Summertime, and the Living is... HOT!


It's been hotter than the proverbial "Forty Hells" here. The humidity is off the charts and what little breeze we have feels more like a blast furnace coming off the water. The three H's (Hazy, Hot, and Humid) have hit with a vengeance and keeping the garden watered has become both a blessing and a curse.

This past Friday, it was 110 degrees out in the chicken house, even with the windows and run door opened. Luckily, I had a little fan for the coop and kept that running. It helped some. Yes, people, summer has indeed hit Eastern NC, and it's done so in a big way.

Speaking of hot chickens, earlier today, I headed up to our Dollar General and bought a $4.00 kitty litter box (extra points 'cause it was cheap and purple). When I got home I filled it half with sand, and half with wood ashes from our recent brush pile burning. Then I put it out in the chicken run, closed the gate, sat down in the shade and waited. The guineas figured it out first, which I admit was kind of surprising since they don't seem like the sharpest fowl in the barnyard. They had a large time in their first real dust bath. The chickens still haven't figured it out.

(Aren't our daughter's Light Brahma chickens beautiful?!)

Yesterday afternoon we had great excitement in the duck house. When I opened the back to clean it out, there were two eggs inside, the larger one a double yolker.  By the shenanigans in the pond, I would say they were most probably fertile. Speaking of which, we ended up with 4 drakes and 2 females.

As far as the herbal harvest goes: chamomile is doing great and I have been working at drying it along with some beautiful catnip that seems to be loving the heat. The basil is gorgeous and is just starting to want to bloom. Everything else looks really good and we have quite a collection of jars slowly filling up on top of our pie safe.

Meanwhile, out in the garden, full grown cucumbers just appear overnight.

For the past two nights, we have had a critter over at our side pond. I know this because at night when I take the pups out I shine the flashlight around (I'm nosey that way). Judging from the eye shine, if I had to make a guess, I would say it was probably a rather large raccoon. Most likely one that really likes corn and sunflowers, since something ate most of both from our back garden last month.

All this month my eldest Granddaughter has been here on the island with us. She has been a joy to have around and we are really going to hate to see her go home next weekend. She and my youngest daughter have been having a blast trying to "Catch 'em all" (Pokemon reference there). We also had our two youngest Granddaughters here for the last two weeks of June. They are ages 7 and 5, in a big way. They were so helpful with the chickens and ducks, and in the garden. Things sure got quiet when we took them back home.

So, as July slowly and surely leaves us for another year, and I try to come up with suppers in the evening that don't heat the inside of the house to the temperature of the outside, we know we have at least one thing to look forward to: August in Carolina is always hotter than July.

Forget Pokemon - I think I gotta catch me a pool!


~Sue Sue

Spring Has Sprung


This morning Pookie was up at the crack of dawn (as usual) and got an early start on cutting the grass on our 4 1/4 acres. I got up a bit later at the crack of mid-morning and made my way outside to hang for a while.

After he was finished, we took a stroll around the property to see how things were going. He showed me a ton of wild blackberries, figs on our newly planted fig tree, and the new growth on two of my elderberries, both of which I thought had died. The ancient pear tree on the back of our property has even stepped up this year and has a ton of pears on it. The thornless blackberry bush that he and my youngest gave me for Mother's Day has berries too.

Next we headed to the "corn field", which is in fact 5 rows of bi-color corn that our daughter requested we plant. The corn is up about 5 inches which is amazing since the ground here is mostly sand (we do live on an island) and straw from the duck house. The sunflowers that I planted along the edge are getting flower heads too, which I'm sure the chickens that are coming in about another week and a half will surely love as much as we will.

Out to the side, the kitchen garden beds that Pookie built us are coming along. We already have some baby squash, tomatoes, and sweet peas. The onions are finally starting to look like onions and not marbles, and the potato's in the potato box look pretty good. Most of the herbs that I planted in pots out there have come up, except for the Rosemary. Rosemary is being a stubborn lady for me and it looks like I will have to end up getting some plants to fill in the pot. Take that Rosemary.

As for our ducks, they are big, and beautiful, and a joy to watch. They are still in their pen that Pookie made for them that has access to a small corner of the front pond. I know that it is getting time to turn them loose so they can have the run of the property, but I have become so protective of them that I'm scared to turn them out. Hopefully they will be smart enough to return to their duck house in the evening so that I can tuck them in for the night (LOL).

The one year anniversary of when we moved to our new place here is coming up in August, and it will mark the first full year of trying our hand at becoming more self sufficient. We have made great strides so far with the duck enclosure, chicken coop (which is about finished), kitchen garden beds, some fruit trees and berry bushes. Pookie also has his garage in place so the motorcycle has finally come home from storage (YES!). Every day I thank the good Lord for letting us find this unique property smack dab in the middle of the Island.

My biggest tip for others out there that may be thinking about trying their hand at the whole "becoming more self sufficient" thing: READ. There is a ton of information out there, on the internet as well as in books. You may just discover how truly satisfying getting back to the old, healthy way of doing things really is.


~SueSue

Chicks, and Guineas, and Ducks, OH MY!

Our chick and guinea order went in three weeks ago.

Youngest daughter and I spent quite a few hours deciding exactly what kinds of chickens we wanted. Well, mostly our daughter spent time trying to figure out what kind she wanted. I already knew that for my 3 chickens I wanted Black Austrolorps. I have been taken with the breed ever since I saw some at the state fair one year. After much deciding, youngest daughter settled on White Brahamas for her choice. She loved their color and the fact that they have feathered feet was an added bonus.

Guineas were easier: 6 lavenders and 6 royal purples to be split with friends of ours. So 6 chickens and 6 guineas seemed a good number. We are expecting our order mid-May, which gave us plenty of time to build the coop. Life was good.

Then we went to Tractor Supply.

They had ducks. Not just any ducks, mind you, but the exact kind that we wanted: the Pekin.

I have some experience with the Pekin breed. When my two oldest children were little we bought them a Pekin duckling at Easter. We named it "Rodney" and it acted more like a dog than a duck. It became apparent that Rodney was a girl one morning when we found an egg in her duck house. She was quite a character and would make her rounds to the neighbors houses and beg for food. Sometime later, someone gave us another Pekin, which turned out to be a drake and soon we had a flock in our backyard.

So, anyways, that morning in Tractor Supply, we picked out 6 ducklings and brought them home. Pookie wasn't as thrilled with them as we were, since he hadn't had time to build a chicken coop much less a duck house, but we convinced him that he would have at least 6 weeks before they would be ready to go outside. Right now they are in a large stock tank out in the garage. They are about 4 weeks old and we can't believe how fast they are growing! This afternoon we rigged a temporary pen in the yard so that they could be outside a few hours a day to stretch their legs. They seemed to really enjoy it.

Now, I don't know how many of you have ever had ducks, but they are a pure mess! They have just about wore me out trying to keep their container clean and dry and their waterer filled. Ducks love water and everything gets soaked within minutes. I tried putting a block of wood under the waterer to raise it, thinking that would solve the problem. Nope. Then yesterday in Tractor Supply (I am at Tractor Supply A LOT), I spied something.

*Lightbulb moment*

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the HOG PAN!

They come in different sizes and I picked the smaller one. I brought it home and put their waterer inside it on top of the block of wood. What a difference! The pan catches most of the water they splash out, and they have learned to drink the overflow from it. Their container stays dryer and it's a lot easier to clean out, so, GO ME!

Also, while I was in Tractor Supply yesterday it came to me that, at this point in my life, the only reason I still work is to finance my duck and chicken habit.

Can I get an Amen!?

February, The Hardest Month

Growing up in West Virginia my Mom always said that February was the hardest month. It's far enough into winter to make it seem like warm weather will never get here, which makes spring seem far too distant. February in West Virginia is mostly gray with a chance of snow.

Since moving to The South, that has gotten some better. It's not as cold as West Virginia here and there is little or no snow, but I still agree with my Mom about February. However, recently I have found a golden lining to February: seed and chick orders.

I love looking through all the seed catalogs. So many choices, so many possibilities. Below are a few of my favorite catalogs.

I have sentimental feelings for R.H. Shumway's. My dad use to order seeds from them, so every spring the catalog was in our house. They have a great selection of seeds. My personal favorite is the heirloom tomato variety "Hillbilly", it's an old variety from West Virginia. They get big (1 to 2 lbs.), have a great taste and just have that homegrown look about them. I have a flat of them started in my mini-greenhouse.

The Rare Seeds catalog from Baker Creek, is just a pure pleasure to look at, plus their seeds are non GMO. They have a little bit of everything in there with varieties that you may not be able to find elsewhere. I was able to find and order Yarrow and Marshmallow from them. If you're a butterfly lover they have hard to find Milkweed seeds.

My personal favorite is Southern Exposure Seed Exchange.  I love this catalog! This is the go to catalog if you live along the southern coast and want to plant a garden. It's chock full of information from how to grow each seed, to harvesting, to diseases, to medicinal uses. It's absolutely amazing, and I will keep it with my reference books. I placed a huge order this morning for my medicinal herbs. Also, for some really neat Lemon Cucumbers which I'm going to try to pickle.

This past fall, my youngest daughter and I were shopping in Tuesday Mornings and found 2 mini- greenhouses on sale for $5.00 each. I bought both of them and stored them back in our junk, I mean storage room. Last week my wonderful daughter put one of them together and it's not bad. I just love deals.

Speaking of deals, right now our Tractor Supply store has a really good deal on 56 lb. bags of garden soil. They are $6.99 each and so far we have accumulated 5 bags. We will use it to fill the pots we're going to plant our herbs in. You can never have too much garden soil, can you?

So, February, I have decided that there just may be hope for you yet. And if not, hey you're only 28 days long.

Next blog we get to talk about CHICKS!

'Granny Pods' - They're a Thing Now


My youngest daughter and I were sitting on the couch the other night with our laptops, and I happened to look over at her's. This is the conversation that followed  (WARNING, strong language)

Me: What the hell is that?

YD: It's called a 'Granny Pod'. It's what we're going to put you in when you get old.

Me: I don't think so.

YD: Yep. It's the latest thing now, you put them out in the back yard. Want to see what it looks like inside?

Me: I guess if you're planning on sticking me in one of them I might as well.

(She shows me pictures of the inside)

Me: Where the hell is the door to the sleeping area and the bathroom, and why is the toilet out in the open like that?

YD: There are no doors, it's one big open space inside.

Me: Well, that's pretty crappy. You mean I can lay in bed and see the toilet, and sit on the toilet and be next to my bed?

YD:Yep.

Me: No way, and what the hell are those camera looking thingy's down by the wall outlets?

YD: They are cameras so we can see if you've fallen, you know, and can't get up.

(At this point in the narrative I look at her like she has two heads)

YD: (In a soothing voice) It's O.K, we can only see you from the knees down.

Me: Well, I'll be damn if you all are going to be spying on my ankles! These 'Granny Pod' thingy's are shit for the birds! You know what I'm going to do if you all stick me out in one of them? I'm going to buy a big pack of chewing gum and go around and put a wad over every camera lens in the place! You'll not be spying on me for your warped entertainment!

YD: (Shaking her head) Mom, you are not right.

The end

So folks, it seems that 'Granny Pods' are a thing now. Buy one, stick it out back in your yard and keep your parents/grandparents close. Here is an example of what I'm talking about:

On a side note:

Notice the guy looking in the window, on the left of this photo. Maybe 'Granny Peeping' is a thing now too. Ewwww.

In all honesty 'Granny Pods' are probably a great thing, for some people. I just don't think it's for me. At least not for another, oh, say, 40 years or so. Maybe by then they'll have a model with a damn bathroom door.

Thanks!

I don't know about you all out there, but we had an excellent Thanksgiving.

The oldest daughter, her husband and the three granddaughters came up and stayed through the long weekend with us. They even brought their dog with them, which was a bit of a challenge. But, in the end neither of our cats were eaten, both of our dogs were unscathed and Grand Dog was his old goofy self, so things worked out well.

As part of our Thanksgiving we decided to use some of the foods that we had put-up during the summer. The green beans that we had canned tasted so much better than the canned store bought ones and the homemade jam we used for breakfast was also a huge hit. Things just taste so much better when they are homemade.

Each of the Granddaughters got the "go withs" for supper that they had requested: macaroni and cheese casserole for the middle one, homemade cheesecake for the oldest, and, believe it or not, Lucky Charms cereal for the youngest (I know, right?!). Hubby's 20 pound turkey was done to perfection and the collard greens were amazing. We ate like pigs without the troughs.

On Saturday, my Son In Law made me a big pot of his spaghetti sauce. Let me tell you, he makes a good sauce. He used some of the dehydrated mushrooms and basil that I had dried in October. I canned 5 quarts of sauce so that we could have some for later in the year.

Saturday night the guys went out in the boat flounder gigging. They managed to get a few, and we added them (the fish, not the guys) to our freezer.

Sunday came way too soon, and the kids packed up and headed home. And the house got way too quiet.

So, even though our Fall garden failed and the only herb I managed to plant this summer was basil, we were still able to enjoy for Thanksgiving some of the things that we had put up. Things not from our garden, but from supermarket sales on veggies and from local farmers markets. Our freezer is pretty much stocked with local shrimp we bought while they were running and with meats that we buy as we find sales at the grocery. I guess my point is, you don't have to have a huge garden to can stuff, or raise your own livestock to butcher and stock your freezer with. Check out your local farmers markets and grocery stores for sales. Do what you can with what is available to you. It may not be a big start, but it's a start.

Hope your Thanksgiving was filled with good food, family, and lots and lots of love.

Now, bring on Christmas!

Today Was a GOOD Day


Today was a good day. The stars aligned and all was right with the world. At least it was in my world.

It started earlier than usual. Old Pup got me up at 6:00 am instead of her usual 7:00(-ish). Both pups went outside then came in to an early breakfast (it was a good day for them too). Even though it rained just after I brought them inside, by 8:30 the sun was out and it was a beautiful fall Carolina morning = GOOD Day.

I had a list of things to do, and high on that list was our annual hunt for the elusive un-seasoned bread cubes I use to make our Thanksgiving dressing (No stuffing here, my forbearers were dead set against stuffing). Every year it gets harder and harder to find the darn things. What's up with that? Anyway, next came car insurance for our teen and tags for her car, both of which she was paying - SCORE! Somewhere in there I had bills to pay and a spring form pan to buy so oldest Granddaughter could have cheesecake for Thanksgiving.

We didn't get very far. Less than 3 miles from home, when I hit the stretch of road with the 55mph speed limit, it became apparent that something was wrong with the Jeepster. Try as it might it just couldn't shift into that final gear. Well crap. Carried it to Hubby, who determined that somehow the Overdrive button had gotten pushed (or un-pushed, which ever the case). Simple fix = GOOD Day.

Next came the insurance company and I've got to say it was painless. Nice Lady at the desk gave Our Youngest a great rate (did I mention she paid it herself?!) and we got a ginormous break because she is no longer on our policy = GOOD Day.

Tags were a breeze and there was NO LINE = GOOD Day.

Somewhere along the way, I received ABSOLUTELY THE MOST FANTASTIC NEWS EVER about a friend = GOOD Day.

Then I got to shop in my Most Happiest Place That Was Ever Created, Ross Dress For Less, where I not only found an awesome set of spring form pans, I was able to get a really cute sweater and top in my size = GOOD Day.

We ended our trip at Walmart. You know, I actually really like Walmart. Especially because they had my un-seasoned bread cubes = GOOD Day.

They also had a giant frozen turkey that called my name. I only hope I can find a pan big enough to roast the thing in.

GOOD DAY!