Recently featured..

My Victory Garden Seed shop was recently featured here:

http://www.paigeoneevents.com/blog/ on the 4th day of Christmas post.

Yay! What fun!

~The Garden Goose!~

Merry Christmas! and..a recipe idea to share...

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas!!

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I'd like to tell you about this yummy recipe that you can get from allrecipes.comIt is for Baklava... my daughter made this a few days ago and it is awesome. Do make sure that you use all of the honey mixture that the recipe calls for, it may seem like a lot at first, but do use it all on the baklava, as it boils into the pastry and the pastry soaks it up, creating a wonderful baklava.
When you go to allrecipes.com it is the first recipe shown for baklava.It is also one of the first recipes that come up on google search for baklava.
Give it a try.

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~The Garden Goose!~

Here is what I won

I don't know why the links would not work on my last post. I kept trying and trying to get them to work and made sure I typed them in properly, anyhow the name of the shop that I won this absolutely gorgeous necklace from is www.noblestudiosltd.etsy.com

Here is what I won from Violette's blog.It is a gorgeous locket with rhinestones around it, on a black glass bead necklace. Very pretty I think.:0)

Violette specializes in steampunk inspired jewelry and her creations are very pretty and one of a kind items.

Stop by and visit her shop.

~The Garden Goose!~

I won something fun...and..baby it's cold outside..and more

Brrrr it has been downright cold here lately. No, we don't have snow in North Florida, but we have had rain and very chilly days and nights. In fact we did have some sleet last night. Brrr. Yep, I'm a wimp when it comes to cold weather.
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Oh, and look at what I won recently!
Yay!
www.noblestudiosltd.blogspot.com

For my win I have chosen a really pretty bird locket from the shop. Stop by this shop on etsy if you like unique one of a kind jewelry with a vintage look and feel to it, or if you are in to Steampunk accessories.
Really super cool items.
www.noblestudiosltd.etsy.com
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Here is another recipe to share with you.

Buttermilk Walnut Pie
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1 stick butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 eggs
3 Tablespoons plain flour
1 pinch salt
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 nine inch pie crust
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Cream butter,sugar and vanilla together. Add eggs, flour and salt. Beat well. Sprinkle chopped walnuts into bottom of crust. Fold in buttermilk and pour mixture into crust. Bake at 300 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until set.
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Enjoy!
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Well..the holiday season is underway...here's wishing you some warm cozy days, and may you enjoy the season.
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~The Garden Goose!~

Hi Friends...a recipe to share and more

I trust that you all had a lovely Thanksgiving day. We had a few family members to visit and had a great time, eating and talking.:0)
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I have enjoyed the cooler weather, and it has finally been cold enough here to tentatively call it "winter"..at least for a couple of days...ha.
That is the funny thing about Florida living..our fall and winter weather is rather wacky at times. One thing that we can count on though in late November/December/January/February here is that usually rain will precede a cool spell..and this afternoon it has rained for a while so I expect by later tonight the weather will usher in a cool spell for us.
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Luckily all of my plants are still hanging in there and none as of yet have suffered any frost damage..knock on wood here.
I did move my prized jade plant indoors a few days ago and decided to try and start a few cuttings off of it. I have had the parent plant for about 5-6 yrs now and it is a lovely specimen.
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Oh! I wanted to tell you all to scoot on over to www.notquitejunecleaver.com and get your hands on a copy of Susan's first cookbook! It is a book devoted to everything "Pies"..good down home recipes you will want to add to your collection.
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Now here's a recipe I'd like to share.
This is so very easy, but oh so yummy. Give it a try the next time you want a fast, easy chicken meal.
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Baked Crispy Chicken
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8 boneless chicken breasts
1 stick of butter melted
1-2 cups Rice Krispies
Salt and Pepper to taste
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Dip chicken in melted butter, the roll in crushed Rice Krispies. Bake in shallow baking dish for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees until brown and juices run clear.
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Enjoy!
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Here's wishing you all a very lovely week! Thanks for stopping by.
~The Garden Goose!~

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving!
May you have a lovely day!
~The Garden Goose!~

Small Town Living compilation CD's now available

Wanted to let you all know that we have revised the Small Town Living Compilation Cd's to encompass all issues of the magazine through to Aug/Sept. 2009! That means that you receive 18 issues of the magazine on a cd! Over 1,000 pages of information!
What a terrific gift for yourself, a friend, or family member!
Stop by the website at www.stliving.net to order your copy now!

The Compilation CD Includes:

18 Issues of Small Town Living

Over 1022 Pages of Small Town Living Articles,

Stories and Photos.

Searchable Content - Find the stories and articles

you want in seconds.

Practical Advice on:

Gardening

Livestock

Small Business Guidance

Herbs

Crafting
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Check out this interview

Wanted to let you all know that my friend Susan posted a nice interview on her website with Ellyn Anne...the Apron Lady.
Check it out here:
www.notquitejunecleaver.com
Also Susan is having a lovely drawing to accompany the interview, don't miss that either.
So stop by and check it out, and find out what the "Tie One On Day" is all about too.
~The Garden Goose~

Hello there....

Hi there folks..I hope that you all are having a lovely week thus far.i have spent my weekend and part of this week out in my garage going through boxes upon boxes of items that I had packed for the move...decided that there had to be more things that we could avoid moving and that we could live without..and boy was I right. Goodness gracious! I now have 1/3rd less boxes packed up and a huge pile of things gathered for a garage sale.

I still have a few boxes left to go through the remainder of this week, but what a relief to have cleared out a fair amount more of unwanted items.

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I've taken the blog here back to the original format with the hopes that I'll be able to actually get on here to post as normal. After trying to spruce things up a bit I was unable to post on here or anything with the blog..so maybe just maybe going back to the original format might fix that for me.

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The tropical storm that blew through here luckily did no damage, we simply received some much needed rain from it.

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Along with trying to clear out our garage, and to get some things accomplished on the home front...I have also been busy trying to get the next issue of "Small Town Living" together. Writing an article and then trying to get submitters coordinated to get their submissions in on time. Sometimes that part of things is very, very frustrating for a magazine publisher...the getting the submitters on board and in gear to get things in on time

..this month has been frustrating to say the least on it . Ahh well..I really hope though that this issue is enjoyed by our readers.I just hope that the next issue goes a bit smoother than this one has in getting things together for it.

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Here is a recipe to share this week:

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Lemon Pudding

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3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch

1 cup light cream or half and half

1 cup whole milk

3 large egg yolks,lightly beaten

1 1/2 T. finely grated lemon zest

pinch of salt

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice,strained with pulp and seeds removed

2 T butter at room temperature

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In medium saucepan whisk together sugar,cornstarch to remove lumps.Add milk and cream,whisk til smooth.

Add egg yolks,lemon zest,and salt.

Cook over med.heat stirring frequently and then constantly.Until mixture coats the back of a spoon.(about 5 to 10 minutes)

Remove from heat,and stir in the lemon juice and butter.Position a mesh strainer over a heat proof glass bowl and pour pudding into strainer.. Use a spoon to push it through th strainer, sieving out the lemon zest.

Let cool to room temperature.Cover with plastic wrap and let chill at least 2 hours.

Serve chilled.6 servings.

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Have a great week!

~The Garden Goose!~

Good grief..technology can be a pain sometimes..

GEE WHIZ..I have tried for the last week to get onto all of my blogs as well as the ning forums for our Small Town Living site with no luck..my computer went on a real wonky fritz. So I am currently on my hubby's laptop writing all of my posts and we will be getting an external harddrive for my computer and transferring all of my photos onto that and then deleting a lot of things off of my computer with the hopes that it will then run a bit better for me. but..ugh..technology can be aggravating at times.
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well, we took a trip to Ocala last weekend to put in our bid on a home, but that fell through at the last minute as we did not wish to get drug into a bidding war on the home. So we continue to look for a home. Ours is being listed with a new agent who is very nice and seems to definitely have her act in gear compared to the last agent..this gal is a dynamo and quite helpful with advice, and a "go getter", so we really are hoping that things go quickly once we have the new agent.
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Weather here today has started to cool down again after this mornings rain shower.We have had a rather odd bit of Fall weather here..it just can't seem to decide whether or not to remain summertime or to go ahead and embrace the changing season :0)
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On another note my husband is hosting a giveaway, all you have to do is visit his shop at www.wilsongraphics.etsy.com and email him and tell him what you think of his work..then leave your address and you will receive a nice vinyl decal from his overstocked items...his email is pauldavidwilson at gmail dot com.
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I do hope that you all are having a great weekend. Here's wishing you a Happy Halloween too.
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~the Garden Goose!~

Just a wee bit busy here lately..

Things around here have been a wee bit busy as of late.

I've been working on cleaning out our garage a bit more. Trying to get more things downsized and cleared out.

And am bartering a few of the items for things that I actually can use/need at a new house. Things like crocheted dishcloths, some heirloom seeds that I don't have in my stash, and some retro looking fabric fat quarters. So it is thinning out things I don't want to move and swapping them for things that take up a lot less space and that I can wind up putting to good use. It is a win-win situation for all involved.Plus bartering is just plain fun.

Then I worked on weeding my potted plants..yep..somehow my potted plants out back wound up with their fair share of weeds in amongst the pots/plants...gee weeds are persistent aren't they? Then I had to move a couple of heavy terra cotta pots in with the grouping..boy a terra cotta pot filled with plants and soil gets heavy quickly. Next time I will make sure I use a dolly to move heavy things like that.

Today I spent all afternoon getting my house whipped back into shape..vacuuming and mopping and boxing up all the barter items to gt them ready to ship out.

Oh, and in case you haven't noticed..I have created a blog for "Small Town Living" check the side bar on the left, and I hope you'll stop by the blog and become a follower.:0)

Fall weather has finally arrived here, and wow! I'm loving it!
So very nice to be able to open the back door and leave it open for the breeze to drift through the house.And to open the windows too. Actually love to see curtains lightly swaying in the breeze.Something so peaceful and homey about it.

Stop by the "Small Town Living" blog and check out the recipe I've posted there this evening for "Crockpot Apple Butter".

I'll be updating "The Victory Gardener" blog too this evening, so be sure and pick up the latest gardening tip over there.

Thanks so very much for stopping by!
I'd love to know that you visited so please feel free to leave me a comment.
~The Garden Goose!~

Fun blog give away

Here is another great blog give away that you won't want to miss out on..trust me! :0)
Hurry on over and check it out.
You know you want to!
http://designdazzle.blogspot.com/2009/10/decal-giveaway.html

Have fun! ~The Garden Goose~!

Sewing Gadget Giveaway

For those of you that like to sew I came across this neat giveaway today.

Check it out.

The Original "How Much Fabric" reference cards.

http://grosgrainfabulous.blogspot.com/2009/10/how-much-fabric-card-guest-giveaway.html

~The Garden Goose~

Homeschooling Helps

My son and I recently completed a 155 page unit study on Dolphins.

I thought I'd share the link here to the unit study.

http://www.unitstudiesbygwen.com/

It had about 42 pages of printable worksheets to accompany the study.Approx. Grade 3-5 level.

We also visited the http://www.scholastic.com/winterstail/ website to watch the little video they have there about "Winter" a bottlenose dolphin who at age 3 months was caught in a crab trab and lost her tail...she is now 4 years old and resides at the Clearwater, FL. Marine Aquarium.A very inspiring little video about success despite the odds.

I think you and your child/children will enjoy both the unit study and the little video.

Have fun and Happy Homeschooling!

~The Garden Goose~

Dressing things up a bit...

I had gotten a little bit bored with the looks of things on my blog here, and decided I'd like to gussy it up a bit, do you like the new look? I do, and I hope that you do too. Sometimes we just need to add a little bit of flair here and there to things huh?

I've created a new blog today also..one that ties in with our Small Town Living magazine. You can check it out here:

http://www.small-town-living.blogspot.com/

Weather here has been hot and humid again..I sure would like for Fall to decide to stick around for a little bit.

Hard to believe that in about 2 months Christmas will be here already! Wow! where did the year go?

I've been trying to think of things to create on my new sewing machine.

I'll be participating in a Christmas garland swap over at http://www.smalltownliving.ning.com/

Why don't you stop by and become a member of the site and join the fun too?

We are completing a pinkeep swap right now, and the gals that were involved with that swap had a lot of fun creating pinkeeps for their swap partners.

Here's wishing you all a most lovely weekend!

~The Garden Goose~

Check out this "sweet" giveaway

This gal creates the sweetest items..trust me..definite "eye candy"! Check out her give away http://sweetbfolkart.blogspot.com/2009/10/first-annual-sweet-b-blog-buffet.html

~The Garden Goose~

New issue of Small Town living Online now!!

Just a little note to let you know all know that

the new Oct./November 2009 issue of Small Town Living e-zine is now available online at:

http://www.stliving.net/

Featured in this issue:

Buckeye Chickens

What We Learned Through Our CSA Adventure

My Journey To Veganism

Soap Making 101

The Do's and Don't's Of Moving To A Small Town

Gifts From the Pantry
....and more.

Please feel free to share the e-zine with family and friends. Thank you and Happy Fall!

Loving Fall!...and a little visitor

We finally have gorgeous Fall weather here in North Florida. The days have been at about the mid 70's and nights have been at about 54 degrees. Breezy, crisp clear air.

Love it!..and love the fact that I can now start throwing the windows open for fresh, crisp,cool air to breeze through my house. Yay!

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I was able to get some close up photos of a cardinal that makes our backyard his home turf...hubby used the bird sound application on his i-pod to attract the little guys attention..it did the trick. This little male cardinal came in quite closely and would land about 6 feet away from us, and sometimes even a little closer than that as the cardinal bird sounds played on the i-pod speaker.

I'm not sure if this little cardinal had mites on his head/beak area or if he is going through a molt, as he kept rubbing his beak against branches and the feathers around his beak area looked a wee scruffy..anyhow..I was delighted to be able to get a few close shots with the camera. Enjoy!

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I hope that you are enjoying Fall in your area too.

Thanks for stopping by!

~The Garden Goose!~

Awesome Garage Sale Finds

It was a terrific garage saling day around here yesterday!..which to be honest with you is a very rare occurence in our area to be able to score such nice vintage finds. But score I did! I am still excited about the cute/fun finds I mananged to acquire yesterday. Here are photos of what I found.Ooops.... and I still forgot to get photos on here of the 2 vintage cameras I found..I'll add those in a next post....But here is everything except for the 2 awesome antique cameras I found.

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cake and pie keepers from 1970's.(cake keeper was $12.50 and pie keeper was $5)

chicken figurine and chicken candy holder... from late 40's and mid 50's. (Found for $1 each)

little pug dog figurine..unsure of age but it is old..and old dog print in frame..this was created by the Wilson Chemical Company around the 1930's-1940's they would sell these little prints to customers for 25 cents when the customers would buy their Cloverine Salve. I could not find much else in regards to info/value on this print other than the name being "The Last of the Litter" ..this print in very old frame too with wire wrapped hanger. (Got this picture for $1 /pug was $1)

wee dutch shoes/child sized were $1

little cherry embroidered doily /old on linen..was 25 cents

modern garden quotes book was 50 cents

Awesome vintage child's umbrella in excellent shape...scored this cute find for all of 50 cents!

And.... I scored 2 antique ladder back chairs in excellent condition with rush cane seats for $10 each!

Then this vintage wooden folding chair for $3 I'll need to repaint the yellow chair as I was unaware when I bought it that it had a fair amount of mildew on the underside of the chair and a strong musty/mildewy scent..so I will have to clean it with vinegar to kill the mildewy smells and probably sand and repaint..but I do like that cheery yellow color though..but may go with painting it a robin's egg bue..unsure of what color it will wind up....may keep it brilliant yellow, but it does have to be repainted as in currrent state the smell is a bit overpowering..so I'll have to scrub it and possibly have to sand it too.

then I found this little Chrysanthemum mug with underplate shaped like a flower. I'll be listing tis in my etsy shop as I already own a set of 4 of these... it is quite old..by the Ardalt company...this one still has the old foil label on the bottom of the mug.

I'll post my vintage camera finds later on this evening though.

I really had fun finding these treasures and am pleased with them..Hope you enjoyed my little "show and tell"

Thanks for stopping by and joining in my bit of "vintage finds" excitement!

~The Garden Goose!~

Wee sewing project...

I've been having fun with my new sewing machine lately.... I had not sewn anything in about 9 years. Have not had a sewing machine for that long either, so hubby bought me a new sewing machine about a week and a half ago as an early birthday present...and I've been having fun getting back into sewing.
Here's a little Scotty dog mini pillow I made yesterday. Isn't it cute?

I really like it, and will probably find a way to add gusset to the belly area and make it a 4 legged version.

Thanks for stopping by . Really appreciate it when I have visitors, and love to read your comments too.

Hope that you have had a lovely Monday!

~The Garden Goose~

A little painting...and more..

Created this wee painting today..after about 5 years or so of having not dabbled in water color painting. I created this image..it is about 4 inches tall by about 4 inches wide.After I painted the image I added pen and ink details.

Just a wee something to try to get the creativity going again.:0)

Then I wanted to share with you another one of my vintage circus themed items.

That I'll be using in my new home..once we get to that point..ha.Anyhow..I like this little guy and can't wait to get him out to display him in a new home.

I'm not into those weird creepy/scary clowns..but I do like vintage, folksy clown and circus type things..ones that have a slightly European look to them like this one has..very hard to find them like this. Either the clowns are too cutesy-kiddy,or too creepy to suit the look I am wanting in the new home...so I was delighted to have been able to find this one a while back.Doesn't it look cheery? And I love the mix of yellow and blue.

Well, we have had a bit of rain here today and yesterday..which is good for the bean plants though..I have a few varieties of heirloom bean plants growing right now.(Jackson Wonder Butterbean, Queen Anne Blackeye Pea, Provider Bush Bean, and Royal Burgundy Bush Bean) Don't the little seedlings look great?

I hope you all have had a good weekend thus far!

Thanks for stopping by.

~The Garden Goose!~