A Long Weekend on the Homestead.

The sprouted wheat, dried and ready to grind! Notice the crackled appearance of the berries. We ground this into flour and have used it for a cake and waffles so far. The unused flour is stored in an airtight container in our freezer. I have to say, the claims about sprouted flour seem to be true! It has a distinct flavor and is very filling.

Drying ziplock bags. Reduce, Reuse, & Recycle!

Grinding meat. We then seared & canned this venison. Perfect for casseroles! This is the kind of no-fuss, instant cooking I can use!

My canning operation. That pressure canner will hold 19 quarts at one time. It was an investment, but it has paid for itself already in the amount of time it has saved me!

Saturday afternoon we hiked in our woods, although the wind was blustery, the temperatures hadn’t dropped yet and I told the kids we had to take advantage of the warm weather!

After a day of hiking, games, and family everyone climbed in bed with me to read. It really is the best way to end a day, surrounded by children who love a good story!

The hoop house is ready for end walls and plastic. Now, I just have to patiently wait for the weather to cooperate. It is a blessing I’m more than happy to be patient for.

Snow falling as the cold creeps our way.

This mama is ready to have her babies! I misjudged how close she was to kidding, but now when I look at her I know it will be soon. After birthing 4 children myself you kind of have a sixth sense for this thing, or maybe a touch of mama to mama sympathy.

Breakfast.

We finished up the long weekend with a trip to the Science-Play-Space-Iniative. A great place to take your children in downtown Mt Vernon. Here the kids are experimenting with gel beads. The beads grow when you add water, sink in tap water, and float in salt water!

Sunset! We have lived in the woods always, and recently thinned out some of the trees when we built our pond. This is the first winter that I have been able to see a sunset from our house. The kids reaction was priceless, they were shouting out colors and had their noses pressed against the window trying to see as much of it as they could.

Read this book, take time to be quiet, and let me know what you think!

A Long Weekend on the Homestead.