Weekending

Oh my how things have changed in the past month..... We are hunkered down at home, having fun with the animals and taking the opportunity to get a few things done at the house that we didn't think we had time to do.  Might as well make the most of it, right?

We are not currently selling at our farmer's market.  Although the market is still going, for now, we are trying to make the most responsible decision for us and our customers.  Since our products are shippable we decided it's really best to limit our exposure to others at this time.  I mean honestly, it's just the two of us.  No kids, no parents, and no relatives around us at all, so in the end, it is us solely responsible for our farm and our business and because of that we want to try to stay healthy.  Our customers are wonderful and have seemed to understand so our online store has been busy the last two days.  For that we are incredibly grateful!

Most of the schools around us are closed for the next 2 weeks and our grocery stores have been hit like what you are seeing on the news.  Shelves completely emptied.  We did our monthly grocery shopping (plus a bit extra knowing eventually we'd need to isolate) about 2 weeks ago.  At that time everything was in stock and we had no issues at all.  We didn't feel the need to stockpile a year's worth of toilet paper, instead, about a month and a half's worth of food, animal food, coffee, tea, and toiletries.

When I shop monthly rather than weekly we eat the fresh fruit and veggies first and then switch to frozen for the last couple of weeks.  If you truly don't want to visit the grocery store for a month it is possible to make it work.  Many fresh fruit and veggies last a month (root vegetables, apples, oranges, etc.) and you can freeze meat, milk and butter.  If you don't make homemade bread you can freeze bread too.  As far as meals go, you can either create a full month meal plan or just wing it with what you have in your stocked pantry, fridge and freezer.  It's really a matter of buying what your family eats regularly.

As long as you do that,  you are good to go.

Coop Girls - they are loving the fact that the weather has been decent and the snow is (finally) melting.  Eggs are being laid regularly (we are getting about a dozen a day) and they are enjoying patrolling the property.

Oliver - I had a woman ask me at the park yesterday how old he is.  We took him for a walk to get him (and us) out of the house and out in the beautiful weather.  When I said 10 she was amazed.  She said she would have never guessed he's that old based on how he acts - running around like a crazy man and having a blast.  I'm so grateful that he really is doing well.  He certainly has his moments that scare me but in general, he is thriving.

Jackson - when I walked down the stairs this morning I could see something in the middle of the dining room floor but couldn't make out what it was.  It was Jack's toy basket.  He had drug it out from where it lives to the middle of the floor and proceeded to almost empty it.  He must have been looking for a specific toy and couldn't find it.  He does this sometimes.  I'm guessing he got bored in the middle of the night.

So what I'm telling you is he is the exact same.  I don't think he will ever mature....  He will forever be a kitten in an adult cat's body.  The other night he was pretending someone or something was chasing him.  He raced around, crashing into furniture, jumping and carrying on like he'd lost his mind.  He is a piece of work.  Oliver, Jay and I just watched him and shook our heads.

What's Cooking - I'm going to work on creating a new veggie burger recipe this week.  I love them and thought it would be fun to do.

For dinners I've been enjoying homemade burrito bowls (Mexican rice, beans, and corn salsa) these days.  I like making the beans in the instant pot.  Quick and easy.  I make a huge batch and freeze them.  Jay does not enjoy having the same dinner more than once a week so I just make quick and easy things for him.  I have a list of recipes he loves and we alternate depending on what protein he's having that day (poultry on Mon, Thurs & Sat; pork on Tues; Beef on Wed & Sun; Seafood on Fri.).  He will NOT eat poultry or seafood two days in a row (isn't that funny?) so this makes my life a bit easier, assigning protein to the days.  I just look at the list of poultry, pork, seafood, or beef recipes and cook one up.

For lunches Jay has been on a pizza made on homemade naan bread kick (I make this recipe from Budget Bytes).  We add tomato sauce, cheese, and other toppings then cook it in the air fryer for 8 minutes and voila.  A perfect mini pizza!  I have been loving quinoa salad (no recipe, just cooked quinoa, chickpeas and whatever veggies I have on hand - fresh and frozen).

Breakfasts are usually cereal (Jay has eggs a couple days a week) but I've been craving cinnamon swirl bread toast so I made a batch of that today.  I was thinking of it last night and realizing I haven't made it in forever.  The recipe makes 3 loaves but I usually make 2 loaves plus a batch of cinnamon rolls.  So that's what I did.


Hoping you had a wonderful weekend!

Link Love:
Finding Your Purpose And Pursuing Your Passion (SallyAnn Miller)
10 Things To Remember Before You Take Things Personally (Marc & Angel)
A Well-Stocked Pantry (Prudent Homemaker) - Brandy's list of her extensive stocked pantry.
We Are Not A Zero Waste Family (This Simple Day)
Farm Notes - you may know Kristin Kimball from her book "The Dirty Life".  She and husband Mark farm in Essex, NY on an amazing farm they built from scratch.  We've had the absolute pleasure of visiting a few times.  She writes weekly notes to keep their CSA members in the loop and publishes them to her site.  (Kristin Kimball)

Weekendingwas originally posted by My Favorite Chicken Blogs(benjamingardening)