Strawberry time

I have had and idea to grow a big strawberry patch for years.  I have attemped in the past to grow one.  Sometimes I ended up with plenty for my family but never enough to market.  I guess you could say this has been one of my dreams. 

These plants have just started producing.  They will get much bigger this season.

The leaves are shiny and green with no dead on them.  That means they are very healthy.

Yes, a few weeds but no harsh herbicides in this field.  If it gets to bad I will till the centers. Hannah says it's bad.  The way I see it, is that it is good organic matter to go into the soil.

A handful of yummy berries.

A New Experience.

Sometimes things are a little hard in life and this was one of those times.  Deanna went down to feed her sheep and found that her sheep had lambed.  She noticed that one sheep was large and healthy and walking by mom sheep.  Then she notices a little tiny sheep on the opposite side of the pen, cold, dirty, and as far as she could see, the mother did not have anything to do with it.  She sent Web to get me.  I looked at the little lamb and thought, this lamb is way to little.  I waited longer hoping the mom would come see to her but she seemed to not acknowledge that she even had another one.  So after a bit longer I told Deanna get it and we will see what we can do but the mom sheep probably knows more than we do.  She knows this lamb is little and weak and she could loose both lambs if she risk trying to care for this one.  And it  was to weak to even get up and nurse.   Not knowing really what to do I called a friend.  Thanks Shanna for your advice.

Deanna wrapped it in her jacket and here it is.  On my kitchen table.

Our first thought was get it warm.  So on the stove under a heat lamp was our fastest option.

Then we remembered Hannah's heat pad so we got it.  It will stay at a perfect 100 degrees. That will keep the towel about 98.  I left Joy with the lamb and went to help Deanna get some colostrum from Mom.  After working over and over we managed to squeeze about 2 tablespoons out. I began giving the lamb the colostrum while Deanna and Web went to get more.  They came back bushed by wrestling mom sheep with about a tablespoon.  By this time she got back. This little lamb had warmed up and drank the other colostrum and was trying to stand up on my counter.  soooo

On the floor it went.  We gave it the other tablespoon.  By this time we had began to wonder if we would get enough milk from mom so we looked in a lamb book and read how to make homemade lamb milk.  We mixed pet milk, egg, sugar, and cod liver oil. 

We waited and watched.

By the time Deanna had came in from trying for more colostrum her little lamb was walking around. Hmm you smell like my mommy. Deanna had the smell of mommy sheep all over her from wrestling with her for colostrum.

He is trying to find his mommy.  I decided it is time to try to get mom sheep to take this little one.  We gave it two ounces of the homemade milk and off to the barn we went. 

I must put to be continued here.  It is time to get ready for church.  I will post the rest of the story soon.

The icing on the cake. Really

This post is intended to give you inspiration to live a happy healthy life.  We started the week with animal science.  Time to worm the sheep.  This is the 9 day from the day we wormed them last. 

This sheep's dark pink eyelids show it is healthy and worm free.

Time so grow some healthy brains.

Deanna and Joy learning algebra and geometry.  To advanced for me so the computer helps here.

Learning, learning, learning

Grow healthy bodies.  The peas, and eggs came out of our backyard.

Picnic time again

These are the most awesome swings we have ever found.  They are huge.

giddy up Joy

fun

fun

Kids play castle and dungeon. 

Shortly after the news paper showed up and captured the Senn again.  Sally landed of the front page to the Eldorado news times swinging up side down.

Then to the library.  Alena loves the children's room with computer, puppet stage, puzzles, toys, and of course books.

They even have live creatures at this library.  Very unique library.

Yummy yogurt making time.

Turned out great.

perfect.

Saturday and to the Daffodil fest and 5k run.

Go Web and Joy

There medals

More fresh eggs

The icing on the cake.  Watch this video see the icing. This was so much fun Sunday night ofter a wonderful day at church.

 

 I am going to post this but I really want to put more but I don't have time.  Maybe I will update it tomorrow. Forgive the errors I am in a hurry to do do and do some more. Bonnie

Spring time Week of March 1, 2011

This is a journal entry of things we are doing at the Mike Senn family farm in zone 8.  It is intended to give you ideas and helps about gardening, and  to inspire and help you live a happier healthier life.

Monday it was such a pretty day; We fly kites after school was done.

Tuesday, I decided I would spread lime on the field that will be for the sheep.  Mike gave me instructions and off I went.  He said don't go to slow or you will bog down and get stuck.  I went around the pecan tree with spreader going, for practice, then headed to the field.  I made it to the field and the pto shaft broke so there it sits.

Strawberries are growing good.  March 1, 2011

Sally started this sweet potato.  The idea is, it will send out shoots that will will plant in the garden.

Thursday I disked the garden.  I am just learning to do this.  Things went well.  My plans are to get a cultivator and do this whole garden with a tractor. 

Thursday evening we had Bible club. We had it outside because they still don't have an apartment available for us to use.  The adults were able to see what we do.  I think this was good.

 Hannah telling the Bible story.

Friday we finally got the blueberries planted that we got in the mail Monday.  We all got up and our first priority was the blueberries.  We planted 18 and we had 22 already planted that makes a total of 40.

                                         

On the way back to the house Web and I noticed this chicken coming out of a pile of mess at the barn.  She was singing her cackle song.

Yep. Just what we thought.  Eggs.

Now back down the hill for school with a tarp to cover the lime, eggs we found, a little fertilizer for my starter plants, a stepping stone we made, and two potted blueberry bushes we saved for my mom.

 Deanna working on her herb garden.

We put our plants out on the car in the full sun everyday so the can get used to being outside and they will not grow long and leggy.

Our tomato plants are up.

AJ is learning to guard the chickens.

I am thinking about this pole.  It is cemented in the ground in our flower garden area.  It was used for guide wires for a TV antenna.  We don't need it because we have more important things to do than to watch TV, so we save that TV expense every month and buy other better things.  I think is needs something growing up it.  hmmm

Mae's Weeping cherry tree.  This was on her wish list for two years.  Last year for her graduation party we bought it and planted it in her garden area.  It is just sprouting.  This means we were able to keep it alive for a whole year.  That is a good sign we may can keep it alive.

A rose garden.  Mike and Alena made me last year.  It is putting out leaves all over.

Sally gathering some of that good dirt for her flower garden.

This is the pen my chickens are supposed to be in.  The goat and sheep tore it all up on the bottom.  The idea was free range chickens in the evening after they lay the eggs in the nest box.  We would forget to go back and close the door,  so they got to used to being out and eventually started roosting other places and now we hunt eggs for more than just Easter.

Nap time for Alena and her puppy. I need to quickly get this puppy interested in guarding sheep. You want them more social with sheep than with people, but I think I am losing progress here. Bonnie

Alena says she is driving here doll to China.

Friday.  Planted Lettuce and broccoli on a row that had some strawberries that did not do good.  We plant these after we had had the plants for over a week.

Nat cleaning out the barn stalls.  After they are cleaned they will get a layer of lime to help with smell and flies.  The litter is gardeners gold.

We will use these stalls for the mommy sheep that will soon have babies.  We pen the up for a few days until the learn they have a baby.  Sometimes they forget and don't keep up with them to well.

This is a row in the garden that I am getting ready for tomatoes.  I am trying to put all the natural things they like here.  Leaves, and sheep manure has been put here.

The strawberries are just making a few berries, but no red ones yet.

Sally pointing at a strawberry.

Eggs Webster found in the barn loft.

Alena's ducks from the past two Easters.

Huge daffodils show us the first sign of Spring.

My poor azalea bush.

I have no idea what  is planted in the six pack or why it is there. 

Prime roses just coming up.

My pretty Rooster.