Chronicles of the Long Shot Farm

Family

Polymer Clay Doll Food

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This year Jeff had the BRILLIANT idea of ordering polymer clay to occupy his many grandchildren (and daughters and wife as well).  Our goal was to create food for the 18in dolls that were the stars of Christmas.  Tina was inspired by someone who created a tiny deviled egg on Pinterest.  The clay arrived in many colors and with a variety of basic tools.  The experience ended up being fun for everyone.   The food was not too complicated because it was made with simple shapes and the scale is 1:3. We went through several pounds of clay and the dolls were thrilled.

Felicity could not believe her luck! At the Merriman General Store she found modern treats like Oreos, candy canes, and S’mores. Just in time for the holidays too! Possibly they were not sold out because other patrons, in 1774, did not know the true joy to be found in an Oreo.

Our Bitty baby is quite the entrepreneur.  She decided – at quite a young age – to open her own bakery, full of macaroons of every color, candies, white chocolate truffles, petit fours, and cupcakes.

Caroline enjoyed a hearty breakfast of monstrous bacon, a small egg, and an even smaller orange (kumquat?) before joining her father out on the skiff.  To think such unique proportions of food were to be found in 1812.

Tina made all the dresses in the above pictures as well, in case you were wondering!

Posted by Anja Weyant

Fun in the Pond

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Watch out! The kids have squirt guns!

After a hot week picking blueberries and working in the vineyards we are all ready for a cool afternoon in the pond.  Rachel brought over 2 rafts and a handful of squirt guns.  The girls inevitably wind up together in one raft with Lars, Toben and Leif in the other.  Chaos ensues.  Anja documents a safe distance away with Torin.

Toben spends an impressive amount of time swimming next to the raft.  It was a great day to take a break with uncle Lars.

Posted by Anja Weyant

Blueberry Time

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The blueberry harvest is in full swing.  The blueberry patch features several varieties of plants and is just next to the barn.  From the Winery deck you can view the patch. We added shiny metallic tape as a bird deterrent this year and the harvest is significantly larger.  Fortunately Anja’s family is in town and Rachel’s children were game to make some headway on the patch.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted by Anja Weyant

Tasting Room Open House

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We hosted a pre-opening event for our neighbors, friends and supporters to thank them for all the encouragement and help during the last few years to get our winery going.  We had our PLCB inspection last week and our winery license is active as of February 28 🙂

The tasting room was spick and span and we had light refreshments from the County Butcher Shop to pair with the wine.

It was also an opportunity to work out some of the kinks.  No one really knew what to expect in the tasting room or even how to pour wine.  Our self-taught servers used wine glasses filled with the appropriate amount of water to use as guidance.  It was also an opportunity to learn how to talk about the wine.

One of the many things we had to learn and prepare for was how to use Square to accept payments. A big thanks goes out to our first official customers and helping us with our learning process!  Knud (Tina’s brother) and his wife Shannon enjoyed the Chardonel wine and Tina’s parent’s could not go away without buying their favorite wine, Chambourcin.

The open house was a success.  We even had a random customer stop in.  They were in the area, from State College, and saw all of the cars in the parking lot and the sign.  They bought 2 bottles to go after tasting a few.  Our first uninvited customers!

We cannot be more grateful for the support and encouragement from family, friends and neighbors.

Posted by Anja Weyant, Tina Weyant, and Samantha Shaffer Weyant

2019 Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention

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This week the 2019 mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention is going on. Rachel spent time learning and taking the Private Pesticides Applicators exam (Good Luck Rachel)! Tina, Lars (Majoring in Plant Science at PSU), Rachel and Toben learned more about fruit and vegetable growing.  And growing grapes!

Toben even got an approved day off of school and is taking notes on early basal leaf removal and its affects on the health of vines.  As Jeff always says, “If you learned something today, it was a good day.”

Posted by Samantha Weyant Shaffer and Anja Weyant