Happiness Over The Holidays

At my daughter Christina's having a Christmas time dinner, our first ever at her home.

I woke this morning long before light,and lay in bed reminiscing about the holidays and how much fun it's been with family and friends.  I'm lucky to have my husband, and children, our home, and all the menagerie that is Applegarth Farm.  We are all blessed to be healthy and happy, and feel warm and safe.

Jarin got up early this morning and put on the coffee, I heard the bell ring and knew I had to get up and get dressed, pull on the rubber boots, and walk over in the dark from the barn to the little house.  We're not on our normal routine with school out for the Christmas Break.  The kids all sleep in 2 or 3 hours later than we do, and stay up a couple hours later, they're on holiday hours.  So our mornings begin with starting the  fire, coffee and chatting about what we're doing that day, then I feed the chickens, rabbits, and cats.  Jarin always takes Sierra and Summer for their morning walk, then puts them in the pasture to eat their breakfast and  play for a couple hours. 

Over the holidays it's been warm here in the NW, the moisture is thick, and it has rained lightly for days.  They're predicting Snow for Wednesday and Thursday, we have cold air coming today, and they're forecasting snow in the foothills and lowlands.  The kids, especially Kaley want it to snow.  Over Thanksgiving the snow we had was really fun to sled and play in.  Plus today 3 cousins are coming to stay for a couple days,  it would be fun to have snow so they could all play together.  I'm hoping for it too!  I love for winter to be Winter, I say... Let It Snow!

With Christmas over, we're onward to 2011.  I have big plans for Applegarth Farm this year.  This spring will be exciting,  we are planning to get a couple Nigerian Dwarf goats, they will be does to milk, sometime I'm hoping in March or April.  We'll be getting their area ready over the next few months.  The new year will bring work on the nursery part of the farm.  I will be grafting apples, pears, plums, and cherries, January through March.  Some work in the garden will also begin around the end of January.  I have several new beds planned, and will be planting more espaliered fruit trees around the garden.   I am also planting several rows of fruit trees I grafted a couple years ago in the new upper meadow orchard.

Over the next few days and weeks we at Applegarth will be reflecting on what we've accomplished over the last year, and what will be priority and desire to work on this year.    I encourage you also to take the time to reflect and write out your dreams for the coming year.  If self sufficiency is important to you, take some positive steps like planning now for your garden, look at seed catalogs, and study books from the library about vegetables, fruits and berries. You will want to dig your beds, and amend them with aged manure first of all.  If  you are interested in bees, January is the time to order them, and get your hives ready before they arrive in April.  If you want fruit trees, plant them over the next few months, order them now.  I have bought mine through Raintree Nursery and Burnt Ridge Nursery, both are in Washington, and do mail order.  If you want Chickens, rabbits, or goats., they all provide self sufficiency for families with food, and compost for enriching your garden.  Begin to think about getting ready for them come Spring.    The thought of all the new life in Spring brings me happiness now in the darkest days of the year.  Onward to longer days and a bright shiny New Year!