I knew we were going to have problems out of Jen (nephew's wife) but I didn't expect it to be the very next day. Everyone else was up at 6 a.m ready to start their day but she stayed in bed. I had my son fire up the rocket stove while I put the makings together for hot oatmeal with dried apples, cinnamon and raisins. I made a pot of coffee and then heated water for tea for my sil and myself. My nephew offered to wake his wife up and I told him that if he starts doing that then she will never learn to live with the rules. His mom and dad backed me up on that.
After breakfast was cooked and everyone had ate my sil started on the dishes while my son, my nephew and I went out and started butchering the doe. The guys skinned it while I set up the turkey fryer and got my pans ready to put the meat in. I had a Lifetime plastic table that we laid the doe on when they had got done skinning it and then my nephew cut off the legs protions and then he started cutting the rest of the body in to steaks and ribs. I started cutting the leg meat in to roast strips. I had a bunch of clean dish tubs lined up on another table and as soon as we filled one my son would carry it in to the house and put it in the refrigerator. I had the geny on charging up John and my bil's portable oxygen machine batteries so the refrigerator was running to. It took us about an hour to completely cut up the doe. I put all the bones in a pot with some water, added some dried celery, carrots and onions, put the pot on the gas grill and fired it up. We would be having deer vegetable soup for dinner tonight.
My son brought out my big pressure canner and I brought out 2 dozen quart jars. My nephew brought out a 5 gallon jug of water. I put another pot of water on the grill and fired up the other side. I placed 9 quart jars in the pressure canner and got them hot and ready to fill. As soon as the water was hot my son brought out the first pan of roast strips. I filled the jars with the meat, my son filled them with hot water and wiped the rims, my nephew placed the lids and rings on and set them in the pressure canner. As soon as we got the first canner load full, he put the lid on the canner and when it was time put on the weight. Meanwhile my son went and got the smaller canner and we did the same thing all over again. While the pressure canners were going we cleaned up the mess we had made and then the guys brought out more jars. Just before noon I went into the house to get something for my nephew's daughter for lunch. While I was fixing her a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a fresh apple that I had Jen came down. As soon as she saw my great neice's lunch she said "Oh good it's lunch time. I am starved." I told her no it was my neice's lunch time and she was going to wait till dinner. "But I am hungry", "To bad. You were given the rules of the house. If you choose to ignore them that is your problem" I told her. " Well I will just eat a sandwich to tide me over till dinner" she said, "No you won't" I said. I closed up the peanut butter and the jelly placed the jelly in the refrigerator and took the bread and the peanut butter back to the store room. She can not get in there with out John or my bil seeing her. I heard my bil and sil snicker as I had walked past them on my way to the storage room.
I then got my niece and her lunch and took her into the dining room where the rest of the adults sat so she could eat with out Jen trying to sneak her food. On my way back out to the garage to work on canning more of the meat I told Jen that if she planned on eating dinner that night then she had better hurry her butt out to the garage and help or she would be SOL at dinner time.
She came out a few minutes later and as soon as she saw her husband she started whinning that she could not work unless she had something to eat. He told her that she had been told the rules and he had also warned her I was not a push over like his mom so if she wanted to eat she had better start working. Oh man was she mad. Her face turned bright red and she started slamming things around. I simply said "Either end you fit throwing right now or go to you room until tomorrow morning". She setteled down right away. By 5 pm we had over half the meat canned and I called it a day. We cleaned up then the guys carried the pot of soup in the house and sat it on the stove while I baked some biscuits on the grill. Once the biscuits were done I brought them in the house. My great niece had the table all set so we sat down to dinner. I dished out the soup making sure the two guys who had worked hard all day got big bowls full and a couple of biscuits a piece to go with them. Then I gave my niece her food then John and my bil. Next I dished up my sil food. I could see that Jen was fuming because I was making her wait to next to last but that was the way I was raised. The men who worked the hardest were served first then the children, then the older folks and the younger women were fed last. I had made sure that everyone got generous helpings but I reserved a little because I was not sure how much my grandniece would eat. Sure enough she asked if she could have a little more. My sil started to give her what she had left and I said no that I had more for her. As soon as I said that Jen pops up with "Oh I will have some more to then" "Nope, sorry you won't I just kept enought back for Amy because I was not sure how much she would eat." She slammed her bowl down and got up to walk away. I told her not to go far because after everyone was done she had to help with dishes. She sat back down fuming but never said another word.
After everyone was done eating and had their second cup of coffee or tea I got up and started clearning off the table. My sil told me to sit back down and rest as I had done enough today. She then told Jen and Amy to help her clean off table and they would do the dishes. I told my son and nephew to go get some rest and to come back down at 3am for guard duty. Jen wanted to go to bed with her husband but I told her she still had work to do and that he had been working since 6 am so he needed his rest. I swear I heard my sil snicker again then. I kept Jen busy till 10 pm and then I finally let her go upstairs. I knew she would wake my nephew as soon as she got up there to raise hell about me so I had wanted to make sure he got some sleep. Sure enough as soon as she got up there she started fussing at him. I could not hear her but the other adults could.
The next morning she was down stairs at 6 am on the dot. I went into the storage room and got a quart jar of canned bacon, a box of grits, and some powdered cheese put it all in a basket then went in the kitchen and fixed the coffee pot, filled the tea pot and got out a dozen eggs. I put the rest of the stuff in the basket then I made the biscuit dough and put it in a pan and headed out to the garage. She followed me and when I sat the basket down on the work table she grabbed the coffee pot and the tea pot and put them on the grill. Never saying a word. I went back into the house to grab the frying pan for the bacon, a pot for the grits and the pan of biscuits. And I grabbed my tea cup, tea bag and sugar and headed back out to the garage. She brought the coffee and hot water in for the others while I started the biscuits baking on the grill. Then I opened the bacon and took it out and put it in the pan and cooked it. I put together the grits and set them on the little side burner to cook. Home canned bacon doesn't cook like fresh bacon. It doesn't get brown and crispy and it falls apart which was okay. When the bacon was done I cracked the eggs right into the pan with the bacon and scrambled them. Jen came back out after getting her cup of coffee and we stood there in silence while the eggs cooked. Once everything was done we carried it back into the house and called everyone to eat. While I was outside cooking Amy had set the table with her grandma's direction and my sil had made our bed and her bed. After breakfast she said her and Amy would do the dishes because she knew I wanted to get the rest of the meat canned so my son, my nephew, Jen and I went back to the garage and started in again canning. We finally had it all done by 4 pm that evening. Before I had went back out I got out Amy's lunch and gave it to my sil. It was a can of spaghetti. Since the geny would be going she could heat it up in the microwave.
I had left out enough of the deer meat to grind up for chili that night. While my nephew ground up the meat with my hand grinder I went to the storage room and grabbed two quarts of tomato sauce, one quart of tomatoes and one quart of red beans. I put them all in my big stock pot and son carried it and the skillet it out cook the meat in. Then I put the ingredients for fried cornbread. I then got out the spices I wanted for the chili, grabbed my cast iron griddle, told Jen to grab the batter and the cooking spray and we headed outside. My nephew had the meat all browned and in the pot by the time I got out there. I added the spices and showed Jen how to cook the cornbread. Then I made another pot of coffee and heated water for tea. After everything was done we all carried it into the house and called the rest to dinner. This time Jen waited for her food with out any looks or complaints. I gave her a little extra this time because she had actually earned it today. I still kept a little back for Amy just in case. After dinner my sil told me that her and Amy would do dishes and for me to rest. Jen got up and helped clean off the table without being told to. Once the table was cleared my sil told her that if I didn't care she could rest to while they did the dishes. I had no problem with it.
At 7 I told the guys they could go to bed when ever they wanted but to make sure they were down at 3 am for guard duty. When my nephew went to bed that night Jen looked at me as if it ask if she could go with him. I told her if she wanted to go ok but make sure he got some sleep. I think she has learned that I mean business and I am not a pushover like his mom is. We will see sooner or later.
After breakfast was cooked and everyone had ate my sil started on the dishes while my son, my nephew and I went out and started butchering the doe. The guys skinned it while I set up the turkey fryer and got my pans ready to put the meat in. I had a Lifetime plastic table that we laid the doe on when they had got done skinning it and then my nephew cut off the legs protions and then he started cutting the rest of the body in to steaks and ribs. I started cutting the leg meat in to roast strips. I had a bunch of clean dish tubs lined up on another table and as soon as we filled one my son would carry it in to the house and put it in the refrigerator. I had the geny on charging up John and my bil's portable oxygen machine batteries so the refrigerator was running to. It took us about an hour to completely cut up the doe. I put all the bones in a pot with some water, added some dried celery, carrots and onions, put the pot on the gas grill and fired it up. We would be having deer vegetable soup for dinner tonight.
My son brought out my big pressure canner and I brought out 2 dozen quart jars. My nephew brought out a 5 gallon jug of water. I put another pot of water on the grill and fired up the other side. I placed 9 quart jars in the pressure canner and got them hot and ready to fill. As soon as the water was hot my son brought out the first pan of roast strips. I filled the jars with the meat, my son filled them with hot water and wiped the rims, my nephew placed the lids and rings on and set them in the pressure canner. As soon as we got the first canner load full, he put the lid on the canner and when it was time put on the weight. Meanwhile my son went and got the smaller canner and we did the same thing all over again. While the pressure canners were going we cleaned up the mess we had made and then the guys brought out more jars. Just before noon I went into the house to get something for my nephew's daughter for lunch. While I was fixing her a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a fresh apple that I had Jen came down. As soon as she saw my great neice's lunch she said "Oh good it's lunch time. I am starved." I told her no it was my neice's lunch time and she was going to wait till dinner. "But I am hungry", "To bad. You were given the rules of the house. If you choose to ignore them that is your problem" I told her. " Well I will just eat a sandwich to tide me over till dinner" she said, "No you won't" I said. I closed up the peanut butter and the jelly placed the jelly in the refrigerator and took the bread and the peanut butter back to the store room. She can not get in there with out John or my bil seeing her. I heard my bil and sil snicker as I had walked past them on my way to the storage room.
I then got my niece and her lunch and took her into the dining room where the rest of the adults sat so she could eat with out Jen trying to sneak her food. On my way back out to the garage to work on canning more of the meat I told Jen that if she planned on eating dinner that night then she had better hurry her butt out to the garage and help or she would be SOL at dinner time.
She came out a few minutes later and as soon as she saw her husband she started whinning that she could not work unless she had something to eat. He told her that she had been told the rules and he had also warned her I was not a push over like his mom so if she wanted to eat she had better start working. Oh man was she mad. Her face turned bright red and she started slamming things around. I simply said "Either end you fit throwing right now or go to you room until tomorrow morning". She setteled down right away. By 5 pm we had over half the meat canned and I called it a day. We cleaned up then the guys carried the pot of soup in the house and sat it on the stove while I baked some biscuits on the grill. Once the biscuits were done I brought them in the house. My great niece had the table all set so we sat down to dinner. I dished out the soup making sure the two guys who had worked hard all day got big bowls full and a couple of biscuits a piece to go with them. Then I gave my niece her food then John and my bil. Next I dished up my sil food. I could see that Jen was fuming because I was making her wait to next to last but that was the way I was raised. The men who worked the hardest were served first then the children, then the older folks and the younger women were fed last. I had made sure that everyone got generous helpings but I reserved a little because I was not sure how much my grandniece would eat. Sure enough she asked if she could have a little more. My sil started to give her what she had left and I said no that I had more for her. As soon as I said that Jen pops up with "Oh I will have some more to then" "Nope, sorry you won't I just kept enought back for Amy because I was not sure how much she would eat." She slammed her bowl down and got up to walk away. I told her not to go far because after everyone was done she had to help with dishes. She sat back down fuming but never said another word.
After everyone was done eating and had their second cup of coffee or tea I got up and started clearning off the table. My sil told me to sit back down and rest as I had done enough today. She then told Jen and Amy to help her clean off table and they would do the dishes. I told my son and nephew to go get some rest and to come back down at 3am for guard duty. Jen wanted to go to bed with her husband but I told her she still had work to do and that he had been working since 6 am so he needed his rest. I swear I heard my sil snicker again then. I kept Jen busy till 10 pm and then I finally let her go upstairs. I knew she would wake my nephew as soon as she got up there to raise hell about me so I had wanted to make sure he got some sleep. Sure enough as soon as she got up there she started fussing at him. I could not hear her but the other adults could.
The next morning she was down stairs at 6 am on the dot. I went into the storage room and got a quart jar of canned bacon, a box of grits, and some powdered cheese put it all in a basket then went in the kitchen and fixed the coffee pot, filled the tea pot and got out a dozen eggs. I put the rest of the stuff in the basket then I made the biscuit dough and put it in a pan and headed out to the garage. She followed me and when I sat the basket down on the work table she grabbed the coffee pot and the tea pot and put them on the grill. Never saying a word. I went back into the house to grab the frying pan for the bacon, a pot for the grits and the pan of biscuits. And I grabbed my tea cup, tea bag and sugar and headed back out to the garage. She brought the coffee and hot water in for the others while I started the biscuits baking on the grill. Then I opened the bacon and took it out and put it in the pan and cooked it. I put together the grits and set them on the little side burner to cook. Home canned bacon doesn't cook like fresh bacon. It doesn't get brown and crispy and it falls apart which was okay. When the bacon was done I cracked the eggs right into the pan with the bacon and scrambled them. Jen came back out after getting her cup of coffee and we stood there in silence while the eggs cooked. Once everything was done we carried it back into the house and called everyone to eat. While I was outside cooking Amy had set the table with her grandma's direction and my sil had made our bed and her bed. After breakfast she said her and Amy would do the dishes because she knew I wanted to get the rest of the meat canned so my son, my nephew, Jen and I went back to the garage and started in again canning. We finally had it all done by 4 pm that evening. Before I had went back out I got out Amy's lunch and gave it to my sil. It was a can of spaghetti. Since the geny would be going she could heat it up in the microwave.
I had left out enough of the deer meat to grind up for chili that night. While my nephew ground up the meat with my hand grinder I went to the storage room and grabbed two quarts of tomato sauce, one quart of tomatoes and one quart of red beans. I put them all in my big stock pot and son carried it and the skillet it out cook the meat in. Then I put the ingredients for fried cornbread. I then got out the spices I wanted for the chili, grabbed my cast iron griddle, told Jen to grab the batter and the cooking spray and we headed outside. My nephew had the meat all browned and in the pot by the time I got out there. I added the spices and showed Jen how to cook the cornbread. Then I made another pot of coffee and heated water for tea. After everything was done we all carried it into the house and called the rest to dinner. This time Jen waited for her food with out any looks or complaints. I gave her a little extra this time because she had actually earned it today. I still kept a little back for Amy just in case. After dinner my sil told me that her and Amy would do dishes and for me to rest. Jen got up and helped clean off the table without being told to. Once the table was cleared my sil told her that if I didn't care she could rest to while they did the dishes. I had no problem with it.
At 7 I told the guys they could go to bed when ever they wanted but to make sure they were down at 3 am for guard duty. When my nephew went to bed that night Jen looked at me as if it ask if she could go with him. I told her if she wanted to go ok but make sure he got some sleep. I think she has learned that I mean business and I am not a pushover like his mom is. We will see sooner or later.