We went out tonight and forgot to feed the fire before leaving.  As a result, it was chilly when we got home.  Thankfully, we know how to get it hot fast to heat the house up quickly.  Also, thankfully 800 square feet (not counting lofts) heat up quick.  I'm sure if our home were bigger, it would take longer.

Today has been a day of housework and collecting more firewood.  Firewood is a constant.  If it is not being gathered from the woods to the wood piles, it is being gathered from the wood piles to the porch or from the porch to the inside pile.  Today, the porch and inside pile needed stacked.  What is brought inside during the day is used through the day and into the night so that by the time breakfast is over it needs to be restocked.  The porch is if we happen to go through all the wood and need more during the night.  Or if it is raining (yeah, right) or in the event of ice or some other reason we don't want to go the 20 feet to the wood pile outside. 

This area needs rain.  It keeps missing us.  Farmers are getting very disgruntled.  Their ponds are dangerously low and that is how their cattle get water to drink.  The wells are running low also.  One guy was saying he doesn't remember ever going this long without rain.  I don't know how long it has been since we've had a good rain.  We had half an hour over night last week.  We've had rain in the forecast lots of times.  But it seems to either go around us or build here and dump north of here.  There is now a burn ban on and that (from what people say) rarely happens. 

Tomorrow is Friday which means I will be at R's again giving her a hand.  I have the pot roast put together and on the wood burner so it will be nicely done for dinner tomorrow.  I'll make a beef stew out of the left-overs for Saturday. 

Saturday is Veteran's Appreciation day and we will be attending that.  It will be interesting to see how that goes.  It starts at noon and goes until 5:00.