How To Keep Flowers Upright In A Mason Jar

Don't you just love to have fresh flowers in the house?

Hand picked from the garden, the woods, or even the grocery store...flowers are welcome any time of year.

One of my favorite ways to display them is in vintage blue mason jars.  I have purchased most at yard sales throughout the years.  

Anything looks better in a mason jar, right?

But sometimes because of the length of the stem or even the weight, they need a little help standing upright in the mason jars...

The New Pioneer Magazine Summer 2016 issue

The New Pioneer magazine Summer issue is now available and WOW is it full of some great ideas!

I enjoyed reading the article about a Vermont farm that has a program giving children that live in large cities the opportunity to experience the lifestyle and practices of farmers.  They also make some great cheese!

I learned a lot from the basket weaving articles.

There are DIY sheds, rustic furniture, compact campers, a farm-to-brew article, and so much more.

There are lots of gardening ideas in this issue, including my article on how we grow tomatoes with the help of cattle fence.

The New Pioneer magazine is full of real people and real projects...a great read for the pioneer that lives in all of us.

I hope you pick up a copy and are inspired!

Dogwood Branches

I found a dogwood tree on our property the other day.

What a statement a few branches make on the mantel.

Beautiful flower.

Powerful story!

I love decorating with nature whenever possible.

Planting A Salad Garden

Are you craving fresh garden salads?  I know I am!

Spring is the perfect time to plant what I like to call a salad garden.

LETTUCE
Lettuce is a great Spring crop.  The plants thrive in cooler weather, compared to the extreme heat of Summer.
Sow the seeds in prepared soil about 1/4 inch deep.  You can do so three to four weeks before your last frost date.
Sow seeds every 2 to 3 weeks to keep fresh greens on your dinner table.
In about 45 days you can enjoy that first garden fresh salad.
Sow more seeds in late Summer / early Fall (before the first frost) to harvest salad greens again.
A favorite of ours is Black Seeded Simpson.  It is a loose leaf variety that is easy to grow and fast to produce!

This year I also planted Select Salad Blend.  It will provide a kaleidoscope of color.

Egg Salad

Egg salad is a classic!

As with a lot of my recipes, this is simple to put together.  It doesn't call for any fancy ingredients, but instead lets the eggs be the star of the show.

* This recipe uses 12 eggs!  A great way to use our farm fresh eggs. *

Vinegar is my secret weapon.

Farm Photo Friday (April 15, 2015)

When I fed the ladies some kale and spinach, I tried to capture some moments with my phone camera.

First, she casually checked it out.

Herbs - oh how I need you

Well, a couple weeks ago I was bitten!

Bitten by Spring fever that is...

I jumped the gun and planted some herbs on one of those glorious warm Spring days.  

I just couldn't help it!

I love to cook with fresh herbs!  

I love the smell of fresh herbs!

Have you heard the saying?  If you don't like the weather in Ohio, wait 10 minutes and it will change!

Crock Pot Southwestern Chicken Soup

Although I have titled this Southwestern Chicken Soup, it could easily be called Dump It In Chicken Soup, because that is literally what you do...

               dump in some sauteed, seasoned chicken

                                              dump in some flavorful veggies

                                                                             dump in some liquid
 
                                                                                            cook it all low and slow                                                                              
                                                                                                                        BAM...supper is ready

Egg, Ham, and Cheese Muffins

The ladies are all producing eggs now!  We are getting between 5 - 8 eggs a day!  I'm not complaining, but...not used to having so many eggs on hand, they were piling up in the fridge.

With that said, I wanted to make a recipe that used a lot of eggs.

Feed Sacks From Grandma

My Mom gave me some feed sacks.

What?

Yes, feed sacks!

There are some very pretty patterns.

But the best part?  They have a story that goes with them...

Farm Photo Friday (April 1, 2016)

Happy April Fools Day!

and

Welcome to a Farm Photo Friday!

Although hoping for peaches from this tree, the budding flowers are certainly putting on a show.

Spring is here!  One morning I looked out and everything was so much greener...things are popping up, budding, and flowering...it is all so beautiful!