by Susan | Apr 19, 2012 | Bird Patterns, Felt Patterns, Hummingbird Patterns
Soon I’ll be filling the feeders for the return of these little hummingbirds. Invariably they return on May 12 – give or take a day. A feeder right outside the kitchen window provides us with lots of free entertainment! You can download the free pattern...
by Susan | Apr 15, 2012 | Projects
Not long ago, I saw a picture of large woven baskets sitting among raised beds in a garden. They looked so neat, that I thought I’d try make one for potatoes. Truth be told, I thought of making a couple – but these are a lot of work! I cut tree branches...
by Susan | Apr 13, 2012 | Chickens, On the Farm
Baby peeps arrived today! FIFTY-ONE of them! Well, that’s what the invoice says – I didn’t count ’em. These are Freedom Ranger chicks that will be raised for freezer camp. Aren’t they sweet? And this little guy looks plumb tuckered out....
by Susan | Apr 11, 2012 | Chickens, Ducks, On the Farm
Another farm girl has succumbed to Spring fever and has gone broody. Shadow, one of our two Ameraucana chickens hasn’t left her nesting box for the past couple of days. Today was the first I’d learned of it, so I paid her a visit. She didn’t budge...
by Susan | Apr 9, 2012 | On My Mind
This cute little guy caught our attention on Easter Sunday. We found him just outside the living room window tugging on a piece of fabric that was stuck in a bush – a remnant of a long forgotten scarecrow. He tried and tried, but couldn’t work it free....
by Susan | Apr 8, 2012 | Bird Patterns, Felt Patterns, Waterfowl and Seabird Patterns
A snowy Easter afternoon seemed like a good time to finish this little Mallard Duck felt ornament. Click here to download the pattern. Hope you have fun making him!
by Susan | Apr 6, 2012 | Ducks, On the Farm
Okay, it’s a really short movie. Take a look at Dilly tending to her nest of chicken eggs. I know it’s silly, but I’m fascinated by my first broody duck! Other Dilly Posts 27 March 2012: Rules to Being a Broody Duck 23 March 2012: Dilly the Broody...
by Susan | Apr 4, 2012 | Ducks, On the Farm
Dilly stopped laying as of yesterday and at the same time became very serious about sitting on her nest. Obsessively so. Over the weekend, I candled the duck eggs she had been sitting on. Sadly, they were not fertile. Since Dilly has stepped up her commitment to...
by Susan | Apr 2, 2012 | Home Improvements
It’s been six years since my beautiful Cherry kitchen cabinets were installed. Since then, the bottoms have fallen out of the 36″ wide drawers. Twice. The first time the company came out to inspect and sent replacement boxes. The second time, Paul rebuilt...
by Susan | Apr 1, 2012 | Bird Patterns, Felt Patterns, Waterfowl and Seabird Patterns
The past couple of weeks, Canada Geese have been flying overhead returning north for the summer. I love to hear the honking sound as they fly by – there’s something nostalgic about the sound. This little goose is a quick and easy ornament to make. Click...
by Susan | Mar 31, 2012 | On My Mind
I couldn’t help but admire Paul’s creative use of recycled materials for birthday wrap. I especially appreciated the ribbon – it does finish things off, don’t you think? Using my felt bird ornaments as models, Hannah drew for me a very special...
by Susan | Mar 30, 2012 | Hannah's Cutting Board, In the Kitchen
The other week when we cooked down our sap into Maple syrup, Hannah took advantage of the wood fire and made S’mores. All day long. The other day, we were down to the last graham crackers and marshmallows with no chocolate left in the house. (A truly sad thing,...
by Susan | Mar 27, 2012 | Ducks, On the Farm
There are rules to being a successful broody duck. I’m not sure Dilly understands that. She starts out the day doing a really good job. She has a drink, some breakfast, goes for a dip in the mortar box and then heads back in to sit on her nest. By the time...
by Susan | Mar 25, 2012 | Bird Patterns, Felt Patterns, Perching Bird Patterns
It’s a little early for me to find a Goldfinch at the feeder, but I’m sure it won’t be long with the warm days we’ve had lately. In the meantime, this felt Goldfinch adds a little sunny cheer to the landscape. Click here to download this free...
by Susan | Mar 24, 2012 | On the Farm
I sit outside on a beautiful Spring day writing this post about The Return of the Fox. Our resident fox has visited three times this morning raising havoc with the chickens and ducks. So here I sit on the porch giving the ducks some supervised play time. The commotion...
by Susan | Mar 23, 2012 | Ducks, On the Farm
Our sweet little Dilly Duck has developed quite the attitude. It took us the better part of a week to put together all of the pieces and realize that Dilly is feeling broody. Each day, after Paul collects the eggs, Dilly sits alone in the corner of the yard;...
by Susan | Mar 18, 2012 | On the Farm
Our morning began with the sunrise. Before that first cup of coffee we were outside setting a fire in our makeshift outdoor wood stove to boil down sap. It’s been two weeks since we tapped 12 Maple trees. We collected 25 gallons of sap, filling every jug, pot...
by Susan | Mar 17, 2012 | Bird Patterns, Felt Patterns, Perching Bird Patterns
This little Bluebird seems quite content perched on the feeder. Tucked in the woods like we are, it’s a rare treat for us to have a Bluebird visit! You can download the pattern here. If you make this little Bluebird, comment to share a link to a picture of...
by Susan | Mar 15, 2012 | On My Mind
All the snow was gone and the smell of Spring was in the air. Then we woke up to this. The weather man totally missed this snow forecast – five inches of snow. Nobody seems particularly excited about it. Although snow does have a way of defining beauty in the...
by Susan | Mar 11, 2012 | On My Mind
A week after tapping 12 trees we did our second round of sap collection. All together we’ve collected about 8+ gallons of sap – enough for about 12 ounces of syrup. The nights have been cold with daytime temps anywhere between 32 and 58. The coming week is...
