Masthead header

If I had to choose one word to sum up my weekend, it would be: gardening!!  The weather has finally started warming up enough to truly get in the dirt and make things grow. The majority of my time this weekend was spent helping my mother in law around the yard tidying up the beds, pruning trees and raspberry canes and of course tending to my own veggie garden which has started sprouting already, believe it or not! Of course my weekend wasn’t complete without some chicken fun too..my little babies are 5 weeks old today, hard to believe!! They are doing very well and this morning we moved them in to their coop where they will be spending the rest of their blissful lives! They will be staying in their cardboard box this week, getting used to their surroundings and what not and then {hopefully} next week we will start building a pen for them and get them in to their big girl home full time. I’m pretty excited to see them out there now, having chickens in a chicken coop makes it that much more real now compared to hiding in a corner in the shop! So exciting!! Alright, so here is my weekend in photos:

We moved the chicken coop in place on Friday

Our water isn’t hooked up yet so I’m hauling water to my garden..its getting old fast

I rec’d confirmation that a few more cards of mine will be published this year!

We cleaned the flower beds

A neighbor gave us 21 new strawberry plants that we temporarily planted in old washtubs tils we figure out where we’d like a berry patch

We prepped 1500 new trees for planting

I went thru my magazines and organized/recycled them..finally!

We pruned trees..

I pruned raspberry canes

I took this guy for a swim in the dugout

I brought this guy lunch while he rolled lentils
I snuggled lots with this guy

I bonded more with Eleanor and showed her the ‘great outdoors’
All in all it was a fantastic weekend. Wonderful, warm weather..getting my hands in the dirt and spending time with loved ones {human, furry and feathered}

Before I sign off, I couldn’t resist showing you a photo of one of my 5 week old Plymouth Barred Rocks…seriously, are they not GORGEOUS?! *sigh*
Happy Monday everyone!!
Posted in Weekend Recap
like tweet pin
add a comment

  • Anonymous - You were a busy girl this weekend! Way to go!!ReplyCancel

  • Lynette - A very full weekend. Now you need to rest:-DReplyCancel

  • dawn - WOW what a busy weekend, but how fun and fullfilling it is to do all this for your house and family. I think it’s great what your doing and that you will never have a boring moment living on this land. Love the photos of your whole day!!ReplyCancel

To the woman who gave me life, thank you
To the woman who held my hand when I was scared, thank you
To the woman who braided my hair for school every day, thank you
To the woman who passed on possessions so I would not go without, thank you
To the woman who listened when I needed to talk, thank you
To the woman who talked when I needed to listen, thank you
To the woman who taught me everything I know, thank you
To the woman who scolded me when I needed it, thank you
To the woman who supported me no matter what, thank you
To the woman who joined me when I made a fool of myself, thank you
To the woman who laughs at all my jokes/stories, thank you
To the woman who loves my husband as her own son, thank you
To the woman who taught me what it means to be a wife, thank you
To the woman who planned and worked so hard for my wedding, thank you
To the woman who loves me more than I ever fully understood, thank you
Happy Mothers Day Memoo!! You are the best mom a girl/human being could ever ask for!! I love you more than you will ever know!!
love,
 dawn
Posted in mothers day
like tweet pin
add a comment

  • dawn - aaaww how sweet this is. You are both lucky to have each other. She sounds awesome!!ReplyCancel

Anyone who knows me knows I love a good bonfire! Every since I was a little girl, camping with my family, a campfire has been a symbol of so much to me. It symbolizes carefree summers, camping, childhood, peace, happiness, good food..the list goes on! So when we finally got a free evening to do as we please, we gathered our firewood and sat down for an evening of campfire, wieners and roasted marshmallows..and boy, was it good!

Adams brothers are both staying at the farm, helping us with seeding, but because they live in the city and rarely get a chance to come down for a visit – we take every opportunity we can to hang out with them and create precious memories while chatting and reconnecting
The following picture speaks a 1,000 words to me. Its happiness, joy, contentment, love. And most importantly? My parents recently commented that Adam looked like my Grandpa P with his crooked ball cap, and a similiarity like that makes my heart truly happy. My Grandpa P passed away 14 years ago and Adam never got to meet him, but I know one thing for sure..he would have really loved him!
And I couldn’t let my BIL, Scotty, get away without snapping a photo of us – he hates having his photo taken!

At the end of the night, we all agreed it was such a great idea to build a campfire and spend the evening together. We also agreed that this would be the first of many fires this summer..and I have to tell you, I cannot wait til the next one! I can taste those marshmallows already..

Posted in summer
like tweet pin
add a comment

  • dawn - ooohhh yes the campfire, we LOOOOVE those also. The kids get sooo excited about them, we usually wait till schools out to do ours and if it’s warm enough. Love that first photo, your fire is a serious one!!

    How sweet that you got to spend some family time and get some photos to remember. Cute one of you and hubby! Hope you share more of your bonfire photos over the summer. We also make smores at ours, YUMMY!!

    I just posted my new fave color post peek when you have time.

    Enjoy your weekend!ReplyCancel

    • Dawn Cosgrove - Hi Dawn!
      Yes, we are very “serious” about our fires..lol. The bigger the better 😉 we made s’mores as well but I have to tell you, they really aren’t my favorite! Give me a plain old roasted marshmallow anytime!ReplyCancel

This week I finally was able to get in the soil and start planting some of my seeds! Trust me when I tell you I was giddy about this! With the weather doing what it did, we needed a few days of dry winds before getting back in to the field so Adam worked in the yard and took some time Monday afternoon to till my garden with the tractor attachment {SO much easier than the green beast I used earlier!}and then proceeded to help us seed peas, potatoes & popcorn. I have many more seeds/veggies to go..but this was a nice start!

After Adam ran thru the garden with this amazing attachment, we spread on some inoculant over where I will be growing my peas {My brother in law promises me that I will be growing more peas than I know what to do with!}
And then after all of that prep work was done, it was time to plant my first rows of peas! I will be planting a new row every 2 weeks so as to keep the harvest going even longer in the season. Reason being is that although my hubby & I do love fresh peas..I happen to know a father in law who really loves them too 😉

I never knew this contraption existed before but it is just about the best thing since sliced bread! It is a seeder that comes with different sized discs according to the size of seed you are planting. It spaces the seeds out for you, digs the trench and covers it back up! All just by pulling and pushing it along! Genius!!
I have to say I am truly ecstatic that I finally get a vegetable garden to play in that is all my own. I have wanted one for years but just never got around to it nor had the ability, yard wise. But this year is the year! It is truly an experimental garden for sure and I am anticipating many failures..but heres to hoping for some successes as well!
Posted in gardening
like tweet pin
add a comment

  • dawn - Hi Dawn,
    I missed you this week, glad to see you blogged. Thanks for your comment on my blog also. I’m crazy for doing one layout a month but it’s sooo nice to do this again.

    HOORAY FOR FIRST GARDENS AND PEAS!!! We just did our first peas last year and we do potatoes every couple years also. The peas came out soooo good. My hubby will want to read your blog now just to hear about the garden. He’s the one that does all that in the family. He is verrrrry excited to start planting and just did the onions last week. He’s buying seeds this weekend to finish up the garden. You will have so much fun growing veggies and eating them. Good luck on it!!

    How much land do you have, that is a big garden!! My husband dreams of having this much land.
    Have a good weekend!ReplyCancel

  • Dawn Cosgrove - Hi Dawn!
    Yes it is a very big garden but we live on a pretty nice sized farm! Our yard is 6 acres :) we call it our own little Disneyland! The guys farm a lot more land but the yard, is ours to play with!ReplyCancel

    • dawn - WOW that is so awesome, my hubby would love all that to play in also. It would be so peaceful to enjoy and not hear all the cars and neighbors some days. When they get too loud in the summer we have actally had to close our windows just to hear our own tv and selves talking. LOL

      ENJOY YOUR DISNEYLAND!ReplyCancel

    • Dawn Cosgrove - Before moving here I lived in the city on a street like yours! SO LOUD!! It was a main street with constant traffic, school kids walking all over my lawn & a main bus route with buses driving alongside my home every 20 mins!! Nothing can express my gratitude for the peace I have now..lol!ReplyCancel

  • Lynette - That looks like a lot of hard work. Here in South Africa we have farm laborers that do most of the hard work. Thank you for your kind comment on my blog.ReplyCancel

    • Dawn Cosgrove - Haha – yes it is hard work but I love gardening! For me it’s very relaxing & rewarding! Thank you for stopping by!ReplyCancel

I am so sorry I haven’t been around the blog yet this week, life has just gotten busy here at the farm and, unfortunately, the blog gets dropped in priority. So much has been going on that I can’t wait to blog about! But first, an update on my newest pride and joys..my month old chickens!! Can you believe it has been a month already? I am shocked every time I go in to check on them and see how big they grow every. single. day!

Now, before I move on to showing you their photos..I thought I’d update you on my flock. All 15 of my chicks have been growing and changing daily, minus Maggie with her sour crop and Dharma with her crossed beak, all have been happy and healthy..until last Thursday when I unexpectantly lost one:(The chick I lost was one of 8 black Australorps and one that had grown big and strong early on and was a complete shock to me. I was devastated! The chick was showing no signs of anything wrong Wednesday night when we went in for their nightly food/water refresh and playtime and Thursday morning all 15 were still running around like normal. But, I came back in to check on them at noon and this little lady was dead. I really was in disbelief, I didn’t want to believe it..kept hoping it was just asleep, but I knew better. I carefully wrapped her up and lifted her out and placed her in the burning barrel for my brother in law to take care of. It bothered me a lot to have to dispose of her this way but, like Adam said, if it was in fact sick or carried a disease, burning them is the best way to ensure it would not carry on to the rest of my flock. Needless to say, Thursday was a hard day for this gal! But, my remaining 14 chicks are beautiful and {so far} doing well..and did I mention that I love them to death?! They make my heart swell with pride every time I see them and their quirky antics!

And, now that they are a month old, most of their cute baby down has disappeared and been replaced with feathers…Adam thinks they are going through a “not so cute” phase but I still think they are adorable, don’t you?

One of my Plymouth Barred Rocks – gorgeous, no?

Eleanor – 1 of my 2 Ameracaunas

Adam holding “TINY”, one of our Black Australorps

And this, this is Beatrice, a Black Australorp. At first I was really concerned that she was too sleepy and a loner and I thought maybe she was dying. Then I realized she is just very submissive, gently, broody and loving. She is in heaven if you pick her up and just let her roost in your hand. Perfectly content being left to sleep on your while you go about your daily business. I can tell already – we are going to be bonded for life!!
And those are my chicks at one month old!!!
Posted in chickens
like tweet pin
add a comment

  • dawn - I’m sooo sorry you lost a chick, how awful for you. I will pray and send heathly wishes for the rest of them. They do so dang cute with new feathers, I’m so thrilled that your sharing this with us. This is all new to me so it’s fun to read and see the changes. I love the names you have picked out also.

    Happy Mother’s day to you and your first babies!! I can tell you love them and spoil them. Can’t wait to see them grow and change more.
    HUGS!!
    DawnReplyCancel

« Older posts Newer posts