Ridgetop - our place and how we muddle along

[Ridgetop]

Bay! You always cheer me up!

 

[Ridgetop]

It is official! The restaurant is closed for outside dining as well as inside dining FOR A MONTH! That takes them past the wedding date. They are not sure if Governor Gruesome will extend the closure through Christmas as well. Nothing like destroying as many businesses as you can. I will get back my money from corporate - IN A MONTH! I have sent in the official request, now it must be sent to their corporate offices for a check to be issued refunding our money. It takes 3-5 weeks.

I have a call in to the party rental company for a tent, tables and chairs. However, he told me he is not sure he will be in business after Christmas. Three generations and Covid and Gruesome are probably puttig him out of business. He will get back to me after Thanksgiving about what he can supply. Three generations of rental business and another family business bites the dust. Thank you Governor Gruesome!

Governor Gruesome is in quarantine after exposure to Covd. He is blaming some poor Highway Patrol officer for the exposure instead of the giant maskless birthday party he held for tons of people in a restaurant. Apparently one of his 3 children at their private school (where they are getting one in one tutoring instead of classroom time) came in contact with a classmate who tested positive. Enough about him.

I now have to decide whether to hold the wedding here, chancing rain, or cancel and postpone it. I am getting tired and not sure abut my decision. I will continue hemming the Maid of Honor's dress anyway since it needs to be done and will give me a respite from decision making. DD2 actually always to be married from home instead of the restaurant so she is happy with the restaurant cancellation.

DH has decided to give away DD2 in his nice suit instead of renting a tux since FSIL has not gotten an appointment for a fitting or chosen tuxes yet. DGS2 can also wear his lovely brand new suit as ring bearer instead of a tux. Since this is a home wedding it will be totally appropriate. I am now sorry that we decided on the gorgeous fairytale wedding gown since the original dress she tried on would have suited a home wedding better but it is too late for that. She will look like a fairy princess still. I can carry off this wedding but will have to make some changes.

I suppose we will have to do plastic table cloths and paper goods. Or I can go to the dollar store and buy plates and goblets for $1 each and donate them afterwards to the church or Goodwill. Need to price the paper and plastic stuff first. Cleanup will be easier with paper goods. I have about 35 glass punch cups I could use for the mimosas with my 2 punch bowls and probably could find more at the thrift stores around. DD1 might have a set too. Need to ask her. Mimosas in paper cups? UGH! Mimosas in glass punch cups? Better . . . .

I need to discuss this with DD2 and FSIL - if they decide to put off the big reception and get married quietly by Pastor Arlo here at home. Now that I am getting my $$ back I can go along with it for the reception. But doing it a second time is rather tasteless although she will get a second wearing out of the dress . . . . LOL

Either way, I have to get to work on this. I have to send the rental company a list of what we will want to rent, and get a quote. He told me they might not be in business after Christmas due to this constant quarantining. I must send out change of venue cards to those that have RSVPed they are coming.

The grandsons are coming over today for their standard workday. they are going to be spending the night too. That way we can get to work early tomorrow morning on the pumpkin pies. I need to haul the turkey out of the freezer. DS1 said turkeys are on sale for 47 cents a lb. so if I get another one it will do for the wedding.

Thanksgiving is sneaking up on me this year and then I have to put up the Christmas decorations. Bake the Christmas cookies, finish the shopping such as it is, and everything else in addition to the wedding.

I am Woman - I can do this! I have raised 5 children and survived. I have pulled 100's of kids and lambs and not puked. I am still with DH after 50 years! I am STRONG, I am INVINCIBLE, I am also a little tired . . . .

Slap myself ! No self pity! Get on with the program! AAARGH!

 

[farmerjan]

YES, YOU CAN DO THIS. !!!!! All the nice things you listed/said in my journal, the least I can do is support you too. I still think that getting them married, small reception, and then let them have the baby and start their life is going to be LESS STRESSFUL in the long run. You will survive this.
Do Paper, make it easier on yourself; with the mimosas in glass.......I am sure you can beg/borrow/buy enough to make it work. Might be fewer coming than you originally thought too before this is all over. Once they get themselves settled, and the whole mess with shutdowns and all is done, THEY can host a huge summertime bbq/get together/celebration. By then, you and DH should be moved and can just go back as GUESTS......

Gov Gruesome is a real piece of sh!t trying to blame his "exposure" on some police officer rather than the whole "DO AS I SAY, STAY AT HOME, WEAR MASKS, SMALL GROUPS OF NO MORE THAT 10.......RATHER THAN AS I DO WITH A BIG BIRTHDAY BASH, UNMASKED, OVER LIMITS OF PEOPLE NUMBERS.....ETC.......
Typical of those that do as I say mentality.... not taking responsibility for their own actions and then trying to blame it on the "average Joe" working person. What a jerk.

 

[thistlebloom]

Get them married. If it rains tell everyone to bring an umbrella. What's a little rain? It will make telling their wedding story to their kids ever so much more interesting. Even better than walking to school in four feet of snow, uphill both ways! Perfect weddings are so boring anyway.

 

[Baymule]

Better than that, if it rains, go to the BARN!!! A little sheep poop on fancy shoes will make it a wedding to remember! LOL

Wow, what a mess. Yes, you are WOMAN and you can do this. I second the paper goods and big trash cans.

What a crying shame over the family business. How sad. What are people supposed to do? They show lines miles long for people lining up at the food banks here. People are out of work or working a lesser job and they are broke. Can't make a living if you can't go to WORK.

 

[Ridgetop]

"Out flew the web and floated wide

'The curse is come upon me' cried

The Lady of Shalott (sp?)"

 

[Ridgetop]

To paraphrase Alfred, Lord Tennyson -

"Out flew her plans and floated wide
'The curse is come upon me' cried
Unfortunate Ridgetop."

Yes, I have been cursed and will suffer planning the wedding AGAIN!

DD2 and FSIL have decided to have a tiny private wedding NOW and hold the formal ceremony and reception next spring after the birth of their baby.

I am in the process of sending out postponement notices now. Also cancelling al the vendors, and trying to get a future date with the Odyssey.

Although I could have done the wedding here at home without a problem, here is the reason they decided to cancel. Apparently FSIL is know far and wide among family members as a Doofus. They are overjoyed that DS2 has taken him in hand and made him into something they can be proud of. That said, they ALL want to attend the wedding, BUT the new Covid closures have made that impossible. Since his family all want to attend and witness the NEW FSIL2 in his moment of glory - becoming a man instead of a Doofus, DD2 and FSIL have decided to postpone.

Life sucks, and then you die.

So at least I have everything done for the wedding and will just have to fight with hundreds of other bridal families to obtain a date in June. It must be in June to allow the bride to recover her figure and get into her wedding gown. She is tiny so maybe May (but that means that DDIL2 will have a month old baby) no, has to be June. I will have to remake the petticoat since I made it to fit a pregnant bride. I am extremely annoyed over this development. I am designing Governor Gruesome and Mayor Fartcetti voodoo dolls so I can stick pins into them!!! Guess where?

Anyway, over Thanksgiving we had strong winds that blew down the newly erected pipe corral fencing. Not surprising. To me. I told DH and DS1 they would need posts in the ground every so often to support the 10'-24' corral panels that were just clamped together. I was ridiculed so now they are discussing how to re-erect the fence and support it. Instead of digging a hole and putting a post in the ground, they are planning to attach a secondary panel at right angles to the long span. This will apparently give it support. I know the ground is hard and rocky, but surely digging a hole for a single support post every 20 feet or so will be better in the long run than wasting a full 10'-12' panel? This is why I no longer involve myself in the plans of DH and DS1.

These additional pastures were to be used with breeding rams and their designated lady friends. As untrustworthy as these fences seem to be, I am rethinking that plan!

Thanksgiving was very nice. DD1 sent her 2 boys over for "sleepovers" with PauPau and GyongGyong Tuesday before Thanksgiving. This was ok since on Tuesday they worked in the barn and on Wednesday we made the pumpkin pies. It was decided by DH to extend their visit through Friday. After all, they were no trouble to him.

They did have to do a lot of barn cleaning, stall cleaning, etc. They also worked cleaning the large night folds on the field. DH pays them $5 per stall - divided between them. They were very unhappy to find that he pays the same for the 30' x 40' night folds as he does for the 5' x 10' jugs. LOL The jugs are dirtier though since the night folds are only for night and the sheep are out on the hillside during the day. The jugs hold 1 ewe and her lambs but they are in them 24 hrs/day. Also DH uses his tractor in the night folds. Then DS1 moved one fence panel to install a walk through gate into the catch pen. So much easier now to move ewes around. And so happy he did it since Thanksgiving night - after dark - a first freshener proceeded to deliver her single ram lamb in the pitch dark. I had told DS1 and DH that we really needed some floods on that side of the house to be able to check the sheep at night. Instead, I went out with my flashlight and iodine in the pill container to dip the cord. No need o move her since the jugs were all full!

I had expected the second ewe in the pen to deliver before both first fresheners since she was, is, and continues to increase to ginormous size. In fact, the day before thanksgiving she was laying on her side very still and I send DS1 out to check her. She is so large that she looked like a dead carcass with her belly already bloated!

On Friday we needed to move the ewes with the earliest single lambs into the creep but they needed ID first. The drawback to all white sheep. First we had to tag them, so we decided to tag everything except the newborn lamb. That done, we proceeded to move the 2 ewes and lambs into the creep pen. Now their stalls needed a recleanThen we brought the new mom and lamb into the barn. DGD1 carried the new lamb, weighing in at 7.8 lbs. She had ben allowed to spend Thanksgiving night with us since all the family were engrossed in the family board games ritual. Except for me, stumbling around in the night fold with a flashlight and bottle of iodine.

Anyway, we now have a free jug for the next ewe to lamb. Tomorrow is the day when the grandsons come over to clean the barn again. At that time we will weigh all the lambs, including those currently in the creep pen. The 2 ewes in the creep pen will get wormed. The 2 ewes with twins that lambed the week before Thanksgiving might be moved into the creep pen too. That pen opens out onto the hillside where the lambs love to run and play. Healthy for them to exercise. They grow faster out there.

My next group to lamb - 5 of them I think, will not lamb until January. Although that huge ewe is due any time between now and Dec. 1. She is also a first freshener, but her udder has developed, and looks like she is having twins or triplets. I told DH and DS1 that if she as triplets and one is a ewe lamb, we will put up a covered dog run at DD1's house and give the ewe lamb to DGD1 to raise on goat milk and LambLac. That way the new ewe lamb will be really tame like Snowflake. I am it sure that a first freshener can raise triplets so am prepared to have to supplement. With the children quarantined at home, they will have time to bottle raise a lamb. DD1 used to bottle raise all her goat kids and is experienced at it so can help DGD1. And I will have bottle raising a lamb off my plate. Hee Hee

The day after Thanksgiving DS1 and DS2 brought over all the Christmas decorationsDS1 had the grandsons help string new lights to replace the ones that have burned out over the years. Then he and DH went off to Lowes on Sunday and bought more replacement light strings. They can't find the extra strings that they bought last year. They are not sure if they finally put them up or we stored them somewhere. DS1 has looked in our storage areas but I think they might have been packed in different storage box and I will have to go look for them myself. Eventually. Maybe.

This year I did not go all out like I usually do I did not put up some of the ornaments. I am getting old and tired. I think I will pack up some of my stuff and take it to DD1's house to decorate. Next job, making Christmas cookies. I have gotten clever about this since standing for days on my feet results in knee ankle and back aches. Instead, I make the rolled and press cookie dough then refrigerate or freeze it. The bar cookies have to be made the same day so I do them all on ne day. Then, cool, cut package and freeze. I devote one day to the press cookies and one day to the roll and cut cookies. These are the special Christmas cookies handed down from my German forebears for generations. If we spent a Christmas without these cookies my children would have a breakdown and there would be a great earthquake caused by my forebears rolling in their graves. In order to prevent a massive undead uprising, I make these cookies every year.

I really need to make a batch of fruitcake too. It stays good since you just keep pouring liquor over it and freezing it, but I haven't made any in the past several years. It is an acquired taste and I used ot make it for my aunt, uncles, and mother. I am the only one that has the secret recipe from my Grandmother and she swore me to secrecy. I was even forbidden to give it to my mother - her own daughter! This legacy will probably die with me since not too many people like fruitcake anymore. Probably due to the dry stuff decorated on top but with no fruit inside that is sold as fruitcake in stores. The secret of a good fruitcake, according to my grandmother, is to have only as much batter as is required to hold together the candied fruits and nuts! Then, you keep it moist with liquor. It needs about 3 months to age properly. Since nuts and candied fruits don't go spoil, and the cake itself is constantly moistened with whiskey or rum, it lasts forever in the freezer, just getting more and more hard proof! My grandmother used to keep hers wrapped and stored in large metal barrels with the tops hammered down by my grandfather. She made them before Thanksgiving and kept them stored airtight with the liquor poured on them till Christmas. As a child I did not like fruitcake but with all that liquor on them I now know why! LOL

All my Christmas shopping for the grandchildren is finished. Much of the shopping for my children and DH is finished. This is a small Christmas year. We seem to alternate between large gifts and small gifts when we recover and retrench. Also as the children get older they don't seem to need as much or want as much. DS2 hates getting money or gift certificates and he is the hardest to shop for. DS3 is easy - if I can't find exactly what I know he would love, we give him $$ to put towards his next project or large tool. DD1 doesn't have time for hobbies so not sure this year. Each year I have given her a large coat sweater to wear while teaching, but since she is teaching from home, I am not sure what to give. I would give them a puppy, but they have to want that for themselves to make the commitment. DD2 and FSIL already got their gift early. DD2's birthday is December 9 and I have some maternity clothes for her. Maternity clothes for DDIL2 as well. DDIL1 has started doing more entertaining at home so for her a chafing dish and other entertainment items. Getting much harder to buy gifts for them now.

Anyway, I guess I will go out and see if I can find the lights for DS1. I can check my huge ewe at the same time.

 

[Senile_Texas_Aggie]

I know the ground is hard and rocky, but surely digging a hole for a single support post every 20 feet or so will be better in the long run than wasting a full 10'-12' panel?

It may be moot by now, in that your DH and DS1 have already put up the fence, but I seem to recall that Miss Babsbag had a walk-behind Bobcat that she used for digging post holes. Do you think you could rent one of those to make the work go easier?

 

[Ridgetop]

Sadly no. This is on the front of the property and it is steep. Not as steep as the 60 degrees in the gully, but still steep. Not sure what they will do. I don't think they are sure what they will do. Having the front corral panels all fall over has put a crimp in their plans. They haven't done anything about them yet. I think if ask they will tell me they are trying to decide what to do. LOL DH just said that the ground is like concrete to dig right now. I guess no field pens for a while. Ground will soften if we have rain, but he wanted to order some field grass seed to spread when it rains. I told him he should order it now if he plans to spread it before it rains. Peace is kept by not offering suggestions. He did say that he would need to rent a jack hammer to dig post holes. I say whatever it takes but I am not strong enough anymore to do the job so . . . .
Glad there were no sheep in there. Particularly glad there were no breeding groups in those pens!!!

 

[Bruce]

DD2 and FSIL have decided to have a tiny private wedding NOW and hold the formal ceremony and reception next spring

That is what DW's nephew did. Original wedding planned for June at a resort, pushed out to October. They got married with just family and the reception will be held at the original venue next summer/fall.