So, Jake is about to start his school work after we have our Bible reading, and he says, “I wish we lived in camp like the Israelites so I wouldn’t have to do math!” Funny kid.
We had a good weekend, and got through the long task of processing chickens on Saturday. We had a giant thunderstorm on Friday night, so the boys’ baseball game was canceled, leaving the whole day free for the task. It’s a good thing, because it took us longer than expected. We had nine broilers to process, which we’ve raised from 2 days to 8 weeks, so we set up a pretty awesome work station that included a table and sink, and set to work. I even made us plastic butchering aprons from an old tablecloth and duct tape, but Craig passed on his. I was thankful for mine, and the rubber boots! We set up the video camera and taped quite a bit, but after the first bird went a little rough, we knew we probably wouldn’t share it. It will be fun to watch in a few years, though, I’m sure!
As usual, when undertaking new adventures here on the ‘farm,’ we did thorough research on the internet on how to go about the task and what methods work best. We have killed chickens before, but never more than a couple at a time, and we’ve always just skinned them, since plucking seemed much too daunting a task. I only had to run in the house once, after the first bird, when I realized that I hadn’t read far enough into the material to cover the evisceration, or actual ‘cleaning’ of the plucked bird, which I thought I would remember well enough, and realized I’d need more instruction to do it right. By the end of the day, I had even shucked my rubber gloves for that part, and if you know me well, I wear rubber gloves for everything, especially anything involving entrails.
We made killing cones out of flexible cutting mats, which turned out to be a little TOO flexible, so Honey also tried a couple other methods, including the traditional chopping block, before making the best of it with the cones. Next time, we’ll have to have something sturdier, but I refuse to pay $40 for a metal cone! Honey MacGyver to the rescue! The boys were all too eager to help with the actual killing, but they soon found that it wasn’t as exciting as they had imagined, especially since they didn’t get to use the machetes, like they anticipated.
Scalding water was necessary for the plucking operation, so we put the big water canner on the grill, inserted a thermometer to keep the temperature right, and set it to boiling. The plucking station was set up with a chair and makeshift table, and the cooler was ready for the finished birds. It was a pretty good system! Honey started the line by executing and draining the birds, then he dipped them in the scalding water. I took them from there for plucking, which was not nearly as awful a task as I’d been told. We found that with the right water temperature and dipping time, the feathers came right off. (It was actually kind of fun!) The boys helped us with all those chores, with enjoyment, until it came to the evisceration, which was reserved for the adults, since it demanded accuracy and care to avoid a mess. Craig and I switched off on jobs some, except for the killing, which was left entirely to him. In about three hours, we had nine dressed birds. Hopefully, our time will improve with the next batch of TWENTY-FIVE birds, but they will still have to be done in at least two groups. By the end of the job, we were hot and sweaty, tired, wet, and covered with blood and feathers. We left the chickens to age in the cooler, put the organs inside for further processing, cleaned up the mess, and headed to the garden to plant more peppers and herbs. It was a long day!
We finally went inside for showers, and I got the strange and rarely-performed job of giving posthumous pedicures to detached chicken feet. You see, chicken feet are full of rich gelatin that makes chicken stock super healthy, and I wasn’t about to let them go to waste. I used an old toothbrush to scrub every one of those dirty feet, including the long, sharp toenails, and put them in the fridge for later, along with the gizzards and necks. I just kept thinking… I never imagined this job in my childhood dreams of my life as a wife and mother. We fried the hearts and livers for dinner, and combined with greens from our own garden, salad, mashed potatoes, and gravy, we had a great dinner (in front of a movie) to end a long day. Yesterday, we moved the birds to the freezer and I put the stock on, feet and all, and cooked it all night. Today, we will strain the delicious, healthy broth, and put it in the freezer. The old adage about chicken soup healing all ills is referring to THIS kind of chicken soup… not the kind in the can! So, if you get sick and I bring you soup, you can be sure it will be full of goodness. Just try not to think about the toenails.
On another subject, still a little creepy, but not quite as bad, we caught a mouse in our bedroom last night. I’ve been very thankful in this house, because, although we have scorpions, centipedes, and an occasional snake around, the mice are of the tiny, adorable variety, instead of the forearm-length rats we saw on our last property. A few nights ago, I awoke to a strange sound in the bedroom. It was a jingling sound, and even after I had turned on the light, I couldn’t figure out what it was. I could see something moving, but until Craig walked over there, we couldn’t tell what. It turned out to be a tiny little mouse that had fallen into the gallon-size glass apple juice jar that we use to collect change. He would run around in circles, making all the coins jingle, and try to get out the top, but it was too deep. Craig put a shoe over the opening, but a moment too late, because he escaped in a flash, in a final amazing jump, out of the hole and to some unknown hiding place. The next morning, we set a small trap near the jar, and waited to catch the tiny money-hungry rodent. Well, last night, I was again awakened by a strange noise, like something plastic banging on the jar. The poor little mouse had been snagged by the trap, but only on his foot. He was throwing the trap around, trying to get loose. He was barely bigger than a walnut, so Craig took him outside to the cat, who further proved her worthlessness by jumping back from the contraption and showing no interest in the midnight treat. He finally just let him go, at my suggestion, since I couldn’t see killing such a harmless little thing, so we’ll probably see a gimpy little mouse back in the house before long. Hey, I could think of much worse things scampering around!
Last Friday, I attended (alone!) the homeschool bookfair and thoroughly enjoyed the day. I found a new piano teacher for Jake, about which I am really excited, and signed him up for the homeschool chorus that starts in the fall. Those two things alone were enough to make the day a total success, as I’d been hoping for them for a long time, but I also found language arts books for Jake and Levi, and a phonics book for Luke, which were my actual targets for the day. I usually find plenty of things that are NOT on my list, like books and games, of which I found both this year. Out of the Box makes some of the coolest games that are both fun and educational, and we have several of them already. This time I bought Rock, which is a card version of rock, paper, scissors, and 7 ate 9, which is kind of a cross between Speed and Uno. They are both a lot of fun, and can be played by multiple ages. Of course, parents will win the math one, but not necessarily the Rock game. I also got a Brain Box that had each U.S. state on a card, with its state bird, tree, flower, and some other information. You look at the card for 10 seconds, then have to answer questions from memory. Hopefully, it will be a great learning tool, and all of us have enjoyed it. They have them in versions other than the states, too. If you’re ever looking for a good gift, we highly recommend this company. Think Fun and Mindware also have excellent choices.
There are only four more baseball games until this season ends. Yay! It will be nice to have our evenings back, but it always seems to end when it’s just getting fun. Just when they really start improving, our time is up. Maybe that means we need to start practicing at home BEFORE the season starts, lol. Next year should be more fun, since Levi will be in minors. That’s when the games really get exciting. We are still holding on for ONE win this year, but we’re happy with their improvement, so that may have to suffice. Maybe we should let the kids play the parents once. They’re bound to win that one!
The huge pile of filing on my desk and Craig’s request that I iron some of his shirts today are now drawing me away, since they must be done before baseball practice. Oh, and lunch, the stock to strain, dinner to make, and papers to grade have to fit in this day, too. I need an assistant!
No comments:
Post a Comment