The quilt in progress.

Here is a peek at the quilt I've been working on - lots of Amy Butler and a bit of Anna Maria Horner.


However, there has been no time for working on it this morning, we have been in the garden. We planted some watermelon, more potatoes, cucumber, and more marigolds and and iris bulbs. I still hope to plant some more sweet pea after lunch, and then maybe some more time for the quilt. :)

Two new and two borrowed...

I'll start with this bread book, Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking-amazing!! I have made three batches, the first two batches were the boule, and this round I am trying the olive oil bread. This batch will go for pizza and stromboli.

The authors do an incredible job teaching you about how to make great breads, that as Matheau said, "tastes like it is from Panera Bread". It is also easy to have a fresh loaf every day to eat with one, or if you have any left, two meals. The prep work (to make the batch) takes around 15 minutes, and then just five, really, just five minutes to get your loaf ready and in the oven.

Book reviews coming soon...

The soup and the bread, both from books new to me. But right now, I am really busy trying to fit in a lap quilt for the front porch.

Just outside my kitchen door...

are some of my roses that are in full bloom right now. I think Mac knows they are a treat, because every time I step out side (and it is not raining) he is sitting here, or near the other roses in bloom.



Friday and Saturday I was able to plant a few wild flower seeds, as well as some more varieties of zinnias. I was hoping today to put in my corn and beans. We had a ton of rain last night, and it is still raining, so it is going to have to wait a few more days...

May 22.

Psalm 23:3 "True to Your word, You let me catch my breath and send me in the right direction."

May 21 - I planted sweet peas and poppy seeds...

I am still busy planting seeds and bulbs friends have given to me.

Yesterday I planted marigolds (to keep rodents out of the garden) and helped Jason finish up the girls (and Ollie's) house. They now have their own door to go into. It took a bit for them to figure it out last night but I bet tonight will be quicker.



This is one of my first yellow roses to bloom. It won't last much longer but has smelled and been a cheerful addition to the kitchen and dining table this week.

Still planting.

May 19.
I planted some more:
iris bulbs, lillies and salvia in the front of the house.



The sage is blooming.

May 15.

My first rose in full bloom for the season.

I love that a short walk to the garden provides part of an evening meal.

Yesterday I celebrated my 34th birthday. The day included time to work in the garden and plant a couple more tomato plants and 4 green pepper plants. I wish I would have done a better job labeling my starts because I have NO idea which tomatoes I just planted. I also planted African daisy seeds in a couple of containers in the front of the house.

Christians going green...

This is something that has been on my mind quite a bit lately. Truthfully, I have been pushing it out of my mind for the last six years. I think I have finally given up on the idea that the need for severe change needs to go away. Not only because of the changes in the earth, but the high rates of cancer, Type II diabetes, the risk of heart disease, I just can't believe that that isn't linked to what we put into our bodies. God created plants before He even created us and He doesn't seem to ever do anything without a specific purpose. But we have taken what He gave us, and altered it, and altered it some more, so a lot of the time, it doesn't even taste or look like what it was originally intended to be. Ok, off my soap box... ;)

I've started with our eating. This year our garden is started. I had taken several years off in between having the last two children, everyone can walk to and from the garden without help, so it has been the perfect time to start again. As I've been working on the garden, the kids and I read about gardening and planting so even this they aren't doing a lot of the work, I hope that what we are reading about is coming to life as the garden does. For the last six weeks, I have also been making changes to the recipes and meals I prepare. I think some days the hardest part is the extra time, more in meal prep then actual cooking. I have had to start meal planning again (something I used to be great at but slacked off in).

One of the hardest things for me to give up was soda. I still will pick up a Jones at the store now and then, but I need to confess that once and a while I have had a diet coke or Dr. Pepper. I also would let the kids pick out a 30 cent soda at the grocery if they had done a good job while there, I have quit that as well. Between that, and cold cereal only now and then, I don't think the kids are still too sold on it, but hopefully the longer I stick with it, the more they will start to enjoy the changes. I think they have gotten pancakes a little more often this way. :)

French knots.

I have granny squares to finish and put together, Grandpa M's fishing hat to finish, the baby bibs are about done (that is a plus), a February baby sweater not even half way completed, but I made some time to learn to make french knots. I know, not how I should probably be spending the children's read-aloud time, but I did anyway.

Mother's Day weekend.

Luke calls the goat's milk his medicine. His allergies are not so severe when he drinks it instead of cows milk. I am always glad when she has enough for us to buy. While picking up the goat's milk at Suzanne's, she also gave me some vanilla bean to make my own vanilla. :)

Day three of my first rose blooming...


I have had a great weekend. I'm thanking the Lord for holding back the rain we were supposed to get on Saturday. We need the break, everything is still really wet. Too wet to finish planting my garden. However, this weekend, I did get some gardening done. I also cleaned out the chicken house on Friday afternoon. Because I don't wait too long, it isn't a bad task, I may think differently in the middle of the summer or winter...

My Mom and Dad-in-law surprised me with 2 blueberry bushes, and 3 American Bittersweet vine for my birthday. I was able to get them planted yesterday and today. I am stoked, I have been wanting to start blueberries for a long time now. There will not be any blueberries this year, but I checked on our black raspberries that I had try to clean up a bit awhile back. They are looking good, the berries are forming and I am hoping the work I did will make it easier to get them picked when they are ready.




I also received birthday money from my parents for my birthday (my birthday is this week). I already ordered my 12 by 4 in. loaf pan and a couple of books. One is "Apples for Jam" that I have been raving about. Speaking of the book, I tried another recipe from it this weekend. Chicken cutlets with tomatoes and capers. I asked Mat to rate it on a scale of 1 (lowest) to 5 (highest). He gave it a 4.67. I served it with the pan fried rosemary potatoes.

New Desserts...

Blueberry cake from Soulemama.



Homemade brownies with a whipped topping and fresh strawberries from "Apples for Jam".

Quick knitting project.

I knit this pillow with yarn from hobbledehoy. (It came with the dollies on it.) I used US 19 needles, very fast. I had the pillow form from a previous pillow that just needed a new purpose.

Liz is the fiber artist, aka: Hobbledehoy. She creates amazing handspun yarns. I had purchased a sub with my Christmas money and it was worth it.  She does an amazing job spinning and dying the yarn.

  

Choices and running early in the morning.

Martha as a chick. 

Our chicken house is at least 100 yards from our house, and there is no electricity up there. So before bed last night, I thought to myself, "it surely isn't going to rain. No, it will wait until tomorrow."

 And since we all now I can predict the weather, instead of going out and pulling the plastic over the chicken's large bay window, I left it up. 

 It was around 2 this morning when I was awaken from my sleep by the thunder and rain. Now, I had two choices, leave the plastic up, knowing that the hens like to sleep right underneath the window and don't move well once they settle in for the night, or run up the hill singing really loud to scare any animals away incase some were out in the middle of the lightning storm. Not wanting my girls (and possible rooster) to become ill, I chose the second. And yes, I do sing very loudly when I am running in the dark, by myself, up a hill, and in the dark, I always sing hymns, they just seem more comforting to me. :)

More education regarding the chickens.

Hannah holding Trixie.

When I first started putting the hens (and maybe rooster) in their chicken run for the day, they didn't want to go-in or out of the house. By day two, they couldn't wait to get into the run, but when it was time to go into their house for the night, we (whoever was willing to help me) would crawl into the run (which is less then 3 feet high) and we would have to hand them out one by one while someone stood guard to make sure they would not try to get back into the run, before they were all in their house. This process took us roughly 30 minutes. So after a week of that, I figured out that if I moved the run near their house at least an hour before I wanted them to go in for the night, they could eat all the worms there before hand. Also, if I remove their food and water, then they are really ready to get into their home. Note-if it was really warm, I would not take their water, but when they all go in, they go straight for the food, not for the water, so I am not dehydrating them-just in case you were concerned. :)) Now, when I do the above, I also go ahead, get them fresh water, check/refill their food, so it only takes me about 5 minutes to put them to bed for the night. (And my clothes stay poo-free.)

Martha may really be Obiwan.

Well, we (I) thought that Olivia was going to turn out to be Ollie. Now, I am not so sure, but it does seem to look like Martha may be a rooster. Her/His waddle and comb is developing faster then the others, so I will just keep watching to see. If she does end up a rooster, we already have a new name for her/him.

Granny squares.

I have been working on a granny squares blanket since before Christmas. This is granny square 67, I am not quite done...

Granny square #67.

Gifts.

These have been on my to-do list for quite sometime. I have been wanting to try sewing on these moleskines since I received "Last-Minute Patchwork and Quilted Gifts". The idea for the clips is from Country Home Magazine. Two finished, four more to go.