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I was just introduced to this Christian Camp for all ages through my homeschool group! It is like the old time revival meetings, and it's free!!! Check it out, there are camps all over the west at different dates. I would absolutely go if I weren't already going to be volunteering at Wings Like Eagles for the exact week that the camp is going on in our area 
. Here's the link http://www.kathrynsweb.com/ranchmen/index.htm
Here is another exerpt from The Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It by John Seymour.
"The big question here is: cow or no cow? The pros and cons are many and various. In favor of having a cow is the fact that nothing keeps the health of a family, and a farm, at a high level better than a cow. If you and your children have ample good, fresh, unpasturized, unadulderated milk, butter, buttermilk, soft cheese, hard cheese, yogurt, sour milk, and whey, you will simply be a healthy family, and that is the end of it. A cow will give you the complete basis of good health. If your pigs and poultry get their share of the milk by-products, they also will be healthy and will thrive. If your garden gets plenty of cow manure, that too will be healthy and thrive. This cow will be the wellspring of all your health and well-being.
"On the other hand, the food that you buy in for this cow will cost you hundreds of dollars each year. Against this you can set whatever money you would pay for dairy products in that year for yourself and your family (and if you work that out, you will find it to be quite substantial), plus the increased value of the eggs, poulty meat, and pig meat that you will get (you can probably say that, in value, a quarter of you pig meat will be creditable to the cow), plus the ever-growing fertility of your land. But a serious counter-consideration is that you will have to take on the responsibility of milking the cow. Twice a day for at least 10 months of the year, rain or shine, you will have to milk the cow. It doesn't take very long to milk a cow (perhaps eight minutes), and it is very pleasant if you know how to do it and if she is a quiet nice cow, but you will have to do it. So the buying of a cow is a very important step, and you shouldn't do it unless you do not intend to go away very much, or you can make arrangements for somebody else to relieve you with milking. (Of course, even if you only have a hamster, somebody has to feed it.)"
Well, that settles it for me. If we didn't live in the city, I would have a cow!
Happy Trails!
First, I have to ask a naive question. Why are we having a grain shortage? Is it because of the decrease in bees and their pollinating? Is it because of the storms that have wiped out farms? I don't watch the news much, so I really don't know. Please tell me.
Secondly, I have to say that, from what I believe to be a Biblical standpoint, I don't really agree with stockpiling grain for ouselves, unless we do so under the intention to sharing it with those in need, when the time comes. Otherwise, it just takes the much needed grains off the market for others, and it hoards it for ourselves. Sounds a bit self thinking to me. Motives aside, it also doesn't help the problem at all. When I hear of everyone stocking up, it sounds so defensive. When asked what my plans are for preperation, I really had to think. I've been praying about it and just going about my business as usual, trying not to worry, because I know God will take care of us one way or another. His Word promises that His people will not go begging for bread. Then an idea came to me, which I believe was from God. Rather than hoarding grains, why not grow our own? I will share what I found in a book (an absolutely incredible book) by John Seymour called The Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It. About wheat he says this:
"Many self-supporters feel that grain growing is not for them: it requires expensive machinery, is difficult, and cannot be done effectively on a small scale. This is just not so. Anyone can grow grain, on no matter how small a scale... Harvesting can be done quite simply with the sickle or even an ordinary carving knife. Threshing can be done over the back of a chair, and winnowing outdoors in the wind. Griding can be done with a coffee gringer or a small hand mill.... When the Roman armies wanted to conquer Britain, they waited until harvest time, so that their soldiers could spread out over the country, reap the native wheat, take it back to camp, and make bread out if it. If the Roman legions could do it with such apparent nonchalance, there is no reason why we cannot do it, too."
"Hard what grows only in fairly hot and dry climates....In temperate climates, soft wheat grows more readily."
"In temperate climates, wheat - and it will be one of the varieties called winter wheat - is aften sown in the fall. Winter wheat grows quite fast in the fall, in the summer warmed soil, then lies dormant through the winter, to shoot up quickly in the spring and make and early crop."
"I prefer to put winter wheat in very early; even early in September, because it gets off to a quick start, beats the crows more effectively... and makes plenty of growth before the frost sets in.... You can sow winter wheat in October and sometimes even in November."
If we each tried growing our own winter wheat, so that it would not interfere with our regular gardening or take up any additional space (space that many of us don't have), not only would we not be depleating grains from the commercial market, be we would actually be helping out with the shortage! (not to mention that we could all have our grain organic.) If we do not try in some way to help the shortage we will end up in a situation like this: imagine WW II without any victory gardens.
So I propose that we each attempt, for that is all we can do, to grow our own winter wheat "victory gardens." Let us not be greedy and self thinking. Let us lighten the load on the market, and still have the wheat we need. I think the picture in our minds of endless wheat fields is a little overwhelming, but remember that those giant fields are supplyiing wheat for hundreds of thousands of people. Even as little as a few hundred square feet of wheat can give enough flour for a small family, if used sparingly. From what I understand, you get about a pound of wheat for every ten square feet planted. Every bit helps.
I challenge each of you to do your part, and try growing wheat this winter!
Happy Trails!
Inspired by a recent post by Mennobrarian, I thought I'd share a few of my favorite memories of my wedding day! I would rather have waited to post this on our anniversary, but that's not for quite a few more months yet, and I surely would forget!
Our wedding was in early December, but the church decided to decorate for Christmas anyways! So hubby's family had completely undecorate the whole church before the wedding (a morning wedding), decorate it for the wedding, undecorate the wedding, and redecorate for a Christmas party at the church early that evening!!! They pulled it off beautifully, and I never would have known had they not mentioned it!
My grandpa came all the way from California despite poor health and the fact that my grandma couldn't come either! He had also sworn he would never again come to Colorado after he had visited once during a terrible storm and slipped and broke his shoulder. It was such an honor to me that he came anyways!
I, unlike most brides, was completely ready and actually bored about an hour before I had to walk down the isle! I hadn't eaten breakfast and was starving!!! So my mom put my wedding dress bag over me and my dress like a giant overcoat and my aunt ran to a fast food place and picked up a burger for me. There I sat in the bride's ready room, pigging out in my wedding dress!
I did get nervous when it was getting close to time and hubby still hadn't arrived! He later tells the story this way: he originally left for the wedding on time, but forgot the bouquet! He and his best friend rushed back home and got the bouquet. He then said that his friend was speeding down the highway to get him to the church on time, and he told his friend that he would rather make it there late than not at all (a suggestion to slow down!)
Anyhow, it all went off without any hitches, other than our own, of course!
Happy Trails!
First of all, let me say that I have never made my own vinegar. But I found these directions for it in a book by Sue Robishaw called Homesteading Adventures A Guide for Doers and Dreamers.
Take your apple cores and peels from whatever apple product you may be making (applesauce, apple jelly, dried apples, or what have you) and put them into a good clean plastic bucket. If you have any other fruit remains such as the pulp from wine making, jelly making, or what-not, put them into the bucket as well. Cover the fruit "generously" with warm water and drape a cloth over the top. Vinegar yeast is naturally occuring in the air, so just set your vinegar bucket in a warmish spot and wait two to six weeks. It will be pretty obvious when it's vinegar. After it has turned to vinegar a "pinkish soft slime will form over the surface. This is the mother. You can usually gently lift/skim this off (it holds together) into a jar and save it in a cool, dark place for future use." You need to store the vinegar in a container with a plastic lid because it is an acid and will corrode metal. This is true of the mother also. And store both in a cool, dark place.
She pretty much stops there, but it is my understanding that your mother is basically your yeast for your next batch of vinegar. So you would start the process over again and add the mother to the top of the water. It would just help ensure that the vinegar yeasts are there.
Sue says that vinegar that is just from apples can vary greatly in strength. She uses the best (strongest) for pickles and salads and the worst (weakest) for cleaning.
Happy Trails!
I had mentioned a while back to some gals I was talking to that I make homemade soap. And the question arose, as it often does when I describe our ways of living, "Why?" My answer was, of course, that we are trying to live as self-sufficiently as we can. Later that evening, as I was showering with a bar of soap from my favorite soap recipe, it occured to me that my making soap has nothing at all to do with trying to live self-sufficiently, and was, in fact, the opposite! You see, I do not raise pigs and so I do not produce my own lard; I do not have an olive tree from which I can press my own oil; I do not produce any of my own fats or oils, in fact; and I have never even attempted to draw my own lye from wood ash. So I go from store to store hunting down all the proper ingredients (and use gas to get from place to place). I stood there in the shower, soap in hand, thinking there is nothing at all resebling self-sufficiency in this bar of soap! Sure, it is a good quality soap, but it is more hassle to get and more expensive as well, since I never spend more than a dollar a bar for my commercially produced, not-so-natural soap. I then had to really think about what other areas in my "self-sufficiency" am I not really being that self-sufficient! And so, as I'm spring cleaning my home and yard, I find myself in a spring cleaning of the ways I try to live self-sufficiently. It's time to weed out those things that are not bringing more benefit than their worth, or that are more taxing on the pocket book when I could be using the same amount of money in a way that lends itself to true self-sufficiency. Now, if I could turn my soap into a cash crop, it just might find it's way back into self-sufficiency 
Happy Trails!
As we are nearing the end of shcool I am ever so eager for the freedoms that summer permits. I want to use the newly gained time each day to really spend time developing character and life skill in my children, not that I don't try during school, but summer provides new outlets for developement. I plan on making a summer chore chart to help develope a sense of responsibility. I am going to find some fantastic books that exeplify godly character that my children and I can read together and discuss. And I plan on doing a lot of outdoor activities, such as trips down to the creek, going hiking, riding our bikes, berry picking, trail rides on the horses, you know, just spending time together!
Happy Trails!
I wanted to try a new kind of jam, and I found a recipe for Pear Jam. It has a really high sugar to fruit ratio, but I decided to try it out anyways. It turned out beautifully! Here's the recipe (from the Ball Blue Book of preserving)
Peach or Pear Jam
1 quart finely chopped, pitted/cored, peeled peaches or pears
7 1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. lemon juice
1 pouch liquid pectin
Combine fruit, sugar and lemon juice in a large saucepot. Bring slowly to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Stir in liquid pectin. Return to a rolling boil. Boil hard 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim foam if necessary. Ladle hot jam into hot hars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 10 minutes in a boiling-water canner.
Recipe Variation: Add 1 teaspoon whole cloves, 1/2 teaspoon whole allspice and 1 cinnamon stick tied in a spice bag to jam during cooking. Remove spice bag before filling jars.
I don't use a boiling-water canner. I keep my jars hot in the oven and the lids hot in a not quite simmering pot of water on the stove. I've never had a problem with them not sealing properly. I didn't use the recipe variation either.
I had also made some chokecherry jelly abd applesauce the other day. I tag everthing because, even things seem obvious, after time I tend to forget exactly what each thing is.
Well, we've had another week of sickness. Surely this will be the last! This week it was a terrible and painful stomach bug with ALL the symptoms. But the lettuce is coming through the dirt. the sugar snap peas are a little over an inch tall, and the fruit trees are starting to bloom. We had a solid freeze last night, so I'm not so sure any of the trees around here will actually fruit this year, which will be a bummer because they didn't fruit last year either due to a late freeze. But regardless of a cold night, we are expecting warm weather this week, and it's starting to look like spring, even if we haven't felt very springish 
Well, I think that's all the thinking my brain can handle for tonight.
Happy Trails!
Well, for most of us it's getting warm enough to hang clothes on the line. I've never had a real clothes line, but I've made due. And I encourage you all to do the same. It doesn't have to cost much at all to set one up. My first clothes line was a plastic coated cable with two hooks on the ends that we bought to tie our dog up when we take him camping. I just wrapped the ends around two trees and presto! a clothes line! Currently, I am using a 30 foot piece of parachut cord (my husband and his family own and run a military surplus store, so I get all sorts of incredibly useful stuff) tied to a post that holds up the bird house and a post on our fence. Remember that whatever you are using to tie your line to must be quite sturdy and the line pulled taught! Wet laundry is HEAVY! Look around your yard, garage, workshed or where ever and see if you don't already have everything you need for your own clothes line.
Happy Trails!
Ever get sunburned? I mean really sunburned? Have you ever tried Noxema face wash as a sunburn cream? It works wonders. My mother used to always rub a little bit into our sunburns as if it were lotion. It instantly sooths and actually reduces the burn and helps prevent peeling! Now, I've still peeled when I was burned so badly that it blistered, but for most burns Noxema takes care of it. Depending on the severity of the burn, I will rub it in as often as every couple of hours. After a few applications it does tend to leave a residue, so I take a cool, damp wash cloth and rub off any excess before reapplying. Use the washcloth gently, and only when absolutely needed so as not to irritate the already injured skin. Also, when I have fresh aloe (my plan recently died) I mix a little Noxema with some fresh aloe gel and use it just the same.
Happy Trails!
We just got a Cortland apple tree the other day, so I picked up a book from the library on pruning. About apple trees it says this: "Annually [late winter or very early spring] remove broken branches, crossing limbs, weak stems, and any branches that grow toward the tree's center or grow vertically or downward. Thin out enough new growth to allow light to filter into the canopy when the tree has leafed out. Cut back to a sturdy side branch any too-long branches." -Sunset Pruning Handbook
"For the cleanest cut, be sure the blade side of shears is closest to the portion of the stem that will remain on the plant.....The lowest point [should be] opposite the bud and approximately even with it; the cut slants upward in the direction the bud is pointing" -Sunset Pruning Handbook
Illustrations taken from http://www.arborday.org/trees/NineNum3.cfm
Have any of you ever watched the older BBC show "Good Neighbors"? In the UK it's called "The Good Life" but they changed the name here in the US because we already had a show by that name.
"Good Neighbors" is a sitcom from the '70's (I think) about a couple who live in an afluent community, but decide to forgo their way of life and live as simply and self-sufficiently as possible right there in their posh neighborhood. Their closest neighbor, however, is all aobut keeping up appearances, and having Mr. and Mrs. Good for neighbors doesn't exactly help! Mr. and Mrs. Good garden, raise pigs, goats, and chickens, make their own wine (which is a hillarious thread throught the entire show duration). It is honestly one of the funniest shows I have ever seen. I'm not sure that the humor is actually the funniest, but striving for simplicity myself, the humor definitely hit home!
PBS broadcasted all four seasons a good while back, but they can still be purchaces online for close to $12 a season. I haven't bought them yet, and I'm not one for buying much in the way of movies at all, but I would love to be able to pick them up some day. Sooooo funny! And clean enough for the whole family, by the way.
This is the planting schedule I got from the from the folks at Rick's Garden Center in Colorado Springs, CO. They are incredibly knowledgable, and have just about anything any gardener could want or need. I know nothing about planting in other areas, but if anyone lives in this area or in a similar climate, this may be helpful.
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The below listed frost dates are for Colo Spgs, elevation 6,035'. You can adjust the dates of the first and last killing frost for your specific location by knowing your elevation. Count forward or backward 1 day for each 100 foot change in elevation above or below 6,035' to get the average frost dates.
Average last killing frost in CS - May 15
Average first killing frost - October 15
Average growing season -148 days
Vegetable Indoor start Transplant Outdoor start
Beans May 15
Beets April 15
Brocolli March 15 April 15 June 1
Brussel Sprouts March 1 May 1
Cabbage March 1 April 15
Carrots Late April
Cauiliflour March 1 April 15 Late July
Celery February 15 June 1
Chard April 15
Collards May 15
Corn May 15
Cucumbers April 15 May 23 May 23
Eggplant March 25 June 1
Kohlrabi April 1 May 15
Leeks February 15 May 1
Lettuce April 1
Onions March 1 May15
Onion sets April 1
Parsnips May 15
Peas April 1
Peppers March 1 June 1
Potatoes April 15 June 1
Seed potatoes April 1
Pumpkins May 15
Radishes April 15
Spinich April 15
Squash April 1 May 15 May 15
Tomatoes March 20 May 15
Turnips April 1
Watermelon April 15 May 23
I sometimes am about two weeks late according to this schedule, and I don't worry about it. Sometimes I'm later than two weeks, and then I don't get a very good crop. Happy Planting!
It rained today! Real rain, not just a heavy mist. Then the rain turned to hail, then back to heavy rain, then back to hail again. The hail was tiny, just about half the size of a pea, but there sure was a lot of it!
Here are some pics.
Ooops! I guess not. A frame pops up that says I don't have enough space. Does anyone know if that means I don't have enough space on my blog, or that the picture itself is too big?
HELP!!!!
Ok, every once in a while I get myself totally bummed out thinking there is no possible way that we will ever actually own a little sliver of land to homestead on. Right now, the average price for one acre is $30,000. And that is for a virtually unusable acre - on the side of the mountain where it would cost about $120,000 to get a well, septic, utilities and phone put it. Then you have to build the house! For something more usable, by usable I mean still on a hillside, but not too steep to build on, an acre costs closer to $130,000. Sometimes they have utilies nearby, but not usually. Either way, the elevation would be close to 11,000 feet, and it gets awefully hard to garden that high. On a $30,000/yr salary, how on earth are we every going to be able to afford even a single acre? I get so discouraged.
Does anyone have any ideas of how to help us?
This is the south most part of our garden. This was last fall. You can see of of the grass walkways between garden section. I grew giant marigolds around the borders. This picture makes the garden look extra small, and it isn't huge, but it's about 800 square feet total.
This is a little stone planter I made to raise the ground a little so it gets some sunlight. Nothing I plant grows well along the curb (I don't know why our whole property has a curb around it) so maybe this will help. I have some sugar snap pease and some strawberries in this planter and the matching one next to it (just out of the picture). I've been wanting something pretty and useful to grow up the chainlike fence that separates our yard from the warehouse that is next door to us.
These pictures are the south and north parts of our garden. You can kinda see the stone border I have up and the grass walkways between.