Missing Willow Farm

When Brian and I were dating some 28 years ago, we took a ski vacation to Colorado and spent the majority of the trip in a hot tub out by the ski slopes.  We decided it would be heaven to own one and it was one of our first purchases after we got married.  As it turns out, we used it every night.  We wore it out, bought a new one and moved it to NC, wore that one out, bought a new one and moved it here when we bought the farm in VA.  That one just died and we had a shiny new one delivered from Roanoke.  Brian plans to build real steps for this one, but the cinder blocks have worked just fine.  We still use our spa every night.  We live so remotely there is no ‘light pollution’ from businesses or neighbors.  We can see the milky way, shooting stars, occasionally the international space station and once the northern lights.  Merry (early) Christmas to us!

This morning the greenhouse yielded a summer vegetable (red pepper) a fall fruit (our first fig from a seedling I planted in a pot 7 months ago) and a winter fruit (a tart little orange).  I should have picked some spring buttercrunch lettuce for the photo because we have that growing in there, too.

The best place to have dinner and a movie is on our back deck.  We’ve had a few mild December days which make it possible.  During warmer days, we enjoy fireflies coming through.  Last night, it was a possum that strolled through.  What?  I don’t think they have very good eyesight but they can surely hear?!  Maybe it smelled our dinner and wanted us to share.

We cut our Christmas tree down from our back yard this year.  We planted 50 seedlings when we first moved here.  Only a handful survived, and this is the last one.  Despite obviously not being tree farmers, we’re considering planting more.  Maybe we’ll even water the next batch.  🙂

A deer tried hiding behind our replacement weeping willow tree and was almost successful at being undetectable.  Until he stepped out and started eating it.  We lost our first one to a beaver, I’m not ready to lose another!

I made sour cherry pie for dessert, how about you?

They’re flowering and we’re hoping to have fresh peas at our Christmas dinner.  We’ve been painting them at the same time we paint our tomato flowers.  Not sure if they need pollination or not but they’re planted right next to the tomatoes so no biggie deal.

Edwina decided to molt right as it’s getting cold this year.  Sometimes the barn looks like a chicken massacre with all the feathers lying around.  If I could knit, I’d make her a little sweater.

Jack chewed open and killed both of his wubbas on the same day last week so he got an early Christmas present.  Hopefully he won’t be able to tear this one up.  It bounces really crazy and he’s not as protective of it as he was his prior toys but that makes it easier to get it off of him after he fetches it.  Santa is bringing him a new wubba next month.  Shhh… don’t tell him.

Today’s harvest from the raised beds inside the greenhouse included a bit of spinach spinach, tomatoes, peppers… and a hickory nut.  Since we’re not growing hickory trees in there, I blame a squirrel for it.  Probably the same squirrel who ate half of our newly planted broccoli plants before we buttoned it up for the season.