Welcome to the country, the first year.

Welcome to the Country, the first year…Really?!

Hard to believe it, almost exactly a year ago we scaled down from a five-bedroom house near Galveston, TX to a one bedroom apartment

Demo Day Begins

(we lived in it during reconstruction, yes we are that crazy and we dubbed it “The Shed”) in the middle of a small pasture with a couple rentals and lots of grass to cut near Huntsville, TX.

In the end after a lot of hard work from our contractor and on our own; we have a very cozy nest with a garden, lots of wildlife and never a dull moment.

 Stick around I have lots of photos to share and plenty of stories, and I hope to start up with a weekly blog again. (I guess I am crazy, arrogant or both enough to think folks might like to read about how much fun retirement can be.)

Did I mention the large amount of grass to cut?

Yeah, lots of grass.

Our tractor

Don’t get me wrong, this is the best thing I think we have ever done. We bought a used tractor. I HIGHLY recommend driving a tractor in a large field with a big floppy hat on your head. Best therapy in the world to cure corporate burnout.

Peppermint

My garden has been lots of fun so far. Right now the best plant is the peppermint, it doesn't seem to care about the heat. The summer squash has succumbed to bugs so tomorrow will be gifting these plants to the compost pile. The tomatoes are still hanging on as well as the herbs and the okra.

We have had some good and bad moments with our pets. We lost the last dog. She was almost 20 and it was a heartbreaking time to say goodbye.

 But the country Gods saw fit to gift us with a feral kitten in that same week. I say that because there was a feral Mom on the property when

Mamma Kitty

we bought it. We had been feeding her for about a month when one night we were sitting out front enjoying an adult beverage, or two.

Mamma kitty came up, so we gave her some food and she left. About five minutes later she came back around the house from out back carrying what I thought was a baby rabbit.

Nope, it was this little ball of fluff…

Luna

“Hey, thanks for the food, here’s a kitten.”

We named her Luna, and here is why. It was a full moon that night, and she just looks like a Goddess. She is one of the best cats I’ve ever had the pleasure to share my house.

Please don’t let Chester know I said that, he’s sensitive you know.

That same mamma, who disappeared a few months after she gave us Luna, also had other kittens. 

Mr. Jiggles

 This is Mr. Jiggles. He will accept food, but has yet to let me get close enough to touch him. That’s okay, he is now the property guardian and very handsome. Mr. Jiggles has a lot on his mind and talks all the time, so I nod knowingly, and it seems to make him happy.

We have other neighbors on the property, a couple of young armadillos make a morning of it wondering through the back by this beautiful old oak.

Young Armadillo

Texas Live Oak

We learned about a new Texas wildflower this month. It is called Spotted Horsemint or Spotted Bee Balm. Thanks to the website put out by Dr. Mark "Merriwether" Vorderbruggen, of Foraging Texas . He is an awesome source for plant identification. Check him out on his website and on Facebook.

Spotted Horsemint

So, one last photo and now you are caught up and we will chat again next week, stay safe out there y’all.

Local Bumble Bee