snapshotmiki

Hi, you all! I gotta quit taking my family here for granted and acting like company at Christmas. Sorry! Today I made some cheesecakes and am getting ready to dehydrate some apples. Think I will wait to roast my green tomatoes until it's cooler so the oven can warm the house. It is almost 80 today but supposed to be in the upper 40s Friday. Has anyone heard from Violet or Christy? They have both been on my mind for awhile.

We still don't know what is wrong with DH but he is holding his own for now. Some of the specialists he has seen aren't worthy of an MD title in my opinion. And so we press on. My 5 hens are doing well except for the molting part. Hopefully over soon. We fixed the fence so they can free range in the evening while we are outside now. I still only work a few days a week at the little grocery store and sometimes help out making cheesecakes for a dairy. DH has disability and can't work at all right now. Things are tight but interesting! Our garden did well this summer with tomatoes and little Cajun bell peppers that are about as hot as jalapenos. Did plenty of canning and still have sweet potatoes gifted to me to can. Right now I have carrots, radishes and lettuce planted in containers. We have learned how to compost. I've only made soap one time and am waiting to make another order of oils and scents before I go farther with it. Our pups are all doing well and a joy in our lives! That's all folks (for now)!

I'll chime in. Tonight (and for the next few nights) elk stew and biscuit bread made in the oven--the bread, not the stew. Stew was made in the crockpot. And made chocolate chip cookies.

I love that you got the griddle and the stove for one price! LOL I can't imagine working with a toaster oven for so long. My oven came with just one rack and only 2 burners work, but it still gets me by. Bet it will be easier to make Thanksgiving Dinner this year! It looks great and I'm really happy for you!!!

Thank you all for the Birthday wishes!!! It's been the best one in years! Went to town and had lunch (Chinese) with dh. A techy girl at Radio Shack fixed my dead phone so I don't have to upgrade and pay more with Verizon. My chickies now have a proper dust bath and wading pool with a piece of concrete to stand on. And found out I don't have kidney stones but have 3 cysts on my left kidney. Sure glad it's not stones and will deal with this new issue asap. My friend gave me a solar light so my chickens can stay up later now! LOL Anyway, a wonderful day all in all!!!

Praying for you and your dh!

Thanks Jeepers! I think I have 1 book on kindle but I wanted a basic book with real pages too! Mt. Rider, it was kind of scary for me working with lye for the first time and I my stick blender was still in the box so it was the first time for that also. Glad that first time is behind me! We got some hot chickens here in MS! 96 here today. They get ice cubes in their water a few times a day and they have that redneck a/c that I move around the coop and run. Getting them a wading pool (litterbox) and a couple of bricks for them to stand on tomorrow or Thurs.

I made a basic cold process soap today and I feel like I invented fire or something! I know that's silly but it's like the first time I used my pressure canner or drove the 37 ft. RV for the Health Dept! I kept waiting (2 months) for my friend to be able to help me but it just never happened. Anyway, now on to more soap soon. Thank you Darlene for inspiring me to get the stuff needed to make my first batch!!! Now I'm going to find some more recipes!!!

Woohoo! Had a 4 egg day today! Doesn't take much to get me happy out here! The chickens are almost floating with all the rain again but hope it is over for now. Garden is growing and I spotted two blooms on a tomato so maybe they will turn around and produce. Finally making soap tomorrow for the first time. And we now have a doctor appt. with SS doctor for dh in a month or so. I am sugar free now and have been for a few days. No problems yet. Not eating white flour either. Feel better already!

They do grow wild around here but I started some from cuttings in my yard also. I make jelly and syrup mostly. Syrup for flu, etc. I make a map so I remember where the largest areas of berries are. Once they lose the flower, they are hard to see.

You can order Body Glide Anti Chafe balm from Amazon.com. That really stops chafing which just keeps the area irritated. I have used anti fungal creams also--Not at the same time. Taking an acidolfi... probiotic pill or eating some plain yogurt= no sugar helps too.

The hens and dogs are doing well and the garden is finally starting to grow. Yesterday, I made pulled pork in the crockpot for either tortillas or sloppy joes with a Mexican taste! Also green jello flop. Doesn't sound good but was easy and is great. You mix it in the blender! Also cooked sausage, bacon and potatoes for the week. Today, I have cleaned out and organized my office/storage room/sewing and craft/guest room. One room for everything is just not enough!!! Had a friend tell me that I should fry fresh green beans and squash so I may try that later. Hope you all have a good week!

Right now I am feeding parsley to the chickens and getting about 3 eggs a day from five hens (sometimes 4). We had such a cold and long winter that I didn't plant til the end of May and then it rained for 4 days straight. Not sure if I will have any tomatoes but the bell peppers (though small) look ok. Have red beans, black beans and snap beans growing and watermelon, cantelope and sugar pumpkins started that look good. I have loose leaf lettuce on the porch and it is doing well so far, also mint and ginger. So right now the harvest is going to the girls but we get the eggs... It was such a late year!

I'm so happy for your DH's new job and for your sons' gardening skills!

Here are a couple of the girls! The coop! My redneck air conditioner, and the back yard view. If they will load for me. Today we put a heavier tarp over the coop run and did a few finishing touches. I planted watermelon seeds, cantaloupe, sugar pumpkin and some snap beans. My tomatoes are still looking rough from too much rain last week. Dinner was a roasted chicken (not one of the girls), new potatoes from my friends garden and fresh snap beans from another friends garden. Peach cobbler for dessert. I am done for the day!

My new girls are jealous!

Happy Belated Birthday, Jeepers!!! Hope it was lots of fun!!!

Didn't rain too much today so I grilled some chicken and hot dogs this morning. Washed all the bedding this afternoon. When you have clean dogs, you want clean bedding for them and us! It was a 3 egg day so that is good also. Don't remember having chickens I could pet before.

Yolko Spurinimo! Sounds like a Sumo wrestling chicken!

We've had 5" rain so far and much worse where BIL lives in Louisiana. They've had 16" in the same amount of time. My hens are slightly bedraggled but still laying. Pretty sure they don't think they are in paradise right now. We should have a fairly clear morning and then rain in the afternoon tomorrow so will be cooking out in the morning. My red beans are sprouting and the tomatoes are getting too much water. The jalapenos and parsley are loving it along with the elderberry bush! I gave Lucee (schnauzer) and Peanut Butter (good question- small and fluffy) tubbies and haircuts today and made a triple recipe of shortbread. Cleaned out chicken coop which is leaking. I will have to figure out what to do soon.

I had to work all day and it wasn't easy. Kept wanting to call dh and see how they were as it has rained all day and supposed to continue into tomorrow afternoon. 3" so far. Much worse to our south! Had to catch them and put them in the coop again tonight. I hope they will get the ladder soon. Mt. Rider, I was reading a post about the horses and the blankets and the shed. You have had your share and more of storms, haven't you? These hens are really sweet and eat right out of my hand already.

Mt. Rider-- we call the coop "Ft. Knox"! LOL DH is OCD. Glad you made it through your Spring storm! Are your horses both ok?

What a cute idea!

I hope the special harness works for your dog! I had to use a halti on Buddy to keep him from dragging me all over creation. I'm sorry you are going through all this and am praying for you!

WE HAVE CHICKENS!!! And a garden of sorts!!! Monday I planted tomatoes and bell peppers, red beans and black beans. Still have to get seeds for cantelope, watermelon and pumpkins. I have two lick tubs full of dirt and not sure what to put in yet. We got 5 Buff Orpingtons from a lady getting out of chickens. These were her last 5 and very friendly! There were two eggs in the nest box when we went to get the chickens and two more this afternoon after they had been here and settled a bit. This is a great day for me! Have been looking forward to chickies for a couple of years! Got to work tomorrow and that's about it for now!