Daydreaming while waiting impatiently!

[tortoise]

DH is loving the tractor! He's been moving a year's-worth pile of barn poop down to a composting pile near the garden. Also brush-hogging some areas that improve visibility for deer hunting.

FIL/MIL visited to see the tractor (lol) and Baby. They're so sweet - they never come empty-handed. Fresh asparagus and rhubarb from their garden, homemade strawberry freezer jam, and traditional chocolate covered peanuts. And a box of 1,000 wipes. I didn't have any eggs to send home with them this time...

... because we have 30 eggs incubating for a second hatch attempt! I didn't realize we had so many in there! I'd be thrilled to end up with 15 chicks from this hatch.

We haven't had an predator activity. No activity by the live traps. DH turned off the game cameras because all the frames were of chickens, the cat, our dogs, and wild rabbits. He has plans to close up the pole shed better (using the tractor, of course!) The pole shed has large areas under the steel sides dug out by animals. The previous owner had cattle, and possible hogs, in the pole shed at one time.

Our garden peas are days away from harvest! We're impatiently waiting!! The peas coming remind me I need to get a pressure canner and learn how to use it confidently so I'm not overwhelmed during the peak of garden harvest. My only experience so far was making blueberry freezer jam last year. I haven't canned anything shelf-stable. I'm not comfortable putting all of out food into the freezer. We don't even have a generator! I hope to learn to can venison also to rely less on the freezer. We've had canned moose from a former neighbor: it was very good!

My hydrangea, lilac, and willow cuttings are not thriving. I killed my second planting of seeds by putting them outside (covered) immediately after they germinated. I need to replant. I had planted a variety of perennial herbs. Why am I so bad at growing herbs? I have no problem with houseplants or vegetable gardening. But somehow, I kill herbs every time. My mom gave me an established sage houseplant. Yup, I killed that one too. (how?) *sigh* I'll take ANY advice.

 

[tortoise]

oh My!!!

DH and I got to talking about our chickens. He wants to switch chicken breeds. We have Rhode Island Red. We've had a glut of eggs, but have not been completely satisfied with their meat production. I do not want an unpredictable barnyard mix of birds. We've decided to get Buff Rock hens and Dark Cornish roosters. The hybrid offspring will be our meaties. We'll keep at least one Rhode Island Red hen (her name is Sweetie and she comes running for treats when I go outside!)

27 chicks arriving in 7 - 10 days! (plus the 18 7-week-old chicks, and 30 eggs incubating) Sounds like a lot of butchering this fall! Our coop can only handle 12 birds over winter! I would rather keep birds in the barn. There is space for about 30 birds and we're already using that area for chickens. The floor is concrete so we can do deep litter bedding in the barn. The coop floor is wood, so DH is adamant we can't do deep litter in there.

 

[Denim Deb]

I've been adding birds to my flock to try and get bigger birds for meaties. I'll be interesting in hearing how yours do.

 

[Britesea]

Our coop has a wood floor, but I covered it with a remnant piece of that new style vinyl flooring (you don't glue or staple it, just drop it in place) that was big enough to go about 4 inches up the sides. I check every time we clean out the deep litter (spring and late summer) and so far the floor hasn't gotten wet.

 

[tortoise]

ooo! that is a fantastic idea! Thank you! I'll start watching the Habitat store for a piece of vinyl flooring!

I listed our 16 RIR chicks on a Facebook group. They were spoken for, and a second buyer lined up in less than an hour. I did not expect that much interest! DH wanted to chuck the incubating eggs, but I think we'll keep them!

Garden peas have started! I picked a gallon bucket full this morning and we weren't able to eat them all! I'll send the rest home with my mom tomorrow. We're going to have A LOT of peas!!

I bought new t-shirts for my growing DS8 for $2.97 each. After that I couldn't bring myself to go to Goodwill to get "barn shirts" for.... $2.99 each. I posted on a Facebook group yesterday. Today I picked up 2 garbage bags stuffed with boy's clothes.... FREE. The family's yard sale was yesterday and she gave me all the clothes that didn't sell. I'll be dropping off some fresh veggies from my garden at her house soon!

I replanted the herb seedlings I so effectively terminated. I stopped in at the local hardware store and saw asparagus seeds! I bought 5 packs! I have a new appreciation for asparagus. Yum! I'm not willing to pay for asparagus roots, but I'll take a chance on seeds!

I'm getting frugally kitchen inspired again. I made a meal plan, and a shopping list from the best sale prices this week. My grocery total was under $50. My goal is under $200/month for grocery. That's quite feasible since we rarely buy meat. Our big garden will help too! Baby was fussy most of the night, so I didn't bother trying to go to bed. I stayed up and made pound cake, sliced up strawberries my MIL brought, and we had strawberry "shortcake" for breakfast!

 

[Denim Deb]

I wish I could get my hubby to spend less on groceries. Under $50/week is great!

 

[tortoise]

Peas are coming thick now! 1 to 2 ice cream buckets full every other day! We LOVE peas! 2 banana peppers look ready, but I'm not sure when they're ripe! Kale needs to be harvested (what the heck do I do with a bumper crop of kale?!) DH and DS8 are eating the first planting of kohlrabi. Our cabbage looks fantastic. Onions look great. I still haven't gotten those asparagus seeds in the ground though. DS8 has potted 21 maple seedlings in little pots he made out of stuff in our recycling bin. He has kept them alive so far! I keep forgetting to check the blueberries; I expect to see some pink on them about now.

I earned my first farm income (other than cropland rent) from selling chicks. I'm trading with my brother for the remaining chicks. We still have 30 eggs incubating. DH candled them and thought they looked promising. I have a rabbit due to kindle on Monday. I plan to keep the entire litter until at least 6 months before culling. It's her first litter though so I'm not expecting live kits. Our adult hens are getting quite tame since I started supplementing the chicks diet with dog food mash and kitchen scraps. The chicks are copying them and becoming equally as tame. or spoiled? They come running when I open the front door and follow me around! So cute! I'm trying to get to a point where I can start lead training the ewe lamb. Our ram is getting more and more "rammy" and I don't go in the pen without a big stick. I can't turn my back to him. So try catching a lamb while not turning you back to the ram and holding a big stick and getting it accomplished before the ram and ewes finish scarfing down their grain. yeah, right. DH moved them to a different barn pen and pasture setup which is easier for me to work with.

Our town has a festival this weekend. DS8 ran in a 1/2 mile kid's race. He did well! He was proud that he was just 4 kids behind the fastest boy in his class. I'm avoiding the traffic! I'm not going to attempt watching the fireworks this year.

Most of my attention is consumed by planning for the upcoming school year. I am continuing my education with another online class that is helping me adjust my concept of a daily schedule to maximize learning. DS8 has gone a little bit crazy with an online educational site and completed half of 5th grade English in 3 weeks. Oh my! I had to email his academic guide to arrange another subject acceleration to skip him to 6th grade English. I'm also preparing an additional project based curriculum using 4H materials with the goal of teaching him planning and prioritizing executive functions.

With all that going on, I was VERY proud of DS8 when I asked him what he wanted to do today and he included "sit on the deck and just look at the sky for 30 minutes". Unfortunately it didn't happen today, but it's a high priority for me to make sure he gets that tomorrow.

 

[Denim Deb]

Everything sounds good. Sounds like you've been busy, but it's a good busy.

 

[tortoise]

My ram "hit" me last night on my leg. I can walk today, but it's bruising up all "pretty". I listed him for sale. Even before he got me, his untrustworthiness was keeping me from cleaning the barn (barn cleaner switch on the wall in their pen), going to the garden (need to cut through their pasture), taming the lambs (can't separate them out), and getting lambs started on creep (need to go in the pen to put a divider in so the adults can't get to the creep). I'm so over this. Selling him ASAP. He's rather docile as intact male livestock go, but it's not good enough for me.

Baby chicks have arrived. Settled in and all survived the first 24 hours. DS8 is interested in sexing them. We bought males of one variety, females or 2 other varieties. We have 2 unsexed chicks. DS8 was comparing the ones we know, trying to figure it out. He thinks they are male. I hope they are not!

 

[Denim Deb]

I can't blame you. I'd be selling him too. RU used to have a ram. I hated him and was not sorry to see him leave. You could not turn your back on him. He got me a couple of times.