10th Egg!

100 Egg Contest update. The chickens laid another egg. We're up to 10 now. And we've had another guesser.
Lisa - February 8th. 2010

"I laid the egg today," says Henrietta (Anni's chicken)

Today, Alex, Anni, and I went to the Boeing Air and Space Museum for a field trip. We say the new Amelia Earhart exhibit which was really interesting. I didn't realize she was such a fashion icon as well as a pilot.

We also saw the NASA exhibits and the historical aircraft. Anni really liked sitting in the cockpit of one of the jets. Alex was fascinated by all the switches on the older aircraft. I quite admired many of the leather flying boots. (I'm such a girl!)

The farm box came yesterday. I forgot the photo, but we had red chard, red onions, a sugar pumpkin, persimmons, pears, apples, plums, mushrooms, potatoes, avocado, tomato, collards, celery, and a cucumber. We made a delcious mushroom marsala pasta for dinner with a Sicilean lacinato kale sidedish - yum!

A new post at last

Well, we're back! I took a brief trip to Victoria, BC to relax and write. I now have a great start on a new story - yahoo! Stay tuned for photos!

We have a contest! Two of the three chickens are now laying. So far, we've had 9 beautiful brown organic eggs. Here's the contest....

Guess the date on which the chickens will have laid 100 eggs and you will win a fabulous prize (no, I'm not telling what!) So far, the following dates have been taken:
December 7th, 2009 - Farmer Anni
December 24th, 2009 - Farmer David
January 1st, 2010 - Farmer Alex
January 29th, 2010 - Farmer Ari
February 20th, 2010 - Famer Julie Ann

If you'd like to guess, send us a post or e-mail with your guess. In the event that a couple of folks want the same day, the date goes to the first one to reach us. We'll let you know who wins. :) Good luck!

In other news, we went to the second to last farmer's market on Saturday. It was cold! We stocked up on pasture fed meat, potatoes, cilantro, apples, onions, and winter squash. On Sunday, Alex and I joined our friend Lisa at the Seattle Home Show. We drooled over exquisite cabinetry, gorgeous tiles, and beautiful kitchen countertops.


And now as promised, pictures! These are from the gardens.

We're psuedo grandparents! (Or who laid this egg?)

We're back! The funny farm had a run with a nonfunny virus. First Alex, then Ari, then Anni, then David and finally me. Eck! Cough, cough, Achoo! But we're starting to feel better.
The girls (the clucky ones) are finally laying eggs! Here's the first. We've had another today. We have no idea which of the hens is laying, but we're glad at least one of them finally is. The eggs are brown, organic, and delicious.

Here's Ari hiding behing that giant pumpkin I lugged home from the farmer's market.

October weekend

Well, we had another busy weekend down on the funny farm.

Saturday was farmer's market day. We're really going to miss the market when it ends for the year on Halloween. This time we found 3 little pumpkins (to eat!), onions, green onions, leeks, spicy peppers, lettuce, cilantro, free ranged, ground beef, winter squashes, apples, blueberries, hazelnuts, and raspberry brandy sauce. After a quick coffee with our friend Lisa, Alex and I did a quick visit to the used bookshop. We found lots of great bargains. I found a cookbook on cooking squash and pumpkins, perfect for the season!

Back at the funny farm, Ari and Anni were busy handing tissues to each other. They both have colds! After lunch, some of us headed to the garden for a session of weeding and planting. Out of the beds came the dandelions (and straight to the chicken coop where the clucky girls enjoyed them immensely) and into the beds went the little brussel sprouts, cabbages, cauliflowers, broccoli, kale, collards, onions, and leeks. Then came the challenging bit. Due to our upcoming weather forecast for freezing temperature overnight Saturday and Sunday, we had to protect our baby plants. So it was off to the hardware stores for plastic piping and clear plastic sheeting. We built hoop house covers for 4 of our raised beds (the ones with the seedlings). The next challenge will come on our first fall windy day. We'll see if those clothespins hold!

Today, we had a cozy day. We cooked. We made crab crepes for brunch while contemplating this week's menu. For dinner tonight, we made a delicious Argentinian soup, using local ingredients. It featured some unusual additions such as pumpkin, winter squash, and peaches. It was awesome! We also made a big batch of golden mole' sauce using lots of the dried and fresh peppers from the farmers' markets and many tomatillos from our garden. It was spicy!

SeasonaliTea

Today, this funny farmer was pondering on the seasonalities of things. In fall, our tastes seem to change from the pastels and lights of summer to the warms of the autumnal palette. I've noticed this especially with regard to tea. We're big tea drinkers down on the funny farm; breakfast tea, iced tea, tea time, evening tea, and soothing teas. We drank lots of fruity teas during the summer. Some of our favorites were iced strawberry tea and mango black tea. In September, we turned to apple cider tea with a drop of caramel sauce, and our fav, for October, is the pumpkins spiced tea with a dab of brown sugar.

Our lovely weather is about to undergo a drastic change, according to the weather guy on TV. Nighttime lows will be hitting down in the thirties, which means it's almost the end of NW gardening season. We're going to try to extend it a bit by covering a bed or two with raised row covers. We're hoping to get a few onions, carrots and brassicas over the fall season. Wish us luck.

The summer garden season has been a wonderful one. The hits of the garden were the tomatoes, beans, tomatillos, peas, and (groan) zucchini. Our flops this year were the corn and strawberries. The corn needed much more sun and the spring was just too wet and cold for the strawberries. Lessons learned for next year:
1) Move the corn to the sunny spot.
2) Plant the lettuce where the tree shades in the full afternoon sun.
3) Compost, compost, compost!
4) Move the beans to the back beds so they can run the fence line.
5) Plants loads of marigolds.
and finally
6) Only 1 zucchini plant!

Fall has retreated

Our weather has been absolutely gorgeous the last few days. The front garden is in false spring with the roses, pansies, and assorted other plants all reblooming! We picked a whole bouquet of pink and red roses yesterday. They smell wonderful.

The pea plants and baby spinach are doing well in the garden. The green beans and tomatillos are still producing at an outstanding rate. Thank goodness the zucchini had finally slowed down. We still have 20 on the kitchen counter! Our pumpkins are in full bloom with two little pumpkins on the vine. Today, we cleared weeds and nonproducing plants (a few spent beans, tomatoes, and squash) to make room for seedlings that will need to be set out by the weekend. We also fertilized all the currently producing plants and herbs with an organic fertilizer and some compost from the worm bin.

Alex is finally getting over his bronchitis, but now Anni has a cold! Pass the tissues!

We had a lovely fall lunch today of potato leek soup with potatoes and leeks from the farmers market, milk from our local dairy farm, and chives from the garden. It was delish! For dinner, we had some porkchops basted in a wonderful apple chipotle sauce from the good folks at Aldrich Farms. It gave them a great sweet spicy tang.

And I'm still making it to the gym, 4 days in a row! Drum roll please...So far, I have 9 miles running, 9 miles cycling, 12 miles elipsing, and 30,000 lbs of weight lifted on the weight machines. Phew!

Fall Fun and Buns of Aluminum

This weekend the funny farmers had lots of fun. On Saturday, we went to Full Circle Farm's annual Hog and Grog celebration at the farm. It was terrific, a potluck to beat all potlucks, with the farm folks providing BBQ pork and the brews. There were hayrides, live music, and plenty of muddy fields to explore! The weather this year was beautiful (unlike last year when it poured bucket loads!). Full Circle is the provider of our beautiful CSA boxes.

We also went to the Saturday farmer's market. We saw a huge and lovely pumpkin for only $4. "I'll take it," I said, not thinking of how I was going to get it all the way back to my prius in the parking garage. It weighed a bleepin' ton! I think my arms are both 6 inches longer now.

Also at the market, we found local tuna, peach syrup (perfect for wholewheat pancakes), apples, Asian pears, onions, delicata squash, a beautiful orange squash that looks like a little turban (but I don't know the name), ground cherries, cucumber, potatoes, and a huge bouquet of fall flowers in a real pumpkin vase.

On Sunday, Ari and I went to a writing session at the library with many of our fellow writers. It great to just sit and write. I added to three of my stories! Woohoo! We also weeded the garden and planted all the spinach seedlings to the garden.

I decided it was time for this funny farmer to start working out again. After all, the holiday baking season is nearly apon us. I made it to the gym yesterday and today. So far, I have 5 miles running, 6 miles on the ellipse, 3 miles on the cardiobike, and 15,000 lbs lifted on the weight machines. I hope I can move tomorrow.

Fall Arriveth!

Well, we know fall has finally fallen. We turned on the heat last night. And today we went sock shopping. Ari and Anni also needed new shoes, rainproof. Though it's cool, there's still a fair amount of sun for which my veggies are very grateful.

The future farmers are participating in the International Peace Project curriculum, and to that end..

Does anyone know why we had a dinner of BBQ Pork sandwhiches and sweet potato fries yesterday and Aloo Gobi (using potatoes from our garden and a cauliflower from the farm box) and chicken tomato (garden, of course) curry tonight?

Yesterday, was Jimmie Carter's birthday. We learned about his work, post presidency, with Habitat for Humanity and international human rights. And today would have been the birthday of Gandi. We learned about his struggle to bring independence and human rights improvements to India. Coming up later this month is the Children's Day of International Peace and Understanding.