Good Morning Monday!

Mondays are tough...  then when you get up at 5:15 on Monday morning it is even tougher...  UGH!

Oh well...  I needed to get up because the 2 little girls I watch most days of the week were going to be here early.   So I got up, got the quiche in the oven (it was premade, just needed to cook), only spilt a little and smoked up the house all before 5:30. 

This weekend we had finally got caught up in the garden where we could work on something else!  I suggested we work on Greg's barn and get his workshop up and running, but to my surprise he wanted to deep clean the house. 

So Saturday am, we woke up and started on the porch and mud/laundry room...  And Sunday morning we finally moved on to the kitchen!  YIKES!  I am not a deep cleaner I guess... The ceiling needed cleaned, the walls, EVERYTHING!  We got the pantry moved so I can finally get into it (just turned it 45 degrees oh what a difference!)

So this week and next we are hoping to get through the entire house.  Jacob needs to move to his new room and everyone needs to switch beds, all before school starts (about a month way!) and the new baby comes.

As for life on the farm...  Our 2 chicks that the Muscovy mama hatched are doing well in the brooder box and our mama from earlier this year is sitting on 9 more eggs!  She is doing so much better than the first round, no broken eggs so far and all seem to be doing well.  It is amazing how they develop into better mamas.

The piggies got a new pasture, although they are having a hard time crossing the old fence line.  But enjoy the bigger room and less thistles.  They are loving the windfall apples we picked up last week, as are the cows.

I have discovered trading/bartering!  AND LOVE IT!  Last week we got some apples for some produce, eggs and pickled beets!  We picked for a neighbor who donated sausage in the mix, and we all came home with a bunch of transparent apples which will be canned up into apple butter and applesauce today!

 

We have traded our cherries for raw Jersey milk, and look forward to trading much more in the future!  It is such a great way to work with our fellow farmers and exchange goodies without exchanging $, which has to go to other places most the time...

 

I wonder if the mortgage company will take farm fresh eggs for payment? 

 

Then there is this whole test tube meat?  WHAT IN THE WORLD?!?!?  How can this be better than home grown beef?  "Frankenburger"  Come on!  We aren't huge in the following of GMO/Organic/ processed food, but have become more aware of it all since we started growing and raising our own food.  This just seems wrong on all levels. 

 

Oh what to do... I guess we just keep on raising and growing our food and learning more about all the different things out there.  

 



New Recipe from the Farm

Last night I tried a new recipe, but altered it a bunch!  So I thought I would share with you what came out. 

We have a lot of squash right now, and a lot of frozen old hens...  If you haven't had old hen, it can be dry, tough and just not pleasant to eat. 

So step 1 was to juice up and tenderize the hen.  I slow cooked the chicken with some Kickin' Chicken (one of our favorite spices) some garlic powder, pepper and filled the crock pot about 1/3 with water. 

Since I let the squash get a tad bit big, I de-seeded it, and then diced up (1/2" cubes) a crocked neck.  Diced up an onion (this didn't come from our garden as ours aren't quite big enough yet).
Added 2 cans of Cream of Mushroom soup along with a little of the chicken broth.

We still have some left over canned carrots from last years garden, so in a quart of carrots.

After cooking all day on low, I let the chicken cool a little, then picked it off the bone and shredded it a tad bit more.  It was still dry so I added some broth and let it soak up the juices!  (A must if using old hen!)  Everything got thrown into a casserole dish along with some more pepper, garlic powder, and about 2tsp (or more...) oregano.  I didn't add any salt, it ended up there was enough in the Cream of Mushroom soup. 

Stirred it all together and threw it in the oven at 350 for 45 mins. The original recipe called for croutons, but not having any on hand, I topped it with French Fried Onions and let them warm for a tad. 

It ended up being very yummy!!!  Even my husband who doesn't like squash and could go with out chicken, especially old hen, liked it! 

1 old hen (cooked in crockpot with Kickin' Chicken, garlic, pepper and water) cooled and shredded
1 squash (de-seeded if needed and cubed)
1 onion (diced)
quart of carrots
2 cream of mushroom soup
2+ tsp. oregano
pepper
garlic powder
French fried onions

The hubby did add Cholula to the mix, but he adds that to everything, so if you want a little spice in it, shake it on!  He also served his over some left over seasoned Orzo we had from the night before. 

Well, hope you enjoy and hopefully I will remember to take some pictures next time!

Have a happy Thursday!

"Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. And as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything."

Genesis 9:3 ESV

Male? Female? I am confused...

The farm has been growing lately. 

Newest additions include a beautiful male crested duck, a goose (still don't know if it is male or female), 2 Americana roosters, a new bee hive for Jacob, 2 chicks our Muscovy duck just hatched (she was broody so we took a risk and gave her some chicken eggs... dogs got 6 of them, 2 hatched and 1... well we are still waiting!) and a black and red silkie hen.

Or at least we thought she was a hen.  We were told she was a hen, she acted like a hen... until this morning when she crowed like rooster!  We love silkies, but we already have 2 silkie roosters and only 1 silkie hen (Snowball, Chloe's pride and joy).  So we are just waiting to see if this is just a confused hen, or a small rooster!

Now this isn't the first chicken that we currently have that has some confusing sexual orientation. We have this little banty hen who has laid eggs and just all of a sudden started crowing like a rooster. 

I don't know if it is something in the water or what, but this is just throwing me off!

And then to add to that confusion, our black barn cat, Bomb who we were told was a fixed male (yes I never checked, but should have!) is a female... and not only is she a female but she is a pregnant female!  So, soon we will have some barn kittens for you all!  And then it is off to WeSnip or someone to get these cats under control. 

Jacob's guineas are growing like crazy and getting louder by the day.  Pretty soon he is going to have to start finding some homes for some of them. 

The goose, named Goose for now, is really something fun to watch!  It is friendly with the kids, and really runs the roost with the ducks.  Hopefully it will be a female and we can have eggs and babies next spring.  (Yeah, I am going to have to talk bee-keeper Greg into another goose!)

Our pigs are growing beautifully. Bullet, the male, is shorter and stockier; while Petunia, our female, is longer and leaner... Should be a beautiful sow! 

We are knee high in squash, peas and I guess now beans!  The garden for the first time ever is feeling under control.  And now the busy time starts preserving all this beautiful produce.

One thing I prayed for when we started up our little homesteading farm, was that it would be used as a ministry.  I was thinking we would have plenty of eggs, meat, produce, and such to share with those in need.  Well of course my plans are not always what God has in store for us.  I am seeing more and more, the ministry is with the fellow farmers that we are coming in contact with.  Whether it is helping them out, receiving help or just chatting and exchanging knowledge (or what we think is knowledge) it is the contact with our fellow farmers.  And it has been great!  We just live out our lives, give God all the credit and share Him through our actions and words.  We have been blessed by our fellow farmers, and in turn can bless others.  It has just been another reminder of God's will being done, not mine. 

Day #2... some verses and farm life

Well, this marathon stuff isn't too bad... no soreness, not even a bit winded!

Today's post is just going to be a couple verses that we have on HOPE.

Our church's theme this year is BE HOPE.  Is it just a coincidence that the Good Morning Girl's study this season is Colossians {theme: HOPE}?  I don't think so...

Therefore, as the chosen of GOD, holy and dearly loved, put on affection, compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, putting up with one another and forgiving one another. ~Colossians 3:12-13a

May the God of HOPE fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in HOPE.  ~Romans 15:13

 

Our lives here on the farm is getting busy... but it seems like we are always busy.  We are in the process of harvesting all our goodies that have grown this year.  Plums, pears, apples, tomatoes, peppers...  Unfortunately our beans and corn didn't do very good this year. 

 

My goal for our little farm is that we will produce the majority of the food we eat in a year.  A quart of each produce product for each week...  That's 52 pears, 52 applesauce, 52 beans, 52 corn, and the list goes on.  But this year that isn't going to happen.  Oh well, we can't go full force in just one year...

 

I am learning to build and be patient.  Learning that it takes time to have a successful farm and that it doesn't come overnight.  That we need to take steps to being self-sufficient/sustaining.  We can't just get all the animals all at once, and go from there.  We need to start with a few and build on to that. 

 

I must say I a looking forward to this winter when I can enjoy some more of the indoor hobbies I enjoy, scrapbooking, sewing, baking. But for now, I am going to be thankful for this extended growing season God has given us! 

 

 

Until tomorrow... May God bless your day and may His light shine through you so that you may BE HOPE!