PEAR HARVEST TIME
The month of September is come and almost gone, and we're glad. With almost 200 trees, mostly pears, some peach and apple, it's a big job to care for them all summer and then pick and sell them in the fall.
But if we work it right and get enough help,we will leave them for another year. Every year about July Dee threatens to cut them all down, but harvest time makes you realize that you are PREPARED.
With Linn, Keiko and David doing most of the work, and Dee and I "supervising" we are now ready to kick back and enjoy the winter with lots of reading and writing. Hooray! 
We've also had lots of colds, (no flu shots yet) which accounts for the lack of posts. But I'm repenting. So check back again.
For people who like to be prepared for emergencies, a food supply is a necessity. Wheat being the staff of life, knowing how to make bread is vital. Even if you don't make it all the time, knowing how will give you great peace of mind
FOLLOW THE PROPHET!When bread got to be 3.00 a loaf, we decided it was time to start baking whole wheat bread again. So I thought I'd share my recipe with you. I made lots of bread when I had a houseful of kids, but when there were just two of us, we got a bread maker and used that. Now, back to making "real" bread.
We are using hard red wheat which is somewhere between 25 and 40 years old. Some has traveled from Oregon to Utah to Fresno and back to Oregon. Most was purchased for 10 cents a pound (today I saw in Emergency Essentials they have it in 46 lb. cans for 47 dollars) So, back to the recipe and a couple of hints.
4 cups warm water
1 cup oil
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 eggs
1 pkg. (2 1/2 teaspoons) yeast
12-14 cups flour
I use about 3 cups of white flour and the rest whole wheat. I like to add about 1/2 cup cracked wheat. After mixing, I let it double in size, then punch down and make four loaves, baked in well oiled pans.
Wheat handles better if you don't add flour when forming into loaves, just keep your hands moist with oil. Let loaves raise for a long time, maybe 1 1/2 hours or until nice and full in the pan.
Bake at 450 for 10 minutes, then turn heat back to 350 for 25 more minutes. BE CAREFUL, it's easy to eat both ends off a couple of warm loaves.
This bread freezes really well, in freezer bags. Enjoy! Your husband and kids will think you are wonderful!
MORE IDAHO FUN!!
When you count up Mark's 19, Ruth's 9, Karen's 4 and Grampa and Grandma, we had 34 around at one time or another. Somehow reunions that are unplanned just have a way of turning out good.
Vacations are mostly for eating and visiting and crashing and being together and loving each other.
The best part of being in Idaho Falls was seeing Jason prepare for his mission. We got to go to a session at the Idaho Falls Temple with him, Ruth, Danny and Karen. We cooked hot dogs in Karen's back yard, and had pizza and milk shakes at Mark's.
