Mom mom's rolling pin

There is a funny story sort of linked to the rolling pin that Billy spoons when he sleeps in the window.  My Mom Mom (my Dad's mom) used to roll out her pasta dough and make her own manicotti shells.  (with a name like Ceconi you'd expect this).  She would form them and lay them out on their large kitchen table to harden.  One day my dad took his hammer (one that he carried everywhere as a kid like some kids carry a blankie) and smashed every single one.  Woops. 

When my grandparents passed away, I had to have this rolling pin.  It was one of the only things I took from their house.  It was the spark to a very vivid memory of a funny story and quite honestly I'd never seen one this big!  It happily resides in my kitchen where it never gets used (cause well we all know that I don't cook). 

Thankfully Billy has decided it's his spoon buddy.  Awwww Billy...that's so nice!

Huh? You talking to me?

Can't you see I'm SLEEPING!  Sheesh....stupid humans should be shot.

Masterpiece

Mark is really proud of his wall...as well he should be.  It's unbelieveable.  We think we may change the name of the farm to Meadow Creek Estate. 

The camera loves him...

and he sure as heck knows it.  Billy (aka HillBilly)...centerfold in training.  Say cheese!

I'll soon be experiencing "Empty Nest" syndrome

My little barn swallows are this close to leaving the nest.  I've actually noticed they are taking day trips...they seem to return at night (I'm assuming to get a free meal at mom and dad's place and to get their laundry done).  There were only two this year...I named them Milli Vanilli.  Do you see the resemblance?  Look closer...and listen...girl you know it's true...ew ew ew...I love youuuu.

Meadow Creek Farm timeshare

Each year around this time...like clockwork, our time share renter barn swallows move in.  The first evidence of their arrival is not so pleasant...it's not like they put out a very "nice" welcome mat.  But, it does show they are here!

See?  He/She is peeking out at me.  Hello up there!  His/her sibling is in there too...just hiding.

This shot cracked me up.  FEED ME NOW!!!!  Mother (and Father) barn swallows are so patient.

In this shot...Mom (or Dad) was posing...how do I know?  He/She stayed like this for several flashes of my camera.  This bird was like YO!  Paparazzi!  Be sure to get my good side!

Don't mind if I do

Seti is allowed to stay in the barn on very hot days.  To her 'very hot' means anything above 80 degrees and 30% humidity.  She claims it messes up her hair.  Since she has been kept in, she has adopted a sort of princess attitude.  Demanding to be fed and attended to. 

I think these next two pictures say it all.  Um....no Seti...that load of hay is NOT for your personal consumption.  Yup...I'm sure.  Nope Mark will not say differently, but you can try to persuade him.  He's a sucker when it comes to your big brown eyes. 

The Wall (and I don't mean Pink Floyd either)

As you are likely aware, Mark has been busily building a stack stone wall on our property.  (between doing his laundry, putting dishes away, vacuuming and making me dinner)  The wall serves a few functions...mostly it is for Mark to practice the skills he needs to get his Journeyman in October and to qualify his skill for part of the exam, but I think it also a place where Mark can put his ear buds in and quite frankly...get away from me.  It's okay...I have horses, Mark has stone.  It works.

Drum roll please...the wall is FINISHED!  Mark put the last touches on the wall last night...which meant laying sod and prettying up the space around the wall.  It is magnificent.  My pictures do not do it justice.  They really don't.  Enjoy...

BS = Before Sod

DS = During Sod

DMS = During More Sod

ASS = After Sod Silly!  (tee hee...sorry)

They're HERE!

Well almost.  My Stewartia tree is starting to bloom.  A few buds have opened to expose the lovely lace ruffled fringed bloom.  So gorgeous!  I can't wait until the entire tree is covered in these lovely little flowers.  Don't worry...I'll most definitely get a picture.  Promise!!

Lemons!

Lemon lilies that is.  They are BLOOMING!  And they are so bloomin' gorgeous...I am beside myself.  I am so happy my farm blooms in stages...it allows the loveliness to last for months at a time...LOVE that. 

LOVE being a barn kitty

CB is our newest barn kitty.  She is learning how to cope with living on a farm.  It's tough when you were born in the city.  There is so much to get used to!  The sounds, the smells, the OTHER barn cats.  A girl can get slightly overwhelmed.  But man...when CB discovers something new that she likes, she dives right in. 

I think it's safe to say she LOVES my hay pile.  Oh what fun a hay pile provides to a 'used to be' city kitty.  Barn kitty life is such fun!

Why buy when you can scavenge?

Each year I buy ferns for our front porch.  And, each year I try (with all my heart and might) to winter them in the basement for the following year.  I have yet to reach success with this mission.  So this year, Mark suggested I gather/scavenge a few ferns from our property (in the woods) and pot them.  Hmmmmm...this might work. 

I figure, at the end of the season, I can replant them in the woods...maybe then they will come back.  It's an experiment...so stay tuned for the results.  For now they seem pretty happy hanging on my porch.  They get misted every single morning.  I spoil my plants like I spoil my animals...so!

The wall is in the homestretch

Mark has been working very hard to complete his stack stone wall before he starts on a huge wall restoration project in downtown Baltimore.  He's very excited about the opportunity and has been preparing physically and mentally for the challenging work that awaits him.  (He's even been getting up at 6:30am every day to retrain his body to get up early.)  Wow!

Anyway, he only has to complete one more layer before adding the coping.  (the tippy top vertical layer)  Doesn't it just look amazing!?  I'm so proud of him and his amazing craftsmanship...and very happy he doesn't charge me by the hour to make something like this. 

Pretty little yellow flowers

We have flowers on the farm that I have no idea what they are.  And quite frankly, they could very well be weeds.  (remember the time I 'weeded' the garden and accidently got rid of most of the good stuff...leaving mostly pretty weeds behind?)  Yup...I am dangerous. 

Either way...this could very well be a weed...but it sure as heck is a pretty weed.  Don't you agree?

Loving my lilies...

On Sunday...some of my lilies looked like this. 

But last night, some of them looked like THIS!  And there are still dozens that have not opened.  I swear it's like getting a present every day. 

Only thing better than a full trailer of hay...

is that same trailer empty of hay.  It's now safely tucked in our Cover-it Tent.   I like the feeling of having lots of hay...it's like having a full pantry.  And surprisingly enough I was not sore the next day.  Did I mention that I unloaded and stacked almost all of it?  I didn't?  Well...yup...I did.  Mark was VERY happy when I sent him this pick from my BlackBerry.  Can you blame him?

My favorite place to be

My favorite place to be is on one of our horses...riding down the trail. My trailriding season started last month and I am eagerly anticipating many many rides down trails like this. Ahhhhhh...doesn't get much better than this.

Hey! We got Hay!

When Mark and I receive a call of a great deal...we typically jump on it. Well we received such a call yesterday. A friend of ours was trying out his "new to him" baler and wanted to know if we'd like some hay for cheap (and when I say cheap...I mean CHEAP). Well heck...you betcha!

So we hooked up the flat bed trailer and headed to PA (which is only 20 mins from our farm).  Once we arrived we quickly got to stacking...just the first row of bales on the ground and we were halfway to filling the rig.  Wow.  The hay was really nice first cutting orchard grass too.  Smelled amazing!

The machine that our friend was using was an older model baler he had recently fixed up.  We weren't really sure of its exact age, but he estimated it was from the 50s.  I love older machinery.  It has character.

Our friend has a lovely new tractor.  It's orange and has AC...Nice!  Mark and I were sweating like it was going out of style, but not our friend...he was cool as a cucumber in that thing.

All in all we got 140 bales on our rig.  Holey schmoley.  The back breaking work was totally worth it.  Did I mention it was in the upper 80s yesterday?  Fun!!  And the best news of all...the horses LOVE it!  Phew!