Crazy Poultry Lady

With the farewell of the pigs came the introduction of some new poultry for our Chook Yard. Our sole remaining Hen Mrs Wishy Washy and our sole Rooster Bucko were looking a little lonely  so we found them some friends. 7 new hens of various breeds to brighten up the chook yard and help fill my egg holders in the fridge.

 

It was definitely a family effort to move them into their new home, they were all patted and held to help get them familiar with us. My Muddy Puzzler needs a few more lessons on holding as her hold is more of a strangle. The new chooks were keen on the Sock Protectors mistaking the strawberry pattern for real strawberries and having a peck. And a nice surprise when we took one out of it's box - a egg freshly laid!

 

For those that are interested we now have 2 Silkies, 2 Gold Laced Wyandottes, 2 Rhode Island Whites, 1 Ancona, 1 Isa Brown and 1 Astralorp Rooster.

 

They are a hit with the Muddy Kids, they check the eggs several times a day, help spread fresh hay in the roost and feed them at night, all a nice start to doing chores and helping out, a win for everyone really.

The Family Business

I find this time of year hard when it comes to farming. It's kind of like make or break time, no rain and we're looking at a small or non-existent harvest, too much rain and it gets them a little water logged, a cold snap with a frost and the crops might get frosted. It's this time of year that Muddy Hubby's favourite saying is 'Just an inch of rain would be right'. We haven't had that inch, and for some of our paddocks that's not a good thing. The wheat is struggling to stick it's head up above the weeds which are prolific because the wheat was dry-sown. Other paddocks are doing better, sticking their heads up waiting for rain to help them fill.

 

On the other hand our Chickpeas are loving it, they hate water, especially if it rains too much they don't cope and disease starts to set in. At the moment though the conditions are just right for them, they are podding and they have flowers on them. A little bit of rain wouldn't hurt them to help them fill their pods, and give us some nice chickpeas to sell, but they're still looking good.

 

The Muddy Kids love crop checking, learning the family business from the start, looking for flowers and pods on the chickpeas and seeing whether or not the wheat has started sticking up it's head getting ready to fill it with grain. Our Muddy Organiser practices her counting skills by starting to count the number of grain sheaths on the wheat head. It was a lovely Sunday morning, warm weather, sunshine and family time.

 

I ate them and I liked it....

After all the trouble the pigs gave us I was a little sad to say goodbye to them. The morning we had to send them to the abattoir I was dressed and ready for work when Muddy Hubby said he needed a hand, so like any good wife I whacked on my farm boots and headed down to the yards. After almost an hour of trying to hunt them up the race and failing we had resorted to running them into the drenching race and Muddy Hubby lifting each one individually onto the crate on the back of the ute.

 

In my head this was a good idea, in reality it was a nightmare. I will never ever forget the blood-curdling squeal these pigs gave off as Muddy Hubby caught each one and slowly inch by inch lifted them up (we had been feeding them up well, so they were no light weights). I was useless (happy to admit it), I tried to get Leopard's foot unstuck when it got stuck but each time he turned his head to me I'd squeal and pull my hand away, terrified of having him bite my hand off (you'll remember I had nightmares about these pigs so that didn't help the situation). Eventually they were safely ensconced on the back of the ute and the Muddy Kids came and said their goodbyes.

 

This week they've been returned to us......packaged in boxes! Well, the pork has been, the ham and bacon should be arriving by the end of the week. So what to do with this much pork landing in your kitchen......Roast Pork of course, followed with a serve of Sweet and Sour Pork Stir Fry (Recipe Below). I am cracking out the recipe books to diversify my pork cooking - any suggestions welcome!

 

Ingredients
500g Pork fillet chopped into bite-size pieces
3 teaspoons soy sauce
1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons tomato sauce
1/3 cup vinegar
1 tablespoon cornflour
3 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 cup fresh pineapple, chopped (I used tinned)
1 red capsicum, chopped (I used green because that's what was in the fridge)
1 large onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped

Method:
Place the pork in a non-metallic bowl, add soy sauce and toss through so all the pork pieces are coated, set aside.

In a medium saucepan over low to medium heat, whisk together the sugar, tomato sauce, vinegar and cornflour and allow to simmer.

Meanwhile bring a Wok or large non-stick frying pan to a high heat, then add 2 teaspoons of oil. Swirl the oil around so the bottom is coated. Toss the pineapple, capsicum and onion and stir-fry for about 4 mins until they begin to caramelise. Add the warm sauce and remove from the wok and set aside.

Add another teaspoon of oil to the wok and then the pork and cook until the pork is browned and just cooked through (about 8 mins).

Add the sauce and vegetables, allow to come to a simmer then remove from the heat and serve immediately with rice.

This is a recipe from Kidspot, and they know their stuff as this was a huge hit with the Muddy Kids, barely a spoonful left in their bowls.

Left, Left, Left, Right, Left

For the last few weeks when the house goes quiet my ears prick up (as any mum's do really) and I listen hard, what I've been hearing though isn't the sounds of mischief, it's the sound of my Muddy Organiser organising her Muddy Sisters into line ready to march. Then starts the call 'Left, Left, Left, Right, Left' as she instructs them to keep their hands at their sides, fists clenched before setting off around the house.

 

It's that time of year for the interschools sports trophy and one major part of this is the big march all the schools do down the main street of the town it's being held in. There is even a separate trophy awarded to the school with the best marching (not kidding).

 

The teachers and principal at school have had them practicing for weeks (yes weeks), they have the drum going and you hear the call of 'Left, Right, Left, Right', 'Lift those feet', 'Keep your arms straight' as they march around the streets that border the school. It's serious stuff this marching (who knew! Cynical me didn't). My Muddy Organiser was so very proud this week to put on her poorly ironed sports uniform, white sneakers and school socks and head off to the march. For her it was all about the march and not so much about the sports and games.

 

The best bit though was her enthusiasm, she arrived back with just as much as when she left, she tried her best, had a great day and is already practicing her marching for next year, as much as I'm informing her that she'll run out of march by next year if she keeps it up, she just keeps going. I have no doubt that by the time the rest of the Muddy Kids start school they'll have the marching down pat thanks to their big sister!

 

 

And just so you know, they won the Marching Trophy!

Wet Weather Morning Tea

Muddy Hubby, for as long as I've known him, has this thing about 'when it rains, you cook up morning tea', his preference is scones, mine is not to cook at all because I'm too busy doing the rest of the household chores. However occasionally I do like to indulge him and I get a hankering for some fun in the kitchen, and when it rained this week I was working, so the next day the Muddy Kids and I cooked up pikelets, an oldie, but a goodie.

 

The Muddy Kids had a blast watching them bubble up and then be flipped over before being put on the plate to be slathered in honey or jam and quickly devoured! None of them would sit down to eat them, they were quickly stuffing them in their mouths while trying to reach for their next one, to make sure they got their quota. Unfortunately for Muddy Hubby he wasn't home, so I made a nice batch of Rocky Road for him to enjoy in his tucker box this week.

 

What's your favourite morning tea when it rains? Do your kids love pikelets as much as mine?

 

Day by Day I'm Grateful

This week I have taken a step back to breathe, to focus each day on something I am Grateful for, to try and take on some advice and prioritise.

Sunday I was grateful for some family time, to tick off some of the jobs on the to do list, spend time together, play with our ducks and get them started with training on their new Duck Feeder and just be together as a family.

Monday I was Grateful for time to play with my Muddy kids, to stop and roll around on the grass and chase the ducklings and push them on the swing, to have fun with my kids and enjoy them and their little personalities.

Tuesday saw me be grateful for lots of things, a wonderful school who organise a Year 6 Buddy for my Muddy Organiser, who she absolutely adores and who has made the transition to school that little bit easier. I was grateful for my wonderful Muddy Sister-in-law who didn't hesitate to say Yes and look after Muddy Bubby so I could volunteer to help make Kinder - Year 6 Buddy lunch. I was grateful for a fantastic OT who listened and didn't hesitate to offer help where she could.

Wednesday I was grateful for healthy kids, for Muddy Kids who push my buttons, but are here and healthy and who I love with all my heart. I was also grateful for good friends, as always, who helped organise the next days expeditions.

Thursday I was grateful for the sales they have at the shops in town. As they don't have any storage space for last seasons stock they mark everything down really low to help it sell so they don't have to store it - it's a big win for us! I was also grateful for the enthusiasm my Muddy Organiser showed on going to the 4 schools carnival and being soooo excited about marching in the march.

Friday I am extremely excited and grateful that I am finally getting our NBN Satellite Internet installed today, I am hoping that this is as good as it's supposed to be, because if it is it will make my life a whole lot easier and I won't spend hours waiting for my downloads and uploads like I do at the moment.

 

Linking up with Maxabella at Village Voices for 52 Weeks of Grateful. Make sure you make the time to check it out.

 

 

Cup Fever

It's not often a little piece of Australian History, really an Australian Icon, passes so close by, so I had to go and check it out! Yesterday morning the Melbourne Cup was coming to a breakfast at the local pub. The local community served up bacon and egg rolls with a cuppa for breaky and you could see the real Melbourne Cup up close and personal, as well as hold it if you wanted to.

Of course, not one to miss out on an opportunity I put the Muddy Organiser on the bus and carted the other 3 kids to the pub for breakfast to see something they probably won't get to see up close again. It weighs just over 4 kgs, is made up of 44 pieces hand welded together, it is made of 24 carat gold with a wood base. Each year they make a new cup so the winner gets to keep the year they one, they have almost finished making the one for the 2013 winner. This year I can proudly say I held the cup that will get presented to the winner at about 3:20pm on the 6th of November 2012.

The cup travels with an entourage, including a security guard who instructs you specifically on how to hold it. You are allowed to hold the stem, but only with the gloved hand, and your other hand must sit under the base to support the weight. The security guard got very nervous as Muddy Bubby kept reaching for the cup and trying to put his sticky hands on it. Very sternly he said 'the kids make me nervous, please do not let them touch it'.

They have a couple of PR people and we were lucky enough to have a jockey who has ridden in the cup 10 times and won 3 Melbourne Cups, he gave a lovely talk about his history and the races he rode in. We were also given a talk on the history of the cup, now I missed most of the talk thanks to the Muddy Kids, but one on one the entourage were lovely to chat to and were more than happy to share their stories and knowledge of the cup.

Definitely not my normal Monday morning, and not something I'll forget any time soon.