This morning’s Walkabout.
I am trying to get back into the Blogging Groove! For me, a good ole Collage is the place to start :) I will have a post on the Blacksmith early next week. I have really missed blogging, and my bloggy friends!
Happy Weekend to All!
I am going to show off because we usually have a really sad garden. This year, we have a newer – bigger - better garden plot. Bonus: it’s close to the Bee Yard. I think they helped make a huge difference. It’s been fun to work in the gardens with the bees during the early morning hours.
We had plentiful rain early in the season, but we began slow-soaking this garden with the water tank once a week when the hot, dry weather set in over a month ago.
It’s a blessing to have these “pickins” every other day or so.
Currently, the temperature here in mid-Missouri is 96. Summer’s been fun, but I’m ready for cooler temps and all things Fall.. how about you?
We have our own little sunflower field on one side of the new garden plot. The honeybees and bumblebees adore it, and I’m certain the birds will enjoy the seeds soon. I’ll be a little sad when they’re gone. I planted this little sunflower field with only black oil sunflower seed from my bird-feeding stash! Soak the seeds overnight just prior to planting and keep the newly planted seeds watered daily. Pretty cheap seed - it worked great!
Today I picked through my camera’s memory card to try and recall a few things from this Summer. It’s gone by so fast! All I will say is it’s been a very eventful Spring-Summer 2013.
Some good, some bad. Some happy, some sad. That is life, as everyone knows.
And I have blogged so little…
For sure, there will be some randomness thrown in.
I couldn’t leave this one out. This Red-Bellied Woodpecker crashed into a window in early June. He was rescued and safely put into the little chicken coop (aka hospital) for a few hours until he could fly again. He could have nailed me with that long beak, but he was very polite and (I believe) appreciative for the save from a certain death by barn kitties. He took a strong flight out of my hands into the woods.
We’ve attended a few Square Dances over the past few months. What better way to spend a Saturday night?
Of course, the Fiddler is an active participant. The Blacksmith and I just enjoy listening to the music.. maybe we’ll join in with the dancers soon.
I adore this accordion. This gal is my hero – what a phenomenal musician!
For a short while this summer, I thought I needed one like this. But, I decided on a different instrument (more on that below).
My coordination couldn’t have handled this anyway!
Most of June and July was gorgeous – with pleasant temps and plentiful rain. The grass was nice and lush.
{If you look closely, you’ll see our bent windmill.. so sad.. but fixable when we get around to it. We think it was straight line winds}
August hasn’t been so kind. We’ve had hot temps and dry weather the past couple of weeks with no end (or rain) in sight. So, we water.. and water, trying to keep things alive.
Our new garden plot, complete with “Olivia Walton,” the scarecrow.. has done pretty well – all things considered. I have SO enjoyed our sunflowers this year! And so have the birds and bees.
We’ve gone on a few road trips. One was to pick up my old Relic. Had to admire this owl sign along the way.
Can you guess what old Relic is on our trailer?
A gorgeous antique Pump Organ! I hope to do a video or audio soon to share.
It works pretty well, but needs a few minor repairs. I love the old-timey sound of a pump organ. Bonus – you get a workout in too!
She is a beauty, huh? (Photo courtesy of the Seller.. I need to take some of her in her new home).
Back out to the heat we go to check on critters. We’ll see you soon!
Mind + Body = Drained. But hey, Life is Good!! There has been much going on here, and I’m sure the same is true with all of you as well.
The chickens are moved into their big Happy Home and big run (Thank you, my Dear Mr. W for all your hard work!!)
Flight netting is in place over the run. Take that, Mr. Hawk! :)
Girls chillin’.
Shotgun Red makin’ trouble
(the rooster formerly known as “Reba” – this was the “extra” chick who turned out to be a HE). Hmmm… two roosters… let’s just say it’s been interesting so far!
Sappo, #1 Rooster, mid-crow.
There are a few loose ends to tie up on the chicken project – finish painting the coop, finish the interior, *decorate* the interior :), and fix up this vintage nest box before the girls begin laying their colorful eggs. 
Oh yes, there have been other happenings besides chicken activities.
Flowers to enjoy.
Garden produce to pick every few days.
2+ gallons of Garden Pickles made using Linda @ Prairie Flower Farm's recipe. Delish!
Gracie & Ruby… waiting to be tucked in for the night. Each night, they are locked up in their stall (with “screen” door) -- with background music from their radio, hay and tiny bit of grain and water.
Now to get some rest to make it through the remainder of the week. Hope all is well with my friends!
Nighty night!
“What???”… you may ask?? I turned an old chair with a worn out seat into a container for some of my favorite plants: Succulents.
A Succulent Old Chair. See??
I’m going to pretend this is a real tutorial, but truth is, I did this a couple of months ago and didn’t take any before or during pics. I was inspired by a post I saw somewhere. I am 99% for certain it had something to do with Donna at Funky Junk Interiors, and perhaps some inspiration pics she posted on Facebook (although I can’t find it now!). I’ve always wanted a Succulent Wreath, but this Succulent Chair was much more doable. For me, anyway. It took only a few minutes to complete.
I began with an assortment of succulents from our local greenhouses. Our Lowes also had some different little cuties I threw in. I already had eyed an old chair with a worn out seat down at hubby & father-in-law’s machine shop. I had just enough potting soil left over for this project. And also a scrap of hardware cloth (from the big, huge Chickens 2010 project.. hehe), and burlap, plus a trusty staple gun.
I knocked out what was left of the seat. The hardware cloth was turned into a very crude bowl formation and placed in the area that was the seat . Gloves work well for that task as hardware cloth can be a little wicked to work with at times. The “bowl” was covered haphazardly with burlap, which I scrunched around and stapled to the chair here & there. Then the potting soil was added, the plants, and finally I threw on a little mulch & some pebbles.
Voila. An almost maintenance-free little garden, sitting in an old worn out chair.
It takes very little water. I keep it under the shelter of a porch much of the time to protect it from the occasional torrential rains we’ve had this year.
I simply can’t do a post without at least throwing in a little something “chicken-y” (since this is the year of the Chicken here…), so I must show you our big run, still in progress. We still need to add some boards along the sides, the cover (flight netting to protect from hawks), as well as some hardware cloth around the perimeter about two feet up (to protect from raccoon and cat’s paws). Special thanks to the Fiddler for helping on the Run project over the weekend. It has been incredibly hot here and it’s not pleasant to be out in very long!
It is 97 degrees here at 5:30 pm and I’m headed back out to refresh the cool water for everyone. Almost makes me wish for Fall!
Hope your week is going well!
p.s. Thanks for all the nice birthday wishes!!! :) :) :)
For the first time ever, I'm linking up with a party. My friend Andrea over at Rural Revival hosts Thrifty Thursday. Check it out! You won't believe the fabulous thrifty treasures! In Andrea's words - "Recycling, up-cycling, reusing, re-purposing. Whatever you want to call it, it's being thrifty and walking with a softer footprint."
This beginning carpenter is getting her coop built :) I really think the framing part has been the most fun so far. The rest of it has moved much slower. It didn’t seem like I accomplished much during my building sessions this week, but now I realize: two hours here – two hours there.. I’m starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Chipboard was installed on the roof (this stuff will *not* show in the end. I’m putting nice shiny tin on my roof). This is the view from the back - nest box & roost area (where I’ll be installing a door).
Most of the bead board siding is installed. I had planned to perfectly match everything (i.e., the “beads” on the bead board), but let’s just say… measuring, and cutting accordingly has not been my strong suit so far. But then again, I’m a beginner! Trim will hide most of my errors (I hope). I am getting better and less nervous with the jig and circular saws.
This view shows the opening for the little chicken door, and the side window.
And here’s a quick view of a step that proved to be very tedious – I installed hardware cloth in the ventilation around the rafters. At that point I wished for verrrry tiny hands.
A few of the next steps –
*one more piece of siding installed because of another slight modification I made :)
*paint the interior – I have a quart of nice lemony yellow eggshell that was FREE from Glidden a few months ago.
*install hardware cloth on the inside of the window.
*cut out doors & brace them, as well as cut the window cover.
*trim window, doors, corners, roof lines.
*install doors, window, hinges, latches, etc.
*drill hole in back for heat lamp cord.
*caulk, caulk, caulk.
*paint exterior.
*install galvanized tin roof.
More updates soon – chicks arrive week after next! Thanks so much for the encouragement, Blogger Friends. I hope I can inspire others to build something they’ve been dreaming about. If you want to see more inspiration, check out my friend Linda at Prairie Flower Farm and what she’s been up to this week!
I’ll leave you with a few photos from this week. We’ve had lettuce from the “greens bed” for a couple of weeks now.
Check out one of our yard birds. So pretty, and so watchful over the nest…. 
Giant Allium was fully bloomed earlier this week.
Spiderwort from Patti. Such dainty little flowers!
Lastly…. and sadly, our Miss Monkey kitty disappeared a week ago today (in the middle of the day, no less). No clues… nothing. The neighborhood has been alerted and we’ve covered a lot of ground over the past week looking and calling for her. Hoping she’s okay and will come back soon. I miss those blue eyes…
Last but not least, Happy Mothers’ Day. Blessings and hugs for all the moms out there!
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