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 →
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'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 →
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 →
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 →
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 purchased a high top dining table and chairs when we first got married. Mink likes to sit on a chair, find a crack in the vinyl, and tear bits and pieces off. So, I decided it was time... Time... Continue Reading →
We have a hankering for sourdough pizza and breadsticks, so it's time to wake up my Creature. I keep my Creature in the fridge and bring it out when I'm ready to make a loaf of sourdough or pizza/breadstick dough.... Continue Reading →
Yesterday we placed a large silage tarp over the grass and weeds in this area to attempt to start a new no-till/no-dig garden site. We tried super hard to find enough items to keep the tarp down, but in the... Continue Reading →
Sometimes you just gotta have an iced latte even in the middle of winter. My rheumatologist recently changed my meds and now I feel like I have cotton mouth, I'm nauseated, and I'm desperately thirsty all the time. (Hopefully these... Continue Reading →
Let's be clear, cookie decorating has become an art. Cookie decorating is not my strong suit. The Husband's youngest sister is REALLY good at it - very talented. Personally, I wanted to at least learn how to pipe an outer... Continue Reading →
Every day I have to let my big male siamese cat, Ermine, into the master bedroom so he can get up on his carpeted cat tree and watch "birbs" out the window. It's the only window in the house with... Continue Reading →
I wanted burgers for dinner, but I was out of hamburger buns. So, instead of running to the grocery store, I just made some buns using Prairie Homestead's recipe. These are so good and are fast and easy to make!... Continue Reading →
Well, it's over. I'm done. Today was my last day. I'm no longer employed by anyone but myself. I feel like I just hurled myself off a cliff! It was a long time coming and it was a hard decision,... Continue Reading →
I hadn't fed my new swarm in a couple of weeks, so I cracked open the top honey supers to take a look. They'd drained their feed trough long before. So, I added more 2:1 syrup and a pollen patty cake. Meanwhile, I peeked in to see what they have been up to...
They're quite jurassic in size and have set some wee baby gourds already. How did they accomplish this you ask? With the help of bumblebees.
I had just gotten home (week ago Saturday) and was checking over my garden, picking a few items, and on the way out I noticed - the Swarm! It was a nice size swarm and so we set about trying to encourage them to stay by moving them into the empty hive about 150 feet away.
What's that? Coronavirus possibly causing food shortages, you say? Well, we have a plan for that...
The shearing is done, the ewes and lambs have been turned out onto spring and summer pasture, and I don't have to feed hay anymore! Yay! If you are interested in fleece, let me know!
We lived on Guam for 3 years before we got out of the U.S. Navy; it was the Husband's second tour on Guam. One of the recipes I instantly loved was Kadun Kadu and everytime I can get my hands on bok choy, I'm almost sure to make it.
Since the CDC recently recommended that everyone wear a face mask during the COVID-19 pandemic, whether they have symptoms or not, I wanted to share with you a great mask pattern that the Husband's coworker (a D.O.) found.
