Thursdays Thoughts, Grab Bag of Life

Really, I haven't been lazy about blogging.   I'm not very good

 about the everyday stuff and that's all it's been around here lately.

Last week JS and I took a ride to Dixon to the block company, to

purchase .... "block" ?   to  finish the yard project and then met 

with son Zach for dinner in Vacaville.   Zach had our flatbed truck,

delivered the last of the oranges.

The orange picking is over, not for a lack of fruit, but Mother Nature

has been a real "Mother" as if beating rains and wind were not enough

to reunion our crop, she decided we needed two weeks of freezing on top of it.

I'd like to poke her in her big icy nose......... 

It's that time of year, to early to do much outside, don't want to 

do anything inside and Mother Nature is dangling spring in front of me......  

 I have mixed emotions about her.....  ; | 

Pretty Picture Monday

Pfriday Photo Play... ;D

Thursdays Thoughts

I'm just messing with my kids heads........

I'm in one of those moods...... LOL      ;D

Wordless Wednesday

Tuesdays on the Farm

Was thinking that since I wrote in the intro

  "working the orange orchard"

I should maybe write about it from time to time,

 along  with the rest of the farm.  

Obviously.... my blogging hasn't had much long term thought!

Anyway............ I'm going to dedicate Tuesdays to the farm. 

Here's a project we started today.  This piece of ground is no-mans-land, 

it lays between the kitchen garden and the horse pasture.

One of those place that gets everything dumped on it.

  

We've been needing to finish fencing in the back yard for the dogs and

I've been wanting to build a compost bin and clean up this part of the yard,

for some time.      Finally got JS to agree!!!!!

As you can see the footing is dug and a retaining wall will go around the 

oak tree.  The dirt will be leveled out on top of the wall.

A fence will go across the top and a gate across the lower level.

This will give the dogs more room, when they have to be pinned up.

I'm pretty excited !!!!! .....  ;D

Pretty Picture Monday

Sunday Stills, Big Sky

I'm fortunate to live where I can stand on my front porch and see for miles.

A big sky overhead, that is more beautiful then any photo can capture.

Watching the sunset, cross the valley and drop behind the coast range,

 to the Pacific beyond, is always time well spent.

Seed Catalogs

Last week I posted this picture for Wordless Wednesday and a reader asked, 

"Which catalogs I bought from the most?"   I don't buy a lot of seed, our area

is pretty mild and bedding plants are abundant, yet limited in varieties. 

So if you want something out of the norm, the seed catalogs are you best bet.

  Green beans are one of the things I order, Blue Lake and Kentucky Wonders.  

My two favorites are Burpee and The Cooks Garden.  Burpee is the good old
 standby,a wide variety of veggies (the kind I remember in my mom's garden)
 and flowers. The Cooks Garden, has a good amount of the standards and
 unusual Items.  A big selection on herbs and salad green, with a few flowers
 and garden supplies.  Prices are higher them the others, but always
 a high germination and yelled.

Harris seeds is a lot like Burpee, but with a  wonderful selection of Zinnias

and seed starting supplies.  Territorial Seed Company,  is geared for the 

back yard gardener and the farmers/flower market growers.  

They also have canning and food processing supplies.

I've never bought anything form Gurneys or Select Seeds ???

Select Seeds has some beautiful Coleus, so I may have to start...

Well there you have it, My 2013 Seed Catalog Review..... ;D

Pretty Picture Monday

"Look who greeted me this morning"

Sunday Stills, Old Barns

It wouldn't surprise me if this old barn had been part of a dairy,

at some point in it's life..... The area around it, is still home to many

small family dairies..... fond memories of field trips with my kids.

You haven't lived till you've eaten ice cream at the dairy 

with the essence of "cow" every where.

The old almond trees still standing near it, make me think it

probably house farming equipment, in an other life.

Today, it's one of my favorite hang outs.

The Plant Barn..... I could spend hours here..... looking at flowers,

garden art and terracotta pots.....but have never spent more then

15 or 20 minutes as I make a quick stop, while waiting on pain to 

be mixed, a plumbing order to be readied.

  It is my haven in a crazy world.

Thursdays Thoughts, "You can't expect to get good photos setting on a running snowmobile!"

It was a fun ride !!!

JS and I spent this last weekend at the cabin.

Our friends where up and we got together for dinner.

The next day was beautiful so we went for a snowmobile ride around the lake.

The snow was wonderful, about 18 inches of powder on a good hard pack.

Riding on powder is like floating on smooth water.

Had the camera along to take winter photos and thought I had some 

really good shots.  Till I put them on the computer, to see that the 

vibration of the snowmobile had make them all blurry.

Turning on and off the sled sounds easy enough, "If it was an electric start!'

No..... my sled is the...... "Put the rope type"

It's just more trouble then it's worth.

I'm thinking, maybe asking JS for a new machine with key start and reverse?

I'll get back to you with how JS liked that idea........LOL

Wordless Wednesday

Pretty Picture Monday

Thursdays Thoughts, The Road Ahead

With the new year ahead, I feel the need to 

make some personal changes in my life.

"Nothing earth moving"

(I had sudden visions of my kids reading this and 

calling each other in a  frantic,

"What does Mon mean by that?"

and who's getting left with "DAD" ?)

What I mean, is being 

"Less of a Dreamer and more of a Doer"

~ 2013 ~

I hope everyone is feeling as good today as you did last night....  LOL

"That's how my post yesterday was going to start !"

It was as lazy and nonproductive of a day as I can remember.

I didn't even finish the post.   Got a few things done, a load of laundry, (because we were out of towels) firewood brought in, 

 some of the decorations packed up.

I even cooked dinner, but everything was in slow mode.

The holidays are officially over and time to get my butt in gear.

Doing what, I'm not quite sure, there's always a long list.

"HAPPY NEW YEAR"

PS...the photo is on the new calendar I just put up,
I didn't take the picture........   Ops...sorry