Breads, Pies and Big Cat Tracks

 Sourdough bread.  Can you smell the different kinds I made?  Onion Mustard......Italian Herbs & Cheese......Tomato Basil?

You missed our annual Baw Faw Spring Festival at the grange in the valley!  Too bad for you, as we took 18 loaves of sourdough bread and 18 homemade pies, too.  My daughters and I had a table and sold our bread, pies & plants.  We chatted with others from our small community & ate chili dogs, too.

If you're curious, it took me about 3 1/2 hours to make 18 loaves, though I got my sourdough out and working about 5 days previous.

 I'm still making primitives, of course.  Some patriotic raggedy stars...

 Vintage button adorned homespun hearts.....

 Sunflowers and a bee!

 Spring is in full swing and the goats are enjoying all the new growth.  Preston, the buck, looks on with interest as Shiloh checks out the delicacies to be had in the plum tree.

 The early end of the garden is looking good.  Hubby planted broccoli, onions & garlic and they're growing nicely.  Tiny apples are forming on the trees in the background.

 Here's a wider view of the garden.  He has since tilled it, but now it's raining again, so we won't plant until it clears a bit.  Of course, it would have been ideal weather for those lettuce, cabbage, cauliflower & extra broccoli starts, but I didn't feel like working in the mud!

 A hysteria of wisteria and an aromatic lilac on the corner of the porch.  Everything has been blooming fabulously.  Our weather has been drier and warmer overall than usual.  We haven't had a fire in the stove in weeks.  Some years we build fires clear up until the first of June.  This year has been odd and the woodshed is still more than half full.  Less wood to chop for next winter, I guess!

 We took time to go for a walk down in our valley a few days back.  Our house is on top of our hill and we have a long road going down to the creek in our valley.  Surrounded by forest, we have about 10 or 15 acres of pasture down there, too.

Found this track on the bank of the creek.  Can you say.....BIG CAT? 

 That will explain why hubby carries a weapon while walking.  Just...in...case!

 One of the wilder spots on the creek.

 Stunning old trees.

 Remnants of years gone by.

It was a lovely walk on a lovely day.  I'm grateful and thankful to God every day for the opportunity to live on this glorious piece of His earthly paradise!

Hope you enjoyed a bit of Springtime here on the Hilltop.  I keep putting off blogging and then time gets away, so thought I'd just dump a bunch of pictures on you today ;-)

Last one....here are most of the pies my daughter made for the Spring Festival last Saturday.  In case you're wondering, they are Marionberry, Apple and Apple Mincemeat. 

We came home with no bread and no pies, but if you stop in for coffee we can whip out another one!