The Coming Along of Potager Garden...

Welcome back to Pilgrim's Cottage...


Come peek through the hibiscus and see the update...
on the potager garden.
While I planted more seeds into seed starters...


and in between the rains and dog hugging...


my husband put up more of the bamboo fencing for the garden


It's getting there...slowly...getting there


With dogs, I need the protection for my potager garden
I do hope a good day, or night for you.

Scenes of the Big "B" around Pilgrim's Cottage & Farm...

The big "B" meaning...
busy...busy...so busy.
A friend gave me these boots;
she knew I needed a pair to get around the farm...
especially, during rains.
And...we have another new addition on the farm...
definitely, spankin' new;
a baby goat...aka...
a kid.
These photos were taken just a few minutes after he was born...
and he's a biggie.
I believe his sire is a La Mancha goat...
but, alas, he isn't ours...
he belongs to our farmhand...
who keeps his nanny goat on our farm.

Now just a few days old...
he's bouncing around the farm like he's been here all along.
cute, cute...
with a doting mommy who gets upset when he strays a bit far.
I often watch him kicking his legs up and climbing rocks from my kitchen window...
better than TV (although I don't have one).

In the meanwhile...
we are getting things done in between rains.
If you look hard enough...
you can see the streams of rains falling in the photo below.
Beyond the gate will be my chicken coop...
still waiting for completion.

With the rains this morning...
even the pair of birds paused from completing their nest in the bird box in the photo below.
No sooner did my husband put the birdhouse up...
we got interested bird pairs of different species...
one pair arguing and winning against the others for it.
I can watch all the doings from the veranda.

And...I'm happy to say...
we had our first quart of milk from our nanny goat.
She's decided we aren't so bad after all
and will take treats from our hands.
In the beginning...
she ran like a wild deer from us.

The days have been filled with harvesting as well...
bananas...
on their way to market and private client's food boxes

peas...red and green ones

some shelled fresh off the trees...
others dried for storage...
and most for the food boxes.

We've dug out sweet potatoes...
picked sweet grapefruits...
ours are in high demand for their sweetness.

papayas...root veggies of various sorts...
all going into clients' food boxes.
We do get plenty for ourselves, of course.

I've been getting around to taking plant cuttings;
putting them into the ground...here and there

most of them will take and give me pretty trails
of vines loaded with flowers around the cottage.

some running up the posts...
others already happily running along the fence.
It never takes long for plants to take and run along here.

May your day, or night
 be filled with the fragrance of God's grace



Curried Comfort...


The clouds gathered during the night...
and are now raining their tears over the farm
there is nothing to do except to gather items together...
for a comfort pot of curried stew


This recipe serves 4 to 6 people
4 breasts or 6 drumsticks/thighs, deboned
4 medium regular potatoes, diced
2 medium sweet potatoes, diced
2 large carrots, chopped
2 large onions, chopped
2 Tblsp of oil
1 Tblsp of molasses
1 to 2 Tblsp of curry (depending on your taste)
2 Tblsp of catsup
1 cup of broth or water
4 to 6 cloves of crushed garlic (hold the garlic until the stew is cooked)
sea salt and pepper to taste


In a large pot, put in the oil, molasses and curry and cook for about a minute...
put in the onions and carrots and sautee till onions are translucent
put the chicken and all potatoes in...
add broth or water 


and add the catsup, stirring everything together


bring to a simmer for about 30 to 40 minutes...
add a little more liquid if needed
and check potatoes with a knife for doneness

add the salt and pepper
then, add the crushed garlic...
put the lid back on, turn off the heat...
and let it mellow all together for a few minutes before serving


the reason for leaving the garlic last is to keep the medicinal properties intact...
cooking garlic tends to destroy the health benefits of garlic


Because I use little liquid in this stew...
we like this chicken stew in a homemade gluten-free tortillla
if you want it as a wetter stew, add as much liquid as you care for

May your day, or night find comfort in God's grace.

Time Gone Astray...

Hello!
Shadow here to let you know...
Mom's so busy, time got away...

So, this is just a quick note from her...
letting you know...
she'll be back with a real post.
Yeah...that's Foxie back there, behind me in the next photo...
doing what she likes best...
rolling a ball around.
In the meantime...

Mom's posting some hibiscus flowers below
to thank everyone for visiting...
Oh hey!
One of the goats just made a movement...
gotta go to my staring station to watch for their next move...

Mom said...
have a wonderful day or night



Farm Additions!...

Come on down the road with us...
to pilgrim's cottage and farm...
Come see what we have gone and done...
My husband and I talked of it long enough...
we finally bit the bullet and bought our milking goats...
Well...one is a female...
the other, a male.

We are strangers to them...
so they look at us a little strangely...
wondering, what is this place...
and who are these people.

I kept company with them for a while...
trying to aquaint ourselves...
They stood and stared with suspicion in their eyes...
just standing and staring for a long time...
I sat on a rock and started to sing low and soft...
She moved her head with a little cock to it as if to say...
what is that noise?

He brought his head up and looked right at me...

For a minute, I thought it was a mistake to sing...
then, they both suddenly stopped all the staring...
and bent their heads to graze.

 Still with just a little suspicious look in his eyes...
cautiously keeping one on me...
Once we've earned their confidence...
I'll think of names for them.
But now, I won't need to buy raw goat milk...
we will have our own.
Later today...
I will be learning to hand milk a goat.

God calls on his people to feast on Him and His word...

"Ho, every one that thirsteth,
come ye to the waters,
and he that hath no money;
come ye, buy, and eat;
yea, come, buy wine and milk
without money and without price."
Isaiah 55:1

May your day, or night, be blessed.


A Recipe for High Blood Pressure...


Ever since sin entered the world...
people have dealt with stress of all kinds

one of our modern day stresses is the politics of food...
how it is grown, processed and fed to people

it is a huge business and profit driven...
and we are suffering the consequences of food perversion from the natural
what ever happened to the backyard garden?


bad food and stress can cause high blood pressure
if your blood pressure is at urgent high...
you may need meds until it comes under control

however, it is is over the normal range but not high enough to run for conventional drugs...
using natural herbs is a good way to bring it back to normal along with eating good food...
and keeping stress down
keeping white sugar, white flour and other highly processed foods will help
HBP is often a result of gluten intolerance or celiac disease...
which you can find out more about at:

this disease causes a great deal of inflammation in the body...
causing it undue strain and stress


if you have the will power to change your diet...
then, it makes sense to use foods to bring down high blood pressure

ginger properties are:
reduces pain/inflammation, anti-coagulant, digestive help, anti-nausea
as a warming herb, it knocks out fevers

lemongrass properties are:
anti-fungal, anti-bacterial, detoxifies, pain killer, digestive help

the combination of ginger and lemongrass makes a powerful medicine
if you are on pharmaceutical drugs...
always check with your doctor to make sure the herbal foods don't interact with the drugs

the recipe below is for fresh ginger root and lemongrass
chunk of ginger about fist size
10 - 15 leaves of lemongrass


crush and twist the lemongrass well to get the medicinal juices flowing
fine grate the ginger
bring water to very hot but, but not boiling
pour the water over the herbs in a heat-proof glass container
don't use metal as it gives herbal teas an off taste
cover and let the tea steep for a few hours
strain and refrigerate or use right away
I drink about 3 cups of herb tea a day and it keeps colds, flues, and such away
you can drink it heated or iced
if you like tea sweetened as I do...
I use raw honey for it's medicinal properties as well


as a tea lover...
on very warm days, I put 6 teaspoons of black, green or white tea in the pitcher...
to steep along with the herbs
and for an extra boost in taste, use stevia leaves from my garden to sweeten


please do, have a glass, or cup of ginger/lemongrass with me
enjoy!


May your day or night find healing in the herb of God's wonderful grace.

What Garlic Can Do


Garlic is a medicine

this wonderful herb is given to us from our God...
a powerful medicine, as well as a food


packed full of anti-bacterial, anti-virus, anti-oxidants...
anti-candida, cancer cell killers...
and is probably one of God's most potent antibiotics...
which no bad bug is able to become immune to


I take raw garlic for myself on a regular basis...
and put minced garlic in my dog's food for a healthy regimen...
to keep away mange, infections (especially ear) and build their immune system

sometimes, I give it to them in a small roll of minced raw meat
sometimes, I mix it in with their home cooked meal just before serving

3 times a week, Monday, Wednesday and Friday
I use one clove of garlic for my 85 pound dog...
and 1/2 clove for my 32 pound dog


I always crush or mince the raw garlic to release the allicin...
which is the property that works as a medicine...
and always give it with food to keep the garlic from "burning" the stomach

this is Shadow in the photo below
as you can see, he was quite skinny when he came to us as a stray...
before we moved to the farm


he developed a bad case of mange and ear infections...
and because he was so wild and fearful...
we were not able to take him to a vet

so, I started to give him 2 cloves of crushed garlic with each meal...
twice a day


after one week, he began to look better...
and his ear infections were no longer flaming red and swollen

he looked old and sick and no doubt feeling miserable


I kept up the garlic regimen...
and he kept getting better

after about two months, this is what he looked like in the photo below


today, this is what Shadow looks like now in the next photo...
here on the farm

he looks great and the mange and ear infections have never come back

who could have thought he was this handsome! 
what lady dog wouldn't go for them thar eyes!


I thank the Lord God for creating garlic...
and giving me the insight into it's valuable benefits

May you enjoy the blessings of God this day or night.