2016... where has the time gone.

It's 2016!!  October, 2016 actually.  The time has just been blowing by me.  I love this blog and really wish I made more time for it.  The past few years have been full of camping, gardening and family fun.  I actually just finished cleaning up all my vegetable gardens and harvested all of the final tomatoes from the plants.  We had a frost warning so I decided to let the green tomatoes and peppers ripen in the house under some lights.  Peter built me a really awesome shelving unit to grow seedlings on with hanging lights and it has worked well for the past two years.  I also purchased a small greenhouse shelf unit from Lowes this spring to help me harden off my plants; I got tired of moving them inside every night and back outside every morning.  This spring we also purchased a new 25' travel trailer.  Without thinking, we parked it alongside one of the garden beds and so I didn't get much yield from my cucumber plants this year.  They were far too shaded being between the house and trailer.  Next year I will just be growing greens in that bed which should do just fine in the limited sun exposure.

Speaking of our new trailer, I think I will also start blogging more about our camping trips.  We camp all over southern ontario and I think its a great topic to chat about.  We have been to some amazing campgrounds and a few not so great ones.  I love the outdoors, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, bonfires, hobo pies, and all things camping.  

I have Psoriasis

1 of my many small spots of psoriasis

I have recently discovered some random spots on my legs and arms. Turns out I have psoriasis, which is an auto-immune disorder which is generally inherited; y grandma was a long time sufferer which explains that.  I am thankful that so far my case seems to be quite random, but I am finding more and more spots regularly.  I have been doing plenty of research online to discover ways to treat, prevent and deal with this newly discovered ailment I have. Considering the array of auto-immune disorders out there, this one is relatively minor and certainly not life threatening. For me, so far, the condition is very mild. There are over 7 million people who suffer from psoriasis so I know I am far from alone. There are many home remedies out there. So far I purchased an ointment from the drug store which contains coal tar which is regarded as being one of the best treatments for psoriasis. After purchasing the ointment I decided to research the active ingredient which turns out to be TOXIC, EEEK!! Here is an excerpt from wikipedia with regards to its safety:

"According to the National Psoriasis Foundation and the FDA, coal tar is a valuable, safe and inexpensive treatment option for millions of people with psoriasis and other scalp or skin conditions.[14] Coal tar concentrations between 0.5% and 5% are safe and effective for psoriasis, and no scientific evidence suggests that the coal tar in the concentrations seen in non-prescription treatments is (or is not) carcinogenic because there are too few studies and insufficient data to make a judgement."

In light of this, I will use the ointment only when I am unable to achieve comfort through home remedies. In my search for help I have come across a few home remedies that I feel may be very helpful. Vitamine D* is known for slowing down cell growth. Since Psoriasis is basically an overgrowth of skin cells, applying topical vitamin D should definitely help. Also, simply moisturizing more regularly as well as not using soaps with harsh chemicals. I plan on using Avocado Oil with Vitamin B12** since it contains omegas which have also been shown to reduce symptoms and severity of psoriasis, It is simply a matter of me finding a pre-mixed cream or making one myself. These are the home remedies that I feel stand the best chance based on their properties. I also am trying to alter my diet a bit, sitting back on grains. I am aware of people who have had success with this alone. I am a lover of breads and pastas but I do believe cutting back is always a healthy move, regardless of psoriasis. I have purchased a Spiralizer to make veggie pastas and also have a Bread Machine to make paleo breads.

Considering this is an overly visible disease, it becomes that much more difficult to live with. I have made a vow to myself to never let it change what I choose to wear not how I view myself and my beauty.  It is not something that is catchy or dirty and is nothing to be ashamed of. I will not hesitate to speak of it if asked about the spots and I will also educate others about the disease.

Paleo Bread:
http://snapguide.com/guides/bake-paleo-friendly-bread-in-a-bread-machine/(HOW TO)
http://paleogrubs.com/bread-recipes(21 Recipes)

*Info on the link between Vit. D and Psoriasis
**Medical Study of B12 cream containing Avocado Oil to treat Psoriasis

More Great Info on THIS SITE (University of Maryland Medical Center)
The National Psoriasis Foundation also has a discussion board that many may find very helpful.

Milk Kefir and Strep Throat

My daughter recently came down with strep throat.  Kefir has shown in studies to combat the strep bacteria.  It has never been tested on humans but we have relied on drinking kefir twice now when a person in my household had strep and I have never caught the infection.

Here is a great link about kefir.
Also a link to more benefits which go far beyond combating streptococcus bacteria.
And Another Link.

Milk Kefir Troubles

Over the past months I hadn't made milk kefir.  I simply left my grains in the fridge and changed the milk every once in a while in hopes the grains would survive until life settled down and I had time to make it daily.  When left in the fridge the kefir grains go into a type of hibernation.  If left in the cold too long they will lose this ability to culture properly and will eventually die.  I finally got around to wanting to make my milk kefir on a regular basis but my grains didn't seem to want to come back to life.  I had taken them in and out of the fridge a few too many times and so my milk kept spoiling.  Rather than the sweet smell of kefir it would smell like horrid sour milk.  It wouldn't thicken properly and simply separated rather than becoming thickened first.  It also would have a yellowish colour on the top.  I pitched my grains and got some more that I had given my Mom.  SHe had also left hers in the fridge but had never taken them in and out as I had.  At first the grains didn't want to culture properly.  I decided it might help them activate if I added some existing healthy kefir.  So I purchased some from the local store, which is what I had been doing while they sat in the fridge all those months (what a waste of money).  I added my grains to the store bought kefir and also added milk.  My measurements were approx 2tsp grains (3 average size grains) to 1/3c store bought kefir and 1/3c organic milk.  Within a few batches it smelled beautiful!!  It was thickening nicely and tasted as it should.  I am now getting about 2c of milk kefir every 24hrs.  I do believe that the store bough kefir helped the grains get back to their regular culture.  They are growing rapidly and I am back into full swing!

Harvest of 2013

Throughout the summer of 2013 the new garden provided much nourishment for me and the kids.  From beets to zucchinis, we grew quite an array of produce and the gardens did quite well for our first year here.

Mustard Greens, spinach and musclun mix and baby chard.

                 Spaghetti squash

                                                                                                             fresh basil

Brandywine tomato

              This is a golden midget melon!

Well into the fall I was still able to harvest some lovely goodies!
FYI: Green tomatoes when picked will continue to ripen when left out on a window sill in warm temperatures.
NEVER throw away your unripened tomatoes!!!!

The beginning of a new Era

I purchased my home which is on a small lot but with a decent about of gardening space.  I moved in at the beginning of march 2013 and was able to get my gardens growing in spite of how crazy things were in my life.  Gardening brings me peace of mind and I find it very cathartic.  Here are just a few pics of my gardens from last year.  I won't go into much detail about things because it was last year and I am currently in full swing with my seedlings and planting for this year!  

Cukes, Zucchini, tomatoes, mint

lettuce on the rise.

 Strawberries (which over winter were destroyed by the dog.  :(

 Pease and Beans

2 varieties of spinach

Neglected Blog

My oh my has so much changed.  The last year has been a bit of a whirl wind.  A lot of family changes and yet another move… thats right, another move.  The BTC Acre was such a wonderful idea yet the dream has taken a bit of a detour.  Aaron and I separated and sold our perfect home and moved into separate homes in the city.  *GASP*  The chickens and ducks were sold and we have moved on.  My dream of a homestead is simply put on hold for the time being.  I needed to be in the city where I have a good support system of friends and family.  I moved in March of last year (2013) and still managed to have a decent garden at my new home.  It wasn't BTC acre but it was a nice start for my new home in the city.  I have become a member of the Chicken Co-op yet again and still get out to visit with our original 4 Barred Rock hens as well as the rest of the big flock that is out there now.  My goals in life are still the same, there has just been a few detours along my path.

I have a file on my computer with many pictures and post ideas that I just never got around to writing and so I will be back dating many posts so that it all makes sense and in chronological order.  So from August 2012 I hopefully will be filling in the blanks over the next few weeks.

 

Winter with Birds

The winter with the birds seemed to fly by.  The daily was going through some major changes and plans to sell the birds had already been put into place.  Regardless of this, I loved these birds throughout the winter.  There were no major issues throughout the cold months.  It was a mild winter for my area but we still had a few cold spells and some major dumps as far as snow fall goes.  The main issue in the cold months was of course water.  I managed to bring the large waterer with warm water every morning and afternoon and the birds would empty it before it froze each time… thanks to the ducks.  When building the coop we were sure to not have any low drafts and made the roosts flat so the birds would could keep their entire feet under their bodies rather than having to wrap their feet around a circular type roost.

If you have ever seen ducks or chickens in the cold you have seen how they will keep one foot tucked under their body for warmth while perched on one leg and then they switch.  During sleep it is difficult for the birds to do this so it is important to have a flat surface for them to roost.  

As for laying, the birds didn't slow down too much over the winter months.  They had been well into their fertile months and only slowed down moderately.  I usually got just under a dozen a day.  We also had a bird who laid double yolks on a regular basis.  The eggs were far larger than the rest, more like a duck egg, and the yolks were usually a fair size… poor girl.  

It was late in february that the birds were sold.  The chickens went to a local farmer who wanted to add to his flock and saw our for sale sign.  He stopped in one day and offered to take (for a price) the birds if we needed to rehome them.  The ducks also went to a different local farmer who added to their existing flock.  If only I were able to have some birds in the city… I would most certainly have 4-6 birds in my side yard… on day I'll be back on a property where I can have a flock, but until then its back to the Coop Co-Op.  

 

Foamy Pekin Duck Eye

One of my Pekin ducks got an infection in his eye.  This is a very common ailment with ducks in colder months because of the lack of water to bathe properly.  Typically, it is easy to manage with some TLC.  We purchased some saline solution and I would go outside 3x a day and squirt it in his eyes.  I would never rub them or touch them, you wouldn't want to irritate it further.  Foamy eyes can often be signs of a upper respiratory infection if accompanied by any combination of sneezing, wheezing, runny nose, diarrhea or lethargy.  If any of these symptoms are present further treatment and a vet visit may be necessary.  This guy didn't have any other symptoms aside from the foamy eye and it was within a day or two that I could see significant improvement in his eye after the saline treatment.

Once this infection occurred I would often (once a week or so) bring out warm buckets of water for the ducks to simply dunk their heads in and give themselves a quick rinse.   

Here are 2 links with some of the common duck ailments/issues:

http://www.callducks.net/ducksail.htm

http://www.duckhealth.com/duckhlth.html

A New Family Member

A close friend of mine decided to find a new home for her dwarf Norwegian Rabbit.  I of course jumped at the opportunity to take her!  I am very allergic to rabbits, but this would not stop me… after all I am allergic to birds as well.  As long as I remember to wash my hands after handling, I am typically fine with all animals.  So here is Ruby!

The kids are huge fans of Max and Ruby so of course our white bunny needed to be named Ruby.    

Even Winston was a fan of our new bunny!

Ruby would remain part of the inside family and was never outside with the birds.  Meat rabbits is something I would consider in future… but not Ruby and certainly not her breed.

Eggs, Eggs, Eggs!

A few of our first chicken eggs!

Our birds started laying between 18-20 weeks old.  It started with a few eggs a day and quickly escalated to around a dozen a day at least.  As usual, the first few eggs were smaller and often misshapen.  Duck eggs didn't appear until 25 weeks or so.  The duck eggs were beautiful!!  About the size of 1.5 regular size chicken eggs and speckled.

Here is a duck egg between 2 chicken eggs.

To compare duck eggs to chicken eggs in flavour, for me duck yolks were far superior in flavour.  Duck yolks seemed to have a much richer flavour.   Duck eggs are also higher in Omega-3's and last longer.  But… when it comes to the whites, I actually prefer chicken egg whites.  The duck whites have a different texture which was a bit tougher than chicken whites and they just seemed to have less flavour to me.  In a nutshell, if I want dippy eggs for bacon I'll go with duck eggs.  If I'm wanting scrambled eggs or omelette I'll have chicken eggs.

Here is the nutritional breakdown of Duck eggs vs. Chicken eggs (Source):

Chicken Egg, Large, Raw

Chicken Egg Caloric Ration

Chicken eggs (large egg, 50g):

• Calories: 71
• Total Fat: 5g
• Cholesterol: 211mg
• Sodium: 70mg
• Total Carbohydratge: 0g
• Protein: 6g

Duck Egg, Raw

Duck Egg Caloric Ratio

Duck eggs (70g):

• Calories: 130
• Total Fat: 10g
• Cholesterol: 619mg
• Sodium: 102mg
•  Total Carbohydrate: 1g
• Protein: 9g

Now, here are some photos of the flock once they were all laying:

One of our Columbian Rocks… tied with Barred Rocks as my favourite!  The were so sweet and every time I would bend over in the run they would take the opportunity to roost on my back!

A Poisonous mushroom was growing rampant in the yard.
I made sure to remove any that were growing in the birds run, although through instinct, they knew not to eat them.
I believe it to be a:  Fly Agaric, Amanita muscaria

The Fly Agaric is a common white mushroom with an orangish to red cap. This is the species illustrated in many fairy tales (it occurs both in North America and Europe). Many mushrooms in this genus are extremely poisonous.

Some yummy snacks from the kitchen.  Chickens really do make the best garbage disposals.

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Sam The Clock

"Sam The Clock" named by our son.   He was boss of the chickens but certainly not the ducks.  

Sam was the Rooster and he was a Barred Rock.  He was the keeper of the flock and the wakeup call in the morning…. and the afternoon…. and sometimes even in the middle of the night.  He was boss of the chickens, indeed, but certainly not the ducks.
As he grew he became a bit aggressive.  We loved taking the kids into the run to pet the birds and chase them around.  Once Sam started getting aggressive we stopped bringing the kids into the run.  He liked to jump at us and try to get our legs with his claws.  When he decided to attack my leg and give me a nasty cut it was decided that he would have to become dinner.  He was a decent weight so one night Aaron, for the first time, harvested a bird.  I'm a bit of a softy so I wasn't present until the bird looked more like food.  I helped with some of the plucking and cleaning and we ended up with Sam on our table.  Surprisingly, the kids were very ok with this process.  Megan was a bit young and may not have fully understood but Owen certainly did and was not bothered by it at all.

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Bird of Prey

We had an issue with a bird of prey in the summer of 2012.  We are not sure what kind of bird but we believe it was a hawk.  One day on my way home from getting our son from school I noticed all the birds were inside the coop.  Upon further investigation I then noticed one of our female rouen ducks on the ground and had been killed by something.  I quickly looked around and saw a very large bird high up in a tree near the creek.  I assume this was the culprit.  I sent the kids inside and I disposed of the duck.  The rouen ducks were my absolute favourite and I was so sad to see one go this way.  I began to make more frequent appearances outside and also got a fake Owl to set in a tree in the yard and I moved it around regularly.  I saw the bird in the same tree a few times but it never took another bird, thankfully.

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Fly By Summer

As much work as a garden can be, it is well worth the reward! We got a late start this year due to the move but we have managed to get a decent yield so far considering! 

   

              

   

We recently harvested some radishes and plan to make a radish relish. We have harvested a bunch of zucchini so far and had a surplus which we pickled and canned.  We also had a bunch of garlic scopes from our CSA and pickled them as well. 

I haven't done much critter maintenance other than sprinkling some diatomaceous earth, an herb mixture (mint, thyme and sage) along with my garlic pepper spray around the plants and beds. So far damage has been minimal.

We have had a few storms with pretty gusty wind and our trellises have held up to the challenge. Although, my yellow brandywine tomatoes have been struggling this year for some unknown reason.  As for the other varieties, they are doing well and producing many tomatoes which are almost ready for eating; can't wait!    

Tomato Trellis

Cucumber Trellis

The CSA we purchase from at our local farmers market has been wonderful.  We go every Saturday morning and pick up our share and shop at some of the other local venders.  My only complaint is that there has been many repeats and many boxes contain much of the same things in them.  I would love it if there were a bit more variety which I know is available since there is a large share which often contains produce which we have yet to receive in our small share.  Aside form that, I have been quite pleased with the quality and amount given with regards to the cost.

It is just about time now for some second planting to happen!  There is a few spaces around the garden that are just waiting for something to be planted.  In the next week or so I hope to get some beets in the ground and possibly some mustard greens.