Slaters' Funny Farm

Can you believe that we are writing this for the last Monday in January already? I know many of us in the US are ready for this cold and snowy month to be over, as I know I am. Artic cold has enveloped us for at least the past two weeks and snow along with it has just added to the pure brutality that you feel when you have to be out long. Living on a small farm truly becomes a chore in weather like this.  I will be linking up with Sandra for this Happy Homemaker post over at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom   . If you are interested in learning more about what this is and why we write it, you can hop over there. You will also find links to what other Happy Homemakers have to say this week. Check it out for a bit if you haven't been there before. I am finally feeling more like myself, and the weather has broken a bit, and I was able to go visit with some friends over the weekend, so I am thankful to say that I have finally beaten whatever the virus was that made me so sick. Let's ge...

 I have decided to change this weekly post a bit after learning that someone else had a Sunday Smiles post that was a link up. I hope you do not mind, but I don't want to steal someone else's thunder. Blogging is such a great community, and I would not want someone to steal my link up either. We are now going to call this Sunday Farm Smiles and I will share farm items that make me smile.  I am thinking farm animal photos, memes, even farm wife or home items that simply make me smile and hopefully, make my reader smile as well. I want to make this a link up party, if I can figure out how to do it. I am not as tech savvy as some. Although, I know my way around the computer quite well.  Most Sunday posts will not have much reading to them unless it is a meme, but I wanted to share what I was doing and why with my readers that have followed my Sunday Smiles posts for so many months now.  Enough talk, here is what I hope makes you smile today. Fits quite well with the wea...

  Spring officially begins March 20 this year and I for one cannot wait for that day to get here! It has been such a cold and snowy January, and we have no idea what February will bring in weather, that I guess we just long for March 20. I am usually the first to say we should not wish our time away, but this cold is just so bad this year. As I sit here in my home with the wood stove roaring, the fireplace on, and dressed in flannel pajamas and my sweatshirt and I am still cold, I dream of warmer days ahead. I am planning my garden while looking at nothing but snow. How can I possibly dream of large, full tomato plants while looking at the gloomy, cloudy sky of January?  Another activity that I love to do in the winter to prep for spring here on the farm is searching for chickens. We always like to add to our flock in the spring. This year I am wanting more layers as I can usually sell eggs quite often in the summer. I have always liked Old English chickens, and I have several...

 To A Tea  Author: Vera Dodge Length: 249 pages Series: Tearoom Mysteries         * Tearoom For Two         * Tea Rose         * To A Tea Blurb: Business is booming at Tea for Two, so cousins Elaine Cook and Jan Blake decide to hire more help. When Elaine interviews a dapper Englishman with a resume full of important jobs around the world, she can't help but wonder, Why does he want to work here? As the tearoom readies its first wedding, Elaine's concerns are quicky overshadowed by the groom's sudden disappearance. Cold feet or foul play? The distraught bride turns to the cousins, who spring into action to find the missing groom.  To make matters worse, a local bank is robbed. Could the two incidents be related? Elaine and Jan set out in different directions to solve the mystery-- even taking Jan to the town's biker bar! Before long, it becomes clear that the cousins are unraveling the same thread from different ...

 Good Morning and Happy Monday! I am glad to be here and share some happy thoughts with each of you as I have been sick all of last week. I still am not feeling great, but it seems that the virus is attempting to exit. Now if we could only have a bit warmer weather, I would be so glad! I will be linking this to the Happy Homemaker Monday post over on  Diary of a Stay At Home Mom . If you have no idea as to what Happy Homemaker Monday is, you should head over and read the many posts that Sandra has there.  The Weather in My Neck of the Woods... FRIGID! It is winter here for sure. It was below zero here this morning and our high is to be 10 degrees Fahrenheit today.  Things That Make Me Happy... This past week the only thing that has made me happy was my blanket, hot tea, and my book. I just have not felt well at all. I hope that this week is much better. A warm blanket and hot tea always make for happy moments.  Books That I Am Reading ... I am currently reading ...

 Since I somehow missed writing the first one of these for the year, I will write this one. I have been away from my blog for a while, but I intend to keep on top of it this year and I have plans made for that to happen. If you aren't aware of what Happy Homemakers is, I suggest you stick around and read this post and then hop over to  Diary of a Stay At Home Mom  and find out all about this link up party.  It has been a hard week around here as we have had 2 snows that have left measurable snow and has caused our kids to be out of school all week. Part of the downside of living in the country is that gravel roads aren't easy to remove snow from. It makes getting the kids to school much harder and the bus drivers are challenged much more than those that have routes in town.  THE WEATHER IN MY NECK OF THE WOODS: Cold and Snowy. We have about 16 inches of snow on the ground and may get more this week. Temperatures aren't supposed to be above freezing until Friday....