This Week I Learned....

I have a write-board in our school room that I use to put a new journal entry up every school day. The kids have a notebook journal and are required to write at least 3 complete sentences for each entry. I thought that I might participate on my blog... no promises as to my consistency, but at least it will give me something to write when I have nothing to write.
Oct. 2 2009 Journal Starter -- This week I learned...

This week I learned that The Walmarts carries over 4000 items that are made with or from corn or corn products, including pudding, marshmallows, and graham crackers. Is that bad? I don't really know. I also learned that the Right Choices Corn Maze in Southwest City, MO, is really 45 minutes away...not 30 minutes. I also learned that the Everglades in Florida are a national park. And, I learned that during the Great Depression, one of FDR's many programs included hiring a few hundred thousand men for the CCC...a conservation program where the men worked at national parks, forests, and monuments. They made $30 a month. They lived in what looked like army barracks and had early morning calisthenics each day...and they were thankful. I've caught bits and pieces from the PBS special by Ken Burns on America's national parks. Even though the contents is surprisingly interesting, all his shows are alike... Even the music sounds like the music from his civil war special.
OK, I think I've reached my minimum of 3 sentences.

I'm back...sort of

It's been a while... I'm re-evaluating my time and the way I spend it. Not sure what this means for this blog... I guess I am trying to decide why I do it and if it's a reason that justifies the time. On top of that, I don't really have much to say :-). I talk about my chickens, my garden, my kids and family, but I'm not certain it's of any interest to anyone other than my aunt.

For example: Here is a picture of our grapes. Not enough to make wine, but plenty to make homemade grape juice.

It might not look like much, but when you have to take the stems off of all of those grapes...well, it seems like the mountain of grapes don't get any smaller. Handy Man and I worked on these grapes for about 4 hours. Of course, we didn't even get started until 9 o'clock. PM!! Why do we always do that?! By the end of the night/morning, I was in a grape juice induced stupor. I think there was about 50 lbs.

Anyway, once I got the stems off about 8-10 lbs, Handy Man would cook them so that the juice was about to burst out of the grape skins. Then, he'd put the purple blob in a straining bag and allow the juice to drip into a bowl. Once he had squeezed all the juice out of the hot grapes, we'd ladle it into quart jars. We ended up with about 15 quarts of grape juice concentrate. We went ahead and canned the juice in a water bath. Now, we just pop open a jar and add about 2 cups of water... It's heavenly. The yummiest grape juice EVER!! You wouldn't necessarily need to add water, but it still tastes amazing and makes it last longer. Now, I can pretend to be a grownup and have a wine glass of grape juice while Handy Man has his evening glass of red wine...for his heart, of course.

Hatching a chicken...

Here's what's been going on at my house. We happened to peek in on this little one as he/she was beginning to hatch, so we caught the whole think on the camera. Science!!

What's Growing...

Some people grow roses... I buy mine (actually, Roger buys them).
Some people grow cucumbers and zucchini...I just wait until my firends (thanks Rebecca and Karan) have more than they can possibly eat and are giving it away. We just don't eat those veggies very much...so I don't want to expend the energy or space for them.

Here's what I DO grow...

Lovely cantaloupe! I've harvest 2 so far and they are fabulous. I have about 14 on the vines right now.


Tomatoes...


Tomatoes...


and tomatoes... I've harvested about 75 lbs so I can make tons of spaghetti sauce.

I planted the green beans because we had the extra space. I've been getting about a handful each day and have harvested about 2 gallons. I think we'll plant more of those next year! They're yummy!

My Summer Reading

Yes, yes...I know. You haven't been able to sleep at night because you've been wondering what in the world has happened to Trish! Thanks for the thoughts, but you needn't worry. I'm here. I'm still trying to hang on to every last drop of summer... I'm gardening for the first time ever and am enjoying it immensely. And, I'm working on getting my act together to start school. But, enough about all that...
One of the things that I have enjoyed so much this summer is getting to read. So, I thought I'd do a little book list/review... I checked several of these books out from the library, so I don't have them in front of me, so I might not be able to give you the authors. You're smart. You can find it if you want to.

A Handmade Life - written my the gal that has the blog www.orangette.blogspot.com. I really liked this book. It is a memoir that chronicles her life and the food that she associates with the times of her life. It has 50 recipes...including the Winning Hearts and Minds Chocolate Cake. I've made this twice and it's fantastic.

The Egg and I - By Betty MacDonald -- This book was written in the 40s, I think, and was a bestseller, which was rare for a woman. It tells about her and her chicken-loving husband living on a farm in Washington state. It was a funny book. I liked it.

Onions in the Stew - Betty MacDonal - Continues her story after a divorce, and a new marriage. She and her husband and 2 daughters move to an island in Washington state. It was ok, but I like the first book better.

Country Matters - Michael K? - Another book about a New York couple buying a farm and how they came to love it. It was a good book...easy to put down and pick back up. Has some language.

The Curate's Awakening - George MacDonald - A fabulous fiction book that deals with questions about God and faith. I try to read this book at least once a year.

A is for Apron - a book of apron patterns. I actually made an apron to hold clothespins and harvested produce. I love it.

The Magic Apple Tree - Another book that chronicles a life on the farm. Written by a gal that's famous in England. Another book that's easy to put down and pick up. I like reading about this stuff...do you see a pattern?

I read several books about raising chickens. The one that I actually bought as a reference is The Joy of Keeping Chickens.

Made from Scratch - I loved this book. The author is Jenna W. and she has the blog www.coldantlerfarm.blogspot.com Her book tells about her transformation from a city dweller to a country dweller in the city. She tells about her first attempt to raise chickens and other endeavors. And, she gives info on how you can start small as you head towards the goal of homesteading.

Hobby Farms - a sort of reference book on how to do things on a farm, but as a hobby.

I subscribed to 2 magazines that I really like. Hobby Farms is a magazine that deals with mainly the outside stuff...barns, pens, gardens, tractors, etc... The other magazine is Hobby Farms Home, which deals with the inside stuff. I like them both, but would go with HFHome if I had to choose one.

I read LOTS of cookbooks and information about canning and preserving...

Wow... I guess I was a little single-minded this summer.

Unattended Kids

I'm trying to savour each day of my summer vacation...and not let it get sucked up by the black hole that is "the internet". I don't know about you, but hours can just fly by when I'm online... So, I've been a little MIA on my blog... but I had to share this. Of course, it would NEVER apply to MY kids :-)

This librarian's heart swells with happiness...

Isn't this a lovely picture?