Kefir Blueberry Cream Cheese

I have been making Kefir lately, just learning how to do it. I have tried it with goats milk -smooth yogurty texture. Low pasteurized Holstein milk -smooth yogurty texture. Raw skimmed Jersey milk -grainy, cultured buttermilk like texture.
So what to do with my Kefir now that we have our Matilde? I took out the grains and then hung the Kefir in a cheese cloth.
I then added honey, a bit of sea salt and some blueberries (all I had was some fruit naturals, which I drained and used). Mixed it up and put it on a toasted bagel.
Can you say Yum?!!?
So very easy and so very good.
If you tried it, let me know what you think.
Rhiannon LOVED her piece of bagel.... she only left one bite.

This is the Way We Wash Our Clothes

I have a kingsize comforter, that won't fit in my washing machine. And well, it's been needing a good wash for ages. I kept thinking I needed to find a laundry mat with an industrial size washing machine. Then yesterday the light bulb went on FINALLY!
That's what we have a bathtub for. The girls we're pretending they were Cinderella, and singing as they worked.

Oh and I had a few people wondering what a clothespin apron was. Well, here it is. Short little apron with a big pocket for your clothespins. As we supposedly shouldn't leave them on the line year round, but take them off the line between uses. And it makes it much easier if I collect them as I take things off the line..... no more hunting around for a pin off the other line, leaving the clothes hanging -not pinned- desperately hoping a wind gust won't blow it off while I'm distracted.

I find I enjoy laundry a lot more now that I have this nifty apron.
Oh happy day!

Homemade Pasta

I thought yesterday, that I would make some pasta.

The recipe I found online was quite simple:

1C flour
2 eggs

make a well in the flour and add eggs, using fingers stir the center, taking more and more flour with. As it combines you might need to add a bit more flour as you knead (just so it doesn't stick to EVERYTHING).

It will look lumpy, keep kneading... you want it to look all smooth.
Let the dough rest for abt 10 min. then roll out as thinly as you can.

The pasta will get about 5 times bigger as you cook them. (in lots of well salted water, abt 2 min).

I used a can of spaghetti sauce that was in the pantry and my fresh goats cheese I had made (filled with spices and herbs)

Everybody enjoyed it... I would like to try to find a pasta roller at some point though. They turned out quite thick :o)

Milking time

Milking Time

Elm gets a turn too

Just thought we'd share our family milking session. We had a lot of fun. Everybody got to milk and Arilyn got a ride on Matilde on the way back to the pen.

A Cow and a funfilled day!

WELCOME MATILDE!!!!!!

We made a trip yesterday to pick up our new addition to the farm. A Jersey milk cow. We are letting her roam around... not that she goes very far.
I headed in to the dr office for a blood draw. Dear Hubby told me when I got home that she's been looking for him, she was standing outside the garage window mooing at him.

This is her looking in the bay windows in the family room as I'm sitting here working on the computer.

She seemed kind of sad this morning in the pen, so we let her out. DH was excited about the fact that he
probably won't have to mow the lawn anymore. Now we just have to hose the "spots" on the lawn.... free fertilizer.

Here she is on her way down towards the house.

When I got home (and had to carry two sleeping girls in the house) she came over to the car to see who came home. She blocked the way to the house, so I had to walk around the other side of the car.
Gotta Love my Moo!!







Here's our fist gallon of milk we got last night from her.
Arilyn is showing you just how much cream we got on the top.



















Rhiannon wanted curls, so I rolled up her hair this morning.


We've been busy today. It's laundry day as well, and I'm going to make home made pasta for dinner..... Oh and don't forget the fudge brownies.
So off I go.

Farm Life

I've got to say, I really enjoy this kind of lifestyle. Having grown up on the fifth floor of an apartment building, I always dreamed of living far enough "out" that I could have some animals. Oh I dreamed of a cow, some chickens, couple of pigs, 3 sheep (1black and 2 white) oh and a donkey. I wanted the "petting zoo".
Now that it's become an reality, I love it!
Okay, so I have goats in stead of sheep, a llama instead of my donkey (I'm still dreaming about that one) geese, ducks and turkey instead of the pigs (I will be adding those). And we have bees.
Oh and the cow you ask? Well, she will be joining our farm this week.

My hubby's rooster.

We've planted fruit trees, nut trees and berry bushes (will be adding more of those).
We got in the structure for a good raised bed garden this year (even if it needs some tweaking) and now know how to get in "the big garden" so we now just what to do next year.

Broccoli from our garden


our second tomato out of our garden.

We are trying to grow as much of our own as possible and have decided to try to stay away from prepackaged foods when ever possible.
We'll be making our own butter... SOON :o) and yogurts and soft cheeses (and when I get up the nerve and buy some cultures, I'll be trying my hand at making hard cheeses).

I have a loving husband, who works so very hard for our well being. And two wonderful little girls that are always exploring and getting into mischief :o)
Life is Good.