Pioneer Woman at Heart

I have no idea why I never thought of this, or not ever heard of this, but somehow I learned about it the other day.  They are fruit bags you put over your tree fruit, to keep birds and bugs off of them.  I just covered a lot of apples, but may get the ladder out there and get more covered up.  I am also hanging garlic around the bottom of the branches to keep deer and raccoons out of trees.   I'll be sure to let you know if they work.  They even have bags for your grapes.  I may have to put our grapes in next year.  The last ones were ruined, and I can't remember why.  Maybe a drought and we just couldn't keep up?  Anyway, I learned something new.

Sunday the heat started rolling in, along with thunderstorms and a lot of humidity.  Second picking of tomatoes brought us 6#.  Not much but tomatoes no less.   Humidity and heat rolled in on Monday and t he heat index reached a high of 98°F.   Today it will be the same.  Rain is in the forecast for Wednesday.  The porch is unbearable, so crochet time was indoors (again).   Hubby and I wandered out the pear trees.  They are loaded, but deer are bedding under one tree.  We also discovered that two other trees growing are producing apples.  Not enough to pick, but producing.  That was a happy discovery.  They were smaller over the years and they were planted before we moved here.  Thankfully, the pears are not ready to pick.   The treadmill and I are back in a relationship.  I have used it since the passing of our nephews.  It's been a rough time, but now I'm back on track as they say...

The last pear wine update was posted here ( November 9, 2016 ).  We had some wonderful taste tests, and eventually bottled it.  However, the bottles with corks popped some tops, and turned pink.   We didn't have enough bottles with screw caps, so much went bad.  However, to our delight, we kept one screw cap bottle.   We popped it open last night.  It was very good, but too much carbonation in it.  More like a high alcohol champagne, ha ha! We are so excited that we've learned so much already, and next time we will have another carboy and we'll let it sit longer with the bubble airlock on it.   We were so happy to enjoy that one single bottle, and now we are prepared to do any fruit wine.  Peach, cherry, any berry, grape, plum, apple....I may need more fruit trees, ha ha! We now have a supply of empty screw cap wine bottles too (thanks to my wine drinking friends and family).  Many wine companies and changing o...

It's a chilly 32°F here this morning.  Brrr.  We have not yet turned on the heat (nor burned wood).  Wood....let's not be reminded we are so far behind on that chore (gasp!). I recently used some pumpkin puree to try another new recipe - Pumpkin Ricotta Stuffed Shells (Country Living, online). I purchased my pasta shells.  Barilla is certified Non-Gmo.  If you prefer, you could use homemade lasagna noodles and roll them, slice and bake in the tomato sauce too (for a completely self-sufficient dinner, adding a garden veggie for a side, homemade rolls etc.).  The basil and sage came fresh from my herb garden.  I had just enough of each herb. We absolutely loved this dish, but to me it lacks a protein.  I think I'll have a side of meatballs or something with it next time, for us meat eaters.  Tuesday night I went to bed completely e-xh-aus-ted.  I spent the day baking and mashing sweet potatoes, amongst other chores. ...

The previous rain left things very wet outside, so the inside got the attention it needed all day Friday. I roasted 1 larger pie pumpkin for making a batch of pumpkin butter. I put 2 cups in the fridge, and the rest went into the freezer. I roasted 6 more pumpkins for pumpkin puree, and have one very tiny one went to the porch for fall decor.  The puree will be used for pumpkin pancakes/waffles, pumpkin muffins and bread, pumpkin hummus, pumpkin steel cut oats, pumpkin-sage macaroni, pumpkin pie . . .just anything. I roasted more whiskey-bacon pumpkin seeds as well.  They are so good.  I updated over on the recipe post.  I doubled the amount of pumpkin seeds. (Saturday sunrise, just before we enjoyed our breakfast on the porch) Saturday the weather warmed back up, so I high-tailed it to the tomato patch and starting yanking those pesky stakes and tomato plants (which surprisingly, some were still green and alive).  What we started...

Hubby told me last Tuesday, the he reserved a lift for Easter weekend. I was shocked. This is my best friend this morning - coffee.  We've been sleeping pretty good, and will be for a week or two yet.  Grab a cup of your favorite beverage.  This is a rather long post.

Some thing new for the hom estead - three rooster door pulls.  Love them!  They went on the ma ster bath c a binet doors. S omething harvested at the homestead - stin ging nett le.  I filled the dehydrator, but will need to cut more for "greens" for the free zer this spring.   I took a walk out to the fruit trees.  I am happy to report that all tre es have buds, and the peach tre e has t eeny tin y pink blo ssom s about to bloom.  I'm thr illed to see most of the fungus is gone on the p lum tree, so my homemade neem spray is w orking.  My el derberry trees actually have leaves on them already.  The grape plants are budding, and I will have to buy one grape pla nt to replace the one th at died last year.     We are still playing the car shu ffle.  Daughter's car is not fixed.  W e now know the problem, but the other problem is the labor involved.  It's a bout an 8 hour job with her engine....

This is how we began our pear wine - pears were seeded and stems removed.  We purchased a wine sieve bag to place in our 6.5 fermenter.  We had just enough pears to fill this half-way , which was about 23-24 lbs. of pears.  We added one cup of su gar f or every poun d of pears (approximately) , then poured boiling water over, with enough water above pears.

You-Tube has it's advantages.  Hubby and I watched a few videos, went out to the barn and got a broken hoe.....  ...cut out the bottom of a plastic bottle, and stapled the bottle to the handle.  Wa-la.  Not real fancy, but functional and free.  It works too.  Homemade fruit picker is no w off the "to buy -it" list. I woke up early and told Hubby, "I can't can a thing today - no onions ."  Which he quickly said at the crack of pre- sun -up, "I can run to the store real quick and get some for you ." Ha ha ha!  Oh that burst of energy he has now.  And no , we are still not canning, and no quick trip to the store .  We'll get them later, maybe from the farmstand, but not before 6am, ha ha!

Beets are finally filling up my freezer this fall.   We have a good supply of shredded zucchini, so the next ones went in the freezer sliced.  I know these sometimes thaw watery and softer, but I just drain the water and cook.  We use these mainly in our teriyaki dish over winter, but have added them to other casserole dishes and mixed vegetable sides.  I'll be honest, I'm surprised my zucchini is still producing.  It looks terrible right now.  I doubt I'll get much more, but would be blessed to get a few more. I purchased some large head garlic (organic) at the Farmer's Market, which is much easier to slice and dehydrate than my homegrown this year.  It's much smaller (in fact there were farmer's selling the smaller size for $.25/each as well).

I'm getting more peach jam put up, and for the first time, plum and apricot jam. All jams are reduced sugar.  These will go fast in my family.  I can utilize the plu m and apricot with other meals , not just PB and J's. The p lu m jam is delic ious!  So is the apricot! I'm  starting to put enough fresh plums, apricots and peaches in the freezer to enjoy all winter too.  I'm freez ing them until our our trees start suppl ying us an ample a mount.

I've discovered that when you decide to be self-sufficient, a homesteader or simply (ha!) grow a garden for preserving purposes, you have one giant messy home all summer long. Messy = chaos.  Chaos=headache/stress.  I took the day off (one afternoon) from the garden (sort of), and attacked my bedroom with gusto.  I still had a sweater on the back of a chair, from cool spring weather (Yikes!).   I told the girls, "I'm finally going to vacuum my room after a month," and the response was "that's gross."  Ha ha!  Ain't that the truth though?  We just can't do it all.  Even with the help from the kids.  Two work and go to school, and two are about to go back to public school (cry).  I'm about the only Mom who doesn't like the start of school.  I appreciate all the help, believe me.

We are so happy to see peaches on the tree this year.  This is our third year since we planted.  I'm so happy with this progress.

As I crocheted and watched the news,  was hoping that the weather forecast was wrong (as it is most times).  They were right.  Well, right on one thing - snow.  The weather man kept stating to watch for "thunder snow."  I didn't see rain or hear thunder, but the white stuff returned.  It's already melting, so I'm not worried.  Or should I be?  It will be a low 20°F tonight.  And more rain.  And more snow.   It is nice to see it so bright out today, but by Wednesday it should be gone.  It rained for 3-4 days straight before this arrived, so it's a swamp out there (soon to be an ice rink).  Good thing I have spikes for my boots too. 

In case inquiring minds want to know... I think I finally caught up on the laundry.  I may have one load yet to finish today.  During my next trip however, whoever is home will get laundry chores. Yesterday, I had to make a mad dash to the rain barrel to try and save my flowers and herbs.  The younger two did not do their chores as asked, and my porch pots are either dead, dying or look terrible.  They just about let my organic herbs die too.  I desperately worked away, watering and removing dead leaves.  I just realized that my water trough flower bed of sunflower seeds, has no sunflowers this year.  Those must of died in the masses of rain too.   I had picked up some more green beans on the recent road trip, and blanched and froze those (adding 5 more quart bags to the freezer).  I do need more. 

Giddy.  The feeling of pure happiness.  That feeling you get when something you planted grows rather quickly.  Or grows at all for that matter. I was thrilled to see that our potatoes are up. I've never been this successful, this early in the garden season.