Friends Make the Best Pies

Pie wasn't on the agenda yesterday, and yet somehow it took up my entire day. In the best company possible. I'm recording this now because I want to remember the times when I am completely surrounded by friends in the best, most spontaneous, and joyful ways. Yesterday, apple pie was the way.

My friend called me in the morning to tell me her apple trees were ready to pick. She had never allowed herself or her children to eat the apples from these trees before, so she was letting me have them for free. When I finally got her to taste one of her own apples, she was immediately won over by the sweet, crisp, fruity-tart flavor (I could drone on about the quality and disease resistance of this particular variety she happened to be growing...these were EXCELLENT apples...but I'll spare you). She borrowed a long hook and cutting tool from her neighbor and we spent the morning picking apples. Our children ran around the grass stuffing their faces with the fruit. Especially James.

After picking up Robert from preschool, we started lunch. Buddy looked over the 15 gallons of apples and proclaimed, "That's a lot of apples! Do you think it's enough for a pie?" My plan was to sauce them, but 15 gallons of raw apples doesn't make much sauce. It was hardly worth the mess it would make of my kitchen.

"Okay, let's make a pie after lunch."

Then another friend popped in for a visit. I don't often entertain surprise visitors, but I make exceptions for the very best of them ;) She and Robert worked the apple peeler/corer and I cleaned up the slices. James watched in awe from his seat. We just kept talking and slicing and talking and slicing. Before I knew it, we had enough prepped apple to make THREE apple pies. Whoops, guess we'll have to make three pies, then.

I'm fortunate that my friend does pastries. She whipped out three butter crusts in no time. Buddy and I assembled the pie filling. Just about that time, another friend came by (this was a planned stop) to drop off her son for a play date. She was feeling a bit out of sorts because a service she had planned to perform for a different mutual friend of ours had exploded in her face that morning. I offered her one of our three pies to take instead. This made everything better.

Pie. Makes. Everything. Better.

My two friends left for an appointment and the three boys and I got to work assembling and cooking these pies. Whew! My house smelled awesome. My kitchen got a serious cleaning. I got to help and be helped by oodles of friends. And then I got to eat pie.

I haven't had a better day in a long, long time.

Bye Bye Girls

Roo got over her broody urges yesterday and laid her first egg in a month. Today, she and Penny were whisked away to a lavish backyard elsewhere to be spoiled with treats and pet-like attention. Alice was in tears. I was a little relieved to have them go somewhere that wouldn't mean certain death.

I'm not a monster, y'know.

The remaining chickens, well, their fate is still certain death. Or maybe I can find a good home for them, too? Dunno.

I can feel the growing season winding down.

Cooler weather is on its way.

We had a good run this year. I'll probably review my 2013 farming triumphs and failures in another post. Every year is one step closer to figuring out what I want out of all of this.

The girls panting in the early September heat wave.

Sweet

This is why I let Alice use my camera. Every once in a while, I get something like this...awwwwww:

Bobby's Sunday Summary

I don't feel like I have a ton to write about.

Alice lost her first tooth this week.  It has been loose for quite a while, and she has been telling everyone about it. Several people, including myself, offered to help take it out, but she refused.  It finally just came out at school one day with relatively little fanfare.  I guess we are not doing the tooth fairy thing.  She still has the tooth and a $1 to boot. If you look close you can see tongue where tooth should be. And the one next to it is wiggling now too.


We went to the temple in St Louis for the first time in a while.  We have gone to other temples while on vacation and the like, but have not managed to get to St. Louis in a long time.  In an effort to find something new and interesting to do with the kids, and to help a friend get her hands on some gluten free goodies, we discovered these.

They taste like a fresh ripe mango with cream fresh.  Susan was skeptical before she tried one, and now wants us to bring a cooler down the next time we go to the temple. I must say I am not fighting the idea.

Bobby's Sunday Summary

Not too much new to talk about Robert has started preschool.  He likes it, but does not talk about it too much with me.  Alice likes school, but depending on the day she says she hates it, because it is too dull.  James is still growing and seems to be happy.  Not much else to report.