Christmas Time Is Here

Opening Weekend 2009...The wind almost kept everyone away on Saturday, but the true diehards did not disappoint.

Barbara got her glue gun on and cranked out 24 gorgeous balsam wreaths. Amy decided that the night before was the perfect time to change the entire shop around. But it all turned out beautifully in the end.

The chickens have been a big attraction for visiting kids. Maybe we can sneak a rooster or two into someone's car when they're not looking.

Farmgirl Fare

Farmgirl Fare

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Egggggsellent...

We have eggs! In some weird way we are looking at the hens with new awe...sort of like proud parents watching 12 girls move into puberty.

When the girls hit 16 weeks of age, I had to stop myself from running out to the coop every half hour to see if anything had happened. Then not long ago, week 19 to be exact, I went out to feed them and then walked slowly to the back window thinking "I'll just check this once..."

The site of the four (yes...4!) perfect blobs in the straw was enough to make me speechless. No small feat. Then I started screaming like a fool and made everyone come out to see.


Of course then the photo shoot ensued. Aren't they beautiful?

Ladies, can you imagine doing this every 30 hours or so? I didn't think so. Hence the mention of chicken awe.

So with a few more weeks of practice, all 12 should be contributing and Windcrest Eggs will hit the market. Coming soon to a store near you....

(cue Sinatra...) Summer Winds....

xoxo happy day WMM xoxo

The world is all abuzz about the start of school and life is a whirlwind of rushing around to get things done. I remember not long ago I would look out at the sand and wish the tourists would go away and that summer would dwindle down to fall, and peace and quiet, at last.

Once again, what a difference a year makes. Or should I say, a farm?

The chores alone have us realizing that there can't be enough summer - how else would we fit everything in? But even more than that, we get to enjoy a summer vacation through the eyes of a 5 and 6 year old. I am so sad to see it end.

The recent highlight was coming home from errands one day to be greeted by Foley, carrying the most beautiful painted turtle I have ever seen. Wandering aimlessly down route 108 (the turtle, not Foley) he was simply going about his day when he was greeted by my kids and their friend from next door - Miss Tessa (a.k.a. the best behaved child in the world and the only one who listens to me, but that's another blog). They scooped him up and brought him home until, as McDonagh put it "His family marches by for him."

My first instinct was to keep him and make him mine! So many stray kittens were turned away at my childhood door step that I grew up determined to let my kids keep any creature they found. My only exception to this has been snakes, a decision that has been solidifed by the discovery of a shriveled up snake tail under Foley's bed. But I digress....

We got some lettuce for the turtle and set about finding a spot for him to call home. We debated about names. I have lost every naming battle so far in this family; my old standby - Atticus Finch (duh) - has been rejected soundly every time. That's o.k.; no one can ever stop me from occasionally calling the cat Atticus. Foley was insistent on Oscillot, or Ossie for short. Not bad, I admit. I gave him that one immediately and Ossie he became. Somewhere between finding him lettuce and setting him free in our pond, he became Churchwig - again not a bad choice and apparently it is a Pokemon reference that I obviously know nothing about.

But yes, it quickly became apparent that our little tank would not hold him...He was just too much turtle for us. We enjoyed him for a few hours, during which time he played on the front porch swing with the kids, went on several walks around the yard and may have even taken a ride in the tree swing. He is a well traveled turtle. We assembled solemly and walked to the pond. Foley did the brave deed and gently placed him in a "good spot." We spontaneously clapped as Churchwig Oscillot Finch (ahem) glided out to open water, occasionally glancing back at the crazy bunch of humans yelling from the shore. It was a good release.

So with each new creature, whether it be frog, turtle, or a field of glittery fireflies, we parents are soaking up summer all over again with the help of our own wee beasties...and desperately looking at the calendar to see how many more days we have for buttercups and spitting watermelon seeds.

Welcome

Welcome, everyone, to our blog. A lot of time and sincere procrastination has gone in to this site and I appreciate your visit!

We have been "home on the farm" now for 11 months. It is so hard to believe that we have come this far in such a short time. We are incredibly blessed, for so so many things.

Life has been a constant swirl of new things to learn, see and do. The kids and I have been picking berries for a few weeks now, as we have a huge grove of high bush blueberries and several randoms patches of raspberries and blackberries. The kids remind me of real life versions of "Sal" as they plunk a few berries into their buckets, eating the majority from their hands and then wandering off to explore. I can usually squeeze about 7 minutes of picking from them before they are gone to pick flowers or complain about child labor violations. Bless them.



The hen house is up and running and we are eagerly awaiting the arrival of eggs! Shawn has become the Bird Man and feeds them each day. Which Rocky movie was it that featured Balboa catching chickens to increase his speed? Well guess what? I catch him talking to them too. I think he likes that 12 females come running toward him with complete wild abandon and no back talk. Go figure.

The baby trees have been planted and most are doing well. My garden is pitifully behind, but I am making notes for next year to adjust my timing of tasks. We did enjoy a tiny harvest of mixed greens and it truly was the best salad we had ever had! Small victories...

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