Sebastapol Geese

The Sebastapol geese began nesting late last week. Today I found their nest in the barn with 3 beautiful eggs inside! I had an idea that one of my 'babies' a hen I call Shirley was on a nest somewhere since I noticed her missing when I came out the door and then Grant, the gander, ran up and nipped me from behind as I walked down to the barn. That's always a big clue there are eggs about as my ganders tend to be sweet and friendly at all times except during nesting season. These babies will be purebreds, therefore I will have to make a decision whether to let the flock raise any babies or to take and hand-raise them and return them later in the season when they're bigger, older, and better able to keep away from danger.

Rabbit Show Building Cave-in in Sweden

http://www.thelocal.se/25112/20100220/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-AgEhDdZgU

I can't even imagine how those breeders felt/are feeling about their beloved rabbits, or maybe I don't want to. So for all those rabbits who made it out alive, for all those still trapped, and for all the ones who were lost, my condolences to the breeders/owners/exhibitors that have suffered.

Maple Syrup

I'm not sure why this never occurred to me before. We have 2 rather large Maple trees on our property, the equipment for tapping is minimal and the season is right. This year, I want to try tapping our trees, collecting sap, and making Maple syrup! Wish me luck, as best I can tell it takes a LOT of sap to make a small amount of syrup. I may ask around and see if anyone will allow us to try tapping their trees as well.

Feeding a Large Family on a Non-existent Budget

Who out there isn't trying to save money these days?! I know there are other large families out there, trying to make ends meet, trying to keep their kids fed and clothed and a roof over everyone's head. A lot of them are even trying to do it without any kind of income. Our family currently is trying to survive on a single member's income. That means that foods have to be home-made as often as possible and plenty of it to keep growing kids happy and healthy.

Meat and fresh foods are the biggest concern. To that end a large family such as ours often looks to alternative sources for protein including beans, peanut butter, and home-grown meat sources. I shop bargains and am grateful to have a large deep freezer in which I can store meats long-term. This allows me to stock pile when times are better. I'm becoming more adept at stretching small amounts of meats farther so that just a little will feed the whole family.

We eat a lot of soups, stews, chili's, and pasta's. Meals that feed everyone and still have leftovers. My large 12 qt stock pot has seen more action recently than it had in months! We make bread regularly, a 5 lb bag of flour can be had for just $1.60 here. A jar of yeast lasts for literally weeks. I'll be adding more laying hens this spring, and plan on bringing in some meat chickens and perhaps some ducks and turkeys to provide a little variety. I will buy a couple/few bags of chick starter grain, but then the birds will be free-range, minimizing expenditure for growing them out.

I'll be doubling the planted produce for our garden this year. Last year's crops gave me an idea which vegetables to plant again, which did well in certain places or could do better if they were moved. I had problems growing beans last year and will be using small terrariums to protect them, hopefully long enough for them to gain some size.

Alternative Feeding Regimens

Our show string and animals are now separate from our 'family use' animals. For the show herd, nothing will change, but I feel that I can perhaps branch out a little more with the family use herd and try to find some alternative that will help make them more economically feasible. Remembering that the one herd may be able to support itself through sales of animals and the other will have to be supported by myself. Therefore one particular feeding regimen that appears to yield good results involves the feeding of loose hay and fresh foods with a grain supplement.

Naturally, much research will need to be done before any switch is made. It's also recommended to try switching from pellet feed to a grain/green diet be done in the spring, when there is a greater availability of fresh foods.

A Milestone

Korben reached his first genuine milestone today. He sat up unassisted. He did it a little differently however. All the girls sat up by shifting their leg under them from a crawling position, but not my little man! Oh no!! He'd begun pulling himself to his knees on laundry baskets and this morning on his crib and then later on his sister's toy boat (a sitting toy). This evening he pulled to his knees on the side of his bouncy seat and was able to shift his legs to the front to finally sit up on his bum. However, I don't think he could figure out how to get back down because he sat there for a very long time before he finally just began to cry. LOL

"I'm free, I'm free!" "Dang it!"

Cherokee came out to greet me this afternoon at feeding time. Apparently she's been pushing the door of her cage open and taking a stroll, or at least she had done yesterday and today. I fixed it well today though, a simple twist tie will hold her cage securely until I can make more permanent repairs. At least she was in the basement, where not much ill could befall her.