It's that time.....get ready for our ~SIZZING SUMMER GIVE A WAY!!!

It`s that time of year again...and so beginning JUNE 1st. We`ll be starting our `SIZZLING SUMMER GIVEAWAY which will continue until AUGUST 30! Here's just a peek at what you might win! Check out my website for all the details.

HOW TO ENTER

Entering is easy! You`ll be entered every time you shop!

Each time you place an order of $75.00 or more, your name will be added to the pot. So the more you shop...the higher your chances of winning! THE PRIZES

(1) Grand prize will be awarded consisting of (1)#952 Primitive Anderson House Chandelier .(a $340 value)

(1) First place prize will be awarded consisting of (1)#1232 Stove Board Cover in your choice of color.(a $110 value)

(1) Second place prize will be awarded consisting of (1)#865 New England Sconce-wall mount (a $52.00 value)

The more times you shop, the better your chances are! Lay a way orders can be entered as long as each lay a way order is $75.00 or more, and the final payment will be received on or before Aug. 30th.

The list of winners will be posted to my blog.

Good luck!

Happy Memorial Day To You!

Hello my friends...I hope everyone is having a safe and happy weekend. Summer has finally arrived with it's warmer temps...what a joy to FINALLY get outside and feel that warm sun on your face. Ofcourse with shorts on I'm as white as a ghost. Hubby says I glow! I don't think it's that bad...and if I do, then so be it. You'd better put on your sunglasses then cuz I'm not changing!
I took a few pics of some of my favorite things that are blooming right now....I LOVE this time of year!!

Chives are one of my most favorite little herb. I LOVE the blooms they give in the Spring, which I cut and dry. It's very easy. I use an old screened window that I have hung in the attic. I simply put the chive stem right through the top of the screen...all the chives heads are resting on the top of the screen...and usually they are nice and dry in a couple of weeks. They are perfect then for flavored vinegars.

The old birdhouse is one that I've had for MANY years....bought it out West 15 years ago from a wonderful 85 year old man that enjoyed building them...and sold them for $20.00. The work is awesome with great detail..and as you can see has aged really well. Sadly, a bird family has never called it home...I think the hole is to large. But I do have another smaller one up front that has held many a family of birds. It took the house about 6 years before any birds would live in it. Don't know why...but through all the moves, every year now Sparrows and wrens raise little ones all Spring & Summer.

My favorite flower of all time are Peonies. In all of the places we've lived, I've never had any to grow, so when we moved here, I was happy as a clam to see 2 sides of the garage covered in Peonies! Gorgeous Pinks, Dark Maroon and White blossoms for many weeks...and then sadly there done. But I did just find a great way of enjoying their blooms all Summer long.

Simple cut the flower stems just as they are opening. You must be able to see a bit of the flower color...or they won't open. You then put them in a baggy...don't close it up... and stash them in the back of the fridge. When you want to use them, simple take them out, trim off the end about 2" and put them in water as usual. Now, I've not tried it yet as I heard this last Winter...so I am pretty excited to see if this works because I can never get enough Peonies in the house before they are finished blooming, or a heavy rain damages them. If you do decide to try this, please let me know how it works for you.

Our peonies are still in small bud right now...but when they do open..I'll have photos to show you.

Well friends, I hope you all a wonderful day today. Stay safe....I just lost a long time friend yesterday in a car crash...so please be careful....you never know.

Till next time, cook up some ribs and whip up a batch of potato salad and just take in the beauty all around you.

Many hugs,
Paula

WINDY HERE.....did I say WINDY!!!!

I tried to get a photo of the girls and boys.....it's SO windy here that the poor darlin's are hiding where ever possible just to stay out of the wind. This good looking chap is my rooster 'Rocky' (see the similarities??)...He HATES the wind most of all. When his saddle feathers blow up around his head, he does a wild Indian dance to get them to lay down. Pretty funny to watch.

I even tried hanging out laundry today...towels...folded over the lines...3 clothespins. By the time I finished the 2nd line...all of the towels from the first line where blowing across the yard....needless to say, I picked them all up and put them in the dryer. So much for being green today.

Grandbaby even wanted to go outside, but it's so windy I'm afraid the poor thing would blow away! So, instead I caught him doing this.
With pen in one hand, and Grandpa's glasses in the other he had dragged out my gardening mags and some of my rooster books as well....with all this reading, maybe he'll be a great little gardener someday!

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We are working on doing some new updates to the website. Time for a change I think...a bit more simpler and as always...easy for you to use. So hopefully we'll have that finished in a few days. We hope you'll like the new layout. Comments are always welcome.

With our new look will come a *NEW giveaway*! Something we haven't done in a while...and I figured it was about time. We will also be doing a weekly special....and ofcourse if your on my emailing list, you'll get all the information first. So please do sign up....I try to have a 'customer appreciation ' sale once a year...and that's ONLY for my newsletter friends.

So my friends, till next time stay out of the heat with a good book. My new favorite is 'Seasons at Seven Gates Farm'. I want my home to look just like this!!

I do have an extra hardcover issue that I'd love to sell if your interested in it. $12.00 includes the shipping to you. Just email me if your interested. :o)

Take care!

Feels like a life time ago....

I know, I know.....where have I been? Well dear friends, lets just say that my health was an issue....and I needed to address it. Thank you to all who have emailed and sent cards....your the best! So..I'm now on the road to recovery...a slow road it is, but one that is getting shorter everyday. So, on to all the great stuff that's going on here!

Our oldest daughter moved in last month....and with her came our grandbaby! WOOHOO! Seeing him everyday is just the best joy I could ever ask for. I get to tuck him in at night and kiss him good morning. What a pure blessing he is.

Look at that face....isn't he an angel?

The baby chicks have grown huge while I've been gone. With the warmer weather, they have been moved to a pen that can be inside or out depending on the weather. They do enjoy the warm sunshine and the fresh grass when they are out. I've not introduced them to the older flock yet. Granted, they were just hatched when I received them, but just in case either flock has something contagious...I don't want the other to catch it. Not that any of the chickens have been sick, on the contrary, the older girls are back to playing 'hide the egg and you go find it' game which seems to amuse them to no end. Yesterday I was out on the bench enjoying the day when one of the girls came to share the day with me. When she left, after much chatter, I found a beautiful blue egg by my feet. What a great gift she gave me.

The biggest news is that our sweet youngest daughter's boyfriend came today and asked for our blessing to marry our daughter! Ofcourse after picking myself up off the floor, I gave my approval as did hubby. Alex is a very nice young man and I can honestly say that I've not seen my daughter as happy as she is with him, in a very long time. They are both going to collage and have no plans of quitting......
He plans on proposing next week...I can't wait! He says he's planning something very romantic. Ofcourse I'd expect nothing less from a boy that asked the parents first!

My cup runnith over my friends!

As for store news...our update will be on Thursday. Many primitive antiques will be added...even a few furniture pieces so please do mark your calendar. We will also be marking down a bunch of our antiques to make room for our new goods....so make sure you pick up that something you've been eying before it's gone!

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I'm just so tickled to announce that I've also been asked to be featured in the 'Mercantile Gatherings' magazine. What an honor for me. I shall keep you posted as to when....

Well dears....that's just about all the news I have for now. So, till next time pick up the new issue of 'Mother Earth' mag. It's a great read!

Big hugs,
Paula

Baking Bread & Goodwill makeover...

Yesterday was a perfect day for making up a batch of homemade bread! Mother nature just couldn't decide if she wanted rain or snow...so I stayed in all day and worked.

I'm sharing with you the bread recipe that I've been using for years. It's SO simple and really a wonderful recipe to work with. But right now I have pics of the baby's as promised. You just won't even recognize them. They are growing by leaps and bounds and are just so darn cute! A few of them are very inquisitive and just had to get their mugs right in the camera!

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I've also finished up one of the Goodwill finds...the stack of boxes.

This is the before..

And here's the after...with a little bit of glue and fabric...they look totally different!

Keep your eyes open when your out junking. Look at things in a different way. Just about anything can be revamped into a whole new look for cheap. These boxes were covered in old fabrics using just plain 'ol glue watered down..with a final coat of aging which you can by in the small bottles where ever paints are sold..after I did a bit of sanding first. The inside is recovered in old papers from a book, but you could use newspaper as well.

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This recipe makes 5 large loaves of bread.

BREAD

3/4 c. butter

6 c. milk (may use part water)

2/3 c. sugar

1 egg

1-1/2 TB salt

2 TB yeast

7 c. whole wheat flour

7+ c. white flour

You may choose to use all of one kind of flour.....this time I used all white.

melt butter. Add milk and heat until warm. Pour into a bowl or bread mixer. Add sugar, egg and salt; mix. Add 7 cups of whole wheat flour and yeast. Add white flour until dough pulls away from the bowl, still a little sticky. Let raise for 1 hour. Knead and shape into 6 small or 5 large loaves. Let raise until dough not spring back to the touch. Bake at 350* for 30 minutes. Remove from pan and cool. Put into bags as soon as the loaves are cooled.

I hope you enjoy making this.

So till next time...bake some bread...slap on some butter when it's finished...and enjoy the day!

HAPPY EASTER BLESSINGS!

Well my friends...I can't believe it's been a couple of weeks since I last blogged! We've been crazy busy...with birthdays galore! Grandson turned 2, oldest daughter turned 24, and middle daughters boyfriend turned 19, so we had a huge party for all 3. What a great time we had!

We bought the baby a his first bike...and ofcourse the helmet, elbow pads and knee pads to go along with. OK..I'm just a little anal about safety. Just ask my kids...they weren't allowed to ride their bikes without a helmet, and our car never moved until they were all buckled in.
So anyhoo...

It was SO cold that day! We were all out there JUST long enough for Grandpa to get him on the bike, show him were his feet go, and help him peddle down the sidewalk ONCE! Then it was indoors for the rest of the day! Happy Birthdays were sung and cake was eaten...well maybe worn more then eaten, but it was a great time.

The chicks are doing great! We did lose one, it's expected I guess even though I hate losing any...the rest are growing SO big! They look so funny now at 2 weeks with feathers coming in...a little scraggly really. I have 3 that are just sweet as can be, and come to me whenever I'm out there. One of the little Delawares loves to snuggle with me in the evenings. Gosh how I love my chickens! I'll get some new pics taken of them tomorrow and put them on, along with a few of the junk store makeovers I finished up.
Till then, may you have a wonderful Easter today with your family and friends!
Much love to all!
Paula

A Very Busy House!

We've been busy becoming new parents this past weekend....and having little ones around again is SO much fun! I snapped some pics for you to see after we arrived home and got them settled in. The chicks are just a few hours old when I took these.
We picked them up on Saturday morning from the BEST hatchery that I've ever been to. McMurray Hatchery....and if you'd like information on them, please email me and I'll be happy to send you their way. After being in a few different hatchery's here in Iowa, I was flabbergasted when I walked into McMurray! They are so organized, and SO clean....even washed their hands before retrieving my babys'. So if your looking for baby's of any kind...they carry the most exotic breeds...Murry McMurray is the place you want to visit.

So the baby's are here....all 36 of them. Ofcourse they don't look like that many now...but just wait!

The little yellow chick in the very top pic has fuzzy feet and is a 'Salmon Favrolles'. A very beautiful salmon brown and creamy white color when full grown..with 5 toes and a beard and muff just like my 'Americanan's'. This is a very old French breed and considered critical by the ALBC Priority (The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy).

We also have 'Partridge Rocks', and 'Black Star' which are American breeds and not considered critical.

The Yellow chicks are 'Delawares'. This breed shows white feathers with slight black barring(stripes) in the shankle(neck)and tail. this breed is also Critical. I've personally found this breed to be very gentle and loves human companionship.

'Black Austrolorps' are the black and yellow chicks. A recovering breed that I find the MOST beautiful when grown! All glossy black! Another very gentle and quiet breed.

The yellow and Brown striped backs are 'Speckled Sussex.' A breed from England considered 'Threatened' by the ALBC. This adult female will be a rich mahogany base color with feathers ending in white tips and black bar.

And lastly we have our 'Buttercups'. The chicks have a black banding around their eyes making them look like bandits. They are also Critical. They are from Sicily and their cup shaped comb gives them their name. A beautiful breed and one that our son will be showing for FFA.

I had to show you this sweet little 'Black Australops' that took right to our son and snuggled herself in for a long nap.




This is all of our New baby girls....I do hope you've enjoyed seeing the pics of them. They are now 4 days old and already developing their wing feathers. I'm not sure if you can see it in these pics...
I'm knocking on wood as I say that we've not lost a one yet...and that they all seem very happy and healthy!

I hear some peeping going on....did I forget to tell you that they are smack dab in the middle of my livingroom?? HHHmmm.....well...it was to cold for them yet...just a few more days till it warms up a bit and I know that they'll be eating and drinking on their own. NO they are NOT spoiled!!

Till next time, read up on chickens! It's very mind opening!
Hugs to all,
Paula

What's Up Monday...

After a very nice weekend...the weather today stinks!! The wind is so bad it's blown my lawn chairs clear into the field. After 3 trips outside to rescue them...I finally decided to drag those huge concrete blocks out and put one on each seat. It had better keep them in place....because THAT was the last time I'm going after them! And just a little FYI...DON"T hang out laundry today!!!!! Not unless you want a pair of your briefs waving hello from the neighbors car antenna as he goes by!! YA...enough said.

Today has been a busy day here. We've just added (6) *NEW* furniture pieces, and (2) *NEW* Smalls! I'm in love with them all!! And..we've also added (6) *NEW* color options as well. These are our most popular colors.....SO awesome!!
These new dough boxes are a definite MUST HAVE!! So perfect for anything! Towels, old newspapers, books, blankets, paper towels...ect. Yup....A favorite!

Making this short and sweet today...busy, busy, busy. Gotta get the meatloaf in the oven!!

When you get a chance, take a peek at the new furniture. My wood worker man and his son do such a beautiful job on it all! Ofcourse, if you'd like more pics of anything...just yell.

Have a nice quiet evening my friends...and hold on to your hats!!
Much love to all,
Paula

It's Friday!!

Ok girls...how many of you put on the brakes...when you see a 'garage sale'or 'Flea market' sign...or how many times do you circle the block making sure the coast is clear, when you spy some good junk on the curb?? Yup.....me too. Even shoved my 7 year old son in a dumpster a few years back just to grab some GREAT old trim molding someone tossed out. Even picked up a perfectly good wooden ladder that day as well. It was a good day..

I love junkin'......even more then gardening....the better the deals they are, the more my heart flutters. And I KNOW there are many of you that are the same way. So today I thought I'd share a few of the things I just picked up. I'll show you the before pics today..and when they're finished being 'Primed' up, I'll show you the afters.


This sweet little cabinet is my favorite find. Handmade from an old packing crate. It's almost perfect to me...just needs a bit of cleaning up (I'm leaving the original paint) and getting rid of those knobs. We'll put on some simple homemade wood ones...probably what it had on it when it was built. I love the fact that it's missing a drawer. I love the quirky....it'll be a great places to stash a bowl..or recipes...we'll see.

These boxes cost me just a few bucks...and I know, some of you are saying' those are so cute just the way they are'. And your right. But I'm extreme prim girls...and these need to be jazzed up a bit. You won't even recognize them when I'm finished.

And finally we have the birdhouse that you see up top. Handmade and given to me. A little remake and it'll be good to go.

I'm still Spring cleaning and decorating. We have orders we're working on...and ofcourse I LOVE working down on the dining room table instead of my craft room...so the dining room looks like a bus full of 1st graders just visited!LOL
I promise that as soon as I get orders finished and out, I'll get those pics taken. :o)

Hope your having a great day today. Chilly, windy and cloudy. You know it's a icky days when the girls don't want to leave the chick coop.

One week till the baby's arrive and counting down. We are working on the brooding pen today...getting the heat lamps up..and the waters and feeders cleaned. I'm So excited. I've found pics and details of all the new girls coming..so I'll share details of them tomorrow. There are 7 breeds...I miscounted.

So till tomorrow....start a fun junk project...and check out your local farmer's market for those fresh eggs! Our's starts in just a couple of weeks. It's one of my favorite places to go.

Hugs to all,
Paula

Happy St. Patty's Day to you!

I know it's been a few days since I posted...we've been so busy here. But I just wanted to take a moment and wish you all A great day today. Even though I'm NOT Irish..I did put on a pair of green socks just for this occasion.

I hope your all enjoying this wonderful weather God has finally graced us with. *70 today...but a bit cooler for the rest of the week. Just fine for racking gardens and hanging out clothes.

We've been finishing up our orders...but I've also been sneaking in a bit of time for Spring decorating. I have to admit that I still had just a FEW pieces of Christmas still up. I know.......I'm bad.LOL But after I finish I'll take some pics for you to see what I've been doing. It's been really fun decorating this Spring as I've 'Shopped' in my own home. Finding things that have been put away for awhile now...or things that I've dragged from one room to another. I like this kind of decorating...in these hard times, when we ALL love to have a beautiful home, but little funds to make over....using what we already have can be very satisfyingly. So dig out those goodies you've had stored...and gather some fun Spring things from other rooms and lets get to work. See what you can come up with and in a few days, I'll post mine. Please send me your pictures as well...I'd love to share them with others.

Till then my friends, enjoy shopping in your own home...and don't forget to have a wonderful day today!!

Hugs to all,
Paula

Well friends...this past week as been nuts. With March coming in like a lamb(and how many FORGOT to change their clocks ahead..Hands up...yes I did)the weather this past week has been anything but Lamb like. We had been scheduled to do our update on the 8th. That didn't happen with the winds and freezing rain taking it's toll on my dish. Yup..that left me without a computer for a day and a half. I was having withdrawals let me tell you.
But between the sun and hubby, we were able to clean it off for our update last night...though it DID take me 4 hours to finish it. Ick! But, if you have a chance, please stop on over and see what I've been doing....I really am proud of the new dolls. All hand sewn (tons of work and finger pricks I have to say)...and all made with 19th century rescued fabrics. LOVE them!!

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Being March...we've also got our baby chicks ordered. They'll be arriving March 28th. So that will be a very big day for us here on the farm. There are almost 40 coming...6 different breads, all of them are very old breeds and 3 of them are almost extinct. So I really can't wait to see them. It'll be a beautiful flock when they all grow up. Hubby is planning on building a different henhouse that can accommodate all of the chickens. Right now it really is just big enough for the girls i have now ...I want a house that can hold the older girls on one side, and the younger girls on the other....
Pictures will be coming as soon as they arrive. Such cute little puffballs.
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I've also got my gardens all planned and have started some of the seeds. It's going to be 8 raised beds this year. Easier for me to garden with the arthritis...and hubby just ordered me a Mantis tiller, so HOPEFULLY no weeds! I'm not sure who's more excited to play with it...me or hubby. He comes in every morning askin' if the post man delivered it yet. I swear...he's like a kid in the candy store when it comes to gadgets!

As usual I went nuts with the seeds. But the packages look SO pretty..and the promise of beautiful plants and flowers is just to much for me to handle. So a whole bag full of seeds are now sitting on the potting table. I'm not talking just 1 pack of each kind here my friends...oh NO..I'm talking 4-5 packs of each!! Well...like I told hubby, we live on a farm...with lots of room...which needs lots of plants because then it's less mowing for him. See where I'm going with this?? Oh yes, that worked and hubby was speakless scratching his head....and then finally agreed with me. 'Yup, I guess your right. I love him to death, but BOY is he easy!!(giggle)

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So dear friends, I'm off to finish orders...we've had alot of wood orders..which is very good but a bit time consuming with all the aging we do to them. So I'm off to age and work...hopefully I'll get few more goodies on the website in the next few days..so please keep checking.

Till next time....put your feet up and read a good book and just enjoy the beautiful day!
Hugs to all!

Starting Roses from Cuttings..

This is what's left of a huge bouquet of flowers that I received on Valentines day from hubby. I was just getting ready to toss them, when I noticed that 2 of the roses had sprouts on the stems. Now, I've NEVER seen this before on florist flowers.....and probably will never again, so I decided to root them and see if they'll grow.
Rooting is really simple...but only works on hard stem plants...such as the roses, lilacs, lavender..etc. Just always make sure you take a cutting from the old woody growth.

After cutting off the blossom , I cut just below the new sprout. Both cuts are at an angle for better water absorption.

I found 2 small custard cups to plant the roses in. The cups are small enough to put a sandwich bag over..and then to sit on the window ledge.

After cutting the stems, I dipped them in water, shook off the excess and swirled the wet stem in the root hormone. This I buy at any farm implement store, but I have seen it at Walmart as well.

I then pushed the stems into the moist potting soil, and taped down nice and firm. Give it a bit of a misting, not much. You don't want mold to grow. Cut a wooden skewer in two and push on either side of the stem. This will keep the bag from settling on the stem and will act as a terrarium.

Cut off the 'zip' part of your sandwich bags, and place over the your whole pot. You can tie some twine around the bottom if you'd like, But I like to keep mine open for a bit of fresh air. Only mist the stem when it's dry. With the bag over it, it should produce enough water to keep itself going, but if you see that it's to wet, uncover the pot for awhile.

You can keep it on the windowsill, or on a table on the south side of your house.

After about 4 weeks, you can check to see if roots are growing by very gently tugging on the stem. If there's resistance, you have roots! After about 2-3 months, I'd transplant the rose into a larger container and over winter till Spring which is the best planting time for roses.

Have fun....look around this Spring and see what you can start. It's a great cheap way of adding plants to your gardens. :o)

Good Luck!

A wonderful day!

YUH.....now this is what I call a great day! 65*...warm, sunny and just plain beautiful. I've had my windows open for most of the day...don't you just love that fresh smell you get indoors when the windows have been open?
I tried to stay outside for awhile...just to enjoy the sun...I hung out some laundry.....and the girls enjoyed the day as well. With the snow melted, they were able to do the thing they most love in the world...dust bath.What's even funnier is when all them try to get in there to bath. Oh how they love this time!

POOR MATILDA! Her pretty feathers never grew back after she molted last Fall...but they do say that your best laying hens are always the worst looking. I should sew her a jacket... don't you think?


Have a great evening!