I Am Thankful

I just read a blog about a women who is suffering through an illness.  It causes me to remember my own year of illness and surgeries.  I always knew there was something that GOD was trying to teach me.  I think we are all on our own paths and learning comes easier to some.  I don't know what God's plan for me is.  I am just trusting that I am now on the right path.

I never dreamed of being a farmer in my former life.  Never imagined a life where we worked to be self sufficient.  However, after spending a year in bed, I knew I never wanted to go back to that.  I wanted to take care of myself and my children.  I couldn't afford organic food on our one income family.  I struggled with the need to feed my family REAL good food.  I knew there was a better way.

I read a book or two by Joel Salatin and was hooked.  Specifically how to raise chickens and make $25,000 a year.  Sounded good!  However, that didn't translate to actual $$ for us.  Our main hurdle?  We lived in a sub-division! No Land!  So we leased land- two acres to begin with and eventually 20 acres.  We started with 150 Cornish Cross Chickens and ended with upwards of 1100 heritage chickens when we moved.  Did we make money? NO, but we were starting to get close.

I also found that I love working with our customers- I wanted them to know us, and see how we raised our animals.  I craved their reactions, I needed their accolades on the quality of our chicken and eggs ( and pork too).  I discovered I need words of affirmation- that is my language of love.  I love being a Mom, but you don't get too many words of affirmation from this job. 

I started working for an online farmers market, and working with other farmers.  I loved it!! I enjoyed my time with the customers and the farmers- and I learned so much.  Those farmers taught me so much about integrity and diligence.  They showed up every week, with the best they had to offer.  They apologized when they screwed up and worked doubly hard to make sure they didn't again.  They often woke up before the sun and went to bed long after the sun went down. If they were dairy farmers they worked twice as hard as the rest of us, for often little or no profit.  All of them (and me too), were full of hope for a brighter food world. 

So to sum up my post here.  I did get so off topic.  I am thankful for that year.  I did learn so much about myself.  My kids are better people for it, and I love them for their service to me and our family.
When life throws terrible things at you always always look for the lesson.

Goals and Clearing

 

Yesterday we spent the day cutting down trees on the side lot by the front of our farm.  Our goal is to get this area completely fenced by the end of December.  There is still plenty of grass over in this area and it would go a long way to keeping our sheep fed for the winter.  It may only be an acre total, however it is long and narrow, and will cost more to fence it than a regular 1 acre lot.  An acre is about 209 ft squared.  This strip of land is more like 700 by 100 by 700 by 40 ft.  It is going to take a bunch more fence.  With this being done and a gate put in place on our driveway, we will have cut off access from the road for any stray dogs attacking our animals.
 

As you can see we have a lot more to do. All of the fence lines are for cattle- meaning that they are just 3 strands of barbed wire.  Our sheep, chickens and dogs will need 2x4 welded wire fencing to keep them in and the coyotes, foxes and bobcats out.  The darker yellow is what we have done so far, and the lighter is what still needs to be done.  Everything is overgrown and needs clearing before we can put fencing in.  It is more work that we can get done in one year and so we are trying to take it in steps.  Here is the before of the side we are working on right now:



We took down 4 trees yesterday- learning the whole time- how to take the trees down safely.  I helped Hubby take down the trees, the kids stacked wood and took branches out to our burn pile.

There is still so much to do- Including
Clear Land
Fence paddocks closest to house
Figure out how to get water to the back of property
Sound overwhelming?  It is, but I am excited to to get this property in shape and in working order.

Plant Zones and First Frosts

I am researching my plant zones and first and last frost dates today.  Did you know that in 2012 most of the United States underwent a change in plant zones?  That's right, most of us got moved 1 to 2 zones warmer.  Hmmm.... but global warming is a non-issue right? 
I am in zone 7a, but just barely.  You can check your zone here: http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/InteractiveMap.aspx
I then went and checked when I could plant here:
 http://www.almanac.com/gardening/planting-dates/NH/Dublin
Here are my dates:

Crop	Start Seeds Indoors	Moon-favorable Dates	Start Seeds in the Ground	Moon-favorable Dates
Beans			Apr 13-27	Apr 13-25
Beets			Mar 23-May 4	Mar 28-Apr 9
Broccoli	Feb 15-Mar 1	Feb 15-25	Mar 23-30	Mar 23-27
Brussels sprouts	Feb 15-Mar 1	Feb 15-25
Cabbage	Feb 15-Mar 1	Feb 15-25	Apr 6-20	Apr 10-20
Carrots			Mar 8-23	Mar 8- 9
Cauliflower	Feb 15-Mar 1	Feb 15-25	Apr 6-20	Apr 10-20
Celery	Feb 15-Mar 1	Feb 15-25
Corn			Apr 27-May 4
Cucumbers	Mar 16-30	Mar 16-27	Apr 20-27	Apr 20-25
Lettuce	Mar 1-16	Mar 11-16	Apr 6-27	Apr 10-25
Melons	Mar 16-30	Mar 16-27	Apr 27-May 4
Onion sets			Mar 16-23
Parsnips			Mar 23-Apr 13	Mar 28-Apr 9
Peas			Mar 1-16	Mar 11-16
Peppers	Feb 15-Mar 1	Feb 15-25
Potato tubers			Apr 13-27	Apr 26-27
Pumpkins	Mar 16-30	Mar 16-27	Apr 20-27	Apr 20-25
Radishes			Apr 6-20	Apr 6- 9
Spinach			Mar 1-16	Mar 11-16
Squash, summer	Mar 16-30	Mar 16-27	Apr 20-27	Apr 20-25
Squash, winter	Mar 16-30	Mar 16-27	Apr 20-27	Apr 20-25
Tomatoes	Feb 15-Mar 1	Feb 15-25

I don't think I can wait until March 23rd  to plant beets. I say that now, but I bet you those dates creep right up on me and I am scrambling to get things in on time. 
We are leaving our animals on our garden area over the winter in hopes that they will fertilize the land.  Maybe we won't have to add as much compost to the area. 
These are my favorite sites for seeds-
All time fav is : http://www.seedsavers.org/- they are trying to do it right, and draw from a huge number of members that have old time favorites.
http://www.johnnyseeds.com/  has a lot of information on the plants themselves.  I really appreciate the extra information.
http://www.territorialseed.com/   another great site for good quality seeds
You need to watch carefully to make sure you are not getting GMO seeds.  I am choosing not to grow corn this year, because I live in the middle  of corn fields and I do not want cross pollination between GMO seeds and mine. 

Another thing we are considering is how to keep pests from eating on our plants, and what kind of fertilizers we can choose that will benefit the plants but keep harmful chemicals from our plates.
The kids have suggested we get guinea keets to help keep the bugs at bay. I think this might be a good solution but they also make a bunch of noise all day long.  Think of them as the burglar alarm for your farm.  They let you know if anything is out of place! 
Do you have any great seed places you buy from each year? 

What Do You Really Eat In A Year?

This has been a very confusing question for me-  I am doing a lot of guess work here.  We are trying to eat 90% of our meals at home, both for the health benefits and the tight budget .  I find it hard to feed a family of 5 on our current budget of $800 a month.  This includes everything, dry goods, toilet paper, etc....  With all of our kids in their teens now and two of the three being boys, the money never seems enough.  I am used to having our own eggs, meat, and vegies, but with our moving so late in the year we did not have a chance to grow our own anything.  We are waiting on our 20 hens to start laying eggs still.   I am motivated that in 2013 we will try and be more self sufficient with our food production.  In an effort to figure out how much seed to purchase and how many animals we need to have on hand I developed a list of what I THINK  we will need in 2013-2014.  Figuring that our growing season may not start until May 2013 our full year might be May 2013 to May 2014. 

So here is what I have come up with:

Meat-
100 chickens- with 1/2 being in parts and 1/2 in whole chickens
2 pigs- seems like we go through one every 6 months
1 cow- should last all year long
1 Lamb per year
15 turkeys- one for every month and a few extra to make into ground turkey

Herbs- Hannah will likely add to this list, but I want to have fresh or frozen herbs this coming year
Mint, Basil, Thyme, Lemon Balm, Rosemary, Cilantro, Parsley, Dill, Lavender, Oregeno,  Pyretheam
Sage, Stevia

Fruits- we will not have our own orchards yet- it will take them a few years to come into fruit so we will have to look around for orchards to pick from
Blueberries- 50-100 lbs frozen
Apples- 30+ lbs for applesauce, pies, butter and frozen  to add to dishes later
Peaches- 20+ lbs for jam making, and to freeze for later use
Plums- 15+ lbs for jam making and to freeze or dehydrate for later use.

Mushrooms-  I am hoping that Eric will take on the task of growing mushrooms for our family and maybe extra to take to markets in the summer
Button, oyster and shiitake

Vegies-  I plan on canning, freezing and storing most of the harvest while still eating what is in season
Beets-  50 jars with 10 beets per jar= 500 beets
Beans- 50lbs with 1/2 produced from bush beans and 1/2 produced from pole beans = 100 bean plants
Broccoli-  100 lbs with 2lbs per plant = 50 broccoli plants
Cabbage- eaten seasonally = 5-10 plants
Carrots- 100 lbs = 200-300 carrots
Cauliflower- 40 lbs = 20 cauliflower
Cucumbers- 25 jars of pickles= 10 plants
Eggplant- 20 lbs to freeze and eat at harvest time = 10 plants
Garlic- 100 bulbs a year- we use at least 2 a week
Kale- eaten seasonally = 5-10 plants
Lettuce- eaten seasonally I want to try and always have some planted
Melons- to eat seasonally and freeze for later use = 20 plants
Onions- 100 to 150 lbs = 200 to 300 planted
Peas-  100 lbs a year = 100 plants ??
Peppers- to eat seasonally = 5-10 plants
Potatoes-  200lbs  1/2 in sweet and 1/2 in regular
Pumpkins- 20-30 in several varieties- I bake and freeze most of my pumpkin
Spinach- 50-100 plants to eat seasonally and freeze for the rest
Summer Squash- 20 plants to freeze and eat seasonally
Swish Chard- One of my favorites- to eat seasonally 10 plants
Tomatoes-  This is a big one- We eat a lot of diced tomatoes.  500lbs of tomatoes = 100 plants  We need diced, stewed and sauce tomatoes
Watermelon- to eat seasonally 20-30 plants
Winter Squash-  Most of these hold well over winter in storage
Butternut, Acorn, Spaghetti  10-20 plants each

Here is the real question- Can we really grow all of this food ourselves?  Of course there are things missing- I don't want to tackle grains yet, so you don't see corn, wheat, or oats YET.
It would be fun to have honey bees too, but that is in our future and only if one of the kiddos or husband wants to take that on.
I think we have maple trees on the property too, but that too is a few years out.  But a fun thought!!
So much to do before we can even contemplate getting our garden going or trees planted.  We keep pushing forward.
What do you think of our food plan?  Do you have one of your own? 

Homesteading for Reals

With our move to Kentucky, we have found that our regular supply of LOCAL food is non-existent.  No one grows through the winters here which makes me wonder why not?  Are folks really good at preserving their summer harvest, or are they so disconnected from their food that grocery store produce is "good enough"?  How can they not miss fresh broccoli, kale, beets, and carrots?  I long for Swiss Chard, in it's beautiful range of rainbow colors.  I can find it at my grocery, but it is wilted and from a far off place- Yuck! 
We have been considering how to plant our own garden this spring.  The only flat place to put our garden is in front of the house.  Where the trees are!  Most of them are in bad shape, from an ice storm several years ago that decimated many of the trees in the area.  So how do we get them out?

We could use a chainsaw and take them down to the stumps and garden around the stumps for now. This is the cheaper route and may work for a time.

Or

Picture Courtesy of Country Life Experiment

We could use a tractor and push them down. Probably the quickest way to go about it- but probably not cheap when you don't own a tractor (YET). 

I am thinking that we may have to cut trees down to a level to where, when we get a tractor, we can then push them over and get the roots out.
Or Maybe, I can use digging stumps out as a discipline for my kiddos when they get out of line.  Child Abuse??

There is a lot of work to be done before we can put in a garden.

*  Get the trees out- biggest step and the one I worry about most
*  Amend the soil with lots of compost, cow manure, chicken litter, and whatever else I can get my hands on to "bring on" the good soil.
*  Till in all the amendments
*  Plant cover crops to set and add more nutrients to the soil
*  Plan, Plan, Plan
*  Order Seeds
*  Make our rows
*  Plant
*  Water
*  Be Patient
*  Build a Root Cellar-  That is a whole other issue I have no idea how to do
I have already started thinking/planning out what we need to plant.  Thinking about how many vegetables we use in a year.  What are we going to can, freeze or store for use. 
We are faced with supplying our family with food for a whole year- there are no other options here in Kentucky for us. 
I will post our list tomorrow of what I think we will need to get through a full year of producing our own food. 
If we can produce that remains to be seen, but we are going to try.

The Things I Want to Remember

I want this blog to be about our family and our accomplishments.  My hope is that others can learn from our mistakes and successes, but even if no one reads this, I want to be able to look back and have a record/history of what our family has done. 
We are a family of 5, although most days it is just the kids and I that run the farm and household.  Hubby works for the Army and is often busy from sun up to sun down with those duties.  We get the most accomplished when he is home on the weekends and can lend his muscle to the jobs I cannot get done without him. 

We have been working on fencing our front two + or - acres, to afford our sheep and chickens with forages throughout the winter.  We had fenced before, but never with an eye on never having to do it again.  Making it last the next 50 years or so would be great.  We are stretching woven wire over t-posts with a new (not to us- we bought it at a garage sale) ratchet - pulley - come-along thingy.  I don't know what it's technical name is but it is wonderful.  We have been hooking it to the hitch of the truck, but it can also be hooked to posts. 
When we all five work on this it goes super fast.  We can fence about an acre a weekend- Is that fast?  I don't know, but it seems so for me.  An acre is 209 ft squared- I guess that is not bad.  Anyway- back to our jobs.  It is my job to decide where the fence is going to go, lay out the string for straight lines (which is a joke on hilly land), and give direction where to dig posts in.  Oldest son (18yo now) drives the t-posts and digs the corner posts in.  Hubby cements the posts in, carries and unrolls fencing.  I get the fun part of ratcheting the fencing tight- and straightening it - and ratcheting some more.  It is kind of exciting to see it all come together.  Meanwhile while I am tightening youngest son and daughter are working on getting fence ties in place.  Really a team work job ! 

So far all we have fenced is maybe 2 acres..... maybe!  We have a lot more to do!!  Ugh!

Attempting Again

So- It has been a long, long time since I posted.  I am going to attempt this again, even though I really question my grammar and writing skills.  I am going to try and not let those things get in my way.
Here we are at the end of 2012 and I have been a farmer for almost 3 years now.  I love it..... my heart craves it.... it is who I am.  Not sure how I would describe myself anymore without the word farmer in it.

 

We have moved to Kentucky now, after spending a few months in limbo between two homes. Husband had to leave Georgia and report to his new duty station in Kentucky at the beginning of July. The kids and I spent our summer in Minnesota at the family cabin and lake.

 

 

 

 

We are now at our home in Kentucky, and we have been busy working on pulling out carpets, replacing subfloors, painting and moving all our stuff into place.  Hard work, but we are hoping that this is our forever home now.  We have 50 acres here and it is almost completely land locked which we love.  Our animals will be behind the house, and nobody will hear or know that they are there.

  Our gardens and orchards will be in the front closer to the water supply.  It is such a difference for me to live on our farm- to be able to look out the window (albeit, dirty) and see our animals grazing.  To leave my window open at night to be able to hear the dogs barking and keeping predators at bay.

I will post more on specifics in the future- maybe not everyday, but more frequently than once every two years. 

Sorry I Have Been Away

I have been trying to decide what to do. I now have a website that I can blog on, and I have been trying to figure out whether to move the whole blog over to the website, or just start anew from here.
I think it is too confusing to have 2 blogs- Don't you?
So come on over to gingersnaphollowfarms.com to follow our farming journey.
I will start blogging their tomorrow! Tonight I am off to sleep!

My Antibiotic Soapbox

I just watched this CBS News report and thought you might be interested in seeing what big factory farms are doing...... and the risks involved in eating food that comes from these big corporations. You can see the video here:

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/02/09/eveningnews/main6191530.shtml?tag=stack


One of my New Years Resolutions was to eat local meat- Meat that I knew the person growing and taking care of the animals. I want to know that what I am putting in my body is from antibiotic, steroid, and hormone free animals. We the consumer have been led to believe that the ONLY way to farm is to add to what nature provides. Big business has come in and convinced the farmers to add fertilizers, pesticides, and pharmaceuticals to our food system.
What did farmers do before the invention of these chemicals? They farmed in a way that was in harmony with nature. They planted in rotational beds. Perhaps one year in bed 1they grew corn but year 2 in bed 1 they would rotate and grow beans. This kept the pesky bugs confused as they had a hard time following where you moved their favorite vegetable. They rotational grazed their animals so that they had fresh grass to eat everyday. This cut down their need to feed them anything else but grass and hay. These animals were meant to eat grass- God didn't say Grass and Antibiotics, No he just gave them grass.
Our problem really lays in the fact that in order to make any money farming in this manner you have to produce large quantities of product. We as consumers want cheap food. Unfortunately cheap comes with a cost! The farmer cannot absorb the costs of losing half his crop to bugs and is forced to use a pesticide to keep them at bay. In order to make any money in raising hogs he needs to raise hundreds at a time in close quarters. Eventually one gets sick, and before you know it they all are sick and need medications. Because in most cases these animals are not out on fresh grasses all day, every day, but instead locked in small paddocks with way too many bodies to a stall. Not exposed to the freshest air and food. Why on earth would we think they would be healthy animals? Would we allow our children to be treated this way? Definitely not! Animals need the same things we do. Food, shelter, and to be treated with respect and love.
It is a shame that most conventional farmers are so far in debt trying to make a living and failing because they cannot compete with the big corporations that are now running a huge percentage of our countries farms today, that they are getting out of the business.
There is a better way! I am convinced of that! Eat locally- Eat food that you know where it comes from. Get to know your farmer and what he stands for. Visit the farm and see how he treats his animals. We must make time in our lives to do these things. It is for the welfare of our bodies and our children's bodies and the future of our planet.
Let me know what you think.

Things Are Coming Right Along

My dear husband finished putting up the shed last night. It is a cute 7x7 plastic model that we got on clearance from Home Depot. Now I need to build the brooder boxes and get them in there. Chicks will be arriving around the 17th of this month. I am so excited I can hardly stand it!

I am pasting a picture of what I think the boxes will look like- although this picture DOES NOT belong to me, I just wanted you to see what I am thinking about.

We will be making a shelving unit first and then making the boxes a separate piece so we can remove them and clean them out. I anticipate our boxes being 6.5ft x 4ft which will give us a little over 25 square feet. Supposedly you can fit 100 chicks in 25 square feet of space. Sounds small to me, but I am taking the experts opinions on this. So we will be building 2 units to begin with and then adding a third unit later on when we are ready to start turkeys. Gone are the days of the pool in the kitchen with little chicks in it.

I will miss having them so close by, but not the stink that they created. I am also moving to pine shavings, as I have read that these will decompose quicker and help with the smell issues.

I am having some issues finding farm insurance and it is starting to stress me out a bit. Part of my contract with Farmer D is that I have insurance on the property but also product liability too. I would have gotten both on my own, but now it is a necessity. Most companies say I do not have enough stuff for them to cover for what I want protection on. Let me clarify..... I do not want to insure a chicken house, a farm house, a tractor or any other big ticket item. I just want them to cover liability on 2 little acres and product liability. Big insurance companies want to cover the big things- but I don't have anything big. See my problem? I still have some companies looking into it for me- and I do have one bid, but it is high $$$.

I am off to plan my brooder boxes now- Hopefully I will have pictures of my boxes to you soon.

We Have Land!!

We have officially signed the lease on our 2.08 acres. Yes, you read that right- I guess I wouldn't know 5 acres if it smacked me in the nose. Farmer D assures me that it is 2 acres and not 5. Oh well, 2 is plenty to start with.

My next hurdle is to find farm insurance. This is a must in order to fulfill my lease agreement with Farmer D and also to be allowed to sell at Farmers Markets. Most insurance companies that I have spoken with have said I do not have enough land/equipment to insure for what liability I am asking them to assume. So wish me luck- I will keep looking.

I have officially ordered the chicks, all 200 of them. I have ordered:

100 Cornish Cross Broilers,
80 Rosambro Broilers (no picture available yet) and 20 Red Broilers.
I am experimenting a little to find out which Breed I prefer.

Ray and I are now working on brooder plans. The brooder is the warm home the chicks will stay in for the first 3 weeks of their lives. We want to make it as cozy and comfortable as possible.

We continue to plan for our gardens as well. We measured out and dreamed a little about our garden today after we signed our lease. It will be a lot of work, but beautiful and productive.

I Am Back and Inspired!

I am back from Chattanooga, and I am ready to tackle the world! Well at least my small little part of the world.
I took several classes on pastured poultry, a few on gardening, and even more on marketing. I met so many nice people who were willing to listen to me and give me advice. I have come home with plenty of grandiose ideas- most of which Ray has put the kibosh on. He is much more realistic than I am. Me..... I want it all! Chickens, Ducks, Cows, Sheep, Turkeys, and a huge (acres upon acres) garden. Well, what I am getting are chickens, a few turkeys and a small garden. Ray said so! That is it! He is right, I should just start slow, and move up if we can handle that.
I came home late Saturday night, but was up early and ready to order seeds on Sunday. I have ordered so many wonderful seeds- I can't wait to get them in the ground!
Here is what I will be growing (or attempting) this year:
*Spring Potatoes- will arrive first week in March
Purple Viking
Dakota Rose
Irish Potatoes
Beans- I love Beans and hope to can enough to make us through the following year
Blue Lake
Kentucky Wonder
Beets- One of our household favorites
Ace
Flat of Egypt
Carrots- several varieties to make a colorful bouquet of carrots at the farmers markets
Napoli Carrots
Necter
Purple Haze
Rainbow- whites, yellows, and oranges
Corn- Hoping to plant several types
Kandy Korn
Silver Queen
Eggplant
Millionaire a deep purple eggplant
Fairy Tale a striped version
Lettuce & Spinach I ordered lots of different types- I do not want to have to eat anymore store bought lettuce.
Okra- bought just for my husband- I do not like Okra (it is not in my western genes)
Peas- will be going in soon
Canoe
Peppers- I have never grown these before- will be fun to try these out
Ace
Pumpkins- I want to make my own pumpkin pies this year
Baby Pam
Charisma-Eric wants to grow these so we will have our own jack-o-lanterns this year.
Squash-
Zucchini- Eight Ball & Cash Flow
Waltham Butternut
Sweet Meat Hubbard
Tomatoes- Trying different types this year, but really want to can enough to make it through the year
Salsa- ordered 3 plants
Mortgage Lifter Heirloom
Marianna
Watermelon-
Moon & Stars- A pretty melon with yellow star spots and one big yellow moon spot. Jonah is going to grow this for ME!
Carolina Cross- Supposed to get to 200lbs
Big & Tasty Seedless
Wow- I think I left some off too. Now you get the idea of what we are going to plant, and how crazy my husband thinks I am.

Happy Birthday To Me!

So what else do you do when you turn 40 and are looking at a new path for your life?

Plan your gardens for the year- Duh!

I couldn't sleep last night because I found this great site that helps you plan your gardens. It includes freeze dates (for your area, by zip code) and when to plant indoors and out. It even tells you when to harvest! What could be better!!

Check it out: http://www.growveg.com/

Here is what I have created with it so far:

East Side of Garden- Where the chickens are in their Coop. I currently have 3 8'x4' beds on this side and a corner 5'x5' bed where we put our potatoes. We will be expanding our garden again this year by adding an additional 8'x4' & 4'x4' bed on this side of the garden. As you can see nothing is planted on this side as this is where the chicken coop started its rotation. The chicken Coop sits on a raised bed for one month and then that space lays fallow for 2 months while the chickens move on to the next bed.

West Side of Garden- This is where all the action is! Right now it has row covers over 2 of the beds. Currently all that is in them are onions, but that will change in the next few days when I will plant broccoli, carrots, beets, spinach and lettuce. As you can see we will also expand this garden with an 8'x4' & 4'x4' bed.

I would love to add another 2-4 beds but have not figured out how to accomplish this yet. If we had 12 8'x4' beds the chickens could rotate to a different bed every month thereby leaving all beds in a usable condition 9 months out of the year.
Here in Georgia, we have a pretty long growing season, and I think I can possibly grow all year long with the addition of the row covers on 2-3 beds.
I have yet to finalize my plans on seeds to plant, but today is my Birthday and I can play with seed catalogs if I want to! Do you hear the music playing?

Finally Found It!

So here is the areal view of the land that we will be leasing.

We will be using the southern (bottom) 5 acre paddock for our chickens. Farmer D's house sits in the middle of the farm and he has a small garden in the back yard. I am very excited to be working with Farmer D. He has been very honest and interested in our plans to farm. Although he is not currently farming his land, he still wantis to maintain the integrity of the farm. I will do my best to ensure we are farming in a sustainable way. Taking care of the land for future generations to farm.

The land has been sitting fallow for many years, while Farmer D has had family health issues to deal with, but it used to be a working cattle farm. This is actually a good stroke of luck for Ray and I, as it tells us that there have been NO chemicals, fertilizers, or pesticides put down on the pasture in many years. Good News for the chickens!!

We still have a few more items to work out before we can get chicks, but we are well on our way now. Our timeline is to have chicks by mid February and have them out on the pasture in the first few weeks of March. If all goes to plan we should have chicken for sale the first week in April. It is all so exciting!

Farm Planning- Pastured Poultry

I lay awake at night and in the early morning planning the farm in my head. Ever have a dream or goal like that- where all your free time is spent envisioning your future? I feel led to do this, for the health of my family. I have been consumed with finances, business plans, and learning as much as I can about chickens to make my dream a reality.
I thought I would give you all a picture of what we want to do.
Keep in mind that the following pictures are NOT our own- just close to what we want to do.

Pastured Poultry defined: Chickens, turkeys, ducks and geese that are raised on pasture, most often they are supplemented with some grains. While on pasture, the poultry eat the tender grass, scratch the ground, and eat bugs, meanwhile they are fertilizing the fields they are on with their manure which is high in nitrogen.
Why is pastured poultry better for you? Our #1 reason for eating pastured poultry is there are No Antibiotics, No Hormones, and No Steroids added to the poultry. Birds that have been raised on grasses out in the field are HEALTHIER BIRDS. They do not need any extra pharmaceuticals to be healthy. They are eating what God intended them to eat. A bird that is eating grasses and bugs is going to have higher Omega 3 fatty acids (good fatty acids) and up to 50% more vitamin A. The birds will be leaner, because they have had room to move, and are eating a healthier grass/grain diet. It also tastes more like chicken. Flavorful, no added pharmaceuticals, and leaner meat, not to mention the quality of life for the birds.

What would you rather eat?

A Chicken that has been raised on fresh grass pasture, eating all the bugs, seeds, grass, and grain they want. Being moved to new grass every day, opening up a whole new salad bar for them. A healthier bird means a healthier meat.

OR

A bird that has been raised in confinement. Thousands of birds raised in one long building that allows almost no room for the bird to move. They are sitting in their own feces for 6 weeks, causing all sorts of conditions requiring medical pharmaceuticals to rectify. These birds are fed a feed that has had arsenic added to it. Arsenic helps rid the animals of some of the diseases that close confinement has caused, but it is added mostly to increase the appetite of the birds, making them gain weight faster.

Consider what you are putting in your body for a moment- Do we really need to be putting arsenic, steroids, hormones, and antibiotics into our bodies? If we are eating this type of meat- factory raised poultry- then we are eating what the bird has been given.

Our goal is to raise a happy healthy bird that will be nutritious for our bodies. We want to raise enough poultry to satisfy our families needs and those of the health consious consumers. I would love to hear your comments and if you are interested in becoming one of our customers in the near future.

New Year- New Plans

Here we are in the New Year and Ray and I have some very exciting plans afoot. We are going to start farming. I have no idea how all of this came about- I guess just a natural progression..... from buying food in the grocery store and not know or caring where it came from... to wanting to eat healthier, wanting to know who grows my food, and being concerned about our enviroment.
We have plans and ideas about what we want to do, but the first thing we need to do is find land to lease. We are already farming our 1/4 acre suburban home with rabbits, chickens, and a large-ish garden, but we would like to step it up a notch and produce a majority of our food for our family. By growing in a larger garden I hope to have enough vegies to can, so we can eat our own produce throughout the winter season. We are planning on raising our own chickens and rabbits for meat, and we should be getting our own eggs from our back yard hens next month.
I have been reading everything I could get my hands on about small sustainable farming. I took a class on farming from a local successful farmer, and plan on attending a conference on organic farming this month.
So I plan on changing the format of this blog from crafty to farming, with our adventures, here at the house and on the "farm" when it comes into being. I will still be crafting and creating, and I may even show some things here, but it probably will not be my main focus. I hope you will stay and enjoy our journey.

We have new chicks

Five Deleware chickens. We have yet to name them because we can't tell them apart yet. But they are so cute and fuzzy.

And a picture of the number one son in his new Unisuit for the Augusta Rowing Club.

Can you believe he is 15??? Not me- seems just like yesterday he was so small I could wrap him up in my arms in my lap. Now I can fit in HIS lap!

Drama Week starts tomorrow! It sure has snuck up on me. I have 2 of the 5 Shadow Guard costumes done, but they are easy to fix up at this point. When I picked them a week ago they were almost done, so I really just need to zip up the fronts and put in a hook.

I do however need to get into the kitchen in the morning and make lots of snacks for the week. Drama Week means long days with dinner in the crock pot..... which means I have to go to the grocery store SOON.

Yesterday we went to my cousin Jennifer's house in lower Georgia. Her house is always so much fun because she has so many animals. Let's see, I saw: 2 ponies, 1 colt, 1 donkey, ??? ducklings, ??? ducks, 4 or 5 chickens, Guinea babies, 3 wild snakes, 1 fish, and 1 really frozen gator baby. Yes, gator! He was dead- a long time gone! Apparently, my cousins' husband Rusty thinks it is fun to bring out the dear dead headless gator for family occasions. Oooh!

Eric asked to go fishing and so Jennifer strung him up a red squiggly worm, and he cast it out and reeled in a beauty of a fish on the first try.

Doesn't he look so proud? He begged to take it home, and I said "NO". Number 1, I don't like to eat fish, have no idea how to cook fish. Number 2, I was not about to clean it! One day he and his brother will learn how to gut and clean fish, maybe from Papa this summer, and Grandma can show them how to cook it.
Jonah came back from camping this evening and looked beat! He hiked 7-8 miles and camped on the trail this weekend. His leader said he did a wonderful job, including encouraging the other scouts when they became tired. I wish I had had more time to get him a camera before he went. I would love to know what the scenery looked like in the Appalachian Mountains.
Anyway- I am signing off for tonight. I really must start this earlier in the evening. My brain has gone to mush for the day.

What a Wonderful Sound a Piano Makes

We have now completed another year of piano lessons with our fabulous instructor Tina. The kids played beautifully. Hannah played Hall of the Mountain King and Eric played Puff the Magic Dragon (one of my favorite songs as a kid). I am so proud of how far they have come in the last year. They have grown not only musically, but in maturity, and spirituality. All three children continue to amaze me with their loving and caring attitudes for their siblings and family.
Anyway, here are Hannah and Eric posing for Recital photos.










My camera is acting up, and did not take the best photos this time. Just erks me to no end. Both the fact that it is a new camera and my lack of understanding for photoshop and the camera itself. I still haven't figured out how to download the video's onto my laptop. Grrrr!
I did get a lot accomplished today!
Dropped the oldest son off for Boy Scout camp out. I had to really work on convincing myself that he is not going to get lost and never come home. I have been watching too much drama on TV.
Obtained new post decals for my van. I had to have the lady come out and scrape off the old decals. I am not tall enough to reach the top and she was barely tall enough. She agreed that it was OK for me to put the new stickers down lower on the window.
Picked up refill meds from PX.
Made the "call", and I now have an appointment for next week with a quilt shop owner concerning consigning in her store. Woo Hoo! I have been fretting about this for days.
Now motivated by the call, I rushed upstairs to work on quilt cards. Accomplished 1 set of 3 cards.
Sent care package to husband. Hope he reads the two things I sent him on farming!
Purchased dress shoes and a black t-shirt for the youngest. Shadow guards must wear black under their cloaks for the Wizard of Oz Play next week. Still need black pants or sweats.
Searched for hair net to help when I put Hannah's hair up next week. She needs to wear her hair in a bun and I hate bobbi pins.
Attend Piano Recital!
To do list on Saturday May 30th:
1. Sew Shadow guards' costumes- at least put a dent in the lot of 5.
2. Work on cards.
3. Make RJ a graduation card.
4. Attend RJ's graduation party. Leave early it's a 2 hour drive.
5. E-mail those pictures of the trees.
I guess that is it for now.

Another Thursday Down

I am not keeping count- but one less day until my dear husband comes home.

Thursday's have been harder for me.... I think it is because the kids have music lessons and I have an hour with nothing to do. Leaves me too much time to think.

I am getting many things accomplished in the effort to keep my mind busy. Garden has been planted and the yard cleaned up. My bedroom is finally clean... well almost. I hate to file, so there is a box of filing left to do. I have been throwing myself into my crafting, in an effort to prepare for a possible consignment opportunity.

Here are the baskets that I dressed up with high hopes they will help sell my cards. What do you think?



Here are some of my cards that are going to fill these baskets.

On to the household chores:

I had the turf guy come out today and spray fertilizer and weed killer on the front lawn. Not much grass in the back, therefor no spraying back there. So the vegies are safe. I know it is not very green to have your yards fertilized, but I can't get it to grow, and some day I will have to sell this house. What is a girl to do? I did do away with pest control services. Partly because they ticked me off, but also from the possible side effects on my small animals. So I am left to tackle the fire ants on my own. Ughh! Oh and the wasps, bees and slugs!

On to the garden- This planter is just outside of my window. It holds the three salsa tomato plants that I got from Burpees. Oregano, lemon balm, and basil are in the front planter.

These are my blueberries, one on each side of my porch.

I have also taken pictures of the trees on top of my house. Literally- on top of the house. The branches are now touching, and the neighbors say they have seen squirrels running the rooftop. Having fun no doubt! I am going to send these pictures to a friend who has offered to come and help cut them down. Won't the squirrels be disappointed? Too bad!
To Do List for Friday May 29th:
1. Drop the oldest son off for Boy Scout backpacking camp out. Yes- he is going to hike 5-8 miles this weekend. And he is excited? DONE
2. Piano recital tomorrow 6:30pm, and I have to figure out the blasted camcorder. DONE
3. Maybe, just maybe, see someone about consigning cards? DONE
4. See a Movie with a friend??? NOT YET
I know there must be more, but the mind is not working efficiently right now.
So I am signing off for tonight.