Lots of new things!

<p>So we found some Cayuga ducklings on craigslist 2 weeks ago, and we met the lady in Winston Salem to pick them up last Monday.  There are 4 of them, one which will be crested, one that is smaller than the rest and 2 that look just alike.  We have them in our "chicken room" at night but they get to swim all day in one of our old puppy pools.  They really enjoy swimming and playing in the water! 
We also have gotten some yummy produce from our garden, including corn, okra, lots of squash and zucchini, as well as cucumbers.  Lots of veggie stir frying going on at our house!  The other new and exciting thing is that we found our first egg today, and are pretty sure it was from one of our 4 buff orpingtons.  Hopefully the rest will follow suit soon.

Plans for the Future

So as many of you know, Hunter and I own an 8 acre "farm" in Ararat, NC.  Well we are planning on it actually becoming a real farm that we will be able to hopefully sustain ourselves and make a little money in the process.  We already have the chickens, the garden, and some of our fruit trees/bushes.  We want to add sheep (southdown babydoll sheep) goats (Nigerian dwarf dairy goats) possibly a black angus cow, and bees.  We are also going to get some ducks ( I know previously we said they were messy and not very predator savvy but we have done some more research and found 2 breeds that should work well for us, the Swedish and Cayuga.)  We will also be getting some turkeys and a few peacocks.  Of course this is all plans for the future, but its still really fun to learn about all the different animals and breeds etc.

Meet the Kitties

So we have 5 cats.  Not really on purpose, but we could never get rid of any of them now.  They have their own personalities and it is so funny to just watch and interact with them.  So I thought it would be fun to introduce them to y'all.  So here goes:
Leon is first, as he is the oldest, and the first kitty Hunter got.  He is 5 years old, and Hunter "rescued" him about 3 years ago.  Leon is a Himilayian Siamese Cross, with bright blue eyes.  He loves to snuggle, and all things blue.  He has a tendency to lounge on the foot rest or arms of our couch with his arms and legs splayed out to make him completely flat, he resembles a bat while doing this so his nickname is "bat kitty". 
Floofy is next.  We got her the memorial day after we moved into our house in Lincolnton.  we found her on craigslist, and went out in the boonies to get her.  She was about 3 months old when we got her so I guess that makes her 2.  Her name for the longest time was kitty kitty, but we have since changed it to "floofy" which is a cross of fluffy and aloof, as she is both.  Floofy is our only girl cat, and will probably be our only girl cat from now on.  Hunter was convinced that we couldn't have 2 males, and that was very very wrong....
Leading to Jasper and Freddie.  We decided to get one more cat, and we really wanted a solid black one, so we looked again on craigslist, as well as local pet rescues in the area.  I found Jasper on craigslist and the only catch was if we didn't take his brother he would be put to sleep.  We figured we could find him a new home so after work that night, Hunter, our friend Connie, and I drove to get these 2 tiny kittens.  We decided on Jasper for the black one, mainly because I love Twilight and it was the only name out of the series Hunter would let me use.  Connie got to name Freddie, as he rode home attached to her leg...the Freddie is short for Freddie Kruger, as he has very sharp long claws.  He also does the thriller dance from Michael Jackson when startled by large black dogs.  Jasper is a very special and unique kitty as he thinks he is part dolphin and reminds us alot of the black dragon in the movie"how to train your dragon".  Jasper is also very very good with our puppies, he sleeps with them, and let's them crawl and chew all over him. We never did find a home for freddie, but then again we never really looked either...haha
And last but certainly not least, we have Colby...short for the Colby Jack cheese his fur reminds us of.  Colby is still a little baby, only 5 months old.  We rescued him from the Animal Shelter here in Surry County near our house.  Colby, is also affectionately known as our "spider Kitty" as he will literally fling himself onto any screen we have, and hang there like a spider.  He also one morning accidentally flung himself onto Hunters shirt and hung there until I could untangle him, luckily he doesnt weigh much and has tiny little claws. 
I hope you have enjoyed meeting our kitties and have the chance to see them in person too!!

Riley our Golden Retriever Fish

Riley is our only permanent inside dog.  The others just rotate in and out as we feel like it.  Well Riley loves to swim, as most dogs do, but he is different.  He swims with his face under water using strokes more like a human than the traditional "doggie paddle" most of our other dogs use.  And because of his swimming technique and his long hair, Riley has been spending more time outside recently.  We have a stream on our property with a pooled area just deep enough for Riley to swim in, and he does EVERY TIME he goes outside!!  So he is constantly damp.  Well anyways, yesterday we were invited to our friends Dixie and Rachel's place on the river for a day to hang out, cook out and swimming in the river.  And for Hunter and I to be gone for any period of time, there is a lot of running around to get everyone taking care of...dogs, chickens, cats, and puppies to name a few.  Well we let Riley out and he of course ran to the stream, but what neither of us realized was that he stayed down there, until we were pulling out of our driveway.  And here he comes dripping wet to be let back in the house....not happening by the way...so we let him shake off and loaded him up to come with us.  Now Riley is a very privileged dog already, he sleeps inside, he is allowed on the couch, etc. But he never really gets to go anywhere because he just has to be in your face at all times.  This worried Hunter, but I told him not to because there would be water and Riley would forget there were all these new people to meet.  That silly dog spent All day (12 to 9) in that river except when he got to have a bone from the BBQ Rachel made.  He swam and floated, and chased fishing bobbers, sticks, and even a few rocks.  I took him home with me, early as I had to work so early today, and he promptly passed out next to the couch...and was still there snoring when I left this morning.