Let the pigeons fly! 2021 Kidding, Round 2 has begun! Old Fawn, 10 yrs old popped out twins.
Old Fawn has her spot picked out
Now to wait…
Inside the kit
Don’t want to have to use the resuscitation or kid pulling items, but they are there if we need them.
White doe, grey buck!
What more did Blind Hog and Acorn get up to this week? The usual chores, plus plumbing and electric repairs.
Tree seedlings from the Missouri Conservation Department
Weather is nice, but it turned out all the crazies in the Big City. Lawdy- all the wrecks, all the people. Shopping is not a delight but something to be done in the early weekday mornings- not on a Sunny Saturday afternoon!
The sap run was short and sweet! Acorn figures it was actually a false run, brought on by the Polar Vortex. Two weeks of below freezing temps forced the sap back down, and when the temps warmed up, up came the sap. Good enough for two quarts total of finished syrup. Impressive, especially if you think of the 40:1 sap to syrup ratio!
Sycamore and black walnut sap
Inside cooking
Outside kitchen!
Goats in the dairy barn are all kidded out, now is kidding time for the commercial and Spanish goats. The old goat barn has been prepped, all good to go.
Acorn had to get out of bed at 10:30 pm to eliminate a varmint in the hen house that killed another hen. Sam got skunk sprayed. Blind Hog got his first Fauchi Ouchie. All in all, a typical week on the farm!
This year’s syrup haul… Not bad for our first attempt…
The Polar Vortex is winding down, cold air receding, and temps actually creeping above freezing. Hot Damn! (Episode #8 goes live 2/21!)
Acorn did have time for a bit of fun- SNOWSHOEING to get the mail and take Sam for a walk down the road.
Blind Hog and Acorn have continued to soldier on- feeding the livestock, waiting for baby goats- expected and unexpected.
Callie has twins! Jackets only stayed on till the kids were dry.
Fortunate for running water and electricity, however plans are in the works for “yet more farm improvements…” There is always room to make things run better, smoother, and to be prepared for outages of one sort or another.
Yummy lunch of homegrown tomato soup and grilled cheese made with our own ingredients!
Good news about the increased temperatures is that trees were tapped today for syrup, and Acorn saw sap collecting in the jugs! Amazing! Boiling it down will only yield a few ounces, but OH! What a treat it will be!
The spile (tap) and 4′ of tubing
Tubing empties into collection jars, steadied by plastic nursery pots- this is a sycamore.
The polar vortex is upon the farm. Single digit highs, minus “whatevers”at night. And snow… And gusting north winds… And yes, dairy kids being born!
Verdandi plops out 20+ lbs of bucklings!
Verdandi had twin bucklings, both weighing in over 10lbs each- which is pretty darn impressive. They need that size to help them get through the cold in the dairy barn. Acorn made Verdandi an insulated “goat fort.” Verdandi is pleased.
Blind Hog and Acorn have been trying their best to deal with electrical resistance, amperage, wattage calculations. Working on electric lines from the house to the dairy barn, at midnight, in the 5F cold is a great way to kick off Valentine’s Day…
Good news is that (knock wood) they have everything under control. (knock wood louder…)
Mahindra Engine cozy at work!
Acorn baked more brownies. Why the hell not? Calories are being burned and two farmers need refueling!
Intrepid farmers will be tapping walnut trees by the end of the week- black walnut syrup is the goal. Spiles and tubing purchased, just need a day above freezing to drill the trees. It will get above freezing again, right?
Oy! Blind Hog and Acorn have readied the farm for the upcoming hard, deep freeze. One day might have highs in the single digits and lows? Minus whatever… Been there, done that- they know what they need to do.
chicken coop heated water pan
kidding pen
spiral wire panel connectors are the best
someone found the blow dryer
Skuld is looking right pufft up
Verdandi has a way to go yet
antenna hack in process
goat spy cam
another camera view
Of course, the dairy goats might go into labor next week when the vortex settles in- let’s hope not!
Blind Hog has been Mr Electrician, wiring in the new receptacles for the welder and plasma cutter. Acorn has been busy doing other stuffs, including kidding pen set-up and freeze-proof watering for the geese, chickens, goats and cows. All is ready!
Zucchini bread is a great way to use that shredded summer squash you loaded in the freezer. You DID shred and freeze surplus squash, right? Recipe link is here..
Mmmmmmm…..
most excellent, even toasted!
BTW- Acorn fixed the microphone issue from last week, just a matter of the input source being changed after the computer did a system upgrade- back to the desired settings!
That Florida Run of 2000 brought back all kinds of memories. We have had our share of harsh winters, seems the temps are colder and the precip is markedly less here in the Ozarks than it was back in Boone.
Snow in the “meadow” where vehicles were parked- our house was 1/4 mile (uphill) behind where I was standing taking the picture.
Badger was ready to get the hell out of Dodge
How long did we wait for this ride? Nonetheless. Priceless.
Episode 5 for season 2 airs 1/31/2021! Blind Hog and Acorn have been busy- doing this and that… Hay out for the herds, unpacking stuffs from 15-20 years ago, going through old papers (and bronze sculpture items), rewiring the shops for the new welder and plasma cutter, taking down old light fixtures and putting in LED flood bulbs. Going in a gazillion different directions, but slowly but surely, things are being accomplished. Acorn is ready to get welding!
Bronze long guns that Blind Hog was going to use in an art installation piece, centered around diners and truck stops. Now these will be door pulls on the two sliding bedroom doors.
Of course, it has been raining. Flood or drought. Welcome to the Ozarks.
Ice cream!!!
Acorn made Blind Hog some “special” ice cream. If you have a counter-top ice cream maker, you already know how easy it is but perhaps you need to bring it out and give it a go. Half-and-half, a bit of sugar, cookie crumbs and a splash of brandy. Need I say more? Recipe is here…
Mr. Wiggles is HUNGRY
Sam interrupted the recording to get his supper. He can be hard to ignore when he has food on his mind. For some reason the microphones were super sensitive- had to really turn down the gain today. Will give that a check later on. Most peculiar…
Blind Hog and Acorn took their show to the road, literally, as they recorded the podcast while driving to the big city. They had their sights set on a portable air compressor that would be big enough to use with the new plasma cutter, and Lowe’s JUST happened to have one 45% off, PLUS and additional 10% off with military discount. SWEET!
new tools!
Thing 1 and Thing 2
Yup, the farmers purchased a new wire feed welder that uses flux core wire, no cover gas needed, so they can both begin welding all kinds of project and new works of art. The plasma cutter is not just a toy (says Acorn) but a much needed farm accessory.
Anyway, Blind Hog will have to wire up a couple new receptacle boxes and run a 30A breaker in the box, do the same down in the rock shop. Exciting times.
Swedish Chocolate Gooey Cake
12 hr brown bread
Blind Hog also recommended the Chocolate Gooey Cake for the recipe of the week. Click here for the recipe. It is pretty darn tasty. Want the recipe for the overnight rye bread? The slow baking caramelizes the sugars- it is wonderful. Comment below and Acorn will post the recipe!
Chores are done, hay is out. Tune in and find out about the art project Acorn has in mind. Something inspired by Jim Dine.
Episode #3 is going live 1/17/2021: Winter chores mean feeding hay, bringing in firewood and baking yummy treats. How about some Icelandic gingersnaps ( recipe here) and a big batch of elderberry fire cider (recipe here)…
dough ready to roll after 48 hours
floured silpat
rolled and ready to bake!
delicious!
fire cider!
purple elderberries look like capers now
draining the liquids from the solids
ready for enjoyment!
And that rooster we processed? 3 meals and 7 pints of chicken stock. All from one bird. Excellent!
Pressure cooked chicken with purple sweet potato salad, brown rice and chick peas!
Sam’s beef, rice and pumpkin chow with a bit of his dry food.
Going live Sunday 1-10-2021: Blind Hog and Acorn have enough to do on the farm. Selling some goats, whipping up dogfood for Sam and blueberry-pumpkin muffins for the farmers- the recipe of the week. Click here for the muffin recipe.
Ozarks geology means goats must have selenium booster shots to avoid white muscle disease. Vaccinated half the adults, the other 24 will be done soon as Acorn prefers to do this 4-6 weeks before kidding.
the “patient”
control panel and top removed, rubber drum gasket off
drain pump assembly, hoses off
corroded and rusty screws… the bane of the project!
Fixed the washing machine- replaced the drain hose and drain pump. YouTube videos to the rescue. $65 in parts, but 4 hrs in very deliberate labor. Removing rusted screws took up most of the time.
Winner winner chicken dinner– need to butcher a rooster tomorrow. Good eating to follow later in the week! But Acorn, how do you butcher a chicken? Listen and find out! No- I don’t do that “running around with the head off thing…”
Fun fun…
Need a great yoga or meditation app? DownDog is pretty darn good. Helps keep Acorn on her feet! Plus, their meditation app is fun too… 75% off as we speak!
This is how we get our head caught where it should not be…
Blind Hog and the Acorn had a very nice holiday: usual farm chores, goats getting stuck in things, machinery to be fixed, hay to be set out. You know, all the typical things that go on regardless of holidays… New episode will be live 1/3/2021.
New Year’s feast of cornbread, black eyed peas, collard greens and plenty of hog jowl for seasoning!
Acorn has some new plans for Season 2 of Blind Hog and Acorn. Dare we mention the m-word? (merch!)
Farmhouse Brownies with extra dark chocolate ships and craisins!
Starting a new feature of weekly recipes from SteelMeadow Farm. This week’s installment are Farmhouse Brownies– they are freakin’ easy and so gooooood. You can find the recipe link here, which will take you to the farm’s website: www.steelmeadowfarm.com
