"Gypsy gold does not chink and glitter. It gleams in the sun and neighs in the dark."

~ Saying of the Gladdagh Gypsies of Galway


Tuesday, February 28, 2012

On being a Mom...

Many people tell you your life will change forever once you have a child. Biggest understatement I have ever heard if I do say so myself. I don't believe anyone can ever explain what 'your life will change forever' truly means until you have experienced it for yourself.

For the past 356 days, my life has changed, drastically, in so many ways. And many of these ways are silent to everyone but myself, and sometimes my husband who gets dealt the brunt of my sporadic emotional fits!

I long for a full nights sleep. But, for as long as I live, I doubt I will experience this again. A restless night doesn't end when my baby stops teething. I envision nights ahead laying awake while my child grows in leaps and bounds. Starting school, catching colds, making friends, turning into a teenager [lord help me], driving [lord help me], going to college, moving out....you catch my drift.

Everything I do today, for the past 356 days, always goes right in line with thinking of my kid. Some things I may have done before, without thought, now creates a moment of pause. Reminding myself I have a child now, who needs me, who depends on me. And I need to make sure my decisions are smart for no other reason than because I need to be here for my child.

They say when you have a baby, you life will change forever. Yes, you will have someone to care for. Diapers to change, bottles to make, teaching to do. But really, it is so much more.

Monday, February 27, 2012

It's like Groundhog Day...


This is what our nights and weekends consist of at the moment.
We'll, 'our' wouldn't be politically correct. More like, 'Allen'!

It's hard for me to get out and help him in this weather since I can't have the baby sitting out there with us!


Every morning he tells me he dreamt about apple trees during the night!


But, the good news [I think] is, he only has about 20 trees left. They are all the monster trees he saved for last! ;)



Saturday, February 25, 2012

Seen it all?


I have learned that you really will never see it all!
Though, finding a metal 'caution' triangle in a hay bale, presumably from the tractor that was baling, was certainly baffling...until I put two and two together!


And then hubby opened up this bale to feed and found a dead.baby.skunk inside. Nice. Now I have seen 'a lot' when it comes to surprises in hay bales. This would be like finding a needle in a hay stack!




Friday, February 24, 2012

Real Food: Dinners

Maybe it's just me, but I hear topics about 'real' food and 'whole' foods come up more and more lately. I was in line at the library the other day checking out Heidi Swanson's books (love, by the way) and I noticed the lady in line behind me scoping out what I had. She then just asked me which books they were, showed me she was in line to check out the DVD Knives over Forks, and the conversation went from there, as you can imagine!

Lots of people think I am crazy when I talk about how we eat and what we don't eat, or try not too. Usually, I get more murmurs and looks when it is in regards to feeding my son, more so than myself and my husband, but none the less. I don't police your plate, so don't police mine. Ok, anyways -- before I get off on a soap box!.....

I was talking to a co-worker of mine and this kind of topic came up. He mentioned his family really tries to eat healthy, but it is hard. Fair enough, I can understand that. And it amazes me how mislead marketing has people - sad really. Especially since I make a living in a professional marketing field ;) At the root of our conversation, after discussing how we don't eat cereal (as in Fruit Loops, Coco Puffs....), in which he was floored, he wanted to know "So, what do you eat?" "What do you eat of any sustenance?What do you make for dinner?"

I thought I'd share here, what I told him, in hopes that it will show even one more person it can be easy. Sometimes it takes a few more minutes than a frozen meal, but it is worth the extra few minutes. So, here is an idea of a weeknight run down of dinners for us.

Monday - Pork Chops in Cream Caper Sauce (I wasn't lying when I said we eat this dish at least once every other week!)
Tuesday - Roasted [Whole] Chicken with a veg & rice or mashed potato's
Wednesday - Leftover Chicken turned into eggrolls or chicken salad - depends what is in the cupboard!
Thursday - Pan fried (in coconut oil!) cubed steaks with sweet potato baked fries and sauteed garlic spinach - sounds kinda fancy, but super fast and super easy!
Friday - Salmon baked in foil with steamed broccoli & rice -- lots of butter on the veg & rice!

Seriously, these are all pretty quick and easy meals. Aside for the cook time for the whole roasted chicken, these meals can be on the table in under an hour. And if you aren't a fan of some of the options, let me throw out a few more, off the top of my head, that are super easy in a crock pot! How about: Shredded Beef Tacos or Winter Pot Roast with Parsnips & Carrots!

So, what do you think? Easy enough? What is a 'real' meal you make for your family regularly, on a busy weeknight?

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Versatile Blogger Award

Lisa at Country Kids Farm has given me the Versatile Blogger Award.

I was just rolling in the 'blogger awards' this past week :) Thank you!!

With this award, I am to mention seven random things about myself (see below) and then pass the award on to 15 other bloggers.

Hmmm, so, 7 random things about me?

1. I am not really a fan of chocolate.

2. I hate wearing lipstick, hence, I don't! Just chapstick over here!

3. When I was in college, I couldn't wait to get a 'real job' so I could 'dress up' instead of wearing jeans and t-shirts all the time. *Note to my college self - you were an idiot!!!

4. After this past weekend, I have had my tarot cards read twice. And I will do it again, for sure!

5. In no particular relation to #4, I love the smell of patchouli. Every time I see my one sister, she wants to know what smells like a hippie.

6. I have a patchouli plant. It is my second one. They are not the easiest plant for me but I am determined...if my dang cat would stop rubbing on it. I guess she likes the smell of patchouli too.

7. My socks rarely match my outfit :) And I'm cool with that.


And now, I am passing this off to a few blogs that I enjoy reading!

Throwback Road
My Mother's Apron Strings
Indigo's Sugar Spectrum
Real Food Freaks
Life on a Southern Farm
Katiegirl


Thank you again, Lisa, for the award :)


Monday, February 20, 2012

Blog Love Tagged

Melissa over at Sky Minded & Ever Growing tagged me in a recent blog love post and someone she thought was interesting! I must say, I quite enjoy her blog as well; her gardening adventures, beekeeping and chicken adventures!

So, now that I've been tagged, I get to answer the 11 questions she has set forth for me. Questions like this usually stump me!


1. Where is your favourite place in the world? Tell us why?
I don't think I have visited enough places to answer that -- there are many places I envision as being wonderful nooks I'd love! But, two of my most favorite places to be at any given moment are in the pasture watching the horses graze during summer and at the foot of my sons crib in the morning when he wakes up and gives me a huge smile!

2. What person has inspired you most?
Tough...tough tough tough! How can I answer this! :) I have had different people inspire me in different ways. This is really a tough one.

3. Who would you like to have over for dinner (famous or not, currently living or not)?
Easy - my maternal grandparents. My grandmother passed when I was maybe 5ish and my grandfather when I was in 5th grade, I believe.

4. Where were you born?
Cleveland, OH

5. City, coast or country?
Country

6. What is the best surprise you've ever had?
That I was right all along, it was a boy!

7. What is your favorite song and why?
I don't have just one favorite, however two cd's I can play from track to track over and over and always love -- Mumford & Sons 'Sigh No More' and Our Lady Peace 'A Decade'

8. What are you most passionate about?
Is this a trick question to get me on a hundred soap boxes?
Animal Rescue & Welfare, Sustainability, Being Green, Grow Your Own & No GMO's :)

9. What were you like as a 3 year old? (as far as you know)
Mom? care to answer in the comments? :) My guess would be, outgoing.

10. Describe your most cherished photograph?
Hmmm, I don't know that I have a most cherished -- I'd have to think about that.

11. What have you done that you are the most proud of?
Got myself to where I am thus far in my life!

===

Sunday, February 19, 2012

Link Loitering

I hope everyone has been enjoying their weekend. We've been busy busy. We are not even half way through pruning the orchard, which is a little behind at this point in February, for us.

I have been milling through this cook book and I am loving it! Super Natural Cooking: Five Delicious Ways to Incorporate Whole and Natural Foods into Your Cooking
Find out how many CAFO's (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations) are in your area - you might be shocked!

Who hasn't heard about this yet? If that was my kid and his lunch, a school would have one pissed off Mama on their hands!!!!

Farms NEED cold winters! Especially the orchards! And this one has me a tad worried!

Crop rotation on organic farms -- free download! Check it out!!

I have been reading this book in prep for our first set of chicks -- it's a good book! The Joy of Keeping Chickens: The Ultimate Guide to Raising Poultry for Fun or Profit (The Joy of Series)

Happy Sunday everyone :)

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Milestone: 11 Months


How has it already been 11 months??

 See any resemblance here?


Dang is that a cute kid! But I am probably biased!





Definitely gets the facial expressions from Mommy!

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Stretching a Meal: Chili

In trying to adapt a 'real food' diet in our home, many challenges present themselves along the way. Lunch can be one of them with both my husband and I working outside the home.  When I make dinner, I try to make things that will leave leftovers for at least me to take to lunch. Here is one meal that will stretch you a few days with pantry staples!



Dinner: Make up your favorite batch of chili & cornbread. Cook a package of spaghetti noodles up too; these will be used with tomorrow's lunch.

Lunch next day: Chili on top of spaghetti noodles, topped with cheese and sour cream for some Cincinnati style chili! I use these small canning jars to carry condiments for my lunch if I don't want to mix them in when I pack it.

Lunch day 2: By now you may have had enough Chili , especially if you stretched it more than a day! Let's completely change things up and move on to something with an Asian flare! Use up the rest of your cooked noodles to make yourself an Asian Noodle Salad for lunch!

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Easy [Real Food] Weeknight Meal: Pasta Alfredo

There are many versions of Homemade Alfredo sauce floating around in cookbooks and websites. This is my take. It is super easy and the ingredients are all pantry staples for me so it makes for a quick weeknight meal. You can jazz it up many ways which is always a bonus. . And remember, it is made with REAL food, so though you might be counting calories, these are HEALTHY calories. Just try to not eat it every day - though that may be hard :)

Homemade Alfredo

12 oz Pasta Noodles of your choice ( you can do 8 oz of noodles, one box, and you'll have a little more saucy pasta. It will also serve less. 12 oz of noddles serves hubby and I am leaves lunch leftovers)
4 tbsp butter
1 clove garlic, diced*
1 small shallot, diced*
1 cup whipping cream
1 cup whole milk
1.5 cup shredded Parmesan Cheese (I recommend getting a nice hard chunk to shave, rather than use the proceesed, preshredded kind in a baggie. Trust me, you will taste the difference)
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt + (add more if you feel it is needed, to taste)

*these are optional but I like to add them

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I do this in one pot to save on clean up, but it takes some extra time since you have to wait for the noodle to boil. If you are in a real hurry, use two pots/pans so you can make the sauce while the noodles cook.

Bring pot of water to a boil with some salt and olive oil. Cook noodles. While noodles cook, dice your garlic and shallot and grate your cheese. Pick up the child hanging from your leg, turn on the radio and have a dance party while you feed him pieces of the shaved cheese. Get your servings of milk & cream ready and set aside your s&p.

Once noodles are cooked, drain and set aside in your colander. Place pot back on stove (I use my Le Cruset 'knock-off' dutch oven! LOVE IT!) and melt butter. Add your garlic and shallot and stir continuously for a minute or two until it smells heavenly. Be careful not to burn. Medium heat should work fine. Then, pour in your milk and cream, add your s&p and bring to a boil. Then, take heat down to medium and stir almost constantly until the mixture thickens some - about 5 minutes. Now, remove from the heat, stir in your cheese to melt and then give it a taste to see if any more seasoning is needed.

Once cheese is melted in, add in your noddles and mix well to incorporate. Enjoy!

# Additions I like to add to this when I can are steamed broccoli. The Babe LOVES the broccoli with the alfredo sauce on it. No joke, he screams when he is ready for another piece. Other options would be to add chicken or shrimp...or jazz up the sauce a tad with some herbs. I have mentioned a time or two my husband isn't big on the herbs so this is one dish I keep pretty simple and it wins every time. And it's super easy to make.

If you are still stumped on what to whip up tonight for a Valentine's Day meal - this would be a good choice!

Monday, February 13, 2012

I Have Experience Raising...Horses

I have some confidence in my knowledge of raising a 'being' from birth - one problem...that 'being' is a horse!

Raising a HUMAN 'being' is uncharted territory for me and so every day is a new learning experience.


Circa June 2007, Newborn Colt Sprite with Hubby & I at H.O.P.E. Horse Rescue.

Horse has the runs? No problem, give 'em some Pepto and monitor their bowel movements.
     Child has the runs? Get out the medical dictionary....

Horse is hungry? Must be feeding time. Throw 'em some hay and grain (or whatever their diet consists of)
     Child is hungry? How old is said child? Are they allergic to anything? Are they to young for solids? For food? Are you out of formula? Did they just drain your boob half hour ago?

Horse needs to burn some energy? Turn 'em out in the pasture if going for a ride isn't an option.
     Child needs to burn some energy? Well, I haven't quite reached that milestone yet! He still cannot walk.

Horse needs to move? Cluck to them as you place pressure /guide them where they need to go.
     Child needs to move? Cluck at them and they stare at you in wonder and amazement....

Horse has done something wrong/unacceptable? Reprimand within 3 seconds and give a stern 'eh-eh'.
     Child is grabbing you cat by the back leg/hanging from a bathroom drawer he pulled out/trying to reach the hot water spicket on the water cooler/eating a leaf at the back door/hanging from the dogs collar.... give a stern 'eh-eh' and I *think* he is catching my drift....

Looks like I have a long ways to go, but if my child learns to speak 'horse', I think we might be ok!

Circa March 2011 - Introducing the newborn babe to the horses!

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Dreaming of Spring

We have had a very mild winter thus far, however, this past weekend the temps dropped and the snow fell. NOW it feels like winter. And, it is about that time of year where we really start dreaming of Spring over here at Apolloson Acres. I am tired of the windows being closed up. I was to to open them and air out the house. I want to walk outside barefoot! I want fresh veggies from the garden! And I want to see the horses romping in the pasture.

Dreaming of Spring...









I have linked this post up with Rural Thursday Blog Hop!
_

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Seed Orders 2012

I FINALLY got my seed orders placed -- well, almost. Seed Savers website isn't cooperating at the moment, but I just needed a few things from there. Try to decide on varieties is awful! That Baker Creek catalog and their squash and tomato selections give me anxiety! Can't I just try them ALL!

Here is my order -- my husband said I am nuts! But I am determined to have good crops of ALL this!


This was my Baker Creek Order

Golden Wax Bush Bean

Romanesco Italia Broccoli

Danvers 126 Half Long Carrot

Alaska Garden Pea

Cocozella Di Napoli
Early Prolific Straightneck Squash
Butternut Waltham Squash

Long Island Cheese Pumpkin

Table Queen Bush Squash

Five Color Silver Beet Chard

San Marzano Lungo No. 2 Tomato

Jujube Cherry Tomato

Grace Lahman's Pink

Black Early Tomato

Cuor Di Bue Tomato

Bread and Salt Tomato


Purple of Sicily Cauliflower
Bull's Blood Beet
Tendercrisp Celery

Golden Bantam 12-Row Corn



And this was my order from Peaceful Valley
Organic Bean, Bush Black Turtle
Organic Cucumber, National Pickling

Organic Cucumber, Muncher

Sunflower, Autumn Beauty

Organic Parsnip, Turga

Yarrow, White

Zinnia, California Mix
Coneflower, Black Sampson

Coneflower, Purple
Organic Bean, Bush Tendergreen

 
Should the Seed Savers site and my pc decide to cooperate ;) I plan to order a Romaine variety lettuce from them as well as Calendula.
 
For onions this year, I decided I only will try a few from seed with the seeds I have left from last year. Instead, I am hoping for better luck with the sets I ordered from Dixondale Farms.
 
 
I also have some seeds from trades I made over the past year, including the seeds I received from Suzanne. She sent me seeds for Asparagus, Squash, Cherry tom's, Butternet and Zulu pumpkins.
 
So what kinds of things are you planting this year? Trying anything new?
 

Friday, February 10, 2012

Link Loitering

Here are some great tips on cooking with/using Coconut Oil.

Homemade Chocolate Pudding Snack Packs! For real!! I made them for our lunches this week and they rock!

Great easy read article on 4 major cooking mistakes and how to fix them!

Seasonal Food Chart - very cool :)


Have you ordered your heirloom 'mater seeds yet? If not, check this out first!


Check out this cutie in his 'chick' pants -- actually they are ducks, but since we just placed our chick order, he is celebrating! Ok, really he isn't. He's been sick all week and I am delirious. TGIF...TGIF!



Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Guest Post: Jen's Chicken Adventure!


My good friend Jen knows what a nut I am, and she is still my friend. I told her about a book I was reading called 'real food'. She took my word for it and checked it out at her library - maybe this means she is a nut too?

Anyways, as I go on this real food journey, I share all kinds of things with her. Some things she buys, and others she thinks I really am crazy! BUT, she kicked her coffee habit completely - bless her. I ain't doing that! AND she roasted a while chicken, made broth and my chicken soup recipe!

While she was at the grocery store, she sent me 509 text messages asking questions like "What do I need to roast a Chicken? They are on sale so I am going to try this", and "I don't have lemons, can't I just use lemon juice?"

So I asked Jen to document her process so we can share just how easy this really is. If there is one thing you can and [probably] should change in your diet, it is eating canned soups and using boxed broth. It is SO much better for you to make your own. Jen and I got on this topic after she stocked up on Campbell's Chicken Soup - she probably wanted to kill me after our conversation, but I think I have converted her :) And if Jen and I can do this, so can you! When we were in college, the mere touch of a naked chicken breast on my cutting board made me gag! Jen used to laugh while I tried to cut it up!

So, let's follow Jen's journey on her first time roasting a whole chicken, making the broth and homemade chicken noodle soup!


Look at how cute! She has her Chicken, her lemons (note: not lemon juice!) and her S&P.


 This is her eldest of 3 boys, Landon.
While Jen was attempting this whole charade, during each step, Landon would ask 100 'why' questions and Jen's respose was "Because Allison said this is how" :)


Check it out. She even buttered her roasting pan with BUTTER! Yeee-haw!


And she prepared the veggies for her stock by sauting them up!


 Jen chose the crock-pot method for her broth. She didn't want to leave it on her stove overnight. I can understand that. I didn't want to do that either, but after the first time I did try it that way, I won't go back! My crock pot seems to let too much water evaporate. But you do what works for you!

It is important to note that while Jen was consumed with this process, her youngest of 3 sons, Brayden, threw-up in his high chair! So, she had to pause to take care of that mess. I know, that was a gross thing to include in a post about food, but my point is, she STILL was able to accomplish this! That is how easy it is :)


 Look at that beautiful bird :) Pretty nice for a first try, eh?
Looks like Jen is a professional chicken roaster!


And here, she is ready to start her stock! She said it was so easy and she let her crockpot go for 8 hours.


Jen is not a lemon person so next time, she said she'll use one lemon, if any, in the chicken when she roasts it. However, the kids LOVED the leftover lemon in water. :)


And here is her Chicken Noodle Soup. Jen is a bow-tie kinda gal, so those are the noodles she used :)

So, Jen's thoughts on all this:

Did you like the soup?: Yes I loved it!
Was it easy? Will you do it again?: I would say it was very easy, especially the roasting part. I put the carcas, etc in the crockpot for 8 hours because I didn't want to leave the stove on all night. When my Mom makes hers she puts in strings of spinach, I was mad I forgot that but that would be good too. I would do it again because I love to have the chicken for chicken salad, to put on my salad, for chicken wraps, etc and literally it cost me like $4!

Yahoo! Proof that real food and cooking from scratch is easy and affordable!
Next up Jen, we'll get you to cook up some Salmon :)

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Fruit Tree Pruning Q&A

Last week I posted some photos of trees in the orchard that hubby had started pruning. I had some questions so I thought I would do a Q&A style post to help with answering these questions. We have a long way to go before pruning is complete so please don't hesitate to ask more questions - I have plenty more photo opps to go along with another post, if need be!

---

Allen said that his grandfather always would say you want to be able to throw a hat clear through the tree. I take this to mean bare is good. Cut those limbs off, baby!

In our area (NE Ohio) we prune anytime between January and March.

I should start by telling you that we have an old orchard. Some trees are estimated to be 10-15 years old, and others 20+ years old. When we purchased our property, the trees hadn't been pruned/tended to for at least 5 years - at least! They were kind of a mess. And in that time, some limbs had grown from suckers to full fledged fruit bearing limbs. A lot of our trees are not trimmed in 'normal fashion'. This could be a good thing, or a bad thing. Depends on how you look at it.

In this photo below, this is kinda of the idea on ideally, how you want your tree to be formed.
You want your large, main 'branch', which is called the Central Leader. This is the branch at the foundation of your tree that runs from ground to top.

From your central leader, you then want Levels. Depending on  your tree and the size, you want probably about 3 levels on average. As I mentioned before, most of our trees aren't average due to the years they went without maintenance. If you go to an orchard that has maintained their trees from the start, you will see what I mean. If you can tell in this photo, the pink arrows point out the first level of brances, the yellow the second level of branches. You don't want the level above to shawdow out the level below - they need to receive even amounts of sun. Think of it as a compass - if level one has branches facing North & South, then you want Level 2's branches to face West & East - makes sense?

You will also see the 'odd limb'. This was most likely a sucker that grew into a full sized limb during the time this orchard wasn't tended to. When we came in and started putting it back into production, we had some mentoring for an 'apple expert'. He took HUGE cuts  - like chainsaw sized cuts - to all the trees in multiples. So, this one could probably go now and just didn't go then because of the sheer amount of other limbs that most likely went in its place!


Don't be afraid of 'big cuts'. One year, or two, you might leave a branch and by the third of fourth year, decide it doesn't need to be there - so cut it!  Less is more with the trees. Too many limbs and you are taking away from the quality of apple that will grow. Many limbs = many [smaller] apples. Think quality versus quantity.

This photo below shows a tree that looks rather bare - and it is! It was just pruned. You will also notice this tree doesn't really have a central leader. It has multiple smaller branches so we make do with what is has.


Below is the same tree as above, pruned, with an unpruned tree pictured in the right - 'Tree #2'. Can you see the difference between the pruned and unpruned tree?


Below is another tree already pruned. Again, no central leader on this one, but you can see the tree seems bare. No excess of suckers.


Speaking of suckers...
Below this is actuall a Quince tree and these are nortorious [at least in our orchard] for sprouting all kinds of suckers at the base every year. GET RID OF THOSE BAD BOYS!! If you garden, they make great trellis material! When they are at the base level, you can carefully take a chain saw to them if you prefer.


Below is a photo of one of the aisle in the orchard - pre-pruning. Once they are all pruned, I will take the same shot again. It will be a fe weeks though. These are some of the tougher trees in the orchard due to their massive size and suckers. We save the best for last!

This is really just a dip into fruit pruning territory and there is so  much more we could disucss. These are the basic though that should help you out to start. Please feel free to ask more questions and we are happy to help you out any way we can.



Tami asks: I have 3 apples trees and 1 peach that are only a few years old. Two are going into their 3 year and I hope to prune this weekend. Any tips to offer? It's good to see that you don't have to allow the tree to get HUGE to bear fruit. I'd like to keep them reasonable size wise.
ANSWER: Tami, hubby says that since your trees are younger, you really don't need to [most likely] trim a lot. What you want to do is choose suckers (not at the base, but within the tree) that you can coach to become real limbs. You will want to bend them out and under another branch to help them form a paralell stance. If you don't have other limbs to tuck it under yet, you can tie a piece of string to the end of it with a small weight of some sort (nut, bolt or something of the nature can do the trick) to help coach the limb to grow paralell to the ground. My mom has young trees...I will see if I can take some pictures later in the week for you to give you an idea with a younger tree.

Roberta asks: I know nada about trees, esp fruit bearing ones. I take it you do not want those multiple tall thin growths on the trees - do they take away nutrients for the apples?
ANSWER: Roberta, yes. You want some, but as your tree grows and matures, less is more. Otherwise you will have a tree full of branches competing with each other.

Golden Oldies Farm asks: Do you recommend any books on orcharding?
ANSWER: One book we liked that keep things fairly simple was 'Backyard Fruit Production' by David Schlabach, but otherwise, our local extension office provided the best info along with a few fruit tree pruning clinics we attended at other area orchards. Look into larger orchards in your area to see if they offer any.


Monday, February 6, 2012

Happy as...Clams?

No doubt this unseasonably warm weather has been a nice treat for most.


But for the horses, ehhh, not so much.
They are cooped up in the barn.

I am pretty sure they are not estatic about this current situation, but I am also pretty certain, come Summer, if they had no grass to graze on all day, they'd be even less thrilled than they are now!

You see, right now the pastures are mud holes. Putting a 1100# animal out on this results in an even larger mud hole which, in turn, results in ruining the grass. In other words, there will be no grass in the summer if they are allowed to tear up the place now.

So, they hang in the barn. And I must say, for being cooped up, they behaved very nicely while the farrier was over to trim their hooves :)

A strange stillness dwells in the eye of the horse, a composure that appears to regard the world from a measured distance…It is a gaze from the depths of a dream… -Hans-Heinrich Isenbart

Sunday, February 5, 2012

Priceless...


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Click on photo for larger image
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Saturday, February 4, 2012

Link Loitering

If you ever weren't sure about the harmful effects of BPA, this article will set you straight.

Tumeric - the wonder herb/spice.



Need a reason why you should shop at local business?

Have you ever doubted that Dr. Oz was crazy? Then READ THIS! It's all about big Pharm and paychecks people *sigh*

This 'elixir' sounds wonderful. I am going to try it this weekend :)