It's the toy edition!

 It was only a matter of time before we started bringing in the "toys" to help us with our land work. I, for one, think it's pretty cool when you bring one thing into the situation that makes a world of difference. One thing can answer a question or save you hours of wear and tear on your body. Let's see what kind of toys today's episode will include!

A pond rake as toy number one!

 Built by Woodchuck, this rake was going to help us either clear off what is on the pond surface, and/or help us figure out what exactly is on the pond surface! Built from hardwood from a vintage loom that was given to us in pieces and missing parts, and a pool noodle. Fun hoarding fact: when you save the kids' pool noodles for years, then donate them to your wife's place of employment (a resale shop), and then have to go buy a new one to make this rake because you JUST donated the ones that you held on to for years. The aluminum handle came from something in our eldest sons garage! I wonder if there's a broom head laying around there now...

Anyhow, he also used some rope...which I also had to use. I will never, ever go into the forest again wearing a pair of pants that are too big without a belt. I even tucked my shirt in thinking that would help, but nope! And when you've had your gloves in poison ivy, you really want to refrain from constantly having to pull your pants up! So I stole some rope from him.

But back to the rake! Here's a little video of how it works. 

Damn! It truly did help us figure out what was on the surface of the pond. Watermeal.

                    And as you can see, it is covering nearly the whole surface of the pond. 

So we will now have to get a pond company our to assess the situation. Once we can get this under control, we will start researching solar fountains to keep the water moving. Add it to the to-do list!

And now for my toy! A work cart!

I have always wanted one! Who's a good little cart? You're a good little cart! HEY! That's not how it's supposed to be used!

This little cart not only handled the rough terrain, forest, and thorny paths, but it enabled us to move several bags of weeds to the front of the property. What did we work on this time? You guessed it! Removing Lily of the Valley. We finally have two patches removed from just inside the CRP and now can start heading deeper into the forest to remove them. I also pulled a couple of more Dame's Rocket along the way. 

But I also made sure there was time to enjoy the land, even if for just moments at a time! I saw many beautiful butterflies, spiders and other insects and we took a little bit of time in the open sun field that is not on any programs to grab some water and a snack, light some incense and talk about our future on the land together. 

 We've got a couple of more "toys" heading our way, so stay tuned!