Homesteading with animals...post a pic!
- Thread starter Beekissed
- Start date
Homesteadmom
Frugal Homesteader
Hey Lin it's me Pam in AZ!! Great to find you again. I left the "other" place too, I really missed you when you left.love blrw said:
Okay, there is another mom in our homeschool group that spins & I sold her a bunch of composted manure this last spring(we had a huge pile) & she saw the ram & asked what we did with the wool, I told her I wanted to learn to spin & she told me she spins & would teach me whenever I am ready. I will give her a bag of wool for teaching me too. She already told us how to wash it all up & dry it.
Still working on getting that guy home huh? It can take awhile can't it? We finally got a new pen built for our ram & he is so much happier with a lot more room to roam in, not to mention he can see better too. Now dh needs to fix the pen he was in so we can get a hog soon.
Hi Pam,
I've been having trouble logging into this site, so hopefully, now that I am in, I'll be able to keep up a little better.
Yes, Moe is coming home in a week, we'll get his teeth done on Monday, and then on Wednesday if all goes well, he will be home. What a relief. There is still a pile of mixed dirt and roots from the backhoe guy that I have to sort through, but it is in the yard and not in the paddock. I planted some grass just barely coming up so I doubt he will have grass until next spring.
Just a little worn out from John being out of work so long, but when he does go back to work, at least the house will be in better shape.
I think I will get a goat, a doe, or maybe two to keep Moe company, I'll see how he does with the dog and cats and chickens and us. Maybe he won't be as lonely as we think.
There was a guy on craigslist selling a loom, but we didn't have the extra money so I passed it up, now I wish I had gotten it anyway. My gg-grandmother was a master weaver in Finland, wish she could give me lessons now!
Glad you are here, I'll try to keep up, I like the other place's format, just much more serene here.
lin
I've been having trouble logging into this site, so hopefully, now that I am in, I'll be able to keep up a little better.
Yes, Moe is coming home in a week, we'll get his teeth done on Monday, and then on Wednesday if all goes well, he will be home. What a relief. There is still a pile of mixed dirt and roots from the backhoe guy that I have to sort through, but it is in the yard and not in the paddock. I planted some grass just barely coming up so I doubt he will have grass until next spring.
Just a little worn out from John being out of work so long, but when he does go back to work, at least the house will be in better shape.
I think I will get a goat, a doe, or maybe two to keep Moe company, I'll see how he does with the dog and cats and chickens and us. Maybe he won't be as lonely as we think.
There was a guy on craigslist selling a loom, but we didn't have the extra money so I passed it up, now I wish I had gotten it anyway. My gg-grandmother was a master weaver in Finland, wish she could give me lessons now!
Glad you are here, I'll try to keep up, I like the other place's format, just much more serene here.
lin
Homesteadmom
Frugal Homesteader
Lin, good to hear from you again. And I am glad Moe is finally coming home to his family. Bet he will be happier. I like to think that if Don was off work for an extended period of time things would really get done around here & we would be in better shape then. I understand about the format I feel the same way. But things are a lot more on target here aren't they? And they really do suit the type of lifestyle we live more. A lot of radicals on the other place & still at it. I thought this was a diverse world & it was the diversity that made it interesting. But I was told since I did not believe the way they did I was wrong. Oh well it is their loss not to have me anymore. Glad to connect with more people who are likeminded here on lifestyles.
I am glad you are here. I was so tired of the bashing over there, and it was never one person's idea vs one person, always the gang had to move in. I have to say though, I learned a lot over there, and I am putting what I learned to good use.
We are living really bare bones. I make most of our meals out of our garden and from the chickens. (I even have a hen who is brooding over a little pile of eggs, hope she gets to hatch one!).
I typically only spend $25 a week for groceries now, john pays for gas, and we have been using his Geo which gets 55mpg. My daughter (16) is making her own 'horse' money. Have very few bills, only local phone, a cheap cell phone, gas/electric (which we are watching the use like hawks), internet, but the ones we struggle to pay are the insurances and mortgage/taxes. No more rotting metal in the woods either, HA, recycled all that!
We had to move Moe from the barn I used to work at because they hired a crazy girl (son's girlfriend), and she didn't give the horses hay (too expensive?) and Moe colicked. A few days of good handling and he was back to normal, but I moved him to a barn where they grow their own hay. So he has gained some weight (good way for him to start the winter with us). This Saturday our local feed store is having a sale and we will buy the winter horse grain, already have the hay stocked. Have some chicken feed stocked, but not enough for the winter. Maybe I'll sell/give a few chickens away. I had to cull one who wasn't right after she had an egg stuck, but I couldn't eat her, (whimp that I am), so I guess we will be eating more egg drop soup than chicken noodle, LOL!
Last thing we have to do before winter is to hook up a new stove pipe for the house's woodstove.
When I saw this site, I knew K would enjoy it and glad you are enjoying it too. Yes, many more like-minded people.
Peace
lin
We are living really bare bones. I make most of our meals out of our garden and from the chickens. (I even have a hen who is brooding over a little pile of eggs, hope she gets to hatch one!).
I typically only spend $25 a week for groceries now, john pays for gas, and we have been using his Geo which gets 55mpg. My daughter (16) is making her own 'horse' money. Have very few bills, only local phone, a cheap cell phone, gas/electric (which we are watching the use like hawks), internet, but the ones we struggle to pay are the insurances and mortgage/taxes. No more rotting metal in the woods either, HA, recycled all that!
We had to move Moe from the barn I used to work at because they hired a crazy girl (son's girlfriend), and she didn't give the horses hay (too expensive?) and Moe colicked. A few days of good handling and he was back to normal, but I moved him to a barn where they grow their own hay. So he has gained some weight (good way for him to start the winter with us). This Saturday our local feed store is having a sale and we will buy the winter horse grain, already have the hay stocked. Have some chicken feed stocked, but not enough for the winter. Maybe I'll sell/give a few chickens away. I had to cull one who wasn't right after she had an egg stuck, but I couldn't eat her, (whimp that I am), so I guess we will be eating more egg drop soup than chicken noodle, LOL!
Last thing we have to do before winter is to hook up a new stove pipe for the house's woodstove.
When I saw this site, I knew K would enjoy it and glad you are enjoying it too. Yes, many more like-minded people.
Peace
lin
Homesteadmom
Frugal Homesteader
Your right about the gang, they could not stand on their own to defend their thought or belief could they? I did, I got a few support responses but no one ever gangged up with me to get a point across. Guess that says a lot about the type of people they really are. I learned a lot from there too over the 5 yrs I was on it. I miss the recipe & garden sections the most I think.
Sorry to hear you are having such tuff times. I know the feeling of $25 for a weeks worth of groceries, been there done that & I couldn't garden at the time(due to my injuries) & had no chickens either. Ds#1 was only 9 at the time too. Thank goodness for free lunch program at school. I learned on my own how to make refried beans at that time & now my family does not like canned! HA ha. I have been doing a lot of stocking up the pantry & next month except for Thanksgiving we will be living out of it & Dec too. I have 3 kids to buy a few Christmas gifts for. Dh used his debit card a few mos ago & did not give me the reciepts(he did not want to get yelled at) so I wrote checks to pay the bills & of course the bigger checks went in first & bounced($25 fee/ea) so by the time the small checks got there the money was gone & they all bounced($300 in NSF fees to the bank alone). Not to mention the fees the companies charged too. So we are still playing catch up on all our bills too. I was thinking this summer what if all I had to feed my family was what i could grow? I came up with some pretty creative ideas for meals too. Plus I would have had a lot bigger garden this yr.
So where are you working now? Wow on the treatment of Moe , good thing you moved him & put weight on him before bringing him home. Ha Ha to the rotten metal, I don't blame you, Don went around collecting every stray aluminum can at the end of every mo to get enough to take Scott to get a happy meal at McDonalds at the end of each mo. That was when we were out of money & really low on food & no food stamps left either. I learned to stretch the food a little better after a couple of mos. I still use some of those creations & recipes too.
I am trying to grow green beans & peas now. Root crops I have no problem with I can grow them all winter long so I have beets in the ground too. Waiting to get onions but they have not came in yet(store). I had a volunter tomato come up in one of my raised beds so I caged it & I am hoping to make a pvc pipe frame & cover it with palstic sheeting to make a greenhouse tent to go around that bed so we can have fresh tomatoes all winter. Not sure what type it is, but don't really care if we get tomatoes all winter. Well I better get busy & go water my garden & feed my chickens I hear them carrying on back there.
Pam
Sorry to hear you are having such tuff times. I know the feeling of $25 for a weeks worth of groceries, been there done that & I couldn't garden at the time(due to my injuries) & had no chickens either. Ds#1 was only 9 at the time too. Thank goodness for free lunch program at school. I learned on my own how to make refried beans at that time & now my family does not like canned! HA ha. I have been doing a lot of stocking up the pantry & next month except for Thanksgiving we will be living out of it & Dec too. I have 3 kids to buy a few Christmas gifts for. Dh used his debit card a few mos ago & did not give me the reciepts(he did not want to get yelled at) so I wrote checks to pay the bills & of course the bigger checks went in first & bounced($25 fee/ea) so by the time the small checks got there the money was gone & they all bounced($300 in NSF fees to the bank alone). Not to mention the fees the companies charged too. So we are still playing catch up on all our bills too. I was thinking this summer what if all I had to feed my family was what i could grow? I came up with some pretty creative ideas for meals too. Plus I would have had a lot bigger garden this yr.
So where are you working now? Wow on the treatment of Moe , good thing you moved him & put weight on him before bringing him home. Ha Ha to the rotten metal, I don't blame you, Don went around collecting every stray aluminum can at the end of every mo to get enough to take Scott to get a happy meal at McDonalds at the end of each mo. That was when we were out of money & really low on food & no food stamps left either. I learned to stretch the food a little better after a couple of mos. I still use some of those creations & recipes too.
I am trying to grow green beans & peas now. Root crops I have no problem with I can grow them all winter long so I have beets in the ground too. Waiting to get onions but they have not came in yet(store). I had a volunter tomato come up in one of my raised beds so I caged it & I am hoping to make a pvc pipe frame & cover it with palstic sheeting to make a greenhouse tent to go around that bed so we can have fresh tomatoes all winter. Not sure what type it is, but don't really care if we get tomatoes all winter. Well I better get busy & go water my garden & feed my chickens I hear them carrying on back there.
Pam
FarmerChick
Super Self-Sufficient
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hey HM
OUCH on the fees to pay those checks......Tony has done this to me BUT I have "checkline reserve" with my bank....there must be SOME type of this at your bank....GO GET IT NOW.
Costs nothing, but it is an overdraft protection. I have $2,500 in checkline reserve........so if I have $500 in checking and spend $600 ---and it overdrafts for $100---the bank makes the check good, then they pop $100 over into checkline reserve.....but the rate is 17.9% which of course I pay off ASAP........but that protection is there never to have a bounced check to a company, never have overdraft fees to anyone.
Hope all that makes sense...LOOL-LOL
great protection tool at no cost and I know you bank must offer something like that.
So they cover that situation and then I pay off checkline reserve as fast as possible, they sure don't make alot of interest off me being stupid..HA HA HA
see ya
OUCH on the fees to pay those checks......Tony has done this to me BUT I have "checkline reserve" with my bank....there must be SOME type of this at your bank....GO GET IT NOW.
Costs nothing, but it is an overdraft protection. I have $2,500 in checkline reserve........so if I have $500 in checking and spend $600 ---and it overdrafts for $100---the bank makes the check good, then they pop $100 over into checkline reserve.....but the rate is 17.9% which of course I pay off ASAP........but that protection is there never to have a bounced check to a company, never have overdraft fees to anyone.
Hope all that makes sense...LOOL-LOL
great protection tool at no cost and I know you bank must offer something like that.
So they cover that situation and then I pay off checkline reserve as fast as possible, they sure don't make alot of interest off me being stupid..HA HA HA
see ya
Hey HM and Karen
I did a stupid thing once, had a monthly fee on an account I never used, and every month I would get the balance slip in the mail and every month I would say, gotta go move that money before there is none left, and it took me a full 6 months, that was right after my surgery.
Haven't been working, haven't subbed at the school in a while, but I did find something I am applying to. Looks perfect for me. I am still not tip top after the cancer surgery, and so, I have been doing the home thing. Helping John with the paddock building, sewing winter curtains, gardening, helping out on my friend's farm with her acres of veggies and canning what she can't sell, recycling the loads of metal, useless homebody things like that.
The reason I have put off working is that I have pain after 4 hours of work and I am afraid if I go back to work, and can't keep up, it will ruin my job reputation. So I did find a job that I know will allow me to sit every hour or so (driving) and then on my feet again. I think that is the best for me. I'll get Moe home and then start on the resume. It's that or something smaller part time.
Hope you get all caught up on the bills, I'ver been sneaking to buy about one small christmas gift a month, some nice candy, some socks, gloves, small stuff but useful. My daughter is buying her own clothes so I am relieved to not have to shell out too much for her this year, she has really good taste.
linn
I did a stupid thing once, had a monthly fee on an account I never used, and every month I would get the balance slip in the mail and every month I would say, gotta go move that money before there is none left, and it took me a full 6 months, that was right after my surgery.
Haven't been working, haven't subbed at the school in a while, but I did find something I am applying to. Looks perfect for me. I am still not tip top after the cancer surgery, and so, I have been doing the home thing. Helping John with the paddock building, sewing winter curtains, gardening, helping out on my friend's farm with her acres of veggies and canning what she can't sell, recycling the loads of metal, useless homebody things like that.
The reason I have put off working is that I have pain after 4 hours of work and I am afraid if I go back to work, and can't keep up, it will ruin my job reputation. So I did find a job that I know will allow me to sit every hour or so (driving) and then on my feet again. I think that is the best for me. I'll get Moe home and then start on the resume. It's that or something smaller part time.
Hope you get all caught up on the bills, I'ver been sneaking to buy about one small christmas gift a month, some nice candy, some socks, gloves, small stuff but useful. My daughter is buying her own clothes so I am relieved to not have to shell out too much for her this year, she has really good taste.
linn
Homesteadmom
Frugal Homesteader
Hey Linn, when did you have cancer? I was not aware of that. Wow I will keep you in my prayers. I was going to ask you if you had anymore run ins with naked teenagers lately?
I still chuckle when I think of that. Glad you have been able to get things done for the winter & thank goodness for your friend that let you can those veggies to be able to eat this winter better. I think we will be eatting a lot of beans, soups & stews this winter. A few meals of chilli too with homemade bread. The kids & I will eat a lot of peanut butter(homemade) to help keep all the costs down for food too. I like having a pot of stew or soup simmering on the stove in the winter. It serves 2 purposes, 1 supper is cooking & 2 it helps to heat up the house. Baking bread makes the house smell good too. And they help keep the cost down on groceries.
We are supposed to get down to 59 tonight which is really cool for us this time of the yr. We had the house open all day & just closed up some of the windows about 1 hr ago. We were in the 70's today & tomorrow too. 80's for 2 days & then back to the 90's, again!!!! I am so ready for cooler temps to come & stay! We had over 105 days of over 100 this yr so far.
Well I am tired & heading off to bed.
Pam
I still chuckle when I think of that. Glad you have been able to get things done for the winter & thank goodness for your friend that let you can those veggies to be able to eat this winter better. I think we will be eatting a lot of beans, soups & stews this winter. A few meals of chilli too with homemade bread. The kids & I will eat a lot of peanut butter(homemade) to help keep all the costs down for food too. I like having a pot of stew or soup simmering on the stove in the winter. It serves 2 purposes, 1 supper is cooking & 2 it helps to heat up the house. Baking bread makes the house smell good too. And they help keep the cost down on groceries. We are supposed to get down to 59 tonight which is really cool for us this time of the yr. We had the house open all day & just closed up some of the windows about 1 hr ago. We were in the 70's today & tomorrow too. 80's for 2 days & then back to the 90's, again!!!! I am so ready for cooler temps to come & stay! We had over 105 days of over 100 this yr so far.
Well I am tired & heading off to bed.Pam
No, haven't had any naked teens in dog-sitting basements lately, thank goodness. And whenever I run into the daughter who gave the kids the key, I bring it up and tell her that I never, ever, want to know which kid was naked, bad enough there was a kid, I don't ever want to know which one (I think there were 5 altogether). Thank goodness, I ran out of there and called the cops to handle that mess, the kids just had to be picked up at the cop shop by their parents.
I had tumors in my parathyroid (controls calcium levels) and thyroid and had surgery more than a year ago. My surgeon did a great job, and only removed the active tumors, other tumors were thought to have calcified.....The day of my surgery, a consulting surgeon came in and wanted my surgeon to remove everything in my neck "just in case". I had an all-out war in the pre-op room, it meant that I may not have been able to speak again, and I would have been on meds the rest of my life. The consulting surgeon walked out very angry.. (like I wanted him to do surgery on me, duh). He was a very big guy, but my brothers were big, so I had no difficulty holding my own (even though I think I ended up shaking), I think the nurses were shocked and my surgeon was also. My surgeon had to ask the anesthesiologist to cosign everything because the consulting surgeon wouldn't. I am glad I made the decision I did, I try to take life easy, I eat right, and try not to stress (ha! with my husband out of work 7 months !?!). Gotta laugh about it, no good to cry. Just keep on truckin'
The baking/heating house thing I do, the temps have dropped to the 40's here a few nights already and we haven't had to turn on the heat, and we will be using mostly wood anyway.
My daughter's diet is a hard part of the income, and I told my husband that I wanted to apply for reduced lunches for her, but because she is vegetarian she doesn't eat much of what they serve. Oh yeah, our savings are now bare bones, since we are also paying my son's college tuition (our expected family contribution=starvation diet). Ha ha ha ha ha. Skinny linny coming soon.
My son is on work-study so some of the monies will come back and he is good about paying for his own things, books, etc, and a few things for the household. He has built every one of our computers over the years, so that saves us a bundle, and I never have to call someone else to help our household, like a plumber or computer repair. Although, my christmas wish would be a running dishwasher, I 've been washing by hand for over a year. My husband has a one job mind, one job at a time, that is all he can do.....lol
lin
I had tumors in my parathyroid (controls calcium levels) and thyroid and had surgery more than a year ago. My surgeon did a great job, and only removed the active tumors, other tumors were thought to have calcified.....The day of my surgery, a consulting surgeon came in and wanted my surgeon to remove everything in my neck "just in case". I had an all-out war in the pre-op room, it meant that I may not have been able to speak again, and I would have been on meds the rest of my life. The consulting surgeon walked out very angry.. (like I wanted him to do surgery on me, duh). He was a very big guy, but my brothers were big, so I had no difficulty holding my own (even though I think I ended up shaking), I think the nurses were shocked and my surgeon was also. My surgeon had to ask the anesthesiologist to cosign everything because the consulting surgeon wouldn't. I am glad I made the decision I did, I try to take life easy, I eat right, and try not to stress (ha! with my husband out of work 7 months !?!). Gotta laugh about it, no good to cry. Just keep on truckin'
The baking/heating house thing I do, the temps have dropped to the 40's here a few nights already and we haven't had to turn on the heat, and we will be using mostly wood anyway.
My daughter's diet is a hard part of the income, and I told my husband that I wanted to apply for reduced lunches for her, but because she is vegetarian she doesn't eat much of what they serve. Oh yeah, our savings are now bare bones, since we are also paying my son's college tuition (our expected family contribution=starvation diet). Ha ha ha ha ha. Skinny linny coming soon.
My son is on work-study so some of the monies will come back and he is good about paying for his own things, books, etc, and a few things for the household. He has built every one of our computers over the years, so that saves us a bundle, and I never have to call someone else to help our household, like a plumber or computer repair. Although, my christmas wish would be a running dishwasher, I 've been washing by hand for over a year. My husband has a one job mind, one job at a time, that is all he can do.....lol
lin
