Sharing the Love
October 30, 2008|Comments (30)
Want to meet our friends? I know that you do. Many of them have amazing blogs with beautiful stories to tell. These are my cosmic twins, soul siblings, and sources of joy. One moment with them and you’ll see why I profess my loyalty to their zany, creative, and positively lovely selves. They are not in any order because…. well, because I am not very organized in the braincase but they have all decided to hang in there with me nevertheless. Thank goodness they have. What would I do without them? Seriously. Actually, I don’t want to know. *Just keep swimming, just keep swimming*
- Landon — my Anam Cara from Virginia, who I miss dearly
- Erin — my soul sister from Virginia
- Aunt Julie and Uncle Raul — our beloved family in Alabama
- Aunt Judy — a naturalist living in Alaska, who shares my life’s ambition
- Rhonda Jean — my blogging hero whose blog Down-to-Earth made me want to blog our journey
- Marlene — my dear friend and adopted mom in Canada, a blessing in our life
- Amanda — a fellow Army wife and a gal pal who has agreed to let me kidnap her children…not really
- Leah – amazing photographer and expert at long hair care (check out her DIY conditioners)
- Shelli — glorious photographer and truly fun person
- Connie — adopted mom, strong Christian, hockey fan, and a truly lovely person
- Gina — devoted wife to her husband and an inspiration to us all
- Holly — avid ghost hunter and true blue friend
- Momma Barb — married to a honest-to-God cowboy and adopted virtual mom
- Maggie — my green cleaning buddy from Simply Neutral (if you haven’t heard – their cleaners rock)
- Robin — mind-numbingly beautiful photography and dear friend
- Momma Taderdoodles — fellow Virginian (only not displaced) and inspiration
- Judy — a homesteader after my own heart
- Paul — a friend in Scotland with a fantastic blog
- Denise — strong Christian and great mom
- Holly the Knitter — knitting extraordinaire and full on bud
- Auntie Katydid — creative knitter and partner in crime from knitting circle
- Sheri — mom to Spencer, a very special little boy, and friend to me
- Ingrid — my gal pal in L.A. who has promised to rescue me when I visit there next year
- Jennifer in OR — thoughtful, forgetful (of anniversaries — me too), and wonderful
- Christina — coffee fanatic, organic believer, and constant friend
- The Cotton Wife — photography that’ll knock you sideways and a heart of gold (cute kids, too!)
- Paula — a Great Northwest dweller, poet, and creative thinker
- Crossview — a Georgia peach with a talented vocalist daughter and lots of critters
- Tipper — an Appalachian gal with great stories to tell — she’ll steal your heart
- Michelle K — my dear friend in Australia who loves my “chook” posts almost as much as I love her
- YD — my friend first, then a blogger, and now a friend to many: she’s a gardener, cook, and a joy
- Stacey — a Wyoming mom on a ranch with chickens & a beautiful blog
- Dawn — my Canadian friend, who I adore. Her blog? Tops!
- Lynnie — a mother who doesn’t mind sharing her children with me and a blogger who I love to bits
- Linda Sue — country living with great photos and Linda’s spirit… wonderful
- H — you know who you are and you are my forever friend
- Sandy — devoted mom & blogger but mostly just my friend! Check out her blog!
- Jana – my soul sista, fellow blogger, and a totally awesome mom to a supercool son
- Christine — a friend whose blog went caput but a truly great gal
- Ernie — my heart, my dear friend who inspires me
- CC – a mom with superpowers (how else could she be so stinkin’ cool?)
- Kath — mother to half a dozen and a friend to a lot more than that
- Kristy — Washingtonite, adventurous cook, and friend
- Julie at Elisharose – great mom, DIYer, simple living aficionado, and my pal
- Rachel — foster mom and excellent blogger
- Ann — dessert diva, writer to put David Sedaris to shame (that funny), and my friend
- Rosa — amazing cook, extraordinary photographer, and my friend in Switzerland
- Mrs Darling — a natural chef, friend, mother, gardener, writer, and blogger
- Marky – head of a celiac clan, hilarious blogger, and awesome person – my pal
- Michele — witty librarian and wonderful blogger who is also a terrific friend
- Linda & Tom — I was truly blessed the very moment you came into my life, thank you for saving me
- Applie — a friend, an inspiring homeschooling wonderwoman, and a bug photographer
- Angela — dog lover, hilarious storyteller, and a friend
- Meadowlark — a former farmgirl who shares her heart on her beautiful blog
- Rue — a fellow Army wife whose inner beauty radiates throughout — she’s a joy
- Mojavi — a great mom who is into the simple life
- Barbie — mother of a family more beautiful than the Duggar’s and my friend
- Amy B — mom to five beautiful children who shares the adventure of parenting on her blog
- Fishing Guy — wildlife photographer, dedicated blogger, and country music fan
- Paulette — a friend who’s building a log home castle and a great cook
- Warren — a WV dad of beautiful children, a beekeeper, and a simple living pro
- Dianne — a blogger with so much passion and love
- Kim — an inspiring mom, blogger, nurse, and country girl who is also my friend
- Jess — Bilssfully married to the wonderful Charley in Alaska, a friend and a fellow blogger
- Robbyn - my dear friend, my heart, and my wonderful simple living sister
- The Farmer’s Wife — Domestic Goddess, a simple living pro, and a friend
- Jennifer and Sandy — (ex) sister-in-laws who are absolutely wonderful
- Kelly — my real life sister who moved to Oz has a “happily ever after” fairy tale life
- Chocolatechic — a busy lady, Christian mom, and an amazing chef & photographer
- Valarie Lea — friend, mom, blogger, crafter, cook, photographer, and tons of fun!
- Jeni Hill Ertmer — a love, a dear, and my friend who also happens to have a pretty nifty blog
- Ashley — a witty blogger, mom, and a soul sista to me
- Happy Mommy — mom to a beautiful family and author of a truly terrific blog (and she’s my friend)
- Hank Will and Jenn Nemec — writers and friends at GRIT Magazine (more like family now actually)
- Celesta — find nutritious, kid-friendly foods from this fabulous gal pal of mine
- Insane Mama — she has teenagers… need I say more? She’s cool and she’s my bud
- Indian Lake Papa — a life coach if ever there was one and a blogger
- Laurie — a truly beautiful person whose honesty and grace flows through her blog
- Becca — a Rhode Island resident with a great simple living blog
- Terra — a writer and a blessing!
- Joan J – a delightful blogger, grandmother, mother, and simple living pal
- Carolyn — a fascinating woman with lots of neat ideas and helpful hints to save money
- Angie — a Michigan mom, farmer, and friend to all who shares her adventures in a great blog
- Crunchy Christian Mom — an unschooling mom married to a teacher… I did not make that up:)
- Kaleidoscope Living — a single gal who longs for pets and relishes the simple life
- The Suburban Farmer — a SAHM and a backyard farming, homeschooling, natural living gal
- Jayedee — a loving mother, gardener, caretaker of creation, and inspiration — my dear friend
- Hansen Hootenanny — a heartwarming blog about a beautiful family and their simple life
- Toiling Ant — this hard-working gal is a joyful blogger and a truly neat person
- Clair — a stamp collecting bookworm and a great blogger
- Jenny – a superhero of a mom and a champion of simple living with a terrific attitude
- Aly in Georgia — a neighbor, scrapbooker, photographer, and a neat blogger
- Jen – mother of two and a blogger who works hard to share recipes, activities, and more
- Laura-Jane & Cameron — I love this blog. Where has it been all my life? I adore it.
- Robyn — witty blogger with a blog that sends me into fits of giggles
- Minnesota Mom — a truly gorgeous blog & blogger
- Kelly & Meg — superbloggers who share farming, gardening, and simple living secrets
- Hayden — an amazing writer who is leaving the city life for the country
- Heidi — she got me thinking about how to make a liquid laundry detergent & is just lovely
- Jessica — a homeschooling Navy wife and hero in her own right
- Hallie — dog lover, mom, military wife, and hilarious blogger
- Erika with a K — refreshing and fun, this blogger is a blast
- NancyPants — a pastor’s wife, mom, and amazing person whose blog is lovely
- Dirkey – a simple living, green home joy-spreading, blogger who I adore
This list is far from over but my brain is scrambled eggs at the moment and I must come up for air. Do check out one or all of these great blogs and don’t tell them I was talking about them. Nope. That’ll be our little secret.
This post is a permanent page entitled Friends of RFF. Love, Lacy
Guinea Winter Training
October 29, 2008|Comments (29)
Dumb and Dumber, our remaining male guinea fowl, are far too proud to come in out of the cold. I say “proud” in place of “stupid” or “moronic” because I am now a Southerner.
Josh built them a really lovely house and they use it frequently but enjoy roosting on top of it or in the uncovered portion of the thing while frigid rains pour down upon their odd brainless Mowhawked heads. And you thought I was mean by calling them dumb. It’s freezing out there!
Josh and I captured them, locked them in the red chicken coop (very warm), and then began constructing a covered run so they might enjoy the fall days. Josh used chicken wire around the coop with blueberry netting over the top so that the guineas wouldn’t be able to fly over the fence.
Have you ever seen guineas fly? It is really quite a sight. I mean, seriously — those jokers can fly! One could easily spend the entire day sipping Co-Cola (as the locals call it) and watching those silly prehistoric looking birds walk into the fence, back up a few paces, and walk back into the fence before suddenly figuring out that… Imagine!… they have wings and can fly over it with relative ease. In fact, guinea fowl are excellent fliers. When, of course, they remember that they can.
We are hoping to train the guineas (Lloyd and Harry) to actually put themselves to bed once it is dark and below fifty degrees. So far, we have had to catch them and force them into the red coop which they are then reluctant to leave when the coop door is opened and sunlight is streaming in.
The chickens are much easier to negotiate with. Wherever a chicken sleeps is its home and it will return to like clockwork to roost. Like that Metallica song… anywhere I may roam where I lay my head is home. Why can’t Lloyd and Harry be so logical? Am I really asking for birds named after Lloyd Christmas and Harry Dunne to be logical? Shouldn’t the real question go something like:
Why on earth does Lacy know both the first and last name of the lead characters in Dumb & Dumber?
Really. What self-respecting person freely admits to knowing stuff like that?
Anyway, the guinea winter training continues for at least a week and then we hope to be able to take down the unattractive fencing to let the guineas become vagabonds (free range birds) once more. I’ll let you know how it goes. Promise. Triple stamp, no erasies, touch blue make it true. Any advice? Any closet Dumb & Dumber fans out there?
So, I know you’re wondering why on earth we have guinea fowl if they are A.) dumber than rocks B.) dumber than spit… find out why we’re not totally insane here. Just in case we really are crazy: it’s the cracked ones that let the light in. Love, Lacy
PEAR AND HAZELNUT SALAD
October 27, 2008|Comments (13)
Mixed mesclun greens topped with pear slices, roasted hazelnuts, red onions, spiced pecans, shredded smoked Gouda cheese and feta served with a side of homemade honey poppy seed dressing.
This is The Stuff. The salad that simply says… “more.” It is pure heaven. It has the crunch and the melt-in-your-mouth factor and if I weren’t already a married woman — I’d propose to the silly decadent thing. That’s right… I said it.
- 2 pears – peeled, cored and sliced
- about 8 cups of mixed greens
- 1/4 of a large red onion, sliced
- spiced pecans and/or hazelnuts
- 1/4 cup Gouda cheese, sliced or crumbled feta
The Dressing:
- 1/2 cup local honey
- 1 tsp dry mustard
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup apple cider or red wine
- 1 Tbsp freshly grated onion
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
- a dash of orange juice
- 1 1/2 Tbsp. poppy seeds
1.) Preheat oven to 275 degrees Fahrenheit. Arrange hazelnuts on a baking sheet and bake for 20-30 minutes until gently toasted. Remove from oven. And if you’re anything like me… belt out some Maria Callas. Roasted hazelnuts call for opera, folks.
2.) Warm cider on the stove in a saucepan. Remove from heat once it steams. Mix honey, mustard, salt, cider, onion, orange juice, and oil together in a bowl with a whisk. Add poppy seeds stir gently. Maria Callas is my opera hero. I adore her. Want to know why? Listen here.
3.) Wash and dry the greens and pears. Arrange the greens on the salad plates and top with the pear, onion, spiced pecans, still-warm hazelnuts, and cheese. Pour some poppy seed dressing over it and enjoy. No… bask in this elegant indulgence and crank up the aria. Why? Because you’re worth it.
Now, please do not use any of that powdered aspertamed wannabe cider mix. I’m telling you: it’s just not the same. In fact, I would venture to say that cider enthusiasts the world over would gasp and faint at the mere mention of that just-add-water gunk. No sirree. Not in my poppy seed dressing. Go pick on someone else’s poppy seed dressing.
Oh, and the pictorial display is courtesy of Josh’s fancypants camera which I secretly adore. Drat. The secret’s out.
