Winter

Winter

Saturday, June 30, 2012

Dying Wool and Other Stuff

Today was a good day to play with colors and dye wool. I needed some red for the chicken I am hooking. Once I start though I just keep trying more colors. The one thing I like about using Kool Aid is that it makes the house smell so nice.

Here are all the lovely colors all stacked. Sorry this is so blurry, the cat thought I wanted a picture of her and she kept jumping up and I was trying to dodge her and get a photo. I finally had to get my son in here to hold the cat and she started fighting him because she wanted up here. Silly cat, she was having a needy day.

Yesterday my husband found two newly opened nurseries. He stopped in and he told me about this pepper plant. It is called a Black Dragon. I was intrigued. He had to go run errands today so I told him to run back by and get it. I can't wait to try it in salsa.
Here is another picture of how tall this amazing plant is, not to mention it is just gorgeous.

It is the large one in the light green pot. I also wanted to show you the neat little thing my husband made for the flowerbed. This is all of his current Bonsai projects. This way he can keep a eye on them as he works on them. I thought it turned out really nice. That is one of my favorite things to do now while he wires trees, I hook rugs. It is very pleasant. That pepper plant is as tall as me. I have never seen such a big plant.

The tech came back today to work on the line. He said the guy yesterday didn't finish the work. It makes you wonder doesn't it? He said the guy must not have wanted to move the desk out because that is where the wires are. It works off and on and right now it is working.

Can you believe that we are already at July?

Have a great rest of the weekend,
~Kim~

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Today on Thursday

I hope you are having a great Thursday. It has been a busy week. Our internet has been on and off for almost a week. They guy just left and I have speedy internet again. Yay!!! It is just no fun when you try to load a page and I can go clean a room and get back and the page hasn't loaded and I have forgot what to say, or leave a comment and my comment window just sits there.
But with computer problems and internet problems, I hope I am back for awhile. Though I am not getting my hopes up yet.

I finished my July Word play before July. I finished it on Sunday, but it has taken me this long to show you a picture. I don't know if I am getting faster or it was that I had so much fun with this one.

I loved the little tiny crab. I just sat and chuckled to myself as each one turned into something tiny that you would see at the beach.
The tiny little mermaid was fun too.
I have learned so much doing these Word Plays once a month. I need to sign up for a once a month block next year for quilting. It has helped me to stay focused on other projects.

Well, internet just died again and had to be restarted while I was doing this post. I guess it's not fixed.
I will get around when I can.

Bye for now,
~Kim~

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Chats on the Farm House Porch

I am so glad that Patrice does these chats. It is so nice to have someone else do the thinking for me. :)
She has some awesome drinks to have on her porch this week. So if you get a chance stop by and give her a visit. You will have fun.

Questions:

  1.  What's your favorite day of the week? Why?

I think it has to be Thursday too. My work is pretty much finished and I feel like on Thursdays I can rest and sew without guilt.

 2.   Do you have a blog? Please tell us the name of it and how long you've had it.

Yes, I have a blog, and it is called My Field of Dreams. I have been blogging 4 years in July.

3.    What's the last book you read? If you're not a reader, please tell us about the last movie you saw.

Okay, I am deep in Harry Potter. I just started the 6th book today. I wanted something light and I haven't read it in awhile, well not all of them so I thought it would be a nice thing to do.

 4.   Do you ever doodle with a pen or pencil while something else is going on?

Yes, always I pay better attention if I have a pen and paper in my hand. I am a note taker because it just helps me to remember.

5.    Tell me about your bathroom towels. What color are they? Do they all match?

My bathroom towels are white. Just plain ole white. My kids have different shades of green. I have had white towels now for years. I just think they look like vacation to me so that is why I always use white.

Thank you so much Patrice for doing this, I needed to write a post but I worked out in the garden so long today, my brain was in the deep freeze.

Have a great week!
~Kim~
Everyday Ruraltyhttp://www.everydayruralty.com/

Sunday, June 24, 2012

1000 Posts

Well today I finally hit 1000 posts. My husband said last night, " Now you can stop blogging now that you hit 1000 posts."  I sat there and thought for awhile and I wondered if I could stop blogging. I wondered how would I go back to the way I was before. I wondered what I would do when I wake up in the middle of the night and write blog posts in my head.

Now 78,253 page views later, I really don't know how I would go back. I think of how much my life has been changed by your comments, your emails, by your gifts. You have laughed with me and cried with me. You have prayed for me and you have walked with me in valleys and on mountaintops. You have laughed at my video and you have shared your lives with me. You have stood by and watched as I have learned to be who I am and share what I love. Most of all you have loved me and given me your friendship which I cherish.

I feel like what I have been given has been a gift from heaven that I never knew would end up changing and blessing my life. Not to mention to learn to use a camera. I am so thankful for the friends I have made all over the world and in every state in the United States as well as my lovely friends in Canada.

One of the things blogging has done, has been to teach me to live my dreams. To try new things and to not look back but to keep going forward. I have never worked harder so I can have something to blog about. Really if I didn't blog, I don't think I would ever weed my garden. Knowing I have people to share with, has helped me to strive for a weed free life. :)

I just wanted to say thank you. Thank you for taking time out of your busy lives to come and read about mine. Thank you for sharing your life with me.

I am grateful for all that you do daily in my life.

~Kim~

Saturday, June 23, 2012

A Beautiful Day

Today is one of those beautiful days, that if I were a poet I would write and write about. We have this wonderful cool weather coming down from the Gulf of Alaska. There is this fantastic breeze and the wind chimes are singing quietly in the sparkling morning sunshine. The kind of morning when the light is filled with a golden glow.

I took pictures this morning. I just couldn't stay away from the flowers. All of them had tiny little bees.

Don't you just love how her tiny little pollen sacks are filled to bursting and she still keeps working? She was very intent on her business and didn't mind that lady taking lots and lots of photos.

When you don't pick an artichoke and let it bloom. This is the pretty purple thistle flower it turns into. Have you ever noticed that bumble bees favorite color is purple? They love purple the best.

I finally have some cherry "pomatoes," from my grand daughter. It was so nice to see a few out there. I hope there are more when she comes to visit again.

This is one of the new varieties of sunflowers I found this summer. It is called Cinnamon Sun. This picture doesn't really show how black it is, I don't know if it will lighten up around the edges as it opens more but it sure is pretty now.

 I don't catch many little butterfly's visiting my sunflowers. I see them but they are so fast they fly away.
This one didn't stay very long but I was so happy that I was able to take it's picture.

It is just a lovely day to be outside, in the summer air. It makes that song Summer Breeze keep running though my mind.
Have a lovely weekend,
~Kim~

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Bottling Sunshine

I made apricot jam this week. I made strawberry too but the apricot was so pretty. I just love when I can pick my own fruit and then make jam. Then stare at it as it sits on the sink. It is one of those things that just gives me a deep satisfaction about my job being at home.

 What I like about making jam, is that when it is winter and you are tired of the cold and the dreary days, you can open a jar, and you are reminded of summer. I just loved the color and that is what I thought of as I was making it, I was bottling sunshine.

I only made three batches this time. As I was standing at the stove I was thinking about how in years past my daughter and I would stand and make two batches at a time. When the kids were all at home we could make so much jam so fast with both of us cooking. I always had a goal of filling my pantry with food that I made in the summer. I even had a special pantry made in my other house and every summer I worked so it would be filled with food I made.

Today I needed to put my jars away so I cleaned my pantry. This one isn't like my other one but it is a very nice pantry and I still would like to fill these shelves with my home canned food.

I still need to make lots more things this year. I just thought I would give you a glimpse into my pantry since it is clean.

On another note.
I share with you all the time pictures of what I have in my garden. For some reason the police or sheriff think I must be growing pot out here. I have watched the airplanes doing a grid over the garden taking pictures. Then today my son was mowing the lawn and our big back gate was open so he could drive the lawnmower back and forth. A Sheriff truck came and parked at the end of our driveway and within five minutes the sheriff helicopter was flying over so low taking pictures of every single thing in my garden. 

I have never grown pot, I don't even know what it looks like growing. I keep wondering do they think I have pot plants growing between my rows of sunflowers? Or maybe in with my zinnias? This is getting crazy. I kept wondering what would I do if SWAT showed up and kicked my door in or something. Every day when I am out watering or chopping the weeds I have the sheriff helicopter flying around me. I did have the passing thought the other day, what if I just took all of my clothes off and chopped weeds, I wonder what they would do then. You know weird things like that just pop into my mind. I bet my garden has been photographed every day since I put it in and not by me. I thought about calling the sheriff today and asking if they would like a tour so they can quit wasting my tax money.

Okay I will stop with the rant. It just seems crazy to me. My brother next door was robbed twice in a week and they have time to take pictures of my garden in a helicopter I just wish they would do something else.
 They don't call it Commie California for nothin'

Have a great Friday!
~Kim~

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

A Chicken Post

Today I thought I would tell you about something I observed this week. This story is about a rooster I know named Elvis. He lives next door. He doesn't like his pen much and now that he has spotted the girls next door. He has been sneaking around. If I am not paying attention he sneaks up and tries to take my hens for his own flock.

I was working in the pumpkins and I had left the gate open so the hens could come out here in the garden and wander around and eat bugs and just do that stuff chickens do and it always makes me so happy.

I wasn't thinking of Elvis spotting my girls. But I looked up and there he was, strutting around, dropping his wing and trying to round up one of my hens to be his chick. The hen he was paying attention to is one of my old hens, she isn't pretty anymore, she doesn't lay very much and she isn't in the best of condition. Someplace else she would already be soup. She isn't mean though and she doesn't have many friends. As I stood there Elvis was telling her how beautiful she was and I could tell making lots of promises. She started preening and looking at herself and really it did get to me to see how much her face changed by all of the attention Elvis was giving her.

I chased him off with my hoe and went back to work. A little while later, I noticed not a hen  to be seen.
I put down my hoe and walked to the gate. Sure enough, Elvis was standing out in the middle of the lawn and he was flexing his muscles, and flapping his wings, and he was surrounded by the younger hens all giggling and watching him. Standing off to the side was my older hen by herself. As I stood leaning my shoulder against the fence. The rooster saw my older hen and he walked away from his younger fans and went right up to the older hen and dropped his wing. She smiled and she wasn't that old hen anymore but was a hen that was desired.
I of course, came in the gate and broke up the moment by chasing him back home.

I have thought about it since. It reminds me that we all need friends. Life is very lonely without someone who is there to laugh at your jokes, to make you feel pretty even when there is young chicks all around. At this age, trials are beginning to take their toll on my body and my face. Just like that hen, starting to look a little worn out.
Something I have thought about  is that you never know when a special moment is going to come around the end of the fence and make a normal day into a magic day.
I am so thankful for days when little tiny bits of magic come into my life's kaleidoscope and gives me color to paint my days.

Just a chicken story today. I know chickens have beaks and can't really smile, but their eyes light up in a certain way and you just know. 
Have a lovely Thursday,
~Kim~

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Chats on the Farmhouse Porch

It is time again to have a chat with Patrice. Patrice blogs from her place called Everyday Rurality. Stop by if you have a chance.

Now for this weeks questions:


1.    Do you ever go on picnics? When was the last one? Do you go somewhere with benches and tables, or do you take your own blanket?

I love picnics! I haven't went on any in a while though. When the kids were small I was always taking them somewhere for a picnic. My favorite kind is blanket on the grass kind of picnic. My grandson asked last week for a picnic so he could eat his lunch. I might have to do this tomorrow.

2.    What's your favorite tropical fruit?

I would have to say pineapple I guess.

3.    Wendell would like me to ask you if you've ever ridden a horse? Any pony rides as a child?

Yes, I spent the greater part of my growing up years on the back of a horse. During the summer I spent more time riding than anything else. Nope, no pony rides, my Dad thought they were dangerous so he always made me ride a big horse.

4.    Describe the purse you are currently carrying. If you don't use a purse, what color is your wallet?

I carry my chicken purse that I got for Christmas.

5.    Please tell me the last funny thing that you just recently remembered. This can be something funny that happened to you in the past, or just something funny that you remember.

We were just laughing the other day about this. One of the downsides to homeschooling is your children really never know what grade they are in so when a person asks they look at mom and ask, " Mom what grade am I in?" The person asking the question would look bewildered and you could see the look that said, " Weird Kid."

My son who was always interested is seeing how things worked was watching a repairman working on the garage door. He was about 12 at the time and at some point in the conversation, the man asked him what grade he was in, me not being around to ask, my son just answered, " Oh, I am not too concerned about what grade I am in, it really isn't that important."  I guess the man was really dumfounded and when I finally came outside to pay the man, he asked me. I told him what grade he was in and that my son was being home schooled.  You could tell though, he thought this was the weirdest house he had ever been to with all of these kids and not even knowing what grade they were in.

Later when I had all of the kids together we sat and drilled about what grade they were in and what year in school. I still sit and laugh about that.

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope you are having a wonderful week.
~Kim~

Everyday Ruralty

Monday, June 18, 2012

Computer Problems

I thought I would check in briefly. I feel like I am on borrowed time. Yesterday my computer started doing weird things, like trying to turn on and not being able to and then having the black screen of death. My kids dug up two more monitors so I was able to finally see the screen. It has been acting weird, like turning off for no reason while I am typing. My computer is my husband's old one. His computer that he works on is an Apple. I don't know how to use an Apple so if this one dies, I am off line until who knows when. It has me shaking in my boots.

My husband says it is a hardware issue. He thinks my video card has died. He did a work around this morning so I could get online today and he thinks he can fix it when he gets home tonight. Who knew that I am so addicted  dependent used to having a computer anytime I want makes me feel like my world has been rocked.

It was 106 here yesterday. It felt like 110. My poor chickens and chicks. I kept spraying water in the dust bath holes and they would dry and then they would be filled with chickens. I had to take the bunny out of his cage and put him in my little chicken coop so he could dig a hole. The bunny wouldn't lay next to an ice bottle like normal. It was so hot, that when I touched the ice bottle, the bottle split and made a little explosion of hot water. It was the weirdest thing I ever saw.

I have been meaning to write about this, the other night the boys were taking Sasha for a walk. It was that twilight time, when the sun has gone down, but it is still light. People dump cats here so every single neighbor has about a million cats. The man who builds race cars behind me, has a bunch too. That night Sasha was on the leash because of the skunk issues. The neighbor cats behind us were laughing at Sasha as she walked on the leash with my sons. They had went around a couple of times and my son said, " he felt bad because the cats had such smug looks on their faces so he picked up a dirt clod to throw at them."
When he threw the dirt clod it hit the trunk of one of the cotton wood trees. Bats started pouring out of the tree and started dive bombing my sons and Sasha. They had to run for the house with the bats making the clicking sound above their heads.

I was so relieved, because I get dive bombed by those crazy bats every time I take Sasha outside. I am not the only one and I am not crazy. I never knew bats were like that. I am glad that we do have so many in our trees. They really do keep the bugs down. They just don't like you in their space.

I just wanted to share that in case I don't get back on line for awhile. I also wanted to share that the seed packet I bought for these sunflowers are just mixed sunflowers from Burpee. They say multiple heads and not the large Goliath that some sunflowers are, I buy the mixed so I get all different varieties. I hope to get some seeds from these too but the parrots were here in a whole flock so I don't know if I can. They snip off the whole head and fly away with it to eat it. I will go out there one morning and my sunflower will just be a green bush with little sticks sticking up where there were flowers.

Have a great Monday,

~Kim~

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Just Sunflowers

This morning when I was out in the garden, so many of my sunflowers were open. I just had to share. It seemed like too every shot I got some sort of little bee. I would say that summer is here.

Today is going to be a warm day. My husband had already gone swimming by 10:00 A.M. The weather smells very nice and toasty. The man who lives behind us, has a fire going for a deep pit BBQ so it smells like camping.

I really like the color of this dark one. I love how pretty it looks with the light tips.

I am sure by the end of today I will have lots more to take pictures of and to stare at as I sit out in the garden.

We had a volunteer pumpkin come up out in the garden today it we noticed it had a pumpkin. I just had to share it.

I have to figure out how to get it some water. It is beyond the water so I will have to carry buckets of water to it I think. I love surprises.

Have a lovely Weekend.
~Kim~

Thursday, June 14, 2012

More Garden Pictures

Are you tired of seeing my garden yet? This is our fourth garden. All of those little plants out in the middle is our medicinal/herb garden. Years and years ago when we lived in town and my kids were small, I grew herbs to help when the kids were sick. We would make teas out of dried mullein leaves and peppermint and strawberry leaves because it would break up coughs and colds. I grew other things like comfrey for bruises and camomile because it is my favorite tea.  This year when my husband decided he wanted to grow these things we had such a hard time finding herb seeds like I had known in the past. I am glad that I brought my mullein with me when we moved. You can't find it now, and being afraid of going out in the wild to collect it, I just keep looking. This year we have horehound, and camomile and fennel, and we have all of our mints up by the house. We have lots more but right now the names escape me.

This isn't the best picture of my zinnias. It is hard to get really nice shots because these places are bigger than they look on camera. Having this bed of zinnias as my girls said yesterday, is like having fireworks out in the garden. They do make me so happy.

This one is a bit better with the herbs in the background. We have growing in flats in the shed about this many feverfew plants. I like it because it looks like tiny little daisy's so I am going to plant that in my flower beds around the house.

 Can you tell what this is? It is my pumpkin patch. They will grow so much with this heat we will be having for the next few days. The pumpkins love 100+ degree weather. But so do the weeds. I can't believe I weeded this place on Saturday and I already have weeds. In this bed are giant pumpkins and Cinderella pumpkins and regular cooking pumpkins.

Over in the middle of the garden I have a bed with Jack-be-little. You know the tiny pumpkins. I didn't plant any gourds this year. I meant to but I just never got around to it and gourds need a very long growing time, or they do here. To have a nice gourd crop I need to have them in the ground by April. I was still trying to decide if I was going to put a garden in in April.

I have to say, so far this is my favorite garden. I don't know why. Maybe it is that we spaced it far enough apart that we can get the tractor in to help with the weeds. I don't know if it is that I planted more flowers.
When I walk outside the gate in the mornings and I see all of that stuff growing and I walk around and look at things and then my chickens wander around with me just being chickens. To me it is the prettiest place in the world. I feel very thankful when I am out in the garden. In the evening when the sun is setting and we sit out there and the crickets start singing their summer songs I know why God planted a garden and put man in the midst of it.

Summer is just the best.
Have a lovely weekend,
~Kim~

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

More Odds and Ends

I finally have some sunflowers and after the heat we are going to have for the next few days I am hoping for some more. I feel like saying that I am back in business.

I just have some odds and ends today. I finished my June Word play before July got here. So if I get myself in gear I might finish July before July. I have 3 rug projects I am working on and I got my wool for that yesterday. I should be able to finish those up now.

Here is my June Word Play.

My  chicks are getting pretty big now. I have been putting them out in the yard during the day. They really like the cage outside. It has been hot so I have let the big hens out too so they come up and look in the cage at the chicks and watch them. It is kind of sad that the broody hens stand around staring the most.

Sasha thinks she is the chick official protector. She lays by the cage, chases the hens off if they get to close and if a cat comes up she also chases the cat away.
She wants to stay out there with the chicks and watch them and not come with me.

The chicks are never afraid of her and don't seem to mind her just watching them in the cage. I found a book about Border Collies, and it said that Border Collies are smart but that they are so OCD. They have to have a job to do or they get very depressed. So when she starts acting like that I just let her round up my chickens and she watches the grand kids. She takes her jobs so seriously.

Speaking of OCD. I told my husband I was going to post this so he knows. We were working out in the garden the other day. We had worked 3 hours getting every weed out of the herb bed. I was starting to get tired and I was ready to quit. He was raking up the last of the weeds and he started singing this little song.
" Oh, how I love my OCD,
It is such a part of me."

I laughed and laughed and I am so happy that we both have it. It would be so hard if one of us did and the other did not.

I think that is why we all love our dog so much. She fits us. Oh, and Sasha and the chicks do you remember the movie Babe and how Fly the female Border Collie was always kissing Babe? Sasha does that to my chicks she always kisses their faces. I guess it must be a trait too.

So just odds and ends today. I read a blog the other day and it was about chicken watching and how it was good for you. I was so glad that I am not the only one who just stands mesmerized by chicks. Just like the dog.

Have a great Thursdays!
~Kim~