Mornings...

It is 5:13 am, and I have been up since 3:50am.  The alarm went off like a starting pistol, and we were off. 

By 4:15am, I was hard at work in the kitchen.  The giant garden of the summer, which kept me so very busy weeding and planting, is now keeping me tied to the kitchen.  Cherry tomatoes are slow roasting in the oven, complete with olive oil and spices.  Water is readying to boil to blanch the green beans.  And once that is done, as soon as light hits the sky, we are back out to the garden to see what else can be harvested in the early morning hours.

There is no sleeping in during harvest days.

I know that I have scarcely a post to my name these days.  The summer has run away, and taken me with it, caught up in its warm rays and growing days.  But, I will be back soon with updates and pictures - so much has happened.  The baby chicks are now nearly full grown, and (I think) even saw fit to lay an egg.  We adopted a puppy, who is my new gardening (digging!) companion.

There is so much to write, and so little time.  So, until I can get back again...

A crafty indulgence....

OK – so while my technical issues have taken a brief break, and it appears that I can actually "blog", I thought that I would continue with an update.

So, as you know, tax season is over, and, well, I thought gardening season was here.  I mean…the tomatoes are ready!

 

 

We had many days in the garden, tilling up the dirt and readying the beds.  I am just itching with the need to plant my seedlings and get some potatoes in the ground.  I mean, we had temps in the 80’s in March.

It is time, isn’t it?

But this weekend, we had a surprise.

Snow!

Yes, snow.  Horrid, isn't it?  I do not love.  The green grass is now crunching underfoot with a fresh coating of frost, and the feathered ladies are staging a sit-in within the coop.

So, I have plenty of time to spend indoors.  Time for cleaning, organizing, ironging…..oh how the list goes on and on…

But, all is not lost, as I have also been a very spoiled girl. 

Why, you ask?  Well, the craft is back!  (And yes, I realize that I rhymed that, and therefore sound a bit like a tool…so goes…)

I have a friend, Katie, who runs West Bay Farm in Maine with her husband and their children.  Katie is a friend from back in the old college days when we were both accounting students learning about deferred tax assets, and business consolidation journal entries….you get the picture.

It very long time ago.

(I would insert a picture to demonstrate just how long ago it was…but honestly, who needs that? ;)  )

But, anyways, on the farm, they have lots of different livestock, but sheep are the highlight of this story.  Cause, as you know, sheep are a fiber animal, and fiber is wool, and wool is yarn... and well, that is one of my most favorite items in the whole wide world.

'Cause yarn means crochet, which means that Lee Ann is very, very happy :).

Katie hand dyes the wool herself, and she even takes custom orders for weight and color….  So, I have indulged.  And I am spoiled.

I am in heaven.

Truely, truely in heaven.

You should check it out - seriously.  It is very, very awesome.  And for wool, it is incredibly soft.  So soft that my daughter already claimed the pink purse I made from their two-ply wool yarn for her very own…to be home to some Littlest Pet Shop friends…

I am thinking about stealing it back, but that would be very un-mommy-like, and we can’t have that…

Their website for yarn sales isn't up and running quite yet, but you can visit their West Bay Farm Face Book page, and send her a message for details….

And don’t forget to tell her I said “Hey” ;)  And that I had this thought…for some yarn…well, you get the idea ;)

Moving forward....

Today marks the third day that I have spent a good part of the afternoon in the soon-to-be garden turning over soil.  This is hard work!  And my body, having spent the better part of the last three months parked in front of a computer, is exhausted.  I keep thinking that if I just keep moving forward, it will start to come together.

I am still working towards that.

Yawn.

Thankfully, we have a solid month before anything actually gets planted in the garden.  Plenty of time to get my act together.  We will get there.  In the meantime, I enjoy browsing all of the seed packets I collected over the past months.  Three types of pumpkins...hordes of onions...more tomatoes that I will know what to do with.

The stuff dreams are made of.

But, for now, we are just maintaining the status quo.

We are now down to 11 chickens.  It is such a small number for us.  I keep counting and recounting them at night, thinking that someone must be missing.  But no - there are just that few.  Once a day or so, I think about adopting a few more, and then promptly change my mind as soon I as I go outside at dawn to find that yet another skunk found their way into the chicken yard.  The ladies are yet unharmed, but those skunks make a horrid mess.

I am not a big fan of cleaning those messes.

I don't even like to do the laundry....

The husband has big plans for the homestead, of which I am only just learning about.  That's the thing about tax season.  You get to put huge blinders on and focus on the task as hand.  And the husband move forward to price out wood stoves, plans to hire a friend to build a wood shed, and looks into buying a camper for use on our property across town.

Should make for an interesting summer...

Here come the peas!

After a week of dancing with the IRS, Sunday mornings are for the homestead.  There is much to do, and a span of hours to get it all done.

During the week, my husband cares for the kids, animals, and house, so indoors, it is only the once weekly necessities that draw us in.  Bathrooms, ironing, vaccuuming - all tackled before 7 am.

Glad to have that behide me.

Once the kids, and the sun, was up, it was onwards and outdoors.  Cleaning chicken coops, hauling wagons full of composted hay to the garden, continuing the annual spring extravanga of raking gravel off of the front yard.  Oh, yeah.  That's the fun stuff.

And lets not forget about those guinea pigs - who need their giant condo of an adobe cleaned out every Sunday...  Not the fun stuff.  But, they are soft, and randomly cute as they beg for carrots everything single time I walk by them on the way to the fridge....

Wonder if that means I am walking by the fridge too often....

Today was also the day to rack the 4 half gallon containers of soon-to-be hard cider.

Or, at least, I hope they will be hard cider....

Really hope.

The seedlings started last weekend are popping up - broccoli, kale, onions.  Tomatoes, however...well, I don't know.  Hidden, they are.  But hidden, I hope they do not stay.  This is the first summer that our garden's bounty will be feeding more than our own family. 

Those tomatoes have a job to do.

And now it is 8am.  And I will probably continue the morning by begging my kids to get dressed, and heading back outside again.  High temps are in our future, and I was to get my share before it is back to the office this afternoon. 

'Cause, that's just how we roll ;)

A week gone by...

Well, the week got away from me.  I meant to post before now, I REALLY did!  But, I did not.  A blink, a wish, I don't know.  The week as gone by....

March is here.  The start of spring, or so I thought.  However, temps in the 40's have given way to the single digits, and our poor chickens are back to shivering in their coop.  I, however, think that I am adjusting to the temps - a thought made obvious by the fact that I continue, dispite efforts to the contrary, to leave my coat in the car.  Oh well. 

Last weekend, I racked my second batch of hard cider, and I wonder if it might be ready by the end of tax season.  I hope so - it would add to the celebration.  A celebration that is a bit odd, I am realizing.  See, my children have begun referring to the end of tax season as if it was a holiday to rival Christmas.  Easter is has gone by the wayside, and my coming birthday does not get a thought.  But, the end of tax season?  Oh yes - they are excited :) 

This coming weekend, I hope to start some seeds for the garden.  Onions, sweet peas, broccoli...delicious delights.  I ordered the seeds when grass could be seen in the dead of winter.  Now that spring is around the corner, and snow is here, I am not feeling enthused yet.  But, action will bring reaction, and the inside spurt of gardening will be a delightful rousing event. 

Can you tell I am looking forward to the warmer days?

Fiber, seeds, and trees...

It was a good day. 

I finished my daughter's sweater, which was a huge relief.  She has been asking for it daily since I began work on it 3 weeks ago.  Foolishly, I did not use a pattern, so the process entailed many, many bouts of trying on the interim project.  Next time, though, I will have more of a clue and will know where to start.

Now, I wonder what to do next....socks, anyone?

Our first order to seeds arrived today.  March is typically my seed starting month, so soon I will be spouting greens and turning my dining room into a Chia pet... I ordered 100 Jiffy pellets for seedlings, but I am now realizing that my starting order should have been closer to 200... I will use 100 on onion sets alone.  Oh well.

The logging has begun on our property across town.  Since the land is part of the Vermont Land Use program, there are certain things that need to be done to increase the health of the land and habitat for natural residents.  This year, that is includes a large amount of logging.

We drove by the property today and saw the progress.  The stacks of cut wood was shocking.  I wish I had my wits about me enough to have taken a picture.  Huge trees that used to tower above us...

After seeing the sight, my six year old son immediately cast in to a lecture about how awful we were for having cut down those trees.  It hard to understand how such an act can be good for the land.  But, we know that it is...and dream of a green and lush wildlife preserve of sorts that may occur once the sun is allowed to shine down on more of the ground cover.

It will be a beautiful sight. 

Not your typical Vermont winter...

Now, I am not complaining - no, not at all - but this is not a typical Vermont winter.

Spike peers out the back screen door and grasps a scent of fresh air.  'Cause it is 38 degrees.  Seriously!!  This time last year, we were stuck in FEET of snow.

Not today.

Sugar is tramping on the strawberry patch.  I just hope the warm weather doesn't take that patch out of winter hibernation too early....

The ladies are enjoying a nice graze in the sun.  Not a normal occurence, which makes it all that much more special.

I can now see the ground that we will be planting in a few short months.  I placed the first seed order yesterday, and am eagerly awaiting the excitement of starting my seedlings.

Spring is truely right around the corner...

2012....

2012.

I like the sound of that...2012.  Maybe it is the evenness of it, or the perceived safety of pairs and numbers.  I don't know....but it makes me smile a bit.

I have big plans for this year.  The most important of these began today.  2012 will be the year that I finally get in shape, and stay in shape.  I mean, I know that I am not horridly out of shape, and I can wield a pitchfork for a time with the best of them, but this year, I want something better.  Sometime more.  We have a huge garden out back to manifest into huge degrees of edible, and I don't want to be the one coming up short.

Pair this goal up with the start of tax season (oh yes, starting tomorrow!), and we have quite the scene.  But, it is going to work.  'Cause, I have a plan.  Starting tomorrow, I will be working longer days, and be arriving home just in time to join my husband in tucking the kids into bed.  And, once their heads hit their pillows, I will be heading down for a daily meet and greet with my new BFF, the treadmill.  30 minutes of running to nowhere, 10 minutes in a hot, hot, shower, and the day will be done.  Each day.

And having started this running journey today, I am well on my way. 

All this talk leads to my next goal of our expanding our homestead this year.  Luckily, the seasonality of the bulk of our homesteading tail feathers well with my day job as a tax accountant.  So, just as tax season is ending, the real work on the homestead will be just beginning.

New Hampshire Red

So, start with the most fun, we will be increasing our flock this spring.  We only have 12 chickens for the winter months (and yes, I could name them all for you...but will spare you for now) and plan to add another 4 by summer. 

I am in the process of picking a breed (really liking the New Hampshire Reds), and then will be deciding when to place an order.  I have heard very good things about the Murray McMurray Hatchery, and am considering ordering from them.  Not positive, but am considering...and if we do so, we will be placing an order for 25 (the minimum order allowed, since, as in many other things, there is safety in numbers) of the tiny feathered ladies, and then finding adoptive homes for many of them. 

 

Next, as you know, the garden is already on its way to a 400% expansion.  Rows have been raised and a seed wish-list has begun.  I have canning jars waiting in the wings and a freezer chest sitting on the sidelines. 

This year, we are prepared, and will be growing vegetables (and some fruit of the berry variety) to last our family for the the following year, and some for our friends and family as well.  To say I am excited would be an understatement.

I plan to utilize some of the acreage on our property across town as well.  While the land is mostly being fostered as a wildlife preserve and my husband's *great escape*, I am also planning to harvest plenty of the blackberries and elderberries that are growing with great abandon, and to raise some bees.  I know nothing about bees, but I am planning to start my education very soon...

I am sure that there are many more items that I could be adding to this list, but these are my top personal goals.  To be fit, healthy, and continue on our path to a more self sustaining future with healthy home grown vegetables, fruit, honey, and, of course, eggs. 

For 2012, this sounds just right.

A surprise....

My husband SWEARS that he does not read my blog....but, today, when I rushed home to continue with the water clean up from yesterday's washer flooding, and help install the new washer machine...

This was waiting for me in the back of the truck.

The very thing I was dreaming aobut yesterday, while musing about next years garden...

It is a holiday gift.

For us.

And it is perfect.

Call me crazy, but....

OK, so I know that this is crazy.

Snow is on the ground.  Cookies are in the oven.  Solstice is only days away....

But I can't wait for next year's garden.

I have found myself logging in to my account at High Mowing, and building my wish list...kale, edamame, sweet peas...the list is starting to get out of hand - already!!  And the growing season in not even in sight.

But this next season will be our largest yet, with over a quarter of an acre completely dedicated to growing edibles.  I can't even begin to imagine the volume of food we will be able to harvest this next year.  As it was, with our garden of last year, I found myself sending my daughter from house to house in the neighborhood, dropping off squash, cucumbers, kale, etc...that we just couldn't put up for ourselves.

Our garden of last year had outgrown out storage abilities...

And now, we have grown that garden to be at least four times bigger.

I think we will need some more canning jars....and cupboard space...and maybe a freezer chest...

But first...we will daydream and grow that garden wish list ;)

An unsuspected success...

We had big plans for today...

In my minds eye, I saw myself waiting for the crack of dawn and then rushing outside to the newly enlarged garden.  I was going to run full force at the creation of more raised beds then I can count, and then relish in the future fruits of my labor.

But, that was not meant to be.

We awoke to the pouring of rain.  And while my husband still hurried off to greet the dawn from his duck blind, I merely gazed off into the sheets of rain coating the window glass.  This would not bode well.

And sadly, we were right.  While the rain sped away in the late morning, it was not until late afternoon until we ventured out to the garden.  Some of the saturation had fled the soil, but enough was still present to let the raising of garden beds be a tough task to tackle....but we trudged on, and ended a solid hour of wet work with several beds raised and in place. 

Thoroughly chilled, I fled back into the house to warm up and tend to more domestic details.  Many parts of the home have been cleaned, laundry and ironing have been dealt with, chapters of a book have been read, and I have actually finished untangling a mess of yarn that I have been struggling with for a week.

So, while the day didn't quite turn out as planned, it will still an unsuspected success of a different type. 

And I am glad.

A garden to plan....

The weekend is a full two days away, but I am already full of plans....

My husband is off and away during every possible free moment, enjoying the hunting season (which is our trade off for the tax season that pulls me from the home every winter and early spring), so it is just me and the kids.

And the giant garden has been tilled.  What once was about 1,000 square feet of edibles and tons of grass, is now a soon-to-be garden of nearly a quarter of an acre...even the person who came to till it on the Monday was amazed.

But, we are ready!

A close friend will be utilizing approximately 600 square feet for their our kitchen garden, and I hope to expand the fruiting bushes by double.  Other than that - we are up to our eyes in beds to raise, seeds to choose, and garden joy to tackle. 

This fall, the work will be limited to just raising the beds, to cut down on the work for next spring....in the winter, I will be pouring over seed catologs, aiming to choose the best heirloom seeds for our family and our climate, in the hopes to practice seed saving techniques for the years to follow.  And in the spring (post tax season, of course, we will be running at full tilt, planting and tilling, watering and mulching.

I can't wait!

So, all that being said, it will be a full weekend - full of dirt, iron rakes and shoves, and lots of hopes and dreams....

But until then....it is Thursday ;)  Happy day, y'all!

A bit of the unexpected....

So, the weekend hasn't quite turned out the way that I have planned....

And I have a skunk who may want to be my pet.

But, I get ahead of myself...

We had thought that we would be working on the expanded garden this weekend.  See, our garden is currently about 20 ft by 50 ft, or 1,000 square feet.

Next year, it will be a quarter of an acre.  Huge!  And I can't wait, so I want to get a start on it.  My husband hired someone in the area to come a rototil the area this weekend.  Once complete, we are heading out to start raising beds and adding compost for spring.

But, it appears that many others had the same idea....and the person is very busy....and may not be here for several weeks.

So, the garden is on hold. 

Then, on Friday evening, my daughter received an invite to a birthday party on Saturday.  Needless to say, we did not have anything for the little girl who was having the celebration. 

And my daughter wanted to give her something homemade.  So, I went to the bag to see what was a on the hooks....and found a baby blanket in process. 

So, with a bit of inspiration, the blanket was turned into a purse for the little girl.  And, to go into the purse, my daughter crafted a paper cat....and then we whipped up a matching hat.  Needless to say, no pictures were taken of the hat, as I was literally tying it off as I was telling the kids to get in the van and buckle up....

The day that followed was great - just me and my son, foot loose and fancy free.  We visited the local video store, we hung out at the library....great times!  And the evening was finished out with my completion of slippers to felt in the morning!

However, that didn't quite work out....I tried to felt them...but only thought that I was working with pure wool.  But, having lost the label a long time ago, I was obviously wrong.  And now I have some super large grey slipper shapes....Not quite the plan.

And to go full circle, I now have a skunk in the hay shed.  And he doesn't seem to be in any great hurry to move out. 

So, everything in the hay shed is all over the chicken yard, the kids are barred from the backyard, the chickens probably ran away and moved in with the neighbors, and we have a play date starting in 45 minutes!!!!  And that doesn't even include the son that refuses to get dressed, but is asking me to call his friend's mother every 5 minutes to find out when they will be here.

So....I will finish my breakfast, make another cup of coffee, and take a deep breath.

What's the worse that can happen?  A pet skunk isn't the end of the world, right? ;)

Garden plans....

It is amazing what  clean(ish....) house will do for your spirits....

I tore much of the downstairs apart yesterday for a thorough cleaning.  And it was very much needed.....I love the summer, but I find it so hard to remain indoors when there is so much to do out...and my house shows that neglect.  I mean, I figure, where will the dirt go?  Veggies can rot on the vine, but dirt will never leave.  So it can wait.

Until Fall.

And it is Fall.

So, the house is clean (at least for another hour....until the kids get up) and much of the outdoors is closed up for the season.  Not as much to do out there now.  I admit, I did have visions of a grand Fall garden, but the intense rain from the late summer took care of part of that thought, and my full frozen and pantry took care of the rest.  Without veggies to harvest or storage for said harvest, the gardening is pretty much complete.

But, even as I type this, I remember this is not quite true.

The garden of this past season is nearly put away.  But the garden of next season is still in the works.

Our functional veggie and fruit garden is currently about 20 feet by 60 feet.  A decent size, nothing to sneeze at...  But, for next year, this garden will grow.  To about a quarter acre.... Which might still sound small, but it not.  It will be 4 to 6 times bigger than before!  It will be a whole host of possibilities!

So, in the next 2 weeks, we need to get a rotiller and start to work the soil.  I would like to have everything turned over this Fall, so that beds can be raised and ready for planting next Spring and Summer.  I figure, we will have our work cut out for us this Winter, between selecting seeds, starting seedlings...and dealing with the frigid winter chicken care (shoveling...lots and lots of shoveling....) it will be so lovely to have everything that much closer to planting next garden season.

And now...I am all amped up to get back outside, and start work....  But is it Fall, the house, and family, need my attention, and I must remain right here....At least for another 5 minutes....I am sure that I can manage five minutes....

And I can always grab the kiddos and bring them along....I am sure they won't mind...really....

OK, maybe a little...  ;)

Happy beginning of the week, y'all!

Friday morning....

Well, we got here.  It is finally Friday morning.

It was the first full week of school for the kids....starting the year with a week of 3 days, then a week of 4, warming up to this week.  School definitely in session.

And with school, comes our new routine.  And we are beginning to settle into it.  The mornings go by fast....getting up early to work from home, then breakfast for the husband before he runs out the door, followed by caring for the chickens and the cats.  At 6:15 am, bright and early, I am rousing the kids with a wake up call, as we leave for school an hour later.  Come 9am, I am settling in to the office, having already been up for 6 hours, and ready for yet another cup of coffee. 

This is oddly comfortable.

What is missing, however, is time in the garden.  I am a mix of emotions as we work to close down the garden...sad that summer as passed and the cool weather is rushing in, but content in knowing the harvest is nearly done.  The freezer and pantry (although small) are close to bursting with frozen and canned goods from the garden's bounty, and I am welcoming the break.  Only a few crops are still left out - mainly the rest of the butternut squash, pumpkins, a few late edamame plants, and the sweet potatoes.  Many of these will be coming out in the next few days.

I have been spending much for time crafting, as you may have noticed from past posts....crochet has caught my attention again, and while I wish I could knit with the best of them....I can't deny that I love the ease of handling only one needle at a time.  And there are very few things better than having cozy family time indoors crocheting a warm gift for another, while the brisk, and often rainy, weather carries on out of doors.

And I feel more prepared for this coming winter than last.  This will be our second winter with the chickens, and we have made some good decisions to handle it well.  The coup built by the husband is holding strong, and we have downsized from a count in the 20's last winter, to only 16 feathered ladies this time around.  Everyone fits in the large coop together, and we have the heated mat, heat lamp, and heated water dish ready for the frosty weather.  That being said, I do so hope that such temperatures are still far off.

But, for now....it is time to continue on with this morning.  Chickens, cats, kids....here we go again ;)

Salsa Day!!

So, yesterday was a Salsa Day!.. A batch so fierce, I ran out of canning jars....And, I even had a helper for the project, as my daughter was chomping at the bit to jump in and help!

Lots of time was spent in,the garden yesterday, getting ready to close it down for the winter. As much as I love the garden, it was quite bittersweet being out there yesterday....Looking forward to next year already!!!

On the fiber front, I just couldn't leave that sock alone...tore the heel apart 3 more times on the quest for a better fit....ugh!!!

I guess we will just have to wait and see what today will bring...;)

A rainy, rainy day...

We have been getting so much rain.  Much of Vermont is in ruins, and so many of our friends to the south of the state have been dramatically effected.  And the flood warning continue on....

On the homestead, all is safe and issues are so very minor. What is left of my garden is constantly soaked, and will be gone to rot shortly.  I have no desire to leave indoors of the office or the home, and am perfectly content to stay within and watch it all come down without my participation.  I am getting lazy.

During the summer, I would have braved that rain, clad in muck boots and an old rain jacket, and headed straight out to the garden.  Now, however, I daydream about crochet and knitting projects....I want to cook and craft, occasionally clean, and read blog entries on other inspiring sites. 

I feel guilty about this attitude towards the outdoors, but feel no motivation to make a change.  So, I will continue to live on the indoors during these days...but will always remember to feel grateful for my safe and dry home in this rainy, rainy weather.

A new rhythm....

So, the kids are back in school.  And a more certain rhythm is returning to our life. 

Now, five days a week, the days will begin and end on more certain terms.  Children will rise to prepare for a new day of learning within that brick building and will fall asleep at earlier hours, after more scheduled dinners and homework sessions.  Much of the unpredicatability of the day will leave us.

This change is occurring just as work in the garden is slowing down...at least for the moment.  We rushed to harvest as much as possible before Irene arrived, and now there are very few crops left to deal with.  We do have the garden expansive left to work on this Fall, but that will be put off for a few more weeks.

So, in the meantime, we work to settle into this new routine.  And look forward to the calming sense of peace that this rhythm will bring us.

Potatoes in the morning....

The weather has begun to turn.  The crisp cool air greets us in the early hours of the morning, and the late hours of the evening....

Yesterday morning, I had a few moments before needing to rush the kids towards to van, in order to get to their dental appointments.  So, being the only natural things to do, I took a walk to the back garden.  And I was shocked!

I had just harvested tons of spaghetti squash, zucchini, and cucumbers over the weekend.  But the garden told me that the work was not done.  The ground was ejecting the onions, the zucchini were continuing to grow at alarming speeds, more cucumbers had come out of hiding, and the potato plants were beginning to die off....

The first several items are easy to deal with.  Yank, pull, pluck....the potatoes, however, were another story.  Assuming I had another 10 minutes or so, and knowing that I would be home late in the evening, I ran for the garage and grabbed the shovel.  I then proceeded to tackle to potatoes, tugging the plant from the ground first, then shaking the potatoes clinging to the roots, and then, digging through the ground for any potatoes still lodged beneath.

10 minutes and 6 potatoes plants later, I had to retire for the morning.  The bounty was spread on the front porch for cure in the open air, and about 15 more potato plants waited in the wings.  They would have to meet their fate another day....

Flowers vs. weeds....

I have been so intent on my vegatable gardens, that I have completely forsaken the flowers.

The weeds are taking over....

After dinner, I told my husband to call me in a few minutes, so that we could get the kids to bed....I had to get out to the front flower garden.  However, once I started on that one, I noticed the one under the maple tree, and then the one by the crab apple tree, and then....well, you get the picture.  A few moments stretched to a much longer amount of time.  And now - it is time for bed.

So, the plan for the morning - as soon as the sun rises, I will be outside.  The flowers await, and they are sick of sharing their sun and nutrients with the weeds.  It is time to show those weeds just who is boss!

Or, at least try....can't forget about the veggies, after all....