Our hummingbirds arrived at Big Mill B&B quite late this year -
but once they landed, it was with a flourish and a big show,
chattering and demanding food.   (Photo by Guy Livesay)

And since we are a designated Bird and Breakfast Bird-Friendly Business, we willingly obliged. Guy's outstanding photo, taken here at Big Mill B&B, earned him 1st place in the 2010 Beaufort County Arts Council Nature/Wildlife photography contest. 

Our zinnias seem to be a favorite 

Photo by Guy Livesay

Guests often ask me if there is any time during the year when you should stop feeding hummingbirds? If you have had a similar question, here's my answer:

It is perfectly alright to leave the feeders out until freezing weather arrives. The birds usually leave when their food sources (flower nectar and bugs) are no longer available. You may get a traveling hummingbird guest en route to warmer climates.  Big Mill seems to be a favorite spot for such hummingbird "refuelings!"

Hummingbird Nectar Recipe

4 parts hot boiling water
1 part refined white sugar
Few drops of red food coloring, optional, but not necessary

Stir this mixture until all the sugar is dissolved. (Audubon suggests that you boil the sugar to kill any bacteria. If you change the water every day, this is not necessary).

Allow solution to cool before filling feeders. This sugar water can spoil in hot weather, so change it often, at least two times a week or more. Store any excess nectar in the refrigerator.

Oops! Just gotta get to that great nectar. (Photo by Guy Livesay)

So, have you had any good hummingbird sightings this summer?  Share your best photos with us over on Big Mill Bed and Breakfast's Facebook page .

And while you're there, take a minute to write on our "Wall."  

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We sailed into Green Turtle Cay in the Abaco Islands in 1978 and I met Hank Cochran that day. Hank was lounging on the back of his Grand Banks 50, aptly named "The Legend."

Photo by Chloe Tuttle

Garland Perry "Hank" Cochran was born in Isola, Mississippi in 1935. Hank moved to Nashville in 1960, and with Harland Howard he wrote "I Fall to Pieces." Patsy Cline recorded it in November of 1960 and, as we know, it became a big hit.

Hank wrote many songs including "She's Not You," "Don't You Ever Get Tired of Hurting Me?" "Little Bitty Tear," "Why Can't He Be You?" and "Make the World Go Away."

Hank Cochran (left), Chloe Gurkin McHorney Tuttle (middle) and Captain Joe (right) 1979
(Photo by Joy Greyer)

Hank invited us to go fishing one Sunday afternoon – we didn't get back until Wednesday. But that was Hank. It was fun to watch his creative process – it would just happen. Someone would say something, or a thought would come to him. He wrote it down on anything handy, and soon it was a song. He told me heartache made writing easier. He surely knew how to do that.

  Hear no evil, See no Evil and Speak no Evil… photo of
Chloe Tuttle, Captain Joe, and Joy Greyer
(Photo by Hank Cochran using Joy's camera)

When I met Hank, I had no clue I was meeting such a character.  That same day I also met a wonderful woman Joy, who would became a cherished lifelong friend. We weathered many wet days that winter in the Bahamas, the guys played lots of Crazy Eights and Hearts. We took many trips to Miss Emily's Blue Bee Bar.

Back then I was cleaning conch and making slaw.  Now I am an Innkeeper growing blueberries and making jam. What a great life, eh?

Some times when I am here on the farm that is now Big Mill Bed & Breakfast, my mind wanders back to my sailing days. I remember places I went but mostly the people I met. And Hank Cochran, The Legend, the Man…is high on that list.

The world lost Hank on July 15, 2010. He left behind a legacy in country music. We will miss you, Hank. And you made it to the Rolling Stone.

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Did you know that bees are responsible for every third bite of food that we eat?
Bees are fascinating little creatures and they are in trouble.

Sunflowers on the farm

The Great Sunflower Project was begun in 2008 by the biology department at San Francisco State University to study the wild bee population. In 2009, lots of us were given free lemon sunflower seeds to plant in our gardens. We were to monitor the bee activity for a certain amount of time each day. There were 50,000 participants!

Bees love the bee balm at Big Mill B&B

Well, something ate my lemon sunflowers … bummer … so I couldn't participate. But this year, they have expanded the flower list to include bee balm, tickseed, cosmos, purple coneflower and rosemary. So I am fired up and ready to go!

Coreopsis (tickseed) in the Big Mill Garden

Why don't you join in this Hunt for Bees? All you have to do is plant one of the flowers listed, get comfortable in your garden, watch the bee activity and record it. Any size garden will work – even container gardens!  The bonus, of course, by planting these flowers, you increase the odds of attracting hummingbirds and butterflies too.

Learn more about the project here: http://www.greatsunflower.org/ and on Facebook.

PS — Share your Great Sunflower Project photos over on Big Mill's Facebook Page!

Let's create a buzz!           

Bzzzzzzz …  I used to keep bees, but that is next year's project.

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Well, we did it….Big Mill is now on Facebook!

Photo by Guy Livesay

For oh so long, I have resisted — but now that we are on Facebook, it is quite fun. 

We do hope you will "LIKE US" over on Facebook.  And while you're there, be sure to write on our wall to keep the conversation going. We'll be keeing you up to date on local attractions, special events and other happenings going on in and around eastern North Carolina's Inner Banks. And, as always, I'll post links to new recipes and other items of interest there too.

How's this for an enticement:  Once you sign up and give us the Thumbs-up "LIKE,"  follow the breadcrumbs I've left under the "Free Gift" tab to receive the famous (and top secret) homemade granola recipe.  This never-before published honey and almond granola recipe is the one Big Mill B&B guests rave about!  

Better hurry on over … before I come to my senses.   ;-)

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Winter has been cold here in eastern North Carolina and I am ready to sit on the back steps and socialize with the guests here at Big Mill Bed and Breakfast. (This post is submitted by the Big Mill Fur Person – Moses)

While waiting for spring to arrive, I decided to write a cookbook -The Country Cats Cookbook.  What follows will be my signature recipe. Hope you like it … I do.

Mouse Biscotti with Almonds

• 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• zest of 1 lemon or lime
• 2 egg yolks (reserve egg whites in case the mixture is dry)
• 3 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 teaspoon MOUSE extract, found in specialty stores like Balduchi's gourmet foods or Zabar's Epicurean Emporium in New York
• 1 1/2 cups slivered or chopped almonds, (reserve 1/4 cup)

Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Grease a heavy cookie sheet. Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and lemon zest in a medium size mixing bowl. Whisk  the eggs and egg yolks in a large mixing bowl. Add flavorings: vanilla, almond, mouse extract and 1 1/4 cup of the nuts and the lemon zest.

Gradually add the dry mixture to the wet mixture, stirring until just barely blended. You will have to use your hands and perhaps a wee bit of the egg yolk. Add more flour if the mixture is too sticky.

Using greased hands, form dough into three 4-inch by 9-inch (or thereabouts) rolls that are 2 inches thick. Gently place the "rolls" on the cookie sheet, making sure they are several inches apart. Press reserved almonds and place on a cookie sheet.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until dough will hold together. Remove from oven and cool slightly. (Do not cool completely because you won't be able to cut it.) When cooled slightly, gently slide the rolls to a floured cutting board. Gently cut through each roll at an angle into 1 1/2-inch pieces. Turn each piece on its side and place on the cookie sheet.

Bake again for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven.

If you prefer a harder biscotti turn onto the other side and bake for 10 to 15 minutes more.

Biscotti will keep for several weeks in an airtight container.

Yield: 36 to 40 biscotti. These are great dunking into morning coffee or afternoon tea.   

Bone appetite!

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Well, it is April 1st and APRIL FOOL'S DAY!!!! 

For us humans, just omit the Mouse extract.  And, honestly, Moses really does like these biscotti. She has one each night with her spot of cream just before bedtime.

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Not for the squeamish …. 

(Truthfully, if you want to remember all farms as Green Acres, maybe skip this post)

It seems my meat-eating city friends seem to think sausages commit suicide or that hogs retire to Florida before becoming bacon. So be forewarned  - this is what really happens just before the bacon becomes bacon.

Some years ago, cold weather on the farm here in eastern North Carolina meant hog killing time and that happened at first light on a cold, cold morning usually in January or February.  

(Brother John backside with boots-a hammock hangs here today.
The big old truck in this photo is still running)

The hogs were about nine months old and weighed about 200 pounds.  No boar hogs were slaughtered – only females and castrated males; this part they didn't explain to me. My dad, Ops, couldn't kill his own hogs. 

My brother John told me that sometimes they fed coal to the hogs – he said it made their intestines smooth. Hmmm. I remember that they poured burnt cylinder oil on the hogs.  I guess that was for dry skin.

Neighbors helped neighbors. Each week my folks would get up really early and go and help other farmers kill hogs. They, in turn, came and helped us.

(That's my mother, Chloe, in the middle with the hat)

As a child, it was alright for me to go in the pasture with the mules and cows, but not with the hogs. But the best fishing worms were in the hog pens. I did sneak in to get those Rocky Mountain crawlers. Don't tell anybody.

When it was our turn to have the hog killing, I was very excited. I could stay home from school. The food was phenomenal: fried chicken, country ham, sausage, collards, succotash, sweet potatoes, corn bread, biscuits and so many desserts.

(My dad, Johnnie Gurkin, is on the right foreground in the photo above. Uncle Jimmy is at the end of the table and Henry Peel is leaning on the picket fence)

My dad couldn't kill his own hogs – someone else had to do that job. We killed 20 hogs each winter.

(Stuffing sausage. Brother John is walking away on the right.
That is also my back door here at Big Mill Bed and Breakfast.
That well-bench is still there, only now it has pansies growning on it.)

Uncle Charlie was the sausage man-he seasoned all the sausage. Aunt Annie had a sage bed and grew sage for everyone. Ops liked sausage to be HOT so lots of red pepper flakes were added to our sausage  The ground up pork, fat and seasonings were stuffed into casings of small intestines (chitterlings) and hung in the smoke house to dry. Fresh sausage was called green, as opposed to dry.

Just beyond this scalding vat is the hole where the chitterlings were cleaned. It is now my glorious organic garden. It grows tall sunflowers and lots of wonderful fruit and vegetables that we serve to our guests here at Big Mill Bed & Breakfast.  

Hogs were killed, bled, scalded (to remove bristles), cut up, salted, cooked or cured. Five families lived here so we needed the food. The smoke house and all the buildings in these photos are still here. So are the lard paddles and scrapers and the large crocks that were used to store the salt pork.

Same farm, same family, same trees, same outbuildings, same house. Heritage is a precious thing.

These wonderful black & white photos were taken almost
60 years ago by my brother-in-law Barney Conway, Sr.

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Kermit never looked so cute…and green!

(To see a pretty version of this post go to Chloe's Blog)

Photo by Guy Livesay

Wildlife in North Carolina magazine's 2009 photo competition had over 7,000 entries. This photograph taken by Guy Livesay, who lives right here in eastern North Carolina, was a winner! Other winning photos can be seen in the January, 2010 issue.

Many a late afternoon here at Big Mill you might see Guy and other photographers wandering around looking for that perfect photograph. Some of the folks are snapping shots of brides, graduates, babies — often with Old Red Truck taking center stage.

Photo by Guy Livesay

But Guy can be seen patiently waiting by a zinnia, sunflower, cleome or azalea for just the right shot of a hummingbird or butterfly or bee – any of Mother Nature's creatures are beautiful in the photos of a gifted artist like Guy. 

Photo by Guy Livesay

With these wonderful photos each perfect creature momentarily stands still for us to see. When you come to visit Big Mill B&B, be sure to bring your camera. These birds and butterflies will pose for you.

Note: You can see more of Guy's work at Livesay Photography. Other really fine photographers can be seen here at Big Mill are Peggy Rogerson and Andrea Wood. If you see a bridge, a pack house or an old red truck in their photos, chances are that the photo was taken here at Big Mill.

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Merry Christmas from Chloe Ann and all of us here at Big Mill

This post is much prettier on Chloe's Blog

              I still have this outfit.

Life on the farm is always magic at Christmas time. Today I walked to the woods (too wet for Old Red Truck) and found holly with berries. When I was growing up my dad and I would go into the woods to gather holly, pine and cedar. We had such fun. We hope all our friends, family and wonderful guests have a very merry holiday. You have made 2009 a special year, one we will remember for a long time. Thank you.

Love from all of us at Big Mill: Chloe Ann, Delores, John and, of course, Miss Moses.

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