Pig Wrangling

Tuesday the time had come to take one of our pigs to the butcher. I must admit that I had no idea how hard it would be to get one pig in a trailer.  Maybe she knew more about her fate then I gave her credit for.  How convenient that my husband was at work and left the job of loading the pig to our older kids and me.

We entered the pig pen with few ideas on exactly how we would accomplish our goal.  Basically, we were going to just shoo her into the trailer, shut the door and pat each other on the back.  In hind sight, I now see the folly of that plan.  The reality was much different and much funnier, or so my husband thought. 

When we first entered the pig's arena they looked harmless, even friendly.  They thought they were going to be fed and left to fight over who would get the best bits, as usual.  We started by moving the feeder by the make-shift loading chute.  This chute was the outer fence and an old gate my bother-in-law had given us.  Parked at the end of the gate was our cattle trailer.  It looked like they would eat as we opened the gate and then we could gently encourage them toward the trailer.  If only that plan had worked!

We had three pigs; Becky Bacon, Penelope and Hammer the Ham.  Penelope, was by far, the largest of the three.  We zoned in on her as we moved closer to the unsuspecting pigs.  Unfortunately, instead of moving them toward the trailer they got spooked and ran to the other end of their rather sizable pen.  Now the fun began.  We spent the next 45 minutes getting the pigs close to the chute and then watching them run as we tried to get them in the trailer.  The pigs suddenly looked different to me.  They were no longer the cute little piggies that followed us around and snorted for food.  When I looked at them now all I saw was dumb, obstinante swine.

Finally, in desperation, I called for our seceret weapon...dog food.  Dog food is like "piggy crack", they will do anything for it.  I stared throwing some by Penelope, hoping to make a trail of dog food she would follow right into the trailer.  We made a path to the trailer and then when she felt the least little bit confined, she would bolt.  We went through three cups of dog food before we started feeling like maybe we could do this.

I must admit that I did picture myself having to call my husband and tell him we just couldn't do it.  Would he be mad, diappointed, not care?  I thought, "One more try, then if we fail I will call him."

Finally, we got Penelope in the chute.  She was facing backwards but I was hopeful that she would back inthe trailer on her own.  No, that was not to be.  We had to give her a little space to turn around but not so much she would push her way out.  Our youngest daughter had a broom to "encourage" her to move.  When she finally turned and saw I had dog food left, she hopped right in.  We closed the doors and collased in a pile of smelly, dirty pride. 

I am voting that my husband gets in on the fun next time a pig has to be loaded.

Chicken's to love or chicken's to eat?

That is the real question isn't it?  My youngest daughter would say we need to keep them to love.  My husband would say they are to eat.  I am somewhere in the middle.  I love our hens and the fresh eggs they give us.  The roosters (or "roos" as some people call them) are a pain.  I wish I could say something nice about them but they are mean.  They also fought with each other and hurt our hens.  We found hens missing feathers and bloody from their roo encounters.  Several weeks ago, I had had it with them.  I informed my husband we would be butchering the roos ASAP. 

Once I made the announcement I started hearing stories.  Stories of horror and gore.  What had I gotten myself (and the rest of my family) into?  I can now say it was not as bad as I thought it might be.  Here are some of the stories I heard and what our experiences were:

1. Blood squirting EVERYWHERE:  I can say that the way my husband put down our boys, there were no headless chickens flopping around.  In about 2 minutes it was all over and the roos didn't act like they felt a thing.  We did have to remove the heads once we were sure they were dead but that was very quick also.

2. The stench:  I think people have memories of being at Grandma's and smelling the hot, wet feathers.  I have to say, there wasn't a lot of odor when we plucked our fellas.  Part of the reason could be that it was fall.  It might be a smellier job in summer.  I also made sure we did almost everything outside.  I did not want a bad odor in my house that seemed to hang around for days.  What we did had to get over, was the feel of the feathers and how they stuck to our hands.  Yuck. 

3. Dealing with the insides:  My husband gutted the boys for me.  I had heard that we needed to be careful when cleaning the innards out as not to contaminate the meat.  My hubby made it look easy and did a great job.  We saved part of the innards but I am not sure what we will do with them.  (Maybe that can be a post in the future...how to cook with chicken guts.)

Overall, the job wasn't bad.  Next time, I will get a different breed of roosters that fattens up faster.  We got very little meat for the amount of food our roos ate through the summer.  We will also try skinning them so we can save the plucking step.  I think they will be cleaner when we are done if they are skinned.  We will also do all of the work outside next time.  This will help save my kitchen from most of the mess.

If you are thinking about getting some chickens to butcher my best advise is don't be afraid.  Go to YouTube and watch videos on "how to butcher chickens" and you will be able to move forward and feel prepared.

Becky Bacon finds a home

Seems we now have a pig.  Was I planning on getting a pig?  I think not but here she is none the less. 

Okay, so it was my idea...what's new?  I just started thinking that we needed to get the garden tilled but we don't own a tiller.  What better way to get your ground worked and fertilized at the same time then to get a pig?  Not that my husband was complaining.  He had been trying to talk me into getting a pig for a year.

We looked around on Craigslist and found someone not far from us with hogs.  We loaded our twins up in our big, white pickup truck and took them to help us pick out a pig.  When we got there it was over 100 degrees and I was wishing we had waited until the cool of the evening to go.  We looked at the many pens of little, squealing piglets and I made the grand declaration "We'll take the first one you can catch."  Our seller appreciated that approach and I appreciated not having to climb in the pen and help my husband actually pick up the pig.  After all, I was wearing my new "work" boots (these boots had never yet seen any real work and had only been used to dress up my jeans).  They grabbed a little girl, if you want to call 50 lbs. of wiggling, screaming fury "little".  She was mad and spent the whole time we carried her to the trailer trying to bite us and wrench herself free. 

I was now beginning to question my decision, especially when my husband started saying things like, "I sure hope she doesn't gore us."  Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating.  He did make me think when he started questioning if our fence would hold her and was I sure I wanted that smell so close to the house.  Yikes!  He could have brought that up BEFORE we bought the pig.  He eventually assured me that he would make sure everything was taken care of. 

I started throwing out names on the way home.  A vote was taken.  The winner was "Becky Bacon".  I liked the sound of it and it would also remind us that she was not a pet but an eventual food source.

Now the fun would begin.  We could not back our trailer to the pen so we would have to pick Becky up and carry her again.  I was just about to suggest that she could live in the trailer when my husband gathered our older kids to help him lift her.  My boots were saved again.  Someone (I will not mention names...but it possibly, could have been me) also had the bright idea that we needed to weigh her.  I ran in and grabbed the bathroom scale for my husband to stand on while he held the pig.  My husband is a 6 ft. Oklahoma farm boy but Becky almost got the best of him.  She wiggled, she screamed, she bit, yes, it was just like having toddlers again.  I was afraid for him but he handled her fine for the few minutes he had to stand there.

Finally, she could go into her pen.  We were all relieved to be able to shut the gate and watch her from a distance for awhile.  Our family scattered and went to get her food bowl and some hay for her to make a bed.  I walked back out to her pen in a couple of hours.  I was sweet talking her as I walked up but she suddenly charged at me.  It scared me until I remembered she couldn't get me.  I was beginning to think she held me personally responsible for her current situation.  It was almost like she knew I was the one who said, "Let's get a pig."

A few weeks have passed now.  Becky understands that when humans walk up it means it is time to eat and she sure loves to eat!  Our youngest daughter has got Becky to stand still for a quick pet.  She is still not "tame" but she is a lot of fun to watch.  Let's hope my bribing her with food has made her forgive and forget...mainly just forget!

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HGTV on a budget

I guess I am strange.  I have to live a house for awhile before I start changing paint and upgrading light fixtures.  Everyone else I know has painted, changed out carpet and started a major master bath remodel before the first moving box hits the door.

I have spent the last year thinking about what I want to fix-up but I have just now gotten motivated to do something.  Maybe that is because we have had major problems with this house.  (The septic, the foundation, water under the house, the a/c, plumbing, and on, and on, and on)  I was never so thankful for a home warranty in my life.  Now it feels like things are starting to be resolved.  I have been watching HGTV the last few weeks and have gotten motivated to start making some changes. 

My first project was removing the ugly wallpaper in the dining room.  It was just not my taste.  It was too busy and too country for me.  We picked out a baseboard rather then a true chair rail to use for two reasons: 1) it was cheaper 2) it was wider to match the space of the wallpaper we took down. The whole project cost about $40 and made a huge difference.  I just feel like it has a cleaner look and is more sophisticated now.

Maybe this speaks of the number of times we have moved in the last 20 years but I am always thinking, "If we had to sell this place quickly, what would help us sell?"  This led me to the next obvious project, upgrading our light fixtures.  Most the fixtures seem to be original to the house, which was built in 1995.  Polished brass was huge in the '90's but is a bit dated now.  I was looking to replace a couple of spotlight fixtures.  I found a style that would work and was looking at spending about $70.  My husband said, "What if we refinished them?  We would throw them out anyway."  What a brilliant man!  We bought a can of textured spray paint and tried it.  I think the fixtures look great and cost about $1 in paint.  Now they match the aged bronze in the kitchen.

I would really like to remodel our master bath but I think it will have to wait.  Our oldest daughter is getting married this spring so I think our money will be going in that direction for awhile.  For now, I will concentrate on smaller projects like retouching paint, replacing broken switch plates, and updating the light covers on the ceiling fans.  Maybe in a couple of years we can do some major work around here.  For now I feel very blessed to have a home and land so perfect for us.

Surprise...Milk!

I am a goat 'newbie'.  Several months ago, out of the blue, my husband called and asked if I wanted some goats.  I thought to myself, "Yes, next spring...", but strangely I found myself asking 'why?'.  He said he had a patient who bought these three goats and now didn't want them.  There mother was supposedly a great milker.  They were a great price so I (surprisingly) said sure.  We had our 3 Nubian-Alpine girls (Jewels, Heather and Elizabeth) delivered to our home in May.  The gentleman told me their mother and grandmother "always" had triplets.  He said our girls were, in fact, a group of triplets.  I have to admit, I was excited. 

We took the water hose and gave them a good bath the first day.  The light brown color I thought they were changed to the purest white I have ever seen.   They were lovely in every way you can imagine.   All my fears about their temperament were quickly set aside.  We discovered they had the sweetest personalities. They were loving and social.   They seem like they were made to come and live with us.  It has been a fun summer watching them grow and play together.

A couple of weeks ago I had our youngest girl, our future veterinarian, take the ladies out of the field to get them use to being walked.  I was starting to think about the spring, when we would be having babies and start milking the goats.  I knew the goats would need to be able to walk on a leash to be milked everyday.  Our daughter noticed Jewels udder was getting bigger.  I looked at her, pushed on the teat and out squirts milk.  I was shocked.

I did some research and found out that Jewels is a "precocious" milker.  Even though she has never had a kid, she is in milk.  This is a great opportunity for me to practice milking and to see if I even want milk goats before we breed our girls.  We milked for the first time this morning.  I had about 1 cup of milk once we finished straining it.  And yes, it tastes just like 'real' milk!

A new school year at Hagan Academy.

I can't believe we just started our 5th year of homeschooling.  When we removed our youngest daughter from public school, I really wondered if we were making the right decision.  When I tested her to see what level she was on we were shocked.  She should have been going into the 6th grade but she tested at the 4th grade level in EVERY subject.  She was so embarrassed.  I reassured her that we would get her caught up and by the end of the first year she was right on track.  Her reading ability increased by leaps and bounds.

The second year everyone was telling me that "if you homeschool one, you might as well homeschool them all."  My son's teacher had completely destroyed his self-confidence by the end of 2nd grade with a few cutting remarks and I was very upset.  I thought it was a wonderful time to pull him out of public school and bring him home. 

Last year, when we moved to Oklahoma, our oldest daughter decided to be homeschooled for her senior year. What a joy to be able to hand her the diploma ourselves. It was a beautiful day.


Now, here we are in our 5th year and going strong.  This is the first time I have had little ones to teach.  Our twins started kindergarten a few weeks ago.  I can't believe how much their hand writing has improved.  Our youngest daughter is taking Latin this year.  She has taught our kindergartners a Latin prayer.

I am hoping that this year will be the best year ever.  I am more confident as an overseeer and teacher to the kids.  They are confident in their studies and seem to be having fun with their classes.  We are team teaching our littlest students and that is a great joy.  Not to mention, we have only blown up one science experiment this year....so far, anyway.

What's the buzz on the bees?

It is official, we will not be getting any honey this summer.  I am sad but not surprised.  We did not bring our hives home until well into the spring nectar flow.  We brought home two, 9 frame hives (10th frame was a feeder).  The first hive was a new start-up so they had about 3 frames going when they came home.  Our second hive had seven or eight nice frames of bees but we immediately added a second hive body. 

My son working our first hive in May

To put it simply, there was too much work to expect them to make excess honey for us.  The important thing will be that they have enough honey for themselves to get through the winter.  We will be heading out to pull the empty suppers off them in a week or so and need to do a full inspection.  We will be feeding them this fall just to be sure.

Now my attention can shift to the other animals on the farm and getting ready for fall pest treatments for the bees. Not much else to do with them except wait for spring.  Thanks for trying ladies!

Salsa (Or what to do with all those veggies...)

Can anyone really plant too many tomatoes?

I don't think so! I can always find friends and family to "help me" unload some of the bounty from our garden. Another fun thing to do with all those red beauties is make salsa.

Here is what you will need:
10c firm lg. tomatoes, peeled
3c chopped onions
2c chopped sweet peppers
1/4c finely chopped hot peppers


To peel the tomatoes: Cut the tops off the tomatoes. Drop into low boiling water for 30 seconds. Remove and place in cold water. Peel off skins.

I like to have the kids help me chop the veggies. We have had a lot of good laughs and it is more fun for them to eat something that they helped make.

Place everything that is chopped in a large pot. Add 1Tbsp red peppers, 3Tbsp salt, 2Tbsp sugar, 1Tbsp mustard seeds, 1Tbsp garlic powder, 1c of vinegar. Bring to a boil then reduce heat. Simmer 45 min to 1 hour.  After the salsa is cooked you might want to thicken it a little.  Mix a small amount of cornstarch with water and add to salsa.  Remember, it may thinken more as it cools.  It is better to be a little runny then too thick.

Prepare jars while the salsa is cooking. Make sure the jars are very clean (run them through the dishwasher with bleach). Heat your lids and jars in a hot water bath.

Once the salsa is cooked place in hot jars and seal. After an hour or two, check to make sure the jars have sealed by pushing on the top of the lid (It should not "pop" when pressed). It should last at least a year...maybe more if it is canned properly.

This is how your finished product should look. The salsa is ready to eat immediately. It is fast, easy and your friends will be amazed that it is "home-made". Have fun!

Goodbye, Sweet Harley

We lost our beloved Mastiff a few weeks ago. Harley was a "big oaf" but we sure miss him.

We named him Harley because my husband always wanted one...a motorcycle actually but "wasn't this close enough," I asked? He grew fast, as all giant breeds do and before we knew it he was a 135lb lap puppy.

When we adopted our little boys from Korea, Harley allowed the new little men to crawl all over him. I was nervous but he was gentle and patient with them.

I knew the end was coming last year when Harley became very sick. We nursed him through that episode but the vet gently told me we didn't have much time with him. His hips were broken down and the move from Kansas to Oklahoma had been hard on him. Not long after that we brought home our beagle, Cooper. Harley started acting like a new dog, playing and running with the new puppy. I truly believe that Cooper extended Harley's life.

A few weeks ago Harley just laid down and didn't get up. He died peacefully in his sleep. The house feels a little emptier and much quieter without him lumbering about.

Harley, thanks for being a good friend. We miss you.

Our 1st year on the farm

We have now been on the farm a full year. The last year has been full of beginnings and endings. We have left friends and our church family to embark on this journey to the country. This is the last year in review.

One of the things I remember about moving in was the heat. I forgot how hot Oklahoma can be in June. I am not sure I prepared the kids for the heat either. We spent a lot of time that summer at the lake or in the house.

When we moved in we had the neighbors horses on our land. I loved to look out the window and see them munching on grass or running together. I also enjoyed the beautiful wild flowers that grew in our fields. I remember one day looking out and we had the most beautiful sunflower growing by the back fence. I looked forward to doing dishes and looking at my flower. One day I looked out and Patrick, a large white stallion, had my lovely flower hanging out of his mouth, eating it.
 

In the fall, we built a compost bin. I did some research on the Internet to figure out how to get the process started. We mowed the yard and planned to put the grass clippings in the bin for our first contribution. About an hour later I looked out and the horses were eating my compost. Apparently, they though I built them a new feed trough. We tried to put chicken wire over the top to keep them out but they just pushed through it.

Our youngest son with the new calves

In November we got our first baby chicks. In January, we acquired 3 Holstein calves. By the beginning of 2010 it felt like we had a real farm. I really thought that would be all the animals we would get until spring 2011. I was happy to learn how to care for the animals and get to watch them grow. Then in March, Matthew suggested that we get bees. He was so excited that he read books without being asked (that is a big achievement for an 11-year old boy). Consequently, in the spring we ordered two hives to start our aviary. In April, Jim had a patient who had 3 Alpine-Nubian cross doelings. He wanted to sell them and knew we had a farm. I felt a little overwhelmed having so many animals come so quickly. So far, all our babies are doing well and growing.

Our new baby goats

We have had more then our share of problems with our house. It seems like every time we get one problem fixed two more pop up. We are on first name basis with our plumber. My kids run up and give them hugs when they pull in...they are just like family now.

Our older kids, hard at work building fence

We have our land fenced now. The horses are on their own property and we have our steers and goats in their own areas. We got out and worked together to get the building done and had a lot of fun as a family in the process.

We have had many adventures this first year. I am hoping year two is a little more quiet but I am not holding my breath. With five children and acres full of farm animals there will always be some comic relief somewhere.

Homestead ideas for the suburbs

Long before we ever moved on to our own land we were starting to implement some homestead ideals. Basically, these ideals center on being more self-sufficient. I thought I would pass on some things we started doing when we were still in the suburbs.

1. Grow a garden: Anyone with the smallest piece of land can grow a garden. We started in a flower bed that was unused and put a few tomato plants in. Our garden this year is in a small spot that use to be a dog run. We have peppers, tomatoes, green beans, watermelon, cantaloupe and okra. You can borrow or rent a tiller and start today.

2. Hang out your clothes: Not only will this save money ($30 or more a month for us) but it is better for the environment. Plus, you will love how your clothes smell. We bought a small umbrella-style clothes line for $50 at a local hardware store. I love it, it is easy to use and doesn't take up a lot of space. Even if you only used it a couple of times a week, you will notice a savings.

3. Have a chicken in your backyard: Perhaps even 3 or 4 hens would be nice. They help keep your yard free of pests and provide you with eggs. If you had 4 chickens you could have 20 eggs a week. Check local codes and talk to your neighbors. More and more cities are starting to allow small flocks.

4. Get out of debt: This is the real secret to self-sufficiency. It might take some time but sit down and work up a plan to real financial freedom. You will never regret it.

City girl turns country

Showing off our new "cowgirl" look.

A year ago I would not have thought I would be writing this declaration, but here it is...I am now a country girl. I love to hear the rooster crow and I don't care what time it is. I have found great amusement in watching animals. I like hanging clothes out on a line. I enjoy being in the garden in the cool of the morning and picking the bounty of what is to be found there. I even enjoy hearing the bees buzzing in the distance.

Last year at this time, we were moving from Kansas City looking for a quieter, simpler life. We were shocked when we moved into our "new" house. What a mess it was. It was left dirty and uncared for. Once I recovered from the shock, I set into making this house a home. I cleaned for two days before I felt comfortable unpacking. We went through our belongings to weed out what was unnecessary, to move us closer to that "simpler life". It was healing to be able to live with a little less.

This whole adventure started as my husband's dream. He was a farm boy and had spent our whole married life trying to get back to the country. I have to admit, I didn't embrace this dream for a long time. I wasn't apposed to living in the country but it wasn't a burning desire in me like it was in my husband.

Now, here I am, a reformed, former suburbanite. A city girl who loved going to dinner theater and having every form of entertainment right around the block. I have traded the convenience of close shopping for the peace we have on our little homestead. I have exchanged Starbucks for Folgers. There are usually many days in a row that I never leave our property. I am happy with that. What I get in exchange is worth it...a simpler, quieter life.