Farm~School~Life

Showing posts with label squash. Show all posts

Wrangler Wednesday

I can't believe it's already July!

And honestly it's quickly approaching the middle of July.

That means that lots of our friends who grow produce have many yummy things in their roadside stand.

Over the holiday weekend I grabbed some peaches, tomatoes, corn, squash and cantaloupe

from one of our favorite family farms....Cotton Hills Farm

(If you are a regular to the blog you've probably seen me mention them before.)

I put up most of the corn, squash and tomatoes this weekend.

Well I put up what didn't make it's way into our tummies I should say ;)

This Farm Boy really impressed me this past week. He has taken to writing in his journal often. I can't always tell you what he's writing but he's putting his thoughts on paper!

He also did a great job of helping to shuck corn. He was very meticulous on his silking duties,

which slowed us down but that's ok.

His favorite part though was fresh corn on the cob. As you can tell Farm Boy #2

was quite pleased as well!

Speaking of FB2...he's a mess!

He loves to entertain everyone...see here why we have dubbed him...

"PACI MONSTER"

we never leave home without at least 2 sometimes 3 or more!

Those peaches you saw earlier were made into peach cobbler for the boys

with a side of home made ice cream

And to cool off on the farm...we fill the old sandbox

with ice cold well water

and splash around

The farmer cut the hay field next to our house this week,

which means no more "over my head" field

and Farm Boy is excited to be able to run through it without fear of getting lost.

Here's the field while they were baling.

And we are finally getting a few things out of our own

tiny raised bed garden.

Farm Boy #2 is happy to help pick each evening,

while the original Farm Boy tends to his hens.

I'm just glad I don't have to deal with the chickens!

Until we meet again,

Caci

So the last few weeks the weather in the Southeast has been a little crazy to say the least. One day its 85 and the sun is brightly shining the next day it is overcast and 58. In addition we have had our fair share of storms. The storm that hit Alabama late last month didn't really affect us greatly. We just had a few down trees and powerlines. However last Tuesday night a big storm hit. No tornadoes hit but the straight line winds wreck havoc on our area.

Schools were closed or delayed. Trees were down everywhere. Roofs were ripped off of barns and more.
We personally experienced the damage on our farm and in our backyard.

(Picture coming soon).

Our commodity shed had its roof ripped completely off and the majority of it was taken off still intact. The few sheets that ripped off individually wrapped around a telephone pole about 25 yards away.

(picture coming soon)

The sound of the ripping sheet of tin combined the wind moved calf hutches a few feet as well.

(picture coming soon)

The small feed bins also suffered some damage being blown down into the driveway.

Needless to say with all this wild weather we have had a good chance to get our family garden planted. So yesterday after school Wyatt and I stopped and picked up some seeds and tomato plants. We then headed to Grandma & PawPaw's to plant the family garden. We are using the field they have used for years to plant a garden since our house is just across the road.

So far we plan to plant a few rows of sweet corn, indian corn, tomatoes, watermelons, squash, onions, potatoes, cucumbers, bush beans, carrots, peppers, lettuce and pumpkins. Yesterday we got a the first row started, with the help of Grandma & PawPaw of course.

We laid out the rows and planted 28 tomato plants, about 2 dozen onions, and maybe 3 dozen potatoes.

The best part of having a garden at Grandma & PawPaw's is their wealth of knowledge. Its wonderful to have them share this with our young son, who of course thinks the sun rises and sets with his great grandparents.

Over the course of the next few months I'll make sure to post plenty of pictures and post about the growth in our garden especially since this is my first encounter with a large size garden. Wyatt wants to sell some so he can save money to buy some new tractors...we will see how that goes. You will find this farm wife is more comfortable with a 1,500 lb bull than a 1/2 lb of beans.

In addition to farm life Wyatt has begun playing T-ball and I am Team Mom. So each Saturday we spend about an hour at the local ball field with 2 dozens 3 & 4 year olds.

(Pictures coming soon).

Have a great week!

A yummy fall treat

Fall has just really began in our part of the country and we are lucky to still be enjoying some summer garden favorites such as fresh tomatoes and squash. Now my little man LOVES LOVES LOVES his veggies, but especially squash (in any form). His favorite though is fried squash. So I thought I would share this super simple recipe and give all of you a chance to enjoy Simply Southern Squash...

You will need:
a frying pan
tongs or fork
knife
bowl w/ a lid (tupperware works best)
2 or 3 medium sized yellow squash
cornmeal
cooking oil
and a little helper doesn't hurt

1. rinse the outside of your squash and pat dry
2. fill your bowl about 1/2 full with cornmeal
3. pour oil into your frying pan (it needs to be about 1/4 inch deep) turn the burn on med-high heat
4. slice your squash into 1/8 to 1/4 inch slices
5. put squash slices into cornmeal bowl, place the lid on and let your little helper shake

6. once the slices are coated throughly...shake off the excess cornmeal and drop into the oil (which should be hot but not smoking hot)
7. don't over crowd the slices, leave a little room for flipping

8. after about 2 minutes flip the squash slices over...the side that is now facing up should be light golden brown (you might find you like them cooked a little darker)
9. wait another minute or 2 and flip again to ensure color is correct on opposite side
10. take slices out of oil and drain and cool on paper towels
11. repeat steps 5-10 until all slices have been cooked.
12. serve warm and enjoy!

I hope you enjoy this quick and easy way to use your garden bounty and enjoy some Southern comfort food.

(pics coming soon!)

Wrangler Wednesday

Weather...its amazing

A yummy fall treat

Instagram