Congratulations tooooooo

Amy over at Crazy for the Country! She won the Chicken Nest Box Giveaway hosted by Ga. Farmwomen and her hubby at Life on a Southern Farm. ENJOY THEM AMY!

OOOhhh PS. Our one thing Monday is............

Windows!! (I know I know..but it's easy!) Do you have a kitchen window, or a bathroom window?? Today's the day..wash the insides of the windows in ONE room today..preferably the kitchen or a bathroom! Use newspaper to prevent streaking!! :)

A RESURRECTION!

Welcome home Oscar! Oscar is our resident scarecrow. He has graced our yard during Halloween and now will grace the yard to protect the flock and the garden. On a farm along with the birth of new things, comes the sad but true fact of the cycle of life and the death that it brings. Hawks, falcons, foxes and all predatory creatures must eat so they prey on the smaller ones. Big fish eat little fish kinda thing ya know? A few weeks back we lost one of our 2 month old chicks to a Falcon. He's been surfacing nearly daily now in search of more..hence the very reason for Oscars Resurrection!

The stuffing begins!

 Oscar has been housed in our storage shed for quite a few years but after our loss we knew it was time to resurrect him. The DIL gave him new clothes, new stuffing, the boy child helped and he's got a temporary head till we can find suitable head material and a hat for him. He's in residence at the edge of the garden and seems to be doing his job well. I'm sure he's happy about the new life he's been given and doesn't want to let the little farm animals down. He'll protect them. (the little birds however, totally ignore his authority! I think they mock him daily.)

Oscar has risen!

I'll post pics soon of our 'decked' out Oscar as soon as I can. Till then..Welcome home Oscar!

A final addition of a temporary face.

What's happening around the Farm!

Baxter stands guard!

I'm not sure why everyone thinks it's still winter! With temps in the 80's around here, winter is but a memory of last month! I love it at the same time dread it. If our temps are 80+ in February, what will it be like in August! Enjoy the color and the farm goings on...

Maya watches

Aiden waits.

The Japanese Magnolia is in full bloom!

It's a colorfest outside my window

The House Druid still watches and waits.

Blueberries bud

It's lovely to see!

And the pink color keeps going!

See ya next time......down on the farm! Sage

Second post of the day

UNBELIEVABLE HUH?

Well, here's some news for ya. Georgia farm women over a "Live on a Southern Farm" is having a giveaway of some chicken nest boxes that her and the hubby produce and sell. They look like this:

They are fantastic and now's your chance to try your luck at being the lucky winner of one. Go on over to "Life on a Southern Farm" and sign up..HAVE FUN! and GOOD LUCK!

Ok, now on to some delicious things.
Last Thursday was a park picnic day for us, so off we went to the park. I knew I would be pooped after a day at the park so I made sure dinner would be ready when I got home, enter the Crock Pot.

Into the crock pot here's what I stuck:
2 slices of boston butt, completely frozen (yep, hard as a rock)
 (this would be equivalent to a small roast. (we buy whole boston butts and have them cut into 1inch steaks and in this recipe, I used two)
1 small onion, rough chopped
1/2 bell pepper from the deep freeze
3 stalks of celery chopped
4 cups water
1 T. chicken bouillon
salt, pepper and a few dashes of soy sauce.
Turned the crock pot on high and walked out the door. When I got home, the aroma met us at the fence gate. YUM!!
Once inside, I gave the mixture a stir to 'pull' the pork apart, then added 2 cans of 'cream of soup'. You can choose whichever soup you prefer, chicken, mushroom, potato or celery. Since I had the mushroom on hand, that's what went in. I gave the mass a stir, boiled up some egg noodles to serve it over, veggie of your choice on the side, added a few dinner rolls to the fare and dinner was DONE!  DELISH! Try this one, you won't be sorry!
Ohh, this made enough to serve 6 that night, 2 work lunches and I still have a small/medium container in the fridge for munching on for lunches. If I have any leftover today, I'll put it in the fridge and when I've got some leftover mashed potatoes, I'll put it all together with some freshly chunked cooked potatoes for a hearty potatoe/pork soup! :) 

So you're frugal tip for the day, NEVER throw it at all possible. Think ahead about what you can 'change' it into and freeze it for later use. You MUST become the Fairy Food Godmother and wave a magic wand over some things to make them last!

You should be here!

Baxter enjoying the wonderful weather

The weather is beautiful! It's 54 degrees here this morning and the daytime temps are near 70-75! Couldn't ask for nicer weather.
The DIL and I have been in the garden and planting seedlings for the past week. We are ready to plant! Now we just have to wait till it's safe from any possible frost! WHOOHOOO!

Time for a lovely spring picnic!

The chickens have gone on an egg laying strike and we are not sure why. We seriously think it has to do with a predator bird that snatched one of the young hens up last week.Chickens don't like 'upset' and since that little incident they've all taken to hiding up under the porch and not laying any eggs! I'll be adding some extra calcium (read: oyster shells) to their diet this week just in case. Hopefully I can get them out of this non laying funk they seem to be in.

Anyone up for a wheelbarrow ride?

It's looking to be a busy day here on the farm. A little bit of work in the garden, some laundry to hang out, floors to clean and vacuum, whew, never ends does it?
See ya next time......down on the farm! Sage

It's one thing Monday!

Yep, here we are again!
Our one thing Mondays ..so what shall we do today?
I actually have several things I have to do, laundry, cleaning bathrooms, make a scarecrow..yep. That's right, scarecrow. Don't know if it will work, but I have to give something a shot. Last week I lost one of my 3 month old pullets to a prey bird and he's still roaming the area. Sooo scarecrow it is with the hopes that it will deter him.
But back to our one thing. Today, it's the washer and dryer. They need a bath. So today, I'm going to give my washer and dryer a good wash/wipe down. Lint, dirt and dust collects on them, I know this. And with mine being right at my back door, dog tails are constantly hitting them spreading dirt everywhere! So your one thing is, cleaning the washer and dryer!

I've got a recipe to share with you later. A crock pot recipe..and it was soo good!
The DIL and I worked in the garden for two days last week, my boxes are all seated and filled with dirt ready to plant. It's a wonderful 54 degrees here this morning and according to the Almanac, our last frost date is March 9. I've already planted seedlings and some are sprouting. I can't wait, it's garden time again folks!

Has another week come and gone?

Oh yes dear Hedgewives, it surely has.
Firstly..HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!
A new week, a new Monday and a new 'one thing'.
Here we go, get on your garden aprons and let's plant.
The one thing for today is play in the dirt!! Yep, plant something or care for something that makes it's home in the dirt. Whether it's taking care of a few house plants, fluffing up their dirt, giving them a boost or transplanting them, it's time for dirt play!  How about planting a few herbs for an indoor herb garden? (if you don't have room or can't plant an in-ground garden). Get some seeds, and some dirt a small pot or two and plan on some culinary delights! It's playing in the dirt day!

The DIL and I will be doing some planting of our own today as we head out to collect some unused dirt to fill the little pots for seedlings! WOOHOO...it's time for garden chores!

Oh yes! Lovely days ahead

The rain has finally rained itself out! WHEW! We had a glorious weekend and to catch up and be prepared for today, there isn't a stitch of dirty laundry in the house. We washed and hung all day Saturday and a wee bit on Sunday..all laundry DONE!  WHEW! It's nice to be able to hang them all out at once.
The rest of the week is suppose to be beautiful as well, so keeping up with the 'garden' laundry I'm getting ready to have this week will be easy peasy!  That's right, today is seed planting day. Boy child is going to construct a shelf unit for me to go in front of my dinning room window and the DIL and I are going to gather the dirt and fill the mini pots and plant seed after seed for the garden!
Our first order of business according to the Farmers Almanac will be the cooler weather crops..all cabbage related crops will be planted today. Broccoli, cabbage, collards, etc. Maybe tomorrow we might turn one of my garden boxes into a mini green house and plant carrots and lettuce too!
One never knows what we may get into. I do know that Thursday of this week, we'll be heading to N. Charleston to have a picnic with all the grandbabies at the park. Our temps this week are supposed to rise one or two degrees each day so that Friday is scheduled to be 75 degrees! WHEW..sounds like spring to me!
I've heard a hoot owl singing for many mornings past, tons of cardinals in the yard and blue jays too. We even have one resident red headed woodpecker flitting about! I'd say for sure it's spring!
Welcome to Spring in the South!
Ohhhh..PS: Happy Valentines Day!!
See ya next time......down on the farm! Sage

It's been five days! (or is that six?)

Since I've posted. The week has been sort of busy. We had one day of sunshine early in the week so all the laundry was done, hung out to dry, folded and put away. One day was a visit day, went to visit the daughter an grans and one day for a dentist visit, not what I would call a good day.
Today is looking to be full of sunshine with mild temps, so I can see another laundry day on the horizon. Of course, all of next week is looking nice too! Can you hear it? The little seeds calling out, ready to be planted. Next weeks plans are a picnic and a park visit and planting seeds that will turn to seedlings for the garden! YEAH! I'd say spring is surely springing!
Today is looking to be a cleaning day for sure. Maybe I'll even get to open a few windows!

Rain rain and more rain!

   I wasn't sure the sun was ever gonna come back out. Seems like it's rained here for a week or better! (actually..it kinda has!)  BUT TODAY is beautiful ..upper 50's, lots of sunshine. So that means, LOTS of laundry to do. Washed up all my laundry last night, layered it and got it ready in the basket and hauled the heavy thing outside as soon as the sun peeked over the house this morning. 5 loads of laundry, all hung out and over 1/2 dry and back in already! The breeze was pretty hefty so they dried quick..add sunshine and you've got instant natural dryer.

I'm coming to realize that dryers are NOT an necessity as I once thought they were. Funny how things seem to take on less importance when you do without them. I'm half tempted to remove the dryer from the house. It'll give me lots of extra room in the laundry area for sure! (I can see it now.."hubby"? Yes? "I want to take the dryer out of our house"...(pause..gasp) "Have you lost your mind, what in the world are you thinking!?" So..yeah..that will NOT go over. It's been over 3 months since I've run the dryer, but he wont' see it my way. See ya next time......down on the farm! Sage

One thing Mondays!

Yep, it's that time again..it's one thing Mondays! Today is an easy day..sort of.
It's mirror day!! The one thing to do today is to wash/clean/dry/polish (however you choose to do it) all the mirrors in the house. Even the decorative ones. Yep, that's the ticket. Might as well be able to see yourself in the New Year we are in..so shine those mirrors!! :)

Not much went on here over the weekend. We had lots of rain for many days last week, and it's not looking a whole lot better for this week. Was sort of dreary.
The DIL and I finished quilting up that quilt and today I'll start putting the binding on it, maybe I'll have it finished in a few days and can post some pics of it.
Till then, happy mirror washing!

Outside my window today

Are cardinals (male and female) by the dozens, a hoot owl asking me who I am every time I step onto the porch, crows by the tons flying over, plenty of blue jays stealing the chicken feed and even a red headed woodpecker knocking on the birdhouse to ask if there is anyone home.
Do you think he'll get an answer?

It's cloudy and a wee bit gloomy here, chilly even. This can be a good thing for Imbolg. Check out Sagewood Farm home page to see why a gloomy day on this day is a GOOD THING!

I'll be heading to the kitchen soon, I think I'll whip up some bannock bread! Join me in this FEB 1 day of celebration.

Welcome to February!

What is today??  
Imbolc (also Imbolg or Oimelc): an Irish festival marking the beginning of spring. Most commonly celebrated on February 1 or 2 (or February 12, according to the Julian Calendar or 'old' calendar), it falls halfway between the Winter Solstice (Dec 21) and the Spring Equinox (March 20/21).  

Imbolc  means "in the belly" indicating the pregnancy of the ewes and usually marked the beginning of lactation. It was a sign that the ewes would soon give birth to the spring lambs. A major importance for survival.

This date, (Feb 2) also known as Candlemas was at one time the day that the Chandlers dipped and or made the candles to be used for the upcoming year.

Imbolc recognizes the lengthening days and early signs of spring.  The celebrations traditionally included special foods  (bannocks, sheeps milk cheese, butter & mutton) and weather predictions.
Bonfires were lit in celebration of the coming spring and the old tradition of watching for animals to appear from their winter dens. Could this be where we get our Ground Hog Day?

Imbolc is the day the Cailleach, (a hag in Gaelic tradition) gathers her firewood for the rest of the winter. Lore says that if winter is to continue , the weather on this day is beautiful & sunny, (so the hag can gather plenty of firewood), but if  Imbolc is a day of bad or foul weather, (cloudy, cold and wet) it means the hag is still asleep and winter is near over.  People always wished for a foul weather day on this day!

SO what are your plans for this day of spring beginnings? How's YOUR weather? If it's cloudy and wet, CELEBRATE!!
The Farmers Almanac says there are 47 days left until spring.
Are you planting seeds yet??
Tomorrow, get your wax, your molds and you wicks ready and make some candles!
Plant some seeds!
Make some Bannocks and spread them with butter! Spring is springing!! (really, it is even though you might be able to see it, it IS!)

Bannock Bread Recipe:

1 cup white flour 

(can mix 1/2-1/2 with wheat, oats, corn or any choice of flour)

1/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 tablespoon butter or margarine

1/3 cup or more cold water

Mix dry ingredients thoroughly then cut in butter. Add enough water to make a thick dough. Form into thick cakes and place in the bottom of a greased cast iron frying pan. Cook on low/medium heat until done on both sides. For a change of pace add raisins, blueberries, dates, prunes, etc. Or even a spice or two like cinnamon or cloves. Serve with molasses and/or butter.  

You can deep fry this bread, or choose to bake it in the oven. You choose, make your own tradition. Enjoy it! 

(don't want to make bannock?? Substitute pita, tortillas or even pancakes!)

See ya next time......down on the farm! Sage