Another day...

 

Still waiting on our child to arrive.  3 days after the due date, and not much sign of 'em.  Still, a beautiful (cold) morning here in North Carolina.  Plans for church, brunch and a hike in the woods.  We'll see if that gets them excited about meeting the world! :) ~



The end of November

 

 

 

 

I can't believe it's been a month, but it has.  It feels like November has been spent simply being pregnant, but looking over the last few weeks, I remember the other highlights:

 

-Greg finished the outhouse I started so many months ago!  I started building with logs in the saddle style, but after my return from Alaska to 100 degree weather here, picking up the chainsaw and chiseling away at logs while pregnant seemed to be the last thing I wanted to do.  Thank goodness for Greg to finish my projects. :)

-A brief foray into skinning animals came to a rather abrupt halt for me when the great idea I had (salvaging roadkill to sell the furs; probably not even legal), turned out to be a bit harder than I thought due to misjudging how long a certain fox had actually been on the side of the road.  I just have to laugh about that one, but I will spare you the details... 

-We had a very nice, if brief Thanksgiving with Greg's family in Winston-Salem, the town where Greg attended high school, and where his grandparents and uncle and aunt still live.  It was so nice to see everyone and share a meal.  Knowing this was the last time we would see almost all of them until we became parents was a wierd realization!

-We had our first peek at our baby this week at the midwife's house.  She wanted to see the baby on the ultrasound machine to be sure it was the size it should be.  I was measuring about 6 cm behind on my growth at 37 weeks, and she was a bit concerned (although how concerned she didn't let on until after the sonogram).  We met with a doctor friend of hers who read the ultrasound and found out that evrything is just fine. :)  We'll have a little baby, but nothing out of the ordinary.  Thank the Lord...

 

 

 

On that note, our house is slowly being taken over by stuff I am not used to seeing!  Wipes and creams and pads...little gifts for someone we're still waiting to meet!  The strangest are the things for the homebirth...cord clamps, and iodine, and plastic sheets...blood tests, powders, and the teeniest clothes just waiting for that big day (or night!).  It all helps me get used to the idea that soon enough we will be parents, never again to be just the two of us.  That is something that the child in me is still getting used to.  I guess for me, normal is a crazy rollercoaster of emotions that I never expected, being at the same time so excited, and yet feeling completely unprepared. 

The closer it gets, the more surreal it seems until I just want the day to be here so we can find out what our new reality holds.  I'm going to blame it all on the hormones, I guess, and simply carry on.  My luxurious days of taking 3-hour naps, and still feeling exhausted enough to fall asleep at 9p.m. are surely numbered, and I wonder how on earth one does this when they already have a toddler to care for.  I guess in a few years we will find out.  Maybe the next post I write will be about our little one...crazy to think!~

The end of October

 

After giving our previous, asthetically pleasing stove more tries than it deserved in every way we could think of, we finally decided it wasn't cutting the mustard.  We upgraded with another find from Craigslist, and were luckily able to sell the old woodstove within 12 hours at a small profit.  The new behemouth in the living room may not be as pretty, but has instantly won my affections, as it works like a good stove should.  Night number one got down to 29 degrees, and the yurt stayed in the mid-60's with minimal midnight stokings.  We also reheated our cornbread and chili on the top, while still able to keep water humidifying the room.  I just love practicality! 

 

The last of the sunflowers.  They are all dead and withered now, but maybe still feeding the birds.

 

 

 

I called them "tarts" and Greg called them "bearclaws," but I don't think they are really either.  Leftover pie crust stuffed with blueberries and cranberries (from Alaska last fall!) and a little sugar and flour.  Next time I would cook down the berries and sugar a little before stuffing the crust to minimize the delicious berry juice leaking out too much!

Had to include a photo of my Halloween costume this year.  I was inspired by my growing belly, and chose a mother earth theme.  After almost giving up on this idea, and Halloween altogether (things seem to cost a lot more energy these days!), I was excited to find everything I needed for under $20 at Goodwill.  It was a sign.  Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get a  picture of Greg and I together, as he picked his Viking costume up at camp on the way out to the Halloween party.  We had a fun night, and I was glad to rinse off the glittter and paint when it was over.~

 

 

 

Fall Chores

 

There's something about fall chores.  They are the best kind.  Spring chores are really fun, because you've been looking forward to them all winter, but there's something about fall chores that's really satisfying.  Knowing you've got things buttoned up and stored away for the winter gives you a cozy feeling inside.

 

This fall, that feeling is multiplied with each thing checked off our to-do list, as we're still getting the yurt finished up, and preparing for our little yurtling.  Of course, that also means our fall to-do list is about 10 times as long as it was last year.  But we are getting there.

 

 

A before and after of my project last weekend; washing pollen, sap and yes, sadly even some mold off both sides of our window shades, and rolling them up nice and neat.  Some were pretty hastily put up in the impending heat of summer and never got re-rolled...

Leaves are especially a commodity this year.  We use them for the composting toilet, the compost piles, litter in the chicken coop, and for tucking in the gardens for the winter.  Good thing we've had a large supply :)

Greg got into the greywater system last weekend.  The frame he's started here will hold the gravel pile to the right in the bottom half, into which our perforated pipe will run, and dirt and a raised bed in the top half.  Greywater from the sinks and shower will run through the gravel, and some will be used up by the flowers in the top.  It's essentially a french drain combined with a raised bed, inspired by Anna Edey's "Solviva" book.  (Highly recommended!)

Some cosmos still holding on...

So nice to see firewood stacked and drying...  the chickens helped a bunch.

IT WORKED!!  I reluctantly started yet another batch of bread the other day, and thought of a couple more things to tweak.  I suspect the main problem was I was not kneading long enough, but there were several other things I did differently, like carefully measuring the salt, instead of tossing in a few pinches (for some reason I never measure salt-I feel like I know what a teaspoon looks like in the palm of my hand), and adding all the flour at once, instead of gradually.  I set the timer and kneaded to beat the band until the second it went off.  Lastly, I sent it into the oven with a quick prayer. "God, this bread is tasty and nutritious, even if it isn't pretty.  Thank you for it, and the means to make it.  I give it to you, and if you want it to rise, it will rise."  It ROSE.

 

Amazing what a little coat of paint can do to spruce things up.  The chocolate brown color looks sharp against the teal yurt; a lot sharper than moldy, natural wood did.  $2 at Sherwin Williams back in the mis-tint room!

 

The greywater system is done.  I have dumped my last 5-gallon bucket of greywater from the yurt!!!  Just need to plant the flowers back in the top.

 

 

 

And, one of our favorite things checked off the to-do list.  The wood stove is doing a wonderful job turning this house into even more of a home. ~

 



A Race

 

 

 

 

 

Greg entered the Hickory Nut Gap race, which was last weekend.  The race had a 10K, and a 50K relay.  He was unable to find a partner for the relay, so the 10K it was.  There were about 80 people in the race on saturday morning.

 

I wasn't sure what to expect, as training sometimes had to be put on the back burner in order to work on the yurt, and other responsibilities.  I knew he was in good shape, though, so I was anxious to see how he did.

 

 

I took a nice, much-needed stroll in the cool woods while I waited for the racers.  I had my watch timer set, so I could relax on my walk, but still make it in time for the finish.

 

I had to laugh when I saw this.  I heard a tiny baby squalling, and was a little surprised to see it was being cared for by a very young group of kids.  As this girl lifted it to rock it, I saw it was one of those realistic babies that you have to rock or feed to get to stop crying.  How I would have loved one of those at that age.  Now I get a real one, though, so I can't complain. :)

 

 

 

 

 I expected the racers to start coming in anytime after 40 minutes.  After a few skinny cross-country runner-looking fellows ran in first, here came Greg in 6th place overall!  I was very proud of him, and I barely got this picture as he came streaming in to the finish.

 

It was a nice change of pace for us for a Saturday morning..~ 



Baking failures and around the yard..

So, my mom makes wonderful bread.  We never ate store-bought bread growing up, and I remember these huge, fluffy loaves coming out of the oven by the half-dozen, just waiting to be sliced and slathered with butter.  Truly great, nutritious, hearty bread.

 

After setting out on my own as a wife, one thing I always knew I would do was take that recipe with me, and provide my family with that same great, homemade bread.  Unfortunately, making those big, fluffy loaves has turned out to be A LOT harder than I originally anticipated.

 

Every time I've tried this recipe (probably over 30 times in the last few years), I put in the same ingredients, in the same order, at the same temperature as my mom.  The dough smells the same, proofs the same, usually feels the same, and even starts to rise the same.  And then, after it's risen, I turn on the oven to bake it, and-bummer!  The bread falls yet again!  I have heard of cakes falling, but why is my bread falling???  I thought maybe it was a difference in altitude, but it's not that great of a difference.  Then, I thought maybe it's the humidity here, but I've made it in other people's air-conditioned, de-humidified homes and it still falls.  The only thing that's different is I don't grind my own flour and add it while still warm, but my mom didn't always do that....at least the bread still tastes good, but I am sure tired of mini-sandwiches and really missing those light, fluffy slices!  When my mom comes for her visit in December, she is going to make me a batch of bread under my very scrutinizing eye, and prove to me that it can be successfully done in North Carolina, too!

 

Nothing too special, but a long-awaited project finally completed!  Compost bins made from old pallets lined with chicken wire...and just in time for all the leaves to be gathered.  I look forward to a well-fed and fruitful garden next year.

 

 The newest addition to our yard.  A MUCH-needed storage shed.  I am too embarassed to show you the before picture of the tarp-covered mess we called the "garage," but very happy to have this sharp-looking solution in the yard instead.

 

 

Beautiful turnips coming up.  These were always a staple in every garden I grew, even back in Junior High.  I love eating them raw, and that's about the only way I like them.  In my opinion, turnips are one of those mysterious vegetables (like cauliflower) that transform into something less than desirable after being cooked.

 

Five rows of carrots went in beside the turnips, but were extremely slow in coming up due to lack of rain.  We'll see if they make up some size, and make it into the freezer before the hard frosts come.

 

 

So, I saved my favorite news for last.  One of our hens went broody recently, and wouldn't let us take her eggs.  After some coaxing, she let me replace her eggs with (hopefully) fertilized ones from a friend who's got roosters.  We find out Wednesday or Thursday if she gets to be a mom!  I've hatched eggs before in an incubator, but never gotten to see a chicken raise her own (well, sort of) young firsthand.  I am so excited to watch her mothering instincts be put to use, and am glad she finally decided to start laying on the eggs before it got too cold! 

 I was waiting for one of them to do it all summer, and I finally got my wish.  She's laying on 6 eggs, but if at least one hatches, I'll be happy.  She got a little distracted the other day, and ran off.  I kept ducking in the coop to make sure the eggs were still warm, nervously reminding her to come back.  I finally had to remind her with a herding stick, and she squawked when she saw the eggs and climbed back on.  I hope they didn't cool off too much, but we'll find out soon.~ 

 

 

Evening stroll around the Farm

Greg perfecting the mountain unicycle.

We threw some free pumpkin seeds in hills in the middle of the summer, and planted a row of sunflower seeds from last year next to them.  Despite no time to weed, there are some small pumpkins growing, and the sunflowers brighten the field.

 I think I understand why pumpkins are planted in a patch now.  Though there were plenty of bees in the field, it seemed, and tons of blossoms, having them all in one, long row seems to make it harder for them to become pollinated either by wind or the bugs.  The amount of blossoms to the amount of fruit produced was a huge gap. 

I had good intentions of getting a picture of one of Greg's summer projects before the tomatoes all wilted and died, but at least you can see all 150' of what we had before the blight hit.  The tomatoes were all basically headed to the compost pile here, as Bill and Dianne had no room for any more up at the house, and from Ace hardware, as they were headed out to the dumpster.  Essentially free tomatoes that ended up in local restaurants, grocery stores, and at the local market.  It was a good experiment in growing, harvesting, packaging and marketing large quantities of produce in town, and brought in a little extra revenue for the summer.  

 

Our next joint effort: growing winter greens and selling them to the restaurants in town.

 

 

Mustard greens and Kale are popping up!  Now we just have to keep the turkeys from dusting in the high tunnel...