Farm Trucks in Winter

In the wintertime when there are no Farmer's Markets we don't use our farm trucks much. Most of the winter they just sit parked in the snow waiting for the busy season of spring to come again.




A cold winter's morning. Crabapples covered with sparkling ice crystals with
the trusty old farm trucks resting for the winter under a blanket of snow
in the background.

Winter Landscapes

10 Degrees Outside

It is about ten degrees outside. I have absolutely no desire to go out there. My ideas of perfect activities on such a cold day includes reading books on the couch, making crafty things, and drinking hot chocolate. The boys however think otherwise. David keeps begging to go out to play, while Matthew brings his boots over to me every few minutes indicating that he wants me to put them on him. Finally I reluctantly bundle them and myself all up. The snow pants, the coats, the hats, the gloves, the boots. It takes at least ten minutes to get everyone ready for what I know will probably only be about five minutes of outdoor fun. It feels like such a chore. But when we finally make it outside it is worth it. It is worth it to see the sparkle in their eyes, the rosy glow on their cheeks, and the smile on their faces. Even though it does only last five minutes before they are cold and ready to go back inside.

Matthew

David

Paper Lanterns

Paper Lanterns

On these colder, darker days of winter we need to do all we can to brighten and cheer our homes. I love the cozy glow of the fire in the woodstove and the soft radiance of strands of white lights hung around the house. Something I saw several years ago at someone's house was a strand of origami paper lanterns. They were so lovely. And so simple. All it was, was a set of origami boxes/ balloons on a strand of white Christmas lights. I already knew how to make the little origami boxes/ balloons so I decided to make myself a set. The first set I made was actually a bit expensive because I went and bought two packages of fancy origami paper. This time I only spent about five dollars, $2 on a strand of twenty white lights, and $3 on a 100 pack of colorful 6"x6" scrapbook paper. Scrapbook paper is ideal for this project; it comes in just the right size, a variety of beautiful colors and patterns, and you can get a whole book of it for a few dollars. It is a simple project to do. It only requires some time and quite a bit of paper folding. During a movie is the perfect time to do it. If you want to make a set for yourself, here is how.

Start with a strand of 20 white lights and a pack of 6"x6" scrapbook paper

Take out one sheet of 6"x6" scrapbook paper

1. Fold paper in half diagonally
2. Open up and fold diagonally the other direction
3. Bring the corner of the triangle up to the center point
4. Bring the other corner up to form a square

5. Open paper up so inside is facing you
6. Begin to bring the two creases on opposite sides of the paper together
7. As they come together it will form into two triangles
8. Flatten and place on the table

9. Bring the two corners up to point. Flip over and do the same for other
two corners, forming a square.

10. Fold two corners of square in, meeting at the center,
repeat on other side.

11. Next fold free corner and tuck into previously folded corner.
Repeat for all four.

12. Pull open slightly. Find the end with the hole and gently blow
in a puff of air until the balloon inflates.
13. Insert white light into the hole. Jiggle gently until it is on securely.
Now make 19 more and you have a whole strand!

The Finished  Light Strand

Pretty Lanterns Hanging Above My China Cabinet

The Winter Season on the Farm

The Garden Resting Under a Blanket of Snow

Here at Simple Gifts Farm the changing of the seasons brings a corresponding change in our activities. After a busy summer of growing, cultivating, and harvesting our crops and bringing them to our friendly customers at the farmer's markets; the final rush of autumn to get the garden cleaned up, the garlic planted and what feels like a million other projects wrapped up before snow; comes the quieter, slower season of winter. For us this season is a much needed time of rest and refreshment. The days are shorter now, the days are colder now. We spend more time indoors by a cozy fire with a warm cup of tea. As we settle into the rhythm of winter we reflect on the busy season that has just past and plan for the year ahead. Winter is an important time to discuss ideas and goals for the coming year, to layout the garden on paper, study seed catalogs and decide on varieties and quantities, and make our seed order. It is also the time to work on indoor projects like updating our website, designing new brochures, repairing market tablecloths, or organizing supplies. Even though winter is slower there are many things to fill our time. We do more reading in the winter. There are so many great books and resources that can expand our knowledge, there is always more to learn. We also read more to our children, teaching them, and helping them become excited about learning, too. We get our creative side going while making soap, lip balm, and other body care products. This has developed into a small side business that helps supplement our income. More opportunities for gathering and fellowship with family and friends is another highlight of this season. We usually try to make a trip to visit my family in California sometime during the winter. It is fun to explore the Farmers Markets; which run year round down there; and talk to the farmers during our stay.

It is good to take this season to remember and be grateful for the many blessings we enjoy; our families, our friends, customers who support us, a wonderful community, a gorgeous place to live, a warm home, food in the pantry, work that we love, babies in our arms. As winter slowly slips by we will soon begin to feel a restless stirring, a longing to get our hands back in the soil, to see that first bit of green, growing life. In late winter we will start our seeds in trays and the anticipation of spring and the opening of the Farmers Market grows strong again. And the cycle of the seasons continues.

This article was published in the months edition of the North Columbian Monthly.

Grateful Everyday

Thanksgiving... a day to gather with loved ones, a day to eat mountains of delicious food, a day to be thankful for our many blessings. Sometimes it is easier to set aside one day to be thankful on, almost as if we fulfilled a duty and now we can go along our way. But what is one day of thanksgiving worth if we don't fulfill the harder task of being grateful everyday? Everyday when the hours are long and weary, everyday when the children are whining and the dinner is burned, everyday when all the mundane tasks overwhelm us. Sometimes it is hard, so hard to remember to stop and count our blessings in the midst of the mess that is so often everyday life. But they are there; a kiss from little lips, a fleeting ray of sunshine on a cloudy day, a crackling fire in the woodstove. And not just to notice all the good things that are so easily overlooked, but to actually give thanks for the hard things, the painful things, the challenging things. This Thanksgiving may we not only give thanks, but stop to remember why we can give thanks in all things... because we serve a great God who gives us grace for everyday, who gives us growth in the hard things. For this may we be truly grateful everyday.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Potato Party

Well this post is a little late, but I figured better late than never. Back in September we were blessed to have the help of friends, family and neighbors to get our potato crop out of the ground. We made it into quite a party. In the evening we all had a harvest dinner of potato soup and Asian cabbage salad. We also celebrated David's 4th birthday with a some cupcakes, balloons, and gifts.

The Potato Harvest Crew

Matthew Helping Sort Potatoes

Picking up Potatoes

Potatoes

Happy Birthday

David Turns Four

Feeding the Poultry

Both boys absolutely love feeding the chickens and the ducks. It is so much fun for them to throw the grain. Matthew almost always cries when it is time to put the can away and go back inside.

Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

This summer I had an abundant crop of colorful and delicious cherry tomatoes. I picked a whole bucketful the other day to save the last of them from freezing. I wasn't really sure what to do with them all. So after looking for some ideas online I decided to try roasting them. It was quite simple. I cut them in half then tossed them with olive oil, some fresh chopped basil and oregano, and a handful of whole peeled garlic cloves. I spread it all on cookie sheets and roasted them at 450 degrees for about 25 minutes. After they came out of the oven and cooled a bit I put them in jars and covered them with more olive oil. I kept on jar in the fridge and the rest I put in the freezer for future use. They would make a great pasta or pizza topping or for just snacking on.

Squash Harvest

Last week we finished harvesting the squash and pumpkins. I love all the shapes and colors, they are one of my favorite parts of fall.

Marcus Ciderfest

We had a fun day at the CiderFest this year. We had a booth to sell our pumpkins, potatoes and other vegetables along with my body care products. The weather was perfect. A little bit cool and cloudy in the morning with beautiful sunshine in the afternnon. David enjoyed the parade but his favorite part was watching the ciderpress, he would have watched it all day if he could have. Matthew was pretty fascinated by it as well.

Autumn Pear Tart

I love Autumn, the smells, the flavors, the colors. This delicious pear tart has become a tradition for me to bake each fall.

Kombucha

Finished and delightful

Well I did a post about water kefir or tibicos, now I am going to share with you about kombucha. Kombucha is another fermented drink that is full of probiotics. Kombucha is a little stronger flavored than water kefir and some people don’t care for it. I tend to like water kefir a little better but I also really like kombucha. If you enjoyed the water kefir and are feeling adventurous you might like making kombucha, too. I got my kombucha scoby and my water kefir grains at the same time. While the grains look like pretty little transparent crystals the scoby looks kind of like a slimy brown mushroom, which is why it is sometimes called one even though it is not. A SCOBY is a Symbiotic Colony Of Bacteria and Yeast that is used to ferment sweetened tea and turn it into kombucha. It is very easy to make, although it might take some experimenting to get it just the way you like it. I usually make a half gallon at a time but you an easily double the recipe for a larger batch. Ingredients for one half gallon of kombucha: 1 kombucha scoby ½ cup of kombucha tea 4 plain black tea bags ¾ cups organic cane sugar Helpful equipment for making kombucha: 1 gallon glass jar Cheesecloth Rubberband Airtight jars or bottles Strainer Here is the method I use: Place tea bags and sugar in a 4 cup measuring cup, add boiling water. Stir to dissolve sugar and allow to cool completely. Add to gallon jar along with scoby, four more cups of cool water and ½ cup of kombucha from a previous batch. Cover with cheesecloth and secure with a rubberband. Allow to sit at room temperature out of direct sunlight for 5 – 10 days. I prefer mine to sit for about seven days. I like the flavor the best after that length of time and it also makes it easy to remember which day I need to do something with it and start my next batch. Next I strain it into an airtight bottle. I have been using an old plastic juice bottle, but would prefer to get a couple more glass flip top bottles to use. Let it sit on the counter overnight then refrigerate to chill. You can experiment with different types of tea such as chai, or other flavors or green tea. My brother in law even tried a batch using coffee once, I’m not too sure about that though. You can also add fruit juice when you bottle it for a tasty flavored version. See it is easy to make, tasty, and healthy, too! If you need a scoby keep your ears open for friends or aquintances that are making it, most people are happy to share extra ones, or you can buy them online. Kombucha is easy to make, tasty, and good for you!

The lovely scoby

Steeping the tea

Bottled to give it a nice fizz

My Herb Garden

I enjoyed my little perennial herb garden so much this summer. I planted it last fall fall and everything came back beautifully I have Oregano, Winter Savory, Thyme, Sage, Lemon Balm, and Lavender.

Oregano Flowers

Winter Savory

Lavender

The Enchanted Garden Gate

Water Kefir

Tibicos… what a strange word, what might it be anyway? Well, it is fizzy fermented sugar water. Sounds strange right? It is actually quite delicious as well as a healthy alternative to soda. It is also known as water kefir. I first heard about it a few years ago when someone at the Farmer’s Market mentioned it, then a friend of mine started making it. It caught my interest but I didn’t start making any until last fall when my midwife offered me some grains as well as a kombucha scoby(which I also started making and will be another post.) Making water kefir is a very simple process. After looking it up online to figure out the basics here is the method I use. I make mine in a half gallon jar. For ½ gallon of water kefir or tibicos you will need: 10 Tablespoons of water kefir grains 6 Tablespoons of sugar(I use organic cane sugar) 1 small lemon or lime 1 small piece of fresh ginger Helpful equipment to have: Half gallon glass canning jar Cheesecloth Rubberband Funnel Strainer Jars or bottles that seal tightly To make your water kefir measure your kefir grains and sugar into your jar. Fill with water. Cut the lemon or lime into quarter and slice the ginger add to jar. Cover with cheesecloth holding in place with a rubberband. Let sit on counter at room temperature for 1 to 2 days. It should be tangy, with just a little bit of sweetness. Experiment to find how long you like to leave it, the longer it sits the more sour it becomes. I find the time it takes to ferment varies a little depending on the temperature in the house. Next strain out the liquid and pour into airtight jars or bottles. Let sit on the counter another 12- 24 hours. Refrigerate to chill then enjoy! Another variation that I like is adding about 1/3 fruit juice when bottling. It adds extra fizz and flavor! It is also good mixed half and half with lemonade when you serve it. I also want to try making ginger ale syrup to add to it one of these days. To make the next batch simply add 6 more Tablespoons of sugar to the jar and fill with water. After three batches I use fresh lemon and ginger and re-measure my grains, they will keep growing. I keep the extra grains in sugar water in the refrigerator, give them away, or throw them in the compost if there are too many.

My water kefir in my pretty bottles

Ready to sit on the counter

The grains- aren't they pretty?

The grains

The finished drink- so refreshing