Getting what you wish for

 

Our family has a spreadsheet where we each give suggestions of what we would like for a Christmas gift.  Gerry asked for an XL tee shirt with quotes.  This is what he got.  Good job, granddaughter.

For our dinner, lasagna with home made noodles.We would expect nothing less from daughter.

The wind sock Gerry received was well packed. 

Getting ready to fly

G has search for a runway that has a hanger for his ultralight. As he could find none nearby he decided to make his own.  He marked out an area from the field and started working on it.  He disked over it for many hours to make it smooth.  I should say as smooth as possible.  He hopes grass will grow over it so he can land smoothly.  He is storing the ultralight in the shop so he can taxi to the runway.

When he left his dad's farm at 18 he vowed to never be a farmer.  Well, it looks a bit like he is again.  But it is for his pleasure.  As soon as his new prop arrives he will be ready to go.

Getting our exercise

 

We do not have a wood burning fireplace, but have a  stove with a glass front in the basement.  In the winter I enjoy sitting down there looking at the fire.

We have burnt all of the wood so needed to replenish it.  Several dead Ash trees had fallen across the paths so we, Gerry that is, cut them up.  My part is yet to come.  

These need to be split.  A neighbor has a wood splitter and will loan it to us.  The plan is for Gerry will put the large pieces in the splitter, the neighbor will  operate the splitter, and I will load the trailer.  Next all needs to be unloaded into the basement.

A Birthday gift

 As a birthday gift Gerry made a path in the woods.  I now can walk or ride the four wheeler.  Thanks, Hon

Before

After

 

Fun

Freezing corn

 Fortunately we have farms around here that grow the best sweet corn.  So I haven't put any in my garden.  We bought a bag of 48 ears.  G was happy to help since he could use his invention for cutting the kernels off the cob.  

We now have 24 pints of corn to enjoy this winter.

Walking in the woods again

When we first moved here, there were paths around the perimeter of our 20 acres of woods.  It is overgrown now from fallen trees.  The biggest culprit was the 

Emerald ash borer.  The larvae are under the bark and where they feed.  When the trees die, they fall quickly.  When I first saw the logs after the bark had come off I thought it was amazing.  That is before I realized what it was.

That brings me to the present.  

Gerry is clearing a path for me.  He had to cut fallen trees in pieces and move them with the tractor before the mower could even make a path.  

No, the extension cord did not stretch from the house to the woods.  He brought a gas generator out which he plugged into. I failed to get a picture of that.

I will show the finished project as I walk through it.

Cages and trellis

I think I have forgotten a lot about gardening. I had been a long time since I  started vegetables from seed.  Gerry built me a grow light in the basement.  I had to check on my babies every night to make sure they had enough water.  Then as they got bigger they needed to be transplanted into a larger pot and finally into the ground.  When I had a garden in the past I bought tomato cages to put around the tomatoes so they would not fall over.  Since I had given up gardening I had given them away 

Well, as it happens in the Goertzen household, we will not buy anything if we can make it.  Daughter recommended pole beans, so we constructed the tomato cages and a trellis.   

The poles are from small trees we cut in our woods.  Holes were dug, then the project began.  Obviously designed by an engineer.

 It would be more authentic if we had used grape vines instead of wire to hold the poles together.

There is a fence around it to keep the rabbits out.  As an aside, one year the rabbits got in and had a nest of little bunnies IN the garden.  I didn't have the heart to move them out.