Anters in the house?

I will be the first to admit that I would never before, be one to allow antlers to be displayed in my house. That was until now!  My dad had these laying around in the garage for years (he is now 86).  I know that he has not been out hunting for about 15 years or so, so they've been collecting dust for some time!  

I positioned the antlers so that they would hold the bowl that I picked up at Goodwill pretty securely, marked the antlers and then glued them using some clear contact cement.  My daughter had the fabulous idea of painting them white. I have to say I would not have thought about that, but after painting them, I agreed they looked even more beautiful.  That is why she is the designer and I am not!  http://urbanidnw.com/

I love floating flowers or even candles in it and in the winter time, pine cones or greenery. I will now be on the look out for more antlers!!!

Look out "44 North" ...Welcome "44 Blue Northwest"

Look out "44 North"... Here comes "44 Blue Northwest"

The Raspberry infused vodka was so delicious, we decided to try some freshly picked blueberry infused vodka to see how it compares to the "44 North" (Huckleberry flavored vodka) out of Boise, Idaho.  We will give it 30 days on the counter to soak up all of that fresh blueberry goodness, shaking it every day to get all of "berry goodness" out and into the liquid.  Then we will strain the liquid, and mix it with the boiled sugar water (same recipe as the raspberry infused vodka in this blog) and place it in a dark cool place for 6 months.  (Lets see how patient we can be!!!)

P.S. the blueberries that have been soaking don't need to go directly into the trash can :)  Lets try them on fresh ice cream or in a lemon sorbet!

Great idea for wine bottle storage!

While at the Rusty Grape Vineyard, located in the scenic hills of Clark County Washington just east above Battle Ground, Washington, I snapped this photo of their great little wine bottle crate collection.  It looked like they made them out of old barn or pallet wood.  This vineyard is a nice place to go out in the country to enjoy a casual atmosphere and incredibly great fine artisan wine.    http://www.rustygrape.com/

We sat on the back patio and listened to live music by Wade Hendrix, singer-guitar player....fabulous night!  They also have outdoor movies during the week, just bring your lawn chair and a basket of food. 

Spring has Sprung! Time to Plant?

Weather is warming, plants are over growing their containers and the garden beds are ready!
Time to Plant!  J and I have been steadily busy working the beds, transplanting the seedlings into bigger pots,spreading some great compost and pounding in the stakes for the beans. 

Looks like we could be ready to plant.  Or............should we wait?
Never can be too sure about the frost in this area!  We will see what tomorrow brings. Last week we planted the bean seeds, lettuce, chard, beets, spinach, and carrots,  checked on the raspberry vines we transplanted and put the 3 varieties of seed potatoes into their above ground beds.

We are anticipating an awesome harvest!!!!

We are in need of some volunteers to help weed, and then harvest the veggies.  If you or someone you know want to help out....please give me a call.  We will put you to work!

Seeds have arrived from Seed Savers Exchange!

Today was an exciting day! 

Most of the seeds we had ordered from Seed Savers Exchange had arrived.  In anticipation, we had our seed flats ready to go for planting.  All of the tomatoes, eggplant, squash and melons have been planted in seedling trays down in the laundry room to get a good warm start.  All of the other seeds will have to wait until the ground is ready to plant outside. 

Our potato starts are due the first part of March.

We are excited about the variety of the vegetables this year and the fact that we are starting our tomatoes from seed.  Normally we have purchased starts so this is an exciting adventure.  We are hoping to plant enough starts to give our friends a few.

Along with the vegetables pictured above, we are also planting the following for harvest.

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  Spinach
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  Romaine Lettuce
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  Red Leaf Lettuce
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  Dragon Carrots
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  Chioggia Beets
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  Basil
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  Dill
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  Delicata Squash
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  Zucchini

We have transplanted raspberries into the giving garden as well, hoping for an abundant harvest. We will be companion planting, so along with the above vegetables, we will have plenty of flowers and herbs mixed in among the rows to keep the pests down.  This will also enable us to grab a bunch of flowers to hand to the Food Pantry Staff when we bring in the over flowing food baskets at harvest time :)

Seeds of Change Giving Garden in first part of transformation!

Gardening is a matter of your enthusiasm holding up until your back gets used to it. ~Author Unknown

Linda and I cleaned out two of the raised beds in January. 

We found a dry day and took advantage of it!  We dug out overgrown

lavendar plants and turned the ground under.

Today, J and I removed the remainder of the old lavendar plants and

worked the remaining beds to get them ready for some "Black Gold"!

...Just like fine wine....aged manure is well worth the wait!

Here is a list of some of the Heirloom Veggies we are planning on growing this year.  Every day I check the mail for my seeds to arrive from Seed Savers Exchange.  They are a non-profit organization of gardeners dedicated to saving and sharing heirloom seeds.The selection of seeds that they have is amazing and through their site you can access forums and blogs about seeds and gardening. (Check them out via the link above)

Only a few more months before Spring and can hardly wait :)

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  Ideal Market Pole Beans
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  Chioggia Beet
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  Dragon Carrot
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  Scarlet Nantes Carrot
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  Paris Market Carrot
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  Udumalapet Eggplant
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  Charantais Melon (Wishing for a really hot summer!)
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  Nyagous Tomato
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  Five Color Silver Beet Chard
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  Galeux d'Eysines Squash
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  Muscade de Provence Squash
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  Cincinnati Market Radish
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  French Breakfast Radish
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  Plum Purple Radish
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  Federle Tomato
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  Speckled Roman Tomato
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  Isis Candy Cherry Tomato (these sounded delicious!)
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  Blondkopfchen Tomato
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  Black Krim Tomato
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  Amish OG Melon
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  All Blue Potato
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  Desiree Potato (pink)
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  La Ratte Fingerling Potato

Stay tuned for more pics!  Were are going to work on our "home grown" tomato cages next!

eggsactly! ....That's What I'm Talkin' Bout! FRESH BROWN EGGS!

Beautiful!  It is like Easter EVERY day!

I never know which box they are

going to lay in!  I learned my lesson by

reaching in and feeling for the eggs!

Found it best to pull the boxes all the

way out to check for eggs!

Found out they DO poop in thier nesting boxes!

We have been getting 2 eggs every

day from our 2 hens.

She's checking us out!

The chickens have arrived!

Sadie the Guard Dog!

The fabrication of our "Chicken Cabinet"

Saturday Morning my husband and I were to meet at the "Rebuilders Center" in Portland in hopes of finding some lumber or something "already fabricated" that we could alter to make our Chicken House/Nesting Boxes. http://www.rebuildingcenter.org/  Before I could even get a chance to park my truck, J was waiting near the front entrance with a big grin on his face...he had already found something that would work! 

A $25.00 vintage kitchen cupboard was about to become a home and nesting place for a few good hens.  With a little trimming here and there, a few hinges, some legs, and a new top, the cupboard began it's transformation.  This will fit nicely into the fenced off portion of the backyard which is partially covered.  We brought it home and went right to work on it.  Getting the 4 x 4 posts bolted on for the legs was first on the list.  (check out the groovey shelf paper...it was removed!)

J made sure that they were very stout!

We screwed on some wheels so that the "Chicken Cabinet" could be moved for easy cleaning.

Next we added a hinged top for easy access to clean, along with the access from the front doors. The hinged top will also act as ventilation in the summer as it can be popped up. We then cut a portion of the middle shelf out so that the hens could access the "top nesting bunk", chicken bunk beds!

It seemed logical to have the access door on the end where there was already an opening.  We closed it up except for a hole large enough for them to get in and out via a ramp.

Starting to look real cozy!

Hmmmm!  Bunkbeds!  Brings back old memories :)  Three of my sisters and I all slept in one bedroom for the longest time on two sets of bunkbeds. Those that got the bottom would always push up through the top mattress with their feet to irritate the top dwellers.  Great times!

These old dresser drawers were heading to the dump, so we R & R'd them!

Next on the agenda is a little outdoor paint and a "roosting" bar. Stay tuned, more pictures to come!