Welcome to Spring!

Spring is always a welcomed time of the year here in Minnesota, even if it means rain, mud and bad roads. We've had a couple of small dustings of snow and some sleet but it goes away by the afternoon and so that is okay. With Spring comes the warmer temperatures and "Spring Fever".

This past week I have pretty much been living outside! I have been burning off some of the tall grasses and weeds to the north of the house and shed in preparation of doing some planting and fixing things up. I found myself running out of steam quickly though and realized that I needed to have to have help. With Brian back at work I knew that I would have to ask someone else for help.
My brother, Myron has been unemployed since January and so I called and asked if he could help me. He didn't have money for gas so I went up to New London to pick him up. He spent three days here and between the two of us we got quite a bit accomplished. He is a hard worker and it felt so good to have someone that I didn't have to keep pushing to get things done. By supper time we were both ready for a break. Wednesday evening we went back outside after supper to finish up with the tasks that we had started that day. After we came in for the night Myron took a shower and got cleaned up. Then we sat down with Dad/ Brian to play a game of Spades. At 10 PM both of us were ready for bed. When we got up from the table I couldn't help but laugh. Both of us were hobbling around here like we were 90 years old. I have always pictured Myron as a strong, strapping young man but when I saw him that night and how the fencing job had got the better of him; I realized that my perception needed to change. We are both getting older and it isn't just me that does the hobbling after a day of work outside. Maybe I need to cut myself some slack. I have been getting a reality check this past year.Seeing how this work around here wiped out Myron I don't feel so bad that I can't do it all by myself any more. I don't feel bad about having to have help, it really is a huge job to take care of this place.
That being said- the economy is awful and the cost of living keeps going through the roof. In order to try to keep our food budget under control and to help this place pay for itself, I am once again going to put critters on this property. Myron has been helping to fence in the pasture again . I am holding off on getting the chickens because I want to get the roof on the barn taken care of first. I am debating on weather or not I want to put the garden in 5 gallon buckets or if I am going to throw the seeds/ plants into the ground. It is hard for me to get up off the ground once I am down so the buckets make more sence. They would likely require less weeding as well.
I am looking at putting the garden closer to the house so that I don't have to drag water hoses all over the place. I chopped down a large portion of the Rapberry patch to make more room for other produce. The Strawberries have gone crazy and so there is now a good sized patch of them. I really hope they do well this year. The Rhubarb is being taken over by the Raspberries and the Strawberries so I am going to transplant it into one of the large wooden tubs that I have. It should do pretty good in one of them. I am going to try my hand at corn again this year I haven't had much luck in the past with it but I'm going to give it a try anyway.

The weather is still to cold for planting but the preparations are well under way.

The house will get its turn today.

I work tonight so around 2 I'll have to stop and grab a nap!

Happy Easter Everyone!!!