Christmas on the Porch

  Back at the beginning of November, I wrote a post about hating to put away my porch decor and it looked like this next photo.  It's hard to believe that just 6 weeks ago, things were still that green.  

  To be honest, I didn't put away the pitcher of flowers until just last week.  They sat  there through several snow storms before I had the heart to bring them in.   But it looked so bleak out there it made me sad.   Then I got the bright idea of putting a live green wreath  on the table with a vase of ornaments.  

  How that simple decoration brightened up the whole porch.  

  With the white porch and snow for a back drop, the red and white ornaments brought the perfect pop of color to the room.  

   I didn't add anything else to the simpleness of my porch decor because I thought it made a statement all by itself.  Pretty pillows and throws would have been beautiful, but my porch is screened and it gets pretty dirty and wet out there.  "Simple" and "using what I have" are what I'm striving for this year and I have found that look to be the perfect solution to unnecessary overspending.  

 

Now every time I head out the back door with the dog to feed the chickens,  I smile at the Christmas cheer on the porch.  

  Speaking of chickens, the girls are doing well with the cold weather and snow.  Being new at keeping chickens, I tend to worry about everything and could they handle the extremely cold weather we're having this winter.  This is Maggie Mae.  She's the newest addition to the flock and she has lots of "fluff" to keep her warm.

 This is Wendy.  She's the smart one of the group and my only egg layer.  But with the shortened hours of daylight, she has stopped laying for the winter.

This is Sally who wouldn't pose for a picture.  I call her Sinister Sally because she is always sneaking around like a detective and stalking everyone who comes into the yard.    

  And last, but not least is my Lucy Lu.  Lucy was very sick this summer and it took a month on four medications to get her back to health.  She's my sweetie and I probably worry most about her.  

  I pamper my girls and on the really cold days, they get oatmeal or scrambled eggs in the morning.  Their coop was made from part of my greenhouse, and for the winter when they are stuck inside, I opened up the greenhouse to them so they'll have more room to roam.  They like the extra light and warmth of the greenhouse and they seem as happy as cooped up chickens can be in the winter. Yeah, they are spoiled, but happy and healthy chickens make for a happy me.