Animals, Around the Homestead

Homestead update…

Gretchen

Monday started out as a great day and kind of ended on a bad note.  Every spring we borrow our neighbors tiller to work our garden.  The agreement is Randy changes the oil and gets it all ready so when I neighbor goes to use it it is all ready to go.  It works out great for both parties.  We don’t have a tiller and our neighbor is not a mechanic.  So, Randy tilled our garden and when he was nearly finished it broke.  $150, and two weeks later it is up and running again.  Randy got a phone call at 6:30 last night from our neighbors because the tiller had started smoking.  We got down there, Randy tinkered with it, and it threw a rod just like it did the first time it broke.  Our neighbor is being really great about it.  He knows there is a good possibility there is something else wrong causing this to happen over and over.  However, Randy is going to do a couple of things to it to see what’s going on.  The tiller is old and it may be a situation where he should just buy a new one.  When we went to bed last night we were pretty upset about it.  We hate borrowing and just needed a reminder that it is not a good thing to do.  We woke up this morning with better attitudes and decided we would just roll with the punches, fix it, and move on.

On my drive to work Randy called me to let me know a skunk had dug into our chicken coop and killed 11 or our 25 month-old chicks.  The skunk didn’t even eat them, just killed them for sport. 

Fourteen of them had gotten over or through the panel separating the chicks from the Banties and survived.  Isn’t that sad?  It just about made me sick this morning when he told me.  So, all our chickens are locked inside right now until we can figure out what to do to try to save the few we have left. 

Every morning starts with feeding our bottle lamb/lambs.  This particular morning it was really cold outside and the gate to the backyard was open, so our cute little bottle lamb made her way not only to the backdoor, but stepped right inside to have breakfast.

In other news, Friday and Saturday were spent putting up electric fencing in our pasture so we can 1) make paddocks to rotational graze our sheep and 2) block off a portion of the pasture so we can start replacing fencing.

This is Randy out in our pasture.  Our house is in the background.

We borrowed Mom and Dad’s four-wheeler and trailer and it made things so much easier.

Sunday, we sheared 36 sheep at our house and over 200 at Dad’s house.  We started at our house at 6:30 setting up and didn’t get home, showered, and settled until 7:00 that evening.  We were tired.

Monday, Randy took the day off and worked on my brother’s four-wheeler and worked on his pickup.  Hopefully we will have a pickup up and running again soon. 

Tonight we will be moving the chicks back inside their pen in the garage where they will be safe and sound.  Any suggestions for reinforcing our dirt floor coop are welcome.  I have read to bury 1 ½ to 2 feet of fencing around the perimeter, so we are debating on something like that.  We really feel dirt floors are the healthiest in a coop and would prefer not to do wood or concrete flooring. 

Our house is so cozy right now with the weather being in the 70s.  Windows open and cool fresh air blowing through the house.  What could be better?

What would a post be without a few dog pictures, right?

Here is Ash who doesn’t have the ability to take a picture with her eyes open.  She is playing with her favorite toy, Lamb Chop.

Here is Koal playing with the ONLY toy he has ever really played with, Animal.  Just incase you can’t read it, the front says, “Cats are not my friend.”

Have a wonderful day!

Animals, Around the Homestead

391

Gretchen

That’s how many baby lambs we worked (vaccinated, docked tails, and de-wormed) at Mom and Dad’s Sunday.  I got lucky and got to de-worm them, Dad vaccinated and docked tails, and Mom and Randy were the catchers.  By the end of the day we were all pretty tired.

I made shampoo over the weekend.  As soon as we have used it a couple of times and worked out any kinks I will share the recipe (maybe even do a fun tutorial on it).

This weekend we are putting up electric fencing to split our pasture in half.  Then we will start rebuilding our exterior fencing with goat fencing and eventually have it split into parcels for rotational grazing.  We have been wanting to do this ever since we got into the sheep business, but just hadn’t had the money or the time.  However, our pastures need some extra care, and we would like to at least cut back on our use of de-wormers if not eventually eliminate the use of them all together.

I planted a few more things in the garden yesterday.  It is slowly but surely coming together.  Just waiting on my heirloom plants from Abundant Acres to get here and we will be in full gardening mode.

Hope everyone has a wonderful day.

Animals, Nutrition

Supplement Review and baby chicks

Gretchen

Okay, there isn’t much to review in the way of supplements.  We got our Twin Lab CLO Lemon to try in hopes of saving some money and not use the Carlson brand.  No way!  Twin Lab tastes fishy and not good at all.  We will use the Twin Lab because we have it, but then we are switching back to Carlson CLO and fish oil.

Koal has only been on CLO (Twin Lab Unflavored) and Vitamin C powder for one day.  I will post later on what the results are with his allergies/supplements.  If we haven’t seen any improvements by Friday I will load him up and take him to a vet about 70 miles away to get a second opinion. 

Randy has the day off today, and I wish I was home with him.  I want to be home curled up in bed right now.  It’s cold here in Kansas and after this weekend’s events I could use a little extra sleep. 

Randy will be moving these cute little guys into a bigger pen today. 

Just one of the many things on his “to do” list.

Hope everyone has a wonderful day.

Around the Homestead, Social

Grandma’s 80th Birthday…

Gretchen

We had an eventful weekend.  It was my Grandma’s 80th birthday party so we had lots of family in town.  Thursday, Randy and I went up to Grandma’s to see my aunt, cousin, and her daughter.  Randy and I were really close to all of them when we lived in South Carolina.  We miss them so much, but neither is willing to move closer to the other just yet.

Friday night more and more people started making their way to town and out to Grandma’s house.  We had a potluck dinner with tons of food and great conversation. 

And plenty of kids to entertain one another.

Saturday, Randy and I worked hard around the house trying to get a few things done, got cleaned up late afternoon, and headed back up to Grandma’s.  The adults were going out to dinner and all of us cousins were going to order pizza and hang out to watch the KU/UNC game.  The adults got home in time for the game, so it was a packed house for the big game.

My Grandma does a grab bag once a year with things she has collected along the way.  These hats are out of the collection.  My cousin and I ALWAYS have a fun time together.  Humor tends to bounce back and forth off of us and back to the other.  Sometimes others find it funny, sometimes I think they find us annoying, but we have so much fun either way.

Notice the red lip?  I got popped in the face by a three year old that morning. 

Sunday morning was church, family pictures, and lunch with everyone.  Then we all loaded up and headed to the Country Club for Grandma’s birthday.  There were over 100 people there for cake, punch, and conversation.  Other than a pretty strong wind the weather was beautiful for the entire weekend.

Here are my two cousins, Mindie & Ali.  Ali looks a little different without her stylin’ hat.

Sunday evening most had headed home.  A few of us rode 3-wheelers, 4-wheelers, and hiked down to a pond on Grandma’s property.  It was so peaceful and the two “city” boys from Georgia enjoyed being able to run and play and explore a whole new world.

Monday was a dreary, rainy day.  I got up early and was out putting up electric netting at 6:30 in the morning, so I would be done by the time everyone else was up and at ‘em.  I went to Grandma’s and chatted with my aunt, cousin, and grandma for the morning.  My cousin and I finally got to sneak away for a trip to town and got to visit a bit.  Her and I share secrets with each other and have a wonderful relationship.  If only we were closer.  We share many of the same ideas on how to raise children, homeschooling, and just life in general.  I will really miss her and her mom (they fly home today).

The kids got to hold our baby chicks, feed bottle lambs at mom and dad’s, and see their donkey and our llama.  Life was good for the little ones.

One of my cousins has two little boys.  They were well mannered and just and sweet as they could be.  I could sit for hours and watch her interact with her children and admire the bond they have and the wonderful job she has done as a mother.  Her efforts were very much noticeable and noted by all.

It was an incredible weekend and so much fun to have all of us together again!

Nutrition

Supplements…

Gretchen

I placed and order yesterday from Vitacost.  It shipped the same day.  I was so excited.  I had originally checked Amazon for these items, but found them cheaper at Vitacost. 

Twinlab Super C Powder

Twinlab Norwegian Cod Liver Oil Unflavored

Carlson The Very Finest Fish Oil

Shipping is a flat rate of $4.99.

The vitamin C and the unflavored CLO is for the dogs, specifically our little mutt with allergies.  I’m leaning toward atopic dermatitis and hope the CLO and Vitamin C will help.  Vitamin C is suppose to work as a natural antihistamine amongst other things.

I’m comparing the Twinlab CLO to the Carlson CLO we already have on hand.  I would love to pay $4-$5/bottle compared to $23-$25/bottle. 

I also placed and order from More than Alive for herbs to make our own shampoo (nettle, sage, and rosemary).  I usually order from Mountain Rose Herbs, but they were out of a few things I needed.  More than Alive ended up being less expensive because you don’t have to order as much, so it worked out.  I also ordered a book from them Created to be His Helpmeet.  I have wanted to read this for a long time, and our library doesn’t have it so I coughed up the money and bought it.  I’ve read mixed reviews on it and want to see for myself what it is like.

I visited the kinesiologist/chipropractor yesterday for an adrenal/thyroid issue.  He put me back supplements containing bovine adrenal, bovine thyroid, carrot, and magnesium citrate, yum.  They seemed to work the last time I took them I just didn’t stick with it. 

I’m also trying to take Virgin Coconut Oil daily (or close to it).  I have also tried to eliminate for cut back on peanuts/peanut butter to help my thyroid.  Peanuts and soybeans, goitrogens, block iodine absorbtion in the body.  It’s always something, right?

Have a great day!

Around the Homestead

I’ll try to catch you up…

Gretchen

I’m getting really terrible about blogging.  I tell myself I’m going to do better and the next thing I know a week (or two or three) has passed.

The visit from Randy’s mom and fiance went really well.  They weren’t here for long, but it was nice seeing her and meeting him.  You know I was worried about the whole menu thing.  So, I cooked pretty much like I normally would and received a nice complement.  Jeff (fiance) told me the one thing about vacations he never liked was eating food you don’t normally eat, so you never feel quite right.  He said it was great at our house because he was eating good food he would normally eat at home and felt great.  Yea, that is the best complement I could have gotten the whole weekend.  We drank raw milk, ate homemade mozaarella, homegrown eggs, and lots of organic veggies and fruits, and they couldn’t have been happier.

We have a sick ewe lamb at home.  She’s almost two months old and we are at a loss for what’s wrong with her.  Dad came over last night to look her over and is checking on her today.  We did so well not losing any during lambing season it will be terrible to lose one now (especially a ewe). 

We got our baby chicks last night, twenty-five Rhode Island Reds.  Dad walked in to see them and asked, “are they laying any eggs yet.”  Ha, ha, he’s so funny!  They are really cute.  I took pictures, but I think I left my camera in the car.  Oops!  Just take my word for it, they’re cute.

Today is the day my family from all over the country will start filing in for my Grandma’s 80th birthday party.  It’s going to be so much fun.  It is going to be a weekend long event and Saturday night the adults are taking Grandma out for dinner leaving all of us cousins at Grandma’s to watch the KU/UNC game and visit.  Some of the family is from NC, so we are going to have a divided household.  Rock, Chalk, Jayhawks!

I was also supposed to go plant some flowers at a friend of our’s on my way home from work.  She was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, it has spread, and not good.  She loves flowers and always has such a beautiful yard.  There’s a good chance it will be raining, so I think Randy is going to take off work tomorrow and go over and help me or do whatever they need done to help around their farm.  She is such a kind-hearted, happy person.  Pray for her and her family.

Tonight I’m hoping to make homemade pizza and roast a chicken for sandwiches since I didn’t have time to actually roast it for a nice dinner.  I’m in charge of cole slaw and a couple of appetizers for the weekend, so those will have to be made also.

Tomorrow chicken broth will be going in the crockpot and hopefully Coconut Chicken Soup (NT) to follow.  I’m hoping to nip the allergies in the bud before they take over.

Hope everyone has a wonderful day!

Around the Homestead, Gardening, Homemaking, In The Kitchen

Lots to do and company coming…

Gretchen

We have been really busy around our homestead the past couple of weeks/months. 

Garden:

We are putting the garden in and some of the things are getting off to a late start due to a lack of fencing.  We needed to fence our free-range chickens out of the garden, but instead they are on a short break from their free-range status until we can get fencing around the garden.

So far we have potatoes, onion, peas, greens, beets, radishes, cabbage, broccoli, and cauliflower planted in the garden.

Randy borrowed a roto-tiller from our neighbors and was tilling the garden (and before you say anything I don’t like deep tilling the garden and suggested not turning the soil anymore than necessary).  Eh hem, so he was roto-tilling the garden and the engine locked up, piston broke, etc.  $150-$200 and a few hours of labor later the roto-tiller should be purring like a kitten again.

Yard work:

I managed to get the fruit trees sprayed with an organic dormant oil spray from Gardens Alive.  It has to stay above 45 degrees for 24 hours in order for the spray to work.  Sadly, yesterday was about the first calm day with a predicted low above 45.

Pasture:

Dad came down with the tractor and disk and worked up a bottom area of our pasture that seemed to only grow poke, devil’s claws, stickers, and cheat.  Yesterday evening, I headed down there with a big bucket of turnip seeds and my little lawn fertilizer spreader to throw some turnip seed around.  The plan is to have turnips for the sheep to eat soon and follow up by planting grass.  We’re a little late, but that’s kind of our theme this season.  I have no idea how many seeds got thrown, where they got thrown for sure, if they will come up, and what it will look like if they do, but it is done and we got a tiny bit of moisture last night and today to help the little guys grow.

Tonight we will be docking tails and doctoring sheep.  Luckily a friend of Randy’s and my Dad will be there to help.  They will also start an hour before I get home, so hopefully they have it covered by the time I get home from work.  Randy’s mom and fiancé are visiting this weekend, so I have plenty of tidying up to do before they get here.

I know we eat differently than a lot of people, so I always panic when we have company and meals will have to be prepared.  I don’t want to freak anyone out with the meals we eat, but I also don’t want to completely change who we are for someone.  So, I will make some slight compromises which some are more of a convenience for me anyway (i.e. store bought tortillas). 

We will probably go out to eat once or twice.  His mom can’t sit still for long and insists on going “shopping” a lot.

Otherwise, on the menu:

Dinner:

*Fajitas (venison, shhh!) with homemade salsa, homemade yogurt, store bought ww tortillas (compromise/convenience), and homemade Spanish rice

*Roasted Chicken (raised on our farm) with baked potatoes, veggie, and homemade bread

Breakfast: 

*I hope to make ww pancakes one morning while they are here and maybe kefir smoothies another morning if anyone is feeling daring.

Snacks: 

*Organic raw veggies (carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, and celery) and homemade Ranch dressing

*Organic apples with organic peanut butter

*Organic bananas

*And possibly no-bake cookies if I’m feeling froggy!  I know they aren’t healthy, but man are they tasty.

We are supplementing a bottle lamb right now, so it will be fun for his mom to get to feed the little cutie.  Our blue heeler, Ash, can always squeeze in a game of fetch.  And our cat, Spooky, can always stand to be held and loved on.

I’ll try to take some pictures over the weekend, so I have some more interesting posts next week.

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

Around the Homestead, In The Kitchen

Easter and Springtime…

Gretchen

Things are busy, busy here on our little chunk of the globe.  We celebrated Easter with family and lots of wonderful food.  We have Randy’s family coming in this weekend, so there is lots of housekeeping and food preparations to get finished up before they arrive.  Hopefully the weather is nice, but they are already calling for rain here on Saturday.  The rain will be good for the pastures and we need pastures desperately right now.

Chas has a Giveaway!  So go check it out.  She has a wonderful blog and the giveaway is great too!

So far I only have potatoes and onions planted.  My peas didn’t come up and our garden isn’t fenced yet, so our free range chickens will eat the seeds if I plant them.  Hopefully this weekend I will get the majority of my seeds planted. 

I know it’s late, but this is a wonderful recipe for Blarney Stones for those of you intrested in some fun Irish food.  One recommendation is to use salted peanuts.  I made half with raw unsalted peanuts and the other half with regular salted peanuts and they were MUCH better.

Have a wonderful day!

Animals, Around the Homestead

Done lambing…woohoo & Grandma’s surgery

Gretchen

It’s just another one of those days here at work.  My co-worker is on vacation so I am all alone today. 

We are officially done lambing.  It ended with a bang, of course.  Our favorite lamb, Ma, had a major ordeal delivering her single ewe lamb.  I’ll spare you the details, but we are doctoring mama and baby and praying to avoid infection for the mama and pneumonia for the baby.  Things are looking good so far, so hopefully we have a completely happy ending.  So, it is safe to say this now without having to “knock on wood,” not including our aborted/miscarried baby lamb that started off our lambing season, we had no fatalities this season.  Any of you who raise livestock will appreciate this.  We had 18 ewes lamb this year and have 26 babies to show for it.  We didn’t have the highest percentage ever, but we are grateful for the healthy babies we have.  Two have already been sold and one is spoken for, so we are pleased.

In other news my Grandma had surgery to have her gall bladder removed and is doing really well.  Randy brought her home yesterday afternoon and said she looked really well. 

We have decided to buy her car from her since she is buying a new car.  With both of us commuting we put so many miles on our cars everyday.  Randy’s car is a really old, worn out car and may go at anytime.  Hopefully by this time next year we won’t need two commuter cars, but for now we are on the treadmill and contributing to pollution, the need for Middle Easter oil, and an empty house all day.  We’re working on it though.

Randy has been working with Ash, our blue heeler, in the sheep lots.  She is still a long way from independently herding sheep; however, she has made small progress in the form of not devouring sheep poo as soon as she is through the gate.  Baby steps!

I am off to a vet 1 and ½ hours away Friday to get a second opinion on our other dog, Koal.  He has allergies in the form of a rash and also has a small bump on his back we need to have looked at.  So, him and I are loading up (without Ash, she will heartbroken) and heading to a different vet to see if we can come up with something.  I will also be ordering CLO to supplement both of the dogs from here on out and also contemplating making Koal’s food.  I found a recipe that uses lamb which is in great supply here.  I’m just not sure I can keep up with it at this point in my life.  He’s always done really well on the food he is on now.  So, unless they have made changes to their food I can’t imagine it being the problem.

Other than that things are pretty normal here.  We placed an order for 25 Rhode Island Reds which should be here the beginning of April.  We lost another Bantie hen in our stock tank and are down to three.  It was decided to go with a larger chicken that can reach the stock tank without jumping up on the edge, so hopefully we have better luck with these.  Did I mention we are excited about having normal-sized eggs too!

Have a wonderful day!

Animals, Around the Homestead

Just a quick post…

Gretchen

I haven’t posted in awhile, so I thought I would real quick. 

Here are some pictures of my Dad’s Icelandic sheep’s babies.  They are the cutest little things!

And of course, what would a post be with out the cats involved.  They just happen to be the most photogenic critters on our farm.

This weekend we will be selling our two bottle lambs.  Yea!  We are also hoping to possibly burn our pile of limbs leftover from the ice storm and mow around our pasture so we can get it burned off soon.  Oh, did I mention build more lots and fence in the garden to keep the chickens out so I can plant seeds?  We’re going to need a long weekend :  )

Have a wonderful day!