Home Grown Goodness

I have really big news to share... Mark and I planted a garden and finally have something to show for it!

Yep...real vegatables.  We have cucumbers, acorn squash, lots of jalepenos, bell peppers, roma tomatos and cherry tomatos.  I guess you could say I am a proud mother.  I even took pictures :)

Here is our solo squash and I really hoping we get more.  There are lots of flowers so I am hoping that means at least a few more squash for us!  It is by far the biggest plant in our little patch, but it probably should be because this is also one of the only original plants left after Mark's "accident". 

Let me explain.  Mark and I planted the garden just one short week before I left for my France adventures. It was a really big step for us and a really big under taking for Marko, but he never has food at his house and I love fresh veggies from the garden.  Plus, I knew I was going to want something to do at his house all summer!  So, I left all those fragile plants in his care and made him promise he would water it every day, weed and most importantly not kill anything. 

To make a long story short, he killed nearly everything in the month.  How?  Well, it's really so Mark.

Mark grew up on a very large crop farm, his family raises over 2500 acres of corn and soybeans each year and every spring and summer his Dad heads out and does his spraying to either kill the weeds or fertilize the fields.  To them, and most farmers, this is the most economical way to produce their crops.  And truly their system works well.  Well, my boy Mark decided to apply that same system to our little 6 foot by 6 foot garden. 

He started commenting that the garden wasn't growing very fast (he has no patience) and decided to take it into his own hands and help along Mother Nature.  I mean I understand his thought process "If that fertilizer worked on the field corn, why wouldn't it work on our squash and tomotoes?"  Well, it probably would have worked except he applied it a little too heavy.

Needless to say, our fresh-grown veggies are not "organic" and got a little bit of a late start, but the garden looked as good as new (and 80 percent was) when I returned!   Despite the little setback, Mark did a great job keeping up the garden when I was gone and now we are about to have delicious food to enjoy!  Here is some more pictures...

My favorite: cherry tomatoes.  It's so hard to wait for these little guys to turn red....are there any tricks to help them along?  I don't think we are going to have any even make it to the house!

Now, you have to look closely to see the green peppers.  We only have a few of them coming in, but honestly, that's okay because I don't know what to do with them anyways.  Any advice?

Now on the other hand, the jalepenos are growing like wild!  I am so excited to try the stuffed jalepenos my Texas friends suggested to me! I hope they are good because the only other thing I know what to do with jalepenos is make salsa.  Next year, we are going to have to be a little smarter with our plant choices.  :)

And speaking of next year, we already have BIG things in mind.  For a boy who wanted me to plant my vegatables around the flag pole, he really has taken to the gardening.  However, next year is a long way away and until then we will patiently wait for our cucumbers to get fatter and our tomatoes to turn red!  Fresh veggies from the garden are the best...even if they aren't organic :)

Sweet Summertime

I haven't had too many reasons to get worked up lately.  My biggest concerns are if my garden got watered, how I am going to get to the next cattle show and that Avery May is a happy little girl.  I guess I could say life is good.

Now don't get me wrong I have been busy in the last 25 days since I returned home from France.  But instead of it being a long-to-do-list-with-no-breaks-in-sight kind of busy it has been I-want-to-do-as-much-stuff-as-I-can-before-I-have-to-go-back-to-school-and-get-a-real-job kind of busy.  I don't mind that type nearly as much...in fact, I pretty much enjoy it.

So far I have been to Dickinson, North Dakota to celebrate my friend Megan's wedding.  It was a great time and it was even better bonding with the boy :)  16 hours in the car in one weekend is almost too much fun!

I sure missed my country girls.  Hopefully we can catch up again soon :)  I will be holding down the fort in Fargo for them while they are off getting married, starting real jobs and being big girls.  My time will come...:)

I have spent some quality time with Avery May.  She is getting to be quite the personality and has her little finger wrapped around my boy.  He finds a reason to come to Kenyon nearly every time I watch her and manages to catch her waking up every time he checks on her napping.  I had to put my foot down last night when he wanted to wake her up at 9:30 at night. :)

I have given back to the program that used to dominate my summer--4-H.  Mark and I are coaching the Rice County Livestock Judging team and those kids are a hoot.  We have this little guy who told me every heifer was wide and long...needless to say we are working on his vocab.  I have a feeling he is going to be the next great one though, he just needs a little TLC.  I also have somehow gotten to be an expert on fashion revue and was able to judge Washington County's purchased garment contest.  This of course brought me back to my glory days of purchasing pants for $2.34 and a sweater for $3.02 and shoes for $8.01 for a grand total of BARELY ANYTHING!   I mean why can't I find those good of deals today?   Probably because I never wore those outfits...but that wasn't the point of that project, was it??  Oh and I also judged my first show...and it was tough.  Hopefully things only get better from there!  10 head is harder than you think....

My latest excitement was traveling to Wooster, Ohio and then to Denver, Colorodo to reconnect with Certified Angus Beef and the American Angus Association.  It was great to be out at the National Junior Angus Show again and catch up with some familiar faces.  Plus, I was surrounded by some really really good cattle and I can never complain about that.  Avery and Annabelle did really well out there and Matt came home with two second place ribbons, definitely something to be happy with. While we were out there, Mark and I got one free afternoon and took a trip to Golden, CO and visited Coors Brewery.  Did you know they owned Miller Lite too?  It was a good time and the free samples weren't bad either!  Next time you head to Denver make sure to check it out!

Well that's my latest recap...I will try to be more timely in the upcoming days and before I know it I will be back to school and judging and hopefully will have lots of fun places and good news to post.  Until then, enjoy the beautiful summer days.  I hope you are getting to spend time with the ones you love, some good cattle and maybe even drink a glass of wine while watching the sunset over the cornfield. :)

Homeward Bound

I will be home before I know it!

Back home everyone needs to just go to sleep once and I will be home. :)  Over here, I technically should be going to sleep almost twice, but regardless I will be home soon!

To be honest, I am going to miss this place terribly.  My host family has become such great friends and the relaxed atmosphere and stress free living was much needed!  I tend to run and run and run and here, the closest thing I did to running was walking fast to the pastry shop to get a pain de chocolate.

People are right when they say it is a whole different culture over here, but truly I don't mind the differences.  They may not use GMOs or hormones in their beef, but they do have this local pride and friendly spirit that is contagious!

I am going to keep it short and brief because I need to finish up a few things before I catch my train to head to Paris, but look back in the next couple of days--I have so much to tell you about Angers.  I have three blogs started that needed to be completed with pictures even!

See you soon!  Call me, text me, Facebok me or visit me...I can not wait to hear what ya'll have been doing for the last 30 days!

Did I really just say ya'll?  I have been spending way to much time with these Texas people! :)

The Frenchest Sunday I Could Find

A good friend of mine warned me that I would have a culture shock when I got to France--which I have yet to have. The other day, I about thought and wondered why I was missing that common downfall of a study abroad trip; concluding that maybe I have been surrounded too much by Americans to feel the pressure of a new culture.  However, after this weekend I am disputing that idea as well. 

I think I experienced the Frenchest Sunday possible and I absolutely loved it. I don't know if you have picked this up yet, but I have a really great host family that has done a great job of introducing me to French culture.  I mean even if I was a little nervous about eating raw meat last night, they were giving me a great opportunity to try something new, like they always do!  I love being here and will be sad to leave them next week!

This past Sunday, they invited me with to a opening of a local winery that included dinner, music and of course wine tasting.  It was sooo much fun and completely French.  We ate under a tent that looked over the vineyard and we had a live singer serenading us in French.  Plus, the food was delicious (it always is in France)...we had bread that reminded me of a pita, except it was made fresh in front of us in a brick oven.  We ate the bread with a duck, goose and rabbit pattae for our appetizer; enjoyed it with a ratatuie or white bean mix for our main course; used it with our cheese for the third course and for desert we had French apple pie fresh from the oven!  Mmmm...and of course we had each course with wine.  Rose for the appetizer, white for the main course, red with the cheese and a sparkling wine with our desert! 

After dinner, (which took about 2 1/2 hours) we took a ride through the vineyard in horse-drawn carriage.  A friend from school, Taylor, also came with and the picture below is of us on the carriage ride.  I really loved the whole afternoon and when Phillipe and Lydie explained that this was a common event in the summer, I got really jealous.  It was such a fun experience and I got to taste four delicous wines...and of course, another bottle is now coming home to Minnesota (hopefully)! 

It was a perfect way to spend a Sunday in France, in fact, if I could go to a grand opening of a winery I would every day of the week!  J'adore Angers!

P.S. Watch for more pictures soon, Taylor took most of the pictures because my camera died and my words just can't do this place justice!

"World Famous" Creperie

The title of this blog is a little bit of a running joke with my classmates because on my first night here my host mother said nearly everything was famous.  It was pretty funny at first, but since then I have learned that most everything she referred to was actually well-known in France, like the Nespresso machine or the Basque region.  And now, my host family is so good at English that I take it to heart when she calls something famous, so when she pointed out a creperie in Angers that was "famous", I made note of it and headed there the next day for lunch!

Mmmmm.....it was an excellent choice!  If it isn't in Rick Steve's book of things to do in France, it needs to be added.  It was the cutest little shop a little off the main road and it had delicous crepes!  If only I could get crepes that good at home!

We had hear about a traditional crepe of the region called the Gillette Complete.  It has eggs, cheese and ham all within a crepe and sounded like home to us, so we ordered four. :)

I loved them.  It is like a whole breakfast wrapped up in a delicous crepe.  The eggs are over-easy, so the yolk soaks into the crepe and is to die for.  Way better than a plain old omelet anyday and it made Ty-Yann creperie famous in my book for sure!

If you know where they sell or make these at home, let me know!  Until then, I am going to try my best to perfect this yummy goodness every Sunday until I get it right!  :)

I Spoke Too Soon....

I pressed the "Publish Post" button on my latest entry right before I went down to dinner. It was definitely a moment too soon because in fact, I got served red meat tonight.  Really really red meat.

And I know that this was from a cow because I am pretty sure I heard it mooo on my plate.

If you haven't figured it out yet, I ate raw beef for dinner tonight.

Yes, RAW beef.

I think it might be called steak tattae.  I don't really know, I just know it was cold, raw and bloody.

Mmmmm...good? 

I didn't think so. I did try it because I feel too rude to ever refuse, but I didn't take any more than my little piece and instead I filled myself up on bread.  I probably won't be trying it again, because even though it might have been tasty, I couldn't tell because my brain was kicking my taste buds in the head every time I ate another bite.  I guess what I am saying is that I could not get over the fact that is was raw...even if they assure me it is safe...I just can't afford stomach problems right now!?! I have a castle to see tomorrow!

So...what's your thoughts...have you ever ate raw beef?  Should I have been more open?  Is it safe?  Is it really as delicous as my host family says?

Oh and I definitely will not be complaining about eating so much fish ever again!

La Vache :)

My host mother is an amazing cook.  Not only does she serve me delicous cheese for desert, but she can serve up some of the best fish I have ever eaten.  She trumps Red Lobster or any other chain restaurant that attempts to serve legitimate seafood every day of the week.  She loves the art of cooking and combines it with my host father's culture in Southwestern France to make the best seafood almost daily.  Since I have arrived I have had salmon, tuna, mussel, crayfish, white fish and clams.  Yet, regardless of Lydie's Iron Chef skills with fish, I am starting to crave my favorite source of protien--BEEF.

Around the end of last week, I was starting to wonder if beef was even consumed in France.  I had seen cattle in the pastures along the roads, but I had yet to see a slice of red meat on the table in front of me.  I was starting to miss my favorite animal, in both the live and edible version.

Lucky for me and you...I found out that cows do exist for a reason in France and people actually do eat beef (just not my family) and that farms in France still do remind me of home.  For starters, a farm still smells like a farm...as all of the city folks complained about the smell, I loved the scent of hard work and dedication.  Second, a cow still looks like a cow...it still moos and eats grain and has calves.  The farmers still care about their product and work hard to raise a quality piece of meat (viande in French) for their consumers.  They still have the small farms that many of us are able to call home and they pass those farms from generation to generation. A farm is a farm whether is is Minnesota, France or China...the values never change and that was one of the best lessons I have learned on this trip so far.

 (This is an advertisment I found in Angers that promotes Beef.  It makes me think that some people may enjoy my favorite meat!)

But, let me be clear there are major differences in our production practices.

Now I know, that there are variations in production practices even in the United States, but realisticaly our main goal is usually efficeiency.  We punch numbers to determine which genetics will produce a fast-growing calf that will make it to market with the least amount of inputs...it is a matter of economics.  From what I am gathering, that is not the case in France.  Why?  Because French prefer old meat.  Wierd huh?  We prefer a fresh, "A maturity" carcass that is filled with marbling and they would rather have an extremely lean, tougher, older piece of meat.  So, in order to react to these demands a steer is usually fed out for 2 1/2 years and because of that, farmers often feed out bulls instead and harvest them at 15-17 months for beef.  That is just so odd for me.  That's a long time for one steer to be on my farm, but the differences don't end there--

• Steers aren't typically castrated here until 12 months, sometimes at the earliest of 7 months.
• There are no major feedlots in France.  Most steers and heifers get sold to Italy or Spain to be fed out.
• There are many Appelations of Origins (AOC) dealing with beef breeds.  These AOCs guarentee the region, breed, handling and quality of beef from specific areas.  For example, there is an AOC Maine Anjou.
• There is no real market for market heifers in France.  For example, the Maine Anjou AOC required all females to have at least one calf before they could qualify.
• Cattle are not given hormones...ever.
• Producers are given their prices on visual appraisal before the cattle leave the farms.  Little emphasis is put on our normal guidelines, such as marbling, size, condition and it is more on what the grader thinks that day.

My list could go on and on and on but instead, let me share with you some pictures from the birth place of the Maine Anjou, which happen to be one of my favorite breeds!  I was pretty excited about this visit, as I had made an assumption about their origin when I discoverent the name of Angers' region is Anjou and that a nearby river is named the Maine.  It turns out it wasn't just a coincedence and I was able to visit the farm where the first Maine Anjou (also known as Rouge des Près) was bred! 

However, the Maine Anjou in France are much different than the my heifer I lovingly showed in 10th grade or any of the steers we have ever raised.  These cows here are red and white and at home, they are definitely black.   It is obvious that there has been some crossbreeding in the American Maine Anjou breed, but I still love ours none the less.

                          

The pictures above are from the AOC Maine Anjou (so basically like the breeds headauarters) and let me just say, while I love the American Angus Association, this office space was beautiful.  Plus, they still had the original stalls where the first cattle on the farm were stalled and they had two cows in their pasture, chickens in their yard and a barrell of cider the size of me in their barn.  I think the Angus Association maybe should take some notes :)