I need a holiday from my holiday weekend.....

So its been 5 days since my last confession...ahem...I mean blog...
the days are all kinda jumbled together at this point, but I can tell you this...things got checked off the honey do list.
See I have these lists...usually the one for me is outrageously long...some with definition of my intention with the task, sometimes just the task itself.  This list typically consists of things I can do without a man.
Now don't get me wrong. I am sure I could do all these things, had I been trained properly from the beginning...but being a girl, and brought up in a time that girls are still doing girly things...I didn't take shop or automotive class, or touch the power tools to much when I was younger.  I have a healthy fear of power tools, so I tend now not to use them much...minus the power drill, I love that thing....if only I could screw everything together without every having to cut anything I would be set...NO man needed...well except for lifting heavy shit....but then of course I could get a bunch of girls over here and we could get that done to.
Total rant...and Take note...teach your girls how to do man stuff.....like change oil, tires, and use power tools safely...
Anyhoooooo....My dad came for the weekend to help me with my new chicken coop, we moved the girls into the barn in preparation for the winter months around here, and because my coop is to small for the amount of birds that I want.  We laughed a lot and worked our butts off, but now the girls have a groovy indoor coop...Now if they can just figure out to lay their eggs in the nesting box, we will be golden.
We drank and ate, and ate and drank and just generally had a great weekend.
The hubby and I worked on the yard on sunday afternoon in the beautiful sunshine.  We burned some brush and moved some fencing, this place is starting to come around.  Its such a beautiful spot.
Spring cleaning was next on the list for me yesterday, I moved some furniture around and dusted, swept and washed floors in 4 of the 5 bedrooms..OH didn't I mention this place is a monstrosity....
We are now 2 days away from the Irish Invasion and I am so excited I can barely stand myself...I am going to have a wicked go gal pal to adventure with and I just can't wait....You will be sure to have lots of picks and adventure stories to check out this summer to be sure....
So there you are a quick recap of the last few days...its been real...its been fun....its been real damn fun...
Have a great day peeps and see ya soon...
the friendly female farmer...

Monday and Tuesday......

SWEET....2804 Views of this crazy little blog...I am overwhelmed with excitement and gratitude for everyone who takes a moment to check it all out...

Soooooooo...what have we been doing here at the farm...MOWING...mowing and more mowing...did I mention that I have been mowing...My brain is all rattly from running that bush hog/lawn mowery type piece of equipment that we use to keep the bamboo from over coming the property...

I have this problem, with not being able to stop once I start.  I want our farm to be pretty, to be beautiful to look at, and enjoy while you are here.  Everything just looks nicer mowed, thats all there is to it...and Yes I have palpitations when I mow over the little violets and violas, I mowed down some jack in the pulpits before I figured out there was a whole patch, that I now need to dig up and move to a better, non mowing location...but because I am mowing, I am able to find these things, that can be saved and moved to a location they will be loved and cared for....

See this is what happens when old farms are not cared for and loved...do you know how many people have stopped and said, "oh did you know there used to be such and such plant here, or this used to grow on this property"....sadly, lots of plants are now gone, and some so lacking in care, such as the fruit trees, all need to come down and replaced because they were not cared for.

It takes someone special to take on a place that was once a farm.  Not only do you find treasures below the deep grasses, but you find junk as well...So we will concentrate on the good things we find, and toss the junk into the dump pile...continue to mow...and bring this place back to life...

Thanks for check me out...all the best to you on this foggy day...I'm off to dig fence posts...

Sunday and Monday...oh what fun days....

So I have to come to the realization that I need a proofing oven.  Now don't get me wrong, I love the fact that I can stoke up the wood stove and rise a little bread or the infamous cinnamon rolls...however, not only humans are clamoring to get a taste of the cinnamony goodness....The chihuahua thinks they are pretty damned good to...in fact so good, that he couldn't wait till they were finished, I literally had walked away to get a damp cloth to cover them, when I came back I caught the guilty bugger red mouthed....His sad little face said damn it all, I should have inhaled this like I do all my other food...

Oh well, the trials of a farm girl with no commercial kitchen.....Anyhoo, the batch on cinnamon rolls turned out heavenly....minus 1

Sunday was spent riding back and forth to NH for a birthday gathering for my step daughters, boyfriends birthday...good food and drink was consumed by all, and laughs were most definitely had.  Not much got done on the farm on Sunday...but hell sometimes you just need to break away from the place and enjoy your family and friends...

Early to bed...means early to rise and today didn't start out all that bad.  Have been puttering in the yard, picking up brush piles and moving them closer to the fire pit...mowed a bit of the lawn out back before the rain got heavy..I have a mowing fetish, once I start, I have a hard time stopping...more often then not, mowing till it runs out of gas...I just love the look of freshly mowed grass...then I took a much needed nap...but I'm still tired from the weather being dreary....Now its a waiting game for the chicken cluck clucks to go to bed, so I can close up their cage for the evening.

Food today has been simple, fresh sausage pattie for breakfast, and a delish lunch of couscous and veggies with a whole avocado on the side...yummy yummy...
I need to find a thermostat  for the fridge though, its freezing my outragously expensive organic veggies...can't be having that now can we....

Oh and tick count is 2 so far this year...One was eating me, the other was just taking a stroll...I burnt him in the ash tray.....

Thanks Ya'll for checking out my blog....views are up to 2775, I am more than thrilled to know that people out there well beyond my circle of friends are reading my crazyness...

10 days till the Irish Invasion....Can't wait....

Thanks my peeps...Have a wonderful rainy night...see ya on the flip side..

Day 3/4 rolling along....

Lets just say that the weather this morning is WET....that's the only nice word I can think of right now.   I have been up since 5 getting cinnabuns ready to go with me to a horse clinic that my wonderful farmy and horsey friend Colleen Winslow is putting on for us.  She is most definately right at the top of the list of inspirational horse women.  She is kind enough to take the time to show me and others about the Parelli way...and I am learning and taking in so much on each visit to the camp.  I am thrilled to be going this morning, as we will be discussing horsenality..."horse personality"...Very Interesting stuff...

Yesterday was a day for horses as well....Working with horses on the ground is giving your horse confidence in you...and you confidence in your horse...Its a very good opportunity to be present with your animal...and being aware of your situation and surroundings.  I couldn't help but notice the birds singing....the breeze lifting my hair when I noticed I was getting a little warm...the bugs bothering...every little thing needs a bit of consideration in your day, in my humble opinion.

So you haven't missed much in the life of this crazy farm girl...The wet will call for a fire this afternoon and couch time with the dog, as I read through my Elliot Coleman book, and look at companion planting charts...oh and design a new chicken coop.....I am looking for an old hutch, or cabinet for the laying boxes...a cute idea I saw on Pinterest.

So my faithful followers and friends...Have a wonderful day...and hopefully there will be an update for ya later on this evening....I passed out last night before I got a chance to get on the computer...not to mention service was spotty at best...Kinda like now...

As my niece used to say when she was little....really fast and jumbled all together

.................loveyouseeyalaterbye............

the friendly female farmer....

Day 2 not so tough....Ya right....

As you all know, when you start a to do list, it never seems to get shorter....Imagine my surprise, as I went outside to start one project..mowing the lawn with the giant antique lawn mower that my dad got from my uncle in SC....first 3 or 4 passes were great, then it stalled....and I couldn't get it started again...so on to the next thing...which turned into weeding a whole section of the front of house, finding out the soil beneath is terrific and with a little amenitizing we should be good for veggie/herbs and flowers...possibly even a good sight for a cold frame....which will require a bit of work as well...
I boned the chicken we had for dinner last night...made a killer chicken salad for lunch...and fed my hubby a nice healthy lunch, that he didn't have to buy at the local fast food joint...
I cleaned stalls, and did my regular chores...drove all the way to oxford for the farmers market, only to remember that it opens at 2pm on Thursday...4 hours early is a little to long to wait for the doors to open....
I played with my chickens, they follow me everywhere...so there excitement over freshly turned ground crawling with worms...made me happy in return.  More often than not the animals make me happy, and I find myself smiling and wondering what they are thinking.
I rode Gunner this afternoon, which was terrific..just a short trip out around the fields to see how he felt.  Only a single buck was hiding under the surface when I asked for the canter...nothing threatening or intimidating...just a little bad boy attitude to test me...
Took the time to sit on the deck and reflect on my accomplishments and mentally check off things on my list....Even thought it keeps getting longer...I always feel good crossing stuff off...
Finishing off the day with chicken tortillas, with cilantro, tomato, garlic and green onion...yummy...
and possible a little ice cream...we shall see how long I can stay awake after I post this blog.
So you see...its just a regular old life around here on the farm...some days are not as exciting as others....
But I am sticking to my guns...and continuing on my challenge...I found I was more present in the moment today, as I was thinking about the challenge I set for myself...

Until Next time...

the friendly female farmer...

Its a challenge...to myself....

Day 1
The challenge....its actually a number of things really....
One of the things is to do some kind of art every day...whether it be photograph, or a small drawing, or the start of a big one.  Taking the time to sit and relax and create something thoughtful.
The other thing is to blog everyday.  Hey listen if the Pioneer Woman can do it, why can't I? Hell I ain't feeding all those people on a regular basis, I am just starting out..
You know you might not want to read every single one of my blogs, but you might read one, that gets you to come and visit, or ask for a recipe, or for me to make a meal or dessert for ya..
So tonight, a fresh chicken got roasted, very simply seasoned, but laying on a whole clove of garlic, a few carrots, some onion and leeks....to go with that pan gravy.  Sides are Colcannon and Glazed Carrots...simple and delish...I can't wait the house smells great.
On a sad note we lost one of our little cluck cluck's today...she had to be one of the giant egg layers to be sure...this however is all part of farming...I will have to find a replacement for her...the fresh eggs are unsurpassed by anything bought at the grocery store..
So here is you insight into the farm as we go forward...a little bit everyday....hope you will stay tuned and share...Its been a slow start, but its our intention to keep chugging along...

OH and you don't want to miss out on our adventures with a lovely Irish Lassie by the name of Maria....

Take Care Ya'll

the friendly female farmer....