Buried in Veggies

Today Hannah came over to help with the canning, which was a real boost to Esther and me. Even I was feeling a bit demoralized. I was busy enough with my garden, but then a friend brought 7 feed sacks of corn over (which probably hold 70 ears each) and the idea of all that corn sitting there GOING TO BE WASTED was terrible. But, I did give away all but half a bag, felt better, then realized that MY corn was ready. So today we did our own corn (all done! 18 pints canned, and 3 quarts frozen...my freezers are getting full so I'm having to can some of everything). We also baked all the rest of the zucchini in the closet into bread, which Larry was happy about. He likes it in his lunches.

I think I'm feeling overwhelmed because Della isn't here and I have all the cheese making too. I made yogurt yesterday, and tomorrow we must do something with some of the milk. I'm also having to do the laundry which means running up and down stairs while trying to watch the canner and prepare jars...

I have tried some different cheeses and had some successes. We dropped one milking to decrease the amount of milk, and we're drying up one of our big producers. Even so, there is still enough milk for cheese-making. I've told Della we just can't have all the goats milking at once!

Last year we had half milking at a time and that was much more reasonable.

Tomorrow Esther and I have to run errands and pick up a few chickens, then Thursday it's back to canning again...tomato sauce I think. I think this week will be the peak. Della certainly knew when to leave :)

Helping Milk Victoria

Realizing that busy is the word most used to describe my life, next to tired, so I've changed the title of the blog. Not even sure who is reading it! Facebook vs. Blogs...can I keep up with both? Are blogs better for those with a particular interest, like Della with her decorating? We'll see.

And now, it's Sunday afternoon, I'm recovering from a 24 hour bug (I spent all last night tossing with a fever and wondering if I had the flu, and cataloging all the people in the family that I could have infected...). Esther and I have had a quiet afternoon and are about to go out and take care of all the animal chores. Sarge the farm dog has to be tied out by the garden every night to keep the deer away from the second crop of beans. Maybe next year we'll have more fence up. We have to feed all the outside cats and dogs, water the goats and close up the poultry. And maybe pick all those tomatos!

Very Busy Summer
Writing to both boys takes up a lot more time than I would have thought. No wonder I don't write so m

The hens are laying now. I sold 10 and kept 15, one of which turned out to be a (mean) rooster. He terrorizes Esther when she lets them out in the morning-she goes in armed with a stick and a garbage can lid as a shield. However, the same rooster can be chased by my little Siamese cat Mochi. The trick with roosters is to never let your guard down, and YOU do the chasing.
Anyway, I'm getting about 12 eggs a day now. The eggshells are dried, crushed, and fed back to the hens as part of their calcium. Recycling starts on the farm!

Rain, rain

Esther is down with Laura; Della and I are at Panera's. We were desperate enough that we sacrificed a morning at home so we could come here and use the internet w/o worrying about exceeding the mysterious limit that plunges our speed into the Paleolithic zone.
It's raining, again; and I would have worked outside longer yesterday had I known. Today I was going to buy plants for my flower planters but who wants to tour outdoor garden centers in the rain? The older I get the more cat (and goat) like I become about rain.
Yesterday I did plant my cucumbers and dill. Instead of the wonderful neat "square foot gardening" raised beds, I had 3 pallets wired together (former compost heap). I put a board across the front, filled it with old manure, and so avoided building at least one trellis! The garden is soaked from 2 weeks of rain. Frogs are living in the low spots. It's going to be a while before I can till up any of it. So for now, my raised beds (which I'm trying to add to each year; at the moment I have 3) are the only part I can work on. One raised bed has potatos already planted in it, so I have two to work with the next time weather permits.

Down in Florida, letting my nails dry and preparing for church...we're going to Christ Community Pres, PCA. Rebecca's off to te gym, Josh is snoozing.
Yesterday R and I went furniture shopping since they've been living in a mostly empty house. She found a black leather dining room set (since she has no kids, cats, or dogs, it may survive). It has a square table and 2 chairs and a curved bench. VERY nice. Also found a couch, which is leather and brown suede (microfiber). We checked the Sal. Army-nothing even for end tables or lamps. We were going to try to fill in with thrift store items but in the limited time I have here, we may not be able to find much. I don't know where the good stores are. Beck needs Laura down here for decorating help!
We had a great drive down, and I checked every ditch we went by for beady little eyes. Good thing I didn't bring Sparky the Australian terrier. I would have been terrified of him getting near the water. This place could turn me into a phobic. I don't mind reptiles except when they are capable of leaping out of the water and eating small dogs and children!
Beading: the only Clearwater bead shop seems to have closed down due to the economy. Sad.
Off to church, Mom

Sparky, Chicks, and Febuary

Lee and the new dog

February has been busy. In January the rhode island chicks came (25 of them). They are now housed in the garage but soon I'll have to think seriously of moving them out to the chicken portion of the barn. That means I'll have to decide what to do with the older chickens; perhaps just give them away. They're still laying but I'd rather start fresh.
Sparky is an Australian Terrier, just acquired last week. So far the worst thing he's done is to get out. He zips out the door unless you fix him with a gimlet eye and say, STAY, SIT, in an I mean it kind of voice. Della has been dying for a small dog but says this doesn't count since he's a family dog, not her personal dog. I give up. Now she's talking about greyhounds and dobermans. Not likely. Sparky made friends with my special cat Mochi, and he an Sarge get along. He's not yippy or hyper, definitely likes to be with people, and I'm very pleased with him.
The third event of February is I have brought my first orchid to bloom. I have 6, but except for the 3 bought while in bloom, I've never had one bloom for me. I went to see a retired couple that have a greenhouse full of orchids in nearby Culpeper and they were extremely helpful. They told me some things I could stop worrying about (because when you read orchid books they make it sound so complicated) I was ready to give up and take them all to Rebecca in Florida on the grounds that maybe they'd like her weather better. These orchids spent the winter in my bathroom, and I guess the low light was ok given the daily doses of heat and humidity during my bath. A wood heated house isn't the easiest place to grow orchids!
This Friday, the 20th of Feb, Larry and I are driving down to Rebecca's. We'll be taking her dulcimer and a few other things that have been languishing under beds and in closets. I'm looking forward to some Mom and daughter time, and Dad's going to play Retired Guy and sit in a lawnchair in the sun with a book.