Showing posts with label memories. Show all posts
Showing posts with label memories. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Fall 2015 is here

Fall is here and I’m getting ready to bake
Heritage Farm September 20, 2015.  Notice the faint leaves changing color in the woods?
Hi there friends.  Have the leaves started changing color where you are?  They started here.  I’ve posted a pic here in the blog of all the leaves starting to change.  The breeze is cooler and I’m here longing for summer to stay a bit longer.  I don’t want to have hoodies and stay bundled up… I love shorts and sunshine and warm breezes.  Tis the season tho.  Summer is by far our busiest time of year here on the farm and I’m starting to be ready for that part to slow down.  We have 3 more weeks of processing chickens and then 2 weeks of turkeys and poultry for the 2015 season will come to a close.  That is a major HORRAY here!  I love what we do, raising our food in the way that God designed it to be raised, but I’m ready for slower paces and new plans.
Pie Pumpkins we grew to be supplemental Pig Food!

Micah and Patrick
This fall/winter my goal is to be able to supplement our winter income of frozen meats and eggs with the Heritage Homemade baking.  I bake lots of breads and cinnamon rolls for our farmers markets throughout the summer time.  Fridays are a mad house in the baking kitchen.  There’s breads rising, baking and cinnamon rolls waiting to be iced! All those markets come to a close at the end of October and that’s when I’ll transition to full steam ahead baking for my Etsy shop and our Buying Clubs. I’m excited to see where God takes this and so happy to get the opportunity to stay home with my little ones and still earn income for our family.  I’ve got all sorts of plans for cookie trays, pies, brownies and other goodies I’ll make fresh for folks and deliver right to them!  I’m so excited.  If it doesn’t pan out as I hope, I’ll probably go get a part time job somewhere in town and work till spring.  I hope that isn’t the case though.  I’ll miss out on so much time with my boys when I can be teaching Micah more letters and numbers and cuddles with Patrick!  (I know many mom's don't have this choice like I do.  I am blessed to be able to do this, and I don't take it for granted.) We shall see.  God is good and He is my provider. 


I’d like to ask you my reader a question.  We as the farmers know all the facets that go into each piece of meat and each egg we produce.  From how much grass and hay the animal eats, to how much time it takes to wash each egg by hand, to how much each egg carton costs us.  Would you, the consumer like to know what goes into each item you buy from us, or some of them?  I wonder if you’d like to know why our chicken breast is $11.75/lb compared to what you can find it for at the Walmart, how much we actually earn profit on each dozen of eggs we sell.  I never want you to think we’d be complaining.  We do this because we know this is where God has called us to be.  We do this for Him.  Not for us.  But farming isn’t always a wealth making career choice.  Its hard work and long days, but you feel good about what you’ve done most days.  So what do you think?  Would that help you understand your food better?  Is that something you’d like to know about?  Please comment here or on my facebook page.  Thanks friends for being my friend.

Tara Burns


Down along the Clarion River

Princess Buttercup says HI!!!


Monday, August 17, 2015

Canning & Salsa-fi-ing!

Hi Friends,


I thought I’d give you a quick update.  Things have been super busy around here – as they always are during the summer.  I wish I could just write blog posts mid-air as I think of them, because then there’d be a ton more!  However, finding a moment to sit down and write something just hasn’t happened recently! 

Anywho… some of the farm team has been away for 2 weeks on a family vacation/wedding trip out west.  This means that I’ve been surrounded by my husband, my two boys and our two apprentices full time for these 2 weeks.  Praise the Lord that we have great guys who are with us this year and I enjoy being around them!  I was very excited for church yesterday tho, partly for the Godly Message and partly to see some female companions!  {I will say we are blessed to have a neighbor lady help us process chickens every week so I did have her to bring some estrogen to all the testosterone I’m surrounded by!}  I love our church, and especially love the friendships I’ve built with the families/ladies there.  We’ve all become great friends.

Today starts day 3 of canning for me.  My grandmother canned things and I have memories of her making currant jam and sealing the jars with a thick layer of wax on each jar.  Those are memories that I hold dearly and bring a smile to my face.  My mom never canned foods when I was growing up so I’m learning from scratch here.  I helped my mother-in-law a few times here and there but with her gone it’s all to me!  And I have TONS of tomatoes that I need to do something with.  I have decided to make salsa and tomato sauce.  I have all my ingredients prepped and am ready to start here in just a moment.  Wish me luck!  I’ll post some pictures when it’s all done!

~Tara