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Here it is almost the end of August.
Summer has flown by on super sonic wings. The jiggler on the canner has been singing in the kitchen every weekend and I still have bushels to go before I'm done. The pantry is looking better every day. We've only had one fog this month, so far, so I'm hopeful that it will be an easy winter.

You’ve heard the saying of dipping your toes in the water? I think Mother Nature is doing that for us.
We’ve had several chilly mornings in the upper 40s here on the farm and that’s enough to get us thinking of fall. Officially, it’s one month away. Time to get moving.
I have several friends who think of me as a “pioneer woman.”
I’m not. Just because I preserve what I grow, take my meat off the farm and heat with a wood stove, doesn’t mean I don’t spoil myself with the luxuries of the modern world.

I really love silver linings. Sometimes, however, it’s really tough to find them.
Take this summer for example. We’ve had a high number of insect pests, unseasonably hot weather and record low rainfall. Needless to say, it has been a challenging summer for gardeners and farmers.

One thing I know for sure, the drought has toughened up the weeds.
Since I mulch with newspapers and straw, I use my hands to pull up any weeds that appear in the garden. Some I leave, because the bugs like them better than anything I plant. Most others I pull and I’ve got the cuts on my hands to show for it.