Rabbits, and Chicks and Dogs and family oh my!

So, thought I'd post a bunch of pictures, just some that I've taken recently. As you can see, we always seem to have something going on!!! So the top picture, of the Chocolate bunny, that's George! George is the Son of Fred and Betty. He turned out to be a nice size buck, with good body size, and breeding Silver Fox, that's kind of an important thing.
Of course you know,  Jasper, Sam and Bella!!! (Jasper is the black and white, Sam is the grey and black, and Bella is the hound dog)(Just in case you're new to me). The chicks were hard to get pictures of, but I did get a couple of pictures. Now the black bunny is Fred, the grey one is Doris.
That adorable red headed little girl is my niece Faith. The sweet lady with her is my mother in law, who I would not trade for the world!!!
As you can also see, the dogs have been very busy digging a huge hole out back. I need to try and get a picture of the ditch that they seem to have dug. I believe that they are following a tunnel that something has dug under ground.
I know that this doesn't make up for my lack of posting here lately, but I've got lots of things on the fire, and hopefully will be able to keep up better once we get things going on a better more even keel.

Easy Dinner Rolls

Hello!!! And Happy Late Christmas!!! (yeah, I have neglected you all horribly) Christmas here was really great! We had a wonderful Christmas with my husbands family. My nephew and his new wife came up from Georgia, and they looked great! (Its really weird to say my nephew and his wife..am I getting old?) I do have some fun pictures coming up for you, some of the new chicks that I hatched out on December 14th, some of the dogs, and a couple of rabbit pictures. I need to introduce George to you all properly now that he's full grown, and about as big as his daddy (Fred)

So, I made these rolls for Thanksgiving, and I've been meaning to share the recipe for some time now. They work up really easy, and are quite tasty. Of course, these aren't nearly as pretty as their picture, but I'm not one who can ever get anything to look like the picture!  This is an icebox dough, and you can make the dough up to 4 days ahead of time if you are super busy. Now, I didn't make mine ahead that far, but I did get the dough started that morning, and had it in the oven by the time I got done prepping, and getting everything else going. Now, I know you can buy pre made rolls, and that's awesome if you really don't have the time or inclination to make stuff by scratch, but there are times when home made rolls are just way more tasty. (Sorry Mathew)(FYI for anyone wondering, Matthew is my favorite grocery store boy.)

So, here goes the recipe!

Ingredients:
1 cup warm water
(105 F. to 115 F.)

2 packages active dry yeast

1/2 cup (1 stick)
butter, melted

1/2 cup sugar

3 eggs

1 tsp salt

4 - 4.5 cups unbleached
all-purpose flour

Additional melted butter
(optional)

makes 2 dozen rolls

Directions:
Combine the warm water, and yeast in a large bowl. let the mixture stand until yeast is foamy, about 5 minutes.

Stir in butter, sugar, eggs and salt. Beat in flour, 1 cup at a time, until dough is too stiff to mix (Some flour may not be needed). Cover and refrigerate 2 hours or up to 4 days.

Grease a 13-x-9 inch baking pan. Turn the chilled dough out onto a lightly floured board. Divide dough into 24 equal-size pieces. Roll each piece o a smooth round ball; place balls in even rows in the prepared pan. Cover and let dough balls rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375 F. Bake until rolls are golden brown, 15-20 minutes. Brush warm rolls with melted butter, if desired. Break rolls apart to serve.

Now, a word of warning, these are so good right out of the oven, that they can be hard to stop eating!!! They are super good!!! (Well I think so, but then I don't bake anything I don't like!)

Hatching eggs...again

So, I have eggs in the incubator...again.. These eggs however, I purchased from a lady that I met on the Virginia Farm site on Face Book. I don't recommend just meeting people willy nilly that you are purchasing from online. There are some safety factors that need to be considered. Always meet in public, and never meet alone.

I'm not sure how well this video is going to show up for you guys, its the first time I've uploaded a video from my phone, onto the computer, and then put it on here. From my phone to FB is another matter completely, but this is a new thing.

So, I took a video of me candling an egg. Now I was doing all of it by myself, because Frank was at work, and I wanted to see if the iPhone camera is as awesome as they say. It seems to be, but you all be the judge! Enjoy!!!!

Snow Flake Throw

Snow Flake Throw

Materials
2 Skeins of White Red Heart Super Saver Jumbo (14 oz.)
2 Skeins Blue Red Heart Super Saver  (7 oz.)
J hook
yarn needle


Squares - Make 48 (Squares are about 5 & 1/2)

1. With White, ch 3, join with sl st to form circle, ch 3, 2 dc in ring, *ch 3, 3 dc in ring, ch 3* Repeat 2 more times, for a total of 4, 3 dc clusters, and ch 3 st. Join last ch 3 with sl st to beginning ch 3. (note beg ch 3 always counts as first dc)

2. ch 3, 2 dc in corner, ch 3, 3 dc in same space *skip next dc, dc in second dc, ch 2, dc in same st, 3 dc, ch 3, 3 dc in next corner space* repeat from * all the way around. Join w/ sl st to beginning ch 3. Finish off white

3. Join blue with sl st in any corner space. Ch 3, 2 dc, ch 3, 3 dc in same ch 3 space. *sc in 2nd dc of next 3 dc shell, 5 dc in next ch 2 space, sc in second dc of next 3 dc shell. 3 dc, ch 3, 3 dc in next corner space* Repeat around. Join with sl st to beg ch 3 space. Finish off blue.

4.  Join white with sl st in any ch 3 corner. ch 1, 2 sc, ch 1 3 scin same space. *sc in 2nd dc of 3 dc shell, 4 dc in next sc, sc in 3rd dc of 5 dc shell, 4 dc in next sc, sc in 2nd dc of next 3 dc shell, 3 sc, ch 1, 3 sc in next corner space* Repeat around Finish off

Assembly
Whip stitch them together, in a row of 6, and then sew all of the rows together. (you will have 8 rows of 6)

Edging

1. Join white in any corner, ch 3, 2 dc, ch 3, 3 dc in same corner. *skip next 3 sc, 5 dc in next sc, skip next 4 dc shell, 5 dc in next sc, skip next 3 sc* Repeat to joining seam between blocks, 5 dc in seam stitches, skip next 3 sc** repeat from all the way across to the next corner of blanket, 3 dc, ch 3, 3 dc in each corner space* Repeat all the way around, join with sl st, finish off

2. Join blue in any ch 3 space, Ch 3, 2 dc, ch 3, 3 dc in same corner space,* sc  in 2nd dc of  3 dc shell, 5 dc in 3rd st of next 5 dc shell, and each 5 dc shell all the way across to next blanket corner, 3 dc, ch 3, 3dc* Repeat from *to* around, finish off

as you see from the pictures above, this square is beautiful in any color combo. I especially like the one that comes out looking like a Christmas flower.

You may sell anything you make from my pattern, but please do not sell my patterns.

Working on things

Hey everybody, I know it has once again, been a while since my last post. Things have not been as wonderful as I would love to say they could have been, but there comes that time in every ones life, when life just isn't smooth.

I've been helping my mom out a lot, because she's been having seizures. They are still working out all of the details, and reasons of this new problem she's been having. We just aren't sure what's going on, completely. So far we've had 3 possible different answers. Answer number 1 was, she had gotten bitten by a black widow spider. Answer number 2 was, it was her Parkinson's getting worse, and Answer number 3 was, it was possible that she had been on one of her medications for 10 years, and it was built up into her system to the point that it was causing some problems for her. So, that has been something to deal with.

Then, I've had a lot of deaths in my family here lately. I've had an Aunt, an Uncle, some distant cousins, and last week, my Step Mother passed away. Kathy was a really awesome lady, who I loved talking to. Her and my father lived in Oregon, and I here in Virginia where I was raised, so in the last 10/11 years I've only seen them twice. Yes, I do feel bad about that, but trips like that are costly, and quite frankly, plain rides stress me out so badly that it takes me a month to recover from the pain in my joints from being tense on the plain ride. I've gone on plain rides all of my life, from the time I was a kid. But now there is more to worry about than a plain just randomly crashing, and seeing as I would be getting on the starting plain in Washington DC, well, that's just a bit too much for me.

But, I do have some good stuff to tell all of you wonderful people! Last week, Frank and I expanded the Chicken run 20 feet!!! We discovered that the dog kennels (10x10x6) are $100 cheaper at the local Co-op than they are at our local Tractor Supply. Let me tell you, when those birds discovered that nice fresh grass at the end of the run, they were absolutely thrilled!!! Of course, you can imagine that they have spread themselves out greatly.

When we expanded the run, we also ended up keeping those 7 Easter Egg Hens that we hatched and raised. I couldn't decide if I wanted to keep or sell them, and there were 2 that were so pretty, I knew I was going to keep them. Then the other 5, I was like, oh we will go ahead and sell them...and then my older Easter Egg hens (my original girls) Stopped laying, and then some of my other girls have slowed down for the season. These girls are pretty close to laying, so I decided what the heck we will keep them all. Once we got them all out in the run, and I got a good look at them all, oh I'm so glad that I kept them all, because they are fabulous.

My Chicks that are here in the house are growing fast! I can tell you that out of the 12 I have, 5 of them are boys. That's actually pretty darned exciting, because I usually have way more boys than girls. The fact that the girls outnumber the boys is fun.  They will be going outside before too much longer though. I just have to make sure that they are completely feathered up, because its that time of the year already. (cold)

So now onto some crochet news. I'm working my way through writing a pattern for you guys. It's going a little bit slower than I wanted it to, but I'll give you all a fun hint. I'm writing an afghan pattern. (yay!!!) If all works out the way I want it to, I'll have it posted no later than December 1st!!!! (hooray!!!!)

Alright, I guess I had better stop rambling along here and get off of this computer and get my day moving.

Oh, and this is not an after thought, Happy Veterans Day to all of you who have served for our country.

Fall Updates

Greetings, things here have stayed busy. I've been attempting to try to get stuff done for this blog, but all of my canning, and regular chores have kept me so busy, that I'm afraid that it will be winter before I'm able to fill this blog with recipes and patterns. The good news is, I have lots of fun ideas for patterns, that I truly hope you all will enjoy. In the meantime, I've reopened my Etsy shop. It only has a few things in it, but that's ok, I'm not really trying to make a living, just some yarn money.

The chicks that I hatched out at the beginning of the month are growing like weeds!!! They are at that baby dinosaur stage, and their feathers are coming and, and they look all ragged and disheveled. Oh, I'm not going to lie, I think they are cute no matter how ugly they get. I guess I'm just that type of person, nobody is really ugly, they are just a different kind of cute.

So, I have Sam and Bella on the flea and tick pill, the one that lasts for 3 months. Jasper will be the next one to get one, and then it will go Bella, Sam and Jasper again. The reason that Jasper is last, isn't for any particular reason. He just doesn't have the flea trouble that the other two did. Sam is so fluffy that the fleas can get away from flea shampoo in a bath, and poor Bella, hound dog that she is, was just attracting them like she had a magnet in her or something. I must say though, I'm pleased with the results. I'll know for sure though when Summer comes back around. This is the time of the year anyways that the fleas start to slow down. (I'm still treating my carpet and furniture on a regular basis, because they can still hitch hike in)
  
 Well, I suppose I had better get off of here, and get back to work...although Bella came in with me when I brought in the groceries, and she has taken up residence on a yellow blanket that she's drug into the middle of the floor and is napping on. She had some lunch, and is snoring hard!!! Love that crazy hound!!!

This week

It has been an incredibly crazy week, and it's only Tuesday!!! Whew!!! Today, I picked up a bushel of apples, so that I can make apple butter, and  apple pie filling. I also picked up some Tattler lids and rings, so that I can give that a go. They are a bit on the expensive side, but will be worth it in the long run since everything is reusable. Well, the rings will have to be replaced eventually, but I'm keeping a little more out of the landfill.

On Monday, I had to take Sam to the vet. He had an ear infection, which had gotten pretty bad, because none of his regular ear wash and drops had been working, but now, he's on some meds that are making him feel better. For being such a good boy, I took him to McDonalds, and he was really happy about that!! (What dog wouldn't be happy to get chicken nuggets, and maybe a few French fries???) (No, we never give them people food. They do get chicken nuggets once a year, at vet time.)

Finally, I've been working on finishing up some of my works in progress with my crochet stuff. I got these dogs for a friends nephews. It took me way longer than it should have to get them complete, but I managed it!!!

So, that's been my week in a nutshell!!! Hope you all are having a great week, and are enjoying your fall!!!!

Chicks

So, Everybody who lives on the east coast knows that it's cold, wet and just plain nasty right now, and we have some strangely named Tornado or hurricane or something like that on its way this weekend. So to add a little cheer, here are a few pics of the chicks that I hatched out yesterday. I ended up with 19 in all!!! They are the most fun chicks I've ever had. In fact, I can't stop playing with them, and that's generally not something I do. I'm usually pretty hands off with my birds for the most part. But here we are!!!

Saturday Ramble

What a long day this has been!!! Not in a bad way, just a long day. I spent the day canning some chicken that I cooked down last night. I still have a bunch of broth that needs to be canned, but I'm going to start on that in the morning. I put some of the big chicken bones back into the broth to cook a little more. I would do it tonight, but by the time I get done doing the night time feedings and putting everybody to bed for the night, it would be really late before I got done. (ok, plus its Saturday night, and the new season of Doctor Who has arrived, and I cannot lie, I'm a Whovian through and through.)

I've finally decided what I'm going to design for you guys!!!! As soon as I finish my current crochet orders, I'm going to get started on it. (I can't tell you all...its a surprise...spoilers) (No, it's not Doctor Who related, but I had to say it because its Doctor Who season!!!) I will tell you all, I am a bit excited about it though.

yes, there was a feather in there that I somehow managed to miss!!! Of course I would happen to miss one, and take a picture of it before I noticed it in there...but its out now. It just goes to prove that its really fresh chicken.

more to can yet

Hey there, I'm taking a moment to step out of the kitchen. I've just spent a good deal of time scrubbing my pressure canner, and then my water bath canner. We don't have a water softener, and we have well water, so as you can imagine, things tend to build up a bit. As soon as they dry, and I do a good inspection of everything, I've got to get another 5 pounds of tomatoes canned, and then I have to start prepping some chicken to get cooked down and canned up. I'm hoping that I'll get some extra broth to get canned as well. There is nothing better than home canned broth.

Frank finished butchering the Americana roosters yesterday. There were 6 more to do, which gave us a total of 10 roosters out of 17 chicks hatched. I have to say, I am really happy that we have 7 hens. I was a bit nervous, because I thought we only had 4 or less!!! But once we got all of those boys butchered, we were able to see exactly what we have. We have some really beautiful pullets. We have decided to keep 4, and sell 3. The money we make off of the pullets sold will go back into the chickens.
    
 Our weather has been fantastic here!!! I cannot complain about it at all!!! It's been what I consider the perfect fall weather. It's been cloudy and over cast, but no rain...the air has been cool and crisp, and refreshing. It's a really nice change from walking outside and just feeling sticky and hot.

I have been looking at some fun new ideas for some crochet patterns to design for you all. Some nice, simple gifts, or things to have around the house. Keep your eyes peeled!!!! Add me to your reading list so you can keep up with my pictures, recipes and free patterns!!!!

2015 Summer Pictures Part 2

And more pictures!!!! I'm not sure where to start, so I'll just start!!! So, the tree with those big blueberry looking things, are Damsons. They are kind of like a small plumb, and make great jelly!!! (in fact I still have some in the freezer to turn into jelly) The thing is though, when cutting them up, and taking the seed out, you want to make sure to wear gloves, because they will turn the fingers black.
I went out with a group of friends to a new place here in town, called The Brew House. It was pretty good. Good food, great atmosphere, and pretty good beer. They brew their own for the most part.
We spent some extra time with my husbands family this summer, which is the older couple in there. I myself made the photo stream in here...can you pick me out??? (I'll bet you can)
I did a lot of canning this summer. It was almost never ending, but well worth it. We stayed really crazy with the garden.
We had bigger grasshoppers around here than we usually have, it was kind of neat to see them. They weren't really bothered by us one bit, and didn't seem to care how close we got to them.
I tried a new sauce that I found at Food Lion (Mathew it was delicious, keep it in stock). We used it to make a pulled pork rabbit thing. It was so good, there were no leftovers!!!!