Busy "B's" at noTTafarm!

What a beautiful Saturday!  Clear, deep blue skies, no wind, and a high of 72 degrees ~ added up to a great day.  We managed to accomplish a few things.

Scott mowed for what could be the last time this season.  He got it done in record time but got a bit dusty in the process.

While Scotty mowed, I picked up a garbage sack full of pinecones.  What for, you ask?  Mostly to keep me busy. But I am holding out hope that I may find a decorative purpose for them during the upcoming holidays.

We are always excited to welcome visitors, and today was no exception.  Welcome, Brummet Family!  Monte, Amy, and Brenna stopped by to enjoy noTTafarm for a few hours.

Hi, Brenna!

Brenna turns "2" this week!  She's such a cutie.

The girls played soccer while the boys got set to pull out a big stump next to the corncrib.  Good thing Monte drove his fancy Chevy 4x4!

One quick yank, and the stump was out!  Unfortunatley, I did not capture with the camera the entire corncrib shuddering in pain as the stump wriggled free.  The entire east bay looks a little straighter now and continues to defy gravity by remaining upright.

This stump is pretty big but has an odd amount of metal objects protruding from it. Later in the evening, Scott towed it to the bonfire pit with the Escape.

We went on a little hike on the western trail.  Brenna got her very own pinecone to take home.

Monte + Wagon = Fun for All!

Mommy begged for kisses which Brenna denied.

Look at that face!  Such a munchkin.

Thanks for visiting!

Checking Off "To Do" Tasks

Sunday afternoon was gloomy and misty - just right for putzing around noTTafarm.

First up was the task of adding air to the water pump tank thingy.  By doing this, water from the well will have pressure to flow freely through the pipes.  We hadn't done this before and we found out that the water will simply stop flowing when the pressure drops.  (Yes, it's every bit as interesting as it sounds.)

Next, Scott climbed up on the '72 addition and cleaned out the gutters. 

He did a fine job and was very careful.

While he was up on the roof, Scott took a few pictures.  The area between the corncrib, house, and barn looks smaller from up there, doesn't it?

The longhorns next door were intrigued by all the gutter-cleaning, so they came to watch.

The definite highlight of our Sunday at noTTafarm was having two special visitors! 

Caleb and Sarita have an acreage about 5 minutes east. 

Have you ever noticed how people absolutely LOVE having their photo taken when they know that it will end up on a blog that no one reads?  Trust me, Sarita is a cutie pie!

Caleb has already lived through several years of acreage renovations so he was intrigued to hear about Scott's plans.

Stay tuned for our next Adventure!

Full Moon

The Hunters' Moon

Hangs in the East Sky Over noTTafarm

http://earthsky.org/tonight/hunters-moon-to-rise-as-the-sun-sets-on-october-22

Every Little Bit Helps

Last Saturday, with a great amount of help from Mark and LuAnn, the barn was swept clean.  We filled seven trash bags with assorted trash, bones, leaves, animal droppings - everything that you would expect to find in a underutilized barn.  This Saturday, before we left noTTafarm to watch the football game at Grant Street, we managed to finish sweeping and power washing the west entry and the old tool shop.

The west entry is now the official garden area, including the potting bench my dad made years ago.

This bench was previously positioned in the lean-to area outside the tool shop.  It fits perfectly in its new home in the garden area.

The old tool shop had a ton of clutter on the floor as well as the built-in benches.  Scott sorted through most of it and found a few usable parts.  Of course, he kept the majority of the items abandoned by the previous owners and will go through each nail, bolt, and wrench to assess its value. 

Our Sunday afternoon ended with Scott and Carl moving three tree stumps to the burn pit.  Scott knocked the stumps out of the ground a few weeks ago with the rented Dingo.  He used the Escape and a tow rope to maneuver the stumps to their final resting place.  Now we just need to have a big bonfire!

Scott invented the "Stump Knot" which secured the stumps nicely for the relocation process.

noTTafarm Welcomes Sunny Sunday Visitors

Despite the event we shall not speak of which occurred in Lincoln Saturday afternoon (hint: it was witnessed by 80,000+ red-clad fans), the weekend weather at noTTafarm was beautiful! We've been blessed with a mild, golden autumn (knock on wood) and as Scott so aptly put it this morning, spending time at noTTafarm on a clear and sunny afternoon is good for my soul.

We were so excited to welcome visitors from Papillion today!  Dave, Leigh Anne, and Meredith were treated to the full noTTafarm tour.  Scott and I took it easy on them. . . .next time, they'll be put to work!

Meredith was her usual energetic self, turning cartwheels and telling us all about her favorite Wii games but for this photo, she put on her "serious" face.

Meredith is quite the photographer for a 6 year old. She snapped this one of us near the barn.

The hay bales on the east end made an excellent perch for Miss Meredith.

"Race Ya!" 

Thanks so much for visiting!  

We hope you make the trip more often!

Love Comes to noTTafarm

A kiss for luck before the work begins...

Two of our favorite lovebirds visited on Saturday.  I'm sure my big brother Mark and his wife LuAnn were hoping for a leisurely day in the countryside.  However, after the obligatory guided tour and a quick lunch, we put them to work!

First on the agenda was the barn.  Mark and LuAnn came to Omaha armed with two big brooms to tackle the task of sweeping.  Aside from layers of dust and cobwebs, the barn was littered with a variety of animal droppings, hardware bits, and remnants of odds 'n' ends.

Mark's Boots Are Made for Workin'

Sweeping the barn's loft was a bit trickier.  In addition to finding piles of dirt to eliminate, a variety of cracks and knot holes allowed an unpleasant shower of ick to rain down on the first-floor workers.  I didn't blame Mark and LuAnn for taking a break and enjoying some fresh air.

The dust mask was Scott's best friend as he swept the loft.

 When the sweeping was basically complete, we moved on to the next bit of fun.

"What else ya got?  Sweeping is child's play."

Hey, I know...let's cut down a tree!
Mark and Scott decided that one Chinese elm tree had to go.  It was growing too close to the barn and too close to another Chinese elm.

The arrow points to the doomed tree.

Felling this tree seemed like a quick job for an afternoon.  But, of course, once it hit the ground, that tree was huge!  Scott ran the chainsaw and Mark guided the tree to the open area with a series of ropes.

Notching the trunk.

Mark was in charge of the ropes.

Got it down without crushing LuAnn and Kristin and/or the Barn.

The mighty hunters with their prey.

LuAnn discusses the craft ideas inspired by the trunk's extracted wedge.  All she needs is a little paint and a "watermelon slice" will be born!  Too bad her boys have outgrown 4-H.

I even got off my butt and did some work!  I climbed up and swept a few years worth of leaves and muck off the roof.  

Finally, our work was done for the day.  The evening's weather was perfect for grilling steaks and dining outdoors. The night was complete with a bonfire and S'mores. 

Mark and LuAnn relaxed with a walk to check out the Longhorns next door.

The perfect end to a wonderful day at noTTafarm!

We are so lucky to have such a great family!  

A Great Big THANK YOU to Mark and LuAnn for spending the day with us and working so hard!! 

Sunday Photography

What's a girl to do when her husband takes 3 1/2 hours to stain a picnic table?  "Target" was calling to me from 72nd Street but the weather was so nice and the sky was so blue, noTTafarm convinced me to explore.  So, I put the telephoto lens on the Canon and went for a little jaunt.

The foliage on the western trail is beginning to turn.

Tall grass on the east side.

Aha!  Look! It's our feral friend, Bibbers, taking a cat nap in the warm sun ~ curled up in the grass on the east side.

I know thistles are the enemy but their fluff is pretty.

Pretty!

The east pasture has recently been mowed and yielded five big rolls of grass.

The south porch in the late afternoon sun.