Mid-January Farm

Posted on January 17, 2026 by Donna

The sheep and goats have pretty much decimated our Christmas tree.  Priscilla is still nibbling on it.

Last Sunday I was able to work on my sheep tribute scarf while watching football which is just about perfect for me.

The glass rain gauge tube broke at the end of December.  I was having a hard time finding a replacement.  But finally I was able to find one and replaced it in grampa’s rain gauge on Tuesday.  Part of my difficulty is because I am still boycotting Amazon.

Last night (Friday), Tom and I went to Bellingham to see Scott Losse.  He is a comedian from Burien, and it was so nice to laugh again.

This morning I was able to get the last of the bands from the chickens’ legs.  The last two were on a Ancona hen and a hen out of our Fluffy, a strong-willed bantam hen we have.  Both were very difficult to catch, but I finally was able to by cornering them in the old pheasant pen (which they cannot fly out of) and our large fishing net.  So that chore is over, and I will not be using bands anymore unless forced to for some reason.

This morning was cold and frosty.  I was able to get relatively close to this GBH enjoying the sun.

The cows seemed to enjoy it too.  They are not looking very pregnant in this photo.  Hopefully they are.

This afternoon we watched the lifestream tribute from San Francisco for Bob Weir.  It ended with a rendition of Ripple.  It was really nice but made me cry a lot.

Then this evening we are rooting for the Seahawks!  So far, so good.  I am sure our Seahawks light is helping them.

Go Hawks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted in Farm | 6 Comments

Wassail

Posted on January 11, 2026 by Donna

We went to the inaugural Wassail at Anderson School in Bothell this weekend.  Here are the three apple trees they brought in for the celebration.

There were a variety of ciders represented so we sampled a few.  We had Ryeleigh with us, and she received a lot of pets.  Then the Sound & Fury Morris Dancers came in.

Then the trees were toasted.

There were Wassail songs.

And dances.

 

Some of the crowd got involved.

After this the trees were properly wassailed.

We had dinner in the Woodshop, partially so we could watch the Packers and Bears game.  It was a good one.  Here are some steins above the bar.  It’s hard to see, but there is a Seafair one.

We had booked a room at the hotel so we didn’t need to drive home.  This time we got the Marilyn Eylar Conaway room.  Here is the information about her and her portrait.

He had the beagle with us so plenty of dog walks  Here is a gas statue in front of the hotel.

And a hallway in the hotel.

Bob Weir had died while we were there.  Here is a Instagram post from Anderson School from an August 1 celebration they had there.

And here is an Anderson School T-shirt that Tom purchased during our stay.

We did enjoy the Lagoon Pool in the morning before we had to pack up and go back home.  It was fun to see all of the families enjoying themselves on a Sunday morning.

So we had a nice Wassail.  It was a birthday present for Tom, and we might need to make it an annual tradition.

Posted in Trips | 4 Comments

January Sadness

Posted on January 7, 2026 by Donna

It has been a little rough around here recently.  I keep thinking things like I need to get Steve in for lunch or I need to be careful getting out of bed in the morning and not step on Steve.  So it is recurring remembering that he is not with us anymore.  I didn’t quite realize how much I was doing to try to help him.  I had to pick up his ashes on Monday.  That was really hard, but they came in a nice box with a name plate and also a lock of his hair and his paw print.  Not sure what to do with it all so made a little tribute for him with the digital photo frame that Thomas and Diana got us for Christmas that has some photos of him.  It does help me to see his photos.

In better news, the cows are looking pregnant.  They are due starting in March so that will be nice.  Hoping for a bull calf from Hercules.

I am inspired by a fellow blogger, Boulderneigh.  She presented her 2025 book list from her Libby app.  I keep complaining to myself (and possibly others) that I do not have enough time to read.  But inspired by her, I got myself a library card.  I never thought I qualified for one as I am not in a library district, but I was able to get a digital one from the Burlington, WA library.  I went there to pick up my card on Monday, and it was a hopping place with lots of people, including kids.  It was nice to see.  I spent a fair amount of my childhood at the Bellevue Library so I miss it.  So now I have a Libby app, and I also set up a Everand app with titles stacked by my bed that I have always thought would fall and kill me someday.  Hopefully, I can prevent this death.  I didn’t go for the libro app as I already own these books so am not wanting to purchase them again (although I would be in a way when I start the Everand subscription).  And I do not want to use audible as I am boycotting amazon.  So hopefully now I can listen to audiobooks, decrease my stacks, and not feel so sorry for myself.

But, in my defense, I did finish a book.  I love Ann Cleeves and always read her Shetland murder mysteries when they come out.  I never figure out the killer before she reveals them, but I love the ambiance and stories.  I do love the TV series too although it is not the same.

Tom bought me a rocks glass with bees on it not long ago. Today I made a Penicillin cocktail from the Doctors and Distillers book, and I thought it was very appropriate for this glass as it contains ginger-honey syrup.

That is what is happening here in this sad January.

Posted in Farm, Historic recipes | 4 Comments