Too Cute for Words...The Kitties are Here

The day we left to spend a couple of days in Vancouver Miss Bella finally had her kittens.
The poor little darling was so big she could hardly walk 10 feet, now after birthing 5 beautifully healthy kitties she is skin and bones.

2 orange, 1 dark and 1 light, 1 grey stripped and 2 black and orange stripped.
All a mass of fur and strips, it's hard to tell what is what.

With their eyes still shut they softly mew and nurse endlessly.
Bella is a perfect mommy and I couldn't be prouder.

I am so excited to have little kittens as I have never let any of my pets have babies and since this year we are not raising any meat (our usual chickens, turkeys and beef) I feel a bit lost around here.

That was one of the reasons I took the kids to the petting zoo today.

It's not like they haven't raised most of these animals before, but it is still fun to venture around town and check things out.

This cow is 14 days old and we weren't the only ones concerned about it's thinness.

It just looks sad.
So I asked the farm help but he was passive and annoyed that I asked, for probably the 100th time today, why it was so skinny.

The pigs however were stuffed full as they root around everywhere, including my pants.

One bit me on my knee as I was taking this picture, then went for my toes.

Yikes!

And sheep bottoms...bababaaahahah!!

The Filberg is a great place to spot and hang out with the local wildlife, mainly the deer.

They are almost tame around there as they cruise the property ignoring people unless you ran at them.

But this one could care less and I was an arm lengths away but wanted the picture more then the pet.

At the beach we toodled around and the girls said they were getting hungry.

Since we have been on the go for the past 6 days and today was no different I knew we would be dining out ....again.

Lunch at home was a far fetched plan so I decided to make the girls do something if they wanted to go out for lunch.

More because I was feeling bored and needed some humour and they are always game for silliness, I said they had to.....

Lick a crab if they wanted to eat at the Tea House.

Troopers!!!

And I got my laugh.

Taking a Evening Stroll Through a Local Farm

Innisfree Farm is a farm close to us and a very special place indeed.
Not only is it on the land that J grew up on, the new owners have transformed it from a horse farm filled with pastures, barns and riding rings to a wellness oasis.

Chanchal and Theiry both have created gardens filled with love and so many amazing plants that I spent 2 hours there and only touched the herb gardens.

They have made a therapy garden and do many workshops and courses for people to learn and recoup.

They encourage smelling, tasting and go in depth into the botany of each plant.

You walk away feeling so in tune with the growing world around us.

There are herbs for culinary purposes that they sell to local restaurants and at the local farmers market.

From the gardens Chachal creates her own tincture, teas and healing salves etc. for her practice in Nauturopathy and Holistic Therapy.

They have a produce stand at the market and do a weekly veggie bin by subscription for those who cannot grow for themselves and want locally grown fresh vegetables.

There are healing gardens to teach about medicinal herbs and to sit, relax and reflect on an earthly connection.

This is a place that you feel so connected you actually leave rejuvenated.

It is definitely a spiritual place and one that I wish I could recreate in my yard.

I feel the seeds of my future have been planted.

There are apprentice programs to learn organic gardening/food production, horticultural therapy and medicinal herbalism.

Any like-minded person can volunteer and help out around the farm while learning.

They provide lunch and you can join in on any workshop being held.

There is a huge labyrinth that has been lovingly cared for and planted consciously with blue frescue grasses to ensure people with disabilities are safe from bees when going through it.

A pond sits just beyond the labyrinth.

This is a view, over a herb garden, of the old horse barn.

Now a drying/storage room with a chicken pen attached.

In every corner there are herbs and flowers to heal and enrich your life.

Chanchal is not only a master gardener and certified horticultural therapist she is also a faculty director in botanical medicine at the Boucher Institute of Naturopathic Medicine.

As well she is a clinical aromatherapist and author of a book on Fibromyalgia.

Chanchal is a person who is kind, friendly and welcomes you with a warm heart and smile.

She is a wealth of knowledge and I am so grateful that she is a resource in our community, so close to us, and so willing to teach.

This is a complete paradise.

There are fruit and nut trees and they hope that within the year that they can be able to offer self guided tours.

I will defiantly go back for classes and tours, to support a local business and to learn.

If you get the opportunity to visit be sure to give yourself the time to do so.

If you cannot get there in person check it out online.

http://web.mac.com/innisfreefarm/Innisfree_Farm/Innisfree_.html

Jewelry Holder

Sweet Peas are my favorite flower.
Well I have to say I love all flowers but sweet peas have a sacred spot in my heart.
They are so delicate and their colours are so subtle.
Their sweet smell is so delicious I could breathe it in all day.
This is the first one I found in the garden and am delighted to have it on my bedside table so I can smell it whenever the night winds sneaks past it.

Copy Cat Craft Of The Day!!!

This is just too good not to make.
Since I have 2 girls and together there is a lot of jewelery laying around or pouring out of boxes and purses.
This repurposed picture frame is a smart idea for our tiny house as verticle/wall space is our saviour with a lack of floor/square space.

Such a thrifty and simple idea/design and it used stuff that I had laying around waiting for a purpose and only took an hour to do including waiting for the paper to dry.

I found it here but I simplified it a bit to make it quicker for myself to accomplish today.
http://tessaann.blogspot.com/2010_05_30_archive.html

E chose the pattern, buttons and frame and she couldn't be happier with "her" design.

I write this as she is spending her evening filling it with her treasures.

Tomorrow I must make K one...but insists hers "must be bigger because she is older and has better stuff."

Sisters!!

Looking for Some Whimsy

While sitting at the computer as the little one breaks a fever this afternoon, I had time to check on Etsy.
This is always a bad idea for me as I always find a million things that I must have.
Today I found so many artists that capture whimsy just as I imagine it.
Needless to say my mailbox will be full soon, with art and a visa bill.
Thought I would share some of these talented artists with you.