The Thread

I was speaking to a young mom this morning and she told me of her and her husband's desire to move to the farm. It caused me to think back to when we made the decision to move our family there. I told her that it was the best time of my life. And our goals were accomplished in our children. There were obstacles and difficulties but the good times far outweighed the bad. And they still do. If you know why you do what you do it will get you through the tough times. Ponder it often and search the Word and other writings for answers. She said that so far when they have made an offer on a place it hasn't gone through. So, as we all do, she wonders if they are on the right track. I told her it sounds like it just isn't time yet. But, if you put it in the Lord's hands it will be just the right timing when it all comes together. And when you are having those doubts that come when you are doing anything worthwhile, you will know that the Lord has taken you there.
There is a thread that runs through our lives that connects everything. Sometimes it is hard to see. It looks more like the broken scattered pieces of a mosaic to us. We see the mistakes and wrong turns and forget that our lives are in the hands of a loving God. He is working everything for our good. And one day we begin to see the pieces come together to form a beautiful picture and realize that God saw it that way all along.
This is a journey that we are on. But, a wonderful journey it is. A woman called the other day taking a Gallup poll and wanted to know how I would rate that day on a scale of one to ten with ten being the best. I told her any day that we are alive has to be a ten.
When you start to think about all of those things that you wish you had done differently step back and see the whole picture. See the thread that runs through it. See the mosaic.

Processing Pastured Poultry

  I want to give you some tips that we use that will make processing your poultry easier. But first I want to give you a great quote that Boots gave me last night when I was wondering about all of the hurdles, obstacles, and opposition that we have encountered over the years since we made the decision to leave the city and move to the farm. I wondered out loud when it would end. And he said,
  "If you go against the flow it won't end until you conform or die."
  Then he gave me a long and remarkable allegory using our recent canoe trips as an example. I hope to record it all one day and share it with you. But for now I want to encourage you to keep on. Stay the course. You are not alone.
  We use a mechanical tub-style plucker and it makes all the difference in the world. We started without one and plucked by hand but when you are doing several birds it saves a lot of time and effort. You can put a couple of chickens in at a time or a single turkey and they come out clean as a whistle. Make sure that your water temperature is right and that you have added some detergent to the scalding water. O.k. here we go:
  Place the bird upside-down with its head put through a traffic cone (for chickens) or a five gallon bucket with a hole cut in the bottom (for turkeys) and slit the neck, cutting the side arteries. Make sure to have a bucket underneath to catch the blood. Let the bird "bleed" for several minutes.
  Meanwhile, you will have heated your water for scalding to 145 degrees. If cooler than that it will not loosen the feathers. Hotter than that and you will cook the bird. Add a little non-toxic detergent to the water. We use Basic-H. (The original.) This really does make a difference in loosening those feathers. Hold the bird upside down by the feet and dip in the hot water. Hold there for a minute or two and check to see if the feathers are loose. If not, dip in the water again. When it's ready put into your plucker or pluck by hand. Then proceed with removing the head and cleaning the inside. If you need help with that part let us know. We would be glad to help.
  Sticking your thermometer through a styrofoam cup or cork and letting it float in the scalding water is a big help in keeping the temperature right. Curved end needle-nosed pliers are great for removing stubborn pin feathers. A pair of hog ring pliers and the rings are very handy for sealing the bags. Make sure to cool the birds and innards (separately) in ice water until all of the heat is out of them and refrigerate for 24 hours before freezing so that the meat will be tender.
  As with anything, you will find your own way of doing things, but we hope these tips will help you with your own home-grown, healthy, delicious, raised-by-you poultry. 

Milk Cooling

If you are looking for a way to cool your fresh milk this night help. Cooling the milk down quickly gives it a better taste and it stays fresh longer.
After filtering the milk into jars we put it into rinse tubs with water in them and add ice. (The freezer above the fridge is a funny sight because it is filled with ice trays.) If you only have a jar or two you can do this in the sink. If you have a smaller jar, such as with goat's milk, you can do this in a bowl.

Farm Sale

We got word last night that the farm we have lived on for the last five years is being listed for sale.
Needless to say, there wasn't much sleeping going on around here.
We would very much appreciate your prayers.

After Work

                                                          After work there's play!

Bits and Pieces

Normally when I make our homemade bathroom cleaner I use white vinegar, water, a little natural cleaner such as the original Basic H, and add sweet orange essential oil. It smells great and citrus oils kill germs and stuff. My daughter-in-love gave me a great tip a while back. Put your orange peels in a jar and fill it with vinegar. Let it sit a few weeks and strain. Use it as you would the vinegar and now you don't have to add the oil. When I make the cleaner I just fill the spray bottle half way with the vinegar, the rest of the way with water, add a little natural liquid soap, and if you need extra germ-killing power add some grapefruit seed extract.
Unfortunately, you can only buy the original Basic H in five gallon buckets now. We use it for several things around the farm so that works o.k. for us. We have a book, Home Remedies II, that lists over 100 uses for Basic H. We don't use all of them but we do use some of the ideas. We know a lady that is able to order the cleaner for us.
The strawberries came on early this year and we have been harvesting lots of them. This is such a blessing! We have been eating them fresh right out of the strawberry patch (you can't walk by and smell that smell without picking some and eating them and, of course, you have to eat lots as you pick), having them for dessert with fresh whipped cream (out of this world!), and making lots of jam.
We've been harvesting sheep sorrel, as well as continuing to harvest plantain, comfrey, and red clover. Sheep sorrel is a plant that is easy to identify and has very tasty sour leaves. We have been picking the leaves of lambsquarter, also, which is mild tasting like raw spinach. It is good raw and we also like to make wilted greens with it by sauteeing sliced onions in bacon grease, olive oil, or butter and adding the greens and stirring just until they are wilted. So good!
Today as I was very seriously talking about how there was so much to do and so little time to do it in, our attention was drawn to a vehicle slowing in front of our place. The person driving it was looking at the nine cows in our front yard. No kidding. Let the round-up begin....
Quite a while later, as we were visiting with the neighbor who helped get the cows back where they belonged, I realized, once again, that it is not by our strength or power that it will all get done, but by His. (And that we can, and we really need to remember to, enjoy the journey.) I'm so glad those crazy cows got out.

Mark 10:27 " .....for with God all things are possible."  

Persevero

Persevere. I'd heard that word before when I was treating our goat Emily's eye after it had been injured by another goat's horn. I was nervous about whether what I was doing was going to work and I heard: Persevere.
I heard that word again recently when we were plowing with our workhorse and everything seemed to be going wrong. Persevere.
We had to persevere through some very difficult things this last winter. Some things are over and others are not. Did they work out well? Not always.  Is it worth it to keep going? Yes.
Persevero.

Ephesians 6:13 " ...... and having done all, to stand."