RIP

I feel better. We now resume our regular knitting.

Matches, please

See this??

It is the Prayer Shawl pattern from Debbie Macomber's latest "Yarn Shop on Blossom Street" novel. Valerie wanted to knit one for her m0ther-in-law and I agreed to a knit along for moral support. Yes, she manages to get me into a lot of scrapes...

I have reknit the same row for an hour now and the pattern is NOT working out. Now, I am a fine knitter, quite frankly. Very little challenges me to the point of crying. This has.

So I have decided to set fire to it in the front yard.

Bathe with Goats and Bees!

One of the lovely things about our farm is the fact that we have ready access to many things that make life just perfect! Two of these are goat's milk and honey. My son drinks the two combined, but me? I just want to bathe in it!

This is how we start: castile soap which has cured for two months, cinnamon, and a mold. My son and I made the castile soap several months ago so that it could cure and be just for the second part of our French milled soap process. The honey isn't shown here. Don't you love the little bee mold? Just perfect for "Lazy Bee Farm"!

Here we have the melted castile soap. It was grated down very finely and added to the goat's milk to melt. Very little stirring is done at this point. We wouldn't want to have a lot of suds! To melt the soap and combine the milk, we use a double boiler system. It takes a lot longer, but is a lot safer for someone like me who thinks that burned green beans (just a tad scorched) improves their flavor. I just love the colour of the castile soap and goat's milk! It is very soft gold at this point. Beautiful! This is when we add honey and cinnamon. Can't you just smell it!?

Viola! This is the soap after it has been frozen for an hour and is ready to cut and put on drying racks. The soap cures for another few weeks and is then packaged and ready to either sell or for the tub.

I just love making the soap! It is such an interesting process and makes the house smell heavenly! We have made clove (good for skin circulation), sage (excellent for rashes and skin disorders), cinnamon (soothes the skin), lavendar (can you say, ahhhhh?) and honey (plumps the skin). These will be for sale in my etsy shop starting this weekend. Drop in and have a peek!

I'm off for a soak!

Welcome Back, Brenda!

So glad you are safely arrived home, Brenda! We have missed your wisdom and your gentleness! Rest and tell us all about your trip tomorrow, won't you?

Good Morning, Sunshine!

After four days of dreary weather, rain and snow, we are finally back to what should be fall weather -- sunshine and 60s! To celebrate, there will be some serious outside activities today. Those potatoes will be dug; the hostas will be divided; and, all the summer "stuff" will be stored. There are herbs to pick and put in the dehydrator. And, the does and bucks all have to be shifted to new pastures.

We are trying a new method of parasite management. Well, actually, it isn't that new. Our forefathers knew this; we just forgot. In the past, there was more than enough pastures for grazers. While they may have been contained in pastures, most farmers had just the right ratio of animals to land. These days, we don't. Animals are crowded into lots or pastures far too small for the numbers. This results in exposure to parasites and worms that animals just don't have the immune system to resist.

Charlie and Connor enjoy their new space!

So, this year, we are trying the co-pasturing theory. This means that we have cows and chickens alternating pastures with the goats. And, we have split the goats into two herds to reduce the number on a pasture. It is a lot of upfront expense. There has to be fencing as well as housing in each pasture. Rain is death to goats, so, they must have access to cover. We have accomplished this by creative pasturing, creating an alleyway to each paddock which has a very clever (I am not at all proud) house constructed of fence panels and tarp or a stand alone bulding, depending on the field. The alley can be manipulated to allow consistent access to the milking parlor. Pretty cool.

Hollie demands a "little more hay, please!"

It is working. Our gals are fatter and happier than ever. We are not dealing with parasite overrun which means that we are not using chemicals or herbs too frequently. All in all, we are quite pleased. And the gals are, too.

Added later: Yeppers. The barn is purple. All the out buildings are. The does wanted purple and they got it!

Come to the Pantry Party!

Jane over at Thrifty Countrywoman is hosting a pantry party. We are sharing reciepts or posting hints for stocking the pantry.

I'm all for reciept sharing, so here we go!

Creamy, Dreamy, Potato Soup

6 medium potatoes (we use Yukon Gold -- such a pretty colour!)
2 medium onions
5 c. whole milk or
4 c. milk and 1 c. cream
1/2 stick butter
salt and pepper to taste

Peel and thinly slice the onions. Melt 1 T. butter in a sauce pan and cook onions until clear. Peel and thinly slice the potatoes. Add them to the onions and put in just enough water to cover them. Cook slowly until the potatoes are fork tender. Pour off the water to use for making sourdough bread or Moravin Sugar Cake.

Mash the potatoes to your desired consistency. We like chunks of potatoes, so we just mash them until we have a half and half of chunks and mashed potatoes. Add the rest of the butter and all of the milk. Heat through and serve with cheese croutons.

Miss Kathryn will add a small can of chopped tomatoes to the soup as well as about 1/2 c. cheddar cheese. Sometimes, she will fry up some bacon, use the grease to cook her onions and leave it in the pot to flavor the soup. I love the tomatoes and cheese addition! Yummers!

Won't you join our party? Just click on Jane's link above or on the sidebar or post your receipt in the comments section.

Bon appetite!

I'm Roving....

As a distraction from the weather, how about we all look at what sheep do in the winter? They wear wool.

This roving is a lovely Rambouillet/Merino/Alpaca from Nancy at Foxfire Hollar Farm. It is a natural coloured fiber and will be lovingly spun for use as either a shawl or scarf and hat combo. It has a wonderful hand and, when washed, will bloom into an even softer and fuller fiber. There are eight ounces here, but when I got home this morning from the shop's third anniversary party, I realized I wanted the full pound. I got the last of this particular roving and I am so excited!

Nancy's shop features such delicous goodies as yarn, weaving, baskets, toys, as well as Nancy's own beef, pork, and lamb. She is an amazing woman! I could sit and watch her talk to people all day! She has the gift of hospitality and makes everyone feel as though they are the most important person in the world. Her shop is like a lively bee hive and she is the queen; we all adore her and appreciate her!

This came from Pat at Kid Hollow Farm. Evelyn brought it to me when she went to the Montpelier Fiber Festival a few weeks ago. It is the "Crayola" colourway and a 50/50 blend of mohair and border leicester; there are eight ounces here and it will be a scarve or a small shoulder shawl. It will depend on if I ply it or not. Single ply will give a finer weight and would make the more lovely shawl, don't you agree? It is currently on my wheel and now I am eager to finish spinning it so that I can move to the next roving. I can't help but think that this may be from the little goats I fed animal cookies to last summer when we (Evelyn, Deneice, and I) went to visit Pat at her farm.

If you take a quick look at her web page, you can see the darling faces of her little ones. Pat and her husband Steve manage their farm as well as work full-time jobs! And, what is more amazing is that Pat does ALL the dyeing herself! Such a lovely farm! (I won't discuss the near fatal encounter I had with a black snake looped around a rope in her stable. I have a near deadly fear of anything snakish -- on TV or in person! It caused quite a howl when I scaled the knee walls and tore a door off the hinge escaping the very very very large black snake... I do not exaggerate...)

All this is in an effort to deny the fact that there have been snow flurries this morning and tonight. And, it is my effort to find something toasty and warm to do. Why is it that 35-degrees doesn't seem nearly so cold in January as it does in October?

Here is where I will be, should you need to find me: