Hay Days and Apple Processing Time!

Apple harvest time is here again... Thanks to Mr. Hollow! :)

Hubby's yearly travels takes him to Hay Days in North Branch, Minnesota.  (It is a Huge snowmobile swap meet.)  He goes with his brother every September and always arrives home with new treasures.  Past purchases have involved sled tracks and parts, truck rims and tires, chainsaw parts... You name it and they have it there for the guys.  Well this year on his way home, he decided to stop by the town of Gayes Mills and bring a few things back for yours truly...  2 Bushels of Apples! :)

Aren't they lovely?
  

As if the apples were not enough, he purchased some fresh cider donuts, and a gallon of apple cider to be heated and spiced up!  Mmmmm...

This past week has been busy with peeling and slicing, which has been a breeze thanks to my handy dandy apple peeler/slicer from the Pampered Chef.  What a time saver!

For a huge money saving versus grocery store prices, I decided to flash freeze and pack 21 quarts of apple slices this year, along with 3 quarts of halved apples, 12 quarts of applesauce, 3 large pies, a caramel apple pie  and 2 dozen pies in a jar.  (Pies in a jar can be read about in an earlier post here. )  That still left plenty of apples for slicing and pouring caramel over... Yum!

Mr. Hollow and I might still do some travelling near the orchards before the season is over and will definitely pop in to enjoy the smells and sites of the season, but I am relieved to have the processing of the apples is over for the year. :) 

The 127 Yard Sale Finds of 2012 ~ Vintage Feedsack Cloth

Here is part one of my haul on this year's 127 Yard Sale.  It is now over 600 miles of great buys.  The weather was beautiful and not as balmy as years past.  Unfortunately, some of our southern bargain hunters were met by rain showers.  We were lucky and missed the rain by the hour and were blessed with lower temps, due to the cloud cover!  :)

This post is dedicated to one of my Tennessee finds... Vintage feedsack cloth.  I stumbled across this on the beginning of our 3rd day of the sales.  Vendors were set up in storage sheds along the highway that were safe from the previous days showers.  Since they had lost a day to rain, everyone was making deals!

It was in one of these sheds that I found a clear zippered bag full of feedsack cloth remnants.  Yay!!  I love the idea of leftovers and the vast variety of patterns.  Aren't they just lovely?  *sigh*

I can spend hours researching the history to these pieces of cloth from days gone by... 

Here is a close up of the "Alice in Wonderland" print.  It is one of the "hard to find" designs.  I have only seen it once with a lavender background.  The flowers are just as whimsical on the green cloth.  :) 

Next to the bag of remnants, there were whole feedsacks.  Score!  As I was opening up sacks, the vendors started making deals.  They were keeping an eye on the dark rain clouds looming in the distance and were determined not  to lose another day of business.  So, we bundled all the material together, they threw out the price of $16.00, and I left thrilled with my finds! 

***A little note of gained knowledge... As I was finishing up my purchase, the woman was kind enough to point out that I had left behind two feedsacks.  Not wanting to insult her, I remained silent about those left behind, but it was running through my head that those remaining were old pillowcases.  Having a general knowledge of feedsack patterns, I felt confident leaving them behind.  Once we arrived home, I began researching the basic designs on these "pillowcases".  The vendor was correct about them being a vintage sack.

The remaining bags were Gold Medal Flour sacks.  They were designed to have a simple pattern around the opening, making them perfect for pillowcases. ;)   Even though they will not be gracing my growing collection, I am always excited to expand my knowledge of this fascinating phenomenon of our American agricultural history.  :) 

A Halloween Chicken??

As you all may have guessed by the title of my blog and the colors of my layout, Fall is my favorite time of year.  During the season, I feel so at peace with the world and my artistic mojo is at an all time high.  (Twenty-two years ago, I was even lucky enough to be blessed with the arrival of Farmerboy in October... double bonus! :)  ) It is no surprise with the impending arrival of September, that the old familiar smell and feel of Fall is making itself known in Northern Illinois.  Of course, it has limited itself to only a few days here and there, but the trees have taken notice and patches of crimson are showing up in town.   Soon, we will be making our annual trek to our favorite apple orchard in Wisconsin.  Yay!!  

So to celebrate the arrival of my favorite season, I had to share a few pictures of one of our chicks that is quickly becoming my favorite hen to marvel over... Believe it or not this is Coal... My jet black little chick that is growing up to be the most handsome bird that I have ever seen.  She was being raised for another farm, but I am not sure that I will be able to let her go.  She is the most amazing shade of black and orange!    Her plumage just hinting at the colors until the last few weeks. 

Here she is without the camera flash.  Her feathers are such a wonderful deep shade of burnt orange with black tips.  *Sigh*

She fits into my life and my blog perfectly!  ;)

 

2012 Badger Steam and Gas Engine Show Baraboo, WI

Time is flying by so fast.  Where has the summer gone?  My family has enjoyed another year on the 127 Yard Sale and its 500 miles of fun (Promise to post my finds soon!), and we spent this Saturday enjoying the sights at the Steam and Gas Engine Show in Baraboo, WI.  As always, it offered a HUGE flea market, an antique chainsaw exhibition, loads of vintage engines, a tractor show, great food, and several buildings housing wares and occupations from days gone by.  A person could spend the whole weekend enjoying the sites! :)

Here is a view into the large building that houses the Blacksmith Shop.  It is open from each side, so that spectators can watch the Smithies at work. (If you enter from the front of the building, there are chairs set up for the visitors.)  They have a table next to their work space with newly crafted items for sale.  It was amazing to see these skilled Artisans at their trade.  :)

Onward to another building housing the Print Shop.  There was beautiful old printing presses and loads of gorgeous type on display.  Here is one of the machines in progress.  The gentlemen were busy working and full of information about the beginnings of the printing press.  I was told that there are some of these machines still in use today in specialty shops that deal with ornate printing.  This press in motion makes such a rhythmic sound.  The printer can print a copy every 1 1/2 seconds, when he gets his timing down.  And remember... he is placing the paper by hand!   I thoroughly enjoyed this machine and would love to have one of my own... *sigh*  Could you just imagine the gorgeous cards one could create?? ;)

A little memento from the guys in the print shop.  :) 

The women's center is another one of my favorite haunts. (That is where I learned the process of doing beeswax candles last year.)  This wool spinner caught my attention.  Here he is applying his trade.  The table displays all the various tools involved in processing various forms of wool.  Isn't the yarn lovely?  Like the rhythmic hum that draws me to the printing press, the pedals moving to the spinning wheel gives me the same sense of peace to my soul.  And unlike the expense that will never see me owning a press, this little wooden dandy is more likely to be in my budget! ;)

Here is a close up of some of the tools of the trade.  I have not decided how to process our sheep's wool yet.  Farmerboy has decided to do his shearing in early Spring, so I have a while longer to decide.  I had thought of getting a set of carders like the one in the upper left corner of the picture. 

**NOTE** While walking the flea market, I was able to watch Larraine Bertrang from Long Lane Farm carding some of her Alpaca wool.  She was using the hand carders (resting one on her leg and brushing with the other hand).   The results from her work were for sale in bags on her table, along with some raw wool in need of carding.  It was a fascinating process to witness, and I am so glad that she shared her wares and talent at the show.

Here is a closeup of wool yarn that was available for purchase.  Behind the yarn, you can see a drum carder.  I cannot remember if this one was electric.  An electric drum carder would be ideal to own.  It would be a lot pricier but would save a lot of wear on my arms!

Have you ever felt roving that was a mix of baby Camel hair and sheep wool.  It is BABY SOFT!  What an amazing combo... :)

It is hard to believe that this event has passed for another year.  There are so many other buildings that did not make it into this post... *sigh*  It will be something to look forward to sharing next year!  :)

Chore Time

Farmerboy and I did chores together.  With a little help from my camera, we decided to introduce you to a few members of our family...

Below is one of the first pigs that Farmerboy purchased on his own.  He is enormous and LOVES to be scratched on his head and back.  The sweltering temps have been wearing on all of us, but this guy has his own way of relief.   He quickly turned over his water trough and laid in the cool wet spot on the floor.  What can I say??  Such a small thing to make him happy! :)

My son has been raising cast off runt pigs for the last year.  These are the last two that he has remaining.  They are a lively twosome.  When the sheep's hay falls through into their stall, these guys scramble over and gobble it up.  How funny is that?  Especially since their whole stall is bedded with hay! ;)

Farmerboy purchased 5 turkeys as babies.  Only these two made it to maturity.  Big plans were made for Thanksgiving.  Of course, that was three years ago. ;)  It can safely be said that these guys will be looking at death from 'old age'.  LOL



Now for the newest addition to our small farm family... The Sheep.  This shy girl is named Ariel.  She is a might skiddish and ever aware of the activities surrounding her in the farmyard.  I like to think that she is an interested observer and overall 'deep' thinker! ;)

This handsome dude is Brick.  He is by far the smallest of the sheep and is absolutely adorable!  Brick is full of energy and rushes inside the building when chore time begins to ensure being the first in line for feed. LOL  

Lego is the most gentlest ewe of the small herd.   Truth be told, I think that she is Farmerboy's favorite.   As you can see by the photo, this matriarch thrives on attention.  

There is nothing more relaxing then spending time with the animals.  I will be adding some shepherding blogs to my blog roll as my research into raising and processing wool expands.  My son and I spent quite a bit of time at the county fairs admiring the breeds in the show pens.  Who knows... Maybe there is a shepherd in my pioneer's soul!  :) 

Elizabeth Town Fair and Tractor Pull

Is it time again for the Elizabeth Town Fair?  I am beginning to wonder if summer is getting shorter.  Hmmmm.   Maybe shorter in days, but definitely not short on heat! ;)

My morning was spent at work in the bliss of air conditioning with a church bake sale taking place in our lobby... Yay!   By noon, I arrived home with a newly purchased apple pie and a tray full of Reese Peanut Butter Cup cookies.  Lunch was eaten in a hurry, clothes were changed to summer attire, and we loaded up the Mini Z and U and made our way to the Elizabeth. 

If you are ever in Illinois at the time of Elizabeth's Fair, I highly recommend it.  There is a wonderful midway, a hometown parade, EXCELLENT food,  live band at night, and a great turn out for the annual truck and tractor pull on Saturday evening. 

Farmerboy pulled with his Minni Z in the 4500 and 5000 pound classes.  His front end rose up on the first pull but was nothing compared to the lift he got out of the U later... but that is another story!  End result... He placed 1st in both classes. :) 

Due to the time of night and the enormous need for me to invest in a better camera,  I failed to capture the night time pull of the Minneapolis Lp U.  Just let me say... The first pull ended with the front of the U rising up from the ground as it crept along.  Although this is not an unusual phenomenon, the fact that Farmerboy kept pulling made it rise to heights that these eyes have never seen!!  It happened so fast that my fear instincts didn't even have a chance to kick in.  I suppose that is a good thing in the 90 degree heat. ;)   Even if my camera had been cooperating,  I'm doubtful that a photo would have taken place!  The second pull went a lot smoother as he made his way steadily down the track.  (Much to the relief of  mom and maybe even to Farmerboy too!)   His last pull finished at 11:30 pm with Farmerboy taking home 1st in the 6500 and 7500 pound classes.  :)  Jubilation for the driver and pit crew!

I do not think that I have mentioned this in earlier posts, but a HUGE thanks goes out to Dave and the Crew at Iron Anchor for putting on a wonderful show.  They were still putting on a great pull when we left at Midnight.  How is that for entertainment??  They provide a great sled to pull and have the most friendliest bunch of workers that we have ever met.  Plus,  they do the best work in the hottest time of the year and can always be seen smiling.  Now that is dedication!

No Fuss Rhubarb Dessert

With the Fourth of July right around the corner, this Rhubarb Dump Dessert is super easy and quick to make and refrigerates well for preparing the day before your celebration.  ;)   Each ingredient is layered and mixes itself in the cooking process... Yay!  (It is always a plus for me to find a recipe that uses a main ingredient from our garden.) 

There are many variations of this dessert on the Net, and I know some are more concientious about sugar usage.  My personal preference is to use enough sugar to turn out a rhubarb gel similar to a sweet pie filling.   If wish your dessert to be a little more on the tart side, add an extra cup of rhubarb.  Once it is cool, it may not gel up as firm but will be just as tasty! :) 

The recipe is written with each step being followed by the picture.   The dish is 13 x 9 inches, and your oven should be preheated to 350 degrees.

5 Cups   Rhubarb (cut into chunks)

Spread out evenly on the bottom of a 13 x 9 pan.

3/4 Cup    White Sugar

Sprinkle over all of the rhubarb chunks.

3 oz. package of Strawberry Jello

Clip a corner of the package and sprinkle evenly over the other ingredients.

1 box    Yellow Cake Mix

Clip the corner of the bag and sprinkle evenly over contents of pan.  You can use your fingers to push unwanted piles or break up chunks! ;)

1 Cup    Water

Let the water drizzle from the measuring cup.   You can go back and forth and change from side to side.  This will dispense it fairly evenly over dry ingredients.

1/2 Cup    Butter (melted)

Melt butter in microwave safe dish.  Drizzle the butter as evenly as possible over the other ingredients.  As you can see from the photo, I have a few chunks in mine still.  It is a very forgiving recipe! ;)

The only thing left is to bake your dessert.  Your oven should be preheated to 350 degrees.  Which at The Hollow translates to "Turn the oven on about 2 minutes (or less) before sticking the pan in!"  LOL  Set your timer for 45 minutes and pull out a colorful yummy dessert! 

The longer the dish cools -  the firmer the filling will get.  My family can be found scooping it onto plates with a spoon while it is still in a semi warm and liquid state. ;)   For a chilly twist on a hot day, you can add a scoop of vanilla ice cream.   

After the dish gets to room temp,  put a wrap over the top and pop it into the fridge.  It tastes even better after being chilled!  

Enjoy! :)