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“If people let government decide what foods they eat and what medicines they take, their bodies will soon be in as sorry a state as are the souls of those who live under tyranny.” Thomas Jefferson

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

The list keeps getting longer

While some projects are indeed getting completed, my list seems to keep growing of things to do. One of the reasons for this is that my husband has torn a muscle in his back, so all of the farmwork falls to me. The children help with what they can, but there are things they simply are not able to do yet. I seem to be getting behind or at least behind where I would like to be. The rain doesn't help either. It is raining again today with more coming this week. Again I am thankful for the rain, but it really is throwing a kink in my spring projects. I am trying not to stress about things not getting done and instead focusing on plugging along. I can that is all that we can do with situations, like the rain, that are out of our control. I will eventually get my garden in and I will eventually get these projects finished so that I can move on to more. Have a great day and God bless.

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Working on Sunday and the Sabbath

Most Christians consider Sunday the Sabbath and are strict in adhering to that day of rest. Technically though Saturday is the 7th day of the week and should be considered the sabbath. If I remember correctly, the Sabbath was changed by the Catholic Church to Sunday. Some Christians are very strict about observing the Sabbath on a certain day of the week and I think by focusing so much on which day of the week they are missing the point to some extent. The point is to rest, if God can rest from his labors then so can the rest of the world. Yesterday, Saturday we took our day of rest. It was a busy week, my husband is bed/couch ridden at the moment, and I was exhausted. None of us even got out of our pj's yesterday, and leftovers were heated up to eat. So yes, I am working on Sunday because I took my day of rest on Saturday. There are many Christians that just cannot get around working on Sunday either. When I was in the restaurant business I was called to work on Sunday, just as many others are. However, the point of the Sabbath is to rest one day a week. This is good for your health, both physical and mental and I think this is the real point that God was trying to impart to His people when commanding them to keep the Sabbath. I personally don't think it matters which day that you observe the Sabbath as long as you do take that day of rest and reflect on God's blessings and grace. So no, I don't feel guilty for working on Sunday because I rested on Saturday. I do feel bad that we missed church, but my husband needed someone to take care of him and we just could not leave him alone. For those days Pastor John Weaver's Sermons are indeed a blessing. Enjoy the day and may God bless you and keep you!

Those Oh So Wonderful Curveballs

Just when things are moving along smoothly, wham... you are hit by a curveball that comes out of nowhere! When I started this blog, I wanted a blog that was real. I wanted something that not only told the good things about homesteading, but a blog that shared the downside of homesteading also. So here is one of the downsides....husbands get hurt and get laid up in bed. Which means that the wife must take over the farm work. Ladies, if you are not prepared to get callouses, cuts, bruises, sore muscles and break a few nails then homesteading might not be the life for you. Yes, ideally you can tend the garden, care for the children, and keep the home. In the real world of homesteading however, husbands get hurt and then we wives must assume their chores, projects and duties. Well, that is the way things are now. Just doing normal farm stuff, my husband has hurt his back and is almost unable to move. Farm life goes on and there are still projects that must be tended to. So this is where a homestead family buckles up, pulls together and does what must be done. My oldest daughter today is helping to accomplish the housework while I take on my husbands normal work. We will pull together and get through this. He has been bedridden for several days now, so it has been a tough few days. There is always a silver lining though to these types of curveballs that can happen. These curveballs can be the opportunity that we need to push ourselves and to really test ourselves to see what we are made of. These curveballs build character and give the members of the family a chance to pull together as a unit, building bonds that will last a lifetime. Life's curveballs can certainly be aggravating and frustrating. They can disrupt your routine, and if you are like me you really like routine, but life's curveballs can be a chance to grow as a family and a person.

Friday, March 27, 2009

Guinea Update

Well folks, as you all know the guineas have been a new experience for us. We lost one hen who just disappeared when we could not get the guineas in the coop for the night, then one of our dogs killed one of the roosters. So we are down to two guineas a rooster and a hen. They have settled in nicely and they now have me well trained. They will not go in the coop at night and we think that they are roosting in the big barn, which is fine. Each morning they hear me come out to feed as I start talking to all the critters that sleep around the feed room in the little barn. So they meet me at the feed room door with sweet little funny noises, almost as if they are saying good morning what's for breakfast! So the guineas get their breakfast first and then everyone else follows suit. Now in the evening they meet me at the chicken coop and as the chickens are entering their house for the night the guineas once again want to know what their supper is, so they get their treat again. They range most of our property now and you can usually see them voraciously hunting bugs and other such goodies throughout the day. Our guineas are pretty quiet and in fact we have found that if they are raising a ruckus then we need to go see what is going on. I have found that I really enjoy my guineas, they are funny little birds. I have also decided that they are not quite as dumb as I had originally thought and been told, I know these two have trained me pretty quickly!

The Great Goat Escape

As many of you know, we purchsed two Nubian nanny goats last Thursday. It was a little earlier than we planned to get our goats, but we had the opportunity to purchase these two goats within our budget and we had to take it. We have been working on the fence for the goats this week and were close to finishing. So the goats have been confined to the barn, with the exception of daily walks. We had a pretty big storm yesterday morning and when the storm cleared I went out to feed as usual. The girls have been coming along nicely in getting to know us and my voice, so I did not latch the stall door when I went in yesterday. Both girls were very nervous and coffee spooked at something, so yep right through the stall door like she had been shot from a cannon with Tea closely on her heals. Oh great, the goats are out and the fence is not finished. After 3 hours of trying to herd goats back to the barn we decided to leave them be, let them calm down and finish the fence. It did not help that my mare, Whisper, decided that these goats are her babies and she was playing keep away. So when we would get the goats close to the barn she would move them away from it. I was worried about them getting in the pasture with the boys, which they did on one occasion. My stallion does not tolerate intruders and will kill the goats if given the chance. It is lucky for them that he is very old (25) and can no longer move as fast as he once could. He almost caught Coffee before we could get them out of there, but fortunately she safely made it out. So 3 hours of chasing goats, 2 hours of finishing the fence, and another hour herding the goats into their new fence all before lunch. So we were pretty exhausted yesterday and I am sure that it looked like the keystone cops around here. Somebody really needs to visit our place with a video camera everyday, we would definitely win some money on America's funniest videos. By the time all was said and done all 4 of us (yes the baby was helping me herd goats) were covered in mud and exhausted. It was a run to see who could get to the shower first, the children won. It is once again pouring down rain and is supposed to be like this through Saturday. I can guarantee you that this morning the stall door will be latched when I go out to feed. And who said our lives here on the farm were boring!!!

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Heirloom Veggie Seeds Company

I had previously recommended a company called Heirloom Veggie Seeds/Get Seeds to purchase heirloom seeds from. I no longer recommend them as it has been 6 weeks since I placed my order and paid for my seeds. I have not received my seeds, nor am I able to get a response from the company as to why I haven't received them. So buyer beware.

Update: I received my seeds yesterday and finally got an email from the company. I am still not sure that I would recommend ordering as they take so long, but at least they are not thieves or dishonest. They simply are slow, but I am very happy with my order.

Terraced Gardening

Recently a reader brought it to my attention that not everyone lives on a flat spot to have a garden. Many folks living in the hills (mountains) have a difficult time finding a spot sufficently large and flat enough to garden. I remembered having seen documentaries and such about rural folks in South America and other areas that have beautiful, wonderfully producing terraced gardens. So I have done a little research and come up with some links explaining how to build a terrace garden on your hill. Since, I don't know much about this I will defer to those who do. Our place has a very very gentle roll to it. So here are the links for those who might need to terrace their garden.

Do-It-Yourself Terrace Garden

Master Gardener

My Garden Net

Rain Again!

These past few weeks with these huge rainstorms are tough. It means projects are on hold and not getting finished. However, considering the very dry summers we have had the past few years, I am truly thankful for the rain. I kinda wish it would rain at night and clear up in the morning. That would also give the rain some time to soak into the ground. Today is day 2 of the four days of rain we are supposed to get which will leave things pretty sloppy around here once again. Hopefully, after last week's downpour we got the problem with the chicken coop flooding taken care of. It has been raining pretty hard all night so I will see this morning when I go to feed. Last week so much rain was falling that the rain was running underneath the back wall and the poor chickens were flooded. They were not happy to say the least until we added a thick layer of spanish moss, which kept the floor from being sloppy wet and gave them something dry to walk on. So I gues with the rain we will be doing inside projects. I do need to spend some extra time cleaning and tidying up the studio. Although I try to spend a little time in there each week, it quite disorganized. I guess that comes with having a 10 year old who go in there rummaging for craft supplies and isn't real good about putting things back in the excitement of finding what she wants. I am also getting back into the mood to paint, so I want to get my paint supplies tidied up and cleaned up so that I can do some paintings this summer of the farm and the children. Summer is a slow time around here for projects because of the extreme heat, so it gives us time for more leisurely pursuits. Since the downturn in the economy, art is not selling very much except for the occasional commission so painting is indeed a leisurely pursuit rather than making a living. Our feed room also needs some serious organization since it is getting to be time to get in hay for next winter. Since we don't grown our own hay just yet we buy it from local farmers who do. The cost of hay has increased tremendously and whereas 10 years ago we would get all of our hay in for the winter in one big haul, we now space it out as money allows over the whole spring, summer, and fall. We still spend the same amount, unless of course hay increases in price again during the course of the season, much it is much easier to swallow in small amounts. We are planting a small plot of hay this year, so will be harvesting a few bales of our own. Since this is a new endeavor and one that we know very little about, we are starting small until we learn the ropes. Until then our neighbors are more than happy to sell us their excess hay. In the future when we have an excess of vegetables and meat we might look to bartering for our hay needs, but for right now cash is king in the hay business. So anyway those are my thinkings and musings for this morning. As the sun is coming up, the rain is flowing like a faucet open all the way and the lakes and rivers are flowing in all different directions. This is good for our watershed though so no complaints here.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Being a Proverbs 31 Wife Part 2

I am continuing the series about being a Proverbs 31 wife. I have found in my journey to be the wife that God commissioned me to be, that it is a difficult journey at times because the outside world simply does not understand. The women's lib movement has tarnished the minds of the people and made them blind and unnaccepting of the commissions of God. All that being said despite this small difficulty it is the most rewarding journey I have made and our marriage has prospered greatly because of it. So let's continue with our journey into Proverbs 31.

Proverbs 31:15 She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth meat to her household, and a portion to her maidens.

Women in the days of old indeed rose earlier than everyone in the home. When the husband and children awoke breakfast was ready and everyone in the home started the day with a good breakfast and the care of a loving mother/wife. In today's times I hear of so many women that sleep til the later hours of the morning long after the sun has risen. Now I will admit that although I wake up before the rooster (5 am) that my husband does not get breakfast before he leaves home. However, this is at his request. I do make sure that he does have whatever he needs to take with him for the day handy and that his lunch is prepared and sent off with him. My children have breakfast ready when they get up, with the exception of Monday's which is cereal day. Also by arising early in the morning there is quite a bit more time to get the things accomplished during the day. It is not easy running a homestead or a family and by wasting half the day in bed much is lost and there is always of feeling of not getting much done. So get up early ladies and get that day started.

vs 16 She considereth a field, and buyeth it: with the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard

Hmmmmmm....So Adam might have been the first to be commissioned to till the land but we ladies were not left out. This verse shows that we do have a say in what happens on our homestead and we do make decisions and act upon them. So many women think that the Bible simply command them to be doormats and this just is not true. It is what the women's lib folks would have us to believe. Not only do we help to provide for the family by working our own field which we have purchased, but we must bring in an income of some sort to be able to do this. We will see later where this income is coming from. For right now it is enough to know that we women also contribute to the well being of our family and we do so of our own free will. We too are commissioned to work the land.

vs. 17 She girdeth her loins with strength, and strengtheneth her arms.

No wimpy weak women here in this verse. Women worked hard and they were were strong for it. This kept them healthy. I know women nowadays that cannot life a 20 pound sack of dog food. Really I have seen them in the grocery store when they have to find someone to help them get it into their buggy in the aisle. It is pitiful how weak women are these days and dangerous as well. Not everything about the good old days were "good" there were evil men in those days as well. Women who were weak were vulnerable, women who could defend themselves were much better off. Which kind of woman are you? Are you vulnerable to the evils of the world, or could you make a stand if you had to? You know in the South during the Civil War women were left home alone with the children. The weak women didn't fair so well when the yankees turned to total warfare. They were raped, killed, imprisoned right along with their children. There were babies burned alive in homes because their mother's were too weak to defend them. Some women fought though and survived along with their children. I would rather know that I could defend myself and my children if needed than to live with the knowledge that I had no chance to save my children if we were under some sort of attack. And ladies, these days, women are not safe anywhere or at anytime. Just watch the news if you don't believe me. Are your muscles strong? Is your body healthy?

vs. 18 She perceiveth that her merchandise is good: her candle goeth not out by night

Yes, we are often called to work late into the night when taking care of our family. This verse tells us where the money to buy the field comes from... our own skills and our own hands. Women were allowed to work and earn money by God's word. It is a fallacy to think otherwise because right here in this verse God is talking about the merchandise of a wife. Merchandise is something that is for sale and biblical wives not only were allowed but expected according to God to produce goods from the "extras" of their family's labors to sell at market. This is the heart of the Biblical agrarian movement. Most will agree that if you start down the path toward biblical agrarianism with the idea of how much money you wish to make then you have already failed. First, provide your family's needs, and then sell what you will not use. It is the wife who gets the goods ready for market. You see the husband and wife still interwoven here in their marriage bond. It is a physical partnership and interweaving as much as a spiritual partnership. Both husband and wife working as a team and if seperated then the continuity fails.

vs. 19 She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff.

Again the wife working for the good of the family. Ladies it is plain and simple, God expected, commanded, and ordained that laziness and slothfulness were not part of his plan nor were they acceptable. So those who think it is ok to lounge in bed half the day, then lounge around the house or spend your days shopping or some other slovenly pursuit are in trouble. 6 days the Lord labored and 6 days we are to labor.

vs. 20 She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; yea, she reacheth for her hands to the needy.

The family's acts of charity were shown through the wife. It was her duty to see to the needy and poor of the community. In biblical times this was probably due to the fact that most of the needy and poor were widows. Women were given the gift of compassion and empathy for a reason and this is one area where it was ecpected by God for those gifts to be used. My grandfather often told me that during the Great Depression that my great grandmother every morning would load up her car with live chickens and drive around the community to people who were in need of food. During the depression most everyone had a small garden, but for very many families meat was hard to come by. It is much easier for someone in need to accept help from us women than it is to accept from a man. Especially, if the person in need is a man because having to face another man and admit that they need help is something that many honorable men cannot bring themselves to do and simply destroys their pride.

Ok, I will get to Part 3 soon. I expect this is enough for us to think about for today. May God bless you all in your journey.

Monday, March 23, 2009

What is Biblical Agrarianism

The other day I was talking to someone about the move back to Biblical Agrarianism that is taking place among Christians across the country. They didn't understand what I was talking about because today when most people think of farming they think of the vast commercial farms across the country. Their response was oh you can't possible farm for a living. Well, no not right now and maybe not ever. That is not our purpose nor our goal. What is Biblical agrarianism? It is a return to the order and plan of God. You see when God placed Adam in the garden of Eden, Adam was to keep and dress the garden. After the fall Adam was sent forth from the garden to "till the ground from whence he was taken". So God's order was for Adam and his descendants to be tiller's of the ground, or simply farmers. Why? Was it to make billions of dollars and ship food all around the world? No, it was to provide for their own needs, work with their own hands and by the sweat of their own brow. This was the beginning of God's order and God's order continued through agrarian ventures from there. Living according to God's order calls us to be seperate from the idustrialist, consumer driven world. So those of us in this move towards a more Biblically ordered life are stepping outside of society, outside of mainstream, and outside of man's traditions. We are going back to the order of God. In understanding that we are the descendants of the House of Israel, we see throughout history how the tribes kept to the agrarian life up until the past couple of hundred years. We do get quite a bit of criticism and skepticism, which is to be expected from those who don't understand and are still totally dependant on the industrialist consumer life. However, we have the peace and the happiness to keep us going when the world ridicules and mocks. Like the homesteaders and farmers of old we are planting seeds for future generations, giving something to the future rather than the traditional idea of living in the now off of the future generations. What modern industrialism has done is to steal the future of the children and grandchildren. Biblical agrarianism is giving something back. Jesus Christ taught us that we are to be in the world, but not of the world and those following the order of God are doing just that. May God bless you in your journey.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

Busy Day Yesterday

Yesterday was a busy day and I am feeling it today. I re-bedded the hen house. Then we got most of the goat pasture fence up. We also had some fenceline clearing to do until the tractor started acting up. I will tell you tractors are sometimes more trouble than they are worth. It seems as if we are always fixing something on the tractor. I also worked with the new goats, Coffee and Tea yesterday. Coffee is much more mellow than Tea and she is coming along well in her training. Tea is determined to remain relatively wild. Yesterday was their first day outside on a lead line to browse. Coffee settled down quickly and was leading nicely by the end of the hour. However, at the end of the hour Tea was still fighting the lead line and had browsed very little. She doesn't mind me petting her anymore and I got their collars on with no trouble. Now when they first came out of the stall they came out like little bolts of lightning and the rodeo was on for a few minutes. But with some calm voices and gentle persuasion Coffee settled quite a lot. The funny thing is that our mare Whisper was in the pasture at the time and she is a bit of a spaz herself. Well after figuring out that the goats were not going to eat her, she decided that Tea was her best friend. And everywhere Tea went she went. When Tea got upset, then Whisper got upset and went over to comfort her. Once the goats went back into the barn so did Whisper and throughout the day she would go and look over their stall door to check on them. This will be good for her to have some friends again. When we had to put down our old pony, it was devastating on her. She spent several weeks looking for him as they were best friends. So she has been pretty lonely and she can't go out with the boys, since one of them is her daddy, so she is happy to now have friends again. After fixin supper and all of the work yesterday, I was plain tuckered out last night. I sat down to watch a movie and fell asleep. Good thing I had already seen the movie. Anyway, just another busy day here at Whisper Wind, where the adventure never stops.

Organic Fertilizer for Pasture

I have done a post before on the virtues of spanish moss. There is another virtue of this plant and that is that it can be a great organic fertilizer for your garden or pasture and it is free. This of course works better with small pastures rather than larger ones, but is a great solution for the small homestead. Spanish moss tea can be made by soaking spanish moss in water for a couple of weeks. Then the spanish moss can be removed and the "tea" can be sprayed on the pasture. This works well for a rotation system because when you remove the animals from the pasture then spray with the tea and start some more brewing until you move them off the next pasture. The benefits of this is that spanish moss soaks up tons of nutrients from the air, when soaked in water all of these nutrients are soaked into the water to make the tea. By spraying with this water concoction the nutrients find their way into the soil and into the roots of the plants quicker. You also don't need a whole lot of spanish moss to make the tea so a little goes a long way. Just another little tip to keeping pastures producing good forage.

Saturday, March 21, 2009

Being a Proverbs 31 Wife Part 1

Proverbs 31 is one of my favorite scriptures in the Bible. In this chapter of Proverbs God shares His wisdom and guidance about the kind of wife I am to be and the duties that I am to have. So I thought I would break this up and write a series of posts about being a Proverbs 31 wife.

Proverbs 31
vs 10:Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.
vs 11:The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil.


To our husbands a good and virtuous woman is a priceless treasure. This seems to be something that has been lost in recent generations. It used to be that men/husbands readily showed that the one thing they treasured most was their wife. Men of old would give their life in protection of their wife. No man was more fierce than when his wife was insulted or violated or harmed. She was priceless. This reminds me of an episode of Little House on the Prairie. In this episode another man is making rude insinuations to Caroline and when she attempts to walk away from him, he grabs her arm. She does get away and is very upset over the whole incident. When Charles finds out about this he is furious because his wife was treated this way. Charles confronts the man and this confrontation escalates into a fist fight. Charles unfortunately gets beat up pretty badly. The whole point of this is that Charles so valued his wife that his only concern was to defend her. He gave absolutely no regard to his own well being. And this brings us to the next verse which explains why a man treasures his wife so. It is because she has his heart. Her most valuable possession is the heart of her husband and because a virtuous woman holds her husbands heart and values her husbands heart then no spoil (other woman) can touch him. In recent generations it seems as if infidelity has become a pandemic that has spread like wildfire across our country. Even television shows are full of it with so and so cheating on so and so and then vice versa. Why is this? Because so many women have stopped being virtuous. You see mainstream society has filled women's heads so much with the bulldooey that they need to be like men that they no longer care for the virtues of womanhood. They seek careers and independance from those things which women always in the past held dear, like family children and their husband. At one time in history a woman guarded her reputation, nowadays women do not care about reputation. If fact, the world seems to care very little about reputations of women. It has become so mainstream for women to behave like men...drinking in bars, fighting with other women, sleeping around. So as a result women are no longer virtuous and a non virtuous woman cannot hold her husband's heart. Therefore he is tempted to be spoiled. So what we ladies need to think about is our virtuousness now. Do we consider how our dress might affect our virtue? Do we consider how our friendships might affect our virtue? Do we consider how our attitude might affect our virtue? Do we consider how our language and way that we conduct ourselves might affect our virtue? If we do not consider our virtue, then our husband's won't consider it either.

vs. 12: She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life.

One thing I have discovered is that our husbands need constant reassurance and ego boosters, especially in their younger years. If we ladies are complaining about them and to them then we are doing evil to our husbands. We are tearing them down instead of lifting them up. Our husbands never really stop "courting" us or trying to impress us with their prowess. It is just that we wives stop seeing this. Instead we focus on their faults or their shortcomings and in doing so we stop doing him good and instead are doing him evil. Not only that but we do ourselves evil as well because this man will eventually start seeking some other means to boost his ego. Now this does not always mean another woman, but it could mean that work becomes more important than home. Our husbands need to know that what their efforts to impress us ladies do not go unnoticed, they need that ego boost. So we should do them good and be supportive and vocalize our pride in their efforts.

vs. 13: She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands.

As men were commisioned to til the soil, women were commissioned to make use of that effort. You see this is an example of the further strengthening of the marriage bond, the covenant with God. We ladies work as hard as our husbands and I think modern day women have forgotten this. So many stay at home wives, do nothing. They go to lunch and go shopping and flit here and there during the day. They hire someone to clean their home and put the children in daycare. There is no intertwining with the work of their husband. The bond is broken. Wives in olden days cooked and cleaned, they sewed and tended the children. If their husband was a businessman then his wife saw to it that business associates were entertained in their home. The two worked together. This always reminds me of an old saying that I have heard all my life "Idle hands make for the devil's playground". Too many women nowadays have idle hands and so they seek their happiness outside of their marriage. So many women are unhappy with their marriage and turn to shopping and other forms of satisfaction and it is all due to the fact that there hands are idle.

vs.14: She is like the merchants' ships; she bringeth her food from afar.

Well, this reminds me of another old saying, "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach". This is so true. Men like food and they especially like food that is prepared by the woman that they have entrusted their heart to. So ladies, when we stop bringing our food to our men then we are failing in our duty as wives. In today's world of fast food and restaurants it is all too common to find wives who do not ever cook. It is fine to go out once in a while and take a break from the kitchen, but it is our food at home that makes our husbands happiest. It is our food lovingly prepared with our hands that brings them fulfillment. It is their satisfaction that gives us as women pride in what we do and satisfaction with ourselves.

So tomorrow I will continue with more of Proverbs 31. God bless and take care.

God's Path for our Children

When I was in college my goal was to finish my degree and get a great career as a veterinarian or research biologist. I didn't do either. I fell in love and got married and developed a career in the restaurant business. Then life happened and I needed to stay home and take care of my grandparents. We moved to their farm and took care of them and the farm for as long as we were needed. Then our first child came along and instead of going back to work full time in the restaurant industry I stayed home for several years and worked several different small jobs that allowed be to earn the income that we needed in addition to my husband's income. When my daughter was about 4 we were told that she needed to be in daycare and that I needed to go back to work. So since this was what I was supposed to do because it is what everyone did, I went back to work and put my child in daycare which later became school. I wound up working 70 hour work weeks and I made good money. The tradeoff though, was that I rarely saw my child and was usually too exhausted and tired to spend much time with her when I did see her. I never got the chance to get her ready for school and take her to school as I had to be at work at 5 am. My husband did that. But this is what we were supposed to do. Society had programmed us into believing that career comes first and then family. Somewhere along the way I began to learn that something in my life was simply not right. I missed my child and my husband. I began to suffer anxiety attacks and depression. I went to counseling and took loads of antidepressants just simply to function. Somewhere deep down in my soul, I still knew something wasn't right. My counselor hit the nail on the head when she told me that the answer to my problems was simply to do in life what I wanted to do. What I wanted to do....hmmm, not what I was taught was the acceptable route to take but what I wanted to do. I wanted to see my daughter grow up and I wanted to spend time with my husband that involved something more than just listening to him snore at 2 am. I still thought that I needed a career, so I left the restaurant business and opened an art gallery. I had a host of talented artists in house and sold quite a few of my own pieces of artwork. I began selling more of my own, but I didn't earn any money because of overhead. After a year of losing a lot of money, I realized that I still was not doing what I really wanted to do. So I closed the gallery and my husband had a studio built for me at home. I came home and my daughter came home from school. A short time later we were blessed with another child. I work at home according to my own schedule which revolves around my children. I came home and I am finally after all these years doing what I want to do. We are working on our little farm and I do my art and some freelance writing to earn a little extra to help pay the bills. But the most important thing that I have now is a happiness that I have been seeking in all the wrong places. I found it at home. So why have I written this long diatribe? I got to thinking this morning about my old roommate my freshman year in college. Ann knew exactly what she wanted. She was in college to study education, not because she wanted to teach in the schools but because she wanted to get married and homeschool her children. I thought she was a lunatic at the time. Oh, if I had simply listened to the wisdom in her words I might have saved myself a very long and strenuous journey!Another thing that has brought her to mind lately have been the comments of my daughter. Most of the time when you ask a child what they want to be when they grow up they at least have some career in mind. They of course will change this a million times over the course of the years, but they will say something like "I want to be a teacher, or a nurse, or a doctor, or....a research biologist". Well, my daughter has told me on several occasions in the past couple of years that she wants to be a mom. That old dragon that I fought for so many years has raised its ugly head and I have heard myself over and over saying that is fine, but you must go to college and choose a career. Hmmmm...this is what has really gotten me thinking. Why am I doing this? Why am I saying these things? Who am I to determine the path that God himself has chosen for this child? Then I think about Ann and how she knew what she wanted and wasn't afraid to be different from the rest of us in that dorm. Then I think about the struggles I have had over the years trying to fit in with mainstream ideals. I am happier now than I have been my entire life and it only took me 20 years to find the "career" that would lead me to happiness. If my daughter wants to be a mom and a homemaker then I will teach her to the best of my ability and leave the rest to God. The one thing that I have learned is that only she can choose her path in life. I can teach her all that I know, and that is where my job ends. God must lead her where she is needed and where she is to go. So that old dragon is banished from my vocabulary and I will not tell her again that she must choose a career and enter into the work force. That is such a socialist concept anyway. I will simply educate her and help her to strengthen her mind so that her knowledge expands. The rest I leave to God as I must. I think sometimes this is hard for parents to do because we want the best for our children and want them to be more successful than we were. It is just that our concept of success is twisted by a neo-Babylonian way of thinking. Success is relative, success is happiness and a feeling of accomplishment. So I pray that my daughter will find success along whatever path God chooses for her. If that is a career fine and if that is being a homemaker and a mom, that is fine too. I think I am finally ridding myself of the last of mainstream thinking that has had a hold of me. That dragon has been slain. May God bless you all.

Friday, March 20, 2009

Honest Abe? I don't think so!

I would like to point out an awesome sermon found at Is the Truth Really Out There blog. This sermon is by Pastor John Weaver and is an excellent expose' of the real Abraham Lincoln, not the lie taught in government schools today. The thing that gets me is that Obama is referred to as the next Lincoln. Lincoln was a poorly educated tyrant with no regards to the Constitution or the Republic. Hmmmmm...sounds familiar with our current administration. Anyway, check it out as it is definitely worth the read. God help us all!

Mosquitoes!!! Ugghh!

Well, it is that time of year again and since our winter weather was extremely mild there wasn't a single mosquito killed off. So what does that mean? It means swarms of those horrid, evil little disease spreading insects. What can a person do to protect their little piece of heaven and their family from them. There are a few things that you can do.

1. Be diligent about not letting water stand around. For water buckets and water troughs you can either disturb the surface of the water everyday for at least 30 seconds or put some goldfish in the water trough. The feeder goldfish will eat the mosquito larvae.

2. I don't like chemicals so I do not use bug sprays, instead I make my own. I make a solution of citronella oil and water which I then spray on our clothing before we head outside. Citronella is a natural bug repellant. Care should be taken not to spray it on the skin though, just on clothing. Even some natural things like citronella are not good being absorbed into the skin. Citronella is a great herb to plant around your house and your yard. Just a few citronella plants strategically placed and mosquitoes won't like your yard very much.

3. Mosquitoes are most active (supposedly) in the morning and evening hours, kinda like sharks. So avoid spending much time outside during these hours. If you must be outside then wear long sleeves and pants during this time.

Down here in the south we have mosquitos big enough to drain you dry in seconds. They also don't follow the typical rules of when they are most active, ours are active all the time. Take special care to avoid being bitten as much as possible, they do spread disease. I have had a friend with encephalytis and it destroyed his life. He had to get rid of all his animals as he was no longer physically able to take care of them. He spent years suffering before he passed away. To me not being able to enjoy my active lifestyle is worse sentence than death. Take care this summer and do what you can to avoid those bugs!

Spring and Summer Skin Health

As the daylight hours get longer and the sun gains strength in the days to come, it is time for us to start thinking about the health of our skin. I am talking about overexposure to the sun. I do think that some sun exposure is healthy, we do need the sunlight for Vitamin D. However, too much is not only dangerous but also unnatractive. Too much sun exposure makes us look old. There is a reason that proper ladies stayed out of the sun or covered themselves to protect against the damaging effects of the sun....they didn't want to look older than they had to. Not only does sunlight age it is dangerous. How dangerous? One of my dearest friends died last year at the age of 28 from malignant melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer. I also remember my grandfather making regular trips to the dermatologist to have small skin cancers burned off. My husband has started making a few of those trips himself. Skin cancer is real and for some deadly. Why take the chance of which type of skin cancer you are going to get. There are some things you can do to protect yourself from the sun as much as possible. Wear a broadbrimmed hat when working outside along with sun screen on your face. When possible wear a light cotton long sleeve shirt. This second option is great for us here in the south through spring but into summer time it is just too hot. So wear sun screen or sun block. I don't like to plug products, but in this instance I will. We use Burt's Bees sunblock because it has no chemicals and really is great at blocking the sun's rays. Ok end of product plug, Burt feel free to thank my by sending my free tube of sunblock! Anyway skin cancer is serious and very unnattractive, so avoid it at all cost. Take care of your skin ladies, we age fast enough so there really is no reason to speed up the process. Go and buy a cute hat and a long sleeve cotton shirt, then head outside to enjoy the garden. Take care and God bless.

Coffee and Tea are Here

Well,last night was an exciting night. I happened to find two nubian does for sale right within our budget. So my husband and I jumped in the station and went to take a look. They are beautiful girls each a year old. They definietely need some handling but have been well cared for. We named them Coffee and Tea on the way home. Goating wrangling is rough stuff. It has been a long time since I have been around goats and forgotten how heavy and strong they are. Even though Coffee and Tea are lythe and sleek, not having finished filling out, they feel like boulders when trying to wrangle them out of the car. Like I said they have been well cared for, but not handled on a regular basis. On top of that they didn't know who we were or where they were. They may have possibly been bred having been exposed to a Billy, so we will see. It was funny on the way home we couldn't figure out what one car behind us was doing. They were acting kind of crazy and pulling up reall close and then moving over and pulling up beside us. It was then that we realized they were taking pictures of the goats in the back of the station wagon. I guess it was a funny sight and definitely not something you see everyday. They went into the stall next to our horse Whisper and she is totally flipped out by them. She flips out easily and has suffered so much trauma this week with the renegade guinea trying to share her barn. She is not liking life right now, too much going on for her delicate Throughbred brain to process. Well, she will adjust. Our girls are beautiful and if they have been bred then we will be getting milk relatively soon. What a wild night we had last night getting them into the barn. My poor husband has decided that he lives with a crazy woman, and I would probably have to agree that he does.

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Homestead Economics

Sometimes new homesteaders forget about the economics of homesteading. In their excitement they rush out and buy material, buy livestock, and buy feed for the livestock. Then they pay someone to butcher that livestock. By the time all is said and done those cuts of meat in their freezer cost them more than those bought in the grocery. The economics of the homestead has been blown out of the water. What are homesteading economics? Well, reducing the cost of living, being self sufficient, being more sustainable, and for many environmentalism. So let's look at the economics of two homesteads from these perspectives. We will take raising a couple of pigs for fall butchering and look at it from two perspectives.

Homesteader 1:
1. Purchases 1 feeder pig in the spring for 30.00.
2. Purchases material for hog pen 200.00
3. Purchases feed for 6-8 months feeding 120.00-140.00
4. butchering cost in the fall 75.00
5. Supplement with kitchen scraps- Free
Total cost for about 150 lbs. of meat 425.00-445.00 or 2.83/lb-2.96/lb. Lately in the grocery store I have been paying less than 2.00 per pound for pork.

Homesteader 2:
1. Purchases two feeder pigs to breed later 60.00
2. Fences in small pasture for pigs to free range using purchased fence and cut your own fence post 200.00
3. Plants extra garden plot for hog feed (seed cost) 5.00
4. no butchering year 1
5. Supplement with kitchen scraps- Free
6. Year 2 8 piglets born- sell 4 (120.00 back into pig budget)
7. Again plant garden plot for hog feed using seeds from previous year's crop and allow free range- Free
8. Feed kitchen scraps- Free
9. Self butcher 4 remaining piglets- 600lbs. meat free
Total cost for 600.00 of meat 145.00 or 24cents/lb. Now that is a bargain

These scenarios are meant to be examples of how to plan and manage a homestead. A homestead is not meant to be cost consuming, but cost efficient. In order for it to be cost efficient means sometimes that proper planning should be thought out and done ahead of time. It also means that there may be more work involved such as growing your own feed. However, this is what the original concept of homesteading was a self- sufficient ecological environment. Having to re-purchase livestock each year and feed is not self- sufficient because you are still dependant on outside supplies. So when planning your homestead really think about how your homestead is going to support not only you, but the livestock that you have. Work towards making the homestead a closed ecological environment, meaning that it needs no outside sources for its support. God bless

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Summertime Sewing

Summertime is pretty laid back around here as the heat index climbs we all slow down including the animals. The horses spend midday huddled in the barn trying to escape the blaring sun and we spend our midday huddled in the aircondition or playing in the water, any water. We often go to the pool and swim, then come home and play in the sprinkler or water stuff here. So there really is more of a need for play clothes and not really nice clothes. This makes sewing easier and cheaper. Summertime playwear is when I pull out my scrap fabric and my old stuff that I saved like old sheets. Play clothes for the summer don't have to be fancy or complicated. For my girls they consist of simple sundresses made from old sheets. They are cool and it doesn't matter how dirty or stained they get playing around the farm because they are worn for that purpose. This allows us to save those nicer outfits for going into town, church, and visiting. So consider saving some money this summer and making play clothes for your children to play around the farm and in their own homemade mud puddles out of old sheets and other bits of fabric that you have hanging around. Save the nicer fabric for those few outfits needed to go to town.

The Great Guinea Hunt

We bought some guineas last weekend at the poultry sale. Now, I have never had guineas and about the only thing I knew about these birds is that they were loud and good to eat. We got two mating pairs in the hopes that we will one day be able to put some of their offspring in the freezer. Well, I did get on the internet and find out as much as I could about these homely little birds and what I found was not promising. From what I read they are more prone to be wild and very skittish. They tend to be hard to teach to go back into the coop according to the writers unless trained from very young keets. Well, the writers were right everything they said has so far proven to be true. You see yesterday being the first beautiful day after 3 days of solid rain we let the guineas and the chickens out of the henhouse. Everybody was doing just fine and voraciously seeking the bugs in the yard. Because of all the rain our earthworms are very close to the surface of the ground making them easy targets for the chickens who were going wild over a particular spot. The dogs came around the corner of the house and the guineas went nuts, so our rhodesian ridgeback (being a sight hound) thought they wanted to play chase. After a couple of seconds and a severe reprimand the dog stopped his chase and with a very sheepish look on his face layed down to behave himself. As we looked around we saw no guineas! The chickens were still happily hunting earthworms and basically in a chicken frenzy over their new found gold mine. The guineas were nowhere to be seen. After a little hunting we did find the guineas in the woods behind our property. So the first guinea round-up of the day began. After half and hour of shooing guineas through the underbrush and around the trees we finally got them back into the yard where they spent the rest of the afternoon quietly hunting bugs. As the day started to close to an end it was time to put everyone back inside for the night so that they stayed safe and sound. Well, this time the chickens had moved to a new gold mine and the guineas were once again nowhere in sight. This time the dog was not at fault. I opened the door to the henhouse ans started to rattle the feed bag which always brings the rooster home and the hens dutifully followed. Now to find the guineas. We found them in the big barn that sits a good ways off from the henhouse. As we started to try to round them up and back home for the night well the roundup began and guess where they headed? you guessed it back into the woods! An hour later we had 3 of the guineas in the henhouse and one guinea was not to be found. So hopefully that guinea lived through the night and we will find him today. It was dark by the time we finally closed the henhouse door for the night. The rooster and hens had already found their perches and were hunkering down. We were tired and hungry, supper still had to be fixed. So guinea #4 was on his own for the night. I am not sure about these guineas. They are funny little birds and do have their benefits, but I am not sure I want to spend my days chasing guineas through the woods back home every evening. I know some people just leave them be and let them stay out. We have a pack of wild dogs that has taken over the property across the road from us, though and with those things hunting at night the guineas wouldn't last long. Our neighbor also has a dog that I have had to shoot with a pellet gun several times for chasing the horses so the guineas would provide great fun especially if the dog caught it. So guineas must for their own safety go into the henhouse at night. Now, how to I explain alll of this to the guineas?!

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Farm Dogs

Seems like every farm has a dog and some dogs are suited better to farm life than others. Things to ask yourself before getting a farm dog is what will the animal be used for? On a farm everything has a purpose. I am partial to Rhodesian Ridgebacks for several reasons. The fact that they were bred to be multipurpose dogs is a great thing for us because we need a dog that has several jobs to do. Some typical breeds that are popular on farms around here are Australian shepherds and Blue heelers. Most of the farms are cattle farms and these dogs make great companions as well as being very helping in herding cows. Goat farms are becoming more popular around here and with the goats comes the ultimate goat/sheep dog the Great Pyrenees. We are seeing quite a number of pyrenees showing up on farms because of the goats. These dogs are voracious guardians of their herd and most live with the herd on a 24 hour basis. Border Collies tend to be popular because of their great herding ability and they love their job. Many farms have small dogs like jack russels instead of cats for mouse control. Actually these little dogs are much better at catching and killing mice than cats are. I think every farm needs a dog or two and the breed or mutt depends on the owner. I have never been real fond of many breeds on a farm, but really it depends on the dog, not the breed. I currently have a pit bull/hound mix that I never would have chosen for the farm. However, we wound up with her and she is a wonderful guard dog and does noteven pay attention to the chickens. The biggest concern with some dogs/breeds is that they have an inner instinct to hunt smaller animals.Then they either kill them by accident or on purpose. When choosing your farm dog, keep in mind what the breed or breeds if they are mixed were bred to do. This will give you an idea of what to expect and what hurdles you may have to jump to establish a good working relationship. I don't know what I would do without my dogs and they are well suited to our farm even if one shouldn't be. They enjoy their job and we feel good having them do their job.

Changing Schedule Around a Bit

Ok, we have so much going on here at the farm trying to get the goat pasture ready, overseeding and liming the other pastures, and the garden. So between all of that and the other spring projects that I have previously mentioned in another post, I am having to make some adjustments to my household schedule. Instead of doing little bits each day and spending half my day or so in the house working then I am going to be doing all of my housework on Monday and Tuesday. I will of course, have laundry to do on some of the other days as I cannot go a week without washing diapers and such, but that I can have done by the time the sun gets up in the morning. So by chaning my schedule maybe I won't feel so strung out and feeling like I am not finishing anything. Lately, I have felt that we have just been hitting the high spots. I know a lot of people think that once you have settled into a routine that works for them they shouldn't adjust it. However, I have found that being on a farm and trying to do farm stuff means that you kind of have to roll with the flow and make those adjustments even if they are temporary. So you will see some changes in my daily schedule and other schedules that I post as well. God bless and happy spring!

Monday, March 16, 2009

Managing Time on a Farm

There is always so much to do on a farm. There are outside chores, livestock duties, and a never ending list of projects. Managing a farm is taxing on your sanity and your body. Muscles get tired and weary and shortly following your mind gets weary. One of the best ways that I have found to keep myself going and not experience complete burnout is to manage my time. There are several ways to do this:

1. Work your daily schedule to your body's schedule. Some people are not morning people so don't put your most demanding chores when you are not at your best during the day. I am a morning person. So, in the mornings I update my blog, hang out a load of laundry, fix breakfast, run another load of laundry, and sweep and mop the kitchen, and feed the animals, all before 7 am. Then I can take a little break and write another post on my blog. All of my household chores are usually finished by noon and homeschooling is finished by 1 pm. I try to spend the afternoon doing less demanding work because I am usually fading by that time and by the evening is when I do my reading research and answer emails. Schedule yourself around your body's schedule and you will find that you have a much more productive day.

2. Schedule around the seasons. Big outdoor chores are done when the weather is nice, in the spring and fall. We save the hot summer for what absolutely has to be done and small chores that can be done in the mornings. In the summer time my blog will be updated and the news read in the heat of the day when it is too hot to be outside. So mornings and evenings are relegated to outside projects and then we reserve pretty easy projects that don't consume too much time.

3. Stop trying to be Martha Stewart. When we girls are at home managing the farm it is easy to get frustrated because there simply is not enough time in the day to keep the perfect house, cook the perfect meal, do the farm chores, and everything else. So we cannot be Martha Stewart. Remember Martha has people that do a lot of things around her farm for her. She does not do it all by herself and neither can you. Be who you are and do the best that you can.

4. Don't get so bogged down in working the farm that you forget to get off the farm and have friends. Friends are important and a social life is important. Make time to get away from the chores and spend time with other people. If you don't do this you will eventually get burned out on being stuck at home working on a constant basis. Everybody needs to get off the farm on occasion.

I know some people are not fond of schedule and some people like me are too fond of schedules. They are necessary to the smooth running of a farm even a small one, but they can be adjusted and maneuvered to suit each individual best. Remember these tips and adjust your schedule to suit you best and your farm will run smoothly, most of the time.

The Great Chicken Adventure Part 2

Well, this weekend we went back to the auction where we bought chickens and then had them stolen before we could load them up. The auction owner had been busy over the past week. The back loading dock was now fenced in and there was only one gate in to get to the livestock. There were two people posted throughout the entire auction watching the livestock and checking paid tickets before livestock was loaded. We bought some chickens and some guineas and came home with all of them. I was pleased. my new hens are already laying and very happy in their new home. This past weekend was the auction for guineas, there were more guineas than chickens. So guess what, I bought some guineas. I have always wanted some guineas because they are voracious bug eaters. However, they are tricky little birds and so very unlike chickens. Guineas have retained much of their wild nature and while there are many guinea owners whose guineas are well trained to go back into the coop at night this is easier said than done. So we are keeping the birds locked up for a few days so that they learn where the food is (in the coop). Hopefully this will work and the guineas will stick around. Just another experiment around Whisper Wind.

Saturday, March 14, 2009

Yesterday's Activities

Well, yesterday I did get the rabbit house finally cleaned out and de-wasped. Yes those pesky little buggers are searching for anywhere and everywhere to make their new summer homes. I have already knocked down several small starter nests and squashed dozens of those buggers with my hand dandy barn broom. If anybody has any suggestion for getting rid of paper wasps, pleeeeaaasssseee let me know. They take over our farm every year and really are a deadly menace!I swiped down 4 new nests in the feed room yesterday and 3 in the rabbit house. Anyway back to the rabbit house, it is all cleaned out. Now we just need to repair the hole in the roof and hang the cages on the walls. The bunnies will be set to go then and it will be really nice to get our doe out of the house as she is making a huge mess everywhere. She is a large rabbit and very playful. It seems her favorite activity is to get close to the edge of her cage and shove all of the shavings out of the cage and onto the carpet, then she takes off running around her cage. The next trick is to take her food dish, which is actually a quite heavy crock and pick it up and throw it. Yes, she really does do this. So needless to say I spend quite a bit of time cleaning up after this bunny. Yesterday, the new chickens came out of the coop for the first time. This was a little nerve wracing at first because of the dogs. I wasn't too worried about our rhodi as he is known to be the mother hen to small animals and quite gentle, however, I was not sure about our pit bull mix. She has not been around chickens since she was a small puppy and she really likes to chase small animals a few of which she may have even caught. So, as my daughter opened the door to the chicken coop and led them outside with some feed I held her collar and anticipated the look of lunch crossing into her eyes. She sat calmly beside me and watched as they peeked outside the door of the coop. Once outside our rhodi (short for rhodesian ridgeback)walked over to sniff the chickens and say hello. Our rooster promptly bowed up, flapped his wings and screeched, and the dog tucked tail and ran for the house. He is more of a chicken than the chickens. So I am still holding the other dog's collar and she lays down and decides it is nap time. So I decided to let go of the collar and she did not move. In fact she slept so hard with the chickens scratching around her that she was snoring for about an hour. I stayed close and since the rabbit house is right next to the chicken house and the chicken yard this was not a hard thing to do. For the rest of the afternoon there were no problems between dogs and chickens and the one I was worried about showed no interest in them. So I guess we are good for now. The rhodi is terribly upset that the chickens won't be nice and be friends with him though. He sat at a very healthy distance and whined. His last hen was his best friend and the two of them were inseperable. I guess he really does miss her. I also got the future goat pasture overseeded for the year to boost the grass production and now it is raining like cats and dogs. I did expect rain because that is why I put the seed out, however this is a deluge and so I envision most of my seed washing to the bottom of the hill in that pasture and off the bare spots where I wanted it. We have always had problems in that pasture and really don't know why. The other two pastures have good stands of grass and this one is just poor. I have more seed to put in the other side of that pasture where the old orchard used to be, but I think I will wait until the rain is almost done otherwise I will have a great stand at the bottom of the hill and nothing on the top. We have to plant in the rain because otherwise our spring birds think that we have just provided them with a great feast. The best way that I have found to keep the cardinals from stealing all of my grass seed is to run around in the rain scattering it. I always overseed by hand because in this manner I can assure that the areas that are thin get the most seed and no seed is wasted. I am a deliberate planter and have no intention of wasting very expensive good grass seed. I did a pH test this past week on all the pastures and we are in good shape so it doesn't look like we will be liming this year. It has only taken us 6 years to get these pastures back into good condition and it is about time.My husband bush-hogged the front pasture and we will be closing that off this weekend so it has a chance to rest. The boys will be upset because that is where they like to spend the most of their time, but they will deal with it. Next week we will be bush-hogging and burning the big pasture which will make them even more upset. They will be confined to hay bales for a month or so, but will be happy when they have nice fresh grass for the summer. Well, I guess I have rambled enough and need to get busy. Ya'll have a great day!

Friday, March 13, 2009

HR 875 and S 425 will destroy family farms

Ok, folks time to get out and do something to save our family farms and organic farms. The big corporate farming giants are at it again! There are two bills currently in committe HR 875 and S 425. These bills will make it impossible for family farms to comply with food production regulations. Even if you only produce food for yourself you will still be subject to the regulations of a NEW federal agency to be established for the purpose of regulating your farm. These bills are designed to put small family farms out of business. Why? because we are becoming too much competition for the corporate giants. As people want better quality and safer food they are turning to the small family farm. Our state has seen tremendous growth in small family farms this past year and I am sure others have as well. As a collective whole we family farmers are filling a need and taking money away from the corporate giants. Even though they still make plenty of money greed drives them and they want it all. Here are several things that these bills will do if passed.

1. Take away state's rights to oversee their agriculture and put it in the hands of the federal government.
2.Criminalizes any farm practice outside of the commercial type practice, this means organic farmers will become criminals
3.These bills effect anyone growing food even if they are only consuming what they grow
4.Section 103 allows for factory farm corporations to become the experts in interpreting these two bills and the legislation is wide open with very little specifics about anything. Any aspect of food production could wind up being illegal.

These are just a few things. So folks, get busy we have got to save our farms. Family farms are the hope of this country and the hope of the people. Don't let that hope die because you had some excuse to not help. Tell everyone you know, make sure farmers in your area know about this, visit your state ag department, write letter/emails. Get the word out and save our family farms or we will all be in a world of hurt and very, very hungry. May God help us all.

Edit Note: The above links won't work for long. I guess they will only let you access the bill page for a little while and then you get an error page. So to see the bills for themselves please go to http://thomas.loc.gov/ then in the search box type in the bill number and it will take you to the bill. Sorry for the inconvenience, but that is the nature of our government.

Online Canning Course

The ladies over at the Pantry Panel blog have taken this free online course from the University of Georgia (best school in America by the way) and highly recommend it. I thought I would pass on the information to my readers. The course is free of charge and even gives you little quizzes to test your knowledge. It took the ladies about a day to complete so doesn't take up much of your time, but they said the information gained is invaluable. So those who are looking to start canning or expand their knowledge of canning check it out. I might be taking the course myself this weekend. Here is the link.

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Apple Cider Vinegar

Let me tell you folks, apple cider vinegar has got to be the greatest stuff on the planet. I had forgotten about the healing properties of this stuff until these past few days when I have been suffering terribly with sinus troubles and headaches, due to the heavy pecan pollen that is covering everything now. I was reading something and remembered the vinegar. I mixed 2 tbls. in a glass of water and gagged it down. Within 20 minutes my head was clearing up and I wasn't going through as many handkerchiefs. A few hours later I took some more. Wow, with dose number two I felt like a new person. My sinuses were clear and I could breathe, my eyes no longer watered and my headache was gone! Not only that I had energy that I have not had in a very long time and my chronic pain was gone. It has been suggested that I have fibromyalgia, but I have never had a formal diagnosis. That is probably because I rarely go to the doctor and just deal with the pain and fatigue. It might be just that I have abused my body riding horses all my life. I have cracked a lot of bones and my knees were used as shock absorbers so pain is something I expected as I got older. I also have restless leg syndrome and have since I was about 8 years old. I also tend to be extremely tired all the time. Some days I have trouble just taking care of the children and folding a load of laundry makes me feel like I have just run a marathon. I wake up in the morning feeling just as tired and in pain as I did when I went to bed. So anyway with all that said, let me get back to the ACV (apple cider vinegar). I took the ACV for my sinuses, but the side effect was that my pain diminished and I no longer felt tired. Usually, I have to take a short nap after lunch. I haven't had to take a nap for 2 days. I still wake up feeling like a mac truck ran over me, but I am taking my vinegar in the morning and begin to feel like a real person within about 1/2 and hour. I am telling you folks, this is great stuff. Now it needs to be raw, organic ACV with the mother to have all the stuff to bring your body back into balance. It is worth the money to get this and take it when you are feeling poorly. I feel like a new person. I haven't felt this good since I was about 16 years old (and that was a very long time ago). ACV will be a part of my daily routine from now on. God bless!

The Great Chicken Adventure

Well, let me tell you about the great chicken adventure. Saturday we went to the local poultry and rabbit auction. We were looking for some Rhode Island Reds and some duck or Turkey pairs along with some rabbits. We had not been to this particular auction before, but since it was closer to home we decided to give it a try. We got there and started checking out stock as they were unloaded. Whenever, I go to an auction I like to watch the stock being unloaded. This not only gives me a chance to really take a good look at what is there, but gives me a chance to talk to the owner. You can learn a lot about what quality of stock you might be getting by chewing the fat with the owner. One thing that many people should realize about livestock auctions is that there is quite a bit of stock that will show up that is diseased or old. Now, by having a chance to talk to the owner about anything and everything not necessarily even about the livestock you can get an idea about the quality of the stock that they have brought. I was excited to find several RIR hens and a couple of roosters. There were several other things there that I was interested in also, but this was the main thing I came for. The hens and roos were young, healthy and just starting to lay. Well, the auction was long. Apparently this little country auction will allow pretty much anything to be brought in for auction. So we had to wait while the donkeys were auctioned outside. Then we had to wait while 10 million (ok a little exaggeration) roosters were auctioned one by one. In the process we did get a large bred doe, missed out on a couple of rabbit bucks, and missed out on a mating pair of geese. Two hours later the chickens I had been waiting for came up and I won them. I was excited. My husband went to stand in line and pay and I went to put the children in the car and wait for the ticket so I could go pick up my stock in the back of the auction house. Little did I know that this was like no other auction I have ever been to. I have been to a lot of livestock auctions and I have never been able to pick up my livestock without showing that I had actually paid for them. I have always had to show someone my ticket before loading livestock. This auction was a free for all, no tickets checked and everybody loading livestock. By the time I got to the back of the building to load up my stock,it was pretty thinned out back there. I started looking through the cages and crates and found my rabbit, but no chickens in sight. I loaded my rabbit and returned the cage to the previous owner. Then I took another look around, absolutely no chickens. My chickens were gone. I found the auction owner who apparently had already been called to the back of the house by another customer missing chickens. Somebody had stolen my chickens and the cages that belonged to the seller. Not only had my chickens been stolen, but several other people's chickens also. Then one of the seller's stock that didn't sell came up missing. Several sellers were missing their cages. Now when you go to a poultry auction you are supposed to bring your own cages to transport them back home. The seller does not sell the cage that they bring them in. However, these folks took the cages too. It was the darndest thing I have ever seen and a sad testimony to the state of character in our country. Now, at this auction there was nothing but country folk. The one thing that you have always been able to count on with country folk is their honesty and integrity. When country folk can no longer be counted on for this then the world is in pitiful shape. Well, the auction owner gave us our money back and even gave us the little hens that he bought for himself. They were not RIRs. In fact when we got them home they are kinda pitiful. he did ask us to please come back this weekend and he would make sure to have some reds there and that things would be better run. I felt pretty bad for him because he was out a lot of money. He may have given me my money back but those chickens were gone and the seller still had to be paid. Not to mention all those sellers that lost stock and cages won't be back. It was a frustrating day. We are going to go back this weekend and give the man another chance, at least he was honest unlike others there. Honor goes a long way with me. So now you know the story behind the great chicken adventure. I thought I bought 6 beautiful hens and two roosters, I came home with an old blind dominecker, a golden comet hen, and a RIR rooster. What a day!

I'm Back!

I am sorry that I have been away from my blog lately. To tell the truth I have been having a time with my sinuses and feeling very under the weather. I am better now, still having sinus issues, but not like I was. So I should be able to get back into the swing of posting tips, hints, and anecdotes for all to enjoy. I really hate not feeling well, I get such a sense of being behind and of course I am behind my schedule. I am a schedule nut, probably a little OCD about schedules. Anyway, I will get back on track. Have a great day and enjoy!

Friday, March 6, 2009

Wild Strawberries




Yep, like other berries there is a wild strawberry plant. These berries are just as if not more nutritious than those commercially produced. It does take quite a bit of harvesting to get enough for a meal, but they are delicious. These plants can usually be found in shady areas on forest floors. They usually grow in patches. You can do anything with this strawberry that you would do with a commercially grown strawberry, they are just a little smaller. Happy hunting.

The Coming Food Crisis

Well folks, I have been trying to tell people that this was coming. Others have been telling folks that this was coming. Food is going to become hard to come by. Grocery stores are closing across the country. This past month we had one of our strongest chains close all their stores here. I read yesterday that some grocery stores in California are closing. Not only are the grocers closing but the farmers will not be planting. Farmers are currently getting 3.00 bushel for corn, but it costs them 5.00 a bushel to produce it. Do the math, they won't plant next year. Same thing for wheat, they get less for wheat than they can produce it for. I am in the middle of cattle country and cattlemen are going broke. I went to the sale on Tuesday for a little while and was talking to some of the cattlemen. Some of them there were selling the last of their breeding stock, they are out of business and don't know what they will do. If you have not planned and prepared to support your own food supply you don't have much longer. This will be the last post like this I will do. I won't do anymore doom and gloom because there is much to do and much to learn. For those that think they will simply take to the hills and sustain themselves, well....good luck with that. Growing your own food is hard work, taking care of livestock without a feed supplier ain't easy and takes planning, Despite the blisters, callouses and aches and pains the work still has to be done. For those who can't get out of bed before 9 am you are in for a rude awakening. I know I am being harsh but I would rather folks face the reality rather than live in a fantasy. If you simply think that you will hunt, fish and forage for food, good luck in joining the millions that will be trying to do the same. Too many people make it seem to readers that homesteading and self sufficiency is easy, so everybody thinks they can do it and don't have to change their way of living. Well, it isn't easy and it takes hard work, sacrifice, and fortitude. The days are long and sometimes back breaking. The work is there when there is a foot of snow and when the temperatures are in the 100s. A good drought will decimate a garden and a pasture, taking away your vegetables and leaving you to slaughter livestock for lack of feed in order to feed the rest. It isn't a matter of picking and moving to that little plot of land in the country when you need to and automatically you are a homesteader or farmer. Doesn't happen that way. So for those of you still living in the fantasy you better get to practicing or you might not survive. Like I said this is the end of my doom and glooms, I will keep further information to myself. Right now is the time to learn and teach. God help us all.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Message from England and Australia to American Gun Owners

Want to know what happens when the government takes away your guns? Listen to the warnings from England and Australia. Don't give up your Second Ammendment Rights, they are worth fighting for.

An Amazing Young Woman

This young woman is amazing and should be an inspiration to us all. I pray that my daughters grow to live their life in as Christian a manner as she. Check out Mia's blog and see for yourself.

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Depression Era Cooking

This is an awesome lady with some great advice for us young whippersnappers! I am gonna search youtube to see if she has some more recipes and advice but enjoy this one that I found.

Learning to be frugal (or just plain cheap)!

Money is really hard to come by these days and even though we earn money it is buying less. This is just going to get worse in the coming times so learning to be frugal is a blessing. The first step in learning to be frugal is to know where your money goes and how much goes where. This is the step where you need to be extremely detailed. For instance, it is not enought to say that you spend 500.00 a month on utilities. You need to break it down as to what amount goes to which utility. By doing this you can see exactly where you might be able to cut down a few dollars. Going to the grocery store these days is an expensive endeavor, but do you know the value of your food dollar? The next time you shop, keep your receipt and break down how many meals you get from the amount that you bought and spent. Then look to see where the majority of your money went, did it go to convenience foods or "junk"? By thoroughly analyzing your grocery spending you can find ways to cut down. For instance, did you buy a frozen lasagna for dinner one night? Can you buy the ingredients and have several meals instead of one? For our family of 4 (one is very little though) I can make three meals from one chicken, sometimes 4 if nobody is really hungry one night. Keep a notebook for one month to see where your money is going and to find the areas in which you can save. It can be done, but it takes some work and effort on your part. Good luck.

Spanish Moss

We have a lot of Spanish Moss in our area and often have to clean it out of our trees because it gets so heavy that it will break branches, especially in our very old oaks. Well you know me always looking for a way to use what I have instead of getting something else. So I started doing some research and I found out a lot of interesting things about Spanish moss. For one it was used in the old days as livestock feed especially in the winter. Apparently it does have some nutrition as well as fiber in it. Also, it can be used as bedding for livestock due to its incredible ability to absorb moisture. Then there is spanish moss tea for the garden. Simply soak spanish moss is water for a couple of weeks and then pour the tea on your garden, awesome organic fertilizer. Then the most awesome thing is that most of the saddle blankets for the Confederacy were made from....you guessed it, Spanish moss. Apparently inside all that gray there is a long black fiber kinda like a horsehair. These fibers can be woven into blankets. Wow, who'd a thunk it?! So many great things from this one plant growing in my trees. For now we will be using it to bed the livestock and see how that goes. If the horses colic, I will be sure to let you folks know.

Storing Beans and Grains

I thought I would pass on a little tip when storing beans and grains coming from the grocery store. Normally, we would simply put the unopened packages in our pantry or if these were for long term storage put them in a bucket of some type. Well, I go one extra step before I put them in their permanent storage home. And here is why. One grocery trip I loaded up on beans and grains because my supply was getting pretty low. I brought them home and left them in the grocery bag for a couple of days (just a couple of days) while I gathered my storage containers and made sure they were cleaned out and no old stuff left in them. Well, when my couple of days was over and I had all my nice clean containers ready to be filled, I opened my grocery bag and pulled out the first bag of beans only to be confronted with the ugliest most vicious looking critters I have ever seen...grain beetles. If you have never seen these critters you don't want to. My beans were infested with the eggs when I bought them and they had hatched and were very hungry. I don't really know whether it was just one bag or several, but I do know that everything in that grocery bag went into the trash. Fortunately, nothing else in my pantry was affected because I keep everything in glass jars. I was mad because that was such a waste of money which is tough to come by these days. Ever since then when I bring these types of items home from the store I open the package and spread the beans on a cookie sheet. I then place them in the oven at 150 degrees for about 20 minutes. The heat kills any beetle eggs that might be in your beans. I have not had any beetles since then. For my grains like rice and flour, I will put those in the freezer for a couple of weeks and then they are fine to sit on the shelf in my pantry. No more grain beetles when I get home. So take these simple precautions to keep grain beetles out of your pantry because they will hitch hike home from the store.

Monday, March 2, 2009

Lent

We are now in the season of Lent. It actually started this past Wednesday. It is the remembrance of the 40 days that Christ spent in the wilderness. It is a time usually of self sacrifice, penitance, and a renewal of our commitment to God. Catholics usually forgo all meat except fish for the 40 days of Lent. We Episcopalians are allowed to choose how we spend Lent. Some of us give something up and some of us don't. One of my big vices is not drinking enough water. I drink a lot of sweet tea during the day. So, I have given up sweet tea and will be drinking water instead. Lent is not just a time for us to sacrifice, it is also a time to reflect on our relationship with our Savior, Jesus Christ. Are we as close as we should be? Am I living according to His example? Just a couple things to ask ourselves. Sometimes Lent is a good time to start a habit, such as daily Bible reading. Getting up a few minutes early can give us some quiet time for reflection and growth in our personal spriritual walk with God. So reflect this Lenten season on the sacrifices made for you and where you can grow in your walk with God. Whether this growth comes from sacrificing something you love, or giving some extra time to be with God that is up to you individually. We all need to grow in different ways and in different areas of our life. The importance of Lent comes from knowing that growth is still needed and learning is not yet finished. May God bless you in your journey today and may this Lenten season bring you closer to our Savior.

Spring Cleaning

Even though I do a lot of purging when I go through my deep clean sections of the house each week, I still have spring cleaning that needs to be done. Since it is now March 2 and for us we only have a couple more weeks of cold weather left I am getting to my spring cleaning. So I will post the spring cleaning task for the day just above the deep clean sections. I am so ready for spring!

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Snow!!!

It is snowing today!!! This is an odd thing for us down here in the deep south, so we get rather excited about it. My husband and youngest daughter have already been out in it. Don't know how long it will be here, but it is fun to get what we get. I will post pictures today of our little bit of snow and the completed chicken house. Have a great day!