A disjointed post containing sheepy garbage disposals, a quick recipe, a dog injury and a rotten pumpkin

Gertrude really enjoys table scraps more than either of the other sheep. She is the first to the fence to see what kinds of goodies I am bringing whenever she hears me come out of the house, and the other day, after the thaw, I clipped the remaining broccoli greens left from my failed late-season planting and decided to see if she liked them. Of course she did! I also shared a slightly wilty stalk of brussel sprouts which she was first to devour, though after she started in on it, Ingrid butted her out of the way and decided it was her stalk an no one else's. It's fun to see what the sheep like and dislike. I wish I still had a few winter squash to share with them, but I'm sure they'll get plenty of garden seconds come spring and summer!

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I figured as a quick post, I'd share the recipe for a spread I made yesterday morning for our toast. I decided early on that I wanted to use up some of the chèvre I had left over from the other night's dinner. I dumped some of the cheese, a splash of local "natural" (unhomogenized) milk and a dollop of local blackberry/pecan jam into the food processor. After altering with a bit of extra jam I had, I flipped the switch and tada! I had created a fabulous breakfast spread. I like things sweet so I think if I'd made it just for myself I would've added a bit of honey to sweeten it, but still- it was such an easy way to make such a rich food that I couldn't help but share it. I was also considering adding zante raisins (often called dried currants - a total misnomer) but my dear husband has not warmed to the idea of using raisins in most dishes, so I decided to hold off... this time.

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Our poor Basil was three-legged-lame yesterday for no apparent reason. I think she got tossed around while playing with Connor and my mom's dog Abbie and managed to twist her hock (rear ankle). It took me ages to find where she had hurt herself, but finally I was able to locate a small spot of fluid and heat on the front of her joint. My experience with dogs (and horses... and vet calls, even) is that for soft tissue injuries you're almost always told to just keep the animal calm and quiet, while possibly supplementing with something anti-inflammatory. We simply restricted Basil to only going outside by herself, and she spent much of the day lying in Connor's bed sulking while Connor and Abbie enjoyed their romping. This morning, however, she is much better and the fluid and heat are gone from the joint so I'm pretty sure it was just a mild sprain (and my puppy might be a big wuss).

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Here's a random shot of an angry little pumpkin I found rotting out in the field where I tossed it after the wedding. I couldn't help but laugh at his disgruntled little expression, and the grey green color was so disgusting I just had to share it.