A Buff in the Box – Felt Chicken Ornament Pattern
This little felt chicken ornament was inspired by our own Buff Orpington chickens. Often when we check for eggs, there's a Buff in the Box - that is a Buff in the nesting box getting settling to lay an egg. We have 12 chickens, six nesting boxes,...
An Eggcellent Surprise!
Look what Hannah found this morning when visiting the Banties. Our first bantam chicken eggs! We got these little chickens in August. They were on clearance at the Blue Seal store. Who could resist $1 chickens? Six months after their arrival at...
The Seven Year Slump
We've been living in this house we built ourselves for seven years now. Suddenly it seems that we are having a rash of appliance failures. First, there was Hannah's television, just a couple of months out of warranty (of course). She does not have...
Atlantic Puffin Felt Ornament
In Maine, the Atlantic Puffin resides on a few islands off the coast. Almost gone from Maine in the early 20th century, their populations are now thriving or stable due to the help of Project Puffin. These cute little sea birds have a colorful,...
A Fox on the Farm
Mid-morning, as I was making brunch, the Banties on the porch started making a ruckus, wildly bock-bock-bocking all together. We laughed at their antics wondering what had gotten them so stirred up. Suddenly, Paul called out, "There's a fox!"...
A Dozen Day!
The Girls are at maximum production! Nine weeks into egg laying we had our first day with one dozen eggs. That's 12 eggs from 12 hens. Good job, Girls! This is exciting stuff for a first-time farm girl.
Dilly the Duck Felt Pattern
Dilly is a special duck at Downeast Thunder Farm. She inspired this little felt duck ornament. You can read more about Dilly here. Click here to download this free duck felt ornament pattern.
Snowshoeing Through Narnia
Overnight Mother Nature dropped eight inches of snow resulting in Snow Day #2 of the year. Once the front moved out, Hannah and I strapped on our snowshoes and headed out exploring. We trooped up the woods road and then ventured into the woods. I...
Moonset
Moonset from my kitchen window this morning.
My Constant Companion
I ventured outside at 7:30 this Sunday morning to let the ducks and chickens out into their pens, and replace their frozen water with fresh. The thermometer read 3 degrees with a stiff breeze. It's officially brrrr outside today. I snuggled up on...
A Stalker in the Night
The first storm of 2012 dropped four inches of slushy snow overnight. The snow was the perfect foil to expose those who lurk in the shadows of the night. Living in the Maine countryside means that you share the land with predators. We've seen...
Felt Cardinal on a Snowy Afternoon
School was called off early and the snow is coming down. It's a good afternoon to hunker down with a movie and a project. Today I finished a felt cardinal ornament that I've been puttering with. She joins the collection with my chickadee and owl...
Felt Chickadee Ornament
Now that the holidays are over I find myself at loose ends. Feeling the need for a project I drew this pattern for a felt chickadee ornament using a photograph for inspiration. I think she turned out pretty cute. Click here to download the...
Hannah’s Favorite Granny Gadget Gadget: George Foreman Grill
Last month Granny Gadget sent us (via QVC) this new six-plate George Foreman Grill. Years ago Mom sent us one of the the original George Forman Grills. It was handy, but came out of the cupboard only three or four times a year. This new version has...
Inquiring Chickens Want to Know
Everything! Chickens are very curious little creatures. They love to explore every little change or sound. When I stopped to visit with them today, The Girls all gathered around until they figured out that I was empty-handed. Except for my camera....
Free Nesting Box Plans
At Downeast Thunder Farm, my engineer husband designs and fabricates our structures, farm implements, and equipment as we need them. He's a handy guy to have around! In planning for another chicken coop this coming Spring, Paul drew up this nesting...
Downeast Thunder Spinach Artichoke Dip
New Years Eve I made this very yummy Spinach Artichoke Dip. I love the warm creamy texture with just a little bite of jalapeno. Downeast Thunder Spinach Artichoke Dip 1 - 8 ounce block of cream cheese, softened 3/4 cup mayonnaise (the real deal -...
Nesting Box Number 6 – A Popular Place
Nesting box number 6 is the place to be if you're a chicken. We have six nesting boxes in our large coop, but box number 6 is the most popular. Some days we find all of our eggs in this one box. (Seven eggs today - a record!) This is what I found...
An Afternoon with Harry Potter Monopoly
The last day of 2011 found my family gathered around the table playing Harry Potter Monopoly. New Year's Eve afternoon is typically game day, served up with popcorn and appetizers. We are clearly fans of the Harry Potter book series. Hannah and I...
Snowshoeing 101
I bought snowshoes for the family for Christmas this year. We are not the most athletically-minded family, but we do live in Maine so it seems that we ought to have snowshoes. These are the entry-level, all terrain type of snowshoes that I'm sure...
Our First Christmas Without Santa
Santa didn't come to our house this year. I knew the cat was out of the bag when Hannah asked me with a knowing smile, "Why do you have Santa's wrapping paper stashed in the storage room?" You see, Santa wraps presents in this special Santa...
Merry Christmas
My great, great aunt, Elizabeth Stroble, created beautiful linoleum block print posters. She sent these to family and friends as her Christmas card. Recently, ten of these prints came to me via my mother from another relative. At Christmastime,...
A Balmy Winter Solstice
It's the first day of winter - the shortest day of the year and I weeded my garden today. Temps in the 40's makes me feel a bit silly for moving the portable banty coop onto the deck to keep these miniature chickens out of the snow. Is it a...
Owl Family Felt Ornament Patterns
Hannah and I have had great fun making these little owl ornaments to decorate our Christmas gift bags this year. For those of you looking for a fun felt project, I've put these in a pattern for you to download. Happy sewing! Click here to Download...
Hannah’s Spinach Pinwheels
Hannah stumbled across a recipe I'd pulled out of a magazine for Pepperidge Farm's Spinach-Cheese Swirls. Hannah being Hannah read the recipe through once and then did her own thing. Having recently discovered that Hannah loves spinach I've been...
