Maybe tomorrow

I've been wanting to decorate for Christmas for a while now and thought about bringing in the tree as soon as the dishes were washed on Thanksgiving day, but...

easily distracted, I got the tree as far as the front porch and it's been there ever since.

why even yesterday, after dropping Poppy off at his hunting spot down the power line...I came back and walked straight to the shop to bring in boxes of Christmas decorations, but...

leaning there against a big willow oak tree was the rake, handle deep in leaves, and I could not resist the temptation, so raked leaves for over an hour.  Still no decorating done.

Early yesterday I had both dentist and doctor appointments. After that, went on to Walmart for a few things. Since the day was about shot anyway, I stopped by the Safe Space thrift store and oh wow! how could one little thrift store be so packed. It was like a little Christmas village.Wish I had pictures to show you! I bought two little pieces...

the carolers!

and this little red outhouse, for setting up a Christmas village on the mantle. 

Do any of you have a toy train that you set up around the Christmas tree? I really really want one...and don't know why we've never bought one over the years. Trains are so neat!

Maybe I will talk to Poppy tomorrow about a train. Right now he is asleep in front of the TV. 

Better get things turned off in the sewing room. I've been sewing, finishing two bonnets and almost finished another Henny Penny apron. Hope to see you tomorrow.

Love,
Henny

Dinner, and a little critter update

Here's our little Thanksgiving meal...

it was just the two of us, so I  cooked small and didn't do any fancy table setting. Goodness, I could have at least sliced the turkey breast and put it on a platter before taking the picture. Not a very pretty Thanksgiving table, but it did taste good.

and here's Poppy heading back into the woods across the road, to sit in a tree. I offered to go sit in the tree for him if he would wash the dishes and walk Eli, but he said "no thanks".

Granny Marigold recently asked about all the critters, so here's a little critter update...

I am totally shocked at how fast a baby rabbit grows...

isn't she (or he) adorable? She still doesn't have a name. I call her little sweetie pie, but we've got a dozen little sweetie pies already. We need something special, and I just can't come up with one that fits.

Here's big old Bun Bun, little sweetie pie's papa. She doesn't favor him at all, does she?

then there's Fiona. Fiona does her own thing. In fact, she has been hard at work digging a tunnel. See her dirty little feet and nose? She has built a nice little storm shelter under her cage. 

Miss duck duck paddles along the bank with us when we walk. She seems lonely since her best friend Mrs. Muscovy is sitting on a few eggs on the other side of the pond. Crazy, I know.

Eli found a broken duck egg 

the babies decided to leave the heat lamp and sleep upstairs.

cozy little bunch.

and since going through molting, these hens have stopped laying. Not one egg have we found in the chicken house in two months. I've bought two dozen eggs lately. Probably the first store bought eggs we've used since moving here in 1989. 

and that sweet little Rosie. Why she has tried her best to eat every leaf that falls. See her there in the picture with the chickens...eating leaves! We had to close her up in the goat barn until I could rake the lot...

I will have to get a newer picture to show you just how fat she has gotten. She is obsessed with eating. Seriously! Wonder who she got that from? :)

We haven't seen Wilder lately. I do worry about him and hope he is safe in his own little rabbit hole somewhere. Weetie did go tearing off  after something a few nights ago when I went out to close the chicken house door.  It could have been him. Weetie like to chase rabbits and squirrels, but could never catch one.

Maybe I will sew a little tonight. Thank you for stopping by.

Love,
Henny

Craft Bazaar done

Somewhere, tucked away in there, is a little house...

and when the sun comes up in the mornings and shines through the oak trees, a bright orange glow comes through the living room windows...

lifting my spirits

Raking leaves in the front yard for two hours this morning, hardly made a dent, but it sure does count for exercise. It will take several days weeks months of raking to get rid of all these leaves. 

The lastest craft show...

the one my neighbor Ann asked me go to and share a table...

 That's my little display to the right. Needless to say, there was very little room. I did make a few sales. Actually, sold all my sun bonnets except for four.

Oh, you've got the see the sweetest little lady who bought a bonnet, and wore it...

She had everybody oohing and aahing and taking her picture to put on Facebook.


I worked really hard last week making three old fashioned dolls, and another cross-back apron, and all were sold.

I love these little aprons and have decided to call them the Henny Penny apron...

I love how the ruffle hangs in the back. This one sold too, and I kinda hated to see it go.

I need to shop for more creamy calico fabric and muslin for ruffles, and make more of these aprons.

Guess that's about it for tonight. Thank you visiting. Hope to be back soon, but for sure, will be around to visit and catch up. 

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Love,
Henny

FROG Jam and cats on the freezer

You know, I could start every post with the question, where do the days go? 

Shelby and Jimmy at the market in 2015

Shelby is sharing her recipe for "F.R.O.G. Jam"...

6 cups peeled, crushed figs

3 cups fresh or frozen raspberries

5 cups sugar

2 tbsp finely grated gingeroot

1 cup orange juice (1 lg. orange)

1/2 tsp butter (I don't use)

Mix figs, raspberries, sugar, gingeroot, and peel together in large pot

Cook, stirring frequently, until thickened, about 30-45 min.

Ladle into sterilized jars and cover with sterilized lids

Process in boiling water bath for 10 min.

Cool and store in cool, dark place for up to 6 months

Note: To test for doneness of jam, place a small plate in the freezer as you prepare the ingredients. When ready to test, remove dish and pour  a tablespoon of jam onto it. Return to freezer for 1 minute. Then draw your finger through the middle of the jam. If it separates, it's done. Will thicken as it cools.

At that last craft show Shelby and I did, the one at the church; the preacher pulled up a chair and sat down in front of Shelby's display of jams and jellies. Shelby puts out a small opened jar of each flavor, along with a pretty little dish of cream cheese, and a dish of wheat thins, for sampling the jellies, kind of like here at the market...

Anyhow, the preacher, a very tall, big, friendly, down to earth type man, proceeded to sample each of the jellies. After sampling the Frog jam, he stood up and said, "rriiivvit, rriiivvit", what's in the frog jam?" It was funny. We really liked both the preacher and his wife. Very nice friendly folks.

To Diane in Wisconsin; you asked if Shelby ever ships her jams and jellies. She does occasionally, but the cost of shipping is high. She shipped a few jars to a lady in New York, and the shipping cost was as much as what she paid for the jelly. The lady wanted them anyway, and paid the shipping cost. All I can say is, that must be some delicious jelly! :) and it really is.

As far as the baking, Shelby mostly sells cakes, but she does make banana nut bread and pumpkin bread, and in the summer time, strawberry bread.

Listen to this! Here's what Shelby had baking this morning when I called her...eight cakes, (the last of an order for twenty). Chocolate pound cake, coconut pound cake, fresh apple cake, carrot cake, and million dollar pound cake, there were eight different ones and I've already forgotten the other two. Plus, six loaves of banana nut bread. No way could I do all that. As mama used to say, "I'd rather dig stumps".

Better get busy, but first a few kitty cat pictures. We may have to invest in a bigger freezer...

and here! See why it's hard to get any sewing done at night...

Thank you for visiting

Love,
Henny

Christmas Jam and Shelby

Sorry about the Christmas Jam recipe that was supposed to be posted here yesterday...Hopefully, today is not too late...

Shelby in her warm, inviting, and always busy kitchen, and below is the recipe.

Christmas Jam

1 (12-ounce) pkg. fresh Cranberries

2 (10-ounce) pkg. frozen Strawberries, thawed

4 cups sugar

1 (3-ounce) pkg. liquid pectin

Position knife blade in food processor bowl; add cranberries. Cover; process until cranberries are coarsely chopped. 

Combine cranberries, strawberries, and sugar in a Dutch oven; bring to a boil and cook 1 minute, stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat; add pectin. Return to a full rolling boil; boil 1 minute, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and skim off foam with metal spoon.

Quickly pour jam into hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/4" head space; wipe jar rims, cover at once with metal lids and screw-on bands, process in boiling water bath 5 minutes.

Yield; 7 half pints

Now why didn't I take pictures of her jams and jellies?? 

These are the jams she makes...
Apricot, Blackberry, Blueberry, Blueberry peach, Christmas, Frog, Peach, Ginger peach, Jalapeno peach, Hot jalapeno peach, Plum, Raspberry, Strawberry, Strawberry Rhubarb, Tripleberry, and Spiced tomato.

and the jellies...
Cherry, Ghost pepper, and Grape. 

and the butters...
Apple, Honey apple, Honey blackberry, Honey blueberry peach, Honey strawberry, Honey blueberry.

and these...
Fig preserves, Orange marmalade, Mango relish, Tomato relish, and Chow-chow.

Good gosh! I had no idea! No wonder she never has any free time.

Looking out the back door of Shelby's and Jimmy's house, I love the old barn and out buildings.

on craigslist today for $150.00

Wonder if there could be an old rusted cast iron pot-bellied stove tucked away in their barn somewhere? I really need one for the playhouse...

with a bit of rearranging, the little stove could go inside the fence panels...

Recently, Poppy said to me,"Henny, you can't  put a cast iron stove in the playhouse. The rain and damp weather will make it rust". So, I had about given up on the idea until this thought hit me, "there are covers for everything else, why not make a cover from an old brown tarp". It's not like the stove will be used every day. 

So, once again I am in the market for a pot-bellied stove, a small table with two chairs (Bistro set would be perfect), and a tea kettle.  Oh, then we will need a small shelf and a few thrift store teacups and saucers. :)

Guess I had better get busy. It's time for Poppy to get home. I've had a little vacation, even though it was Poppy doing the traveling. He has been gone since Friday morning early, and I've been home alone! He went down home (Moore County) to deer hunt with his nephew. As of last night, they had not even seen a deer.  Yay!!  I pull for the deer.

Sorry for such a long post. Thank you for visiting.

Love,
Henny

freeze tonight and animal pairs

Oh my gosh, were we ever glad to see the sun come up this morning. The weather lately has been dark and dreary. Out with Eli and Weetie at 4:30 this morning...I looked up and there were stars, and the moon! The clouds were gone!

Tonight we are supposed to have our first freeze. I've been up to the garden and picked
the last of the pretty zinnias...and now feel bad for the ones that didn't get picked, the faded ones. 

I've plugged in the little milk house heater to keep the teeny tiny greenhouse warm...for a night or two anyway...

there were many buds and new growth on the potted rose bushes. I hated to see them freeze. Two nights of freezing cold and then we should warm up a bit.

and finally, after a week of rain, we have a little fall color...and some roses.

I've been out picking up pretty leaves, and taking pictures, moving more pots into the little greenhouse, and looking at all the leaves waiting to be raked...

...why, I hardly knew what to post!

The camellia has been simply covered in blooms.

These two were guarding the door. With cold weather coming, the gas company had their big red trucks out filling gas tanks today... 

The truck driver keeps an eye on Weetie as she runs out barking with her bristles up. Eli, on the other hand, tucks his tail under and comes inside where it's safe. I had to pick up Weetie and bring her inside.

and here's another pair...

this was at 4:30 this morning! Never a dull moment!

Okay, I am off to sew a bit. I've started on three more of those silly dolls. There is another craft bazaar Nov. 17th. Neighbor Ann has asked me to go and share a table with her. I've bought myself a new hand saw and pack of sandpaper...just need to chop down another maple sapling! :)

Love,
Henny

Oh! for those of you interested in Shelby's jams and jellies...she gave me her recipe for Christmas jam, and a list of all the jams and jellies. I will post that tomorrow. Thank you!!

The Craft Bazaar

Well, I'm back, and behind, as usual. Throw a little something like a craft bazaar into the works and it totally wipes me out. I never could concentrate on but one thing at a time.

Folding and packing the night before...

A few days before the sale I decided to make dolls. There were already maple sticks in my work basket...

I got three of the larger dolls and two small clothespin dolls made.

It was a fun two days. Shelby was there on Friday with her jams and jellies, and then on Saturday, my neighbor Ann was there with her jewelry. It was a small space, not a lot of room to spread out.

So, that's me in the center, the one with the silly grin. Don't know where Ann had disappeared to.  Shelby's little staircase of jams and jellies are to my right, on the red cloth. Cases of each flavor were stored under the table. The "Christmas Jam" was everyone's favorite, and it sold out on Friday.

the center table with the red cloth belongs to Lee Ann, "The Bag Lady". She makes beautiful bags, pillows, and aprons, and was kind enough to take a few pictures for me. 

You know Henny Penny! Not enough courage to get up in a crowd and take pictures. Reminds me of the cowardly lion in The Wizard of Oz!

I love the cute little clothespin bags and bought the one in front, trimmed in red for me.

Some of the ladies who sold baked goods.

Now I need to get back in the sewing room and finish putting things away. I've simply got to make more dolls this week.

I sure appreciate you all. Thank you!!

Love,
Henny