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September 5, 2009

Week of 8/31/09

Bread baking extravaganza!


Max!
Ewe udder development!

Smoked ham and cheese quiche.

Foamy sculptures, not a good thing.

ROTC kids.


Where has this week gone?
I only milked 2 times in the last week, but will milk Sat. and Sun. to make up for it. The cows are enjoying over ripe melons and getting out in the back pasture. Hattie will be in milk until October, Princess won’t be picked up for a few more weeks. This will work out perfectly with our trip to Maine; Princess can keep her milked out.
The weather has definitely been shifting toward cooler at night and one day the high was only 86!
The kids finally tried out the hot tub; mainly because they were worn out from running afterschool with ROTC. They are hooked. J
Charlye got her driver’s license this week and had to drive to school in the dark and then home after the football game (in the dark). A milestone!
Dave and I were befuddled about the hot tub suddenly becoming cloudy so we made a trip to the sap man for advice. He said we don’t need to drain it, but treat it. We came home and set to work; a few minutes later Dave called me to come see the tub “it is funny”. I asked funny-ha-ha or funny ironic, he smiled and walked away. I had to look! The spa had a foam formation that we could have sculpted! Glad to say, the spa is clearing up and the foam is gone. Edited to add: the spa did not stayed clear and we drained it/replaced the water—now it is beautiful again!
On the foodie front: I made beignets one morning when I woke up too early (and had plenty of time), lentil soup from Nourishing Traditions was a hit (I added leftover ham), ham and cheese quiche (delish!), and of course smoked ham that led to several other meals. Every cut and type of meat we have prepared on the smoker has been absolutely wonderful. I am going to try and make smoked cheese sometime, when I can figure out a low temperature way to get the same flavor. I spent most of Saturday making bread, yogurt, and butternut squash bisque. It has been months since I have made bread, so I doubled the recipe to have plenty for the future. The dinner rolls disappear pretty quickly around here! I used the whole wheat recipe from The Break Baker’s Apprentice. Using fresh buttermilk, eggs, and honey really makes it wonderful.

We performed “sheep maintenance” this weekend. This consists of herding them into a small area, going in to retrieve one at a time by hook or by crook, and then leading/dragging the one to the stand for hoof trimming, worming, and sheep drench. We also banded the girl’s horns. They all did as well as could be expected, having been 3 months since the last sheep rodeo. The ewes are developing udders!

7 comments:

  1. Wow! Your farm is really doing well.I enjoy reading all the interesting news. Thanks!

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  2. The quiche looks delicious! I just love Max! I think his sweet personality shines through in the photos of him!

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  3. Quiche -- yummm. You mention your sheep rodeos are about three months apart. My goats get a rodeo every four weeks in the summer. Do sheep only need worming/trimming/etc. every three months? I think I shoulda gotten sheep ...

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  4. Hurray for little sheep udders and trips to Maine!

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  5. Thanks Y'all!
    Jo--the sheep haven't needed it any sooner I think because we have not had any rain and the ground is hard. The ivomec is every 3 months, and I treat weekly with DE, garlic, cayenne, raspberry, squash....well, suffice to say I rotate with naturals a lot!

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  6. OMG! Please tell me that my hot tub isn't gonna do that! I'd never find my grandkids in there!-Although on second thought-they'd LOVE the bubbles!!

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  7. LOL Susie! Ours needed to be emptied and refilled--apparently we use it more than normal!
    (Normal=2 or 3 times a week) :)

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