January on the farm!

Howdy y'all! It's January out on the farm! Since it's so cold, (and it's winter!) we don't have many greens for our henny pennys. But we got a cabbage and hung it in their run and they loved it! Recently, we have been talking about what kinds of chicks we want to get this spring. We'll keep you posted on that.

Lately, we have been feeling crafty! Our first project was knitting. At the beginning, it was pretty bad, but we have been working on it, and have gotten a lot better. We have been making tree huggers for our farm. Second, we went to the art store and got a big bottle of Mod Podge. We decorated outlet and lightswitch covers.

On the nice days, the boys go out to work on the dock. They have been making a lot of progress!

Lemon Poppy Seed Bread

Lemon Poppy Seed Bread

1 ¾ c all-purpose flour

1 t baking powder

½ t kosher salt

2 eggs

¾ c granulated sugar

½ c canola oil

1 t vanilla extract

6 oz lemon yogurt

1 T poppy seeds

2 t lemon zest

Heat oven to 350˚ F. Coat an 8 ½ in. by 4 ½ in. loaf pan with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.  In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, yogurt, sugar, oil, and poppy seeds.

Gradually add the flour mixture into the egg mixture, stirring until just mixed.

Transfer the batter into the prepared pan and bake until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (55 – 65 minutes).  Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

While the bread cools, prepare the glaze. Combine ¾ c confectioners sugar and 2 T lemon juice. Spoon the glaze over the top while the bread is still warm on the rack.

Laundromania

With six people in the family, we have a lot of laundry to do! (Especially when one of them is Elliot.)  We found a DIY laundry soap recipe that we like that we would like to share with you from www.diynatural.com

1 bar Fels-Naptha soap
1 c Borax
1 c washing soda


Grate the bar soap with a cheese grater. If you value your knuckles, you can use the food processor! Make sure you chop it a bit first, though. Then add the Borax and washing soda until it is a fine mixture. That was easy!

Birthday Cupcakes

TADA!

December is chalk full of birthdays at the Youngs! On Sunday, we celebrated mine. For my birthday, I made chocolate cupcakes with strawberry buttercream frosting and a chocolate covered strawberry on top. Dad's rating? "Awesome!"

Frosting the cupcakes

While looking for a recipe, I discovered a great cooking blog! The blog has lots of good recipes and ideas, including my cupcake recipe! I recommend you check it out. Click here to see the recipe I used and her other wonderful concoctions.

~Caroline

Rich the Builder can do it all!

A few weeks ago, there wasn't enough water. This week, there was too much!  That's where our handy dandy rental pump comes into play. Dad worked to pump about 75,000 gallons of water out of the pond last weekend! Once the water level was low enough to start the dock, the crew (Dad and two friends) used an auger to drill out the holes for the supports. Today, Dad is working to place the repurposed telephone poles into their holes.  After he cut the engine on the bobcat, he was able to answer a couple interview questions.

The final step!

What was the process to get the poles in the holes?
Well, first I scoop up the post and get it centered on the bucket of the skid loader.
After that, I tip up the bucket, then pull forward until the pole is not dragging on the ground. Once it is about balanced, we chain it down. We lift it up, drive very slowly and slide it very carefully into the hole.

What are the next steps?
We will probably let the poles settle as much as they can, then pack in the holes. Once all of that is done, we can start building the frame!

Thank you David and Robbie for all the help!

I will keep you up to date on the action.
Caroline Young, 2625 News

Carving pumpkins isn't just for humans anymore! The chickens at the Golden Egg have been working away on their post-Halloween special. They have chiseled two eyes and are currently working on carving out the stem. What a group of over-achievers...








Sadly, our sweetest girl, Dolly, was found dead this past weekend.  She had been through a lot in her short life and fought like a trooper.  We worked to correct her crooked toes and to save her after she caught her head in a fence and was nearly decapitated. She was loved dearly and a special chicken. The other chickens made a tribute to her after she died as they laid all of their eggs in her crate.



As you can see, Mother Nature is working to fill up our pond.  Dad is hoping it doesn't fill too fast so he can build the dock without hip waders on!  There is a white pipe with a red cap sticking out in the picture.  This is a dry hydrant. Dry hydrants allow fire fighters to pump water from the pond to fill their truck. That's probably a good idea at this house! See blogpost FIRE!!!!!

Fall on the Farm

The results are in and the winner is... lemongrass! Once our ingredients arrive, we will make a batch of our favorite, Gentlemen Farmer soap.
This past week, our pond friends, Bob, Russ and Keith, worked 12 hour days and finished up our pond! (minus the two million gallons of water and the fishies) As they dug our pond, they found old concrete rubble. They made three piles for the future fish to live in.

The equinox has passed so the chickens laying has slowed to about six eggs a day. To boost them back up to their normal rate, we attached a light onto their timer. Now their day starts around six am sharp. But, Waffles doesn't wear a watch and he starts crowing at four! Another reason we aren't getting as many eggs is because some of the hens are molting. Here you see Junie. She is one of the girls that is losing her feathers. Don't you worry! She does have two legs.





The spinach grow off ended in a tie. We all lost... But that doesn't stop us! We planted more lettuce and  some garlic. To prevent the seeds from washing away and getting frosted overnight, we put a plastic tarp over our lettuce. Hopefully our plants will grow this time, so we can have the yummy salads we dream of.