by Kristin Echols | Dec 2, 2018 | Homestead
Yesterday afternoon it was sunny, so I suggested to Shawn that we walk to the mailbox. This is a nice 1.7-mile roundtrip. I put on a cotton/wool long sleeve base layer shirt with a fleece shirt over, thick athletic pant, knit gloves, and a beanie hat. By the time...
by Kristin Echols | Oct 28, 2018 | Cooking, Homestead
It was hot. Then it was not. We had mid to upper 90s in August, a week or so of 80s in September, then it dropped into the 60s mid-month. On October 3rd, we had our first freeze. That left us with a bunch of green tomatoes still on the vine, so we canned green...
by Kristin Echols | Sep 23, 2018 | DIY Projects, Homestead
It has been six months since we retired and moved to Idaho, and what a busy six months it has been! I think we’ve accomplished a lot both inside and out. Inside Unpacked (mostly) Removed tons of nasty carpet and wood flooring Laid over 2,000 sq ft of new...
by Kristin Echols | Sep 9, 2018 | DIY Projects, Homestead
We are surrounded by wheat fields, so we know wheat grows well in our area. In early spring, Shawn planted a pound of wheat seeds in a row in our garden. For the longest time, it was the only crop in the garden that seemed to be growing. By midsummer, the wheat was...
by Kristin Echols | Aug 13, 2018 | Cooking, Homestead
After a couple of weeks with days in the 90’s (and two over 100), we are starting to see fruit and vegetables ripening in our garden. We’ve picked some cherry tomatoes, Roma tomatoes, Armenian cucumbers, onions, tomatillos, chilies, and plums. ...
by Kristin Echols | Jul 30, 2018 | Homestead
I’ve never really had an interest in birds. Maybe it’s because we didn’t have a lot of birds in our suburban backyard in Elk Grove; just the annoying blue jays in our redwood trees. Now we have an abundance of birds in our yard. I cleaned the kitchen window...
