Triple Digits

It seems Summer is not giving up yet (SIGH).  I let myself be fooled by all the Fall decorations in the store, and the displays of school supplies, forgetting that August is our HOTTEST month.  We had temps of 101 yesterday, and a high of 100 for today and each day this week.  I want to cry :(

PH dug trenches around our two peach trees.  They were looking rather ragged, though I water them in the morning.  So deep trenches around the trees so that I can fill them with water is now the plan, so that they can prayerfully survive the heat.  My garden is so over grown with weeds, and I am not looking forward to clearning it out to plant the Fall garden in a couple of weeks. 

Continuing to get prepared food wise for the coming food shortages, and normal Winter preparations.  Organizing the pantry, and working on my LDS order which will be placed on Sunday.  The hens are still laying and I get about 7 dozen eggs a week.  I have a couple of customers, but I have been cooking eggs more for PS#2 breakfast, and baking more.  Trying to determine what I need in the pantry is very hard, I am out of so much.  The SHTF here, budget-wise, and I have had to cut down my grocery budget from $300 a month to $100 month.  I did splurge and purchase a 1/4 share of beef (105 lbs), which will last us a good while, plus getting ready to place my Freedom Ranger order.  That will give me chicken to eat.  So far, we are doing good with eating what we produce, and what I can find locally.  My $100 goes for dairy and baking supplies.  I strongly urge everyone reading this blog to consider stocking up, and if you already do, encourage others you know.  It is only going to get worse!

Molly, my Charlois heifer, is getting big, and is sometimes pretty feisty.  She butted me this morning wanting something to eat, and I have a nice bruise on my arm.  Boy did it hurt!  Poppy, one of this year's doelings was hurt last week.  Our big buck Larry somehow got her back, right hoof caught between his horns.  It was wedged in there pretty good.  I heard her screaming like someone was eating her, and went out to see him yanking on her leg.  I slowly approached them, and was able to get her foot out.  She promptly sprang up and ran away, but did begin limping rather badly.  PH was worried her leg was broken, but it was hard to tell.  It did get pretty swollen, but she managed to keep up with the herd, and is still eating and drinking.  She has actually been putting her wait on it, and running around, so I am assuming she is going to be fine. 

We have confined the pigs to the back pasture connected to the pond.  By making a small opening from their pen into the pasture, they are able to come and go out of their pen, but cannot make a mess around the house.  They have about 3 acres to roam on, and love eating the cat tails in the pond, and wallowing in the mud. 

With my 1/4 share of beef, I received several pounds of beef bones for soup.  I plan to make beef stock and can it.  I really have a difficult time coming up with items to can.  I am just not a creative thinker in this regard, and often go to Kris' blog http://www.krissimplyliving.blogspot.com/ to get ideas.  I am not an adventurous eater like she is, and neither is my family, but it gives me a jumping off place :)

The "farmer" across the road from me planted cotton, and it is about ready to harvest.  I can see the white bolls.  This means they will be spraying herbicide soon to kill the foliage.  I hate it! I wish I had known what was going on around the property BEFORE we bought it.   I love the land, but having the crop duster fly over several times a year makes me sad.

Watermelons seem to have done great around here, if the road side stands are anything to go by.  Everyone and their brother is selling watermelons out of the back of their trucks.  Mine didn't do anything, which was surprising.  The watermelons and cantelopes did the best last year.

Well, off to get PD#1 from my sister in town.  Talk at you later!

Heritage Skills

I know everyone would be shocked to discover I have an interest in the "heritage skills". Ha, ha!
In my new role as librarian, I have to come up with fundraisers to help support the library fund.  I opted to combine the need for a fund raiser with my need to let everyone know how they should be self reliant. 

The Heritage Skills and Self Reliance Fair is September 8, 2012 in Natalia TX.  If anyone is in the area, I would appreciate your support, either as a demonstrator/vendor or as an attendee.  For more info go to http://www.nataliaheritageskills.blogspot.com/

******************************
Life has been busy on the farm.  This past month as virtually flown by, and we are in high gear in winding down the summer and into fall/winter preparations.  Seems silly I know when it is 100 degrees out side, but I want to be prepared. 

PH will be going to a friends this weekend to bring back a large pecan tree that fell down during a recent storm.  We will add it to our fire wood pile. 

I am in the process of washing blankets and going through the pile to make sure none need to be mended or replaced.  We are definitely blessed in the area of blankets :)

Our lone turkey poult (PH feels it is a girl, I am undecided) LOVES PH still.  Follows him everywhere.  Peep has taken to attacking all the dogs if they get close to the front porch, which is hilarious, since Peep is REALLY quite small.  She/He scares the bejeebies out of the dogs. 

We received 3.5 inches of rain this month, and our pastures are so green.  I am so excited! That means I do not have to feed hay and it can be saved for the Winter months.  Next on our agenda is to clean out the barn.  We need to remove all the old hay, clean the chicken tractor and get it ready for a new batch of meat birds, plus take out the left over hay bales from last year.  We want to stock the new batch in the back, and keep the old bales up front.  This will also allow me to go through our totes (that is the plan anyway) to see what I am saving for the new house, and what will be gotten rid of.

PD#2 turned 9 this month.  Her birthday party is Sunday, July 29th, so drop on by, if you are in the area, and if you are one of the lucky few to have directions to my retreat :)  PD#2 is very pleased with her new bicycle and is riding all over the place, trailing dogs.

Planning the Fall garden planting as well, and am stymied over what to plant.  This is my first Fall garden, that I can recall.  I know I will be planting pumpkins, but other than that, I am not sure...The garden needs some clean up as I have let it go wild, once the tomatoes were done.  The cantelopes never did anything, other than vining and flowering.  Evidently, no bees this year, though I normally run over with them.  I will have to get my paint brush out and start pollinating the plants myself. 

The house is coming along, and the outside, complete with porch, is finished.  I am so excited for the inside work to be moving ahead.  I am hopeful the wood stove will be installed in the next month, so that I will be prepared for the cold days/months ahead.

Happy Belated Fourth of July!

Happy Indepenence Day!  We were very busy on the fourth preparing for company in the evening.  We managed to get the yard cleaned up, and picked up from construction debris.  A very needed break from house building, and clearing the yard of assorted trash.  Cleaned the house, and did a load of cooking/baking for the gathering. 

We had about 20 people Wednesday evening, for a great time of fellowship, food and watching fireworks.  I had wanted to read the Declaration of Independence to everyone, but there were so many "littles" that attention was short, and I decided not to.  I did read it myself.  I had never read the entire declaration, only pieces of it.  It is very moving, and in light of our current governmental issues, very applicable. 

I managed to consolidate all my tomatoes, and made a small amount of tomato sauce to can.  I have five pints.  Not a lot, but every little bit added to the pantry staves off hunger. The rest of the garden is burning up.  My tomato plants are struggling, as well as, my lone basil plant.  The cantelope vines are still growing and producing flowers but not one fruit.  I am unsure of what is going on....probably bees.  Last year, there were swarms and swarms, this year, very few.  This was the first year since we have lived here that I haven't seen a swarm in a tree, and I hoped to have a friend capture it for me this year.  What a bummer!

I have moved on to the harvesting of wild edibles.  The mustang grapes are about ready, as well as, the Prickly Pear fruits (tunas).  In the Winter, I am hoping to harvest a truck load of the wild melons.  Praying they will do well, as this is what we fed the pigs most of last winter.  Pears should be ready soon, and I am keeping my eyes open for any neighbors not harvesting any.  Ready to make some pear jam this year.  I canned pears last year, but still have some in the pantry.

Our lone turkey chick, has unfortunately become a pet for PH.  I came in last night from taking PD#1 to guitar lessons, and PH was watching t.v., with the little turkey standing on his chest.  PH "said" the chick managed to escape from it's box, walked into the bedroom, jumped on the bed and settled down on his chest.  It had been there for a while.  I didn't know that PH was making "friends" with the chick daily by talking to it, feeding it bugs and petting it.  I reminded him that the chick was our turkey dinner if it survived.  I got the "look", so I guess we won't be having fresh turkey this year (sigh).

Continuing in our quest to self sufficient, and prepared for emergencies.  I have committed this year to do something weekly, and so far so good.  Whether it is organizing or canning, I get something done. 

Here are a few random pictures:

Boomer -a friend's donkey she entered in the local pet parade

Pudding - Nigerian Dwarf

Side view of porch

Front view of porch/steps

PS#2

Creek bed after the rain this week - received 1.5 inches

I hope everyone is having a good summer.  I've been out of touch for a while due to computer issues.  Both of our laptops have died, and I only have a Nook to get online.  It's great for reading info, but very difficult to use to type with, and I haven't been able to use it to post.  I don't think Blogger allows that type of function from the Nook.

Anyway, the outside of the house is done, and PH has started work on the front porch.  The deck and posts are done, and the roof is left to complete. 

I had purchased 10 turkey chicks, but one day nine went "poof".  No idea what happened to them, no evidence left behind.  I have one little one left, and he is getting big.  I keep him in a rubber maid tote in the living area of the container.  He isn't too happy about his confinement, but he is too small to be put out by himself. 

The heat lately has been in the triple digits, and combatting that heat has been difficult at best.  We normally retreat to the air conditioned bedroom of the container, and emerge in the early evening to complete outside activities (laundry and working on the house).  No rain to speak off, a few drizzles every now and then, only enough to make round, wet, spots in the dust.

I have recently found a part time job in a small town close to us.  It is a librarian position and I work 25 hours a week.  It is an ideal job for me.  I love books!  The position is a great resource to meet people of like mind.  I get to plan events, fundraisers, order books, movies and implement community programs like reading, ESL, GED, Home school support and more!  Plus, I get paid.  It isn't a lot of money but every bit helps to reach our goal of finishing the house and becoming more self sufficient.

The house is VERY hot during the day, but at night it is very peaceful, calm and COOL.  By early morning I am actually chilly and need a blanket and to turn off the fan. 

My garden has basically fizzled due to the heat.  No amount of water and fertilizer helped.  I was able to put up 8 quarts of corn, and my tomatoes, jalapenos, and onions, did not amount to much to be able to can.  I look forward to beginning my fall garden soon.  Even my watermelons and cantelopes, that did so well last year, did NADA!  So devastated.  I had high hopes and plans for this years garden.  How did people survive long ago, it just isn't possible to grow enough to support our family for the year.  It's very disheartening.  I'll keep plugging away and trying, but after six years of gardening, I feel like giving up.

Hope to be able to keep everyone updated from the library more frequently :)



Turkey poults in their turkey tractor

Cuties!

Loving the fresh air!

Due to the loss of these little ones, I plan to purchase more in a month.  Very heartbreaking to lose your "food" like we did, especially without a trace or idea of what happened.

Metal roof on front half

Herbs

Laundry

Bean Plants

 

Onions

 

 

Tomatoes

 

 

All the pictures are from about a month ago, I'll try and get updated ones taken and loaded on here.

Happy May!

It has been a really long time since I posted.  My laptops are down, and I am unable to post from the Nook.  So, here I am at the library updating ;-)

The garden is flourishing! We received approximately 6 inches of rain (some nearby received 10!) which helped green up our pastures, replenish the pond, and jump start the garden.  I have loads of little, green Romas on the vine.  The jalapenos I harvest daily.  I also had to harvest all my onions as some critter was eating them. 

The outside of the house is about complete, I'll try and post a picture next time I drop by the library. 

Spring is definitely sprung, and little baby animals are everywhere.  From kittens to goats I am tripping over them all.

Hope everyone has a good week!

Wilbur

It has been extremely windy lately.  Scares PS#2 into thinking a torndo is coming.  Poor baby, he asks EVERY day if we are having a tornado. 

PH has half of the West wall of the house sided.  Only 1 1/2 more sides to go! yeah!  He was able to collect enough scrap metal the past few weeks, from various sources, to garner enough money to finish the roof and sides.  Today, he purchased additional electrical items, and stacked them in the corner.  That is his next project until he can get into town to purchase additional siding.  The roofing is on order, and will be paid for when it arrives.  Once these two items are done, I hope we will be concentrating on the interior, though PH is chomping at the bit to start adding the front porch.  Personally, I feel the inside walls and insulation are more important than a porch, but I don't get a vote ;-)

I think someone has bought the land two lots over.  This is the same lot a couple of years ago that I complained about being bought.  Since then it has changed hands twice.  People were over there building something tonight by headlight from their truck.  Using our nifty night vision scope, PH could see they were buildin some kind of A frame structure.  He thinks for a garden or something.  We were trying to make sure they weren't over there starting fires or doing drugs or they weren't stuck in the sand.  Everything was fine, so we stopped being nosy ;-)

Several weeks ago I gave 3 hens and our beloved banty rooster, Buff Jumper, to my MIL.  Well, this week a neighbor dog killed a hen and Buff Jumper.  I was contacted by PS#1 that lives with my inlaws about getting a replacement rooster and hen.  What a I? The poultry provider?  I will give them one more hen and a rooster, but after that they will have to wait until the chicks are grown.  I can't afford to keep giving away full grown hens.

Spent Friday showing a friend how to can chicken stock, and added those jars (minus one I gaver her) to my pantry.  Also, placed my order with the LDS Cannery and will pick those items up on Tuesday. 

I am thinking of replanting my green beans and cucumbers.  One bed of green beans is about ready to pick, the others haven't sprouted, and my cucmbers seem stuck.  Not growing, not dying.  My tomatoes have tomatoes on them (green), and it worries me that the plants are so small but producing fruit.  Not sure that is normal.  My watermelons and cantelope are not doing well.  Last year they did awesome.  That is what I get for complaining last year about too much cantelope. NONE this year.

I went through the van today (it is where I store lots of things).  I re packed a tub with my sewing things.  I am hoping to get rid of a bunch of books this week, and again at our upcoming homeschool book swap in two weeks.  That will free up space to get my treadle sewing machine out, and with prayer, in working condition. 

I've been copying recipes down for basic items like: shampoo, soap, cheese, lye, bread, making bacon and sausage, saltines, cheese crackers, and more. 

I was also given about six large glass pickle jars, and I purchased six more at the thrift store.  I washed about half this weekend and have set out to dry.  I want to start emptying my rice and such into them to store in the pantry.  My freezers are full of grains in the hope it will keep the bugs out of the food. 

Please pray for PD#1 she will be, prayerfully, attending our local community college in the fall to take a photography class. She is also interested in taking a farrier course in Dallas, so we are starting to save for that opportunity.  It is about $1500 for the two week course.  She has been interested for over a year so I guess it's for real.  I am trying to get her interested in an opportunity to use her artistic skills in photography and combine it with her love for horses.  Horse magazines must need pictures.  She could earn money towards her farrier course.  She isn't receptive, but we will see.



New Gate Sign PH made (the animal cut out on the left is a coyote, and on the right, a goat)

 Well, off to bed! It's hard to see by the light of a little battery operated lamp.