Mower Maintenance

For the past week I have been learning, hands on, how to work on a lawnmower; and I must say...I DO NOT LIKE SMELLING LIKE GAS AND OIL...I would never make it as a mechanic! However, I did manage to replace a carburetor filter, replace a melted primer button and change the oil and now our push mower is working wonderfully.

Yesterday the chickens were treated to finely chopped grass and weeds;

And now that the mower is working I can give them lots of chopped grass and weeds since the grass is tall and thick and loaded with seeds.

While I was mowing Elizabeth wanted to play with the camera so she took this photo of me emptying the grass catcher;

And this photo of Rani. All together she took about 75 photos! I sure am glad taking pictures is cheap.

Potatoes in the Garden

Most of the potatoes in the garden are now up and looking nice.

As I was hoeing this morning I was thinking about how exciting it is to plant a garden and how easy it is to forget the work it takes to keep a garden growing.

Wholesome Goodness

We love fried egg sandwiches for any meal;Using whole wheat bread makes it even better.

Natural Chicken Food

Ever since I began keeping the chickens in a pen I have been pulling grass and weeds for them to eat.

They love just about every kind of weed I have given them.

Grass and weeds are plentiful and grown in abundance along the side of the road.

It only takes a few minutes to pick a bucket full and the best part is...it's free!

Baking in an Electric Roaster

My mom has had great success baking in an electric roaster; so much success that I decided to try it myself today. This morning I took my roaster outside and set it up on Elizabeth's little picnic table.

Then I went inside to make a batch of whole wheat bread; after the first rise I put it into the roaster on warm for the second rise.

And rise it did, beautifully!

Next I turned the roaster up to 350 and covered it. This is what I saw when the time was up; a wonderfully brown loaf of bread.

However, my excitement was short lived...my bread was not cooked on the underside and caved in when I took it out of the pan.

In order to try and save it I placed it back in the roaster and cooked it longer.

The only parts that continued to cook were the corners.

And when I cut into the middle it was uncooked. Oh well, at least Elizabeth and I got to eat the crusted ends and the chickens will get the rest for an afternoon snack.

A Banquet

Last night Jonathan and I went to an awards banquet for college students who received scholar ships.

We dined on chicken, rice, corn and salad. The salad was really good; along with lettuce it had nuts and Mandarin oranges.

Here is Jonathan accepting his certificate from two of his favorite professors.

A Spring Storm

Recently a storm blew through our area producing high winds, rain and hail; the weatherman said a funnel cloud touched down briefly. The day after the storm, while on our way into town, we saw this.

This old house had been gutted a couple of years ago and had been sitting empty; the owner never finished the remodeling.

All the outside walls are crushed; I have never seen a house fall like this.

I sure am glad no one was living there.

Homemade Sopapias

The kids have been asking me to make sopapias and today was the day. A quick Internet search produced this beauty.

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon shortening

1/3 cup warm water

Blend well and cover soft dough for a few minutes; roll into 8 small rounds; cook in hot grease till brown; dip in cinnamon sugar and drizzle with honey.

Bloggers Quilt Festival

This morning I read about a "Virtual Quilt Festival" being hosted by Park City Girl.


Normally I do not participate in on-line events; however, I just had to be a part of this one! I love seeing quilts made by others for inspiration and I hope my "Favorite" quilt will inspire others.I chose my Fussy Cut quilt as a favorite for the Quilt Fest; I love the variety of fabrics used in this quilt.

And I love the size 60 x 60; perfect for snuggling.

My favorite part of the "Fussy Cut" quilt is the machine quilting;

The texture and weight of this quilt is simply wonderful!

Crochet Caps

The last few days I have been playing with yarn.

I have never been good at reading crochet instructions but thanks to my mom I am getting better.

I found a pattern on line for the little flowers but they needed a center;

So today, thanks to free long distance, my mom was able to explain how I could make little centers.

I really like how all these caps are turning out.

Yarn Bags

I finished the yarn bags today;

And they are so perfect!

No more tangled yarn; my project tote feels so organized.

Fresh Hen Eggs

This is how my fridge looks most of the time....But my name is slowly getting around; today I took 6 dozen eggs with me to town and sold them all in less than 30 minutes.And I already have a list of customers for next week. The price I have been charging is $2.25 per dozen with a new egg carton or $2.00 per dozen if the customer has their own egg carton. The egg money helps to pay for the grain we buy to feed the chickens which makes the eggs we keep for ourselves nearly free.

Yarn Winder

Today I dug out my yarn winder so I could turn my bargain skeins of wool yarn into spools/balls.

I bought this devise almost 20-years ago when I worked for a lady in the Dallas area knitting sweaters.
When the spool/ball is complete it sits in one spot without moving.

Once all the spools/balls were finished I started making small muslin bags to store the yarn in so they stay clean.

The bags are a draw string style so it's easy to use.

So far I really like this new system.

Easter Chicks

Our setting hen hatched a total of 7 chicks over the Easter weekend. This morning when I checked on her one chick was dead; I think she squished it during the night. Pat and I set her up in a pen and she, with the little chicks, were really enjoying the sunshine this morning.

Throughout the day I would spot her walking around teaching the chicks how to scratch and peck.

I just love having chickens!

Easter

Our Easter Sunday began with getting up early for church; dipping strawberries after church; and taking an afternoon nap.Now it's time for a pot luck meal with family and friends; our contribution is chocolate dipped strawberries.

More Little Puff Balls

Our setting hen is a mama!So far one chick has hatched;

This hen has such a gentle spirit; she lets us handle her without getting mad.

Summer Skirt

On Thursday our local Hancock Fabric Store had a sale on absolutely cotton fabrics...50-percent off! So, temptation struck again; only this time I had a plan...I wanted to make some summer skirts for Elizabeth. Half a yard for the body and an eighth of a yard for the trim.

Total cost was just under $2.50! Next week we will look for a coordinating t-shirt to go with it.

Temptation

Today, while in town, Elizabeth and I visited the quilt store so I could check out their backroom bargains...I should have stayed away; we walked out of the store with these wonderful pieces of fabric marked 50% off.I don't even drink coffee but I just couldn't resist these fabrics.

Most of my sewing projects on sitting on the back burner while I am getting the garden ready but hopefully someday these coffee fabrics will be turned into quilted pillows.

Cross Stitch

Last year, in May, Elizabeth began learning cross stitch. Her first completed project was an apple.Yesterday she completed a squirrel;

Which I turned into a mini-quilt.

Now that the squirrel is finished her newest project is a duck.

We have been slowly making mini-quilts to hang on Elizabeth's wall; the quilts so far consists of Elizabeth's cross stitch and my hand embroidery and patchwork.

So far we have 4 completed quilts; and I still need to turn the apple into a mini-quilt. This has been a slow but fun project.