Monthly Archives: November 2015

Where Chickens Walk

Posted on November 29, 2015 by amanandhishoe

In the shade, the frost is growing every day. It’s covering everything in a coat of white fur. Now I can see where the chickens walk. It would be a good time to study the footprints they leave behind. Knowing … Continue reading →

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The Softness of Frost

Posted on November 28, 2015 by amanandhishoe

Day by day, frost softens the things it touches. Frost makes the leaves look like soft, supple leather. Dust feathered leaves look soft and cuddly. These cold, clear mornings we are having make for invigorating morning walks.

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散紅葉 • Chiri-momiji

Posted on November 25, 2015 by amanandhishoe

Japan is famous for its fall colors. Tourists from all over the world travel there to walk through temple grounds, resplendent in their colorful foliage. The beauty lingers even after the leaves fall to the ground. When there are more … Continue reading →

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Which is More Beautiful?

Posted on November 24, 2015 by amanandhishoe

Special is a beautiful hen, but is she more beautiful than colorful Svenda? It doesn’t matter if one is more beautiful than the other. If you stare at their feathers, it almost looks like they aren’t feathers, but brush patterns. … Continue reading →

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A Family of Toadstools

Posted on November 22, 2015 by amanandhishoe

A group of mushrooms is called a troop, but the tight cluster of purple mushrooms I found the other day poking out of a cushion of moss looked like a family to me. You could imagine that I stumbled upon … Continue reading →

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What Happened Here?

Posted on November 21, 2015 by amanandhishoe

On our way home from a shopping trip to Bellingham, we stopped along Chuckanut Drive to enjoy the evening sun. A boulder at the edge of the cliff was adorned with flowers. Oh, no! What happened here? Did someone fall … Continue reading →

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Hoary Daybreak

Posted on November 20, 2015 by amanandhishoe

When I went to bed last night, I knew the morning was going to be magical. I could feel it in the way the cold night air stung my nose. This morning we had our first ice. You can have … Continue reading →

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Just One

Posted on November 19, 2015 by amanandhishoe

Just one melon, that’s all I got from the artemis melon vines I grew in one of the hoop houses. The vines were loaded with ripening melons this summer when one night, something got into the hoop house and destroyed … Continue reading →

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Be Curious

Posted on November 18, 2015 by amanandhishoe

When I first brewed a cup of Yogi Tea’s Egyptian Licorice tea, I wondered how it could be so sweet. There was no sugar listed on the ingredients, just licorice root, cinnamon bark, orange peel, ginger root, cardamom seed, black … Continue reading →

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From Beautiful Flowers

Posted on November 17, 2015 by amanandhishoe

From beautiful flowers come beautiful beans. From beautiful beans come delicious, heart warming meals. I received this text from someone who purchased some of the white flower beans I grew this summer: I just wanted to share this pic of … Continue reading →

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Autumn Glow

Posted on November 16, 2015 by amanandhishoe

Autumn glow is special. Autumn leaves intensify the brilliance of the sun. Whenever the sun pops out between the rain clouds, it’s time to put on my boots and go for a walk. I’ve got to be outdoors to see … Continue reading →

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Give Us This Day

Posted on November 12, 2015 by amanandhishoe

Every day I appreciate how generous nature is. You don’t have to give nature much of a garden to supply you with more food than you can ever eat. After eating more radishes than you can stomach, you get to … Continue reading →

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It Only Happens Once a Year

Posted on November 10, 2015 by amanandhishoe

It only happens once a year, that magical first day of frost. A clear cold night and this morning the grass, fallen leaves, toadstools, and vegetables were fringed with frost. First frost happens only once a year, which means it … Continue reading →

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If You Can Wipe a Baby’s Butt

Posted on November 9, 2015 by amanandhishoe

If you can wipe a baby’s butt, you can make sausage from scratch. This summer we purchased half of a pig from Akyla Farms. They raised ten pigs on pasture on the banks of the Skagit River in Birdsview. They … Continue reading →

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Siblings in the Rain

Posted on November 7, 2015 by amanandhishoe

Steady rains don’t deter Tangerine’s chicks from roaming the woods. She is no longer caring for her chicks, but the siblings stick together. Sibling relations are one of the pillars of chicken society, but you would never know it from … Continue reading →

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Mini Spring

Posted on November 6, 2015 by amanandhishoe

After summer’s long draught, the fall rains have given birth to a mini spring. Nettles push up through the damp earth to soak in the morning mist. We’ll get to enjoy nettle soup before the frosts cut them down. The … Continue reading →

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Vegetables Come from the Sky

Posted on November 3, 2015 by amanandhishoe

Where do vegetables come from? They come from the sky, and this is how. Before you can plant a carrot or lettuce seed, you need living soil. Living soil starts up in the sky where the tips of the trees … Continue reading →

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Swans-here, Swans-there

Posted on November 2, 2015 by amanandhishoe

Today was an auspicious day. The start of Swans-here. Hearing their distinct honking, we looked up into today’s blue sky and were dazzled by a flock of swans flying in off the bay. There are really only two seasons in … Continue reading →

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Flinstonian

Posted on November 1, 2015 by amanandhishoe

I describe this salad fork and spoon set as Flinstonian. The woodcarver who made these, Allen Berry, sells his creations at Bow Little Market and the Mt. Vernon’s Farmer Market. He creates an assortment of boxes, spatulas, stirring spoons, salad … Continue reading →

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