Life's a blank canvas; add whimsy!

This is my friend Heidi. She runs a successful decorative painting business. Heidi and her husband Chuck also are farmers (Thompson's Painted Hill Farm) who raise heritage breed cows and pigs in Wells, Minnesota; their farm products are Certified Naturally Raised, which is a designation on par with products that are Certified Organic, though meant for small producers for whom reporting requirements mandated by the USDA program are prohibitively expensive.

Heidi is also a brand new author! Today, she handed me her book, part memoir part farmstead cookbook, when she stopped by to spice up the old granary.

I tell you, when I look at this picture of Heidi, I have a hard time picturing her tracking around the farm in muck boots. Yet I've seen it with my own eyes.

I first learned Heidi was writing a book in January, and when I got my hands on her manuscript, I couldn't believe the stories held within. You see, Heidi and Chuck were raised in a metro area. Their first house was in Minneapolis. You know the neighborhood; it's the one where you can see into your next door neighbor's bathroom everytime you grab a glass of water from your kitchen faucet! Heidi has such a story in her book, along with all the trial and error her and Chuck went through as they transitioned from city to country.

Her tale resonates with me, though she and Chuck dove into the deep end of farming. I'm still sitting on the edge of the pool, splashing water with my feet. Heidi and Chuck also have five dogs, five BIG dogs, each one sweeter than the next. The dogs have their own chapter.

Heidi's recipes are pretty terrific too, and there's lots of them. I recommend using the pork or beef or chicken they raise on Thompson's Painted Hill Farm. Visit their web site to find out where to buy it, or buy direct. Heidi also includes a few recipes from my other farmer friend, Janice Guldan, who happens to be one of the best cooks I know.

You can learn more about Heidi's book on her blog. Heidi says at the end of her book that she's just opinionated enough to be dangerous -- to herself. I hope not.

After handing me my autographed copy, Heidi took stock of the blank canvas known also as "the big birdhouse." Personally, I think she spent more time looking at the ladders than the building.

Heidi's two hour break from farm chores in Wells gave us this. She promised to return next week to plant, I mean paint, the other side. I'm thinking this is just what a boxy, old farm building needs -- whimsy!

I'll update you when it's finished.

Today, there'd probably be a law against this...

This picture, borrowed from the Michigan historical society, depicts a record number of logs ever loaded and hauled on a sleigh, at least as of 1893 when the photo was taken. Cool, huh?

I recall history, in school, was limited mostly to dates, wars, and consequent land exchanges. We never heard about the lives of immigrant loggers and miners and bootleggers, hearty citizens all. Pity.

How does your garden grow?

Hubby and I have been taking gardening classes on Monday nights this spring. We've learned a lot. For instance, we know (now) that we planted trees that have no business growing on this farm and we know (now) that successfully seeding two acres of pasture is nothing short of a miracle.

We know how long our grass blades should be after they are mowed (3 inches!).

We know how to prune, or at least, we were reminded how to prune. Pruning is one task at which we're actually pretty good.

We know when and how to divide perennials and we know not to waste money on big expensive tomato plants and big expensive trees. Our teacher told us a small, $80 tree and a large, $300 tree will be exactly the same size in five years. It's reassuring to learn we've done some things right! We also learned to never, EVER put weighty landscaping under a tree or bother the root zone of a tree we want to keep growing.

We also learned that wind can cut a garden's production by as much as 30 percent. Today, with gusts topping 37 miles per hour, I'm glad my seedlings are tucked safely in the garage. As for the grapevines, well, there's not much I can do for them except pray.

Finally, our education has done nothing to settle the disagreement hubby and I have over whether or not to prune up the mighty cedars. He says YES; I say the trees are holy and should be left alone. It's a good thing we've been married for so long because on some things it's okay to disagree.