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The chickens are not the only obstacle to getting plums from our trees. Last night we had a hard frost. We went out in the dark and put tarps over the trees. 
B also put an old coal burning stove under the larger tree. He got up several times in the night to add some wood to the fire.
Let's hope it worked.
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About fifteen years ago we planted two areas of native prairie grasses in our fields. We burn a portion of the prairie occasionally, primarily to discourage invasive plants such as the autumn olive. Yesterday was burn day. The weather was beautiful and there was not much wind.
We start the fire so that it burns into the wind, this way it does not burn too fast. When everything goes as planned, there isn't much to do...
I am often mesmerized by the flames while we watch the fire and listen to the popping and crackling sounds it makes.
This area of prairie is below the barns. There is a cluster of locust here that we are trying to kill. It is also an aggressive invader in the prairie areas and is sending up saplings in our raspberry row. We cut the larger trunks of the locust for fire wood.
There are bursts of tall flames when there is a gust of wind or the fire comes to an area of thick tall grass. Some of the big bluestem grass can be eight feet tall.
Burned locust.
Now we watch the regrowth of grasses and flowers. The native prairie plants make great landscaping because once established they can endure long periods with no rain. According to some references, some of the native grasses can have a foot of root for each inch of plant above ground.
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We may get plums this year! We will have to keep the chickens out of the tree if we want to eat any of them. Just before the plums are ripe the chickens make a plan. They all gather under the tree and a selected few jump up in the tree to knock the plums down. The others are ready to eat as they fall. Last year we didn't get a single ripe plum.
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Yesterday was our first garage sale day. We actually didn't go out until 2 in the afternoon on our way to pick up our trees from the Soil Conservation Service. (50 Christmas trees and 100 other seedlings).
I wasn't expecting to find much but a barn sale yielded a stack of old children's books and readers:
and this beauty still in its case.
Not that I needed another typewriter, mind you, but it was only $5. How could I pass that up! Now, P and I can play secretary together. The sad part is that the new ribbon will probably cost more than the typewriter.
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It seems a bit early, but today is apparently the day according to the farm saying, "plant corn when the oak leaves are as big as squirrels' ears." 
Will it be "knee high by the fourth of July?"
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I finished the doll quilt for the swap this afternoon. This quilt will be mailed far away! 
I really like hand quilting with that hand dyed perle cotton. Like the other doll quilts, I quilted free form without marking the quilt.
You can see more quilts in the swap here.
I am working on a tutorial for how I do the quilt binding. I'll let you know when that is up.
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One of the boys chores is tending to the chickens. They alternate days and fill the water container, make sure they have food, bring in the eggs, and close them in at night. When D. and M. get home from school, I often ask, "whose chicken day is it?" so that I can ask that person to take care of the special items for the day, like putting fresh straw in the nests, or dumping the compost. P. has started answering this question, "Mine, it's MY chicken day."
Every day is P's chicken day.
We go over to the barn together and she tends to them in the morning. She loves to give them their chicken scratch which consists of cracked corn and other grains. Even when the container is almost empty she enjoys this job. You will notice that her feet are not touching the ground. She is doing a big, important job.
We keep the big door latched and the hens go in an out of a small door on the side (it is pictured in the photos above). When we are out in the yard playing or working in the garden P goes to check on them. She has discovered how she can get in to feed them corn.
Yep. That is the other side of the wall shown in the top photo.
I hope that as she gets older, she will continue to think that helping around the "farm" is fun.
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My sisters and I used to
play for hours at a time under the hemlock tree in our back yard. We had a pretend town under it. We played with sticks, nuts, and other found objects. We felt like we were very far away all on our own but we were really just a few feet from the house.
When my husband and I moved here 20 years ago I tried to imagine where our children would play. It was all open - just barns and fields. We did have two lilacs right by the house, one purple and the other white. Our first spring here we dug some of the small plants growing at the base of the established lilacs and planted them other places in the yard. In one area we planted them in a ring with an opening away from the road. I thought this would be a fun place for children to play when the lilacs grew and filled in the ring.
The lilacs grew slower than the boys so they never played in there. It has become a chicken hang out. P likes to visit with them there.
Her favorite.
I think P will like it over there even more when all the leaves are out and the flowers are in bloom.
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Whew. What a weekend! Saturday afternoon the Chelsea House Orchestra, the music group my boys are in, performed at the library celebration for the "Best Small Library in America 2008."
Saturday evening was the 10 year Anniversary Show for the group. It was also the release event for their new CD! The event was a HUGE success. It was a sold out show with people standing in the aisles on the sides of the auditorium. The show started with the middle school Fiddle Club and then the High School kids took the stage by storm!
If you want to hear a GREAT music group, and I don't say this just because my kids are in it, get a copy of the new CD, "Celtic with a Kick." Older CDs are also available, in fact, they are stored under my bed! Help me out. I have nowhere to put the new ones!
The group travels and plays at Highland Festivals and other events. They will be performing at the Edinboro Highland Festival, in Edinboro, PA May 16, 17, and 18. On May 24 they will perform at the Alma Highland Games in Alma, MI. They will also be performing at other festivals over the summer.
You can find more information on the group here and information on ordering CDs here.
I just looked and the new cd is not listed on the website yet but you can still order it.
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I have a big shopping bag of neckties that belonged to my father-in-law. I plan to make some wall hangings from them for B., his siblings, and mom.
My first step will be to take them apart and wash them. I haven't decided anything past that. I would like to try some applique and also pieced. I think they would look good in a log cabin pattern with narrow logs. They are of all different fabric content so there will be some challenges there.
Have any of you made a quilt from ties? I am open to any suggestions you may have.
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