Turkeys, garden, cantaloupe, catnip and new steps.

It is time to fatten these critters up for Thanksgiving. This time of year (or earlier)  we start giving them corn with their food.  It helps any of our animals to fatten up before they are taken to the butcher. Then it got me thinking... if it fattens up animals , should I be eating if I am trying to lose weight? Hmmm.

Catnip. I decided to plant some in a pot to see if I can grow it at my desk at work.  I don't dare try to grow it here with four cats.

On the way to the greenhouse I was met by these two calling me to give them a hug. Okay, what really happened was they snuck in the goat pen and ate their hay. 

Found some small pots. 

And went through the green house. 

 Dude is hoping for corn for Thanksgiving. 

Yay!  My new greens are coming up!

 Peppers will be pickled and jalapeños will be stuffed this weekend. 

 We still have tomatoes. 

 Lettuce came back nice after trimming. 

I came back in the house and started sewing some catnip pillows. I had a jar of store bought catnip plus a friend gave me a bunch from their yard.  The latter is drying for now. 

I got them all ready to sew tonight when I got home. I put them at the machine and left to get water. When I came back I found a cat having a blast! errrr. I put the cat out and gave up for the night. 

The water of the day was cantaloupe. 

 Yep, we still have a lot of cantaloupe so I decide to make water out of it.  I cut up a small cantaloupe and put in the food processor with 2 tablespoons of lime juice, a cup of water and a big pinch of powder sugar. Give it a good whirl until it is liquid. 

Strained it over my drinking mug. 

Yum! Very refreshing but it does have a bold cantaloupe flavor. 

Dude was busy today too making new steps 

I think they turned out great!

peace 

Canning and the garden

We got a lot of canning done this week.  I got 28 jars of pinto beans canned! I will at least have protein in my pantry! 

The greenhouse is still going strong but we are beginning to put the garden outside to bed. 

Corn

Peppers, basil, zucchini, tomatoes, and carrots.

Tomatoes, radishes and lettuces

I prepared a basket of goodies for my mom. 

Cantaloupe.

I had to pick a bunch. I was afraid they would rot if I didn't. They smell great!

That's it before I had to head to work.

peace

Homestead chores and update on the chimney

Most days the homestead is anything but the dreamy thoughts of life on the prairie. Take this morning... before heading to work I:
Feed the chickens, geese, turkeys, guineas and made sure everyone had water.
Picked cantaloupes for breakfast
Had poo-girl duty (picking up dog poop ...ohso glamorous)
Laundry
Put away last night's dishes
Washed the eggs
Made dinner for tonight and started tomorrow's
Turned the compost bin (not much, just put in the kitchen scraps and turned it 7 times)

Breakfast

Dinner for tomorrow put in the crockpot. 

Dinner for today... Thai lettuce wraps. Started with ground sausage, add fish sauce, honey, lime and hot pepper flakes.

Add your favorite veggies and mint....simple and good . 

The chimney didn't get done Saturday. When friends heard we still needed help many offered help. And then one came over without being ask... he just knew we really needed help and needed this project done.  Yesterday Jamin and Dude got the stone applied... well, Dude taught Jamin and Jamin did most of the work since Dude is having trouble moving.  Today the rest was to be done and grouted but the winds were just too high to get up on the roof .  I love how it looks so far and so grateful for the friends we have. 

By the end of the morning I got a lot done. Dude had feed and watered the big animals, milked the goat and did the laundry.... I was so glad I could cross that one off the list. 

peace