It was my bookkeeping Tuesday and I don’t know if it was because it was cold or I really don’t like it all that much – but it took forever to do. I should have been outside and into the garden by lunchtime, but for some reason it was just a slow day.
So with the winter sun sinking quickly over the hills there wasn’t much time for any gardening at all. I was so disappointed. I have a list. The things on the list need to be done. Grr.
So I looked about for things that needed doing without much time invested and decided it was time to move the goats. I spoil them a bit. When their field looks even remotely low I give them a change of scenery. This time I looked at how nicely they had taken care of the front field and decided that they should earn their keep taking care of the back lawn.
Hubby the Un-Gardener took some convincing, but I reminded him he was just too busy to do any mowing for the foreseeable future and the goats would love it as it is the loveliest grass. So he moved their wee house and we set up some posts and made sure they couldn’t reach anything we wouldn’t want eaten – like the swimming pool. Goats can eat anything!
The girls seem to love their new home and are chomping their way through the grass. The only thing that makes me nervous is if they escape and head over to my veggie garden as they are awfully close!
Peaches the chicken is on the road to recovery from her pecking order issue and is free ranging on the deck. She has decided though that the life of a house chicken is what she really wants and spends most of the day trying to get in and succeeding every time someone leaves the door open. She is like a wee vacuum cleaner, picking up bits and pieces off the floor – I just worry about what happens when her wee vacuum cleaner bag needs emptying – on my carpet! So I shoo her back out again. But since she has discovered the cat food she is all the more determined to get in!
Hubby the Un-Gardener had been busy tidying the shed and brought me a couple of pumpkins that if we don’t use soon will go off. So I decided to use the largest one to make soup. Although I didn’t end up using it all, as it was just too big. It weighed in a 7.2kg and was a Pink Jumbo Banana Squash. I decided to try a new soup making technique mum suggested where I roast the pumpkin first. I got carried away and roasted peppers, onion, garlic, rosemary, and tomatoes as well and when they were all nice and sweet I threw them all in my blender and had this amazing roast pumpkin soup. I even thinned it down so it didn’t look like orange porridge. I don’t know how far I can get away with serving soup every night, so maybe tonight we might have something else.
Come again soon – it is cold and raining and I’m not sure how I can garden in these conditions!
Sarah the Gardener : o )
Wow! Now THAT is a pumpkin! Visual trick of using your smallest child is a total success.
Hi there. It’s pretty impressive. The plant grew loads of them, so we have our work cut out for us getting through – along with all the other pumpkins I grew!
Cheers sarah : o )
Now that is a squash! Goodness me. 🙂 Our dogs are half goat and I wonder what would happen if we tied them out front.
Hi There. I’m always telling Hubby the Un-Gardener we don’t need a dog as goats are just like dogs, only you don’t need to walk them and they will eat grass, and even give you cuddles! He’s not convinced and still wants a dog!
Cheers Sarah : o )
Dogs are a lot of work, well at least one of mine is, but they do make a home! 😉
I like the sound of roasted pumpkin (and everything else :)) soup.
Hi Elaine. It was really nice. I’m definitely making it again. Having said that, the kids seemed to eat the turnip soup with more enthusiasm. Maybe they are sick of soup?
Cheers Sarah : o )
Roasted pumpkin soup is delish! You can tell hubby the ungardener that men (specifically “men”…sorry girls) who eat soup once a week (at least) live an average of 7 years more than men who don’t…eat up! 😉
Hi Fran. I’m beginning to think it’s the kids who are reluctant to eat soup regularly, and they are young and invincible and believe they will live forever so soup won’t alter that eternal fact. So I just bribe them with ice cream!
Hubby the Un-Gardener doesn’t get a choice. It’s soup or starve!
Cheers Sarah : o )
(that doesn’t stop my eldest…the son-and-heir from calling it “foods last chance to be eaten” though 😉 )
That is funny!
S : o )
I’m thinking about getting some goats and am very interested in your “wee goat house.” Do you have any details on it elsewhere on your blog?
Hi Sharon. The goat house is just something Hubby the Un-Gardener knocked up one weekend. We mostly don’t know what we are doing and just give things a whirl and hope for the best.
We have two houses one for the front of the property and one for the back.
The are both triangles with an open bottom and ends. The first one is made of wood with corrugated iron on the sides. We also put a length of wood across the top as they like to stand on the top and we didn’t want them to hurt their feet.
The second one is all metal, made out of some old frame we had leftover from when we extended the shed.
They are roughly 1 metre high and 2 metres long and are just the right size for two full ground goats to shelter from the rain.
It’s not exactly the Ritz, but it does the job and we have happy healthy goats.
Good luck with your goats – they are such lovely animals.
Cheers Sarah : o )
Thanks for the détails! We are still in the research phase but having a good time of it!
I laughed out loud when I saw the photo. What a magnificent specimen (both pumpkin and child).
The roasted pumpkin soup sounds wonderful. Made me wonder “just how big is her oven?!”
Hi Jean.
So far we have had two meals out of it, and there is still heaps left. I’m going to give the family a bit of a break from it though as the kids have started to complain.
Cheers Sarah : o )
You are making me hungry for soup, but it is a bit too hot today for a warm soup, supposed to hit 95 F.
Hi Lucinda. Sometimes you get a hankering for something from the opposite season. On a cold winters day I would give anything for just one middle of summer searingly hot day that we complain about at the time.
Cheers Sarah : o )
So true, so true.