Happy New Year Greetings

Of course, I'm a day late to wish you all a peaceful, healthy New Year! But the greeting still means as much to you and yours!

It has been snowing little whisps and tufts since yesterday... with only a few inches of accumulation, but it's snow none-the-less! We are predicted to get perhaps 4 to 6 inches by tomorrow, with the wind kicking up this afternoon and lasting through the night. I just came in from feeding and watering the chickens, geese, ducks and guineas, and it is rather blustery... the wind is just strong enough to drive the tiny pellets of snow into your cheeks and down your neck! I tucked in extra straw and shavings for the biddies, and a week or two ago I stacked bales of hay in front of either side of the barn door to block the north wind from blowing straight into it's small opening. I have not let the birds out into the bigger barnyard for a few weeks, but they are content in their covered run, and have plenty of indoor and outdoor space for exercise and fresh air. It is just as well, as yesterday I took a walk around the fence lines and discovered three places where the fence was torn down. One spot was a curiousity... it looked like deer had tried to jump the 6-foot fencing, but one heavy steel fence post was completely knocked out of the ground. The other spots were the work of a coyote, fox or perhaps a neighbor's dog. I mended it all as best I could temporarily, but it will require far greater repair come springtime.

Yesterday was a day spent with family, as everyone came up for supper. I really need to think about a larger kitchen table, as when my children come with their families and everyone is together, there are 10 adults and 4 children around the not-long-enough farmtable, which comfortably seats only 8! And when extra friends or family come, I have to add an extra table. I suppose I could just attach longer and  wider pine boards to the table base though. Something to think about, as Sunday suppers can be a bit cramped!

Today was spent getting new tires for my poor Jeep. The man at the garage declared the old tires "baloney skins". Then I had to get a washing machine, as the old one died about a month ago, and we've been washing our clothes in the clawfoot bathtub! I did use an old wringer-washer for a few days til the motor burned out; then it was back to the tub. My youngest son has a new appreciation for how laundry was done long ago, as he spent quite a bit of energy agitating his laundry with an old wood and metal plunger!

Well, the wind is picking up and the cold is settling in, so I'm off to put on a pot of soup and stoke the wood furnace. I just wanted to stop in and wish everyone a Happy New Year! Til next time!