Hello friends! How are you? I’ve missed you. I say this every time I’m gone from this space for a while, but it’s true-I’ve missed this space! And you! The past few weeks have been busy, which is good. The next couple of weeks are quieter and that means I can focus on behind-the-scenes things again. I still have a lot to do but I just keep chipping away at the to-do list (which will make an appearance in a few. Just hang tight. Or scroll to the bottom. Either way is fine with me). But first, I have a huge homestead update for you since I’ve missed a couple of weeks. Hold on, sit back with your coffee, and let’s chat.
Eggs
Boy do I have an update for you on eggs! Not only did I collect eggs from the girls over the past couple of weeks, but I am currently incubating eggs. That’s right! I bought the incubator and then picked up eggs from a friend. The chicks will be barnyard mixes, but I’m so excited to try my hand at hatching chicks. But before I get into the details, let’s catch up on how many eggs I’ve collected lately.
My last update ended on 1/29/21 with 17 eggs! For the week of 1/30-2/5/21, I collected 10 eggs. And for the week of 2/6-2/12/21, I’ve collected 12 so far (I’ve collected 2 eggs today). It has been so bitterly cold here that I’m not surprised that the egg laying has slacked off. The girls are doing fine otherwise. We have a tentative date set for our friends to help us move the chicken coop and do the run expansion. If all goes well, the girls will soon have newly updated digs and a handsome man to call their own. I think things will be so much better for them once all this is done. I know I’ll feel better.
On to the fun news though. If you remember from the last update, I bought an incubator. I was having a hard time figuring out where to get eggs but then I remembered one of my friends has a lot of chickens. So I texted her and asked if she had any hens laying (it is the time of year when things slow down) and she said yes! So the Mister and I took a ride this week and picked up a dozen eggs. I set them yesterday and so far everything is working just like it should. I love hearing the drum of the machine working. It is such a simple thing but really, it means that life is being created here on the homestead.
I set the incubator up in our pantry. It seemed like the only place that would be out of the way (of the curious critters, ahem, I’m looking at you Corny) but still close enough to check on. I’ll have a bigger update on incubating eggs in the chicken update post (if I ever find the time to write that post!). But just know I am loving the incubator.
In other news
We’ve been enjoying the last few weeks of quiet here on the homestead. It won’t be long before everyone is back for fishing season. The weather has been cold but we’ve been busy getting things done and just enjoying the quiet. I moved my office upstairs. We have a little apartment (more on this when I get to writing that introduction I’ve been talking about) and it has a ‘sitting’ room of sorts. That’s where my office is now. I have a couch that Anna Lee has claimed as her own. We call it “Anna’s Office Chair”. She loves going to work with me. The commute is short though. I hung up a letterboard with a motivational saying on it. Hopefully it will keep me motivated to keep on keeping on. I also finished hanging up pictures upstairs in our little apartment. I’d had a stack on the floor for a long time and finally found the time to stick them up on the walls.
I also finished the shot gun shell wreath! I love it! I didn’t use as many shells as I thought I would, but I did use enough that I only have one big jar full now. It hangs in the living room (the one that I like to consider to be like a ‘lodge’).
The Garden
It’s just about that time of year where we started forward focusing on all things gardening, especially starting seeds. We’re not quite there yet, thank goodness! I need a couple more weeks to get everything together but I have my grow lights and soil blocker purchased. I need to find a shelving unit for the plants and also need to purchase the materials to make my own seed starting soil. I have my list, I just need to get to a town with a larger hardware store. I did purchase most of my things at the local hardware store, but they said they wouldn’t have soil in until March.
I also need to work on my garden plan (as in, where is everything going to go?!?!) and also update my seed spreadsheet. Since the next couple of weeks are quite, I’m hoping to get all that updated. I did a seed exchange over on Instagram and I am now the proud owner of luffa seeds! I think that will be a fun addition to the garden this year. I also have all those dried flowers to go through and figure out what they are and how to grow them. I’m also thinking of adding some mushroom compost to the garden beds this year and then getting in a load of mulch to use as a barrier on top of the beds. Both of these things can be purchased locally in various loads. I’ll need to figure out how much I need of both.
My Master Gardener class is coming to an end soon. I’ve been taking the class since October. The final is on March 4th and then we get to jump right in to being MG’ers. I’m already working on a project with some of the folks from my county. It’s been fun learning but, I’ll be honest, I’m ready to be done with the class. We have to take a test and make at least an 80 on it in order to pass and move forward. I’m a little nervous, but hope I’ll do okay on it.
I’ve also been thinking about plant markers and how I want to keep track of my garden rows. I was pursuing insta the other day and saw some really cute markers and went down the rabbit hole on Amazon. I came back up with these markers. I think they’ll be fun.
Photography
If you recall from my last ‘Good Things List‘, I’ve been working on a photography project for my friend. My friend and I went back last weekend to reshoot the pictures and I do believe we have success! I’m in the editing stages now, but I feel so much better about them. And I’ve continued to use manual mode some. I found a great tutorial online about my camera and was really into it. I really need to go back and finish that up so I can learn more about the bells and whistles of my camera.
Anyway, after we took the pictures of the apartment, we strolled around town. It was a snowy day and there weren’t that many people out and about. One of the fun things about this little town, that happens to be the county seat for where we live (and 45 minutes away from us!), are the murals. Just look at them. There happens to be another mural in town, but that’s part of the photo project I’m working on for my friend. So I’ll just have to keep that one under wraps. For now.
And the rest of the story
Maple syrup is fast approaching! It’s the kick off for all the things yet to come (garden, spring, green stuff, summer, etc. etc.). The Mister and I have been discussing our ‘boiling’ set up. For the past few years we’ve just boiled on the stove in the kitchen, but that is a really long and sticky process. It’s okay to use the kitchen stove to finish off the syrup, but really, boiling needs to be done outside or in a separate building (if you’re going commercial, which we’re not. We’re just hobbyist). Anyway, we were looking for an electric option that would be big enough to hold gallons of sap and that we could use outside. I ordered an evaporator from Amazon, but when it got here it was tiny. So I asked around in some Facebook groups and then after much discussion, we decided to go with the cinder block method. This will make more sense in a couple of weeks. I’m telling you about it now to just say that I bought the cinder blocks that we need. Looking at the weather, tapping should start after next week. I still need to grab my tapping stuff from the pool house and get it cleaned and ready. And then we’ll build the evaporator station and get a load of wood brought in.
I’ll be back next week with a monthly budget update. This post is getting really, really long as it is! But before I finish up, I would like to add that we have continued eating really yummy, home cooked meals. The Mister cooked dinner last night and he made a big salad out of things we got in our weekly Misfits Market box (use referral code: COOKWME-IC0HDH for $10 off should you want to try a box for yourself. I do receive $10 off as well for everyone who uses the code). But he was complaining that we were out of ranch dressing, so I made some! It was so good y’all. I don’t know that I’ll go back to store bought. It is literally made with milk (or buttermilk), sour cream, and mayo. And then add spices. Mix. And then add lemon juice. The lemon juice curdles the dairy and makes a nice, thick, yummy dressing. I’m making venison stroganoff again for dinner tonight to go along with that yummy salad and salad dressing!
The List
I’m happy to report that I’ve marked some things off of “The List”:
1. finish business plan
2. clean out chicken coop and run : adding this to #11 since it will get done at the same time
3. garden: finish moving to new location, plant garden and flowers
4. make soap
5. render lard
6. restock spices
7. inventory first aid kit and emergency kit supplies
8. test smoke detectors
9. wax wood furniture
10. add a rooster to the flock: adding this to #11 since it will probably happen at the same time
11. chicken coop expansion: clean out coop and run; move coop and run; expand chicken run; put metal roof on current run; expand roosts in run; fix door between coop and run; add rooster to the flock
12. finish chicken coop curtains (I’ve only been working on them for about 5 years!)
13. Do something with blueberries
14. Do something with cherries
15. Ham hocks: find a recipe and use them!
Okay. That’s it friends! I hope you all are doing well and hanging in there with this cold that is blasting through the states. I’ll be back soon with more updates, posts, and just all the good things.
’til next time
-k
xoxo
Tracy
Oh, Kristin, I am joyfully envious of you! I cannot wait to follow your “we added a rooster” stories. I wish Mr. Gordon and I could do that here, but it’s just not feasible. Do you know what breed you are going with yet? In my chicken fantasies, I have a beautiful Silver-Laced Wyandotte rooster. 🙂 Chicken fantasies… sigh! Anyhow, I’m so happy that you will be able to bring home a fella for the girls! It will also be so neat to read about your chicks as they hatch and how that goals. I can’t wait for those photos! 😀
We have added mushroom compost to our garden three years in a row and we believe it’s a good addition. We just can’t produce enough compost on our own. Last year we went with a different source and I didn’t like it as much. Too much “trash” in it. Literally found some big chunks of glass. 🙁 And blue nylon string. Very annoying. We’ll have to go back to our first source. I’ve ordered almost all of our seeds – still had plenty from last year that are viable, but I ordered some extras. I want to grow a seedless watermelon variety for the chickens. I have found one, but Mr. Gordon sometimes votes no if he thinks it will add to his weed eating and challenge in mowing. (eyeroll) This is one area where I think he’s unrealistic. We have SO MUCH ROOM and… (throws hands up). Anyhow… I have thought about a soil blocker for years. I think it’s a wise-investment. I should probably add that to my list. By the way, speaking of seeding / seedling supplies, if you find a resource for T5 fluorescent lights, let me know! They are so hard to get now and I dislike (okay, hate) the LED grow lights.
I totally forgot you were taking the Master Gardner Class! And you are almost done! That. Is. Awesome! It’s on Mr. Gordon’s list (and mine). There might be one locally in fall 2021. If it makes sense, I might do it. 🙂
Your photos are beautiful – as always! Look forward to seeing the other mural as well. 🙂 Okay, off to do morning chores before work (groan – that grown is for my job, the chores just ain’t that bad). Happy Monday!
chickenlibrarian
You are so funny Tracy! I think I start every response to you that way. But you are funny. I can’t wait to add the rooster to the flock. The girls have been cooped up, hehehe, this winter and they need the advice of the man to straighten themselves back out. Of course, having bigger digs will help with that too, but I also want babies so they need a man. LOL. My friend has a barred rock roo and she’s offering him to me since I love barred rocks! I hope to be able to hatch out some more barred rock chicks one day. I still haven’t been able to figure out who is laying which egg. I have 3 chickens that lay the same colored brown egg and I haven’t caught them all in the nest box to quite figure it out. Actually, this is a good topic for my ‘chicken update post’…hmmm.
Anyway, I’m really looking forward to getting back out to the garden. I can’t wait to get the soil and compost in the beds and get the fence put up. But the chickens need my attention before that happens. I did get my grow space set up and am looking forward to getting that started. But not too soon. I learned my lesson last year. I was just looking at my spreadsheet and saw that there is only a couple of things that need to be started in March. So that’s good. I got my fluorescent bulbs at my local hardware store, but I think you can buy them on amazon too. I don’t recall if I got T5’s though. I think I have T8’s. And I’m with you on the LEDs.
I highly recommend the Master Gardener class. It’s a lot of ‘book’ learning first but then you get to have fun helping and doing things. I just had a meeting with my county group a couple of days ago about a project we’re starting. It’s exciting! but I’ve got to pass that test first! Keep your fingers crossed for me.
Steph - Elder Oaks Farm
You’re incubating eggs!!! How did I miss this?! How exciting! We have wanted to incubate and hatch eggs from our flock for years now but (this year included) it just never really fits into our plans and budget. But one day we will do it! So looking forward to following along with your egg hatching so please post updates! It’s something that I’ve always wanted to do but also scares me since I’ve never done it, you know? I loved reading this update! Sounds like you’ve got so much greatness going on at the homestead and it makes me smile for you. Good luck with your master gardener test, I know you’ll do great! And one last thing, we grew luffa for the first time last year and they took a while to produce the gourds but man were they prolific! And they really do take over like everyone says, even more so than I expected, so definitely prepare for that.
chickenlibrarian
hi Steph! Sorry for the delay in responding! My website sent your message to spam! Not sure why it did that. It has a mind of its own sometimes.
yes! Incubating eggs. We are on day 10. 8 more days until lockdown. I did try to candle them on day 8 but couldn’t see through the shells. This is my first time so I am being cautious. I might try to candle them again soon just in case.
I am having fun with it. I highly recommend the Nurture Right 360 incubator. It has been so easy so far. It turns the eggs and has all the digital details that you need (temp, humidity). And the cost wasn’t that bad. A lot of people recommend a Brinsea incubator, but they are rather cost prohibitive. But probably worth the expense if you are planning on incubating a lot.
I will be back soon with a whole update on incubating, including what I found in my research and what’s working for me. So check back! I was scared too but I just jumped right in.
Thanks for the clues to growing luffa. I’m excited to try something new!! xoxo