It's been awhile, I know, but I had to share some pictures of our place from a couple weeks ago. My DH went over to begin the task of bringing in power. One must have power in order to start building pole barns and such. He's retiring June 30 and hopes to spend quite a bit of time getting things read for our eventual move over to the homestead.
Alas, I wasn't able to go along, although that was the original plan. I had a school visit to plan for, some revisions to send in to my editor for my latest book, and in general too many mundane tasks here on the West side. *she sighs with longing*. My DH called every day and said things like, "I'm sitting up here in the loft watching the snow fall in the woods, drinking some tea." I was laboring over lesson plans. No fair!
But he did bring home some pictures, which I will share here. I wish I could have gone:
It's hard to believe it's April. But we are at 3,000 feet. Sometimes it's warm and sunny, but this week it dumped 8" overnight. The next day--blue skies!
A Flicker (woodpecker) friend looking for dinner.
This reminds me of Robert Frost's "Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening."
The snow melted quickly, and the wild turkeys were out in all their glory.
You can tell I'm scrounging when I dig into the Archives for source material. But the fact is that it's pretty boring around here lately--since jury duty is over. So I found these old pictures and thought I'd WARN you against giving into your children's pleas for pets larger than a goldfish. This is Kristel with her horse, Panda. Now Panda belonged to our friends at church, but when their daughter grew up, they gave her to us for Kristel (age 11). Panda was a ripe old age 23, and our friends figured this was the old girl's retirement plan. Since we were already into "livestock mode," having milked goats, raised sheep and chickens, raised calves for beef, as well as meat and angora rabbits, we figured how hard can it be to keep a horse?
It's not hard; just expensive. And you can't eat them. Between worming and the farrier, the hay and grain, she cost a bit more to keep then...say...chickens. But Kristel and her brother played with her a lot. She braided her tail, rode her in the huge field across the street (where, incidentally, she lives in her house in the development now), played "store" and had a ball.
But there were a few added costs to this new pet;
1) Christmas Eve--we come home at midnight to a horse shed full of water; Panda had knocked the faucet off the automatic waterer and it was flooding the shed. Turn off water. Fix another day.
2) Panda decided not to get off Kristel's foot one day, and here was the result: Surgery and stitches. Pain and payment. But worth it, right?
When we knew they were going to develop the field across the street into houses, we couldn't keep Panda any longer. One acre isn't enough room, and we had no trailer. So we WALKED her home--clear on the other side of town. Panda lived another 10 years!
Go with chickens next time. When they don't cooperate, you can eat them. Kristel and Chad proudly holding up our freshly killed "dinner." City cousin, Sherry, not so sure about the whole thing.
This is my best Show and Tell of the year so far. Book 3 of my Circle C Adventures series has been released a month early. Yippee! I'm very excited to share a preview (AKA Book Trailer) of Andrea Carter and the Family Secret with you. It's about one minute long. Then, please read on for ways you can help me get the word out about the book. In today's "book-glutted" market, it's hard for little authors like me to make a splash without tirelessly working to promote the books. The Circle C Adventures seem to be a hit with young and old alike, but the only way to get these books into the hands of readers is by readers
spreading the word.
I'm an official juror for a case for the U.S. district court for Western WA (in Seattle). Blogging is on the back burner for this week for sure! Up at 6am, drive 30 minutes, catch bus to the city, serve, RUN to catch bus in city back to the park and ride and drive home, arriving around 7pm. G'night!
Do you, like me, despise that tub margarine that seems to be about 80% water and lasts less than a week, since you have to spread so much of it on your bread to get any taste? Do you, like me, wonder what it's actually made of? What a waste of money and it's not very healthy.
However, butter is too hard to use if left in the fridge, and too soft (especially in the summer) if left out. Ta-Da! There is hope. I learned how to make butter that keeps in the fridge yet stays SOFT, just like tub margarine. The perfect homestead compromise between natural butter and healthy canola or olive oil.
You need:
1) A blender2) 2 cubes (1 cup) soft butter 3) 1 cup Canola or Olive oil 4) A 2-cup Tupperware or Ziplock plastic container with tight lid.
Blend the oil and soft butter together until smooth and creamy. Pour into the storage container, snap on the lid, and put in the refrigerator. It hardens up to the consistency of tub margarine! It lasts a lot longer than tub margarine because you don't need very much to taste it. And it cuts your butter costs in half.
Enjoy!
We have 14 acres on a mountain in North Central Washington state, where we plan to move and establish a homestead in the middle of nowhere. Right now we have a cabin and a shed. And a well, but no power.
It's hard to believe it's April. But we are at 3,000 feet. Sometimes it's warm and sunny, but this week it dumped 8" overnight. The next day--blue skies!
A Flicker (woodpecker) friend looking for dinner.
This reminds me of Robert Frost's "Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening."
The snow melted quickly, and the wild turkeys were out in all their glory. 
This is Kristel with her horse, Panda. Now Panda belonged to our friends at church, but when their daughter grew up, they gave her to us for Kristel (age 11). Panda was a ripe old age 23, and our friends figured this was the old girl's retirement plan. Since we were already into "livestock mode," having milked goats, raised sheep and chickens, raised calves for beef, as well as meat and angora rabbits, we figured how hard can it be to keep a horse?
Surgery and stitches. Pain and payment. But worth it, right? 
Kristel and Chad proudly holding up our freshly killed "dinner." City cousin, Sherry, not so sure about the whole thing.
2) 2 cubes (1 cup) soft butter
3) 1 cup Canola or Olive oil
4) A 2-cup Tupperware or Ziplock plastic container with tight lid.
