what does kempo have to do with hay????

 

.... nothing really other than I got some serious assistance from my fellow martial artists bucking hay over 4th of july we brought in 10 ton - that's a little shy of 400 bales bucked and stacked !! - THANK YOU !! - Kevin, Taylor and Doug!! you guys are the best !!! 

thank goodness for girlfriends and horses

sarah, laura and I out for a summer evening ride...of course you can't see my trusty steed as he's under the the cowgirl holding the camera...and it's Hummer so he's pretty much under everything ; )

some evening shots of baby

 

and some garlic scapes from the garden again just because they are beautiful  : ) 

 

waiting for the rest of the babies

It's like the calm before the storm around here ... 

 

 

we are busy with the usual summer activities, tastings, moving fence etc etc... all while we wait for the last three babies as well as the final (I hope weeks) before we start the big project!! step one will be taking down the old barn and starting on the new one then getting the site ready for the winery.. GULP...

 

 

 ...and last but not least some paintings I've done last week and this week... 

 

Joshephine had the first baby this year!

and it's a girl!!!

on a personal note

I posted some resolutions on jan 2nd of this year... and I got to check one off the list on Friday - I earned the rank of black belt - It's been an amazing transformative process. The funny thing about getting to this place is I feel like now I'm at the beginning again the test for me showed me where my strengths and weaknesses are and gave me a window into what to work on going forward...  I had some amazing friends on the journey with me and - truly tapped into the power and energy that was bigger than just me during the test... I trained and got my body as ready as I could - but what got me through to the end of that day was bigger than any one person - I'm deeply grateful to those people who have been on this journey with me!

just placed my order : )

I'll be sending these our founders circle so far as soon as they come in about 6 weeks : ) 

as folks sign up you will see this as a small token of our thanks!  

53 and counting!!

I love mondays!

Monday is the day Brian goes to the winery all day - I set that day aside to paint. I also do other little things for me on Mondays - like mowing the grass, checking on the bees doing a little work in the garden.. today the weather was as good as it get's I painted outside and I got to spend some time with the momma cows too which is always so calming.

 

the baby was moving so much today it was amazing to watch !! 

Miss Josephine is sooo pregnant she looks like she's about to pop... and she's super docile at this point in her pregnancy she just stands there for as long as I will scratch her... 

 

A swarm of bees moved into my third garden hive this evening it was so exciting to see! It was a really big swarm and they decided to make my last emply hive there new home!! super exciting... and no catching necessary - gotta love that thanks bees!! : )  

 and todays paintings

 

 

 

and levi being cute : ) 

50 founders so far ! and the first round of plans are in!!

We have 50 founders add there names to the guest list so far! Thank you all so much!!  Brian and I are totally blown away by the support and enthusiasm for the wines and the winery - barn raising! You are all family and we are so excited to share this project with you!

We got the initial plans today from New Energy Works! We are busy looking things over!  As I type we are sharing a bottle of rose and Brian is cutting out little pieces of cardboard and laying them out in the space to see how all his existing bins and barrels and equipment will all fit in the space and how it will all flow...

 

I'll be adding names over on the right side of the blog as things come in and folks give me the way they like to be listed...  Thank you all again - 150 people is the goal and after just 2 weeks we are at 50!! which is kind of mind blowing in and of it's self - thank you!!! 

Big Table Farm – Barn Raising

Big Table Farm – Barn Raising This is an invitation to you, our close friends and supporters, to participate in a special project with us and to be a part of our community as we take a big step for us personally and for big table farm. We have decided it’s time to BUILD A WINERY for big table farm wines, right here on the farm. This will be a place where we can make the wine close at hand. We believe this will give us even more control over the quality of the wines, and will be an important step in building big table farm. We are daring to follow the dream. As non-traditionalists, we are thinking outside of conventional financing to build this dream. We have put together a special package that we believe will bring you value and joy, as well as make you part of our FOUNDERS CIRCLE. Your participation will leave your names on the big table farm winery permanently, and make you a special part of the big table farm community. THE OFFER – A six pack of 2012 Magnums which will include 5 of our vineyard designate Pinot Noirs. The 6th Magnum will be our “founders reserve”, one special barrel that Brian will choose from the entire 2012 vintage that we will bottle into magnums for this specific purpose. This magnum will have a label that, true to big table farm form, will feature a piece of my art - that will also be made into a limited edition letter press print. As many of you know, we have not sold any magnums in the past, bottling only a few magnums each year only for special causes. In addition to the wine and art, we will be throwing a big table farm feast – July 2014 -- big table style – for you, our founders, to celebrate the opening of the winery, and to thank all of you that have made this possible. Your FINANCIAL PARTICIPATION of $1700 will build the WINERY We are excited and a little nervous as we take this leap, but we believe in our hearts that this is the right next step and are excited to be able to open the doors to you all when we complete it. Thank you for being part of our story, and we hope we get to count you in our circle of founders and raise a glass with you to celebrate.   Cheers! Clare and Brian --------------------- we have closed the founders circle offering we are thrilled to say we have over 80 founders who have helped us build the winery... Big Giant Thanks to all... --------------------- photo of table courtesy of our dear friend Jeremy Fenske - http://www.jeremyfenske.com/ (and historic photo courtesy of George Williams - drawings  of the winery site and design by clare)