This & That

Yesterday I went to look at a little French Alpine buck that a friend has visiting her girls.  His owner is selling him and I may buy him.   I love his markings but couldn't tell too much about his structure with him scrunched up between the feeder and the fence.   It was mealtime when we arrived and there was much butting and pushing going on and I didn't have time to stay too long to get a better look or picture.  He was holding his own with the full sized does at the feeder though.

Before Dill came back to breed my two does this fall I had brought another little buck of my friends over to see if he was up to the task and my two girls were so mean to him I took him back a day later. I was truly afraid they would hurt him butting him.   He was so sweet and so very passive.   Therefor  I really appreciated this little guys ability to stand up for himself.   

All you goat folks.....  We knicknamed Dill - Elvis because he had this bunch of curly hair on his forehead just like this little goat has.   I've not seen that on other goats and Dill and this little goat aren't related.  Has anyone else seen this?  Is this common for goats / bucks? Dill's owner and I just scratch our heads about it.   Maybe it's more common than I realize but because most goats on the Internet are shown shaved I don't see it????  Anyone???

                        

                                        Dill   aka Elvis                                   New little buck

After leaving my friends house I spent the rest of yesterday returning electric fence pieces and parts I had purchased and didn't need.    After all the fencing issues I had a month ago or so, even though the electric fence still isn't up we seem to have gotten the existing fence issue straightened out and there have been no more wandering pigs.    I also realized that now isn't the time to give them the run of the place by extending their fencing.   Many people confine their pigs somewhat for the winter when there isn't any grow going on so they don't tear up pasture or land looking for food.   They just get hay and feed in a smaller area till spring growth starts again.   Since I'm so behind with projects this was a good and timely revelation.

With the fencing issue not looming over my head and my outside chores done yesterday, I had a day to spend in the kitchen.   This is something I've not had time for lately and very much missed.  First on the list -   a Devils Food layer cake with Buttercream frosting.

I didn't have much to decorate with so threw a few semi sweet chocolate pieces in the blender and sprinkled the processed bits on.  I then toasted a bit of coconut and added that as well. 

Buttercream Frosting

1/2 cup Crisco shortening

1/2 cup margarine

4 - 6 tablespoons cream, half and half or milk

pinch of salt

1/4 tsp of almond extract

2 tsp vanilla

5 cups of confectioners sugar sifted

In a large bowl using an electric mixer at medium speed beat together the shortening, margarine, cream or milk, salt, almond and vanilla extract until smooth  ( about 2 - 3 minutes).

Add in sifted confectioners sugar starting with  4-1/2 cups beat well until smooth and fluffy, adding more sugar or cream/milk until you achieve desired consistency. 

I used a double recipe of this to frost the cake above. 

I also made a carrot cake but didn't get the frosting done. I started some chicken soup as well and have some jalapeno corn bread in the oven to go with it. Tomorrow I plan to make enough bread to last a couple of months and the same with pizza dough.

Stay warm everyone!

Elizabeth

Looking back on this season

A bouquet from Malia's trip to the mailbox

Malia is home again after a month of public school.  Yea!!!!!  I had no idea how much help she is to me.  Well I did but sometimes we need a reminder.   I need to do a whole post on homeschooling versus public school one of these days.   Both last year and this year she's gone back for the first month to give it a try.   Next year that isn't an option for her.   She would be going to middle school and this grandmother isn't up for the transition from homeschooling to public school in those challenging middle school years.  The good part of her short stints in school like this is we both get to measure her progress with her age group academically and socially.  She's doing well.  I wish more parents were able to do this.  I feel blessed I am in a position to do this.  I know this isn't the case for everyone.

The veggie garden this year was successful in some ways and not in others.   The squash bugs certainly took their toll.  Only one lone Hubbard pulled through.  It was from a new shoot  grown after the battle was semi won.   The tomatoes mostly did well.  Roma's best, Better boys next with Beef master coming in last.   The peppers were terrible this year for a variety of reasons.   I had bought only 3 varieties; bell, ancho's and jalapenos.  I wanted habeneros too but couldn't find them.   My bells ended up being 1/2 bell and 1/2 cherry.   I have no idea what to do with the cherries so I threw most of them out until later in the season when I decided to freeze them whole until I could figure something out to do with them.  I'm still working on that.  The bell's really didn't produce all that well but the jalapenos did great.  The ancho's were practically tree's getting over 4' tall.  They would have done better had I gotten them in earlier and watered more. They had lots of peppers but they were small.

The butternut squash did outstandingly well.  As advertised, they held up well to the squash bugs and kept on producing through it all.  These are just a couple of the ones that are still out there ripening.  I have picked quite a few.   I now need to find recipes to use them all.  Mostly I love it boiled like potatoes and mashed.  I've never been a fan of it halved and baked although it is much easier than peeling it and boiling it.

The pea's Malia planted were ridiculous.  I believe the variety was Layton.   I wrote it down and will look later but they never got taller than 6 - 8 " tall.  

They've got these tiny little 1 1/2" pods on them with one or two pea's in them.   Yikes.  I would need an acre for just her and I at that rate.   The field pea's in my green manure are coming up normally and are about  2 - 2 1/2" tall now so it's the variety, not the soil.

The turnips I threw out into the squash patch in early August are doing well. They were planted for their greens for the goats and pigs.  There is also crimson clover, field pea's and orchard grass in there.  Later the pigs will be housed here for winter and can root it all up.  

This one has a bit of room around it so actually has some substance to it.   Most of them are much closer together because they weren't really being grown for their roots.

Most of the roots look more like this one.

The cool moister weather has given us another blooming time from the Clematis plant and the variegated miscanthus is now blooming as well.

In Aug. I cut this back to the ground because I was going to divide it and move it so I could better enjoy the Harry Lauder Walking Stick behind it.   I didn't get it moved but I learned something from the exercise none the less.  I always cut this back in the spring and then let it grow all season.   By this time of year though a rain will split it leaving it rather disheveled looking because it's so tall.   I've tried tying it up to hold it together with limited success.   Cutting it back in Aug though it's still very attractive now with plenty of blooms and because it's shorter it holds up to the rain.   I will always cut it back in Aug. from now on. 

The goats and the pigs need to be moved to their winter area's in the next few days which means building new housing for them.   Tina's still giving us 5 quarts of milk a day.   The pigs are enjoying all the acorns.  We have an abudance of them too due to the dry summer.   Mother natures way of ensuring the tree's.   Dry weather = more fruit.  Works with your tomatoes too.