Lack of water...

Well we have had frozen pipes for two days now. We did our own water system so we know how it works. It froze right where we knew it would and we could have fixed it before it did. We have been working on it, on and off today...it has been a long cold and wet and muddy day. Sometimes it is not better to put things off......maybe we will learn someday...

We are very close to having it done.....I hope to be having a shower at my house tonight, if not well, I will just go with the flow......

I am still smiling, but I know that some of the rest of us aren't

Christmas Presents

Well, we all received some great Christmas presents...they kids are even still playing with theirs...but I got the weirdest and best present of them all

I got an Autopsy table....yes you read it right, I even really wanted one....I live on a farm and we butcher our own animals....it will be great for butcher day. It is stainless steel, this is going to be so easy to clean and to keep clean. It even has a drain hole at the end....I see this being used a lot and it should last forever. If you are wondering where this came from...well we got it at NAU college surplus, I saw them there about 2 months ago and thought they were cool. Yes I do get weird things for Christmas(and birthdays) but most of the time it is for a reason.....

Actually, I got a quad for Christmas too...but I got it about 5 weeks ago and use it everyday. I am a practical person I guess.

Thankful for Family and the power company

We have had lots of family in town...it was a great time for all. Great Grandma was here, along with Jan, Krik, Jordan, Jeff, Patty and all of my bunch. We had many meals and fun was had by all. The kids got presents and seem to be still enjoying them the day after Christmas.

We went last Friday and saw the other grandparents, that was fun too and it was a nice visit.

Between these two things and stopping and visiting friends, we have been visiting a lot this month. That seems like all we have been doing. It has been fun, but it is time to get back on track.

---The thankful for the power company, well we had an ice storm last night and it took out power for 14 hours....I know that in the ice and rain it wasn't easy for them to fix it, but they did and I am thankful.

Selling Chickens and Different People

I have had a great day today, I sold two different groups of Chickens to two very different groups of people.

The first group of people, were more of what you would call normal people. If you ran into them in the store they would be clean and friendly toward you, they might say hi and if you knew then you would have a conversation for a minute or two. They were very nice and we took a tour of the ranch and it was really fun to meet them.

The second group....boy oh boy what a contrast to the first, they came 4 piled into the front of a small pick up truck....they were more of the hippy type. Nice enough people, in a big hurry to get the best deal that they could. They really tried to get me to give the birds away but in the end they realized that I was pretty set on my prices. One of the four, he was the most interested and had called to arranged to come over, is going to be more like the first group......I bet that he will call back and come over again for more birds.

So what does this say for the economy??? I seem to be selling to all walks of life.

Happy Thanksgiving....

Well for the day of thanksgiving, we went to a friend house and had a great time.....

Now two days after Thanksgiving we are doing it again, Friends and family are coming over and the turkey is already cooking. It is starting to smell really good in here. We will have most of the normal foods that you have including pie.......We just like turkey, I guess.........

Soap, Easy soap...

Here is my recipe for an easy soap....

 Here's a very simple 2 pound soap recipe. I've never had it fail and
   it's one I give to everyone to try for the first time. They all have
   had good success with it.

   Here is the way I make soap...

   First I prepare my mold. For a small batch I use a square or oblong
   plastic dish. Just a low flat one. . For the 2 pound an 8X8 or 9X13
   is a good size.  For the plastic ones I just spray with Pam or
   whatever. If you are using a wooden mold or a box line it with
   freezer paper and tape the corners well. Make sure that the shiny
   (waxed) side of the paper is toward the soap.

   I measure all my solid oils and set aside in the pan I'll be using.  I
   measure my lye into a paper cup (disposable! ) and liquid into a
   plastic bowl (empty shortening containers work very well).

   This recipe uses only 4 oils and all of them are available at
   Walmart or most grocery stores. Soybean shortening (or regular
   shortening if that is all they have that is solid) to make your skin
   feel soft, Coconut for lather (LouAnna is a brand available almost
   everywhere now. White plastic jar with green lid on the shelf with
   the other oils.), Olive (least expensive or canola liquid. Olive and
   canola have the same sap value so they can be substituted for each
   other without changing the lye amount) for skin conditioning and
   Castor for small creamy lather, it is a laxative so look by the
   pharmacy!

   Ingredients:

   10 oz, milk (or water)
   4.4 oz. lye

   14 oz. soybean oil
   8 oz. coconut
   8 oz. olive oil(Canola)
   2 oz. castor oil

   Make sure your scale has a tare feature. Be sure to hit the tare
   button EVERYTIME after putting your dish on the scale so you get a
   correct amount of oil without the weight of the bowl.

   Dissolve 4.4 oz of lye into 10 oz. of COLD milk (or water). Add just
   a few grains of lye and stir and stir. Add a little more and stir
   etc. until lye is fully dissolved. Milk will turn a golden color.
   This will get very hot very quickly. I use a small plastic bowl in a
   sink with an inch or 2 of cold water to keep the milk from getting
   so hot.

   In a different pan  measure your oils: Use stainless steel ONLY for
   stove top melting or use Pyrex etc in the microwave.)
   14 oz. soybean oil
   8 oz. olive oil (canola)
   8 oz. coconut oil
   2 oz. castor oil

   Melt them together and let them cool until you can touch the outside
   of the pan for just a second... Add the lye/milk mixture as you
   stir. Use a stick blender (or plastic spoon) and begin to mix them.
   Keep blending and stirring until light trace... (Looks like gravy or
   instant pudding before it goes into the frig) If you lift the
   blender or spoon and the trail stays on top of the soap for just a
   second it's time to add your fragrance and pour into a mold. I cover
   mine with freezer paper or waxed paper. I like to insulate so I
   cover with a thick towel and leave it alone for 8 to 12 hours. It
   should be cool and come out of the mold easily. Just cut this into 8
   bars and let it cure for a couple of weeks.

You can use this soap right out of the molds(and I do)......it will just get harder as time goes by.

More about my cows....

she is so cute.....but very hard headed and likes to get her own way.......But she is becoming friendly, it has been a slow road for us. As you can see the halter isn't on yet....I will be heard when I am able to do that...I want it so bad because it will make it much easier to work with her.She does come up on her own to me....boy is that a great start.

New Computer,painting and fall fling

Well....I have a new computer and I am still getting it set up. I keep running into things that I have to install.This is why I don't have any pictures. It is working great and I am really happy to have this because it is such a nice system, so much better than my old system and lots faster. We got a couple of computers from a university surplus and now my husband, the kids and I all have nice systems at a very low cost.

On the painting front......I am redoing my daughters room. It is looking great. This is a total redo down to the floor, new bed, shelves,desk,curtains, etc.About the only thing that is going to be the same is the dresser.

Fall fling...well I just needed to add this in. In the past week I have taken 3 large bags to the thrift store, my friend ended up with four bags and I am sending a bunch of stuff with my daughter to sell at the yard sale at grandmas house tomorrow.

I sold my big milk cow

I sold Glatys just this past Friday......I know that I needed to sell her but I am going to miss her, she is a great cow. I know that I will come to enjoy the new ones as well........

Cleaning Up....

We have spent many hours with different people in this past week cleaning up around here and building and taking things apart.

We have 1 and 3/4 of another new chicken coop. As of last Sat, all of the birds are somewhere down the hill. They are not all in their final homes but the old houses on the property line are down and mostly cleaned up. They seem to be happy in their new homes, nice and clean and more space.

My parents were here for 5 days last week. My dad and husband redid the area that we are storing the trailers in. All of the trailers are parked neatly and the rest of the area is cleaned up. It looks great.

The tractor is working great and has been being used daily. It is so nice when you have things that work for you.

Around the Farm...

Well, we have been busy around the farm. Recycling the extra stuff that we have has been going great. Today a bunch of metal leaves and a whole truck. My husband thought that we was going to make a trailer out of this truck , but I talked him into not doing it and just buying another trailer if he really needs a new one. The time and cost of making one is more than just getting a different one.

I am making a little progress with the new cows, it is so slow going. But I know that I can do it.

This morning I was able to put on my boots for the first time since I hurt my foot. On that foot, the boot is loose, but it is on. I am glad that I was able to do this, it is getting colder and I really need to be wearing shoes that are warmer and have the protection.

On the hatchings .....well I have new Guineas that are three days old and we have chickens hatching right now. I really need a new home for some of the guineas....but I know that I will find them a home it will just take some time. I still am enjoying this....

The cows are here...

Time sure goes by fast, the cows arrived on Sunday afternoon---I ended up getting two new ones. They both are girls, the black one is named Val and I haven't figured a name for the brown one yet. The black one is the momma of the other one. It has been an adventure so far, I am still trying to get a halter on them. After that it will get easier. I have been working with them, talking and feeding them treats. They are starting to calm down just a bit. I am going to have to be very careful even though they are only about 32' tall, they are very strong.

Better pictures to come.

The New Cow...

Well, she is not here just yet. But, I have been getting ready for her to get here. She might be arriving today. I am a little nervous about this because it is training a new cow all over again. I know that it will be worth it. Hopefully, this will be the start of something great. I have always wanted a cow that was little.

To get ready for her. I have cleaned out the little barn. It is all down to dirt. I am letting it dry for as long as I can. I will put straw into it right before she gets here. Next, we are going to try out the just fixed tractor. We will use this to get everything down to the dirt in the whole area so it is nice and clean for her.

It should be an adventure for the next few weeks. I can't wait............

Guineas and Work Boots

Well, I think that I have MORE figured out about hatching Guineas---in the past week I have hatched over 30 of them. They are doing really good. It is fun to be learning more about hatching and getting better hatches. Now, I just need to find some new homes for just some of these little guys. I need to find the list that has names and numbers of people that want some.

Work boots---Well, we found some for Scott at Kmart. It was the very first place that we went and looked. I made him get two pairs. We have been trying to get him boots for so long and no one found him any. I also ended up with a new pair of work boots, I even tried to put both of them on but that was a BIG mistake. My foot is going to take a long time to heal if I keep trying to put on closed shoes. The boots were on sale....so we even saved some money.

Band Concert at the Folk Festival

Today we went to the Folk Festival....my DD played her guitar with others from her school. It was the same music as the concert that happened last Tuesday, but these are the kids that really like to be in band. Today was not required, so really only the better players that came to the festival. It sounded so good for a bunch of 6-8th graders. So HIGH five to the kids today!!!

---I have got to remember my camera and use the dumb thing----

Well today has been really long....

I have been doing to much because my foot really hurts. I wish that I could just sit around but I am not able to. Today was the day to get caught up on a few things. Did many loads of laundry and dishes. My son and I did school...this was hard today because he was just cranky...well that passed and he finished his stuff and went over to Grandmas.

Just an off kind of day. I had two Black Cochin chicken hatch. Which means I have 1/2 of the babies I need for my new laying stock. Some of the Guineas went over to my friend house to complete the trade that we did.

Well, off I go............for now

October 1, 2008......

Time is going by so fast. I spent most of the summer wither working at the Farmers Markets or working with Scott or working on the animals.

Well about 2 weeks ago, I tried to break my foot..Here is a great picture of my foot in the ER
This stopped me working at all, so that was the end of the farmers markets and all extra things that I was doing....so I am back to doing things just at the farm. After two weeks, I am now able to do all of my farm chores myself and I am branching out on doing a few extra things. My husband was such a great help with all of my projects.

During this time...I had many chickens and guineas hatch. It is time to get them sold. I am condensing in some areas and expanding in other areas, so things are a little messed up right now, time to get back on track.

New month, new goals and many new babies here...let October be a good one

Well I started a blog.....

I have been asked if I have a blog so many times that I am starting one....maybe just maybe I will be able to keep everyone updated on us. Also maybe this will help me take more pictures of the kids and everything else.

So here we go...............