Meet our hens - Rosie, Tulip, Lily & Violet!

I haven't properly introduced you dear readers to the happy hens of Mama Moon Homestead! On February 26, 2016, we brought home four fluffy baby chicks that were just three days old. Two of them are Rhode Island Reds, and the other two are Buff Orpingtons. It has been super cool to watch these girls grow from little peeping babies to clucking hens. 

Rosie is the leader of the pack. She has always been the lady in charge since she was a little one. She puffs her chest out and likes to herd the other girls around. Rosie has basically taken the place of a rooster. I don't plan on ever getting a rooster, so Rosie can be the boss. 

Tulip is the second biggest hen we have. She likes to run around and be tough like Rosie. Her comb is rather large and flops to the side which just adds to her already large character. 

Lily is next in line. She looks very similar to Rosie but isn't quite as large. She gave us quite a scare last week. We thought she was egg-bound which means a hen is unable to lay the egg she has inside of her. The result is death. Lily was removing herself from the other chickens and acting very lethargic. We made sure she was drinking plenty of water, but she seemed to have no energy. Her droppings also fit some of the symptoms of an egg-bound hen. 

We were so afraid to lose her. My sweetheart gave her a bath and went out to the farm store to pick up some ground oyster shells to make sure she was getting plenty of calcium. After the second warm bath and gentle belly rubs, Lily began to come around. We don't know when she lay the egg, but she must have because she is feeling 100% better! It's hard to tell who is laying which egg, right now all of our hens are laying. Our chickens are not just here to give us eggs; they are a large part of our homestead family, and I don't want to ever think about the day that we may lose one.

Last but not least is Violet. She is a funny girl. Violet has always been the runt of the flock, and her comb is still developing, but she sure lays some beautiful eggs. She is also very proud of herself and stands up to the other hens regardless of her place in the flock. 

I am extremely thankful to have healthy hens who provide us with fresh eggs daily. It feels awesome to fill up egg cartons with their eggs. I always say thank you when I find an egg in the nesting box. Having these girls has definitely changed the way I look at eggs. I appreciate the process so much more and have mad respect for chickens!

A late weekly wrap-up! Cabbage, potatoes, chickens, and more!

Happy Tuesday evening! It has been a busy week on the homestead. It was the last week of school for the kids, so a lot was happening, and their energy was bouncing all over the place. Plus, we had some family visit over the weekend which is why my weekly round up is being posted on Tuesday instead of Sunday. That's okay; the family is number one!

This week we harvested:

12 heads of Chinese cabbage
A handful of cilantro

So far in 2016, we've harvested: 

Two dozen radishes
8 pounds of spinach
One small head of broccoli
A handful of chives
Two bundles of lemon balm
12 heads of  Chinese cabbage
A handful of cilantro


Garden

It's wild to see the space we have as we have begun to harvest the vegetables. I am still planning what will replace all of the cabbage. Speaking of, let's talk about how I planted too much Chinese cabbage! Okay, so I've harvested 12 heads. What in the world do you do with all of the cabbage you might ask? Well, I gave a few heads to friends and neighbors, and then I froze the rest. I am freezing the cabbage in different ways to see which way ends up tasting the best.

I washed the cabbage, plucked off the tiny slugs, and cut them into thick strips. The cabbage, not the slugs. I blanched those strips for just 30 seconds and then added them to cold water. They dried a bit and then went straight into the freezer bags. I think they will be great for stir-fry meals, casseroles, and soup. I also froze raw leaves and raw chunks of leaves. I want to see the difference of blanching vs. no blanching. I feel like a homesteading scientist right now. 


I still have about 8 - 10 heads of cabbage left to harvest. I think I will be doing more freezing and sharing. Also, a cabbage and potato casserole seems fitting for tonight's dinner.

Our beets have popped through the dirt to show their little green leaves, and our large potato plants have begun to flower which has me over the moon in excitement. I've also noticed some broccoli, cilantro, spinach, and cauliflower that are looking ready to be harvested. It's going to be another abundant week around here.

Chickens

Our girls are around four months old which means fresh eggs may be in our near future. I like to check every few days just in case there is a surprise waiting. I tell the girls to lay when they are ready and no rush, but secretly I am growing impatient. Not so much for the eggs, but just for reaching such a big milestone with them especially after raising them from three days old.

My beautiful friend Rebbeckah from Harvest Moon Homestead blogged about a bee waterer and I was very intrigued to make my own. It's extremely simple to do and brings the bees much joy. I gathered some rocks and shells from around my yard and added them to a planter bottom, then simply filled it up with water. I placed my next to the chives which our local bees love dearly.

We here at the homestead are big jokesters and love to laugh. I thought I would leave you with some shenanigans that my 12-year-old daughter took part in with a growing tomato. Until next time!

Weekly Wrap-Up Around the Homestead

It's been a hot week. You can tell summer is just around the corner!

What we've harvested so far:

Two dozen radishes
3 - 4 dozen large spinach leaves
One small head of broccoli

Garden

In the early morning hours, I spotted a baby bunny hopping around the yard. After inspecting the garden, I saw some nibble marks on a small strawberry. I decided it was time to put some netting around the strawberry plants. My daughter asked me what we should do with the nibbled strawberry, and I told her to pull it off the plant and leave it for the bunny. When we woke up, we both were excited to find out what happened to the strawberry. It was gone! We found remnants of it in the grass. None of our other berries were eaten. A very thoughtful bunny.


We took the plunge and added two semi-dwarf apple trees to the homestead. I planned on taking the kids to a u-pick farm to gather enough apples to cook and can with, and after crunching numbers, we will save hundreds of dollars by buying our trees. We bought a North Pole variety and a Scarlet Sentinel. 

We had record high temperatures in April then a drop to cool temps in May, and now we're back up. It's been a roller coaster ride of weather. I noticed that my largest head of broccoli had decided to flower. I went ahead and harvested it, so we could enjoy it before it grew too tough to eat.

Our Chinese cabbage is growing like wildfire. I am hoping the high temperatures won't bum them out. Today, we added higher netting to give them some room to spread upwards. 

Chickens


The girls love watermelon. They pecked at a round piece of watermelon until the rind was paper thin. I was very impressed with their work. I read a few months ago that mint helps to keep rodents at bay. We haven't had issues with any by the coop, but I decided to be proactive and transplant some of our lemon balm around the chickens' pen. I also know lemon balm has a calming effect, so I hung a fresh bunch to dry, and when it was ready, I crumbled some in their nesting box.

Rabbits

Our male Rex rabbit, Ostara, has stopped pooping in the litter box. I am not sure if he is moody or something else is going on there, so we've kept a watchful eye on him. He is getting plenty of water, eating, and bucking around his exercise pen. His sister Juno is her usual awesome self. They have both enjoyed feasting on the fresh radish greens and spinach from our garden. 


Gifts from Nature

I spotted a tiny little eggshell on our carport. It seems to belong to a bluebird. I am going to keep my eye out for a nest and babies. Hopefully, this one made it.

Homesteading: How We Got Here

I grew up in Georgia on a half acre of land filled with pine trees, kudzu, and parents who knew if they wanted to make ends meet and survive then they would need to garden, can food, chop firewood, and live frugally. And here I am 37 years later, with three children of my own, homesteading on a small piece of property. Except I am a long way from where I grew up. I am in a small community in northern Washington. It's wild to think I am on the opposite sides of the country, yet living as I always have.

In my twenties, I did a lot of apartment hopping. Despite my lack of space, I always had my potted plants. I worked full-time, sometimes two jobs, so homesteading wasn't in my path at that time. Then I became a mom, and that's when things shifted for me. I wanted to feed my children better than I fed myself. I wanted them to experience the beauty of the world around us. I began to grow food in containers, sewing clothes, and even homeschooling at one point. I thrived to get back to basics. To enjoy life. 

Fast forward ten years. My family and I move cross country to Washington state. We again find ourselves in an apartment. Nothing wrong with apartment living, but I longed for a yard to grow a large garden with sufficient sunlight. 

This year, we moved into a large home on the waterfront - still renting - and finally have space to not only garden, but raise four chickens and two bunnies, house a large compost bin, a rain barrel, and two semi-dwarf apple trees, A big change!

I struggled with investing in homesteading because we don't own this property. What if the owner decided they wanted to move back in, and we had set up all of this for nothing. But, then I realize that finding joy in what you are doing each day is not for nothing. So, instead of worrying about the what if's, I decided to jump right into homesteading, but keeping in mind that I may have to transport our mini farm (ha) one day. I am okay with that because I am living my dream.

I hope you'll follow our journey as we garden, raise farm animals, and figure out to be as self-sufficient as possible. I work long hours, so it's hard to devote many hours throughout the day to homesteading, but I think I am doing a pretty darn good job. I have lots of thoughts, pictures, and stories to share with you. 

Thanks for reading! - Sage

Spring Break 2013: Swimming & Chicken Sitting!

Last week was Spring Break for my kids. We did some chicken sitting for friends who went out of town. My youngest two enjoyed feeding and loving the chickens each day. My son was in charge of collecting the eggs. It was a fun experience for us.

When we weren't tending to chickens, we were swimming at the pool. As you can see in the photo below, it was a real rough week for us. What did your family do on Spring Break?