Weekending

Happy Sunday friends!

How are you doing?  I'm hoping you and your family are healthy and figuring out creative ways to find enjoyable things to do.  Something I've been thinking about this week is my realization that when crisis happens I've learned to turn toward gratitude and get a bit tender, I suppose.  Crisis reminds me of the precariousness of life and I find myself feeling a bit vulnerable.  Although it may sound odd, I'm actually happy that I have evolved to this response.  In my younger years it may have caused fear and possibly even upset but definitely not gratitude.  I just received a similar reminder with my mom's terminal illness last summer and her ultimate passing.  It's crisis that reminds me we only have one (life) and it is delicate and short.

This has been a time for me to work on forgiveness and to give my flawed self and others grace for past mistakes.  It's a time to remember that all people and animals deserve compassion and a hope that, as I continue to age, I am able to remember these lessons and engage in gratitude, forgiveness, and compassion more frequently, without first the prompt of a crisis.

On to our weekend:

In The Garden - Can you even believe summer is on the horizon?  Well it is, whether you're ready or not, so time to button up those springtime projects!  We've enjoyed a beautiful week here with temps in the 70's.  I have planted my warm-weather crops.  I'm not finished, but the majority are in.  We have a woodchuck hanging around, again, which means we may be sharing the harvest until my fencing gets installed.  Fingers crossed that my temporary fencing keeps him away from the crops he loves.

We have one more raised bed to complete and, honestly, I'm not sure that's going to happen until fall.  Our business has  gotten very busy again, which we're grateful for, so household projects are once again pushed to the back burner.

Because I pulled out all of our strawberry plants a few years ago, we will be purchasing berries from our farmer's market.  I believe we should see them start to appear in a couple of weeks.  For those of you in warmer climates, I'm sure you've seen them in your yards and markets for a bit.  We are not only behind due to our zone, but it's been a bit cooler and overcast so they haven't been able to ripen and get juicy and sweet.

We are, however, harvesting asparagus and it is sooo delicious.  I didn't get sugar snap peas in early enough so they aren't quite ready, and our radishes, herbs, and greens are oh-so close.

In The Coop - the girls are happy again which means plenty of eggs.  It's so funny how the production dips.  I think it's been dipping with the weather changes.  Can you say diva's???  I've never noticed this happening in past years but this flock seems to be very sensitive to colder and wet weather.  Simply put - their average number of eggs increases with relatively warm and sunny weather.  It changes by about 2 dozen per week.

They have been enjoying finding all types of bugs and greens and sunbathing.  When it's warmer they tend to forage in the earlier parts of the day and then return to the comfort of their outdoor coops to rest from about 1 o'clock on.  They don't go out much after that. It's a pretty rough life....

The Business - well, we returned to the farmer's market last Sunday.  It has been nice to return and, for the most part, has gone very well.  We've seen a lot of new faces, which is great.  I wish it didn't take a pandemic for them to begin shopping at the market, but hopefully they realize how integral local farmer's and maker's are to the community.  Our meat and veggie vendors have been selling out every weekend so I'm really happy for them.

We've changed our set-up so customers aren't able to handle the products so we can ensure when customers make a purchase, their products have only been touched by us.  And we follow the CDC guidelines when making, packaging, packing, and selling them.  So, although it's a change (which is understandably difficult) and I suppose inconvenient, my hope is that people feel more comfortable because of it.

We are very (VERY) fortunate that online orders have continued to come in (as in, we are now shipping 6 days a week instead of 3 days a week as we've previously done) so we are back in full production.  Some of our craft shows have already cancelled for this year and we anticipate that the remaining likely will too.  We had assumed that from the start, so we have tried to set ourselves up to be prepared for that loss of income.  We are so grateful that our products are able to be shipped.  Some of our friends either don't have a website set-up or can't easily ship their items.  It definitely takes some creativity to figure out how to stay in business for many of them.

At The Grocery Store - so I went grocery shopping this past week.  Because we usually eat so many fresh fruit and vegetables I decided it would be nice to go stock up.  It was a lot quieter then my past 2 trips which was wonderful.  And pretty well stocked!  I went to a large grocery store plus one of the health food stores in our area.  At both stores I saw empty shelves where flour would go, and still no Amy's brand refried beans (my favorite).  The large grocery store was also out of dish soap and household cleaners.  They finally had paper towels and toilet paper.  It was a limited selection but it was at least a selection.  Other then a man screaming and storming around because an employee asked him to put a mask on, all went well.

Oliver - he's doing well but he's definitely acting a bit older.  I mean, I know he's 10 years old so he's up there, but he's starting to act more like his age now.  He's sleeping a bit more and not so peppy.  He's also not as excited about being out on the deck choosing instead to pretty much be at my side 24/7.  His hind end is causing a bit of discomfort I believe - not sure if it's his hips or his spine since he has problems with both.  No serious pain (I check regularly) so I'm assuming maybe some aching.  He is on medication and it works because I accidentally forgot it one day this week and he was definitely out of sorts until I realized it and quickly gave him his dose.

Jack - Jack is, well, Jack.  He's been doing fairly well although he's back to posturing at Oliver and trying to bully him whenever I'm not looking.  You know, the same old - same old....  He's enjoying the windows being open and spends his days roaming room-to-room so he can sit in each and every one.

DELICIOUS veggie burgers

In The Kitchen - It remains a busy place.  I haven't been meal prepping as much so I'm in there a bit more then usual throughout the week.  We've been making banana-based ice cream as a special snack some days and I've been experimenting with sourdough recipes and techniques which is always fun.

Saturday I had oats with a banana, flaxseeds and berries for breakfast and Jay had hash and eggs with a side of berries.   Lunch was simple - a big salad (greens/peppers/onions/roasted mushrooms/dates/pepitas/cabbage/balsamic vinegar/hummus/quinoa) plus a half of a super delicious veggie burger that I made for me and a burger and chips for Jay.  Dinner was Enchilada Stacks (chicken and cheese for Jay and black bean and veggie for me) with corn salad and salsa.

Today it was oats again for me and a breakfast sandwich for Jay.  Berries on the side, of course.  We had the market so if we both attend, I bring a salad and some fruit and Jay gets lunch there from one of the food vendors.  Dinner was something easy -  Mac & Greens for me (dairy-free macaroni and "cheese" with greens and peas) and a grilled steak and homefries for Jay.  We had a side of broccoli.




Our part of NY State is in phase 1 of reopening.  We are faring very well during this uncertain time and feel incredibly lucky that we, for the most part, work from home, have a roof over our head, and a garden to tend.


I'm hoping you had a wonderful weekend as well!  Do tell - did you do anything fun or productive?  Did you read a good book?  Cook anything delicious?


Link Love:
Did you realize that you need Peanut Butter Bread in your life?  I didn't either, until I tried it.... It's good!  It's dense but still moist, even on day 3.  If you do decide to make it, do not over bake it.  I took mine out at barely done with just a bit of dough attached to a toothpick inserted into the center and it was perfect!  I added non-dairy chocolate chips, because, well....chocolate.  (The Kitchn)

Have you been looking to add more houseplants to your life?  I have and this site (not an affiliate link) is an online store that provides a great deal of information and I'm finding it very helpful in determining what's best for each room (i.e. low light, pet friendly, etc.) (Bloomscape)

And then something quite disturbing that you may not even thought of.....mad cow disease and cosmetics.  It really does show the importance of reading and understanding every single label for not only what you put in your body but on your body as well. (Nutrition Facts)

I think these will be the next veggie burger recipe I'll try.  They look DELICIOUS.  And I agree with Robin about adding a touch of BBQ sauce to all of my veggie burger recipes (that's the glaze on the veggie burger photo up above from my lunch this weekend).  It really does add great flavor.  (Green Eggs And Yam)

Weekendingwas originally posted by My Favorite Chicken Blogs(benjamingardening)