Lester's Flat survives Irene and Lee

There has been major flooding for the past 2 days in the Mohawk Valley. These photos (right) are from the normally tiny Herkimer Creek in our backyard—you know, the place where Lester does all of his best swimming. From the looks of it, he won't be swimming again for at least another week. This is also the site where we had installed the dock (remember the dock?). Good thing we gave up on that idea.

The Husband gets all the credit for choosing the house site (top photo). The goldenrod is at least 4 feet tall, and you can see the house rises above that several feet further. Where I was standing to take that photo is about halfway back to the creek. Not even a drop of water in our basement, but the creek waters rushing out back made it sound like we were going to be swept across the road and into the lake (by those foggy mountains in the background).

I can't tell yet if the trees that came down were from our property, or washed up from somewhere else. People are comparing this to the flood in 2006, which was so bad that it washed away 4 lanes of highway on Rt. 88 in Sidney, NY, swallowing up 2 tractor trailers and killing the drivers (last photo). This is the road that we would have been on, just 2 days later, coming up from NJ.

We were very lucky, in 2006 and 2011. The creek will eventually go back to being pretty again, without any help from us.

It's been raining dogs (no cats)

The weather has not inspired any photos in the past 2 days, so I am reaching back to July 30 for a few more "dog in creek" photos. I know how boring they are to most of you, but I am thinking that this 13YO Lester doesn't have too many summers left for swimming. You can also see how much Sophie does not love swimming. She gently treads in the shallow water, my little diva.

The Husband picked far too many tomatoes this weekend, because we are starting to lose them to groundhogs and splitting from the lack of rain/too much rain. I am still not a believer in the theory that tomatoes have all of the flavor they are going to get on the vine by the time they are half-red. So far the ones that have been ripening on the windowsill are not all that tasty. Probably it is just me, still recovering from my loss of South Jersey's fantastic tomatoes and corn.

We went to Tractor Supply yesterday for some pig feed and feeding trays (also not inspiring any photography). And we need to finish cutting 2 pieces of the T111 siding for the pig shed while we still have Steve's circular saw in our possession, but the cutting and subsequent painting will have to wait for a break in the weather. I am torn between painting the Pig Shed to match the Chicken Shack (light yellow and turquoise) or barn red and white like the front door of Lester's Flat. I'll take votes if you want to leave me some comments. Now that summer is officially over, I want to see some comments here. I need to know that someone is still reading all of these hugely interesting posts, or at least looking at the Lester-in-the-creek pictures...

Building a better barn than the one behind them

Steve (The Husband's friend from work) and his daughter Valerie kindly donated their services today to the construction of a little barn for the soon-to-arrive piggies. We needed Steve for his experience in building—he built his own beautiful house pretty much all by himself. They've been out there working all day in the hot sun with very little help from me (or the dogs).

Lester and Sophie have been doing what they can: raiding the tomato garden, swimming in the creek, helping me make sandwiches... At least they did a pretty good job of posing for their fall portrait. The mums came from visiting relatives (hi Bets!), and the pumpkins from The Husband's garden.

The guilty party...or at least one of them

My sweetest chicken of all, the friendly one who always greets me at the door, the one who sticks around for company even when I am not bringing treats, the one who always lets me pet her and pick her up—SHE is eating the eggs!

Yesterday I spent very little time with the girls, and only got 3 eggs because of my neglect. Usually we get 5 or 6 eggs from our 7 hens, and there was some evidence of broken eggs in the nest boxes. So today, I waited while Sweetie and Big Mama were both in a box. Ahhh, the miracle of life (sorta). As soon as the eggs appear in the box, they both flip their heads around and look for it. I didn't wait long enough to see if they were going to eat it, but I think I know what the outcome would have been. Not my Sweetie! How could you do this to me!

I came back again later and watched while another black girl and another red one were laying, and they did not seem interested in eating their own eggs, but I also didn't give them much time to think about it.

Bad, bad girls. Just what am I going to do with you? We aren't getting enough eggs to sell, but we have been fairly successful in giving them away for free. We always have at least a dozen or 2 in the fridge, no matter how many we eat, and no, I am not tired of eating eggs yet. Just wait till we get those pigs, then we can really have a farm-fresh country breakfast!

Corn and apples are down. The rest of us are up at Lester's Flat.

As The Husband predicted, his beautiful cornfield (see previous post) was destroyed by Hurricane Irene. Several of the ears were about 2 weeks from picking, but the wind took down almost every stalk. I will go out later today to see if I can resurrect some of them. The tomato plants are also struggling to stay upright, but that has been a battle from the beginning. Most of the ones that were staked and still upright, pulled the stakes over with them when they came down. I am also going to try to rescue a few of those today.

Our apple trees probably hold their largest crop ever, and that caused one whole tree to come down (in photo) and another to lose 2 big branches. The apples are so heavy on every branch, even after the wind knocked so many of them to the ground, that I am surprised we did not lose more.

Overall though, we came through Irene in better shape than a lot of people in this area. State Highway 28 was closed just north of us because a tree brought some wires down. This was close to Cousin Greg's house and took out his power, and the wind and high water level in the lake took out the Reef Shark (his boat). At least Greg's house and ours are both on higher ground and survived the storm, as did all of the humans and critters. The Reef Shark spent yesterday drying out on our front lawn, and is being repaired as we speak (I think).

For some reason I do not understand, the Chicken Girls and Roo spent most of a very stormy Sunday outside in the wind and rain. They would come back in every so often, completely drenched and looking pathetic, shake off the rain and go right back out. You go girls! We, the wimps, drove to the Chicken Shack in the car.

And, speaking of critters, who is this large critter that Irene sent to our house? It looks like a mosquito, but its body (minus the legs) was about 2" long. It was on the screen porch when I let the dogs out the morning after the storm. Yikes!

Note: The critter is apparently a crane fly, also known as a mosquito eater, even though it does not eat mosquitoes. I posted this on my Flickr photostream, and jumpingboy identified it.

For Mary K in SJ

Just in case Hurricane Irene does send us the serious wind and rain that is expected, The Husband wanted to document the beauty of his cornfield before she swings by tonight. This is a hybrid called Silver King, which was highly recommended by Mary K, a friend back in South Jersey (land of the most excellent corn).

He planted several rows of corn back in the spring, only to have the birds pull up all of the little seedlings just as they sprouted. He had to replant all of it, and then we covered it over with bird netting until the sprouts were big enough to survive the birds. And then we had to fence around the corn to keep out the rabbits, groundhogs and deer. Still the deer have been seen reaching over our wimpy little fence, but for the most part, the corn is thriving.

We are praying that Irene doesn't do too much damage, now that we are almost close to harvesting.

A piglet or 2, and goats in the spring

As Hurricane Irene is fast approaching the East Coast, Lester's Flat is gearing up for the arrival—not of the hurricane—but some piggies and goats. As I could not convince The Husband to change his mind, we are just back from choosing 2 piglets at a place in Brookfield, a boy and a girl. The male is the red one in the center, the female is the Oreo® cookie one on the right, who looks just like her mama, Lola. First attempts to name came up with Rush and Lucille, but they could easily change. They will be ready to come here in about 3 weeks. That dog crate in the back of the CR-V will be getting a workout. It was plenty big for 7 chickens, but probably barely big enough for 2 little fast-growing piggies.

And last week we visited a farm in Jordanville and discussed getting 2 goat kids in March or April.

All I can say is "Hee Haw!"

Silly nieces, a piglet (or 2) and a big Roo

We took the nieces to the Herkimer County Fair last week. Here they are, serious working girls instead of the "silly suburbans" their mother accused them of being. Unfortunately we went to the fair on a day when there were very few animals to view. The baby goats were the most interesting, but Ella was hell-bent on finding a piglet (or 2). The Husband promised her a piglet last year, and he's rightly blaming me for dragging my feet on getting one (or 2). Personally, I'd rather hold out for the goats—they're cute when they are young, and still adorable when they grow up. I am finding it difficult to feel the love for an adult pig (or 2) and finding it even more difficult to think about raising them only to send them off to slaughter. Ahhh, life on the farm! Maybe I am also a silly suburban.

Mister Roo is doing his best to stand up to the tough girls. He's growing fast and starting to trade in his little peeps for a more manly cock-a-doodle-doo (but we don't yet know if he's even a roo!). The girls still pick on him, but mostly just when he tries to steal one of the pieces of tomato that I've been feeding them. Grapes, watermelon and tomatoes seem to be their favorites.

I am keeping my fingers crossed that the pingpong balls in the nest boxes have solved the egg-eating problems, but I am also doing a better job of getting out there more frequently to take the eggs before they have the chance. Waiting for an egg to drop is like watching water boil... At least the hens who aren't laying at that moment are still entertaining enough.

Bad Chicken Girls, Lester, and pink cosmos

It's just not as much fun without the nieces here. I think the Chicken Girls are bored without them, and they have been eating their own eggs to pass the time. The Husband caught one in the act the other day, and I saw two of them in the nesting boxes who were just about to commit that Number One chicken crime. Watch out girls—hens have been culled for less than this! (Not that I could or would, but don't tell them that.) I put some plastic eggs filled with mustard, and two ping pong balls in the nest as a distraction. I read it on the Backyard Chicken forum, not sure if it will work.

Here's a pretty Lester-in-the-creek photo, not that you all aren't tired of them by now. We try to go down there every day. I think it is Lester's own Fountain of Youth. Swimming keeps him young.

The Husband has been bugging me to post some photos of his lush vegetable gardens. I will, soon. For today, a photo of his wildflower garden. The seeds went in a little late, so the grasses had too much time to grow, but some of the cosmos and cornflowers are beginning to stand out among the weeds.

The chicks left the coop

The chickens are still there, but my nieces returned to their home in NJ today. The Chicken Girls have already told me that they miss the daily visits. They also told me to thank B&E for the grapes—there was a serious chicken war for the 8 or 9 grapes that I brought with me to give to them this afternoon. The Husband is bringing the rest out there right now.

Clairebear and Ellabella were guests at Lester's Flat for this past week. In addition to their beauty pageant performances, they spent a good deal of time in the creek, swimming with Lester and Sophie and the lobsters (crayfish). They also made daily trips to the Chicken Shack in search of eggs, including finding 2 of the largest, double-yolk eggs we have ever seen. No more baby-size eggs from these hens!

Bacon and Cheerios® seemed to be the breakfast of choice for the girls, and we had some very healthy lunches and dinners to make up for the bacon overload. Ellabella's contributions were scrambling the eggs and slicing the homegrown "magic" veggies for salad. Clairebear sliced and sautéed apples and peaches for breakfast, and once for dessert. Yum!

Star Doll

That last blog was about me. Well, I like pageants, but I'm not obsessed with them!!! This is my sister (in the picture) who is just as much OBSESSED with an online computer game called stardoll. She is always on the computer. She reads a lot, but all the other times she is on stardoll throwing and visiting parties. Other times she is doing her doll's hair and make-up.  


By: The Pageant Princess AKA the Blonde
Guest writer on Lester's Flat