Northeastern Leaves

by Marci

For each extended training or deployment, The Soldier has asked me to make him a quilt. This time he scoured Google images for a pattern that would remind him of home.  The colorful New England fall was in full swing, and we were beginning the annual process of leaf blowing, so it seemed fitting that he found this pattern.

The Soldier helped choose the fabrics, then I worked on it diligently for about three weeks (between outdoor leaf blowing and periods of household catch up).  I even worked on it during our three-day, no-child Cape Cod getaway.

(I must insert here that he gave me very strict instructions that I could only work on the quilt when I had love in my heart for him, so that would transfer to the finished product.)

I took a week break...huhah!--not for lack of lovey feelings--then finished the tag on the back, just in time to take it to the machine quilter.

Planning and sewing in my formal dining room.  

Does anyone in my phase of life actually use a formal dining room for formal dining? 

The Soldier's Insanity workout while I completed leaf row #8 of 11 at 

a friend's cottage in Cape Cod.

 I've hardly bordered any quilt and was surprised how long it took to 

center the seams and make the corners just right.  I should have planned better 

before I jumped into it.  Typical.

Somehow this dear couple agreed to long-arm quilt this for me in a 24-hour period.  And when they discovered the quilt's purpose, they upgraded the design and refused to take a cent for payment.  An unforgettable gift from strangers.  I still get a little weepy thinking of their kindness.

They delivered the quilt, and I finished the binding within 14 hours of The Soldier's leaving. Plenty of time, right?

Front

Zoom

Check out the variegated thread.

Back

Silly that I didn't even see the pattern in this flannel to match the center seam
until someone held it up for me.  A lesson in working too quickly
and looking too closely.

 Zoom

When I saw the scrap in my stash, I just had to add the rooster, hen, and four chicks 

to represent our family.  Big D is still bothered that his place is as a chick 

and not the rooster.

The quilters insisted that the quilt have a name for their records.  The Soldier decided on "Northeastern Leaves." Not much of that where he's going.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

by Marci

We celebrated my dad's birthday today by eating our very first chicken eggs.  The Man of the House mandated that we collect at least ten eggs before we ate any of them, so here they are.  I love the farm, all things fish, and provolone cheese because of my dad.  And the kids adore Grandpa, of course.  

My husband might also use this day to give tribute to my dad for a golden truth that opened his eyes almost ten years ago.  Explained in the context of "it's the same with people, too":  A hen does not need a rooster to lay an egg!

EGGS! Take Two

by Marci

Saturday we began and mostly finished the project of painting the chicken coop.  Our cousins joined us, and all the kids participated.  The guinea hens squawked at high volume through the entire process.

Before

 Primer

 Topcoat(s)

The chickens must like the color: 1. because they've been pecking the paint off the walls like crazy, ahhh! And 2. because we got our first egg the next evening. We've been anticipating this day for almost five months!  Here's a congested description of how the second egg was secured (this morning).

EGGS!

Greg came in late last night more giddy than I have ever seen him. He proclaimed "I have great news. We have eggs." I felt my heart leap - which is not something I normally experience. Seriously it felt like sharing you were expecting or engaged. So this morning I got all the kids out of bed and took them out to the coop where we discovered two little brown eggs. The kids were so excited and I had to rush them around all morning to get them to church on time. I even took one to church to use as a prop for my lesson. Today's meeting was about hope and I told the kids how I had faith and hope for so long that the hens would begin to lay. It is so fun to see this amazing process. I have been babying the eggs and trying to be so gentle. I am sure that the pictures below cannot do their beauty justice. I am also sure that this was not the intended use of the Tiffany candy bowl my mom gave me 10 years ago.

SEE FISH DEMONSTRATE...

HOW TO PUT A CHICKEN TO SLEEP. (Just in case you're wondering).

by K.K. mentored by Uncle K.

Fish Family Favorites: Random Stuff

by Stefanie

Egg sandwiches with leeks, greens, and sometimes turkey sausage or gluten

sausage on an Orowheat 100% whole wheat, 100 calorie sandwich thin. Wow! That's a long name for a sandwich. We crave these at our house. Here's how to make your own:

Saute finely chopped leeks in coconut oil.

(*Note: Leeks and coconut oil are among our favorite things! Leeks are a mild onion that are a lot easier to cut than a regular onion. Cut off the ends; slice it length-wise; run it under water to wash out the grit; then slice it up! Coconut oil is amazing for many reasons. I can't list them all here, but check out The Coconut Oil Miracle by Bruce Fife as well as www.wildernessfamilynaturals.com for the best price on the highest quality.)

Add some fresh or frozen chopped greens of your choice. (We like beet greens, collards, swiss chard, or kale). The water from them being washed or frozen should be enough to steam them and cook them down a bit. If not, add a tablespoon or so.

At this point you can add some sausage or bacon, but it's not necessary.

When the greens are cooked down, add some eggs and scramble everything together.

Serve on bread with mustard and Veganaise (another one of our favorite things for a more healthful alternative to mayo. I feel like the yellow label is the best).

Enjoy!

InstaHot. I don't know if that's it's real name, but magically out of this little faucet at my kitchen sink comes boiling hot water. It's incredibly useful and time saving: like when you need a quick cup of hot chocolate or herbal tea; like when you are canning and need to put the lids in boiling water first; like when you need to sterilize something fast--you get the picture. I use this multiple times a day. It's a must. Call your favorite plumber and get one installed today.

Hydrangeas. I picked these hydrangeas from my yard in September. I think they are going on 5 or 6 weeks now. I've changed the water twice and re-cut their stems once. Now, what fresh flower arrangement can compete with that?? I see the carnations lining up--but seriously, I'll I can say is "Wow, you make me happy!" every time I walk in that room. Come spring, pick yourself up some Endless Summer variety and plant them in your yard.

Colored eggs. Yes, these are the very eggs that go into our egg sandwiches, and yes, I raise chickens too. These colored eggs are a delight to behold and just as fun as playing "Colored Eggs" when I was a kid. Remember that game? Anyway, again, come spring, get yourself some cute chicks that will eventually produce these amazing eggs.

See Fish Raise Chickens

By Amy

We are on a chicken raising frenzy in the Fish family. At this point I believe four of the nine adult children are raising hens.

Nine years ago when we moved to the Upper Midwest, my husband Greg insisted that we buy a house in one of two cities where we could have chickens. Time passed and he never really showed too much interest in building a coop and getting going until this past spring when he decided it was time. He loved having animals at home a a kid and thought it would be a great way to show our kids more responsibility and work ethic. Greg hunted down a 20-year-old kid from church who is incredibly handy. He asked him to draw some sketches and Jonathan came through with 4 different possibilities. Greg told him to build the one that was most appealing to him and a month later we had an amazing coop and 16 chickens.

I grew up in a very suburban town south of Chicago. I had never even seen a mouse except at the pet store or a cow except on the side of the road. When those chicks arrived on June 30th I had no idea what I had gotten into. They stayed in my laundry room for a month and my kids named each one. We have Rhode Island Reds, Buff Orpingtons and Americaunas. We have given away 7 since, but we are left with 9 crazy hens who will start laying eggs any day. We cannot wait! Will the first be brown or green?

By Marci

Without meaning to, we also started the chicken coop project within weeks of Amy and Greg.  Moving around with the military, we've never had a place where we could raise chickens until now.  But what finally sent me over the edge was our tick population, some of which carry Lyme disease.  Greg and I also grew up with guinea fowl, and their specialty is eating ticks.  So, we decided to get both chickens and guineas.

Guineas are the cutest as babies but have quite the ugly heads and obnoxious sounds as adults.

We have 16 hens of the following varieties: Rhode Island Reds, Plymouth Rocks, and Americaunas.  Well, we thought "hens" until Dancey turned out to be a rooster.

Michael did some research on coops and solicited the expert help of Paul, Dave, Kurt, Candace and Big D. I was also sucked into design and hard labor, even though I was less-than-stellar help at 8 months pregnant. A few weeks and many popsicles later, we had a mostly completed and very large coop! We will report someday in the future that we have electricity and a paint job.

Our chickens are four months old today, so we hope to see eggs anytime now!