Oh sangria!

Made sangria for some friends' wedding - so much fun..so much fruit!

I loved her most of all

R.I.P. Whitey 

Pinky

My boss' Thunderbird

sky study #72

Sunrise Tuesday, July 24, 2012

mini donkey alert

My farming & cheese making mentors John & Mary have a new member of the family at their farm in Maine

Meet Kirby!

the gentle turkeys

The turkey family eating fallen sunflower seeds underneath the bird feeder

canine wrestling opera

When Max and Cozy wrestle, they make really funny sounds

the Summer bounty

The Scottish poet  Alexander Smith wrote, "How deeply seated in the human heart is the liking for gardens and gardening."

the tomato row - I staked them this year and highly recommend it

purple jalapeno peppers from Holman farm

pickling cucumbers

Savoy cabbage

the squash patch

the sweet corn is hanging in there 

broccoli

blackberries

my new 'Calypso' rose

guest sky study #71

Agnes' sunset in Toluca Lake/Los Angeles, CA

the hoist

blueprint of how to lift a 100+ pound milk canister

so stainless

My milk supplier is going to begin delivering my milk in 10 gallon stainless steel milk cans, which weigh in excess of 100 lbs. when full.  Mechanical wizard Dad Kurta is working on a ceiling mounted pulley system so that I will be able to hoist these up and pour their contents into the kettle.  I love the look of milk canisters.

A neighbor of mine works at a large food processor in town, and when they get rid of aging commercial pieces, he donates them to Boss Mouse.  While it would make a great looking bar cart, it will be my new brine stand in the cheese cave, replacing my upturned buckets.  Perfect.

double parms

I made 40 pounds of Parmesan cheese this past weekend - it can age for years, and I want to get these to December 2014 - now you know what you'll be getting for Christmas next year!

and then she was a he

I think my young hen Rocky is a rooster

S/he's huge, and sprouting big tail feathers - let's hope he's nicer than Penguin was

fifteen fetas

marinated feta

climb up here

New trellises, compliments of Reeber Roseworks

the free raspberries of Consumers Energy

A million wild raspberry plants underneath the power lines near the farm

hello little friend

tree frog on the lawn chair

the bountiful window box under the cheese room window

sky study #70

Can you see the animal profile?

something old, something new

a new bandaged cheddar on the right, beside one that is about three weeks old

Manchego with smoked paprika

The Sainte Maure survived and tastes great!

Hang 15

When Cozy rides in the car, she likes to get as much of her body outside of the vehicle as possible, which means balancing three of her feet on the windowsill - it's scary, but she loves doing it so I  keep a good grip on her and let her.  After I took this picture, she was also trying to balance on the side mirror.

who needs strawberries

Rhubarb

Pie

down the rabbit hole

Blackie dug an impressive tunnel in the hen yard that travels into the barn

Oh yes I did

Sainte Maure update: keeping the faith

The little goat cheese cakes are hanging in there - they're beginning to get a wooly grey jacket and are drying out and aging nicely - I formed one of the patties into a log, the traditional shape of Sainte Maure cheese. 

bottom's up

Max digs it

Amy

Wonder sister Amy from Brooklyn visited Michigan and we had the best time

on Megan & Jesse's boat

cruisin' on the riding mower

gnome at Punzel's

barn swingin'

dogs & flotation devices

huggin' a mushroom 

the view from 2 Lads Winery

Summer Goddess Amy

lunch at Taco House

she is a really great photographer