Life With The Crew

Friday Flowers

Cosmos.

Sweet Peas.  One of the rabbit's favorites.

Dinner Plate Dahlia, which isn't exactly the size of a dinner plate, but I'll take it.

Purple poppy, I forget what it is called.  The rabbits or groundhogs came through not just once, but twice, and cleanly nibbled off just the buds which were about to open.  The flowers persevered though, and I now have buds that will bloom in the next few days.  This is the first one.  Sad, scraggly, upside down, but it is a purple ruffled poppy grown from seed.

Pole bean flowers in the sunlight.  Just because something is practical, doesn't mean it can't be beautiful too.

Garden and Kitchen Glimpses

Gathered in the morning:  a heaping bowl of basil to be made into pesto and two lovely eggs - one little, one humongous.  When I let one of the little red hens out of the coop, this is what I found.  She had just laid the smaller egg and our big Buff Orpington laid the monster egg, which most likely is a double.

I got tired of looking at the dried-up sad looking potato plants, so I pulled up six of them.  I loved seeing my purple shirted babe picking purple potatoes.

Rhubarb and elderflower shrub on the left.  We'll wait two weeks to see how it tastes, but the color sure is lovely.  Elderflower and raspberry cordial on the right.  I was inspired by CJ and Christina's cordials, so after discovering the monster elderberry bush in full bloom, I thought I'd give it a try.  But being Katie, I couldn't follow the recipe exactly, so mine is a riff on this cordial.  I cut the recipe in half, threw four big red raspberries in with the elderflowers, and then since I couldn't bring myself to put two entire cups of sugar into this small amount of liquid (actually, I just can't bring myself to use two entire cups of white sugar for any one recipe), I only used half a cup.  So it probably is not like a cordial at all - I wouldn't know since I've never had cordial.  However, adding a splash of it to a glass of ice water makes for a refreshing summer drink.

I still have plenty of jars taking up space all over the kitchen.  I added several echinacea flowers to my whole plant tincture - I sure hope something good is happening in there.  My lavender plants survived the mild winter, but they haven't produced many flowers, so this little jar of buds in olive oil is all I have.  In the jar on the right is rosemary and thyme infusing in white vinegar.  Not that cleaning up cat vomit is ever enjoyable, but the smell of fresh herbs makes it just a bit more pleasant.  

I am sharing this picture of a near perfect looking Baby Pam Pie pumpkin because it may not be here when we return from vacation.  If your garden is doing well and doesn't need them, please send positive protective thoughts towards mine.

Enjoy these summer days!

Thankful Tuesday - 7.12.16

 

Today I am thankful for...

 ~An evening walk in the woods that led to the discovery of a fantastic wild blueberry picking patch.  Later this week it should be a sea of blue.  The little babe and I will be singing loudly to scare away any bears.  My husband says that he isn't worried.

~ A peaceful morning picking raspberries at the local PYO with my husband in the next row and the little babe beside me.  "Do you think they'll know that I ate any?"  These words were uttered by a small mouth smeared with pink and purple juice.  "No, not at all honey.  They'll never guess."

~The discovery of a huge elderberry bush only five minutes from our home and with easy access for picking.  We'll even be able to put a ladder right next to it to get the ones at the top.  The only problem?  How many flowers do I pick now and how many do I leave for berry picking in September?

~Foraging for herbs and flowers and finding them in unexpected places.  Along with the elderberry, I also found a great spot for picking mullein.  While the little babe and husband had fun on the swings, I strolled along the edge of the playground in the late evening light and collected mullein leaves and flowers.  The small yellow flowers can be warmed in oil to treat ear aches and the dried leaves make a good tea for clearing up congestion and coughs.  The little flowers were closed up since it was the end of the day and I placed the large handful in my pocket.  When I pulled them out at home, I discovered that I had a pocket of crawling insects also.  Oh well, at least I know the plants were pesticide free!

What are you thankful for today?

*I apologize for the poor camera phone photos - I've been making a point to leave my camera at home, but then asked my husband to capture these shots.

Instead of Blogging I've Been...

~harvesting garlic.  I am absolutely surprised and thrilled with the size of the garlic bulbs!  These were planted in soil that was severely lacking - it really was just a step above dirt.  Growing your own food really does make you appreciate it so much more.  Single little garlic cloves were pushed into the soil (dirt) last October and nine months later, we have our own garlic.  Amazing!

~watching the little babe enjoy the first Sungold tomatoes.  She thought that she liked them and was so excited that they were ripening, but then after the first one, she has wanted to "save them for later".  Which means that she really doesn't want to eat it.  Oh well, gardening is a good learning experience for her, even if she doesn't eat everything.  At least she knows what a ripening tomato looks like, instead of thinking it comes in a plastic package.

~enjoying the day lilies.  I love this dusty pink variety.

~attempting to keep the Red Kuri squash, Baby Pam Pie pumpkins, cukes, and lone butternut squash under control.  They are now growing like crazy and have crested the top of the cattle panel and made contact with vines from the opposite side.  I am rather frightened about what will happen while we are on vacation.  We may not be able to find the chickens when we return.

I have also been picking berries from our local chemical free PYO, both red and black raspberries.  In August they will have blackberries, which I have never really been a fan of, but I am excited to make a triple berry jam.  I have been spending a lot of time watering the gardens, since we have had almost no rain for a couple of weeks.  It bothers me to think about how much water is spraying out of the end of the hose, but if I want to grow my own food, water is necessary.  On a non-garden note, for the past two days I have been attempting to remove the smell of sour milk from seven large bath towels.  We purchase raw milk in glass one-gallon carboys.  On Wednesday evening after purchasing milk, my husband and little babe went on a hike, then came home and the bottles sat on the kitchen counter while we ate a late dinner.  It has been hot here and apparently it was warm enough that the milk expanded inside the bottle and since the milk is filled the entire way up to the lid, there was nowhere for the milk to go.  Bam! The bottom of the carboy cracked open and entire gallon of milk quickly spread across the kitchen table and onto the floor.  Then the next day, when I was doing multiple loads of laundry, the drain line for the washing machine, which is attached to the kitchen sink drain, clogged and filthy water backed up into my sink.  That was yesterday and the plumbers came this morning to unclog it.  Of course, now that I was able to wash the towels, the ever present sun decided to take a rest and it is raining.  So I have towels that still reek of sour milk hanging on the drying rack in my sunroom.  It could be worse.  At least I do have a washing machine.  As I was soaking the towels in the bathtub and then rinsing them out individually (before putting them into the washing machine for a second time), I was thankful that I don't have to wash all of my clothing by hand.  

I've been thinking a lot lately about how the modern "conveniences" that we have to make our lives easier sometimes make it more complicated, plus they require a lot of money to upkeep.  With all of our pets and a babe still in cloth dipes (soon, soon), I am definitely not getting rid of the washing machine.  But when our dishwasher kicks the bucket, I won't be getting a new one.  I hate how it always smells inside and before you have a full load,  you somehow run out of small spoons.  I think it encourages people to have more dishes than necessary, because you can just keeping filling up the machine and grabbing another dish from the cupboard.  Maybe we could actually just have less dishes in our cupboard?  Anyway, that was an unplanned rant.  Perhaps some food for thought.  

*I just finished reading Better Off:  Flipping the Switch on Technology by Eric Brende.  I found it really interesting.  

 

A Bit Quieter Around Here

Last Thursday morning, I stepped onto the back deck to hang laundry and realized, "Wow, it is really quiet."  And while I normally would rejoice in the lack of noise from road traffic, leaf blowers, and loud barking dogs (my own included), I felt a bit sad because the silence was caused by the absence of Lou and Lily, our two Indian Runner ducks.  I have written about Lou and Lil several times; I really loved these two guys.  Yes, they were both male; we had at first thought that the slighter duckling was a female, but the drake feather appeared on "her" also.  They seemed to love me too, if I may dare to anthropomorphize a bit.  My most pleasant memories of the ducks are from last Autumn, during our second batch of red raspberries.  At the end of the day, sun sinking behind our house, I would let Lou and Lil out of the chicken yard and they would dibble dabble in the grass under the apple tree while I picked berries.  If I got out of eyesight, they would quickly waddle, waddle over to where I was standing in the bushes, helping themselves to the low hanging berries along the way.  I felt such peace and happiness in these moments, having these two funny ducks murmuring to each other and simply enjoying life.  

Flash forward seven months and the two teenage ducks became hormone charged adults.  With no females to make them happy, I suppose I became an odd sort of substitute.  Their "love" for me became aggressive, obessive, and downright annoying.  I could not walk into the coop without being dogged by these two ducks.  They would dart around my feet in erratic movements, trying to figure out where I was going to step next so they could be right there.  I would step on them, they would run into each other, swear words would be uttered, fighting would ensue (the fighting was between the two of them).  Then when I would turn towards the door to walk out of the coop, they would chase me the whole way, making my exit a hurried event of kicking, extracting ducks off my legs, and trying not to slam the gate on their webbed feet.  Have you ever read the book, "No Fighting, No Biting" by Else Holmelund Minarik?  Lou and Lil were just like the two little alligators in that story, constantly bickering.  If it was just me that they were bothering, they would probably still be with us.  (Oops, I just gave away the end of this story.)  However, the little babe could not go into the coop because they would go after her also.  And the chickens were bearing the brunt of their bad behavior.  Multiple times throughout the day we would hear indignant squawking and look out to see a chicken running with Lou and Lil pecking at her back.  They were downright vicious.  Plus, from a practical standpoint, we were feeding them and getting nothing in return - except stress (and duck bites).  

I guess that last paragraph is me trying to offer a guilty explanation for the fact that my husband took Lil and Lou to our friend's farm last week and they did not come back.  I know that some parents try to sugar coat unpleasant actions for their children, saying that animals "went to a farm" or a better place, when in reality they had them killed or the animal died of natural causes.  I am raising my daughter with a no bullshit approach and so in her own words, "they just WHACKED their heads off!"  Yes, our friend did.  Very quickly, with no suffering, Lou and Lily's lives ended.  

There was a lot of sobbing on my part.  However, the chickens are happier and my daughter is happier.  That night when it was time to lock up the birds, instead of saying, "I'm going to put the boys to bed", I paused a moment and then said, "I'm going to put the ladies to bed."  My daughter said, "Can I come too?"  Sure honey, I guess you can.  And so we pulled on our wellies and went out into the quiet of the evening into the now quieter chicken yard and put the ladies to bed.  While I missed the chatter of my boys, I enjoyed having my daughter there beside me saying, "Good night ladies."

And no more impulse buys.