Skunky Acre Farms

Bee Hives

2011-06-19T19:59:00.000-07:00

Here are a few images of the bee hives we have. They are a Jasckson/Tanzanian style that use top bars or langstroth frames. All home built.

We got some new Chicks!

2010-05-02T21:03:00.000-07:00

Spring has come, though with the snow over the weekend you would not know it. Spring always means one thing around this house - Baby Chicks! Here is our newest batch, fresh out of the eggs last Monday. An assortment of Americaunas and Barred Rocks.

Spring is Finally Here!

2010-04-18T22:01:00.000-07:00

The snow has finally decided to melt, and the Spring rains have come. Things are getting greener everyday, and the fruit trees have bloomed. We decided to get out of the house and take a trip to the Malpais Lava Flow. This place was formed by a giant volcano that belched forth lava creating a 50 mile long flow of black lava across the high desert plain. The boys love this place.

Way behind here at Skunky Acres...

2010-03-10T11:15:00.000-08:00

We have gotten so far behind, it is almost impossible to keep up. Let's see...

In the past month we have had a young 'un get his tonsils removed and ears plugged, A dad with fractured ribs (now healed), and a dead turkey which caused all kinds of sadness. She was a pet after all and died from a chronic illness. The big Tom Turkey is now very lonely and even more annoying as he follows us around the yard.

Basketball season has started for the boys. The oldest is pretty good, but our youngest REALLY needs to learn how to dribble. He is so bad he hurt himself doing it. Pretty sad...

We are still recieving a large amount of snow, but the days are getting warmer at least. In fact, we are due more snow this weekend.

That about sums it up. More snow than actual family activities going on.

News from the Acre...

2010-01-28T20:44:00.000-08:00

Hot off the press...

Tomorrow is ski day at school. Part of the benefits of living in a ski resort town, is that the local school takes them to the slope every Friday for ski instruction. Our oldest is quite excited.

In other news...

It is still snowing. We are about two feet deep and holding for now, in our yard. Cloudcroft has been hammered and is sitting under about 3 feet of the stuff. All of it piled on the 3 feet from two days ago. It is awful for travel, but great for skiing. All the trails are currently open.

More news...

In a totally unexpected development, the patriarch of our little family has broken another bone. This time it is a rib. Ouch!

Snow, Snow, and More Snow...

2010-01-23T22:17:00.000-08:00

It just seems to keep on snowing here on our mountain. We have lived here for several years, and this is by far the snowiest we have seen it. We have literally gotten pounded by snow every 3 to 5 days since the end of September. The snow in our yard almost melted totally off just once, and it promptly snowed again later that night.

A little further up the mountain, they are measuring their daily snow in feet, and not inches like we have become accustomed to over the last few years.

All this snow should make for a really green spring when it finally stops, say around late May, if the past winters are any example. That is a whole 8 months with snow in them.

And they say New Mexico is a desert.

The Raccoons must be Starving...

2010-01-17T21:52:00.000-08:00

The night before last, our local Raccoon posse decided to invade our rooster pen. It did not go as planned. Even though carnage and death was involved, it was funny to see those three roosters open a can of destruction on the raccoons.

We stopped it and scared off those furry little marauders.

Unfortunately, they came back later on and snatched one of our meanest roosters. It is actually a mixed blessing. We are sort of glad he is gone, but sad he went the way he did.

Taking the Rakes Skating...

2010-01-01T14:15:00.000-08:00

We took our two boys, aged 10 and 6 ice skating today. Wouldn't you know, the first thing that my oldest boy did was use his man skills and pick up a girl. They skated around hand in hand for a while, then dissappeared to go build snow forts together. Suffice to say, we left shortly afterwards.

When your ten year old dissappears in the woods with a girl, it is time to go.

Our House is Covered in Snow...

2009-12-23T16:44:00.001-08:00

And we have the coolest, most Christmas-like weather vane ever.

More Snow!

2009-12-23T13:05:00.000-08:00

We got 6 inches of snow overnight. The roads had not been plowed, and our truck promptly slid in the ditch on a turn. A neighbor pulled it out for us, but what a morning!

The Continuing Soap Opera of the Dog Fence...

2009-12-20T13:26:00.000-08:00

As if the new fence wasn't enough, we now have old people teasing our dogs from across the fence when we are not around. This morning, we saw a little old man and woman at the end of the driveway, yelling at the dogs and saying they needed to be run out of town. What??

We also heard an interesting story from a friend. This story concerns the disposition of plums we witnessed being picked from our yard by the very same person who started this whole dog debacle. It seems she is giving away our plums as Christmas Gifts to the locals.

We put up the wrong kind of fence, I am afraid. We need one to protect us from mean and vicious senior citizens who like to steal our fruit and tease our dogs.

By and large, most people in this town are very pleasant. There does, however, remain an element with which no-one can seem to please. No wonder it is so hard to get younger families to move to rural areas such as this. It is mind boggling that a certain element of the town's society would rather see it die than change for the better with new people and ideas.

Well, for what it is worth, the dogs are here to stay, and so is the new fence. I can't wait to see what else develops...

A Very Snowy end to November...

2009-12-06T10:55:00.000-08:00

After we got back from our trip to Texas, it began snowing on November 30th. It really didn't stop until yesterday. We got about 8 inches a night, except for one crazy night when we got 2 feet! School has been called off for nearly a week now.

These kids REALLY need to go back to school.

I hear we are due for more starting Monday night. Oh Brother!

Fences Make Good Neighbors

2009-11-14T05:36:00.000-08:00

The past few weeks here at Skunky Acre we have been busy installing a fence along the only open area on our property. When we moved in we had no fencing what so ever. As time has passed we have slowly been separating ourselves from the rest of the crazy people in our town. We never wanted it this way, when we moved in I loved the open yard connecting to everyone else. I envisioned everyone just sharing, and boy was I wrong. First our chickens bothered one neighbor, then our dog bothered another, people indiscriminatly stop in and pick our fruit with out even asking, neighbors dogs attack our livestock, etc. We are hoping the fence will help in other ways also. I am silly enough to believe that any fence that would keep in 2 dogs will keep out a pack of hungry coyotes, or that having the dogs fenced in the yard will help chase off some of the predators who are desimating our flock this year. We have lost 3 chickens in 2 weeks and wake every morning and immediately run to the chicken house to do a chicken check. The fence is almost complete, well actually the fence is complete, all that is left is to install a gate across our driveway. This is a major project that will involve hiring someone to dig through very rocky soil so we can install the gate posts. I think in the end it will be nice and we will love it. Fences make good neighbors after all.

R.I.P. Larry 2006-2009

2009-11-04T16:21:00.000-08:00

That is right our sweet little Larry is dead. He was fiendishly attacked in the night by a rogue raccoon. We all miss him terribly, and the kids cry about it quite a bit. You see Larry was a bantam rooster so therefore useless as anything but a pet. We had all become very attached to our little rooster. He was the comic relief for the chicken house, and never failed to make us laugh. He truly left his foot prints on our hearts and we will never be the same.

Really, We don't need you...

2009-11-01T14:28:00.000-08:00

The Turkey decided to help us stack firewood, if you could call it help. He needs to go in a pot, soon...

Crazy Mountain Folks

2009-10-31T08:27:00.000-07:00

I think the title really wraps it up. We have truly become crazy mountain folks and you know what ... we love it.

We had the kids Halloween parties at school, complete with a lunch room turned into a haunted house, and a parade at the end of the day. It was the parade with the exciting story because you see it was 18 degrees outside and actively snowing. But we still had that parade all around town with all the elementary and middle school kids waving and screaming " Happy Halloween". The parade goers even had candy to throw at the parade ( a bit backwards but fun). What a wonderful day, and what a wonderful school.

Happy Halloween ?

2009-10-28T17:07:00.000-07:00

Yes, that is right it is not even Halloween yet and we are already on our SECOND snow. Go figure !

My Friends Ass

2009-10-21T12:35:00.000-07:00

If you want to see a good friend of mines ass, just rent Transformers 2 ( out today on DVD).

What ....

get your mind of of the gutter, she rents and sells donkeys. Hers is reportedly pulling a cart in this movie but I can't say for sure. It seems that I am not a very good friend ( or mom of boys for that matter) and did not go see the movie in the theaters. I do ,however ,have it on the way to my house as we speak from netflix.

Who Is That Man And Why Is He Screaming At Me

2009-10-11T17:11:00.000-07:00

The nearest I can figure out his name is Charlie. That would be the total that I know.

Now for the story......

I came home from taking my youngest to the doctor, back when the horrible sickness had taken over the house, only to find my husband a bit upset. Apparently some strange man in a white truck had pulled into the driveway, gotten out, and began to scream at us. Being a sane man my husband avoided all contact with said man. This action only made the gentleman more upset. He eventually left, and my husband assumed I would know what what going on. When I arrived home with my sick little one I was asked if we knew anyone in a white truck with a funny mustache and if I knew why he would yell at us. Of course I knew nothing. I now got to spend the entire week or so asking everyone up and down the street if they knew him and if they knew what was wrong. I am sure my neighbors think I am crazy. I stop everyone walking up and down the road, and quiz anyone I can catch driving by. I have been told everything from my dog scared a little old lady ( the same lady who comes in my yard and picks my fruit when she thinks I am not looking, by the way) to I have a viscous dog that tries to eat people. Truth be told, no one knows what happened. Maybe eventually I will find Charlie and we can find out the truth.

The latest from Skunky Acre

2009-10-03T18:56:00.000-07:00

I know it has been quite some time since I made a post. I really have no excuse other than being busy, and isn't everyone now days. I do, however, have quite a bit of fun and excitement to spread all across the internet. So here goes, the latest infomation coming out of Skunky Acre.

We had a rooster rebellion. Long story short, if you have male anythings and lock them up to keep them away from the females they will find a way out every single time. No matter how much fencing you patch, or how attractive you make the lovely private quarters.

We are also not having our calls returned by the majority of our friends. If I have learned anything living out here it is that if you are trying to find a home for a wonderful huge potential meat bird sperm donor people forget to call you back. And we have 3. I guess they will just end up in the freezer. It is a shame though, lovely genes they have.

A huge round of sickness has also passed through the house. I am crossing my fingers and hoping that it is all over. I think I was the worst. I went to the doctor because I could not figure out what was wrong with me. The doctor took one look at me, took my temp., and said sweet heart you are sick with the flu. Go home and get in bed. Leave it to a mom to not see the forest for the trees.

All our pumpkins died this year. We had beautiful lush plants, but all the fruit rotted right on the vine. Well, I take that back one made it this far but it has not turned orange yet so we will see. This leads us to finding pumpkins for Halloween. Lucky for us some friends up the street have a pick your own field. The boys are begging to go, but I told them we have to wait until we are all not contagious, and everyone is actually attending school again. They are a little unhappy about that.

I also agreed to let my oldest boy have a good chunk of the football team have a party and spend the night, and I added my youngest first sleep over to the evening. Some of the other moms responded with statements like " What ! are you on crack", and " There must be something wrong with you". I answered with " what is one more monkey in a barrel", and " No, I don't do drugs or drink for that matter". And for their part all of the kids were wonderfully well mannered, the big kids were nice and included the little kids, and the evening was a lot of fun.

I have finally found the limit of what exactly our Toyota Prius can hold. I fit 2 adults, 3 kids, 2 drum sets, my husbands bunker gear ( for fire fighting), 2 sets of football gear, 3 back packs full of home work, and one bag of soccer gear in my little car. Now I don't know if I given the opportunity I could fit more, but we were fairly loaded down. Who says little cars can tow the line !

That is all for now, I am sure I am forgetting a ton of exciting news but I will have to post it as I remember. Please check back for my up coming post. It will be titled " who is that man and why is he screaming at us".

Fall Means Football and Soccer...

2009-09-14T16:11:00.000-07:00

There is a nip in the air, it can only mean one thing... Sports. The first game of the season was Saturday, for both boys. It was the youngest's first year to play.

Just Some Advice

2009-08-26T13:04:00.000-07:00

Last Week At Skunky Acres

2009-08-22T10:11:00.000-07:00

This past week at Skunky Acres has been a busy one. Our youngest resident started kindergarden and has had a roller coaster ride. Kindergarden is a pressure cooker now days( it is definitely not the sweet little class I went to). Now it is big school and the kids are put through the ringer. Our little one is adapting well, but has his ups and downs. I am also adjusting to having an empty, quiet house for the first time in 10 years. I miss both my boys when they are at school, but I will have to admit it is nice to have some time to myself.

The new dog is also settling in, although it has occurred to our original dog that she is sticking around longer than the others before her. Freckles spends her days looking at the new dog and sighing. They get along well, though. Penny is even accepting her name change well. She is wonderful and I can't imagine our life with out her any more.

Toyota Prius, the Ultimate Farm Vehicle

2009-08-16T13:09:00.000-07:00

Do to the county fair I have really put my car to the test this week and I have discovered it is quite the little champ. We have hauled 80 pound healthy dogs, a 45 pound bleeding dog, 100 pounds of feed, kids, shopping bags, chickens, even buckets of livestock bedding. It may need a little cleaning out, but I think it has really proved its worth.

Ladies and Gentlemen We have a Winner

2009-08-15T11:22:00.000-07:00

After seriously questioning the place in our home for a second dog, and giving up for the most part that we would ever have one a wonderful thing happened. A friend recommended a web site called petfinder.com. What a wonderful web site. It allows you to look at the pets in your area, enter your criteria, and then you can email the rescue groups to see if they think the dog will match your family. This is a much better system than randomly bringing home dogs from the animal shelter. After lots of looking and lots of emailing we now have a wonderful dog. She is a 2 year old Catahoula Leopard dog, and she is everything we had in mind when we decicded we had room for a new pet. So far she is good with the chickens, the cats, and Freckles. I guess that this must be the breed for us since Freckles (our original dog) is one also. I will post pictures as soon as I have some.

Score

2009-08-13T11:47:00.000-07:00

Skunky Acre is proud to announce that it is now home to an award winning chicken. Sally the buff cochin and her owner took not only first place for the large breed chickens, but grand reserve champion for the entire poultry house at the local county fair.

Is my son cool or what !

Sad

2009-08-11T11:23:00.000-07:00

Max had to go back this morning. It was a very difficult decision but I made it. He was just to hard to control ( he ran away 5 or 6 times a day), he ate my house, and he tried to eat a cat. The cat one is what broke the camels back. I can't endanger the welfare of one of the animals I already have. I miss him, and wish him nothing short of a wonderful home. I am also questioning the place in our home for a second dog. We have the room, love, and desire but it is just to hard to find one that fits. I guess we have a lot of thinking to do.

Dog Number 54

2009-08-09T17:37:00.000-07:00

Our quest to get a second dog has become a crazy affair. The first dog we brought home attacked Freckles ( our original dog) and hurt her bad enough that she needs several medications and veterinary care. Then we brought home a puppy, you can imagine why that one went back the same day. Right now we have Max. He has been giving us quite the run around, but we think we might keep him. The vote is in the morning so we have until then to continue to evaluate. Max has proven to be a handful. The first night we had him he decided to leave and hike all the way down the mountain to a movie theater. Lucky for us the local animal control found him, and we decided to call them on a whim. He is a sweet heart though and I really hope he works out.

Why is this titled Dog Number 54 you ask. Well, when we were bringing home Max he had no name. I asked the boys what they wanted to name this latest dog. My oldest son replied " Oh, I don't know how about Dog Number 54". To be fair we have named quite a few animals this week alone. I feel his frustration.

Chaos Rules

2009-07-31T20:03:00.000-07:00

Do you know how as you go through life you learn things about yourself, things you would never have guessed?

Well, I came to the realization today that I love chaos. How else could you explain my actions and my life for that matter.

First let me say my husband is having surgery in a week and a half, my kids are in the middle of getting ready for school to start, the garden is producing,
I am personally remodeling a basement ( and teaching myself new skills in order to do it), we are in the middle of a coyote invasion, not to mention the fact that I still have a house full of men to run on a daily basis, and a million animals I am personally responsible for. Now this house I am running is not done in the normal fashion for say someone living in 2009. No, I can't do that. I have taken us back a few years and I do things the old fashioned way. So when I say a house to run I mean laundry to hang dry on the line, dinner to cook from scratch ( now where did that hatchet go ?), etc. Any how, back to the enlightened moment. Today as I added a new dog to the batch and threw in a extra kid I began to question myself. Why would I purposefully go and get a dog ( my husband and I have been considering it) and then turn around and tell my 10 year old " sure your friend can spend the night what is another monkey in the barrel".

The answer is I must love the crazy topsy turvy life. Who knew ?

In A Pickle

2009-07-29T15:27:00.001-07:00

I spent the day today making dill pickles from an old family recipe and ingredients from the near by farm of a friend. All in all it was a lovely day in the kitchen made even better when some friends stopped by and chatted with me as I cooked away. They only had moral support to offer though not having any know how in the canning department. I have not made pickles in many a moon, and don't really know if this recipe is even any good. My family is not known for its cooking heritage. But I am out there trying, learning, and sometimes failing.

If You Show Me Yours, I Will Show You Mine

2009-07-27T05:34:00.001-07:00

Mowhawk Mike is now officially a contestant in the local county fairs poultry show. He is mean as fire, and looks like the devil. Isn't that the chicken you would want to carry around in a cage?

I wonder how that will go over?

Better yet, I wonder what his views will be over the situation?

Five !

2009-07-25T06:22:00.001-07:00

It happened.

Yesterday my sweet little baby left behind his babyhood and entered his childhood. Yes, that is right he turned 5 and will enter kindergarden in a few weeks. How did it all happen so fast? Why can't I rewind time? If you have not noticed I am having a bit of a hard time with the fact that he turned five. He did, however, have a wonderful time at his army party. It was the first official party of his life, and all his little friends came.

Done

2009-07-20T05:44:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I did it ! In only around 2 1/2 hours this room went from uncarpeted to carpeted. Of course moving the furniture and toys in and out took longer, but it is all worth it. Now my older son wants his room done also. I think we have turned an important corner here at Skunky Acre.

Now I wonder if I can dry wall ?

Full of Myself

2009-07-17T19:10:00.000-07:00

With all the success in fighting the school board I am a bit giddy with power. So I have decided I can now do all sorts of things. Things which lead my husband to question not only my sanity, but his choice in a wife. This leads us to our story today.

I have come to the conclusion that I can install my own carpet. Yes, you read that right. It can't be that hard, can it? The guy at the home improvement store laughed when I said that, by the way. I just figure that if we can raise and butcher our own meat, take on social injustice, etc then we should be able to do something as simple as install carpet. OK, OK you can stop laughing now. But this really has the potential to save us some real hard cash. Tomorrow is the big day. I will keep you posted as always.

School Fight Update...

2009-07-16T06:12:00.000-07:00

After several weeks of pure work and literally hundreds of emails and other attention grabbing antics, it appears we have prevailed in the fight to save our local school. The governor announced he will be reviewing the school budget and will provide funding to make up the difference and keep the school open.

Politics in action. Gotta' love it.

They Are Back

2009-07-11T15:37:00.000-07:00

The coyotes are afoot once again here on the acre. Yesterday ( at 5:45 in the morning !) they got a particular favorite of ours. Junior the rooster is no more, and we are sad. He was the comic relief around here. My favorite story is the one where he steals the chicken head from the butcher block and runs around the yard with it for most of the day. What a character. As you can imagine we started the coyote reduction program upon juniors death. We have not had any success as of yet, but we will prevail. Until then the chickens are on lock down, and super pissed about it.

There Is A Snake In My Boots !

2009-07-08T08:36:00.000-07:00

Well, he may be in there or any where else for that matter. You see my kiddos found a nice sized garden snake the other day. They did like all little boys and kept him in a clear shoe box with a lid. You know the kind that organized women keep their nice shoes in. They are plastic and make great animal containers. The kids wanted to sleep with their "best friend in the world" so off to bed everyone and his snake went the other night. Fast forward to the next morning when there is an empty snake container in the bed and a slightly irritated mother. Now I am not sure what happened, or where mr. snake went but I do know that his "food", a nice juicy grasshopper who was in the box with him at some point, emerged later in the afternoon. He hopped right into my open paint can, then hopped right out again leaving a trail of grass hopper prints all over the house. It was a very exciting day as you can imagine.

My Sense Of Humor Is Returning

2009-07-07T06:46:00.000-07:00

The rains are letting up a bit, my house only slightly sinks of water damage, there is no longer a Christmas tree in my living room, we have word from the school board about a meeting to " voice our concerns", and now my sense of humor is returning. I am feeling a little over whelmed with all the activities at the moment, but a lot of good is also going down.

I may have to rip a ton of water damage out of the basement, but at least it is in the guest room and bathroom. Those areas can be out of service for quite some time and not be a big pain. I also get to finally decorate down there. We have chosen Fresh Grape Juice for the color in the bathroom. Sort of cool in a Harry Potter kind of way. Oh, we also got a ton of junk cleaned out of our storage area. A bunch of it was " stuff you hang on to but don't really have a need for". Gee, once that is water damaged it can go. Talk about feeling groovy.

The school board has agreed to give us another meeting so they can hear our concerns. Like they don't already know we are going to come in a throw a fit. It is, however, giving us some amount of hope. Maybe we are winning over a few people, and maybe we can win this battle. The lines are already drawn and the vote is in 6 days.

Washed Away

2009-07-03T09:13:00.000-07:00

As many of you know our lovely little town clings to the side of a very tall mountain. Yesterday said mountain was hit hard with hard fast rain. So much so that most of the roads, and some of the houses are washing out. We are lucky and only have minor water damage in the basement, I guess that means I should reconsider putting carpet down there. Some of our neighbors have mud slides in their houses. Thank goodness for sandbags, and lets all hope it stops raining.

Now Where Did That Chicken Go ?

2009-06-29T18:18:00.000-07:00

So I guess my sense of humor has taken an odd turn living out here, but this is what we have been doing now that our little fight to save the school has hit a lull. We are still waiting for a response from the school board and the superintendent. That means we have time to evaluate our flock and take some ( for lack of a better word) action. We have 10 chickens in the deep freeze , 2 meat birds that have to go this week or they will just fall over dead, and a bunch of accidental roosters that need some down sizing. The reduction program for the roosters is going to be by far the hardest. We are attached to some, and others we are still a little unsure if in fact they are roosters. I would hate to kill a good laying hen just about to drop her first egg.

SSHHHH, You Don't Know Me

2009-06-27T05:30:00.000-07:00

Ok, so it now appears that I am a media sensation.

I guess that means I will have to start wearing dark glasses and a scarf when I leave the house, well that or I will have to take the young Hollywood direction and just wear no underwear and short skirts and use none of the lady like skills my mother taught me when I get out of a car.

I should tell you the story of my meteoric rise to stardom.

The big meeting was on Thursday and we gave them hell. I mean we really showed up in force and defended what is ours. Apparently the school superintendent had mentioned to a few people that he thought only a hand full of people would show up. He had quite the surprise when we not only filled the room to standing room only, but people where lined up in the hall way to speak their minds. To say he looked like a deer in headlights is an understatement. We even had several news outlets there, including the big ol tv station for the state. Can you guess who they interviewed and platstered all over the 10 o'clock news.

Lesson learned never do that again

Not that the interview was bad, but I don't like looking or hearing myself on tv.

Now all we have to do is wait, and see if they give us another meeting ( and tell us the time and place) or if they change their minds. Wish us luck.

Sticking It To The Man

2009-06-23T08:04:00.000-07:00

Most of the activity around here for the past week has been centered around our campaign to keep the community school open. We even spent fathers day handing out fliers and passing around a petition. Letters have been written, meetings attended, friendships made, and our little hamlet is really coming together. Boy howdy is it all exhausting, and I am just a foot soldier in the fight. My friend is the head of the movement and I am a little unsure how she is maintaining her sanity. The whole event is, however, reenforcing the decision we have made to send our kids to the neighboring school district. It was a very hard decision, but they have a lovely school with small classes which they will never close. That would mean no constant fighting and worry for us. It will also mean keeping our children on the mountain where they belong for all of the school days ahead.

Schools out .... forever

2009-06-19T14:47:00.000-07:00

We have received terrible news. The front page of the paper has announced that the school district wants to close our wonderful little 2 room school house. No matter that if they do they will have to bus all our sweet little kiddos all the way down a 9000 foot mountain to the big elementary school, or that our school is the oldest continuously operating school in the state of New Mexico. They say it will save them one million dollars to close it. Now if it takes them that much money to operate a school for 24 kids than I am a monkeys uncle. We plan on fighting ...... watch out big mean school board here we come.

Uninspired

2009-06-18T05:37:00.000-07:00

It seems that lately I have been a bit uninspired. It is not like nothing interesting has been going on, you an I know better than that.

My mother in law came and showed me how to vacuum my ceiling ( brilliant ! so why had I not thought of that). The dog showed up one morning sprayed by a skunk, did I mention it just happened to be the day my mother in law called to say she was on her way. The basement flooded with sewer when the boys ( which one is in question) flushed something they should not have down the toilet. The geese found a new home which is lovely and they will be so happy there. A bear got into our chicken feed ( we know because we saw the foot prints) and tossed everything willy nilly. I also broke the lawn mower and I did a really good job. I am not sure exactly what happened but black smoke came out of a crack in some important looking metal. I am not a mechanical person but I am sure that is bad.

I am sure there are countless other little things that I can't remember but today I became inspired once again so here is my story.

I woke up this morning not quite moving very fast. The usual mommy get up, mommy get up, being my alarm call. Then when I walked in the kitchen and opened the door to let the cat out 4 beautiful deer stood looking a me. There were also deer stalking the chicken coop looking for left overs. I shut the door and went on about my morning only to notice the deer just watching me through the screen door. So whats a girl to do...... I just sat and watched them back. We sat there quite a while , looking at each other. That is when it happened I thought of how peaceful it was and how I just love living here and inspiration struck.

It had to happen...

2009-06-14T16:30:00.000-07:00

We all knew it was coming. The Geese decided they wanted to be badder than we could tolerate, and got moved to a new home. After several months of them picking on the hens, they have been moved to a large pond and now have new people. We will visit them when we can, but they no longer live at our little abode.

A Bird In Hand .......

2009-03-21T07:30:00.000-07:00

The chicks are growing like mad, and we now walk them every day in the garden. The boys are particularly attached to the little gray one my son is holding here, but I really love the little black one in the other picture. Good thing these are going to be our laying hens because we are a little to friendly with them to eat them. I think this batch is a little different because we hatched our own eggs this time.
We also have a big batch of eating birds we picked up the other day. They are just as cute as the laying hens, but we are trying hard not to get to attached. If they are anything like the last batch of broilers they will have awful personalities so that will not be to big a problem.

With the days being warmer we are starting to get out into the yard and " spring clean". It feels so good to be able to hang dry our laundry again, and I am super excited about the sprouts I now see in the garden.

Bad Goose, Very Bad Goose

2009-03-19T15:23:00.000-07:00

It seems as if our geese have developed a new and VERY BAD habit. They now spend their days standing at the end of our drive waiting for joggers, trash pick up men, wandering teens, etc to pass by. They must then defend our house against such obvious intruders. Oh, and they also try to bite the tires of passing cars. While this is quite funny to us from the safety of our home, it is not to the intended targets. Full grown African geese are huge and a bit frighting. We are, however, a bit stumped on how to stop them. They are after all wild barnyard geese.

Picking Up Chicks

2009-03-14T14:41:00.000-07:00

How cute are our new baby chicks !

It is that time of year again here on the acre. We are now over run with adorable baby chicks and new plants are springing up in the mini green houses in our window sills. This year, how ever, the chicks are extra special. A friend of mine called last month and wanted to know if I wanted in on her hatching plans. They have a commercial incubator and had some room for a few more eggs before they fired it up. So we made a sweet deal, I give her a bunch of eggs and she gives me back half as many chicks. Every one wins with an arrangement like that. Now lets hope I did not end up with all roosters !

Be The Change You Want To See In The World

2009-03-06T15:40:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I stole that quote from Gandhi, but that is exactly what my family decided to do.

Any one who knows me at all knows that I have been ranting on and on about wanting an electric car. Our car was getting a few miles on it and we like to have at least one newer car to head out across the vast New Mexico landscape in. So on this trip to the dealership we decided to be that change, and boy are we glad. We are now the proud owners of a 2009 Toyota Prius. Ok, so it is not electric but it is the closest we can find at this time. We are also getting 44 miles to the gallon, and have fallen in love. I was worried at first that it would be a bit small, but in all honesty it fits 90% of what my family does with a car. What about the other 10%, well, I figure we will improvise. Besides it is all apart of my new years resolution, being honest with what I really need.

Today I Had To Shave The Butt of a Cat

2009-01-24T16:25:00.000-08:00

I am not sure how else to put it, but I had to do just such a thing today. I am positive that you are wondering why anyone would have to do that. Well, as usual it is quite a interesting story.

You see the victim in this case is poor little Miss Kitty. She is a stray that has been hanging around here for quite some time. She has set up house on our deck and no one , and I mean no one, questions it. I guess you could say she is a little protective of that space. She weighs about 20 pounds ( good deal of which is hair) and she is missing most of her teeth. She is also the next cat to hit the vets office and officially become ours. A point she may be reconsidering right now.

Today as I was feeding her I noticed a small issue. Upon further inspection I found that , how can I put this, because of all the long hair she has some vital body functions had become blocked off. I hope you understand what I am trying to say. Now she is a half wild cat that tolerates us because we feed her. I can't comb all that hair or bathe her to keep her clean, so how was I now going to fix this?

My oldest son and I decided just to wrap her in a BIG beach towel and start shaving. As you can imagine it was a very interesting experience. One I don't hope to ever have to repeat. I am quite positive that Miss Kitty feels the same way. After the event she quickly exited the building and is not coming anywhere near us or our crazy house. It all makes me wonder if we will ever see her again. If not who could blame her.

Falling Off The Wagon

2009-01-22T15:38:00.000-08:00

I hate to report that I have already fallen off the stuff wagon. It all started when JCPenny had their 75% off sale on their clearance merchandise. I was able to get over $350 worth of clothing for under $100. With 2 growing, active boys it seems like I am constantly replacing clothes. I just still can't help wondering how much of that we really needed, and how much was just such a great deal I did not want to pass it up. I guess I need to work a little on my new years resolution.

Stuff, Stuff, and More Stuff

2009-01-18T07:12:00.000-08:00

This January a few things have all come together to make me realize what a culture of stuff we all live in.

First off my boys and I have been reading some of the Laura Ingalls Wilder books. Yes, she wrote some that appeal to little boys. Did you know when they moved the entire families belongings fit in their wagon. Yes, they could move in one trip and they moved their stove !

Could you? Even if it was just your stuff ?

Or that she was completely amazed when she went to a friends house and they had a room just for eating. I guess better known as a dinning room.

Second it is after Christmas which is my traditional haul stuff to the dump and thrift store time. The other one being in late August when the boys go back to school and I can finally clean out with out their " help". This year I have been in shock at how much just stuff we have accumulated over the year. Did we really bother to buy, haul, and put away all this useless stuff ?

Any how, this year I have hit the clean out trail a little harder than usual and with a new pair of eyes. It just amazes me how much time and money we waste on our stuff, and we are not even the average consumer family. So this year I am making a late New Years Resolution to do a better job of sorting out what I WANT as compared to what we really NEED.

Finally .......

2009-01-10T10:10:00.000-08:00

Yes, I know it has been quite some time since I made a post,but I am finally back. Things here at Skunky Acre have been busy, fun, and a little sad.

We can start off with the fact that we had a lovely Christmas. The boys got most of what they wanted, and several opportunities to meet with Santa. We did ,however, move Christmas ahead a few days. Being a fireman my husbands schedule is quite honestly odd. He had a few days off before Christmas, but he had to work Christmas day. We decided to move everything up, but did not tell our offspring. We just simply got up one morning and announced that it was in fact Christmas at our house, if not at any other. The kids were thrilled and had a great time. It all turned out for the better, to, when a family friend died Christmas. We were all a bit sad, and will miss him.

We have also had many, many days of loads of snow falling from the sky with several days of 60 degree weather in between. It has been quite fun since the old snow does not pile up and get yucky, but you still get all the fun of watching it snow. The boys have dragged up an old snow board and been teaching themselves how to use it on the hills in the yard. We are very lucky and there have been no trips to the hospital with that ( knock on wood).

Now ,I am afraid, it is back to the old grind. The boys Christmas breaks are over and the tree is down. We are now into the good old clean out the closets and try new and better habits season.

The Tukey Is Dead And We Are Sad

2008-12-16T16:17:00.000-08:00

We finally found Turkey Lurkey, or should I say my oldest son found him. My boy and this particular turkey had a special bond and finding his death location was terrible. To say we all miss him is an understatement.

The Good, The Bad, and The Just Plain Ugly

2008-12-13T14:16:00.000-08:00

Last night we had a wonderful time at my youngest sons preschool Christmas program. Santa even came with a gift for each child. Seeing my little ones eyes when Santa walked in the room in the middle of dinner was , well, priceless.

He even got to stand next to the new woman in his life. In case you are wondering my sweet little man is completely and utterly in love with Vivian and she is a fine pick if I may say so myself.

I was shocked that my boy got up in front of everyone and sang and danced. Such public displays are usually his brothers domain. I guess when you have the woman of your dreams by your side you can do anything.

But why does it seems that good and bad always come hand in hand. As we left for our really rockin' party with the man in red himself we had a loss. Turkey Lurkey is missing, there is no sign of him and we are all beside ourselves. His loss would be a deep cut to our lovely family and we keep hoping he will turn up.

The Adventures Of Mohawk Mike Rooster Extraordinaire

2008-12-10T15:51:00.000-08:00

I don't know what about my house attracts such strange things, but here is a new one.

Today a simple thing happened. The UPS man tried to deliver a package. Now one might think his biggest worry would be the dog, but no not here on Skunky Acre. One has to watch their back against all sorts of attacks when treading on our property,apparently. You see our drive way was covered in ice and snow so the UPS man did not want to pull his truck in. Instead he parked on the road and walked down. A simple move one may think, but it was the wrong one for him. Mohawk Mike our low ranking, feather headed rooster was right on that one. He was convinced that he needed to protect our house and all of its occupants from this person who was obviously up to no good. Yes, that is right our rooster attacked, with full force mind you, a delivery man. That poor guy. He just tossed the package and ran......God only knows what stories he told when he got back to headquarters. In fact I wonder if we will ever get a package delivered to the deck again or if they will just throw them from the truck as they pass.

The Queen Of No Fun

2008-12-08T13:17:00.000-08:00

This year I have had a heck of a time getting into the Christmas spirit. I don't know if it is the lack of snow ( usually it comes by Thanksgiving at the latest), doing a good deal of my shopping on the internet, or the decrease in everyones budget but I have been having a hard time getting in the mood. Today ,I believe ,it is all turning around. The family and I all headed out to the store to try to get some shopping done and to try to grab a few supplies before a big storm hit. We did not make it. Right in the middle of our errand running the storm hit and then the fun started. We ran through the grocery store to lay in a few things and rushed home, all the while listening to Christmas music ( which I have not been able to find until today because someone around here " borrowed" it) and enjoying the snow.

What a difference snow makes.

We stopped at the post office and all the internet orders had come. We had a big teetering pile of boxes. Now I just want to drink hot chocolate with a roaring fire. Goofy, I know, but fun.

I Have Been Bad, Very, Very Bad

2008-12-02T05:33:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I have not made a post since November, and then I only made one post in a whole month. I do sincerely make an apology, and I promise to be better this month. These cute little monkeys are the reason for my absence. I particularly like how the middle one ( my youngest) has begun making that same face for any picture. Isn't it just lovely !

Now let me catch you up on our lovely little lives:

We had a wonderful holiday. The whole family came out and we all shoe horned into my house. We had a great time visiting, going to movies, eating turkey, the whole works. It was really great to see my little niece. She is growing up so fast and I only have so many days a year to spoil her.

We also are in the middle of a raccooning. We have traps out but no occupants yet. Fortunately we have not lost any chickens, but we are on the look out. A family of around 7 raccoons can not be up to any good in my yard at night. Especially since my oldest caught them waiting in a tree, hoping that we would forget to lock up the chicken house just one night. I do think they would get a surprise when they went fishing for a nice sweet chicken and got a handful of turkey.

On a really exciting note...... We now qualify for a free calender from the feed store. A special moment in every girls life, I know. We received ours yesterday and it took me a while to absorb the fact that we actually purchase enough stuff from a feed store for them to consider us good customers and send us a calender. Are we cool or what.

And They Lived Happily Ever After

2008-11-16T08:22:00.000-08:00

Today is the day that I married my loving husband 17 years ago.

That is right 17 years !

Can you believe that one. I am a little unsure how I got so lucky as to marry the man of my dreams, a guy who shares all my goals and values at the tender age of 20, but I did. You may ask what wonderful plans we have for such and important day. Well, we are attending the Football awards banquet for pee wee football, and we have a kid with a fever. Sounds like a great way to celebrate to me.

1980 Has Left The Building

2008-11-09T10:46:00.000-08:00

I am pleased to announce that the 80s have officially been chased from my home. You see my lovely master bath, the place where I go for a little quiet and some renewal, was stuck in 1980. It was all complete with wallpaper with little powder blue and pink flowers, oak cabinets, wooden towel bars, the works. You really can't blame the original decorator for it was in the 80's that that part of the house was added on. I am sure at the time it was picture perfect and a sight to see. Now , being 2008, it all seems a little dated and just not my style. In fact, it was not even my style in the 80's. So, yes, I have spent my weekend so far painting, peeling, and texturing and the results are beautiful so far. I will soon post pictures of the brothel bathroom ( as my husband is calling it), and I will leave you to ponder what exactly a brothel bathroom looks like. Just remember with me you never know.

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T15:42:00.000-07:00

The Pissed Off Cat says "Happy Halloween!"

Have You Hugged Your Turkey Today?

2008-10-28T11:50:00.000-07:00

There goes Thanksgiving dinner !

Satisfaction

2008-10-22T08:48:00.000-07:00

Here on the acre we have been enjoying one last week of nice weather. We have had lovely days in the 60's and cool nights in the 40's. It has been hard to get any work done around the house and on the computer as we have been picking apples, attending festivals, playing football, and carving pumpkins. What a wonderful way to spend the fall, but it is ending. As of today the weather is turning and snow is starting for fall here in our lovely state. It was great while it lasted, and now we can all look forward to fires in the wood stove, ice skating, and hot chocolate.

I just love having 4 seasons.

A Quote For Our Times

2008-10-08T06:02:00.000-07:00

A good leader inspires greatness in others

Ok, so I got it off an episode of Star Wars, but it is still a great quote.

I Have Cats !

2008-10-06T07:40:00.000-07:00

First you have to say that right, sort of like one would say:

I have lice,
or
I have gas,
or even,
I have termites

Yes, here at Skunky Acre we have a plague of cats. It all started when we went out of town for a few days this summer. We had a lovely time, but the house sitters were feeding our cat outside ( with our permission) and it attracted a lovely calico cat. We kept feeding her because she was sweet and cute, and she apparently did not have a home. Well, that set off the cat radar for this whole area and now we are over run with cats, all of which want food. One has even decided she lives here and will just walk in my house and make herself at home. We started calling her Jadis ( as in the white witch that just took over Narnia) and her picture is above.

Now what to do with all these cats,

Anyone want one ?

If The Economy Is Going To Collapse Then Maybe I Should Go And Buy A Shovel

2008-10-01T08:30:00.000-07:00

My oldest son informed me yesterday that if the economy was to collapse then we would be ok. You see he is sure that our garden, chickens, and orchard would protect us from the general pain that such a thing would bring the country. I guess that means I should replace the tools we broke the day before the infamous arm injury. We were digging out stumps and broke our pitch fork and shovel. Those just might come in handy if indeed he is right. In case you are wondering he is currently working on a plan for what to do if the " city " people try to come up the mountain and take our resources.

Maybe I should start limiting his TV news watching.

Normal ?

2008-09-30T09:06:00.000-07:00

Ok, I am back now. My life is returning some what to a normal state ( if my life is ever normal). Skunky Acre has been as active and interesting as always, I just have not had the time and mental space to write about it. Now that everything is calming down I should be back to entertaining the world with our odd life.

My husband, the brave leader of our family, has returned to work. His arm is almost healed and he can now use it again. It is a bit painful for him, but the doctor told him that is his therapy.

My oldest sons football team is kicking some Pee Wee butt. They are undefeated and have now qualified for the play offs. So far he has not broken any bones or had any major injuries. Thank goodness ! Any time someone gets hurt on the field my first response is " that is not my kid is it?".

Our turkey ( who we were convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt was a girl) has found his manhood. He now struts around the yard displaying to all what a huge stud he is. He has also formed some strange bond with our oldest son. He meets him at the bus, comes when you call his name, and will hug you. Yes, I just said our turkey will hug you. I think the oddest thing he does is gets on the trampoline with the kids. Strange I know, but that is our life.

This past few weeks has been so busy and crazy that I can't even start to tell you all about it. I guess it will have to be enough to say I am back and I am sure it will all come out in the end.

Bears 21 - Cowboys 0

2008-09-13T16:56:00.000-07:00

Hot off the press! The Bears win their first season opener 21-0, over their rivals in blue - the Cowboys.

Here star player Alex #62 shouts his enthusiasm to his team-mates on the sideline over their victory.
Alex #62 clobbers a cowboy during a pass attempt.

Battitude

2008-09-06T16:48:00.001-07:00

Screaming Halt

2008-09-05T07:26:00.000-07:00

Here at Skunky Acre we are in danger....

We have fallen right back into the life we purposefully moved away from. Yes, that is right for the past few weeks our life has been in and out of the car, running from obligation to obligation, eating on the run, move move move.

Yesterday we said stop !

I am exhausted, my kids are exhausted, and my husband is still broken. So what did we do, we quit.

Today we will stay home and get back to our lives. Boy do I miss our life.... in fact here are the top things I missed

1) hanging laundry on the line. It is such a relaxing thing to do and you really feel like you are accomplishing something.

2) Weeding and caring for my garden. I just love sitting out there and listening to the silence, the results are yummy to eat also.

3) Cooking real meals with real food and real nutrition for my family. Nothing tastes better than that

4) Waiting out in the yard for the school bus to drop off my oldest while the turkey waits at the end of the drive and my youngest jumps on the trampoline.

5) Walking around out in our property and just looking. You get to find snakes, lizards, bugs, what fruit is ripe, what animals are coming around. Pure heaven !

6) Hanging out with my girls. I love my chickens and I love to work in the yard and just watch them having chicken adventures. The meat birds we are keeping since all our laying hens have been eaten are particularly funny.

7) Hanging out and talking with my kids, not just driving them around and hearing their fun second hand.

8) Having time to notice the world around me and blog about it.

Hut ( Did I Spell That Right ? )

2008-08-27T12:23:00.001-07:00

Ok, so my husband and I are so unsporty that it could be a crime. So, guess what our kid decided to do?

Play the mother of all sports,

Football !

I am learning a lot, like did you know they have different cleats for different sports, and my boy is enjoying himself ( that is what matters, right).

Go Bears ....

Oh, and my kids is the one in green shorts and a white t-shirt.

How Cool Is My Man

2008-08-18T05:49:00.001-07:00

Yes, the same one with the broken elbow.

On Friday the neighbor called to say a coyote was headed this way. My brave man hung out our bedroom window with gun and shot it as it was trying to get our chickens.

Broken arm and all !

On the bad side he did not drop it and it ran off in the woods ( behind the bus stop) to die. I decided it might be wise to stand with the kids until the bus came. I had visions of the little girls trying to help the poor wounded creature while the boys threw rocks at it. We all know nothing is meaner than a wounded animal.... so I took a gun. You read that right, I stood at the school bus stop with a clutch of kids and a gun to protect them from a wounded coyote. Don't you do that often?

Oh, and the plums are jam, the yard is mowed ( no coyote cover that way), my husband is still broken but really cool, my oldest is registered for football, and I am very tired.

The Plums Are Ripe, The Grass Is Knee High, My Husband Is Broken, and I am Tired

2008-08-16T06:37:00.000-07:00

What more can I say, other than what is in the title. I am being run ragged doing all the chores around here at our busy time of year. My poor husband is broken and can't help, but our plums are plum delicious.

And Father Of The Year Goes To .............

2008-08-14T06:47:00.000-07:00

This guy right here. Not only did he put together a new trampoline for the boys on HIS birthday, but he broke his arm doing so, and he finished it before going to the hospital.

We love him a lot.

Saved By the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture

2008-08-09T10:44:00.000-07:00

Ok, so they don't sound like the go to guys when you have a coyote problem, but let me tell you these guys kick butt and take names later.

Our coyote problem has been getting worse. They have begun coming up on the deck right up by my windows and doors. To be honest with you I was getting scared and would not let a single soul out of the house. We came to the conclusion that those animals just had to go.

Yesterday was the assigned day so early that morning my husband and children ( who were well prepared) painted their faces, put on all their camo, and proceeded to climb into the tree fort ( their blind). They blasted their recordings of " hurt baby coyote", " dying chicken", and " injured rabbit" trying to lure in those coyotes. It lasted for hours and nothing came. I say nothing but really every dog and cat in the area showed up. We were all a bit frustrated since until now we could not even go outside with out seeing one. Where had they all gone. The " great hunters" decided to take it up a notch and released our pent up chickens. That for sure would do it. By 6 that night we were all sick of it.

Now enter the U.S. Dept. of Ag guy. He showed up around then and informed us we had a real coyote problem ( no kidding). Apparently when we called in the big guns last week they started checking out the area. They discovered that the coyote population in this area has gone nuts and reached an unsafe level. They have been hunting coyotes all week and are thinning the population. It will take them some time, but they are handling it. Oh, and they shot the giant female who has been stalking us. To say we are happy about that is an understatement. I can now go out side and not worry about my safety or that of my children.

Please, Don't Make Your Problem My Problem

2008-08-07T14:45:00.000-07:00

This is for all of you city folks out there who like to think you are doing us country bumpkins a favor by hand delivering us your unwanted pets. You know who you are, the ones who dump your problems out on the side of the road out side of town and hope someone will find them and love them. Well, we don't want them. If we wanted such a pet we would go down to the animal shelter, pet store, or local rescue and get one. If you are wondering exactly where this is coming from here is the story.

Yesterday we told the boys we would take them out to lunch and to the movies as sort of a last blow out before school starts on Monday. Everything was going well all through lunch in a mountain town near by, and then we headed down the mountain. Not to far from our house we found 2 large dogs that some one had " set free". We know this by the big bag of dog food they left dumped on the side of the road. It was complete with EMPTY water bowl. Now I am sure it was a very hard thing for them to do, seeing as I am sure they loved those dogs so very much, but it ate up the rest of my day. We as a family go with the idea that if we kept going on about our day we would be no better than the people who dumped them out. So we spent the next few HOURS finding out who was in charge of strays in the very remote area, and trying to figure out how to tell them where they were with no landmarks to speak of. They were 1 1/2 miles after the pavement ends up fresnal canyon road. There is a big bend in the road after a 15 mile an hour sign. How do you like those directions.... we also drew a map. We did finally make the movie, although we all worried about those sweet, friendly guys the whole time. They are in good hands now with an animal rescue group and hopefully finding good homes.

Now to deal with the stray cat that has shown up. It's picture is the one above. The boys have started feeding it and named her Clementine. I guess now we have a second cat I sure hope it is a girl.

Banned ....... From Disney ?

2008-08-06T08:23:00.000-07:00

Yes, that is right I have banned my kids from Disney. Not the lovely g rated cartoons, mind you, but the awful, tacky, smart mouthed sitcoms they have started to produce. I started to notice my oldest boy getting that same lip and attitude they have on Hanna Montana, I Carly, and the like. I put my foot down and now I am afraid I am the most uncool mom of the year. To bad, so sad.

Just A Few Things

2008-08-05T14:08:00.000-07:00

There have been some new " happenings " here on the acre and as always I like to keep my people posted.

We discovered what is eating our hens. Coyotes , and darn big ones at that. We have had the government out here to handle it, but it is to dangerous for them. So , of course, they have left us to handle it on our own. In the mean time we are keeping our kids, pets, and live stock locked up until the offending pack is dealt with. More on this later.

I have a new look. I know everyone is so concerned with my appearance, but this one is fun. I went in to get my hair touched up last week and came out with a completely new thing going on. Think Trixie from speed racer only crazier. I could not decide on a hair color so we just did them all. I am now Dark Golden Brown with bright blond and bright red streaks. My kids hate it, I love it. They say I don't look like a mom now, I look like a rock star. I say who wants to look like a mom, I would rather look like a rock star.

In Plain Sight

2008-08-02T06:11:00.000-07:00

Have you ever been looking for an answer to a problem only to discover, after many hours of searching, that the answer is right in front of your face ?

That is what happened to me. I spent yesterday calling all my chicken contacts ( yes, I have chicken contacts don't you?) in search of some barred rock laying hens. I had 8 meat birds to sweeten the deal. Then my loving husband pointed out the obvious,

all chickens lay eggs.

They may not lay well, or long, or in the same place every time like my beloved working girls but they all lay. We have 8 hens left of the meat birds and they should start up production fairly soon. I say when you are desperate you give everything a try. So in with the flock go the nameless masses who were save from the chopping block.

What a smart man I married.

Skunked

2008-07-31T19:32:00.000-07:00

Here we are again, I have been out in the yard in the dark night in my pjs and muck boots smelling chicken feathers.

How do I keep coming to this point.... and who would ever think of themselves as being here !

Any way, here I am and we have lost most of our chickens already this year. 8 chickens in two weeks to be exact. This means we are now in desperate need of laying hens. We only have 5 layers left and only two are laying right now. That is not enough to feed my family much less sell. From the smell of a fresh batch of chicken feathers we found on the ground we believe it to be a skunk. Let's all hope we trap it tonight.

The Chickens Are Unhappy

2008-07-29T18:57:00.000-07:00

Yes, that is right my chickens are a little off. We know this because for about 8 weeks now we have only been getting one to two eggs a day and with all the chickens we have that is way off. I have carefully watched them and have noticed that only the barred rocks are laying. This just makes me love them more, they are my favorites after all. They are such little champs. We have several theories as to why the chickens have just stopped laying, but can't confirm any of them.

1) they are molting
2) Rocky's love is a little much and is bordering on harassment
3) the predators are stalking them and stressing them out ( we have lost quite a few in those same weeks)
4) they are laying somewhere else

I guess we will just have to wait it out and give them the break they must need.

The Batman, Dinosaur, Indiana Jones, Hiking Party or My Youngest Turns 4

2008-07-26T04:52:00.000-07:00

As most of you with children know with your first child you would cut your arm off before you would let their birthday parties be theme free. You make sure that every aspect meets that theme, and spend all sorts of money to have the perfect party.

Then after a few kids and many years of party giving you could give a crap. Not that you are not just as excited for your little ones special day, but you realize that what ever they want is fine as long as it makes them feel special.

For my youngest, my sweet baby, all he wanted was his whole family to come to his house, to have a batman pinata, an Indiana Jones cake, dinosaur decorations, and go hiking. That is exactly what we did. In his mind is was the best day ever, what more could you ask for.

To Heck With It All

2008-07-21T11:42:00.000-07:00

After a busy month of butchering chickens, digging and rocking ponds, putting in gardens, installing light fixtures, and generally improving our home we said to heck with it all , loaded up our nutty family, and headed to Albuquerque. We had a blast. We hiked lava fields, saw dinosaurs, ate in a shark tank, feed larakets, rode camels, ate ice cream, ordered pizza, rode trains, found peacock feathers, swam in pools, let butterflies land on us, and just had a good time. Now back to work, refreshed and just a little tired.

Love Is ......

2008-07-15T05:34:00.000-07:00

Not giving your children to their grandparents permanently when they

Have a rock fight, get in trouble for it, move the rock fight around the corner where you can't see, break a window on the house, hide in an apple tree so you can't find them, find out the apple tree is to small for two little boys and break the branches on the apple tree with their weight.

Rain, Rain

2008-07-10T11:23:00.000-07:00

It is 63 and raining, and it has been for days. It stared on Tuesday night and is still going strong. As you can see from the picture my kids have found a wonderful way to entertain themselves. We adults are just frustrated since all our out door projects are just sitting and waiting for the rain to stop and us to finish them.

Happy 4th of July

2008-07-04T18:18:00.001-07:00

I hope everyone is having a great time on this 4th of July. We spent the day doing what every red blooded American does on the one day a year we celebrate our independence.

I hauled rock !

Now don't get me wrong we attended parades, ate watermelon ( even the chickens) , popped fire works, and ate hamburgers. I did not want our citizenship revoked after all. But, the majority of the day was spent hauling rock up a hill from the big pond in the yard to the little pond in our garden. The pond is shaping up very well. Yesterday ( as the above picture shows) we finished digging the hole and put the liner down. Now we just have the long and hard task of rocking it. I will make sure I post pictures later this week when we are finished. And now I leave you with a picture of our youngest rooster Mohawk Mike spending his independence day lounging by the compost heap. It must be nice.....

The Big, Long Post

2008-07-02T05:25:00.000-07:00

I must apologize for my lack of posting in the past week or so. The home improvement stores have begun to mark down their merchandise for the season, and the rains have come. The combination has made for a very busy life and a much improved home. Good thing since my whole family is coming for my youngest 4 th birthday in a few weeks.

On another note, the rains have also lead me to ask a very important question......

" just how stupid can a chicken be"

The answer is really, really, really stupid. Now that the rains have come the yet to be butchered black broilers are a bit confused. ( 11 down and 12 to go) All that water falling from the sky is just to much decision making for them. What do they do about it. The answer is nothing, they go about their day getting soaking wet. All of this ended with me, once again, standing in the yard in the rain and dark trying to round them up and put them to bed for the night. Let's all hope they don't end up getting colds and dying from it.

The Best Day

2008-06-23T13:01:00.001-07:00

Yesterday shaped up to be a really wonderful day. We took a break from the endless chicken killing ( 8 down and 15 to go ) to attend our towns cherry festival. We volunteered at the fire departments snow cone stand, petted the local camel, ate hot dogs, amazed people with our 3 wheeled bike, and generally had a great time. I am always glad when festival time comes around and we can ride our bikes up to what amounts to a big party for the locals.

Half A Bike ?

2008-06-22T07:14:00.000-07:00

What ! You mean to tell me that you only bought me half a bike !!!!!!

So it is not what we had in mind when we went to buy our youngest a bike, but we all love it. You see his birthday is coming up next month and all he wanted, with all his heart is a bike. We are thinking we can finally all get out and ride as a family on the awful gravel roads.

The Sounds of Summer...

2008-06-21T22:16:00.000-07:00

For those who do not live in New Mexico, you are truly missing out. We always know summer has arrived, because the state bird shows up, with his distinctive sound. We know because it flies overhead every ten minutes between slurry drops.

The rain really needs to start. Then these guys will go away. By the way, the forest is "closed" right now due to the extreme dryness, and we have teams of firefighters camped out on the local trails just in case. They are literally living in the woods to get the jump on anything that may start. Betcha' can't convince them global warming is a myth. Every year the season is drier and hotter and the fires are getting bigger.

The $7.50 chicken, or Why We Do What We Do

2008-06-21T10:07:00.000-07:00

Ok, so the final numbers are in. Our chickens are averaging 3 to 5 pounds after they are cleaned so we are paying around $ 1.87 a pound. I think my husband is a little disappointed that we could get them cheaper at the grocery store, but I don't know if that is true. Around here we can buy a whole chicken for $.89 a pound. But, and this is a big but, they are injected with salt water. Yes, most meat is. Read your labels people. They inject our meat with all sorts of things. I learned all this when my youngest had a terrible milk allergy. I had to start reading labels on everything and boy howdy was I surprised at what they do to our food. Talk about an eye opener. Any how, I am wondering if this lovely, beautiful skinless meat will not shrink as much during cooking. That would lower our price per pound considerably. I guess the truth will be in the cooking, and I will keep you posted.

Thought For The Day

2008-06-20T17:45:00.000-07:00

How exactly can a chicken stick out the feathers on their neck when it has no muscles attached to them?

I Can Vacuum Seal ....... How About You

2008-06-18T16:21:00.000-07:00

After extensive reading and video watching I have finally mastered the vacuum sealer! This may not sound like a giant achievement to you, but to me it is huge. My mom was nice enough to send me hers ,since she does not use it often any more, and I had huge plans for putting up those awful chickens in my yard.

Yesterday did not go well for me.

The men huddled in the yard working out the system we will use for the rest of the birds ( 2 down 21 to go) and all I had to do was preserve them for future use.

Who do you think had the easier time ?

I for the life of me could not get the hang of the sealer. Here I was with the fruit of my mans work sitting in the kitchen sink while I fumbled around and just could not get the hang of it. I finally gave up and used plastic wrap to contain them. If you are wondering why exactly I did not just put them in a freezer bag the answer would be because they are HUGE. I don't know what happened out there in the chicken tractor, but those sweet little chicks grew to gigantic proportions. Crazy.

So now I go on through my life with one more skill...... that of vacuum sealing. Now if I can only preform under pressure.

The Winds Of Change

2008-06-17T15:50:00.000-07:00

Today is the day we started " retiring" the meat birds. We selected 2 of the biggest birds and we went to work. I guess I should really say my oldest son and my husband went to work, and I was pushed to the sidelines ( cleaning toilets, getting mail, taking trash to the dump, picking up the youngest from preschool and taking him to free lunch at the school). I was so proud of my little boy..... so big and spending the morning really actually helping his dad. He was so excited to be included in this grown up event and I can see him reaching for his manhood and wanting to learn. I am also a little sad as this is one more step away from me.

Spread your wings little man......

#$&@!%#

2008-06-14T05:51:00.000-07:00

Ok, so the black broiler meat birds are big, stinky, mean, and really need to be in my freezer. We called the butcher and guess what .... he is way busy until late July ! There is no way our measly little plot of land can support all of these full grown chickens for that long with out really making a mess of it. We have decided to do it ourselves and have set the date for next week when we will all be home for 5 days straight. So look forward to the post, it will be a good one.

Wonder Twin Powers Activate

2008-06-10T18:25:00.001-07:00

I was up at the general store showing off pictures of my hansom brothers wedding and this one seemed to stand out. I think everyone picked it out and said " is this your sister". I have no sister... in fact it is my cousin. Maybe is was all that pulling me around in a wagon when I was 1 and she was 4 that bonded us. What you would not put a 4 year old in charge of a one year old. Well, evidently my family would. What can I say it was the 70's and people did a lot of strange things.

Hitched

2008-06-10T05:45:00.000-07:00

He did it ! My sweet little brother got hitched. We dragged our country bumpkin family to the big city to witness the event. My smallest child was in awe of the big airplanes at the airport, the freeway was mistaken for a race track, and he achieved his goal of eating a hamburger as big as his head. We spent the whole week amazing our kids with all the fancy sites to see but are very glad to be back at our humble abode.

The Adventures Of Snail Boy

2008-05-29T08:04:00.001-07:00

Ok, so the picture is out of focus but you get the idea.

We had a nice little rain shower yesterday afternoon, and being summer my kids hit the dirt ( or mud) afterwards looking for fun stuff. What they found were tons of snails. They spent a good hour out there catching them. Now I am not the biggest fan of the snail. I can handle most bugs, but snails = yuck. I insisted that they at least put them in buckets when they came in the house for bed time. You can imagine my surprise when my youngest even pulled a few out of his pants ! Needless to say I tucked in 2 happy boys with a bucket brimming with snails which were released as soon as the boys were happily sleeping.

Go Organic

2008-05-23T10:59:00.000-07:00

Have a look at this !

Organic fresh produce delivered to my door. I usually try to buy my produce and meat locally, but living in the mountains there is really only 3 months out of the year produce is available. Our only other choice is Walmart. I hate buying produce at walmart. They do have a nice little line of organics now, but their selection is so limited and I have to drive all the way down a mountain to get it. The other day I ran across a lovely web site that ships fresh organic foods right to your door. More food miles than local, yes, but in the end it is better than food shipped in from some far off country. Both better for you and better for our planet, I believe. We decided to give it a whirl, and boy howdy am I pleased. It was easy, fast, and my kids love it. The box arrived and they tore it open and started shoving food in their tiny little faces. I sort of like the variety aspect of it. Some of it I don't think I would buy normally but I sure will try it now that it is in my house. Here is a list of what I got delivered right to my door for $82.00 and that included shipping.

3 apples
3 citrus fruits
1 pear
2 kiwi
4 peaches
1 bunch of red grapes
1 bunch of green grapes
3 red potatoes

1 small package of cherries

1 head of garlic
one box of cherry tomatoes
1 bunch of green beans
4 zucchini
2 bunches of cooking greens
1 package of mesclun salad mix
1 bunch green onions
one head of leaf lettuce
1 bunch of spinach
1 bunch of parsley
1 bunch of basil

They also included a recipe sheet to tell me how to cook some of it. The selection will change seasonally , of course, but I am pleased and we will do this again for sure. In fact next time I think I will get the larger size box, as my kids have already dug in to the shipment and show no signs of coming up for air.

Respect the Bird

2008-05-21T13:37:00.000-07:00

Things here at Skunky Acre have been a bit crazy but I do have a lot of new stories to tell, so here they are.

Have a look at Kung Foo Pee Pee. I guess that is what happens when you let a 3 year old child name a turkey. The elementary school my oldest attends tried to hatch some of our eggs for a science project. Something went terribly wrong and what few eggs that hatched were deformed. I had been expecting 8 more chickens for our flock. When the news that we would not be getting any more chickens came my lovely husband and crazy children immediately ( as in I had to turn the stove off to leave ) hopped into the car and ran down to the closing feed store to snatch up this lovely bird. Gee, do you think they had a plan there ! We are unsure of his breed, but know he is a heritage breed turkey that will be white. Oh, and here is my favorite , he has to be walked and he does not get along well with others. Other birds that is, he LOVES people. We purchased him as Thanksgiving dinner, but I am sure that plan will be revised.

On another note we had to off a few of our bantam roosters. We accidentally ended up with 3 of them and they were really hard on our hens. Now nothing, and I mean nothing, messes with our laying hens. They are our money makers and food supply. We had been putting it off for a good while and it was just time for them to go. In fact, I do believe that their soup was what had to be turned off to go and get a turkey. The soup was good, but we were all a little sad. They were good little guys and really pretty. Such is life.......

The black broilers are growing by leaps and bounds. I am sure they will be in the freezer in 3 or 4 more weeks. The hurt ones have started regrowing toes and feet. Yes, you read correctly, they are regrowing body parts. I would post a picture, but it all looks pretty gross.

Next week is the first week of summer around here. The boys are enjoying the end of school and all the cupcakes and fun that come with it. As a matter of fact, I can't get my oldest to stay home and in bed with his sore throat and low grade fever. He was going to school this morning if he had to walk there.