Homestead Life In Photos

I've not been blogging much, kind of taking a break, letting my days just be full of necessary things, with no time to write about the goings on, let alone take any pictures of them, and picking the wrong time for letting my menu plan slide under the table. Well, with this busy time, I should especially have a meal plan, but it also happens to be a time where we are staying away from the grocery store and eating mostly just what is in the pantry and off the farm. To come up with 20 meals consisting entirely of green beans, beets, tomatoes, and beans and grains, seemed dull. But now that I think about it, a post about cleaning out the pantry and a skinny fridge would be frugally homesteady.












I've spent some time teaching my kids how to fry up their own morels, grimacing at the amount of butter that goes into the pan. They had several batches to smoke up the kitchen with.

Setting out (in the hoop house), probably a little to soon as the nights are chilly yet, my beautiful tomato plants. Transplanting millions of cabbage, broccoli and Brussels sprout plants. Planting some in the hoop house and saving some for the garden.
I'm hoping that one of my gardener readers ( with an amazing ability to interpret this lousy photo below) can tell me why all potting soils don't grow tomato plants the same. The sad little plant pictured below was started only a week after the 1st batch (pictured above) -in a different brand of potting soil.The seedlings stayed small, dark green with purple stems and several inches smaller than the first.
I read that this was a lack of phosphorous. So, I just planted the poor little things in hopes that they could recover, some have and some haven't.  The rest ( I have many starts) I transplanted into the soil left over from the first batch. They look  much better now, still dark but growing and leafing out. I also started using a lot of manure tea.
No photo, but the peppers acted the same way. But squash and the cabbage family didn't seem to be affected, growing well and fast.


Then there is homeschooling. I took off a huge bite to help a friend out and we now have an extra class mate twice a week. I'm thinking that it is a good lesson for the kids, to learn to control themselves and overcome distractions. This is the area that makes me think I bit off more than I can chew.
So for a few days of the week we have our noses in books, until I can't stand the house the way it is and then we study life skills.

Such as kitchen help and photography. I find all sorts of these pictures on my camera. So this is what goes on when I'm concentrating.

In the back of my mind I'm constantly wondering why it looks like this already, and what affect will this have on the rest of the growing season. As pretty as extremes can be at the moment, how they turn our lives keeps me pondering. I'm a farmer in my heart, and it's showing itself by being too concerned about the weather, maybe.

When I'm in the kitchen, I'm working on my bread. Looking for consistency in size, shape and flavor. Consistency is not my relation. But my intentions are to maintain a look and flavor that will bring people back to get more...yes, I want to make bread for the farmers market!  I think it will add to the other things Bryon and the boys are getting into: Cutting/serving boards, spoons and benches.

Along with goats milk soap,  an Old World rustic style.

So that brings me to:

~Coming Soon to Mosquito Creek Farm~

  Goat's Milk Soap

 Hand made in small batches to ensure quality with the best possible ingredients.  

A saponified blend of goats milk, olive and coconut oils, and fine essential oils to bring a richness and rustic purity to your bath. 

Our soap is gentle enough and even healing for sensitive skin with no harsh chemicals or irritating fragrances.

Face and body soaps * shaving soap 

kitchen bars * facial and foot scrubs 

~

Lavender

Vanilla

Oatmeal&Cinnamon

Peppermint

Lemongrass

Oatmeal&Honey

LemonPepper