Abigail is the Awesome Farmgirl!

Today it's time to load up one steer from our backyard pasture and the heifer we purchased from our neighbor's pasture. We've been fattening them up with a bit of grain the last month and they've been bonding over the fence as they are both alone in their respective pastures.

We headed out at 8:30 this morning to load up the one on our property. Last week, Dan parked the trailer outside the fence, then he and Abigail made a chute with the cattle gates we have. The idea is to feed him just inside the chute area, close the fence gate behind him and crowd him into the trailer. That's the idea, anyway. This steer is jumpy. Always has been. Probably didn't help that we sold off his friends and left him to his own devices. (of course, if he wouldn't have been so skimpy at the time, he would have already gone) To make a long story, even longer..... He won't go in. We encourage him, we try to bribe him in. Dan is shaking his feed, giving him a taste and trying to lead him in. We are patient. Then, we get impatient and we try to herd him in. He goes nuts, spins around, slips and rolls on his back. We go away and leave the food in there, thinking he might walk in eventually and then Dan will sneak around the house and shut the gate.

We hang out in the garage, out of site. Abigail decides to go feed her fair steer, Seifer. As she leaves with hay for him, I said to her, maybe the Crazy Steer would go in the chute for the hay. She tells me, "No, he wouldn't do it just for hay." Dan and I are freezing.....did I mention it is about 20 degrees out AND windy??? We decide to go inside and wait him out. I feel guilty that Dan and I are inside and warm, but Abs is outside freezing with Seifer. I go to the window to wave her in, and see her putting down tiny piles of hay for Crazy Steer, leading him toward the chute. Slowly, slowly he is following her through the pasture. (She later told me, she never said a word to him the whole time) Because of the position of the chute and deck, Dan and I can only follow her progress through the upper left hand corner of the kitchen window. Abby is in the chute and the steer is almost in. Dan heads out to sneak around the house and hopes to shut the gate behind Crazy. He and I are on the cell phones so I can keep him updated on the steers position. (Abby doesn't even know if we are watching this whole thing or not). The steer backs all the way out. Dan comes back in and says that was when the steer saw him and he doesn't know how he can get it shut.

Abby leads him back in and we just watch from the window. Well, Dan watches and narrates the scene for me. "She's inching past the steer, she's behind him, she's slowly untying the rope for the gate, she's shutting the gate, and she is AWESOME!" Quote from Dan! We then gave her enthusiastic thumbs up through the window; of course, she tried to act nonchalant about it - until the grin broke through!

We went on to load the heifer next door, which took awhile - but, not nearly as long as Crazy Steer. Abigail's part in loading the heifer was, again, crucial.......but, this post is too long to describe that.

My desire in posting all this is to document Dan saying, "She is AWESOME!"

Sewing Accomplished

With having extra time at home, I've finally managed to get a few sewing projects accomplished. First, I had this small needlepoint project to do. The poem says: Use it Up, Wear it Out, Make it Do or Do Without. I sewed some homespun scraps around the edges and will finish it with a wooden frame that was my Aunt Sharon's. Mom had it for a long time, but gave it to me recently. I'm pleased with how it turned out.

Second, I FINALLY patched a pair of Betsy's jeans and also inserted a piece of matching fabric at the hem on a pant leg. She only asked me to do it about 4 months ago.

Third, I made cute, lightweight curtains for my kitchen window out of a homespun print. Tabs at the top and they are hanging! Although, I'm still not finished there, because I want to make a simple valance to complete the job.

I wish I could sew every day and I love this saying: My day is not complete, till needle, thread and fabric meet.

November 2009

Thanksgiving was quiet. Dan was at the station and since I can't drive yet, Abby and I stayed home. Hernia surgery was on the 18th and that went well. Recovery from the pain has been quicker than I anticipated, but I still won't be able to lift anything heavier than a gallon of milk till Jan. 4th. That includes my granddaughter. There is a very sad Nana here. Friday after Thanksgiving we had our first snow! It didn't last, of course, but it was pretty. Saturday, Dan and Abby picked up 8 steers. They will be finished in about a year. They look good and so did Dan, bringing them home. He really gets a kick out of raising steers.

I'm so thankful God provided this place for us to live and finish raising our family. Oh, and very thankful for our church family, who has fed us well since the surgery.

Stinky

FYI. Just in case your dog ever comes suddenly upon a skunk, keep hydrogen peroxide and baking soda on hand. Mix 1 quart peroxide with 1/4 cup baking soda and a tsp. of dish soap. Soak this mix into your dog's coat. It works! We will do one more treatment today for the lingering, residual scent still lurking, but he was unstinked enough to let sleep in the basement last night.

End of Harvest

I would like to post a picture of my "organic" garden at the end of the harvest - looks more like a weed patch! However, I do have heirloom green beans just blossoming and growing. I hope to get a few more warm sunny days to finish them. I still have some eight-ball squash to harvest, and the white pumpkins. Truly, I found MORE zuchinni still on the plant! Other than those veggies, our garden is done.

I canned 18 quarts of green beans, 4 pints of refridgerator dill pickle slices, 7 quarts of dill pickle spears, 3 quarts of peaches, 3 quarts of pears, 13 pints of spagetti sauce, 6 quarts of tomato & basil (thanks to Mom! she canned those with me!), and 7 half-pints of banana peppers. It's been fun, but am very happy that my tomatoes are about gone. I probably have enough to make a bit of salsa.

Huge Thanks! to my sister-in-the-Lord, Penny Noll, who helped me tremendously in the canning department with her time, advise, and green beans.

Waiting for the rest of the picked pears to ripen, and will can some more. Dan really likes the pears in the winter. Abigail and I need to go pick some more apples and make sauce.

Onions! Beans! Zuchinni!

Yesterday I pulled my onions and they look gorgeous! I'm hoping to enter some in the fair. I also need to plant more sets today for a fall harvest. We do go through a lot of onions. We've been getting a fair amount of bush beans. Hopefully, I will figure out this ancient pressure-canner without blowing it up! I did freeze beans last year, but didn't really like them that way. Haven't canned them yet, so we'll see how that turns out. Peas are about finished, but I did plant for a late harvest of peas, pole beans, lettuce and Eight-ball squash. Peas and squash have popped up already. I really don't know if there will be enough season left for the beans to finish.

Tomato plants are huge and fruit set. Can't wait for them to grow bigger and ripen. I think I have some banana peppers to pick today, some beans, and most definitely zucchini. Who want some fresh, huge zucchini??? I can't believe my sisters were here and left without at least one each. Tonight I will make zucchini quiche and bread. Good thing Z. lasts a long time!

Loving the garden. The Lord has really blessed it this year. Love my sunflowers in the middle of it, too!

Joy........

Swaying in the hammock, dappled sunlight through the maple tree, birds calling one to another, gentle breeze, and my grand-daughter asleep on my chest..........

Cool quiet evening, contented steers with tails switching, pasture grass waving, and my baby, my beautiful daughter, in chore clothes and boots, singing.......on the wind comes to me lilting Celtic songs.........

Watching my beautiful, first-born daughter, mother her child. Her first born daughter. As my mother watched her first-born daughter mother her first-born daughter. Generations of first-born daughters...........I watch her mother, effortlessly. Naturally. With complete Love.

It brings me complete joy.
Thank you, Jesus.

June Farm Status

The end of June brings a green garden, and some of it is grass! I have harvested peas and a very few green beans. The volunteer zucchini plant is the biggest thing in the garden. We also have volunteer watermelon, tomatoes and basil. We've been eating lettuce from the garden all month, and I need to get my second crop sown today. My teeny-tiny tomato plants have taken off, but most of my home sown pepper plants are still on the small size. Potatoes haven't done well at all - will replant for a fall crop in a different spot and hope for better results. I still have a lot of work to do on the flower beds, they aren't looking so hot, but I've done a better job this year weeding in the veggies.

Abby is busy with training Ceres (steer) and Roscoe. They are both going to the fair! Abs is very excited about the fair this year. She will have items displayed in the FFA building and she'll have to work shifts in there, and has entered the zucchini competition. Oops, can't forget the turkeys! The four remaining hens look good. I don't know how she'll every lift them up on that table for the judging! She had a blast with the church youth group at Cedar Point and rode her first big roller coaster. A tremendous feat for the "car sick" girl!

Dan just took in the two heifers to the processor. Abby was at Cedar Point, so one of our beef customers came out to help Dan load them. He grew up a country boy and when Dan showed him around the woods, Chris found Ginseng there. I had no clue it was there, but I'll have to find it and share! (it's expensive in the store, isn't it?)

Vernal Pool Day

Today was fun! We had some homeschool kids, moms and one dad out to muck around in and investigate the vernal pool on our property. The kids found tadpoles, dragonfly larvae, and (eek) poison ivy! This is the second year we did this. Last year it was the end of April - and it was better then. The pool has dried up some and wasn't as deep.

Abby got her carrots in the garden (second time), also zucchini and watermelon. Yesterday, I put in my teeny, tiny roma tomato plants (6), multicolored bell peppers (4), and banana peppers (2). Beans are coming up and peas. Something is nibbling holes in my bean's leaves though. Tonight, I need to make up garlic spray to put on their leaves......hopefully, the critters do not like garlic.

This morning, the tile was laid in the keeping room for under the wood burner. Looks great. Tile-guy will be back in the morning to grout it. One step at a time.

Memorial Day 2009

This morning I did some housekeeping until Dan brought home fixin's for potato salad, so I made that. Love potato salad - didn't so much enjoy the 1.5 hour making of it. Turned out yummy, though. We just had the three of us for a cook out.

It's really sad how this whole holiday is about cookouts...........I swore to myself that I would take Abby and go to a Memorial activity - one that actually memorialized those who have given their lives for our freedoms and protection. For the freedom and protection of people in other parts of the world. We didn't do it. I got wrapped up in the garden and my own enjoyment and basically forgot until Dan was praying before we ate.

He prayed for those still serving and was thankful for the sacrifice so many have given.
I'm sorry I didn't follow through on my plans. Does it count we are watching a PBS program about Memorial Day?

Nice Day for Me

This morning was our Ladies Prayer Breakfast. We have it once a month and I love it! We take turns making breakfast for each other, meet at the church, share what's going on in our lives and hearts and then pray. I love these ladies. I know I'm still getting to know them all, and yet it seems as though they are old friends.

After I left the church, I called the Farm phone, Dan's phone and Abby's phone - no one answered, so I figured they were out moving the steers or playing tennis. (I decided to go to a furniture store instead of going home- checking out dual reclining sofas) Well, they weren't moving steers or playing tennis......they were BOTH on the roof cleaning gutters! Yikes! My 'baby' said after she got over being afraid, that it was really cool to see all the property from that vantage point. Then, she drove the riding mower and mowed our new fenced pasture, #8 (my previous backyard).

I came home and half-heartedly pulled a few weeds, stood in the hot sun, sweated and plotted ways I could go inside or sit in the shade instead.

Luckily for me, Dan decided we should get out of the heat for a few hours. I had told him about the sofas and he thought we should head to Mt. Vernon for sofa shopping (didn't buy), and early dinner (Ruby Tuesday's was good!), and a movie (the new Night at the Museum - funny, but certainly not as good as the first one).

The recap is: I didn't have to make any meals today, got to hang out with precious sisters in Christ, one of my kids, and generous hubbie......he's thinking we should get the leather sofa~yea!

First in 2009

Chestnut Hill Farm is getting busy. Dan has 6 steers and 2 heifers he is finishing for end of summer. He is busy planning the rotation schedule and moving them every 5-7 days, trying to keep up with the pasture growth. Abigail's poor fair steer has had bloat twice already. She is just hoping to get a healthy steer to the fair this year. She also joined in the turkey pool, and is raising 4 hens. (did have 5, one died in the second week) One will go to the fair and one to the Thanksgiving table. We had thought we would sell the others, but I think we should keep the other 2 for the freezer.

I haven't planted too much in the garden yet. Spinach, romaine, two other lettuces, peas, beans, and 32 potato plants. Abby is going to take about 1/4 of the garden for her own and has planted carrots, so far. She is planning celery, canning cukes, canteloupe and popcorn.

We are about plunge into some home renovations. We decided to replace the flooring, which lead to replacing the wood burner, which lead to replacing the roof. We are putting hardwoods in the living areas of the house, and carpet in the bedrooms, widening the doorway from the living room to the keeping room/kitchen by 16", put in a smaller, more efficient wood burner in the corner between the kitchen and back door (tile under that), and metal roof. (yikes! )