Kamis, 30 April 2015
Understanding Chicken Behavior Interpreting The Egg Song
It's a common misconception that roosters are the loud mouths of the barnyard. But you can't raise laying hens for long before you will start to hear an awful screeching and cackling coming from the direction of the coop each morning. What you're hearing is the hen's 'egg song'.
[continue reading]
Barn Hop 23
Im keeping it short today because Im by the ocean, camping at the beach. The internet connection is sketchy at best, but then again, its too beautiful to spend much time on the computer! But dont think Im not at least THINKING about homesteading topics. Ive brought plenty of reading material including Mother Earth News, Surviving Off Off-Grid (still working my way through that one), and a friends Mary Janes Farm, just to name a few.
Join The Barn Hop!
Jill @ The Prairie Homestead
Kendra @ New Life on a Homestead
Megan @ A Blossoming Homestead
and Amy @ Homestead Revival...
...invite you to link up and share your homesteading adventures!
1. Write a blog post about whats going on at your homestead or a post on something youre learning or an item of interest that will benefit the homesteading community. Be sure to add the red barn button and link back here so others can join in the fun.
2. Come back here and enter your information in the Linky. Please be sure to link to your actual post (click your title and then copy the URL above) and not your home page so those participating later in the week can find your post easily.
3. If you dont have a blog, leave a comment and tell us whats going on at your homestead!
Please Note: As hostesses of the Homestead Barn Hop, please understand that we reserve the right to remove any links that are not family friendly. While this may be subjective, we will err on the side of caution in order to keep our blogs appropriate for all readers. Thank you for your understanding!
Preparedness Challenge 9
To participate, all you need to do is leave a comment or write a blog post and link up telling us one thing you did this week in order to be prepared (or two or three...). Its our way of holding each other accountable. Be sure to add the canning jar photo to your blog and link back here so others can participate as well. It encourages us all when others are joining in, dont you think?
week for the Preparedness Challenge, I cleared out a store room, sold the stuff, and bought windows for a cold frame and made plans to buy blocks for retaining walls for my garden so I could extend the terraces for more plants. I really need to do more next week in terms of my pantry and 72 hour kit, but it was a really difficult homesteading week (Ill share more Monday on the Barn Hop - perhaps by then Ill be ready to talk about it.). But getting the garden in tip top shape in terms of hardscape will really make a difference long term. I think its a good investment.
How about you? Ready to share how you prepared?
Quick Reference Feed Guide Chart Chick to Laying Hen
Depending on where you buy your feed, you might get accurate information about what you should be feeding your chickens at various points in their life - or you might not. I remember being horrified early on, after having been told that Flock Raiser was perfect for our growing mixed flock of chickens and ducks and bringing home a bag, to find that it would have been perfect had we been planning on EATING our flock!
Rabu, 29 April 2015
A Week in Farm Photos July 7th 13th
My husband's birthday is today. We celebrated a bit early, on Thursday, after one of our magpie ducks laid her very first two eggs for us the previous two days, which I promptly made into a beautiful cake decorated with fresh flowers. Please enjoy these shots of our week on the farm, capped off by photos of the green duck eggs (yay!) and Mark's birthday cake. Happy Birthday Mark and thank you so much for tolerating supporting all my endeavors and our foray into backyard farming!
[continue reading]
Barn Hop 49
Things have been busy around here and our lives have just taken a new turn. Meet the newest edition to our little herd... Dance Hall (I did not name her that - she came with the name!). A sweet Nigerian Dwarf doe who is already giving us milk! I just got her Saturday, so this quick picture is all I have for now, but hopefully Ill have more soon. I think shell be a nice addition to our homestead and a good fit for us so we can learn how to milk regularly. She stands perfectly while being milked, even without a stanchion. Such a little lady!
Whats happening at your homestead this week?
Join The Barn Hop!
Jill @ The Prairie Homestead
Kendra @ New Life on a Homestead
Kelly @ The Morris Tribe
and Amy @ Homestead Revival...
...invite you to link up and share your homesteading adventures!
1. Write a blog post about whats going on at your homestead or a post on something youre learning or an item of interest that will benefit the homesteading community. Be sure to add the red barn button and link back here so others can join in the fun.
2. Come back here and enter your information in the Linky. Please be sure to link to your actual post (click your title and then copy the URL above) and not your home page so those participating later in the week can find your post easily.
3. If you dont have a blog, leave a comment and tell us whats going on at your homestead!
Please Note: As hostesses of the Homestead Barn Hop, please understand that we reserve the right to remove any links that are not family friendly. While this may be subjective, we will err on the side of caution in order to keep our blogs appropriate for all readers. Thank you for your understanding!
cartoons
One of the things I listened to on my phone while walking through the White Mountains this weekend was a Fresh Air interview with the New Yorker cartoon editor. They talked about shifting tolerance at the magazine for racy cartoons, about where to draw the line on offensive jokes (don’t knowingly offend), and about what makes cartoons funny. In the old days, cartoons were more often jokes with the characters unwitting subjects; now characters usually deliver the punch line. Cartoons range from the literal, easy to understand, to the absurd, where there might not be much to understand. They usually poke fun at the class of people likely to read The New Yorker.
At least that’s what I remember. The editor didn’t talk much about making cartoons, except to say that his most famous – in which a suited exec says into a phone, “No, Thursday’s out. How about never – is never good for you?” – came mostly from an exchange he’d had himself. Of creating from whole cloth or drawing from life, the latter seems the easier to me.
Many years ago, my sister, I think inspired by Roz Chast, tried to draw a few cartoons. I remember one in a deli, and one showing several different options for wrapping a California-style burrito. I thought they were pretty funny. In the interview, the editor mentioned a Seinfeld episode in which Elaine, frustrated at a New Yorker cartoon she couldn’t understand, tries to write one herself – something about a pig at a complaints department complaining he feels fat. The editor explained it wasn’t technically a joke, although I didn’t understand why.
Anyway, here’s my attempt.
Selasa, 28 April 2015
Homemade Liquid Handsoap
Slowly but surely, Im learning to recreate many of the items I use to buy at the store for a fraction of the cost. I like that its not only frugal, but the products are often safer because the ingredients are much more simple. I know every single item that goes into the soap, deodorant, or whatever it is Im making. And this liquid handsoap is no exception... its a fraction of a fraction of the original cost! Woo hoo!
You may remember my recent batch of bar soap? I actually had extra soap that wouldnt fit into my molds so I just poured the excess into some disposable plastic containers and then pulled it out a bit early in chunks because I had a little trouble getting that batch to firm up. But it eventually did and I saved these pieces, not knowing for sure what Id use them for.
Then I was on Pinterest and found Robyns liquid hand soap recipe on The Farmers Nest. Jack pot! I knew exactly what I was going to do with the soap scraps Id been saving. And in fact, this was very timely because I had been searching for a bulk supply of liquid hand soap at a great price, but hadnt found one that I was pleased with in terms of cost and quality. Even if this experiment was only so-so, it would be almost free since I had all the ingredients on hand.
Liquid Hand Soap Recipe
1 8 oz. bar of soap, grated (or more - Ill explain below)
2 T. liquid glycerine
1 gallon water
favorite essential oil (optional)
Place the water in a large pot and begin to heat it on medium-high. Add the 2 T. of glycerine and the grated soap to the pot and stir. As it warms it may get a bit bubbly. Stir in several drops of your favorite essential oil if the soap is not scented and you want your hand soap to smell nice. (I just did this until it smelled like I wanted - sorry I didnt count drops!).
Continue to stir until all the bits of soap have dissolved. Then turn off the heat and let it sit over night or for about 10-12 hours. After sitting, mine seemed to separate and was very watery, so I followed Robyns instructions and reheated it and added more soap shavings (believe me, I had plenty!). So in all, I guess I used about 16 oz., not 8 oz. But mine was a homemade soap. Robyn used an 8 oz. bar of Mrs. Meyers and it got very thick after sitting.
After mine sat a second time overnight, it didnt look cloudy like Robyns but it did look like a liquid version of my soap. And if I put my hand into it, the liquid was certainly soapy! time it was still runny, but thicker than before, so I decided to call it done.
Using a funnel, I loaded up a couple of my very empty soap dispensers and stored the remaining soap in a couple of large canning jars.
And now, I have a lot of soap for literally a few pennies. I think I can live with it a bit runny at that price!
It the runny soup bothers you, perhaps these two tips will help:
• One reader on Robys blog made a solution of 3 T. table salt and 8 oz. hot water, stirred until dissolved, then added it to her room temperature liquid soap. According to the reader, it instantly thickened it.
• Another reader suggested not adding as much water if your soap is high in oils (which mine was).
If your soap ends up being too thick:
• Try using an electric hand mixer and breaking it up a bit.
• Try adding a bit more glycerine.
So I hope this extra info helps because every bar of soap is going to produce different results. At least our hands should be clean for a long time!
Read More..
You may remember my recent batch of bar soap? I actually had extra soap that wouldnt fit into my molds so I just poured the excess into some disposable plastic containers and then pulled it out a bit early in chunks because I had a little trouble getting that batch to firm up. But it eventually did and I saved these pieces, not knowing for sure what Id use them for.
Then I was on Pinterest and found Robyns liquid hand soap recipe on The Farmers Nest. Jack pot! I knew exactly what I was going to do with the soap scraps Id been saving. And in fact, this was very timely because I had been searching for a bulk supply of liquid hand soap at a great price, but hadnt found one that I was pleased with in terms of cost and quality. Even if this experiment was only so-so, it would be almost free since I had all the ingredients on hand.
Liquid Hand Soap Recipe
1 8 oz. bar of soap, grated (or more - Ill explain below)
2 T. liquid glycerine
1 gallon water
favorite essential oil (optional)
Place the water in a large pot and begin to heat it on medium-high. Add the 2 T. of glycerine and the grated soap to the pot and stir. As it warms it may get a bit bubbly. Stir in several drops of your favorite essential oil if the soap is not scented and you want your hand soap to smell nice. (I just did this until it smelled like I wanted - sorry I didnt count drops!).
After mine sat a second time overnight, it didnt look cloudy like Robyns but it did look like a liquid version of my soap. And if I put my hand into it, the liquid was certainly soapy! time it was still runny, but thicker than before, so I decided to call it done.
Using a funnel, I loaded up a couple of my very empty soap dispensers and stored the remaining soap in a couple of large canning jars.
And now, I have a lot of soap for literally a few pennies. I think I can live with it a bit runny at that price!
It the runny soup bothers you, perhaps these two tips will help:
• One reader on Robys blog made a solution of 3 T. table salt and 8 oz. hot water, stirred until dissolved, then added it to her room temperature liquid soap. According to the reader, it instantly thickened it.
• Another reader suggested not adding as much water if your soap is high in oils (which mine was).
If your soap ends up being too thick:
• Try using an electric hand mixer and breaking it up a bit.
• Try adding a bit more glycerine.
So I hope this extra info helps because every bar of soap is going to produce different results. At least our hands should be clean for a long time!
gore v akasofu
Right, so Al Gore won a Nobel Peace Prize yesterday for his climate crusading. I spent part of the morning with Syun-Ichi Akasofu, who until this year led the fancy new International Arctic Research Center on the University of Alaska Fairbanks campus. His field of study is the northern lights, but lately hes been looking into climate change, and has been widely spreading his belief that it really isnt caused by human activities -- mostly -- and that theres nothing we can or should do about it other than adapt.Thursday he talked to a group of UAF students; Friday morning he met with a group of local miners.
He ripped on the IPCC and its findings, and took a few jabs at Gore, basically for promoting bad science.
Hes a very small man, and very polite, and also very witty, so when he sent me an e-mail later in the day, Im pretty sure he meant it tongue-in-cheek. He had no problem with Gore winning the peace prize, he wrote, as long as its not a science prize. More on him later.
Loving The Little Years
If Rachel Jankovic had a blog, Id read it every day. Oh, but wait... she does blog! Over at Femina along with the rest of the Wilson women, just not every single day. As the mother of five toddlers and another on the way, she would be insane to attempt such a thing! But can you believe she managed to write a book filled with some very powerful vignettes on motherhood... and survive? (To my knowledge the children and the husband did, too.)
Rachel has honed her writing skills to be sure, but its immediately clear that she also has a natural talent along with plenty of wit to communicate in such a way that you feel like shes hanging out with the girls talking face to face. I love that.
Loving the Little Years, could only be written after spending time "in the trenches" herself. She masterfully teaches without being preachy, throws in some natural humor (that could only come from someone who has learned to laugh at herself once in a while), and leaves you with a nugget of wisdom to take with you as you re-enter the trenches of your own home.
Each chapter is short enough that you can read it in the bathroom when you get a 2-3 minute break. Seriously, Im a slow reader, but I could read one of her 20 chapters in the amount of time that it takes to go to the bathroom and no one need ever know! But dont think that just because this book is smaller than most that its thin on substance. Youd be grossly mistaken. Those nuggets I mentioned are meaty... something you can chew on for a while and put into practice.
It would have been great to have had this book a few years earlier! My girls wouldve really appreciated it (once they were older). I think Ill be buying this in multiples and tucking them in baby gifts - for the moms, of course!
I received a copy of this book to preview, but I have not been compensated in any other way. My views about this book are strictly my own.
Read More..
Rachel has honed her writing skills to be sure, but its immediately clear that she also has a natural talent along with plenty of wit to communicate in such a way that you feel like shes hanging out with the girls talking face to face. I love that.
Loving the Little Years, could only be written after spending time "in the trenches" herself. She masterfully teaches without being preachy, throws in some natural humor (that could only come from someone who has learned to laugh at herself once in a while), and leaves you with a nugget of wisdom to take with you as you re-enter the trenches of your own home.
Each chapter is short enough that you can read it in the bathroom when you get a 2-3 minute break. Seriously, Im a slow reader, but I could read one of her 20 chapters in the amount of time that it takes to go to the bathroom and no one need ever know! But dont think that just because this book is smaller than most that its thin on substance. Youd be grossly mistaken. Those nuggets I mentioned are meaty... something you can chew on for a while and put into practice.
It would have been great to have had this book a few years earlier! My girls wouldve really appreciated it (once they were older). I think Ill be buying this in multiples and tucking them in baby gifts - for the moms, of course!
I received a copy of this book to preview, but I have not been compensated in any other way. My views about this book are strictly my own.
Speaking Duck
Like any good chicken or duck mother, I pride myself in thinking I understand for the most part what our chickens and ducks are trying to tell me by the different clucks, growls, shrieks and quacks they use. If you spend enough time around them, you will come to recognize a low throaty cluck of a broody hen, the sort of growling sound when they spy a hawk, the high-pitched chirp-chirp of a lost chick, and the Morse code-like chatter of the ducks when theyre excited.
While I would never claim to be able to communicate with them on every level, their body language also helps convey their message and between the sounds they make and their expression, we seem to be able to get our messages across to each other at least most of the time.
So when Gregory, our Pekin drake, came over this morning while I was filling the ducks pool and started chattering away, I assumed he was just excited about having a clean pool, so we chatted about it for awhile with him getting more and more worked up by the minute....well, imagine my surprise when I glanced over my shoulder to see the run gate had swung partway open and all the chickens were escaping !
As I ran to get them back into the run, I swear Gregory waddled away, completely disgusted by my failure to communicate with him. And yet again, I was humbled and reminded how much I still have to learn about our backyard flock.
~Find us on Facebook~
Senin, 27 April 2015
Sourdough Perfection!
I dont always share everything Im learning at the GNOWFGLINS™ eCourses, but sometime I get so excited, I cant help myself. And while I cant share the exact recipe, I can tell you, that these sourdough whole wheat waffles were the best Ive ever had!
The sourdough starter is built up the night before so that when you wake up in the morning, its ready to work with. And no extra flour is needed and no commercial yeast. Just some eggs, salt, honey, vanilla, and baking soda. After breakfast, you just feed your starter a breakfast, too! How easy is that?
The whole wheat waffles come out nice and crisp - not crunchy like theyre overcooked. No, no, no! A nice kind of crisp. The whole wheat recipe I used before caused the waffles to cook up nicely, but before you could butter them and eat, they were soggy. Not good. Or sometimes, if you overcooked them, theyd get hard. It was always a bit of a disappointment. But no longer! Im now a sourdough whole wheat waffle gal!
I have to give a little credit to my waffle iron... the work horse of waffle irons. A very good friend gifted this to our family one Christmas and its been a wonderful addition to our kitchen.
Erin, who helps Wardeh on the sourdough eCourse suggested some ideas for making savory waffles. Oh, my, they sound good! If I start gaining weight, youll know why!
I think a common misconception about sourdough starters is that they make everything taste sour. But I havent found that to be the case. A lot of it depends on the environment your starter is in, the age of your starter, and the recipe youre using and its souring time. There are things you want to taste sour and things you dont. So by adjusting the amount of time you let it sour, you have some control over the taste.
Another item Ive used my sourdough starter to make is muffins. Although they didnt dome when they rose, they tasted great! Ill have to work on the poofing issue. Too bad... guess Ill just have to make and eat a lot more!
FINALLY, I made the pizza crust Ive been hoping to achieve for months! I tried recipe after recipe, trying to get a thin and crisp 100% whole wheat pizza crust and its been very elusive, always coming out bready. I took this picture before the cheese and before baking, but we got so excited eating it that I forgot to take another photo! Next time, Im going to roll it out even thinner and bake it a bit longer for an even crisper pizza!
Id love to hear what you make with a sourdough starter if you use one. And if you havent tried a sourdough starter yet because youve been intimidated or think its too time consuming, it really isnt that hard. Just 5 minutes in the morning and evening to keep it going. A worthwhile investment!
Read More..
The sourdough starter is built up the night before so that when you wake up in the morning, its ready to work with. And no extra flour is needed and no commercial yeast. Just some eggs, salt, honey, vanilla, and baking soda. After breakfast, you just feed your starter a breakfast, too! How easy is that?
The whole wheat waffles come out nice and crisp - not crunchy like theyre overcooked. No, no, no! A nice kind of crisp. The whole wheat recipe I used before caused the waffles to cook up nicely, but before you could butter them and eat, they were soggy. Not good. Or sometimes, if you overcooked them, theyd get hard. It was always a bit of a disappointment. But no longer! Im now a sourdough whole wheat waffle gal!
I have to give a little credit to my waffle iron... the work horse of waffle irons. A very good friend gifted this to our family one Christmas and its been a wonderful addition to our kitchen.
Erin, who helps Wardeh on the sourdough eCourse suggested some ideas for making savory waffles. Oh, my, they sound good! If I start gaining weight, youll know why!
I think a common misconception about sourdough starters is that they make everything taste sour. But I havent found that to be the case. A lot of it depends on the environment your starter is in, the age of your starter, and the recipe youre using and its souring time. There are things you want to taste sour and things you dont. So by adjusting the amount of time you let it sour, you have some control over the taste.
Another item Ive used my sourdough starter to make is muffins. Although they didnt dome when they rose, they tasted great! Ill have to work on the poofing issue. Too bad... guess Ill just have to make and eat a lot more!
FINALLY, I made the pizza crust Ive been hoping to achieve for months! I tried recipe after recipe, trying to get a thin and crisp 100% whole wheat pizza crust and its been very elusive, always coming out bready. I took this picture before the cheese and before baking, but we got so excited eating it that I forgot to take another photo! Next time, Im going to roll it out even thinner and bake it a bit longer for an even crisper pizza!
Id love to hear what you make with a sourdough starter if you use one. And if you havent tried a sourdough starter yet because youve been intimidated or think its too time consuming, it really isnt that hard. Just 5 minutes in the morning and evening to keep it going. A worthwhile investment!
Barn Hop 84
Thank you to everyone who has been linking back to Homestead Revival, The Prairie Homestead, or New Life on a Homestead. Its like flying the colors of the homestead community and showing others the way to a great life living closer to the land!
Wonderwoman at Blissville Living is making things a lot more sustainable on her homestead by feeding her chickens the seeds from this years mammoth sunflowers... as you know, I love this kind of thing! Way to go Wonderwoman! Im definitely going to work harder to get my sunflower seeds in the ground next year.
If youve been featured in the past...
If youve been a featured blogger on the Barn Hop, either today or in the past, we now have a special button for you should you wish to add it to your sidebar stating that youve been a featured blogger! You can find it on my button page by clicking the hen with the blue barn on my sidebar that says "HR Buttons". Its a good idea to link it back to the page where you were featured so your readers can see where youre actually mentioned. (These buttons do not have a code since it needs to be linked to the page youre featured in and it will change from week to week. Just copy the button or drag it to your desktop).
.jpg)
Join The Barn Hop!
Jill @ The Prairie Homestead
Kendra @ New Life on a Homestead
and Amy @ Homestead Revival...
...invite you to link up and share your homesteading adventures!
Did you share any cool new homesteading tips on your blog this week? If so, we’d love to have you link up below! Even if you don’t have a blog, we always welcome your comments!
Please remember that the Homestead Barn Hop is meant to be a place to share homesteading related encouragement and inspiring ideas specfically related to homesteading. In an effort to keep our weekly round-up clutter free, links which are not specifically homestead related, and any promotions such as giveaways, contests, carnivals, etc, will be deleted in order to maintain the integrity of the Barn Hop. Please remember this is a family friendly link up. Any pictures or posts linked to the hop which aren’t appropriate for our children to view or read will also be deleted immediately. We’re pretty conservative, so we ask that you use good judgment and err on the side of caution.
Make sure that you link to your Barn Hop post, not your blog’s main page, so your guests won’t have any trouble finding your great tips!
We would also appreciate it if you would link back to the Homestead Barn Hop in the post that you share! Feel free to grab the banner at the top of this post to link back to us with.
Want a chance to be a “Featured Homestead” next week?
Occasionally there is a problem posting due to glitches in the internet or the Linky Tools. If you have difficulties posting and it does not show up immediately, please wait a little while and try re-posting (this helps avoid double posting). Were sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, be we do not have absolute control over the internet. Thank you for your patience and understanding!
Langganan:
Postingan (Atom)