Homeschooling update

I have to say that I am surprised and pleased at how well homeschooling is going. I was expecting teaching to be kind of painful, something I have to push on the kids, and sometimes it can be that way; but mostly it has been fun, and the more I do it, the more I love it.

There are the favorite subjects, like History, which we cannot get enough of. Sena and Aiyana could read about history all day, and I catch myself reading ahead in their book just because I can't stop, when I should be cooking, or cleaning, or doing some other work.

There have also been some pleasant surprises - like Aiyana getting into classical music. She found some old CD of mine and started playing it, and let me know that she really liked it. She asked me to find that kind of music. We went to the library and have been borrowing the Clssical Kids CD series. They are great, one CD for each composer, telling a story about that composer's life, and playing some well known pieces of theirs.

Another nice discovery has been the Mike Venezzia book series for famous artists like Da Vinci, Michelangelo, and so on. Each book is dedicated to one artist, describing their life and showing some of their most famous artwork. Sena will read as much as she can, five or six artists if I don't stop her and tell her to go do something else. We also read these books together, and it's fun talking about what we like and don't like about a certain artist. As of right now, Sena and Aiyana know more about famous painters and their work than I did a month ago. Which is not saying much, but I am happy about this unexpected turn.

Another surprise was grammar. I knew that I wanted to teach the kids grammar and writing, and I expected it to be a struggle. Writing kind of is. They like to read but when it comes to writing a summary about what they read, they dread it. Grammar, on the other hand, which I though would be much more boring, they love. I think it's because they like the structure of it, and they like how you can make sense out of language by using grammar.

Overall, my favorite part of homeschooling right now is the fact that we are learning together. I often find myself inspired and refreshed by something we read or studied during homeschooling. I like the openness of that.

Over the past week

 Greenhouse waiting to be shoveled out.

Compost pile: Is there life after death? Of course.

Brothers

peace

Wind blowing, snowflakes falling

Winter is undeniably beautiful

 

Lots and lots of snow

After last week's storm, Ed and I shoveled for 4 hours each. We had to get our greenhouses and hay tunnel cleaned up, for fear that more snow, which was forecast to come (and did come), would make them collapse. We lost one greenhouse last year, and it was a real pain getting it back up and functioning; it made us late with our planting, and we did not want that to happen this year. So we were out there shoveling.

This week, the forecast called for a lot of snow, and it was right. Rd found a used snowblower attachement for our BCS tractor on Craiglist, and we decided to get it. He went to Vermont and picked it up on Tuesday. He had it all set up and working by Tuesday night, and I felt relieved that we would not have to shovel (as much).
But, on Wednesday, Ed came down with a stomach bug, bad enough that he could not get out of bed for very long. And it was snowing hard. When the snow got deeper than 6 inches, Ed tried to get the snow blower going, but he was feeling too crappy and came back to bed. I headed out to shovel. By myself. No Ed, and no snow blower. How ironic, I was feeling all confident the night before...but that's how it goes. I shoveled one greenhouse first, the one that looked the worst. 200 feet plus the roof. Then I came to the house and crashed in an armchair. Thank goodness that i had cooked a big pot of venison and cabbage stew, and Sena had made butternut squash soup. At least there was plenty of good food to eat when I came in.
Ed was throwing up and feeling miserable. Sena and Aiyana and I watched an episode of Little House on the Prairie, which my sister lent us. After that, I had to go bring water to the cows, and seeing that there was lots of snow on the ground, Ed and I decided that the hay tunnel would collapse unless someone shoveled it out. Sena and Aiyana and I headed out there again, in the dark this time. Sena and Aiyana used two little buckets to get snow off the hay tunnel, and I shoveled. We actually kind of had fun. We kept saying how this would make a good story to tell to their children. Little house on the prairie's got nothing on us!
Next day, Ed was still feeling bad, and it snowed/freezing rained again. We shovelled some more.
On Friday, Ed was able to get out of bed and run the snow blower. Since then, we were able to get everything cleaned up really well. No standing snow on the greenhouses or tunnel.
So this has been the week of shoveling. And we're not done - it's snowing again as I write this.
If I could only get those people paying the gym to waste their perfectly good energy running on those machines up to our farm! They wouldn't even have to pay me!

42

Yesterday was my birthday. I turned 42.

Ed’s 91-year-old grandfather sent me a card that says: “How would you spend the perfect day?”

Here’s how I would spend it:

I’d wake up to see my children and Ed and have them sing Happy Birthday to me.

I’d make coffee and drink it by the fire.

I’d go outside and pause for just a moment, deliberately breathing in the cold, refreshing air, enjoying the feeling of the sun touching my skin. I’d go to the greenhouse and pick some salad greens for lunch. I’d go to the cows, clean their stalls, and hang out with them for a while. I’d sit near them in the hay, and watch them chew their cud. I’d allow myself the luxury of just sitting there, listening to their chewing noises, hearing their breath, looking out over the fields, feeling content.

I’d come back to the house to make chees and yoghurt. I’d clean the kitchen only to a “good enough” standard.

My sister would bring me freesias, my favorite cut flowers, the only cut flowers I get, and only on my birthday. We’d visit for a little bit.

I’d have some time alone, and I’d sit by the fire, in my favorite armchair with the sheepskins on it; I’d light the beeswax candle my sister made, and the candle Aiyana re-gifted to me. I’d sit and feel grateful for all the good things in my life, and for the hard things, and for how they mesh together. I’d enjoy being here another day to experience it all.
I’d read “Keeping a Family Cow”. I’d reread some favorite quotes.
I'd talk to my parents.

That would be, and was, my perfect day.

peace

Happy Groundhog Day!

This is one of my favorite holidays of the year, marking the midpoint between winter solstice and spring equinox. It also marks the time when the sun is getting noticeably stronger, and plants and animals start stirring from their winter slumber. In our greenhouses, we start seeing lots of growth in February for spinach, salad greens, carrots, beets and other cold hardy  vegetables.

I've been trying to read Cheryl Strayed's "Wild" for the past few days, as a way of relaxing and doing something different. I usually like mountaineering / adventure books. But I can't get myself to like this one. At the risk of sounding really boring, and knowing that her book is super popular, I have to say that I find her description of how messed up her life was, and how she made all these poor choices, not very interesting. Also, the hiking part of it is not inspiring to me. I keep thinking that it will get better, and that there will be something that will reach me about it, but it's not happening, so I think I'm going to give it up. I'd just rather do something else than read about her messed up decisions and her one big hike that's supposed to prove that everything is OK. Pretty harsh, I know. Boring too, I know.

I read a book this past summer, that reminds me of "Wild" in some small ways, and that I loved. The author, Melissa Coleman, had also lived through a very tragic family event which shaped the rest of her life. There's no great hike in it, just a very unconventional way of life, with its daily trials and tribulations, all of which seem very authentic. The book is "This Life is in Your Hands". Beautiful, moving story. Check it out.

Peace

February

February can be tough. There’s not a lot of natural light as we don’t see the sun for days or even weeks at a time. There’s little fresh food growing, and we don’t spend much time outside, so I think that all of these things combined can make us feel depleted and blue.

But there’s spring to look forward to, and even though it’s not obvious right now, life is quickening inside the earth. Sap is rising in trees, snow-drops are getting ready to emerge, and before we know it, spring will be here.

It’s good to take advantage of this time of the year to rest and renew, let go of whatever it is we no longer need, and clean the slate, spiritually and emotionally speaking. I read that the name February itself means “to purify”.

This week especially, I am feeling the need to rest. Since Christmas, I have been very busy with one deadline after another: I had to get the 2014 CSA info out; put together the yearly soil amendments order; do seed orders. In addition to homeschooling, cow-related activities, and the usual cooking and housekeeping, all of it has left me a feeling a little low. But, silly as it may sound, I have a hard time relaxing. I feel the need to be productive in some way or another.

The most relaxing time I’ve had recently is doing cow chores at night. I’m in charge of bringing water to them at around 8pm, and making sure they’re settled in for the night.When I go out, it’s pitch dark and cold, and as I walk across the field to where the cows are with two buckets of water in my hands, I find myself having to stop often to give my arms some rest. The nice thing about this chore is that it’s the last thing I have to do at night. So I don’t have to rush – I can take my time, walk as slowly as I need, and enjoy the stars, which have been shining brilliantly overhead these cold nights with clear skies. When I get to the cows, I also enjoy very much being around them. They are usually lying down, chewing their cud, and they watch me placidly as I break the ice and pour warm water into their buckets. There’s a feeling of calm, safety and warmth around them, and the hay in their stalls smells sweet. I often linger, just wanting to be near them under the big starlit sky before returning to the house.

I want to share this passage from an article written by Bert Gunn, recently published in Natural Transitions magazine (full article here). I met Bert at the sweat lodge ceremony a couple of years ago, and since then he’s become a teacher and someone I really look up to. In this article, he describes the death of his own teacher, Tlakaelel, a Mexican elder. I’ve been coming back to this one part of the article over the past few days:

"Tlakaelel often recited an ancient poem in the Mexica (or Nahuatl) language about an old man on his deathbed. As he looks at the four walls around him, he asks himself: “Is that all there is? Do we just pass like the wind? Will there be nothing of my name or of my fame left in this world? Do we just come to this world to grow up, reproduce, and die? At last, an answer comes: “At least we leave flowers and songs.” The flowers are the projects we have done in this life—perhaps a book we have written, a work of art, or a bridge or building, or our children. The songs are the people we have touched in this life, those who remember us, and the “seeds of wisdom” we have planted. Tlakaelel left many flowers and songs".

Peace

LT's winter break

Here's our best hunter, L.T. She lives outside in spring, summer and fall, and she works hard hunting in the fields. But in the winter we let her come in the house. I think she likes it.

peace

Mozarella - total failure

I made my first mozarella and it was a total failure. All I got was a whole bunch of whey and some very small curds. No ball.
Everything was going well until the step where I was supposed to put the curds in the microwave to melt and stretch them. Since I don't have a microwave, I went with the alternative option of working the curds in hot water. Very hot, 172F. I couldn't really do it with my hands, and I was working with two spoons, but basically my curds desintegrated and where I was supposed to get a ball shaped thing, I got some really small curds, all separate, and a whole bunch of white watery liquid.
Oh well.
I'm not giving up yet, though. I'm going to get some rubber gloves so I can work with my hands in hot water next time, and I'm going to try another recipe.
In the meantime, since I can't bare waisting a full gallon of that beautiful milk I started with, I'm eating the minuscule curds myself (in soup), and I plan to use the whey in cooking and to make ricotta. I know I can get that to work, since my last ricotta came out great.

Cow news:
The cows are getting more comfortable on our farm. They're both coming out of their stalls now and spending the day outside eating hay and the little one even eats the grass she digs out of the snow.
We've been doing a lot of reading and learning about cow training, and cow behavior, stuff like how to read their body language, what different postures mean, etc. We want to treat them right and be tuned into their signals, and at the same time we must make sure that we and the kids are safe around them, since they do weigh 600 pounds.

Opal was getting somewhat pushy with Aiyana, so we had to learn how to be more assertive with her. Basically, what we're finding is that they really need to know who's in charge, because that's how they work in a herd situation, and if we don't make it very clear that we're in charge, they will think they are and be pushy. Opal wasn't bad at all, she just nudged Aiyana sideways with her head, but it doesn't take much for such a large animal to hurt someone much smaller. So, after checking in with their ex-family and doing a whole bunch of reading, we've been much more clear about our personal boundaries with both cows, and we're working on training them to obey our direction. It's all very interesting, and the learning curve for us is really steep right now.

Tomorrow, our good friends T, C, and K are coming to help us halter and lead the cows. These guys are great at working with animals, since they have their own goats, chickens, rabbits, and horse. The horse was pretty wild when they started to work with him, but now he's much more tame, so I'm sure they'll be helping us with some of their techniques.

All that being said, we are so lucky to have found Opal and Jasmine. They're both so friendly, and good-tempered, and easy to work with. And, they're fun. I have to admit that before getting them, I was mostly focused on what they'd give us, i.e. milk and soil fertility. I didn't realize how much I'd like them for who they are. I really enjoy going out there and being around them, cleaning their stall, bringing them hay and water. It doesn't feel like a chore, at least not yet, more like a good opportunity to get outside and get some fresh air and quiet time. There's an air of peace and tranquility and well being around them, and I can see why they're revered in some parts o the world. They give us so much, and ask for so little in return. They feed us, make our soil fertile so we can grow our crops, and they multiply. Cows were a symbol of wealth in the past, and although that is no longer the case given the way we think of wealth, in my world, they still are, and I feel more secure now that we've got them.

Peace

love this picture of Sena getting hay in Opal's barn

cows and cooking

Aiyana with Opal

 and with Jasmine

Sena, cleaning Opal's stall. She and Aiyana have chicken and cow chores every morning.

Sena, making lunch. She's been a big help lately, and lightened my load considerably by cooking a meal per day. She made the delicious spinach pie below a couple of days ago.

Some of the food we grew and preserved: dried beans, dried cherry tomatoes, canned tomato sauce, pickles, apple sauce, roasted red peppers, and corn.

peace

Opal. Isn't she cute?

Sena and Aiyana, practicing a stretch for Karate.

No more waiting till the cows come home

A summary of the past few days:

On Friday, we went to see the cows and meet with the vet. Following is an email we sent to our CSA members that night, which will give you an idea of how everything went:

Want to help on the farm immediately?

To

Date

Fri 23:19

The cows are coming home.
Mission: To have 2 stalls ready for them by Sunday at noon.
When we need help: Any time on Saturday, rain or shine heavy rain.
Problem: Only one stall is currently ready. The other is filled to the brim with wood and other stuff, which needs to be removed and restacked. The stall then needs to be cleaned, and a barn wall and gate need to be built.
Jobs you can help with:

• Move out and restack the wood
• Pickup nails and other objects off the ground (dangerous to the cow)
• Help install hay racks and salt licks.

Tools that would be helpful to bring if you have them:

• Cordless skill saw
• Cordless jigsaw

How we got into this situation: We had one barn ready for the cows, but we found out just today that the two cows we’re getting should be separated for a couple of weeks, and thus require two stalls. We also just found out tonight that we’ll be getting them this Sunday, a lot earlier than we expected (although we’re very excited about it).
Why we’re writing this email at 10pm (usually we’re in bed at 9): This email is actually being written as we drive home on I-91S, after closing the deal on the purchase of our first cows! This email is also being written after having had a flat tire on the side of the highway, driving around aimlessly trying to find a gas station that had air so we could inflate the spare from 10psi to 60, and then proceeding home at 50 mph with flashers on the whole way.

ps. If anyone knows about tractors, our Kabota won’t start.



The response to our email was great. We had a dozen people show up, and the work was done in a few hours. It would've taken Ed and I several days were we to do it alone, not to metion the stress we would've experienced. Like this it was actually fun for everyone.

The cows were delivered today and everyone is extatic. The girls are besides themselves. At one point, Aiyana shyly whispered to me: "I fell in love" .
Everything is going really well so far. The family who sold us the cows is among the nicest we've met. On Friday night, after we sealed the deal, the sent us home with fresh, home-made cookies. Need I say more?

The cows are: Opal, who is just about 2, and she's most likely pregnant, due around June; and Jasmine, who's 6 months old and just weaned from her mom. Opal is the perfect family cow, mild disposition, nice size, already had a calf and gave birth unassisted with no problem. Jasmine is timid. She'll need more time to become accustomed to us and our farm. But she's also very sweet. Right now they're both a bit stressed by the travel and the new surroundings. We're being really gentle and calm around them, and we'll be spending lots of time with them to get them used to us. They'll be in their stall for a couple of weeks until they get comfortable here, then we'll let hem out on pasture.
This feels great.

Jasmine with her previous owner

 Opal and Ed

Peace

Our first Feta! and Ricotta!

Sena and I made our first Feta last night. We used raw, Jersey milk from Baldwin Brook Farm in Cantebury. Everything went well, up to the salt brining step at the very end. My recipe called for 3 days of brining, but we only brined overnight, and when I tasted the cheese in the morning it was way too salty.In the future we will brine for one ot two hours only. Fortunately you can reverse the saltiness, which is what we did, by putting the cheese in a pure whey brine or plain water until it comes back to the desired saltiness. 

I made Ricotta with the whey left from the Feta. I had some topped with peaches from our tree, which I froze in the summer, and it was delicious.

I've also been making cultured buttermilk, a big hit with the family and super-easy to make.

Adventures in dairy have begun!

My grocery list for this week has only 3 items on it: milk, cream, and nuts. The milk and cream will soon disappear - we're going to see our (hopefully) future cows on Friday. The nuts, I'm not so sure. We grew peanuts this past year but they didn't do well. Maybe we'll try a different variety in the future, but for now, we're buying nuts. In any case, I feel like we're getting closer to our goal of self-sufficiency, and that is encouraging.

Here's a picture of our cheeses. Ricotta is in the glass bowl, the rest is Feta.

Peace

I guess I was a little overzealous with the work when I got back from Montreal. I went out a couple of days ago and harvested the last hundred pounds of (super-sweet) carrots from the greenhouse. I wanted to get them out of the ground before the real cold came, and I felt the need to do some work outside. My hands were frozen by the end of it, but still, I felt good. The problem came with transporting the carrots from the green house to the root cellar. I didn’t use a wheel barrow, because of the snow, I just carried them in a bin. I only carried about 30 pounds and asked Ed to carry the rest, but the way I walked with the bin made for an awkward position. I guess my back did not like this, because yesterday all of a sudden I started having lower back pain, which has intensified quite a bit since. Now I feel like an old woman, and that exuberance that made me go out there for the carrots in the first place seems like it belonged to someone else. I’ve been sitting around the fire and shelling beans, a task that had to get done, so at least I feel like I can still do something useful.

Cow update: Things look good. We found a Dexter cow who’s pregnant and due in about August, and a 6 month old Dexter heifer, both on a small farm in New Hampshire. The family selling them seems very nice and easy to deal with. We’re hoping to go up there next week to have a vet assessment of the two of them, and pick them up shortly after, weather permitting.

Sena made her first cheese, with my help – paneer. It came out delicious, I thought, but unfortunately I was the only one who thought this. I made curry with half of it, and ate the rest raw all by myself. It was a real treat, and I was kind of glad I did not have to share it. Sena was really proud of her first cheese even though she did not like the taste, and now she wants to try other cheeses, but I told her we’ll have to wait till my back feels better.

 Peace