The German Rolling Pin

Living in Pennsylvania offers the splendor of a variety of old world demonstrations. We entered a hand stoned home when we were embraced by the sweet smell of homemade biscuits. As we neared the kitchen area the walk in stone fire place was graced with black rod iron cooking pots. The warmth of the fire filled the room and the sweet smell of biscuits cooking permeated the entire lower level of the home. A women stood at a large wooden table dressed in period clothing. She was mixing up another fresh batch of stone ground biscuits and rolling them out with the most unique rolling pin, I had ever laid my eyes on. I questioned her about the rolling pin and she stated that it was a German rolling pin that was made by a man in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. She was kind enough to give me the information where I might locate him. I set out on a quest to find this rare rolling pin but was disheartened that the man that had fashioned her rolling pin no longer was living. I was sent to another source that had duplicated the previous mans work but the price was astronomical in comparison to it’s simplicity. I had set aside the idea of ever owning one of these unique pieces but kept the vision rolling around in my head for weeks.
It was Christmas time and one of our favorite past items is to frequent antique shops in the area. Often times it’s not to purchase anything but just to reminisce about items that we had while growing up or embrace new knowledge of the use of items we encountered. We would walk around sometime for hours taking in all the splendor of yesteryear. I paused in one area with my hand draped across an old dresser. I began a conversation with my husband when I glanced down and there inside the dresser drawer was the rolling pin that I had so desperately wanted. I gasped, picked it up and held it tight to my chest. I paused afraid to turn over the price tag. After all it was in an antique shop and could very well be twice the price that I had already determined as astronomical. I bravely removed it from my chest and drew in a deep breath before I revealed the price. It just could not be, it was fraction of the price and in perfect condition. As I inspected it further it was engraved with the name of the man that had passed on and date as proof of authenticity. I knew at this very moment that this was a gift from above.

Cheryl’s Whole Wheat Bread

Preheat oven to 250 degrees and turn your oven off .

Place 2 ½ Tablespoons of yeast in a bowl with 1 Tablespoon of natural sugar and ½ cup of warm water. Let rise.

Place in your Bosch Mixer
5 cups of hot water
2/3 cups olive oil (place oil first so honey does not stick to your measuring cup)
2/3 cups honey
2 Tablespoons of salt
Pulse above ingredients to mix 4 to 5 times

Add yeast mixture when water has cooled to a warm temperature so that you don’t kill your yeast. Pulse to blend 3 times
Begin to Add wheat a cup full at a time
It usually takes about 12 or more cups of freshly ground whole wheat depending on the humidity..
I just add wheat until the dough does not stick onto the side of the bowl.
Set timer for 10 minutes and let the Bosh mix on setting 1

When removing your bread from the bowl, grease counter well with olive oil. (It’s a puddle of oil). Place oil on your hands to pull the dough from the bowl and remove from the dough hook.
Take the mound of dough and fold in the air by grabbing each corner and placing it in the center of your dough. You will do all four corners the same way.
Now, divide dough into four batches and fold air into each batch the same as above.
Grease bread loaf pans and place in warm oven to rise until double in size.
Do not preheat oven but shut door and set oven at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes.
When removing from oven let sit in pans for a couple of minutes to rest and take a butter knife around the edges to remove onto a cooling rack.
You can rub butter over the tops of bread to make a shiny top on each loaf.
Store in air tight bags.

When making sweet rolls, roll one bread loaf size dough out sprinkle with brown sugar, nuts, and cinnamon. Roll it long ways and slide dental floss underneath the loaf and pull upward to cut desired size pieces. Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 15-17 minutes.
You can glaze them with a powdered sugar and cream cheese frosting or eat just as is.
Store in air tight container. C.A. Bresin www.risenshinefarm.com

Cassie Rose

Our Border Collie Cassie came to us as an unwanted pet that was herding a vast amount of cattle without command or guidance. Border Collies have a natural instinct to herd but without the proper training can become a thorn in anyone’s side. The simple problem is they are intelligent, high energy dogs, that get bored quickly. If you can't find a way for them to stay busy, they will. There idea of staying busy may not be advantages or beneficial to anyone but themselves. When Cassie first came to our farm, she would jump our front gate and make her way into our front field before we ever missed her. She would herd the baby calves from one corner to another until they would drop from exhaustion. Her other favorite past time was to lay low in the grass along side the road and run along side the cars. She would hit their door as if she were playing tag. There was many a frightened passer by that thought they had hit her instead of her hitting them. It wasn’t long before we caught onto her antics and put a stop to them. No, we didn’t tie her, hit her, or find other degrading means to stop her behavior. We simply put her over abundance of energy to good use. First we tried training her to bring in the sheep when we were there to supervise. She was brilliant! She would watch my hand commands and bring them all the way in. Our problem surfaced when she felt it was necessary to bite them on the heels when she got too close. I spoke with a trainer for herding dogs and she suggested muzzling her during the time we were working the sheep. Cassie spent a good bit of her time buried beneath the grass trying to work that muzzle off her face with her paws. Rather than give up on her abilities, we found a book that showed all the uses for Border Collies. We asked Dustin if he could make us some jumps and a ring as a obstacle coarse and set her to the new task. It didn’t take long before she was clearing the jumps and making her way flying through the hoop. She was a natural! This was not only fun for her but we really enjoyed watching her gracefully glide through the air.
Cassie always had an aversion for ground hogs. One day, I was standing in the field with her and I saw her bury her head in a hole. The next thing I knew, she had lifted that ground hog from it’s hole, snapped it’s neck, threw it in the air, and then tossed it at my legs. I let out a scream, took flight and landed to see the proud gaze and wagging tail of our little black and white Border Collie. It was plain and simply, a job well done.
So often I hear or see of people who misunderstand the abilities and the way a dog thinks and reacts. More times than not, it’s the problem owner not the problem dog. A dog will always give you back the love and respect you give them.
To one of the best little ground hoggers bar none. You are a part of so many cherished memories here at the farm. You will always be loved and your presence forever missed. April 14, 1999 - December 12, 2011
C.A. Bresin (Welcome to My World)

The Border Collie originated in the border country between Scotland and England where the shepherds' breeding selection was based on biddable stock sense and the ability to work long days on rugged terrain. As a result of this selective breeding, the Border Collie developed the unique working style of gathering and fetching the stock with wide sweeping outruns. The stock is then controlled with an intense gaze known as "eye", coupled with a stalking style of movement. This selective breeding over hundreds of years developed the Border Collie's intensity, energy and trainability which are features so important that they are equal to physical size and appearance. The Border Collie has extraordinary instinct and an uncanny ability to reason. One of its greatest assets is the ability to work out of sight of its master without commands. Breeding based on this working ability has made this breed the world's premier sheep herding dog, a job the Border Collie is still used for worldwide.
http://www.akc.org/breeds/border_collie/

Georgia

It wasn't long after our goose Lucy made the news that people began to call for one reason or another. One morning a farmer responded to the article in the newspaper saying, he didn't have our goose but he had a goose or two that we could have. There was really not another goose that could fill Lucy's place but we set off on a days adventure. His farm was neatly tucked back in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania. We meandered down a dirt road and past a pond where we met an older man dressed in well worn overalls. He greeted us and took us to the barn were he had ducks, geese, and a male turkey that met us up close and personal, as he shook his feathers and did his turkey dance. We decided on a couple of White Ebden Geese and the farmer said, he would even throw in a little bantam hen and tree duck eggs. Down the road we traveled to take our barnyard friends to their new home. It was nice to once again hear the sound of geese honking and clamoring as they waddled in front of our barn.
We named the little red bantie hen Georgia and placed her in a laying box and carefully put the duck eggs under her. It was really quite comical because she was so small that she barley covered the large eggs. She sat diligently until one day the hatching began. What a sight to behold as this little hen hatched out three perfect yellow ducklings.
We were in the process of a move to a new farm that had a larger barn and a small pond. Gathering all of our animals for the move was quite a challenge. The horses were loaded in a stock trailer. The dogs and cats were crated and the chickens and geese were placed in separate containers. Special care was given to Georgia and her waddling feathered ducklings. Adjacent to the barn rested a little pond that I knew would be perfect for the ducks. We began to unload our variety of barnyard critters when the ducklings quickly made there way to the little pond. With out any hesitation Georgia followed them into the pond before she realized that she could not swim. As her confusion rose, the flapping and struggling to try to stay afloat overcame her very existence. We quickly went to rescue our puzzled little bantie. This was without a doubt the last time that she would try to swim. In the upcoming days Georgia would peck around the pond as her hatchlings enjoyed their daily swim. Once her ducklings were done swimming, you could see them faithfully waddling single file behind Georgia throughout the day.
C. A. Bresin

Bantam Chickens
A bantam is a small variety of chicken, deriving it’s the name from the city of Bantam. Bantam was once a major seaport, in Indonesia. European sailors found the small native breeds of chicken in Southeast Asia to be useful, and any such small poultry came to be known as a bantam. Bantams are usually one-fifth to one-forth the size of an average chicken.
Bantams are suitable for smaller backyards as they do not need as much space as other breeds. Bantam hens are also used as laying hens, although Bantam eggs are only about one-half to one-third the size of a regular hen egg.
Many bantam hens are renowned for hatching and brooding purpose. They are very protective mothers and will attack anything that gets near their young.
excerpts taken from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bantam_(poultry)

God's Provision

The joys of living on a farm outnumbers the challenges. Caring for our animals on a daily basis not only requires feeding and making certain they have fresh water but the administering of wormers, vaccinations and a variety of general care. Each type of animal requires a different feed and the knowledge of its individual design to properly raise and maintain it's survivability.
Chickens have been a passion of mine for over twenty years. I still delight in the fact that God has provided us with all we need for our sustainability.
Each morning we go out, open the coop door and give them some chicken mash and fresh water. We use a natural parasite control and organic dusting powder for lice and mites. Chickens are relatively easy to keep other than the constant watch for predators. Our farm resides along the Conewago Creek, so we seem to have a variety of fox, raccoons, possum, and chicken hawks. We even have a resident bald eagle that nests along the creek and sits in one of our trees to peruse her delectable fancies. A massive white owl has been known to visit on occasion. All of these predators are a constant source for absconding my cherished feathered flock.
It was broad daylight when I heard our chickens creating a loud cackling stir. We raced out to the coop to find that something had brazenly entered. I could see white feathers scattered across the field. Upon further investigation the first and largest patch of feathers were located where our chicken had been killed. Right next to the feathers remained a pile of her intestines. We then discovered a fresh pile of dung that the animal left as a way to mark it's territory. Fortunately, I had recently purchased a tracking book, which Daisey fetched so that we could inspect our findings. As I flipped through the pages, I eyed a surprising perfect match. It was undoubtedly a fox. We could hear the foxes eerie calls during the night. Their shrill screams sends chills up my spine when walking in our darkened fields.
Now that we had identified our culprit, we set out to track our adversary. We swayed back and forth across the field as if we were on a treasure hunt. We could see an occasional feather that kept us on coarse. As we approached a ravine, we came to an end. Our Border Collie Cassie had been eagerly tagging along. We sent her down by the stream that naturally flowed between the crevices of the terrain. She seemed to be onto something, as she frantically sniffed and began to paw at a pile of leaves. Our son Dustin climbed down to help her unearth her prized discovery. There it was, neatly tucked under the leaves resting close to the cold free flowing water. The fox had intelligently placed it for safe keeping so that she could come back for it when she needed to feed her young. We placed the leaves back over the top of our chicken as the fox had rightfully won her kill.
We walked back across the open field realizing that we were not only provided with a knowledgeable adventure, but we witnessed first hand God's provision for all of his creatures.
C.A. Bresin

Fabulous Foxes
Foxes belong to the canid family and include such species as red fox, kit fox, swift fox, fennec fox, arctic fox and gray fox, just to name a few. While some species of canid have been hunted almost to extinction because of their penchant for livestock and the depletion of their natural habitats, some species of fox such as the red fox have adapted well to changing times and find great opportunities for food and shelter in urban environments. The red fox is not a finicky eater, and will ingest beetles, worms, frogs, birds, eggs, mice, fruits and refuse.
Similar Characteristics: All species of foxes have similar characteristics. They tend to be light brown, reddish, gray or dark brown in color, except for the arctic fox, which is pure white in winter. Most foxes have relatively large ears that stand up straight and long bushy tails. Home for most foxes is a den tucked away among rock crevices, an abandoned rabbit burrow or a tree hole in the case of the gray fox.

DID YOU KNOW?
Fox Names
A pack of foxes is called a "skulk."
A fox's bushy tail is called a "brush."
And its acute muzzle is called a "fox face."

On the Brink
Some fox species, such as the red fox, are highly adaptive. Others, like the crab-eating fox of South America and the bat-eared fox of Africa, are on the brink of extinction in their native habitats.

Cold-Adapted Fox
The arctic fox has several adaptions to its cold environment, including thick, white fur, a good supply of body fat and a system of blood circulation in its paws that keep them constantly warm.
http://animal.discovery.com/mammals/fox/

Shearing Day 2011

A Pioneer Spirit

The day had arrived that Emma would journey across the wide open sea to a new land. She had diligently saved her money for her ticket on the ship Helvetia. The journey would take forty days or more and there would be no turning back. All she had known was her birth place of Appelbo Sweden. Being a young lady her sights were fresh and untainted. With youth comes the freedom from unknown fears and the willingness to experience unsettled territories.
From the moment Emma stepped foot onto the Helvetia, her heart raced with excitement as she anticipated the journey ahead. The large crowds of people filed to their designated cabins, but many more would be escorted to the steerage below the ships deck. The massive trunks filled with treasured belongings were stored below and a carry on bag of personal necessities remained with each passenger.
One could feel the era of excitement as the passengers shuffled around. After the first and second class passengers settled in, many returned to the deck to wave farewell to those that were left behind. With arms waving, for some this would be their last farewell. The voices and cheers over shadowed the ships whistle that bellowed as the large vessel pulled from the shore. For a moment, there seemed to be an unsettling calm as the emotions of leaving their loved ones brought forth the reality of the journey ahead.
As they set sail, the waters were brisk and the smell of salt water filled the air. It was not long before there was music playing and many of the passengers were brought joy by and endless night of celebration and dancing. This was a time of festivities and the making of new friends that all shared one common virtue, a pioneer spirit.
C.A.Bresin

The development of passenger vessels made the journey easier, cheaper, and faster for many immigrants. By the 1870s, steam powered ships replaced sailing ships. They were bigger, faster and safer. Immigrants in the early 1800s had to endure voyages averaging 40 days, depending on weather; by the 1900's, the average voyage was only one week long.
In order to account for and regulate immigration, the US government established immigrant processing centers on both the East and West Coasts. 70% of the European immigrants beginning in 1855 would be dropped off at Castle Garden on Manhattan Island and pass a series of examinations. In 1892, a new immigrant center at Ellis Island was built to replace Castle Garden. On the West Coast, immigrants, mostly Chinese or Japanese, arrived through Seattle or Angel Island in San Francisco.
The increased convenience of immigration did not, however, imply a level of comfort for the immigrants anywhere near modern standards. Poor sanitation and food, as well as diseases such as cholera and typhus, were still common on the trans-Atlantic liners.
Immigrants who could only afford the minimal third-class fees of about $30 were referred to as "steerage passengers." The name came from the part of the ship, the steerage, where they were kept and which provided the cheapest possible accommodations. It was crowded below deck, and steerage passengers were seldom allowed to go up for fresh air. The trans-Atlantic shipping companies had not yet learned to provide efficient basic services, such as food, and often fed passengers nothing but soup or stew, and sometimes bread, biscuits, or potatoes.
Many immigrants had to wash themselves with salt water while drinking stagnant water that was stored in dirty casks. At the root of these problems was a mindset on the part of many of the companies that considered the immigrants "human cargo." These same companies would often ship American-made goods to Europe on the return trip, and could not yet see the essential distinction between transporting products and people. They would learn with time.
Even after the tough voyage, immigrants were not guaranteed entry to America. About 250,000 people (2% of all immigrants) were sent back home. 1st and 2nd class passengers were inspected on the ship, but 3rd class passengers had to go to Ellis or Angel Island for screening, waiting about three to five hours in line and undergoing inspections of both a medical and legal nature.
Officials at Ellis Island also did something that is not commonly done today. When they could not pronounce an immigrant's name, the immigration inspectors thought that this gave them the prerogative to change the name to something less difficult. Names like "Andrjuljawierjus" might be simplified to "Andrews" or something similar.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/268908/immigration_from_1870_to_1920_the_journey.html?cat=37

Quilts For Sale

Moving across the United States always brought unwanted anticipation. The questions raced through my mind as I embraced the new adventure. Would I like my new home and the people who would surround me? Could I find a good doctor for my family? Would everyday necessities cost more? Where would I purchase feed and hay for our animals? Is there a good veterinarian in the area? So many things to consider and all of them out of my control. This particular move brought a deeper venue, a change in culture. We were moving among the Amish. I enjoyed soaking in the ambiance of the passing buggies. Slowing down to consider another way of life was something I admired. On my way to town to get groceries, I would take the Amish backgrounds and drink in the beautiful farms with pristine gardens laden with flowers. Often times, I would see a Amish farmer working with his majestic draft horses gathering shocks into a neatly packed array. As I rode further down the dirt roads, I passed an Amish one room school house. This was another cherished opportunity to watch the children playing in their school yard enveloping in the traditions of their community.
One of my favorite stops was the Amish tack store. The buggies were hitched to posts out front. When entering the dimly light wooden building, the stoves were filled with coal that brought about a warmth that was like no other. The heavy boarded floors resounded as you walked through out the shop. The shelves were neatly stacked with work boots, oil lamps, and other accessories. The upstairs was filled with saddles and bridles. Along the wall were red wagons awaiting the some little boy or girl who would happily use them for pleasure or possible to carry supplies. Even the Amish children knew what it was to work and contribute to the livelihood of their family.
There was always a few Amishman off to the side of the front counter. They busily repaired leather bridles and any other work that needed to be done for their Amish and English customers. I frequented this tack shop for some time before I was no longer looked at as an outsider but someone that was here to do business like so many others.
On one particular day, I noticed a black and white hand painted sign out front of an Amish home that read, Quilts For Sale. As I pulled in, I marveled at the serenity of the this home. We went in the little shop and sitting quietly doing some needle work sat a Amish lady. She sat quietly while we looked through the endless displays of hand sewn quilts. There was a rack of quilts that were neatly displayed. A double bed sat next to a sun lite window that you could fold back one quilt after another. An endless masterpiece of hand sewn needle work that created some of the most beautiful patterns and an endless array of colors.
On one of my many stops to the Amish quilt shop, I noticed my little Amish lady entering her house to have coffee with an English neighbor. I remember thinking what a honor and privilege to have and Amish friend and especially this one.
One day I got up the nerve to ask her name and she glanced from her work to say in a slight Dutch accent, Mary Ann. She seemed to become more comfortable with me as my daughters and son would enter on a regular weekly basis.
On one of my visits she asked if I would take her to pick up a new Chihuahua puppy at another Amish house. A buggy ride would be quite a ride but a ride in a car would get her there and back in no time. She was so excited to get her new puppy and offered to pay me for my time. I surprised her by saying, that I would take a kiss on the cheek for payment. May Anne giggled and gave me a kiss on the cheek.
Our friendship grew and we were later invited to their home for a dinner. This was like being in a dream or stepping into the pages of a story book. These were not just some Amish people, Danielle and Mary Ann became true friends.