Sunday In Pictures

You know it's Spring when....






....the boys start digging worms to go pan fishing.











....the Forsythia seems to blooms overnight.









....the apricots start to bloom.
(Way too early this year I might add -- it's going to freeze tonight)








....the chicks get moved from the garage to their outside shed.
(The bigger ones are Cornish Cross meat chickens,
and the smaller ones White Plymouth Rocks -- layers for next year.
They are not all the way feathered out yet, so the light stays on.)









....the over-wintered geraniums have been planted.
(How I save my geraniums every year here)



.....dr momi

Linked To: Farm Photo Friday
Linked To: Week In Photos

Sunday In Pictures

The ducks are out enjoying a sunbath.
That would be after they  took a puddle bath in ice cold water!
Down feathers must be very warm.
It got to 61 degrees today -- that's a heat wave in Wisconsin ....in March.
That's Shawano Lake in the distance, where my husband does all his ice fishing.

Maple sap has been cooking all day in our
crude stove....it works.

What a difference a week makes.
These are the ice puddles the ducks are puddling in.

The pussy willows are blooming and.....

the first batch of meat chicks are in the garage.
Now I think it's spring.
The last thing my daughter said to him when she
put him down was, "Grow big"

.....dr momi

Sunday In Pictures

My back porch.
That stuff in the front....salt.
Ask me what my floors look like.

Things are looking  really grey around here.

Except for the touches of blue in the woods.
(No dripping going on.)

Oh....., and the touch of forest green on my driveway.
The ice shacks had to be off the lake by tomorrow.
I now get to look at it until the snow melts enough
to get it "parked in the back".  Yeah.





Then there's this color in the woods.
Any guesses???

I get asked every winter what this is about.
It's right along our driveway.
The young neighbor kids were playing with
colored electrical tape...it's been there for 3 years.
I like it :-)
And the trees seem none the worse for the wear.








I guess this has a little color left, but.....
it's still winter here folks. Not complainin'.




.....dr momi





Sunday in Pictures



This year's sweet potato plant has
already given me a couple of slips.



They are ready to plant.

...and my celery end has sprouted and is ready to plant.
Check out directions at Farm Bell Recipes at Chickens in the Road.
I hope to get a few more going before garden planting time.

This was Levi's 1st Sunday Night Supper with the whole family.
He slept through all the noise.
Big brother Brayden walked into the house *sing-songing*
"I got a baby. I got a baby."

We couldn't figure out if Zoe was left or right handed tonight.
Or maybe Grandma's chicken soup was just extra good!

Grandsons (brothers) Ryan and Brady (6 months)

.....dr momi

Linked To: Farm Photo Friday

Sunday in Pictures

So.....this was the "dusting of snow" we got on Friday.
I took this shot as I was leaving town to go "up north"
for a three day weekend with some  friends.



I traveled straight up the middle of Wisconsin
on Highway 51.  Had to go through the town of
Mercer -- the "Loon Capitol of the World".  This big loon was at their
Chamber of Commerce.  They call it ClaireD 'Loon.
Only in Wisconsin....:-)



....and this big statue of Chief Hiawatha was in Ironwood, Michigan. (Upper Michigan)
LOL....only in Michigan???
He's not even on a main highway....right in the middle of a neighborhood.

This is the backside the neighbors get to look at out their windows.
I suppose you'd get used to it. :-)



My trip ended at Big Powderhorn Ski Resort at a friends ski chalet.
No I did not ski. I lounged :-)
I did play with Future Leader Dog Kimber.
Kimber goes back to Leader Dogs For The Blind in
Rochester Michigan in about a month and a half.

 .....dr momi

Sunday in Pictures

My first farmhouse cheddar cheese is aging in the basement.
I have to practice more.  I really don't know if I'm using the press correctly or not.
It came with NO instructions.

I racked the Maple Sap Wine (recipe here).
In Sept. for our fair competition, it was not ready.
Today....not bad! The recipe said it tasted better after a year -- a year is coming right up.
It's getting nice and clear and I'll bottle it in a couple of weeks.
I would make it again.
It does not taste like maple at all, and it is dry instead of sweet.  ....and potent.



I racked the 3 gallons of elderberry wine too.
It's still way cloudy (it's still early).  I added oak chips.  I added oak chips last
year and really liked it -- you know, like it was aged in an oak keg.
(the apple wine is coming along -- has a way to go)



The mitten tree I got for Christmas has been getting a good workout.
After ice fishing yesterday the grandkids were soaked.
I heard they "played" with a fish all afternoon.
As the gloves dried it smelled like I was roasting fish!

.....dr momi

Sunday in Pictures



This was my first try at Candy C.'s  Onion Cheese Rolls.
Oh.  My.  Goodness.  Are they good!
Making the rosettes was super easy,  though they did
 not turn out as beautiful as Candy's.  I will keep practicing.
 These are officially a regular recipe in  this house!  Thank-you Candy!
Husband's take...."man these are good!"














You heard that Sonnet did not work out at our house?
I wish she had.  She sure was good with kids.















3:30 game snacks......using up what's on hand.....Nachos.
5:00 -- Barbecued Ribs
....but alas, it's a sad, sad, day in Packerland.



Tato's puppy is named "Billy" and Gracie's puppy is named "Butschy" :-)

We have very little snow on our itty bitty hill,
but the kids had a blast sledding this afternoon.

.....dr momi

Sunday in Pictures



"Fuzzy Wuzzy" Peach.  A pony we owned years ago.
We were going to breed her and then never did.
She pretty much just ate hay and pooped.  :-)













Romeo (1/2 Arab - 1/2 App, .... a colt  I bred), and Peach.
It's not what you think.......  :-)













Pony Pals .... Daisy and Peach
Daisy was my youngest daughter Kerri's pony when she was growing up.
Daisy was Registered 1/2 Rocky Mountain Horse, therefore gaited.   ......smooth ride.
Of course that smooth ride means nothing if your pony stops suddenly
 from a canter, and you fly over her head like a torpedo.  Ask Kerri.











Arab Dance
My full arab brood mare Abra Aziz.
(dam of Romeo)











Miniature Donkey Boots.
Just a baby here yet.  He grew up to be the meanest animal ever.


    



     This was memory lane for me.  I still love horses, but I'm glad I don't have the chores (or bills) anymore :-)   .....dr momi

Sunday in Pictures

Another picture and a little about him here.



Yesterday Billy was scheduled to go to the library for kids to read to him.
When I told Rick my plans for the day he said, "Oh no, I was going to go hunting!"
I said, "Hhmmm, it just so happens I have another dog."
Retired Leader Dog Sonnet has been moved in with us for 2 weeks now.
I took her.....



....and she did extremely well....it's her new job.  :-)
A little more of Sonnet's story here.

 

Tato wanted a "football hat".
So his Mom got right to work.

.....jean

Sunday in Pictures

The back side of my old barn.  Taken a few years back, on a different full moon.















The other side of my old barn with the old silo.
The new owners want to make the old silo a climbing wall.
He was up the old ladder chute trying to knock down some of the old roof cement
when a big hunk of cement fell down and broke his foot!
The boards on top of the barn blew out with a bad wind storm. 
 We had a guy try to fix it, but that whole corner of the barn is "unstable". 
He came flying down his ladder that day (afraid the whole thing was going to cave in) and said, "not going to happen".





....and the side of the barn facing the road.
A tennis court was built by the previous owners in the old barnyard.
Notice the basketball net and the tennis practice wall.  The kids spent many a day down there.


We often looked into replacing the roof and keeping the barn up.
Quotes for the roof (that needed all new rafters) were 4 times 
more, than putting up the same size new metal pole building.
Pure economics left it just the way it was.

Linked To: Barn Charm


 .....dr momi

Sunday in Pictures

........on Monday.  I had major problems with the internet on Sunday, I could not get on blogger.  Seems the powers that be have it fixed this morning.




Had a little chaos Sunday night.
Tried to take a Christmas Card picture of all the grandkids.
Check out Zoe ripping that santa hat off her head.



They all had bells to ring.
I think Gracie is not happy with her bell.
Silly adults......what makes you think they are all going to look at the camera???



Before the "picture",  they all got
to put the ornaments on the
"kids" tree up in the loft.



....and place the kids manger scene out.
Gracie places the angel.

 






So....Mary and Joseph and Jesus,
and 100 animals worshipping with the kings and shepherds.
I just said to Rick....I think we need a stable to "lift"
the Holy Family above the worshippers :-)
The kids had a blast putting it out.
What.....you didn't know there was an anteater at the stable?





































Knowing we would never get a picture with them all looking at the camera, I learned
how to do my first collage on Picasa 3.
Left to right on the top:  Zoe, Ryan, Brady, Remington
Logan, Grace, Brayden, and Riley.

I've told you all I have 10 grandchildren.......
8 on the ground, 2 cooking.