Non Toxic Weed Killer

People are finally starting to realize that using toxic chemicals in your gardens actually does more harm then good. Not only does it destroy the soil, but these chemicals will also leech into the plants you are trying to grow. That being said not everyone has the time to hand pick every garden and flower bed and weeds can take over a garden pretty quick. 

Here is a Natural Non Toxic weed killer to help keep the weeds under control in your garden without subjecting your produce and flowers to chemicals that can and will leech into your plants and then into your system.

http://www.nwedible.com/2014/04/diy-weedkiller.html

~ Niki

Spreading Their Wings.

So far this morning these little chicks have been rather entertaining. Between jumping from one end of the tank to the other, and trying to "fly" out of the tank I'm really glad that we made sure they had a secure roof! Haha. The kids can't get over how quickly these babies are growing, it seems each day they are doing something new and entertaining. Yesterday it was tossing their treats around the tank today flight! 

Hmmm I wonder what tomorrow will bring haha!

~ Niki

New Pressure Tank!

Today we change out the pressure tank. Woo hoo. Ok it might not sound like a big deal to you, but when you loose water pressure at random times, and because the old tank is well old you end up with plugged lines followed by chunks of iron flowing through your lines for a few days after you clear the blockage, yes a new tank is something to celebrate!

Really some days it's just the little things. I plan on celebrating with a nice hot shower once it's all done! 😄

More Younique sent!

So even though my house/homestead to do list seems to be getting behind these days, today I was able to ship off a few more Younique prizes and samples to some very lovely ladies! I'm about 90% ready for my show next weekend back in Stetter. Looking forward to catching up with a bunch of ladies I met at my last show down there. 

Still hoping to add some strong women to my team this month, love the ground floor opportunity, and the fact that the company just keeps growing! The momentum is awesome!! That being said if you or anyone you know is looking to get on board and meet a tone of amazing women not to mention make some really sweet cash on the side send me an email! youniquebyniki@gmail.com

~ Niki

Wet Wet Wet

Between the rain and snow lately things just won't dry out. I have a shed full of boxes and furniture I want to sell off, and a coop full of Christmas stuff I need to store. Seriously starting to feel like a chicken with my head cut off here. My honey do list is growing daily and my time line to get it done is getting shorter. 

If I only had one more shed I could make this work lol. Downsizing is great, and lord knows we needed it, but getting everything sold off is not only stressful, but overwhelming. 90% of the stuff is too good to toss out and too valuable to just give away.

Today is another one of those crappy snow/rain mix kinda days. I could run out and get my dirt to start more seedlings, but a) the dirt piles I've been given are currently mud hills and b) it's not quite warm enough for my seedlings to be outside. I even went to check out all the feed and grain I was given, but even that is far too wet to move just yet. It seems like a never ending circle around here these days. 

That being said I think me and the kids are gonna tackle the basement. Organize all the boxes and totes down there and maybe work on getting joeys Lego stuff set up. Worst case scenario I make room for all the totes and boxes needing to be stored and stick them down there for a week until this weather smartens up. 

Need to get something done, even if it's the stuff wayyyy at the bottom on my list.

~ Niki

Natural Treatments for Common Chick Illnesses

I came across this fantastic link tonight that I thought I would share with you all!

http://www.hobbyfarms.com/livestock-and-pets/protect-your-chicks-from-7-common-illnesses.aspx

This is a great list of common illnesses as well as what to do in case any of your flock gets infected. This is the natural way of treating those illnesses, very important to those of us trying to raise our flocks as organic as possible without pumping them full of medications and chemicals. 

~ Niki

Quick check in.

Today was spent running around delivering stuff I had sold on the local buy n sells, picking up a new pressure tank for the house, grabbing a few groceries, and trying to get as much done while it was snowing/raining as I possibly could. The kids got to have a veg out day after they helped me load up the truck and did all their chores. 

I'm really looking forward to having hubby home tomorrow. Sometimes it's just nice to have that extra bit of adult help around the house. That being said I have a mountain of laundry to tackle, supper to start, cleaning to do, as well as chicks that need their food and water filled for the second or third time today haha. I still can't get over how quickly they are growing up.

Last night was the first night they stayed on the shelf in their tank over night and didn't get brought into my bedroom. The cats actually left them alone other than staining at them through the glass. This for me is great news! Anytime I can cut even one small job out of my day frees up my ability to do something else. 

Well that's it for this check in ... I'll pop in again after I get some stuff done around here.

~ Niki

Homesteading Group for Homeschoolers

I know there's a lot of people especially in the homeschooling community who are looking for ways to either set up a homestead, develop an "urban" homestead, or just learn how to become a little more "off grid". There's nothing better than fresh produce from your own garden, or raising your own meats. Just something about knowing exactly what really going into the food you eat makes it taste that much better. 

Since there was a lot of interest I decided to put together a set of "classes" which will be done as family group projects. With everyone meeting up at our homestead to work on them and try out some new fun stuff! Although I still have a few dates to fill in I'm glad to officially have the dates set and most of the projects scheduled. Now comes the real hard part which is figuring out the cost per project. This I hope to have done in the next few day even if only for the first few dates. 

For those of you here looking for the information here you go! 

Here are the planned dates/projects.
Times will be 1:00 - 4:00 and will include a break for a snack. For prices on individual cases please contact me as some prices haven't been fully set yet.

May 14 - Herb Garden and Meet & Greet (requested that anyone interested in any of the classes please come to this one for full information on the classes as well as what to expect over the next few months) 
May 28 - Compost Bin
June 11 - Chicken Tractor
June 25 - TBA
July 9 - Homemade Butter
July 23 - Weather Station
Aug 6 - Homemade Ice Cream
Aug 20 - TBA
Sept 3 - Cold Storage Rack
Sept 17 - Solar Dehydrator
Oct 8 - Canning
Oct 22 - Swap & Trade

Keep checking in with our blog for more information, as well as posts recapping each project day!

~ Niki

Storing Fresh Eggs

With all the planning that comes with getting laying hens there is also the planning of what to do and how to preserve all those eggs. Knowing that I plan to have many eggs for sale each weeks, as well as for personal use I thought it would be important to really research the best way to keep them, not only for myself, but for my customers.

After digging on various blogs I found one that actually put all these "preservation" methods to a test. Honestly I really wasn't shocked by most of the outcomes, but in the end it was a good read and very educational. 

http://www.motherearthnews.com/real-food/how-to-store-fresh-eggs-zmaz77ndzgoe.aspx?PageId=1

One thing that is so very important for anyone that has their own laying hens whether for personal use or for sale is to not "wash" the eggs. When they are laid they have a special coating which protects them from the air and bacteria keeping them fresh that much longer. 

Give it a read I'd love to hear your input on it! Also since we are homeschoolers we are always looking to experiment with new things. Have you heard of pressure action methods not done on that blog post, let us know! It might just become something we'll need to test out!

~ Niki

Heritage Hogs

Raising my own Hogs are definitely on my future to do list. Not this year though lol

Like most homesteaders I dream big, and plan years in advance. Hog breeds are something that I have been looking into for quite some time. That being said Heritage Hogs, are in the same category as heirloom seeds. It's going back to our roots. This article really grabbed my attention.

http://www.olyfarmstead.org/heritage-breed-hogs/

With a list of various heritage breeds as well as a pile of information it's a great resource for anyone looking at getting a hog or two. Give it a read! And let me know which is your favorite! 

~ Niki

Watermellon Trellis

While searching around online for different ways to make the most of my garden space I came across a great blog post on grooving Watermellon vertically! This for me is awesome news! Watermellon is one of the many things on my "grow" list this year, and 1 plant can take over 15 ft in diameter of garden space! Considering I plan on planting at least 25 of them I was starting to wonder if I would have room for anything else!

Growing Watermellon plants vertically is going to save so much room in my garden I can't wait to incorporate it into my plans! Go to http://squarefootabundance.com/growing-watermelon-on-trellises/ for details!

~ Niki

Easter Babies!

So excited to share with everyone the newests members of the Gurney homestead! We got 2 Cooper babies (2 weeks old) and 2 Gibsons babies (also 2 weeks old) from a wonderful lady and friend Kara at Three Mile Ventures who breeds these beautiful birds. (Make sure you check out her page on facebook!!!)

The Gibsons will lay pretty green eggs, and the Coopers will lay a dark brown egg! We are so excited to watch them grow and mature, and even more excited to try their first eggs. 

Kids are still working on names for them, but so far we have "Bare Bum" and "Morgan" lol

~ Niki

Grazing Options for Chickens.

Anyone that has ever raised chickens knows that if they have lots of area to roam they will munch on the greenery and move on. However this can be an issue for people have have to keep the grazing area to a smaller scale or may not have the idea growing conditions to keep up with the demand. Chickens will pull vegetation out of the ground roots and all for fresh greenery.

There are many ways to curb this issue, either by expanding their free range area, constructing a chicken tractor, or building a grazing grid. Not only is it beneficial for the chickens to get fresh greens, and cut down on your feed bill, but it will make happy healthy birds, and very yummy eggs!

This spring an summer I plan on building many of these options out of recycled material, but in the meantime check out this fantastic post by another blogger and get some ideas of your own for your homesteading projects!

http://www.thegardencoop.com/blog/2012/02/07/grazing-frames-backyard-chickens/

~ Niki

Busy Easter weekend.

Today has been a crazy busy weekend in our home. Not only was hubby home, but it was Easter weekend. Normally I do the big full on meal, but this year I cut it down and spent the extra time helping hubby, cleaning, and planning.

We did a bit of transplanting, and I got even more of that done today along with starting my herbs etc. I love having my hubby home. That being said I love him working too lol. This current job seems to fit nicely schedule wise. He works 3-5 days during the week and is home on the weekends. It's only a temp gig as he's doing it to help get a friends business rolling in a new to them field. Plus it helps put some cash in the bank since he has been laid off since Valentines Day.

He left again early this morning and will be back sometime Friday. We have really awesome family and friends that are letting him crash in their spare rooms as he's a bit of a nomad right now bouncing from one place to the other. It's nice for him that he's able to catch up with everyone too.

Well this girl needs to get back to purging and listing stuff for sale if I'm ever going to get this homestead going lol will post again tonight if I get a chance!