A School

The latest Milton Bradley puzzle that we've completed; 1000 pieces. Well, not exactly, we're missing one piece, which is strange because it's brandy new; we just opened it, so technically it's a 999 piece puzzle.

I sent the company an email about the missing piece and much to my surprise they're going to be sending us an entire replacement puzzle. It would be almost impossible to replace the exact piece that's missing, not very realistic. The replacement may or may not be the same puzzle but will be one of equal value, so we're hoping for one that we don't already have. In the words of the almighty Homer Simpson, whooo whooo!

Triplets, Finally Arrived

Well, I was only about 30-days incorrect on the arrival of these triplet piggies. They arrived on the afternoon of March 31st and are doing just fine.

I was guessing that Squeaky's litter of three and this litter of three would have arrived around the same time but that didn't happen.

These are the offspring of the recently departed Tootsie Roll...

Oreo Bunny Update

Here are Oreo's litter of baby bunnies. She had six and raised them all and is a very good mother. They were born on March 4th, so they'll be 4-weeks old this Tuesday and ready for 're-homing' next weekend, 4/5.



Of course Emilie doesn't want them to go and wants to keep them all. Well, we're not doing that but I make a deal with her... here's the deal, I said she could keep two of Oreo's babies if she agreed to let us get rid of the guinea pigs, all of them.


Much to my surprise she agreed and accepted the deal, yippie!! Here are the two babies that she wants to keep. I believe the brown one (r) is a male and the grey one (l) is a girl.

Presence vs Presents

"Children need your presence more than your presents." Jesse Jackson

If you agree with Reverend Jesse Jackson, please click the 'Sign the Shared Parenting Petition" icon to be taken to the American Coalition for Fathers and Children website and sign the Statement of Support.

R.I.P Little Buddy

Sadly, I must report that Tootsie-Roll, pictured above, has gone to the great big guinea pig cage in the sky.

Although, the most traumatic piece was that Emilie was the one who discovered ole Tootsie-Roll lying outstretched and stiff as a board. Needless to say she was VERY upset and still is.

I adopted this dude from Craig's List in early 2007 and never asked how old he was. He could have died of old age, could have had some terminal ailment or perhaps the cold New England weather from garage living was the cause or some combination of these.

He fathered (4) babies back in July 2007 with Riley, (3) babies March 1, 2008 with Squeaky (his daughter from July 2007) and Riley is due again anytime now, she's huge. So, there's no doubt he sowed his wild oats.

Alas, rest-in-peace old chum. It was difficult watching the trash truck haul you away...

Pineapple Angle Lush Dessert

Oh, it might look like the leaning tower of pizza but don't be fooled. JoAnne and Emilie whipped up this bad boy for Easter and it was goooooood! It's called Pineapple Angle Lush. The recipe can be found at kraftfoods.com or by clicking the link above.

And here is JoAnne and Emilie's handy work once again. Good ole fashioned colored Easter eggs. The dark colored egg is one layed by our chickens - either Ethel, Lucy or New Honey. The others are store bought. Our chickens are brown egg layers and as the commercial jingle goes, 'brown eggs are local eggs and local eggs are fresh' and you ain't gonna get eggs any fresher that ours. However, brown eggs are not the best or preferred for coloring and you can see why. One of the white store eggs came cracked, so we went to the bull pen (baseball term) or rather the chicken pen to have an even dozen.

Frye-Alator Makes VARSITY Team

Breaking News - This just in...

Once again I am happy and VERY proud to report that Stephanie has made the 2008 girls high school VARSITY Softball team! She was one of only four sophomore girls to make the varsity team.

Also, on a similar note Stephanie's been asked, has accepted, will be going to and has already purchased a beautiful pink dress for the WHS junior/senior prom on May 9th. Yes, I know I know, she's only a sophomore, so you can understand my trepidation. Perhaps more on this later after I've had more time to digest the whole situation...

Visiting Tom's

We've had some wild turkey's visiting us recently. There were (7) one evening making their way from the backyard to cross the street, and more than likely go to roost for the night. A couple days later, first thing in the morning, we had three visiting and eating a breakfast of spilled bird seed from the bird feeders, see pictures.


Above is a strutt'n Tom striking a pose.


This picture shows what's known as the 'beard' hanging from it's chest. The beard is actually a tuft of feathers that grow from the chest. Both males and female turkey's have this beard but it's much more prominent on the males. The males are typically larger birds with spurs on their legs that get bigger with age.


Here's another Tom making his way along the side of the neighbors house on a chilly morning with smoke billowing from the chimney.

Determining Dog Life Expectancy

Popular myth suggests that "one human year equals seven dog years". This is inaccurate on two scores, since dogs grow rapidly the first two years; the first year or two years represent some 18-25 years and 4 years per human year after that. This ratio varies with size and breed.

No one formula for dog to human age conversion is scientifically agreed. Here is a rough approximation:

Morea Easter Bunnies 2008

Oreo has joined the ranks of motherhood again. She had (6) and they were born on Tuesday night March 4th, so they're 11 days old today and just starting to open their eyes. She had six babies during her last pregnancy so she's consistant and a good mother. These babies are going to be beautiful;their marking and coloring are stunning.



Here's mother and babies in their nest box. Yes, the cage is small but it serves the purpose for now and allows me to bring them in the basement (maternity ward) to the dismay of JoAnne.

Here is an updated picture of Salt and Pepper's litter of 9. They're getting big and up for adoption now!

The Shared Parenting Petition

Please participate in this new campaign and sign the SHARED PARENTING PETITION.

Click the "Sign the SHARED PARENTING PETITION" icon below to be taken directly to the petition.

Your help is needed to demonstrate the public support which exists for Shared Parenting. For years public officials have heard about the millions of people who support Shared Parenting and family law reform. Unfortunately they rarely see this sentiment expressed, which leads them to question it's existence. We need to demonstrate that support in a tangible way.

The goal is to generate as many electronic and physical signatures on the petition as possible. Thereafter ACFC will print and bind all the signatures into a book which will be presented to Congress as part of the DC Rally 2008 weekend.

Petition results will be further parsed for use in activities related to framing public policy not only at the national level, but at the state level as well.

Once you've signed the petition, please help PASS IT ALONG.

The American Coalition for Fathers and Children

New Lawn-Mowing-Machine

The ballots are in and the decision's been made - we're buying a new lawn-mowing-machine!

We've chosen the Craftsman 24 hp 42 in. Deck, DYS 4500 Lawn Tractor, see below! After you say Craftsman 24 hp 42 in. Deck, DYS 4500 lawn tractor you need to grunt like Tim Allen. You know what I'm talking about.

We chose this specific model because it has a 'Handy cup holder'. Cmon, I need to put my beer someplace. You have no idea just how much beer I spilled over the years using my other tractor simply because it didn't have cup holder. So you see I am actually saving money by stepping up into this new model...

Rock on - bring on the warm weather and grass cutting season!

They're Here! Well Some...

Guinea Pig Update:

Squeaky popped out three piglets one week ago today (03/01/2008). They greeted us on Saturday morning when we went down to check the maternity ward. She is doing a great job for a first time mom.

Riley is now a grandmother with the arrival of Squeaky's three. However, she has yet to have delivered her babies, which is surprising since she is huge and getting bigger. I was guessing the two would have their babies around the same time but I was mistaken.

You see in my previous post I wrote that the expectant mothers were approximately 63 days along in their pregnancies. However, 63 days is the approximate time that I put the male in the same cage as the females and not necessarily how long they've been pregnant. Apparently he took a fancy to Squeaky and hooked up with her first. Riley, having been through the pregnancy process before, prolly fought of his advanced knowing full well what was to come. Ah, but you can't fight mother nature and of course true love or perhaps animal lust. Stay tuned...

One Little, Two Little, Three Little...

We have two guinea pigs that are expecting any day now; they're HUGE and about to explode! The gestation period for guinea pigs is typically between 60 and 70 days. These two are at approximately day 63 today.

Riley is the piggy on the right and that's her daughter Squeaky on the left that was born on July 4, 2007. Squeaky was one of four piglets born that day and the only we got stuck with, err I mean, that we kept. Of course I didn't learn the first time around, so here we go again. Stay tuned, updates and pictures to follow...

Frosty?

We had a pretty good nor'easter last Friday that dumped about 6" or so. It wasn't too bad a storm as the snow was light and fluffy and easy to shovel; not the best for snowballs and snowman making though.

However, Saturday morning we noticed this unique snowman at the neighbors house across the street. An elderly woman lives there so we found this snowman out of place, especially because the snow wasn't good for snowman making remember, so we took the following picture.



A couple of days later after the weather warmed and the snow began to melt we looked for the neighbors snowman but he wasn't there. Where could he have gone? It wasn't that warm to melt him away or was it?! Instead what we saw in it's place was an old tire, see below picture. That mother nature sure is creative.

Hydrangea pH Play

Q: How do I change the pH in my soil to change the color of my hydrangeas?

A: It's easy to modify your soil's pH. Start with the Hydrangea macrophylla variety. Soil that is on the acid side (pH between 4.5 and 5.5) will produce blue hydrangeas. Once established, you must fertilize them yearly with an acid fertilizer according to the package directions. When you plant initially, modify the soil with two pounds of sulfur and peat moss. If you want pink to light red hydrangeas, the soil needs to be neutral to alkaline, with a pH of 6.5 to 7.5. Add ground limestone only around the plant to make the blossoms pink. A pH above 7.5 will result in poor growth.

Frye-Alator Makes All-Star Team

I am happy and VERY proud to report that Stephanie made the 2008 Bay State Conference Girls Ice Hockey "All Star" game! She was one of only three from her Walpole team to make the "All Star" team.

Each girl was announced to the crowd and acknowledged before the start of the game and presented with a certificate for making the "All Star" team. Here's Stephanie below receiving her award -

Stephanie skated hard and played very well and had an excellent scoring opportunity but was robbed by a hot goalie. Despite their efforts and a hard fought battle, her team Herget lost to team Carey.

Stephanie, I am VERY proud of you! Love Dad

Easter Bunnies 2008

Here are a couple pictures of the most recent addition to the Lincoln Street menagerie. Nine adorable, happy and healthy baby bunnies! The mother, Salt & Pepper, believe it or not had ten babies, YES, ten babies! Unfortunately, one didn't make it but incredibly she has done a terrific job raising the other 9 little ones.

If I planned it right these little guys will be old enough, weened and ready for adoption a couple of weeks before Easter.



These are mini lop bunnies and the picture below shows one ear already drooping at 12 days.



Emilie has been chomping at the bit to take them out and hold them but they're still too young yet. Soon enough and then she'll have her hands full trying to contain all nine...

Birthday Bumper Bowling

Birthday bumper bowling - now try saying that 3-times real fast. Once you've mastered that try the ole, "how much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood"...

The 3 of us went bumper bowling for Emilie's birthday and we had a blast. Here's Emilie trying to pickup the spare -

No more score sheets and no more pencils and no more need to push the button to reset the pins at the end of each set, the entire experience is now computerized.

Here is one of our game scores -

Ficco's Bowladrome

Frye-alator Starts Cooking in Wins

It was snowing pretty good last Saturday night as I drove to my oldest daughter's varsity ice hockey game. The storm didn't drop too much snow but Stephanie sure did, as she brought her "A" game on this night. It was a very exciting game, fun to watch especially #9, the Frye-alator!

Walpole 3, Norwood 1

Sophomore center Stephanie Frye scored a pair of goals including the second period game-winner leading the Rebels past the host Mustangs on Saturday.

Midway through the second Frye and Cosby (2 assists) worked a 2-on-1 with Frye getting in alone on goal to give Walpole (5-9-1, 3-5-1) a 2-0 lead. “They played very well,” said Rebels coach of his top line of Frye, Cosby and Lennon.

Pachyderm Poop

Time is flying - we're just about mid-way through February. Spring is right around the corner and will be here before we know it. With that said and in preparation for some happy, health and hearty plants, here is some good information on manures and their uses -

Q: Ringling Brothers gives away elephant manure when the circus comes to Atlanta. Is pachyderm poop good for my garden? What is the best manure for gardening?

A: Assuming that the circus elephants are American born (there are no federal restrictions on their waste, although manure from imported animals must be burned or buried), elephant manure can be as useful as any other. However, we do not know the nutrient content. Horse manure is generally regarded as the best; it's rich in nitrogen, and it ferments easily. Cow or horse manure applied in the early spring is best for flower gardens; chicken, cow, or horse manure applied in the spring and fall is best for vegetable gardens; cow or horse manure applied in the fall is best for potatoes or root crops. For acid-loving plants, cow or horse manure should be applied in the early fall or not at all. Never use fresh manure. Another excellent manure is sheep manure. Sheep chew their cud so finely that there are no weed seeds being inadvertently applied to your garden bed. Make sure all manure is aged or composted.

Click here to be taken to the Old Farmer's Almanac gardening question of the day.

Identify the Tracks II

Emilie and I walked up to the ball fields/playground this morning. It snowed over night and everything was covered in a white layer of snow; it was beautiful and very peaceful.

As we typically do, the camera came along too. Here are some tracks that were left behind in the snow from various critters. Can you identify them? How bout I make this a little easier as a multiple choice quiz. Here are some possibilities to choose from - Coyote, Fox, Dog, Emilie, Squirrel and rabbit - GO

When I Was A Kid...

When I was a kid, we didn't have fancy swings like they have today, see below. If you were lucky you'd have a swing in your back yard and if not you'd have to hoof-it down to the playground for some swing time fun. Even then the swing would be hangin from some old rusty chains with spurs that would cut your hand if you slid them up and down and the seat, well the seat, would be some old, worn out, torn, black canvas thing-a-ma-bob that would pinch your ass as you swung and leave scuff marks on the seat of your Tough Skins - yeah that's right, my mother dressed me in tough-skins but that was the style back then and I looked good! With all that said we were happy with what we had.

Ok, Ok, so I'm not that old but I did wear Tough Skins, which were first introduced in 1971, and I looked good. However, the kids today do have quite the playgrounds as compared to those of 10, 15, 20 years ago.

Here is what the kids of today have to play on. This particular playground was built this past fall just up the street from us; less than 1/2 mile. Emilie is excited and loves it, so we'll be taking advantage of it and getting some exercise too walking up and back.

Identify the Tracks

Can you identify what animal left the following tracks?

As always, a lollipop goes to the winner.

Blue Bird 2008

It's the beginning of February and we already have visiting Blue Birds! I saw one on Saturday and tried to get a picture but was too slow. Today, well that's another story; today I was able to take a handful of pictures of these visitors. I was ecstatic to see not one, not two, not three but FOUR Blue Birds bee-bopping around our back yard!

Potentially even more good news too. The above picture shows one of the Blue Birds sitting atop of a bird house I built. Actually, there have been two of these bug eating machines checking this house out - in and out and sitting on top. The location is attractive, as it's hanging amongst our raspberry plants, which I would guess is prime bug catching real-estate. Our fingers are crossed and we're hoping that they'll move in come Spring!

Here's one taking a break on one end of Emilie's swing set.

And here's a third one sitting on the other end of Emilie's swing set with the neighbors shed in the background.

Think Spring...

Numero Uno...

Were there any doubts? Rock on...

I'd like to thank all the folks that took time out of their busy schedules to participate in the poll! I will do my best to continue the work I've started and that you've all come to enjoy and rely on.

FYI - I actually prefer the Samao's Girl Scout cookies to the Do-Si-dos, go figure and with coconut too...

Tom

I was not the only one visiting my farmer friend last weekend. However, these turkeys are regulars on his lands and have actually grown accustomed to my friend and typically allow him to mingle and work amongst them.

This is a Tom

Come spring and summer time the hens will emerge with their clutches of babies and a turkey-boom will occur. However, there are simply too many predators (coyotes, owls, hawks, foxes and raccoons. There is also a new predator on the block or actually one that's making a comeback; the Fisher) and only a handful of the new chicks will make it to adulthood.

These are some of the hens

Click here to learn more about turkeys, "MassWildlife Turkey Learning Kit".

Click here to learn more about Fishers, "Wild Things Unlimited - The Fisher".

Pig Pile, Perhaps

I took advantage of some free time and drove down to my farmer friends place yesterday. I hadn't visited or spoken to him since just before Thanksgiving, so a visit was long overdue.

The weather wasn't too bad;cold and a little windy but bearable and as it turned out I was put to work not long after I arrived moving and stacking bails of hay, which kept us warm. We also had a burning barrel going, so when we'd take a break we would gather around it to keep toasty warm.


Burning barrel -

We used the burning barrel to keep warm but the pigs used a different method. These particular pigs are penned with an enormous pile of compost, which is by design. Pigs are rooting-type animals therefore in their search for tidbits of food they'll root through this pile of compost in short order. This accomplishes a number of things; the pigs are kept busy doing when they enjoy, they're able to find snacks for themselves and the pile of compost is constantly rotated and turned, which aides in the composting process. Also, the composting process keeps the pile itself hot and the pigs take advantage of this and dig themselves in to keep warm.


Steaming compost pile with napping piglets -


The same steaming compost pile with napping piglets, only a close up -

January Nor'easter

We got hit by the first Nor'easter of 2008. It started sometime after midnight on Sunday and went well into Monday. Most of the area towns were ahead of the storm and issued school cancellations Sunday night. Emilie's school was one of them, so I worked at home and got to spend the day with her and shovel too.

Here are a few pictures of Emmie enjoying the snow -



Here she is looking over the porch railing into the backyard. You can get a good idea just how much snow we had by how much has accumulated on the railing.



Here she is eating and licking some of the snow she just had to throw at the door, mmmm yummy!


And here she is stretching out and rolling around on the porch.

First WIN of Season!!

This just in...

"Walpole center Stephanie Frye (aka, “The Frye-alator”) took a long pass from Duffy with just under five minutes remaining in the game and broke into the Norwood zone with only Walsh (goalie) standing between her and the net. When Walsh came out of the net to cut the angle off and play the puck, Frye juked left, slid the puck into an open net, and sealed Walpole’s first victory of the season."

What the article doesn't mention is that in the first period Stephanie collided with an opposing player as they were both charging for the puck. The end result was Stephanie slamming her head on the ice when they fell. Although she played the rest of the game she was hurting; she had a terrible headache, as well as very dizzy and lightheaded, both of which persisted after the game. A trip to the local hospital emergency room for a CAT scan, thankfully, showed NO signs of a concussion.

You can read the entire article here, Walpole girls hockey grab first win of season.

Vasilopita 2008

In keeping with our family tradition we all gathered at my aunt and uncles house on New Years Day for a nice diner followed by the cutting of the vasilopita (dime cake). My Uncle has been cutting the cake for as long as I can remember. In that time I can't recall if the dime was ever found in any of his pieces over the years. Well, this year it was, well sort of. The dime was actually in the middle of the cut between his piece and my aunts, so they get to split the good fortune for 2008 (five cents a piece hahaha).

Happy New Year!

The picture above is the actual piece showing the location of the dime.

Click here to see last years Vasilopita posting...

Second Opinion

The doctor said, "Bill, the good news is I can cure your headaches. The bad news is that it will require castration. You have a very rare condition, which causes your testicles to press on your spine and the pressure creates one hell of a headache. The only way to relieve the pressure is to remove the testicles.
"Bill was shocked and depressed. He wondered if he had anything to live for. He had no choice but to go under the knife.

When he left the hospital, he was without a headache for the first time in 20 years, but he felt like he was missing an important part of himself. As he walked down the street, he realized that he felt like a different person. He could make a new beginning and live a new life. He saw a men's clothing store and thought, "That's what I need ... a new suit."

He entered the shop and told the salesman, "I'd like a new suit."
The elderly tailor eyed him briefly and said, "Let's see... Size 44, long."
Bill laughed, "That's right. How did you know?"
"Been in the business 60 years!" the tailor said.
Bill tried on the suit, it fit perfectly. As Bill admired himself in the mirror, the salesman asked, "How about a new shirt?"
Bill thought for a moment and then said, "Sure."
The salesman eyed Bill and said, "Let's see, 34 sleeves and 16-1/2 neck."
Bill was surprised, "That's right. How did you know?"
"Been in the business 60 years."
Bill tried on the shirt and it fit perfectly. Bill walked comfortably around the shop, and the salesman asked, "How about some new underwear?"
Bill thought for a moment and said, "Sure."
The salesman said, "Let's see... size 36."
Bill laughed, "Ah ha! I got you, I've worn size 34 since I was 18 years old."
The salesman shook his head, "You can't wear size 34. Size 34 would press your testicles up against the base of your spine and give you one hell of a headache.

"New suit - $400
New shirt - $36
New underwear - $6
Second Opinion - PRICELESS

Happy New Year 2008

**Warning **: For the adult male readers of SFrye732_blog, Happy New Year! -
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k228/re-werx/HappyNewYear.jpg

The Apprentice

How bout some post Christmas plumbing?!

Not only did Santa deliver endless pairs of shoes to Emilie "Imelda Marcos" but he also left a brandy new kitchen faucet for my dad. More proof that he'd been hitting the sauce I'd say. Oh don't get me wrong that was a nice gift, a needed gift and very thoughtful of the jolly ole feller BUT what he failed to include was installation. Well doesn't that pose a dilemma...?

As you can see from the picture above, dilemma solved.

Emilie gave me a hand removing the old faucet and installing the new. Of course I had some trepidation going into this project for fear that it would turn into what I affectionately refer to as a "Frye project". A "Frye project" is one that should be straight forward but turns into anything but. Although we ran into a few minor challenges removing the old one, once out, the new faucet installed without a hitch with the end result being a success.