a face only a mother could love, and other stuff

The entire week has consisted of days that were not longer than 15 minutes each. How is anyone supposed to get anything done under those circumstances? I’ve felt like I’ve done little but race madly from one thing to the next without actually accomplishing anything. So today, I’m taking it a little slower (although there are still a million things to do!) and tomorrow I may take a road trip to meet some other farming-types who live in central Maine.

I don’t really know where to begin, so maybe I’ll just start chronologically and see where I wander from there. We had a gorgeously sunny day last Saturday. Although it was very cold, Rowen and Arden got the idea into their heads that we needed to go on an Exploration and have a picnic. So … we did. Brrr. Here are Rowen and Arden fearlessly perched atop the broken branch of a gigantic tree – especially when viewed from the perspective of an uncertain four-year old.

And here is Rowen with Flip in the same tree. Rowen has explained to me that the path we followed was one that Flip shared with Ro and Nick several days previously. I’d tell you where it is, but it’ a secret.

And here is Flip, showing that he is a fearless cat who possesses remarkable leadership qualities. Hey, do you think it’s too late to get him on the ballot?

Today is another brilliantly sunny day, and it is a lot warmer than last Saturday. So of course, no one is interested in being outside at all. Go figure!

Since I’m talking about our furbabies anyway, here’s the latest on Tom, who has been re-named by Rowen and now bears the weighty moniker of Major Tom Stubbs. He’s had his neutering surgery and is being introduced to the house. The other animals hate him, though, so it’s a slow process. His own behavior is still a little unpredictable – he’s generally an absolute love bug but sometimes he forgets that the hand that’s petting him is attached to the arm hovering in his vicinity and he bites and/or scratches the arm. The arm usually belongs to me, and I’ve been very glad we keep antibiotic salve and gauze pads on hand. It’s a face only a mother could love, and yet … we do love him and are glad to be able to offer him a comfortable spot for his golden years.(I’d like to point out that I obviously took these photos elsewhere because my own house is kept spotless and clutter-free at all times!)

Well, maybe some of us are less happy to welcome him than others. Flip is letting him know that this pool of sunshine will not be shared under any circumstances.

Also taking place in my clean and uncluttered kitchen is baking. Lots of baking. Baguettes by the bag full this week, and each more delicious than the last. Yesterday, the gray weather really got to me so I also began baking cookies (something I tend to avoid because I like my own cooking…).

Talking about the gray weather offers me a reasonable segue into the bizarre storm we had that dumped close to a foot of snow on us earlier this week. It’s still melting off. Here’s the barn, viewed from the back door of the house, the day it snowed.

Down in the barn, life has been busy. The geese continue to lay eggs and because I only have two small incubators, we’ve been eating some of the eggs. I made scrambled eggs the other day and when I saw how huge the goose egg yolks were compared to a regular chicken egg, I had to take a picture. Doesn’t it look like a face?

We have some new chicks down in the barn – 2 month old Barred Hollands. I love them! They look a lot like Barred Plymouth Rocks but they’re a much older (and rarer) breed that lays a white egg (rather than a brown one).

In the house, the little Miracle Marans are doing well, and the incubators are full-up. Hoping for some exciting hatching to start soon! While I wait, I occasionally find five or ten minutes for stitching. This is for an exchange, so I can just show a snippet.

I’d probably be able to get a whole lot more done if these impossibly adorable creatures didn’t keep distracting me.

Thanks for visiting! I hope your weekend is full of joy and good health!

it feels like it’s been ages

… since I last posted, but I guess it’s just that the days have been so very, very full. If anyone has any hours to spare, please deposit them directly to my time account … I need them!

I have finished Soft as a Bunny. Yesterday afternoon when I should have been typing the umpty-millionth version of my next class paper, I instead finished this design. I have to admit that I like the other ones from the series better – too many pastels in this one. And I goofed and stitched the ribbon in cameo pink instead of cherry wine – but as much frogging as went on with this seemingly simple design, I was not going to change it. Nicky hasn’t seen it yet, but hopefully it will meet with his approval.

And an arty, off-center perspective:

Valentine’s Day was a bust, though I did make a pretty awesome dinner. Dessert eclipsed it entirely though – fresh fruit over vanilla ice cream with homemade lemon syrup and fudge sauce. Mmmmm.

And that’s about all I can fit into this post-on-the-fly accounting of life at Chateau Chaos! Thanks so much for visiting!

keepin’ warm

Brrr!! Chilly today – but so bright and sunny! The dogs couldn’t figure out how to get warm, fast – Lola thought getting under the dog blanket might be better, but Rigby liked it better on top.

Arden slept somewhat better with the aid of a humidifier, but still isn’t sleeping through the night and is still plagued by the croupy cough. Ugh. Today makes four days of the cough, and it generally runs a course of 3 to 7 days. Needless to say, we are all hoping we’re nearing the end rather than just past the halfway point. My aunties surprised us with a visit and get-well basket for Arden. The basket was quite a bit fuller before I managed to get a picture of it (hmm, how did that happen?). Aunt Kathy remembered that Arden is wild for blueberries, so you might notice a blueberry theme.

It was a wildly busy day. The poor barn critters didn’t get their dinner till nearly full dark and they were making quite a ruckus. Thankfully, the guineas made their noise inside the fence – yesterday, I found 8 of them spread all over the property. Apologies to our wonderful and understanding neighbors. I loved how little Mr Doodles was warming up with the help of a big Delaware girl.

After taking care of our outdoor family, I could finally take care of the indoor members. We enjoyed a delicious and filling Spanish omelette. The recipe can be found over on the farm blog.

Further keeping me warm was the arrival of the order I placed with Violarium. Gosh, I was sad to hear that this wonderful ONS is going out of business. I stocked up on lots of specialty linens – gorgeous banding and two linen towels – as well as two patterns. I’ve had my eye on the bunny one for some time now, and the other just called out Arden’s name when I saw it.

And now, I think I may go curl up between some flannel sheets! Brrr! Stay warm, and thanks for visiting!

my new toy

The mailman made me very happy today by bringing lots of goodies that must’ve been building up in the postal system for awhile.  There were some Fine Lines magazines/reprints with gorgeous projects, a cut of BOAF Sparrow linen, and … this! It’s a Grip It and they aren’t made anymore, which is a mystery to me because it’s fabulous.

And that’s my newest project – a little something I’m putting together for one of the giveaways.

It was a bit of a challenge to get everyone going and get everything done on time today, but I think we pulled it off. Arden was his sweet & silly self:

And I even managed to pull together a pretty decent dinner.

day twenty – new beginnings

How this can be Arden’s fourth birthday is beyond me. The upcoming New Year’s Eve will be the tenth that Niek and I have celebrated under the same roof. Years, and even decades seem to fly by in the wink of an eye. It’s astonishing. Scary, too. But isn’t it an amazing reminder to treat each day as if it were the only one?  I know – that’s just not realistic with all the pressures we’re all under; and if it’s not a critical one-off event, the mundane stuff mires us down. But seizing something from each day and setting it apart will make a difference in keeping  each day unique – maybe it’s the crystal clarity of the moon at night, or a smile from a person you didn’t expect. Whatever it is, hold it fast and try to give these special moments to others, too.

We have a tradition that the birthday kid gets to choose dinner on the Big Day. I thought Arden would choose pizza but instead he asked for popcorn and cocoa. “I don’t know about that,” I said, trying to let him down gently. He took my hand and looked up at me and said, “It’ll be okay, Mom.” I nearly fell over laughing. After a slow stroll together through the supermarket, we came home with a heavenly kids’ feast that included pizza, meatballs, and crackers with “stuff” on top. And of course there was homemade chocolate fudge cake with “every colored sprinkles” at his request. Everything was washed down with cocoa – with extra marshmallows, of course. I think we’ll be eating raw greens and lean meat for the rest of week to make up for this indulgence!

During Arden’s few hours in school, I pulled out Primitive Bird for the neighbor’s intended Christmas gift and put in a little work on that. Tuesdays are usually busy with errands, so I didn’t get as much done as I’d have liked. So instead, I’m sneaking in a picture of a long overdue gift that is making its way (at long last) to its real home in Holland. This is one of The Sampler Girl’s designs, though I went with my own choice of colors. It’s filled with the most heavenly scented mixture of dried flowers that I’ve ever encountered, and shown on the fabric used for the backing. I hope my special friend will love it and not mind that it really should’ve been in her house more than half a year ago.

day thirteen – simple joy

Today I took a walk in the woods to help a friend find a Christmas tree for his sister. The moss was deep and springy, as if it had never been walked on. Fallen trees lay peacefully rotting while saplings grew randomly wherever they found light and nutrients. It was so quiet – my flailing around on the uneven ground was like a sneezing fit during a prayer in church. The air smelled so incredibly clean and crisp. The sunlight seemed to have a  substance, a weight, of its own.

I tried to keep that simple, natural joy with me for the rest of the day. When I began dinner – tonight was a SOLE (sustainable, organic, local, ethical) food night- I wanted the pureness of the food to really shine through. I loved the fact that whatever we didn’t use, the chickens and goats would turn into a new food source through the eggs or milk or meat they provide for us. I felt like a small but happy part in the Greater Scheme of Things. That’s a really nice feeling, in my humble opinion.

My thing of beauty today is the star inside one of our apples. I hope you find it as beautiful as I do.

day six – reality check

I woke up, late, from a dream that I was visiting a friend who committed suicide several months ago. I felt weird and unsettled … and rushed. I couldn’t get my clothes on right-side-out and had to turn on the light, which made me feel irritable. I got downstairs and realized I didn’t have time to do my barnyard chores and get breakfast made and get lunches packed so I felt more rushed and irritable. Nicky tried to help, but kept getting in the way and I was having a hard time not letting my irritation show. I doubt I was successful in that. Eventually we were all at the table and had a few minutes of strained togetherness before I got up to do the undone chores, the kids got busy with tooth-brushing and backpack-packing, and Niek walked the dogs. It was raining and I had more chores than usual because it was time to haul down new grain bags. The inside of the barn was as muddy as the ground outside. Even hanging out with the animals didn’t curb my foul mood. When I came back in the house, Arden was being sweet and funny and Niek had made hot coffee and I tried to let go of the negativity that had been building up inside me. Then Arden and I walked to school, and we bumped into two friends who were also walking a little boy to school so we all walked and laughed and talked together. At Arden’s school, I came across another friend and we made a date to get together next week. The simple joy of talking to friends … that was something I missed so desperately in Holland, where although I had friends, they lived in other parts of the country. It was rare to just bump into someone and have a conversation, make a date, shoot the breeze, etc. I thought about that while walking back from Arden’s school. I found a few late-season apples that had fallen off my neighbor’s tree and landed close enough to the road that it didn’t feel like stealing to pick them up and bring them home for the animals, who were very grateful for the treat. I found a warm brown egg under one of the hens. Emily gave me ‘breathing therapy’ – insisting on being nose-to-nose for much longer than usual today. When I came inside to check my email, I stumbled across this blog post and it said everything that I want – that I want to say and do and leave behind when my days are over – that I have to share it with you.

***

Tuesday is market day – I take in the eggs the girls have gifted us with, and pick up a variety of locally-grown goodness. It’s always exciting to see what’s in the offering, and meal-planning becomes especially interesting for a couple of days while I experiment with things new to me or simply enjoy old favorites. This week will include a bit of both because I came home with a gigantic blue hubbard squash (we all love it) and a small array of fermented foods that includes kimchi and ruby kraut. Niek and I are very partial to sauerkraut so I’m sure we’ll like these more adventurous additions. If the kids also like it, I’ll invest in the supplies necessary to begin fermenting foods here at home. I’m amazed at the nutritional benefits and it’s yet another way to stretch summer’s goodness through the year.  I also came home laden with milk, cream and butter produced in Lubec and Edmunds, both just a piece up the road as my grandparents might say. I’m amazed by the diversity available in our diets once we look outside the box a little bit. Eating locally in the winter months is getting a whole lot more interesting! And brings me to today’s ‘thing of beauty’. Am I the only one who thinks that fresh peeled beets are utterly amazing? I could look at them for hours, I think. It’s like psychedelia without the substances. But they are very hard to photograph, especially when your family is looking at you like you’ve finally lost it.

***

After my marketing, I found that Niek had forgotten to empty the mailbox and our envelopes were well on their way to disintegrating. He’s forgiven though – he took me out for lunch today, simply to brighten an otherwise dull, rainy day. After I helped the cards out of their soggy jackets, I found a wonderful card and gift from Ruth that I want to thank her for right away. I love the snowy bird (it reminds me of my Charley Harper charts!) and the GAST colors of Geranium and Piney Woods are absolutely perfect.

***

There has even been a bit of stitching today! I’ve started The Goode Huswife’s Primitive Bird for my neighbors, who are held hostage to the sometimes very noisy chatter of my ducks, geese, Guineas and chickens (particularly the roosters!). I thought the verse might hit home: “Don’t the little birds set their tongues in motion as soon as the day has dawned. They never stop their thanks.”  It’s an early start, but at least it is stitching.

And thank you so much for your kind words about yesterday’s exciting accomplishments. I don’t think I’ll top that for awhile, but I hope you’ll keep visiting me as I count down these days till Christmas in a mindful manner.

catch it while you can

The days are going by far too fast, which is why when an opportunity to spend time in a cool place with a good friend arises, you simply must seize it. Yesterday, Patti and I met up at the Belfast Co-op for a relaxed day of stitching, chatting, people-watching, being people-watched, and tasty treats. The Co-op is one of those incredibly laid-back places that just seems to bring out the best in everyone there. I even managed to collect a new joke for Arden (who is all into humor these days) from a little boy there with his family: Why don’t you ever see giraffes in first grade? Because they’re all in high school! Oh yeah, that one scored me serious points for coolness when I got home!

The Co-op has great bagels, fabulous coffee, and my newest favorite – seaweed salad. Mmm mmm. The artwork this month was bright and cheery, but the piece behind me, entitled Afterlife, was a serious hazard to my health. I have a lump on the back of my head from hitting it every time I got up or sat down, LOL.

As always, people were drawn to our stitching and felt friendly enough to just come on over and talk to us about it. Patti’s Christmas at Hawk Run Hollow was especially enticing.

I was working on the 2009 Prairie Schooler Santa, and made some decent progress with it.

As always, I came home with a 50 pound bag of “my” King Arthur Special Bread flour. The co-op is the only place I’ve found that sells it in 50 pound bags – I tear through those measly 5 pound bags in a couple of days. Here’s what I whipped up with some of it today. Talk about mmmm mmmm!

I’d hoped to just bake and relax today, but of course that didn’t quite happen. The kitties tried to show me how to do it, but I just don’t follow direction very well.

Thanks for coming by for a visit. I hope your weekend included some “me-time” that made you happy. And for those who celebrate Thanksgiving, I hope you aren’t stressing out about the details. Remember, it’s all about being together – not about being together perfectly. ♥

a little holiday finish

The ornament issue of TGOS was very hit-or-miss for my tastes, but I loved the simplicity of Giulia Manfredini’s Christmas Heart. I hope she doesn’t mind that I pared it down quite a lot (to fit the little scrap of linen I wanted to use, but also because I simply cannot get a heart finish that looks presentable) and changed the color scheme. I used Carrie’s Colors for the floss: Antique Gold, Koala Claw, Olde Salem Red, and Olives. The linen is a mystery scrap that had just the right sort of gently distressed coloration.

I’ve been branching out into new areas with my baking, using Reinhart’s book The Bread Baker’s Apprentice. I baked the bread shown on the book cover (if you follow the link). Mine turned out a little lighter, and I used cornmeal in the breadform to ensure it didn’t stick. It’s a pretty amazing bread, but it takes a whopping three days to make so I don’t think it will become a family standard. I also made some potato, cheddar and chive torpedoes (also from this book) but they were gone too fast for me to photograph. That happened to last night’s cornbread, too. I need to be quicker with the camera.

We’re enjoying (if that’s the word for it) some warm, wet weather. The barnyard has reached maximum muckiness, I think, but everyone remains in good health. The baby goats are growing – literally – by leaps and bounds.

And the goat herd in general seems to be settling into the new numbers very well.

The jury is still out on Emily’s possible pregnancy. Compared to her usual skin-and-bones look, she’s very rotund.

The chickens don’t care too much for the rain (not that it keeps them inside) so when the sun comes out, they all run to gather under its rays. They look so pretty all together.

They certainly provide us with the most beautiful eggs!

Thank you so much for visiting! I hope you’re enjoying a day full of sunshine and beauty!

wet and windy

After a few days of delightfully warm and dry weather, the wind and rain have returned. When we had that freak snowstorm a week or so ago, I started doodling and came up with Snow Pig. It’s not much, but every time  Arden and I look at it  we completely crack up. I’ll finish it as a little ornament.

I’m hoping the return to chillier temps won’t include a repeat of those frigid temperatures we had a few days ago – it appears that Emily, the other adult female goat I bought this summer, is also pregnant. Since the previous owner obviously wasn’t paying any attention to the contact between her buck and does, there’s no way to know when she might deliver … and obviously, we’ll need mild weather for them to stay in the barn. (Despite how adorable baby goats are, we’re honestly hoping she’s just getting fat!) We do have a new ‘goat house’ coming later this month, thanks to a remarkable program run by the industrial arts teacher at the local high school. My friend and carpenter really let me down by continually postponing when he’d start the extra outbuilding … and then simply not doing it at all. I’ll post plenty of pictures when it arrives. Until that arrives, or we have more babies (gulp!), here’s sweet Emily begging for some snuffles – she just loves to get nose-to-nose and snuffle me, LOL!

With this better-stay-indoors weather, baking has resurfaced. I didn’t have time while my brother was visiting and I think everyone was glad I spent the day in the kitchen today. In addition to a couple of loaves of multi-grain sandwich bread, I made some amazing sourdough baguettes (recipe here). Mmmmmmmm. I could never follow a carb-free diet!!

Although I haven’t done much stitching, I have engaged in a bit of stash enhancement. I snapped these three patterns up from JJ’s Collectibles and bid on some really exciting Birds of a Feather and Mary Garry auctions by other eBay sellers, but the prices were too rich for my blood. Luckily, JJ’s was having a sale.

Hopefully the next time I post, I’ll have more stitching pictures. I’ve been reading a lot lately – I just discovered Sheri S Tepper and had to devour several of her novels back-to-back, and then I picked up Stephen King’s latest short story collection Full Dark, No Stars and tear through that. I am so glad he’s writing shorts again! The man is an amazing storyteller – and unstintingly generous as well.

That’s all for now.  Thank you for spending some time with me here. I hope the wind isn’t howling wherever you are – and if it is, I hope you have something tasty to ward off the chill.