Dan & Emma

Dan and Emma were here for a little more than a week.  She is a student from China and he lives and studies in Oregon.  He drove 12 hours straight from outside Portland to Harmony Hill.  In a short time they did much valuable work harvest- ing goat food and organizing the firewood.  Each learned to milk a goat and groom a horse.  Since they had a car they could explore the area and National Parks.  Emma had a riding lesson at Sierra View before they drove back to resume school.  Emma had a beautiful singing voice and taught me the first verse of the haunting and lovely Chinese song "My Heart Represents the Moon."  (I am learning the rest of the song from Kai Hei our next visitor who arrived with a ukulele, the day after they left.)

Dan spoke some Chinese and had traveled there. We enjoyed learning more about the Chinese countryside and culture.

Spring Rolls with Thu

 What a great treat to have Thu come visit with Elisha and Enoch and all the fixings for a spring roll feast.  She taught me how to assemble and roll Viet Nam style spring rolls with rice noodles, chicken, shrimp, and greens.  She brought everything including her home made peanut sauce and a beautiful salad.  The trick is the way you soak the wrapper just enough to soften and put a small fold in the bottom before adding the fillings, folding in the sides before rolling.  We had as much fun assembling then as we did eating them.  Thank you Thu!

The Fixin's

Amazing lunch spring rolls salad home made peanut sauce

O Canadians

.                                                cheese making

We were so happy that Kaylie and Dani stopped by Harmony Hill on their spontaneous Sister's roadtrip.  They arrived in time for a Thanksgiving  Feast and stayed 3 weeks, learning to milk goats and care for horses and chickens and also for Allen, during the week I was in Aptos.   Kaylie loved to cook and made brightly colored mostly Vegetarian food, healthy and delicious.  They worked hard on the wood pile and harvesting goat food among other projects to improve Harmony Hill.

They met lots of our friends and explored the Park and Exeter.  We enjoyed a banana pancake farewell breakfast as they headed north.  Kaylie is a plant biologist and she explored the new property in Aptos where they spent a couple of nights and she shared her observations and suggestions.   We were happy to learn they made it across the border and  back to Courtney BC for a white Christmas with their family.

Exeter Home Tour

On Morro Rock

orange tasting Lindcove

 

Turkey Loves Dani

Brief moment

Brilliant streaks of pink cloud spike the sky
as I amble down the hill with my three legged dog.

As we return, the pink now dulled, floats below folds of heavy greying clouds.
Venus radiates beneath a bright crescent moon.

We trek up the hill as Venus drops towards the horizon then shatters into splits of light.

Our two cats meet us at the end of the stone wall,
they turn and travel with us up home.

Caprine Cadre

Thu milking Hillary with help from Seth

We are so happy to have a new group of friends and helpers on Harmony Hill.

Carmen, Seth, Thu and families have been enjoying the farm, learning to milk and making it possible for me to travel a bit knowing everything is in good hands.

Elisha flies down the hill

Thu's palm on Carmen's belly a few days before baby Liam was born

^

Goat Milk Ice Cream a la Carmen

Carmen and Vicki are two new friends and neighbors who answered my shout out on Craigslist for Goat Milkers for Harmony and Hillary while I am in transition traveling to our Day Valley Home.  Vicki has raised her own goats and studied animal husbandry at Washington State University.  Carmen will be giving birth to her first child at the end of the month and wants to have pure fresh goat milk available for him.

We have been gathering for milking and enjoying each other's company.  Yesterday Carmen taught us how she enrichs goat milk  for ice cream, with white chocolate and extra egg yolks.  Goats milk, while creamy and delicious does not separate like cow milk and hence no cream.  I am allergic to cow products I cannot have cow cream in my ice cream.  Carmen created a solution.

Carmen at the stove stirring custard mix

Carmen is a talented creative cook who believes in using high quality organic ingredients.  She adapted two recipes she found on line one for BASIL ice cream and the other for Cherry Vanilla.  The results of both are rich, smooth, creamy and taste amazing.

Vicki watches and listens after cracking and separating eggs with Micheal

Basil, sugar, and goatsmilk in the blender.  Unexpectedly delicious combination.  The strong fresh green flavor of the basil creates a wonderful contrast in ice cream.

smiling after just a taste, waiting till it freezes!

Who's minding the Farm? Hannah, Sasha, Sarah and Allen

While I am in Los Gatos staying with dear friends, training with Uly at American Sporthorse Center, and exploring the area for our eventual move, Allen sustains Harmony Hill with the help of three International beauties
Hannah Middendorf from Germany, Sasha Sudakova (Александра Судакова) from Russia and Sarah Janner from France.

Hannah, Sasha and Peg

Sarah

Sasha on Uly

Hannah and Uly

Sasha knows her way around a kitchen!

Thanks Allen!

Jacob & Miranda (Goose)  Quad rides and rifle lessons

Cool Pool Cats

Candy display from outdoor Mexican Market, Fridays in Lindsay

. Viva La Musica

Horses try to peek into the bathroom

They work hard for six hours and then relax by the pool.  Hannah rode North with Uly and the trailer and was a great help as she has been for her whole visit.

Sasha and Sarah covered things while we were all gone.  Sasha is an excellent cook.  She has made cakes, cupcakes, stuffed squash and Borscht!  Sarah arrived with gifts of a beautiful scarf, large picture book about France and Channel #5.  She is sweet and shy and a hard worker and quick learner, good with horses and goat milking.

Allen has taken them to the Lindsay Market, Three Rivers for ice cream and drum circle.

They saw the murals in Exeter before I left

I hope they all know what a pleasure it has been to host them and how much they are appreciated.