Around the Farm...

Frankenfoot is all healed on the outside and feeling pretty good.

Inside, there is still some swelling around the joint and it lets me know when I need to sit down for a while and rest.  I see the doctor tomorrow and hopefully he'll tell me I'm not overdoing it.

Strawberries in abundance from Bountiful Baskets! Over the past two weeks I got 16 pounds of them.  I put up 8 pints of strawberry jam,

and dried 12 pounds of them in my dehydrator.

It's amazing how they shrink down to nothing...

I've been making some fermented things:  yogurt, sourdough starter, and creme fraiche.  It all sounds very fancy but it's stinkin' easy.

strawberry yogurt, sourdough starter, creme fraiche

In fact, there's no reason to buy sour cream when you can make creme fraiche in 24 hours.  Get a pint of heavy cream (whipping cream) - NOT ultrapasturized, and dump it in a bowl.  Add 3 tablespoons of buttermilk and gently whisk into the cream.  Put a clean cloth over the bowl (I use cheesecloth) and leave it for 24-36 hours.  Our house is chilly in the winter, so it takes a little longer.  When it's thick, it's done.  Put a lid on it and stick it in the refrigerator.

Yesterday I worked in the herb garden, building up the bed and making a (hopefully) dog unfriendly border using some paving stones that have been lying around for ages.  I also transplanted my bay laurel tree from a container into the ground.  This morning I'll plant some peas, nasturtiums, and calendula seeds. (Or maybe not.  I just went outside and it's freakin' cold and windy.)

Murnie checking out the new border.

At the back of the garden, you can see my upcycled bowling ball.  Here's a close up:

I got the idea for it on Pinterest here.

Remember the lace wimple I blogged about a while back?  Well, I got busy with it...

and now it's finished! I learned a lot by making it - provisional cast on, how to add beads to your knitting, and a picot bind off.

I must remind you that I am neither a professional model nor a professional photographer...

So while some of us are buzzing around doing a million and one things, others of us are just lying around taking it easy...

Murnie the Dog

Rosko the Chihuahua

Sophy the Cat

Nelly-cat

Frankenfoot, a finished project and the amazing cleaner recipe

Here is Frankenfoot, 12 days after surgery.  I am pleased, my doctor is pleased, my foot is relatively pleased.  I can now wear a real shoe, but have to be careful that it doesn't rub too much on the top of my foot, which = PAIN.  Murnie the Dog and I have walked twice around the path at the park (1 1/3 miles) for the past two days, but by the end of it we're both ready to go home and sit/lie down.

sorry for the poor color - it's my phone camera

Here is the finished forest green wimple.  It's really warm and light to wear either as a neck "scarf" or
a head warmer!  Amazingly simple to make, too.

dweebie looking model - it's hard to look stunning while managing the camera phone...

Yes, those are snowflakes and poinsettias left over from the holidays.  I have a hard time letting go...






I said I would post the recipe for the cleaner I used to clean my daughter's bathroom if it gave satisfactory results, so here it is:

1/2 cup Borax
1/2 tsp liquid soap (I used Dr. Bronner's peppermint liquid castile soap)
2 tsp. TSP (trisodium phosphate - you can find it at a hardware store.  I got mine at my local Ace.)

Swish this all around in 2 gallons of warm water.  It did the trick on the bathroom mold/mildew.  Big happies and results without the use of noxious chemicals.   

I got this recipe from a book called Nontoxic, Natural, & Earthwise by Debra Lynn Dadd.  I just checked and it's available on Amazon even though its copyright date is 1990.  Shouldn't I get a kickback from Amazon for referring you there?  How do you do that?

EEEEWWWWWW

I went to the doctor yesterday for my post op check up.  Off came the bandages and...

it's FRANKENFOOT!!!  Yeah, my foot is GREEN.  And you can see how long the incision is.  But the upside is that there's no pain and no swelling.  My doctor was amazed.  We had a little mutual admiration moment - I said it was because he is such a good surgeon.  He said it was because I followed his directions and took such good care of myself.  Probably it was a lot of both.  

Anyway, I am cleared to drive and now begins the painful process of keeping the joint moving so it doesn't freeze up.  Not the most pleasant feeling, I can assure you.  But at least I'm no longer confined to the couch.  Not digging in the garden yet, but swimming in a week and a half (once the incision is healed completely).

And now for even more  horrifying pictures...I walked into my stufio this morning looking for address labels and found this:

                                   O. M. G.  What the hell?!?

OK, it's awful.  I'm ashamed.  But by posting these pictures I have made public my personal challenge to get this mess cleaned out so I can get back to making art.  Please tell me that your art room has looked this bad at one time or another.  Please.  Even if you're lying.  Make me feel better.

I have eight weeks off before I have to go back to work.  Surely I can do it in eight weeks, right?  Say yes.  Please.  Even if you really think it's a lost cause and my room should be condemned.  I can't see you snickering behind your hand.

On a happier note, my homemade vanilla is coming along nicely.

I learned how to make it from Sarah at Frugal by Choice, Cheap by Necessity.  She's got a great blog.  Check it out if you have a moment.

Finally, in my last post I mentioned that I was going to make orecchiette and sauce from scratch.  It turned out to be soooooo delicious that it deserves a post of its own along with the recipe.  Coming soon.

Off to figure out where to begin with that god-awful mess.  If I don't reappear in a couple of days, please call the National Guard.  Tell them to bring their hazmat suits...