Well, Life on a Farm is Kinda Laid Back...Thank God I'm A Country Gal!

Vincent's 4th Year Selling A Hog!
$8.50 a Pound

Leah's Second Year Selling a Hog!
$13.50 a pound!

Another County Fair has come and gone.  Three grand kids raised and sold their hogs...and they did an awesome job! Our County Fair Livestock Auction earned the kids in the county in excess of $1.6 million dollars!  How amazing is that...we're a county of only 22,000 folks.

Granddaughter Lynda...First Year and She Was Beat! 
$18.50 a pound!

The Garden has been down-sized again due to our continuing drought.  I plant just enough for my pantry and a bit to give to the kids.  The kids all have their own gardens...small, but enough to keep salads and fresh veggies on the table daily.  I turned 2 of my raised beds into chicken brooders!  My egg sales really ramped up last year so I doubled production...and because of the avian flu I have folks from all over wanting eggs and meat chickens...and turkeys.  I'm raising a small flock of turkeys for the family to see if this is something I want to do on a bigger scale.  Never thought I'd be in the poultry business...but looks like I am!

Baby Turkeys...Just Love These Guys..Too Cute!

I've invested in a nice little shed/barn this year...my stuff was just getting out of hand..I had gardening, poultry, bee, hog, kayak equipment strung all over the place...just looked junky.  You would think with FIVE barns on this property I would have plenty of space...well, thanks to my husband's HOARDING I was being pushed out.  We have 3/4's of a barn that is storing all the DEAD family members junk...really, like an Egyptian pyramid!  I keep threatening to have an estate sale...my husband used to violently reject the idea...but I recently noticed 2 brand new expensive tractors parked next to that same barn and not under the roof...he told me there was no room!  I told him it was time to start getting rid of stuff: he shook his head and said: "Yeah...maybe"...I take that as a YES!

My Wonderful Shed/Barn!!

I'm still working at the school...love the job.  Lots of changes and sometimes turmoil...but so goes life.  I have a great staff...finally.  Hard working gals that want to make a difference and really love and care about the kids. We're doing more and more scratch cooking...we've introduced some great lunches for the teachers and administration...and that's a BIG step.  If the teachers eat at the table with their students I give them a break on their lunch...such a difference in behavior and less food waste. It was just a fluke: I had a kindergarten teacher want lunch and I told her I'd "comp" the lunch if she ate with her kids (usually they lead the kids to the cafeteria and leave).  One of the best ideas I've had since I started the job.

Staff Acting Silly On Halloween!
We Don't Dress Like This AT ALL!

I've been able to spend more time up at the cabin.  Smaller garden, timed irrigation and automated poultry operation has freed up a lot of my time.  I only work 182 days a year and have lots of earned vacation and sick leave.  I was earning over time hours and cashing those hours out...not now, I use them to extend my 3 day weekends!  I take an extra day each 3 day weekend!  Fridays are PIZZA day at our school and a very easy "cook/serve" day...it's just perfect for me to take it off  on the weekends we have Monday as a holiday.  This tiny little change in my schedule has changed my attitude 100%!  I had reached a point where I just wanted to quit.  I was earning $$ but no time to enjoy my life.  I would get off of work at 2 p.m. get home feed the animals, water and weed the garden, start dinner and sleep...weekends I was watching grand kids.  Just adding that extra one day to an extended weekend a couple times (or once) a month has done wonders...I even encourage my staff to comp a Friday once a month.  Of course my Department Head doesn't like it...but our Union contract allows for it...and if it's a Friday (EZ-PZ day) who cares.

My youngest daughter and her husband bought a nice vacation property up at a nice Lake within a 1/2 hour drive of my cabin! So I have another option to getting away from it all!! They purchased an established dental practice in Paradise, CA...and are living in Chico...his hometown.  They have a cute place across from Bidwell Park...if you know anything about the area, Bidwell is a slice of Heaven...horse, bike and running trails right on the the creek...beautiful setting!

Daughter number two is getting married the 20th of June...a real outdoor Farm wedding.  Thank goodness she and the younger daughter are best friends...the two have everything under control...and Dad is in charge of the "funding"...I just have to sit back and enjoy: My kind of wedding!

A Practice Table Arrangement...We have to
Make 40 of These!  YIKES!
Flowers From Our Combined Yards and Gardens

My oldest daughter has opened her Baby Business on the Gulf Coast...her dream...with her oldest daughter as a partner!  She's a Mid-wife and teaches all sorts of classes...the storefront offers Natural baby needs, classes for moms and dads and the Midwifery services.  Hopefully I'll make it out this Fall to check it out myself, in person!  Luna Babies

Today we're to break the 100 degree mark and it's already in the 80's at 9:00 a.m.  I'm heading out the door to turn the misters on the birds...don't worry...I'm very drought friendly...recycled water from the catchment system (the same system my son and husband thought was silly a few years ago: "We have a deep well...we'll never run out of water!"...yeah, right).

Harvest Monday: April 28

Join us over at Daphne's Dandelions Harvest Monday...and here's my Harvest:

Carrots, The First Artichokes and the Last of the Lemons

Harvest Monday...Yes!

I'm continuing to harvest some very nice lettuces...a couple leeks...and a very small handful of strawberries.  Plant and harvest, plant and harvest...something out and something in.  The soil has warmed up enough to plant more green beans and peppers.  I've planted a few more Russet potatoes for Fall storage.   Joining up with Daphne's Dandelions Harvest Monday.

Harvest Monday...Late

Almost forgot to post!   Joining up with Harvest Monday at Daphne's Dandelions.

4 Types of Lettuce...Lots and Lots in the Garden

Just in time for Easter...they ladies are laying like crazy...this is one days "gift"

Only got a few of these beauties...just haven't done well for me the last couple of years...I'll just keep trying!

What I Wear

When I was selling real estate I was a major clothes horse...I could spend a ton on all kinds of outfits and shoes.  First thing I did after closing my real estate office was to donate all of the clothes and shoes to a local program outfitting homeless women for job interviews...I was glad to get rid of the closets full of clothes and happy to help women in my community.  During my 4 year retirement my daily Spring and Summer "uniform" became a tank top with knit shorts/or denim capris.  In the Winter I wore leggings, sweatshirt type tunics and Uggs.  If I needed to muck out a chicken coop or mow a lawn I had a couple pair of Big Mac overhauls and rubber boots. I had saved back 4 "dress-up" outfits for weddings and funerals.  Now I'm back at work...but when you're the Lunch Lady you don't have to have an appropriate "Uniform".  I started out as a sub and followed my work mates' lead: worn jeans, ugly tee shirts (most with stupid logos) and sneaks...you wear an apron, so who really cares...I DID.  I always felt grubby and kinda' dumb...and I'm not dumb.  When I was made Head Cook and supervised my own kitchen and staff I dressed in nice slacks, white oxford shirt with a dark cardigan...that was too business-like and I was "out-dressing" my boss (she wears nice sports wear...tee shirts and denim capris).  I ordered 5 pair of Chef's baggy pants in different patterns (food and garden patterns) and matching solid colored knit tops.  Bingo!  The perfect outfit for the School Lunch Lady...no hair net... no yucky tee shirts, or whiskers on my chin. On their own, my staff started wearing hospital scrubs and boy do they look spiffy.  My original chef's pants are just starting to wear out, so I'm making new ones...the kids are going to love these, they're a cross between scrubs and Chef's wear!

An my Granddaughter has taken up sewing, so we now sew together...this table has four sewing machines set up on it!  She's making an apron for her mom...actually she's taking out a seam on her apron and will re-sew it...we both are sticklers for perfection!  Everything is more fun when you have a partner!

My Secret Stash

I make my own laundry soap...have for years.  My husband is a Tide Man...his Mom was a Tide Mom.  So, to keep the peace I make laundry soap and pour it in a big almost empty bottle of Tide...the bottle contains about an 1/8th of the liquid Tide.  My husband is none the wiser...I just keep the 5 gallons of "homemade" stuff in the storage space under the staircase.  I have a front loader washer and the homemade stuff works just fine.  Twice a year I do a special "bleach and blue" on all of the "whites"...they can get dingy...but I noticed they got dingy with the full strength Tide, too.  Today after making my semi-annual laundry soap I gathered up all of the whites and did some bleaching and bluing...mmmmmm...very nice!  Now out on the line for a bit of California sunshine! It's 80 degrees with a slight breeze...perfect weather for doing the laundry!

Promises

Artichokes

Strawberries

The garden is teasing me with the first of her many promises:

Tomato

Onion

Figs