New bike.

 This is a window I've had for years and years. It's just kind of hung around on the floor. When I got this studio finished, I brought it over here. It's like it was just waiting for this place. It's home now. I love it. I started putting sheep photos and other prints around it. 3 of the sheep are from Suzanne at Chickens in the Road. blog. The black lamb is from Maria at Full Moon Fiber Art blog. The rest are from my favorite magazine, Taproot. Sometimes they put these cute post cards in.

And here is my new bike! I love this bike. It's so much better than that other one I had gotten a few weeks ago. I took it back. This is from a store in Chattanooga called Trek. It's just a nice cruising bike. Very comfortable. Nice big seat. Peddles in the middle, not right under me. Higher handlebars, so I sit straight up. And very light. And long too. We had to take the front tire off to get it to fit in the back of my Trooper.

It didn't come with fenders, but I can order some for around $50 if I feel like I need them. I think I will go ahead and get the rack that goes on the back though. It just made it look so much better. And I can strap stuff on if I want to go for a longer ride.

I hope this will help motivate me to get out and ride now. I have only lost 3 more pounds in over a week. A little disappointing but I'm not stopping. I feel so good right now and do not want to go back to the way I was before. I have not missed sweets at all. Or bread. Or fried stuff. Because I know in my mind that if I did eat any of that stuff, I would feel horrible.

And I have 22 dreads for the 22 pounds I've lost. I need to do another one.

I have set a goal for myself. My birthday is June 5th. I want to have lost at least 51 pounds by that date. And I want to have ridden my bike down to Mt. Cove farm and back. That will be 10 miles. Then I will be getting a tattoo. Of a honeybee on a dandelion flower. On the top of my left wrist. Just a small one. Not too elaborate but pretty. 2 of my favorite things.

I think I will do it.

Around the wet farm.

 It's going to be a wet rainy week here in N. Ga. I guess I could do some house cleaning maybe? But I could probably think of something else to do instead.

  This is the chain link gate the sheep tore up.  I cannot believe they were able to do this to it.

 Campbelle is doing a lot better. But I've noticed how she reacts when Darla comes near her. Darla is huge, the biggest ewe I have. She's half Suffolk and half Finn. Huge! Yesterday, I put them back over on the other side of the yard so they could go out back. The grass has grown so much in just a week. I saw darla heading toward Campbelle, in a not very friendly manner. Like she was going to ram her. So now, I'm wondering if Darla is picking on her. I did take a picture a few months ago, where Campbelle was at the gate and all the other sheep were behind her. Darla was giving her some really evil looks. So maybe there is some bullying going on there. The biggest picking on the smallest. I'll have to keep an eye on those two.

I did get most of the garden mowed last week. It just about killed me to do it. I love all the wildness out there and wanted to keep it that way for the bees. But there are still several spots that I left wild. Plus all the clover. I'm waiting on it to bloom. I am seeing some red flowers here and there. So will wait a while longer to mow it down.

When I am ready, I'll get my husband to get the weed eater in there and just knock it down. Then wait a few days, cover it with old hay, and plant tomatoes and squashes and other plants in it. No tilling. The other places I'll till for seeds.

The sheep are back over in the bigger pasture. In just a week of them being away from it, the grass has grown several inches. We've had a very wet spring so far and it looks like it will continue this way.

 Sheep generally don't mind a little sprinkle, but a down pour they do not like. So they get under shelters. The alpacas love it though. When I'm filling water troughs, they come running for me to spray them down on warm days.

Speaking of alpacas, they will be getting sheared this Friday. My friend will come get them Thursday evening and take them to her farm, where several other people bring theirs, for the annual Alpaca Shearing Day. Susan has about 75 alpacas at her farm, My Little Darling Alpacas. Then there are about 6 other people who bring theirs there. It's just easier on the shearers. It took all day last year to do them all. It was Mother's Day. I was there ALL day helping out. And it was hot. I think these guys are ready for a hair cut. And their hooves need a good trimming. They do it all there that day. Teeth too.

So, all winter, I had not seen a single ant in my house. I thought I had been given a break. But I guess about 3-4 weeks ago, here they came. A few here, a few there. Not too bad. But now, they are all over the kitchen. On the counters, in the stove, in the cabinets, and under the coffee pot. Even over here in my studio. I have about had it with them.

I tried cinnamon. Did not work. I sprayed with kitchen stuff, like Lysol and anything I could reach when I saw them. More would come every day. So I got some ant traps and ant spray. For days, they didn't go near the traps. Then I noticed a steady stream of ants in the pantry shelves. So put traps there. They started going in. For a few days now.

This morning, I had enough. There were hundreds on the counter, under the coffee pot. I was out of spray, so grabbed Dawn. Poured it all over the counter. I never saw where they were coming from. I had already sprayed the cabinet shelves so was out of spray. I am just SICK of those stinking ants. I smell like an ant, as many as I have squished. I might just have to call an exterminator to get rid of them. I hate ants.

Anyway, we had a great weekend. I'll post more about it later. I hope you all have a great week!

Fun weekend!

I;ll be at Mrs. T's all day today. But it's Friday and the weekend is coming! And NO grand kids!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's going to be a busy weekend. Saturday morning, off to a friends to help plant their garden. Mr. Farmer was attacked by their dog and has lots of stitches, so can't do anything right now, and the plants in flats  are in desperate need of planting.

Then Saturday night is a barn party at some friends barn. So excited about this. We haven't really been a whole lot of places just to have fun and relax with friends in a long time. We need this. So looking forward to reconnecting with friends and making new ones.

And Sunday, since we didn't have an Easter gathering, the family will be going to mom's for a big dinner. Fun!

So what are y'all doing? It's April, rain showers bringing on the green grass and leaves and flowers here. But looks like a great weekend, with great weather, family and friends.

 Have a great weekend, y'all!

Sheep on greens.

I let the sheep and alpacas over here Sunday. Could have  been a little longer, but they wanted to go. They are happy now.

Last weekend, they were out back. I checked on them before I went to bed that night. They were all laying out under the stars, just fine. The gate was open so they could get back in the yard if they wanted.

When I got up the next morning, the gate was all torn up. It's a chain link gate. All torn up. I checked the sheep, they seemed fine. I have no idea what happened. It was shut when I checked it out.

Then I started noticing little Campbelle, off by herself most of the time. I just thought she needed some quiet time. Then later, I noticed she was a little slow when she walked. So, a few days ago, she was laying down in the barn and I saw her back right leg. Right above the hoof looked swollen. And she's limping when she walks.

I think, whatever happened that night the gate was torn up, she was in the middle of it and got her foot broken. All the others are fine. She hangs out with the alpacas. They are slow and she feels comfortable with them. I guess maybe they got spooked, maybe by coyotes, and tried to get to the front yard, but the gate had gotten closed by wind and they wanted out bad. I can't even imagine how they did it.

I'm just going to have to let Campbelle's leg heal on it's own I think. I might go by the vet and get a few shots of Banamine for pain though.

I did it!

Isn't this cute? I made this! Well, with a whole lotta help from my friend Jennie. Couldn't have done it without her really. But she let me do most of it. This new sewing machine had her stumped a few times. But she likes it. And I finally figured out the back up stitch. That will help a lot.

Kansas loves it. And it fits perfect. But not for long. She's growing like a weed. She can wear leggings under it or shorts.

I am right proud of this! I haven't made any clothing since I was in 8th grade Home Ec. And I hated it! Took me a whole year just to sew a pair of pants. Why can't we have school when we're older? I want to learn everything now.

But this was fun. I can't wait til I lose more weight, so I can make some clothes for me. What fun! Another goal for me to work toward.

Can you tell Kansas loves to pose? Such a ham, she is.

Around the farm...

 And just like that, most of the trees are green again! The grass is growing like crazy. Already been mown twice. I haven't been able to start the garden because it's still too wet. And rain all this week too. I do like a fall garden best anyway. But I do want green beans, corn and tomatoes.

This is one of my herb gardens. I can see chives and a few other things coming back in. I should add more soil.

                                         The clematis is full of blooms! Can't wait to see them.

I think all 4 fig bushes are dead. Makes me so sad. They did great the first year. Had lots of figs that were so good. Then last year, they were getting leaves and we had a killing frost. So I cut them all way back and they came back, all nice and full. Got a few figs. But this year, they are doing nothing. I'll break a branch and it's brown. No life at all. So sad. I wonder what happened? Does anyone else have figs?

My little bee garden is looking good. Hosta popping up all around it. And I see several of the perennials coming up that I planted last year. Me and Kansas got in there the other day and pulled up big clumps of grass and the dead branches. Looks better. I'll mulch when everything is bigger.

The 3 pear trees are in full bloom! And full of critters. Lots of my honey bees. I hope to get lots of pears this year.

                                   Cab you see the honey bee right in the middle of this picture?

  Beautiful apple blossoms. This is on one of the newer apple trees below the garden. I planted 6 there and can't remember what all they are. I know I got Arkansas Black, a Granny Smith, and a few Yates. But can't remember the others. They were good last year.

 

 And the Old  Granny Smith apple tree, in full bloom too. The Yates and Early June is coming along too but not like this yet.

Here are some working girls. I love my hens. I have 7 and get 7 eggs about every other day. Yesterday, I was putting them up for the night and only saw 6 with the rooster. I got them in and looked all over for #7. I had taken a long walk earlier and thought maybe she had followed me. But I didn't see anything on the road. Looked in the garage and other rooms. No # 7 anywhere. Then I saw her, meandering along the fence in the studio yard. Just taking her time. She's always by herself. She marches to the beat of her own drum, that one. I was very glad to see her and she went right in the coop.

And this was my lunch yesterday. I love this salad. My favorite. It's spring lettuce mix with dandelion greens and red loose lettuce. I added some hen-bit and violet flowers. Also have dried cranberries, walnuts and Gorgonzola cheese with a Superberry fruit vinaigrette dressing. It's SO good! I do hope you all go outside and harvest wild food from your yards and eat them!

I rode my new bike down to the fire hall and back yesterday. Man, I have not been on a bike in years. It's hard!! I was exhausted y'all. And it's only about a few blocks away maybe? Why is riding a bike so hard? And that seat! Torture! I think it feels too small for me. I might take it back and go to the bike store and try them. They are a lot more money, but I want a bike to last for a long time. And I want to be comfortable. I might try a cruising bike. I won't be racing. And the seats are bigger and look more comfy.

My friend will come today and we'll finish the dress I started last week. I tried it on Kansas and it's perfect! She likes it. So I hope to make lots more clothes soon.

20

Today, 4 weeks and 1 day into this weight loss journey, I have lost 20 pounds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And I bought a bike yesterday. Oh my goodness, I have not been on a bike in forever and it's kind of a little scary. And good grief I am SO out of shape it's horrible. I rode it up and down the long driveway and was huffing and puffing. And my driveway is pretty flat. But I was trying to get the seat and speed adjusted too. It somehow doesn't feel just right to me so it might have to go back and I'll try another one. I'm going to ride a little later this afternoon, just to see how it is on the road, then decide.

I am so happy right now! And I feel SO much better already.

Fluffy Friday

 Just some very fluffy sheep pics for your Friday enjoyment. Have a wonderful Easter weekend y'all!

Wood Faeries

We have wood faeries. They live up on the mountain. We've known them for years and they are the best friends ever. They came last week while we were both gone and filled up the wood shed and the metal wood stand. It's so nice to have wood faeries. This is a great start for next year's wood pile. Thank you, sweet wood faeries!

Sunburst Granny Squares

This is something else I've been working on lately. I take my bag everywhere with me. Always when I have to take mom or Mrs. T to a doctor. I have 74 so far. I'll make 16 more, for a total of 80.

I think I'll give this to my oldest grand daughter for her 16th birthday May 27th. It should be finished by then. I hope. If not, it will be for graduation.

It's made with cotton yarn. I love it. And really easy and fast. And a conversation starter too. I had taken Mrs. T's car in for an oil change and check up last week. Brought this along. And a man asked me what I was making. He said his wife keeps telling him he needs a hobby. I told him lots of men crochet and knit. I hope he'll at least try. He seemed to like the squares.

Sewing

I bought a Brother sewing machine last year. Didn't take it out of the box til a few months ago. It's got a lot of different stitches and other fancy things on it. But not too fancy. Or computerized. I have sewn before, on a little basic sewing machine. But it quit working years ago. So I did most things by hand. I like making quilts by hand. But have used a machine to sew the squares together. I always have quilted them by hand though.

So when I got this machine, I thought I would learn to make clothes for myself and the grands. But I had to learn first. I asked several people to teach me. But people are so busy these days. And sewing lessons are expensive in the stores.

I finally Had a friend call and said she could help me!. She came a few weeks ago to learn the sewing machine first. She loves this machine. She sews her grand kids clothes and makes doll clothes too.  We got the machine all threaded up and practiced on it. Then later I made a few little pouches, just for practice.

I decided to wait on clothes for myself til I lose much more weight. So I got a cute little dress pattern for Kansas. She loves dresses and I figured it would be easier to start with a simple dress.


Got the material all washed and ironed. Got my work table and sewing table all cleaned and ready to go.

I love this work table. It was my old brooder box for chicks and turkey babies. I painted it the color of the walls and use it now for everything. I have an old metal stool I painted purple to use with it. Then my sewing table is behind it. Lots of space to work with here now.

Jenny came over yesterday and we got started. Cut out the pattern pieces for this dress. She showed me how to save lots of material. That was a good thing to know. So when I want to make another quilt, I'll have lots more fabric to use.

I learned how to gather. That was fun. We got the straps sewn onto the front and back panels. She had to leave, so she'll come back Friday to finish it. We just have to sew the elastic in the back and sew the sides together and hem it. It's a size 12 with the size 14 length. Kansas is not here to measure her so will have to hem it when she comes back.

I am so excited to finally be sewing! But for any of you who do sew a lot, how do you get your fabric? I was at Joann's the other day and it is SO overwhelming, just looking at all the fabric in that store. Walmart only has a few rows, so lots easier to make a choice, although I hate Walmart. And Hobby Lobby would be better I think. But I see people's sewing rooms on line and am amazed at all the fabrics they have, all lined up and folded and in color order. It's so expensive! Do you order fabrics on-line? Where is a good place to get it? I see on Amanda Soule's blog, one of her sponsors is Alewives. Their fabrics is beautiful. But I bet it's pricey too. Do you just go to fabric stores every day to catch good sales? I know lots of people have the phones where they can pull up coupons and specials. I don't.

I will get a picture of Kansas in the dress to show it off. It's so cute and summery.

Around the farm...

This is my farm sign. When I had it made, they added 4 small signs that can hang at the bottom. One says lamb, with a cute little lamb on it. Another is produce. Then eggs. And a goat milk sing. Since I don't have any of that right now, I have them all off. Although, I should hang the egg sign back up. These hens are laying so good.

When we first bought this place, there were big tall cedar trees lining the driveway. Out son-in-law cut them down about 6 years ago. They were pretty, but were blocking the sun from the garden. We still have about 15 cedar trees that need to be cut down. That big one to the left is at the top of the garden and blocks all the afternoon sun. Then there are 3 in the yard by my studio and it is constantly wet over there. And a few more back in what was the goat yard. Never dries out back there either. They provide great shade, but that's about it. And I have 9 apple trees. Not good to have cedars around apple trees. And I'd rather have apple trees. So one day, we will have most of these cut down.

Here's a honey bee on a dandelion flower. My garden is full of dandelions not. I love them. And so do all the bees and bugs. And I have violets, henbit and the nettle flowers. And soon, the clover will be blooming!

My house. With the green grass that my husband had to mow last week. It was getting pretty high. And we had to start the wood heater again. It's still on. We had a good frost Saturday night.

I do believe this is the same bird that built the laundry room nest last year. They have been busy for weeks now building this nest. It's so fun to watch. So many birds are building here now.

The apple trees are getting full of leaves and buds now. I was so glad they waited to bloom til this crazy freezing weather was over. My mom has 2 peach trees that were in full bloom and I think they all got frost bit.

 I covered up the blueberry bushes that had buds on them for 2 nights. And the lilacs. They are all fine now.

Here's Cosmo the kitty next to the blueberry bush with the most blooms. I had 10 bushes but the sheep got 1 of the bigger ones. And last year the chickens got all the blueberries. Not this year!

This morning. Some of the sheep taking their mid morning siesta. They are so funny, these sheep.  I love them.

My very first flowers on the biggest Redbud tree!!! I have waited years for it to bloom. I love these trees. They are in full bloom most everywhere around here now. One of the weathermen said we had Redbud winter this past weekend. never have heard that one before. Have you? We have Dogwood winter in April. Then blackberry winter too. But never a Redbud winter. Something new around here I suppose.

This is the Early June apple tree. One of the oldest trees here. I was so worried that the sheep killed it and the other 2. But they are all putting on leaves and buds now.

The plumbers need to come back when it's dry enough and finish their mess. There are still holes where they never covered enough dirt over the pipes. And they left a big diesel tank here.

My Mom's eye looks amazing! Like it never happened. We go back Wednesday and  I know that doctor will be amazed and proud of her and his work. She has done everything he told her to do. For 3 days, she faithfully put an ice pack on her eye for 30 minutes, every 30 minutes. So she had no swelling at all and very minimal bruising. She started her exercise class at church Saturday and had a good class. The only thing we're concerned with is a big hole right under her tear duct. Don't know what or why this has happened. Unless he used a huge needle.

And as of this morning, I have lost a total of 18 pounds!!!! I am so happy. I hope by my birthday, June 5th, I will be under the 200 mark. I know I can do it. I want to do it. I was at a birthday party yesterday sitting right next to the cake and pizza. It smelled SO good. But also it didn't. So I can say no to stuff like that and be ok about it.

Saturday, I walked up to my friend's farm almost 2 miles from here. Checked on all the goats. Gave Ada a shot. Washed off the little goat kid. He's a mess. Ada has awful runny poop and the kid stands to nurse at her back end. It's gross. But Ada is getting better, day by day. Then I walked back home. It was a beautiful day.

Yesterday, we all went to mom's to get her yard cleaned up. I did most of the mowing, with her old NOT self-propelled lawn mower. UGH, what a workout that was! I wish I had taken my camera to do before and after pics. It looks amazing. Got her white wicker lawn furniture back out. She can now go outside and enjoy her yard and sit down while her little dog runs around and chases squirrels and digs big holes to China!

And today, I am very sore. Y'all have a great week!

Tea anyone?

Since I quit drinking coffee, I have a big cup of dandelion tea with honey every day. I love it. I have always drank it. But since I gave up sugar, I can't have my creamer and I hate black coffee. So I put a small spoon of good raw local honey in the tea. It's a great spring tonic too. And gives me energy. It's from my garden, so is free and organic. It has pollen in it so is so far staving off the horrid allergies I would normally have right now. I've had 1 day of itchy eyes so far, that's it.

So y'all go out and find some good organic dandelion flowers, put in a pot of water (about a handful per cup), let it come to a boil, then simmer a few minutes. Strain and add a little honey. And enjoy!

Mineral block

I bought this 33 pound mineral block yesterday. I gave it to the sheep and alpacas when I got home later. This is what's left this morning. They love this stuff. But at $12 I can't afford to give them one every other day. Geeze.

That's my big ole fluff ball Cara. Her wool is  amazing. The shearer changed the shearing day to mid to late April. Kind of glad, because this weekend, back down in the low 30's at night.

(And yes, it is specifically for sheep.)

My grand daughter's drawing for me.

This a a drawing from my oldest grand daughter, Chloe. She is so talented. I hope she does something with her talent. She's in 10th grade and in an art class. I really want her to pursue art in some form or other. Her dad is really good too but has never done a thing with his talent. This is about all Chloe does. She loves to draw.

Prayers please?

This morning, I'm going to get mom and take her to the surgery center for a little surgery on her left bottom eye lid. When she fell last fall, she hit on the left side of her face and right under her left eye. So when the scab was all gone, it sort of pulled her eyelid down a little, enough to be noticeable. So went to her eye doctor and they scheduled a nip and tuck surgery. Supposed to be there at 11 this morning. While they are doing this, they'll repair her tear duct. She will be so happy to have that done. She's tried the plugs but they just don't work on the eye. I'll spend the night with her, then hubby will stay the day tomorrow with her. Then Saturday, she starts teaching her exercise class at her church! She's got 14 people so far signed up and she is very excited and a little nervous. So 2 prayer requests here. Eye surgery and class. Thank you all!

I made kraut Saturday. I don't really know if this should be called kraut or just fermented cabbage? I added Chioga beets to it. I love this stuff.

This is the coolest bell. It's at the gate by the apple trees. It's starting to get some moss growing on it. Cool.

See y'all later! Have a good Tuesday.