Are we living our dream?

[tortoise]

I love reading your updates! Your world is very different from mine. I have a lot to learn from you!

 

[Medicine Woman]

Omg. I am sorry for your loss. But I hope you don’t regret your decision. It’s just been 2 months and I wouldn’t want you to forfeit your lifestyle and later regret it. Is there not a way to downsize the chores to make it manageable? Like for me...well I am a nurse and my coworkers have questioned me about my farm. I told them I make my living as a nurse and then the farm pretty much supports itself and only feeds me but if I had to choose I would farm because if I can’t work in the future as a nurse the farm is bread, meat, vegetables, fruit, cabins, warmth, water, herbs....basically everything I need. If I don’t have my land then I’ll be just as dependent on the money economy as everyone else. I just don’t believe in hasty decisions. I hope you have a good plan because I remember communicating with you in the past and people like us just don’t see things like most people.
If I were left alone with too much land to manage and no farmer to lease to or sharecrop with and by all means selling as a working farm was in my best interest I really think I would sell it for the most possible money and then go RVing. Downsize and go places, while I still use some of my skills. I do have a used RV and Nature has already forced me to downsize but still with the land. But I trust you know what is best for you.

 

[baymule]

We moved here because our daughter and family was here. They moved to Odessa for better jobs, then moved to Corpus Christi this past summer. I had already been telling my husband that we ought to move a couple hours south to be closer to family. This is not a new rash decision. Without the love of my life, I have no family anywhere near. Moving to my son’s rent house on 2 acres will give me time to figure out where I want to be. I’m not giving up farming, keeping 12ewes and my ram. Plus my LGDs. I’m a firm believer in that when the time is right, God will show me where I need to be. I just know I don’t belong here anymore. Thank you for your love and concern.

 

[Medicine Woman]

Happy Sunday everyone. I woke up earlier than usual. DH not exactly as good as usual. I fetch lots of things for him. It was a 2 pot coffee day. I went to the 11:00 Mass and went to my farm to feed everything. I swear I am going to have a big slaughter day as soon as possible. I really think I have 3 Tom’s and 2 turkey hens but DH thinks opposite. But they kinda cocky and I really don’t need one of them to leave my yard and jump a kid. I also have too many drakes and I need to check how many unwanted roosters. They should be all chill about now, drunk on fermented grain. I didn’t cleanup my yard because DH requested grits and eggs and I have his chores to do now. Oh....he is up from a nap. Sure hope pain free. See y’all.

 

[Medicine Woman]

Basically if DH is awoke I am awoke. I am extremely tired. All chores are still mine. I had a miscommunication with the doctors office yesterday regarding DH’s condition and they prescribed a medication he was already on so insurance refused to fill the med. I then informed the nurse (without telling her I am also a nurse) that he couldn’t urinate so that’s why I asked for antibiotics and they put him on Flomax so she tells me if he can’t urinate it’s not an infection he needs Flomax because his prostate is enlarged so I tell her he is already on Flomax and I personally don’t have a prostate and yet I have been unable to void in the past. Tries to explain what Flomax is and I tell her I know.... I give it to men for a living. I don’t want to go to the follow up appointment. Anyway I fortunately was able to pull enough stunts to get him on the right meds and herbs due to things previously rescued from my house. A lot less screaming now. I was beginning to be afraid his kidneys were shutting down. Enough of that....
Because I had no choice I did chores while I really just wanted to sleep. Rabbits were grateful. Clothes hanging and washing. DH wanted me to make soup with the turkey bone pieces but I am making turkey dumplings. It’s not a Cajun dish so it’s really not something I am an expert at.
Youngest child is here and wants to go back in Taekwondo. Just discovered they not training until January 3rd.
I am now afraid to take the dog run at night in the cane field in the back. It’s harvest time and last night we made Trouble get back in the truck and we turned around at the boat launch in the far back and on the rebound a pig ran in front of us exactly where we made Trouble load up. Bigger than her. Gonna have to wait until someone kills all the pigs. They will destroy the sugar cane anyway. They probably swam there for the storm.
I went to my sisters house yesterday to pick up some beanies she had made. I didn’t realize she had used a knitting machine for all of them. She showed me how to use it to make a beanie from start to finish. I ordered a smaller one because I don’t think we should have the same size. I am mainly wanting to be able to not order socks in the future and so many people have given me all their dead momma’s yarn because they saw I was crocheting that I literally don’t know what to do with it all. It might be a few days before it comes in.
Well I guess the dumplings won’t finish themselves. See y’all.

 

[Medicine Woman]

Merry Christmas my old and new friends!! I am a mess but at least I am showered and dressed...hopefully for Mass. we can do the basic feeding and clean up the truck for tomorrow’s road trip to Fort Polk. DD5 has been learning to drive and we have been taking the dog to a lonesome street for her runs and driving...kill two birds with one stone kinda thing. I let her drive us home afterwards because it was late and cold and I didn’t see anything on the road at all. She did well. She will be 15 in March.
I really gotta see about getting a few pieces of clothes. I barely have anything you can call decent at this point. I guess I am just so set in my ways. Even t-shirts that look new have stains on them. I might have to get creative and cover them up with something.
I need to close off my bedroom against the dog and put puppy pads down on the bathroom floor before tomorrow because I don’t want to count on a neighbor to come over 4 times a day. This is why I don’t want more dogs in the future. All I have to do for the rabbits is make sure plenty of hay and pellets and totally fill the water. I wish she was an outside dog or at least a toy dog. No.....DH had to get a pit bull.
I think DD5 is coming with us to Fort Polk. Her older brother is her godfather. DH says we will stay the night at a hotel to be comfortable. I will go back to the house the next morning to rock a baby and drink coffee before I go home.
So I don’t know how long DH and I will live in the family house. I already know something is up with the shower drain and there is no way either of us can get under and fix it. I really think a shed in the backyard with a few 50 gallon drums sunk in the ground bottoms out and surrounded by beer bottles....hidden and with banana trees all around might be able to serve as a bath house and then we can turn the shower space into a big family closet of sorts.
But I am really serious about PVC pipe aquaponics garden for the windows instead of curtains.
OMG...gotta run. DD2 just informed me she is expecting us in 45 minutes 🤦‍♀️ Great warning.

 

[Medicine Woman]

I totally understand about what, ideally would be best for me as far as balance and exercise. I am a little worried about fracturing my ankle. But yeah.
So funny we have talked about this...I called my doctor about my bloodwork. Got a return call. Total cholesterol was 239 and sugar was 129. He was going to put me on a med and told me diet and exercise. I said... hold on a minute. This is the first time in my life I have high cholesterol. Let me see what I can do until March. I will call y’all back and go in. Y’all weigh me, check my vitals and send me back for tests again and then we discuss meds. So that’s the plan. So tonight instead of run the dog and drive, we going to the park and walking the dog.
I will try to get on a save my life diet. Waiting for DH to get that little pig out the truck so we can leave. He has been working on a little pen. Cattle panels, T-posts and Hurricane Ida sheet metal. Little guy should be okay. Hurry up DH.

 

[tortoise]

I think evenings are hard for DH. He went to the grocery store with me and OMG!!! He is working against so many of my goals. He bought sweets while I was picking salad supplies. Then he stopped at the Dollar Store and I stayed in the truck and just asked him for some sugar free hard candy. I forgot what he really stopped for but he loaded up on so many canned soups and I am trying to empty the shelves. I mean doesn’t he think I can make chicken soup? He is in really bad pain and probably needs surgery on his knees. It would be great if we can get on the same page. I don’t know how long it took me to unload the groceries and pick everything up. He grabbed about 5 heads of cabbage for New Years and I found the manager and asked for the loose leaves for the animals. We dropped off 2 bags to the goats. He somehow thought it would be good for the pregnant does.
So the little pig has a small pen in the yard. I will post a picture. The mess in the back is the neighbors yard but in all kindness let me remind y’all we are all recovering from a horrible, monster storm.
I brought Trouble to my farm to feed my animals and check the mail and then I took her running at her usual spot but she got scared because of the fireworks. Then I picked up DH to get just a few groceries. I really wanted a salad with some baked chicken. I am still baking the chicken.

My DH doesn't support my health goals either. He doesn't discourage them - he just wants his cake and to eat it too. I heard someone on public radio talking about changing the environment to change food choices. I don't remember enough to find the speaker, but I do remember a couple bits

1. People with clean/clear kitchen counters snack less (maybe weigh less too?)
2. People who leave a toaster on the counter either weigh more or consume more calories.
3. Fruit consumption can be increased by leaving a fruit basket in a conspicuous place AND keeping a variety of fruits in it. I don't remember how many varieties of fruit was the magic number to increase consumption, possibly 3.

I really wish I could find the information again. It was so interesting. It did help me change a lot of things that have helped me. One of the changes is that all of DH's unhealthy food gets stashed in the most inaccessible spot in my kitchen. For me, it's the little cupboard above the fridge. He's tall so it doesn't bother him much, but it prevents me from opening a cupboard, seeing some junk food and suddenly wanting it.

I've also unpackaged food and stored it in canning jars so that my food choices aren't influenced by packaging.

I am very, very careful to keep DH out of a grocery store. There is no asking him to get one thing - he will get everything on sale. Definitely never let him in a store when he is hungry!

It's incredibly difficult when your family isn't on the same page, but there are still things we can do to help ourselves make good choices!

Here's a similar link to the message I heard on the radio: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/...how-set-your-environment-help-you-lose-weight

 

[Medicine Woman]

Currently building a salad. Next one will be better because it will have boiled eggs. Gonna need to buy way more lettuce if I keep up at this rate. I had been having a lot of cheese in the fridge for a while and I just shredded a bit for the salad. I think it wants something crunchy like sunflower seeds. Yeah!! Actually I am building twin salads. DH loves olives in his salad. Got it!!

 

[Medicine Woman]

Hi. I don’t try to be so depressing. I have good days and then trying days and just hope more for one more than the other 🤷‍♀️
My sleeping pattern has been really messed up lately. Last night I got really sleepy fast and I was out early...maybe too early because I got up at 1:30AM. I started tackling the dishes and fixed butter milk and took melatonin because I had every intention of going back to bed. I was listening to audiobooks (helps me rest) and I planted more tomato, cucumber and green bean seeds in the plastic container I have been using which now has coffee grounds and egg shells mixed in.
As for the aquaponics project I put a milk jug planter I made with the top in river pebbles with 4 bean sprouts and some Miracle Grow and it actually looks great. I also have a cucumber sprout in a half gallon jug done the same. I could have done it like the lady in Nifty’s post and wrapped with aluminum foil but I am too cheap so I just bought a brown spray paint. I probably made some major mistakes sprouting in the beginning and now I’m not gonna drown everything. I am anxious to have more sprouts.
So DH ends up waking up before I went back to bed and he wants coffee so yeah...we ended up bringing Trouble for a run a little after 4:00. Sugar cane must be totally harvested in the back. I can see really far away.
So on either side of the road is mustard full of yellow flowers but the seed pods are still not full. I got my eyes on them. I want a bunch of those seeds. So DH told me there is a reason they plant mustard. He said when it floods you can’t see where the road is and the mustard helps you not drive into the canals. No one much ever harvests the mustard. I didn’t know it had a purpose besides food. 🤷‍♀️
So I just saw Ideal Hatchery has a sale on hatchery choice bantams for $1.75 each. I am thinking about getting 50 chicks. It’s for the hatch on the 12th. I figured I could pickle tiny eggs, have help incubating and do everything I normally do only small.