Holiday Wishes

 

We wish you a Merry Christmas

and all good things in 2024!

Blessings...daisy

Homestead Happenings

 

The end of another week,

and the sunsets have been simply spectacular!

It looks as if the sky is on fire through the trees,

but not to worry, it is only Mother Nature showcasing one of Her many talents.

Here are a few of the things that went on this week.

The leaf collection and mulching are complete

in both our yard and our neighbors'.

Our wonderful next-door neighbor allows us to use her 

mower with attached bagger to clean up our yard,

and in return we take care of hers.

Everyone wins!

We have this massive leaf pile out by the garden,

and another two cubic yards in heavy duty bags.

I think we're set for leaf mulch for a while!

I finally got around to cleaning up the loofah.

We ended up with about 20 usable loofahs.

These will be listed on our local Next Door

for anyone who can use them.

Considering that I wasn't sure they would dry in time,

(we got cold weather earlier than expected),

I'm quite pleased with the harvest.

One of the big projects we've been 

dragging our feet on pondering for months,

was how to level our shed.

Big K can fix just about anything,

but this lil' conundrum was a little out of his comfort zone.

The floor inside had started to buckle,

and after calling a couple of shed companies,

ended up with no one who would do the job.

Until I asked our neighbor Joe.

Joe is an 80-something gentleman 

who lives a block over and does all sorts of odd jobs

for folks in the neighborhood.

He cuts grass, chops wood, builds stuff,

he's truly a talented guy.

Not only did he do a fabulous job of leveling the shed,

he would not take payment for it.

We ended up dropping off a Lowe's gift card,

knowing that he'll put it to good use.

Generous neighbors are such a blessing.

A couple of the raised beds have been dismantled,

to make room for our new Birdie's beds.

The garden is being reconfigured,

and two of the beds need to be moved anyway.

The soil from these beds will be added to

the asparagus bed,

as it has settled quite a bit.

I've been working on getting rid of things 

that I don't really need.

A couple of items were found that I didn't even realize I had.

One was this French newspaper,

which must have been with my mom's things.

Our next-door neighbor is going to help me

with the translation.

Someone suggested that perhaps the paper

held some information about a family member.

I don't really know what to do with this,

as I have no way to contact any of my mom's family in France,

if they are even still around.

Suggestions?

Here's the other item.

Remember these?

Here's the flip side.

Again, what to do with these random things?

I know that C will not be interested in them,

so there's really no reason to save them,

but I can't bring myself to just throw them out.

Not my style.

The baking has commenced.

Another year of sharing my mom's recipe for Madelienes.

They are a traditional French "cookie"

that my momma used to bake at Christmas time.

They taste like miniature sponge cakes more than cookies.

Unfortunately for me, I can't eat them because they contain gluten,

but I do enjoy making them for others,

knowing that they've probably never had anything like them.

Our indoor decorations are fairly simple.

We always decorate the mantel with our various holiday Lego sets.

It's a fun activity for the whole family,

and it gives our home a unique, cheerful theme.

Hoping you are enjoying this holiday season,

however you celebrate!

Going Local-Cotton Ginning Days

 

A couple of months ago,

we ventured out to a local event.

(I'm a little behind on posting this because of technical difficulties.)

The Cotton Ginning Days Festival was held

in a nearby town and is an annual event.

Cotton is still one of the main crops grown here

in the Piedmont of North Carolina.

Here's a great article on cotton's importance in our state.

The Cotton Ginning Days Festival is held on the 2nd weekend in October each year.

This fair is a joint effort between the Gastonia Parks and Rec Department,

and the Gaston Agriculture, Mechanical, & Textile Restoration Association (GAMTRA).

There were many antique machines on display.

They are maintained by their owners

and are kept in working order.

Old time skills are featured in some of the buildings.

These two gentlemen were forging in the ironworks shed.

This festival is a celebration of the way things were done in the 1900's.

A pioneer village is on display,

with original buildings.

Of course, no heritage festival would be complete

without tractors.

These workhorses were the key to successful farming.

They are still admired by many,

but their only work now is showing off in the tractor parade.

One of our favorite parts of the festival

was the flea market area.

This so reminded us of our beloved 

Florida Flywheelers back in Central Florida,

that we visited several times a year.

Look at this handy cart.

Wouldn't it be fun to ride around the neighborhood on this?

And would you look at this sled?

I was so tempted to get it,

even though I'm fairly sure

I'd break something using it.

The icing on the cake was this cute lil' coffee bar.

What a perfect way to spend the morning,

and a cup of joe made it even better.

This is one festival we plan on revisiting next year.

Garden Friday

 

Welcome to Garden Friday!

This week's cold snap (17 degrees),

sure made it feel like winter,

but the calendar says differently.

We are still enjoying some color on the trees which keep their leaves.

Oh yeah.  It's leaf time around here!

It seems the trees have not yet completed their autumn shed.

We still have so many leaves to mulch

and I'm not complaining one bit.

All of these leaves are added to our leaf mulch pile

and then used in garden beds to fortify the soil.

Leaves are one of the best things that can be added

to improve soil.

The bonus is that they suppress weeds and insulate the soil as well,

which allows for earlier planting in the spring.

I reworked the sprouting screen for the chook run,

this time adding a few slats of pallet wood

to raise it off of the ground.

This should make it easier for the seeds to germinate

while keeping the scratching chooks at bay.

It's just another way to provide food for them

and give them another actiivity in the run during the colder months.

Picking autumn/winter bouquets from what's growing

in our yard is a wonderful way to get outside

and enjoy the milder days.

Unbelievably, this rudebekia bloomed,

even after we have had very little rain

and freezing temperatures.

What a bright spot in my day.

Thankfully, we still have some greens growing,

despite the several freezing overnight temperatures we've had.

Here, a bed of Romaine is holding its own.

The brassicas haven't missed a beat.

These beds are nestled under a light covering,

and it seems to do the trick.

There remain plenty of lettuce seedlings,

ready to transplant as the season progresses.

Buttercrunch lettuce is one of my favorite varieties.

On a recent thrifting trip,

I picked up this enamelware vessel

to house our kitchen scraps 

before they go either to the chooks or the compost heap.

It's just the right size, and enamelware speaks to my inner pioneer.

At some point this winter season,

I plan to add two new Birdies' beds to the garden landscape.

The company had a Black Friday sale,

so I was able to get a good deal on two of their beds.

I've been pleased with the round Birdies' bed,

and I'm happy to support a company who does things well.

Read more about the Birdies' difference here.

Another treasure found at the same shop

is this sweet concrete hen.

She even came pre-dusted from a dirt bath!

I don't buy much these days,

but these rehomed items just make my heart feel good.

Fresh greens from the garden are still available to the chooks,

and Queenie is happy to partake.

She seems to have fully recovered from whatever was bothering her

a few weeks ago, 

but she is showing her age.

She is still keeping Betty company on the east end of the run,

and they seem to get along fine.

Neither of them lay anymore,

they are just living out their lives in the best way we can provide.

I'll be happy to have them for as long as they care to stick around.

What a blessing they are to our lives.

Hope this December first is going just the way you like it!