March Snow Storm

As we sit here in the dark the fire keeps us toasty warm. The power shut off about 8pm. The snow still falling not sure when it will stop. It's a wet snow. I'm sure the reason for the power outage. To look outside it's like a wonderful winter wonderland. So pretty. Just as long as your loved ones are home safe and dry. The family is sitting by the fire playing some games. It is kind of nice to loose power. Gives a family time to shut off and use the power of conversation.

School let the children come home early this afternoon. It gave them some great time to play outside. 

Not sure if you can see them in the picture. They are playing in the front of the pigs. I love watching them play together. 

When they were done they had time to play with the pigs. Russell is trying to hug them. They just think he has food. 

It's now 9:30pm power came back on just in time for bed. Good night!

Run free you Maine Deer, But why my car :(

Well not such a good morning.  Things can be hard enough trying to get all this going.  We have all we can do sometimes to make a dollar stretch.  I know it was only a matter of time.  We see them almost every day walking across our street.  We post no trespassing signs all over our land.  We don't want people hunting here.  We do not eat Deer so we would never hunt them.  I do know hunting helps keep the population down.  But until today they have never done me any harm.  But today we are grateful no one was hurt.  Well no one except our car that is.  We really don't have the money to fix it.  It will set us back.  Car parts are not something we can grow.  Such mixed feelings this morning.

Poor car. Funny how a deer can walk/run away from this. Drivers door won't even open. Oh well nothing we can do about it now. Just always be careful early morning and around sundown. That seems to be when they want to cross the streets. Drive safe. 

Round House Farm Roasted Potatoes

Roasted Potatoes are a favorite side dish for my family.  They are so simple to make.  I always make extra and freeze some.  When someone wants a snack they are quick and easy to pop in a toaster oven or microwave to reheat.
http://youtu.be/WMeZCR4Yb4o
Follow the link above for the fastest way to make your families favorite Roasted Potatoes.  It is so easy you will not want to make them any other way.  It is great to bring as a pot luck dish.  A party favorite.
Enjoy!

School Lunch

Today was a great day.  We were invited to have our lunch at our daughters school.  What a delight it was that both my husband and I could go.  I know it just thrilled my daughter.  She is a thriving young lady in fourth grade.  She was very excited about having both of her parent join her for her lunch.  The town of Skowhegan has a great school system and we did get lucky when we moved here.  Melanie has adjusted well to our move to this town and a new school.  She has made many friends and really fits in.  We were informed this morning we would be sitting with her best friend Zoe and her mother.

After our lunch the school was having a book fair.  Well of course Melanie was eager to purchase a few books.  Melanie loves to read.  It was a wonderful afternoon having lunch with Melanie and her classmates.  We thank her school for the opportunity share a meal.

Love our Goat Barn

Now that we have a homestead we look at everything close before we call it trash.  When someone states something is junk we want to find another purpose for it.  With winter coming we would be in need of a barn for our goats.  We could not afford a barn made out of wood at this time.  We had to become creative.  When looking on craigslist we noticed people were always selling cheap tag along campers.  It gave us an idea to find someone wanting to give away or sell one cheap.  We started looking and sending offers on campers.  Our goal was to only spend $100.  We didn't care what the inside looked like we were going to gut it.  Finally we found one that the person was willing to sell us for $100.  It was in bad shape.  But we seen potential.
We bought it, brought it home and went to work.

 First we stripped everything out of the inside.  Then primed the outside of it white.

We painted the outside a fun color.  Then added some fun shutters.  We made a couple of stalls inside.  There is a great place in the center for milking.  The best part of making the barn out of a camper is if we ever wanted to change the location of our paddock we can move the barn.  Its on wheels.  We just love it.  The goats just love it also.

Round House Farm Peanut Butter Bars, Family Fun

We never buy pre packaged foods.  Making our own crackers and treats not only helps cut cost it lets you know exactly what ingredients are in what we eat.  Here on the farm we experiment with all our recipes.  We try just mixing all kinds of ingredients together until we come up with a family favorite.  We have some misses but most of the time we find a real hit.  Plus its a great time to experiment with food.  The goal is to try and make things that cost less and are better for you.  If you can even cut a tablespoon of sugar out of a recipe I think you have helped your waist line.  So many times I try to cut out eggs and milk and use other ingredients.  Many times you never even miss them.  Some recipes you can cut those ingredients in half.  The bottom line is just try.  Worst case you feed it to the animals in your home.  They will love your experiments.  Today I will share with you a Round House Farm Peanut Butter Bar recipe my daughter and I created.  My family cant get enough of these.  It is simple and easy.  I am sure you always have these ingredients in your home.
Watch the video on
http://youtu.be/kn0MvEEszrk

If for some reason it does not get you to the link here is the recipe:
1 cup melted butter and 1 cup peanut butter mixed together
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
mix well now add 1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
mix well
add 3/4 cup oats
now place in foil lined pan and bake for 25 mins at 375 degrees.
Its that easy!

Warm weather tease

Snow covers the ground. The sky is full of sun. It has been an amazing weekend. With temps reaching 40 we feel like it's a heat wave. Let the sun shine!

The ground is wet with the snow melting. Brings us to thinking about mud season. When we moved to Maine we quickly got our lesson in mud season. We live on a dirt road. After living here a month our car was stuck in the mud. Even did damage to the transmission getting it out of the mud. This year we know the soft areas. We will try not to get stuck again. The town spends most of the summer re-grading the road. Big trucks go up and down the road one or even two times a month. It does not stay smooth for long. The road is not traveled by many cars. Just the few homes that live on our road. 

But that is enough to make pot holes that have taken a muffler off one of our cars. Living in Maine you need 4 wheel drive cars for sure. If it's not the snow then the mud will do you in without it.

Well today is spring ahead daylight savings. This bring happy thoughts of our upcoming spring. Let the Sun Shine!