crocuses! daffodils! babies!

 This winter has not been a real winter in my mind. I feel like we've been waiting for it to start for so long, and a couple weeks ago I realized that it was still light out at 6pm and that the daffodils were peeking up from the dirt and a pair of geese were courting around the pond, preparing to make adorable geese-babies, and that IT WAS SPRING! Yes! Maybe we'll get some cold weather, or even a few inches of snow, but in only 21 days, it will officially be spring so any little last-stand "winter" might have is going to be short lived.

I feel so motivated to get stuff done outside! It's been in the low 60's all week. Jamie's mom and her boyfriend are coming over on Saturday to help cut down some trees that are ruining the foundation of the barn and a few more that are randomly in the middle of our orchard. Tomorrow I plan to make sugar-water for the bees since they're probably getting hungry by now. I had my doubts about whether or not they'd survive the winter so we went down and checked on them a few weeks ago when it was still pretty cold. I didn't open the hive of course, but all I needed to do was press my bare hand against the wall. It was warm! Bees are such incredible creatures. If you ever have the chance to take a beekeeping course, I definitely recommend it.

 On Monday, a Craigslist-friend came by with a delicious prepped meal for us. We met last spring when she took a bunch of our quickly growing baby chicks. She read my blog after Jamie's last surgery and sent an email about her similar experience and offered to bring us some food. I said yes because I'm trying harder to be gracious about accepting help. Too often I martyr myself because I don't want to be a burden, but when someone offers something so kind, you just can't refuse.

 She made some amazing chicken with herbs, capers, bay leaves, prunes, and brown sugar. She even gave us rice, broccoli, and cookies! It's the same meal that she was offered after she gave birth to one of her daughters, and apparently she loved it so much it's the only thing she ever gives people now! I must say, it was ridiculously good. I love capers. And I love knowing that relative "strangers" can be so generous and thoughtful. When Jamie and I are back on our feet, I'd like to return the favor to someone who is in need.

ps. Do any of you have experience with low white blood cell counts and working to increase them? I'll explain more about this question later this week, because I feel like there needs to be more emphasis placed on diet in American medical practice. It turns out the antibiotics Jamie is taking lowered his count so much that they told him to stop everything immediately. I can't help but wonder if he could have altered his diet from the start and prevented this decrease. I took off work tomorrow so we can figure all of this out with the infectious disease specialist.

pss. That little nubbin in the second picture is a praying mantis egg sac. Soon, tiny babies will break free! I think I'll take one to the school for the kids.

planting a new apple orchard

I wanted to post these pictures early in the morning, but the gosh darn interweb was not cooperating. Mitch and Dakota have planted about twenty new apple trees of all different varieties. It was such a beautiful spring day... it's really here!

family and food

Such a full, busy, heartwarming weekend! Jamie's mom and brother came over on Saturday and helped me clear the rest of the vines and brambles that were surrounding the last two apple trees. It was a huge project, but now that it's done, I feel so optimistic about what I can accomplish on my own this week.

On Sunday we drove to Chestertown for a big family lunch to say goodbye to my brother. He's leaving for Chicago on Wednesday for basic training in the Navy. The best part of the trip was goofing off in the car. It made me remember being with Joey on family road-trips when we were little, minus the whining about who gets to sleep on the pull-down cushion in the middle of the backseat...

When we got home, I went straight to the kitchen. I'll admit, last week's meal plan was a big flop compared to the first. It was basically non-existent. This week I hope to follow through a lot better. So tonight I made four lasagnas (three to freeze), one batch of raspberry scones (most to freeze), and one batch of bagels (all to freeze).

Oh! I resurrected the little-house-on-the-prairie-doomsday-wedding-registry (a.k.a. the Jamie-nearly-lost-his-arm-and-can't-work-fund). Feel free to take a gander! I suppose it's basically a farm registry since it's full of electric fencing, feed troughs, and vet thermometers. If anyone is feeling charitable and would like to make a donation, it will not go unappreciated. In fact, it will probably be returned with something along the lines of a digital print of an illustration by yours truly. Or cookies. ;)

What did you do this weekend?

orange juice and pizza

Thought I'd leave you for the weekend knowing I'm a normal human being and that my desk actually tends to look like the second photo rather than the first. 

ps. Rita! You're famous again! I love your shadow shots. Please borrow my camera more often. :)

pss. The title is my breakfast at the moment. It needs to happen more often.

being thankful

We've had lots of help around the farm recently... Jamie's dad and one of his buddies came over to repair a fallen gate and build two new ones on the sides of our hay storage shed. I love how he made both from a fence Jamie grew up having in his front yard. I also love how it says there's a dog in there. I promise you, it's only hay. 

Gene and Steph came over to help build the new chicken coop. It's smack-dab in between our two houses. I can't wait to finish it!  When we were done moving the frame out of the garage, our neighbors came by since it was such a pretty, spring-like evening. They offered us an old window, tar paper, and architectural shingles. I love being able to make use of things that would otherwise just sit around and get old. It's a nice cycle on this farm.

Mitch taught me how to prune the apple trees by the light of the moon, and Dakota helped me unload ten bales of hay from the truck. Cherokee gave Jamie a free pity-haircut.

Brice came by to put some wire over our large metal gate and pound some extra fence posts in. Poor Fuzzy got really sick last week from eating alpaca and sheep poop, so we wanted the barnyard to be dog-proof. But seriously, why do you eat poop silly dog? 

We got a call from Casey at Breezy Willow farm this morning and she said they're donating a CSA share to us this spring. Oh... kind, kind friends and neighbors. Thank you.

ps. Sometimes I get a homesick feeling about Twin Peaks. Is that unhealthy?

notes on meal planning: week one

So far I'm really enthusiastic about this whole process. I'm a big procrastinator, so when I get hungry I tend to just go for the easiest (and most unbalanced) meal in sight. This prevents that from happening as frequently. It also encourages us to wake up earlier so we have time to make breakfast, get dressed, and feed the animals before work/PICC-line-time. 

Before I go ahead and share last week's menu, I will say that much of our plans were postponed due to an excess amount of food. We had some unexpected guests who brought unexpected meals, and our fridge was suddenly stocked with yummy leftovers. Either way, having the general layout for the week was great. Forethought is crucial in our kitchen.

Sunday 2/12

breakfast- oatmeal with fruit

lunch- leftover pasta

dinner- chicken soup

snack- chicken soup

bake- bagels

Monday 2/13

breakfast- bagels with jam, maple yogurt, and walnuts

lunch- leftover chicken soup

dinner- venison steak, sweet potatoes, broccoli

snack- leftover beef vindaloo

Tuesday 2/14

breakfast- scrambled eggs, leftover venison steak

lunch- leftover soup or vindaloo 

dinner- mattar paneer and salad

snack- popcorn, yogurt

make- hamburger rolls

Wednesday 2/15

breakfast- bagels, sausages

lunch- venison cheeseburgers, salad

dinner- white bean and ham soup

snack- peanuts, fruit smoothies

Thursday 2/16

breakfast- oatmeal with fruit

lunch- leftover white bean and ham soup

dinner- spinach quiche with lamb (make several to freeze)

snack- pb&j

Friday 2/17

breakfast- eggs with pepper and onions

lunch- kale, kidney bean, and goat soup

dinner- not home

snack- cheese and crackers

Saturday 2/18

breakfast- pancakes, eggs, bacon

lunch- leftover goat soup

dinner- lasagna and salad (make several to freeze)

snack- homemade granola (make enough for next week)

make- spaghetti noodles to freeze

Sunday 2/19

breakfast- spinach quiche

lunch- leftover lasagna

dinner- sweet potato ravioli and salad

snack- bake a pie! :)

make- bagels or scones and crackers

adventure time

The farm is a pretty exciting place for little boys. There are eggs to gather, sheep to feed, chainsaws to watch, logs to move, fences to repair, and horses to greet. All in an afternoon.

an odd obsession with baking soda

 Regina's son, Rowan, turns five this week so we baked a cake. Many cakes actually. Cupcakes, sheet cake, mommy-baby horse cakes... All with chocolate butter-cream frosting, per the birthday boy's request. Five candles were not sufficient, so he jammed all 20 on the head-portion of the mommy horse. Baby horse just got his legs gnawed off and then abandoned because he was "too sweet." A sugar high followed, along with lots of pacing back and forth and jabbering about super powers, programs, and devices that shoot other devices. Oh boys... five year old boys.