Punkins' world....SUNSHINE, seeds and no more drought!

[punkin]

Thanks for the link Kel. It looks interesting and has lots of FREE patterns. I'm gonna bookmark it so I can look through it more thoroughly later.

I had errands to run today. Went to the bank, Walgreens, Hobby Lobby, 2 Goodwills and Walmart. I was a little disappointed that Hobby Lobby didn't have many remnants of fabric. But, I did get the batting and thin-sulate that I need for the oven mitt and potholders.

The Goodwill store in Cleveland is about one fourth the size of ours in Athens. I thought since Cleveland is a larger town, then their store would be larger. Not so. Their prices seemed a bit higher, too.
I did find some nice navy material in our store that matches the navy plaid the mitt will be made from. That navy will be the inside lining and the apron.

So, came home and cut out the rest of the napkins, the mitt and the potholder. DH had already put extra hay in all the chicken coops and fed and watered them. Heated up leftover Pasta Fagiola Soup and cleaned up the kitchen.

And now, I am here . . .

 

[PamsPride]

PP, here is the link:

http://www.simplicity.com/index.cfm?page=section/classroom/sewprojects/purses/pursedecor.html

Really cute, aren't they?

Thanks for the link! That pink plaid one sure is cute!

 

[Farmfresh]

I got my chickens all tucked in for the cold ahead.

I smeared their combs and wattles with Vaseline to help prevent frostbite.

I made sure the litter in the coop was dry - this also helps prevent frostbite.

I gave them some chopped alfalfa (very leafy) with shelled sunflower seeds on top for dinner tonight. The sunflower seeds have a lot of fat to help maintain body heat.

And I made sure they had a good tepid drink of water before bed. Being properly hydrated helps a lot when it is cold.


I guess I spoil them, but then again ... my eggs this morning tasted pretty good!

Try to stay warm all.

 

[punkin]

I started working on getting the BBQ napkins stitched up. It took more time than I thought - pressing seams and pinning. Got those done and then started on the oven mitt. It turned out pretty good, but I did notice one small spot where the layers pulled apart. I can fix it, though.

I put a heater in the cabin coop for tonight since it may get to the single digits here. DH put a heat lamp in the Hen Pen. The temp never got much above 25 today. I had to add warm water to the waterers a couple of times.

Oh, and after DH put the lamp in, he came back down, had a bowl of cereal and settled on the couch to watch the news. All of a sudden, he said, "OH, CRAP! I think I forgot to open the coop door back up!" I ran up there and sure enough, my girls were on the ramp trying to go back in. One of the Andalusians had layed outside and the egg had frozen and burst. Gladly, all is well now and they are tucked in for the night. Bad DH

Also, earlier when I was outside, I noticed a little snow falling from a sunny sky. It looked just like glitter. So much so, I was almost afraid of some getting in my eye. It was beautiful to see though.

For Cocoa, (our only outside dog left) I piled up the dog pillows in the back corner of the garage for her. We put a small heater in and closed the doors. She should be pretty snug.

Supper was fried chicken with biscuits, gravy, mashed potatoes and corn with peach cobbler. That got rave revues from everyone.

Andy's best buds are back from Florida. The went swimming with manatees. I am so jealous, I've always wanted to do that. I'm glad they're back. It's been too quite around here. School is starting back up Monday. They had better be serious, they have lots of catching up to do.

 

[punkin]

It is 7 degrees here, this morning. Now, I know you folks like Morel, Pat, Quail and Bee may be used to that kind of thing and saying Phssst!, but for us that's cold. It hasn't been this cold here in 25 years. (I finally got to use the little old man smiley)

Even with heaters in the coops, thier water still froze. So, I added hot water and brought the others down to thaw. Everyone seems to have made it OK. For breakfast, they had warmed mashed potatoes and corn left over from last night.

I looked across the road and noticed that my Dad's truck is gone. He's 83 and I don't like him out in this cold. But, he's probably at Hardees having a cup of coffee with all the other old f*rts.

 

[MorelCabin]

Don't you just hate frozen water! I have been going up there 4-5 times a day to change the water for the pigeons...I think it actually freezes solid within 20 minutes here right now!

 

[Farmfresh]

I am testing an idea right now.

I use those black Forteflex rubber pans for water in the winter. They are so easy to bash the ice out I love it. Recently I saw a frost proof water pan for birds advertised. It has a plastic cover that allows the sunshine through with a center hole and a dark pan.

I made a doughnut shaped cover for my Forteflex pan out of a cheap plastic cutting board. It seems to be working! The center hole stays ice free most of the day. Maybe you should try it too and we could compare notes.

 

[MorelCabin]

You know, that actually makes sense...I never thought of it till now, but when ppl icefish here in the winter and want to go back to fish the next day they will simply cover the hole with some insulated material and it does keep it open...hmmmm, good idea

 

[punkin]

Yesterday, I made about 70 yeast rolls to put in the freezer and pull out as many as I need for a meal. That should do for about 7 meals.

My niece's husband came over so DH could do his taxes. He uses one of the tax programs and e-files for them. While he was here, he also placed an order for plants.

Wednesday, before our bitter cold snap, DH bought a kerosene heater for the greenhouse. Tried it out Thursday night when it was 8 degrees. On low, it kept the greenhouse almost up to 32. It only burnt about 3/4 gal. of kerosene in 14 hours. I don't have plants in there now, just wanted to keep the water pipes from bursting. It's alot more economical to use kerosene than propane like we did last year.

Today was mostly an errand day. DH & I went to a fabric outlet, but unfortunately, it was upholstery fabric. Then, we went on to Hobby Lobby, which really is my closest source right now. Calicos, denim & canvas were 30% off so I bought a few yards.

DS went with his buddies and helped out with replacing some frozen pipes. Their grandpa owns a plumbing & electric company. The owners whole first floor flooded. They came back here and we had pizza for supper.

I think we are just going to hunker down for the rest of the weekend.

 

[punkin]

For the past few days, I have been working really hard to get my sewing project completed. I finally did yesterday and posted pic. to my journal this morning. It took longer than I thought.

Our financial outlook is still dwindling. Now, with the lack of need for the chip unloader, DH hasn't hauled contract wood for almost a month. He has a meeting with them Friday to talk about the demand outlook.

I'm trying to keep our grocery bill under $100 week. Last week, I went over by $10, but I did get alot of good meats to divide up for the freezer. DS's friends usually eat with us every night, so that eats up (sorry about the pun) some of the budget. But, that's OK since it's the only homecooking they get.

We only ate out 1 time last week, so I met my goal there.

I've had alot of orders for the greenhouse. Today, I'm going to do 300 cabbages and about 100 brocolli plants. It will be good to get my fingers in the dirt again.