The K List

   Pickles wrapped in bacon - Yuck, right?  Nooooo.. it's the bomb!!... Seriously, try it.  All you have to do is grab a jar of your favorite dill pickle - either the little whole ones or the long slices... and wrap them in bacon - maple bacon especially! ... bake them in a  425 oven in baking dish of your choice until bacon is done - about 20 minutes or so.. ovens vary. oooh man, are they good.  Make a dip of your choice to dunk them in, even better. 

 Little Sally is part of the family now, all the dogs get along, although there are the occasional sibling jealousies.  And K's new pup, Rex is just a love bug - already adored by us all.  For a brief little while I said to myself several times a day..... What.. Did you DO!?.... but I'm over it.  I just love her, and so does the husband (BIG bonus right there).   I think I can say for certain though, not doing a puppy again. Adult dog adoptions only from here on out. 

 We're having dinner tonight at my daughter's condo...

we'll get to play with this adorable scruff too. 

In between farm and work related chores and errands, we've been scooting

down to the shore for dinner and a swim...

I have a little plaque down there on the wall that reads..

The Ocean Fixes Everything 

I do believe it's true. 

 Isn't this a cool idea?... bird bath - glass top, sand and shells - BOOM

Awesome seaside table for porch/ patio/sunroom..

  I just finished a great read - well written, fascinating true story.  I highly recommend it for all my book loving friends -  Thanks, Hilary.. for the recommendation.   I'm looking for the next great read - what's on your nightstand? 

Another installment of the K List

  .. .meaning this that, and the other too. 

   Little Miss Olivia Penny Sally Maddie Scout is doing just fine.  Even though I had her name tag engraved OLIVIA... I'm not feeling it.   I  also gave her too much credit for being potty trained so soon in life- silly me.  Now that she's comfortable here... yeah.   So.. the REAL potty training is in full force.  The great news is she sleeps through the night without having to go out - and without messing in her crate.  Bonus!   I do believe in crate training, it's not cruel, it's not dangerous, and it's not to be abused or it can be all of the above.  I only use the crate for over night and when I have to get busy somewhere else and need her to be safe and not in a potty zone. For the most part she has the run of the house with the other dogs. 

   

The dogs are getting use to her - here they are under my desk in the little bed a bought for her because she likes to hang out there when I'm working... they kicked her out and took over, but at least their butts are allowed to touch.  Progress! 

   I saw something beautiful on pinterest or facebook... a sea glass artist who makes beautiful creations from sea glass, shells, sand and windows.   Mine is much more simple but I love it regardless.   I bought an old window at a junk shop for $5, took some of my  shell and sea glass collection and scored a big vase full from a friend,  and in two hours time put this together and will hang it in my dining room window as soon as the husband has time to help. It's heavy and I don't want to risk not securing it well enough.  Better to be able to blame him if it falls (kidding!!  but not really!!).  This is a super inexpensive craft you can do - cost me $16. total - and what a gorgeous accent to anyone's home.  

      As I've said before, I've been trying not to delve into the political state of things lately, but some things can't be ignored.  I have a good friend who is a decent man, an intelligent man... who loves all things Tr*mp.  How those two realities co-exist is beyond my comprehension.   He believes all negative news is fake news and repeatedly tries to defend him no matter what the obvious offense.  It astounds me, how anyone can love him.  LOVE him, not just tolerate him because -agenda-.   He thinks the government deserves what they're getting from Tr*mp and to be honest?  The government and the media had lessons to learn.  They're learning alright.  But to who's expense.  Ours, in my opinion.  This is the leader of the free world, supposedly.  This isn't just a lesson.   My friend has said over and over again there are absolutely no truths to any of the inklings that the Tr*mp team and Russ*a had any collusion whatsoever regarding our election.   While this will not get him arrested... it is the tip of the iceberg.  It is.. truth.  Is it illegal?   I guess not.  But the son of the President was willing to work with the Russ*ans, felt comfortable doing so... do undermine our election.  That's enough sleeze for me.  If you're a Tr*mp supporter and you're reading this.. you would be SCREAMING if it were Chelsea Cl*nton.    First... lets stop all the hypocrisy.  

     One thing I'm pretty confident is the truth....  Tr*mp is a master manipulator.  He knew how to play what would be his base by using the distrust and fedup attitude of many towards our government.  The downside to that is, he got in and I don't think he every really believed he would.  His own good friend, Howard St(rn said he had hoped his friend wouldn't win the election because he didn't think he really wanted the job.  He was too thin skinned for what would come with it, he would miss is old life, his mental health would be in serious jeopardy.  NO  KIDDING. 

 45 himself said he misses his old life.   So.. what are we getting?  A bitter, self-absorbed bully narcissist who's missing his old life and saying FU to whatever and whomever isn't riding along on his magic carpet with high praise for his majesty.    The POTUS works for us, we don't work for him. He's forgetting that very important aspect.  If he were a corporate exec, he'd be fired by now with all that hideous twittering and false facts.  

   We the People deserve so much more.  The world stage demands so much more.  What damage will be done...   and oh how I hope I'm wrong about all of it. 

The Family that Hays Together.. Stays Together

   Sunday here on the farm was Hay Day.  Those two little words invoke pure happiness (oooh, the sweet aroma of fresh cut hay, and  hooray for a full loft of hay for the horses!).... and it also invokes heavy sighs and eye rolls (allergies, a lot of heavy lifting and tossing and sweat.)  

    This year, our kids' significant others joined in and I gotta say, both have proven once and for all they are in-law material. Kidding!.. but really not! 

    Decent feed hay around these parts now costs $10 per bale- and those aren't the big bales.  By making our own hay, we have saved about $4000 to feed our horses this year - well worth the sweat equity and seed cost last year. 

  Have I told you lately how much I love my kiddos?    And while we aren't a full working farm in the way many of our ancestors may have been- more of a farmette  compared to the previous occupants of this land, despite the work it takes to keep the place up and bring in the few crops we manage - it's a good life, a reaffirming life.  I appreciate every single day we get to do this.  

Meanwhile.. back at the house - little Sally  AKA  Scout, Maddie, Olivia, Penny.... is doing just fine.  The other three dogs are accepting her slowly and she is just a love bug.   Now, if we could only decide on a name that suits her..... 

 

She's here! And what a gem!

  

      We've had a busy 4th of July weekend here - all good!  Little Sally arrived via transport from Georgia on Saturday in New Haven - at a rest stop along the city's shore containing about 275 thousand food trucks with half the population of the city in attendance - with 25 parking spots.  I'm kidding, but not really.    

   Our new little girl was exhausted, and so very happy to get out of transport and into someone's lap.  I will say the transport used was wonderful - they really give a damn about the dogs and treat them very well while in the very stressful environment they are in. My son came with me to pick up, and a shout out to him for being very kind despite his mother's embarrassing tears of happiness. 

 These are the girls of Grateful Doggies Freedom Transport.  They bring shelter dogs from up and down the East Coast to their forever homes.   They left Georgia on Friday morning - driving through the night, picking up pups along the way, delivering them  to their adopters at various stops along their route.. it's exhausting work and they do it anyway.  Amazing folks.

 Right after this picture was taken she peed about 2 gallons directly on that shirt.  She had been holding it in for a loooong time, apparently.    Did I mention  how much I love my son?  

 Sally (although we're still not set on the name) is doing very well, we adore her already. She's super friendly, smart as a whip, loves dogs and people. 

Frasier and Bailey have made it clear she's not allowed on the bed.

They aren't either... clearly. 

I need this shirt.... 

 We spent the 4th at the cottage -  Stella has proven to be a great family gathering place, it's a beautiful thing, just what I hoped for...   

      That's my dad in the photo below - M picked him up at the nursing home and we had a nice visit.  There are times when we feel  not-so-great about him living in a "home", but  at the end of the day, it is without a doubt the right place for him to be.  At the time of his last heart attack, he wasn't taking care of himself, hadn't cooked for himself in years, hadn't cleaned his little house in years, wasn't doing his laundry, wasn't taking his meds properly, and his driving was unsafe.   We had been maintaining his property for him for years, trying to give him as much independent living time as possible.   If you read here often, you know our relationship is a tough one.  Living here with us is just not an option - he's lucky we do what we do.  But.. I admire this in him - he has made a decent life for himself at the home, and that's where I feel good about the decision to place him there.   First of all, it's a good one - clean, updated, friendly knowledgeable staff and lots of activities for those who are still fairly active.  He has made friends and has a social circle. He is now the president of the residents association, and joins in the activities.   All is well that ends well.

 And because I gotta be me... how about that Christie fella closing down NJ beaches on the weekend of the biggest beach holiday of the year, beaches that hard working tax payers of the state pay for,  only to open one up JUST FOR HIS FAMILY for the 4th weekend.  His answer to questions by reporters as to how he could do that was basically this... "I'm the governor, I can do that. If you want to become governor you can do it too!"    Wow dude.. talk about saying FU to your people.   I'm pretty sure he doesn't plan to run for anything ever again.  

  If a picture says a thousand words....   

  

   Till soon, friends - thanks for stopping by.