We have had enough rain in the past three days to fill up Lake O'Brien! The hens, goats, and sheep were dining lakeside. The little goats and sheep were moved to the front pasture so they have fresh greens and their feet will stay dry. As for the hens, they love the puddles!
It is Spring Break in Oregon and that means all of the public schools are closed for a week and many families take a vacation or visit relatives. Our break included a little visit downtown Grants Pass to the Antique Mall. This beautifully preserved quilt, called Grandmother's Flower Garden was displayed in the window of the store, along with a perfectly matching metal bed-frame. This pattern of quilt was very popular in the 1920's and 1930's and just in time to brighten up any home as the Great Depression settled in across the nation and the world. It is a very labor intensive pattern made mostly from scraps. Each hexagonal pattern is pieced and stitched almost completely by hand. What a beautiful quilt and inspiration. Of course we were truly window shopping, so the precious quilt is still on display in the store window!
Amazing hail and sun showers are taking place all day! The sky is so dramatic, the hens are scratching and running, and the osprey have returned. Spring is very near!
The day began with cinnamon rolls, coffee, and fresh snow in the mountains...also known as white gold at this time of year!
Corned beef is set to simmer and cook all day until it is tender and falls apart with a fork. It is seasoned with mustard seeds, bay leaf, whole black and red peppers, and basil.
Sunshine streamed through the windows all day. Canning shelves are more than half eaten and we feel so lucky that our garden produced enough to preserve to eat our farm food for a while longer.
Chives are loving the sunshine and are beginning to bulb at the tips for a lavender colored blossom. Leprechauns deposited golden chocolates on the counter top too!
A break in the mid afternoon for a toast and a blessing and prayers to our family and friends to live life in the ways of love, faith, hope, and charity.
Irish man, Tim, wit his traditional greeting of 'Happy St. Paddy's Day!'.
Irish soda bread with golden raisins is out of the oven and dinner is nearly ready to serve.
The sunshine continued into the afternoon and early evening as dinner was set on the table. 
Corned beef, cabbage, boiled potatoes, carrots, bread and butter.
Late evening Irish coffees and a movie The Quiet Man, with John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara finished off the evening of a perfectly green and lucky day!
The daffodils are ready to burst open for tomorrow's celebrations! There is so much promise and hope in these clusters of spring happiness.
Today's green was brought to you by the O'Brien hens! Their lovely eggs were made into a great big quiche full of spinach, onion, garlic, and mushrooms. A little golden cheddar cheese was mixed in too!
Where would we be without a little more Irish cheer in the form of Shamrock Rye Toast, complete with butter and green sprinkles!
Finally, a rainbow of Jello was the dessert of the day. Six different colors of Jello were mixed with cottage cheese and layered into glasses. There is less sugar and still big smiles! It only takes a teaspoon or two of the Jello to make the pretty colors. 
There were also some golden coins hiding between the layers that our lucky little leprechauns found, because at the end of every rainbow there must be a pot of gold!
The snow melted as quickly as it came and we were left with warming winds, greener grass and moss, and life on the farm and grandkids together for an afternoon. Here is Anna and Marial enjoying some one on one time. x
Wintering over garden has just started to green up. The kids were out inspecting what was edible and available.
And before you know it, the magic of childhood imaginations took them off into knighthood and sword fights just by a few sticks that were found in the garden.
The sword fighting ended happily and the knights and their princess surveyed the kingdom for more fun and games.
Of course there is always the tire swing with Papa pushing for the best ride!
It all began with deep, dark, green kale...
It was sauteed with onions, garlic, mushrooms and added to shredded buffalo roast, and mashed potatoes with a bit of sauce...
The kale was transformed into a shepherd's pie that was warm and healthy and very much green!
Then there were plenty of Irish eyes twinkling at the dinner table of green goodness!
Green eggs and shamrocks and chive starts in the kitchen! There is an Irish Gal in the background! Hi Mom ~ xo
The hens are really treating us to some brightly colored eggs now that the days are getting a little longer. These are simply creamy scrambled eggs cooked with a dab of butter, a splash of half and half, and chives. Cooked soft and left to finish cooking in the cast iron skillet off of the heat keeps them at their creamy best! We had three days of 60-70 degree days with 23-25 degree nights. Now the cold winds are blowing in again with rain and snow. March is presenting herself as both a lamb and a lion!
Here are some buttery orange-raisin scones. There are a few golden raisins left. These scones have a little orange oil added to them and cook up quickly when they are just free form dropped onto the cooking stone. Both the eggs and the scones are great comfort foods to end the wildly approaching change of seasons from winter to spring. How does the end of winter look in your neck of the woods?
The baby chicks have started to arrive. We have the Rhode Island Reds here first and they sure are hungry! Frequent refills, plenty to drink, warm red heat lamp, near the toasty woodstove... Isn't that what we all want this late in the winter?! Happy March ~
Happy Birthday, Sweet Karyn! We wish you were on the farm to celebrate, but just look at all of the white, Alaskan snow and remember how much we all love you! ~Happy Days!~ xo
