#100HappyDays :: Day 97

The wrap up before leaving on vacation this time of year is much like the furor prior to guests arriving.  We finished a massive harvest of beets, and carrots and the fall planting is taken care of.  We also processed 25 squash into six casseroles snug in the freezer for easy fall meals.  B also successfully combined two bee hives, but that craziness deserves its own post.  I love days where we accomplish a lot but still have time to leisurely bar-b-cue with the kids and enjoy the late summer/early fall foliage that is just beginning to peak through.

Good Morning August!

Well hello August!  It is hard to believe that you are here already and even harder to believe that I spied the first blush of color on the trees three days ago.  As you can see from the picture above, the trees are not the only things that are beginning to blush this first day of August.   The light is lower and more golden, and school starts in less than three weeks.  I cannot say that these are necessarily the dog days as we have had such a mild summer, yet it is crunch time.  We will spend our weekend knee deep in prep for our Seventh Annual Chili Cook-off, which is one week away, and the perfect event to kick off making the most of the end of summer.  Happy Weekend!

Farm Bag Five

This week has gone by in a blink!  I spent last weekend at a conference, and then came back to work, school preparation and garden duties.  It has been a really phenomenal summer and I am excited contemplating a continuation of farm bags for longer this year than in years previous.  Here is this weeks newsletter.

Farm Bag Four

As the heat of August does not disappoint farm bag number four was ready for delivery.  I like to try to add little personal tidbits that come from all of the squirreling away preserving of food that we try to accomplish.  It never ceases to amaze me how quick and easy some things are, but it seems that we do not do them, always making the excuse that the task too time consuming.  I am much this way myself, but this week I was once again reminded how the most difficult thing of processing some of the basil was hauling out the food processor!  That said, it takes all of 15 minutes to pound out three containers of pesto and that was with grating all of the cheese by hand.  I have come up with a favorite recipe and now that I have made it a few times this week pesto is front and center in many of our meals.  I also included a container of it in each of this weeks farm bags.  Take a peak at this weeks newsletter to catch up on our Homestead Happenings.