100% Homegrown!

Our fig tree has been producing like crazy lately!  We were a little worried about it earlier in the season because the figs were falling off early and dying before they were ripe.  We figured it was a residual effect from last year's terrible drought and figured this growing season would be a bust.

But then, things changed!  And fast!  It was like figs were suddenly everywhere on the tree and we couldn't keep up with the production!  JL was bringing in bowls full to the top with beautiful figs!  I didn't know what to do with all of them, so JL researched a fig jam recipe and I got to work.

The result was magical!  Something between a plum and a strawberry jam.  Much sweeter than both. (In fact I ended up putting in half the sugar and it was still super sweet!)  And it is a beautiful apricot reddish color.  The kids gobble it up.  Well, what's left of it after JL and I are through, that is! ;-)

You start with about 5 cups of figs

Remove the stem and the end and then cut them in half.  I loved it because there is no peeling required!

Throw in some water, pectin, and a little lemon with the halves and begin it all boiling.

When the figs are soft, smash them up, add the sugar and let it boil hard for 5 minutes.

That's it!  The result is beautiful looking and fabulous tasting jam!

If you think it looks good, you should be here when it is cooking!  The aroma is  wonderful!

This baby has my domestic juices flowing.  This same week, I also made a homemade pot pie.  It was delicious!  The kids gobbled it up, JL gobbled it up, and I couldn't get enough!  I love a successful meal!

There is something super satisfying about taking something you have grown on YOUR land and turning it into something wonderful for people to enjoy.

The Baby's Room - Makeover

The piano room will double as the nursery for the next year or so.  Previously, the piano room has been doubling as a guest room.  That worked... ok, but it wasn't ideal.  The nursery, however, fits much better in the space.  I'm actually plesantly surprised with how much room I'm left with for the crib etc.  

We used the same beautiful pale blue that we did the master bath with.  Not because I happen to think Quatro is going to be a boy, but because I ultimately want this room to be blue.  I thought it would look beautiful with the wood wainscoting that is in the room.  And, it does.  I'm very pleased with the way it turned out.  Cute for the baby, but potential for elegant down the road.

BEFORE:

My sweet husband going to all angels to paint behind the piano.

AFTER:

Master Bath - Makeover

To keep with the retreat calm, the master bath also had to be done.  It's so ... white!  And it was sad to see it neglected when the bedroom was so fabulous!  

I decided instead of matching the walls to the gray we did in the master bedroom, that I would instead use the accent blue on the walls and then carry the gray and white through with the decorations in the bath.   Turned out so nice!  I still have a few things I want to do with this space, but overall it's wonderful!

BEFORE:

AFTER:

I have big plans for these hideous mirror lights.  This is the only part of the room that I still can't stand.  I plan to rip these babies down and replace them with sconces and beautiful single mirrors.  

Master Suite - Makeover

I'm totally nesting.  In the past 2 weeks, JL and I have redone 4 rooms in the house!  It's been fantastic! Some of the things I've been dreaming about for the past year have happened!

The front runner being our master bedroom.  What a great room!  I loved it when we first saw the house.  It has a magnificent wood beam running right down the center of the ceiling and there is space for days in there!

I went with a gray for the walls, accenting with the pale blue color that I love so much from my bedding and a white to brighten up the space.  This room is our retreat, so I also decorated using pictures from our cruise a few years ago.  I love to relax with the beach reminders all around me.  I think it turned out great!  So great, that I am in that room a TON more now!

BEFORE:

AFTER:

One of my new furniture pieces - a blue chest, which I LOVE!

One of my new favorite accessories.  I found this gray lantern and thought it would look nice on the blue chest.  I filled it with shells to keep with the beach theme.

My second new furniture piece - a blue settee

Fantastic addition!  It fills the space and ties in the blue color for this wall.  It is also really comfy to sit in and/or lounge with a book in!

Tah Dah!  

On to Greener Pastures

I have sold the goats.  Why?  Well, let me tell ya.  They were great to raise up and have as we started our ranch, but eventually - they just got too annoying!  They are terribly mischievous, they were getting to be downright rude to the pigs, they were tearing up our new corral, and they eat and eat and eat.  What do they eat?  My roses, mainly!  

So, off they went to 380 acres with 150 other goats.  There they can freely eat all the weeds/landscaping their little hearts can dream up.   Now, I talk tough, but I'll admit I was sad to see them go.  Not because I'm terribly fond of them, but more because they represented the start of our ranching life.  They were one of the first animal additions we got, and I must have been more attached to the little buggars than I cared to admit.  Still, I think we made the right choice.

Luke & Bert moments before they were carried off.

Luke showing me what he thinks of my plan.

Gosh, they are kinda cute.

Off to new adventures.

Coincidentally (but not related to this event at all) we got a new animal this same day.  You can read about that here. 

Micro Mini Eggs

About a month ago, the strangest thing happened in the chicken coop.  JL retrieved an egg that was the half a normal size.  We really didn't think that much about it.  The weather has been heating up (like, rapidly!) and we figured the chicken was just stressed.

Until about 2 days later when JL pulled out an egg that was about a forth the size of a normal egg!  It looked like one of those craft eggs you can purchase at the store to make fake bird nests and what not.  I hardly believed he got it from our coop until he pulled a second micro mini the very next day!

At this point, we were alarmed.  So I consulted a few webpages only to find out micro eggs are actually quite normal.  They happen occasionally during a chicken's life.  It took a few days, but eventually, everything returned to normal.

In other chicken news.  We recently lost one of the baby chicks that we raised up.  Little Lee died randomly a couple Sundays back.  As near as we can figure - the heat got him.  :-(  I wouldn't have minded so much had it been one of the older chickens.  They are spotty with their laying and eat us out of house and home.  The babies, in contrast, eat little and produce each day.  It was a loss.

Back in the Saddle

I am here and alive.  I'll get back to blogging soon!