Throw it...

Throw it, throw it.... c'mon throw it.

Bunnies!

We got these angora rabbits from our friend Eric... They're names are Sammy and Delilah, Sammy's the grey one. They're both really cute and docile and REALLY soft...

I've been letting them get exercise in the chicken run, there's an area that is completely caged even from above so they're safe from hawks. And it's a pretty decent size for them to stretch out and hop around.

The weather has been beautiful these last couple of days, we are finally finished planting the rest of the spring garden. We planted lettuce, spinach, chard, garlic, onions, potatoes, carrots, sugar snap peas, broccoli, bok choi and beets. I'm interested to see how the bok choi does, we've never grown that from seed before. Last fall I bought a couple of plants and they did really well, so I thought I've give it a try.

Springtime!

It seemed like this winter was going to go on forever but this week everything seems to be coming to life again. God, I love this time of year.

Well, we've been here a year today! And we're still together, ha! Our real estate agent kept warning us how difficult this would be and that marriages sometimes don't make it through renovations.

It hasn't been luxury living by any stretch but it also hasn't been terrible, frozen pipes and $500 heating bills and all.  So, there's still a lot to be done and there probably always will be, but I think we're on our way to having the cool old house we always wanted.

Here are some photos I took this morning.

The chickens love to perch on this barrel.

Sugar snap peas sprouting, planted 2/1

This spinach made it through the winter.

Buds on the tree in front of the house.

Angry Bird

We thought our Rhode Island Red was so nice, but after we added the new chickens last summer, she showed her true nature. She's reeeallllly mean! She jumps on the tops of the younger birds and pecks at the back of their heads. They all look like they've lost chunks of feathers here and there from her. I don't think she actually hurts them, but we did see blood in the coop once. We've pretty much just let it be and resolved ourselves to watching the pecking order in action. The other chickens have learned to live with it, too, and for the most part and get out of her way when they can.

We're adding more garden space! I can't wait for Spring, I know the northeast has been hit way worse than NC but man, this has been one rotten winter.

Here are some new pots I've been working on. I've been obsessed with patterns lately.

California, kittens and curtains.

This year we spent Christmas in California with Aaron's family then visited my sister in LA for a couple of days. It was really good to see everyone and get a little relief from the cold. I packed some ridiculously thick socks and sweaters that came back untouched, I don't know what I was thinking. While we were out in the dessert at Aaron's parents' house we went on a really nice hike with Aaron's mom to a real oasis. Right there in the middle of the dessert is this beautiful stand of palm trees and a lake, it was gorgeous.

When we got back I started on my kitten hunt, scouring Craigslist in the hope of finding 2 young female kittens. Since we've lived here we've lost 3 cats, so these two are going to be indoor kitties. I figured if we got two, they could keep each other company... and they do.  Play, play, play.... sleep, sleep, sleep. It's like living with a couple of cartoon characters, they're adorable. Hopefully they'll take care of our mouse situation, too. We named them Miney and Mo.

For Christmas we got a couple of gift cards from Aaron's aunts, Connie and Rainey (thanks!). So we headed over to JC Penney and got an awesome deal on new curtains. They ended up being around 75% off. Yay! So the living room's almost done, just need to put up crown molding and redo the floors. We bought the moldings and then realized that we need a better saw to do the job, so we haven't been able to get that done yet. And the floors will have to wait, they're good enough for now.

Next week we're gonna have a fireplace guy come and look at the chimney for the wood stove and see if it's safe to hook up. We're hoping to cut down on the heating costs a little.

Oh and we got a bird feeder off of Freecycle on the same day we got the kittens. If you haven't heard of freecycle, check it out. People post what they want or are giving away and other people respond, it's pretty cool. No birds yet though, anyone know how long it takes for them to find a new feeder?

Winter Came Early

It snowed here on Saturday.  My guess is that we got about 2 inches.  The trees were flocked and every surface was coated with the white stuff but the roads are free and clear.  I think the asphalt must have been just a little too warm when it started around 1 PM Saturday afternoon so it did not shut everything down.  So anyway, it is beautiful here.

When we moved into this house we knew that the house needed insulation.  For some reason no one every thought to insulate this house in over a hundred years.  Maybe they ran into the same fiduciary restrains we have been running into of late.  I digress.  Evelyn had her last pottery sale of the year on Saturday morning so I drove here down there and then over to The Big Box Hardware Store to buy enough bats of insulation for the job.

The job started really easy and it looked great.  Over course, I wore a paper mask while I worked but I was not into the second package when I notice it was getting hard to breath.  Finally, I figured out that I had been sweating and the mask was soaked through, essentially suffocating me every time I inhaled.  So I swapped out the water logged mask for Evelyn’s respirator and got back at it.

By the time I finished I was bushed.  My knees hurt from crawling around the attic, and my hands, the same hands that gave me such fits earlier in the year were sore and achy.  Serves me right.  But the job was done and now the house warms up as quick as you can expect a heat pump to warm it up.  And its a good thing too because come Monday we had problems.

But on Sunday, we had a ball.  Evelyn, Gertrude, and I took a walk in the woods in morning.  We bundled up, put plastic bag on our feet (under our boots) and headed out into the snow.  I thought I had seen a stream running through the woods behind our house on the Google Earth photos of the properties around here and I wanted to explore the woods when I knew nobody would be out there with a fire arm.  We did find a big creek back there and Gertie jump right in a little part that was about chest deep.  It must have been freezing.  What a silly dog.  But that’s our McGurk.

When we got back we fixed some eggs, bacon, and potatoes.  Then settled in on the couch to watch the Godfather and maybe take a nap.  I learned that you can not take a nap during the Godfather.

So, the high on Monday was 28 degrees.  Yes, 28 degrees.  IN NORTH CAROLINA!  Or at least that is what Evelyn claims.  But It was chilly.  So then we go to bed.  The next morning I went into the kitchen to make the coffee and what do I find?  The pipes froze over night.  Ugh.  Maybe I will put this in the book I might write one day, “So, You Think You Want To Live In The Country?”  Anyway, I put a space heater under the house and one in the well house before I left for school today and Evelyn said the water started running again around 10 AM.  When I got out of school I ran by The Other Big Box Hardware Store and picked up some rubber wraps for the pipes.  When I got home, I crawled under the house to wrap ‘em up.

Speaking of wrapping it up.  I’m outta here.

A First for Us

A couple of weeks ago, our friends asked if we'd like to come over and help slaughter their chickens. We'd talked about this a lot and wanted to see the process in person so Aaron went over to help and learn.  I didn't expect it but he came home with a freshly killed chicken in a freezer bag. Thanks Eli and Carolyn!

I wanted to make a special meal from this chicken, so I simmered the whole bird for about 4-5 hours with some pot veggies. When the bird was tender I took about half of the meat and made a chicken pot pie. We ate it last night and it was delicious, great for a chilly night. I'm going to make soup from the remaining meat and broth. 

Here's a photo:

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 3 cups cooked chicken, chopped

• 1 cups chicken broth

• 1 purchased or homemade pie crust

• 1/4 cup butter

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• 1 large sliced celery stalk

• 3 carrots

• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour

• 1 cup half-and-half

• 1/2 cup frozen peas

• 1 egg, beaten

Preparation: In a large saucepan, melt butter. Add onion, celery and carrots. Cook for about 3 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. Stir in flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt (less if using salty broth) and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add the broth and milk; cook and stir until thickened and bubbling. Stir in chicken and peas; pour into a round casserole dish. Brush the edges of the casserole with beaten egg to help the pie crust adhere. Place pie crust over the mixture; cut to fit and crimp edges all around. Cut steam vents in top. If desired, re-roll and cut excess pastry into strips or decorative shapes and lay over the crust. Brush chicken pot pie with remaining beaten egg. Bake at 400° for 30 to 40 minutes, or until crust is browned.

The Last of the Fall Garden

This week I went out and gathered up what I could from what remains in the garden. We're supposed to get several nights in the 20's. There are still some carrots, beets and onions in the ground but they should do okay with the weather. We were surprised how big the carrots got so fast, I think it's because I planted them where the potatoes were so there was a lot of loose dirt for them to grow in. Here's a photo:

This week I'm catching up around the house. I've been so busy with getting ready for my Fall shows, everything else has taken a back seat. Yesterday I cleaned out the attic so that Aaron can put insulation up there this weekend. There's absolutely no insulation in this house and we feel like we've been wasting a bunch of money in heat that's going right through the ceiling.