Eggs for sale

In the summer, we have eggs galore! I'm starting to play around with the idea of selling our extra eggs. I already have quite a customers! I hope to start selling this summer! I've joked with the boys that I'll sell enough eggs to send them to college!  Good thing Pickle is in kindergarten!

Happy, hot hens

https://youtu.be/M2gdurO4U-Y

Spring sunset

Blessed to see beauty in humble places...

Sparrow

Our kitten is getting bigger!

Check out the slow motion video I took of her getting a bed night drink while I brushed my teeth!

https://youtu.be/G5MSkd_9uWU

My oh my, gotta love homemade pie

Something about spring makes me want to bake a pie, or two! JJ's favorite pie is cherry! But, to be honest, our whole family loves a homemade pie of any variety (except mincemeat, or anything with prunes!) This pie didn't last 24 hours!  And, being honest once again, our family of four can easily take down a whole pie in one sitting! What will I do when I have two teenagers???  

My love for pie baking came from Miss Emily, a lovely friend of mine, who years ago taught me how to make a flaky pie crust dough in her tiny kitchen, all while having a babe on her hip!

Below is the pie dough recipe I use:

2 cups flour

One stick and 5 tablespoons of butter

1 teaspoon of salt

1/4 cup of room temperature water

This crust is great for an immediate roll out or to use days later after chilling out in the fridge. 

And that is exactly what I did...chilled my dough two days ago and used it today to make this beauty!

This banana cream pie was absolutely lovely! I tried this recipe for the first time today and it turned out unbelievably good! I do give most of the credit for this amazing pie to our hens; their amazing egg yolks created a gorgeous color and flavor. Also a shout to my assistant pastry chef, Pickle! 

Add some fresh whipped cream and...

Here is the link to the recipe! Try it! You won't regret it!

http://www.food.com/recipe/old-fashioned-banana-cream-pie-14979?photo=14712

Lemon ginger honey "tea"

Amazingly simple and refreshing- warm or cold! There are lots of various recipes on Pinterest but I simply did one cup of warm water (not boiling), juice from half a lemon, some freshly grated ginger (to taste; I did around a heaping teaspoon) and a spoonful of honey (or maybe too, if you have a sweet tooth like me!) I let all the flavors swim together for awhile (once again, for a more detailed recipe than "for awhile" check out my Pinterest page or search for "ginger lemon honey tea". I then strained out the floaters...and enjoyed my warm "tea" from my favorite "K" mug given to me by a loved one. Now this is a great way to start a morning!

Ahhhh, fresh veggies

Come spring, I love cooking with fresh vegetables! Farmers markets are now in full swing in our area, including a mid-week market in our tiny town! Purple radishes, green onion and parsley will go into my homemade macaroni salad!

Eating anything that is purple (naturally) is just plain ole' fun!

My veggie "scraps" we're quickly enjoyed by my two living garbage disposals! Should I wonder why they try and escape their pasture when I feed them every time they come visit my back door?! 

These radishes were not only beautiful but so tasty with just a hint of sea salt sprinkled on top!

I also chopped up some white cheddar, English farmhouse cheese!

Add some frozen peas, slightly spicy pickle relish, mayo, a variety of sweet and spicy mustards, along with some salt and pepper...

...and I was one happy farm wife! This sweet, salty, spicy and tangy macaroni salad didnt last more than 48 hours in our house! Next time, I'll double the recipe (that, of course, I made up in my head!) Did I tempt you to make your own macaroni "dump" salad with what you have in your fridge? I hope so!

Lilies of the Valley

My birth month flower and one of my favorite floral scents. May isn't May to me, without a bouquet of these white bells!

Cloudy days...

result in some amazing photography. Farmer J sent me this beauty via text today! All the little gems we find living on the farm! This picture is now my phone screen background and every time I use my phone, I smile! 

My goal is to blow up this picture to find an exact paint match! I just adore robin egg blue!

If only chickens laid eggs this blue-tiful color!

More bees arrived today...on Mother's Day

https://youtu.be/JgMSkXLEXLg

Brave Pickle carrying the bees to dada!

The queen bee!

Dumping the bees into our hive!

A beautiful day!

Happy Mother's Day!

Goat video!

https://youtu.be/Ak0z6VJXXx4

Beautiful day to be a farmer...

Future garden and compost pile. Farmers workout: mucking out the lambing barn! Straw gets heavy when it's saturated in pee and poo!

We found a old ice cream bucket and keep it in our freezer. Keeping it in the freezer keeps the flies and smells away until I'm ready to dump out the bucket into the compost bin!

The boys leftovers from last nights dinner 

make a good afternoon snack for the hens!

The new chicken area! Farmer J trimmed their wings so they can still free range in the pasture but cannot fly over the fence and poo all over my car, garage and driveway.  Wary Farmwife wins a small battle against the mess of farml life.

Yum. Vegetarian baked beans!

The secret passage between the chicken only area and the pasture! It's a tight squeeze for some of the gals!

The pasture is in full bloom...

Thank you pollinators!

Can you tell how high the ruminators can reach to get the yummy lilac leaves off the bush?

Grow prairie grow!

Do you see where the tricky hens are hiding their eggs?

They are not making it easy on this egg collector!

Enjoy the beautiful weather of spring!