Happy First Day of Spring 2022

Happy First Day of Spring, everyone!  I am so happy to see these little pollinators today.  They were feeding on the dandelion flowers in our backyard.  It's so amazing to see them hogging each flower as they transfer to the other. 

Love your bees.  Leave a small patch of weed flowers like this when you are mowing.

 

 

 

 

Thank you for sharing!

It's A Pajama-Kind-of-Weather Today

It was raining all afternoon, thank goodness.  It was pouring. The weather is so nice that I was feeling very lazy and sleepy all day. I sat on the back porch while sipping hot coffee after lunch while watching and listening to the heavy rains pouring down.  The temperature wasn't that cold, but I felt more comfortable with socks on.

How about you? How was the weather in your area today?

How to Prevent Ticks

Our dog Jompyong.

Tick bites can be harmful to animals and humans. These external parasites feed on the blood of their hosts and need to be taken care of as quickly as possible. Professional tick treatment is available. These pests can be treated quickly, but the best course of action is prevention. Stopping them before they spread diseases is always the right choice. 

Look Out for Your Pets

There are tick sprays and collars that you can put on your pets to keep them safe. You do not want them to get a disease from ticks or to pass ticks to you and your family. By shielding your pet from ticks, you are also keeping your home and family safe. 

Watch Out for Trees

Ticks thrive in shady and moist areas. You want to have these areas pre-treated to deter ticks. You should make sure that you never pile up tree debris too close to your home or deck. Do not build playgrounds in areas with a lot of surrounding trees either. Ticks do not do well in sunny spaces, so try to clear out the land right around your home for additional safety. 

Lawn Care

Ticks like to hide in tall grasses and in leave piles. You want to keep your yard mowed and get rid of leaf litter. Your yard will look good and ticks will stay away from your property if they have no reason to be drawn to it. 

Look for Them

The best way to stop ticks is to stop them before they attach to people or pets. Search fences and brick walls for signs of these pests. You want to make sure that these areas are pre-treated by professionals to stop ticks quickly. 

Professionals

Call professionals to prevent ticks. They can spray a barrier around your property that will kill ticks on contact. Experts can also implement other methods like tick tubes to make sure that you do not have to worry about ticks affecting your health and comfort. 

Ticks can be a tricky problem. It is always smart to bring in a professional company to take care of your needs fast and efficiently. Ticks can be prevented or treated so that you can have a normal life without having to worry about these disease carrying pests invading your property.

Bird On A Sign

Mockingbird.

Bird watching?  Not really.   I just love taking pictures of birds whenever there is a chance. They are quick so sometimes I had to be very slow and quiet so they won't fly away.  

This mockingbird was tweeting lively on a post across the road in front of our house.  I was standing in front of my husband's truck, as you can see, that's the roof top of the truck.  It makes me feel good to see and hear birds singing around.

5 Ways to Winterize Your UTV

Winter can be tough on your UTV. Even with modifications and cold-weather equipment, you still have to contend with snow, sleet, ice and freezing temperatures that can sneak into your engine and steal your power.

The good news is that there are certain precautions you can take to lessen winter's deadly grip on your UTV. They may not be foolproof, but they'll block the worst of the elements and keep you running no matter how many polar vortexes come your way. Here are just five tips for winterizing your side-by-side.

1. Check Your Fluids

Make it a point of checking your fluids before you head out. If they're too frozen or chunky to be operational, you'll need to warm up your UTV before you can take it anywhere. This is also something that should be done gradually and not all at once.

2. Be Careful With Your Antifreeze

In the same vein as the above, remember that winter comes with different rules for antifreeze. More specifically, you shouldn't be topping it off with water anymore. That can induce swelling in cold temperatures.

3. Throw Out Your Old Fuel

If you haven't ridden your UTV in awhile, you shouldn't take it out with the same old gas that's been sitting in it for months. Your engine can get so gummed up with bad fuel that it stalls in the middle of the wilderness, and what will you do then?

4. Buy Cold Weather Parts

Look for UTV parts that are made for snowy banks and icy terrain. For example, you might buy track systems to get through the slush or skid plates to protect your vehicle from chunks of frozen ice and dirt. You should also look into things like windshields and cab enclosures to keep the frost out of your face.

5. Check Your Tire Pressure

If your UTV goes from cold to hot to cold again, your tires can start swelling and deflating in time with the temperature. This will result in a loss of tire pressure that might require you to purchase completely new wheels.

When the temperature starts dropping, these tips can be the difference between a dead UTV and one that powers through the snow no matter how thickly it falls. If you're serious about staying on the road despite bad weather, follow these guidelines for winterizing your side-by-side.

www.sidebysidestuff.com

Winter Wonderland In North Texas

Snow on the trees in the backyard.

So we got snow again today.  The winter storm advisory took effect at 6:00 A.M. this morning until 6:00 P.M. tomorrow, Saturday night.  We had about 2 inches of snow here in our area.  Dallas and some parts of Northeast Texas had snow up to 4 inches deep. The temperature was between 26 to 29 degrees Fahrenheit all day.

We didn't have plans to go out this morning but my darling daughter asked for Chicken and Cheese Wraps for breakfast.  I don't have them in the refrigerator so we drove to the gas station close by to buy the food that she's wanting.

A dove up high in the tree.

DD checking how deep the snow is.

Since it's below freezing temperature, I decided to buy a stack of firewood. It sells $25 at the gas station.  Pretty high priced.  I built a fire at the fireplace as soon as we got home because we were shivering cold. :)  My husband came home from work at about 1:30 in the afternoon.

The ground is all white except the roads.

Dense Fog

Fog

It's a foggy day today.  Actually, it started coming last night.  There's a dense fog warning so driving in this condition is very dangerous especially in the evening.

I thought it'll clear up today. I will go out to do some errands sometime this afternoon.  I almost forgot that I have a package to ship.  

(Nevada, TX)

Wordless Wednesday: These Clouds Look Weird

Wordless Wednesday: Donkey On The Loose

Weekend Snapshots: Flower Bed

Flower bed

 It's about time to tend my flower bed in front of my house.  It has been are for a year now.  The only plant in there was the miniature rose that my mother-in-law gave me as gift on my birthday three years ago.  It's a shame that I didn't take care of my flower garden.  But now, I am determined to make it look great.  

Oklahoma Rose.

 Last Saturday, I worked on putting bricks around the edges of the flower bed.  My husband bought some garden soil and he spread them evenly in the flower bed.  Few days later I bought a couple of rose bushes from Lowe's.  One is called Oklahoma Rose, the other is Golden Yellow Rose.  According to the description, both have big fragrant blooms.  We'll see.

A house spider on the water hose.

 After the work's done, it was time to water.  When I was about to grab the water hose, I saw this black fuzzy-looking spider.  It freaked me out!  I called my husband to have him get rid of the arachnid.  He said it's a house spider and it's not dangerous.  Still, 'gave me goosebumps. 

Anyway, next thing I'd do is to fill the space in the flower bed with little flowering plants.

Weekend Snapshots: Na-Na And Paw-Paw's Flowering Plants

My darling daughter and I went to visit her grandparents this week.  We spend the nights Wednesday and Thursday.  When we arrived Wednesday afternoon, the folks were at the back porch.  Mom was picking flowers and Dad was tending the backyard.  Oh what a lovely time to spend in the backyard looking at these colorful flowers of different shapes and sizes.  I felt so relaxed after a long drive.

Gardenia

Hydrangea

Lily