Birds, we have a bird problem. Apparently here in the midwest we have these birds called barn swallows and they seem innocent, but man they are far from it. I thought I could be a homesteader but it seems the more I have dreamed this, the more things have happened to me that have made my husband question my ability to actually do it. Just to name a few; a dead animal on our front porch, snakes in our yard and now this incident. All of which he has received a phone call about from his panicked, crazy wife. Never a dull moment I tell you.
And of course always with a snide response and a laugh, he never really has any sympathy. One day last week I had noticed birds kept swooping through our front porch. Over and over and over. I had told him that I thought there were birds making a nest by our front door, which is not approved for someone who doesn’t love birds to begin with. I’m a fan of bird houses and trees, so make your nests there please. He assured me there were no nests on our porch. Well, the next day these birds were back so I thought I would take matters into my own hands and make sure there was no nest-making happening.
Well you can imagine, the minute I went out side those crazy birds started swooping me. With a few screams of histeria I went running back inside. My oldest was now at the door wondering what was going on. I tried to calm myself to tell her everything was alright but I don’t know if it was because I was winded, or pale, or both. She wasn’t believing me that the birds would not hurt us. At this point, I wasn’t even believing myself. As I regained confidence to head back out that door to prove a point to my lovely husband, my daughters thought they would join me in the quest.
So out we went. And you guessed it, multiple birds were flying right at my head. Screaming I told them to get back inside and we would let daddy deal with the problem when he got home. Well my oldest being three could hear the panic and take instruction, she was back inside in seconds. What I didn’t realize was my sixteen month old had no idea what was going on or what I was saying. So she just hung out on the front porch while my oldest and I were inside. Seconds after we had made it inside, my oldest proclaimed, “You forgot her mom, you forgot her! The birds are going to get her!” Not sure where the panic was coming from because just an hour before I’m sure she would have let the birds have her for dinner, but I did, I left my youngest on the porch with the “killer” birds.
As I am calling my husband with this problem, I have my oldest yelling at me to get her sister. She is oblivious to the bird problem and enjoying life outdoors with no intentions on coming in. I start by persuading her to come to the door (to me) with words, then bribery and finally I just had to take a broom and run and grab her to get her inside. Once everyone was safely inside, we caught our breath, took a moment to calm down and then I had to proceed to tell my daughters that birds really wouldn’t hurt them and there was nothing to be scared of. I’m sure I probably scared them for life as I constantly am getting asked if those are the nice birds or bad birds outside. What have I done?
Later my husband did look to make sure there were no nests and he was right all along (I’m sure he would want you to know that). So I thought I would make up to him by making some strawberry, peach, rhubarb crisp. His stomach is a good way to his heart. My intentions were cherry rhubarb but he isn’t a fan of cherry so I changed my game plan to make it approved by him. If you can’t think of something to get your dad or husband this fathers day, know that a good tasting healthy dish could be just what he is looking for. Enjoy!
- ¾ cup almond flour
- 1 cup chopped walnuts (pecan and almonds are nice too)
- ¼ cup chia seeds
- 2 Teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 Teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 Teaspoon orange zest
- ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 1 cup rhubarb
- 1½ cup strawberries
- 1½ cup peaches (can use frozen)
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ½ orange, juiced
- 1 Teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 Teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 Teaspoons arrowroot powder
- Preheat the oven to 350.
- Mix together all the ingredients for the topping until thoroughly combined and set aside.
- Place fruit in a 9″ x 13″ baking dish or individual dishes.
- Mix together the topping in a bowl, set aside.
- Mix together the maple syrup, orange juice, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and arrowroot together in a bowl until well blended.
- Pour the mixture over the peaches and berries and spoon the topping evenly over the surface.
- Bake the crisp for 30-45 minutes until the peaces are tender and the juices are bubbling.
- Serve warm.
