Love Is....

Love Is....
Showing posts with label harvest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label harvest. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 31, 2018

A Day's Work

Sarah Young's Jesus Calling Devotional
I am clinging to this message!

The cutest little individual sized cantaloupe, creamed peas
and potatoes, and mixed green salad.

Kendra's celebration birthday party at work!  It was really nice!  We work with such an awesome team!

Have you ever made macaroni salad!?  It's kind of a new awesome thing in my life!
Fresh watermelon, tomatoes, and beet tops!  Oh, and of course, BACON!!

Today's Harvest!  *Bountiful Blessings*

After a long day's work at work and on the farm, we retired to the amazing
hot tub under the stars!

Sunday, July 29, 2018

Sunday

Sunday mornings Heath makes me breakfast in bed.  It is amazing and I do not take it for granted!  How special I feel!  :)

Today, steel cut oats, farm fresh eggs, and hot tea in bed!

I went out for eggs today and this is all I found!
BUT, on the bright side, this probably means one
of the young girls is starting to lay!

!HOT! Peppers and Cucumbers

Cucumber, basil, lime infused water!

We had pork chops tonight for supper!  Something we don't often have.  What a treat!
I also made creamed peas and potatoes from our garden!

Quick Side Note:  Have you heard of something called Marco Polo, an app on your phone?!  It's crazy awesome!  Whitney had asked me to download it quite a while ago.  Not knowing what it was or making the time to download it, I didn't do it until she asked me again recently.  Wow, am I glad that she pursued me to get this app!  I would say it is some sort of a combination between FaceTime and texting.  You get the flexibility similar to texting so your recipient can check it at their convenience, but it is a video so you can actually see them!  It is great!  This has brought all five of us girls from high school back together.  I have been able to meet their kids and see parts of their homes.  You get to enter into their lives.  We all know how hard it is to connect these days even with all this technology.  With this, you don't have to find a time for both parties to meet (and make a phone/FaceTime call), but you can send a video message when you have a free moment and the recipient can then do the same.  It is really neat and makes you feel very connected.  I have also been able to connect with a friend who moved away and we have so much fun!  Great accountability and helps you feel like you live closer together!



This app is an awesome way to
connect when you have time!

Thursday, July 26, 2018

Delightful! Savor the Moments!

Sarah Young's Jesus Calling Devotion

Grilled zucchini, green chili egg casserole (thanks to it freezing well), English Breakfast tea.
A delightful breakfast and morning!

Bountiful, Bountiful, Bountiful!



Yellow Beets in the amazing InstaPot

African Basket with Swiss Chard

Left to Right:  acorn squash, white ace, lemon cucumbers (front and center),
yellow zucchini in back right corner!

Wednesday, July 25, 2018

Bountiful Harvest!

Clockwise from top left:  green beans, chokecherries, peas, sugar snap peas.

The furry children are getting SO big!  They look forward to their twice a day
"gravy" (aka water over their kitten food).  They are so used to seeing me twice
a day from when they were babies and had to have their antibiotics morning and night.
There is one mama/aunt here, three bigger babies, and five smaller babies.

This little sweet thing is sooooo FLUFFY!  She is very much so long haired!

The Morning Glory is beginning to reach out!  We had one of these before and it totally took
over.  I think this is so awesome how it is wrapping around the old school desk.
Front:  Stevia plant.

I found this picture tucked away in a drawer and it is now sitting on my desk!
Lake Travis ~ a place we frequented alot while living in Texas!

Tuesday, July 24, 2018

Processing Veggies


This AMAZING machine called a FOOD SAVER was a gift from Bill, Alicia, and the kids for our wedding back in 2014!  We have used and used and used this thing!  We have three different types of bags which all have a different purpose.  For the more moist foods such as zucchini, carrots, green beans (after they have been blanched), the press and seal bags work well that you use the accessory tool to suck the air out of a special spot in the corner.  Then, for the dryer stuff like peppers, squash, and tomatoes (I don't blanch them) the pre-made bags work or even the roll.  I really like the roll because you can tailor make the bag to fit your product!  Then, you use the actual machine to suck the air out and then it seals the top (and bottom if creating your own bag)!

*Plant * Water * Weed * Pick * Wash * Process * Bag * Label * Freeze * Repeat until Winter *
*ENJOY ALL WINTER!!*

Bunches and bunches of peppers!

And shredded zucchini in roughly 2 cup portions!
Yellow and green make it *c*o*l*o*r*f*u*l*!

Tuesday, July 17, 2018

Bountiful Harvest

....and the very next day......these gardens are incredible, absolutely amazing!

Bountiful, Bountiful!

Monday, July 16, 2018

Life on the Farm

We cleaned up at Five Rocks this morning.
God blessed us with overcast!

I took these pictures on two different days.  Pretty neat to see the sky in both!

We were able to share an early supper together this evening!  This was an awesome feeling to have been able to have supper ready when Heath got home!  Then, we were able to head out into the garden!

Version #1:  Homegrown peas, marinara with mushrooms served
over spaghetti noodles, complete with hotdog bun garlic bread!

Version #2:  Homegrown peas, mushrooms, yellow zucchini
with garlic and onions, spinach salad with tomatoes and cucumbers!

Life on the Farm!

So, I inadvertently created a monster with our animals!  When the kittens were babies, I randomly grabbed a peacock feather lying close to me on the ground and used it to play with them.  My goal was to help them with their paw/eye skills to become good mousers (that is their job around here).  Turns out, now that they are a little bigger and also a bit braver, they now go after the feathers that are still attached to Petey!  Cats:  'Mom, but they look the same?!  What's wrong with this?  Isn't this what you taught us?!'  Oh, the things we learn as we go....

A little wee one!

Oh, how wonderful!

Oh, how marvelous!

Oh, how beautiful!

We are grateful!  Thank you Lord for blessing us with a bountiful harvest!

Monday, July 2, 2018

Good Helpers

This morning I put up a ton of spinach.  Picked it yesterday then began the process for freezing it!  I use this really awesome resource from Bon Appetit:  https://www.bonappetit.com/test-kitchen/cooking-tips/article/preserve-leafy-greens.
  1. Rinse clean
  2. Roughly chop (DANGEROUS --> see below)
  3. Blanch in boiling water
  4. Cool down in ice bath
  5. Squeeze (really hard) all the excess water out
  6. Make into little golfballs
  7. Place individual balls on cookie sheet to freeze
  8. Next day, place all the spinach balls into baggies and use Food Saver to suck all the air out
  9. Place in freezer
  10. Enjoy ALL winter long
So this system works with lots of things in which I have experimented:  Swiss chard, spinach, and beet tops.  I also plan to try it with kale.  It is wonderful for smoothies....you already have the perfect size to go in there....just pop a ball in smoothie and add other ingredients.  I am also steaming and freezing red and yellow beets which are also a smoothie staple.  All this work now will pay off this winter when the sun goes down at 5 pm and doesn't get up until 7 am.  We will be all cozied in our home using all the wonderful, bountiful blessings God has provided this year.


Turns out your nail does not stop a sharp knife.

I have started going out to the barn to pick up the bigger kittens in order to get them friendly and handle them more.  We go out to the gardens in my basket and then back to their home in the basket.  They are sweet little things and sure do love them some gardenin'!


As you can see there are only four little ones.  I was laying in the hammock last week when Heath came home.  He asked if I had fed the kittens yet and I hadn't.  I also have been giving an antibiotic and cleaning their little eyes twice a day to help them feel better.  When I went out there, I only saw 3 of the 4, thinking to myself, maybe Fuzzy was just in with the chickens.  Sometimes, I find them in the chicken coop mingling....may be an identity crisis since they lost their mama at an early age.  Regardless, they all get along and the chickens don't see to mind the kittens and the kittens don't try to eat the birds, so it's all good!  Right when I was starting to administer the meds to the three, Heath walked up.  When I told him that I thought Fuzzy was still in with the girls....he had a very sad look on his face.  We exchanged glances and I knew what had happened, Fuzzy had passed away and Heath gently had already take care of him.  Tears, tears, and more tears poured out.  I had gotten so attached to this little guy and he had just made it to his second round of going to the vet, our little miracle kitten.  He is no longer suffering.  He was a sick little guy and Heath reassured me that I did the very best I could.  We had such an awesome moment as he embraced me, allowing me to cry, reassuring me on the barn floor.  It was such a treasured moment.  He has such a BIG heart!

We decided no more naming animals as we have lost so many lately....all but 3 of our chicks we raised from babies, 2 ducks, 3 cats, 1 turkey, and now this kitten.  No more names.  I told him that I just don't know what to do differently to stop losing all of our animals.  He said the only way you will not lose animals is if you don't have any.  True.  Life must go on and we just do the best we can to love and care for them and to provide them what they need.

I matted and framed Jean's coloring page!
Spray painted an old frame teal!!
It looks great in my yellow walled office!

We are doing something special for our boss' birthday tomorrow.  My part was the flowers.  I purchased some sunflowers
since ours aren't in bloom yet and then got creative!  Even used Tiger Lilies and dill!  Picked, arranged, and delivered!

Finally got those Superhero muffins mixed up and in
the oven.

By the way, I am looking for muffin tins that are waxy, you know, the ones you usually see at a bakery.  You can have a larger muffin without the muffin top sticking to the pan or the actual muffin sticking to the muffin tin.  If you know where to purchase them, please let me know.  It's a struggle because these muffins turn out different each time since I use different ingredients each time depending on what I have available.  I purchased tin cups thinking they wouldn't stick, but I freeze these and pull them out to eat.....turns out tin doesn't microwave well.  The paper cups stick and make a horrible mess.....any suggestions, I'm open!  :)  These muffins are delicious!

Sunday, July 1, 2018

Farm Fresh

Have you ever heard of a Watermelon Radish?
That's what this is!  Woah is it bitey!
Red beets in the background.

Lovely farm~fresh meal with Heath and my Daddy! 

Deer steak with peppers and onions, beet top salad with Granny Smith apple,
corn, and cucumbers, roasted potato with rosemary, and chicken broth/onion
fresh green beans from the garden.

Time for a batch of Superhero Muffins from my Run Fast.  Eat Slow. cookbook.

Friday, June 29, 2018

Farm Raised

Daily Devotion from Sarah Young Jesus Calling Enjoying Peace in His Presence
Me and God!  We got this!

(L-R:  Caprese salad with mozzy, fresh basil and a balsamic reduction ~ avocado toast with fresh watermelon radishes
and parsley ~ fresh grilled veggies with mushrooms. 

Back at the vet with the rest of the family for ear treatment.

I kind of really like food from farm to fork and everything in between!  It is such blessing planning, planting, growing,
watering, and weeding but also harvesting, cutting, chopping, creating, cooking, presenting, and sharing the food!  It's
all FUN and super REWARDING!
Note:  heart shaped sausages!  Have fun with it!