farming / vacation

Honeymoonin’ (again, but where?)

So in honor of our fast approaching 1 year anniversary Brian and I have planned for a week off work in the fall. On our honeymoon we went down around Chicago to Moline, IL. We went for the John Deere tractors of course! While we did not get to tour the factory there were some good sights to see and we took a ride on the river (umm, the Mississippi? I don’t know my geography…). Then we went through the bottom of Iowa and up to Wisconsin. We stayed in the Wisconsin Dells and visited some of the many water parks there. Then we rode the car ferry back across Lake Michigan and drove home. We got a late start and weren’t gone the whole week but we had a great time. I thought I’d share some pics since no one has ever seen most of them… It is always hard to get away when there is so much to do on the farm. I’m tempted to just throw in the towel and say let’s stay home instead. However, I know how we are and we WILL NOT relax and spend our time together if we’re here, we’ll find a

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horses

Good Day For A Ride

Today was a great day for a horseback ride! After not riding at all yet this summer I went for a ride yesterday and today. It always seems like there are a million other things that should be done and it is a lot of work to hook up the trailer, pack up the saddle, load the horse, etc. However, it is so worth it when I finally get to settle down on my horse. I love taking in the scenery and chit chatting my friends. In case you’ve never ridden a horse, here’s a taste of how things look from the saddle…

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Menu Plan Monday

Menu Plan Monday

Monday: Lil’ Smokies + Rice Tuesday: Sirloin Steaks + Baked Potatoes (on the grill) Wednesday: Buttermilk Baked Chicken + Mashed Potatoes Thursday: Homemade Chicken Nuggets + Fried Garlic Potatoes Friday: Breakfast for supper (homemade waffles, bacon, hashbrowns, eggs) I’ve decided just to list suppers for awhile. Our breakfasts are usually something from the stash of frozen muffins and pancakes or eggs and toast for Brian. Lunches are usually leftoves, a sandwich for Brian, a PB&J or hot dogs for me. Dessert: So far it has been storebought Oreos for me – I’m feeling weak. Brian finished the No-Bake Cheesecake today. If I whip something up I’ll post it. What are you eating this week?

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asparagus / fire / hay

Neighbors

“Hello?” “Hey Ken, it’s Brian. We’re up north and the person who was going to check the animals tonight can’t do it now. Is there any chance you could run down? Everyone should be fine except the chickens might need more water.” “No problem, you got it.” “Thanks so much, we really appreciate it.” The above conversation is one that we had with our neighbor and good friend over the 4th of July weekend. I know we have great neighbors but I’m still amazed at how great. Ken and his family have been very supportive since we moved here. Brian helps him as much as possible during harvest and then Ken brings his equipment and harvests our fields. We would really struggle without his help. When our barn was burning, he was one of the first people I called (after 911 of course). Looking back, it is kind of funny. Ken ran out of the restaurant where he was eating breakfast with his wife and his brother, leaving them there. He flew in to our driveway in record time. Later, his wife and I cried together, with her remembering the dreadful day when their own barn caught fire. Speaking of

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cattle panel chicken shelter / chickens / sheep

They’re chickens, not ducks!

So the chickens are drinking so much in this hot weather that we drug the hose right out there. Every few days we drag it back and fill the other animal’s big tanks. Tonight I went out and watered the chickens… then I came back up and we worked on the fence for about 3 hours. We finished it and weaned the lambs by putting them out on pasture and leaving the ewes in the garage. I’m hoping their milk will dry up this week – they won’t get any grain and will have only old hay this week. The babies are crying but the moms don’t seem to mind much right now. Once the hard work was all done Brian went up to grab a pail of water for the lambs. Guess what? I had left the hose water on. For. 3. hours. Brian suggested I go check and see if they needed a life raft. They didn’t, since there shelter was there raft surrounded by 2 inches of water on all sides. I knew I put a floor in that thing for a reason!! Too bad the flooding wasn’t Mother Nature’s fault instead of mine. What a waste.

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sheep

Notes About Sheep

This is kind of long but I want to share some of the things I’ve learned about raising sheep since acquiring my first two lambs about 15 months ago. I’ve tried to break it up by topic so you can find what you’re interested in. Right now I can sum up my feelings about sheep pretty easily: I love sheep, but sometimes I don’t. Why, you ask? Sheep are a better alarm system than any dog or machine. They are still in their pen in the old garage which is way too close to the house. They have hay and fresh water in front of them at all times but twice a day we give them grain. They expect us to grain them before we do anything else in the morning. We tiptop from our bedroom to the other end of the house in the dark to avoid waking them. If you let the dogs out at 5 or 6 AM you better be very quiet and hope the dogs stay in the front yard. At the first sign of life from us, including the dogs running by their pen, it starts. Bah………….bah. Bah? Bahhhhhhhh. Baahhhhrrrrrhhh.BAHHHHHHH!!!!!! BAHHHHHHHH!!!!! BAAAHHRRR!!! BAHHHHHRRRHH!!! And

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Uncategorized

Blueberry Pie Filling

Note:  I’ve followed this recipe for 2 years in a row now with excellent results.  The key is to just warm the berries.  Don’t let them cook too long or they will lose their shape. This is the way I made my filling. It was a lot less work than the Ball canning book called for. 7 cups blueberries 1 2/3 cups granulated sugar 2/3 cup ClearJel, cornstarch, or flour (as a thickener) Blue & red food colorings 2 tbsp lemon juice Combine sugar and your choice of thickeners in a large saucepan. Whisk in 2 cups of water. Add blue and red food coloring to get the purple color you like. Note: I used flour because it was all I had and it worked just fine. It was certainly not as transparent as filling made with ClearJel or cornstarch. I would recommend the ClearJel if you have it and cornstarch if you don’t, with flour being a last resort. Bring mixture to a boil over medium high heat. Stir often as it won’t take long to start to thicken. When it starts to thicken and bubble stir in the lemon juice. Add the blueberries and keep over medium-low heat

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Menu Plan Monday / recipe

The Trouble With A Menu Plan…

The trouble with a menu plan is that: A) You have to make one before it works and B) When you have one you really come to rely on it and when you don’t it makes for a miserable week!! I thought about it on Monday but never quite made time since I had to work this Monday (my normal day off). I thought about it yesterday but made dinner and dessert and then it was 10 o’clock! Today is the day I guess. I know you’re wondering if it is even worth it now? Yes, it is. Now that I know what it is like to plan ahead I HATE coming home and trying to figure out what to cook. Here it is: Monday: Tacos for Brian, I never really ate dinner. Tuesday: Spaghetti (with herbs and butter for me, meat sauce for Brian) with Quick Cheese Bread (this recipe is a winner! We’ve had it twice now) Wednesday: Parmesan Crusted Walleye with Roasted Herb Potatoes Thurday: Grilled Cheese Sandwiches with Soup & Peas Friday: Breakfast for Supper – French Toast, Hashbrowns, Bacon, and Eggs Breakfasts this week consist of those blueberry waffles I made for me, I’m not

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berries / blueberry bushes / canning / cherries / pie

All In A Day’s Work

I could hardly believe my eyes when we pulled up to my sister-in-law’s house the other day. Across the road, bordering a field that my father-in-law owns, there were hundreds of cherries hanging from the trees. I held back my excitement long enough to ask if anyone picks those? All I got back was a funny look. They had never noticed the cherries!! That was last week and the cherries weren’t quite ripe yet. We did go up to the beach for the weekend but we came home first thing Sunday morning. I have a bad sunburn (stupid me!) so I certainly didn’t want to lay on the beach anymore and we were both ready to go home. Brian went to cut hay and I headed over to pick cherries. The whopping total: 8 # 13 oz.!! That took me a good part of the morning. Back home I pitted them all. Since our 5 tv channels suck and I canceled Netflix I set up my labtop next to me and watched the first 4 weeks of Here Come The Newlyweds while I pitted. After experimenting with different methods, I liked using a drinking straw and popping the pits out

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