Oh they do grow fast

Remember the Kefir post a while back? Oh my they grow so fast its hard to keep up. I now have lots of grains to share if anyone who reads here is interested. You can Google "water Kefir" and learn all about it and its great health benefits. If this seems to be something you would like to make for your family I am willing to share the grains with you. Most of you already know I don't work anymore so if you would be so kind as to help with the postage it would sure be much appreciated by my hubby. I have to ask him to pay to mail this stuff for me. If you would like to have grains, email me at stellasplace62@gmail.com and let me know. Leave me you mailing address in the email please and I will send them. I have enough to share with about 5 people right now and they reproduce rapidly so in a few days I will have more. Just to let you know how active these grains are, even the ones I put in the fridge when I left for Nevada have worked and reproduced in the cold of the fridge. Normally they slow down and almost stop fermenting but these did not. So you can be assured they are healthy.

It has been one of those wet dreary nasty days outside that makes the body hurt a bunch. The forecast is for snow tonight and all the way thru this time next week. You would think it is March out there. I am looking forward to spring here. Really getting tired of this cold wet weather. But it is good for the ground and gardening so I should not complain about it.

Not much else happening here today. So till next time blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella

Not sure what season it is yet

Our weather has been a bit wonky the last week. While we were in Vegas it was nice then rained and sleeted and we got back it was nice at 50 degrees. It was just like spring out today but it rained a bit. We even had thunder. They say thunder in February, frost the same day in May. That will not be good to have frost on May 25. Not good a tall. But it will do  what ever it wants no matter what we want. That is all in Gods hands. We are susposed to get snow flurries tonight and tomorrow now. Did I mention I do not like cold weather no more? Well just in case, I dont.

I think I am still tryin to rest up after our trip. We just lounged around all day Saturday. We went to Richmond to Lowes and Walmart on sunday. Rodger wanted to go get the materials to build lil Liam a toy box and I wanted to get some yarn to make a cocoon for the baby. So off we went. My body did not need to be traveling just 2 days after a long trip. I think it made the hurty worse. We picked up a few things at walmart and headed back home. Stopped by to see Rodgers parents in Richmond and came on home. We had stopped to see his sis Tammy on the way down. Her daughter Kim had surgery for gallbladder removal this morning and she is home now doing ok, hurtin a bit an gettin sore. So happy the gallbladder didnt flare up on her while we were all in Vegas. I think she and her momma had a pretty nice time. They got to do some sightseeing while they were there. Its always nice to see other parts of the country. Anyway back at home I ordered stuff to make more lotion. I took Amoy a small jar of the lotion and she loved it. She has really dry skin and she said it helped a lot. I do think I will change the emulsifier that I use to the vegetable wax as it helps emulsify the oils and water much better than beeswax and it is derived from a plant source. I dont use preservatives in my lotion so it has to be refrigerated if it is kept for a longer period of time. I think it would be fine for a month but longer it would need to be kept cold to prevent bacterial growth. I should get my order of supplies later this week.

Before we left for Vegas I ordered my chicks for meat birds. Used Cackle hatchery this time as I do think they have the same blood line that Marti poultry farms had. Not sure when they will arrive but soon I do hope so we can get them raised up and butchered off before we go to Nevada in May when the baby gets here. I dont think Jason and Mary Kay want to babysit 25 lil chickens. Matter of fact, I know they dont. The cornish require more attention than standard breeds to keep the temps just right for them. But we  hope to get the garden in and the greenhouse empty before we leave to. I guess I have to get the greenhouse up before I worry about getting it empty. I am out of plastic so will have to buy a roll to use this year. Maybe next year we can get one made from the polycarbonite panels. I can dream I guess.

Last post when I labeled  the wedding pictures with names I listed the wrong names for Amoy's mom and auntie. Her mom is Paula and her auntie is Pauline. See I tole you I was terrible with names. I do well to know my own name. Sorry Paula and Pauline.
The day after the wedding Matt (Robs best man and best friend) and Rob were going out to drive some fast cars. This was Matt's treat for Rob as a wedding gift. I think they had a blast.
Here are a couple pics of them and some of the cars they got to test run. Expensive fast cars I might add.

Rob in a Lamborghini. Dont he look cool?. I think he said one of the cars got sideways coming out of the parking lot. Imagine that!! Lead foot?

 

This is Rob in the Jaguar XKR-5. Pretty color, but too small and not practical here on the farm. But fun no less.

This is the lil red Ferrari. Now this I really like. But really have no need for one. But would be fun to take for a spin.

This  is Rob on the right and Matt on the left posing with their big boy toys for the day. I am sure these 2 had a blast. It was one of those once in a lifetime chances to do something. And these 2 guys like to hang out together. They have been best friends for 10 years. And Matt is really a great guy.

This is a pic of Amoy's momma Paula at the wedding. Some of these photos I just got from Tammy on Sunday so they didnt get posted on my last blog post. She is a sweet lady for sure.

 

This is Amoy's aunt Pauline with Rob. I got names switched on the last post. They know and understand how my memory is at my age. A really sweet lady.

This pic was from dinner on Wednesday night before the wedding next day. From left to right, Rob, Matt Vanover, lil ole me, and Tammy, Rodger's sister, my sis in law, Rob's aunt. As other family members post and send pics I will post more that I think you all might enjoy. So glad my wonderful readers can share in this special time with us. Thank you all for letting me brag and show off my sweet family.


Not much else happening here on the farm right now except the rain. So till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella

I gave birth and our family expanded

Yep for those that know me personally, bet that title got your attention. I can hear the gasp now. But its really true. It was 31 years ago today that I gave birth to the most beautiful little baby boy I had ever laid my eyes on. He has grown into a fine young man that I am proud to call my son. I hear lots of moms and dad talk about how their kids have worried them to death, out doing dangerous stuff and stuff that could kill them. I am so blessed that I did not worry about those things as either of my boys were growing up. My motto is "give them wings, and give them roots". I guess we always second guess ourselves as parents but in the end I can say I am proud of Jason and fine young man he has become. I think he has finally found someone who loves him as much as his momma as well. This momma is happy. Happy birthday Jason. Love ya bunches.

And yep our family expanded this past week as well. We gained a beautiful daughter. So proud of Rob and his bride Amoy and so pray for a happy, healthy wonderful future for the 2 of them. Soon to be 3 of them. OK I know ya wanna see pictures. So here we go.

Yep thas my backside, sis in law Tammy was taking pics as the wedding progressed. Thanks Tammy, we all were so happy you and Kim and lil Harper were there to share this wonderful day with us.

This is the momma (me) and daddy(Rodger) of the groom. So love these 2 kids. What a joy this young man has been in our lives and this beautiful young lady has brought joy since we have known her as well.

 

This is the beautiful bride Amoy and her auntie Paula. I just wonder if this lil boy that is coming in May will be spoiled. I am thinkin, yeas.

 

This the groom and his groomsmen. Matt Vanover college roommate and best friend from Ky on the right, Matt Warnert friend and co-worker from Elko on the left. We got to meet a couple of Rob and Amoys friends from Elko at the wedding. All great young people. Kinda re-instills hope in humanity to know there are still many good quality young folks out there that are real and not so fake.

This is Stacy Warnert friend from Elko, and Sophia Boreland, sister of the bride. All 3 of these lovelies are live wires. So fun to watch them dance.

This is Amoy dancing with her brother Donovan, better known as Junior. He was such a nice guy. And oh my goodness can he dance. Not to mention his wife Kerry. They reside in New York so they have lots of opportunities to keep in practice.

I think most every one had to kiss the "baby". I am tellin ya it is gonna be rotten before it gets here.

Another pic of Amoy and Junior dancing with Robs aunt Tammy in the background.

This lil cutie is Amoy's lil niece Jovi who was the cutest lil flower girl ever and did a wonderful job scattering rose petals in front of the bride.

Sophia, Amoy and Rob in the limo after the wedding on the way back to the hotel. I am thinkin they had too much fun.

The beautiful bride and groom after the ceremony and at the reception.

The bride and groom at their table, with best man standing and aunt Tammy's backside.

 

Amoy's mom Vera standing left, with Kerry in back, lil sister Samara in the aqua dress, Sophia in turquoise dress and aunt Paula on the right. Sweet bunch o ladies.

A bunch of softies acting all tough. 

We had a great time visiting with all the family and at the wedding. There are more pics out there and I will share more later as I get copies of them. 

The mother/son dance went well. Rodger danced with Amoy. Not that he or I can dance but we can fake it. Anything for the kids. Love them dearly. I sure do not feel I lost a son but really gained a daughter. May God bless them both.

We flew from  Las Vegas on Friday morning back home. We left being kinda concerned with the weather that had blasted the mid west and north with lots of snow. We had no trouble on our flight. No delays in Detroit and made it to Lexington on time to finally arrive at our house about midnight last night. A good nights rest sure does a body good. I think Tammy and Kim finally got landed a couple hours after we did. They were flying American airlines and got delayed on the tarmac at Las Vegas and in Chicago. I still prefer to fly Delta. So far we have always got where we need to be on time with them. 

All was well on the farm, Jason cared for the chickens while we were gone. I went to close up the chickens tonight to find I have 2 hens that want to set. So I stuck eggs under one of them. Not sure if the other one is serious or just threatening. Will see tomorrow and if she is serious she will get eggs too. Before we left I got my Cornish cross ordered. This time I ordered from Cackle Hatchery. There are owned by the same folks that owned Marti poultry farms that I ordered the best chicks from in the past years. Not sure when they will be here. But hope soon enough we can have them butchered off before the first part of May. Luna was so happy to see us when we got home. I guess she thought she had been abandoned. She almost got in the truck with us when we pulled in. But now she knows we home. I think Possum thought we had runned away too, he was a lil shy when I first got here. But he is back to his routine now. He is at the chicken house when I close the chickens up for the night. He gets in front of me on the way back to the house till I tell him to go gt on the porch and lay down and I will rub his belly. And he takes off and gets just inside the gate on the deck and rolls over on his side so I can rub his belly for a minute and he is fine after that. He is sure a big boy. Long way from the lil orphan kitten that I nearly fell and killed myself to feed last summer. 

Not much else happening here on the farm today, so till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella

 

All done, on to the next project

I worked on the baby quilt last night till the wee hours of this morning. I got it tacked and it looked pretty good. The extra padding behind the lil bear blocks sure made a difference.

This  is with the tacking done. Now the tricky part is getting the borders on and finishing the whole thing. I worked on that today and finally finished.

 

Here it is, all done and ready to take with me this week and give it to Rob and Amoy for the lil one. You know how they say you cant always see the forest for the trees. My friend Anna and I were talking on the phone last night and she brought some differences to my attention. The bears are all the same at first glance, but upon looking at the details they are all different. Really the only thing they have in common is that they are all in some shade of blue. Each bear has a different expression on its face, their bows are different colors, and some of them don't have hands. Hell I had not noticed the lil things. I didn't see the forest for the trees. Thanks sissy  for bringing this to my attention. My poor lil grandson will get my very first attempt at making a quilt. I sure learned a lot making this lil project.

 I still need to get busy and crochet  the lil cocoon  and hat for Liam. I will work on that and ship it later. Hope I have more time to sit still when we get back from the wedding.  Its a good thing that I don't sleep much at night I guess. Come spring I will be busy with the greenhouse and gardens and outdoor stuff so the only time I can tinker with crocheting and such is at night when its too dark to be outside plundering around. I still don't really have my craft room/closet organized well yet. I think I need some shelves to store boxes for crafting stuff and shoes and such. At least it would look a lil better. Thas not really on any list of priorities at this point. It works for me and there should not be anyone in my closet anyway. 

I guess I am the worst for procrastinating. I did finally get out of town yesterday and get my nails done. I had planned on attending a friends Pampered Chef party but that did not work out. I had to wait 2 hours before they got to me to do my nails. Gosh the stupid stuff us girls go thru to look like a lady. I actually like the acrylic nails. They work out well for me. Lower maintenance than real ones. They even look nice if I have to work in the garden with em. Thas my kind of product that can stand up to my abuse. 

Not much else happening here on the farm today, so till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella

Pushing the deadline

Sounds just like me doesn't it? Always pushing the deadline. I have put off going out of town to find the thread to tack the baby quilt that I have started till dang it its not long till we fly to Nevada. If I keep messing around I wont have it done to take with me. I guess I will go out of town tomorrow and get the stuff to finish it up. I just need the thread to tack the quilt with and add the border and it will be done. I am going to get my nails done tomorrow anyway so I can pick up the thread while I am out and about. That is IF it don't snow. I don't do snow much less drive in it. Rodger cant go he is on call this weekend with his work so he must stay in town.

I was going to get those things done today but I am still having issues with leg cramps. I did go out to a friends house and got my hair cut today and on the way home I had to stop in the middle of the road because my right leg, the one on the gas pedal , started cramping really bad. So with it being 25 plus miles to the next town to the nail salon I thought I might not should try driving with muscle cramps. I didn't go. I came on home and puttered around the house. House cleaning, laundry and such.

Rodger picked up 20 lbs of ground beef from the slaughter house today and brought it home. I made about 15 lbs of it into burger patties and stacked those with parchment paper between the layers on a cookie sheet and put them in the freezer to freeze solid. Tomorrow they will go into zip top bags and be stored in the freezer for later use. I did freeze 1 of the 5 lb packs into 1/2 lb patties so I can add a half lb to each lb of ground venison when I make meatloaf. Meatloaf needs a lil bit of fat in it to make good gravy in the pan. So we tried out the burger for supper tonight and it makes really good hamburgers. I feel good knowing we will not get food poisoning this time. Rodger said he stood there and watched them grind the burger for us. He had ordered it and it was to be ready today and as he got there to pick it up they had just started grinding. That is about as fresh as you can get right there. No ammonia smell , no pink sludge in it, and didn't spend who knows how long getting to our dinner table. I sure feel better serving that to the family.

Not much happening here on the farm, so till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella

No more for us

No more store bought burger that is. OR fresh produce either. Not sure which one made us both sick but either one could be the culprit. We rarely buy store bought meat or fresh produce of any kind. I guess I am gonna have to figure out a way to grow a small amount of lettuce for a sandwich on the window sill in the summer kitchen or just not have any. Dang that is really bad. After reading things online and researching how foods get to your local store it is no wonder people get sick. And die. Not to mention the detrimental effects they have on our bodies out side of food poisoning that makes you sick quickly. It really boggles the mind if you think about it. Anyone knows that a fresh garden ripe picked tomato would not make the trip for Florida or California, much less Mexico to us at our local store in any kind of decent shape. It is all transported by truck and imagine the thousands of lbs of produce on that truck a "real" tomato would be pulp on the trip. What do they really do to them to make them keep longer? I know, they pick em green and ship em and they get ripe on the way. But we all know it takes a week or more for a tomato to fully ripen on the counter, so the red store tomatoes are more than 1 week old.  Now how about that big juicy burger you just ate. How did that beef get from the mid-west to your store.? For it to stay nice and pink it has to be treated with something to preserve the color. Most times that is ammonia or formaldehyde. Google "pink slime" and read about what all goes in your store bought burger. Or not! You may not ever eat another one. I know I wont no more. And dumb ass me knew all this when I ask Rodger to pick up burger for supper Friday night. Prolly would have been safer just eatin the dang wrapper it came in. If you are interested in what your family eats and research and read about our food supplies, you are trying to figure out how to eat better. Find a farmer in your area, make a deal with a good ethical farmer that is honest, ask around, and buy from them. This will help your own local economy AND put better food on your table. If you really think about it, it is really cheaper. Hey offer to help process your food you buy locally. Most people who know how are more than willing to share their knowledge with you as to how to take care of fresh meat and produce and canning or freezing. I wont lie, its a lil harder when you do more of the work yourself but so worth it.

Rodger didn't work today either as he still was not feeling up to snuff. He did feel better after I got him to drink some kefir water today. He actually felt really bad yesterday but still got out on the tractor and plowed up our garden spot. It was ready to plant peas and stuff. He went over there this afternoon and planted our peas and carrots. It is supposed to rain and snow tomorrow so they are in the ground. I am hoping for a good pea crop again this year. We have used a lot of our canned and frozen stuff from last season. I am almost out of corn in the freezer. Or at least I think I am. I may have to dig deeper to find some. If not I still have home canned corn from the year before. Our potatoes are not keeping well at all. Well they are keeping, they just have foot long sprouts on em. It has been a warm winter and the cellar is not cold enough to prevent or at least delay the sprouting. I will use them for a while and as soon as we get back from Nevada I will try to get Rodger to help me plant a couple rows for early taters to use on this summer and buy some new seed potatoes to raise to store. I think we may have a fungus in the ones we have now. I am gonna try the trick my friend Rosie told me about. She says if you put cornmeal in the bottom of the potato row it will encourage microbes to grow that will destroy the fungus. I got homegrown cornmeal so I can try. Will never know if it works for us if we don't try. We will be putting the plastic on the greenhouse when we get back also. Then it will be about time to start seeds in there. I have to find some other odd thing or 2 to grow this year. Not sure what that will be yet tho. I was looking at my pitiful egg gourds that I use for nest eggs when I gathered eggs a bit ago and I do need to raise more of those to dry. They really work to teach the hens where they need to lay. The gourd eggs I have now are ones I picked up several years ago in an antique shop in Nicholasville when Jason and I went plundering one mothers day weekend.

Well my quilt sewing project is coming along nicely. I got the batting in and double batted the bear squares. Now it is pinned together and ready to tack. I just have to by the thread to tack it with. Not gonna find that in our town tho. Maybe I can talk Rodger into an out of town trip this weekend. And then I can get the lil quilt finished to take with us to Nevada. I would take a pic, but that someone who borrowed my camera has not returned it yet. Soon I hope.

Not much else happening here, so till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella

Yuck!!

Yep that is how I have felt all day. Rodger and I both have not felt well today. Not sure what the problem is but we thinking maybe its what we ate. He said he didn't feel good Saturday morning. We had hamburgers for supper on Friday night. It was store bought burger with store bought tomato and lettuce. That is the only 3 things we had in common. Don't think it was the tomato as we have eaten some of them prior and no problems. So that leaves lettuce and burger. So not sure if we got a stomach virus or slight case of food poisoning. Most people can fight off a case of food poisoning if they are healthy and have a healthy digestive system. We do get plenty of probiotics and eat mostly organic foods that we raise. RARELY do we buy meat from the store period but once in a while we just want a hamburger. Guess we have to stop that. OR change our source of burger. I got lots of venison burger in the freezer but it is far too lean to make a good sandwich burger. I guess we need to go to the slaughter house and get burger if we want to grill an occasional hamburger. Cause I sure don't like this nasty sick feeling and I am sure he don't either. There is a slaughter house in a neighboring county that will custom grind meat for you. Really they butcher all the time but if you want a certain amount or type of meat you can call ahead and go pick it up on a set day. I guess we need to get several lbs of burger and make patties to freeze.
I really wanted to work on baby Liam's quilt but sure did not feel like it. So we have both just rested and chilled today. Both of us have been OK drinking plenty of fluids, Rodger did eat some tomato soup and grilled cheese later this evening when he felt hungry and not sick. I had wanted to go see mom at the nursing home tomorrow but I sure don't want her with this nasty stuff. Gosh she gets cramps really really bad when she gets the simple stomach virus. IF that is what we had. Don't think I want to chance it. So guess maybe I will go on Tuesday.
I must get a haircut this week too. Gosh time is wasting, not long till our trip to see Rob and Amoy. My hair grows out so fast it is not even funny. I like keeping my hair cut short, sure makes it easier to take care of. Take a shower brush it in place and go. No fuss. I likes that.
It has rained most of the day today, not hard rain just a rain that makes the day look gloomy outside. But gosh its less than 40 days till spring. It will be here in a blink and we will all be so busy, too busy to think. I love spring and watching the earth come alive with all Gods creations. New lil animals being born, new plant growth. Kind of renews the soul to get a chance to witness this. I am looking forward to some hens sitting some eggs and hatching some babies. I sure have plenty of excess eggs to put under any hens that want to set. I got 14 eggs today. Kinda hard to find use for a dozen eggs per day. But I can try. I boiled a bunch of eggs today and made some egg salad to eat as soon as I feel better. I guess I need to start making homemade puddings and stuff that requires a lot of eggs. I still need to dry some eggs just to make sure I can and know how.
Nothing happening here today, so till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella

Finally working on the baby quilt

I know you are saying "bout dang time". Well I know, I do procrastinate some. But I got my neat cutting mat and rotary cutter in yesterday and figured I may as well do some cutting and see what happens. It was not a hard project. But I learned something already. When making quilts, have all the fabric the same quality, I guess that's the right word. The lil bears that my Granny embroidered were on a thin sheet like material and the fabric I bought to set the quilt up with was a lil heavier cotton. I did the usual wash and dry the material before I started so it wont shrink later. But the squares the bears are on have a little more stretch than the fabric I bought. So I had a really hard time keeping everything straight. But I did get the sash pieces and border pieces sewn on today.

I

I think it will be kinda cute once it is complete. Not done yet. Still need to put in the batting and finish the edges. I really want to get this thing complete before we got to Vegas so I can take it to Amoy and Rob. Some of the things that Amoy has chosen for Liam's room have bears on them and the rest have lil monkeys. Its gonna be so cute. She has really good taste when it comes to decorating. When I get the quilt done I will start on the cocoon for the baby and a lil hat to match. Ya reckon I am getting in over my head here? Probably, but thas OK. Nothing I haven't done before.

Not much else happening here on the farm today, so till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella

My best lotion recipe

I have had a decent day today. The weather has been nice out and I have the door open to let in some fresh air. I somehow got motivated today to try a new lotion recipe altered from one I found online. I really altered it a lot and I love it. It was not hard to make. Now I cant wait to shower and try it out. But here is how I did mine. I did use my normal herbal blend to make the tea for this lotion. ALL organic stuff too.

Lotion

2 1/2 cups water (I have good well water)
a blend of herbs (calendula, golden seal, round leaf plantain, rose buds)
3/4 oils that are solid at room temp (coconut, mango butter, Shea butter)
3/4 cup oil that is liquid at room temp(almond, Castor, apricot seed oil)
1/3 cup bees wax pellets

Heat the water to boiling and stir in the herbs, cover and let steep over night. In the morning heat to almost boiling again and set off the heat to steep more.

In a large measuring cup fill to 3/4 with your choice of oils that are solid at room temp. On top of this add your 3/4 cup oils that are liquid at room temp along with bees wax. Melt in microwave till all is melted. Take out and stir often to get things melted together.


Strain 2 cups of the herbal tea into your blender container and put lid on without the hole cover in the middle.
Turn the blender on and stream the oils into the tea. It will emulsify pretty quick. Keep the blender on till all the oil is in and well blended. You may have to turn the blender off and on and scrape down the sides to get it evenly blended. Once it is blended scrape into the containers you want to keep your lotion in and let sit un-capped till it cools completely. Enjoy. The neat thing about this blend  of oils is that it will absorb into the skin well and will keep your skin moist all day with just one application.

 

You can tell from this photo how thick the lotion is after its blended. But not as thick as a creme type moisturizer would be.

My Kefir is growing like crazy. I put this in fresh sugar/molasses water yesterday evening and today it has grown a lot.

The line is the level of the grains yesterday and you can really tell how much they have increased in just 24 hours. Today I strained the grains out, made fresh sugar water for them and added them back and marked the level of grains on the jar again. Not long and I will have some grains to share if someone is interested.
This is very healthy stuff to consume. You can read about the benefits of Kefir here. I am sure hoping that will steady drinking the kefir water that it does make me feel better. So far, so good. If you think you have an over growth of yeast in your body you will want to consume a small amount of kefir water each day and work your way up or you may get a good deal of gas as the kefir kills off the yeast. I do know that just from a couple days of drinking the water kefir my belly don't feel so bloated. I can live with this.

Not much else happening here, so till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella

The ups and downs of life

Life has its share of ups and downs for everyone I think. But I guess we all have days when we feel like we have more than our share of downs. I think I have fallen in that hole again. Life does wear on you physically and mentally when you live with chronic pain, fatigue and soreness with stiffness in the joints. It makes life twice as hard when you just deal with "normal" daily things but for those of us with fibro and arthritis we have the "normal" things plus we fight the disease factors as well. I have finally come to realize the fact that I cant remember when I can say I have had a day that I actually feel good. The weather the past couple days has been really pleasant considering it is winter still and it would have been nice to get out of bed, have coffee and maybe go outside and walk around and look to see if any new things are starting to prematurely poke thru the ground. But with fibro and the RA by time I get to the point of being able to walk well and make coffee, I am tired. I sit down and while sitting decide to check email and such online. Read news, check mail, drink some coffee, take morning meds and by then feel so tired all I want to do is take a nap. No time for that at this point, so I push the body on. The cats and Luna want to be fed and the chickens need to be let out. Its still pretty cool out so I feed the cats and Luna, put on shoes and coat over jammies to go out and let the hens out. They are happy. Fill their water container and trudge back in the house. Really tired now, sit for a bit more thinking of all the things that need to be done, laundry, clean house, meals. A nap sounds good but cant sleep yet cause we need clean drawers, ya can only turn em over so many times ya know. So off to gather laundry and start a load. Pain meds don't work that well so still hurty all over. Sit down and ponder. Damn, its time to start supper. Where the hell did the day go. This is how the typical day goes for me, and these are just days that are what I can call "easy" days. And by time I get supper started I realize I have not had the energy to take a shower much less go out anywhere. That's pretty bad. So rush off to shower. Dang at this point I would really love to just crawl under the covers and sleep till tomorrow and maybe I would feel better. But much to my disappointment tomorrow is the same. This really is an account of my normal typical day. This is a day that I don't have to force myself to get that shower fast and go out to a doc appointment or to see mom at the nursing home. On those days I just come back home and lay down. I am really drained if I have to leave the house. But to look at me most people may think I am lazy or there is nothing wrong with me. IF only they really knew. And along with all this fatigue and pain  comes lil thinks that add to the mental irritation. Foods that I have always been able to eat and enjoy now really upset my tummy. I can not eat anything with cheese now. If I consume any kind of cheese, never ate much to begin with, but now it seems to totally stall my digestion. Not really pain, just that what ever I eat along with the cheese just sits in my stomach and takes all day to digest. On days that have cheese, I eat only 1 small meal. cant hold any more. Odd I know. Several things that I use to enjoy now do this to me. Trust me it takes a while to figure out what the culprit is sometimes but then ya have an Ah- ha moment. Peanut and canola oil that is used in lots of restaurant deep fryers also do the same thing to my stomach. So eating out is always a challenge. ANY processed food really does me in. I love a bologna sandwich better than steak but really have to limit myself on it and only eat it when I can stay home. Antibiotics that I have taken in the past that have worked now make me deathly ill, sick or just do not work at all. Sometimes I just want to say life sucks, but I would be lying to say that. I am able to stay home, not go out to work, live the life (as best I can) that I have alas loved, see the beauty of the world around me here on the farm, feel safe in my surroundings and be at peace. Sometimes when I fall in that black hole of depression and pain, if I can drag myself out the door and see the world outside here on the farm, it sure helps put things in perspective. Not that life is a bed of roses, but I am learning to manage the thorns. OK enough of my venting, thanks for listening.

Ya know the lil quilt that I was gonna make for lil Liam? Oh yeah I am still gonna do that. But last evening as I was talking on the phone with a friend we were discussing crochet things. I think I would like to make a lil cocoon for the baby. Some people call them snugglies, buntings, and others call them a cocoon. But they are for keeping lil ones snuggled in to make them feel secure. Kinda like the way wee ones are bundled at the hospital after they are born. Yep my brain needs something else to think about. But I sat here for many hours teaching myself new crochet stitches and practicing those. At time I think I may have even invented new ones. Those were the ones I could not un-do when I needed too. Gosh it has been many years since I did any crocheting. But its been fun playing with it again.

Not much happening here on the farm, so till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella

Finally finished

I got finished with the second rug at about 4 this morning. I know I should be sleeping but when my hands got busy my mind took a vacation and I lost track of time. Normal for me tho. But any way I did get finished with them. I had some readers ask some questions so now I can answer them and let you see the end result. I cut my strips about an inch and a half wide, I highly recommend if you use a heavy weight fabric like denim cut them no more than an inch. It was tough working with the blue jean material on these rugs. I had a brain fart and put them on the porch today when I swept off the last of the melting snow and forgot to take pics till the rugs had been used. But none the less you can get the idea. Also when I was crocheting these I started just doing single crochet but it will start to curl after a few rounds unless you switch to double crochet. And with heavy fabric like I was using to keep them flat you may have to increase a stitch occasionally to keep it smooth too. I learned this making these. Ya probably ain't gonna believe me but I had to look up "crochet stitches" just to be able to tell you what the stitches were called that I used. Also instead of going thru just one loop in each stitch I went thru both just to add extra strength to the end product. The rugs are oval shaped when they are first put down but with feet wiping goin on they get disheveled and look roundish.

 

Working with heavy fabric will also make it fairly obvious where your stitches stop too. But a good learners project. Would be a great project for kids or someone learning to crochet. And functional too.

In this rug you can see the different shade of blue in the middle. When I was stitching the strips of material together I purposely turned some of the denim wrong side our just so it would vary the colors. Not a good idea if you want a neat pattern. I was just tinkering. Bet you could have guessed that knowing me. But it was a fun project to do. I will do more in the near future as I want a rug on the front porch under my willow chair for summer. Now to raid the closets again. Oh and I read that old tee shirts make great yarn for crocheting things like this. Hmm, that would make a great bath mat. To make tee shirt yarn you cut the tee shirts into 1 inch or half inch strips and then pull them and they roll up like yarn. Cool eh?

An online friend sent me some Kefir grains today in the mail. Have you ever made Kefir? It taste good and is good for ya. It helps put good probiotics back in the gut that is lost with age, taking meds, taking antibiotics, being sicky or just to keep you healthy. With all my issues I will take all the help I can get. I know my routine meds mess up my belly. So thanks Lina for the kefir grains. Gosh and are they lively. When the mail came today I opened up the baggie and made my sugar and molasses water and dropped the grains in there and within 30 minutes I had bubbles in the liquid. Now I will taste it tomorrow and see how it is and maybe wait till the day after to start another jar. It has a tart taste when it is ready. I have had it before and would mix it with juice or just drink it straight. I don't like the taste of plain water so maybe, just maybe I can make me drink more water this way. When I strain the grains out of the liquid I will try to remember to take some pics so ya can see what they look like.

Not much else happening here, so till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella

Piddlin on Superbowl Sunday

I am not by any means a football fan nor do I watch. But I have watched 2 in my life. Many years ago in 1979  when Terry Bradshaw was quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers and they won against the Dallas Cowboys in the bowl I watched and today I watched as the Ravens beat the 49ers. I mostly watch for the commercials. I guess my favorite was the Dodge commercial with Paul Harvey and "Then God made a farmer". Guess that just hit home. Now I would have been all in if it had been a Chevy truck. I kinda half watched the game, I was busy cutting more strips and starting my rugs. I had a bright idea of sewing the strips together and make a very long strip and then use my huge crochet hook to "crochet" the strips into a rug.

I had lots of strips when I got tired of cutting them. Notice the huge scissors? And the glove? Well if ya use those scissors ya need that glove or you will have blisters all over your hands pretty quick. Or maybe I am just a wuss. Anyway I had already taken a pile of strips like the one to the left that you see and moved them to the sewing machine so I could stitch the ends together to make a long strip.

At this point I was adding on more strips and crocheting them as I got them attached. This hook is huge.

 

You can kinda get an idea the hook size by comparing it to a finger. It is fairly easy to work with. Although the jeans that I made strips from are a lil harder to manage.

This is what I got done today using the first bunch of light blue fabric from 2 old shirts and the tan is the legs of 1 pair of pants, the outer light blue is from legs of jeans. It is now about 18 or so by 24 inches. A good start for just piddling around with it. I will post more pics as I progress. Don't really like too much and this one will be big enough for the purpose I have in mind. Maybe I will get a chance to work on it some tomorrow evening. Anyway this is a functional use for old clothes that are stained and beyond hope. Not really fit to even donate. If I continue to feel real industrious I may make a really large one to use on the front porch for summer time. I think it would feel nice underfoot out there. Hey I could even make a chair pad for my nice willow porch chair that Aunt Ann gave me. I best quit thinkin before I get in over my head.

Not much happening here on the farm right now. Rodger got out today and walked around some on the farm, He said the fields are muddy and water logged. He found lots of deer trails up back of our house.  Just hope the fruit trees I have ordered don't come in too soon. Cant set trees in mud. At least I don't want too. Not only that I would sure hate to move wet chicken manure to mix in the soil to plant them.

Till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella

February, in like a lion....

.........out like a lamb. At least that's the old saying any way. I just hope it ends that way. I hate to fly and travel when the weather is bad but will if I have too. February started out for us with cold, wind, and now snow. Not just flurries. We actually had a lil snow on the ground this morning. But as the day wore on the snow melted and it seemed to warm up during the day. Not hot mind you but warmer than it was. We are supposed to get snow all weekend. We shall see how much we get. Kinda like sex, never know how much ya gonna get or how long it will last.

We got our new fan assembly that we ordered for the furnace. That was fast too. I ordered it on Wednesday and it came in yesterday. I was impressed. If we need anything else electrical I will for sure order from the same place. This is the place we ordered from. The website was kinda messed up when I placed the order and I could not get it to take my cc info. I was gonna call later in the day and make sure they didn't bill and ship me for 3 blower assemblies but before I could do that THEY called me to assure me they would only send 1 and I would only be billed for 1. That is good customer service and I guess I am a lil old fashioned in the fact that I still appreciate good customer service and human contact. They have replace parts for things mobile home related and sometimes parts can be hard to find for those.

We have not done anything here today other than eat, sleep and watch TV and surf the Internet. Talk about lazy. I have pondered my quilt today and trying to figure out how I can cut the fabric straight and keep it all even without having to buy one of those neat cutting mats and rotary cutter. I finally decided if I want to do it right I may as well suck it up and purchase one. I will need it later to finish the full size quilt from the top my aunt Connie made. So now I am cutting strips from old jeans that Rodger had to make some simple braided rugs to toss outside near the doors to catch some of the crap to keep it out of the house. I could just go buy some cheap rugs and save a ton of time and energy but ya know, I actually enjoy making things to "make do". Not only that I can actually hose the homemade ones off and let em dry and toss em back down. Easy and I am sure they will last much longer than the store bought ones. I have had those in the past and they soon fall apart. When they get too bad to wash and re-use I can toss em and make more. Easy and fast. I will cut the fabric in strips and then twist and braid it, sew the strips together with light weight fishing line and once I get the size I need stop and put em to use. Now if I was going to use them inside and wanted them to look nice I would fold the strips in half kinda like bias tape and sew them down, braid and then sew the braids. But for outside serviceable rugs that will not be necessary. OK I will go back to my strip cutting and let ya know what happens. Maybe I take some pictures along the way.

Till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella

Quilting and sewing

For a hillbilly that is one thing I have not done, make a quilt from start to finish. But some online friends are getting out their sewing stuff so am thinking that might motivate me to work on Liam's baby quilt. As far as needing quilts for use, I don't NEED more per se. I have lots of quilts, some new, some old and some even older. I thought I would share some pics of those with you all.

 

This is the quilt squares that my grandmother embroidered and the fabric that I am using to make the baby quilt for Liam. IF I ever get started on it. 

 

The quilt above was made and finished by my mom and her sister Connie, that is now deceased. Some too pretty to just store away.

 

This quilt is another one that mom and Aunt Connie made when Connie was sick and mom stayed with her.

 

This is a quilt top that Aunt Connie made given to me a few months ago by Aunt Ann. After I get the baby quilt finished I am going to try to finish this quilt. Maybe by then I will have enough knowledge to do it. 

 This is an applique quilt that mom made before dad passed away. She made quilts for a couple years when dad was not doing well and didn't get out much.

This is Rob's baby quilt that Rodgers mom made for him when he was born. I am taking it to them when Liam is born so he can use his daddy's quilt too.

 

 This is some pillow case sets that my maternal grandmother made. I am going to use them. I think these kinds of nice things last just as long being used as they do being stored. I gave Jason and Mary Kay a set to have and will give Rob and Amoy a set too. Just so they can have something made my a great grandmother.

This is an antique quilt that I have, not sure who made this one but it is in excellent shape.

This is a silhouette of Rob that mom used as a pattern to make a quilt for him. Pretty neat eh?

 

This is a neat farm quilt with the tractor and corn applique. Mom also did this one. This is in the master bedroom and the headboard that you see is one that Rodger built several years ago. He does some really nice wood work when he is in the mood. He has to get in the mood soon to build a toy box for a lil boy. 

Not much else happening here on the farm, so till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.

Stella