Seasonal Projects: Food, Fiber, Future, Fun!
Now that we have finally settled in from the madness of the last few months, we are tackling some seasonal projects. Honestly, winter is one of my favorite times of year because there is finally time to catch up on all of the indoor projects and planning that were so neglected during times of good weather. Since we have another baby on the way, we have even more motivation for completing our to-do list. Here are some of the things we hope to do int he next few months:
Food
The freezer and pantry are fully stocked. We won’t be adding any new meat or veggies until next summer. I have been making weekly batch-meals. What works for me to is make four of whatever is on my list for that week, eat one the night it is made and freeze the other three. So far I have made Turkey Pot Pie, Shepherd’s Pie, and Lasagna. Next week I will make Chicken Enchiladas, and then either a Split Pea or Bean Soup with ham. I have several large bags of dried beans in my pantry and I may also try to pressure can our own black beans and baked beans. The idea of just opening up a jar of something and warming it up is quite heavenly. The goal is that by the time the baby is born in mid-to-late April, we will have about a months supply of heat and serve meals made from the meats and veggies we grew on the farm last season.
Fiber
On Friday the kids and I mailed off the salted and dried sheep hide to Bucks County Fur Inc. in PA. In a few months we will get back our finished, washable rug. I have 33 rabbit hides tanning in a salt and alum mixture. I hope to make a large blanket with their pelts and line it with satin. I can’t imagine a warmer, softer blanket to have the baby lay down on. I have finished cleaning Flora’s (our female angora goat) fleece and will be working on cleaning the other goat fleece and the two sheep fleece in the coming weeks. I should be getting my spinning wheel by the end of the month, and I might even get a few skeins of yarn spun before the baby arrives. I am finishing up a quilt that I started after Charlotte was born; all that is needed is to machine quilt the three layers together and sew on the binding, maybe a couple of hours of work in total. I have several small knitting projects going (socks, hats, etc) and I would like to make some new felted wool slippers for Mike and myself as ours are beginning to get holes in the soles.
Future
Each time we add to our family, I go into big time nesting mode. I am already a huge purger when it comes to the house, but adding a new person means that I want our living space to be completely streamlined. We are in the process of going through each room in the house (and then the outside spaces, barn, shed, etc) and cleaning them out from top to bottom, addressing any problems, and making our “for the future list”. This includes any short term or long term plans for the space. For example, we really want to get a desk for Jackson in the dormer of the kids’ room so he has his own private space to build with legos (short term) but we also want to eventually replace the tub in the kids’ bathroom with a bigger model than the one installed currently (long term). We are also in the process of making a yearly calendar for the different livestock tasks and also for the garden and the orchard. Now that we have lived here for over a year and gone through every season, we have a relatively good idea of what needs to happen when. Having it all written down makes life so much easier. Mike makes amazing computer programs that allow up to manage many aspects of farm life so that the information we need is always easily accessible.
Fun
The kids and I (and Mike when he can) are trying to have as much fun as possible. We have been having daily soccer matches on the frozen pond with the goats. We have been playing in the grow tunnel on sunny days. We have been taking weekly trips to museums and play spaces. We have been visiting with friends. We built a play kitchen for Charlotte and have been making our own toys. For a while after the baby comes, I won’t be as available to do all of these amazing and active things with them. It will be a time of snuggling and reading books and watching movies. Luckily, the weather will be warming up and the kids will be able to play outside. Thankfully, we have lots of friends who like to come “visit the farm” and can keep the kids happy and entertained. But, while the two of them still have me all to themselves, we are going to enjoy every minute and spend as much time as possible having adventures and playing together.
Enjoy the season, make some rituals for yourself and your family and don’t forget to have fun!
