What did Dude do last week, an apple salad and crafting a money jar

Dude has been very busy, as always.  I thought I'd give you a peek into what he has been doing. Right now he is off to the hardware store to get grease for the tractor and then turning the compost. 

He put together a chicken coop for someone. 

Stained and delivered.

And how do you think we get perfectly straight rows in our gardens... yes, Dude.

Plus, always fixing a fence somewhere

or making sure our toilets can flush...ugh. 

all this after he rearranges what I have put in the dishwasher...wink.

From that garden I made another salad today. 

Mixed greens, apples, dates, walnuts, and red onion. 

Topped with a little apricot hard goat cheese. 

The dressing was balsamic vinegar, stone ground mustard and small bit of maple syrup.

Put them up for meals during the week.

Listening to... all I can say is...oh...my … goodness.

Money Monday … I wanted to make a money jar for one of my grandsons.  I got an old pickle jar... I save a box of them, we try to recycle whatever we can. Mod Podge the whole thing and cover in fabric. 

I finished the bottom of it when I got home from work.

and glittered up the lid.

Now to let everything dry until tomorrow. Then add a dinosaur to the lid.

I will post how it turns out tomorrow. 

peace 

Mother's Day Sunday - a recipe and a crochet pattern I found

We were blessed with a beautiful day.  It was so clear we could see Longs Peak in the north and Pike's Peak in the south.

It's Sunday and it's Mother's Day but it begins with still making sure the animals are doing well, fed and watered. Today will be the first day the meat hens go outside for fresh air and we clean there coop. 

Out they go... their legs are a bit wobbly with everyone pushing and shoving. 

The regulars stopped by to check out the commotion. 

Others, just ignored the whole scene.

We clean and filled the water containers. 

Including the one for the sheep. They came over for some love and scratches.

I picked a bunch of greens for a salad... parsley, lettuces and mint.

I made a salad based on this recipe from Ina Garten .  I didn't have farro but I did have quinoa. I didn't have pistachios but I did have walnuts plus no tomatoes.  It  turned out very good with the substitutes. 

I did finish crocheting a spa set for my mom.  It has three face scrubbies, a bath pouf, a wash cloth and a soap bag. The patterns are free. I found them here..  She has video tutorials that are easy to follow. 

Then it was time to head to the city to pick up my mom and head to my brother's house. All in all a 2 hour trip one way but worth it. 

Along the way we saw a goose and her little ones out for a stroll. 

We had a good day with wonderful weather.  Happy Mother's Day mom. 

peace

Spinach - breakfast, lunch and dinner

Yes, it's May and yes, it was a snowy, rainy day.  The day could not decide if it wanted to snow or rain. Despite the large puddles on the land, I am glad we have the greenhouse.

We welcome the green the water has given us!

Today we have an abundance of spinach!

Let's see what we can use it for all in one day....

Breakfast - a vegetable scramble of egg, a little bit of cheese, chopped onion, tomato and of course, spinach. 

Lunch - spinach pesto. Instead of basil, I used spinach.  Instead of pine nuts , I used walnuts. Make it like your favorite recipe with these substitutes and you won't regret it. 

Cream cheese on one side, pesto in the middle and Colby/cheddar cheese on the other.... butter the outside and grill. 

Great with apple slices. 

Dinner - spinach salad. 

Spinach, strawberries, goat cheese, walnuts and red onions.

Served with grapefruit and fish... imitation crab legs.  

 

Ended the day with decadence. Magic bars, which is a cup of crushed graham crackers mixed with 1/4 cup melted butter pressed into an 8 inch pan. Top with whatever you have in the freezer. I had coconut, walnuts, white and semi-sweet chocolate chips, and m&m's.  Press. Top the whole thing with sweetened condensed milk and bake at 350* for 25 minutes. (I put the m&m's on after it came out of the oven)

Tomorrow the sun is said to be making an appearance.

peace