Wanted Free or Cheap!

 Wanted Free or Cheap: has invaded.  Every time I browse through the sell groups on Facebook I see it.  Now there are times when I would put cheap.  I'm not one to spend more then I have to.  The problem is that people are looking for animals for free or cheap. 

Its a pet peeve of mine.  It takes about one bag of feed to raise a hen to laying age.  Depending on the brand you are spending from $12-$20.  So no laying hens are not cheap.  Then you add the time you have put into taking care of them.  For me that is about 20 minutes a day.  Caring for chicks takes more time, if you want friendly hens you must spend time with them.  I'm not going to count those hours.  So in three day's time I have put in an hour for my 14 birds.  In a week I've worked at least 2 hours.  An expert makes $20/hour.  Every week I should be paid about $40.  It takes 20 weeks to raise a hen to laying age.  That means in the time it took me to raise the hen to laying age I should have been paid $800.  We still haven't figured in the cost of water or housing, but we'll stop here.  So if we take the $12 in feed and divide the $800 by 14 birds($57.14) each bird is worth $69.14.  Most

people sell their chickens for around $20.  Its well worth paying $20 for laying hens!

So no I won't give you a laying hen for cheap or free.

A little hard work goes a long way.  Chicks are worth about $3 each.  Put in the hard work your self and raise your own laying hens. 

Now don't get me wrong.  If I see a need I'm the first to want to help someone.  I'm not saying that you shouldn't give charity.  Help out a new chicken lover and help them hatch their own chicks!

Elizabeth~

Fixing our Garden

 First Item on my garden fixing list is the bug problem. 

I plan on getting Guinea Fowl.  Guineas eat bugs but don't eat the plants.  They also don't dust bathe, or rip up plants.  While they are running around the garden they help fertilize the garden.

On the plus side they lay eggs and can be butchered for meat.

Second is the Deer problem.  The deer destroyed 70 tomato plants, my corn, peppers, and cool weather crops.  I was not impressed with them at the end of the year.

The plan?  Adding netting over top of the entire garden.  We added netting over the chicken coop with great success!  Now the rest of the garden will get its turn. 

Wow!  When listing the problems I realized that I didn't have as many as I thought!  The problem is I have the same problems over and over again.  What problems do you have in your garden?  How are you fixing them so that you can live a more self sufficient lifestyle?

Elizabeth~

Buck up and Start Planning!

Buck up and start planning for what??  Back in October I wrote an article called Death of a County.  Saturday I wrote about a growing bad feeling that something bad is going to happen to our economy.  Actually something bad is already happening to our economy.  Two major companies are closing some of their stores, Walmart and Macy's.  Not a great sign.  Sound like 2008?  So if you can see something bad is happening what do you do?  Sit by and let it happen?  NO!  You do something about it!

I'll have more detailed posts later, but here is what I'm planning for the new year!

1. A Garden.  Ok so I always plan on having a garden, but it needs some major improvements. I'll have a post about that later.

2. Goats.  In the Great Depression it was said that if you had a cow and a garden you were lucky because you ate better then most others.  Goats mean milk, cheese, and soap.

3. A year supply.  Think its for crazy preppers?  Think again!! I'll let you know why I like having some of my favorites on hand.

4. Canning Plan.  I like canning and have even won awards in our local fair, but this year it takes on a whole new meaning.

5. Shopping. Getting great deals means I can buy more food.

6.  Chickens and Turkeys. I love my feather babies!  I talk to them, feed them, and in return I get delicous eggs.  This year I'm going to try to build my own cabinet incubator.  They normally cost $1000+ but I'm trying to see if I can build one for less then $50. We'll see if experimenting will work.

What ides do you have for this year?  Do you feel like the economy is heading for trouble?  Leave me a message!

Elizabeth~

This Growing Bad Feeling...

Have you ever had a bad feeling.  One that keeps growing and won't go away.  No matter what I've done in the last month my stomach keeps getting tied in knots.  It feels like my way of life is going to hit the end of the road.  For weeks I've been praying to know what to do.  I've soul searched, and meditated.  Researched, and read and I think I'm finally ready to share with you what I've found.  If you look at the stocks as of yesterday(Jan. 15, 2016) this has been the worst beginning of the year for stocks.  The market has been sliding since the middle of last year.  I won't tell you that we are going into a Great Depression, but I will tell you that in my part of the country things are looking like they will get bad.  Check out my post Death of a County.  Coal mines are shutting down and the price of oil is the lowest its been since 2001.  It doesn't look good. 

With the bad comes the good.  Have you ever noticed that you rely on God more when things get tough?  Or that Family really is more important when you know that is who you can count on?  Beauty really is all around.  Books are amazing for entertainment.  Looking for the good helps soften the hard reality of the bad. 

I do feel that God wants me to share what I've learned these last few weeks.  So look foward to me posting more in the future.  I know that I have a mission, and what it is.  Let me help you through some tough times that are to come. 


Elizabeth~

One Emergency Item Everyone Forgets!

September was National Preparedness Month.  In the spirit of being prepared I was looking at 72-hour kits, Bug Out Bags, emergency kits, and DIY lists.  There is one major component missing from almost every kit.  What would be missing??

ENTERTAINMENT!!

Think about it.  What happens on rainy days?

Kids go crazy.
There is nothing to do.

Now imagine an emergency situation.  You have to leave home, and are now stuck in a emergency shelter.  No electricity, no TV, no movies, no entertainment.  What are you kids going to be doing?  What are you going to be doing??  See where this could be a problem.  It makes a bad situation worse.

What can you do about it?
Add a few simple toys to your little's bag.  Little guy has plenty of room for a few toys.  Think cars, magnetic games, card games, small dolls.  You get the idea, just a little something to keep them occupied till you can get home.

Taking a little time now can make a big difference later! 

Death of a County

This had been on my heart for a while now so I hope you don't mind. 

First let me give you some background.  I've worked retail for 7+ years.  Officially I worked in a retail situation for 7, but if you count having my own business I've been working for the last 18 years in retail.  That is enough hours to be considered an expert.  An expert has had 10,000 hours of practice in any given field.  I've put in 14,560 hours in just my official employment history.  I've done everything from stock shelves to being a CO-Manager.  I know retail.  I also know that our economy depends on everyone.

 Doctors and Lawyers couldn't be doctors and lawyers if there wasn't a cashier.  Their couldn't be a cashier if there wasn't backroom associates.  Stores couldn't run if there were no farmers, and factory workers. 

We all need each other!


No ifs and or butts!

So whats my problem?  Why am I in an uproar?  The mines that fuel our economy are shutting down.  The stock market has driven the price of coal into the ground, and there is no money to be made.  What's the problem with that. 

The economy of my area depends on the coal miners.  Let me sketch it out for you.

Coal miners make about $18/hour.  They are young men with young families.  Young families need Doctors and Hospitals.  Young families send their children to school.  The wives of the coal miners buy cows and pigs ready to butcher and put into their freezers.  Wives of coal miners also shop at the local stores, and boutiques.

If the coal miners go, then so will part of the hospital and other health care staff.  They won't have families to take care of.  It then gets worse.  With the coal miners and health care staff gone, the schools will not need as many teachers.  The children will be going with their families.  The farmers now have fewer people to feed, and the boutiques now have fewer shoppers. 

There we have it.  Now my little county in Colorado is gone.  Several ghost towns could be in the making. 

How do we fix it?  Can it be fixed?  That is a question worth looking into.  I do know I would like to keep this area alive.

Keep people like this face painter painting.  Keep the farmers growing, and the boutiques open. 

There are blogs dedicated to the economy and there has been plenty of professionals stating the we are in an economic recession.  I don't know anything about the stock market, except that when the numbers go down fake money has been wiped out.

I just want to keep living in my beautiful area, with amazing hard working people.

What to do when you Garden Fails!

 So what do you do when your garden fails?  Do you curse God?  Kill the herd of deer?  Give up?  All of the above?  It has been a hard garden year.  I've lost plants to the bugs, and now the deer have destroyed my garden. 

Its hard to get over the loss of months of work.  I thought I was going to be overloaded.  So tired of Canning I wouldn't want to look at my pressure canner.  Instead I had to buy veggies to can.  At first I thought "Oh buck up!" but then the deer kept coming.  I put up lights to keep them out.  The Deer just laugh!

So what do you do?  At some point I gave up.  I can't put up a deer fence now.

The next step is to plan for next year.  Whats the plan?

Put up a deer fence.

Raise Guinea keets.  They eat bugs and don't dig up plants.

Build raised garden beds.

Realize that sometimes God needs you to learn a lesson, and try to learn the lesson in one gardening season. 

Cream of Tomato Soup Recipe

Did you make tomato powder?  Looking for something to do with it?  Look no farther! 

Cream of Tomato Soup
1/4 cup Tomato Powder
1 Tab Bouillon Powder
3/4 tsp Basil
1/4 Tsp Oregano
1 cup Dried Milk
3/4 cup Corn Starch

Mix all ingredents.

To make soup
Add 1/3 cup mix to 1 1/4 cups water.  Heat over Medium till thick.  Enjoy! 

Adding ingredients one layer at a time

Layers of beauty!

Mixed in a bowl, my jar's to small!

Ready to be used.

Ready to use with instructions!

Making Tomato Powder

 Waste not want not right?  So when we were peeling tomatoes to make spaghetti sauce I just had to save the skins.  I put them in the dehydrator and let them dry till crispy.  The plan is to make tomato powder.  After they are crispy put them in a bag and smash and mash till its powder!  Viola! Tomato powder.  What can you do with it?  Come back and I'll show you how to make Powdered Cream of Tomato Soup.