This hit song from 1983, with words Anne Murray could have written last night, often comes to mind. This weekend has been somewhat awful with lots of sprinkles, so I'm going to focus on the sprinkles.
We got our first pullet bullet yesterday, and another today! Go, Lottie!
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| L to R: bullet #1, bullet #2, mature hen egg |
How do I know Lottie is the bestower of blessings? An educated guess based on her behavior (the squatting), combined with having the largest, reddest comb of the pullets.
Yesterday I witnessed Spot breed Blaise, and this morning he was very interested in Bernadette as well as Blaise. I'm pretty sure I would have had another breeding or two to mark on the calendar if the jingle of Poppy's collar hadn't distracted them. Crossing fingers that that's at least three of the four ewes in the breeding group covered — and settled.
Yesterday we took a walk around town with visiting relatives, blessed with a dry island in the midst of an atmospheric river and the most amazing fall foliage (all photos straight out of my iPhone):
Celebrating a birthday was the reason for the visitors; I made the requested birthday cake. Folks, this is how you do German Chocolate Cake:
Because, after all, isn't that rich Coconut Pecan Frosting the best thing about it? Why NOT spread it over the whole thing?!?
Today has been windy, and very wet at times; I imagine many of the leaves that bedazzled us yesterday are scattered. But my big Japanese maple is just getting fired up:
My husband has gotten fired up today, too, taking care of some of the long-neglected messes around the place that were making me crazy. Yay!
Unfortunately the arena is too sloppy-wet to turn the horses out or ride, which is probably making my mare crazy. And since I am covering for Rick's secretary on the days I'm not working at my usual part-time job this week, she'll likely go crazier. I will, too; our near-daily time together is one of my essential therapies. Hopefully we can sneak in some after-dark rendezvous.
I have more to share, but think those will be in future posts; this is long enough.
That's it for now from . . .
14 comments:
I'm always excited when a new pullet lays her first egg. Your fall colors are so pretty. Love your blog, have a great day!
I agree with the excitement, Sherry; can't wait to share our first BLUE egg! Thanks so much for the love. 😊
Your fall color is gorgeous! Such a delight to the eyes. We have a little here and there, but we never really get a good show.
Those pullet eggs are always exciting. We're still waiting for our pullets to start. They're six months old now so it should be any day!
The fall colors near you are just wonderful. Ours are not going to be nice this year. They seem to be going to brown with no in-between change in colors.
I read this every day even though I seldom comment. One of the only things I missed this year about WSWF was being able to actually meet you. Believe me that many people out here in the blog-o-sphere read your blog like I do and read between the lines having been there in their lives. Best wishes for a level road ahead.
Oh, Michelle, I hope things mellow out for you soon. It's such a strain to have to function when one's mind is held captive by the difficult phases of life we go through.
Thank you for sharing the magnificent color show your area is currently displaying. Most of our trees are bare now, but there is still that occasional golden dress on a few which contrasts beautifully with the evergreens. I'm enjoying it as much as possible before we enter bare, stark, monochromatic November!
ALWAYS focus on the sprinkles - and German Chocolate cake! My Carpathian Walnut trees are producing nuts right now. They make the best pecan pie. I'll bet they'd be good in a GC cake, too! Cheers
Hi Michelle!
I'm really excited for you, on the gift of those three eggs! I hope the other chicklens get started laying soon, too!
And I hope too, that your ewes will ALL settle! That would be so much fun to see little lambs.
It's been 27! years since my husband and I moved to the west foothills of the Cascades. (That's almost unreal!) I have SO loved the beautiful fall colors we get here. In the places we've lived before coming here, there were no fall colors so lovely as this area. Your photos are simply gorgeous!
Thanks for sharing!
Leigh, I think I'd ask for a partial refund on those pullets. Six months and no eggs yet??? The fall colors we have are mostly from planted, not native trees, so we get the best show in towns, but I'll take it!
I was afraid that would happen here, Elaine, but we got blessed!
Sharrie, to know that you follow along and understand has given me such a boost this morning; THANK YOU.
Thanks for understanding, Mama Pea. I'm glad our winter monochromatic shade is GREEN.
Tim, do Carpathian walnuts taste different than regular walnuts? I LOVE walnuts in cookies.
Jeanne, that big egg was from DAYS ago; the big hens are old and tired. I can't wait to see a BLUE pullet bullet! Hopefully I'll have as much interest in lambs next year as I did this year (when I had none to sell). Otherwise, we could be overrun!
P.S. - I realized when I read my comment that I had made a mistake, when I said "three" eggs. I knew when I first read it that there were only two pullet bullets. I need to do more proof-reading! A friend has a few chickens, and I know that most of the eggs she gets are brown, but she does get a few green ones. I have no idea what breeds she has.
Well, here's your biology headache for today:
Carpathian walnuts are sometimes otherwise known as English walnuts or Persian walnuts. They are easy to pick and taste an awful lot like pecans. They have the shells con-men use for gambling pea tricks. Officially it is known as Juglans regia. I have trees from the old Miller Nursery which will grow here. Millers said they were imported from the Carpathian mountains.
American black walnuts are what grow like weeds on my farm in Iowa. These are the stronger flavored, hard to pick, nuts usually referred to as 'walnuts.' This is also the tree that supplies the beautiful dark walnut cabinet wood. The official name of this one is Juglans nigra.
Pecans are in a whole other world. Technically, they are Carya illinoinensis. It is still in the Juglandaceae family like the others, but a second cousin - or third? They will not grow for me here at Oakdale Farm. They will grow about 25 miles south of me. I'm in that special little 'hook' climate of awfulness, remember.
Usually two asprin and a glass of wine - or a long walk with an active terrier will make the headache go away. Hope this isn't too much nuttiness for this morning!
Eat more pie.... Cheers
Cake… always cake when things seem unsettled… and coffee ! Hope things ease and your heart becomes lighter, soon!
Jeanne, my understanding is that green eggs come from chickens developed from crossing blue-egg layers (most often going back to Araucana or Ameraucanas) with brown-egg layers.
Ah, the vagaries of common terms, Tim! I've always known Carpathian walnuts as English walnuts, or just plain walnuts. Black walnuts are ALWAYS referred to as black walnuts, never as just walnuts. Both grow here, and there are commercial orchards of just plain walnuts ;-); they are often grown on black walnut root stock. I dislike the strong flavor of black walnuts, probably from an early experience with them. When I was attending a boarding high school, my paternal Kansas grandmother sent me a care package of chocolate chip cookies with black walnuts in them. Not familiar with the flavor, I thought the nuts had gone rancid! Ugh. I love a good (read English!) walnut probably even more than a pecan, but would never mistake one for the other. Unfortunately my active terrier gave me heartache this morning that aspirin, wine, or walks won't fix....
I'm not generally a cake lover, wyomingheart, but homemade German Chocolate Cake is nothing to sneeze at. I don't think any changes are on the near horizon, but I'll keep praying that they are!
Amazing fall color!!! And(hopefully) lambies on the way!!! :-)
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