The Parasol

Lookee what we found during our roofing project! Our house was built in 1905. After we bought it, I searched high and low for something left behind by the original owners. Sadly, there wasn't a thing to be found except an empty secret compartment under the stair case...so imagine my surprise upon finding something several years later. Jason pulled this parasol out of what i thought was a ratty old t shirt. It was tucked in the edge of the roof under the old cedar shingles. I imagine it was either red or coral colored and was QUITE fashionable in the day. Finding this just revived the the wish to know more about the original family that built our home... where they were from, what they did for a living, why they moved to Diamond. Maybe they even knew John Q Diamond, the original founder of the town! 

The search continues for more clues to our home old history.

Post-a-palooza! My weekend in pics.

Diamond's round bales dot the hillsides

Round bales at dusk

The Palouse River meanders past Green Hollow

The best damn hayin crew a girl could ask for!

Boy and Dog enjoy a cool dip in the river

Captain Cash-tastic... He's the best river rock pickin dog in the Greater Palouse.

A random share

Our brand. Isn't this great???? My DH fabricated it out of stainless steel rod. It's about 12" tall. LOVE IT!

A glimpse of the round table meetings at our house. Seed catalogs for the man and I, rubber tire toy for Cheyenne.

Last but not least- meet Howly Berry! She's our new farm kitty. I don't know where she came from but she arrived in the barn one night while the coyotes were howling in the distance. Hence the name Howly :)

The Dawn

PLEASE click in this picture to see it full size. I want you to experience the dawn as it greets me it in the mornings.  This brilliant display last a few minutes at most. Between the sun and the apple tree you can make out the furrows of the field. Oh, gorgeous morning, I love you!

Chief resident building inspector and mechanic

Cheyenne

(aka Ninnie, Cheyennerbananaer, Lil Baby, Pretty Girl, Twinkle Toes, and the latest one- Shortcake)

*I'm telling you, this battery is dead!*

*One good kick, Daddy, and this building will just topple over.*

She's our farm helper, intruder alarm, diesel mechanic, building inspector, and loyal assistant in every project Jason starts.

Spring after winter

Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature -- the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter.

~ Rachel Carson

OMG, such abuse!

Look at these two! You would think they'd be out of their yard all the time, right? They jump and jump, clearing the gate with every leap and bound, BUT they never jump over. Never.

Is that not a perfect animal abuse ad? I mean look at Remi's pitiful little face and death grip on the fence! And Win looks desperate to escape!

What would the Cesar, the Dog Whisperer say?

You can't force spring

BUT you CAN force Paper White bulbs!

A friend gave me this little Paper White in a Mason Jar for Christmas last year. It grew really well and when it's life was over I put it in storage with the intention of planting the bulbs in my garden. It seems the Paper White had other plans! I found it with half an inch of growth two weeks ago, replanted the bulb a little lower in the soil, watered well and VOILA!

Instant Spring!

Star light, star bright

Look at the stars, look how they shine for you and everything you do…


I LOVE STARS! No, not star decorations, star tattoos or gold stars on the board…I’m talking about stars in the sky; the Milky Way, constellations, shooting stars and satellites. I am not sure exactly when my love of stars began. When I was a little girl someone taught me "Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight. I wish I may, I wish I might have this wish I wish tonight". I think it was my Momma. Sometime around 5th or 6th grade Grandpa would  sit/lay out in the yard with us and look for satellites in the sky. If you just watch for slow, steady, unblinking movement, usually around the Milky Way...that's a satellite! With this game, Grandpa introduced me to the vast expanse of the galaxy and even gave me my very own constellation. You all know it as Cassiopeia, The Seated Queen.

WHY you ask!

What does it look like to you? The letter W! What’s my name start with? The letter W!

Hey, I’m pretty thrilled to have my own constellation. I feel connected to it, like seeing an old friend when I look up to the night sky.

There is NO BETTER PLACE to see the stars at night than in the darkness below my barn. Imagine stand in the shadows, holding Howly Berry (our purrrrry farm cat) and listening to the horses munch at their dinner, all the while taking in the night sky in all its glory. I seek out Cassiopeia first and then make my way across the sky, picking out the constellations I learned in high school astrology class. I love nights when the stars are vividly shining and the Milky Way seems so crisp, like a big white ribbon around the sky.

So I challenge you- find a shadowy place tonight (providing it’s not too cold) and check out the stars. See if you can pick out all the stars of a constellation, even if it’s the Big Dipper!

Facing the dawn

Our windmill eagerly anticipates the sunrise, the beginning of a fresh new day.

I eagerly anticipate the lilac, peony, and bottlebrush buckeye growing and blooming around our windmill and greeting the passerby’s on our country road. Spring fever starts!

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Aspirations of 2010

As·pire
intr.v. as·pired, as·pir·ing, as·pires
1. To have a great ambition or ultimate goal; desire strongly
2. To strive toward an end: aspiring to great knowledge.
3. To soar.


-I aspire to take two times the pictures I already take, use the techniques I'm starting to learn, and maybe someday make a few sheckles at it
-I aspire to remodel my upstairs and do some of the nifty projects I see on other blogs
-I aspire to ride my horses until my legs no longer ache and my 'seat' is fantastic, 'til my horses turn and run to me with excitement, 'til I have to feed Skipper grain because I'm riding all his weight off (trust me, that would be alot of working out for Skipper!!)
-I aspire to live in my house and treat it as my own personal retreat
-I aspire to plant purple potatoes, weird green broccollis that look like funky little trees, watermelon radishes, funny shaped carrots, and other interesting varieties of plants in my garden (suggestions are welcome!!) so that people, upon eating a meal at my home, would exclaim with delight at the funky fresh feast before them
...to be continued