Farm Life City Life: A new chapter

Farm Life City Life: A new chapter: Today is the first day of my "gap 6 months" from my business and work. For the first time in over thirty five years I will ...

A new blog

If by chance you have found your way here- thank you!

I loved writing and posting on farmlifeusa - but realised how hard that is to do when most of the year I am in Sydney!

Join me at my new blog farmlifecitylife.blogspot.com

Weeds or wildflowers?

Suddenly bright orange flowers have started blossoming along the side of the roads nearby. Some people call them weeds- I prefer to call them wildflowers and happily pick a bunch to brighten our living room. I was told they are day lillies and they do only last a day - but there's plenty more where they came from for now. I'll pick them daily.

Mid week WFO dinner

Steve and Barb joined us last night for the first firing up of the WFO (wood fired oven) for pizza this summer. Mark was keen to get some dough tips from his mentor Steve - and we had a delicious thin crust margarita. This followed some stuffed zucchini blossoms, asparagus and sage leaves. It is such a short blossom season, we can't resist frying them up whenever we find a few on the vine. A great starter, with a glass of champagne- Michel Turgy Blanc de Blanc. Finally lamb kofta grilled in the WFO , with a greek style salad and tsatsiki. Lots of great wine including a Bandol Tempier Rose 2009, Vieux Telegraphe 1995. Sat outside until well into the night.

Steve Adams, oven mentor and our official photographer took all of these photos.

A golden wheat field

This year we have wheat planted on two sides of the farmhouse. Right now it is looking spectacular. Shimmering gold stalks move gently with breeze - and contrast beautifully with the bright green fields surrounding it. Harvest is soon.

A Busy weekend

We always look forward to catching up with friends on the farm. It's very relaxed - and as it's always a long time between seeing each other there is lots to talk about. Friday night we had Stan and Nanci (below) and Dennis and Pam for our WFO chicken caesar salad. Plans to eat outside changed due to the storms that hit , so we were inside - not quite the same- but a fun night - lots of good wine as usual. So much so , I nearly forgot the dessert.

Too much fun!

Saturday we headed into St Louis to stock the pantry and stay overnight with Steve and Barb Adams. Costco, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's were on our list - and we managed to fill the car with supplies that should take us through the next few weeks.

We had an early dinner outside - grazing on lots of delicious treats to start- grilled bread, olives and italian sausage and salami, olive confiture - a sweet olive jam from the Adam's trip to Provence and pork rillettes from a local producer, followed by poached salmon and a fresh tomato and mozzarella salad. Perfect summer dining. We headed off to a very exclusive concert - in the basement of Barb's brother's house. Rob is a passionate trumpet player and has created an intimate show space for his friends - inviting local musicians to play. We were lucky enough to hear Javier Mendoza and his band - what a fantastic night. Rob took to the stage for a couple of tunes - and we all had a blast. St Louis has a very strong and active music scene - some great performers and small bar venues- however this was a truly unique experience. Thanks Rob!

On our way to self-sufficiency?

Mark puts in a vege garden (his potager) every year- and every year it gets bigger and bigger. This year we will have peas, beans, zucchini, potatoes, tomatoes, onions, carrots, peppers, beets, lettuce and rocket to feast on over the coming months.

After a week of high temps, last nights storm and heavy rain was welcome. Everything looked a bit fresher this morning -