Thanks you for your kind comments on my post, out of 54 grandchildren and almost 30 great-grandchildren, I am the only one that farm's, there are many times I feel like they are still with me.. like when I wipe my rims of my jars with boiled/hot vinager instead of water (that's grandma whispering how its done), when I work with the critters and its not going my way, its grandpa that whispers.. Slow down girl.. Stop and look, you raise and treat your critters fair and honest and they won't "choose to be difficult" so stop an see what YOU are doing that is causing this..

Some folks have asked why I named my little cow Girl, as its a bit of a odd name but its a nod to my grandfather, you see way back when, a little team of mares came from out East (quebec) to his farm area in northen alberta and no one would bid on them in the ring, they were to small compared to what most folks wanted, (they were Canadian's) and so my grandfather bought them, one mare died shortly after giving birth, as it turns out she was bred when he got her, and so grandpa bottle raised her little filly, who he called.. GIRL.. This was his favorite horse, o the stories of girl that my mom and all the aunts and uncles tell of this horse.. they are family legend.. so it just seemed fitting that when I decided that my little milk cow to be would also be a draft cow, that she would be named in honour of grandpa's Girl.

Farmgal-you did again. Sitting here crying as I try to type this. Thank you so much for sharing.

It's a shame that only you carry their spirit.

I can't help when the wind blows to check out the leaves in a tree to check for the weather, nor look at a strawberry batch or a 100 other things without hearing my grandfathers whisper. Every time I see hollyhocks I remember my grandmother showing me how to make hollyhock dolls. Every snake I see reminds me of grandma too and her fear of them. (she used to chop all snakes with her garden hoe, it did not matter that it was only a corn snake instead of a rattle snake)

I have a chair that I use every day that my grandma needlepointed the seat and a picture of both above my desk. When I take on some new craft, chore or project I always ask myself would this make them proud.

Just thought of something my grandmother taught me. I am not sure how or who started it but I still do it today.

I make meatloaf with a layer of stuffing/ dressing. Grandma used to save and dry the heels of bread. When making a meatloaf she would take the heels, chop them up, add spices (savory, sage, Rosemary and thyme) add a liquid which was usually chicken stock if she had any. Then she would mix the hamburger with onions, eggs, bread crumbs. Fill a third of the loaf pan with the meat, the next third with the stuffing and top with the meat.

My best guess for doing this was to make the meat go further.

Awesome thread!

after remembering the meatloaf, I took hamburger out of the freezer to make some 🙂

My grandma was big on preserving food. That is where I learned it. It was her hang over prepper tradition from the war time. She would spend entire days filling jars with homemade salsa, jams, fruits, veggies, pickles and other assorted preserves. When she passed away I inherited a bunch of empty Mason jars and a cache of goodies. RIP Grandma.

MMMM, Oldschool - sounds good! I'll have to try it. Thanks

I remember my grandma in Florida, I went down to visit her in her mobile home retreat, She had a deck of cards out and wanted to play Euchre. I had a friend with me we were both around 25, when I sat down... Wasnt able to play, It was a dollar a hand or no go! She was serious, she loved to gamble! So she made me get her a drink instead! I miss her so much! That was just one of the memories i had, but grandma loved her whiskey! On another thought, I remember and old game hanging on the door was made from the seals in canning jars the redish colour ones, as a kid the thing hanging on the door had hooks and we tossed the seal rings on them and tried to get points. Hope that makes sense.

Was just looking for my grandma's recipe for her icicle pickles. I have never made them as someone else in my family always did & would share. The recipe was in a book my grandmothers church put together in 1967. So I guess I got my first cook book at the age of 5.

I must say I am surprised at the time it takes. From start to finish it's 11 days. Not sure how to figure out "enough cucumbers to take up the water" would be.

Tongue sliced thinly is quite tasty or with liver and other ofuls (sp?) to make great stews and pot pies. Add seasoning and eat it away

^ Offal, but I prefer variety meats as it sounds less awful lol

Love my offal or variety meats, so many yummy things can be made from things that most folks just throw away or ends up in dog food..

Great idea for a thread.

My grandmother, "Mama" as we call her, grew up in Hungary. She told me the process they used to turn hemp plants into clothes, sheets, and bags. It was a drawn out process involving storing the hemp for nine days in a pit below ground. Of course she can't show me this, but I love to hear the stories.

Lately she is showing me how to make noodles from scratch. I have been cooking a lot of our Hungarian dishes too - very simple peasant food like dumplings made from just flour and potatoes or paprika chicken, etc. I grew up eating this kind of food and it's wonderful to make it.

I love hearing her stories about having two cows and one was creamier than the other so she made a lot of butter using the plunger style churner. One of their first homes in Canada was a one-room shack with dirt floors on the first farm they bought. They had to wear boots all the time in the winter. And this is when she already had two children. She also has so many tips about caring for skin with olive oil and lemons and things of that nature.

Very cool Amf

Making spaetzle and linsen for dinner tonight. The spaetzle I am cheating and not making from scratch.

Awesome post folks and some great reading. Tough in spots, but great.