This Thanksgiving, I am especially thankful for the animals on our farm. They give us lots of food and entertainment, especially the pesky goats. Our Ancona ducks are an endangered heritage breed. They like to hang out with black and white things, like soccer balls. No, I'm just kidding. I merely thought the football in the picture was a nice touch.
The goats give us milk, cheese, yogurt, and kefir. Let me introduce Gracie and Coco. I know, I know, they don't have any ears, but that's because they are a breed of goats called "La Mancha", known for their high butterfat, high solids milk, which is ideal for cheese making.
This year, we raised 60 meat birds with our neighbors. They are the tastiest chickens I have ever eaten, fed on organic grain and free range pasture. Our ten and eight year old sons Kai and Lukas were very involved in the whole process. They know where their food comes from. They nurtured the little baby chicks, watched them grow, and finally enthusiastically eviscerated their guts after they were slaughtered, ahhhh.... harvested.
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| Dear chicken, thank you for becoming our Thanksgiving dinner |
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| Plucking chickens is a nasty, nasty job. You can see how much I am enjoying the process. |
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I know it's gross and graphic, but this picture distills Lukas' helpful spirit. Notice how some chickens are much plumper than others.
And here is the chicken when it came out of the oven for our Thanksgiving dinner. I like to bake it with bacon, to keep it really moist, and to show off the bacon that came from pigs raised on the whey brom my cheese making.
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And finally, I am extremely grateful for my family. My kids have brought so many blessings into my life, and Steve, my amazing husband... how lucky am I?
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| Kai |
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| Maple Leaf... no, wait! It's Lukas! |
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| Little Eva |
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| Steve, the wilderness man, who knows how to blow fire into a flame, made from rubbing two sticks together! |
awesome!!!
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