Taking Care of Business Day

Today was a long day on the road, but productive. Bruce and I drove to Pickens today to order a package of bees. We decided to just get one this year. We have two strong hives and will probably split one if not both, depending on the equipment we can afford. It is not a cheap endeavor, but it is so worth it to see nature at its core, and the honey. We use honey for tea, lemonade, hot cereal such as oats, and cornbread regularly. I made a loaf of bread with it a few months ago. I really haven't tried other recipes lately. I have given away two very, very small jars to a couple of friends who are suffering from allergies already. Of course, any further honey will cost them. I have not bought any white granulated sugar in months! I have bought a bag of raw cane sugar for those in the family who have to have a little sweetener now and then.
We found an "oops" paint at a local home improvement store for $5. It was a beautiful pale green. That saved us about $25 (it was a more expensive brand).

We are getting ready to order some more hens, yes, hens only. I am waiting until late summer to order the broilers / freezer fodder. I have ordered 25 brown egg layers. The company will be sending five each of five different breeds. Please don't let them send any turkens...seriously those things scare me! They look like they have a horrible disease. Of course, they would be easy aim for butchering-sorry. (This picture is from polishfarms.com.)

We bought our rabbit wire so that Bruce and Jake can finish the cages. There are several advertisements online for New Zealands for sale. I will be calling on those next week. The boys better finish the cages soon. If I waited for the cages to be finished first...I have, and that was over a year ago. Time for a new strategy, don't you think? Besides, poor Rebel really needs to be up with everybody else. Bless his little lonely heart.

We also stopped at a local feed store and got some Kennebec seed potatoes. We will be tilling the "secret garden," as my mother calls it, and get those in the ground soon.

The only thing that did not get done, that we really needed to do, was get the part for the greenhouse waterline. We need to make sure the water heater elements are working too, but I have my doubts. Yes, my mother asked us to make sure we turned off the power supply to the water heater in the greenhouse, and Bruce said he did, and being an adult I didn't double check him...my bad...

All in all it was a productive day, getting supplies and taking care of errands.

Is Spring Coming?

I must suffer from SAD...you know, the label we give people who are grouchy and reclusive in the winter...seasonal affective disorder...now the days are getting a little longer, the sun is getting a little warmer and I am feeling a bit more alive.

It has been a nice winter really. We had two good snowy spells, one actually on Christmas. There has been a good number of rainy days. Now, of course, I have to find some rock for the driveway, soon!

Okay, catch up time. The farm still has one goat, Suzy...I am still contemplating her residency though. We still have Rebel and the one angora rabbit, who is nameless. We have 14 hens and the one rooster we kept around is the "rare" breed McMurray sent us, which is the dominique (the black and white striped/checked looking one). We really thought it was a hen too because it's comb was so small, well, he is so small, no wonder the other roosters were so mean to him. Then we heard him crow. Nice surprise. We aren't getting many eggs, but I have not used the artifical light or anything, just let nature do what it does. And we do have an egg eater...she will be found and dealt with harshly. We did sell a total of 4 dozen eggs over the last few months. Hopefully production will pick up now.

I am just now beginning to get outside and work a bit. I pulled some of the weeds out of the asparagus bed and around the garden fence row. I have my garden plan and most of my seeds ready and waiting. I have few to get. But I still have quite a bit of cleaning up to do, as you can see. Fence posts ready to put up and all those weeds where my cucumbers are going.

Bruce and Jake folded back the shade cloth (just halfway) to allow some sun in the greenhouse. It was 80 degrees in there shortly after they did that. YES! We moved some tables around to open it up a bit and now it is time for the cleaning of pots, cleaning of tables...well, once Bruce repairs the broken water line...This year I will just be growing our food, including vegetables and herbs, and a few neighbor's requests in the greenhouse. This is my true first trial year. I might try to sneak in a few flowers just because.

That is where we stand as of today, Valentine's Day 2011. I am sorry that I have not posted anything for five months. I am guessing the next few months will make up for it; I feel a lot of energy in the air.

Rooster's Crow

If you have ever had chickens, you know how amusing it is when the roosters try to crow, well, at first; it gets kind of annoying after a while. We all have to start somewhere, don't we?

It is actually how I feel right now. I am more of an er-er-er than a cocka-doodle-do. So many things to do, judge yourself on and find out how much you really don't know; that is annoying too. But with a little practice, patience and persistence, it will fall into place.

As summer days are getting shorter and the feel of autumn is in the air, I look back and wonder what I have accomplished. I have to remember to look at what I HAVE accomplished, not what I have NOT. I have to keep in mind, what my goal was, what my goal is and am I moving in the right direction?

Practice, patience and persistence.

Vacation

Bruce and I went on probably our last real vacation for a while. The kids decided they wanted to stay home so as not to miss school and help by taking care of the animals.

The kids and animals survived just fine. Although I did have a good time, it was not the same without the kids.

We are back now and hopefully renewed mentally to get back into the swing of things. We still have to finish the goat shelter, clean out the greenhouse, butcher at least 13 roosters and order a few more for the freezer before the next month is out, fall cleanup in the garden and yard, finish the new rabbit hutch in the animal yard, etc...not to mention trying to catch up on the paying job, catching up the laundry that the kids didn't quite get to and try to create and stick to a realistic routine for the school year that doesn't have anyone in the household running down the road screaming-okay, just me. As SpongeBob would say, "I'm ready!"

Chicken Hawk?

Yesterday afternoon I went out to check on the animals water and make sure all was well. Well, there was not a soul in the chicken yard. Every chicken and rabbit was inside the house. It is such an unnerving site and sound (or lack thereof). In the middle of the yard there were a few feathers, nice tail feathers. My heart sank a little. Another chicken gone. Well, when I get inside the gate, the chickens come out slowly one by one and get back to chasing bugs and eating cracked corn. All but one rooster came out. After some coaxing he stepped out into the sunlight. Poor guy, he had a hole where some of his tail feathers used to be. At least he survived, he was one of the largest birds. Greedy hawk!

By the time I had gotten everyone fed, watered and checked on there were three more chickens on top of the blue barrel that holds their food. Apparently, they are the daredevils of the group, sitting up high in the middle of the yard, just shouting to the hawks, "Look at me, look at me!"

I think we will go back, at least after butchering day in a couple of weeks, and clip everyone's wings again, both sides this time, just to be thorough.

Goat Shelter - part I

Now that the goat fence is up, it is time to work on the shelter. Obviously, I want to have this done before we breed the goat, so we have a safe place for her, her kid(s) and a place to milk. Right now she just has a tarp to protect her and her food from rain (which is nominal at this point in time), and trees for the same.

I have left the planning of this building in Bruce's hands. This must require a lot of thought and sometimes calls for some backup. A couple of hours after hearing the saws and hammering, I went out to check the progress.

Why do I get the feeling this is going to take a little longer than I had hoped?

At least I am not contemplating breeding Suzy for another month or two....

Random Thoughts #2

This has been a busy time for me with my "paying" job. I have not had much time to "smell the roses," which I promised myself I would do. I do get little moments in the day when I have to stand up, stretch and walk. It is in those moments I try to remember that this is just a job, not a life and try to remain in the present. It does get hard when the stack of bills is right in front of me...maybe I should move those off to the side.

I do enjoy watching the hummingbirds and butterflies that land on the flowers just outside my office window. I have been able to enjoy the snowy egret and the majestic Great Blue heron that have frequented the far edge of the pond. But only in passing it seems.

And the animlas. Suzy is a bit lonely without Bella, but we are working on that situation. I have had to give her some water soluable vitamins to help with the runny nose that I am sure is caused by the stress of losing her friend. The rabbits are getting used to us coming in and out of their area. The chickens, oh those chickens, always entertaining. One evening, I went out to lock them up. They were already in their houses. It was just light enough to see four rabbits around the upside down water bucket. I wondered how long it had been flipped over. It must have been a while and those poor bunnies were so thirsty to gather around the bucket. I went in and lifted it up. Out ran a chicken...poor thing, ran into the chicken house as fast as his little legs would carry him. I had to laugh. He shouldn't have been trying to be the daredevil walking along the edge of the bucket...I wonder what the rabbits were really thinking? Were they laughing too? Ah, always entertaining.

Moments like that keep life in check. That is one thing that I love about homesteading-keeps life real. I have been in the fast-paced world, working 8-5,(really, is there a 9-5 job anymore), having the money but not the time or energy to enjoy it, eating out because I was too tired to cook, buying the kids techno gadgets to keep them entertained because I was too tired to listen. That, to me, is not life. It is a shell of a life. I am so thankful for the direction my life has taken. It's hard, oh, it is hard. I have neither time nor money now, but I have so much more treasure that can't be measured.