Day 127 of 236 days of our life on our small family farm in the USA

Another fun filled day or running about and getting stuff done, before Rachael and Dah'veed go off to their 4-H event.  We worked on a few horses had to make an emergancy trip to the dentist for Rachael and than off to Walmart for sneakers for Michael, who bought 2 pair.  Michael and Dah'veed went to help some one move a bed.  We got a call latter about al the 4-H plans getting changed, some one died, another person had just had surgury, so the kids will be leaving here at 3 in the morning to go, boy is it going to be earily.  We still have no idea when they will return, never a dull moment.
Still working on replacing the cow and holding our own in these tight economic times, sometimes I wish I was one of the farms where the govenment was paying them not to grow stuff, than I would be rich.  Only kidding, but just working the gardens seems to be an endless task, all by it's self.  Still need to plant more stuff, I wonder if I will ever be done.  I picked cucumbers today, small ones, but they were yummy the kids said.  I guess the peas are done and need to be replaced with beans.  I bought the wrong green beans, I bought the bush kind and the fava should have be planted at frost..so they will go in around  Sept and I will hope for the best.  the corn is coming along and I fee we will be able to make use of it.
  Well got to go and get the gardens waters...
Be Blessed and know you are loved...Shekhinah Michael and all the kids and critters on Mahanaim Farm

Day 126 of 365 days of our life on our family farm in the USA

I am sorry it has been so long since I have posted.  The loss of our dear Moo cow has been more than I could bare.  Currently we are looking for another cow, but they are very pricey and not being wealthy, it will be a little while till we can replace her.  I did find one a good price, full Jersey, 5 years old, AI bred and due to calf in Oct, her last milking she gave 4 gallons, not too bad.  The price of this wondrous cow was $850, very reasonable, but currently out of our range.  So we will pray that work will come our way and provide us the money to afford her.

  Hay season is now upon us and to get the better price on square bales we must buy out in the field, which mean many days of going out and driving 40 plus miles and then loading the hay into the horse trailer.  We can get 22 square bales at one time this way and the cost is $2.50 per bale, if we wait and he sticks it in the barn the cost goes up to $4.50, so haste is important in this matter.  Often when I get the call, we drop what we are doing and get hay, seems odd I know, but after a while it is just another day at the farm.  Our round bales are ready now as well and are a  bit more than I wanted to pay at $30 each, but we need them for the horses, so I will pay what I have too.  With the three horses we go through a round bale a week, so storing hay, is always a problem here on the farm.  I am grateful to G-d that we have good friends that are kind enough to store our round bales for us.  With our new method of buying and useing hay, we will save alot of money.  The horse hay will cost me $1680.00 per year and the other hay, if we get it from the field will run us about $3360.00, for a grand total of $5040.00 per year.  We can make that work and it beats the over 7000 grand I paid last year.   The grain on the other will not be an easy fix, the cost seems to rise every time I go to the feed store.  It is nearly $10 for 50 pounds of corn.  This is what I have come up with, I plan to sprout wheat and corn in 100 gallon barrels, I should be able to fill the barrels one quarter of the way(about 20 pounds woth of grain) and sprout about 100 gallons of sprouts for the animals from it.  The best part is I can do this year round with about any grain.  It will not only quadrupal the amount of feed, but it will enhanse it, giving it more protien and vitamins.  My plan is not new, farmers in some parts of Europe have been doing it for hundreds of years and farmers here in the States during the last depression, used this method. 

Being a small farmer in America gets harder every day and we must learn to change the way we do things or we are going to go hungry, very soon.  I have heard a lot of discussion as to the way we farm, how it will produce less than corporate farms, but here's the thing, more than 40 percent of what we grow in this country ends up in the trash.  So even if farms like ours grow less food on the whole, it of a better quality and less likey to find it's way to the trash.  We need as a people to waste less and take some reasonability for ourselves.  Just growing one tomatoe plant can produce over 10 pounds of fruit and takes up very little space. It saves fuel too.  If everyone planted a few pots of garden plants, they would reduce the need for corporate farms that are poising the plant and destroying the future for our children and grand childen.  It all starts with us, when we are willing to throw away an apple with a soft spot, instead of cutting the spot off, feeding it to livestock or composting it there is a problem.  Most produce is like that, a small blemish is all that gets it thrown into the trash.  While we are on the subject of food in the trash; in Orlando florida and other places like it; people are being arested and thrown in jail for gathering this waste food and feeding hungry people.  I know it is hard to believe that some one could stop people from feeding some one , but it is true.  I can hardly understand why since no one in the many years they have done this has never gotten sick from eatting the food and they are not profiting off of it.  I wish many more peole were doing it.  Just me I guess.

Our incubator is off at the moment, due to need a bit of repair which I am planning to do very soon.  I have to replace two wafers and than see if it corrects the problem.  It was all very sad as it spiked a few days ago and killed, what would have been many lolvey birds.  I could have cried. 
We are still working on the garden, it is an endless task and I guess I will never be finished, lol.   I canned a bunch of strawberries and blueberries already and plan to can some pickled radish greens and pods latter today, they should be yummy and provide us some much needed winter greens, which we always seem to lack.  This winter we will have to work on sprouting more greens for us and not just the animals.  Anyway, bunches today, a nice roast in the oven and potatoes waiting to be mashed in the kitchen.

Be blessed dears ones and share what you have, as full hands can not be filled...so share with some one else who hands are empty and soon everyone will eat.
Shekhinah, Michael and all the kids and critters on Mahanaim Farm

Day 111 of 365 of our lives on our small family farm.

Today has been a day, our milk cow ran off while I took the kids to a local event.  I almost hate to leave the farm anymore.  Anyway, she got out where the fence is down from the storm and I am a mess over it, as she is a big part of our farm and due to calf at anytime as well.  I love her, but she makes me so made.  The people on the next farm have kindly offered us cedar trees to cut and make into posts and some more barb wire.  I bought some the other day at a yard sale while I was out with Mrs.R and I was happy to find it, since our last repairers were done with scrap wire...all that said I am frustrated and worried I will never see my poor Moo cow again.  People in this area over the past few months have been walking off with animals ans well she is such a sweet healthy cow , I just worry for her.  I also worry for us as a farm and family as we depend on her milk to drink, make cheese, cream cheese,yogurt, sour cream and some of stuff, which is about a third of our total diet.  We will not make it through this winter with out her...not well fed anyway. 
On a good note the geese started laying again and I have orders to get out, after that I may be able to make a few bucks for animals feed.  I need to buy hay in the worst way and have decided to scrap some metal to buy as many square bales as I can to get us though.  I hope the weather permits this week. 

News From The Doghouse and the Friday Edition

 

Slept late this morning even with tickling my feet by Bears, was really tired. Stayed up last night with the generator running until power was restored. Was it sure dark outside, cloud cover and no star light at all, pitch black. The geese really hollered when it was so dark. All the animals were quiet after I got the lights on.

 

Got the chores going after coffee and trying to open my eyes, at least I did not have to fix any Bear toys, lol Had the fire going and it was toasty when it was 40 something outside.

 

Cleaned the guineas' coop today and more wheelbarrow loads of Moo's stall and Rebekah's too. Piled it into the garden and around the duck pond berm area. Did not get anything planted though I wanted to, and need to soon with the giant pumpkins and other super max veggies. The apple tree has some nice big apples but not many of them, my fear from the cold has come true it appears. But at least they appear to very large this year, think the same is true for the pear tree as well.

 

Worked with the new chainsaw today as well, and cut a couple of wheelbarrow loads from the fallen oak tree on the north fence uphill of the barn. Had some tech problems, but just learning with this new equipment, hope it all works out. Not much else today, just the usual I guess....seems like I have a lot to say then when I get typing I go blank...was going to type earlier but Elisha was on with ABCMouse again, doing school level work.

 

 Took some pictures today of Rebekah and Moo out by Eagle's doghouse, and tried to zoom in on Rebekah but Moo keep getting in the way, turns out she is a glamour girl lol

 

 

Well go night dear ones...be blessed

Shekhinah, Michael and all the kids and critters...

 

Day 109 and 110 of 365 days in the life of our small family farm

 Another storm couple of days for us here on the farm and as current the gardens are taking much more work than I would have ever thought.  Because of all the rain we are going to be eating a lot of greens and strawberries.  In fact I just found out today he a friend who has a farm has invited people to come out and pick and keep strawberries, gosh I wish I could go tomorrow, but I need to take Rachael to the dentist before her state share of cost stuff runs out at the end of next month and the cruel reality of young adult-hood sets in.  I just found out that half the cow is ready to be picked up and I am taking Mrs. R to pick it up ion Friday, maybe after that I can go and visit Ida and pick some berries.  I could always use more berries...emmm yummy pies and jams of all kinds...it is a dreamy thought ewww and the big mess this is all gonna make in the kitchen, lol.  

 

So I have to replant sections of the garden over the next few days, killed the first round of corn and radishes and beets are going to see, once they are done, into the wok they goo and I will plant green beans and more squash.  We are so close to having the new section up and I am ready to get the rest of the plants in the ground and be done with at least that part for a while, but it all depends on the storms.  My peas are all over the place, they were knocked about pretty bad from the winds, hail and heavy rains,I may have to pull them and use for animal fodder, we will have to wait and see.

We have been rotating grazing land for the animals and part of our afternoon time is spent grazing sheep, goats, horses and moo, who for a few hours a day has the run of the farm and sometimes further.  Today once again she thought she would knock on the door and get us to come out and pet her, honestly she is a sweet goofy cow...I think she thinks she is a dog...lol  I was worried about her hoofs being a bit longer than I like but since she has been on the road more she is wearing them down nicely.  She has of course still not had the cafe yet and I must admit I am concerned.  I found out after may hours of research that there are cow pregnancy tests, for about five bucks each or so, they make one where you test the blood, one for the urine and one for testing the milk and each one will tell you in a very short time, if the cow is pregnant or not.  Now here is the interesting part, no one here in Arkansas Carry's them, even thought they are like 99.9% accurate.  they would rather do what is called slieving the cow, they put on a glove go up the cows rear end and palpitate the womb.  I think they are all cruel and rather a few cards short of a deck.  Why in the world would you want to risk the life and healthy of a cow to do this, when you can run a safe non-evasive test.  Now if the test came up with a problem, well than maybe, but only as a last resort.  I plan to keep many of these tests here at the house and give them to other people as animals have the right to kindness and should not be treated cruelly.

As to other things we are using our sweet potatoes to bake bread and it was nice, I like the black walnuts, but intent to work on the recipe a bit more before posting.  

We are getting some more geese and a few more Muscovy ducks added to the gene pool some time soon , the nice lady came down and talked to me about it today, while we were swapping eggs, I still owe her eggs, guineas just to let you know hate thunder and quit laying.  Out of 50 plus birds no eggs today, the geese are equally not as happy and have also not graced us with eggs.  I hope they both start laying again very soon.

Corn is going up in price so high so fast it is crazy so I am going to see about getting a few bags of whole corn put up for the winter for family use and I am unsure what to do about the animals needing it.  Michael says that some of the birds do not like the soy and layer mash, I say they better learn to like worms, yup, I am setting up more worm beds and I guess I can dry the worms for the birds for winter use.  I still plan to scale down the number of birds we have as well.

 

Other things I am up to...trying to get the bags done for a batch of soap, making mustard seed pendants and thawing all the freezers and fridges, in prep for summer and new cow meat...

We have made no further progress on the roof as we can not seem to get it dry enough, long enough, but it will get done before winter comes.  

anyway I am adding some photos to share with you all and I hope you enjoy them and than off to bed for me.

 

 

 

News From The Doghouse and Gotta Keep A Running...

 

Well, Tuesday was a blast, had the air conditioner on from the heat and humidity, (miss the weatherman in New York saying hum-ditity) AND had a fire going in the basement to take out the chill and dampness

 

Got the chores done and worked over in the studio house and got some cleaning and organizing done, then had an area to work in and got the wiring done for the welder. Had lots of problems, but managed it all quite well I guess, still have to have the test run though. Also, put some scrap junk together and made a locking latch for the goat gate and successfully held in the 2 primier escape artists, so far that is. The little critter crew all escaped from the pen somewhere, even after my mending and patching the fences that Jim Bob, Joe Bob, and Hammerhead put up some time last century...oh well, I put those 5 kid goats back into the makeshift goose/geese enclosure that is supposed to be the porch for the studio, guess I just liberated the momma goat from all of them and took the other milk goat, Miracle, from the barn away from her cellmate Rebekah. Rebekah has just been getting tied up outside mowing different areas and seems quite content with this new job and status, does not jerk the lead line or anything, coming or going, anymore.

 

Today (Wednesday) started out with a very loud suction noise and a door slamming shut at @ 2AM...got up and checked out lightning outside, and turned the weather channel on to find out we were under a tornado watch until 4 AM...Elisha climbed into the bed with us at 1 AM, before this storm...the night before when it was a really bad thunderous storm, he slept through it all and when it was over and just when I finally fell asleep he climbed in, waking me up...what can I say, he's only 4...so I try to enjoy it while he still feels the need for security, or just go bonkers, if I wasn't already.

 

So got woke up today, to garlic breath Bears, tickling my feet, and I sat in the easy chair with coffee, just exhausted, taking my time getting started. Took the Bears out on the walk with Lady and we collected mushrooms, all sorts of types, sizes, shapes, and colors. I had only seen a couple of them the evening before, I planned this expedition. Didn't think of taking the camera until after the fact and seeing this really nice orangish red coral looking mushroom. Most of the mushrooms today were not edibles, but we all had fun on the adventure and got school work done doing the whole thing I guess. Got all the other chores done, with some nice egg collecting, but not as great when I find a peacock egg or the large amount of geese eggs, as something like that really helps the farm pay for feed, or get ahead on things, supposedly. One good day means the feed bill for the week in some cases, or something to splurge on, whether it is groceries, or yard sale-ing, or a beer lol

 

We had a nice dinner tonight, I think it was called Plotnik somewhere sometime, just tired now and getting hard to think or recollect clearly at the moment, of course I am sure it did not have gold corn kernels like ours did...the Boss said it needed garlic, my line to say usually, but I thought it was sweet tasting, the lambs quarters was succulent and tender, that's wild spinach to you un-ed-you-krated cityfolks ;-P

 

 

Be blessed dear ones and pray for the Prez of the USA as it tells us to in Psalms...

 

 

day 108 of 365 days of our life on our small family farm

News From The Doghouse and Lions, Ticks, & Bears...

 

Oh, boy, it's been a long long time since I last wrote and posted....sorry about that, partly due to exhaustion, partly due to Bears and their school work on ABCMouse, and in great parts due to storms...

 

Had planety of things to type, but kind of blank at the moment. Today was trash run to the curbside dump day, after a long drawn out storm last night, the news says 75% of Joplin MO is gone, and maybe 300 casualities...I wonder where the survivors are staying in all this rain now...when I was finishing chores at the barn it started raining and pelting hail the size of peas then marbles, they were solid ice centers then clear the outer half, of course I did not have the digital camera...

 

Had to go get the horses this morning as well, the storm from last night knocked over some big trees and branches, some old ones from the previous years ice storm, some new as there was leaf on the branches...also had got the horses Saturday as they escaped then after a storm as well, in that case I thought they jumped over the fence...had the gates and barn open for them last night but they stayed out in it, they come in when it is hot and too sunny I guess...then to top it all off, Moo decided to go visit our neighbors as well, guess she wanted to go visit and see how they did from the storm...

 

The Bears have been doing good, we had some more turtles and what not, planted some red raspberry bushes, transplanted some sunflowers from when we moved the old pool to a shady pasture spot for a fish pond, lost the 3 small mouth bass they Isaiah had got fishing awhile back, in that move...

 

Cicadas are coming out, this batch is a 13 year variety, and is it ever noooooiiisssssyyyy!!!! They have red eyes and seem smaller than the usual every year types. Got some pics of them.

 

Did some work on some horses on Mothers Day and the horses were mothers as well...what a fight and struggle, but got the shoes on and it made a nice down payment contribution on a beef calf we bought, and got it to the butcher already and it was a chore and adventure as well. Also did some horses after Mothers Day, the next day, and had an adventure getting there as well as the road was washed out at the last half mile to get there, so we back tracked and stopped at the nearest place, which was for sale, and is quite nice, and turns out these people had looked at our place back when it was for sale, before we found it and bought it, talk about feeling like WOW!, it was strange telling about our experiences to them at a quite different level than the usual normal, I don't know if I can explain it any better.

 

There's more stories and other events, but my fingers are tired of walking on the keyboard...hope to type some more soon, hopefully tomorrow. Oh, by the way, I got lots of pictures downloaded on Kodak share file, now just have to figure out how to get them transferred and what not. Got cool pictures of wild flowers, Bears and doing things, and other bizarre events revolving around us constantly, like black helicopters flying over the farm, the windmill we started to build, the aliens from Cygnus X-9 landing...LOL

Day 100-107 of our life on our small family farm in the USA

Good morning friends, family and well wishers, it has been a full week since I have found time to post and I am sorry about that, so many things have happened and I would love to share them all with you.  So lets see a place to start.   so it has gone back into a cycle of rain, which is followed by more flooding and than high winds a few days of all most sun and than it starts again, the good news is it is becoming a regular cycle and at least it gives me a way to plan a bit better.  The temp today is 70 degrees f with an over all high of 84 so we are going back to the couple of days of warm.  With the eruption of many volcano's around the globe and the nuclear power plants in Japan still dumping radiation, I fear for a very long cold winter.  We are putting up food now and feel everyone should do so.  I remember reading about Napoleon and his attempt at concurring Russia; in that year there was also a serious of events of volcanic activity as well as a weird El nino cycle of current, making the summers unbearable and the winters unforgiving.  In some places in the world this will undoughtable be the case, here where I live the winter will most likely turn out to be the worst on record history.  I expect blizzard conditions for sure and plan to lay up enough food for us and the livestock for many weeks.  Here we generally have very mild winters, a few inches of snow rarely a foot, there is no snow moving equipment to speak off so, any more than the normal amounts sends panic in the air. The people here do not know how to drive on snow either...lol, anyway it means making blue 100 percent operational before fall, which may also be early this year.  Every girl should own a Jeep Wagoneer.

What I learned from some one else failing this week is that if I sell animals in the amount of $500.00 or more to one person or company, I must get a specail permit and let them go over my farm and inspect it, so this is not gonning to happen as the USDA fined one family here in the states $900,000.  American dollars for 1st not having this permit that no one told them about and than for not having the cages that they(USDA) thought they should.  There area for raising the animals was clean and the animals were all healthy.  If they do not pay the $900,000. they will be fined up to 4 million dollars, now here is the really sad part, they only made about 400 bucks in reality and it was their kids money for doing fun things with their parents.  It would seem the the USDA is having so many issues with small farms no matter what the sort that they have now started using snitches to tell them what small farms are doing...nothing like making hard working good people into crimanals, which of course is what happened here.  Michael and I saw this sort of thing coming a few years ago and feel that if it continues we will beforced to bevome only a supstance farm and no longer sell to anyone, as it is because of how quickly the laws in MO have changed I am no longer comfortable doing the animal swaps there as in the back of mind mind I am always on watch for what could happen. It is just not worth the few meger dollars it might make us.

Repairs on the roof are going slow do to the weather and we are still pushing foward, living below tarped roofs.  It is dry but I wish we could get it fixed.  The fences are still going up and coming down, had the horses get out yesterday, they leapt the fence, which would be ever so lolvey if I were chasing foxes, which I hear is no longer legal in the the UK, sorry to hear that, it was a charming sport and highly enjoyable, but none of that here in the states either.  Anyway, goats pasture is short over 50 feet of fence...ughhh, so I will have to save up for that (rolling my eyes). Another thing to save for, but at least the fence that has been taken down is fine for the gardens I think and we will start using it as earily as today.  I will have to put old chicken wire over the top of it, but it should give us some protection from the grazing herds and athe birds that are running loose on purpose. 

I started packing and moving nonesential items to the new kitchen area and feel good about seeing it moving from this building to that. Still waiting on the roof, which is of couse the hold up on putting in the floor and setting cabinets and such, but all in due time.

I have become over frustrated with the fact I can not find a counter to put the manual grain ginder on, tryed to rig it up , so to speak and it was a huge failure and I have a bruse on my hand to prove it, so I have 50 plus pounds or so of red winter wheat sitting and waiting for me to do some thing with it.  I looked online thinking  maybe I just need to buy an electric one, but oh  my the prices.  When I do get a new one, it will be the stone kind, but currently they are out of my range, selling for between $200.00 and $500.00, hmmm that is almost the price of a used car.  Maybe I should run an add, will trade 1973, running Jeep Wagoneer for working Stone grinder and roofing supplies...lol  Who knows it could work.  Micahel says he will try to rig up my old grinder in the mean time, so I could be making flour as early as today...~smile~

On brighter notes made more tofu, looks nothing like the sort bought, which I find weird, so now I am wondering what the store bought has added to it or took away from it, that makes it such a pretty white...lol  It taste fine, be requires draining off extra water before using.

The soy milk came out very nice and might need a straining or two more than I did, but it was all good and the kids seemed to enjoy it very nuch.  I could see making chocolate, strawberry and a few other flavored syurups to add to the milk to make it extra special and never having a drop left over in the house...lol

The garden is coming along nicely and with the addtion of the some more plants should provide us enough vegtables to weather any storm...I may plant some  more tomotoes though.  Still picking about 2 cups of strawberries a day. 
I plan to pickle and brine some more of the curly dock, which by the way makes a great pie.  Today I picked spinich from the garden as well as peas and strawberries, got lots to still do....but did plant the dill for the butterflys...

Ok grazed the cow and the sheep and the horses, trying to save and get them fat on natural grass.  I have enough lambs for the orders placed, if they do not fall threw, we should still have at least one to eat.  Still watching one goat real close as she should have had that baby by now.  Still no baby from our cow, I swear I will never dry her out that way again, what a waste...Gettting around a gallon and a half of goats milk a day and it barly cuts it.  We do have our canned milk from last year and plan to start using it, still going to buy another milk cow, but not till the fences are up and in working order.
Life on the farm is very and we do alot in between the storms and such, one headed here now, so I better get out and get the dock picked...
By the way bever did reach 80...lol  back to turning off the air, putting wood on the fire.

Be Blessed Dear ones and now that if the world ends you are getting no real warning...

Shekhinah, Michael and all the kids and critters on Mahanaim Farm

Day 99 of 365 days of our life on our small family farm in the USA

Welcome to another day on our farm, today I just could not get over how blessed we are, as I watched small kittens snuggled up against their mom, planted , red, orange, white, yellow and red carrots, and harvested about 4 more cups of strawberries.  Worked on soap bags and other things, setting new fence and getting ready to move the fish pond to the front pasture and put up the pool, it might get warm a few days this summer.  We have started drying curly dock and lambs ear for the winter.  We will bee drying mint as well, some to keep and some to sell with handcrafted reusable muslin teas bags, another thing I was working on today.  Yesterday, Rachael butchered 4 chickens which after being Koshered, were cooked today.  The best way to cook them is with alot of seasoning in a oven bag for about 3 hours at 350 degrees, the meat becomes super tender and very tasty.  We also had some fresh Florida corn, a real treat. (Corn in the past has not done well here on the farm, but we are not giving up).  Checked on the bees and I have two combs full, I guess I am going to pull them and than put them back, so they can make more. Sheep are recovering from being sheared.  We are milking the goats still and hope the cow will bless us with a calf in the near future. 


Last year we caught a show out of the UK called Rebecca's garden.  The show was about a lovely women named Rebbecca who had once been a wildlife photographer, but now had returned to her family farm.  Upon being back on the farm she realized that in order for her farm to continue she would have to find a better, more earth friendly way of doing things.  When I first watched the show, I thought, wow  I can so understand what she was saying and from spending my older teenage years in the heart of Farm country in Indiana, I could really grasp a much better understanding of the whole thing and the endless damage people have done and continue to do to this planet.  I felt as through I was truly sharing in her hopes and fears as she learned that the constant tilling of soil was killing every living thing and one of the most powerful reasons for no longer doing it.  After only 20 years of tilling a farm field , there is no life in the soil, no worms, no bugs, nothing and why, in hope of producing more food.  Sadly most of the food grown on most farms looks pretty but is lacking key nutrients and by growing more food we have only become more wasteful.  Anyway back to the point; one farm she went to was so amazing, it looked sort of overgrown and such.  It was anything but, the couple had learned to grow with the weeds and with the trees and such.  They grew more food on a smaller space and will no poison, no tilling.  The gave up fighting nature and worked with her.  We started doing this on our farm last year,I heisted as I had always tried to plant in neat little areas of weed free ground, but this year the weeds are our friends, most of them we eat...lol  The rest protect and nurture the soil.  The soil holds more moisture and nutrients and the plants are doing unbelievable things. Out of the tiny 7 by 2/12 foot area, I am getting nearly 4 cups of strawberry's every other day, no pesticides, no straw.  There are a few bugs and I lose at least three berries a day, but the trade off is worth it.  Each time I harvest I am more amazed than the last.  Our peas and other plants are being wild creatures, making their way to the groupings of beets, and radishes.  Potatoes poking up next to them...further down Jerusalem artichokes have pushed their way up threw the soil to great the some times sun.  The asparagus growing with in zuckines and tomatoes, cucumbers next to  to them and the onions being weedy on one side and protecting tomatoes from pests on the other side..dandelions and portage(plantain), squishing in along with animals grade weeds.  It is truly a site to see and the food we are growing is worth the change.  We plan to plant corn with pumpkins, and other crawling squash to grow on the beams that last year held our sun cloth and beans close to the corn, thank you grand parents for the lessons of conservation that we are returning to.

We are counting down the days till we pick up our meat and are looking forward to filling the freezer, now I have to defrost it this week.  That will be a joyful job, I get out the hammer and blow dryer, no frost free junk here, just good old American craftsmanship, made back when "made in America", meant it was top of the line.   The hide is safely in it's new home, in her freezer in hopes of being tanned soon, the cows feet at Mr.R's and the head after being de-brained is hanging out on a tree.  Nothing but the entrails was wasted and had I thought about it a bit more, I might have saved some of them.  I still feel all and all we did a good job.
Well my dear ones, I have eggs to wrap, emails, to answer and dreams that need dreaming...know that we love you and G-d loves you as well.  Be Blessed and try to feed just one person who is hunger and the world will be a better place...

Shekhinah, Michael and all the kids and critters on Mahanaim Farm.