Tuesday 30 September 2014

Shake the tree Grandpa!




When you go to collect leaves, it always seems that the very nicest ones are out of reach.


"Shake the tree, Grandpa!"


And he did.  Problem solved.


Brenda

Monday 29 September 2014

Farm Tour

Johanna, Sophie, Lydia and I headed out on a farm tour on Saturday.  We were with the 4-H Alternative Crop Club.

First up....Carleton mushrooms!


What a place....I had no idea how complicated it was to grow mushrooms.


These rooms are continually monitored for heat and humidity...and other things that I know nothing about.


Rooms and rooms of growing mushrooms.

 
Then we headed to Upper Canada Cranberries.

The owner dug out all these bogs....in what once was all bush property.


Then he planted the cranberries in the bogs.

When it's time to harvest, he floods the bogs and then goes through them with a machine with a whirly bird on the front of it....and it gets all the cranberries to rise to the top of the water and then they skim them off the top.



Then they need to be sorted....and bagged.  He also makes cranberry juice and dries them too.


We had 'picnics on the bus' in between stops.


Next up....Sun Tech Tomatoes.


This place was incredible....they grow everything using 'coco' slabs and water....NO soil!


The plants just grow and grow and they have to keep wrapping them around the end of the row....and they just keep growing.



Their tomatoes and cucumbers are SO yummy!

Brenda

Thursday 25 September 2014

The Trail Cam

My boys like to save their money. 

That's a good thing....I think.

They save it and then they spend it.

And I'm always interested in what they are going to buy.

Jack came to town with me the other day....he doesn't like to go to town...but he had his money and he wanted to buy something.


A trail cam.


Then we went to the river and set it up....he said that there was a trail down there that went through the grass and then into the river.  There must be deer crossing there.

We'll have to wait and see what kind of pictures we get.



We had a little fun with the rocks while we were there....


They are full of fossils.


Lydia even brought a few home to paint.

Brenda

Wednesday 24 September 2014

Meat Birds

Today we said good bye to the 'pretty little meat birds'.


Only they weren't little anymore....they had a very good summer.


They averaged about 10 lbs.


My roast pan is ready.

Growing your own food is so very satisfying.

Brenda

Monday 22 September 2014

It's Fall....

Fall is here.

We got our first heavy frost last week.

The leaves are changin'.

The hood of the van is the best place to be.  Oh. so. warm.


Time to head to the camp.

You can hang out in your camo.


And eat as much cake as you want....and drink Pepsi too.


These kids had a tonne of fun.  They play games....I think they become dogs or something....in the back room where the bunk beds are.




And then they go off and explore....


And these guys hunt.  They are pretty serious about their hunting.


When we got home, all Sophie and Lydia could talk about was Halloween.  They begged me to get out the box of costumes.

Lydia found a witches dress that fits her perfectly.


She even wore it to bed.  But I managed to get her to change when we went to do the chores this morning.

It's fall.....let's embrace it.

Brenda






Monday 15 September 2014

Too Much Zucchini

One morning last week I looked out the window and I saw Lydia talking to Ruby on the back step.  My heart melted.  It was so so sweet.

What could she possibly be telling our dog?  I couldn't hear the conversation but it was probably something about zucchini.  Yes.  Zucchini.

We've been dealing with a lot of zucchini for the last few weeks...it's become sort of an issue with me.

Maybe this was the conversation....

Ruby, I had no idea when I planted that zucchini in the spring that we would end up with that many zucchinis.  It's just completely out of hand.  I just hate the stuff.

Mom fries it with onions and garlic...she has even put in on her pasta.  She loves it.


She made zucchini muffins and she didn't even put chocolate chips in them.  Grandma always puts chocolate chips in the muffins.

She hid the zucchini in chocolate brownies.


She made zucchini patties for supper one night.  She said that they were so delicious.  But they weren't....they were super gross.


I saw her shredding up a whole bunch of it and putting it in the freezer......I think there was over 30 cups of it.  That means we can eat it all winter too.

I guess we aren't the only ones with the zucchini problem.  Everywhere we go people are offering us their zucchinis.  One guy said he had a whole wheelbarrow full and they were even giving them away FOR FREE at the post office.


It's just completely out of hand.  But I think the end might be in sight because I saw her carry 4 big zucchinis up to the barn this morning and she fed them to the meat birds.  Only.....will that make the meat birds taste like zucchini too?  I'm a little worried.


Thanks for listening Ruby.  I know that you are with me on this....you won't eat it either.

Brenda

Monday 8 September 2014

Renfrew Fair 2014

We headed back to the fair on Saturday.

It was the beef show.


Grady has a big steer this year as his 4-H project.....he loves a challenge.



I love it when they are all in the ring at the same time....



Jack getting some advice from the judge....


I did manage to take more photos than I thought I had....I had spent most of the day running around with the girls.


They LOVE to milk this cow...


The 4-H kids square danced before the Steer, Hog and Lamb Auction.


Here is a clip of them in action...

Johanna sold her lamb at the auction....she had placed 4th.


She donated some of the money to Hospice Renfrew in memory of Danny....and her buyer actually donated the lamb to the Bonnechere Manor.


Brenda