Keeping Busy....

When I posted a week or so ago I wrote that we expected to start looking for airline flights to Puerta Vallarta.  As so often happens, plans have to be adjusted, and we found we still have some loose ends to tie up here before moving on.

No problem for us...  Bill just keeps on working...

He finished putting up that shed we bought at Lowe's.

It was kind of like putting Lego blocks together...  everything snapped into place, and then he had about 3 dozen or so screws to secure it...  as well as some pins to snug up the roof.  That's it...  from start... still in the box, to building the floor platform...  then putting down the floor and erecting the sides...  putting on the roof and doors.... and the lower right... you can kind of see it right in front of our Scion.  We've already put a few bins and other things in it...  mostly stuff we don't need on a daily basis, like the brake box, and some things we want to keep out of the weather like lawn chairs.  I think it will be really handy as time goes on.

That only took a few days.  I think building the foundation and leveling it took more time than all the rest of the building combined.  So... on to the next project...

A new water line needed to be laid between two different wells.  Victor rented a Ditcher to make this job easier.  In fact, hand digging with a shovel would have been impossible!  Look at all those rocks laying just beneath the ground!  The whole area is like that...  the only real good soil is what Victor has brought in from another area and spread around.

We've been going for a morning walk before it gets too hot.  Yes... it still has been in the 90's every day for weeks, often getting into the low 100's.  We have three "routes" we walk...  each a total of around 3.5 miles.  

This one is my favorite....  we walk along the county road to a dead-end road that is more like a lane.  We never see anyone here...  an occasional deer or roadrunner...  sometimes a feral cat.

There are lots of deer here...  it's nothing to see a dozen or more at a time.  I think that's a pecan tree at the lower right...  see the wire cage around it?  Hopefully that will keep deer from munching it before it gets a chance to mature.

Another walk we like is also on a dead-end road.

This is a good walking road because it has several hills and makes your legs work.  Also, it's a higher elevation and the views are fantastic.  That's a herd of goats on a hilltop about a quarter mile away.  And the lower left you can barely see the water tower to the right of the power line...  it's on the main road driving to Granbury.  

We see several species of birds along this road...

This looks like a young bluebird.  There are also mockingbirds, phoebes, woodpeckers and a few species of sparrows, as well as cardinals, bluejays and the like.  I've seen only one roadrunner so far.

The elevation here isn't very high and the land is scrubby desert/range.  Lots of junipers, types of oaks and such.

There is a lot of prickly-pear cactus.  That's a cholla at the lower right.  Like everywhere else we go, there's always something to sting you, stick you, bite you or otherwise make you itch or cause pain.  Fire ants are prevalent....  our daughter has several bites on her foot as I write.  They are mean little rascals and their bite hurts for a week!

At the top of the hill where we walk we see this windmill off in the distance.  I wonder how deep the pipes are that have to carry water here?   Our daughter has a well water, and so far it's held up nicely.

We do walk along another route...  I'll have to take my camera and see what's interesting along it.

One more photo before I close...

Evie, our Great-granddaughter lives in New York.  She was 5 years old last week and this is her first day of kindergarten.  That's her Mama, Heather, our granddaughter, seeing her off to school.

Look at that backpack!  I know all kids have them, but I'm glad I don't carry that on my walks!  

This hot, humid weather is supposed to break...  maybe we'll see some cooler temps soon.  Hard to believe it's autumn already...  maybe we'll see some signs of it before we leave.

That's All For Today!