Thinking....Canning....and Planning....

My summer squash is coming in now and it is so beautiful...

Zucchini is in abundance as well....

......that means.....

We have been filling the freezer with lot's of these zucchini muffins...

Acelia is a real pro at whipping these up in no time flat!  We pop them in the freezer UNCOOKED so when we want fresh, hot muffins we take out what we want and

bake them up.

My "Marketmore" cucumbers are abundant as well....

We aren't really pickle eaters so we just did a few jars of pickles

and the rest we are eating fresh!

Unfortunately I didn't check with my mother before I ordered bean seeds and 

came up EXTREMELY short!

Planning for next year though!!!!  

I've been scouring the farmers markets with my sister in law for beans and have been

blessed to get some to can.

I will cherish this canner because it was my grandmothers and then my mothers.  I WISH there was a journal tucked in the original box somewhere...

where my grandmother and mother recorded all the pints and quarts of canned goods they have

done over the years.  Wouldn't that be cool!!!

I bought these little plums at the farmers market.

Juicy and sweet!

I don't remember the name of them though :(

Warm evenings....I LOVE!  Honey had a lovely bath and is eating dinner with Acelia.

So cute!

My red Geraniums are so beautiful and I planning on cutting some to root and have through the winter months!

A New Adventure

This is going to be a new adventure for us.

This little guy will be joining the farm along with two other little heifers at the end of September.

These are Dexter cows.  The more I read about them, the more I want to raise these exclusively.

They are very gentle and calm.  

This is his dad (below).  Rico will look just like him in 18 mo's, and bring about 500lbs of meat.

This guy was in the field the whole time held back only by two strands of wire.  He looks massive, but this particular breed is short and docile.  He walked right over to his owner and lowered his head for a scratch behind the ears.  I reached over and gave him a few scratches as well.   Though the owners say NEVER TRUST A BULL, they said they have never seen aggression in him.  "These cows are very pampered." The owner said, "Because I can."  They owners are in their 60's or so and have 23 alpaca's, 5 cows, I don't know how many buff orpington pullets, other assorted chickens, ducks, and a cute little vegetable garden in front of the house.  Their farm is neat as a pin!  I looked at Scott and said, "This is what I want the rest of our lives to be like."  The exclamation point to their chosen life style............a "FOR SALE" sign on their motor home sitting in the driveway.

Weather Junkie

 I'm not ashamed to say I'm a weather junkie.  I could sit in front of The Weather Channel all day long.

  Forget Facebook and give me the weather channel! 

These photo's were of the last storm that rolled in. 

One of my favorite things about summer is watching the storms roll in over the mountains.  

Randomness

Spearmint 

Sungold tomatoes

Chocolate Mint

Yarrow and Red Clover

Red Pepper

Our new Pine Tree Flag click on the link and scroll down the page to read the meaning.

Our new workout station for the boys

The garden is doing great

Meat birds

Pea pods and dill

I'm still drying calendula

Prince Charming???

Projects in progress......

I almost couldn't contain my excitement when I received my yarn shipment!!

I can't wait to get going on my project!

My embroidery project is almost done!

I've had a blast doing this! It's relaxing and I can't wait to start another one.

A little of this and a little of that.....

Acelia's new heels!

 What girl doesn't love a new pair of heels?

I am becoming more and more confident and comfortable with my embroidery stitches!

I am really loving this project! I feel like I will really be able to tackle 

this one!

I made my first batch of lacto-fermented pickles! Cukes and dill straight from my garden!

I also made my first batch of whey and homemade cream cheese! Strawberry cream cheese sweetened with maple syrup!

I froze two quarts of broccoli out of my garden!

I made a second batch of Zucchini soup and served it with garlic crostini and brie! Yummy!!

Sweet Dreams

This is my first embroidery project.  A pillow case that says "Sweet Dreams". 

I LOVE embroidering!!

I am going to give the set to Acelia.

When they are done I'm ordering this!!

Education

I just received my Bulk Herb Store order today and my new books came.  

I can't wait to dig in!!

Simplicity

Dill from my garden in milkglass