Happy New Year!

A lot of life has happened since my last post...

--A.J., our foster son, turned one in October. He is walking now and jabbering and surprising us everyday. He knows where his toes, belly, ears and eyes are. He recently started saying "moo" and "baa". He says other things too, but we are working on animal sounds. He loves to "talk" on the phone and is obsessed with the computer mouse.
--Matt's manure pumping business has been going very well, despite the wet weather. This has been his best year yet and we hope it continues the same momentum.
--My dad is still getting along o.k., despite the surgery he had on 1-6-10 and the long healing process that followed.
--My garden didn't amount to much, except for weeds. I was just too busy with A.J. to really take the proper time it needed.
--Sadly, Eddie, one of our cats passed away in September from renal failure. He was on subcutaneous fluids everyday for almost 3 months. Without that daily task, he surely would have died sooner. But he was pretty happy, for the most part, considering his daily jab.
--Connie, our barn cat, had a run-in with the neighbor's muskrat trap and now only has 8 toes total on her back feet.
--I sold 15 of my old chickens at a local livestock auction and was amazed that I got over $4.00 a piece for them! I thought I would be lucky to get $.50 a piece for "stewers".
--Toby and Roscoe ran off a month or so ago. Roscoe returned right away, but Toby did not. He was gone for over 3 days! I finally found him at the local pound after someone turned him in.
--Tuffy has had a rough several months. Earlier in the fall, he and Sadie went to the pond across from the field next to our farm. Sadie came back muddy, the clue that told me where they went. I immediately got a feeling of dread. If Tuff got in the mud too, I knew he could get stuck since he's aging and has a weak hind end anyway. I went in search of Tuff. I called and called, but no Tuff. I had almost given up. I circled around the pond looking in the cattails, where I didn't think he would have ventured. To my surprise, there, behind a patch of cattails was Tuff, stuck in the mud. I had to wade in after him and pull him out. He was shivering and caked with mud. Thank goodness for cell phones! I called Matt and he called the neighbor. Tuff couldn't walk. The neighbor brought his son's sled and with help from our other neighbors, we managed to get Tuff home. He couldn't walk and was sore for a few days. If I wouldn't have looked or had given up, Tuff surely would have died from hypothermia that day--according to the vet. Since then, we have found out that he has Cushing's disease and we are still awaiting final results as to whether or not it is pituitary or adrenal...
--I am still working on the hog farm one day a week.
--Of course, we had Christmas recently. We still have to celebrate with my family since there was some stomach flu going around our house and my brother's house.
--I started writing a book! It is going slow, but I only write when inspired. It is a Christian-based romance between and young woman and a young veterinarian. I am pleased with what I have so far.
--Beginning Monday, I am going to begin my New Year--New You project. My goal is to lose 20 pounds and maintain a healthier lifestyle. Similar to what I did last February...I already told Matt that he needs to help me stay on track.

I can't think of much else, as far as highlights. I will try and do better at posting. I really do enjoy it and look forward to the comments.