Setting our Intentions

As the 2021 gardening season gets underway - we ordered our seeds! - we have decided to go a somewhat different direction this year.  We decided last year that it would be the "year of the farm" for us.  We went big in 2020 with an expanded CSA program, meat chickens and ducks, pigs, milk goats, new lambs, new layer hens, and even a turkey (good old Pecky Becky).  It was epic!

As a change of pace, this year we are planning to spend much more of our spring and summer swimming, hiking, and cottaging.  We are not "scaling back" the farm but we are not "ramping up" either.  We will still be selling egg plans and planting a garden (think kitchen garden instead of market garden) but we will not be breeding any animals or raising any new farmyard babies.  We will also be taking a break from offering a CSA program in 2021.  We will focus on growing less time intensive crops like potatoes, garlic and squash instead of the variety needed for weekly vegetable baskets.

We will also be drying up Martha and Mellie to give our lovely goats a rest from milk production and me a rest from milking duty.  This part is the saddest for me.  I love the daily milking ritual with my beautiful girls but, while they are amazingly easy for me to milk, they cause a ruckus for anyone else who tries to milk them.  This is stressful for me when I am away and for our farm sitters who are tasked with caring for them.  After a year and a half of producing our own goat milk right here on the farm, the end is near.  Tomorrow we will move from milking twice daily to once, then to every second day, and then we will stop milking completely.

And so, as we look eagerly towards the warmth of spring, I am excited for our next chapter.  While I would not describe it as "new" (it is not like we are moving to the city!), I am hoping that it will be a fun and refreshing spring and summer with some new sights and lots of fresh air and exercise.

That said, I will never entirely rule out the possibility of a milk cow in my future.  It just will not be in the "near" future.  <Don't tell Ian.>

Dividing & Conquering our Way to Peace

I would like to say that there is something new and exciting going on in Gael Glen Farm's barnyard but that is simply not the case.  It is really cold here and the animals are laying low.  They munch their hay, they stand around in the sun, they drink their water before it freezes.  That's about it.

As for the humans, we approached the weekend using the "divide and conquer" technique.

Grandma took Seamus for a visit.  He spent the day wood working in the basement shop that she build for him at her condo.

Liam and I braved the cold in favour of an afternoon in the sunshine.  Liam planned our route through the forest and guided us the whole way.  We hiked 4.7 km in a little under 2 hrs.  We made such great time by not having to carry Ali "Sack of Potatoes" on my back or wait for Seamus "Mr. Short Legs" to catch up.  By the end of the hike my legs and nose were pretty cold but it was great to spend the afternoon outside with my eldest and most enthusiastic hiker.

I know that "there's an app for that" but Liam and I
worked out the distance we hiked the old fashioned way (with math).

Ian was relegated to house and baby sitter duty during Alistair's nap.  He held down the fort, worked at putting away the last few holiday decorations, and even had some "me time" (what a luxury!).

It was a perfectly peaceful day for all.  Finally.  I am looking forward to tomorrow.

Kindness is Lemon Flavoured

It is finally Friday.  I made it, barely.  Many thanks to all those who sent supportive messages and virtual hugs this week.  I needed them.  I also really needed this extremely kind and thoughtful gesture left on my front porch today by a good friend.  Receiving it this morning was a much needed pick-me-up and sharing it with my family as an after dinner treat was a perfect way to celebrate the end of this rather heinous week for all of us.

With the kids now in bed, I am looking forward to a virtual yoga class, a cup of tea and perhaps a hot bath.  I will consider this the equivalent of pressing my reset button.  I am looking forward to a relaxing weekend followed by (hopefully) a much better week next week.

ISO

Seeking a kid-free beach holiday with my BFF and maybe one or two other adults whom I like most of the time.  Departure: yesterday.  Return date: maybe never.  

This has been one heck of a week and it is not even over yet.  😭

Keeping Busy to Avoid Bickering

Some days it is enough to make it through with everyone still alive.  We have had several of those kinds of day this week.  Other days, you actually manage to scratch a few items of your always long to-do list.  Today, thankfully, was one of these.

We started our morning off with a solid hour of snow shovelling after we accidentally broke the snowblower by running over the rope from the hay sled.  Ian was not impressed.

We are completely out of bread so we mixed up some dough for fresh loaves tomorrow.

We got a grain delivery today and filled up all our bins with fresh, delicious oats, alfalfa and dairy goat pellets.

We thawed a hen and made a delicious dinner of roasted chicken with couscous salad complete with homemade lemon-mint dressing.

It was a stay-at-home kind of day but with all the time outside and getting some chores done, we managed to keep the bickering at a minimum without the need for another 5 km hike.  I wonder what tomorrow has in store for us; only time will tell.

Proceeding with an Acceptable Level of Chaos

After a rough start to the day, I made the impromptu decision to delay homeschooling until the afternoon.  I packed up my three overly rambunctious and excessive cantankerous hooligans and we headed to the forest where we walked and walked and walked.  After 5 km I decided that we might now be able to proceed with our day with an acceptable level of chaos.  I love my children.  I love my children.  I love my children.

Trails maps are the BEST thing for keeping kids this age engaged on a hike.
Even after 5 km the boys were still literally running to the markers to check where we 
were and where we were going next.

Moon Phase: Waxing Gibbous

Have you ever had a day so trying that you actually check the phase of the moon to see if you can find some possible reason for the sudden monstrous behaviour of your offspring? In case you are wondering, tonight is a Waxing Gibbous phase.  So much for that.

I offer one small snippet of my day:

Me: "Seamus please wash yourself."

Seamus (in the bath): "Nope."

Me: "You aren't going to wash yourself at all?  Not even your butt?"

Seamus: "No."

Me (deep breath): "Okay.  Get out then and put on your pyjamas."

Ten minutes later after I have dealt with Liam, prepared bedtime things for Alistair and put away a bunch of laundry.

Me: "Seamus come brush your teeth please."

Seamus: "No."

Me: "Either you brush them or I brush them but you cannot go to bed with dirty teeth."

Seamus: "You brush them."

Me: "Fine.  Wait....did you see that?"

Seamus: "What?"

Me: "There.  In your hair."

Seamus: "WHAT?"

Me: "Seamus!  Are you so dirty that you have BUGS in your hair?  Let me look [for the obviously imaginary bugs]."

Seamus squirming.

Me: "Oh Seamus!  You better get into the bath RIGHT AWAY!  It might be dirt but..."

Seamus (ripping off his pyjamas): "Ohh, this is nice and warm."

We get Seamus' body and hair washed without further incident.  He gets out of the bath and opens his mouth super wide.

Seamus: "We better brush my teeth really good, right?"

Me: "Yup, definitely [eye roll]."

And this was my day on repeat.  

Liam and Seamus are seriously lucky that they are not currently posted on Kijiji for rehoming.  

And if I have to sing Ali "Baby Shark" one more time he might be joining them.

Even Ava was better behaved than my boys today and THAT is saying something indeed.

Sunny Sunday Sauce Monster

We spent this beautifully sunny but very cold Sunday sleeping in, snow shoeing, folding laundry, and just hanging out.  During our time outside it was wonderful to see (from a distance) many of our neighbours out and about too.  Some were sliding down a homemade ice slide, others were building a bonfire in their woods, and others still were out cross-country skiing along their homemade paths.  We may all be stuck apart from each other but I still feel a sense of community with all of us out enjoying the afternoon sun despite the chilly wind.

It was a great day overall but one of the very best parts was that Ian cooked us up a traditional Sunday night supper.  We feasted on roasted venison, the last of our homegrown potatoes fried up in duck fat from our own ducks, and roasted carrots glazed with our own maple syrup, honey and oregano.  

And the best sauce for this feast was a gift from Jayne and Craig, their original homemade apple BBQ sauce. The big boys slathered their meat in it; meanwhile, Alistair ate his sauce straight up with a spoon. Ali is a bit of a sauce monster right now. If you ask him what he wants to eat, his answer is reliably "ketchup" - not to dip, just to eat. He never gets it as a meal (obviously) but it does not stop him from asking, though after tasting tonight's sauce offering I would not be surprised if tomorrow he asks for "apple BBQ" instead. So yum!

I hope everyone else had a fantastic day too.  Did you get outside to enjoy the Sunday sun?  Did you eat anything delicious for supper?  Was there sauce?!

Minor Ice Fishing Mishaps

Seamus and Ian braved the cold today to go ice fishing for smelt.  While they were unsuccessfully in hooking any keepers, they did have some notable (mis)adventures along the way.

Seamus managed to step in the fishing hole and got completely soaked in freezing cold lake water up to his knee.  Luckily Ian was able to dry him out and warm him up inside the ice fishing shack.

Next, Seamus had to pee.  Despite receiving an advanced warning from Ian "not to pee on the fishing tent", sure enough....  

Seamus hypothesized that maybe "the lake water just splashed up".  It is -26 C outside (with the windchill).  Not likely, Seamus, not likely.

Despite these few hiccups, Seamus had a wonderful time with his Daddy.  I am not sure the trip was as relaxing for Ian has he was anticipating but taking care of kids rarely is, is it?

Boston Brown Bread & A Very Big Hike

The boys started their morning with a thick slice of my warm-from-the-oven Boston Brown Bread with cinnamon and raisins.

They finished their afternoon with a 4.5 km (2 hr) hike at our favourite conservation area.  It was the first long hike that I have taken all three boys by myself.  They did amazing.  I did pretty well too given that I had to tote Alistair the whole way since Ian was not there to share the load.  

Liam was a super big brother and hand fed Ali his mid-hike snack and water while he was still in the carrier.  Big brothers taking care of little brothers is the best.

I intentionally planned this hike a little longer than usual to try and tire out my very energetic boys.  What I did not plan on; however, is that the more we hike, the stronger they get.  They plowed through the first half of the hike barely breaking a sweat even though we had to break trail through the fresh fallen snow for part of it. They were still running sections and bickering with each other over their walking sticks at the halfway point.  I did finally succeed in tiring them out by the end but I may have to rethink my strategy if I am only building up their endurance with longer and more frequent hikes as opposed to tiring them out.  Soon we will need to be hiking up mountains in order to exhaust them.  Sigh.

Double Trouble

It was a double trouble snowshoe kind of day.

Liam and Seamus were inspired by this morning's snowfall and had me up and out for a snowshoe trek through the forest before I had even eaten breakfast (or had a cup of coffee)!

After breakfast, we spent another hour outside in the backyard with Alistair playing in the snow and getting the morning chores done.

Then after lunch and some multiplication homework, Liam and I went out again for a second snowshoe trek - this one around our special path - during Alistair's afternoon nap.  Luckily with Ian working from home we can sneak out when our littlest monster is asleep.

We certainly got our fill of white dusted trees and fresh forest air today.  The boys and I should all sleep like snow covered logs!

One Very Lonely Sausage Maker

It is usually sometime during these long winter months that our house bubbles over with the boisterous enthusiasm of a half dozen sausage making fellas.  These guys gather in our kitchen laughing and joking as they make strings upon strings of sausages; enough to last the families of all involved until the next year.

Like almost everything else, this tradition has been suspended this year and I, for one, will miss it.  Not for the meat, that I can live without, but for the sounds of the male camaraderie that I know fill Ian with such joy.  

As the introvert in our pairing (and now as a mother with the pretty much constant companionship of three young children), I rarely feel the urge to seek human companionship beyond my immediate family.  In fact, I actively seek alone time.

Ian is very different.  His many friendships with his hunting, scouting, fishing, and beer brewing buddies feed his soul.   Like many extroverts, he is very much feeling the strain of the required social distancing that has been the hallmark of the past year.  I sympathize.  I know that Ian will be a more balanced, happier guy when he is finally able resume his pre-COVID social schedule.  For his sake, I hope this comes sooner rather than later.  

Whenever "old school" social gatherings come back into style, I have no doubt that our kitchen will once again be filled with a bunch of rowdy but respectful fellas stuffing ground meat into casings.  And we will all be better for it.  In the meantime, the sausage making must go on, even if it is only one very lonely sausage maker in a very, very quiet country kitchen.

Oodles of Tenacity & Independence

I had every intention of waking the family up early this morning for a "before the work day" hike.  It is supposed to be freezing cold on Wednesday and snowy on Thursday, so today was the day.  When the alarm went off at 5:30 am, I bounced out of bed and was halfway to the boys' room when I thought, "Hmmm....I better just check the weather."  Google: "Good morning.  It feels like -20 C outside."  Me: "Nope."  I promptly did an about-face and climbed right back into bed.

Even though our morning hike was foiled, Seamus, Alistair and I did get out for a snowshoeing excursion once things had warmed up a bit in the afternoon.  Our lovely across the street neighbours let us tromp through their backyard forest for a change of scenery and it was beautiful.  

My only mistake was leaving Ali's backpack carrier at home.  I thought: "He's always stuck in that pack, I bet he'd like to walk."  Did he ever!  Alistair is as stubborn as Charlie and once he experienced freedom, there was no reigning him in.  His heart's desire was to stray from the path even though his tiny little legs could not handle the deep snow and he doesn't have the balance yet to walk any distance in his snowshoes. Ali: "Mama FOLLOW!"  Me: "Mama help?" as I gently tried to redirect him to the packed down path.  Ali: "NO!"  Me:  "Follow brother?"  Ali: "NO!"  And off he went his own way.

Alistair refused to sit in the sled.  He did not even want to stop when his boot fell off (which it did at least a dozen times).  His mitts also fell off too many times to count but at least they are attached by a string.  Why in the world someone does not make a toddler snowsuit with permanently attached mitts and even boots is beyond me.  This would be perfection.

I sure hope Alistair enjoyed his freedom march today because he will 100 percent be riding in the backpack for our next snowshoeing excursion.  My (ample) patience is no match for his oodles of tenacity and independence.  Lord help me.