Hen House Diaries

He Wants To Be A Model

2011-11-23T15:07:00.001-05:00

Otis is looking for a new home. We had planned to get pygmy does at one point, so at the time getting him seemed like a good idea. Unfortunately things fell through concerning the does so we really don't have a reason to keep him other than as a pet.

If any of you reading this has buck goats, they will know why they don't always make good pets. When they are in Rut, they can get a little aggressive, not to mention smelly. Also, when he can smell that the does we do have are in heat, it is stressful for him.

So you can see why it would be better to find him a home where he can be more useful. Although I'm not sure he's planning to stay with farm life. He seems to want a modeling job. He's working on his portfolio now. Here are his current head shots:

All of us here at Bramble Valley Homestead (our now official farm name) hope that you and yours have a wonderful Thanksgiving (if you are in the US) if you choose to celebrate it.

Gratitude

2011-11-14T19:44:00.001-05:00

I can hardly believe it's been nearly three months since I last posted. Life has been busy this fall and sometimes things fall by the wayside. Somehow it seems it is always those things I enjoy the most that get pushed aside when I get busy. I have missed posting and hope to be doing it on a semi-regular basis at the least from now on.

Being that it is November and a Monday I thought it was the perfect time to get back into it with a Gratitude post. As hectic and stressful as the last few months have been, I think I need it.

Today I am grateful for:
1) Knowing where my food comes from.
2) Good friends I know I can always count on.
3) The hugs of my children that somehow make the worst day seem worth while.

What are you grateful for today?

A Sandwich Fit For a Husband

2011-08-21T13:32:00.003-04:00

Now and then I come up with something that just begs to be called man food. This is one of those things. It is simply two slices of turkey lunch meat (fried), two fried eggs, a slice of cheese, some mayo and some good German mustard between two slices of whole wheat bread. Delicious.

Family Reunion In The Rain

2011-08-20T22:30:00.003-04:00

When summer events are planned, everyone always hopes for the best weather. Unfortunately it has to rain sometimes. As dry as this summer has been, the rain was welcomed in my garden. However, I don't think the family was really in need of watering.

Regardless of the rain, it was a great time. I really enjoyed the time with my mom's side of my family. It was the first time some of them had met my family, and the first time I had seen some since I was a child.

Here are some pictures of the rain:

Thank you to my cousin Camilla for all the work you put into making this happen. Rain can't ruin family bonds. We love you all.

Facebooking Bunny

2011-08-19T16:56:00.003-04:00

Meg has decided this little guy is going to be her new showmanship rabbit. She brought him in the house today. Somehow he ended up on my desk and took over my facebook page for a bit.

What The Girls Have Been Up To

2011-08-03T11:13:00.002-04:00

Not long ago Jade and Meg decided they wanted to try breeding their mini-rex rabbits as a way to make some extra money on the side. They need to make some repairs to their hutches and feed is getting more and more expensive.

The first couple of breeding attempts were not successful. As the saying goes, third times the charm. Here are a couple of my favorite mini-rex babies we have right now.

This one is a red broken. I can't tell if it's a buck or doe yet though. It seems to have very good color. If I could convince the girls to part with a some of the pet only rabbits that we have, I might let them keep it long enough to see how it does on a show table.

I would love to have better pictures to show you of this one. It seems to be hard to get good color distribution on a tricolor like this. If this one has good body type when it gets bigger, I think I will try to find a way to let the girls keep it long enough for one show and then sell it.

Most of the babies are what are called "Charlies" in the world of rabbit showing. That means that there is something about them that would disqualify them on the show table. This one and possibly one hymalayan colored baby are the only ones we have out of nine that have any chance of being show worthy.

If we do get rid of these ones, I think we will try to sell them straight off the farm rather than through Family Farm & Home like the girls plan to do with the pet quality ones.

Otis Gets A Friend

2011-08-02T22:40:00.002-04:00

Otis has been a wonderful addition to our farm. But since we don't want the girls kidding in December (or January for that matter) we have had to keep him in a pen by himself. I have felt very sorry for him being all alone. Goats are very social and Otis is no exception. He would stand at the fence and call to us until someone would come out to see him.

As you can see in the above picture, he is a very nice looking boy. I was very worried about getting him because I've heard horror stories about pygmy goats being a bit on the wild side and this boy has horns! I love his horns, I think they make him look old and wise. I am so glad that he is loving and kind. Even being in full rut with the girls just on the other side of the wall he has never been the least bit aggressive.

Jade has been saying for the last year or so that she wanted to do a market goat as a 4H project and we have toyed with the idea of raising some goats specifically for meat. Since our budget this year is rather tight with needing to buy hay and already being stretched for our angoras (coming in just two weeks!!) we had no money left for breeding stock.

So Jade opted to spend her own money on this little guy. He is full boar and just six weeks old. With any luck he will be ready to breed in just another two months or so. Then Jade can breed him to Cream Soda, who is part boar, in hopes of getting a nice market goat to take to fair next year.

Normally we would keep new goats separated from all the other goats on the farm for two weeks just to observe them and be sure of their health. Since this buckling is only six weeks old and was just pulled from his mother, we opted to take the chance of introducing him to Otis right away. We felt that would be better for the baby since boars do tend to stress badly when first separated from their mothers.

I love this picture because you can see here just how small Otis really is. He is so muscular that all alone in pictures people tend to think he's much larger than he is. While he is barely taller than the buckling, he is much longer and wider. I wonder how long it will be until the younger one is bigger than him.

So now our only dilemma is what to name the little boy goat.

If anyone is wondering, yes the little boar has horns. We have having them removed on Thursday. I debated since they are already over an inch long and it will be an ordeal. The main reason that I decided to go ahead and get it done is because this goat is for a 4H project. That means that Jade will be the one primarily responsible for handling the care are breeding with him. Yes, we will be helping her where she needs it. However, she is only 10 and boar goats are strong and a boar goat in rut is protective of his females. So I don't want to leave him with weapons that could cause serious hard to any of my children. Wish us (especially him) luck with the dehorning on Thursday.

Next up....adorable baby bunnies.

Still Alive and Well...

2011-07-13T20:07:00.003-04:00

It's been brought to my attention that I haven't posted in quite some time. We have been so busy with various projects and family things that I just haven't taken the time from my sleep schedule to post.

Since I have nothing going on this evening, I thought it would be a good time to post a bit of an update. So here's the good and bad of what has been happening here this spring and summer so far.

First off Jade went to the 4H Rabbit and Cavy Expo at Michigan State University in June. I don't remember the full results. I think her Junior team took first place in Cavy Judging. I do know that Jade took second place over all in the state for individuals in Cavy Judging. I'm very proud of her. She is really learning her stuff.

On a sadder note, we lost two goats this year. The first was Ginger Ale. We aren't sure why she died. She had no signs or symptoms of any kind. She was never as energetic or curious as any other goat I've ever met. She just wasn't very "goat like", for lack of a better way to describe it. We wonder now if she may have had some sort of genetic defect that we didn't know about. The other goat we lost was Leah. With her it was coccidiosis. Unfortunately by the time I realized something was wrong with her it was too late. We started her on medication, but it wasn't soon enough.

Luckily the other two goats are as healthy as ever and have been treated for coccidiosis as well to avoid any more tragedy.

On a happier note, it's the time of year for ducklings and chicks.

We have an abundance of ducklings this year. We thought we were limiting the number of eggs in the nests, but it seems that those mother ducks are sneakier than we realized.

We don't have the abundance of chicks that we were hoping for with the bantam chicks though. It took three clutches for us to finally get a hatch, and that hatch only has seven chicks. Seven would be a great number if we were only hatching for ourselves, but we have had a few 4H families that have wanted chicks this year. With any luck we will still be able to get another hatch this summer and maybe make some kids happy.

We also have added our first buck to the goat herd. He's a pygmy goat that I'm head over heels in love with. His previous owners called him "Shaggy", but we decided that the name "Ottis" is more fitting.

We are considering some new options with our goat herd over all here. The kids aren't crazy about the goat milk and although I like it, I'm not a big milk drinker. So adding more dairy goats to our herd really doesn't make much sense.

Jade would like to add a boer goat to the herd so she can raise market goats for the fair. I've also been offered a pair of nice pygmy does. We are also considering adding some angora goats to the herd.

Whatever we decide we need to add either another buck or a wether to be a companion to Ottis. I think the pygmy and angora options are both good ones since I can cross them and grow a nice fiber herd. I'd love to have my own ready source of fiber instead of having to buy it.

Other than animal stuff going on, there is the garden. As always it needs to be weeded. It seems like no matter how much I weed it still needs to be done.

I planted purple beans this year and I am so glad that I did. The plants them selves are such a dark rich green with a hint of purple hue. Then the blooms start out as dark purple buds that slowly lighten as they open up. I love seeing that sort of beauty in my veggie garden. It makes me happy. I think I will grow them every year.

A Walk Out Back

2011-06-13T12:09:00.004-04:00

I was going to call this post "A Walk In The Woods", but that doesn't quite fit since most of our walk was around the woods rather than in the woods.

It was so nice to see everything in bloom and all the green around us.

I don't remember ever noticing the Locust trees having so many blooms before. They were just gorgeous this year.

They make up the majority of the woods on the east side of our property.

I was happy to see that the black berries, raspberries and dew berries are all blooming nicely as well. I'm not sure what is going on, but the black berries seem to be early this year. I'm going to have to watch them close. My goal is to make all of the jelly and jams that we need for a whole year. Even better would be if I had extras that I could use as gifts.
Ruger is especially fond of our walks out back since he gets to be off his leash. He does so great with the "Leave It" command that he will even stop when chasing a rabbit.

One of the best parts of our walk was discovering several baby oak trees up on the ridge. When we moved in here almost 12 years ago there was only one young oak tree on the property. I think it was about two years ago that we discovered it was finally producing a few acorns. If all the baby trees survive we will have more than a dozen young oaks.

I love spring and summer when I can walk in the woods and enjoy the sights, sounds and smells. It almost makes me forget how much I hate snow.

Gratitude

2011-06-13T12:05:00.003-04:00

Another week has passed. I can hardly believe how fast the time has been going by this spring. At least now that school is done there is a slight possibility I will have a few more minutes during the week to concentrate on my blog. We'll see how that works out.

Today I am grateful for:

Sunshine
Sleep
Kitchen drawers

What are you grateful for today?

Gratitude

2011-06-06T10:37:00.003-04:00

It's been a while since I did a Monday morning gratitude post. I apologize for that. The past month has been kind of crazy for us. On top of scheduling too many field trips with the kids school (the nearest of which was an hour away) we have had crisis after crisis here lately. Mostly vehicle related, which kept me house bound for more than a week straight. While I don't mind being home, there's something that leaves me almost feeling caged about knowing I can't just pack up the kids and run to town if I want to. But we made it through and all in all, things are good here.

Today I am grateful for:

A vehicle that holds the whole family at once and runs
Good neighbors
Summer!!!

What are you grateful for today? Remember to find joy in the little things, it will outshine the looming shadows.

One Less Tooth

2011-05-19T09:22:00.003-04:00

Meg lost her first baby tooth yesterday! She was a little scared and was a bit worried that it would hurt or that she would miss her tooth when it was gone. Luckily her sister's stories about the Tooth Fairy and what can be bought with the money made it better.

Unfortunately the Tooth Fairy is a flighty creature. She didn't show up. So when Meg woke up this morning all she found under her pillow was her tooth. Whoops!!

So I told Meg that sometimes things happen to make the Tooth Fairy get off schedule so she has to come a day late. So that has me wondering, what excuses have other moms out there had to give for the Tooth Fairy being late?

Gratitude

2011-05-11T20:43:00.000-04:00

It seems I've missed my Monday morning Gratitude posts for a few Mondays in a row now. So I thought I'd try to get one posted right now while I'm thinking about it and almost have time. It seems the closer we get to the end of the school year, the busier I am. With all the kids outside activities, field trips and needing to finish lessons on time, I am out of time.

Today I am grateful for:

Sunshine and warm weather
Guinea fowl
My dog, who loves me no matter what side of the bed I wake up on.
Sleep

What are you grateful for?

Six Years Old Today

2011-05-04T07:23:00.005-04:00

Yes, I know I missed TWO Gratitude posts. I will get back to that later. Today something more important is happening. My Megan is turning six years old.

Just look at how sweet and tiny she was at just four months old:

And now look what happens when she gets a hold of my camera:

Happy Birthday sweetie, I love you.

Shearing Day Pictures!

2011-04-20T18:37:00.005-04:00

Almost two weeks ago Chickasaw Farm hosted their annual Spring Open House, aka Shearing Day. This is the second year that we have gone. Last year was the start of something for me. It was when I discovered the joy of spinning with a drop spindle. I've been spinning ever since.

When I got the reminder in the mail about this years Shearing Day, I cleared my calendar. We had a great time. Here are some of the best pictures of the day.

Here you can see champion shearer Nick Weaver shearing a sheep.

Here a few ladies are skirting the fleece. Skirting is picking out all the badly soiled and matter wool, poop and vegetation so that when the fleece is sent out to be processed it comes back nice and clean like it should.

Something there this year that wasn't last year were vendors. Evelyn from The Old Farm Girl had some wonderful weaving wool for sale at a great price. I wish I could have bought it all up. I'd love to weave some nice rugs. Maybe next time.

Someone also had all of this beautiful spun yarn for sale. Again, I didn't have enough money for everything I wanted.

These skirts were so amazing! The top is made from the top of old jeans. The lady sews a fabric skirt on and there you have it. I can't believe I forgot to get the lady's name and etsy store address. I will be on the lookout for one of these in my size.

Here are bags and bags of raw fleece on the porch of the store. This was just a small portion of what was available. Inside the store were more glorious things to be had. Yarn, wool, various knitted items, books, spindles, and even a pair of hand carders (which I bought!).

Here is a momma sheep with her two babies that were born not long before we arrived. See the little black one? His name is Odin and I really want to buy him from Sheila. I wonder if he would live OK with my goats? He's just the cutest lamb I have ever seen in my life.

They also have alpaca at the farm. They aren't sheared on the same day as the sheep. I am told they are too unpredictable to do with so many people around. But we do get to look at them and that keeps Meg happy.

This is some of the cast off wool from skirting. This is the stuff that I too dirty or matted to be cleaned, carded and spun.

Here we have a few ladies who brought their wheels and sat spinning in the afternoon. As you can see, even though it was jacket weather the sun was shining and everyone was having a great time.

And of course, the kids have to get some sort of goody at any event like that. A lady there had these beautiful knitted finger puppets for sale. Most were alpacas, which of course Meg got, but there were also chickens and a Santa. Jade took a chicken and Braden chose the Santa. I was so grateful they all chose differently.

If you live in the Reed City area and have any interest in the fiber arts I would recommend contacting Chickasaw Farm to find out about the workshops they host in the spring and summer months.

A huge thank you to Pat and Sheila for opening up their farm for a great day of fun.

Gratitude

2011-04-19T11:01:00.002-04:00

I was out of town most of the day Sunday and Monday. It never occurred to me to make my gratitude post when I finally got home last night. I don't like to do it ahead of time because I like writing what I'm grateful for at the time the post goes live.

Today I am grateful for:

Time with my husband
Possibilities and choices
Spring

What are you grateful for today?

Gratitude

2011-04-11T11:13:00.002-04:00

What a beautiful weekend. The temps made it all the way to 78 degrees yesterday. The sun was shining and the kids played and played and played outside all day. All the windows on the house were open and the chickens were cleaning up the garden. We couldn't have asked for a better day.

Today I am grateful for:

Open windows
Broody hens
Green grass

What are you grateful for today?

Baby Goat Pictures

2011-04-05T14:58:00.002-04:00

Shamrock is officially living outside with the other goats now. This has not only been the best thing for her and for us, but also for her mother. Leah was just not giving milk like she should. With in hours of moving the baby outside she was finally taking care of her AND nursing her. This was shocking because she was 2 1/2 weeks old and had been only bottle fed to that point.

So now we are letting Shamrock nurse all day but separating her at night so I can milk in the morning. In just the first night, Leah's milk increased by 1/3.

Jade didn't want to give up having a bottle baby, so she takes Shamrock a small bottle in the morning while I milk Leah. That way I can take all the milk and Shamrock won't be completely starving when her mom comes back with an empty udder.

I love this picture. Ruger isn't overly fond of the goats. Cattle dogs don't like things that don't stay put when they want them too. However, Shamrock he finds to be at least tolerable. Probably because she was in the house for a couple weeks living with him.

Is it a goat or a rabbit? Shamrock still follows Jade around as much as she can. She is small enough to just walk through the holes in the livestock panels that make up the goat yard.

Oh wait, it's a Pointer! If you ever need something to make you smile, find a baby goat to watch.

We have new pets!

2011-04-04T15:49:00.001-04:00

We attended our very first Rabbit and Cavy show this weekend. We had a great time and Jade really learned a lot.

We had promised Jade that if she brought her science grade back up from a C to an A before the show we would get her a Cavy. For those of you who don't know, a Cavy is a Guinea Pig.

Of course she brought the grade up in no time and has kept it there. On top of that, she knows her mother is a sucker and it took her about 2 seconds to talk me into two Cavies rather than one.

The one with the white face is a boar. The other one is a sow. They are only together when they are out of their cages and supervised. Aren't they cute?

2011-04-04T11:55:00.002-04:00

Here it is the first week of April already. Where is the year going so fast? Not that I'm complaining. I love this time of year when the temps rise and the snow melts. We are hearing song birds along with the roosters crowing and goats bleating.

Today I am grateful for:

Melting Snow
April Showers
Guinea Pigs

What are you grateful for today?

I forgot!!

2011-04-01T10:11:00.003-04:00

I completely forgot to make my post for Daring Bakers on March 27. Better late than never, right?

The March 2011 Daring Baker’s Challenge was hosted by Ria of Ria’s Collection and Jamie of Life’s a Feast. Ria and Jamie challenged The Daring Bakers to bake a yeasted Meringue Coffee Cake.

The challenge for March was a Yeasted Meringue Coffee Cake. Honestly, it didn't sound all that great to me in the beginning. Really it just sounded like another sweet bread. I'm saying it didn't sound good, it just didn't sound like anything spectacular to me. I WAS WRONG! This coffee cake was amazing.

Since there are tons of blogs and web sites out there showing all the steps of making any yeast dough you have ever seen, and because my kitchen is still in a state of flux due to remodeling, I didn't include step by step photos this time, just the finished product.
Just look at the meringue and chocolate peeking out of the slits. It was almost melt in your mouth consistency and was perfect for the soft, sweet bread that wrapped it up.

See the beautiful swirls of chocolate and pecan that went inside with the meringue? I will be trying this again with different combinations of flavors inside. Some people even used less sugar in the dough and meringue and used savory fillings. The possibilities are endless and this dish is a feast for the eyes as much as the stomach.

Here is the recipe we received along with the variation ideas we were offered. I would have liked to try both and some of my own. May for April's challenge I will have time to play more.

FILLED MERINGUE COFFEE CAKE
Makes 2 round coffee cakes, each approximately 10 inches in diameter
The recipe can easily be halved to make one round coffee cake

Ingredients
For the yeast coffee cake dough:

4 cups (600 g / 1.5 lbs.) flour
¼ cup (55 g / 2 oz.) sugar
¾ teaspoon (5 g / ¼ oz.) salt
1 package (2 ¼ teaspoons / 7 g / less than an ounce) active dried yeast
¾ cup (180 ml / 6 fl. oz.) whole milk
¼ cup (60 ml / 2 fl. oz. water (doesn’t matter what temperature)
½ cup (135 g / 4.75 oz.) unsalted butter at room temperature
2 large eggs at room temperature

10 strands saffron for Ria’s version (Saffron might be hard to find and it’s expensive, so you can substitute with ½ - 1 teaspoon of ground cardamom or ground nutmeg. Or simply leave it plain like Jamie’s version)

For the meringue:

3 large egg whites at room temperature
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ cup (110 g / 4 oz.) sugar

For the filling:

Jamie’s version:
1 cup (110 g / 4 oz.) chopped pecans or walnuts
2 Tablespoons (30 g / 1 oz.) granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup (170 g / 6 oz.) semisweet chocolate chips or coarsely chopped chocolate

Ria’s version:
1 cup (130 g / 5 oz.) chopped cashew nuts
2 Tablespoons (30 g / 1 oz.) granulated sugar
½ teaspoon garam masala (You can make it at home – recipe below - or buy from any Asian/Indian grocery store)
1 cup (170g / 6 oz.) semisweet chocolate chips ( I used Ghirardelli)

Egg wash: 1 beaten egg
Cocoa powder (optional) and confectioner’s sugar (powdered/icing sugar) for dusting cakes

**Garam (means “hot”) masala (means “mixture”) is a blend of ground spices and is used in most Indian savory dishes. It is used in limited quantities while cooking vegetables, meats & eggs. There is no “one” recipe for it as every household has a recipe of their own. Below, I am going to share the recipe which I follow.

4 or 5 sticks (25 g) Cinnamon Sticks (break a stick and open the scroll)
3 ½ tablespoons (25 g / less than an ounce) Cloves, whole
100 g. (3.5 oz.) Fennel seeds
4 tablespoons (25 g / less than an ounce) Cumin seeds
1 ½ tablespoons (10 g / less than half an ounce) Peppercorns
25 g (less than half an ounce) Green Cardamom pods

In a small pan on medium heat, roast each spice individually (it hardly takes a minute) until you get a nice aroma. Make sure you stir it throughout so that it doesn’t burn. As soon as each spice is roasted, transfer it to a bowl to cool slightly. Once they are all roasted, grind into a fine powder by using a coffee grinder, or pestle & mortar. Store in an airtight container and use as needed.

Directions:

Prepare the dough:

In a large mixing bowl, combine 1 ½ cups (230 g) of the flour, the sugar, salt and yeast.

In a saucepan, combine the milk, water and butter and heat over medium heat until warm and the butter is just melted. Ria’s version: add the 10 saffron threads to the warmed liquid and allow to steep off of the heat for 10 minutes. This will give the mixture a distinct aroma and flavor and a yellowish-orange hue.

With an electric mixer on low speed, gradually add the warm liquid to the flour/yeast mixture, beating until well blended. Increase mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes. Add the eggs and 1 cup (150 g) flour and beat for 2 more minutes.

Using a wooden spoon, stir in enough of the remaining flour to make a dough that holds together. Turn out onto a floured surface (use any of the 1 ½ cups of flour remaining) and knead the dough for 8 to 10 minutes until the dough is soft, smooth, sexy and elastic, keeping the work surface floured and adding extra flour as needed.

Place the dough in a lightly greased (I use vegetable oil) bowl, turning to coat all sides. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel and let rise until double in bulk, 45 – 60 minutes. The rising time will depend on the type of yeast you use.

Prepare your filling:In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon and sugar for the filling if using. You can add the chopped nuts to this if you like, but I find it easier to sprinkle on both the nuts and the chocolate separately.

Once the dough has doubled, make the meringue:

In a clean mixing bowl – ideally a plastic or metal bowl so the egg whites adhere to the side (they slip on glass) and you don’t end up with liquid remaining in the bottom – beat the egg whites with the salt, first on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high and continue beating until foamy and opaque. Add the vanilla then start adding the ½ cup sugar, a tablespoon at a time as you beat, until very stiff, glossy peaks form.

Assemble the Coffee Cakes:

Line 2 baking/cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Punch down the dough and divide in half. On a lightly floured surface, working one piece of the dough at a time (keep the other half of the dough wrapped in plastic), roll out the dough into a 20 x 10-inch (about 51 x 25 ½ cm) rectangle. Spread half of the meringue evenly over the rectangle up to about 1/2-inch (3/4 cm) from the edges. Sprinkle half of your filling of choice evenly over the meringue (ex: half of the cinnamon-sugar followed by half the chopped nuts and half of the chocolate chips/chopped chocolate).

Now, roll up the dough jellyroll style, from the long side. Pinch the seam closed to seal. Very carefully transfer the filled log to one of the lined cookie sheets, seam side down. Bring the ends of the log around and seal the ends together, forming a ring, tucking one end into the other and pinching to seal.

Using kitchen scissors or a sharp knife (although scissors are easier), make cuts along the outside edge at 1-inch (2 ½ cm) intervals. Make them as shallow or as deep as desired but don’t be afraid to cut deep into the ring.

Repeat with the remaining dough, meringue and fillings.

Cover the 2 coffee cakes with plastic wrap and allow them to rise again for 45 to 60 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).

Brush the tops of the coffee cakes with the egg wash. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes until risen and golden brown. The dough should sound hollow when tapped.

Remove from the oven and slide the parchment paper off the cookie sheets onto the table. Very gently loosen the coffee cakes from the paper with a large spatula and carefully slide the cakes off onto cooling racks. Allow to cool.

Just before serving, dust the tops of the coffee cakes with confectioner’s sugar as well as cocoa powder if using chocolate in the filling. These are best eaten fresh, the same day or the next day.

Gratitude

2011-03-28T09:41:00.003-04:00

Yikes!! A whole week with no posts. That's just not right. I promise to get some more pictures of Shamrock, the baby goat, up soon. She's so cute.

Today I am grateful for:

Sunshine
Friends who don't press me when I say I'm not ready to talk about something
My kids

What are you grateful for today?

2011-03-21T11:59:00.002-04:00

What a beautiful week we had here last week. It was great to lead into spring that way here. Of course they are calling for snow this week, but that's Michigan for you.

Today I'm grateful for:

A husband who deals with a baby goat in the living room even though it drives him nuts.
A daughter who cleans up after said baby goat since she is the one who wanted the bottle baby so badly.
Snuggles from my dog.

What are you grateful for today?

Meet Shamrock

2011-03-18T13:08:00.003-04:00

Yesterday Jade went out to check on the goats and see how they were coming along. Leah was the closest to kidding, but I didn't think she was quite ready to go yet. It seems that I was wrong. When Jade got there, she had kidded. One baby was dead, the other only half cleaned. Leah didn't seem to interested in taking care of her.

I knew she was cold and being fast was important. So I got the little doeling in the house and Jade dried her and held her until she warmed up. I managed to get a little colostrum our of leah and fed that to the baby with a syringe.

For some reason Leah isn't bagging up as well as she should, so I haven't been able to get much out of her for the baby. Luckily the friend I bought her from had saved some of her colostrum from last year and gave me that for the baby.

It's taken more than 24 hours, but the baby is finally starting to show some interest in her surroundings. I don't know if she had just gotten too cold or if something else was going on. She was standing by yesterday afternoon, but showed no interest in walking until just this afternoon. Mostly she is just sleeping.

There are other things that make me wonder if she was actually just a little premature. For example, she won't open her mouth for the bottle when she is hungry. Once I manage to force it in her mouth, she can suck on it but it's like she can't figure out how to get it there herself.

While I know that I could probably get Leah to take her and nurse her, Jade is quite excited to have a bottle baby to train up for fair. So I think it's all working out. Even Ruger is being gentle with her. As I type this he's napping right in front of her crate, almost like he's guarding her.

Gratitude

2011-03-14T11:24:00.002-04:00

The sun is shining today and that somehow always makes me feel more positive. I think that this remembering to be grateful thing is helping as well. I haven't been remembering to write it in my journal every day, but I find myself thinking about it more and more. Even in frustrating situations where I would have just complained and stewed about it. Don't get me wrong, I still complain when I'm frustrated, but I seem to get over it sooner and remember to be glad it's not worse. Basically I find I'm reminding myself not to sweat the small stuff.

Today I'm grateful for:

Laughter
Sunshine
Smiles on my kids faces

What are you grateful for today?

Baby Watch Starts Today

2011-03-12T11:58:00.002-05:00

Goat gestation is 150 days. Today is 150 days since the girls were first taken to my friends farm for an extended stay with their buck.

So now we watch and wait. Since two of the girls are first fresheners (that means they have never had babies before) I have no idea if they will show signs of getting ready before it's time. Some goats do and other done. Leah, our full Nubian doe, is showing signs but doesn't seem quite there yet. Her udder is noticeably larger today, but not really tight like I would expect. Her ligaments are loosening, but not gone. The other two have no signs at all.

While I expect Leah to first, there is no guarantee. Some goats just don't udder up or loose their ligaments until they start labor.

Regardless of who goes first, I can't wait for the babies! There is nothing as cute as a baby goat.

Four Years Old?!

2011-03-10T09:49:00.003-05:00

Today is Braden's fourth birthday. I tried to post a picture of him as a baby and a picture of him from last week. For some reason I'm having trouble getting the pictures to load on blogger. Not sure why. *pout*

I almost can't believe he's gotten so big. He's a normal, healthy little boy. You would never know he had such a rough start in life. If you are somewhat new to my blog, you can read about Braden's rough start HERE.

I'm just glad that four is still little enough to give his momma lots of snuggles. I think it's time for me to have one of those snuggles now. Happy birthday, Braden. I love you.

Gratitude

2011-03-07T08:15:00.003-05:00

A whole week without posting. Yikes. Maybe this week will be less busy.

Today is a bit of a hard day for me. It would have been my dad's 57th birthday. I miss him just as much today as I did when he died. So in his honor this post will focus on the things I'm grateful for about the time I had my dad.

Today I'm grateful for:

All the memories of fishing with my dad, even the ice fishing.
The lemon pledge that made my rusty old Mustang shine.
The strong work ethic my dad refused to let me grow up without.

Happy birthday Papa. I miss you.

Gratitude

2011-02-28T07:34:00.000-05:00

Here we are at another Monday. The weeks seem to be flying by lately. I'm not complaining though, the faster winter is over the better. :o)

I've struggled some with this gratitude challenge I've issued myself. I was looking at the simple little things I was writing in my journal and thinking that they didn't seem grand enough. But suddenly today I realized it's the little things that make life grand. I suddenly realized that it's so important to be grateful for all of those little things.

Life isn't made up of a string of grand things. It's made up of a string of little things with the occasional grand thing thrown in. So you see, it's the little things that matter most.

Today I am grateful for:

Hot cups of tea
The laughter of my children
Fresh eggs
My husband

What are you grateful for today?

Box City

2011-02-27T07:41:00.000-05:00

Last week Jade and a couple of her friends had the opportunity to participate in a Box City project as part of Festival Of The Arts. The kids built a model of an entire city out of boxes and other materials.

I could try to tell you all about it and what exactly went on, but I wasn't there so I don't really know the details. Sometimes it's hard to get many details out of a 10 year old. What I do know is that there were professors and students from Ferris State University on hand to help and that the kids got to learn about things like zoning permits. But that's about all I know. So here are some pictures I took of the finished project a few days after it was finished.

Daring Bakers: Panna Cotta and Florentine Cookies

2011-02-27T00:33:00.001-05:00

The February 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Mallory from A Sofa in the Kitchen. She chose to challenge everyone to make Panna Cotta from a Giada De Laurentiis recipe and Nestle Florentine Cookies.

It's been a long time since I've participated in a Daring Bakers challenge. I'm so glad that I decided this month was the month to rejoin. The challenge was to make Panna Cotta and Nestle Florentine Cookies.

We were given a basic Panna Cotta recipe and a Chocolate Panna Cotta recipe. We were also give pretty much free reign on putting our own twist on the Panna Cotta, along with a suggestion of adding a Gelee to it.

But the challenge doesn't end there. It is called Daring Bakers after all, and neither Panna Cotta or Gelee are baked. So we were given the assignment to make Nestle Florentine Cookies to go along with it. To make a great balance of creamy and crunchy.

Pictures are sparse this time around because of the renovation going on in my kitchen. Hopefully that change for next month.

A huge thank you to Mallory from A Sofa In The Kitchen for hosting this months Daring Bakers challenge.

Again due to the kitchen issues we have going on, I only had time to make one Panna Cotta recipe. Just the basic one. It wasn't our favorite thing, but we did all like it on some level. I can't wait to try it with some variations. I'm really wishing I would have thought to add some vanilla extract in it. Jade and I have come up with a few flavor variations we would like to try, like vanilla and cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice.

I wasn't overly fond of the Gelee recipe. But the kids loved it, so I may try it again. It's basically Jell-O made from scratch.

Now for the cookies. They were wonderful. Crunchy, chocolaty, sweet. What more could you want from a cookie. The best part for me was that they were very rich in flavor so I really didn't want more than one at a time. It made them last longer and it helped to keep me from over indulging.

In the end, I'm glad I made these. I will make each of these things again. The Panna Cotta and Gelee are great base recipes to build on. Both offer a lot of room for experimentation.

Be sure to check out the Daring Bakers Blog Roll to see what others did. You'll find some wonderful and very creative variations to inspire you.

Giada's Panna Cotta

Ingredients

1 cup (240 ml) whole milk
1 tablespoon (one packet) (15 ml) (7 gm) (¼ oz) unflavored powdered gelatin
3 cups (720 ml) whipping cream (30+% butterfat)
1/3 cup (80 ml) honey
1 tablespoon (15 ml) (15 gm) (½ oz) granulated sugar
pinch of salt

Directions:

Pour the milk into a bowl or pot and sprinkle gelatin evenly and thinly over the milk (make sure the bowl/pot is cold by placing the bowl/pot in the refrigerator for a few minutes before you start making the Panna Cotta). Let stand for 5 minutes to soften the gelatin.
Pour the milk into the saucepan/pot and place over medium heat on the stove. Heat this mixture until it is hot, but not boiling, about five minutes. (I whisk it a few times at this stage).
Next, add the cream, honey, sugar, and pinch of salt. Making sure the mixture doesn't boil, continue to heat and stir occasionally until the sugar and honey have dissolved 5-7 minutes.
Remove from heat, allow it to sit for a few minutes to cool slightly. Then pour into the glass or ramekin.
Refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight. Add garnishes and serve.

Nestle Florentine Cookies

Recipe from the cookbook “Nestle Classic Recipes”, and their website.

Ingredients:
2/3 cup (160 ml) (150 gm) (5.3 oz) unsalted butter
2 cups (480 ml) (160 gm) (5 2/3 oz) quick oats
1 cup (240 ml) (230 gm) (8 oz) granulated sugar
2/3 cup (160 ml) (95 gm) (3⅓ oz) plain (all purpose) flour
1/4 cup (60 ml) dark corn syrup
1/4 cup (60 ml) whole milk
1 tsp (5 ml) vanilla extract
pinch of salt
1½ cups (360 ml) (250 gm) (9 oz) dark or milk chocolate

Directions:
Preheat oven to moderately hot 375°F (190°C) (gas mark 5). Prepare your baking sheet with silpat or parchment paper.

Melt butter in a medium saucepan, then remove from the heat.

To the melted butter add oats, sugar, flour, corn syrup, milk, vanilla, and salt. Mix well. Drop a tablespoon full, three inches (75 mm) apart, onto your prepared baking sheet. Flatten slightly with the back of your tablespoon, or use a spatula.

Bake in preheated oven for 6-8 minutes, until cookies are golden brown. Cool completely on the baking sheets.

While the cookies are cooling melt your chocolate until smooth either in the microwave (1 1/2 minutes), or stovetop (in a double boiler, or a bowl that fits atop a saucepan filled with a bit of water, being sure the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl).

Peel the cookies from the silpat or parchment and place face down on a wire rack set over a sheet of wax/parchment paper (to keep counters clean).

Spread a tablespoon of chocolate on the bottom/flat side of your cookie, sandwiching another (flat end) cookie atop the chocolate.

This recipe will make about 2 1/2 - 3 dozen sandwiched Florentine cookies. You can also choose not to sandwich yours, in which case, drizzle the tops with chocolate (over your wax paper).

Fruit Gelée

Recipe by Mallory

Ingredients:
1 cup (240 ml) (230 gm) (8 oz) fruit (strawberries, raspberries, mango, blackberry, etc.)
*Note: Certain fruits interact with gelatin and stop it gelling like pineapple and kiwi etc.
3 tablespoons (45 ml) water
1/4 cup (60 ml) (60 gm) (2 oz) granulated sugar
1½ teaspoons (7½ ml) (3½ gm) (1/8 oz) unflavored powdered gelatin

Directions:

Sprinkle gelatin over water.
Place fruit and sugar in a small saucepan and simmer until sugar has dissolved. Now mix the gelatin into the strawberry mixture and stir until gelatin has dissolved.
Remove from heat and allow to cool (close to room temp, again, if you're planning on layering on pouring on top of your Panna Cotta, a hot mixture will also heat up your chilled Panna Cotta).

Has it really been a year?

2011-02-22T02:26:00.000-05:00

I realized last week that Ruger has been with us for more than a year now. Looking back on the last year I have to say I'm so very glad that we have him. There were some rough patches. He needed to learn to trust us and we needed to teach him where he fit in.

He's a great dog with a lot of energy. All he wants is to be by my side. That is unless Rob is heading out to do chores. Then all he wants to do is go with Rob.

Gratitude

2011-02-21T02:22:00.003-05:00

Another busy week has come and gone. It's amazing how fast time seems to pass the older I get.

Today I am grateful for:

Afternoon naps
My goose
Being just busy enough to keep me motivated

What are you grateful for today?

Gratitude

2011-02-14T09:56:00.002-05:00

I completely forgot to make my gratitude post last Monday. I was busy all weekend and then most of the week. It just slipped my mind. So today I will post double. This could be hard.

Today I am grateful for:

A husband who ignores the fact that he wasn't suppose to buy me anything (we already got each other gifts early) for Valentine's Day and bought me a card that made me cry.
Temperatures above freezing
Constant hugs from my son
Breakfast that I didn't have to make
A comforting cup of hot green tea

What are you grateful for today.

2011-02-02T10:07:00.003-05:00

I know that many of you have more snow than we have here. Somehow that's little consolation given the work it's going to take us to get into the pole barn today.

I'm not sure if you can tell from this picture or not, but the snow in the driveway was actually deeper than the clearance on the van. There will be no driving today. I'm just very grateful that Rob made it home from work OK. A huge thank you to the person who plowed a narrow path with his truck down our road. Without it Rob says he wouldn't have made it home.

Good luck to everyone who has been hit by the storm. If you can stay in and stay warm. If you are lucky enough to have been missed by the storm, don't forget to count your blessings.

Gratitude

2011-01-31T21:35:00.003-05:00

I apologize for getting this up so late today. Things have been busy and, as usual, I'm trying to do more things in a week than there are hours for. But I'm not complaining. Being too busy is much better than being too idle. For mind, body and soul.

Today I am grateful for:

Seeing the world though the eyes of my children.
Chocolate.
My mom.

What are you grateful for today?

My Goose

2011-01-26T07:06:00.002-05:00

Please forgive the wobble. I'm not nearly as steady as I think I am. I just wanted to share a little video of my goose. I'm completely in love with her.

Goats and Cookies

2011-01-25T06:59:00.000-05:00

Over at Chickens In The Road Suzanne talks often of giving her goats cookies. This inspired me to feed them some very stale, yet not spoiled, sugar cookies left over from Christmas.

The goats loved it. It does, however, make it hard to take pictures.

My Nephew

2011-01-24T13:08:00.003-05:00

This is my nephew, Jimmy. This is his Warrior Face. It's the face he uses when he wants to scare cancer. You see, Jimmy's friend, Max, passed away on Thanksgiving day from cancer. Max was working hard to raise money for childhood cancer research. Since his passing, many have come together to continue raising cancer in memory of Max.

Jimmy has a goal to raise $1,000 by February 12, 2011. He is only nine years old, yet has put so much passion and effort into what he wants to accomplish that it's easy to forget he's so young. I'm very proud of him and really want to see him reach this goal. I learned from him that seven children die every day from childhood cancer. SEVEN children!

If you are a parent that number is mind numbing. That means that every day seven mothers hug their child for the last time. Seven fathers kiss their children goodnight never to do it again. As a mother just the thought of losing one of my children is so painful I can hardly breathe. If we can keep just one family from suffering this horrible loss, it will be worth everything.

If you are able, please consider donating. Every dollar counts. CLICK HERE to donate.

As a bonus, if Jimmy reaches his goal by the deadline, my sister will be shaving her head. I'd love to see that, especially knowing the reason behind it.

Gratitude

2011-01-24T06:46:00.000-05:00

Has another week really come and gone already? I can hardly believe it's time for another gratitude post.

Four weeks in though, it's getting easier to be grateful for the little things. I'm not saying it's been perfect. I've spent a lot of years brooding over pointless things that are beyond my control. I'm sure I'm not the only one. It's just taking a little more to rattle me these days. I'm hoping it's a trend.

Today I'm grateful for:

Children who are getting along.
Snuggly bunnies.
Goats who like cookies.
Roosters who let me pet them.

What are you grateful for this week?

Apple Sauce With A Pear Twist

2011-01-23T18:06:00.003-05:00

When I found out that these gorgeous organic gala and golden delicious apples were on sale for $1.28 a pound, I just had to buy plenty.

Then I saw that these beautiful organic pears were on sale, too. So I had to buy them as well.
But what to do with more apples and pears than our family can eat before they go soft? Make Apple Pear Sauce, of course. Just chunk up the apples and pears. Put them in a pot, cover and simmer. (Yes, I leave the seeds and cores.)
When they start to look like this it's time to mush them up.
Put them through your food mill and that's it. Pears are so sweet that no one will notice you didn't add sugar.

It's Not Always Easy

2011-01-20T07:20:00.002-05:00

I sometimes wonder why the way my family lives is often called "the simple life". There is really very little simple about it.

It would be much simpler to turn a blind eye and buy meat from the store and not think about what might be in it that I really don't want to put in my body. It would be much simpler to send my kids to the local school and pretend I don't know their minds are being challenged.

Most of all, it would be much simpler to never have to wonder why a favorite animal had to die. If I didn't connect with the animals on the farm, it would be so simple to not feel anything for the food on my table.

After a week of nurturing and treating our big old rooster who was suffering from frostbite, he died. He was doing great, crowing like crazy and finally eating and drinking well. We thought all was going to be fine with him. Then within just a couple hours of returning to the coop, Rob found him dead on the floor. There was no sign of additional trauma, so we aren't sure why he suddenly died like that. Our best guess was that after being in the house for almost a week, returning to the cold coop was too much of a shock to his system and that he wasn't quite as ready as we though.

We are a small homestead. We raise most of our animals to provide for our family. This rooster was old and really beyond being fertile enough to give us a good hatch rate on our eggs this spring. At the same time, he was gentle with the hens and docile with us. He also was getting along well with the couple of young roosters we still had hanging around. He helped the mother hens protect their chicks. He was a gem among roosters. For that reason we tried so hard to save him. Any other rooster in as bad a shape as he was would most likely have been put down at the start.

To some that seems harsh I'm sure. This is where it isn't easy living this life. This is when we have to remember why we are raising these animals in the first place. Sometimes I think the kids understand better than me that it doesn't make good sense to keep unproductive animals.

All I can hope for now is that one of the young roosters takes after his father and becomes the calm gentle fellow we need.

Gratitude

2011-01-17T09:00:00.000-05:00

Here it is Monday again. The weeks seems to have flown by. Yet at the same time, it feels like January is going on forever. It's funny how our perception of time can be.

I'm still not remembering to write in my Gratitude journal every day. But I am writing in it. That means that at times I am still remembering to focus on the good rather than the hardships and annoyances.

I have found that acknowledging even the smallest thing as something to be grateful for is having some affect on my mindset overall. I feel more positive over all.

Today I am grateful for:

The understanding of my husband who doesn't think I'm crazy for keeping the rooster in the bathtub all week while he recovers from frostbite.
The quiet time that gives me a chance to clear my mind and find focus.
The love of family and friends that I know can carry me through anything.

What are you grateful for today?

The Boy

2011-01-16T10:55:00.001-05:00

Braden had to wait at Meg's Girl Scout meeting the other day while I filled out some paper work. As you can see, he was not real happy about being there.

House or Barn?

2011-01-13T23:02:00.003-05:00

I know I wasn't born in a barn, but it's starting to feel like I live in one.

The girls got a new rabbit recently, but he's too young to live outside with the other rabbits in our cold winter. So he's living in Jade's bedroom.

As if that isn't bad enough, my favorite old rooster got an extreme case of frost bit and is presently living in my bathtub.

Now all I need is a baby goat in the house and barn will feel complete.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-01-12T00:50:00.002-05:00

Animals in Winter

2011-01-11T00:41:00.000-05:00

The Muscovy ducks don't seem to mind the cold at all. Often they sleep outside even though they have a nice warm, straw lined shelter under one of the porches.

We have a Shetland Goose now (at lest that's what we are about 95% sure she is) that doesn't seem to notice that it's winter at all. Goose and Lucky (Pekin drake is named Goose, it gets confusing) only seem to notice the winter cold a tiny bit more than the Goose. They all prefer to spend the day laying together in the snow. I'm not sure they could be coaxed into their shelter at all if it weren't for the fact that's where the food is!

The chickens will come outside if they don't have to walk though any snow that actually covers their toes. This pictures is a rare thing this time of year. Usually it's only a brave few that venture out of the coop to actually enjoy the sunshine. Most of them just crowd by the door wishing for spring and bugs to eat.
Now the goats, they are my animals to the core. They do NOT like that cold white stuff at all. Leah (the Nubian) couldn't even be convinced to come out and play during the brief warm spell we had a few weeks ago that melted all the snow in their yard. After a lot of effort, I did manage to coax Leah and Cream Soda out of the stall.
Ginger Ale, on the other hand, wasn't falling for it. She likes to look at me like I've lost my mind, unless I bring cookies. Then she is the first one to the fence. I forgot the cookies today.

Gratitude

2011-01-10T00:16:00.000-05:00

A week ago this sounded so much easier than it has been. I keep forgetting to write in my journal every morning. I've only done it three times. But that is three times that I remembered to focus on the things have, rather than the things I don't. It's proving to be a process and, like so many things in life, I have been tested.

My goal for this week is to reorganize my desk so that I can leave my journal laying in a highly visible spot. In the mean time, here are some things I'm grateful for right now.

I have wonderful friends who support me and let me borrow their strength when I feel weak or attacked.
I have the beauty and tranquility of nature right outside my window.
I am blessed with an abundance of material and non material things in my life.

The Beauty of Nature

2011-01-09T10:26:00.002-05:00

It's not secret how much I detest the cold of winter. I could easily go the rest of my life never feeling freezing temperatures again and be just fine with that. Even so, they are always a few days every winter where the sheer beauty of nature take my breath away. Frosty trees and bushes against a bright blue sky will do it to me every time. Today I'd like to share a few pictures of the views I see out my windows today. Enjoy.

Midway Point

2011-01-05T08:38:00.004-05:00

So here we are near the end of the first semester with Connections Academy. In some ways it seems like the year is going very slow and in others it seems it's flying by.

I'll admit there have been moments that I've wondered why we were doing this. Mostly it was the struggle to find our grove. I think we are there now and it's made all the difference. Most days go rather smoothly.

I had some little pangs of sadness when I though of the girls missing out on things like putting on school programs. Well they dispelled that one for me. Here they are putting on a Thanksgiving program for our extended family. They wrote it themselves and practiced in secret so that it would be a surprise to their dad and I as well.

They even got my niece, Violet, in on the action. Jade taught her some of the songs while my mother and I were preparing dinner.

Finally near the end Braden got the courage to join his sisters for a song or two. Best of all, they had fun.

Our special Christmas project was to make a gift for the wild birds. We strung popcorn, fruit rings and cranberries to hang in a tree. Then we took large pretzels and smeared the with peanut butter and rolled them in bird seed.

We hung this all in one of the maple trees in the front yard. While some of it's gotten eaten, I think next hear we need to do it a little different. Some of the birds seem to have trouble eating the goodies that are strung and draped between branches. We realize now we should have wrapped them tighter to the branch, or used a pine tree.

The one concern I think almost all parents who homeschool in any way is about socialization. It's as if people sometimes forget good manners and social boundaries over this issue at times. I actually had a young 20ish cashier practically sneer at me that "the only problem with that is that your kids only social interaction is with you." the very second she heard me say that I school my kids from home. Rest assured I set her straight in no uncertain terms.

In fact, both girls are very active with 4H and Girl Scouts. They also have friends they visit or have over fairly regularly. Not to mention that they have pen pals and we've even developed a friendship with another family that is a part of Connections Academy as well.

Here's Jade and her friend from school when we were able to meet up at the mall just after Christmas. We had a great time.

While there were moments that I wondered about this school, they were mostly due to finding the routines and schedule that works best for us. Now that we seem to have found that, we are doing great.

I still think the Kindergarten lessons could be a bit more advanced, but it could be that I just feel that way due to Meg being an advanced learner. We just work with it and I supplement with other worksheets or lessons I come up with on my own. Over all even this has turned out alright for us.

I would most certainly recommend this type of schooling to anyone who wants to homeschool their children but has concerns about getting everything in. Also, if you are in a state that offers Connections Academy as a public school it also cuts down the cost because you don't have to buy the curriculum.

If you're interested in more information about the school, you can visit their web site at www.connectionsacademy.com.

Being Grateful

2011-01-03T09:01:00.004-05:00

I find it's far too easy to focus on the things I don't like in life. The little annoyances and things that get under my skin can seem to consume my thoughts some days.

While shopping the other day I came across a little Journal that simply says "Gratitude" on the front cover. Inside is the following quote:

"I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought; and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder" - G.K. Chesterton

The rest of the book is for jotting down thing things a person is grateful for, with occasional quotes here and there throughout.

I found myself buying this little book and feeling inspired. What better way to start a new year than to find a way to focus on the positive.

So I will start every day by writing a few things I'm grateful for in my little journal. On every Monday I will blog here a post titled "Gratitude" and I will list no less than three things I am grateful for.

Today I am grateful for:

A husband who doesn't mind me driving 80+ miles to pay twice what I expected for two rabbits.
A father-in-law who always smiles and really seems to enjoy working on my kitchen.
A daughter who helps her younger siblings without being asked, even when she doesn't feel well.

What are you grateful for today?

Happy New Year

2011-01-01T21:51:00.000-05:00

Freising

2010-12-31T09:50:00.005-05:00

I've really taken my time getting all the posts from our trip to Germany posted, but I couldn't leave out the city of Freising. It's the city we stayed in and it was wonderful.

On our first full day there we walked around down town. This big open area was packed full with the farmer's market. It was amazing. Everything you could imagine. Not only did we see tons of fresh produce, but there was also baked goods, eggs, flowers, and meat. I would love to have a market like that here.

These bears are all over the city.

This is only a small sampling.

Here we see the bear with St. Corbinian.

I'm sure you won't mind a couple more....

This one is my favorite. Would wouldn't love a giant bear made of cheese?

I don't recall the name of this fountain. I just thought it was beautiful and I needed to share it.

I found out while we were there than Aldi is a German company. I had no idea! This may have been the most familiar thing we saw in the "normal" every day stuff while we were there. In the U.S. we have Aldi South, as does Bavaria. I'm not sure what the difference is between Aldi North and Aldi South other than they are two separate, yet connected companies. At one time there was only one company, the brothers who started the company split it in two after a dispute.

We saw many water ways in Germany. This one was one of the prettiest pictures I took while there. I'd love to see it in late spring when the foliage is green and everything is in bloom.

This was a 'green grocer' in Freising. I'm not sure what it would be called in German though. The whole store was nothing but fresh produce. How wonderful that would be!

Rob pushing our friends twins up the steep climb to the Freising Cathedral. He was so nice to do that for us.

Here is the court yard area at the top of the hill. You can see pictures of the inside in my previous post here.

And here is just some grand fun! Someone in the city sets up this little gnome and figure village in their yard. I'm told that they change it around a bit from time to time to keep with the holidays and seasons. Kind of like those geese that you can get different outfits for, but on a much grander scale. They even have a little bench so the children can get a better view over the fence.

Our trip to Germany was great. We had a wonderful time there and hope to go back again some day to see the things we didn't have time for this time around. However, the very best part of it was getting to spend time with dear friends. Huge thanks again go to Thomas and Leslie for opening their home to us.

How did THAT happen?!

2010-12-27T08:08:00.002-05:00

I woke up this morning the mother of a 10 year old. WHAT?! I could have sworn I forbid her to get older when she was about six. Sigh......I guess I really have no control. She's getting older and I'm just going to have to accept it.

Sh no longer drinks from a sippy cup, but spaghetti is still almost as messy. It's just not fun if you don't slurp the noodles so that they flap all over your face, even when your 10.

And see where the door handles are in this picture? Right above her head? Now they are somewhere below her arm pits. She's going to be quite tall when she's done growing.

And what a smile she had when she was little. Always ready to grin for the camera.

OK, so not everything changes as she gets older. She still have a beautiful smile ready for the camera no matter what.

Happy birthday Jade. I love you.

Christmas Traditions

2010-12-25T10:18:00.004-05:00

It seems that along with the usual traditions of Christmas, such as opening presents Christmas morning, many of us have unique traditions as well. In my family it has become a tradition to watch the movie Oscar when we have Christmas with my mom.

(This picture has nothing to do with the rest of this post. I just wanted to show off my snowman cheese ball.)

I barely remember the first time we watched it on Christmas. I know it's been more than 12 years because I hadn't started dating my husband yet the first time we watched it. We laughed so hard that we had to watch it again the next year. And somehow it has become something we strive to do every year.

I think maybe one of the things that makes it such a great tradition is that no one planned for it to become a tradition. It was just something that we enjoyed so much that we did it again. Then we found that we enjoyed it just as much the second time so we did it again. Before we knew it, it was just what we do.

So what are some unconventional traditions your family has?

Now if you have never watched the movie Oscar, get over to Netflix and add it to your queue.

Family History- Ansbach

2010-12-17T00:03:00.007-05:00

WARNING: This post has a lot of pictures.

One of the things I was most excited to do while I was in Germany was to visit the city of Ansbach. There really is not much there that would make it a huge draw for tourists in general. Like all of the places we were able to visit while in Bavaria, it was beautiful. The old buildings, the cobble stone streets, the shops, etc. were all worth seeing on their own. But that's not why I wanted to go there.

You see, my heritage through my paternal grandmother is German. Some genealogy was done many years ago on the family and that history has been published on line HERE. In reading this, I discovered that the oldest traceable ancestor of that branch of my family was born in Ansbach some time in the year 1680.

When you reach the center of the city, this is what greets you. I have no idea what this building is called. When you walk through the archway it's easy to forget that the hustle and bustle of everyday life is happening in the rest of the city.

Edit: One of the landmarks of the city of Ansbach is the Herrieder goal. The massive baroque gate was built between 1750/1751 by the court architect Johann David Gruber on the foundation stone of a previous building.

This Gothic foundation is still visible on the ground floor. With the four flanking town houses on the promenade side is the gate of a Herrieder the most important Baroque building ensembles of Ansbach.

Thank you to commenter RenateS. for finding this information and translating it into English for me!

Right in front of the above building was this fountain. We saw several fountains while we were in Germany, but since it was starting to get colder, many of them weren't running anymore. It was nice to see this one still flowing.

Some of the alleyways were so narrow that it was easy to see why so few cars in this part of the city. In some places the buildings were literally only a couple inches apart. I suppose that is what happens when a city is built and maintained over so many hundreds of years.

This is nothing more than a manhole cover, but I thought it was interesting set in the cobblestone like this with the city crest on it.

The various crests on the building here show the history of the city. I can't remember what they all mean, but it has to do with what country it actually belonged to during the dates listed below each crest. Apparently it traded back and forth quite a bit through the years.

I think this was St. John's Church, which is a Lutheran church. I have to admit I'm not entirely sure though. I didn't really take notes on most of what we saw here. I was too busy marveling that I was possibly walking down the same streets my ancestors did over 300 years ago.

You can see how the buildings connect to each other yet are very distinct at the same time. It was very easy to just enjoy the beauty around us and forget about time.

Something about this reminded me of my Megan. Maybe the happy face that's just slightly tilted down as if she's a little shy. I'd love to replicate her clothes into a costume for Halloween next year. You know, in spare time. (HAHA!)

Again, I do not remember the name of this building at all. I do remember that it was inspired by the Palace of Versailles. It was so long I couldn't get the whole thing in one picture, but it was just more of the same going out several more feet in each direction.

Right behind me as I was taking the picture of the building above were these fountains. If you look real hard, you can see one more further back. I wish that the pictures could really capture the beauty there. Like so many other places we saw there it was simply breathtaking.

We saw this sculpture as we were walking back toward the parking garage. Even though it's a very modern sculpture I loved it. Something about it being a horse seems to tie together now with the past.

There was really something sort of surreal about being in this city for me. Even now thinking about it makes me long to know more about my family history. Most of all, I wish I could share these pictures with my Dad.

Three Weeks!!

2010-11-20T15:58:00.002-05:00

That's how long it's been since I last posted. YIKES! Sorry about that. I guess I've been busier than I realized. There are still a couple posts waiting to be written on my trip to Germany.

Also there will some new posts coming to show off my kitchen renovation. It's not something we had been planning, but when you have a small kitchen fire, things need to be fixed. Everyone is OK and there is nothing horribly damaged. I'll post more on that soon.

For now, I need to get back to cleaning up the mess left behind. See you soon....

The Concert

2010-10-31T12:08:00.003-04:00

The main reason that we took the trip to Germany when we did was so that Leslie and I could see a-ha together on their farewell tour "Ending On A High Note".

It was a truly wonderful experience. My pictures aren't the greatest as we were sitting up rather high, but I thought I'd share a few with you anyhow.
I was secretly a little worried that Morten Harket wouldn't sound as good live as he does on CD. I had no need to worry. He sounded great!

The concert was at the Olympic Hall in Munich. It was a nice venue with great acoustics. It would have been nice if the speakers and cords hadn't been in the way of the big screens though. Not that I'm complaining. It was my last chance to see a-ha live. No complaints from me at all.

See, even with the cords in the way Morten still looks good on the screen. Nope, not complaining at all. :o)

Most of the pictures were very dark because the lighting was low. I'm guessing that was so all the stuff they were showing the the big screens would be easier to see. But I did manage to get a couple shots with good light.

One last good-bye. They ended the show with Take On Me. But the song that got me the most was Manhattan Skyline. As an American that song hits a little different now than it did before 2001.

An Afternoon In History

2010-10-29T07:58:00.006-04:00

We found out that in Germany most everything closes down on Sunday. However, that doesn't mean there's nothing to do. The first Sunday we were there, we spent afternoon seeing the historic city of Landshut.The historic look of the city is maintained so well do to the celebration of the Landshut Wedding every four years. In German it would be called Landshuter Hochzeit. This celebration and reenactment is to commemorate the marriage of 1475 wedding of The Duke of Landshut's son, George, to the Polish King's daughter, Hedwig Jagiellon.
From the city's center you could see Trausnitz Castle. The view was marvelous no matter what direction you turned.

All of the main section of the city is required to maintain the outer shell of the buildings so that the historic look remains. Every four years in preparation for the wedding, the buildings get a fresh coat of paint and any needed repairs.

I do not remember what this building was. There were just too many things to remember it all. It was just too beautiful not to share.

I'm sure we've all seen the cobble stone that is bricks laid in a pretty pattern. This is a much older type of cobble stone made of actual stones. It's just so beautiful. I now want all my pathways through my herb garden (the one I don't have yet) to be like this.

Now back to the castle. As I stated earlier, most everything is closed in Germany on Sunday. So when we made the trek up that steep hill to see the castle we were fully expecting to just take pictures of the outside portions. We were pleasantly surprised to find a tour available when we got to the top.

Now my husband is very tall. 6 foot 5 inches tall to be exact. The castle was built in the 13th century. The average height of a man was much shorter then than it is now. So that really makes doors short for a man of above average height today.

Here is a view of Landshut from the outer walls. The tall tower you see is St. Martin's Cathedral that I showed you in my previous post.

And here you can see the inner court yard of the castle. If my memory serves, we were told that only the Duke was allowed to ride his horse into the inner court yard.

The outer walls of a castle were usually considered a castles first and main defense. Here you can see the path way between the outer wall (on the left) and the inner wall. The inner wall provides one more layer of defense to protect the castle in case the fortifications the outer wall were breached.

Even though we weren't here for the wedding there was plenty to see and enjoy in Landshut. I'm glad that we visited on a Sunday when the shops were closed. I think if the shops had been open I would have been too distracted by them to really take in the beauty around me.

Cathedrals

2010-10-28T08:45:00.005-04:00

There are two things in Germany (and probably all of Europe) that are more plentiful than beer and chocolate.....castles and cathedrals. We visited 2 cathedrals and toured 2 castles. Today we'll focus on the Cathedrals.
The first that we visited was St. Martin's church in Landshut. (More on Landshut later.) Construction on St. Martin's began in 1389 and took around 110 years to finish. St. Martin's boasts the tallest all brick tower in the world. The tower alone took 55 years to build.

The tower didn't sound like any big deal until I was standing at the base looking straight up it. That was rather dizzying.The crucifix is one of the largest and oldest in the world as well. It's completely carved from wood. It was put up in 1495, five years before the church was dedicated. The body is carved from the trunk of a lime tree.Along the outside are essentially grave stones. For a price, people can be buried in the cathedral. I didn't think to ask if there is a tomb below if there is some other place they put the bodies.

The other cathedral we visited was the Freising Cathedral. I'm sure that Leslie told me a different name for it, but I can't remember it now. The outside was not nearly as elabroate as St. Martin's, but the inside was breath taking.
I don't think any photograph could do justice to the frescoes on the ceiling. The colors and detail are amazing.
The walls are decorated just as elaborately.
Being American, I don't often think about how old the structures are in the rest of the world. To think of the age of these buildings is mind boggling. Regardless of your faith, you can't help but marvel at the art and architecture. It had to have been an amazing feat do build like this without any of the modern tools we have today.

What a Great Trip

2010-10-27T10:58:00.003-04:00

We finally got home yesterday morning. As great as it feels to be home, I am already missing Leslie and her family in Germany. A huge thank you goes to them for their hospitality.

We saw so much while we were there. There is way too much to share in one single blog post, so I will be putting up several over the next few days. The picture above is of my husband, Rob, in the city of Landshut. More on Landshut later. I just loved this picture and wanted to share it.

The concert, the castles, the cathedrals, the food, the beer......so much in such a short time. And there are still so many things we didn't see. We are already thinking about a return trip. But the best part still remains the time spent with good friends.

People Watching

2010-10-14T12:22:00.002-04:00

We are sitting at the air port right now waiting for our first flight to take off. Since I'm trying not to think about how nervous I am to fly, I have been watching the people come and go.

You can tell who is here early because they either look bored or are on their computers or otherwise engaged time consuming activities.

Then there are those who are distracted or fidgety. My best guess is that they are people like me who are trying to face their fear of flying.

My favorites are the ones waiting for someone to arrive. You see them looking here and there, checking the arrival times on the board and then looking at the gates. When the flight they are waiting for finally arrives, their faces change and they suddenly become alert staring at the gate just waiting to see whoever they are meeting.

I don't know how much time I will have to update while I'm gone, but when I return I plan to share a ton of pictures and stories with you all. Until then......Guten Tag!

So Busy!

2010-10-10T08:42:00.003-04:00

I haven't meant to be neglectful of my blog. It's just one more casualty of how busy I have been the last couple of weeks. For my readers, I'm very sorry. It will get better, just not right away. You see last year at this time I had lots of time to go walking and take pictures and just enjoy the fall.
This year I'm preparing to leave for Germany for 11 days. I'm quite excited about this. I'd love to be here sharing that excitement and telling you all the things I plan to do. However, I have to spend my time packing, shopping, making arrangements for the animals, and preparing our parents for the task of doing school lessons with the kids while we are gone.

So I thought I'd share a few of my favorite pictures from last fall with you.

This barn is about a mile from me and is just one of several on our road. I love old barns. Someday I may have this picture framed along with a few others I've taken.
Here we have some wild asparagus. I didn't know until last fall that it turns bright yellow like this in the fall. It's so pretty in contrast to the green field behind it.
Lastly is a seasonal road I travel often in the summer and fall. It's one of my favorite places to take fall photos. Sadly, it doesn't look like I'll be able to this year.

There Was A Little Girl

2010-09-29T07:46:00.003-04:00

There was a little girl,
Who had a little curl,
 Right in the middle of her forehead.

When she was good
She was very good indeed,

But when she was bad

She was horrid!

----Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

More Sights From The Renaissance Faire

2010-09-27T22:36:00.003-04:00

We were greeted by the Queen herself as we entered the faire.
The next people we saw were dressed as Garden Gnomes. I thought they were about the cutest couple at the faire.

One thing you can't assume at a Ren. Faire is that everyone dressed in period garb is a worker or entertainer at the faire. I have no idea if this woman was working that day or just enjoyed dressing up and going as a spectator. But I thought her costume was great.Now this girl was working at the booth where we bought our food. I had to take her picture because she reminded me so much of my sister-in-law Amy. Seriously if she had acted any more like her, I would have asked her where my brother was hiding.

Stage shows are the other big thing that you will see at the faire. Here are the Zucchini Brothers. Their act was that sort of seamless string of one liners that leaves your sides aching, and yet you can't really relay to anyone why or how they were so funny. They are a must see.
The kids favorite was the puppeteer. He does it all on his own, including making his puppets himself.
The last act we saw were the Rouge Blades. I had seen the end of their act at Derbyshire earlier this year and thought they were great. Seeing the whole act here was even better.
I'm counting the days until next year when I hope Rob and I can go with friends without the children.

Huzzah!

2010-09-27T07:37:00.004-04:00

I love that word. It's just plain fun to say. HUZZAH!!! It's the Renaissance version of hooray. Too bad everyone looks at you like you're crazy if you use it outside of Renaissance Faire setting. (Right, Mike?)
One of the things I feel needs to be a priority with the kids doing school at home is socialization. Not so much because I think they need to spend a lot of time in groups of kids, but because I think it's important to connect with their peers and have friends. I just think they need someone to talk to now and then that's not part of their immediate family.
Last Friday we were lucky enough to be invited on a field trip with some other families from Connections Academy. We went to the Michigan Renaissance Festival for their Festival Friday. It's a toned down version of the festival to make it more family friendly.
There was so much to see that I really don't feel like we were able to see it all. I can't wait to go back. I have more pictures to share throughout the week.
The best part of it was not only did Jade get to meet the classmate she has been emailing the last few weeks, but I made a new friend as well. See, the need for socialization doesn't stop with the kids. We all need to connect with our peers from time to time.

On The Subject Of Eggs

2010-09-26T10:43:00.003-04:00

I haven't said much about the recent issue of eggs and salmonella because I just didn't know where to start. There are so many things I feel are wrong with the big business egg industry.

Today one of my favorite bloggers published a post that says it all perfectly, in my opinion. So I will refer you to her over at Whispering Acres with her post Let's Talk About Eggs. Enjoy and consider your self well informed and able to make an educated decision about your egg buying.

One Big Mushroom

2010-09-25T01:11:00.000-04:00

Meg found this huge mushroom growing beside our house. There are actually two of them, but the other was half eaten. (Probably by the chickens.)
The top is a good 6 inches at least in diameter and it's probably 8-10 inches tall. Does anyone know what kind of mushroom this is? Or where I might find out?

Even More Rabbits

2010-09-24T00:52:00.000-04:00

I'm sure it's been quite some time since I've posted about all the rabbits we have now. We are up to a grand total of 11. That's a lot of rabbits! I'll post about everyone soon. But for now I'd like to introduce our newest additions. A pair of Hotot rabbits (pronounced Hoe-Toe or OH-Toe).

The male is Sugar. He's as sweet as can be and only weighs 2 pounds 6 ounces. Yes, he's full grown. The usual weight for these rabbits is 2.5-3.5 pounds with 3 pounds being the maximum weight for show. But we don't show, so it doesn't matter to us how much they weigh.The female is Hello Bunny. She is a bit big for the breed at 3 pounds 14 ounces. But that's OK we love her anyhow. She is a very nice rabbit and will be good for the younger kids to handle.

Megan has pretty well laid claim to Sugar. We all know that he is her rabbit. And that's OK with us as long as she continues to take good care of him.
He seems to be OK with her too. She can do almost anything to him that she wants and he just lets her. Here she's practicing her 4H showmanship skills on him.
These are about the best rabbits we've had so far for the younger two kids. Lil Puddin' Tater is pretty good too (our Netherland Dwarf), but he doesn't tolerate the kids for as long as Sugar does.

Pony Rides

2010-09-23T00:38:00.000-04:00

Last Sunday my neighbor had a birthday party for her son. At the party they had pony rides for all the kids.
All the kids were so excited. Meg was a bit nervous at first, but she got over it. Now she wants her own pony. She's even willing to empty her piggy bank of the whole $30 in it to buy one herself. Jade has wanted a horse for quite some time now. Looking at her here, you would think she had ridden many times before. It's really only her second time.
Braden picked the pony he wanted to ride as soon as he saw her. She was the pony for him and he would not even consider riding anyone else.

A Rainbow!

2010-09-22T12:36:00.001-04:00

I almost never have my camera with me when I'm driving along and suddenly see something I'd like to take a picture of. The other day I was lucky enough to have my camera with me when I saw this rainbow.

They Run and Run

2010-09-20T22:50:00.003-04:00

It seems that my boy will just run and run all day.
Occasionally I get him to pause for a smile.But usually he just runs and runs.
Then suddenly it just stops and I know it's finally time for bed.

Do You Know About Swagbucks?

2010-09-17T07:43:00.003-04:00

I had almost forgotten. It's a web site that includes a search engine, surveys, special offers, polls and more. When you sign up and use these things you can earn points. Those points can then be used to obtain a number of different rewards.

I signed up quite some time ago. In the spring, I think, and then forgot about it. Even so, I have over 450 points. I plan to use these points to get gift cards to various retailers for my Christmas shopping.

If you are interested, click HERE and check it out.

If you aren't interested, please ignore my ramblings today. I'll be back tomorrow with something new.

Relaxation Time

2010-09-16T13:20:00.003-04:00

I'm realizing how important it is to take a little time each day for me to just relax and center myself. It doesn't have to be an hour, sometimes just five minutes is enough. It can make all the difference in the tension of your day.
I've also discovered that sometimes mom is the one who needs a "Time Out". That's OK too, so long as mom takes it. It's not the end of the world if school is off schedule by five minutes. What's important is remembering to keep your cool and that your children probably don't mean to be the most frustrating creatures on earth (next to their father, of course).

Mom time is up, the kids need help. See you tomorrow.

Here Piggy Piggy

2010-09-15T06:44:00.003-04:00

This is not the view we want from our front porch. It took a little work, but we got all three back in their pen. Actually, we spent too much time chasing them around the yard before realizing all we needed was a bucket of slop.

Texture Hunt

2010-09-14T06:41:00.002-04:00

Our second week of Virtual School is well underway. The kids are still loving school, but would really like to get a little more sleep. We start by 8am so that we are done about mid afternoon. Well, Megan is done mid afternoon. Jade has been working until I make her quit around 4pm each day. She has a goal to finish 4th grade early and start 5th.

Megan had art yesterday. The lesson was on texture. We were to do rubbings of various things. In case you don't know what that is, you lay paper on a surface and then rub it with the side of a crayon. It's a fun way for a five year old to explore.

This is just a small sampling of the things Meg found to do her rubbings on. She would have stayed out there all day if I had let her.
She was fascinated that different wooden things had different textures.
She was on a roll.
She suddenly spied something across the yard she hadn't tried out yet. Doesn't she know I can't run that fast anymore?
I guess holding on to things longer than we should does have it advantages.

Happy Monday

2010-09-13T03:20:00.000-04:00

I think this says it all. Have a good week everyone and don't forget to smile.

Strike A Pose

2010-09-12T09:12:00.003-04:00

Megan had soccer yesterday.

She's still a bit unsure about playing.
But as you can see from the photos......
She loves......
The uniform.

Of Goats and Boys

2010-09-11T03:22:00.002-04:00

Want to make a 3 year old boy happy? Tell him he can go play with the goats.Want to make the goats happy? Let the boy in the pasture.
Cream Soda is the whitest one, Ginger Ale is right behind her and Leia is bringing up the rear. We have had Cream Soda and Ginger Ale for about three months. We've had Leia for a little more than a month.

We no longer have Teresa and Pixie. As much as I loved them, they weren't the calmest goats and I worried they would be too rough with the younger children. So we sold the whole herd and started over, so to speak.

Cream Soda is a mix of Saanen, Alpine, Nubian and Boer. Eventually my goal is to breed her to a Boer buck to raise meat goats. Remember, our goal here is to be a sustainable homestead. At least to some degree.

While we still rely on commerce for a lot of what we consume, we do raise the bulk of our food. It's nice to know that even though we don't have to rely 100% on what we raise, we do raise enough variety to live fully off what we raise if we ever need to.

Ginger Ale (who is redder than the pictures show) is a mix of Saanen, Nubian and Boer. Although I suspect some Alpine in her line based on her coloring. She will be bred for milking. Her mother, who was Nubian, Saanen and Boer, was milking more than a gallon a day when I bought her. She will be bred to a spotted Nubian buck later this fall. I'm really hoping to get spotted kids.

Leia is full Nubian and gives great milk. She is very sweet and gentle. While she is the queen of the herd, I've never seen her be the least bit harsh with the other two goats. We still had Teresa when we got them and they were scared all the time because she was so mean to them. That was another deciding factor in selling her. She needed a home where they had a larger herd and more room.

Leia will be bred to Yancy, who was the Nubian buck we bred our Toggs to last year. He throws beautiful kids and a fairly high number of spots and doelings.

Too Many?

2010-09-10T15:02:00.002-04:00

These are only a few of the muscovy ducks that we have here on the farm. We actually have in the neighborhood of 20 right now. They are everywhere! The females make this sweet sort of cooing sound similar to the sound a dove makes, but a little more shrill.

Now when it's just the five or so that are our breeding stock it's not so bad. Even when the ducklings are small and downy it's not so bad. But when they get to be full grown and poop everywhere, it is so bad.

I thought I would have a hard time sending them to be butchered. I'm over it. Now I'm just worried about freezer space.

What an awesome problem to have. I truly feel blessed to have more meat for my freezer than I have room for. I need remember to look at it that way instead of stressing about where I'm going to put it all.

Now back to the current duck situation. This is what I came home to last night after Jade's soccer game:

I am not going to be the one to get up on the roof and clean the poop off!

Going Out To Eat

2010-09-08T06:47:00.003-04:00

Going out to eat is something we rarely do. It's expensive and I'm usually managing all three kid on my own. Also, I can't always control the ingredients when we are eating out. When you have to avoid nitrates and MSG, that can making eating out frequently not an option.But since it was Labor Day and the kids wanted new pajamas for the first day of school, we headed to Walmart. Of course we no sooner got there and all three kids were starving. STARVING I tell ya! So I took them to the Subway at the front of the store.
They had fun, at foods I rarely let them have at home. Bologna, real salami (we eat uncured at home), and ham (again, uncured at home). Even my three year old polished off a 6-inch sub by himself. And lets not forget the cookie. What can be better than a chocolate chip cookie on a rainy day?We had fun. The kids behaved. It was great. I have avoided doing too many things in public with all three kids at once because it would get to be so exasperating for me. Young children don't try to get out of hand. It's just that when your a little kid in a new place it can be really hard to contain the excitement. It's just bigger than they are.

I got to eat my whole sandwich. If your are wondering, I got a chicken breast on flat bread. That was so good. I need to learn to make flat bread like that at home. Or maybe it tasted so good because my kids were behaving so well I got to eat it from start to finish with out swallowing unchewed food to yell at someone. All in all, it was a great day. Kids with full tummies behave better too, so shopping was even a little fun. Megan is STILL in her new jammies. Wonder how long it's going to take me to get her out of them so they can be washed.

First Day of Virtual School

2010-09-07T22:22:00.004-04:00

Today was the girls first day of "attending" the Virtual Public School through Connections Academy. This is a program that is brand new to Michigan and we are one of the first families to try the school here.

Almost awake, but not quite. The one drawback that is going to be difficult for us is that Michigan law requires that all public school students have an average of 6.1 hours of instruction per day based on a 180 day school year. The unfortunate thing is that this law doesn't take into account that it is much different sitting with your mom and sister at home than it is in a classroom with 25 or so other students. That means we have to start fairly early in the day so that we don't have to be doing school until dinner.

A neat work area. For the most part it still looked this neat at the end of the day too.

The computer is provided by the school along with text books, work books, lesson guides, and several other school supplies. They even sent a jump rope and yoga DVD for Physical Education. Yes, starting in 1st grade they are required to have Phys. Ed. every week.

Here' Jade all ready to start her day. She has been so excited to be able to participate in a school with a gifted program where she can work at her own pace. That pace was slow today. We are still learning how the system works and how to best manage our time.

Meg was especially excited to begin her day. Both girls were up at 7am and ready to start by 7:30am. It sure made me glad I was up early enough to get a cup or two of coffee in by then.

Meg's activities were the most involved. Here she is making things go with air. Not only did she blow on them with a straw, she made a paper fan. Then she showed her little brother how to do it. She loves to pass on what she learns to him. It's great to watch.

Here she is showing him how to sort plastic table ware. I think she was sorting according to function here. She also sorted by color, function and size.

And of course we had to have lunch. My children love to have meat and cheese plates for lunch. I had to force the fruit, but they ate it without too much complaining. How many school kids get mozzarella, Gouda and cheddar with their lunches? I bet it's not many. I know this plate looks sparse. Trust me it's more than it looks like and they had seconds.

Overall I was impressed with the first day. It was just challenging enough to keep Jade fully engaged all day. Her day took longer than expected. Mostly because she we haven't quite mastered the system yet. I think tomorrow will go much faster.

I did have to supplement Megs lessons a lot. She was done with everything is less than 4 hours. For tomorrow I have printed off some extra coloring pages and a craft that will go along with her Language Arts story. I'm hoping this will be a good time filler for us.

I'll keep you posted on how it goes as the year progresses.

Zucchini and Chicken Fritters

2010-08-17T21:17:00.003-04:00

Sorry I've been absent so much this summer. Hopefully this recipe will help make up for it.
1-2 leeks, chopped
1 1/2 Cups shredded zucchini
1 cup cooked chicken, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped small
Salt, Pepper, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, turmeric, oregano to taste
1 Cup all purpose flour
1 Cup whole wheat flour
3/4 Cup corn meal
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 cups milk
2 eggs, beaten

Combine first four ingredients and set aside.
In a large bowl compine flours, corn meal, salt, seasonings and baking powder. Add milk and beaten eggs. Mix until just wet then add the veggie and meat mixture.

Fry in one inch of hot oil turning once until golden brown. Salt lightly after removing from oil.

Fun At The County Fair

2010-08-05T11:23:00.005-04:00

I can hardly believe that it's been over two weeks since I last posted. It seems I get going on a good posting streak and then life gets busy again.

We spent all of last week at the county fair. I've been a 4H leader for the last two years and my oldest daughter has been a 4H member for the last four years. It's been a lot of fun for us, and the kids (even the younger ones) have learned a lot about their animals though the fair.

Sunday is spent getting animals checked into the fair and put in their pens and cages. Rabbits and goats are pretty easy. The barn superintendents simply look over the animals to be sure there is no obvious sign of illness. Chickens, however, are a little more time consuming. They all need to be tested before then can be put in the barn. We waited almost three hours.

Then on Monday the fun begins. Rabbits and poultry happen at the same time. So kids have to run back and forth between the two barns and hope that they don't miss their turn for showmanship.Even Megan was able to do showmanship. The fair has what they call a "Tykes and Toddlers" division for 3-5 year olds. Megan was excited to show a rabbit and a chicken. The last two years we have let her use her sisters show animals.

Next year Braden will be showing in Tykes and Toddlers as well, so we will have to have at least two animals trained for showmanship in each species.
Here are the girls with their Rabbits and Chickens:
In exciting poultry news, the breeding pair of easter egger bantams that Jade chose to take to the fair won "Best In Show" in the poultry barn. She got a trophy and a $50 savings bond. That was a wonderful thing.

As for showmanship, it wasn't Jade's best year. She did realize that it was her own fault though and is now determined to spend more time with her animals so that she can do better next year. It really makes me proud that rather than being discouraged, she has instead learned that she has to work harder for what she wants.

Tuesday is the goat day. Again, both girls were able to show goats:
And of course no week at the fair would be complete without rides.
Overall it was a good week. Now we just have to rest up for next year.

And The Winner Is......

2010-07-19T14:21:00.002-04:00

Comment number 4. Linda has won a wonderful bar of homemade pear scented soap.

The winner was chosen randomly by using www.random.org.

Linda, contact me with your information and I will get your soap sent out before the end of the week.

Braden's First Crush

2010-07-18T09:39:00.003-04:00

This is Lindsay, Braden's first crush.

Back in December we took Braden to have his hair cut by Tammy, the woman who cuts his dad's hair. Lindsay works in the station next to Tammy. Braden was completely infatuated with Lindsay from the moment he saw her. He was making the cutest googly eyes at her the whole time.

Fast forward a couple months. Braden hadn't seen Lindsay since Christmas time and there really hadn't been much mention of her since right after that first time he saw her. Yet here was Braden pretending to talk on the phone. When he "hung up" he looked me and said in the puffed up macho way males do "I was talking to my girlfriend...Lyndsay."

So when we told Braden last week daddy was going to call Tammy and make hair cut appointments, he said "I want my girlfriend Lindsay to cut my hair." Seriously, what three year old boy requests a specific hair stylist on his own?

As the day approached, he kept saying he was going to tell Lindsay she was his girlfriend. Too bad he got shy and chickened out. I would have loved to hear her response. But he did tell me later that it was nice to have her touch his hair.

Yesterday when I showed him the pictures of his hair cut, he looked at me and asked "Can Lindsay come live at our house?"

I wonder how long before he realizes she a little too old for him. And I wonder if this is the first sign that he's going to like older women.

Boys are so fun.

Due To Technical Difficulties

2010-07-16T09:44:00.002-04:00

The deadline for Hen House Diaries First Ever Give Away has been extened. It seems there has been some issue with people being able to post comments on the blog. I'm not sure why this is happening. I have run into this from time to time with other blogs I've tried to comment on. All I can tell you is to keep trying.

In the mean time, the deadline has be extended to Monday, July 19 at noon, eastern time. Mostly because I have a very busy weekend a head of me and I'm not sure I'd have time to choose a winner before then. So CLICK HERE and leave me a comment letting me know you want to win.

Just A Reminder

2010-07-15T11:22:00.001-04:00

Don't forget about the give away that ends tomorrow. You can read all about it by clicking here.

10 Years Ago

2010-07-15T09:13:00.003-04:00

10 years ago today I got married. As I look out the front window I see that it's raining. So different from the sunshine and blue skies I had on my wedding day. As I look out the back window I see chickens and goats where we once celebrated with friends and family. There is now a pole barn where our guests parked their cars.

The spot where Rob and I stood and vowed to love and cherish each other, however, is still untouched. Perhaps I'll plant a small flower bed there to mark that spot as special someday. And if you are wondering, we got married outside in our own back yard. It was the perfect wedding. Small and intimate with just our family at the ceremony.

When you say it 10 years sounds like such a long time. Yet when I think back on the time together it all seems to have flown by so fast. 10 years ago we had no idea what our lives held. All we knew was that we were going to face it together.

Three children and a farm later we still don't know what the future holds. All we know is that will will face it together.

Hen House Diaries First Ever Give Away

2010-07-14T16:19:00.005-04:00

Yes, you read that right. Today I am hosting my first ever give away on this blog. I'm so excited!

(See note at the bottom of this post, please!)

So I suppose you would like to know what you might win, right? Well I'll tell you. It's homemade soap. I made my first ever batch of hot process soap a couple weeks ago and was so happy with the results that I decided to give a bar away.

This batch is lightly pear scented and turned out a really nice creamy color. It also lathers up very nicely.

All you have to do to enter is leave me a comment by Friday at 12:00 pm Eastern Time (that's noon) letting me know you would like to win it. I will choose the winner by using a random number generator to keep it fair.

I hope this makes up for not having time to blog for so long.

Edited to add what I should have said to start with: Please only one comment per person to keep things fair. Multiple comments will be deleted. However I do read all of them and will make note of anything that I may need to remember for future reference.

*NOTE* Due to people telling me they are having trouble leaving comments I have extended the deadline to Monday, July 19, Noon eastern time. So tell your friends. Good luck everyone!!

The Dark Flower Gypsies (Derbyshire Part 3)

2010-06-23T09:10:00.002-04:00

One of the last shows I caught at the Derbyshire Renaissance Faire were the Dark Flower Gypsies. They are a belly dance troupe made up primarily of mother and daughter groups. The group also includes one of the daughter's best friend.

They performed a mix of traditional and non-traditional dances. The best part of watching them was that I could see that they were having fun.

The sword dance that they did was quite involved. It's not easy to move around with a huge sword like that on your head.

I hope I get the chance to see them perform again some day. Watching them really made me miss the belly dance class that I use to take. I just might have to get out my old practice tape and see how much I have forgotten.

Vikings Of The New NorTHUMBria (Or Derbyshire Part 2)

2010-06-22T00:45:00.002-04:00

My favorite group at the Derbyshire Renaissance Faire was without a doubt the Vikings Of The New NorTHUMBria. The thumb is emphasized due to them being from the thumb portion of Michigan. If you aren't from Michigan go look up a map of Michigan on Google Maps and you will see what I mean. It's OK, we'll wait.

This is the Viking Ingvar who admitted to being shameless when I asked to take his picture.

Here he is teaching my daughter to play a game that I think was called "Send Them To Valhalla". It was sort of a mash up of tic tac toe and chess. Ingvar makes these boards and sells them. And yes, we bought one.

After beating Jade honorably at the board game, Ingvar read a story about Leif Erickson to Jade and Megan. At which time we also discussed a bit about the Vikings being in North America 500 years before Christopher Columbus.
Here the group was getting ready for a telling and acting out of Beowulf. Ingvar was the story teller while the rest of the group, including his lovely wife Katta, acted out what he was telling behind him.

I didn't think to ask at the time, but I wonder now if the rest of the group are Ingvar and Katta's children.

Here we have the King of Denmark. Laughing and having a great time at a party in his feasting hall.

Then Grendel comes to shake things up. Sort of put a damper on future parties. No king likes to have their favorite subjects eaten and dismembered.

Luckily Beowulf comes in to save the day. He defeated Grendel and his mother. Later he gave his life slaying a dragon to protect his people. He was buried where he fell along with the dragon and his treasure.

This really was a great group at the Faire. They were fun to talk to and really seemed to love sharing their knowledge. I hope to see them again at a faire or other event in the future.

A Day At Derbyshire (Part 1)

2010-06-21T08:54:00.006-04:00

Saturday I went to The Derbyshire Renaissance Faire. What a great time. I have wanted to go to a renaissance faire from the time I first learned about them. I'd love to be an active part of it and not just a casual observer.I can't believe he actually smiled. He didn't even want to stick his head in there.

Oh to have lived in a time when it was fashionable to have hips this wide. I would have been in my perfect environment.

And what should every man eat at the Faire? A turkey leg of course.

Here we have the Rogue Blades. They had quite the act. Sort of reminded me of something that could have easily fit into Monty Python And The Holy Grail.

And of course there had to be at least one knight in shining armor.

The sword fighting was done with real swords! It's a good thing these guys were well practiced. I'd hate to think what would happen with one simple misstep.

The archer looked very "Robin Hood". I really loved all the different costumes and personas present at the faire.

Lee Mulder was singing in one of the pavilions. I really need to track her down so I can get a CD of hers. She sings wonderful traditional celtic songs.

This is all I caught of the Knotty Bits act. Playing with fire is pretty cool though, don't you think?

We even met Pan wandering around the grounds. He performed a couple of magic tricks for Jade and made me laugh quite hard. He made me laugh harder than anything at the faire.

Tomorrow: The Vikings Of New NorTHUMBria. Don't miss it.

I Fell In Love

2010-06-18T23:37:00.003-04:00

That's right, I fell in love today. Head over heels. Unfortunately he was not available, and he wasn't even the right breed. He was a huge, beautiful Saannen buck at the farm I visited to purchase a new doeling. (No, I really don't need a new doeling. But what does that have to do with anything?)
Do you see this big beautiful guy? The lady said he is so gentle and can even be trusted with kids. The goat kind of kids that is.

I do feel a little bad that I was so taken with the big white Saannen that I didn't really even notice the other buck there. I'm sure he was wonderful as well.

I just only had eyes for the one. I wanted to bring him home. Never mind the fact have no available housing for a buck. No way to build housing for a buck. And no money to hire someone to do it for me.

But alas, I had to move on. We weren't there for the bucks no matter how beautiful they were. We were after doelings.
And there were plenty to choose from too. They were all very friendly and tried to get close enough to play with us. Too bad the fence was electric. Poor things.

I was only going to maybe buy one doeling. I have wanted a nice Nubian/Boer mix of some sort for a while. It's a cross that can produce nice milking does, but also nice meat animals as well.

So much for my resolve. I bought two. I haven't sold my others yet and my pen is not big enough. Thank goodness my friend who came with me was willing to keep them at her farm for a couple weeks.See the little tan doeling on the right? I bought her. She is Boer/Nubian/Saannen. Good thing I'm not worried about pure breeds. I'll be breeding her to a nice Nubian buck when she is old enough.

And look at these sweet faces. The one in the front is my other little girl. She is Boer/Saannen/Nubian/Alpine. But seriously, she looks just Boer/Nubian.

Based on the udders I saw on the moms and the size of the teats on these girls already at just a few months old, they are going to be nice for milking.

My friend ended up buying a doeling as well along with a little buckling. If I had a place for a buck, I might have really considered the buckling myself. He's a really nice one. Of course I would have had to rethink buying does.

The craziest part of the whole thing? We drove for an hour with four goats in the back of my minivan on a tarp.

Thank You For a Great Year

2010-06-16T01:39:00.004-04:00

Each year Jade has been lucky to have teachers who have been willing to foster her ability to learn at an extremely accelerated rate for her age. When she started 3rd grade I was a little concerned that would come to an end, or at least lessen to some extent. The 3rd grade brings with it more personal responsibility for the children along with less assistance for the teachers. In our school district cuts over the last few years have meant growing class sizes and fewer teacher's assistants.

As it turns out, I had no reason to worry. Mrs. B is an amazing 3rd grade teacher who went above and beyond to help Jade excel. By the end of the year Jade was working on 6th grade math objectives. She has been reading far above her grade level since she was four years old. Most of the books she has read this year have been between 6th and 8th grade reading level.

I also spent a lot of time in Jade's class room this year helping out. I enjoyed every moment of it and it was great to get to know Jade's classmates and watch her thrive among her peers. Most of all, it was great to see how well Mrs. B taught her class.

I never heard her yell or use a harsh voice with her students. That's not to say never reprimanded them. Yet somehow she managed to do it with an amazing amount of grace and seemingly natural ease. I learned a lot just by observing her that I hope I can remember when my own kids need to be reigned in a bit.

Thank you, Mrs. B, not only for teaching my child and helping her to grow, but for teaching me a thing or two as well.

Kale Chips

2010-06-15T08:24:00.001-04:00

Lately we have been getting a crazy amount of greens from the CSA. Spinach, lettuce, Kale, Swiss chard and Collards all came at once this last time. Since I am the only one here that cares for greens beyond salad it's been a challenge to get them all used before they go bad.

Then my friend Chris told me about Kale Chips. What are Kale Chips you ask? It's simply Kale that is drizzled with olive oil, sprinkled with slat and pepper, then baked until it is crispy.

I also discovered that this works well with Collards as well. If we get more Swiss Chard or Spinach this week I'm going to try it with those too.

How to make Kale Chips:

Wash kale and dry. Remove large, tough ribs. Place kale in a bowl and toss with 1-1 1/2 teaspoons. (this is for approx. 1 pound of kale)
Next, lay the Kale out on baking sheets. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 300 degrees F for 20-30 minutes. Thicker Kale will take longer, thinner will take less time. When the kale is crispy, remover from oven and allow to cool.
Place in a bowl and enjoy as a thin, crispy and healthy alternative to those other chip type snacks your waist line so loves to show off.

Ducklings

2010-06-14T00:48:00.002-04:00

On May 27 one of our ducks hatched out 16 ducklings. I would have loved to have shown you pictures before now. However I have not had the best luck with cameras in the last month. First, I broke my camera the day before Mother's Day. So for Mother's Day my husband took me shopping and bought me a new camera. Then I lost it at the Alma Highland Festival on Memorial Day weekend.
Do you have any idea what it's like to be a blogger with no camera? I suddenly was seeing so many things that I wanted to take pictures of so I could blog about them. Not that I have had any time to blog mind you. But that doesn't stop me from wanting to blog.

At any rate, I have a camera again. My wonderful Mother-In-Law, after hearing my plight, set my Brother-In-Law (who has a nose for electronics deals) on a hunt. The result was an early birthday present. YAY!
The other problem with getting a picture of the ducklings was that every time I would try to get close enough to take their pictures, the momma duck would either stand between me and them puffing herself up and hissing, or she would lead them away. After losing a duck and her babies last year because she went off in the woods to get away from the hub-bub of activity in the yard, I didn't want to take chances.

But she finally is starting to trust me. Or maybe not. Maybe she's just sick of me following me and is actually daring me to touch her babies so she has an excuse to attack. Whatever it is, I finally got close enough for a picture. Here you go:No, there aren't 16 ducklings in this picture. We have lost a total of 5 ducklings. The same morning that the first four disappeared, my neighbor called to say that her cat brought a dead duckling home. :o( Then yesterday morning one more disappeared. I suspect the same cat.

Pheasants And Chicks

2010-06-13T11:44:00.001-04:00

I have really been behind on posting. So much has happened here this spring that I hardly know where to begin. So I will start with telling you about my daughter Jade's best gift of the year so far. She has six beautiful young golden pheasants.

This gentleman, John, has a pair of golden pheasants that started to lay eggs. When the female didn't seem to want to sit on her eggs, he decided to incubate them himself. He soon discovered how easy it is to keep putting more and more eggs into the incubator until it's completely full. Luckily for Jade, he couldn't keep all those pheasant chicks.

The other person in the picture is Rachel. She met up with John here to get some silkie chicks. Maybe someday we will have silkies and I can show you how adorable they are. They really aren't a chicken, they are kittens with feathers. You can read more about Rachel HERE. This is only one of her blogs, so be sure to check out her profile and read the others.

We have also been hatching quite a few chickens ourselves here on the farm this year. Our original layers are starting to slow down and now it's time to start raising up their replacements. So what do you think happens when two girls, chicks and pheasant chicks get together? Just take a look:At least they will be use to being handled.

Next up: Ducklings!

Only A Boy

2010-06-12T23:15:00.003-04:00

Could have this much fun with a pile of pillows.

This Makes Me Mad

2010-05-07T08:02:00.003-04:00

I've refrained from using my blog to promote my views on the world. For the most part this blog is a happy place for me where I can escape the turmoil of the world around me. I blog about happy things like my new baby goats or the birthdays of my children.

However, something happened on Wednesday that makes me so mad I just have to say something or I will burst. Forgive me if my thoughts seem wild and disorganized. I have so many things boiling up inside me over this that I fear my words will fall all over themselves.

On Wednesday, May 5th some students were sent home for wearing shirts with the American flag on them. CLICK HERE for the full story.

Apparently the Assistant Principle of the school didn't want to offend the Mexican-American students on Cinco De Mayo on the day they were celebrating their heritage.

Now I'm all for celebrating where you come from. I think it's great to remember your family history and heritage. But come on! Cinco De Mayo is a great day for Mexican and Mexican-American people in the United States to celebrate this. BUT IT IS STILL AMERICA. Cinco De Mayo is NOT an American holiday, it is a Mexican holiday. It is, in fact, Mexico's independence day. Should we expect other countries to put their patriotism on hold for the Americans in their countries on The 4th of July?

I five students were discriminated against. Not for their race, sexual orientation or religious views, but for displaying their love of this country. In my opinion this is not acceptable. If I were the parents of those students I would be pulling my kids out of the school and hiring a good lawyer. I feel that the Principle and Assistant Principle that sent these kids home should be suspended without pay for the remainder of the school year, at the very least. If I were to be completely honest here, I think they should be fired.

When are Americans going to stand up for America? I am not at all against immigrants coming into our country (legally!!), we are a country founded on immigration. I do have something against anyone feeling the need to suppress their love of country or being American for fear of offending someone.

I'm very saddened that these boys have been through this. I hope that they and their families are strong enough to stand their ground. I personally would love to replace all the their clothing with only patriotic items. Unfortunately I'm not in a financial position to do that.

THIS IS AMERICA. IF THAT OFFENDS YOU.....LEAVE!

Edit: It seems I made a mistake in my original post when I called Cinco De Mayo Mexico's Independence Day. Mexico's Independence Day is actually September 16. To learn more about Cinco De Mayo please click HERE.