Pssst...

I'm sitting here in bed, checking out some blogs and various website whatnots, sleeping Baby Emmaline by my side. Just one of those peaceful moments where you don't know how it could get any better than this.

Fall KICKOFF!!!

Woot! Its FALL!! I know that it officially falls on a certain date in September, but to me FALL starts in October. Its pumpkins, candy corns, Sophia talking about being a bat for Halloween. I live for October. We welcomed this cozy sweater & apple cider month with a crafty party yesterday. I put some Halloween decorations out, a big pot of apple cider on the stove, and put out some goodies. My friends came over and we sat around making our various crafty things and passed around baby Emmaline. Right now I'm sitting here on my comfy sofa, under a blanket, and drinking my morning coffee. Life is good. Fall makes it GREAT!

I've started planning my garden for next year already. This year was such a terrible failure, which was my own fault for the most part. I was pregnant and didn't maintain the plants like I should have. I tried some new things this year, like the potato grow bag. You put your potato starts in the bottom of the bag and fill up the bag with dirt as the plants grow. The plants were lush and healthy all summer long with no indication of trouble below. When the plants died back, meaning the potatoes were ready, I dumped the bag...only to find NOTHING. Nada. Zilch. Not even a mini spud. Not sure what I did there. My pumpkins started off wonderful, blossoms, tiny pumpkins. Then the vines split because of a worm and killed the vines off. This coming year, I will be prepared. I will be able to resolve some issues as they occur. In past years, I have submitted to my garden enemies because I was trying to stay organic. (ie I am cheap and didn't want to by expensive fertilizers or pesticides) I found a great book, Rodale's Vegetable Garden Problem Solver, that is going to see me through my future gardening endeavors. The book proves easy to find your problem and solution. There are hundreds of gardening issues that the book addresses. My pumpkin vines will have stab wounds, but they will make it because to alleviate the burrowing worm problem, they suggest sticking a pin through them. Worms...consider yourself warned. And, yes, that is a threat.

Making bread, making babies: both worth the time and effort

Well well well...look what the cat dragged in. Me. And about 25 lbs lighter with a side of sweet little babieness named Emmaline hope. Heaven, in a wrinkly, toothless package. Its taken me awhile to get back into the groove of things, but I think I'm back, more motivated than before, and ready to start some new adventures. For starters, I'm making bread today. For the first time in about 5 months probably. I can't even remember honestly. My garden disaster was a big downer for me, as well as being pregnant and not really enjoying any moment of that. But, now that my new munchkin is laying beside me asleep and the yeast is foaming in a bowl in the kitchen...life feels good again. Sophia has been such a big help. She is thoroughly in love with our new addition. Although she still wants lots of attention, she is more than willing to give some to her new baby. She has helped with diaper changing and bathtime. I even pumped some milk into a bottle so she could see what it was like to feed her. The look on her face was like she had an electrical charge running through her whole body. Pretty sure I could have marched a pink, sparkly pony into the livingroom at that moment and she wouldn't have noticed. I knew she'd be great. I went along with everyone's worries for her and nodded as they talked about jealousy and poor Sophia, but she is a different kind of person. She is old in her ways sometimes. Its odd and sometimes I wonder what I'm supposed to be doing as her parent. I know that I don't do enough to challenge her or support her. She is just so smart and grounded that its hard to know what I need to do. I fear that Emmaline may be the same way. I'm already getting some serious looks like I did with Sophia. Children are odd. They have everything they need to learn about the world all wrapped up in one little package just waiting for parents to open them up. Its my job to show her the world in a way that will help her become an even better adult than she is as a child. But, what do you do with someone who is probably already smarter and more grounded than you are. What kid says "I'm only misbehaving because I'm bored"??? She knows why she misbehaves...Ask me again why I'm scared to be her mother. My answer, because I'm afraid that I'm not good enough for her. But damned if I won't die trying to show her how amazing she is and what she's capable of.

Another tidbit of good news...I'm typing this on my "new to me" laptop, which I bought from a friend. As much as I love my mornings in the office with the sun coming through the blinds, typing out in my garden, on the front porch, at the park, or from the sofa...as I am right now, is far more motivating.

So my goals for this winter...

-More time with Sophia doing crazy projects like our current one "milk carton bird feeders" (pics coming soon)

-Rejoin MaryJane's Farmgirls and earn some crafty lady badges

-Host once a month craft parties and introduce some other fine ladies to MaryJane's Farmgirls

-Plan a more simplified garden for 2012

-Work on our debt situation. I have joined a small discussion group with friends and we're all working on our problems together. Success in numbers, right?

-Make almost all of our Christmas gifts

-Make a secret plan to become a SAHM, hide it from hubby, and work on debt situation to make that happen.

-Be a better blog host. I like you, blog. I'm sorry I ignored you for so long. I'm aiming for once a week or every other week.

Peace. Love. And poopy diapers. I'm out!

A list of hopefuls

Sooooo, day one was almost a complete fail. I tried really hard to stay on the "schedule" that I made up, but it seems that once you get off track, its very hard to get back on. The hour that I gave myself to strip down the living room and clean, ungraciously fed on my planned crafting hour that followed. Sophia's 15 planned minutes of schoolwork was an unholy disaster that led to tears and frustration in a matter of seconds. Apparently if its not coming out of Elmo's mouth, she doesn't want to learn it. Dinner happened at 8 instead of 7. Bed didn't happen until 11:30 on a plan of 9:30. All in all, I was productive and I'm trying not to lose faith in lists and schedules, but yesterday didn't help that.

Just so I feel like I did something:
Living room
-Took everything out of every drawer and off of every shelf, cleaned and reorganized and DOWNSIZED most importantly
-Cleaned the windows and door
-Rotated Sophia's toys and downsized
-Took couch apart, washed cushion covers, took cushions outside and lightly sprayed with bleach/water. Yeah I said bleach, its called nesting, get over it.
-Vacuumed under cushions and floor
-Washed curtains
-Got Hubby to pack up his manhood--ie Super NES, wrestling DVDs, and numerous PS2 games that haven't been touched since we moved in. I know this to be fact because I carbon-dated the dust crust on them. :-P And, don't flip out, I want him to get a mancave going so he can keep all of his junk in a place that does not affect the space I need to stay organized. I would never force the boy to part with his toys. Jeez. I'm not a monster.

Others
-Laundry completely done...for about 5 minutes
-Dishes completely done...for about 2 minutes
-3 batches of frozen pesto
-1 frozen dinner
-1 dinner for us PLUS the chicken I need for 3 other dinners
-pulled up carrots, basil, and a few tomatoes from the garden
-conditioned chickens that if they step into my garden they WILL get sprayed with the hose
-Made dark chocolate hazelnut ice cream

Today, I adjusted the list and times for things. Hopefully this will help me stay on schedule. Now, lets get this party started.

"51" days until BABY!!

Day ONE and countdown to meeting belly buddy face to tiny face.

I've been begging for this day to come since the heatwave rushed over the Ohio Valley. I had high hopes of major house cleaning and prepping for my wee one and most important, spending some undivided attention on Sophia. In a normal setting, i.e. sans baby belly, I would go at the cleaning like a mad person, tackling every room on the first day. This time, I HAVE to pace myself. I have made a list for each room of things that I want to get done. Each room is broken down into two days. Hopefully this will allow me to clean for a bit, cook for a bit, rest for a lot of bits, and play with Sophia. I'm also trying to make a little daily schedule to make sure that my allotments of time are not overwhelmingly full of cleaning. I am a very "go go go" person. I want everything done yesterday. This is not going to be easy.

52 days until her due date...

Cherry Stained Brain

After a few months hiatus, shocking and so unlike me, I know, I'm ready to return to blogdom. I have spent a good portion of my pregnancy not looking forward to much in life because working while pregnant has been unintentionally sucking the life out of me. I say unintentionally because everyone at work has been so good to me and helped me out as much as possible, which has left me feeling guilty and unworthy of their kindness...another lovely positive direction for my mood to go. Not. The heat has taken its toll on my body, mind, and most importantly, soul. I haven't maintained my garden. The chickens get food and water tossed at them and barely a "hello" is spoken. I can tell they are sad because every time I get home from work, there is a feathery frenzy at the fence, beckoning me to come play. Gertrude hops the chain barrier and runs after me, bawking the whole way. Its hot. Too hot. I just can't get out there alone. I have felt so unmotivated and unproductive. I look at the garden and its over-growness with a broken heart and sympathetic eyes. It needs me. The chickens need me. My job needs me. My family needs me. I haven't been there. I took on the FAILboat and haven't returned...until today. My light at the end of the tunnel is now right in front of me. My heart is a little bit lighter. I feel something along the lines of excitement and hope. All because of 3 lbs of cherries...

I feel like I need to talk about my whiny pregnant self for a moment though. I need to get it out. Let it go. And, hopefully move on. I feel like the worry/anxiety is leaving me. In a nutshell, an on going construction project has left my brain spinning. For a year now, we have been working on Sophia's bedroom. Stripped down to bare studs, raised the ceiling, new insulation, and new drywall, we are finally at a point of "almost there." Up to this point, I have not done anything to prepare for my new belly buddy. She has no place to sleep, almost no clothes for her butt, and speaking of butts, I decided to try cloth diapers to which I have only a few samples of those and I'm not totally sure what to do with them. Trial and error. Sophia has been in our room since she was born, but all of her toys and clothes, at least, were in her "room." Now, everything is in our bedroom. There is no room and its driving me crazy. We are at the mercy of my dad to help us with this room. He is incredibly talented at remodeling and making my visions become reality. Unfortunately, he also has a life and must work, so I can only get bits and pieces of his time. I am grateful for every second, but it has taken so long that I wasn't sure if it was every going to get done. Now, there is paint on the walls and the trim is almost ready to go up. There is a light and switches and a fan. I'm beginning to see the end. When Sophia's stuff is moved into her new room, there will be space for new munchkin's things, like a crib and tiny socks. Her tiny socks.."her" still being nameless. Thanks for the reminder of my inability to find a suitable name! You guys are jerks. J/K But even though it seems to be a small thing and no big deal, I'm frazzled by the fact that I haven't had that EUREKA moment of her perfect name. I did with Sophia. In fact, I already had a girl name picked out and the second I found out she was actually a SHE, the name was no longer good enough and when I came across "Sophia," even with every one's comments about Sophia being a little old lady's name, it was perfect and sooo her, albeit I hadn't really met her yet. It fits her so perfectly that I can't picture her with any other name. I've decided to take a break from even trying to name this one. I feel like I've been through them all. My family thinks that I have a name and I'm being secretive, which would be awesome to do if I could actually keep a secret. Sorry, no name yet.

Now, back to the cherries...
Hubby's birthday was Tuesday. He wanted a chocolate cherry pie from the Pie Kitchen. Its pretty much the only thing he asked for. I could have just bought it. I know he already likes it. But I have a competitive mind in the kitchen. It may be the only place that I'm competitive. I have it in my head that if something is mass produced or even produced commercially on a local scale, I can do it better. So arrogant, I know. But what is better than HOMEMADE and HEART. Those two things, I feel, give me an advantage over businesses, big and small. So back to the cherries. I've never made cherry pie before so I thought I would just make a basic one to start. I bought the cherries. Sweet, fatty, and the most gorgeous deep red I've ever seen. I'm not sure why women don't just wake up, cut a cherry in half to use as lipstick, and walk out the door. Its by far, sexier than any tube of lipstick I've ever seen and it doesn't come off!! I'm typing this with cherry-stained fingertips, so this is fact. I felt at peace pitting the cherries. I haven't made bread in awhile and I forgot how nice it is to do a mindless lengthy task while looking out the kitchen window at chickens and grass. So the cherries are pitted, the dough is chilling, and there is cherry pie in Hubby's future. Stay tuned for pending virtual "cherry-pie-cooling-in-the-window" smell.

(picture taken with my "new mommy" / birthday present from Hubby...healing me with retail therapy one purchase at a time) :-)

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100% heart, 30% heartache, 50% effort to get plants growing, 80% weeding

That's my mathematical breakdown of gardening. No, I'm not a stereotypical redneck that counts by taking off my shoes. I know that my percentages are more than a 100. But gardening is far more than numbers. My heart is in it 100% of the time. Heartache is a factor of life and most definitely a big part of gardening. (i.e. failed tomato plants and no pumpkins in 2010) 50% of my time is spent getting plants to grow, either by preparing the soil, planting, watering, and harvesting.

However, had I known that 80% of my time was going to be spent on weeding, I may have considered another route, such as covering my entire lot with concrete and building only raised beds. Around my raised beds, I even dug up the grass/weeds, laid down that lovely black anti-weed fabric, then covered in several inches of rocks to hopefully subdue the weeds and grass from getting through and thwarting my progress in the garden. Kudos to that guy who invented that black fabric. I would hate to think that my weeds were bored out there, but fortunately they have the black fabric, a dense yet not impossible obstacle to entertain them on their passage to sunlight and happiness amongst my veggies. I do find a slightly deranged humor in that the weeds could potentially find humor in my weed cloth.

I start at one edge of my garden and work my way around each raised bed. I like to do this right after it rains because its much easier to get the weeds out by their roots in damp soil. I swear that by the time I get around the last bed, the first bed where I started already has teenager weeds growing again. If only my veggies had the gusto of weeds. If only.

Anyhoo, another odd, chilly, cloudy day in the 'ville. Happy weeding!

You're already home if you're loved

Its Sunday. I am loved. I am making bread. I am making strawberry jam. I will be outside soon with my little Sophia, planting beans and transplanting tomato midgets. You could take me to the cliche paradise and it is nothing compared to my home, my hobbies, and the comfort in the love that Hubby shows me. I have met some new people recently and in their short time of existence in my life, have already created a new excitement for me. I love learning new things. I love sharing what I know. I feel like a broken record sometimes because happiness was so easy to accept for me. Maybe its sad that a simple cup of coffee and watching chickens run around your yard creates such a euphoric feeling to me. But, alas, I am simple. And life is what you make it. I was lucky in love. I had two great relationships. One lasted for 7 years and we are still good friends to this day. The other, well, I married him. Two very respectful, intelligent, loving men and I was lucky enough to have them in my life. There is never a 100% guarantee in love or life, but I am really trying to make the best of it all. I haven't always revered my relationships as they deserved to be, but now,everyday, I wake up its my first thought and always in my future goals. Show love and respect. Be polite. Be thoughtful. Be honest.

I feel the same way about the garden. I'm not an expert gardener, but I love it and try really hard to make it work. Tomato seedlings seem to be my biggest struggle. I have high hopes every year of not buying a single starter plant. I want to grow them all from seeds. It almost never happens. I have two of my own starts that I think will make it. Who knows. I still have bed prepping to do. Hopefully the freshly rained on ground will be soft enough for this preggos chick to till up with minimal effort. Hoeing seems to be a struggle for me. It wears me down more than anything. Enough whining.

Yesterday I got to go to the Kentucky Sheep and Fiber Festival. SO MUCH FUN! Packed up the car with fruit and tuna sandwiches, Sophia, and my momma. It was a little over an hour away in Lexington, KY. We saw an overwhelming amount of handspun/dyed yarn. I got TWO books autographed. (I'm far more star-struck over true talent and hard work than I am for the overpaid monkeys of Hollywood and professional sports) "Spud and Chloe Go to the Farm" by Susan B. Anderson and "Welcoming Home Baby the Handcrafted Way" by Tricia Drake are two books that were on my wish list, but now I have them AND I met the lovely ladies who wrote them. We pet sheep, goats, alpacas, and llamas. After browsing at the festival, we went to a store called Mother Nurture where I got a cloth diapering lesson. They had some super cute diaper covers and the lady was so helpful. I had so many reservations about "natural parenting" and things that I wanted to do with Sophia such as cloth diapering that I actually just refrained from doing them. With this new munchkin, I'm not holding back because I didn't know that I was even going to get this opportunity. Now if I could just think of a name for this little one...

An eye opener for the record books

I have been taking baby steps towards homesteading and having a farm of my own some day. I started a little garden. I added a few more raised beds. Then, yet again, added a few more. Hubby and I built a chicken coop, so I ventured off into chickendom. I have lost chickens. I have added new chickens...and lost a few of those as well. This year's adventure was supposed to be bees until Mini-Me set up shop in my belly, so instead I decided meat birds would do the trick for my need to expand, without really adding any new forms of animal life. I ordered the meat birds along with a few new layers to replace the ones I lost over the winter. I had high hopes. I've been reading and reading about the harvesting day. Confident that my need for self-sufficiency would see me through the gut-wrenching experience of taking a life, even for my family's nourishment, I didn't name these boys or really bond with them much. Everyone kept asking how I was going to be able to do it or IF I was going to be able to do it. I would respond with "I don't know." Which was true. A part of me was hoping that some chicken fairy would fly down and turn them from warm, feathered yard munchers into naked, headless freezer decorations.
I got the opportunity to see, firsthand, how this was really going to go down in the end. As it turns out, I was WAY off on the chicken fairy fantasy. A friend invited me to a "harvesting 101" class at a small farm in Southern Indiana. I got up early, dropped Sophia off at my momma's house, and followed my friend out to the farm so we could meet a few other couples interested in the process. I was happily surprised to see so many young people into chickens and gardening. For awhile, I've felt like the odd-chick-out. I think I recall posting about people at work calling me the crazy chicken lady. Its all fun and games, but when it comes down to it, there aren't many girls that would rather spend a night knitting with a glass of wine when there are clubs to be danced at and the latest fashions to be worn. Its lonely. I really only have had my mom on this journey. And while she is more than sufficient, I feel like I lean on her too much for support and ideas and time spent doing gardener/crafter/farmer stuff. She has a life of her own, but I am forever calling her up to talk about whatever came up in my garden that day or our plans for who is growing what so that we can share veggies.
Anyhoo, the chicken seminar. Back to it. Once everyone arrives, the very sweet and down to earth couple that is teaching us starts by taking us down to the brooder boxes where our future dinners lay unaware of whats to come. Without warning, he grabs up a chicken, bandages her wings and feet down, explaining that this prevents bruising of the meat, and takes her over to a wheelbarrow. His wife grabs a pair of loppers and proceeds to chop off the chicken's head. I started getting light-headed when the bandaging was going on. I thought there might be a grace period for me to get acclimated to each step. When I get blood taken at the doc, after they clean my arm and tie it up, I always ask for a second to breathe and mentally prepare for the excruciating pain about to come. (of course, its never excruciating, but you never know! I hate needles) Everything happened so fast that when I saw the little bit of blood, I knew, right then and there, that I would not be able to do this myself...EVER. I know EVER is a big statement, but I think I really mean it. Seconds after the chicken was in chicken heaven, it was dipped in boiling water, feathers then plucked, legs trimmed off, and insides were removed. It was a very fast process. Nothing past the initial activity bothered me, but I was so bothered by the initial activity that it affected my whole experience. Waves of light-headedness and nausea, the need to flee the scene, they were overwhelming. It got easier with each chicken and watching the process. I did decide that if someone could do the first step, I really could do the rest. All in all, I was so thankful for the experience because I learned many lessons. #1 I bought meat birds that may actually never end up on my table. #2 Its ok to want to try new things, but always know what you're getting into FIRST FIRST FIRST!!! #3 I have a new friend and she is wonderful! She is what I someday hope to be. #4 I am not the only "almost 30" gardener, crunchy mom, wannabe farmer in Louisville. I am not alone. I just have to keep looking! Someday, I will host a Knit-n-Wine right here at my little abode with lots of gals.

Tales from the coop...

To me, its cold and rainy. I go inside. I get a cup of tea to warm me up. To a chicken, its cold and rainy. Thats it. They have to wait for someone to bring them new food and warm, dry bedding. And today, they waited. The temperature dropped. The rain came in and down hard. I was at work. I looked outside and I was sick. They were all I could think about. All of my feathered babies...in the cold...in the rain...needing me for warmth and comfort...and I wasn't there. As soon as I got home, I was on damage control. I still had three bantam babies in the brooder box with the heat light on them which was unneccessary so I took the light outside to the teen-chicks. I threw on my muck boots and went to work. In the pouring down rain I hooked the light up for the chicks to get dry and warm under. Cleaned out with coop with new bedding. Put new bedding underneath the coop, which is where the teen-chicks sleep together in a side-turned rubbermaid bin. They won't go up in the coop to sleep for some reason, but their rubbermaid bin seems like home I guess. New water. New food. All is well. I stayed out there with them for a bit and the huddled under me as they pecked at their crumbles. I put my hands on their backs to warm them up more and they didn't even scurry off. Their feathers are so soft and clean. Whomever said chickens are dirty creatures, obviously didn't have a clue. They are beautiful, spunky, interesting animals with ways of showing love...and disgust. (i.e. Princess) Even the little boys intended for dinner are full of personality. I won't name those guys, but I can't deny them identities.

"dirt makes you big and strong"

Oh you productive weekend you!

That short break in the rain was all I needed to grab my mudboots and hit the dirt. Sophia and I stole Daddy's truck while he was sleeping on Saturday. We hit our fav gardening places to the point of no leg room in the cab and the back got a nice heaping scoop of compost. Before Daddy woke up, us girls had shoveled out every last bit of the fresh dirt into the beds. He was so proud of us! He couldn't believe we did all that without bothering him for use of his man-arms! We also got some serious plantage in the ground as well as some seeds!

Plants:
2-Poblana Peppers
1-Golden Summer Bell Pepper
1- Red Beauty Bell Pepper
1-California Wonder Bell Pepper
2-Big Bertha Bell Peppers
1-Orange Wonder Bell Pepper
3-Sweet Basil
2-Rutgers Tomatoes
3-Hazelfield Farms Tomatoes (heirloom)
2-Dill
2-Jalapeno Peppers
1- Red Chili Pepper
1-Hungarian Wax Pepper

Still to plant...
5 strawberry plants
10 marigolds (these belong to Sophia)
tons of tomato babies (diff varieties)
tons of pepper babies (diff varieties)
3 varieties of eggplants


Seeds in the ground:
Babette Carrots
Yellow Straightneck Squash
Danvers Carrots
New Orchard Watermelon
Buttercrunch Lettuce
Spicy Globe Basil
Parade Onions
Jarrahdale Pumpkins


Seeds waiting for a spot:
too many to mention

This weekend was much needed and felt great. I've got a little color. This was majorly good for the baby bump. Working like that makes me feel good and therefore is good for me!!! I'm not a *feet up* kind of gal. After all of the gardening, Sophia and I made Carrot, Raisin, Oatmeal cookies which were quite delish. Dinner consisted of salads from the yard, CSA delivered green beans, and pork chops. I had never made my green beans this way before, but here is the recipe...
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/claire-robinson/sauteed-green-beans-with-garlic-chips-recipe/index.html
Even Sophia ate some of those guys! I received my first CSA delivery from Green B.E.A.N. http://greenbeandelivery.com/ I think I was more excited for this than Christmas and my birthday combined. All in all, I couldn't have asked for a better weekend. Sophia's room is painfully close to being finished. Plants are in the ground and growing. Feathered babies have been moved out to the coop and are doing so awesome. Much happier to have room to run! Oh happy days!

A spring in my step and water on the ground

So, where the hell is Spring? Its now almost May and I have yet to see a significant amount of sunshine. My sprouts are still sunning themselves under a fake bake light. I have minimal produce growing in the ground. The only thing remotely happy about all of this rain are my onion plants, who, I might add, have withstood hurricane-like conditions this past week like little champs. COME ON ALREADY! Give me some fresh air! Part those clouds and lets get on with this thing. I think my Winter depression is being pulled through April by a string of dreary weather forecasts, day in and day out.

My belly is growing a baby girl sprout. I would love to introduce her to gardening before she arrives. I want to tell her all about the dirt under my nails and drowned caterpillars from the broccoli that I plucked off and tossed into a bucket of water. I want to be pregnant and sweat out this summer picking tomatoes and making jams. Anyone can 9 to 5 it, but can a preggos hang with the big dogs and still produce dinner? I want to test my strength. I wanted to take on bees this year. This will be far more challenging and exciting.

This Spring, and I use the term "Spring" very loosely, has proven a challenge for my current adventure in meat birds. I started with 25 of the little mates. And, shamefully so, I am down to about 12. Princess, albeit a lady by design, is nothing of the such. After a warm few days, I moved a few of my meat boys out to the coop for an afternoon of playing in the dirt, only to find that Princess had obtained re-entry and left a massacre of 6 week old baby chicks. I was too shocked to be heart broken. I can't and won't describe what I saw, only that if I had a chance to punt that bird, I would have. She is wretched and mean to the other girls and I hope that my rooster will grow up and put her in check. I don't even want to look at her. I don't think this is normal chicken behavior. I understand pecking order. This was NOT that.

The rest of the flock is doing quite well, but getting way too big for the brooder. Escapees greet me everyday at the bottom of the stairs. Can't lie though, I think its hilarious and do nothing to stop it. The boys' combs are already turning red. My girls are starting to show their true colors and are absolutely stunning. My three bantams are about to get their own personal condo this week. I'm going to separate them from the big girls for a few more weeks because they still have puffy fluff on most of their bodies rather than feathers. And, they are just so tiny that I'm afraid that Princess may seek them out. I will be keeping a close watch on the other babies and if there is so much as a stink-eye given, Princess won't be dinner, but she won't be hanging out here anymore. Anyone want a silver-laced Wyandotte with a royal attitude problem?

Oh yeah, and I forgot to mention that Ms. Gertrude is happily laying a blue egg just about every day. Maisie is quite the overachiever and I swear leaves two beautiful tan-brown eggs sometimes. Oh yeah, and Princess, when she feels like it, lays one about every few days. They are pretty eggs though...kind of a creamy pale brown. She is such a p*ss ant.

Sophia says " today we garded and pecycled"

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A wayward chicken and high hopes

After a long week involving bad weather, a funeral, and a failed vacation I am ready for the pending sunshine due next week. As if I hadn't had enough trouble with the chickens, Tuesday morning I let them out for some pecking and exercise only to find that Princess has hopped the 6-ft fence separating my backyard from the HIGHWAY!! and Lucy is no where to be found. Princess, who got her name by acting as such because calling her B*tch is just inappropriate. She is rather mean and unsocial. Yet, I don't think I've ever seen a chicken happier to see me. She paced back and forth as I tried to climb the fence. Its old. I'm old. I recalled scaling any fence as a child with ease and delight. This fence, as I straddled it hoping not to flip over and break my neck, got a few choice words that wouldn't be said with ease or delight. Finally on the ground and questioning whether any of the passersby on the highway were going to call the cops on me, I picked up Princess Featherbutt and gentle tossed her back over the fence. Chore #2 was getting my own butt back over which proved more difficult as I did not have trees on that side to help me balance on. Alas, made it over, Princess was safely in the coop, and Lucy was still missing. Fast forward to next day, mid afternoon, Lucy returns. I don't know if she wrote her own version of "City Chicken, Country Chicken" and visited a long lost relative out on Taylorsville farm or what. She seems fine and happy to be back. I am happy she is back. My dwindling poultry population has got me quite skittish about adding more to my flock.

I was feeling particularly down today. Lots going on. But, lots to be happy for. Weather permitting, this is going to be one fantastic year. I got a Valentine's card from my farm sister, Karla. If I was to model my life after someone, it would be her. I'm not sure if she really knows how she has impacted my life from her many miles away, but one of my New Years' resolutions was to be more like her. I also plan to become closer to her and do more for her this year if possible. If anyone deserves my time and effort it is certainly her. Her words of wisdom have carried me through a few near tragedies this passed year and have helped keep me focused on my strength as a person, not without giving credit to the big guy upstairs who gave it to me. Along with my Valentine's day card, I stopped by Bunton's Seeds, a local supplier of all good things in the garden. I was giddy when I found the employees still packaging seeds and putting them on the shelves. Now that's fresh! I bought some pumpkin butter from a local farm, and several packets of seeds. Sugar pumpkins, Danvers carrots, Orange Bell peppers, Buttercrunch lettuce, Green Sprouting Broccoli, Snowball Cauliflower, and Lettuce Leaf Basil. Some of those I plan to start tomorrow. Some of them I bought because, darn it, I just wanted to look at the seed packets!!

Tomorrow marks the start of my 2011 garden plans. My heart is skipping just typing that. I have been waiting and holding off for as long as possible. My journal is ready. My seeds are ready. And my hands need dirt on them. I'll keep you posted. :-)

What is it all for?

I'm not innovative, extreme, or political anything really. My efforts are not expected to be noticed by anyone other than family members and friends. My efforts are for simplicity, self-sufficiency, and, most importantly, happiness. Everyday I want and need less and in that I am becoming much happier. Its easier to refocus on my happiness. You cut out and cut back and your path becomes clear. I want to be more "green." I am desperately trying to learn from others who inspire me to do bizarre things for the sake of our carbon footprints. I wish my house was solar or wind powered and maybe someday (soon) it will be. I want alternatives to shopping at mass chains. They are there. I am trying. Step by step, albeit baby steps. Maybe someday I'll get to inspire someone. Simple is better. And, less is certainly more.

Spring is around the corner. I feel it in my bones. I am forcing myself daily to not start digging in the yard yet. I have been planning and re planning my garden strategy for this year. After a catastrophic winter for my flock, I am down to four chickens. It was heartbreaking. I still don't know what happened or if the last four will make it. They seem to be doing well and quite perky. I am trying to be positive and take this as a learning experience. Its also an opportunity for me to try out some new breeds. I am looking forward to having my feathery girls all back and happy this summer. Four is NOT enough. Too sparse for my liking. Less is NOT more when it comes to chickens. They are like potato chips, you can just have one, or just four. I want like 20 but that is legally impossible. I love chickens. I dislike jail or fines or whatever our lovely local government would toss my way. I am venturing into meat birds with the help of a dear fellow urban farmer. I am going to raise 10 broiler chickens in their own little chicken tractor so they will be free range, foraging, happy dinners for me in a few months. I am also going to order two turkeys and raise them as well. They are the Midget Whites which are a heritage breed and are much smaller (approx 12-15 lb hens) than what you'd normally picture as a thanksgiving bird. I think they will blend into my chicken flock better.

An unexpected, yet welcome obstacle has put a stopper on the beekeeping for this year, I believe. So to satisfy my need to expand, turkeys and other meat birds will have to do for now. Hopefully, I will also be sharing my yard with a family who doesn't have much room to grow veggies. I am looking forward to having some knowledgeable gardeners/farmers around me this year. This year I am hoping for enough tomatoes to sustain my family and some to share. Same goes for potatoes, beans, and a few others. I am EXPANDING in more ways than one. This is my year. Lets get this party started.