Category Archives: Uncategorized

Unknown's avatar

Some Days

by

Some days all goes well and I feel like the most fortunate person in the world here on my micro-farm.  Because really, when you come right down to it, all the place needs is some cleaning up, clearing out, and some beautification (yeah, we’re owrking on it, slowly) and it’ll be great.  We even have a pool we’re getting ready to install.  Most of the time I can cure any of my various ills by spending some time with the critters, be they indoor (Japser cat!) or outdooor.  Some days, though……some days make me want to change my name, move to Timbuktu and pretend I never met any of these people before.

That day was yesterday.  Obviously I did not move, nor did I change my name.  I did try to pretend I didn’t know any of these people, but theywouldn’t let me.

It started on Sunday.  I decided it was high time to get the back garden planted.  Problem was, the tiller wasn’t functional.  So, I did it all by hand.  Just me and a shovel.  That back garden is HUGE.

There’s at least 4 feet between each of those posts, to give you an idea.  This was how it looked last year.  Now there’s grass grown all in around it and it was full of weeds I had to pull out.  By the end of the day I was very, very sore.  The good news was I had all the corn, potatoes and butternut squash planted.  I ended up taking a shower around 10 pm with Oona because I felt filthy after all that and she has been miserable with allergies.

Yesterday morning I woke up feeling like I’d been chewed up and spit out.  My muscles were all on fire, my head was threatening another migraine, my ears were crazy itchy, and my throat was swollen and sore.  I wanted. to. die.  So…..I stayed shut in the bedroom, lounging in bed while Oona stayed with me and watched Spongebob.  I drifted off at some point, and woke up to, “SNIP!  SNIP!”.  The unmistakable sound of scissors being used.

The bedroom door had been flung open and there she sat, next to me, my big sewing scissors in hand, shredding her pajamas.  Her hair, which had just this past week been fixed by a hairdresser, was missing chunks right down to the scalp.  Several barbies lay strewn about, locks missing.  I can’t even tell you.  I was so mad.  After that I felt I couldn’t properly rest or recoup, especially because all the kids had apparently decided to make the house as unsanitary as possible, and stinky to boot.

I didn’t kill my kids, I didn’t run away (though a mini vacation for me is taking shape in my mind…..details to be worked out later).  I can’t honeslty tell you how I made it through the day.

Oh yeah and did I mention the dog ruined the living room carpet?  Big pile of poop + Neve = ground in anstiness that cannot be cleaned.  We had to order a new rug.

Anyone want a dog????

Switching gears.

Rather than start a whole new post for this, I figure I’d leave you with the  happy parts from today.  We let the babies out to play for awhile.

Jerry decided to hang out in the chicken tractor today.  I have no idea how he even fit in there.

And lastly, a video of the babies playing and jumping.

Unknown's avatar

Good Stuff

by

Ok, y’all know how much I love Susan over at Juniper Moon Farm. Not only is she my hero for doing what I want to be doing (um, raising sheep and goats and making yarn?  Hello!!!) , but she is also one of the best people you’ll ever meet.

Today, she and her assistant Maggie, along with numerous other friends and helpers, staged a fun – filled day of Sheep Shearing, eating, spinning and knitting.  Who the heck needs MD Sheep & Wool???Well, lots of us do, but that’s besides the point.

I brought blueberry cobbler.  Good thing I made two batches, because I was so overwhelmed with the incredible food everyone else brought that I never even made it to dessert.  (I know, I am as shocked as you!!!!)

They started out shearing the angora goats.

Then came Ernie the sheep.  He is massive.  Huge.  Unbelievably ginormous.  You can certainly see him from space.

And petite little Emily the Shearer is totally badass hauling that 300 lb sheep around like a ragdoll.

Despite his size, he was rather compliant.

Post – haircut.  Still huge……but decidedly less – so.

With all the action going on around him this little lamb (Rushworth, or “Mr. Tiny”) enjoyed a quiet snack with his mama.  If you follow Susie’s blog at all you’ll recognize him as the touch- and – go preemie from this past week, and you’ll be happy to see he is nursing on his own.

Can I please, please puh-leeeeeeeze have this as my backyard?????  Talk about the most serene, happiness – inducing scene imaginable. Happy, healthy sheep grazing a fresh pasture.

This is what happens when Neve gets the camera. I have to say…..I think I may hire her to take all future food pictures for this blog.

And though Hattie just might kill me for posting it, this also happens:

Hattie drove up from Charlottesville and rode along with us for the fun.  Despite how close with live to each other we don’t see each other very often, so it was a good day for it.

We stayed for quite awhile but the kids were getting restless and my head was threatening a migraine, so as much as I did not want to ever leave, we left late afternoon, while most of the visitors had migrated indoors into the living room and were very cozily spinning and knitting and joking around having a great time.  I was very sad to leave that scene!

Fortunately Paul has Oona out for a short car trip this evening and for the first time in far too long I have a chance to sit and relax and I think I will work on a striped scarf (with some scrumptious Noro Silk Garden yarn) (and maybe catch up on some brain – rotting South Park or Deadliest Catch on Hulu)  instead of the many other things I should work on.

But first!!!

I have opened my etsy shop at last.  I have several flannel tote bags listed that I made this past week.

Some with sheep,

Some with chicks.

I really need to make some llama ones.  But not ones with bad haircuts, I promise.

I’ll be adding to the shop on and off as I am able, so check it out!!!!!

Unknown's avatar

Someone’s Idea of a Joke

by

I got married on St. Patrick’s Day fourteen years ago.   We were crazy and young (19!) and in love (and stupid.  waaay stupid)

It’s been quite the ride, I’ll tell you that.  Four years in, we had our first girl.  Four years after that, girl number two.  And four years after that……girl number three.  I guess we were working on a pattern or somthing.  Do NOT expect another one when Oona turns four!

Anyhow, we usually celebrate our anniversary St. Paddy’s style – Guinness, Irish Cream Chocolate Cake, Irish coffee….you get the idea.  Not once, though, have we followed the rules of what to actually buy each other according to the year of marriage.  You know, the whole “first anniversary is paper, second is cotton, etc, all the way down to your diamond anniversary at sixty years.  (Did you know there is a wool anniversary?!!!  Because I didn’t, and it was seven years ago.  Rats!!)

This year someone must have said something to my dear spouse, however, because he came home and announced that it was our Ivory Anniversary.

I’m really thinking that this is deserving of a Darwin Award.

Unknown's avatar

Finally Back On-Line

by

After getting way more snow in one day than this state usually sees in a year we spent most of the weekend powerless and phone-less.  I can’t tell you how great it is to have heat, water and internet again.

It’s still a mess out there – lots of downed trees and many more homes still without power (or plowed roads even) and we’re expecting more snow tomorrow.  So in anticipation I am going to work on the mountains of laundry and dishes and everything else that can’t get done with a cold, dark house.

Hope everyone’s warm!

Unknown's avatar

Occasionally, Something Great

by

It’s a small thing, to be sure, but its potential is great.  Not only for the life inside of it (well, actually Emily at that sunny side up this morning) but because it means I at least have ONE laying hen!

I know Turkey Day has passed already but as I have some pictures to share and I am still so excited about our first egg yesterday I feel compelled to share my gratefulness!

For those of you who know use or who are regular readers, you probably already know that we are “cursed”.  Not that I am sure I really believe in the whole voodoo/black magic/stink-eye kind of stuff, but more along the lines of thinking that Mr. Murphy had me in mind when writing his law.  Anything and everything that can go wrong, will.

For instance:

*We ordered a part for my car so that it would pass inspection, but the seller took well over a month to ship it out and now my car is way past due.

*We bought a bus in great condition and a decent price (but not so decent that it should have anything major wrong with it) only to have it break down just south of the capital beltway a month later.

*I brought home 6 adolescent female chickens only to have 4 of them turn out to be boys.  Add this to the fact that half of the chicks I bought in March turned out to be roosters as well.

*Oona turned off the chest freezer this weekend and no one noticed until all the food thawed and the frozen berries leaked dark red juice all over the wood floors.

*I had this post 100% written and ready to go and when I clicked on “Save Draft” it deleted it instead.

You get the idea.  This is just my life, day to day.  We have accepted this and try as much as possible to plan for all of the failures.  It tends to make one grateful for all of the little things; sometimes little victories are all you have.  BUT I do have 3 very significant victories – all 3 of my girls were born healthy, on time, and without complication.  I’ll take a lifetime of Murphy and his bad luck if that’s the payment required.

And with all of that in mind, on to Turkey Day!

Over the river and through the woods, to grandmother’s house we go……

It was funnier when we actually did have to go over a river and through the woods to get to my mother’s house.  Now it’s really just “down the road and through the gates”.

Emily dressed herself all in polka dots.  I wouldn’t do that, I promise you.

I’m thinking that if Maddie sees enough of these pictures of herself on the internet she might stop making that face.

Eric made the fried turkey, as per tradition. (And pumpkin creme brulee – the likes of which shall haunt my dreams forever).

Master chef dad, whipping the potatoes.  I am starving just thinking back on it.  My brother will be happy to know that this was the first year we did not run of out masjed potatoes.  Dad said it was because he made “an ass load of them”.  And yummy they were, with the mashed squash (acorn?) stuffing with sausage (oh droooooooool) green beans, gravy………this is torture.

My kids gnawed on the drumsticks, caveman – style.

Paul was……..Paul.  Actually, to be fair, that’s my Blackberry he’s messing with there, not his.

Everyone loves Sadie dog.

We ate so much food that once the dessert was passed around and squeezed in all we wanted to do was lie down and sleep.  I think we were all in bed by 8 that night.  I didn’t want to eat again, ever.  But now that it’s been a few days and I am thinking about it again I think maybe I could use another such feast.

Hey, dad?  Want to whip up another feast for me?

Dad?

Hello????

Unknown's avatar

Anticipation…….

by

While I anxiously await the final outcome of the goat giveaway (we’ll be informed by October 1) I have been trying to stay busy so as to avoid my head exploding from the tension.

I’ve been knitting away like mad (read – not doing any cleaning) on a cardigan for Neve – it’s getting close to completion and I will post pictures of it soon.  I’ve also been spending quality time with the chickens and interrogating them as to the whereabouts of all the eggs they are supposed to be laying for me.  So far they’ve had no comment other than “More treats please”.  Only Clementine has a valid excuse for not handing over the goods, as HE started crowing the other morning and has barely stopped since.  He is a lovely roo, I have to say.

09.28.09c

We’ll be putting them in a much larger pen and coop soon (as soon as the boss tells me I can, that is) and adding some females to keep them happy.  Three hens per roo is not enough to keep them from going a bit crazy (I know……human males wish they were so lucky, right?) and if I don’t add more girls chances are they’ll start fighting and picking each others feathers and they’ll wear out the girls I already have.  Stressed and worn out hens equals less egg production, and since I am having enough issues in that department……  But anyway I told Emily she should start reading them tasty chicken recipes as bedtime stories and smack her lips a bit.  Maybe that’ll put the scare into them.

In slightly more insane news – we bought a bus.  A Bus.  A big old ancient greyhound bus.  Why???  We’re crazy.  Haven’t you been paying attention?

09.20.09a

Actually we’d been researching rv’s for awhile and found this, which had been converted as a touring bus for a bluegrass band.  Neat, huh?  It needs a good amount of cleaning and I am going to insist on a new bathroom (I’m a girl.  I have 3 girls.  My sister, who lives with us 75% of the time, is a girl.  Get the picture?).    There’s the big storage area underneath it that Emily has declared “Perfect for Pippa the dog!”.  Poor Pippa.  No, we will not actually put her in there!

09.20.09b

But it’s got these nice first – class style seats up front with nice big windows to look out.

09.28.09b

The driver’s area is pretty much identical to what I got used to as a transit driver (except that this is a manual transmission and manual steering – Oh boy….)

09.28.09a

And it has a kitchenette area with sink, fridge and stove.  That couch on the left will probably get replaced with a dinette bench.  There are six bunks behind the curtain there, and in the back is the bathroom, a sitting area and a closet.  We’ll be camping in style from now on.  Good thing I know how to drive a bus.

Unknown's avatar

Spring Cleaning, Or When Norovirus Comes to Town

by

The Universe has a great sense of humor.  You may remember I’d just about given up on winter, right?  Still holding out for one big snowstorm but knowing deep down (based on several year’s experience, too) that we weren’t going to get one?  And remember how I was starting to come around to the idea of it being very early spring since the little crocus and daffodil greens were coming up and that maybe I should begin thinking about a spring cleaning?

Well.

Two things happened at once.  We all came down with a nasty case of norovirus (you know, that gut wrenching, puking, diarrhea, body aches so bad you’d gladly die RIGHT NOW illness that seems to be everywhere lately) and it snowed.  Major snow.  The kind that I should have been out playing and taking pictures in and making snowmen with the kids in.  Except for the aforementioned norovirus.  Ah, universe, touche.    So now that we are on the mend we need to do a VERY major spring cleaning (3 days of 4 sick and vomiting people makes for a nasty messy house), and I’ve been trying to enjoy the snow from inside as much as humanly possible.

But let’s back up a moment here, if we may, to set the stage for just one of the many reasons that a major cleaning is now in order, despite the fact that old man winter is not quite thorugh with us after all.

030309a1

The Laguna del Laundry-o

This is immediately before I fell victim to the virus.  Neve had come home sick from school and I guessed it was a matter of time before I became incapable of any real housework so I put myself into overtime getting everything in order to avoid being sick and having no clean towels or dishes and dirty bathrooms.  My lovely washer and dryer were put on full time duty and doing a bang – up job.  Too bang – up.  My washer became somewhat unbalanced and the full 1.5 gallons of Tide HE that was sitting on top of it fell over and became wedged upside down between the dryer and the laundry room door.  Where it then popped off its cap and poured out all over the floor under the machines and onto the white hallway carpet, which is now a lovely laguna blue and must be ripped out and replaced.    And you know what?  I gave up on it.  I let it go.  Because really there’s no coming back from that.  You can’t clean that out.  The sudsing power (kudos to the laundry detergent companies for this, btw) is too much for any carpet cleaning device to handle.   I soaked up what I could with towels and threw those towels in the washer along with the bathroom rugs and they washed up rather nicely (no need to add soap!).  And since then we have been pretending like there is no huge unsightly squishy blue pool in the hall.

And shortly after that, Oona got hit with the vomiting.  All over Paul at Sam’s Club (buying more laundry detergent!) no less.  Twice while in line.  A few times more in the car on the way home.  All over the dining room chairs and the floors downstairs.  The problem was that in between throwing up you’d never know she was sick.  She could not be made to sit still, she wanted to play!  And since we didn’t want her to end up dehydrated we kept filling her with juice and pedialyte whenever she would take it.  And she’d be on the run and need to vomit, but keep running.  We’d try to grab her and she’d try to get away, spreading it everywhere.   Then, I got it.  No, I didn’t spread it all over the house.  But I did feel a lot worse than Oona.  I couldn’t get out of bed all day Sunday and could only stare woefully out the window as the snow started falling late in the day.  I didn’t expect much to come of it, but I was in a total fog anyway.  So imagine my surprise Monday morning when this is the scene from the back door:

030309b1

I was blown away.  I was elated.  I was MAD!  I was still barely able to stand up and here was all this perfect snow (and I do mean perfect – this stuff was just right for making snow balls).

030309c1

What a glorious sight.  And now Paul was sick.  Emily and Neve at least got to enjoy playing out in it.  Oh, and Emily, by the way, has impetigo.  You now that lovely bacterial infection that looks like itchy red pimples on your face?  Yup.  Sigh.  At least she wasn’t too sick to make snow angels and chase the dog around.  Pippa LOVES playing in the snow.  It really does make me wish we had this kind of snow more often like we did back up north when we were kids.

030309d

I am still amazed at how much we got, and that here it is Tuesday and it has barely showed any signs of melting.  Watching Paul clear off the van really made it kind of weird for both of us – flashback city!  He never thought he’d been doing this again!

030309g1

I haven’t been able to get Oona out to play in it yet, but as of this morning it still looked like this out back:

030309e

It’s really beautiful with the sun shining (though a bit bright!!!) through the trees.  The birds are visiting the feeders in scores and the dog is eating her weight in snow.  I’m really sad to still be feeling so crummy, but with any luck it’ll pass soon and there will be enough snow left for my littlest one to get a taste of it (not literally!).  For now she is content to eat everything in sight (she’s weaned now, which apparently means HUNGRY ALL THE TIME!) and tormenting her big sisters.   As long as I don’t have to do any of that major cleaning in the next couple of days, I think I’ll be ok.  I’ll hang out on the couch and enjoy the view of the snow covered trees from my windows, and laugh as Oona makes everyone crazy.

030309f

Unknown's avatar

Cold Snap

by

020109b

What’s funny is that as I write this it is in the mid 60’s outside.  No wonder we can’t get well – the weather can’t seem to make up its mind.  We had quite an icy week.  The girls had 2 days off due to the hazardous road conditions, and it was quite a disappointment, since we were hoping for snow.  Emily and Neve were all set to make snowmen and igloos, “and a snow castle, too!!!”  Well, that didn’t work out so well but Emily still explored outside a little bit, but finding only a few icicles here and there (which always reminds me of Ralphie from A Christmas Story) she decided ice was simply no fun.

020109a

I will say that even though I am no fan of ice it was rather delightful not to have to wake up early those 2 mornings for the bus.  There was also no chorus practice or Girl Scouts for Emily on Tuesday which made my day a whole lot easier than normal.  We celebrated by eating blueberry pancakes shaped like snowmen for breakfast.  And the satellite install guy came out even though we felt sure he wouldn’t, given that climbing onto an icy roof was probably not the smartest thing to be doing.  Turned out he wasn’t the smartest satellite installer guy.  He ended up being at our house for 5 and a half hours and then Paul still had to finish up the job for him after he left.  I may have mentioned this already.  Anyway the satellite works now and it has helped out in the mental health department for me dramatically, as has (surprisingly) having a tv in the bedroom.  Oona has been much easier to manage in those early morning hours when I am not ready to be awake and she has had enough of sleeping.  Now I turn on Spongebob and we can snuggle until I am in a happier and more wakeful place.

The two days reprieve from school also gave Emily more time to work on her diarama, which was supposed to represent an arctic biome, complete with 2 animal and plant types.  She spent quite awhile researching, and then we threw it all together in just under an hour once all of the information was complete.

020109c

She included polar bears, arctic foxes, bearberry plants and caribou moss.  I was ecstatic once it was complete.  One less thing to worry about!

Sadly our winter weather lasted all of 3 or so days and today it has been rather warm.  Don’t get me wrong, I am glad that the sun and dryness and warmth motivated Paul to clear out a bunch of scrub behind the house and clear spots for my garden shed and pumpkin patch, but I hate these warm day fake – outs.  You see, it goes like this:  it’s winter.  You know it’s winter because the calendar says so.  February means winter.  But suddenly the warm weather pops up on you and you’re outside without a coat looking at the grass and the garden beds and the green sprigs that have been fooled into poking up through the dirt and you start thinking about spring, and you catch that bug.  You know what bug I mean – the one where you want to scrub out the house and replace the flannels with cottons and organize your seeds and go buy some bulbs and little flowers and just generally do all things spring – like.  Except that WHAM!!  Before you know it it’s 12 degrees and snowing!  Just like that!  I am a firm believer that winter should be winter, spring should be spring, and so on.  I am not a fan of ambiguous weather.

Which is why I have shunned the out of doors for today and instead have focused on finishing up that sock that I have been working on forever and a day.  I haven’t gotten to the heel yet, but it is definitely going more quickly this time, perhaps due to the fact that I could probably work the chart in my sleep at this point.  The only glitch in my plan has been the entrance of Oona into the terrible two’s.  The thing about this is that I didn’t see it coming.  Emily and Neve did not go through the terrible two’s.  Wait!  Do not scoff!  It was far worse than you think!  They went instead through the terrible three’s!  The terrible three’s is much worse because they are fully articulate at that stage and have no problem making clear why they are throwing their tantrums and delight in embarrassing you with this info in public places and in front of family and friends.  They also have the dexterity and strength to get into whatever it is they want at 3.

Oona has always been a delightful, sweet little thing, so I figured she was on track to become horrible at a later stage in the game as well.  The last week has proven me woefully wrong.  She is my first biter, and she gets great satisfaction out of causing me awful pain, either with her teeth or fingernails.  When I am knitting she will throw herself upon my yarn and needles as though she knows how best to cause the most dire problems for myself and for her (needles I say!!!).  If you allow her to self feed (which she is quite capable of) she will instead feed all of her food to the dog.  The dog LOVES Oona.  She adores pulling Neve’s hair and has twice left large purple bite marks on Neve’s face.  She can and does remove any article of clothing that is put on her, even those that button or snap up the back.  Ditto the diaper.   There is nothing that she is not interested in breaking or tasting.  Her mess making skills are unparalleled.

020109d

At first I could not imagine why my sweet tempered little cutie was acting this way suddenly.  And then it hit me – she’s 18 months old, and at the right stage for the terrible behavior that is the hallmark of her age.  And she is enjoying every minute of it.

Unknown's avatar

What, ME M.I.A.???

by

So I guess it’s been about 8 days since my last post.  Sorry!  You find yourself in bed with a nasty cold with symptoms too gruesome to describe, then there’s a nasty ice storm leaving the kids at home for a few days and the next thing you know it’s been a week!

I’ve been working on that second sock and I will have a progress report soon.  When I’ve been unable to knit (sleeping baby on my chest) I’ve been reading some fun books about ghost legends in New York State.  And then, of course, there is Lost, which just started up again last week, much to my excitement.  Which is a great segue into my best news: we ditched our old satellite system and got a new one all hooked up!  And it works!  We have tv again!  Not only that, but they had some nice flat screens on sale at Target so we picked one up for our bedroom.  We’ve never had a tv in our bedroom before.  Not one in 13 years of marriage.  But, since 95% of the time it’s just me and Oona in our bedroom, and with argumentative kids who will one day be surly teenagers wanting to watch crappy teen dramas, we decided it was high time to have our own tv sanctuary.  Great for those lazy icy days when you’re still not quite feeling well and just want to snuggle up with your favorite baby and watch Spongebob.

Cheers!