Monday 8th November: Hellooo I will try to be a little more focused on writing the blog this week, been an bit slack if I am honest š
This morning it was fresh but not frosty, a beautiful pink sunrise greeted us first thing. John did the morning feeding and letting out and then went off to work after requesting a fresh loaf of bread. Happy to oblige as I havenāt made one for over a week so it was about time really. Once the bread was on the go I sorted out what would be for dinner later and prepped the veg. I also made a crumble, apple and strawberry š, strawberryās always smell amazing when they are cooking and while apple and strawberry is not a usual combination for crumble it is a very tasty one so give it a try. While waiting for the bread to do I may as well do other things in the kitchen so I also made a sort of flapjack. Not the standard type with syrup though, this one was a combination of oats, honey and peanut butter, a touch of salt, some vanilla and a handful of granola. All mixed together and then pressed into a tin, marked into squares and put in the fridge. This will be my ābreakfast grabā or āI feel peckishā snack š
Is there a better way to start the week than with a freshly baked loaf of bread? š„°
I did a few other things around the house as well as prepping some more Christmas cards ready to decorate another time, need to get ahead with those as there will be plenty to do in the run up as it is.
The evenings are drawing in and so it is now my turn to do the afternoon feeding although John rang to ask if I could also shut them away at dark as he would be late. Itās not the only thing that was be late because if I have to go out and do that, it means the dinner doesnāt get put on until I come back in, which is ok until John starts moaning he is hungry when he comes home š¤£ tough mate, I canāt do it all š¤Ŗ
We had the straw delivery yesterday and we had a conversation about carbon capture and how lots of farmers are now growing a carbon capture crop instead of food. I get why itās an attractive choice for farmers but in my opinion itās very short sighted, we will be growing less food to feed the country and having to import it instead, whatās the point of capturing carbon on the one hand while creating it on the other š¤·āāļø Somebody explain that one to me if they can please š If you are going to grow carbon capture then at least use an edible crop if possible.
Had another phone call about more woodchip tonight, I donāt like to turn it away so even more will be arriving tomorrow š I need to shift some of the other pile I think.
Tuesday: It was a lovely day today with above average temperatures and plenty of sunshine. With another wood chip load arriving today I thought I ought make a good effort to move some of the pile that is already there. I barrowed until I couldnāt barrow anymore and then I went onto cutting back the dahlia foliage as the frost has blackened most of them now. Sam arrived mid morning with the twins and we spent an hour or more moving the electric fence in the front paddock. The horses havenāt been in this paddock for a number of years because I planted 4 fruit trees in there but these have been fenced off. The grass got too long to mow and my scything is not up to it š so I needed to get it eaten off in order to be able to mow it next spring. It will also help to flatten the ground out with them trampling all over it š After a break for lunch and some playing Sam went home, Charlie also called in while they were here, back from her honeymoon š„°
Time for the afternoon rounds and egg collecting, while I was out there I replenished the hay for the rabbits and Guineas, topped up all the water holders, put in clean straw for the ducks and some for the hens in the stable and then while waiting for someone to come and collect something I barrowed a few more loads of woodchip š¤Ŗ
Wednesday: I spent most of the day making Christmas cards to put out for sale, I was feeling quite tired so a day doing something gentle is a good way to regroup.
Thursday: I cleaned and hoovered the boot room before going out with Shelley and Flo and spending a lovely few hours at a Christmas market and garden centre. We met Charlie and Macca there and had lunch as well, lovely day. When I got back it was time to feed the birds (who had been left in because I was going out) collect the eggs and then the twins arrived to stay while Mia went for her swimming lesson. In the evening we went round to see Mum and Ken who have had a nasty bug but are just starting to get over it now. There are such a lot of nasty bugs going around as well as chicken pox at the moment, dodge the bugs winter is ahead of us I think lol.
Friday: The day started with rain but the sun came out mid morning so not a bad day. I thought I had better get my Christmas cake started so this morning I have measured out all the dry ingredients and they are now soaking in brandy and orange juice for the next 24 hrs. If you fancy a go at making your own, I followed a Merry Berry recipe, they are usually pretty foolproof and there is an online calculator to adjust measurements to the size and shape of your tin. A tip you might find useful is to measure your tin and then use a permanent marker to write the size on the bottom for next time, this goes for any baking tin you use, I am always forgetting what size they are and it doesnāt really do to guess š As always I substitute what I havenāt got with something I have and likewise if there is an ingredient you donāt like then just change it, I will be using walnuts instead of almond because thatās what I have available.
Saturday: I got the rest of the cake ingredients mixed and then combined to two and cooked for four hours š Christmas cake done āļø just got to āfeed itā weekly.
Mid morning Sam, Luke and the kiddies arrived and I looked after the children while Sam and Luke went for a meeting. Once they were back Luke helped John to get a bit more work done out the back and now the pantry is nearly ready, just need to concrete the floor and put a door on then time to fit it out with shelves etc. Meanwhile Sam was sorting out the horses and the stables, the horses came in to be wormed and then will stay in for a few days. The children were helpful, on the whole š Luke stayed on after the rest of his family went home and worked with John until dark.
Christmas cake š„°
Sunday: Today we needed to get a lot of tidying done in the back bit, stuff to the skip, stuff to the burning pile, stuff to put up for free, stuff to sell. Mid morning we went to Charlie and Maccas to look at the wedding photos, popped to get a bit of shopping afterwards and then back home to shift more rubbish and get the scrap wood burnt. We had someone come to collect any decent burning wood and someone come to buy some bits we were selling. You canāt beat a big bonfire in November so thatās what we hadš„
Monday 5th October 2020: After the dismal weather at the weekend, this morning the sun was shinning thank goodness, itās soggy ground underfoot but at least itās not raining for the moment. John did the morning rounds and my first job was to tidy the boot room and give it a bit of a clean, sort out the kitten area and hoover. From that I went out to give the horses a small breakfast and turn them back out, they wonāt appreciate being in when the sun is out, then muck out the stables ready for the next lot of bad weather. I did a quick whip round the veg garden picked some very small courgettes, a handful of runner beans and a couple of punnets of raspberries, I contemplated doing more out there but the ground is so wet I think itās best left to dry off a bit. It wonāt hurt to leave for a while and it will do damage by compact I g the ground if I walk on it while itās wet so decision made. I had ordered some archive boxes and they arrived yesterday so I went into the office and started to do some sorting out in there. Plenty of paperwork that can be boxed up and stored out in the old caravan until it needs to be burnt ( about 7 years time š) I donāt even know if you need to keep it that long anymore, I guess as most things are now digital it would be possible to find them online if needed but old habits die hard š Why do we keep so much stuff, thatās what I have been wondering over the past couple of weeks, I think I would like to go minimalist but we would need about five skips to get rid of it all I reckon š I am that person that keeps the boxes things come in just in case I decide to sell them, only I never sell them as most things get thoroughly used. Today I have managed to sort all the boxes out and flatten them for recycling, sorted out Christmas decorations I donāt want and put them in an ever growing pile for the charity shop, looked through a pile of other stuff and put it back on the shelf š And still there is plenty of āstuffā I donāt know what to do with lol, I need to get tougher I think and increase the charity pile š You know what itās like though, the minute you get rid of something, you inexplicably need it!
Good morning sunshine š nice to see you after a dismal weekend of rain.
I took a break from doing that job and put a home reared chicken in the slow cooker with homegrown garlic and herbs, together with home grown spuds and veg and we will have home grown raspberries for dessert, thatās what I spend my life doing….growing dinner š„°
I got a sourdough starter on the go, I have been wanting to do this for ages but the process is long and so I could never be bothered, well today I started š I did do it years ago but turned to fast yeast instead for time saving, now we are going into Winter I will have more time so it seems like a good opportunity. Itās very easy, just mix flour with water leave the jar open for a while to ācatchā wild yeast (its floating all around us) and then āfeedā it for the next six days (not an instant food) then it will be ready to bake with. I put it on the window sill because it needs a bit of warmth to stimulate it, I will close the lid in about an hours time and let it do itās thing. You can buy fresh starter online but by the time it gets delivered you could be four days into your own batch.
The beginning of a sourdough starter š
Another thing I spend time doing is getting into discussions on various topics, the latest one was āwhat time does evening beginā? I would say 6pm others have different opinions but of course this then leads to the ātime does not existā theory. Time doesnāt exist, itās only what man had created in order to…well, keep order š There is change, change over a day, night, month, year, decade, millennium but itās not time, I will just leave that there for you to ponder š
Something else that I keep meaning to have a go at and that is fruit leathers, today I finally got round to doing it, never done it before but I have a feeling if it works out well I will be doing a lot more. The main reason I have done it now is because we are lighting the Rayburn daily so I may as well use it to itās full advantage. The fruit leathers are easy enough to prepare, I used raspberries I picked this morning, put them in a sieve and used a spoon to crush them and squeeze the juice through leaving behind all the little seeds. Line a Swiss roll tin with grease proof paper and pour the juice in, this then went into the warming oven at the bottom of the Rayburn to dry. Iām not sure how long they will take, the warming oven doesnāt get direct heat it basically harnesses the heat from the oven above, itās not a lot of heat as the oven is well lined but itās a gentle warm, dry heat ideal for this kind of thing. I often put things in there and totally forget they are there mind you š I have just taken the walnuts out as I put them into dry off, if you left them in for weeks they would be shrivelled up š like the orange slices I did they were more orange bullets when I eventually found them.
Fruit leather (raspberry) going in the Rayburn for drying
I know itās only October but I am starting to think about Christmas, more specifically the Christmas cake, I need to get it made soon, that will give me plenty of time to feed it š I always made one, then I had a few years when I didnāt bother and now I make them again. Itās true that it lasts for weeks, John has usually gone back to work after the Christmas break and is still having it in his lunchbox š but itās great to have if you unexpectedly have guests and nothing else in the cupboards. I will probably use our walnuts and hazels instead of almonds and I still have some dried apple rings from last year in the cupboard so I will use those along with the bought dried fruit, mmmm canāt wait to get it started now, I love the smell of the fruit soaking in orange and brandy š„° The Winter months are when I get to use all those wonderful things I have been growing/making all year long, thatās as it should be, traditionally long before the time when you could pop to the supermarket or have stuff on next day delivery, you would have worked towards stocking up your winter stores and especially for that marvellous mid winter feast that has now been thoroughly taken over by commercialism š I try, as much as possible, to still have a traditional Christmas, itās all about good food and good company and I think I have successfully passed on that to my children just as my Mum did to me š
I have to do the feed and egg collecting rounds today as John is still working, bloody typical then that it has just started spitting with rain š
Tuesday: Dry and sunny again this morning although it did rain a little last night. This morning I got up had breakfast, a shower, sorted the cats out, got something I prepared earlier out of the freezer for dinner tonight, fed my sourdough starter, put some washing on and hoovered up. Now I am off out for a walk around Blenheim, we bought annual passes this time last year š luckily or unluckily depends on how you see it, they were extended until April next year, not because of Covid and the fact we couldnāt use them for half the year but because they cocked up sending them to me in the first place, not once but three times! Basically the only times we have been able to use them is when the weather is cold š even then we have to advance book an entry place, never mind at least we can š
The sun was shinning the rain stayed away and we had a lovely walk around the Blenheim grounds, George even did a little bit of the walk himself š
Back home it was time to do the egg rounds, get the Rayburn lit and get the dinner on but not before a lovely cup of tea āļø
John was telling me that this morning when he went out to do the birds there were two large white birds in the standing water in the paddock, from his description (shame he didnāt have his phone and get a pic) and looking online we think they were a pair of Little Egrets. There is only a heron that looks similar and they are grey, he said these were pure white.
Stock photo of a Little Egret
Wednesday: Cold but dry this morning. I have fed the sourdough starter and itās beginning to take form, you can see the yeast is working thatās producing the bubbles and the smell is acidic which is exactly what we want it to be at this point.
I went outside and picked a few raspberries and a courgette, thatās about all there is as the moment, I bought in a butternut squash and I think I will have some of it roasted for dinner tonight with a lamb chop and other veg. Itās a tad cold and as I donāt have to work in the cold I thought I would wait until it warms up a bit. Thatās the joy of being my own boss with nobody waiting for me to do anything š I have the complete freedom to do what I like when I like although as I have mentioned before you do have to be a little bit disciplined otherwise nothing would get done at all.
The fruit leather didnāt work out, my fault as there was not enough pulp so it was a very thin layer which basically just stuck to the greaseproof paper, I will try again at a later date.
Charlie called in for a cup of coffee, she has a week off and so that was a lovely interlude that we donāt get very often š„° After that I went out and had a look at the bird boxes that we had taken down when we did the front. I want to put them back up somewhere but Iām not sure where is high enough for their safety, I cleaned them out and I will keep looking for places to put them. Then onto the veg garden, I find if I donāt have a definite plan I bimble a bit, so I started off bimbling š and then got into my stride. I have now cleared all the small raised beds, put mushroom compost on the top of them and covered them with the bio degradable black plastic, thatās how they will stay for overwintering. I then cleared the rest of the dwarf French beans and put a few of them in the greenhouse for drying, I can use the seeds again next year. Then lunch and a podcast Charlie had sent me a link to. I feel a bit tired today and on those days have to force myself to do things and also to eat well, the temptation to grab anything is high but I got myself something nutritious and so after a small rest I will hopefully be re energised š
Next job was to soak the dried fruit for the Christmas cake, itās an easy five minute job and the fruit can be left until you are ready to get the cake mixed, I will probably leave it 24hrs. I have 1kg dried fruit, orange zest and juice, a good splash of fresh orange juice, and then some alcohol if you like it, if not add more orange juice. I used some rumtopf I had left from last year and a tiny bottle of blackberry wine that I had in the cupboard. You can use whatever you like really, itās all going to taste great in the endš„°
Various stages, soaking the fruit, the mixture and the end product.
I made a skinny version of banana bread, all I can say is donāt bother not if you are expecting it to taste delicious anyway š I did have a piece but I squirted some skinny syrup (0 calories) on it and it filled a hole and was ok but only ok š
Iāve prepped the dinner, lit the Rayburn, fed the chickens, collected the eggs and then sorted them out to go into the shed. I am feeling tired or glum not sure which one precedes which, I try and chivvy myself along but the pep talk does not work so I guess itās tiredness.
Butternut squash, ever tried it? I have had it before but usually in a stew or similar, well tonight I roasted it š® oh my days that took the taste of it to a whole new level for me, delicious š I will definitely be looking at different ways to have this vegetable though my fav is going to be roasted I can just tell š
The nights are drawing in very quickly now, itās dark by 7pm, we have a few weeks yet before itās dark by 4.30 š and we have the clock change coming at the end of the month, always buggers everyone up doesnāt it š I hate it when people say āyeah but really itās *oāclockā no, no itās not because the clocks have changed so that is what time it is š Itās usually the same kind of people that like to let you know that while you were on holiday and the weather was not what it could be, they had glorious sunshine back at home, you know the type, and if that type is you….just donāt š¤£
Thursday: Its raining again and it has been raining overnight but on the upside I feel in good spirits today so I must have been tired yesterday. I need to always remember that even if I look well there are things going on inside my body that upset the balance from time to time, it usually results in feeling tired and grumpy š¤·āāļø so a good rest can often sort things out š Not sure what I will get done today, I need to feed the starter and I have got some washing on but apart from that I have not many any definite decisions yet, oh I need to sort the Christmas cake so I will probably get that done this morning.
The kittens will have been here two weeks by the weekend and I think they are getting a little bit bored of being in the boot room so we will have to let them start exploring. Jack is fine I donāt have any worries about him, I think he will come when called but Jill is a different story. She has always been and still is reserved, she doesnāt come to greet any of us when we go into the room, she sits firmly in the corner and her head goes down when we stroke her, it is a bit of progress though as when she first came as she would growl at us. I donāt particularly want them to be over friendly just as long as they come for food and donāt clear off for good š
The Christmas cake is mixed and in the oven š once cooked and cooled it will be stored and then bought out weekly to feed it with some alcohol or other. The smell of the mixture was amazing and I tasted the spoon š delicious, to be honest in my opinion the raw mixture is better than the cooked cake but itās not very good for you š
The sourdough starter is smelling sour, thatās a good thing, it is working a treat. I can remember the first time I had sourdough bread, July 2006, I can be that precise because I was up in the Blue Mountains, I had taken Charlie to Australia to visit my Brother Joe and his wife Monique. We took a trip up to the mountains to have Christmas in July, we had some real laughs due to the place we had booked not being a bit like the online photos š We checked out and went elsewhere and in the process of finding new accommodation we stopped for soup in a little cafe. Soup and sourdough bread with unsalted butter, well I was hooked from then on. At that time over here in the UK it wasnāt something you could find on a regular menu, it seemed to me that the Australians were so far ahead of us with food choices and outlooks, I am glad to say that we have caught up with them, almost š
As I was doing the Christmas cake my thoughts turned to Christmas crafts, I am not terribly artistic (thatās an understatement š) but I do like to have a go at something for the occasion. I want to get the office all sorted so that I can sit in there in the evening and do things like crafting or my other passion, ancestry š one day I will get it sorted. I quite like the darker nights for doing that kind of thing, I canāt wait to get started however I have to do the books up for the year first š„“ I had an email saying they were due (they are very overdue š) so I need to get my house in order before I can begin to enjoy myself.
I have no idea what is going on but we have had an increase in the number of customers coming to get eggs, today it was 19! That is unheard of apart from during lockdown, 2/3rds of them will have been disappointed to find the egg shed empty. For a few weeks now we have always had eggs available most times of the day but over the last three or four days they have sold as soon as they go out š
Friday: Always a welcome day, a happy day and today is a sunny day which makes it even better š
Sometimes I get philosophical thatās not always a good thing as it generally occupies all of my thinking for a few hours at least š Why have I chosen to do what I do? Itās not something I always wanted to do it is something that evolved over time and you have to wonder why? Fundamentally I despair of the human race as a collective, not as individuals, there are millions and millions of good people but collectively humans seem to tread the same path I guess I retreated to this lifestyle because (in my opinion) its wholesome, with it comes a responsibility to look after nature or at least to not do it any harm, but then if that were the case you would think I would be vegetarian and Iām not, life is confusing isnāt it. See what I mean, it doesnāt do to start thinking lol. Sometimes I just need to write these things down so thank you for accommodating my thoughts for today, of course the whole subject is wider and deeper than that but itās a weekly blog not a year long one š
“Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning.” – Albert Einstein
Sam and Shelley came over with the little ones that are not at school and we went for a walk down a local lane, I looked for apples on a tree but they had all gone, there are a few blackberries left but most have started to shrivel up, itās beginning to look and feel like autumn š Though we do get compensation in the way of awesome sunsets at this time of year š
I opened my sourdough starter this morning and it has liquid on the top, this apparently is called hooch and means the starter needs feeding š itās like having a baby š The hooch is alcohol produced by the yeast but by all accounts you wouldnāt want to drink it, I donāt think I took enough of the starter away yesterday which meant the ratio wasnāt right which in turn produced the hooch. All is not lost though you just stir it in and feed it more flour, it is a living thing with wants and needs š
John left his phone on a job he has been doing in town so in the evening we went back to collect it and then nipped round to see Mum and Ken for a cuppa.
Saturday: A dry day some sunshine now and again, not too cold. John did the rounds and then started on digging out a path along the front of the building. We are putting a flower bed in but I wanted a path so that I can still get to the windows easily to clean them. When we first came there were thorny roses along there which was difficult, then I had to put up a fence around the area as Kai kept digging everything up when he was alive, now we can clear it and have it looking nice, only taken 10 years š Meanwhile I got started on the beginning of winter clearing up in the garden, first all the plants that I have been bringing on, they are now safely in the cold frames, after that onto the tort run and some cutting back and chipping up, putting the clippings back on the ground. Inbetween all that I was making bread so diving backwards and forwards between the garden and the kitchen. I tried the sourdough but I donāt think I paid enough attention to it and itās not rising at all, I will habe a look later and see if I can salvage it in any way š I also made a regular loaf as I was not sure how the sourdough was going to do, good job I did š More tidying away in the garden and potting up some bits, I really need to dig a few things up and divide them but by lunchtime my hips were hurting, the wind had got up and the sun gone in so I think the cold got into them. Time to come in and do some washing up and tidying, thatās the trouble when I am working out side, the kitchen becomes a dumping ground for everything while I go about my work.
Popped round to have a cuppa with Shelley and the kiddies in the afternoon before coming back and lighting the Rayburn. John did the feed round and I sorted the eggs, he then went out to clean out the hen huts in the paddock…..just as it started to rain and I mean really rain š„“ luckily for him I had got the fire going nicely and there was plenty of hot water for a nice bath.
The sourdough dough is a bit of a disaster but Iām not giving up just yet, I still have starter so I will continue feeding it and try again on a day when I have more time to apply myself š I may well have to do a fair bit of reading up before I attempt a second go š
Sunday: Todayās plan was to go to the garden centre and get breakfast, actually my plan was to get some new gardening gloves and have a mooch about but to get John to readily agree I have to mention getting breakfast š We picked up a few bits for Christmas but the gloves were all medium and I have very small hands. Itās not much fun gardening in gloves that have about an inch extra as I canāt grab hold of thing properly and the extra bit always gets trapped. The lack of small gloves in one centre meant I had to go to another one as well šš where I am glad to say I successfully purchased a selection of gloves in a small size. The first centre was relatively quiet, the second more popular and upmarket (and therefore overpriced) centre was very busy š While I was waiting to pay I was looking at the dried flower collection, I cant believe people pay that much for dead stuff š here is me chopping it down and putting it on the compost heap, I said to John we are missing a trick here š
Monday 18th November: The weekend passes so quickly doesn’t it š Back round to Monday and it’s a sunny morning, not too cold and not raining so that’s a pretty good winters day š I did the morning rounds, we still haven’t moved the geese but I have opened up the paddock gate for them to wander round the place and hopefully I can herd them into the front paddock later today. Geese are great for keeping your grass under control as long as it’s not too long in the first place and although the front paddock got long it is now dying back so they should be able to get some good grazing in there for a couple of months.
I have a choice of tasks I can tackle today and as yet I haven’t decided which ones I will do, coffee first, decisions after š
Coffee drunk, decision made and I got on with cleaning the bathroom, the kitchen, stripping the sofa covers to wash and making a fish pie š not very interesting things but very necessary ones š I was putting my preserve pan back in the top cupboard as I don’t think I will need that any more this year and knocked an empty bottle out which smashed on the floor and covered every square inch of the kitchen floor or so it seemed, took me ages to make sure I had collected all the bigger bits and hoovered up the tiny bits.
Sam, Shelley and the kiddies came over in the afternoon.
John has been coming home in time to put the animals away since the clocks changed but tonight I was on my own, it wasn’t too bad, I was worried I wouldn’t be able to get the front lot of hens in by myself as they for some strange reason won’t go to bed even when it’s dark so they have to be cajoled in but I did manage it š
Tuesday: I had a bit of a bonus this morning in that the Rayburn was still showing embers in the bottom so before I even got dressed I got it going again, just as well because it was very cold outsideš I did the morning rounds breaking ice in the water buckets as I went round teas that cold overnight.
Once that was all done and I was back inside I sorted out dinner for later and then I got some bread on the go. I haven’t made any for ages as I just didn’t have time but over winter there is more time to do those kind of things so I also gathered together all the dried fruit for the Christmas cake, weighed it out and it is now soaking nicely in some pear liqueur and orange juice ready for making tomorrow morning. This year I have been able to use home produce sultanas and I was thinking that if I could get all things aligned I could actually use home grown apricots, cherries, sultanas, lemons, possibly figs and nuts in the cake, wouldn’t that be something š
I had a quick visit from two of Johns uncles who had come over this way to visit Johns Mum.
I left the afternoon rounds as late as possible because I have to feed and collect the eggs then go round and put everything to bed so it makes sense to only have to put coat and boots on once. The front chickens were a pain in the proverbial as usual and one is still out but I chased it round long enough so I will see if John can get it when he comes home as I have dinner to sort out. I did manage to manoeuvre the geese down to the front paddock and they are back in their old lodgings tonight, that great because there is plenty of grass out there for them to nibble on š
I don’t think it’s going to be quite as cold tonight as last night and I was sweating after coming in from outside lol.
I washed the sofa covers and more holes have appeared š I really need to sort out new ones I think but I can’t quite commit š
Benny has been earning his keep every other day I see him with a mouse or something similar, I am glad we went for farm bred kittens who learnt the trade from their Mum, just a shame about the disappearance of TC š
Wednesday: A milder day today and the sun is out although my feet got cold towards the middle of the morning.
First off before going out I got the Christmas cake mixed and I to the oven as it was going to take 4 1/2 hours to cook! Then out to do the morning rounds cleaning out the ducks while I was at it. Then Mum came over and she has planted the tulips š·š I dug up the dahlias and washed off the tubers and did a bit of division with them. Then onto the freesias, I dug half of them up ready to store and I will leave the other half in the ground to see how they do through the winter, hopefully they will survive and I can do that every year instead of lifting them. This is about the point my feet got cold so it was time to come in and make coffee, we had a bit of pumpkin cake that I got out of the freezer yesterday and I lit the fire. Sam arrived with the twins as I am having them while she goes for some physio, the cake was finally done about 5 hours in š¬ It’s a few years since I have made one as normally there is so much food the cake is hanging around for weeks but this year it really will be a treat having not had cake available on a regular basis.
I won a bookcase on eBay, I’m delighted as my other one has run out of room for books š I know it’s the digital age but there is something about picking up a book to read that I’m not ready to let go of just yet š
Thursday: Not a bad morning weather wise, I did the rounds and it is quite dry underfoot although we are forecast rain this evening so that will bugger it all up again š As well as feeding and letting out I moved the Light Sussex hens to a pen and had to chose a cockerel from the five we have left. I will be using them as a breeding group and the choice was difficult. I spent a good five minutes looking at them, should I go for size and as they will be for the table that might seem like the obvious option but they will produce more eggs than I need so in the end I went for feathering which means I should end up with good standards and can sell the surplus eggs for hatching which will fetch a good price. Jobs done outside I came in to sort the eggs, we have lots at the moment and not many customers at the farm gate, I say not many we are still turning over dozens of eggs but eventually the surplus catches up and I have a few trays to shift. The duck eggs are going rather better than I ever expected, sometimes we even sell trays of those which is unusual.
Occasionally I have random thoughts and today’s was ‘what is the definition of farming exactly’ I always assume, probably along with most people that farming, especially in this country, takes place on a fairly large scale so I wouldn’t call myself a farmer however the definition is ‘Farmingis the act or process of working the ground, planting seeds, and growing edible plants. You can alsodescriberaising animals for milk or meat asfarming‘ so it seems that I am after all a farmer š I would also take to task anyone who labelled smallholders as ‘hobby farmers’ as a hobby by definition is something you do for leisure in your spare time š
I took all the books off of the bookcase in preparation for the new one and so get what happens next? Yep I spend ages looking through books Ihaven’t picked up for a while lol. I did sort them out and put a few smallholding/countryside books up for sale, ones I no longer need or use. The range of books goes from smallholding topics to gardening techniques and then publications on local history in one form or another to British countryside, then there are the children’s books that I have never god rid of so poetry and story books and finally novels that I have read or need to read. Another pile of novels will go to a friend who sells them for charity and now I have my eye on sorting out the cook books on the kitchen bookshelf š
I did feel inspired by looking throughone book and so I did some apple slices to dry in the oven for storing, great snack for the grandchildren or for use on breakfast porridge I reckon.
Around midday when I had slowed down from busying I suddenly felt cold and thought I’d better light the fire, I’mnot sure if the temperature dropped or if was already that cold but I hadn’t noticed.
Very pleased with how the bookshelf project turned out and it was a bargain for solid oak, love a bit of second hand shopping.
Friday: Early start for early bloods this morning so I cracked on and got everything done by the time I needed to leave for the doctors surgery. When I got back I lit the Rayburn and decided that I was going to have an easy day today, I feel like I have a cold coming but not sure if it is a cold coming or if it’s the Lupus so I figured a rest day was probably the best thing.
Saturday: Feeling tired š Did the morning rounds, I was hoping that John would be able to do them but he has to get materials for next weeks job apparently, not happy š I do everything by myself from morning till night and look forward to the weekend when I get a bit of help, still the same amount of work but it’s easier with two and besides that it’s someone to talk to as well, makes things more pleasurable. Tired and grumpy do not bode well for the day today š³
To be fair John didn’t take too long and got dog/cat food and delivered some eggs on the way and I soon got out of my sulk š (at least I’m honest) and we got on with a few jobs. John cleaned out the hens in the front and the ones at the side while I did the ones in the POL pen and the stable ones, we altered one of the stable doors so that I can open it with ducking (and usually banging my head) then we went to get a bit of food shopping and called in to see Mum and Ken for a cup of tea and a slice of cake š Once back home it was time to feed the birds, collect the eggs, light the Rayburn, put the shopping away and organise dinner for tonight all before it gets dark at 4.30 š then it’s time to go out and shut everything away and that’s the day done outside.
Sunday: It rained a bit in the night but not raining come morning however it is one of those dank dreary days.
John did the animals this morning while I did some indoor bits and then he went to visit his Mum, when he came back he went out with the tractor to move the chicken hut onto some better grass, it have become a mud bath. Meanwhile I lit the Rayburn and as it is stir up Sunday I found all the ingredients to put together and make a Christmas pudding. This is a light version (Jamie Oliver) as it does not have any added sugar it just relies on the dried fruit to sweeten it, find a recipe and use any combination of dried fruit that you like as long as it adds up to the same amount needed. I like to use dates and cherries for a bit of opulence but any dried fruit will work, the same goes for nuts, if you don’tlike almonds or walnuts then use nuts that you do like. I like to add freshly squeezed orange juice and some Christmas spices such as nutmeg which makes it smell amazing š Hopefully the grandchildren will be around sometime today and they can stir the pudding mix and make a wish before it gets steamed and then stored. My children are very used to stirring the puddingmixture it’s been a long-standingtradition in our house. The hardest part of making a pudding is the amount of time it takes to steam it and then people think you need to steam it again on ChristmasDay, you can if you want to be purist but you can also heat it much quicker in the microwaveš
The pudding is currently steaming on the hob with a couple more hours to goš
I picked up some reduced cranberries in the supermarket, had to be a bargain at only 5p š I will probably use them to make a cranberry and orange sauce to go with cold meats at Christmas as we are not having turkey this year. I may pick up some more if they have any next week they will always be useful for making something different.
Monday: Cold start again today so I made sure I had thick socks on, plenty of layers 1and thick gloves as well. To give the hens a bit of heat I mixed in some poultry spice with their feed this morning. I make my own as itās cheaper than buying the pots that you can buy, they contain turmeric, fenugreek, garlic and one other ingredient that I canāt remember at the minute, but I just looked on the pot and ordered bulk individual items and mixed them in a tub, it makes loads. Hopefully it might boost egg production which has dropped off considerably due to the lack of daylight hours and the cold temps. I did a bit of cleaning out of nest boxes as I went, that helps to keep the eggs clean and makes my job easier when I am boxing them up later in the day. I checked the baby rabbits and fed all the small animals, we now have five in there so one of the escapees has come back! The small garden birds have discovered the feeding station that now has bird seed in and judging by the excited chirping this morning they are very grateful. I am going to make a couple more seed holders as I only have one and there are a lot of birds, easily around 20 I would say and these are the ones living in and around the nest boxes (and gaps in the cladding)on the front of the house.
Then on to feed the dogs and give Kaiās kennel a clean out and give him a nice clean duvet for his bed for the colder months.
Inside then to light the Rayburn and the temperature is not going to go much above 4 degrees today āļø and I want to try and stay warm to see if it helps my hand problems, I think it does as yesterday they were fine until I had to go outside then all evening they were playing up.
I fed the Christmas cake some brandy and it will now be wrapped up and stored for a couple of weeks when I will get it out again and lace it with more brandy š
Tuesday: The day of epic boiling of the Christmas pudding, 8 hours of bubbling water to cook it so an early start is needed, and I better put the timer on as I will probably forget over the course of the day how long it has been in. Again I followed a Mary Berry āfiggy puddingā recipe. I made bread, leek and potato soup and some rock buns while I was at it. Had Mia from lunchtime and Shelley and Josh came for a visit, I can nip out and feed the hens and collect eggs while Shelley is here so thatās what I did. John came home in time to put the birds to bed and found a bag of live chickens dumped at the gateway! Going through the the cctv we could clearly see who it was and they are known to us so John will be calling in there tomorrow for a few stern words š¤ Clearly they donāt want to look after them so there is no point taking them back to him and after all itās not the chickens fault, but there is the risk of contamination to my flock so they will all have to be wormed and de loused/mited just in case. Very unfair on us and the chickens.
On the upside I have found a home for any of the baby rabbits that are female so I just need to sex them and see how many that is, just the boys to find homes for as there are definitely both sexās among them.
Wednesday was lost somewhere š
Thursday: I have a fair few jobs I want to get sorted today, the main one being separating the boy and girl rabbits! Iāll tell you though you couldnāt write this stuff, I went out and fed them caught the three up that are in the run I made, the others have escaped š then I looked at the one in the guinea run, 2 boys, 2 girls great, I go off to prepare a separate hutch for the boys and when I get back I check the bunnies again in the run and remove the boy, go to get the one from the guinea hut and itās gone!!! Iām sure it will be back but it means I donāt get the job done and dusted just yet. One of the babies died, I donāt know why, it was looking quiet yesterday, canāt see any obvious signs of anything but they have been getting out and so anything could have happened to it at some point. Just having a quick coffee then I have 10 sweet chestnut trees to decide what to do with. Some will be potted up for sale, some will be planted in the hedgerow.
Among many other jobs on the list today, the rat poison arrived so I needed to put that down just as it got dark, the rubbish needs to go out though I have no idea what colour week we are on š had another look for the baby rabbit but that one is right under the hutch and I canāt reach it, meanwhile another is out in the paddock chomping on grass but I canāt find the net to catch it with.
Friday: āļø brrr very cold this morning! Did the rounds quickly lol, topped up the wild bird feeder as they will be hungry in this weather as well, thought about working outside but gave it a miss and did indoor stuff instead. Had a visitor drop in for a chat and as we were talking at the gate another egg customer pulled up, good job because two minutes later a very dodgy couple in a old van who couldnāt speak any English pulled up. They were trying to buy 1 chicken??? Well that was what they were gesturing but as I have said before you know when someone doesnāt seem right, the chap wouldnāt take no for an answer and I was grateful that there were others there with me, one took the registration number and the other wrote down directions to go and find chickens for sale, I donāt think they were real directions lol. They left and my visitor stayed around for 10 more minutes just to make sure they didnāt come back. With all the activity in the area at the moment you got to keep your wits about you š As a consequence I am now spending every five minutes looking out of the window just in case, puts you right on edge. The egg customer came back twice, once to give me the reg number she had jotted down although I had already committed it to memory and then again to tell me they were still hanging round the village an hour later so they clearly didnāt head off to look for chickens for sale, at this point I rang 101 to report the incident just in case they were up to no good.
Saturday: The weather started off ok and slowly deteriorated š John was away early this morning on an errand so it was just me manning the place. Did the morning rounds and found that something had attacked my guinea pigs and killed one of them, poor Stuart Little, Herbie the other one I bought in and tended his wounds which were superficial and purple sprayed him and put him back out, hoping that whatever it was doesnāt come back and if it does he can fend it off as I donāt have anywhere else for him to go. Iāve half a mind to think it was the baby boy rabbit that was in with them but he didnāt have any blood on him and the neck had been eaten out so looks like stoat maybe, if it was a rat they are usually only interested in food and there was some in the bowl. The boy rabbit has now been put in with the other boy, so now girls and boys are separate thank goodness, so we wonāt have any mishaps!
We often have some strange customers and visitors as this week has already shown š and todayās request did not let that custom down, ācan I cuddle a chickenā luckily it was John who was out there and he can be very obliging lol and so the ladyās request was granted š
The rain continued to come down and once I had finished the housework and John had finished outside we called it a day and watched a film in the warm and dry š
And thatās it for this week as I am off with the girls tomorrow morning for some great food, great drink, spa treatments, relaxation and general time out leaving John in charge for the time Iām away.
I haven’t got any photos this week and I was looking back through them to see if I could find one or two of general interest, what I decided was that I will do a blog just of past photos sometime next week, it’s interesting to look back at what we have done form year to year, keep your eyes peeled for that š
Monday: 3.30pm just sat down with a cuppa after a bit of a day, Iām back on a daily dose of painkillers at the minute, hands hurt, muscles hurt, pain in the arse, not literally but itās difficult to get stuff done when bits of you wonāt work properly! Anyhow, this mornings shocker was, wait for it, two more baby rabbits just born, although they were both dead, this means that the rabbits were getting out for longer than I had suspected. Did the feeding rounds then went and gave both the rabbits and Guineas a good clean out and I really needed to round up these babies that are getting behind the boarding and out into the field. Samantha and Mia came over mid morning and we set about trying to catch them by means of lying in wait for them one at a time, We caught two and caged them, by his time Mia was getting a bit bored so we decided to wait until after lunch when she had her nap, to finish the job. In the end we managed to round up 5 of them, one has a chunk missing from its ear and one has managed to get a wound on its back probably from scrabbling in and out of the small gap, two are still on the loose. We think one of them is now too big to get back through the gap and as it could be seen on the other side of the fence nibbling grass, if we donāt manage to catch it, it will have to fend for itself. This morning I had to turn the horse out without a rug on because I couldnāt do the fastenings, see these pains are really inconvenient, but as the sun was looking like it was coming out Jack didnāt mind too much, Sam mucked out the stable then did his field and put his rug back on and all is well again. I planted the pea and bean seeds I had growing on the windowsill and fingers crossed nothing will eat them š
Caught another one when I was putting the birds to bed, just one more to go.
Tuesday: Rainy day š on and off rain so bad luck if you get caught like I did doing the afternoon feeding. I had a 10 minute window to feed and collect the eggs as Mia was asleep and John came home before he had to go to the dentist. I quickly discovered that my waterproof needs reproofing, I was only out 10 minutes and was soaked through literally to the skin in places, urghh need to sort out wet weather gear as well as the cold gear. I remember why I hate the winter now, I could be heard muttering about having only a few chickens for self sufficiency purposes rather than a large flock. The rain is coming over the top of the guttering inside the stable block, I did tell John he needed to clear them a couple of weeks ago when I did the ones I could reach, need to start those lists again I think š At least I had already lit the fire so it was nice and warm when I came back in.
Wednesday: Cold this morning but at least itās not raining. Did the morning stuff, put the eggs out for sale and had a conversation with a regular customer who is retiring to the coast next week so will no longer be coming. I wished him all the best and hope he finds a nice little farm to buy his eggs from where he is going. I have been remiss about making bread for the last couple of weeks, I just didnāt have the time or the inclination but Iām back on track with that again, I may even make a cake today š
Definitely got my cooking head on as I decided to prepare a lamb stew for tomorrow which will cook in the Rayburn this evening, an apple and blueberry sponge pudding, a batch of dumplings, some for the stew and some to freeze for another day and some fully loaded potatoes that cook in the slow cooker to go with the pork chops later. Stews are great because you just make it up as you go along with whatever you have, this one is stewing lamb, potatoes, butternut squash, onions, rosemary, thyme, garlic, salt, pepper, red wine, some pontack sauce, vegetable stock and cornflour.
I would have done more cooking but I had Mia from lunchtime so Bing and babies were on the agenda instead.
Thursday: I plan to pack a fair bit into today so I was up early and got the bathroom and living room cleaned before daybreak came š Then out to do the morning feeding etc, the grass in the back paddock particularly, is like a skating rink so we have decided to move the hens from there and put them into the POL pen for the winter as nothing else will be going in there. They will be let out to free range every day but not until mid morning that way we will hopefully get the eggs laid all in one place instead of all over the farm. But my first job on the list is to make a secure pen within the rabbit run for the babies, bit of a mission as they can seemingly squeeze through the tiniest of gaps, an hour later, a roll of chicken wire, staple gun, wire cutters, scratched hands, dirty knees and the sides of a run and objective achieved š I can now let them out into a bigger area and assess their health etc. After that it was on to prepare the POL run for the hens, my plan is to get it all cleaned, put in a dust bath made up of diatomaceous earth, wood ash, louse powder and shavings, extra nesting boxes which will be plastic buckets and tubs, and lure them in at the afternoon feed with corn. I very nearly managed to get all but about 10 hens in so thatās not bad, the rest we will gather up when we have time or hopefully they may follow suit later tomorrow.
Meanwhile I have been making a list of jobs for John to do at the weekend and a shopping list of things we need for the Farm, lightbulbs for the hay barn, rat poison, Iām determined to not have the same problem we had last year and the cats seem completely useless, feed, including wild bird feed because the little birds that have grown in number are raiding the rabbit food to the extent that there are bird droppings galore in there, might as well get something to feed them as itās costing me which ever way I do it š
Josh and Shelley came over in the afternoon and helped me to feed the rabbits some fresh veggies and feed the horse, I didnāt get round to cleaning the rest of the house but there is always tomorrowš
The stew, complete with dumplings was superb, only I forgot to get a photo before we ate it š
Friday: Up early again as I forgot to put the dustbin out last night so need to get it out before 6am, not that they come before 8 but on the day I donāt do it you can bet your life they will be early! John was also up early so he went out and cleaned out the front hens, fed the and let them out, saves me a job š
The weather yesterday, by the way was cracking for early November, this mornings sky is dark and ominous, however it is windy so Iām hoping the dark clouds will blow around us and not towards us.
One of the jobs in the mornings that I do now is laying the fire in the Rayburn ready for lighting as soon as I think itās getting cold, at the moment thatās usually around 1pm as the heat from the night before slowly ebbs away, we have been burning pure logs for a while as I have been saving the wood ash for the chicken dust baths and for the garden. It needs to be good wood and not wood with nails for obvious reasons and it needs to be untreated, then itās perfect for all sorts of uses around the farm.
Gave the windows a clean, I say that rather loosely, not my forte, window cleaning š I hate it but at this time of year with the low sun you can see all the dirt and eventually it starts to really annoy me so out comes the bucket, cloth and the window rubber thing, my windows are small and few but I do need the hop up to reach the top, and now I have cleaner windows with a few smears, that will do for me šš I have better things to do than spend an age getting them smear free š
I started thinking about the Mid Winter feast and the various components, the meat is in the freezer as are the veg, I have all the ingredients for making the pudding, I just need to pick a good time that incorporates, the soaking of the fruit, the children coming to stir it and the hours of steaming it will need, I went onto testing the sloe gin I made last year, yep 10am Iām on the booze, well a little sip at least, I think I need to add a bit of sugar syrup and I might add a cinnamon stick to give it a deep, warming quality, not that it doesnāt have that already š but I fancied giving it a go. The mincemeat has been developing nicely for a few weeks now and in our house we traditionally start making, and eating mince pies from Dec 1st, I donāt usually make a Christmas cake as we are always still eating it for weeks after we have got fed up of it but we will have visitors this year so I shall make one very soon. Obviously we have the nuts I gathered and plenty of fruit in the freezer to make many a splendid dish with š We shall eat like kingsš¤“ and queens šø
Saturday: Today I thought it was high time to tackle the office come dumping ground! That was a big job that took most of the day, everything pulled out sorted out, piles for the charity shop, piles for the rubbish bin, piles for giving or selling on. It is a multifunction room really and most things are stored in there, grandchildren paraphernalia, Christmas stuff, photo albums, hoover, spare chair, fold out bed, a small chest of drawers filled with stuff we havenāt worn for a few years, cctv monitor, music system as well as the desk, filing cabinet, folders of paperwork, printer etc you get the idea, itās pretty rammed. As a consequence when I am cleaning I kind of look in there hoover the floor and shut the door so it was well over due for a de webbing and dusting too. I felt it was a great and worthy achievement when it was finished, how long it will stay like that is anyoneās guess š Meanwhile, John took care of all the outside work and feeding, cleaning gutters out, tidying the muck heap, burning rubbish, all the jobs on my list and a few more besides š
The rain has put us squarely back into winter mode and the dogs were filthy by the end of the day so they had their first bath in a while, they were not happy but whatās not to like they have a bath to stand in AND hot water to boot, canāt please some.
Sunday: The weather is windy today so that should dry things up a little, I went out and checked the baby rabbits but apart from that John did the rest, including cleaning out the ducks. I came in and got started on mixing up the Christmas cake ready to go in the oven.
https://pin.it/r-sJ9dP
Iām on a roll with the Christmas eating ideas now and I think I will try a pork pie with hot crust pastry, never done it before so excited about giving it a go.
Apart from the usual domestic chores and going down to do the horse that was pretty much it for the day and we are having dinner at Charlie and Maccas tonight so I donāt even have to cook š
The photos are the stages of the cake, it smells divine, now just got to decide how to decorate it in a few weeks time.
frieslandfarm (flowers) 