FarmerDenise's journal - full on harvest time = busy, busy, busy

Blackbird

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Hey Denise!
Haven't heard from you in a while..
How are you? How are the animals? Hanging in there?
 

FarmerDenise

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I've been a bit on the busy side. I still haven't frozen the peppers we picked before the freeze. We have been cleaning up the field of the frozen vegetation, leaving only the stuff the goats will and can eat. Most afternoons, I take the goats out of the pasture and we let them raom the field. It takes more than one of us to supervise, but the goats and us have a lot of fun.
It was SO's birthday yesterday and we managed to surprise him with a nice day of little family events. I made the chocolate black bean cake, which is one of his favorites. I baked it in two round pans and made fresh whipped cream. I put the whipped cream in between the layers and on top. I used one of my special cake decorating tools to make pretty little mounds on the top and added chocolate sprinkles. It looked very festive.

DSS's GF also has expressed a big interest in learning how to bake. Especially cookies. So we are making Scotch shortbread cookies tonight. My recipe calls for rolled oats for most of the flour.

We are plannning on making cookies and candies for gifts this year. So I hope to make at leasst one batch of cookies every day.

I also offered to host DD's baby shower. Most of her friends are either too busy or don't know 'nuthin about baby showers. Her very close friend has been too sick with fibromyalgia to do much of anything :(

I had a blast the other day at goodwill. I found a stash of excellent quality 100% cotton baby boy clothes. I bought them all up for $13. I also bought a camo shirt for SO for his birthday. That was included in the $13. Have I mentioned that I love my Goodwill Outlet Store?

I actually went there hoping to find wool sweaters. I want to make them into slippers for everyone. But I didn't find any. I might go again soon. Although I don't have much money left.

Gotta run, the cookies need to go in the oven.
 

FarmerDenise

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Those cookies came out really good. We think they are sort of like granola bars except better. We think they'll make a good base for future granola bar type recipes.

I try and post the recipe in the next few days.

I just got soo much to do, I can't make any promises.
 

FarmerDenise

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Two nights ago BIL dropped of a huge load of firewood. Nice dry, ready to burn firewood. We have been just about out of firewood and fortunately the neighbor has been bringing us stuff to burn, so we could heat up at least one room in the house.
We got that firewood nicely stacked yesterday and today we are enjoying a nice fire in the stove, without having to worry about running out of wood.
It is gloomy here and cold. Occasionanl showers keep things wet. We are watching tv and reading and playing on the computer. A rare day off for us.
We also have a rooster in the bathroom. It looks like he had been fighting with rats. So we had to bring him in until we either decide to send him to freezer camp or find a better place for him to be outside... until freezer camp. We are just not up to doing any butchering right now. I am much more in the mood for baking cookies :D
So the rooster is getting a reprieve. Although the crowing coming from the bathroom at 3 am is a bit annoying to say the least.

Ok am going back to reading my book for a while.
 

FarmerDenise

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Thanks BB

We just did animal chores. All that remains to be done is for someone to go and lock the chickens up later after it gets dark. Right now they are still scattered in the field, enjoying themselves.
 

BarredBuff

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FarmerDenise said:
Thanks BB

We just did animal chores. All that remains to be done is for someone to go and lock the chickens up later after it gets dark. Right now they are still scattered in the field, enjoying themselves.
My ducks suprising frolicked in the snow today.
 

CrimsonRose

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oh man I feel for you and the rooster issues! we have a rooster that got spooked a few nights ago because an opossum got into his pen and scared him... so now he won't go into his pen at night (even though we killed the opossum) and he decided to make a nice nest right below our bedroom window... :smack

Last night 2am I stomped out side in the freezing cold in my PJ's and boots... grabbed that idiot and marched him right back up to his pen and tossed him in... 5am he's back down under my window again... :rant I had 3 roosters and planned on processing them but the first one I did went bad... and I had a really bad experience with the whole thing so the other 2 roos have just been free ranging till I can get the nerve up to send them to freezer camp... they keep this midnight serenade up and I'm finding it easier and easier to work up the nerve :gig
 

Denim Deb

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Ugh, the night I spent in my tack shed the roosters started to crow at 3:00 am, so I feel for you! 2 of them will be going by by soon, but not to freezer camp. However, the 2 at home WILL be going in about a month. I just need to find someone to teach me how to do it.
 
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