Passionate

This little farm girl has been thinking an awful lot about the desires of her heart as of late. I think that I have "discovered" it. Ironically enough, I've been surrounded by my desire and passion my entire life. It took moving away from it all to finally see how much I want it. I desire the land. Farming. Horses. Tractors. Long days working beside my husband. Young sons and daughters riding in truck beds. I desire it so much, it brings tears to my eyes whenever I dare to imagine it. 

One thing that God is really teaching me right now is that I have to be thankful for the things that I have now. I have to acknowledge him now. Not later. Now. Because why on earth would my Father bless me with more if I'm not grateful for what I have right now? Why would He give me more if I refuse to acknowledge him here and now? If I refuse to do that now, when I have little, since we're just starting out,  when would I acknowledge the greatness of my Father when I do have more? I wouldn't. And I know that. 

I also so whole heartedly believe that when God gives us such a passion, a desire for something, that He will not deny us of that desire. It may take a few steps along the way. It has to be earned. When God places a purpose within you, He will fulfill that purpose through you! So always dare to dream so big! You're on a journey to entering into your desire. 

When The Farmers Go To Town....

Monday was a good day. I got to spend it doing what girls do best: shopping! My sister and I headed down to the local Value Village (yes that's right! Why pay more for something when you can pay less and still get that something??) and we spent a few hours scouring the racks for jeans and dresses. It was a success! It always makes me feel like a super-farmwife when I can get great things at a great deal with my hubby's hard earned money!

Here's a little post to encourage y'all:

This is just the beginning, my friends!

And this one too: 

I hope that you enjoy today to the FULLEST! God bless! 

Water On The Countryside

The summer rain slips in. I can smell it.  How it likes to tease the farmers! It makes them worry about their fields. Ploughing still needs to be done, subsoiling, planting, there's still hay on the ground. The rain would always set in slowly in the valley where I grew up. It rolls in like mist, creeping from the mountains across the farms. I'm convinced that most of the Weather Network's ratings come from local farmers. 

A storm brewing in the Fraser Valley 

It's so ironic that townsfolk consider rainy days to be lazy days. That is far from the truth for  this farmer's daughter, who is now also a farmwife. They turn into busy days. Hurried, rushed, hard working days. It's a challenge to try to get your fields caught up before the rain arrives. But then, when it does arrive, Hallelujah! The farmers can rest for a moment. Then we carry on until summer showers come again. 

The sun shows up again

Rainy days in the valley bring newness. It's incredible to see just how high the corn seedlings shoot up after one good rain and a few days of sun. Summer rain always shows up at just the right time -- when it's most needed. It brings green back to the valley again. Such a wonderful, fresh source of renewal.

Sometimes, if the storm is just right, we get thunder and lightening. A very rare occurrence. Other times we're blessed when we get to see this: 

 

And God's great promise still remains. 

He provides rain for the earth; 
    he sends water on the countryside.

Job 5:10

Some Beautiful Barns

Since you all know that I love big old barns, here are some more pictures of them! It's so incredible to think that these old barns were someone's pride and joy. They were a save haven for grains, hay and beasts. Although they may look a little forlorn, they are still a thing of beauty, and proof that hard work always will pay off. They're still being seen and admired for generations to come.

Click to See More Country Images

Chicken Fried

Since my last post was about chicken farming, I figured I should post a delish chicken dish today. This recipe was originally posted on The Girl Who Ate Everything. It's one of the tastiest things ever! Enjoy!

(PS: This chicken would be excellent grilled, or on kabobs!)

Chicken Gyros: 


Tzatziki sauce: 

1 cup plain Greek yogurt

1 regular cucumber, peeled and seeded
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
Salt and pepper
Squeeze of fresh lemon juice
Extra virgin olive oil

For the chicken:
2 teaspoons minced garlic
Juice of 1 lemon (2-3 Tablespoons)
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 heaping Tablespoons plain Greek yogurt
1 Tablespoon dried oregano
Salt and pepper
1 1/4 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts

To assemble: Pita bread
Fresh tomatoes, seeded and diced
Red onion, sliced thin

Directions:
Shred the cucumber or chop in food processor. Wrap in a towel a squeeze to remove as much water as possible. Mix together the yogurt, shredded cucumber, garlic, white wine vinegar, salt and pepper to taste, and lemon juice. Drizzle lightly with olive oil.

Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavors to meld.

To prepare the chicken, combine the garlic, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, olive oil, yogurt, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste in a medium bowl. Whisk together until mixed well. Add the chicken pieces to the bowl and mix well to coat. Cover and refrigerate for about 1 hour.

Cook the chicken as desired, either in the skillet or with the broiler. Once the chicken is completely cooked through, transfer to a plate and let rest for 5 minutes. Cut into strips. Heat pitas. Top with chicken, tzatziki sauce, diced tomatoes and sliced onions. Serve immediately.

Follow The Girl Who Ate Everything

It Takes a Tough Man to Raise a Tender Chicken

These are some very happy broilers. They're laying down,
and roosting a little, which is a telltale sign that they're
super comfortable in their barn! 

I grew up on a chicken farm. We have raised broilers since my existence came to be. I have spent countless hours in the barn as a little girl "helping" my dad. Then, as I got older, I actually did turn into being quite a good farmhand. It's what I grew up knowing, so the aspects of raising up healthy, good chickens seems simple to me. For everyone on the outside looking in, it doesn't seem that simple! Each cycle of birds involves a lot of care, and between each cycle involves a lot of meticulous clean up. Then you set up and do it all over again!

All broilers (the meat producing chickens) are given free access
to feed and water. They get to roam around their spacious barns all
day, doing as they please, eating when they want and enjoying cool,
fresh water whenever they desire. 

Sometimes, it was tough or scary. During the harsh winters, its hard to keep the barn warm and keep the little chickens up to temperature. During the heat of the summer, it's hard to keep the large birds towards the end of the cycle cool and drinking. There have been close calls where we have almost lost flocks of birds. That would be devastating to our livelihood. I remember summer days spent walking through the barns every 20 minutes to a half an hour to keep the birds up, drinking and alive. I also remember cold, cold, cold winter days of pushing snow away from the barn to keep it from puddling too close to it as it thawed out. (By the way, snow days create a lot of work for farmers! A simple 15 minute job during good weather can turn into an hour or two long job in the snow!)

A water line. Chickens love to peck at things, especially shiny things.
So when they see the shine of the droplets of water on the end of a water
nipple, they can't resist it one bit! That's how they get their water. 

Here are some facts about chicken farming in Canada:

• For starters, Canada benefits greatly from the economic activity generated by its chicken farms
• Ontario is the largest producer and processor of chicken in the country. One third of all Canadian chickens are grown there. 
• Chicken farmers have an awesome, well thought out biosecurity program in place that makes our chicken products safe, nutritious and competitively priced.
• In 2009, the average chicken farm produced 364,819 million kilograms of chicken meat. That's a lot to feed this nation! 
• In 2009, retail purchases accounted for around 659 million kilograms of chicken. This represents over half (63%) of Canada's total chicken consumption. 22.6% was consumed via fast food restaurants, 9.4% in full service restaurants, and 5.1% was consumed while in hotels or institutions
• In 2009, Canada exported over 5.7 million chicks worth over $13 million to 26 countries, with the United States being the primary market! Everybody loves a Canadian Chicken! 

Those are some pretty awesome facts for us Canadians! (And we should be proud of it!) Another thing that most Canadians unfortunately aren't aware of (but should be about the chicken they consume) is that: 


If the chicken is grown in Canada, and the label on the packaging states that it is Canadian chicken, it's 100% hormone and antibiotic free! 

That's right, all Canadian chicken is 100% all natural, so you don't have to pay an arm and a leg for  "organic" chicken at your favourite grocery place! Thank you to Canada's awesome chicken farmers for keeping our chickens healthy and natural for us!


Click Here For More Chicken Facts

Planted

Two bags of corn seed, patiently waiting to go into the planter

What you see depends on how you view the world.

To most people, dirt is just dirt. 

To a farmer, it's potential. 

Doe Zatamata 

 I love this quote and this picture! Both are great reminders for so many aspects of live. Sometimes, we are the ones who must wait to be planted. More often than not, we're only able to see the "dirt" of a situation and not its truest potential. 

And then when we discover that we have been planted in a certain spot for a reason, we get to follow the next step:

There's a reason for the spot that you're in today. Sometimes it's a good spot, other times it seems like a hopeless spot, but don't give up! What you've sprouted will turn into seeds you can sow again. Sow them in the right spot, and you'll never ever stop reaping the benefits! 

As long as the earth endures,
seedtime and harvest, 
cold and heat,
summer and winter, 
day and night
will never cease.

Genesis 8:22