Good-bye Cocky Locky!

I'm sad to say our Banty Roo disappeared. He had been experiencing leg spasms and general malaise. I keep expecting him to come out of the field somewhere. I have an infinity towards the Bantam breed or perhaps it's because I love Miniature anything. I am truly sadden by his loss. He was my last Banty.

Now this isn't the first time we have just seemingly lost a chicken out of thin air and I'm sure it won't be the last. In the past when a chicken was under the weather they would wander off never to be seen again. In my mind I try to romanticize that they found a comfy spot to settle down and pass on. The latter is just too intense to think about. SEE! This is why I shouldn't get attached to our farm animals! I blew my own rule. I'm a BIG sap. I cry at commercials. If someone shares their story of woe or happiness, I cry. If someone gives me a tip at work I cry (This is humbling for me. I treat others how I like to be treated and the last 2 days have been very generous and moving for me with how kind guests have been by tipping!).

I'm not a cry baby just very empathetic and caring. If you read my other blog about my journey as a Domestic Violence Survivor I wear my heart on my sleeve. If someone contacts me to share, it is moving for me when someone shares how reading my blog has helped them. I'm not tooting my own horn.

I mentioned in my previous post that I have been offline a bit. I have just been focusing on my family and in the moment. I may cruise around on Pinterest or Instagram but not for long. There is so much to do. I have to plan my day with 2 things in mind:

1) How am I feeling after work
2) How am I feeling in general

Pushing myself is never a good option. I tend to work myself with such intensity in order to get what I need done finished.

Enough about me!

Peanut has the garden detail this summer. She has been doing a great job! Rather then go nuts and just buy more and more plants I figure that I will get maybe 5 to 10 a year and add to our garden and around the home every year.

The plants I had gotten from Mom are looking pretty sad but I pray they will come around next year.

We went on an adventure last Saturday! Each year I ask the kids to pick 3 things they would like to

do or to go. (Within reason of course) Her picks were the Museum, Zoo and Turkey Run. So we went to Turkey Run! We stayed about an hour and then hit Rockville for lunch, antiquing and ice cream. I was able to have a long weekend and I needed to recover from Saturday for sure! The weather was nice, not too hot, humid or rainy. Can't wait for next year! My eldest was unable to go with us as Short Stack is sick with a virus. Poor baby! She is also cutting her first tooth.

Mr. Awesome has been working on various projects. From

getting a spigot for the outside to creating a cabinet for the kitchen about the stove.

Cherries and Mulberries are ready for picking! We picked a few gallon bags but I hope to can some for pies or jelly/jam. Now we have an understanding in the house for no one to mess with the jars at all. I was saddened to have lost dozens of jars because someone popped them before they cooled as well as leaving the rings on. I was horrified when a jar I had given to someone was moldy!

UGH!

It was JV and thankfully she is wonderful and understanding. She gave me a cute jar with a cross-stitched chicken on it that is adorable. I haven't decided what I'm going to fill it with yet. I have my goals, dreams and wishes that I keep in a box perhaps I'll put those in there instead. OR maybe I will just a thankfulness jar. Either way I am so touched!

What a charmed life we live. Rant to follow right now...

I don't get how people can sleep at night when they are untruthful, surly and downright deceiving. I am a terrible liar. I don't even lie well. I recently cut the hose with my Garden Claw and confessed to Mr. Awesome because I felt so guilty. Oh, now don't get me wrong I have done my fair share of untruthfulness. Like blowing money on a donut or something random that I didn't need and not telling.

I feel if I talk the talk I should walk the walk. I'm not perfect. I fail. I curse. I unsavory thoughts. I
don't always choose the right path. Because I think I'm right doesn't mean I am. Such with the situation above. (I still think I am though) I don't always handle situations right. I am a hypocrite. I fail everyday as a Christian. Boy, I sure am thankful God loved me so much he sent his only Son to die for my sins.

Yep, I went there. Before you shut this window please do me a favor.

Why do you not believe? If you curse God or say why does God let bad things happen to me, think about this...

You are mad, hurt or angry at the wrong being. God is not necessarily lovey dovey. He's not looking the other way at sin nor does he want you miserable.

There is one that loves you to curse the Lord. There is one that dances when you fight or shut your heart God or enjoys it when you fight with your loved ones. The devil has dominion over the earth to tempt you, drag you through the bramble and valleys.

The devil is delighting in your misery and your letting it do just that.

God is not a magician. There is no wand to be waved. If there is maybe your praying to the wrong God. Prayers aren't always answered or answered right away for reasons we can not begin to fathom!

Have a falling out with church? Or perhaps people are judgmental/cliquish at church. Maybe your going to the wrong church. I'm going because I want to hear God's word not because I want to join groups or see what this person is wearing or the latest gossip about such and such. I'm going to join hopefully like minded persons. A church should be a place of healing. A place to find comfort. No one there is without sin. Consider it a hospital for broken spirits. And don't harden your heart if that place where you seek refuge is not what it should be.

I had no intentions on writing these things but have thought about my path and how the things of my past have come to be blessings.

Want to learn more check these out:
Common Man's Institute
Reg Kelly
Dr. David Peacock

Still reading? Great! Now look at my life. God has moved mountains and made miracles in my life. Please read my story of Lyme disease as well as a Survivor of Domestic Violence for my story. Also check  here for my vlogs.

I know I am still pondering the wonders of how everything turned out the way it did....

Thanks for listening to me ramble!

Wherever your journey takes you, know I bid you happiness and joy.

BIG HUGS!
Mel

Another chicken bites the dust and Bee update!

With heavy heart we had a chicken kick the bucket. No, not this bucket! Quite literally she is not playing in this picture! Mr. Awesome and I came out to gather eggs last week. She was just laying in the Abbey, still warm. The only thing I could think of is perhaps she was egg bound. I hadn't noticed her acting any different prior to this the days before.

There are many wee projects being done in and around the house which include fixing a leak on part of the roof on the back of the house. Electrically fixes as well as Mr. Awesome shaking his head alot as he explained to me the complexity of how confusing the repairs of wiring from the previous owner are. We will never know why things were done as they were.

What do I mean? Wires leading to nowhere. Boxes/Wires leading to spots that are supposed to be off but are still hot as well as boarded over as if they were finished?

It's a big puzzle! Much to the dismay of my partner.😨

The garden is still a work in progress. I am fighting a losing battle with the weeds again. I had hoped to have the garden mulched in but am unable to find a source that will happily deliver mulch without charging.  I did get a great tip on some but don't live close enough to get it.

We did put in 2 Pear trees! We hope to also purchase a few Peach trees in the near future as well.

The Cherry trees are full! I can't wait for harvest!

I scored some old windows for the future greenhouse. I was so excited to find them. And yes I found them in the garbage. I happily picked through a pile while my Husband advised he didn't know me and shrunk down in his seat. Sadly, there are 2 things that are problems with picking through trash... It's illegal in many locations and you may get caught! Luckily, the police officer let me off with a warning this time. Oh, I air walk on the wild side at times. I supposed if I'm going to get in trouble, why not doing something I love?

I made Dandelion Jelly, Wild Violet Jelly, Dandelion and Wild Violet Salves! I also starting drying leaves and flowers for later this year and for sale. I hadn't canned in a few years. I didn't have the strength quite literally from getting sick (Lyme Disease) this is the first time since 2014 I canned! I missed it!

The Amberlink chicks are outside now. Mr. Awesome moved them into Alcatraz today. They are of course nervous and exploring the new digs. We will move them again with the rest of the crew in about a month. With the weather getting warmer they were due.

On the 21st will be the next Fleamarket and I'll be hauling a Jewelry box that doubles as a small dresser or lingerie dresser. Also a top of a hutch, some garden things, possibly some concrete garden leaves (this one I haven't started on so they may not be ready in time) and more plants! I did really well selling my Spider plants and Peppermint that I will be bringing more. So if you have nothing to do stop by and say HI! I'll have my St. Paddy's Day flag out on top of the Jeep to mark my spot.

I will also have my Lyme Disease Awareness information available! If you have questions about Lyme I'll be happy to answer them to the best of my knowledge or perhaps you are interested in a local group? Let me know!

We did a quick bee check yesterday to view progress. We have had the bees for 3 weeks now. They are busy today! The weather is warmer then it has been. We noticed they are carrying pollen. YEA! I added the frame I took out during our initial install. I refilled their sugar water which is refilled every other day or so.

Most importantly! The kids have come by with the baby. It's

always such a joy to see Shortstack. She is getting so BIG! 9 months already! I have to pester my Step-Daughter to ask about her big boy! I wish we lived closer to visit. I mentioned to Mr. Awesome that perhaps he could visit once our super late getting back to us tax refund comes back. As much as he wants to, he doesn't feel right leaving the kids and me here while he has fun. We have the animals so just going would be hard. I also have no plans on ever flying due to my fear of it.

Our school bus project is shelved and it may just become a mobile fixture in our side yard for company. The Gypsy trailer is still in the planning stages. Many of our plans due rely on funds that we just don't have readily available. We have been blessed with donations of unwanted material and stuff from family and friends.

If you have been following my other blog Hope when there was none- A story of escaping abuse you'll be interested to know that my eldest Son has been in contact with me (see story there) and we printed off a copy of my book to edit! It's been intense as I muddle through the editing process. 😞I hope to get it published before the end of the year. I haven't decided if it is going to be in parts or just one big ebook yet.


All in all it's been a challenging busy few weeks with more to come!  Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to view our other social media pages!

Wherever your journey is taking you may it be as wonderful as you are ❤

BIG HUGS!
Mel

What's going on with this place?!

Mr Awesome has been keeping busy with various projects around the house and garden.

He staked out a pie shape for me to work on a Potager style garden! Worked on some electrical issues, put up trim in the kids rooms, worked on our mowers, took off the roosts from the old chicken coop, some plumbing fixes, moved several furniture pieces around the house and to the 
  barn and put up with me.

We had a visitor digging down under the front stairs so Mr. Awesome also threw more dirt down, added slate and I threw down some mulch in hopes of  deterring our visitor. We'll see if this helps!

We have an outlet outside! Hooray! All of these things are small projects to him but they add up in the grand scheme of things.

I did plant a few of my cool weather plants in, herbs, sowed flowers and more veggies! I have been busy working on more Dreamcatchers to bring to the upcoming Fleamarket! I did have 2 women offer to buy them all but they never followed through.

My Duck egg hatched is a dud! My incubator decided it's not going to work and gave itself up to ghost. So no chicks but a journey to the farm auction is a maybe. Mr. Awesome meant to go but things just keep popping up. 

I have been very off kilter, blame it on the moon or my cycle. I'm a mess! I felt like giving up the other day in regard to my health. I guess feeling a bit of despair and sorry for myself. I told Terry I feel just useless as a Wife and Mom right now. His reply is always tear jerking, super awesome, God I love this Man, sappiness and gushy.  

My memory is flaking out, my parts are hurting, I feel awfully tired, my visits to nap time are coming more frequent again, I am stumbling often and dare I say I'm fearful of being bedridden again.

I wrote a email to my family advising of some final wishes. Now I have no intentions of going anywhere soon but the feeling darkness was strong the last few weeks. I'm normally a happy-go-lucky Lady but something is not quite right.

I've went dark on some of my visits to Social Media land. Opting instead for something less news worthy... Instagram and Pinterest! I haven't chatted with anyone or visited anyone for a LONG TIME. While I feel a deep need to reconnect with my family, I am just too exhausted. Too tired to talk sometimes and how does that make sense? Even eating requires effort. Well not that much if you have seen me.  

I have opened some books I've been meaning to reed and started reading my Bible again. I need to journal and ground myself again, but felt it was a dire time to do some smudging. It's gotten to the point where I had to tell Mr. Awesome that he hasn't been so awesome (He's been a bit grumpier lately) and needs to find a job or something he can get out of the house to do. He is a stay-at-home Dad, unable to find work in his chosen profession and he considers his age, 59 years young to be a contributor of why he hasn't been able to find a position.

My job is fine. It is not rocket science. I meet wonderful people and it pays the bills. Though I managed to ask for a raise. I really don't want to go through the process of finding a new job or I may have to find another part-time one. But the hours are awesome! My side dream businesses are on the slow side leaving me to question my path/what I want to be when I grow up. 

With my brain fog I forgot to pay a few bills so now we are a bit behind. Our tax return has been in process for more then 6 weeks, despite it being electronically deposited. Grrface!

In all this I am reminded that I need to be grateful. I had a hug out of the blue from a co-worker, a compliment from a guest that came out of nowhere to serve a reminder to me that there are many folks in this world that are suffering, had a loss, unemployed, in poor health or without the joys I have right now. I feel selfish for my feelings. So smudging seemed appropriate to break the tension in CasaMel's. I did a YouTube of a few basic information, also the prayer I used, links to other negativity busting ideas and my Bible info! Find it here- Go Smudge yourself! Dang full moon...

I am picking myself up, dusting myself off, lift my eyes upward and a quit my whining. Well, at least for this month...

Ultimate fails on a Homestead

I don't always show the failures of this sustainable lifestyle. I admit I am still learning bunches about this.

Here's a bit of my garden experience:

I was trained as a Master Gardener what seems like years ago. I had a small grass cutting company I managed and ran. I wanted customers to have a better experience so I took the class out of U of I and loved it!

I was able to provide weed identification, applied fertilizers, potted plants and gave a few basic ideas for landscaping. But I didn't focus at that time on how valuable it was to feed the earth.

Fast forward to present, I can truly see how much more I could have given to my clients if I had seen the Permaculture/Sustainable/Biodiverse community at that time. I always had a heart for homesteading but didn't really know what it was until I met my 2nd Husband, Terry too had a interest in learning to live off the land someday.

We made the leap into homesteading after being apartment dwellers in 2011. We were blessed to rent a HUGE old hunt lodge that was off the Kankakee river- see some of those goings on here-Redrum hotel .

Now to get off track a little here is some info on Terry (A.K.A- Mr. Awesome) has a background with Radio/TV and as recent as a few year ago as an IT Specialist for FEMA. He was gone at least 8 months out of the year and I missed him. At the time of the change from the apartment to the hunt lodge he was gone. I did as much as I could by myself and when he could come home on the weekends, he would become a weekend warrior. But that was really heard on him and our relationship.

I missed him and made a deal that I would work so he could stay home. They money was definitely not anywhere what he was making but he was home.

During this time we started to make plans to open a B n B with antique shop inside. We were already hosting Barn sales that were building steam! We had people knocking on our door to ask when the next one would be.

We also toyed with the idea to have a small cafe that would serve tea, coffee, soups, sandwiches, and desserts. We were approached by the park service to host "Wild game dinners" this would be held a few times a year and cooked by the employees.

I wanted to host classes that covered: Hunting, Fishing, Cast iron cooking, Foraging in the backyard, Canning, Survival skills and First aid in emergency situations. Of course crafty type of classes featuring old and new skills. I had asked a small group of friends that are amazing with these skills to help us learn, connect us with others so we could make almost a fest out of it.

We were so EXCITED!  These plans came to a screeching halt when there were some changes to our handshake agreement with our rental company. Everything fell through.

We managed to be blessed a second time to find our forever home. Here we could raise the animals, garden as much we want, run naked if we wanted to. (Scary thought I know!)

So what does all this have to do with our fails and why share them?

This is kind of a "Do as I say not as I do" type of thing.

I don't think I was as prepared as I thought I would be to start raising animals, the garden took more time then I hoped, and I was battling exhaustion. (My teen helpers weren't always very helpful)

Canning had several mishaps. We lost dozens of jars due to someone who shall remain nameless
popping the caps on my jars before they were done. This person liked the sound it made while cooling. Some of my canning was mushy despite following directions. I have learned some things about that since then!

There are the bugs that infested our tomatoes so I lost almost the whole lot. The chickens that flew in and ate my herbs to nubs after being in the garden the whole day. Or the rows and rows of veggies that didn't come up or were damaged due to the weather. My water person didn't water for long enough or often enough and many plants died.

Living in old homes has it's charm but when it rains it could pour literally! There were some mold issues in our old place so bad the kids and I were miserable. Also that is the 2nd time I was infected with Lyme. Deer are pretty normal to see in the country, since living off the river it was a water source for Deer so ticks were all over. So were mosquitoes! We couldn't go out at times when they were too thick to make a run just to go to the car. And by the way it was either a mosquito or spider that infected me with Lyme.

We did fogging, DIY fan units, sprays, essential oils, keeping the lawn short, cutting down any old wood, dumping standing water and bug zappers. They were too intense.

Our new home also has some water issues, not as bad as our rental thank goodness. I have pots and containers strategically placed in our attic to collect water. The roof is a job that is not readily affordable at this time.

We knew the house was a challenge when we purchased it! We hope to barter, trade and work out some sort of agreement to help with repairs that may be a bit too large or not in Mr. Awesome expertise.

There are always cooking fails! The old joke when the smoke detector goes off food is done. I am notorious at forgetting (Brain fog darn you Lyme!) to put things in my recipes. Eggs or Butter are on my forgetful list. So you may have a brick for banana bread or the cookies just are a bit off. And we did splurge for a new oven that we realized later has to be leveled. Cakes usually come out lopsided.

We had the animal fails. I embarrassed and sad to say it was our error in many cases.

As an example, a friend had sexed a rabbit we had gotten from a animal auction. Our friend said it wasa Doe.

We should have double checked. But several weeks later much to our sad dismay Fluffy (an Angora rabbit) had babies. Unbeknownst to us at a time when we were taking apart the rabbit hutch so they were in a dog crate for temporary use on the ground.

Needless to say some of the babies wiggled out and ended up being food for hungry chickens. I felt awful! I heard a wee voice screaming and didn't know until too late what it was. We tried to save a remaining injured baby but it succumbed a few days later. 2 others did survive! They stayed by Momma and were safe and sound. (Pictured above) We no longer have them. We had planned to go across the country in a renovated School bus but ended up finding our forever home as well as becoming Grandparents for the first time. A few months later we found out we were going to be Grandparents a second time too!

There was time we ran an errand into town and left our dogs outside, chained to a in ground stake, while our chickens were ranging. Now I did ask Mr. Awesome to put the dogs in. But he figured we wouldn't be gone that long.

We came home quickly to a view of white puffy looking clouds on the grass. It looked like snow piles here and there in the grass. We jumped out of the car, quickly realizing the dogs were gone and something was horribly wrong with those piles!

Up bounded one of the dogs, Blue, with a white hen mustache in her mouth.

We had a flock of 12. Key word there is "had".

It appeared the Rooster, Combs, put up quite a fight. He seemed to die doing exactly what Roosters are supposed to do. Protect the Hens.

We were angry, sad and upset with each other and the dog. It took a lot of restraint for Terry not to take care of the dog with his pistol.

Of course the dog was just doing what part of her breed does. Hunt. They are part Lab/Australian Shepard.

We did find a good home for Blue as soon as we could and kept Vi. 

Vi has more of a Shepard in her and seems to herd our animals. Not that given the chance she won't eat wee one We closely monitor her whereabouts and never leave her alone with chicks or ducklings.

There is the great beehive disaster! Mr. Awesome built a really cool hive for our first set of bees. We made it through the Spring, Summer and Fall without injury. Buttoned up the hive for the winter and thought all was well. We had some freezing, warm and then freezing again with a sprinkle of icy rain. This lead to the wood on the hive expanding and cold rain getting into the hive. Which ultimately caused them to die. In case your wondering Mr. Awesome didn't think the hive needed the dovetails, which would have been more secure, maybe there would have been no lose of the hive. We did have about 5 lbs of wax and several jars of honey. 

We lost our Mason bees the placement was not the best at our new digs. They area had too much rain and wind. They re homed themselves.

We have lost Chickens, Ducks, Guinea Fowl, Quail, and Rabbits to:

Coyotes

Owls

Den of Foxes

Some large fish that devoured one of our 2 year old Ducks at our old house while she was swimming a week after a flood near the house.

Hawks

We have also lost these to other Chickens, Guinea Fowl, and Rabbits.How?!

Remember the pecking order? It is not uncommon for a flock to peck at a younger group brought in. They seem to know the weaker ones even if we don't. Chicks may climb all over a chick that is down, eventually killing it.

They may keep the odd one away from food and water. They may fight to the death. A momma Rabbit may not feed her litter. She may eat them, step on them, push them out of the nest and they freeze if they get too cold (if it's the Fall or Winter). Finding a half eaten baby is not something you will see me post on social media. But it's nature, it happens.

Even with our efforts to rescue these babies, it isn't always pretty or a happy ending.

A chick can end up with Splayed legs, notice down below. Even after binding this wee one up after this picture was taken. It was weak and died. I thought for a few days it was on the mend but I was wrong.

Then there were deaths that happened and we had no idea why they died. We found them in the cage/coop in the morning.

Now many of these things we could have prevented. Some things you can't. I have heard stories from other homesteaders/farmers that have dealt with larger animals deaths.

Sows that rolled on their babies, killing them.
Mother animals that walk away from their babies leaving them to fend for themselves.
Animals that die during birthing.
A group of people  bought a pregnant cow and though the cow was considered healthy she and the baby died overnight.
Animals that chocked on something too big for it.
Whole crops gone in an instant due to flood, tornado or fire.
Crops gone to severe insect infestations

While we have those moments of stupidity, anger or sadness; it is still beautiful to celebrate life, something green that we grew, and feeling grateful for a job well done. 

We have learned many valuable lessons that comes for caring for our animals. We have a roof over our head, food in the fridge, cars that run, love and support from friends and family.

Small scale farming and homesteading

Mr. Awesome and I began this journey in March it will be 8 years! 4 of those were very crazy due to the circumstances of my ex. (See my story here- My story of escaping abuse)

Both of us had an interest in learning the lost art of Homesteading. From raising Animals to Blacksmithing to Herbalism to Foraging and more. We read through articles from Mother Earth News, Grit and dozens of websites that offered practical advice. We dreamed of having a place of our own that we could actually try out the things we just read about!

We were blessed to come across a HUGE old hunt club and the landlord didn't mind small farm animals. Our idea at the time was to open this sprawling place into a B & B- I even still have the blog from that here- M & T Redrum B & B . I'll be honest I don't recall my password to the dang thing to remove the blog. So there it stays!

Things went wonky and sadly our plans had to change. But God had other plans! We found a property that met our needs! Now our initial plan was to also go traveling (our School bus renovation!) across the country to help out others where needed and perhaps find some land of our own. Finding our "forget home" very close to where we already are was just wonderful!

Here we can start doing all the things we just dreamed of! Larger scale gardening, having more animals, including some that are larger then a chicken or duck.

Now the home is 100+ years old so it needs some TLC. But the bones are there. Over time we will fix her up see our 2017 Goals!

My goal would be to have a sustainable food forest that we could supply food for us and also for the public. I would love to be able to give back to our community by providing veggies, herbs and fruit to local food banks.

In addition to educate children where our food comes from!  I hope to also like to have a Gypsy trailer or Tiny house as a shop to have vintage goodies for sale, Honey, tinctures, herbal concoctions and host crafty/homestead classes.

Mr. Awesome would like to have a few Tiny homes for WOOFERs that may pop-in to join us.

Sounds daunting I know! Have you ever had a gut feeling you should be doing something to help others? That's me! I have a feeling in my soul that I should be doing more. Now I've had this conversation with my Mom and Mr. Awesome, both believe my sharing my story of abuse My story of escaping abuse and Lyme story is a great idea. Tired of being tired Of 1 and Tired of being tired Of 2 .

Enough of that! We still have MS. Froggy the rabbit and she's doing great. P!And for a cage that will feature 3 separate cages is in the planning stage. Why 3 1 will be for a male and 2 others for Does. No plans to eat the rabbits but perhaps to sell the offspring. We had Angoras in the past and tried to get our eldest Daughter interested in collecting the fur for fiber. But she was in her early teens at the time and lost interest as quickly as it came.

Mr. Awesome found he has houseguests in the barn! This is wee one of his favorites.














                                                                           

Our Hens have been showing us some love! Not sure if it was our experiment of using yogurt or just because they are getting more sunlight. But we are tickled to start selling them again!









Last year we didn't have time to devote to foraging around the yard. I found both Spearmint and Wild onions!

Here's the Wild Onions! There are a few patches in other areas too! We know we have Mulberry and Cherry trees existing already. We added 10 Apple trees that were grafted but only 1 graft took and we'll work on grafting the other 9 soon.

It's also almost Fleas market time! I'll be setting up at Jasper County Fairgrounds in April! I'm excited!  I will also have Lyme Dis-ease info with me to hand out and info about the group I belong to. 

It's been a productive few days despite the crazy weather. I can't wait for Spring!

2017 Goals

WHEW! Been a long time since I've jotted down our Homesteading Goals! Now that we have our "Forever Home" we can do many ideas we have just dreamed about and we are pretty excited. The 1st year here was more of a tidy and hurry kind of time. Mr. Awesome was a flurry of tools and ideas to get the house secured and livable so we could move in last year in April.

We spent many months just bouncing ideas off each other of what we want to see developed over the next year. So we came up with these for this year! Every idea is still in flux and I'm mingling some personal goals for myself as well.

2017 Goals-

1) Mark out the garden and use our entire homestead as a "Food forest". Now this will be a continual developing idea that won't just be for this year but for the years to come. Mr. Awesome thought it would be neat to have a Herb/Kitchen garden as you come up towards the house.

2) Green house that can be dual purpose if we want to have animals in at various seasons.

3) My dream small business Gypsy House that is portable to take to Fleamarkets. Not sure if we will also do a Tiny house as a Vintage market out on our property.

4) Fence in larger garden area- Doing this now!

5) Mulch around where we have existing plantings/trees- Working on this now

6) Chicksaw- portable chicken (feathered birds)

7) Tire Duck pond

8) Small pond in back of property with possible water generating feature? That is still up in the air. We don't have running water so not sure if that part will get completed.

9) Plant more fruit trees/garden yumminess!

10) Order 1 pkg of Bees- DONE! They will be coming in April! Also, order Mason bees

11) Chicken/Animal Run

12) Sheep- Well we are thinking those maybe in the future instead. Cost wise right now it's not doable

13) Order chicks or buy from Animal auction

14) Can more! Last year I didn't do so well. I'm pretty tired when I get home from work and I work 6 days a week. This means on my 1 day off I don't feel like doing ANYTHING!

15) Save more seeds. I saved quite a bit from last year from our garden and a dear Woman on a Homesteading group sent me some to get us started last Spring.

16) Now something more personal- Read 100 books! Or at least as many as I can. I read my Bible every year, I try to do so at least twice a year. I did read about 48+ books last year, not counting books I read to Mini Man.

17) Learn to make Soap

18) Make more of my own Tinctures

19) Take Herbalist course

20) Finally publish my book

21) Write/Publish a few Ebooks

22) Work on getting Affiliate and Ebay things listed

23) Attend Lyme meetings- I am not thrilled about driving in the dark and the meetings last into the evening hours.

24) Continue to work on growing some sort of business that I love and enjoy

25) Get Roof repair done or at least maybe a bandaid

26) Insulate! Insulate! Insulate!

27) Find someone to finally clean and inspect our Furnace

28) Seal around windows

29) Gravel driveway

30) Telephone poles in yard for various projects

31) Finish painting indoors

32) Sleeve and inspect chimneys

33) Make Concrete bird baths

34) Finish lap blanket

35) Fix my Amber necklace. The clasp broke a wee bit ago and I miss wearing it!

36) Make more Sage sticks to sell

37) Dry more herbs and flowers

38) Go to Aquarium, Turkey Run, Museum

39) Visit some folks on my Guest Post list

40) Figure out how to edit my videos

41) Host a webinar


42) Find wild Honey bees

43) Meditate more

44) Have a once a month Date Night

45) Work on sewing projects/Craft projects to sell

46) Spray mildew off house

47) Organize our closet

48) Molding around bedrooms

49) Take out tub in bathroom and replace

50) Move kitchen sink and replace faucet

51) Front entry way remodel

52) Remodel Mini Man's bedroom

53) Seal off hole in attic/shorten handrail

54) Patch hole in ceilings in bedrooms

55) Tear out drywall in Peanut's bedroom/insulate

56) Hang light in Peanut's room

57) Figure out electric issue upstairs and put in ceiling fans

58) Aquaponic system for kitchen herbs

I will add more to the list and again it's these are ideas not set in stone. I'm excited! We saw our 1st Robins in the yard. Come on Spring!

So what are your plans?

BUNNIES!

We were recently blessed to have a new member of the household. Her name is Frufee, once a preggers Momma, she is now the proud Momma to 3 adorable bunnies! She had 4 but the little one didn't' make it. SAD FACE!

I'm so proud of Jessica! She is taking such good care of them. Oh, I still have to ride her a bit to clean the cage, but she doesn't bat an eye. YEA! They are a week old now and they have fuzz all over. Momma is a Lionhead Angora. Beautiful! Thanks to Angel for the pleasure of having the experience of raising Rabbits!

Now for your viewing pleasure!

I was going to do Beekeeping but now I'm not so sure. I missed the first Beekeeping group meeting that was last Saturday. We had issues with the supervised visit and ended up in the ER for Jess having a panic attack. Long story check out www.hopewhentherewasnone.blogspot.com for that one!

The apple trees are blooming! The Magnolia looked lovely and there is many other wonderful plants and flowers coming up. SWOON! Lots of work to do in the yard. I love it!d

Almost forgot here is Momma bunny!

Make food from scratch!

I want to greatly reduce the garbage output from the house. I have so much cardboard from the boxes from rice, mac n cheese or random snacks that it is frustrating. In my hopes of reducing this I decided to make more meals from scratch. My new found adventures in cooking has been interesting! The joke around here is if the smoke detector goes off dinner's done! I made up my very first batch of Spaghetti sauce with nothing but natural veggies! Well I didn't have garlic cloves so I used the jar of minced cloves. I felt like I cheated! I used the sauce as the base for Pizza nite and oh my was it YUMMERS! And a big hit! Of course the girls asked why it was orange and not red like normal, but I explained this is what the sauce is supposed to look like. I plan on making more of this one! I found the recipe in my Grandma's old Italian cooking cookbook.

Decided to try at least 2 new recipes a week, from dessert to main course. I had kicked around a monthly menu for us, which Terry bought Mastercook for me to incorporate my recipes that have been floating around in cookbooks or randomly on the fridge. Mini Man is in the "Can't hold me down or back stage" so chairs end up next to the counter or sink so he can reach anything and everything! So back to the Monthly Menu planning! I made out 9 1/2 days for January. I hit a brick wall! Terry suggested I make a list of things I already make to help nudge me along. I made a Excel spreadsheet of Main courses, Desserts, Appetizers and Sides, which I came up with over 30+ items! I was surprised, though I am not sure why this surprised me but it did! After that ephiany I told myself to work on it more, but I got distracted as usual (there goes my undiagnosed Adult ADD again. I still promise to ask the Dr. if this is try or maybe it's just my age.)

Yesterday out the blue I grabbed the calendar, pen and wrote out the menu. It goes like this:

Sunday- Roast something (chicken or beef or port)
Monday- Anything in from a Box
Tuesday- Something in a Bun
Wednesday- Prince Spaghetti nite! (OK maybe not Prince, showing my age for this advertised jingle in the 70's) This could also be Italian Nite.
Thursday- Mexican Nite
Friday- Pizza Nite ( Found this good pizza crust in my Pillsbury cookbook!)
Saturday- Anything goes from leftovers

Less aggravation for me and I can do fancy food recipes for lunch for Terry and I during the week! YEA! Alex is a picker eater so this will work for us. Nothing like having to argue about if the kids will eat what's comin from the kitchen! But she has been good about trying new things lately. OH! I made a Greek lasagna that was WONDERFUL! I should have let it set up longer after cooking but the next day it was so yummy! Much better then the first day!

We did have the Flu bug run through, seems as I am the last to get it. I've felt run down, sick to my stomach and achy over the past few days. I don't have time to get sick! Too many things to do! Terry snuck this picture of Mini Man and I napping yesterday! The Booger Face!

I couldn't sleep any longer yesterday afternoon, so I ended up painting the cabinets over and under the kitchen sink that I had put off doing. I also tackled my future "Butler's pantry cabinets". Today Jess helped me plant about 50 cups with veggie seeds to start us. I have a HUGE list of other herbs and veggies I would like to have.

I started composting! Oh my gosh I can not tell you how excited I am about that. I'm thinking I need to have more excitement in my life. (Not crazy STBX excitement) Just maybe a night out. LOL!
I also know that I have to hold my composure when someone throws out eggshells or the coffee grounds. You would think I had lost gold in the garbage can!

I trimmed Terry's hair the other night. I have a phobia about this only because of STBX. So cutting anyone's hair makes me break out in sweat and shake, seriously. I was so proud that I didn't do that this time, but in my haste I ended up trimming Terry's prized "Sideburns"! After I was done and looking pleased with myself that everything seemed equally and not too butchered I told him to go look in the mirror to check it out. He came back from looking with a big grin on his face and he said, I'm missing something... Remember my sideburns?!

UGH!

Luckily he is good natured about it. We have laughed, giggled and are still making jokes about that one! Anyway his hair and sideburns made it into my small compost can.

I found a Herb garden plan I adore and a veggie garden plan too! I can't wait for SPRING!

Organization!

Yes me! Actually!

Terry added more shelves to the pantry to accommodate the need for space for bath towels. I'm lovin it! So is Mini Man! I have found potatoes and random onions all over the house.

We have a new shelf downstairs for other needs besides food stuff. Such as camping, misc. kitchen and of course bulk items. I'm really digging stocking up. I sort of went nuts in Aldi a few days back. I spent more then the $20 I had initially set for us to spend. Well, it had been almost 2 months since I have done any decent shopping, lately I have been spending $25 here or $100. I really need to set a budget for us since we have limited funds for now. I am trying to dig inside my memory for ways to make money.

I do Craigslist, Etsy, eBay and have been thinking about everything under the sun for extra cash. Legal that is! Growing herbs, flowers, veggies, crafting with herbs and so on. Selling eggs, goats milk/cheese/soap, beekeeping for honey/pollen/wax. I really want to be able to stay home with Mini Man. I was hoping my Doula business would take off. I have had one lead and sadly I missed out due to the move and having no internet to find out about her interest. GRRFACE!

I have been still kicking around the idea of going to Libraries to do speaking or craft demo's as well. I have plenty of experience with that or even maybe something informational about childbirth.

OK, so I got to thinking what in this short time on this earth do I have had experience doing? Besides Secretarial, Receptionist, Super Mom with awesome cape and everything!

MOMS Club charter starter/President
Sunday school teacher
Craft seller and later demo at library
Avon
Christmas around the world
Cub/Girl scout leader
Master Gardener Program
Doula program
Antique/Vintage Dealer
Cleaned houses/businesses

As with all things there has been great success and failures. Or what seems as failures. I have found I am not good with MLM or Sales such as Avon. But I can sell my own things! We have been discussing have a Barn sale in the Spring, perhaps it will not only lead to $$ but also to leads on antiques or items that are needed to be taken off someone's hands. It's a thought! I did enjoy cleaning out houses (taking items soon to be discarded).

Since I do have the Medical Assisting and Doula (Birth Assistant) recently under my belt to my ever growing list I am really hoping to find perhaps a Caregiver situation where I can bring Mini Man with me. But of course if the farm takes off then I will be super busy with that! Oh, thank God that I have so many choices and thank God for providing all I need at this time.

 In the meantime I will keep leaving all in God's hands. Enough rambling I sound very whiny today.

GREAT NEWS!

 If you have been following my other blog you know of the hopeless feeling I was having due to not having a divorce atty. Well! I got one!

YIPEE! He is a volunteer atty! I'm so relieved and hope this well help speed things along.












AND

We have 2 new additions to our home! PUPPIES! 2 adorable puppies! Lab/Australian Shepard, 3 months old outdoor dogs. We are pretty excited and hyped up! Can you tell from the exclamation points?

I am in the process of teaching myself how to crochet. I showed Jess my progress on my first future afghan and she was not as excited as I was. She made a face and said "Really good Mom." She didn't pat my head but I was feeling it coming. The girl towers over me now. I feel as though I am shrinking. I'm 5'5 and she is 5'7. Alex is on her way too, she's 5'6. SIGH! At least I will be taller then the baby for now. BIG SMILE!

I have a garden plan and a handful of seeds to start! I am very excited for Spring as well as chickens, maybe a goat and possibly bee's this year. Oh, Spring come soon! I hope to pick brains of anyone that knows a bit about these.

Things are coming along inside the farm house. I found my doily's and lace tablecloths. Hope to start staging rooms soon. Pictures of improvements soon!