The WE2's

Gonna winterize our travel trailer, zip the drain in the bathtub drain in the apt. our son's living in, THEN...take a motorcycle ride. A bit chilly, but we have the gear. It's such a wonderful, peaceful thing for us...just touring God's country. I love my prayer time riding behind Mountain Man...and he hears me or hears me singing, and reaches around and pats my knee! LOL Oh well...we all have a way to worship a great God!

Went to one of our states largest swap meets today. Abby had her first encounter with a billy goat. OHHHHH what a hoot! She walked up to it...bigger than he was by far. Began to sniff it's nose. Down went it's head and I knew what was coming! Sent her rolling! She jumped up, looked at it as if to say "why'd ya do that?" Mountain Man and I nearly laughed til we cried...along with the goats owner. The swap meet is held 3x a year and they have hundreds of vendors with about every animal you can imagine (except no horses, cattle or pigs etc.) along with tons of everything else. Abby seems to have this unique ability to entertain us with her curiosity and it's results!

Saturday...went to one of our state's largest swap meets and found some really dandy bargains. Found another round (even smaller) graniteware pot w/lid that fit perfectly in my solar oven. Also found some nice citronella soap for $1 a bar ... what a bargain! Wrapped them in plastic wrap and then vacume sealed for storage. I don't get along well at all with mosquitos (they make huge bumps and stay for weeks) so I use the soap alot during summer time. Hubby thought I was kidding/exagerating when I told him I was allergic to mosquito bites...until he saw for himself. I also take some anti-histimine tabs during summer time along with the soap. Helps greatly. Also was able to buy a nice big dog house for Abby (her's is now too small) for only $15! Abby had her first "run in" (literally!) with a billy goat! It was so funny. this swap meet has just about every farm animal and then some, they want to sale. She had never seen a goat so went up, began to sniff it's nose...and BAM! Sent that 65+ pound dog on a roll. She got up, looked at the billy goat as if to say "why'd you do that?" SOOOOO funny!

As a kid, I remember my elders hammering copper nails into tree stumps to kill them off. ???

Friday...just watched a video of a man in Washington that gardens on wood chips! Absolutely fascinating! Told Mountain Man that I'd like to try a patch this spring somewhere near our Square Foot Gardening system. We have a city owned tree limb drop off where they shred everything up and I'm thinking we can buy some cheap or perhaps even free! Rained most of the day, now getting very chilly but not really cold. Just such a quick change from what's been going on in the midwest. Here's the link to the guy in Washington. The buffering isn't the best but... http://www.backtoedenfilm.com/#movie

Wonder how one would make some Doctor Pepper? Mountain Man is an addict to DR

Last night, Abby "heard something" and come up off her kong mattress headed for the kitchen. All of a sudden, we heard her come to a skidding halt (on the linoleum) and couldn't get out of the kitchen fast enough. Stood in the livingroom, growling. Went to her kong bed and sat there growling. Mountain Man went to the kitchen, and began pointing to things saying "is this it?" When he got to a sack of potatoes I had sitting on the counter, she bristled up and began to growl. Guess she must have stuck her nose against the sack, felt & saw it shift, and scared the wits out of her. Some watch dog! LOL Now we're calling her our "spud" dog!

FOUND THAT BY ADDING A FEW TABLESPOONS OF MY FAVORITE "BLUE" DISHWASHING LIQUID TO MY MIXTURE, I GET MY SUDSY! WILL MAKE MY "BLUE STUFF" GO A LONG, LONG WAY! LOL

BeeeeUteeeeefullllll!

Stopped today to nose around the dutch store while headed home from another property, and found some 2 1/2 gallon white, food grade buckets w/lids for 25 cents! Bought $3 worth but think I'll go back and buy some more. Guess when they empty them out for re-sale in bags, they wash them out and then sell them. Good for my purposes! Can store food stuffs that I'm in and out of all the time and not have to disturb the 5 gallon buckets.

Guess we'll find a trip to Sam's in our future! LOL Watched a YouTube video of a woman using them in her breakfast in a jar demonstration.

My canner is a Presto, 10 qt?. Fairfly good sized, but not a double decker type. The big grill is a very big one that uses a trailer sized propane tank and also has a burner on one side of the grill area. (similar to pic) You have to roll it around on it's wheels, too big and heavy otherwise. Hubby wonders if we put it in out in the big garage with it's overhead door open, that would reduce the air flow and keep the burner(s) at a more even temp and still be able to vent fumes etc?

LOL...haven't subscribed to a paper in YEARS!!!

Thursday...got the hotwater working in son's apartment (upper unit at our homestead) so he can take a good soak! (No shower, overhead ceiling too low!) Went to our other property and let Abby have a bit of a romp in the yard, put a new lid on the toilet, found our drain stripper so we can use it in son's tub to make water drain quicker, dropped off a book at the library, paid water bill for this property, paid insurance on this property, then headed back to current "home" to meet another of Mountain Man's clients to start some work on his 4-plex. I AM SO GLAD GOD HAS BLESSED HIM WITH WORK! He's a retired builder, so now only does home repairs and improvements. Had to greatly reduce his hourly charge but we both talked about it and figured it was better to lower the pay and keep busy than to set around with no work. In his field of work things can be so seasonal! Anyway...stopped at a dutch market on the way home and found the most wonderful white, 2-gallon sized food grade buckets with lids, for 25 cents each!!! Bought 3 dollars worth. Figure they'll be wonderful for storing smaller food items and not have to worry about opening a 5-gallon bucket. I think me's gonna go back and invest in a few more! Rambling again...thinking out loud!Thought I'd post a pic of my Mountain Man! LOL

I'm still trying to get up enough nerve to try it. I bought a used canner early this spring and case after case of used jars...but just haven't been able to get up the nerve to try it. My kitchen is so small and my stove is electric (leary of burning out the elements). Wonder if I could fire up my big camping grill in the back yard? Has anybody ever canned outside on a big grill?

I'm still trying to get up enough nerve to try it. I bought a used canner early this spring and case after case of used jars...but just haven't been able to get up the nerve to try it. My kitchen is so small and my stove is electric (leary of burning out the elements). Wonder if I could fire up my big camping grill in the back yard? Has anybody ever canned outside on a big grill?

I agree with NOT trying to bake in a glass jar...what if it should break or explode? I think I'll stick to using my solar oven and a foil loaf pan. If there's not enough solar gain, guess we'll eat biscuits or cornbread from a skillet or dutch oven. I guess "to each their own"?

Oh my...LOL Reminds me of a librarian friend we have who purchased a cattle prod and decided to test it on herself. Unfortunately, her son had his cell phone camera operating and exposed her "experience" to everybody they knew! WHEN...she got up off the ground he was nearly dead meat! LOL

Both of my parents are still very functional (mid 80's) but I can just imagine what it would be like to have turn either of their care over to another. Be blessed and be watchful friend.

Wednesday...another beautiful weather day! Mountain Man is back to work on the screening project, hopefully done today. Can definitely use the $$! My "handwashing dish soap project was almost trashed, until I went ahead and bought a large bottle of my "blue stuff" (LOL) and added 2 tablespoons to my bottle of homemade. Working very good now...I got me some sudsy! Yippee! Should make the "blue stuff" last a whole lot longer. Is this treason? LOL So...I'll revamp my recipe to include 2 tablesoons of the "blue stuff"! Hubby wants to go to a swap meet a few miles from our area. It's one of the largest 4 day events in our state. Everything from chickens to car parts...you name it. Abby loves to go because she gets to meet so many animals, and becomes acclimated to new experiences. I think they call it "socialization"! LOL Going to work tonight on the apartment for son. So sad that his job didn't work out. Very stressful for all of us. He's been diagnosed as having PTSD so I don't know if that will help him get disability or not? He's got to have some sort of income to sustain his life. Us providing a roof over his head and him having food stamp privileges won't pay his utilities, car gas, medications (he's also diabetic) and tv/internet/phone package. That's why we "bug out" (or get the hitch itch) and need to just get away. Wanted to have a yard sale, but that will wait I guess.

Does your area have a Salvation Army pantry? Some areas do and they help people out. There's also other types of food pantry's that help out. I heard once of an "angel food"? ministry that sold foods low costs.

Went to WM and bought refill jugs for liquid dishing soap (similar to Dawn)...just can't deal with the homemade formulations I've tried. Bought refill for sanitizer for camper...we use it for personal BUT we also squirt a few squirts on our fire logs to spice things up after we've put a match to a tiny strip of inner tube tire. Bought bar soap on sale...a couple of packages of 8. We love shower gels etc, but have started using the soaps...to get used to it. Also put back to pantry some shampoo, liquid hand soap and a few other items that our pantry "loaned" to us! LOL When I borrow from the pantry I usually pay back plus one more.

Wonderful idea! Of all the "ideas" I've experimented with, never considered that one...until now!!! Lookout hamburger...here comes Philbe...IF you're on sale? Maybe not, maybe just a great idea of saving time. Especially when on a camping trip...just pop a few bags into my trailer frig and meats are provided! Thanks MoMo!

I don't know the recipe, but I used to work with a lady who made Christmas tree ornaments out of cinnamon & applesauce. She stuck holes in the tops to run threads through AFTER she baked them. Perhaps somebody here knows the portions of applesauce to cinnamon? Or online? Anyway, they were VERY fragrant. Hope this gives you another idea?