Strawberry Picking

       Our strawberry bed was planted over the last two years.  Last year there was a good foot between plants.  Now they sent out so many runners and covered the ground, weeds don't have a chance.

      Evan usually has an attention span long enough I can get half of them picked before we have to take a break. 

        We have put 11 quarts in the freezer for the winter and are eating them plain, with angel food cake, or on ice cream.  They are still doing really well so we have given some away and selling a few too.

11 months old

        Eleven months old and he is on the move.  Within the last week Evan has learned to crawl from room to room following you.  Life will never be the same!

       His older cousins came over to play the other day so we got the toy tractors out.  After they left Evan was driving them back and forth himself.  He will entertain himself for a while now and it doesn't have to be a toy either. Dresser handles, pots and pans, remotes, and attempts to get the computer or cell phones seem to be some of his favorites. 

       Evan will wave bye, bye occasionally and have never ending conversations that only he can understand. 

       He has eight teeth already and starting to steal food off your plate. 

     In addition to crawling, he is pulling himself up on things and cruising along when he gets a grasp of your hands.  When put in the walker, he runs toward you and gets your toes every time.  Hard to believe one more month and our baby is a year old. Where did the time go?

    Puppy outtakes. 

Copper walked right off the bale and then wondered what happened.

Puppy Love

         Every boy needs a dog to be his best friend and every country home needs a dog to keep the critters away especially in the summer time with a garden. 

         My husband found this Mt Cur puppy.  The more he read about his hunting habits, the more he fell in love with him. 

       One down side to a puppy is, he likes to chew.  My mom always recalls the puppy they had when my brother was little.  He would take his shoes off to go into the sandbox and Toby would eat them every time.  Evan is about the same age, but luckily we don't have a sandbox.

       Evan and Copper are getting to know each other. 

        Throughout the afternoon Evan would get excited when Copper came around.  Copper on the other hand enjoyed getting into trouble while I was planting the garden.   As he stole the bag of sweet corn away, he planted a diagonal line of sweet corn before chewing the bag open in my flower bed.  

Farm Livin'

        This little piggy went to market. Come Monday the last of our first group of pigs are off to market.  

        All of them seem to have become best friends with my husband.  

       Have no fear we have cute baby pigs to replace them.  These adorable 30 lb. pigs arrived on the farm Monday.

         Did you know a pig this size will eat 3 pounds of feed a day?  Oink, oink.... stay out of my way. I'm hungry.

        A water drink or itching post? The red with black spots piggy has an itch that needs to be scratched. 

        We are day two post surgery and a trip out to see the pigs always make him feel better. 

        My husband has enjoyed the pigs so much, we are expanding the operation.  Here is a farrowing house built by his grandfather in 1948 according to the markings in the concrete.  A farrowing house is kind of like a nursery for pigs.  It's where all sows come to have their babies and stay until they are weaned. 



       Originally this building housed 20 sows in crates which lined both side walls with an open middle.  We aren't sure how long they used the barn, though. My husband only remembers raising baby pigs outside in huts and this building being full of "treasures."   It took a week to clean it out.  There was lumber stacked on both sides, farrowing crates stacked in a corner, an old snowmobile, a stack of extra tin from building a different shed, and many more things including a nest of 4 baby skunks and a momma possum with two little ones.   Eventually this will be separated into three pens for finishing hogs.  

        On the outside we will have to cut three holes in the wall to allow the pigs to get fresh air.  Before that can happen we need to pour some concrete, install water drinks, find some more feeders, and add fences.  We already have the posts to install the fences to, gravel down as support for the concrete, and working on forms to house the concrete as it dries. 

       In a few short weeks there will be 120 pigs running around in the sunshine.  

       Before we headed in for the day it was time to pick strawberries.  Yum, Yum!!  Our first picking resulted in 6 quarts of delicious strawberries in the freezer.

 

Ten Months Old

      

 

        Our sweet baby boy is 10 months old and picking up every little thing he can get his fingers on to taste.  While helping Dad fill up the planter last week, he was being so quiet.  Then we noticed he was eating dirt.  Oops bad parenting moment.  

       Look out world, here I come!!  I would still rather scoot backwards, but I will get this thing called crawling down eventually.    

        Evan's favorite activity of the day...visiting the pigs.  Usually when we get out there all the pigs come right up to the fence to check him out. Then they have a staring contest until Mom wheels him away.



        April was filled with lots of sunny days.  Evan enjoys outside so much he now cries every time we walk in the back door.

     Evan was lucky enough to have a few quality bonding times with Daddy in the planter while Mommy planted the garden or mowed the yard.  Lucky for Daddy Evan slept most of the time in his car seat, but next year the buddy seat will be a hot spot. 

      This is the life.  I get to spend my days eating, sleeping, and playing. 

 



On the Road Again

       The road themed baby quilt is off to my nephew.    It's made from a Riley Blake fabric collection.  The five or two and a half inch squares are perfect for a boy.

       The prints include wood grain, forests, road maps, cars, polka dots, and forest friends. 

       I tried something new on this quilt.  Instead of doing batting and a cotton backing, I skipped the batting and went with a fleece backing.  The quilt has a nice soft feel to it and won't be that warm in the upcoming summer months. 

Illini Quilt

        I'm calling this quilt Illini due to the beautiful blue and orange color combo.  It is also my donation to the God's Portion Day Auction coming in June.   

 

       Illini is composed of half square triangles sewn into an offset diamond pattern.  It will make a wonderful large baby quilt or small throw. 

    The quilting on Illini has to be one of my favorites.  The white diamonds are filled with tight neat rows while the orange/blue diamonds are contrasted with a flowing wave.  Then in the offset center diamond you will find a single flower.
     This quilt will be a wonderful addition to someone's home...maybe an Illini fan.