Meet the Ladies (and Gent)

They're finally here! We are so excited to have our chickens home and we can't wait to introduce them to you. So, without further ado......here they are..... (oh, and let me apologize for some of the fuzzy pictures-chickens are harder to photograph than you might expect)

 

There's Betty- the "queen". She arrived first and quickly established her dominance. It was a little sad and a little funny to watch her boss everyone else around that first day they were all home.

 

 

There's Shirley, who's fairly quiet and minds her own business.

 

There's Thelma. I don't think we've heard her make a peep yet. She is often seen off and away from the rest of the flock...anti-social, I guess.

There's Dottie, who makes up for the quiet ones with her incessant cawing.....no sweet little coos and clucks for this girl, she's got complaints and she needs you to hear them!

 

There's Maude, another pretty unassuming gal.

 

There's Edith, who is in constant motion. She's the first one to grab any treat being offered and she's fast enough to get away from Betty when she starts trying to harass her.

 

There's Louise. We can tell her apart from Thelma for two reasons: one, she's thinner and two, she squeaks- it is the craziest thing to hear, but it's the only sound we've heard her make...very funny.

 

And last, but not least, is Henry the rooster. He is some serious comic relief, this guy. He sounds like an old smoker with his hoarse cockle doodle doo and although he's the smallest of the flock he struts around like the "king" that he is.

We are having so much fun watching these girls and guy! And, of course, it is super fantastic that we are getting eggs everyday straight away. We will bring in chicks in the spring so we can stagger the flock and keep active layers coming in, but for now it's nice to be getting to know how to care for chickens with already grown ladies. The kids are absolutely fascinated and truthfully, so am I. Chickens have been a dream for awhile and now that it's true I'm just in heaven. I can't wait to show you the wonderful coop and run the Hubs built for them, but that's another post for another day!

Tonia

 

 

The Long Road Home

It was a day 10 years, 6 months, and 2 weeks in the making. From the moment they placed little baby Bug in my arms, I knew I belonged at home. There were so many times I didn't think it would ever happen, but finally  here I am - I worked my last day yesterday. It is tempting for me to talk about regret, about all the things I wish I would've done differently, to list all the mistakes and heartache, but that would be such a waste. Because there have been lots of bright spots and lots of lessons learned on this road home. For instance, I've learned:

There is ALWAYS someone worse off than you.

I have cared for those struggling to live...and those struggling to die. I've held impossibly small babies and the hands of lonely old women, with no family left. I've cared for extra children for 16 hour days so that their exhausted single moms could go to work. I've complained loudly only to be humbled by another's harder story. I know without a doubt that these years had to happen so that I could open the door to the Heap and not run screaming the other way. Is it bad? Yeah. Is it the worst I've seen? Not even close.

I am absolutely, 100% sure, we're doing the right thing.

The thing about working for 10 years for something is this: there's no way you're getting there if you don't believe in what you're working for. I have worked from 7p.m. to 3a.m. so I could be home with my kids during the day......even if I was operating on 3 hours of sleep. I have worked weekends while the rest of the family went off to do fun stuff like go the zoo or the lake. I have juggled 2 and 3 jobs at a time, trying to get a new business going while still bringing in an income for the family. I have cried all the way to work and then all the way back home. It would have been easy to just stop the struggle and work a normal, full-time job- to accept life for what it is instead of what it should be. I have had plenty of time to think about it, to decide if I really believe in this lifestyle.

I do.

You can never give too much, but you can only give what you have.

I love to give gifts... to my family, to my friends, to complete strangers. I have been known, many times, to give away something I was still using because someone else needed it- and then turn around and get myself a new one. It has taken a lot of years for me to realize how foolish this is. I have been wasteful and irresponsible with money over and over again. As painful as it is for me to admit, I know that these past ten years were absolutely necessary in order for me to learn what money is, what it is for, and what it can really supply. I will never miraculously turn into someone who doesn't give, but now I understand what Gandhi meant when he said, "Live simply so that others can simply live." I can't have everything I want and still have enough to bless others, but I can certainly have everything I need and have plenty left over.

Organization, Time management, Biblical womanhood, Patience (okay, still working on that one...), the list could go on and on......so much growth, so many things that have made me who I am today. These past 10 years were essential and valuable and I am grateful for them.

And now, I learn what I've been waiting ten long years to learn.......

.....how to just be Mom.

Tonia

Anticipating the Garden

One of the bummers of this year has been the fact that I wasn't able to plant a garden. We had a lovely raised bed garden at the McMansion, but I didn't want to plant it and then sell the house and have to leave it behind so I left it empty. We came to the Heap too late in the summer to start a garden here so it's been a much anticipated job to get a garden spot picked out and prepped for next year.

I chose to start fairly small for a homesteading garden because I know how much work a new garden can be. This garden will be a lot different from my previous one because it will not be raised and I know that a change like that can bring a big learning curve with it. So, I tried to tame my enthusiasm and be realistic......we'll see how that goes....

Finding a suitable location was harder than you might expect. There are a lot of trees out here- a problem I didn't have at the McMansion. I did find a place that will work, but even there we'll have to take out some trees so that they don't grow bigger and shade the plot too much.

Once I found the spot, I decided how big I wanted it and laid out paper right on top of the grass. Special weed barrier paper is available at nurseries and similar stores and that would have worked great, but I found a big roll of contractor paper at Lowes that was the same price as a much smaller square foot amount of the weed paper so I went with that. I also got some special lawn staples that are made to hold weed paper or fabric in place- turned out those didn't really work all that well with the paper I got.

 

I'm using a lasagna garden method. The general idea is that by putting a layer of organic material right on top of the ground you can kill off the grass and weeds and have a plot ready for planting in the spring. Some people do not till at all with this method, but I plan on tilling the ground before I plant- I just want to get rid of as much grass and weeds as possible before I do. I ended up with a plot that measures about 19 ft by 7 ft- more square footage than I had at the McMansion, but not by too much.

Once I had the paper down I put some wood chips and things down first and then covered them with top soil. I will then put a good layer of manure on top of that once the Hubs is able to go pick up a load from a local horse owner who offered us some of his bounty for free. The hope is that over the winter all of the larger things will break down and feed the soil and in the spring I'll have a lovely, fertile garden plot to plant in.

I cannot wait for the first seed catalogs to start arriving in late winter. Picking what to plant is going to be so much fun!

Tonia

Beauty and the New Babies

It's absolutely beautiful out here right now. Well, as long as you ignore the trash and the run down and the stinky....then, it's really, really beautiful.

I know, I know....it's been way too long since I posted anything and you're dying to know what we're up to out here and I'm going to tell you all that, I promise, but first just look....and breathe. Trust me on this- sometimes you just need to look around and see the beauty. So, today I did.

I love autumn, it's my favorite season. I love the colors, the way the air smells, the cool nights. I love layering on jackets and sweaters, and exchanging the flip flops for a sassy pair of boots.

I love the leaves on the ground. I love hearing the kids playing joyfully outside again after weeks of hiding from the heat. I love pulling out the cozy blankets and stocking up the hot cocoa and marshmallows.

God willing, someday soon autumn will mean harvesting and canning and getting ready for winter. I look forward to those days. For now, though, I'm just enjoying the view and basking in the fact that soon winter will set in and many of the outside chores will be on hiatus, exchanged for inside work and nights of knitting and snuggling with the kids.

It's been a long, hard summer, with a lot of ups and downs and more work than I ever thought I could handle. We are so blessed and grateful for everything we have, but we are also happy to see a bit of mandatory rest settling in on us. God knew what He was doing when He created the seasons, didn't He?

Thank you for sharing that moment of rest with me....now I will reward your patience with a little bit of Heap news....we have 3 new babies!

First up is Jess. She is a 3 y/o border collie who joined us a couple of weeks ago. She is very, very sweet and very, very timid. We've been working hard to get her used to all of us and accustomed to our land. At the moment she still spends nights and any days we are gone in the dog run. She has been able to run free while we are working and she loves that. She is very much like a toddler and likes to be able to come back and touch base with "Mom" every now and then. When I allowed her to run free while I was inside she became very nervous and ended up straying too far from home so we've had to slow down and give her boundaries again. She has bonded strongly to me, and I to her, so I pray we'll be able to get her comfortable with living here. I don't want to let her go, but I will if she can't handle farm dog life. Time will tell, I suppose.

Then we have Myra (the gray one) and Kai (the black one)....our new barn kitties, who, of course, are not living in a barn, or even outside, yet. We aren't sure of age, but are guessing they are about 8 weeks old or so. They came to us only partially tame so they are living in a large dog crate and getting lots and lots of snuggles and loving. We brought them home a couple of weeks ago and already they are doing so much better. They start to purr as soon as you touch them and they know exactly what feeding time means and do not dart off immediately anymore, but stay close, hollering loudly about how hungry they are. They are ridiculously cute. They are also absolutely disgusting. Kittens do not know to clean themselves yet and they have some pretty gross habits, like playing in the litter box and sleeping in the leftover food that's in the food dish. They have added a whole new element to our days since we now have the chore of feeding them twice a day and completely cleaning out their cage once a day. Thankfully, this is a temporary ordeal- soon enough they will be outside, catching mice, and we will just need to feed them once a day and pet them when they come around.

I'm starting to see just how busy I will be out here, taking care of our expanding menagerie...I'm not going to lie, I'm a little bit nervous!

Tonia

Sometimes There's a Rock

After a couple of crazy weeks, with tons of running in circles, we're finally back at it around the Heap. The big project continues to be the chicken run and coop, which like everything else, is proving to be a lot more complicated than expected.

You might remember the trench the kids and I were digging:

 

Well, this trench has become the bane of our existence over the past couple of weeks. First, only about half of it was even in the right place. Once the Hubs started placing the posts it was quickly evident that there had been some miscalculations somewhere. This meant Hubs had to dig new post holes- a job that is nowhere near fun- and that our much worked upon trench was useless. To top it off, the trench we were so very proud of was about 6-8 inches from being deep enough. Needless to say, we have had some digging to do.....

 

This weekend the Hubs had a discussion with Bug about digging...and the inevitable rocks you find when doing so. "Sometimes," he said, "You find a rock and you think it's a really big one, but as you dig a little you find it's just a little one." I'm thinking the lesson was probably lost on her, but you and I can see it clearly.

 

It ain't nothin' 'til it's somethin'

 

Sometimes, though, it's definitely something. Sometimes there are gigantic rocks. Obscenely heavy rocks. Please, dear God, get this rock out of the way NOW rocks.

 

We could finally see the finish line. We only had about 5 more feet of trench to clean out and the digging would be done. And then, my shovel hit rock. I called the Hubs over to help get it out. He is the breaker bar operator in our digging hierarchy so he is the one to call when something needs broken up or wedged out or whatever. This is the point where I got to hear about the rock lesson Bug had heard earlier in the weekend. This is also the point where I looked at the Hubs with a blank expression. I'm not interested in any character lessons right now, buddy, I am T.I.R.E.D. Get the rock out, please. Only without the please.....

I'm convinced this is also the moment when God decided to spank me for my bad attitude because what happened over the next hour can only be described as punishment.

Dig a little. Try to find the edge of the rock. Wait for Hubs to see if he can get the breaker bar underneath the rock. Nope. Repeat.

Dig from one side of the trench, then from the other. Kneel. Sit. Stoop over. Get more dirt out. See if the rock will move yet. Nope. Repeat.

After a whole lot of grunting and groaning and about a dozen exclamations of disbelief from me ("Good grief", "Holy cow", "Sheesh"...you get the point), we finally, finally got the rock out....

 

 and declared the trench to be officially done.....

 

 

and the chicken run ready for the next phase of construction.

 

 

Sometimes there's a rock and you just gotta keep at it until you're past it. Thank you Lord, that we don't have to battle the rocks alone. 

 

 

Tonia

The Greenhouse Reality

Last weekend we had some wonderful friends come out to help with some work. I cannot even begin to tell you how grateful we are for this. It's always a little breathtaking to see how much work gets done in one day when several strong men dig in.

The Hubs and one friend worked on plotting out the chicken run while another friend worked on clearing out more brush and....sit down while I tell you this.....tearing out the greenhouse.

Yes, you read that right. I was so excited about that greenhouse when we moved out here, but as I started making note of growing conditions around the Heap, I started to realize something pretty significant- the greenhouse was in the shade. Like, all of the time. Now, I'm not an expert on growing in greenhouses or anything, but I'm pretty sure they have to get sunlight to work properly. So, sadly, the greenhouse dream is temporarily put to rest.

Since it was a lean-to greenhouse it couldn't just be moved elsewhere so it had to come down completely.

We now have boxes of broken glass to get rid of because nearly all of the panels were glass and it turns out they don't really come out in one piece. Thankfully, no one got hurt while they worked on this mess.

After it was down, we discovered that we have this beautiful, large concrete slab that is in really good condition. Funny how we couldn't see that with the greenhouse there. I immediately started dreaming about what I would do with this new found patio.

It wasn't until everyone was gone for the night that I realized what this area should be used for. We had been debating about how to make the new dog run usable and had finally settled on buying a concrete mixer and pouring a concrete floor.

"Could we move the dog run onto that slab?" I asked Hubs. It would save us several hundred dollars and quite a bit of back breaking work.

He agreed that this was a very sound plan so off we went, in the dark, to immediately move the dog run.

It is perfect.

Sam cannot dig out so both dogs are secure in there. It is in a place that is nearly always shaded so we don't have to feel bad about them being penned up and now they have a lot more space to move around in when we have to leave them.

Oh, and I still have some space for some plants and a couple of chairs so we can sit out on the patio at night and enjoy the cool air. Sometimes a failed plan can turn out oh so well.

Tonia

Timber!

Work on the chicken run/coop had to be halted temporarily this week when we realized that we had a tree that needed to come down right next to where the run will be. It was supposed to be an easy job. It was supposed to take an hour or two at most. Yeah, right.

The tree in question needed to come down so that we can hang guttering on the side of the garage. It appears that when it rains the water comes pouring down the roof of the garage in such a way that dirt washes down a small hill and builds up in front of the building that will be the coop. We had to dig out the doors in order to get into that building and obviously we don't want to have to do that again. So we'll put guttering up and catch the rainwater in rain barrels, which we can then use to water flowers or the garden. But first, the tree needed to come down....turns out, it was a very stubborn tree.

The Hubs started by chopping off the branches and the kids and I dragged them to a pile to be burned. There were a lot of branches!!

Then he chopped off the top of the tree...things were still going pretty well at this point. The top was heavy and hard to drag to the burn pile, but we managed. No biggie.

Then it was time for the main trunk. Hubs tied a rope around it and instructed me to keep tension on it so that the tree would fall in the right direction- there was a post for the run close by and we didn't want it to fall into that and mess it up. Turns out that wasn't going to be a problem.

The Hubs started sawing.

The Hubs kept sawing.

Then we pulled on the rope to see if we could help it start its descent. The tree did not budge.

After some more sawing we tried again. Still no luck.

This cycle continued for I have no idea how long. The kids had agreed that they would yell, "Timber!" when the tree started to fall. At some point they abandoned this great idea and went off to pick up trash instead. You know they're bored when they CHOOSE to go pick up trash instead!

More sawing, more pulling.....that tree would not budge. By now, it was dark...not getting dark....it was dark. Desperation set in. We briefly entertained the idea of some rather dangerous methods that included the phrase, "If I were younger...." Then he got the tow rope and I got the van. We set out to get that tree down tonight and by golly, it was coming down tonight.

Praise God. It worked. Down came the tree.

Once we got it down, it was easy to see the problem. The tree had partially grown into the garage so the chainsaw couldn't get to that part of it and it was a big enough part to keep the tree from falling over of its own accord.

Needless to say, we didn't get anything else done that night...but we got that tree down! In the end, that was good enough for us.

Tonia