ReluctantFarmChick.com

I’ve been dying to stamp.  A new catalog was unveiled in January, but I didn’t order anything till March, which shows amazing restraint on my part (even if I have to say so myself!).  Most of the stuff I ordered is still in the box, which is absolutely shameful, but it’s the way things generally go when it comes to stamping.  There just is not enough time in a day.  Or should I say . . . I just don’t place stamping near enough to the top of my priority list (I recently did an inservice in which I emphasized how we are not victims of our environments - we have lives full of CHOICES - and we have to take responsibility for our choices and stop casting blame. . . . sigh).

Anyway, as mentioned in an earlier post, our church sends care packages to the kids of our church who are away at school (highschool or college) to let them know we’re thinking about them and care for them.  I invariably stamp cards for these packages (we generally send about 18 packages).  Here is the card I made for the March packages.

I send the card through my printer before I cut and embellish the front.  I generally include a Bible Verse and a message to the kids.  People who don’t donate package "stuff" sometimes donate money to put in the cards.  I think this might be one of the kids’ favorite part of the packages!

I wanted to stamp a memorable card for my daughter’s 13th birthday.  I worked on it some, but didn’t end up giving her any card (I’ll tell you about our celebration in a different post, if I get to it).  But I had fun playing and learning.  One new product that was introduced at SU convention last year was the "Big Shot" which is a sizzix product.  We have a very cool "pop-up" card helper (actually several, but I have only played with one).  It’s a cake die-cut.  Here are my attempts at a card.

When the card closes, the cake collapses, like this . . .

I ran out of time to do another card.  I din’t end up giving her this card because I got annoyed by the fact that the candles didn’t hide (I put 13 candles on the cake).  There are several things I could have done to make this card work, and I haven’t discarded it, I just haven’t gotten to it yet.  Here is what happened:

(this is the view from the back)

We did other birthday stamping, but I forgot to take pictures.  The girls (my daughter and her friend) made "name frames" where they stamped and embellished their names to put in a frame.  I’ll have to find an example to show.  They had lots of fun and they did a great job!

Another new product we got that I LOVE is a cuttle-bug-like folder that matches one of my favorite stamp sets.  I gave the card to a friend without taking a photo of it - but I’ll be making more because they are SIMPLE and quick - which is the best kind of stamping!  I love that I have the opportunity to create as an outlet.  I will make more time in my weeks for stamping - it helps me maintain balance and is an opportunity to share too.

I have really enjoyed watching our chickens grow and develop.  I’ll fill you in on some of their happenings in a post soon, but thought I’d share things I never knew before this chicken experience (which started in September)

1)  Chickens stand on 1 leg a lot of the time

2)  Roosters can only crow with both feet on the ground

3)  Roosters can crow while walking/running

4)  Hens need their egg shells back (ground up in their food) OR oyster shells so that they can continue to lay eggs

5)  Green eggs (the shells, not the innards) have lower cholesterol than brown or white eggs. 

6)  Roosters don’t only crow in the very early morning - they crow all day long

7)  Crowing is the way a rooster greets you - they’re great "watch dogs" because they let you know when people arrive, or when surroundings change

8)  Chickens will eat ANYthing . . . food scraps, banana peels, slop, you name it . . . I think they’re pigs with beaks

9)  Chickens are social, and prefer to hang around people.  They will also wonder (in a "herd") quite far away from their coop, but will come back at roosting time

10)  Roosters don’t crow at sun-up.  They crow well before the sun even thinks about rising - as early as 3am.  Jennifer suggested they do this so I’d know where to aim a gun.  I’ve been tempted.

Hello to all my skywatch friends . . . it’s been fun visiting your amazing sites and seeing your photos.  I have not been leaving comments, but I have been stopping by.  You continue to inspire me! 

I’m doing a bit of catch-up here - about a month ago it was COLD - spring was in the air, and then it just reversed itself and turned back to winter.

The trees look misty, but they weren’t really . . . it was ICE.  brrrrrrr.  Check this out (sorry for the blur)

The ice stuck around just about all day because temperatures didn’t get high enough to melt it. 

You can see hundreds of amazing skies by visiting the skywatch blog here.

We (my kids’ school) took a field trip to a nearby lake that happens to be in a cave.  I don’t really do caves.  There is a cave on my in-law’s property that is quite the destination, apparently.  There are huge rooms (I’ve heard) and slithery trails.  And endangered bats that the state protects by locking the gate every winter.  People LOVE going through there in the summer time (a perfect 60-degree hike in crazy hot summers).  I have never been in that cave.  Ever.  Not even when Prince Farming and I were dating.  Which is a bit of a sore point for some (a-hem) but I’ve set my boundary and I’m sticking to it (at least in this case).  Which wasn’t really well-thought-through on my part when I chose to go on this field trip.  ANYway, that’s not what this post is about.  I took some of the kids through the little tourist-trap gift store.  This caught my attention and tickled my funny bone.

So, now the record is set. 

I was going to make this a "Top Ten" list, but then I wasn’t sure how many things I’d end up with.  My next option was a "Top xx List" but then I worried about what kind of hits and nonsense that would produce.  So I’ll stick with a less conspicuous and more ambiguous option.

This is a list of things I could blog about but a) didn’t; b) won’t; c) can’t;  d) shouldn’t or e) might still

1)  The chickens’ first eggs

2)  Landscaping my yard - the strong desire and almost a vision of what should happen, but strong doubt that the inspiration will stick for longer than the rain.

3)  Grass planting and the agony of spreading hay over the seed all by myself because my kids went camping and Farming had to drive for 3 hours to get the fertilizer and then spread it so our farming day "together" ended up with me unrolling 3 huge bales of hay that I spent less painful hours last year putting into the bales.  And I’m not done.  But I am still sore.  ALL over.  (hey - that’s an entire blog entry right there)

4)  My precious daughter’s 13th birthday surprise

5)  Learning how to ride a dirt bike with a clutch (that would be me)

6)  My commitment to blog 10 times in the next 20 days with no whining, apologies, or fear/hang-ups

7)  The behindness of where I am with work and other assignments  (don’t tell anyone)

8)  A very fun trip to Charlotte to visit friends over Easter

9)  Stamping that I’ve done and still wish to do

10)  A stamp room that is photo-worthy for an "after" shot (I already have several "before" shots that could be recipient of some sort of "least inspiring of creativity" award).

11)  A link to a cousin’s site introducing his amazing work with "World Outside My Shoes" - look for a book in the near future

12)  Observations of Prince Farming’s 25th Highschool Reunion

13)  Book reports on my new pass-time (audiobooks - have to LOVE that invention (or discovery) coupled with iPhone)

14)  The chicken’s new house and their general life to date

15)  Spring time beauty on the farm

16) The death of a cow.  And a few chickens.

17)  A wonderful and stress-less weekend with Prince Farming while the kids were gone

18) The search for a boot jack or pattern for DIY

19) My kids’ "summer jobs"

20) More sky watch posts

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