I have this triangular metal trellis that I brought inside and wrapped with colored lights for Christmas.  Last night I replaced the colored lights with white lights and added some English Ivy skeletons and grape vines.  My purpose was to create an interesting light feature.  (If they can do it on Pinterest, I can do it in Woodworth.) This is how it came out.

Then I decided to take some old doors that I have used for headboards and wall hangings and make a room divider.  I needed to put some feet on those doors in order to stand them up, so I cut and

I drilled and

I welded, until I had two feet for each door.  Then I installed the feet, stood the doors up, hung a painting on them and butted the sofa up to my new divider.  After moving around a few more objects, this is what I had.

Then, on the back side of the divider, I put an old drafting table

as a pedestal for one of my metal pieces. If you look at the room from this side of the divider

this is what you see.  I’m pleased with my ‘room divided’ and am wondering why it took me so long to think this up.

Grandma Moses once said, “If I hadn’t started painting, I would have raised chickens.” I don’t see why she couldn’t have done both…I do.  And, to start off the new year, my chickens flew off of a new roost.

Joel enclosed part of my daddy’s old ‘bus shed’ so that my chickens could have new quarters.

Although this pen is smaller than the other one, it is much better. It’s also closer to the house. As a matter of fact, I can see the chickens from the porch.

After Joel finished putting up the wire, I built a gate

and made a latch

that you can drop a pin into. I also built a roost with a place to catch all the droppings

so they can be collected and added to compost.

Joel put in a water faucet, which is quite convenient.  We hung a feeder

in hopes that less feed will be wasted. Then,

I installed their old nesting boxes.

Ever since the chickens moved in, Gypsy has been hanging out down there. Sometimes she climbs up into the oak tree and just watches.  Yesterday I let her in the pen,

but when a couple of the girls gave her the evil eye, she couldn’t get out quick enough.

I have more things that I want to add to the new ‘poultry palace’,  so give me a few days to do a little construction and I’ll get back to ya.

The other day, when it was sixty-three degrees outside, I said to Joel, “It just doesn’t feel like Christmas.”  Now, I know better than to gauge the arrival of the Christmas season by the weather…especially in Louisiana.  And I know better than to hinge reality on a feeling.  But knowing something doesn’t necessarily mean that you practice it, right?  That’s why, for the past few years, I’ve either read or listened to Rick Warren’s The Purpose of Christmas.

 

It’s a wonderful little book, a quick read, and I highly recommend it.

Warren tells us that Christmas really is the best news we could get, regardless of our background, religion, problems, or circumstances.  He sites Luke 2:10 which says, “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”  Then he shares that Christmas is worth celebrating for three reasons:  It’s personal – I bring YOU, it’s positive – GOOD news of great joy, and it’s universal – for ALL the people.

Warren reminds us that the whole reason for Christmas is God’s love, and that it is not only a time for celebration, but for salvation and reconciliation as well.  This little book prompts me to acknowledge that Christmas has nothing to do with a feeling, but a reality that I must choose whether or not to accept.  AND…it doesn’t depend on the weather.

This morning Kerry and I decided to drive over to Inglewood Plantation (about ten miles from my house) and check out their Harvest Market.  We had never been before. I knew where Inglewood was located,

but, I had no idea where to find their Harvest Barn.  We drove past the house and stopped at The Saxon Guild,

(also part of Inglewood) run by Joel and Bob Smith.  I knew that Joel was there and that he would know where to direct us…and he did.  As a matter of fact, we were almost there.

He told us to look for the orange Allis Chalmer Tractor and

.

that’s where we’d find the barn.

The produce was beautiful. There were also fruit trees for sale, and

Thomson Grazers was there with their grass -fed beef.  While we were shopping,

our friend Judy walked up.  We had a good time shopping and visiting together.

If you live in central Louisiana, and have not visited the Harvest Barn at Inglewood Plantation, I highly recommend that you do. It is located at 6233 Old Baton Rouge Highway.  They are open from 3-7 pm on Tuesdays and 9 am-6 pm on Saturdays.

Next Saturday, from 1-5 pm, they will be having Christmas at Inglewood.  There will be caroling, live Christmas music, hay rides, plus more produce vendors.  We’re going and have invited the twins.  So, stay tuned!

Today Joel had to go to Lowes to pick up some tin that he had ordered. I went with him and so did the twins.  Hudson found a penny in the back seat and of course, Denton had to have one too.  So Joel and I dug around in the front for loose change.

Denton wound up with a quarter, a dime and a penny.

Hudson wound up with a quarter, a nickel and a penny.  I helped them to add up their change.  Hudson didn’t like it that Denton had five more cents than he did, but I assured him that his nickel was much larger in size than Denton’s dime and that seemed to make him happy.

Then Hudson said, “Is this a quartiger?” “A what?”, I asked.  “A quartiger.” I looked and said, “No, that’s a picture of a bear on your quarter.” Then he noticed that the bear had a fish in it’s mouth. I said, “Let me look at your quarter and see which state it represents.” I told him that it represented the state of Alaska.  Excitedly, he said, “Wow, this quarter is worth Alaska! I’m going to Alaska!”

As you know, in seven weeks I will be in Alaska.  I bought my plane ticket in October. I sure wish I had known about that quarter back then!

You know how one thing leads to another. I know how one thing leads to another.  But sometimes I forget that one thing leads to another… like today…I decided that I would swap the door in the laundry room with the front door.  “Why?”, you ask.  Three reasons:

A.  Because the door in the laundry room has windows which would allow more light into my den.

2.  Because I could, which, sometimes is the only reason a girl needs.

D.  Because Joel was at work.

Right off the bat, as I was removing the doors from the hinges, I stripped several screws. This meant that I would have to purchase the tool that allows you to unscrew screws that have been screwed up.  Since I did not know the name of this tool, I called Joel.  He provided the information I needed.  I don’t know if he was really involved in his work, or if he was a little scared, but this is the first time he didn’t ask what I was doing.  I drove to town and purchased the 

Grabit Pro.  This thing worked like a charm, and had I realized how much fun using it would be, I would have been stripping screws a long time ago…on purpose.  After taking the doors down, I realized that I had forgotten to buy a wood chisel, so I went BACK to town and bought this

so I could do this

so that the hinges would fit right.  When I got the door hung in the den, the doorway was ever so slightly too small and the door wouldn’t close.  So, I had to trim the blooming door. Because I didn’t have a plane, I decided to use a side grinder with an eighty grit wheel.  Not the smartest thing to do, especially since I didn’t take the door down.  It worked pretty well, but when I got finished, it looked like Jack Frost had made a pass through my den.  There was sawdust everywhere.  When I FINALLY got that cleaned up, I realized that I needed a new door knob.  So, back to town I went.  Along with the door knob, I bought a plane so that I could

finish trimming the door.  I was DONE decorating with sawdust.  This time I took the door down.  When I finished with the plane, I hung the door back up and installed the knob.

I took down the old storm door.  All I need to do is

clean the door and where the storm door was and paint. I didn’t think I did too bad…..for a girl.

Yesterday Joel bought the boys a tent.

Today they decided to set it up.  The boys unpacked it

while Joel raked off a place to put it.  This was one of those tents with the poles already attached that only takes one minute to set up. The boys watched

as Joel unfolded the thing.  Of course, he got me to read him the directions.

At one point, he said, “I don’t understand what those directions are saying.”  Hudson pointed at the tent and said, “That’s because it speaks Spanish!” Are you smarter than a five- year- old?

This week, for reasons that remain a mystery, Peter (of Peter, Pauline and Mary)

slipped the surly bonds of earth and touched the face of God.  He was the rooster from the original pair of Malaysian Seramas that I had purchased several years back.

It seems that 2012 has not been the best year for ‘little’ chickens on this hill.  In the spring, Joe and Nidette gave me six Silver Laced Bantoms

in an attempt to save them from varmints that stalk their farm animals. They just might have fared better around Lake Charles because there is only one left…a rooster.  Actually, there were two until yesterday. They lived down at the barn, and until about a week ago, they lived alone.  It was then that they got four roommates.

These four Buff Orpingtons, who could probably  escape from Alcatraz, would somehow fly the coop, and they  had made it their mission to “work” Josh’s daylilies and Joel’s pansies. Needless to say, I had to do something quick before Josh and Joel put them in a pot.  I put them in lock up with the two little Silver Laced Bantams to which they probably seemed like giants. Yesterday, when I went to feed, the little Silver Laced hen had joined Peter, and when I opened the gate, the little rooster flew into my arms. I felt so sorry for him.  It was the first time he had ever given me a second look.  So I said, “Don’t you worry”, carried him up the hill, and put him in the cage with Pauline and Mary.

It was a match made in heaven.  Or maybe I should say… it was a match made because two chickens went to heaven.

Today was Thanksgiving dinner at Hudson and Denton’s school and Josh and Nikki were able to join them for the meal.  So…

guess who got to stay with me?  That’s right, Josie.

She sat in my lap for the first few minutes and we talked.

Then she watched me put up some fall decorations and after that,

she listened to her music and entertained herself for a while.  Recently we hung a swing on the sun porch, so

we decided to ride that for a while.  At first she sat in my lap,

but soon moved to her own spot on the swing.  We talked and listened to music on my phone, but it was my duet with Roy Clark  singing “Thank God And Greyhound You’re Gone”

that did her in.  A little later, it was my solo of the same song

that brought her back.  I really didn’t think I sounded that bad.

We got back from our trip Monday evening around five and the rest of the week has been fairly laid-back.  Joel’s sister, who came to keep his mother company while we were away, left yesterday.  It was good to get to visit with her.  There were daylily people here this week

digging, washing

and labeling plants

for their club’s sale table at their big meeting this weekend.  And while this was going on

I got to hang out with Josie.

I’ve gotten interested in using essential oils,

so I’ve been studying my new book.

As you know, I will be in Alaska in January.  I have been promised protection from accidental cryogenic suspension by Mom, aka The Grouchy Old Woman.  So, all I have to worry about is my camera equipment.

So, I’ve been researching how to take care of my equipment in cold weather.

Yesterday, I built a combination feeder for the goats.

It holds both hay and grain.  It will probably eventually hold a small goat,

Jasmine likes to stand in the feed trough.

All is well on the home front except for one thing.

Joel planted pansies the other day and the chickens just can’t help but dig them up. So, I’ve been patching holes and locking up chickens.  I knew I was in trouble when Josh called to me from the front porch saying ,” Mama, you best get in the front yard.”  Bless his heart, Joel didn’t say a word……..but, he didn’t have to.