The Dehydrator's Bible

My mom bought me this book.  At first, I wasn't all that excited, but then I opened it. 

It tells you how to dehydrate everything!!  Well, not everything.  But since I discovered dehydrating last year, and everything tasted so good, I'm doing even more of it this year.  This book tells you how to put your dehydrated foods together to  make meals.  It even  has camping menus so you can bring with some pretty fancy dehydrated feasts.  Anyways, just thought I'd give the heads up if anyone wanted to do some serious dehydrating.  I might have to get me a bigger dehydrator now!

Frost.....and more frost

Okay, so it's not snowing, but we did have a good frost last night.  Tonight we get to have another one.

I don't think there's enough plastic in the township to cover my garden.  I did get some of the beans covered, half of the tomatoes, some of the cukes.  The rest got hit with the frost, though I think the corn is going to make it.  I'll check it out tomorrow morning.  Pumpkins and squash might be goners.  This has been one of the shortest growing seasons I can ever remember.  I did put in an abundance of cold weather crops-cabbage, broccoli, kale, rutabagas, beets.  We should get a lot of potatoes, too, but I was really looking forward to canning tomatoes and eating as much sweet corn as I wanted. 

Our 4-H club put on our fall animal swap today.  I'll have pictures soon.  It was a wonderful day for my son.  He crated up about 20 roosters and brought them in.  He sold 16 of them for $2 a piece (he got to keep half of the money)  and traded the last four for a mallard.  My son is crazy about ducks and he couldn't have been more blessed.  He is so happy.  I'm happy we got rid of so many roosters.  We have had some very busy hens this summer who have hatched us out somewhere around 60 chicks.  We should still have plenty of roosters to butcher this fall.  We've had 12 new chicks born this week and another hen started setting last week.  God is good.

Sitting here shivering at the computer, I think it's time to go hunker down under the covers and get to sleep.

Good night to all.

From Glory Farm

Tuesday, August 25

Two girls off to college this week.  One is down in the Twin Cities, one is staying home and going to a two year college instead of high school.  They are best friends and they're seperated.  My younger one, the one at home, sure misses her sister. 

Today promises to be a pleasant day, the sun, a few clouds and near perfect temperatures.  Beans to can, fenceposts to pull, a barn to continue to clean, and I'd like to start scraping the house to repaint. 

I have found a home for one of my llamas, and I still need to shear the two alpacas.  I've just spent my time with them getting to know them and giving them treats.  I also have a ram, born this spring, who is completely black with the most fantastic fiber.  He's just a doll.  I'm keeping him to breed back my ewes and selling the other two at the animal swap next Sunday.  I have two Angora goats for sale, also.  We still have to put up some hay, but it's awfully late this year, as my honey is working out of state and my neighbor is going to help me after he finishes his hay.  Thank you Lord for neighbors.

That's it for a quick update.

Hope all is well and Lord bless.

Whoa!!! Slow down.

The geese fly in every morning now.  About 30 of them.  They send the cattle scattering all over the pasture.  I think  they do it on purpose.  A couple of the maples have turned to a soft maroon.  It's early for fall and our woodpile is in a shambles.  Tomatoes on the vine are small and so are my cukes.  Others have their's in the refrigerator already, but mine are taking their time.

So today, I think I'll can as much as possible.  Some beets, swiss chard, maybe some beans.  I'll send the kids out to weed the weed patch.  The wild rasberries are red and ripe and ready to drop.  We'll try to get some more before they do.  The blueberries are so late.  They're at their peak right now, though we don't have too many of them this year.  Enough to get a pie or two.

My two oldest start college next week.  My two youngest won't have to start school for a couple of weeks yet.  I don't like to start too early.  We learn plenty just farming. 

That's about it from Glory Farm.  Have a good and Godly day.

Real Life Learning Opportunities

As homeschoolers we're always using life experiences to enhance our children's education.  So imagine how happy I was to stumble upon a new opportunity.  It was completely unplanned and allowed my children to use not only their problem solving skills, but also a bit of physical science and geometry.     I locked my keys in the van!  Leaving the back two windows opened just a crack allowed for some hope of unlocking it without calling the garage.  They tried broom handles, sticks, clothes hangers and even a dog leash, while trying to figure angles and force.  But, alas, we were not meant to be car theives and had to call the garage.  God sent over a wonderful man who was willing to do it for free.  We paid him, but it was much less than I thought it would be.  I really don't want that learning opportunity again.