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Well, I see it's been a long time since I have updated and many things have taken shape around here! First off, we found two hypoallergenic Baskir Curlies to purchase. Two mares, neither one really trained to ride, so we have our hands full, but there are so few available andthe prices are much higher than normal horses. Our 9 year old son is highly allergic to horses, he has a breakout if he simply stands next to someone who has petted a horse, so our only option if we wanted to ride were the Bashkir Curlies. Thank goodness there is an option! We had horses before he was born, and have been missing them all this time!
I have my garden plot tilled and ready to go. The seeds I started indoors are now very large vegtable plants! This was exciting for me as I've always bought my tomatoes, onions, and peppers as plants.
We purchased our first calf! He's adorable at this tender age of 5 weeks and the kids are having a blast feeding him with the bottle. Maybe someday we'll have more than one to raise. With the price I'm paying for organic milk, we just might try a milk cow too.
We have an order in for two feeder pigs. We have raised a pig for the freezer once when we lived on three acres in the Nevada desert, so we are comfortable with this part of the homestead! I'll post pictures when they come. They too are adorable when little but once they are grown, it's rather easy to get them to the butcher as they become loud, mean and smelly!
I see I orginally posted that I was getting in about 28 chicks. I changed my mind and upped my order and now we have 77 chicks! I know for many seasoned homesteaders that still is not a lot, but it's a first for us. This is my third time raising chicks. We'll have 50 - 60 for the freezer and the rest will stay and lay eggs.
We purchase a buck and doe white New Zealand rabbits. These two will remain our children's pets and will be breed to raise meat rabbits.
Other than all of the above, we are simply grateful each day we look out our windows into our open wide space, fresh air and life close to nature!
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Today I purchased seeds, and this evening I checked different hatcherys online for our baby chicks. I've ordered twice in the past from McMurrays. They cost a bit more than the others, but they always do a great job for me, I'll probably end up with them again this time.
I can't decide if I should get 25 straight run, or 25 pullets and sell the eggs at Farmers Market or even roadside. I've never sold the eggs before, but I think it would be an excellent experience for the kids and myself.
So, if I order straight run, we'll butcher the roosters in the Fall, and have 6 -8 hens laying for us. If I choose 25 pullets, we will end up with more eggs than we need and will need to sell them. Hummmm...
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!
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Mark is home for a week before he has to head back to Los Angeles for another week or so, and even though I have the house nearly unpacked and set up, I haven't hung any shelves, or the kids wallpaper borders in their rooms, so we are trying to get that type of work done this week.
We had a new sump-pump installed when we had the new Pergo wood floor put in throughout the house. Our basement is finished and has a bedroom, office, family room and play room in it. We were trying to cover all our bases and had a new battery back up for the pump installed as well. This flooring was a big expense and we didn't want to wake one day to a flood. Ironically, it was the battery back up that caused the flood.
Apparently, when they installed the sump pump, they didn't realize that the hose that drains the washing machine was held at the hole with a large brick. Without the brick, it worked it's way out of the hole, with each washing, until it drained right next to the battery which is plugged into an outlet that charges it. The water tripped the breaker while we slept, the battery back didn't have the power needed to drain the water and we had inches of water throughout the basement in the morning.
After much money and aggravation, we have it all repaired again. The battery back up is now on blocks.
Next was our furnace fan stopped working. That cost nearly a thousand dollars. This has been an expensive move,and by the grace of God, our last. We would really like to stay here and give it to our children one day.
We had a beautiful dinner tonight. The whole family sitting around our country table, it felt so warm and comforting with the freezing temps outside. It's been crazy since we arrived, this has been only one of a few quiet dinners around the table. I'm looking forward to finishing settling in and eating a calm dinner at the table every night.
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We are back in our beloved farm home on 12 acres and eager to start homesteading agian! ten years of life in Los Angeles and Los Vegas has left us with a profound sense of what we want to call home! |
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