Feeling Domestic

Wow, last week was a good week on the homestead. I got two things accomplished! Yay!

Other than the usual that is... I actually made some homemade baby food... for actual babies that is... not adult baby food. It was pretty easy, just steam the carrots and blend them and some water in the mighty Vita-Mix.

And the biggest challenge, I got some orange marmalade put up!

Been trying to tackle that for a month.

Two times I had bought road side oranges but never got to making the marmalade.

But this last time I got the oranges from a couple giving them away at church.

I have about twice as much as what's seen here.

Would anyone like some?

Veronica 2 Month Photo Shoot

Took some pics of the baby girl yesterday and used online photo editor, www.picnik.com.

Me vs. Spaghetti Sauce Canning

I won!

It all began Sunday around 3:30pm...

Actually it all began a few days ago when I received an abundance of tomatoes from our neighbor's garden.

To peel the tomatoes, dip them briefly in boiling water...

Then an icy cold bath... the peel slips right off.

Francesca enjoyed some tomato while waiting for her mommy to hold her...

Here's a portion of the 20+ pounds of peeled home grown tomato goodness...

Here's some of them seeded and squeezed of most of their juice.

I ended up with 40 oz of tomato juice.

Soon Jason will enjoy some home-made bloody mary's.

Mommy holding her precious tomato stained princess...

More ingredients to be added:

onion, basil, oregano, salt, pepper, garlic, red pepper...

More yummy natural vitamin c and lycopene...

There's my new monster of a pressure cooker! After I cooked the sauce and ladled it into the 9 jars, it was about 8:30. Once I got the pressure up to 11 pounds, they processed for 25 minutes.

All processed and ready to be put up!

Our teeny boppers and fuzzy butts part two

Here are the pics of our teenager chicks. They're probably about 8 weeks old. There are 4 Plymouth Barred Rocks and 2 Cochins.

A glimpse inside our new roosting house. We also have a laying house.

Our new chicken yard.

Fuzzy Butts 2:

(for fuzzy butts 1, click here)

Below are pics of our wee little ones, about a month old.

How does the time fly so fast?

Why did the chicken cross the road when there was a Tonka Truck coming?

To see posts about our poultry adventures, click here.

Coming soon!!! We adopted a rooster! He's a funny looking guy so the camera will be on him soon.

Tuscan Inspiration

My house is in dire need of some interior (and exterior) designing. We've always been interested in Victorian style but this house just doesn't quite fit the bill. I've been considering transforming it into a Tuscorian Villa! Ever since I discovered that exposed beams are common in Tuscan homes, I thought, hey, I have 3 rooms with those beams... maybe we're on to something here. I am a quarter Italian and love the food...

So I surfed online for Tuscan ideas and checked out some books from the library. The library didn't offer any books dealing solely with Tuscan decor. I did find one with a charming story packed with beautiful photos, of a California couple that restored a Villa in Tuscany. Bringing Tuscany Home isn't about the restoration but about the different aspects of the Italian countryside they fell in love with. They have their villa in Tuscany and Mediterranean style home in Marin that is heavily influenced by their love of the Tuscan life. The author, Frances Mayes, is the author of the popular novel and movie, Under the Tuscan Sun.

I like just about every major feature to Tuscan style. There's the textured walls, old world style fixtures and furniture, warm - earthy colors, wood accents, tile, rich fabrics, Trompe L'Oeil, etc. The major structural disadvantages I face are lack of high ceilings and arches. And the only Tuscan accent I'm not crazy about is wrought iron.

This week I will tackle a gnocchi recipe

Maybe next week I'll paint my living room with a faux textured look with the ragging off technique. But then again tackling the plant eating pest in my garden may be the priority over my Tuscan living room.

Vertical and Square Foot Gardening

Here's the beginnings of our garden this year. We decided to try out square foot and vertical gardening. Check out the source book here:

http://www.amazon.com/Square-Foot-Gardening-Garden-Space/dp/1579548563/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241843919&sr=8-3

The author claims that the pounds of food harvested per square feet are much more than the "typical" gardening. This is the first time I've worked with such an organized garden space. I do say that I like it! We went with two really long 1-square foot rows. 

So far I have planted 3 different beans, cilantro, sweet basil, Thai basil, Italian parsley, bell pepper, Italian pepper, serrano, jalapenos, Thai pepper, cantaloupe, watermelon, 2 different cucumbers, a few different tomatoes, carrot seeds, and probably more I am forgetting.

This is just next to the garden, the site of last year's jumbled garden. I still plan on prepping and planting in this "triangle" soon. Here will go the large and sprawling plants such as zucchini, corn, and pumpkin. Plus I will plant sunflowers and a zinnia flower bed.

Here are those said plants, just waiting for more dirt to dig into.

Stockton Church Street is Rented

Here are "after" photos (never got around to taking before's) of our third rental house. We bought this one before Francesca was born. It took quite a while to get it finished and not too long to find tenants. Here it is... on to #4!

Imagination Kids015

Click here to view these pictures larger

Imagination Kids052

Click here to view these pictures larger

Della Rental

Last Saturday we had a family clean up day at our Della Street rental property in Stockton. We purchased this 100+ year old house recently and are just about ready to rent it out. I wish I had before pics... but here are some afters. While on paternity leave, and since then, Jason made some repairs, hired someone to paint the exterior, and worked on our other rental project in Stockton. Saturday he replaced a toilet and other duties. The kids and I were mainly in charge of clearing out the basement.

Zack carrying wood out of the basement.

Vincent getting tired and dirty.

He perked up and got back to work!











Rewind a few hours and here we are at a nearby pizza joint, boys playing their first game of pool: