Fun Friday

A friend came out today to visit. She wanted to experience the baby goats and all.  :)  She was glad she wore her tennis shoes instead of flip flops.   They goats would have LOVED her toes!

 One of her sons loved the babies.  Her dd who is 15 months LOVED them.

She liked the ducks too, but couldn't catch them.   She cried when we took her out of the baby pen.  

I think all three kids were worn out they napped on the way home.  Today was such a beautiful day for this!   Lots of sun, (maybe to much), no wind and just wonderful fellowship.  We all had fun!

Cooking

I'm sitting here trying hard to stay out of my kitchen.  MN is cooking supper.  She is a wonderful baker, but really isn't excited about meal cooking.   Today was her day.  She missed doing chores at the barn to cook.   She is frying egg plant and baking chicken strips.   Not store bought heat and eat chicken strips, but instead she is making a coating to go on chicken breast she is slicing into strips.   Her organizational skills might not be fully developed, but she is getting it done.   Not in the order I would have done it but oh well.

When we came in from chores D12 offered to take over cooking eggplant.  He used the excuse that he saw she was still working on the chicken and needed help.  She did need help, but he wanted to sample the eggplant as he cooked it!   D10 is helping by being the go for and washing dishes.  

We were talking as they cooked about how much they have changed.   D12 couldn't boil water when we go him.  He didn't know anything about cooking.  Now he is a good cook.  He also said he would have never offered to help when he came and wouldn't have helped if ask to.   These are such positive changes.   I'm not sure the foot of growth he has done is positive.  That kid is going to be TALL!!!  

D10 while he is learning to cook isn't allowed to do meals yet.  He can cook his own eggs.  He can do some task on getting things ready to cook.  He is getting there.   I see a lot of growth in the last few weeks in measuring and just a willing heart to cook.  

Last night was T's night to cook she decided on Lasagna.  My recipe isn't hard.  You cheat and use can spaghetti sauce.   Still it requires lots of measuring and in some cases substitutions.   Last night we had home made cream cheese but no cottage or ricotta cheese so she used it!   D10 was her helper.   He did a lot of the measuring.   They only doubled the recipe, some times we cook extra to freeze and do 4 times.  How many 11 yo's would make Lasagna?  Two pan fulls and it is all gone!  I would say it was good!  

I think of the life skills that assigning each child a night to not only prepare the meal, but plan it and make sure that we have everything to cook it teaches.   They are not cooking out of boxes, but from scratch most of the time.   All of them are great cooks.  They will make someone a great spouse!   Each of them has an area they are best at.  MJ is probably my best bread maker.  Probably because he measures the most careful.   MN is a wonderful baker.  T is my best throw it on the table and feed a crowd cooker.  D12 is a good meal cook and does good bread too.   D10 will get there! 

Remember that at our house making bread starts with grinding the wheat for the flour.  :) 

Fun Stuff!

Since we didn't have anything going on we decided to buy a few (12) dairy billy kids a few weeks ago.   Just to keep us from being bored.  Then Friday we went and got a few more (15).   So if you are keeping count that is 27 kids!  Add our 2 lambs that the dogs killed the mamas to and we have more than a few.  To start with each little goat has to be shown how to nurse the cow.  They aren't use to reaching quite so high to nurse.   The smaller ones we put on a tub under the cow.   After about a week of nursing like that then we start dropping then over the fence 4 at a time and they attack mama.   Then when their little tummies look like they will pop we remove them from the cow into the full pen. 

To feed 29 babies on two cows with 3-4 of us doing it takes about 30-40 minutes.   Not bad!   Some days I am blessed with lots of extra help in the form of smaller children.   Still takes the same 30-40 minutes, just lots of training going on in "helping"   Once helping is done then it is play time.  This is some pictures I took of 4 yo playing after the babies were full. 

 I love the smile on his face.  He really looks to be in heaven!

Sweet Hands...

Cooking with the next Chef!   This guy loves to cook.  This morning after I had finished mixing sour dough, which he supervised he played in my wheat grinding mess.

He measured back and forth until we had to leave to go get produce.  He didn't make a mess or anything, just measured.  

Homestudy Updated!

Well at least the home visit is behind us!  She still has to write it up and all.  It went very well.  Kids didn't do anything that made you crazy or looks crazy.  It went well I think  It was a nice visit where we really got to brag about how improved the kids are from where we started. 

Thank you everyone that has been praying for it to go smoothly. It really did. 

More Roping and other such country activities

This afternoon I again sent 4 yo after calves.  Calves are getting wiser, after a few rounds they went IN the pen without being roped.  After he penned the calves I turned him loose on the SWEET milk goat. She will NOT go in the pen without some help. She decided a 4 yo with a rope was a good enough reason to go IN the pen.

While he was chasing them around 2 yo wanted a rope. So I gave her a rope too.
Then I dug out my phone out and started taking pictures.

 She is chasing a chicken here, to rope it!

 He was working on roping the dog.   Dog was working on NOT being roped.

 After chasing the cat with the rope and cat avoiding the whole rope thing he tossed the rope down and CAUGHT the cat!

Roping Fiesta!

It all started when I suggested that grandson get the milk pen calves in the pen.  For those that don't know this type calf knows where to go and isn't wild, but won't do what you want well.   I suggested maybe taking the rope to help get them going that way.   Then I called mommy and told her to bring the camera.  I was feeding baby goats on the cow. 

First calf he went to work on was the bigger one.  Calf didn't do what he wanted.  Calf even went through his loop once.  Finally calf was penned without being roped.  This was a good thing! 



Then he was off to get the next calf.  This one is younger and smaller, much better roping material for a 4 yo.  

 After several laps around the pen....

 Then a few more...

 Success!!!!  He got her caught! 

Calf put in the pen!   He did suffer some rope burns on his hands from it.  He was totally proud of himself for doing it.   It was a very successful adventure for him.

Basic Sourdough Bread

I used WW flour insead of white and rapadura for the sugar.
By Donna M. on July 23, 2002

"Plain white, simple sourdough bread. A great starter recipe to use if you are new to sourdough baking. The dough cycle of the bread machine can be used to prepare the dough, if you like. Prep time does not include proofing time for starter."

Ingredients

• 2 cups proofed sourdough starter
• 1 tablespoon butter
• ½ cup milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 3 cups white bread flour

Directions

1. Before measuring out your 2 cups of starter culture, it must be proofed: To proof, I usually start with 1 cup of starter and stir into it equal parts of flour and warm water (for this recipe, 1 1/2 cups of each would be more than enough).
2. Let mixture sit, covered loosely, for 8 to 12 hours-- the longer it sits, the sourer the flavor will be.
3. At this point, measure out the 2 cups required for recipe, and return leftover starter to refrigerator for next time.
4. Pour starter into mixing bowl.
5. Melt butter (microwave works well).
6. Add milk to butter and warm briefly (85 degrees F).
7. Add the salt and sugar, stir until dissolved.
8. Add this mixture to the culture and mix well.
9. Add the flour, 1 cup at a time, stirring until the dough is too stiff to mix by hand.
10. Turn onto floured board and knead in the remaining flour until the dough is smooth and satiny.
11. Pat dough into a 1-inch thick oval and form loaf by rolling oval up from the long side, pinching the seam together as you roll the dough, tucking ends to form the loaf.
12. Place in lightly greased loaf pan (I spray with cooking spray), and let rise, covered, at 85 degrees F for 1 1/2 to 3 hours.
13. When the dough rises 1 to 2 inches above the edges of pan, it is ready to bake.
14. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
15. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees F and bake an additional 30 to 40 minutes (baking time varies according to your oven and your personal taste--some like a darker crustier bread than others).
16. Remove loaf from oven and brush the top lightly with melted butter; turn loaf out of the pan and cool on wire rack.
17. If you prefer, you can shape this into a round or oval loaf and bake on a baking sheet.

Life and Barn Life

Life has been interesting.  Thur. we came home to discover the two dogs that stay in the yard out.  Three dead sheep and dogs 'playing" with others.   Thankfully my DIL came home earlier and she put a stop to it and called me.  I was broken hearted.  I really do love my pets.  I also knew that they had made the decision for me on getting rid of them.  They went to the pound the next morning.  We only have 3 dogs, for us that is amazing.  My goal is to keep it that way. 

But, God provides distractions!  He knew my heart hurt.  A friend that has dairy goats called to see if I wanted to buy some billy kids.   :)  she had 12.   Kids and I talked it over and decided OK.  So on Friday we loaded up the bus with 5 kids and 4 grand kids and dil.   Think of the quiet ride home.  12 baby goats and 9 kids!  I felt so blessed!

Then it was time to teach the babies to eat!   They were use to being bottled or bucket fed.   I would rather cow feed.   They caught on fast.

Look close, they are LAYING on a tub to nurse.  They are not tall enough to nurse from the ground, but the tub is a tiny but tall.  They can stand, but hey that works!

 Yes, that is a lamb and a goat nursing.  The dogs managed to kill two ewes that had young lambs so we have two bottle babies from them, plus the one we have had a while.

Happy child!  When I showed this picture to granddad and mom and dad they all ask the same thing, "What was he in trouble for?"   They were right!  He wouldn't calm down was bouncing all over the barn.  Finally he was rolling his tub chasing a grown goat.  I put the tub to good use.  He didn't get yelled at again by anyone!

 This was before he got bucketed.  He wasn't sure about these very friendly little goats.  He got into the swing of it but for a minute he wasn't sure.

 Not really in the barn, but the hay barn a few days ago.  She was helping load hay in the ranger for stock.

Time to get off here and get sour dough biscuits made for Church! Have a very blessed day everyone!