Tag Archives: Pets

Unknown's avatar

Sunday Progress

by

It was so sunny and warm out today that we opened the windows early and had vegetable omelets and coffee in the fresh air before getting to work outside.

Oona and I mulched a raised garden bed for her use and she planted peas.  When it’s warmer she will plant sunflowers and mini pumpkins as well.  She is beyond excited!

After we took care of that we finished mulching the back garden and Oona helped plant peas back there as well.  We got tomato and pepper seeds started inside, and I tied the long, spindly rose branches down to the trellis after some pruning.

I checked on the bees and they were happily buzzing about and working hard to bring nectar and pollen back to the hive.

03.15.15d

There were tiny little blue wildflowers blooming all over the lawn, and I found two little crocuses in the front.

03.15.15a

It was great to have the kids all outside all day for once!  Oona conned Paul into playing on the swingset for a little while before dinner.

03.15.15b

03.15.15c

Our house lamb is getting used to life outside once again, and is walking and eating on her own.  Her head is unfortunately still turned a bit back, but very slowly that seems to be improving as well.

In the coming weeks we will be putting in the cooler weather crops: lettuces, beets, carrots, radishes, etc.  I can’t wait for them to be ready.  I’ve been craving crunchy salads like nobody’s business!!!!

The sheep have been running and playing and kicking up their feet, and the dogs have been rolling happily in the grass.  Everyone’s got spring fever!

03.15.15e

I think Lucy is the most photogenic dog!

03.15.15f

Though Orzo doesn’t want to be counted out.

03.15.15g

03.15.15h

I know spring doesn’t officially start for a few more days, but we are enjoying life as though it is here already!

Unknown's avatar

Pre-Spring

by

I love this part of the year; the air smells fresh and cool and earthy.  Full of the promise of things to grow. The rains are warmer now, and the first early bulbs are just starting to send their shoots up through the surface.  Normally this also the time of year we look forward to lambs and kids, but we have taken the year off.  Though I will miss the wee lamb noses and kid bleats, I’m relieved to have more time to devote to the garden and other farm projects that are sorely in need of attention.

I have gone through all my seeds and ordered the ones I needed; i’ll be starting my seeds in the mini greenhouse this week. Peas will be going directly into the ground in the next few days.

We did lose one bee hive over the winter. Not sure if it was the Varroa mites that did it or the cold; it was the smaller of the hives and not as strong as the swarm hive I started out with.  I will be sterilizing the components of the hive and seeing if the swarm hive decides to produce another swarm this year. If it does, I’ll be ready for it. That hive is super strong.  It went into winter with a bumper crop of honey.  I decided not to harvest any because there wasn’t a large amount above what they needed for themselves, and I wanted to be cautious in my first year as a beekeeper. It seems to have paid off, because they still have a few frames of lovely honey left and I’m not really needing to feed them much extra.

The chickens are finally starting to lay with some reliability again, to my great relief.

03.11.15a

You cant see the color really well in the picture, but that is a blue egg!  I’m looking forward to being overloaded with eggs again; it’s it’s been far too long!

 

Little daffodils and crocuses poking up!

03.11.15b

I’m hoping to be able to get out and work in the gardens a bit today and clean them up a bit in prep for planting.  I am going to be trying the Deep Mulch method this year. I have so very much waste hay that we may as well put it to good use!

03.11.15c

One of our lovely Silver-Laced Wyandottes, Penny. She likes to hang out on the porch.

03.11.15d

We’ve been able to have the windows open during the day lately, and the cats are loooooooving it. I’m thinking this little one needs a perch next to the bird feeder so she can better stalk her prey.

All this springyness has got me wanting to get sewing a whole lot as well. New dresses and skirts!

I’ve been getting a bit done here and there, and I’ll reveal all soon.  But I am excited about the newest Lonsdale dress I’ve made with some lovely Moda crepe:

03.11.15e

This fabric reminds me so much of one of my favorite sewing bloggers – Lauren over at Lladybird.

For now I am excited to get outside and get the gardening started for real. What are you excited for this spring?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Unknown's avatar

Tub Lamb

by

Just when all was starting to return to normal around here (and all of my seed catalogs were calling to me, reminding me I need to start my seeds), we got another snowstorm.

03.07.15a

It was quite lovely.  Of course, the town was in no way prepared for it.  People were trying to drive home from work in it and there were abandoned cars everywhere on our road. Paul was out on the tractor clearing our neighborhood until pretty late, but thankfully neither of us had to be anywhere.

03.07.15b

I love when it’s just snowed and all of the trees are heavy with it; it’s very Narniaesque!

Today it’s bright and sunny and in the upper 50’s, so everything is melting off and I am back to thinking we actually see spring soon.

It also means I can let our little Wembley outside to get some sun and fresh air.

Wembley, you see, has been living in my bathtub for the past week or so.

03.07.15d

“I know there’s a cat there, but I am going to stare you down for more treats”.

Right before I got sick, we found her at evening feeding time laying in the hay with her head pinned back. Susan and I agreed that this looked exactly like a thiamine deficiency. But, not having any pure thiamine on hand, and out of an abundance of caution, a trip to the vet was in order.

Dr. Davis gave her an IV with thiamine and some glucose to keep her blood sugar up. She couldn’t find anything else wrong with her, so home we went, with instructions to keep her warm and keep her blood sugar levels up.

Into the tub she went, with some hay, food, and warm water mixed with molasses.

She’s been getting many, many shots of thiamine and plenty of attention. Her head is no longer pinned back to her side and her appetite is monstrous. She’s been in the tub awhile, though, and her limbs are a bit unused to holding her weight, so I’ve been taking her outside when I can and trying to get her to stand up.  She tries all the time, but in the tub she cant get any traction to stand.  Otherwise, she is the picture of health!

03.07.15e

“Seriously, lady. Make with the treats.”

03.07.15f

“Hello, cat. Do YOU have treats?”

I’m hoping her strength returns soon and she can be back out with the flock. Keeping a lamb in the tub is just as adorable – and disgusting – as you can imagine.

Unknown's avatar

Sort Of Snow Days

by

We have had a “sort of” snow day.  We had a dusting overnight and we’ve been enjoying watching the fluffy, light flurries we have been seeing off and on all day.  Though the snow has long since melted into the mud, we’ve been slow to start today, and slow to accomplish much. That’s what “sort of” snow days are about; things like enjoying that the Paperwhites finally bloomed.

 

01.27.15a

And that Mr. Cini is snoozing happily by my feet.

01.27.15d

I’ve also been enjoying my new little llama ornament I got for Christmas.  I have a fierce ache where Jerry belongs, and I love having this little guy as a reminder of him.  One day we will bring home another llama, I promise. Until then my task is keeping this one safe from the kitten, who likes to climb onto the fireplace mantle where he lives and secret him away to chew on him.

01.27.15c

Lastly, days like today are perfect for getting some serious knitting done.

01.27.15b

My Shepherd sweater. Still stuck on the sleeves. Or as my friend Tanya says, “stuck on sleeve island”. I feel like I’ve been working on this one sleeve forever and ever and ever. It’s killing me.  I want to be done so I can wear it. And start THIS year’s Shepherd Sweater!

 

Unknown's avatar

Chore Day!

by

I don’t usually sing the praises of warm weather in January; mostly because it’s enough of a tease that it makes those bone-chilling February days seem cruel after the fact.  Today, though, we were lucky enough that it was both a holiday AND the weather was nice enough that we could tackle some more important farm work with Paul home. And BONUS: I had my phone with me so you can see some sweet sheepy noses!

01.19.15a

One of our lambs, Finchley, has been scouring (he has diarrhea), and since they can get super dehydrated, super fast, I’ve been giving him a supplemental bottle of lamb milk.  The dogs absolutely LOVE it.  Here’s Orzo having a bit after Finchley’s evening dose.

01.19.15b

I’ve also discovered that I can’t mix this stuff up in the kitchen if the kitten is around or she will tear me to bits trying to get at it.

01.19.15c

Lamb congregation. They were expecting me to produce their evening food.

01.19.15d

Yeardley and Wimbledon seem to be having a conversation.

01.19.15e

Mabel got moved to the back coop.

01.19.15f

Fairfax is looking sassy.

01.19.15g

Get my good side.

01.19.15h

Fresh bale, delivered into the new shelter……

01.19.15i

….which hopefully can withstand Caramel.

01.19.15k

Check out Perivale’s spotted ears!!!!

01.19.15l

Staunton.

01.19.15m

01.19.15n

Perivale.

01.19.15p

Wembley still likes to get all up in your business.

01.19.15q

Suspicious Wimbledon is suspicious.

01.19.15r

We also finally got our Christmas tree out to them, and they dove right in.

01.19.15s

Hannah loooooooves the taste of pine!

01.19.15t

We also got some fresh bedding into the prison coop and discovered an egg had been laid.  Fingers crossed this means we will start seeing some production out of these girls at last! (We’ve been threatening them with the stewpot but they’ve been unphased.)

Now that we’ve had this lovely mid-50’s weather I wonder how long before I’ll be posting super snow pictures!

Unknown's avatar

Welcome Winter!

by

Many people tend to forget that while we are welcoming the first day of winter (which many people aren’t fond of), we are also welcoming the return of the light.  The days will start getting longer again now, so for all of you winter haters, silver lining!

You all know of course that I adore winter.  I function better in the colder weather than in the warm, and I still love the magic of snow.  Since we live in an area that is iffy with its weather, we have begun the yearly wondering whether we will get any snow this year or have any real cold temperatures.  Last year saw the Polar Vortex, and for the first time in the eighteen years we have lived in Virginia, even I thought the cold was excessive!

Sadly, it seems we will not have a white Christmas yet again this year.  The last I checked our forecast it even looked like we may get thunderstorms on Christmas Eve.

Thunderstorms! If it isn’t going to snow, it may as well be sunny!

Nevertheless, I won’t give up hoping.

For tonight, we will enjoy homemade cookies and light all of our candles in the windows to celebrate the season.  We’ll also keep watch on  Gavlebocken, who, on December 21 is STILL STANDING!!! (And incidentally, those of us lower lattitude types who have complained about daylight savings would do well to remember that the Swedes are only averaging about four hours of daylight right now!)

Have a warm, wonderful, and light-filled Solstice, all!

12.21.14a

 

Unknown's avatar

Hygge

by

I came across an article about the Danish concept of Hygge not long ago; about how people with Seasonal Affective Disorder (or those who just hate the colder, darker months) might benefit from adding a bit of it to their lives.

Hygge, as it turns out, is all about the “cozy” in life.  Or, something like that. It’s a feeling that encompasses all of those things that make say, Christmas, so magical. It’s love. It’s an inviting fire with a cup of delicious tea when it’s snowy outside. It’s snuggling with your loved ones – furry or otherwise.  For most of us knitters, it’s an afternoon free and a bag full of fresh-spun wool.  It’s well-being. It’s sanctuary.

When I read about it, I knew it deep it my bones already.  It was in there all along, just waiting for a good word to put to it. Paul has always called it all of my “little things”.  Those things that make you feel at home, that make you happy. It turns out I’ve been practicing hygge my whole life.

December is, indeed, the sort of “holy month” for hygge, for lack of a better term. Think about it: the tree, the lights, the comfort foods, the festivities.  It’s a month where we all know the cold and dark of winter is breathing down our backs but we push it aside to  celebrate joy and warmth and love.

I have it all around me.

12.09.14a

A darling paperwhite bulb in the kitchen window.

12.09.14b

My favorite happy little sparkly reindeer ornament.

12.09.14c

My very favorite tea, which I will enjoy this evening, snuggled on the couch with my girls after a dinner of spicy vegetable soup.

12.09.14d

The soft glow of the Christmas tree, which still smells divine! We sat cuddled up next to it today and watched the classic Baryshnikov version of The Nutcracker.

12.09.14e

These fantastic little heat packs.  Great for cold feet, headaches, backaches, and cozying up your blankets at night.

12.09.14f

A big, furry, polar bear of a dog and a tiny sweet kitten.

12.09.14g

My purry little companion, curled up in a wool blanket.  A wool blanket woven from the wool of the very sheep I can see from my comfy chair as I type.  If that’s not hygge, I don’t know what is!

Go forth, fill your world with hygge!  And even more, allow yourself to revel in it a bit!

Unknown's avatar

The Wintering

by

We are all holding our breath these days, just waiting for the inevitable return of winter.  We’ve had several recent days where the sky was grey, the temperature was frigid, and the air felt and smelled of snow.

Like every other year, this is where the last minute scramble to be prepared kicks in.  On one of the last warm days I tipped out the water tanks and hosed the hay and leaves and bits out of the bottom.  Of course it looks today as though I didn’t do anything at all, but at least I tried, right?

I’ll be freshening up the pigs’ barn with a layer of fresh hay to root through and burrow into on cold nights.  The bees have been supplied with sugar water as an extra help for the winter (though honestly they made plenty of honey for themselves over the spring and summer and I didn’t remove any from them).

There’s still plenty I’d like to accomplish (some fencing around the strawberry bed, for one) but as every other year, it’s a race against available time and impending cold.

We’ve also been doing our best to keep Cini in the house as much as possible.  His old bones get achey in the cold and he’s looking too skinny these days.

11.16.14f

Keeping him in allows me to feed him extra treats throughout the day and know he’s snuggled up warm by the fire at night.  He’s not too crazy about the arrangement.  He still makes a mad dash for the door whenever it’s opened and will then take off after the first deer he sees. But happily, he has found a small friend in Piccadilly, who loves to rub her face on his snout and play with his giant paws.

Outside the leaves are nearly down from all the trees and it is looking very much Thanksgiving-y.

11.16.14e

Except…..I was surprised to see this:

11.16.14a

I can barely get this rose bush to bloom in the spring, and I have NEVER seen it bloom in the fall.

As lovely as it is, my favorite right now is the Beauty Bush:

11.16.14b

I’m thinking I need to dye some yarn in these colors. I also should have bought about 30 more of these bushes when I planted this one, years ago.

Speaking of yarn…..I’m done with my secret baby knitting project!

11.16.14d

It needs a blocking and to be sent off, so I will save the details and good photos until it has arrived in the hands of its recipient.  I will say that it was very enjoyable to knit and I used JMF Sabine.  It was knit in bits and spurts mostly during school mornings while the girls were working on reading, or their new project, art journals.

11.16.14c

Neve enjoyed working on her title page, which was all about her and the things she enjoys.  However, when I gave them the task of dedicating a page to all things “November”, the results were less than enthusiastic from my middle child.  It was mostly just a statement written out.

“November is a pointless month holding up time between Halloween and Christmas”.

Well then.

 

 

Unknown's avatar

Family Weekend

by

I have just realized, after sorting through my photos from the weekend, that I didn’t really take any.

What the heck, me?

We had my dad and new step-mom down from New York for a visit, and happily the weather couldn’t have been more beautiful.  I made pumpkin ravioli again; why did I wait so long this season?  We seriously should have  been eating it since September.  So very delicious.

Maddie drove up for the day Saturday, which we were thrilled about, since we don’t get to see her very often anymore.  Busy college student is busy!

11.11.14a

She took time to visit with her silver fox, Roquefort.

11.11.14b

Oona showed Julie around the pasture (when she wasn’t being feral and trying to bite me. Little heathen).

11.11.14c

Bertie decided that this weekend was a good time to develop a limp.  Dad helped hold her for me while I cleaned her hooves up a bit.  Luckily I didn’t notice anything much wrong with her feet other than some packed-in mud and poop.  But I gave her a nice trim anyway since we had her there.

11.11.14d

Oona particularly enjoyed being serenaded while we waited for dinner.  It was a lively, cozy evening with music and dancing (Oona, with her skeleton, Frank).

We ventured out Monday for lunch at The Whiskey Jar and a walk along the downtown mall.  Neve kept everyone entertained with her various character voices.

I took them all to UVa to see the section of The Berlin Wall that is on display there.  It’s great to have such an incredible, iconic piece of history so close to us. We spent some time talking to the kids about the significance of it before heading over to walk the lawn (actually, we spent our time sitting on the lawn while Oona raced around us in circles, due to the gelato we’d eaten before we left downtown).

The rest of the visit we spent catching up, remember good times from the past and family members who are gone now.  My dad and I are working on getting reacquainted, having lived so far apart for so many years and seeing very little of each other. His new wife is just lovely and I am glad to have had this time getting to know her. I’m happy to say that reconnecting with this part of my family has been more wonderful than I could have hoped for, and I am looking forward to seeing them all much more often in the future.

Now if you’ll excuse me once again….I have a sweet little cousin who was just born that I really need to finish knitting for.