Best of Serendipity (August 2024)

My harvests make me smile each day.  So, I made them smile back at me!

My houseplants thrive during the months that they get to live outside.

Having an herb garden has been a fun new thing to try.

We know that autumn is coming when the squirrels sit in the big hickory tree munching on nuts and tossing the hulls down onto the deck.

Marie has laid her first egg. We know it's her because her legs are goldish.  Her eggs will be brown,  Maisy has grayish legs, so her eggs will be blue.

When a possum figures out how to open the bin and help himself to the chicken's food, he gets a snack in a trap then a car ride then a new home.

Another early sign of autumn is the red leaf on the sassafras tree.

Sweet little family!

The garden isn't finished, but it's slowing down.

Once I pulled the tomato plant out of this pot, it made the perfect dust-bath.

I  think it's about to slow down, but the garden isn't finished yet!

 Everybody needs a drink at the same time.  

 My funny co-workers.

Best of Serendipity (July 2024)

I wondered why the herbs wouldn't grow in this pot.  I think he takes a dust bath there every day.

I'm not sure what made this little guy show up outside the backdoor, but it seemed like he'd enjoy a snack.  (He ate the tomato and left the piece of pepper and squash.)

Fancy-like and her (big) chicks were unimpressed with the guest.

Now, how does a zucchini go unnoticed and get so big!

They know I'm watching them watching me.

There's so much variety in all the colors and shapes of each day's haravest.

Best of Serendipity (June 2024)

He's huge and kind of ominous, but I don't think he's interested in either the garden or the chickens. He's probably interested in the poor deer that was hit by a car. 

 I love how the colors that fill my little white towel change as the days go by.

Pretty little colorful hens... and Pete.

Our back deck makes me happy in summer.  It's covered with herbs and pots of vegetables.

Our garden is about as deer proof as we can make it.  It's small but mighty!

(There's Pete strutting around... zoom in on the left.)

We never get tired of seeing deer in the yard, on our walks, in the woods, with their babies, looking back at us. 

Seeing wild blackberries on the hillside brings back so many memories of those my neighbor and I would pick when I was a kid.

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I've tried to grow day lilies in my flower row on the hillside, but something (a vole, I think) eats the bulbs.  What a surprise to see a few grow and bloom this year!

Best of Serendipity (May 2024)

The irises put on their best show in May. 

Spinach and lettuce are the first to be ready to eat.

The hens found a new place to lay their eggs since Fancy-like was grumpy about them coming to her nesting box.

The chicks came right on time.  Mother's Day!

There's a new sound in the backyard now. 

I can never remember whether ladybugs are good for the garden or bad for the garden.

My grandkids named them Marie, Merida, & Maisy.

I might like the squash blossom better than the actual squash!

Pete crows early every morning... and every mid morning... and every afternoon... and every evening... and every night...

We love our woodland friends... usually. This guy was a little to comfortable making the chicken food his midnight snack.

It's so colorful! I say I'm harvesting a rainbow.

Best of Serendipity (April 2024)

It's a scraggly little thing, but this dogwood is faithful to be pretty in every season.

It's so nice that these ladies (and Pete) can roam freely around the yard and woods all day.

This little piece of ground has rested all winter. It's time to wake it up.

The ground is ready to go!

The plants are ready to grow!

Little Fancy-Like is sitting on a few eggs.

Thanks for stopping by, my dear/deer.

Pretty!

Oh, Pete!

Colorful hillside.

Colorful roadside.

Silly Eleanor!

Best of Serendipity (March 2024)

Yellow is the color of March. Daffodils cheer everything up.

The forsythias bushes are across the driveway, but they're bright and beautiful.

The redbuds bring purple trees that are so pretty that they don't look real.

Onions! They don't look like much yet, but they'll be tall soon.

Our little pond is surrounded with pine trees.  They drop the prettiest pine cones.

These ladies have been leaving nearly a dozen eggs every day!  

Pete has been crowing nearly a dozen times every hour of the day!

I do love hearing the sound of windchimes.

Best of Serendipity (February 2024)

Pete's a good rooster.  He keeps a close eye on his hens.  But he does crow all day and all night.

There are almost always deer in the field as we walk around the bend.  They stand completely still and stare until one stamps, they make a sneeze sound, their tails go up, and they run off.

When the weather is warmer, there are more eggs in the boxes each day.