Storing nuts...


 Like any good squirrel who stores up a supply of nuts for winter, we've been trying to stock pile all the amazing, fresh produce so we can enjoy it all winter long.  Our most recent project was freezing sweet corn.  I know it might be easier (and probably cheaper) to pick up a few cans in the grocery aisle throughout the winter, but it sure does taste good when you pack it yourself!   

My only additive is a little butter to melt during the cooking process.

I discovered the use of my grill for cooking sweet corn last year while we were under construction.  I was without a kitchen for several months during the summer and experimented with all kinds of things on the grill.  It keeps the heat out of the house and the mess is minimal.  I just wrap about 4 ears at a time in foil and cook on the grill for about 20 minutes.  I flip the package halfway thru the cooking.

Right off the grill.  They look, smell and taste amazing!!

The absolute most important step is to have a professional label all of your packages!

Who wouldn't smile everytime you pull out a package of corn all winter?  I might just keep it for sentimental purposes!



The finished product!  This will taste amazing this winter when it's 20 below outside! 

 
The best past is having a fresh, wholesome food supply for your family all winter.  No preservatives added here!  I like knowing where my food comes from and who was involved in the process!

And when you are done, you get to feed all the shucks and cobs to the cows.  They LOVE this part and nothing goes to waste!!  They come running when they see the buckets on the four wheeler!

Chicken Sale...

As promised, here is a little peak at our first official "chicken sale"!  It's actually tagged an exotic animal sale but it's about 80% birds, 15% farm animals, and 5% other stuff.  It was overwhelming to see all the different types of birds:  chickens, geese, ducks, guinneas, peacocks, pheasants, turkeys... you name it, they had it.  I never knew there were so many different breeds of chickens!  

Every type of bird and cage you can imagine!! Nate's checking it all out!

Chinchillas!  I had never seen one of these before!



Nate pitched in with the sale ring crew and helped move crates into the sale line!

 

Ally is picking out the rabbits she wants to bid on!



Llamas... they were really sweet and din't even spit on us!



They also had all sorts of farm animals like pot belly pigs, goats, llamas, donkeys, horses and the essentials like horse tack, cages, feed pans, grain bins, etc...  It was a one stop shop!  We met up with a couple of other local families and had our own "cheering section" in the stands.  Our group "won" plenty of stuff and we all resembled the Beverly Hillbillies as we pulled out of the parking lot!

Donkeys!  I LOVE donkeys but we didn't bring one home :(



Our friends bought their girls a new horse!  What a fun surprise for them!!

These are the two bunnies that came to live on the farm with us... Meet Checkers and Socks!



Our new Guinnea!  We love them and all the noise they make!

We also came home with 13 chickens so I am excited to soon have some farm fresh eggs.  Next time you come visit, you might just get scrambled eggs for lunch!!

Inspire Me

·         "Make the most of today. Translate your good intentions into actual deeds. Know that you can do what ought to be done. Improve your plans. Keep a definite goal of achievement constantly in view. Realize that work well and worthily done makes life truly worth living." ~Grenville Kleiser  

           I just love this quote!  My life seems to be filled with good intentions.  My goal is to turn some of them into actual deeds.  I'll let you know how it goes!  Happy Tuesday!!

A new addition to the farm...

The word is out that the family made a little road trip last weekend.... to a CHICKEN SALE!  I know you are all just dying to know what the heck a chicken sale is so you'll have to check back soon to get the full story, complete with pics.  It's pretty much what you are already imagining but I do have proof in case you think that might be too hard to believe.  In the meantime, I had to share my cuties with their new pals.  I never knew chickens could be "tame" but these certainly are.  The kids are already talking about taking them to the fair next year.  I just want to have scambled eggs between now and then.  We'll see how it turns out!  

Chicken Sale post coming soon.  You know you want the scoop! 

Horse Show...the last summer fling

One final horse show of the summer. One final fling before the tack is stored and the horses are ignored allowed to roam free in the pasture.  One final gathering of new friends made over the summer.

I guess all that is true but it doesn't seem possible that it's September already.  This was more of a relaxed, fun show up at the Curtis Ag Tech School.  It was so cold that week I couldn't stand the thought of giving Sonny a bath with ice cold water so we did a "brush and go" this time.  And FYI...I could get used to that!  The nice thing about the smaller show was that they let the little kids do a walk-trot pleasure class so Nate actually got to show a little bit this time.  As usual, he was all smiles and he did great.  Ally had a great day too and competed against some much older kids so it was a good "learning" experience.  All in all, it was another fun family day and we are glad Gail got to join us fairly early. I'm not the horse person in the family so we are all relieved when he shows up! Especially when he's there in time to back the trailer out for us!! 

 Have a great weekend!!

Horsin' Around

Yesterday Gail and the kids had the horses out messing around and I was loving the view from my kitchen window.  Everytime I looked up I would see them weaving in the trees or chasing each other.  I couldn't resist grabbing the camera and capturing a few moments.  Wish they would stay little forever...

Ally decided to ride bareback.  It does wonders for improving balance and riding skills... plus it saves a lot of time from saddling him up!!!

Throw 'em on a horse and they turn into best buddies!

My little one looks SOOOO Big on his paint horse!

Nate was all smiles yesterday.... the horse must have been cooperating for him!

Every little girl's dream....

Sonny has strict instructions to take good care of her... So far he has listened well.

Hope you all have a GREAT labor day weekend!!!

Fair Daze... Part IV - The Bike Rodeo

When you hear "rodeo" in this part of the world, you think bulls and cowboys and bucking horses and lots of ropin'. So when I heard so much about the bike rodeo these past few years, I was envisioning some crazy kids ropin something or other while trying to stay upright on their fancy BMX bikes. Which of course is exactly what Nate-Dawg does on a regular basis around the farm, except he has a Wally World version of the BMX bike... and an ice-cream bell attached. So.... when 4-H enrollment time came around last spring and the kids just had to do the bike rodeo we had all heard about, I figured why not. How bad could it be?

Turns out it had nothing to do with ropin and wranglin stuff.  They just had to ride patterns around cones and do straight lines as fast as they could and as slow as they could without breaking pattern or falling off.  Come to think of it, it was a lot like the horse show!

Ally on her hand-me-down recycled bike.   Complete with ice cream bell to warn the dogs to get out of her way!!!

Why do those helmets make them look like little aliens?!

If you look close you can see the little wood boards they have to ride between and go as slow as possible without falling over!

Turns out country kids seem to be better than city kids at riding bikes in funny patterns.  Must be all the dodging pot holes and rocks and dogs in the driveway.  Paved sidewalks and streets are BORING.  Give 'em a hay bale and a board and they turn it into a jumping ramp.  Creativity and athletic ability all wrapped into one!  Anyway, both kids participated and had a great time with their friends.  They also walked away with more ribbons.  What do you do with all those ribbons anyway???