Sunny New Year's Weekend

Sunny New Year's Weekend-

We had a gorgeous weekend here! It was 43 Saturday, so Dave took down the outside lights and decorations. We looked up and there was Posey, neighbor's kitty, up on the roof! Miss curiosity-

We think she was sunning herself!

The snow got slushy, but was still pretty-

Packed up the holiday goodies-

We had a family dinner here last night and River loved his new book we gave him, he said  "ooo"! I made a hearty pasta sauce with our frozen, home-grown organic tomatoes, with Italian sausage on top of rotini pasta, salad, bread,and a blackberry/raspberry pie (store bought) rounded out the menu. We all had a great time!

Stopped at Lowe's found some 60% off holiday mini cloches, $6.00 for 2, perfect for my kitchen window- 

We dropped off some donations to a thrift store of holiday decor, since I keep downsizing every year. I did score a Duplo truck for River to play with here and a stocking holder for one the grand kids for next year. I need one more then we're set. We packed up the Christmas things, leaving out the winter decor for a while. Tomorrow I'll fill in the gaps with the normal decor. We'll start the New Year with a wintry mix! Happy New Year to you and yours!!!

Little Homestead Year End Review

Little Homestead Year End Review-
I was reading last year's year in review 2016 Year and it was in fairly sharp contrast to this year. Last year we did a lot of structural building, home improvements, the normal other tasks as well. This year was different, no major home improvements, no big medical issues, just final recovery from thumb surgery, that was nice! I changed jobs within my company which was a much better fit. Dave got laid off his job, but we had the skill set to survive and not lose any money during the process. For the 49 days it lasted we had vacation/severance pay, extra food, cash and really cut expenses. It really reaffirmed the path we're on. We didn't take a vacation we had hoped for but squeezed in a couple of day trips.  I decided after blogging for many years to start bringing in some income from it. I became an Amazon affiliate. I've been invited recently by a local large public library In Meridian to do a class on blogging in January, so that will be fun! I hope to teach some urban homesteading classes next spring/summer, time will tell. There's a few things in the fire then. And now.... here's a little review of this last year!

We started the year with SNOW, SNOW and more SNOW, Boise's Snowmageddon-

And it did!

Walk to the coop

 Dave shoveling the front drive, again

Near record breaking snowfall hit Boise and the surrounding areas hard. Bitter cold and slippery conditions. Challenges but we survived and thankful we both had short commutes to work. I fell in a parking lot at work, luckily no major injuries. It was so pretty, but a lot of maintenance issues in the valley. This year Dave is driving much further, so am hoping for a calmer winter. We already have some snow this month of December, with a white Christmas!

Christmas Day 2017

We had another new addition to the family in Dec. 2016, Oliver-

He joined River, his cousin, and became our second Grandchild. We called him the "winter wizard" since it started snowing when Angela went into labor, and kept going. We've spent a lot of time with him babysitting every other Saturday for a half day, while Mom and Dad worked. We're happy it's now going to a few hours every other Sunday. He's just starting to walk, what fun!

River and Oliver having some summer fun

I had fun doing some thrift store shopping for them-

I discovered Hygge, which fit in with my fondness for Scandinavian culture-

We had pretty great food production this year, except for the tomatoes. With our cold, wet spring many of the nurseries had poor supplies of starts.  We had a good harvest of peppers, beans, herbs, kale, collard greens, apples, peaches and pears. Every year is different, I have learned that! We had a GREAT harvest of apples, peaches and pears-

 Peaches that I froze and canned

Peach jams

Great apple harvest after the previous poor year, canned slices and applesauce

  

It was a great feeling filling up the canning rack and the freezer

Hens free ranging

Chillin' in the heat in the shade

Summer veggie garden

Pumpkins and beans

Took a day trip to McCall in the summer

  

 Anniversary trip to McCall in the winter this time

Sweetie pie Anya on her favorite blankie, again

On her favorite chair, again

And in the basin

First Real Snow! Oliver's First Birthday

First Real Snow!

We had our first real sticking snow Friday night, about 1"! Pretty-

After a few weeks in an inversion, with gray skies, and dirty air, waking up to blue skies and sun Saturday was wonderful!!! 

Chickens having a treat with some greens in the coop

It's the SUN!!!

Tough little Rosemary plant :)

Oliver's First Birthday-

When Angela went into labor last year snow was in the forecast, and then it started snowing. We call Oliver the "winter wizard". It snowed the night before his birthday this year so he has kept the title! Here's Oliver last year- 

Sleeping on Grandma

Oliver last week, he's growing into his head :)

Easy Frugal Vegetarian Chili, Telepathic Chickens- No Eggs Mean New Chicks!

Easy Frugal Vegetarian Chili-

Yes, winter is here! With our coldest week so far I was ready for a big pot of chili! Over the years I stopped using meat since this is cheaper AND healthier. I made a big pot today-

I use- 

6 cans Light Red Kidney beans, 2 Lg bell peppers diced, 2 can diced tomatoes, 2 yellow onions diced, 3 cups of my own diced tomatoes, 2 cans water. I used about 4 TBL Chili powder (to taste heat-wise), 1 Tsp. Thyme, 2 Tsp. Garlic powder, about 1 TBL Cumin, and salt to taste. Basically put everything in a pot, cook for a few hours until nice and tasty. Adjust spices, or type of beans, as needed. I added more Chili powder near the end. Serve with any kind of toppings you like- sour cream, avocado, grated cheese, diced onions, cilantro, tortilla strips, you name it! We went with a little cheese. Cilantro or diced green onions would be nice too. Freezes great!

The leaves have really been falling, and Dave moved the yards today, composting the leaves-

Grand baby Oliver watching the leaves fall 

  

Squirrels and birds have been out eating the bird food

Telepathic Chickens- No Eggs Mean New Chicks!

I started this post earlier this week, then my telepathic chickens laid 4 eggs in the last 3 days! Go figure, they read my mind:) They haven't laid in weeks and weeks, even with extra protein. They're getting a little older, and at least one has been molting. Anyway, there WILL be more chicks in the spring/summer next year. So... 

After our three hens have laid really well for years, it seems they are done. It's been store bought eggs lately. On the bright side, that mean new chicks! I will get three again, early next summer to add to the flock. Last time it went really well integrating the new birds, so I'm confident I can do it again. It's always so much fun getting new chicks! You get to think about breeds and then a trip to the local hatchery. We go to Dunlap Hatchery in Caldwell (outside Boise) since they are really reliable with sexing the chicks (gender), the breeds are correctly labeled, and they're really healthy. Since we only buy pullets (female chicks) it's important that they're sexed correctly. We don't want any roosters. Here's our two fluffy balls from a few years back, and the Grand kids will love the new ones! We ALWAYS keep our other older hens. They eat bugs, weeds and keep an eye on things. I have integrated flocks before and can do it again.

Living room visit

How cute!

I'm leaning towards breeds we've had before Black/Gold Sex links and maybe something different. List of breeds we can choose from here Laying Breeds Then we'll make our fun run, pick up the chicks. So exciting! We set up in indoor mini brooder holding area. We use a laundry basket to start, lined with paper towels. Next we graduate to a long cardboard box with pine shavings. I've never been fan of indoor heat lamps, although we've used them. They can be a real fire hazard, but I finally found a solution that has good reviews and seems to work. I was excited to find out about a the Chick Heating Pad, 9" by 12", good indoors or out, chew proof, low energy use-

Our last flock (one was a little rooster we re-homed), SO CUTE!!!