Thanksgiving at Six Arrows Farm!

~Six Arrows Pastured Turkey~

Gravy

Dressing

~Vegetables~

Mashed Potatoes

Squash

Sweet Potatoes

Green Beans

Creamed Peas

Corn Pudding

~Whole Wheat Breads~

Herb Bread

Rosemary Garlic Bread

Wheat Germ Rolls

~Salads~

Broccoli Salad

Lettuce Salad

~Hors Douvres~

Baby Dill Pickles and Olives

Bite Brownies

Crackers and Cheese

~Desert~

Homemade Pumpkin Pie (served with whipped cream)

Pecan Pie (served with whipped cream)

~Beverages~

Punch

Cider (served with whipped cream and caramel)

Coffee

Hot Tea

Iced Tea

And other things too good to mention. :o)

Read more on our Six Arrows Home blog

Moving the hens to their warm winter quarters...

 You would be surprised how warm it is in this hoophouse on a cold day. Because the light plastic allows solar heat to penetrate all day the house is still fairly warm even at night. Our hens LOVE digging through their deep bedding during the winter months searching for grains or bugs. This process of disturbing their bedding surface enables the chips to compost creating additional heat. Our job is to keep the right bedding depth maintaining a healthy carbon-nitrogen ratio so their home is always clean and sweet smelling (that distinct sweet pickley smell that a farmer especially appreciates :o) ).

Sam makes sure his birds have a clean new home.

Tucking in the Garden...

Ben heads out to the garden to stir in the compost.

Thinking in terms of baking, he's kneading it for the last time before the final deliciously long rest! :o)

Edmund says hello...

Autumn Prose

The mesmerizing log-splitter convert thick chunks of trees into aromatic wedges for the stove, Sam rushing across the living room floor to catch sight of the grain carts or combines rumbling down the gravel road, the sharp bright autumn sky, tall boots, hearing the boys wake early in the morning to tramp over frosty turf and leaves with their guns on their shoulders, cutting up venison in the kitchen and wrapping it for the freezer, the tip of my nose bright and chilled with the snap of early morning air, the sweet and bitter rush of cold air invading my lungs, two pairs of socks, the way warm food sizzling in the kitchen gets more savory and inviting the colder it is outside, standing in the freshly shorn fields and listening to the fall wind worry the lifeless leaves and trumpet the coming of snow with every breath, planning resplendent and engorging menus with which we will laden the Thanksgiving table, cold fingers and toes to tickle each other’s necks, plants and greenery buttoning up against the cold and retreating into the heart of the earth, the myriad shades of brown, stocking caps, trees, rigid and shadowy pillars, casting severe elaborate shapes on the leaf-mottled floor, the smoky, earthy tang that accompanies the boys every time they come in for dinner, long sleeves, birds singing the autumn symphony, and frost scattering its wonderful lace-work abundantly. Summer is glorious melody, winter is lilting song, spring is ecstatic whistling, but autumn is magnificent harmony.

Our precious chocolate Labrador, Lucy the Valiant, passed away last week. We were very sad to lose our faithful canine friend with her unique personality and lasting loyalty.

As the farm mascot, Lucy earned one of her many titles… “greeter dog.” We miss her every time we pull up the driveway, her perky ears, her energetic race up the garden path, her clever ploys for treats, her solemn hazel eyes that would plead tears out of a rock, the way she watched movies with us, rode faithfully in the ranger with whoever was driving, endured “love” from the cats and ate everything from chicken feed to green beans…we are so thankful that we had eleven and a half years with the best dog any family could have.

We were talking about all of those things and observed that God had truly blessed us with a good dog. Even a dog in its own way, can us teach lessons of loyalty, faithfulness, endurance and patience.