Spring time

I love the spring! It's the busiest time of year with so much to do! Just this week we have 3 new ducklings, 7 or 8 new bantam chicks, 2 goats ready to kid any day, a hen that is broody, and one of our Red Bourbon turkeys sitting on eggs! We have 2 blueberry bushes to plant, and several vegetable plants ready to go in the ground too! Its been so hot lately, Polly and Esther are really needing to be sheared, and everyone's hooves need trimming! All that, together with a goat that needs to be milked everyday, so we can make that cheese we have been dying to make! Sometimes I sit down, and think, I have a full time job, kids and grand kids... why the heck am I doing this!   At this time in my life I should be slowing things down a bit, planning for retirement, maybe relaxing a bit more, but instead I farm, and I have to say.. I love it! If I wasn't doing this, what would I be doing? Watching TV, vegging out on the couch, flipping through a magazine? What is more beneficial?  I love the health benefits and the values I hope my grandkids get, of hard work, and the ability to be as self sufficient as possible,  The satisfaction of this life is amazing, and so worth the work. I love getting up in the mornings, getting ready for work, sipping my coffee, doing my devotions, then heading out to all the LOUD greetings of the VERY hungry critters! I love the way they run up to meet you when you walk out, the quack of the ducks as they play in their pool, and the bleat of the sheep as you head out to feed them! I love the sound of the milk of Cardamom as it falls in the pail, and the cluck of the chickens as I gather the eggs.

There is nothing like a delicious fried egg that you just gathered that morning, or a crisp salad made from lettuce you grew yourself, or mixing up a cake from scratch using your eggs and milk! It is so satisfying and so worth the work! Sometimes when I just want to get away a bit it is frustrating; it's very hard to find a reliable farm sitter who doesn't mind milking a goat! Those days when I am exhausted from a night of little sleep and I have to get up an hour earlier so I can feed everyone, or come home from a bad day at work only to have to refill waterers, water plants, milk a goat, gather eggs and all that other farm stuff, I ask myself.. what am I doing?! But, when I hold that sweet little kid in my arms, when I listen to the turkeys answer my call, when I see those cute baby chicks hatch and watch a family member nurse them back to health, after their mother abandons them, (great job Amber!).  That's when I realize, ahhh.. that's why I am doing this!
 As I finish this up, I think of the upcoming chores, the 20 ducklings arriving next Monday, the brooder that has to be prepared, the sheep that have to be sheared, those plants that have to be planted, the building that has to be cleaned out, the new shelter that has to be built,.. and I smile! Thank you Lord for this life!

Catching up..

    Wow! I was looking over some old stuff and came across this blog. I use to enjoy this so much, but like most things, life got busier and busier and time for this slipped away. When I saw it was 2015 since my last post, it saddened me quite a bit! I wondered if I could possibly reopen this old therapy source, so here it goes, if you read this and enjoy it, please let me know! A writer I am not, but I do like getting my thoughts down, and maybe with some feed back I'll get back at it! Just make a comment here or on the Facebook page, or drop me a message!
     A lot has changed in 2 years, in some ways we have progressed quite a bit, in others we have slipped back, but its a work in progress, so I'll update you a bit! We still have our 2 German Shepherds, and our ancient cat, Callie. At the present time we also have 12 goats, 9 females and 3 bucks. We are in the process of selling 2 does and 2 bucks, and we have one expecting any day! We have 8 turkeys, 3 toms and  5 hens. Two of our females are on nests and we are hoping to have little ones soon. We have chickens, bantams and several breeds of full size chickens. We average about 18 eggs a day. We also have sheep! Two females, named, Polly and Esther (aka polyester). We also still have our 2 rabbits, Heidi and Hans. Unfortunately, at this time we do not have our bees or ducks. We lost our hive during this past year, and plan on getting a new one soon, after we can figure out what issues are causing us to lose them. As far as the ducks go, a predator got the ones we had , but we have 20 more ducklings arriving on May 8th, and we are super excited! I miss them and their antics so much! Our pigs have long since gone to market, and we are discussing getting a couple more for the fall.

   So far this year we have not planted a garden , but we do have lettuce planted and in abundance, and a new small greenhouse attached to the back porch , which we will be utilizing soon. We have blueberry bushes, squash and pepper plants ready to go and working on the tomato plants! Several herbs we planted that we are enjoying include, oregano, cilantro, rosemary, parsley, basil, thyme and chocolate mint. Our 2 peach trees are loaded, and will have to be thinned out soon, and our grape vines are doing very well.
  On a family note, I have all my children back in the area! Shannon, Chris, Oli and Emme are back from New York , and live close by. I also have a new grandson since I last blogged, He is a year old named Allister. He is my youngest son's son. We have family nights on Sundays and I am blessed to get all the kids, their significant others and the 3 young grands together! I look forward to it so much, we have a nice supper and hang out. It is such a blessing!
  So, that's the update, so many more topics and thoughts I want to discuss, but I wanted to inform you all where we were at, as a farm first. I would
love to hear from you, so if you have a second, please drop me a word. Until next time!

Bantams led to What??

I have learned so much since we started this journey! There's always something to do, and it seems the more you do, the more there is to be done! It all started with a couple bantam chickens someone gave my son, ( thanks Carol)! That small gesture changed our lives, and we went from the bantams, to the big chickens, to bees, and now? Turkeys, ducks, rabbits, pigs,goats, and soon sheep! We raise our own meat birds as well as having layers, we processed our own turkey for Christmas dinner, and filled our freezer full of our own raised pork! We are even working on our own beef (thanks Mary)! We grow most of our vegetables, and some of our fruit. We bake our own bread, and home can almost everything. Now, we have two pregnant does, that we hope to make cheese, soap and lotions from their milk! When we get the sheep, we will be making our own yarn too. Wow, things really HAVE changed!I truly have never felt so satisfied with life and our choices. It is wonderful to know how the animals were raised, what they were fed, and see the impact that that has on your food. Life is never dull either, and you are always learning. A few things  I have learned along the way, pigs are extremely smart, and if there is a way out, they WILL find it,and go visit your neighbors,that being said, pig panels are a must with pigs! Goats are amazing, smart, funny, lovable creatures, and once you have one, there is no turning back. ducks are great to watch, just their interactions are fun, their eggs are terrific, and great to bake with! Bees can make a huge difference in your gardren, and local raised honey, is way better than store bought! Beeswax is great to make your own candles, and things sweetened with your own honey are delicious. Also, honey is great for coughs and allergies! Flemish rabbits are beautiful, and very cuddly, and it is very easy to get attached! Trust me when I say, mistakes are made  and you learn a lot from them. Research on your animals is extremely important, for their sake as well as yours! We appreciate our food, and the more we do our own thing, the more we want to do! Some folks think we have gone off the deep end, but to me simpler is better, and I love raising our own food, it is Simply Our Farm!

Pondering....

        We have become a society of me first! We have taught our kids that we owe them, that everyone is entitled to the same things, even if they do not work for it! I do not understand how the idea that we all have the right to work toward success has become the right to success, whether or not you work for it! How can our children learn to achieve if they never fail? Children have been taught they will be taken care of ,even as adults,even if they sit at home and do not even TRY to work or look after their selves! If something happens in our country, if we lose the success and wealth we have, how will they survive? A lot of people these days have no clue on how to make it in today's world,let's not even think about making it in a trying time! Everything is based on convenience, and quick fixes. If we lost our sources of power, if the government failed, how would your family make it? Could they cook with out power? Do they have things to cook? Could they have sources of heat? Do they know how to protect themselves? It is time to wake up! Learn to depend on ourselves not everyone else. To be responsible for our own actions, not blame everyone and everything else but ourselves! Do not get me wrong, I do believe in helping others, I do think we should help feed and clothe those who are less fortunate than we are, but I also believe you should TRY to help yourself too.It worries me that there are a large group of people with blinders on!We need to equip our children with the ability to succeed in all types of situations! To teach them not to take things for granted, to give a helping hand when needed and to accept help when they need it! To not blame everyone else for their issues! Let them realize that everyone has successes and everyone has failures, it is how we learn, and how we gain experience that we need, to lean ourselves and to help those who are going through similar things. Always be willing to learn, to help others, and to teach others to help themselves!

LEARNING A NEW WAY OF LIFE

Hello Folks,

I'm the new farm hand at Simply Our Farm.  We've had a productive couple of weekends here.  I've been learning many new things, like how to dry apples and then how to make delicious home made apple cider from the peelings and cores.  I helped freeze onions and fresh pumpkin puree, and I helped can beans and make and put up applesauce.  I've also worked outside helping :) with things like gathering the chicken eggs, corralling the ducks at night, as well as hauling and stacking firewood, building new nest boxes and roosts in the chicken coop, repairing the roof in the goat pen, and putting up a fence for the pigs. 

I've found the work challenging at times and very tiring but also very rewarding and it's fun as well!  I've discovered that although I go to bed pretty beat, I sleep soundly and I wake up rested and refreshed.  I'm already looking forward to what this next weekend has in store. As the weather gets colder I wonder what changes winter will bring. What are some of the challenges and rewards you've experienced during the winter months?  Any advice for a rookie??  I'd love to hear from some of you.  Any words of wisdom for me?





  

Saving money, and making our own

   I think everyone is trying to cut back,save a little money,and cut cost wherever they can. Over the past year, I have learned a lot about this. When we started canning our own food, raising animals for meat,eggs, honey,dairy and other needs,I looked into learning other ways to save.We now  make our own laundry detergent,dishwasher detergent,cough syrup,sinus medicine,apple cider vinegar,mint and  vanilla extracts.  We also make our own pancake and baking mixes, instant cocoa,apple cider as well as a few other things. Not only does it save us money, it taste better, and is better for us, less chemicals and preservatives , and we know what is in our food. We are soon going to be making our own flavored creamers, and shampoo and whatever else we come across that looks promising!  If you are looking for a way to cut cost you should give some of these a try. We even make our own creamed soup base! In the next few days I will be adding a section with a few of these recipes, if there is one you are interested in, please leave me a comment below, and I will add those first! They are quick, simple, and most ingredients you have sitting around the house! I also would love to hear your honest thoughts on how they work for you, once you give them a try! Happy saving!  

A New Journey Begins...

A New Journey Begins...

Hi folks, 

I'm the new farm hand at Simply Our Farm.  I'll be sharing my thoughts and experiences with you from time to time as I learn my way around. Yesterday was my very first day.  I had a terrific time!!  We spent the the afternoon working on the enclosure for the new additions due this week. Look for the pics coming soon! :)  Clearing out weeds, briers, and undergrowth, putting up fencing and spending time together outside was somehow very satisfying.  The time just flew by and although the work was physically hard it was rewarding in a way that I haven't experienced in a long time.  Being out in the sunshine on a gorgeous fall day, having good conversations, working with our hands, and seeing our progression...  I loved it!  Yesterday I learned firsthand just how healing (mentally & physically) hard work and sunshine can be...  We are missing so much by spending most of our time inside attached to our computers, ipods, phones etc. 

I enjoyed meeting the animals and watching their antics, especially the goats.  Seeing their interactions and how they pushed to be the first to be petted made me smile inside.  They are so sweet and they really enjoyed their treats.  I loved the way the ducks waddled around the yard always staying close together and looking out for each other.  Gathering fresh eggs from the chickens was something I hadn't done since I was a child visiting my grandparents farm.  It brought back so many fond memories...  Wow!  What a special afternoon!

After driving home and eating a bowl of homemade vegetable soup with a slice of homemade apple pie for dessert as my dinner, I had a wonderful, relaxing shower and turned in early.  Slept soundly for 9 full hours and awoke refreshed and feeling wonderful!  Can't wait for next time!  

I look forward to sharing my experiences with you as I learn my way around a farm.  No two days will be alike and that's part of the fun!  Wonder what I'll get to do next?  Should be good for a few laughs if nothing else...  Stayed tuned; more to come soon!  Have a great week!  

The Farm Life

   It is immensely satisfying to have a farm! Even a small one like ours. There is something about getting up, and doing the morning chores that helps to ease my soul! I know that sounds a little crazy, however when I head outside in the crisp morning air, to refill the duck pools,water troughs, and feed buckets for the animals, it makes my day a little better! I love watching them, their antics and their interactions fascinate me. I love gathering the eggs, seeing how many we have, checking to see if my Goldie is still broody and sitting on a WOODEN egg!! It is great to go let out the ducks and see how many eggs we get from them, to see if another one  of the ladies has started to lay! I guess it may be the routine of it all, or the fact that with each animal and their gifts we get more self-sufficient. It is awesome to go to the canning cabinet, or outside to the chicken coop to gather supplies for supper, rather than going to the grocery store.  The greetings of the goats when you go outside, their faces happy to see you, and pushing and shoving to see who can get that first pat of affection, can not help but make you smile! 
    The things you can learn from your animals are endless. The other night, we went out to pen up the ducks. We free roam them during the day, but pen them at night to protect them from predators. Usually, they are near the pen, if not already in it, but this time they were not. We looked around and all of them were up by the turkey coop. When we tried to herd them down to theirs they would not go, they kept returning to the turkey pen! Upon, closer examination, we discovered one duck had somehow gotten IN the turkey coop, and could not get out. The other ducks would not leave her! They stayed as close to her as they could, only after we got her out did they head to their pen! I loved that,no duck left behind!! They would not abandon her. From how our hen mothers her chick, protecting her from the others, but also making her be a little independent, is very informative. I learn from my animals everyday! 
     Yes, it IS a lot of work! There is always a fence to mend, a shelter to build, a coop to clean out, or an area to winterize, but you feel a great deal of satisfaction when you are done. To know you are contributing directly to your food sources, to know they are treated humanly, and are happy, mean a great deal! The work makes you feel like you accomplished something, that you can directly see the results from. I never thought I would be doing this, but I am so thankful and blessed this is where I am!I think the way things are today, people try to get by with less and less work, what is easier and how can they do less, but for me the extra work is worth it. It is fulfilling, and makes you appreciate your food and life! I love my little farm!

 

Less is More

 It's funny to me how time changes things, when I was younger I dreamed of having a great job, lots of money, a big house, nice cars, and all the trimmings.. That was how success was measured, that was how I would be happy. The more stuff you have, the more money you make, the happier you would be. Well, now.. all I can say is NOPE! Now, I dream of a smaller home, less stuff, making less money, less bills and making do. The more I downsize, the more I depend more on me and less on fast food, big stores, large electric companies, the more content I get! My dream would be to have a small house run on solar panels, with a wood stove, OK the one thing I would have to keep is the indoor plumbing...lol.  I think, if I had to, I could  do without the lights, the television, the microwave (we actually did this almost a year ago, and truly have not missed it) but I need my hot shower, and all the other conveniences of running water..going outside in sleet and snow for a  bathroom run would NOT be fun!

Modern technology is not a bad thing, I do not mean I want to go back to pioneer days completely, but I do think a lot of the older ways of doing things are better and sometimes,healthier! Since, we have started raising our own food, I know we feel better and have more energy! Yes, it takes a lot more time and work, but it also brings about this level of satisfaction that I cannot explain. There is nothing like frying some farm raised bacon from the freezer, scrambling a couple eggs from the chicken coop, and toasting a couple slices of fresh home baked bread, spread  with some of your own goat butter!Then pour yourself a glass of cold fresh goat milk.. and it is a meal you cannot compare. 
Now, I do not miss satellite television, I enjoy sitting on the porch with a hot cup of coffee, watching the interactions of the farm animals, the simple routines of feeding and milking and gathering calm me, I do not sit and dream of that big house or new car, I dream of a small tractor, or the time and energy to put up a new fence for that new animal addition. I do not need more things, I need less, and the more I downsize the more satisfied I get. You can't take it with you, right? So what is the point? More things, mean more bills, and more work for more pay to buy the more things.. Less bills, mean less stress, and less stress means happier..and isn't that what we all want and need?  Like I stated earlier,technology is not a bad thing, and neither is owning nice things, I just think we all need to take a closer look at what is important to us!

A new favorite...Goat Milk !

Well it has not been that long that we have had fresh goat milk...and it is even better than I had 
imagined!
I have known the great benefits of goats milk for a while but honestly had not put them to the test, or tried goats milk before getting my own goats. The goat milk is rich and delicious on its own, the health benefits of raw goat milk is amazing, but there is so much more that the goats milk can be used for.
Last night we have made goat cheese for the first time. It was a pretty basic recipe, but that  has made me want to try to make more cheese. Maybe we will try mozzarella next.  We mixed the cheese with herbs and it turned out so good! It was rich and creamy and delicious. We also made butter that was awesome and so easy! This has made me so glad we got the goats, it made me love them even more (if that is even possible!)They are such sweet, friendly creatures!
Next we are going to try our hand at making soap with our own goats milk and own our bees wax from Ric's Bees!!
It is so exciting to  know that the cheese you use,you made  and produced , from milking the goat, and actually making the cheese to testing the final product!! It makes everything you do more exciting and worthwhile.There is nothing quite like creating something from start to finish! It is rewarding, and taste so much better!If you have not tried raw goat milk, I recommend that you do!I think you will be pleasantly surprised! I was!