gardening and enjoying life in Salem, Massachusetts
Our cars are always clean.
We have everything we need.
He goes on all the scary rides.
Occasionally (very occasionally), he’ll attempt to stop and relax
He is the reason that we are able to live the wonderful and amazing life that we have.
and I am so grateful for him, every single day.
Happy Father’s Day!
Love, Michele
So, last night at 10:00 just as I was about to take my shower and get my jammies on Michael said “come on outside, it’s time to move the chickens”… of course my immediate response was ” really? seriously? you want to do that now? do we have to? how about tomorrow night?” Please!!
He said, “nope, no way, their getting too big for the tractor, let’s go!”
(meanie!)
So off we went, with a flashlight, in the dark, to the far corner of my back yard.. One by one we dug them out of their little house in the chicken tractor and gingerly placed them, two together, in the nesting boxes in the coop with with big girls.. trying hard not to step on poop or anything else that might be out there.
Doing this meant that I slept lightly, worried about what today would bring. We’ve moved babies up quite a few times and there’s still that mother part of me that worries about what’s going to happen to them out there. I raced out at 6am with my little guy to check. It’s his job to feed them in the morning and I was concerned that he might encounter an unpleasant situation. Well, they were all in a tizzy but everyone was alive and well. The big girls were outside squawking because their territory had been invaded and they wanted to be fed their treats (have I mentioned that their a bit spoiled). The babies were hopping around the inside of the coop, kind of upset and disoriented but busy exploring their new home. I went out to check again a few minutes ago and they were all outside in the run together.. at opposite ends but definitely sharing the space.
Before we know it we’ll have a really healthy and beautiful flock of egg layers out there!
Mission accomplished!! Whew!
This statue has become a landmark in Salem. Can you tell who it is?
Here’s a closeup of her face
Of course, it’s the late Elizabeth Montgomery portraying Samantha Stevens on the Bewitched TV show!
What child of the sixties doesn’t remember watching Samantha and all of her adventures? In June of 2005 this statue was installed and dedicated here in Salem. It was donated to the city by the TV Land Network. There was quite a bit of controversy in the days leading up to the unveiling. Only two Bewitched episodes were said to be filmed here, so it’s relevance to our city’s history was widely questioned. Some felt that it took away from the seriousness and tragedy of the witch trials.
There was lots of excitement on the day of the reveal. I didn’t attend, possibly because my fifth child was three months old and the thought of taking five children under the age of eleven downtown to see a statue unveiled compromised my ability to breathe properly. I believe that members of the cast were here, including the actress who played Tabitha. It was a big event!
It seems that Samantha has settled in comfortably. She’s become a landmark in the center of a long row of wonderful restaurants. Salem’s downtown is hopping these days, and while Samantha doesn’t exactly represent the serious side of Salem, she definitely adds a whimsical element to a city that is well-known for fun and whimsy.
First of all, thank you, thank you for all of your wonderful suggestions yesterday about what to do with the Green Monster! I’m newly energized and I’m working hard on pulling that area together. I was feeling quite overwhelmed before I asked for your help. Hopefully I’ll be able to share a photo of our progress soon. It’s such a shady, private spot. I love to sit there for a minute first thing in the morning or when we take a break during the day. It’s going to be a little oasis in our oasis.
Here’s an update on how things are going out in the garden this week:
The sweet peas are almost ready!
Here’s a beautiful post about sweet peas that AmySue at A Healthy Life for Me wrote last week
http://ahealthylifeforme.com/2012/06/05/peas-peas-everywhere/
Her recipes and photos are wonderful!
The basil and tomatoes are coming along (notice that the bunny food/poop grass is still trying to surface). I decided to try salt marsh hay as mulch this year to retain moisture and keep weeds and wilt away. We’ll see how it goes. I’d better get cages around those tomato plants soon.
I planted few red cabbage plants in this extra space and we’re enjoying the lettuce. Better get it while we can because lettuce is happiest in cool weather, once it gets hot it will bolt and be gone! The zucchini has settled in nicely and I planted a treat just beyond the lettuce… zinnias to cut and enjoy in August
Lemon balm, thyme and lavender…
And here’s our first purple coneflower blossom of the season! There will be many more to come..
It’s very rainy here but it’s supposed to clear up over the next few days. Perfect weather for growing everything!
Thanks for stopping!
Enjoy Everything today!
Michele
No, It’s not Fenway Park… It’s my house. I have my very own Green Monster here in Salem It’s what Michael is calling this wall outside our back door that we painted a few weeks ago…
What should we hang on it or decorate with? Any thoughts or ideas are welcome! Yes I did go kind of bright with the paint color but we wanted it to be cheery and welcoming.. it’s always been a very dark space full of clutter, but it has such a nice view of the yard. We wanted to brighten it up a little and make a nice place to sit for a few minutes.
I know that there are a few wonderful designers out there who might be reading…. share your thoughts please! Comment away!
Early Sunday morning I went out to find my little guy taking care of the chickens. He’s heading over to tend to the babies, poop scraper in hand!
Here he is hard at work, but if you look closely to the left you’ll notice an escape is underway.
Uh oh! We have church soon and they can’t be left to wander safely yet.
Winnie the Wonderdog wants to help!
This photo doesn’t exactly fit in to the story but my son enhanced it himself, and it’s a cute shot, so here it is! I think he did a great job!
Getting back to what was happening… here’s little sister to the rescue!
She’ll help round them up again!
“Where should we go? How do we get back in there?”
“I’ll save you!”
She’s a great little chicken handler!
On to the big girls… it’s a tough life for these urban chicken kids!
Enjoy Everything!
Before
After
Much Better!
Lots more to do! It’s time for soccer!
Have a Great Weekend!
Yesterday I spent some time walking around Salem Common, a nine acre public park right in the middle of the city. It’s been public land for hundreds of years and was originally used as a pasture in the 1600s, with ponds and a stream running though it. It was designated as a military training ground in the 1600’s and still hosts a military muster once a year. You can read more about the Common’s history here at http://www.salemweb.com/guide/common/
As a former resident of the neighborhood it’s always fun to take a walk and take in the sights.
People meet here to exercise, walk, ride bikes and play.
There’s a beautiful new playground..
When our kids were small and we lived a few doors away I spent many, many hours under that tree!
There was a different play structure but the very same view. Such happy memories!
The walking path is covered by trees so it’s shady and comfortable.
here’s the view coming around the northwest corner
The common is lined with beautiful historic mansions.
Many of them were designed by renowned architect Samuel McIntire.
He created the original version of this wooden archway as well.
It’s said to have been made for a visit by George Washington.
The Gazebo is the true focal point…lots of fun happens here!
Everything from the reading of the Declaration of Independence on the Fourth of July
to prom and wedding photos being taken!
The Salem Witch Museum is located on one corner (the two young people above both happen to work there)
The Witch Museum is a great place to gain a clear understanding of what happened during the Witchcraft Hysteria that Salem is so well known for.
The Common is quintessential New England, full of history and fun… a beautiful place to relax and unwind!
Hope you’ll visit soon! Hint, hint to all of my family and friends who are still planning their summer vacations 🙂
Have a great day! Enjoy Everything!
Michele
Here’s the butterfly garden, shortly after planting it in 2008
Here it is a year or two ago, doing okay, not perfect (nothing is) but it’s all right…
Here is is yesterday…. Yikes!!!
Maybe some weeding, digging and trimming is in order here? Time to get out there!
Have a great day!!
Good Morning!
I thought that I’d share a little bit about our life with our chickens today. I sometimes take a few in to visit the first grade classes at our elementary school when their studying the life-cycle. First graders always have great questions. So do our visitors! Here are some of our most asked questions:
How many chickens do you have? We currently have nine adults and six twelve week old pullets.
Where do they live?
The older girls live here in their coop:
The younger flock lives in our chicken tractor. In a few weeks they should be about ready to join the older ladies out in the coop. This photo of the tractor was taken a few years ago. Notice how new and shiny it is, along with the fence and the coop before siding was added.
How old do they get? Chickens often live for five to eight years but I’ve heard of some living longer. This is one of our very first chickens. She’s named Chip, after the friend who brought her to us. She is still laying eggs and recovered from a bad bout of “bumble foot” last year. Chip is one amazing chicken!
Do the boys lay eggs? No, they don’t. This is always very hard to explain to the first graders.
Do you have roosters? No, we tried to keep some small Banty Roosters last year but they were way too noisy for our neighborhood. Our hens are quite happy without a rooster around 🙂
Do they poop a lot? Yes!!
Do you have a favorite chicken? We all have our favorites. This one is mine. I call her the little red hen. She’s a Speckled Sussex chicken and she is so cute and sweet!
Can we hold them? Sure you can, but we might need to help you.
Are they friendly? Some are friendlier than others but our chickens are raised by hand from when their one day old so most are very used to humans. Several of them like to sit in our laps.
Do they all have names? Not really, the older ones do. I call this one Sheba because she thinks she’s the queen. She tends to wander away from the flock. We’ve had neighbors come over and ask us to come get her. I don’t know why she’s standing on one foot in this photo? I think she’s planning her escape.
Is there a pecking order? Yes, most definitely. The social structure of the flock is very interesting to watch. This little Banty Cochin is actually kind of in charge these days. She rules the roost and she can be really mean!
How often do they lay eggs? About one every day and a half in the warmer months when there’s lots of daylight. Egg production slows way down in the winter.
What do the eggs look like? Just like this…their all different shapes and colors. It depends on the chicken.
Do you eat them? No, we don’t eat our pets.
Is it easy to take photos of chickens? No! Their always moving around and running away.
But we love them, their wonderful pets, the fresh eggs are great and they keep us connected with our food source and with each other~
Questions? Leave them in the comments section and I’ll try to answer them. Thanks for stopping by!
The Salem Garden 