After growing up with chickens throughout my childhood, and keeping chickens for over a decade of my adult life, I've known a lot of chicken coops. My first chicken coop was a very important place on our little farm, and will forever hold an important place in my heart. That's where I would go hang out with Maude the chicken on rainy days, and even though she usually ended up pecking me, we were ...
Dreams
Lavender Harvest
I have a case of lavender love. Why? Because of the aroma, because of it's soothing qualities, because it is so beautiful and because it is so purple, I am completely enamored. I look forward to harvesting and drying the bundles every summer, because it is seriously like a spa experience in the garden. When I was a kid I couldn't care less about lavender. I thought it was just a scent that uppity ...
Dream Pillows
When the nights get longer in the fall, there is more time to spend dreaming. It's the perfect time of year to pile extra blankets on the bed, get out those warm flannel sheets, and prepare for our winter slumbering. A tradition I enjoy in my house is sewing dream pillows for everyone in the family to slip inside their pillowcase, filled with fragrant herbs to promote restful sleep and peaceful ...
A Sneak Peek at the New Homestead
Moving has been keeping me busy...too busy to write a blog post about the new place. But, I thought I'd give a sneak peek at the new homestead which will be the future subject of many, many writings to come. Every day it seems, some new flower opens up. Currently there are several colors of rhododendrons, wild irises, orchids, lilacs, roses and the list goes on and on... I feel ...
Miss Thena’s Easy Applesauce
This post goes out in honor of my friend Thena, who got herself a homestead this weekend. She's been working hard towards it for YEARS and when I was up in Washington visiting her in June, she showed me around this lovely bank-owned acreage with an orchard, outbuildings, chicken coop, a pond, fenced pasture, and a woodstove. She and her partner had just made their offer on it that day and ...
Me and My Banjo Down by the Riverside
What more is there to say? ...
The Magic Rattle
If you can think back and remember the first time in your life you wanted something so badly you saved up all your pennies, birthday money from relatives, lawnmowing wages, and stray quarters picked up off the sidewalk until you attained the object of your heart's desire, I'll bet you treasure it among your gems of character-building childhood memories. These early lessons in the power of our ...
Cute Kids and Blueberry Miracles
On our way home from this past weekend's camping trip (more about soon) we stopped to see our friends Jeff and Taryn on their Siuslaw River homestead and meet all their baby goats. Let me tell you, those were some cute kids all around, and it was hard to resist taking some home with us. We all fell in love with the runt. There's something about tiny little goats that just pulls on your ...
Birds for May
I have a sweet little story to share with you of childhood dreams come true. The other day, my daughter Rosemary painted a picture inspired by her favorite folksinger's song about a pair of tin birds in love. It was a beautiful watercolor of two red birds facing one another, and in my opinion was quite good. She asked me if I would send the picture to Daisy May. I told her I didn't know the ...
Imbolc is Here and Spring is on the Way!
As we turn the corner towards the oncoming Spring, our family celebrates the increasing sunlight and the stirrings of the seeds beneath the soil by celebrating the festival of Imbolc. Still celebrated in the United States in some form as Groundhog's Day, St. Brigid's Day in Ireland, and Candlemas by many, the ancient Irish festival of Imbolc honors the Spring's beginning. The word Imbolc ...