All the Little Birdies

This is Mini May, the Russian Orloff Bantam Hen.  I purchased her as a chick, last spring.  She is a super friendly little bird, with lots of spunk, and a huge stomach.  Mini May likes meeting people, and is usually the bird I opt to take to educational events.  

mini may

(Mini May and I where at Octoberfest at Old Economy Village last year)

octoberfest

Mini May quickly became a family favorite, and we wanted to find a good mate for her.  I ended up trying three different Russian Orloff Bantam roosters, but all of them where aggressive.  Thankfully, I found Ollie,  and shipped him in from a breeder in Washington State.  It was love at first sight.  

pair

The two get along like peas in a pod!  Ollie is super sweet to Mini May.  Unlike most roosters, he follows his hen around everywhere, doesn’t show any interest in the hens next door, refuses to mate with Mini May in public, and doesn’t mess up her feathers with dirty feet.
 
Every night, Mini May and Ollie wait at the edge of door of their chicken coop.  Mini May has to be picked up, pet, and tucked into bed.  Ollie just stands there quietly.  But, last night Ollie was the only one standing on the edge of their door.  Ollie has always kept his distance from humans, so I was surprised to see him anxiously pacing the edge of the door for me…alone.   Where was Mini May!
 
Mini May was in the back of the box brooding.   When she saw me, she fluffed up her feathers and let out quite a few squawks of distaste.  Thankfully, she didn’t nip, as I plopped four more eggs under her belly.  
 
brood
 
Poor, Ollie still doesn’t seem to know what to do with himself, or his cranky wife.  He continues prancing up and down the side of their box.  Ollie was further perplexed with his new neighbors, that I put into the coop next to his.  They seem to resemble him and the wife.  
 
babies
 
Originally Published: here
Written by: Jamiegoof

The Maple Syrup Festival

Yesterday, my good friend and I attended the Maple Syrup Festival with the 63rd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry.  We where dishearten to see that some of our fellow civilians where not able to come, but had a wonderful time meeting new people, knitting, strolling around the vendors, and taking a hike in the woods. 
 
Because it wasn’t exactly appropriate for young ladies to hang around a military camp, we always try to bring something to look our part.  So, we loaded up a basket with some home baked bread, hard boiled eggs (from my own hard working biddies), and fruit for the soldiers.
 
I don’t have many civil war recipes, so I was happy to find this one on the blog “The World Turned Upside Down.”
 
The rolls where a little bland, but I was pleased with the taste and texture.  It seemed to go well with the soup the camp cook made, as there was little left.  I will be sticking with making rolls in the future, as I have noticed people seem hesitate to cut into a loaf of bread, and rolls do not go stale as quickly. 
 
While there, I finally finished an orange wool sontog for my friend…just in time for summer. LOL.  It is the overly represented basket weave pattern.
 
Here it is on my friend and model Kaela.  She is very handy with a sewing needle, and made her entire outfit herself including her all her undergarments, work dress, apron, and bonnet.
 
Front
 
Back
 
What I would change:  The front panels should be wider.  This can be fixed with blocking.  I also think the back would look better shorter, with a band to keep the back from moving.
 
The day was very windy, so we had to pay a lot of attention to our fly away clothing.  A good gust untied my bonnet, and sent it souring.  And some of the ladies had their skirts flip up a bit.  Thankfully, my hoop kept everything hidden, but it sure did make walking a challenge here and there. LOL. 
 
Me
 
Originally published: here
 
Written by: Jamiegoof