Too Quiet

Yep, I've been too quiet. Plenty of things to think about around here lately. First thing this week was the stove element, I burned another one in pieces so I had to cash in some aluminum to get another. Going a couple of days without fresh baked bread is a hard thing for me to do. Not to mention the ruined batch of bread dough because I didn't notice the element was burned in two. Takes too long to get the wood fired smoker/grill up to temperature so I fed the dough to the chickens. they liked it.

Next, I learned to make home made yogurt. The cream from the milk rose to the top during the incubation period and made this nice, thick cream cheese kind of layer on top of the yogurt. I skimmed it off and plan to bake something sweet with it. I am currently thawing out some strawberries and blackberries to add to the yogurt. Just something new to do with all the milk I've got from day to day. I also made some mozzarella and ricotta to go with the left over spagetti sauce I made last weekend for another dish of lasagna.

So, some oven use is in the works for today plus a round of caraway cheddar cheese on the stove top. Lots to keep me busy today.....

Happy Cheese Day 11-6

Yup, I made some cheese last night! Just a plain old wheel of cheddar cheese, it's what we're fond of eating here. I was going to whip up another home made pizza with the mozzarella I made Friday night but the element for the oven is burned up. At least this one lasted 14 months, 3 months longer than the last one lasted. Things just aren't made of good quality anymore. It's times like this that I get a little nasty tempered thinking about still not having my brick oven and cooking grill built. That whole thing is a rant for another day tho. I had a whole Argonaut squash all foiled up and ready to bake for a couple of pies and no oven. The chickens got a treat since it won't make it cut until Monday when I will have to go to town and try to get an element. I WILL build my gazebo with my brick oven, cooking hole, fireplace and firepit in the middle. I already have my design mocked up and the spot on the property picked out. LOL, I'll never be in the house again, LOL.

Have you all heard about the 20 earthquakes since yesterday over in Oklahoma? Do you think it might be connected to the plume event from the 1st? I say yes it is and the pucker effect is strong here. The old barn will NOT stand thru a 5.3 earthquake. Between the dericho and the earthquake we had here a couple of years ago, the doublewide is already off center, the brick skirting is already cracked, this thing might fall apart. Like it would really break my heart, LOL.

The calf has quieted down a little bit. Geez, there's nothing worse than a couple of cows mooing constantly for 3 or 4 days. I know my closest neighbor is not liking me too much right now, LOL. I know it's got to be as bad as a barking dog but there's nothing I can do about it. It has to be done and whacking them with a newspaper isn't going to help. Goober cow has leveled off at a hair less than a gallon every milking so I'll have plenty of milk to play with for a while. I still haven't located a bull small enough to breed her to. I'm kind of running out of time too. Something I should have considered when I bought her. I can't breed a jersey cow to a big breed bull and not have calving problems. Jersey cows are not very common in this area.

Well, I had planned on baking some bread and a couple pies this weekend. Guess another pot of deer meat chili is on the menu. I really need to get all the old deer cooked up anyway, almost time for a couple of fresh kills. Can't have the old mixed in with the new. Guess I better get to it....

September Wrap Up

I've been piddling around the farm all week, working on shaping our new farm helper into a country boy. A few small projects and normal life as usual here. Yoda the tomcat is making sure my sack of cornmeal corn doesn't run away on me!

I got lucky with craigslist for once. I posted an ad to sell some of the straw I baled this summer and sold a few bales right away. It allowed me to pick up 100' worth of fence and another goat feeder. A little measuring and cutting on some scrap wood laying around (I never throw that stuff away, I might need it!) and now all the girls can eat at once without pushing and shoving. Polar bear did a little supervising, making sure we actually intended to feed somebody with the new contraption.

Since I spent a day outside supervising the farm work and making sure it all got done the way I wanted it to be (just did it myself, LOL) I ended up with 4 gallons of milk in the fridge. So, a big batch of farmers cheddar got made. I like the farmers cheddar because it's a relatively quick cheese to make. One I don't have to constantly stand over to ensure a good outcome. It's just got a 12 hour press time so it's a good, moist fresh cheese for eating. I'm slowly getting back into the cheese making groove and it won't be long before I get back to having good wheels from every batch. Making great cheese really is an art form and you get a little rusty when you don't make it all the time.

I still have that milk in the freezer for a batch of soap. I might find the time to get a batch whipped out before the end of the weekend. I've been asked to make pizza first tho, LOL. So, maybe soap tomorrow!

Cheese Day and Rain

A whooping 5" of rain in 3 days, yay rah. A little thunder from time to time, a good time to just nap and relax. Oh no, what do I do? Do I flop on the couch? Of course not! I made me some cheese and pastries, LOL. Of course, I got some net cruising time in too, I like looking at pictures of other peoples gardens. I might get some ideas to try!

So, a big ball of mozzarella got made. I had forgotten how hot the water to process it needs to be. My fingers are still tingling a little bit, LOL. The stirred curd cheddar smells great and is drying. I also made a wheel of farmers cheddar, half the press time and a moister, softer cheddar type cheese. While the curd was cooking down, I used a couple of the apples I got from the farmer up the blacktop and made an apple tart. Pie crust with butter, cheese, an egg and a tbsp of flour for the filling and those yummy apples on top. Some of the butter leaked out of the crust and now I have a mess in the oven to clean. Oh well, it was worth it!

Today I'm thinking about some rabbit and dumplings with french bread.......

Quiet Waiting

Here's a peek at one of the newest kittens on the farm. Butter cat had these hid in amongst my canning jar shelves.

We had a nasty squall of a storm roll thru here this past Tuesday. Ripped roofs off, knocked down trees and knocked power out to several thousand people in the area. Wednesday morning broke to show all the nasty damage. To add insult to injury, Thursday night brought the next round which is still pounding us today. There's a line from around Tulsa OK, where the storms are forming from, that just keeps coming, one right after another. This little anomaly has not moved east at all. It has dumped plenty of rain on us and if ever there was a time I was glad to not have anything in the garden yet, this is it!

Having trouble getting the milk from the jersey cow to form a good curd to make cheese with. Not sure what's going on with it but the curd does not want to cook down to firming up. I'm open to any ideas...

Happy Easter......

April Showers

Yep, it's pouring down rain here. Thunder right with it. A beautiful, warm weekend we had tho. Lots of yard work got done.

I whipped up a wheel of colby (or tried to) yesterday and I'm not looking forward to it coming out of the press. I don't think I got the curd cooked down enough. It seemed good until after the 15 minutes of cool down time and when I put it in the press, it just didnt seem right. Oh well, I guess the learning curve for the jersey cow milk continues ;)

Polar Bear has been a good girl and I'm glad of it. She's such a good dog and so very smart. 14 days until the puppies arrive...

The seedlings are still growing and waiting. I have more of everything in baggies, working on germination. The new coffee plants have not emerged tho. I am always on pins and needles waiting for them. It better hurry up and warm up outside before my tobacco plants need transplanted tho. I think I started them a week too early ;)

Todays Experiment

Since it poured rain all day yesterday and is still overcast, I have decided to follow up yesterdays batch of cheddar cheese with some caraway cheddar today. While the cheese is setting, I'm going to work on more dehydrated eggs. "Watcher" from over at APN agrees with me on the taste of dehydrated eggs for eating but he says they work great for baking. So, I'm going to do a couple dozen more and store them for when I don't have any fresh eggs.

Since it's not blowing rain this morning, I opened up the barn doors and now Lucky the goat is running around on the front porch, calling for me. I hate to not let him in but he's big enough now that he does damage in the house. he's a goat and he is just doing what goats do, chewing on everything, jumping on everything and head butting everything. It breaks my heart listening to him cry but I can't sit out there with him all day and comfort him. He's a goat. There's other goats in the barn. he'll get if figured out.

First cheese wheel

Woohoo! There it is, the very first wheel of cheese from the jersey cow! it's the half batch of cheddar I made the other day. The cheese has a richer, almost buttery taste to it and I suspect it is due to the high butterfat content of the milk. I tried to make some Gouda last night, it did not turn out so spectacular. I did not expect perfection for the first time making Gouda and I did learn a couple things as i went thru the process so I hope the next round will be better.

This morning was so much fun!!! I got a milker from Maggidans and used it for the first time this morning. No more dirt floaties in the milk, no dumped milk pail and no udder chasing! I never have to play rodeo clown again. I had morning chores all done and the cow milked in half the time it took me just to milk that cow yesterday. How cool is that? Best part of it is, there's no electric parts to break ( no electric at all). This neat little milker fits perfectly into my self sustained living plan. I love it when I find things like this.

The weather is goofy here still. it was 49F yesterday after the week of mid 20s. it's pouring rain now and the cold is coming. I can see the skating rink in the circle drive now.

Not too much else has been happening around the farm, just every day chores and some bread baking. I've had plenty of work on the neighbors farm tho. I'm ready to stay home for a few days!

Cold Sunday

Yep, we got a tiny bit of freezing rain over night. The big chill with the snow never did turn into what the weatherman said it would, not that I'm complaining or anything. Yesterday started out kind of nice, not even really cold but during the day, the wind whipped up and the temperature dropped. It's all good tho, I spent most of the day lolling around the house, thinking about how I wished I had internet at the farm. This not having internet has long since gotten old. There just is no good net package available in this area. How sad is that? A simple land line phone package is $75 a month with taxes included and the line has static every time it rains so dial up is not an option, too much money, too slow and with the poor phone lines, it's hardly dependable. Hughes net wants way too much money for install, alltel eliminated their service to anyone not paying for a phone plan and verizons plan has a 5GB a month limit and a 2 year contract at $59 plus taxes a month. All out of this poor farmers price range. So many little things each day I'd love to share. The journey of living self sustained always has some cool little twists. Not all of those twists are pleasant but each one inter twines with the next experience.

So what's been going on since I last posted? Let's see...... Oh, all the chickens are in moult. A few look like naked birds and the rest look like they have wax on their feathers as the new feathers are coming on quickly. So, it's been 10 days since I found any eggs and we've finally eaten thru every one in the fridge. I broke down and picked up a couple dozen eggs from the lady down the road. Geez, that killed me! It's like lunch at the post office here, every chicken gotta moult at exactly the same time and take a month to do it too. No work ethic, LOL! Here it is, the time when I do all my pastry and cookie baking for the holidays and my chickens all gotta take lunch together, at the same time. I see how they are, LOL. Well, it's all part of living self sustained, you just gotta deal with what you've got and work with what you can produce for yourself. I almost felt like a hypocrite, buying those 2 cartons eggs. At least I had an option, I didn't have to buy factory produced eggs from a store, but still, not eggs produced on my own farm. ARG, depressing. But, if I can keep the hubster from eating them all in 2 days, I might have a dozen to make some goodies with. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the chickens will get back to laying by the end of this week so I don't have to shame myself by buying more to bake with.

The farm up the road I am tending ( besides my own) has finally given me a bit of a break. All the cows but 5 have been sold and moved. The lady's rent trailer is now occupied and the young man renting it is supposed to be feeding those cows every day. The lame donkey got turned back out, still lame, he decided to bite on the freezer cow. The darn thing is ready to be butchered right now but the lady wants to wait until February to take him off. Whatever, not mine to decide, I fed him to finished, as long as they keep the weight on him, not my worry. Guess it's just my personality and desire for perfection that makes me feel like it's a failure because he won't be butchered at perfection. Oh well, I have enough right here on my own farm to worry about anyway.

My 3 nanny goats all look good and fat and I'm hoping those big bellies have kids in them too. Hard to tell tho, just have to wait and see. I was hoping to have them in their own shed by now, instead of a make shift pen inside the hay barn. Not everything works out the way you want tho and you just do what you have to until it does. The billy is still tied to a post, next to the pen and a few pallets are set up so he can butt all he wants to. The butting behavior I'm sure is my fault from letting him run loose all summer and play with the dog. The 2 of them get along so well and they played constantly, now he's bored tied up all by himself with no one to play with. At least he's quiet now, tied up next to the girls.

The cow is settling down, finally. It's taken 4 days to get a gallon of milk to try a batch of cheese with. I've got my first one in the press right now. A stirred curd cheddar, a half batch wheel. This jersey milk is so much different than the brown swiss milk I learned to make cheese with. This milk is more than half cream and when I set my curd, there was very little whey to stir it in! As I started the cooking process, it was difficult to stir the curd without damaging it since it had no whey to float in. As it came to temperature tho, the whey cooked out of the curd some. By that time tho, the curd was broken up quite a bit. It did cook down decent and the first set in the press seemed to be correct and the wheel held together well. The wheel presses until 8pm tonight so we'll just have to wait until then to see how it comes out. A couple days of dry time before we can sample it is going to be the rough one.

I am pleased with a trade I did this weekend. I traded 4 deer roasts and some jerkey I made for a small turkey from the bird farm in the next town over. The farm is primarily a wild game farm, they raise chukar, quail and pheasant for sporting sales. I got a young tom, around 10lbs for the deer meat. A good trade I think, I'm pleased with it. The bird was live but they let me kill it right there. Whew, I'd rather leave the mess in their pile than bring it home anyway. Besides, they have this really cool plucker thingy that strips the feathers right off. Neatest thing I ever saw! Of course, watching that thing spit feathers out the bottom, I was thinking about how to use them to make a pillow or something. Might be an investment for later on, hmmmm.....

the mice this year are horrible! They are getting into my corn terribly and the process of hand shelling is becoming an every day chore for me. With no corn crib, I'm still storing it in the bags I harvested it with so I spend a couple hours a day now shelling it, trying to protect it. At least it's dry enough to store in barrels now. I've got probably 20 bushel still waiting to be shelled and I've lost maybe 2 bushel of it to the mice already. That's a weeks worth of feed I've lost so the need to get it protected is pretty great. The almanac must be right, again. It says the winter for my area is going to be cold and wet so the mice are feeding on everything. I even have at least one I know of in the house, it ran across my stove last night! At least there's 3 cats hot on it's trail so hopefully it won't make it too much longer. My poor counter tops, it's bad enough I bleach them twice a day now, with a mouse running around, it will be 10 times a day until that thing is dead! Hmmm, my poor hands too, LOL.

Thinking outside the box

In a big way, LOL. I've been busy all week working on a neighbors' farm. I need the money and they need the help, a win-win situation. I've had a few come-aparts this week but the hubby has always come up with some interesting in the field fixes for me to keep going with. Check out how he fixed the pto spring pin breakage! That silly fix made it thru 30 acres of bush hogging, LOL. The other picture is a coyote that was much closer than the phone picture makes her seem. She was just 15 or so yards off and stood there watching me for a few minutes.

I have a solid lead on 2 young heifers for milking, just a bit more than I was planning to spend but nice little jersey holstein crosses. the man said he would hold them for me and take payments so I think I'm going to be making cheese soon!

Not too much else is going on around here. The nights are down right cold this week and it leaves me wondering where our nice fall season went. The trees are not as colorful as they normally are and I blame the lack of rain and the sudden cold temperatures. I'm ready to start a fire and read a good book, LOL.

speaking of a good book, this was national Banned Book week and I did my part. I ordered "atlas shrugged" and "farenheit 451" from the library. My local branch didn't have a copy of either but they got them on the exchange just in time. I hope to crack the first one tonight!

Hot and Quiet

Yep, it's hot down here. It is really starting to get miserable in the house during the day now. The kind of hot that just saps the will to do anything right out of you. Check this kidney bean plant out, it's making beans even tho it's just in a 2 litre bottle planter. Silly plant it is. It's outside counterparts are also making beans, good thing they are covered in pods instead of just a few. I weeded around them a bit yesterday and fed the skeeters while i was at it. I bet I was bitten at least 40 times even with cutter spray on. The skeeters are vicious this year.

It's hot enough in the house now that cheese making is about done for the summer. The cheese isn't drying a rind like it should anymore with all the humidity in here. So, I made some Mozzarella cheese instead. The batch turned out really well, hit the proper acidity level right away and cooled out really nicely. I'm going to make pizza in the smoker/grill this weekend.

Absolutely no progress toward getting anything around here fixed, the paycheck is barely going to cover fuel for work and college, no bills get paid this week. I've got a resume in at a couple coal mines close to me, hope I can get in somewhere. The farm and my sons schooling will suffer greatly but I don't see much other choice. I don't even have a clue how I will get to work if I do get hired on but I have to do something. No use in being self sustained on a farm I can no longer pay for. Guess I'll cross that bridge when I get to it......

Storms and Trick Weather

April showers bring May flowers. Isn't that the old saying? i remember that from my childhood. I don't know why that little rhyme has stuck in my head, but it did.

Things are really starting to green up around here and the yard clean up and garden spot clean up is in full swing. I wish I had more energy tho. The last few days have been kind of rough. I should be feeling pretty good but instead, I just feel wiped out. Hopefully it will pass and I can get on with it.

My friend from up the road a ways brought me about a dozen strawberry plants. The darn things have taken over her raised bed. I'm thrilled because we were eating strawberries off those plants during first deer season, last fall! I put them in one of my grow tubs next to the porch for now.

I turned the little front garden patch over yesterday. It was still a bit more wet than I was hoping but I did make it thru it. One row of onions went in, I'll probably plant another row or so soon with the garlic.

The weather has been outstanding here, a few rain showers tucked in it. I am resisting the urge to put my seedlings out because we've got some cold overnight temperatures coming for this week. 70s during the day but 40s overnight is not good enough to put them in the ground.

The old house cat is misbehaving the last couple of days. She laid in my carrots and knocked my parsley off the table. She's not making me very happy. Hopefully the carrots will spring back but the parsley is a total loss.

Todays picture is one of the tires i cut the sidewall off of per the instructions for tire gardening from the Alaska Preppers Blog. I'm hoping it will improve the drainage and in turn, the potato yields so I can actually have enough to make it thru the winter this year. We're big tater eaters and we get a little testy without them.

Sad morning here, I started a batch of cheese late last night. I know better than to do that, especially when I'm already tired to start with. I made it all the way to the 30 minute cook time and walked off without turning the heat off. The buzzer dinged and I had a melted, gooey mess instead of pretty, cooked little curds. I ruined a 5lb batch! I guess i was more tired than I thought I was. I left it in the sink and went to bed. Oh well, I'll just have to pay better attention and not try to make cheese at 2am. Not today tho, I plan on walking another stretch of back roads in search of more beer cans. Hubby has got to make it to work......

Spring Rains

It poured rain here all day yesterday and been raining on and off so far this morning too. Glad I got all that clean up done last week! I should of taken before and after pictures. Sometimes the farm gets a bit trashed up and when it's clean, it looks so good.

The rain brought a cool snap in with it and the Roma tomatoes didn't like it too much. they seem to be struggling a bit so I started another 2 dozen yesterday just in case. The yellow cherries and the beefsteaks are doing so much better than the Roma this year. I'm also going to start another round of cauli and brocc since the first round did miserable along with the Borage. 2 of the 9 plants I sprouted have made it thru the cold snap, the others turned brown and died. The cucumbers have loved the cooler temps and are growing nicely. Ah, this is the same fight I go thru every spring living in this house trailer. I hate it, seriously despise it. Oh well, you just deal with what you've got and go on. Sooner or later, I'll get it all sprouted and growing.

I've got 3 slices of cheddar cheese and 3 slices of colby cheese if anybody is interested in them. The $12 donation will help us make it back and forth to the Kentucky coal mine office while hubby is getting all the ducks in a row to work in a Kentucky coal mine. Looks like he's got a job lined up if we can make it thru all of the paperwork, fees and daily 300 mile drives to the mining office. Seems like nothing is ever simple for this family.

Just a quiet Saturday

Nothing much going on around the farm. The seedlings are progressing right on schedule and I'm working on a round of colby cheese.

In case you can't figure out what's in the planter, it's carrots! All three rows have now sprouted just in time for a couple overcast days with rain.

It's a Thursday

I've been kind of busy, just a little. I'm almost over this cold, the daughter had a conference game, the sheep got hung plus the bread got baked and I tried out a new recipe.

We've got a little snow/sleet/ice storm headed our way, according to the weatherman, so I have not started any seeds yet. I just hate to start them and have them mold.

Copper the sheep will soon be supper, he's got 2 days on him hanging now and I will finish the butcher on him in the morning. I'm already tasting the Gyros sandwiches, I can hardly wait!

Some of the worst ref work I have ever seen in the jr college basketball season and even tho our girls played the last 6 minutes of the game with just 4 girls (my girl and another fouled out) the team won by 2. The 2 that fouled out were basically cheated out of the game, given fouls they did nothing for, the 2 tallest on the team. Oh well, it's over now anyway.

The new recipe isn't anything special, just a simple chicken caserole with shredded cheese, egg noodles, chicken, mushrooms, peas, onion and cream. It wasn't too bad, the kids liked it. A nice change of pace from the stuff I always make for supper.

Not much else is going on around here, we're still unemployed, no word at all this week from anybody we know. It's frustrating to be "in the dark".

Ah, I have a 1.3lb wheel of colby cheese I will give away for a donation of $22 if anybody would like it.

I will be working on some cheddar for the next cheese giveaway this weekend!

Springs coming on

Ha, no, I didn't start seeds yet! Had ya going tho, didn't I? Still 2 whole weeks before I can even think about starting anything. It's been really, really hard to wait this time around. So much going on around here, not too much of it good tho. That happens... Soon enough I'll be starting seeds and working on growing that wholesome, healthy, chemical free food!


Okay, I just can't wait! I have another round of cheese to give away in celebration of Gods goodness, who's ready?


Everyone that was in for last week is still in, anyone else that would like a piece of home made cheese, post a comment and you're in. Sorry to my out of country readers, still working on how I can gift it you.



The slices are 14oz of fresh Cheddar cheese. One to give away and one for anyone that can't wait to win for a $12 donation. First come, first serve now, make sure you email me at mmpaints@yahoo.com so I know you want it.


Still no word on the job but we've got a couple other things in the works, maybe some good luck for us for a change!


Last minute add on to the post.... a completely home made supper here to warm up the cold boys in the house and stick to their ribs a little. A little biscuits and sausage with gravy! Got some home ground whole wheat bread rising there too.........

Cheese Giveaway #1

Okay, it's time to share the cheese.

Here's what's on the "plate" today. I have 2 chunks of cheese here. 1/4 wheels, 14oz each. One I am giving away absolutely free. The other piece is for anyone who just can't wait to win a piece of cheese and wants to donate $12 to the blog.

The cheese is Cheddar, it is very mild with a nice, light taste to it. Slightly drier than your typical American cheese with a smooth texture.

Now, all you have to do to qualify for the giveaway is to make a comment. If you need to make one as anonymous, please put a first name in there so I know who you are. On Monday, I will draw a winner.

If you'd like to help out the blog and donate for a piece of cheese, please say so right away as it will be first come, first serve and you may email me (mmpaints@yahoo.com) or comment claiming it.

God Bless and good luck!

Update-okay folks, the one piece of cheese is spoken for, put your name in for the free cheese!

Another Happy Cheese Day

Today I'm working on another wheel of Colby cheese. I've got Colby, Cheddar and Monterey Jack done and ready for fresh eating. I'm thrilled because now I can make some cheesey breads and pizza!

There's the 2 home made presses I'm currently using and as you can see, the whey from cheese making is pretty rough on the wood. Each time I make cheese with it, I have to clean the board with super hot water, soap and a little bit of bleach to ensure there is no bacteria growth on or in the wood. Very important to do unless you want to make yourself sick while making cheese ;)

We're in a holding pattern on life here and everything is kind of revolving around farm chores, prayers and supper. Not much else we can be doing right now. Tuesday is what we're hearing now from several friends in the position to know. They are being very supportive and are constantly keeping us informed, which of course, helps with the feelings of despair and helplessness.

Another nice day here, party sunny and much warmer than it's been. I'm still fighting the urge to start seeds. Sunshine and warmer weather isn't helping me tho. I know there will be at least one more round of nasty weather for us and I hate to lose my seeds since I'm kind of close to being low on seeds. I should have saved more last season. I still don't have any eggs! it's been almost 2 weeks now and I'm starting to wonder if a critter might be getting them before I do. I have decided to check every hour for eggs to see if I can find them.

Oh, I almost forgot...... With the arrival of our first paycheck, I will begin giving cheese away. Anyone that speaks up in a comment will be eligible to receive some cheese. Plus, several people who have helped me thru this most unpleasant time in my life will be receiving a gift from my farm as well. My out of the USA followers, hang in there, I'm working on a way to share with you as well. I will also most likely throw in soap and some of my home grown and home made jams as well. So, keep an eye, it will be coming soon........

Light at the End of the Tunnel

Praise the Lord, looks like we'll have something in the next few days! Hubby talked to the contractor guy who thinks he can place him somewhere temporary by next week and a guy from the mine hubby wants to go to just called the house and said the whole mine is buzzing about him coming to work there very soon. Whew, I knew the Lord was listening! I've been thinking all morning on how I was going to get all it all done if I had to find work away from the farm.

So, here's what I've been up to while all the excitement was going on around here with hubby. I got the Colby cheese going and it's in the press right now. While I was working on the cheese, i whipped up some biscuits for sandwiches during the day. I've got some pan fried pork sausage left over from breakfast and my son likes to munch on it thru the day. So, he can have a snack while he's doing his schoolwork.

Now, what kind of trouble can I get into for tomorrow????

Hard Work and Worry

We're still waiting on the work call. It was supposed to be Monday evening but the coal company CEO seems to be ducking us now, not answering his phone. Now it's Wednesday, no one is answering their phones and the hubby has do get off that and get on to working something else out. Very disappointing and very frustrating. Just when we thought things were finally going to go our way. If he doesn't find anything, I'll be headed down to the temp office in the morning to see if there's anything for me out there. I don't see any other choice right now, the farm will go to pieces with me having to be gone working for minimum wage somewhere but I don't see much other choice right now. Please, if you pray, say one for me, I would appreciate it greatly.

Yep, that's a picture of some cheese! I've worked out a tentative deal with another local farmer with milk cows. It's a straight up trade, the milk for some cheese from each batch. There's a batch of Colby on the stove right now. So, if nothing else, I'll at least have some cheese.

Whew, it's finally warmed up slightly! I ground feed and flour last night and didn't shiver the whole time. I ground up a 3 gallon bucket of wheat for making bread. I still have some but the new ground wheat needs that "maturing" time to make a good, fluffy loaf so I try to keep ahead of my usage by 3 weeks as much as I can.

Not much else is happening here, I'm still trying to keep good self control over seed starting. It'll be hard tonight since the new Seed Savers Catalog just showed up in the mail. I so love that seed catalog, it's full of variety with excellent descriptions of performance and usage.

The dinger just dinged, off to work on the cheese!