Happenings on the Homestead in the Appalachian Mountains

Weekend Coffee Share

Hello there Adventurous Friends & Family, greetings from Georgia. How you doing this 39th week of 2023? One or 2 of the hens have started laying. Kevin got a bear. We both guessed there would be 15 packs of ground meat come out of the bear. Grab a coffee or your favorite beverage & I'll tell you how much meat was processed, come walk with me...

Soft shell egg.

*  The 1st chicken egg harvested was soft shell. Rose got to have it. Kevin got a bag of oyster shells, a size bag he says will last for about 10 years. It don't take much. The oyster shells provide extra calcium that helps the hens lay healthy strong eggs. 

The nest boxes are working, sometimes they
 don't. It's so exciting to be getting our own 
eggs again.

The rooster perfecting his crow. These 2 are speckled sussex.

Fans in the stands cheering & clapping
 at the football game along with
Cheerleader Sister.

*  Kevin figured his bear probably weight around 150 pounds. He cut up the meat & processed it himself. He cooked us up some of the ribs for supper. There was enough leftovers for lunch.  The meat was cooked in the crockpot on high for about 8 hours. Then Kevin put BBQ sauce on the ribs & grilled them on the charcoal grill. Boy, the meat was good! It was juicy & no weird wild taste. It was compared to having pork ribs. The meat produced 2 roasts, 3 packs of ribs & 17 packs of ground.  Kevin cooked the fat & made a jar of bear grease that we'll use to make biscuits or anything else that would use lard.  He had enough rendered to make 2 jars, but it seems the liquid was too hot for the jar.  The jar busted, oh what a mess.  Several years ago, that happened to our glass tea container as I was making tea. Opps!

*  The garden is still producing okra, peppers & strawberries. Kevin has been working a little all along pulling stalks & getting the garden ready for next year. He's been adding real dirt to the beds in hopes that it will help maintain moisture better. The dirt in the beds was a potting soil type mixture that seemed to dry out very quick.

The fall garden is not very pretty as the plants are dying back, when it's time to
cleanup & pull up the stalks. Grand had a time last weekend hunting strawberries &
 eating them on the spot.

Happy Daughter's Day 
this week! 

These are some of the things that's been going on in my neck of the woods, how has your week been?

Happenings on the Homestead in the Appalachian Mountains

Weekend Coffee Share

Hello there Adventurous Friends & Family, greetings from Georgia. How you doing this 38th week of 2023? The roosters are starting to crow & service the hens.  I'm excited to think we might be getting some eggs soon.  I turned on the heat to knock off the chill then Kevin opened a window cause it got to hot. I went to a baby shower, Kevin went to a cowboy shoot, we both went to Grand's football game.  Grab a coffee or your favorite beverage & I'll tell you more, come walk with me...

 

*  I love baby showers.  This shower was for Coworker that's due in November.  It's a girl. The shower was at a local restaurant.  I had a drink (diet coke) with Party Goers, got my Italian calzone to go then Kevin & me headed to the football game. 

*  Kevin went to the shooting range for the cowboy shoot.  The event was cancelled due to not enough participators. He went hog & bear hunting a couple times but didn't see anything.

*  Nana Grandjoy Camp Run-A-Muk - Grand spent the night to go jeep riding & fishing with us.  Turned out the fishing place wasn't so great after all but there was an awesome swimming hole. Kevin cooked us up lunch on his little camp stove.  The food was delicious even though it was just canned beef stew & ravioli.  Everything always tastes better on a picnic.  It was a damp day, especially for Grand going for a swim, the warm food hit the spot.

These are some things that's been going on in my neck of the woods, how has your week been? 

What would you do to get free doughnuts?
This week 8 years ago......
Daughter, Grand & me dressed like pirates
on Pirate Day at Krispy Cream.  We each
got a dozen free doughnuts.  "Arrr Matey!"

Happenings on the Homestead in the Appalachian Mountains

Weekend Coffee Share

Hello there Adventurous Friends & Family, greetings from Georgia.  How you doing this 37th week of 2023?  Kevin made apple jelly, I made candy corn harvest mix.  Grab a coffee or your favorite beverage & I'll tell you more, come walk with me...

Neighbor gave us some crab apples.
Kevin made beautiful delicious jelly
with the apples & I helped.

  

My version of candy corn harvest mix using pumpkin spice seasoning.
The house smelt so good & pumpkin spicy.

*  Nana Grandjoy Camp Run-A-Muk - 2 of the Grandgirls spent the night.  We had a blast having a campout in the camper over in the field by the creek.  The girls crafted pumpkin treat bags for the candy corn mix that we made together.  We had home Sunday school with a seasons theme.  Here is a fun fact about fall - there are more spider webs, those big beautiful gotta take a picture of kind.  Genesis 8:22  While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.

I wiped the rims then put
the lids & rings on while 
Kevin filled the jars up.

   

Playdough creations made
by me & the girls.

Their hair put up, the wind slapping them in the face,
excited & giggly to be jeep riding the back roads
on our way taking them home.

Spider that attached it's web
to Daughter's vehicle.

These are some of the things that's been going on in my neck of the woods, how has your week been?

Kevin noticed this cloud in the sunset
while we were out jeep riding.

Happenings on the Homestead in the Appalachian Mountains

Weekend Coffee Share

Hello there Adventurous Friends & Family, greetings from Georgia.  How you doing this 36th week of 2023?  I've been Christmas shopping & checking things off my Fall Bucket List.  I had an extra day off work this week due to the Labor Day Holiday, though it was my Sunday to work.  I was up at 3:30 am to get that day started.  Grab a coffee or your favorite beverage & I'll tell you about a few other things, come walk with me...

I love when these 2 host a
smash burger cookout.

Happy Birthday to Grand Tripp.
Daughter made a minecraft
birthday cake for the occasion
with chocolaty goodness,
rice krispie treats & jello.

*  Daughter & Son-in-Law hosted a birthday party/Labor Day weekend cookout at the creek.  There was swimming, fishing, tubing & rock climbing that went on along with burger & birthday cake eating.

I did a little toe dipping
in the creek.

* Kevin & I had a good day exploring in the mountains, jeep riding, walking, fishing, taking pictures & picnicking.  A lot of other jeep folks were out enjoying the day too.  I got stung by a yellow jacket while walking. Kevin noticed the nest after the fact & said it looked like a bear had dug it out to get the baby bees.  We walked by the nest 2 times.  Man oh man that sting on my arm hurt for the longest time then it was gone, no swelling or nothing, thank goodness. Then there was a couple days of itching. We noticed a little leaf color changing on a few of the trees while out & about.  Kevin caught us a small mess of rainbow trout. We ate them for supper along with a veggie stir fry from stuff out of the garden.  The okra has put out more here at the end of the growing season than we thought it would.  Kevin put several packs of okra in the freezer.

38 years of marriage

These are some of the things that's been going on in my neck of the weeks, how has your week been?

Then

Now

Happenings on the Homestead in the Appalachian Mountains

Weekend Coffee Share

Hello there Adventurous Friends & Family, greetings from Georgia.  How you doing this 35th week of 2023?  The Grands started back-to-school, that means it's fall.  Daughter had an end of summer pool party, I was extra eyes around the water.  I went to football games, Kevin went squirrel hunting.  We both went to a lake picnic hosted by Son-in-Law's parents.  Grab a coffee or your favorite beverage & I'll share my fall bucket list with you.  I've already marked a few things off the list, come walk with me...

I made this wreath using all
dollar store items.

Happy Fall!

*  My fall bucket list:

1. Put out fall decorations  ✅

2. Go to a fall festival 

3. Make a snack mix using candy corn

4. Get candy for trick-or-treaters

5. Drink pumpkin spiced coffee & eat pumpkin spiced everything

6. Get some pumpkins

7. Start Christmas shopping ✅

8. Watch fall/Halloween movies every day in October

9. Get out coats, hats, gloves & long johns

10. Go camping while the leaves are colored

11. Make potato soup

12. Drink spiced apple cider

13. Go to a football game & have a tailgate party ✅

14. Take pictures of fall

15. Make a pumpkin pie

16. Take a leaf looking drive & have KFC for a picnic

17. Carve a jack-o-lantern

18.  Make pumpkin chili

19. Got vehicles ready for winter

20. Rake leaves & make pumpkin bags

Me cooking up sloppy joes to take
to the football game.

*  I hosted 2 tailgate football parties.  I cooked the food at Daughter's house then took it to the football games to eat there.  That's my twisted version of a tailgate party.  There were sloppy joes for the high school game.  There were hotdogs for the youth games. 

The hotdogs were pretty good
with ketchup & shredded cheese.

  

*  Son-in-Law's parents brought pizza to the lake for a picnic.  The weather was picnic perfect.  I enjoyed walking along the water's edge & playing in the sand with the kids.

*  The trail camera got pictures of the critter that's been getting into the bird feeder.

These are some of the things going on in my neck of the woods, how has your week been?

Happenings on the Homestead in the Appalachian Mountains

Weekend Coffee Share

Hello there Adventurous Friends & Family, greetings from Georgia.  How you doing this 34th week of 2023?  It was my Sunday to work with a starting time of 7 am, so I didn't have to get out too early.  The pot of elephant ears I got was supposed to have a green leaf bulb & a black leaf bulb.  The black ears didn't produce, the green ears done good.  Probably the biggest ears I've ever grown.  Getting the Michigan coffee cup instead of the Georgia one I ordered, brings back good memories of traveling with Friends & Family through the years.  We went to Michigan several times on grouse hunting vacations.  We road up to the Mackinac Bridge during one of those trips while in the area.  Grab a coffee or your favorite beverage & I'll tell you about going to the Georgia Mountain Fair.  We had not been in years, come walk with me...

We don't consider ourselves social nor good hosts,
but we do treasure the friendships we've made
along the way, whether we've seen friends recently
or not.  If you've ever been to one of our dinner
parties, you know it's a hotdog roast.  Hopefully
you had a good time cooking your own food &
was entertained in some awkward form
 or fashion. 

1990 Mio Michigan

 

*  A page from one of our photo albums site seeing in Michigan & the chalet we stayed in.  Kevin said it was some of the best grouse hunting he had ever done.  It was usually the middle of the woodcock migration when we were there.  The birds were plentiful & very good meat for the table.  To our surprise, there were elk in the area.  The 1st wild elk we had ever seen & heard bugle.  The chalet was surrounded by an Amish community.  There were signs posted giving caution to watch for horses & buggies.  It was common to pass them on the roads.  We enjoyed talking with the neighbors & getting our 1st glimpses into Amish lifestyle.  When we lived in Iowa, we had Amish neighbors & still treasure their friendship. 

Me, the official drink holder at the fair.

*  I remembered the Georgia Mountain Fair to have more demonstrators than vendors.  During our visit to the fair this time around, there were more vendors than demonstrators.  Kevin & I went to the fair a little earlier than Daughter & her family so we could walk around & see the arts, crafts & demonstrations 1st.  When Daughter arrived, Kevin & I took the Grands to the rides while Daughter & Son-in-Law took a turn walking around.  Daughter got the carnival ride tickets in advance at a discounted price.  There wasn't a waiting line for Grands to get their wristbands, so that part went quick.  Kevin & I spent a joyful amount of time with Grands watching them ride rides till their parents came & took over.  Kevin & I then headed to Taco Bell for their $5 Cravings Box.  The waiting line to get ride tickets/wristbands was backed up a long way at that time.  We talked about our timing to the fair worked out just right. 

The flower show exhibits were my
 overall favorite things to look at,
 at the fair.  Son-in-Law said he
remembered (being drug through)
the flower building when he was
a boy.

  

We all liked the metal art, though
it wasn't made by the vendor.  They
sure had a lot of it.  Daughter &
Son-in-Law's favorite was the 
dinosaurs.  Kevin & me liked
a skunk.

One of my favorite crafted things
were these painted fishing/trap floats.

  

One of Daughters favorite crafted things
were these wooden lighted
Christmas trees.

These are some of the that's been going on in my neck of the woods, how has your week been?

The bear hit the bird feeder
again.  We haven't got a
picture of it on the
trail camera yet.