday we became responsible for the care of a new momma goat. On Tuesday, she gave us quite a scare when she ran away for two hours. Then on Wednesday, the excitement continued.
We had left the house for a few hours to take care of some errands. As we returned and pulled back into the yard, a somewhat unusual sight greeted me. One dog ran out to greet us, the other, Ms. Annie was crouched down over by the steps looking at us anxiously. At first I wondered why. Then one glance to the side of the steps let me know why she looked so anxious. Apparently UPS had delivered a package while we were gone. It was a book that I had ordered online. Ms. Annie evidently thought it was her duty to open the package for me.
And instead of reading the book, she began to eat it!
The book was torn in a hundred pieces. The binding was completely removed and chewed thoroughly. A very guilty look was on Annie's face. She knew she had done wrong. So, we picked up all the pieces to the book as we could, and carried inside to try to tape it back together as best we could. I was so upset with Annie that I couldn't even discipline her. I left that up to the kids who took her outside and explained to her quite well how bad this was!
I guess Ms. Annie thought she was doing me a great favor by opening the package for me, but instead of reading it, she ate it. We hope she learned from this experience to never, ever do this again! One can always hope!
So while I was trying to piece together my book, the kids ran out to check on momma goat. We got a frantic call from Ryan saying that momma had had her baby while we'd been gone!
Oh my! So we ran out to the goat pen to meet the newest addition to our family...
He was just the cutest little thing, and couldn't have been more than a few minutes old! Momma goat was quite proud of herself, and let us ooh and aww over the cute little guy!
We got a heat lamp set up for him so he wouldn't be cold out in the shed and brought in some fresh water for Ginger. She drank in about two minutes flat two margarine tubs full of water! She even let me pet and love on her!
We covered the floor of the shed in hay. We didn't have the goat pen ready for a baby,and this was all a surprise to us, because we didn't think Ginger was due for several more weeks. However, my neighbor came over to see the baby and Ginger, and she said the other goat that had been bred the same time as Ginger.... was also in labor. So, apparently, it was just time for our sweet little baby to be born!
Momma Ginger and baby were doing just fine. We decided to leave them alone for a while, and let them bond, and let baby nurse. It was hard to leave, because it was so sweet to watch them together!
This is a picture of the little baby after spending a night getting used to living in a goat pen instead of momma's tummy! He was moving around and wagging his tail whenever he was petted, and whenever he was drinking. What a cutie!
Unfortunately, because he is a boy, the kids won't be able to show him in 4H. Only female goats are allowed to be shown in 4H. Our neighbor told us that more than likely he will be sold once he is weaned. Sad to say, there are not many options for a boy goat :( However, it is still a great experience for our kids to have to take care of this momma and her baby. We are now going to have to find two baby female goats somewhere soon for their 4H project. Our neighbor is hoping that her goats that she still has will have some more female goats. But for now, we are doing our best to care for Ginger and her little one. The miracle of new life never ceases to amaze me!
We had left the house for a few hours to take care of some errands. As we returned and pulled back into the yard, a somewhat unusual sight greeted me. One dog ran out to greet us, the other, Ms. Annie was crouched down over by the steps looking at us anxiously. At first I wondered why. Then one glance to the side of the steps let me know why she looked so anxious. Apparently UPS had delivered a package while we were gone. It was a book that I had ordered online. Ms. Annie evidently thought it was her duty to open the package for me.
And instead of reading the book, she began to eat it!
The book was torn in a hundred pieces. The binding was completely removed and chewed thoroughly. A very guilty look was on Annie's face. She knew she had done wrong. So, we picked up all the pieces to the book as we could, and carried inside to try to tape it back together as best we could. I was so upset with Annie that I couldn't even discipline her. I left that up to the kids who took her outside and explained to her quite well how bad this was!
I guess Ms. Annie thought she was doing me a great favor by opening the package for me, but instead of reading it, she ate it. We hope she learned from this experience to never, ever do this again! One can always hope!
Oh my! So we ran out to the goat pen to meet the newest addition to our family...
He was just the cutest little thing, and couldn't have been more than a few minutes old! Momma goat was quite proud of herself, and let us ooh and aww over the cute little guy!
We got a heat lamp set up for him so he wouldn't be cold out in the shed and brought in some fresh water for Ginger. She drank in about two minutes flat two margarine tubs full of water! She even let me pet and love on her!
We covered the floor of the shed in hay. We didn't have the goat pen ready for a baby,and this was all a surprise to us, because we didn't think Ginger was due for several more weeks. However, my neighbor came over to see the baby and Ginger, and she said the other goat that had been bred the same time as Ginger.... was also in labor. So, apparently, it was just time for our sweet little baby to be born!
Momma Ginger and baby were doing just fine. We decided to leave them alone for a while, and let them bond, and let baby nurse. It was hard to leave, because it was so sweet to watch them together!
This is a picture of the little baby after spending a night getting used to living in a goat pen instead of momma's tummy! He was moving around and wagging his tail whenever he was petted, and whenever he was drinking. What a cutie!
My kids had no idea what the phrase "escape artist" really meant... that is... until yesterday... when we added a new family member to our household...
Her name is Ginger....
I don't think she has been around people much. We got her from the lady next door who rescues animals from bad situations. I am not sure what situation she was rescued from, but for sure, she is very, very fearful and scared. When we first put her in the pen, she ran to the far back corner of the pen, and just crouched there shivering, and drooling a bit. It broke my heart to see this poor little thing to be so scared.
My kids were determined to make her life much, much better. At first, she wouldn't even let us get close to pet her. She ran around and around the pen.
She is expecting babies, and from the best we know, she is due to have babies in about three weeks. Our kids plan to bottle feed her babies, and then they will be taking care of these babies for the 4H fair in August.
You can see from the above pictures how Ginger was straining to get away from us. The leash was tight, and she was constantly jerking, and turning her head from us to try to get away, as far away from us as she could. Yet, we kept working with her, and it wasn't long until she began to relax.
She finally relaxed enough to come and stand by us and just rub up against our legs, and she began to allow us to pet her. She is such a beautiful little momma and really so sweet. She just needed some time to warm up to us.
Later in the afternoon, some friends came over to visit, and went out to the goat pen to meet Ginger. Somehow, we're not quite sure, the gate to the goat pen was not securely shut after one of the girls went inside the pen to meet Ginger. Ginger bolted away and was able to push open the gate, and off she went.
I don't have any pictures to share with you of this event, because we were all so traumatized trying to track her down, that I certainly didn't have the presence of mind to go and find my camera before trying to track down our little escape artist.
She dashed across the road into the state forest land full of dense, thick trees and underbrush. Even with four or five of us chasing her, she disappeared quickly.
It was a desperate two hours for all of us. Our little escape artist ran fast, really fast. Faster than we could run! She was nowhere to be found. After searching vainly through the forest for a couple of hours, we were in despair.
The kids told me later that they had stopped and prayed together while they were searching. I had stopped many times myself to pray for poor little Ginger's safety. The good Lord cares about all things in our lives, and I had no doubt that he was looking out for our missing goat. And HE was!
I then told the kids to walk down the street and talk to the neighbors on the street in pairs, and let them know that we were missing a goat. So two of the girls were walking down the road, and a neighbor called out to them and asked them if they were looking for a lost goat! OH YES! What a happy reunion for all of us!
Ginger had made her way down the road about a half mile or so. These neighbors had their own goats, and Ginger wanted to meet them. She had already made herself quite at home eating their oats, grain and hay. She was munching happily when the kids put a leash on her neck, and brought her back home.
After we got Ginger safely back in her pen, I gathered all the kids around for a very important meeting. We discussed goats, and their escape methods, and came up with a plan to hopefully prevent any further escapes - hopefully! Ms. Ginger is expecting babies, and running around pell mell through the forest is not a good thing for this sweet momma. All the kids recognized the importance of being very, very careful when going in and out of the goat pen from now on.
All of the tired and hungry kids then came inside where I fed them chicken potpie which was now quite cool. I had just taken it out of the oven when Ginger made her escape. But, regardless of the slightly lukewarm supper awaiting us, the pot was just about licked clean when all the kids got through with it, and after a panful of brownies had been consumed, we decided to call it a day!
We checked on Ginger after supper just to make sure she was okay, and she was. There was a prayer of thanksgiving offered at our supper table from all the kids for Ginger's safe return. I am thankful for the lesson we all learned today... our Father in heaven does care about all our needs and concerns, and we were very thankful for Ginger's safe return!
Her name is Ginger....
I don't think she has been around people much. We got her from the lady next door who rescues animals from bad situations. I am not sure what situation she was rescued from, but for sure, she is very, very fearful and scared. When we first put her in the pen, she ran to the far back corner of the pen, and just crouched there shivering, and drooling a bit. It broke my heart to see this poor little thing to be so scared.
My kids were determined to make her life much, much better. At first, she wouldn't even let us get close to pet her. She ran around and around the pen.
She is expecting babies, and from the best we know, she is due to have babies in about three weeks. Our kids plan to bottle feed her babies, and then they will be taking care of these babies for the 4H fair in August.
She finally relaxed enough to come and stand by us and just rub up against our legs, and she began to allow us to pet her. She is such a beautiful little momma and really so sweet. She just needed some time to warm up to us.
Later in the afternoon, some friends came over to visit, and went out to the goat pen to meet Ginger. Somehow, we're not quite sure, the gate to the goat pen was not securely shut after one of the girls went inside the pen to meet Ginger. Ginger bolted away and was able to push open the gate, and off she went.
I don't have any pictures to share with you of this event, because we were all so traumatized trying to track her down, that I certainly didn't have the presence of mind to go and find my camera before trying to track down our little escape artist.
She dashed across the road into the state forest land full of dense, thick trees and underbrush. Even with four or five of us chasing her, she disappeared quickly.
It was a desperate two hours for all of us. Our little escape artist ran fast, really fast. Faster than we could run! She was nowhere to be found. After searching vainly through the forest for a couple of hours, we were in despair.
The kids told me later that they had stopped and prayed together while they were searching. I had stopped many times myself to pray for poor little Ginger's safety. The good Lord cares about all things in our lives, and I had no doubt that he was looking out for our missing goat. And HE was!
I then told the kids to walk down the street and talk to the neighbors on the street in pairs, and let them know that we were missing a goat. So two of the girls were walking down the road, and a neighbor called out to them and asked them if they were looking for a lost goat! OH YES! What a happy reunion for all of us!
Ginger had made her way down the road about a half mile or so. These neighbors had their own goats, and Ginger wanted to meet them. She had already made herself quite at home eating their oats, grain and hay. She was munching happily when the kids put a leash on her neck, and brought her back home.
After we got Ginger safely back in her pen, I gathered all the kids around for a very important meeting. We discussed goats, and their escape methods, and came up with a plan to hopefully prevent any further escapes - hopefully! Ms. Ginger is expecting babies, and running around pell mell through the forest is not a good thing for this sweet momma. All the kids recognized the importance of being very, very careful when going in and out of the goat pen from now on.
All of the tired and hungry kids then came inside where I fed them chicken potpie which was now quite cool. I had just taken it out of the oven when Ginger made her escape. But, regardless of the slightly lukewarm supper awaiting us, the pot was just about licked clean when all the kids got through with it, and after a panful of brownies had been consumed, we decided to call it a day!
We checked on Ginger after supper just to make sure she was okay, and she was. There was a prayer of thanksgiving offered at our supper table from all the kids for Ginger's safe return. I am thankful for the lesson we all learned today... our Father in heaven does care about all our needs and concerns, and we were very thankful for Ginger's safe return!
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