rewards of the day

our spring break and the days preceding have been very full.

the weather here in middle tennessee has been spectacular.

the violas were a gift from my dh. they came in two cute faux watering cans.

he got them at the franklin farmer's market.

i've had little time for blogging and there are so many things

going on around dash home farm.

we did get our new little ram.

"mcgruber"

he is an olde english southdown babydoll miniature.

he is fitting in nicely on our little farm.

beatrice has taken to guarding him like we knew she would.

wild strawberries

two(of the four) new raised beds with seating have been built.

we have planted some cool weather veggies and fruit.

red oak~leafed lettuce and winter density green romaine

are in the dirt.

as always we have lots of curious faces watching us wondering

what in the world are those guys doing.

lylah

rowan

tawny

barrette

mcgruber

it's been so warm i have put out some easter stuff

for the younger kids and grandkiddos.

we will have our easter egg hunts all around the farm.

here's hoping we will have nice weather for that day.

sometimes it is very cool and rainy on easter.

our ground cover is blooming although it is not in the ground

but in a lovely old yellow enamel container. the dogs would have

it trampled if it were in the ground.

hellebores are showing up and i get so excited when they do...they have become one of

my favourite flowers.

it's been great to watch each dog bond with our baby ram.

a new variety of pansies for me...

viola x wittrockiana 'delta' pink shades

i am teaching mcgruber to walk on a leash with a harness.

i'd like him to be in the leiper's fork parade in december.

i think he would make a great addition to the quirky little

christmas parade in our town.

same pink shade of pansy as above...i love the variations.

the front yard is finally getting a makeover. we gave mcgruber

the back yard picket~fenced~in area...which is where we have

had most of our raised beds for the last several years.

so we decided to put our new raised beds in our front yard

picket~fenced~in area. i think it will be much more convenient

to keep an eye on and take care of. we will see it every morning and

have water readily available.

the dogs are used to being able to use the front yard so we had to put some new fence boards

up to keep them out and will only let them in when we are out there with them.

i have dubbed it our victory garden. partly, in tribute to the men still

fighting the war and also to be as positive as we can about the success of our garden.

my dh agreed to make me new raised beds with seating.

i am sure glad he did...it will be much easier on the back.

we picked rough hewed wood like the barn as a nod to the farm life.

i am loving the results.

this is the first of four beds we have planned.

we talked about more but...i don't want to get

too many things going so they can't be cared for.

the green watering can is an antique galvanized can from

england i found at a local antique store.

buster brown has taken to the new puppy...barrette.

mcgruber chilling in the front yard.

a new hellebore just planted this year.

winter jewels cherry blossom lenten rose

i am blessed to have both sunny areas and very shaded areas.

hellebores are shade loving.

eggs in a basket.

my black pansies coming back from last year.

back door greetings...

with freshly planted pansies.

some eggs the kids can't get to.

freshly planted columbines on the front porch.

aquilegia hybrid 'winky' double red and white.

coral bells black currant planted in black glazed pot

on front porch steps with bunny.

another columbine combined with last years creeping jenny.

the urn has a new iris.

iris african butterfly.

since we starting sprucing up the front yard

we added some handmade garden art from

the franklin's farmer's market...

planted with some white candy tuft.

we got the second raised bed in and planted last night

just around sunset.

after our hard work outdoors, we opened

up a bottle of one our favourite pinots...

and enjoyed a glass on the front porch

admiring our work and of course the

amazing sunset God had provided us.

it has been thoroughly enjoyable being

back in the garden and welcoming in spring.

don't forget earth day is approaching april 22nd...but don't

you think everyday should be earth day afterall it is our planet.

also jan at thanks for today is hosting a wonderful give~away.

she is promoting sustainable living.

here is the link to join in:

http://thanksfor2day.blogspot.com/2011/03/gardeners-sustainable-living-2011-win.html

happy springtime.

autumn awaits

as autumn visits on and off these first few weeks...we
head to our franklin farmer's market.

last saturday was supposed to be an arts and craft day
at the market but we were under a deluge of rain and it was a no go.
this saturday what a difference....the sun was shining brightly...the
air was crisp....the wind was blowing quite blustery.
we waited until it warmed up to go.

one thing i love...when the artists come to
the market....creativity is in the air.
you can sense it with all those highly creative people in one place.
i love to see how they display their wares.
this lovely old door with glass knobs held pieces of handmade jewelry.
the glass panes had been replaced with chicken wire...so great.

baskets emptied by people buying fresh real
food from the local growers. real farmers....people you get to
know and discover how they do things....organically.

not just labeled organic but the real workers of the farming

community that labour for us to have this amazing food.

it always make me proud to be an american to buy from our

farmers....i love how they proudly fly their flags at every market.

it is an american tradition of the deepest kind.

here a jeweler patiently shows abbey how to use tools to make a

chain...we were so intrigued with it she agreed to come to our house

and give abbey and i a lesson. this is something i have always wanted to try.
now abbey and i can do it together.

j.r. and dh talking farming. we buy a lot of good stuff from this farm.

here's trish and her son from beaverdam creek farm, our csa

(community supported agriculture.) we bought shares of

their farm at the beginning of the growing season and get a

basket of their homegrown goodness every week.

we cook what we get and that is how we plan our meals.

another farm we love is windy acres farm...we got beatrice from them.

we buy our lamb from them and also bought a share in a cow

on their farm so we could have fresh raw milk.

of course it is october so no market would be complete without lots

of pumpkins. these were so large....

they had a tractor trailer load full of them.

another great thing about the open air farmer's market ....dogs.

we take buster brown(our chesapeake bay retriever) every weekend.

lots of people bring their dogs and most are trying to socialize them with

other dogs, kids, and people of all sizes and shapes....most don't mind taking a few

minutes and letting you pet or photograph their canines. abbey particularly likes

this about being there. two adorable cavalier king charles spaniels.

so many artists....so little time. i especially liked this one.

although i refrained from buying one of these beauties.

kettle corn is always a favourite at the market.

as a gardener i am always drawn to bird houses...

abbey wanted me to look at the windmill birdhouse not take a picture of

her showing me the birdhouse...first things first....i say.

the same birdhouse maker said this gourd was an accident...

he was explaining that while making a birdhouse out of this

large gourd it broke so he made this very colourful bowl instead...i said you should

make that kind of mistake more often. he smiled.

everywhere there was a festive feeling in the air...and decor was no exception.

lovely jewelry....displayed very beautifully.

abbey liked this maker of jewelry...quite a bit.

there are always such diverse things to see....like brunswick beeworks...

local raw honey(which is great for allergies).....

along with all kinds of products made from beeswax...

we did bring home some wonderful smelling beeswax candles....perfect for

burning on these cooler autumnal nights.

this is a farm....new to the market this year and i love it.

remember my first pumpkin months ago from the compost pile...it

was from this girl's farm. see that pumpkin...it called my name as i

went by it and i had to take it home too.

i love how she is new to farming....how she displays her stuff....

how she is willing to sell me things from her displays.

i pretty much bought all my decorative touches from the

farmer's market this weekend....lots of pumpkins....green ones.

flat ones....white ones.....mums....red ones.....several squashes to display...

first it was a good deal....second i am supporting my local economy....and thirdly,

i know there are no pesticides residing on my newly decorated kitchen table.

.

.

.

autumn is my favourite time of the year and i am relishing in every day....

every moment.....every chance i get.

happy autumn days to you and yours.