Around the Homestead

The chickens are now out free ranging - I gave up the last bit of my kale to them.

I saw a great sign the other day, it said - "Caution, free ranging children" - I love it! and will have to come up with a way to make one to hang on our barn.

With snow flurries in the air most of the day today, we planted seven raspberry bushes that our neighbor gave us - they are the larger size raspberries.    I do hope they grow well and provide many berries in the years to come.

Scattered Knitting and Homestead Thinking

As you will see from these pictures, there are many projects in the works right now.

This is the beginnings of a Little Coffee Bean raglan cardigan (a free pattern) that is knit in the top down style - in a newborn size, with soft purple stripes - a wool blend yarn from my local yarn shop.

Also pictured is a little gnome cap for one of my knit dolls.

For our business, I need to finish crocheting two bags to hold our matching memory games.

Still finishing King of the Wind with Sarah and enjoying it.

This is a new cast on - In Threes (Soulemama mentioned this pattern the other day) - the pattern can be purchased on ravelry.

I like that the pattern includes infant up to size 5T.  I am using some wool blend yarn in a soft pretty pink that was given to me.

Something to show you that I finished! This is a short-sleeved cardigan knit using Peace Fleece yarn, sizing up this simple pattern - I have added it for sale in our shop.

Really excited to share with you this book - 

Up Tunket Road, the education of a modern homesteader, by Philip Ackerman-Leist

This book brings up so many questions.  Here is an excerpt ~
"The joy and challenge of homesteading is that it puts us face-to-face with our ecological choices.  We are forced to confront our cultural ubringing that gives us disappearing poop, anonymous food, and ravenous landfills.  I'm reminded often of the cultural admonitions delivered to me by Mary de Pachewiltz, who was raised in a peasant family in the tiny village of Gais in the Pustertal region of the Italian Alps.  As she watched me sort the castle's garbage and recycling and cope with the unmethodical composting efforts of the American college students living there, she would shake her head and say, 'Where I grew up, we never had garbage.  We didn't even have a word for garbage.  We had only what came from the earth, and then it went right back to the earth when we were finished it.'"

So much to challenge us as our family considers our future as homesteaders - is it possible with children - older children making it more challenging than the younger ones, by the way.  How much money do we need?  What can we live with and what can we live without?  Can we conserve money so we have more money to give?  How much time is leftover after earning enough to provide for the essentials? (and what are the essentials anyway....)   The process is exciting and thought provoking.

Looking forward to all of the sharing with Ginny today - the knitting projects and the books.

Pumpkin Time

Being the first week of October, I decided I could wait no longer for the steady stream of pumpkin something treats.  Wanting a more efficient (and easier) way to get the pumpkin puree from our heirloom Small Sugar pumpkins, I did a quick search online (so not old fashioned I know) and read about baking the entire pumpkin in the oven - stalk and all.

Well, while I was doing my morning baking, I put one in.  The oven was set at 350 degrees and in it stayed for about 90 minutes or so.  I turned the oven off, kept the door shut and let it stay in until it cooled.

I was then completely wowed!  The skin peeled right off and then it was a breeze to cut through and using my ice cream scoop, the "guts" scraped right off.  I would say in about five minutes, I had all of the puree.

So far I have made Pumpkin Bars from one of my favorite cookbooks - 

Uprising - The Whole Grain Bakers' Book

(I have added my variations)

Crust:

4 cups rolled oats

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 cup maple syrup

3/4 cup butter

Blend together oats and flour.  Cut in butter.  Add maple syrup and mix well.

Filling:

1 2/3 cup mashed pumpkin

3/4 cup cream

1/2 cup honey

1 t. vanilla

1/4 t. nutmeg

2 t. cinnamon

1/4 t. ginger

1/8 t. ground gloves

Combine .

Spread 1/2 crust in an 8 x 12 pan.  Spread filling over crust and then crumble rest of crust mix over filling.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 - 40 minutes.

Pumpkin Bread

(this recipe was in one of my books - hand written by a friend)

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 t. salt

1 t. baking soda

1 cup pumpkin puree

1/2 c. safflower oil

2 eggs

1/4 t. nutmeg

1 t. cinnamon 

1/4 t. allspice 

Walnuts

Combine all.  Bake in a bread pan at 350 degrees for 60 minutes.

What seasonal recipes are you enjoying?

Moments from the Week

Well it has been a wet, rainy week this past week - eight days of damp weather.  I still have the same clothes hanging on the clothes line - eight rinse cycles I guess.

Thankfully, it has been warm which has made it possible for us to go outside in between showers.

this is a view down our driveway

Our found on the side of the road free ride on toy with a replaced branch "steering wheel"

With all of the indoor time this past week, we decide to make roll and cut out cookies.

morning oatmeal

Wishing you a weekend full of beautiful moments,

Tonya

Kale Salad

With the kale thriving in our garden right now and a bit of inspiration from a farm stand stop on our weekend getaway, I have a new fall favorite, kale salad.

Why didn't I ever think of this before?

Simply chop up your kale, add your favorite dressing combination, some finely chopped sweet pepper (we still have some green peppers hanging on in the garden, but red peppers would look pretty), and a bit of minced garlic and chopped feta.

Simple and so good for you.

Knitting and Reading

This is the finished baby bonnet - I did not capture the beautiful blues in this hand dyed yarn.

I have cast on for a baby sweater to try out a new pattern.  A friend copied it for me from a book that I am sorry I do not remember the title of, but the pattern is called Zane's Coming Home Sweater.  And like I often do when deciding on a pattern, I appreciate that it only requires a pair of straight needles.  The yarn is some wool I hand dyed with the children.

Finally, I am reading The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love - really just a so/so book - a bit of entertainment before falling asleep, but I am looking forward to reading about the book recommendations today at Ginny's Knit Along.

Nature's Beauty

I've been quiet here as our phone line was out for two days - we still have dial-up for our internet access:)  A bit of a blessing to not be connected for a brief time.

Early Sunday morning while doing the morning animal chores, 

I was in awe of all the beauty I saw - such a gorgeous time of the year up here in

northern Vermont.