Destroying Angel

This weekend we made a '4 lb' derby (It must have been less than that, though (It appears that the goat milk makes a less dense curd, and that it loses more whey on pressing)).

The curds set up well, and we cut it without incident. What makes a derby a derby is a pseudo cheddaring process that the curds go through. You put them on a cutting board and cover them with a warm towel. Every 15 minutes you turn them over, and eventually they become about the hardness of a hard boiled egg.

After you finish that you rip them into chunks and press them for 26 hours at varying levels of pressure, and then you set them out to dry.
It turned out pretty good so far. We also made some ricotta out of the whey (and some 'gatorade' out of the whey after the ricotta was removed).

While we were making the cheese, we made a quadruple batch of granola as well. Alison bought some mango pineapple that we added. It adds a very tropical flavor.

We also took a walk and found a few mushrooms that look a lot like button mushrooms. I picked some, and am currently trying to determine if they are edible (Apparently the button mushroom is easily mistaken for the destroying angel, and one other mushroom that makes people puke but not die, but if you pay attention and know the signs you can be sure about which one you have.)

Andrea has been behaving in a very headstrong fasion recently. Perhaps it has something to do with Sara being here, but perhaps it is her impending second birthday.

Sara's nose has not yet completely cleared up from her cold. It seems like she has had a stuffy nose forever. She is breathing better, just not perfectly.

My card game is still moving toward completion (however slowly). I am happy with how trading works for the first time - I just have to play test it more. I also have to consider what modifications have to be made to the Gods and Strategies to make trading seem more like a real part of the game and less like a tacked on part.

This weekend we are having another baptism. Basically my job is to print stuff, conduct, and fill the font. Filling the font takes 3 hours, and since the primary has an activity that day I will be hanging out in the church alone. If anyone wants to come over and play Polynesia (or any game), feel free to.