Good evening from Uphill Farm!

We've had a pretty good day although it was grey and cool and damp. I won't be complaining about the wetness however, because we have had several years of drought here and can use the rain :-)

You can see some of our young blueberry bushes there in the forefront of this picture. I spy little tufts of greenness beginning to peek through the brown grass now as I walk the property-A sign that soon the days will become sunny and warm. I had better make good use of these last few days to finish pruning stuff. We've got blue, black, and raspberries, peaches, apples, plum, and pears. I've already pruned the persimmons. 

The palm that I brought in for the winter has begun to bloom! I was so surprised! Unfortunately the first head of blossoms snapped at the stem because the pod would not open all the way. Then I discovered that there were several more blossoms forming.

I placed the blossom into sugar water hoping it would continue to bloom and develop--and it did seem to mature some, even putting off a unique fragrance :-)
Also, I'm happy to report that I started my day off healthier by drinking a large glass of warm lemon/cayenne water, and beginning a new stretch/exercise program with my daughter. We are also reading one of the Screwtape Letters together every morning. I have missed doing something with her for awhile, as our lives have been sort of discombobulated for a sec : 0
I'd better sign off for now. More to share about our meal planning and Spring cleaning coming soon!
*Peace Out *

Happy Valentine's Day everybody!

Things have been crazy around here at Uphill Farm lately. But today we are going to pause and have heart shaped pancakes and turkey bacon with strawberries and whipped cream. (We have a daughter who is allergic to mammal meat thanks to a tick bite that she had gotten last year!)

My husband is busy working on some electric wiring for a camper - home site that we are building on our property. The girls are cleaning up from lunch and doing miscellaneous free time things. I am hoping to ride one of the horses in just a little bit.

I hope you each have someone special to spend this day with. Next week will be busy also as we will be babysitting my granddaughter for the week while my daughter in law attends to some medical issues in her family.

Happy Trails!

These are my front porch plants enjoying the indoors over the winter! I have a humidifier going in this room 24/7 which I believe helps them and us. I water them minimally, and love to have living, green things inside. The moonsetting this morning was beautiful, and I tried to capture it on a photo, but, alas, there were power lines obstructing the view!! It was a full moon too! Oh well. I tried.

     I had a horse hay adventure this morning---We have 2 horses who usually go thru a round bale of hay in 2wks. Apparently, with the colder weather, they eat a little more. Makes sense, duh! Well, dear husband was out of town, and oldest son was using the truck. I don't drive the tractor, so my dad's Accord got to haul 4 square bales from Tractor Supply (Thank goodness they HAD hay!). I knew enough to attempt to line the trunk and backseat with tarps, but still had a little mess to vacuum out afterward.

     Youngest daughter, 13, takes dance lessons from my dear daughter-in-law once a week at their home next door to ours once a week. I usually take this 1-2hrs to spend time with my oldest grandchild, a girl, 2 1/2. We've tried to go to Wendy's for a frosty, but she wasn't quite into sitting down that long yet ; )  So we started going to my mom and dad's home for a change of scenery, and for them to see her for a bit. Today, since she's recovering from the latest respiratory bug, and not quite up to par, we just played down here at my house. She loved the balloons leftover from her daddy's bday party last week, rolling my old marbles across the kitchen floor, eating MY egg, and "helping" me to put the ingredients into the bread machine. Then it was time to ride to town to meet my friend in the McDonald's parking lot to pick up her daughter for the weekend. We had cheeseburgers, fries and Coke while we waited. I heard her say from the backseat, "what is this?" My daughter turned around and looked. She was holding her pickle slice up. "It's a pickle" my daughter told her. "You can eat it." "Oh." she said, and proceeded to do so. "Mmmm." I love those moments. Wouldn't trade 'em.

     Well, I've got a 13th bday party to plan for Sunday afternoon. My daughter tells me she wants cheesecake and balloons. OK...........I can do that.  Another friend's family is coming too. Haven't decided whether I'll invite family this time or have them another time....Decisions, decisions. 

     I'm also in the thick of trying to expand my understanding and use of these latest technological advances. For instance, how do I type without erasing what I've already written when I want to insert another idea? Minor. After having a pretty tight schedule for the past 30ish years having/caring for/homeschooling 5 children, things are slowing down a bit. The interesting challenge is that I need to be intentional about my time, or things just sort of ooze all over the place. There are plenty of things calling my name. It's a matter of constantly evaluating.

   

Well, after a late night burning the midnight oil reading a new library book, I got a bit of a later start this morning. Fed the horses earlier than usual due to the cold. ( I'm a softie that way...) The dog got an appetizer---my son's leftover sandwich from yesterday, and the pig, (Yes, I said PIG, my husband's "dog"), got an apple core.

     I decided to let my youngest daughter, 13, attend a Valentine-making party at a friend's house over lunch,so that changes our whole middle-of-the-day plan. I quickly wrote her new assignments inside of her school worktexts for today so that she would be able to get started on some before we have to go. She completed her few morning chores, (Fed inside fish tanks, cats, her bunny out in the goat barn, and washed the dishes left from last night), and is now reading her History here at the table with me : )

      In just a few, I must go get presentable and run by the store to get some supplies and then a drive-thru lunch (no health food this time!) on our way over there.  I will have a bit of time to kill, so will probably head on down to the garden center for a look-see.

     

Hello again!  I got my daughter going on her school and accompanied our oldest out to check on goats, dog, chickens and horses, when I had the rude awakening that I should have pruned the grapes already! : 0
So off I went to locate my small pruning sheers and got to work.  Top pic is just getting started. Bottom pic is after finishing the one row. We have about 2/3 more to go across from this row. Normally grapes need to be pruned before it begins to warm for the spring so that they do not bleed too much when pruned. Hopefully we're safe....

     Oooops! Gotta go put youngest daughter's hair up for dance lessons tonight. I have the library books already loaded in the car, and will drop them off after dropping her by the dance school. In future, I'd also like to start collecting/taking our recycling on the same night as these places are all closeby one another " )
   

     Good morning from Uphill Farm! Well it's not  too early actually. Our entire household got "THE BUG" all last week, and we are in various stages of recovery! As I am just beginning (again!) to blog about our adventure with this life, please do not expect polished expertise! HA!, quite the opposite---I will be painfully honest about our dreams, visions, and how we are or aren't achieving them " )
     I suppose a little history is in order:  I married my college sweetheart, Don. We were both in a small school up near Chicago majoring in the sciences. He was going to be a marine biologist, I a medical doctor. When I met him, I was in complete denial mode about what my heart really wanted---You see, my parents' generation was convinced that the key to "success" for me was a college degree leading to a well-paying career. I was flatly challenged to be prepared to support myself and our 3 children after my husband suddenly keeled over with a heart attack while in his mid thirties! : 0  I figured since I had always had an interest in living things and a compassion for the suffering, the medical sciences would be a good fit.(I know now that being an equine vet would have been even more specifically "up my alley").
     Fast-forward 30ish years. I ended up graduating with a B.S. in Pre-medical Biology, getting married 6 weeks from graduation, working in medical research for a few years, then moving south where it was more affordable to live. My heart took over, encouraging my husband to take the lead career-wise so that we could start a family. With LOTS of help from friends and family, we ended up basically "flipping" properties over the years, increasing our value all the while. This allowed us to always purchase "up". Starting with our first home, a small, brick ranch fixer-upper, we finallly ended up here---Uphill Farm! " ) We've gone from a little house in town to a nearly 12ac property out in the country.
     There are so many aspects to our lives and the story up until this place and point. Sometimes I feel like we've gone so far......sometimes I feel like we are standing right where we've always been. And it's not just us, not just me. ALL of our lives are complex. WE are complex. I prefer to use the term, "rich".
     Come. Join me in looking back....looking forward.....looking around....and up   " )  I would love to hear your comments/reactions/reflections. In the meantime, I will share some of the daily life here down to the grime and grape juice, the animal hair and slobbers, the ripe tomatoes and rotten eggs---come on along!
     Until next time...I really must get dressed, tend to the animal chores, and check my daughter's school lessons!