Flat Creek Farm

Road Trip ~ Re-routed

2012-01-20T22:20:00.001-06:00

This wasn’t the trip we originally planned for today, but we always enjoy a trip up the road to Amish Country.

Bantams.. need some bantams…

It’s official – I really want some guineas too! Beautiful feathers, interesting faces…

Lots of fun and games at recess. Seems it was recess at each of the schools we passed. Such a cold day, but they didn’t seem to mind.

Scenic views on the way home…

All in all, a very good day, enjoying peace and quiet.
Sending all of you lots of peaceful, quiet, uninterrupted moments. Priceless!

My First {Human} Photo Session

2012-01-11T13:07:00.001-06:00

A few weeks before Christmas, Fiddler and Girlfriend wanted some photos taken. (Disclaimer, in case any one wonders: I am told these were for gift purposes only ;)) It was fun! They were such easy and natural subjects. We packed the church pew, musical instruments, old quilt, and various other props out to the hay field.

719 photos were taken (seriously). Here is but one of them.

Aren’t they a cute couple? I’m not biased.
At all :)

Canadian Geese ~ A Sunday Blessing

2012-01-08T16:56:00.001-06:00

Visitors on the pond behind our barn.

I hope they stay ♥

2011: The Year in Pictures

2011-12-30T21:56:00.001-06:00

It was a very good year. Here’s wishing you and yours a wonderful 2012, filled with many blessings, much peace and love.

From all of us to all of you.

do you hear what i hear?

2011-12-17T15:31:00.001-06:00

Goldie at almost 5 months…

all legs,

and EARS!

Annual Hee-Haw Tradition

2011-12-09T22:25:00.001-06:00

One to-do was marked off the Christmas list (several more to-dos to do, by the way).

But, for now, these two girls want to stop by with a Christmas message…

In spite of all the hustle and bustle, let’s always remember the reason for the season..

and…

It’s good for all that ails ya!

Double Nickels!

2011-11-27T21:27:00.001-06:00

Hope your Thanksgiving was wonderful and full of much love and gratitude. Ours was!

And, guess who turned double-nickels this weekend? Happy Birthday to my Blacksmith!!!

bona fide

2011-11-15T19:32:00.001-06:00

[boh-nuh fahyd] authentic, true. What does this have to do with anything? It’s just one of my very favorite words. Or would that be two words?

Remember our Goldie Pup? Well, she has finally won over the rest of the family (for the most part). She and Chloe are actually playing in the top left photo, although it looks like a scuffle!

The chickens have been molting, therefore we’ve had very few eggs for the past several weeks. The good news is their feathers are almost all grown back and they are looking good. After months of picking/pecking each other (and actually eating the feathers.. gross!).. they really needed some improvement. Their manners toward each other have thankfully improved as well.

We’ve had some pretty skies… during daytime hours and at night.

Hmmm… what else has been going on around here? I made 35 half-pints, plus 4 pints of Green Tomato Relish (delish – recipe here). We had loads of green tomatoes at the end of the season.

I painted this sign for the Fiddler’s girlfriend (and I didn’t mess it up.. woo hoo!).

Life’s been busy, but good. And bona fide.

{these girls are truly bona fide}

Hope all is well and bona fide with each of you!

A Gander named Gus…

2011-10-24T17:28:00.001-05:00

{and other random thankfulness}

Meet Gus - Greta’s husband #3.

Goose Pen~

and a special latch that my Blacksmith made for me.

Beautiful late October days… we’ve been so spoiled.

Chyna Cat.

A healthy supply of winter wood – almost done!

October evenings and quilts and warm pups.

Keep your eyes open to your mercies. The man who forgets to be thankful has fallen asleep in life.
--Robert Louis Stevenson

Thursday Walkabout: Autumn Delights

2011-10-06T17:49:00.001-05:00

Bee Hive Area.

Our next door neighbor’s lake.

Hope that you’re enjoying the season wherever you are!

Introducing Goldie…

2011-10-05T20:03:00.001-05:00

The newest member of our family -- Mr. W’s 2 month old Mountain Cur puppy.
It’s been a long time since we’ve had a puppy around here, and she is a fireball. Banjo (our almost 10 year old JRT) and Chloe (our 6 year old Corgi mix) are not pleased.

Pecking orders are being established, and slowly things are calming down a bit.

I hope :)

Operation: Sting

2011-09-25T23:40:00.004-05:00

Also known as: Our First Honey Harvest and Extraction

How about some good news first? About 30 pounds of pure liquid gold “clover with a smidgen of wildflower” honey was harvested this weekend.

Casualties: 1 sting for me (over my eye when I took the water hose to rescue Mr. W) , and numerous stings for my Mr. Also, 3 plus stings for the Fiddler (and he wasn’t even on extracting duty, but splitting wood several yards away). We are all fine, and the Fiddler even boasts that his allergies are much better after several stings to the head. Ouch, but maybe a good dose of apitherapy is all he needed?

I have a ton of pictures to take you along with us on the photo story of Honey Harvest 2011, then I’ll close with a list of things we learned.. and also a quick update of what we’ve been up to the past, oh.. month? Good grief, how time flies! Please pardon what is sure to be a record-breaking lengthy post for me as I try and catch up.

Pulling the frames. This method was a good back-saver too (more on that at the end). Frames were pulled individually from the super, and we used the smoker and a turkey feather and bee brush to “tickle” the bees as I called it ;) It actually worked pretty well, and the nine frames were put into a large rubbermaid box. Much lighter to carry back to the ‘honey house’ than the entire super would have been.

Back at the ‘honey house’ (garage), each frame was scraped with a regular serrated knife to uncap, in preparation to place in the extractor.

Cappings were placed over an old oven rack to drain into a plastic box. (Definitely should have used a screen-type cover instead).

Uncapped frames (four at a time) were placed into the basket inside the renovated antique honey extractor.

Cranking away as centrifugal force spins the honey to the sides of the extractor and…

…out the honey gate. Here are the first drops of pure raw unfiltered honey, dripping into the filter over the honey bucket.

The drained cappings also produced an amazing amount of honey. Some bottling was done tonight, but more will be done tomorrow after it settles a few hours.

It is delicious, and beautiful, and oh-so-addictive. Did I also mention we’re firm believers in the healing powers of honey?

It was a little bit of work, mostly in preparation. Things definitely did not go as planned, and as we look back on this experience, those boo-boos seem so funny.

A few things we learned:

those velcro strips on the bee suits are meant to be closed. do not question this!
do not wear holey britches to the bee hive area, especially when bees are already irate because you’re removing ‘your’ share of their honey.
quickly remove empty frames back to the bee hive area for the bees to clean out. do not tarry on this one! The bees WILL find the remnants of honey, and they WILL then take over the entire yard.. and hold humans hostage until they finish it!
Irate bees who invade the yard in search of honey remnants like to bury themselves in your hair. This produces a little dance we call “the bee dance” and gives the neighbors something to talk about as they drive by.

All in all, I think we did great though.. and we are looking forward to next year’s beekeeping experiences.

******

Now, a quick update of what we’ve been up to the past month. Mr. W had his second back surgery of 2011 earlier this month. He is doing great, and plans to return to work in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, he’s been doing everything he can possibly do that doesn’t involve lifting, twisting, pushing, pulling, etc. Including coaching the wood-gettin’ team.

We also had a wonderful two-day visit with Osage Bluff Quilter and Blacksmith a couple weeks ago. Read about our Amish trip here on Patti’s blog – she’s a much better blogger than I am. Oh, how I wish we would have taken pics of those wonderful fried pies.. but we snarfed them right up! And, the same thing happened with Osage Bluff Quilter’s homemade Peach Salsa (the BEST in the world!) – all I have is an empty jar to show! We even got to visit with them the following weekend at the Heritage Festival – check that event out here.

If you’ve stayed with me this long… bless your heart! Thanks for stopping by.. and hope all is well in your neck o’ the woods!

Till next time…

Updated to link to:

As Summer Fades

2011-08-29T12:56:00.001-05:00

Where has this month, and Dear Summer gone? We have been busy, but somehow it seems there is a new priority every day… and we keep spinning around in circles. Does anyone else feel like that? Here’s some randomness that’s been happening in our neck of the woods.

We said goodbye to an old wagon heirloom last week (Peter Shetler).

I’ve been working on a new pen as time allows. It will be “Fort Knox” for geese (Greta and her future new gander friend), plus a hangout for roosters occasionally. This will consist of 3x6 foot panels with hardware cloth (14 of them). I chose the panel method so I can change my mind in the future and possibly move the pen or expand. You just never know :) There will be something over the top to deter raccoons and other predators. I never ever want a repeat of what happened to Grady Gander :(

Yesterday was planing day for the walnut lumber we milled last Spring. It was dry and ready to go. Hmmm, we will have to choose special projects for this dear old tree from our backyard that turned out to be our first sawmill project!

Our Hive #2 of Bees (we thought they were Carniolans) had a problem. They were without a Queen. While we were debating what to do, it seems the bees took matters into their own hands. Hive #1 (the Italians) started taking over Hive #2. We also moved (with Bee Boss’ help) a frame of brood over to Hive #2 from Hive #1. The objective is of course to somehow end up with a Queen in Hive #2. We will check in a few days to see if there is any sign of a new Queen. So exciting! In the meantime, Hive #2 is guzzling *two gallons of sugar water per day*. Amazing.

Finally, I’ll close with a mosaic of our Sunday evening drive from yesterday. Just a few random views from our neighborhood. We shared the camera, depending on who had the best view at the time!

Also, Mr. W has had a recurrence of his back woes. We are not 100% sure, but think there may be yet another back surgery in his future. We would appreciate any good thoughts and prayers on his behalf.

Hope all is well in your neck of the woods!

Precious Creatures of the Night

2011-08-06T11:30:00.001-05:00

This has been the Summer of the Owls at Flat Creek Farm. Some of you may recall my mother’s close encounter with a baby owl in Spring of 2010. Several weeks ago I noticed a group of birds flying right over my head after dark. I was packing my two roosters back to the chicken coop for the night (ah yes, just another day in my crazy life). After the roosters were put to bed these odd little birds became friendlier, oscillating their heads in a most familiar way. Owls, I thought… “baby” owls! And I was correct. They’ve been guests around the chicken coop area nearly every night. It seems they are preying on the mice in that area. Hey, no problem with that!

Here are some of “my” owls. I do believe they are Eastern Screech Owls. They are very small. If anyone has more particulars on them, please chime in.

They were friendly and calm, even while the camera flashed.

They talk to each other. Not screeching, but sweet little ‘coos’ – like “hey, I’m over here! where are you?”

My favorite shot ~ love the little curly tufts!

I don’t know how long they’ll be frequenting my backyard, but for now I really enjoy my almost nightly visits with the Owls!

*Read more about Eastern Screech Owls in Missouri here. This link also solved our mystery night call that we’ve been hearing for several years here!

Honeybees, the Amish, and a Goldfinch

2011-07-25T09:56:00.002-05:00

We have a new swarm (thanks, Bee Boss, for grueling hours in the heat to rescue the bees). We think the newbies may be Carniolans (aka Carnies). Pictures to come soon of the NewBees :p

Here’s a pictorial update of Hive #1 – frame-checking, adding a Super to Hive #1.

Bee Boss adding the Super to Hive #1~

Mr. W and I now have our own protective Bee Suits. They are awesome. We’ll have to do a self-portrait soon :) I must say.. in this heat – suiting up for the bees is a very good way to lose weight!

Speaking of heat, we made a quick trip to Amish Country last week. The heat index was about 110 degrees. I no longer feel like complaining about the heat after seeing this---

Making Hay the Amish Way...(I stand corrected... *wheat* shocks)

And finally, a male Goldfinch giving me the Stink Eye at the window feeder.

If you’re among the many suffering with this extended heat…
Stay hydrated and well!!

General Stores: Hays Ten Mile Store

2011-07-09T08:07:00.001-05:00

I have a soft spot in my heart for general stores. Anyone else with me on this? Last weekend we visited the cutest li’l general store.. lovingly preserved in its near-original state. Hays Ten Mile Store is near Ten Mile, MO (tiny spot in the road) in Macon County.

The store was built in 1902.

Mr. Hays, shown in the photo below, owned the store for fifty years – from 1946 until the late 90’s.

Back in the day when Mr. Hays owned the store, you could buy dry goods and porta-huts (for livestock). Today, the store has a good selection of antiques and a few odds and ends such as dog food for sale…

And about a million bucks (or more) worth of pure vintage charm. You just can’t put a price tag on something like that.

The pink stove followed me home (I’m not quite sure how these things happen).

The present owner, Wade King, talking business with a customer.

Here is a nice video put together by our rural electric cooperative’s magazine, Rural Missouri, which interviews some of the regular card players at this history-rich store.

If you’re ever in Macon County, Missouri (northeast portion of the state), take a trip just a little off the beaten path to visit this charming piece of history.. frozen in time. From Macon, travel north on highway 63 (3-4 miles), take blacktop DD east about 4.5 miles and you are there! The store is on the northeast side of the crossroads, and is open Saturdays only from 10-5.

A Tribute to Grady

2011-07-08T10:39:00.001-05:00

Sadly, Grady the angel-winged gander is no longer with us. During the wee hours of Independence Day, raccoons attacked in the goose pen. The one casualty was Grady. Greta Goose is A-okay.

I won’t even tell you the guilt I’m feeling now as I knew the raccoons had been raiding their food lately – but I wasn’t convinced they could harm my geese.

Rest in Peace, dear sweet Grady. There wasn’t any hint of mean spirit in you. You were a wonderful companion for my dear Greta Goose. You were a trooper.. apparently protecting your Greta girl up to the end.

Here is the last picture I took of Grady – last week during our early morning walkabout. In spite of his Angel Wing Issues, he truly was a beautiful-handsome boy.

Until I have the goose area more secure, Greta has been inhabiting a large pet taxi in the house at night. I pack her in the house at dark, and back out in the morning. She’s been a polite houseguest, with only an occasional honk-honk.

Raccoons are smart, and some of our more cute wild creatures. I won’t argue that one bit. However, this time of year, please make sure your coops and pens are secure and raccoon-proof ~ as it’s their time to be more aggressive to find extra food for their babies. We know they kill chickens and other small feathered creatures. And yes, they do kill geese also :(

early morning walkabout

2011-07-01T10:31:00.001-05:00

All from this morning, except for bees (that photo is courtesy of the Blacksmith).

hydrangeas, hummingbird, coneflowers, daisies, grady the gander, yard deer, shotgun the roo in new daytime man-cave.

homemade

2011-06-20T14:55:00.002-05:00

We made and used the homemade liquid laundry detergent for about a year. This time I’m going with the powdered version. It’s easier, less messy, and if I might add… cuter to display. Will this cute factor make laundry any more enjoyable? Doubt it. But it’s worth a try, huh?

I made a sheet of labels, sealed them and glittered them (yah.. you’re right.. glitter was probably a bit much but I like it). Now I’ll have cute labels at the ready when I need a quick little gift to give. Laundry soap for a gift? Why, of course!

“homemade clothes soap ~ 1 Tbsp per Load, 2 Tbsp per Extra-Grungy Load”

Here’s the recipe I used:

Powdered Laundry Detergent—

1 cup borax
1 cup washing soda
1 grated bar of laundry soap, such as Fels Naptha or Pink Zote
5-10 drops of essential oil (I used grapefruit essential oil, and it smells just yum)

Just mix it all up with a big spoon, deposit it all in a pretty jar.. and there ya have it. Your own lovely mix of laundry detergent, and the added bonus is it’s much cheaper than buying anything ready-made. Use 1 tablespoon for each regular load, and 2 tablespoons for extra dirty or extra large loads.

Also, I doubled the recipe and grated one bar each of Fels Naptha and Pink Zote. I found Pink Zote at a local Latin Market. Makes for a pretty mix! I also added a 2 Tbsp coffee scoop.

**Updated to Answer some Questions about HE machines. I do not have one - mine is "old school" (but yet, not the washboard in the pic.. hehe). I've done a little research just now and I see this recipe seems to be fine for HE machines also -- due to the low sudsing effect. I also read where some people use this product monthly in their HE machine, no matter what detergent is used (to clean out any remnants of detergent & be on the safe side).

Next up, baby gifts! I’ve been making these little appliquéd Onesies for little boy gifts.

So easy! I’ll direct you to a fantastic tutorial at Crap I’ve Made blog. She has definitely covered all the bases. I’ve also used some camo fabric, and I do have some rockin’ guitar fabric to try next. Soon I hope to try out some baby girl onesie ideas (I think they should include lots of ruffles).

So many homemade ideas, so little time & energy. But I’m workin’ on it!

Fathers & Fiddles

2011-06-19T15:08:00.003-05:00

The year is 1982 ~ the Blacksmith holds a brand new Fiddler boy.
(applied Kim Klassen Love & Mayzee textures)

The year 2000, following Fiddler’s high school graduation ceremonies. 3 generations of “John” ~
(yes, it does get confusing. thankfully, the Blacksmith goes by his middle name)

Me and my Daddy – 1961
(applied Kim Klassen pourvous texture)

I’ll close by sharing a short fiddle tune for all the dads. “Happy Jack” as performed by the Fiddler (in his summer haircut) at the Bethel, Missouri Fiddle Festival yesterday.

**blogger did not cooperate when I edited this post to add the Texture Tuesdays link - it removed the video, but you can view the Fiddler's performance here**

(By the way, if you have an aspiring young fiddler or guitarist, please read this link about the Bethel Youth Fiddle Camp here. I also found some great photos here of last year’s camp. The Fiddler attended this camp for as many years as possible, and taught at least one year there in the past. Highly recommended!Or, if you just enjoy fiddle music and are in the area, plan to attend the Bethel Fiddle Festival next year.)

Happy Fathers’ Day ~ Enjoy your day, Dads!

linking to Texture Tuesday

Texture Tuesdays – a first for me

2011-06-14T07:48:00.001-05:00

I discovered the fabulous Kim Klassen Cafe several weeks or months ago. I was then reminded about it when my friend (and fellow Bee Girl) Andrea began participating in Texture Tuesdays not long after that. (By the way, Andrea has some amazing photography with textures ~ please visit! I love them all and look forward to seeing what she’s up to each week.)

So recently I revisited Kim and did her amazingly quick and simple Textures in Ten tutorial (free – and Kim also generously offers some free textures to get you started. Just sign up on her site!). Although I’d tried some textures in the past, I never really “got it” until Kim’s tute. Thanks, Kim! I have more to learn, but it will be fun practicing. Here is my first real shot at this. I started with a photo I took at our local Amish friends’ farm back in 2009.

I used Kim’s “Luminous” texture and kept it simple, mainly using her Textures in Ten tips. So easy, and so addictive, I must say. I look forward to learning more, and will try to participate in TT’s on a regular basis.

Check it out!

Have a wonderful Tuesday, friends!

Busy Bee Memorial Weekend

2011-05-30T17:10:00.004-05:00

Saturday was spent goofing off -- shopping, yard sale-ing, farmers market-ing.. and other fun things. Aren’t goof-off days fun? They don’t happen often enough, in my opinion.

Sunday, among other chores, we fed the bees again. They are really working hard and dining on lots of sugar water!

Banjo, keeping her distance from the bees.

Today was coop cleaning day. Sappo is never amused when he’s locked out of the coop for awhile.

And I rescued a stuck snapping turtle from some old wire. He was so well camouflaged I would have missed him, had it not been for Henry the Cat’s curiosity.

I used these to cut the wire… (thankfully, this tool has long handles!)

Ruby watches in bewilderment as the Snapper “runs” free.

Banjo says, ‘oh what a weekend!’ and takes a dip in her Country Hot Tub.

We put our busy-ness on pause for a bit and say Thank You to all who have served, and are serving

our great country.

Waving Flags captured at Centralia MO cemetery 2009.

Hope everyone has enjoyed a safe and happy holiday weekend!

Bugs & Blooms ~ And a Prayer

2011-05-23T16:06:00.002-05:00

They’re back! The Periodical Cicadas, that is! I spied our first emerging “Thirteen Year Locusts” this morning in the front yard.

Left Behind – the Shell…

The Cicada ~ Kind of pretty in their own little creepy way…

A Gathering of Cicadas (the first of many gatherings, I’m sure)…

The noise level hasn’t picked up yet, but soon it will. Buzzzzzz… bzzzzz… bzzzz. Some sounds you just don’t forget!

A collection of blooms and plants around the yard this morning, after my locust-observing.

Bee Boss visited us this morning also, and was kind enough to check our hive. He added more sugar water as they were completely out. And also discovered that we have bee babies in the making!! Hooray!! An amazing amount of larva already (a good thing). The Queen has definitely been busy, as well as the rest of the occupants. Another hive will be added on top soon. Sadly, my camera battery ran out, so no bee photos today!

Finally, our hearts, thoughts, prayers go out to the victims, families, rescuers, and all affected by the devastating tornado in Joplin, Missouri. We traveled through Joplin several times while the Fiddler lived in Dallas, Texas and found it to be a friendly town, and certainly a welcome rest stop along our way. It’s hard to imagine the devastation they have experienced. The death toll, at the time of this post, stands at 116. Unbelievable. The company that the Fiddler works for is sending a big trailer with donations by the residents of our local communities. We’re all gathering items now to load and send on Wednesday.

Heartwrenching.

A Joplin resident carries his wide-eyed daughter through the wreckage looking for family just after the tornado hit on Sunday evening, May 22, 2011.
Photo Credit: Joplin Globe

Hope all is well in your neck of the woods. More crazy weather to come in our neck of the woods this week. We’ll all breathe a sigh of relief when this unsettled weather clears out!

Tales of The Birds and The Bees

2011-05-13T20:43:00.001-05:00

(Missed ya, Blogger! This is yesterday’s post… ) For our anniversary, Mr. W gave me a cute little video camera. {Yay! Finally video blogging!} This morning I used it to video the hummingbirds. They arrived on April 29th and we have a big crowd already. Here’s the buzz at the feeder this morning. We had to add a 2nd feeder. I’m pretty sure we’ll be adding a third tomorrow. (I have no idea why the last few seconds of the video went blank… oops).

Today, a friend (we’ll just call him Bee Boss) phoned the Blacksmith (aka Mr. W, of course). Mr. B. Boss had been called to go retrieve a swarm of bees from a friend’s yard. He called to see if we’d be interested in a swarm of bees, and the use of the basic ingredients to get into the Bee Business.

Mr. W’s dad had bees on this farm in the past. I remember seeing the old hives during the early years we lived here. We’ve talked about this bee business off and on for years. Finally, today we have a start. Thanks, Bee Boss!

I was at work, so thankfully Mr. W was kind enough to document the process with photos. This is pretty basic. I fully admit that I don’t know what I’m talking about yet ~ We are learning!

Mr. W whipped up the sugar water mixture, cooked it, then chilled it (all by himself) so the bees would feel right at home here. Please be impressed that he actually included this task in his photos.. heck, he’s a better blogger than me!

He also mowed an area near one of our ponds, and set up the Hive Support.

Bee Boss arrives with the Bees!

Brave Bee Boss, up close and personal with the bees.

Happy Bees ~ Sun bathing.

Now, to get educated on this Beekeeping thing!! Hopefully we’ll have some wonderful honey to enjoy in our future.

~~~

There ya go. Tales of the Birds and Bees @ Flat Creek Farm. Happy Weekend, Everyone!

A Royal Day on the Farm

2011-04-29T18:56:00.001-05:00

I still have to watch my recording of the Royal Wedding. Can’t wait! While getting ready for work this morning, I was watching sporadically the royal festivities on the kitchen telly :) Just as the Prince & his Princess stepped out on the balcony for their first kiss, I spied our first hummingbird of the season at our feeder. I mean really… how cool is that?

After a glorious day of sunshine (they’ve been rare lately), I came home to take a walk in the woods and pastures with the dogs. Just on a whim, I thought I’d check to see if I could find any morel mushrooms. I’m a lousy mushroom hunter. I’ve always believed that I couldn’t see one -- even if a squirrel in the woods would throw one at me. I had my dear late mother-in-law on my mind while hunting, you see… she was a legendary mushroom hunter. Just as the thought of her entered my mind, I saw one! And another, and another…

And another. Until I had about a gallon (well, that may or may not be a slight exaggeration… I’m excited, I tell ya!). I had to carry them rolled up in the front of my sweatshirt. It’s bad luck to take a bag with you on a mushroom hunt, ya know ;)

Here they are in all their glory, getting washed up in the sink.

I can’t wait for this feast. I’ve waited many many frustrating years to become a real mushroom hunter.

So… did you watch the Royal festivities today? If so, what was your favorite part? I’ll let you know mine as soon as I watch it. I do confess to shedding some tears during The Kiss (don’t tell!).

Have a fabulous weekend, my friends!

Heads Up, Hobby Farms Magazine Fans..

2011-04-22T11:13:00.005-05:00

Another great deal on a favorite magazine! Today, and only today... Hobby Farms Magazine is $5.00 for an entire year's subscription at Amazon. Remember, as for the Hobby Farms Home magazine that was posted Sunday, this is for auto-renewal. After purchase, you must go back into your account and manage your subscriptions to remove auto-renew (unless you want to pay full renewal price).

Enjoy!!

A Blessed Good Friday and Happy Easter to All!

Afternoon in Amish Country

2011-04-20T21:43:00.001-05:00

It had been entirely too long since we ventured out to our nearby Amish settlement. Today was the day. Besides the usual shopping and visiting, we enjoyed these sights and scenes.

Whistle-pig (aka Groundhog) ~

beautiful baby & mama ~

A long-eared Friend ~

Sweet William in the pasture ~

Hopefully, I was able to send some Amish simplicity and peacefulness your way. Have a great remainder of the week!

Hobby Farm Home

2011-04-17T16:18:00.002-05:00

Updated - this deal was only good on the day of the post, which was Sunday, April 17th. Didn't want to mislead anyone! Hope some of you were able to get the deal on Sunday. If not, keep watching Amazon magazine subscriptions till the end of April for other $5 deals you may be interested in.

Just have to share this deal :) I adore this whole family of magazines. My sister gifted me with a Hobby Farm subscription for Christmas (love!). Each day this month, Amazon is featuring one (random) magazine at a subscription rate of $5.00 per year (with auto-renewal). Today, and only today, it’s Hobby Farm Home. Run over there now if you love this magazine as much as I do. And here’s a tip-- this price is for auto-renewal (which will renew at the regular price after a year). So be sure to go into your account and manage your subscription soon to take it off auto-renew -- unless you want to pay full price after the first year.

{photo courtesy of hobbyfarms.com}

Introducing: Flat Creek Sawmill

2011-04-11T17:34:00.001-05:00

In our quest to never, ever run out of something to do around here, we’ve now added a sawmill to the mix. Actually, one of these babies has been on our wish list for quite some time. After loads of bad luck and great difficulty, our new project finally arrived a couple of weeks ago. Mr. W has been working on the base for it, and yesterday we finally got to try it out. The Blacksmith and the Fiddler worked very hard yesterday to accomplish this.

Everyone had their chance at a test drive. It was fun!!

Here, the Fiddler is the operator, cutting a slice of walnut from our old backyard tree that had died and was taken down a couple years ago. His sandbox was located under that very tree many years ago. Awwww ;)

Here are the first few walnut boards (they did get prettier with each cutting).

A closer view – see the Angry Ants?

The boards will have to cure for awhile, then they’ll be project-ready.

More sawmill posts to come in the near future. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods!

Barnyard {foot} Couture & Spring’s Return

2011-03-21T09:23:00.001-05:00

Actually, I think these new chicken wellies will be my Town Boots, and not Barn Boots. They are just too cool for school (at least in my mind!).

Again, a Blogger friend shared a tip on a great deal and I’m passing it on to you. Thanks, Sue at Country Pleasures blog! These wellies are factory seconds from Gardeners Supply. Originally, $50… now half price because they are slightly imperfect. {Oh, but they are perfect to me.} Use this code: XXXX1957 and get free shipping! (psssst…. they also have tomato boots for the same price – they look really cute as well).

Spring is here! I’ll briefly mention we also have a chance for snow and cold temps later this week. Nuff said about that! Notice the green clover in the first boot picture above? Many signs of Spring’s awakening here. The red bud trees are bursting and ready to bloom. Our Missouri Conservation calendar says they’ll be blooming next week. We also have the Purple Martin houses raised and ready for purple occupants (“we” means Mr. W, by the way).

Happy Spring, Everyone!

Saddle Up Your Chicken!

2011-03-14T18:42:00.001-05:00

FYI: A Hen Saddle or Hen Apron protects the hens’ backs from overly zealous roosters.

It’s not like I don’t have other things to do, but making some hen saddles had been a priority on my list for quite some time. I love my two rooster boys just as much as my hens, but let’s face it… roosters will be roosters. My poor hens have bare spots on their backs. This can lead to wounds as well. So, this whole hen saddle thing is not just a fashion statement – it’s a matter of comfort, health, and protection for my little flock. And, after all…. look at what those girls do for me!

Thank you, Linda at Prairie Flower Farm, for alerting me that Tractor Supply has these red wire egg baskets for 4.99. So cute… and useful too!

I’ve had a pattern and some supplies on my sewing table for quite some time, but the thought of sewing 15 little ‘jackets’ for my hens seemed like a big time commitment.

I’m so not into the whole big time commitment thing.

Enter Backyard Chickens and some pure genius creative minds who came up with an idea to do no-sew polar fleece hen saddles. There seemed to be several folks who were trying this out, so I thought.. what the hay? I’ll give it a try too.

Polar fleece is stretchy and does not have to be finished. How perfect. I also had some on hand. Even better!

Supplies: Grab a tape measure (measure the space from wing to wing on the back & from “shoulder” of wing to the start of the tail – this will give you an idea of the size), polar fleece fabric, scissors and that’s all you really need. If you have several to make, grab some scrap cardboard too and make up a template (once you’ve perfected your design).

It took four trial runs before I finally came up with a design that seemed to work for my Ameraucana/Easter Eggers (I consider them to be standard or average size hens).

Here is my “prototype saddle” with the cardboard template underneath.

It does look somewhat like a mask, don’t you think? The “eyes” at the top are where the wings are pulled through. The “mouth” at the bottom is for the tail. I just started out with a very ‘guestimated’ measurement, and cut the basic shape and some holes. Then I proceeded to modify (and modify…). It will take a little practice to get it just right for your birds. In fact, I know mine still are not just right.

Fitting day was a fussy day in the chicken coop. Nobody wanted to take their turn at being fitted for their “jacket”. Squawks could be heard far and wide. There was also lots of flying across the chicken coop – a rather dangerous place to be, I might add. But we survived, and nobody really seems to mind them now – after a couple weeks of use.

Here’s the line-up for bedtime…

They have remained in place fairly well. However, morning and night I may find 2 or 3 out of the 15 who need ‘adjustments’.. i.e. a wing slipped out, or a tail. And yes… once or twice a day, one girl (usually Opal) manages to completely pull and wiggle their way out of the saddle… leaving their garment in the nest box or in the muddy chicken pen. But still, it certainly buys them a little time to grow some feathers back.

Lucy examines her new saddle.

Maybe when Summer arrives I’ll get more ambitious and try to make some of the cotton/interfacing/elastic saddles that my pattern is for.

Or, perhaps I’ll just build a Bachelor Pad and keep the boys separate. Best.idea.yet!

I do see the need to make about 4 smaller saddles as Opal, Miss Cluck, Loretta and Bella are a little smaller than the other girls and have trouble keeping their garments on :)

If you’re not into DIY, but a hen saddle sounds like something your chicken girls could use, check out Mandy’s Rabbit Ranch blog. Mandy and her mom make and sell some really cute ones here. Quite reasonably too, I will add!

Farm Friend Friday: It’s Snow Pretty

2011-02-25T12:34:00.001-06:00

I’m sharing a snowy walkabout around parts of our farm this morning. It’s very pretty, and I really don’t have much else to say except hopefully this is the last big one of the season. We grow weary :)

Stay warm and well!

{Scoop from the Coop, aka Saddle Up Your Chicken will be forthcoming, after we dig out!}

Linking to Verde Farm’s:

Winner-winner!

2011-02-19T12:40:00.002-06:00

But, sorry -- no chicken dinner from this coop!

Lucy, attempting to remove her chicken saddle.

Now, I always say, it but I truly mean it… I wish I had a CSN gift certificate for each and every one who enters. Thanks to all who commented, and bless you for following along. If you weren’t the lucky one this time, hopefully it will be you the next time around. I numbered each entry in order received, and headed over to random.org to choose the winner.

The winner of the $50 CSN Stores gift certificate is…

Nezzy of Cow Patty Surprise!! Please take a moment and visit her blog. Nobody I know has such a way with down-home country speak. You’ll be entertained and delighted with her tales from the farm! And, she’s a sweetheart. Here’s Nezzy’s comment --

“Girl, we're gonna have to take up a collection and get you a suit of armor for the chicken coup before you 'really' hurt yourself!!!
You take care and know I'm prayin' for both hubby's back and for you too dear!
God bless and have a marvelous Valentine's Day!!! :o)”

Congratulations, dear Nezzy!! I am sending you an email right now with your prize enclosed. Please email me back when you receive it so I know it’s safe and sound and in your hands :) Have fun shopping!!

Thanks for all of your entries, and wonderful comments. Hope to do this again soon!

In reference to the “Lucy” photo above -- I’ve been working on a special chicken project this week, and it (pretty much) seems to be a success so far. Check back soon for the scoop from the coop!

The Greatest Gift

2011-02-13T22:18:00.005-06:00

Update: Giveaway closed -- winner selected!

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

*I chose this verse to be a part of our wedding vows – almost 32 years ago.

This week we celebrate Valentines Day. In honor of this special and important event, and in celebration of the fact that Spring is officially just a little more than a month away, we are hosting a giveaway!

The winner will receive a $50 gift certificate to CSN Stores.

Did you know that CSN Stores is actually comprised of over 200 online stores? If you’re looking for something – chances are, CSN has it. Not to mention, it’s a safe and fun place to shop.

Perhaps you need some home office furniture so you can feel more comfy while doing your taxes (every little bit helps).

Or… how about this beautiful pergola to usher in Spring?

Really, they do have it all.

There’s only one thing you have to do – become a Follower (or tell me if you already are), and leave one comment. Be it a happy comment or a whine (please see my whines below)… let it out. You’ll feel better. It’s been a loooong winter after all! Please also make sure that I have a way to contact you – via your profile or otherwise.

Comments will be closed around noon on Saturday, February 19th, and at that time I’ll head over to random number generator to select a winner. Winner will be contacted via email immediately thereafter. The gift certificate should arrive in your inbox early the following week.

Now, I’ll do a mini-update since I’ve been absent a few weeks. Hmmm, where to begin?

*We survived a major blizzard.
*Mr. W had back surgery.
*We were snowed *out* (as opposed to being snowed in).
*I slipped, fell and injured my knee (not on the ice, but in the chicken coop).
*One of my “sweet” roosters busted my lip today (well, isn’t that the icing on the cake?)

But, we are alive and well in spite of all that, and Mr. W is healing quite well from his surgery. And I am healing from my minor injuries. We really have a lot to be thankful for, in spite of a few miscellaneous whines.

So, Happy Valentines Day! Make it a loving one.

and…

Good luck!

*Us – Cruise pic back in 1999

winter wonderful-land

2011-01-26T22:15:00.001-06:00

This morning we awoke to a beautiful frozen fog. Is it just me, or does this seem to happen a lot more the past couple of winters? Okay by me… it’s lovely to look at.

After morning chores and a quick photo session around the yard, I headed to my hair artiste, who also happens to have a wonderful talent for decorating and all things creative. She had recently acquired this cabinet. Love! She and her dad had also cut it down slightly to better fit in her kitchen. I want one! I couldn’t resist a quick phone pic. I always enjoy my hairdo days, and our visits in her adorable country beauty salon.

Thanks again, dear friends, for your wonderful, sweet, healing words of comfort. I appreciate them more than you will know. Big hugs to all!

Grandma Annie Mae

2011-01-22T15:03:00.003-06:00

Thanks so much, Blogger Friends, for your kind words and prayers. My beloved Grandma Annie Mae left this world yesterday morning, peacefully, and in the company of loved ones. This short video was made at her 97th birthday party last October (by cousin Susan). I think at that time we knew that we wouldn’t have her long, but she remained strong in her faith and mind right up to the end.

Grandma’s Advice for a Long Life

Hugs to all...

A Winter’s Nest & Catching Up…

2011-01-20T18:40:00.001-06:00

Who knew? I looked up and tried to identify this puzzling shape every time I’ve gone out to fill the front yard bird feeders. Could it be? Another hummingbird nest?

Upon closer examination, it turns out to be an Oriole nest (I’m 99% sure anyway. If you think it’s something else, please let me know!)

I know we have Orioles around the yard every Spring, and they surely do love the grape jelly I offer them. But who knew they were nesting just a few feet away from the house?

So now to the catch-up part…. I have been in a blogging slump, therefore this is my first post of 2011. We have had lots of this:

And more Snow is on the way. And it’s so very cold. Again.

On a sadder note, my Grandma is in the hospital again. By the way, the last prayers were answered and she enjoyed several weeks of fairly good health. Thank you, Dear Blogger Friends! It doesn’t look good this time for her, bless her dear heart. So glad we had a nice visit yesterday. My cousin Susan snapped some “hand” pictures of various family members with Grandma while we were waiting at the hospital. Notice we both had our nails painted? I will cherish this forever.

Mr. W will have back surgery in less than two weeks, so we are preparing for that also. Hopefully he will be able to walk upright again and can be relatively pain-free after surgery.

So, that’s what we’ve been up to. How about all of you? Take care, and hope 2011 has gotten off to a good start for you!

Till next time….

2010: The Year in Pictures

2010-12-31T12:36:00.001-06:00

Happy New Year
to All of our Dear Friends.
May 2011 be a Blessed and Healthy Year for You and Yours!

A Merry Little Christmas

2010-12-25T21:01:00.001-06:00

We are still enjoying Christmas here -- one is taking a nap, and one is taking a blog break :), and two more (Fiddler & girlfriend) are celebrating at another holiday party. We’ve had a beautiful White Christmas this year.

*“Peace” Scherenschnitte is my talented sister’s handiwork. She doesn’t need a Cricut like I do ;)

We have enjoyed a wonderful and very blessed Christmas, and hope you have as well. May we truly keep Christmas in our hearts all year long.

See you soon!

Merry Christmas from Gracie & Ruby

2010-12-15T17:34:00.001-06:00

It’s a tradition. Friends now ask in advance if we’re doing a Ruby-Gracie card each year. Monday was our chosen day for the photo shoot, and was only slightly warmer than the Arctic weekend we had just survived. Earlier that day I was very inspired when I saw Fergus of Morning Bray Farm peering up and over the gate, looking dapper and handsome in his reindeer antlers. (If you haven’t visited, please visit the darling donkey bros over at Morning Bray!). So, back to Fergus… I thought, hey… this pose could be doable on a cold day. After only a mild little rodeo session, and Santa hats thrown off once or twice, we ended up with this.

We didn’t quite accomplish Fergus’ adorable flaring nostril look… but it will work.

{The girls send hugs and kisses to Fergus and all of his darling burro bros}

xxoo

Happy Hee Haw Christmas to all!

Oh Christmas Wreath!

2010-12-13T11:01:00.001-06:00

The Fiddler’s girlfriend and I made 2 Christmas wreaths each last night. What fun!! Both of Miss J’s wreaths were just gorgeous, but this one was my favorite of all four that we accomplished.

Beautiful job, Miss J! The grapevine wreath base, plus the added in twigs from around the yard were sprayed lightly with faux snow. She then added various white, light gold, and silver accents (from Ben Franklin & Wal-mart). Simple country elegance.

Linking to ~

Send Some Love to our Troops

2010-12-11T11:06:00.001-06:00

It takes five minutes or less. Head on over, right this moment, to Xerox’s Let's Say Thanks site to choose from several child-designed postcards to send to our troops. You can choose a message to go with, or customize your own message. Xerox will print them out and send them to our troops. I missed the snail mail call this year for sending Christmas cards to our troops, so I was delighted to find this way to send some thank-you sentiments to those who serve our country.

Take a moment to read some of the feedback from the troops as well. They really do appreciate it!

“Thank you so much for the post card. It is so nice to receive things in the mail here. Some would not believe it but the simple good feeling of going to the company mail room and the clerk saying "Yes, you have mail" is an uplifting experience. Even if it’s just a letter saying "hi" makes our day! Thanks again for your thoughts and prayers.”

- An Army Sergeant

Thank you, Troops, for serving our country and keeping us free. And thank you Xerox for providing this service. Xerox says it will continue this “Let’s Say Thanks” program as long as there is a need.

The Winner is…

2010-11-26T12:29:00.002-06:00

Well, you are ALL winners to me, and of course I wish I had one of these gift certificates to give to each and every one. I numbered each entry in order received, and headed over to random.org to choose the winner.

Lucky number 13!

Without further delay, the winner of the $50 CSN Stores gift certificate is…

Tonia of The Simple Life. Per her description, Tonia is a “Stay-at-homeschooling goat/chicken farming Mom of 3 Wife to 1.” I enjoy Tonia’s blog so much. Please give her a visit and congratulate her! And, I assure you I am not being partial to Missouri bloggers-- the last winner was a Missouri blogger! Maybe it’s because I have several MO blogger/followers, therefore increasing their odds? Tonia was lucky #13 and commented the following--

“I am a follower and fellow MO Blogger.. I am Thankful for my new stove I was blessed with 4 Days Before Thanksgiving!!”

Congratulations, Tonia!! I am sending you an email right now, and also alerting my contact person with CSN who to email the prize to. Happy Shopping!!

Thanks for all of your entries, and wonderful “thankfulness” comments. We all have a lot to be thankful for. Hope everyone enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving. Today is the hubby’s birthday, and since he now works in retail, he had to be to work at 4 a.m. for Black Friday. Poor guy!

Happy Birthday to the Blacksmith… Love you!!

I want to add in a special prayer request here for my Grandma, if I may please. She was hospitalized earlier this week with chest pain. At any age, we never really know what each day will bring, but at age 97, life becomes more frail and even more uncertain from day to day. We would appreciate your prayers! I am headed over to visit her this afternoon.

Blessings to all, embrace your family, and enjoy the remainder of the holiday weekend!

A Farm Girl Wedding Shower

2010-11-20T10:34:00.001-06:00

Back Story: A few weeks ago I attended quite possibly the most darling wedding shower I’ve ever seen. Our son’s (the Fiddler John’s) girlfriend (Jocelyn) and her mother hosted the event for a dear friend of Jocelyn’s. The mother & daughter pair worked diligently for weeks collecting vintage Farm Girl items to use as accessories and decor for the shower. You see, the newlyweds Robin and Darren are truly an authentic Farm Couple… born and raised… and now setting out on their new Farm Life together.

[BTW, this may be a part 1 of 2. {I took lots of pictures!}]

The setting was a little country church basement – the home church of the bride. It couldn’t have been more perfect. The freshly painted walls and cabinets provided a vintage-y look in itself. Of course, there were aprons.. many aprons.

The hostesses and the honoree all wore vintage aprons as well.

Jocelyn painted a cute sign on an old barn board for a gift to the bride. No shabby chic here… we are Farm Chic! Very cute, and will be a nice addition to this young farm couple’s home.

Old blue jars with simple & sweet Fall arrangements were placed along the tables.

The Drinks Table ~ Antique Crock and Thermos upon vintage tablecloths~

The Dessert Table (my favorite) -- Lots of gingham check, antique scales, vintage Pyrex, and {be-still-my-heart!} chicken napkins…

Gifts, gifts and more gifts!

Great job, Girls!! What fun!! Besides all the awesome vintage eye candy, I enjoyed reuniting with some gals I went to school with (many moons ago). One was the mother of the bride!

Upcoming: a Black Friday Giveaway. But for now, back to housework I go! We plan to install an over-the-range microwave and a new cabinet this weekend, which means first I need to clean out the big pantry cabinet so it can be moved. We’ll see how this project goes. Nothing ever goes as planned in the old farmhouse! What is everyone doing this Fall weekend before Thanksgiving? Make it a great one!

It’s all gone to the Chickens ~ Coop Tour

2010-11-07T13:47:00.001-06:00

Finally, a day last week Mr. W and I had a day off together and spent an afternoon winterizing the inside of the coop. I had insulation duty and Hubs worked on cutting and installing the poly board panels. All insulation and panels were ‘slightly imperfects’ and therefore FREE (my favorite!). He also had to cut down the vintage nest boxes ever so slightly due to a slight measuring error in the coop building process (oops). This proved to be a huge pain in his backside {So Sorry!}… but everything worked out fine in the end.

Here are a few of the beautiful occupants to help show you around their newly finished and decorated coop interior. You’ll have to work your way through a few too many chicken pictures in order to see the coop. Everybody wants to be a superstar rock star, ya know!

Opal BusyBody says, “Come on in.. don’t be shy!”

Sweet Chica…

Loretta ~

Sappo ~ I may be biased, but he sure is a gorgeous boy.

Bella

Shotgun, the resident comic ~

Now for the Coop Reveal ~

First up, accessories that I’ve been collecting for a while now.

Special thanks goes to Linda of Prairie Flower Farm for the fabulous Farmers Market curtains. They are perfect! And see that “notes” holder? She made that too! Now I can keep track of the daily egg count and much more. Did you also know that the very talented Linda designs her own line of fabric? Farmers Market is just one of those designs. Thank you again, Linda! My little chicken coop dream has finally come true :)

The girls caught on to the Nest Box idea the first day. That doesn’t mean we still don’t have the occasional stray egg in the Run (used for a game of chicken soccer) . But, for the most part, the little eggs are laid where they are meant to be laid.

Ruby, observing the activity at the coop, was again totally unimpressed by all this chicken business.

That’s our tour for today! Thanks for stopping by!

{Haven’t forgotten the Farmgirl Wedding Shower post. Coming soon!}

Halloween Wishes & Treats

2010-10-31T21:09:00.001-05:00

My celebration was baking a little bit today. One of our neighbor girls showed up on her bike about the time I was ready to begin (she was fundraising for her 5th grade basketball team). She offered to help bake as she loves to cook. We had fun!

Neighbor Girl helped me with the layers for these Candy Corn cookies, and pretty much made the Halloween Turtles all by herself. I paid her with candy and jewelry, and a jolly ball for her horses that my donkey girls just never really felt the love for.

These treats could also be made allll the way up to Thanksgiving (or beyond) if you like, of course! You can find the recipe for the Candy Corn cookies here. Thanks to a co-worker for finding these cute cookies!

For the Halloween Turtles, I modified another recipe found somewhere (sorry can’t remember!). Pretzels are the bottom layer, then place a Rolo’s or Great Value Creamy Caramel Milk Chocolate Cup (which is what I used), and bake at 350 for about 2 or 3 minutes. Just enough to soften the chocolate a bit. Lastly, press a candy corn in on top of the softened caramel/chocolate to complete the “turtle”.

Here are but a few completed Turtles and Candy Corn Cookies (the cookies are tiny & bite-sized & pretty yummy). A tip: watch the youtube video mentioned in the comments for the cookie recipe. It’s not that difficult, but hard to explain.

Hope to be back later this week with a post about a darling wedding shower I attended this weekend. It was Farm Girl themed, and, why yes… I do have pics :) Hope everyone has, or is still enjoying, a fun-filled Halloween!

Grandmothers are…

2010-10-25T21:41:00.001-05:00

just antique little girls, aren’t they? And what a blessing they are. We recently celebrated my Grandma’s 97th birthday. It was truly a joyous day for all, but this photo by my cousin Susan captured the joy oh-so-perfectly.

Grandma on her 97th birthday this month, with great-great granddaughter.

What children need most are the essentials that grandparents provide in abundance. They give unconditional love, kindness, patience, humor, comfort, lessons in life. And, most importantly, cookies. ~Rudolph Giuliani

Here is what it looked like in our neck of the woods one year ago today.

Things aren’t so colorful here this year, or at least not yet! How is Fall where you are?

Upcoming CSN Stores Review

2010-10-16T11:30:00.001-05:00

Back in the Summer, I was offered a chance to do a review for CSN Stores. In my usual procrastination mode (even for the fun and positive things – silly me!), I am just now getting around to starting this.

As you may know, CSN is an online retailer with over 200 stores, selling everything from dining room chairs to chicken coops (yes, really).

I’m not sure what the review will be on – still working on that. Hmmmm, could be cooking related, Christmas related… the list is endless with all those stores to peruse! Please stay tuned for the review.

I also want to let Patti know that this pretty sedum is doing well, and it’s such a lovely shade of pink. Very different from the other, darker blooming “Live Forever” that I have. Patti so kindly sent me this and some other starts in the Spring while my Blacksmith was in their neck of the woods. Love it!

On another note - we will attend a local Fiddle Contest tonight. There just are not many of these old-timey events around anymore, so it’s good to see one small town trying to renew this tradition. Of course the Fiddler is involved! Lots of good, toe-tapping music to be had. Tomorrow we celebrate my Grandma’s 97th birthday at my uncle’s farm. Yes, she will be there with bells on. She only recently moved to a nursing home, but still is in reasonably good health for her age. She always knows and recognizes her grandkids, great & great-great also… and loves each and every one! I am continually blessed and inspired by this wonderful, faithful, dear lady.

What’s going on in your neck of the woods? Hope your weekend is off to a great start!

Reminders everywhere ~ if we only look UP

2010-10-13T11:42:00.001-05:00

Sometimes I’m too busy to look UP… how about you?

An early morning view over our barn.

Psalm 121 2-8

A song of ascents (NIV)

² My help comes from the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth.

³ He will not let your foot slip—
he who watches over you will not slumber;

⁴ indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.

⁵ The LORD watches over you—
the LORD is your shade at your right hand;

⁶ the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.

⁷ The LORD will keep you from all harm—
he will watch over your life;

⁸ the LORD will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.

So glad I looked UP this morning! Have a wonderful & blessed Wednesday!

Exciting News x 3

2010-10-03T17:07:00.001-05:00

First exciting thing…

I won, I won!! I am a whole lot late on announcing that I won (ummm… about 2 months ago) a wonderful giveaway hosted by Vickie at My Red Truck blog.

Look at these adorable Bottle Cap magnets she made!! They make me smile every time I see them on the fridge. Didn’t she use the cutest images? Thank you again, Vickie!! Please visit her to see some other wonderful things she has created. This girl has a knack for the crafty! (Photo courtesy of My Red Truck).

And, I won, I won… again!! Yesterday, after a fun day at the Craft Festival with my sister (and having this unexplained “lucky” feeling all afternoon), upon return home I found out I had won a $35 gift certificate to CSN Stores from Rural Revival. How fun this will be! If you aren’t familiar with Andrea @ Rural Revival, then you’re really missing out!! I just adore Andrea and her blog. From the renovation of their beautiful 1860 Ontario Gothic Revival farmhouse, the day-to-day adventures with Andrea and The Artist and the Glimmer Twins, to the storybook beautiful Rural Revival Wedding last year… you’ll be hooked too!! Don’t miss their beautiful wedding photo or the priceless American Gothic version of Andrea and The Artist (on her sidebar). Just go read. Now. You’ll be captivated for hours :)

Thank you again, dear Andrea!!

My final reveal of exciting news for today involves this --

The first egg laid by one of my little Ameraucana girls!! Trust me, the egg is not nearly as large as it appears here. It’s so tiny and cute ♥ Nope, I wasn’t there when it arrived, but I did notice Peaches sitting nearby. I don’t know if she deserves the credit for this first little gem, or if she was just waiting to lay one of her own.

Oh, by the way, did I mention I still don’t have the nest boxes installed in the coop?!

I hope everyone is enjoying a fabulous Sunday!!

Artichoke Annie’s

2010-09-27T14:21:00.001-05:00

Sunday afternoon found us at a wonderful Antique Mall -- Artichoke Annie’s near Columbia, Missouri. If you’re in the area and have never visited, may I just say…

By all means… GO!!!

I don’t know why it took us so long to finally get there. I was in awe of all the wonderful items. This mosaic is compliments of the cell phone camera.

They are open 8AM to 8PM every day. We were also told that they are hosting a HUGE flea market this coming Saturday, October 2nd.

And, after looking around for a couple of hours there, what did I buy? (Willpower is my middle name – sometimes…)

A burlap potato sack for an upcoming project -- $6.00. More to come on that endeavor later (if successful).

Hope your week is off to a great start!

“Whatever” Wednesday

2010-09-22T15:09:00.001-05:00

In an attempt to blog something today,
whatever is on my camera card from the last few days is getting posted. Well, at least a few. Here goes!

Coop Update – Exterior. (Interior is coming up soon. In fact, I should be working on cleaning up those nest boxes right now!). It’s all about the decor, right?

A tree frog (found by Mr. W on the porch swing).
“Lord, please help me outa this tight spot. Amen.”
(Froggy is fine, by the way).

Henry, looking dapper.

I apologize in advance for the next two, that is if you don’t care for creepy crawlies.

Porch Spider.

Praying Mantis.

Finally, a sign I made for my sister. The old board was actually excavated courtesy of Ruby and Gracie. You never know what those two will dig up in the donkey pen!

One more thing -- Happy Fall, Y’all!!! The sun is threatening to come out here, and things are lookin’ up!

A Baby Shower for a Dandy of a Girl

2010-09-17T10:00:00.002-05:00

[Join the Party if you’d like!! - click above]

Today is a special day in which we celebrate the upcoming birth of Peanut, the little boy baby of Dandy and B. (Just 41 days to go per her baby countdown!)

Dandy (Dawn), of Spontaneous Clapping fame is a beautiful person, inside and out, a true Survivor, a fan of my Ruby and Gracie (which is a hint as to my shower gift), and someone I consider a dear blogger friend.

True, this is a virtual Shower, so we have no real goodies to eat, or presents to pass around. But we can offer advice, celebrate life, and send our love… which is exactly what we’re doing today.

Dawn has a beautiful blog, and she is a regular blogger (unlike me). She’s just so darned good at it too!! If you visit, you will see one of the most beautiful weddings I have ever seen, gorgeous New Zealand photos from their honeymoon, the very cool-est engagement photo shoot ever, and highlights from her day-to-day life. Dandy is a breast cancer survivor, and I believe she lives every day to the fullest. Something we could probably all take a lesson from. This girl is Pure Joy.

A Baby Shower includes gifts of course. That being said, I planned to make something to send for little Peanut. I always have such good intentions. But, the next best thing was to send something someone else had made. Sorry, Dawn, I couldn’t resist sending this Wonky Donkey shirt for Peanut. I wanted the next best thing to you and Peanut visiting Ruby and Gracie live and in person, so please think of us when this tee arrives at your doorstep in a few days.

My only advice is
love, love, love.
Let love be your guide and that’s really all you need.

So, we here at Flat Creek Farm send love and blessings your way.
Here’s to Dawn and B and Peanut in beautiful, sunny CA!

Hodge Podge

2010-09-15T22:17:00.001-05:00

It’s been awhile! Again! Where doth the time go? This may be a hodge podge of a post. Today, The Blacksmith and I wandered off to a “draft horse and related items” auction. We saw many antiques and beautiful buggies, and more!

I did not take my ‘real’ camera, but instead used the camera on my phone. I’m slipping!! But, truthfully, these turned out better than I thought they would.

Here -- there are many items shown: an antique v-belt pulley (turquoise) that for some reason I fell in love with, White Vis-à-vis (carriage), original spring wagon, antique seed cleaner, antique incubator (I SO wanted this for a coffee table!!), brightly painted horse drawn mower, numerous old wheels… and so much more. Also, please note the Amish boy riding the “trike”… I really liked his mode of transportation.

We truly enjoyed our time at the auction, although we didn’t purchase any of the vintage treasures today. There were a few vendors in attendance. My Blacksmith bought me some lucky horseshoe earrings which I love. And I bought this hoodie. If you’re looking for some cool donkey & mule designs (isn’t everyone??)… then I must recommend these nice people. Their company name is Aardvark Graffix and the phone number is 219-267-4799 or toll free 1-888-582-3513. Website coming soon, so they tell me. They also have some beautiful horse designs.

After the auction, we shopped till we dropped in two different towns. My Maytag gas range has died (for the second time in 5 years or less), so the shopping began for a replacement for that. Then it was home to chores. And butterflies. They are so elusive!

How has your week been so far? Missed all of you!!

Chicken News and More

2010-08-25T21:39:00.001-05:00

Mind + Body = Drained. But hey, Life is Good!! There has been much going on here, and I’m sure the same is true with all of you as well.

The chickens are moved into their big Happy Home and big run (Thank you, my Dear Mr. W for all your hard work!!)

Flight netting is in place over the run. Take that, Mr. Hawk! :)

Girls chillin’.

Shotgun Red makin’ trouble
(the rooster formerly known as “Reba” – this was the “extra” chick who turned out to be a HE). Hmmm… two roosters… let’s just say it’s been interesting so far!

Sappo, #1 Rooster, mid-crow.

There are a few loose ends to tie up on the chicken project – finish painting the coop, finish the interior, *decorate* the interior :), and fix up this vintage nest box before the girls begin laying their colorful eggs.

Oh yes, there have been other happenings besides chicken activities.

Flowers to enjoy.

Garden produce to pick every few days.

2+ gallons of Garden Pickles made using Linda @ Prairie Flower Farm's recipe. Delish!

Gracie & Ruby… waiting to be tucked in for the night. Each night, they are locked up in their stall (with “screen” door) -- with background music from their radio, hay and tiny bit of grain and water.

Now to get some rest to make it through the remainder of the week. Hope all is well with my friends!

Nighty night!

A Succulent Old Chair for the Garden

2010-08-10T17:51:00.004-05:00

“What???”… you may ask?? I turned an old chair with a worn out seat into a container for some of my favorite plants: Succulents.

A Succulent Old Chair. See??

I’m going to pretend this is a real tutorial, but truth is, I did this a couple of months ago and didn’t take any before or during pics. I was inspired by a post I saw somewhere. I am 99% for certain it had something to do with Donna at Funky Junk Interiors, and perhaps some inspiration pics she posted on Facebook (although I can’t find it now!). I’ve always wanted a Succulent Wreath, but this Succulent Chair was much more doable. For me, anyway. It took only a few minutes to complete.

I began with an assortment of succulents from our local greenhouses. Our Lowes also had some different little cuties I threw in. I already had eyed an old chair with a worn out seat down at hubby & father-in-law’s machine shop. I had just enough potting soil left over for this project. And also a scrap of hardware cloth (from the big, huge Chickens 2010 project.. hehe), and burlap, plus a trusty staple gun.

I knocked out what was left of the seat. The hardware cloth was turned into a very crude bowl formation and placed in the area that was the seat . Gloves work well for that task as hardware cloth can be a little wicked to work with at times. The “bowl” was covered haphazardly with burlap, which I scrunched around and stapled to the chair here & there. Then the potting soil was added, the plants, and finally I threw on a little mulch & some pebbles.

Voila. An almost maintenance-free little garden, sitting in an old worn out chair.

It takes very little water. I keep it under the shelter of a porch much of the time to protect it from the occasional torrential rains we’ve had this year.

I simply can’t do a post without at least throwing in a little something “chicken-y” (since this is the year of the Chicken here…), so I must show you our big run, still in progress. We still need to add some boards along the sides, the cover (flight netting to protect from hawks), as well as some hardware cloth around the perimeter about two feet up (to protect from raccoon and cat’s paws). Special thanks to the Fiddler for helping on the Run project over the weekend. It has been incredibly hot here and it’s not pleasant to be out in very long!

It is 97 degrees here at 5:30 pm and I’m headed back out to refresh the cool water for everyone. Almost makes me wish for Fall!

Hope your week is going well!

p.s. Thanks for all the nice birthday wishes!!! :) :) :)

For the first time ever, I'm linking up with a party. My friend Andrea over at Rural Revival hosts Thrifty Thursday. Check it out! You won't believe the fabulous thrifty treasures! In Andrea's words - "Recycling, up-cycling, reusing, re-purposing. Whatever you want to call it, it's being thrifty and walking with a softer footprint."

I.am.alive

2010-08-02T18:13:00.001-05:00

Please excuse my unplanned absence. Somehow life got in the way. Thanks for the well wishes and concern! I’m really just fine, just a bad blogger these days! I’ll try to do better.

Several things have transpired around here:

1) We have new, faster internet as of today. Yay.

2) I turned 50.

3) We traded our dune buggy for a four-wheel drive farm truck. How’s that for practicality? We were both a little sad to see the buggy go though…

I have about 1000 pictures and other things I want to share, but first I promised Mr. W I would finally post updates of his wonderful chicken coop. This is his project and I think he should be very proud. I am! There is more to be done, plus the Aviary/Run has to be started soon. The coop will be red, just like my little coop. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves. He also added the niftiest little chicken door today. I’ll have to post it later. Ok, no more chit-chat from me… here’s the coop from almost beginning to present.

And, the journey to the permanent location… which will be near the Donkey Barn.

I will be repaying the neighbor in eggs for quite awhile (once they start laying). He donated the wonderful, insulated tilt-out windows. Too fancy, and much fancier than what we have in our old farmhouse.. hehe!

Since I have a better internet connection, I don’t have that excuse anymore… so I DO plan to be back soon. In the meantime, a few gratuitous critter pictures.

And the garden ~ doing well, but oh so muddy.

See you soon!

We have a Winner!!

2010-07-14T09:26:00.001-05:00

I am happy to announce that Rural Rambler has been chosen via Random.org as the winner for the CSNStores $50 gift certificate.

Congratulations, Rural Rambler!! She happens to be another Show Me State blogger, and one of my favorite blogs to visit. Her gorgeous photos of rural life captivate me, as well as her humor and wonderful posts. Now, if you haven’t visited Rural Rambler’s blog, now might be a good time.

Thanks and hugs to all for entering. Hopefully we can host another giveaway soon. Have a great remainder of the week.

p.s. I have the cutest video of “Sappo” the little rooster crowing (so pitifully cute and squeaky), but I’ve been having internet problems and can’t get it uploaded. Internet issues are ongoing out here in the sticks! Hopefully soon I can share some delightful chicken and donkey pics and stories and videos :)

The Holiday Weekend

2010-07-03T19:09:00.001-05:00

Hope everyone is enjoying the holiday weekend. Happy Independence Day!

Here are just a few things that have been happening around here.

We vaccinated and banded calves this morning. Then Mr. W hopped on the tractor, raked the two fields nearest our house. When that was complete, he hopped on the other tractor and finished up the baling there as well. And then he had to go to work for 8 hours. Impressive, huh? Something tells me he’s gonna be one tired fella after this day is complete.

An update on our 2010 Purple Martins…

I am happy to announce we have had two families of Purple Martins in our martin house in the front yard this year. I’ve waited a long time for this. The yard and surrounding areas are filled with their beautiful music morning and night. Love it! Here are a couple of shots from last weekend… the young ‘uns learning how to fly.

A quick mosaic of a few of the blooms we have here now, our resident tree frog on the front porch (sorry, Patti), and a hummingbird nest I found today while blackberry picking.

Here’s a better look at that hummingbird nest. It’s empty now, but oh the intricate weaving the tiny birds did on this. I’ve wanted to find a hummingbird nest for many years… so this was monumental for me ;) Not being picky, but next time it would be super cool to see eggs or babies…

We plan to attend my hometown fireworks celebration tomorrow night -- small town… short and sweet fireworks display. We’ll visit with family and friends while we’re there. What are your plans this holiday weekend? A Happy and Safe 4th to you and yours!

My Miniature Chickens

2010-06-25T16:16:00.001-05:00

The chicks are one month old this week! And they truly have blossomed at this point. I spared them the humiliation of posting those awkward in-between pictures. Well, actually I just didn’t get around to it till now, but… now they really are pretty I think.

Don’t you think they look like miniature chickens at this point? Can you imagine how big they’ll be in another month?

Today I added a ladder (see above) that gives better access to the “upstairs” portion. Not that they really needed a ladder, because they are pretty good at flying now. But I feel better about it.

Take a look at Roo (“Sappo” – named after my Grandma Winfree’s famous crowing banty rooster). Can you tell he’s already sporting some rooster attitude?

As promised, here is a view of Mr. W’s latest creation… the Chicken Tractor, aka Portable Run. Made with PVC pipe & hardware cloth and our ever-popular galvanized tin. He also built them a nice Chicken Tunnel that gives them safe access back and forth to the Coop. (By the way, yes… it’s still sitting on the Barn/Cottage Porch… waiting on me to paint the wheels… <sigh>). The run portion moves pretty easily as it is lightweight. Note there is an “apron” of hardware cloth around the bottom to discourage digging predators. Yes, sometimes those pesky predators can even visit during the day. This Mama Hen is a worrier to say the least (just ask Mr. W).

The crowd awaits in the Tunnel…

Today while I built the ladder and a roost, and cleaned the coop, I blocked access to the coop with a board. “Peck, peck, peck” was all I heard as they “knocked” trying to hurry me up. Demanding little birds, they are :)

Here they are… hanging out in the “loft.” At this point, I’m really glad we have the upper area because they’re definitely going to need all the space they can find by the time the Big Coop is complete. I also opened up the Nest Box area a couple of weeks ago… for added space.

Cute Little Chicken Notes as of 1 Month Old:

Favorite Treats: Yogurt and Quick Oats (they suffered no Pasty Butt.. could this be the reason?)
Favorite Pastime: Running up and down the Tunnel. Just about any time during daylight hours you can hear the pitter-patter of little chicken feet going back and forth. So cute!
At least half of them seem to enjoy cuddling, or is it just me?
Names, so far: Chica (a very gentle and sweet soul from the beginning), Sappo the Roo, Bella, CoCo, Lucy.

That’s all the Chicken News from FCF for now. I hope to be back in a few days with some Chicken video (after a technical difficulty is attended to). And probably some Ruby and Gracie video as well. My little donkey girls are feeling a little left out since the chicks arrived. I promise they are still getting spoiled a-plenty, as is everyone else around here :)

Have a great weekend!

Thursday Walkabout: Little Flower Farm

2010-06-24T12:58:00.001-05:00

Oh, Summer, how I love thee… but are there ever enough hours in the day? The chicks are growing up too fast, and so far all we have is the floor built for the big coop. Mr. W built them an awesome chicken tractor/portable run. They love it! Pictures (and maybe video) coming soon, I promise :)

For now, since it’s been a long time since I did a walkabout post, I’m posting a tour of my sister & brother-in-law’s farm. We spent Father’s Day there. It was a fun day exploring all the critters, including the Blue Faced Leicester Sheep, Angora goats, Toulouse geese and more. This is my sister’s long-awaited dream farm.

Hope you enjoy!

A Darn Near Perfect Day

2010-06-09T22:54:00.001-05:00

After a morning of checking cattle, cleaning the little chicken coop, and other such chores, the Blacksmith and I headed to Amish Country for a nice peaceful afternoon. I’ve often said this outing is one of the best stress-relievers I’ve ever found (that is, besides my renewed hobby of baby chick cuddling or the always-calming little donkey hugs).

Headed down the road to one of the new Amish stores, our first relaxing sight…

The Macedonia School…

We bought lumber for the next project (bigger chicken coop) at the Amish lumberyard. This is what was going on outside the yard…

Along the way, we stopped at one of the Blacksmith’s Amish friend’s home. He is an older gentleman who has been ill for quite awhile, but happily is doing better now. He was helping his wife piece a quilt. Yes, it’s true, an Amish man was quilting. Much to my delight, his wife invited me in also, and we visited inside and outside for awhile. They are both treasures! I had bought some bread in her bakery and then she gave me three nice starts of Rose of Sharon. She also showed me how she makes a wren house out of a worn out straw hat.

On the way home we stopped by our “English” friends who have the blueberry patch. They truly have a history-rich home which I hope to share more of in a future blog post (if it’s agreeable with both of them). We sampled organic cherries and blueberries… yum!

Ah yes, what a nice, non-stressful afternoon. Just what we both needed. But then, there was more baby chick cuddling in store when we returned home. They have grown soooo much! Can you tell?

After a little run is made to go with the little portable coop, we’ll begin on the bigger permanent coop. All 17 chicks are doing well so far (I miscounted in the beginning – they sent me an extra baby). Thanks, Cackle!

Hope all is well in your neck of the woods!

Haulin’ Chicks

2010-05-26T17:55:00.001-05:00

Okay… so THIS is Chick Week!

2010-05-25T12:01:00.001-05:00

I was disappointed to learn last week that my chicks were not shipped from the Hatchery on the day scheduled. That’s okay though, because sometimes you can’t count your chicks before they hatch. Right? It still didn’t keep me from pouting, just a little bit.

This morning at 7:10 our postmaster called and gave me the following information:

“This is the postmaster and we have some critters here for you. They are telling us that they are hungry and thirsty, and want their mama.” I just love our small town post office!

Needless to say I zoomed into town as fast as I could to pick up the 16 peeping balls of Ameraucana fluff. Stay tuned for Peep Pics near the end of this post.

I must first show the (almost) finished coop. Still to complete: latches for the two big back doors. We won’t be using those for awhile so they are screwed shut for now. Also, vintage iron wheels from an old hay loader will be attached by the Blacksmith to make the coop portable. More on that on a later date.

So now I present the (mostly) finished Coop de FlatCreek, sitting on the Barn/Cottage front porch while the babies are still tiny.

View of the back, while still in the garage.

Interior Views. Also, I temporarily attached some leftover bead board pieces to keep the chicks from falling out the big door when opened, as well as to keep them out of the nest box areas.

Roost area is storage area for now…

Now,

who wants to see some

really

cute

chicks??

Checking our look in the mirror…

The one and only Li’l Rooster, marked in blue to differentiate from the pullets.

Naptime…

That’s all for now, but yes, I will be back with more chick pics. How did you guess? I vow to allow the little sweeties to rest for awhile. Then, look out… there will be a major cute chick photo shoot coming your way soon :)

Coop Update – Rush, Rush.. It’s Chick Week!

2010-05-16T21:31:00.001-05:00

I had one good productive afternoon last week in which I built two doors. With mitered trim, thank ya very much :) I painted the interior a lemony yellow yesterday. And today.. I had help! Which I gladly accepted since this is Chick Week after all, and the babies are scheduled to be shipped to me one day this week. I was getting so close, but still a lot of details to do. So I swallowed my Farmgirl Pride and said… yes, it’s okay to have a helper today :) And a most excellent helper he was.

Here is a view of the interior.

Mr. W was kind enough to build a sliding window cover bracket for me. This is the “gridded” window. I still have hardware cloth to attach inside. I had visualized the cover for this window as being a slider, and voila, the hubs came through for me again. It is perfect… just as I had imagined.

Here is a view from the front – you can see the window with sliding cover here as well. Also the tin edge trim he installed today. It is actually silver/galvanized but looks green in this picture for some reason…

For those interested in how the sliding bracket was made, here’s a close-up of first the top bracket and then the bottom. Laminated wood and nuts & washers were used to shim the back.

I painted the hinges, latches, handles, etc. today also.

Also, the remaining doors were built. Here is a view of the back. These doors are not attached yet (awaiting exterior paint). The top door is the roost access door. The bottom door is the egg access door. Of course, for our brooder purposes the egg door won’t be utilized. However sometime in the future it most likely will be used as a portable coop, and the nest boxes & access door should come in handy.

Next up will be to paint the exterior with red oil-based (Valspar Porch & Floor) paint; apply the tin roof; trim corners; attach the doors and installing all necessary hardware, and a couple other miscellaneous items.

Now, how do I get oil-based paint to dry fast in this 100% humidity, daily rain, and chill we’re experiencing now? That is the question.

This little coop is just about finished. Stay tuned for more Coop Building Adventures, and also the long-awaited arrival of….

the return of Chickens to Flat Creek Farm!

Every Once in Awhile…

2010-05-09T21:23:00.001-05:00

we are given a gift, a special moment in time. Something. Perhaps an event, perhaps what we could perceive as a miracle, that fills our hearts to overflowing. My parents were recently given such a special gift. A baby owl visited their yard. This might be expected in a rural setting, but my parents live in a small town.

My mother feared the baby would go into the street, so she put on leather gloves and carefully moved the baby to safety. They were able to watch and observe this sweet baby for a little while… until later when they noticed the baby was safely up in a tree with a parent. But before that, my mother was able to get some exceptional pictures of this baby owl and she said I could share them with you.

Also, if there are any ornithology experts reading this, we would appreciate some ideas or an identification on what type of owl this is. Mom has some ideas in mind, but nothing definite as of yet. This baby appears to be the offspring of “the neighborhood owls” whom they think may be nesting along the creek bank near their home. They have visited before, eyeing the little faux critters that my mother had around their garden pond.

Oh yes… now I present this fuzzy little bundle of cuteness…

These pictures are great, but Mom says she wishes that somehow she could have captured the sloooow blinks of the little owl eyes. Absolutely precious.

I hope these pictures warm your heart as much as they did mine!

Coop Update ~ Slowly but Surely…

2010-05-08T21:47:00.001-05:00

This beginning carpenter is getting her coop built :) I really think the framing part has been the most fun so far. The rest of it has moved much slower. It didn’t seem like I accomplished much during my building sessions this week, but now I realize: two hours here – two hours there.. I’m starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Chipboard was installed on the roof (this stuff will *not* show in the end. I’m putting nice shiny tin on my roof). This is the view from the back - nest box & roost area (where I’ll be installing a door).

Most of the bead board siding is installed. I had planned to perfectly match everything (i.e., the “beads” on the bead board), but let’s just say… measuring, and cutting accordingly has not been my strong suit so far. But then again, I’m a beginner! Trim will hide most of my errors (I hope). I am getting better and less nervous with the jig and circular saws.

This view shows the opening for the little chicken door, and the side window.

And here’s a quick view of a step that proved to be very tedious – I installed hardware cloth in the ventilation around the rafters. At that point I wished for verrrry tiny hands.

A few of the next steps –
*one more piece of siding installed because of another slight modification I made :)
*paint the interior – I have a quart of nice lemony yellow eggshell that was FREE from Glidden a few months ago.
*install hardware cloth on the inside of the window.
*cut out doors & brace them, as well as cut the window cover.
*trim window, doors, corners, roof lines.
*install doors, window, hinges, latches, etc.
*drill hole in back for heat lamp cord.
*caulk, caulk, caulk.
*paint exterior.
*install galvanized tin roof.

More updates soon – chicks arrive week after next! Thanks so much for the encouragement, Blogger Friends. I hope I can inspire others to build something they’ve been dreaming about. If you want to see more inspiration, check out my friend Linda at Prairie Flower Farm and what she’s been up to this week!

I’ll leave you with a few photos from this week. We’ve had lettuce from the “greens bed” for a couple of weeks now.

Check out one of our yard birds. So pretty, and so watchful over the nest….

Giant Allium was fully bloomed earlier this week.

Spiderwort from Patti. Such dainty little flowers!

Lastly…. and sadly, our Miss Monkey kitty disappeared a week ago today (in the middle of the day, no less). No clues… nothing. The neighborhood has been alerted and we’ve covered a lot of ground over the past week looking and calling for her. Hoping she’s okay and will come back soon. I miss those blue eyes…

Last but not least, Happy Mothers’ Day. Blessings and hugs for all the moms out there!

Coop de Flat Creek – Week 2 Progress

2010-04-28T22:03:00.001-05:00

If only all the other tasks would go away for a little while, I could get soooo much more done on this project. I’ve invested two more partial afternoons this week so far. It’s such a little drop in the big bucket of time, but all I can usually muster in a week.

Things that were accomplished: my modifications to the plans – framed a “grid” in the window to help support the hardware cloth, framed in the little chicken door (original plan didn’t require this). I also installed a vinyl flooring scrap on the main floor, as well as the roost shelf. And my biggest “ta-dah” …. rafters. Although it was also my biggest blunder so far. I completely assembled one rafter “bass-ackwards” as they say. I fixed the problem and all seems okay. This coop is definitely not perfect, but it’ll do I think! And did I mention how much fun this is?? Really, it is!

My favorite tools so far: miter saw, air nailer, cordless screwdriver/drill. My least favorite thing so far: Liquid Nails – ugh! I somehow manage to glue my fingers together each and every time. I also don’t care much for the circular saw or the jig saw, but they beat the heck out of using a hand saw :) All in all though – fun, interesting, addictive (what to build *next*?!).

Next step will be installing the hardware cloth on the interior of the window, and figuring out a way to install the hardware cloth in the ventilation area by the rafters. Hmmmm, more modifications may be in order?? I think I need another board situated in there somewheres….

Well, friends… all I have for now –
hope you’re having a great week!

You’ll never guess what…

2010-04-24T13:22:00.001-05:00

…but hang with me to the end and I’ll tell you. In the meantime, here are 1,001 random things that are going on around here. It has been a very busy week!

First, I spent an hour on a post this morning and Windows Live Writer went nuts and lost it. I really have a love/hate relationship with that program. And with computers in general.

Mr. W has been in and out of Osage Bluff Blacksmith & Quilter’s neck of the woods lately. Patti and I have been exchanging plants. This week I see I have received from her: Spiderwort, Bluebells, a cute little Osage Bluff fern, and some Live Forever. Awesome… can’t wait to plant them! Also, the Osage Bluff Blacksmith sent me this really cool, wicked-looking hoe. Won’t that be heck on weeds? I think so! Thanks, you two!

I took a quick walk around the very wet yard this morning and got a few pictures.

Purple Martin – please, oh please stay this time! I’ve been trying to lure you for three long years. I’ve resorted to everything during those years, including playing very loudly a CD of purple martin songs into a speaker directed into the front yard. Every morning. Hubby still hasn’t forgiven me for that one.

Giant Allium… ready to bloom.

Irises, between showers.

Here is one of my projects, awaiting my attention. 150+ heirloom tomato plants bursting at the seams in the jiffy pot container.

Our first hummingbirds of the season arrived at the feeders this morning. Thank goodness I had them ready! Moments after that, I heard the first oriole. Now I need to get that grape jelly out. No rest, I tell ya! :)

Ok, for my big news. I am building a small chicken coop. Yes, I am amazed too, especially that I still have all 10 blogging fingers so far :) I have absolutely no building experience, except as a lowly assistant on projects in the past. Who knew this would be so much fun? This building stuff could be addictive. I really hope to inspire someone else to try something they never thought they could do all by themselves. Best confidence-builder ever!

So far, I’ve devoted two afternoons. The first afternoon was spent cutting my pieces and parts, labeling them accordingly, and stacking in little organized piles. Well, that and hanging several loads of laundry on the line, and many other unrelated things. The second afternoon I completed the base (on four 2- foot legs), the floor, the nest box frame, the upper frame, and windows & doors framed in.

It isn’t perfect, but I am so proud of myself! I’ll keep posting updates, then one big post on the entire project in the end. My deadline is mid-May when 15 Ameraucana (Easter Egger) pullets plus one little rooster will arrive from Cackle Hatchery. I can’t wait! It’s been years since I had chickens and I’ve missed them ever since.

Oh, and lest you think this small coop is a permanent home for 16 chickens… nope! So, yes, a larger coop for when the chicks are bigger is already in the planning stage. Then this “starter” coop will turn into a portable coop with wheels and the addition of a portable run.

That’s all the news from Flat Creek Farm for now. Hope everyone is doing well!

Thursday Walkabout ~ The Fragrance of Spring

2010-04-15T19:55:00.001-05:00

Can’t you just smell the fragrance of Spring? I want to bottle it up for those long Winter days to come.

It is so unbelievably difficult to take pictures of Ruby and Gracie. They are always in your pocket! Here’s an example.

These two boys have been hanging out a lot together lately. I think they’re plotting something.

Springtime Blessings to you and yours….

Thursday Walkabout: Oh, Spring…

2010-04-08T05:18:00.000-05:00

How we have anxiously awaited your arrival. So glad to see you again!

Top: Sunshine through the Bradford Pear, Redbud tree ready to pop, Lilacs ready to pop, Creeping Phlox.

Center: Wellies – a necessity, Greta Goose has 3 eggs!, Plum Blossoms, Weeping Peach Buds.

Bottom: Big Puddles, One of the new Bluebird Houses (thanks, Dad! & thanks Mr. W for installation :)), Miss Monkey in Bradford Pear, One more Bradford Pear shot.

Happy Spring!

Hay & Straw, and other random things…

2010-04-07T13:09:00.001-05:00

My first randomness - a random mosaic including a few of my favorite things in the pie safe.

A favorite towel – a gift from a favorite young lady; Shamrock in a crock; Mama & baby donkey – treasures found by my dear mother at a recent antique show & sale (thanks Mom!); Grandma Winfree’s sugar “stove” (very precious to me); Hummel donkey & cart (my most favorite eBay find ever); yet another donkey with one of last summer’s hydrangeas; Greta Goose’s egg which was Pysanki-painted just beautifully by our very talented neighbor, Colleen.

Did everyone have a nice Easter? We had a dual celebration, also celebrating the Fiddler’s birthday on Sunday afternoon. I fixed a simple lunch on Easter called “Hay & Straw.” It’s a Taste of Home recipe, and you can find it here if you like. Very easy and delicious! And I love the name! It consists of julienned strips of ham, linguine, frozen peas, parmesan cheese, butter, whipping cream (I used half & half). I put it in the big slow cooker on buffet setting and it worked perfectly. Along with a salad, we were good to go. Or at least until later, when we all pigged out on an enormous white cake with heavenly frosting & ice cream.

I have big plans to do a Thursday Walkabout tomorrow. We have a few blooming trees now. We’re loving Spring, but it’s so overwhelming the amount of things that need to be done. Like… right now! The only thing holding us back is all this rain, but that has allowed more time for Spring Cleaning. Speaking of which, back to work I go… the Purge continues!

Enjoy your day!

Happy 28th to the Fiddler!!

2010-03-31T08:16:00.001-05:00

You know, it really hits home when your “kid” pushes closer to that big 3-0.

I. am. old.

Happy Birthday, Dear Son. Here’s to many many more. We love ya!!

The Natural History of the Chicken

2010-03-17T13:44:00.001-05:00

Dear friends who love chickens (like myself)…

Have you seen this documentary? It’s been around awhile, but it was my first time viewing it on PBS this week. I loved every minute of it (although much of it is admittedly quite bizarre). My desire to be a Chicken Keeper again was strengthened ten-fold. (ummmm… Mr. W, get ready to build that chicken coop!).

A word of caution for Big Saps like myself… grab that box of Kleenexes. (sniffle-sniffle).

This is part 6 of 6 (my favorite), but if you want to view more, click here for part 1 and proceed through all 6 parts.

Back to taxes and purging…. Fun Times!

Spring Awakenings: Frog Pond

2010-03-13T07:13:00.001-06:00

We interrupt this regularly scheduled blog break for a springtime announcement.

My long-awaited first sign of Spring finally arrived early this week. Spring peepers and western chorus frogs began their spring songs on our ponds. Ohhhh, how I love this sound.
I made a little audio clip to share. Nothing to look at here – just the audio for you to enjoy the spring sounds. I wanted to give you a snippet of what we are hearing now in case you’ve never heard them before, or are in a location where the froggies haven’t awakened quite yet. I crave this sound all winter long. It's even my ringtone. Crazy... yes I know :) The sound is nearly deafening at times here, but I still love it! **Update: I had to insert a link here because after 10 hours my video still wouldn't upload to Blogger. Hope this works!

Listen to Frog Pond

The loud whistling sounds are Spring Peepers – pictured below. (Whoa, this looks painful, huh?)

Photo Credit: George Grall

If you listen closely to the clip, the sounds which resemble a thumbnail on a comb are the Western Chorus Frogs (my favorites).

I’m still on a blog break. Really I am. Soon I hope to catch up on my chore list, as well as my ever-important blog list. I’ve been sick this week with cold/flu. And no, I do not have our taxes complete. And no, I haven’t accomplished any of the other unpleasant tasks as of yet. I did manage to purge my closet of two very large bags of clothes (so far). Goodwill and Uncle Sam (IRS), look out 'cause here I come just as soon as I’m back among the living.

Hope all is well in your neck of the woods. Happy Spring… see you soon!

Knee deep in...
kleenexes inside, and mud outside...

Big Muddy

2010-03-04T22:07:00.001-06:00

Nope, not the Missouri River, aka Big Muddy. This describes the current condition of our driveway, and everyone else’s around us.

How’s the weather around you? We really can’t complain. The temps have been in the 40’s most days, still dipping down to 20 or so at night. But it’s getting a little better every day. The birds are singing their Spring songs. I’m still waiting for those Western Chorus Frogs to sing, but the ponds still look very cold and partially frozen.

I’m taking a blog break to take care of some UNpleasantries. Taxes for one thing.. boo!

Till then… Cheers to all! Hope you’re seeing signs of Spring too!

Thursday Walkabout: Our National Bird

2010-02-25T06:46:00.001-06:00

The Bald Eagle became our national bird in 1782, and is the one eagle unique to North America. The bald eagle's scientific name signifies a sea eagle with a white head. Bald eagles may be found throughout most of North America, from Alaska and Canada to northern Mexico.

Bald eagles were declared an endangered species in 1967 in most areas of the United States. In 1995, the US Fish and Wildlife Service upgraded the status of bald eagles in the lower 48 states to "threatened." In 2007 the American bald eagle was removed from the Endangered Species List. They are still protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.

Over the past few years, we’ve seen an increase in Bald Eagles in our neck of the woods. They’re literally in our back yards in this area now. Until that time, I had never seen a Bald Eagle up close and personal. Viewing a Bald Eagle in flight makes my heart skip a beat! This ‘eagle season’ I’ve had two meetings with them. A few weeks ago an eagle swooped my car (just saying hi?) when I was getting close to home. A few days after that encounter, I was feeding the geese and one flew just a few feet over our heads peering down on us. Awesome! (But, maybe he/she was eyeing my geese?!).

Mr. W and I were able to capture some photos of “our locals” this week. In the mosaic you will see an eagle in flight, and one roosting in the tree – both of those eagles have a mottled appearance. That means he or she is a juvenile. They’re not the best quality pics – lots of zoom and crop here, but not bad! I’ll throw in my favorite shot of the day at the end.

Enjoy your day!

It began as a dreary, gray day… and then…

2010-02-22T18:30:00.001-06:00

Well, first let me show you another snow picture or two. We had rain, and lots of it yesterday. Which turned to ice. Last night it began to snow. Again.

And then the sun tried to peek out ----

(It finally succeeded). From this point, the day just got better and better.

I went out to the mailbox and what did I find? A ZSQ!!! What IS a ZSQ, you may ask? Why, it is a Zippy Strippy Quilt. Made by none other than JENNY MATLOCK. It is truly adorable, made in a camping theme, with fleecy warm fabric. Keep in mind that Jenny Matlock lives in a perpetual state of sunshine and warmth. It was pure fate that I won this giveaway, given the perpetual frozen tundra state we seem to be in these days. The giveaway was in memory of her sweet friend Mike. Please read more here, but be warned, there is a famous Jenny PKW (possible kleenex warning) on this post. So sad, but so sweet, and I am completely honored to be the recipient of this darling quilt.

I couldn’t get a picture that captured just how big the ZSQ is. It’s BIG!! And oh so cozy.

Close-up of one of the fabrics. So cute!

Needless to say, it will be loved. Jenny also enclosed the sweetest little card (I think she made that too).

Thank you so very much, Jenny! Bless you. Every time I see or use this quilt, I will think of your friend Mike and the wonderful memories you must have.

Thursday Walkabout: Let’s Go for a Drive

2010-02-18T21:27:00.001-06:00

We took a drive late this afternoon, so technically, these aren’t really walkabout pictures… are they? Maybe I’ll just pretend this once, k? Several of these photos are along our route to and from work. A few are just slightly off our beaten path. It was a gorgeous, sunshiny day. We’re still waiting for warmer temps, but the mid-thirties today seemed very pleasant. The local weather dude says that 45 is the average high temperature for the latter part of February. It would be so nice to see that number soon!

A few of these photos were snapped by Mr. W. Thank you, Dear! :)

Roadside Squirrel, Snowy Fields, Wild Turkeys (they sure are making a lot of appearances these days), Sky View

Old Levick’s Mill Log Cabin, Barn, Windmill, Old Lonely Farmhouse, One Room Schoolhouse in a Cow Pasture, Love those Windmills (Note to Self: All we need to make our farm complete -- Windmill & Chickens).

Here’s the Snowy Field in solo form. For some reason, it brings me peace and serenity. Need to chill? Take a deep breath, and gaze at this photo a few seconds…

Did it help?

We’ve almost survived yet another winter’s week. Hope yours has been a good one!

Thursday Walkabout: Yep! More Snow…

2010-02-11T13:24:00.001-06:00

It’s been a daily job to keep the feathered friends happy, but they’re more than worth it.

We’ve had two snowstorms in a week’s time, with more predicted for the weekend. I know we’re not alone in our winter weather, but sheesh, bring on Spring already!

I stepped out of my color comfort zone here and transformed everything to sepia tones with Pioneer Woman’s Soft and Faded action. (Photoshop Actions are so much fun!). We have snowy scenes and some of our frozen fog from this morning.

Enjoy your day! I hope to be back with a Valentine’s post and an update to our 2010 mini-journal later this week. But if not…

♥ Happy Valentine’s Day, Friends! ♥

It’s a Giveaway! Hop on over to…

2010-02-06T17:56:00.002-06:00

another dear friend’s blog - Patti (Osage Bluff Quilter) for a fantastic giveaway. It’s her BIRTHDAY – today!! First, wish her a Happy Birthday, of course. She will announce the winner on February 10th (that gives lots of time for LOTS of Happy Birthday wishes per Patti).

She is giving away a set of Wade seasons collectibles. I won’t pretend to know anything about collectibles (I don’t!), but I can say they look very cute!

Thursday Walkabout: Sunshiny Woods

2010-02-04T08:51:00.001-06:00

We have been blessed with a little sunshine this week, which made for a nice couple of walks in the woods.

Frozen waterfall, critter home, another icy waterfall, sunshine through the trees, woodsy hillside, frozen “crick”, sunny cedar grove.

The most exciting event this week on our Walkabout was sneaking up on a group of wild turkeys. Of course, with my two sidekicks (Chloe & Banjo dogs), it’s a little hard to sneak up on anything. Here’s one of the turkeys in flight.

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Mini-Journal update of random stuff 1-28 thru 2-3-10:

Thursday- Other than work, I don’t recall? lol

Friday – I returned from work to find a message requesting use of one of my Barn Quilt photos for a soon-to-be published book on the topic. I was happy to cooperate! The author has a nice blog following the trail of barn quilts. Follow this link to learn more about "Barn Quilts and the American Quilt Trail"

Weekend – Mr. W brought up a load of wood. The Fiddler suffered with strep and a cold. Mr. W & I did some cleaning in the garage. I can actually park in it now! We also had our first successful coffee bean roast.

Tuesday – Out the door and headed to work, I heard the first Spring call of a Cardinal! What a great way to start the day. And on Groundhog Day, no less. I’m going with the Cardinal’s prediction :)

Wednesday – Enjoyed the great outdoors as much as possible. Snow and colder temps in the forecast!

Weather for the past week: We dodged a bullet of more winter weather, missing the snow that many others around us received. The temps stayed mostly in the 30’s during the day, with a little bit of 40’s.
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Hope everyone is having a great week!

Till next time..

Coffee Bean Roast #2 – Modification & Results

2010-02-01T10:14:00.001-06:00

(If you want the whole scoop of our initial attempt at roasting coffee beans, please go HERE).

In previous posts I forgot to include a picture of green coffee beans. Here is what we started with…

The modification: Mr. W placed a steel plate over the fish cooker burner to diffuse the heat. Just a plate of 3/16” steel. Excellent idea! I’m told you can also use a cast iron pan for that purpose. We roasted two batches – again using the Colombian Supremo green coffee beans from Coffee Bean Direct (via Amazon). And again using the Whirley Pop. There was a little smoking involved, but it wasn’t unpleasant (like before). We’ve learned that we may have to ignore the thermometer a bit as “first crack” seemed to arrive at 250 degrees F or so (if we wanted to believe that thermometer). Also, by the end of the roast, we had barely reached 400 degrees F. We can now understand that it’s probably best to learn to judge the beans on smell and appearance, as well as listening for those 1st & 2nd cracks.

The best part this time was that we were able to actually see the beans while they were roasting. With our maiden roast, it was smoking too badly and we couldn’t see the beans when we opened the lid. This time we could actually check every 3-4 minutes (or more often toward the end) and see that the beans were going from green, to the various stages of brown. Awesome! The smell wasn’t nearly as bad this time. Let me emphasize this – we could actually breathe in the Roasting Room (aka Blacksmith Shop).

We did two roasts this time. Each one took approximately 15 minutes. We kept the heat on high, but with the diffusion from the steel plate, the roasting process was slow and nice. And, I assure you, these roasted beans smell yummy! Definitely not burnt offerings. Here are the successfully roasted beans, in all their glory --

I put the beans in our Melitta Mill and Brew pot last night, set the time for 5:10 a.m., and we were awakened with….

…the wonderful aroma of fresh ground, fresh roasted coffee. The taste? Delicious. I think at this point we’re hooked.

If you’d like a synopsis of why people roast their own coffee beans, check out Wikipedia's explanation. Thanks goes again to Jayme for introducing me to home roasting! Without her encouragement, I would have given up with that first burnt offering batch.

Coffee Bean Roast #1 – the results are in…

2010-01-28T23:17:00.001-06:00

(Please stay tuned to the VERY end for news of an exciting GIVEAWAY over at a dear friend’s place!!)

I was the only brave soul who would try this coffee. The results of our first home roast = Burnt offering! Yes, indeed. Those beans looked like burnt offerings, smelled like burnt offerings…

and truly the brew tasted bad. Seriously… yuck. Also, I put in plenty of beans for a good hearty brew, but it looked pale and weak. I found that part strange – since the beans were apparently burned? So our first roast was a definite…

But! We are not giver uppers. We will keep on trying to perfect our home roasted beans to our liking.

Thanks for your interest, and I hope we can help others by sharing our mistakes. Hopefully soon we’ll have success to share.

Now, as promised, on a much sweeter note, please head right on over to Misha’s blog "From My Front Porch In the Mountains" and see what she is giving away! You won’t believe it… a pair of Ariat boots of the winner’s choosing! Read the rules carefully, and leave your comment. And… while you’re there, you must get to know her beautiful horses (and that sweet little foal Annie), and the rest of her wonderful Tennessee Mountain crew!! Stay awhile and look around. It’ll make ya smile – I promise :)

Thursday Walkabout: Gray Days and Big Logs

2010-01-28T07:57:00.001-06:00

First, a coffee bean roasting update from yesterday’s post – we STILL haven’t tried it yet (I think we’re chicken – it smells burned!). I promise we’ll be brave and try some soon. And I’m sure we’ll do better next time. Jayme reassures me it takes a few tries to get it right… thanks again, Jayme!

Most days over the past week have been, well,

a little gray. So again, this walkabout reflects the gray days. Did I mention the gray, long, when-will-spring-arrive days?

Cardinal silhouette in tree, Red Bud tree seedpods, donkey weather vane, coneflower seed head, geese in flight, allium perhaps ‘jumping the gun’ a bit, and at center – birdhouse reflection in big water puddle.

I also thought the giant logs Mr. W dragged up on Tuesday were blogworthy (and very much appreciated since our woodpile is dwindling fast!). The logs are Water Oak and Black Oak/Scarlet Oak. You might see glimpses of our little helpers here & there…

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Mini-journal update for the last week--
I’ve been really bad at keeping notes this time. And now, I have a headache and a temporary memory lapse…

Friday evening – I had an enjoyable evening with a dear friend & neighbor.

Weekend – spent mucking through the mud!

Monday – Among laundry & other Monday tasks, I cleaned one nightmare kitchen cabinet out – the under-sink cabinet. It was scary, but not anymore.

Tuesday – a follow-up doctor’s appointment for me. Mr. W dragged up two giant logs for the woodpile.

Wednesday – Mr W worked up most of the two gigantic logs he brought up Tuesday. We burned, I mean *roasted* green coffee beans in the afternoon :) A fun, learning experience!

Weather: has been gray, overcast, some rain, decent temps for this time of year – 30’s in daytime hours with a couple of colder days mixed in. Two days with peeks of blessed sunshine.

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Hope your week is going well!

Coffee Bean Roasting in the Blacksmith Shop – Take 1

2010-01-27T19:44:00.001-06:00

Inspired by Jayme at Tales from the Coop Keeper, Mr W, and I set out to turn green coffee beans into beautiful roasted coffee beans today. Friend Daniel just happened to be visiting here at the right(?) time so he was drafted to help in this process. I think we may just have smoked and stunk him out! Poor guy… he may ne’er return again.

Mr W and I are major coffee fans. We’ve purchased coffee beans for fresh-ground weekend coffee for years (our weekend splurge). The next step seemed logical – to start roasting our own beans (it’s a little less expensive that way also).

Jayme gave me just enough information to get me really interested in this venture. She also recommended the Whirley Pop popcorn method. I purchased a separate Whirley Pop to use exclusively for coffee bean roasting (didn’t want to taint the taste of our buttery popcorn!). Also, dear Jayme recommended doing the entire process outside because of the stink/smoke involved. Wow, was she ever correct?! One would think that roasting coffee beans would be ahhh…. aromatic… delectable-smelling. Nope! So, out to the blacksmith shop we went, and kept the door wide open.

I ordered green coffee beans from Coffee Bean Direct (tip: search for “Coffee Bean Direct green coffee beans” on Amazon to get free shipping with a $25 order), and Sweet Maria’s (link below). Sweet Maria’s also had the thermometer which reads to 550 degrees and fits nicely into the Whirley Pop popcorn popper. A thermometer is a great thing to have, especially for novices like us. Mr W drilled a tiny hole in the top of the Whirley Pop to insert the thermometer. He set up the fish cooker burner in the blacksmith shop. I also gathered a metal colander to cool the roasted beans in, a metal cake pan to put the cooled beans into, an oven mitt, a measure that holds exactly 8 ounces of beans at a time. And of course my instructions printed from my various trusty internet sources. We had the air compressor next to the cooker so we could immediately begin to cool the beans after roasting (very important to cool them quickly, so I’m told). You can also use a hair dryer set on cold, or a fan for this purpose.

We poured our 8 ounces of Coffee Bean Direct’s Columbian green beans into the Whirley Pop, turned on the heat, and started cranking.

Keeping close watch on the thermometer on top. We’re waiting for “first crack,” which may happen at about 6 minutes into the process. You will start to hear pops and cracks, and the beans should start to turn brown. *Some sources suggest the ideal temperature for roasting will be around 450-500F degrees.

Our “first crack” happened much sooner than 6 minutes, which told us we had the heat too high. From here on out, major smoke and stink warning :)

“Second crack” should happen between minutes 9 and 12 according to one source. We went to “second crack” much too soon also, and quickly removed the popper, poured the beans into the metal colander to cool. We helped the cooling process along by using the air compressor, forcing cold air onto the beans. Also much of the chaff from the beans was blown off during this step.

We went on to batches 2 and 3, trying to regulate the heat. I think we almost got it, but unfortunately our beans from today’s roasting are very very VERY dark. Could they be classified as espresso? I hope they’re drinkable! We’ll see…

Let me just say, while our first efforts were valiant, I think we’re going to need more practice. Best tip from today: SLOW DOWN – lower heat. Yes, we’ll try it again. Soon I hope. And after we allow our beans to “degas” for 12-24 hours, we’ll try a pot of fresh-ground home-roasted and I’ll post our review.

If you have an interest in becoming a home coffee bean roaster, there are many sites which are quite helpful. My favorite so far is Sweet Maria's. They really do have a wealth of information and tutorials on roasting your own beans. Join us – we’ll learn together!

Gifts from the Heart

2010-01-23T12:20:00.001-06:00

Aren’t they the best?

Hope your weekend is full of blessings, big and small.

Thursday Walkabout: Fog

2010-01-21T07:15:00.001-06:00

Most of these pictures over the last few days have a common thread ~ fog.

Icy pond, Mr W’s Old Sawmill trademark, Old Wagon, Bottle tree with Cardinal, Fog across the Hay field, Barn through the fog (parts 1 & 2), Cog from the old sawmill, Crunchy dry Goldenrod. And at center ~ something we all never seem to have enough of: Thyme/Time.

Here’s an update to the mini-journal of random happenings here of 2010:

Weather: Many days of fog and clouds. But the temps have been decent at mid-30’s for the most part. The water buckets for the animals have never completely frozen for the past week, making a.m. and p.m. chores much easier. Thank goodness for small blessings!

Thursday – Late afternoon while loading up the outside wood stove, I found the headless body of a flying squirrel in the yard (I have no idea what happened). Poor little critter...

Friday –A major re-stock of groceries and supplies.

Saturday – Sat evening, Mr W received a cell phone call from a neighbor/friend who had taken his nephews coon hunting. They were lost in the fog. Mr W proceeded slowly down the blacktop in his pickup, honking the horn constantly so the guys could find their way out of the woods. (Only on a Saturday night in Podunk, USA!) All arrived safely to the road, and made it to their truck. While Mr W rescued the wayward hunters, I made a jewelry gift for a friend. And made a jewelry gift for me. p.s. Mr W and I refuse to allow said neighbor to ever forget about the “lost in the fog” episode. :)

Sunday – Among other miscellaneous tasks, I wormed the donkeys. (BTW, wormer sandwiched between two graham crackers is an easy peasy way to handle this task.)

Monday – We worked with cattle in the a.m. Oh, the mud! In the afternoon and evening, I did some cleaning and a little bit of organizing (it’s a start!).

Wednesday – Mr. W and I took a little trip to my hometown for haircut, visits with our dear former neighbor lady and my 96 year old dear Grandma, lunch with my parents, and a quick visit to the local antique shop. This was day 7 (at least) of fog.

Today we have fog again, and some rain.

How is the weather in your neck of the woods?

Thursday Walkabout: January Thaw

2010-01-14T08:46:00.001-06:00

These photos are a combination of our earlier colder weather this week, and the sunshiny balmy 40’s temps mid-late week (woo hoo!).

Melting snow in hayfield, Promise of Spring in Buds on tree, Hazel in tree, Snow in corn stubble rows, Diamonds in the snow, Icicles, Snow dunes.

More tree buds (I’m searching out proof that Spring is coming), Snowy Scene at Cattle Gate,
Snowy sunlit Grass, Li’l Austrian Pine, Wisteria Vines,
Sunset with Bottle Tree

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This week’s update for my mini-journal to document random happenings throughout the year ~

1-7-10 Thursday night – Snow/bitter cold day ~ the first of two snow days. Made a bazillion trips outside to provide fresh water for animals, put wood in the outside stove, insulate donkey barn & goose pen even more for the next three bitter cold nights. Also left more blankets for barn kitties. We watched The Soloist with Robert Downey, Jr and Jamie Foxx tonight. Cello… loved that! And the story (based on true) was a good one.

Friday & Weekend – Drifting blowing snow, bitter cold temps which lasted through the weekend. Every two hours the drill was: stir outside stove & put more wood in, check the animals & give fresh water. Some nights, the wind chill dipped to 25 below and possibly beyond. It was all about survival, baby!

Ahhh, Monday & Tuesday – temps back into the twenties during the day. Much better! Back to work and routine.

Wednesday – Temps into the 40’s and sunshine! Mr. W had a morning road trip before work. I began to clean out storage shed #1 of 2, boxed up several dozen quart jars I was given before Christmas, and tackled the previously frozen, now thawed, manure pile in the donkey stall. All fresh and clean now with a new batch of Equine Fresh :)

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It’s almost the weekend.. yay for that! I plan to do more cleaning and organizing, possibly some painting on the Barn/Cottage interior trim too. Winter doldrums are trying to get me, but I’m going to fight back and take action on some things that need to be done. Yes, I am!!

What are your plans for the weekend? Are you fighting cabin fever & winter blahs too?

One last note – thanks so much for the prayers and comments regarding the recent tragedy in our Amish community here. Also, as many mentioned, we pray for those suffering from the devastation of earthquakes in Haiti.

Our Local Amish ~ Sadness & Tragedy

2010-01-13T17:45:00.001-06:00

Yesterday, one of our local Amish men, age 29 and father to five, was tragically hit and killed on the highway while traveling by buggy. His horse was traumatically injured and was euthanized by a veterinarian at the accident scene. Our hearts & prayers go out to his family and the entire local Amish community. As well, our thoughts & prayers are with the driver of the car and his family.

Many questions remain unanswered, however this has been a grim reminder to all that we need to keep our mind and eyes on the road constantly.

I’ll leave you with a prayer request for all of the above, and a photo that I took last Summer in Amish Country. Some of the hardworking, beautiful, strong horses…