Work to the rescue

Recovery

The pictures above are of starting over again. Yes, I have ordered my baby chicks and they are enroute. Yesterday David and I refenced the chicken yard. I cleaned out the chicken house and all is ready. Wish me luck! As the old saying goes, If it isn't one thing, its another. The cliche isn't associated with positive things either. Trials and tribulation is as much a part of the human experience as breathing. And so it has been for me.

A Low Fat Fourth Of July

Burgers, hot dogs, potato salad, apple pie, oh my! The foods we consume on the fourth of July do little for our waistlines. We can lighten things a little, however, without ruining the party or picnic.I love the fire works on the fourth. It is fun to relax with family and friends and enjoy a picnic or cookout. The trouble, as always is the potential for eating too much fat and calorie laden food. How about a pasta salad, fruit done up in a flag design. I love stuffed mushrooms on the grill. Use your imagination and you can come up with all sorts of tasty stuff.

Do Skunks Eat Chickens?

My husband was convinced that a skunk killed all the chickens and even the baby ones. So he decided to load his gun for skunk last night.

At 4:30 this morning he killed this skunk. Do skunks eat chickens? Skunks are know to eat chickens, but drink their blood. So that is the story folks. Watch the skunk in your yard.

Disaster In The Chicken Yard

Last night we didn't get home until after 10PM. I turned the chicken house light on. It wouldn't work. Our chickens are afraid of the dark. Really! They were soooo spoiled. This morning I got up at my usual time and ventured out to the chicken yard. I was totally shocked. Twenty five chickens on the ground dead. What on earth had happened? Even the 2 baby chicks in the small pen were gone. The poor mother was in there when it happened. Not a scratch on her. My 2 roosters and hen were in a separate pen and they seem to be alright.
I called Murray McMurrray Hatchery today and ordered 25 more chickens. They will be here Tuesday. I am not going to let this get me down. We are putting in a stronger fence hoping this will solve the problem.

What's Been Going On

The pictures below describe what has been going on in the last few days. I now have 2 new baby chicks. Two roosters that were born in February and one hen along with the two roosters.  I robbed the hives and totaled 5 pints of honey and 2 stings. David and I picked blueberries again at my friends farm. Things around here have really been humming. Very busy time. Today I have been hoeing and trying to get control of things. Have a great weekend. I intend to treat myself to a pedicure tomorrow. I deserve it!

Why the 400 calorie McDonalds Menu is a Joke

What else do you get with these items other than fewer than 400 calories? A whole lot of nothing, as it turns out. Three small breaded Chicken Selects may just have 380 calories, but 210 of these calories come from fat, which clocks in at a whopping 23 grams of fat for the trio. Dip them in a packet of mustard honey sauce and you have an added 60 calories.
That's the real hidden ingredient in McDonald's Favorites Under 400 program. You don't go to McDonald's to order one thing. Usually, by the time you are done, you will likely have eaten a days worth of calorie intake. Not me!

New Arrival

My husband called to me today and said come in the chicken house I have something to show you. Low and behold after 3 tries, Henrietta finally hatched a baby chick. After an hour or so I found the chick at the bottom of the nest where another hen had pecked her. I immediately took her out and now she is in the garage. Another chick for me to raise. Henrietta is still setting on 4 eggs. What will happen next is any ones guess.

Of course it's Monday this ain't my Friday
face.

Homemade Fudge Pops

Who doesn't love a frozen fudge pop? I was a BIG fan of them when I was younger so I worried that a knock-off version wouldn't taste as good. Check it out for yourself, and come to your own conclusion.

2/3 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 cup plain yogurt
1-1/4 cups milk

In a medium size bowl whisk together the syrup, cocoa powder, and vanilla until thoroughly combined and there are almost no clumps left. Slowly whisk in both the yogurt and milk. Pour into the popsicle molds. Freeze and serve. 10-12oz. pops.

I picked Blueberries at a friends farm Friday and made Blueberry jam. Yum! 

 Landen spent a few days with us this past week. He is roasting marshmallows by the fire.

 Our garden is finally in. Looking pretty good.

Our grandchildren bought this hat for David. He loves it. How sweet!

Happy Father's Day out there to all the dads

When it comes to telephone calls, nobody is listening to your telephone calls. Whom do you believe? Who's lying? Based on this president's growing history of scandal, I think the answer to that question is pretty simple. Even if you are not doing anything wrong, you are being watched and recorded... it's getting to the point where you don't have to have done anything wrong, you simply have to eventually fall under suspicion from somebody, even by a wrong call, and then they can use this system to go back in time and scrutinize every decision you have ever made, every friend you ever discussed something with, and attack you on that basis, to sort of derive suspicion from an innocent life. 

One of the biggest complaints among ordinary families trying to eat healthy is that clean, organic food is simply too expensive, and thus out of reach for the average budget. But eating right does not have to break the bank, especially when you know what to look for and how to shop for it. Buy local. We have u-pick strawberries and blueberries in our area. Buy in bulk. Costco's is a great place with great prices. Grow your own food. Plant a garden in your yard. Tomatoes can be planted in containers which makes it so everyone can be involved. Become a coupon shopper. Now I do have to say I am not a coupon shopper. I don't receive the paper and most of the coupons for the item is not what I buy. Join a cooperative. When the children were young we always bought from a co-op. We would buy 50 pounds of popcorn, beans, rice, etc. You can't beat it. 

Life is Good



I love summer. It's a busy time planting, harvesting and gathering honey from my hives. But this summer is different. It is the 11th of June today and I only have half of my garden planted. It rains every week in South Central Kentucky. More rain than my garden can handle. The weather is beautiful today, but the weatherman is calling for more rain Wednesday. When will it stop? When will I get the rest of my garden in? Will I have honey towards the end of June? There are a lot of unknowns. But such is life in South Central Kentucky! 

When your yoga teacher gives you verbal instructions about the position of your hips or comes over and coaxes you to deepen the bend of your knee to warrior 1, he or she is working with you on your alignment. The idea that there is an ideal way to do each yoga position can seem like a contradiction, since those very same teachers are the ones encouraging you to listen to your body and not judge yourself. Stop listening to the teacher OK, you should listen to the teacher most of the time, but don't forget who's really in charge here: you. If your teacher instructs a pose with which you don't feel comfortable, if it causes you pain or aggravates an injury, don't do it. No one is inside your body but you, so you are the one calling the shots. Practicing good alignment and listening to your body are both ways to minimize the chance of hurting yourself in a yoga class. 

Part V

If you are Raising Chickens and you are interested in having ultra healthy chickens without the use of chemicals and pesticides, you may want to read a book on herbs for chickens. It tells you what herbs you can feed chickens safely and what herbs will treat pests such as lice, parasitic worms and mites. There are a number of common herbs we can grow for chickens for general health. General poultry tonics and laying stimulants include, garlic, onion, chickweed, dandelion, fennel, wormwood, rue, marigold, mint sage, nasturtium, mugwort and parsley.

There's an endless number of reasons as to why

people run and we shall celebrate those reasons (health, weight, sanity, etc.) June 5, a.k.a. National Running Day. Woot woot!

Part IV

The quality and taste of fresh organic eggs is fantastic in comparison to commercially produced eggs. What you feed your chickens can change the egg's flavor. The more diverse their range of food is the healthier and tastier the eggs are. Eggs have a high protein value and are an excellent source of Vitamin B and selenium which is an important anti-oxidant. Eggs are only roughly 75 calories and are less than 5 grams of total fat. It is pretty clear that raising chickens for eggs is a smart option as illustrated by the many reasons above. The regular supply of fresh chicken eggs and the confidence of knowing where your food is coming from is a huge comfort. Knowing your eggs come from happy, healthy chickens is also important and it's great to have fresh eggs that you know won't have hormones or chemicals added to them.  

Part III

Security is the most important aspect of your chicken coop. You must have a very secure place to lock them in at night. There is nothing more distressing than finding your chickens killed by a fox or a dog. Chickens are very vulnerable to predators. Even in the city, dogs, cats, rats, opossum, hawks, owls, foxes and coyotes are a danger to your hens. Your coop needs to be weatherproof. You will need poles for them to roost on at night and nesting boxes for them to lay their eggs. They will also need an area outside their coop that they can feed, scratch and have dust baths in. If you live in a very cold climate extra warmth can be achieved by surrounding the henhouse with bales of straw in winter. It has been proved that chickens in cold areas will keep laying if they are kept warm enough. Otherwise freezing weather can stop them laying. The same is true with extreme heat. Placing your chicken coop under a shady tree is a good idea in hot climates.