top o' the morning

 I took my camera for a walk around the house this morning. Here are some of the sights and sounds edited with my newly discovered picmonkey.

 It's a full house (and driveway) these days.

 Front porch greetings!

 Our temporary outdoor theater.

 A quick stop by the garden to see how things are growing.

Morning greetings from the roosters. 

 A handful of scratch for the girls.

A wagon with a collections of treasures collected by two little girls.

 And one happy nose ready for a hoppy day.

inspired

by this.... http://www.boredpanda.com/animal-children-photography-elena-shumilova/ I put fresh batteries in my camera and stepped on the backdoor determined to capture something worthy of posting.

The rosemary outside my dining room is in full bloom. It's delicate flowers invite a happy buzz.

for farmer fred

Dear Farmer Fred,

I thought of you this weekend as we worked on a project in the wash.
I harvested stones as the dirt was being moved around and built this rock wall (almost) all by myself.

With much love and sore muscles,
Your Rocking Auntie

a window a day...

After discovering an alternative to painting the whole house back in January I finally started in earnest my task of painting the trim on the house. I have a goal of painting one window per day which works well will having Jay move the extension ladder for me. I'm pleased with how much better the painted parts look but a little intimidated by the height of the roof trim.

dancing bubbles

Friday I had two friends over to make laundry soap and practice a dance for a concert on Sunday.

c is for clean: book report #3

After my homemade laundry soap experience I ordered a book (don't remember where I saw it recommended) the Naturally Clean Home, 150 Super-Easy Herbal Formulas for Green Cleaning by Karyn Siegel-Maier. I've been making my way through the chapters organized by areas in the home: Bath, Kitchen etc. The first chapter, Why Clean with Herbs?, included a starter kit list for the recipes in the book. I ordered some liquid Castile Soap and several essential oils that I was missing and continued to read while waiting for my products to arrive. When the order arrived in the mail box I organized my herbal cleaning kit and made my first concoction; Tough Dirt & Grease Formula kitchen floor cleaner. Typically I use a splash of white vinegar in a bucket of warm water to clean my kitchen tile. This recipe used the hot water and vinegar along with castle soap, washing soda and essential oil (I used peppermint). I enjoyed washing the floor knowing I had the scrubbing value of the washing soda as well as the healing properties of the peppermint. I even got rid of some skid marks that have been hanging around. Now I'm excited to try more healthy cleaning formulas.

sudsy

Under the inspiration of Lauren Mae I attempted my first laundry soap making. I was surprised with how easily everything mixed up and delighted at how many bottles I filled with the fresh lemony goop.

just a swingin'

Over the long weekend Jay put the seating on my swing.
Now to sand and finish and cushion.
Can't wait to sit and read a book on the finished product while admiring this amazing view.

roasted rooster (includes gross factor)

We put it off as long as possible, neither of us savoring the task, but life with two roosters in one coop had reached a point of no return. So, this past weekend, the number one task on the to-do list: butcher Rooster Senior.


On our cross country trek this past summer we spent a night at our friend's, Kathy and Dave Miller, in Nebraska. Knowing we were new to chickening, Dave offered to butcher one of their chickens and give Jay some pointers. With Dave's lesson and some help from Youtube, Jay boldly, or perhaps more accurately, reluctantly, set out to butcher his first fowl.

Lily, having endured multiple unprovoked attacks by Roster Senior,
seemed to enjoy the process of roster slaying.

Our goal, along with a more peaceful coop, was to learn "how to" so that we have that homesteading experience. Being the first time, it was a rather long process and eventually Jay had me fetch a stool (I was the gopher) so he could sit and skin.

Lily, keeps a close eye as the process moves from tree to table.

I did the majority of the photographs in black and white thinking it would diminish the gross factor, but couldn't resist this color shot of the skinned bird as there were surprisingly interesting colors exposed.

Youtube is so handy for "how to" videos including how to butcher a chicken.

While the sun was setting Jay took photos and I broiled the breast meat for a very lovely looking roasted rooster dinner. Unfortunately the meal looked much more appetizing than it tasted and we learned yet one more lesson on butchering that day.

night chipht

Photo credit: Jay (from on top of the house roof)

The sun went down ending the sabbath and we headed back down in the wash to shred away another pile of brush. Jay set up a couple of flood lights so that we could see. The spotlight on the machine made an interesting photo.