Outside The Farm House

It was a chilly weekend up at the farm and there was quite a bit of cold, cold snow. But the dogs and I enjoyed our time there. I took photos of the outside of the house on numerous occasions that weekend and post some of them here as a collection. The first is of the dogs outside in their fenced yard. I can't imagine having dogs without a fenced yard. Or perhaps my dogs can't imagine not being able to go outside every half hour or so - as the spirit moves:

This was taken from the county road and shows the north side of the farm house and barn. That addition on the back of the house is the apartment:

And, of course, the barn. I've spent a lot of money on the barn and it is one of the main reasons I fell in love with the place:

The side door and porch. There are two other doors, but no one ever uses them. The dog gate is to channel the dogs from the door to their outside fence without giving them the opportunity to go for an unbounded run:

Also taken from the county road, this time showing the front/western side of the house and barn in the background:

OK, I guess this is pretty much like the second photo. So here's another one, just like the other one (isn't that from a song?):

I traveled down the county road into town and, on the way back, snapped this photo of the property from the south. This view shows some of the new fencing and gates:

And to end where we began, the dogs out behind the house in their fenced yard. It's a homey, comfortable, welcoming, warm place for both humans and animals:

The New Old Tractor Gets Delivered

I'd made it a point to arrive at the farm earlier than usual as I had two appointments. One was a man to come look at the farm apartment. He came and left, but didn't rent it. Then the man from whom I'd purchased the tractor arrived with his son. They parked on the dirt road and began to unload it:

The seller was a retired dairy farmer who now fixes up and sells old tractors, both as a hobby and as a business. His son started up the tractor for him:

And backed it down the ramp:

They showed me how to operate the tractor by moving snow away from the barn door. I would, after all, have to park it in there and night was falling fast:

Then I tried it but - well, let's just say I wasn't very handy with it all. So the older man got on the tractor to show me a thing or two. Just after he'd begun, a bolt fell off of a hydraulic pump and got lost in the snow. A scramble for parts and tools ensued as they raced against the darkening sky and the bitter cold:

The tractor was a Ford 660, all refurbished and repainted. From what I've gleaned from the Internet, it might date back to the late 1950s:

Then he gave me a few pointers on moving the snow efficiently and warned me the gas tank was quite low. They said goodbye and headed back to their own farm:

I began moving snow but quite quickly the motor sputtered and I knew it was almost out of gas. I shut it off and ran into the barn for a gas can. But when I was pouring in the gas, the tractor's gas cap fell down through the motor and got lost. I gave up on moving the snow from in front of the barn door and took the tractor around to the other side of the barn where there was no snow piled. I got it indoors and parked for the night. The next morning, I found and replaced the gas cap, filled the tank with gas and started it up to charge the battery. All seemed well. I'll try it again on my next visit:

A Last Look At The Farm Apartment

This was the week that I was moving out of the apartment and into the farm house in preparation for my upcoming retirement. But before I let the dogs into the house at all, I wanted to snap photos of the apartment all cleaned up but with furniture still in it so that I could advertise it for rent on Craigslist:

Besides, these photos will bring back lots of memories some day when I look at them. I was very happy here on my weekends up at the farm:

I photographed the bathroom also, a bathroom which I quickly discovered was much more convenient than the one in the house. Oh well, the rest of the house will make up for it:

This bathroom had lots and lots of storage space and a modern shower. It also had a lovely view of the flowering crabs and Yellow Delicious apple trees in the springtime just outside that window:

I chose 4 photos to put on my Craigslist ad. This was one of them as I figured it would show what a potential renter would want to know:

And my little kitchen work station and table. I left the kitchen work station, formerly someone's computer desk, in place but put the table into my new kitchen. I then let the dogs into the house and began cleaning, moving and making phone calls. But I'll post more about that tomorrow:

Feeling At Home In The Farm Apartment

I'd taken several driving tours on this visit up to the farm and hiked the Red Dot Trail with the five younger dogs. It was time to settle in for the evening and the dogs were happy to do just that. This is one of the rare photos with all seven dogs. Seamus, by the way, is on a giant sized doggy bed but his giant sized body is covering most of it up:

Winky, Fergus, Daphne and Wally. This was to be our last full weekend in the farm apartment as I planned to begin moving into the farm house on our next visit:

Wally took the pillow in front of the heater this time. Usually that belongs to Clover:

Um, Dad, It's dinner time. Haven't you forgotten something?:

And there's Seamus on his big doggy bed:

And I served dinner:

I have never had any food aggression issues and that's a good thing with so many dogs. They just wait politely until a food dish opens up:

Madeline stayed right at my feet. She's definitely a people dog:

With everyone's stomach full but the dog food dishes still out, they all lay down for a nap - especially the five which had been hiking that day:

Six dogs, all comfy. The only one missing in this photo was Madeline - and she was at my feet:

Clover waited until Wally got up to eat and then reclaimed her bed by the heater:

Once darkness had fallen, it was time for bed. Good night!:

Getting Comfy In The Farm Apartment

The younger dogs had gone with me for a walk in the south hay field to check out the new fence (see yesterday's post). When we returned to the house, I had to let the oldsters, Wally and Winky, outside for a bit. The tenants' wild dogs were inside the fenced yard, so I just let my own dogs out the back door of my little apartment. Madeline danced on the steps, running up and down, just for the fun of it:

And then we began settling in for the night. Madeline, Wally and Daphne made themselves comfortable on my bed:

Clover took her favorite floor pillow just in front of the heater and Fergus curled up on the one next to her:

Big ol' Seamus simply curled up next to the bed:

Winky sat on the floor watching my every move:

The next morning, I caught the pooches as they hoped I'd drop a bit of breakfast on the floor. (I didn't):

Clover made herself a comfy spot in the crumpled bedclothes:

Later on the next morning, I put Fergus and Seamus out into the fenced yard but took the other dogs into the  side yard lawn for a romp. It was all a very strange situation for them, being separated, but they figured it out. The fence installer arrived just then to show me the work he'd done, but I'll post about that tomorrow:

At Home In The Farm Apartment

It had been two weeks since I'd been up to the farm, two weeks since I'd seen my family and two weeks since little Madeline had joined my happy dog pack. She was adjusting well, and  hopped right up onto my bed as soon as we arrived. She and Daphne were buddies already:

Clover desired her own elegant cushion by the heater. She also desired bonbons and peeled grapes, but all she got was a floor pillow:

My two old timers, Winky and Wally, made themselves at home. This is familiar territory for them both:

Fergus and Seamus walked around and checked everything out. Apparently they gave their seal of approval:

We slept the night away and I woke up extra early on Monday morning. The fence installer was coming by to walk the property line and give me a quote. He turned out to be the perfect person to help me get set up:

The weekend was chilly and rainy, so the dogs and I spent many hours indoors resting:

And of course you know where all the dogs sleep. Only crabby old Winky and giant Seamus sleep on the floor:

"Yeah, it's not fair that I have to sleep on the floor." Winky has two bad habits when on the bed. One is that he jumps off, landing dangerously and sure to injure himself. Two is that he is prone to bite in the middle of the night if I should roll over and bump him. So he sleeps on a floor pillow:

Seamus stretches out wherever and whenever the notion should strike him, though he does like soft surfaces. He has a couple of giant sized beds made specially for him by a friend, but mostly uses the rug or the smaller pillows: