You Cannot Reap, If You Do Not Sow

You cannot reap if you do not sow. Autumn in Georgia. Harvest time. Thanksgiving. So thankful for the life we have, the earth, the river, the warm sun, the pine trees, and blue skies as far as the eye can see. Peace, love, laughter and contentment. There is nothing better that we can reap while we're here on this planet.

Desperately Seeking Rain

Remember the post about Childhood Creeks? Go check it out to remind yourselves of the creek filled to capacity with flowing waters that our son enjoyed playing and splashing in. Go on, look!

Now this is what that very same creek looks like right now:

Drought is taking its toll all over the US. We haven't had rain since early October. The North Carolina and the north Georgia mountains have more than 15,000 acres in flames. We are praying for those people, homes, animals, even the trees. Some hundred+ years of vegetation burned to ash. I pray for the lives and safety of the firefighters attempting to battle these blazes.

Staring at the dry, empty creekbed brought to mind times in my life in which I experienced a drought. No maybe not a personal lack of rain, but a dry spell of life.

Life is meant to be lived abundantly with great relish, celebration, and thanksgiving. It's so easy to live so fast, in such a rush and give so much of ourselves away to work / career, education, church, organizations, friends, family, even to our own children that we find that we have nothing left for ourselves. Where did that other me go? You know the fun, spirited, creative girl with dreams of grandeur and a wild side?

We get so busy with the routine, to–do list, and errands and what we think we should be doing, that we can easily lose track of those little things that bring fulfillment to our lives. Sometimes we must make the time to nurture our inner child, our internal dreamer, and remember all those things that ignite our spirit and soul. 

What was the name of your imaginary friend as a child? When was the last time you lost hours of time doing something you enjoy? When is the last time you played? When is the last time you laughed so hard you fell out of your chair?

Don't let the world dictate what's important to you. Avoid the traps that throw you off track or make you forget those old dreams. It’s difficult to put these things into action. If you aren't intentional about doing these things for yourself, no one else is going to remind you. The kids aren't going to say "hey mom, take some time off of doing all those fantastic things for me...you go on and do something nice for yourself." Nope they will not say that (ever).

Purposefully set aside some time for yourself. Go on a picnic, run wild with your dogs, go find secret gardens or mysterious caves in your backyard, build a treehouse, climb a tree, seek solitude among rocks and trees in a wilderness or state park, go camping, wish on a star, eat cake, watch the leaves glisten in the sunlight, read in your favorite spot, get to know yourself, revive your inner dreams, wishes, and childhood ambitions. Remember who you were, who you wanted to be, and bring that back into who you are and have become. Harness the dreams you may have set aside or forgotten to inspire a life less busy, a life less empty, a life less dry. 

Invest in yourself to find your life's balance. The rains will fall again on the earth, in the mountains, into the creek just like your cup of life can be refilled with love, laughter, light and harmony. We can't be our best to those little kids, bosses, spouses, friends, PTA...unless we balance our lives to live with abundance and joy and remember the wishes and dreams of our authentic selves.

I'm thankful for the balance, the peace, the contentment in my life and the people in it who inspire me to be the best me I can be and that includes knowing who I am, what I need, and what my life means in my terms so that I can be the best in all my roles. Happy Thanksgiving! 

Cheers,

Ramsey

Like this one? Here's some other posts I think you might enjoy too:

• Childhood Creeks (yeah, read it again! It's good!) 😊
• Slow Pace of Life
• Teamwork
• Farm Heart
• Take Time to Smell the Basil

October Popsicles

I realize it's autumn and that most of the civilized world has broken out their furry boots, sweaters, and scarves to rush out for pumpkin spice coffees, pumpkin patching, and romantic walks through a falling rainbow of leaves. Meanwhile, in south Georgia, there are some brown leaves falling off the trees and I do smell a hint of campfire in the air. AND it's a crisp 90 to 100 degrees outside during the day! Too hot for lattê, too chilly for the pool. What's a girl to do? Make popsicles of course! I recommend that you do try this at home!

BANANA POPSICLES

yield: 6 to 8 popsicles

prep time: 5 minutes

total time: 5 hours

Banana Popsicles recipe made with fresh bananas and only four ingredients!

INGREDIENTS:

1½ cups milk
2 large ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 cup)
¼ cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

1. Place all of the ingredients in a blender and puree on medium speed until completely smooth.

2. Divide the mixture evenly between popsicle molds and insert popsicle sticks. Freeze for 4 to 5 hours before serving.

Check out all the recipes on this blog here!

Storms & Rainbows

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” ~ Genesis 1:1

“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” ~ Psalm 19:1

“This is what God the Lord says - he who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to itspeoplee, and life to those who walk on it.".” ~ Isaiah 42:5

“By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.” ~ Hebrews 11:3

"Can you raise your voice to the clouds and cover yourself with a flood of water? Do you send the lightning bolts on their way? Do they report to you, "Here we are"? Who endowed the heart with wisdom or gave understanding to the mind? Who has the wisdom to count the clouds? Who can tip over the water jars of the heavens when the dust becomes hard and the clods of the earth stick together? ~ Job 38:34-38

All Photos Copyright R.Penegar. Taken at Ramsey Farms. June 30, 2016.

Life is short. Enjoy every moment. Think about what's truly important! We need to work to earn a living, but do we need to do so at the expense of seeing our kids grow up? Is rushing around to run errands or taxi the kids to extracurricular activities more important than sitting down to dinner at home as a family? Is the big house as important as the people who live in it? Is what's on TV tonight more important to you than getting to know what's in your spouse's heart and mind? Is what's happening on your phone more important than what's going on around you - in real life? Take the time to talk with an old friend, read a book with your child, eat dinner with your family, watch the sun set, go fishing, play frisbee, swing, look for rainbows, dance in the rain, splash in a creek, cartwheel through the fields...breathe fresh air, laugh out loud, dance like no one is watching. Stop being so busy and start looking for life's little miracles in the ordinary. Our lives are ordinary and yet magical! Live it to the fullest, enjoy the moments of ordinary. We are not promised tomorrow or even later today. 

Cheers, Ramsey

~R.I.P. Lauren 1977-2016~

Canning

Happy Summer Solstice! Today is the first official day of summer, though we had 80 degree days in January and it's been well over 100 many days (110 to 112 degrees is not out of the ordinary here). 

Our family spent the weekend celebrating Father's Day for Farmer Chris. He's been busy building "The Big Chicken Coop" so our gals can move in before they really outgrow their little coop. We all hope that tonight can be the big ribbon cutting and move in ceremony! :) 

Farmer Chris in the coop he's building. Photo May 28, 2016

 The garden has still kept us busy (though Farmer Chris said no more big projects during garden season). We've been picking and eating and selling and giving away a TON of potatoes, squash, and cucumbers. We still have a good deal of zucchini, carrots, lots of onions, some green beans left and hopefully some more produce on the way! 

Dill

I put up squash pickles, squash relish, and dill pickles this weekend! I was excited to use my homegrown dill this time. It is so nice to stock the pantry for "fresh" homegrown goodness later this winter.

My next canning project is potatoes. I'm

80 lbs of tators dug from our garden

dreading the fact that I'll have to wash and PEEL 20 pounds of potatoes so I've been putting that off. Luckily you can put off potatoes when you've got summer squash as those tators ought to last a few months. 

One thing to say about staying busy from sun up to past sun down...you'll sleep soundly! Get outside & play!

Garlic! The First Glimpse of Our 2016 Garden

Chief Farmhand Chris planted 50 cloves of garlic on December 28, 2015


By January 8, 2016, the garlic had sprouted!


January 14 shows the garlic taller and fuller. We've been trimming the garlic scapes (the green stem) to use in cooking. They're like a scallion only more garlicky than onion flavored, yet a very mild, fresh garlic flavor to use in salad dressings, sprinkle on salads, toss into a casserole or soup, roast with other herbs on pork or chicken. Plus by trimming the stem, it allows the garlic plant to focus on the bulb production rather than the stem.

Hoping for a good crop of 50 heads of garlic later this year! Garlic harvest generally is late August to November. I cure the bulbs so they store nicely for use for the whole next year!

Nothin' tastes finer than somethin' you grew yourself! 

Spring is in 48 days! What are you doing in preparation? How do you celebrate Spring? It's in the 70's today outside, so that's how I'm enjoying the anticipation of my favorite season!

Late Summer at Ramsey Farms

The wild muscadine vines are the first to show signs of cooler weather. When the fruit is gone, the grape leaves begin to slowly fade to yellow. The majestic oaks are next. In the garden, things are still going fairly strong. There is yellow squash, zucchini, cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes still growing. The green beans just started producing and we've harvested one small turnip though the turnip bed is full of dark leafy greens, the beet seedlings up are, and the lettuce is popping up.

Turkey and deer are on the move. You can hear them in the woods. I listen to turkey hens while I hang clothes on the line. A family of deer gallops across the front field from one wood to another. I need to build a tree stand so I can watch and photograph the wildlife! 

In mid-September Chief Farmhand, Chris applied fish emulsion to the growing plants. The curcurbits (squash, zucchini, cukes) showed indications of a nutrient deficiency, likely nitrogen, which fish emulsion (think fish compost tea) is full of and can green up plants. It's like a vitamin for your plants. That stinks like the Dead Sea. The plants really did green up and come alive after the emulsion. The smell only lasted a couple of days at most. We are going to be making our own fish emulsion in the future with a little help from our river.

We also purchased our winter cover crop seed: crimson clover. This will look gorgeous this winter. Then in spring, the crimson clover will be tilled into the soil which will enrich the soil with nitrogen and other trace minerals to continue supporting growth next year. The land we now use as our garden lay fallow for many years and our sandy soil doesn't hold nitrogen the way heavier more clay-like soil does.

We will continue to supplement the soil by incorporating compost, manure, cover crops like the crimson clover, fish emulsion, wood ash, and Epsom salt (magnesium) over the years to boost the health and vitality of the soil over time in order to produce a higher yield and better quality produce. The idea is to avoid chemical fertilizers, insecticides and other potentially harmful substances on our garden. By planting beneficial plants, we can entice the right kinds of insects to come into our garden to help with pollination and ridding us of harmful insects.
On another note, the oven died! We "roughed it" for about two weeks...and then...una cuisenéire arrived! My new oven is so nice! Stainless with a smooth ceramic glass top (not the nasty old timely dirty, can't-keep-it-clean coils) and it is 5.9 cubic feet of cooking space that steams itself clean inside, roasts, bakes, convections, broils, boils and warms. There are five burners! Five! I get really excited about this kind of thing. I hated having to buy an oven unexpectedly, but that's what life and emergency household savings funds are for, right?! Besides, who wouldn't want their very own cuisenéire?! (The box had the word "cuisinéire" on it, I decided that sounds so much better than "oven", right?! So henceforth the oven at Ramsey Farms is christened Cuisenéire.)

We have tested the cuisinéire several times including a batch of my daughter's pumpkin muffins just yesterday using our homegrown pumpkin of course. They were delicious and the oven performs perfectly! I am so ready to attempt a new pie crust recipe and dive into a warm buttery pumpkin pie! The cuisinéire has a proof setting, too, so today I plan on making farm bread to further test-out the new oven and all its fun features.

"There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle." ~ Albert Einstein

 What's the last thing you got really excited over? When is the last time you lost yourself in an activity you enjoy? Have you stood still and watched the sun set or rise in the past week?

make it your best,

Ramsey

Summer at Ramsey Farms

The late summer seeds are all in the ground - the squash, zucchini, cucumbers, & the green bean plants have all sprouted. Several zucchini have blossoms, so there will be zucchini on the table and at the farmer's market in a couple weeks!

We picked over 5 gallons of muscadines yesterday and have started the juicing process to make jelly! Or vinegars or wines. Who's ready for a Ramsey Farms Red? Can you imagine rows and rows of grape vines on those fields? We can.

The roma tomato plants remind me of Christmas with their various shades of red, orange, yellow and green raindrop shapes visible from the window by my desk. We've been canning tomatoes, making ketchups, barbeque and pasta sauces and eating lots of fresh tomatoes and bruschetta! There is nothing like opening a jar of homegrown tomatoes or sauce in December, the aroma will take you right back to summer and the taste?! Nothing like it!

The "solar clothes dryer" is installed! Okay, it is a clothesline but there is something exciting and peaceful about clothes on the line on a warm (hot) summer day. Sun drying makes them feel so fresh and clean. In the 110° afternoon heat, the clothes dry faster out there and who knows maybe the electric bill will shrink? It's a great way to be outdoors in the sunshine getting a little fresh air, exercise and solitude.

Now Chief Farmhand Chris is starting the chicken coop. Can't wait to have fresh eggs! 

Well, I'm off to do a little dirt road running. Y'all make the most of your day! And while you're at it, ponder this: You don't know as much as you think you know, but you are more capable than you think you are. (You can quote me on that one!) :) 

~Ramsey

https://www.facebook.com/RamseyFarmsGeorgia

This post ranked #4 in our most-read posts of 2015!

Hot Days in the Country

This week's weather forecast...

Summer in the south is H-O-T HOT! The forecast may "say" 90s but I have seen the mercury on my outdoor thermometers top out at 120 degrees in the sun on the western-facing porch in the afternoon. And it's not a dry heat, as they say out west. Naaaaaw, this is a humid, sweaty, subtropical heat that will melt plastic and anything else you leave outside. Maybe even your face! It's the kind of sultry heat creeks, ponds, and swimming pools were invented for!

This is south Georgia. Spring was over with in March! I've had flip flop tan lines on my feet for a quarter of year already! The pool's been open for a month! There have already been sunburn incidents around here! We are eating fresh wild blackberries right off the vines! Summer starts in April and ends on October 1 here.

We get outdoors and work or play during the cooler morning hours (it's absolutely gorgeous out there at 6:30 in the morning!) and have inside siesta time from 12 to 3. Just a time to literally chill out and take a break from the heat. It may be a good time to start dinner or do some indoor chores or maybe take a little snooze in the good ol' AC. Farmhand Chris usually gets back to his farm work about 5 o'clock and works until dark. See the sunrise and watch it set and work so hard in between that you sleep like a rock...that's a good way to live a life. 

This Week at Ramsey Farms

Monday, October 27 - Sunday, November 2, 2014

Gina, Myself, Katie, & Stephanie

It sure was nice to have “The Girls” from North Carolina down last weekend to celebrate my birthday. I think I miss them even more now that I got to see their faces, laugh and talk in person, share some time together…just not enough time! I can’t wait to have them back down here for another, maybe longer visit really soon. I got a bunch of great phone calls from my mom, sister, family, friends, and neighbors. My wonderful neighbors here made me a delicious cake with caramel and pecans that has been immensely enjoyed by everybody (when I let them have some)! The whole church even sung happy birthday to me in church two Sundays in a row! 

Our week hit a tough patch when on Wednesday morning we experienced our first tragedy here on the farm. Our dog George (full name Georgia) was hit by a car and killed instantly after the kids had left for school. Luckily he did not suffer. Chris carried the dog back up to the house and buried him in a backyard grave, complete with a cross by the time the sun rose over the eastern skyline. His pal, companion, and (we think) mother, Carolina has been sad and lethargic all week. She looked for him to come up the driveway for two days, she sniffs for him, cries for him, it’s obviously grief. The whole household here is shaken and missing dear George. He was an instant part of the farm family and like Carolina, seemed to belong here. “We didn’t know you long, but we loved you much dear George. Rest in peace, buddy.”

We’ve really seen autumn this week as leaves are finally beginning to change – the wild muscadines vines have bright yellow leaves against the still green oaks, the magnolia trees have bright red berries and some orange mottled leaves, some of the maples are turning yellow, and way in the tips of the tallest oaks I may see some reds. The weather is still bright, sunny, and dry but our daytime high temperatures have taken a little nose dive from an average of 82°F to an average of 76°F, Saturday’s high barely even hit 60° and our low Sunday morning was a frosty 36°. 

Two mornings of 30 degrees took out our cucumber and squash plants as we did not take precautions since it was so late in their growing season anyway. The remainder of our garden is doing well and will do fine in these chilly temperatures. If the forecast seems likely for a 28° plunge I will need to protect our beets, carrots, and lettuces by covering the rows with light airy fabric (groovy 1970s large bedsheets actually!) And if it dares to drop below 25/26°F then we have to take extra precaution for the onions and radishes. For the garlic, 21° is my magic number at which to add extra insulation to those root crops.  Chief farmhand Chris is setting up poles to hold the row covers near the plants without touching them and we will mulch in the garden to keep our fall investment growing. Hopefully. (Remember you can see the latest garden pics here.)

If all this cool weather has you in the mood for some good autumn food, here is a few links you will like!

• Rustic Farm Bread
• Brown Sugar Chili
• Ramsey Farms Hot Apple Cider! (this one will be "live" later this week) 

This week was Homecoming week and our county school system’s 100^th anniversary. The kids had fun dressing up for each day’s theme. Hat day, decade day (1960s), character day, red shirt day, camo day, I can’t remember them all as both schools had something different every day. The week culminated to a homecoming parade and the big football game Friday!

We did hit the parade then headed home for dinner and trick-or-treating! We were with a group of 15-20 kids in three pick-ups. Our fearless leader, my neighbor Ms. Patty had a pre-arranged list of house to visit and with homes sometimes a few miles from one another and country driveways that meander like a wild river for a half-mile. It was an awesome fun night – most of the houses were decorated in a fun Halloween theme and several of the houses gave out gift bags that may be like what you’d get at The Oscar’s! It was a fun way to do Halloween in a place with no neighborhoods and the kids had more candy and treats than I bet they’ve ever gotten.

“If there is to be any peace or reason, we have to create it in our own hearts and homes.” 

~From A Swiftly Tilting Planet by Madeline L’Engle

This Week at Ramsey Farms

This Week October 6 - October 20, 2014

So you already know that time flies when you’re having fun! I must be having lots of fun because the days just seem to roll on by in one big chunk of time! Sometimes there are just too many things going on to try to write a blog post. By the way, I am excited to tell you all that this simple, little blog has had more than 2,100 visits since I launched it last year! YAY – thank you for dropping in, please be sure to “follow” us, post comments and questions, and share your ways of finding the joy in the simple life with us!

We have had some gorgeous, warm, sunshine so far this October! Based on the comments all over Facebook, it may be looking like autumn in some more northern locations (including North Carolina) but here in the southeastern coastal plains of Georgia, nary a leaf has turned.  Will they change? I have no idea! The weather has vacillated between summer and fall these last weeks. It’s still can hit 100° in the sun but the average high has been 82° with lows around 60°.

Chief Farmhand Chris finally got his Z-mower and has spent many hours mowing our fields and yard spaces. His next project is a fire pit for entertaining, cooking, and simply enjoying! Yummmm, I am ready to roast marshmallows and sing campfire songs! ;) He reseeded lettuce and we have tons of baby radishes popping up! Check out the garden pics here.

Getting up early has its perks. We would not have gotten to see the lunar eclipse earlier this month if we weren’t outside before 6:30 in the morning! It was the October full moon and a “blood moon” that made it appear red. I love checking out the sky every morning, it seems to be so much more visible than we lived in the city with a million twinkling stars in the big Georgia sky. No buildings, city lights, or smog to block the view. It takes my breath away almost every single morning! I hope I never get used to it!

I am so happy that we visited a local farmer’s market where we were able to purchase locally grown potatoes, tomatoes, green beans, and fresh local eggs! The woman I bought the eggs from has invited us to check out her farm to get ideas and buy some laying hens. She seems like she’ll be a great resource to us in the coming months as I am very anxious to get started on the poultry side of our farming adventure.

Last week, Chris spotted something moving across the back field. It took me a moment to see what he saw as he fled outside gun in hand. A 3-foot diamond back rattlesnake was moving rapidly through the fresh-cut grass beyond our fence. He put a couple 22s in it and nearly decapitated it with his shovel and it was still moving! I’m so glad no one was outside in the field at that time! Just a not-so-gentle reminder that we live among the wild and we must be careful. I can handle some chiggers or ants, but I’d much prefer to avoid the bite of any snake, much less a venomous rattler. Speaking of chiggers and ants, did you miss my post on DIY soothing anti-itch cream? It is wonderful - I dare ya to try it!

The whole household had a great time Saturday helping out at our community’s rescue squad / fire station’s biannual fundraiser. We got to help serve up BBQ chicken, homemade potato salad, green beans, bread, dessert, and tea while meeting a slew of neighbors. My son even got to do the honors of drawing the winning name for a 30-0-6 shotgun! He didn’t choose any of our names but oh well! It’s all for a good cause.

I had a plethora of local, farm-fresh tomatoes that a neighbor had given to us. I had never canned tomatoes but I was able to put up 3 quarts this weekend thanks to the canner from Chris’ grandmother and some handy internet instructions! I have a new, easy rustic bread recipe to share with you all too. There are days I just don’t feel like kneading dough, so I’ve been searching and testing no-knead bread recipes and think I found a winner!  On the subject of food, how often do you visit the grocery store? I am looking forward to discussing “once-a-month grocery shopping” with you all in a future blog post!

Many times our life’s greatest desires are fulfilled in unexpected ways! –Ramsey Penegar

This Week at Ramsey Farms

For the Week Ending Sunday, September 28, 2014 - 

The weather this past week has been so different from the southeast Georgian summer heat and sun! I ain’t seen the sun shine in three damn days, to quote Cheryl Crowe. It’s been overcast, cloudy, rainy, stormy, and fairly cool! It’s perfect weather for our mushroom crop. Just kidding, we don’t have a mushroom crop but those little fun-guys (get it?!) are popping up all over the yard – like a magic little Smurf village built overnight! We’ve gotten nearly six inches of rain this month – almost double the “normal” September rainfall.

Our typical 90-100+++ degree days of Georgia summer have faded into daytime high temperatures ranging from 65 to 88 this past week. It’s been so refreshing outside watching the stars (when it isn’t raining) with cools in the low to mid 60s. Sadly though, it does seems pool season has come to an end!

Last Tuesday morning while washing dishes, I looked up and out the kitchen window to see two animals walking out of the woods soaked by the two-day rain storm. I asked Chief Farmhand Chris if he had special ordered any new friends – I swear these two dogs were just what we said we wanted – a black lab and a German shepherd blend. He went to investigate the visitors who seemed in healthy condition despite being soaked and very thin. The two canines appeared to be friendly enough and we cautiously introduced ourselves.

They are actually very ferocious dogs!

Carolina and Georgia have elected to stay here at Ramsey Farms as our security/farm dogs! When they stayed 24-hours, we then had to feed them. Chief Farmhand, Chris started building them a dog house after the 2^nd night. He hopes to finish the house early this week if the rain lets up.

This dog house construction curtailed the chicken coop development and I am so anxious to get my own birds – one of the very reasons I wanted to leave the suburbs and have a large parcel of land in the country of my very own! So for now I’m just reading books on chicken raising and pursuing the Farm Bulletin sales ads for poultry!

This week a quote came to mind (I think of you, Alysha T. when I read this quote). I have always been a big fan of the public library (or any private library for that matter)! Reading is a fundamental skill, passion, hobby, learning method, and escape mechanism. I've visited my new local library three or four times since we moved here eight weeks ago! We don't have a TV in our living room and our satellite internet can be sporadic, entertainment is made the old-fashioned way round here. Conversation, games, hobbies, and reading! I find myself wondering what my favorite characters are up to while I'm not reading or when the book is finished, I wish I could ask the author or characters questions about their lives and the story! Stretch your mind and read something interesting to you tonight! 

"Because for some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth." - Anne Lamott

A few great books I've recently enjoyed:

• Devil Bones by Kathy Reichs (I cannot wait to read more of her work! A forensic pathologist in North Carolina and Canada, she is the role model for and the executive producer of the forensic show, Bones.)
• A Walk on the Beach by Joan Anderson - a non-fiction book about life
• Circle of Quiet by Madeline L'Engle
• Your Money Map by Larry Burkett
• 116 Lighthouse Cove by Debbie Macomber

Be on the lookout, loyal blog readers! J I am going to start posting a “Recipe of the Week” that is QUICK & EASY and tested out here at our house! Maybe you’ll find a fast and easy meal to make for your family or find ways to simply replace the processed foods (canned and boxed goods) from your own recipes or just find a fun, new treat to share with your friends!

Also, don't forget to check out the Georgia garden pics!

This Week at Ramsey Farms

For the week ending September 21, 2014 ~ 

Well I certainly did not intend to skip the last weekly update…but time flies when you’re having fun and last week just slipped quickly away from me. I do want to remind you that you can “follow” my blog by clicking on the “Follow” button on the right and to brag that this little blog has received more than 2,000 visits since its creation last November! You are also encouraged to leave positive comments and questions and have space for this following each post.

Today is the Autumn Equinox and tomorrow will be the first full day of fall here in the northern hemisphere of our globe. For me, autumn brings to mind colorful and falling leaves, crisp air, sharp sunlight, chili, cooler air, warmer clothing, hikes, boots, football, and a closing down for the winter hibernation. I love fall for the feeling of change, but cringe at the thought of winter. Then I remember that without winter we won’t have that wonderful rebirth of spring!

From death comes life; out of the ruins, beauty will grow.

It’s remained quite hot here in southeast Georgia with afternoon highs hitting or surpassing the 100 mark daily. We’ve had some wondrous heat lightening and even a better-than-fourth-of-July electrical storm thanks to this heat! Though our official highs have actually dropped to the low 90s most days this past week, yesterday morning we dipped to 60 degrees just before the sun rose and heated the land. Our daily half-mile trek to and from the bus stop was crisp and refreshing, albeit a tad chilly this morning. This week the forecast shows our high temperatures to stay in the mid to high 80s! What a change that will be.

Since we’ve moved and started a brand new garden, I have created a brand new garden photo album. You can check out pics of our current garden HERE and still can view the photo gallery of our 2014 NC garden right HERE. Chief Farmhand, Chris has worked hard in the garden to get things planted. So far the cucumbers, squash, and zucchini are the only things that are doing well. It’s either far too hot in our sunny planting area or the ants are carrying off / eating our seeds. I have parsley, chamomile, dill, and cilantro started inside and all have sprouted!

Chief Farmhand, Chris finished installing the compost walls last week. It was really tough to toss things like egg shells and coffee grounds in the trashcan, so I am happy we’re back to composting! We look forward to some nice, rich, organic matter to incorporate into our garden soil for the spring planting. He’s planning out the chicken coop and run next. We are so ready to have our own hens and fresh eggs! I can barely wait. 

We checked out a livestock auction this past weekend and saw a huge variety of chickens (roosters and hens), quail, turkeys, a peacock, rabbits, pigs, cows, goats, and sheep. Some roosters got loose and headed straight for us! My five year old was upset that he didn’t get to catch them! (My teenager was just glad she wore closed-toe shoes.) Our Chief Farmhand designed his animal barn on paper that very night.

It’s all a big learning experiment…so stay tuned to see what’s next!

This Week at Ramsey Farms

Monday, September 1, 2014-

The last couple of weeks have truly gotten away from me. I have stayed really busy with my work gaining more than 16 new career strategy clients in about as many days. Thank God for blessing me with ample work! It just gives me less time and energy to write blogs! J

It’s really nice to all walk the quarter-mile to the end of our driveway each morning before the sun comes out to meet the school bus. It’s a nice way to start the day: a brisk walk in the dawn air, seeing the moon and some planets and stars while the sun rises in the east, night time paw prints in the sand, coffee and groggy conversation with your kids.

I like to take a few extra moments outside to watch the pink and orange glow come up over the trees and breathe deeply the fresh morning air, maybe catch sight of an owl or other nocturnal animal returning home for the morning. Then I head inside to my office to start the work day by seven. Many days I’m done in time to enjoy some free time before the kids get home, but there are plenty of days when I’m working until dinner or beyond to meet deadlines. I love those days I can take a solo swim, go fishing, take a little walk to the creek or in the woods, or just sit and take in the natural beauty surrounding me in the afternoon!

The heat has been amazing these past weeks. Daily highs topping 100° and the heat indices exceeding 106°. The cheap $1 thermometer I have on my front office window that gets full afternoon and evening sun often reaches its max level of 120° most every afternoon. The official temp has hit 95 or higher ten out of the last fourteen days. We are blessed with a nice, well-insulated house with great air conditioning as well as that pool! A quick jump into the pool after walking up from the bus stop in the late afternoons is a decadent treat!

106°

We got about 2.75 inches of rain yesterday along with lots of thunder and lightning and even some good quarter-size hail! During a lull in the storm at dinnertime, Chris said, “look! What is that?” We all got up to the windows and low and behold – a family of at least 20 turkeys came waddling out of the woods and up the hill. “Get your gun. I’ll get my camera!” I told Chris in jest. (It is not turkey season until spring.)

Chris has worked hard to get our fall garden in and I hope the heat doesn’t just kill it all. So far he planted bush beans, cucumbers, dill, beefsteak and roma tomatoes, green onions, borage, crookneck yellow squash, and zucchini. The beans came up quickly but also very quickly dried up and died. (He replanted cukes in their spot). The first batch of cucumbers planted are up and seem to be doing very well despite the heat and lack of rain; though Chris does water most every night and morning.

On Labor Day, Chief Farmhand Chris spent the afternoon tilling a 20x20 planting zone and one 3-foot wide bed that is 26’ long. During the month of September, we hope to plant the following seeds: arugula, beets, broccoli, carrots, garlic, kale, leek, lettuce & mesclun mix, radishes, spinach, and maybe even Brussel sprouts. I also intend to get some herbs in the mix and start a herb garden for the perennial herbs. This month I hope to plant my chamomile, cilantro, parsley, and more dill & borage if those don’t pop up in the primary garden. My next door neighbors gave me some fresh basil over three weeks ago that has sprouted roots in the vase on my kitchen island!

Inside, I have the majority of the house in order, organized, and unpacked. I have four boxes of photos that I will have to go through eventually and not found the need to open four boxes marked “china cabinet / wine glasses / kitchen” in the month we’ve been here. (I love moving to get rid of the things we truly don’t use!) Those boxes will go into the shed for the next six to 12 months. If I haven’t needed those things before then, I will sell or give away the contents of those boxes! (Please see me if you need wine glasses. Please.)  I have not hung any photos, art, or whatnots on the walls and that will be a project for September.

We still bake all our bread and baked goods from scratch by hand and prepare healthy meals with items

that do not come from cans or boxes. It’s harder to do without our garden-fresh produce or even a local farmer’s market. My daughter is an excellent pastry chef baking us tasty brownies, peanut butter cookies, and other sweets! Farmhand Chris has learned how to bake bread, too. We all pitch in in the kitchen, but I get the fun of planning out our meals and finding (or creating) recipes. We made a homemade garlic-mozzarella cream sauce for pasta that we served with homemade basil-garlic bread; pancakes from scratch served with hand-shredded hashbrowns and handmade cinnamon syrup; remarkable potato soup and a black-bean vegetable soup served with fresh homemade bread. Some of the best things out of my kitchen are things we threw together at the last minute or combined from several recipes and ingredient shuffling!

The mailbox is a source of mystery, fun, excitement, and intrigue! We’ve received so many cards, letters, and packages (okay only two packages to date) from our friends and mailed so many letters and postcards that this old-fashioned method of communication has become something fun for us. My son will be five in just five days and daily he checks the mailbox to see if anything new has been sent to him! For those of you who know us well enough to know our mailing address – please take a  moment to write us a letter! We’d love to hear from you. I encourage us all to get back to letter writing as an art form and way to communicate. Don’t allow modern technology like texting, social media, email, and the phone let this form die. Write a letter to your mama, your best friend, a pal living in another state or another country – anybody!

I would never suggest that anyone try to live their lives according to my definitions, but I believe in this busy world of ours it’s easy to lose track of the small things that can bring simple pleasure into our lives. So here is my suggestion of stuff you ought to give a try to this week:

• Watch the sun rise or set
• Take a brisk, quiet morning walk (no earbuds)
• Jump in the pool
• Try a new recipe
• Write a letter
• Find ways just to simply be good to yourself & others

God's Creation in All It's Splendor! Take Time to Enjoy This Day, We are Given so Few!