Friday, February 29, 2008
Thursday, February 28, 2008
finally, a picture of me....
I seldom have any pictures of me on here--hard to do that when I'm the one always taking them, but I found this one of me and Doug on Amalia's facebook page. So I stole it! We had been snowshoeing, I think, and then decided to make sweet potatoes.
It was a beautiful sunny day today. I sat outside for at least a half hour sunbathing. Face sunbathing. What a glorious day. One of the great things about never having sun is that when it does decide to show itself, it is heavenly. Totally heavenly. Still on a bit of a high from it.
I think spring is on the way! This after stepping off the path and losing my leg. But still, it's on the way!! Woohoo!!!!
Monday, February 25, 2008
and more....
Amlan, Newspaper Dan, Rhiannon, Chris, Justin--just listening:
Amlan, Rhiannon, Chris:
The day after! Amalia, Vanna, and Doug:
Amlan, Rhiannon, Chris:
The day after! Amalia, Vanna, and Doug:
more pix....
Doug, Shady, and Justin:
Doug, Julie, Anton:
Chris, Newspaper Dan, Justin:
Scott and Erin:
Travis, digging the tunes!:
Doug, Julie, Anton:
Chris, Newspaper Dan, Justin:
Scott and Erin:
Travis, digging the tunes!:
bday at the goat shui!
Doug and I had a great party at the Goat Shui, if I might say so myself! Lots of great friends, fabulous music, and a nighttime snowshoe. Who could ask for more? Seriously, the 40's just keep getting better and better! Hopefully Doug is enjoying his 20's just as much!!
Speaking of Doug:
Chris, Justin, Scott, Erin, Amlan and Travis. Julie and Anton are in the kitchen:
Erin, Rhiannon, Travis, Amlan, Justin, Chris:
Erin, Little Guy, Rhiannon:
Little Guy and Rhiannon. I love this picture!:
Speaking of Doug:
Chris, Justin, Scott, Erin, Amlan and Travis. Julie and Anton are in the kitchen:
Erin, Rhiannon, Travis, Amlan, Justin, Chris:
Erin, Little Guy, Rhiannon:
Little Guy and Rhiannon. I love this picture!:
snow!
We've had some amazing snow last week, so I took a few shots. I think this was Friday morning. I got up early (6ish) to snowshoe, and it was like being in a snowglobe. It was incredible. No wind, big fluffy flakes, and there must have been a couple of inches on all the branches and trees. Just beautiful. I'm into snowshoeing early these days. It wakes me up, and it's quiet. Pretty cool!
Station and Waddlesworth:
Lizzy and the Mr. Turkeys:
Isaiah Tree:
Station and Waddlesworth:
Lizzy and the Mr. Turkeys:
Isaiah Tree:
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
forgot a few things....
I'm going to reconvert the wood shed back into the wood shed this summer. The goats and Flower will have enough room in the old horse barn.
Richard is most probably shooting blanks, as the girls have come into heat again. Maybe that's the best thing for this year. If they do get pregnant, they won't deliver till the middle of summer, and I'm ok with that. More time would be good, and they will probably be healthier if it is warm out.
The geese and ducks are going to be permanently residing off the side of the horse barn where we kept the male turkeys last summer. It will need a little fixing up, but should do fine. They love winter, so I won't have to worry about them at all. Maybe Waddlesworth will actually have some babies this year. Hopefully we could sell them, although her eggs sure do taste great!
Think that's all.....
Richard is most probably shooting blanks, as the girls have come into heat again. Maybe that's the best thing for this year. If they do get pregnant, they won't deliver till the middle of summer, and I'm ok with that. More time would be good, and they will probably be healthier if it is warm out.
The geese and ducks are going to be permanently residing off the side of the horse barn where we kept the male turkeys last summer. It will need a little fixing up, but should do fine. They love winter, so I won't have to worry about them at all. Maybe Waddlesworth will actually have some babies this year. Hopefully we could sell them, although her eggs sure do taste great!
Think that's all.....
the middle of february, already!
Our snow barometer:
Hey! We might actually be past the halfway point of winter, although this is the Keweenaw, so who can really say? I hope so, because when Benj and I went to get wood yesterday, I realized that we are on the very last row of our wood pile. How did that happen? Of course there is some wood scattered here and there, along with a pile that needs a chainsaw, but still....bummer! I guess now we can pretend that we are real homesteaders who have to keep cutting their wood all through the winter. I WON'T be pretending too much and cutting it by hand. Like I would even know where to start. Yes, we are very spoiled, I'd say!
Not all that much to report on. I did order a ton of seeds last week. I can't wait to get that box!! I have a schedule of exactly when I need to start what seeds in the house etc., and the first batch, which is basically the cabbage family, will need to get started in 2 weeks. Wow! Isn't that exciting? I bought a box of 1000 jiffy-7's, which should be a breeze to plant in. We'll see. Chances are, I'll be using all of those 1000, and maybe even have some left over plants to sell. That could be fun.
I bought some really interesting varieties this year. Chocolate and purple peppers, along with some red and yellow little stuffing peppers. A ton of different hot peppers. Broccoli that grows all winter long, chard, lots of different kinds of tomatoes, some gourds to grow over the deck. (I'll need to do a little work on the deck area so that they can grow towards the house. That should be pretty cool having big gourds hanging over our heads. Hopefully not too dangerous!) What else...I can't really remember at the moment. But lots, for sure. Oh, some really cool long red beans, as well as peas. I tried to order things that had multiple uses...like I didn't realize that some of the beans could be eaten fresh, or would be just as good if they were left to dry out. This way, if I get behind on things, nothing will go to waste. There are some people who grow fields of beans, dry them out, and use it for hay in the winter. Who knew? I just realized that I forgot to buy some sunflower seeds. For sure, we need a lot of those. The goats and Flower get a cup and a half a day, and their coats are nice and shiny. It would be good to be able to grow enough to last them the winter. It'll be a fight with the squirrels, though. They tried to eat through my big plastic container in the barn that houses the sunflower seeds. Little bastards.
I've also realized that a lot of things will need changing around this summer due to the fact that the chickens aren't doing well in their new house, and the turkeys and geese aren't the best of friends. Besides, I'm going to be starting my own turkey and chicken breeding program, so things will have to be different.
Here's the new plan at the moment:
The horse barn is currently filled up with old goat barn and homestead wood. That will need to come out of there. Because the road house is going to eventually be the new workshop, I will clean that out and put the wood in the attic. Of course, this means that the upstairs floor of the roadhouse will need some new supports. No problem.
Once the horse barn is cleaned out, I am going to convert it to a goat barn. Build individual stalls, a milking area, a place for feed etc. Diane gave me this great little book for my bday that has some ideas for how to organize a goat/cow barn. I'll follow that.
Once the goats are out of their current barn, I will reconvert that into the chicken barn, which is what it was originally. Unfortunately, the goats have all but destroyed it, but that's ok. I'll fix it up again. The current chicken house will become the turkey house for next year. They don't mind the cold like the chickens do, (they go outside all the time where they are at now,) so they should do ok there. I'll have a run outside for them so they can come in and out all winter, build some breeding areas inside so the girls could start laying whenever they are ready to. I'll also keep a couple of male turkeys, but only one will go with the turkey girls. The others can go with the chickens so they can protect them if something should get in there. They are excellent watch dogs. Turkey chicks are over 8 bucks a piece, and if I raise my own, that will save a ton of money. I've got orders for like 50 if I had the room. Next year I will.
What else...I'm also considering breeding my own pigs, and have decided to build a pig house off the back of the wood shed. Their fence can go up the hill a bit and they will have shade, as well as clear out that entire area for me.
Another thing that will happen, but probably slowly, is that I want to start building a mess of little chicken, turkey and pig houses, and develop a system so that I can move them all over the property so they can fertilize and eat all the bugs. They will all be healthier, the ground will benefit, and everyone will be happy. This will be a ton of work, and will require a lot of organization. But it can happen if I don't overwhelm myself. Getting everyone in their new places will have to come first. But I'm pretty motivated, so it will happen. I just read a terrible article on the 35 million pounds of beef recall and the way the animals were treated. Darn it! I will do whatever I have to so that people don't need to purchase meat from the grocery stores. Any little bit I can do is going to help. If we have to move to selling farm shares we'll do it.
Well, that was a bit more than I thought I'd be writing. But pretty exciting, so it's hard to stop! The guys are home from school sick today, and because I have no classes today, we are all staying home. I've lots of my own school work to do so I best get at it!
Here's a few shots of Vanna as she tries to talk me into going for a snowshoe. I tried to get a picture of her jumping but she's too fast!
Hey! We might actually be past the halfway point of winter, although this is the Keweenaw, so who can really say? I hope so, because when Benj and I went to get wood yesterday, I realized that we are on the very last row of our wood pile. How did that happen? Of course there is some wood scattered here and there, along with a pile that needs a chainsaw, but still....bummer! I guess now we can pretend that we are real homesteaders who have to keep cutting their wood all through the winter. I WON'T be pretending too much and cutting it by hand. Like I would even know where to start. Yes, we are very spoiled, I'd say!
Not all that much to report on. I did order a ton of seeds last week. I can't wait to get that box!! I have a schedule of exactly when I need to start what seeds in the house etc., and the first batch, which is basically the cabbage family, will need to get started in 2 weeks. Wow! Isn't that exciting? I bought a box of 1000 jiffy-7's, which should be a breeze to plant in. We'll see. Chances are, I'll be using all of those 1000, and maybe even have some left over plants to sell. That could be fun.
I bought some really interesting varieties this year. Chocolate and purple peppers, along with some red and yellow little stuffing peppers. A ton of different hot peppers. Broccoli that grows all winter long, chard, lots of different kinds of tomatoes, some gourds to grow over the deck. (I'll need to do a little work on the deck area so that they can grow towards the house. That should be pretty cool having big gourds hanging over our heads. Hopefully not too dangerous!) What else...I can't really remember at the moment. But lots, for sure. Oh, some really cool long red beans, as well as peas. I tried to order things that had multiple uses...like I didn't realize that some of the beans could be eaten fresh, or would be just as good if they were left to dry out. This way, if I get behind on things, nothing will go to waste. There are some people who grow fields of beans, dry them out, and use it for hay in the winter. Who knew? I just realized that I forgot to buy some sunflower seeds. For sure, we need a lot of those. The goats and Flower get a cup and a half a day, and their coats are nice and shiny. It would be good to be able to grow enough to last them the winter. It'll be a fight with the squirrels, though. They tried to eat through my big plastic container in the barn that houses the sunflower seeds. Little bastards.
I've also realized that a lot of things will need changing around this summer due to the fact that the chickens aren't doing well in their new house, and the turkeys and geese aren't the best of friends. Besides, I'm going to be starting my own turkey and chicken breeding program, so things will have to be different.
Here's the new plan at the moment:
The horse barn is currently filled up with old goat barn and homestead wood. That will need to come out of there. Because the road house is going to eventually be the new workshop, I will clean that out and put the wood in the attic. Of course, this means that the upstairs floor of the roadhouse will need some new supports. No problem.
Once the horse barn is cleaned out, I am going to convert it to a goat barn. Build individual stalls, a milking area, a place for feed etc. Diane gave me this great little book for my bday that has some ideas for how to organize a goat/cow barn. I'll follow that.
Once the goats are out of their current barn, I will reconvert that into the chicken barn, which is what it was originally. Unfortunately, the goats have all but destroyed it, but that's ok. I'll fix it up again. The current chicken house will become the turkey house for next year. They don't mind the cold like the chickens do, (they go outside all the time where they are at now,) so they should do ok there. I'll have a run outside for them so they can come in and out all winter, build some breeding areas inside so the girls could start laying whenever they are ready to. I'll also keep a couple of male turkeys, but only one will go with the turkey girls. The others can go with the chickens so they can protect them if something should get in there. They are excellent watch dogs. Turkey chicks are over 8 bucks a piece, and if I raise my own, that will save a ton of money. I've got orders for like 50 if I had the room. Next year I will.
What else...I'm also considering breeding my own pigs, and have decided to build a pig house off the back of the wood shed. Their fence can go up the hill a bit and they will have shade, as well as clear out that entire area for me.
Another thing that will happen, but probably slowly, is that I want to start building a mess of little chicken, turkey and pig houses, and develop a system so that I can move them all over the property so they can fertilize and eat all the bugs. They will all be healthier, the ground will benefit, and everyone will be happy. This will be a ton of work, and will require a lot of organization. But it can happen if I don't overwhelm myself. Getting everyone in their new places will have to come first. But I'm pretty motivated, so it will happen. I just read a terrible article on the 35 million pounds of beef recall and the way the animals were treated. Darn it! I will do whatever I have to so that people don't need to purchase meat from the grocery stores. Any little bit I can do is going to help. If we have to move to selling farm shares we'll do it.
Well, that was a bit more than I thought I'd be writing. But pretty exciting, so it's hard to stop! The guys are home from school sick today, and because I have no classes today, we are all staying home. I've lots of my own school work to do so I best get at it!
Here's a few shots of Vanna as she tries to talk me into going for a snowshoe. I tried to get a picture of her jumping but she's too fast!
Sunday, February 3, 2008
february!
It's February already! I have to say that I haven't really done that much lately. Feeling a little bit like Vanna here!
Maybe it's just that time of year, although it is starting to get lighter earlier now. But still, not motivated would be the polite way to describe how I'm feeling these days. I did get a little excited yesterday when I realized that I'll have to start planting seeds in a few weeks. I just ordered my little Jiffy-7 peat pots, and need to think about building my plant frames soon. Maybe over winter carnival, although I really should be spending that time doing some reading. AHHHH! At least the laundry is finished for a few days and I can get in and out of the driveway, so I am pretty happy about that!
Amalia and her sister Elynn came over yesterday to snowshoe. I've pretty much packed down the trails where I usually go, but it was still a pretty good workout. I don't think I went out Friday, so it looked pretty with the trails covered over a bit. Elynn and Amalia have the same laugh, it was pretty cool hanging with the both of them. Plus Amalia did the dishes. Woohoo!!! How'd I get out of that one??
It's been a bit warmer which is really nice for the animals, too. I'm realizing that Lizzy is probably going to want to start laying her eggs pretty soon. I should probably consider moving the geese and ducks out of the barn, and letting Lizzy and the Mr. Turkeys have the front part to themselves. Maybe she would feel more comfortable that way and can find a hidden place to lay her eggs. I'm hoping we have chicks fairly early this year.If I leave the Mr. Turkeys in with Lizzy, they will protect her and the eggs. It will be a good thing. Pretty stressful last year with her eggs getting eaten by neighborhood dogs. What a bummer that was!I definitely need to start our own breeding program. I have enough orders for Thanksgiving turkeys to place an order through McMurray, but each chick is over $8 to begin with, not to mention shipping, then there is all the feed etc.
I also will need to build the moveable pens for the turkeys as well as for the chickens. Ok, now I'm feeling excited about doing something!! Woohoo. It is going to be an adventure.
Well, time to take care of all the beasts and do some paper grading. It could be a busy one, if I actually end up doing something! Maybe like vanna on our snowshoe, here! Sigh..... :-)
P.S. Just came back from feeding the animals and had a few interesting ideas....Maybe the new chicken house should be the new turkey house, especially if we are going to be starting our own breeding program. They don't seem to mind the cold, and it is warmer in the big barn so maybe the chickens will actually lay more eggs in the winter. I can build an extension on the duck/goose summer home, so that they can live there all winter long. We will probably have to make the fence a bit higher so that no wolves or coyotes can jump the fence with the snow on the ground, but I think it would work. Basically, keeping them all separate would be a good thing. We could get a bit more fencing for the goats summer area so that Little Richard and Flower could live out there all winter, and that would keep things nicer in the big barn for the girls. They don't treat Flower that well anyway. If we end up having a few whethers, if the girls get pregnant at all, then they can keep her company.
Don't think I mentioned that the girls were in heat again this weekend. Is it possible that Richard is shooting blanks? On the positive side, if they do have their babies in the summer, we'll be better prepared for them! Really looking forward to that.
Anyway, time to get some school work done!
Maybe it's just that time of year, although it is starting to get lighter earlier now. But still, not motivated would be the polite way to describe how I'm feeling these days. I did get a little excited yesterday when I realized that I'll have to start planting seeds in a few weeks. I just ordered my little Jiffy-7 peat pots, and need to think about building my plant frames soon. Maybe over winter carnival, although I really should be spending that time doing some reading. AHHHH! At least the laundry is finished for a few days and I can get in and out of the driveway, so I am pretty happy about that!
Amalia and her sister Elynn came over yesterday to snowshoe. I've pretty much packed down the trails where I usually go, but it was still a pretty good workout. I don't think I went out Friday, so it looked pretty with the trails covered over a bit. Elynn and Amalia have the same laugh, it was pretty cool hanging with the both of them. Plus Amalia did the dishes. Woohoo!!! How'd I get out of that one??
It's been a bit warmer which is really nice for the animals, too. I'm realizing that Lizzy is probably going to want to start laying her eggs pretty soon. I should probably consider moving the geese and ducks out of the barn, and letting Lizzy and the Mr. Turkeys have the front part to themselves. Maybe she would feel more comfortable that way and can find a hidden place to lay her eggs. I'm hoping we have chicks fairly early this year.If I leave the Mr. Turkeys in with Lizzy, they will protect her and the eggs. It will be a good thing. Pretty stressful last year with her eggs getting eaten by neighborhood dogs. What a bummer that was!I definitely need to start our own breeding program. I have enough orders for Thanksgiving turkeys to place an order through McMurray, but each chick is over $8 to begin with, not to mention shipping, then there is all the feed etc.
I also will need to build the moveable pens for the turkeys as well as for the chickens. Ok, now I'm feeling excited about doing something!! Woohoo. It is going to be an adventure.
Well, time to take care of all the beasts and do some paper grading. It could be a busy one, if I actually end up doing something! Maybe like vanna on our snowshoe, here! Sigh..... :-)
P.S. Just came back from feeding the animals and had a few interesting ideas....Maybe the new chicken house should be the new turkey house, especially if we are going to be starting our own breeding program. They don't seem to mind the cold, and it is warmer in the big barn so maybe the chickens will actually lay more eggs in the winter. I can build an extension on the duck/goose summer home, so that they can live there all winter long. We will probably have to make the fence a bit higher so that no wolves or coyotes can jump the fence with the snow on the ground, but I think it would work. Basically, keeping them all separate would be a good thing. We could get a bit more fencing for the goats summer area so that Little Richard and Flower could live out there all winter, and that would keep things nicer in the big barn for the girls. They don't treat Flower that well anyway. If we end up having a few whethers, if the girls get pregnant at all, then they can keep her company.
Don't think I mentioned that the girls were in heat again this weekend. Is it possible that Richard is shooting blanks? On the positive side, if they do have their babies in the summer, we'll be better prepared for them! Really looking forward to that.
Anyway, time to get some school work done!
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