Bathtime Is So Much Fun

Today was bathtime for all the dogs. Lady, Tramp, Sheba and Kuma got theirs. I was so tired by the time I finished Rowdy won't get his till tomorrow. None of them liked their baths but at least Kuma stood still. She wouldn't give me a smile but she at least stayed in the tub till we finished. All of the dogs are shedding their winter coats and were looking a little ragged. I got most of Kuma's brushed out except for some left on her hind legs. Poor Lady and Sheba still have tons of winter fur we need to get off them. After their baths they all took naps in the sunshine. I sure wanted to join them!

My Aunt Judy emailed me about the icebox pie recipe. She remembers my mother making it and using lime jello. She shared some really funny and wonderful memories with me. She also gave me a low fat recipe for the pie that I will share tomorrow. Several ask what size box of jello. Its the small size and you can use whatever flavor you want.

Snakes, Squirrels and Pies... Oh My

We have some baby chicks in a cage in the house until the hen has finished hatching her other eggs. Was afraid if we left them she would come off the nest to feed the chicks. Couple of days ago William was moving the towel we had over one end of the cage to check on them. As he moved the towel a snake dropped on the floor. I scream snake and William being barefooted and startled from my scream started screaming like a girl and dancing all over the floor. I had retreated to the sofa with my feet nicely secured under me. I was laughing so hard at William dancing and screaming I almost fell off the sofa. The snake darted off behind the file cabinet and William darted off to put on his heavy winter muck boots and grab a couple pair of kitchen tongs. Armed he went after the 2 foot snake. I would have taken pictures of this oh so funny adventure but the camera was on the diningroom table and I of course was still safely planted on the sofa. I was cheering William on inbetween laughter. After about 5 minutes of chasing and trying to catch the snake William finally got it out the door where it slithered off the porch and hurriedly made its escape. Turns out Whiskers had brought us a water snake as a gift for feeding him. The next day I am rushing around the kitchen trying to get things done for a upcoming craftfair when I step on something soft and furry. I scream like a girl and look to see Whiskers sitting beside a live squirrel! I pick the squirrel up and set it on the porch railing hoping it will get over its fright and make a break for it. But seems Whiskers must have injured it internally when he caught it as it died a little later. Whiskers is a big fat spoiled cat. He comes crying and whining to you every couple hours for something to eat. He gets a tablespoon of canned food when he cries and has dry food out all the time plus he gets extra for breakfast and supper. He is so fat I don't know how he can catch snakes, squirrels and field mice but he does and he always wants to bring them as gifts. Last year he was carrying a huge black snake to me while it was biting him on the face. He just kept walking with it right to me. I took a hoe and picked it up and let it go over the fence. We are working on breaking him from these gifts but so far the gifts keep coming... ALIVE!

When I was a kid (way back when) I loved going to my Aunt Lola's. She was the best cook! She made melt in your mouth biscuits and pound cakes but the absolutely best thing ever was her pineapple icebox pie. I emailed her daughter (my cousin Jan) to ask if she knew the recipe. My aunt is now in a nursing home in frail health. Jan was hoping her mom would remember the recipe but she didn't and Jan didn't know it either. Aunt Lola had given it to me when I was a young newlywed but I had misplaced it. Well cleaning the kitchen and going through cookbooks I found the recipe written on a envelope inside one of my mothers cookbooks. I am so excited and look forward to making these pies today. They are soooooooo good so I am sharing the recipe with you. I bet you will be addicted to them too!

Aunt Lola's Icebox Pie
20 oz pineapple juice
2 eggs
1 c sugar
1 box cherry gelatin
1 large can of evaporated milk, chilled
vanilla wafers

Heat pineapple juice, sugar, and eggs to boiling; remove from heat and add gelatin. Cool. Whip milk; fold into mixture. Line bottom and sides of pie or cake pans with vanilla wafers and pour mixture over them. refrigerate until congealed. makes 18 servings.

My mouth is watering now so I am off to make pies and enjoy the memories that will come flooding back. Have a blessed weekend.

Another Rainy Day

We have had several days of showers off and on but this morning brought a nice steady soft rain. The beans and squash are blooming like crazy. All the plants are standing up nice and pretty. Diva and the girls decided it was a good day for napping. No way were they going to go out in the rain. Rowdy is curled up with CC. He actually didn't cry at all when I took Baby and Tiny Tina to their new home. Nor did he bark much when we moved Leo over with the boys before he got big enough to get the girls in trouble. The geese and ducks are loving the rain. All are walking around washing their feathers and flapping their wings. The chickens decided the nap thing was a good idea and are sitting on the roosts nodding off. With the rain brought a easy day for William and I. Too wet to do tilling and garden jobs. We did our morning chores and then did a walk around to check over all the animals. Charlie the ram was limping from a stone in his hoof but now is back to normal. Ricky the goose is still limping. He let me pick him up and hold him while William checked his leg out. He got a little over excited when mating with Lucy in their pool and got his leg caught. Kinda like a pulled muscle which will heal in time. We massaged and pampered him for a few minutes. We made a trip to the bread store to pick up a stack of bread for the animals. They sell out of date bread to feed animals for only $6 for a big stack. Each feeding the animals get their feed plus some crumbled up bread. The bread always gets eaten first. The rabbits love the wheat bread. The chickens love the seeded buns. The geese love bagels and the goats, well the goats love any and all breads. We have to be careful and not give them very much as it would mess up their rumen. William is fixing soup and grill cheese for lunch which is perfect for a rainy day. Yesterday we grilled out and had a awesome meal. William grilled deer steaks my brother had given us and I fixed a salad from veggies a friend had given as well as some of our own grown. Green beans and corn on the cob were from same friend as well as the plums I made a pie with. Our wonderful meal was almost zero cost! I like meals like that. Time to enjoy my lunch. Have a blessed day!

Special Numbers

This was in my daily devotion this morning and is something I am going to keep handy. Hope you have a blessed Sunday.
When in need please use the following Emergency Phone
Numbers:

When in sorrow, ...................... call John 14.
When men fail you, ................... call Psalm 27.
If you want to be fruitful, .......... call John 15.
When you have sinned, ................ call Psalm 51.
When you worry, ...................... call Matthew 6:19-34.
When you are in danger, ............. call Psalm 91.
When God seems far away, ............ call Psalm 139.
When your faith needs stirring, ..... call Hebrews 11.
When you are lonely and fearful, .... call Psalm 23.
When you grow bitter and critical, . call I Corinthians 13.
For Paul's secret to happiness, ... call Colossians 3:12-17.
For understanding of Christianity, 2 Corinthians 5:15-19.
When you feel down and out, ....... call Romans 8:31.
When you want peace and rest, .. call Matthew 11:25-30.
When the world seems bigger than God, ..... call Psalm 90.
When you want Christian assurance, call Romans 8:1-30.
When you leave home for labor or travel, .. call Psalm 121.
When your prayers grow narrow or selfish, . call Psalm 67.
For a great invention/opportunity, ... call Isaiah 55.
When you want courage for a task, ..... call Joshua 1.
For how to get along with fellow men, . call Romans 12.
When you think of investments and returns,. call Mark 10.
If you are depressed, ..................... call Psalm 27.
If your pocketbook is empty, .............. call Psalm 37.
If you are losing confidence in people, . call 1 Corinthians 13.
If people seem unkind, ................ call John 15.
If discouraged about your work, ....... call Psalm 126.

Alternate Numbers:

For dealing with fear, ........... call Psalm 34:7.
For security, ................... call Psalm 121:3.
For assurance, ................... call Mark 8:35.
For reassurance, ................. call Psalm 145:18.

All lines to Heaven are open 24 hours a day! Therefore feed your
Faith, and Doubt will starve to death!

Still Here

Just been so busy I haven't taken time to post. William STILL waiting on his truck so is doing odd jobs to bring in a little money. He works all day building fences, tilling gardens, cutting trees down, etc so comes home tired with a sore back. I am trying to get all the animal pens and shelters cleaned out to keep the fly problem down. Also trying to keep too many hens from sitting on eggs. This year we are over run with baby chicks and now all the hens are wanting to set. A friend gave me some green beans, plums, corn and a ton of oranges so am trying to cook, preserve, etc before they all go bad. Mandy (dwarf goat) is very happy at her new home though she is giving Pickles a hard time. Baby and Tiny Tina will be going to their new home tomorrow. Rowdy will only have 5 baby goats to guard so am sure he will be upset for a little bit. Wild Thing is doing fantastic. He is so much smaller than the other bunnies but is running around, eating and drinking. Momma seems to want a break from them but its not time to wean them yet. I am way behind in making soaps but waiting for a few supplies to come in so I can finish them. I am also going to be setting up at a craft fair next Saturday. Its at the same little wonderful church I went to last fall so am excited about that. I just need to get things ready for that. The gardens have really taken off growing and keeping me busy. William gave up his annual camping trip with grandson and boy scouts this year and I am going to miss the family reunion. Watching every penny till his truck is back up and running. Some people can write beautiful fairy tales about homesteading but its hard, long hours, no days off, poor pay, broken equipment, back breaking work. Lots of things go wrong but working to fix them and enjoying milking the goats, gathering fresh eggs, watching the animal babies run and play is worth every minute. Some friends have a dream homestead in their mind. How they want their home and land to look. How many and how well behaved their animals are going to be. How big and beautiful their gardens are going to be. Those are wonderful dreams but they don't realize the hard work involved to make those dreams come true. Believe me there is no fairy tale life here but there is a blessed one! Happy Memorial Day everyone.

This n That

What strange weather we have been having. We have went from 90F plus temps to 40F's. I have resisted the urge to build a fire in the stove but I think I might break down tonight and build a small one to knock off the chill. I love winter and cold weather but not after I have packed and put away my winter clothing. I scramble to find warm shirts and jackets before I go out to do morning chores. I actually wore a pair of wool gloves while helping William weed and hoe his garden yesterday. I try to remind myself in a few short weeks it will be so hot and humid I will be craving days like now. Seems hard to acclimate to the summer heat when we keep getting these cold spells.

William's garden is just now starting to come up good. He planted it right before we had a week of over 90 degree weather. His weeds are also coming up so we got all those taken care of and planted more rows of corn. William doesn't mulch his garden. I lay newspaper down and mulch heavy around my plants and inbetween the rows so I don't have to hoe. I have to pull the occasional weed but not often or many. We are getting lots of broccoli right now. Lettuce is almost gone. Radishes are gone but still tons of onions to eat. The beans and tomatoes are blooming. Cabbage is heading. Squash and cucumbers are getting buds on them. With his garden, my garden, the neighborhood kids garden here we should have lots to eat this summer and put away for winter.
Sammi seemed to enjoy her birthday. All day she played the part of a diva very well. On the other hand Diva was pouting because she didn't get cake. When I would go to pet her she would turn and walk away. Goats are so smart and such a pleasure to interact with.
Wild Thing is growing everyday. He plays and hops around with his "siblings" and is one of the first to run nurse when Momma rabbit goes in to feed them. Won't be long till they will be eating and drinking on their own.
We have so many of our hens wanting to sit on eggs. I pick them and the eggs under them up and move them to a nesting area away from hens just wanting to lay their egg and get about their business. Right now I have 4 hens sitting. I took one hen off her nest as she had hatched one chick 3 days ago and her other eggs hadn't hatched yet. I put those eggs under another hen so the hen could let her chick drink and eat. She only had 3 other eggs under her and they felt like they might hatch in a day or two. If they do I will give her the chicks. Always shuffling things around here.
Baby and Tiny Tina will be going to a new home soon. A very very nice lady by the name of Rosemary is taking them. She even purchased a little log house for them. William is going over today to build a fence before they go to their new home. I think they will love it as their pasture looks down over a beautiful creek and they have wonderful grass and things to nibble on. Rosemary is so excited to get them and I am very happy knowing they have a good home and are going to be very spoiled. We spend so much time with our milk goats we don't have alot of time with the dwarf goats. I think they will love the attention and love they will get from Rosemary.
With all the bananas I got from a friend I have been making banana bread like crazy. I decided over the weekend to make banana pudding. Instead of using a boxed pudding I made my own. Very simple and easy recipe if you ever want to make a tasty banana pudding.

Banana Pudding from scratch
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup flour
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs separated
2 cups scalded milk
2 TBS sugar
sliced bananas
vanilla wafers
Mix sugar and flour. Gradually add egg yolks to scalded milk. Slowly add the dry ingredients stirring constantly. Cook on med heat stirring until it thickens. Add flavoring.
Place layers of wafers and bananas in a dish and pour the pudding over the layers.
Beat eggwhites until stiff. Add 2 TBS sugar and beat till stiff again. Spread over custard and bake 15 minutes in 325 degree oven. Cool then refridge until ready to serve.
I have been given a couple of awards. Thanks ladies! I will post about them very soon.
Hope you are having a blessed week!

Happy Birthday Sammi!

Around The Homestead

Wild Thing is doing great. His and the others eyes opened today. Now they are hopping around everywhere. Poor momma. She isn't getting any rest because of having to watch them.

Rowdy is all settled in and enjoying his new home. He is doing a great job guarding the goats. Just don't try to take him out of the pen. You can't even drag him as he digs his heels in and stays put! The goat pen is his domain and he isn't leaving for anything or anyone.

Roses are starting to bloom and boy do they smell wonderful!

Snap's leg has healed. He and Scooter have become best buds and enjoying living together.
Have a wonderful weekend!

Blessed

Things are still busy around the homestead. Worried about the cost of hay and should have known God always provides. William and his helper went Sunday and picked up 100 bales for only $1.00 a bale. We didn't order chicks this year and our hens are getting old but once again God provided. We now have over 100 chicks that in a few months will be laying eggs or be sold to others wanting laying hens. Our cost? Zero! William has been getting lots of garden tilling jobs and other things spring from those. We also made some wonderful friends. I have been taught to give my burdens to God and not try to carry them alone. Its easier said than done but God always comes through and provides our needs. We are so very blessed! How about you?

Happy Mother's Day

Why are you crying, Mom?

"Why are you crying?" he asked his Mom. "Because I'm a
woman" she told him. "I don't understand," he said. His
Mom just hugged him and said, "And you never will"..........

Later the little boy asked his father, "Why does mother
seem to cry for no reason? "All women cry for no reason"
was all his dad could say........

The little boy grew up and became a man, still wondering
why women cry...

Finally he put in a call to GOD; when GOD got on the phone
the man said, "GOD, why do women cry so easily?"
and GOD said.......

When I made woman, she had to be special. I made her
shoulders strong enough to carry the weight of the World;
yet, gentle enough to give comfort....

I gave her an inner strength to endure childbirth and the
rejection that many times comes from her children......

I gave her a hardness that allows her to keep going when
everyone else gives up and take care of her family through
sickness and fatigue without complaining......

I gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and
all circumstances, even when her child has hurt her very
badly...

This same sensitivity helps her to make a child's boo-boo
feel better and shares in their teenagers anxieties and
fears.......

I gave her strength to carry her husband through his faults
and fashioned her from his rib to protect his heart.....

I gave her wisdom to know that a good husband never hurts
his wife, but, sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve
to stand beside him unfalteringly.....

I gave her tears to shed. They are hers to use whenever she
needs them. They are her secret strength. They make her
more like ME.....
Author Unknown
___________________________

"Wild Thing"

Little "Wild Thing" is growing and doing very very well. He is nursing, sleeping, jumping around just like the other baby bunnies. Momma has accepted he/she as one of her own and gives it the same care as her natural babies. Can you tell which is Wild Thing? Although he is growing he is much smaller than the others.
I am actually starting to think we might have a happy ending with Wild Thing

Around The Homestead

The wild baby bunny is still doing well. Momma bunny is nursing and caring for him along with her own. The gentleman that brought the bunny to me didn't just take it from its nest thinking momma had abandoned it. They were mowing all day and while they were on the other side of the field they watched the momma bunny go back and forth from the nest to the woods. She moved all her babies but this one. They left it there and mowed far around the nest hoping she would come back for the last baby. The next morning the baby was still there so they brought it here to see if we could help it. The family knew momma bunny only fed at night and they also knew she had moved her other babies to a new nest. Hopefully "WildThing" will survive.
We also have a baby duck we are caring for. The couple that got DiDi's son "Pickles" brought their duck "Snap" to see if we could help with his leg. Their dog got a hold of Snap and broke its leg. William and I put splints on it made from popsicle stick and so far he seems to be doing okay. For a few days he didn't even try to stand. Now he is standing and stretching his leg a little. It still hurts him if he moves it alot. I massage his foot and bottom part of his leg which seems to help. Snap may have a broke leg but he hasn't lost his appetite or spirit!
We have been having rain and storms everyday. Diva and the girls seem to enjoy it about as much as I do.
Goats don't like getting wet so huddle together. That also makes more mucking the stall chores for us as they make a mess. Oh well, its great for the gardens!
Inbetween the rain we are tilling and mulching neighbors and friends gardens. It has been bringing in some extra money, which is nice.
That's about it for whats going on here. Hopefully the rains and storms will end soon and we will have a few sunny dry days. Have a blessed one!

Wild Baby Bunny

A gentleman that had purchased a bunny for his daughter stopped by the other day. He had a newborn baby bunny with him. A wild newborn baby bunny. They had been mowing and found it. They left it all day to see if the mom came back for it but the next morning it was still there alone. He asked if I thought I could save it. He also knew that it was a 1 in 100 chance of it surviving. Just so happened I had a bunny with day old babies. I took the tiny thing and rubbed its body with each of her babies so it would have their scent and then put it in the nest with them. William thought she would kill it. I thought she might take it out of the nest and reject it. She came to the nest sniffed around and covered the babies with her fur. I checked that night and the wild baby was snuggled down with the others doing fine. Next morning it was still doing great. That afternoon it was hot and momma bunny had taken the wild baby and one of hers and put them in a nest together and the other 3 in a nest together so they wouldn't get too hot. Babies doing fine. Last night it started raining so momma bunny put all the babies in one nest, covered them with fur and they stayed warm and dry. Momma bunny is nursing the wild bunny with her babies. They all are fat and happy. The wild bunny is of course smaller than our babies but its doing great and momma bunny has accepted it as her own. I hope it survives. We shall see.

Time

William and I were talking the other night about time. We never seem to have enough of it yet our parents and grandparents did way more work and always seem to have time left over. Time to sit on the front porch and visit with whoever stopped by. Time to really listen and talk with their kids and grandkids. Time to go fishing, go to church socials and picnics. Time to read to and tell stories to kids and grandkids. They had big gardens and used their own energy to hoe and weed. They cooked and canned on woodstoves even in the summer but always had time to bake a cake or pie for their kids and grandkids. They had time to teach little hands how to thread a needle and sew a quilt block. They had time to show a kid how to hold and throw a ball. They had time build a snowman and show their kids how to make a snow angel. With all the hard work they had each day they were never too tired or ran out of time to enjoy life, family and friends. Our parents and grandparents had it alot harder than we ever had yet they always had time for us. Where did time go? We don't have to till or work our land by hand, We don't have to carry water from the spring and heat for baths and washing. We don't have to stand over a hot woodstove in the middle of summer cooking and canning. Life is so much easier for us so what happened to time? Our lives are easier, work is easier, caring for home and family is easier now than way back then, so why don't we have more time? We have sat and enjoyed our patio area twice since we fixed it. Once was for a few minutes after we finished it and that was because it started to rain. The second time was the weekend we had friends visiting. We don't have time to sit and enjoy it. Each time we sit down we think of all that needs to be done and get back up. We don't sit on the backporch and watch the birds at the feeders or the sun come up. We don't get the canoes out on the water. We don't go fishing. When we spend time with kids or grandkids its while we are working and they are helping us. Yes, they are learning as they help us but I want them to remember time. I want them to remember our having time for them. I want to have time to sit on the porch and just listen and talk with them. I want to tell them stories about growing up and that there was always time to do things without rushing. That there was always time to get things done, work hard yet have time to enjoy life, family and friends. Where did time go? Has anyone seen it? How do I get time back? I sure do miss having time.