Archive for May, 2010
May 17, 2010 – Garage as Test Case
We’re moving the color scheme of the house from white and green to butter yellow and green. We’ve already put the new siding up of the dormers when we did the 3rd floor of the house and used the leftover siding for the peaks of the garage. I hadn’t come around to painting the rest of the garage the same color yet.
In this photo, the first coat is about 80% complete. I did manage to finish this side and prime another side today.
one year ago…no post
May 16, 2010 – Peonies and Ants
Very few things go together more than ants and peonies.
There’s hardly a peony anywhere not covered with ants. The ants neither harm nor help the peonies, but can just be a pain for bringing them into the house. You can cut peonies at the “soft marshmallow” stage before they open up and shake off the ants and then bring them in the house to open up – free of ants.
one year ago…no post
May 15, 2010 – Eight Year Old Boy “Records”
See the red spot in the tree? That’s Martin, the monkey.
A few days ago Martin came to me with a revelation, “Dad, I set a record for the farm.” Curious, I asked what it was. He said with some pride and trepidation, “I have the highest pee on the farm.” Still curious, I asked, how high and where – thinking he might have decided to launch out his window. Instead, he said, up above the power lines on the south tree.” So, there it is, a record any eight-year old boy would treasure. I just asked him to let me know next time he planned on beating the record, so I could plan my travels around the farm without an umbrella.
one year ago…”no post”
May 14, 2010 – Closing Out the School Year
Lately there’s been many lasts. The last band concert, the last this, the last that. One of those lasts is the last debate (forensics) banquet. No doubt because of plenty of practice from her sharp-witted parents, debate was one of her favorite activities – highlights included being the first student in 10 years to make debate nationals from her high school, and a finalist as “senior of the year” in the state of Iowa.
At the banquet, she got to grab all her trophies that had been accumulating in the school trophy case. Of course many thanks go out to her coaches, who endured many hours on the road and in hotels for out-of-town tournaments!
one year ago…no post
May 13, 2010 – Thingamajig Thursday #208
Here’s this week’s thingamajig Thursday.
Also check out the last thingamajig answer.
As always, put your guess in a comment below.
Hold mouse over this sentence to pop-up answer.
one year ago…”‘Eagle Lake, Acadia National Park”
May 12, 2010 – Fern Brings New Goat to High Hopes
Fern delivered her first kid! Fern is a very undersized doe and we weren’t sure how she’d do with her first delivery. Because she was so small, we waited two years to breed her.
But she delivered her first kid with no problems and we can now introduce you to Hazel.
Martin had naming rights to this kid, based on the fact he was the only child home when the baby was discovered – Martin picked Hazel as the name, so Hazel it is.
one year ago…”Cadillac Mountain, Acadia National Park”
May 11, 2010 – Spring Bee Renewal
The spring beekeeping tasks are at hand. Two of the three hives needed to be rejuvenated this spring. So two hives have new queens.
The new queens were put in the hives in mid-late April and now it’s time to check on how the hive is doing. The smoker is ready in anticipation of opening the hive.
They are all off to a good start – with more brood cells and great hive activity – so the queens stuck around and are laying eggs.
one year ago…”Ship Harbor, Acadia National Park”
May 10, 2010 – Frosty Mother’s Day
Although a few mothers may have received frosty vibes from their children, at high hopes, the only frost was outside on the ground.
As the sun came up, it quickly melted the frost away. I don’t think we’ll have any ill effects as we only had cold-hardy plants in the ground, and most of the fruit trees are finished blooming, and the frost was light enough, I don’t think it will bother the developing fruit.
one year ago…”College of the Atlantic”
May 9, 2010 – Cuban Bread
It’s hard to go wrong with homemade bread, especially if someone else is willing to make it for you! This is Cuban Bread, an easy cousin to French Bread. Linda provides the recipe following the photo.
Ingredients:
5 to 6 cups of bread or all-purpose flour
2 packages dry yeast
1 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2 cups hot water (120-130 degrees)
Sesame or poppy seeds (optional)
I used my kitchen-aid mixer to mix and knead the dough. Prepare a baking sheet by greasing it or with corn meal or parchment paper. I liked the texture of the corn meal.
Place 4 cups of flour in a large mixing bowl add yeast, salt, and sugar. Stir until blended. Pour in hot water and beat for 3 minutes with the mixer flat beater.
Gradually work in the remaining flour 1/2 C at a time. I used a scant 5 cups. Mix until the dough takes shape and is no longer sticky. Knead using the mixer for 45 seconds (or 8 minutes by hand).
Place dough in a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm place for 15 minutes or until the dough doubles in size.
Punch down the dough, turn it out on the work surface, and cut into 2 pieces. Shape each into a round. Place on the baking sheet. With a sharp knife, slash an X on each of the loaves, brush with water, and if desired, sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds.
Bake at 400 degrees (350 degrees in convection oven) for 45-50 minutes. Place the baking sheet on the middle shelf of a cold oven. Place a large pan of hot water on the shelf below, and heat the oven to 400 degrees. The bread will continue to rise while the oven is heating. Bake for about 50 minutes, or until the loaves are deep golden brown. Thump on the bottom crusts to test for doneness. If they sound hard and hollow, they are baked.
Note: Since the bread does not have shortening, it will not keep beyond a day or so. Even though it may begin to stale, it makes excellent toast for many days and freezes well.
one year ago…”Bar Harbor, Maine”
May 8, 2010 – Ecoheartland Film Features High Hopes Gardens!
Today we received a surprise in the mail – our own copy of an Ecoheartland DVD! Back in June, 2008, a couple of filmmakers stopped by – you can see the original blog post and a photo of the filmmaking brother duo on the June 23, 2008 blog entry. We’re in good company among Iowans in the film – Paul Willis from Niman Ranch, Mike Coon from PowerFilm, Inc. in Ames, and Fred Kirschenmann from the Leopold Center. A film trailer follows:
I’d like to thank Nick and Max for their project and for representing us accurately and professionally. They indeed did produce what they set out to do!
one year ago…”Preview of Maine Trip”
May 7, 2010 – Spring Lettuce
Latest E.Coli lettuce recall/scare – Not gonna worry about it – gonna go out to the garden!
This lettuce is the Pinetree Seeds variety mix.
Believe it or not, these are all volunteers from last year in an untilled portion of the garden.
Lookin’ very good!
one year ago…”Thingamajig Thursday #163″
May 6, 2010 – Thingamajig Thursday #207
Here’s this week’s thingamajig Thursday.
Also check out the last thingamajig answer.
As always, put your guess in a comment below.
Hold mouse over this sentence to pop-up answer.
one year ago…”‘Mud Room Renovations”
May 5, 2010 – New Chicks Arrive on the Farm
Yesterday 103 broiler chicks arrived at the farm. They are safely tucked in the brooding area.
I’m sure there will be more photos as these guys grow up. The weather, of course, is supposed to turn colder this weekend – into the 30′s (no matter when the chicks are ordered, you can always count on cold weather very soon after their arrival.
one year ago…”Feeding the World”
May 4, 2010 – Thoughts on Youth Coaches
I didn’t think I’d write about a situation Martin was put in by his little league coach last year – but the triangulation of a few events, brings it finally to bear. Martin played t-ball for a couple of years and last year was in his first year of real pitching ball – at seven years old.
A few games into the season, when it appeared that Martin was still picking up the knack of hitting the ball, he came to bat with the bases loaded and two outs. Martin stood and watched as the pitcher threw three called strikes, as Martin stood still with the bat on his shoulder – not even attempting a swing. He ran back to the dugout, tears streaming down his eyes, and bravely took the field with his glove, while his parents and spectators all wondered quietly to themselves why he didn’t even take a swing.
On the way home, Martin told us that he wanted to swing, but before he went up to bat, the coach told him not to swing at any pitches and that he might get walked. So Martin listened, and suffered the humiliation of standing there, bases loaded, and not swinging as the coach instructed, while all the spectators and his parents saw him not even try to hit the ball.
So what’s the coach’s motivation to put a learning boy in that situation? What could possibly be so important as to not let a seven year old play? I don’t know, but can make some assumptions. For what it’s worth in a league of seven and eight year old boys, his son was the “star” of the team. His older brothers were good high school players. Was the rest of the team just an accoutrement to his son’s exploits? Did he have to win at all costs, even at this level?
So earlier this year, Martin came home from school and said he thought he’d “take a year off” from baseball. I commented that there were lots of fun things to do in the summer and remarked that we didn’t even get a sign-up sheet from school. He said that the sheets were passed out weeks earlier and that he (who brings every paper home religiously) had thrown it in the trash at school.
So all you good coaches out there – never doubt that you have the ability to encourage and engage players in a lifelong love of the sport and a team. Martin learned a different lesson. I was thinking about this as I drove home and saw all the fields filled with kids, but not Martin among them.
But when I turned in the driveway, I was happy to see Martin and Emma playing catch in the yard.
one year ago…”A Walk in the Spring Forest”
