porch time...

we took a little time to make the porch 

a bit cozy

lots of places for quiet chats…

lazy sips of lemonade

or…

with fall fast approaching

some hot tea

spots with beautiful views…

and spots for curling up with good books

spots for dining

and spots for lounging 

LOVE the traditional look of the new porch furniture

which was a fun end of season sale

THANKS to cousin !

and the solid feel of the coffee table

that was a great garage sale find!

perfect for grabbing a cup of joe...

i like it.. 

I am not done decorating it.. 

but..

for now,

this mama is 

THRILLED!

Nesting...

The Ladies need a place to lay…

and with Winter all to fast approaching,

and the hen's Castle having taken far to long to complete…

We decided to hold off on fancy this's and that's..

Mr. T came to the rescue!

He got wind that a neighbor might want to get rid of

those old nesting boxes

so he dragged me over to take a look see..

and I brought the camera

so Machine Man could take a look see

and I got some different angles because

HE can be particular with his questioning of things..

and my words don't always paint an accurate picture 

in his minds eye

there was some hemming..

and some hawing

and some praying..

but

let's be real 

and be honest..

we love FREE

and any chance to up cycle

recycle 

and repurpose..

we try to take 

sooo

time to prettify

first he cut it down to a size we could use…

Then we pulled the boxes out and scrubbed them…

ok.. not WE

I should be fair..

the Teens..

we made them scrub them..

we are mean that way…

building up a work ethic and

all THAT jazz...

then we painted

looks a sight better in my opinion 

**smiling**

the fella's finished out the frame inside

and the chicken wire…

now to INSTALL

TADAH!!!!!!

looks fun don't you think?

they insert the little box things

and were not shy for helpers

of all shapes and sizes

eager to see how they could help

the whole team pitched in

Buddy brought the stacks of shelves

even Firecracker our wee cousin helped out!

i wonder if we were more excited or 

the birds?

here it is!

and there she goes..

hopefully to tell her Queenie friends

how SPECTACULAR the Castle is shaping up..

Buddy helping them find their way..

because we SIMPLY had to get it done…

see.

this week…

we found some of these..

just laying about on the floor!

YAY!

now our ladies can lay eggs in their 

nice little nesting boxes!

yummy farm fresh eggs

darling ducks...

i have such a heart for ducks

especially Pekin Ducks

so when our friends had a desire to raise some

as a part of a homeschool project

they asked if we would mind adding them to our flock..

we warned them

that some might end up in a pot by winter..

but

they'd sure be happy till that day!

because we LOVE Pekin ducks!!!

WE are a ducky kind of a family!

Every day can be a fun day when a duck is around!

One thing we noticed about the new additions

Snow White and her gang..

is that 

while they hang with our

Daisy, Poppy, & Lily..

they don't MINGLE with them..

in fact..

early on,

there was some

duck fights

who knew?  

seems Snow's quite the hottie…

and 

their was a disagreement about ALPHA position..

But who really wants to mess with Poppy?

Please…

He's a JUMBO pekin..

whilst Snow and her gang

are just Pekin…

what WERE the boys thinking?

lately all is fine

they take turn in the kiddie pool..

one group in..

then the other…

there goes Snow and her gang...

they have lots of fun!

we are SO excited to get the official BIG pond going ..

but we have to finish up the Duck Aviary first…

and THAT is fast running out of time to be done..

Winter IS approaching..

swim

or not..

lets test the waters..

oh yeah!

good times!

all done!

and their back ..

time for fluffing

preening and general grooming of self..

see how they are all together..

but still

a bit separate?

cracks me up!

I love ducks!

family fun

there is nothing..

NOTHING

as fun to an 8 year old boy

than having your great Uncle play with you

especially a if it's a bit of target practice 

with your air soft

nothing so fun as having family about you

chatting

and sharing stories

a few weeks back we had Uncles and Tantes

come up to 

Blessings Farm for a wee visit…

and it was so lovely!

We had a great little lunch spread out..

enjoyed eating it on the porch too..

LOVED hearing stories of

back in the day

I have never enough words..

or perhaps

not the right words

to express how much I love

these BEAUTIFUL souls!!

their genuine love

interest

affection

has been consistent

thru the ups and downs of life

and each of them

means so much more to each of US

than perhaps they will EVER know..

Uncle A

Aunt D

Uncle H

and

Tante M

we LOVE YOU!

Thanks for coming all the way

to spend the day

with our family

at Blessings Farm!

you are LOVED!!!