Toto.........I don't think we're in Texas anymore

Or at least that's how it feels......

In the early morning, heading out with my faithful Sophie, to take care of the chickens and ducks, I opened the door........................

snow........beautiful, white, quiet and still, falling.......

Texas only gets snow ONCE a year......if we even get that at all. We have now gotten it 3 times since Thanksgiving.

I quickly awaken from my daze to remember that I have a whole load of clothes hanging out on the line. My dryer just recently took vacation and the last batch of clothes were not dry last night. Hanging out over night, I was sure they would be dry by mid morning.

As I sit here, with damp clothing hanging over every chair in the house, I am enjoying the view from my window. With no wind, the outside temperature is tolerable with a coat on, so I am going out to sit in my favorite spot on the front porch, with steaming coffee in hand, just to enjoy the solitude.

A New Canvas

The year is almost over. This past year has been a good learning chapter for me. I have made a few mistakes and have learned a little more along the way. With the recent snows, the grounds are easier to work with. I have tilled the large zinnia garden space for next year's flowers. Stock flower and Italian Jasmine are growing well where I planted them for a natural fence. I am hoping to have a good harvest of flowers to sell in July's farmer's market. I still have new gardens to break up and to get ready. Great blank canvases to work with!

Merry Christmas

Whether far away,

Whether very near,

Merry Christmas to you,

And a joyous New Year!

Have a blessed Christmas!

Pond Life

Warm weather and sunny clear days have once again come to the farm. I took advantage of the warm day and cleaned out the pond. So much dirt and leaves have fallen in since the arrival of fall.

I am amazed at how large the goldfish have gotten. These fish were only an inch long when they were purchased at a pet store 2 years ago. They were the little 25 cent fish.
Now they are bigger than my hand and have the most brilliant color. The bullfrog has left the pond, burying himself somewhere to weather out the cold winter months ahead. The fish have slowed down in their eating and swimming. Although the pond gets a layer of ice on top in the early morning, the fish are still swimming underneath it. By 10:00 AM, the ice has melted away. My goal for the pond is to find some water lilies this coming spring to add for beauty and shade.

Sprouting Pine Trees

I learned how to spout pine trees from a little elderly man at a local flea market a few years ago.

He explained what I needed to do, then gave me a bag of pine cone seed. I did as he said and was successful. However, something, (probably a mouse) got into the greenhouse where I kept them for the winter, and ate them down. One more lesson learned the hard way.
I have since sealed the greenhouse, and for the winter season, it is sealed in plastic and has a heater. Since the strong winds blew the other day, I gathered the fallen pine cones and extracted the seed. I plan to sprout these out and once again, see how they will do in the greenhouse. I am hoping to grow the trees big enough to sell later on.

Sourdough Bread

Yesterday was the day that my sourdough starter was ready to make bread with. I have to say I was delighted when the dough rose and I formed it into rolls. They had a pleasant sourdough taste. Now my goal is to keep this starter growing all year long. I am definitely putting this recipe into the family cookbook that I am making!

Weather

An ice storm hit late last night,

and by morning, everything was wearing a thick coat of ice, the barnyard was a skating rink for the chickens and ducks. But so typical to the Texas weather I know, it was soon melted by noon.
Taking it's place about an hour later was 60 mph winds and thick dirt from the fields.The roar of the wind is so loud and it is beating up the house. Where the temperature was freezing, it is now warm. This kind of dirt chokes out plants and blinds anyone who is trying to drive. I have to say this is not my favorite type of weather.

Farmer's Market

I tracked down the person who gets the local farmer's market up and going in a town about 30 miles away from where I live. I got the much needed information I was seeking and am pleased to find that I can sell my hand embroidery and other hand made items I make there, as well as my baked goods. This way, when I don't have flowers or produce, I will still have something to sell. I have all of these months to get things made, up until July. So on these cold winter days, I will be inside designing and stitching.

Composting

The dirt in this area is made up with clay and sand, when there are not rocks. One thing I am really working on is trying to make better soil in the garden areas.

I have a wonderful book by Jerry Baker. In one section, he talks about composting. I have been following what is described in the book. What my chickens do not eat, gets tossed out into the compost pile, such as banana and potato peels, onion skins, grass clippings , leaves, tea and coffee grounds, and egg shells. I have been composting for much of the year and I can already see the good results.

This year I planted a large zinnia garden. I love zinnias for their beauty and easiness to grow. I plan to use much of the compost in next year's zinnia gardens. I had such a wonderful harvest of beautiful blooms this year. I also have a good quantity of seed. I plan to grow several large zinnia gardens this next spring...with the hopes of selling the flowers at the local farmer's market and to local florists. The farmer's market will be a new thing for me to try as well.

Snow

A light blanket of snow fell on the farm in the early morning hours. The woods and surrounding grounds are still and quiet. However the sun is dancing across the frozen earth and the snow will be gone by noon. Snow does not last even a day in Texas.

From The Hen House

I have just returned from delivering eggs to a customer.

Even though the weather has turned rigid and freezing,

the nest boxes are full. Usually the hens stop laying through the cold spells and don't start back up till early spring. I have a young group of hens that I just got this past Mother's day. They are the ones who are hard at work. I have just sold 3 dozen eggs today. This customer takes what she doesn't use and sells them at her work place. Which is a great help to me.

Rose, one of my older hens, is occupying her favorite nest box. No eggs from her, but she's making the younger hens competitive. Doesn't she look proud of herself?

Sourdough Starter

I made a sourdough bread starter this morning, using a recipe from one of my favorite magazines. I love homemade breads, especially sourdough. I have seen many folks on TV work with their sourdough starters that they have had for years. I am going to give this a try. With winter coming on and the house being a little chilly, I am concerned whether this culture will stay alive and produce sourdough as the recipe states. Just one of those "trial and errors" that I am hoping to learn from. Hopefully, by this time next week, I will have a loaf of bread baking in the oven.