Saturday, January 3, 2009

When a Little Farm I Keep


Weather-wise, this is the nicest weekend we've had since October.

Remember that I forced goats on Mike? How does it appear that Mike is taking it?

Nougat on his spool in the bamboo.

Neighbors, Teesa and Sam, stopped by.

Sam really likes Franklin and Franklin really likes Sam.

Franklin and some of the gang.

We got some gravel down on top of the muck.

I like for our critter lot to be a pleasant spot to hang out.

A good hangout for everybody.

MilkDud on his barrel.

I copied this poem from Jama's blog, it's so nice,
http://prosperinegoathill.blogspot.com/
thank you Jama for posting it.

When a Little Farm I Keep

By Katharine Hinkson (1861-1931)

When a little farm I keep,
I shall tend my kine and sheep,
And my pretty lambs shall fold
In deep pastures starred with gold.

On green carpets they shall tread,
Gold and purple be their bed,
Honey clover make their food
In a watered solitude.

Garden places I shall tend,
For a welcome to a friend,
Make for him a roomy seat
By the box and privet sweet.

And my kitchen garden shall
Grow me fruits on tree and wall,
Give me blossoms in the spring
And an autumn gathering.

An old dial and a cote
Where the pigeons fly and float,
And a well so green and dim
Where the little fishes swim.

Hives of honey I shall own,
Bees with drowsy monotone
Toil all day to bring me home
Heather honey at the gloam.

Twixt the mountains and the sea
There my little farm will be.
In a heart-remembered spot
I shall have my happy lot.

In a heart-remembered place,
Where the mountains lift their face,
I shall tend my sheep and kine,
And a thankful heart be mine.

When a little farm I keep,
I shall sleep the happiest sleep,
To my simple meals invite
Thanksgiving and appetite.

In the heart-remembered place
I shall wear a shining face,
And my quiet nights be praise,
And a prayer my innocent days

14 comments:

Christy said...

Nice poem! And it seems the goats are going over pretty well.

Teesa said...

We had a ton of fun! Thanks for letting Sam do some chores and for the reward of the eggs afterwards. We'll use them well!

He was sorry to leave, but we'll come back soon.

Lanny said...

I love that poem. It is so our farm too! We are nestled between summit and shore and have little lambies skipping to and fro on green carpets.

I love it, thank you for sharing it! I'm thinking I may use it for some pictures I am putting together.

It is inspirational! Now I really need to get down to business and get some bee hives for my grandson to visit.

And to be sure, I'll always be thankful to the Provider of the simple daily feast

Teesa said...

Since I'm not on email right now, I'll post the chocolate chip cookie recipe here. Maybe I wrote it down wrong before.

Mix in small bowl:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 t each salt, baking powder, baking soda (I add a pinch more salt)

In another bowl, use hand mixer to mix:
1 stick butter
1 egg
1/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 t vanilla

Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture using a hand mixer. Then add 1 cup SEMI SWEET chocolate chips.

Place on a cookie sheet (use an ice cream scoop for consistency) about one and a half inches apart.

Bake at 375F for 12 minutes.

Cool on a cooling rack. Eat with a tall glass of cold milk. Yummy!

Jennifer said...

I love the pictures, looks like somebody is happy they got talked into goats! :) I just love your set up around your barns and animal yard, everything is so neat looking. Looks like a great place to hang out with the animals. I said it before, but I am going to say it again...Franklin is a cool bird!

KathyB. said...

Love your farm and hope to eventually make our place as city person friendly and pleasant for the critters. Not to mention, as pleasant for us to hang around in. We have had to do some major reinforcement of the pens because of very clever and murderous coyotes in the area.

Franklin is pretty impressive!

Susan said...

What a lovely poem! It's perfect for your place. Isn't it nice to have little ones come to see the animals. They get so excited!

Nice post!

Unknown said...

From the content look on his face, I would say Mike used reverse psychology on you to get the goats HE wanted!!!
Nancy

Sharon said...

I just love your blog :)

My husband is the same way. He fusses, "We don't need no more dogs!" I bring home the dog and he spoils it. :)

PS...I'm having a giveaway on my blog if you'd like to enter ;)

~Sharon

Anonymous said...

Great photos!
Franklin is beautiful. I like your gravel path too. The muck really does pile up around here.
I may talk my husband into putting one of our extra spools in with the goats. Nougat is enjoying it so.
The poem is nice and calming to read.
Have a great day.
Pam

Anonymous said...

You always have the nicest pics over here! :) Really love the poem too.

Mary Humphrey said...

I love the portrait of the goats. It look so peaceful. Makes me want to sit down in the middle of it all, quietly. Your animal lot looks great! And nooo...that man of yours isn't falling for goats, is he? :)

Amy said...

Um, yeah...it sure looks like Mike is miserable with all those goats bugging him all the time! I love that Franklin, what a ham! Err...turkey! The poem is perfect with all your wonderful photos. You have such pretty chooks.

Hey, would you like a free silver-spangled Hamburg? My little roo, Silver, is getting too big for his britches!

diane said...

i love the goat pics- especially nougat standing on the spool- it almost looks like he is a teeny tiny toy goat on a big spool!
and milk dud is funny too :)