tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16616117648016522242024-03-12T23:39:24.220-07:00Life and Times of CrazyAnnCrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.comBlogger151125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-36018204649126088362012-05-13T06:48:00.000-07:002012-05-13T06:48:00.287-07:00Eye of the ButterflyLots of pics today. But I think you will enjoy most of them. And hopefully it will catch you up with what has been going on in my world since my last post.
First pics up will be of a most amazing butterfly that I was blessed to be able to observe yesterday for the very first time ever. The Zebra Swallowtail is actually pretty rare and this one was probably freshly hatched out of it's cocoon as it was in perfect condition, again something that is pretty rare. Usually they are a bit beat up and missing wing parts before I get to see them.
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNjO-gYtl4OeadbrHOhnsvc9z_A1ogMP1nBQBcrFT4jp_2kCmNzk0hc5YJixaguzbo7j1VcLwpc81gKQvaVZ6LJeLZYUfyBnZhC3xxLCdMCpRM5YigzUatjGh7Zi6JTU2I2tfesE6kw50/s1600/zebra+swallowtail%25231.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNjO-gYtl4OeadbrHOhnsvc9z_A1ogMP1nBQBcrFT4jp_2kCmNzk0hc5YJixaguzbo7j1VcLwpc81gKQvaVZ6LJeLZYUfyBnZhC3xxLCdMCpRM5YigzUatjGh7Zi6JTU2I2tfesE6kw50/s400/zebra+swallowtail%25231.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJh4tVVhHYe_V9ajCzI6wCn942ehd6HBVQbuZvb4-BGD8sxd7cnQPQRirN9P_CPc6XRIguI3RiPu-OY1NoBj9es_Gh8KxWcObw2EAVGB9qEt_YARtjoR-v15wXAAwnz1DfN3dNaZp8rEQ/s1600/zebra+swallowtail%25236.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJh4tVVhHYe_V9ajCzI6wCn942ehd6HBVQbuZvb4-BGD8sxd7cnQPQRirN9P_CPc6XRIguI3RiPu-OY1NoBj9es_Gh8KxWcObw2EAVGB9qEt_YARtjoR-v15wXAAwnz1DfN3dNaZp8rEQ/s400/zebra+swallowtail%25236.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_fAe1wLsN5fYOBhFkfcFEZIklQ8e53Cf19e9YiD_0H_3NxyTNeuFMqvy9QwneKUUuEvRGWZrHVIw1HnsuutOefRsYLh6lGnUImrXXobvplKgEessFF0wIDKKcK6s4NtH8iIpI2a8W06A/s1600/zebra+swallowtail%25234.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_fAe1wLsN5fYOBhFkfcFEZIklQ8e53Cf19e9YiD_0H_3NxyTNeuFMqvy9QwneKUUuEvRGWZrHVIw1HnsuutOefRsYLh6lGnUImrXXobvplKgEessFF0wIDKKcK6s4NtH8iIpI2a8W06A/s400/zebra+swallowtail%25234.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgshYCpSeyp6IUeWAyGqhXo5iQNdPTd262SBxv2iBUlZcDCGWsLI83KJzoYbxn87bUt5md_pzncD9uU6JwE5SqG04GV10M1NoYETrTfWnyB8DbL_cn1hVR9ViF0Qc5Nbz50KnpprMk8LY4/s1600/zebra+swallowtail%25233.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgshYCpSeyp6IUeWAyGqhXo5iQNdPTd262SBxv2iBUlZcDCGWsLI83KJzoYbxn87bUt5md_pzncD9uU6JwE5SqG04GV10M1NoYETrTfWnyB8DbL_cn1hVR9ViF0Qc5Nbz50KnpprMk8LY4/s400/zebra+swallowtail%25233.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Such long tails on this species</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikYGYXxX1M45I4fGnbKMUxu4fk81HlusMRVt7HqpwAXcsv42BBXv_WIPLBS_w3QM32YVErqnFE2fhElnZ7Jo0MDxDdiWKcTHM4RMWzrDldElTrXhHqvJYxrDi20OY6Bi6IQuLZptcJvJw/s1600/zebra+swallowtail%25235.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikYGYXxX1M45I4fGnbKMUxu4fk81HlusMRVt7HqpwAXcsv42BBXv_WIPLBS_w3QM32YVErqnFE2fhElnZ7Jo0MDxDdiWKcTHM4RMWzrDldElTrXhHqvJYxrDi20OY6Bi6IQuLZptcJvJw/s400/zebra+swallowtail%25235.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The eye of the butterfly.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I love the close-ups of this gorgeous gift of nature. I had to lay on my stomach, in the chicken coop, with my close up lenses on and wait very patiently to get these shots. The price I pay to remember these special moments!! Don't you love how the stripes on the body of the butterfly are matched perfectly with the stipes on the wings when they are folded up. Some sort of adaptive camouflage I am sure.<br />
<br />
Next on to some of the projects I have worked on since last here. The Bathtub Herb garden has slowly morphed into what it is now. I had lots of ideas that flew thru my head and then didn't end up working. But at last I think I have pulled together enough things to make it work. And it sure dresses up the boring side wall to our 2nd garage and our guest apartment. There is still a lot of growing to do. There are larger herbs growing in the ground and those are still quite small. On the other side of the door, there are matching beds that are filled with baby 4 o'clocks, zinnias, cosmos and cerinthes. But right now they are all about 2" tall and not worthy of any pics!!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijpkRhPgJyPVA6kwjd1UlYpKuM3Zr-U4g-ATdwHmAlJHKxHn75s9sMwH303N9tEQocIVONqQQQnOLoz3K4zLMGeAwD9rmjiaHtoVQZgqIxyY3c3CMyDThd9Y2C_zKVVgB0w_GqVmkFtKw/s1600/bathtub+herb+garden+%25231.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijpkRhPgJyPVA6kwjd1UlYpKuM3Zr-U4g-ATdwHmAlJHKxHn75s9sMwH303N9tEQocIVONqQQQnOLoz3K4zLMGeAwD9rmjiaHtoVQZgqIxyY3c3CMyDThd9Y2C_zKVVgB0w_GqVmkFtKw/s400/bathtub+herb+garden+%25231.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfl1YZaUrB8uRxg0CxNPhaiom22iuatEx7EWa3EWc4Np1zEO6Y4vRhZAtjGz7rraJgBCKPfHFk3n_9z0T3vqHq_RLYH69joth4YtA0_t8r98H_BqTxeA8JCiltkWg8dFhp8JzWTfL3WDo/s1600/bathtub+herb+garden+%25232.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfl1YZaUrB8uRxg0CxNPhaiom22iuatEx7EWa3EWc4Np1zEO6Y4vRhZAtjGz7rraJgBCKPfHFk3n_9z0T3vqHq_RLYH69joth4YtA0_t8r98H_BqTxeA8JCiltkWg8dFhp8JzWTfL3WDo/s400/bathtub+herb+garden+%25232.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I had this pump for years. We actually poured a concrete pier to attach the pump to so it would not fall over in the wind. And no, it is not plumped for water. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaGTVOiqvvndZFFgM4Wt_jnK9MF0zjK5B51vNDNnXBTAIYxboAhW06ja57txeTxiweBJG57hR3hpO3g66UTc4qyw6cRkWOHB4j7AJtjdUk0zHdOW51bETRNkrzOM91tJUTaAsr5t0TbbE/s1600/bathtub+herb+garden+%25233.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaGTVOiqvvndZFFgM4Wt_jnK9MF0zjK5B51vNDNnXBTAIYxboAhW06ja57txeTxiweBJG57hR3hpO3g66UTc4qyw6cRkWOHB4j7AJtjdUk0zHdOW51bETRNkrzOM91tJUTaAsr5t0TbbE/s400/bathtub+herb+garden+%25233.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAMx9QaBBoO2SEQRIcSX1tfZNlVAlpOo1VxsJh5hSnbh4rMLsUd1QPkXVQ6oyjeY1wgL1SkwfVTNAHnqgAmUIb3N6NPqhbTx8jX-4xPY70e9EKwduxIInDKVKzG4IUlltk80sCtxYVFOU/s1600/bathtub+herb+garden+%25234.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAMx9QaBBoO2SEQRIcSX1tfZNlVAlpOo1VxsJh5hSnbh4rMLsUd1QPkXVQ6oyjeY1wgL1SkwfVTNAHnqgAmUIb3N6NPqhbTx8jX-4xPY70e9EKwduxIInDKVKzG4IUlltk80sCtxYVFOU/s400/bathtub+herb+garden+%25234.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw8VrR50FJDbGglUTJoRMcj4DjUsEW7MLki5I2dP51X8_NnMOKLQZ2xiYzZsv_RaC3QkIQH-rZLLdatplR2v0h_A9Z7RjUG3Bc_B2GLyKGfGSbZq3Uh25ru-7PP-_mH2fiZRGGI0SopjU/s1600/bathtub+herb+garden+%25236.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw8VrR50FJDbGglUTJoRMcj4DjUsEW7MLki5I2dP51X8_NnMOKLQZ2xiYzZsv_RaC3QkIQH-rZLLdatplR2v0h_A9Z7RjUG3Bc_B2GLyKGfGSbZq3Uh25ru-7PP-_mH2fiZRGGI0SopjU/s400/bathtub+herb+garden+%25236.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg97wnLA-mwkH3EdSDEm30tU16B8OhlNaXQHr5dB9UoGoQ2lJXohJ_G8BW2AeLWR06X-ahTGYK42CaAjX06asxM0h_cH-4Z5U8xc11GGcHzpeMrCi8y9CW6vl56c25qvakULz_7e8Y9hjc/s1600/bathtub+herb+garden+%25237.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg97wnLA-mwkH3EdSDEm30tU16B8OhlNaXQHr5dB9UoGoQ2lJXohJ_G8BW2AeLWR06X-ahTGYK42CaAjX06asxM0h_cH-4Z5U8xc11GGcHzpeMrCi8y9CW6vl56c25qvakULz_7e8Y9hjc/s400/bathtub+herb+garden+%25237.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZJrltuMlQ-OpyAriOGi2ESQkaP7DnshOx0NbJeoINaKKeNk99dpK77A3VZu3kUgIIhEkrZYrmmBKz3h7hPynvMI1LKo26ZkunyCtStn-PQPsIEEIxBi1xnK2SeFjQKVkAkKLwi37MkOE/s1600/bathtub+herb+garden+%25238.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZJrltuMlQ-OpyAriOGi2ESQkaP7DnshOx0NbJeoINaKKeNk99dpK77A3VZu3kUgIIhEkrZYrmmBKz3h7hPynvMI1LKo26ZkunyCtStn-PQPsIEEIxBi1xnK2SeFjQKVkAkKLwi37MkOE/s400/bathtub+herb+garden+%25238.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgizzVM-9dPYxLn-YLmH_qq98KNQJnadF3DD-Kl6TuGu_s3fnumJYUOJD2yHMH0yjLR2lUSOQtlUZzHR3dfzmkh319YeNz1GwQvu4NtdQ4SD5Mza8YAN2UWB-VugNLRoY0EwNP9ncepx74/s1600/bathtub+herb+garden+%25239.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgizzVM-9dPYxLn-YLmH_qq98KNQJnadF3DD-Kl6TuGu_s3fnumJYUOJD2yHMH0yjLR2lUSOQtlUZzHR3dfzmkh319YeNz1GwQvu4NtdQ4SD5Mza8YAN2UWB-VugNLRoY0EwNP9ncepx74/s400/bathtub+herb+garden+%25239.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Next up is just one shot of a new project that has been long in the works. A potting bench/outside garden sink. This is just the skeleton but now that it is in place the rest should go pretty quickly. The sink I plan on placing in the top is an older porcelain one, and you can see it laying upside down in front of the bench. It will only have the hose as a water source but I only want to be able to clean up veggies in the garden so that I am not dragging so much dirt into the house.
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSEEu8-7jr9IzZ2XhF7uAGsJp0oGGka7i9np2nHzJe4_dXZ_fX1HZF-F9f0ULxZfnq68wrxVf_g-YL9v0AbJrVpguCKwi_f0gzrrzPIVcq_NKnnA5m4LKkMduH2nXvWSElr-O1KuRoGmQ/s1600/potting+bench+outdoor+sink%25231.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSEEu8-7jr9IzZ2XhF7uAGsJp0oGGka7i9np2nHzJe4_dXZ_fX1HZF-F9f0ULxZfnq68wrxVf_g-YL9v0AbJrVpguCKwi_f0gzrrzPIVcq_NKnnA5m4LKkMduH2nXvWSElr-O1KuRoGmQ/s400/potting+bench+outdoor+sink%25231.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Next up....random pics of the rest of the garden. The waterfall is finally totally in and working, without leaks. It is not the biggest waterfall in the world but the sound it makes is so sweet and it really helps clean up the pond with the filters that are inside, hidden by the rocks. I still have some work to do to finish the edging and further hide the pond liner. But the fish are happy as you can see by the smiles on their faces!!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Mbu1dJnHnWTAgxZ-MQRQ4LJ0itnn8lD1QRDPurvEtt_zN5DQxYSm7cSH1l6ko8djNLFrvzgrVVfhEH2Sk0w_3o68cOR69R64L_vvpplIgtiVT4wYYV6Djo0qULRlkcgC9NRt-cdLTVA/s1600/pond+waterfall+%25231.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Mbu1dJnHnWTAgxZ-MQRQ4LJ0itnn8lD1QRDPurvEtt_zN5DQxYSm7cSH1l6ko8djNLFrvzgrVVfhEH2Sk0w_3o68cOR69R64L_vvpplIgtiVT4wYYV6Djo0qULRlkcgC9NRt-cdLTVA/s400/pond+waterfall+%25231.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFeLbSmXnmzrQXRWliok_923ve_nwwbGjhgU9xnoisJFsKdsinCkSBzS04qUClsElklJ9Es8bBY_1O-pwa3bAm-ZZtbkFOvNduwTHg4swUxem4q192cPQmmIV-dPcpn24ru7FTneJkXQk/s1600/pond+waterfall+%25232.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFeLbSmXnmzrQXRWliok_923ve_nwwbGjhgU9xnoisJFsKdsinCkSBzS04qUClsElklJ9Es8bBY_1O-pwa3bAm-ZZtbkFOvNduwTHg4swUxem4q192cPQmmIV-dPcpn24ru7FTneJkXQk/s400/pond+waterfall+%25232.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cool rock that the frogs love to sun on. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-MbsCiXJkBOdh889b9LJuUE86JzuwR2s2W823xWW7rsUoxj_ognfnD0ojkjecJM8p4k9gNUfGqPuYKVwOa6BaYkmWLu_rFzimpgTNo6x2osekBgew6VplF_EL23_upa1bzVpfdjUQlIE/s1600/pond+waterfall+%25233.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-MbsCiXJkBOdh889b9LJuUE86JzuwR2s2W823xWW7rsUoxj_ognfnD0ojkjecJM8p4k9gNUfGqPuYKVwOa6BaYkmWLu_rFzimpgTNo6x2osekBgew6VplF_EL23_upa1bzVpfdjUQlIE/s400/pond+waterfall+%25233.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdh7apr0TVs4z8gBbqi8Y13cna-YSs_QXdvj2MrD6x9nv93NxUeUF0wmnFwERQqNGy0xTgviqJWI5n8r-2Nmfz6EQcxlPcbyruMmnHQccWDFLiVRlUlB7Hotdp6nNa4BPRn74uiuowhLI/s1600/fish%25232.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdh7apr0TVs4z8gBbqi8Y13cna-YSs_QXdvj2MrD6x9nv93NxUeUF0wmnFwERQqNGy0xTgviqJWI5n8r-2Nmfz6EQcxlPcbyruMmnHQccWDFLiVRlUlB7Hotdp6nNa4BPRn74uiuowhLI/s400/fish%25232.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Now close up's of flowers, since I had the lenses out for the butterfly anyway.
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_ZXf9oLs6hs-fuZulzEdNIxQon-XkFtTtSA4iABgs50ZxgbBNC-DsmCpjCq3yubaqnl-DMTfAlQiIGMqP6dLWT-2DoGX5M7876AFI2tUGkEkFrXC5yWq4cl6JCxjnboBHcRDxe-Kns4M/s1600/dianthus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_ZXf9oLs6hs-fuZulzEdNIxQon-XkFtTtSA4iABgs50ZxgbBNC-DsmCpjCq3yubaqnl-DMTfAlQiIGMqP6dLWT-2DoGX5M7876AFI2tUGkEkFrXC5yWq4cl6JCxjnboBHcRDxe-Kns4M/s400/dianthus.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dianthus</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsDSMVYXdyimxbEVR9hX3d3AX1Gf8JA0wWoEGPlvKmi-Yco1t324p818sBp-wZUrEpmr_W4zLYNNdkjMx1hEkjJkEmR8w9bBV2nVR_Z2SimvwNoON2kAC-87nUENhs28pcyKHCl2gxUp0/s1600/clematis%25231.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsDSMVYXdyimxbEVR9hX3d3AX1Gf8JA0wWoEGPlvKmi-Yco1t324p818sBp-wZUrEpmr_W4zLYNNdkjMx1hEkjJkEmR8w9bBV2nVR_Z2SimvwNoON2kAC-87nUENhs28pcyKHCl2gxUp0/s400/clematis%25231.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Clemetis</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicAvltMnG_7UayNMeZ31WdG1VVhCIixSXRgra11nLS05jCHeXeYi5aW0hfkuoLl7nn0z-ZV38wkBeNP6wda4XfJVeog0ADojcrYOBh6Sz7a1zIruzHWtI6aJscAgg0TldCUTaw17qa4F4/s1600/hens+%2526+chicks+%25232.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicAvltMnG_7UayNMeZ31WdG1VVhCIixSXRgra11nLS05jCHeXeYi5aW0hfkuoLl7nn0z-ZV38wkBeNP6wda4XfJVeog0ADojcrYOBh6Sz7a1zIruzHWtI6aJscAgg0TldCUTaw17qa4F4/s400/hens+%2526+chicks+%25232.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWuAU-rrgj85iqtY6yKgWB7N8ZODC5RFxp1YEuq04qYrB8HvaAyh4vXWuICq3P-HizdK_su3hyfl-3X_rk9TrJGQ0pZ8yI0i_WF7Wj4CRQobFBWhWRaT9h7P2WLRg2NQSJCdICzq8H_U4/s1600/hens+%2526+chicks+%25233.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWuAU-rrgj85iqtY6yKgWB7N8ZODC5RFxp1YEuq04qYrB8HvaAyh4vXWuICq3P-HizdK_su3hyfl-3X_rk9TrJGQ0pZ8yI0i_WF7Wj4CRQobFBWhWRaT9h7P2WLRg2NQSJCdICzq8H_U4/s400/hens+%2526+chicks+%25233.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
These last 2 are the tiny flowers on one of my Hens & Chicks. I didn't even know they even had flowers but boy are they fun. </div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoCdpmRFq1vCsG-p2Ejh91IF6JwdXI0OnbyTX0g51lTgug9taTF_RkqmEZMnbtovApmzJVqbitvBLOi5QqwQw_rnMK0dyVu3GTQPls-t01zGPST-8-bXEHXoqEYFjtjGKsEluZcENEzz4/s1600/penstemmon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoCdpmRFq1vCsG-p2Ejh91IF6JwdXI0OnbyTX0g51lTgug9taTF_RkqmEZMnbtovApmzJVqbitvBLOi5QqwQw_rnMK0dyVu3GTQPls-t01zGPST-8-bXEHXoqEYFjtjGKsEluZcENEzz4/s400/penstemmon.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Penstemmon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1AmNs2Lt1bzuWwqexwl6OeX19o8G-mnre-euEhvhu75BVBqSw3M18x2KK62FUJ7gVl4kGVXDc-PMyu4Ctk6sd6qD6OU27WOAYpu-ZiMwhGDLceXXApP7ZtCEKGUqOPwz8stvw8GgHrN4/s1600/bunnies+%2526+violas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1AmNs2Lt1bzuWwqexwl6OeX19o8G-mnre-euEhvhu75BVBqSw3M18x2KK62FUJ7gVl4kGVXDc-PMyu4Ctk6sd6qD6OU27WOAYpu-ZiMwhGDLceXXApP7ZtCEKGUqOPwz8stvw8GgHrN4/s400/bunnies+%2526+violas.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFK-aEcibA3ufo1JLwrBgBNnLCQ0zIqvqfkAdbK5WIvDQFxIcNWtwvXyLziEaqc6_BBaOZlzs8hCtzujxJ4eIiHb88dx8dNAewy0QEHPp6LibowAHZXqLhUmFXRGQDEO11yfSMra4WDb0/s400/thistleflowers%25231.jpg" width="400" />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy8EmKlUUbgiX6cvya4PwgesR_ITRX2NCm-OinRMFykQN586k_yajgtz9PW5pBrSSWT7vIaBrHJeOV0gF6VmtVVUo-Kc9VoQewUxmS_wlJvLb9CQ6Udvw_v8928vgUPc4xrp_2Nmr5zys/s1600/thistleflowers%25232.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy8EmKlUUbgiX6cvya4PwgesR_ITRX2NCm-OinRMFykQN586k_yajgtz9PW5pBrSSWT7vIaBrHJeOV0gF6VmtVVUo-Kc9VoQewUxmS_wlJvLb9CQ6Udvw_v8928vgUPc4xrp_2Nmr5zys/s400/thistleflowers%25232.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxl_MA9x_4JKZU6aBfcDxEIniU9ttzP4w5EkA7G-ZLuJ85w6XFcZ6h-ysKuJTLBVWz5r2PPvgOCaVektwwCJYoUQPDAd_cOVUToxNNfH_UbVjPmYux08XL1rRxOlontM151BVxHhYXjhM/s1600/thistleflowers%25233.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxl_MA9x_4JKZU6aBfcDxEIniU9ttzP4w5EkA7G-ZLuJ85w6XFcZ6h-ysKuJTLBVWz5r2PPvgOCaVektwwCJYoUQPDAd_cOVUToxNNfH_UbVjPmYux08XL1rRxOlontM151BVxHhYXjhM/s400/thistleflowers%25233.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">These last 3 are shots of a flower that looks a lot like a Thistle. But it is not, thank goodness. It is quite small compared and not as bristle-y. I wish I knew the name but it was something I started from seed 3 years ago and I have long lost the package. The deer almost did this plant in so many times but this year it is amazing.</span>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHviogMKDsGUu9o1KSTa95Sy84Q69i0aMCfyxrW4iZRaI2OgTTJXV2I9hx_UoBxEwbWy2TaOGZsYwyXTe2ZbUqsJzaEeX7AL1ZC-9FfbYJ_FBZbKa4a_SrZ6w-nBBoaAo577a8GHuTia8/s1600/Elfaba.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHviogMKDsGUu9o1KSTa95Sy84Q69i0aMCfyxrW4iZRaI2OgTTJXV2I9hx_UoBxEwbWy2TaOGZsYwyXTe2ZbUqsJzaEeX7AL1ZC-9FfbYJ_FBZbKa4a_SrZ6w-nBBoaAo577a8GHuTia8/s400/Elfaba.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Elfaba, one of my new chickies. Should lay blue/green eggs.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhguqAyw5Hulj_WtRIG5n9wG4Zsqp5zR9i0bQd1W8MILNz53UOy0bjFoeG-wDv4GOOsrCzbG1bs4bHgv28mrkgbpgGiy6LqQnvSikKgRNpeRQ4q7yj842iVewKo0gtTWwKJs75VOikXCOM/s1600/Hamlet+May+2012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhguqAyw5Hulj_WtRIG5n9wG4Zsqp5zR9i0bQd1W8MILNz53UOy0bjFoeG-wDv4GOOsrCzbG1bs4bHgv28mrkgbpgGiy6LqQnvSikKgRNpeRQ4q7yj842iVewKo0gtTWwKJs75VOikXCOM/s400/Hamlet+May+2012.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hamlet, now that he is solo rooster, is so much happier. Horatio went on to a neighbor to be lord over her hens.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div>
But we have also had some hard times recently. DH was just diagnosed with prostate cancer. It is of intermediate concern for either already spreading or would in the very near future. There are not any really good imaging studies for finding prostate cancer that has spread. The CT scan can show if there is major involvement and the bone scan of course would show metastatic bone disease. And yes, those are normal as we expected. But for the early more microscopic spread, the only way to find out is to look at everything under a microscope. So that will happen. Meaning, major removal of the entire prostate and some lymph nodes. Then go from there. So prayers would be welcome.</div>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-15295108155651041662012-02-15T15:14:00.001-08:002012-02-15T15:46:40.178-08:00Whole lot a Croakin"Warning ahead of time. Most of this post is about the loss of a dear family pet. If the subject or how I choose to handle it bothers you then come back another time. My feelings won't be hurt.<div><br /></div><div>I have posted many times about our dog Holly. She was always a problem child but all she had to do was come put her head in my lap and look up with her sad brown eyes and all was right with the world. She chased and sometimes killed small animals, chased cars, got skunked a world's record number of times, ran off to the neighbors, dug up the garden, and in general, caused a lot of unrest and mayhem. That is probably why she was dumped on our doorstep 2 years ago when she was about 1 year old. We watched her try to make it out on her own in the middle of winter for almost a week outside and then finally took her in. She immediately became our other dog, Daisy's best friend. But instantly, my 2 house cats because prisoner's of our bedroom for the next 2 years. They were in total fear of Holly, and for pretty good reason.</div><div><br /></div><div>But even tho we thought of rehoming her several times over the last 2 years, she stayed our dog up until the end. The last few months we finally decided she would only go out on a leash and that actually worked out pretty well. She would get walked each and every day with me and she could go on as long as I could. Gave me good reason to get out and go each day. We also took her out to cruise the yard when the weather was good. She didn't get the chance to chase rodents thru ditches but she still seemed to love being out on the prowl with us. </div><div><br /></div><div>Little did we know that big trouble was brewing. Holly had always paid a lot of attention to her tail. Chased it in circles all the time. She would finally catch it and then lick it for a bit and then settle down and forget about it. However, the last month or so it did get a bit more extreme. The chasing started every evening and would be a bit more frantic. The vet had checked her tail one other time and did not find anything so we figured allergy and gave her benedryl. It did seem to work but in actuality, it probably just made her sleepy.</div><div><br /></div><div>Suddenly, Sunday evening she started her usual tail chasing and it got so out of control so fast that we did not react to it nearly soon enough. She growled and barked at it until she finally caught it and actually bite into it hard enough for it to bleed. But it was not over. She just got worse. So we double dosed her on the antihistamines and put her in her kennel to calm her. But she probably messed with it all night and kept it bleeding til we got her out Monday morning. </div><div><br /></div><div>As soon as we got her out of the kennel she started in again and it was horrible. She was howling and if she caught her tail she would bite down on it and the blood was everywhere. We were at the vet's door when they opened but by that time, she, me, the car and the office were a bloody mess.</div><div><br /></div><div>The news was not good. The vet was not sure, but felt there was a very strong chance that she had a spinal nerve abnormality. And even if the tail could be docked successfully, she would have still had the sensation of pain in it and would have been miserable. And nothing we could do with medication would have helped much. The other diagnostic considerations were even worse. </div><div><br /></div><div>So I talked it over with DH and the vet and we made the decision to have her cross the Rainbow Bridge and end the suffering. I went into the kennel area at the clinic, sat on the floor and said my goodbyes. They had heavily medicated her and put on a collar but she just looked so miserable and her tail was hideous to look at. It was a hard decision and one I may second guess for some time to come. But if an animal is suffering you want to make them better and this was the only option we felt would take the pain away.</div><div><br /></div><div>So I choose to remember her in a few pictures that give me happy memories. Holly loved the snow and I caught this first picture last year during our one good snowstorm.</div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl2ebg3RGj1-CnS0GfpUKBCbQz3Aptkz0V_U4D2m8PdQmjNj6MgHox97lb6aXSGwZT1Z9a7r0Xfk62ites-G-M7nLhsYbN6CeAvR-8zNpu232yIP2dR2H0BJguj3AZDwkH9r1OECF6VjM/s1600/Holly+in+the+snow%25236.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl2ebg3RGj1-CnS0GfpUKBCbQz3Aptkz0V_U4D2m8PdQmjNj6MgHox97lb6aXSGwZT1Z9a7r0Xfk62ites-G-M7nLhsYbN6CeAvR-8zNpu232yIP2dR2H0BJguj3AZDwkH9r1OECF6VjM/s400/Holly+in+the+snow%25236.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709509537231987346" /></a><br /><br />As much as she didn't mind being cold, she sure liked to lie in front of the wood stove and warm up.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzAzWwABLk4juWTsTzxKoOGHdoV8nZQ9EYqkx5la2bTlLa5UwKQ4psyeq8TEPXZNz1IjjZqQO0QQeXByL5rbOtYDyipxZFxAd97tlU3zZSkBddWKtwRMtfTIr_76zojf8CJq1TqTmQKWk/s1600/Daisy+and+Holly+warming+by+the+stove%25233.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzAzWwABLk4juWTsTzxKoOGHdoV8nZQ9EYqkx5la2bTlLa5UwKQ4psyeq8TEPXZNz1IjjZqQO0QQeXByL5rbOtYDyipxZFxAd97tlU3zZSkBddWKtwRMtfTIr_76zojf8CJq1TqTmQKWk/s400/Daisy+and+Holly+warming+by+the+stove%25233.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709510382477119554" /></a><br /><br />She also loved the comfort of a comfy loveseat.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVyHR0ZMwDnTPKkoNqCugJRXITg7Vj0eyDqqNKN2iQn4vcYObT9e4eyn-gPI2m5Ye3uHgRGyvGG70UifAaQMES-QjRR42m6clH358HycPR45nhQmi1a6vLQOBbo7ReUHVIT0VMHmssG-M/s1600/Holly+under+the+afghan.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVyHR0ZMwDnTPKkoNqCugJRXITg7Vj0eyDqqNKN2iQn4vcYObT9e4eyn-gPI2m5Ye3uHgRGyvGG70UifAaQMES-QjRR42m6clH358HycPR45nhQmi1a6vLQOBbo7ReUHVIT0VMHmssG-M/s400/Holly+under+the+afghan.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709510755121335506" /></a><br /><br />And here is one of the final pics I have of the dogs together. Taken right before Christmas.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRgk58kU97cxFh5vmTU2g927Bgr44mRAQrQ7_564TH47XRbdFYlqmG7xLmRSyX_Lra3yRY4k5BTPLf6eOMzYyr5XoUIqm6YtH16gI3w2oL3BDknxh6lNCBuUw7cvJD1Ct3NdHQcTD_kXk/s1600/Christmas+dogs%25234.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRgk58kU97cxFh5vmTU2g927Bgr44mRAQrQ7_564TH47XRbdFYlqmG7xLmRSyX_Lra3yRY4k5BTPLf6eOMzYyr5XoUIqm6YtH16gI3w2oL3BDknxh6lNCBuUw7cvJD1Ct3NdHQcTD_kXk/s400/Christmas+dogs%25234.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709511190777256338" /></a><br /><br />But now, on a happier note. A couple posts ago I posted a pic of the frog that lives in my pond. But he was under water then and today he posed quite nicely for several pictures. Must have been the awesome weather we had today. Warm, sunny and just the slightest of breezes.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj57zJP8IWE443wo3A55goqh-bkvgcDKSKWcCCKZMacCgDujj0siK1juywPXA73gaGElxUnd5BCo3Jz4PkxrQ4exR8Vv6L0ixMxy9jdRi34nHuwsid8Zi-RqM_8lN0Jj4nDpPQTSrasEMI/s1600/frog.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj57zJP8IWE443wo3A55goqh-bkvgcDKSKWcCCKZMacCgDujj0siK1juywPXA73gaGElxUnd5BCo3Jz4PkxrQ4exR8Vv6L0ixMxy9jdRi34nHuwsid8Zi-RqM_8lN0Jj4nDpPQTSrasEMI/s400/frog.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709511765541535650" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVMwOi-zl4li0k6S5t-zpJqdCHH6BNhFBK_ke3vGKDRmZV6S5GiYOQVVhLPmtNhq6taJHGkfNOcUYmb37e8UEEyLaqWZ-YEBMn_MpKR4fE-kzw4SKmttvu4IZxPYte7o8TbAS1A5u4K28/s1600/frog%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVMwOi-zl4li0k6S5t-zpJqdCHH6BNhFBK_ke3vGKDRmZV6S5GiYOQVVhLPmtNhq6taJHGkfNOcUYmb37e8UEEyLaqWZ-YEBMn_MpKR4fE-kzw4SKmttvu4IZxPYte7o8TbAS1A5u4K28/s400/frog%25232.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709511948337066002" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdMBNKfXSFmoGnfLMMWAx0sxlbLpzOFT9ywyR43Oo34US9PIZ3LVYJmXX30eGJQcF2aGYhob_PgoLw5CKroTqUrphAZPXMm6NOwu4vqDovftgrqRoMs6ro7llkJFxhlg_tiR8UwL_0oUk/s1600/frog%25233.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdMBNKfXSFmoGnfLMMWAx0sxlbLpzOFT9ywyR43Oo34US9PIZ3LVYJmXX30eGJQcF2aGYhob_PgoLw5CKroTqUrphAZPXMm6NOwu4vqDovftgrqRoMs6ro7llkJFxhlg_tiR8UwL_0oUk/s400/frog%25233.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709512107918458914" /></a><br /><br />Oh, and while I was out snapping pics of the toadie, the roosters were also strutting their stuff. Horatio was willing to let me get pretty near him with the camera and here is the result.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSIiOVkhuhigAmk_q_OGd7UeZOdLSwdVSNvxHtY7CSPh356yHgFaBAZ7fbLE8Jx6cAGwpdea1vNX6l32sHMz_qMOs1ovJWWTeRtN1986ICqLQQFUANNRxnlf9HUkPTR23lqcaUJra3Fsc/s1600/Horatio+the+Proud.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSIiOVkhuhigAmk_q_OGd7UeZOdLSwdVSNvxHtY7CSPh356yHgFaBAZ7fbLE8Jx6cAGwpdea1vNX6l32sHMz_qMOs1ovJWWTeRtN1986ICqLQQFUANNRxnlf9HUkPTR23lqcaUJra3Fsc/s400/Horatio+the+Proud.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709512520023072882" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWrtunDuQcRTx6EOgb9pd9cw2iXgDCRZ1vnjLfG6V2hJfDwd9lUdmk1aBoHfOgQ6xcPRZ4gxgLRgxZXDu8MYDeZlLpQsGhiRfTo7ufhLFAv324OzbgPJOX62ltZk8fVN_InLPNWFFV58s/s1600/Horatio+the+Proud%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWrtunDuQcRTx6EOgb9pd9cw2iXgDCRZ1vnjLfG6V2hJfDwd9lUdmk1aBoHfOgQ6xcPRZ4gxgLRgxZXDu8MYDeZlLpQsGhiRfTo7ufhLFAv324OzbgPJOX62ltZk8fVN_InLPNWFFV58s/s400/Horatio+the+Proud%25232.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709512672556226194" /></a><br /><br />I better get out and close up that chicken coop. As soon as that sun goes down, they head up to safety and want me to lock them in til morning.CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-73235547051900402832012-02-03T16:45:00.000-08:002012-02-03T17:27:00.417-08:00The Inspector GeneralSorry I have been missing. Our only source of internet access is by an aircard. We searched high and low and found the best deal with the best price and the most amount of available bandwidth. Still, with DH now at home all the time, we went all the way to the max amount available by the third week in January. So for a week, I could only check my email on my "not-so-smart" phone and I could also scan Facebook, if I didn't expect to see pics or make comments.<div><br /></div><div>But finally, the first of February arrived and we can now surf the internet with wild abandon. Except maybe DH needs to not download tons of quadraphonic music this month. And no movies. That is what the Netflicks mail option if for.</div><div><br /></div><div>Like most of the country, we are having much warmer than normal weather. Most of us are jumping the gun and getting lots of gardening done. I have been careful to only plant what can stand a sudden cold freeze, especially if I can offer protection with row covers. I am going more and more towards raised beds and framework that will allow me to use row covers for what ever the weather throws at us. Frost blankets for cold, shade cloth for blazing sun, protection from the bugs and even from the chickens. The raised beds I have used in the past have not worked out to be all that sturdy or helpful. So this year I bit the bullet and spent the money on what I hope will be a better, longer lasting system. I am using regular, standard dimensional lumber from the big box home improvement store. But I am treating it with a <a href="http://www.ecowoodtreatment.com/">new product</a> which is supposed to be an eco friendly product that is safe to use around pets and food, and is reported to protect the wood from rot for many years. I bought mine on line but found out later that Home Depot is also supposed to carry it. The corners I purchased from <a href="http://www.gardeners.com/Raised-Bed-Corners/RaisedBedCorners_Cat,default,sc.html">Gardener's Supply Co</a>. I decided on the 10" set but I might have been happier with the 12". Another thing I realized as I put my bed together was that I wish I could have screwed it together from the outside and not the inside. I know they designed it this way to have a nice clean look but if I ever do need to change the wood sides out, I will have to empty the bed first. Even to add an extension set would require at least exposing the one long side. But still, I think it is a lovely raised bed and with my addition of PVC supports for the differing row covers, I think it will be very useful. </div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLBdsAuNSl_R0WSC1VrPYW8UG8phWyq8VYeCk_F0gi-LTpB2w23kaqhMmFSPtEBmVfNL1Nod2DUhR1ffgXUtbO2-7XDL7KcyfxMoyUPNPNoKx1hik3I1bsJFkaBMu623l6qRpqQl8eoII/s1600/raised+bed%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLBdsAuNSl_R0WSC1VrPYW8UG8phWyq8VYeCk_F0gi-LTpB2w23kaqhMmFSPtEBmVfNL1Nod2DUhR1ffgXUtbO2-7XDL7KcyfxMoyUPNPNoKx1hik3I1bsJFkaBMu623l6qRpqQl8eoII/s400/raised+bed%25231.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705080194914007058" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNNv5Vk7Ed9K5W4dH0DaERNmSEydAJNXe4Ydvnw1wxj4Q14CCu_82zjRVsw43I1v3GDqxKZnOwSlBHhyphenhyphen3oS74irHaWNlB09LlZYHTrhlDIy7H5lEObNRMjHyR3ztkT0bYO1sHSsGAO4wM/s1600/raised+bed%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNNv5Vk7Ed9K5W4dH0DaERNmSEydAJNXe4Ydvnw1wxj4Q14CCu_82zjRVsw43I1v3GDqxKZnOwSlBHhyphenhyphen3oS74irHaWNlB09LlZYHTrhlDIy7H5lEObNRMjHyR3ztkT0bYO1sHSsGAO4wM/s400/raised+bed%25232.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705080326920867202" /></a><br /><br />Of course, nothing can be done with out the approval of the Inspector General. I think all 5 of the team are happy with the new bed. They are dreaming of some luscious veggie that I can grow for them to snack on!!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiolHaht3aXsZiq-gaIwLLNvzugeY43BgZx6QW-FB80kqPJBZfyZsA3btzQRn0jhdrceM0YTYydVC6hyhrxsOsO3NeL7wWClWY0EJJY_d086_b4wk199kt5H66rOpCYKrqdbqIbG-QFlJ0/s1600/The+inspector%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiolHaht3aXsZiq-gaIwLLNvzugeY43BgZx6QW-FB80kqPJBZfyZsA3btzQRn0jhdrceM0YTYydVC6hyhrxsOsO3NeL7wWClWY0EJJY_d086_b4wk199kt5H66rOpCYKrqdbqIbG-QFlJ0/s400/The+inspector%25231.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705080753138227154" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvVIv4cgZZTRn7ML2201d6B3WtcJxuupYhUD8mJk3T4j5gchbFJFGKLkQijdmkzGsoUrwTcALvr9ajUDXHk4R-RPzTstaSe08M2G3NVbiNhawJ_l2C-dw2gWDBinR5CygbyQgdSZaONzs/s1600/The+inspector%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvVIv4cgZZTRn7ML2201d6B3WtcJxuupYhUD8mJk3T4j5gchbFJFGKLkQijdmkzGsoUrwTcALvr9ajUDXHk4R-RPzTstaSe08M2G3NVbiNhawJ_l2C-dw2gWDBinR5CygbyQgdSZaONzs/s400/The+inspector%25232.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705081257343082386" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpzwPy5Sv4KWCBWtZTDsKSu-UBLDlOHYt5w-mHie1AnRv7nNOBoh2P4jJIbWx9pFe4IhdC0eafi5mH5zqcmR9O5N-YvRxAHVECztvInDHSR-awrwosSmwb82sV7TMJk311w3ANbEu1UAA/s1600/The+inspector%25235.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpzwPy5Sv4KWCBWtZTDsKSu-UBLDlOHYt5w-mHie1AnRv7nNOBoh2P4jJIbWx9pFe4IhdC0eafi5mH5zqcmR9O5N-YvRxAHVECztvInDHSR-awrwosSmwb82sV7TMJk311w3ANbEu1UAA/s400/The+inspector%25235.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705081522291339058" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBXd_htTRYaKkhCb-IJcOJNg1aO0hsghnDKsTjdE1ffQ3Gir98pE3Vx7peaJ4ZKge58zhVRGEFrKKRNt7MQaQD4DTOgYIKyEg_xsI6xRZaps_aGCpJhZJI0kNSchIYwDirvdQ30pbtqAM/s1600/The+inspector%25237.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBXd_htTRYaKkhCb-IJcOJNg1aO0hsghnDKsTjdE1ffQ3Gir98pE3Vx7peaJ4ZKge58zhVRGEFrKKRNt7MQaQD4DTOgYIKyEg_xsI6xRZaps_aGCpJhZJI0kNSchIYwDirvdQ30pbtqAM/s400/The+inspector%25237.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705081761339107010" /></a><br /><br />I finally have had to make a decision about my pond. The pump and filter system is just not keeping things clean enough. So after talking to my local pond guy, I have decided to add a waterfall filter to this side of the pond. I really wasn't wanting to do a waterfall, but he assures me I can easily add one, it doesn't have to be all that tall or hard to hide the mechanics and it will keep the pond so much cleaner. So here in the next month I will attempt to add this feature and hope that I can keep things looking attractive. It shouldn't cost all that much and the time involved shouldn't be too bad. But I swear, if I don't end up with a cleaner pond, I will go throttle the darned pond man.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0ZpaPmuxAQxmTj7tv58K9IAz4uUjGu8WjKfb7ez4WDay5EJuNHMXZV2erHcTTbmTLBPlEhzA3Hu7GA0cUvbnffzPxnj7Zxaixm0hk6HBmQAJj3DkuSQ6gbzN7tsfPXEBvrm4NmCSVhYc/s1600/location+for+waterfall+filter.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0ZpaPmuxAQxmTj7tv58K9IAz4uUjGu8WjKfb7ez4WDay5EJuNHMXZV2erHcTTbmTLBPlEhzA3Hu7GA0cUvbnffzPxnj7Zxaixm0hk6HBmQAJj3DkuSQ6gbzN7tsfPXEBvrm4NmCSVhYc/s400/location+for+waterfall+filter.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705082972763183122" /></a><br /><br />Today, I picked my first spring bouquet. Daffodils out of a large field that runs by my daily walking path. There are so many wonderful wild daffs around our part of Tennessee and I just picked a few to brighten up the house. This is way too early for daffs and way, way to early for my magnolia which is also in full bloom.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJry5r9Y0cHZqquvO5L9heIMNrTOlUcCUDKYiqHpO0QvpjTdFmRodxvdCZZF6hbwr6AkMVeEl8hazGbXGO5UOdIZeD9j0UhOHOu0r9EzK6Z5bt5AD7052BFaeg9EAZKFJVIo1IkKV1krM/s1600/Magnolia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJry5r9Y0cHZqquvO5L9heIMNrTOlUcCUDKYiqHpO0QvpjTdFmRodxvdCZZF6hbwr6AkMVeEl8hazGbXGO5UOdIZeD9j0UhOHOu0r9EzK6Z5bt5AD7052BFaeg9EAZKFJVIo1IkKV1krM/s400/Magnolia.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705083642794701810" /></a><br /><br />The other day, I was not home and my DH decided that he was watching "the best sunset" ever in our new adopted state. So he grabbed my camera and shot away. Mind you, he knows nothing...nothing about my camera. When I ask him to take a picture with it, even with me setting it up, he never gets a good shot. So how in the world did he gets these? Must have been some devine intervention. Enjoy!<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE3KtY_L3oiqNvOZtAuuknFjRGAk7wjoxdEf4JVGdp_a0JGgDpL1p94Olx6RsjWbt504fUlcuUtIwuSOrg-oU6SAS9mz0B3UEI7kCtuHy-1rsdRFBVmHLnf5mE40z9S2_mtBErPcjHzyk/s1600/001.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE3KtY_L3oiqNvOZtAuuknFjRGAk7wjoxdEf4JVGdp_a0JGgDpL1p94Olx6RsjWbt504fUlcuUtIwuSOrg-oU6SAS9mz0B3UEI7kCtuHy-1rsdRFBVmHLnf5mE40z9S2_mtBErPcjHzyk/s400/001.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705084299575308674" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjXy2qmkX750X6O-7WjV6rkO8ErEc8kvEYiQa0utQvJ3bN8NPdXjlLEPPl2LUWQGJ_5yq4HnUfdC4udIyEDH1LDvytL714HBZN13pwR1nAPo1-e4xdmQYu10473gtPNexCpszRuXTfCpI/s1600/009.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjXy2qmkX750X6O-7WjV6rkO8ErEc8kvEYiQa0utQvJ3bN8NPdXjlLEPPl2LUWQGJ_5yq4HnUfdC4udIyEDH1LDvytL714HBZN13pwR1nAPo1-e4xdmQYu10473gtPNexCpszRuXTfCpI/s400/009.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705084502995520194" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7hyphenhyphenpqF5S0iHoSycnw6riUg2-3Fc09KFlApD7mHlgnCn2Dx5FlO0Sf_V1Y2-NkJMMAVmUFFlmM6ImLQwzeJgyBLAFeFi6LlDsJFEwvSG0yV9cau3Ub3a0a3EIIqWt8I2CPeCva5r8J4QY/s1600/013.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7hyphenhyphenpqF5S0iHoSycnw6riUg2-3Fc09KFlApD7mHlgnCn2Dx5FlO0Sf_V1Y2-NkJMMAVmUFFlmM6ImLQwzeJgyBLAFeFi6LlDsJFEwvSG0yV9cau3Ub3a0a3EIIqWt8I2CPeCva5r8J4QY/s400/013.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705084663590310914" /></a>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-37395503728676418892012-01-22T13:44:00.000-08:002012-01-22T14:09:24.347-08:00Some say, "Boots on the Ground"...I say, "Hands in the Dirt"Boots on the ground. Used to be a military saying to indicate that the planning stages of an operation were over. That soldiers would now be out getting the job done. Now everybody uses it for everything. But I digress :). <div><br /></div><div>For me, winter is filled with gardening catalogs, filled with all kinds of new inspiration for spring. And my head gets filled up with all kinds of new veggies to grow, ways to grow them and then what to do with them after harvest. I drool and dream over all kinds of new flowers I want to use in the landscape to make my world more colorful. But mostly, us gardeners just impatiently wait for the first time we can go out and plant something and get it all going once again. We just hang in there barely, until we finally can go out and get those hands really dirty for the first time of the new year.</div><div><br /></div><div>And I did that today. Planted peas. Peas need cold and can even tolerate moderate freezes once up and growing. I presprouted my seeds to help them get up and going even faster. I watched the weather reports and knew we have an entire week. at least before the next frost. So today, the presprouted seeds went in and hopefully, they can finish the sprouting process in this next week and be off and running before we have any more seriously cold weather. I do have my beds set up to be able to cover the plants if that old silly weatherman suddenly tells me that we are dipping down into the low 20's or even below. If it really got cold, 15 or below, I would probably loose it all. But that package of seeds cost just over a dollar. I think my pocketbook can handle that. Not sure my spirit will do as well!!</div><div><br /></div><div>But I do have some nice things growing as we speak. Growing enough to even harvest some. This last fall I took my chances and planted some lettuce and spinach. I got them in very late and had serious doubts as to how successful I would be. But the weather has been pretty mild so far this year and I have been pretty religious in covering the beds when it did get down into the lower 20's. So, so far, so good. And tonight we get a salad to celebrate. </div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZi_m3BBbt5cH5paPC7x3hkVYC1ZA0MBKYG5G8_9usKQpPPkwPc0txDnJoz7K5CAhzuZUSpyjaYJefBUZld70pQAY6zhyphenhyphen7_5ibSow0LUVIst2TNAgmZpsFJgggJT_upP2RsPBpF9mmioc/s1600/winter+lettuce%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZi_m3BBbt5cH5paPC7x3hkVYC1ZA0MBKYG5G8_9usKQpPPkwPc0txDnJoz7K5CAhzuZUSpyjaYJefBUZld70pQAY6zhyphenhyphen7_5ibSow0LUVIst2TNAgmZpsFJgggJT_upP2RsPBpF9mmioc/s400/winter+lettuce%25231.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5700577824583182354" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSTUg6C2tFJJFp-ig6F3CfxYVgfscrsro8vF-jQLJTyIIYuCVDJLi_JXySKQjTPp10wI0aERnoPkQXrCBwrDtbq5aRRgtdNGDIlL6ZM6LLOBQOjLAlPP3GBKu3c-YQcCQRTMGiT3pjDb8/s1600/winter+lettuce%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSTUg6C2tFJJFp-ig6F3CfxYVgfscrsro8vF-jQLJTyIIYuCVDJLi_JXySKQjTPp10wI0aERnoPkQXrCBwrDtbq5aRRgtdNGDIlL6ZM6LLOBQOjLAlPP3GBKu3c-YQcCQRTMGiT3pjDb8/s400/winter+lettuce%25232.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5700578063730179890" /></a><br /><br />I also have a bed of garlic, planted this fall, that is growing very nicely. We should have all the garlic that we need for the next year!<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGhMUXU_c6-s6McXStb7MPcRmGSSnAFC8ZPuu-3guoMaXRx2W1VIBzgfuC5A8VSBkJSO1aF2AE42mCHadPgkeSdpMAfgbigqNG6xJwze4mTEJSdYEU7iu-UEO0y3UV6QYxd3r5vGczgvk/s1600/garlic.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGhMUXU_c6-s6McXStb7MPcRmGSSnAFC8ZPuu-3guoMaXRx2W1VIBzgfuC5A8VSBkJSO1aF2AE42mCHadPgkeSdpMAfgbigqNG6xJwze4mTEJSdYEU7iu-UEO0y3UV6QYxd3r5vGczgvk/s400/garlic.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5700578398431153042" /></a><br /><br />So, now out of the garden and onto the wilder side of the yard. The pond. I have had 2 really cool frogs living in my pond, almost from the beginning. Whenever it is even a little bit warm out, they come out onto this rock and sun themsselves. Of course, if I get anywhere near, they immediately jump back into the water and hide under the rocks. But today, I almost got him. He was there with the camera trying to focus and he jumped away just a hair too soon. But he only got into the water and I still was able to at least get this picture of one of them. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT_OIjFGmgakVXZuLvvS4xdeWOstflWVZ3z1zsAdxueTWQW5XYm7sJnerLBV5E7JR8E8Bvp4WJdZV4b4IXMV3gsXx2uSZHKj-UjdnMBKvHMIM8PjLZny6TIvTfaTeEGnr0CMxmIjqEn24/s1600/frog+rock.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT_OIjFGmgakVXZuLvvS4xdeWOstflWVZ3z1zsAdxueTWQW5XYm7sJnerLBV5E7JR8E8Bvp4WJdZV4b4IXMV3gsXx2uSZHKj-UjdnMBKvHMIM8PjLZny6TIvTfaTeEGnr0CMxmIjqEn24/s400/frog+rock.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5700579354419193314" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1lY4oSt1rSl67PnkYpGDys08B7AzKCgx7tYJrV3Ry8_dxEbTQOq3sZHiIoT1vtmNkexuWYeJW02WHzG1xIuzpRlUGHwS-s8j59QZIfLTTMb8bFDSE5awUegWNxVG7EDY5HfLTEYj936o/s1600/frog+rock+%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1lY4oSt1rSl67PnkYpGDys08B7AzKCgx7tYJrV3Ry8_dxEbTQOq3sZHiIoT1vtmNkexuWYeJW02WHzG1xIuzpRlUGHwS-s8j59QZIfLTTMb8bFDSE5awUegWNxVG7EDY5HfLTEYj936o/s400/frog+rock+%25232.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5700579575438354642" /></a><br /><br />Here's a picture of last week's birdfeeders from outside the apartment door. Thought you might want to see what it all looks like from this angle. For now. Till I change the feeder poles out for a new easier to use one. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7WmXiV9HnKWbqXWUI5p5rU-fnNGfuKkHRr-TNJUCQKDb3sevxTt04qh4UO_FNRJvEjs7FDCZDkCPLo-4EX_2zkgtFRGFOq4aJxLZF3e_xiSLwG8HyTXlmpcFE_keLseSsGKsrXnbosm8/s1600/bird+feeders+from+outside+the+door.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7WmXiV9HnKWbqXWUI5p5rU-fnNGfuKkHRr-TNJUCQKDb3sevxTt04qh4UO_FNRJvEjs7FDCZDkCPLo-4EX_2zkgtFRGFOq4aJxLZF3e_xiSLwG8HyTXlmpcFE_keLseSsGKsrXnbosm8/s400/bird+feeders+from+outside+the+door.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5700580039932418466" /></a><br /><br />Last, but not least....you must see the chickens as I see them every afternoon about 2. They know they get to run free about this time everyday and they get so wound up and ready that it is quite humorous. Especially the boys. They just can't wait to get out and be boss of the bigger barnyard. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh73yZuf-NvSh2MiCDam7s1i6ylT-G89pkqH661pe8KaD1FCWyITt7JvBbeDbS9Ws6x8BviLzEZjFx5adrzZorScwU7NULyw5xtGst_w2KnfzsHsdkV1_auR7Z49eJLJ3Rq355Pph2zShg/s1600/waiting+for+early+release%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh73yZuf-NvSh2MiCDam7s1i6ylT-G89pkqH661pe8KaD1FCWyITt7JvBbeDbS9Ws6x8BviLzEZjFx5adrzZorScwU7NULyw5xtGst_w2KnfzsHsdkV1_auR7Z49eJLJ3Rq355Pph2zShg/s400/waiting+for+early+release%25231.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5700580654761040034" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi5Acx6_7LUKQtaGp_D9YX2Si1IMP67X9c4Gkgz3ZTh9e5LrgY7xv9_X5RWWAqumivRwEUufid0tHDoLC3XRoCYsGRtKFKnUaog2BtqT1iWkQGdOa900_-J9mViuMziRssguEYU9K_VQY/s1600/waiting+for+early+release%25233.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi5Acx6_7LUKQtaGp_D9YX2Si1IMP67X9c4Gkgz3ZTh9e5LrgY7xv9_X5RWWAqumivRwEUufid0tHDoLC3XRoCYsGRtKFKnUaog2BtqT1iWkQGdOa900_-J9mViuMziRssguEYU9K_VQY/s400/waiting+for+early+release%25233.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5700580845217212274" /></a><br /><br />The more that we let them free range, the less they eat the food that we have to buy for them. So the cheaper our eggs are and probably the healthier they are for us. But we could never let them run loose all the time, out here in the country with all the predators that lurk about. Including the one that lives in our house. Holly, the fox terrier/chicken terrier/cat terrier/skunk terrier/squirrel terrier..........and so on, and so forthCrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-74388693235721481892012-01-16T09:12:00.000-08:002012-01-16T09:56:11.880-08:00Who Knew, I might actually BE a morning person?I have never been a morning kind of person. Normally, I am not a great sleeper and what sleep I do get tends to be late in the sleep cycle and by morning, I am just not all that ready to put boots to the ground.<br /><br />But all that changed when these came to live with us.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh05yhHwMr4G7xN7pB22ABgpHEOq7sjNpn6FgE4boeYI_cZehGmrdAVZNzas0i4QrpMKv_8ZBr8C7gNHSLZmmF1TmPSKMUCispAe8DKLynI1x4VrMKw1EbvUnciE6uf7aD3wYtYGifOwHg/s1600/Hamlet%25234.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh05yhHwMr4G7xN7pB22ABgpHEOq7sjNpn6FgE4boeYI_cZehGmrdAVZNzas0i4QrpMKv_8ZBr8C7gNHSLZmmF1TmPSKMUCispAe8DKLynI1x4VrMKw1EbvUnciE6uf7aD3wYtYGifOwHg/s400/Hamlet%25234.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698279491556559826" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4bcUarStGb57VZLeMajdsIR4FCU1X_IkReO0nu9OAyhJ8netRxXRP5BHHuFAsRRn5K3xogrOyDd48L8omIc8c6btxN9E-hsfxp-BPpW_8HogQNBTVJFJ4v5Oy86ed9j4MLA2p0lRCjSk/s1600/My+Red+Wyandottes.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4bcUarStGb57VZLeMajdsIR4FCU1X_IkReO0nu9OAyhJ8netRxXRP5BHHuFAsRRn5K3xogrOyDd48L8omIc8c6btxN9E-hsfxp-BPpW_8HogQNBTVJFJ4v5Oy86ed9j4MLA2p0lRCjSk/s400/My+Red+Wyandottes.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698279767035653938" /></a><br /><br />That beautiful rooster above goes by the name Hamlet. He has a brother, Horatio. They don't find any need to be extra quiet in the morning. And as soon as they sense the slightest bit of light in the sky they start crowing to be let out of the coop and down into the run.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4cPb5QjgVLqEQhgFIss2vU0bZ9Q-f4j_JuD7G4gYtcEXK9wMwMuPj32MbBUaQtfLRTAFDKhfxLBITBNXkqeu-wWLZbJ9wPqN_2FEhrCBhSAhHpCrhF5Wyq872n4yfTGTIQW5aYTYHiwc/s1600/chicken+coop+oh+no+this+is+scary+but+I+can+do+it+here+I+go.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4cPb5QjgVLqEQhgFIss2vU0bZ9Q-f4j_JuD7G4gYtcEXK9wMwMuPj32MbBUaQtfLRTAFDKhfxLBITBNXkqeu-wWLZbJ9wPqN_2FEhrCBhSAhHpCrhF5Wyq872n4yfTGTIQW5aYTYHiwc/s400/chicken+coop+oh+no+this+is+scary+but+I+can+do+it+here+I+go.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698280458513284482" /></a><br /><br />And if the weather is particulary cold, I must take the waterer back in the house and refill it with warm water because chickens really must drink a lot and often to be healthy. If you let them drink really cold water, it chills them from inside, and that's not so good.<br /><br />So once I get all that done, there are 2 very hungry house cats to be dealt with. Most mornings, my old grey kitty is awake and on my upper chest just about the same times as the first rooster crows. He is not all that happy about being 2nd in line but he doesn't get a choice. So as soon as I get back in, that can of cat food gets popped open and that makes them happy campers til evening.<br /><br />Next up, 2 doggies. One who sleeps in the house and one out in a kennel in the garage. Both are very ready to go outside. Not as much for a nature call, as one to observe what the outside world has to offer them today. So poor tired, sometimes cold me is out trying to get both of them to stop nosing all around and get the necessary potty business done.<br /><br />Then finally I get to pay just a little attention to me. I get to pour a cup of this.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid51xOC9RxneY9P9qSDCVY5vntyZBIZzUkeg2xKwuVGravDWA490jRDHSZTI2AjL-Ix3FB8DlepgR2uQHbmJvqEhS263Kz8ixh-XrLL7c1FLwqllzAAYmLcU_IC0rAmkItYwNQHr5zsK4/s1600/My+cup+of+Joe.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid51xOC9RxneY9P9qSDCVY5vntyZBIZzUkeg2xKwuVGravDWA490jRDHSZTI2AjL-Ix3FB8DlepgR2uQHbmJvqEhS263Kz8ixh-XrLL7c1FLwqllzAAYmLcU_IC0rAmkItYwNQHr5zsK4/s400/My+cup+of+Joe.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698283869066451554" /></a><br /><br />And I get to take it and another bowl of cat food out to the guest apartment and feed Finn who is also waiting anxiously. Not for the food, but for the company. She has already watched me go make my morning runs out to the coop and she is also not happy that she was not first in line!!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKD8yUTvp_pv10V_aySoxq2G2YQRtj6R-3iCQClPEsYtuOtg1cMHBl0vQdNtcoPkx9OTOHhEk5PSHULKcCLlH8WJ-hFmyXEBZzt7UXKewyxi6IyHaQ0Q0DolL29bDPbHILjSdm7Sha3vM/s1600/Finn+in+the+morning.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKD8yUTvp_pv10V_aySoxq2G2YQRtj6R-3iCQClPEsYtuOtg1cMHBl0vQdNtcoPkx9OTOHhEk5PSHULKcCLlH8WJ-hFmyXEBZzt7UXKewyxi6IyHaQ0Q0DolL29bDPbHILjSdm7Sha3vM/s400/Finn+in+the+morning.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698284439841063906" /></a><br /><br />I knowit looks like she could miss a few breakfasts, but actually, she is still a kitten and not all that plump. It was just this position she takes on the floor when she knows I am on my way in the door. She wants her belly rubbed immediately. Before the cat food, before I can sit down to drink that coffee and start the most peaceful part of the morning.<br /><br />Bird watching. Right outside the french doors of the apartment is a wonderful garden, now with bird feeders positioned for the best view from indoors. I pull the chair into a prime spot, and sit with that coffee in such blissful quiet. Sometimes Finn even bird watches herself, from a perch right by the door.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8I8TYZbRCV-zJAHLQ-CH6cdB21NENx6cY1QGwrJ8msZyc9BBFTQFIHEWmjeMtC9kdltueX48kt36wtGln1PNNM0nMs6Lug0JcgmJ2frddI1FlbvkFH7dJ8KflYk5aAz7Wdfl6d-atZD0/s1600/Finn+bird+watching+%25233.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8I8TYZbRCV-zJAHLQ-CH6cdB21NENx6cY1QGwrJ8msZyc9BBFTQFIHEWmjeMtC9kdltueX48kt36wtGln1PNNM0nMs6Lug0JcgmJ2frddI1FlbvkFH7dJ8KflYk5aAz7Wdfl6d-atZD0/s400/Finn+bird+watching+%25233.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698285456534697890" /></a><br /><br />But much of the time, she thinks she can get those birdies if she really tries. And that involves several charges to the door. The doors, that she finds are very inconvenient for her birding instincts. Oh well, lots of much bigger predators live outside, including one of my dogs. So she will eventually get used to the fact that she can only sit and watch the show.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2WueJ7412Qm2i7RXvBd-TjVgLdjK2Nnr2mjCpYyY-2JbebFcbv2KSd_DV0GRDgLtatD3ZqWRX_HB6jdE0r28TIZGGfua-J7uYu5A3qpzLhXxvlWCenwFqJJPqzkjScne2ExA13SDxmrg/s1600/Bird+watching+%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2WueJ7412Qm2i7RXvBd-TjVgLdjK2Nnr2mjCpYyY-2JbebFcbv2KSd_DV0GRDgLtatD3ZqWRX_HB6jdE0r28TIZGGfua-J7uYu5A3qpzLhXxvlWCenwFqJJPqzkjScne2ExA13SDxmrg/s400/Bird+watching+%25232.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698286305386896066" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQvv8RnbnbqsEzO4s69XVkahOgQg07-Yq8remra9f5Df1z9-aph5eU42sKFGFhmoNiiKbe-NnW01rfPZggYIwfsv05d-UswOY_SzunJKa512RNPj-LMBDjUdVXEK0w183w5uhM49Fr68E/s1600/Bird+watching+%25233.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQvv8RnbnbqsEzO4s69XVkahOgQg07-Yq8remra9f5Df1z9-aph5eU42sKFGFhmoNiiKbe-NnW01rfPZggYIwfsv05d-UswOY_SzunJKa512RNPj-LMBDjUdVXEK0w183w5uhM49Fr68E/s400/Bird+watching+%25233.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698286518017774354" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxjiWgmAIFz-bgvDXG4cadn1L0hPPpwRd3bL8Ffoqd1FkqOWyYv7KTatGbemxJD2XY9V2FEF169TVCA_bsDa26X_XH8g_XJZ59s_w9DZn54qiSHMooEuhbnndC0YRdgE1_8OVFT3lq8vs/s1600/Bird+watching+%25234.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxjiWgmAIFz-bgvDXG4cadn1L0hPPpwRd3bL8Ffoqd1FkqOWyYv7KTatGbemxJD2XY9V2FEF169TVCA_bsDa26X_XH8g_XJZ59s_w9DZn54qiSHMooEuhbnndC0YRdgE1_8OVFT3lq8vs/s400/Bird+watching+%25234.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698286681689941634" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6m9ZMcNtblQwqAcKMXVX8TjmyNp9iPk1neau5PFklMiiqmEfuQnFGSr4iUpazh7Digy9uNO-_GjPFKBPHhzYgbt3kS36vKjIWM819ewvalMMWJWV22tfg4f2j0tVQ1BO-R09rcqAjblQ/s1600/Bird+watching+%25238.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6m9ZMcNtblQwqAcKMXVX8TjmyNp9iPk1neau5PFklMiiqmEfuQnFGSr4iUpazh7Digy9uNO-_GjPFKBPHhzYgbt3kS36vKjIWM819ewvalMMWJWV22tfg4f2j0tVQ1BO-R09rcqAjblQ/s400/Bird+watching+%25238.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698287000420726882" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip2R3893HF1HlgM2k4puhaOrkG5RT_E_H3Pj5E4V0Suuu7GAnjjjM4WaHHf0rjKnmkg6wF1sUCH0aCXWOTDHuGZs5Gb1b07I6Ay80LrqLS5rIWmfj83k7OAzlYTDD6YVa6K2Jd1JRWFxE/s1600/Bird+watching+%252312.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 286px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip2R3893HF1HlgM2k4puhaOrkG5RT_E_H3Pj5E4V0Suuu7GAnjjjM4WaHHf0rjKnmkg6wF1sUCH0aCXWOTDHuGZs5Gb1b07I6Ay80LrqLS5rIWmfj83k7OAzlYTDD6YVa6K2Jd1JRWFxE/s400/Bird+watching+%252312.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698287203973010434" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzwafdXyAz2yhFtuA2UqNB-ybuYGgh9kF7fM1vwwANd4JxDM5NQ36Qn_YWBe6bkICosOkc0LQ8g92TXbTez_pKw4na9ZGcRB-YQXB00tr6vE6ifiQqbaKX-QrobM-1TsB5bV8Z9vXgYOs/s1600/Bird+watching+%252315.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzwafdXyAz2yhFtuA2UqNB-ybuYGgh9kF7fM1vwwANd4JxDM5NQ36Qn_YWBe6bkICosOkc0LQ8g92TXbTez_pKw4na9ZGcRB-YQXB00tr6vE6ifiQqbaKX-QrobM-1TsB5bV8Z9vXgYOs/s400/Bird+watching+%252315.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698287529414325826" /></a><br /><br />None of these pictures can come close to capturing the experience I am getting every morning. I find that just getting near the window with the camera sends all the pretty birdies scurrying away. Many times I have as many as 10 adult male cardinals and their mates, 2 or 3 tufted titmice, 2 to 3 blue jays, numerous Carolina Chickadees, white crowned sparrows, white bearded sparrows, towhees, juncos, house finches, ect. Also one very gorgeous red bellied woodpecker. Then of course, the squirrel. Soon I plan on getting one of those really good feeder pole systems with the various add on arms. And a squirrel baffle. But once I do that, I will also buy a squirrel feeder cause, heck, if they already live in my yard, I should get to watch how cute they are. Yes, some call them tree rats. So what, I got ground rats too and unless they come inside, I happily let them live their lives.<br /><br />But I guess the whole purpose of this post is to let you live my morning, vicariously with me. The peace and serenity that I get from these small hours is amazing. This morning, as I was ready to come in, Finn decided momma's lap was the softest, warmest, bestest place to take a morning nap. Allowing me even more time to watch those awesome birdies. <br /><br />Hopefully I will start blogging a bit more. Now that I have found Pinterest.com. So many great ideas to do for the garden this spring. I am already working on several of them and should have reveal posts soon. See you thenCrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-62760251635640013112011-10-25T06:54:00.000-07:002011-10-25T07:55:03.207-07:00The 3 DaySigned up in February<br /><br />Finished raising the funds in May<br /><br />Lost Jan to cancer of the breast on June 1st<br /><br />Trained all summer<br /><br />Gathered all the stuff I would need to "camp" out for 2 nights<br /><br />Trained some more<br /><br />Fretted over what shoes and socks to buy<br /><br />Trained some more<br /><br />Finally, October, walked 6 miles in 3 days!! <br /><br /><br />This experience was amazing. Walking 60 miles to honor my dear friend Jan was so much easier than anything she had to go while trying to fight off this horrible disease. All the worry and prep was nothing. The blister that plagued me the last day was nothing. The aches and pains can be medicated and will slowly disappear over the next few days.<br /><br />The money will go for research, education and treatment of breast cancer. Maybe someday we will find a cure. But until then, thousands of dedicated humans will walk millions and millions of miles to work towards that end. Others will volunteer to make it all happen which is just as important as the walking. And if you can not do either of those, you can be one who donates, even a little to get the walker on the road. <br /><br />I went to Atlanta, saying I would not do this walk again. The fund raising was easy for me this time around. My group of friends were so supportive to both me and Jan by making this part effortless. But raising the money a 2nd time is rarely as easy and I did not want to bother my friends again. But honestly, I do want to participate and will try very hard to make it happen. We will just have to see if my schedule next year will allow it to happen in Atlanta or if there might be another city that would better suite my active social calender!!<br /><br />Darn.....I was going to post pics. But can't seem to get them off my phone. Drat, darn, dang and damn.......Maybe later I can come back and add themCrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-67670027837513468622011-10-07T08:21:00.001-07:002011-10-07T08:47:48.415-07:00My other summer project.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirU1TEq6S9LvgDNvRrM6qaNfhIEUHLLcZF7tAXoDaop5i9GMHX4AqhH8Q55jIBT5prmtEToX2b43eIZL8P99nnFk5Lr8K_Sp0AKIWbUnSYdbYxsAJ6fzMfAe380oI2KsCMuq-Nvhh6N2o/s1600/042.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirU1TEq6S9LvgDNvRrM6qaNfhIEUHLLcZF7tAXoDaop5i9GMHX4AqhH8Q55jIBT5prmtEToX2b43eIZL8P99nnFk5Lr8K_Sp0AKIWbUnSYdbYxsAJ6fzMfAe380oI2KsCMuq-Nvhh6N2o/s400/042.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660772419031887394" border="0" /></a>This is my garage guest apartment. Open to any and all who care to visit. But be warned. I now have a permanent resident sharing the space. It is a long sad story about how I came to possess another kitty and I won't go into it here. But this is Finn, the surviving kitten from a pair that I rescued this summer. He can't come in and live in the house cause of all the dynamics of the animals that already live inside. But he does very well out here by himself. He spends lots of time playing with his toys, watching the wildlife out the window and relishing every minute that I come out to spend with him. He is a great kitty and I wish I could do better by him. But at least he is no longer living up a tree and now has some meat on that skeleton that I rescued a few months ago.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtle7JbMWFjnyJkVGsiu-7iF9A1lrFK6vSN04Al_gDfE9z21dhGPkLglM3MuFypkLiJ-WTjXCGjIjwsErO60EUgP_GKrW3HU50jNVjbExNku8klFOWOhPtYbY0J-taYuCXaZEqCl-5oz8/s1600/Finn+land.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtle7JbMWFjnyJkVGsiu-7iF9A1lrFK6vSN04Al_gDfE9z21dhGPkLglM3MuFypkLiJ-WTjXCGjIjwsErO60EUgP_GKrW3HU50jNVjbExNku8klFOWOhPtYbY0J-taYuCXaZEqCl-5oz8/s400/Finn+land.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660772170588781986" border="0" /></a>We call this Finn Land! He loves climbing on this and sleeping in the very soft bed. I plan on adding some more pieces to it as I find them. There is a tunnel and he needs another climbing wall to get up to the corner hidey hole at the top.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeYODPeoElfJXnzjLahZRQOgWGBs4VRBD-TuAof1tTkvL-TtqZQzX8VxWb1HgoGfGDe5RAuYCxUf9zCPKPWt_x5ET-oWnH1WvM7l3HlgbslARhHAW3uzO5nkk_hikrF3QDMLoOwjlEmyU/s1600/Finn%25233.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeYODPeoElfJXnzjLahZRQOgWGBs4VRBD-TuAof1tTkvL-TtqZQzX8VxWb1HgoGfGDe5RAuYCxUf9zCPKPWt_x5ET-oWnH1WvM7l3HlgbslARhHAW3uzO5nkk_hikrF3QDMLoOwjlEmyU/s400/Finn%25233.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660772071713954226" border="0" /></a>Here he is, probably watching the chickens. One time I let him out and he chased the biggest rooster. He is quite a brave little guy.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfzHYpIved8zjwDNSblvRR6e6kMkfunqZzezBmE5HSxAMoFTmdHB6dBAsb3qh-ndeE4uxqy9muThfo6Ki6KqRI7I2hWzqjbnBqMFJIJvJ-20TOf-OjJd8hTUu2DqZvzL_j-Lptu0F4E-w/s1600/Finn%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfzHYpIved8zjwDNSblvRR6e6kMkfunqZzezBmE5HSxAMoFTmdHB6dBAsb3qh-ndeE4uxqy9muThfo6Ki6KqRI7I2hWzqjbnBqMFJIJvJ-20TOf-OjJd8hTUu2DqZvzL_j-Lptu0F4E-w/s400/Finn%25232.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660771926867190690" border="0" /></a>This was probably about a week after I took him in. He has already fattened up considerably. He was really nothing but skin and bones when we found him.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho2v16Es20qqSTkEBjI-VRsFBX5wRRn7QjLoFIM_ePRQqagO2tXHIidARjFGsbkj1EyXEUGwYLmj1kmVAKY0XrUEAD1pFWR7ON-PNz9vffMMCtZHWP0VjSfsHJAHjAy67UyqidYPBQ51o/s1600/Finn%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho2v16Es20qqSTkEBjI-VRsFBX5wRRn7QjLoFIM_ePRQqagO2tXHIidARjFGsbkj1EyXEUGwYLmj1kmVAKY0XrUEAD1pFWR7ON-PNz9vffMMCtZHWP0VjSfsHJAHjAy67UyqidYPBQ51o/s400/Finn%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660771800638109266" border="0" /></a>This is his mean face!!! But really he has a very sweet disposition.<br /></div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7WY9Xzggd6EUvQgbqLIVPgIwvuupfhruHw1J6LSHVf_tcJLTDrgZ27LlvBfHDQwnFakNZxVI0ebDrd8L_wcadKI508cZdPqpHtsgA2xrl6fDgBdvqEDngsxcFsRMTDECPP0PI1_9naCU/s1600/the+fish+pond%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7WY9Xzggd6EUvQgbqLIVPgIwvuupfhruHw1J6LSHVf_tcJLTDrgZ27LlvBfHDQwnFakNZxVI0ebDrd8L_wcadKI508cZdPqpHtsgA2xrl6fDgBdvqEDngsxcFsRMTDECPP0PI1_9naCU/s400/the+fish+pond%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660771648726280066" border="0" /></a>So now, this is my new fish pond. In the walled garden behind the guest apartment. I dug it entirely by hand, moving the buckets of dirt way across the yard to fill in low spots elsewhere. I estimate it to be about 300+ gallons. Which is a lot of dirt. I would have loved a bigger deeper pond. But those 300 gallons of dirt about did me in. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAbyPJ5cviQbcJeMm2IqdbfF3I-BOvwG2QsCdlIkkjjX04XqHFSqUqf8QHyv1KNLX-pIyQfl6oavKE31NvHnyr2vVMkryq1ph2SniKcBT8BE6oZMlFRX3AO5WFaf4c_96PY3XwYI3VjBY/s1600/the+fish+pond%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAbyPJ5cviQbcJeMm2IqdbfF3I-BOvwG2QsCdlIkkjjX04XqHFSqUqf8QHyv1KNLX-pIyQfl6oavKE31NvHnyr2vVMkryq1ph2SniKcBT8BE6oZMlFRX3AO5WFaf4c_96PY3XwYI3VjBY/s400/the+fish+pond%25232.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660771511637399570" border="0" /></a>Somehow I did not end up with any pics of the pond during the in between stages. No laying of the liner, no pics without the edges sticking out. In other words, you get to miss the ugly stage completely. I don't miss it at all.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwYZ3jC3Qshvf_Y6FFRye0FKAamA2CHt6rh36A_NwuUXWuifFwbqoyVUPQlpyfDbB9u0Z9kyf74aOYU8UxAbVFFlcHle9_AFgjwVzw4I_OMkvsTQSNdI-1rWsjHkdu1TFdKcqQtYVxgXc/s1600/the+fish+pond%25233.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwYZ3jC3Qshvf_Y6FFRye0FKAamA2CHt6rh36A_NwuUXWuifFwbqoyVUPQlpyfDbB9u0Z9kyf74aOYU8UxAbVFFlcHle9_AFgjwVzw4I_OMkvsTQSNdI-1rWsjHkdu1TFdKcqQtYVxgXc/s400/the+fish+pond%25233.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660771372464280898" border="0" /></a>This is some of the pretties that I have to make the pond even nicer. These statues are not your run of the mill Hobby Lobby ones. They are real art work. And not horribly expensive. I bought both pieces so far on sale and even with shipping were under $100.00 each. And I have a spitter coming that will match these and it was under $50.00<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDQK1J1Y5iG9bLZikVReXsvfQg8cNL0lt5XHuX1t8py4hRJgxnjXrieJm7qhwYgWRW8oXefOTbE_j9liJ_k8ycRg7ezTmM0pTDmCswGliFw7l7LyV5jYU2M0lfoFEGZKSbyxQDvDtREzs/s1600/the+fish+pond%25234.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDQK1J1Y5iG9bLZikVReXsvfQg8cNL0lt5XHuX1t8py4hRJgxnjXrieJm7qhwYgWRW8oXefOTbE_j9liJ_k8ycRg7ezTmM0pTDmCswGliFw7l7LyV5jYU2M0lfoFEGZKSbyxQDvDtREzs/s400/the+fish+pond%25234.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660771231799868530" border="0" /></a>Right now I have a fountain going off the pump to help aerate the water. I have since changed out the fountain head to a bubbler cause when the wind blew it almost emptied the pond over the course of 2 days. The bubbler does not blow as much and still provides the oxygen the fish need to survive.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvZq4bLOmzukv4KxxMlbz7Wws8jrtxiBiuvYjCO72Mak8JWee6P0G15zEuAaqkkf0wFU8jj2j2bctCKsEF58YFtGS2l4O7vlQg5hEdYdu1fh4qdxno1ZW1kExNO8yvdu26sIm01_npoTw/s1600/the+fish+pond%25235.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvZq4bLOmzukv4KxxMlbz7Wws8jrtxiBiuvYjCO72Mak8JWee6P0G15zEuAaqkkf0wFU8jj2j2bctCKsEF58YFtGS2l4O7vlQg5hEdYdu1fh4qdxno1ZW1kExNO8yvdu26sIm01_npoTw/s400/the+fish+pond%25235.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660771116169323714" border="0" /></a>The plants are ones I just quick bought to help green up the pond and help hide the rough edges of the "manmade"pond. When I brought them home it was horribly hot and I just plunked them in the water expecting them to acclimate wonderfully. Not so. Several did suffer in the hot sun. But they have all recovered fairly well and are slowly growing. Most are perennial but at least 2 are annual. The water lily came from Ken's cousin Sheila in Ohio. She has gorgeous fish ponds of her own that I hope to visit some day.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMdtA__lu2DeDrxIRDLYa5lz08Fhe6vucUwfHEd4Riq_8n5I1QELf4PXxx6xzBzXbmRTh0LdDkMMNT9t5XLZ-EbKPE-03AdS_G14phrbxkn62M49beybZNHr_wobMpv0SnfkRdawG0tOs/s1600/the+fish+pond%25236.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMdtA__lu2DeDrxIRDLYa5lz08Fhe6vucUwfHEd4Riq_8n5I1QELf4PXxx6xzBzXbmRTh0LdDkMMNT9t5XLZ-EbKPE-03AdS_G14phrbxkn62M49beybZNHr_wobMpv0SnfkRdawG0tOs/s400/the+fish+pond%25236.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660770989755463282" border="0" /></a>In these pics everything looks one color. Beige. But with the flower beds surrounding the pond, there is actually quite a bit of color. And now the fish are finally comfortable in the pond and we see glimpses of orange and white all the time. I am not going with Koi. This pond is a bit small. I went with pond variety goldfish that are sturdy and won't get quite so large even after many years. So far we have not had any predator issues and even Holly doesn't seem to bother the fish when she sees them. <br /><br />I still have a bit of work to do on the edges of the pond. One end is still a little low compared to the rest. And I need to take out the rocks and build it up to match. Then i should be able to fill the pond more and not let the upper liner show so much. The plantings need to be worked on next year. More and different plants are in order. I have been doing pretty well with the balance of the pond so far. I did have some string algae issues but got that quickly under control. next year I may add some trap door snails which are known for keeping the algae down pretty well. I did have a frog move into the pond area almost immediately. And i know for sure that we had at least 1 if not 2 batches of tadpoles mature and turn into frogs themselves because of my pond habitat!! That did make me a bit proud. <br /><br />I would love to someday have even a bigger pond out front of the house. But unless I can get a backhoe to dig it out for me, it ain't gonna happen any time soon!!CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-74359927553476943182011-10-07T07:06:00.000-07:002011-10-07T08:19:44.770-07:00Get ready for a whole lot of Pictures!!It has been awhile. I have had so many projects this summer and did not want to post a little bit of progress at a time. Wanted to show from breaking ground to finish product. So here goes.<br /><br />We badly needed a new chicken coop. The chicken tractor we built this spring proved to be not the best for larger chickens. And mine are large. Woo hoo, believe me. They are large. Red Wyandotte's are a dual purpose breed, meaning we can eat the eggs but also the chickens so they tend to be a meaty bird. But we won't be doing that to any of ours any time soon. Unless they still aren't laying by Christmas!!<br /><br />So I looked at tons of coop plans on line. Looked at folk's finished coop pictures, bought some plans, bought a book and finally made a decision. I would go on my own for the entire thing!! But the book helped. The book is called, "<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10051577-art-of-the-chicken-coop">The Art of the Chicken Coop</a>" by Chris Gleason. It does not give blow by blow construction details or cutting plans. But talks you thru some good basic design elements adding in the ability to make the coop your own artistically.<br /><br />So I used the book to get me started. And changed a lot to suite the materials I had on hand and the abilities I had as a very novice carpenter. I also don't have a lot of power tools and feel more comfortable being able to use a hand saw as much as possible. I even went and bought a cordless drill which helped out tremendously with the location for the new coop being pretty far away from a power source.<br /><br />So now here are the pics. With as much commentary as I can figure out how to work in between. I have never really figured this Blogger thing totally out so I am going to just do the best I can.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8jSlh095RR4KVQOOq5v8d_AINUE7I9e_iCkbw3AKPejQpUJQ8ZUcjQd9k93zgnBdH66pe1dAajl9xCEF4O9YJgclgmTgMXDaEWqipVQg3Wb56I0AuH3wiJBh2dqwwLPZuenDi2MnDhic/s1600/getting+addicted+to+scratch%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8jSlh095RR4KVQOOq5v8d_AINUE7I9e_iCkbw3AKPejQpUJQ8ZUcjQd9k93zgnBdH66pe1dAajl9xCEF4O9YJgclgmTgMXDaEWqipVQg3Wb56I0AuH3wiJBh2dqwwLPZuenDi2MnDhic/s400/getting+addicted+to+scratch%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660762865821514994" border="0" /></a>Here are my reasons for building this new coop.<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIw-4F_21bDBgjT17Vpdb9V7jwX_bcKSG7CqZmSiGKDIJ9MKhKVHxRS_-1HwUK1a-6l03bDf-Ppl8Sdn_KGqQBDsrsvfgeBXJzkIcOcVEldjzubGgrQyXW3lockGEleeU9M9udwUfsB7U/s1600/Hamlet%2527s+neck+feathers.jpg"><br /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrllVNFmgfGUca7SweOA5QCWDMjblKODoGfAZCl4I0UvMeTttseRlWn-IPi6I81Wy_3evgygBklnTKiu5PeWBvtdPew2xcpBKpNxf5G_K4KRK_arpzledwA9TlZSEHbWijOG_4VjtXmO4/s1600/Horatio.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrllVNFmgfGUca7SweOA5QCWDMjblKODoGfAZCl4I0UvMeTttseRlWn-IPi6I81Wy_3evgygBklnTKiu5PeWBvtdPew2xcpBKpNxf5G_K4KRK_arpzledwA9TlZSEHbWijOG_4VjtXmO4/s400/Horatio.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660762482038406354" border="0" /></a>This is Hamlet. He lost all his immature neck feathers all at once.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBMWdokgvcSbDyHI4_7v2cNL9qKHRd60J0lx3f0A0fx4bFcKqBm-hqFjNH3Ay4edyIlOfbVGghNYW3QDrse4cGxxX6n9w9pbuU6hEhocT-BPpF_qnjD9vKjKvCConj5lTFnTEUma68r1E/s1600/Hamlet%2527s+tail+feathers.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBMWdokgvcSbDyHI4_7v2cNL9qKHRd60J0lx3f0A0fx4bFcKqBm-hqFjNH3Ay4edyIlOfbVGghNYW3QDrse4cGxxX6n9w9pbuU6hEhocT-BPpF_qnjD9vKjKvCConj5lTFnTEUma68r1E/s400/Hamlet%2527s+tail+feathers.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660762266926824610" border="0" /></a>He doesn't mind. He has much prettier tail feathers!<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0xDbPHJqI51bSdcEB1Tyz9QydkwirA6VeABC5m4v0oMGkdEoxo7sy7I577XcZrqMs4RfMt0MvtopnIAlPT8R5leRbMtist4QeC2UXEAlFQxFIV3HCJkjxwDZa7gIDTxze7JNM46VTsas/s1600/Ophelia%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0xDbPHJqI51bSdcEB1Tyz9QydkwirA6VeABC5m4v0oMGkdEoxo7sy7I577XcZrqMs4RfMt0MvtopnIAlPT8R5leRbMtist4QeC2UXEAlFQxFIV3HCJkjxwDZa7gIDTxze7JNM46VTsas/s400/Ophelia%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660762101613278274" border="0" /></a>One of the girls.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW3FFnUxi8OdjgvvwtVPgzlpy73YafHTF5kayA1RxaPoocLkpZWgLquj5A0aT-GCINujmOi0mDREMA30_dZFRwpsBtH_AxJV0UgiVk95RL834v9dG9VLapoF9eWV7qtkMU65VZfDEBj04/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+1%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW3FFnUxi8OdjgvvwtVPgzlpy73YafHTF5kayA1RxaPoocLkpZWgLquj5A0aT-GCINujmOi0mDREMA30_dZFRwpsBtH_AxJV0UgiVk95RL834v9dG9VLapoF9eWV7qtkMU65VZfDEBj04/s400/Chicken+coop+day+1%25232.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660761772259379346" border="0" /></a>First day build on the driveway. Probably last time all was level and flat<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP3eA5yVgSrExUmv7Zv69yxPfEBq-AGvBuPHt8HtkFkaVaJAOVPrvzPvFBLoyYUbGAksm46US7CKIH1NhZAfYN1ULnCBOhtaLi0b0qA9OpQ1cOa5_6dvLmNmb9mDbt_ZJygLIBO70b6-E/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP3eA5yVgSrExUmv7Zv69yxPfEBq-AGvBuPHt8HtkFkaVaJAOVPrvzPvFBLoyYUbGAksm46US7CKIH1NhZAfYN1ULnCBOhtaLi0b0qA9OpQ1cOa5_6dvLmNmb9mDbt_ZJygLIBO70b6-E/s400/Chicken+coop+day+1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660761619860423634" border="0" /></a>This is the decking and 6 very strong sturdy legs. These puppies were hard to cut with just a hand saw<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0BLdjtWy3jEvyudmtnyHeJTofcgvfG8r4nkHdgnUUs3nZvMvoUHuB5N6Zh9A2gy4cYDpsNDi7yrpNDudVdouNum-FADZ1tbrKvm_DR7mV3cc_YGKiuWA4BFDBNSkWaQDtFm2y-nOT4qE/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+1%25235.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0BLdjtWy3jEvyudmtnyHeJTofcgvfG8r4nkHdgnUUs3nZvMvoUHuB5N6Zh9A2gy4cYDpsNDi7yrpNDudVdouNum-FADZ1tbrKvm_DR7mV3cc_YGKiuWA4BFDBNSkWaQDtFm2y-nOT4qE/s400/Chicken+coop+day+1%25235.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660761482082785186" border="0" /></a>Flipped over and ready to move<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ4DnegRJ_rrsN9vGEjFilJBPBTXxGBzIdHjCvwFV8AUUPJP9PJtPNJDjXthibc7EQ3dAoZ9Sxi9efbUDQegt4j_g7qKnQU_hvBrgvw-f5LmhjEVj6u4fpxbITnIJaEPZMAvm-IG6fYH0/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+2%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ4DnegRJ_rrsN9vGEjFilJBPBTXxGBzIdHjCvwFV8AUUPJP9PJtPNJDjXthibc7EQ3dAoZ9Sxi9efbUDQegt4j_g7qKnQU_hvBrgvw-f5LmhjEVj6u4fpxbITnIJaEPZMAvm-IG6fYH0/s400/Chicken+coop+day+2%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660761279708272866" border="0" /></a>Now moved into it's pretty final position. Before I moved it 2 more times.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7v1mrzlcgO9zEK9XqElcIYnHW2UUHXOZLLHqF17DLmOySPRq5Yzcl9uPXF3ZPjemysbpWh8uVuxvERaGJFvUZeR4W8DcHZtQJNy-rLLhdtK98YosvlcMWHGxvPd6apDXZjlDBtI5KQgA/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+3+%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7v1mrzlcgO9zEK9XqElcIYnHW2UUHXOZLLHqF17DLmOySPRq5Yzcl9uPXF3ZPjemysbpWh8uVuxvERaGJFvUZeR4W8DcHZtQJNy-rLLhdtK98YosvlcMWHGxvPd6apDXZjlDBtI5KQgA/s400/Chicken+coop+day+3+%25232.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660761068741336498" border="0" /></a>First wall up. It needed a tad more support until I could get the next 2 walls attached.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH81KrNqfyDo1lhYPEcD6LM6wqiWxWKkvy6ctbTS0LSBiY0j78vXvbiEA62R0imbLa5OJhQ7vYbLbttTk_DaHc4Z2TGJwbbwDslAVKs_LP7uWz0TJ98md2Yn0szt9SQ6ZgZJeNna0uymA/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+4+%2526+5+%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH81KrNqfyDo1lhYPEcD6LM6wqiWxWKkvy6ctbTS0LSBiY0j78vXvbiEA62R0imbLa5OJhQ7vYbLbttTk_DaHc4Z2TGJwbbwDslAVKs_LP7uWz0TJ98md2Yn0szt9SQ6ZgZJeNna0uymA/s400/Chicken+coop+day+4+%2526+5+%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660760878203929842" border="0" /></a>2nd wall. This is the eventual ramp door<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvlfJD37mkpdBNXnsVA-y_TEZlxn7FcPgc3lWB3GEaG0zRHyP-w3Zeragji2uZ7BWoCKZ11kSQUNTED6J4Br5zPopk2X_tHeKdoOOSt__gjz99V1ie5jnFuOBS2ds68f3JsGUfYiQqmwg/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+4+%2526+5+%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvlfJD37mkpdBNXnsVA-y_TEZlxn7FcPgc3lWB3GEaG0zRHyP-w3Zeragji2uZ7BWoCKZ11kSQUNTED6J4Br5zPopk2X_tHeKdoOOSt__gjz99V1ie5jnFuOBS2ds68f3JsGUfYiQqmwg/s400/Chicken+coop+day+4+%2526+5+%25232.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660760724078772482" border="0" /></a>Back wall went up easily and the top of the front wall married in.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcxVgFPnp9a0ekTSa873GUSDSY2gzorHwAa8UYIwNCpHpFU7emL3j7AfA3-MVYjvdjEkHWO8beGJTp6LS_L8CWcf56UAeeHjXYsnANhxAnLOo6WzmfUqjsGudUZHyAPFT_oj5iregaDY8/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+4+%2526+5+coop+comparison.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcxVgFPnp9a0ekTSa873GUSDSY2gzorHwAa8UYIwNCpHpFU7emL3j7AfA3-MVYjvdjEkHWO8beGJTp6LS_L8CWcf56UAeeHjXYsnANhxAnLOo6WzmfUqjsGudUZHyAPFT_oj5iregaDY8/s400/Chicken+coop+day+4+%2526+5+coop+comparison.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660759999514337842" border="0" /></a>In comparison. Hard to tell but the chickies are very crowded in their old digs.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN1dFehU1vKRLsA_ZaHoTyvTDJRCxtFS7pgipKO6RvUgJ_nuKbAPa1OpEKDaU_ebQC6tFlRQ20oYvVotsvBkeSu5uXwaDThtNrJMSb6xNPgYvwrn_Tpdc5ffA8ZqM0aYrUKsuyRd_3gs4/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+egg+box+construction%25236.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN1dFehU1vKRLsA_ZaHoTyvTDJRCxtFS7pgipKO6RvUgJ_nuKbAPa1OpEKDaU_ebQC6tFlRQ20oYvVotsvBkeSu5uXwaDThtNrJMSb6xNPgYvwrn_Tpdc5ffA8ZqM0aYrUKsuyRd_3gs4/s400/Chicken+coop+day+egg+box+construction%25236.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660759825550998914" border="0" /></a>The framing to the egg box. This was easy.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhcfu7zU2Hegk0uWonctVCK6DFd6M1ezlV4uWzyXxo3YtyovRTlcpVRnQgOJ8p94sV5Y1y6ErNWny3BptAa1FT02sWakKTvoNaIrVD3RmIvqBJ23HW6HXhlUHHuMs52pWQJekec3lEH94/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+egg+box+construction%25233.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhcfu7zU2Hegk0uWonctVCK6DFd6M1ezlV4uWzyXxo3YtyovRTlcpVRnQgOJ8p94sV5Y1y6ErNWny3BptAa1FT02sWakKTvoNaIrVD3RmIvqBJ23HW6HXhlUHHuMs52pWQJekec3lEH94/s400/Chicken+coop+day+egg+box+construction%25233.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660759648624587426" border="0" /></a>It got harder the next day.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisPy-k0KZXP4Sx_rhBdAnXlTdYnh7Xt6ksjLhnw-NpNjoLrRK2OkZJUwIV1HxY6HJGLDjMsTsawTZQO7i9qCgu2viQRXrDiMH6sx9W71yNg49_wyaO-nAjgj5tcgHiPWK1ZAbJ5VDjuwE/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+egg+box+construction%25235.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisPy-k0KZXP4Sx_rhBdAnXlTdYnh7Xt6ksjLhnw-NpNjoLrRK2OkZJUwIV1HxY6HJGLDjMsTsawTZQO7i9qCgu2viQRXrDiMH6sx9W71yNg49_wyaO-nAjgj5tcgHiPWK1ZAbJ5VDjuwE/s400/Chicken+coop+day+egg+box+construction%25235.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660759478583086914" border="0" /></a>Figuring out how to frame it all out and make dividers taxed my simple mind.<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQyoe2XvpJ7fZkOhgAQx1I4cPCYaNu_GZRHTdaHWkmoaNV7p7kORcqgdZLF1cElVLVty_0M_gZIQHxp4NStImX_Q2zI49MbQnUI2A96nvl2vaL17myWYQl3EKF1sBv7HCEhjEhE5woq8k/s1600/Chicken+coop+inside+framing+and+roof+joists%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQyoe2XvpJ7fZkOhgAQx1I4cPCYaNu_GZRHTdaHWkmoaNV7p7kORcqgdZLF1cElVLVty_0M_gZIQHxp4NStImX_Q2zI49MbQnUI2A96nvl2vaL17myWYQl3EKF1sBv7HCEhjEhE5woq8k/s400/Chicken+coop+inside+framing+and+roof+joists%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660759294864871266" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">But I got it done and moved on to frame out the rest of the inside.<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDSBfnPaU7XxlJ-EuSDd-R7A4P1AGVP98XHaK1Xx_A51-PHWHRKEDsfBtdLBIxuypYVFqYx9Ojp3h3BQ8jg6ZEcOVzuwHm9xmqqHloQH7ZMk1FFYbvKEK_S42oQKb031caJzsOhSc9Nx4/s1600/Chicken+coop+looking+up+to+the+sky%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDSBfnPaU7XxlJ-EuSDd-R7A4P1AGVP98XHaK1Xx_A51-PHWHRKEDsfBtdLBIxuypYVFqYx9Ojp3h3BQ8jg6ZEcOVzuwHm9xmqqHloQH7ZMk1FFYbvKEK_S42oQKb031caJzsOhSc9Nx4/s400/Chicken+coop+looking+up+to+the+sky%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660758916222976386" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Including the roof<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJCdww8WCanzryQ2WrljLfIhkIa-ysD1CVTHbMSuC21gPte9YGkkpNtFjHPKuib2ogjWo6RU-ZdIrHDRMs4V1Ktbd4-u8liYDRKSCM-34kC8Do5ePJuy5qkAXok-swpLYTJpBDNHplMM4/s1600/Chicken+coop+looking+up+to+the+sky%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJCdww8WCanzryQ2WrljLfIhkIa-ysD1CVTHbMSuC21gPte9YGkkpNtFjHPKuib2ogjWo6RU-ZdIrHDRMs4V1Ktbd4-u8liYDRKSCM-34kC8Do5ePJuy5qkAXok-swpLYTJpBDNHplMM4/s400/Chicken+coop+looking+up+to+the+sky%25232.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660759050407946738" border="0" /></a>These translucent panels will let more light in during the winter. Better for egg laying<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOrZT5xSk4wy1u76Yj9kndVBGcrIwsRkUuqd1sH-Ni4DMmP-gLlkyk8qSiL2bYhgACNHHMG4GMh9RxXeqCNmzZj7316rz-h7qLlFgli_TGv6oQdNVdANk7VJHyd2iq4YENcy_cX38_tWQ/s1600/Chicken+coop+front+side+%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOrZT5xSk4wy1u76Yj9kndVBGcrIwsRkUuqd1sH-Ni4DMmP-gLlkyk8qSiL2bYhgACNHHMG4GMh9RxXeqCNmzZj7316rz-h7qLlFgli_TGv6oQdNVdANk7VJHyd2iq4YENcy_cX38_tWQ/s400/Chicken+coop+front+side+%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660758728714962002" border="0" /></a>Now to get the front built.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7kxeeA0dpqBxvKl6KOS_TuAwq-kvWfuCE2iCGotH_uMskUr5acawbOccWtm0nQRdzO4LfwSkHOUtyll1hieQFDzmmMI_Fl075N5qAbxM6qw2C15q29jU14QbsiZNOgCWoJG1gAHIgpMk/s1600/Chicken+coop+front+side+%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7kxeeA0dpqBxvKl6KOS_TuAwq-kvWfuCE2iCGotH_uMskUr5acawbOccWtm0nQRdzO4LfwSkHOUtyll1hieQFDzmmMI_Fl075N5qAbxM6qw2C15q29jU14QbsiZNOgCWoJG1gAHIgpMk/s400/Chicken+coop+front+side+%25232.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660758480623700498" border="0" /></a>Nice big doors so the coop can be cleaned out easily<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwT_iAf5O75oHeWNOYX7I6pRsQ8heCmHTkUcxULIDs6RfjZy2JwxhCRvNzt_RedCR3hr4qusmwRUacUCFyC8b_2w0JVYrOSQLkht-ZC0R4weNXiT6UEASCk0Baq1dcY-aZWpzmcf1Tv0c/s1600/Chicken+coop+front+side+of+coop%252C+back+side+of+Holly.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwT_iAf5O75oHeWNOYX7I6pRsQ8heCmHTkUcxULIDs6RfjZy2JwxhCRvNzt_RedCR3hr4qusmwRUacUCFyC8b_2w0JVYrOSQLkht-ZC0R4weNXiT6UEASCk0Baq1dcY-aZWpzmcf1Tv0c/s400/Chicken+coop+front+side+of+coop%252C+back+side+of+Holly.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660758345527386146" border="0" /></a>No, the gap in the middle of the doors was not a mistake. All in my plans.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZm-S6Fn67c32FYL9FIeO2srGflPzor50YxTQy2uKAVtS97tYvLTkRDFTsEkWBHrMeHoxNXZ7hg2AxXBq-I08Hw6Q1RZ9_RIS0XILribUUTNSXvN8HkCTTKstrR7dZdZ4oWg5AT7Rf2eQ/s1600/Chicken+coop+first+paint%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZm-S6Fn67c32FYL9FIeO2srGflPzor50YxTQy2uKAVtS97tYvLTkRDFTsEkWBHrMeHoxNXZ7hg2AxXBq-I08Hw6Q1RZ9_RIS0XILribUUTNSXvN8HkCTTKstrR7dZdZ4oWg5AT7Rf2eQ/s400/Chicken+coop+first+paint%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660758176358045362" border="0" /></a>I wanted to cover the gap with a trim board. Makes it better when the wood all swells during the hot humid summers we have here.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivE28-Mbguz1PYG200tiREvq5iUbRhDkVUT7BMJHMnUWfF94YVrM3obQNmWctWL7kg5VmDARzj0ESw4jl5AwncgAxYQUs_YolrHUvhLn9CyRBC3Hlp2_0OjZ9akPgwatuyaTqrAmGoMLA/s1600/chicken+coop+front+decorations%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivE28-Mbguz1PYG200tiREvq5iUbRhDkVUT7BMJHMnUWfF94YVrM3obQNmWctWL7kg5VmDARzj0ESw4jl5AwncgAxYQUs_YolrHUvhLn9CyRBC3Hlp2_0OjZ9akPgwatuyaTqrAmGoMLA/s400/chicken+coop+front+decorations%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660758039614500770" border="0" /></a>Now after reading "Art of the Chicken Coop" I just had to add some interesting details. These are vintage cast iron and I spray painted them with Rustoleum for protection.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiyIgAw4ELZS39LLTCm8qfOzO6gdQ4Wo_syUWpJuQMbPyqXD3Nkpyymaa7CYrBks0dGImiL1MiB9jPkZ7C9LGzA0p7NZ1vUCy4yQp4B8OH6unIAU0QR_ta02UZ7q6lHUcvD8d_zpitFrA/s1600/chicken+coop+front+decorations%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiyIgAw4ELZS39LLTCm8qfOzO6gdQ4Wo_syUWpJuQMbPyqXD3Nkpyymaa7CYrBks0dGImiL1MiB9jPkZ7C9LGzA0p7NZ1vUCy4yQp4B8OH6unIAU0QR_ta02UZ7q6lHUcvD8d_zpitFrA/s400/chicken+coop+front+decorations%25232.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660757884093783346" border="0" /></a>Close up of Iron Rooster. I have a bid on ebay for some cast iron sunflowers, probably from the same time period. I will add those, if I win, to the centers of the doors.<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiYHh_DPKD0O5Medcw5zuxRyNPh37kakFM1UnTErKFdrVnl9RJRYbdSk2OiO-nojt0j83yum_38KXEo8ZRvR4xYHNapgL2ydjCYJMhvwegRFDAwzp5zrdOLzk4SpH_lyEj0_M73H5z_Us/s1600/chicken+coop+%2526+run+%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiYHh_DPKD0O5Medcw5zuxRyNPh37kakFM1UnTErKFdrVnl9RJRYbdSk2OiO-nojt0j83yum_38KXEo8ZRvR4xYHNapgL2ydjCYJMhvwegRFDAwzp5zrdOLzk4SpH_lyEj0_M73H5z_Us/s400/chicken+coop+%2526+run+%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660757485542308178" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Here we go with the run. I know it does not show but my only really big mistake happens here. The 2 long boards attached to the coop to support the run are not attached at the same level and later on that proves to cause a bit of frustration when attaching the wire to the run. But it worked out and after all, it is just a chicken coop.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTyJbUhoeFpCj7QPwDMVTR3BaBwmySMKYPTSr3aw6H7I6cEyVmFMFiYKk9tIaBkowVHgM2XBDhFnIskW8cw3mBVXG-eau49q7ZIdGWpigeoHtwCw47ZjdAMgqHoqXU0u_1zT6dvRQxt4k/s1600/chicken+coop+%2526+run+%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTyJbUhoeFpCj7QPwDMVTR3BaBwmySMKYPTSr3aw6H7I6cEyVmFMFiYKk9tIaBkowVHgM2XBDhFnIskW8cw3mBVXG-eau49q7ZIdGWpigeoHtwCw47ZjdAMgqHoqXU0u_1zT6dvRQxt4k/s400/chicken+coop+%2526+run+%25232.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660757609464459938" border="0" /></a>More of the run done.<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXLy-Fyd1EmCnNrCvBCQfKDVX4c_PR0RxghZITJXsvy04gL3EFzYLWLAO0UTV5r1olAu2xmkYBPh8p8_yVZnVSxHE8WzySdvS_LrrlMDKZpguwWc4JykAz5NnrzoxjJlv7UiiZ-IqETB4/s1600/chicken+coop+pretty+much+done%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXLy-Fyd1EmCnNrCvBCQfKDVX4c_PR0RxghZITJXsvy04gL3EFzYLWLAO0UTV5r1olAu2xmkYBPh8p8_yVZnVSxHE8WzySdvS_LrrlMDKZpguwWc4JykAz5NnrzoxjJlv7UiiZ-IqETB4/s400/chicken+coop+pretty+much+done%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660756559959410866" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Including the cute chicken run ladder. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd8isdHCHzhNIgCyc2YjpFoMzYy43WDVdiwQ8WMSiEp06yh7DJP55yfcomYpBjD9vI5yvDv3d_zEKU3oOorl3OXiJsEnhLCM958F1ZhClOJYWz7tkh50Wq8zVXeTr_nM2ZxcLuD6odODw/s1600/chicken+coop+getting+ready+to+move+in%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd8isdHCHzhNIgCyc2YjpFoMzYy43WDVdiwQ8WMSiEp06yh7DJP55yfcomYpBjD9vI5yvDv3d_zEKU3oOorl3OXiJsEnhLCM958F1ZhClOJYWz7tkh50Wq8zVXeTr_nM2ZxcLuD6odODw/s400/chicken+coop+getting+ready+to+move+in%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660756933131220786" border="0" /></a>Almost ready to move in.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEMSdAvqQUcEjaoUGLeG8mUq-7mA5wFv3mJjwfyNyFKx6fJCK4I0qlSFnIgqwVchcvKhk0McjW8bEsF4zZFUmsTch8gXxkR5y2tuKHjhREKT-758a5tmr84YVutHNX03jW0Ezb2-jW8wQ/s1600/chicken+coop+moving+day%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEMSdAvqQUcEjaoUGLeG8mUq-7mA5wFv3mJjwfyNyFKx6fJCK4I0qlSFnIgqwVchcvKhk0McjW8bEsF4zZFUmsTch8gXxkR5y2tuKHjhREKT-758a5tmr84YVutHNX03jW0Ezb2-jW8wQ/s400/chicken+coop+moving+day%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660756368408267202" border="0" /></a>Moving day at last!<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkTmUMbXj09h_3se9L28poTYqRsaT0LQN0QeZTU1uXYVzENmoo4ZtrdKIjzB8c_IEAx1hF7WEmhAeUGku5GRN0i1XiHoKAtJnBm1GaGeqcWbIzm_GElbqhCds1vYwSQ_ouR5AYzKN8O2c/s1600/chicken+coop+oh+no+this+is+scary%25231.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkTmUMbXj09h_3se9L28poTYqRsaT0LQN0QeZTU1uXYVzENmoo4ZtrdKIjzB8c_IEAx1hF7WEmhAeUGku5GRN0i1XiHoKAtJnBm1GaGeqcWbIzm_GElbqhCds1vYwSQ_ouR5AYzKN8O2c/s400/chicken+coop+oh+no+this+is+scary%25231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660756019534397874" border="0" /></a>After a hilarious evening of trying to get the chickens from the run to the coop, the night passed by uneventfully. But in the morning no one was brave enough to go down the ladder. I finally opened the coop front doors and gently convinced on of the roosters to go down the ladder. The rest followed within a few minutes. But it did take some real concentration and bravery on the hens part<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfLdiACJEE8sjNkKn5W3lnMmAdYdsVmaj_94p1RAGNggKhp9DkPVGHXviX9z9-SunkfQ17z4vmSvSGV3P5xJu1rtEUlTAMaAJsba6JuiBnqvyU3JIPINKfbx1mEwWrSijBkrIBatjVSPU/s1600/chicken+coop+oh+no+this+is+scary%25232.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfLdiACJEE8sjNkKn5W3lnMmAdYdsVmaj_94p1RAGNggKhp9DkPVGHXviX9z9-SunkfQ17z4vmSvSGV3P5xJu1rtEUlTAMaAJsba6JuiBnqvyU3JIPINKfbx1mEwWrSijBkrIBatjVSPU/s400/chicken+coop+oh+no+this+is+scary%25232.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660755852149234882" border="0" /></a>It sure looks scary from here<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj46tsRtQZKb3rB_pK_KNHjV29ta8Azl86Qlm-6iDQory_JKj1z5O_q6FGk5bxGrd4cxdVHHNCI40slxOe3SycBZHAFkkGXXRSDjauRN1ngp0Vex5xF1RtsgWpPi8YKGzst_7KN4O1ZwZM/s1600/chicken+coop+oh+no+this+is+scary+but+I+can+do+it+here+I+go.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj46tsRtQZKb3rB_pK_KNHjV29ta8Azl86Qlm-6iDQory_JKj1z5O_q6FGk5bxGrd4cxdVHHNCI40slxOe3SycBZHAFkkGXXRSDjauRN1ngp0Vex5xF1RtsgWpPi8YKGzst_7KN4O1ZwZM/s400/chicken+coop+oh+no+this+is+scary+but+I+can+do+it+here+I+go.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660755696668421778" border="0" /></a>But here I go<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnzqPKKAd45-Ia12WhRPOUMlesI_0kJO3bMosn2lmAUJE9KWaetyYF-CyMdMKMsucDUIPVTkjxzffkDTcV8ruHWky2yl7Dd2PqH5vUooa_2pbzQhNldYuEmMHtzWniiDz8ebjLQikkZwM/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+2%25231.jpg"><br /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM0bvvoGM4dkAhiwn4f0m3LzEL6qH2JqqqFf_rGAjXS8DKlssUeCzBA16dR7POy61utThf1ri8nA30aWt69V2r1b9t14xbB7aJkQI2q-Mq5bVxNdu-noRGRP6971ldCdBFlPkk8jasPEo/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+1%25235.jpg"><br /></a>All in all, I am terribly proud of this project. Yes, there are mistakes. And things I just could have planned better. If it had not been close to 100 degrees for the first 10 days of the build I would have totally excavated the site and got it all totally leveled out. And put in concrete footers. And so on and so forth. But it was close to 100 and I just didn't have it in me. So where it sits it is very very happy. But a bit on the sloped side. It slopes to the front which i figure will make it easier to clean out when i need to. But it also makes the water dish inside want to leak out so I need to find a better way to deal with that. I am also now having to carry concrete blocks over from the garden to surround the outside bottom of the run. I figure even tho I buried some of the wire fencing, this will help discourage raccoons. I haven't had any problem with them yet but they are in the area and could try to dig under. I will eventually replace the cinder blocks with big flat square paving stones. But I have other things to do first. To include walking 60 miles in 3 days. <br /><br />I am not totally happy with the roofing. The translucent panels were tough to cut straight and did not screw down over the trim pieces just right. Oh well. It is probably because the 3 panels overlapped properly were meant to cover 72" and I forced them to cover about 73.5" That is another thing that I never gave a thought to when I cut the very first piece of plywood that became the floor to the coop. I guess that is why I worked in medicine for over 30 years and did not take up carpentry for a living!!<br /><br />I am going to get this posted and then do a separate post for my other summer projects. Neither of them involve nearly so much work. Ok, the pond did come close.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt-IDLoxmKfja9mWAChDPdo1awHdzWXZaAGXtYm3dR8f-zBPd-FsyHw1axqINahxS4ATmsR11FWYwYv8xkqkyCQotqF2Up1sS1wU2iL966z0f9LAxGpVDfpmACm_X9LoJLhKG0GIEquF4/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+1%25234.jpg"><br /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsbUtDYzgPuc-OFlNvUMzI9JpGjR5Jg0pmaVGrkw6B17wA8uiPQT5eZMZCQuiYgyPmiX-uO6ZrljmOY451JvD7mjaX8hdvWFknm1HUbxFEY1MTvCqd07RpzBJ_CS4at1wj8VLsJKPBsSY/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+1%25233.jpg"><br /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp3AmRF8nxsLeknKz10trojsQwVc8yoJHprYSLMHIySEK3zlUYNJwXReM5_OCPLNogJh63HcFF2D6K324sjjoanceFGpeHM-KE7hjDlCW0W1SVqdG1-yDch6ViGTrcAJKLI2h_odw074g/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+1%25232.jpg"><br /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsh2_h19u2SUdu0P6XO1ztNu35KqqmNs7mLI-VURo_HxNRbdgbXXdPEwpIbY4A5RNPowVlBUI6jby7fQxq6tiF7bgVoUVxaqU5yEe8JaKBRa35MldK2KKMqRep9xba6-FLcMufZ1uWhE8/s1600/Chicken+coop+day+1.jpg"><br /></a>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-19118971723545792722011-05-27T07:37:00.001-07:002011-05-27T11:40:03.255-07:00Cute chickens, if I have to say so myself!!<div align="left">So it has been a few weeks. And of course, the chicks are starting to grow up pretty fast. They transitioned out into their coop a few weeks back and that all went fairly smoothly. Except for the 2nd day, when it was still too cold for them at night. I needed to get them back out of the coop and take them into the house before I had frozen chickens. The first night they were all snuggled up next to the door waiting to go back in the house. The 2nd night though, they ran away from me no matter which door I tried to use to get them back out. So eventually I had to belly crawl into the coop and bring them out one at a time. You can only imagine that the clothes I was wearing went straight into the wash!!<br /><br />The next phase came when we left them out in the coop all night. They have plenty of room down on the bottom level to run during the day. But at night they need to go upstairs and roost where it is safe. But they weren't really all that adept at figuring out the ramp that goes between. So I had to go out after it started getting fairly dark and pick them up, one at a time, from the bottom corner where they were huddled and put them into the top thru the egg door. Then the ramp door got closed up to keep any night time predators from being able to dig under the chicken wire to get at them while they slept. In the morning we let down the ramp but the chickens weren't so keen on going down by themselves. So I figured out if I threw feed all over the ramp that they would follow the feed back down. It worked quite well. But getting them to go back up by themselves at night was harder to accomplish. So for about a week I would pick them up, one at a time and move them up thru the egg door. I really didn't mind all that much, cause a sleepy chicken is a sweet cuddly chicken. But honestly, going out and doing all this after dark was an issue. But finally one night, 2 had gone up by themselves. The next night, 4 and then finally they all got the idea.<br /><br />The last step in all of this was to start letting them free range for an hour or so every evening. The first night I let them out was so cute. They came out a bit cautious. But then realized how much more they could do out of the coop. They stretched their wings and took short flights and headed straight for the garden. Since then they have gotten so used to getting out at night, that they line up at the door when they think it is time. We have had no trouble getting them back in the coop at night. When the sun sinks just below the top of the treeline, they head back in, like March of the Chickens. Except for one guy(we think), that is way more independent. Sometimes he takes longer but eventually he gets in there and all is well.<br /><br />Most people say chickens will tear up your garden. But so far, we have not found that to be true. They love a little weed called oxalis and will eat that til they are stuffed. They like english peas but only if I shell them out for them. They don't seem to pick at the pea plants much at all. I am not sure what I will do for treats once the peas are done and that day is fast approaching with our summer heat setting in. I love when they peck for bugs. They scratch thru the leaves we are using for garden mulch this year and when they find a bug, they pick it up and then set it down to observe it before they eat it. Then when they are done, they do this sideways swipe of their beak on the ground, both sides, like they were wiping their mouths with a napkin!! And if they see a flying bug it is even funnier as they run to catch them. Wish I could get a decent pic of that, but all I ever get is a big blur.<br /><br />We still don't know for sure if we have 1 rooster and 5 hens, or 2 roos with 4 hens, or even 3 of each. I am banding their ankles so I can tell the 4 more similar ones apart but I am still waiting to finalize those 4 names. Hamlet and Ophelia are sticking cause I am still pretty sure I have those 2 right.<br /><br />Now for pics......enjoy<br /><br /></div><br /><p align="center"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5611410077527106786" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp2phWmOKDA3m_JO1xV_aDP3Uhv30rWPnvb4Y8_2D28wFdk_Oe3-nMPfLYAjTGJ6_ArwClJ_vv89qcDzhj7JzpUpRnmtOXzfrHmfGkt4UQ6HpRM2obYhlslur-mEAaYQxIwMkVALeVvLo/s400/Hamlet+%2526+Ophelia%25233.jpg" /> Hamlet and Ophelia<br /><br /></p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5611410067846026162" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWCcVtSszqxkmThYDEE5uHVUfpgTPoHHUsjcM6hUeq5Wm7g0_qV3qSLY3iLgmgB78cQF5G_-TXScOfGERw4ZMs8rUv9aTUjZnhKg5oqF8TZjyjqDTE3PFXa3sLxAbgagjywunpZgeVgHE/s400/Hamlet+%2526+Ophelia%25232.jpg" /><br /><br /><p align="center">Hamlet and Ophelia dust bathing<br /><br /></p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5611410063556025922" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdA0L2S2IOm7wdkRjGj0qCg_6RUU82NAnwQeLhdYkIuqRFXDtIuwefTnl4Ft44VXx4LsM68kZeyGp7HZfHawqT16xVeJ7EejMhpxjR8S3J1i0tu99OacP18FDr8VuFut1N79AzEZ90V0A/s400/Hamlet+%2526+Ophelia%25231.jpg" /><br /><br /><p align="center">I love how Hamlet is so much redder and Ophelia is almost white<br /><br /></p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5611410059393303138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO-QlZSgpVIxcz00Xezs_nTb6_13qQGBJXRAZPZQV_TnIKF5Z__z44VZzpAqN8l8Dn_1DF8iw-5rJedITttAapHaDYPoSGOJPSWTCNSuB3qK1K059wIHjoHT_8HOQGyF5q6Acm-r8SF0k/s400/Dust+bath%25232.jpg" /><br /><br /><br /><p align="center">A big dusty ball of chickies<br /><br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjt29La3Ju4N2MJdx0ex4YYsiRDQXuvDrySOZQ8PtnmtYGU4RrIGu4vZm49f_t5TLgZm8aZ8sF6BSKLSg1dhPW6PDw92Ilro2j3SvOajiZqw8qXE8GuvWwe-CFw4HxoOsbRMSOgEUK-C4/s1600/Dust+bath%25231.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5611410052436639570" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjt29La3Ju4N2MJdx0ex4YYsiRDQXuvDrySOZQ8PtnmtYGU4RrIGu4vZm49f_t5TLgZm8aZ8sF6BSKLSg1dhPW6PDw92Ilro2j3SvOajiZqw8qXE8GuvWwe-CFw4HxoOsbRMSOgEUK-C4/s400/Dust+bath%25231.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY2DqIODbA125T5iUEM9sTxajnb0gSTFpqDikF4FS9b8MC_BHNLQmIIQx7xDrnNknzxEI6ATnX172tm44cLrTUVmH2FNDp9unr6FsZUSO8V2XaS9zyefCxKJu1VsDj9yGEjdKiurdxTL4/s1600/001.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5611409582084154626" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY2DqIODbA125T5iUEM9sTxajnb0gSTFpqDikF4FS9b8MC_BHNLQmIIQx7xDrnNknzxEI6ATnX172tm44cLrTUVmH2FNDp9unr6FsZUSO8V2XaS9zyefCxKJu1VsDj9yGEjdKiurdxTL4/s400/001.jpg" /><br /><br /><p align="center"></a>Hamlet in his glory<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdpdgoEDsXi9Hfx-1hnLB-tkZQCACa3pT33222uBBNJW-iUhHxceMXEVISbyZojTf7x0SM741_W_wqQPnsNvOJa0VVKyC9IvAG1oOp0O-p-ssoFHHRDjP4kclZCwwnQcUKWOUhjpybI2Y/s1600/Ophelia%25231.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5611465238745836626" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdpdgoEDsXi9Hfx-1hnLB-tkZQCACa3pT33222uBBNJW-iUhHxceMXEVISbyZojTf7x0SM741_W_wqQPnsNvOJa0VVKyC9IvAG1oOp0O-p-ssoFHHRDjP4kclZCwwnQcUKWOUhjpybI2Y/s400/Ophelia%25231.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs6gHlKwQ8kkI4AoKhcKt9sORDliHQPkr6BS4G_-W9EIDZCW5r-GvEsWMxxVdLw3E5to8dc8EWygrkQt7Y3C7o2n50BOXYMPezWPVV-MQbxsTLuk3I3EKQVUXzF_N4E9NlnqvkcAa3ECs/s1600/Hamlet%25232.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5611465236814420530" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs6gHlKwQ8kkI4AoKhcKt9sORDliHQPkr6BS4G_-W9EIDZCW5r-GvEsWMxxVdLw3E5to8dc8EWygrkQt7Y3C7o2n50BOXYMPezWPVV-MQbxsTLuk3I3EKQVUXzF_N4E9NlnqvkcAa3ECs/s400/Hamlet%25232.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgexou4kwI5DcUnFTZTRhTkRxFsmPNvdVTDelg-lSTrKC-w3PS7A4sr4EII_jOIgZU7Xr_16kq8AcLulCUsW8mGAMaLISC7XPjSfkc2jEAg8ue8x9q5kGzeDbZajEjC_GWDTJfEfCty1H8/s1600/Hamlet+and+the+girls.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5611465230296842850" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgexou4kwI5DcUnFTZTRhTkRxFsmPNvdVTDelg-lSTrKC-w3PS7A4sr4EII_jOIgZU7Xr_16kq8AcLulCUsW8mGAMaLISC7XPjSfkc2jEAg8ue8x9q5kGzeDbZajEjC_GWDTJfEfCty1H8/s400/Hamlet+and+the+girls.jpg" /></a><br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu0NbowteKiVZWMpEaLHxoSDpiGKxO0bA-zh5IDnmMmHpZ0co25QrhEy9OnEK_LCofcPt7tWS9OJw4WKFKFIyw4Wl4NUwX1z54OkVHclMyg-PC5T6CuQ3dRzru2dTnWMjoExbnr-TZpww/s1600/Holly+while+chickens+are+free+range.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5611465247454346306" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu0NbowteKiVZWMpEaLHxoSDpiGKxO0bA-zh5IDnmMmHpZ0co25QrhEy9OnEK_LCofcPt7tWS9OJw4WKFKFIyw4Wl4NUwX1z54OkVHclMyg-PC5T6CuQ3dRzru2dTnWMjoExbnr-TZpww/s400/Holly+while+chickens+are+free+range.jpg" /> <br /><p align="center"></a>This is where doggies must be when chickies are roaming<br />Poor poor Holly!</p>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-10679820556603155372011-04-20T06:59:00.000-07:002011-04-20T07:29:41.378-07:00Spring Is Definitely, Probably, Maybe HereWe have had some lovely spells of weather this spring. And just about the time we feel like it is finally going to stay that way, we drop down to right at 32 degrees and things get nipped back a bit. But I really do think all that is behind us and now we can move on and things can really start growing.<br /><br />First thing that is growing around here is our menagarie!! We have finally added our first chickens to the family. 6 little darling Red Wyandottes. Right now they are in a brooder box in the house but quickly outgrowing the need for that. I figure about 2 more weeks and if the weather indeed stays warm then we will put them out into the new coop, built mostly by me. Ken did help in the beginning because it simply needed more than one person to hold things while the other drove in the screws. But after the skeleton was in place, I did the rest by myself, thank you very much!! This is really considered a chicken tractor because it will be constantly moved around the perimeter of the garden. But this baby is heavy so we won't be ever moving it far at any one time.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXvNhkCMAWQdJ_d5NCaPC3yPzoHi1UYyzXEO3Ukk_C3QbIGuSoakCNP1OUz3IgKTf6DfihOugZTZGtEacpbc4M9euspENibPRM76GSfF6nIKzMaw7ShjyQWF4EHwjjeBa1MIBwFKda0s8/s1600/Chicken+coop%25231.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597666445877927778" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXvNhkCMAWQdJ_d5NCaPC3yPzoHi1UYyzXEO3Ukk_C3QbIGuSoakCNP1OUz3IgKTf6DfihOugZTZGtEacpbc4M9euspENibPRM76GSfF6nIKzMaw7ShjyQWF4EHwjjeBa1MIBwFKda0s8/s400/Chicken+coop%25231.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy2jWJ05i3Imt3hC5lrvT8pcY23xCgkl2IWYol3BkmVhfsSULv9KLglQ1PDdvxjyC2SKKh43ZqT34yHG1PUUCK-9C1bGQT1t8c64Fko_S_MtGeB28IPF2rYSATqQPyZhLCtPAJ-0D-BSs/s1600/Chicken+coop%25232.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597666665878130818" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy2jWJ05i3Imt3hC5lrvT8pcY23xCgkl2IWYol3BkmVhfsSULv9KLglQ1PDdvxjyC2SKKh43ZqT34yHG1PUUCK-9C1bGQT1t8c64Fko_S_MtGeB28IPF2rYSATqQPyZhLCtPAJ-0D-BSs/s400/Chicken+coop%25232.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br />The chickens are actually 2 different ages, but from the same breed. I am not sure if the parents were the same as the girl I bought them from had a decent sized flock. But the 2 bigger chicks are a week older than the other 4. The one I think is a rooster is the darker red and his name is Hamlet. Just came to me that it had to be Hamlet. So the one I think is a girl, the blond chickie, is now named Ophelia. She seems to be the one that will be the mother hen, or ruler of the coop. The other 4, younger chicks do have names. They just haven't been permanantly assigned which one quite yet. They are so identical in appearance and I am waiting for some sign of differences before I hand on their monikers. The 4 names are all girl because that is what I am so hoping for. Dorcus, Mopsa, Portia and Rosiland. All from Shakespere of course. All rowdy minor characters, which seemed fitting for my flock!!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHD5MHIDJkxc-u3vHUmLgqDocHBKmZhZaCUwvmF0-zHPbzXOo25fP_EYIdk_DzjFOSq-VUOK3mixMqrQ8Mkl9WEPk4C_5MwGNW-kTKOMbJtvknS4YIyDVwTaTsH5pdXVmmQOfsCwo1uWM/s1600/All+the+chicks.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597668008258654658" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHD5MHIDJkxc-u3vHUmLgqDocHBKmZhZaCUwvmF0-zHPbzXOo25fP_EYIdk_DzjFOSq-VUOK3mixMqrQ8Mkl9WEPk4C_5MwGNW-kTKOMbJtvknS4YIyDVwTaTsH5pdXVmmQOfsCwo1uWM/s400/All+the+chicks.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwGEpLhojrqG9U38hDd-mrVYL57ZAnJwC-gxSNzFXpTGWorFBv1J-ChoNUx1XWwHLsHtZPux92cL-zC2JBSE2LIOxGcLGfyH1fxgV0cplCiw2Gw27HBdbjhs6CD0GLJTbPhWlCZE2qZXY/s1600/Chicks+a+little+older%25231.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597668404169909554" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwGEpLhojrqG9U38hDd-mrVYL57ZAnJwC-gxSNzFXpTGWorFBv1J-ChoNUx1XWwHLsHtZPux92cL-zC2JBSE2LIOxGcLGfyH1fxgV0cplCiw2Gw27HBdbjhs6CD0GLJTbPhWlCZE2qZXY/s400/Chicks+a+little+older%25231.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhquXNRzAjZGE8vpxn0VBA85Q2XAX2H-mHr2rwHq2hTrYJPUVHH7XmIdCjgGl2DjhUoPIIsJlL4a_kbK7VJFdqkgmN-JB4gid28XLUuQh-mOwAT4V_Qc3R4sXFV7jbTHvlv2tQhpqBEEiw/s1600/Mother+hen+Ophelia.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 286px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597668655760389682" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhquXNRzAjZGE8vpxn0VBA85Q2XAX2H-mHr2rwHq2hTrYJPUVHH7XmIdCjgGl2DjhUoPIIsJlL4a_kbK7VJFdqkgmN-JB4gid28XLUuQh-mOwAT4V_Qc3R4sXFV7jbTHvlv2tQhpqBEEiw/s400/Mother+hen+Ophelia.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9jqu1I2izThCgJYXCPSO1I2Sg60Ze2WIEXB1DlFs82Z-GgwOCwKJVhw-YSAhUOXYgIcE2PbKIsJFoy1PQSXt8qaDaMPLSs5JoR1KohTcpNyKtAPUbH9v75Cv5plfQmOVHXrJgmpFmbUw/s1600/Ophelia+again.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597668920093596706" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9jqu1I2izThCgJYXCPSO1I2Sg60Ze2WIEXB1DlFs82Z-GgwOCwKJVhw-YSAhUOXYgIcE2PbKIsJFoy1PQSXt8qaDaMPLSs5JoR1KohTcpNyKtAPUbH9v75Cv5plfQmOVHXrJgmpFmbUw/s400/Ophelia+again.jpg" /></a><br /><br />Another thing in full growth mode is the guest garden. I am really enjoying seeing things I planted last year finally come into flower for the first time. And the bare spots filling in with either plants or garden bric a brac. I have really haunted some antique and thrift stores lately and have gotten some great things. I found the 2 really great metal chairs for $20.00 each and then painted them. The baby bathtub is the cutest thing and will probably get filled with potted plants once I decide where I want to actually put it. The crosses on the wall I had in Oklahoma and am just getting around to hanging out. The little bunnies are concrete and were on sale for next to nothing at TJ Maxx of all places.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRtO5VxL-4L2Z5lxCupcpXg_9QsnXTZZ5JvIsfrUhQluoceQk5adZLF6WaHJJ81YUMwtJawqeZyt_tuXcjz_BUvxhVG89V5CoO3by3rAiWkbDsK_kRVM43CP7JKlsTe3-aVUC6oWRygz0/s1600/Garden+chairs+from+thrift+shop.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597670220855402290" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRtO5VxL-4L2Z5lxCupcpXg_9QsnXTZZ5JvIsfrUhQluoceQk5adZLF6WaHJJ81YUMwtJawqeZyt_tuXcjz_BUvxhVG89V5CoO3by3rAiWkbDsK_kRVM43CP7JKlsTe3-aVUC6oWRygz0/s400/Garden+chairs+from+thrift+shop.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyYkilMVMrOL-zGIjvRody4hQ8pl0jzBlx0dAW_tEP_dbCLHkUUuORSlAZjrhFUcEsCFr51Q-L1Hx_4Hu_CddshTyv5b_VPuXGbDxsijRplEL0VKu2cDr2rWWFn52HqXPdzNWMaW4ZoaU/s1600/Baby+Bathtub%25232.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597670447182026226" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyYkilMVMrOL-zGIjvRody4hQ8pl0jzBlx0dAW_tEP_dbCLHkUUuORSlAZjrhFUcEsCFr51Q-L1Hx_4Hu_CddshTyv5b_VPuXGbDxsijRplEL0VKu2cDr2rWWFn52HqXPdzNWMaW4ZoaU/s400/Baby+Bathtub%25232.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ7ygh0dun82c-2iVQSUIsJgplE0WEIBJzRRwS029O6UTM8WdCuyXSc8z5c_5czcsK7np1zUysNr4vgZPPyi3ccRtgMqg0CDPtXRygg_jne2dQh2Z_cJ-PaKUSg8DReB4SHIo3JbzyN_s/s1600/back+wall+of+apartment.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597670672935721602" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ7ygh0dun82c-2iVQSUIsJgplE0WEIBJzRRwS029O6UTM8WdCuyXSc8z5c_5czcsK7np1zUysNr4vgZPPyi3ccRtgMqg0CDPtXRygg_jne2dQh2Z_cJ-PaKUSg8DReB4SHIo3JbzyN_s/s400/back+wall+of+apartment.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja6wDDn6Q2bFCg7DC54pHNd0hnQWSReS0j_A1TlTfpWlOSHShRB3FgfMby09-fGwiM37Gep3Wqg23jKObCxjtxfeEmkyobKDIKynKEo7fWMs0ZQpAR1F0xunAY5w_kfl5zHiUno7Jpg-Q/s1600/Bunnies.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597670863078981986" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja6wDDn6Q2bFCg7DC54pHNd0hnQWSReS0j_A1TlTfpWlOSHShRB3FgfMby09-fGwiM37Gep3Wqg23jKObCxjtxfeEmkyobKDIKynKEo7fWMs0ZQpAR1F0xunAY5w_kfl5zHiUno7Jpg-Q/s400/Bunnies.jpg" /></a><br /><br />The bleeding heart was my biggest suprize this year. It came up very early and within days was the size of a bushel basket. It is even bigger now and just keeps blooming its little heart out!! Some of my pansies are gorgeous, the ones that the bunnies and deer decided didn't taste as good. But at least half were eaten to the ground numerous times over the winter. Many other things are very close to starting to bloom and I will try to take pics and post as they do.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpt0l6ISTPYu7RaZZrn40HgoWBoGl4hS5TcJcnGh5zWcey3ArqRfmH_9-7n9islsrl3Yg5-Ms7MR06yTHhmuTu90OtIZWBvK27X19ISnTfpmUHFOfMEkHCJTHfZhstOaEf-NLCQpj0wxo/s1600/bleeding+heart.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597671097488942258" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpt0l6ISTPYu7RaZZrn40HgoWBoGl4hS5TcJcnGh5zWcey3ArqRfmH_9-7n9islsrl3Yg5-Ms7MR06yTHhmuTu90OtIZWBvK27X19ISnTfpmUHFOfMEkHCJTHfZhstOaEf-NLCQpj0wxo/s400/bleeding+heart.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSr-9AbtswzeEdliPt2ydAyPt5eB7gDlszFPFaz7TKxdxqNHnKUYqNr9u7YZOewgZLQHdSYjpRYglR6uGcmD1Gfu6Wk-AtbuJtU6YFEwx4AMy3Bd1cSbAJB5cYnxsGzmMRyvQj4C1DkN4/s1600/geranium+and+penstemmon.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597671867647112258" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSr-9AbtswzeEdliPt2ydAyPt5eB7gDlszFPFaz7TKxdxqNHnKUYqNr9u7YZOewgZLQHdSYjpRYglR6uGcmD1Gfu6Wk-AtbuJtU6YFEwx4AMy3Bd1cSbAJB5cYnxsGzmMRyvQj4C1DkN4/s400/geranium+and+penstemmon.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL1l3n-SjMj2eX31-LHOdmKUrPD4hP7KIJIDqFpR_JWmfF96glq8-PHAA6bY1X-vMX1yWDKOM6sPTvwJNT5MC3UwOatdonUdcftt-3e5jq2OecND7BUaCZ_JqEmG9SDUDMfVJ7xb4ycrc/s1600/bleeding+heart%25234.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597672086936261634" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL1l3n-SjMj2eX31-LHOdmKUrPD4hP7KIJIDqFpR_JWmfF96glq8-PHAA6bY1X-vMX1yWDKOM6sPTvwJNT5MC3UwOatdonUdcftt-3e5jq2OecND7BUaCZ_JqEmG9SDUDMfVJ7xb4ycrc/s400/bleeding+heart%25234.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPN4V9lASY5lDs4KKTNX-Ez-BEKYJP22ED4rp4X-BU_FcWSTBVLU0IcbLtZbDh0EYzF4a8wdpd2QC2aeJhJnIeBJBibCMNW-mD-hp1NskDhQMzHmQVcPAXqG2luiWcyuC4WMwolOCWkfs/s1600/Pansies%25233.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597672296640447890" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPN4V9lASY5lDs4KKTNX-Ez-BEKYJP22ED4rp4X-BU_FcWSTBVLU0IcbLtZbDh0EYzF4a8wdpd2QC2aeJhJnIeBJBibCMNW-mD-hp1NskDhQMzHmQVcPAXqG2luiWcyuC4WMwolOCWkfs/s400/Pansies%25233.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPDucVLUZiLFMJk8elenYwH0vIDeRu7_MysBUaqPapI8qohmTjybcuOZ37sc2ACWdx4BWJwvv0Xqrvy5ZEVqz4EiA-GPskavfYkZygouDQmwXK2c2xu7jfXMut8v6T94O6JBIRtEfjkSA/s1600/Pansies%25234.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597672562668816834" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPDucVLUZiLFMJk8elenYwH0vIDeRu7_MysBUaqPapI8qohmTjybcuOZ37sc2ACWdx4BWJwvv0Xqrvy5ZEVqz4EiA-GPskavfYkZygouDQmwXK2c2xu7jfXMut8v6T94O6JBIRtEfjkSA/s400/Pansies%25234.jpg" /></a>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-37115959271103856452011-01-16T13:27:00.001-08:002011-01-16T13:43:47.727-08:00Cute as a ButtonThe snow is still here, after an entire week. But it is starting to recede in all but the most shady spots. I have to say, if you are going to have a good snowstorm, this one was the one to have. It was lovely to look at, lovely to play in and lovely to be able to not have to get out into it. But now, no more real snow this winter, OK?<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8YYH3jbOgpEXRnDQJJHTTL8Yk652Km-PrJOeTkaji-wVw8xcJQhCPEgfsfraOwOUz6-yY4dgnfeKJHgA6kTyrGGvqI1COjMXnoWyFXlGuJz_HPRbp-kkZ8x4E0Cc_giM8jalVQS6Gtu4/s1600/winter+sunset.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562899059352424050" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8YYH3jbOgpEXRnDQJJHTTL8Yk652Km-PrJOeTkaji-wVw8xcJQhCPEgfsfraOwOUz6-yY4dgnfeKJHgA6kTyrGGvqI1COjMXnoWyFXlGuJz_HPRbp-kkZ8x4E0Cc_giM8jalVQS6Gtu4/s400/winter+sunset.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br />This pic was one I got the other night as the clouds finally decided to part and let the last rays of sun peek thru for the day. What a beautiful sunset it was. I did nothing to this picture after I got it off the camera. So the colors are pretty true to what my own eyes did see.<br /><br />Next, on to more important things. Cute, cute, cute baby knitting. I learned thru Facebook a few months ago that a good friend and former coworker was going to become a daddy for the first time. So I just had to make the family something. Trouble is, he told me the baby was set to arrive in February. And he is a doctor so he should have been trustworthy on the facts. But to prove everybody wrong, Ibrahaim was born in very early January. Before I even had yarn!! I had my heart set on a Baby Suprize Jacket project but found that the selection of yarn in sport weight was pretty slim pickin's. But this pattern, Baby Garter Stitch Kimono was free thru Ravelry and I was able to find some really nice yarn to make it work. The jacket was knit exactly according to the pattern. When done, I found I had very little of the grey yarn left to do anything with. So the hat was something I kinda designed myself to make the most of the yarn left. Off the head, the stripes kind of bunch up. But once the baby has it on its head, the stripes are alot more noticable. The booties are the combination of several patterns. When done I had only about 5 grams of grey yarn left over. If I ever decided to make this in a 6 month or up size, I would need to buy a second skein of the main color yarn.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtLUgm195_Jw4RZ1G6H67ALVVF8Oz4vUR_0Hj5jzhjsxruFi8_hs_eKEQkvIdrDYLw_V2bjJdABUS4Tjgm034KlboWMpjANy3nZclbtpnNJi-LxNRy56id_r7nhyVL5jeXAWt7E9GaQhA/s1600/baby+sweater+set+and+dog.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562901391252213906" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtLUgm195_Jw4RZ1G6H67ALVVF8Oz4vUR_0Hj5jzhjsxruFi8_hs_eKEQkvIdrDYLw_V2bjJdABUS4Tjgm034KlboWMpjANy3nZclbtpnNJi-LxNRy56id_r7nhyVL5jeXAWt7E9GaQhA/s400/baby+sweater+set+and+dog.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgemLWYo81ZFY3gdPQxftGV6VWJtmW3EQcr5BKmuSHX0dGd_123XIPEz4o539NnEU0Vbky6GMpaXNPYIa7ThXEszwyBaa_eEETsMWjjQo0ZE3YD3iWI1a-f8c6AtJ0_4r_-TSa3V23-H6g/s1600/baby+sweater+set%25232.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562901572347209106" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgemLWYo81ZFY3gdPQxftGV6VWJtmW3EQcr5BKmuSHX0dGd_123XIPEz4o539NnEU0Vbky6GMpaXNPYIa7ThXEszwyBaa_eEETsMWjjQo0ZE3YD3iWI1a-f8c6AtJ0_4r_-TSa3V23-H6g/s400/baby+sweater+set%25232.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheNMwM8j5exJjyeq6LKkM-dZynbeIFkeaqy6k0fUGHP6kV5gR2AU82kA6DILV4SHrnlooe9jEV-iAFRK0djzFCRu5NJjs-mW6AclDRemDr-W4fqxzSArf6olZKc3k1kX4IRh4AQz8bYMI/s1600/baby+sweater+set%25233.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 286px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562901741970767378" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheNMwM8j5exJjyeq6LKkM-dZynbeIFkeaqy6k0fUGHP6kV5gR2AU82kA6DILV4SHrnlooe9jEV-iAFRK0djzFCRu5NJjs-mW6AclDRemDr-W4fqxzSArf6olZKc3k1kX4IRh4AQz8bYMI/s400/baby+sweater+set%25233.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7NtGw4f60sFv2cEyKdLuQigLDo6YPKkHeCY3e5rVTpFKSqhvQI7IBz3E7thkupM9H1Me8T5T4ENj8osKK6Qei9TBIYUnXocbg1cvX0aUzI77sTJwm0jPWgV0zx0D8t4U_Me8te3fVo8E/s1600/baby+sweater+set%25234.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562901954966406114" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7NtGw4f60sFv2cEyKdLuQigLDo6YPKkHeCY3e5rVTpFKSqhvQI7IBz3E7thkupM9H1Me8T5T4ENj8osKK6Qei9TBIYUnXocbg1cvX0aUzI77sTJwm0jPWgV0zx0D8t4U_Me8te3fVo8E/s400/baby+sweater+set%25234.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtGL6hPfmJLAZdcusNXXTYaXS0B_VdgNJCNv_ktcCL8IjdPB_xils6vscKT4zXCsefT5bVRiCMMLpnTQ3Iu_hRfn3g3ofeMXaDeXtHBCbzcNXY9NfH0GjieMVzCrZ4W0AuVXphVN75XrU/s1600/baby+sweater+set%25235.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562902182889501026" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtGL6hPfmJLAZdcusNXXTYaXS0B_VdgNJCNv_ktcCL8IjdPB_xils6vscKT4zXCsefT5bVRiCMMLpnTQ3Iu_hRfn3g3ofeMXaDeXtHBCbzcNXY9NfH0GjieMVzCrZ4W0AuVXphVN75XrU/s400/baby+sweater+set%25235.jpg" /></a><br /><br />So now I am finishing up with sock #2 of a set I put down to work on Christmas knitting. I am at the heel turn and I am trying out a new version of a short row heel. As I seem to be on the eternal search for the perfect short row heel. I think I am getting pretty close...........CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-4834409219200171272011-01-10T09:09:00.000-08:002011-01-10T09:33:44.735-08:00Big Snow<div align="justify">Well, Christmas has come and past. Went by in a blur. But the peace and quiet of the post holiday has set in. And now winter has come a knockin at our door. So I hope you enjoy these pics as much as I have enjoyed the snow. And as much as Holly enjoyed the snow!! Daisy not so much. She took one step out the door and pee'd on the porch!! Such a woos dog..<br /><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirHNY3yK9d0419c38dem_gN1ajaXO6Thg9peYD9xNk7YyFtT3RruXPq5wiynfaCEJUHNlG5lfna8p_Xyin5YJTcKG7U9tXuU_Ep232E2O_7LiXntJgqJN1LFEq7SKTccDGCxBHUehXra4/s1600/snowman%25233.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5560606132150637954" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirHNY3yK9d0419c38dem_gN1ajaXO6Thg9peYD9xNk7YyFtT3RruXPq5wiynfaCEJUHNlG5lfna8p_Xyin5YJTcKG7U9tXuU_Ep232E2O_7LiXntJgqJN1LFEq7SKTccDGCxBHUehXra4/s400/snowman%25233.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a><br />Finished snowman<br /><br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO9Ldfm4nINEkrNyYXKZoUvSZlDN-oBQpiQGUpKRvkeGYkp3NkHJu9QyFltLwIuzGReA04Iu_QG5f_d5l-lwarYTAdnQm0siPCzTGLUNzsCXcjGnkcuYpwrkmeekK6JTUSHDjv2ChGFSo/s1600/big+snow%25232.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5560606359469526770" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO9Ldfm4nINEkrNyYXKZoUvSZlDN-oBQpiQGUpKRvkeGYkp3NkHJu9QyFltLwIuzGReA04Iu_QG5f_d5l-lwarYTAdnQm0siPCzTGLUNzsCXcjGnkcuYpwrkmeekK6JTUSHDjv2ChGFSo/s400/big+snow%25232.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>View across garden to neighbors house<br /><br /><br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkpZTfoOHT7TMmxHXGkzGwJfXWFbN5cSDsBGai6XR7qsx28v_JwWgzeEAaDHs9rc-9qvfsYkPu2TZ-NVoWx5GNMYaF7vwgljbCYXLHWbN1hGuQAVA8wLM33fTT5j4KNxTdRDyfo-vFjZc/s1600/Holly+in+the+snow%25234.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_ 5560606541617998306" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkpZTfoOHT7TMmxHXGkzGwJfXWFbN5cSDsBGai6XR7qsx28v_JwWgzeEAaDHs9rc-9qvfsYkPu2TZ-NVoWx5GNMYaF7vwgljbCYXLHWbN1hGuQAVA8wLM33fTT5j4KNxTdRDyfo-vFjZc/s400/Holly+in+the+snow%25234.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>Holly running with the frizbee<br /><br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg0c95xJHenCUFMahUN7TzXrdWA9TChfhL2Zjpi_iRamFiwtYhNNn_Fgdaunx0SraVq771JHHwHFCIAQv_sH-Z0F7OwoGg2ZWYvrluDNkVkaHAc5zfk0r4nDlLFefhTo8_VPpoHxmVMk8/s1600/snowman%25232.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5560606713852714738" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg0c95xJHenCUFMahUN7TzXrdWA9TChfhL2Zjpi_iRamFiwtYhNNn_Fgdaunx0SraVq771JHHwHFCIAQv_sH-Z0F7OwoGg2ZWYvrluDNkVkaHAc5zfk0r4nDlLFefhTo8_VPpoHxmVMk8/s400/snowman%25232.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>Not nearly as big as he looks!<br /><br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr1Vo07WI4N-K7H6gJYPwxpqmQSgYUJyo832CnBBdRL6yHIO8sYQQrSjvfcNRM-a-DMH_2anoYoXj-CZbzM3cWcUTu7hGHDJK_hvwN0KUogVcBn3HIHbviWy2hZ6BTzWLlJW5jfyOPUUI/s1600/snow+sculptures+in+the+garden.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5560606925886343954" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr1Vo07WI4N-K7H6gJYPwxpqmQSgYUJyo832CnBBdRL6yHIO8sYQQrSjvfcNRM-a-DMH_2anoYoXj-CZbzM3cWcUTu7hGHDJK_hvwN0KUogVcBn3HIHbviWy2hZ6BTzWLlJW5jfyOPUUI/s400/snow+sculptures+in+the+garden.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>Snow sculpture<br /><br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQk0XyK-MhJzJt8NI_rOoPu8o3O3ffuceroIP5IiwWDmbooBl06K98xy8DybDVTxIygCjP1ytJfC-lpumBTa-CJI1gdYxAthFrMfkzGgq8rxSMCGAk_3IPVgg11jIjzPyzk9zc6d6zAnQ/s1600/snow+sculptures+in+the+garden%25232.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5560607060523927138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQk0XyK-MhJzJt8NI_rOoPu8o3O3ffuceroIP5IiwWDmbooBl06K98xy8DybDVTxIygCjP1ytJfC-lpumBTa-CJI1gdYxAthFrMfkzGgq8rxSMCGAk_3IPVgg11jIjzPyzk9zc6d6zAnQ/s400/snow+sculptures+in+the+garden%25232.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>No coffee here for awhile<br /><br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaAd7faq0hn959GjOuZEj5Vi8FlRVvamgJH_pku5dEyAWueFCSO4eVEPvF1rmy-cQ8U_uKEejN7bVbv1w90xzeFtXNRO6PI5QcGd0JlISdTE0C3QIU1Wi8SNfEsVETkF4ROhw2HSszjkI/s1600/snow+sculptures+in+the+garden%25233.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5560607229363982658" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaAd7faq0hn959GjOuZEj5Vi8FlRVvamgJH_pku5dEyAWueFCSO4eVEPvF1rmy-cQ8U_uKEejN7bVbv1w90xzeFtXNRO6PI5QcGd0JlISdTE0C3QIU1Wi8SNfEsVETkF4ROhw2HSszjkI/s400/snow+sculptures+in+the+garden%25233.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>Snow Globe snow gnome<br /><br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiohbHKnz-5yjun5HaUJX85PTmmg1K1bXFtsuwA5pxukUhRdfVhzEhWTLLMtzmXb56XPPoDZ11Cz4nc3TaSRzrUOexWF7krAjWikD3JSBvyLCK1HrSv387OgeTDdVUJuUYWPs86o7jOc1g/s1600/big+snow+%25231.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5560607537748342642" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiohbHKnz-5yjun5HaUJX85PTmmg1K1bXFtsuwA5pxukUhRdfVhzEhWTLLMtzmXb56XPPoDZ11Cz4nc3TaSRzrUOexWF7krAjWikD3JSBvyLCK1HrSv387OgeTDdVUJuUYWPs86o7jOc1g/s400/big+snow+%25231.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>View from our front porch</p><p align="justify"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisOdd23gcVGMPdKe2yFs9Hzfhlk2cIhCzMPG2LaTvbI9lkl7q3HW8E3YGwbI8dFliO2jEIYPeXwg-PkW32oWbsfrw9kReIe9qN79yzuGmM5ud6LO1GaX2D15Mxja3zkFFzuhr0ccwKy1k/s1600/snowman%25232.jpg"></a><br /><br />It is indeed rare for us to get this much snow. And such a nice snow it is. There must not have been any wind, because there are no real high drifts. It is great snowman snow but I have to admit it took me a little while to remember how to make a decent snowman. And then the sciatica kicked in and limited how big I could get this guy. But I may go back out after lunch and try for a bigger snow person!<br /><br />I never did get a great pic of all my knitting projects that I finished up this Christmas. The tally ended up at 6 pairs of socks, 2 hats and 3 monkeys!! And everybody seemed to really appreciate and enjoy their gifts. I also gave away jars of black walnuts I had gathered, husked and shelled and those went over extremely well. And of course..biscotti. I made my usual cranberry pistachio, a decent brownie/black walnut and then I invented a double orange. I dried several cans of mandarin oranges in my food dehydrator and then snipped them up small and added them, along with orange peel to a basic vanilla biscotti. They were simply amazing. Drying oranges is a slow tedious process but was well worth the effort.<br /><br />Spring is right around the corner, despite this posting being all about snow. So much going on around here at the homestead to get ready. We have our chicken coop plans all ready as well as some of the lumber on hand. We have picked Buff Orpingtons as our first breed and will buy them after the coop is in place. The seed and plant catalogs have all arrived and we are starting to place orders. So I am sure I will have plenty to post about in the next few months. Everybody take care, enjoy what ever weather God has given you. And stay warm!!</p>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-29834234133805921772010-11-07T08:25:00.000-08:002010-11-07T09:01:27.288-08:00Man Loves FireAnd so does woman. And most of all, so does dog..dogs to be exact.<br /><br />When we first moved into our house, we weren't sure if we loved or despised our propane fireplace. It was easy to light and got the house plenty warm. But soon we realized it also did not have thermostatic control so we had to turn it off and on constantly. It made our eyes burn and it took up alot of room in the house. The efficiency rating on it was dismal and we just knew there had to be something better.<br /><br />We had always longed for a good woodstove. It was not possible in the last house we owned cause it had a traditional built in fireplace. So it just seemed natural that we would swap out the propane fireplace for a brand spanking new woodstove at some point.<br /><br />But as usual, with my DH, making decisions on things that cost bit bucks end up being a chore. Ken does not part with money easily!! So the last 2 winters came and went without us doing the switch. But the man does suprise me sometimes. About 6 weeks ago he came home with a sales slip from our local fireplace shop for a woodstove and a propane wall heater. Now we just had to wait for a very busy installer to get here and get it all put in for us.<br /><br />Strangely enough, Ken did not bring home a picture of what he bought, nor could he describe it very well. So I ended up looking the model number up on line in order to be able to see what we were getting. I was hoping for a more traditional cast iron type stove but it was not to be. He bought a more modern looking cold rolled steel design from Vermont Castings. It is said to be a very sturdy model that will outlast us. Cast iron can crack with age, and cold rolled steel should never be able to do that. Yeah, whatever. I know it came down to dollars!! But once it was in, it looks pretty good with our living space and style and I am fine with it. It is one that has a large enough top surface to be able to cook on it if the power ever went out during a snow storm so that is a plus. And it sure does heat nicely without taking up too much floor space.<br /><br />Now in case you thought we were smart people, shake it off. Cause we didn't think to maybe buy wood to have on hand ahead of time. So when cold weather hit the day after the stove got installed we were in a panic to have something to burn. Luckily, enough people sell wood in the area that we were able to get a load delivered that very next afternoon, just in time for our first very cold night. The stove heats up fairly fast and soon we found that not only were we going to love it, the dogs were in total heaven. Usually in the evenings they get pretty rowdy in the house and drive me a bit loco. But now they are more than happy to veg in the space between the back of the sofa and the stove itself. Sometimes they get so close that I worry they might burn their nose if they stretch wrong in their sleep. But they snuggle up, stay warm and sleep the evening away, leaving me in total peace to knit or watch TV. Who knew? All we needed was a good toasty spot for them to sleep in and we could have saved all that money we spent on toys!!<br /><br />So here are pics. Starting with how it used to look and ending with a "few" of the doggie sleeping poses that I have managed to catch so far. Every time I think I have gotten all the cute shots, they come up with a new one. Please try to ignore the places where the paint needs touched up. Ken has to take a rather large paint chip somewhere to be mixed to match so we can fix the rest of the wall. At least all we had was a very small hole in the floor where the propane line had come up to the old unit. We simply placed the new stove right over that. Job done. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3HL6OEX7HgbvaWb2c2GIhRbIVT0gf7wOCuW2ZxUfbx17TZUUcdvV70JI9vDvssJMHCC_Og4TFLk6vIoOsmxuc294GstrQevEryjCcUYRYk9hOSX5V25T6YRAiUFxdX5R-6Y0TVSyjJ-0/s1600/old+propane+fireplace%231.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536850001168910898" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3HL6OEX7HgbvaWb2c2GIhRbIVT0gf7wOCuW2ZxUfbx17TZUUcdvV70JI9vDvssJMHCC_Og4TFLk6vIoOsmxuc294GstrQevEryjCcUYRYk9hOSX5V25T6YRAiUFxdX5R-6Y0TVSyjJ-0/s400/old+propane+fireplace%231.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536849984482131922" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1VCQCeFEeN9bYQ02jlOmWousTdSskiNEbnQaU3ltM7HjkpoZHEcyrLqsZG9RpGtcwJSS8KE1OoxDXMoj1l7HaidRvN-gy2mTCB-jLfRVF8SCAuU7AJJ3Jw5iC9GCvvgLGZyV-RFDi2-k/s400/old+propane+fireplace%232.jpg" /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536849987590578210" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDdKmfl-i2RLKAFs6fwO9fsyvNjFP0U2o7lU_oiEZwQEjyGGjbUoop7rR_nZrw0wxQ_iBQZ420GhNa-eHwzx3YIfM9TGH1cevXpORDf7C2YikM1adOjvByVP0FpDiy-Y_Rbn7IDk59QvM/s400/New+woodstove%231.jpg" /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536850684059572882" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrWOPjPX6vLsxTgJvlMcQfeP0hM5FqG8UPRn9lqcq0cstf2vVWXxSVZbf0_acRI9OO0sVE0LLNVkM9oEkxtMm6nPO63d0Rxi76qrNjo-PEkPgdysPe_ndsIDAjnkBSbXMeeKJkcflkjrI/s400/Dogs+and+woodstove%231.jpg" /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsvrNS7ClIcQfWYDOmSQSDZel05omUGpl3ybDmWit1_vprVKEY_9tiQOOaXp5bKn1cNxDdy2Qz4R_nsKu7T5h77hvNtKyZdkbc_2CLq4-6ouNBpriuO6vWDfOacXUy8kgoWNI-InIJwPs/s1600/New+woodstove%232.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536849997945519970" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsvrNS7ClIcQfWYDOmSQSDZel05omUGpl3ybDmWit1_vprVKEY_9tiQOOaXp5bKn1cNxDdy2Qz4R_nsKu7T5h77hvNtKyZdkbc_2CLq4-6ouNBpriuO6vWDfOacXUy8kgoWNI-InIJwPs/s400/New+woodstove%232.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuohD8S2QzgCuDeqqblcYnFGYKrrZf6xuigPGy19jtMisNzHwkEg4sLKr-2bTk1vyPKt8817DUn1RWObAFeQzQDrEm0UZR2imMVBlF4-P8Qq7iOd_vP9-3Uj7Hou4JyzWPEYnKmi2wil4/s1600/Daisy+and+Holly+warming+by+the+stove%234.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536850699719902690" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuohD8S2QzgCuDeqqblcYnFGYKrrZf6xuigPGy19jtMisNzHwkEg4sLKr-2bTk1vyPKt8817DUn1RWObAFeQzQDrEm0UZR2imMVBlF4-P8Qq7iOd_vP9-3Uj7Hou4JyzWPEYnKmi2wil4/s400/Daisy+and+Holly+warming+by+the+stove%234.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqO898SYI-XAU-FIWZchKSY0erfccHbp8XeIBmzS0v3wkfjqihjXaKsoWf2JqWC1go8ufl7y74uSwuQ_V7KzdVpnhTkJjkKYEKiXO6V64wpFW2h39pPtG_PDjw-7Sl5pR2eufvprdpkHU/s1600/Daisy+and+Holly+warming+by+the+stove%233.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536850695944734354" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqO898SYI-XAU-FIWZchKSY0erfccHbp8XeIBmzS0v3wkfjqihjXaKsoWf2JqWC1go8ufl7y74uSwuQ_V7KzdVpnhTkJjkKYEKiXO6V64wpFW2h39pPtG_PDjw-7Sl5pR2eufvprdpkHU/s400/Daisy+and+Holly+warming+by+the+stove%233.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaWrjnfmrJ8tjU8oMIL25FSIGdym8TJj3ITpa1H1ZHQjgOg_OzobtneDrP-7GqTt1Tt9pOwpWz_VCwvBVxrtgRzUTrJbRD_cVyeqB_j5C1RLmbG70mNGgQ-XoPp1L2IPz-4OuxYHc8Zgo/s1600/Daisy+and+Holly+warming+by+the+stove%232.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536850691546568258" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaWrjnfmrJ8tjU8oMIL25FSIGdym8TJj3ITpa1H1ZHQjgOg_OzobtneDrP-7GqTt1Tt9pOwpWz_VCwvBVxrtgRzUTrJbRD_cVyeqB_j5C1RLmbG70mNGgQ-XoPp1L2IPz-4OuxYHc8Zgo/s400/Daisy+and+Holly+warming+by+the+stove%232.jpg" /></a><br /><br />And now one last photo. This is of some of the wine I have made so far this year. The light colored bottle is dandelion and is now finished and into smaller bottles. The other 2 are elderberry. They just got reracked to get more of the sediment out of the liquid. I hope to be able to finish off the oldest bottle of that next time I do any racking. I also got a batch of wild persimmon into the secondary fermenter this same day and it is going to be some wonderful stuff. Sorry the pics are not as pretty as they should be. I am afraid the flash bounces off the liquid instead of going thru. I guess I could have slupped all this outside onto the porch to make nicer photos for all of you. Nope. I would rather wait and just let you taste it instead!!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhETadZZ3ZeXDpl3RmMbyNFfeO7DV2t_zMf3OL7YKCJNE5X_pyVimlxm4eJW2md5uMgElP613R8Oqxdxn1kA4jUCz9s4ja91v_aECkWWHhglXkOF3V7KmyVH2WZgAVZ3kyc2KUhx8kEZbY/s1600/persimmon+and+elderberry+wines.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536852004082161874" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhETadZZ3ZeXDpl3RmMbyNFfeO7DV2t_zMf3OL7YKCJNE5X_pyVimlxm4eJW2md5uMgElP613R8Oqxdxn1kA4jUCz9s4ja91v_aECkWWHhglXkOF3V7KmyVH2WZgAVZ3kyc2KUhx8kEZbY/s400/persimmon+and+elderberry+wines.jpg" /></a><br /><br />There are a few more knitting projects done and I do need to come back and post about those separately. So expect me to do another post soon.CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-47817426302788811412010-10-16T12:46:00.000-07:002010-10-16T14:07:15.260-07:00Stitches of LoveSecrets. Used to suck at keeping them. Still am sometimes. But not recently. At least about these 2 projects. But the time has come I can finally reveal them to most of the world. There are still 2 young granddaughters who need to not find out about the monkeys. So please, don't discuss the monkeys if you run into Maddie and Kate!<br /><br />Several blog posts ago I told you all about my dear friend who is battling the little "c". The Lizzies have decided to not ever call it the big "C" again. Being the big "C" gave it to much credit and we are not going to let it take center stage in our lives. But darned it, if Jan, at least temporarily, isn't having to let it dominate her life. She is smack in the middle of some pretty tough chemo and heading into another round of testing to see how things are progressing. There is also a matter of another big firm place in the surgical breast. Hopefully the PET scan will reveal that it is a scar, seroma or infection and not more of the little "c".<br /><br />But I knew I wanted to do something for her that would be from my heart. Something to warm her. And to be soft and comforting. And knitting is usually my avenue for that. Yes, I know she lives in South Florida. But when you are not feeling your best, have lost all your hair and are in over air conditioned doctor's offices, I knew a prayer shawl would be just the thing to keep her warm and to keep her spirits up.<br /><br />This shawl is a generic <a href="http://brooklyntweed.blogspot.com/2008/01/pi-shawl-blanket.html">Pi shawl</a>, first discussed in length by my knitting goddess, guru, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Zimmermann">Elizabeth Zimmerman</a>. I wish I could say I chose the yarn with the exact intent of making this shawl, at this time, for this exact person. But that is not the case. The day I decided to start, I went in my knitting/sewing room and saw 2 skeins of this wool/cashmere blend that I had bought at a fiber show back in April. I thought that it was pretty then and even prettier now cause it was just sitting there waiting to be knit into just the right thing. Trouble is, it ended up not being enough yarn and I had to order another skein. Twice. And the dye lots ended up not being the same any for either of the subsequent orders. But this shawl ended up being so organic and earthy that it worked. No overdyeing had to be done, which was something I did consider at one point.<br /><br />I chose to do a simple garter stitch Pi which turned out lovely but I would probably not do again. First of all it ate up the yarn faster and didn't stretch out as far once finished. But the edging I found later on in another book worked out perfectly with it to give it just a touch of romance after all the garter stitch. I loved doing this edging using a "knitted on" technique which meant I never really had to cast off those 567 stitches that were live around the outer edge. I just used them up by doing a knit 2 together each time I got to the inside edge of a row of the lace. I am not sure I ever want to know what it is like to have to cast off that many stitches!!<br /><br />The gift was very well received by Jan!! Never doubted that it wouldn't be, cause she is such a sweet heart. And I think they both are probably munching away on Cranberry Pistachio biscotti right now. Wish I had saved some of that for me!!!!<br /><br /><br /><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimgVFuloa9WXC18h31unoZ5cC1WvqgflrVgjnXVdt1OZ8WDZst0vLKG98UtCIeYRR2C7Y90rVHuV138ImbX8MXu6IBiE9z3gzweM7dSXwefl1wONeaEgZEMJwfo3Kc_0rruARULOGkNag/s1600/Jan's+prayer+shawl%235.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528739518975234706" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimgVFuloa9WXC18h31unoZ5cC1WvqgflrVgjnXVdt1OZ8WDZst0vLKG98UtCIeYRR2C7Y90rVHuV138ImbX8MXu6IBiE9z3gzweM7dSXwefl1wONeaEgZEMJwfo3Kc_0rruARULOGkNag/s400/Jan's+prayer+shawl%235.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoSiMf4PqGxd5I_oi7y8GQzht4JEi5eS_cB4DSAbUR0-1I0_UFXwtIzL1OFKk-URWAOz4qTghgsydW0yYLIFjS6kBx8oN288nFFuQaIknsdprYbCBBmBtWLnPUzhukc3QNWLVWKH5VMzc/s1600/Jan's+prayer+shawl%234.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528739509169806242" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoSiMf4PqGxd5I_oi7y8GQzht4JEi5eS_cB4DSAbUR0-1I0_UFXwtIzL1OFKk-URWAOz4qTghgsydW0yYLIFjS6kBx8oN288nFFuQaIknsdprYbCBBmBtWLnPUzhukc3QNWLVWKH5VMzc/s400/Jan's+prayer+shawl%234.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkjxw2kQim1en46KBXAPcmCUQ2mjJj9o7SJEzzGqSIBsm5d3iJnyzNiBxCnQHFJ46hzv_7ZpqbZJGsowaKFgXGFt1tFMuz8zKszm03LnO4qtolMjqz7M5WkH4JNiOxAOokBIOpg7gUnE4/s1600/Jan's+prayer+shawl%233.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528739506106890882" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkjxw2kQim1en46KBXAPcmCUQ2mjJj9o7SJEzzGqSIBsm5d3iJnyzNiBxCnQHFJ46hzv_7ZpqbZJGsowaKFgXGFt1tFMuz8zKszm03LnO4qtolMjqz7M5WkH4JNiOxAOokBIOpg7gUnE4/s400/Jan's+prayer+shawl%233.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1ilN93fypCnjjC28YVGbPK5vuJMLaP5P27SBgrhoTmO4nhwXmhrfi5ZVY8cCTDSbDqcBLV1R3lxBd6o8ulCLmQXKKXd5tKgz6-HN8C61PKdyzpbiRkT9HTcwwhWDOhyphenhyphenCLfUyPyUBulfk/s1600/Jan's+prayer+shawl%232.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528739494980329714" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1ilN93fypCnjjC28YVGbPK5vuJMLaP5P27SBgrhoTmO4nhwXmhrfi5ZVY8cCTDSbDqcBLV1R3lxBd6o8ulCLmQXKKXd5tKgz6-HN8C61PKdyzpbiRkT9HTcwwhWDOhyphenhyphenCLfUyPyUBulfk/s400/Jan's+prayer+shawl%232.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX_QKfPE5YLRrxXHsP1OSLWzlX5-_KGzR05753sTPOcGlHqjkpG2Agsc5vusbYb0mE36b7Ns_JAHEnHLjiqBC1TE3fYa8TOs8jm6FJqeEnxJPfSoW1J57GNvSt4khvEVL8pdUdlZlgSLQ/s1600/Jan's+prayer+shawl%231.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528739491851223970" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX_QKfPE5YLRrxXHsP1OSLWzlX5-_KGzR05753sTPOcGlHqjkpG2Agsc5vusbYb0mE36b7Ns_JAHEnHLjiqBC1TE3fYa8TOs8jm6FJqeEnxJPfSoW1J57GNvSt4khvEVL8pdUdlZlgSLQ/s400/Jan's+prayer+shawl%231.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeN0ED8uQhHTLYutfWNsXNXpGTfsjUOZ8jDXvXq1zdWoxXzJOQVg28Thkb6ojWhVRk8Lyf70OoU5ZzHmCsGw09y4xvJjnHP3gMxuHt7sFbtRft1uTiRA_XAkKZEVASesLtpqimohIormc/s1600/Jan's+prayer+shawl%2310.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528741324156418130" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeN0ED8uQhHTLYutfWNsXNXpGTfsjUOZ8jDXvXq1zdWoxXzJOQVg28Thkb6ojWhVRk8Lyf70OoU5ZzHmCsGw09y4xvJjnHP3gMxuHt7sFbtRft1uTiRA_XAkKZEVASesLtpqimohIormc/s400/Jan's+prayer+shawl%2310.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIOKee2rWdQvIESQsrwqn_Kz1QUYNVF4dDghbvHrMJdO4W_7KeF6qKp3PCHzFzy0hTCd0E0O89pEtnqpSidsbz2X9Xr_DivlaEgSDxIu7JFlhBfd2qoji__gYpQh_7dVzIrW79BwhXrXk/s1600/Jan's+prayer+shawl%239.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528741322360434114" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIOKee2rWdQvIESQsrwqn_Kz1QUYNVF4dDghbvHrMJdO4W_7KeF6qKp3PCHzFzy0hTCd0E0O89pEtnqpSidsbz2X9Xr_DivlaEgSDxIu7JFlhBfd2qoji__gYpQh_7dVzIrW79BwhXrXk/s400/Jan's+prayer+shawl%239.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDSQ1joNAu_ri_LxtveHpClkjfLTsbro3svcZHcrPrzukJF3rK4MBxtnRykzZmmjwksgZ2w-YWfGsPNzAlRk1MEK03sSU0BWlouYm10DAhrEGsmw7AxQFfcdXBM-LpizJpAkoGtP5xDz8/s1600/Jan's+prayer+shawl%238.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528741312766499330" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDSQ1joNAu_ri_LxtveHpClkjfLTsbro3svcZHcrPrzukJF3rK4MBxtnRykzZmmjwksgZ2w-YWfGsPNzAlRk1MEK03sSU0BWlouYm10DAhrEGsmw7AxQFfcdXBM-LpizJpAkoGtP5xDz8/s400/Jan's+prayer+shawl%238.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQSdJFKJ8dj8nsXtPfqdRMboKRApmWnJuK6BDBm4ym5wiQSocIWrY4_YWcglXygjAzn2kXKFT4XwdGvvrV-DoYMjy8QJMVG0ZGgF4b_Ei7aTN2f7y29G3EyQenlw6-045DJBDb3Sbs1r4/s1600/Jan's+prayer+shawl%237.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528741305658332450" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQSdJFKJ8dj8nsXtPfqdRMboKRApmWnJuK6BDBm4ym5wiQSocIWrY4_YWcglXygjAzn2kXKFT4XwdGvvrV-DoYMjy8QJMVG0ZGgF4b_Ei7aTN2f7y29G3EyQenlw6-045DJBDb3Sbs1r4/s400/Jan's+prayer+shawl%237.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7-fZyWwTWHuzHi9A0IekzEB-_8SfS0OeEC_ZKlCU72gkNq_bEigLVf6l6wHyxjFTfmknqd3Pg4XNC_lExd251ZedKE8LesCRSH8k6xjEqt0qGYoUFbcTu-90gSPEbz24es3aQhUNzcpU/s1600/Jan's+prayer+shawl%236.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528741300744703714" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7-fZyWwTWHuzHi9A0IekzEB-_8SfS0OeEC_ZKlCU72gkNq_bEigLVf6l6wHyxjFTfmknqd3Pg4XNC_lExd251ZedKE8LesCRSH8k6xjEqt0qGYoUFbcTu-90gSPEbz24es3aQhUNzcpU/s400/Jan's+prayer+shawl%236.jpg" /></a><br /><br />Stop the presses....I kinda forgot to take pictures of the monkey. Off to do a quick photo shoot....<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq9FnHuxI7i_0Z2Rs5TUjF43GSvUyrtgu1P5Rrr4eflqP5IjYQr-a6fLq6WvVJdlUTaTBy-HUMDuW3yHfFn9MQKtAPGHm32jRxthKINyJ8O-gGwo8a5oT3r_KU-WcND5jCk8nv2p5l5aM/s1600/Greenmonkey%235.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528745501105053026" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq9FnHuxI7i_0Z2Rs5TUjF43GSvUyrtgu1P5Rrr4eflqP5IjYQr-a6fLq6WvVJdlUTaTBy-HUMDuW3yHfFn9MQKtAPGHm32jRxthKINyJ8O-gGwo8a5oT3r_KU-WcND5jCk8nv2p5l5aM/s400/Greenmonkey%235.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN5LAj60iW17hul2Os-yWa170ysJgjx_9TSw0Um_V8TTce6NsO9DNJ1RtUT6JkU5W53t5b9zVSJcqTTMgoNrd0dAmA3N0GarbPln64XuOF7XM5vCrb3-IArt3sezfg2t2emiC9yZxUJ5I/s1600/Greenmonkey%234.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528745494927900098" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN5LAj60iW17hul2Os-yWa170ysJgjx_9TSw0Um_V8TTce6NsO9DNJ1RtUT6JkU5W53t5b9zVSJcqTTMgoNrd0dAmA3N0GarbPln64XuOF7XM5vCrb3-IArt3sezfg2t2emiC9yZxUJ5I/s400/Greenmonkey%234.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfeR71Z_JkCwbYNH9djMSz34XF_MFF6JNlBerz1dBuFqOm8unhlj124x1mjB24tcsZEOwZGNCEtMRRTR_bpminnOwne-YBvkWfZu5stDwq24LDS7HMgCsdgnTAARfsK138Aviv_By6cAY/s1600/Greenmonkey%233.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528745498042332578" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfeR71Z_JkCwbYNH9djMSz34XF_MFF6JNlBerz1dBuFqOm8unhlj124x1mjB24tcsZEOwZGNCEtMRRTR_bpminnOwne-YBvkWfZu5stDwq24LDS7HMgCsdgnTAARfsK138Aviv_By6cAY/s400/Greenmonkey%233.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_z4h6S7zjjhYQVibFIcEvN6jp_uovo4a0Dk2c3sfr2QUS2bmtHvW_bfpztMoV7VjFe1vCL6nn3Gfh7Q7p0CwOmB94d4kQOL4UaDeBqT7woHVIlNjHPu50HvfiABPt3pczO0yc6e5FBeY/s1600/Greenmonkey%232.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528745493199361138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_z4h6S7zjjhYQVibFIcEvN6jp_uovo4a0Dk2c3sfr2QUS2bmtHvW_bfpztMoV7VjFe1vCL6nn3Gfh7Q7p0CwOmB94d4kQOL4UaDeBqT7woHVIlNjHPu50HvfiABPt3pczO0yc6e5FBeY/s400/Greenmonkey%232.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-_tgQdHveHyZpCJPKKUuvKHhqbCuGhlA_6XjWydy_wKHTqg_Rc_bENafHGXn0YsB-wtgq50tc88NrAc4PFOs_yBWgXqo3z81F3zWHRXtVxzwE3aC2pKG3wKtzkkNz2OS9NfXUF8Zd3E8/s1600/Greenmonkey%231.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528745487149193650" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-_tgQdHveHyZpCJPKKUuvKHhqbCuGhlA_6XjWydy_wKHTqg_Rc_bENafHGXn0YsB-wtgq50tc88NrAc4PFOs_yBWgXqo3z81F3zWHRXtVxzwE3aC2pKG3wKtzkkNz2OS9NfXUF8Zd3E8/s400/Greenmonkey%231.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVdtmjAmGun-qIRhLGIeGLA1LeyEW-rJFj0Oi1XjJTplu4i4zfIhdcAh-Ljo1CB2_alPrQRoJf8EUVGgMov9CBKfdFloSOZ1jFI7I9A9BN0yMzrXaZfNEIJgmTjEYpQA4WdGm0B3xNqk8/s1600/Greenmonkey%239.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528746376587908658" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVdtmjAmGun-qIRhLGIeGLA1LeyEW-rJFj0Oi1XjJTplu4i4zfIhdcAh-Ljo1CB2_alPrQRoJf8EUVGgMov9CBKfdFloSOZ1jFI7I9A9BN0yMzrXaZfNEIJgmTjEYpQA4WdGm0B3xNqk8/s400/Greenmonkey%239.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEnvvhsTBMKGxnKMwt6ia6RNT5btEDKHwoelJUgetvO4jwWH436b8iOwfe-mNGpOwpPOkjDhyHXbMbIFNPVyERFir7KzhBRqq9s8zeKC7zIFV2qOs2OxKnz21xFBnDMhp61X-UGgF8mBs/s1600/Greenmonkey%238.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528746372523971666" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEnvvhsTBMKGxnKMwt6ia6RNT5btEDKHwoelJUgetvO4jwWH436b8iOwfe-mNGpOwpPOkjDhyHXbMbIFNPVyERFir7KzhBRqq9s8zeKC7zIFV2qOs2OxKnz21xFBnDMhp61X-UGgF8mBs/s400/Greenmonkey%238.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3_t3XbS6CT5C0mlu_pp_aefFbE1rsUi5lxJMpc9zvzja5cn-GC8ryHxCzHdUQJbJZRNhERBCXb1LwcZ_11wYkIyQb-nFQdl-ibTL0T9e4GxafQHmeHLVoUl44wIUwruxbc3zbGkBu88c/s1600/Greenmonkey%237.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528746366432388818" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3_t3XbS6CT5C0mlu_pp_aefFbE1rsUi5lxJMpc9zvzja5cn-GC8ryHxCzHdUQJbJZRNhERBCXb1LwcZ_11wYkIyQb-nFQdl-ibTL0T9e4GxafQHmeHLVoUl44wIUwruxbc3zbGkBu88c/s400/Greenmonkey%237.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8kfGLS-PyrM0v3XcaJrGXy3m8exuECOjZtdK7QYh25qFIf5TjNt_Eh5EFUdXVS7sQZXuvhmbj5LIJsUofamssLLf3Hnffy0xYxMtsDUCYuc5Wh4TN8HWVtMG5ig06m5Jdv26s-QcWHok/s1600/Greenmonkey%236.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528746365323596018" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8kfGLS-PyrM0v3XcaJrGXy3m8exuECOjZtdK7QYh25qFIf5TjNt_Eh5EFUdXVS7sQZXuvhmbj5LIJsUofamssLLf3Hnffy0xYxMtsDUCYuc5Wh4TN8HWVtMG5ig06m5Jdv26s-QcWHok/s400/Greenmonkey%236.jpg" /></a><br /><br />This monkey was a fun knit but one pattern that you needed to read line by line and page by page. There are tons of short rows, plenty of increases and decreases and a few new techniques to learn, such as intarsia in the round. But the pattern is written spot on perfect, and is achievable by anybody who is a step above a rank beginning knitter. There are only 2 seams to worry about when the knitting is done. One short on at the crotch which is left open for stuffing and a partial whip stitch seam to fasten the bottom half of the muzzle to the lower part of the face. You do have to sew on the eyes but I found that very easy to do. The pattern does call for any weight of yarn and the appropriate size of needles to have a tight gauge when worked. I chose worsted weight, Cascade 220 Tweed to be exact. The total length is 15" not including his tail or 9" when sitting to the top of his head. The pattern pics show him knit in self striping sock yarn. I am not sure I would personally enjoy knitting him in yarn that small. Doing all that work and having a 5" tall monkey when done just doesn't grab me much. But hey, the striping effect is really cute. Here is the <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/jacobus">link</a> to the pattern. But if you aren't on Ravelry you will have to join to be able to purchase this pattern. But hey, Ravelry is free, and oh so much fun. So go ahead and join like the entire rest of the knitting world. </p><p>I am half way done with the purple twin to Jacobus. It will be for the 2nd granddaughter. And I already have a request to do one for my walking partner's daughter for Christmas so I ordered another skein of Cascade, this time in a pretty aqua blue. I have a number of other knitting projects on the invisible list for the holidays and really need to pump up the production if I want to get most of them done. So expect some more project posts soon. None as picture heavy as this one, I am sure...<br /></p>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-25562193053761689712010-10-13T13:54:00.000-07:002010-10-13T14:50:17.732-07:00Of Beds and BirdhousesOK-As promised, I am back again in short order. Warning-this post has lots of color!! Some of them might make your head spin and leave you feeling a bit dizzy. But seriously, I am proud of project #1. It has been in the making now for well over a year. And still, it is not really done. It needs a sashing put on around the entire outside of the quilt. Then of course, I need to peice the backing, mail it off, sell my soul on the street to pay for custom quilting, wait til it comes back in the mail, sew on binding, design a label and last of all, <em><span style="color:#993399;"><strong>paint that darned wall behind the bed</strong></span></em>!! The name of the block is Rolling Stone. Ken thinks it is cause the Rolling Stones are his favorite band. But he would be wrong. I just liked the block. Oh, and never mind the pajamas on the floor. I have never been accused of being a tidy housekeeper....<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM4_gGvejURRDGTvab_QgsMXw2GGwyYIpRia7VmndpZRQ8TWw-0wMi2NBNwpzWHQ264wThjq9O5EqbYGe2eFmUSwOf49vXKaqhA2lZChdzjJi8jK_5Mwl-ktOOsfdUxBTrQ5gm2dxGC_U/s1600/Rolling+Stone+Quilt%234.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527646173279721442" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM4_gGvejURRDGTvab_QgsMXw2GGwyYIpRia7VmndpZRQ8TWw-0wMi2NBNwpzWHQ264wThjq9O5EqbYGe2eFmUSwOf49vXKaqhA2lZChdzjJi8jK_5Mwl-ktOOsfdUxBTrQ5gm2dxGC_U/s400/Rolling+Stone+Quilt%234.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKjOhnQ1c8MwLMsWCSOl2kjx6nibZZr7-8QMXkOejgWbTlDV3gvOUTFibGZj43N9HrAGU6ldMEn4441VdyTIe6W5V55FJuUfF8Mw5q_gnv3dysb9_QjER7O5UA60IIYs49kAom6XeRpaY/s1600/Rolling+Stone+Quilt%233.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527646168166942498" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKjOhnQ1c8MwLMsWCSOl2kjx6nibZZr7-8QMXkOejgWbTlDV3gvOUTFibGZj43N9HrAGU6ldMEn4441VdyTIe6W5V55FJuUfF8Mw5q_gnv3dysb9_QjER7O5UA60IIYs49kAom6XeRpaY/s400/Rolling+Stone+Quilt%233.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvrEvid6iPBFF2uEPm_QfG_tM5EWUwfy90Jo0s5aNnAGwR9vIKFJNAw2n7-IJzA0MSxOpwR_0QWBKh20wQBPCwVOLAqOABESPbADcD0rC5iTuoFiyYOkytafyyp6jnANya9piQAB0Hzog/s1600/Rolling+Stone+Quilt%232.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527646167920288130" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvrEvid6iPBFF2uEPm_QfG_tM5EWUwfy90Jo0s5aNnAGwR9vIKFJNAw2n7-IJzA0MSxOpwR_0QWBKh20wQBPCwVOLAqOABESPbADcD0rC5iTuoFiyYOkytafyyp6jnANya9piQAB0Hzog/s400/Rolling+Stone+Quilt%232.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnzBVPB_yKraV6QtKlsw9kVVafxE7pXE39rcxwIOXznod-EsI5VR38Ypppz0RlDCsFv0lfom3BuW_sOtD2PdAa6BfBfoiKjoixVTU3VKbPnn0tli6151JsjhfMvtuSbu7MHFzz0gGo3sY/s1600/Rolling+Stone+Quilt%231.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527646162038368370" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnzBVPB_yKraV6QtKlsw9kVVafxE7pXE39rcxwIOXznod-EsI5VR38Ypppz0RlDCsFv0lfom3BuW_sOtD2PdAa6BfBfoiKjoixVTU3VKbPnn0tli6151JsjhfMvtuSbu7MHFzz0gGo3sY/s400/Rolling+Stone+Quilt%231.jpg" /></a><br /><br />Next up are little nesties to be. I had some space at the end of my row of lima beans and thought I would throw a couple bird house gourd seeds in to climb up the trellis. Those 2 seeds gave me an amazing amount of fruit. These are all I picked but there are still some out on the fence that might still be large and nice enough to make houses for wrens or other such small birdies. But I am thinking I may have 3 to 4 large enough for Purple Martins and many more for finches, nuthatches and such. They are all now into my attic to dry for the winter and then next spring I will pull them all back down and do the finishing up work on them to get them out in time for the early spring arrivals. Gee, after writing all that, I may be a bit presumtuous to think I will have them done for 2011. Maybe 2012? BTW-the moldy spots on several of the gourds do not automatically mean they should be discarded. I have it on good authority that most of those spots turn out lovely after drying and can add to the decorating possiblities..<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicG_MKnr4cl6-N12DL9fZluEkW1mJwP1HwmJaIXgpXaceY6kMEIxgxK2MzbrgTvT7xMBlQwtTGS0J1BLnRWDns5VEZANQnYiagzjEPZ1sPqwYSvCGmlAg_NaV-nl9G_K-Inul6yCxCdVY/s1600/Birdhouse+gourds%235.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527648509598238418" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicG_MKnr4cl6-N12DL9fZluEkW1mJwP1HwmJaIXgpXaceY6kMEIxgxK2MzbrgTvT7xMBlQwtTGS0J1BLnRWDns5VEZANQnYiagzjEPZ1sPqwYSvCGmlAg_NaV-nl9G_K-Inul6yCxCdVY/s400/Birdhouse+gourds%235.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUhUjuOUvaAIPlJoHAhGA6OnhXFcgcN6r5DQaCXaHSbNj_H2Xv3lXYMpgxerLM0-WBSTh45MT_RXNlyg6vQaIUjKbfOqGmH1_TTpVCsbRQJiVa3DotrEnH8t2b92SJGNrrFvIn_npc6Ws/s1600/Birdhouse+gourds%234.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527648503491598514" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUhUjuOUvaAIPlJoHAhGA6OnhXFcgcN6r5DQaCXaHSbNj_H2Xv3lXYMpgxerLM0-WBSTh45MT_RXNlyg6vQaIUjKbfOqGmH1_TTpVCsbRQJiVa3DotrEnH8t2b92SJGNrrFvIn_npc6Ws/s400/Birdhouse+gourds%234.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-1NR6VxofWSNYqVo-5bv0q56g8rEST6oCI3WIO7psZmeP-MSjQ8wYAljoNGxZTBP-oD0LUVwsgPkm1143NH7GvSkoHTHlefjHYZ7yG8BHSTx0EaQF3C_-2pNMuYmywbVTpg_3zfuZfKQ/s1600/Birdhouse+gourds%233.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527648498850390770" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-1NR6VxofWSNYqVo-5bv0q56g8rEST6oCI3WIO7psZmeP-MSjQ8wYAljoNGxZTBP-oD0LUVwsgPkm1143NH7GvSkoHTHlefjHYZ7yG8BHSTx0EaQF3C_-2pNMuYmywbVTpg_3zfuZfKQ/s400/Birdhouse+gourds%233.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqDdoUmxmXYgcFKW_X6r6XduWtrAYUWEizkHWvE57kdt8QJKk5-0XS8COpx82LwrW1RfANVubpCb71jAav_eLHHG5pHOt-gNGLSEBSHbEimJOg7w9YMfD-BQ9UhX10hOIeyRzwJplTjmc/s1600/Birdhouse+gourds%232.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527648491372162850" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqDdoUmxmXYgcFKW_X6r6XduWtrAYUWEizkHWvE57kdt8QJKk5-0XS8COpx82LwrW1RfANVubpCb71jAav_eLHHG5pHOt-gNGLSEBSHbEimJOg7w9YMfD-BQ9UhX10hOIeyRzwJplTjmc/s400/Birdhouse+gourds%232.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkKCG0bWeU5xN-bZAXaVTCfya0JMahEeO1maVfZz_x6IVQ02ioAcq5QYmXrlMWugfBsMlHPGo44VTPW9HlYWx1_mTvZjC8eIiOUInW4bmAWtClNy9oxAuMFKF225guHilxKSaq9dh7H8o/s1600/Birdhouse+gourds%231.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527648486639911282" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkKCG0bWeU5xN-bZAXaVTCfya0JMahEeO1maVfZz_x6IVQ02ioAcq5QYmXrlMWugfBsMlHPGo44VTPW9HlYWx1_mTvZjC8eIiOUInW4bmAWtClNy9oxAuMFKF225guHilxKSaq9dh7H8o/s400/Birdhouse+gourds%231.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5sxqzrzOf7xlFD7hHViMDR95uRhFCxk6TyLXzIrsH1SlPID3IcX_BN7pOXXevroeT5gkdu_AcpyARTq7NgkmG3KaysXQbf2Sh3cUBJgtN_OEorYRPMI0dG9f7rHvSvKZ4j9OuTUKuPCY/s1600/Birdhouse+gourds%236.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527649599834934338" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5sxqzrzOf7xlFD7hHViMDR95uRhFCxk6TyLXzIrsH1SlPID3IcX_BN7pOXXevroeT5gkdu_AcpyARTq7NgkmG3KaysXQbf2Sh3cUBJgtN_OEorYRPMI0dG9f7rHvSvKZ4j9OuTUKuPCY/s400/Birdhouse+gourds%236.jpg" /></a><br /><br />I got silly this afternoon and tried to change the look of my blog a bit. I am not sure if I am just not a techie, but it sure wasn't easy or predictable as to how it was gonna look. I will leave it this way for awhile and try to go back and redo it later on. I still don't understand why I can't get the photo slideshow to only be of my pictures. So ignore that. I can only wish I did some of that crazy quilting!!<br /><br />Be back soon. Got several more projects just about ready to show off!CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-35598727122855382232010-10-10T19:14:00.000-07:002010-10-13T13:19:44.944-07:00Retreat 2010<div align="justify"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi8x4ZmNDyXLP9xVtuchbdb40a4wkh6JQ_naxtM5GwTwf_cXJTVoyh55ShLDcJ5lfeYwJAkLSMNAmksPe8dskbss7veCDgjWeLnt9nqoGGLU5y5PgL-g_qmtvhFMtjTJ_agLnq1URjuOE/s1600/Lake+Logan+Last+Morning+%233.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526618167263486530" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi8x4ZmNDyXLP9xVtuchbdb40a4wkh6JQ_naxtM5GwTwf_cXJTVoyh55ShLDcJ5lfeYwJAkLSMNAmksPe8dskbss7veCDgjWeLnt9nqoGGLU5y5PgL-g_qmtvhFMtjTJ_agLnq1URjuOE/s400/Lake+Logan+Last+Morning+%233.jpg" /></a><br /><br />Lake Logan, North Carolina, 2010.....gathering place for Lizzies far and wide. A place to come together to sew, knit, laugh, hug, cry, talk, eat, drink, walk, sit in the sun, run thru the rain and even try to get in a little restorative sleep. A time to see old friends and to finish up projects that have been sitting on the back burner, some as long as from Lake Logan 2009!!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhle4vySTgtgbDdbK0DNJKpnWjuzxemiCGSFrmGfWwefAMj2GoO83dvqk6prbQ4cKld41x8ya8Y7K35-ig5FL5wJ3t1oR94DfVPW99DVVJHIHOXsKKKKX8HwrML7L_fmQDSn4vx4HdYr_Q/s1600/Meddy+%26+Vickie+walking+towards+Sit%26Whittle+%233.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526618518912849458" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhle4vySTgtgbDdbK0DNJKpnWjuzxemiCGSFrmGfWwefAMj2GoO83dvqk6prbQ4cKld41x8ya8Y7K35-ig5FL5wJ3t1oR94DfVPW99DVVJHIHOXsKKKKX8HwrML7L_fmQDSn4vx4HdYr_Q/s400/Meddy+%26+Vickie+walking+towards+Sit%26Whittle+%233.jpg" /></a><br />I think this year was a bit more important to all of us than in the 2 years past. Cause this year we have had so many health scares amoung our group. It seems our ta-ta's have been misbehavin' all thru out the group. Several Lizzies have had some bad scares, that have led to biopsies. Luckily most have come back normal. But for one of us, the news came back badly, and in a big way.<br /><br />One of the sweetest souls on earth found out a few months ago that she did have aggressive lobular carcinoma of the breast. And even worse, they also found tumor in her brain. So our dear Jan had both a lumpectomy and a cyberknife procedure to melt away the lesion in the brain. The rest of us have felt a bit helpless, being so geographically far away from south Florida where Jan lives. So being able to see some of the rest of the Lizzies just made me feel like I was almost able to reach out and hug Jan myself. And I am sure many of the other Lizzies felt that way also. Plus it gave us the chance to all wear our "Friends Don't Let Friends Fight Cancer Alone" t-shirts and have a group picture taken. Our catch phrase for saying our prayers is, I am going to the rock. So we found the biggest rock we could, climbed up and had a picture made. I can not take credit for this photo. My people pictures don't always seem to come out that well.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6_yectA_rQtJ4tdRl_kjhQafzbJZ-U0LADYyHD29A6gZ-xg969RJ5IUm5XC94EyEnmnMRpycpH5OXJnjzwEAk7UObpgSpwoEtdRS21QKIC6I9kvuh_Zj-GvmmO6T2OvtclCmL_XzgeSE/s1600/group+picture-on+the+rock.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526611280148546258" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6_yectA_rQtJ4tdRl_kjhQafzbJZ-U0LADYyHD29A6gZ-xg969RJ5IUm5XC94EyEnmnMRpycpH5OXJnjzwEAk7UObpgSpwoEtdRS21QKIC6I9kvuh_Zj-GvmmO6T2OvtclCmL_XzgeSE/s400/group+picture-on+the+rock.jpg" /></a><br />This year we had 14 of the actual Lizzies participate and 1 honorary Lizzie. I think the furthest any one travelled was Martha, all the way from Colorado Springs. But then there were lots from all up and down the east coast, several from the midwest, me from 1 state over and Debbie right there in North Carolina. Dee, the honorary Lizzie is also local. We were able to occupy the lodge at Lake Logan which had room for almost all of us to sleep and plenty of room to sit and visit. A few girls did have to stay in one of the smaller cabins but it was a whole lot closer to the dining hall!! We still sewed in Celebration Hall which is still plenty big enough for all that came. Everybody brought the cutest, sweetest little personal gifts to exchange. I brought the felted pincushions which I think everybody liked. As usual, these girls work hard while they are there. I even got alot done in my 4 days. I pretty much finished my quilt top and did alot of knitting. Alas, when I got home I realized I will still have to add a small border all the way around the quilt before I can send it off to be quilted.<br /><br />All to soon, it was time to head out for home. I decided to drive south on Lake Logan road until it dead ended into the Blue Ridge Parkway. It looked on the map like it might be an easier way to go, since I can not seem to keep from getting lost going thru Waynesville!! It was a gorgous day and I was hoping to finally see some of those Smokies without all the rain that kept me from seeing them last year.<br /><br />About 10 miles south of the lake, there was a gorgeous spot where the river widens and slows down a bit. The banks are rocky but very picturesque and peaceful. But somehow, big clod that I am, managed to fall down and really crack my head. I mean hard. Seeing stars and wondering if I am going to black out, hard. I actually laid there for a minute wondering if I was going to be sick to my stomach. Finally I did get up and was able to walk..stagger...back to the car. After a minute or two, I did feel alot better, albeit, with a headache. But I figured I was going to live, unless a slow bleeder in my brain got me later on. I never even noticed that I had also falled on the back of my forearm and it was bruised from wrist to elbow. So what do I do another 10 miles down the road? Get out and take a 4 mile solo hike thru the woods to a really pretty, very remote waterfall!! Oh yeah, probably well out of cell phone range. But hey, if I died, I would have been a good meal for a bear or cougar!! I did get some good pics of the south section of the Blue Ridge Parkway. When I got to where state highway 74 crosses the parkway and goes on up into the Smokies, I turned and headed home. The headache was finally winning and I just wanted to get home. Maybe next year I will finally drive thru the Smokies, and it will not rain on me!!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeExRbpTuNEVTHoeUUbRuL8VuFZhyphenhyphenWGuMwkis4qzaysf1EvglQI-wclql_fThQ1McGFJgyFAuajx8KNQ1HKJSPncKF_xvbNODtWoGFZR-wGeYcdOUg5JC13JII9AaWfoqmvlZhplS_Ow8/s1600/Blue+Ridge+Parkway%231.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526616456711115074" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeExRbpTuNEVTHoeUUbRuL8VuFZhyphenhyphenWGuMwkis4qzaysf1EvglQI-wclql_fThQ1McGFJgyFAuajx8KNQ1HKJSPncKF_xvbNODtWoGFZR-wGeYcdOUg5JC13JII9AaWfoqmvlZhplS_Ow8/s400/Blue+Ridge+Parkway%231.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2O441ldOcbrXZEkenkW-Yw7ot8bfRoAQlG9nBV_MEPrGnV6z4-cLlLQ9h_ztHG_tdXZlIz0dy2OhRQTntpT9PDL7NSFmRSE_1jklKwCS2SzEYEwLTn7DaiCN_hXOp5Sn2fO6odXELQ2Q/s1600/Blue+Ridge+Parkway%2312.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526616756068408962" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2O441ldOcbrXZEkenkW-Yw7ot8bfRoAQlG9nBV_MEPrGnV6z4-cLlLQ9h_ztHG_tdXZlIz0dy2OhRQTntpT9PDL7NSFmRSE_1jklKwCS2SzEYEwLTn7DaiCN_hXOp5Sn2fO6odXELQ2Q/s400/Blue+Ridge+Parkway%2312.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV0hODu5YhSflm6AxiQi5rF3VGaXY3PmAcpDqILr-Jcd5CbYbcUA8bgXV6wz9E3EEuHKSd2HGwZlRQOY9OowinGcFBveVeIGLVdVBjkYaFwoQSpJc4w8Fk6bBY4d1NTE3eIeO58KgUkvg/s1600/Blue+Ridge+Parkway%235.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526616969717713746" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV0hODu5YhSflm6AxiQi5rF3VGaXY3PmAcpDqILr-Jcd5CbYbcUA8bgXV6wz9E3EEuHKSd2HGwZlRQOY9OowinGcFBveVeIGLVdVBjkYaFwoQSpJc4w8Fk6bBY4d1NTE3eIeO58KgUkvg/s400/Blue+Ridge+Parkway%235.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtGDgxQww3KCk_PY3OW42V_aMRhq1lw1OWHmo615slHXB8QQO4HV_EmwWXGjx6zHt4me155TPl9aWl_lFDXc8R5PtuQR9mBsj47Mn2tUlw48zvVp6SHogS7OSM_Hd1qrMfVlYfx8k6bSM/s1600/Cascade+Waterfall%234.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526617261554185474" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtGDgxQww3KCk_PY3OW42V_aMRhq1lw1OWHmo615slHXB8QQO4HV_EmwWXGjx6zHt4me155TPl9aWl_lFDXc8R5PtuQR9mBsj47Mn2tUlw48zvVp6SHogS7OSM_Hd1qrMfVlYfx8k6bSM/s400/Cascade+Waterfall%234.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrt_X3XcexYjrg9fKHfZl1RcxZ3KgyUyANyest9T83Tw8qLQkKRxZHC5IIJcq5iPTQ9X7iQou4qJ4wZw4GEumwSE5aXCJeZB9PvlIAvd3lkL-Dc8802L8MVPMOZXPHdN7t9DexfyofjOE/s1600/The+River%234.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526617602362372130" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrt_X3XcexYjrg9fKHfZl1RcxZ3KgyUyANyest9T83Tw8qLQkKRxZHC5IIJcq5iPTQ9X7iQou4qJ4wZw4GEumwSE5aXCJeZB9PvlIAvd3lkL-Dc8802L8MVPMOZXPHdN7t9DexfyofjOE/s400/The+River%234.jpg" /></a><br /> This is where I fell<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHYTb8Pa31RCXlTNwYxhv0zQWQNpAy7K0cny9jrgZn1kCIEuCBTyYIAcKj1WadWRb58HS5X6OP0LXwK3uawAp-QpTALYekDnxGaH_-6APjDRMWkCVuPFb1BssRlBZRfWVvibkDCp-dxzk/s1600/Blue+Ridge+Parkway%2311.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526617900997244626" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHYTb8Pa31RCXlTNwYxhv0zQWQNpAy7K0cny9jrgZn1kCIEuCBTyYIAcKj1WadWRb58HS5X6OP0LXwK3uawAp-QpTALYekDnxGaH_-6APjDRMWkCVuPFb1BssRlBZRfWVvibkDCp-dxzk/s400/Blue+Ridge+Parkway%2311.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br />The rest of the trip home was pretty uneventful. My sciatica didn't even get bothersome til I was less than 50 miles from home. The furbabies were of course happy to see me as well as the poor hapless hubby who just wanted some sort of home cooked meal after a week of sandwiches.<br /><br />I do have several other things to post in the next few days. Pics of the almost done quilt, some pretty stuff out of the garden, several neat knitting projects and such. But for now it is time to take the doggies out for one last potty and then we are all hitting the hay. See you soonCrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-84572182697821164402010-09-20T08:41:00.000-07:002010-09-20T09:04:59.278-07:00A Bit of the Blues<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbCi0YNZgYW6Deu65DDMTmniz2Vl4S1RRRaexfgtUwyEt5eeU0wcwO-qW5xT4R2BmZjA9Pn3m9cZxkC71z-ZH621PoPQcmZy0I-TztTe3YqdpbZlfziRiBSiBwbBumYpXAbKRRvaEXn7o/s1600/Crystals'+BD+present%233.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5519025661833993810" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbCi0YNZgYW6Deu65DDMTmniz2Vl4S1RRRaexfgtUwyEt5eeU0wcwO-qW5xT4R2BmZjA9Pn3m9cZxkC71z-ZH621PoPQcmZy0I-TztTe3YqdpbZlfziRiBSiBwbBumYpXAbKRRvaEXn7o/s400/Crystals'+BD+present%233.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNKECh7Ii9PkXck3pwCKHuUbRk1vO4E1H9GE_MMWUuqgjAWbovG-9OAmf527a0Pg3CLQ3DtNhV_ENjbiUaJb9PQkm18ml2FK5nZnyhF4VPx2Lp2KY9-e0_KajJkYvGQl9kJhyNH6AN0xs/s1600/Crystals'+BD+present%234.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5519025917413356098" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNKECh7Ii9PkXck3pwCKHuUbRk1vO4E1H9GE_MMWUuqgjAWbovG-9OAmf527a0Pg3CLQ3DtNhV_ENjbiUaJb9PQkm18ml2FK5nZnyhF4VPx2Lp2KY9-e0_KajJkYvGQl9kJhyNH6AN0xs/s400/Crystals'+BD+present%234.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh79Vqb4D73zQM_bPM95qKUva6S9TSOpxVK-ljP3p8lugtDYJLPuk5Co5Mfed03cj-KLcQID_CeeBTmZTrlhQFUCsumYeU9NKNtmtv7rDPpyOCR7sxv8r6AOlKq9bS98nxs8Cp2R5mf8fo/s1600/Crystals'+BD+present%235.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5519026337460147154" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh79Vqb4D73zQM_bPM95qKUva6S9TSOpxVK-ljP3p8lugtDYJLPuk5Co5Mfed03cj-KLcQID_CeeBTmZTrlhQFUCsumYeU9NKNtmtv7rDPpyOCR7sxv8r6AOlKq9bS98nxs8Cp2R5mf8fo/s400/Crystals'+BD+present%235.jpg" /></a><br />I have a daily walking partner here in Tenneessee that would literally give me the shirt off her back. All I have to do is mention that the new bag she just whipped up over the weekend would go perfectly with the new little bag I am making, and it is given to me without hesitation. Constant jars of jelly and fresh veggies are being sent home with me. And she made sure that for the first time in years, that I had a freshly baked chocolate cake on my birthday, along with a gardening apron she made just for me.<br /><br />So I knew I had to do something for her birthday. Something that did not involve my sewing machine. Since I guess I took my machine in for service to the most popular place ever, and the waiting list was made longer by some surgery that the service guy apparently needed to recover from, taking off a few days in the interim. And me being the only person I know, with just 1 machine.<br /><br />So I knitted this lovely little pincushion. You basically knit this wool sphere, stuff it when it is almost totally done, finish off the knitting and then felt it in your washing machine. After 3 to 4 cycles thru it is this lovely shrunken ball that needs to have the fuzzies removed with a shaver. Then you use crochet cotton to sew thru the middle and make the divisons around the pin cushion which further helps the shaping. The last thing is to sew a pretty button in the middle. The one here is a pearlized glass, not antique, but pretty.<br /><br />The other item that made sense to me was a needle book. She does sew a fair bit, and embroiders some too. She had admired my crazy quilt needle book, before Holly chewed it up some, and so I knew she would like it. I did not have the time to do something quite as ornate as mine but this one seemed to be a pretty compromise. The outside is green dupioni and the inside, which I forgot to take a picture of, is a green striped silk from a blouse I bought years ago at a Goodwill. When I picked out these 2 fabrics, I was not thinking at all about the wool I would need for the pages. I knew I had a few peices put away to do needlebooks but had no idea about what colors they might be. Lo and behold, when I pulled out my stash, the only 3 colors I had were a subtle but matching green, blue and a totally unstuitable orange. So the inside pages are blue and green.<br /><br />I wanted to dress up the front so I thought doing her initial would be a good fast idea. Trouble is, I can't freehand anything and I only had 2 old books with any monogram ideas. The one I chose was a bit smaller than I would have liked but it still turned out OK. The beads are vintage lucite from my much smaller stash than I remembered having. Must remedy that on ebay!! The bug is a button bought years ago at a quilt show. We both garden and this little green beetle reminds me of the hideous cucumber beetles we both battle all summer long.<br /><br />So when I got ready to take them down to her I thought to myself, Good job Ann. I rarely say that when I make something for anyone. Which is why I rarely do give handmade gifts. But I just knew she was going to like these. And she did. Told me they looked so professional and expensive. And that she would treasure them forever. This morning she let me know she was already obsessing over what she was going to do for my next birthday!! Let it go, girl. I was at the top of my game with these 2 things. It's all downhill from here out!!CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-30480359750658890192010-09-13T12:00:00.001-07:002010-09-13T13:19:03.911-07:00Our Dismal AnniversaryNow, doesn't that sound ominous? Well, not really.<br /><br />Our 34th anniversary was September 11th. Sharing our anniversary with that of the terrorist attacks of the same date has been hard. I want to remember what all that day brought to the world but then again, I feel like we should be able to celebrate a marriage that outlasted many others out there. Sometimes the attack wins out but this year I decided to not let that happen.<br /><br />The weather was predicted to be a bit hairy on Saturday so I had two different destinations in mind. If it rained, we were heading to Cathedral Caverns outside of Huntsville Alabama. We could tour the cave in the rain with no problem. But our first choice was to head down to northwestern Alabama and hike thru <a href="http://www.dismalscanyon.com/">Dismals Canyon</a>. A last minute look at the weather predictions led us to beleive we had a large enough safe window for spending the day outside. Turns out it never really ended up raining at all, but that is a whole nuther story......<br /><br />It took us about 2 hrs to get there, maybe a bit more. But you gotta knock off a few minutes for our wrong turns. They sure could mark some of the highway's a bit better around here. We drove thru some Alabama countryside we had not seen before. I must say it was not the prettiest scenery around and it made me have doubts about how nice the canyon could possibly be. Even up til the last few miles, it was flat, brown and dry. Not appealing at all. But a few miles from our final destination, it did get a bit hillier and greener. Still not as gorgeous as where we live, but not everywhere can be heaven I guess.<br /><br />Even turning into the parking lot was not impressive. A small gift shop/registration area was at the far end of the almost empty parking lot. We went in and met the parks registrar and resident funny man!! He was a hoot!! We paid our bucks ($8.00, I think?) and went out thru the back of the store and onto a patio. Right behind was the swimming hole and deck. Also pretty unimpressive. But you go across the swimming deck, down the stairs and the first thing you see is a waterfall that comes from under the deck. There is a very old dam holding back the creek right above you that helps form the waterfall, but there would have still been one naturally if the dam had not been built to form the swimming hole. The stairs continue down quite a ways dropping you immediately into a cool, refreshing, all natural canyon with walls going up several hundred feet on each side. The whole canyon is never that wide at any point and goes straight up on each side just steps from the path. But all along the 3/4 mile trail there are huge house sized boulders with little narrow chasms and rifts. Little slot canyons between the boulders exist and may can be travelled thru if you are skinny enough and not a bit claustrophobic!! So even tho it was less than a mile to get to the far end, we probably did twice that by going into and around every single nook and cranny. There is a nice creek running thru the entire canyon and it was filled with the nicest smooth quartz pebbles, a few just had to come home with me. They were all colors from white to brown, with lots of pinks and salmons that were almost translucent. There was some really nice flora and fauna along the way, some of it nicely identified with a sign. At the end there was a bridge that the registrar had actually built himself many years ago. You cross the creek and head back to see the sights on the other side. There was a really cool place called the Dance Hall. It was a flat mega boulder that had fallen centuries ago and the ancient indians had used it for spiritual and ceremonial dances. It was very well hidden by other boulders so it would have been a very cool place for them to hold these special events. Especially at night by firelight. The registrar tells us that after you leave the dance hall area the trail either heads back across the creek or you can take the unmarked part of the trail on the far side of the creek and then come back across a swinging bridge later on. The reason they don't mark the path is because it is a secret!! You have to really look around for it and when you find it, it is a tiny crack between 2 boulders that you shimmy thru and then follow for a ways, eventually coming out at the swinging bridge. It was so much fun to go back thru a second time to see if you could remember how you went. It was not that easy!! We had to look just as hard the 2nd time. We just loved it!!<br /><br />We would really like to go back and take a night tour. They guide you down into the canyon by flashlights, then turn them off when you get down there. There are thes bioluminescent buggies that glow like fireflies. They congregate in parts of the canyon and I understand it to be quite magical in nature. The peak months are April thru June so we might just have to go back and try again this next year. After all, I need some more pebbles!!<br /><br />And now for a few pics. Forgive the blurry ones. That is what happens when you didn't think to bring a tripod and the natural light is a little low. But I still think they are worth a look at.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5ns571_GA3QlT9pdoc8xixi3iPDHyjvnEf0PILiY27BGbp91D20wfdWd5nBLzo42BxMMlIMteXJ4kKNXfcG85RNHlLh8TNTkoXyUFGYtrLkLyG5nCw2HLddtlz3OTBeuuID-elHxG8HY/s1600/009.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516488686764346002" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5ns571_GA3QlT9pdoc8xixi3iPDHyjvnEf0PILiY27BGbp91D20wfdWd5nBLzo42BxMMlIMteXJ4kKNXfcG85RNHlLh8TNTkoXyUFGYtrLkLyG5nCw2HLddtlz3OTBeuuID-elHxG8HY/s400/009.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz6Vq15-uXBJDqV6cM0DGxZpjQucMOZ9tJrTxF2thk83y0yja21QD0GxFeposPdt62g3PnC2xfNMPQkqZMXUzDSeclAnamzwctxerdBojBICwT3UL7YMDf1fKEOM071dDsBbj9-tpchT0/s1600/003.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516493693425545394" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz6Vq15-uXBJDqV6cM0DGxZpjQucMOZ9tJrTxF2thk83y0yja21QD0GxFeposPdt62g3PnC2xfNMPQkqZMXUzDSeclAnamzwctxerdBojBICwT3UL7YMDf1fKEOM071dDsBbj9-tpchT0/s400/003.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH3DPiUD0W8QzzqWDiP9Tjo7pVF87XzDNeKoGaa6CvwWQDyKRqZwo0LojpZivAcCdSElL0vXCv89sFa04e7dPE2DZveJ3vfGbF0vu0I8g1YdmECRq-8eU_LUS5bv0A93ZwoEqj2n6nkTY/s1600/010.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516493966927574258" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH3DPiUD0W8QzzqWDiP9Tjo7pVF87XzDNeKoGaa6CvwWQDyKRqZwo0LojpZivAcCdSElL0vXCv89sFa04e7dPE2DZveJ3vfGbF0vu0I8g1YdmECRq-8eU_LUS5bv0A93ZwoEqj2n6nkTY/s400/010.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieGZSuWUUSWxT2sIurkWpOXbrc_vJMf9bgqxKavWlHp68FBGiIyAXp3OPTvceRe1xvxr7rC1qe3RvFgBdSeVnvJoE4xcWBsENDhgNbv07slItEzqvxVrevDwLJM7_Jrpwj3ulpAt132cY/s1600/026.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516489065479212242" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieGZSuWUUSWxT2sIurkWpOXbrc_vJMf9bgqxKavWlHp68FBGiIyAXp3OPTvceRe1xvxr7rC1qe3RvFgBdSeVnvJoE4xcWBsENDhgNbv07slItEzqvxVrevDwLJM7_Jrpwj3ulpAt132cY/s400/026.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp_mvs-svWwrSSv2sPeG1Abeh7LMze01k1N2gApFdnC-9j4gvKawAYww-9JlUdhthKHPI3ReG5FAdi-3Lbcwz5IxHndUHqnRiwVYojEzOhyphenhyphenkxbxfW8DS4Sq2E2s6UyXovJcbuOeVn2AxA/s1600/036.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516494436672897122" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp_mvs-svWwrSSv2sPeG1Abeh7LMze01k1N2gApFdnC-9j4gvKawAYww-9JlUdhthKHPI3ReG5FAdi-3Lbcwz5IxHndUHqnRiwVYojEzOhyphenhyphenkxbxfW8DS4Sq2E2s6UyXovJcbuOeVn2AxA/s400/036.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNvttcQ2fpGcmvGnuKx1MW1bbNtJZAANbWOxeScSvehXu7WTJcXuwK9RJHPKqRsWgo2jSA3njGfXifRFq0jelhKFp73xiqusdpNshoYifkQgnlSmMJ044-gmODioIvuwjlQ9gRm9SvFZg/s1600/016.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516495062779602914" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNvttcQ2fpGcmvGnuKx1MW1bbNtJZAANbWOxeScSvehXu7WTJcXuwK9RJHPKqRsWgo2jSA3njGfXifRFq0jelhKFp73xiqusdpNshoYifkQgnlSmMJ044-gmODioIvuwjlQ9gRm9SvFZg/s400/016.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikrqYVTO7vNADCCigDvbWTiGRBa8uzpoZZ6EuhiE1W8c9GRHKHBv4GIFDHduUtQNgq1lJ3t59MMtcOx9foeWiNGiGooNwELEkPO1NBZbSxWXDla6YpmRft9U1CgrZ8BCYWu4ukvm9QSyM/s1600/037.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516489404773699154" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikrqYVTO7vNADCCigDvbWTiGRBa8uzpoZZ6EuhiE1W8c9GRHKHBv4GIFDHduUtQNgq1lJ3t59MMtcOx9foeWiNGiGooNwELEkPO1NBZbSxWXDla6YpmRft9U1CgrZ8BCYWu4ukvm9QSyM/s400/037.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnMs8JQ9vNj56b-HCZPUH0pmGImKO_0autBPqwF9G5o3xqCIrJ24nYUOzghicWqgsoW5ABcGRyaEdlb1R44iSkTBf7G4CAm8Qyhr1sZiiBbvvKWS9wpxGpD_Yrn1rc186ij3kH0vWP7tc/s1600/043.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516489716333892498" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnMs8JQ9vNj56b-HCZPUH0pmGImKO_0autBPqwF9G5o3xqCIrJ24nYUOzghicWqgsoW5ABcGRyaEdlb1R44iSkTBf7G4CAm8Qyhr1sZiiBbvvKWS9wpxGpD_Yrn1rc186ij3kH0vWP7tc/s400/043.JPG" /></a>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-73772504038928632012010-09-10T12:16:00.000-07:002010-09-10T13:15:04.789-07:00Sticky WicketHoney, elderberries, hummingbirds and jalapenos. What do all these have in common? They can make an incredibly sticky mess when you try and make things with them. Oh no, I am not really making anything with the hummingbirds, I promise. Just making their food!! Sorry, that did sound a bit bad up there in that prior sentence.<br /><br />First off, the honey. Last weekend my darling DH comes in with 2 supers of honeycomb and plops them down and tells me I need to harvest the honey.......No time to Google and find out how best to do this for the first time.. So I grab my biggest sheet cake pan and start the task of getting honey out of the comb. I don't have an uncapping knife to help open up the cells but I find a regular sharp knife, carefully used, can open up the honey comb just fine. I throw the caps into a sieve cause I can see there is tons of honey dripping off them. Probably mistake #1. But I don't find that out for some t ime to come. I keep trying to position the supers in the pan in a way that let the most honey drain the fastest. I think the kitchen is too cool. The only day below 80 in months and that's the day we decide, well, he decides, this has to be done. So I decide to very slightly heat up the oven and put the whole shebang in there to help the honey flow faster. It works thru several brief heatings. But then, somehow, I let it heat up just a degree or two more than I should have. I hear a thud and look to see that the beeswax has now softened and the whole architecture has slumped out into the pan, on the oven floor, over the racks, ect. Lots and lots of honey to clean up. But you know, honey cleans up pretty well with lots of water and a bit of soap and patience.<br /><br />I take the pan out of the oven and see this big huge conglomeration of honey with bits of comb all thru it. I for one, do not like honey comb with my honey. There are those who do, I think that is just wrong. So I dump it all into my very large mesh colander. Big mistake again. I think I am up to 3 wrongs at this point. The first sieve, the oven and the colander. But I drain over 1/2 gallon of very nice honey off the mess and I am pretty proud of myself.<br /><br />Meanwhile, I Google and find that they used to just squeeze the honey out of the comb. Not a bad idea. Well, in retrospect, this becomes mistake #4 and the first dawning of where I had gone wrong. No one told me how sticky beeswax can actually be when it is liquid. When I squeezed out the honey I got about another 2 cups but when I went to wash my hands I realized that nothing wanted to take off that darned sticky goo. And it was not just on my hands but on all the equiptment used up to that point. The sieve, the colander, the oven, ect. It has taken me days to get all the stuff cleaned up and useable again. But the honey has sure been good. This year's harvest was small but they are very young hives, the supers got put on late and it has been a brutally hot and dry summer. So hopefully next year, I will learn to carefully uncap the combs, be more patient allowing the honey to drain on its own and putting whatever comb I want to drain off into a clean section of pantyhose. The combs themselves when drained of honey, can go right back into the hive which is actually a big time and energy saver for the bees. And I have no need of beeswax for candles. The light switch on the wall works fine for me!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJlL7IGrzfStIFSdupL2jZl_tTnTjA4N15T_A9XrwpD3z9BgMmox-9LRg24zTFX_OEwp4KmURBs4qmNnwmon8g6yaO00XaYmFBTh6OkNqq2ArIrdT90a3W1BeD8osuZiLj2GUOLpHb40o/s1600/001.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5515378744095190274" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJlL7IGrzfStIFSdupL2jZl_tTnTjA4N15T_A9XrwpD3z9BgMmox-9LRg24zTFX_OEwp4KmURBs4qmNnwmon8g6yaO00XaYmFBTh6OkNqq2ArIrdT90a3W1BeD8osuZiLj2GUOLpHb40o/s400/001.JPG" /></a><br /><br />Then the hummingbird story. Really quite simple. I mix nectar and fill 2 glass hummingbird feeders. I head out the door and drop one sending nectar all over the laundry room floor and walls. I think I have now mopped 3 times and still I find sticky places I must be missing.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuWF8mhs81ixzH9VHBg2fwNpUvcvGFpZ2VKjhhpnbFvW6sHOXjktBnUycuqEljeuBAGzvtm19YGHAsTiNd_LFDVporBxA-LT0wdnJQWS0WN6I90AZY58VlnYzuf59ACpRBQAQQ2zA_1pY/s1600/002.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5515379071541620210" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuWF8mhs81ixzH9VHBg2fwNpUvcvGFpZ2VKjhhpnbFvW6sHOXjktBnUycuqEljeuBAGzvtm19YGHAsTiNd_LFDVporBxA-LT0wdnJQWS0WN6I90AZY58VlnYzuf59ACpRBQAQQ2zA_1pY/s400/002.JPG" /></a><br /><br />On to the elderberries. Elderberries make wonderful wine. It takes a great deal of effort to find enough along side the roads and ditches to make all I would love to make each year. Stripping the berries off the stems is even more of a time suck. But I do it, cause the outcome is so worth it. But in making elderberry wine, you get this scummy stuff in your primary fermenter that should be investigated as a industrial glue!! There are lots of speculation on what the goo actually is from. My thought is that it has to be a reaction between something in the elderberries and the yeast. You don't get this scum if you just make elderberry juice. But if you then take the juice and make wine, you get the goo. But after the first step, you don't get it anymore so at least there is only one big clean up involved per batch.<br /><br />Last year, I had a dicken's of a time getting the goo off. I tried everything I could think off to mechanically get it off. Really, really hot water. Soaking with dishsoap multiple times. Scrubbing til my arms ached. A Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. But to minimal avail. The primary fermenting bucket got clean enough to be used again but the stain was permanent.<br /><br />Meanwhile, I discover this year that some really sticky things can be cleaned up well by applying olive oil, then after letting it sit, coat well with liquid dish detergent and rinse. Actually any vegetable oil will do. Obviously, these gluey things are fat soluble chemicals and melt into the oil which is then washed away by the dishsoap. BTW-Dawn is still the best. So when I had elderberry goo on my hands I thought, let me give the oil trick a try. It worked like magic!! So I thought I would share this great discovery with the rest of the wine making world. Well, if you Google the right words you find out all kinds of things. Like, most, but not all of the world already knew this. I am always a day late and a dollar short. But now I will still be that, but with a clean fermenting bucket!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNc-97r6HylrmzFWznyK_X-6dgOqmQ_ysnKsArhyphenhyphenaMXEwI71wk8WLRLtj-gbnwr3ueHI-75sHwJifFyVCrPcm_7CmgaEOp31LBk1oc06JK4bJuUef505eikuhOc_OjRXys1MbiARmOfe0/s1600/003.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5515379295579580610" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNc-97r6HylrmzFWznyK_X-6dgOqmQ_ysnKsArhyphenhyphenaMXEwI71wk8WLRLtj-gbnwr3ueHI-75sHwJifFyVCrPcm_7CmgaEOp31LBk1oc06JK4bJuUef505eikuhOc_OjRXys1MbiARmOfe0/s400/003.JPG" /></a><br /><br />The last but not least fiasco involves me trying to use up some surplus jalapeno's I had brought in from the garden. Jalapeno jelly was just the most sensible thing to make. I looked up a recipe and got going. I was in the process of bringing my mixture to a boil when I turned for just a second to put my jar lids into a pan of boiling water to have them ready when I needed them. Oh yeah, that's right. In just a matter of a few seconds, the mixture came to a full rolling boil and went all over my glass cooktop and quickly became carmelized jalapeno jelly cement. No amount of scrubbing has cleaned it all off. And you gotta trust me on this, I gave it all one could give. I have decided my next option is to carefully take a razor blade to the last bit of remaining spots. This is, BTW, recommended by the users manual. But the jelly did turn out very well. Ken almost licked the bowl clean that I brought to the table last night to serve on crackers with cream cheese.<br /><br />This batch was made with all green peppers but I want to go ahead and push my luck this coming week and work with the red ones I still have out in the garden. I found a recipe that uses cranberry juice with red hot peppers. I think if it turns out it will be great at Christmas as gifts. But Lord, I sure need all the help I can get to not turn this into any more sticky messes!!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoIeZfdoCOd03nZtozfKxiacHnDEpviHOIfXI4nrX-JN-l9S68lh5mSL0xAhg6IgddwiU3p1rM8FvBr-om8iMW9a2FgW4-6lteHpD2wsSP4XMtODiJV1CA5giUQom8epSlKYIMqWgOXcc/s1600/004.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5515379547579806434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoIeZfdoCOd03nZtozfKxiacHnDEpviHOIfXI4nrX-JN-l9S68lh5mSL0xAhg6IgddwiU3p1rM8FvBr-om8iMW9a2FgW4-6lteHpD2wsSP4XMtODiJV1CA5giUQom8epSlKYIMqWgOXcc/s400/004.JPG" /></a><br /><br />So yes, watch out for these sweet, innocent appearing food products. Behind each one of them lurks a heart of pure sticky evilness that may never be permanently removed from my well used kitchen.CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-43886916333337019232010-09-03T18:04:00.000-07:002010-09-03T18:14:48.389-07:00Evening From My Front Porch<img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512859516758481490" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimM8Zsk3DK1U768_YPN2tKAjDHp3xAHG_8y5KKC1pTIV4QEqJZtf5u6r8wrx4SxNIyjhnLXUXgVcLTsq8vLNG6f-HZ0OZCi6M-an1HvqkNppoKcwUEuzL82NzAYeXdiHt-VfLmK74Iffc/s400/006.JPG" /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512859668610499570" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFSSdN6aNVcnOTftJJQzNxnu-mqwP_zaAsm9UB88c9oX5rlB1rF8kNNeQrVq4lrol6oJoMdgOkTbhTvAfDkdyvDXD4OC1X8wZcK0325RqdcSa3voblDwH8mi50Xcq3_WTKHz_wX-6C9kk/s400/003.JPG" /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512859774287646882" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcTg2YV85ilit9ktzbxKUWGQ8vl7WEQFXLY4De-3lH2di3zPrS04V_YRyJFJvURbNf1MotpcB_sbVZanCorVaGXS2ZLPMZjWpoN9qJ8c_ub-vn9UR3IA65Vs5z-YXCAqDmFN3yVXhxi78/s400/010.JPG" /><br /><div>The weather is finally cooling off, especially in the evenings. We had some rain predicted for today, but it totally fizzled out here in the middle of Tennessee. But what was left over was some high thin clouds just in time for a jaw dropping sunset. <div><br /><div>So picture yourself on my big front porch. Sleeping dog at my feet, glass of my very own elderberry wine made last fall, at least 50 hummingbirds dashing and darting about all around the feeders and then this. A sunset that takes your breath away. Mind you, there has been absolutely no photo editing done on these. It was really this spectacular. And all about me was the peace and quiet that comes from living way out in the country. So my day ends with this post to share it all the best I can with you.</div></div></div>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-27334563788949799612010-09-02T05:15:00.000-07:002010-09-02T14:41:59.156-07:00Icarus AscendingA die hard Dan Fogelberg fan like me. How is it I could have missed an entire album? And a song as amazing as this one. The lyrics to this are a testament to what endeared him to so many of his fans.<br /><br />I discovered it just today as I was reading a newspaper article about the memorial service/dedication they had this past weekend in his home town of Peoria Illinois. This, and 2 other of his important works were inscribed on the stone that makes up his public memorial. The other 2 peices are favorites of mine but this song I could not even place. A Google search later and I am reading words that speak straight to the strength of spirit of the human soul. It immediately had me thinking about 2 close friends who are just starting out with their personal battles with cancer. And also, of my daughter and another close friend, who have recently divorced and are learning to fly solo for the first time in many years. Sometimes we just have to trust our faith and know that we are headed in the right direction.<br /><br />I hope you will all take just a moment to read thru these lyrics and understand how they apply to your life.<br /><br /><div align="center"><br />Icarus Ascending<br /><br />Soaring alone upon a threatening wind<br />Just fix your eyes on the horizon<br />Cut off from everything<br />You've known or have been<br />I shouldn't think it's so surprisin'<br />Spiralling upward on a freshening lift<br />Reaching the realms of fleet Apollo<br />You have been given the most sacred of gifts<br />You must be fearless now and follow<br /><br />[Chorus:]<br />Don't look down<br />Though your heart may be weary<br />Don't look down<br />Though your wings are on fire<br />Don't look down<br />Though the night may seem endless<br />There's a reason you're flying<br />This fast and this far<br /><br />Let your faith be your strength<br />And your love be your guiding star<br />Venturing further than<br />The length of your sight<br />Out past the reach of your beginnings<br />There is a gamble in each<br />Proud act of flight<br />But the losses pale before the winnings<br />Circling and diving with this<br />Freedom you've found<br />Illusion blows apart and scatters<br />There is no darkness in this place<br />That we're bound<br />Love is the only thing that matters<br /><br />[Chorus]<br /><br />Up.....up.....up.....up.....</div>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-59186725109263817042010-09-01T13:39:00.000-07:002010-09-01T20:39:24.652-07:00Just Forever....and a day<div>It has been a long time hasn't it. Sorry as always. But let's let that go and hope for a fresh start with this blogging thing.<br /><br />Alot of life has gone on since last I chatted with most of you. Tons of gardening, a very very hot dry summer which exhausted me, a visit from the granddaughters, another visit with my dad and then very recently a short visit from my Aunt Judy, my dad's sister whom I had also not seen in almost 50 years. All the visits were great and never lasted quite long enough for anyones liking.<br /><br />Probably the best visit is when I took the girl's down to Atlanta to meet my dad the day before they flew back to New Hampshire. The day before had been a tough one. I think Maddy was a bit out of sorts about the entire idea of meeting a grandfather she didn't already know, leaving and going back home and maybe flying out of Atlanta. Who knows what had her on edge. But she just didn't have the best of days and exhausted herself and everyone around her. But the day we left to go down, she was great and both girls enjoyed meeting my dad and his wife. They were on the very best behavior the entire time, especially when we were out to dinner. I am sure the conversation bored them to tears but you would have never known it. We left late to go to a hotel closer to the airport cause their flight in the morning was so very early. Maddy was an amazing navigator and both girls held up well when we couldn't find a hotel for over 2 hrs. They were very tired when they got on the plane the next morning. They are now back home, in their brand new house and at a brand new school. All is going well from what I have been told.<br /><br />The sitting garden has made alot of progress since the last posting and pictures. Even thru a very hot summer, lots of things bloomed well and provided me with a quiet spot to drink my coffee in the morning. Well, at least after I found this vintage cafe set at a junk shop and painted it this bright blue. After all, a girl needs a place to sit in the garden in order to have that coffee. I have also managed to place alot of found objects thru out the space this summer. I have a "made" birdbath out of terra cotta pots. I am going to mosaic the large saucer part here soon and use the orange globe from an old hummingbird feeder in the center for an accent. I brought several gazing balls with us from Oklahoma and they are all in their places now. Our local Salvation Army had a nice armillary sundial for 5 bucks that came home with me and is nestled where it hardly even sees the sun!! Oh well, I am not smart enough to tell time in such a complicated way!! The little patio that the table sits on is almost big enough and soon I will move all the pavers and level it all out a bit better. My bottle tree looks right at home next to the french doors to the apartment. And yes, we did drink all that wine at some point! I still have not found the perfect bird house that I see in my mind, living a corner of the garden. But I will find it and get it out there someday soon. By this time next year, it will all have changed again as I plan on letting the beds get a bit wider and there of course, will be alot more growth on all the plants. So stay tuned...or of course, come for a visit and see for yourself!<br /><br /><div><div><div><div><div><br /><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 213px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512061776320359746" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3XBXs4NxTrJJ1cZpZIZq6qxF9RKCKJNmyXQUpsxeIOVfeboadNxXsXlhS-NyHCXHCrP6lMz5WQPgZZ5HZqH1w28PLRgYxFUFoCPwsz_v4Sur8GO2fmaqPppFm8jift077NEATp6a7qH0/s320/sitting+garden+%231.jpg" /> <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512150022915667122" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlVE5XMVZY_P0IwHM8NouWmogCseiyhroQblzeiKoGRN7vuRtzH_gGPl1MFAYNkKN2lXWW4LBqd0EdG8xpBl9-MKqZP6w4qYlw-18eOd3PDaSqFOscH1LfOTdguLqcEOHMt2nj7LMxuw4/s320/sitting+garden+%232.jpg" /> <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 213px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512151605733848114" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhivJI_zqCa-F-KkxNKfmKpOEbXFnn9C1xj1EYX8vQI2meYQDLYqzNfrLl5oS5UX5VzPTxf0b3aH-1VKdK80eqixs1EqmPfjy_IiVs6jaa06SpcZoQCpjui8OqXb6NzFSH-JzXecp5Yzeg/s320/sitting+garden+%233.jpg" /> <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 213px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512154404968413586" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrTBQLs4bdDPKiqsIxNhj7hziNqxElNhUQq6zmduoc8Kc5XS55UViBjTNoCPFiGkhdIGw49Af2wc7263X-Ly_eNc4z0bYUgIe8HaP4wz4Ma2wnXN7ejbcqa84CJYzltGkEXCMyJi5zVVk/s320/sitting+garden+%236.jpg" /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 213px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512152978858155058" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5M_90vydtpUIzvYjrMWPSV7NtQz1CHD2tpPrWzWxY36Mo8h_9a80iWjlWpwWyR3zo5_JYZngT8eW71_YKYwIhldXeVnkzJ6zgOu3TT0zaL0pJFWCJ_lArMP9djf7Pj0UmMYuq-dmvQUI/s320/sitting+garden+%235.jpg" /><br /><br />Another thing that I have not done in forever. A real forever. And a day.......crazy quilting. But this little purse is something I whipped up to replace a bag I had worn plumb out. It is just big enough to carry my money, credit cards & ID, and my cell phone when I leave the car to go into a store. I honestly had not done any CQ in so long that every step of the way I had to really think about what I was doing. Going thru some of my bins, I felt like I was making new friends of all my old supplies. I really need to get back to doing more of this and maybe even finish my big wall hanging that already has so much work put into it.<br /><br />The slightly bigger bag is one my friend Crystal made for herself or her daughter. But when I saw it I commented on how well it would match my little bag. Being Crystal, the very next day she came down and gifted it to me. I have such great friends!! And alot of the fabric for the CQ bag was from my Lizzie on-line friends. A few years ago, they all sent fabric in my birthday cards. Every time I opened a card, some sort of blue fabric came tumbling out. They swear it was not a coordinated effort and I beleive them. They are just all in sync some times. But I knew at some point I would use that fabric for something that would remind me of all of them. I think I did good with this one.<br /><br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512145700994018818" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcXcReGae9sOpCxbJEY4loYhYLt4WW6QUgh5y1CZuQlBLBEGX4PuMq8AMWmpfltYIUt260HcZMvL9F4IgZtW3Xi5WI7sKbKaxBdUmevhJ1pUuvtesrkgTkGVGNIdDoZJ9TL2zaOgeH-pw/s320/little+CQ+purse%233.jpg" /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512143486600320114" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVcfHvjp1kItA-eqxGMkxgrndZ4tY7Wf1Q6skpQsbDX3tAhdMSHugwGLv3cTIVc3aaJ61dxTN0SjnVg1Ye94NOw8JG1o11imS0ugkWD85ZK6LEnzoracYBy4_ueY1-wZRxuvOkIlvP8U8/s320/little+CQ+purse%231.jpg" /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 213px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512142234353249714" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT5ACR5bvmIHgnZ5G_e4VBNjtlymToQ2v55E2tQlQvk5k5GSDJ_TFi_U5-MAf-_2cRDNQxhHEln1-8Auufz1vgCvNVB29QhaMEwdyUzqIVJkFvcduL9fj686DgjojQz95-Ufaw0p-MsWA/s320/little+CQ+purse%232.jpg" /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 213px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512147200003025282" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjizKd12pS7NjqvjUDo5oZejO1VbiZEBi8Px80U_hkZa5N7vzJDiwBjd-Ap-VnN8STfFgSaY8qEs6iE9SzIHy4PG8hn-LPg3gmBEH3fT5Hf_YhmYEwcxO4_sKyPJ6ERU_rgwyCi3G6AjvQ/s320/little+CQ+purse+plus+larger+bag.jpg" /></div><br /><div>I have lots of other projects in the works and may have some more to post about soon. So see you next time, when ever that ends up being! </div></div></div></div></div></div></div>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-34114586686954760982010-05-14T08:49:00.001-07:002010-05-14T09:50:00.229-07:00Before, During and Almost After<div align="left">Seems like this spring has been one with lots of new beginnings. The best, of course, was the one with my father. We talked that all out in my last post. But this entry is all about the 2nd best one, my new fencing.<br /><br />Now if you listen to my husband, fencing is made to either keep things in or to keep things out. This fence does neither. It just defines a space. And so he just does not get it and sure didn't think it was an idea worth spending money on. But my brother-in-law, who drew up my landscaping design and I both envisioned a beautiful space filled with flowers to have as a private sitting garden. It encloses but does not close off, a space right behind our detached garage. The nice thing about our detached garage is that it has this very nice little guest apartment built onto the back. And the entry door to the apartment is now going to be within this fenced off garden. You will eventually be able to look out the apartments sliding glass door and see nothing but flowers and the meadow beyond. Pure bliss. Still, husband does not get it. Tells me that it now looks like an old family graveyard that many houses in this part of the country have. Oh well, there are worse things!! I expect once the space is filled with blooming plants and the trellis is covered with vines, it will look a lot less like a graveyard and a whole lot more like the cottage garden that I have long wanted.<br /><br />So here are some random before, during and after photos. But not really totally after, since the plants are not in at all yet. I did use some Round-Up in preparation to commence planting this next week. You see, I have been expecting this fence to be installed weeks before it actually did. So I have been buying everything I could get my hands on at the nurseries and babying them along while I was waiting for the fence to be put in. So hopefully in just a few short weeks it will look very very different out there.<br /><br /><br /></div><p align="center"></p><p align="center"><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1258/4606214539_e82609a109.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1258/4606214539_e82609a109.jpg" /></a> </p><p align="center"><br /><br /></p><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1404/4606831328_337a091a97.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1404/4606831328_337a091a97.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1203/4606831726_1b7bb6870f.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1203/4606831726_1b7bb6870f.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1422/4606839434_7cd7287f4c.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1422/4606839434_7cd7287f4c.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3391/4606222405_c9ea3caf08.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 333px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3391/4606222405_c9ea3caf08.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1068/4606840688_4133ce5522.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 333px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1068/4606840688_4133ce5522.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4014/4606839984_aa0b2bdd99.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4014/4606839984_aa0b2bdd99.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1134/4606223787_316201e35f.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1134/4606223787_316201e35f.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1283/4606224597_967e2e2632.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1283/4606224597_967e2e2632.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4045/4606841866_06dda8fc7e.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 333px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4045/4606841866_06dda8fc7e.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a><br /><br />And now just a few pretty shots from the garden...<br /><br /></p><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1381/4606224329_c5e234a673.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1381/4606224329_c5e234a673.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1190/4606840194_fb5b95abfb.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1190/4606840194_fb5b95abfb.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4008/4606832540_d97e0a4761.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4008/4606832540_d97e0a4761.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3373/4606832400_38ae2cb254.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3373/4606832400_38ae2cb254.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1365/4606832290_46dfaf4a81.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1365/4606832290_46dfaf4a81.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3589/4606215449_d6c3354d93.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 333px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3589/4606215449_d6c3354d93.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1077/4606832002_a122b19f94.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1077/4606832002_a122b19f94.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1250/4606831874_9f3172be26.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1250/4606831874_9f3172be26.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1320/4606830620_5bb734eacc.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 333px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1320/4606830620_5bb734eacc.jpg" /></a>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-83095909826752622162010-04-25T13:40:00.000-07:002010-04-25T14:23:18.764-07:00Here's to New BeginningsI know some of you have been waiting with much anticipation, to find out what my big <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">surprise</span> is, promised in my last post. So without further ado, here it comes.....<br /><br />I have found my father. He had been missing to me for approximately 45-50 years. My parents had a difficult marriage and an even harder divorce when I was but 6 years old. I always adored my father, as many little girls do. And when I was told I had to live with my mother when I would have much rather lived with my father it tore me apart. Then when my mother further unraveled after the divorce, becoming an even more unstable person I longed for my father even more. At first, after the divorce, he was still a part of our lives. But my mother could never keep her rent paid and we constantly would be moved from town to town in the middle of the night which made us a bit hard to keep up with. Visits became fewer and further apart. We did go to live with him, his new wife and 5 kids for a time but eventually, for reasons I did not understand, we eventually went back to my mom and to a life that just kept getting worse and worse. The final time I saw my father, we were back living in Ohio and he came into town for a day and took us to lunch. I sat <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">thru</span> the meal thinking if I could just be perfect and make my brother and sister also be, then he would want us and take us back with him to where ever he was living at the time. Of course, that did not happen. Then again, my mother moved us and would not let him know where we were. My dad said he called my grandmother for information but she refused to give it to him. So that ended our relationship at that time. Until just a few short weeks ago.<br /><br />Now all those years did not pass without me wondering where he was or what he was doing. But before the electronic age, I would have had to hire a private investigator to have a prayer of finding him. I wasn't always in the position to afford that, nor was my mental state all that healthy to be able to risk rejection. So I just kept it at curiosity.<br /><br />But once Google came along, I occasionally would put his name into the search engine. I ran across small items like his Ohio State wrestling record. But nothing really very helpful. I was starting to get a little older, wiser and happier with myself but still not enough to spend a whole lot of money to find him and still risk rejection. Or even finding out that he had already passed.<br /><br />But about 6 weeks ago I was messing around with <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-error">Facebook</span> and put his name in just to see what would come up. Lots of <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">people</span> with his name but none with anything that made me sure it was him. So I pulled up Google and gave it one more college try. The 3rd listing in was a document and my computer warned me against opening it, not sure it was not virus free. Never being one to pay attention to threats, I opened it and there before my eyes was his resume'. I searched <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-error">thru</span> it trying to see if there was any concrete proof that it was my father. The birthday was close but not exactly what I remembered. His degrees were a tad bit different also. But there was way too much for it to not be him. And it included an email address!! So immediately, before I could lose my confidence, I sent him an email. It was a couple of days before I heard back but he was completely glad I had found him. And he said he had been looking for me for many years also. But with all those moves, me going to a married name, me not being exciting enough to make onto Google, I was impossible to find.<br /><br />In his email he asked a ton of questions about my life up until that point. So I answered as well as I could, glossing over <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_5" class="blsp-spelling-error">alot</span> of the bad stuff that had happened in my life. I also told him all about my wonderful, gorgeous, talented kids and <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_6" class="blsp-spelling-error">grandkids</span>. But then I did not hear back from him for over 2 weeks. That broke my heart. I kept thinking something I said upset him and made him not want to reconnect after all. Or that he had gotten suddenly ill and passed before we could get any further. So close and yet so far.<br /><br />But in the back of my mind, I kept thinking not to give up. Until after my birthday. He had asked to be reminded exactly when my birthday was and I had. So if he had not answered by my birthday I figured it was all over and done. And I was right. First thing in my in box on my birthday was another email. He had been out of town and then had come home with a bad cold that had him taking to his bed for a few more days. He did still want to have me in his life after all.<br /><br />We emailed back and forth a couple of times over the next week or so. And then I suggested that we meet up for a meal while I was in the Atlanta area the end of April. A friend and I were already going to be there to attend a fiber festival so why pass up the opportunity. We all agreed and set the date.<br /><br />Now, the fiber festival was great. Lots of great yarn to feel, covet and even buy. Needles, patterns, notions, <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_7" class="blsp-spelling-error">ect</span> by the score. Classes by big name teachers that I would have loved to have taken. But somehow the highlight of this weekend just didn't end up being yarn related!!<br /><br />We <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_8" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">rendezvoused</span> at a <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_9" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">restaurant</span> in <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_10" class="blsp-spelling-error">Symrna</span>, Georgia called Curry, Curry cause he remembered that I said I loved Indian food. But I can't honestly say I hardly even remember the meal. No, correct that. The <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_11" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">spicy</span> chicken coconut soup was to die for. But I walked in and had no trouble at all telling who he was. But I did also have to meet my half sister I did not know I had at all and my Dad's wife Claire, whom he has been married to the last 15 years. They both turned out to be very dear people that I will be proud and honored to have in my life now. We probably spent almost 2 hours there talking and catching up the best we could. He told me many things that I did not know or only partially remembered. I told him things that also validated many of his suspicions about my mother's mental state of mind for all those years.<br /><br />The weather was threatening to be a big problem for our drive back to Tennessee, but we did still go on over to his and Claire's house to take one final look at the weather channel before heading out. He lives in a amazingly nice retirement village where they have their own house, larger than mine, but they do all the <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_12" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">maintenance</span> work for them along with providing a dining hall and other <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_13" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">amenities</span>. They can move to different quarters as health demands for as long as they shall live. It seems so perfect for them. I got to see his huge, and I do mean huge, collection of books. His lower level honestly looks just like a public library. Although many of the book titles would bore the average person!! But we really had to get on the road to avoid the severe weather that was brewing all over the <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_14" class="blsp-spelling-error">tri</span>-state area.<br /><br />So now we can move this relationship along to another level. Hopefully Ken and I can go down there soon and then hopefully both kids can make it out to also meet their grandfather. I know he is already proud of them just from what I have told him. And he is so very much like Daniel that I know they will click like 2 peas in a pod.<br /><br />But for now, here is a picture of him, Claire and I on their back deck. I think I look old!! I think he looks to young to be my dad!!<br /><br /><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1343/4552338856_5484097db2.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1343/4552338856_5484097db2.jpg" /></a>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1661611764801652224.post-73309747331246299212010-04-07T10:01:00.000-07:002010-04-07T10:26:06.166-07:00All This Potential...<div align="justify"><br />Spring has sprung. It went from being a cold, wet, horrible, long winter straight into early summer here in Tennessee. We have been so hard at it, working out in the yard digging, planting, weeding, pruning, mowing and such. But in one of my pensive moments I stopped and looked all around me to see all the potential waiting to be realized later in the summer. So here is a photo tour of that moment, enjoy!!<br /><br /></div><a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2734/4500543002_60615df0ae.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2734/4500543002_60615df0ae.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>future dandelion wine<br /><br /></p><a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2776/4500542766_34826af21a.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 333px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2776/4500542766_34826af21a.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>a native grape hyacinth that will be the seed of many more to come fill in the area<br /><br /></p><a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2798/4499907347_4dc4fb1d96.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 333px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2798/4499907347_4dc4fb1d96.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4066/4500544240_567b56541f.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4066/4500544240_567b56541f.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>ditto on the wild violets<br /><br /></p><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4016/4500543182_6585a6a0e4.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4016/4500543182_6585a6a0e4.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>these will someday be apples!!<br /><br /></p><a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2458/4499908139_c57b08801b.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2458/4499908139_c57b08801b.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>and these, peaches<br /><br /></p><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4031/4499908383_79479dd9fc.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4031/4499908383_79479dd9fc.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>strawberries-yum!<br /><br /></p><a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2727/4499908681_693406facb.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2727/4499908681_693406facb.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>and if we can keep the bunnies out of the garden these will be our sweet english peas<br /><br /></p><a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2719/4500544440_540fe9b9fb.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2719/4500544440_540fe9b9fb.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>bell and hot peppers<br /><br /></p><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4054/4500544584_a550dbee20.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 333px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 500px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4054/4500544584_a550dbee20.jpg" /> <p align="center"></a>tomatoes. Lots of tomatoes. Like about 15 varieties!!<br /><br /></p><a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2701/4499909633_563bcb1528.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 500px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 333px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2701/4499909633_563bcb1528.jpg" /> <p align="justify"></a>Last but not least. The long awaited quilt. It is more done than it looks in this pic. 4 rows out of 11 put together. All the blocks done. So now the challenge is to make myself stay inside just enough to get at least a row put on a week. But I would love to make that 2 rows a week so I have a prayer of getting it totally finished before the end of the summer. Sorry the lighting isn't any better but I promise it is a beautiful quilt.<br /><br />There is also 1 more thing that has a lot of potential to bring joy into my life. But I need to wait a bit longer to talk about it in it's full glory. And in a post of it's own. Cause it will deserve it. And I promise it will be worth waiting for. It has been for me. See ya next time<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></p>CrazyAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09875910506115133546noreply@blogger.com3