frugal fashionable farmer: Buh-Bye, January...

Daddy would be proud......

Last Friday was the two year mark since he was suddenly taken from us. I was nervous all last week on how I would feel. I even braced a little bit. It came and went, and here I am this morning, having spent the weekend doing a whole lot of 'therapy'. Maintaining fence lines, envisioning my perfect little trail around the entire property, and starting the work of clearing paths, all while thinking about how my daddy would be so proud of me and this little farm. I even moved the horses around by myself both mornings and felt how in just one year, my confidence has grown when handling Rose. She is still nowhere near as calm and easy as ol' Hazel, but I can at least read her energy better and that is key when walking her across the yard and into the other paddock....

My brother also came over and spent some time with me and Christian yesterday and it was really just the icing on the weekend cake. We all got wind-chapped hanging outside, and talking guns - my dad was a big collector, and as much as I love target shooting, and was able to 'play' as a preteen with my dad's old AK, I never knew really how special it was. Derek (my bro), was explaining the difference between my dad's AK and the newer ones. Dad's, which Derek got from my dad about 6 months before daddy died, is an Egyptian, and very old, or as I classify my clothes, vintage ;) ...
It can withstand almost any condition - from being submerged in water, mud, sand, etc. , and still be fully functional. Waaaaaaay different than the AKs and SKs of today. I remember tearing up the backyard with that thing when I was 15 or so, and Derek, well, he wasn't even 10 years old and was getting schooled on dad's AK. Christian didn't grow up with guns, so he got to learn some things about the history, and it was just what I needed - to hang out with my favorite men on a Sunday.....

...Yesterday with all the gun talk, my first and hopefully last casualty came up. This little piggy met its maker just over a year ago after going after my mom, gnashing teeth so hard that they were broken... eeeeeesh. One good thing about regular target practicing, is that in a moment of panic, you can hit a fast target with ease... and a pretty clear head. I could never be a hunter, but admire their ability to bring home meat and keep the populations of deer from becoming too overwhelming...

As I mentioned last post, I wanted to get back to posting here more like I used to (which was pretty much every day), BUT, I have realized for the time being, I am shooting for weekly updates. There are quite a few things in the works that I cannot post about just yet, which have taken up loads of my time at the farm in the last several months....

In the last TWO WEEKS (yes, it has been that long!) since I posted here, the grass is growing!!!!

We got some major rain and the temperatures have been perfect for some green growth! It has actually gotten me prematurely excited to start seedlings. I think next weekend I may work on a very small raised bed, hoop-house for some early planting experiments.

Aside from the plans for Spring gardens, I have also been working my tail off on products and ideas for the Fox & the Forest Valentine's Day sales. The biggest selling item has been the Healing Helichrysum roll-on, the magic facial serum, and the Detox Dose. I must admit that when I almost lost my fingertips at the end of December due to an accident between me and some electric hedge-trimmers, it was an ugly, ugly sight!!! BUT after only a week of using this oil blend, I was completely healed. Even I was shocked, and I created the blend, but mostly for acne and scrapes...