Fun Finds

Here is the picture I promised of the embroidery I found at the antique store in Buckhannon. I think it looks perfect for a log "cabin" wall. I think I'll reframe it but otherwise I love it. See the Liz '60 in the corner. Kind of makes you wonder if it was a little girl working on her sampler stitches 50 years ago or if it was an older woman, dreaming of all the places she'd like to visit. I don't usually buy crosstitch or embroidery. My mother does beautiful work and my walls are full of her pieces, but knowing how much effort goes into this on her end and seeing the low prices I just had to pick up a few. The other pieces are tablecloths and some hand towels - can never have too many of those in the country, right?

As for other fun finds, today I visited the library. My reserved copy of Julia Childs, My Life in France was finally in so I quick picked it up before someone else could steal it. It's been a hot commodity since her movie came out. I am always excited when I come home from the library and today is no exception since I also brought home: How to pick a peach: the search for flavor from farm to table, A homemade life, Made from scratch, and MaryJane's Outpost: Unleashing Your Inner Wild. If you're not familiar with MaryJane yet - check her out at www.maryjanesfarm.com I'm not ready to camp out in the wilds yet (oh wait I do that every weekend) but I do love to read her magazine and her ideabook is priceless.

Someone Else's Farm

This weekend we did not go to "THE farm" - Gasp - but we did go to work at another farm. We have dear friends who have a very fun place in West Virginia. After 20 years of visits with family and with friends we have loads of fond memories. So when Uncle Tom passed away several years ago and Aunt Judy continued to keep her summer home open for all of us to enjoy, we were happy to help her with some of those things that just have to be done around the place. Earlier in the summer John mowed the 40 some acres on her farm up the road from camp - where miles and miles of atv-ing has taken place and promised to come back at the end of the summer for one more round of mowing. That was how he spent his weekend. I went along to "help" and spent the weekend shopping at antique stores and scrapbook stores in town. I found some great prices on cookbooks - I can never seem to get enough - and some good prices on embroidered tablecloths and a decent price on a framed embroidered map of the US, complete with icons for famous places. I'll post a picture soon. I also took tons of photos, of the countryside, of the fall leaves beginning to change, of old outbuildings, whatever called to me to snap a picture. All in all it was a relaxing weekend and we enjoyed the time spent with a precious friend. Sunday the weather was perfect so we went over to the farm to inspect John's work and spent some time on the atv's. Someday, someday we'll have our own place cleaned up to be enjoyed with others and I can only hope that it is as peaceful and fun as camp is at Uncle Tom's Cabin in West Virginia.

Applesauce! Applesauce!

When my oldest was a little girl and learning to read she saw the words applause! applause! and thought they said applesauce. As these things are prone to do it turned into a family "funny" and we often congratulate each other with the words applesauce, so I can't help but think that after spending the weekend picking apples and spending my week making....you guessed it applesauce. After all, if I am going to be a farm girl I have to make applesauce, right. When the kids were little and I was a stay at home mom (well let's say pre-fulltime working mom) we would go to the orchard every fall and pick and then make applesauce with my friend Linda. She never peeled her apples, I thought that was scandulous but hers sure was a pretty pink color and just as yummy as mine. Well this week I find myself peeling apples until my hand cramps and thinking about Linda. I've made 12 quarts so far - just finished the first bag of 5. I've also made an apple cake and apple pancakes and apple syrup and well you get the idea. I just hope the neighbors and the deer help themselves to the trees while we are not there the next few weeks. Now I wonder when we'll be there often enough to grow tomatoes so I can go back to canning salsa and spaghetti sauce.

You Know You Are On The Farm When...

...a snake is lying by the back door
...a mouse has nibbled the apple you set out on the counter last night
...Daddy long-legs crawl over your foot while playing canasta
....a walk down the lane scares up three wild turkeys
...you wake to the sound of the neighbors cows mooing
...you turn on a fan to drown out the sound of insects at 3AM
...you can lay in the back of the pickup and see all the stars
...butterflies follow you while you do your chores

...you have that peaceful easy feeling

here comes another weekend

and you know what that means.....time to head to the farm. Yay! It's been two weeks since my last journey down south so I am eager to get back and revel in that peaceful easy feeling that settles over me once I've driven onto the property. This weekend we hope to install a hot water heater - woo hoo hot showers - and maybe even find a refrigerator. It becomes less and less like camping each time we go down. Maybe that is a bummer for some, not sure if it matters, but it seems like steps in the right direction. We also plan to do a walk around the perimeter of all 35 acres and make plans and dream a bit. And of course I will take lots of pictures so that I can post them when I return. I am almost ready to begin my one year at the farm photo book. Can't wait to pick apples and sleep with all the windows open (Yup I packed the blankets for this trip.) More later.......

Been on the road

Been on the road.

Traveling in the south.

Missing the farm

But picking up ideas

and confidence along the way.

Fun Find: An Amish book of homemade ways to get rid of pests including snakes, mice, ants, bees, and all the little critters that hang around the farm.

Also found some awesome rockers - should have taken a picture. Can't wait for a front porch to rock on.