Simply Practical: tomaotes

I've been using the goat milk like crazy around here! Everything from chevre, to cake! It is so good! Just ask Winterlynn and Riley! They couldn't get enough of it when they were here! I just haven't mastered mozzarella yet. I will keep trying. Or a creamy cheese. It turns out more like a course ricotta. I will keep trying with that as well. Right now though, I'm using goat milk in recipes instead of store bought milk. It's a season, just like eggs. Sometimes you have a lot. Other times, none. I still have to buy the guys milk. They don't like drinking goat milk. Ugh! I've made creamy potatoes, a chocolate cake or two, bread, waffles, just to name a few. I'm so thankful I have learned how to milk the goat by myself! It only takes about 20 minutes from start to finish. Maybe less at times. That includes getting the goat out and fastening her to the stanchion, and taking feed over to the other goats while she's on the stanchion. I can't forget about them! She gives almost a quart at a time. I don't know if that's good or not, but it's working for me. I milk her twice a day. I've even been able to sell a gallon here and there. For pet consumption only, of course.

We had the girls here last week. I was so happy to see them all! We got a surprise day visit from Yasmine and Layla! Hurray! I don't get to see them as much lately. Soon three out of four of them will start to school! I won't get to see them for sure then. Except on occasional weekends.

The weather has been extremely humid and hot this summer! We have gotten showers on an almost daily basis; thus the reason for the extreme humidity! It's not good on a body! Especially one that is prone to headaches! They come on slowly and turn into a pounding! Glad I have some otc med to stop them! I think I'm almost over the poison ivey! It has been so itchy! Along with chiggers! I put DE on my ankles today in hopes of deterring them. The 'farmy' homestead life! I love it!

Ya'll stay in where it's cool! Don't overdo it in this heat! Blessings from Bama!

It's mating season for snakes. I caught two of these together in the hen house!

Homemade salsa from our tomatoes.

Creamy potatoes from goat milk.

Bread baking in the Sun Oven.

Momma and baby. I'll get to milk her before too long.

Fresh hot bread from the Sun Oven.

Me milking. I wear these shoes outside everyday. They work pretty good at protecting my feet from fire ant bites. The hat is my signature.

The Udderly EZ Milker works really good! Faster than hand milking, but I can do either.

We had to modify the stanchion since it was made for Nigerians.

Lemon cheesecake cooking in the Sun Oven. I've been using this a lot! The cheesecake did not turn out good. It was a lemony, sweet, goaty tasting thing! I did not like the course texture either. Cheesecakes are supposed to be creamy!

Yummy spaghetti sauce made from fresh-picked tomatoes!

Randy is doing the "Itsy, Bitsy Spider" on Riley's back!

Homemade soup made with fresh-picked tomatoes and store bought produce.

Yasmine wasn't 'in' to the swimming pools this day. The other girls had a blast! They hardly even notice the big pool is gone!

Of course a golf-cart ride is always to be had when Uncle Randy is home.

It's so hot, the rooster and hens hide in the shade.

As well as the goats.

A five gallon bucket almost full of tomatoes, was picked from my garden!

Almost seven quarts of tomato sauce from the five gallon bucket! This is the first time I've canned my own tomatoes!

A nice, big pumpkin.

A different pumpkin. They look like they're almost ready to pick!

A moon and stars watermelon.

A sugar baby watermelon.

A kakai pumpkin. I found out about this one from watching John Kohler's Grow Your Greens on youtube. They are good for seeds. I thought the chickens would like them.