Hippy Dippy Earth Mother

Today was my second day off in a row.  Yesterday I spent recuperating from a week-long vacation coverage and hanging with the kids.  I downloaded a couple books - one on goats and one fiction book and I took my iPad out to the blackberries and read, and played with goats, alpacas and dog.  It was lovely.

Today I worked toward becoming a hippy-dippy-earth-mother.  I made two loaves of bread.  I was testing bread machines.  The machine on the right is mine, the one on the left is my mother-in-law's. I used the exact same recipe and ingredients.  It appears her bread machine does a better job.  Now I can blame all my failed loaves of bread on the machine. Yay.

I also went to the grocery store.  I looked at pork sausage and was utterly appalled at the ingredients list.  Corn Syrup? Dextrose?  BHA??  Propyl Gallate??  What the heck!?!?

Since I have my brand new meat grinder attachment I decided to try my hand at making my very own sausage.  I bought a big "family pack" of pork chops and divvied it up into portions.  Some pork chops I left as pork chops - but the rest I ground up.  Then I added onion, garlic, pepper, chili powder, kosher salt, thyme and a few other ingredients.  All things I know how to pronounce.  I ran it through the grinder a few more times and produced a fine home made pork sausage.  I'm quite pleased with myself.  

The goats are doing well.  They explored their future pasture today.  Eventually they will be hanging with the alpacas in their pasture, but right now the alpacas are very curious and very big and scary to little baby goats.  That meant the goats got to play awhile with out the alpacas.  They ran and jumped and spun and had a ball.  

Just to make you jealous, here is a glimpse into my new morning routine: