Chats on the Farmhouse Porch

I am glad that Patrice is having a Chat today. I was having a time coming up with a blog so this fits the ticket perfectly. If you haven't stopped by and met Patrice your in for a treat. She has been feeling a bit under the weather but I think she is on the mend. This is her weekly linky party. So if you are like me today and having a hard time coming up with something to talk about, stop by and join the chat.
Everyday Rurality

QUESTIONS

1.    Joyful Keeper asks, "What makes you smile a happy,content smile in the course of a day?"
I think when all my work is finished. The house is clean, dinner is almost finished and my husband will be walking in the door, it is moments like those I realize I have been given the world.

 2.   My Kid's Mom asks, "Are you married, single, or divorced?"
I am married and it will be 32 years in April. It still only feels like I am 17 and I looked up and there he was, He is still that cute guy to me.

3.    Empty Nester asks, " Do you have any home remedies for allergy or the common cold?"
I really don't have any, I think for me that being proactive is the best medicine. Keeping up my good yeast to keep my immune system healthy. Staying away from white refined flour and white sugar, One thing I have to say that has helped me more than anything I have tried in a long time. I have had U TI 's My sister told me about taking 1 teaspoon  of soda with a whole lemon or lime mixed with 8 ounces of purified water. I was completely sceptical, but  I was so tired of the pain and having to be on antibiotics. So I tried it. I haven't had one since. Even with antibiotics I was always aware of the pain. After drinking that all the pain was gone. So that has to be the best and easy fix I have found. This is in no way medical advice it is just something that helped me to return to normal.

4.    Stephanie asks, "How many different addresses did you have growing up?"
Four times as a kid but the funny thing since I have been married  all of the streets we lived on have began with the letter "M"

5.    I've just recently realized...that I am to obey God and leave the consequences to Him. I know this with my whole heart, but today while I was driving and I was thinking it just seemed to shout at me. All I have to do is what He is telling me to do and I don't have to worry.
I am so tired of worry. I was thinking today, I am committing suicide slowly because I worry so much. I have to stop.

I want to thank Patrice once again, I hope your week is a nice one, it feels like spring outside today. I can see the pear trees on the next street over and the light sheen of green appearing and the tell-tale blooms on some of the lower branches. We aren't finished trimming trees yet.

Berry Vines

When we moved out here one of the things I missed was having our own berry vines. When we had bought our house in town, I tell people I bought it because it had 35 berry vines at the back of the property. Every year I would put gallons of the berries in the freezer and I was able to make jam and cobblers and I guess I just grew accustomed to it. When we moved out here there wasn't a thing except the tree in the front yard. This had been a horse and cattle pasture. So we have spent 10 years getting it the way we like it. I made the mistake of buying Thorn-filled boysenberry bushes one year. It is terrible to pick berries and then have to pull out the thorns before you can wash the berries you just picked.

Yesterday husband and daughter went to gardener heaven here in town called White Forest Nursery. I didn't go because I knew I was feeling pretty crazy already so it was safer my husband and I didn't go together. He came home with 6 Blackberry thorn-less canes and 6 thorn-less Boysenberry canes. I know if I had been there it would have been triple the amount. This was just enough work though.
So he worked the already perfect soil with his tractor and then on Saturday he had got a load of this wonderful mulch he goes to buy for his little trees but it is wonderful in the garden too.

He dumped it in the long trench he made and then we put in the berry canes. 

This is my favorite part when everything is all planted and it looks all nice and clean. Notice I didn't show you a picture of the other side of the garden. My other berry vines are filled with weeds. I will get to that this week.
He also bought 3 Rhubarb plants. We planted those but only in a giant pot so I can move it when it gets hot. It gets to hot out in the pasture so I will have to find a place that gets shade part of the day.
He said they had Artichokes. I would love to have some of those too. I love growing Artichokes. Eating them is nice too.
It was a very nice day, we got to be outside in shirtsleeves.
Now off to get stuff done, it is after all Monday.
Have a great week,
~Kim~

A Nice Day

Today was a nice day. My husband and my daughter had to go visit nursery's and big box stores today for one of her classes at school. She is taking a greenhouse management class so she had to check out some and some more tomorrow.   They went to one and my husband brought this back for me. It just makes me so happy and it is so fragrant you can smell it everywhere in the house. It is like bringing a breath of spring into the house.

Another thing he brought home for me is this little hand held hula-hoe. You know how crazy I am about my big one. I have always thought I would love a small one to use when I am on my knees working in the flowerbeds. So today when he went into a nursery there was a small hand held on. I was so excited and I can't wait to use it. I am rather deadly with the big one and I have slain many innocent flowers because I get a little too zealous. I think this will help. I really have always wanted one and have often thought about just sawing off the handle of my big one but just never had the nerve.

Today the pasture got plowed again. We finally had that rain and it was perfect today. The sun finally came out and it looked so nice and clean out there. I just love it when it looks like this. It makes me dream of gardens and planting things.
I hope your day was a enjoyable one.

~Kim~

January Skies

This morning, this is the sky, and the tree. We have fog so all of the color is washed from the sky. I walked outside and I found some red flowers to take a picture of but I was in my pajamas and a guy was out front on his bicycle and Sasha was barking so I came back in the house. The red of the flowers brought such blinding color to this morning.
When I started this blog, I thought I was going to be a real farm girl. I had my bees and my garden and I thought I would have so much to write about.
Then the bees flew away and my garden hasn't been that hot.

New bees in their hive.

This morning I got a notice that I could buy bees for 2012 As mean as my bees were, and how many times I got stung and all of that, I wish I had bees again. I could have given away or sold 10 hives of honey. One thing that I found out about natural honey, there are lots of people in this area that the local, unprocessed honey was like good medicine for them.
I forgot about the stings, and the vet bill because Sasha got stung so bad we had to rush her to the emergency vet. I forget about my husband getting so sick from the stings because he is allergic to them.
All I remember are the good times.

I did love seeing all of that lovely honey in the comb. It was really good, but I have forgot the mess it made and every inch of my kitchen was sticky. I just remember jars of honey.

I already have chicks coming in the spring. I don't need baby bees to fool with but when I got this picture today in my email. It did make me want to get some more. I do like getting bees in the mail. Foggy days just make me long for spring. Have a lovely day,
~Kim~