Happy Birthday, Little One!

Tonight we gained a new member of the Morgan family and we caught "its" birth on camera!!!

Here are a few fun facts about chicks/chickens:
1. The incubation period of a chick is 21 days.
2. A mother hen will turn her eggs about 50 times a day so that the yoke does not stick to the shell.
3. Chicks can eat, breathe, and chirp while still inside their shell.
4. A mother hen looses the feathers on her belly while sitting on eggs so that they get direct body heat.
5. Chicken eggs incubate at 99.5 degrees.

That's the Night when the Lights Went Out in Walmart...

...sung to the tune of Reba's song "That's the Night when the Lights Went Out in Georgia".

But instead the lyrics should go:
That's the night when the lights went out in Walmart
That's the night when the door flew off the hinge
Go to the center of the store and you're not allowed to depart
Until the winds die down and the storm comes to an end.

Tonight Jacob and I ran out to Walmart to pick up a few things before Bible Study.  On our way, it started pouring rain....and then hailing.  But, we continued on our way because the storm was behind us and we were headed away from it.  Upon getting to Walmart the winds were picking up, trees were bent over-- you get the picture.  So we ran in trying to avoid getting soaked.  Instead, we got in Walmart and no more than 2 minutes later, the power went out.

Have you ever been in a store as big as Walmart with no electricity?  Each time the lights flickered, the generators took about 5-10 seconds to kick in the emergency lights.  It was literally pitch black.  Kids screaming, people yelling, sheer chaos.  So after the lights went out and came back on twice, the electricity finally gave out for good.  Here is what Walmart looks like without power:

So, we continued to shop until hearing the workers say, "Get to the center of the store."  So, we started walking to the center of the store.  Apparently, there was a miscommunication between the workers because then we got in trouble for going back through the store...haha!!  What they really meant was, go to the center of the front of the store (near the cash registers).  On our way back up to the front center, we heard a HUGE crash and looked just in time to see one of the automatic sliding doors fly off of its hinges and crash into another one of the doors.  Soon after that a light flew out of the ceiling in the corridor area.  Needless to say, I was FREAKING out.

Well, Walmart wasn't letting people leave until the storm passed so we ended up sitting in the dark in Walmart for a solid hour. It was pure chaos....babies screaming, people spreading rumors about tornadoes, employees running around.  Once they started allowing people to leave, we made a run for it....literally.  But, we did take time to take a few pictures of the craziness.

The door off of its hinges...

I tried to get a picture of the light hanging out of the ceiling but they wouldn't let you get anywhere near it.  Here is what was in the middle of the aisle we parked on:

As you can see, the shopping cart return station blew into the middle of the parking lot aisle.  In the middle of the parking lot, there was easily a foot of water.  There was a KIA that had water sitting up to the top of its tires.  Unbelievable.

In the back of the Walmart parking lot was (the key word here being was) a fireworks tent.  When we came out, the tent had blown over and been torn and bent to shreds.  The fireworks were strewn across the parking lot and soaked. Ruined.

We ended up not getting anything from Walmart because the electricity was still out when we left.  So, we left empty handed with only a good story to take away.  We were a little late for Bible Study (at our own house), but had a great time once everyone arrived.

Next time you go to Walmart, just imagine, "What would it be like with no lights?"

The Three Little Pigs

Once upon a time, there were three little pigs...

No....not those pigs!  These pigs...

 

These are our newest backyard friends!  We went and picked them up last night and got them settled into their new home.  These guys (and girl) weigh about 50 pounds each and we think it will take between 4 and 5 months to finish them out.  They are very skiddish and do not liked to be petted (?)......yet :-)  They haven't lived with the Morgans long enough to know how great they're going to have it!

Last night they wouldn't let you get near them with a 10 foot pole.  But today, they had already gotten a little better as evidenced here:

   I know you like that farm girl style ;)

And after a little coaxing with some hamburger buns, I finally got the little fella right where I wanted him.

 And so, for now these little porkers are "wee, wee, weeing" in their new backyard home!

Now Offering: FREE Piggy Back Rides!

Literally!!! And GET YOUR MINDS OUT OF THE GUTTER! Ethel wasn't being crude, she was just chillin' out like this :-) BFFs for life <3

As Happy as a Pig in a Mud Puddle

It was a GORGEOUS day outside today, so Jacob and I decided to spend most of the day outdoors. To start off the day, we visited with our piggie girls. I made a blueberry cobbler last night and saved the leftover blueberry juice (equal parts water and sugar + cooked down blueberry pulp) for the girls. June used to love it- so I figured Lucy and Ethel would too.

In fact, they loved the juice so much that they ended up getting in a "squeal" over it :-)

Just in case you didn't know....pigs are a lot like dogs! They love human interaction, they enjoy getting a belly rub/petted, and can even be trained like a dog. Jacob used to make June sit before she got her food! Here are Lucy and Ethel getting a little attention from their Momma ;)

When we left the large ladies to go weed our flower beds, they were chillaxin' in their mud puddle....just as happy as could be!

So, until next time- I hope that YOU are as happy as a pig in a mud puddle!!

A New Kind of Redneck

March 19 was Jacob's 27th birthday so, of course, we had an evening full of celebrations. I asked Jacob to get off work early because I had planned a little "surprise" for him! We met at home around 3:45 and then struck out for the first event of the evening.

A little background... Last October, Jacob went hunting in Raleigh and shot a really good size buck. So, after some encouragement, he decided to have it mounted. When we got back home, we took it to Gene (our local taxidermist). About a month and a half ago, I started talking to Gene to see if he could have the mount done in time for Jacob's birthday. Thankfully, Gene didn't let me down and had the deer ready.

I drove Jacob to Nature's Art Taxidermy and as soon as we pulled up, he knew what was going on! We talked to Gene, got some instructions, and then left with Jacob's newest, most prized possession!

After picking up the deer mount, we went home and hung it. Jacob wanted it to be in the living room by the fireplace, so being the considerate and loving wife that I am, I agreed.

So, in honor of our semi-new lifestyle-- a little redneck joke....

A redneck goes into a bar in Arkansas and orders a white wine. Everybody sitting around the bar looks up in surprise. Meanwhile, the bartender comes up and asks, "You ain't from around here, are you........where are you from, boy?"

The rednecks says, "I'm from Iowa."

The bartender asks, "What the hell do you do in Iowa?"

The redneck responds, "I'm a taxidermist."

The bartender asks, "A taxidermist.....now just what the hell is a taxidermist?"

The redneck answers, "I mount animals."

The bartender grins and shouts out, "It's OK boys; he's one of us!"

A Temporary Stay

This past Tuesday, Jacob and I went to a small hog operation in Lenoir County to offer two little pigs a home! Although I did not want to go on a weeknight because of the drive, we didn't really have any other choice. The farmer was planning on taking all of his piglets that were under show size to a feeder pig sale for slaughter.

After our first hog growing experience (with June), we knew that we wanted to give it another go. The day we took June to be slaughtered I was a MESS. No, really. I cried off and on all day and said we were never doing that again. Well, like they say...time heals all pain. I would also like to add that, in this case, so did the taste of some seriously delicious pork! This was our last family picture with June on the day that she was taken to the slaughter house.

From start to finish, it cost us about $430 to raise June and we got back over 150 pounds of meat. It averaged out to be about $2.92/lb. Not only is that a great deal, but we also knew exactly what she ate and got back some very high quality meat. So with those things in mind, we set out on our journey to get our TWO new piggies.

The place we found in Lenoir County was SO COOL! There were TONS of pigs at every stage of the game from a few weeks old all the way up to sows and one ginormous boar. They were kept in open-air hog houses (of a sort) that were indoor/outdoor. The facilities were really nice and well kept. The pigs also looked very happy and healthy.

We picked the two pigs we liked the best, paid up, and headed for home with the little ladies in the dog box :-) After a brief stop by Bojangles for dinner, in which the pigs were rocking the truck back and forth, we arrived at home with our new guests. We built their pig pen the weekend before out of hog panels and T-posts so it was all ready to go for them.

So now, I am pleased to introduce you to the newest members of the Morgan family: Lucille and Ethel!

The pink pig is Lucy and the black and white pig is Ethel. They are BFF's-- they eat together, run around together, and snuggle up with each other at night.

Here are some pictures of their setup---

They have an automatic feeder and waterer. We also have a solar powered electric fence run around the bottom of the pen so the little girls won't escape. For the time being, we plan on giving Lucy and Ethel a fabulous home with lots of FLC (food, love and care)! Then, come June (the month, not the pig) their stay will end and they will join their sister that came before them......at freezer camp :)

She's Country

Well, it has been over 2 years since my last blog post. I had just gotten married and was living blissfully unaware of what my future would hold! And now, as it seems, my life has done a complete 360 and I may be what you would call a "Country Girl"! I changed the name of the blog to a line from one of my very favorite songs- She's Country by Jason Aldean.

So, on that note, here are the top ten things (and that's narrowed down) that may qualify me as such. You know you're a country girl when...

1. You raise a pig in your backyard, name the pig, and then slaughter it!
2. You spend WAY too much money on a chicken coop.
3. You can shoot your guns right out of your back door, and do so.
4. You own a Deere!
5. There is a coon dog in your back yard.
6. Cowboy boots are a staple in your wardrobe.
7. You go to town only on the weekends.
8. You drive a pickup truck to work (with a dog box in the back).
9. You sincerely don't like city taxes and would never move back just to avoid them.
10. You put all of your farm animals on your family Christmas card!

All in all, I love my life and wouldn't change a single thing! I have learned so much over the past three years. And for these reasons, I officially understand the saying, "You can take a girl outta the country, but you can't take the country outta the girl".