More Than a Gift
March 07, 2010 - When is a gift more than just a gift? When it has been hand made for a particular person, for a particular time.
As you know the princess bride of the house has taken up knitting and from time to time she and her creations get a mention, perhaps even far to little mention.
This one she has been working on for months with my mom in mind. Just her color and style and just the right occasion - her birthday.
This handbag is felted, has beautiful bead-felted flowers and is skillfully lined. Designed to hold just a few essentials and make a lasting impression and too beautiful for just one picture.
The Road Home
March 05, 2010 - There are so many things that I have a better understanding of now that we have college aged kids. One of the many things that I enjoyed about being away from home was the coming back but I never really appreciated what my folks must have felt.
We posted in the January 10 edition of OTR the departure of the boys back to school. Today was the joyous homecoming. They arrived home after dark so the girls were all asleep.
It'll be pandemonium in the morning.
Jolly Roger
March 04, 2010 - This past weekend brought with it a simply lovely Sunday afternoon which we took full advantage of up at our neighborhood park.
One of the kids had been gifted a kite and was just dying to try it out. Not only is it the shape of a pirate ship but it was like a kid magnet. Now, there was not a lot of wind - occasional gusts but nothing sustained - so they had to do a fair bit of running to get it over the trees.
I'm not sure they would have had as much fun if they would have been able to make it fly the first, second or 23rd time.
March 03, 2010 - I had to do some digging but it occured to is that we haven't given you a chicken update since the
August 31, 2009 edition of OTR and so here it goes...
Like other critters you get to know a lot about them when you keep them as pets. For instance you may or may not know this but chickens have to have 14 hours of light a day in order to produce eggs and even at that you only have a few good years of laying per hen. They are incredible eggs mind you but you have to mind the girls if you want them to keep laying over the winter.
On this evenings visit to check on them I was gifted with 4 of the most beautiful eggs from our 6 layers. Thanks Ladies.
On the Hunt
March 02, 2010 - I mentioned in the
January 15 edition that we had taken up the sport of hunting so you are likely to see a fair number of posts on the subject.
There is a lot about hunting that gets you closer to Gods creation not the least of which is hiking new tracts of land and discovering what types of critters may live there by the tracks, scrapes and scat (google it) that they leave behind. The more you know about the critter you are hunting the better chances of success you have.
NLD and VMD exploring the Kirk farm. Turkeys beware.
March(ing) On
March 01, 2010 - For one reason or another I have missed a few weeks (Ok, about six...) but I've never been one for letting the failures of the past dictate what the future holds.
And so it is now the beginning of March, the cold wind is indicating a change in the weather and snow is predicted, yet again, for our part of the country. So, what's with the flowers?
For the casual viewer, a reminder of the spring to come. For our family, the promise of meeting little faces in heaven.
Iced Fountain
January 18, 2010 - We reported in the
January 01 edition of OTR about the cold snap that we were in for. It has finally broken as it was in the upper 50's today.
It left a few memories in its wake however. When the boys returned to campus after the Christmas break they came upon a fountain that did not fair very well in the cold.
Loafing Around
January 17, 2010 - I have to say that there is nothing quite like the smell of freshly baked bread.
We had the occasion to try a recipe from some friends of ours and while they weren't the best looking loafs of Italian bread you may have ever seen, they sure tasted good.
The first loaf went fast with nothing but butter melted by its oven fresh warmth. The second was cut for dinner. The third gave it self to breakfast this morning in the form of french toast.
Is it OK to use Italian bread for French toast?
Big Blue
January 16, 2010 - Did we happen to tell you just how much we love our neighborhood? Its got about everything a family needs - including some great critters.
We spent this afternoon up the block at a little pond where we have seen so many great things and even released a few of our own. Today we had the pleasure of coming upon a Great Blue Heron that we have seen from time to time from some distance but never up so close.
Submitted for your approval by the lens of NLD.
Big Blue.
January 15, 2010 - One of our favorite blogs out there is the Art Of Manliness. A recent post was about 45 Manly Hobbies
45 Manly Hobbies and I'm proud to say that this house has happily participated in a good many and we are working on a few others.
Hunting is the latest and this file photo from Christmas is evidence of just how serious we are. NLD got his first shotgun. A Remington 870 pump-action 20 gauge. What else could a boy ask for?
We completed our Hunter safety course yesterday and are looking forward to our first rabbit or squirrel hunt next month.
