Everyday is an adventure…

Posted on by October 3, 2011

We just passed our 6 month anniversary, here at the new place. I can’t hardly believe it’s ONLY been 6 months! Oh my goodness… whenever I catch myself thinking that all our plans are not getting done and accomplished, I just have to set back a moment and think, ok, 6 months ago, we had no clue if we would be farm owners or not! We had really only just begun to formulate our battle plan and get the troops together!!! And now… six months.

We just have not had a routine day, yet. I really don’t think so. Everyday has been something of an adventure, some thing that needs to get done, some project in the works, something to get dirty with. Maggie and I went to get kerosene at the local gas station and I walked by a window and caught my reflection. Oh my gosh, I look like one of the natives!!! Plaid woolen shirt, dirty t-shirt, farm boots, good worn jeans… haha and a bandana over my hair… I look like some rural gal for sure. Proud to be dirty because it means we’re WORKING hard.. and getting stuff done. I got pony poop on my shoes and goat slobber on my arm and I’m pretty sure it’s muddy dog paws on my t-shirt. And I’m proud of it! Haha… okay, well, I do think I clean up pretty well, but it’s still kinda fun to be so ah, rough. And the best part? We’re not even the roughest looking at the Quicky Mart! There’s a dude with concrete and paint on his boots and a couple good layers of crud on his Carhartt jacket. There’s a lady with a couple youngins in muck boots and way dirtier t-shirts! And no one looks at you funny at all!

They smile now. That’s cool. Smile and nod, say hello. AIn’t really best of friends yet, but passing that six month mark says that they approve, at least this far. Of course, the winter will test us for sure and then, maybe, in the spring, if we’re still around and all, then we just might be accepted as bona-fide rural folk. That will be a day to celebrate! Probably buy a steer or something. Maybe build something dirty. That’s what we do out here to celebrate.

Jessy has been working on orders most of the day, and tending the inside stock. She’s my best chicken mom around when the chicks are little. But once they get big feathers and all, she doesn’t really want a lot to do with them. And she’s the kitten wrangler. The kittens are just about ready to start going to their homes… they are 8 weeks old on Wednesday. Cornelius bunny is doing fine. He was eager to get let out this morning and was much more happy to see Jessy. That made her happy. He was playing with the kittens for awhile and that was amusing.

Maggie and I were doing chores and all, but our goal was to get finished with the bunny hutch. The top apartment is all done, but the bottom two apartments were still waiting. So we got all the tools out and the wood and wire and such and got to it. We managed to get the floors installed in each side, and all the wood cut for the doors. Of course, we also had some fun with all the livestock and enjoyed the very beautiful day. I had to run a few errands, but that was fun too.

I like being able to run up the road to the neighbors and not even worry about getting your purse and all that. Just keys, car and go. It’s ALMOST close enough I suppose we could walk… but it always seems that we are toting this thing back or picking up that thing or transporting livestock or something! haha… One of these days, I’m gonna be driving my pony cart up there for a visit! That will be keen!

I’m waiting on a lady from Craig’s List to let me know her Black Copper Maran chicks have hatched… she has 9 in the incubator and I dearly want a few of them. 4 or 5 would make me a super happy gal. And she has Buff Orphinghams too… and I want a pair of them for my free range flock because they are good broody moms!

Tomorrow is go to town day, got practice with the band and a few errands to run. I think I’m going to get myself a good pitchfork. I have this pony poop fork/basket thing, and it’s great for like quick daily pickup, but I’ve been finding that I need something to spread straw with and to clean out the barn or the coop with a little more efficiently. A good metal tined pitchfork would be the best. I also have a lead on a whole bunch of pallets for free! I have this idea to make a garden fence out of pallets… but I need about oh, 20 or so I think. So, that’s another phone call and possible pickup! I wonder how many pallets I can get in a Blue load… I’m thinking at least 4 or 5 inside and then another 3 or 4 on the top! Yeah!

I keep thinking… things should be slowing down soon, but they aren’t. We have a half dozen projects we need to finish before it gets really cold, for sure. Got to get the winter hay in the big barn. I was going to store some in the pony barn but Cody taught me that it’s not gonna happen that way. He made a big mess of three bales yesterday, so I guess it’s all going to be stored in the big barn! Haha…

I need to get some fire board and tiles for the corn stove installation. I need to get that done sooner than later. Of course, this week is supposed to be wonderful, even highs in the 70’s! So, I have a little leeway, but still, I just don’t want to have to depend only on electric heaters and kerosene to stay warm when we procrastinate and it’s the middle of October and 32 degrees at night. No fun.

i need to find another small freezer, so that I can finish the last of our nuggets. We have 14 hens left and I checked on them yesterday and wow, they are getting big! My freezer in the mudroom and the inside freezer are jammed with chickens already! And with a piggy growing at the neighbors, well, I’ll need more freezer room for sure!

Oh the piggies are so cute and cool! I am SO going to do a few piglets in the early spring. I would like to be able to watch them grow every day. I know I can go and see Sir Loin any time I want, but it’s still sometimes a day or two between seeing them! They are so cute. They love their heat lamp and straw… they dig in it and snuggle all together. So cute!

The last batch of eggs should be hatching this week. They are my neighbors chicks and I will admit, when they are done, I think I’ll be cured of hatching eggs for at least a few months!!! Or at the very least, the next time, I’m going to be making sure I have the cash for the automatic egg turner!!! I have been turning eggs now since July! Honest! I hope these last babies hatch good…

I’ve been having the goats tethered out in the garden area, cleaning up the weeds and all. They are doing a great job. I have plans for out there and some plans involve some bed prep NOW… for garlic! But mostly, I want to whack back everything in my failed garden space, spread the compost I’ve gotten so far over top and them make some rows and trenches so that in the spring, I will be able to plant when I want to, not whether or not I have the time to get it ready. I plan on getting it mowed down, tilled, manured/composted and then covered with black plastic row covers. As much as I would like to do all this weeding and such, raised beds or green covers and all that, the fact is, it’s soil that has had weeds on it for at least 10 years and it’s awful to keep up on. Weeding that is. I tried. I tried and tried and I failed miserably. So, it’s going to be plastic for a few years until I get some of that weed seed killed and done for. I SO missed having a decent garden this year! I know, we were busy, but still, it’s no excuse. Haha… we MUST have a good garden for 2012. At least a half way decent garden for sure!

Well, just like how we get everything else done, you just keep at it. A little bit forward every day. The earth will not stop rotating if it takes us a couple days to finish the bunny hutch… as long as we keep at it, we’ll get it done eventually. The card system assures us of staying on task for the most part. I usually only like 2 cards for the farm on the bullentin board at a time. If you can’t work on one, you can work on the other. Too many cards and it takes toooo long to get them done and you loose your drive and spirit. Right now, we have Bunny Hutch Finish and Get Area Ready for the Corn Stove. WInter hay purchase and storage is coming right behind.

Well, it’s getting late and I have a couple business to-do cards to finish up before bed. Gotta keep both sides of the fence happy. I hope you are having a great productive week and that you will be able to see your goals accomplished! Feel free to comment with what you’re working on this week! We can share the load and urge each other on!!! Yahooooo!

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Road Trip and Sunday Roundup!!!

Posted on by October 2, 2011

I am beginning to believe that here in the country, the only time you get to take a road trip vacation is when you are acquiring livestock or equipment!!! Haha… But that’s okay, I’ll take either! I like a day away from the work especially when it’s beautiful, sunny and crisp out. And you get to drive through the country and see lots of neat things and end up at a farm, and a big downtown capital city! And you get the spend the day chatting and yacking with your beautiful daughters! It’s bliss, let me tell you.

We set out at the crack of 10 AM and were soon tootling down the rural highway after we got animal chores done. All the hoof stock had to stay locked up for the afternoon, which I’m sure they didn’t like, but we can have escapees and worry while we were on our little day jaunt. If we got too late, I’m sure we could have called our friends to let everyone out for a bit, but in the end, they were just fine with a day inside and good hay and a few treats to pass the time.

We got up to Jill’s farm and got the tour! I love seeing folks farms… you learn things and you get to also see that you’re doing things right, because, well, they are doing it too! She and her hubby and her 3 young sons are growing up on a beautiful farm with lots of critters! They have alpacas, llamas, goats, a dairy heifer and of course, bunnies!!! Oh yes, and kitties. Lots of kitties. Kitties seem to be a requirement to farm living! They had some beautiful calicos too! I’ve seen a lot of calicos at various farms this year. More than I think I’ve ever seen before! But I digress…


She had some beautiful alpacas and llamas there, and very friendly. We were watchful for spitting, but Jill said that they have only seen them spit at each other, never humans. Of course, there’s always a first time! haha… but thankfully, they were very nicely behaved. She also had a nice little flock of Angora goats and wow, they are beautiful. I am thinking about an Angora goat for our fiber mix… perhaps in the spring, with a couple white lambs to complete the Windhaven fiber assortment!!! We’ll see how that all goes! I will admit though, the Angora goat is beautiful to touch and feel, the fiber is to die for!

Oh but this little darling was to die for! She was SO adorable, her big brown eyes… a little Jersey heifer calf, just as sweet as could be. She came right over and licked my hand! We all fell in love with her. She was so darling. I can’t wait to add a mini moo to our herd! This girl was a full sized milk cow, but I think a mini will be much more suited to our homestead since we would be more into the butter and cheese production and some milk. 14+ gallons a day from a big cow! Wow… that would be a little much for us! We would HAVE to get pigs for that!

But the main reason we were here, at Jill’s farm, was so that this young lady could meet this young gentleman and fall in love. And yes, it happened in 1.3 seconds of Awwwww…. What a sweeeeet little bunny boy! He got handed to Jessy and that was that. She wouldn’t give him up. And he’s just so soft and pretty, and just so content to be in her arms. She held him for the rest of the visit! We got to see his momma and daddy and they were beautiful too. And his siblings! He is our little French Angora buck and perhaps in the spring, he might be our little rabbitry foundation sire! Who knows! But he’s a beautiful little broken black and white bun bun and he is already spoiled!

His name is Cornelius, after a character who changes into a rabbit. Jessy has decided that her rabbitry name is going to be Pookah Bunnies… and since they love video games, all her bunnies will have names from characters in the games they like. Hey, sounds as good as anything to me! Odin and Ozzy and Grizelda and Gwen are all from a game about Norse gods and goddesses! Now little Cornelius is joining the flock! I finally got to hold him at home and he is just the sweetest thing. He already likes to be brushed and I think he will fit in just nicely!



After we said our goodbyes and got back on the road, we headed for the big city of Lansing, Michigan, the capital of the Great Lakes state!

And of course, being true hillbillies at heart, when we see a big giant plastic chicken, we just gotta stop and take a picture. It’s a given.

But then we ambled into the main downtown area and decided to wonder a bit in the big city of tall building and ended up at the capital building.

Very pretty building. I know that these beautiful buildings were build over a century ago, but I miss that we don’t build these kinds of structures much anymore. They are works of art, for sure, and just stunning. Some of these new buildings, they are so cold and modern, just after a while, boring. But a beautiful building like this one? Stunning. Majestic. I couldn’t stop thinking about all the great men and woman that had walked the paths and stood on these very steps… just neat. Love history and the vibes it sends.


I like this picture of Maggie and I… of course, Jessy was the head photographer for the day, I only snapped a shot of her and Cornelius… she took a ton of photos and Maggie and I just wandered about and soaked up sunshine and crisp fall air! It was beautiful beyond words. Just a touch chilly, and perfect for a sweater to snuggle in. The trees are starting to change and we had to point out a zillion on the trip bursting in beautiful oranges and golds and reds.

Everything around this part of lower Michigan and northwestern Ohio is just bursting with color right now. I can’t believe how beautiful our grass is! It’s the most rich green, almost a spring green with all the rain. What a weird year this has been, the delightfully pleasant and wet August has got everything in the plant world making up for the terribly hot and dry July! Kind of mixed up, but I have not minded. The last two months have been picture perfect. Jessy caught this beautiful monarch over some purple salvia and wow, just lovely colors. I can’t wait to plant a bunch of perennials in the courtyard garden next spring. I missed that for sure this year, hoping that there would be a lot of lovely perennials on our century farm, but really, there were not that many! Don’t worry, we’ll change that for sure!


Got to see some lovely cherry trees around the capital building and that was really pretty keen. We wrapped up our visit and got back on the road. We didn’t want our bunny boy sitting in the car too long alone. Of course, he was in a carrier and had a little towel to keep him comfy and warm, but still, it was time to hit the road home!

We are homebodies, and that is just fine. Some folk have so many things going on, here and there, sports and activities and such, I don’t know why they even have a big old house. They just never seem to be home. Just a bit in the evening and then to sleep. And with the morning sun, they are off again. I think that would kill us. We love being home. We like spending time there. We like getting out and seeing the world, but it’s always a comforting feeling to be back on the road and headed for the barn, so speak. The cradle of our hearth and home. The girls both fell asleep on the ride back, which reminded me of the days when they were just little critters… the excitement of the day had worn them out and they would snooze contentedly all the way home after an adventure. Of course, in this cause, it was just because I had woken them at an unnatural time for them. Hahaha… teenagers! Well, I guess Jessy is no longer a teenager, but she still can act like one!

We stopped in Jackson and got carry out Italian at Fazolis and couldn’t resist a little bite or three in the parking lot! The majority of it made it home, though, it was sure good and we were very happy campers!

Everyone was very happy to see us return. The goat boys were hamming it up and just so ready to be let loose to wreck havoc on the place! Cody was really happy to be let out of his spacious, yet boring pony barn. I think if I can swing it, I’m going to get him a Jolly Ball for his bedroom. I had stacked up some straw bales and some hay bales high in his barn, but the little wort had fun today knocking them all down and opening up one to spread all over the place. I guess he was complaining about the housekeeping services, since I hadn’t mucked out his little potty area this morning! Hey, I figured he would be fine, he’s such a good pony boy and just uses a little corner of his stall area! And him being not that big, it’s never really that much. But he had done a number to the bale and had it ALLLLL over the place! Haha… bored pony = trouble!!!

However, with a carrot, he was totally over his snit and my best little pal immediately. The girls were inside fussing over Cornelius, so I spent a little time outside, visiting my little minions and soaking up just a little more sunshine!!! Oh, how good that feels after a week of rain!!! And everyone is feeling frisky in the crisp fall air! As they were all playing around, Cody spooked Timmy, whom flinched into me, and knocked me to the ground! With my little half scream at the whole 20 seconds of chaos, it was SO funny to look up and find them all immediately at my side and staring down at me as if to say, Ooops… sorry Mom…. Are you okay? Even a couple hens and Bucka Roo were all there! I would like to think that they were concerned for me and my welfare because they love me. However, since Cody started to nudge my pocket where I keep his horse cookies, I suspect that they were just going to strip my body for treats if I was dead and carry on. Haha…My laughing made them all decide I was okay and upon righting myself again, I was found to be whole and sound. Silly beasts!

Isn’t Bucka Roo just a beautiful bird? I can’t get over how pretty he is. Such a nice rooster….

Timmy hamming it up for the camera. He likes to have his picture taken, especially if he thinks there will be a goat cookie as a reward. I found these awesome hard horse/goat treat/cookies at Tractor Supply and they are so nice and handy as little bribes. Cody really likes the oat and raisin flavored ones. They were only like $4.00 for a big bag and we have only made a small dent in them. You can slip a couple in your pocket and they are so much better than just bread or crackers or whatever, so it seems for us now. The birds love the bakery outlet bread and such, but I think the hoof stock is getting just cookies now and then and a carrot or some other goodie like apple or such as a rare treat. They would all eat until they were sick on anything that smacks of grain or sweets! And we’re trying not to overdo that for sure. But also, treats and bribes are good to establish a nice bond and acceptance with them too, which I really want. Easy goes it, is our new mantra.

Our new recepie for grilled goat! Haha… Bryce is practicing bad fire safety. Of course, it’s not a fire, but he has to goof around with the fire pit. Shesh…


Of course, on the way home, there was a ton of people selling pumpkins and Indian corn and such, but when I saw this fellow and his birdhouse gourds, oh my gosh, I had to stop. I have wanted one of these forever!!! I tried growing them one year, but they rotted on the vine, very wet year. And I loved his Indian corn too, especially the little ones! I love that you can stop and get all these cute and wonderful garden delights for $3. What a deal! It’s not fall, if you can’t decorate with a little harvest colors! The big corn is going out on the front porch and I think the little corn will go inside somewhere! It’s so darling! The fellow said that it would take the gourd about 4 months to dry out, but that it would and get all hard and ready to be drilled and worked with by January or February! It will be hard to wait that long, but it’s cool…

Well, it’s off to bed for me. Got a huge week ahead of us, orders and rocks and practice and all that. We need to finish the bunny hutch this week so Cornelius has a real and official home. We got most of the plasticing up… and have the chicken barn door to fix. Got to stock up on winter hay and straw as well… and move some of the stuff from the pony barn before Cody decides to wreck it all! Bad pony…. And most of all, we need to get the corn stove installed and running… it’s getting COLD at night! So it’s going to be a busy week of sunshine and hard work… can’t wait!


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Making Laundry Soap…

Posted on by October 2, 2011

Been meaning to share this with everyone for awhile now, but a bit ago, Miss Julia and I decided to try making some homemade laundry soap. All the recipes online seemed really pretty easy and for us to gather ALL the materials to make a zillion gallons was a big whopping $7. Yep. $7.

You need three things.

Washing Soda (Not Baking Soda… sold in laundry area)
Borax
A Bar of Soap.

Now a lot of people use that good old Fels Napa soap, but we just used some dollar store soap bar that I had laying about the homestead. And I have to tell you, it worked just fine. Some folks swear by a bar of Ivory soap, and I think that it would be very mellow and gentle on your clothes and for those with a allergy sensitivity to soap. I think next time I will try Irish Spring, just because I ADORE the scent of that soap!

Each of the boxes of stuff, cost about $3. And you can make many many batches with each box.

Okay. First you take and grate up about 1/3rd of a big bar of soap. We used a regular old grater and it worked wonderfully. It doesn’t have to be real fine, and I suppose you could even chop it with a knife, just be careful. Soap bars are slippery.

Then you pop it in a big saucepot and add in 2 cups of water.


Warm it over a medium heat, stirring to melt the soap flakes up nicely. It really only took a few minutes. Not long at all.


Once it’s nice and thick, like a liquid hand soap or something, you turn off the heat and add a half cup of washing soda and a half cup of Borax powder. Just stir until there are no lumps. Lumps are for gravy! We actually used a whisk to just sort of break up all the lumps and get it nice and smooth again.


Have a 5 gallon pail waiting, filled with 2 gallons of warm tap water. You don’t have to heat it, just as hot as your kitchen tap will make it. It’s a lot easier to pour the warm saucepot of stuff into the bucket, if the bucket water is warmed up. Just pour in and stir with a big spoon. It’s super easy. You’ll notice that some of it will kind of lump up and we just used our hands to stir it all, and break up the biggest lumps. You want to stir it up nicely, then put the cover on and let it sit and gel up for overnight. I suppose that you could use it right away, but it does get nicer after a little rest.

That’s it. I figured it to be about oh, less than 70 cents for a 2 gallon load. That’s just pennies a load of wash, ladies! Considering those huge bottles of soap are easily $5 to $7 bucks even at the dollar store, I would have to say, hands down, this is a huge savings.

Now how does it work? Fantastic!!! The first time we used it, I just ladled off a big quart jar of the stuff and we used about 1/4 cup per load. I noticed that there was still some lumpies, but you can decide if you want to strain them off or just go with it and use them. Miss Julia says that too many lumpies will leave little blobs in your wash on darker stuff. She agrees, strain it off and avoid the little blobs. But honestly, it cleans like crazy! My girls were pretty much sick of me saying “OH MY GOSH, Look at this bra!” or “OH MY GOSH, Look at these undies!” as I was folding clothes at the laundrymat! Haha… but I was amazed. Everything was sparkling white and bright. Brighter than I’ve even seen. Especially the whites and light colors. And thinking about only pennies per load? Well, that made my day as well!

Now we’ve used the stuff for well over a month and I have to say, it’s still fantastic. And I have enough now in the two boxes of powder to make many many more gallons. Just have to add that 1/3 bar of soap. I’ve heard of folks adding a few drops of essential oil to their mix as well, just to bring in a lovely scent. I know there is a dry mix formula of laundry soap, but I’ve heard that it can cause a bit of a mess in your drain tubes of a washer. Sometimes the powders don’t dissolve well enough. The liquid is really easy to make and use. In fact, we were done so quickly, we figured we must have done something wrong! Haha… It’s super easy… give it a try!

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