Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Look What I Found

I found it!!!I found my camera! Yea! Since I was forced to sit down for a while and I noticed how dirty my house was, I started to clean things that were in my reach. You know that place where everything ends up? That place where you toss mail that you will go through when you have time. Well I had time, so I went through it. Instead of finding 10 million dollars from Publisher's Clearing House,I found my camera. (My 10 million dollar check is on it's way. At least that's what they say) So I am going to post some pictures, just because I can.

This is Skeeter watching the doves eating bird feed on our freezer outside our window.(Yes, I know that a freezer on my front porch makes me a redneck.)



This is her watching a cardinal. I love being able to get this close to the birds. They don't fly away from you. I don't think that they can see through the glass.



This is her wishing that spring would get here fast so she could go chase rabbits.


My ankle has been getting better every day now. It is almost back to normal. I'm glad it wasn't as bad as it could have been. I got lucky. Thanks everyone for your nice comments. You guys are great!

And because I can, here is a picture of my mare Foxy.


So until next time,

Small Farm Girl, picture taker,again.

Monday, February 22, 2010

Just Hanging Out

I'm down. I twisted my ankle yesterday, in the snow, walking to the chicken house.(Did I mention that I hate snow?) The snow just gave way under my foot and down I went. Luckly Luke did not see me. That would have been bad. I couldn't have hobbled over to sit on an old wheel, if I had to fight off a St Bernard at the same time. Anyway, when I got over and set on the wheel, I jerked off my boot. I didn't care that I almost passed out when I done it, if I had to go to the hospital for this ankle, they were NOT going to cut my new boot off my foot. Priorities man! One good thing about the snow though, I stuffed my foot down in a drift to keep it from swelling much. (Once again, I still hate snow!) I set on the wheel for a while forcing myself to breath in and breath out. Hubby was at one of our neighbor's house fixing his snowplow. I had to get in the house somehow. Finally, I sat there long enough that my foot went numb. I hobbled, as best that I could, back into the house. Once I got in, then I could see how bad it was. Just an ordinary sprain. I've had sprained ankles my whole childhood. The ER people practically knew me by my first name when I walked in the door. I thought I had done good. I haven't had a bad sprain in a long while.(I didn't count the broken foot I had 3 yrs ago. That wasn't my ankle. lol)

So now, I'm sitting on the couch, bored out of my mind,looking at all the things that need to be cleaned. If I were fine, I wouldn't have noticed how dirty it is in here. But since I can't do anything about it now, it's FILTHY! lol. I should be up and at'em in a couple days, I'm sure. Maybe I'll play my fiddle some.

"Can someone get my fiddle!?"

"Hello!?"

"Anybody there?!"

Well maybe I'll just watch some MORE tv. I think they are trying to tell me something.

So until next time,

Small Farm Girl, hop-a-long

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Okay, I know I'm not the best fiddle player in the world. I'm lucky to play Twinkle,Twinkle,Little Star. But, does my wiener dog,Skeeter, have to bark and howl EVERY time I play? I play one note and she starts the barking. I play two notes, she starts howling. Is she trying to tell me something? Is that a hint? I will not let that discourage me. Everyone has to start somewhere right?

This weekend I got to meet another fellow blogger. She is Debbie from Happy Days. (Sorry, still no link. I've set my mind to learn how to do it.) She was very nice. She gave me a vanity top for our new house. It should be perfect for our bathroom. It's nice to meet fellow bloggers. If you follow their blogs regularly, it's like you already know them. But when you get to meet them, it's even better. Thank you once again Debbie.

I told you I would post the recipe for Bee Spit Tea. Well, here it is:

Water
Milk
Honey

Boil the water. Pour into cup.Add milk. If you want it thicker, add more milk. If you want it thinner add just a little. I add about 1/4 cup. Then add honey to taste. I like mine sweet, so I add quite a bit,2 to 3 tablespoons. Stir and enjoy.

This drink will help a sore throat. It will make any fever break.(At least in my experience) It is just a great all around drink. I hope you like it as much as I do.

We have been having some warmer temps around here the last few day. The ground is making a comeback. Slowly, you can see it peeking out through the snow. But, we shouldn't get use to it. It's suppose to snow again this week. That's good and bad. Good because Hubby is fixing his snow plow. He will be able to go around and make some money scrapping driveways and parking lots. Yea! Bad because I'm tired of snow.Boooooo. Oh well, spring is getting closer with each day. It will be here soon.

So until next time,

Small Farm Girl, fiddler,kinda

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Why!

Why do things always happen when the weather is bad?

WARNING: Long blog!

I kept hearing a calf bawling for his mother out behind the house. So as I went out to feed the birds this morning, I looked around to see if I could see it. The cattle were a few hundred feet down over the hill acting like nothing was wrong, so I just assumed that we had a baby that couldn't find it's mother at the exact time that it wanted to feed, so it was bawling.(Babies do that)So I finished feeding the birds and went back into the house. A few minutes later, I hear it again. Okay, I've got to see what's up. So I get my coat and boots on and go outside.

As I go around the house, trudging through snow, I see that we have a calf out. It was either Sir Loin of Beef or T-Bone.(I can't tell them apart anymore.) We have places in our fence around our house that, how should I put this, are not the best fence in the world. There are places that babies can get out. Granted, they normally don't. But I guess this time he did.

I try to force him into the field. Calves have a talent. They know how to get through a fence. I think they are born with it. This one didn't. He goes around the chicken coop and darts down the driveway into the road. Now, through all of this, Hubby is not home.(Of course) He is helping a friend with his tractor. Me,being not the most graceful person on snow and ice, decides to get one of our four wheelers out. Our newest four wheeler is behind the house underneath a tarp. I try to move the tarp, but the blocks that are holding the tarp down are frozen into gigantic ice blocks. No moving them. So I go and try the older four wheeler. Hubby uses it to pull the wood splitter around when he splits wood. The wood splitter was still attached. No problem, just unhitch it right. Wrong! Wouldn't budge. Now imagine a fat woman out there heaving and tugging on a wood splitter. Not a pretty site. Oh to make things even better, I was in lounge pants. You know, the pants everybody sleeps in. Not warm either. Anyway, the brother of our neighbor picks this time to pull in the drive. He was looking for Hubby to see if he could help him with something. Little did he know that I was going to persuade him into helping me get the calf back in. Finally! The little booger went back in.

Still not done. As I set down to type up this blog, I hear some more mooing. This time it was Mama. Okay, now where did her calf go. Since I really didn't get to see mom and baby reunited, I probably should go see if everything is alright.

So back into my coat and boots. I try to get the wood splitter off again. Nothing. Then a bright idea hits me. I'll use the big metal tamping bar that is leaning up against the chicken coop to break the blocks loose.(Why it was leaning up against the chicken coop, I don't know) Anyway, I walk over to the coop, trudging through a snowdrift that is up to my nether regions,and got the bar. Got it back, broke the blocks loose and shoved back the tarp that weights 90 million pounds. All this time I have a St. Bernard jumping up and down thinking I'm playing with him. I'm not.

I start the four wheeler and pull it around to the gate. As I'm going around my car, the four wheeler gets stuck in a snowdrift. Great! After a few minutes of rocking it back and forth, I got it loose. I drove up to the gate to open it. The gate has a ratchet strap keeping it closed. Now any other time I can work the ratchet strap. But oooooooooh nooooooooo, I can't get it this time. So I take off my gloves, put them between my legs and unfasten the strap. The gloves fall on the ground. And as I was bending down to pick them up,Luke(St. Bernard)starts licking my face. AAAUUUUGGGGHHH! I shove him off,get back on the four wheeler and drive it through the gate. I go and check the cattle. All were there. (Those little liers! You would think at least one of them would be dead for all of the problems I had to go through just to check on them. lol)I come back,go through the gate, and fasten it up. Once again, Luke slobber in the the face.

I decided that since I had the four wheeler out, I would go and check the mail. I rode it down my driveway. There was a snowdrift as tall as the mailbox. I was not going to walk in that to get the mail. So what did I do? Got the four wheeler stuck again. This time, not as bad. I drove back to the house, sitting on the mail so that I wouldn't lose it and go to put the four wheeler up. Now, what am I going to do with the mail as I put the tarp back. The wind isn't blowing back here bad, I'll just toss it on the ground. Wrong! Big gust of wind at the same time I let go of the mail. Mail is now being blown across our yard toward our pasture. Okay. Cover four wheeler, get licked in the face by Luke as I'm putting blocks back on tarp, and then chase down mail. I, once again, go trudging through the snow that is up to my nether regions, to get the mail. The mail goes under the fence. Now I have to make the decision, do I want to go under the barbed wire or over it. As I look at my happy dog standing beside me hoping that I will play with him, I decide to go over. I push the fence down,because once again, it is loose there, and start to swing my leg over. Nope. I hear a distinct ripping sound. I catch my lounge pants on the barbs. Great, just great! The horses, that are eating right there, come over to investigate, or how it really happens,let's go run and kick and buck. Do not worry, I did not get run over by the horses. But, I did decide that I didn't need that 10% off coupon from Tractor Supply that was blowing across the pasture. I went back into the house and made me some Bee Spit Tea, (recipe will come later)and sat down close to the stove.

So until next time,

Small Farm Girl, going back to bed and starting over.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Misplaced=Lost

If you have been reading my blog lately, you have noticed that I haven't had any pictures on here. Well, I've misplaced my camera. Hubby says I lost it. No, I have misplaced it. I know it is around here somewhere. I hope though, that it's not outside somewhere under the snow. I could have easily set it down outside so that I could do something and just forgot it. It's driving me crazy! I believe my mind is gone. Or did I misplace that too.

Anyways, last week me and hubby went to meet a fellow blogger Catherine. Her blog is Kentucky Hollows. I'm still not sure about the link thing. I'll get there. But for now, you can find her in the list of blogs that I follow. She was kind enough to give me a fiddle. Yes, GIVE me a fiddle. And they say there are no more nice people in this world. Ha! While we were there she was so worried about our how her house looked. To me, it just looked like work in progress. It has so much potential. She was exactly like she is in her blog. So friendly! Her girls are so beautiful and full of life. (As was her Lab. lol) But what surprised me was, she was doing all of this gardening and homesteading on just a small piece of flat land. Now, my comment on her place being small is all relative. We have 50 acres of almost flat land. She has a lot of land, but there is more hill than flat. The Appalachians are like that. I was impressed with what she did with what she had. It was awesome.

It got me to thinking, not all people have the good luck of inheriting a farm. If Hubby hadn't, would I still be trying to live like I am. Or, would I be like everybody else, worrying about how big our screen was on our tv? Do I want to live a sustainable lifestyle because of WERE I live? Now that Catherine of Kentucky Hollows has shown me what can be done on a smaller piece of property, it makes me want to utilize our land better. Bigger garden, more live stock(pigs, milk cow, maybe some wool animals),fruit trees, maybe even something more that I haven't thought of yet.hehehhe.

But, then again, I might just misplace them too. lol

So until next time,

Small Farm Girl, misplacer

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

You Can Tell I'm Bored

Yep, you can tell I'm bored. I was tagged by a very nice lady at Laughing Orca Ranch. (Lisa, I don't do this for just anybody. Oh, and I don't know how to make a link to your site. hehehehe). So here it is.

The rules are:

Answer the questions with one word, then pass it along to 5 other bloggers.

Have fun!

Your Cell Phone? Busy
Your Hair? Short
Your Mother? Loving
Your Father? Vetran
Your Favorite Food? Any
Your Dream Last Night? None
Your Favorite Drink?Water
Your Dream/Goal? Healthy
What Room Are You In? Livingroom
Your Hobby? Blogging
Your Fear? Spiders
Where Do You See Yourself In Six Years? Older
Where Were You Last Night? Bed
Something That You Aren't? Skinny
Muffins? Yes
Wish List Item? House
Where Did You Grow Up? Ohio
Last Thing You Did? Dishes
What Are You Wearing? Jeans
Your TV? On
Your Pets? Many
Friends? Few
Your Life? multifacited
Your Mood? bored
Missing Someone?yes
Vehicle? civic
Something You Aren't Wearing?makeup
Your Favorite Store?TSC
Your Favorite Color?All
When Was The Last Time You Laughed? Morning
Last Time You Cried?unknown
Your Best Friend? Hubby
One Place You Go To Over And Over Again? Bathroom
Facebook?Yep
Twitter? Nope
Favorite Place To Eat? Tres Hermanos

Okay, that's it for me. Now I'm suppose to give this to 5 different blogs.( Guys I understand if you don't want to do this. I hardly ever do. But, since I don't have much to blog about, I thought I would give it a try.)

Between You, Me, and The Fence Post
Kentucky Hollers
City Chicken Farm
Grannys Garden
Happy Days

Oh, guess what? I got a fiddle!!!!!!!But that's another post all in itself.

So until next time,

Small Farm Girl, tagger

Monday, February 8, 2010

I don't want anymore snow! Waaaaaa!(Now imagine me with my head tilted back with mouth open wide, tears running down my face.) We got 5 to 6 inches this weekend. I know, it's not the 2 ft that they had in DC, or the 13 to 18 inches that other people have gotten, but, dang it, I'm tired of snow! They are predicting snow all week. Now they are adding cold temps and wind. Enough already! I think I'm going crazy here!

I think I'm just torturing myself though. I keep looking at seed catalogs and wondering what kind of new things I'm going to plant this year. One thing I'm going to plant that I have never planted are peas. I like peas. Hubby doesn't.(He'll get over it.) I thought about planting butternut squash. I love butternut squash soup. Hubby doesn't.(Once again, he'll get over it.) I'm going to plant zucchini and summer squash again this year. I didn't get enough last year. I cut it up into little slices and freeze it for later in the winter.(WAAAAA winter!)

I'm also reading the book the book Animal,Vegetable,Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver.(More tortur) If you haven't read it, you need to go out(that's if you can get out of your driveway.) and get it. It is so good. It tells about a family who is trying to eat locally for one whole year. It will open your eyes to how the food business is run. Plus it will make you want to get out in your garden. (But ooooohhhh no, we have snoooooowwww!)

This winter(if you couldn't already tell) is getting on my nerves. Normally I like winter. You don't have to worry about sweating. You don't have to worry about being hot. You don't have to worry about looking like a freak if you put on shorts. There are no mosquitoes in the winter. But this year, I would take a dozen mosquitoe bites while looking freaky in my shorts, just to be able to sit out in the sun, watching my garden grow. I can't wait!!!!!!!!

Now remind me of this little rant when I'm complaining about how busy and hot I am in the summer. lol

So until next time,

Small Farm Girl, winter hater(for now)

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Confused.

Warning, this blog contains diet talk. lol

Okay, I've tried no carbs, low carbs, high carbs. I've tried low calories, low portions and low fat. Still no progress. I'm just about ready to quit. If it was just a simple fact of my clothes looking better on me, I would just resign to being fat. (They make clothes in the size of "tent" don't they?) But, my heath is at risk. I've got high blood pressure. My knees are starting to hurt, and I can't tie my shoes without passing out.(Okay, the last one was a little bit of an exaggeration, but not much.)

The first problem is, I don't know what to do. First the doctors are telling you to eat high carb. Then they are telling you to eat low carb with high fat. Next they are telling you to eat low fat. Now I just heard on the news that they don't think eating saturated fats have anything to do with high cholesterol. Does anyone know what's going on? I mean, come on! Us fat people are trying to lose weight here.

Then I watched an episode of Oprah. Finally someone has put out in main stream media what I have, deep down, known all along. Eat what your grandma and grandpa did. No more processed foods, no more meat with antibiotics in it, and eat more "real" food. Will it be more expensive at the grocery store? YES! But, we splurge on toilet paper, why not splurge on stuff that will keep us out of the doctors offices? (Well I guess good tp could keep out out of the doctor's office too.) We are conditioned through media to think we love the taste of fast food. Next time you go,(and I know you will) stop and think,"Does this really taste good?" 9 times out of 10 you will say,"No!" So why do we love the idea of eating at fast food restaurants. To me, it's the convenience. When I get off work it's so much faster and easier to go through the drive thru, than it is to go home around 7 pm and try to figure out what to have for dinner. But we are sacrificing convenience for taste and health. What's wrong with us?

This thought is protrade in the movie Food Inc. I have watched it and, yes, it did change the way that I look at food. My problem is once again convenience. I need to make it a priority to plan out my food ahead of time so that I won't even think about eating out. Maybe that will help with losing weight. We shall see.

Now with that in mind, I'm trying to figure out what we like to eat and what we would like to try. My garden, this year, has to be a lot bigger. (Hey exercise!) I have to plant more than just tomatoes, beans,and corn. (Although Hubby doesn't think there are any other veggies.)I need to TRY different veggies. Does anyone out there have any suggestion? Or, does anyone have any recipes that use "real" food. (Kelle, this is your expertise!LOL). I'm getting back on our bandwagon of eating real food. Oh, and smaller portions wouldn't hurt either. lol.

So until later.....

Small Farm Girl,bandwagon getter back oner. (It is a word....that I made up)