Operation Healthy Balance

What to do when your baby chicks that live in your flower garden can get out but can't get back in.  Check out my construction expertise. Sometimes I wonder about myself....

Last week was my first quilting class.  I was oddly very nervous at the start of the class.  Worried about my sewing abilities, the 'cheapness' of my Wal-Mart sewing machine, messing up my beautiful new fabric etc. etc.  The class consisted of seven women including myself; I was the youngest...go figure? There was one particular woman who sat in front of me that caught my attention.  She was so insecure and anxious which made me kind of sad.  I immediately felt the need to make her feel better so I commented how nice her fabric was and she began to talk a bit more.    She said that she used to sew when she was 'younger' but then got too busy with family and work that she hadn't sewn in quite a while.  Turns out she is a retired home-care nurse.  At one point she turned to me and said that she couldn't wait for 9 o'clock to come so she could be 'allowed' to leave.  Which got me feeling that her situation was quite sad; how could a woman...

I like to think that I am a "crafty" person and I have successfully taught myself how to sew, crochet, knit, draw and paint.  Before I was a nurse and before I had children I used to sell my wares at a local craft market with a friend.  We were mildly successful in our first year but then both of us were pregnant and well time was scarce so we stopped. A fond memory I have of my Grandmother Bryan is that she always was creating a quilting masterpiece in her living room.  I remember handing her pieces as she sewed quilting blocks and helping her roll the quilt on her quilt stand.  She was a very talented lady and I bet she made over 100 quilts in her lifetime; for weddings, anniversaries, new babies or whatever people asked for. I've tried my hand in quilting as well.  I've started piecing a "friendship quilt" and I think I managed to finish 5 blocks.  I loved sewing the fabric together to create a pattern but never really could fit my hobby into my day....

The boys said goodbye to their buddy, Lucky the Hamster last week. Chase wanted to make a grave for Lucky so as I left for work I handed this task to "Daddy".  I think he did a wonderful job.

There has been a hen sitting on eggs in my flower bed for quite a while.  Whenever we walk by her we always peek in and see if there is any hatching going on. We had just come back from visiting a neighbour and Chase checked in on our hen.  He screamed for me to come quick.  I grabbed my phone and caught this scene.  Not sure how the video will look but it shows a tiny, wet chick just hatching out of an egg. It is times like this that make me appreciate the life that I have.  Not too many people get to experience moments such as this one.  Times like these give me an extra breath of fresh air and allow me to overlook the fact that my kitchen smells like manure and that there are thousands of flies in my house on any given day. This farm has always been my safe haven and little piece of my personal country perfection.  I can still remember the feeling I had when my parents introduced me to my childhood horse.  How I could ride all over the f...