It’s been an awesome couple of weeks here on the Funny Farm in our quiet corner of New Brunswick! That seems to be the trend around here lately. But of course it’s busy; it’s the summertime!! Even more surprising, our last couple of weekends have actually taken us away from the homestead!
On July 18th, I finally had my long-awaited hair appointment. I’d booked it a month in advance, so I’d been looking forward to it for weeks. I decided it was time for a big change and had about eight inches cut off—maybe even a little more in some places. I also added some highlights around the front, and I absolutely love how it turned out.
I went to Avalon Spa, where they took wonderful care of me. If you’ve ever been there, you’ll know their scalp massage is worth the visit all on its own. While my toner was processing, they even treated me to a relaxing hand massage. It was such a nice opportunity to slow down and enjoy a little self-care.
Not long after my appointment, we met up with our friends, Stefan and Amalie, and headed to Saint John for the Moonlight Bazaar. They kindly offered to drive, so the four of us piled into their car for the hour-and-a-half trip from Fredericton.
The Moonlight Bazaar was incredible, and I’d recommend it to anyone. Several city blocks near the port were closed to traffic and transformed into a lively festival. Local artisans lined the streets with handcrafted goods, live music filled the air from multiple stages, and one intersection featured an enormous inflatable moon suspended high between the surrounding buildings. Even though it was “just” an inflatable, it was genuinely impressive and made for an unforgettable centrepiece. It even lit up when the sun went down!
The atmosphere was energetic, welcoming, and full of happy people enjoying a summer evening together. I couldn’t resist picking up a few treasures—a natural roll-on perfume, a matching candle from the same vendor, and a beautiful sun catcher that I’m excited to hang up. Since the streets were closed off, there were also beverage stations where you could grab a drink and wander through the event, listening to music and even dancing if the mood struck.
Of course, the weather had other plans.
It started raining while we were there. At first, we managed with umbrellas, and then we simply decided not to care. After all, sometimes getting caught in the rain is part of the adventure. Eventually, though, the rain became heavy enough that we called it a night. The drive home was exciting, to say the least. It absolutely poured the whole way back, but thankfully we all made it home safely.
The fun didn’t stop there.
The following day, we attended a farewell party for friends who are beginning an incredible new chapter. They’ve sold their home and almost all of their belongings—keeping little more than a couple of suitcases each—as they prepare to move to Australia. We spent the afternoon enjoying burgers, hot dogs, plenty of snacks, and good conversation while wishing them all the best on their new adventure.
The following weekend brought another adventure away from the homestead.
On Saturday, July 25th, we had the opportunity to help our friend Al and his band, Everyday Carry Band, film a music video. While they’ve done videos before, this was their first music video featuring the band themselves, and we were excited to be part of it.
Most of the filming took place around downtown Fredericton, where there are so many beautiful and recognizable locations. We also spent time at a local brewery, Half Cut, which served as the venue for a few of the scenes.
Al had already planned out a fun little storyline. The wives and girlfriends of the band members each had a few lines that hinted at a bit of tension between the couples. As the story unfolded, everything came together during the band’s performance at the brewery, ending with everyone smiling, laughing, and getting along again. The final scene featured Al and his wife, Constance, walking away, Al’s arm around her – a perfect ending to the story.
Our role was to handle all of the filming, so the day started early. Addy and I got our homestead chores finished ahead of schedule so we could be in Fredericton by noon. Thankfully, Joshua was able to step in and take care of the evening chores while we were away. In fact, he covered dinner chores for us on both busy weekends, and having someone we can count on like that makes these opportunities possible.
After filming the final scenes, the band stayed to perform a 19-song set at Half Cut. It was the perfect way to wrap up the day. Constance and I spent some time dancing, everyone enjoyed a few drinks, and it was wonderful to relax after a full afternoon of filming.
Now comes the hard part—but fortunately it’s Addy’s specialty. He has the big job of sorting through all the footage and transforming it into one cohesive music video. Editing has always been one of his talents, so I’m happy to leave that part in his capable hands. I can’t wait to see the finished result.
Sunday was another full day, but in the best possible way.
We started the morning by visiting another couple of friends who are preparing for a big move. Like our friends the weekend before, they’ve sold their home and have decided to move back to Ontario to be closer to family. It’s bittersweet watching so many wonderful people begin new adventures, but we’re excited for them.
They invited us over for coffee and a chance to catch up before the move. They had a spread of snacks waiting for us, and they introduced us to their newest kitchen gadget—a Ninja Slushi machine. They made us frozen coffee slushies that were absolutely delicious. Needless to say, the machine has already found its way onto my wish list. In my opinion, you can never have too many fun kitchen appliances!
While we were sitting around reminiscing, our friend casually asked, “Do you guys like wisteria?”
I laughed and admitted that I’ve always loved it.
With just a little bit of friendly persuasion, everyone managed to convince Addy to head out to the backyard with a shovel. Our friend had planted a young wisteria not long before deciding to sell the house, and rather than leave it behind, he offered it to us. A little digging later, we were heading out with our very own wisteria plant.
After saying our goodbyes, we headed into Fredericton again for another gathering—this time with Addy’s coworkers from Earth to Belly. The owner Luis had organized a staff outing at Picaroons, treating everyone to dinner and a drink.
The weather couldn’t have been better. It was sunny without being too hot, and we found a couple of picnic tables under umbrellas on the outdoor patio. It was one of those perfect summer evenings where good food and good company are all you really need.
I ordered cheesy fries and chicken tenders, while Addy went for a plate of wings. Picaroons has some great non-alcoholic options too, so he enjoyed a couple of alcohol-free ciders. I opted for something a little less responsible—but equally delicious.
Before heading home, we made one last stop at my parents’ property to check on the progress of the excavation work for the pad where their new mini home will eventually sit. The excavator had been busy adding fill and levelling everything out, and while I’m certainly no expert, it looked great to me. I snapped a few photos to remember the progress, and it’s exciting to see everything slowly coming together.
By the time we finally made it home, it wasn’t too late to finish the evening chores and tuck all of the animals into bed.
As for the weekdays over the last couple of weeks, work has kept us busy during the day, and the evenings have been all about keeping up with everything happening here on the Funny Farm.
One of the biggest pieces of good news came in the form of a text message. The wonderful lady we bought hay from earlier this year reached out to let me know they had another batch available. This cutting had been caught in the rain before it could be baled, which meant it wasn’t ideal for horses, but she wondered if we’d be interested in it for our goats.
My answer was an immediate, “Absolutely!”
I was so grateful that she thought of us. While horse owners understandably need near-perfect hay, goats are a little less picky. The hay had spent the entire day drying in the sun before being baled that evening, and we’ve seen no signs of any problems. More importantly, the goats have been happily munching away without a single complaint.
Addy hitched the trailer to the truck, and over the course of two trips, we brought home 73 bales. It felt like a huge weight off our shoulders. We estimate we’ll need around 200 bales to comfortably get through the winter, so we’re still searching for more. We’re not even entirely sure where we’ll store that much hay, but that’s a future problem. We’ll figure something out. For now, though, our hay panic has been staved off for a little while, and that’s a wonderful feeling.
Another exciting little project around the homestead has been our incubator. For the past couple of weeks—16 days, to be exact—we’ve had a batch of quail eggs incubating. Our little incubator isn’t very big. It holds about a dozen chicken eggs or eight or nine duck eggs, but this time we filled it with 32 quail eggs. Our original quail, the ones we brought home the spring after we moved here, are getting older now, and while they’re still doing well, their egg production has slowed down. We also have the 19 quail we raised earlier this year, and our long-term goal is to build a sustainable flock for both eggs and meat. That means getting comfortable with incubating, hatching, and raising our own birds. On Wednesday, the little ones finally started hatching, and it has been so exciting to watch! Lockdown started on Sunday, so they took about three days before the first little beaks began poking through the shells. As I’m writing this, we have almost 11 chicks hatched. I say “almost” because a couple are still in the process of breaking free from their shells. So far, that’s a hatch rate of about 34%, although there’s still time for more eggs to hatch over the next day or two. Personally, I’d consider a 50% hatch rate pretty good and 60% excellent, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed that a few more decide to join the party. We purposely included eggs from our older quail because they have some really beautiful feather colouring that we’d love to carry forward into the flock. It doesn’t really matter if they’re destined to become meat birds, but if they can be extra cute along the way, why not? Watching those tiny little quail emerge from their shells has definitely been one of the highlights of the week.
Addy has also been harvesting Swiss chard from the garden. The leaves were absolutely enormous—some of them were seriously the size of his head! We’ve chopped, vacuum-sealed, and labelled everything for the freezer. We’re both getting much better about labelling our packages these days. Future us will be very grateful when we’re not trying to guess whether a mystery green bag contains Swiss chard, kale, or spinach six months from now.
Of course, the goats still need milking every single day, so I’ve been keeping up with the milk production and finding plenty of ways to use it.
One project I’m especially excited about is my latest YouTube video. If you enjoy reading our blog but haven’t subscribed to our YouTube channel yet, I’d love it if you joined us over there too! I’ve been experimenting with both short-form and longer videos, and I’m having a lot of fun learning as I go.
My newest video walks through how I make our homemade farmer’s cheese. On filming day, I happened to be making a dessert version—a strawberry farmer’s cheese—and I decided it was too good not to share.
The process starts with my usual farmer’s cheese recipe, but this time I made a homemade strawberry compote. I still salted the cheese as normal, but I also added a couple of teaspoons of maple sugar directly into the curds. The compote itself was sweetened with about half a cup of sugar before being folded into the cheese just before it went into the mould.
The result? Absolutely delicious.
I think it might actually be Addy’s favourite cheese I’ve made so far. He never officially declared it the winner, but considering how quickly it disappeared from the fridge, I’d say that’s a pretty strong endorsement.
I’ve also been keeping up with making homemade yogurt, which is another great way to use up some of our fresh goat milk. A bowl of yogurt topped with honey and fresh berries has become one of my favourite breakfasts, especially alongside a warm bowl of oatmeal.
Out in the garden, we’ve been spending plenty of evenings watering. The weather has been quite warm lately, and keeping everything hydrated has become part of the nightly routine.
The garden itself is looking wonderful overall. The mystery squash plants that Addy brought home from Earth to Belly have absolutely taken off. We still don’t know what variety they are, but they’ve gone from tiny little plants to sprawling vines in what feels like just a few days. They’re covered in blossoms now, and I can’t wait to find out what surprises they’re growing for us.
The tomatoes, on the other hand, have been a bit disappointing this year. Usually by this point in the season they’re growing so quickly that I’m scrambling to keep them tied up on their supports. This year they’re still quite small, yet they’re already trying to produce tomatoes. I’m beginning to think this might just be an off year for our tomato crop.
Thankfully, the beans are making up for it. They’re covered in flowers, and the pole beans have finally started climbing their trellis. Watching them reach higher every day is incredibly satisfying.
The peas have been a different story. Whether it’s the location I planted them or simply the weather this season, they seem a little stunted. I haven’t picked a single snow pea yet, which is disappointing because one of my favourite gardening habits is wandering through the rows, pulling a few weeds and snacking on fresh peas as I go. I’m still hopeful they’ll surprise me.
Our berry patch is beginning to reward us too. The raspberries are finally ripening, and Addy picked a nice little harvest today. Considering these canes have only been growing since we first moved here, I’m thrilled with how they’re doing. The strawberries are producing nicely as well, although I suspect we’re sharing part of the harvest with the birds. Between our busy schedule and some hungry wildlife, we’ve probably missed a few berries along the way. Next year we’ll have to come up with a better system—whether that’s bird netting, picking more often, or simply making more time to be home when everything is ripe. That’s always the challenge with gardening. Nature doesn’t wait for your schedule.
Looking back over the past couple of weeks, it’s been a wonderful mix of work, friends, gardening, cheesemaking, filming, and plenty of time spent outdoors. We’ve been busy from morning until night, but it’s the kind of busy that reminds me exactly why we chose this life. There’s always something growing, something to harvest, something to preserve, somewhere to lend a hand, and another adventure waiting just around the corner here on the Funny Farm. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
If you’ve made it all the way to the bottom of this post, thank you so much for spending a little part of your day with us. Whether you’ve been following our journey from the beginning or you’ve only recently discovered the FunnyFarm, we’re so grateful you’re here.
Sharing our successes, our challenges, and the everyday moments in between has become one of my favourite parts of this adventure. I hope these little updates make you feel like you’re right here alongside us. As always, thank you for reading, cheering us on, and being part of our growing Funny Farm community. We’ll see you in the next update—and until then, take care of yourselves and enjoy the little moments. ❤️
