Painting and Paddocks

It's Saturday and the beginning of a welcome weekend after yet another busy week.  They just keep on coming this time of the year, don't they!

Lets see. The deck posts, chairs and downpipes have been given their second and final coat of paint. 

It was much harder work than the first coat. I don't quite know why, especially as Mr Potts, the emu, wasn't trying to help me paint this time.  (Show Mr Potts a paint brush and suddenly he won't leave me alone.  Ditto spray painting.  Ditto power tools.  'Have. Craving. Must. Investigate' ). 

I'll have to capture his obsession on video one day....

It wasn't until I had nearly finished painting and commented to my daughter that Mr Potts had not been creating his usual brand of havoc that the penny dropped.  'He's being lulled to sleep by the Christmas music!', she told me.

And there, under a tree a few metres away, was Mr Potts, happily tucked up with eyes half closed, peaceful and snoozy, swaying gently in time to the beat of Christmas tunes coming from my ipod deck.

What can I say? This emu truly belongs on Jingle Bells Farm : )

So.  This week:
Deck painted?  Check.
Cast iron chairs and table spray painted? Check.
5 new chicks hatched in the incubator? Check.
Christmas decorations pulled out from storage and waiting to be tackled?  Check.
Schooling done? Check.
Catch up with a bunch of schooling friends? Check.
Supplies ordered and delivered for today's project to set up the horse Paddock Paradise?  Well.....still waiting on the replacement energisers and electric braid to arrive, but the posts are going in today, the insulators, earthing rods and all else will be done and the moment the braid arrives I'll have it up and running. 

Last on my list of things to get done this weekend is tearing down the poultry run and putting up a new area for the ducks and geese to bed at night. 

Wish me luck!

The Paddock Paradise-Finally!

Busyness has struck Jingle Bells, with another major project about to be tackled AND Christmas coming up fast.

I've been waiting for a day of sunshine to complete the second coat of paint  on the verandah posts, trim and chairs, and in the meantime we've been catching up with friends, schooling, and getting a little Christmassy with some party preparations for our annual Christmas Party on the farm.

As for that major project I mentioned, this weekend the horses are getting a big surprise- their Paddock Paradise is finally happening.
The posts have been ordered and due to arrive tomorrow, the electric braid on it's way, and the new paddock set up is marked and ready to be implemented come Saturday. It's going to be an exhausting couple of days replacing the old ringlock and star pickets, but I can't wait to get this project tackled and done.

And Zanda should be content to stay on his own side of the fence line come Monday...

Cheeky!!!!!!!!

Zanda has perfected the art form of unlatching the paddock gate and letting himself out for the occasional romp around the homestead.  It will be interesting watching him try his Houdini act once the fence is electrified : )

A Facelift for the Wrap Around Veranda/Deck

I freely admit I have more than a small issue when it comes to painting.  I'm passionately  overwhelmingly  slightly addicted.  I go through periods of craving to pick up a paint brush and very little can stop me when I hit this mode.
Have. Craving. Must. Paint.
There is something amazing about being able to transform with texture or colour. Or a bit of both : )

Taking time out after farm feeds Sunday evening and enjoying the changing colours as the sun set while I plonked on the veranda to soak in the beauty and tranquillity that is our piece of valley, the urge struck.
 
Yes, that urge.

The veranda posts had caught my eye and that was that, they were in for a redo.

I contemplated their red clay hue and consulted my mental paint chip file. 
Hmmm. 
White, definitely not.
Green, nope nope noooo. 
Brown?  plleeeeeaaasse. 
I looked at the colours of the surroundings and finally decided on corrugated iron silvery grey.

...Only once I tried corrugated iron silvery grey on one post it was very obviously NOT the right colour at all. Thankgoodness for tester pots...

What to do, what to do? Why,  sift through my paint supplies of course!  And there I found it.  The PERFECT colour.
Oh baaaby!

            See how well this colour brings out the purple hues? Think iris, wisteria and lavender.

Of course, it didn't stop there.  I've been meaning to pull down the shadecloth divider for a while now. 

It's hideous  rather an eyesore, although I do appreciate it was meant to help keep garden bed dirt off the driveway.
 I couldn't get it down fast enough.

Better already!

*sigh*  

So much better!  And not even all painted yet!

And there's more.
Chairs were looking a little blah, so......

  The Puddleducks let me know if I missed a spot....

I've only managed one coat on everything so far, and the weather is against me today so it will be another day or two until the job is complete.  But I love how it's turning out so far! I'll be sure to post a few pics once the job is complete.

Happy Wednesday everyone!  And for those that celebrate Halloween, Happy Halloween and keep safe : )

Monday on Jingle Bells

Happy Monday everyone!

I hope you all had a great weekend :)

Me, I headed to the local Farmers Markets yesterday and while the pickings were slim for fresh produce, there were alot of other stalls to browse over.
I was super happy to find this bucket of glass insulators.

Yep, that's right, 50 cents each.  I am not sure exactly what I'm going to do with them yet, but when I saw them I knew I couldn't pass them up!  I have some ideas floating around, but so far the most appealing is some kind of hanging sculpture. So many possibilities!

Another find was a rocking chair which didn't come home with me. 
It was being sold on consignment for $600.  A beautiful rocker with a super high price tag.  Would anyone pay $600 for it?  I dunno.  What I do know is I have one EXACTLY like it.  Not similar.  EXACTLY.  Its twin. 
And this is what I did to it a few months back.

Hmmm. Wonder if it's still eligible for the $600 price tag? LOL

Today has been a fun day as I was doing what I absolutely love- painting.  No, not a framed masterpiece but rather the posts on the wrap around verandah.  So I suppose I was painting the frame of a masterpiece : )  I'll post all about the verandah overhaul tomorrow.

For now I thought I'd introduce you to some of the newbies to the farm.  I  mentioned these guys the other day but didn't have any pictures to go along with the post.

So here is Clive.

And Isabelle. Well, Isabelle, mama Lady Plum and daddy Darren's butts. What can I say?

Aren't they adorable?  'Course they are : )  Know of any duckling or gosling that isn't?  I rest my case.

Have a fun evening everyone, and thanks for stopping by.

Beanbag Chairs and Wall Art

Beanbags.  Gotta love them.

Unfortunately, in my past experience of beanbags, the cats of the family also love them. 
In a bad way. 
A really bad way. 
I can only assume the feel underfoot underpaw is rather like the litter in their litter tray.  You get the drift.

We've gone through a number of beanbags over the years until I finally called it quits.

Until recently when I came up with this little idea:

To hang the beanbags, I simply unstitched part of the seam, added in a loop of ribbon and a metal ring. 

 If you give this a try be sure to restitch that seam well!

Nah-nah-na-na-nah Puddy Tats : )

The Case of the Missing Peahen

I mentioned an unplanned trip to the city happened during the week.  That was Tuesday.
It's a 7-8 hour round trip and I came home in the late evening to find one of the two peahens not on her usual night time perch. 
I've kept a look out for her each day, with the suspicion she had chosen Tuesday as the day to start sitting on a clutch of hidden eggs.  And hoping the nest wasn't in the neighbouring farmers garden where she set up house last season. 

Today, the missing peahen appeared in the horse paddock just as as I was leaving for an appointment in town, so I enlisted my daughter  on a covert operation to track Griselda back to her nest.
Happily, her mission was successful and Megans stealth skills quite exceptional- along with neighbour PR- and we collected Griselda and her 5 eggs from under a camellia bursting with pink blossom thisafternoon.

Knowing from last years experience Griselda would refuse to sit on the eggs once moved, they have been tucked under one of the broody bantams.  Oh wonderful broody bantam!

 I take back all the negative things I said about you and your sisters in my previous post.  Brood away dear things!  : )

Griselda is now penned with her pal Gemima and their sweetie Kevin.  With luck she will set another batch of eggs, this time in the enclosure!  And Gemima should do the same.  It's sad to not have them free ranging around the homestead, but for the best until breeding season is over.

And in the meantime I am counting down the days until those 5 eggs hatch and the first peachicks for Jingle Bells Farm are born. 
25 days to go...

More Additions to Jingle Bells

It's been another busy week- an unexpected trip to the city, busyness on the farm, schooling- and suddenly it's Friday!

Even more of a surprise is finding out there is less than 9 weeks until Christmas.  How did that happen?  I mean, really, wasn't it just August last week?

I'll soon be posting quite alot on Christmas.  But you probably expected I would, being on Jingle Bells Farm and all : )
I'll be dragging out the Christmas crates that fill a large space of the loft and unearthing the overflow that found it's way into the children's rooms. And guest bedroom.  And my bedroom.  Contemplating this years festive season decorating..  Planning the annual Christmas Party.  Getting caught up in all things Christmas.
But that's in the coming weeks.

This week saw new arrivals to the farm- and one family was a total surprise.  A black bantam has been MIA come dusk the past few weeks and Thursday morning I discovered why. Seven little reasons why :)

A hunt around found her abandoned nest and I'm glad we looked- two eggs were pipping and there were 4 other eggs cooling down fast.  How Smudge Mama, her eggs and her newborn chicks managed to evade being snacked on by a fox or snake I'll never know.  She and her chicks were moved to a safe enclosure and the unpipped eggs stuck under a handy broody hen.

 I've been cursing the broody hens for going broody because it means less eggs for the kitchen, but I was glad for it yesterday! The pipping eggs I decided to place under Miss Determined.

Miss Determined is a goose.  A very large goose, especially in comparison to the tiny balls of nothingness that are the bantam chicklings.  But she has been sitting on her nest for months now, determined to become a mama, and faced all sorts of trials (I'll mention the word turkey but I wont expand) and disappointments (infertile eggs), and still she is sitting.  I figured she deserved these little bantam babies.  One hatched successfully and I am super proud to report Miss Determined is now a MAMA! I am a little concerned she will inadvertently squish the chickling but it's day 2 and all is well so far.

Lady Plum has also finally become a mama.

She and Darren have been taking their little gosling Isabelle out on foraging expeditions during the week and look so very proud of themselves as they waddle along keeping a watchful eye for eagles and crows.  We've lost a few chicks during the last month to winged predators, so I am constantly checking to make sure Isabelle is safe.

Next to introduce is Clive.

Clive was an oddbod hatched in the incubator.  He struggled to make his way out of his shell and was very weak for the first 48 hours. I didn't expect him to survive. But he did, and is doing so well he graduated today from Duck ICU in the upstairs bathroom to join all the other hatchlings in the Outside Nursery.

And now for the weekend!  Have a great Saturday and Sunday everyone. 

Freezer Hash Browns

Now these were fun to do!

I got a kick out of using the food processor to grate the potatoes. Who knew it could be so fun? And talk about a time saver!. 
Hash browns are so versatile that I put aside about 7 kilos of spuds to use on this recipe.  That's alot of grating. I'm glad I am on friendly terms with my food processor.  I don't visit it as often as I could.  I might have to remedy that and find a permanent home for it on my counter top.We worked well together as a team.

Be sure to place the grated potato in cold water as each batch is processed to prevent it going brown.

I've used two types of potato, the darker of the two is Desiree, the other Nadine. 

Drain, rise and blanch for 2 minutes. It may sound like a lot of work but it isn't really.

Drain and push out as much water as possible. I also blotted with paper towels to remove as much moisture as I could.

Store in layers separated with freezer paper, seal and freeze.

Or flash freeze individual serves on trays then transfer to Ziploc bags and return to freezer.

Is it just me or is this photo upside downish?

You can season or add cheese, bacon, onion, etc before freezing, or leave them plain, whatever floats your boat.

To bake, place on greased tray and bake at 180C for 20 minutes or so, depending on size.  Flip over about half way through to brown both sides.  Or you can fry in a skillet or use in whatever favorite hash brown recipe you may have in your recipe file.

MYO Cake Mixes

It's times like these that I miss access to products like Crisco.  I don't think there is an alternative to Crisco in Australia.  If you know of one, please let me know! Most master mixes and Bisquick-like mixes that can be pantry stored call for this type of shortening and I would love to make up some bulk mixes to permanently have on hand.

In the meantime I have adapted or tweaked some of my favorite cake recipes into MYO mixes that can be stored in the pantry. 

Gingerbread Cake Mix

Place in bag 2 cups flour, 1/2 t salt, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 t allspice, 1 t cinnamon, 1 t ginger, 1 t baking soda.

To prepare add: 1 cup molasses, 1/2 cup buttermilk, 1 egg and 1/2 cup melted butter.

Pour into greased pan and bake at 375 F for 25-30 minutes.

Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Mix

Place in bag: 3 cups flour, 1 1/2 cups sugar, 1/4 cup poppy seeds, 1 1/2 t baking powder

To prepare add:  3/4 cup softened butter, 6 eggs, 1/3 cup milk, 1 t vanilla, 1 teaspoon lemon extract and zest of 1 lemon.

Bake at 350F for 40-50 minutes, glaze with lemon syrup or icing.

Peach Cinnamon Cobbler Mix

Place in bag: 2 c flour, 1/2 t baking powder, 1/2 t bicarbonate soda, 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1 t cinnamon.

To prepare: Place 815g tin of peach halves cut side down in pie dish and pour over 1/4 cup retained juice.
Whisk 1/2 cup milk, 1/4 cup golden syrup, 40grams melted butter and 1 egg.
Fold in dry ingredients,  but don't overmix.
Spoon over peaches, leaving some uncovered. Bake at 375 F,  30 minutes.

Lemon Cornmeal Cake Mix
Place in bag: 1 1/3 cup flour, 1 cup cornmeal, 1 cup sugar, 2 t baking powder and  1/4 t salt.
To prepare: Whisk 3 eggs, 1 1/2 cups sour cream, 3/4 cup melted unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon lemon zest, 1 tablespoon lemon juice and 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla.  Add dry ingredients.
Bake in greased and floured 9 x 3 spring form pan at 350F, 45 min.
optional: pour over lemon syrup while still warm.

Chocolate Cake Mix
Place in bag: 3 cups flour, 2 cups sugar, 1/2 cup cocoa, 2 t baking soda, 2 t salt.
To prepare add 2 cups water, 2-3 teaspoons vanilla, 2 tablespoons vinegar and 3/4 cups  mild vegetable oil.
Pour into greased tin and bake at 180C around 30 minutes.

Apple Crisp Mix

Place in bag: 2 cups flour, 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar,1 cup rolled oats, 1/2 t cinnamon, 1/2 t salt, 1/4 t nutmeg, 1 cup chopped nuts (optional).

To prepare add:  1 cup chilled butter to dry ingredients and sprinkle over apple pie filling (homemade or tinned).

Bake at 190C for 20 minutes.

Fudgy Brownies Mix

Place in bag: 6 T cocoa, 1 c sugar, 3/4 cup flour, 1/2 t baking powder, 1 cup walnuts (optional).

To prepare: Melt and cool 1/2 c butter, add 2 beaten eggs and stir into brownie mix with 1 t vanilla.

Pour in to greased 8 x 8 tin and bake at 190C for 30 minutes.  Cool in pan.

MYO Cookie Mixes

While putting together a selection of MYO cake mixes for the pantry I decided a few cookie mixes wouldn't go astray.
Making up batches of cookie dough and rolling into small balls before placing in freezer to flash freeze, then storing in ziplock bags, is a great way to always have cookies on hand.  But it's also nice to have some ready made mixes on hand too!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Place in bag 2 cups flour, 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 t salt, 1 t baking soda and 2 cups choc chips.

Write on bag: Add 1 cup softened butter, 2 eggs, and 2 teaspoon vanilla.

Bake at 350F for 8-10 minutes.

Large Batch Roll Out Cookies

Place in bag 5 cups flour, 2 cups sugar, 2t baking powder and 1 t salt.

Write on bag: Cream 1 1/4 cups butter with 2 eggs.

Add dry ingredients alternating with 1/2 cup milk, and 1t almond or vanilla essence.

Roll to 1/8 inch thickness and cut into shapes.

Bake at 375F for 8 minutes.

Crispy Chewy Oatmeal Cookies

Place in bag 1 1/2 cups flour, 3 cups rolled oats, 1 1/2 cups brown sugar, 1/2 t salt, 3/4 t vanilla,3/4 t baking soda.

Write on bag: Mix 3/4 c melted butter, 1/3 cup buttermilk and 1 teaspoon vanilla.

Add dry ingredients and shape into small balls.
Place on a greased tray and flatten with palm or fork.
Bake at 190C 8-10 minutes.

MYO Mixes and Freezer Meals

Today was fabulously productive.

It began with a trip to our local Markets.  I was planning on bringing me home some fresh seasonal produce and spending the day creating freezer meals with said produce.
Off we headed, bright and early and full of Sunday morning zest to see what bounty there was to be had.  The markets are run on a fortnightly basis.  Unfortunately, I got my fortnights mixed up.

Don't ya just hate that?  I do. Never mind.  I still spent the day in the kitchen and it was actually alot of fun.

MYO mixes are littering my countertop as I speak type. I put together a stack of them and am loving the idea of whipping up a batch of whatever in a matter of minutes when time is tight.

The idea struck me last weekend as I took a break from lugging a huge slab of tree trunk  to it's destination on the wrap around verandah.

I had been eyeing up the slab for a couple of weeks.

It made a great seat to plonk in the sunshine but I figured it was destined for bigger things. All 3.5 metres of it!

What do you think? 

 Organic, textural heart thumping wonderfulness.

I have a love affair going with wood.  Love it, love it, love it.

So on a much deserved coffee break between positioning this amazing piece of table top which weighs mega many much moosen, it came to me a batch of chewy choc chip cookies warm from the oven would go down a treat just about then.  Except I didn't have time to whip up a batch of chewy choc chip cookies, so I threw together a butterscotch self saucing pudding and zapped it in the Mystery Box instead.

(Those who know Brian Regan will understand this to be a microwave.  Those who don't know Brian Regan really should.  I highly recommend him.  Especially for long car trips and unsuccessful jaunts to the Markets).

The quick-mix idea stayed with me, and this is how I came to be mixing up a nice collection of MYO yummies today.

Here's what I decided would have a happy home in my pantry this month:

Cookies:
Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix
Large Batch Roll Out Cookie Mix
Shortest Shortbread Mix
Chewy Crispy Oatmeal Cookie Mix

Cakes, Strudels and Cobblers:
Lemon Syrup Cake Mix
Gingerbread Cake Mix
Lemon Cornmeal Cake Mix
Peach Cinnamon Cobbler Mix
Apricot Ginger Cobbler Mix
Apple Crisp Mix
Chocolate Cake Mix
Apple Cobbler Mix
Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Mix
Buttery Strudel Coffee Cake Mix

I also dragged the 12 kilos of potatoes from my larder and made up a huge batch of cheesy bacon stuffed double baked potatoes and 6 or 7 batches of hash browns to plop in the freezer.

I'll post the recipes during the next few days!

Have a wonderful week everyone.

Wrapping Up the Week

You know those days that start out as Monday and by evening are suddenly Friday?  Yep, that's been my week.  One of those.

We've been in holiday mode the past fortnight, with Jingle Bells Farm  the vacation destination for a number of our city friends.  Sleepovers, bonfires and smores, catching up with day to day happenings,  oh it was a wonderful school break.     
                                                          
Getting back into the swing of school term on Monday went surprisingly smoothly, I have to say, but how it is all of a sudden Friday, I just can't fathom.
Lets see....
Homeschooling, appointments, chaos with faulty energisers that power the electric fencing to the goat and pig paddocks, poultry mayhem with hens going broody, turkeys going potty and ducklings being rehoused, and a ram unconfined by electric fencing having decided he does not like being parted from his mama (me), preferring to come inside on my heels than be a sheep and do sheepy things like, I don't know, GRAZING IN A FIELD perhaps.
No, sounds like a pretty standard week on the farm.

But does that ever happen to you?  Blink and you've lost a week? 

Happy Friday everyone.  Have a wonderful and relaxing weekend.  I'll be back to post later on my quest to stock the pantry with myo mixes and the freezer with ready-to-heat meals for future blink-and it's-Friday weeks.

The Wrapping Station

I am a total contradiction in some things.  Not everything, but some.

Take for instance presents.  I love giving well wrapped presents, taking 5 minutes out to choose a nice colour ribbon and perhaps even using a bit of tissue paper in the layering. 

My favourite paper to use is simple brown paper.  It seems rather organic to me and works well for pretty much any occasion depending on what you use to adorn it with.  If it's a child's gift, have the kids draw over the paper in bold textas and add bright ribbon.  I appreciate the personal touch : )

The contradiction comes in somewhere about now:  I am terrible at dates.  I really truly am.  No matter what system I have set in place to be sure I cant miss friends birthdays it always fails.  Dismally.  Catastrophically.

I am lucky to have such understanding friends who know I really do love them despite being so forgetful over their special days.

My latest idea for breaking the birthday-block came to me last night.  Perhaps if I set up a wrapping station, complete with a printed list of everyones birthdays at hand, I could break my abysmal record of forgetfulness.

So, a few bits of dowel, some hooks and a delve under the bed and in the closet for hidden away wrapping supplies and I had this:

Will it work?  I'll keep you posted.
Wish me luck!

Guess the Rooster

Can anyone guess my name?

It has something to do with the shape of my comb.

Look closer.  Think hard.

Ok, I'll help you out.
                                    

Front....

                              

Back...

Side...

C'mon folks, you can do it! I believe in you, I do believe in you!

A clue?  Another one?

Nope, you're on your own. Anything else would be practically giving it away.  Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go find my shadow.

A Plethora of Pine Cones? Hmmm....

It seemed a perfect late afternoon to collect fallen pine cones from our woods. 
When we first moved to Jingle Bells the understory was covered in big glorious pine cones. 
Perfect for using in Christmas displays.
Fragrant  to burn in the fireplace nestled among the logs.
Tactile wonderfulness in a bowl.

Sculptural interest  to dangle from the eaves of the wrap-around veranda.

I had a lot of fun thinking these up!

It's been nearly a year since my last pine cone pick-up, so I was expecting there to be a load on the ground ready for me to scoop up and do something creative with.

The geese wondered what I was up to, and came to investigate :)

Unfortunately it seemed the only pine cones  on the ground were there because they had been stripped from the trees by foraging parrots and were destroyed for the most part. The branches are laden with pine cones though, so I guess I'll have to be patient and wait  for them fall when they are ready.

I was lucky to find  a perfect cone tucked into the clover...

And one more that was overlooked by the pesky parrots.

Here's my bounty!

Not quite what I was expecting :)

Muscovy Madness

Recently, MaryLou has been rather tiresomely single minded, come evening. 

Normally she is the most obedient of ducks. 

One of the first in the duck run for late afternoon feed time.  Always ready to be picked up and cuddled.  She has the sweetest nature and loves her people about as much as she loves her Muscovy sisters : )

While her sweet nature hasn't altered, she hasn't been quite as obedient as usual.  Evening feeds have been wrapped up and wellington boots are being dragged off when MaryLou appears from nowhere, quite nonchalantly foraging away. 

All the poultry on Jingle Bells are allowed to free range during the day, but are put to bed at night safe from Mr Fox.  How MaryLou is making her way out of the fox proof duck run is a mystery.  But she is.  And despite being put back she appears again. And again.

And now we know why. 

Lets take a closer look.

Tucked away in a sweetly scented hidey hole...

Hmm, not sure why this came out turned sideways. Never mind, just tilt your head to the left.  Like a duck :)

Thats alot of eggs.  Fifteen!  A totally unexpected surprise but it explains so much.  Should I risk Mr Fox finding her and let her continue to nest?  What to do, what to do.....

PYO? Yes Please!

With this weeks summery weather I found my thoughts turning to canning, preserving, baking. 
Making the most of seasonal produce. 
And while I don't have any seasonal produce on my land YET (apricots, mulberries and peaches due in a few months though!) aside from lemons, which I have been putting to use with lemon butter galore, here I am in the country and surrounded by other farms which do have seasonal produce now!  You know, the farms who haven't been dealing with escape artist goats and three free ranging not-so-miniature piggies.

Wednesday I woke thinking "Lets find a Strawberry Farm and go a-picking!"

Well, that didn't quite work because despite an exhaustive search on the internet  AND a visit to  the local  Tourist Visitor Centre, I came up empty handed. No pick-your-own farms!

Well, I fibberoonie.  I did find a BLUEBERRY pyo an hour or so away- guess what family adventure we'll be doing in Christmas break when the berries are ripe?
 And the lady at the Visitor Centre actually runs an organic pyo (woohoo!!) but she only has oranges at the moment.
And  she picked them all  last week so her trees could be pruned.
Selecting oranges from a box just isn't the same as off the tree.
 In an orchard.
 With the kids.
 For their first pyo ever.

BUT all is not lost, she does stone fruit and berries too, they'll be ready in a few months and I am soooo looking forward to visiting her farm, the kids and I picking away, and fun in the kitchen afterwards.

 So what did I do Wednesday then, if not PYO-ing? 
Well, I thought I'd hop on the 'puter for some egg-rich freezable recipes, and did a little of that but not a lot 'cause while I was in the laundry (multi-tasking, what can I say) it came to me how fabulous it would be to extend the kitchen.  After all, we need ROOM for all the canning, preserving, jam making, corn shucking, pea shelling : )

Now, we have a wonderful long wooden turned-leg farmhouse style table in the centre of the kitchen. It seats 8 and is in constant use.  We gather around it for meals, chatting, sharing cookies and milk, midnight hot chocolates, and the occasional board game. It makes a great food prepping area too. 
My thoughts went something like this:

'Hmmmm. So do we need the table that is under the bubble light chandelier in the adjoining room?  It takes up all that space and is hardly ever used...... How about I knock out the counter top that separates the kitchen from this dining area.  Whoa, that would make it wonderful for all those food related self sustainability projects.'

Get the idea?  Yep, I was in a mood to demolish  carefully de-construct and create.

I ventured back into the kitchen eventually, having done whatever task I was immersed in in the laundry.  Oh, yeah, that's right!  I was thinking of knocking down the kitchen counter/cabinets/wall.  On closer inspection I decided it wouldn't work.  Bummer.  The wall is structural.  There are no floor boards under that part of the kitchen counter.  It would be a b i g  and expensive project, and now is NOT the time for a big and expensive project.

But no worry, the doin' bug was caught and when that happens there is little that can stop me.
Out went the white table.  Oooo!  Look at all the room!
Now, this table is pretty special.  It is french designed and has two extra leaves to extend it to a 12 seater.  Old, heavy and beautifully carved.  Not something to relegate to the workshop-cum-barn. Not easy to say goodbye to!  But the space!  'Oh, this room has potential!' thinks I.

Now, with the table removed, a problem was posed.  The carved, mirrored dresser that resided behind it looked odd without it's table-friend. 
Out it went. 

The bubble light chandelier needed shortening.  That was hard.  It was super expensive and as I snipped at the suspending wires to shorten the cascading bubbles I was seeing dollar signs fainting in horror.  But there was no alternative.  So shortened they were.

I now have a great space full of light, and do you know what its waiting for?

What it really really needs?

Well, I'll give you a hint.

It's seasonal.

It's green.

It soars to the ceiling.

It's decorated in twinkling lights and baubles.

Need more clues?

And as for the carved mirrored dresser?  I removed the mirrored section and found a great home for it under the stairs.

Alpacas and Santas Reindeer

I've gotten over my initial reaction of  'Christmas, Already?'

Maybe it was because this year has just flown by and I was thinking it just couldn't be Christmas yet!  What is all this stuff doing in the shops so early? 

But it's not that early. Really.
 A friend pointed out we usually don't see the Christmas stock out until Halloween has been and gone.  I'm not sure why this year is different.  Maybe the economy is a little better and that's being reflected in the stores setting up for Christmas a little early.

While I am constantly thinking Christmas year round, I'm just not used to seeing it in the stores in September : )

My love for the Christmas Holidays is huge. 
I admit I have been playing Christmas Cd's sporadically since August. 
I have crates upon crates of Christmas decorations and multitudes of Christmas Trees  which take weeks to set up. 
My Sweetie prides himself on his outdoor lighting display and until our move to the country we raised funds for the Children's Hospital, with donations from passers-by visiting our Christmas Lights display.

I'm still not sure why I was so taken aback by seeing the Christmas stock on shelves late September.

And  as I am talking Christmas, I thought I'd introduce you to our alpacas.  The connection? We named our herd after Santas Reindeers, of course! 
Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen.  Of course, we also had Rudolph.
Then came Frosty and GingerBread Man.
 Last seasons babies were named Mistletoe, Snowflake, SilverStar and... Boris. 
Yes, Boris.

I'm not sure why Boris was named Boris, only that Boris definitely looked like a Boris, so Boris he is. 
Or should I say, SHE is. 
Because Boris turned out to be a girl.
But she was already named and so Boris she stayed. 
Miss Boris to be exact.

It was a really hard decision to sell our herd.  Really hard.  The alpacas were much loved. but we need to utilise the land to it's fullest potential- they were taking up valuable space that could be put to use as cropping fields. Sadly we relised the herd needed rehoming and set about finding great new families to adopt them.

Two were decided to be kept on Jingle Bells Farm as guards. 

Miss Boris was a natural choice, she was orphaned at a few months old and had been hand raised after loosing mama.  Dancer was chosen for the bond already established with Miss Boris.  They are a gorgeous pair, and wonderful cuddlers.  I am so glad we were able to make room for them!