My Dream Property - Installment 1

You’re given a plot of land and have the financial resources to do what you please. What’s the plan?

First, I really need to know some things about this plot of land! Do I get a choice as to the size (as in farmland with acreage? I am a COUNTRY gal thru and thru. A city plot the size of a garden wouldn't "be me" and I’d not be happy having to live there! I couldn't turn down a gift either so I’d have to turn it down or sell it if it's in town or even the suburbs.

I'm much more of a "functional" type than an "elaborate" (photo-mag-suitable) type. So I would HAVE to continue to be the country gal that I am. Will this be enough acreage to have the closest neighbors out of sight or at least out of hearing? That would also be a necessity and it would have to have enough acreage that I could build in the middle just in case any adjoining property was sold. I don’t want to go through having city folks buy next to me and build their million-dollar house next to my barn again! I also would want enough room that I could make this a working farm w/income.

Also, where is this dream property going to be located?

I would get a house up there ASAP. One dream and desire I’ve had for years and years is to have a house/barn combo. I have some folks I know who lived in one on her father’s place. It was huge as it was an arena in the center and back and their living quarters were in the front. They had an upstairs living room that looked out over the arena and the kitchen, dining, laundry area were on the first floor. I’d want to have a huge "wall of windows" opposite the arena as I really need to see outside. I really love a pretty view. Below their living quarters were a meeting room with a small kitchen area on one end. This would be easy to rent out on occasion! There were also a personal tack room, a storage room off the arena for arena equipment, a couple of tacking and grooming stalls, a wash room (for critter bathing/hosing or such), bathroom, and, a small storage room off the living quarter’s door.

Then, flanking both sides of the building are stalls and feed/hay storage. There were also a couple of tack rooms and grooming stalls for those who are using or renting stalls. The arena and stalls can be rented out.

I am at a place in life where my housing is best on a single level. So I’d have to decide what and how I would design it so my living was not requiring frequent stair climbing. Hubby wouldn’t be able to do the stairs at all. So I think there would need to be a bit of a different layout in some ways. So, it would be FUN to be able to redesign something like this that would accommodate our needs and the house/barn situation. Maybe it would just be such that there would be a sun room with a covered walkway that made it so one didn’t have to go outside in the winter to get to the barn/arena side. It could also include a patio area for good weather.

I sure hope those finances and the income generated can easily pay the property taxes on my dream property! I may be in serious trouble if it didn’t!

I have decided that this writing prompt is such that I need to make it a few installments. It would be way tooooo much for one post and for reading. So I’ll continue on go through my whole dream that this prompt turned into a massive writing!

Wouldn’t it be fun to have a dream like this become do-able? What’s your dream if you were the recipeient of this writing prompt and financial security to pull it off? I’d like to challenge you to post on your blog what yours would be. Please include my blog link at the end of yours and share your link with me in the comments section here. Then I’ll make a list of your links to your dream property too. You can make your dream all 1 post or break it up like I’m doing. It will be fun to see who all participates and what your dream place would be.

Don’t forget to come back for the next installment. I need to plan for my goats, horse, poultry, and even the business end of this being my dream includes income and that means it is a business!

A Short Update

I thought I was going to have time to post but the weather is turning ugly. We have a LOT of wind gusts and a storm is coming in. I'll need to get off the computer shortly.

Yesterday was 80 and hot in shorts and tee shirt. Today is cold and wet with the temp in the low 50's. Today is sweat pants with a tee and flannel shirt. It was also bundling up a bit to do chores in the rain and wind.

Yes, you guessed it! The milkstand moved in the barn today! Between yesterday's biting flies and today's rain, inside it went. Fortunately it wasn't too hard to move. The hardest part was my "help" who thought jumping on and off was helping. Everyone needs 3 little ND goaties to help them of course! And not to mention the 3 does who also wanted in on this game. I am thinking if I wanted to move a milkstand around much I'd better put it on wheels. That might not be a bad idea either, if the wheels have locks.

The news on tv tonight was a very sobering "event". The last few days while they talk of opening the flood gates on the Mississippi river has had me feeling sad for the folks who ended up with the river being routed to their farms and neighborhoods in order to spare others' homes due to the damage that is going to happen and which was the lesser of "2 evils". How horrible to be "the ones" who end up with the massive floods coming their way. How could one ever pack up their belongings fast enough to escape this torrential devastation. I've heard from others who are out west and in the evacuation line for the forest fires. How does one plan or act upon an evacuation when they have livestock? My heart goes out to them, as I'm sure yours does. It can't be too great to be the Army, who has had to make the decisions as to what is the best thing to do with such a monumental effect regardless of which way they decided. My heart goes out to them too. My prayers are with all who are "a part" of the whole discouraging disaster. I hope all lives are spared.

The storm is close and I need to get a move on. I'm sorry to end on such a sad note. I guess it shows that sometimes things aren't all exciting and cheerful in life or for homesteaders, farmers and ranchers.

Bless you all, stay safe and have a good weekend!

Update or Catch Up

Update or Catch Up? I would guess this is both! So much has been going on that I'm "whipped"!


I'm now milking 5 does by hand. Due to Danika and Raquel being first fresheners, it's taking a LOT of time. And I DO mean a LOT! I want these does to be the kind one can just tie and milk, no drama, no hassle, etc. How I handle them now is setting them up for their milking behavior for a long time. Both will be sold and hopefully their new owners will continue the "program" and not untrain them! Danika is catching on to this FAST and is such a sweetie! Raquel is a theatrical drama queen and a rodeo bronc! I am LAVISH with the treats, rubbings, and giving them the time needed. I've gone from 45 minutes in the evening to 2 1/2 - 3 hours! That's time feeding goats and chickens for the evening, collecting any more eggs, bottle feeding 4 kids, and milking. (Summer only takes a second to give her a sour cream container of food morning and evening as she has pasture but expects to get fed with the goats! Silly horse but she's a dear.)


Raquel is improving every milking but oh so slowly! She's getting right on the stand and her head locked into the head gate (which she ripped off the stand and clunked me in the back of the head with). She's standing there to get started eating and then I pet and praise her, give her a treat, and then sit and pet her an talk with her a minute. When she ripped the head gate off, she fell off the stand and bruised her udder. Now she's milking bloody milk on that side of her udder. She has a NICE BIG udder and wonderful teats and orifices. She's now being MUCH better and not bucking with milking the not-sore-side (left) of her udder but she's "going rodeo" with the bruised side. She's VERY easy to milk if she'd just stand still. It has to be milked out so she doesn't get scar tissue and mastitis. Anyway, after she's milked (hobbled too) I am leaving her to stand on the milk stand and to chill out. I then milk her momma right next to her just tied and standing on the ground so she is watching a good milker stand right. It also gives her herd security that she's not alone. She can also see her pen mates on her other side as it's a half wall and wire for the top half. What a challenge this has been! But progress is being made and that's my clue that things are going in the right direction!

Now I have to put a price on them and I'm not sure what to put! I need to decide an individual price for each but also a "2 for" price. They are twins and very bonded. They'd be much happier to go together to a new home. I'm also considering offer a free stud service for them if the new owners will supply the feed for them while here for breeding. I'm seeing some prices locally but they seem to be one extreme or the other. I also have a lot invested in these 3 yearling does ($ and time). I needed to see what their dams were producing though so needed to grow out a few of their offspring to see what I need to most work on in breeding improvements. We can't really improve upon them a lot if we don't know what they produce so we know what genes need to come in to cross on them! I now have a very good idea of the strengths and weaknesses of both senior does. Kids are always adorable and cute but one can't know their true mettle if one doesn't raise them up to freshening and milk them a while!

I was suppose to be going to pick up an incubator tonight and haven't heard back from the gal. I sure hope she's not changed her mind or something as I really am hoping to get it. I hope tomorrow will work for her.

I have some running around to do tomorrow to get prescriptions and such which means a trip to the "big city" and 40 miles. Then Saturday I have a "date" to pick up a new rooster and need to be back to watch the Preakness! I'm worn out but have to get things done. We had a funeral for the dearest aunt one could hope to have this week so the emotional loss adds to one's running out of steam.

I did get some garden seeding done in the last week also. I have plenty more to do but it's a start. I got my grapevine clippings and have them in water rooting. I'm ready to get them planted too if I can get enough time. I've finally decided on the place which was quite a decision being I sometimes like to leave a couple goats loose and don't want them to "find" the grape vines!

And I need to get some mowing done - BADLY! Even that has an order to make things easier! For one I need to put Summer (horse) in the dog yard for a couple hours as there is some luscious grass there she's wanting. Then I need to take a shovel out and stab a few burdock plants and then I can mow it. Life on a homestead is often like a puzzle. The border needs done first so one can start putting the pieces where they go methodically!

Yesterday (12th) was Miss Molly Ta Mollie's 10th birthday! Molly is my black tri female Corgi. I LOVE this little dog! She's feeling her age unfortunately and having some age issues. I had a litter of pups from her several years ago and then found she has some genetics starting to show up that I won't breed so we've not had any more little Molly's. Bummer but the only ethical thing for me to do.

It seems my work is never done! So much work - so little time!

Too Far From the Farm

"i have chickens that i reared from eggs,they are now producing eggs now,i do not give them any thing other than corn and odd titbits,no anti wormin or anything,my question are the eggs safe to eat.?"

This was on a poultry list. Sometimes I find it a bit incredible and yet it's far far from the first time that I've heard/read this type of question! I find it sad that so many are growing up without the basic experience and knowledge of the food we eat and of life in general.

I've tried all my adult life to provide info to those who would like it regarding "all things farmy". I think we ALL need to do this. Maybe we don't all live on a homestead or farm, but there's a lot of interesting info to be learned to expand our view of life in the other "lanes". If we all took more time to learn more, we'd be more educated in our food we put on our table, be it home-grown, home-raised or purchased from a farmers' market, roadside stand, orchard, or the store.

IF we were to all learn more and the TRUTH about our food and how meat, eggs, milk, etc is raised and processed, we wouldn't have so many misconceptions that PETA/HSUS and the animal extremists want us to think which "feeds" their agenda. Don't forget that a major part of their agenda is actually the income that so many of them lavishly enjoy "off the backs" of others!

I think those of us with livestock, backyard chickens, an interest in agriculture, etc need to "answer the call" to do what we can to help teach others about the things we enjoy and maybe take for granted!

As to the person's question, YES, you sure can eat those eggs and they are WONDERFUL! It's amazing that something so small as a chicken can make an egg from wandering around the yard and scratching, along with a bit of other feed supplemented to them. It's also "what to do with leftovers" as they'll LOVE your "throwaways"!

A New Direction!

Due to some life priorities, I got behind on blogging and in that time, decided I wanted to change directions with my blog to be more of a homesteading type blog. I have a couple other blogs but decided I'd rather focus on one and keep up than have a few that I'm not doing justice with. So I'll be closing the others and starting in the new direction of focusing on homesteading and all that involves for me.

I hope you'll come along and enjoy this new direction with me!