Morning Bray Farm

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
   That mark our place; and in the sky
   The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
   Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
         In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
   The torch; be yours to hold it high.
   If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
         In Flanders fields.

 – John McCrae

Right outside our kitchen window, a hummingbird sits in her nest. The nest is leftover from last year and was built on top of one of our porch swing chains. To give you some perspective, not much more than a quarter would fit easily into the nest.

I wish we could figure how to get a better picture without disturbing her or the nest. For now, we’ll stick to taking pictures through the window. In the meantime, you should check out this post from one of Carson’s visits to Morning Bray Farm last summer, when she took some amazing photos of our hummer babies.

Last week, in an effort to help us connect with Nigel, C in WI was kind enough to share a recipe for Paco’s favorite treats. Paco is C’s shy, rescued Peruvian Paso. According to C, these treats bring Paco to his knees begging. Hmm. Would they have the same effect here at Morning Bray Farm?

First, here’s the recipe for Paco’s favorite treats:

1 c. bran cereal
1 c. grated carrots
1 c. molasses
1 1/2 c. flour.

Mix together. Put teaspoon full dough on greased baking sheet. Flatten with fork and sprinkle of sugar (like Peanut Butter cookies). 350 for 15 min. 

We were fairly certain what the outcome of our baking experiment would be. Not surprisingly, we discovered we have four cookie monsters.

Bernard thought taking a picture of the treats was a ridiculous waste of time.

Ellsworth thought they were delish and immediately asked for a second.

Fergus thought he had died and gone to burro heaven. Keep in mind during all of this I was hollering at Don, “Wait, you all are going too fast. I need to take pictures!”

Oh, sweet Nigel. Would you like a cookie sweetheart?

Paco loves them, so you will too. Better hurry though, before Fergus gets it.

Oh dear! It fell on Ellsworth’s butt. (This place is a madhouse.)

Let’s chase that puppy down before Ellsworth runs off with it, okay?

Here you go, buddy. I then heard Nigel exclaim something about a par-tay in his mouth.

Meanwhile, I turned around to find Ellsworth still pleading with Don for a second cookie. As was Bernard’s, Ellsworth’s upper lip reach was quite impressive.

After everyone had their second cookie, Ellsworth got to lick the plate. I noticed something else going on then too. Look at Bernard’s mouth. He’s savoring that molasses goodness.

They all did it. Too cute, I tell ya.

Dear C in WI,

Thank you so much for sharing your recipe for Paco’s favorite treats with our mom. We loved them and think you and Paco ROCK. Hugs to you and Paco from all of us. 

Love,

The Boys ♥

Last night, as I was going through random pictures taken over the weekend, I came across a couple of shots that made me crack up. I’m sure you can guess who’s that donkey.

This picture is very a la Loch Ness Monster. (This picture reeeely makes me crack up.)

 Did you figure it out? Just in case you haven’t, here’s a hint for ya.

Don is an excellent cook. He has a knack for cooking without recipes (I do not; please give me my measuring cups and spoons) and is good at finding and making yummy stuff on a whim. ♥  Take yesterday, for example. He was flipping through the PARADE Magazine from our Sunday newspaper and came across this recipe for Grilled Stuffed Jalapeño Chilis.

Grilled Stuffed Jalapeño Chilis

4 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
2 oz. soft goat cheese
1 1/4 cups shredded white cheddar cheese
2 green onions (green and pale-green part), thinly sliced
Salt and black pepper
12 large jalapeño chilis, halved lengthwise, stemmed and seeded
1 heaping Tbsp ancho chili powder

1. Heat grill to medium.

2. Whisk together the cream cheese and goat cheese in a medium bowl until smooth. Fold in the cheddar and green onions; season with salt and pepper. Fill each jalapeño half with about 2 Tbsp of the mixture; sprinkle the top with ancho powder.

3. Place chilis on the grill, filling-side-up, and cook until slightly charred and tender, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Seriously? De-lish.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to sit in the bottom of a feed tub?  Just in case you have, The Boys of Morning Bray Farm present Suppertime. 

Call me eccentric if you must, but I think I could listen to the boys eat all day long. ♥  

Living in Albuquerque is the first time I’ve ever had roses. I always thought they were too high maintenance. I’m happy to say I’ve been proven wrong.

The unedited photo:

I decided to have fun being artsy yesterday. Versions of the same photo:

Don: She’s my baby,

Me: My Kassie,

Don and me, in harmony: My little baby Kassie.

This is Kassie ‘s song. We sing it to her a lot.

Well, she is a baby. You remember how when your parents got annoyed with you, they called you by your first and middle name? That’s when she’s Kassandra Dee.

For example, we call her Kassandra Dee when she eats bees and her entire face swells up like a balloon. Oh, Kassandra Dee. We still love you so. Oh, how we love you.

‘Cause she’s my baby, my Kassie, my little Baby Kassie. Uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh. I always throw that uh-huh part in at the end. She likes that.  ♥

The other day Carson and I were talking about how when we blog about a particular burro, cat, dog, donkey, goat, horse, pig or sheep, it often happens that particular critter becomes the resident star at 7MSN or at Morning Bray that day. 

For example, yesterday I found myself actually telling Bernard that he made Cat snort her Diet Coke, Duffylou loved how his legs were crossed, C in WI thinks his mug belongs on greeting cards, Ken and Mary Berry thought his picture would make a great book jacket picture (by the way, he immediately began writing his memoirs), and June thought he might like using the rake as an Awful Good Buttscratcher (Bernard also thought that was a fabulous idea). 

In any case, mostly due to his shyness, poor Nigel really hasn’t had his chance to shine, so it’s all about him today. He’s a gorgeous boy.

I know I can’t rush it, but I so badly want to hug him and brush him. And wipe away his eye boogers. He still won’t let us touch him, but he does seem to be more and more comfortable with us as each day passes.

Baby steps are fine, buddy.

I can’t wait to see more of his personality emerge over time. For now, I know he’s a very quiet, shy and gentle soul.

And I think there are some serious wheels turning behind those beautiful eyes.

Oh, and I promise to pass along each and every one of your comments to Nigel today.  ♥