2 chicklets hatched this morning

Aren't they cute? They look like a chipmunk and a Persian kitty. LOLOL

Duck, duck..

So much has been happening. I went into my coop and one of my 4 Muscovy ducks had been pecked on by the chickens and her tail was bleeding. The problem is not a little blood. The problem is that chickens are carnivorous and will peck a thing to death...literally so I brought her into my house, washed the tail well and put some ointment on it and placed her in a crate just so she could rest. Later yesterday i went back into the coop and saw that her buddy, Lennox, was missing her terribly so I had to do something. This morning, right away, I checked her tail and it looked good so I went and put together a dog crate and made her a bed in it and brought her down where she could see Lennox but yet was safe. We are all happy with that decision. When there is no hint of blood at all, she will be allowed out. Bitsy, my little cochin bantam, is a egg laying machine...she lays pretty near daily. She is so small compared to all the rest, not to mention the ducks and yet she holds her own with them. No one messes with Bitsy. I have stayed busy making sure the coops got clean and the bedding winter ready. In the Spring, my female Muscovys will lay eggs and the duck numbers will increase dramatically...yay!

New life

I have new peeps at Willow Wood. They are adorable. There is one silver one and; if one can sex them by the wings, it is a little roo-ette and I could not be happier. It is obviously Ignasio's baby and I have hoped and prayed for a rooster from him. The light colored one is mothered by my favorite Easter Egger and I am overjoyed at its hatch. The dark brown one...well i am just not sure. So, without further ado...meet the the babies:

Trying hard

I am very happy because the new tire for my dump cart came and I was able to put it on and now I am ready to roll. This makes me happy for 2 reasons: 1. I was able to put it on 2. With my new saplings coming, it will save me time and effort to load the shovel, water, fertilizer etc., just once.

Also, One of the tires is flat on my wagon and; because God loves me. it turns out to be the very same size as the tie on my old wood carrier so i will be replacing that either today or tomorrow.

Kia is an OK car but the minivans in 2003 left much to be desired. One of the things that happens is the steering becomes difficult. It is tight and takes a lot of strength to steer. A few years ago this happened to me and one mechanic said i needed a $500 repair and the other mechanic went into the shop, came out with a can of spray lubricant and sprayed it and the problem was gone. Cost to me: 0 A couple of days ago, the steering was stiff and because my long term memory is intact, I remembered so i got on YouTube and there was a video on how to "fix" it. I popped the hood. located the joint that came out from the firewall, sprayed it with WD40 and I am back in business. It is a good day

cold weather, water pipes and a rise in confidence.

I have never been very good at problem solving and even if I knew the answer I would not know how to execute it. Homesteading does not allow for that. I get to learn something new. I get to problem solve and I get execute the solution. I never thought I could do this and I think the reason was because I did not have to. I have to now. Just today, as I am preparing for the better cold coming this weekend, I wanted to change a lightbulb that was on a trouble light that hung in such a way as to warm the U water pipe to keep it from freezing. I took off the panel of skirting found the trouble light and changed the bulb. Still it did not work, so i rain into the house and got my hair dryer and plugged it into the outlet to make sure that was working. It was so then I knew the problem was the trouble light...now what? I took a deep breath and tried to think of a solution. I had a clamp light but it would only take 40 watt bulb and a 40 watt bulb would not do the job. I wondered what I could use that might put off heat...just at that moment Zora chirped and there was my answer...a warming light. I took my extra one and ran it outside and clamped it on and viola!!! It worked. Then I had to find out if it was safe to do this so i Googled it and sure enough it is not only safe but recommended to keep pipes from freezing. I did it and now I have some confidence that I can solve a problem safely and effectively.

My non-traditional tradition

I have this new tradition, started last year, where I plant a fruit tree or trees on holidays. It helps me remember how old they are and it is celebratory for me. Last year, on holidays I planted multiple fruit trees so that I now have 17. In preparation for Thanksgiving (my favorite holiday) I have purchased the following to plant:

2 peach trees (full sized), 2 elderberry bushes and 1 California plum. I am SO excited! Great life with great traditions.

"Accept the things I can not change..." and do it with joy

In light of the snow forecast, I was out putting a deep layer of mulch on the bases of my saplings and it was hard work...physically hard work and I thought to myself how much easier it would be if someone helped me. I thought about how much work and how much more yield i could get if there was someone else. Almost immediately i rememberd to accept the things i can not change and to change the things I can...meaning myself and I decided to go easy. I AM doing the best I can and that is all I can do. I try really hard and I get what produce I can. It has to be good enough and with that certainty, I have great joy.