"It is well to remember that the entire population of the universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others." A.Holmes

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Doves & Scrolls For the Garden (Arbor For Kiwi)

My husband added this detail to many special buildings he built for me.This is part of the roof support of my dovecote.(below)
 If you look at the roof ridge in this pen in my herb garden you can see the same dove detail. It is presently housing our granddaughter's rooster Roseville, but I will be putting doves in it soon.You can see the close-up here.
 The new arbors for kiwi and grapes surround the dovecote and my husband has worked to craft them so they reflect the other garden structures he has built. We are not finished yet, so many little details to add, plus the landscaping and the upkeep of the gardens.
 The decking under the wood lawn furniture is not on yet. We will be using the gray plastic decking that looks like wood, but will last as many years as we hope to live here, and then some. You can see the new kiwis my husband planted and is training to climb the arbor. The kiwi vines will cover the arbor in a year or two, provide shade in the summer, and fruit to eat.
 

Monday, June 25, 2012

TeaTime Tuesday With Mrs. Little & Friends

It's Teatime Tuesday and I've missed my Tuesday teas.Since the weather has remained a steady cloudy / rainy, and cool, in the high 50's to the low 60's, I decided I would brainstorm with Mrs. Little and two of her friends to plan a fairy garden party. Surely the weather will warm up soon, and a party in the garden is something to look forward to.Above is a new tiny tea-set my friend Judy gave to me to share with the Little family.
This little tea set is perfect for the Littles as you can see. Mrs. Little's fairy friends, Lily and Lilac, are using teacups that are slightly larger, much more appropriate for them. Mama Cat and one of her kittens have come to the table to find out about the fairy garden party too.
Lilac is reaching for the delicious cake Mrs. Little prepared ahead of time for this little planning party.
Lily is dictating to me the list of supplies I will need to assemble so 4 of my grandchildren and I can make just the right miniature gardens for the upcoming party.
Mama Cat returns to the Little's bed to contemplate the upcoming party and she is hoping there will be catnip tea and some very tiny mice.
Thank-you Judy for this little tea set. About the tea set,there is a sticker on the bottom of the tray . The only legible thing on the silver label is " N.J." I am assuming they are the abbreviations for the state of New Jersey. There are no other marks  of any kind on any of the little pieces of china.The tiny roses are a favorite of Mrs. Little, and she adores the gold rimmed china.She believes this little tea set adds elegance to her humble china hutch home.

I have several miniature tea sets and all are of different sizes thus enabling me to serve tea to the Bear family, the Little family, and the fairies without any of my little friends having to deal with cups and saucers they are unable to comfortably handle.My little friends assure me they enjoy tea with me no matter the size of the cups, but one does like to make friends and family comfortable and welcome and I like to know they appreciate tea with me enough to come back for more.Please join us next Tuesday when I will share the Fairy Garden Party in the miniature gardens our grandchildren and I will have made just for this occasion.

Please join the ladies listed below for Tea Time Tuesday :
  1. Artful Affirmations *
  2. Martha's favorites *
  3. Lady Katherine's Tea Parlor * 
  4. Rose Chintz Cottage *
  5. A Delightsome Life *

"Why not seize the pleasure at once? How often is happiness destroyed by preparation, foolish preparation?" Jane Austin
So, make a pot of tea and a sandwich, head outside, and breathe in the scents, sounds, and sights of summer as you sit back and enjoy the simple blessings you already possess. No fancy garden, porch, or tea accessories needed, just simple thankfulness and appreciation.

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

New Fishing Buddies For Father's Day

Father's Day we went fishing, my husband, myself, our daughter, her husband, their 4 children,and some friends.The weather was absolutely miserable, but it was one of the best Father's Day ever!
Our daughter & her husband's 4 children. When they posed for this picture the sun shone, for a few minutes anyway.
 Some of us took boats out in the lake to try to catch fish, here our daughter and her 2 oldest children are rowing out to the opposite shore.They would have had some success had they stayed on the humble dock...
 ..with us, my husband, myself, and the two youngest grandchildren.
 The FIRST fish of the day ( for our party) and the first fish he has ever caught. Look at that smile! The fish was a little bullhead and after taking it off the hook we threw it back, but Little J was so happy about his first fish.
 Then, he caught the second fish, a nice perch, and he is now hooked on fishing."If people concentrated on the really important things in life, there'd be a shortage of fishing poles." Doug Larson
 These two are the perfect fishing buddies.They sat with us as long as we fished, hours!No complaining, lots of excitement, and our granddaughter & I shared coffee and small talk while waiting for the big fish to bite."The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of what is elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope." John Buchan
By the end of our time fishing, no one who went out on a boat caught any fish, but those of us on the dock had a wonderful time reeling them in. My husband & I caught 4 Rainbow trout each, and one of my fish was quite large. ( not the fish shown above) I have always loved to fish and I especially love fishing with my husband, and our new fishing buddies, our grandchildren.My husband said this was a great Father's Day,and I agree.We went home cold, wet, tired, and very happy. Plus, the fish were delicious!
"I love fishing. You put that line in the water and you don't know what is on the other end. Your imagination is under there."   Robert Altman
 

Friday, June 8, 2012

Porch Ponderings~ "Always Remember To Cuddle"

From my porch I watch my sheep, the birds at the feeders, the ducks as they waddle by. I listen to the rain and the wind.It has been a very rainy , cold spring ~ and now into June, we here in Washington are the coldest place in the U.S., colder than Alaska and the northernmost territories. The weatherman did say Siberia was a tad colder.So the porch is a nice place to sit with a hot cup of coffee, ponder, enjoy the view.A warm sweater makes it more bearable too.
Some of my ponderings from the porch have lately centered on some of the dear ladies I have come to know through blogging who have recently lost their beloved husbands to death. I count these dear ladies as friends, and their loss saddens me, yet both of these women loved men who love Jesus, and they are confidant they will again be with their husbands in eternity. ( John 3:16 ) A recent obituary in our local paper caught my eye because of the deceased's  life motto, I think it is one we should all strive for:"Live simply and always be grateful for the love and friendship life bestows on you, and always remember to cuddle".

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

A Whole Lot Of Brooding Going On Around Here

There is a whole lot of brooding going on around here.Inside the dove cote in front of the house...
...doves are sitting on eggs. They've gone "broody", which "describes a hen's condition in the period during which she is intent on incubating her eggs and is often reluctant to move off the nest until they are hatched." 'CHICKENS' by Derek Hall
On the floor of the dove-cote there is some brooding going on too. See the stump in the top right part of the picture? Look closely...
...yes, there! Sitting oh so quietly and calmly, is a bantam frizzled cochin. She won't leave the eggs she is sitting on, rarely leaving to eat or drink. If I try to move her she seems catatonic, but if I take her too far away from the clutch of eggs she is sitting on she squawks and flaps fiercely in her attempt to be back on her eggs.
The other 2 bantam cochins, her sister and the rooster, leave her to the eggs. They know better than to disturb her. Smart chickens!
My midget white turkey hens are also sitting on eggs. They simply scratched a bowl shaped area of shavings out and laid their eggs. They won't move off their eggs either. I can walk around them, add feed & water to their pen, but they steadfastly sit,almost as if they are deaf and blind to anything but what is under them.Like the chickens and doves, they seem to be focused inward, oblivious to everything but the tending of their eggs.
In the bantam pen in the back of our home the story is the same. bantam hens striving with each other to sit on a clutch of eggs. Often the hens will steal eggs from each other by rolling them away from a nest mate and under their own feathered breasts.

These 4 ( FOUR! ) hens have decided to share the nest box. They sit together, day after day, keeping the eggs warm, turning them, and often gently, oh so gently, slyly sliding an egg out from under a nest mate, to warm it under their own breast.
Either way, the eggs are being incubated, and when hatched, will be tended faithfully. I will remove 3 of the hens just before hatching because I have had hens fight so fiercely over the chicks that the chicks end up being unintended victims as they try to get under the wings of their fighting mothers.
Meanwhile, back in the dove-cote, look what just hatched!
5 new bantam white cochin chicks, tended by a devoted mother.All this brooding going on around here is going to make for a lot more drama and entertainment on Cedar Pond! 

I hope any brooding around your home is productive, leading to righteous fruit and a happy home, and not hen fights! Remember, when hens fight, little chicks get hurt, and big chicks do too! "Let all be harmonious , sympathetic,brotherly, kindhearted,and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil, insult for insult; but giving a blessing instead;....And who is there to harm you if you prove zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed." I Peter3: 8,9,13

Sunday, June 3, 2012

"Oh Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder, consider all the worlds Thy hands have made.I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, Thy power throughout the universe displayed. Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to Thee, how great Thou art, how great Thou art !Hymn by Stuart K.Hine, inspired by Carl Gustav Boberg

Friday, June 1, 2012

Arbors To Craft, Kiwis To Plant,Doves To Enjoy

One of my favorite places at the front of our home is the dovecote ( structure in the left of the photo) my husband built me that is home to some of my white ring-neck doves. I also have 3 white bantam cochins living in it. My husband has been busy re-landscaping this area because the ice storm this past winter destroyed some of the trees and bushes here.
To the left of the dovecote is an arbor my husband is building , part of a landscape design my daughter's husband drew up for us and also helped begin.( Our beloved son-in-law Thomas is very talented in this).
This arbor has kiwi planted on either side. This is a very sunny area and the kiwi will grow quickly , hopefully giving us shade and fruit.We will be putting a swing under the arbor. This arbor looks out over the lawn and the pond. My husband is not finished with the arbor yet, and has already begun another arbor that will be close to this one, as a grape-vine covered an entrance to the red gravel area in the top picture.The little building in the background is my husband's honey-house.

Having the doves so close to the house and also an outdoor eating area is very soothing and also fun to watch. My husband and I often eat our dinner together in this area when the weather permits, and we have also put a small fountain pond in this area where we watch the goldfish as we listen to the water gurgle and the doves coo and laugh.

 This is to the right of the dove cote,the closed red umbrella is shown open in one of the photos above. This photo was taken a few weeks after the first photos, the rhododendrons blossomed 2 weeks ago and are still loaded with blooms.
Here is my view of the dove cote from one side of the front porch. When the arbor is done ( soon) I will be able to see it too. Even better, when the grapes & kiwis grow up and over the arbors, there will be shade, a welcome respite from the hot summer sun . I will add more posts showing the project as my husband finishes it, he has a lot of projects though. He plants and tends the vegetable gardens, keeps the bees,and along with his  full time job , it is important we actually DO sit down together and enjoy the peaceful garden rooms and areas we have created."As for man, his days are like grass; As a flower of the field,so he flourishes. When the wind passes over it , it is no more; and its place acknowledges it no longer.But the lovingkindness of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him." Psalm 103:15-17