Saturday, November 20, 2010

It is 40° here this morning and promises to be a sunny day with a high in the 60's.

I have a few outside things I need to do before our cold weather hits next week:

1.  move pots of rhubarb and things my sis brought me from her garden to the east side of the old chicken house.  I will
     bury them in straw soon.
2.  Check the lettuce for something more to cover them with.  Planted too late and will no doubt succumb to extreme
     cold.
3.  Tidy up around the back patio area before Thanksgiving.

That was yesterday.

This morning after milking which went well  again, I moved the pots over to the chicken house and piled straw around them but not over the tops quite yet.  I will wait until is get cold and stays cold.

Tidied up patio by moving the pots and had DH take the two dog bowls to the barn and scrub them...hopefully they will stay back there.

Then over to the east sheds where I husked the dent corn and stored it in the milk parlor.  I am saving the husks for ???  I might try DIY tamales.........or a wreath or just compost them.  I ended up with some nubbins I will give to the chickens.

These sheds are a disaster area where we have stored old lumber from the tornadoed hay barn and other detritus that we can't part with.  There were even newspapers blown around from the summer when I laid my tomatoes on a picnic table on the papers.  While picking them up, I stepped on a board that turned with me and down I went.  I have a chronic dizziness that usually doesn't cause me much trouble unless I get up too high or get on unstable ground.  Didn't really hurt myself except for a jammed right elbow and a bruise on my right hip......  I did make some headway though.  I will slowly work on the rest over winter.  At first glance things are improved.

Next on the schedule was getting the chickens ready for winter by putting down some new straw bedding.
That always sends them into a frenzy of scratching.  They like nothing better  than scratching in straw.  As soon as I got it down on the floor and  the nests cleaned out here they came.  By tonight you won't be able to find the feeder or waterer.  DH will not be happy with me.

From chickens
This is the enclosed pen part.  The chicken house was a pre-built one made by Amish..  It is just 6x12 and one half is enclosed and the other is the pen area.  All under roof.  The nest boxes are accessible from the outside.
From chickens
This is our crossbred rooster.  He is the only one we have ever had that has never shown any aggression toward us at all.  I usually am afraid to even go into the chicken yard without a stick, but not with this  one.  May he live forever!

From chickens


I made a new apron today, but like my old denim style better.  I am retiring the sewing machine for the unforeseeable future.  It is a very messy hobby unless you have a dedicated hobby or sewing room and I don't.

4 comments:

  1. Glenda,
    Of all the people I know from blogging, you are the one I talk about the most to people I know. I think it's so cool to know someone who milks her own cows, and makes butter, cottage cheese, and such with it. Plus, you make your bread, and sew aprons. I'm sorry you don't have a dedicated sewing spot. Well, you'll get it back out when you need more aprons.

    So, did your dizziness cause the missed step, or did the missed step and fall cause the dizziness? A number of years ago, I tried to stand on a bucket and climb over the fence to help the little neighbor boy find his dad. It slipped, and I fell hard. A few days later, I started being dizzy every time I bent over. I'm glad that went away.

    I hope you are healing, and getting over the dizziness.

    Hey, that nice rooster is handsome to boot!

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  2. Sorry to learn of your chronic dizziness, Glenda. My Mom and a close friends both suffer from dizziness as well and both are frustrated with it. I hope your elbow/hip don't slow you down now and they heal up quickly.

    I enjoy your livestock posts and this one is no exception. Handsome rooster you have there! Bet he keeps the girls in line. Enjoy your Sunday. I'm going to mow the lawn for (hopefully) the last time today and get up the end of the leaves. :-D

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  3. oh no, hope you didn't hurt yourself too bad. With all you do it's a wonder you don't get hurt daily! Lots to do on a farm. I know the chickens loved the straw! Years ago we had a rooster who came to a bad end when he was impudent one too many times with our blue tick hound. He was a banty and just couldn't help himself, he tried to pick fights with everyone! Take care Glenda...

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  4. Glenda, have you told your doctor about the dizziness. Perhaps it could be your equilibrium being thrown out of whack, eyesight, and or circulatory. I know you said you checked out fine, but I think you should mention it...:)JP P.S. I ate about 1 doz cookies!

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