Vest Pocket Family Farm

I'm done blogging.

2010-11-30T18:17:00.000-08:00

I didn't intend to quit. But, I won't pay for extra storage. I also don't like bait and switch. The blurb told me to upload all the pics I wanted. I did and found out a month ago that I'd used up my 1gig of storage. I don't have time to fool with this.

Big Family Dinner, an old school and house.

2010-11-11T15:54:00.000-08:00

Fay talks so often about his grief at not getting more schooling. He passed into the eighth grade, but never went a day. He took over the farming, his father was sick and they needed him. He never had a chance to go back to school. But the school is still there, covered in brush and about to fall down.

This little house is the one Fay's father moved the family into when the bank foreclosed on the farm, him and all the children.

We had the best family dinner in Oregon, WI, all three surviving siblings in a row and all the nieces, nephews and relations.

A visit to Lavern and a farm that isn't there.

2010-11-06T19:29:00.000-07:00

Lavern is Fay's sister in law, that's what he'd tell you. Just like I'd tell you Ann is my sister in law. Even though both of our first marriages ended in divorce. Family is still family.

Even over the thirty years since they'd had a chance to sit and visit, the room was thick with their affection for one another.

Her little Schnauzer/Schipperke dog made the rounds of all our laps adding to the love in the room.

It's not there any more, Fay's farm in the bluff area, the last farm they lived on before he pulled out his roots and moved to Oregon.

East Easton

2010-11-06T19:13:00.000-07:00

I find it odd, in the year of 2010 to think about, but my husband is the grand son of a Civil War veteran.

Granddad, grandma, aunts and uncles, cousins, friends, children and adults, Fay knows them all and makes history come alive among the stones of East Easton Cemetery.

Wisconsin Hospitality Part 3

2010-11-06T18:59:00.000-07:00

After the church service and the very tasty lunch served by Lindsey's family, Brad and Angie took Fay and I for a drive. Beautiful weather, but lots of the flood waters from the weeks before in northern Wisconsin had drained south.

First time I ever saw a fire hydrant half submerged.

The day ended, as it should, resting and visiting with family. I love the peace on Angie's face as she holds Shannon Rose.

Wisconsin Hospitality Part 2

2010-11-06T18:40:00.000-07:00

Saturday Fay spent with his brother and I spent the day scanning family pictures with the cat.

That Sunday we went to a little country church for Ryan and Lindsey Pishion's baby girl, Shannon Rose's baptism. Beautiful church and a wonderful family service. I got to be the annoying relative who flashes a camera through the ceremony.

Wisconsin Hospitality Part 1

2010-11-02T19:16:00.000-07:00

Brad picked us up at the train station in Columbus, WI. He and Angie took wonderful care of us from that moment on. I know nobody has ever fussed over me as much in my life.

The first place we went on our road back to Dodgeville was a stop at Oregon Manor to see Willie. Look at the shock on her face and the joy on everyone's faces in just a moment. Willie had been told she'd have a visitor that afternoon, but not that her oldest surviving brother was coming.

Vickie, Willie's daughter was able to drop by after work while we were still there visiting.

The next day we took off with Fay's baby brother, Leonard. He took us all over the country, including a surprise visit to Willie.

And a stop at Alisha's pet

store, including a cuddle with Leonard's great grandson.

The Train to Wisconsin.

2010-11-02T18:51:00.000-07:00

We'd been talking all summer about how Fay ought to go back to Wisconsin to see Willie, his youngest sister. Her health isn't good. So after the Pendleton Round Up, the discussion came up again and we decided to just take off and go via our usual travel method: truck and camper. Neither one of us was looking forward to the cost of bringing the Ford ready for a 3,000 mile trip, plus the gas bill for afters. But, not two days after we decided to go, Fay's nephew Brad called and suggested going by train. The last time Fay took the train was in the 1960s. I've never been on a trip by train. But, the price was right and I gathered up our motley luggage.

Ada took us to Wishram Train Station and there we sat all excited and ready to go.

Sitting there, listening to the waiting freight train, the sheer impact on our bodies as much as our ears.

There's a lot of flat country between Oregon and Wisconsin.
The other really important point about traveling by train: the upper deck is wonderful to watch from if you don't get motion sick like I did. Rather amazing to be that dizzy. I'm a lower level girl. I was perfectly fine riding there.

Pendleton Round Up 2010

2010-11-02T13:04:00.000-07:00

The Pendleton Round Up is the crown of the year's parades for Fay, the biggest, the best. I was worried about this year, their 100th anniversary of the rodeo. I've a lot more imagination than Fay has. Just as well he doesn't, we're much better off with only one of us being high strung.

There was supposed to be a new campground for teamsters, with all modern conveniences, ie, portapotties and stock water. There was even a shuttle advertised as available.

The campground was a bare scraped acreage behind Walmart, stock water a quarter mile away, portapotties didn't show up until late Thursday night I'm told. The shuttle was a half mile away, and dropped folks at the Round Up ground's gate, leaving another quarter mile walk into the Teamster's barn.

Neither one of us can walk that far.

If it hadn't been for Billy Laurenzen, the parade manager, we wouldn't have been able to stay. He gave us his reserved parking spot on the Round Up grounds. In all of the chaos he had to deal with, he took the time to give away his parking spot, just to make sure one elderly teamster could stay for the parade.

The sidewalks were packed, people were even up on the roofs of the buildings.

Fay's First Driving Show

2010-10-23T15:00:00.000-07:00

Chafin Farm's hosted a driving show for the Willamette Valley Miniature Horse Club. But big horses could come and play too. We have so many friends down there in Sweet Home, it just had to go on the calendar. Neither Fay, nor the Fjords had ever done any kind of show at all. Fortunately they were all patient between our times in the arena competing.

Discussing width of wheel base with the other two big horse competitors.

Eyeballing the competition, Fjords to Belgians to Fjord/Quarterhorse crosses.

Then there's the little guys, we weren't in their class.

Potluck lunch, talking breeds of draft horses.

Then back out to wait for our next turn in the arena and talking to Phred about setting lines and all the other details of harnessing and hitching.

Horses are so patient with our foolishness in pursuit of ribbons.

Way too many ribbons:

Freitag's Corn Field Camp out 2010

2010-10-21T12:47:00.000-07:00

Friends, food, time spent driving in the fields and on the road. One of our best weekends every summer.

Hitching

2010-10-21T11:29:00.000-07:00

Amanda took these videos of us hitching the horses. Never got to watch the process before.

Dufur Threshing Bee 2010

2010-10-20T14:42:00.000-07:00

All dressed up and ready to go, not to mention the man sitting there waiting for the photo op to be over.

Waiting for the parade to start.

Parade over we get to the good part, visiting with Barb Tobey and eating our lunch sitting between the Fjords. Which was fine, we were all in the shade, getting to watch the horse drawn traffic go by. Although you can see Feather eyeballing my sandwich from above.

Lisa Hubbe's Brabant Belgians, hitched to a people hauler. It was their first big party and you can see how calm they are.

Just having fun with the Fjords while loading.

Fort Dalles Parade 2010

2010-10-20T07:48:00.000-07:00

Fort Dalles Parade in July tends to be family and friends. Linda Ellett and her girls decorating the wagon and horses.

Amanda, Fay, Kai and I.

Duane and Liz McGlothlin, East Wind Percherons.

Morgan and a buddy and Linda as clowns.

The wagon is okay, but Kai just can't stay too far from Immie.

Our hitch hikers, MCMC had people passing out brochures and this lady's boy got tired out. They were welcome, the wagon has plenty of room.

So proud of Amos, taking pictures of the parade for Linda, he's not much for cameras.

One of the joys of my summers

2010-10-19T18:43:00.000-07:00

One of the joys of my summers has been my daughter and grand daughter coming to visit. Those two weeks are wonderful. Every year, Deonna Mae wants to ride.

This year she started out behind me as always and Immie said nicely that we were too much now.

So Miss Mae got riding by her own self lessons. From this little bitty round pen to the big arena at the saddle club and then on her last ride: all the way home.

Meanwhile, back on the farm.

2010-10-19T13:40:00.000-07:00

We'd been thinking about another family milk cow. Although Fay loves the Jersey breed, their milk, their colors, and cream. We just can't keep up with even a low producing cow. So I'd been doing some research and located a nice 6 month old Dexter heifer named Penelope up in Kent, WA. Shelley at Whistling Train Farm has a small unregistered herd of beautiful black cows.

You haven't lived until you're a country mouse driving through Seattle, WA suburb rush hour traffic with a bellowing heifer in the back of the truck.

But we survived and here's Penelope at her new home.

Nehalem Bay Part Five: The search for seals.

2010-10-19T13:18:00.000-07:00

We spent three rides looking to get close to the seals. We didn't, but it was sure fun to try.

Nehalem Bay Part Four: On the Beach

2010-10-19T12:48:00.000-07:00

Nehalem Bay Part Three. Around the camp fire.

2010-09-21T13:50:00.000-07:00

You can see who's the biggest lap bunny of the bunch.

Nehalem Bay Part Two. Darling mini horses.

2010-09-15T13:40:00.000-07:00

Russ, Fay's youngest son has taken after his dad, not just as a rider, but as a driver. Russ has minis and you can see how much fun the little fellas are for two and three generations.

Not that Bakerman was exactly cooperating with Diana when I tried to get a good picture of Jessica riding.

Nehalem Bay Part One

2010-09-15T12:46:00.000-07:00

Blame it all on Sonya! We didn't think we'd get to the family vacation at Nehalem Bay this year. I missed the memo about when to reserve a camping spot. But Sonya managed to get us a reservation to share just two weeks before take off. So we shared our campground with Sonya, Jerry and little Noah. We also took Beauty, Fay's riding horse and my Immie, my Appy.

There's no picture of Sonya or me, we're always behind our cameras.

One of our favorite drives

2010-09-15T07:44:00.000-07:00

We go down to the used bread store and buy a little something. Just for fun, and the horses are always an attraction.

Late in June, we went riding.

2010-09-14T20:17:00.000-07:00

The cherries were ripe too as we rode out Chenoweth. My old horse makes a great picking ladder. It was only a hat full. But--oh, so good.

Mowing

2010-09-14T19:50:00.000-07:00

Fay mows the little grass patches with the horses, I don't know what they think, but he's as happy as any man can be laying down swathes of grass hay.

Somebody's been eating way too much spring grass and needed his brichen strap let out.

There they go...

The neighboring horses were utterly fascinated by their working brethren.

Old Fashioned Local Beef

2010-09-08T06:55:00.000-07:00

Old fashioned local beef, run out on grass, finished on barley hay and a little grain to make them happy. Sold by the half, $2 per pound hanging weight, $0.45 per pound, cut and wrapped to your specifications. $100 deposit to hold your half. Pick up in Parkdale, OR just before Thanksgiving.

For more details or to reserve a half:

Call 541-296-2977

Ouchy Flowers and plowing.

2010-06-09T18:16:00.000-07:00

These are ouchy flowers as our 5 year old great grand calls them. Tar weed is also a noxious weed in the hay fields around here.

The north field was plowed, it's across the road from

the south field, full of tarweed. The south field was disced, dragged but not plowed. At this point, mid May it was so full of tarweed the hay will be unsalable.

This last shot is of the plowed field, the space around the power pole that was unplowed, solid tarweed.

Putting the grain drill away.

2010-06-09T16:10:00.000-07:00

The grain drill is irreplaceable, no one makes small drills any more. This one has had the horse tongue removed, the driver originally balanced on a board behind the seed box. Now rather than fool with putting the horse tongue on, then off, to pull the drill home or let Fay's sons use the drill with their small tractors, we simply hitch the drill to the fore cart and go to work.

You see Fay standing on the board to vacuum out any leftover seed. Any grain left in the drill rots and molds plugging the tubes and causing rust.

Over the years the drag chains have worn out and various bits of old iron have replaced the missing links. My favorites are the recycled, welded horse shoes.

Use it up, wear it out, fix it as best you can.

May oats make hay oats, although we're really sowing barley.

2010-06-09T15:12:00.000-07:00

I'm never on time with blogging. I just get posts done as I catch the time.

This series of pictures is from the 4th of May when we finished planting the last field. Late, worried about there being enough rain and the field not prepped as it should have been because we don't have a horse plow.

We don't give up though.

What happens when he sits and thinks.

2010-06-01T15:33:00.000-07:00

Are we going some where dad?

What happens when he sits and thinks? Since we farm in different places, he figures out how to move equipment efficiently. If the weather ever quits off and on again raining, we're going to mow hay. The first fields due are little grass patches, too small to do with the tractor and nine foot swather.

Hence using the horse mower.

And the fore cart with the rake. The rake is already delivered and waiting, so we don't have to hook it onto the back of the fore cart. Just as well, I think he'd've done it.

Okay, Mom, what're we waiting for now???

Checking to see if I'm doing okay at the other end of the train.

We're drove out in two parts and came back with just the cart. A lovely Memorial Day outing.

Just never know about chickens.

2010-05-31T13:15:00.000-07:00

I don't keep track of who lays when, but among the six survivors of our first Rhode Island Reds is the lady who lays the lumpy eggs. Always has and is just as faithful as the rest. Fay's never seen one like this either, not in all the years he's farmed and had chickens.

Hillbilly Lawn mowers.

2010-05-27T19:14:00.000-07:00

Hillbilly lawnmowers: how we mow our lawn and also occasionally our neighbor's place. Which is where I caught these pics.

That's my Granny!

2010-05-27T18:58:00.000-07:00

Motorcycle Grandmama

Edna Ellsworth, 97, realized a longtime dream Wednesday. “I’ve lived in Dufur all this time, since 1979, and to think I was able to ride into Dufur on a Harley!” When Ellsworth noted that she had wanted to ride on a Harley motorcycle all her life, Ken Catlin, Flagstone Senior Living’s dietary director, took note. “You can ride with me anytime, you’re great,” he said, after they rode together to lunch Wednesday in Dufur, where We 3 Coffee & Deli provided a spread for Ellsworth and her friends from Flagstone. Ellsworth was born Oct. 11, 1912.
Mark B. Gibson photo

Mean while, back on the farm.

2010-05-14T06:06:00.001-07:00

Remember Cats and Compression Starts? Well, way back then, the reason the Cat got used again was the death by cannibalization our Massey 35 performed on itself. The diagnosis after three hours of tear down by the mechanic was two blown cylinders and accompanying damage. I hope I never hear an engine knock and smoke like that again. Not to mention what looked like oily mayo dripping out the tail pipe.

This leaves one more field left to dig and seed before it's too late. The field out Seven Mile is dryland, what ever grows has to make it on the rain. Which is how we ended up spending many days, a part of a day at a time conditioning our Fjords and putting the last six acres into barley hay. This took most of April and on into the first week of May. It takes about two weeks to bring a team from winter fat to able to work all day. They would've been fine, but it kept raining and the dirt ending up too wet to work.

First weekend in May, ODHBA Plowing Competition. Pt 3

2010-05-13T19:04:00.000-07:00

Larry, one of the mule men.

On Sunday after the plowing contest, everyone hitches up their horses and smooths the ground for planting. Discs, drags, harrows, just an assortment of old iron tools to create a soft seed bed.

Fjords waiting with Fay.

Clare, her Haffies and Juliet. Pair of Dwayne's Shires.Claire, Juliet, the Haffies and sod cutter.

Dwayne and four Shires, Jonathon with two Belgians.

Jerry Jr and a pulling team.

Ladene, Jonathan and Belgians.

Fay and the team.Didn't get the man's name driving this set up.

The biggest rig on the field, four abreast pulling a forecart and four sections of spike tooth harrow (drag). Three of the horses were Percherons, the fourth with his side to the camera is a Fjord/Percheron cross.

First weekend in May, ODHBA Plowing Competition. Pt 2

2010-05-13T13:10:00.000-07:00

I got all of one picture of the actual plowing.

We were busy driving up and down the road watching the plowing and answering questions about our team.

If I had a dollar for every time I told some one, these are draft Fjords, we could've paid our gas bill for the trip. I was so hoarse by the end of the day.

After the plowing we watched every one parade back, including Lisa and her big team.

After the plowing, every one spent time relaxing and enjoying some down time before we barbecued and pot lucked our supper.

First weekend in May, ODHBA Plowing Competition. Pt 1

2010-05-13T12:34:00.000-07:00

First weekend in May for the last three years we've gone to the ODHBA Plowing contest at Champoeg Park. We don't have a plow, but we do have a team and we have more fun visiting with people and talking about horses.

There was Quigley the camp clown, she could roll over,play dead, sit, and so many more tricks, she loved to do them. Besides being an awesome frisby chaser.

Going out to plowing. Draft animals on parade.

And here comes one of the plowing judges, with a broken foot, he needed the transportation provided by Wayne and his mule.

Got to see my horses

2010-05-10T13:57:00.000-07:00

Feather trying to tell Ada to lead them around.

Most school day afternoons, Kai goes home with Grandma Ada. April 21st, Kai just had to see her horses and her Grandpa and Grandma Horsey. I can't resist another horse fool so I got Feather, our draft Fjord, out and led she and Kai around the door yard. Wears me out walking in circles, wears Kai out, 'cause the mare is so broad backed. But a good time is had by all.

Small Farmer's Journal Auction, assembling carriages

2010-05-08T19:43:00.000-07:00

Some friends of our deal in carriages, well, there was quite the miscommunication. There were 14 carriages to assemble. Fay spent that day helping them put wheels, etc on.

Small Farmer's Journal Auction, Plowing Contest

2010-05-08T19:25:00.000-07:00

Small Farmer's Journal Auction, more stuff

2010-05-08T18:53:00.000-07:00

Big, little, old, new, can't think why any one would bring that, all the adjectives apply.

Small Farmer's Journal Check In.

2010-04-29T19:28:00.000-07:00

We left for Madras after lunch on April 14th, Tuesday. Mostly we were thinking we'd be there early, but that would let us camp closer to the edge of the campground and we could watch everything else coming in.

Which we did, there was new equipment from dealers, people with all sorts of stuff in trailers and this load. Some one had cleaned out their barn. There was a grain binder in restorable condition and some other pieces that should've gone to the junk man. But that just shows that I'm not much for old farm equipment as yard art.

Cats and compression starts

2010-04-29T13:26:00.000-07:00

One of the alfalfa fields Fay hays on was due to be dug up and replanted. It's too steep to use horses or wheeled tractors to plow. Which is where the D2Cat comes in. Vance provided the it and being an antique, the pull start gas engine that starts the diesel engine is not running. I'd never heard of a compression start. Turns out, I just didn't know it by that name. Not that calling it a pop start is exactly accurate. The Cat is pulled by the truck, fed a snort of 'smelling salts(starter fluid)', the clutch let in--and VROOM. A started Cat, a plowed field, for that field, Amos and Russ, Fay's son's ran the Cat and Russ' big tractor to do the plowing.

Afterwards, when another field needed to be plowed. Fay ran the Cat.

Then life exploded.

2010-04-29T13:19:00.000-07:00

Then the afternoon of February 20th, life exploded. The back story is that I'd been taking my grandmother to the ER rather regularly for dehydration and severe gastric pain. Our local hospital isn't much for ordering tests to find out what's wrong, because after all, she's 97 and who cares? By mid February though, her doctor and others have figured out that her gall bladder has given out, swollen, possibly infected, stones in it. So the arrangement is that on February 22rd, Monday, Granny will have surgery. This is the day of the week when gall bladders are removed, after all, this isn't an emergency. I keep wondering by whose standards? She hurt so much!

Well, by the afternoon (2/20), Fay's chest pain won't go away and he consents to go up to the ER. So he spends the week end in the hospital having excess fluid wrung out of him with diuretics. By Monday, he's chipper and feisty and ready to go home. He's seen a different doctor every 12 hours, three of whom agree it's congestive heart failure and one who thinks it's his throat. I'm not much impressed with the hospitalist model for patient care.

It was a most amazing weekend. Without my youngest coming to help and my oldest calling me, telling me jokes I'm not sure I'd've survived January and February.

By the beginning of March, Fay is all right, medication and diet tweaks have taken care of his chest pains. Granny's another story. We're (my children and I) are still trying to figure out what else is wrong since the the gall bladder removal didn't completely fix the gastric distress. It took to the end of March to get a functional regimen in place. Turns out Granny is having short term memory problems and hasn't been taking her medication anyway. She was madder than a porcupine when the doctor ordered her assisted living staff to dispense her pills. But, now that she's getting them, she's doing far better.

In the mean time it's planting season and that's another post.

February 20th before life exploded on us.

2010-04-28T19:47:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning, Kai wanted to go for a ride, the sun was shining. So we brushed and harness, hitched to our forecart and went for a ride out Chenowith Road.

How picture taking and fact collecting should be done.

2010-04-10T19:00:00.000-07:00

Once again we were out in the field on Seven Mile and a photographer came along. He stopped, took our pictures, crawled through the half fallen barbed wire fence to get close enough to talk to us and had me write our names down on a clipboard.

Exactly how it ought to be done and they're wonderful pics of all four of us. I especially like the one taken head on as the horses were walking toward him. It shows Feather and Best as the good working team they are.

Thank you, Scott McMullen.

Koolaid and the crock pot

2010-04-07T14:43:00.000-07:00

Koolaid and the crockpot, sort of sounds like a dark and stormy night? Naw, I don't think so either. But last Thursday night Amanda and I combined the two plus four ounces of pencil roving to get the multicolored mass you see in the pic.

We'd been the to local yarn store: The Whole Ball of Yarn, an excellent source for natural and local sourced fiber. Among the yarn and tools was a four ounce ball of cream colored pencil roving from Wasco County sheep (Imperial Sheep Ranch out of Shaniko).

When we got home I had some Koolaid in the cupboard~~ it just took off from there. We unwound the roving into a loose doughnut, stuffed into my crockpot, fill the pot to the top with lukewarm water and 3/4c of white vinegar. We turned it on high and dribbled Cherry, Black Cherry and Grape koolaid in splotches all over the wool and water filled crock pot.

Two hours later, the pot was steaming and the water was clear. All the dye had migrated into the fiber. One of the best party tricks I've ever seen. To keep from shocking the wool with a temperature change, we turned the crockpot off, which let it sit and cool all night.

In the morning we drained the water off, sopped the wool in towels and hung it up on a dowel by the gas heater stove. After lunch it was dry and Amanda tried out her new drop spindle. Voila!! Some hours later, the ombre single strand of yarn was plied into two ply bulky yarn of the most eye catching color complexity.

Dude didn't even ask us our names.

2010-04-03T18:39:00.000-07:00

Kimchee for the Ketchup Mouthed

2010-02-04T14:34:00.000-08:00

I discovered two years ago, that making saurkraut was easy~~at least for me. I've had other remarks from friends and family when they tried out my recipes.

SO, your mileage my vary.

Ever since I started reading about fermented vegetables I loved the idea of kimchee, cabbage, ginger, garlic, onion, hot peppers. What's not to love? Well, the hot peppers for one, I'm rather a devout ketchup mouth and my tummy is even more rigid in its rules. Too much heat and we're miserable together in one body. So I've never got past smelling commercial kimchees. After getting Wild Fermentation for Christmas I realized I could make kimchee at the mild end of the scale.

But, we're out of cabbage, so the cabbage was bought along with the ginger and garlic. I forgot to buy a hot pepper that day, so used chile powder.

1lb cole slaw mix in a bag

1medium onion finely chopped

1 tblsp grated ginger root

5 cloves garlic

1 tsp chile powder

1 tblsp salt

Put the cole slaw mix in a mixing bowl.

Peel and chop the onion, add to bowl.

Peel and grate the ginger root, add to bowl.

Peel and chop the garlic, add to bowl.

Add tsp of chile powder and tblsp of salt to bowl.

Mix, then stuff mixture into wide mouth quart jar.

Pound mixture till juice comes with a wooden spoon.

When the juice comes up over the vegetables, tuck a piece of plastic down on top of the vegetables to mostly exclude air.

Lay the lid and ring on top of the jar.

Leave it on the kitchen counter and push the vegetables down under the juice every day. In about a week it will ferment and become kimchee. Sour, salty, aromatic, delicious.

And beautiful.

Getting Ready for Summer

2010-02-03T17:16:00.000-08:00

Two weeks ago Monday, Fay had me call back to Miller Tire Co. Finding tires for farm equipment isn't always possible locally, especially for the McCormick-Deering horse mower. We guess it was built 60 to 70 years ago. But in the Midwest there's enough Amish farmers to keep little parts businesses going. Mullet Machinery is another one that has made it possible to keep the old machine in good running condition. You can see that the old tire is not looking too good even on the rim.

That split on the inside though, the old tire is done. Fay had no trouble getting the nuts off and the rim unbolted.

Then he rolled the rim and old tire out to the truck, I'd already loaded the new tire and tube.

After an hour and a half and two guys working on the change over at Les Schwab's, the rim was brushed free of rust and the new tire on. At least it wasn't like getting the leak in the hay wagon tire fixed. That took four guys to work on that antique.

Fay installed the rim and new tire and the mower is ready to roll and mow.

Haven't done much this week.

2010-01-28T15:41:00.000-08:00

We haven't done much for the last two weeks. I worked four twelves in a row and then caught the crud. Chills, a snot nose, the usual crud. He's just been doing chores waiting to be sure that his sciatic nerve is truly healed. No extra lifting or shoveling.

Today's the first day I've felt better than a wrung out dishrag. He's got the crud today....but, he always gets over things like this sooner than I do. He's a tough old bird.

But, all the garden seeds have come and we're already talking what goes where. There's hope for spring.

Lazy woman's scalloped potatoes.

2010-01-20T07:15:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday was one of my birthday parties, with both of us being January birthdays and blessed with enough family to fill the house four times over, we celebrate with a multitude of small parties. Ada, my best step daughter and friend came over for our lunch of roast beef, scalloped potatoes, green beans and bacon, with blueberry buckle to follow. The scalloped potatoes were the hit of the meal. I had to explain that they were the lazy woman's recipe.

Have husband peel and slice potatoes.

Fill the casserole with in an inch of the top, an onion chopped fine, layered in with the potatoes.

Then pour on ranch dressing till the casserole is full.

Cheese slices a quarter inch deep, cover and bake till done.

I check every half an hour or so and if it still looks sloppy I take the cover off and let the excess moisture steam away.

That's it, lazy woman's scalloped potatoes.

I was making conversation.

2010-01-16T15:11:00.000-08:00

I was making conversation.

In December, the story starts with a friend of mine. Pam had something wrong with her foot that turned out to be gout. Her old mare, Dancer, managed to step on a nail. So, two lame creatures and the little one has to give 40ml of penicillin to the big one. When Pam asked my husband and I to help with the ten days of shots, of course we went to help. Towards the end of the ten days, Pam's brother called to say that her inheritance from their Uncle Virgil was on its way from Alaska. There was going to be a lot of furniture, Pam asked if we needed any beds or dressers. Fay and I don't lack for furniture, that's what happens when you marry and put together two households. I passed it off saying we didn't help her to get something and really, the only thing that could do with replacing was the dining room set.

God has the most marvelous sense of humor. There was a blond oak dining set in the load of furniture!

There goes the old set. Amos is tying on farmer style with

baling twine.

Here's the new set in the pieces it arrived in:

Next we set it up:

And now, with my birthday present on it:

God is so good, I never thought about actually there being table and chairs or that it would have anything to do with me. I just was making conversation.

The Kubota goes to work

2010-01-02T12:34:00.000-08:00

I worked a call in the day before yesterday. We'd had snow, so I took the truck, feeling better safe than sorry, but most of the roads were wet and bare. By 2:00pm, it'd snowed 5' to 6' inches and when I got home I couldn't open the gate.

Husband and canine cheering section to the rescue! The Kubota that was our Christmas present to ourselves came with a six and a half foot blade. That wet, sticky snow just rolled away, opening up the gate for me to come in.

After he got the gate cleared, we needed to haul hay to the horses. My husband's middle son, is a bit of a tinkerer, he'd come down and built out of junk lumber a bucket extension so we can carry hay bales.

Not going to get any nicer than that. Fay goes out the front gate and around by road, a trip of about five blocks. I go on foot across the lots and get there ahead of him.

Our Fjord mare heard the tractor coming.

Reading

2009-12-30T16:20:00.000-08:00

Fay doesn't read much, he prefers to be active. The only author he enjoys is Ben Green. For Christmas this year I found a copy of 'A Thousand Miles of Mustangin'. The only book by Ben Green that Fay didn't already own.

What I'll do for next year I don't know.

Christmas 2009

2009-12-29T13:49:00.000-08:00

I didn't get pics of Christmas this year. Just never got the camera out. But it was wonderful, we opened presents before chores. There were lots of presents, my electric chain saw, his book, our gifts to each other. All the cds from Amanda and a huge fuzzy Christmas shawl. Meg and Amanda got me two new cookbooks. Love books for Christmas.

Then went out together to feed the stock. Everybody got a few slices of stale bread to celebrate. Even the dog, who took her slice off to bury. Mercy knows where since the ground is froze.

After chores we had coffee and cardamom bread toast. Just wonderful to have such a slow day together.

At 2:00pm we went up to Ada's for a couple of hours for Christmas dinner. Which was fun, three out of four of her kids were there and the great grands too. Love my in laws.

More chores and a slow evening spent reading our new books.

God is indeed good to us.

Burdock butchery.

2009-12-23T09:09:00.000-08:00

Got up last Saturday and went with Fay to feed the horses. Three out of four of them had found old burdock plants, manes and tails full and the one mare even had them in her ears. I'm still picking them out of her ears. They look awful, I had to cut their fore tops off and his little saddle mare has a half roach.

Caramel Corn as I get it done

2009-12-22T19:38:00.000-08:00

I've made caramel corn for years, my recipe is simple, but it mutates according to what's in the cupboard and I absolutely adore this years darker mutation.

Caramel corn

Two batches of air popped corn (1 cup unpopped)
1 cup butter, real butter from cows!
1 cup white sugar, could use raw sugar or brown sugar

1 cup succanat/rapadura
1/2 cup black strap molasses
1/2 cup honey
1 tsp salt
1 tsp soda
2 tsp real vanilla
Grease two cookie sheets, grease the REALLY large bowl/canner that the popcorn is going to be mixed in and also the cup to measure the syrups.
Put the sugars, butter, syrups and salt into a large pot and heat at medium heat, stirring until it boils. Boil for five minutes, turn off heat, add vanilla and sprinkle soda over the top. Stir quickly! It will boil up and thicken. Dump over popcorn and mix. Divide gooey popcorn mess between greased cookie sheets. Bake on the same rack at 250degrees for 20 minutes. Take out sheets out of the oven, remix popcorn, turning it over. Put the sheets back in the oven for another 20 minutes. Take out, stir and cool. When cool, bag and keep dry.

Not as sweet as commercial popcorn but very flavorful.

Pendleton Christmas Carriage Parade Pt 1

2009-12-22T13:50:00.000-08:00

Before the parade and it's much bigger this year, side saddle riders, a sheriff's posse in old time costumes, a rider's club.The little pony and buggy, decorated for Christmas and a lady and her mule. Fay said the mule was at least as old as him. The mule denies it.There they are, ready for take off, I'm on my usual viewing platform. This is one of the few pics with out Immie's ears included.

Pendleton Christmas Carriage Parade Pt 2

2009-12-22T13:44:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Jackie, I always have a pic with me from the parades in Pendleton. It's so much fun to go up there, visit with every one. It's a good family tradition.

After the parade while we adults were unhitching the team, cleaning up decorations, all the stuff that needs to be done, Josiah needed a place to be. I set him up on Immie and he had a ball. He was talking to everyone, ringing the bells I had tied to the saddle. Immie's such a good horse, he stood there, just as quiet as a lamb.

a

The day before Thanksgiving

2009-12-19T11:33:00.000-08:00

The day before Thanks giving we were going to drive the team, practicing for the Christmas Carriage parade in Pendleton, just a little over a week off. Just as we finished hitching, here came Kai and Ada. Kai is just as horse foolish as her great grand dad, so he took her up on the fore cart with him for a ride.

Ready. Set.

Go.

Thanksgiving Day

2009-12-19T11:11:00.000-08:00

Wehad a wonderful Thanksgiving Day, we met at the Ramsey Creek Grange, 36 family members.After the meal we had picture taking. My best beloved is inclined to look serious at the camera. Looks like he's getting ready to trap rats. So I tickled his chin and Diana caught him smiling, much nicer.

Now, here's the picture as we all want to be remembered. Smiling, happy, full of turkey and ham. Well, down below is what we really looked like.

November 6th Our 5th Anniversary

2009-12-18T13:39:00.000-08:00

These pics were taken in October, BUT, that was just because our anniversary present to ourselves came early. Look at those grins, never had an anniversary present I liked so much.
Larry and Ladonna Chafin deal in Pioneer equipment and sold us our forecart. They were so kind, they delivered it to the door.

October!

2009-12-18T12:54:00.001-08:00

In my run to catch up my blog, I've made it to October. And there's just a pic of Blue our elderly (10) Blue Heeler watching something out the gate.
And Of Course, Fay and I trail riding. We had just come in and my daughter came out with her camera and caught us.

Pendleton Round Up, Westward Ho!

2009-12-17T15:31:00.000-08:00

Every year we go up to the Pendleton Roundup and participate in the Westward Ho Parade. Here's the teamsters and friends eating donated watermelons.
The morning of the parade, Immie says, let's go! I'm tired of standing here.
Of course, once we get there, we sit and wait.
And wait some more, two hours this year! My legs were so sore from just sitting on Immie.
The Native Americans really dress up for the parade.
Can you imagine? She plays the clarinet and rides! Part of the mounted band.
Isn't she beautiful?
This lady rode one mule and led another with a dummy laid cross ways.
This is the cutest pony and the buggy is always decorated all over!
After the parade, discussing whose horses were good and whose weren't. See that can of Coke? That was one of three Fay drank after the parade. He was moving fast afterward!!!

Early Release

2009-12-17T14:57:00.000-08:00

Our local school district has a policy of early release, every other Wednesday. This makes it so difficult for parents to arrange for child care. But for Kai and Immie and I, it's been more fun. Kai is as horse crazy as her great granddad and loves to go riding with me.

Every August we go driving.

2009-12-17T14:13:00.000-08:00

Every August, the Freitag family puts on a Camp Out for the Western Drafter's Club. We drive down to their place in Halsey, OR and have more fun!

Fay drives other people's ponies and shows them how to set lines.

This year he helped Sheila fit her brand new work harness for her Haflinger mare.

Fay rides with Larry behind his Belgians and I ride my Appy behind the wagon.

Fay also helped set up a three abreast, six pony hitch. They were so cute.

We have wonderful meals, one included corn on the cob.

Parade Crazy, August 2009, Pt 2

2009-12-11T15:01:00.001-08:00

We had so much fun at the Threshing Bee. My oldest daughter joined us. That was the line behind us for breakfast!

We rode in the parade, all three of us, Fay and I on the team of Fjords and Amanda on Immie.

I think she's telling Best that he has to be a good boy for mommie. He hadn't had a saddle on in a year before I rode him in that parade--and it was only his fifth time to wear a saddle anyway. He sure hasn't figured out how to stand for mounting. ;))

I never have pics of parades, I'm always riding or driving and have my hands too full of horse to take pictures.

Parade Crazy, August 2009 Pt 1.

2009-12-11T13:47:00.001-08:00

Not all the lack of blogging can be blamed on Beauty's need for training. As all of Fay's family and friends know, his hobby is being in parades with his horses. These pics are from August, the second weekend, the Threshing Bee at Dufur. The first series of pics are from the day we brought the horses home from a pasture out Chenowith. Fay had talked to the guys at The Dalles Disposal, they said it would be fine for him to bring his horses by and weigh them on the truck scale.

Feather weighed 1540lbs
Immie weighed 1140
Best weighed 1460

And because I was busy tying horses to the trailer I missed the best pic of all. They were weighing Fay on the truck scales to be able to subtract his weight from the horses'. The look on the people's faces in the truck waiting to get in and weigh was priceless.

You can also see why the horses weigh as much as they do: their welcome home snack was fresh corn stalks! Then all the hay they would eat.

That long gap in my blogging....

2009-12-09T09:17:00.000-08:00

Here's the reason for my lack of posting. Bless Fay, he goes at horse training very seriously. It has to be every day available. I loved the two hour rides every morning. We went to the saddle club grounds, we rode out on the street, we went out Seven Mile road and up on the ridge. Rabbits, gray diggers, dogs, people, deer all kinds of wild life.

Catching up some more.

2009-12-07T11:27:00.000-08:00

My oldest daughter and her step daughter come to visit every summer. Deonna has to ride too, this is her chance to be a farm girl.

Catching up.

2009-12-07T10:57:00.000-08:00

As you can see from the pics, we're catching up in more ways than one. Our horses are kept in a pasture behind our house. It's fine if they're on our side of the creek, but with my lame knees I can't dance across the rocks like I used to, nor can he and I walk the mile around to the other gate at the saddle club grounds. How many people bring their horses home by truck? My oldest daughter was visiting late July and took these pics for me.

Purple fingers.

2009-08-04T14:56:00.000-07:00

Fay picked blackberries today, a gallon in an hour. He came home purple fingered and talking about pies, cobblers, sauce and jam.

Now, aggravating as it is, the purple fingers pic won't stay rotated when I upload it. But I'm not leaving it out, it's too cute.

Feathered Fascinators or just feather brained

2009-08-03T16:05:00.000-07:00

It's not a bit funny, I've had computers for over 20 years and have wrestled (metaphorically at least) several software programs into obedience. I needed a program to modify file sizes for pics so I could list the feathered hair ornaments that are my/our/Meg and I's current creative outlet. For three afternoons in a row I've sat here, trying to reduce file sizes and have them export to the same folder each time. I've never thought I was stupid, but watching folders slither about and rearrange themselves to suit some one else's logic--just as well Fay is hard of hearing.
But the hair ornaments are beautiful! I need to get them out so someone will love them and buy. So, guess what I'm doing tomorrow after noon?

You think I can't raise good potatoes?

2009-08-01T08:54:00.000-07:00

You think I can't raise good potatoes? That's the question I got asked this morning as Fay laid this big guy on the kitchen counter.

The vines are dying and this is one hill. The variety is Caribe, they taste good and keep well.

Fay came in carrying this wounded potato, plus the bucketful, all out of one hill. My boy's a farmer all right.

Camera Lessons

2009-07-31T15:57:00.000-07:00

Fay mutters a lot but our first picture taking lesson was a success. I have to agree, the buttons are small on my digital camera and it's easy to bump the wrong thing. His first pic of me is blurry, but the second isn't. He got two good pics of Beauty in the arena, but I didn't make it into the pics of Beauty like he intended.

Fay got his shadow in the one pic though. :))

We both think he needs to figure out how to get the pic and not get too much reflection on the view finder. I am so proud of him, he's using a digital camera.

Video Grumble

2009-07-30T15:17:00.000-07:00

Phooey, I tried for over an hour to upload a video of Fay driving Beauty and it just won't! I checked with the help section and there was no help to be had.

If someone knows more than I!!! I have no problem taking direction. I'm trying again as I type and if it doesn't upload in five minutes like the help section says, my grumble is getting published as is.

Beauty's First Field Trip

2009-07-30T14:44:00.000-07:00

Beauty is the colt Fay got for $25, she's out of a mare he had for over six years. He loved Peppy and when three years ago she dropped her only colt at 20 years old. He had to have her.

I'm not sure we need another horse, I'm not sure we need to be training a new colt. But he can't be stopped and I love the way his face lights up when Beauty gets her lesson right.

She had her first trip off the place being ground driven today. She gets her hour lesson first thing in the morning before it heats up past bearing walking behind her. The pics are of Fay and Beauty, I took her down the street before he did but Fay got to be in the pics because I haven't given him lessons on how to operate my digital camera. Not sure he wants any. I think he's going to get some though.

I put the pics up backwards, the top one is the last one as she comes back in, her head down and relaxed, the middle one shows them coming back and the first one shows them moving in a left turn.

Convicted of ripeness and hung up to dry.

2009-07-29T15:04:00.000-07:00

The Walla Walla Sweet onions are come and gone, they don't keep well but the second wave of home grown onions were dug this morning. Fay raised us the most deep colored 'red' onions I've seen, I think they look purple, he sees them as blue. They're hung up in a braid to dry on our back porch and are a most eye catching ornament. Not to mention nose catching, the whole porch smells like them.

Unexpected guests.

2009-07-29T06:52:00.000-07:00

About 0630 this morning two Blue Heeler dogs were at our gate sniffing and messing around. Our Blue was in the house and Fay sent me out to catch them if I could. He remembers Russ' dog Bailey being lost on I84.

Nice dogs, I bent over play bowing and calling--here the young male came and his quieter darker female with him. They just wanted to be petted and followed me right in the gate. I set them up a guest room in the big horse trailer, food, water, two raw beef bones. Then I called and left a message for our local animal control officer. Such a good guy, he came and got them right after he got to work this morning. They jumped right into his truck! I hope he can convince the people this dogs belong to that spay/neuter and licensing are good things.

2009-07-25T10:17:00.000-07:00

What happens when you grow green cabbage for saurkraut and purple cabbage to eat and the purple cabbage thrives and comes on too much too fast? Well, if you're Fay and I you make saurkraut anyway. Which is how I got these gorgeous pink jars of saurkraut. I love it. Tastes absolutely delicious and makes 'kraut makes itself once the cabbage is shredded and salted.

Pickles

2009-07-23T09:24:00.000-07:00

We decided to make our own pickles this year, he always raises more cucumbers than we can eat and we do love our pickles. So, 14 quart of mixed dills, some just cucumbers, some with onion and green beans. I love pickled beans. We figure that should be enough dills. I'm going to put up 14 quart of sweet pickles now. They'll definitely be mixed, carrots, cucumbers, onions. I don't know what all.

2009-07-15T17:41:00.000-07:00

Well, he's over the moon today. We got a copy of Country Extra with a pic of us and the horses when we were down to Sweet Home last October. He just loves knowing people are seeing his beautiful team.

2009-07-15T13:21:00.000-07:00

Time just passes so quickly. First cuttings of hay are all in the barn or sold and next Monday our 15 acres of barley/alfalfa will be ready for its second cutting. The pics are of Fay and the Fjords cutting hay.

I've sprained my right wrist which explains why no blogging. Typing is NOT on my hot list. Someday it'll heal.

2009-05-19T18:56:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was frustrating. One of our patches of ground is a spring planting of barley hay and the neighbor isn't good about his fences. Two yearling bulls were out and feeding on our spring planting. They spent four days there until I told him that since they were unbranded, may be they weren't his. It was amazing how fast he could move those two bulls when he got the idea that we were going to saddle up, drive them off and put brands on them.

If you feed animals enough they don't usually push on fences. Fay Pishion

2009-05-14T16:24:00.000-07:00

We're two weeks out from haying and Fay is getting the horse mower greased and ready for service. There's always something new to fix even if you think you left it in perfect running order at the end of haying season last year.