On the Farm…

We had a really nice and productive weekend.  Friday I spent the day doing laundry, working in the garden, and getting a few greens picked for dinner.

Poke and Spinach collected

Spinach ready to cook. 

I also built this handy-dandy trellis for my English Ivy. 

It doesn’t look the greatest now, but I’m hoping my ivy will take it over (and cover it up).  Plus it was free, so nothing lost if it doesn’t turn out as I have invisioned.

Friday evening we had a surprise birthday party for a friend of our’s.  So I did chores that afternoon and as soon as Randy got home we loaded up and headed out for an hour and a half drive to her house.  We had such a good time visiting with friends and eating (of course).  We got home fairly late for us that night, but were still up with the roosters at 5:45 that next morning.

We had to finish clipping pasture fence and with a predicted high of 94 we needed to get an early start on it.  I took these pictures while we were out clipping fence: 

This is the north end of Grandma’s pasture.  The sheep love it out there and always head north when they are let out of the lots in the mornings.

This is where my camera was last seen Satuday morning.  Last night Randy and I had to run the fence line to beat an incoming storm looking for my camera.  It was nestled in the grass right about where that first shadow is, safe and sound, thank goodness.

It didn’t take us long at all to get the fence all clipped.  Then we relocated to the garden to pull weeds and stake tomatoes.  Craig stopped by and helped Randy get his engine in his pickup which was really nice.

Sunday morning we were up really early to finish up some of our outside duties before heading to Mom and Dad’s pond to meet Craig to fish.  I had homemade ice cream in the ice cream maker so we couldn’t stay very long and didn’t catch a thing.  Craig ended up with a huge catfish and a bucket full of bullhead, so he was please.  While Randy worked on the grain truck and Grandma’s, I dug up some starts for peonies and lilacs.  I have been reading Tasha Tudor’s books, and have a new desire to add flowers to our homestead.  Her books are wonderful if you ever get the chance to read them.  She also has a children’s line of books with beautiful illustrations she did herself.

Mom and Dad grilled steaks for lunch for all of us.  Afterwards we headed home to vacuum the pool and build a door for our second chicken coop.  We plan to use it for our Banties, so they can hatch out some babies and also to raise our meat birds in the fall.

It was a really hot weekend, but still got a lot done despite the heat.  This weekend will be more of the same heat-wise.  We have to weigh our ram lambs for the sale next weekend.  We want to try and send as many as we can to help stretch our pasture this summer.  We have barely enough acreage with Grandma’s pasture behind our house to sustain the number of sheep we now have.  We plan to sell off some of our ewes next year, but needed just one more year with them.  Hopefully we get enough rain to keep our grass in good shape for them.

Saturday’s dinner:  mahi mahi soaked in lemon juice and sprinkled with lemon pepper along with, sauted spinach and onions fresh from the garden, and garlic bread.

Sunday’s dinner:  homemade chili and potatoes left to cook all day in the solar oven. 

Monday’s dinner:  cream of broccoli soup and garlic bread

Tuesday’s dinner:  leftover taco mix from the freezer to make taco salads with homemade salsa

Tonight’s dinner:  I was given some bok choy from a co-work, so I will be experimenting with it tonight along with ham steak and radishes also given to me by the same co-worker.  The bok choy looks wonderful.

Have a wonderful day!