A Burst of Sunshine!

I was just noodling around on my computer, reading email, drinking my coffee and eating my toast when suddenly, the  clouds parted and the sunshine burst through, lighting up the room!  It's been so long...I had to shoot a few photos through the windows quick before it disappeared. A view through the frosty dining room window...

and through the  kitchen window.

While most of the country is in the grip of a nasty blizzard, we got off pretty easy this time. I snow-blew through about 4 inches of fresh snow,  but by last evening the wind had blown much of it back across the driveway in scalloped drifts. Rog got up at 5:30 this morning to clear the driveway so he could get to his 7 a.m. meeting, but happily, during the night the wind had blown the entire driveway clear. The temperature was hovering at zero this morning, but not so windy, so morning chores were pleasant.

Squash Soup Supper

Nothing tastes better on a blustery winter night than a bowl of squash soup with homemade sourdough bread and stravecchio cheese!

I  tried to duplicate daughter Sara's fabulous squash soup, starting with  homemade chicken stock (from the chicken we roasted for dinner on Sunday. That chicken also went into 6 potpies, four frozen for a future comfort meal.)

The squash was  roasted whole in the oven, but it can alternatively be cut up and cooked in the broth.  We have about a dozen beautiful butternut squashes from our garden yet - they have stored perfectly in the basement and are scrumptiously sweet.

Other ingredients are:  two carrots, one yellow onion, a shallot, a large orange, one large yellow potato, fresh grated ginger. After everything had been well-simmered, it went into the blender. A drizzle of cream was stirred, and it was seasoned with salt and ground pepper.  Garnished with fresh cilantro and finely chopped roasted almonds.  Mmm.
Summer in a bowl.

Eggstravaganza

With days  getting longer, the hens have begun laying in earnest. In the past few weeks we have gone from an almost manageable 3 or 4 eggs a day to an overwhelming 20-24 eggs a day.

I just finished washing the eggs from past few days -- 9 dozen, not counting the rejects. Any eggs that have hairline cracks because I didn't gather them in time and they were beginning to freeze or that are soiled (from chicken poo or a broken egg) become dog and cat treats.

I love the assortment of sizes and colors - huge eggs from our older chickens and duck,  petite eggs from the first time layers, and cute tiny eggs from the banty.
Let me know if you are in the market for some SBF eggs...please!

Chickens, Cows and a Rabbit

The past couple of days have have been overcast and pretty mild, so some of the chickens have been venturing out into the snow. This morning, some of Lacey's kids  tentatively exited the coop. These are the chicks that Lacey secretly hatched out at the end of October, much to my dismay. Nine of the ten survived and are growing into the craziest-looking chickens.

Lacey, in the bottom right corner, with a few of her offspring.  No two chicks look the same, and they seem to have gotten the wackiest possible combinations of their parents' traits.

As I was filling the cows' watering tank, I noticed a rabbit nestled next to the barn.  Nutmeg was on his trail, sniffing closer, but still oblivious to the rabbit only a few feet away, so I quickly called her out through the gate. The rabbit stayed motionless while I got my camera.

I think this is the rabbit that lives in the loafing shed and leads the dogs on so many merry chases.  He is often  around during chore time.

When I got too close he leaped across the snow, scurried under the fence and hopped off on a path through the woods. The dogs are still off tracking him now, an hour later.

Victims of the Melting

I guess we won't be grilling out tonight.

Rosebush.

Gardening in the Snow

Ever since we moved here my dream has been to create a sort-of-formal, raised -bed, mostly-perennial  garden outside our dining room window. Looking out, one would see drifts of colorful flowers in the foreground, then the large expanse of lawn (studded with cows grazing peaceably), and beyond, that the pastoral view.

Other projects have taken precedence the past two summers, so this garden hasn't happened yet, but for Christmas Rog gave me the promise of helping me build the garden this spring. (He knows the way to my heart!)

With each fresh snowfall I have been taking the opportunity to tramp a garden layout in the snow.  The raised beds will be contained by local Winona stone and there will be brick paver paths.  Tracking it out in the snow gives me a pretty good sense of how it will look from inside the house. This square plan looks a bit too geometric to me, but would be softened considerably by my eclectic gardening style.  I want to be able to expand the design in the future if I feel the need to plant more flowers!

What would you do? Your garden design ideas are welcomed. 

Our Farm Critters as Quilts

My friend Enid is an avid and awesome quilter, and I have been tickled that she has immortalized some of our Squash Blossom Farm  animals  in her quilts. 


Last spring she created a wall quilt featuring my dear Dexter cow Lariat. 

Another of her farm quilts stars one of my first hens, Hawk.  This small quilt incorporates the techniques of glue fusing, glue resist, sticker resist and painting, machine applique, machine quilting using batiks, hand-dyed cottons and silk fabrics.
(Enid has written  a book on these quilting techniques!)

But now Enid is tackling the most most ambitious farm quilt project yet: a life-sized appliqued quilt  of LaFonda, our Jersey mix milk cow.  The quilt measures 6 feet tall!  If you click to enlarge the photo of the quilt top in progress, you can see the many prints  making up the cow's spots.  


Enid explained she is now bleaching various red fabrics to "age" them and use as the boards she will construct as a barn background  behind LaFonda.  It promises to be will be very graphic - and stunning! Enid's goal is to complete the quilt by April first and enter it in the International Quilt competition.  

Here is the photo of LaFonda that inspired Enid's large quilt. Little does LaFonda know, she might become an international quilting sensation!


I will post a photo of the completed  quilt when Enid is done. I cannot wait to see it!