A warm January

Usually in January it is cold here.  We have a few days of warmth to thaw things out a bit and then its right back to cold winter.  This year January has been surprisingly warm.  We had our January thaw like always and then we were cold again as expected.  What was not expected was the 52 degrees we had this last week and multiple days above 45 degrees in the last 2 weeks. The kids little ice pond has really not been a pond all month.  Even in the image above its a slushy mess and those are sweaters the kids are wearing not winter coats. 

 

The snow was melting fast and even the brook is open enough that the ducks have moved off their pond to play in the fresh water.  You know it has to be a warm January when Ticky Ticky (our cat for those who do not know) was outside wandering around.  The first snowflake of the season usually has her housebound till spring.

 

We were literally having tee shirt weather in the middle of winter! It has been so nice.  Almost seemed like perhaps we were heading into spring extra early this year.  The weather was even cooperating with all the frosty mornings and warm sunny days (one can wish cant she) but the reality is tomorrow we will have snow again and I'm sure the cold will return and stay for a while longer.  Thankfully its almost February and that is one month close to spring.  The sun warms us more each day and winter will succumb to the warmth.  Until that happens I will just be glad we had all these nice days of fun in the winter sun.

Stained Glass Bugs

Stained glass grasshopper 

So we are in the middle of a Bug themed 4-H year and we are looking for projects that we can do in the winter.  It doesn't take much searching time to know there are lots of awesome ideas out there that the kids would love to do.  The problem is they either require you to work outdoors or take multiple days to finish.  Our club only meets once a month and we have lots of members under the age of 10 so they do not want to be waiting months to make one project.  Oh yeah and it will be cold in February when we have our next meeting so we needed a one day indoor project and something we haven't done already.  There was a challenge worth searching for.  After polling the members as to what they wanted to do and much searching on the internet I came up with a Stained Glass Bug sun catcher.   
Now I know what your thinking and yes I just said we have kids under the age of 10 that we are going to try to teach this to but we also have lots of great helpers at our meetings so they should be okay to do the project as well. 
Now the fun part teaching myself first. We wont see the results from the 4-H members for a few weeks but I did find my learning experience fun so now I will share it with all of you.

First thing I had to do was get the supplies we were going to need and of course I was pretty sure I had none of them.  Well guess what, I had almost everything we need right at home?  Its shocking and even I'm not to sure how but I had scissors, pliers and unknown to me I had solder.  Thanks to the Hubby for letting me know the copper pipes that supply our plumbing require solder and flux to repair, both of which are needed for stained glass.  The one big obvious item we didn't have was stained glass and it was not an investment I wanted to run right out and make as its kind of pricey and what if the kids couldn't do it after I bought it.  Thankfully I do have a neighbor who is already skilled in stained glass and was willing to give the club a few pieces of hers to work with.  Big Thanks!!!! to my neighbor Sue!!!!
Now if you are looking at the pictures you are right I did not mention all the supplies needed so if you are thinking of giving stained glass a try here is what you are going to need:
Stained glass, Copper Foil Tape, Solder, Soldering Gun, Glass Cutter, Clamps, Scissors, and I recommend basic safety items like glasses and a mask (it smokes a bit).

First ever stained glass project

And here it is my first masterpiece.......Omg it was so awful and yes I kept it as its a great learning experience.  As you can tell by the grasshopper I have gotten much better with my soldering ability and honestly I can not wait to try to make even more.  This might be a new favorite hobby....till spring hits and I can go out side anyway.

First thing you have to do is figure out what shape you want and then cut the glass.  If you are unsure if how to cut the glass to shape I recommend Youtube as I probably watched 10 different videos on there before I tried it myself.  And yes they make it look easy but after you try it you will see it really is not that hard to do.  As for my bug, I went with a betel shape as it seemed like an easy project with only 3 pieces to attach.  I drew it out myself and then just cut the glass according to what I though it should look like.  Guess its a betel shape right?

Next up was putting the copper foil around it.  This is an important step as the solder will have to adhere to the copper to connect the pieces.  I had to be sure to center the glass on the foil so that it would evenly overlap on each side.  After the tape is in place it is important to smooth out the edges and corners of the foil.  This can be done with a wooden or plastic surface.  I used a wooded clothespin that I had taken apart.

Next step was applying the flux to the foil.  The flux is needed to help the solder flow over the foil edges.  It literally takes just seconds to do.

Now the soldering starts.  Fist you will need to put a small bead of solder on the edges you are trying to connect.  My project was small so it really only took 2 beads but larger projects will have more connecting areas and need more joints soldered.

Well it wasn't the best quality solder job but it was still much better then the first attempt I had.  I did decide that I would have preferred more then 2 solder seams though as they stick out a lot compared to the thin edges.  Also I should have probably done a better job smoothing out my foil edges but it will work for a first real attempt.  Keep in mind you need to do each side of the foil tape and you will need to apply the flux to the other side as well.  Another thing to think about is the glass will be getting hotter as you solders so turn it over with care.  I used pliers to flip mine.

 

Next was soldering the edges (or tinning as they call it in the stained glass world).  This little bug was already quite warm and holding it in my hand while hot solder was running at me was just not my thing so I got out the clamps and rigged them to support each other.  The solder will only stick to the copper tape and not the plastic camps so I did not have to worry about that but the solder did drip off once and splatter however it did not get me.  Just be aware that the "drips" could happen and result in a potential burn.
Also I did reapply the flux to the sides to make the solder flow quickly and due to the size of my bug it really was done in seconds.

Adding legs to the bug was just a test run for me as I really didn't research how others had done it but I assumed it was just simply attaching solder to the body. That process worked well for the size bug I made but when I attached them the grasshopper above it was not as stable as I would have liked.  I have since found another method for attaching legs by tinning heavier copper wire (applying flux then coating the wire with solder) and attaching that to the body.  The heavier wire does hold shape better then the solder however I don't have an image of that to share.

And there you have it my first stained glass bug.  I know its far from perfect but I'm still quite happy with it.  I have made a few other ones since this and the grasshopper and my solder seams have improved quite a bit so maybe by the time the 4-H meeting gets here in February I will at least know what I'm trying to teach the kids.  Who knows maybe they will be better at it then me?

Pruning Apple Trees

We signed for the property Dec. 2, 2005 and moved in completely Feb. 1, 2006.  Middle of winter not ideal for moving but we did it anyway.  Its also not the time to see how many apple trees are going very close to the house.  So at that time we had no idea we would have such wonderful apples to harvest each year.  Honestly with all the huge pine trees that had taken over around the house we didn't even really know there were so many yummy apple trees here.

 
At first we really did not pay much attention the trees other then they were apple trees so they were spared in our clearing out around the house.  We were too busy getting things done here.  We had a new baby (our first), we were newlyweds and getting a manageable hold on our fixer upper house was taking all our times so apples really were not the priority. 
With in a few years we started noticing the apples and the color was not all just red but yellow and green ones too and the taste....Delicious!  Needless to say the apples became part of our regular harvest.

Harvesting the Macintosh Tree.  Its tall!

One of the yellow apple trees by the house.  Too Tall!

Harvesting them was not an easy task at all though.  Over years of neglect the trees have grown out of control.  Just to reach the bottom limbs on the Macintosh tree it took all 3 extensions of our roof rake attached the apple picker we made using a basket form a drop light and a broom handle......these trees are tall. 

Trying to keep one of our smaller apple trees from becoming the giants the rest have grown to be. 

Each year we say we are going to prune them and each year we run out of time for one reason or another.  Then last fall happened and we were a crazy busy family with so much happening that the apples all pretty much had to fall to be harvested.  With lots of critters both ours and the wild ones we barely got any of a very good harvest year.  I literally had to buy apples just to make a pie.  That was the last time for that!  With temps nearing 50 degrees (in Jan?!?) the Hubby headed out to get the job done.  We will need to keep after these trees now and hopefully we will also be able to prune enough top out of them to get them down to a manageable height before we are too old to get up there on ladders.

This is our Granny Smith Apple Tree.  It did not come with a tag on it when we bought the property but judging from the taste and the fact the the big apples stay green guess they must be Granny Smith?  They sure make a great pie either way.

We know it will take a few years to trim the trees down with out harming them but this is a step in a much needed direction.
And don't worry we are not wasting all those limbs.  One good thing leads to another and right now we have some very happy goats.  They are stripping the bark of them fast as we can put them in there.

 

Bird Seed Grocery Bag

How many of our readers are bird watchers?  We love watching the wild birds here.  So much that we devoted our whole first year with our 4-H club to learning all about birds. My kids basically know the name of every wild bird that stops by the feeders now.  So it was a great learning experience for them as well.
We did not always have tons of birds to feed here.  Back in 2006 (our first winter here) I put out the feeders and nothing came to them (maybe a chickadee or 2 but really not many).  My mom always fed the birds as did her mom so not having them here was a bit of a let down for me. I was determined to have birds to watch all year round.   It took a few years to get them to move in from the woods to the feeders but with persistence each year more and more came.  So many that now we have tons of them visiting each day.  In an effort to keep them coming back year after year we also have to buy lots of seed for them.  Lots like 40lbs of sunflower seeds and this will not be enough for the whole winter even when mixed with two other smaller seed bags.
So with tons of feed bags (from feeding our critters) and bird seed bags we have been having fun finding uses for the sacks.  We have had quite a few projects from them too.  They have been used for everything.  From props on parade floats to aprons for our 4-H members to use at meetings.  And of course this particular bag was just too pretty not to keep for myself so I turned it into something I would use regularly, a grocery shopping bag.

This bag looks great and works perfect too.  The bag will hold just as much as 3 of those wimpy plastic shopping bags and since I customized it with a longer handle then most shopping bags I can still put larger items in it and still carry it on my shoulder.

Want to make  your own, here is what you will need and some step by step pictures of making mine:
Sewing machine
Thread
Scissors
Sunflower Seed Bag.

Step 1
Cut the bottom off your your bag and turn it inside out.  I then trimmed the bottom till I had the correct size/image on the bag that I wanted for the completed bag.

 
If  you need to keep the back right side out to cut the images correctly you could do that I could see the image though the bag on this particular one so inside out worked for me.



Step 2
Seam all the way around the bottom of the bag to give it a double layer for the bottom seam. This step is optional but I did it to give the bag more strength for the heavier loads.  Then sew the bottom of the bag together again along the new seam.

 

Step 3
Open you bag (still inside out) and form the base by pulling the corners out till you have the desired width you would like your bag.  Do the same for both sides and then sew them straight across.

 

Step 4

On each side cut off the excess corner.  I did a double seam and a zigzag stitch on the edges to prevent any unraveling of the bag.

 

Step 5

Turn your bag right side out and adjust your corners to for the correct shape.

 

Step 6

Trim the top off your bag till you have the desired size height to your bag.  Allow enough extra to put a double fold on the top seam.

 

Step 7

Make your straps from the extra material that was cut from the top and bottom of the bag.  I chose the slimmer piece from the top and then cut my bottom material down to match so each one would be the same width as a finished product. If you wanted to you could skip this step and add a purchased canvas strap for your bag. 
To make my handles I simply folded each edge in 1/2 inch and then folded the whole thing in half.  Then I put a seam on each side of it to complete the strap.  Remember you will need 2 straps.

  

Step 7

Attach your straps to your bag.  I chose to have longer straps on my bag but if you wish them to be shorter you may want to cut your straps down a bit.  I sewed my straps to my bag using an X and then I even went back and reinforced a few of the seams for strength.  Once you have attached all 4 corners of the straps your bag is completed. 

You can enjoy knowing that not only made it yourself but you are helping save the planet one wimpy shopping bag at a time.  Or thanks to the size of my bag, 3 shopping bags at a time.

Bugs in January

Being Team Clover 4-H Clubs leader I am always trying to come up with something new and different at each meeting and sometimes it is not easy to find things that will entertain each member.  Usually we have multiple projects per meeting so there is something of interest for everyone.  I am happy to report that I may have succeeded in both projects at this particular meeting.  For January we did 2 different type of bug art projects and while at first coloring with crayons and twirling paper didn't sound fun to the kids I think they actually had fun with it.  

As our year of learning about bugs/insects pushes on we are stuck in the middle of our two coldest months.  Finding bugs in below zero temps is not an easy task so we have been going into our creative side of bug study by making bug art.  Members were broken into groups and then they chose a bug to study and then create. Member first had to decide as a group which bug they were learning about.  Then they had to fill out a study form of their bug with at least 3 facts.  When they were done each member made a Paper Quilled image of their bug.  The bugs chosen to learn about by the members were Caterpillars, Butterflies, Flies, and Dragon Flies.  These bugs made for some pretty amazing bug art projects.

As I had mentioned above we did the Paper Quilling bugs but you will notice another art form in the photo.  When the group projects were completed members were able to make their own Word Bugs using their names to make a bug and personalize them as they wished.   
Looks like fun doesn't it?  Which project do you think you want to try?  Follow the links above for our simple directions

Word Bugs

What we have here is a rare, one of a kind image of the "Bull" bug. 

Or it could be just one our most recent 4-H Club's art projects.  We are focusing on bugs this year in our club but since its the below zero temps of January the bugs are all hiding someplace waiting on warm weather. 
To keep with our bug theme we had to get "creative" in our bug projects.  What's more creative then a Personalized Art Project using your name to make a bug.
Do you see our name in there?  Bull?  I think it looks sort of moth like or a leaf eater kind of bug.  What do you think it looks like?  Either way it was really fun to make and twice as easy.

Want to give it a try yourself?  Here are some step by step instructions for you.  First you will need to be able to read backwards, write with you opposite hand and look at an image upside down.  Just kidding, this easy project took most of my club members less then 15 minutes to make.  It uses the basic Kindergarten skills of tracing with markers, coloring with crayons and cutting lines with scissors.  Of course you will need to be able to write a word, hence the name "Word" Art but the end result is really quite astonishing considering the effort that is required.

Here are the supplies you will need:

Word art supplies

• Water Color Paper (regular white printer paper will work if you in a jam)
• Water Color Paints
• Crayons
• Permanent Markers (we like Sharpie the best)
• Scissors or paper cutter 
• Picture frame

Step 1

Cut your paper to the size of the frame you are using.  I used my paper cutter to get nice straight edges but you could easily drawn the edges and cut them with scissors (some members did this).  I recommend this step first as we waited till we were already done on a few of them and then some images had to be altered to fit the frames.

Step 2

Fold your paper in half and write the word you would like to turn into a bug on the fold.  Since we were personalizing our bugs we used our names.  Keep in mind when writing your name the beginning and end of the word you choose should touch the fold. 
Cursive writing is the best method for keeping a solid line flowing from start to finish but its not necessary.  We have a few younger members in our club and cursive is not something they have learned yet so they wrote their names and just connected each letter with a loop at the bottom (sort of like cursive). 
This simple word will be half of your bugs body.

Step 3

Fold you paper in half again so the ink side is on the outside of the paper.  Put the ink side of your paper against the window.  Using the light shining through the window trace you word on the other half of the paper.  It will appear as you are writing your word backwards at this point.   When you open the paper flat it will be the other half of your bugs body.
*note* this is best done on a sunny day for better image transfer to the other side of the paper.  We were working late into the evening so it was getting hard to read.

         

Step 4

Examine your bugs body.  It should touch at the beginning and end of the word.  If not this is an easy fix.  You will notice the last "L" did not come together at the end so we fixed it with a little connecting "V" shape.  This is not a necessary shape you can put what every you would like to there but something will need to be added to close the body shape.  Other wise you will not be able to color the full body shape if it does not connect as at least 2 points.

Step 5

Draw eyes on your bug and color it with crayons.  You can put eyes anywhere you would like and as many as you think your bug will need.  For your bugs colors, you can use any colors you want as well.  After all its your personal bug make it the way you want it to look.

Step 6 

Your almost done all that is left to do is finish and frame your art.  At this point your word should look like a bug and you could be done with your project if you wished.  However if you want to add a background to it now would be the time to do that.  Using watercolor paint simply paint around  your bug.  Watercolor paint works the best as it doesn't paint over the crayon.  You can mix colors like I did or use just one color or not paint it at all.  I was trying to camouflage my bug on a leaf so I chose brown and green but you can use any colors you want.
If you painted your back ground I recommend you wait for it to dry but then place your picture in the frame you have chosen and presto you are done.

The finished product is pretty awesome if you ask me.  Its a great creative way to work learning about bugs into any project.  I'm sure it could be used many other ways as well not just to make bugs.
After looking at it for a little while now my picture appears to have a bit of a face property to it as well.  Couldn't you just see this being a head attached to a strange body from.....Maybe that is another project in itself.