Cooking.

 Ok. No excuse to be hungry AT ALL! Well, maybe a little. Ate a huge breakfast: two scrambled eggs, three pieces of bacon, two pieces of toast with pepper jam on one and raspberry jam on the other. Ummmm good. Still, wanted something hot for dinn-upper. So, cooking chicken thighs with brown rice, broccoli, and onion soup mix. That should do the trick. Anyway, it smells good.

Soreness from one end to the other after my little farmer exercise yesterday. Don't think lifting the bale of hay did it, but the two sacks of scratch might have had a lot to do with it. And yes, Jennifer, lots of water is being consumed here! She is always concerned about not enough water causing soreness. And it can. But not this time. Anyway, despite the soreness and sneezes from the dadgummed pollen, my attitude is pretty happy today. A Black Maran was on the nest and did her thing. Posted a picture of her egg--so deep, pretty and brown. Now if that were only a real chocolate egg! LOL  Oh, and Athena had to get in the nest with another hen just to practice! No white egg, mind you. She just felt like getting in there to show up on a nest somewhere. Have put alfalfa in several new places and in the current nests, so we will see if the girls will deal with it. So far, so good. The timothy hay is much softer and more pliable, but the alfalfa was all the Feed and Garden Store had. TSC sells the timothy in bags that weigh about ten pounds--and cost almost as much as a bale of hay! Anyway, buying from a local dealer appeals to me more than buying from TSC. 

Jennifer was saying this morning that it is almost as if Amazon has taken over the sales of most things lately. And it does seem like it. She said that she drives by houses and sees boxes stacked up on front porches. It is such an easy way to get things when going to the stores is a little scary. Gotta tell a funny, however. Someone suggested that if you have a cat litter box, fill an Amazon box with it and set it on the front porch. Giggling. It might take a porch pirate by surprise.

Chewie sent more toys to my critters today. They have not managed to reduce all of them to tatters yet. Two alligators had three or four squeakers each, so every once in a while, a squeak happens. Kinda fun to see them trying to get the squeakers out. Sylvia was able to dislodge a large squeaker from one of the rubber bones. It is still IN there, but no longer squeaks. Told her she has to leave the toys in the house. But she still looks at me as if my mind might have changed. Nope.

Have started another detective series by Steve Higgs. He is the one who had the old detective with the failed drug dog as characters. Good, clean, non-violent stories that are fun. If ever a person had that much good humor, that is the kind of story for them to tell or write. This series has an older--well, somewhat older--in her fifties--woman as the detective--private eye by accident. Good laughs.

Put clean sheets on the bed this morning and got all the laundry done and put away. Pat myself on the head for that one! This is beautiful weather. Sat outside and petted a hen and threw a ball for Sylvia. Thompson said he had things to sniff, thank you very much. Nothing outside makes him sneeze though. Lucky dog! Would worry if the dogs or hens started sneezing. Dirt is just about their territory, huh. It's stuff inside the house that can make them sneeze--the dogs, not the hens.

Guess everyone has seen that post where someone said that on December 31 at 12:01 that hindsight would be 2020. ahem Absolutely ready for this year to get better or go on about its nevermind. Each day is something from explosions to some other bad stuff. 

Oh boy! Sylvia has a toy doughnut in her mouth and is shaking it viciously as she growls and Thompson barks. Dogs are in their window view! Just the pups that never stay home, but still, they should not be in the line of vision as far as these two are concerned.

Had no idea how much food this little idea was going to make. The entire skillet is full of rice, chicken, and broccoli. Not bad tasting stuff, too. Just a bit hot. Oh well. It might be good for breakfast tomorrow.

Jerry came over and asked me to call his mom and ask her to bring food. So a case of ramen noodles that would never be eaten here (compliments of Connie cleaning out the stuff Rebekah left behind) went to his house. Always have stuff that needs to be shared somehow.

Got out the sewing machine and actually filled a bobbin before having to look up how to thread the machine itself. Got the pillow case turned so that it would not let the pillow fall out. Now will get some tucks taken in some jammies for Thompson. Think a button hole and button on the easy to apply jackets will do for Sylvia. No foot holes for miss contrary! 

Still need to find something heavy to put on top of the treat box to keep Thompson out. You have no idea how much 20 pounds of dog treats can be until trying to find a way to keep it away from a devious dog. May just have to put the box in the office and shut the door. A FEW in a jar that Roger Thonton gave me should be enough to keep the dogs happy for a day or two. Will have to remember not to leave the door open when going in there to sew. --So the box is now in the office, the jar on the floor filled with largish bones.

Be so glad when this allergy pill kicks in. Do ya know that sneezing makes all the muscles in your back get tight? Well, it does. 

Some dogs can easily catch a frisbee. Sylvia can catch a tiny treat thrown half way across the room. But then, her mouth is not small, either.

Don't know much to tell either funny or happy, so will just say that it is a good life in Texas today--even with juniper pollen chasing us. May you all avoid the sneezes and rest well. You are loved.