Sunday, January 25, 2015

False Spring and Baby Hats for Brazil

Dear friends.. we are in the middle of a "false Spring".  Here it is, late January and yesterday it got up to 63 degrees F. outside and it was so warm inside the house that we had to open the front door and kitchen window!  I grabbed my camera to get a photo of the Snowdrops that I had spied in early bloom lately.  


Soon there will be many more in bloom!  They have spread all over the farm yard.  These are under the apple tree.


The branches of the apple tree are covered with mosses and lichen.  I doubt that the tree likes this, but it sure makes for an interesting look.


Pretty greens, eh?


I said hello to the hens.. we finally got 3 aqua eggs after they went on strike for 6 months!  I've never had chickens go that long without laying eggs.  Next to the chicken yard there are some large rounds of the old maple tree that died and we had taken down a few years ago.  I was amazed to see it was covered with "Turkey Tail Mushrooms"!  (Thanks to Google for giving me the name of this!)  These are quite amazing looking.



This is a huge round of wood.. at least 3-4 feet across.  


Talk about natural colors.. cream, brown, greys.



Aren't these amazing?



The Daphne Odora buds is getting bigger.. I think they're afraid to open up.. it knows what happened last year.. after this false Spring weather we had a terrible snow and ice storm which ruined all my tulips that were halfway up.


Yesterday we relaxed all day inside which was really naughty of us.. not to get out in the sunshine more.. but Dayle was watching "Cleopatra" and it went on forever.  So, I kept him company and began making a baby hat for Taci's "hat project".  She is going to visit her family in Brazil and wants to take 200 baby hats for the poor women who don't have many clothes for their babies.  If you want to help, you can go to Taci's blog and leave a comment to get her address to send them to her.


I got a baby girl hat done in mauve with a purple flower (I'll add a button center today) and a denim blue boy hat.  2 hats in one day!  I used a simple "beanie" pattern but added my own spin to the design on both hats.


Chef Dayle made homemade teriyaki sauce and baked 5 lbs. of chicken wings in it for 3 hours yesterday. He also made homemade fried rice with veggies, scrambled eggs and sausage to serve with it.  We had a yummy dinner!



Teriyaki Chicken Wings

Heat oven to 300 degrees

1 cup soy sauce
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup vinegar
t tsp ginger
1 tsp minced garlic
5 lbs. of chicken wings 

In large baking pan, put ingredients above and heat to dissolve sugar, add the chicken wings, stir to coat wings with sauce, put into oven, turning wings occasionally.  Bake until caramelized, 3 hours.

I might want to make another baby hat!  What are you up to today?  ((hugs)), Teresa :-) 

24 comments:

  1. Trying to catch up here with chores around the house! Our hens laid 4 eggs the other day. They haven't been laying much of anything since the temps dropped. I miss those fresh eggs!

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  2. We are noticing very early signs of Spring here too. The orange trees are already beginning to show buds. Way too early for THAT!
    I wish I were a hat maker to help with the Brazil babies. Maybe I will give it a try. Greg is still very much under the weather. Doing nothing yet again, on a weekend.
    xo Kris

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  3. We have those nice temps all week - isn't Oregon the best? I have some spring color showing but not as much as you. I may even wash my car this week.
    My BIL was lamenting the warm temps in St. Paul, Minnesota as ruining the ski season for the ski team. The snow is melting @ 41' there.

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  4. Send me some warmth but no frost because I don't want my plants coming out early and dying :-) Love the hats, I'm sure they'll be well received :-) x

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  5. I am drinking tea and catching up on reading blog posts :) Love your outside photos, hats, and am cheering your chickens' productivity!!! xx

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  6. LOVe love love your snow drops. Happy early spring treat of a day!

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  7. Lovely photos and great textures there Teresa. It's bedtime here in the UK. .Night night! X

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  8. Cute hats and I make those chicken wingettes here but with lots of chilli ☺☺

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  9. No early signs of spring here, in fact I think winter is just getting started. The entire month of December we had a scant amount of snow, none for Christmas. After the amazing winter snows of last winter I am so happy. It seems all I did then was shovel day after day. It started to snow this morning and according to the weather man it is suppose to continue till into Tuesday. I have used the snow blower 2 times already, thank God it is running good so far. The colors of nature are amazing aren't they. Your snow drops are brave little blooms, taking a chance on bad weather destroying them completely. The baby caps are a good cause. The ones you made are cute. I'm sure they will be well appreciated. Seems that people who struggle in their life are always happy with random acts of kindness. They have so little but are always so rich in gratitude.

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  10. Cold here! We are suppose to have temps in the upper 30's tomorrow with 80% chance of rain/snow. I am so ready for spring. I love the mushrooms on the stump. So amazing. I haven't done much crocheting or cross stitching. Still waiting out the pain in my hands. But I need to get cracking, I have plans for the grands for Valentine's Day.
    Hugs,
    Sharon

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  11. I don't know what I love most. That moss is so pretty...but so are the mushrooms and snow drops. You are making me green with envy to see all the green and color. But it won't be too long now for us!! Keep the pictures coming.

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  12. Turkey Tail Mushrooms! I've never heard of them before but they sure are interesting looking and do resemble a turkeys tail feathers. Very cool. We had 52F today. WOW! I know winter isn't done with us, but I'm sure enjoying this springlike weather. I like your snow drop pictures too. Flowers so early. Yay! I'm going to copy that teriyaki recipe too and mabe try it later in the week. Your hats are looking awesome. Beautiful job. I know Taci will love them.
    Blessings,
    Betsy

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  13. I have never heard of turkey tail mushrooms either. Are they edible? They are certainly a lovely sight along with the beautiful snowdrops. Spring is definitely in the air, or maybe its wishful thinking...
    mamasmercantile1@gmail.com

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  14. I finished one hat and had my Dad over for dinner. As for today it is back to school and work.
    Hugs,
    Meredith

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  15. I just saw Taci's post and have never made any type of hat so think I shall give it a try. Those turkey tail mushrooms are incredible. I absolutely love the earthy colors. So pretty! Hope your mild weather continues. We had awful fog this morning. Have a good week, Tammy

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  16. The chicken wings are making my mouth water! Yum! Your hats are cute. Taci hasn't responded to my request for her address. I may need to get it from you. I have several baby hats to send her. I've gotta go put chicken wings on my grocery list! Pammy Sue

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  17. I really loved seeing those beautiful snowdrops, your photos are so clear and perfect! I am glad your chickens are giving you some pretty eggs again :) Your mild weather sounds lovely...it has been very cold over here lately.
    Wishing you a happy week, Teresa.
    Helen xox

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  18. I have the same recipe, those are amazing.

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  19. Loved your spring pics, especially considering it's in the 20s here and has been snowing all day. lol The hats are so cute, and will certainly be a blessing to someone. :)

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  20. Wow, it really does look spring-like there! I hope it sticks around, but then again it's very early to have things blooming. Hopefully spring backs off so you can still enjoy everything later on. The chicken wings look delicious. I'm going to make Buffalo wings for the Super Bowl this weekend and I'm so excited to eat them! I love wings so many different ways. Thanks for the recipe. :)

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  21. Wow Teresa it's amazing how many flowers you already have and it's still January... I'm soooo excited to see your baby hats. They are so very cute and will be very much appreciated and cherished. I wasn't feeling very well this weekend but will post an address for everyone to know where to send them. I felt so bad, bit didn't have the energy to write. I'm posting the address tomorrow morning.
    You don't need to send me yours as I know the post office is not your favorite placed to go ... I will get them when we meet next as I still have lots of time.... Thank you so much for your kindness and your generosity my dear friend. The little hats are adorable and the wings look amazing. I'm going to try to make them for Super Bowl this Sunday. :) thanks for the recipe.

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  22. Hello! Glad you came by and said hi! We have had lovely weather up here, though several of us are wishing it was colder - my kids and I love the snow, but only get a few days of it most years, if any! Hubby loves it if he has time off work, otherwise not so much, heehee. Your wings look like something my family would really like, I will have to try them soon!

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  23. My mouth is watering looking at that chicken. Your garden pictures are lovely and the turkey tail mushrooms are really amazing. I'm hoping to get some baby hats done too though I haven't started yet.

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  24. Such beautiful photos of the snow drops and bracket fungi! Am delighted to follow along and look forward to seeing your next makes! J9

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