Evening Sky

We had weather like we were to get a big storm but it blew over and this is the sunset it left us with the other evening. It is so beautiful. I just love when I can step out on my deck and see this for all its glory. This is what makes me smile and feel blessed to be living where I am today. Just being out in the country and not having the city lights block out the stars and everything God has given us .

Canning Jams

My dear sweet husband saw I had purchased canning jars to make jams, so he brought me home some peaches and strawberries. Last night I made some peach jam and today I made the strawberry jam. He says I look like susie home maker doing the things women are suppose to do. ha! He knows I did this because I love my jams. lol

Boy, I know its been well over 20 years since I've done any canning and my back today is telling me so. I only hope they all turn out well as the fruit sure smells good.

Triplets

This morning when I went out and fed the chickens, I started up the hill to feed the dogs and right at my watering bucket was three fawns and mama nearby feeding. She has been coming around the yard the last few weeks, but I had only seen two of her fawns on the property next door. By the time I ran back in to get my camera they were heading out. They are sure cute when they are small but can do some good damage to my bushes. None the less, I love looking at the little babies.

More pics of Co-op Garden

The soil out here is so nice. Makes me want to keep planting.

This is where all the lettuce and onions and beets were. Then here is a pic of our bush beans, squash and corn. And the two hills of pumpkin which want to take over the garden. This has truely been a good experiment for me. Used only organic and heirloom plants and seeds. There are no bugs on anything. The only bugs I find on the plants are ladybugs, good bugs, sent from heaven.

Harvest time

Went to the co op this am and did my usual weeding. The tomatoes are looking good, but not ripe for picking yet. Hot peppers are starting along. And the pumpking patch is going nuts. Had to harvest the walla walla onions, green onion, chard and bush beans today. I did plant my bush beans too close to the squash. It was a bit tight to get into them for picking. Good thing I'm taking lots of pics so I'll plan better next year. All in all, it took me about an hour and a half to get it back into shape. The corn has got to be over 5 ft tall now. I blanched and froze what chard I picked today, put the onions up and fixing the rest.

Tonights dinner is an ol' okey meal my first husband's gramma use to fix. Fresh picked green beans, new potatoes and bacon cooked altogether in one pot. Yummy..... By the way, I married another okey boy this time around to.

Plans changed

This week my granddaughter and I were gonna do some camping by the lake but she was not able to do that after all. So instead I made a list of all the things I need to get done around the house. To start, I finished my compost bin and have started on my garden gate. Tomorrow I will finish the gate post with cement and attach the gate, then its off to make a new area inside my coop for my banties and their babies. The temporary one is a bit hard to manuver in to keep it tidy. After that I have a lot of outdoor furniture to put a good coating of urethane on. I must say, I will definetly need to do some more fishing after all of this. Here is a pic of the gate, it took me 4 hours to build, and here is one of my compost bin in which I used pallets and attached them with L brackets.

New Baby Indy

This is my first time ever where one of my hens hatched a baby. I called her (hope) Indy for Independence Day since that's the weekend she came about. She is so cute and her mama is really good and very protective. I hope to have more baby bantees in the future.

My First Barter on the Palouse

I had never bartered before and this was such a great deal. Our first stop on the Palouse was at the Freeman Store where I was able to swap my Singer treadle machine for this beautiful hand stitched quilt, embroidered pillow shams and this quaint little ladder. I think I did awesome. What do you think?

Here's a pic of me and the two sisters who bartered with me. They have such a nice little place. Girls, I'll hope to be seeing you next year.

Finished touches

Today I pretty much finished the trailer. Had a little painting and cleaning to do. Just need to clean out the ice box, mop floor and put all my dishes and things back inside. Have a new faucet pump on order but everything else is up and working great. Now to start planning my first get away for a girls weekend. Ooops, the BBB is first, then my second getaway to plan. So here are my pics of what I have accomplished.

Gone Fishing

Yesterday was a day of relaxing. Cheryl, her husband Clay and I went out to Fish Lake and spent the morning bringing in a few nice Rainbow trout. We had a wonderful time even though the weather was on the cool side and it did come in choppy water and some rain. We must do that more often as I really enjoy being out on the lake with all the beautiful scenery around. And it is always nice to catch a fish or to for dinner, which by the way turned out really good. Thanks Cheryl for the recipe.

Let it rain

I so love waking up to the wonderful smell of fresh air and pine and sage brush. I rode my quad to the mailbox this morning at 7:30 and it was so refreshing. Looks like we will have more rain for next couple of days. The fishing ought to be real good.

Here's the view out in my garden and, as you can see it needs a lot of work still. I think I'm seriously gonna have to consider raised beds. After all this rain we had rivers going right down the driveway and pathway. No wonder my garden soil never seems to improve enough. It all gets washed away when we have such tremendous storms as of lately. Really must start building up where the soil will be better protected. Hopefully the wild flowers will pop up everywhere though. Looks like today I will be doing inside cleaning, yuk. I even have the fireplace going as it is on the chilly side in here this morning.

Aprons in Public

The Klamath Falls Charming Chicks wore aprons in public! Had our monthly lunch again today at the Nibbley's Cafe and had our waitress take pics of us in our aprons. We discussed all the upcoming crafts we would like to do and progress on our co-op garden. Had a good visit with everyone. And yes the chickens are upside down on the aprons as I must have been cross-eyed the day I cut them out. This is what happens when you have'nt sewn in quite awhile.

Trailer Progress

Hubby and I have been getting little things done on my trailer. Everything is in working order and lubed and tightened down. I had him take out the bunk bed as I won't be crawling up there and we put a shelf across where I can place baskets of necessary items. I've finished all the interior paint and am in the process of making curtains all around. Will have the cushions reupholstered as foam has gotten ridiculously expensive.

Went yard sales today and found some things I can use in the trailer. Won't be much longer where I can take it out on the road. Just need a few more girlie touches, don't you think?

Busy in Gardens

Planted a lot more plants in the co op garden today. I can't believe how everything is already coming up in just one week. This guy's got some awesome soil. I definetely need to keep working on amending mine. My things are puny and they have been in the ground going on three weeks!

We had a nice Memorial weekend on the lake all day. Only caught one little fish but it was real nice to be out on the water. My little boat did real good after sitting all winter. I've been really busy on the glamper. Putting in new cushions, painting and replacing some worn out pieces. It's coming along pretty well.

Now it's back to weeding my own garden and keeping things watered so they can continue to grow.

Met Rogue River Farmgirls

Cheryl, Faith and myself went to Gold Hill on Sunday to have lunch, walk around an antique fair, and meet the RR farmgirls. We really had a great time talking and getting to know each others. They are planning to have a float in the Rooster Parade at the end of June which they would like us to join them. I think we will have a lot of fun. Very nice gals who have very busy lives. Of course we had to stop at a few yard and estate sales on our way and we each brought home more goodies. It was a wonderful day, warm, high 90's and Cheryl had her convertable so we all got to let our wild side out for a little while.

Trailer Pics

This is how it looked when I brought it home. Have taken all the seat covers out and the curtains out. Just been busy cleaning everything and have started painting the inside of the closet and the inside of the cubboards. Will post more pics as I finish a bit more inside.

Chicks Co-op Garden

Cheryl and I finally got to plant in our loaned garden. Let me tell you their soil is wonderful. I have'nt had my hands in that good of dirt in many years. We did spend a couple hours putting in onions, corn, bush beans, beets, lettuce, chard and radish. I would say that we had a pretty productive day. We will plant more in couple of weeks as there is still chance of frost until June.

I've Done It!

I bought a 1965 Aristocrat LoLiner. It is gonna need a lot of cleaning and minor repair but nothing that hopefully I can't handle. It can sleep 3-4 people so my friends will be able to go with me. I have been so looking for one since seeing them in MJ's magazine and thinking how fun it would be to fix one up all pink and shabby chic where no men are allowed. :) A summer project it will be, but none the less a fun one. I've even been collecting goodies to put into it for sometime now. Nothing like planning ahead. Only now my husband will be asking "where did you get that?". And that's where I'll reply with, "oh honey I've had this for a long time." Well off to start the cleaning.

Chicks are moved in

Been awhile since I've been here. Finally got the chickens moved in and today is the first day my new baby chicks went out in the yard with the older girls. O'Henry, my rooster, is sure lovin' the newbies. He makes a noise cooing them to him and struts and fluffs up real pretty. Today it got a little warmer where I finally got 5 eggs. Out of 8 hens laying, not too bad. Tomorrow I may have to mow as since it has rained so much the last few days the grass is pretty tall. My garden is full of weeds so that will need to get done, then there's the gate I still need to build to finish off the last of the fencing down below. Guess as the weather gets nicer, I will be quite busy.

Coop is Finished!

After finishing the gates and the fencing and cement all I had to do was move the chickens to their new coop. Two at a time I finally got them all down there. Then within 15 minutes they managed to find a hole in the fence I did'nt know was there, and they went wondering the property. So here I am with a stick in hand trying to herd them back into their yard. I am so pooped I'm ready for a hot bath. I have been at this since 8:30 this morning. Anyway I hope my hens will be much happier on the southern exposure. If I do say so myself I think it turned out just the way I had pictured it would.

Busy Days

I have been so busy the last few days. Took my little Onyx in to have her ears done and spayed. Poor little thing cries something awful to be let out of her cage to play, so I hold her and rock her until she sleeps or she plays with a toy while I am holding her. Just a few more days before she can chase the cat again.
Spent Monday at Cheryl's house helping plant a few things in the garden. We are having some really nice weather for a change.
Put down cement on some of my posts yesterday for my fences and today got a gate built for the chicken fence. A little more cement to support some of their area and they will be ready to move in. I can't wait to let my little Silky sit on her eggs and hope for new little babies. My other newbies are doing very well but are quite anxious to get out and see the world.
Tonight Cheryl and her husband are coming out so we can go and trap them a rooster. Found several at a neighbors who is more than willing to part with a few. This ought to be fun. Guess I better bring the camera.

Lunch and crafting

Today the girls came out to my house for a chance to do some more on our journal and we met a new gal, Terry, who is interested in what we are doing as a group. We had lunch and talked while some worked on postcards and pages for the journal. I did get our aprons made for all the gals so we could wear them to our next monthly meeting in town. I met with Cheryl and another gal, Yvette, yesterday who seems to really like the outdoors and is thinking about possibly joining our group. We are getting anxious about our garden but our weather is still too cold for planting much. Until then we are getting to know one another and seeing what everyone enjoys doing or would like to do together. Of course my little Onyx had to make her place amongst everyone and chew on everything she could get in her mouth before she got caught. She loved the ladies attention for sure.

Attitude adjustment

I needed my head examined to say yes to my dh for wanting a new puppy. I have'nt raised one in almost twelve years. Let me tell you, its like having a baby in the house. Always wanting attention, cleaning up after their potties, not getting enough sleep. Then there's the putting everything up out of its reach and making sure the wrong things are'nt put in her mouth. And let me tell you, she is training me soooo well. She is a gal with an attitude for sure.

She lets you know when she wants rocked, when she wants you to play with her and now her new thing is run out the door as soon as she hears it open. Boy, with all this going on, I should be losing weight, would'nt you think? Who needs Pilates?

Building a Chicken Coop

The last few days my dh and I have been working on getting our coop going. With the weather still getting chilly it is taking longer than it should. Yesterday I built the roost by myself and today I built the nesting boxes. They were quite a bit more difficult to do by myself. Can't wait until the house is done. I know the chickens are sure gonna like it. It will be in a much nicer location for them, plus I can pop my head out the back door and watch them. It's off to town tomorrow to pick up a little more plywood since I used some of it for the nests. Maybe dh won't notice.

Banana Nut Bread

Today I needed to use up my old bananas so did the next best thing and made my ex mother-in-laws Banana Nut Bread recipe. It is really moist and delicious which makes it my favorite one. Thought I'd share it with you all. Enjoy.

Banana Nut Bread

1 1/4 cup flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup shortening

3 bananas (ripe)

2 eggs

3/4 cup nuts (optional)

Mix dry ingred. together and set aside. Cream together sugar and shortening, then add bananas and eggs. mix well, stir in flour mix and add nuts. Lightly grease loaf pan and bake in 350 degree oven for 55 minutes.

My little princess

You know I just had to get something pink for my new baby. She's a little fiesty booger, just too darn cute not to love her. I'm certainly not use to anything this small except when I was about 13 and had a pet hamster. How the heck do you train something this small and wound up? Guess its off to training school after all her shots. Oh well she still had to have a few new toys. Just to keep up appearances and all.

First day of Spring

It is so beautiful outside. I could sit out here for hours and soak up the sun, think of all the things I need to do , dream of all the things I'd like to do and just do nothing at all. Now this is living.

Hen house

Well the girls got some sunshine today. Sure helps with the egg laying. I got 6 yesterday. Four of the Buff baby chicks are mine and the others are Cheryl's. They just got some wing feathers on them. They're so cute and doing really well. We'll both have lots of eggs this year. My hubby sells ours at his work to several of the guys. Saving my egg money for the BBB trip. Have'nt started on the new coop yet, still need more sunshine. Hopefully within the next couple weeks.

Repurposed rake head

I picked up another rake head for Cheryl as she liked this idea I had found sometime ago and hung on my wall. It's just another way of repurposing an old rake. Little country charm.

Home pics

Okay, since Cheryl put it out there that I actually have a home (hee hee), I figured I'd better place a couple pics of it here. Just know that it is still a work in progress as coming from a much larger home to here (which is only 1000 sq ft), I'm still figuring out storage space. But it is my humble abode and I love it.

My second apron

Finished my 2nd apron with some vintage and new fabrics just for fun. I think I will keep looking for more vintage materials to play around with. My mind is on a roll for all the different things I'd like to try and make. And it is nice to be wearing an apron again instead of staining every top I put on. Why did I ever stop wearing one?

Wedding Ring Quilt

I picked up this quilt at an estate sale last weekend. I only paid $15 for it. What a bargain. I took the advice of some farmgirls on MJ's forum and hand washed it in the bathtub this morning and hung it on the line. Boy was that a workout to haul it outside to hang. Isn't it beautiful? It looks just like the one that was given to me many years ago and was lost in my many moves. It is all hand stitched with beautifully spaced stitches. It must have taken quite some time to finish. It does make me want to sew a quilt. Someday maybe.......

Bath salts

Yesterday Cheryl and I went and learned how to make our own bath salts. It was much easier than I thought and there are so many different blends you could make. I also brought home Cheryl's and my baby chicks. They are doing really well this morning. It is cold outside here to day but their room is a toasty 70. Now if only we could get more spring weather so I could begin on their new hen house. Instead I have stayed inside and made another apron only this is a full apron. Also showing my granddaughter how to sew a dress for her school project. She may be teaching me a thing or two.

Meet our newest addition

My husband got a bright idea Sunday to adopt another dog, only this one is a house dog. He has always wanted a minpin and we have only had Labs. So guess who gets up all hours of the night and has to do all the dirty work. I am not use to anything so small. I only hope I survive the training of the next few weeks to come. Her name is Onyx and she's purebred Mini Doberman Pincher. She's a little pistol. Other than being sleep deprived she's so cute to watch do dog stuff. I can't say my cat is too crazy about her. I think he thinks she's a big rat. So long as he does'nt try to catch her I guess they'll become buddies.

My great thrift find

I picked up my thrift find today. It is a 1910 Singer treadle sewing machine. I will be going to the July BBB and will be bringing this along to barter. Looking forward to a lot of fun and finding lots of great finds there.

Laundry Soap making.....

So I asked myself, self, what are you going to do today? And looks like today was the perfect day for making laundry soap. Yep, I gave it a try and have a load in the wash as I speak. The only thing I will be doing differently is that I will be investing in a food processor (used of course). I really love how it smells and can't wait to see how it turns out. Hmmmm....what will I find to do next?

Snow Again?

This morning I woke up to this. Yesterday you could see me drooling about what to plant and looking through and buying seeds. This is the kind of weather we have around here. Blink and it all changes.

Trouble in thrifting

Today Cheryl and I went thrifting. We looked for patterns for roaring 20's for the BBB and went antique shopping as well. Boy did I score on an antique Singer treadle. Found a few other goodies for the house. (Like I have room for more) Cheryl got some nice goodies too. We had lunch and although it poured rain all day, we had a really good time. Wednesday we will have our second chapter meeting and hope to recruit a few more gals. Maybe we can get a few more in trouble...........love to shop! You'll have to wait to see a pic of my new treadle as I need to bring a truck to pick it up. Here's some things I found. A jar for my flour, a few old clothes pins, and an old grinder and an ironing board that looks like the one I used when my children were young. Well off to finish the dishes and watch my fav shows. See ya!