.jpg)
Finally, there may be a break in the heat. While today and tomorrow are forecasted to be well over 100, this Labor Day weekend should be much cooler. Don't know how to handle highs in the 80's - Anna will probably get out her winter coat. Now, if it will just come in and rain for 2-3 days (or weeks)!
Yesterday was a difficult day on the farm. Kurt loaded out two truckloads of cows and sent them to the sale barn. While we still have about 50 cows (the best of the herd), 20-30 butcher beeves and this year's calves, it was hard to see over half our breeding livestock go to town. We know this was the right decision to preserve our feed supply for the winter and pastures for future grazing seasons but that didn't make it an easy decision. We continue to pray for soaking rains and trust in a God who is faithful.
On a lighter note, we are still planning on celebrating in October - hopefully, in the mud! Make sure you've marked your calendar for October 8th. We'll be hosting a Customer Appreciation Dinner here at the farm. Kurt and his brothers are breaking out the smoker again and this year we'll share a wide sampling of farm products. Watch in the next few weeks for a formal (ok, we don't really do formal here on the farm but you know what I mean) invitation with all the details.
We have a couple specials going through the end of September to clear out the freezer for the fall harvest.
*Buy 4 pounds of hot dogs and we'll give you a pound for free to share with a friend.
*Buy 4 whole chickens and get a pork roast for free. Sidenote: I was never a huge fan of pork roast growing up but these are amazing! Great as a centerpiece dish or shred it for BBQ pork.
Several of you have reserved your quarters, halves and whole beeves for this fall. I will be contacting you by the end of the month to confirm and keep you up-to-date. We still have a few quarters left. Holler if you're interested.
We are currently out of bacon (insert sad face), steak (sad face with tears) and only have a few roasts left. This should be remedied soon. I expect to have bacon (and a lot of sausage) in the freezer by the end of September. We're also excited to bring home two varieties of summer sausage - an all beef mild sausage and a beef/pork jalapeno cheddar sausage. We will have these in stock for the holiday season and will be able to ship them along with our beef sticks and jerky.
Steaks and roasts will be restocked by the end of October.
A couple other product updates:
*Our last date for chickens is October 6th. We will have fresh chickens at the Customer Appreciation Dinner if you want to pick up yours then. After the 8th, chicken will go up from $3.00/pound to $3.50/pound to cover our storage expenses.
*We will have a few turkeys available this weekend and next. If you'd like one, email me. Otherwise, I think we'll smoke several and enjoy them ourselves through the fall for lunches.
* Reserve your turkey for Thanksgiving as soon as you know you'd like one. We have limited numbers and would hate for you to miss out.
*For the planners out there, we will have hogs available around December. Let me know if you'd like to reserve a 1/2 or whole hog.
In about three weeks, we will be processing several Freedom Ranger chickens. We ordered these chicks a few months ago when our Cornish Crosses, our current meat bird breed, were struggling with the heat. We did our research and came across this breed. They are more vigorous (these guys forage ALL day long) and hardy (the extreme temps haven't affected them as much). We are considering changing breeds for next year but would like some customer feedback. If you'd like to try a Freedom Ranger, our compliments, and would be willing to provide honest feedback, let me know. Because we are not selling these birds, they do not need to be picked up on the farm.
Our puppy, K.Z., is struggling to learn appropriate behavior on the farm. You know, that rule where you can't eat the other animals running around in the yard with you. In the last 10 days, K.Z. has killed that many free-ranging turkeys. Currently, she is on a 15-foot leash with plenty of water and shade. She gets to play when we are in the yard which Allison does faithfully 2-3 times a day. See, K.Z. has really become Allison's puppy and A can't bear the thought of finding K.Z. a new, turkey-free, home. We will try this last attempt at remediation, at least until the turkeys can hold their own.
Since our last update, school has started here and that's a big deal.
Allison is now a 5th grader and is really coming into her own. This year, kids get to start band and guess what Allison chose to play? Clarinet! The same instrument her momma played all through high school and college and still pulls out and plays occasionally. Other important clarinetists in Allison's life: her Grandma Billie, my Aunt Gayle, her great-grandma, her Grandpa Bill, and Aunt Cynthia. Hmmmm . . . nature or nurture? It has to be a confidence builder to have your youngest sister dance and clap when you play the same note over and over and over. . . . this is the same little girl who tells me I look beautiful in every swimsuit I try on so she's not the most objective critic.
Natalie is loving 1st grade and can't decide which is more fun; riding the big bus with some of her friends (our route has grown from a suburban to a real bus) or playing at recess. Gymnastics started again and I saw Nat do several front-walkovers with a roly mat to help. How does she do that?! To someone as nonathletic as I am, it always amazes me to watch her strength and grace.
Anna started preschool a few weeks ago and we both survived! There are no babies at my house any more. Anna likes to be with her family (and we like having her around) and she can be uncomfortable in a new situation without her sisters there. Silly me for worrying. Miss DeAnn and Miss Christy, her teachers, are pros and Anna has had nothing but smiles when I pick her up.
Between farm work, football and picking up my slack, Kurt is burning the candle at both ends and sometimes even in the middle. I'm hoping with the cooler weather, he won't be quite so wiped out in the evenings. To relax, Kurt has been testing out his new smoker, a birthday present from the girls and me. He's been waffling between building one or buying one for awhile. We made the decision for him. He's come a long way from the first meal he ever smoked for me years ago. Kurt was so proud of that brisket he had smoked on a small silo smoker I gave him one Christmas. I tried soooo hard to enjoy it but all I could taste was smoke. I thought I might have been chewing on a charred piece of wood from the smoker!
And me? This month, I've mostly made sure everyone was clean, well-fed, clothed appropriately (no long sleeves yet, Anna) and showed up at the right place at the right time as well as getting a few deliveries together and out the door. No small feat and some days, I'm more successful than others. (My chuckle for the morning - I was reading this edition to Kurt and Anna piped in with "I've got small feet!" Oh my!)
Looking forward to fall, football and the state fair.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
August 2, 2011
Whew! July has been a whirlwind of a month and I have to say I'm kind of glad it's in the books.
The first week of the month we focused on preparing for the county fair. The fair started with the Fashion Revue on the 7th and wrapped up on the 16th with the livestock auction. Those 10 days were action packed. I won't go into all the details but Allison was enrolled in five 4-H projects - four "inside" projects and one "outside" project - her goats. Allison had a great week with her 4-H friends and did an awesome job; qualifying 4 entries for the state fair and earning two reserve grand champion ribbons. She also had a few obstacles to overcome including having to start her state fair blue ribbon cake over THREE times! This was a lesson in patience for Allison and her momma. Also during her time in the livestock barn, Allison found a new love, the wheelbarrow. I can't explain it, I just report it.
Natalie also had a good fair week. She showed two pieces of art and earned a blue and red ribbon. Anna had a good time just hanging out with the big kids. As a 4-H leader, I've really come to enjoy fair time even though it's always too hot and we never get enough sleep. The kids work so hard on their projects and are proud to show them off. There's also a good sense of camaraderie sprinkled with a little competition. The kids all want to do well but never hesitate to cheer on or congratulate someone else for a job well done.
While it sounded like a good idea this spring, leaving the day after the fair for Galveston was pure craziness! In the middle of keeping all our fair balls in the air, I also had a trip to pack for! What was I thinking!? It was a most necessary trip though. A week as a family away from the drought was just what we needed! Our first two nights were spent at Kurt's sister's house and she was the hostess with the mostest! We got to spend an entire day visiting with her family and hanging out by her pool. From Penny's house, we went on to the beach at Galveston. Do a quick Google search of Glenn Campbell's "Galveston." Now, imagine Kurt singing this tune the entire week before we left and you'll understand how badly we needed to get away. When we thought we were going to be debt free in the summer of 2010, we asked the girls where they would like to go to celebrate. After some campaigning on Allison's part, they decided they wanted to see the ocean and we settled on Galveston ("Galveston, oh Galveston." Sing it Kurt!) We had to postpone the trip a year and it was so worth it. We spent three days and three nights just hanging out. Except to go out to dinner one night and ice cream another, we never left our condo and the beach. Our days were filled with the beach, sand castles, the pool, good food and 2.5 viewings of "The Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Roderick Rules."
I'm a numbers kind of person, so here's a short summary of the week:
*26 times Natalie asked "What town is this?"
*6 nights away from the drought
*1 near death experience in Waco traffic
*53 CapriSuns Anna drank at the beach - good parenting practices tend to be relaxed when we're on vacation
*31 times Kurt said "it sure looks dry" as we drove through Oklahoma and Texas AND the number of times he said "Man, that's a lot of water" as he looked wistfully out at the Gulf. I know he was trying to figure out how to desalinate the water and bring it home.
*8 souvenirs the girls brought home
*157 souvenirs the girls looked at before they made their purchases
*1 totally awesome sister-in-law (and family)
*53 times Anna probably peed in the Gulf after drinking yet another CapriSun
*3 helpers Kurt had loading the car for the trip home - yep they all rode the luggage carrier while Kurt pushed
*0 helpers Kurt NEEDED while loading
*2 times Kurt visited with local law enforcement on our way home
*1 ticket Kurt received from said law enforcement
*15 explanations Kurt had for why he should NOT have received a ticket
*1560 miles traveled together by car in one week
*5 people who were glad to be home even if it was ridiculously hot and dry
Three days of not doing much was just the break we needed to find some respite from the unrelenting heat this summer. A friend told me that this has been the driest year on record since 1885! We were blessed with a quarter inch of rain last weekend - I stood out in it and got soaked! However, we need many more inches to make a difference. To go from a D4, an exceptional drought to D1, just dry. Kurt's grazing plan changes almost daily as he makes adjustments based on the condition of the cattle and the availability of forage. He figures it will take 3-4 years for the pastures to heal completely.
The incredibly dry summer has forced many in the county, including us, to make some very difficult decisions. Kurt has already sold off our replacement heifers (the young females that would calve for the first time next spring) and will sell off over half the cow herd in the next month - there's just not enough forage for them to eat. By next spring our herd numbers will be down about 70% from this year. There's a chance that we may have to winter the remaining herd somewhere else. Everything Kurt has read and his own experience has taught him that you can't feed your way out of a drought - it gets too expensive too quickly. Hay that sold for $100/ton last year is now valued at $250/ton.
Thankfully, Kurt found some CRP ground to supplement our butcher beeves with. CRP acres are acres that the government has previously paid people to take out of production. Many acres have been temporarily released this year because of the drought conditions. Amazingly, the steers have continued to gain 2-3 pounds per day - pretty good average even in a wet year.
Thanks to Kurt's good management practices (he told me to leave that part out), we will have bulk beef available in the fall and the spring. If you'd like a quarter, half or whole beef this fall, please reserve yours soon. We don't have a set deadline but the beeves are first come, first served. Kurt has told me that he plans on taking beeves to the processor in McPherson the first week or so of October and your beef would be ready towards the end of the month.
The dry conditions have also caused us to make some changes in our chicken plans for the fall. We cancelled the bunch of broilers that were going to be ready in September. It's just too hot and dry. We are still planning on our group for October. Your last chance at fresh chicken will be October 6th. After that date, our chickens will go up $.50/pound to help cover our storage costs.
One more item to put on your radar. We have a few turkeys that are about a month from harvest. We'll also have turkey available for Thanksgiving. Please let me know if you'd like to reserve one.
We continue to provide more options for our customers. This month we have added a PayPal option for you. If you would prefer to pay for a delivery electronically. Let me know and I can email you an invoice ahead of time.
Hmmmm . . . .what else?
Allison has become good buddies with the dentist. I'm not sure how many times we've seen him this summer with her braces. I do know that it's been more than 2-3 times we were supposed to see him!
We had a bit of a surprise last week when we went for eye appointments. Natalie's farsighted and now has a lovely pair of pink specs! The optometrist said they should help as she works on her reading this year.
And Anna - she goes to preschool in two weeks. Excuse me while I dry my tears. I'm not quite sure how that's going to work out. It will be awesome but I'm awfully glad that Miss DeAnn and Miss Christy will be there to help ease the transition.
One last minute addition and I can't believe I almost forgot. Save October 8th! We've decided to make the Pig Roast an annual event. Only this year, we're going to expand it just a little. Instead of throwing the party to celebrate Kurt's birthday - Happy 41st doesn't sound as party worthy. This year, we want to say thank you to our customers. Kurt also has plans to smoke a turkey, some chickens and a brisket. More details will follow but plan on an evening of good food and good fellowship.
May your August be filled with double digit temperatures and above average rainfall!
The first week of the month we focused on preparing for the county fair. The fair started with the Fashion Revue on the 7th and wrapped up on the 16th with the livestock auction. Those 10 days were action packed. I won't go into all the details but Allison was enrolled in five 4-H projects - four "inside" projects and one "outside" project - her goats. Allison had a great week with her 4-H friends and did an awesome job; qualifying 4 entries for the state fair and earning two reserve grand champion ribbons. She also had a few obstacles to overcome including having to start her state fair blue ribbon cake over THREE times! This was a lesson in patience for Allison and her momma. Also during her time in the livestock barn, Allison found a new love, the wheelbarrow. I can't explain it, I just report it.
Natalie also had a good fair week. She showed two pieces of art and earned a blue and red ribbon. Anna had a good time just hanging out with the big kids. As a 4-H leader, I've really come to enjoy fair time even though it's always too hot and we never get enough sleep. The kids work so hard on their projects and are proud to show them off. There's also a good sense of camaraderie sprinkled with a little competition. The kids all want to do well but never hesitate to cheer on or congratulate someone else for a job well done.
While it sounded like a good idea this spring, leaving the day after the fair for Galveston was pure craziness! In the middle of keeping all our fair balls in the air, I also had a trip to pack for! What was I thinking!? It was a most necessary trip though. A week as a family away from the drought was just what we needed! Our first two nights were spent at Kurt's sister's house and she was the hostess with the mostest! We got to spend an entire day visiting with her family and hanging out by her pool. From Penny's house, we went on to the beach at Galveston. Do a quick Google search of Glenn Campbell's "Galveston." Now, imagine Kurt singing this tune the entire week before we left and you'll understand how badly we needed to get away. When we thought we were going to be debt free in the summer of 2010, we asked the girls where they would like to go to celebrate. After some campaigning on Allison's part, they decided they wanted to see the ocean and we settled on Galveston ("Galveston, oh Galveston." Sing it Kurt!) We had to postpone the trip a year and it was so worth it. We spent three days and three nights just hanging out. Except to go out to dinner one night and ice cream another, we never left our condo and the beach. Our days were filled with the beach, sand castles, the pool, good food and 2.5 viewings of "The Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Roderick Rules."
I'm a numbers kind of person, so here's a short summary of the week:
*26 times Natalie asked "What town is this?"
*6 nights away from the drought
*1 near death experience in Waco traffic
*53 CapriSuns Anna drank at the beach - good parenting practices tend to be relaxed when we're on vacation
*31 times Kurt said "it sure looks dry" as we drove through Oklahoma and Texas AND the number of times he said "Man, that's a lot of water" as he looked wistfully out at the Gulf. I know he was trying to figure out how to desalinate the water and bring it home.
*8 souvenirs the girls brought home
*157 souvenirs the girls looked at before they made their purchases
*1 totally awesome sister-in-law (and family)
*53 times Anna probably peed in the Gulf after drinking yet another CapriSun
*3 helpers Kurt had loading the car for the trip home - yep they all rode the luggage carrier while Kurt pushed
*0 helpers Kurt NEEDED while loading
*2 times Kurt visited with local law enforcement on our way home
*1 ticket Kurt received from said law enforcement
*15 explanations Kurt had for why he should NOT have received a ticket
*1560 miles traveled together by car in one week
*5 people who were glad to be home even if it was ridiculously hot and dry
Three days of not doing much was just the break we needed to find some respite from the unrelenting heat this summer. A friend told me that this has been the driest year on record since 1885! We were blessed with a quarter inch of rain last weekend - I stood out in it and got soaked! However, we need many more inches to make a difference. To go from a D4, an exceptional drought to D1, just dry. Kurt's grazing plan changes almost daily as he makes adjustments based on the condition of the cattle and the availability of forage. He figures it will take 3-4 years for the pastures to heal completely.
The incredibly dry summer has forced many in the county, including us, to make some very difficult decisions. Kurt has already sold off our replacement heifers (the young females that would calve for the first time next spring) and will sell off over half the cow herd in the next month - there's just not enough forage for them to eat. By next spring our herd numbers will be down about 70% from this year. There's a chance that we may have to winter the remaining herd somewhere else. Everything Kurt has read and his own experience has taught him that you can't feed your way out of a drought - it gets too expensive too quickly. Hay that sold for $100/ton last year is now valued at $250/ton.
Thankfully, Kurt found some CRP ground to supplement our butcher beeves with. CRP acres are acres that the government has previously paid people to take out of production. Many acres have been temporarily released this year because of the drought conditions. Amazingly, the steers have continued to gain 2-3 pounds per day - pretty good average even in a wet year.
Thanks to Kurt's good management practices (he told me to leave that part out), we will have bulk beef available in the fall and the spring. If you'd like a quarter, half or whole beef this fall, please reserve yours soon. We don't have a set deadline but the beeves are first come, first served. Kurt has told me that he plans on taking beeves to the processor in McPherson the first week or so of October and your beef would be ready towards the end of the month.
The dry conditions have also caused us to make some changes in our chicken plans for the fall. We cancelled the bunch of broilers that were going to be ready in September. It's just too hot and dry. We are still planning on our group for October. Your last chance at fresh chicken will be October 6th. After that date, our chickens will go up $.50/pound to help cover our storage costs.
One more item to put on your radar. We have a few turkeys that are about a month from harvest. We'll also have turkey available for Thanksgiving. Please let me know if you'd like to reserve one.
We continue to provide more options for our customers. This month we have added a PayPal option for you. If you would prefer to pay for a delivery electronically. Let me know and I can email you an invoice ahead of time.
Hmmmm . . . .what else?
Allison has become good buddies with the dentist. I'm not sure how many times we've seen him this summer with her braces. I do know that it's been more than 2-3 times we were supposed to see him!
We had a bit of a surprise last week when we went for eye appointments. Natalie's farsighted and now has a lovely pair of pink specs! The optometrist said they should help as she works on her reading this year.
And Anna - she goes to preschool in two weeks. Excuse me while I dry my tears. I'm not quite sure how that's going to work out. It will be awesome but I'm awfully glad that Miss DeAnn and Miss Christy will be there to help ease the transition.
One last minute addition and I can't believe I almost forgot. Save October 8th! We've decided to make the Pig Roast an annual event. Only this year, we're going to expand it just a little. Instead of throwing the party to celebrate Kurt's birthday - Happy 41st doesn't sound as party worthy. This year, we want to say thank you to our customers. Kurt also has plans to smoke a turkey, some chickens and a brisket. More details will follow but plan on an evening of good food and good fellowship.
May your August be filled with double digit temperatures and above average rainfall!
Saturday, July 2, 2011
July 2, 2011
Good morning!
This morning, I'm sitting out at the Farmers' Market waiting for things to get started. it's wonderfully cool. . . if only it would stay like this all day. Unfortunately, the forecast is for another 100 degree day. Our weather report hasn't changed much since last month. The heat, winds and grasshoppers are taking their toll on pastures, crops, gardens, livestock and spirits. Kurt has started to destock some and has a plan for the rest of the summer if we don't get significant rainfall soon. There are a couple of verses from Habakkuk that have been floating around the county lately:
Though the fig tree does not blossom,
and no fruit is on the vines;
though the produce of the olive falls
and the fields yield no food;
though the flock is cut off from the fold
and there is no cattle in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the LORD;
I will exult in the God of my salvation.
GOD, the Lord, is my strength;
he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
and makes me tread upon the heights.
Habakkuk 3:17-19
The desperateness of the drought has forced us to look for the levity in all things:
1. Our feed bill for the laying hens has been cut in half this past month. The girls are getting fat off the grasshoppers.
2. We've mowed once all summer. This is truly a blessing since our mower is currently out of commission.
3. My laundry dries incredibly fast on the line. One day I had a load of Kurt's work clothes and a few of the light weight work shirts were almost dry before I got the jeans all hung up! Yes, 100 degree temps and no humidly can be good for something.
4. Kurt hasn't had to fix any water gaps in the creek this summer.
5. I haven't had to weed in the garden - it's mostly gone except for the tomatoes and the zucchini. Any other weeds that survive I've left alone - it's nice to see green out there and you gotta give them credit for trying to grow. Not much else will.
It WILL rain again - but until then, we're learning patience and resourcefulness . . .
June has been a very full month and I'm looking forward to a little slower July. Camps, both local and sleepover, and ball are over for the year and "all" we have in July is the fair and a vacation.
We have quite a few whole chickens and chicken pieces in the freezer right now. We also have one more summer processing date (July 12) and then won't have fresh chicken until September and October. Reserve yours now if you'd like some. After October, the price will go to $3.50/pound to help cover our storage expenses.
On Friday, we got 25 baby chicks at the post office - surprise! We're going to give a different breed a try. The heat, which we tried to avoid, has been very hard on the Cornish Crosses, our current meat birds. These Freedom Rangers are supposed to be pretty hardy and good foragers - watch out grasshoppers! They also take just a little longer to grow out than the Cornish Cross and may not have quite as much breast meat but will be more like the chicken your grandparents ate. We're anxious to see how they do and may be asking a few of you to taste test one for us.
Our laying hens like the heat about as much as I do and have rebelled by not laying near as many eggs. However, the eggs they are laying have awesomely orange yolks. Pretty sure they'd make a beautiful yellow cake!
I'm proud to say I and the animals survived Kurt's two absences in June. In the last newsletter, I think I shared some of my misadventures while Kurt was in Colorado. At the end of this month, Kurt went with the South Central football team to Northwest Missouri State for a camp. He had a good time, enjoyed the cooler weather and was reminded what rain looked like. The only downer was the highly processed cafeteria food.
Meanwhile back at the farm, the girls and I sweltered and I earned my pliers. Last time Kurt was gone, I was blessed to have a friend come and provide back-up. This time I was on my own. That's not totally true. I had a very helpful neighbor, two amazing in-laws and several friends who were only a phone call away and promised to come if we needed help. The weekend was a blur of ballgames and choring.
Kurt left on Thursday and returned on Sunday. In that short time, the girls played in 10 ball games and only two of them were home games! Natalie had their last regular season t-ball game on Friday night and an end-of-the-season tourney on Saturday morning - the only two games all weekend where the temperature was under 95 degrees. Allison played in a league softball double elimination tournament. I won't go through all the gut wrenching details but after an early loss to a tough team, Spearville, they played their way back up through the losers' bracket, only to meet Spearville again in the championship game. Because it was a double elimination tourney, they had to beat Spearville twice in order to win the tourney - and they did it! Those little girls (12 and under) toughed it out through the heat and 3 mentally rough games. This from a team who started the season 0-4, 8 of the 12 players had never played softball before, and whom Kurt thought, after their first practice, may not win any games. Oh my! I don't know that I have the fortitude to watch my girls from the stands for the next 15 years. It killed Kurt to miss all the excitement. I suggested that he talk to the coach at NWMS about changing the date of the camp next year because the tournaments will be the same weekend. Apparently, that wasn't a good idea. Somehow, my text updates at the end of every 1/2 inning just weren't enough, especially when read out of order.
When I wasn't cheering at a game or driving to and from a game or packing the car for the next game, I was babysitting chickens and pigs. I lost track of how many gallons of water Jerry, our very helpful neighbor, and I hauled, but it had to be over 100 each day. We had 100+ temperatures all weekend with the high on Sunday topping out at 115 degrees. We lost two meat birds in the heat but given the miserable conditions, I was thankful the losses weren't higher.
I was soooo glad to see Kurt walk into the pizza place on Sunday night! He was pretty lucky too - our sow did NOT have her piglets while he was gone. I told him if she farrowed while he was gone, he could sleep with the pigs. She's due any day now!
We do have ground beef and a few steaks back in stock and are starting to take reservations for fall beef. Even with the dry conditions, Kurt is working hard to keep good groceries in front of the steers and we're thankful for the forage under the irrigation circle. You can also reserve your bulk pork now which will be ready in September and November.
The "little girls" and I will be making a delivery run on Tuesday, July 5th through Wichita, Medicine Lodge, Pratt and Greensburg. If there's something you need, let me know by Monday.
Allison wanted to make sure I included details about the softball championship. Natalie wanted to make sure I let people know she has jumped off the diving board at the pool. In fact, she loves to do it! She can't swim well yet so one of us has to go out with her and hold a pool noodle for her to land on. I wish I could get a good picture of her jumping - it's a crack-up. Instead of jumping, she free falls.
About two weeks until the fair which will be another full week. It's been fun to watch the 4-H kids choose a project, learn something and then produce a finished product.
The day after the fair we are headed south for some much needed time away. We have been planning this trip for almost two years. We told the girls that when we were debt-free (except the house), we would celebrate with a trip. After much discussion, we settled on the beach and have been diligently saving our change to splurge on something fun. Our intention was to go last summer but had some unexpected expenses that extended our debt payment plan and had to put off the celebration for a year. We'll spend some time with one of Kurt's sisters, be on the beach for 2 1/2 days (suggestions welcome here), and make a stop at the Johnson Space Center (a highlight for the astronaut wanna-be in our family). The car ride will be grueling but the time together (and away from our beloved farm) will be be good.
Hoping you have a relaxing, rainy 4th!
This morning, I'm sitting out at the Farmers' Market waiting for things to get started. it's wonderfully cool. . . if only it would stay like this all day. Unfortunately, the forecast is for another 100 degree day. Our weather report hasn't changed much since last month. The heat, winds and grasshoppers are taking their toll on pastures, crops, gardens, livestock and spirits. Kurt has started to destock some and has a plan for the rest of the summer if we don't get significant rainfall soon. There are a couple of verses from Habakkuk that have been floating around the county lately:
Though the fig tree does not blossom,
and no fruit is on the vines;
though the produce of the olive falls
and the fields yield no food;
though the flock is cut off from the fold
and there is no cattle in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the LORD;
I will exult in the God of my salvation.
GOD, the Lord, is my strength;
he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
and makes me tread upon the heights.
Habakkuk 3:17-19
The desperateness of the drought has forced us to look for the levity in all things:
1. Our feed bill for the laying hens has been cut in half this past month. The girls are getting fat off the grasshoppers.
2. We've mowed once all summer. This is truly a blessing since our mower is currently out of commission.
3. My laundry dries incredibly fast on the line. One day I had a load of Kurt's work clothes and a few of the light weight work shirts were almost dry before I got the jeans all hung up! Yes, 100 degree temps and no humidly can be good for something.
4. Kurt hasn't had to fix any water gaps in the creek this summer.
5. I haven't had to weed in the garden - it's mostly gone except for the tomatoes and the zucchini. Any other weeds that survive I've left alone - it's nice to see green out there and you gotta give them credit for trying to grow. Not much else will.
It WILL rain again - but until then, we're learning patience and resourcefulness . . .
June has been a very full month and I'm looking forward to a little slower July. Camps, both local and sleepover, and ball are over for the year and "all" we have in July is the fair and a vacation.
We have quite a few whole chickens and chicken pieces in the freezer right now. We also have one more summer processing date (July 12) and then won't have fresh chicken until September and October. Reserve yours now if you'd like some. After October, the price will go to $3.50/pound to help cover our storage expenses.
On Friday, we got 25 baby chicks at the post office - surprise! We're going to give a different breed a try. The heat, which we tried to avoid, has been very hard on the Cornish Crosses, our current meat birds. These Freedom Rangers are supposed to be pretty hardy and good foragers - watch out grasshoppers! They also take just a little longer to grow out than the Cornish Cross and may not have quite as much breast meat but will be more like the chicken your grandparents ate. We're anxious to see how they do and may be asking a few of you to taste test one for us.
Our laying hens like the heat about as much as I do and have rebelled by not laying near as many eggs. However, the eggs they are laying have awesomely orange yolks. Pretty sure they'd make a beautiful yellow cake!
I'm proud to say I and the animals survived Kurt's two absences in June. In the last newsletter, I think I shared some of my misadventures while Kurt was in Colorado. At the end of this month, Kurt went with the South Central football team to Northwest Missouri State for a camp. He had a good time, enjoyed the cooler weather and was reminded what rain looked like. The only downer was the highly processed cafeteria food.
Meanwhile back at the farm, the girls and I sweltered and I earned my pliers. Last time Kurt was gone, I was blessed to have a friend come and provide back-up. This time I was on my own. That's not totally true. I had a very helpful neighbor, two amazing in-laws and several friends who were only a phone call away and promised to come if we needed help. The weekend was a blur of ballgames and choring.
Kurt left on Thursday and returned on Sunday. In that short time, the girls played in 10 ball games and only two of them were home games! Natalie had their last regular season t-ball game on Friday night and an end-of-the-season tourney on Saturday morning - the only two games all weekend where the temperature was under 95 degrees. Allison played in a league softball double elimination tournament. I won't go through all the gut wrenching details but after an early loss to a tough team, Spearville, they played their way back up through the losers' bracket, only to meet Spearville again in the championship game. Because it was a double elimination tourney, they had to beat Spearville twice in order to win the tourney - and they did it! Those little girls (12 and under) toughed it out through the heat and 3 mentally rough games. This from a team who started the season 0-4, 8 of the 12 players had never played softball before, and whom Kurt thought, after their first practice, may not win any games. Oh my! I don't know that I have the fortitude to watch my girls from the stands for the next 15 years. It killed Kurt to miss all the excitement. I suggested that he talk to the coach at NWMS about changing the date of the camp next year because the tournaments will be the same weekend. Apparently, that wasn't a good idea. Somehow, my text updates at the end of every 1/2 inning just weren't enough, especially when read out of order.
When I wasn't cheering at a game or driving to and from a game or packing the car for the next game, I was babysitting chickens and pigs. I lost track of how many gallons of water Jerry, our very helpful neighbor, and I hauled, but it had to be over 100 each day. We had 100+ temperatures all weekend with the high on Sunday topping out at 115 degrees. We lost two meat birds in the heat but given the miserable conditions, I was thankful the losses weren't higher.
I was soooo glad to see Kurt walk into the pizza place on Sunday night! He was pretty lucky too - our sow did NOT have her piglets while he was gone. I told him if she farrowed while he was gone, he could sleep with the pigs. She's due any day now!
We do have ground beef and a few steaks back in stock and are starting to take reservations for fall beef. Even with the dry conditions, Kurt is working hard to keep good groceries in front of the steers and we're thankful for the forage under the irrigation circle. You can also reserve your bulk pork now which will be ready in September and November.
The "little girls" and I will be making a delivery run on Tuesday, July 5th through Wichita, Medicine Lodge, Pratt and Greensburg. If there's something you need, let me know by Monday.
Allison wanted to make sure I included details about the softball championship. Natalie wanted to make sure I let people know she has jumped off the diving board at the pool. In fact, she loves to do it! She can't swim well yet so one of us has to go out with her and hold a pool noodle for her to land on. I wish I could get a good picture of her jumping - it's a crack-up. Instead of jumping, she free falls.
About two weeks until the fair which will be another full week. It's been fun to watch the 4-H kids choose a project, learn something and then produce a finished product.
The day after the fair we are headed south for some much needed time away. We have been planning this trip for almost two years. We told the girls that when we were debt-free (except the house), we would celebrate with a trip. After much discussion, we settled on the beach and have been diligently saving our change to splurge on something fun. Our intention was to go last summer but had some unexpected expenses that extended our debt payment plan and had to put off the celebration for a year. We'll spend some time with one of Kurt's sisters, be on the beach for 2 1/2 days (suggestions welcome here), and make a stop at the Johnson Space Center (a highlight for the astronaut wanna-be in our family). The car ride will be grueling but the time together (and away from our beloved farm) will be be good.
Hoping you have a relaxing, rainy 4th!
Monday, June 6, 2011
May 2011
I'm a little late with May's newsletter but by the time I was ready to sit down and write, there were ball games to go to, chickens to process and Kurt's chores to take care of. Next thing I know, we're a quarter of the way into June!
If I had to choose a word to describe May, I'd have to pick dry. We've had less than a quarter inch of rain all month. We're thankful we haven't had the severe weather the eastern half of the state has seen. We've had several storms build up and then slide right around us. When I lived in "the city," I was aware of the weather but it didn't seem to permeate my every waking thought. Any time I start to think I'm in control, all I need to do is look at the rain gauge, the neighbors' crops shriveling in the heat and wind and our grass going dormant to realize I need to let go of that illusion of control and trust in God's wisdom. Kurt and I remind each other that it WILL rain again and when it does, we'll celebrate.
June update: We did get about six tenths over Memorial Day weekend - not enough to help the grass significantly but it was good to hear it rain again.
This weekend, Kurt had the opportunity to talk with other graziers and his attitude about moisture changed a little. We live in a dry climate; getting only about 20 inches of precipitation a year. Compared to the people Kurt talked to from places like Mexico, Eastern Colorado, Hawaii, we've got it good. Some of them average 8-10 inches/year and only get moisture about 3 months/year. While this doesn't change the fact that it's dry here, it does make us a little more thankful for the comparatively "lush" conditions we live in.
With the dry weather, I expect the grasshoppers to be bad again this summer. I hope we're ready with our grasshopper eating turkeys. We still have to figure out how to pen them and use them effectively but I'm optimistic.
A good part of the last 3 weeks has been spent at the ball field either practicing or playing games. Allison is playing softball this year with the big girls and enjoying it. They're a young team but will learn lots this season. Natalie's playing her second year of t-ball and loving it. On the mornings of her games, I hear, "How many more hours 'til my game?" It's been fun to watch her grow as an "athlete." She has even given us very specific directions on how to cheer. We're not supposed to use her name (??) but can use her number (Anna cheers "go big 3, goooo big 3!") AND Kurt is NOT allowed to give her two thumbs us with a cheesy grin. As much as we've enjoyed the games, we are very thankful that ball season is only one month long.
School has been out for about 2 weeks and so far I haven't heard too many complaints about being bored - I think they're afraid I'll put them to work.
Natalie is getting to be such a big kid. She brought home her journal from school and it was filled with all kinds of wonderful writing! An example from May 15: I went to my cusin Tillre grajuashine. We got ice kreme cake. Can you translate? We're going to miss Mrs. Jackson so much!
Allison had her braces put on the day before school was out and I think she is past the initial pain. I think the worst part of the whole ordeal was the nasty taste of the cement!
Anna is so glad to have her sisters home although sometimes she has a strange way of showing how much she cares.
I think DFF might have a future as a B&B. We've had company for a full week. It was great! My mom was here for several days and the girls enjoyed some good time with Grandma. Unfortunately, she was fighting a cold and didn't feel great. Too bad she couldn't borrow some of the girls' energy. Mom left on Monday and on Tuesday, my good friend Jennifer and her son Adam came to help out. They not only helped out with chicken processing (a highlight of the trip for Adam) but Jennifer helped me juggle kids, household duties and chores while Kurt was in Colorado. Everyone needs to have a friend like this. I only hope she thinks I'm half as helpful as she is! To celebrate our successes (getting everywhere we needed to and no major meltdowns on the farm), we made donuts from scratch on their last morning - come to find out it was also National Donut Day. I couldn't have planned it any better!
Our first chicken processing was a success and we had lots of great help. If you have an interest in helping, let me know - we'd love to have you! There's always good fellowship, it's not at all gruesome, and we never ask anyone to do a job they're not comfortable with.
We will also be processing on June 15th and 30th, July 14th, September 22nd, and October 6th. If you'd like to reserve whole or cut up chickens, let me know ASAP and we'll make sure to reserve them for you. They are first come, first served and the price goes up $.50/pound after the end of the season in October because we have to store them.
My soapmaking is going well. I've had several successful batches. Although, my production has come to a stand still since school got. Since lye is used in the saponification process, I really don't want any helpers around. So. . . if I want the kitchen to myself right now, it has to happen between 9 pm and 6 am. Not exactly when my brain function is at it's best. I was pretty excited - I sold 4 bars of my Savon Saindoux soap at the farmers' market. Our pastor, who is fluent in French, helped me name the soap. See if you can find the meaning.
We are participating in the farmers' market in Coldwater this summer. It's so nice to have a short drive! We've been open two weeks and while we are still small with only 2-3 vendors, we've been pleased with response from the county. We're hopeful that as gardens start producing, we'll have more vendors. We've been taking a small selection of our meats, some baked goods and soap. I'm also willing to take orders and deliver them at the market.
I'm about to pick up our spring beef and we will have ground beef and steaks in stock again. I'll be through Greensburg, Pratt, Hutchinson, McPherson and Lindsborg on June 13th if you'd like to place an order. I'll also be going to Wichita on June 17th.
If you know you are interested in a quarter, half or whole beef or a hog in the fall, let me know and I'll add your name to "the list." Again, bulk beef and pork will be first come, first served based on availability.
Kurt and I don't have much time to "date" in the late spring/early summer between chores, chickens, children and ball (I know this doesn't fit the alliteration but I couldn't find a "c" word for ball games!). We do know that we need to find a little time to visit without interruptions. Now that the girls are a little bigger, we've started taking short 4-wheeler rides to check cattle on Sunday afternoons. They're not very long but it's a nice chance to spend some time together.
Usually towards the end of my newsletter, I give family updates. I think I've already done that so I'll update you on our animals. Calving is pretty much done for the year. Any cow left to calve will probably go to the sale barn. Otherwise, we'd have some very small calves next spring and the cow wouldn't be ready to breed back with her herd mates. We also need to destock some now because there's just not enough grass growing to feed 140 cow/calf pairs.
We had a rough patch with one of our sows - she lost all her piglets. We think it may have been due to feed high in nitrates. She seems to be doing fine but it was a tough loss for us.
The goats are growing nicely and Allison's two show goats behaved nicely at the spring livestock show. Whew! We were hoping that they would cooperate in the ring.
Our new puppy, K.Z. is growing by the minute. Other than needing to learn a few more manners, she seems to be a good addition to our menagerie.
I referenced this several times in this month's epistle (I've always wanted to use that in a sentence!) but Kurt and a neighbor went to LaJunta, Co for a grazing conference. I tried to call it a workshop and was quickly corrected. Apparently, teachers go to workshops, farmer/ranchers go to conferences. Workshop/conference, whatever you want to call it, Kurt learned a lot. He enjoyed the chance to visit with others doing the same type of things. Ian Mitchell-Innes was the featured speaker. Google him and you can find out a lot about his work in South Africa. While Kurt was gone, I took over most of the livestock - everything but the cattle. I tell you what, hauling water to chickens in 100 degree weather is almost a full-time job. I learned very quickly that I don't have the upper body strength to lift a 5-gallon bucketful of water four feet off the ground. I quickly adjusted Kurt's methods that required brute force to something that would work for me. I'm still sore! Overall, everything went well except one night when. . .
1. I took down part of the hot wire fence with the 4-wheeler.
2. I had to ask my 10-year-old daughter to help me fix the fence 'cause I wasn't sure how to hook on the insulators.
3. My 10-year-old was wounded on the job by a devil's claw - a nasty weed.
4. I forgot to plug in said fence until much, much later. Thankfully, nothing got out.
5. Two turkeys escaped.
6. I had to enlist my 10-year-old again to catch the turkeys.
7. The 4-wheeler died several times for unexplained reasons. I didn't have to ask A for help but did let her drive a little while as a way to say thanks!
8. I lost two full buckets off the back of the 4-wheeler cart and had to refill them.
9. I bruised my thumb.
10. I know something else went wrong and a list ought to have 10 items but I can't for the life of me remember what it might be.
All is right in our world again though. Kurt is home and we're back to doing our own jobs - woohoo! I'd rather feed kids than chickens any time!
Hope you find relief from the heat.
Andi
If I had to choose a word to describe May, I'd have to pick dry. We've had less than a quarter inch of rain all month. We're thankful we haven't had the severe weather the eastern half of the state has seen. We've had several storms build up and then slide right around us. When I lived in "the city," I was aware of the weather but it didn't seem to permeate my every waking thought. Any time I start to think I'm in control, all I need to do is look at the rain gauge, the neighbors' crops shriveling in the heat and wind and our grass going dormant to realize I need to let go of that illusion of control and trust in God's wisdom. Kurt and I remind each other that it WILL rain again and when it does, we'll celebrate.
June update: We did get about six tenths over Memorial Day weekend - not enough to help the grass significantly but it was good to hear it rain again.
This weekend, Kurt had the opportunity to talk with other graziers and his attitude about moisture changed a little. We live in a dry climate; getting only about 20 inches of precipitation a year. Compared to the people Kurt talked to from places like Mexico, Eastern Colorado, Hawaii, we've got it good. Some of them average 8-10 inches/year and only get moisture about 3 months/year. While this doesn't change the fact that it's dry here, it does make us a little more thankful for the comparatively "lush" conditions we live in.
With the dry weather, I expect the grasshoppers to be bad again this summer. I hope we're ready with our grasshopper eating turkeys. We still have to figure out how to pen them and use them effectively but I'm optimistic.
A good part of the last 3 weeks has been spent at the ball field either practicing or playing games. Allison is playing softball this year with the big girls and enjoying it. They're a young team but will learn lots this season. Natalie's playing her second year of t-ball and loving it. On the mornings of her games, I hear, "How many more hours 'til my game?" It's been fun to watch her grow as an "athlete." She has even given us very specific directions on how to cheer. We're not supposed to use her name (??) but can use her number (Anna cheers "go big 3, goooo big 3!") AND Kurt is NOT allowed to give her two thumbs us with a cheesy grin. As much as we've enjoyed the games, we are very thankful that ball season is only one month long.
School has been out for about 2 weeks and so far I haven't heard too many complaints about being bored - I think they're afraid I'll put them to work.
Natalie is getting to be such a big kid. She brought home her journal from school and it was filled with all kinds of wonderful writing! An example from May 15: I went to my cusin Tillre grajuashine. We got ice kreme cake. Can you translate? We're going to miss Mrs. Jackson so much!
Allison had her braces put on the day before school was out and I think she is past the initial pain. I think the worst part of the whole ordeal was the nasty taste of the cement!
Anna is so glad to have her sisters home although sometimes she has a strange way of showing how much she cares.
I think DFF might have a future as a B&B. We've had company for a full week. It was great! My mom was here for several days and the girls enjoyed some good time with Grandma. Unfortunately, she was fighting a cold and didn't feel great. Too bad she couldn't borrow some of the girls' energy. Mom left on Monday and on Tuesday, my good friend Jennifer and her son Adam came to help out. They not only helped out with chicken processing (a highlight of the trip for Adam) but Jennifer helped me juggle kids, household duties and chores while Kurt was in Colorado. Everyone needs to have a friend like this. I only hope she thinks I'm half as helpful as she is! To celebrate our successes (getting everywhere we needed to and no major meltdowns on the farm), we made donuts from scratch on their last morning - come to find out it was also National Donut Day. I couldn't have planned it any better!
Our first chicken processing was a success and we had lots of great help. If you have an interest in helping, let me know - we'd love to have you! There's always good fellowship, it's not at all gruesome, and we never ask anyone to do a job they're not comfortable with.
We will also be processing on June 15th and 30th, July 14th, September 22nd, and October 6th. If you'd like to reserve whole or cut up chickens, let me know ASAP and we'll make sure to reserve them for you. They are first come, first served and the price goes up $.50/pound after the end of the season in October because we have to store them.
My soapmaking is going well. I've had several successful batches. Although, my production has come to a stand still since school got. Since lye is used in the saponification process, I really don't want any helpers around. So. . . if I want the kitchen to myself right now, it has to happen between 9 pm and 6 am. Not exactly when my brain function is at it's best. I was pretty excited - I sold 4 bars of my Savon Saindoux soap at the farmers' market. Our pastor, who is fluent in French, helped me name the soap. See if you can find the meaning.
We are participating in the farmers' market in Coldwater this summer. It's so nice to have a short drive! We've been open two weeks and while we are still small with only 2-3 vendors, we've been pleased with response from the county. We're hopeful that as gardens start producing, we'll have more vendors. We've been taking a small selection of our meats, some baked goods and soap. I'm also willing to take orders and deliver them at the market.
I'm about to pick up our spring beef and we will have ground beef and steaks in stock again. I'll be through Greensburg, Pratt, Hutchinson, McPherson and Lindsborg on June 13th if you'd like to place an order. I'll also be going to Wichita on June 17th.
If you know you are interested in a quarter, half or whole beef or a hog in the fall, let me know and I'll add your name to "the list." Again, bulk beef and pork will be first come, first served based on availability.
Kurt and I don't have much time to "date" in the late spring/early summer between chores, chickens, children and ball (I know this doesn't fit the alliteration but I couldn't find a "c" word for ball games!). We do know that we need to find a little time to visit without interruptions. Now that the girls are a little bigger, we've started taking short 4-wheeler rides to check cattle on Sunday afternoons. They're not very long but it's a nice chance to spend some time together.
Usually towards the end of my newsletter, I give family updates. I think I've already done that so I'll update you on our animals. Calving is pretty much done for the year. Any cow left to calve will probably go to the sale barn. Otherwise, we'd have some very small calves next spring and the cow wouldn't be ready to breed back with her herd mates. We also need to destock some now because there's just not enough grass growing to feed 140 cow/calf pairs.
We had a rough patch with one of our sows - she lost all her piglets. We think it may have been due to feed high in nitrates. She seems to be doing fine but it was a tough loss for us.
The goats are growing nicely and Allison's two show goats behaved nicely at the spring livestock show. Whew! We were hoping that they would cooperate in the ring.
Our new puppy, K.Z. is growing by the minute. Other than needing to learn a few more manners, she seems to be a good addition to our menagerie.
I referenced this several times in this month's epistle (I've always wanted to use that in a sentence!) but Kurt and a neighbor went to LaJunta, Co for a grazing conference. I tried to call it a workshop and was quickly corrected. Apparently, teachers go to workshops, farmer/ranchers go to conferences. Workshop/conference, whatever you want to call it, Kurt learned a lot. He enjoyed the chance to visit with others doing the same type of things. Ian Mitchell-Innes was the featured speaker. Google him and you can find out a lot about his work in South Africa. While Kurt was gone, I took over most of the livestock - everything but the cattle. I tell you what, hauling water to chickens in 100 degree weather is almost a full-time job. I learned very quickly that I don't have the upper body strength to lift a 5-gallon bucketful of water four feet off the ground. I quickly adjusted Kurt's methods that required brute force to something that would work for me. I'm still sore! Overall, everything went well except one night when. . .
1. I took down part of the hot wire fence with the 4-wheeler.
2. I had to ask my 10-year-old daughter to help me fix the fence 'cause I wasn't sure how to hook on the insulators.
3. My 10-year-old was wounded on the job by a devil's claw - a nasty weed.
4. I forgot to plug in said fence until much, much later. Thankfully, nothing got out.
5. Two turkeys escaped.
6. I had to enlist my 10-year-old again to catch the turkeys.
7. The 4-wheeler died several times for unexplained reasons. I didn't have to ask A for help but did let her drive a little while as a way to say thanks!
8. I lost two full buckets off the back of the 4-wheeler cart and had to refill them.
9. I bruised my thumb.
10. I know something else went wrong and a list ought to have 10 items but I can't for the life of me remember what it might be.
All is right in our world again though. Kurt is home and we're back to doing our own jobs - woohoo! I'd rather feed kids than chickens any time!
Hope you find relief from the heat.
Andi
Monday, April 25, 2011
April 2011
Wow! Where to start this month? Several changes to share and lots of excitement on the farm. As I start this edition, Kurt and I are on our way home from a delivery run to Olathe. On the way, we also made stops in Pratt, Kingman, Wichita, and Cassoday. I enjoy making this deliveries. They often have a covert feeling to them when we make a "drop" in a parking lot (that's my inner 007 coming out). My favorite parking lots are McDonald's - it feels like such subterfuge! I only wish we had more time to stop and visit with our customers but we're often on a tight schedule. I gotta say yesterday went off like a charm - well, mostly. Somehow, I gave away one order to the wrong customer - in my defense, we hauled 15 orders and over 200 pounds of meat. My brother-in-law came to my rescue with his freezer beef. Always looking for ways to keep myself humble.
Baby calves are starting to show up on a daily basis. It's so nice to calve in the spring! The girls named the first calf Stormy because it was so windy the day he was born. Chicks showed up last week, too. One hundred meat birds and 115 layers. We took 3 layers in for Natalie's show-and-tell. Somehow, they escaped being mauled to death by very excited and very curious kindergartners. I was so proud of Natalie - she held a chick all by herself - a first! Since we were already at the school, we headed to the 4th grade classroom to share the chicks with Allison's class. The 4th graders were much more reserved but still very interested.
Other new arrivals include our two sows that are due to farrow around the 4th of July - with my luck, they will deliver a week early while Kurt is at football camp. The sows are settling in finally but apparently they were not as used to a hot wire as we thought they were. Those first few days were a bit stressful while they kept testing the hot wire. Somehow, these girls can sense when the wire isn't hot. One sow took the opportunity to explore more of the farm one afternoon while Kurt was making adjustments to the fence and had turned it off. Pig rodeo!
Four goats are scheduled to arrive this week - two 4-H goats for Allison and 1 goat each for Natalie and Anna, just because their parents are suckers. Anna is the only one who has named hers - Goat Goat. (Update: Anna stuck with her name for her goat. Natalie went with Rocky for her goat's name and Allison chose Star and Slap for her goats. The goats managed to escape once in their first four hours. Hope today is less eventful.)
I can't remember if I mentioned last month but our black lab/shepherd mix puppy is coming this week. The girls absolutely could NOT decide on a name. Allison started campaigning early for her choice but Natalie wasn't thrilled about it and added her suggestion which Kurt and I kind of liked - I think it drove A nuts that her name wasn't the front runner. Little Miss Anna was not giving up her name either. So. . . Katie Zoey Puppy is coming home this week. We're likely to refer to her as K.Z. but I'm pretty sure Anna will stick with Puppy. (Side note: I think there are still 1-2 puppies from this litter looking for homes)
You're always welcome to stop by and check out the excitement at the farm, just give us a heads up to make sure someone will be around. I'd love to get to the point where we can give farm tours or have students come visit and learn more about how food can be raised.
As always, we could desperately use a rain - one of the constant concerns of living in an area that averages only about 20 inches of rain a year. While not as desperate as in 2006 (the year we moved to the farm), I think Kurt's about ready to do a rain dance. Should that occur, I'll see about selling tickets to make up for the loss in revenue 'cause the grass isn't growing! (Update: no dancing for Kurt. We got thirty-five hundredths in the gauge and the possibility of more is in the forecast).
Our beef quarters, halves and wholes are sold out for the spring. If you know you're interested in bulk beef for the fall, you might let me know so we can put you on "the list." It will help us plan better for this summer and fall. We want to carry over enough animals to meet demand but we don't want to winter too many. However, we do still have beef, pork and chicken by the cut.
We'd also like some feedback on summer sausage. We plan to have some made this fall for the holidays but we're not sure how much to order. Let me know if you'd be interested and we'll keep in touch. We're also looking at trying to put together some type of gift basket. Summer sausage, along with jerky and beef snack sticks, are products we'd be happy to ship since they don't have to be refrigerated.
There are just a few days left to take advantage of our April special: buy 1 cut up chicken and get a pack of pork chops to try - they are so juicy and tender. Not the pork chops I grew up on! In May, we'll run a poultry special. Buy 1 package of "chicken with a handle" (drumsticks) and get a dozen pastured eggs.
Fast forward a few days. . . .I've been under the weather a bit and never finished the newsletter.
Katie Zoey arrived and Allison is in love. They spend hours together this weekend. Anna tolerates K.Z. and Natalie prefers to observe the puppy from the 4-wheeler or the tree house. She has assured me that it's just going to take some time for her to get used to K.Z.
We are starting to take orders for our 2011 chickens. Chickens will be available on or around: June 2nd, 16th and 30th, July 14th, September 22nd, and October 6th. Reserve yours today.
Please check our price page for some changes in our beef prices, especially ground beef, steaks and the samplers and bundles that have these products in them. We are always striving to find a balance between offering a quality, affordable product, covering our increased expenses (most notably transportation) and staying profitable - a key piece of sustainability.
Please also be aware of changes in our delivery fees. Kurt and I spent several Monday morning meetings trying to find a viable solution. Again, we spent time trying to find balance. As a business, we need to make sure we cover our fuel expenses and wear and tear on our 11-year old, paid for suburban. We also want to make sure our delivery expenses are not prohibitive for food budgets. Here is what we came up with: For each order delivered, there will be a $.15/pound handling fee to pull the order and pack it. There will also be a small delivery fee. For distance less than 60 miles (i.e. Pratt, Dodge), it will be $5. Sixty to one hundred twenty miles (the Wichita area), it will be $10. Any place further than that will be $15.
Example: Someone in Wichita orders a 50# beef bundle. the handling fee is 50# x $.15# = $7.50 plus the $10 delivery fee for a total of $17.50. Questions, please let me know.
We're gearing up for the start of the Comanche County Farmers' Market and I'm making plans for making our booth more attractive and easier to peruse. I'm planning on putting together an album of our popular cuts so people can see how nice our cuts look. It's hard to see them through that butcher paper! I'm also planning to have homemade soap available. I better get busy!
I tried hard to find a roll on the floor funny story this month. I'm sure they've happened but nothing is jumping out at me. Instead, you'll have to be okay with some ho-hum family updates.
Kurt is already dreaming of football camp in June. he and the head coach are plotting and planning and drooling over a transfer student - he's 6'4" and 240 (and a sophomore). Apparently, these are desirable traits in football players.
The girls have spent so much time outside this spring! There are probably days that I let the TV stay on too long but they are happiest and seem to play the nicest when they are outside. Even though there are times they wish were just a little closer to town and friends, they seem to be able to make their own fun - often involving bubbles, squirt bottles or bicycles.
As Allison finishes out the 4th grade, her days have gotten pretty full. The next few weeks will find her spending some serious time with the puppy and her goats. I've been amazed at how confident she's been with all the animals on the farm - much braver than I was at 10, maybe even at 38!
Natalie is almost a 1st grader and starting to become a reader and writer. As I've watched Natalie this year, it always amazes me how different my kids are. Even though they value many of the same things, they most definitely have different talents and gifts. If only there were a book I could order off of Amazon that would give me a fool-proof way to encourage and challenge them each in meaningful ways.
Anna continues to walk the fine line between wanting to be a big kid (it's so hard when her sisters get to do something she's too little for) and wanting to be my baby girl - there are days I'm torn too! I'm finding one of Anna's gifts is taking things apart to see how it's made. Usually, she can put it back together. . . usually. Maybe she'll be mechanically minded like her grandpa and daddy.
The garden isn't coming together quite like I'd hoped - I've been thwarted by weather and busyness. However, I am looking forward to good help this summer.
I'm also working on improving my soapmaking techniques - one small batch at a time. I made my first unscented batch of soap using some of our lard and so far I'm very pleased with it - hope to try it out in a week or so. Still working on a name for it - Kurt likes "Lard Bar" but I'm not sure that's quite the name I'm looking for - any ideas?
One more question for you - any suggestions for some summer reading? I enjoy a variety of good fiction and books on homesteading, farming, etc. Allison is also looking for some good book ideas - she's loved the Harry Potter books and The 39 Clues series.
Hoping you get the April showers needed for May flowers,
Andi
Baby calves are starting to show up on a daily basis. It's so nice to calve in the spring! The girls named the first calf Stormy because it was so windy the day he was born. Chicks showed up last week, too. One hundred meat birds and 115 layers. We took 3 layers in for Natalie's show-and-tell. Somehow, they escaped being mauled to death by very excited and very curious kindergartners. I was so proud of Natalie - she held a chick all by herself - a first! Since we were already at the school, we headed to the 4th grade classroom to share the chicks with Allison's class. The 4th graders were much more reserved but still very interested.
Other new arrivals include our two sows that are due to farrow around the 4th of July - with my luck, they will deliver a week early while Kurt is at football camp. The sows are settling in finally but apparently they were not as used to a hot wire as we thought they were. Those first few days were a bit stressful while they kept testing the hot wire. Somehow, these girls can sense when the wire isn't hot. One sow took the opportunity to explore more of the farm one afternoon while Kurt was making adjustments to the fence and had turned it off. Pig rodeo!
Four goats are scheduled to arrive this week - two 4-H goats for Allison and 1 goat each for Natalie and Anna, just because their parents are suckers. Anna is the only one who has named hers - Goat Goat. (Update: Anna stuck with her name for her goat. Natalie went with Rocky for her goat's name and Allison chose Star and Slap for her goats. The goats managed to escape once in their first four hours. Hope today is less eventful.)
I can't remember if I mentioned last month but our black lab/shepherd mix puppy is coming this week. The girls absolutely could NOT decide on a name. Allison started campaigning early for her choice but Natalie wasn't thrilled about it and added her suggestion which Kurt and I kind of liked - I think it drove A nuts that her name wasn't the front runner. Little Miss Anna was not giving up her name either. So. . . Katie Zoey Puppy is coming home this week. We're likely to refer to her as K.Z. but I'm pretty sure Anna will stick with Puppy. (Side note: I think there are still 1-2 puppies from this litter looking for homes)
You're always welcome to stop by and check out the excitement at the farm, just give us a heads up to make sure someone will be around. I'd love to get to the point where we can give farm tours or have students come visit and learn more about how food can be raised.
As always, we could desperately use a rain - one of the constant concerns of living in an area that averages only about 20 inches of rain a year. While not as desperate as in 2006 (the year we moved to the farm), I think Kurt's about ready to do a rain dance. Should that occur, I'll see about selling tickets to make up for the loss in revenue 'cause the grass isn't growing! (Update: no dancing for Kurt. We got thirty-five hundredths in the gauge and the possibility of more is in the forecast).
Our beef quarters, halves and wholes are sold out for the spring. If you know you're interested in bulk beef for the fall, you might let me know so we can put you on "the list." It will help us plan better for this summer and fall. We want to carry over enough animals to meet demand but we don't want to winter too many. However, we do still have beef, pork and chicken by the cut.
We'd also like some feedback on summer sausage. We plan to have some made this fall for the holidays but we're not sure how much to order. Let me know if you'd be interested and we'll keep in touch. We're also looking at trying to put together some type of gift basket. Summer sausage, along with jerky and beef snack sticks, are products we'd be happy to ship since they don't have to be refrigerated.
There are just a few days left to take advantage of our April special: buy 1 cut up chicken and get a pack of pork chops to try - they are so juicy and tender. Not the pork chops I grew up on! In May, we'll run a poultry special. Buy 1 package of "chicken with a handle" (drumsticks) and get a dozen pastured eggs.
Fast forward a few days. . . .I've been under the weather a bit and never finished the newsletter.
Katie Zoey arrived and Allison is in love. They spend hours together this weekend. Anna tolerates K.Z. and Natalie prefers to observe the puppy from the 4-wheeler or the tree house. She has assured me that it's just going to take some time for her to get used to K.Z.
We are starting to take orders for our 2011 chickens. Chickens will be available on or around: June 2nd, 16th and 30th, July 14th, September 22nd, and October 6th. Reserve yours today.
Please check our price page for some changes in our beef prices, especially ground beef, steaks and the samplers and bundles that have these products in them. We are always striving to find a balance between offering a quality, affordable product, covering our increased expenses (most notably transportation) and staying profitable - a key piece of sustainability.
Please also be aware of changes in our delivery fees. Kurt and I spent several Monday morning meetings trying to find a viable solution. Again, we spent time trying to find balance. As a business, we need to make sure we cover our fuel expenses and wear and tear on our 11-year old, paid for suburban. We also want to make sure our delivery expenses are not prohibitive for food budgets. Here is what we came up with: For each order delivered, there will be a $.15/pound handling fee to pull the order and pack it. There will also be a small delivery fee. For distance less than 60 miles (i.e. Pratt, Dodge), it will be $5. Sixty to one hundred twenty miles (the Wichita area), it will be $10. Any place further than that will be $15.
Example: Someone in Wichita orders a 50# beef bundle. the handling fee is 50# x $.15# = $7.50 plus the $10 delivery fee for a total of $17.50. Questions, please let me know.
We're gearing up for the start of the Comanche County Farmers' Market and I'm making plans for making our booth more attractive and easier to peruse. I'm planning on putting together an album of our popular cuts so people can see how nice our cuts look. It's hard to see them through that butcher paper! I'm also planning to have homemade soap available. I better get busy!
I tried hard to find a roll on the floor funny story this month. I'm sure they've happened but nothing is jumping out at me. Instead, you'll have to be okay with some ho-hum family updates.
Kurt is already dreaming of football camp in June. he and the head coach are plotting and planning and drooling over a transfer student - he's 6'4" and 240 (and a sophomore). Apparently, these are desirable traits in football players.
The girls have spent so much time outside this spring! There are probably days that I let the TV stay on too long but they are happiest and seem to play the nicest when they are outside. Even though there are times they wish were just a little closer to town and friends, they seem to be able to make their own fun - often involving bubbles, squirt bottles or bicycles.
As Allison finishes out the 4th grade, her days have gotten pretty full. The next few weeks will find her spending some serious time with the puppy and her goats. I've been amazed at how confident she's been with all the animals on the farm - much braver than I was at 10, maybe even at 38!
Natalie is almost a 1st grader and starting to become a reader and writer. As I've watched Natalie this year, it always amazes me how different my kids are. Even though they value many of the same things, they most definitely have different talents and gifts. If only there were a book I could order off of Amazon that would give me a fool-proof way to encourage and challenge them each in meaningful ways.
Anna continues to walk the fine line between wanting to be a big kid (it's so hard when her sisters get to do something she's too little for) and wanting to be my baby girl - there are days I'm torn too! I'm finding one of Anna's gifts is taking things apart to see how it's made. Usually, she can put it back together. . . usually. Maybe she'll be mechanically minded like her grandpa and daddy.
The garden isn't coming together quite like I'd hoped - I've been thwarted by weather and busyness. However, I am looking forward to good help this summer.
I'm also working on improving my soapmaking techniques - one small batch at a time. I made my first unscented batch of soap using some of our lard and so far I'm very pleased with it - hope to try it out in a week or so. Still working on a name for it - Kurt likes "Lard Bar" but I'm not sure that's quite the name I'm looking for - any ideas?
One more question for you - any suggestions for some summer reading? I enjoy a variety of good fiction and books on homesteading, farming, etc. Allison is also looking for some good book ideas - she's loved the Harry Potter books and The 39 Clues series.
Hoping you get the April showers needed for May flowers,
Andi
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
March 2011
March is coming to a close and I feel like a Johnny Cash song - "I've Been Everywhere." While that may be a stretch, we have seen several parts of Kansas. Early in the month we (and half of Comanche County) headed to Emporia to watch our girls' team compete in the State 1A Basketball Tournament. It was great fun and we're so proud of the girls who came home with a 3rd place trophy.
Since we were that far east, the girls and I went ahead and stayed several nights with my mom. (There's 2 towns.)
Last weekend, we headed to Kiowa so Allison could compete in Regional 4-H days. She read a selection from Roald Dahl and did very well. If you've never taken a drive through the Gyp Hills on Highway 160, you need to. Very different landscape than the I-70 drive through the flatter plains of NW Kansas. (1 more town.)
Sunday, I had the opportunity to spend a couple of days with a dear friend in Lindsborg. We got to visit about everything and nothing and had very few interruptions. On Monday, we spent time in Salina running errands and playing. We ate lunch at the Wood Fashion Cafe in downtown Salina. They use local meats, cheeses and vegetables when possible. Very good and reasonably priced. Next, we headed to On the Pot to paint our own pieces of pottery - I'm so excited to bring mine home. Tuesday, it was back to work. I had about 700 pounds of beef and pork to pick up in McPherson. (3 more towns).
This morning, Kurt, Anna and I were off to Dodge for a doctor's appointment and a little ATV shopping. (1 more town.)
Added to this deliveries in Pratt, Wichita and Coldwater. (3 more) Oh, and forensics in Bucklin and Spearville bring my total up to an even dozen!
I love my home state and rarely have the desire to live anywhere else - except when the wind gusts to over 50 mph. After driving home yesterday in a fully loaded suburban with Kansas crosswinds, I was wiped out.
You're always welcome to stop by the farm and see what's going on. We recommend you call or email ahead of time to make sure someone is around. If you come out in the next 4-6 weeks, there will be all kinds of exciting things going on. Our chicks are scheduled to start arriving in a couple weeks. We have a puppy on the way - a former student had a litter of puppies. No, no, no . . .her dog had the litter and she's finding homes for the lab/shepherd/??? mixes. We think Yeller would like some company. 4-H goats are also slated to come in April and this year our herd is doubling. Allison is planning on raising goats as a 4-H project again and Natalie asked if she could take care of a goat too. She's not in 4-H yet but we're tickled she has an interest in caring for an animal. If Allison and Natalie each have goats, you can almost bet that Anna will want to be in on the fun!
We'll have calves on the ground in the next few weeks as well - I love to "drive pasture" with Kurt and see all the new babies running around. Kurt also prefers calving this time of year as opposed to in the dead of winter. Never once during the bitter cold days did I hear him wish we were calving. We've talked and the cows seem to have an easier time and the calves seem less stressed when we calve in the spring. The final addition to our barnyard family will be two sows. Last year, we bought young feeder pigs and raised them. This year, we're going to start with two bred sows and see what happens . . .
We were thankful to get almost an inch and a quarter of rain on Saturday. Grass (or weeds in the case of our yard) was starting to green up but after this rain, everything is starting to explode - we're almost verdant - or as verdant as our desert ever gets.
The warmer weather and rain have us thinking about our garden. There are probably several things that should be in the ground already but the next two weeks may delay that a bit. We're scaling back just a bit this year - hoping to do a smaller garden and do it well. Kurt thought I was getting carried away as I'm apt to do - I'm planning a separate pumpkin patch. With this extra space, Kurt was sure we would have more square footage than last year. It's not - it's smaller - only 63% the size of last year. Yep, that BSE in mathematics still comes in handy. I won't bore you with the calculation details but you can only imagine the look I got when I tried to explain to Kurt how nicely the numbers worked out - I was without a calculator and the calculations were elegant . . . if you peek in a mirror, that glassy-eyed look you see is the same one Kurt had - sorry, I digress. New in the garden this year, turnips for the pigs and peanuts for the Dales.
Today (Wednesday)is Bill, my father-in-law's, birthday. Except for four years at K-State and a stint in the Marines, he has lived his entire life (81 years worth!) on the farm and probably knows this particular piece of ground better than anyone. In a world where people move often, I find this fascinating and refreshing and I swear again to Kurt that I'm never moving again.
While at my Mom's house, I made my first batch of soap. I wanted another adult around for two reasons: 1) to watch the girls and keep them away from the soapmaking and 2) to lend a hand if I ran into problems. Turned out I needed Mom for both. I managed to work at nap time which helped but this first batch was anything but textbook. The recipe said stir for 10-20 minutes until the soap traces (I'll let you look that term up because I'm not quite sure I know what it is yet). I stirred for one hour and thirty-five minutes! There were some other issues - not limited to my goggles fogging up - but I'm proud to report that my soap hardened, lathers and doesn't burn my skin off. All pluses for a first time in my book. I've tried a second batch but still have lots more to learn! Hope to have some bars available this summer at the farmers' market using some by-products of the farm.
I mentioned earlier that I brought home about 700 pounds of meat this week. We're pleased to have ground beef, hamburger patties, jerky, roasts and bacon back in stock. We have a handful of fillets but will have to wait until June for steaks. I'm most excited about the new products I brought home. We now have beef snack sticks. There are 4, 1 oz. sticks per pack ($5/pack). We also brought home sliced roast beef and ham ready for a great sandwich ($7.75/pound package). We had some pork made into zesty breakfast sausage ($3.50/pound) - we still have the sweet sausage, spicy sausage and ground pork. Finally, we had some pork beer brats made with beer from Tallgrass Brewery, located in Kansas. We don't hardly know where to begin sampling!
I know it seems early but it's time to start thinking about reserving your chickens for the 2011 season. We'll have chickens available on June 2, 16 and 30, July 14, September 22 and October 4. We do have some chickens left in the freezer - a few whole ones and several cut up chickens as well as some parts - if you find yourself running short or want to sample some before the new season starts.
We've got just a few quarters left for this spring - if you're interested, please let me know ASAP. We're also taking reservations for quarters (or wholes and halves) for the fall. If you reserve yours by April 15th (with a $100/quarter deposit), you will lock in the current $1.10/pound liveweight price. If you wait until fall, our price will go to $1.20/pound. Please email me if you have questions about how our quarters are priced.
I am the subject of ridicule in my house (I mean, more than usual). I left Sunday afternoon and told Allison to keep my NCAA bracket up-to-date. By early evening, I get a text "Your bracket is toast." What Kurt and Allison failed to mention is that their brackets are in pretty sorry shape too. Every year, I try to pick teams, get involved in the games, bet with Kurt and LOSE. Someday, I'll learn - I have learned NOT to pick the #16 seeds.
I think I'll close with the story of two cooks - I'll let you decide who is Cook 1 and Cook 2. Cook 1 wanted to make doughnuts for the family, found a recipe in a really cool cookbook (The Lost Art of Real Cooking), let other family members participate in making the dough the night before, and then fried 50 doughnuts (in lard), one at a time. Cook 1 was lauded all day for these wonderfully light and tasty doughnuts. Praises were heaped upon Cook 1, even the most gracious of comments, "these are as good as Don's (the local cafe owner)," hoping that this culinary feat would be repeated.
Cook 2 needed to make sure the family was fed and chose to prepare a meal everyone would enjoy - pancakes. However, Cook 2 was lacking in one key ingredient - baking powder. So under the advisement of others, Cook 2 tried a substitution of baking soda. On-line, it was suggested to use 3 times as much soda as powder (a side note: Cook 1 was pretty sure that it was a mixture of soda and cream of tartar but was not in the kitchen and chose not to interfere). Unfortunately, Cook 2 chose to use the adjustable measuring spoon that goes from 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon and apparently it unknowingly shifted once or twice. The resulting pancakes were a disappointment. To quote our eldest daughter, "The first batch (off the griddle) looked like pancakes but were full of batter. Batch two looked like pancakes all the way through but tasted awful! Like baking soda!" Our faithful dog and eater of all scraps wouldn't even eat them until they were dressed up with a little bacon grease. Dinner turned out to be a few leftovers and lots of bacon. To Cook 2's credit, the recipe was attempted and mastered again the next morning and everyone left the breakfast table with happy tummies.
I'll leave you to ponder the identities of these two cooks - I will add that Cook 2 was laughing to the point of tears during the retelling of the pancake disaster.
Enjoying the spring,
Andi
Since we were that far east, the girls and I went ahead and stayed several nights with my mom. (There's 2 towns.)
Last weekend, we headed to Kiowa so Allison could compete in Regional 4-H days. She read a selection from Roald Dahl and did very well. If you've never taken a drive through the Gyp Hills on Highway 160, you need to. Very different landscape than the I-70 drive through the flatter plains of NW Kansas. (1 more town.)
Sunday, I had the opportunity to spend a couple of days with a dear friend in Lindsborg. We got to visit about everything and nothing and had very few interruptions. On Monday, we spent time in Salina running errands and playing. We ate lunch at the Wood Fashion Cafe in downtown Salina. They use local meats, cheeses and vegetables when possible. Very good and reasonably priced. Next, we headed to On the Pot to paint our own pieces of pottery - I'm so excited to bring mine home. Tuesday, it was back to work. I had about 700 pounds of beef and pork to pick up in McPherson. (3 more towns).
This morning, Kurt, Anna and I were off to Dodge for a doctor's appointment and a little ATV shopping. (1 more town.)
Added to this deliveries in Pratt, Wichita and Coldwater. (3 more) Oh, and forensics in Bucklin and Spearville bring my total up to an even dozen!
I love my home state and rarely have the desire to live anywhere else - except when the wind gusts to over 50 mph. After driving home yesterday in a fully loaded suburban with Kansas crosswinds, I was wiped out.
You're always welcome to stop by the farm and see what's going on. We recommend you call or email ahead of time to make sure someone is around. If you come out in the next 4-6 weeks, there will be all kinds of exciting things going on. Our chicks are scheduled to start arriving in a couple weeks. We have a puppy on the way - a former student had a litter of puppies. No, no, no . . .her dog had the litter and she's finding homes for the lab/shepherd/??? mixes. We think Yeller would like some company. 4-H goats are also slated to come in April and this year our herd is doubling. Allison is planning on raising goats as a 4-H project again and Natalie asked if she could take care of a goat too. She's not in 4-H yet but we're tickled she has an interest in caring for an animal. If Allison and Natalie each have goats, you can almost bet that Anna will want to be in on the fun!
We'll have calves on the ground in the next few weeks as well - I love to "drive pasture" with Kurt and see all the new babies running around. Kurt also prefers calving this time of year as opposed to in the dead of winter. Never once during the bitter cold days did I hear him wish we were calving. We've talked and the cows seem to have an easier time and the calves seem less stressed when we calve in the spring. The final addition to our barnyard family will be two sows. Last year, we bought young feeder pigs and raised them. This year, we're going to start with two bred sows and see what happens . . .
We were thankful to get almost an inch and a quarter of rain on Saturday. Grass (or weeds in the case of our yard) was starting to green up but after this rain, everything is starting to explode - we're almost verdant - or as verdant as our desert ever gets.
The warmer weather and rain have us thinking about our garden. There are probably several things that should be in the ground already but the next two weeks may delay that a bit. We're scaling back just a bit this year - hoping to do a smaller garden and do it well. Kurt thought I was getting carried away as I'm apt to do - I'm planning a separate pumpkin patch. With this extra space, Kurt was sure we would have more square footage than last year. It's not - it's smaller - only 63% the size of last year. Yep, that BSE in mathematics still comes in handy. I won't bore you with the calculation details but you can only imagine the look I got when I tried to explain to Kurt how nicely the numbers worked out - I was without a calculator and the calculations were elegant . . . if you peek in a mirror, that glassy-eyed look you see is the same one Kurt had - sorry, I digress. New in the garden this year, turnips for the pigs and peanuts for the Dales.
Today (Wednesday)is Bill, my father-in-law's, birthday. Except for four years at K-State and a stint in the Marines, he has lived his entire life (81 years worth!) on the farm and probably knows this particular piece of ground better than anyone. In a world where people move often, I find this fascinating and refreshing and I swear again to Kurt that I'm never moving again.
While at my Mom's house, I made my first batch of soap. I wanted another adult around for two reasons: 1) to watch the girls and keep them away from the soapmaking and 2) to lend a hand if I ran into problems. Turned out I needed Mom for both. I managed to work at nap time which helped but this first batch was anything but textbook. The recipe said stir for 10-20 minutes until the soap traces (I'll let you look that term up because I'm not quite sure I know what it is yet). I stirred for one hour and thirty-five minutes! There were some other issues - not limited to my goggles fogging up - but I'm proud to report that my soap hardened, lathers and doesn't burn my skin off. All pluses for a first time in my book. I've tried a second batch but still have lots more to learn! Hope to have some bars available this summer at the farmers' market using some by-products of the farm.
I mentioned earlier that I brought home about 700 pounds of meat this week. We're pleased to have ground beef, hamburger patties, jerky, roasts and bacon back in stock. We have a handful of fillets but will have to wait until June for steaks. I'm most excited about the new products I brought home. We now have beef snack sticks. There are 4, 1 oz. sticks per pack ($5/pack). We also brought home sliced roast beef and ham ready for a great sandwich ($7.75/pound package). We had some pork made into zesty breakfast sausage ($3.50/pound) - we still have the sweet sausage, spicy sausage and ground pork. Finally, we had some pork beer brats made with beer from Tallgrass Brewery, located in Kansas. We don't hardly know where to begin sampling!
I know it seems early but it's time to start thinking about reserving your chickens for the 2011 season. We'll have chickens available on June 2, 16 and 30, July 14, September 22 and October 4. We do have some chickens left in the freezer - a few whole ones and several cut up chickens as well as some parts - if you find yourself running short or want to sample some before the new season starts.
We've got just a few quarters left for this spring - if you're interested, please let me know ASAP. We're also taking reservations for quarters (or wholes and halves) for the fall. If you reserve yours by April 15th (with a $100/quarter deposit), you will lock in the current $1.10/pound liveweight price. If you wait until fall, our price will go to $1.20/pound. Please email me if you have questions about how our quarters are priced.
I am the subject of ridicule in my house (I mean, more than usual). I left Sunday afternoon and told Allison to keep my NCAA bracket up-to-date. By early evening, I get a text "Your bracket is toast." What Kurt and Allison failed to mention is that their brackets are in pretty sorry shape too. Every year, I try to pick teams, get involved in the games, bet with Kurt and LOSE. Someday, I'll learn - I have learned NOT to pick the #16 seeds.
I think I'll close with the story of two cooks - I'll let you decide who is Cook 1 and Cook 2. Cook 1 wanted to make doughnuts for the family, found a recipe in a really cool cookbook (The Lost Art of Real Cooking), let other family members participate in making the dough the night before, and then fried 50 doughnuts (in lard), one at a time. Cook 1 was lauded all day for these wonderfully light and tasty doughnuts. Praises were heaped upon Cook 1, even the most gracious of comments, "these are as good as Don's (the local cafe owner)," hoping that this culinary feat would be repeated.
Cook 2 needed to make sure the family was fed and chose to prepare a meal everyone would enjoy - pancakes. However, Cook 2 was lacking in one key ingredient - baking powder. So under the advisement of others, Cook 2 tried a substitution of baking soda. On-line, it was suggested to use 3 times as much soda as powder (a side note: Cook 1 was pretty sure that it was a mixture of soda and cream of tartar but was not in the kitchen and chose not to interfere). Unfortunately, Cook 2 chose to use the adjustable measuring spoon that goes from 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon and apparently it unknowingly shifted once or twice. The resulting pancakes were a disappointment. To quote our eldest daughter, "The first batch (off the griddle) looked like pancakes but were full of batter. Batch two looked like pancakes all the way through but tasted awful! Like baking soda!" Our faithful dog and eater of all scraps wouldn't even eat them until they were dressed up with a little bacon grease. Dinner turned out to be a few leftovers and lots of bacon. To Cook 2's credit, the recipe was attempted and mastered again the next morning and everyone left the breakfast table with happy tummies.
I'll leave you to ponder the identities of these two cooks - I will add that Cook 2 was laughing to the point of tears during the retelling of the pancake disaster.
Enjoying the spring,
Andi
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
February 2011
I have horrible writer's block this month. Pretty sure it's because February is a short month and I'm feeling pressured to get something written on time. There's lots of product information to share but other than that, it's been a relatively boring month - no great livestock stories to share. I told this to Kurt, the resident optimist. His response, "The surest way to guarantee a run of bad luck is to talk about how you haven't had any lately." We'll see what March holds.
The rest of my soap making supplies arrived by FedEx this week. I'm hoping to make a batch or two this weekend - if something goes wrong, that may be my story for March! If all goes well, I hope to have a product to share by this summer.
The weather this month has been nuts. The girls have had several "snow" days - mostly they were frigid days with very little snow. One morning, the outside thermometer read -20 degrees. It may have been colder but that's as low as the thermometer will register. The next week, the car thermometer read 82! Crazy! The extreme cold and big swings in temps have stressed our poor hens and they've slowed down considerably. Hopefully, the longer days and more stable weather will encourage more egg-laying.
During the brutally cold morning, we lost power for a little over an hour - just long enough for the pump to freeze. Kurt was smart enough to put a heat lamp out the night before but that hour without heat was too long. Thankfully, it didn't take much to get water moving again once the power came back on. We were ready to flip the generator on about the time the lights came back on. The big girls thought it was a bit of an adventure - especially when they found out school was closed. Anna, on the other hand, was really bothered that there weren't any lights - anywhere. She'd walk from room to room making forlorn announcements: "My bedroom doesn't have any lights." "No lights in the bathroom." "Sissy, you don't have lights."
Right now, we are running a special on our Hot Diggity Dogs. We think our all beef, no added nitrate/nitrites hot dogs are great and we've heard that you do, too. Now, through the end of March and while supplies last, any time you buy 4 packages of hot dogs, we'll give you a pack for free to share with a friend.
I'll be in Greensburg, Pratt and Wichita on Tuesday, March 1st if there's something you need. We should be back in town sometime again this month as we plan spring visits with Grandma.
We have a great variety of pork right now - roasts, 2 types of pork sausage and ground pork, pork chops, and hams - perfect for Easter dinner. Questions about any particular cut, let me know.
Kurt took the last of our hogs and two beeves to McPherson last week. We're going to have a few new products made this time. We're going to have beef sticks made in 4ounce packages, pork beer brats, breakfast sausage and some ham and roast beef deli meat. We're also restocking hamburger patties, ground beef, roasts, beef jerky, fillets, all beef brats and bacon.
We're starting to plan our garden for the spring - I always have big, big plans. . . this year, we've scaled back a little and hope to have more success. We've even ordered a few early turkeys to help us keep a handle on the grasshoppers. I'm also hoping the girls are big enough to be more effective helpers - time spent teaching now will surely pay off in the future. Kurt also plans to help more since he won't be spending all his time in the hay field.
I'm starting to visit with other interested people about the Farmers' Market in Coldwater - we'll keep you posted with the details. I'm excited about the interest we had last year!
I think one of the things I enjoy about the winter - it's certainly not the cold - is the dark evenings. Kurt comes in early because it's too dark to work outside, the girls are in bed at a decent time and both Kurt and I end up with our noses in a book. His book usually ends up on his nose when he falls asleep in the recliner . . . When I've not been studying up on soapmaking, I've been poking around in a couple of cookbooks: The Lost Art of Real Cooking: Rediscovering the Pleasures of Traditional Foods One Recipe at a Time and The Little House Cookbook: Frontier Foods From Laura Ingalls Wilder's Classic Stories. Cooking without a hard and fast recipe intrigues me. I've gotten much better through our married life at this type cooking. Actually cooking, in general if you ask Kurt. There are several go-to recipes that I don't measure for anymore but baking - no way. I'm trying to decide how adventurous I'm ready to be - sauerkraut? Sourdough bread with "wild" yeast? I'll keep you posted.
And then there's the book I ordered for myself that Kurt latched onto - Deeply Rooted: Unconventional Farmers in the Age of Agribusiness. It's three farmers' stories and how they are using their own set of rules. They seem to ignore farm policy of the 70's - "get big or get out." Very thought provoking.
It's time to start thinking about reserving your quarter, half or whole beef. To help us plan for the spring, we'd like to know by April 15th if you'd like beef this spring. It will be first come, first serve - if we've talked about it, go ahead and send me an email to confirm. Animals are scheduled to go to the processor on May 13th and they'll be ready 2-3 weeks after that. Go to our price page or email me if you have questions about pricing on beef.
If you're not quite ready for beef right now, you may want to think about a fall animal. Currently, we charge $1.10 per pound live weight plus some freight and you pay the processing fees - a quarter averages around $450 total for approximately 100 pounds of meat. If you reserve part or all of a fall animal by April 15th, you can lock in our current price of $1.10 per pound. We are asking that you put down a $100 per quarter for a deposit to guarantee your beef. Animals purchased after April 15th will be priced at $1.20 per pound live weight - this pencils out to about a $25 per quarter increase in price.
I'm not sure how many of you follow the commodity cattle markets but they've been climbing steadily for several months. Other commodities are also rising and this has been reflected in the grocery store prices. Currently, the price for a finished commodity steer is about $1.10 per pound. We believe that the beef we are producing is better than anything you can get on the commodity market. In order to remain profitable, we will be raising the price of our quarters, halves and wholes to $1.20 per pound after April 15th. Kurt and I have agreed that if the price of beef in the commodity market drops significantly, our price will reflect that as well - something that rarely occurs in the grocery store.
Family updates:
Kurt - He's figuring and planning. Every morning, I find him at the kitchen table "ciphering." I think he likes that time of the day because it's the one time of day that the house is quiet and he's not tired. He's planning cattle movements through paddocks or trying to decide cutting instructions for the processor.
Andi: The last month has been full of forensics which I thoroughly enjoy. I also started taking a "Holy Yoga" class which has been wonderfully relaxing.
Allison: She's been playing basketball - her peewee team is much more confident this year! She's also been spelling like crazy trying to get ready for the spelling bee. Update - she made it to the 4th round and was eliminated on "integral."
Natalie: Her gymnastics class got to perform at a high school game. I'm her momma so I can tell you how good her cartwheels were - what a strong little girl!
Anna: I'm remembering that 3 is a much harder age than 2! Anna is just sure she can do almost everything "all by herself!" Someday, this independent streak will serve her well - someday. Anna is also the entertainer (hmmm. . .. could it be because she's the "baby?") Always trying funnies out on new audiences and then laughing gleefully if she can get you to join in.
One more family story. Last Sunday, we had caught the basketball bug and headed to the school gym to shoot some hoops (one of the benefits of living in a small town). Unfortunately, we could only find one ball - next time, we'll take our own. Hmmm .. . what to do with one ball - play a game of 2 on 3, of course! Kurt and Anna vs. Allison, Natalie and myself. The teams would have been pretty fair except Kurt had to lift Anna on his shoulders every time she shot. That made rebounding a little tricky. The game also moved a little too fast for Anna which isn't saying much. Soooo, we switched to 2 on 2. Kurt and I against Natalie and Allison - full court. They had the short basket and we took a regulation goal. I think it was at this point that Kurt realized I hadn't been exaggerating all those years I said I was not a basketball player. He believes me now. (When I read this month's Rattle out loud to Kurt, he laughed loudly at this point. He won't say I stink out loud but we all know.) We had a good time even with Anna's tears. Next times, we'll take a short hoop in for Anna to play with.
Hoping you're starting to see signs of spring.
The rest of my soap making supplies arrived by FedEx this week. I'm hoping to make a batch or two this weekend - if something goes wrong, that may be my story for March! If all goes well, I hope to have a product to share by this summer.
The weather this month has been nuts. The girls have had several "snow" days - mostly they were frigid days with very little snow. One morning, the outside thermometer read -20 degrees. It may have been colder but that's as low as the thermometer will register. The next week, the car thermometer read 82! Crazy! The extreme cold and big swings in temps have stressed our poor hens and they've slowed down considerably. Hopefully, the longer days and more stable weather will encourage more egg-laying.
During the brutally cold morning, we lost power for a little over an hour - just long enough for the pump to freeze. Kurt was smart enough to put a heat lamp out the night before but that hour without heat was too long. Thankfully, it didn't take much to get water moving again once the power came back on. We were ready to flip the generator on about the time the lights came back on. The big girls thought it was a bit of an adventure - especially when they found out school was closed. Anna, on the other hand, was really bothered that there weren't any lights - anywhere. She'd walk from room to room making forlorn announcements: "My bedroom doesn't have any lights." "No lights in the bathroom." "Sissy, you don't have lights."
Right now, we are running a special on our Hot Diggity Dogs. We think our all beef, no added nitrate/nitrites hot dogs are great and we've heard that you do, too. Now, through the end of March and while supplies last, any time you buy 4 packages of hot dogs, we'll give you a pack for free to share with a friend.
I'll be in Greensburg, Pratt and Wichita on Tuesday, March 1st if there's something you need. We should be back in town sometime again this month as we plan spring visits with Grandma.
We have a great variety of pork right now - roasts, 2 types of pork sausage and ground pork, pork chops, and hams - perfect for Easter dinner. Questions about any particular cut, let me know.
Kurt took the last of our hogs and two beeves to McPherson last week. We're going to have a few new products made this time. We're going to have beef sticks made in 4ounce packages, pork beer brats, breakfast sausage and some ham and roast beef deli meat. We're also restocking hamburger patties, ground beef, roasts, beef jerky, fillets, all beef brats and bacon.
We're starting to plan our garden for the spring - I always have big, big plans. . . this year, we've scaled back a little and hope to have more success. We've even ordered a few early turkeys to help us keep a handle on the grasshoppers. I'm also hoping the girls are big enough to be more effective helpers - time spent teaching now will surely pay off in the future. Kurt also plans to help more since he won't be spending all his time in the hay field.
I'm starting to visit with other interested people about the Farmers' Market in Coldwater - we'll keep you posted with the details. I'm excited about the interest we had last year!
I think one of the things I enjoy about the winter - it's certainly not the cold - is the dark evenings. Kurt comes in early because it's too dark to work outside, the girls are in bed at a decent time and both Kurt and I end up with our noses in a book. His book usually ends up on his nose when he falls asleep in the recliner . . . When I've not been studying up on soapmaking, I've been poking around in a couple of cookbooks: The Lost Art of Real Cooking: Rediscovering the Pleasures of Traditional Foods One Recipe at a Time and The Little House Cookbook: Frontier Foods From Laura Ingalls Wilder's Classic Stories. Cooking without a hard and fast recipe intrigues me. I've gotten much better through our married life at this type cooking. Actually cooking, in general if you ask Kurt. There are several go-to recipes that I don't measure for anymore but baking - no way. I'm trying to decide how adventurous I'm ready to be - sauerkraut? Sourdough bread with "wild" yeast? I'll keep you posted.
And then there's the book I ordered for myself that Kurt latched onto - Deeply Rooted: Unconventional Farmers in the Age of Agribusiness. It's three farmers' stories and how they are using their own set of rules. They seem to ignore farm policy of the 70's - "get big or get out." Very thought provoking.
It's time to start thinking about reserving your quarter, half or whole beef. To help us plan for the spring, we'd like to know by April 15th if you'd like beef this spring. It will be first come, first serve - if we've talked about it, go ahead and send me an email to confirm. Animals are scheduled to go to the processor on May 13th and they'll be ready 2-3 weeks after that. Go to our price page or email me if you have questions about pricing on beef.
If you're not quite ready for beef right now, you may want to think about a fall animal. Currently, we charge $1.10 per pound live weight plus some freight and you pay the processing fees - a quarter averages around $450 total for approximately 100 pounds of meat. If you reserve part or all of a fall animal by April 15th, you can lock in our current price of $1.10 per pound. We are asking that you put down a $100 per quarter for a deposit to guarantee your beef. Animals purchased after April 15th will be priced at $1.20 per pound live weight - this pencils out to about a $25 per quarter increase in price.
I'm not sure how many of you follow the commodity cattle markets but they've been climbing steadily for several months. Other commodities are also rising and this has been reflected in the grocery store prices. Currently, the price for a finished commodity steer is about $1.10 per pound. We believe that the beef we are producing is better than anything you can get on the commodity market. In order to remain profitable, we will be raising the price of our quarters, halves and wholes to $1.20 per pound after April 15th. Kurt and I have agreed that if the price of beef in the commodity market drops significantly, our price will reflect that as well - something that rarely occurs in the grocery store.
Family updates:
Kurt - He's figuring and planning. Every morning, I find him at the kitchen table "ciphering." I think he likes that time of the day because it's the one time of day that the house is quiet and he's not tired. He's planning cattle movements through paddocks or trying to decide cutting instructions for the processor.
Andi: The last month has been full of forensics which I thoroughly enjoy. I also started taking a "Holy Yoga" class which has been wonderfully relaxing.
Allison: She's been playing basketball - her peewee team is much more confident this year! She's also been spelling like crazy trying to get ready for the spelling bee. Update - she made it to the 4th round and was eliminated on "integral."
Natalie: Her gymnastics class got to perform at a high school game. I'm her momma so I can tell you how good her cartwheels were - what a strong little girl!
Anna: I'm remembering that 3 is a much harder age than 2! Anna is just sure she can do almost everything "all by herself!" Someday, this independent streak will serve her well - someday. Anna is also the entertainer (hmmm. . .. could it be because she's the "baby?") Always trying funnies out on new audiences and then laughing gleefully if she can get you to join in.
One more family story. Last Sunday, we had caught the basketball bug and headed to the school gym to shoot some hoops (one of the benefits of living in a small town). Unfortunately, we could only find one ball - next time, we'll take our own. Hmmm .. . what to do with one ball - play a game of 2 on 3, of course! Kurt and Anna vs. Allison, Natalie and myself. The teams would have been pretty fair except Kurt had to lift Anna on his shoulders every time she shot. That made rebounding a little tricky. The game also moved a little too fast for Anna which isn't saying much. Soooo, we switched to 2 on 2. Kurt and I against Natalie and Allison - full court. They had the short basket and we took a regulation goal. I think it was at this point that Kurt realized I hadn't been exaggerating all those years I said I was not a basketball player. He believes me now. (When I read this month's Rattle out loud to Kurt, he laughed loudly at this point. He won't say I stink out loud but we all know.) We had a good time even with Anna's tears. Next times, we'll take a short hoop in for Anna to play with.
Hoping you're starting to see signs of spring.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
.jpg)