Wash Day Treasury

I'm at it again! Today's treasury theme was "wash day." I'm not domestic goddess, as my husband or anyone who's been to my house can attest. However, I've recently fallen in love with doing the laundry. More specifically, hanging out my clothes to dry. I've been taking little steps toward going green, and line drying was one I could easily make since I already had a clothesline installed at my house. I found that hanging out the laundry could be a form of meditation almost. When watching my clothes sway in the breeze, I felt relaxed and peaceful. It turned out to make what once was a chore something I look forward to. So this treasury is a tribute to my love of washing and drying.

As always, see the full treasury here: http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4d5f4c182f2d8eef8267535f/wash-day

Enjoy!

Public Service Announcement: Homophones and Nautical Terms

I have lots of pet peeves. Recently, I've seen one of them popping up quite a bit, and that is the phrase "anchors away." I am here to enlighten those of you who may not know, so that you won't make this mistake in the future. The correct term is not "away," meaning "aside," absent" or "distant;" it is "aweigh." These are particularly tricky homophones. The definition of the correct term "aweigh" is as follows, "(when speaking of an anchor) just free of the bottom." This means when the order is given to "weigh anchor," that is, to heave up the anchor in order to set sail, when it has broken free from the sea floor and is no longer holding the ship in place, it is "aweigh." You see now why the word "away" makes no sense.

At any rate, I just wanted to set the record straight about these words. Maybe one day if you're playing a game of trivia with your friends, you can wow them with your knowledge. But hey, if you don't believe me, check it out on the US Navy's webpage, which includes the lyrics to the Navy's official song "Anchors Aweigh."

Sources: http://www.dictionary.com/ and http://www.navy.mil/
Photo is a public domain image obtained from: http://www.reusableart.com/

Two new treasuries

Recently, I made two more treasuries on Etsy. I've been in a country state of mind lately, so I created a treasury of all things farm:

Click here for the actual treasury: http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4d51c89a98a38eef849b3e09/down-on-the-farm?index=1

The second treasury I made just today as a tribute to one of my favorite colors - purple:

Check it out and give it some love: http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4d5433f4a9146d91a02ea094/passion-for-purple?index=0

None of my treasuries have made it to the front page of Etsy yet, but one of these days, they will. Once again, lots of unique items to be had. Have fun with these, and I'll catch ya later!

Life cycles on the farm

Yesterday, I was reminded that nature can be cruel. While working on the computer yesterday at my mom-in-law's, I heard the chickens making an awful racket. This isn't an uncommon occurrence; chickens love to announce when they've laid an egg, or otherwise done something spectacular in their lives as barnyard fowl. But the racket persisted, so I glanced out the window to see what the commotion was about. I didn't see much besides one of the mom-in-law's pullets wrestling with what I thought was another chicken. I also saw the rooster rushing across the yard in his fighting stance, and I immediately jumped up, because this roo is a mean son-of-a-gun, and I was afraid he might take matters into his own spurs at the expense of this pullet's life. Turns out, he was actually coming to her rescue; a bird of prey that my mom-in-law later identified as a peregrine falcon was trying to make off with her as a snack. Unfortunately, by the time the rooster, my mom-in-law, and I realized what was going on, it was too late. The falcon didn't manage to get away with her, but the damage was already done. She died right in my mom-in-law's hands. It was a sad thing for sure to see her in her last minutes suffering the way she was. Sadder still that nothing could be done for her.

On the shelf too long?

Tonight, we were again reminded of nature's cruelty. However, unlike yesterday, this story has a happier ending. My husband's cousin called while we were at dinner to tell us he needed help with a dilemma. His wife Mel had been keeping an eye on a stray mother hen who'd taken up nesting in their yard. Today, the mother hen along with one of her seven chicks disappeared. When night fell, so did the temperature, and Mel knew they wouldn't make it on this cold night without their mother. She had her husband call my mom-in-law to see if she could find a home for the remaining six chicks. And so, armed with a heat lamp and an unoccupied cat carrier, the mom-in-law and I set out to help Mel catch the orphaned chicks. When we arrived, Mel had been able to catch four, all of whom were in a cardboard box peeping their little heads off. I managed to catch another that had gotten stuck in a wood pile under the porch, but the last one had escaped and was being too quiet to locate in the dark. Suspecting that he had succumbed to the cold, we packed up the other five chicks and where on our way. Shortly after leaving, we got a call saying that the last chick had been found. Turns out, when he could no longer hear his siblings, he started crying out to them for all he was worth. Mel and her husband found him trapped deep in some brambles near their house. We came back for him, and when we got home, my mom-in-law called up a neighbor to ask if he wanted to keep the chicks. He came and got them, but not before my little one had a chance to see and pet them. I wish I could describe the happiness in my daughter's voice or the joy on her face when she first saw the chicks. I did manage to get some pictures, which I'll share with you now:

What's this, I wonder?

Two cute chicks!

Maya the Shepherd gets curious.

Ma, can we keep them?!

So there it is, death, but also new life down on the farm!

Rain, rain, go away

Rain makes me so sleepy. We've gotten a lot of rain over the past week, so I've been shuffling around like a zombie, sans the craving for brains. All I can say is I'm glad I don't live in the Pacific Northwest. I will be so happy when the sun decides to come back and stay.

Anyway, today I've been thinking about business cards. I've decided to order some when I get my shop back up and running. I'm leaning toward the minicards from MOO. They're cute, slightly more compact than your typical business card, plus they'd give me an excuse to buy this, which I think is a neat little accessory that is pretty as well as functional. I'll probably get some regular sized business cards too, just for people who are a little more traditional. I'm leaning toward the designs that say "handmade" because they're colorful and fun. We'll see.

Well, that's my thought for a rainy Monday. It's not much, but it's all I've got. I'll catch you guys later!

Wonderful Wood Treasury

Well, it has been absolutely forever since I created an Etsy treasury. I've been wanted to do one featuring wooden items for a long time, so tonight I finally did it. I'm very proud of my work. Of course, I wouldn't have been able to do it if there hadn't been so many great items to choose from. Check it out!

Front page, here I come!

See it up close and personal here: http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4d4a106a69056d91d4d324fc/wonderful-wonderful-wood

Hot, hot, hot!

February 2nd and it is HOT! Well, hot for February, anyway. We topped out at 74 degrees here, and what a bright and sunny day it was! The little one had a nice time on Mimi's farm, wandering here and there and watching the chickens. Some of the pullets even followed her around hoping she'd drop her snack crackers. Talk about cute! I wish I'd gotten pictures!

We've decided to stay with my mom-in-law for the time being, and give my parents a break. I keep my fingers crossed that soon my husband will find a job. In the meantime, I've applied for a part-time position to help slow the drain on our savings. I'm also going to help the mom-in-law with her garden. We'll be starting indoor seeds shortly. Yay! I've even bought some seeds to put away for myself in the hopes that I'll someday have a garden of my own. Right now, it's just something to daydream about.