While the seasons quickly pass us by and change into a new year, Fall has been enjoyable as always. 

We had some good fun this fall, even admist all the busy chaos of our lives.  We settled into our new place in the city just before Halloween and the boys enjoyed playing dress up for “Trick or Treat”.  It was cold and wet that night, so we didn’t spend a lot of time tricking and treating. We visited some great neighborhoods that my family and I have trick or treated for a few generations before calling it a night. I love taking my boys to enjoy some past times of my own.

The day after, we had a visit with one of our dear family doctors, and she shared with us the story of the ‘Halloween Witch’. We decided as a healthier alternative to candy that we would also call upon the ‘Halloween Witch’. Realizing we were a few days late, we told the boys she had gotten sick and was the reason for her tardiness. So that night we waited in our sleep for the “Halloween Witch” to take all the Halloween loot. In it’s place the morning after, she left some cars to fulfill the boys request. They were delighted!

Before Halloween I had purchased 3 large organic pumpkins at EarthFare at a great deal. They made great Fall props in the house, photo props, and facinated the kids. After Halloween it was time for us to prepare them as it was their intended purpose. 

Jax had a lot of fun helping. 

We made 7  pumpkin spelt pies (frozen ready to bake), 168 cookies worth of cookie dough (separated into freezing containers for easy to grab, thaw and bake),and 30 scones. Everything was 100% made from scratch Vegan and made to freeze except for most of the scones which were eaten in less than 3days

For Vegan Pumpkin Pie..

I use arrowroot powder mixed with milk or soy milk in the place of eggs to thicken the filling. Substitute sugar with maple syrup or agave nectar (which is what I used). The quantity of maple syrup used in this recipe is minimal. More can be added to your taste. Gluten free flour can be used if you like, but I prefer the taste of spelt as an alternative to wheat.

Filling

Crust

Saving the best for last, Alexzander also turned 1 this Fall.  Here is a few pictures of him through his first year. Isn’t he just a doll?

6 weeks…

6months..

1 year..

While out on the reserve the other day I needed to undo a nut and bolt but realised I had left the spanner behind.  It was a long walk back to the workshop so a decided to try and make something out of natural materials.  I cut a piece of Willow about the thickness of my finger

I used a piece of cord to whip both ends of the stick and then split the stick in half (the whipping prevented the split running to the ends of the stick)

I had to prise the two halves apart and put the nut through the gap

I grasped tightly either side and close to the nut.

I was rather sceptical that it would work but I was pleased to find that it did!!  It would not be strong enough to remove a lock nut or rusted nut and bolt.

Unfortunately I did not have my camera with me when I originally made the spanner so I have reconstructed it for the pictures.

A visual interpretation of a section of ‘Poor Aunt’ by Haruki Murakami in his book ‘Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman’

Nathaniel is a toddler.  I work overnights.  Let’s just say that the work week is dedicated to taking care of him, sleeping, working, and tossing critters some food.

Housework doesn’t happen during the week.  Nathaniel creates housework.  I suck at housework.  John was always the better housekeeper.  John is gone.  Herein lies the problem.

During the week there is no time.  Over the weekend the last thing I want to do is housework.  I look at the house and have no idea where to start or what to do.

Then I try to do something- like say for instance load the dishwasher.  Simple enough.  Till Nathaniel craws in the dishwasher and pulls out steak knives.  Why does he always grab the most dangerous thing????

When I try to fold laundry he unfolds it.  Sometimes he even carries it off.

When I go to change loads of laundry he either stays inside and screams because I’m out in the garage, or, if I leave the door open, he acts like he’s going to come out… he doesn’t go down steps and I know from experience the concrete in the garage is HARD. (I missed a step once and ended up flat out and put a hurting on my knees.)

He is great for trips to the dump, but in  preparation to go to the dump, he takes out the recyclables and deposits them on the floor.

Nathaniel is notorious for leaving food on the floor- cheerios,  puffs, veggie crisps.  During one attempt to vacuum up veggie crisps, he decides to eat them off the floor as quickly as possible and then picks up a toy that was in the way and stands in front of the vacuum as if he’s defending his turf.

I try to sweep up the mud room… he takes off with the dustpan.

Conventional mother wisdom is to clean at nap time.  Great in theory but I either need a nap or the nap isn’t long enough.

My friend called me yesterday when I was about at my wits end.  I’d just re-directed Nathaniel multiple times away from the dishwasher and it wasn’t working.  I was overwhelmed… about ready to send kiddo to bed early just so I could get SOMETHING done.

My friend said, “How about I come over today and watch kiddo tomorrow so you can ride… I think you need to get on a horse.”

I said, “I think you’re right.”

The ground was a little mushy from rain on Thursday.  I didn’t want to tear it up too badly.  But, heck the grass hasn’t been cut in about 2 months- why worry about a few divots.  You’d never notice them anyway with the grass being long.
So he came over and played with kiddo and I got Willow tacked up.  Grooming her was relaxing.  I lunged her briefly in the tall grass and then got on and rode for a little bit- we just walked and trotted.  She’s out of shape and I’m fat and out of shape.  Willow was very good.  It was nice to feel confident about something that I was doing.  To feel a partnership.  To do something that I love to do.  To know that I hadn’t forgotten the good times.  It was frustrating that my equitation hadn’t improved– damn wrists and elbows, but I smiled because I could here my trainer’s voice in my head— “fix your wrists!”   It just felt good to ride.

For a short time, everything was fine with the world.  Just me and my horse.  Just a pleasant ride.    Equine therapy is the best therapy I could have.  The Winston Churchill quote- ““There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man,” just sums it up.  It won’t ever bring John back, but it takes away the pain, grief, and feeling overwhelmed for just a little while.  When I’m in the saddle… it’s just me and my horse.

After riding, I took my friend down to see the infamous “leaky creek” and we walked the trails in the woods.  Nathaniel was impressive… he walked a good bit of the way.  The walk was nice too.  I’m just an outdoorsy kind of gal.  People can keep their parties and big city glamor… I’d rather ride my horse and walk in the woods.

I know I’ll cry tonight… but for a little while this afternoon everything was okay again.

And… I did manage to get some laundry done (although it needs folded).  I cleaned out the fridge and the litter box.  We went to the dump.  I emptied the dishwasher and started to re-fill it.  So… I wasn’t completely worthless, today…

I’d like to get more equine therapy sessions… I think they’re good for my sanity…

McKinley - He's heavier than he looks

If we had been playing that game at the weekend we would have lost!  As part of our routine we had scheduled to weigh Whisper and McKinley.  Whisper was born August 31 with a birth weight of 14.7 lbs, while McKinley was born September 5 with a birth weight of 19.1 lbs.

McKinley is quite a tall cria and Whisper is just the opposite small and compact.  They were the last of the summer crias to be born and are very close in age.  With the exception of Theresa’s cria, the latest cria to be born on our farm, McKinley and Whisper are the two smallest crias of our summer cria crop.

When Ric picked up McKinley it was obvious from Ric’s face that McKinley was a little heavier than expected.  Ric valiantly carried him to the scales and back, but by the time he got to the pasture gate he was calling out “help me” for McKinley indeed was no light weight having weighed in at 54.5 lbs.

Next to go to the scales was Whisper – surely she weighed a lot less.  Were we in for a surprise!  Again as Ric picked up Whisper his face showed the strain (is Ric really getting out of shape I began to wonder, no more Open Farm Day cookies for him!), but Ric had good cause to be taken aback by Whisper’s weight for she weighed in at 58.7 lbs!  She weighed even more than McKinley!

Little Whisper - only she is not that little anymore!

We have been raising alpacas now for over 10 years and so usually are pretty in tune with how much a cria weighs based on its size, but these two really have surprised us for they do not look that big.  Both McKinley and Whisper have dense fleeces though and I suspect that some of that weight is fleece weight.    Whatever the reason for McKinley and Whisper’s weights, I think it is safe to say that they are both healthy, hearty crias and that their dams Bjorn and Willow are doing a great job in the milk department!  Keep up the good work girls (and stay away from those cookies Ric!)

Rosemary

And it was only about an hour’s drive.

Today we went to Gaffney to the Outlet Mall down there with nice group of mama’s, kids, and women from our church. Did I mention my mother too?

It was really a pleasant trip for the most part. On the way down, Jax got a bit carsick as we were carpooling, which made for a tense last 20 minutes, but no upchucking to report so all was well.

My mother and I had some good conversation, and  all in all it was pretty nice hanging out with her and bonding. A refreshing change from our habit to bicker with one another.

My little sister was awesome with helping juggle the kids. She is going to make a great Early Childhood Development Teacher. She’s almost done with her associates! Im so proud. The kids love her.

Jax walked the whole time, talking and helping to pick out things with people in our group, while Zander rode in my Ball Baby Mei Tai (love it! highly recommend www.haveaballbaby.com)

We fellowshipped over fruit smoothies and talked about our kids of different ages. I love hearing from the parents of the older kids. Especially the ones who mother boys since it’s a whole new ballgame for me being the oldest of 3 girls.

It’s really nice to be able to sit down with the ladies, families, mama’s and friends of the communities I am connected with. Each one has a different take on things and each one is important, supportive and powerful in the lessons we all learn and the way we grow as individuals, families, and community. We are blessed!

 

being stuck doesn’t always mean you’re “stuck”, sometimes it means you’re right where you need to be, regardless of whether you like it or not. -WillowJoyce

Listen to the episode HERE.

Joss Whedon’s Firefly was probably the best sci-fi television show ever. To be cancelled after half a season. By Fox (those bastards). It might have proved to be the best sci-fi show ever, period, if it’d been picked up by another network but it wasn’t. All we got was 14 episodes and a movie (Serenity). Fans of the show were heartbroken.

I wasn’t one of the heartbroken. I was part of the problem. I never watched Firefly when it was on the air because it was a huge nerd hurdle for me. Not because it was sci-fi but because I had no idea it was sci-fi. I heard the words “Joss Whedon” and “Firefly” and assumed it was another Buffy spin-off like Angel, but maybe about Willow or some other wiccan lesbians. Though I loved Buffy, I didn’t care for Angel, so I never checked out Firefly. And not many other people did either.

Then, after it was cancelled, I heard it was really good. One of the best TV shows ever. My ears pricked up. Then I heard it was “space cowboys” and my ears pricked back down. Cowboys are a huge hurdle for me. I like the odd western (usually starting a young Clint Eastwood) but generally I don’t care for the genre. It’s why it took me so long to watch the excellent Deadwood. Perhaps it’s because I don’t like modern-day cowboy culture and thereby associate ”westerns” with redneck douchebags. And I don’t care for the music. Such as the Firefly theme:

Then it was explained to me that the show isn’t so much about space cowboys as space outlaws and once again my ears were pricked. So a couple of years ago, several years after it was cancelled, I finally sat down to tackle Firefly.

I wasn’t disappointed. True, I wasn’t hooked from the first episode, but by the third I couldn’t stop watching if I tried. The show’s strength is that it’s blessed with probably the best ensemble cast ever assembled. Where other classic ensembles (TNG, Buffy) took a good three or four seasons to hit their stride, the cast of Firefly hit the ground running. The chemistry couldn’t have been improved in a laboratory. Check out the gag reel at the bottom of this post. It’s hard to believe these people were practically strangers.

Though there is certainly an outlaw/western feel to the show, it’s all the aspects of westerns I enjoy. They’re more dust-bowl pirates than cowboys. In a way it’s like Pirates of the Caribbean set on the Millenium Falcon instead of the Black Pearl. If it’d been sold to me that way, I’d have been watching from day one.

Instead the show was pitched as “nine people looking into the blackness of space and seeing nine different things.” Um. Okay. That’s cool and all, but it’s sounds like Waiting for Godot staged on Discovery One. This show isn’t that at all. Perhaps the exact opposite. It’s an adventure-comedy of the highest grade. And well worth the hurdle.

‘Tis the season! The holidays are here and it’s time to celebrate with family and friends. That means throwing at least a party or two, and possibly hosting a holiday meal. When it comes to your tablescape, Susan, our floral department manager at the Burnside Zupan’s, has some fantastic tips for making a statement without investing a lot of energy. She’s a fan of simple, elegant arrangements that compliment a table rather than stage a takeover—and berry branches are one of her favorite tricks for creating instant ambiance in a room.

Some of Susan’s preferred local varieties of berry branches are Ilex berries, pumpkin berries, bittersweet berries, rose hips and gorgeous purple Callicarpa berries. She fills a tall, cylindrical vase with apples, pomegranates (cut in half, so you can see the beads inside) or persimmons and uses the berry branches to complete the piece (you can also add willow or dogwood branches). The result is quite striking—and this arrangement is both hypoallergenic and long lasting.

If you have your menu down, but need some inspiration for your centerpiece, head in to your neighborhood Zupan’s and check out our European style floral market. Our staff is always willing to help you with a full arrangement, or suggestions on how to create the perfect piece for your home.

From our table to yours—Happy Holidays!

The second kitty is Rosco. He’s about 8 and a half months now, with an estimated birthday of March 30, 2009. He still hasn’t figured out how to meow, but he has no problem with purring! And because he’s still so young, he can be a real handful!

(picture to come)

This isn’t really art but I had to put it somewhere.

In the spring of this year I had the urge to try something new. I’ve always like the look of rustic furniture so I decided I’d try to make a chair from willow.  I did a little searching on the internet but ended up largely making up the process as I went along. I suspect some or all of it may have been done before they found a better way.

Down by a lake near us is a large area where the right willows grow- about 6-8 ft long first or second year growth. I cut them and strip the leaves off. Over a period of a couple days I stripped them of their bark, which peels of easily. For what I did the stripped of bark was useful to temporarily tie the willow together and in place while it dried. I would use a strong string were I to do it again.

First I tried to make a chair without a form to shape the legs and hold them in position while they dry. This was a bust- the outcome looked OK but didn’t have any strength to it as I couldn’t put enough of the willows together to make it strong enough. Secondarily, the willow that I first cut was too thin.

I went back and cut more willow this time picking more stout pieces- where the skinny end was no smaller than a pencil.  Were I to do this again I would cut even thicker willows.

Since the freeform approach didn’t work I built a square form with a height of my kitchen chairs and a bottom in the corners for the willow to bottom out against.  I them bend the willows to make all four legs of the chair but left what would be the back open- I would put the back also if I did it again. For the legs from which the back would be attached I used fewer willows since putting in the back would add to the thickness. To make the center of the chair to sit on, I put maybe 6 particularly stout pieces  on the diagonal, 3 one way, 3 the other way. Most of the  bent pieces were cut to be slightly higher than the top of the form( maybe 1 in. max). I tied the legs into bundles with the willow bark, and tied any of the crossing pieces making the center of the chair to prevent them from moving to far while they dried. I put a board on top of the filled form and put bricks on it to get all the willows to be flush with the form.   These needed to dry several day before they were permanently formed and didn’t spring back up when the board was removed.

After the legs dried I made the back. Willows were placed in the form and crossed at different heights with several used to form the rounded back of the chair. The willows were tied in place with willow bark strips wherever they crossed and as much as needed to hold them in the rounded form of the back. I put the board back on and also used some heavy bricks to bend the backrest somewhat so it was not straight up and down. I allowed this to dry for a week or so before the next step.

After I could remove it from the form, I applied glue to bond the willows together to increase rigidity. Where willows crossed, I used a round file to produce a rounded notch to increase the contact area and applied glue to them. I bought some leather strips from Jo-Ann Fabrics and tied the leg bundles and the bonded willow crossing points. Below is a picture of the end result. Not great but not bad for a novice.

I am so interested in the American tour that Sarah Palin will be promoting this week for her book Going Rogue: An American Life. I think there is something we all can learn from this. If anything, it is a media spectacle unlike anything ever seen before: Sarah Palin, the former Governor of Alaska, who makes history as the first female Vice Presidential candidate for the Republican Party, dishes her perspective on the inside story behind the McCain campaign. While I haven’t read the book myself, (I plan on buying a copy soon,) it will be interesting to see how this all plays out in the end and how it will bode for the future of national and global politics, if at all.

Follow Your Heart Poetry now on sale on AMAZON!
Original poetry works by Rochelle Carr, with creative and engaging poems that combine hearts, family, travel, romance, and a passion for life. The poetry is accompanied by photos of Rochelle’s original fine art paintings. Perfect gift for birthdays, holidays, graduation, and VALENTINE’S DAY! ENJOY!

Hallo zusammen,

heute melde ich mich nun zum letzten Mal. Denn JANA hat ihr definitives Ende gefunden. Ich danke allen, die die Serie gelesen habe und hoffe, dass sie euch wenigstens ein wenig gefallen hat. In meinen Augen ist sie immer besser geworden und das lag nicht zuletzt an den beiden, die mir richtig ans Herz gewachsen sind und deren Liebe so einiges überstanden hat – JANA und WILLOW.

Und so will ich im letzten Video diese Beiden noch einmal ehren, bevor ich gleich die Staffelbox hochlade.
Die Seite wird erhalten bleiben, doch es gibt keine neuen Updates mehr.

Das Video zeigt noch einmal alle Höhen und Tiefen der zwei Hexen und vllt kann sich der ein oder andere an bestimmte Handlungen oder Szenen erinnern.
Alles Liebe, eure Samra.

My farrier came out to trim the horses feet.  In an effort to meet budget, we’ve stretched the time between trims.  Our stretching ended up going 12 weeks (they do grow less in the winter)- he missed our appointment and had to reschedule.  The farrier was pleasantly surprised that everybody’s feet looked pretty good.  They were long, but Tiny was the only one who was getting some chips- and they weren’t any worse than “stomping at flies during the summer chips.”  Winston’s feet were amazing… still nice and round with a good hard wall.  I noticed that Wilson’s feet were exactly the same.  I ended up in a discussion with Wayne over how similar the two are.  The two would make a stunning pair in harness or for a pair’s class.  Their face markings, conformation, and movement is very similar!  Willow’s only obvious contribution to the gene pool is Wilson’s long thick mane and tail.

Later, I was thinking about how people always compare children to their parents.  “You have your father’s nose.”  “Your mother’s chin.” etc.

I thought back to what my Grandfather Brown was known for saying when comparison conversations came up… “He’d say that I looked just like Mary Kate.”  He liked that everybody was an individual and unique.

I looked at Nathaniel and thought of my Grandfather’s words and thought of Nathaniel.  Honestly, I’m much better at looking at horses and telling what attributes they got from their sire and dam than I am with humans.  However, I’ve seen John’s toddler pics.  And even my ignorant eye can spot the similarities.  Take out the 70’s decor and update the photo quality and the two could probably pass for each other.  Nathaniel has John’s eyes- that is unmistakable.

Somebody said to me, that I can tell Nathaniel that he’s looking at the world though his father’s eyes.  I do hope that Nathaniel turns out to be “just like Daddy” in many ways- the world will be a better place if that is the case…

(Bach Flower) Impatiens Person

• He is an impatient person. He manages to attract lazy people – Scleranthus people, who postpone doing things by saying that they have enough time.
• For an Impatiens person, time is important, while the person opposite him does not feel so. His train will leave at 12 noon. But, he will arrive at the station by 10 am. His wife will be so patient that she will start her preparations to leave only by 10 AM. He will turn into Beech and Willow.

We want to finish our tasks faster when we are stuck in a traffic jam or a queue. Bach Flower Remedy Impatiens or Animal Spirit Guide Wolf will help you in such situations to finish them faster.

Don’t get impatient, for you may never arrive at your destination

One day a neighbour of mine was planning to go to a Jewellery shop by 10 am. His plan is to leave the house by 9 AM and come back before 12 noon as per the instructions of his astrologer. Being an impatient person, he told his relatives to join him the day before. He informed them in advance on his plan of action.

At 9 am, except for the two – which includes his wife, everybody was ready. When he yelled at his wife, he fell down. Now everybody could go except for him to the Jewellery shop!

Beware what you pray for…as you will get it!

Shanti prayed to Animal Spirit Guide Wolf, “Today I am paying fees for my son’s education. Nobody should be there, so that I can finish my work faster”. 

It does what you ask it to do. When she reached her son’s school, nobody was in the counter, including the cashier!

She became Willow, as she thought Wolf did not help her. She criticized that the cashiers did not know their responsibilities, as they were absent. She failed to see the notice that it was a holiday for the collection counter at the school (so impatient!).

So be careful in forming the intention, as you will get exactly what you want!  

Impatient persons expect that every event properly done. Therefore, they will go one hour earlier to others.