Diary 1/31/13

Conk growing on an old Douglas Fir stump

Last day of the first month of the new year. The sun is getting the opportunity to prove it is still there today.  We have had gloom, clouds, and rain for so long, we were beginning to wonder. Toiling on some clean-up in the yard with clipping out old perennial stalks, some blackberry vine eradication, and a little rock stacking where a new planter will be. I did get out to the greenhouse yesterday to plant radishes, snow peas, and chard. I also sprinkled the bottom of a bag of seed that was quite the mixture. We'll see what I get if anything. I have accomplished some writing. I have to constantly turn down the volume on the voice of self-doubt.

Diary 1/29/13

Who's going to the garden?

Diary 1/28/13

Woke up to 3 1/2 inches of snow.  Very wet and turning to slush as the morning continued to get warmer.  Didn't go away, but boy is it a wet mess out there.  Baby shower went very well.  Good to celebrate with friends and family.  Stayed with our birds and nests theme as much as we could.  The mama-to-be scored, and that is what it is all about after all!

Diary 1/25/13

Full moon tomorrow night to Sunday, snow maybe, too.  That would be fun.  Feel like quite the socialite, two parties in two days, phew!

Diary 1/24/13

Sunny, dog day of winter

Cleaning house for a baby shower here this weekend.  Looks like a historical affair in the making.  Lots of old friends and family coming together, I hope.  Add to that games and cupcakes, it is all good!  Sunny day with temperatures in the lower fifties.  Very nice, but only one of them as it going to start raining tomorrow. Soon it will be nice for a few days in a row and then voila, that whole growing thing will start again.  I will resist the urges to jump in with both feet as best I can! It will be interesting to deal with my freedom.

Diary 1/23/13

It is raining for the first time in quite awhile.  Our ice will be melting, and the ponds will fill up again.  The ground is still frozen, but with temperatures above freezing for the next couple days, it will thaw and turn into a layer of loose mud that makes keeping a floor clean very difficult.  Ah well, country living.

Diary 1/21/13

                                                  What can I say?  
                                     You can't keep a good pansy down!

Diary 1/20/13

Went to a 3 year old's birthday party at Wildlife Safari.  Nice activity for kids for sure.  Didn't have to drive anywhere, there is plenty to do at the petting zoo, etc. Garden Girl has headed north and I am looking forward to a change of pace.  Lots of drawer lining, closet cleaning, and 2 freezers to defrost, clean and inventory!  All that and plans to write, do yoga daily, and some crafts, while giving a baby shower and traveling to see some friends and family.  Hmmmm, maybe a bit too much planned?!!!?

Diary 1/19/13

This is the view of the greenhouse way down there from 2/3 of the way up a tall Ponderosa pine tree in the yard. My son was taking all the dead branches out of it with concerns for them coming down randomly on the chicken pen, phone line, or whoever might be passing by.  Not my cup of tea at all.  I can barely look at the photo without the onset of vertigo!

Diary 1/17/13

I left some drip lines going in the greenhouse.  The soil was so dry that nothing was happening; there was no sign of worms, microbes, or life.  In the few days the addition of a good drink has totally changed what would be called the tilth, the viability, of the soil as a living organism of sorts.  The beds are back alive and cold, but well. The clods are broken down, the clay has expanded, filling air holes up with moist dirt, all good. I will resist the urge to plant a few radishes for another little while, but I don't know how long I can hold myself off.  Remember, I am only growing for pleasure this year, not moolah, so how long a row is that? 12inches? What a concept!

Diary 1/16/13

With all the reports of three different cougars in our area, and the fresh haunch of venison that was buried in the snow in a clearing I can see from my laundry room window, I am not surprised that the deer are hanging out in our yard.  Did some clean up yesterday afternoon as we are above the fog and the inversion plaguing the valley.  I think the temperature approached 50 degrees.  It felt really nice in the sun. As soon as we came inside, here came the deer, 7 in all, to munch on the lawn that had melted during the day.  I even raked some leaves to expose more grass for them, a duty I may regret in Spring when they fail to depart...

Diary 1/14/12

Another cold day, but SUNNY! Some areas melted off to expose grass for the poor deer.  Glad we are not in the valley where the inversion keeps it foggy and freezing all day. Picnic anyone?

Diary 1/13/13

With temperatures of 16 last night, and 13 the night before, things are pretty frozen up outside.  We are expecting some high 40's later in the week and that is going to feel balmy.  This picture looks like white flowers, but they are icicles formed at the top of pond weeds.  There is a science to all this crystal making, but I don't know much about it!

Diary 1/10/12

New snow overnight. So pretty!  Still have our power, but no phone...

Diary 1/9/13

Putting  away the last of the Christmas decorations.  I know, I'm late, but they are so pretty, especially with the new snow we received today.  Hate to let go.  Now what?  Red stuff and hearts for Valentine's Day?  Red, white, and blue for President's Day? My decorating has reached a lull.  Too early for primroses. Too late for Christmas cactus and Poinsettias. Ah well, just enjoy these short days and long night with ten hours of sleep and late mornings compared to the rest of the year.

Diary 1/8/13

Cinderella "in her car on the way to the ball", she says.  My how the story has updated. Worked in the greenhouse where the big red bull made a mess.  I think he might have gotten his head stuck in a tomato framework now that I have had a closer look.  He might have been hung-up for awhile, but then the framework got the worst of it.  It is piled and I will remove any screws, but basically it is ready to burn it is in so many small pieces. Weeded in the other greenhouses and started some water where it was so dry, no soil action was taking place and the worms were nowhere to be seen.

Diary 1/7/12

My husband came back from the coast with fresh caught Steelhead, cleaned and cooked crab, and smoked salmon.  It's a rough life, but someone has to eat this stuff...

Diary 1/7/12

It was a dreary, dreary day, cold and grey, drippy moist. I did take a quick walk around and spoke with the chickens, but otherwise I was not inclined to go out.

Diary 1/6/12

It is hard for me to blog in winter when there is so little going on.  I haven't even walked out to the garden in the last few days though there is still some greens, carrots, and beets out there.  I harvested onions the other day.  I had to dig them out from under row cover and frozen snow, but they were fine.  Well, the ones the big red bull didn't eat were fine.  I am still a little put out that I had to deal with a range cow so late in the season, but that is another subject. I have been working on my book, little by little, in between helping with taking care of Garden Girl.  She is learning letters and numbers and needs quite a bit of attention, and because the weather has been so cold, we have been working on those. Other projects are on hold for now, but she may be heading north in a couple weeks, so they will wait until then. Meanwhile, I have received several garden catalogs and though I will do less this year, I do need some new seeds, so want to get a first order in soon. I won't plant anything for another month or until we have at least 10 hours of light per day. More snow due in on Wednesday.  Hibernation feels good for now.

Diary 1/1/13

Hey, didn't I talk to you last year? Yeah, old joke.  Anyway, here we are, officially in 2013.  It was sunny and mild-in the forties-today.  Our friends came up, and we took these snow bunnies for a walk and sled pull. Football and eating, eating, eating this afternoon.  Early bedtime tonight, I think...