A hike after the recent ice storm.

     We had a good ice storm and everything was covered with a smooth thick covering of ice.  When I got home the sun was shinning so we took a walk to the far neighbors.

 I recently purchased a new camera and couldn't wait to try it out and this was a great opportunity.  (click on images to enlarge)

 Ginny walked with me testing the trail.  The top of the snow was ice and sometimes we broke thru, which made Gin make all of these funny noises .

   I couldn't capture all of the glistening ice that was everywhere.  It was beautiful ! 

   The ice on this pine looked fake..as if someone had decorated it.

 Our neighbor's horses. 

   The only hint of how it looked .  I need to work on this and get the image just the way I want it.  Now that I have a good camera I need to make it work for me.    Get out and walk in some bad weather...it does a body good.

This is a little out of focus but it shows a little of the sun shinning on the branches.

Caught on camera this winter

These are from the back "yard".  I had dumped some apples in the back to get rid of them and noticed that something was coming to see .  This is some of them.

  A lone coyote kept coming.
Rabbits lilke crazy.
Coyote again, maybe looking for the rabbits.
Possum

Winter passing by.

I have been busy working so my blog time just doesn't get done. Sorry.
I have been baking a lot . Here is a blueberry creamcheese thing I made. It turned out pretty good too.
Breanna was over to get some sewing done. I thought that it was great that Gin was teaching her how.
See was into it too.

Making Pizzelle cookies

Macy and I made some Pizzelle cookies recently . It was a good thing to do on a winters day to keep her occupied for a while. She likes to help and I like the cookies. We only make these around Christmas for some reason..... I guess the cold weather has something to do with it.
I let Macy time the cooking part..about one minute..with a kitchen clock and a tiny tea cup to mark the starting point. She also was in charge of moving the cool ones to the stacks. I kept her hopping and she loved it. Some more time well spent.

My other little guy was over too. He likes keeping me busy as he empties the cupboards . BTW I got this buffet at the auction last year at a great price. Nice.

Mike's Visit

Ginny dazzles the kids with the apple peeler.

 My friend Mike brought his grand kids over one day for lunch so I had to document the occasion. They were a little apprehensive at first but soon warmed up to us and we had a wonderful time.  

Nathan,Emily and Grandpa Mike

Kaitlyn 

After lunch they played out side around the tree swings and then I took them for a four-wheeler ride to the back.  They loved it and asked grandpa to come back.  We hope they do.  Maybe this winter so I can pull they around the back in sleds.  Okay Mike?
      

My grandson

Today Ben came to visit. The house was warm and he was very sleepy. He fell asleep at the table, a first . The funny thing is that Matthew used to do the same thing. We seem to have come full circle.
Going,Going,Gone.
I hope that everyone is well and getting ready for the holidays. This month is always crazy for us because of all the occasions we have with all of the birthdays,anniversary's (our 40th) and then getting ready for Christmas. This year is a little more nuts for me because I went back to work! My old employer called and asked if I wanted to come back for a few months. I started last Monday. The plant is being closed down in May or so and I'm in till whenever. Sad to see it go and weird to be back after nine years! More later.

Christmas in Ida Parade

Our little town of Ida has a great parade of lights every first Saturday in December every year and it has evolved into a pretty big deal. There is over 125 floats ,food vendors,events and about 40,000 people squeezed into little Ida. Even Disney gets involved.

The down side is that it is cold sitting along the route and you have to dress really warm.

Matt and Shell,Ben,Macy , Ginny and I went this year and had a lot of fun.

Here we are watching and trying to keep warm. We had two large pizza's and a basket of fries,and some hot chocolate .

Matt got Macy a light saber and she loved it. Next year I will have to come up with some heaters for sure.

Macy's cold feet at the end of the night were pretty cold. We came home none too soon. She fell asleep in my lap,sitting in the dark in front of the wood stove. For me The perfect ending .

Chard Chicken and Black Bean Soup

Well it is early November and I still have a lot of lettuce. We have had a few nights below freezing and it is still hanging on. I have been covering it at night trying to keep it alive and well. It is great so far.

The other greens are flourishing ! I have been picking a few turnips

and like them diced with eggs in the morning,Ginny not so much.

Our favorite is soup made with Kale. So here is the recipe.

I started with some Russian Kale as the main ingredient ,with a few other greens mixed in. Try this for some very good soup. We have been making a big pot and then freezing half for the winter. We find that it is best as a leftover. The flavors mingle better with time I guess.

I got this recipe from Urban Hippy

Ingredients

• 2 Cups Chicken ,cooked and shredded
• 1 Can(15oz)s Black Beans
• 4 Tbsps Olive oil
• 2 Whole Onions chopped
• 4 Cloves Garlic,chopped
• 6 Cups Chicken Broth
• 12 Cups Swiss Chard,Kale or what have you
• 1 1/2 Tsps Cumin
• 1 Tsps Cilantro,dried
• 1 Salt and pepper to taste
• 3 L Tomatoes,quartered

Directions

1. Sauté onions and the garlic in the oil until golden brown. In a stock pan heat the broth. Add the onions and garlic,the black beans,cumin,salt and pepper. Add the cooked chicken (and the liquid it was cooked in). Bring liquid to a boil and add the greens and the tomatoes and simmer until tender .( Add more broth or water if needed.)
2. Most any greens can be used for this soup. The original recipe called for Swiss Chard. Ginny pressure cooks the chicken until tender and then shreds it . Use the water from the pressure cooker for the stock. We like the dark meat the best,it's up to you. The greens measurement was just a guess ,use what you have and go from there.

The finished product! And did I mention that my cholesterol has gone down a lot since I started eating all of these greens! My doctor has me on a drug and it still was high until my last test. First time below 175 in a long time. I think that something is telling me" it's the diet dummy" !

Wine making

I started to document my whole wine making process but it got a little busy and before I knew it I was done. Making wine in bottles is relatively easy . I bought the concentrate and the other things needed not too far from home (Dundee) . Now is the waiting and watching until I have to rack it the first time to get rid of the sediments. I made three different kinds. Liebfraumilch ,Niagara ,and Sarah . Matt and Shell gave me a bottle of niagara that they make and I liked it a lot so that was an easy choice. We will see how these turn out before I make any larger amounts. I saw a nice vessel for making 6 gallons at a time but that will have to wait. Check it out here.. I think Kevin would like one of these!

Garden in late Oct.

I have in this bed Swiss Chard , Onions, and curly Kale at the far end just starting to come up. Hoping for Christmas dinner of greens and onions. I got this idea of covered beds from my Alaska magazine that had a story about someone in the far north growing plants and selling them to the locals. As I looked at those photos I was thinking that this is what I need to do and so far I am having some success . It is still a learning experience though and I need to get a good schedule and the right plants.
The garden is doing well. I planted in late August and most of the greens are flourishing . We still are not getting enough rain so I have been watering. From the left to right in this photo... Russian Kale,Beets,and Turnips.
This is a view into No. 4 bed. Spinach Mustard cross,with leek along the sides. The darn leek did nothing all summer but are starting to take off now. I am hoping that with the row covers they will have time to get some size. I can never get the giant stems that the markets have . I think because of the dry summer mine didn't grow. Some day I will get a water system going for the raised beds. First I need a hydrant in the garden and my well water fixed.
I have a lot of lettuce growing and it is doing great in this cool weather. This is just a peek under the covers.
Under all of that white row cover is the lettuce . The other rows are Mustard, more Mustard spinach cross, and a row of mixed greens.
All covered and buttoned up for the cold night we had last week. I think that all would have been okay anyway even though we had a hard frost. Over and out.