chicken pizza:

for breakfast this morning i made yummy gluten free waffles. 

there was one left over, so i topped it with peanut butter, bird seed, and homegrown sprouts to give the chickens a special treat today:

 i think it looks absolutely delicious:

they loved it and tore that thing up!

sunshine after rain:

it poured down yesterday morning. 

poured! and it was really yucky.

when running errands in the afternoon i could not help but take these pics:

the skies were wonderfully dramatic and full of color

the mountains so clear in the distance, where hey were hidden just hours before

and my favorite barns still sitting facing each other, thankfully unharmed by the tree raping that happened right next to them earlier in the year.

from scraps to ....... :

every time i am working on a project i save my cut-offs and scraps and put them in different piles around the shop. 

 knowing full well that i will still be able to use them for something, they keep piling up.

this week i had enough of all the random piles everywhere - they were getting too big to ignore and some i had to move to use my tools. so i started processing them into something useful.

long skinny strips and other parts became cutting boards. what i could no longer use for those were turned into tons of spreaders. smaller cut offs became salad hands, and hearts for mother's day 

and a few were big enough to make little trays like the ones i made earlier this week for a lady in Richmond

i have not processed everything, 

and all these things are going to need a good long shaping and sanding. 

but i thought it was an excellent start in cleaning up. 

its a lot of good product i can sell that got made with things others would have just thrown out. 

whatever was not possible to save or make anything out of has gone into the kindling bin to get the fire started every morning.

even the sawdust gets put into the barn to be used for bedding for the calf my father in laws took in and cares for after its mother passed away at birth. 

so in the end, nothing goes to waste

tree raping:

earlier this year they did some logging -yet again- on this road and left the harvested spot in shambles. 

it looks like a war just happened here. it sickens me and makes me sad every time i drive by what used to be a beautiful tree filled hill as you enter Turner Drive. 

can they not even just clean up their mess?

painted handles:

thanks to my booth at viva-la-local, a lady bought two of my 33stools.

after seeing an ash version of this tray, 

she wanted me to make her these little trays out of the heart of pine 

with matching colored handles to go with them:

i wasn't so convinced how i would like them with painted handles, 

but i think they are pretty cute.

thankful:

there is always plenty to be thankful for. 

so many times this harsh winter i was thankful for my husband and father in law for providing me with wheelbarrows full firewood:

lots and lots of scraps for kindling to get that fire started:

 and last but not least the fire and stove that eventually warm the shop so its tolerable to work in

what are you thankful for?

chewy fruit-nut-bars:

when robert and i decided to cut sugar out of our diet the beginning of the year, 

we were missing some sweet things to snack on here and there. so i have made a few batches of bars like this, that are packed chock full of healthy yumminess and so easy to make:

 this batch consists of raw almonds and cashews, organic raisins, dates, chia seeds and oats

i dont really follow any recipes. as for amounts - there is more fruit than nuts to make it sticky

 put it all in a blender together

 get it to the right consistency - i had to add more raisins.

in the past i have also used apricots and added some orange zest. 

one really great things about these bars or bites is that one can really customize these to whatever flavors and tastes one prefers

form a square or something to easily cut into cubes or bars on some wax or freezer paper.

for easier cutting, store in fridge for a while to harden just a wee bit.

play with your own combinations and let me know what you like.

enjoy!!

valentine's:

not being one that "observes" valentines day, 

as in my heart and mind its my sister Judy's birthday, 

yesterday i got to make and plate all kinds of treats for those that do while working a long shift
at the Inn at Willow Grove:

-chocolate mereigne with white chocolate mousse and vanilla essence-

-pop rock crusted truffles-

-passion fruit panna cotta-

-pecan and dried cherry backlava with dark chocolate sorbet and blackberry coulis-

winter wonderland:

winter is not complete to me without some snow. and this week we sure got some! 

here are just a few shots from around our property:

viva-la-local:

this past weekend i had a show at the modern furniture store laDifference in Richmond VA. 

it was hosted by the wonderful people of viva-la-local and was really really great! 

not only was it really well organized and marketed, but the atmosphere and vibe were grand, 

everyone was so delightful and went out of their way to make you look outstanding.

here are a few shots from my set up made with my new camera 

(which i still need to learn a lot about): 

i cannot tell you how fantastic it was to see my things in a modern furniture store, 

surrounded by great design.

after all the hiccups, rain, and disappointments with shows last year, it was wonderful to start the year off with a successful one. thank you so much Tyler, Laura and Bill and all of you at LaDiff for making this an event to remember!

you can see more pictures of this wonderful day on the viva-la-local facebook page

THANK YOU!