Happy New Year!

It's been almost a month since I last posted! And that's the last time I've made soap. That will change come tomorrow morning. My New Year's resolution is to make a lot of soaps now so I'll be ready for the spring shows and the farmers' market season starting. Then when it's time to work in my garden, I'll have more time to devote to tilling, planting, and caring for it. Last Spring, it rained so much that the garden was too wet or it was raining so that I couldn't work in it. Or I got a call to substitute teach on the "nice" days and I hated to turn them down. So, I was late in putting in half of my garden and the other half didn't get planted because I was busy making soaps and attending all of the markets. But don't think I'm complaining. I had a very good year with my soaps. I gained more customers and regulars came back to for more of my goat milk soaps and I'm looking forward to more of the same this year.

Back on the gardening topic, I usually start receiving seed and garden catalogs around Christmastime. This year I actually received one the week of Thanksgiving! Received a couple of new ones this year; however, I'll probably only order from my 2 favorite catalogs and buy the rest of my seeds/plants at the local feed store and from some of my market vendors.

Backtracking a bit....My family and I had a good Christmas. My sister and her family, who live in GA, came home to visit. My other sister lives in the area, but I didn't get to see her over the holidays. We visited over the telephone. Watched my kids and their Sunday School perform their Christmas program, which was very nice for a small group. Spent Christmas Day with my in-laws for the first time in many years. In the past we celebrated Christmas at their house on a different day because we've always had to pick up my oldest daughter from her father and it was too late in the day to drive for 3 hours, eat Christmas Dinner and leave right away so we could get home to do the evening chores: feeding animals and milking the goats. Last year my father-in-law said he wanted Christmas on Christmas Day this year, so that's what we did.

I did finally finish my Christmas sewing projects. I had bought Christmas fabric to sew aprons for my mom and sisters' gifts. I have enough leftover to make an apron for my oldest daughter, when I get around to it. She'll have to use it for next Christmas.

The temps here are COLD!!!! Have to go out several times a day to thaw the chickens', rabbits', and goats' waters. Hubby will not be riding his motorcycle to work this week! Weatherman says there's a chance of snow in middle of the week. I'm tired of winter!!! I'll have to remember this cold when I'm sick and tired of the heat and humidity in August.

Well, the kids go back to school tomorrow and hubby goes back to work. And I'll go back to making goat milk soaps, with Lavender, Castile and Coffee soaps at the top of my to-make list.

Rainy Day Today

It's a rainy, dreary day today here at Patchwork Acres. The craft shows are over for this year; but I have to continue making soaps to get ready for next year, which isn't that far off. Today's soap making will be of Oatmeal and Honey Goat Milk Soap. I don't add fragrance to this one and it always smells good.

I haven't put up the Christmas tree yet, but will get to that this week. I have to clean the living room first and re-arrange some items to make room for the tree. This will be the first year that my oldest daughter won't be home anytime over the Christmas Holidays. She's living across the country from us now and and still looking for a job. She has an interview today and she's very hopeful that she'll be offered a position as a permanent substitute teacher for a high school history class.

Hubby did some repair work on one of the chicken houses and we finally moved the chickens, who decided the barn was their house, back into their "real" chicken house. Silly birds! Don't know why they have to hang out down there. Then we get to "hunt" for eggs instead of getting them out of the nest boxes.

Hubby also got his motorcycle put back together and running again. He rode it to work yesterday, but not today. Even though the temperature is up, it's raining and feels colder than it is. And he won't ride it tomorrow because there is a high wind advisory for the area.

I bought supplies for another project....a new purse. I've never sewn a purse before, but I don't think it will be too difficult. I bought extra fabric, which I usually try to do, to use for rag strips for rugs or for patchwork quilt blocks. In fact, I need more rag strips because I made two rugs recently and used up almost all of the strips I had.

I finally, after several weeks, got to play my dulcimer yesterday. Worked on several Christmas songs. Oh, that reminds me, I need to send a web page to Hubby. It's Dulcimer song books I would like to have. He's going to "surprise" me with one or two. Well, it will be a surprise, because I won't know which one or two until Christmas. LOL. I also practiced a very short time on my harmonica. Would like to play again today, but after I make soap, I really need to bake some kind of dessert for the family and get that cleaning done so I can put up the tree. Oh, I should make some fruitcake, too, though it should have already been baked by now. I LOVE fruitcake! My kids don't, but Hubby and I do, so that just leaves more for us. Haha!

Off to get busy now. Later!