Time is Flying Away....

My word, have things picked up pace around here! I do not know where all my time goes or if I am getting anything accomplished, but I sure don't have an ounce of free time. There are so many things I want to post about that I don't know where to start! I guess that is a good problem to have :)

Today, I think I will focus on updates.

I have been brewing a little jar of water kefir grains for the last 5 days. This is a first for me. I have been tasting it ever since the 2 day mark and the taste has changed drastically. After 2 days, it tasted a lot like apple cider. It had a vinegar-y smell but not so much in taste. Day 4 tasted a bit like alcohol! Hubby decided he would be the taste tester for it if it was gonna taste like booze! Today's taste was much more mellow. The sweetness is very light. I think it should be ready to drink in another day or so. Once this batch is ready to drink, I will rinse the kefir grains and get a new batch started.

My kombucha is happily fermenting under my kitchen sink. Every time I open the cabinet, I get a mild whiff of vinegar. Peeeee-u! The mother has split and formed a daughter on top. I just tasted it and it has a bit of a kick to it. I don't think it is ready to bottle yet, though. In the instructions, they say that first timers almost always bottle too soon so I am going to wait for the 2-3 weeks that they suggest.

I checked on my bottles of vanilla extract today. I am at the halfway point in the curing. They are a beautiful dark brown color. I cannot wait to try them. Only 3 more months to go!!!!

On the gardening front, I have picked a few squash and zucchini and we have eaten a couple of salads with my lettuce. This is the first time I have ever grown lettuce and it has come out pretty good. At least I know which kind I do NOT like! There will be no more mesclun grown here. Too spicy and bitter for me. Chickens, however, LOVE it :)  I should be getting some green beans pretty soon and I have gotten a few strawberries. They have me puzzled a bit. The berries have been kinda small. I don't know if it was the brand I bought or what but they are 1/3 the size of regular strawberries. They taste good but I don't think there will be enough to make anything with. Between my daughter picking them and the slugs getting to them, there just aren't a whole lot.

We are on like day 900 of no rain...Okay maybe not 900 but we have not had any rain in a very long time. My blueberries are starting to shrivel and my muscadine leaves are looking a bit droopy. I have no more hose left to get water to them because I am having to daily water all the other garden areas. Hubby promised to buy me more sprinkler stands but his pay this month was a bit less than what he was hoping for. Enough to pay bills (not complaining) but not for much else. *sigh* Maybe next month.

Hubs cooked dinner with our daughter last night and made something VERY unusual. You see, I haven't done our monthly shopping yet so meal ingredients are slim pickens until tomorrow. He was going to make chili but we all protested because it is hotter than h*ll outside. We only had a few tortilla shells for the tacos he decided to make so he improvised on the shell part. He is a whiz at making crepes. When it is just him and I for dinner, he will surprise me with them and they are A-MAZ-ING!!! Well, he used his crepe recipe but left out the sugar and used them to hold the taco stuffins. Let me tell you, I no longer want tacos any other way! Were they healthy? Heck no, but we don't have them all the time so I figure my rear end won't grow too much. Were they yummy? Oh my sweet Lord, they were! I will do a post on his crepe recipe soon so you can enjoy them too. I would post a picture of how they turned out but we ate all of them within minutes! If I had gotten my camera anywhere near it, my camera might have been eaten too! My boy was shoveling them in like his life depended on it. Honestly, he isn't quite a teenager, yet, but he is eating me out of house and home. My grocery bill will be exploding in the next few months, I can feel it....

The twins had their state outdoor archery tournament Saturday. That took a bit of prep work that kept us busy for a few days prior. I will post on that tomorrow.