So long, September...

I can't believe it's been so long since I last posted... where has September gone? We had another rainy and humid week last week, but Fall is really in the air now... the next few days are supposed to be dry and much cooler around here. Not really much going on right now... the chicks are growing, the grass still is too, and I've been cleaning out closets and taking some things to Goodwill. The biggest news around here lately- we made a major purchase a couple of weeks ago. Hubby bought some used equipment to cut and bale our own hay. It was quite a bit of money for us to spend up front, but we figured it would be better in the long run to be able to cut our own hay rather than having to keep buying it. Hubby is planning on cutting the field next to the house sometime this week to try everything out, so I'll post some pictures of him and his new toys. (*chuckle*) It won't be long until we will have to get our little honeybees ready for cold weather... Dad is going to help us get our hives "winterized" soon. He checked them last week and was amazed at how well they are doing, and said next spring we might even be able to split the largest one into two separate ones... that would give us three hives total! I feel so blessed!

Here are a few pictures from this chilly Fall morning...

My Silky babies are growing fast....

Cecil peeks at me through the poultry netting...

Somehow Daisy and Edie know when I have my camera and come running... "take my picture, pleeeze?"

Hamburger and the girls are up to no good. (No doubt plotting an escape...)

Baby, Molly, and Dolly aren't too sure about the camera.

Smokey thinks he sees a rabbit.....

Beauty can be found in the strangest places.....

The hay that will soon be cut...

Time for me to visit my bloggy friends now and see what you've been up to!

Happy Monday, everybody!

Thanks from the bottom of my... uh, bottom.

Well, those awful people from Kraft Food and Family magazine have done it again- another issue with the most wonderful dessert recipes you could imagine. My jeans are fitting more snugly than ever now thanks to this....


OH LORDY.
You are looking at the best pound cake I've made in a long time- and I'm certainly not bragging on my culinary abilities, either- this cake is very easy to make and it's so unbelievably moist, it's scary. It's called Gram's Best Brown Sugar cake and Hubby was so impressed, he wiped it out in 3 days.

Well, he had a little help.

Okay, he had LOTS of help.

Now I'm going to have to get re-acquainted with my treadmill.

Ugh. Thanks a lot, Kraft.

Moving from the kitchen to the sewing room, here are a couple of things I've been working on...

This is from a pattern I bought from my friend Dani's ETSY shop-

This little guy is a "sock bunny"- his body, head, and arms are all made from a sock- isn't he cute? He's still waiting on his whiskers- I plan on putting those on for him sometime today. This was my first one so he's far from perfect, but I'm planning on a making a couple more soon for some special little ones in the family.

Next- my "chickie" apron! *squeal*

I love machine applique and blanket stitching.... and this was my first time trying out the Bias Binding presser foot I bought last Christmas to use with my sewing machine. It worked great!

I'm still working on the clothespin apron- it just needs to be hemmed and the ties attached and it will be finished, but it may have to wait until next week... it's time to mow the grass again, and the Tennessee Valley Fair starts tomorrow night- I can't wait!

Have a great weekend, everybody!

Fuzzy-Bottomed Bliss

My baby Silkies are now 3 weeks old and are in a very awkward teenage stage- half fluff and half not-so-full-plumage.

(But they still have fuzzy bottoms! *tiny squeal*)

The total chick count was 20... it's still too early for me to tell who's a hen and who's a rooster- fingers crossed for an even number of each, but you just never know. The last ones to hatch were from the eggs Sadie laid on top of poor Clementine, so they are only 1 week old and are spending their days in my sewing room happily peeping away in their box until their feathers fill out enough for me to put them outside with their siblings.

The weather for the last few days has been nice with cooler temperatures- I've been spending a lot of time outside doing the "messy work" that has to be done like cleaning out the sheep pens and chicken coops... I try to keep fresh straw and pine shavings in the nest boxes for Sarge and the girls to keep mites in check, and if I don't keep the manure out of the sheep pens, the flies are just awful. I'll be back at it today- Baby, Molly and Dolly's house is next.

Speaking of Baby- we sheared and washed her- isn't she pretty? Look how white she is next to Molly and Dolly!

Fall is in the air, and tomorrow is Tennessee's first football game of the year...(Go Vols!) I just love this time of year, don't you?

Have a great weekend, everybody!