Uh, Spring???

Well, March is almost over. And this morning, we woke to snow on the ground. Not much, just a light dusting but still. And Tuesday is supposed to be 73°...

What's Up?

I'm planning to use this blog more than my FB page. It's a bit too much right now. There is so much information, so many photos, so many voices! I don't want to lose contact with any of you! I simply don't have the time right now! Ha!

I hope you'll join me over here occasionally to see what we're doing and how things are going! Feel free to leave comments or questions or something about your own life in the comments section! I'll post a link on my FB page when there's a new post here. I downloaded the app to my phone so should be able to post a bit more regularly!

Catching Up

So, I've been away from this blog awhile. Again. It's been an overwhelming year. A lot has happened. Births, deaths, comings and goings, ups and downs. In December of 2014, hubby was sent to Korea for a year. We knew before he left that he would not be stationed back at home. The military placed him about 6 hrs from home, instead. It's a bit of a haul for us to see him but we manage! He has just over a year until retirement, so we're just counting down at this point. Our kiddos and I stayed on the farm. We manage the property, animals, school, activities, etc from here. The next year can't go by too quickly!

Last spring we added a pregnant Jersey cow to our farm! She gave us an adorable bull calf in June. I was thrilled to have found the "perfect Jersey"! Unfortunately, at some point in the fall, she was killed by coyotes. I was devastated. She was such a sweet, unassuming girl, and I was looking forward to many years with her. Her calf is fine, thankfully, as is Edith.

We also added a couple more ducks, a Narragansett turkey, an African goose, and a random large white chicken! A friend was needing to get rid of them and offered them to me. For free! Now that was a fun car ride home!

We're coming up on the end of several school related things, too. Co-op is almost over. The homeschool drama production is this weekend; it will be the last for our beloved director and my dear friend. My show choir is doing wonderfully and will be performing their showcase next month! And, of course, spring is almost here!

The grass is already turning beautiful, rich shades of green. The trees are budding and forming leaves. The sun is bright, the skies are blue (except when it's raining). Take a big, deep breath and breathe it all in!

I'll try to snap some photos tomorrow, if the sun will cooperate!

Next Time, Don't Wait So Long!

No, that title is for me, I assure you! I can't believe how long it's been since I've been on this blog! It's difficult to remember to get on here when I have the ease of FB posts. Sorry. But I'm making a new resolution to put more time and effort into this blog!

I'm not putting photos or anything in this particular post. This is just a post to say "I'm baaaaaack!!!" We've been busy around the farm and a lot of things have happened in the months that I've been gone from the blogosphere; some good, some bad, and some ugly. I will try to elaborate on some of that in a later post.

For now, I just wanted to pop in and give an idea of some of the posts you can look forward to in the upcoming weeks!

Future Posts:

• Our Kitchen Renovation-- A lot has happened and a LOT has changed! I'm eager to share the ups and downs of our kitchen reno!
• Fall on the Farm-- We're getting ready to head into winter in just a short time and there's still so much to be done!
• Hubby's Deployment-- Gone for a whole year?!? Yep. It's happening! And soon! How will we cope with his longest deployment yet? And so close to retirement, too? Stay tuned, and we'll share some of our ideas and plans!
• Christmas Open House--  Oh my goodness!!! Christmas is only 10 1/2 weeks away!!! What plans does Moose Spitt Farm have in store for this year?? I know, you're excited, too, aren't you? Go ahead. This is a "Christmas-Encouraged Zone"! 

So, there you go! Some wonderful and exciting things to look forward to! I'll see you again soon!

Fine. One picture. Sunset and fog on our farm. Gorgeous and soothing, isn't it?

Recipe #2: American Style Beef Pot Roast

Tonight was a good night to try the next recipe on the list for this pay period!  My good friend Laurel from SnailCreekFarm.blogspot.com brought over a beautiful roast the other day.  (Check out their blog for great recipes and information on how to purchase grass-fed beef!)  The recipe calls for veggies; celery, carrots, onions, canned tomatoes, and garlic.  I totally cheated.  No fresh veg.  Only garlic powder, onion powder, celery seed, tomatoes but no carrots at all.  Sadness, I know.  But I will be a good girl next time.  I actually had forgotten to put those things on my grocery list.  Oops!  And despite all that...  It was delicious!!!  So tasty!  We also had mashed potatoes and gravy and canned pears.

Here are some photos of our fantastic meal!

The beef with tomatoes.  Yum!

The recipe.  Pretty simple and straightforward!

Our whole meal... Delicious!

I used my cast iron pot for this meal.  Since I wasn't using fresh veg, I didn't bother browning the meat and veggies in separate pans.  I browned the meat in the cast iron pot and then sprinkled all the veggie powder on top of that and then followed the instructions. Let me know if you decide to try any of these recipes!

Thanks for stopping by! 

A New Old Cookbook!!!

So, I attended an auction with some friends a while back and my friend won a stack of old books.  As it was nearing the end of the evening, they had piled a bunch of other books on top of the few she wanted.  After the auction was over and she went to collect her things, she allowed me to poke around through the books she didn't want.  I came away with a yearbook from 1950-something and one from the 1920s!  Very cool...  There was also this neat old cookbook....

The cover says "Westport Victory Cook Book".  Printed in 1942, it encourages individuals to "patronize the firms whose advertisements appear herein".  There are many old adverts for local businesses throughout the pages.  How interesting!

Inside the cover

I'm picking a few receipts from the different sections of the book and trying them each week.  This time around we have Peter Pan Pudding, "My Blue Ribbon Devils Food Cake", Orange Slice Cookies, Graham Cracker Pudding, Butterscotch Rolls, and American Style Beef Pot Roast.  It looks like a lot of sweets this time around!  I'm taking the first receipt from each section and working through it throughout each pay period.  So there will be another set of yummy deliciousness in two weeks!

For tonight, we made homemade pizza with pepperoni, cheese, and pineapple toppings.  Yum!  My good friend Laurel from SnailCreekFarm.blogspot.com came over to drop off a roast for our meal later this week.  While we were chatting, she mentioned a new food related blog and that got me thinking,  "Why not post about what I'm doing with this cookbook!"  And so here is the first of, I hope, many food related posts!  

On to tonight's experiment with the 1942 receipts...  I made the dish Peter Pan Pudding.  Odd name for a tasty and cool treat!  It consists of gelatin, whipped cream, crushed pineapple, marshmallows, marashino cherries, and pecans.  It went together quickly and tasted better after chilling for a bit in the fridge.  The recipe actually calls for you to "stir and allow to set".  I could tell why very quickly!  The cream is bland tasting at first because it hasn't had time to soak up the other flavors yet.  After setting in the fridge for a little bit, it tasted very good!  Laurel had left by the time we got out the fancy dessert dishes and served some up!  Everyone enjoyed it!  So here are some pics of Peter Pan Pudding and the receipt from the cookbook for you to try, if you'd like!

Stirring in the marshmallows and pecans.

The recipe from the 1942 cook book.

Finished Peter Pan Pudding served up in beautiful dessert dishes!

I hope you enjoyed this post and will come back for more!  

Thanks for stopping by!

This Week at Moose Spitt...

The last several weeks have been very full.  A lot has happened, a lot has been accomplished...  To start off, let me apologize for not updating the blog in all that time!  I had good intentions of posting once a week but somehow became very distracted by Life!  Let's see if we can do a quick re-cap of the last few weeks and get caught up!
My daughter and I went to a JASNA event on the 27th.  It was "Picnic at Pemberley" and had three very interesting workshops to attend and a most delicious tea! Here is the link to JASNA (Jane Austen Society of North America):  www.jasna.org  My daughter and I both dressed in Regency fashion!
We also  enjoyed the birth of five kittens to our cat Cookie!  But then something went wrong.  We lost all but one kitten during the first two days after their birth.  We made the decision that third morning to take the last kitten and attempt to bottle raise him.  He made it through his first week of life, mostly with a bottle and human "parents".  We named him Melvin, and he was much loved.  The evening of his seventh day of life, his breathing became labored with ominous clicking sounds in his lungs. He was gone by his 3 a.m. feeding time.  It was a sad time at Moose Spitt Farm.
To brighter things, however...  Our chicken coop is almost done!  Finally.  We have only to put hinges on the doors, build the nest boxes and attach that, and put the chickens inside!  Yes, they are still in my bathroom.  Yes, I am becoming concerned that I will be collecting eggs from the tub or sink.  Yes, I really, really, really want them out of my house!  And it looks like it should happen today!  Yay!!!  It will be painted barn red with white trim.  The inside will be painted with white exterior paint, as well.
Our other animals are all doing well.  The horses are overdue for a hoof-trimming.  We'll get that worked out in the next week or so.  The dogs are all enjoying the outside weather.  Mae Belle is loving being out, running around, acting like the goofy puppy she is!  And our cats are becoming quite the hunters!  Vermin, beware!
One more thing that happened just last night...  Pip, our other kitten, had a kitten!  Yes, that is singular.  One kitten.  It's a rather large one, too!  She is being a very good momma, however, unlike her own sister.  We have better hopes that this kitty will make it.

And that, dear readers, is a brief and somewhat messy recap of what we have been doing here!  There is more but I am tired and hot and still have much to accomplish today!  Finishing the coop and finally getting my plants in the garden!
Thanks for stopping by!