Saturday on the Farm

We have had fairly great weather since we were flooded so we had been playing clean-up more than projects, until we put up the poles to the gate the other day. Last night the boys 'set' the poles so they are all straight up and down!

Here are Ruth and Obed in a repaired pen. If you remember Obed has the heart on his side(click here to see it- as he would not allow me to get a recent picture). I must confess that I really love the sheep. During the flooding, while the men were helping get the birds taken care of the sheep were very distressed. So I stood in the middle of the flooding(16" water) and sang to them to calm them. It took about two minutes before all of them were up against my side and they stopped baaing. I was humbled to realize that me being there was very calming to them.

After the monsoon season last year(which was nothing compared to this year) we were amazed to discover that a tossed pumpkin(with seeds) took off and began growing in the mesquite. This year, I decided to see if I tossed many seeds from the squash family among the mesquite~ what would happen? Well lookie here:If you enlarge this picture you can see the muck look of everything except the squash plant(I think that these are watermelon). The mesquite became a natural trellis for the pumpkin plants and I was certain that this would work...but am tickled to death that it is! Every time we have eaten any farmers market squash or melon, I have had the kids take the seeds and toss them. We have many seedlings growing around the property and hurray! No worries to what they are... we will be able to identify what is what when they get bigger!

This is what we are paying for diesel, which impacts our Saturday on the farm, as we haul garbage to the dump and pick up hay on Saturdays. I am grateful it is not near where it was last year, but I know times are coming where fuel will go high very soon. Today in the loop of garbage and hay, we dropped off the billy goat we traded for post holes dug. Our friend needed a few days to prepare a pen for the goat, and since we were headed that way we delivered him.

Back l-r: Oatmeal~Molasses bread, dinner rolls

Front l-r: bagels, sourdough bread

Here is some of what I baked today(the rest was eaten before I was able to capture the complete photo!). Aside from the sourdough bread, everything else was new for me today. I have been slowly learning how to make a variety of breads these past few years, and if we like it, I work to master it, or if not- I do not make it again. Everything was a thumbs up, so I will practice these for the next month or so. I believe I will enter the Oatmeal Molasses bread in the fair...as my entry in the leavened breads. One loaf of the Oatmeal Molasses bread, two bagels and two rolls did not escape the quick hands of the members of Double Nickel family!

Well that is what is happening, except once again I have discovered a rogue picture as I uploaded the pictures on the computer...Once again my goofball kids bring a smile to my face. They really make being a mom an easy thing to be!
Jennifer