Another new bird...

I just happened to look out the window and notice this fella hanging around the bird feeder.  I knew immediately it was a type of shrike.  I got a photo just before it flew off.  After comparing the Loggerhead Shrike and the Northern Shrike, I have come to the conclusion it is a Northern Shrike.  The only way I can tell the difference is there is a little white patch above it's black eye band.  I have not logged a shrike yet at the cabin.  I think I saw one a few years ago, but it flew away too quickly to identify.   I don't really want them hanging around the feeder, as they eat other birds.  I'm pretty surprised that I have logged two new birds so far this March. 

 Friday was 8 inches of wet heavy snow.  Saturday was a beautiful balmy day.  Today it rained all morning and then turned to snow in the afternoon.  The weather is driving me nuts.  I checked on my greenhouse plantings and nothing is up yet.  

 I had a question about the bottles in my greenhouse.  I bought these adapters at Gardener's supply.  You poke holes in the plastic according to your soil type.  Mine is clay all the way.  You then attach a bottle.  You can use plastic bottles, but they don't seem to last as long.  I like the look of colored glass, so I opt for glass bottles.  They work nicely.  It takes about two days to empty.  

I have wanted to make this cake for a long time.  It met expectations.  I saw it at this pin:  grammasinthekitchen.blogspot.com.

Hot Milk Cake
4 eggs (beat for 5 minutes)
2 c. sugar (add to eggs and cream)
2 1/4 c. flour
2 1/4 t. baking powder
1 t. vanilla
1 1/4 c. milk
10 T. butter (melt in the milk then add to mixture above)
Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.  Delicious!




Saturday was beautiful.  I took advantage of the sticky snow and made 3 little snowmen.  I thought they would be a nice welcome for my husband when he came back from work.  Unfortunately, the little suckers melted and fell off before he even got home.  Glad I took photos.  

That is all I have going on.  It is snowing pretty hard now, so I guess spring is on a pause.  I'm keeping my camera with me when I go to work this week.  On Friday, I saw 18 bull elk while driving home in the snowstorm.  The weather was too treacherous to take a photo.  I didn't want somebody running into me.  Maybe I will be lucky enough to see them again this week.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed. 

Have you tried any new recipes?  When was the last time you made a snowman?  If you are smart at bird identification can you double check my shrike identification skills?  I appreciate it.

I'm in...

I am not a fan of March: snow, melt, ice, snow, melt, and ice.  Ella and I have been doing a lot of snowshoeing to get outside.  Once in awhile we get to sit on the porch, but it is only for a day.

Yesterday was a blizzard. and today was beautiful.  I couldn't take it any longer, so I shoveled and chipped my way into the greenhouse.

You guessed it.  The smell of earth was too powerful.  I had to plant something.  Lettuce, spinach, and bok choy were in the ground before I knew what I was doing.  

Labeling clothes pins and using them to group seeds has made planting easier.  The square foot planting template also worked great.  I planted several different types of lettuce.  We will see which is the hardiest.  Odds are good nothing will come up, but you never know.  

It was very warm and dry in the greenhouse.  I hauled water from the house and watered my little salad patch.

I also watered my little experimental carrot patch.  I planted these carrots last fall.  We'll see if they revive in the spring.  I had some success with this last year.

We had some horrendous winds earlier this week.  The wind actually snapped my sign in half.  I am very unhappy about that.  I know it tipped a semi on the interstate, but really, did it have to snap my favorite sign?

The sun sets on another weekend.  I am so ready to be outside gardening.  I guess the best I can do is focus on the greenhouse.  Do you have anything growing?  

A new bird...

I have logged 47 different species of birds at our cabin.   The last entry was a Merlin falcon in 2012.  This afternoon I noticed a few birds hopping around under the feeder that I didn't recognize.   I stalked them with the camera and then used the photo below to figure out what they were.   Turns out they are American tree sparrows.  I'm always excited when I can identify a new bird.  Especially, when it has been six years since my last new entry.

 Also on the bird front, the chickadees are still trying to break in through the windows.  I watched this deviant checking for flies in the sills.  

I had several comments about the lack of snow in my last photos.  Trust me, that was a sunny hillside in Deadwood.  We are 600 feet higher than Deadwood and our snow is still here.  We did get a good melt yesterday, as it really warmed up.

 Don't worry, I won't be gardening anytime soon.  Today we watched the cold icy cloud slowly work its way up the valley and we are back to cold and snow.  We were supposed to get two feet, but now they changed the forecast to a few inches.  We will see.  

 The deer, like us, are done with winter and ready for spring days.  Just a few more months.

 I love my morning French press coffee (huge thanks to Gumbo Lily for teaching me the joys of French press).  The only thing better is coffee with biscotti.   Since I was out of projects, I made two different types of biscotti.  One was orange & chocolate and the other was oreo.  I used a blood orange for the orange biscotti and it was amazing.  

Orange and Dark Chocolate Biscotti
1/4c. soft butter                                       3/4 t. vanilla extract
1 c. sugar                                                 1/4 t. almond extract
2 eggs                                                       2 1/2 c. flour
2 T. orange zest                                       1 t. baking powder
1 T. fresh squeezed orange juice           1/4 t. salt
1 c. dark chocolate mini chips

Beat butter and sugar for 2 minutes, then add eggs.  Mix in zest, juice, and extracts.  Slowly add flour, powder, salt and chips.  Divide dough in half and shape into two flat loaves.  Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.  Take out of oven, cut into strips, and bake another 15 minutes.  
loveandoliveoil.com

Oreo Biscotti  

1 c. sugar                   1/3 c. soft butter

2 t. vanilla extract     3 eggs

3 c. flour                    1 1/2 t. baking powder

1/4 t. salt                    1 c. cookies and cream chips pulverized

Mix butter, vanilla, sugar, and eggs.  Add flour, powder, salt, and chips.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.  Cut into strips and bake for 10-15 minutes.  cbsop.com

Sit on the porch in a sunbeam with a hot cup of coffee and enjoy.  I hope you are enjoying a warm up in your neck of the woods.

Nothing...

There is absolutely nothing going on.  No projects, no visitors, and no baking.  It was a pretty quiet weekend.  All I have is a bighorn sheep update.  They are still maintaining after being released about three years ago.   They love people and licking salt off of the road.  Thus, they are often found gallivanting around Deadwood.

Sorry they aren't the best photos.  They were taken with my phone.  Hopefully, I will have something to post next weekend.  The temps have been hovering around zero, but it is supposed to warm up.  Hope your weekend was more eventful.

I have painted everything I can paint...

We live in a log cabin and I am a true believer that nature is the greatest artist.  Therefore, we don't have a lot of sheetrock.  Three bathrooms and that is it.  After 16 years, it was time to repaint.    I did the upstairs bathroom a few weeks ago.  This weekend I did the main bathroom.  Here are a few before photos.

I almost forgot to take before photos.  I also failed to include a photo of the shower curtain.  Some people didn't like my blue, but loved it.  It was bright and cheerful.  It didn't feel cold.  Instead it felt like the sky on a sunny day.  Still, it was time for a change.  Picking colors wasn't easy.

My goal was warm colors.  I won't lie, I was sad to see my blue go.  I used vinegar and water to remove the wall paper border.  I am happy with the final results.  It is cozy and inviting. The shower curtain is the same.  Amazingly it matches both the blue and the spice.  

That was my weekend project.  I was done earlier than expected.  I guess I will have to try and relax tomorrow.  Shoveling should keep me active.  It is snowing again and we have about six inches.

I'm running out of projects to keep me busy. I still need to finish the picnic basket, make curtains for the bathroom, and maybe a quilt for the guest bedroom.  Sounds like a trip to the fabric store.

What do you have left on your winter to do list?

Something old is new again with a picnic basket...

 Last week was busy and very negative.  Luckily, Saturday started out with a visit from our neighbors.  I made a bunch of hors d'oeuvres and we enjoyed good company and several games of pool.  It was just what the doctor ordered.  A relaxed evening with some wonderful friends.  

Sunday was project day.  I had no pressing matters, so I began my picnic basket project.  I'm  a sucker for picnic baskets.  I found this one at a garage sale for $8.  There hasn't been time, until now, to give it some tender loving care.  The inside was caked with hot glue and a piece of elastic stapled to the top.  When it was new, I'm sure it had a fabric liner and the elastic held silverware.

 It all had to go.  I used pliers to pull out the staples and a razor to remove the glue.  Then I gave everything a light sanding.

After sanding the top and cleaning the basket, I took the food grade mineral oil I use on my butcher block counter top and gave the whole basket a coat.  It soaked in like crazy.  You can see the difference in the photos.  

The next half of the project will be to find some material to line the inside and matching elastic to hold glasses and utensils.  I think I have the right fabric in my stash.  I would also like to find some dishes and napkins to match the whole thing.  Maybe even a matching blanket.  

I now have three fabulous picnic baskets.  The top one is perfect for a romantic picnic with two.  It is very intricate and I also gave it a good coat of food safe mineral oil.  Hopefully, that will keep it in tip top condition.

The middle one has a Danish theme and is perfect for four. I have matching water bottles, napkins, and plates inside. It is great when I take the three nieces on our adventures.   

The basket on the bottom is going to be my super deluxe let's feed everyone in the country version.   I will keep you updated on it's progress.  

Despite a rotten week, the company of good friends and the thought of future fun times with others has lifted my spirits.  I hope to find a few more baskets.  One day, I will give one to each of my nieces and nephew, so they can remember the fun times and carry on the picnic tradition.  Right now, I am excited at the prospect that my baskets will be in the perfect condition when warmer weather comes.  

Do you go on picnics?  Do you have any picnic baskets?  What is your favorite picnic memory? 

It is curtains...

Finally, it is curtains for the curtains.  My mom tried hard to teach me to sew like a normal person.  Problem was my mind was outside riding horses.  Here I am 30 years later wishing I'd paid attention.  They look ok from afar.  Up close anyone who knows how to sew will shake their head in dismay.  Sorry Mom, I should have paid more attention.

Other than struggling with curtains, it was a quiet weekend.  No fancy cooking.  Just a quiet snowshoeing trek with the dog.

I have to show you Ella's moose bone.  She keeps digging it out after every snow.  She stands to chew on it.  I looked out the other day and it was frozen straight up.  Maybe she did that so she can find it after the next snow.

My seeds are ordered and the garden is planned.  With the temperatures well below zero, I have lots of cabin time on my hands.  The next project will be painting the main bathroom.  I may even get more material and make a quilt to match the curtains.  What are your cabin time projects?