My Baby Is A Year Old

My sweet baby Daphne that is! ;)

It's hard to believe she is already a year old. She is starting to look more grown up and her beard is coming in but she can still act like such a kid sometimes, like when she is chewing on my apron while I'm trying to take her picture! I wanted to get a picture of her with the other two goats so you could see how big she is but she wouldn't leave my side. At least I know she likes me! LOL!!

She is such a little stinker. She has been watching the "big girls" try to open the door to the milking shed...

Luckily, there is a latch up high where nogoat can reach it. You can see in the last picture that she actually has the door open. We used to lock the door with a key but I accidentally left the key in the lock one day and one of them broke it off. Jerry's horse, Paco, will even open the door if it isn't latched, which is rather disconcerting if I'm in there trying to milk Madeline.

Since it is her birthday, Daphne gets a little treat...

"A PEANUT, maaa, for ME?!? I wish it was my birthday EVERY day!!"

Linking up with the Rurality Blog Hop and Farmgirl Friday.

Chats on the Farmhouse Porch - 02/26/2013

I'm joining Patrice at Everyday Ruralty for Chats on the Farmhouse Porch this week. What a fun idea, thanks Patrice!! :) 

1. Is there a room in your home that you'd like to redecorate or remodel?

My KITCHEN!! It is just waaayy too small, especially with my little bakery business. 

2. Did you watch the Oscars?  

No. It's funny, though, Jerry didn't want to watch but I had to look up all the winners for him the next morning on the internet! LOL!!

  3. How many pair of blue jeans do you own?  

Ten...but I can only fit into three pair right now. (sigh)

 

4. What was your favorite toy as a child?

 

I had a stuffed purple bunny that I got for Easter one year, I LOVED that bunny! :)

  5. If you could visit a country in Europe, which would you choose?  

Ireland...no, wait, Russia...no, wait, Ireland...no, wait...

 

If you would like to sit and Chat on the Farmhouse Porch with us go visit Patrice and link up!! :)

Stitchin' Kitchen Chickens

My kitchen is slowly being taken over by chicken decor. :)

We were at the neighbors' awhile back and I saw an embroidered chicken picture that I really liked because of the way it was mounted with chicken wire behind it. Hers said something about raising kids is like being pecked to death by a chicken. Hmmm...

Well, I wanted one of my own (sans saying) so I figured I'd better get to stitchin'! I used part of a pattern that I got from Peace Creek Collections a couple of years ago, it is for a tea towel and the name of the pattern is Lilly & Her Chicks. I just used Lilly this time. After stitching, I frayed the edges of the cloth to give it more of a rustic look and mounted the completed embroidery in a frame with a black background and added a piece of old chicken wire. Heaven knows, we sure have a lot of THAT laying around! ;)

I'm linking up with the new Creative Blog Hop at Dolly's Designs. Thanks Dolly!

Here is the dish towel I did a couple of years ago so that you can see the whole pattern. I haven't ever used the towel, I just hang it on the oven door for decoration! I think I'll start using it...

 

Five Facts Friday - 02/22/2013

1.  I won one of the door prizes for the Boost My Blog Party hosted by Nancy and Lisa last week! YAY!! This sweet, handmade heart tag is waaay too nice to go on our big ol' outside dog Buddy so I put it on my keychain where I can enjoy it. Thanks ladies for hosting the party, I discovered a LOT of wonderful new blogs to follow and picked up some wonderful new Followers too! :)

2.  I won some other lovely prizes on recent blog giveaways that I need to mention...some heirloom tomato seeds from Kateri, two lovely bars of goat milk soap from Millie, a beautiful metal sculpture cross to hang from Michelle and some handmade soap from Michaele. (Edited to add) AND a beautiful colored pencil drawing from TexWisGirl of a sweet little nuthatch! I also received an unexpected Christmas package from Kristina, a Pay-It-Forward package from Susan and a handpainted tile from Marie. Thank you all and I'm sorry I'm so late in acknowledging some of you. Blogging buddies are the BEST!! :)

3.  It has snowed three times in the last two weeks here! The storm this past Wednesday gave us almost six inches of snow, the most we have seen in the eight years we have lived here. The moisture is always welcome!

4.  Our cat, Ruby, snores. Sometimes so loudly that I can hear her in the other room! ;)

5.  I'm still getting almost three quarts of milk a day from my goat. It will be two years at the end of March since she kidded. I guess I'll just keep milking her until she starts to dry up! I hate buying milk from the store.

Kale with Sausage and Beans

Last week, I had a lovely bunch of kale from the Farmer's Market to use up and some spicy Italian sausage. I thought about making Sausage Potato Kale soup but Jerry was about "souped out" for awhile.

I did a search on the internet for ideas and came across this recipe from one of my favorite sites, Simply Recipes. I did make a couple of changes to the original recipe. I used spicy Italian sausage and I substituted some leftover pinto beans for the white beans, since that was what I had on hand. I also added some mushrooms. Wow, this dish is simple, quick and full of flavor!! The above picture is actually some leftovers that I had for breakfast the next morning with a poached egg on top, YUM! :)

Kale with Sausage and Beans

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 pound bulk spicy Italian sausage
1 onion, sliced thin
8 ounces sliced mushrooms (I love baby Bellas)
2 garlic cloves, sliced thin
1 pound kale, remove center rib and roughly chop leaves
1/2 cup chicken stock
2 cups cooked pinto beans
Salt and pepper

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the sausage and cook for about 5 minutes, then add the onions and mushrooms. Cook until the edges of the onions start to brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the kale, sprinkle with salt, then add the chicken stock. Cover the pan, lower the heat to medium and cook for 2 or 3 minutes to wilt down the kale. Uncover, mix well and add the beans. Cover again and turn the heat to low. Cook for another 5 minutes and then turn off the heat. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Linking up with The Country Homemaker Hop, Down Home Blog Hop, Rurality Blog Hop, Farmgirl Friday and What I Am Eating.

Texture Tuesday - 02/19/2013

For Texture Tuesday this week, Kim asked us to use at least one of the textures from her new Downtown Collection. I used Cora for the pink and Sybil to lighten it up a bit. I also added one of Bonnie's Vintage Manuscript textures just because I really like them! Jerry bought me these tulips for Valentine's Day just so I'd have some flowers to photograph. Isn't he sweet? I sure am having fun "playing" with photos. :)
Also linking up with P52 Sweet Shot Tuesday.

Five Facts Friday - 02/15/2013

I thought I would join in on the fun of 5 Facts Friday this week, mainly because I can't think of anything to post about!! ;)

1.  At age 54, I'm still a sucker for a cute, stuffed Teddy Bear and have more than I want to admit to.

2.  I can't decide whether or not to plant a garden this year. Being at the Farmer's Market every week selling baked goods, I can buy, or barter for, whatever I want.

3.  Some days, I spend waaayyy too much time on the computer in BlogLand.

4.  One of my favorite TV shows happens to be Swamp People (don't judge me). The new season premiered last night. :)

5.  I'm really glad the 2012 DA14 asteroid didn't hit us today! LOL!!