No, we’re not getting snow like they did around Great Falls and where we used to live. They got over 8 inches! And not in the mountains, either. Wow, that’s early. Instead, we went from nearly 80 degrees F down to just above 40 this morning. And it’s drizzling rain. Yes, we need it but there still is a lot I’d like to get done outside. Oh well, if it’s one thing we homesteaders learn is to adjust. So, instead of picking beans and digging carrots, I’m going to turn some of those hundreds of jalapeños Will picked in the Sand Garden, into more Cowboy Candy. At this rate, I won’t have to make another batch for a couple of years anyway! He still is going to pick the Sugar Rush Peach and Striped Sugar Rush Peach hot peppers in the hoop house. From those, I’ll make Gaucho Relish, which we really love. I made 4 half-pints of watermelon rind sweet pickle. We really love it, but it is so labor intensive! Out of a medium sized watermelon, I only got four small jars. But boy, it is worth it at holidays.
Grandson, Drew’s generator kind of died yesterday. It starts and immediately dies. No, it’s not low oil shutdown; Will checked. We took it to Hibbing this morning to get repaired and the guy said he’s two to three weeks behind. Luckily, Drew has a backup generator. Around here, we try to have a plan A, B, and C. Just in case. On the way back, we stopped so I could get pictures of the Trumpeter swan family we had seen on a pond, earlier. Yep, they were still there. Mom, Dad, and four cygnets, grey but big and flying. I’m sure they are resting during their fall migration south.
Will finished haying yesterday and is busy cutting more firewood to split. Our woodshed is full with a huge pile, but it is not stacked yet. Once stacked, it’s shocking how little that huge pile actually was. Beware folks, buying a “truckload,” just thrown into a pile in the back of a pickup. No, it isn’t a cord. Or even a half cord. The 4′ x 4′ x 8′ stacked pile is what is measured for a full cord, not just a “huge” pile in the truck bed.
As soon as it warms up a little and quits drizzling, we’ll pull the carrots and last of the onions because that unwelcome snow is coming before too long. Some forecasters say we’ll have a mild winter with little snow and others say we’re in for a wham-bang winter. The beavers aren’t agreeing with the last guess. I’m hoping for a “normal” winter, not with either dire forecast coming true. I guess we’ll see. Better get ready, just in case, though. — Jackie
