April On The Farm And FFF

Peter in the garden

I'd like to start my post

by saying that our hearts and prayers go

out to all those who experienced the

terrible tornadoes over the last couple of

days especially those who lost loved ones. 

April is nearly over

and I must say that this

has been the coolest and driest

spring I have ever seen here in Kansas.

Yesterday was a BEAUTIFUL day.

Finally!

So I grabbed my camera and took 

a few pictures around the farm.

This is our 3rd summer living in the country

and it still thrills me to see some of the

HUGE and strange farm equipment

working in the fields around 

our farm.

The farmer must have been watching the

weather as yesterday was a fairly

calm day and perfect for spraying.

Today however...is another story

with wind gusts of 45mph

predicted for this 

afternoon!

Later today I'll be planting the baskets

on my bike.

Lizzy followed me around as I took pictures.

So did Olly.

Lizzy looking for trouble.

REALLY!

You can see from the 

photo above that

she's feeling pretty frisky.

Right after I took this picture she 

and Olly started chasing each other

but they were too fast for me to get a photo.

We got some new chickens last 

Sunday.

They are Golden Laced Cochin Bantams.

They are the sweetest little chickens

and have beautiful markings and color.

Above is the little rooster

Kahlua.

Doesn't he have a cute fluffy butt! 

I've named the girls Espresso who is above

 Cappuccino and Cafe au lait.

Below is Kahlua the rooster

again.  

It's Farm Friend Friday again

so I'm joining up with my blogging

buddy Amy over at Verde Farm

Farm Friend Friday

I hope you'll stop by 

and visit Amy and her hubby

and check out the other FFF

bloggers who are joining in 

this week.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Maura :)

It's Porch Time Again!

Country Living

Don't you just love this time of year.

Many of you have been enjoying some

beautiful spring weather 

and have already got your

veggie gardens planted

and pots of beautiful flowers

sitting on your patio's decks 

and porches.

Unfortunately for us here in 

our part of Kansas it has been 

unseasonably chilly for the last 

couple of weeks so we're a bit

behind when it comes to 

gardening.

I've got a few potted plants on the 

porches but I think I've lost a

Boston Fern because it got too

cold one night.

HOWEVER...it looks as though

starting Thursday...we are returning

to spring temperatures and that

means 

PORCH TIME!

So..here are a few beautiful porches

and screened in porches

to get you in the mood

or to get you

dreaming.

California Living

I love the porch lights on the wall 

of the photo above this one.

We need a new light on our old porch

out back and I think one of those would 

be perfect for the old farmhouse.

Country Living

I thought this outdoor living space

above was kind of like a porch.

If the roof isn't glass then I 

think I would put 

something up 

there 

for those

rainy days. 

Country Living

I'm still thinking about a hammock

to put between two 

of the trees in the

shade garden.

Country Living

Hubby says he still would like

to build a screened in porch

here on the farm.

One day.

Robert Stern via The Enchanted House

In the photo above do you see those

two swinging couches?

Wouldn't that be wonderful if they 

were the size of a single bed.

Imagine laying there

reading a book 

until 

your eyes 

get so heavy 

you just fall asleep.

Heaven.

BHG

The above photo is more like a 

3 season room but 

I love the cozy look of it.

I bet it would be wonderful

even on a rainy day.

House Beautiful

Don't you just love that 

coffee table 

and 

hanging willow love seat!

Country Living

What a wonderful place to

enjoy a meal.

It's hard to beat living 

in the country.

Southern Living

What a great place to be on a hot

summer day.

Imagine sitting out there reading a 

good book and then when you get

too hot...you just walk out to 

the beach and dive into 

that cool water.

Red Bud Manor Inn

You don't need a beach to cool 

off on this beautiful shady

front porch!

Southern Living

This is another great porch above.

I bet that ceiling fan feels great

on a hot muggy day.

Whether you have a front porch,

back porch, screened porch,

patio a 3 season room

or just a lawn to sit out on...

I hope your weather

is warm and sunny.

Enjoy your week!

Maura :)

The Shade Garden Is Coming Along

I would just like to say HELLO to

all our new followers...

it's so nice to have

you come to visit

us here in the country!

Our shade garden is coming

along nicely.

We bought a few more

plants and hubby worked

on the trellis

so now I just need to find

some climbing hydrangea for that.

Tara Dillard if you're reading this

my plan is to put mulch down for now

but as time goes by ...replace it

with a ground cover.

;)

One of the new hosta's in the 

photo above.

I've planted a few hardy ferns.

This is one of the smaller type but

I planted 2 that will be quite

large in time.

Ferns remind me of

when I lived in 

British Columbia.

I still have to plant the front

and back carriers 

on my old bike.

Here are a few of the hosta's 

that I just planted today.

I love the colors in the one above!

Above is a Japanese Painted Fern.

I love the colors in this Columbine.

I plan on planting pink and yellow 

David Austin Roses

and soon the 

house will be a soft yellow.

The fern and these two 

hosta's are new

Hubby got the wooden support 

strips on the trellis for the

climbing hydrangea.

In the background I hope to plant

a couple of Rhododendrons. 

Ok...I know these aren't shade 

plants but I just wanted to show

you the old wheel barrow 

hubby made for me years

ago.

Isn't it cute! 

I love geraniums.

Well...hubby is back from getting gas

for the power saw so we're off

to get firewood from along the creek

behind our farm.

No rest for the weary! 

I'm linking up with Amy 

from Verde Farm for 

http://www.verdefarm.com/

FARM FRIEND FRIDAY

I hope you'll hop on over and

say Hi to Amy and check out her

post and visit the others who

are joining in this week.

Have a great weekend!

Our Weekend (Part2)

It's wonderful to be

outside working in the dirt

after what seemed like a

very LONG winter.

It was a busy weekend

but a good one.

While hubby worked on the 

picket fence

I planted hosta's 

ferns and columbine

in the shade garden.

I've still got a lot more to 

buy and plant

but we're going to have to 

do a bit at a time.

Perennials are SO expensive!

Here's a few more pictures

of the start of the 

fairy garden.

If you look closely 

above the windows

you'll see something 

amber...it's a

lantern 

that comes on 

when it get's dark!

I'm sure I'll find little

things here and there to 

add as time goes on.

If you look closely in the above picture

you will notice a curving line

in the soil in front of the

trees.

It took me two days to put

all these rocks in place.

You're only seeing the

tops of most of them

as many of them are

over 7" deep 

5" wide and 

12" long.

There was LOTS of digging

and lifting involved so by

 the time I was done

my arms felt a 

couple of inches longer!

A few of the rocks were

about this size.

Once the plants are in place

it will be time for mulch.

If you look closely at those photo's above

you'll notice little white things

in the garden area and where

the  new lawn is starting to 

grow.

It's elm tree seeds!

You know what I'll be pulling up

for some time to come.

Unfortunately the lilacs are

about done.

I'll miss them when they're gone

so I've been trying to 

get a whiff of them as often

as I can.

Chelsea likes to come with me when

I walk the lilac lane to the mailbox.

This is a 'hitching post' 

that we found in the old barn

before it burned down.

I had hubby put it out by the 

picket fence.

One day maybe I'll

 have a horse again!

Me in my flattering overalls

looking up at hubby

in the JLG lift.

After this picture was taken 

I went up with him.

The picture above shows you our

lilac lane with the lilac 

grove on the right and our south pasture

on the left. The house actually sits sideways

on the property and looks out on the lilacs

and pasture. 

The road in the background is the dirt road

we take either to town or to the city.

See that orange rust colored thing 

in the center of the picture?

That is our propane tank and it

was once bright white. 

This is what our water does when it

touches it.

This is why we can't paint the fence white!

This last picture is hubby's brother

burying the foundation of our 

old barn that burned.

You can see some of the tree's 

that were damaged in the fire.

Some of them are starting to leaf out!

So as you can see it was a very busy weekend.

Lots of work...but it felt great.

Have you got some outdoor projects going on 

right now?

Have a wonderful week!

Maura :)