Yippee!! Baby Chicks....

Nothin' more precious than baby chicks..... and there is nothin' I appreciate more than a mama hen who loves her chicks and takes good care of them...like... instead of me.... not that I don't enjoy personally picking 'em out and bringing those tiny fluffy little cute adorable things home from the feed store...and then there's the pickin' 'em up from the post office after ordering online...it just seems so....oh... I don't know..... the best part about that was walking into the post office and immediately hearing the "peep peep peeps" echoing through the halls. I always knew what that meant.... "it's about time you got here....get us the heck out of this stinking box!"

Just the memory of keepin' them warm, fed and watered (how many times a day did I clean out that water thing) makes my grateful heart oh so big ...and then there's the cleaning out the pin thing ... and the room it takes up in my laundry room.... oh thank you mama hen.... i'm gonna have to name you.... you deserve a name...

Thankful for the Onions....

This was a small section of the 400 onions I planted last spring. I knew they wouldn't make it until we got back from our vacation, so I pulled them early, even before their tops had completely dried out and fallin over. They were everywhere... During the day they cured in the shade on every screened item I could find making sure they didn't touch in order to expose each onion to the warm air so they would survive the winter. Every morning they needed to be brought from their previous night's shelter. Every evening back they went... but not before they were given the "cured" test. I would squeeze the stem where it met the onion and if it felt totally dried up and empty it got it's roots trimmed and top cut about 1" above the onion. Because I don't have a basement, into my garage refrigerator they would go until there was no more room. It was alot of work, but now almost a year later I still have plenty to make it until this year's crop comes up and is ready for the same process.

ONION SURVIVAL TIPS...



Keep an eye on them throughout the year where ever you keep them... Because there were so many in my refrigerator I realized that at one point they were on the border of freezing.... they were also creating alot of humidity which could have spoiled them if I wasn't paying attention. If that starts happening make sure to remove them and lay them out to dry out. Or... remove the ones that look vulnerable and take them into the house and use them first. Just chop a bunch up and put them in a dish to use as needed!

If They Start To Sprout or Soften...

... Into the kitchen they go before they spoil where I dice them up and either throw them into glass containers and freeze for later use or fill up my dehydrator and dehydrate at 145 degrees for about 6 hours. You won't believe how good it smells and the result is dried minced onions for topping your casseroles, salads or whatever you like! Yes it's work but you are going to have to dice those onions up sometime!!

Summertime...

Dreaming of Tomatoes....In February

These cold winter rainless days have my garden, bees & me dreaming about flowers, tomatoes and warmer weather. Actually... maybe it was Saturday's trip to our local Farmer's Market where someone was selling huge, beautiful, red gorgeous looking tomatoes and basil. In February??? Who was that??? It's been consistently in the teens or low twenties at our little homestead for months now! How do they do that? Must be those hoop house things... anyway... I was very impressed. So much so that I decided to remind myself that I really did have a garden this past year (as I peek through the windows and see not a plant or live thing out there in sight!) My poor bees agree. Good thing I left those big supers of honey for them...

The Harvest...

Home Sweet Home....

I remember praying for my own"home" when I was young... a place where I would finally belong.... where my children would belong... a place where they would always be loved, appreciated and respected. I wanted them and my grandchildren to know who they were, where they came from and understand why they became who they grew up to be.

While on a walk today I visited with a young couple from our neighborhood who touched my heart. They told me they had decided to decorate their home with blown up pictures of their lives together. She was also going to frame calendar pictures she loved. Inside my heart cried "yes" and I was reminded of this entry written months ago but had yet to post. I shared that I had my own treasured "calendar" bear pictures given to me by my grandmother that have always hung above our piano. Before I was born my grandfather cut them off a calendar and made frames for them... I shared what a treasure they were to me.

The idea of "investing in a house" never ever occured to me. I wanted a "home".... nothin' fancy....just a "home". Over the years it has become just that. It's plum worn out from raising our family... years of hosting Thanksgiving & Christmas week long events where sleeping bags lined the floors and kids slept exhausted from late night games and running a home business where customer's became my best friends.

Department store "pics" have no place here... our rooms are filled with family heirlooms, gifts from our children and special friends, treasures from places we've been, vintage yard & garage sell finds, and things of nature. Some day the hand peeled log beds and beautiful pieces of rustic furniture my husband has filled our home with will adorn our grandchildren's homes as my grandfather's bear "calendar" pictures adorn mine. The door frame in the kitchen marks the heights of each of our children on their birthdays. Scriptures I cross-stitched so many years ago hang framed on the walls reminding us that our lives are blessed because of Him.

When we bought our home 31 years ago my father-in-law wrote in a card he and my mother-in-law gave us…"your new home is a living monument to you". It’s not about the stuff. It’s the journey and it’s memories…and it takes a lifetime to make your home… sweet… home.

Without Love...

This poem prefaces photos in an album I created years ago when we remodeled our home... the picture was a gift from a precious friend and it says it all...

Without love a house is just a house... a ceiling, walls and floor… but fill that house with faith and love and it becomes much more.

A house is where your dreams come true for love abides, you see... and love makes a house a home... regardless of pedigree.

Home is a shelter from the storms of life and sanctuary too... for loved ones wait behind the door to hug and comfort you.

It’s a home where God is honored and the Bible’s often read and there the children seek him before they go to bed.

Home may be a simple shanty beneath the stars above, but blessed are those who dwell within a house that’s built with love.

The Boys are Alive & Doing Well...

Seeley Lake Rendevous...

I would meet them in one week at Seeley Lake to drop off their second weeks food rations. It was good to see them in such good spirits... a little thinner I imagine. It has been tough going... if the physical challenge isn't enough the mental proves even tougher but the beauty, adventure and sheer challenge of it all keeps them going.

When I arrived they were pulling everything imaginable out of their packs to send back with me... guns, bike tires, whatever they could to lighten their loads for the second half of the trip. We went straight to breakfast where they consumed it in about 20 seconds anticipating how many minutes until lunch. After a quick stop at the grocery to pick up their next two nights dinners (if you could call it that) we just went straight to lunch...I think they were finally full...then for a swim in Seeley Lake.

Burning Calories...

We celebrated our 31^st anniversary by going to a restaurant that had 3 things on the menu… steak….prime steak…. and special prime steak… We ate every bite it was so good… turns out the boys ate there the night before and had thirds and fourths on the potatoes and bread! The reason I mention this is because my husband rarely eats steak! Shows how hard these guys are working.

Meanwhile...Back at the Cabin...

We had barely gotten here when one of our neighbors a mile up the road told us of her harrowing experience going to bed one night recently. As her head hit the pillow she heard something banging on the outside wall above her head and looked up into the eyes and face of a huge black bear, paws outstretched on both sides of the window she had just closed. Hummm….

Another neighbor brought his shotgun over for me to keep until the boys get back from their trip.. just in case I need it…says bears have been a problem this year… dang… that’s the second time I’ve heard that and only been here less than 24 hours.

And if that’s not enough… nicknamed… the “Kila Pack”…. a pack of large grey wolfs is putting everyone here on high alert. Typically, the sound of a far off wolf call and the news that bear and moose scat is found on our property are great news to us….one of the reasons we love where we are… nothin’ more than a “heads up” to pay attention while we’re outside working … would have preferred this news another year. So… I work outside in this beautiful place with my bear spray in my back pocket… just in case and know the boys have guns and spray.

Quite frankly… I’m more concerned about whatever it is that’s living in the walls of my cabin…

The Great Divide Beckons...

Biking Montana's Continental Divide...

Montana is especially beautiful this August…. lots of late snow this year is keeping grasses green and rivers, streams and lakes crystal blue and full to the brim. Tomorrow I will drive my husband and his brother 1 ½ hours north to Rooseville, British Columbia and drop them off at the Canadian Border where they will begin their 15 day mountain bike trek along the Great Divide crossing the Continental Divide 5 times until they reach the southern border of Polaris, Montana.

Today we drove the 20 miles into town to replace our “expired” bear spray canisters. After all the hiking up here thankfully, we’ve never had to use one…only rehearsed it in our minds. So today, using what was left of an expired canister, we actually discharged the thing (did you know they actually kick back?) … now all they have to worry about is holding on to the dang thing while they’re shaking in their boots in front of an angry grizzly bear about to mess their pants. Actually, that would be me.

The two of them are busy packing exchanging gun holsters for food items finalizing last minute items and checking their maps for their 550 mile mountain bike trek. I even heard one of them firing his gun out back to be sure the new pin he had replaced worked ok.

8-16-2011... 11:30 a.m. Here we are at the border of Canada. It has taken about an hour to get everything rigged up and "Spots", GPS's points and maps and all that technology... I just wish they got an earlier start... they have a lot of climbing to do and only a short amount of time to do it in.

Another Incredible Bee Rescue...

Pablo Picasso once said… “I am always doing that which I cannot do… in order that I may learn how to do it”. Not only our “Wild at Heart Farmgirl” motto, lately it feels like I live it out day by day.

I love bees, my neighbor Rob loves bees, and my husband loves felling trees. How three people living within 100 feet of each other again unite because of their unique passions is mind boggling. Guess it’s lucky for the colony of bees living in that old Walnut tree in our small neighborhood. It's certainly lucky for me to have embarked on such an incredible experience. Are we professional bee removal experts??? Hardly. Just passionate about bees… and trees.

We certainly provided entertainment for our small community that week. After felling the tree my hubby ran his saw through parts of the tree guessing where the bees would be. Bingo...he felled it just at the top of the cavity where the colony had made their home.

I couldn’t see inside as the combs all lined up filling the hollow. Blindly reaching down into the hole led only by instinct I tried to feel where each comb began and ended, cutting them away from each other and the inside of the tree. As we pulled them out we were astonished at their size. We cut the combs to fit into the frames and rubber banded them in, the bees would repair them. One after another after another we filled frames until an entire super had been filled sending my friend down the street searching for another one. By the end of the day we had filled two supers and were utterly exhausted.

I was sure we had the queen in the new hive as most of the bees were orienting themselves to their new home, but naturally not all the bees wanted to live in their new home challenging us to again try things we had only read about to save them all. Rob kept saying “Let the bees do the work for you”, wisdom passed on from a seasoned beekeeper friend and it challenged us to be patient. Rob suggested trying a “trap out”, again something we had only read about. Making a wire cone placing the large end over the entrance to the hive and the other end narrowly funneling onto the hive entrance, the bees will walk out of the hive through the cone but cannot figure out how to get back in. They end up right at the entrance of the new hive and because they can’t return to the old hive they just hang out there and eventually figure it out and submit to their their man made home. In several days about 98% of them figured it out… maybe even 99%.

After moving them to my daughter’s house (another new experience) they came home to Garden Farms two weeks later where they are happily living in my garden. The area is familiar to them and they know where to forage. Some of them were caught investigating their old tree cavity but seemed to return home. One of the beautiful slabs to that tree now sits on it’s side with small amounts of comb still attached to the cavity as a memorial to the awesome blessing the whole experience was for the three of us and our neighbors. Thank you Joyceanna… it is beautiful.

Homemade Ice Milk & Homemade Vanilla Extract

At a recent family gathering we introduced "raw vanilla goat ice milk". Everyone LOVED it... I loved it cuz it was so easy.

When I was little we made our own ice milk... the old fashioned way... crankin... and crankin... breakin' up ice and adding rock salt...cranking some more. I still have that old ice cream maker. We couldn't afford cream so we just used plain old milk. It's so light and delicious and I'm sure better for you.

None of us has the luxury of time to be crankin' anymore. And who keeps rock salt and cream on hand. Cusinart solved my problem (yes it's electric but it is worth it)... no rock salt, no ice.... the container stays in the freezer until you use it and in just 20 minutes you have ice cream or ice milk.

My goats give me the most delicious milk.... so I just use that but you could use regular milk from the store! Or half milk and half cream... you pick.

"Homemade Ice Cream"

4 1/2 cups milk (goat or cow) ... whole would be best if not using cream

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 Tablespoons homemade vanilla extract

And if you haven't started making your own vanilla extract... now's the time. I think that might be one of the secret ingredients in the ice cream. You won't believe how easy it all is.

"Homemade Vanilla Extract"

3 - 4 vanilla beans

1 cup brandy

Split the vanilla bean lengthwise... then cut up in 1/2 to 1' pieces. Cover with brandy or vodka. Put in a pretty bottle and shake daily. After two months it will be ready to use. You can add more vanilla bean if you like until the flavor suits you but this method works great for me!

"Zucchini Relish"...aka... "Sweet Pickle Relish"

Both my grandma's had a knack at making due and stretchin' their dollar simply because neither one of them had any. I lived with both when I was young and had the privilege of gleaning from their incredible old time ways. We always had plenty of fish while living with my dad's mama as the fishermen on his side always kept us well supplied in fresh, delicious free fish. My mama's side of the family ate canned tuna... but it was special. Those cans don't go far... so grandma doctored it up big time. A couple hard boiled eggs from the chickens.... some mayo and "sweet pickle relish"... and if you were lucky some red onion from the garden.... and that little can fed us all.

A long story.... just to encourage you to try another way to use your zucchini. You know... that stuff they put on hot dogs... aka "sweet pickle relish" but much better when you are gettin' rid of all that zucchini!

"Sweet Zucchini Relish"

5 lbs. zucchini - halved the long way and then in chunks

4 large quartered onions

4 large green peppers, quartered

4 large red peppers, quartered

1/2 cup salt

Put the above ingredients in a food mill or processor using medium blade. Sprinkle with salt and let sit overnight. In the morning drain and rinse thoroughly with cold water.

In a large kettle bring to a boil:

2 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar

4 cups sugar

2 Tbsp. cornstarch

1 tsp. tumeric

1 tsp. ground nutmeg

2 tsp. celery seed

1/4 tsp. fresh ground black pepper

Add ground vegies and simmer 30 minutes. Ladle in hot jars leaving 1/2" wide space at top. Wipe rims and process 15 minutes in hot water bath. Makes 10 pints.

Saving The Bees...

Not Something We Get To Do Everyday...

..cut a bee colony out of a very old, incredibly beautiful sycamore tree. It broke my heart to see the huge tree down but it was rotten at the base and leaning over a home. My neighbor and fellow beekeeper friend asked if my hubby and I would like to help him try and save the colony of bees living in it. It would involve my hubby's chainsaw expertise, skillfully cutting a wedge into the tree until he sensed he was in the hollow where we suspected the hive would be located. Quite the gamble.... but the alternative was destroying the bees. I had an attachment to this colony. Last year I caught my first swarm when this healthy feral colony threw a swarm and I was lucky enough to hive it.

The tree had come down several weeks earlier. Imagine the huge fall they had taken when the massive trunk came down. The colony entrance had been way up high about the roof tops. It was a miracle the bees found their way back in. We couldn't imagine what would be left of the colony and honeycomb deep within.

I must say my husband was dead on.... he cut a wedge out of that huge sycamore tree, and after we removed it I carefully pulled the fragile combs of bees and comb from within the recesses of the tree while my neighbor strategically and carefully attached them to the ends of top bars with rubber bands, strips of cloth and hair clips. Finally we moved the top bar hive with the newly tied combs right up to what was left of the cluster area and hoped for the best.

A several day old story cut short.... the bees did move into the top bar hive (with a little help from my friend). We had saved the bees. After moving them to a faraway location for a couple weeks they are back in our neighborhood at my beekeeper friend's home doing great.... building up.... hopefully ready to throw a new swarm by next year!

Canning Beets...

Canned beets just shouldn't taste like dirt I always say. Unfortunately, when they come off the grocery store shelf that's just the way it is. There's no comparing them to homemade .... so if you thought you didn't like beets, try these.

Step 1: Cut the tops of the beet greens to about two inches so they don't bleed while cooking.

Step 2: Scrub, scrub, scrub with a stiff brush. Then rinse rinse rinse well. (The secret's in the scrubbing and rinsing - maybe that's why they don't taste like dirt.)

Step 3: Submerge in boiling water until skins slip off... a big pot might take 40 minutes. Throw water away.

Step 4: Submerge skinned beets in cool water reserving liquid for vinegar solution. Strain beet juice. Skin and slice beets. (I like mine in chunks)

Step 5: Vinegar Solution: (Makes enough to fill 7 quart jars.)

Bring to a boil:

1 cup strained beet juice

1/2 cup vinegar

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 Tbsp. salt

Step 5: Pack jars with beets. Pour boiling vinegar mix over beets leaving an air space at top of jar.

Step 6: Process 10 minutes. Turn burner off and leave set until cool. Turn upside down until

you hear the lids seal. (They will make a click noise).

Campfires & Cast Iron Cookin'...

Whether we're in Montana or home... family gatherins' seem to always end up around a campfire. Lots of times dinner's located way down in those hot coals! The men in my family have cooked some pretty good meals in the fire. There's nothin' better than my hubby saying..." I think I need some "sweet tater's in onions" cooked in some cast iron !" That means he's cookin. If I've got enough sourdough starter in my pot he'll even cook up a batch of sourdough cornbread right alongside of it! We slather some of our bees raw comb honey on it and have ourselves a feast!