Slowing Down, Slowly

After several days filled with fun and adventure, yesterday was a day for catching up... laundry, vacuuming and baking took precedence.

It's a quieter time of year.  I can even feel the metabolism of the earth around me beginning to slow.  Subtle seasonal changes are beginning to happen as Mother Nature lets out an end of summer yawn.  She's worked so very hard over the past 5 months... bringing new life to this half of the earth.  Soon she'll turn her attentions southward - bringing spring and summer to the Southern Hemisphere.

I've got to admit... I love this time of year as the days begin to shorten.

  I look forward to chores on chilly mornings, fireplace fires, falling leaves and every other autumn aesethetic that's just around the corner.

For me, baking is an integral part of autumn, and yesterday's treats definitely put me in the mood.  I baked a peach/blackberry pie with farm raised peaches and foraged blackberries.  It will be delicious with a dip of ice cream or whipped cream!

Although the garden is beginning to wind down, there are a ton of butternut squashes to harvest.  I picked a large one yesterday and roasted it...

then, made this pumpkin/streusel bread, substituting butternut squash for pumpkin.

While doing morning chores, I found a guinea egg inside the duck house... the first of many.  Guinea eggs have a thicker, harder shell than chicken eggs.  And although they are smaller, they are shaped identically.  This one, however was completely round.

Every morning after the horses have been grazing for their allotted time, we head to the barn with the dogs to call the horses in.  It's one of the dogs' favorite activities... especially Annie!

She runs into the pasture and circles the horses, ready to send them in to me.  If there are any stragglers, she runs behind them and gives a little chase until they are headed in the right direction.

I'm not sure if there is any herding dog within her genetic make-up, but she seems to naturally understand the process and is always more than happy to help.  Yesterday, Ollie decided to ignore my call.

Thanks to Annie's help, he quickly came running... despite the fact that he had decided to just stay out and keep grazing.

He's had a bit of a naughty streak this week.  It's a good thing he's such a cute little fellow!

Well, Friday came a little more quickly this week than usual.  We'll be back on Monday with more tales from the farm.  Til then... be well!  Have a good weekend.

Sending hugs... from the farm!