We had a successful lambing season this year, thankfully, as last year didn't go well. We are back on track plus five healthy lambs! Gardenia Gardenia had her twins right on time in the evening, but she started getting a... Continue Reading →
I think I left you hanging in February after I learned to hand spin. In an effort to catch you up, entertain you, and take you along on this journey of mine as I continue to learn to spin, I... Continue Reading →
We are neck-deep in fleece again! Shearing is in full swing. Beautiful fleeces are dropping daily. Here are a few for your viewing pleasure. Feta Sheep Tzatziki Delphis
I've been busy hand spinning like crazy since January 6. After getting a blizzard that dropped 17 inches of snow, being essentially snowed-in, and not seeing many people for weeks, I've finished spinning a few hanks of yarn! I've been... Continue Reading →
It's been a LONG journey to get to now! We've kept sheep since 2015, I received my DIY spinning wheel kit in 2018 as a gift, I finally finished staining and putting it together in 2021, and I've just learned... Continue Reading →
Let's be clear, I'm not a seamstress or a quilter. However, last year I sewed a t-shirt quilt (which does NOT qualify as quilting, in my opinion) out of my father-in-law's t-shirts (he passed away in early 2023) for my... Continue Reading →
We are about a third of the way through shearing now. It takes us a couple of weeks because we not only shear each sheep, but we also do a health check, vaccinate, trim hooves, and then we skirt, grade,... Continue Reading →
We had a "bumper" crop of sand hill (chickasaw) plums last year. Well, it was a bumper crop for me as it was more than I could find time to use. Let's just say the birds and chickens were well... Continue Reading →
We've lived here in Northeast Kansas for more than five years now. I've come to the conclusion that most of the gardening success that I've had stems from starting seeds inside under grow lights. I do not currently have a... Continue Reading →
I haven't written a blog post here since November of last year; the posts on this site aren't widely read anyways. Regardless, I'm endeavoring to pick up my keyboard again and post more frequently to this journal/blog. In the interim... Continue Reading →
Last year I was inspired by an article I read in a magazine that highlighted the Lipscomb brothers of Bayou Cora Farms in Alabama and their heirloom corn that they have been growing on and off over the years since... Continue Reading →
Since I am inundated with elderberries, I decided I should dye some yarn. I am very interested in natural dyes and have previously dyed with blueberries (see my previous post Blueberry Yarn). I would love to dye with indigo, but... Continue Reading →
The elderberry trees are laden with elderberries, the bundles of berries making the tree limbs lean far over practically until they are touching the ground. I am inundated and have to work fast and try to use as many as... Continue Reading →
It's high time I provided an update on my new garden area. We have just entered a cool and wet spell after being hot and super dry. Meanwhile, the empty areas in the garden have been overwhelmed by grass, which... Continue Reading →
One of our peach trees has finally brought forth fruit! We are so excited as these are our first peaches (we planted the trees three years ago). They are a little small, but we are happy to have any at... Continue Reading →
I figured it must be time to harvest the garlic when I noticed they had all disappeared into a sea of weeds and grass. Sure enough, upon closer inspection, it was time! I was a bit shocked how successful I... Continue Reading →
The longest day of the year. However, the days start getting shorter from here. Makes me want to stay up all night! I am surrounded by elderflowers and their intoxicating scent. I have to hurry and enjoy the cool of... Continue Reading →
We tend to cook more Asian food than other ethnicities. Right now the garden is bursting with several different kinds of lettuces that need to be eaten. So, we decided to make tuna and salad the Asian way. Salad rolls... Continue Reading →
We've started picking the mulberries. Our ginormous mulberry tree is fully loaded. The first fruits were made into mulberry scones this morning. Here they are, those yummy mulberries. Yes, the little green stems are soft and fully edible - we... Continue Reading →
Well, it's a start. I've got loads of room (~1300 sq. ft.) to fill with vegetable plants. Then I'm going to go crazy with mulch! So far, I've sown two 50' rows of Glass Gem corn, which is a flint... Continue Reading →
Our sand hill plum trees have set an inordinate amount of plums for the first time in our thicket and hedgerow. We are very excited because we've been waiting for this since we got here four years ago. I can't... Continue Reading →
I'm too busy with other projects and I really don't want to use the push-mower or weed-whacker. Next act: rams and wethers trim the garden area. The rams and wethers have been hard at work all spring weed-whacking for me.... Continue Reading →
It feels so good to be done with shearing! We feel so accomplished. We figure this must be how it feels to finish a full marathon. The sheep have all been shorn, vaccinated, and had their hooves trimmed. They are... Continue Reading →
It's been an interesting shearing season! We've sheared in the cold, after the rain, in high humidity, in extreme heat, and surrounded by cats. The cats were there to annoy us every step on the way. They love the smell... Continue Reading →
We started shearing, but it has been really dreary, cold, and rainy. We took a couple of days off to let the sheep dry and now it's sprinkling again... The weather just doesn't want to cooperate this year. Sunday was... Continue Reading →
It's that time of the year again! When you're inundated with eggs and asparagus and you can't eat them fast enough... Every year around this time we are frequently checking on our historical asparagus patch (long ago a previous owner... Continue Reading →
Collect them all! Each one seems a little different... We thought we'd try again this year for a rooster. This time we ordered a half-dozen Icelandic hatching eggs from Whippoorwill Farm in Wisconsin. (They came packed in Icelandic sheep wool,... Continue Reading →
