Weeks of 9.20.15 - 10.3.15

I Love this time of year!!  Chilly mornings, warm days, cool nights.  Mist on the hills and magic in the air  :)

I’ve been doing a lot of drying… squash, pumpkin, peppers, pears, onions, ginger, apples.. Made some pear sauce and candied some ginger. I’m going to be making pumpkin and pumpkin pie bark next week. I also made cheese and yogurt last week.

Blessed food!

We bucked hay all day last Sunday. It’s been years and I wasn’t feeling good and probably only did ¼ or less of what the guys did, and was still sore the next day. But it was good hard work, we enjoyed it and being able to help a friend a little. We also got hay for ourselves!

I’ve gotten almost my whole studio moved back onto the enclosed back porch. It was a huge black snake spending time in the Stone House. Henry, I reckon. Anyway, I can work again!!!!  Thank the Mother!!!

-Learned-

More about making bog shoes

About Sage Grass, Crow’s Foot Grass and Foxtail grass

How to stack hay for safer travel

-Harvest  –

Eggs

Milk

Chicken

Pears

Onions

Acorns

Rosehips

Ginger

Walnuts

-Barter –

3 Ghost pumpkins

A box full of Green Bell Peppers

A huge long squash

A bunch of pinkish orange pumpkins

A ton of butternut squash

Several books

Heavy denim curtains

A few candles

2 months of natural Prairie grass hay

-Gifts –

Elk butter (it tastes just like butter!)

Shoulder of venison

Big bouquet of dried Sage Grass

Squash, pumpkins and peppers beyond our bartering

-Meals-

Homemade venison and barely soup with carrots, celery, lambs quarters, dock, onion and mushrooms. Served with homemade whole wheat soup crackers.

Butternut squash stuffed with wild rice, savory herbs and spices, onion, peppers, spinach and poke.

BBQ venison on homemade organic corn flour rolls, steamed organic broccoli with cheese.

Egg and smoked cheese sandwiches on homemade oat bread with carrot sticks on the side.

Cheese & Meat plate, summer sausage, smoked gouda, medium cheddar, olives, grapes, apple slices, crusty bread and pumpernickel rolls.

-Snacks-

Homemade salsa and organic blue corn chips

Commercial hummus and O blue chips

Raw apples and pears

Homemade peanut butter granola

Grapes

Walnuts

-Desserts-

Pumpkin muffins

Biscuits and wild raspberry preserves

Cocoa oatmeal drop cookies

Scones with pear sauce

Cooked pears with caramel

Baked apples with cinnamon and butter

Goat milk ice cream with pear sauce

Pumpkin bread with walnuts

-Sunday Dinners-

Grilled split chicken with grilled squash, carrots and potatoes.

Venison kabobs – cubed and marinated over night. With potatoes, carrots, onion, squash and green bell peppers. Served on steamed brown rice.

-Drinks-

Hot tea with goat milk and honey

Cold black pekoe and raspberry zinger

Cold Black pekoe with orange peel and honey

Ice cold goat milk (reg and chocolate)

Milk shake of ice cold goat milk and frozen banana

Cold Black pekoe

Mint tea (hot and cold)

Lemon Balm tea (hot and cold)

Hot chamomile tea

Cold green tea with honey

the portable firepit I got for 3.00. It was all rusty, the top screen all smashed in and the bottom rusted through. I cleaned and sanded, pushed the screen back out and painted it with heat proof paint I had leftover from painting the outside of the rusty grill oven from last year. I still need to find a metal piece for the bottom but it's usable now and looks almost new  :)