The Twelfth Day of Homesteading Christmas

The 12 Days of Homesteading Christmas

On the First day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

A blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Second day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Third day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Three snotty noses (one with hay,)

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Four roosters raging,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Six acres to sqare bale,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Seven does a-moaning,

Six acres to square bale,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Eighth day of Christmas,  my true love gave to meeeee,

Eight Bob's a-swimming,

Seven does a-moaning,

Six acres to sqare bale,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Ninth day of Christmas,  my true love gave to meeeee,

Nine falling fenceposts,

Eight Bob's a-swimming,

Seven does a-moaning,

Six acres to sqare bale,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Ten bales of hay,

Nine falling fenceposts,

Eight Bob's a-swimming,

Seven does a-moaning,

Six acres to square bale,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Eleventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Eleven loads of laundry,

Ten bales of hay,

Nine falling fenceposts,

Eight Bob's a-swimming,

Seven does a-moaning,

Six acres to square bale,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeee,

.......FORGET THIS!!!

I'm moving back to the city!!!!!

The Eleventh Day of Homesteading Christmas

The 12 Days of Homesteading Christmas

 

On the Eleventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Eleven loads of laundry,

Ten bales of hay,

Nine falling fenceposts,

Eight Bob's a-swimming,

Seven does a-moaning,

Six acres to square bale,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

Seeing Eye Chicken

The skunk struck again. 

We lost four of the six PaddyMolly chicks to some sort of predator a couple of nights ago, and then another one keeled over the next evening, presumably from injuries sustained in that skirmish.  She had appeared weak, but figured she would be okay.

That leaves us with uno.

Ellie May has been visiting the City Cousin through all of this, and is going to be none too impressed when she comes home, i fear.

Soooo...i have thrown the two misfits together, and it seems to be a match made in heaven.

The banty chick has become a guide for the hen.   The chick goes to the food bowl and pecks on the side until Earl walks over in the direction of the sound and steps on the chick.  At this point she knows she must be close and starts feeling around until she finds the food.  Same process goes for the waterer.

 For her part, Earl gives the chick piggy back rides, and, when Jewels comes sniffing around, protects the chick under her wing. 

 Note the blank glare.  So far Jewels is buying the act and staying clear.

Never a dull moment, huh?

The Tenth Day of Homesteading Christmas

The 12 Days of Homesteading Christmas

On the Tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Ten bales of hay,

Nine falling fenceposts,

Eight Bob's a-swimming,

Seven does a-moaning,

Six acres to square bale,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

The Ninth Day of Homesteading Christmas

The 12 Days of Homesteading Christmas

On the Ninth day of Christmas,  my true love gave to meeeee,

Nine falling fenceposts,

Eight Bob's a-swimming,

Seven does a-moaning,

Six acres to square bale,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

The Eighth Day of Homesteading Christmas

The 12 Days of Homesteading Christmas

On the Eighth day of Christmas,  my true love gave to meeeee,

Eight Bob's a-swimming,

Seven does a-moaning,

Six acres to sqaure bale,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

Time Lapse

Okay, so i have admitted to you that i have been accused of having a "blatant disregard for time."

And i am alright with that.

Most of the time i don't have any idea what day of the week it is, let alone what day of the month it is.

It was the week of Thanksgiving before i flipped the calendar...the one that is prominent in the kitchen...over to November.

One day is the same  as the next when you have a mess of animals.  There is no weekend.  There is no vacation.  There is no time off.  Barn chores must be done whether it is Sunday or Christmas.  Or both :o)

But this still doesn't explain the huge boo boo regarding 12th Night. 

In the wee hours of this morning, while i was still snoozy, i was plotting my day, thinking, "I'll post "8 Bob's a-swimming," and then there will be four more left."  And then i ponder the fact that yesterday was Christmas.  And that Epiphany is on the 6th of January.  Always.

Have you been laughing at me, or just scratching your heads wondering what i was thinking?

I have NO idea how i worked out the timing of the start and ending of my little diddy.  I have been looking at the calendar, and it doesn't even work out to finish on the 31st of December, so that wasn't where my head was. 

The only thing i can say is that i was typing and setting it all up in the middle of the night one night when i couldn't sleep.  Perhaps i should have read, instead.

So we will just stay with what we got...I just wanted you to know that i KNOW when the Wise Men showed up...i just can't keep track of time.

It would appear that i could use some younger brain cells.
Or a vacation.

The Seventh Day of Homesteading Christmas

The 12 Days of Homesteading Christmas

 

On the Seventh Day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Seven does a-moaning,

Six acres to square bale,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

Rejoice!! Rejoice!!

Merry Christmas!!!

Here's a little prezzy for ya--This recipe is from The Sweet Potato Queens' Big Ass Cookbook (and Financial Planner)  by Jill Conner Browne.

(I didn't get permission to reprint this recipe, but Jill, surely you know that recipes as good as these are bound to become public domain...and besides, i am plugging your book!!)

I highly recommend this cookbook, have never made anything out of it that wasn't fabulous.  I even make stuff from this cookbook to take to gatherings without testing them first--the recipes are THAT GOOD!!!  But it is not for the diet conscious.  Most all recipes involve either butter (and that is BUTTER, NOT margarine) or bacon.  And there are very strict rules about using dark (not light) brown sugar and real vanilla in running over measurements.  But hey, life is short...drive fast and eat cheese.

This is the most requested and fastest disappearing cookie in my repertoire.

Mimi's Butterfinger Cookies

Combine:

1 c sugar

1  1/3 c dark brown sugar

1 stick butter

4 eggs

3 t vanilla

Add:

2 1/2 c chunky peanut butter

Combine:

2 c flour

1 t baking soda

1/2 t salt

Add dries to wets

Chop up 20 oz of butterfingers and add.

Drop and bake on lightly greased sheet or parchment, or make a slice-and-bake roll and freeze (recipe makes a big batch, so i usually bake half and freeze half, dough freezes really well, and later on you can be a hero in 15 minutes or less.)

350/7-9 min


I wish for all of you the Peace that is of The Gift we are given, if we only choose to accept it.

Merry Christmas

The Sixth Day of Homesteading Christmas

The 12 Days of Homesteading Christmas

 

On the Sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Six acres to square bale,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

Merry Christmas, Every One

Earl Update:  Earl is doing well, and enjoying her advanced status of invalid house chicken, which has allowed her to remain indoors full time for the last week.  She has been out for a couple of forays into the kitchen and dining area (no carpet,) and it appears that her eyesight is repairing to a certain extent.  She still does not have great vision, but is now finding the food and water bowls on her own, and as of day before yesterday, was jumping up to roost on the top edge of the tub she has been living in for the last several days.  Last nite she was wandering around the dining area and tried to jump up on one of the chairs, so we put a towel on the back to allow her to get a grip, and she settled in for a good 15 minutes and watched as i prepared dinner.  Earl dropped about 4 bombs before i finally had enough (not to worry, she was plenty far enough away from the food prep area) and send her back to her tub, where she pleaded and cajoled for a bit before finally giving up and going to sleep.  She continues to improve, and we (i) remain hopeful that she will some day return to the yard.

We at Tales Up Homestead wish you all a wonderful holiday. 

Enjoy the time with your families. 

Make some memories. 

Eat too much. 

Blessed is the Season

That unites the

Whole World

In a conspiracy

Of Love.

Merry Christmas

The Fifth Day of Homesteading Christmas

The 12 Days of Homesteading Christmas

On the First day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

A blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Second day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Third day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Three snotty noses (one with hay,)

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Fiiiiiiivvvveee Beg-ging Doooooogs,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

Ducking Work

The pink pool finally bit the dust.

Unfortunately, it can't be replaced until spring.
Fortunately, we have had quite a bit of good rain the last couple of weeks, and the ponds around here are filling back up.

Unfortunately, the dry bed of the pond got used for various purposes (like target practice) over the course of the summer, and a lot of the junk did not get removed before the rain came.
Fortunately, the ducks don't care.

The Bobs weren't quite sure what to think.

They went this way......

...and that way....

...and finally headed for the water...

...got their feet wet...

...tested the water....

...nope.  Too cold. We're outta here!!!

And they headed back to the barn.

Better luck next time.

The Fourth Day of Homesteading Christmas

The 12 Days of Homesteading Christmas

On the First day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

A blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Second day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Third day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Three snotty noses (one with hay,)

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Four rowdy roosters,

Three snotty noses,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

The First Three Days of Homesteading Christmas

**note: read the posting below this, "Little Orphan Earlie," FIRST, or you are gonna think i have lost my marbles.

The 12 Days of Homesteading Christmas

On the First day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

A blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Second day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

On the Third day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeeee,

Three snotty noses (one with hay,)

Two sparing bucks,

And a blind chicken in the pan-try.

Little Orphan Earlie

Earl stands at the edge of the universe.
Watch out, that next step is a doosey.

Been an "E Ticket" ride around these parts lately.  Don't even know where to begin.

No, REALLY, i don't know where to begin.

Here are the pertinent facts so that you will understand the song we are about to sing.

First of all, Earl had a really bad day last Sunday.
Apparently, my nerves weren't the only ones she was standing on, and the pack of rowdy roosters sought to set matters straight. 
Ellie May is way more into the psychology of chickens than i am, so she can explain the why's of the behavior, but the net/net is that they tend to police themselves with a leather gloved iron fist, eliminating the weak and the threatening.

And, apparently, the annoying.  

The roosters were trying to eliminate Earl, and were basically trying to peck her eyes out.  Sorry, squeamish, but that is what was going on.

Jethro snatched her from the jaws of death, and we moved the PaddyMolly chicks on out into the hen house so Earl could take up residence in the laundry room/pantry, which is now doubling as the infirmary.

The wounds have healed, but Earl is pretty much blind.  We think she has some periphery vision, but are still trying to figure out where we are with this thing. 

What do you do with a BLIND CHICKEN, for crying out loud???!!!

It would be easy to figure out, if it weren't for the fact that everyone loves her (except the roos.)  (Just because she was annoying me doesn't mean i didn't think she was cool...)  We are all taking turns sticking her head in the food and water bowls, and she is getting carried around on a pillow, so is not lacking for attention.

But WHAT do you do with a blind chicken??!!!

SHEESH!!!!!!

So there is that.

Let's see...Ralph was down for a good week, really starting to worry me, so gave him a little shot 'o somfin, and he seems to be recovering.   Went on rounds with me this morning, so that is a good sign.

Moon and Sparta have been acting like a couple of idiots, or as my Aunt Lu used to say, I-Dots.  They are head butting each other like they are trying to connect railroad cars, and Lance does the happy feet bounce all around them while they are going at it.  Think i am gonna have to start calling them The Three Stooges.

The washing machine curled up and died the same week we actually started getting rain, so everything has been getting muddy, and then staying that way until i can trek into town to the laundromat.

The two legged kids have had the grunge, and gave it to Jed.  So far i have avoided it. 

And, because three snotty noses in the house just isn't good enough for me, Becky, Splendora and Cherry decided to do the same for me outside the house.

Actually, Becky and Splendora have snotty noses.

Cherry, being who she is, has to one-up them, by having a snotty nose with hay.

So, i am trying to get in the Spirit of the Season, but am thinking about how things seem to be circling the drain right now, and the beginning of this song just POPS into my wee small brain.

And it made me giggle.

If i had thought of this a couple of days earlier, we could have started in time to follow the "12 Days of Christmas," but since we missed that we are just gonna jump in and get caught up, so at least, if all goes well, we should end up right.

My friends, i present to you.....

The 12 Days of Homesteading Christmas

...to be sung each day to give you a smile, and to make you thankful you are where you are.

There Is Beauty Everywhere

There is a roadrunner that lives up the road.  Actually, i am pretty sure there are several of them, but they all look alike to me, so i cannot speak to how many there actually are.  In order to avoid overload, i am going to pretend that there is just one.  His name is Bob.

This morning, Roadrunner Bob ran in front of the car, got to the side of the road, and then stopped.  I backed up, and dug out the camera.  Oddly, Bob stood still for just long enough.  Then he continued running.  Took some shots of that, too, but Bob's camouflage was in fine working order, and all i got were pictures of brown sticks.

So i go on around the corner, and i see a row of steaming fencepost's.  Unfortunately, the steam didn't show up very well in the photo.  It is just gonna have to be whirled peas.  Use your imagination.  It was very cool.  Literally and figuratively.

Maybe you can see the whispies a little better in this shot.  Sort of.  Oh well.  Whirled Peas.  It really was beautiful.  Almost magical.  Wish you had been there.

And then, on the way home, a turtle was crossing the road.  Or maybe it was a tortoise.  I never know the difference.  His name is Bob, anyway. 

Missed the Bob shot.  He wasn't nearly the camera hog that Bob was earlier.

It was a nice morning.  There was loveliness everywhere i looked.

Earl The House Chicken

Some people put Santa's on their roofs this time of year.

Some folks have rooster weather vanes.

We have Earl.

She is not there as a decorative element.

She is stalking us, and has found this to be the best vantage point for said activity.

Earl is driving me crazy. 

Fortunately for her she is too small to be worth the effort, otherwise i might be tempted to throw her in a pot with some celery and carrots.

And i am not even going to go into what she is doing all over the back porch.

Know i have been remiss with the stories of late...sorry 'bout that.

That time of year, and we have been crazy bizzzzzzzy.

But everyone is well.

Just trying to keep all the wheels turning.

Hope yours are turning, too.

Extreme Shepherding

Okay, i know i sent this to a bunch of you, but the rest of the world needs to see it.

My hat is off to these guys, and their dogs!!!

http://www.wimp.com/sheeplight/

Be sure and have your sound on.

Soap Bubbles

I am a "glass half full" kinda person.
A "there is always a silver lining" thinker.
Generally don't get upset if "all's well that ends well."

Except when it comes to the Custome Home.

I have had a REAL hard time finding the love for this place.

I LOVE the land....and am most grateful for the roof over my head--don't get me wrong.

But not wild about the house.
In SOOOoooo many ways.

Now, the cool thing about the land is that it is one of the first four homesteads that established this county 150 years ago.  Lots of history in these parts, and i dig that.

But back in the '80's the original homestead was destroyed.  At the time, the owners were very, very old, and i suspect that the house was built as "cost effectively" as possible because the folks were not expected to live much longer.  Turns out they spent less than three years here before one passed and the other moved in with family, and the land, that had been in the same family all that time, was sold.

I could go on an on about the....um...difficulties with this house.  But i won't.  Because i am so very happy to have a home at all.  (There is a story there, about how it came to be my home, but i will save that for another day.  Lets just say i wasn't on board at the onset.)  And it does have a set of built in shelves in the pantry that were made specifically for canning jars.  I do like that.  Only works well for quarts, but still...

Probably the thing i hate most is the master bath.  If you care to call it that. 

I am a bath person. 
I am a bath TUB person.
In fact, i think it is fair to say that i am a lounging in a claw foot tub person.

Before Jed, i rented a house one time based solely on the bathtub. 
The house itself was okay enough, but the tub was a thing of beauty.
It was long and wide, with a perfect slope at the back, knobs that you could operate with your toes to adjust the water temp as needed, and a lovely, oh so lovely wide ledge on the side for my books and water glass or coffee cup, and all the smell-goods and girly stuff ya gotta have in the tub.
Oh, that was such a great tub. 

The Custome Home has a shower stall.
The cheapest, smallest, barely passes the minimum OSHA requirements acrylic shower stall.

There is a small ledge at about 4 feet high.  Just enough that you can easily knock off a bottle each of shampoo and conditioner.

Every time i drop the soap and bend over to pick it up, the door pops open.
I have quit shaving my legs because it is just plain impossible to do.  MAYBE when i was 20, but not now.

And it is acrylic.  I HATE acrylic.
And TINY.

This morning, however, i found the silver lining in such a small shower.

I started to slip.

And ya know how when something like that starts to happen, how ya have that split second where you can see it all before it happens?

I saw myself goin' down.

And then i stopped.

My feet only splayed about three inches before they were stopped by the sides of the shower.

Disaster was averted.

The silver lining was revealed to me.

My shower is too small to fall in.

Isn't that great?

Finally...An HONEST Politician!!!

This one is probably gonna get me in trouble.

But really, it was just too good to pass up.

Since this post is probably gonna have to be censored for the kiddywinks, I'm gonna bring one out i've been saving.

The first time i saw this billboard was the week that Sparta and Moon messed up all my

Happy Thoughts.

As i drove by i thought,

"No thanks, mine have enough."

Okay, that is enough of the off color jokes.

Hey!  At least i didn't tell a dirty one!!!

Now that i think about it, have you heard the one about......

Never mind.

Back to the Family Channel.

Can We Have A Word?

Psssssst.

Pssssst.  Earl. 

Over here.

Think you could snag some Twizzlers for us the next time you sneak into the house?

We'll make it worth your while.

Meet Banty and Clyde

This pair sticks together, and keep to themselves. 

They don't hesitate to run off Earl, and i can't even do that! 

Earl says "Hi," by the way.