Visit to Rhinelander, Bragg Family South, and the Shabby Shed

 

Hello, summer!


Thought it would be fun to start this blog with a picture of Emma and (neighbor girl) Makayla's lemonade stand / "variety sale". They had their sale on the day before the Hurlburt Family Reunion, so we were able to bring the lettuce and potted chives that didn't sell along to the reunion the next day, for whoever wanted it. So nothing was wasted and the girls were happy... they each made $15 for about 3 hours of work.

Which takes us into August...


Our most recent adventure was a trip to Rhinelander and a visit with Bragg Family South (my brother Don and his family, who live in Arkansas). At left you can see Emma with two of Don's kids, Beth and Kenny, as they walk down my parents' trail into the woods.


Besides Don's family, my brother John (on a break from his job in New Jersey) and sister Laurie were also there. Laurie had made plans to pick up Emma in Rhinelander and steal her back to Madison for a few days. Emma was super-excited to
have Laurie to herself for awhile and "get away" from me. I think they had a good bonding time.


This was the first time I'd been home since my brother Bill built Mom and Dad their new serenity garden (my name for it). There's a little cluster of trees in front of their house that used to be the site of a tulip garden back in the 1980's. Since then it's been mostly overgrown and overlooked. Bill cleaned the space out and planted it. Somehow he found room for a little walking path to meander through it. Plantings are mulched with pinecones and white birch twigs. There's a little bird bath and some garden art, as well. While I was there I sat with Mom and Dad on the benches, and we talked and looked out on the garden. It was nice.

Mom and Dad are doing well. Since Bill's been back at home he's been doing the cooking, and is being careful to prepare meals with healthful, fresh ingredients. Dad's lost about 20 pounds and is off a couple of his heart medications. He looks better and is more energetic than I've seen him in awhile. While there, we watched him work on the new trails he's making in the woods with his Kubota tractor.








Mom's garden is growing... all her plants are large and healthy, but I'm always especially impressed with how well root vegetables do in the sandy Rhinelander soil. Notice the tall fence around the garden (for keeping deer out).









Laurie snapped this picture of Don, John and me standing inside the wood "fort" Don built for his kids this visit. That's just the kind of fort we tried to build when we were little kids... except the fort walls were usually one log high and the "logs" were usually sticks.

It was good to be "home" for awhile.



 

I couldn't stay in Rhinelander very long because I was babysitting Jack the next day. But it turned out extra-fun because Don brought his family to Colfax for a couple of days, and Jack was able to play cars with Stephen and spend time with the other kids. 

 

 







One of the things we did with Don's family was give each of the kids a turn riding on the back of a horse. I think it was their first time, so they were a bit nervous. But nobody fell off, so that was good :).

I brought everybody up to the greenhouse, and Stephen and Beth helped me water my plants. It was fun introducing them to Johnne and showing them around.

 

The girls recently painted Johnne's "traveling" chicken coop (who do you think painted the moustache?). Every day a tractor pulls the coop to a different pasture area, so the chickens have lots of fresh bugs and grass to eat and (hopefully) predators are confused about their exact location. At night they climb back into the coop to their perches made of branches, and Johnne comes by and shuts the door. She opens their door in the morning and they are free to forage, though she provides them with water and chicken feed. She sells their free range, organic eggs for only $2 a dozen, which is an excellent deal!

All of the hens are black, but the rooster is white. The rooster, Mr. Shelby, is a new addition to the flock... he was one of two chickens raised by a family in town, who THOUGHT they had brought home two hens. The city of Colfax, like more and more towns these days, allows homeowners to raise chickens-- but not roosters-- within city limits. But then the "hen" started crowing, and Mr. Shelby declared his true identity.

I don't think he minds his re-location. He's the only male in a harem of 50+ chickens. He struts his stuff, and the ladies seem to like him.

We watched Johnne repair a fence to keep her cows in. A tree had fallen down onto the fence and her cows were wandering into the woods. Fence maintenance is an ongoing part of being a farmer.

Jack was a good boy on our long walk, but every now and then he needed to hitch a ride from Grandma and Grandpa. Here you see him trying one of Johnne's apples.

The main reason for our walk was to take the kids blackberry picking. We found blackberries and a few of the last raspberries. Leila was delighted to spot the butterfly below, though we did not let her touch its wings.

So the first day and night they were with us, Don's kids had no Emma to play with... she was staying at Laurie's in Madison. But it was kind of neat because it got the kids stepping outside their assigned cousin "roles". Emma usually makes the big breakfast for visitors, but since she wasn't there, Kenny did it... and very well, too! He made cheesy scrambled eggs for everyone.

Also, Leila and Beth spent a lot of one-on-one time, playing. Usually Emma and Beth are the cousins "thick as thieves", while Leila and Stephen are the little ones, but this time Beth took on that big girl role and hung out with the younger kids. Leila LOVED her time with Beth.

But then Emma came back, and trouble ensued (well, not really).

I wanted to close by showing you some pictures taken at the Shabby Shed in Bloomer. It's a small boutique recently purchased by a couple of friends of mine. I have artwork for sale in the store, and I'm also working there (temporarily) on a part-time basis.

These are a few of the silhouettes I make

The store has all kinds of really cute things. Everything is made or "up-cycled" by local artists. There's some furniture, but also home décor, jewelry, art, scarves, bags, candles, cards, honey products, antiques and more... stuff to buy for yourself or give as gifts. One of the co-owners, Elisha, even blends and packages her own line of natural mineral-based make-up products.

My original drawings, for sale

I've really enjoyed working there because it's been exciting to have a place to showcase my arts and crafts... and it's nice getting out of the house and talking to people a little. Elisha and Yvette are so encouraging, and really do a good job of promoting their consigners. I'm excited about the prospect of making holiday items and things that might specifically interest customers at the store.

This is a vintage paper-cutting that I restored and refurbished

But also it's fun going in to the store, seeing what's new, hearing what's sold, and changing things around so the store looks fresh for customers. I've always liked decorating, so creating interesting displays of objects brings out the artist in me. What kind of colors and shapes look nice together? How can we move the eye up or around that corner? How can we show people another potential use for this item?

SO MUCH cute stuff, like this table made out of a trunk

 

 

Where is the Shabby Shed, you ask? It's across the street from the new McDonald's in Bloomer. It's in the same building as a realty company, so you kind of have to look for it. 

A vintage print I tinted and glammed up

Anyway, that's all for now. Hope everyone is well and enjoying their summer WHILE IT LASTS. Take care!!