Spring on the Farm(ette)

The Jeep is at the body shop and I am toodling around in DD#1’s Acura RSX. It’s over 20 years old but still has a lot of life left in it and I am enjoying driving a stick shift again. I went to Costco yesterday and bought one more apple tree. We have three new varieties to plant—Jonagold, Fuji, and Ambrosia—and a second Lodi. I am running out of room.

I planted five trays of tomatoes on Sunday. I put in my usual Oregon Star and Northern Ruby paste tomatoes as well as Cherokee Green, Cherokee Chocolate, and Thunder Mountain. We are supposed to get rain today, so after I tackle the mountain of paperwork on my desk, I am going to go out and plant peppers and some herbs and flowers. The greenhouse is a wonderful place to spend a rainy afternoon.

I spotted a mouse running through the kitchen yesterday so the husband put down another trap. He reported the demise of said mouse when he came to bed last night. He jokingly said that it is time to get a pet owl. (The yard already looks like a zoo; what’s one more animal?) We are going to have to see what we can do to attract and keep some owls here, although I don’t really want one to carry off Bunny. I just want the owls to eat mice and ground squirrels.

I wonder if the hummingbirds will show up early because of the mild winter. I need to get the feeders cleaned and ready to go. The male turkeys have been quite obnoxious lately, harassing the hens and showing off their feathers.

The chicks are outgrowing the brooder box and will move to the coop soon. They were very noisy when I was in the garage sewing on The Beast the other day. They are no longer cute and fluffy, having reached the baby velociraptor stage.

Another month and it will be time to get piglets.

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Sewing is on the back burner for a while. This happens every year. My brain gets occupied with planting and pruning and other spring tasks and doesn’t have room to think about creative pursuits, although Sarah reminded me the other day that I am planning to make my mother-of-the-bride dress. 🤪 That project will have to move closer to the top of the queue as it is going to require at least a couple of muslins and maybe another fitting session with Ryliss Bod at the Sewing and Design School in Tacoma. Vogue 1983 (view B) is still the top contender (pending DD#2’s approval):

I have a Zoom meeting with the Sew Expo class coordinator this morning to talk about my submissions for Sew Expo 2027. (By the way, Sew Expo dates for 2027 have changed; they will be March 3-7.) I like that the organizers are no longer waiting until the middle of the summer to solicit proposals. If I know what I am teaching, I’ll have more time to prepare, so when they sent out the link for proposals a few weeks ago, I uploaded my list.

Much to do.