2021 in the Rear View Mirror

Greetings Earthlings:

Yikes! It's been a while since I have put pen to paper, er rather, fingers to keyboard. 

I reread my last post and discovered that nothing really has changed much, insofar as the Pandemic goes, this past year.  A few more variants.  Opinions and reports still swinging like a pendulum.  It is wild considering that we have been at this for almost 2 years now.  We're still all very much living in limbo. But now, people seem to be more polarized than they were, even a year ago.  It's truly sad.

It has been in my personal experience of almost 60 years on this planet, that there are three distinct, basic personalities: Those who Make the Rules; Those who Follow the Rules; and Those who think the Rules don't apply to them.  The first and last groups tend to be the most vocal in sharing their opinions on any matter, regardless of whether or not they are correct in their assumptions and points of view.  

I just wish folks would be kinder and more tolerant of each other.  It's no one side's "fault" any more than it is the other's.  Everyone has to navigate this storm to the best of their own abilities, without judging someone else's decision on how they navigate their own boat.  In the end, we can only do what we think is best for ourselves and our own situations.  We, as a whole, need to stop judging other people's choices. We don't know their thought processes or what drives them to make the choices they make.  The only thing we can do is be kind and show some compassion for our fellow human beings.      

The whole pandemic situation reminds me of a scene in the Wizard of Oz movie -- All of the action going on behind the curtain and the audience is focused on what is happening at the front of it.  As I mentioned in my previous post, follow the money.  A lot of people became very wealthy during all of this, while many more are barely hanging on.  There has definitely been a shift in each of our own personal realities.  It has been a very interesting social experiment for sure!   

But, as always, I digress. There is nothing I can do change the situation at hand, so we just keep on, keeping on. This past year has been very busy and interesting for us here at No Regrets Ranch in spite of the current world events. 

Besides the regular day to day process of just living and chores, it really has been a great year.  We ate out on the deck pretty much every supper from May, until Wasp season came in hard and fast, in August.  

Typical Summer Supper on the Front Deck.
This one is a fresh picked garden salad, oven roasted and breaded
Zuccini with Yogurt dressing and a cheese bun.
Wine is one of Papa's creations.

The pond was especially beautiful this year with all the water lilies in bloom and the gold fish making regular appearances. 

The water lilies were stunning this past summer!

 The hummingbirds were late in coming back, but pretty much drained the feeder every two to three days when they did finally return.  Lots of birds nesting in our yard, but we didn't have the Gold Finches we usually have.  Some thought it was the extreme drought.  Others thought that the song bird numbers were down overall, with the fires and air quality.  

Our frequent Dinner Companion

We had a challenge with hatching our chicks out last year.  Probably the worst hatch out we've ever had - in fact, we set two batches and still didn't end up with a lot of little hens.  We don't know if our rooster is shooting blanks or if it was just the year?  But either way we're going to order new laying hen chicks from the hatchery this spring, in the hopes of avoiding the same situation repeating itself for this year.  

One of the two hatch outs of this year's new
laying stock.

Our steers, Kevin, Stuart and Bob were especially social this year.  Within a day or two of them coming home, Papa was able to touch them, as he gave them their twice daily rations.  He honestly thought one of them was going to flop over to get a belly rub at times.  It's so nice when we get nice, quiet livestock.  They had a fantastic summer.  Lots to eat and room to buck and play.  

Kevin, Stuart and Bob watching me take pictures.

The garden seeds and canning supplies were in short supply again this spring.  We order really early, so we got everything we needed and insofar as the canning supplies go, I keep a generous supply on hand, just for this sort of emergency.  I am also in the process of replacing all of my single use lids with 2 part, reusable seals and lids - one more source of security for the long term.  

One of the many canning sessions.  The white lids are the 
2 part reusable Harvest Guard brand lids.

Spring, summer and fall of 2021 were all very dry last year.  There was a serious drought in much of the prairie provinces and into BC.  Although we had minimal rain ourselves, we still managed a decent vegetable harvest.  I would put this to Papa's water collection systems situated throughout the property.  One inch of precipitation fills 3 x 1250 gallon tanks, which we then use to water the greenhouse and gardens.  We also have several 45 gallon water barrels set up to catch any rain that might fall and this keeps the flowers happy.  The flower pots were amazing last year - probably the nicest we've had in years.  I was so terribly disappointed and disheartened in 2020, when so many of the flowers either didn't get going due to the miserably cold weather or those that finally did, hardly bloomed at all.  2021's pots were absolutely spectacular!

One of the Geranium Pots on the deck.
They were all so very beautiful this year!

The Flower garden made for many beautiful 
floral arrangements this summer!

We thoroughly enjoyed the garden and ate as much fresh as possible last year.  I didn't need to do as much canning this past season, as I did a tremendous amount in 2020 - the flowers didn't do much that year, but the garden sure did.  I only put up what we will consume within two years, so some years I do a lot of canning.  Other year's, not so much,  It's good to stay on top of your inventory so you can rotate through it in a reasonable amount of time. No jams or syrups or apple juice was needed in 2021, which left me with time for soup stocks and tomato based products.  I also didn't do as much dehydrating either, so that inventory is getting used up this year.  We try to keep a year's worth of canning and dehydrated goods on hand and like to get them used up at their peak of freshness.

Salsa ready to simmer and be 
canned up.

2021 was the second year of the high tunnel/hoop house.  He ended up making both sides of the hoop house able to open, to let the air pass through, as well as putting a vent in the top of it.  It truly amazes us to how hot it gets in there in the day time, even during extremely cold temperatures!  The sun truly does amazing things!  He planted spinach and lettuce out in it in late February.  By mid March, we were enjoying salad greens again.  This is an unheated shelter that relies entirely on the sun to heat the soil.  Since both lettuce and spinach are cold weather crops, all he needed to do was put a Rubbermaid tub over the seedlings at night to give them another layer of protection.  During the day, the soil collected the heat and the extra cover at night, protected them from the -10 degree C cold.  I wouldn't have ever believed it either, if I hadn't seen it for myself!  

One of the daily garden hauls from March
until November.

Because we grow so much and are able to store our root veggies - carrots, potatoes, squashes, cabbage, onions, etc. - we don't buy a lot of fresh produce in the winter.  I don't like the idea that my lettuce is better travelled than I am!  And reading all the recalls really freaks me out!  So, I blanch and freeze cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, snow peas and so on, to use in stir fry's in the winter.  We will sometimes purchase fresh tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers from the Pik 'n Pak, a local greenhouse growers co-operative in our community, but even locally grown, it doesn't taste like much.  I really questioned why the lettuce was so bitter one time.  Papa deduced that it must be the fertilizer added to the water, since it is all grown hydroponically.  The rest was okay, but no where nearly as good as what comes from our gardens and greenhouse.  So we have just decided to do without for the few months our greenhouse is closed up.  If we're not really going to enjoy eating it, there is just no point to buying it.  I don't like tomatoes that taste like disappointment to me.  I would rather just do without.  This really makes you appreciate, even more, what is grown on our property.  Winter is a time for soups and stews and stir fry's.  In the spring, summer and fall, we enjoy as much fresh as we can possibly consume and the rest gets processed and either frozen, dehydrated or canned.  We're pretty boring, for the most part!

Brussels Sprouts blanched,
individually frozen on the pan, ready
to be packed up for winter's use.

We tried growing turkeys for the first time last year. We had a riot with them!  They have the most amazing personalities, which really caught us both by surprise!  Chickens can be real jerks, but the turkeys were extremely social, inquisitive and very entertaining.  Papa would chat away with them and they would answer back.  They are extremely curious and not as flighty as the chickens are.  I actually felt quite sad when it came time for harvesting them.  There is absolutely no love loss at all when we do the chickens, but I really struggled with doing the turkeys!  We know when we bring livestock onto the property for meat purposes, they won't be leaving again and their time with us is really quite short.  It's definitely tough sometimes, but it is the life we have chosen and we like the fact that we know that they will be given the best life possible, while they are here.  Lots of fresh air, good food, clean water and space to play in.  And when the time comes, they will be dispatched quickly, humanely and with much respect.  Not a lifestyle for everyone for sure, but we do like to own the fact that we are very invested in the meat we choose to eat.  You gain a definite respect for the entire growing and harvesting process when you have a hand in its care and daily attention.  You could say that we definitely "have skin in the game".  As far as the turkeys go, he definitely wants to grow them again this year.  And I'm not going to lie, it is probably the best turkey we have ever enjoyed. 

Papa built this Turkey Tractor so his buddies 
could have access to fresh grass every day!

The Turkeys getting their daily rations.
Mr. Wilbur assisting.  ;) 

In early spring, we purchased a couple of bee hives and some bee keeping equipment, in the hopes of having and caring for our own bees last year.  Unfortunately, the place we ordered our Bee Nucs from, were unable to fill our order, due to supply issues on their end.  So, sadly, we were not able to add the little pollinators to our property last year.  Our regular Bee Guy, Alex, had his own life circumstances to contend with.  With a new baby and travel time from his home to ours for regular hive maintenance, was simply more than could be managed.  And to further complicate things, his bees didn't survive the winter, so he was going to have to repopulate his own hives as well.  It all worked out for the best under the circumstances as we would have been flying solo with no one to guide or give us hands on assistance.  Sometimes you just have to go with it.  

This year, I have contacted a local apiary and have ordered 2 more Nucs to populate our hives this coming spring.  Because they are very much locally grown and split from existing local hives, we should hopefully have considerably more success in acquiring our own bees this year.  We also have our young friend, Bethany, who is taking bee keeping courses and wanting some practical experience.  This is going to work out well.  She will have hives to do her practical on, so we will all learn together.  For now, we will forge forward and hope for much better results this year!   

Although we didn't have our own honey bees last summer,
we still had a lot of bees visiting and doing their
jobs on our property.  This one is still sleeping 
after a very cool evening.

Lots of Sunflowers all over on our property.
These beauties attract all sorts of pollinators
and several small birds.  I love them!
We let them seed and come up as they may. 

2021 also brought big changes to my little studio. With the whole world shutting down, all of my teaching classes cancelled and most shops going strictly online or pick up only, I started to get a lot of requests for more and more products.  People were suddenly home and had time to pursue their quilting projects.  Requests for batting, threads, fabrics and sewing machine needles became very frequent, in fact, almost daily.  Papa suggested that since people weren't wanting to travel to the cities, that maybe I should expand my shop and give them a closer to home option?  He also noted that he felt I really missed having my quilt shop and maybe it was time to reopen it.  

And Sew, in March of 2021, I started to rebuild my inventory and opened up regularly scheduled hours again.  I am only wanting to be open part time as I do still have a lot to keep up with on the ranch and I don't want to over extend myself or have to manage staffing.  

The front door of Prairie Points Quilt Shop.
This occupies the first bay in our 3 car, 
attached garage.  It has it's own entrance and is
separate from our living area.

Since reopening, the part time hours are working very well - it's kind of like having to plan to go to the Farmer's Markets.  You know they are only open a specific amount of hours every week and you work around that.  

My customers have been so loving and welcoming.  I wasn't sure that it was the right thing to do, but having done so now, I didn't realize just how much I missed having my little shop, until I reopened it.  It really has filled my heart with joy and got my creative juices flowing again.

My new bags, complete with 
my new logo.  

Another big change around here was Papa retiring at the end of July.  He had been working part time for the previous year, after having had his back surgery in January of 2020.  At 61, he felt he was ready for a change.  

We know so very many folks who wait to retire until 65 or older, only to get sick and not be able to enjoy their next chapter.  After the life changing back surgery, he was already very much aware at how quickly your life can change.  In literally a heart beat.  

Since being home, he thoroughly enjoyed his time in his beautiful gardens and was able to putter at them, instead of trying to work keeping up with them around a working schedule.  

We have enjoyed having morning tea together, before we both head out to our respective places of activities, then meet up again, later in the day.  He has taken up building hardwood items that we sell in my shop, as well as some home improvement projects for those who might require his assistance.  

A sampling of Papa's Beautiful, handcrafted hardwood
cutting boards.

So many folks don't know what they are going to do after they retire.  This was never a concern for either of us, as we both have a lot of interests to fill our day.  His is very much his garden and woodworking.  Mine is very much my quilting, cooking and preserving.  We both tend to run out of day, before we run out of things to do!

Fall of 2021 was absolutely glorious!  We didn't have cold weather or snow until about a week before Christmas.  It was incredible to go out in shoes and a sweater, well into December!   

When the cold weather did come though, it really came, hard.  We started at about -20 Celsius around the 20th of December and dropped into the -30's C at Christmas, which lasted until well into mid-January.  With the wind chill, some days dropped to -50 C.  After -30 C, there really isn't much difference in what the thermometer says.  It's just all cold.  Dangerously Cold.  

Christmas day saw -32 degrees C.
The windchill brought it down to -40 C.
Yuck.

We got a short respite on January 2nd for about 6 hours,when the temperature rose to +4 degrees C and no wind.  We quickly utilized this time to take down our Christmas lights and outside decorations, before heading back into another 2 weeks of the brutally cold weather.  

Currently, as I type, it has been above 0 degrees C for several days.  The down side to that is the trees will sometimes break dormancy and the snow falls as rain, then freezes.  We watched out our west window one evening during a freezing rain storm, the traffic on Hiway 2 grind to a crawl as the road was closed and the emergency vehicles were out tending to the accidents.  Many vehicles were reported to have hit the ditches.  Freezing rain is not good for travel!  

The year definitely flew by.  But it guess, to be fair, when you are busy, time does tend to slip away.  

I mentioned to Papa that it was the 2nd anniversary of his back surgery.  I asked him if it seemed like two years ago?  He replied, that No, it didn't.  It seemed like it has been a lot longer than two years.  I had to agree with him.  Two years is a very long time when you are looking ahead, but it tends to be a much shorter time when you look back.  But with all that has transpired on our little piece of paradise, two years seems like a life time.  

And I guess, that's a good thing.

We'll just keep doing what we do!

Enjoy your day!  Until next time,

Gremlynn

It is Time to Change the Record. . .

Greetings Earthlings:

It's been a while since I checked in with you all.  I haven't been ignoring you, I just haven't had anything much to share.

It's been a full calendar year now since the world shut down.  And where are we at?  We've been thru the Stay Home orders and the Avoid All non-essential travel guidelines.  The major hiway, which we can see from our home, was empty for weeks.  It was quite eerie and very unsettling. 

We have seen toilet paper hoarding, flour and yeast shortages.  People suddenly became interested in a more self-sustaining/self-sufficient lifestyle.  Grocery store shelves were cleared off.  Limits were put on the items that were left.  

Greenhouse owners sold out completely by early May and most closed their doors in June because they were simply out of product.  There was a massive shortage of Mason jars and lids, due to all those wanting to learn how to can the produce they grew last summer.  

Restaurants went to Take Out only.  Small Mom & Pop shops either were forced to close down or offer curbside pickup only.  No hair cuts for you!  No physical therapy.  Stores stopped wanting Cash but demanded e-transfers and plastic payments for purchases.  Funny how Costco, Wal-mart and Home Depot weren't forced to close down though, hey?  

Senior and Assisted Living homes had the doors shut and locked.  No more visiting Grandma, for fear of making her sick.  People put hearts in their windows to show support for the front line, medical workers and shut ins. 

Those studying this all, changed their minds time and again.  Shut the Borders, but you can still fly to Mexico for your holiday.  Don't visit your family, but you can meet up with them at Costco.  Wear a Mask, but there is NO specific guideline on the legal requirements of your mask - it can be an N95 or your turtle neck sweater - both work - or don't work - the debate continues.  

Keep your distance.  Wash your hands.  Stay home.  School's Open. School's Closed.  No weddings.  No funerals.  You can still air travel - but you have to stay 6' apart in the airport, then get loaded onto an airplane with recycled air, sitting elbow to elbow with the wheezy guy next to you.  

No singing.  No gym.  But you can meet in the parking lot, at the park.  But don't play on the playground - Or you can play at the playground.  Go for a bike ride or a walk, but only with someone you live with.  You can play hockey, but you have to change in your vehicle and your mom can't watch in the arena sitting 30 feet from the ice and 20 feet from the other moms there.  Don't use the public bathroom though.  Use sanitizer until your hands bleed - Soap and water is best, sanitizer is too harsh on your skin.  

It's okay to dine out with your cohort, but you still can't see Grandma.  Shop on line, FedEx guy will deliver your product to your home.  FedEx and Amazon workers don't get the virus.  

Work from home.  Socially distance.  Lock down.  Re-open.  Protect our healthcare system.  This doctor says it's like a flu - more people die from cancer and car crashes in a year.  That doctor says it will kill you.  Kids can't get it.  Major outbreaks in 11% of the schools in the province.  

We have a Vaccine!  But it's only 60% effective.  And you still have to socially distance and mask if you can't, and it's only good for 7-9 months, but you can still catch the variant strain, but you probably won't die, if you get it. . . . But we're short supply and can vaccinate certain people.  Call or go online to book your appointment, but reschedule if you can, just cancel your first appointment. . . 

Is anyone else absolutely and completely mentally fatigued and utterly exhausted by all of this?  

The news changes daily, if not hourly.  Some groups get fined if they gather.  Others, nah, they're fine.  People are dying alone.  Weddings called off.  But the couple who owns their own jet can fly to a social gathering in the US for the Presidential Fundraiser or to the Yukon, to get their shots - I personally don't consider it a vaccine since its effectiveness doesn't qualify it as a vaccine.  

I. Am. Spent.  

I haven't seen my folks in almost 18 months. My Niece and her hubby had a new baby boy a couple of months ago.  How old will he be before it's "safe" for us to meet him?  

My father in law passed away last month, in a long term care facility, where he was forced to take the shots, which I believe with my whole, entire being, was the sole reason for his passing.  He was frail before he took them, but he was eating and doing quite well.  They gave him the shots.  Then he got sick.  Very Sick.  Very Quickly.  He slipped away in his sleep.  And my hubby couldn't visit him, as he had done for years, for the past 14 months.  It's just wrong.  

My grandkids all are growing up and we're missing it.  Hubby turned a milestone birthday and we couldn't celebrate it.  Am I whining and moaning?  YUP.  I Absolutely Am.   

This virus isn't going away.  They "thought" 3 months, then 6, then a year.  Lock downs don't work.  When things begin to reopen, another wave comes thru and the numbers soar again.  

Instead of putting more and more restrictions and rules that aren't being enforced anyways, how about we find a way to Live with it?  Yes, people are going to get sick.  They were going to get sick anyways because people who Are sick, refuse to stay home.  

It used to be, not so very long ago, that when you were sick, you stayed home.  Then you got well.  Then you went back to school or work.  

Then it became a "badge of honor" to work thru it.  People were bullied into going to work if they were sick, for fear of losing their job.  Now people "bank" their "sick days" and use them for extra paid holidays or early retirement.  If you phone in "sick" you have to produce a doctor's note.  Every body is made to feel guilty if they take a sick day.  And as a society, we have never been more sick than we are now.  People think nothing of going to their concert, out for dinner, running errands when they have a fever or are contagious with something.  Stay home, for Pete's sake.  You're sick.  Your body needs time to rest.  

We live in a fast forward, always moving world but are we any more productive?  No.  I don't think so.  All this fuss of working 48 hour work weeks and "needing"  to be there, suddenly got shut down.  

Suddenly, people Can work from home.  Suddenly they don't need that extra paycheck since they aren't spending money chasing themselves from here to there.  

They have learned to be at peace.  They have learned to rest.  They have learned to bake bread, plant a garden, cook a meal, read a book, enjoy some family time without meeting yourself coming and going.  

We have learned that grocery store clerks are absolutely an essential service.  As is the delivery guy, the long haul trucker, and the janitor.  But this still isn't going away any time soon.  

Governments who couldn't "Afford" to raise senior's or disability pensions have suddenly found Billions of dollars to supplement those who can't go to work?  Really?  We couldn't get CPP Short Term Disability for my hubby, who needed back surgery and we went 18 months without a paycheck, but we were both suddenly apply for CERB?  Really?  Are things not somewhat skewed here?  

I have said right from the start of this:  Follow the Money.  Who is benefiting from this?  I am absolutely Not questioning the validity of this pandemic.  We were due for one, as they seem to come in 100 year cycles, as per our records of the many others in the past 500+ years.  It's just How This One has been handled.  Yes, we are a very mobile society and I believe that had it been contained right at the first hint of it, they probably could crushed it.  It's How it was handled/  Kind of like closing the gate after the cattle got thru.  This whole thing has been a Comedy of Errors right from the beginning.  Too many opinions.  Too many decisions.  Too much misinformation.  Too much information.

Open the doors.  Let people choose for themselves.  It's time we got back to living our lives.  There is no guarantee that you won't get this virus, even after following "all the rules".  Yes, the health care system Will be taxed.  But shouldn't our healthcare system Be better funded, with adequate workers and beds and supplies, instead of finding ways to cut every corner and pay the least we can for the people who have our very lives in their hands?  How is it possible that a politician make more money and work less hours than a registered nurse?  They can afford to give themselves raises, but vote to cut wages and hours of those who care for us?  They spend more money on private jets, business expenses and what not, then quibble over whether a hospital actually Needs that Cancer Treatment Center?  Say they can't afford to pay our doctors fairly, but find billions for CERB?  Really?  Me thinks things are incredibly skewed here?

I personally, haven't been out in any crowds from November 1 to January 31st - the height of the flu season - for many years because I am one of the "lucky" ones who has a compromised immune system.  I choose to stay home, because I Know that I Will catch something from Someone who Refuses to stay home when they should.  

I am also one who always gets sick when I travel by air, because I somehow always get to sit behind or beside "that" passenger who is coughing and dripping and sneezing.  Why not refuse those people entry to the stadium, the restaurant, the trade fair or the airplane?  Why not?  Because it is not other people's place to make the call if someone can enter or not.  Apparently it is discriminatory?  And so, I don't go, because I know, I Will get sick.  It's my choice whether or not I want to take that chance.  My Choice.

Give people some credit.  Those who are going to continue to slag off the guidelines and do what they want are going to continue to do so.  Those of us who Are following the Guidelines, wearing the mask, following protocol, doing the "responsible" thing, are living in limbo.  

And what has that got us all when we hear on the news that politicians are going to  Hawaii for Christmas, "Because it's a 17 year Family Tradition"??? Seriously???  This was where I completely lost faith.  Faith in those who mandate what is "Best for Us", "Stay the Course", "For the Greater Good".  And yet, they get to do whatever they want to do?  Those of us "following the rules" cancelled Christmas, "for the greater good".  Why don't these "Rules" apply to everyone, equally?

The lock downs are Not working.  

The verdict is still out on the Masks.  

We are taught from infant-hood that we need to:  Wash Your Hands.  Don't pick your nose.  Don't lick the doorknobs.  

Those who are going to do what they are going to do, are going to do it anyways, regardless of the "rules" - which aren't being actually enforced, in most circumstances.  Heck, restaurants can open up during the enforced closure, without being fined, only to get to re-open the next week anyways as part of the "re-opening" schedule.  Don't make the rules, if you have no intention of enforcing them - you only make yourself look more foolish, cause people to lose more faith in you and make others wonder they are "following" the rules since apparently, we don't "have to".  It's Not Working.  

The rest of us just have to wait it out and keep following those rules.  For how long?   They are only "guidelines" we are now being told.  Sigh.  

This is Not Going Away any time soon.  And especially now that "they" say it is mutating.  I suspect that it will continue to mutate as time goes on.  

The Restrictions Are Not Working.  They bend the curve slightly, then it bounces right back again.  People can't stay holed up in their homes indefinitely.  Those who are going to go, are going to go.  Those who aren't comfortable to go or see their loved ones, won't.  

We need to figure out a way for us all to live with this.  It is time to Change the Record.

Enjoy your day.

Gremlynn  

Brain Block and a Walk

Greetings Earthlings:

I was contemplating on what to write about today since I haven't done an entry in a while.  

Some days topics come quite easily.  Other days, not so much. Today was one of the Other Days.  

My cure for the Brain Block is to grab my camera and take a stroll around the property.  

Sunflowers always make me Happy!

Since I have spent much of the past couple of months focusing on the garden harvest and preservation, I really haven't had much time to think about much else.  

The hour I spent walking around the property today reminded me why we live the life we do.  And how blessed we are to be living it.

Lavender Bouquet in a Porcelain Cream Pitcher

My first stop was out to the Chicken Coop to collect the first flush of eggs.

Listening to the chickens go about their day and all their Chicken trials and tribulations, always gives me something to laugh about.  They are such funny creatures and quite a source of amusement.  It's always fun to watch them.  

There is definitely a hierarchy among them and this can result in some hilarious antics!  You can't help but laugh at them as they rush about to see what's going on.  It could be Big News and you sure don't want to be the last one to find out what's going on!  They are Nosy Nelly's for sure!

The Girls have been loving all the garden scraps as of late.  In fact, when they see me go out the back door, someone sounds the alarm.  I swear they keep a Sentinel on Duty for just this purpose!  

The 17 older layers come running to the fence to see what treats I am bringing out to them.  The new Little Girls have taken notice of this activity.  They can't see me open the back door, but they can see all the commotion and hear the alarm being sounded.  This prompts them to also congregate in their foyer to see what the lady is bringing out.  It's wonderful to have such a captive and attentive audience!

If I don't have any scraps, I always throw them some grain to scratch up.  This gets them out of the coop and into the yard, so I can collect the eggs without an audience.  

When a few of the Older Girls see me "stealing" their eggs, they can make quite the fuss, which brings the rooster in, to see what the issue is.  

I prefer the sneak attack method of egg collection, thus the diversion.  Thankfully their stomachs overrule their heads and they fall for it every time.  Makes collection very easy when they are all locked outside and I can explore the nests, without being harassed.  

The New Little Girls aren't bothered by my being in their coop, so collecting their eggs is a much easier task. They do get their grain when I am done though. 

Russel Crow and His Ladies are in the first pen.
The New layers have the second entrance to their own 
section of the coop.

As I walked around the yard, I took in all the beautiful Fall colors and late blooming flowers.  The Amur Maples have all turned red and the Green Ash trees are suddenly yellow.  In the orchard, a lot of the fruit trees and bushes are also changing color.  It's amazing how quickly it happens.  

Amur Maples in Full Red Dress

Green Ash have all turned bright yellow

Upon writing this (Sept 24, 2020) we haven't had a frost yet, which is highly unusual for us.  Every warm day is a bonus right now.  Considering how long it took our flower pots and baskets to fill this year, I feel it is certainly our due for our patience.  

Most years, our potted flowers are full and lush by mid July.  To be honest, I had given up on them by that point this year as they were wind whipped, water logged and dismal looking.  

Papa, however, picked up the torch and continued to nurture them.  His perseverance was rewarded by a flush of blooms in Mid August.  Had we had our normal frost in early September, we would have literally had 2 weeks of blossoms, but instead, we have enjoyed them for over 6 weeks now.  

Pink Geranium started from our own collected seed.
I honestly didn't think we'd see a bloom this year.

I went out to try to harvest some of the seeds from these plants last week, and they really aren't setting any seed yet.  What a year!

One side of our front door step. 
Normally the Snap Dragons would be sharing seed with me,
But this year, nothing yet.

Even the Hydrangea, which normally blooms in early August is only just blooming now.  I honestly didn't think it would bloom at all this year.  Such a pleasant and wonderful surprise.

Very unexpected blooms on the Hydrangea!

Since all the song birds have suddenly vanished, I decided to take down the Hummingbird feeders for the year.  As I cleaned them though, I realized that we really haven't seen many flocks of geese yet - a few small ones, but nothing significant.  So instead of putting all the feeders away, I refilled one to hang back outside - just in case the little ones are late in moving on as well.  

 

Feeder refilled one last time for the season

We had such an amazing Hummingbird season this summer, even though they got off to a late start.  Normally, I clean and refill our three feeders every couple of weeks, mostly to keep the nectar fresh.  This year, I was refilling them all, every week as they were always all but empty!  

I know we had more than two hummers regularly visiting, as it wasn't uncommon to see one come in as another was leaving.  That was a complete first for us.  We obviously had more than what were seeing, with having to refill the feeders as often as I did!

One of our regular visitors this summer

Another thing I noticed in the yard today was how many flowers were blooming out of season!  This, and how many are coming up as volunteers.  Lupines should not be blooming right now.  Their time is late June, early July.  

You can see the large seed pods on the left side from the first flowering
of this Lupine plant. 
The second flowering in the purple stalk to the right.  Highly unusual.

We also have several little petunias coming up in the oddest of places, where they have no business being, and yet they are.  And thriving.  If this isn't a testament to bloom where you are planted, I don't know what is!

This little Petunia self seeded in the row of carrots.

And this little Petunia self seeded in the gravel, beside the shed.

The garden was also unusual, in a good way, this summer.  The High Tunnel/Hoop House we built earlier this spring, exceeded our expectations!  We got more squash, cantaloupe, honeydews and watermelon than we could have dreamed about.  Still no pumpkins, but you can't have everything.  Papa has pretty much cleaned it out for the season, but we learned a lot for next year.

The High Tunnel/Hoop House is pretty much cleaned out.
All that is left are Hubbard Squash and sweet melons.
A very productive year for sure!

It's hard to believe that Strawberries are still coming as well!  I don't think we have ever had as many as we have had this year!  They started in June and are still thriving.  This photo was taken today - one ripe and one on deck.  I have made Jam, Syrup and frozen as much as possible.  We have been enjoying them fresh every chance we get.  It has been a real treat!

Strawberries are still coming!

The greenhouse is still producing peppers, tomatoes and cucumbers.  

Usually by this time of the year, we have had to have to have some auxiliary heat, but not yet.  

Once we get a few cold nights, we are going to clean it out for the season.  It has been so wonderful to have it producing as long as it has. 

Purple peppers - taste like green, but so pretty!

Papa checked on the grapes again last night.  They are in a protected area in the yard, so they can take a frost or two.  Usually by now, we are hoping they are going to ripen before the frost.  This year's crop looks amazing.  All the extra moisture was greatly appreciated by the plants.  The grapes look lush and plump.

Valiant Grapes still on the vine.  We'll see what we have enough for soon.  
These are not a table grape, but they make excellent Jelly.  
One day maybe, we'll have enough to do a batch of wine.

Canning season is also coming to an end.  

Normally by now, I am sick of seeing produce come into the house.  

This year, because things have been staggered so nicely, there hasn't been an overwhelming amount of anything coming in at any one time.  

Yes, there have been some 12 hour days where I am tired and ready for bed, but, for the most part, these days haven't been one on top of the next.  

When you get a break between sessions, it is quite manageable.  I am almost sad to see it coming to an end.  Almost.

A miniature Sunflower by the pond

Like every other summer, the only time I get out to the studio is when it's raining, extremely hot or windy.  I have had a good balance of that this summer.  Enough studio days to feel like I have had a break from the canning/gardening routine.  I even managed to get a couple of quilts done, so that always makes me feel extra good.  

This Little Baby Quilt went to our Bee Keeper's new little arrival.  We didn't know a gender, so I decided that it had to be Bee themed in gender neutral colors.  I found the little Bees and Hive with a Google Coloring Page search.  

This is my own design and was a fun applique project.  Had Little Arthur been a girl, I would have added Yellow RicRak in the binding to make it more feminine.  As is it is, it is the perfect little boy quilt.  The little family is doing wonderfully and the newest addition is absolutely adorable.  

Baby Arthur's Baby Quilt

Speaking of the Bees, it has been reported that the hives are doing very well this year.  This is great news since they had a complete hive collapse last winter.  

Alex has taken a different approach this year and is happy with the results thus far.  Hopefully the bees winter well and there will be honey available for purchase next summer.  

We had a small sample when he did hive maintenance recently and I have to report that I have never tasted honey as good as this.  Finger's crossed for continued success!

Alex tending to his Bee Hives

 Yesterday, I put up the last of the beets into pickles and had a bit of brine left over, so I did another pint of Dilled Garlic Pickled Carrots for my grand daughter.  

The last of the beets have been canned up.

The only thing left in the garden is some Swiss Chard, Carrots and herbs.  

We will be planting next year's garlic soon. 

The Garden is all but empty for the 2020 growing season.

Not much else is going on right now.  

Once the last of the garden is in, Papa and I can officially enter Winter Coasting Mode!  As if!  

Enjoy your day and thank for stopping by.

Until Next Time,

Gremlynn

  

  

 

August Daze

 Greetings Earthlings!

August is quickly coming to a close.  Where does the summer go?  It seems that July takes so long to come, but when the calendar changes to August, the next few weeks are a blur.  Perhaps, for us, it has more to do with the garden and kitchen work and not having the time to catch our breath?  Regardless, it already feels like Fall.  Which, I am not going to lie, is my favorite season!

What have we been up to at No Regrets?  I can honestly say that every single day has involved some sort of harvest and some sort of kitchen activity.  It is not uncommon to have a 12 hour work day this time of the year.  While many are spending their time at the lake or camping, we are harvesting and bringing in the fruits of our labor.  August is the end of the peas and beans, raspberries, spinach and lettuces.  It is the beginning of the potato, carrot, pickling cucumbers and squash harvests.  Tomatoes continue to ripen for us in the greenhouse.  They begin in June and continue until October.  As they ripen, I can up Stewed Tomatoes, Tomato Sauce and Salsa.  If I have enough, I would like to attempt ketchup this year.  Time will tell on that one.

Sweet Summer Peas shelled on the back deck.

August is a time of steam juicing raspberries for jelly and syrups and for making raspberry wine.  I pick almost daily Snap Peas to be steam blanched, then frozen.  The herbs have all had their first harvests and may offer a second flush if the weather cooperates.  Onions have been pulled to be chopped to be either frozen or dehydrated.  For some reason, we are no longer able to store our onions for any length of time.  So dehydrating and freezing is the best way for us to keep them.  Garlic has also been harvested and hung to dry.  We are able to store the bulbs, but still opt to dehydrate many of them, which will be ground into garlic powder at a later date.  

Another picking of Raspberries from our patch.  
Ready to be juiced to become syrup.

The early bearing strawberries have given way to the ever-bearing ones.  The first ones become jam and the following ones are collected, washed and frozen.  Some years we get quite a few.  Other years, not so much.  

The High Tunnel has proven to be a great addition for us.  (If you check an earlier post, you can read how it came to be and why we decided to build it.)  As cold and wet as June and July were, I am happy to report that we have squash this year.  We only planted a couple of zucchini plants as they can quickly overtake your pantry with their daily offering.  Papa brings several weekly to work to share with those who want them.  We will be getting Spaghetti Squash this year as there are several growing out there as I write.  

We ate our very first Canta-dew yesterday.  What is a Canta-dew you ask?  Is is the sister of the Honey-loupe, of course!  When you plant Cantaloupe and Honeydew plants reasonably close to each other, it is quite common to get a cross pollinated fruit.  The one we ate looked very much like a Cantaloupe on the outside.  When we sliced into it, we obviously expected to see orange flesh, but were greeted with green.  It had the texture of a Cantaloupe, the color of a Honeydew and a taste more leaning former, but slightly like the latter.  I am excited to see what other mystery fruit shows up at my breakfast table as these little gems ripen and fall off their vines!  

The one and only baby Watermelon in the High Tunnel

August is when the new pullets begin to lay eggs for the first time.  And when we harvest the roosters of the chicks we hatched earlier this spring.  We will cull the old layers later this month, or perhaps next month, when the new pullets come into full swing.  We only keep our layers for 2 years before we dispatch them to become chicken stock or canned chicken.  They are a generous creature and feed our family twice - once with their eggs, then with their meat.  

The flower pots on the deck and around the yard are finally starting to fill in!  We have never had such a late season with our flowers.  June was so cold and windy, many baskets and pots were bedraggled.  July was wet and cool so many never really began to grow.  We have finally had some heat and they are starting to fill in just now.  With the way this growing season is going, it wouldn't surprise me to have an early frost and lose them sooner than later.  2020 has been a challenging gardening year in many respects.

Petunias from seed we saved from last year's flowers are finally filling out their baskets.

Many of our fruit trees that appeared to be dead, have finally leafed out.  Most didn't produce any fruit, but at least they survived.  Hopefully better luck next year.

Due to the Cherry trees not producing anything more than a snack this year, when our friend B asked if we wanted anything from BC, we crazily said, Sure!  Cherries, please!  Two cases or 40 lbs of cherries showed up that suddenly needed to be picked thru, de-stemmed and pitted.  It was a very long day, but netted some beautiful Cherry Pie Filling and a batch of Cherry wine for our efforts.  Sure glad I didn't ask for any peaches!

Sour Cherries on one of the two trees that actually produced any fruit this year at all!

We have had an amazing song bird season this year!  I swear we have never seen as many juvenile Gold Finches as we have this year.  It is not uncommon to see 50 or more of the little guys at the bird feeder.  Their little wings are almost too small for their bodies and they appear to be inebriated when they fly off.  Hopefully they have a safe journey south and return next year to hatch more babies!  

The other day, I saw 6 Robins out in the back yard, all bopping along the lawn.  Most were juvenile as well.  They were so cute!  

Juvenile Gold Finches at the feeder.

And we have a clutch of 6 Blue Bird babies who all travel together.  They often sit on top of the weather vane and survey the property.  Our yard is alive with little song birds.

Not sure who these are, but I am suspecting they are Blue Birds.

We have also noticed more hummingbirds than usual.  In a normal year, I might go thru a liter of nectar every 2-3 weeks.  This year, I am totally refilling the feeders every week.  We have seen more than one at a time vying for time at the three feeders we have throughout the yard.  We have a couple that we see every day.  It's pretty cool!  When we purchased this property, there were only two trees on it and no birds.  Since being here, we have planted and transplanted over 1000 trees and the birds have come to enjoy the yard.

One of the many Hummers who have been visiting our feeders this year.

The bees are doing well this year.  Our bee keepers, with a full year of experience under their belts, have taken more of a laise faire attitude towards them this year.  They have learned that hives need to be left alone to thrive.  None of us knew anything about bee keeping last year so although they produced a lot of honey, the bees didn't make the winter and never really grew in numbers.  

This year, with a new plan, the hives have almost tripled in colonies and are happily doing their thing.  Papa improved the hive area and they are now protected and shaded by sunflowers and a wind break.  The bees seem to be thriving and will hopefully fare better this winter than last.  If things go well, there should be honey available for purchase next summer from our Bee Keeping Friends.

Doing a little hive maintenance.

Our Littles have been out for a few sleepovers.  It is always fun for Papa and myself to have them to entertain and to entertain us.  During one visit, we picked and shelled peas for several hours, made an Angel Food Cake with surplus eggs, picked strawberries and raspberries, baked some buns, hung out some laundry and collected eggs.  She commented that Papa and I do work very hard out here, but it is very rewarding work.  We spent a lot of time just talking as we completed our tasks and solved all the world's problems!  It's amazing what you will chat about as you spend a couple of hours shelling peas.  Wonderful memories for me.  Hopefully the same for her.  She went to bed very tired that night and slept until 9:30 the next morning.  The second day wasn't quite so taxing as we took in a bit of studio time to work on her hand stitched doll.

My Pea Picking and Shelling Assistant

The only time I get out in the studio is when it's too hot, too windy or raining.  I was very happy for a few rainy, then very hot days to work on my Scrappy Stripes Quilt.  It ended up a lot bigger than I had planned, but the best laid plans often go awry.  I guess when you have scraps, upon scraps, upon scraps, it's pretty easy to get a bit carried away!  I am very happy with the result, though.  It ended up fitting nicely on top the Queen Sized Bed in my Guest room for someone to enjoy at a later date.

Scrappy Stripes, quilted, bound, labelled and washed. 
Hanging out to dry before it's laid out in the Guest Room.  
Ended up being 86" x 94".

As August comes to a close, it has been wonderful deciding what is for supper by what is ready to be picked in the garden.  Lots of fresh raw veggies have been filling our plates.  As long and tiresome as this month is for us, it is wonderful to enjoy the fresh bounty of our labors.  Nothing tastes as good as a freshly picked cucumber or broccoli, an ear of sweet corn or a cherry tomato.  Soon the frost will come and the garden will begin to be put to bed for another year.  It is a bittersweet time of the year.

I didn't take a picture, but I can share my recipe for Zucchini Rounds.  I had a 3-4" diameter, by about 12" long  zucchini on the counter and I needed a side for the pork chops we were having for supper.  Washed the zucchini, then sliced it into 1" round disks.  The seeds were still small, barely noticeable, so they didn't need to be removed.  I put my pan over medium heat and added a couple table spoons of our home rendered lard (you could use cooking oil for sure).  In one bowl, I beat an egg.  In a second bowl, I added about 1 cup of Panko crumbs and 1/2 tsp each of Salt, Pepper and Garlic Powder, then mixed them together.  I dipped each round into the egg, then dredged it in the crumb mixture.  Fried one side for about 3 minutes, until golden brown, then flipped over and browned the other side, also about 3 minutes.  Before removing, I poked the round to see if it was tender - not mushy, not hard.  Removed from pan and served as a side, with Ranch Dressing.  OMGosh!  They were amazing!  A definite Do Over for sure!

The days are noticeably shorter and the mornings considerably cooler already.  We even noticed some leaves are beginning to turn.  Enjoy the rest of your August as long as the days last.

Until next time,

Gremlynn