How to Catch a Sheep like a 10 Year Old

Look, we got 9 cucumbers. See, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.

That's from Mom's kitchen garden. Yep, absolutely beautiful.

Yep.

Y'all, y'all hear Jonah pounding away? Um, he's working on the lane. We got the Premier One sent us some stuff for Cataline. They make the fencing stuff, and he's excited to put it up. So we'll see what he did in a minute. Look, look who just came up. Look who's doing just fine. Half of y'all said he had a seizure, the other half said a concussion. You know, the way he was just like going nuts at first, I'm gonna say it was a seizure. But everybody say, from what we can find, is if it's good after 24 hours It's no problems. Look at that. Normal eye-age. Just coming right up. Just being the normal cuddly royal self. It's the evening. Good evening. I rarely start the vlog in the evening. But I had a very special day. Beauty and I celebrated our 17th year anniversary. We couldn't get a babysitter on the date, June 23rd. So we got one today. What'd we do? We went used bookstore shopping in downtown Asheville. Major score here, major score. Classic from Rodale. Ooh, it's a, uh, The Problem Solver. You look up problems in here, it's got the answers. You can trust stuff from Rodale. It's one of the original organic gardening sources. Also classic, we met her, we met her on the road. This is Elliot Coleman's wife, Barbara. Oh my, I won't try that last name, Barbara. I don't want to. This is a classic. This is a good keeper. Basics in Gardening. And this is like tub reading. Michael Pollan. I guess this is kind of like theory. A Gardener's Education. This is when he started gardening. And I guess it's a, um, what do you call this? Good, good job, Gideon. $6 for this. That's ridiculous. The hack there The public library. Friends of the Library. Go to your public library. They're selling used books there. That's where we got these. Good score. Let's go do the chores. What are you doing, you bucket head? Come on, bucket head. You gonna do the chores with us? Okay, bring your bike. Where is it?

It's down.

It's just there.

Jonah, Jonah, what have you done? You know, I came home from our date and I looked and I saw your little head over the corn over here working on this fence in the hot— the heat of the day. That's what you want to do on your day off? Tell me what you got going here, buddy. Tell everybody what you did.

So there was all this different netting here that was all tangled and ruined, so I took off that and I put these new insulators in. And you can use them on two different T-posts. So you put the T-post on and see this thing, you put that down in there. So you open that up, you put the rope in, you put that back down, and it holds the rope.

Nice. This is to connect to hot wires, and you can easily disconnect. Oh, you see what I'm saying? And now there's not power coming to it.

Nope.

So you'd have to make it so that you won't have to hold this. Because as soon as you hold that and connect it, you'll get shocked.

Yeah, you don't want to do that.

That's what it's for. Yeah, you get it? Like, you can easily get power off this by pinching it.

Yeah, we're touching it.

Cool. And that will— this can electrify your— connect your top and your bottom line. That's very smart, Jonah. Now, how are you going to keep— when we're not— you— when we're not going across the road with the lane, how are you going to keep the fence off the ground? That's what I asked him, and he figured out this He solved this problem himself because before we've just been laying these on the ground.

Yeah, and it would, it would ground them all out, so I just did this.

Yeah, so you— okay, so you put a T-post way back here so you bring your gate back.

Yeah, and whenever you're done using it, take it back out.

Yep, I like it. Is it Mama approved?

Yeah, because when I touch it, I don't want to, uh I don't want to get shocked, but I'm looking at this stuff.

Watch me, watch me, watch me!

Okay, good job, buddy. You out here barefoot? We just call you Marjorie Wildcraft. You're more than welcome. Marjorie Wildcraft, y'all. I was wondering if she would— I was wondering if she'd be barefoot in November, trying to ground. Like these kids. That's where they've been, this is where they're going. You think they're ready? Are you guys ready? Are you ready? Just one more second. There's one piece to our cross fence and one reel. Do we have another post? We need one more post. Yes, they will. There's another shade tree down the lane. They've had a lane down to this shade tree into their minerals. Look, the manure is attracting these Beautiful butterflies. And there's some compaction under here from them being here for several days, but they've gifted this tree with some manure. I think it'll balance itself out. Now that we've moved further down this pasture, we have other shade trees here to spread the impact. Let's stop them right here. Come on. Hey, you got a post?

You don't need a post there.

I do. I got to stop him from going back to this tree over there. I think we'll make this work.

Look, look. No, it'll work if you put it on this.

I'm going to. Good idea. Good idea. Great minds think alike. We're going to get you, buddy. Just give me a second. I don't think I could ever grow tired of this part of the job. Putting cows to their new grass. I could film that and get excited about that every day. Do a lot of things every day on this farm. This is one of the few things that I never grow tired of. Cutting and dropping in the crop garden.

Some bugs that we got.

Oh good. Yeah, Japanese beetle. Japanese beetles love you.

The, uh, here, like right here, there's these plants. These, these are little eggs, and I just go like that and get them in there.

Nice.

I'm taking the bug population down, but we don't have that many— we don't have that much bug pressure.

It's hard for them to find it in this cover crop.

Yeah. I have bad news though.

Why?

Down there where we thought was Big Max, huh? It's an acorn squash.

We thought we were planting a big pumpkin. Well, got an acorn squash.

I think that probably what happened is that the mouse moved things around and maybe he ate— oh look, we have a spaghetti squash here.

What has 8 feet on either side to grow?

Yeah, it's got plenty of space. It's, it's got a very nice acorn squash that we will very much eat. So it could be also that it got mixed up. Yeah, so there could be a Big Mac somewhere in here.

Okay, I guess we might find it.

We'll find it when it comes.

Hey Jonah, we got to get some of this grass off this, this chicken fence. So you want to get the string trimmer or your scythe? How is it being barefoot in this garden?

Um, it's okay. I did step on a, uh, a spike of some sort of a thorny something or other.

Hey Papa, you said when you got back from the field you take off your boots.

Oh, that's true, that's true. You know what, I'm gonna wait till I string trim this jungle. Because there could be big old snakes, and then I'll do it. Oh, you chose the string trimmer!

Faster.

Got the machine part done. Now let's put the fence back. We've got it. On. I'm going barefoot. You want to go with me barefoot? Sure. Josiah is begging me to go barefoot.

You said you would after camping in the pasture. Okay, you're gonna go move the sheep?

Let's go move the sheep. Marjorie, are you seeing this? The Rhodes have joined the club. We've joined the barefoot— whoa, that fence is on!

You almost touched it.

No, I touched it. I touched it good. You think that's funny? My sweaty back touching that fence. Oh yeah, let's see this. Come here, Mama's showing you some love. Oh, they're coming.

Oh yeah, they're eating them up. They're seeing them.

Oh, they see them.

Oh yeah, they're like, those little fuckers are moving.

Kind of reminds me of my childhood. Barefoot all summer. We're at the sheep, we're gonna move them. Jonah's wanting to catch one like Andy taught him. Okay. Oh, they're on to you.

They are.

Hold still, guys. You got it! Get him on his side, get him on his side, get his legs that are close to the ground. Yep, there you go, perfect.

I think this is the one that I actually tamed too. It was heavy.

You got an audience. Now wait, how many days have they been in here, Jonah?

Two.

Why did they not mow this evenly?

Yeah, they did. Yeah, they did.

We're having a problem here. They're not mowing it even like they have been, Beck. I don't know if it's because they had pooped in here on the first cycle or what, but that's not gonna look too great. Happy sheep on grass, happy cows on grass, happy chickens on grass, happy feet, happy bear, happy human feet on Happy humans on grass.

That's right.

Tomorrow.

Sweaty humans on grass.

You think we can do it, Mom? Finish the Chick Shawl?

I hope so.

Not a lot more thought though, so maybe we can get it done.

Yeah, it's Jonas' bed.

A lot more construction. No more this.

Turn it off, Papa, turn it off!

Not much more of this.

No!

We won't turn it off.