heatwave over for now...

This past weekend, like in so many places, the red-hot heat of summer descended on the Midwest. With temperatures in the upper 90's, the cool refreshment of ice cream was a daily treat. We laughed as we enjoyed favorites from childhood...orange push-ups, drumsticks, and ice cream sandwiches. 

These sun-soaked and humid days meant chores were done early and then again late in the day. Quick trips were made several times to refresh water buckets, check on animals, and share watermelon slices with the hens. 

But today brought a blissful change...temperatures began in the 60's along with a cool breeze from the north. It was nice to putter outside and check on the garden.

As you can see, zucchini and melons are doing quite well...
I'll be making my chocolate zucchini cake this weekend - yum!

peppers are ready for canning (next time I'll share my grandmother's recipe)

I'm not quite sure what this flower is, it's a welcome volunteer that pops up each year and is nearly 6 feet tall! (any ideas??)

On our way to ballet classes last week, my daughter and I spied an old wooden cart outside one of the best shops in a nearby town, The Farmer's Daughters on Main

They have a great collection of retro, vintage, antique, and farm items, and it's run by the two friendliest sisters imaginable...you'll feel like you've known them for years.

Anyway, the cart was still there Saturday, so I had to stop and check it out. Found in an old farm, it was in terrific shape and just waiting for a new home...what else could I do?  

Coated with water seal and filled with flowers, it's sitting by our post lantern at the entrance to our driveway. It'll be fun to fill with pumpkins in the fall and greenery for Christmas, then I'll tuck it away for the rest of winter to keep it protected from the heavy snows.

For me it's always great to find something I feel "needs a home" - like this old cart, galvanized pails, or the barn vent I put on top of the chicken run. Anything rusty or chippy that has a sense of history to it...the old sink that's out by the garden for washing off veggies, the vintage metal chairs in the shade that are just right for resting in, or the enamelware cowboy coffee pot that's filled with homemade laundry soap. 

Love it all...and I'm so glad there are those who rescue it for us to find!

  

knee deep in summer...

These July days are hot & humid...I'm up early, then out again as the evening cools off a bit. Tomatoes are just beginning to turn red, while peppers and zucchini plants are bursting at the seams. It's time for some zucchini chocolate cake...oh my, soooo delicious! Truly, try my recipe here...I think you'll love it!

In our part of the Midwest, the forecast for the weekend is 95 degrees all three days. Yikes...I'll be keeping an eye on water buckets making sure they're filled with cool water and tossing some chilled watermelon out for the hens to enjoy. And other than a quick trip to the county fair to drop off pies for judging, I think we'll all plan on staying indoors.

Here's a look at what's happening around the farm today...


~Flowers have kept blooming, even in all the heat...

~Maizy has a new bunting, all the way from England!

~false sunflowers are one of my favorites...

~the first tomato!

~a little patriotic flower display...

and in case you're still doubting that zucchini chocolate cake, just take a look at this!

happy Independence Day!

scorching summer days...

It's been in the 90's for the last several days...scorching hot and humid. Oh, I am an autumn and winter girl, this heat always does me in.

The daily plan? 

Up early, out while there's still shade, then inside until evening. 

Goats, chickens, our trusty guard dog, barn cats, our garden, and flowers are given lots of fresh water, and even though it's too hot for me, it's perfect weather for sun-dried sheets and enjoying fresh berries.

Our daughter is coming home Friday after a month of studying at a ballet school...I'm tidying up and will be shopping for her favorite foods. And in this heat, it's definitely time for homemade ice cream! I'll share the recipe next time...triple chocolate, oh-my!

Today's post is short; like all of you...lots to do, time is flying, but so much to love and enjoy!

Happy Monday, friends!

no truer words...

Sure, there are a lot of things I want, and some things I need, but isn't it true that the simple pleasures are the best?

Like this screen door we just put in from the kitchen to the mudroom...today's weather is 64 degrees, the birds are singing, a cool breeze is blowing from the North, our rooster, Bandito, is crowing, and the sound of freshly-washed sheets are snapping in the breeze. To me, it's perfect.

Simple pleasures like this vintage dustpan I filled with flowers...

or a rusty chicken waterer that found a new purpose...

our flowers are blooming like never before...

and the green of planted fields surrounds us...

This year, spring has been in no hurry to jump into summer...we even had friends over for a bonfire & s'mores last week...that never happens in June!

It's a picture-perfect day in our part of the Mid-west...and I'm grateful for every minute I can enjoy it. Wherever you are, I hope the sweet & simple things are there for you...sometimes, we just have to look for them.

what makes my heart happy...

while there's much to catch up on, today, this is what makes my heart happy...

I loved the temperature...for me it was perfect, in the 40's overnight,

and I love the colorful flip-flop lights given to me by a friend!

But you know what I love most?

See that glowing window?

Inside is my sweet ballerina (a week-long high school graduate)

hanging out with me...catching up on the day,
making plans for the week. 

And beyond.

Don't get me started, I'll cry.

"Dream beautiful dreams.

Then work to make those dreams come true."

-Spencer W. Kimball

happy, happy day!

photo source

"You have nothing in this world more precious than your children. When you are old, when your hair turns white and your body grows weary, when you are prone to sit in a rocker and meditate on the things of your life, nothing will be so important as the question of how your children have turned out.

It will not be the money you have made.
It will not be the cars you have owned.
It will not be the large house in which you live.

The searing question that will cross your mind again and again will be,
'How well have my children done?' "

President Gordon B. Hinckley

spring cleaning whirlwind!

I'm spring cleaning, sprucing up, chasing dust bunnies...call it what you will, it's in full swing here!

The weather has turned and I do believe that spring is here to stay. We've mowed, collected fallen limbs, cleaned flower beds, and the coop has had it's spring cleaning as well...happy hens indeed.  I'm thinking I'll paint the inside of the coop and maybe even hang a chandelier, just for fun!

We're supposed to have some days that are picture-perfect, and so the to-do list should be much shorter soon...fingers crossed.

Well, time for me to get back to work, but I thought I'd share a few snapshots of what's happening in our corner of the world. 


beautiful skies...

found some retro-style goodies for Maizy 

a local craft store was having a big clearance sale...and I mean big,
70% off! 

Friends and I are thinking a Christmas in July get-together would be fun.

then I dressed her up with a few pillows stitched from vintage chenille...

I love looking out and seeing her glow at night...chances are it's a mother/daughter camp-out.

..

almost time for a jazz festival...

and a ballet recital

-Gordon B. Hinckley

(source)

happenings on the farm...

It's been a whirlwind of activity on the farm lately...

college visits with my sweet ballerina (where do the years go?)

preparations for an Eagle Scout project (my little man always laughing...again, time flies!)

And repair work started on the barn.

I wanted to share these photos I took while the roof was off...I thought the lighting was beautiful, and with any luck (meaning the roof holds tight!) we won't have the opportunity to see this again.

Maybe not everyone loves the old, chippy, primitive look...but it's my favorite. A barn filled with history...pegs, the faded remnants of a large painted Pepsi logo, wooden ladders, old silos, and stalls (just waiting to be filled...right, hubby?) 

Hey, everyone has their dreams...and I'm not getting any younger! Mine is to create a spot that my ballerina and laughing boy can come home to and relax from the hustle & bustle. A place they can one day bring their families to unwind and enjoy the quiet, the sound of owls in the woods, train whistles in the distance, peepers in the creek, and silence. A place for camp-outs in Maizy or a family-size tent, making s'mores and gazing at the stars. A place filled with sunflower gardens, sweet animals, and a little roadside stand.

"Keep your eyes on your dreams; however distant and far away."

-Jeffrey R. Holland

a spring tease...

This winter has been one to remember. While the weekend began clear and brilliant, soon a cutting wind swept across the open cornfields and began to rattle the windows. The local broadcast called for gusts up to 50 mph and so before nightfall, we had double-checked that our animals were safely tucked in and then we tightened down anything that could blow away. 

Candles and flashlights were ready if we lost power, the kerosene heater was handy, and firewood stacked by the kitchen door. We all slept a little uneasy that night...the tall pines surrounding the old farmhouse creaked and the wind whistled through any opening it could find. On nights like that, it feels as if the entire house will set sail. Of course it never does...it holds tight to the land and ignores such weather as it's done for 155 years.

In the morning, we woke to find everything was fine...a few more limbs in the yard and couple of tarps blown away, but nothing serious. However; the farm at the end of the road lost an enormous pine tree, narrowly missing their barn; while a few miles away friends were without power for about 10 hours.

Yes, definitely a winter we'll remember, and tomorrow "they" say it will be 50 degrees...we'll see.

And so today I thought I'd share a few summertime snapshots...believe it or not, it'll be here soon enough!