Dirty Water

Disaster has struck AGAIN!  Thank goodness we still have our home warranty, because problems keep creeping up.

Both times it has had to do with our plumbing.  About a month ago, any time water went down a drain, such as the laundry washer, kitchen sink, toilet, bathroom sink, etc, it would flow right through and out the overflow and into our bathtub!  Brown stinky water!  So we couldn't go to the bathroom, wash our dishes, take a shower, or do the laundry for about a week in fear that the water would flood the bathtub and end up on our floor.  Turns out that roots have taken over our plumbing.  And of coarse, because we take a picture of everything, here is a picture of the dirty roots and the mess the plumber made of my laundry room floor.

Believe it or not, the plumber created a bigger mess.  He was a little aggressive with the roto-rooter and cracked our pipe in the garage.  So this time, instead of water flowing into our bathtub, it poured right onto the garage floor.  Nasty, smelly, brown, and greasy water.  The water has since dried, but there is an oily film all over the garage floor.  I have no idea how to clean that up.  Suggestions?

Look at what the Plumber did!

I was fairly certain that I was in the clear with these plumbing problems, but oh no!  Here comes another one!

This last weekend we walk into our bathroom and the floor is completely wet and flooded.  Where was the water coming from this time?  The toilet.

So I did the only thing I could do, called the warranty people and had a glass of wine.

Botched Batches

So last January, I made a batch of soap and it came out so silky smooth!  The Hubby and I have been loving using it in our showers and smelling so sweet.  The ingredients I used are coconut oil, palm oil, soybean oil, olive oil, and beeswax.  Doesn't that sound amazing?  And it smelled lovely, like oatmeal and honey.

Did you know that Glycerin (made naturally during the soap-making process) is worth more than a bar of soap?  So the large soap makers take the natural glycerin out of their soap, sell it, and then sell you a bar of soap without it! They make out like bandits, selling two products from one process.  When you make your own home-made soap you keep all that glycerin to help smooth and moisturize your skin.

If you take the 20-30 minutes to make your own soap, you will have enough for about 6 months, you will smell great, and your skin will feel SO soft.  This generally costs us somewhere around 3 dollars a bar of soap. Which seems like a lot if you are comparing it to something you buy at Target, but the quality is closer to a luxurious bar from France which would run you anywhere around 6-12 dollars a bar.

A picture from my last successful batch

But unfortunately, this post is not about what a wonderful soap-maker I am.  It is about the virtue of patience and how I don't have it.

We were down to the last few bars of soap so I bought all the ingredients I needed, suited-up and started my cold-process soap. I began by carefully measuring my oils and heating them up.  While they were getting to temperature I started to prepare my lye.  Lye makes me nervous.  It is one of the most caustic materials on the planet and you need to treat it carefully.  Unfortunately, when I get nervous, I get stupid.

For example, I know that the oils has to be around 120-140 degrees when you add the lye.  And even though I have a thermometer clearly telling me it is 180 degrees,  I still added the lye so I could be done with it.  It immediately started to get stiff, almost seizing, so I poured it into my molds.

I pulled out my vinegar to clean my work site and when I returned to my soap it looked like a throbbing volcano.  It was growing and bursting in the middle.  I was actually worried that it was going to grow and expand right out of the molds and onto my table, which would not of been good because it takes a few hours for all the lye to be converted to soap.  At least it didn't look like this.  What a mess!

This is after it had cooled down and my little volcano collapsed

So I tossed my whole batch and will try again next weekend.

The Truth about Home Ownership

So I know everyone told us this, but this first year of home-ownership has been tough financially.  Kevin and I had gotten used to having that little nest egg to fall back on.  It gave us peace of mind, that if something should happen we were going to be okay.  

Well, that little nest egg basically became our house.  And every last dime we have gets put into the house.  I am not complaining, that is just my reality.  And to be honest I don't mind.  Because for that last few nights I get to close my days looking at this and it reminds me that it is all worth it!

Goat Antics

I wanted to post some pictures of my little farm family on the sidebar to the right here.  So I went out to take some recent pictures of the goats.  This is not an easy task!  To take a picture you need to stand back around 3-4 feet, which is impossible with goats!  They want to be touching you and be near you at all times, so you end up with pictures like these:

Obnoxious isn't it?

So I would try to push them away with my hand.  Here are some decent shots:

Nice one of Butters face and Oreo's butt

And they don't look at you like dogs, so I got a ton of shots of them looking in the other direction:

What's so interesting?

Here is my one decent shot:

So if you want to tell them apart, Oreo is black and white with a red collar.  Butters is black and cream with a purple collar.  Butters also has cooler looking eyebrows than Oreo.

My Sweet Poppy

I know I have been absent for while, but we have had one crazy and emotionally draining week.

Kevin and I have two beautiful dogs, Ellie and Harley.  They were one of the main reasons we bought our little farm.  We wanted them to have the space to run and stretch their legs.

Our Sweet Baby Girl Ellie

Our Good Ol' Bear Harley

Well, we had all this space and we wanted to give back the love our dogs shared with us.  So we volunteered to be a foster home for a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.

When we got the call that a Cavalier girl named Poppy needed a home we jumped in the car and drove 3 hours to pick her up.  On the way up, all excited, Kevin and I discussed all the things we were going to do with the new foster, take her for walks, to Fort Funston, meet children, go the park, etc.  

When we picked her up, she was nothing like we were expecting.  She was sad.  So very sad.  Her whole life got turned upside down and she didn't want to interact with us.  If we talked to her, she looked away.  If we reached to pet her, she cowered into a corner.  She barely walked, and only took about 10 steps at a time.

But despite this sad demeanor, she was starting to see us as family.  She wagged her tail slightly when we talked to her.  And she started to perk up when we got closer to her.  She was becoming my foster baby.  The Cavalier spirit was still alive in her and she was starting to open up and trust us.

And then the most horrible thing happened, she disappeared.  

We had moved our dogs outside for the cleaning lady.  She is afraid of dogs (especially Harley) and requested that they go outside so they are not in her way.  I put Harley and Poppy in our shaded yard.  Made sure that the gates were closed and locked and then took Ellie to her Nosework class.  Harley and Poppy were alone for maybe 1/2 an hour.  When we got back Harley was alone in the yard with the gates and doors still closed.  We still have not figured out how Poppy got out.

The pain of a lost pet is quite unbearable.  Wondering where she is.  Is she lost or stolen?  Is she out in the street or in someone's home?  Is she alive or dead?  How did she get out?  Who took her?  What can I do to get her back?

I would lay awake at night thinking about her.  Wanting her home and under my roof, safe and warm.  I would think of things I could be doing to find her.

I cried. 

But I am a woman of action, so I didn't sit wondering what happened.  Here is a list of things I did.  Hopefully, if you have lost a pet, you might find it helpful.

1. Make large signs to be placed in front of your home.  At first, I hand-wrote them on fluorescent boards, but I replaced them with professional looking printed corrugated poster boards with large pictures. I also placed one at the near-by park.  (These were what eventually brought our Poppy  home).
2. Buy window chalk and use your car as a moving flyer.  Just in case your dog gets outside your neighborhood, this expands your visibility.  I used a bright white marker.
3. Call your local radio station and TV stations.  They might do a public announcement.  They did for Poppy.  The local paper also volunteered to run an ad for her.
4. Get your flyers in all the vet hospitals in the area.  I did it in the three surrounding cities.
5. Get your flyers in the local supermarket, coffee shops, pet stores, and surrounding schools.
6. Use the internet: Get attention with Facebook, Pet Amber Alert, Pet Harbor, Fido Finder, Craigslist, etc.
7. Drop-off flyers in all your neighbor's mailboxes.
8. Check the shelters, make a missing pet report, and leave flyers.
9. Hire a private pet detective (I give this one mixed reviews, but it is worth a shot).
10. Did I mention posting flyers around your neighborhood?  I know I mentioned flyers a lot, but you have to cover every angle.
11. DON'T GIVE UP!  

8 Days later, my husband announced he would be right back.  About 10 minutes later he walked through the door with Poppy in his arms.  Our neighbor had seen our sign by the park and when she woke on Sunday morning Poppy was sitting in her front yard.  I immediately began crying tears of joy and whisked Poppy to the Emergency Vet.  They gave her fluids and cleaned out her eyes.  She had collected dirt, leaves, and debris in her eyes, but she was okay.  They sent her home with antibiotics, eye drops, and a cone.  

I was a little worried that this adventure of hers would set her back, but it didn't seem to.  She still sees Kevin and me as her foster parents.  And we love her for it.

Isn't she beautiful?  She will be ready for adoption soon!

One Disgusting Story

I was telling this story to my co-worker and she told me that I had to include this one on the blog.  So for everyone who feels like getting squeamish, please read on  If not, you may want to skip this one.  This is your warning.

As you know, I was in charge of doing all the chores this last weekend which included changing out all the fly and yellow jacket traps.  So I found a shovel and started to dig a hole in the dry hard earth.  This is not exactly an easy chore for me.  I dug and dug and barely broke ground.  So I grabbed the post digger and used that.  Meanwhile, Harley is watching me dig.

So, when I got about 8-10" hole, which is barely big enough, I grabbed the fly traps and emptied the contents into my hole.  So now this hole is full of mostly dead fly bodies, maggots, and few live ones.  I quickly buried them up and walked away to clean the traps and set them up again.

BIG MISTAKE

When I walked past my fly burial ground, I saw Harley, my doberman, digging them all up and the few live ones are flying everywhere.  SHIT!

I called him away and cursed myself for not putting him into the house.

I continued cleaning out the traps and setting new ones, when from the corner of my eye I see a white furry body rolling happily in the dirt.

There was Ellie, my sweet clean white Cavalier girl, rolling all over the dead fly bodies that Harley had just dug up.  I screamed at her to stop, but my screams were falling on deaf ears.  Once she was done, she happily pranced over to me all gray and black with dead fly parts and wings hanging off her.  UGH!

So I did what any good Cavalier Mother would do, I told my hubby to please give her a bath.

YUCK!

Chores

I know people have told me this, but Kevin and I have a lot of chores!  I have never felt it more than this weekend, when Kevin sprained his ankle.  I was left to get it all done by myself!  

So here is a list of typical chores we do on a weekend:

1. Wake Up.
2. Let out the goats.
3. Feed the dogs.
4. Give dogs their medications.
5. Feed the koi.
6. Take the dogs out to potty.
7. Clean up dog poop.
8. Make breakfast
9. Do the dishes.
10. Change out goat's water.  This is easier said than done, since it requires a screwdriver to remove it from the wall.  And then you have to carry the heavy bucket to a place to dump it.  Refill.  Do this twice!
11. Muck out the barn.  Also easier said than done. This requires pulling the green waste bin all the way down to the barn (we haven't set up the compost yet), scooping out the muck and then putting fresh bedding down.  Drag the bin all the way up the hill to where it belongs.
12. Change the water in the fish tank.
13. Clean filters in the koi pond and top off the water level.
14. Water the plants and the lawn.
15. Clean out the fly traps and the yellow jacket traps.
16. Clean up the house.  There is a LOT involved in this, but I won't go into detail.
17. Clean dog's drinking fountain.
18. Shower.
19. Eat.
20. Do the dishes.
21. Lock up the goats for the night.
22. Feed the dogs.
23. Take the dogs out to potty.
24. Sleep.

Let me tell you I am sore today!  But there is so much satisfaction at the end of the day when I am sitting on my deck enjoying the twilight with a glass a wine.  What a good life we have!

It is WAR!

That's IT Mr. Gopher!  You are no longer welcomed here.  I tried to let you live here, but you have not followed the rules.  You have continued to dig holes in the front lawn and that is just not acceptable!  You had 1 acre to choose from and you insisted on living on 200 SF that is my front lawn.  Not cool!

Here is your eviction notice: carbon monoxide.

Side note:  This first attempt to gas him failed. 

You may have won this battle, Mr. Gopher, but we will win the war!

Pop! Pop! Popcorn!

So recently I have been really into popcorn.  What a delicious, light, and healthy snack!  Well ... it has the possibility of being healthy.

I couldn't help myself and bought a box of "natural" microwave popcorn at the market.  When I brought it home I was disgusted with myself.  There is just SO much packaging and waste in a box of 3 popcorn bags. There is the card board box, the plastic around each bag, and then the bag itself.  And to top it off, who knows what chemicals are in the "natural" popcorn.  Just stuff you would have to be in a chemistry class to understand.  So when I finished the box  I made a resolve with myself to learn how to make popcorn over the stove.

Who would of thought it would be so easy?  Why is anyone making popcorn in the microwave?  Here is how I do it and now I can pronounce all the ingredients in my popcorn... corn, butter, salt.

1. 1/3 cup of popcorn kernels
2. 3 tablespoons of canola oil
3. Butter and salt (you decide how much)

Add the oil to your large saucepan and about 3 kernels and turn the stove on high.  
Wait for them to pop.  
Once they pop add the rest of the popcorn kernels and then remove the pan from the heat for 30 seconds.  Count out loud and insert the word, "Mississippi" in between your numbers.. makes it feel like you are 10 again.
Return the pan to the flame and wait for the rest of the kernels to pop.  They should start popping all at the same time.  Once it really gets going, give the pan a gentle shake and skew the lid a little.  It allows the steam to vent, so your popcorn is nice and crisp.  Once the popping stops, immediately pour into a bowl.  
Add butter and salt.

That's it!  Really!  Super easy and probably cheaper than the microwave stuff.  If you really want to go wild add some Parmesan cheese or Truffle oil.  Yum!

I can't get a picture of a bowl full of popcorn because someone insists on eating all of it right away

I wonder who that someone could be?

Let There Be Light

I know this is really weird, but Kevin and I have been sitting in the dark since we moved in.  How long has it been?  Oh, 10 weeks ago?  

Every room in the house has a ceiling fan with lighting except the living room.  Which happens to be the room we spend the most time in.  So, most logical people would run out and buy a lamp probably within 1-3 days of sitting in the dark.  Not me!  I straight up refused and made any guest who came over sit by the light of the TV or the light spilling over from the entry or the hallway. 

I know, strange, but there is a method to my madness (isn't there always?).  I wanted can lighting in that room, and not just any can lights, but cost efficient and eco LED lighting.  And if I go out and buy a lamp, I will never do it.  Recessed lighting would just end up at the bottom of my home improvement list, which if you haven't seen it, is very long.

So I called my friend Joe to help us with the lighting.  I showed him the room I needed lighting in, and showed him access into the attic, and then finally showed him the fuse box.  

Wait, wait, back up!  A fuse box?  Who still has those?  Well, I did.  And I kind of liked it, it was cute.  Joe, however, felt it had to go.  

So a trip to Home Depot was in order to buy the lighting, the cans, the wires, a new breaker box, light switches and dimmers.  I am not going to tell you how much that cost, but let's just say we'll be eating a lot of pasta.

On Joe's next visit, we did the installation and Kevin learned a thing or two about electrical construction.  I am so proud of him!

And now we have beautiful lighting!

Pests! Pests! Pests!

First it was the flies.  They were everywhere.  So I got a couple of green reusable fly traps.  They are awesome and after having them out for a month, I have actually seen a difference.  Thank goodness, cause flies are gross.  Thanks to our fancy doggy septic system, there are never any doggy poops out, but for some reason the  flies are always out and about.  I haven't figured out what is attracting them.

Next it was the spiders.  Well, to be honest, I never did anything about them. Those are skittish little things (although very poisonous) and they mostly hang out in the garage and under the house.  They are not bothering me.... yet.  I will get to them when I get to them (way down low on the priority list).

Then it was the yellow jackets.  They didn't bother me at first.  They never bit or stung me and I thought we could all live peaceably together.  But now they seems to be taking over.  And it is hard to move about the yard without dodging one of them.  They seem to like the water in the pond, which is why they are hanging around the yard.  So off to the store I went to get another trap.  Just like before a nice green reusable one.

Now, it's the gophers.  

How do I deal with gophers?  I absolutely refuse to put poison down.  I have too many loved animals to risk having poison on the ground.  Someone told me to flood it out with a hose and then when they come out to breathe, hit them over the head with a shovel.  But if you haven't noticed, I happen to be an animal lover.  That would be hard to do.  Why can't I write a nice letter asking them to please not dig holes?  It would go something like this:

Dear Mr Gopher and Family,
I know you think you have found prized real estate.  It really is beautiful out there, especially during the sunrise.  But I hate to tell you this, but there is already someone living there, me.   And I really do not appreciate the holes you are creating in my front lawn.

I know, I know.  I have a lot of space.  Why can't I share it?  Well, I am here to tell you that I can.  Just please live by my rules. Here they are:

1. Do not dig or live in my front lawn at all.  Period.  I hate to say it, but your holes are unsightly and I don't want to upset my neighbors.
2. Do not dig or live in my immediate backyard.  This is for your benefit as well as mine.  You don't want to pop you little head out and be attacked by a doberman.  Trust me, it will not be pleasant.
3. Do not dig or live in the vegetable garden.  This is food for me and my family.  Please find your own.

That's it!  Three little rules.  There is plenty of space for you everywhere else.  Tons of it actually.  If you could agree to my 3 simple rules, I am sure we can live amicably with each other.

Very Truly Yours,

Lilian A. Ramey

Sigh... If life could be that easy....

Our Fresh New Look!

Aren't we cute!  I am so excited about our new blog design.  Let me know what you think!

Wild Black Berries

Can you think of anything more quintessential "American Summer" than sun-ripened black berries?  You just get that image of a blond 7-year old with purple juice smeared all over their mouth while smacking their lips.  If you can take that image of a blond 7-year and add 21 years you have my husband Kevin.  Every chance he gets, he is out there picking ripe black berries right off the vine and popping them in his mouth.  Pop! Pop! Pop!  (Which happens to be a very similar habit I have with cherry tomatoes.  Shush!  Don't tell anyone!)

Not only is he enjoying the blackberries, but so are the goats.  Very much like a honey badger eating a rattlesnake, the goats don't give a shit about the thorns.  They walk right through them and eat them, thorns and all!  They LOVE those leaves.  So on a nice sunny afternoon you will see both Kevin, Butters, and Oreo out there eating the blackberries.

So, to take advantage of all those black berries I went out there and picked about two cups and made some black berry sauce for a pork tenderloin. Here is a modified version of Martha Stewart recipe for Black Berry Chutney over Pork Medallions.

The black berries below are all washed and clean in my salad spinner.  If you have fresh berries, do not wash them until right before you are about to eat them.  

Cut up a couple shallots and cook them for about 8 minutes in butter until soft and golden.  Add your blackberries, cider vinegar, and small palm full of brown sugar.  

Let it cook down so it is nice, thick, and syrupy and the berries have started to collapse.

While your berries are cooking down, take your pork tenderloin and slice it into medallions.  Salt and pepper each medallion and pan fry each side so it is light pink on the inside.

When it is all cooked, pour that beautiful purple sauce over your pork and serve with a yummy salad.

Delicious!

Oops!

Things don't always go smoothly and accidents do happen!

Fortunately this happened in the hall closet, so I don't have to look at it all week.

I guess this weekend we will have to learn how to hang sheetrock on the ceiling, tape, texture, and paint.  In a few years we are going to laugh at this and be home repair pros!

DIY Warriors!

Kevin says I don't blog enough, so here is a quick recap of what's been going on:

We had our pool removed, finally!  Kevin and I never wanted it, just another thing to take care of and we didn't have the time for it.  So I put an ad on craigslist stating that it was free to whoever could pump the water out, dismantle, and haul away.  You would of thought we were giving away the lottery!  I got over 50 responses in the first 15 minutes.  Based on some of the emails I wish I had more pools to give away!  Well, we gave it to the first responder.  He came that Saturday and worked 7 hours.  By the end, he deserved it!

Also, my handy husband made a mineral/baking soda dispenser for the goats with some PVC pipe, plumbers tape, and PVC cement.

Isn't he handy?  We leave these minerals out for the goats to self medicate.  We have also been busy getting them all healthy for the year with de-wormers and vaccinations.  This week we are going to try to wean them off the milk.  Say your prayers that our neighbors don't go out there to kill the goats, or us!

Since this is a goat post.  How about a video?  One of the perks of working in construction is that I got to take a couple large spools from the site.

I hope you enjoy.

Beware of the UV Light!

So I admit it.  The last few posts were all la-di-da...life is wonderful on the farm...la-di-da!.  Well, not today!

The hubster is suffering from Corneal Flash Burns today.  What is that exactly?  Well it is basically a sunburn on your eyes, and it hurts. A lot.  

The 2nd question most people ask is, how did this happen?  Well, we recently replaced the UV lights on the pond filter.  Unfortunately, the lights either have to be turned off or you need to wear special eye protection while working with them.  Kind of like wearing a welding mask or those goofy sunglasses at a tanning salon.  After about 15 minutes of unprotected prolonged exposure, Kevin burned his corneas.  Here are the symptoms directly from WebMD:

Any time from 3-12 hours after overexposure to ultraviolet light, you may begin to notice symptoms:

• Pain that can be mild to very severe
• Bloodshot eyes

• Light sensitivity

• Excessive tearing

• Blurry vision

• Sensation of a foreign body in the eye

Kevin woke up in the middle of night complaining about sand in his both his eyes and that was the tell-tale sign that it was a sunburn.  He could not open his eyes long enough to see, so he could not go to work.  I left him with strict instructions to not read, watch TV, or play on the computer.  This didn't leave him much to do, poor guy!  Say your prayers for a quick recovery!

When I called my office to let them know that I needed some time-off to drive my husband to the doctor's, they compared us to Tim The-Tool-Man Taylor from Home Improvement.  Which is kind of true.  I very frequently raid my company's first aid kit every Monday morning to cure my scrapes, cuts, splinters, burns, etc.  We will probably have to get that restocked soon.  He he he, don't tell them!

Here are some pics of Kevin's burned eyeballs.  You see that fuzz on the outside?  It looks like speckled dots.  That's the burn and it makes it hard for him to see.

Lesson of the story?  Your eyes can burn, so please protect them and wear sunglasses outside.

County Fair

How fun is a county fair?  I just love it!  I love everything from the smells of BBQ, cotton candy, and livestock, to the lights on the ferris wheel, and the sounds of a rockin country band.  It all just goes so well with a warm hot night spent strolling with my hubby looking at all the sights and sounds.  It just feels so American and it makes me happy to live in such a wonderful country where we get to enjoy things like the county fair. 

I mean, check out these canned goods!  They all look so yummy!

So Kevin and I headed out to the county fair to check out the goat show and it was so much fun!  We only stayed around to watch 4H kids do their thing, but as they were learning, so were Kevin and I.

Aren't they cute!

You could hear the judge helping the kids along.  She would tell them how to hold the head better, how to stack their feet, and what side of the goat they needed to be on.

We also went and checked out the goats from the professional handlers.  

Look at this guy!  He has 4 horns!  I am not even sure if he is a goat or a sheep, but either way he was totally cool.  I just had to take a picture.

And it has finally happened.  I bought cowboy boots.  Can you believe it?  Now I really look the part!

Pond Loving

Isn't it beautiful?  Something I have noticed at Blue Antler is that there are always  flowers in bloom.  A few weeks ago the climbing roses were a burst of creamy pink opening themselves to the sun.  There were so many of them reaching for the sky it took your breath away.  Last week it was the Juniper.  This week it is the Hydrangea.  And next week the pink water plants in the pond are going to have a full on display.

Well enough with the sappy flower talk, let's talk about some fish! 

Along with these beautiful flowers, Kevin and I inherited 5 koi fish in our pond.  Which breeds?  I have no idea. Some of them have long feathery tails and fins, and some do not.  Some have whiskers, and some do not.  Some are almost all white and some look like a splash of gold, white, and black.  Some maybe goldfish and not Koi, but it doesn't matter to me what they are.  All that matters is that we take care of them and I enjoy them.  And I really do!  I had no idea how much serenity having a pond with fish can provide, but I spend at least 5 minutes a day watching them swim around eating their food going after bugs.  They are starting to know me and are coming to the surface to check me out.

Did you catch that?  I can see them now.  If you read an earlier post, you would know the water was so murky we didn't even know anything was alive in there.  But look!

 

Another sign that this pond is coming back to life are the dragonflies.  There is just something magical about dragonflies.  And I don't say this lightly because I hate about 98% of bugs.  I know what you are thinking, oh Lilian, what about ladybugs?  Yeah, I hate them too.  But dragonflies are allowed room in my heart.  The way they dart here and there with their brilliant colors and curious behavior, landing and floating above the water. It is just fascinating to watch. 

 

Can you see him there on top of the red maple?

 Did you know that dragonflies are fierce carnivorous eaters, and some can eat yellow jackets?  That's awesome, cause along with having fish, the pond also attracts  mosquitos and yellow jackets.  Dragonflies will pretty much eat any bug that is smaller than them, which rates them high on my list.  Eat away dragonflies!

Ta ta for now!

~Lilian

Hazardous Waste

Goat Update!


The girls are now a little over 7 weeks and they are getting bigger by the day.  It is getting to the point where I can not visit them while wearing flip-flops in fear of them stepping on my toes (ouch!).  I am trying to teach them not to jump up on people, but it is not going very well.  I guess dog training methods don't work so well on goats?

So this last weekend it was time for their CD/T vaccine.  Unlike dogs, you don't take them to a vet to get their vaccinations, you have to do it yourself.  So I ordered the vaccine, syringes, and needles from a goat supply website.  Once the vaccine came from UPS I promptly put it in the refrigerator.  On Saturday morning, I brought all my supplies down to the barn to set up my "lab".  When I was ready for my first patient I called in Oreo (who doesn't come when called.  Again, nothing like a dog).  These vaccines need to be administered subcutaneously (under the skin), not in the muscle.  Which just means you pull up the extra skin between their shoulder blades and administer the shots there.  This is easier said than done with a squirming baby goat.  So I called in Kevin.  I held the little goat and whispered sweet nothings into her ear while Kevin gave the vaccine.  What a team!


So now I have two dirty needles.  If any of you guys know me, I will NOT put these in the trash.  I don't put batteries, electronics, paint cans, light bulbs, etc in the trash.  In fact, pretty much nothing goes into the trash.  So I will definitely not put dirty needles in the trash.  After so many years working at HEP, I thought it would be easy to dispose of them since in California there are locations for clean needle swaps.  Not so!  


I call my local sanitation company and they will only take them on certain days/times in an approved container, which I do not have.  So I call CVS, they will not take them.  So I call Rite-Aid.  The pharmacist there told me to put them in a mayonnaise jar and bring them to the hospital for disposal.  Great!


So I hop in my car with my little jar of needles and happily go to the hospital.  I walk through the front office, who sends me the lab.  Nope, they won't take them.  At this point, I am having a serious internal debate on being a good citizen.  Is this really worth it?


On the drive home from the hospital, I stop at Walgreens, who sells the approved containers for used needles.  I grumpily fork over the 15 dollars.  As I am walking out, the pharmacist hands me this:

Really?!  Really?!  I was just there!

I almost lost it on the pharmacist, but she was tricky and got a phone call just in time to avoid my whole diatribe.

So I go home and put my two tiny needles in the world's largest landfill filler.

Fortunately, I came home to these happy healthy baby girls and they made it all worth it.


This is a video of the goats doing what they are supposed to... eating weeds!  I am sorry if this video is totally boring to you, my dear readers, but it makes my all excited and giddy.  We have a LOT of weeds and I need these goats to eat them.  They haven't really been eating them since they are still being bottle feed, but soon they are going to be taken off the bottle and they are going to have to learn to eat those weeds!

Laundry Detergent on a Dime

Actually, cheaper than a dime!  More like 6 cents a load!

If you guys have never heard of Itty Bitty Farm in the City, you should check it out.  It is one of the most interesting blogs out there.  Generally it is about a small family with a couple of pygmy goats, chickens, and a garden in San Francisco trying to make is work on about 1000 square feet. The writer, Heidi Kooy, is so open and honest and you really feel like you are part of her farm when you read it.  One day I would love to go visit, maybe she can pass along some tips about working full time, raising a family, and keep a farm up and running.  She really is Super Woman.

Well, recently she posted her sister-in-law's recipe for home-made laundry detergent and I was inspired.  I had already made my own batch of bar soap, so what could be scarier than that?  You are only dealing with one of the most caustic materials on the planet... no biggie.  I laugh in the face of danger.. ha ha ha!  But laundry detergent is different, no lye involved and it is super easy.

Why would I want to make my own laundry detergent?  Well let's just say it costs Kevin and I quite a bit to keep Blue Antler running.  For example, this past Saturday the hubby and I walked into Pete's hardware store to buy one small gasoline tank...

Me:     Oh Kevin, I forgot, I need some flytraps

Kevin: I need another sprinkler head

Me:     Oh gardening gloves....

Kevin: I need a hand saw

$90 dollars later..... OUCH!

 But I digress...

So the recipe for the liquid laundry detergent can by found here: Itty Bitty Farm in the City.

The materials are not super hard to find. You need a bar of soap (I used the bar I made at home, but you can use any ol' bar of soap, borax (laundry aisle at the supermarket), water, and washing soda.  Washing soda is probably the hardest to find.  But here is a tip: Call this phone number 1-800-524-1328 and have the UPC code 33200-03020 ready. The sweet lady on the other line will ask for your zip code and then she will tell you the closest place it had last sold recently.  Score!  For me it was about a mile down from my office at Raley's.  

You will also need a 5-gallon bucket, a pot that you don't care about (I used my soap making pot), a cheese grater, and a broom handle.

So I started out by grating my bar of soap

 
Then I melted the soap in some water very slowly for about 15 minutes till it was hot and melted, but not boiling.

Added the borax and washing soda and let it get nice and thick.

Then dumped those contents into my 5-gallon bucket filled with warm water.  Let it stand overnight.

And now I have low-sud (perfect for HE washers) laundry detergent.  What I love about this, is that it does a great job washing my clothes, it doesn't have artificial colors, dyes, or fragrances (partly because there were none in my soap).   And did I mention it is cheap cheap cheap?

That's it!  This whole process was done and over with in about 15-20 minutes and it should last about 4-6 months!  I use about 1/2 cup for each load of laundry.  If it is an especially dirty load, I add more.  Now, that you all are inspired by how easy this was, go out and try it! 

Thank you Heidi and your Sister-in Law!