keljonma's Front Porch - Settling in and adjusting

[keljonma]

The weather lately has definitely been autumnal!! Our high temps have been hitting 60 at the most and our night time lows have been in the mid 40s. And we have gotten more rain than sunshine during the past month.

TR and I had our Experiencing God reunion today. We have been meeting for 2 years (since 10/3/2008). I made my daughter's pumpkin cheesecake recipe. It was a big hit.

Raining and TR is off work this week-end. Hoping to do something fun!

 

[Farmfresh]

Sounds simply wonderful!!

How much honey have you gotten from your hives total this year? I remember hearing about you collecting from time to time, but can't remember how much you said you have gathered.

I am just curious. This IS the first year for the hive isn't it?

Well, I haven't posted in a bit and was re-reading and saw I missed replying to this earlier post. Sorry, FF!

Yes, FF, this is the first year for the hive(s). We originally installed the first hive May 1st and then had the swarm late July.

All the experience says 1st year beeks should not expect a honey harvest, as the bees will most likely need it for winter.

However, we have harvested some - 9 pounds, which is 3 quart jars worth. We have more frames filled, but I am using them to feed the swarm hive. The original hive appears to be in fine shape for getting through the winter. God willing.

Wow 3 quarts is quite a bit! I had no idea you could get that much the first year. I bet it is delicious.

 

[keljonma]

The first 3 pounds was harvested in July, so it is very light honey. While I was extracting it, the kitchen smelled of clover and sunshine.

The other 6 pounds were harvested later, and are more golden amber in color. The honey has a slight minty aroma; possibly from our chocolate mint.

They both tasted wonderful. I am saving the majority of it for Christmas presents.

 

[TanksHill]

I can just imagine the smells of your honey. Kinda like the smell of sunshine in the laundry as it comes off the line.

Pumpkin cheesecake??? is that recipes around here somewhere?

g

 

[VickiLynn]

I'll second that request for the pumpkin cheesecake recipe, please

 

[keljonma]

We actually turned on the heat for an hour the other day to take the chill out of the house! And all the rain is making the leaves fall off the trees - so we haven't been getting all the beautiful autumnal colors we usually get.


Had to make laundry soap on Monday - hope this batch lasts as long as the last batch - I last made laundry soap in January.


I got the baseboards finely stained for the music room, which is also probably going to be a guest bedroom. Now we just have to put some expando foam in between the floor and the walls before we put up the baseboards, for some insulation.


Today I am dehydrating more onions and mushrooms. I think I will end up with a quart jar of onions and a pint jar of mushrooms.


My sauerkraut, which I started on Sept 16th is doing well.


I had to call DD last week about her pumpkin cheesecake recipe, and we got to talking about the sauerkraut. Said she just heard Alton Brown talking about making it in a tupperware container. She also the grands are doing well, and back in the swing of fall homeschooling. Next month DD leads the homeschooling group (28 to 30 kids, depending on who shows up) and is going to be teaching about onomatopoeia. DGD (12) is doing a report on Eleanor Roosevelt (one of my personal favorites ) and DGS#1 (almost 9) is reporting on his first year experience in the local baseball league.


TR is off Friday and we are actually supposed to get as high as 69!! I am psyched!


I have to make a couple apple pies for a church function on Monday. I think I will make a deep dish with phyllo crusts in the springform pan and a caramel pecan topped one in my regular pie dish. We still have apples left from the ones our friend gave us, so just need to set up the time to do the baking.


My sis-in-law said she is coming to visit this week-end. The house is a complete disaster area...and I wish I were kidding about that! I have been so busy with projects, recipe testing and my 2 Bible studies, that I have only been doing my "Daily" cards and everything else has been pushed to the side.

I have teddy bears, chickens and prayer shawls all over the furniture in the sun room (church projects I've been knitting). I have recipes and cookbooks all over the computer table and dining room table. (The computer is in the dining room.) I do have my mother's old handwritten and collected recipes spread out by categories on a cardboard box lid on the table, so they can be moved when TR and I eat our meals. And I have canning stuff all over the breakfast nook table; not only fruit and veg, but the huge canner and jars as well.


So tomorrow and Friday we will be doing a number of "Monthly" cards and the cards for September I didn't get done -- like clean the coils on the refrigerator and clean the cobwebs throughout the house. Doesn't that sound like fun?!


Yesterday TR found during his Disciples study at church that our friend Marion was brimming with good news. First her daughter and our friend, Mikki, is pregnant. This will be Mikki's and Tom's seventh child; their oldest is getting ready to graduate from university and the youngest is in 3rd or 4th grade. Also recently Marion underwent a mastectomy; this week she was released from "full restrictions"! God is certainly at work.


Well, I best get a move on, TR is waiting for dinner.

Have fun!

 

[keljonma]

Kel's pumpkin cheesecake recipe.... I don't have it with me, and no it hasn't been posted. That will have to come later.

 

[keljonma]

We actually got sunshine and mid 60s yesterday. And today is starting out to be just as nice, if not warmer...the forecast calls for temps near 70 through Sunday! Happy Day!!!

TR spent the morning cleaning the storm windows and actually got 2 of them put up and the screens washed and put away for winter. He is back to work until next Wednesday, so he is trying to get some household chores done while the weather is nice. We are planning on patching some cracks and holes in the brick foundation after work this week-end, as the landlord brought over a bucket of quikcrete kind of stuff to do the job.

Today we took the recycles into the nearby village. TR said he read in the paper that due to financial issues, the county is talking about doing away with the recycling centers!!! This is not good news at all, and certainly a step backwards.

The library's shortened hours mean that the computers are always in full use. As a result, I'm having trouble getting to a computer that will take a flash drive - for downloading pics and recipes. There was some talk of upgrading some of the oldest computers, but with the state's budget cuts of almost 40% for libraries, that is unlikely to happen. Things are so bad here that the local library is putting a levy on the ballot in the upcoming election. I'm told that they haven't had to do that since the 70's here.

Yesterday we had corn fritters for dinner with some maple syrup we got from a friend who harvests his own maple trees. It was wonderful, and this is one of TR's favorite meals.

This week-end we will be getting the bees ready for winter. We will just have to get the straw (for a straw igloo around the hives to protect from wind and snow) purchased and set up.

I ended up with a pint and a half of dehydrated mushrooms. The onions are still going. I also made a huge batch of onion soup with some fresh onions, and have been eating that for lunch this week. I wish that TR was more fond of soup...he likes tomato and that is about it. :/

Speaking of tomato, we haven't had a very good tomato harvest - for pretty tomatoes. A number of the slicing tomatoes have blossom end rot and a number of the paste tomatoes are cracking as they grow. We still have a ton of green slicing and paste tomatoes. I grew orange paste for the first time this year (an heirloom variety) so am looking forward to using them.

 

[Javamama]

Hi Kel, good to hear from you Sounds like you have been keeping busy. Our tomatoes were so disease riddled this year that I pulled them at the end of August. Maybe next year will be better...

 

[keljonma]

Wow, Java, you are the 4th person this morning who told me they already pulled their tomatoes!! This must be a crazy year for tomatoes everywhere.