by Lena Yoder
Yesterday for lunch Colleen made tacos and warmed up some leftover scalloped potatoes. Wayne and Brian didn’t come in from raking until the potatoes were pretty well crisp. We ended up dumping those and fixing the tacos and wrapping them in foil to keep them warm.
I put Jesse down for a nap, hurriedly washed the dishes, and prepared some iced tea for the water jugs. Colleen went on the road to our neighbors’ to ask for help in the hay making. Brian and Karah helped me get started with the milking.
Later, Emily swept the kitchen. Karah and I did the milking while the men, including some neighbors, did the haying. Colleen helped the men with the unloading and stacking.
After chores I quickly baked some cookies; collected and refilled water jugs, and took them to the men who were putting up hay. I pulled some weeds in the gardens, planted a Vinca plant, and then mowed the yard. I also ran the weed-eater until it ran out of gas. Emily, Jolisa, Jesse, and I biked over to our freezer at the neighbor’s to get meat and some vanilla ice cream.
I then drove the team and hauled wagons of hay from the field. Our baler kept giving the men fits. That’s why it took so long. Our neighbor Junior finally went home and got his baler to use. For a while I was afraid we wouldn’t get it all into the barn and there was rain in the forecast. That’s what’s called stress!
Finally at 8:00 I made toasted egg sandwiches with onions and cheese. I wrapped those in foil to keep them warm. Wayne, the boys, and Colleen finally came into the house at 9:00, saying we got over 1100 bales! That’s when it feels good to be farmers.
Sitting around the kitchen table, everyone wanted to tell their story. They all wanted to talk at once. We ate vanilla ice cream and fresh strawberries. We took our showers, and the children headed for bed. I decided I needed another one. Earlier, while milking, one of the cows knocked the hose off the wall mount with the nozzle landing on the cement hard enough that water sprayed to the ceiling. I had no choice but to get sopping wet while shutting it off. I really didn’t consider that my final shower.
This spring my sister Ida, who lives across the driveway from us, had a lot of volunteer flowers come up in one of her flower beds. One day she and I transplanted a lot of these blue salvias. They grew into beautiful plants but didn’t get any buds. They just didn’t look quite right. Finally I was convinced these plants were weeds, although the leaves looked very similar to the blue salvias. I quickly got rid of those weeds and replaced them with real flowers. Every once in a while it’s good to laugh at ourselves.
With the hay in the barn, I’ll now start praying for a rainy day as I really need my hubby in the house for a couple hours. Probably a month ago already, maybe even a month and a half ago, I tried fixing our cold water faucet in the bathtub because it hadn’t been working right for a while. Well, I ended up ruining it, and we’ve not been able to use it since. It’s a good thing Dad’s house is attached because we use his shower a lot. For baths we dump in the cold water with a pail. It works, but it’s very inconvenient. I will totally appreciate running water once it’s working again.
The kitchen sink faucet leaks too. I guess I’ll keep my hands off that because I just ruin things. Hmmm, on second thought, that could be a good idea after all. Maybe then it would get fixed. That’s just the life of a farmer’s wife once the field work is in full swing. We take things for granted when everything works. I sure do.
I’ve been eating yogurt topped with granola for breakfast for the last several weeks. My friend Esther gave me a baggie of granola she’d made. I’d wanted to try it because I’d never had some that I really liked. Well, this is delicious! Now I could eat yogurt and granola three meals a day. I like to slice a banana into my bowl first, then add yogurt, and put the granola on top.
I baked a batch of bread today. It seems I have to do that every four or five days. I love fresh bread with Miracle Whip, fresh garden lettuce, and just-picked green onions. Next to ripen that’s good for summer sandwiches is yellow summer squash.
We’re enjoying our hummingbirds again. We have a feeder hanging outside the kitchen window. It doesn’t take them long to get used to all the comings and goings through our kitchen door. We can get pretty close to them. They are amazing little creatures.
Why does our bathroom remind me of a swamp on a damp day? Well, it’s exceedingly small and dark with no outside window to open for fresh air. With eight people using it frequently, it just gets that way. Once it really warms up outside, I’ll open the small window above the tub. It opens into our washhouse. That really helps. It’s an old crank window that takes two of us to open. One pulls from the outside and one uses pliers on the crank and pushes from the inside. That’s why we wait to open it until it stays warm—if it cools off outside, we suffer in the tub. Hopefully better days are ahead! We really do have a cozy house that I enjoy. It has a lot of character, as older homes do. Remodeled here and there and waiting for more.
You should see my hands. If I modeled them, they’d be the ones beside the perfect ones and labeled “before.” They are all scratched, purple and black, fingernails broken and uneven. But that’s fine with me—our house is clean! My hands have done a lot of cleaning and scrubbing lately, plus picking and cleaning peas and green beans, pulling weeds, and all that fun stuff. The scratches and purple stains came from picking black raspberries and turning them into pie filling.
For the last two weeks I’ve been hearing ladies tell their big stories of bounteous black raspberry pickings here and there. They were picking 25 quarts and more at a time. I was becoming very green with jealousy. My patch in the east garden did better than last year, but not great. Brian and I went back to our woods and picked maybe three sandwich baggies full. We were knee-deep in cleaning for church service at our house, so I didn’t have time to venture any further. We also had green beans and peas that had to be done.
We got ready for church okay… or actually we just called it quits again and went. There’s always more that could be done around here, but there comes a time to sigh and be satisfied.
We are dry. Everything was so dusty, plus we thought we should have spent the time to water the gardens and flower beds. Then on Saturday morning, after chores, we had a beautiful shower of rain. I really didn’t mind the splattered windows because I was so thankful for the moisture. It settled the dust and gave the plants a needed boost.
We had surprise visitors in church, which pleased us. It was a beautiful day to host services in our big garage. My brother Jay and his family stayed for a supper of grilled hamburgers and ice cream. Made me lonely for Mom. Time has a way of swiftly moving on.
Jesse played so hard with his buddy Jeryl all afternoon and evening. He could hardly control himself anymore by evening. We all went to bed with the sun still shining brightly.
Monday morning Colleen did a huge laundry. We cleaned up the shop where services were held, and the little girls swept the house. I picked two rows of green beans and ended up selling those as I’ve already canned all we need. The plants keep producing nice beans, and I have a hard time pulling out plants even if we don’t need them. Beans are so good to eat fresh, so I’ll keep the plants a while longer.
Colleen brought in red potatoes, yellow summer squash, and cucumbers for lunch. Nothing beats the taste of fresh, homegrown, by-the-sweat-of-your-brow garden vegetables.
In the forenoon, we received a voice mail message from my sister-in-law. She wondered if we’d like to come pick black raspberries. She and her daughter had gone back to the woods in the morning, and there were still a lot there. Oh, did we ever want to go!
I called back that we’d come down in the evening. We hurried through chores and ate our supper of bologna, lettuce, and cheese sandwiches and pretzels on the hour-long drive with the horse and buggy to their farm. Once we got there, we walked a half mile back to the woods. The four little ones stayed up by the buildings to play with their little cousins. That was a good arrangement for us all. We ended up with four adults and five older children back in the
woods. It was fun, peaceful, giggly, scratchy, and beautiful. I was overflowing with thankfulness for the opportunity of picking black raspberries. The berries were the tail-end of the season and a bit smaller, but I didn’t mind. We had raspberries!
This forenoon I processed the black raspberries into pie filling—filling 21 quarts! I still have some in the freezer to make jelly with. My sister-in-law Laura gave me those out of the goodness of her heart. She brought them along on Sunday and stuck them in the freezer. I felt humbled for the time she’d spent in picking these and her thoughtfulness.
Next week I want to go pick blueberries for fresh eating and pie filling to can. Fresh blueberry pie is so good. Maybe I should up my daily walking to three miles instead of just two because of the extra sweets.
Talking about pie filling—I also want to can apple pie filling later this fall. I hope to have 60 to 70 quarts of various fillings in the basement for next year. These are so handy for pies, desserts, and Long Johns for my farm family.
I’d like to share my favorite apple pie filling. It looks as beautiful in the jars as it tastes in pie and apple crisp. A quart also makes a nice little gift for someone. I like to tie a pretty ribbon around the lid to fancy it up a bit.
Apple Pie Filling
In an eight-quart kettle, heat to boiling 7 cups water, 5 cups white sugar, and 1 cup brown sugar.
In the meantime, mix 6 tablespoons Perma-flo (or thickener of your choice) with a bit of cold water.
Pour Permo-flo mixture into the sugar water. Stir until thick and smooth. (Sometimes I need to add a bit more Perma-flo to get the consistency I prefer.)
Once mixture is thickened, add 9 cups diced tart apples and 1 teaspoon cinnamon.
Remove mixture from heat and ladle into quart jars (approximately 14), leaving one-inch headspace. Process using water-bath canning for 25 minutes.
I really should have planted butternut squash to mix with pumpkins to can for cookies, whoopee pies, and pumpkin pies, but I didn’t think about it until it was too late. I even had space in the garden. I like butternut squash and pumpkin mixed together because it has a milder flavor than pure pumpkin.
This year has been a good year for roses, with the weather being so cool. They’ve been putting on quite the show for us. Our rosebushes are outside the kitchen window where I can enjoy them when I’m by the sink. Each time I leave the house I walk past them. Roses are such wondrous gifts from our Lord. To smell and look at one always softens my heart.
Sam the dog is enjoying his summer with our children. He loves to play ball with anyone who will take the time to throw it. He plays with Jesse a lot. They are clearly devoted friends. Jesse spends chore time in the barn with Wayne and me. He stays in the milking parlor watching us, sleeping, and drinking milk. I love seeing him and the little girls playing, bottle-feeding the calves, or just watching us milk the cows.
We went back down to twice-a-day milking. Wayne thinks it’s crazy because we can’t afford to at all, but enough was enough. I love our schedule again but dread the fact that someday soon we’ll need to make some changes again. We desperately need higher milk prices or our doors being opened to some other ventures. Maybe not carrying all our eggs in one basket. Even though our main business goal is dairy, we do want to be open-minded.
I hear the vacuum pump purring, so I’d better head for the barn. I don’t want to miss out on all the fun.
This absolutely beautiful summer is speeding into fall way too fast. I wish I could stomp on the brakes. I feel like flying into a temper tantrum, but I know how much that would help. Fall is beautiful too, but oh how I love summer. My favorite season has to be the shortest one, of course. This summer was so unseasonably cool I barely got a suntan. Most years I tried to do the gardening early morning or later in the evening to avoid the heat, but this year I could do it whenever it suited me because the weather was downright pleasant. We had wonderfully cool nights to snuggle under the covers. I’ve only twice gone out to chore in the morning without a sweatshirt.
Year 2
Fall
Our corn crop really feels the milder weather. It wouldn’t win a beauty contest if it were the only contestant. It was so wet this spring to begin with, and then it stayed so cool. The corn does look better now that it’s closer to harvest time. Corn needs warmer temperatures to fully mature.
The sweet corn in the garden did great. We froze 96 quarts and ate corn-on-the-cob until we felt like hogs. Emily’s front teeth allowed her to enjoy it this year. She’d been teased quite a bit because it appeared for a while she might be missing her upper front teeth through corn season. One new one grew in time, and one old one is still hanging on.
For some reason I didn’t mind the mess of eating corn so much this year. I guess the children are all a year older so most of the corn went into their mouths instead of onto the floor.
Colleen finished her schooling, and having her home from school is wonderful! She thinks so too. This term Brian is in the seventh grade; Karah a third grader; and Emily is in the first grade. Jolisa and Jesse play nicely together here at home. We always have a period of adjusting once school starts in the fall, but there are things I like about it too. The 8:15 bedtime for the children is nice. It gives me a little quiet time to read—if I don’t fall asleep. Emily has been a borderline reader for a while already, and I am really looking forward to her learning to fully read anything she wants. We all love books, and it’s always a thrill when each child masters reading fluently.
Before I forget to mention it, we’re back to milking three times a day. I kicked, and screamed, and banged my head—all to no avail. Not really. No, I absolutely didn’t want to, but I realized we had to. Therefore I prayed for peace, which I was granted. Wayne read in a dairy magazine how the dairy food producers had over 100 percent greater profits the first half of this year over the first half of last year. Well, of course, with not more than they’re paying for the milk, they can fill their pockets with more profits. It angers me that the middleman makes more than the farmer does, but what can a little Amish woman do about it?
I’ve acquired a couple new recipes to try—sour cream, cream cheese, soft cheese, mozzarella, and hard cheese. I’ve already made the mozzarella, and that is exactly what it tastes like. I was amazed. I feel privileged to have raw, whole milk at my fingertips to experiment with such foods, giving me a whole new appreciation for these products. I haven’t tried the other recipes yet, but I will as my schedule allows.
We love cheese, especially with homemade bologna and crackers. Cheese has a way of putting a finishing touch on almost any dish, any soup, any sandwich.
I definitely need to start walking three miles a day.
Our good friends Vernon, Sandy, Jeff, and Connie from Oklahoma spent three days in the area. We were privileged to make precious memories with them again. They brought some lavender scents that I’d been looking for to add to my homemade fabric softener.
Fabric Softener
Stir together 2 cups white vinegar, 2 cups baking soda, and 4 cups water. Sometimes I add ½-cup hair conditioner.
Mix it together in a plenty big container as it will really foam when you stir the vinegar and soda together.
Store in empty fabric softener bottles. Shake well before using. Use ¼-cup per wash load.
There is a first time for everything. Tonight for the first time I experienced the thrill(?) of cleaning fish that Brian caught today. A neighbor man took Brian fishing, and he had an awesome day catching a lot of fish. We look forward to having a fish-fry tomorrow night.
I’m remembering the week of the Fourth of July because it was downright chilly like today. It put a lot of campers into long johns. One 50-degree morning a grandpa in his sixties was trying to sleep with a thick coat and cap on while wrapped in a thick blanket. His sweet wife Edna, entered the tent, and he told her, “Oh, Grandma, this is so fun, why don’t we do it more often?” Grandma laughed so hard she had nearly everyone awake at five o’clock that morning. I l
oved the grandpa’s attitude and cheerfulness; I long to be more like him.
Last night I discovered my alarm-clock battery was dead. I almost never hear Wayne’s alarm, and yes, we need two to get us out of bed in the morning. I reminded Wayne that he needs to wake me when his alarm goes off so he doesn’t shut his off and fall back to sleep. Well, that is exactly what happened. All at once Wayne woke me up, and it wasn’t the time we’d planned to get up. Disgusting! So our day started a half hour later then we’d planned. Chores went as usual… nothing really exciting. Just the right amount of exercise to get my blood flowing for the day.
Colleen spent the night at Aunt Sue’s to visit with her cousins, so I knew what all waited for me once I got to the housework. That was okay. I’m spoiled, and the little girls can chip in and do more if they know they have to. While heading toward the house, I grabbed a five-gallon bucket. In the darkness I shoved tomatoes into it. I’d harvested the tomatoes last week already and put them on a board to speed up their ripening. I headed to the house, got myself cleaned up, and then woke the girls. It took quite a bit of coaxing to get them moving.
Karah swept the house. Emily thought she could just go back to bed. I can’t remember if she got anything accomplished or not. I do think she cleared the table after breakfast. She loves first grade, but she’s not good at handling changes—and school has been a major change for her.