Things I thought I'd never do

Lately there has been a list of things that we have adopted/started doing and I would never have guessed we would do them.  I thought I'd share some of them. 

1. Start up "windowsill farming."

This was our bumper crop of persimmons.  Last year we had 8 total and this year we had closer to 60.  Persimmons are better the riper they are, so we ripened them in the windowsill.  Any recipes for persimmons?  I've got cups of puree frozen in my freezer.

 

 

Elli polishing our apples from our huge apple harvest. 

The apple tree in our yard yielded a lot of apples this year.  I don't know what kind of apples they are, but here they describe them as "winter apples," if stored properly they'll last into the winter.  So we picked, polished and carefully packed boxes of apples into our outside kitchen.  Again the "Ma Ingles" feeling washed over me.  After canning 30 kg (66lbs) of apples for applesauce, the option to store and enjoy fresh apples into the winter was so promising.  A week after storing them, I checked on the apples.  I found an apple in the box almost half eaten with large gnawing marks; telling that a fat rat had rained on my Laura Ingles moment.  I was pretty grossed out and upset about it.  We couldn't figure out another solution that would allow good air circulation to keep the apples fresh but keep rats from getting to them. 

We decided to move them into our large guesting room and store them on the window sills.  The room is in the shade and stays incredibly cool.  No evidence of rats and we still have a handful of apples to finish off.  

With the help of a team of 5 women from Richmond, I canned 50 kgs (110lbs)  of tomatoes this fall.  Yet I knew this wouldn't be enough to get us through the winter.  I honestly was out of canning energy; it was probably the applesauce that did me in.  One Saturday morning in November, I was out with Elli and Elias and saw some grandmas in town from a neighboring village.  One was selling buckets of green tomatoes.  I bought all she had, 20 more kgs.  And you guessed it, they ended up in my window sills.  Those 20 kgs have slowly ripened and I've used them in soups and spaghetti.  My strategy has been to delay opening my canned tomatoes as long as I can.  And so far it's worked.  I haven't needed to use my canned tomatoes yet, so we should make it until fresh come out close to May. The kids have requested hamburgers tomorrow and I think we'll use one of our last tomatoes as garnish. 

2. Dress my boys in tights (though we call them "long socks" to soften the blow).  They are the best long underwear ever for small ones.  It keeps the socks on, and in Ezekiel's case, the chubby calves covered.  His little calves pour over the top of his socks and are never covered by his pants.  Long socks are the perfect solution!  We find them locally and they have pictures of dump trucks, motorcycles and race cars on them.  Which makes it much more convincing for the little boys wearing them. 

Elias modeling a pair of long socks

Two brothers in their socks

They're going to be good buddies and will more than likely keep Mom hopping with all the mischief they discover together!

  3. Wear a bathrobe with matching sweats out in public.  It is one of the acceptable options for winter dressing here.  And with the investment of $45, I'm walking the streets in my bathrobe!  It is complete with sequins spelling out "Romeo Life" and a styling silhouette of a girl and her poodle.  When I saw these pictures I laughed out loud.  I told Austin it's funny to think that wearing this outfit is my form fitting option.  And yet it is still bulky and has me looking as large as a barn. 

 4. Sweep my kitchen floor out my front door.  Over top of our concrete kitchen floor, we've laid a carpet for the winter.  The floor crumbs are real.  Instead of using a broom and dustpan, I've adopted the local solution of just sweeping it out the door.  Most dustpans don't rest flat on the floor, which can prove frustrating.  And the little birds are quick to pick at the crumbs. 

The crumbs collecting at the door.  I did pick up the paper/crafting trash before I swept the rest out the door.  

5. Buy local long johns.  Leapord print and all, and I love them.  The microfleece lining makes them super warm.  They are one size fits all, so the inseam is a little short.  But for $6, I can't complain!  Don't have a photo, and don't know if I'd post if it I did.

Just thought I'd share some of the new solutions to life we've discovered lately.