highlights from the year

The birth of our baby girl was, of course, the main highlight of our year!

A wonderful sugaring season.

Our first full year with our high tunnel (greens in March!)

An abundance of vegetables.

Making all of our hay for the year.

Good weather for the crops.

A fun visit to Chicago...

and Michigan (solo with 4--I made it!) ;)

Lots of food to preserve for winter.

Healthy little helpers.

A great season for our humble farmstand.

Visits with family and friends.

A very mild fall = tomatoes until late October!

And today, we look forward to wrapping up the year with a lunch with good friends-- enjoying food we preserved from the summer and reflecting on our blessings from 2013.  

Wishing everyone a wonderful start to 2014!

Our Best Rink Yet

Every other year (or so) after a good thaw, our field across the road from the house freezes over into a rink.  This year, we had warm weather for several days and then an ice storm and now have the very best rink we've ever had.  

A family hockey game was in order on Christmas day.

Adam made some PVC goals and even M was on skates.
Hopefully, we'll be able to enjoy it all winter long!

out and about

We had some family visit a week ago and took advantage of the snow that was left (after a rainy morning) to do some sledding and exploring.  It was a great visit!

handmade holiday (a little late)

I meant to post this much earlier this month...
I wanted to find an advent calendar for us to use each year.  I looked at buying a wooden one but then I thought about searching online for a fabric panel.  I found the perfect one (for us) on etsy.

Very simple to sew (I am a novice sewer).  Many of the small fabric pieces have activities for the kids to do (ice skate, cut snowflakes, read a christmas story) and for the ones that didn't have activities, I'd put a small chocolate or have a different craft for them to do.  I'm very happy with how it turned out!

around the farm (on christmas day)

Merry Christmas!

~Wishing you warmth and love from all of us here on Old Gates Farm~

Happy Winter!

Wishing everyone a happy winter solstice!

something new

I've been experimenting with linocut printmaking (an early Christmas gift from my mum).
It is so much fun (I should be knitting gifts, but I just can't stop!)

little hands

These cold days mean that I am rarely outside with a camera...
but these little hands have been busy outside with all of the winter chores on the farm.

They are also busy inside--learning, snuggling, practicing, crafting...