Peaceful Fridays.....

Today is for remembering old friends....

Have a peaceful weekend, y'all.............

Got wings?.....

My wings are precariously balanced on my handbag. They are warming up and getting ready to spread wide this weekend. They will be joined by many other wings of all shapes, colors, and sizes. They can barely contain their excitement because..........

soon, this masked man will be calling all Faeries, young and old, to come celebrate.
It's time for the Spoutwood Farm May Day Faerie Festival!

You can read a little blog post I wrote about this wonderful festival here
Better yet, you can visit the farm's website here

Our little group will be entertaining the Fae on Saturday and Sunday whilst roving the farm.
You know, it's all about keeping the Fae happy. So, we do our small part and play some Irish music for them because after all, the Fae love Irish Music.
And, if the Fae is happy, Mother Nature is happy and you know - it's not nice to fool Mother Nature.
On a more grounded note, I'm going to try and take my camera to get some photos, and, if I do, I'll be happy to share. Maybe even a pic of the hubsters and I in our best Faerie garb. Just promise you won't laugh too hard!

Kubiando!!

Ode to critters....

Happy chickens,

horny frogs,

pretty puppy,

and one crazy dog!

So, should I quit my day job? Do you see poet laureate for my State in my future?

Just some silliness for a wet Sunday.

Casual lounging optional....

Peaceful Fridays.....

Take time this weekend to putter around the homestead.

No matter what size it is.....

Have a peaceful weekend, y'all............

* Top photo taken at Birr Castle, Co. Offaly, Ireland*

Happy Earth Day....

The wisteria is slowly starting its summer climb and will soon also be a symbol of peace for those who come through our gate.

Its blooms this year are large and fragrant making all of us, large and small truly appreciate them.

The candytuft's delicate blooms are gracing the fish pond with their beauty - albeit briefly.

The creeping phlox surrounds the gazebo area with its flashy show of color.

I think the lilac wanted to color coordinate with the creeping phlox so your eye is magically drawn to the area they reside.

The laurel is in bloom and is hosting many parties for all their winged friends. Free food and drink for all the busy bees.

And, the rare spotting of the fleshy handbird. Folklore has it if you spot one of these, your gardens will be blessed with a bountiful harvest. Boy, I sure am one lucky gal to have had the occasion to spot this rare bird! hahaha

I don't know about y'all, but, everyday is Earth Day for me and has been for a long time.

Now, go hug your Mother....

Things are blooming and growing....

Nature is still doing her thing and life is bursting with color and fragrance!

She's a busy bee, Mother Nature, and unfortunately, I've been a busy bee, too and lagging behind in posts and reading everyone's blogs...

But, even though I've been too busy, thankfully my veggies have been able to continue to do their thing!

Everything is growing lovely and most everything (or the rest of, I should say) with the exception of warm month veggies will get into their proper place this weekend, weather permitting.

You see, my friends and I have to start making time for the faeries - they'll be wanting a lot of our attention next month. And you know it's not nice to make the fae mad. ;-~ but, more on that later.

In the meantime, go and enjoy your hump day.

Peaceful Fridays.....and the winner is....

My heart bleeds sore because I could only have hubsters draw one name out of the hat...

Sorry, I know that statement is really corny. I couldn't help myself.

And the winner is:

Miriam at Mucky Boots!

Please contact me with your mailing address (you can use the email me in my profile) and put your blog name in the subject line.

Thanks to all who participated in my 100th post drawing.

Now, for this peaceful Friday, don't let your heart hang heavy - it's the weekend, afterall!

Have a peaceful weekend, y'all............

Don't forget to put your name in the hat....

The drawing is tonight and I will announce the winner tomorrow in my Peaceful Friday post. Good luck to all!

Twigs, flying dogs, and giveaway reminder....

Yesterday was spent working on finishing the beds in the new garden and a spur of the moment arbor building with twigs.

We put in the posts to anchor a gate (which still needs to be completed) and at the last minute decided to plant grapes on either side. After I had put the grapes in I had an idea for giving support for them to grow and at the same time add some whimsy to the garden.

We had a birch tree which needed pruning and as I was doing so I figured I'd put the branches and twigs to good use. It may look a little sparse at the moment, but, once the grapes grow, it will make a lovely entrance into the garden.

We still have the fencing to put up and to mulch all the pathways. The greenhouse will probably be put in late summer for use this fall. A few other odds and ends and we should be totally enclosed and fully functional, including the rain barrel for watering and some portable compost bins. I have to say, this has been a fun project.

And, as y'all as my witness, I have finally, FINALLY gotten lavender to germinate!
This is the first time in all my years of trying to get it to do so.

While we were working, the dogs were playing. Nuala is flying! I knew Shelties had wings, but, this is a first hand witness! She looks so ferocious, but, she is really playing. She really likes to pick on Finnegan.

But, I don't think she had too much of a happy ending here! Looks like Finnegan is telling her to "watch it". Bad place to end up, little Nuala....pun fully intended.
All in all, it was a wonderful day after an extremely busy Friday and Saturday doing things that took us away from the homestead.

And just a reminder - don't forget to enter the giveaway here.

Have a wonderful week!

Peaceful Fridays.....

The girls told me to tell everyone to get out this weekend and wag your tail and strut in the yard. Partner optional.

Have a peaceful weekend, y'all.....

Math is not my strong point but...

If my fingers calculated correctly, this is my 100th post! And in the spirit of blogging, I'm going to give away this wonderful book by Stella Otto - The Backyard Berry Book.

Chocked full of info on all kinds of berries and all the how to's and when's a person needs to know about growing berries.

Now the odds are pretty good if you enter the give-a-way you might find this showing up in the post at your doorstep. All you need to do is leave a comment if you are already a follower of the blog. If you're not a follower, become one, then leave a comment. I'll put all the names in a big 'ol hat and have hubsters draw the winner a week from today. I'll contact the winner for their mailing address and off it will go! (Overseas is okay, too. I mean, after all, you only have your 100th post once, right?)

Easy as pie. Berry pie! Sorry, couldn't help myself.

I've not been a proper blogger of late. Just busy like everyone else and on top of it I've been lucky to get one nasty spring cold. This is going to be interesting because we have a performance tomorrow night at one of our favorite venues - Bean in the Belfry in Brunswick, MD. One other band mate has been lucky enough to catch it also. We had rehearsals the other night and neither one of us could take a deep breath without coughing our brains out.

Singing and coughing - not a pretty picture!

The new garden is still making progress. We've gotten the fence posts in which was a major chore and now we still have a couple more beds to put together before we put the fencing up. Hopefully I'll be able to update later this weekend.

So, don't forget to put your name in the hat and if you would like, share with other bloggers.

Good luck!!

Trouble in the hen house.....

I just went out to the coop to check for morning eggs and this is what I found one of the girls brooding on. Not a good sign, I would think. She was laying on an empty egg.

I've noticed over the past week that some of the eggs had a hole in one end, but, none of the contents had been emptied. I chalked it up to the girls starting to feel a little broody and being inexperienced hens just pecked the egg to hard trying to get it in position under their bodies.

Yesterday when I collected the morning eggs, one had landed on the floor in the straw and I stepped on it. All six hens went ballistic seeing who could eat the most. I could not ward them off! It was like they were possessed! Now I'm wondering if that incident has started a taste for eggs? But, when I collected the evening eggs, two were in the nest boxes without any sign of being pecked. They were picture perfect.

I guess I just need to keep any eye on things and look for any signs of egg eating. My understanding it that egg eating can be a rather large problem. I hope this is not the case. We only have six hens. I'd hate to lose any of them due to a nasty habit. Maybe I could put them in egg eating rehab??

I'm sure I'll be asking advice if I run into a problem.

What Spring has given me.....

Greens, pinks, whites, and yellows....

Peaceful Fridays.....

Sometimes we only see things at a glance in our lives.

We see it, process it, make a judgement and then move on.

We don't stop, even if it's only for a second, to really look.
It's a shame.

Because, if you take time to look within, you will see more beauty than ever imagined.

Go beyond just a glance this weekend - you may just be surprised.

Have a peaceful weekend, y'all.......

This and that....

I had a visitor today. She came bolting out of my studio as I was walking by, startling me. I wasn't expecting to see a pussy cat come flying by!

She's a pretty girl, but, she must belong to someone as for she came to me when I called her. It was a great feeling to be petting a cat again. I haven't had cats in years.

She decided to stick around and watch me do some surveying of my berry bushes. It was nice to have some feline company for a bit. She headed back to where she came from as soon as she saw the hubsters.. oh well. Maybe she'll visit again.

The blueberries are budding nicely. No signs of disease so far.

The raspberry is doing fine too!

This is the reason the shed/studio doors were open. Hubster had tilled the garden and a couple of days later we discovered that the gas tank had emptied itself on the floor of the shed. Talk about stink! So, we've been airing them out hoping it dries. It was too late to put anything down to absorb it - it had already soaked into the wood floor.

Speaking of the hubsters - I think he needs some tractor driving lessons. Does the clothesline look a little droopy to you? Oops - he backed right into the post.

We've got it temporarily supported until we can pull it out and re-cement it. I cannot not use the clothesline. What better way to save energy and have the best smelling laundry on the block! Ain't nothing like getting into bed at night under sun dried sheets. It's an olfactory lullaby!