Rose Garden Therapy

I had forgotten how therapeutic digging in dirt can be...

This evening we put 12 small rose bushes in the ground.

When we were first married we had a large rose garden. Our favorites were the Sterling Silver, Tropicana, and any red or yellow variety.

Tonight it felt good to be on my knees, pushing the cool soil back into its place. It felt good to get dirty (not that I don't as a goat farmer). It was like taking all of the cares in the world and hanging them on a hook, good-bye worldly thoughts, hello to God's earth. And it felt good to stand back and have high hopes for a beautiful rose garden.

And if all goes well, I will be sharing beautiful photos of blooming roses in the future with you. And if the spot proves to be successful, more rose bushes will be added. We can call it the Annie's Goat Hill Rose Farm. Soap and goats and roses.

Have a lovely evening!

The "real" baby rose bush...the photo above is a borrowed one:

Herbs For The Goat Milk Soap

I just returned from a lunch break. This morning I fed the bottle kids, checked on the expectant mothers (two does should kid today), and then headed to the quiet office to put my head into some much needed desk work. I am better rested today. My dear husband stayed up past midnight, making several trips to the barn last night. The does were still kidding late into the evening. He made sure the newborns were dry and well fed by their dams before he turned in after midnight.



My mind and eyes keep wandering out the office window. It is a bright sunny day, but with a single digit wind chill of 7 degrees. Very warm out there! I am happy to report that the kids in the barn are fine, in fact, some are romping outdoors. I like to give them a choice after they are a few days old. Similar to human kids, playing outdoors seem to make for healthier kids.



So, with the glimpse of the bright blue sky occasionally on my mind, I also rummaged through some of the recent seed and garden catalogs received in the mail. The beautiful photographs, and listing of seeds just makes me long to begin digging in the soil. This spring I hope to begin a garden with a corner dedicated to herbs only. I love to cook, and I love to can, but I also love dried herbs in soap. I want at least 1/4 of the garden to be dedicated to future soap. I would absolutely love to make infusions, and to dabble in essential oils. But the latter would be a very costly venture, and I think I will stay away from that thought for now. Never hurts to dream!



The catalogs that I show in the picture (above) are from Country Corners Greenhouse and Garden Store, Gardener's Supply Company, and the Sand Hill Preservation Center. The magazine on the bottom left, turned sideways, with a "Think Spring" message and photograph, is from a company called Andy H Weaver. It is an Amish catalog. The Amish used to own our house. I still receive their mail. The catalogs intrigue me. And the gloves I have bought from Mr. Weaver's company, oh my, they are white nylon, but are the best work gloves I have ever worn! So very warm. Stick them in the washing machine in a lingerie bag, along with the rest of the wash load. They wash and dry to a perfection for years!

The photograph below (sorry for the quality) are items sold in the Amish magazine, all from the state of Ohio. Imagine a gasoline powered wringer type washer machine! I actually own a wringer washer, I am going to plant flowers in it this spring. I bought it at a farm auction a few months back.

Spring Fever

It seems we all have spring fever! There is not a lot that we can do for this ailment, there are no special remedies to sooth our souls. We simply dream of what we will be doing when the thaw sets in. As many of us do, myself included, we make the best use of the time. In my case, I will work in the soap shop as much as possible, and I am working on the office. The brand new shredder is going to be worn out very quickly! :)

Yesterday I walked into my kitchen and caught a glimpse of my canning jars. These jars are at least 5 years old. To the left is a jar filled with dried dill weed. Do you know, I can walk past that jar and be caught by the scent of dill wafting through the air? I love it! To the right are tomatoes, yellow and red banana peppers, and finally a jar of jalapenos and other hot peppers. It has been a very long time since I canned! I miss it, and plan to work it back into my daily life this summer.

My plans for the summer are to move our yard shed. Put some siding on it to make it appear as a cabin of sorts. I am going to begin my cottage/whimsical garden, with a picked fence surrounding!Part of the garden will contain seasonal vegetables, part will be herbs for the soaps and cooking, and part will be zinnias and marigolds (easy to grow), and I hope to start a path of roses (I miss them terribly), along with some other perennial plants. This project will take years, and money, so I can be patient. It will be a fun work in progress! One of my favorite places, and I do not live nearby now, is Nashville, Indiana. I spent a great deal of time there, not so much spending money, but appreciating the gardens that surrounded the various shops. This picture is similar to the types of shops that I so much enjoyed.

My grandmother was quite the gardener. There was no better slaw maker in southeast Missouri! She used a hand held grater, such as the one displayed on a collection shelf in my kitchen. I love the red handle!
Do not look too closely, tee hee, I see cob webs! I think we have a lot to learn from our elders, and others. We can save a bundle of money for ourselves and be much happier people, just by putting a little effort into our lives to sustain some of our own nutritional needs.

Anyhow...how many votes are there for 80 degrees, sunshine on our backs, watching our vegetable gardens grow, and even canning and freezing to make us healthier and to save money? Put one in for me! Wait...perhaps I will cheat, put 2 or more in for me. :)

Lotion In The Shop Today

I worked in the shop today. It was refreshing to be out there after sitting at the desk this past week.

Today was a lotion making day. I have new scents to put on the website: honeysuckle, vanilla, berry, unscented, plumeria, lavender and baby powder.

I have a very bad case of spring fever! I cannot wait to start my cottage type/whimsical garden. I plan to get canning going again too. I have to make it happen! I'll write more about that tomorrow.

I love a good plumeria scent. I wish we could grow them here. Today's photo shows a pink plumeria. I looked at several pictures this morning, plumeria blooms beautiful colors (white, yellow, pink, red and pastels). The plant thrives in the more tropical regions, some of the very southern states can grow plumeria. I also read that the plant can be moved to a basement for the winter. I am not quite ready to try that, but I do hope to start a small greenhouse eventually. The plumeria starts to flower in the summer, stays in flower for 3 months, and sometimes carries the flowering season into the fall.

We have snow coming into Ohio today. I just glanced at the radar. The snow line is about 2 miles away. The pond froze over last night, and it is covered with snow now as well. I hate to see the ducks not have water to play in!