I was out with Peggy and Tina this morning, watering the garden while they enjoyed their morning free range, when I heard some familiar clucking. This cluck didn't come from my hens, though, but from somewhere nearby. The noise was faint, but it sounded just like the loud morning clucks Peggy and Tina make before I let them out.

So, it appears we have some chicken-loving neighbors. This doesn't surprise me, honestly, but it's nice to get some confirmation. It also made me feel better about the noise my hens make. They can get pretty rowdy first thing in the morning, and while they don't crow like roosters, they can certainly make their presence known. I have always reassured myself that a few boisterous clucks are nothing compared to the more frequent noise of dogs barking and helicopters flying overhead. Hearing those distant clucks today just made me feel happy and calm, so hopefully that's how my neighbors feel, too. So far, we haven't had any complaints.

Speaking of like-minded neighbors, Dakota and I had a fun time at the Freedom Gardens event last Sunday. We met our blog friends from Ramshackle Solid, and chatted with many other friendly and interesting folks who are, like us, finding out how fun and empowering backyard "farming" can be. I like the idea of joining a community in Los Angeles that's really committed to living sustainably. So, I think we'll attend more of these events in the future.

For the first time ever, I have successfully grown broccoli. In previous years, I would happily plant my seeds in the late Fall, and by the time the sprouts got about an inch tall, some unseen pest would swoop in and gobble them down to tiny green nubs.

This year, I planted my broccoli with low expectations. But, somehow, they survived. It may be because I planted the seeds towards the middle of my plot, mixed in with hardier mustard greens. Perhaps the bugs were so distracted nibbling on those greens that they never got around to chowing down on the broccoli seedlings. Whatever the reason, I now have some lovely broccoli crowns developing.



And now I'm wondering... how do I know when to harvest them? I'd like to let the crown grow as large as possible. But I don't want to wait so long that the broccoli goes to seed. Do you just have to guess, or is there some secret to broccoli timing someone can share with me?

Maybe I'll ask for tips tomorrow at the Freedom Garden event I'm attending. Eric over at Ramshackle Solid tipped me off about this film screening and pot luck, and I'm really looking forward to meeting him and other like-minded LA folks on Sunday evening.

The rain is making me giddy. I just can't stop planting things in the breaks between storms. In addition to various bushes, I've had the opportunity to plant a couple of fruit trees to add to our backyard orchard. To be honest, the backyard orchard is more of a hope than a reality at the moment. But, with all this rain and some careful care, I could be harvesting fruit year-round in a couple of years.

Last weekend, courtesy of Tree People, I got a bare root Panamint Nectarine for free. I planted it on the slope below the chicken coop. At the moment, it looks more like a stick in the ground than a tree. Consider this the "before" shot.



Yesterday, during a trip to Home Depot, I noticed they had some fruit trees for cheap. So, I picked up a Desert Gold Peach and planted it near the Pink Lady Apple that Dakota gave me for my birthday. I managed to get it in the ground before last night's big rain storm. Here's another "before" shot.



In addition to the new trees, I am happy to report that I have revived my almost-dead Brown Turkey Fig. Its previous location was too hot and dry, and the soil was terrible. So, I moved it to a shadier place where I could more easily water it. The move, combined with this winter's rain, brought the fig back to life. Hurrah! I love fresh figs. They remind me of the tree that grew in my great-grandmother's backyard.



Also part of the orchard is this dwarf pomegranate that lives in a container on the patio. It lost all its leaves in December, which freaked me out a bit, but it's back in business now. This was another Tree People freebie, acquired while I was helping them prepare other trees for a giveaway last year. It didn't bear any fruit last year, but perhaps this year we'll get some.



Joining the new trees are two old-timers, which were here when I moved in: an orange and a lemon. The orange sits at the bottom of the stairs down to the patio. After several fruitless years, it managed to produce four small oranges last year, and I'm thinking the upcoming season could be even better. It's covered in blossoms at the moment, which have just started to open. Fingers crossed for lots of bees.



And down below the chicken coop is a lemon tree, which fruits every couple of years. It's got quite a few blossoms as well, so perhaps 2009 will be a productive year.



After listing all those trees, I'm feeling pretty good about my future orchard. I plan to baby all the new saplings through this year, so I can finally get past my history of fruit tree murder. Then, one day soon, all I'll need to do is step out into the backyard to find a delicious and healthy piece of fruit.

Unbelieveably, it's been raining like crazy here. As a gardner and conservationist, I'm really happy that the Southern California dry spell is letting up a little bit. But, as a chicken owner, it's a bit rough.

We weren't able to clean out the coop last weekend because it was so rainy and muddy, and the girls haven't been getting nearly enough free-range time. This makes them kind of antsy. Plus, their feet and legs are really muddy and Peggy's beard is looking a bit scruffy.

When the first winter rain came in January, I ran out and got the girls a tarp to keep their run dry. It works fairly well, but if it rains hard, the dirt floor of the run definitely gets muddy.



We also drilled a hole in an old metal pie pan and put it above the hanging feeder, almost like an umbrella. Again, that works in a light rain, but a downpour still soaks their feed, turning it into a mushy cake. Luckily, Peggy and Tina don't seem to mind eating their food in mush cake form. I just have to clear it out pretty quickly so it doesn't mold.

I think after all these rains are over, we might look at ways to help with drainage around the coop, and we'll probably put gravel around the outside of the chicken enclosure, so it's not so muddy and slippery down there. A couple of weeks ago, I planted some more bushes below the coop, which should help absorb some of the run off.

Happily, there is at least one plus-side to the rain as far as the chickens are concerned: It should help the vine I put at the far end of the run grow bigger and bushier. Last Fall, I planted it as an attempt to provide shade and privacy while adding pleasant scent to the area. I chose a Vanilla Trumpet Vine, which is supposed to be well-suited to our climate and produces lots of fragrant, purple flowers. With all this rain, I'm hopeful that Sping will bring thick green foliage and lots of blossoms.



There's more rain in the forecast for this weekend and next week, which is great, as long as we have a long-enough break to get all the poop-soiled shavings out of the coop. I guess the hens will have to play indoors for a while. Maybe I should teach them tic-tac-toe.

So, you might think I already have too many hobbies with my knitting, gardening, cooking, chicken keeping, reading and copious amounts of TV viewing. But, of course, you'd be wrong. This month, I added yet another crafty hobby to the list: sewing.

Actually, I've been in posession of a wonderful, brand-new, fancy sewing machine for several years. Dakota once gave me a Viking Huskystar as a birthday gift, but, until this month, I'd never even taken it out of the box. I was waiting until we found a space to set up a crafting table, but I recently faced the reality that, in a tiny house like ours, that day might never come.

What really motivated me to start sewing, though, was signing up for the sewing 101 class at machine project. After eyeing this class for a while, I finally took the plunge two weekends ago. I'm very glad I did. The instructor, Annie, was extremely helpful and encouraging. Setting up a sewing machine can be a bit intimidating, but she walked us through threading the needle and the bobbin and getting the hang of sewing with the different stiches. Then, we moved on to individual projects.

After flirting with the idea of making a dress, I opted instead to make a stuffed toy. I searched around the Internet and found a really cute stuffed pig pattern for free (my favorite price). Happily, I also already had some very nice fabric that I pulled from my grandmother's massive stash after she died. (Not learning to sew from my extremely knowledgeable and talented grandmother is a big regret of mine. What was I thinking? Teenagers are so dumb.)

Anyway, I'm not saying the pig came out perfectly. But, I think it's pretty cute.



I think I'll make another pig, just for the practice, and then probably branch out into other toys and maybe a skirt or something. Annie also taught me how to alter clothing, which I think will come in very handy with thrift-store finds.

My big plan is to create some of my own stuffed animal patterns and make some great personalized baby gifts for all my friends who are getting pregnant. Then, when I have my own kids, hopefully I'll be good enough to make them toys and clothes. My grandmother always made my sister and I the cutest, prettiest dresses and nightgowns. I'd love to be able to do that for my children.

Here's a question for other crafty bloggers out there: Can you suggest any sewing books, fabric stores (online or in LA), blogs or other sewing resources I might find helpful? Keep in mind I'm very much a beginner.

I already have the Built by Wendy book Sew U, and I've discovered some great blogs including the Craft blog and Softie Making. But, I'm always interested in learning more and getting inspired by cool crafting blogs. Leave your suggestions in the comments, please!

The Good Girls celebrated the start of our fourth year of volunteering last month. For the last three years, we've done at least one volunteer project every single month. As the group founder, I am very proud of the Good Girls' record. We've helped quite a few people and organizations, and it's also been a great way to develop and maintain some amazing friendships.

For our first project of 2009, we went out to Animal Acres to help with farm chores. We'd done this project once before, in 2006, and it was just as fun the second time. Animal Acres houses all kinds of abandoned, abused and neglected farm animals, most of whom come from factory farms.

When we arrived at the farm, we were greeted by some huge, and very friendly, pigs. The pigs at the sanctuary split their time between sleeping their stalls and roaming around the brush on one side of the farm. Yes, these are free range pigs. Here's Meredith giving one a tummy rub, which, apparently, pigs love.



After we finished saying hello to the pigs, we were shown to a group of goat stalls where we set to work clearing out the soiled hay. It seemed to me that Animal Acres had even more animals than they did back in 2006, and they certainly had a lot of work that needed to get done. This was a project where we definitely felt like we were needed. I don't think Animal Acres could operate without volunteers.



Happily, the stalls where we worked were inhabited by a mother goat and her two cute kids. So, we got to pet and play with some adorable baby animals in addition to raking poop-covered hay. Here's one of the little guys, relaxing in the sun.



The Good Girls spent about 3 1/2 hours at Animal Acres and managed to clean out a large group of stalls and refill them with clean hay. We felt it was a good morning's work, and the baby goats seemed happy. Hopefully, we'll be back to the farm again soon.

Coming up in 2009, the Good Girls have plans to continue to help out at Los Angeles-area food banks, attend beach and river clean-ups, do some arts & crafts for charity and work with Tree People planting trees. In addition, we may organize some fund-raising events for charitable groups. It should be a productive year, full of service and fun.