Back with a vengeance!

Hello again my dears! I do apologize for the lapse in blogging, but it's been a busy couple of months. What with guests and my brain exploding, I've been rather preoccupied.  That said, Occidental Acres is back with a vengeance!

I've had a rather creative bug up my arse lately. I've completed a couple of projects and have another on the go.  To that end, I whipped up a set of saddle bags for Brandy.  And I just realized I should probably get a photo of that before I start talking too much about it. Once the weather clears a bit, I'll get over there and take some snaps of the ol' Brandster - her feet are looking fantastic and we've been putting on a few miles together. 

Because it's hunting season, we've been taking it easy on the backwoods stuff.  Sticking to the roads has been a bit of a bore, but it's only a couple more weeks before we can start wandering over hill and dale once again.

In the meantime, I finally busted out the forge this afternoon and pounded out a primitive hoof-pick.  It felt pretty good to pound some hot metal although I am incredibly rusty!  Shaping keg shoes is nothing compared to using your imagination and creating something with a bit of artistic flair. That said, this simple hoof pick will be serviceable, if lacking in panache

 Forge, blasting away.

Farrier's anvil and Grandpa's ball-peen hammer. I do have Grandpa's Peter Wright, but want to get my skills back up to snuff before busting it out. I know... it's an anvil, right? I'm only going to make hammer and anvil sandwiches, but there is a bit of ceremony and respect to be paid to those who've gone before me.

And of course, the chickens had to come over and check out what was going on.  Some really crappy snapshots of the girls and their curiosity.

 Blanche

 Attila and Hillary (she's my favourite!)

Penny

Poe

Did you know that a chicken's right eye is near sighted and left eye is far sighted?  You can tell in the photos of Penny and Blanche that I was quite far away when snapping the shot (well, you can tell because it's a really blurry/grainy snap, but also because they are looking at me with their left eye). Whereas the photo of Hillary tells you that I was quite close and that I had something interesting on my boot!  I recently read an interesting article on how chicken's see the world - check it out on Fresh Eggs Daily.

Glad to see you back, hearties! Come back soon and I'll be sure to get back on track with regular blog updates!

Oh yeah and your dose of From the Mouths of Babes:

"Momma, do you wiggle a little bit if your butt itches?"