Its sunny with a chance of hot in Texas!!!

Construction:

Granny and Papa’s Home Construction

The time has come! The day we got back from vacation, Granny and Papa moved into their new home! There are loose ends and punch work still to complete but they have spent the last few weeks getting settled in. Having them next door has been great, its so nice to cook in a real kitchen again!

Rachael and Mike’s Home Remodel

We had big changes in our home, the insulation was installed, drywall is up, walls are tape/textured and primed, and now we are working on the polished concrete floors! Next step millwork and trim! We are definitely starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and it can’t get here fast enough.

Farm/Homestead:

On the Farm

This month we entered a drought due to the consecutive days of over 100 degrees with no rain. It has been hard on the land and even harder to get things done. We were able to install automatic foundation watering systems (soaker hoses on timers) for the houses and outbuildings last weekend. We also spent some free time doing a little property maintenance and got to use the new backhoe to dig out a few stumps. Its slow moving with this heat but we are keeping busy!

Behind the Coop

Last month’s chicken run upgrades (shade cloth and increased watering schedule) are continuing to work well. The chickens are doing well in the heat and really enjoying the summer watermelon rinds.

Inside the Shop:

It appears that our “new to us” Yanmar SA424 tractor was a rental tractor in its past life. This means the previous owner did not have the three-point linkage and the three-point lever had been removed. I assume this was done to prevent renters from engaging the lift arms while the backhoe was attached. Between eBay, Tractor Supply, Amazon, and our old tractor, I was able to put together the three-point linkage including “Pat’s Easy Change 3 Point Hitch System”. In addition, I fabricated a new three-point hitch lever from some flat stock. The lever needs a little stiffening and I need to replace the borrowed parts but otherwise its working great!

I repurposed casters from an old carpet dolly and build this box blade cart. This will allow me to move the box blade around when it’s not attached to a tractor and allow for easier positioning when I am ready to get it hooked up.

To make this better, I would replace the casters with locking ones and consider shorter casters. The height of the cart nearly maxes out the tractors lifting arms.

Family:

The whole family went on a vacation to Pigeon Forge, TN over the holiday weekend. It was a lot of fun seeing the top of the Smokey Mountains at the Anakeesta Resort, admiring all the awesome fish at the Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies and enjoying the rides at Dollywood. It was a much need break from the chaos at the homestead and was nice to have some down time with the family.