June Harvest Totals and post-VBS

 June Harvest Totals:

Eggs - 135

Garlic scapes - 3

Pea pods - 1/2 c

Tatsoi - 2c

Obviously, this was not the kind of harvest I was looking for!  Deer and severe heat were both issues, and eggs are lagging because a raccoon took out 4 layers and our beloved Rooster Sam.  It's not been fun.  We have re-secured the coop, but we now only have 6 hens.  I was looking to raise meat birds and a few regular chicks, but we will have to increase the number of layers, so more chicks will be forthcoming.  

Last week was Vacation Bible School week, so Lydia, Gyunay, Emry, and I helped out every morning.  Here is Emry getting ready for a skit with the rest of the cast.  He was so excited that he got to be Saint Juan Diego, one of his favorite saints.

On Friday, we had an epic swim birthday party for Gyunay.  His birthday is actually this week, but we celebrated early by renting out the aquatic center and inviting the homeschool group and our family.  He had so much fun.  The weather was great for it, and it was really nice.  It was so nice, the homeschool moms are considering pooling money to rent it again next year. 

On Sunday, five of the kids and I headed to the Newport Aquarium, where we met up with my family to explore sea life.

Summer Activities

While we were at the cabin, Nathaniel bought me a little hand loom.  I've been busy weaving, which is a good activity for me when I'm low on energy and need to sit.

I do enjoy it, although it is of course a more maddening form of weaving.  Fancier looms are easier to use, and getting the tension right is a bit tricky.  Still, I've gotten pretty decent at it.  Now I just need to decide what to do with it, because I can really only make dish-rag-sized pieces.  Oh, well, I always seem to need dish rags.

Nathaniel and Malachi have been enjoying golfing together quite a bit this summer.

This week, the younger three kids and I are helping at Vacation Bible School, so it's a very busy but fun week.  I'm in crafts, Lydia is with preschoolers, Gyunay is in snacks, and Emry is in outdoor games.

 

Fun with Pigs

Cadiz, Kentucky has a traditional ham festival every fall, and the town is decorated in lots of pigs.  The kids naturally love this, so we had some fun taking pictures with pigs.

We also headed to Paducah one day.  I'd never been to Paducah before, and it was a nice day trip for us.  The highlight was definitely the tour we had at the Hotel Metropolitan:

It's a Green Book hotel, and it's being restored and turned into an African American Museum.  The curator gave us an incredible tour that was entirely in persona of the original owner of the hotel, Ms. Maggie.  Nathaniel and I frequent historic tours, and this one was by far one of the best!

 

1850s Homeplace in Land Between the Lakes

While we were at the cabin, we enjoyed visiting many sites around there.  One favorite of mine is the 1850s homeplace.  It has a farm set up as it would have looked in Land Between the Lakes in the 1850s.  

Lydia naturally gravitated towards all the animals.  They had pigs (guinea hogs), ducks (cayuga), chickens (dominiques), sheep (Leichester I think), and mules.  

The pig was begging for a treat.

We miss our sheep.  These sheep were pretty agreeable.  We petted all 6 of them.

 

Cabin Vacation

 We had a great week at my parents' cabin on Lake Barkley!  

Emry and Gyunay enjoyed fishing several times over the week.  They didn't catch much, but they weren't skunked.  

All 5 of the kids who came enjoyed tubing.  

Fun with Cousins

Two weeks ago, my sister and two of her kids came to visit.  We enjoyed a zoo trip together.

Pilot had a birthday!

He's 20 now, so I have 3 sons in their twenties.

And Lydia lettered in track for pole vault!

 

May Harvest Totals and Yogurt

 

May harvests were small.  The weather has been really nice, but cool and rainy quite a bit lately.  The radishes bolted due to early heat, before this cooler snap.  I hope to see the garden grow a lot in June.

Eggs - 186

Garlic scapes - 37

Pea pods - 2 1/2 cups

Radishes - 4

Strawberries - 4 cups

Tatsoi (a leafy green) - 1 cup

Also, the kids got me a simple yogurt making jar system for Christmas, and I finally used it.

I made yogurt!  Wonderful, creamy, delicious yogurt!

Gyunay and I have already eaten half the quart jar.  I will be making more soon, possibly today.