Goodbye Summer

Tonight will be our first frost of autumn; sniff, sniff. Goodbye garden 2009, impatiens, morning glories, begonias and all you glorious plants that brighten my summer mornings, and nourished me with food.


As sad as I am to see of of summer's splendor go into retirement, I can't wait to say "hello" to all the wonderful things autumn holds. As a matter of fact, I've been secretly courting fall for the last few weeks of summer....

Hello, bright orange pumpkins, crunchy leaves that smell so good and look so pretty. Hello dried corn stalks on the front porch, and cozy evenings in front of the wood stove. Hello my favorite wool sweater and hello to you too crisp, cold wind in my face and fuzzy little orange and brown caterpillars.

What's your favorite thing about fall?

Reunion

My brother Ed looks like John Travolta. He has the brightest, happiest smile you can imagine. As a young guy he had no shortage of Farrah Fawcett haired girls swooning over him. But I was his kid sister; his arch nemesis that looked up to him, thought everything he did was wonderful and did my best to drive him nuts. I used to beg him to take me fishing and he used to beg my mother to not make him take me.

I haven't seen Ed since the bitter cold day we buried Daddy in 1996. Thirteen years gone by just like that. There was no falling out; no hard feelings on any one's part. Ed just isn't a keep in touch kind of guy. For the first few years us girls wrote letters, but we wondered if they reached him and after a few years of unanswered mail, we tapered off. We couldn't find him in any area phone books, thanks to the prevalence of cell phones replacing land lines. We weren't sure where he lived anymore, or what had become of him or his family.

He called today.

He called today because his wife has terminal lung cancer (the same kind as my stepfather) and is not long for this world. He kept apologizing so many times for not keeping in touch, and said that he didn't realize how important family was until you go through something like this. It also occurred to him that he could be the one dying and that none of us would where he was and he would have no family to help him, and so he called.

I think we've all had our turn at tears of rejoicing and sadness today. In all our discussions this afternoon, everyone of us expressed absolute delight in knowing he was well and wanted to run right over there and hug and kiss on him. We've missed him so. It truly feels like the prodigal son has come home. All we can think of is how much we love him and want to be a blessing to him and his family in this time of need.

It struck me in the midst of all this, that's how God feels about us, only a lot more so. That's how God loves us. No matter how long it's been since we've talked to Him, no matter how far away we are, no matter the things we've done or haven't done He wants us to come to Him. It's not too late, we are not too dirty, or bad or messed up to simply come to Him and be met with open arms.

I can't even begin to fathom how overjoyed God must be when we take that simple step; how much He wants to bless us, simply because He loves us.

Garden Review: Corn

Of the three years we've gardened at this house, this is the best year we've had for sweet corn and that's not saying a lot. It could be any number of things; and I'm just not sure what it is. Do we need more manure, compost, water? Ideas, anyone?

But by golly, this year we at least had a decent amount of edible corn. That's good compared to the previous years, so we are thankful. Above is a photo of the last picking. I was able to get 36 ears in various sizes from full to quite stunted, which turned into 4 quart sized bags filled to nearly bursting for the freezer.

Linked to wfmw.

The Weightloss Surgery Blog Is Up

As most of you know, I had bariatric surgery (otherwise known as "weight loss surgery") last month. So far things have been going well; I've been eating less, and thus losing weight but still making sure to get in all the important nutrients that are so vital for good health.

In an effort to encourage others that have had weight loss surgery or are considering it I started a blog about my weight loss journey creatively entitled Weight Loss Surgery Blog. Because you know I have creativity bubbling out my ears.

This new blog is still in the developmental stage, so things may change but right now I envision it as a resource for those wanting a glimpse into what life is like after weight loss surgery. I also plan to share healthy cooking tips, techniques and recipes.

I probably won't cover the topic of how surgery has affected me much here on the Farm Home Life blog, so I thought you all might want to follow me over at the new site for that info. You can pop in and take a look at the new site over here. As always, please let me know if you have any questions or if you have any suggestions for a future post.

Our First Fall Weekend

Our first official Autumn weekend didn't disappoint. It was everything you expect from Fall. The maples in front yard are starting to turn colour and the bright yellow walnut leaves are falling. Saturday was cooler and overcast; Sunday was filled with sun and wind. I love this time of year.

Last year I wrote:

"The nights are heaven as I cuddle under a blanket with the crisp air blowing through the window.

Each morning I wake to the cool, clean air of pre dawn. Light is just beginning to touch the far edge of the eastern horizon as I pull on my long sleeve shirt to go for my morning walk."

This weekend we finished the shed with the exception of the interior shelving. George is glad because now he can store a garden tractor, a trailer and some other equipment under shelter instead of leaving it out in the weather. I planted a few trees and a shrub; fall is a great time to get trees and shrubs started. Later this week I'm going to head out and pick up some spring bulbs to plant. We have several that came with the house, but they are so old that they only spring up here and there and most of the time, they do not even bloom.

On Saturday I went over to visit my mom. In the few weeks since my step dad died, she has been busy sorting through his things and packing to move. Mom lives in a retirement housing development and one of their requirements is that a single person cannot live in a 2 bedroom unit, so she has to move, and soon. Thankfully, she was able to get the unit she was hoping for. Several of us kids have been looking in on her and helping in anyway she needs us. Right now it looks like next weekend is moving weekend.

After church on Sunday George finished a few details on the shed and I worked in the kitchen. I made a batch of tomato sauce, sloppy joes and chicken stock for the freezer. After that we had supper and took a short nap. Oh, how good that nap felt!

Menu Plan Monday

Saturday

Roast Chicken, Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes, Mixed Veggies

Sunday

Sloppy Joes, Baked Potato Soup

Monday

Company's Coming Lasagna, Garlic Toast, Broccoli

Tuesday

Chicken Fajitas served with lettuce, tomato, cheese, salsa, sour cream

Wednesday

Chinese Take Out ( I will be getting Schezwan Chicken, George will stick with his usual sweet and sour pork)

Thursday

Salmon Patties, Green Beans, Squash

Friday

Homemade Pizza

This post is linked to Org Junkie.

#1 Key to Time Management

I spent virtually the entire month of August at home recovering from surgery. Before having surgery, I compiled the Granddaddy of all To-Do Lists. I figured after a few days where I did almost nothing but sleep, watch television and read, I would be hankering for something a little more productive to do in between periods of rest.

I had everything under the sun on the Granddaddy of To-Do Lists-- (but nothing that required bending or heavy lifting!) and was very much looking forward to crossing the tasks off one by one. This worked well for the first few days. I picked my favorite 2 or 3 tasks and slowly plugged away.

Somewhere along the way my whole productive plan fell through a black hole, never to be found again. Just as I was needing to rest less often and for shorter amounts of time -- the point where I could accomplish a bit more each day I fell off the wagon. For the rest of my time off I never even looked at that to-do list! And if that wasn't enough, I didn't do anything except for the very basics, even though I had a full 10 extra hours every day. To be really blunt I squandered the lions' share of each and every day.



Oh, the guilt, bewilderment and confusion! For the life of me, I could not figure out how I let this happen. I had a lot of excuses. And before you kindly remind me of the "you-were-recovering-from-surgery-you-shouldn't-have-to-do-anything" excuse, let me just say that I was resting as often as needed and not trying to over do it. But, there is only so much rest a person can take before they start to go downhill. Being as active as you can be within the surgeon's limits actually helps you heal better, or at least it did in my case.

This whole situation deeply troubled me. I've never, ever in my entire life been a time waster and deep down I knew I wasted most of every day for a good three weeks. This was serious. I would reach the end of the day and wonder what I would make for supper (even though I had a menu plan) and wonder why on earth I couldn't manage to squeeze in a load or two of laundry or pay the bills and no, I was not depressed. I've always worked diligently and productively until a task was accomplished -- even when 20 other things are going on at the same time or several people need my attention all at once. How did I let this happen? Why was I so slothful?

One day the answer dawned on me as I was asking God about it. It's so brilliantly simple that it almost seems too easy of an answer.

I awoke each morning with no plan of action for the day. I only did whatever I felt like doing.

Goodness, did this ever hit home! This was my answer! Our human nature tends toward laziness, and disorganization. We crave ease and comfort. We want to do whatever we feel like, whenever we feel like it. We want to have all fun and no work. We don't want to be accountable for how we choose to spend our time and we certainly don't want the consequences that come from squandering it.

Believe it or not, I've never had much of an opportunity to squander time until this last August. I've always had a very full schedule that demanded I become efficient in all my endeavors. As I put it one time here, I tend to work, while I'm working. It's startling to realize that given the very first chance how quickly I jumped on the proverbial band wagon of doing whatever I felt like all day, every day. Sure it's fine to take periods rest and slow down to enjoy the fruits of our labor but spend too many days doing only what you feel like and you are looking at a miserable existence.

In retrospect this was probably a very good thing for me to go through. It opened my eyes to a tendency I didn't even know I had. Most importantly, God has given me a fresh vision for how important it is for me to redeem the time.

When I prayerfully consider the day, develop a plan of action and then work dilegently toward that day's agenda it is amazing how free I feel.

Mid Week Humor

Today's Mid-Week Humor is courtesy of Mama Hen. I saw this hilarious piece on her blog and asked if I could post it here. I used to work in a grocery store, so I know for a fact that there are plenty of people in the world that think like the gal in this newspaper clipping.

I've seen it all and heard it all. Let me repeat. I have seen it ALL. Here are a few highlights of the more interesting things I've seen over the years.

• T-shirts turned into sleeveless shirts by cutting out a giant area surrounding the armhole. These types of shirts were popular when I first started working at the store and were most often worn by very overweight women wearing dirty bras.

• Polo Shirt Dresses. You know Polo Shirts? Well imagine a shirt that extends all the way to your ankles. You might think this would be a nice, casual summer dress. I wouldn't know because I only saw them stretched across women with middles that caused them to like a giant snake that had ingested a hippopotamus.

• Men should never wear jogging pants or tight stretchy pants in public unless they are jogging or ballet dancers. EVER.

• Towels. Apparently there are people in this world that think is is perfectly okay to go pick something up from the store fresh from the shower with a towel wrapped around their head. I was truly surprised that this lady was not in a bathrobe too. However, she did surprise me the one time she asked me if I extract a Qtip that had broken off and stuck in her ear.

• Baby is the universal word used by creepy men trying to hit on you. Us girls that worked there heard it so often that we could barely tolerate hearing it from our loved ones without feeling yicky. Women should not have to put up with that kind of informality from men they don't know. My favorite response was "my NAME is Trixie". The only exception to this is the elderly southern black ladies. They always called me baby. I knew they meant it in a sweet grandmotherly way. It's amazing the power of a word - depending upon who's doing the saying.

• Parents that repeatedly tell a whining kid that they cannot have a candy bar (or some other treat) will give in 99.99% of the time. We can see you coming a mile away. This is why your kid whines every. single. time. you are at a store. If this is you, please know that we can still be friends.

• You might be surprised at how many people carry their money in their bras and shoes. I like to keep mine in my wallet or at the very least a pocket; I don't care how you carry yours. All I ask is that it not be WET when you give it to me. Eeeeeewwww

• Those that have the least amount of discretionary money spend it on the most discretionary stuff. Sad, but so very true. My heart broke over and over as I saw so many people forgo the basics in life like healthy food, safe shelter, medical care so they could buy cigarettes, alcohol, unhealthy food, designer clothes and drugs.

What interesting observations have you made about the grocery store?

Our Little White Fox Weekend

We had an unusual visitor stop by this weekend. George couldn't sleep Friday night so he slipped outside to sit in a lawn chair. Along came this little dog. We call her our little white fox. Except for the wide ears and tail, she looks just like a little arctic fox. I think she's an Eskimo Spitz from what I found on an Internet search. She's quite friendly but isn't too keen on being brushed.



We spent a good share of Saturday canvassing all the neighbors within a couple miles of our house and putting up signs. Today I place ads in all the local papers. Hopefully we can find her owners. One of the sad things about living in the country is that people dump off unwanted animals hoping they can make it on their own or that one of the farmers will take them in. If we don't find her owner in a week or so, we know someone that will be happy to take her in and give her a good home.








In addition to boarding our little fox we worked on the shed, finished up some garden work and I did some sorting and organizing in the house.



Our shed is coming along very nicely. It's all dried in and most of the metal work on the roof line is finished. Pretty much all that's left are the shingles, building storage shelves inside, and building a ramp to the entrance. Through this process I have learned or more accurately, been reminded of how clumsy I am. Seriously, I don't know how I manage to walk and talk at the same time. I could barely manage holding the ladder for George, let alone climbing it and getting on the roof! Goodness gracious! And, then there was the issue of me nearly killing George by dropping a rafter on him -- which he was thankfully able to catch before it killed him. Our future probably doesn't hold anymore building projects.

Every weekend I keep thinking I picked the last of the garden. But, something new always manages to pop up. This weekend I picked a couple more green peppers, and a few tomatoes. The dried beans are now thoroughly dried so I put them in mason jars for use this winter.

One of our elderly neighbors shared an interesting way to have red, ripe tomatoes late into the fall. He said to pull the entire tomato plant out by the roots and store it in the basement or garage (anywhere that doesn't freeze) and wait for the tomatoes to ripen. The tomatoes won't get any bigger, but they will all ripen. Pretty neat! I think we will give it a try this year. We are not big fans of green tomatoes in any form so we've been wasting the ones that are still green when the first frost comes.

* Edited to add, the owner showed up to claim his dog while I was typing this.

Menu Plan Monday

Sunday

Sweet and Sour Chicken with Rice

Monday

Roast Pork Loin, Baked Potatoes, Green Beans, Tomato-Cuke Salad

Tuesday

BBQ Pork Sandwiches, Potato Soup

Wednesday

Chicken, Rice & Veggie Casserole, Garden Salad

Thursday

Grilled Fish, Au gratin Potatoes, Broccoli

Friday

Homemade Pizza Night

This post is linked to Org Junkie's MPM.

What on Earth is a Firkin?

There is no limit to the number of interesting items from George's customers that show up around our place. I just love to look each thing over and learn more about it!

Last week George had a metal working job and once the lady saw how talented he was with metal she asked if he did any wood working. She wants George to make her a top for one of her antique firkins.

I have a fondness for the old, well worn, useful sort of antiques -- not so much the ones that sit away in a corner and just look pretty. Growing up, a lot of the things that we used on a daily basis around our house and farm were antiques. Such as the washbasin, baby's bath tub, potty chair, egg beaters, some utensils, cookware, my bed, my parents bed, and many hand tools in the shop. We never really thought of them as antiques, just a part of every day life.

My parents strongly held to the old adage "if it ain't broke, don't fix (or replace) it". Very few of those old antiques ever broke even after 75 or 100 years of use so we just kept using them. Funny how they can't make things that last any more; we're on our 3rd coffee pot and 4th vacuum.

Back to the firkins...

When George first brought the 2 firkins below home, I thought what unique old buckets. Apparently these aren't just buckets. The next day George brought home an article that his customer sent for me. These are actually very interesting historical gems.

From reading the article and doing an Internet search, I learned that firkins were unique to the New England area and were primarily used for storing dry goods -- hence the top. Before using a new firkin, the firkin was rinsed out twice with a strong mixture of saltwater. Not exactly the level of cleanliness we are accustomed to today, but not bad for the early 1800's.

A firkin is also an old English unit of measure. It is still commonly used in the beer industry today -- that's what most of my Internet searches turned up. I had to search a lot to find references for firkins used for dry goods.

Another interesting tidbit I read is that in Ireland, butter was commonly stored in firkins and then buried in peat bogs to keep it fresh.



---Click photos for a close up view---

Large firkin without a top and smaller firkin.

Inside of smaller firkin with it's top.

Bottom of firkin. Look close to see all of the staves still held tight together by the wooden banding strips. The only metal on these are copper nails that hold the banding strips on.

George picked out a beautiful piece of wood from his stash for the top. He will plane it down to a very thin thickness and then adhere a thin band of wood for the sides of the top. Right now the thin wooden strip for the sides is soaking in water so it can easily be bent. I'll put up a picture of the new-old top once it's finished.

Cooking Challenge

Grace posed a very interesting cooking question the other day:


"Sometime when you have time I would love to hear your recommendation for the following conundrum:

I have to take food to serve for 20 people. I have to transport dinner to the location completely ready to go and be eaten within minutes of arriving. I'm trying to do this on a budget and stay healthy and make it taste great! What are your top picks for a menu on a budget when serving a larger crowd (and taking it in your car!. I really need to stay on a budget with this meal."

Grace, I was instantly intrigued by your question. I love a challenge! I'll share a few of the ideas I have here and then I'm opening the floor to you readers to help Grace out with your ideas.

Menu Idea 1

A large tray or two of wraps. Pasta Salad (not sure if you will have provisions to do a small serving area with plates and utensils...) Cookies for dessert or a fruit tray. Water and Lemonade to drink.

Use the large 12 inch variety and slice in half. These can be filled with a variety of shaved ham, turkey, cheese, lettuce and tomato. For a vegetarian option you could do black beans/refried beans, salsa and cheese. This type of a sandwich looks beautiful when served, but might be a little more costly because wraps are not that cheap. To save on cost it is very easy to make your own wraps, but it will take a little more time than using store bought. Or, for really fast and cheap you could go with buns from Sam's/Costco/ Bread Store. Serve condiments on the side from squeezable containers.

I would recommend making 1 or 2 varieties of cookies to serve for dessert a couple of days ahead. A fruit tray or fruit cup would also be a good alternative.

A word about variety

In situations like this variety is the devil. We (and by that, I mean I) can easily become overwhelmed by trying to have too much variety. Remember when we were kids? Did our mothers serve 4 different beverages and 4 kinds of sandwiches on occasions like this? Likely not. Well, maybe your mom did but with mine, we considered ourselves lucky to get a choice.

Those that whine about only having only one or two choices of food can 1. keep quite and be thankful for something to eat and 2. keep quite and be thankful for something to eat.

Menu Idea 2

Sack Lunch -- Sack Lunches or Boxed lunches are very popular in the corporate world; they will probably work for your occasion too. Sack lunches will probably take a bit longer to prepare due to the individual wrapping. Make some sandwiches and wrap in saran wrap. Fill plastic solo cups with potato salad or pasta salad and toss in a cookie. Mayo and mustard packets can be tossed in too. (They are pretty cheap at a place like Sam's). Have everyone grab a sack and sit down to eat.

This kind of a lunch works especially well in large groups because if you end up with a sandwich or salad you do not like, there is almost always someone that wants to trade. Much like the elementary school lunchroom.

Meal Idea 3

Not sure if you can do anything hot for this occasion, but in case you can, here's my idea for that. Make up a big pot of sloppy joes. Once you arrive on location, set up the pot and put out buns next to it. Deviled Eggs would be a delicious and very inexpensive side dish. Of course chips are ever popular, but not that healthy.

Okay -- that's what I've got for ideas. I would love to hear yours!

Menu Plan Monday

Sunday

BBQ Beef Sandwiches, Carrots

Monday

Shepherd's Pie, Garden Salad

Tuesday

Turkey Dill Sandwiches, Cuke-Pepper-Tomato Salad

Wednesday

Layered Spaghetti, Garlic Toast, Salad

Thursday

Reubens, Cottage Cheese with Fruit

Friday

Pizza Night. This time around I'm trying a taco pizza.

This post is linked to Menu Plan Monday.

Green Beans Can Be Dried Beans Too!

Did you know that plain old green beans can be used as dried beans too?


This year we've had green beans coming out of our ears. For the past month we've eaten them several times a week and I've frozen a large amount so we can enjoy them through the winter. Despite how delectable that first ripe green bean was, we are now sick and tired of green beans!

What's left of this year's green bean crop will become dried beans. We will use these over the course of the winter for bean soup and baked beans. I mentioned this to a visiting neighbor last night and she had never heard of turning plain old green beans into dried beans. So, I'm here to tell you that you can! Growing up we used to do it every year; it's super easy and they turn out beautifully. In our neck of the woods dried green beans are called Michigan Beans, Shelly Beans, Shellies or Michigan Shellies.


Here's How You Can Turn Green Beans Into Dry Beans

A couple of weeks ago I stopped picking the beans and left the beans to grow into large, fat pods. Once the pods are dry and I hear the beans rattling inside I will shuck the beans much like you do green peas. Drying the beans is the next step and it is crucial. I spread the beans all over a 4 sided cookie sheet and let them dry in the afternoon sun. I'll do this for 2-3 days, bringing them in at night. Once the beans are dry you can put them in any insect proof container for storage. I usually store them in quart sized canning jars.

While these beans look different than navy beans, they taste remarkably similar. You treat them just like any other dried bean for cooking. Soak overnight and cook the next day.

This post linked to Frugal Friday & WFMW.

Our $20 Menu

This week I went to the store for just a handful of perishables and spent under $20. So we will be creating the bulk of our meals from the pantry and freezer.

Monday: Bean Soup, Turkey Sandwiches

Tuesday: Tuna Noodle Casserole, Cucumber/Pepper/Tomato Salad

Wednesday: Chicken Fajitas topped with all the good stuff

Thursday: Salmon Patties, Corn, Squash

Friday: Homemade Pizza Night This time we are going to go with a Hawaiian Pizza using canadian bacon and pineapple.

Meet Kai

You know the old saying that families only get together at weddings and funerals. Well that's kind of true for our family. You can always count of the biggest turn out at those events. Since we don't get to see each other as often as we would all like we break out the cameras to create some photos for posterity.

Below is a photo of George and I with my little nephew Kai.

Here's just the two of us. My sister is really lucky I let her get back on the plane with this little guy.

I Certainly Don't Want to Repeat Last Week

Last week was a hard week. My stepfather, Mike passed away last Monday evening. While we are so sad to see him go; we take comfort in the fact that he came to know Christ as Savior a couple of weeks before he died. Oh how I prayed that he would. I hope Mike is delighted to be with the One that loved him all those years when he wasn't really sure if He even existed.

The funeral was Thursday; what a blessing it was to see so many of the people that knew and loved Mike. It was also a real blessing to see my sister and her new baby. It is amazing how babies can make the world look a little brighter. My mother absolutely adores children and having my little nephew stay with her for the week was the one bright spot during a very dark time.

Labour Day is Labour Day Around Here

Our Labour Day tradition is to spend the day working on projects around the house. Come to think of it, we spend Memorial Day working on gardening projects. When do we get to take a vacation? Glad you asked. Later this month.

Normally we would love to go up and spend the weekend with George's folks at the lake but they live in a resort area. Resort areas are fun when you go there for a vacation. All the traffic and commotion isn't so much fun when you live in it. We aren't big fans of a lot of commotion and busy, crowded places and since we have the option of spending time at the lake when it's not so busy, we try to go in between the big holidays.

This weekend is for work. We started building a shed as you can see by the photos below. Our shed is the largest we can build without building permits or the county assessor coming around and re-assessing our home. Even with plummeting real estate values, assessors usually find a way to calculate that your little shed raises the value of your property by twenty grand. They call it new math.

Now,let me just take a moment to brag on my husband. Thank goodness he knows how to do stuff like this in his sleep. He knows exactly what supplies and quantities to order and how to source the stuff as cheaply as possible. It makes any building project so much easier if your husband is not all stressed out by trying to act like he knows what he is doing and hoping he doesn't cut his fingers off in the circular saw. And of course let's not forget how nice it is to not have to pay somebody to put this up for us.

Earlier this week a giant truck pulled up one morning and dumped 6 yards of ground up asphalt.

Here it is. Ground asphalt looks like plain old dirt, but it is much dirtier than dirt if you can imagine that. It is what we like to call the redneck version of concrete -- much cheaper and dirtier.

So after hours of tedious grading and site prep (using the ground up asphalt) we laid down a foundation of 4x6 timbers and floored it and put up the walls.

Here's George getting ready to throw up another sheet of osb which is the techinical name for plywood. Use it next time you are at the home improvement store. You will impress your husband.

I love this hardworking guy.