We Interrupt Homesteading . . .

The past three days are now kind of a groggy blur.  I've done a lot of traveling in that time, and not any homesteading.

First, DS2 was down to Ohio for a competition of colleges.  Back in the fall, when he first started his college life 500 miles away, one of the first things he did was join a group called "Concrete Canoe".  As a first-year student, he was at the bottom of the ladder in the group, but he still gave it his all, attending paddling practices in the canal until it froze up, then moving indoors to the college's Olympic size swimming pool.  He helped with hull designing, he helped build prototypes, he helped build the actual competition canoe.  Because he's a first year, he didn't get to paddle in the competition, but he did get to go as support and for experience.

DH & I went to see DS2, and to get our curiosity satisfied over this concrete boat stuff, of which we'd been hearing since August.  I have to say, we weren't disappointed.  It was a very neat experience, and an enjoyable excursion.

The day started as cool, overcast and windy.  As the hours went by, the clouds burned off, the sun came out, and the temperature rose to over seventy degrees.  I loved the sunshine.  Unfortunately, I did not even think of sunscreen, so I came home from that day with a face about the color of a cooked lobster.  With the exception of the wide band where my sunglasses had been.  That was white, like a mask.  I guess you could say it was an April Fools prank I inadvertently played on myself.  Because it sure looked foolish.

The good news is that DS2's college dominated that competition.  They won every single race with their concrete canoe.  In the three non-race areas: Design Paper, Oral Presentation and Overall Design (which includes the hull design, the actual construction and the finished appearance of the canoe) they got first, third and first.  They were the Overall Winners of the Regional competition, and will head to Nevada for Nationals in June.

the prototype, made of wood

the competition boat, made of special concrete and with finished paint job

the compass rose painted inside the boat

dominating the girls' sprint race

dominating the co-ed sprint race

turning on the turbo boosters for the final part of the co-ed sprint

After the concrete canoe competition, DH & I returned home to pick up DD1 to take her for a college visit.  She has all ready been accepted at this college, and it is her first choice school, but because it is 750 miles away in Minnesota, we had never been there.  She is determined this is the school for her, but really wanted to see it in person once before arriving for Freshman Orientation this coming August.  Since she is on Spring Break this week, now seemed the perfect time for the long drive to Minnesota.

My goodness, what a drive!  Yes, long it was.  Seeming twice as long as the 500 mile drive to DS2's college in Michigan's U.P.  Not a bad drive (other than Chicago--I'm not a city girl and two lane roads are enough for me, thank you), it was a nice drive.  Just very, very long.

The college visit itself was good.  Beautiful area, small city, small college.  The college itself is only about 4 blocks in size.  A perfect fit for my girl who went from a K-8th Christian school with an enrollment of about 50, to a small public high school with an enrollment of 300, and now on to a Christian college with an enrollment of less than 800.  Yes, it's the place for her.

Back into the car for another 11-hour marathon drive home, so DH could go to work this morning (the entire Minnesota trip he was fielding phone calls from work).  With the change in time zones on the return home, it clocked at twelve hours, but felt more like days, LOL. 

Now I'm home, with car-lag, and needing to get back into the homesteading swing of things.  My lobster face has finally faded to brown with a white eye mask.  Yesterday I looked like a box of Neapolitan ice cream: brown to the bridge of my nose, white from there to my eye brows, and pink on my forehead.  That is one April Fool's I won't forget.  Bring on the sunscreen!

Zeke Goes to School

Regular readers of this little place here might recall that Zeke was the name of the beef that is currently in our freezer.  For those who are new, Zeke was a Holstein steer that Mother-in-Law raised from a bottle calf until he was full grown and ready for butchering.  He has been our source of beef in 2011 and into 2012.

This week, Zeke went to school, where he was thoroughly enjoyed and awed both students and faculty alike.  How did Zeke, in his butchered state, happen to attend school?  DD2's Spanish class was having a fiesta to mark the end of the quarter.  The teacher passed around a list of needed food donations for the students to bring in for the meal, and DD2 volunteered '3 pounds seasoned taco meat'.  Like her siblings before, she knew that I would rather do the 'difficult' work of cooking than make a special trip to the grocery store for a couple bottles of pop (which we don't normally drink so don't buy) or bags of chips.

She informed her teacher, who was overjoyed that someone actually volunteered to bring the meat--she had envisioned being stuck with 'vegetarian tacos', that it would be the best meat ever.

And apparently, it was!  When I picked her up from school at the end of the day (hard to take a crock pot home on the school bus, and DD1 had a softball game to play in so wasn't driving home), DD2 told me that she had gotten a lot of compliments on the meat.  Many students asked where she'd gotten it from, saying it was the best they'd ever tasted.  The teacher asked for the recipe for our homemade taco seasoning.  The student teacher made an exception to her non-meat eating lifestyle to try the taco meat because it smelled so good.

Apparently, Zeke got an A that day.


I've posted it before, but here's the recipe for taco seasoning:
Taco Seasoning
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp crushed dried red pepper (or slightly less ground cayenne pepper)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp ground cumin

Mix all ingredients.  Sprinkle over 1 pound cooked ground beef (drain the meat first).  Stir in 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Makes enough filling for 8-10 tacos or burritos.

Truck Shopping

We've been wanting to buy a new pick-up since 2006.  That's when DH's Sonoma hit 200,000 miles and we realized that while it still ran like a scalded dog, it wasn't going to last forever. It was our third General Motors product that we'd driven over 200,000 miles, and from experience we knew that when it finally broke, it would be something difficult to repair on our own without the specialized tools of a shop. We needed to seriously think about getting a new truck in the near future.


However, we had our first child due to graduate high school in 2007, and things were getting wonky with the economy, so we decided to wait a bit.  In 2007, things were really wonky with the economy, things were shaky with the auto industry (in which DH is employed) and we decided to wait a bit longer.  In 2008, we were on bated breath, day by day, to see if DH would continue to have a job; no way were we spending money on anything that wasn't absolutely necessary.

We made it to 2009 with DH still employed (hallelujah!  But it was heartbreaking to see co-workers who weren't so lucky).  However, by then we needed a vehicle for DS2 to drive himself to community college two days a week as he began dual-enrollment classes; the class time did not coordinate with either my or DH's work schedule to have one of us provide transportation, and there are no public bus routes any where close to this little place here.  So DH's new truck we'd been waiting three years to buy became a small, fuel-efficient 'teenager car' to aide in DS2's education.  A new pick-up was pushed down the priority list yet again as the savings fund for a truck went down to zero.

In November 2010, I wrecked the teenager car on the way home from a Christian middle school basketball tournament DD2 played in 30 miles away.  Why was I driving the teenager car instead of my Suburban?  Better gas mileage!  Why did we still own the Suburban?  It was paid off, it was the only vehicle all five of us could fit in with luggage for a trip up north to Mother-in-Law's or anywhere else, and it was the only vehicle we owned that could tow trailers. 

The wrecking of the teenager car was not totally my fault: the expressway was bumper to bumper, the person in front of me got cut off and slammed on their brakes, I slammed on my brakes, and the person behind me sandwiched me.  Busted radiator and a trifolded hood, and the teenager car was undriveable.  Because the person behind me left the scene, and because we did not have collision coverage on the teenager car, our insurance company would not be involved in funding a repair (they probably would have considered it totaled anyway based on how much a repair shop would charge versus the $3000 value of the car).

So we did a hurry-up car search with the small amount of cash we'd managed to save up for the future purchase of DH's next truck. (Back in August of 2010, his Sonoma had suffered a locked up rear axle at 238,000 miles and he was driving a company car Monday through Friday, with me transporting him to work on Monday morning and home again on Friday evening.)  We purchased a replacement teenager car on a Monday evening, about 48 hours after the accident, and about 14 hours before DS2 had to be at his Honors Calc 2 class. . .  The replacement car was the same year, the same model, but a different color than the previous teenager car.  Meanwhile, teenager car #1 was towed to the home of a buddy who is a mechanic to see how much he'd charge to get it running again.  Which turned out to be not much at all compared to a body shop.

In January 2011, teenager car #1 was repaired for $500 in parts, and $300 cash to the buddy who fixed it (who tried to refuse the money, so I gave it to his wife--mechanics aren't cheap and he put probably a full work-week's worth of hours into repairing our car).  So then DS2 reclaimed the teenager car, and DH began to drive teenager car #2 (which came with a fancy stick-on chrome design under the keyhole for the trunk--I called it a tramp stamp, lol) to work on Monday and home again on Friday.

Early this month (March 2012), DH and I decided we had finally saved enough money, again, that if we were to sell the tramp stamp car and the Sonoma (which had been residing next to the barn for nearly two years, undriveable without a new rear axle, but DH not emotionally ready to part with), we could finally go shopping for a full-sized pick-up truck.  But, only with cash, no taking out a loan.  So that meant the under $6000 price range.  Which isn't very glamorous when you're looking for a particular brand of truck (*ahem*, DH is employed in the auto industry. . .) that is 1/2 ton or 3/4 ton, 4WD required (and operable), with an extended or crew cab, and under 200,000 miles. (Yes, we've seen more ads for trucks over 200,000 in our required price range, brand and options than with lower miles.  Which goes to show how durable a brand of truck it is.)  A truck that size isn't great on fuel, but it is a necessity for the homesteading life: hauling wood, hauling hay, hauling trailers, plowing a 500' long driveway. . . most of which the Suburban is unable to do (it hauls a fairly heavy trailer, but without a bed it's not a true truck in my book. . .)

We sold the tramp stamp car two weeks ago.  We sold the Sonoma a few days after that. It was purchased by a mechanic who is going to put a new axle in it and run it til the engine dies.  Which made DH very happy to hear; he hadn't wanted to sell it for scrap.

We've been actively truck shopping for over a week now.

Boy, have we seen some interesting trucks!  The truck that 'runs great' according to it's owner, but has something wrong with the transfer case, the brakes are always spongy, and it leaks coolant 'a little'.  The truck that is rust on wheels, but fairly low miles on the odometer (making DH suspicious of the accuracy of the odometer reading).  The truck that has a 'custom rim'--the factory one broke when the owner hit a curb(???) and he put a rusty one from the junk yard on to replace it, then painted the replacement with silver Rustoleum so it would look like the other three. . .from a distance.  The truck with the newly broken driver's side window ($20 at the junk yard) from where after the local state university's basketball team lost last week "someone" threw a beer bottle through it--but the truck has a great "system" (yes, it does have an awesome sound system.  My sons would be envious if their father drove a truck with bass like that!).  The truck with the big mud tires, the noise of which (not to mention the reduction in gas mileage) drives DH nuts.

And then the one we thought was a winner; the one we thought we would be going to the bank to withdraw our carefully managed cash to purchase.  Until we went to see it in person and hopefully test drive it, and right after we arrived not only did it get stuck between high and low 4WD, the transfer case totally locked and the truck wouldn't move at all.  We were so disappointed!  (And felt really bad for the seller, who was genuinely surprised that his truck wasn't working right.)


After waiting nearly six years to even shop for a new truck, it is getting frustrating to not be able to find one now that we have the funds.  And truth be told, I'm not fond of getting up at 5:00 a.m. to drive DH to work on Monday before coming home to start my own work day, nor of driving through Friday afternoon traffic to pick him up again.  I'm praying God sends us the right truck to purchase, and soon!

Been Doing a Bit of Sewing

You'd think those four mermaid costumes I made in January and February for the high school play would have burned me out on sewing.  Nope!  I'm not making clothing for a while, LOL, but I do have the urge to sew quilt blocks.  I've worked on several to add to a top that began as a quilt block sewing bee I participated in last year on one of the few internet forums I frequent.  I'm hoping to make it into a wall hanging for the long, empty wall in my mudroom that is across from the wall with our row of a dozen coat pegs (2 pegs for each occupant of the house, back when we were six under one roof).  DD1's graduation is only a bit more than two months away, and if I could have the wall hanging finished and up for her open house, that would be great.

Then on Friday I received fabric for a block in another forum quilt I participate in three to four times a year.  So, I've been stealing off to myself for a half hour at a time lately to cut and sew pieces.  Today I finished the block.  I took a picture to remember it by before I mail it off and eagerly await to see who the lucky winner (drawn at random from those who participated in this forum quilt) is of all the blocks made--there are usually 20-26 participants in each forum quilt.

The pattern is called "postage stamp".  I think you can see why.  It was fun to make, and challenging trying to line up all those tiny (1 1/2" before sewing) squares.  I used mostly scrap fabrics from my stash, the tan with the rosebuds/roses and stripes was the provided fabric from the forum.

And More Wood

We've been cutting wood again.

Sunday afternoon found us on the neighbor's property, cleaning up yet more storm-downed trees.  It is a nice thing to have good relationships with your neighbors; this particular one told us several years ago that he didn't mind if we hunted the north section of his woods and we also could have any dead/downed trees in that section.  He doesn't heat with wood, and would rather let us have the trees while they were still usable than leave them to rot away.

While we had been in our North Corner the weekend before dealing with some downed trees, we noticed several very nice black cherry trees as well as dozens of small oaks that were either blown over, snapped off and hung up, or just plain dead on the ground in the neighbor's woods.  DH had a hankering for the black cherry--it burns very well--and so we made a foray north of the property line with the chain saw.

First we had to clear the way to the cherries. . .there were three or four smaller trees leaning in the way.  We cut those into lengths and made a stack. 

You would think we would be sick of cutting trees and stacking wood after that, right?  Nope!  We turned our attention to a nearby section with many small oaks.

That area also had lots of briers, so we had to drag most of the trees to an open spot in order to cut them up without getting ourselves shredded by thorns.  Even so, I ended up having to do surgery on DH's hand on Monday to remove an embedded thorn with my instruments of torture. . . er, I mean, my surgical instruments specifically for splinter and thorn removal (corsage pin, alcohol--rubbing alcohol, not the drinking kind, although anesthetizing DH with a bit of the latter isn't a bad idea!--and a pair of tweezers).

I was tractor operator for most of the tree dragging, until the ground got too soupy and DH wanted to go after a much bigger oak--about 18" diameter and 60' long or so.  Then I happily took on the job of hooking the chain around the tree while he did the driving (and avoiding a large deep puddle with the right rear tire).

It was a good several hour's work, and a whole lot of free firewood for future winters. 





Hair Waffles

Yesterday I rode my horse for the first time in a long time.  It's a long story why it's been seven months since I've ridden her, and I won't get into that right now.  It was just good to ride again.

Being spring, The Mare is shedding.  She's naturally pretty short-coated, so on first glance it didn't look like she had much loose hair.  HA!  A few strokes of the Grooma, and I was tapping out hair waffles.

For those not familiar with a Grooma, you are probably totally lost at the moment.  A Grooma is a round rubber curry comb that was first created in the 1980's (yes, mine is that old--they last forever!)  It has thick, tapered 'teeth' that massage the horse as you work it in circles over their body.  If the horse is shedding, the Grooma's teeth collect and weave together the loose hairs until the teeth are filled up.  At which point you want to peel  off or tap out the 'hair waffle', as I have always called it.

They do look somewhat like circular waffles made of hair.

Now I'm dreading grooming The Old Man.  He has longer hair and much more of it.  Maybe I'll have DD2 do it; after all, we have The Old Man for her and DD1.  Once upon a time, many long years ago, he was my horse.  I bought him as a 2 year old, broke him out at 3, and showed him in 4-H, Open and even a few Arabian Circuit shows before selling him shortly before becoming pregnant with DS2.  He went on to have a show career with a few young ladies before contracting EPM (Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis--a very serious neurological disease) that left him with a hitch in his get-a-long and made him not show worthy.  After that, he was donated to a therapeutic riding program, where he spent more than ten years doing therapy with children and adults who have been afflicted with various mental and/or physical disabilities.  Along about the time he was in his early twenties and due to be retired from that program, I caught up with him again and purchased him for my daughters to ride.

So, I think then, that they can be the ones to deal with his hair waffles!

The Mare and I churned out close to a dozen hair waffles yesterday before I felt she was sufficiently groomed.  We went on to have a great ride in the warm weather, the last we are supposed to have for a while (it's in the thirties here this morning!).  She even got so sweated up from our workout that I had to hose her off when we were done.  With warm water, of course, which she enjoyed, along with the grass she got to eat while she dried off in the sunshine.

The Mare after hosing.  Loving the green grass.



One Year Ago Yesterday. . .

One year ago yesterday, I started this blog with trepidation.  I wasn't sure what I was doing, I just knew that I'd always loved to write and also that the way my family lives is somewhat of a curiosity to a lot of people and a dream of or inspiration to a few.  So I thought what the hay, I'll give it a shot.  Either it will be something that goes down in flames, fizzles out, or maybe, just maybe, it will be something to last a while.

Well, here we are one year and one day later.  This post is #186.  Not record breaking for a blog by any means.  But yet, I feel a small sense of accomplishment.  I love this creative outlet.  I love telling stories of every day life at this little place here.  I'm always pleasantly surprised when readers leave comments.  It's nice to hear from similarly minded people.  It's cool to be an eye-opener (in a good way, LOL!) to others.

My family's lives are not glamorous.  We aren't famous, we don't have powerful or illustrious careers.  Heck, I don't even have a college degree.  I'm a jack of all trades, dabbling in a bit of this and some of that through the years as need and/or opportunity presented itself.  Yet all of us touch others in our day to day comings and goings.  We all make an impression, ever so slight, on the people we meet.  We all have the ability to affect the world.

I think I do tend to get a bit long and wordy in my posts.  So I'll keep this one short and sweet.  Happy Anniversary this little place here!  May we enjoy many more years and posts together.