Rafe was a big help in the garden on Sunday. With his help we got 20 pounds of potatoes planted.
He uses a hand trowel to get the right spacing…
…and sets them in the row.
Matt came behind him covering them. All that was left for me to do was snap pictures…my favorite job 🙂
2 cute little heifers, that look a lot alike! Fortunately one wears white socks so that I can tell them apart.
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Once upon a time, a long time ago…I turned 30. And one of my best friends from high school did, too, just 7 days before me. So I flew out to San Francisco to celebrate with her.
Me, left, Susan, right
Susan and I share a love of food. I wouldn’t exactly call us foodies, though. I think having Ding Dongs and nacho cheese dip on your favorite foods list disqualifies a person from that moniker. Regardless, we ate some really good food for our birthdays. It was in San Francisco I had a breakfast I’ll never forget.
Buckwheat pancakes.
Fried potatoes.
And eggs benedict.
The aftermath.
Fast forward to today. The hens are laying again. I’m in need of an egg dish to fix for supper. I decided to give the home version of eggs benedict a go. With a few changes, of course
Eggs benedict is usually made with Canadian bacon. We have cottage bacon made when we butcher pork, and it reminds me a little of Canadian bacon. I like to use it on pizza, or to lean up a BLT. I thought it would work just fine in my version of eggs benedict.
Then you have to poach your eggs. Simply get a saucepan half full of water boiling then reduce to a simmer. Crack an egg into a measuring cup, then quickly slide the egg from the cup into the simmering water.
Cook 3 to 5 minutes, to desired doneness. The eggs kind of look like jellyfish while they cook.
Remove the egg from the saucepan with a slotted spoon. Place Canadian bacon, or cottage bacon, atop an English muffin. I changed things up a little here, too, and used slices of English muffin bread. It was delicious! Put an egg on top of the bacon, add Hollondaise sauce and sprinkle with paprika.
Hollandaise sauce is simple to make, and is yet another good use for extra eggs. Melt 1/2 cup butter, 1 Tablespoon lemon juice and 1 Tablespoon water in a glass measuring cup in the microwave. Place 3 egg yolks in a bowl, then slowly whisk the melted butter mixture into the egg yolks. Cook this mixture in the microwave 30 to 45 seconds, whisking every 10 seconds, until thickened.
My home version of eggs benedict turned out yummy, and made a wonderful spring meal paired with asparagus.
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Is there anything sexier than a man tilling your garden? (And some random chicken.)
I didn’t think so.
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1 year ago:
The first batch of chicks for this year is in the garage brooder pen. These guys are all business when it comes to eating.
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This is Pretty Girl. Don’t tell the others, but she’s Matt’s favorite cow. He loves Herefords, and Pretty Girl was the first one he bought. I guess there’s always a special place in a guy’s heart for his first Hereford.
4 years ago:
3 years ago:
I love the piglets at this age
2 years ago:
Chicks will pick a sunny spot on the floor
1 year ago:
Calf #2 is on the ground, and so far so good.
But as you can imagine, I’m now impossibly paranoid. My office window overlooks the cows’ winter lot, and I’m constantly checking on them. Today this little girl layed in the same spot for what seemed like much too long. But eventually her mother did rouse her for a bite to eat.
Isn’t she cute? I love how she looks like she’s wearing a hoodie!
We have another cow that looks just like this one, and she had a calf that looks just like this one. I’ve got to try and get a picture of them, if I can tell who’s who!
2 years ago:
This has been one of the nicest springs I can remember. The mud hasn’t been too bad, the weather’s been warm. The farmers are getting a good start in the fields. Madeline had her first track meet of the season yesterday and we had a gorgeous afternoon for sitting in the bleachers cheering. (And yay for her 8th grade team for winning the meet! They placed in every single event. She placed 1st in the 1500m, she anchored the shuttle hurdle team which placed 2nd, and she anchored the 4×400 which placed 1st.)
Of course, all of this has me worried that we’re in for a drought. Because as you all know by now, I’m a fretter.
So I’m really itching to get in the garden. With the late harvest last fall (due to the epic floods) my dad didn’t have time to get the garden turned then. So Sunday afternoon he brought over his big rig + the soil saver.
As you can see, Rafe had to ride along with Grandpa.
Down one side,
up the other side,
a few times through the middle and the job was done.
Hopefully we can get time to till and plant some early-season crops before the rain Saturday. I’m just craving something fresh & green!
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See that egg? Front row, third from the right? Every once in a while someone lays a giant egg, and it just makes my hiney tingle.
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Remember this guy?
He was 6 days old on Saturday, and had been doing good all week. When I checked on him Saturday morning he was just standing in the pile of cornstalks that the cows like to sleep on. I thought to myself that he didn’t look as spunky as usual, but I don’t know much about cows so I dismissed the thought.
Some friends came out to see the baby chicks and I wanted to show them the new calf. His mother was at the bale feeder eating, but he was nowhere to be seen. Matt found him in the shed, next to the water tank laying in a puddle, now definitely acting very dumpy.
So Matt hauled him out of there and tried to get some electrolytes down him. He swallowed but wouldn’t suck, so we asked my brother to have a look at him. His breathing was clear, he wasn’t scouring, he just seemed dehydrated. So my brother tubed him to get some more electrolytes in him.
Unfortunately our Easter morning didn’t bring a miraculous return from the almost-dead. Our first calf of the ’09 calving season became the first loss of the ’09 calving season. And I’m wondering why I don’t trust my own instincts.
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