Raspberry Jam

We picked raspberries from our raspberry patch today. Our berries are ever bearing bushes, which means they have fruit on them almost all summer. This also means multiple pickings. The other pickings we ate! Yummy! Like on cake and ice cream! Anyway we are making freezer jam with the berries. This jam seems to set up better, than canned jam.  

Yummy Raspberries

Also, we are canning tomatoes like crazy! Froze sweet corn the other day and made dilly beans. Tomorrow we will pick, blanch, and freeze some green beans. Stay tuned for our recipe on blanching green beans, it's so good! 

Wanted: Corn Thieves

We just got back from a week at the cabin, we had so much fun camping, fishing, boating, and four- wheeling. But... we came home to find someone had eaten some of our sweet corn! Those darn raccoons!! Our corn is not quit ready but the coons ate it anyway. Tonight we put a radio out there, which is said to work to keep those raccoons away. We would love to hear any ideas to keep the coons away and to save what corn we have.

Wanted: Corn Thieves

Summer Canning

Ted "guarding" the fresh produce!

These are just a few of the MANY tomatoes that are to become salsa, spaghetti sauce, marinara sauce, or stewed tomatoes. We also have cucumbers coming for dill and bread & butter pickles. We are also going to be canning many more things so stay tuned!

This book looks awesome! You can enter in a drawing giveaway at http://mountainhomequilts.blogspot.com/ Which by the way is a very interesting blog so... go check it out! Also check out my poll and vote.

Helpful Hint for Keeping Rabbits Cool

In these hot August days, the heat can cause a lot of stress on animals. We have found some ways to keep bunnies cool and happy. Today the temps. reached over 90 degrees F and it felt like 100.

This is Skipper the rabbit(not such a great picture, but it shows the point.) She is licking a chunk of ice cubes. The rabbits seem to enjoy eating the ice and it cools them off.

Mr. Molly likes to rest his head and feet on the frozen water bottle. I just take used water bottles and fill them with water and pop them in the freezer. The rabbits really enjoy laying by them or even on them.

Snickers likes to lay by his water bottle. You may ask, "do the rabbits eat the plastic bottles?" No, they do not, our bunnies just lay by the bottles or on them, but never do they eat them.

Ted and the goats love to eat ice too on hot days!

What do you do to cool your animals when the temp. rises?

Butch and Duke

Here are Butch and Duke. Duke is the black Pygmy goat, he is some what of a grumpy goat.

This is Butch and he is Pygmy- Boer goat. He has a really gentle personality and loves people.