Wrote this yesterday but didn't get it posted.
45 this morning, clear except for some remaining haze from the Canadian smoke. Sending my prayers for the people affected by these awful fires. I am thankful that the heat left us, so this week has been so pleasant, even needed a jacket in the mornings.
Well, it has been a while. First, let me tell you about the new baby. His name is Jonathan Andrew, to be called J. His first name is after my son Jon who passed away in 2010, and who would have been the baby's grandfather, and proud as a peacock, I know. My granddaughter, and new mother Kate and her hubby Jake are doing well. J arrived on June 1, weighing in at 7 lbs 9 oz, almost exactly the size my son Jon was at 7 lbs 10 oz. Such happy news.
We have also had our granddaughter Sarah from Colorado visiting to work on her cabin site. It is always such a joy when she comes to stay. Don't I wish all our grandchildren could find time for such extended visits. But of course they are all working, parenting, etc, so their time these days is taken up by their busy lives. Sarah works remotely so has a bit more freedom in her schedule.
Last Friday we did our booth restock, a very busy but productive day. Then Saturday we took a trip to Ohio to take a little break and to pick up a big cabinet for one of our booths. We went to Zanesville, where one of our favorite little restaurants is,Tom's Ice Cream Bowl, which I have written about before.
We took a different route both there and back, and we were enchanted if a little saddened by the dying small towns we saw along the way. This part of Ohio was once a busy coalmining, glassmaking, and ceramics powerhouse of industry. but no more. A few mines remain, but all the glassmaking and ceramics companies have moved on. You may have heard of Cambridge and Lancaster glass as well as Roseville pottery, Crooksville Universal and other pottery/china-making companies. All had their homes in this area, along with many others.
The only bad news this week: a coyote, we think, got into our henhouse while we were away Friday and killed every one of our chickens. Every single one. Whatever it was took all the chickens away, leaving only the feathers. Larry blames himself for not putting up the new fence I had bought for the chicken yard. Our dogs were no help, apparently. Buddy has to be chained up when we leave so he doesn't run off, and Otis and Daisy are both just too old. It was just heartbreaking, as this was a nice little flock with most getting ready to start laying very soon.
But I got online and found 8 more hens for sale, about 70 miles from home. So Sunday we went and picked them up. They will be closed up in the coop until Larry can get the new fence put up, and they will not be let out if we are not at home. I hate to keepp them penned up, but after talking to neighbors I have learned that something has gotten many chickens and even a small dog on our ridge, so for the time being the hens will be well guarded. A young neighbor has eggs for sale, fortunately, so we won't have to eat store eggs, at least, until these new hens, which are 7 weeks old, start laying.
Monday Sarah arrived, so we have been having a great visit with her. I spent some time in the garden while she worked on her cabin site, and the other night we had a wonderful dinner, most of it straight from the garden.
We also harvested our cherries from our only tree, which has done us well this year. The cherries are smaller than usual due to the prolonged lack of rain--it hasn't rained for 3 weeks and it is very dry here.
Cherry cobbler. Yum!
We have been watering daily, moving the waterer from garden to garden, while I also water the flowerbeds with a hose. Not ideal, but better than nothing. I pulled the early lettuce and planted many peppers, some more limas, and the squash and cucumber plants, and butternut squash seeds. Larry put in about 50 more tomato plants and still had about 30 to go, I think, before he's done. The asparagus we planted two weeks ago is coming up nicely, which is really exciting, since this will be a real bed and not the random self-seeded plants that supply us now. I sure appreciate those random plants though. We are praying for rain, as it will be difficult to keep everything going without rain, soon.
I think that's about all the news. Sarah is off to a weekend bachelorette party in the mountains, so I will be putting up the cherries, which we just pitted and froze until I had time, and getting back to painting.
I love Cambridge glass. Did you go to the Cambridge glass museum? My sister has a cabin near there and the hills are so beautiful!
ReplyDeleteThat museum is on my list of places I want to see! Also the ceramics museum in Roseville. And I believe there is also a glass museum in Lancaster.
DeleteSo sorry to hear all those little towns have perished along with companies that couldn't compete with Chinese imports going straight to big box stores. We recently had a nearby paper company close it's doors and the small town is already full of many unemployed workers and businesses that relied upon that factory. I won't miss the smell as I drove by that town however!
ReplyDeleteYes, I hear you. West Virginia is the same. Little towns located away from interstates suffer, especially as industries close.
DeleteThe ice cream picture reminds me of the dairy that I used to visit in Port Huron Michigan, I enjoyed a dish called the idiots delight and yes I am an idiot.
ReplyDeleteI think I would have been right there with you!
DeleteSad to read about your chickens but with a fence around the new ones they will be a lot safer. Small town America seems to be dying a long and slow death, very sad. Congrats to the newest member of your family. Have a lovely weekend.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Bill. Nothing like a new baby! I don't know when I will get to see him, as a 6 hours drive is just not something I enjoy any more.
DeleteCongratulations on the new baby in the family - and your son's name living on in a new generation. Sweet.
ReplyDeleteI'm so very sorry about your flock. If it was coyotes, I'd worry about vulnerable dogs, as well. Certainly an issue around here. I have to keep my hens penned up with a net stretched over the entire pen, because of hawks. They'd be happier roaming loose, but they'd also likely be dead, one by one, in short order. Sigh. It's always a trade-off, isn't it?