Hello Spring?-- Not so much.

  While we were at the feed store yesterday Mom picked up two tomato plants and a packet of seeds.

  It isn't going to get out of the thirties today. It's raining on and off. I heard thunder last night. When I woke up today everything was covered in ice. A few weeks ago the newspaper's weatherman told  people to go ahead and plant their gardens. Chanel 13 tried to say what temperatures it would be at what time last night. They were off by 11 degrees the night before that, predicting 37 degrees. There was ice in all the outside animal's water that morning. I don't know if the local forecasters should be commended for their never give-up attitude or checked into a padded room.
 
   Speaking of never giving up: Mom is planting some of the seeds.

   I'm making sourdough for a pizza. Happy Fat Tuesday!

              Thank you for reading Bats Bizarre's offical blog. Have a bat-tastic day!



 
  

Farmer's Market in Rosenberg

   There is going to be a Farmer's Market in downtown Rosenberg. It'll be open Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., or until the produce sells out, starting March 15.  I'm going to have to go there and check it out one of those Saturdays. I've never been to a Farmer's Market.
  Apparently you have fill out some forms and be approved by the board before you can became a vender. I'd like to be able to sell eggs, whatever extras we have from the garden, and of course some crafts there. But it'll take a bit of research. I have no idea how much the booth fee is going to be yet. It's at the Third Street Park, I don't even know where that is.

   I'm kind of phoning this blog in; tomorrow is my birthday and I'm taking it easy. Well, it's the day I celebrate my birthday on non-Leap Years.

                        Thank you for reading Bats Bizarre's offical blog. have a bat-tastic day!

P.S. I called the woman running the farmer's market. It costs $10 for a booth, and you have to bring a table (they don't actually have booths), plus there is a $25 dollar membership fee.
  
  


  
  

Don't Loose Chickens to Hawks.

Despite, the nice weather we're having here Mom and I haven't been able to let the girls outside for very long. Why, you ask? Hawks. They're not that bad most of the year, but every winter hawks from up North inundate the area. Which wouldn't be a problem if they only hunted mice and small birds and left the chickens alone. Unfortunately, they do not.
We lost our rooster to hawks last year, (That's how we ended up needing Abe) ever since then we do everything we can to avoid losing anymore chickens. Here are four pieces of advice for keeping your chickens safe.

   -Don't let them out when there are hawks about. Listen for their tell-tale screech, watch for large shadows flying over head, or large birds perched in neighboring trees, telephone wires, or fences. Don't let then out that day unless you can stay outside and around the flock while they are out.

  -Put a cover on your run. Putting wire on top of your run can also detour other predators.

  -Fishing line. I've heard that stringing fishing line over your run will detour hawks. They see the line shining in the sun and don't want to mess with it.    

  -If you can't put a cover on your run and the fishing line doesn't work at least make sure you don't build a run that is long and narrow. A hawk can swoop right into a long narrow run and get your chickens.


         Thank you for reading Bats Bizarre's offical blog. Have a bat-tastic day.

Make your own Knitting Bag

Need a bag to hold your supplies? Cut up an old pair of pants, the only thing you have to buy are the handles. That's how I made mine.

      It's not quite as neat as some of those roll up needle holders, but I can store those tiny ball of leftover yarn in it.

 One of the best things about using an old pair of pants are the pre-made pockets. If don't sew the top part down you can have two pockets in one spot.
   (Plus jean fabric doesn't unravel as easily as most fabric does and is very study.) 

  I cut the legs off the pants, so they were the same length, 21" long in this case. Then I cut up the seam so that they were flat panels of fabric.
   I lined the pieces up and sewed them together.
  After that I folded the top edge of the bag over to hold the handles. I just eye balled it when cut a slit in the folded over part for the handles to go out of.
   If you want a more finished look you could use chalk to mark where you need to cut the fold for the hands to come out of cut there and stitch the edges to limit unraveling before you sew the fold over lengthwise.

Now it's all about customization! I put the pockets inside by sewing the original pockets inside the bag. It was so easy I'm thinking of adding a couple more. All you need are an old pair of pants, a sewing machine, something to use as a handle, and an imagination.

  

                            Thank you for reading Bats Bizarre's offical blog. Have a bat-tastic day!