Summer's Simple Pleasures--Bird Watching

We love watching birds here on the Farrm.  We claim them as part of our Farrm Animals!

Occasionally I grab my camera and get photos of some of our friends and although they aren't as artistic (or even in focus) as some of my other blogging friends' photos, I will show them with pride nonetheless!

Bald Eagle undoubtedly scoping out the chickens.

I'm not sure who this is chirping away outside my window.

Barn swallows on a barn, how delightful.

A symphony of sounds!

Washington state bird:  The Goldfinch.  Beautiful song, swinging in flight and they LOVE thistle!

Looks like a momma and baby to me!

Is this Jenny Wren?

This lovey Dovey is a bit shy.  There is a flock of about 9 of them that live in the valley.

I'm pretty sure these are female goldfinches picking seed from a mint plant.

They were not about to let me get too close.

I heard this guy behind me!  He was so nice to pose for a picture.  Then he headed to the water making a lot of clatter!  The Belted Kingfisher is another bird you can tell from a distance by the way they fly, and of course his distinctive voice! 

An last but not least, one of 7 baby barn swallows who were kicked out of the nest prematurely.  They fell from the apex of the barn.  The girls tried feeding the survivors worms from the compost but they died overnight.  The last one they tried to save lived 2 days--they fed this one pancakes instead of worms!  Poor little things just didn't make it.

19th Wedding Anniversary

Ironman and I celebrated our 19th Wedding Anniversary this August!

So did our children!!

The girls, under the direct supervision of one of their brothers, baked a chocolate cake from scratch, set the table out on the porch beneath the wisteria on a perfectly warm summer night, brought out the china, lit the candles, and decorated with flowers.  Live piano music was drifting out of the french doors and the atmosphere couldn't have been nicer!

The lighting was too low for sharp pictures but perfect for romantic ambiance.

Chocolate cake and raw milk in goblets plus peppermint tea for good measure!

I Love You.

We met in April.  We were engaged 12 days later.  We married in August.
We lived happily ever after!

Summer's Simple Pleasures--Horses!

Horses

Need I say more?  

Anne with an 'E' has been taking riding lessons from a girl down the valley (we'll call her Diana) for a couple months.  Diana went on vacation and asked Anne to ride 'Jazz' while she was gone to keep him in shape.  (She was in horse heaven!)  Her confidence has sure soared through this experience and she has really had fun!

KinderGARDENS- Potato Harvest- Week- 19

Harvest time can be quite exciting, unless you are old enough to remember that
 harvest = work and you happen to be a "teenager" whose whole life revolves by avoiding work at all costs! Fortunately for me I only have 3 teenagers!

Actually-they are all really great workers, if I have "inspired" and not "required"!

Time to start harvesting some potatoes.

Anne with an 'E' doesn't like to use gloves, she likes the dirt!

Proper footwear for all fashionable harvesters this fall!

Great catch!  Guess we'll be eating that one first!

I want to show you something else those fingers can do...

Can you guess??

This week, The Inadvertent Farmer, asked this about our gardening experience, 

"Have you had some things you would do differently? How about things that have been great triumphs that you will do again next year?

I have decided I will refer to the Farmer's Almanack BEFORE I plan how many quarts of tomato sauce  and pickles I will can. (I will end up with zero this year and wanted 24 of each!) If possible I would like to know what type of growing season we will likely have THEN plan what to plant.

I'm going to put down weed suppressors in between the rows in the Tyrannosaur Paddock next year.  

I'm going to plant a cover crop this fall: crimson clover.

Zucchini will be planted in the Vegetable garden instead of the T Paddock.

We want many more Sunflowers next year... regular and small ones too, and Zinnias, so the girls can make lots of flower arrangements.

Lettuce, broccoli, cabbage and carrots were big successes this year!  Oh--and celery!!  I can't believe I finally got it to grow and that it tastes good!

After planting green beans 4 times I have a successful crop! I'm glad I stuck with it and didn't give up.

And finally...I am very satisfied with how much more fun the kids had in the garden.  Next year I'm going to give each of them their own plot and let them each tend it the way they want to from seed to harvest.

I have to thank Kim for the opportunity to participate in this gardening community and all of you as well for reading my ramblings and enduring my rants about the weather this year!

We have just a few more weeks of the KinderGARDENS project, then I'm not sure what routine my blog will follow.  Something "out of the box" I'm sure!  Something to delight all 8 of my followers I hope!  (Oh, I know there are a few 'lurkers'; namely my mom and oldest brother and someone from Canada)  

KinderGARDENS- Dinner's in the Garden- Week- 18

I am a bit late posting our weekly Gardening update.  I apologize.

Here on the Farrm we are "Livin' La Vida Granja" and spending more time doing than blogging!

One of the regrets I have as I prepare this post, is that I missed out on taking some photos that would have worked so nicely to enhance your experience reading this blog.  Last Thursday we had a bunch of friends over to play and when the kids started getting hungry and I was still up to my elbows in dirt and hadn't made dinner I declared, "Dinner's in the Garden!"

It was fun to hear what they had eaten.  

"Green beans and snap peas with a garnish of chive."

"Carrots--I love carrots!"

"Purslane is my favorite!"

"We were playing rabbits, we ate lettuce and basil and carrots--the boys were the gardeners!"

So maybe your imagination can fill in the blanks...maybe you will spot Peter Rabbit, his cousin Benjamin Bunny or Mr McGregor as you (virtually) wander through my garden this week.

After planting green beans 4 TIMES, we can harvest!  This is one of my favorites to eat fresh.

The two largest tomatoes have been enjoyed by yours truly!  They were so worth the wait!

We have had a few days of warmth (80 + degree temps) and the sunflower has  bloomed!

Sugar Pumpkins!

This little guy thinks it will start ripening!

I did get some shots of the kids harvesting various fruits of their labors, and just as was promised, I caught them having a bit of fun!

Time to harvest the first planting of carrots.

Some of the carrots were already split, these we fed to the rabbit.

Split

Statue of Liberty?

Comparing curviness.

A string growing out of a carrot?  Or a carrot growing around a string?

Now, the fun is starting!

You can't tell me that boys aren't born boys!!  They can make anything into a gun!  Even a carrot!  (Check out his trigger finger at the ready!)

And to little girls everything is a baby.  Here is the momma carrot holding the baby carrot!!

This is the first year I have been successful with celery!  Bear had the honor of tasting the  first stalk.

Crunch!

"MMmmm, tastes like celery.  No, it's not bitter."
Yeah for me!!

Take a bite!!
Okay, maybe not.

The girls job was to pull the tops off the carrots and onions and they found time to have fun as well.  Can your imagination make up dialog for the carrots?  I will give you a hint: they speak with a formal English accent and discuss dresses, manners and of course--boys!

So that is week 18 in our garden.  Livin' La Vida Granja!