Life on the Farm Known as Critterhaven

Welcome to Critterhaven Farm's Blog

Raising Nigerian Dwarf Goats in Southern Middle Tennessee

Rednezvous

We are back. It was a beautiful site that sits about 4200 feet in the Cascade mountain range.  I made a laof of sourdough bread each day, and within an hour or so it was usually gone.  I never could get it to crisp up like I do here at home.. but it still tasted really good.  DH and I also made main dishes for the contest, he made his Chile Verde, and I made the chicken enchilada casserole, along with the bread.. I got second place with my casserole:>  and won a neat clay pot insert for my dutch oven.  My SIL won first place, with a black forest choc cake, it was really good.

We didnt have as large of a turn out as we had hoped for..80-90 shooters..  it was nice in the fact that both my brothers and their families were up there and we camped fairly close. 
The weather was horrible from Friday on, lots of cold wind and rain, mixed in with fog, ice pellets and snow.  COLD!!! very cold... I was so glad to get home and get a shower, after we unpacked the pickup and had to setup the wet tent and hang up the wet fly.

No more school,

Things are changing around here a bit.. School is out for summer.. YIPPEE! I will miss my little friends but look forward to some down time.  

I have only left the property once since school let out.. that was to go get a packet of  hubard squash seeds.  My dad likes them very much...and that was just to the little feed store down the road... I suppose DH will drag me off the property tonight. I am very much a homebody!

We are going to get two cots to go with our camping supplies... we decided the air mattresses although nice were not to our liking so much...

We have a rendezvous next weekend...I have been practicing my sourdough bread several times a week.. It getting really good.... I will make it for the dutch oven cooking contest next weekend...

The garden is doing well... we are done with the broccoli, I will start some later in the summer for a fall planting, we are enjoying peas and lettuce and an occasional sweet onion.   I am still planting some things...

The chickens are doing well,  we did lose a hen last week as we had a visitor (dog) show up during a thunderstorm(scared to death) we were keeping him hoping his folks would see our signs and call... he ended up going to the dog pound,  his family called several days later... I hope they got him back.. he was  a really nice guy...but I didnt want to chance losing another hen.... or some of the young pullets... I am thinking we should start getting more eggs  towards the end of July. 

I have decided to really start cooking from scratch...that means  homemade mayonnaise, salad dressing,  breads, Cheeses, and anything else we eat.....staying away from more processed types of foods

My daughter finished her classes yesterday, she is taking one class this summer... in the fall she will move to Klamath falls... this is going to be really strange...for both of us... I am both anticipating and dreading this  move.   I will miss her terribly... she is a good friend.. but it will be good for her to be on her own...

Well cant think of much more to write about... I am around  but mostly just the daily grind kind of stuff going on....

First harvest of the year...

I picked 13 oz or mesculin (sp) salad mix  and 4 lbs 4 oz of brocolli....

We sold  5 of the 21 chicks we raised... this was planned in the beginning... and I have  3 larges loaves of soap gelling on my table...will equall about 48 bars...  DH is on his way to the dump.   Its shaping up to be a  productive day..  We will eat some of the brocolli and I plan to freeze some of it as well as take a mess of it, and the lettuce over to my folks... We will be planting corn, beets, carrots, and some okra this weekend.. perhaps a few beans...  all in all its shaping up to be a busy and VERY HOT weekend.. supposed ot be in the mid to high 90's.... Immmmm wilting......already just thinking about it... 

I AM OVERWHELMED

Just a short note to say hello and to say that I will be off for sometime. There has been so much medical problems at our home that I am in tears and silent pain.

After trying to recover from the walking pnuemonia, my cat bit my right hand and punctured the tendons. I went to the emergency room two days later after my hand swollen up and turned bright red. I was just starting to feel better and hubby came home from work one morning complaining of pain in his chest. He was so bad that they had to have the medical helicopter pick him up at home. They flew him to Spokane and found that one of his stints had collpsed and they put a new one in. One week later now, today he had to be taken via ambulance, back to the hospital, for the same thing again. I got a call a minute ago, to stay home and drive up tomorrow when they do the procedure again.

Lord, I don't want to sound like a cry baby, but I don't know how much more of this I can take. I have no one for support, my own daughter doesn't even call to see how her Dad is doing, and we aren't even on the outs with her. I am so tired of being the strong one that I now just want to go to sleep, but I won't and can't. I feel like I am struggling just to live the day by day. Heck I just got the last two years of all his medical bills paid off and just got a $12,000.00 bill for the 20 minute helicopter ride. I feel like someone upstairs just doesn't want us to get ahead of the game just to live comfortably.

I will keep you all in my thoughts.

still working with the sourdough

I have been baking most weekends.. at least one loaf of bread  but usually 3 or more... I have made lots of waffles...and today I made biscuits.. they were pretty good but I think I overworked the dough a bit.. it was rather tough..

If your interested in getting a start here are two sites I have dealt with,

The first starter I made and really liked was obtained thru this site..  http://home.att.net/~carlsfriends/    this one is free.    This one has been my work horse....I like it very much..  very mild sour flavor

The second starter I started is called northwest  and I obtained it thru  Northwest sourdough   http://northwestsourdough.com/starter.html    these cost....  I like this  one to but have not used it quite as much yet... it has a good flavor...     I also ordered the french  starter and the austrailian one...  I have not started them yet....

It takes a few days well more like a week to get them going good.. but they are sure fun to play with....

This weekend I was quite upset to see the non stick coating coming off my waffle iron... so I threw it away and am now in the process of looking for a new one... I think I will opt for a cast iron one... I dont care for the non stick coatings...

Other news....

I found out a week or so ago that I will  probably have my job next year... I    say probably because in the letter I received it said that they  were withdrawing their layoff notice, but in the next paragraph it said that they anticipated more layoffs.. and they could affect me... so I will have to wait and see... there were 3 of us that got these notices,  that sad part of it is that 3 general ed aids  will lose their jobs instead... our district with the new contract had to redo their RIF  (reduction in force) order...  with the new contract  aids are now in different category's...  special ed and general ed...  anyway I should know more by the end of the month. 

The garden is growing well... the broccoli is coming on.. I think we will have a mess by weeks end... the onions peas and garlic are doing well to... we planted potatoes... and are waiting for it to dry out now a bit to plant more of our garden...

The chicks are doing well... they are growing and alot of fun to watch... anyone have any idea when  person could put them in with the big girls?....  they are about 2 months old now, also at what point do you start feeding them regular chicken feed...?  seems like last year  this was about the age I put the new ones in and then they were changed to the regular chicken feed...

Somewhat alive and pictures

Hello everyone,

Thank you so much to those that wished me well. I have had a rought time with this mess of being sick. I was taking the antibiotics but had to quit after only four days as it was tearing up my poor tummy. So far I have not asked for anything else and will just take it easy. I have been a chair potato, which isn't like me at all, but felt it would be best. I have been working on some quilt blocks though, since I have been only able to do sitting things. As you know, I do not throw out anything that has to do with material. I will use up or give to someone else when I get over loaded. Well I had this basket full of scraps that I was saving to do a crazy quilt table runner. I was browsing at this wonderful site called  Quiltville( it is my favorite website for scrappy quilts) and decided to try my hand at the SpiderWeb quilt. I am using some sandwich wrapper paper that I had for another project and am using that as my backing. Here is what one block looks like:

When you put a couple together, here is what you might see:

This quilt is going to be time consuming but that's o.k. with me. When I don't feel like anything else, I can always work on this one.

Speaking of sewing also, this weekend I brought in my treadle sewing machine and dear Hubby put the new belt on for me.

A dear good friend of mine gave me this when I went over to visit her across the state. Both her and I just love treadles and she found this one for me. I am now looking for someone that can turn this ugly duckling into a swan. I would love to have it to it's original finish. I'm not too crazy over the green. Boy let me tell you, you'd better have thighs in shape to work this thing or you will have cramps like no tomorrow. I am having a time getting my feet to work the pedal and got frustrated one day. Well let me tell you, hubby got on it to show me and got that baby humming. My mouth dropped to the floor. His mother used to have one when he was little and i guess it's like riding a bike, you never forget. I am tempting to turn the upper half around and let him do the foot part while I do the sewing! ha ha

As for today, I got outside long enough to put three post into the ground and concrete them in. I am behind on getting the chicken coop fencing in and everything else that goes with it. By the time I was done I was frozen cold. I do believe that we are in for some rain. I have one more post to put in than the fence wire can go up. I will have to make a door also but that won't be a big deal. Once done I will get wiring to the shed and get my chicks in. Yeah I can't wait.

Well hubby just came home and I should go start some supper. This week will be lots of leftovers but that's good for me.

Will talk to you later

Quick Update

Just a quick update. I am still sick.

Sunday I had hubby take me to the clinic in one town because I was outside trying to enjoy our nice sunshine and could hardly breath. I was trying to mow the yard and couldn't make even one pass. When we got to the clinic they did a quick assesment ( ten minutes) and I was out the door. I told them that I have been drinking tons of fluids but my output quit and I was concerned. He diagnosed me with broncitis and to drink more. Hubby was quite upset and took me to our hospital of choice, which he said he should have done to begin with. After all the bloodwork, xrays, and IV's, no it is not broncitis, it's walking pnemonia. No wonder I wasn't feeling good. I am now on antibiotics for two weeks and hope to get outside soon and enjoy this wonderful sunshine. I can't go outside with my skin exposed for the meds will make me burn easily. At least we have a Spring now.

Will talk to you later

sourdough bread

This loaf is  100% sourdough as leavening... my first try.... I am pretty pleased with it.... tastes good too:>  This was  cooked in a kitchen dutch oven...  we also had some really good waffles this morning for breakfast.

I think my camera is dying on me... it wouldnt flash and the focus was doing really weird things  lol 

Sourdough

My MIL ordered a bit of sourdough starter for me from this site   http://home.att.net/~carlsfriends/   They will send you a free start if you send them a self addressed stamped envelope.... I got mine last week some time and  so far we have had wonferful waffles made from it as well as a yummy loaf of bread... It is not a strong sour taste..  but it is good...   I  think tonight I will get some out to make waffles tomorrow.... I thave been enjoying working with these invsible critters....  

Right now I am all alone... and its so nice and quiet... well except for Jessie panting....   round 2 with the squirrels from yesterday....

This morning I got all my potting stuff out and planted... seeds to set out,    I have several different heirloom tomatoes,  amish paste, cherokee purples, Japanese black trifele,  and another with an odd name.... I also planted  cosmos, columbine, and carnations, as well as bell peppers, jalapeno, serrano and aneheim chiles....  the house will be nice and warm over the next few days so it should help them get a good start.... 

The chicken are enjoying armfuls of fresh vetch and grass... the chicks are at that   awkward juvenile stage... they are part feathers and part down  lol... homely....fits them nicely.    not much else going on around here....

Hate being sick and neat garden idea

Well I was hoping to dodge the bullet around here and got hit with this awful cold that is going around. Hubby brought it home last week from work and I stay away from him when he came down with it but I guess not good enough. I have been down on the couch for the last three days with the racking cough and fever. Now that it is in my chest I am thinking I will have to go buy some Musinex and get this cleared up before it goes to my lungs. I hate being sick because this is the time that I notice how much I let things go and how fast my house piles up.My kitchen table is the first to be hit and it goes from there. The only thing good about this is that when I am feeling up to par, I sit on the couch and crochet. I am now making another blanket like the last just a bit smaller. This will go in my donation box. Today I am going to attempt to do laundry ha ha I don't know if I will have the energy to go outside and hang it but will see. I am so looking forward to this weekend as we are going to actually have a heatwave of the mid 70's  WHO WHO!.

Maybe I will grab a blanket and pillow and go lay outside to soak up alot of sun to feel better. he he

I wanted to also give you all another great website for all your gardening needs. This is so neat for any one who wants to garden but is limited on space. Also for those that want to try something different. Here is the LINK and just think of all the other things that you can grow in it besides tomatoes.

Will talk to you later