Fall At The Farm

Hello, come on in and share the fall season with us. I'll get you a cup of coffee and some apple crisp to eat while we talk about the time of year that is "the harvest."

When nighttime temperatures dip into the 40s, and the smell of a wood burning fire drifts over the farm, I know it won't be long until I light my harvest or pumpkin spice candles and snuggle under a soft throw with my dogs on the couch--all sure signs fall has arrived.

Everywhere we look we are beginning to see and feel the signs of autumn. And the gloomy, cooler days of this week are certainly a contrast from the consecutive 90 degree temperatures we had the previous week. It seems summer's last September heatwave only enhanced autumns arrival. This was just the push I needed to insist the hubby make the trek to the basement and bring up the bins marked "Fall" and "Halloween." Each year I can't wait to  dig in and see what all I have in there. You see, I come from a family of seasonal/holiday decorators. We take this very seriously and you will find many bins in our attics and basements labeled with St. Patrick's Day, Valentine's Day, Fourth of July, my husband jokes that we may have a "President's Day" box down there somewhere. Truth be told, he may be right.

So, the stage was set. I put leaves on the mantle, pumpkins all around, mums by the front door, and scarecrows in the ground. All these additions, coupled with the early nights and cooler temperatures outside have certainly made the house feel, warm, cozy and secure.

I have been admiring my bloggy buddies decorations and getting inspiration along the way. Dog Trot Farm has me frantically looking for crows to add to my menagerie but I can't find a cute crow to save my life.  Perhaps if I got rid of the scarecrows I would have a better chance.

Are you ready for fall?  Have you decorated your home, cottage or nest? What do you like to do on a beautiful harvest evening?

Happy Fall, friends,

The Country Living Fair

Early Saturday morning I gave up that extra few hours of sleep to make the drive to Columbus, Ohio for a special event, The Country Living Fair. I wanted to attend in the past and it never worked out so I was determined to go this year. My friend from Farm Tails blog wanted to go too so we decided we would do it in a day trip. We were prepared, took the big truck, a waterproof tarp (just in case) and she made pumpkin cookies so we could snack along the way. Three hours later, we made it to the gates.

Luckily, we arrived just as the fair opened--people were coming in by the loads. Notably, there was at least a three to one ratio of women to men. Not hard to figure that one out, I know.  In we went and we started with a bang. It only took us five minutes to start spending money. Not too shabby. We found this wonderful pottery booth from upstate New York. Farm Tails bought a beautiful cow and I found a wonderful rooster plate, perfect for my kitchen. The day was promising.

The fall decorations were just gorgeous including bright fabric pumpkins with orange, rust and aubergine textures. The straw hat, plaid shirt wearing scarecrows were so lifelike there wasn't a crow within three miles of the place. Farm Tails and I were oohing and awing at ever turn. At one point, we both sounded like Edith Bunker with her "Oh, Archie," we were so excited.  

This was to be no leisurely Saturday stroll at the fair. The sheer size of the event meant we had to maintain a fast pace. But, how to cover the fair and carry our purchases? That's not all, although we had prepared for a large purchase, perhaps a piece of furniture or two, how would we get it to the truck? Unfortunately, for us, a solution came late in the day. We found out the fair offered a porter service which takes purchases and assists with loading. Alas, we were give out. Time had passed us by. 

All in all it was a wonderful day. The take-homes--plates, pumpkins, scarecrows, pictures-- were well worth the trip. The purchases we didn't make will be nagging at us for a few days, at least. We left with our arms full and the walk back to the truck was a little more labored than the walk to the fair. A day of laughter, girl talk and shopping is always a good day. As weary as my feet were upon my return last night, it was worth it!

Tips for next year: take a large bag, perhaps a rolling cart, go for large items first and house with the porter. Wear your best walking shoes and park as close to the entrance as you can get.  Definitely a fair worth taking in. 

Pansy's Betrothed

We just wanted to share a short post to introduce you to our Pansy's betrothed. Pansy is our kunekune gilt pig. We have known for a while that we want to have more kunekune babies here at Verde Farm.  It's not easy to find just the right husband for the world's most beautiful pig and we have been searching high and low for him. We think we found just the right fit. Porter Posie is coming to us from USA Kunekunes in Mira Loma, California. Porter is a beautiful boar piglet and hailed as quite the looker in the California pig world. We know Pansy will be surprised and fall madly in love with her betrothed. Stay tuned for an update on their first date sometime in October. 

Mr. Porter Posie

He's tops already, being the brown and white one at the top right.

The 4077 Tops Ratings At Verde

George Burns

Pappy

My husband and I do love our farm animals and enjoy them beyond words. Additionally, we have three  indoor, furry friends that we love too.  Pappy, 10 years and George Burns, four years are both Papillons and Gracie Allen, four years, is a long-haired Chihuahua. They are our children. We do everything with them including sleep and we don't have a big bed.

Gracie Allen

Little Gracie Allen is quite a unique Chihuahua. She's always been different and we noticed early on that she had a love for TV Land, as her parents do. When she was a puppy, she grew accustomed to the TV Land lineup and often watched it with her dad and me. We noticed she would take extra interest in a few of the shows and became incredibly excited when the theme music would play. Two of her favorites are Andy Griffith and Sanford and Son. No matter what she's doing she immediately stops as soon as the first note of her shows are played. She then looks around to see if we're watching and then begins to run around, howling. However, there is one show that is her absolute favorite--M.A.S.H. When she hears it there is no stopping her. She gets so excited. As a matter of fact, it affects her so much that if we watch back to back shows we often switch the channel until the opening credits and theme music are finished for fear of over stimulating her. It's difficult to describe so we thought we would just share it. Enjoy.