The Singing Tree, as we call him, stands at the entrance to the back pasture. This time of year I imagine him singing to try to coax in Spring.
Sometimes the things in life that bring us joy get put on hold, shoved aside, or boxed up and closeted altogether. We all have times like these, and it's okay. It happens for this reason or that, an illness, a new baby, a new job, a big move, or we just simply need to retreat from the world for a time. I think of these as just seasons in life - go with it - don't beat yourself up - just accept it and move on. It's all part of the discovery.
So here I am, back from my little retreat and ready to move on. I needed a little kick in the pants to get back to the more meaningful things in my life. The things that keep me sane. The things that let me create. The things that give me joy. It's been a journey and will continue to be a journey. I've been learning to accept myself as I am, beautifully imperfect. It's a process, and there are good days and bad. But here goes nothing....
Last Sunday we picked up our peeps at the post office. This is not the first set of peeps that we've raised (we've had plenty of peeps on the farm), but they ARE the first ones that we ordered and picked up ourselves. We ordered from McMurry Hatchery based on their excellent reputation, as so far, couldn't be more pleased. We got the message that they were shipped on Saturday, I was beside myself. Glad we got that brooder done! First thing Sunday morning I checked their tracking to see how far they had traveled. They at one of the main post office hubs in Pittsburgh!! We live about 35 miles outside of the city, but I was willing to drive in if I could pick them up. My first thought was, "It's a Sunday! No one will be available!" But we called all the same, and a return phone call gave us the answer we'd been waiting for, "Come and get 'em!" And that we did.
Newly hatched chicks can survive for about 72 hours without needing food or water. For mama hens, hatching her own chicks this is important. She must patiently sit on her chicks until they have all hatched. And this can take 48-72 hours. So these little guys and gals absorb their yolk sac just before hatching to provide them with the nourishment to survive those hours before mama hen can take them out looking for food. Pretty darn creative, don't you think. This allows chicks to be shipped in the mail. However, warmth is another consideration, therefore typically they are shipped in no less that groups of 25 so that they can keep each other warm. Larger birds, like ducks or geese, can be shipped in few numbers. I'm happy to say that every last one of our birds arrived safely, and all seem to be happy, healthy, and thriving.
On another note, the weather here has been crazy. Definitely an uncharacteristically warm winter. I'm not really complaining. I checked the weather this morning when I woke up (as I always do - I'm a weather junky) to find that it should be nice and sunny and warm all morning and into the first part of the afternoon, where then it will turn into rain....and then more rain....and then thunderstorms....followed by a wind advisory! I had to laugh! Folks, on any given day we have a wind advisory up here on the farm! Don't believe me? Stop by for a visit; I guarantee it will blow your socks off. Guess I better get my outside chores done soon then.
This semester has seemed to leave a lot less time to blog. So bear with me folks! I'm trying to return to a bit of normalcy.
I love to watch the new life come up in the spring. I am so glad to see the greenness after a long, cold, and snowy winter. This was especially true for this spring. So I gathered my camera, my dog, and my husband (with his camera too) and headed out to capture some of spring's growth. It as also a good time for me to brush up on some of my field botany as I hope to be teaching a botany class in the fall.
Trillium grandiflorum
Trillium erectum
Podophyllum peltatum - May Apple or May Flower
The identification of this one still eludes me. I will keep researching. All I can say is that it is low to the ground and found sharing soil with some wild strawberries.
{oh the colorful eggs - I particularly love the green ones}
It's hard to know when we transitioned from winter to spring. Sometimes I question whether or not we have. It was a balmy 45 degree today. And yes, it rained. If there is one thing we have seen A LOT of the past few months, it's rain. We've had so much rain in fact, that none of the farmers around here have even been able to turn over their fields to prepare for planting. Last year at this time we already had new corn peeking out of the soil. This has many people concerned as the rain is supposed to continue all the way through summer. So says the Farmer's Almanac, and they've been pretty close to right on this past winter and into spring.
Our garden sits on an incline and much of the soil has been washed away revealing many rocks and pieces of glass. We planted on a corner of our landlords fields last year. I'm curious as to why all this, for lack of a better term, garbage is in the fields. If we're lucky, our compost pile will cover what we've lost. I've also been putting the rabbit droppings over the soil. It's funny to see that where I raked it over, is now growing greenage. I am guessing that greenage is left over or spilled grain from their feed. Either way, I'm letting it alone for now. It's holding what's left of the soil in place. I've still not decided if it is going to be worth attempting the garden this summer. We're hoping to find and move onto our own property this summer. It would be so disappointing to plant a garden only to leave it wasted. Yet at the same time, if we don't find our 'dream farm' this summer, I will be disappointed that I didn't plant. I can't stand the thought of not growing my own food this summer. I'm considering some potted plants, but nothing's growing yet except my Bleeding Hearts (which I am so happy to see survived the winter).
The girls (meaning the hens) are also confused about the weather. We had a week about a month back of warmer weather which got them laying pretty regularly; maybe 6 dozen eggs per week. Since the rain and cooler temps returned, their egg laying has backed off again. Tomorrow it's supposed to be in the 60s and sunny; at least for the day. It should do us all some good to get out and enjoy it. It's not supposed to last for long.
Life gets busy. There are so many things that pull is in 100 different directions, and if we're not careful, we can forget about the things that keep us sane and relaxed. These things are just as important (if not more) as life's other obligations. I wish I could homestead full time. But alas, I cannot. At least not yet. It is a big goal, a slow goal, a jump-in-head-first goal; all of this and more. For now, I supplement. And this supplement has taken quite a bit of my time lately. However, my semester is a week away from the end, at which time I will get (almost) a whole month off! So I am going to call this month "31 Days of May" and am dedicating myself to posting one thing each day. It may not be big, but it will be something. There's a lot going on 'round here lately. And a lot more to come in the month of May. So keep on stopping back to catch all the...err...excitement!
And the past two days, I've lost. Fanny, our only Jersey Giant finally past. Sadly, with a little help. It was a tough decision, but se was literally down to feathers, skin, and bones. It was so sad. I felt so bad watching her get worse each day. We tried hard for the past week, but it just got to be too much for her and I felt guilty watching her suffer. She was a good ole hen and will be sorely missed.
A new hen has now replaced her on the front porch sick chicken ward. One of our new Blue Cochins has come down with the same thing that our other chickens had last November: bubbley eyes (literally, bubbles coming from the eyes) and snot. Anyone have any ideas?? We searched high and low for info last year, and never really came up with a definitive answer. It went through all of our chickens. All recovered but one old hen. So we're hoping that this will pass with her too and that none of our others will come down with it again.
And if all that wasn't bad enough, I come out to the rabbit hutch yesterday morning to find a dead male bunny. They boys and girls were separated about three weeks ago. I had 3 boys and two girls. Apparently, boys of 3 months old come into their male hormones and will fight (really? 3 months?). I feel so bad. This was all my fault. Nothing that I have read, or any info that has come through other rabbit owners expressed that this would happen SO early. So, I am banking this as yet 'another' lesson learned. Next time I will be smarter. Of the two males that were left yesterday, one found a new home. Everyone else is fine. Onward...
Second sunny day in a row and the temperature has been in the 30s during the day and teens at night. Could someone please send spring? I'm not sure I'm ever going to thaw. I've been trying to get all my bunnies plucked, but I don't want to pluck them when the nights are in the teens. I spun a bit of angora last weekend (hopefully I will finish a skein this weekend), and boy is it ever nice. All I can say, if you are a spinner and want to start to raise your own fiber animals, angora rabbits are a good place to start.
It always seems like there are a few days just as the new year gets underfoot that tease us with the thought of spring. I don't mind the snow, I really don't. It is welcome to come in November if it wishes. But once the Christmas and New Year holidays are over, my mind starts to wander towards spring things. And as if Mother Nature is echoing my thoughts, along come a few warm days. Warm enough to melt the snow and make me ready for flowers and life to start popping up out of the frozen ground. We had a couple of those days last week. My thermometer read 67 degrees Fahrenheit at it's warmest. You sure could smell spring in the air, and everyone seemed to have a little more spring in their steps. The chickens absolutely loved it! They hadn't been much for coming out of the coop the past month, but this certainly got them cluckin' around the farm. Even the cows dared to meander out from the barn. Then just like that, before you could say "Jiminy Cricket" it was gone. In it's place were the familiar subarctic temperatures. Once again we are in the throws of winter.
Still it has got me pondering this year's garden. Last year most of my support went to the local garden supply stores. This year I want to get my seeds ordered (soon) and start them inside. If you're into gardening, you're sure to know how buying 'pre-grown' (or sprouted) plants can add up quickly. So this year I start my own! The next step will be to SAVE my own seeds to replant the following year. The progress is slow, but I AM getting closer to becoming more self sufficient. Even if closer comes in baby steps. I wandered across a website that calculates you global footprint today and was shocked to find how many Earth's it would take to sustain our world's population if they lived like I did. I can't even admit how many, I'm so ashamed! And I do so many things to lessen my footprint; I can't fathom how many Earth's it would take if I lived less frugally.
As winter hangs on, I find myself with a severe case of 'cabin fever'. I'm desperately ready to get outside and start to garden! I have all sorts of plans for this year (hopefully some of those will actually come to fruition). It never hurts to dream big, and that's what I'm doing. As the ground is beginning to thaw, you can smell spring in the air. Though it is only 55 degrees out today (really a far cry from the -10 wind chill we had a few days ago) I've opened the windows to allow some of the stagnant air out of the barn and the cool 'spring' breezes in.So what have I been up to? I'm always looking for new hobbies, crafting ideas and the such. Usually I have about 5 things going at once, and this winter has been no exception. Along with launching my Etsy site (mountainmud.etsy.com - this has been an endeavor in itself since I'm teaching full time this semester), I've become addicted to spinning! Fibers, that is, mostly wool. I love it! Looking for ways to wind down, relax? Needing therapy? This is it! I've been spinning for about a month now, and I just can't stop! I've been spinning with a homemade drop spindle, made from a 10 inch paint brush handle, small tea cup hook, and two CDs, and a turkish drop spindle purchased from a the new aquaintance that got me started with spinning. Such an easy DIY project, and dyed and carded wool is easy to find through Etsy! Perhaps someday I will afford an actual spinning wheel, but for now, I'm really enjoying the simplicity of a drop spindle.See my before and after pictures above!
