Well, last week was a bust when it came to canning.  The persimmons were a disaster!  I seeded, and cooked, strained, restrained, seasoned (cloves and nutmeg) but nothing helped.  They were too astringent and I couldn't get them down to a tolerable level no matter what I did.  I finally gave up on them after Will tasted it and confirmed it was a flop.  I have decided that they are evil and should not be on the farm (grin).  Will laughed and agreed.  What a nightmare!
On the lighter side, I have decided I need a dehydrator for herbs and such and have been looking around at the costs of buying one.  They can range between $25 to $500!  There are some interesting articles on the internet about building one from scratch, including solar powered ones.  I think to start off with I'll just get a reasonably priced one and practice with it and then Will and I can try to design one we like for later usage.  They didn't look too difficult to build.
I honestly feel like most of my contributions right now center around practicing!  Canning, cooking, garden planning etc.  It's a weird but fascinating thing...
It's Pumpkin time around here and they are popping up everywhere.  I definitely want to get some planted on the farm for next year.  Will isn't fond of Pumpkin stuff, but I am and some of his family like them too.  I’m good at pumpkin pie, bread, cream roll, buttered and sautéed... really big fan.  At least he likes carving jack-o-lanterns!
His birthday is this week and I'm taking him out for dinner and some kind of entertainment (movie or tool shopping or something). So my focus is on him this week. 
Did make some homemade chicken stew this week, here is the recipe: (I purposefully left off the amount per spice because everyone's tastes are different... so season to taste!)
Ingredients:
1 whole chicken
cumin
chicken seasoning (I use McCormick's)
sea salt
garlic (powdered or fresh)
carrots (diced)
sweet corn (canned/drained)
onions (large pieces - they will cook down)
macaroni (or diced yukon potatoes if you prefer) 2 cups of water to 1/2 cup of dehydrated macaroni
Red/green/yellow peppers (diced) (optional - I don't usually put them in)

Directions:
Boil the chicken in a pot of water for two hours.  Remove from heat and let sit for about 10 mins to cool slightly.  Skim any 'foam' from the top of the water and toss the skim away.  Strain the chicken from the water and place on a plate to cool.  Place water back on the stove and bring to a low boil, add carrots and seasonings, reduce to a simmering boil and add onions, corn, potatoes and peppers.  While this is cooking (stir occasionally), remove the meat from the chicken bones and put back into the pot.  Be careful to keep all skin, bones, and cartilage out of the pot.  Cook, stirring often, until carrots (and potatoes) are soft then add the macaroni.  Cook for another 15 minutes and then remove and serve.  I prefer corn bread or hot rolls with this stew.
An alternative serving style is to make it without potatoes and serve over mashed potatoes.