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Iditarod day!

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Today was the start of the Iditarod and I was watching it on my phone-wouldn’t you know it the internet quit as the first team left the starting line-pooh!!!! 

Wanted to share a great resource for buying old items. If your on Facebook please check out “Relinquished Relics” the lady who has this store is a very dear woman and she sells many hard to find items in excellent condition plus her pricing is fair-no gouging, accepts paypal and will ship. I will try to post some of her items here as she doesn’t have a website yet and I don’t want anyone to miss out on her great buys!

Rainy day here but the sun is starting to peek out a bit and the wind is blowing but still at 36 degrees and the ice is melting. 

My 10 year old is baking bread using my no fail recipe (you can find it at the bottom of the post on Dec17th I think).  Nice to have someone to help keep up with the baking as it seems to be a full time job in itself. 

Lots of baby rabbits being born at least 2 litters perhaps more but the mommas don’t want anyone near the nests so I will leave them alone for now.

Made a quick check on the critters outside and was startled by a moose calling. It was so loud I jumped but soon seen it was a hundred feet or so away minding it’s own business so I left it alone and Mr.Moose reciprocated.  It is coming on the time we will have to be vigilant in watching for momma moose as they can be quite dangerous.

Still looking for a table top cream separator so I can have cream for butter. My does are producing very rich milk and some cream does float to the top but not enough to make it worth all the effort to collect. Each step we take is getting us closer to total self sufficiency  but somedays it does feel like it’s taking too long.

Stitch you may remember he was injured and had stitches is now returned to the hen house. I took him out for a walk and he was excited to see the others so I allowed him in to visit but have to say I was a bit nervous. Stitch is about a third smaller than the rest of the chickens after his ordeal but apparently no one has told him. He immediately established himself as boss and keeps all the other chickens in line. If there ever was a Napolean of chickens stitch is it!

The wind is really kicking up it’s heals now and dear hubby has gone outside to secure our temporary plastic that we have covering our roof. So far it has held up well but will be glad when the temps are warm enough to get the roofing on. 

I will leave you all for now with pics of sunsets that will be disappearing soon because of the coming of endless days. I will miss them during that time but have to say I love working outside at 3 a.m. In full sunlight. 

May you all be blessed with peace.





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Singing chicks and snoring pigs

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The sounds on the farm are quite amusing. At 4 a.m I was awake as is my norm so I took a stroll around to check on critters and had to giggle at the unusual sounds coming from the pens. The pigs were snoring and it sounded like a chainsaw competition, the goats make these little squeaky noises when laying around blissfully chewing their cud and the rabbits excited for a chance to be petted thumped and rattled anything in their cages to get my attention. Of course the rooster who I have finally named Jack could not be out done and had to begin crowing…,repeatedly and very loudly.

The clouds overhead were just thin enough to allow my way to be illuminated by the moon and a few stars even peeked through to twinkle. I love early mornings as they are peaceful. Notice I said peaceful because it’s never truly quiet around here and I am reminded how noisy it is when I return to the cabin and Stitch is singing away and wanting out of his box to start the day. He must stay in a few more hours though for allowed out his volume level goes to high and then everyone is awake. No, it’s still my  almost quiet time when the only chattering I want to hear is that of the coffee beginning to boil.

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Wild Critters dine and dash

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Living in the wild one must expect losses from wildlife looking for a fast meal, right?  WRONG.  Now to get this through the wild critters heads may take a bit of encouraging or is it discouraging?   Either way the latest task is to get my chickens off the menu of a weasel or mink or whatever the nasty little creature is that has been raiding my-MY henhouse!  The nerve!

This all began a few days ago when I found 2 of my pullets dead and blamed my sweet little (well not so little hen for pecking them).  As some of you may recall I also had a chick with a severe injury to the neck that required stitching the skin back in place but more on that in a bit.  I really did believe that it was the hen so I removed her and the rooster to other living quarters and thought the problem was resolved as nothing happened to any of the sweet young birds over the course of the next 2 hours.  Our friends Robin and Dan came out and we were discussing life on the farm and Robin pointed out that now is the time the wild critters will be looking to feed on my not so wild critters.  Oh the possibility is there I thought but noooooo not MY precious and cute chickens.  That night something DID strike again this time getting 6 of them!  Mad as an old wet hen I drug the carcasses out one by one and examined them and sure enough some wily creature had sucked the blood right out of them!  This means war!   So doing what any rational person would do I immediately apologized to my hen Henny for accusing her of such an awful thing and called Robin.  After teasing her about her wild critters getting my not so wild critters (those who know me will understand I deal with anything tragic by way of humor) she became as mad as I was and said we’re gonna trap that little sucker-or something along those lines and said I will call my son, get some traps and Dan and I will come out this afternoon!   Now you have to understand Robin is a spitfire of a woman all 5 foot 2 or so and a big gust of wind would blow her away but she has gumption.  She is as crazy as I am about the outdoors and is very well versed in everything Alaska.  I am so fortunate to have her as my friend and mentor.  Robin and Dan arrive and I am up to my elbows in cheese-yep more of that story to follow but lets not get sidetracked.  They have traps, bait and more importantly the knowledge we are lacking to catch the beast or beasts that dared trespass and dine on my fowl.  After getting Mike educated on the ins and outs of trapping they joined us for coffee and Robin brought us some blueberries and strawberries she had picked and froze last summer and some canned salmon I have already earmarked for salmon patties on Friday.  Robin came in and immediately got acquainted with my little chick Stitch so named because it took 6 stitches to put the poor thing back together.IMG_3404 IMG_3401

After 6 tiny stitches he or she (not sure which) is as good as new and is making itself quite at home in the cabin. I do believe it thinks it may be a dog as it follows us around and insists on being the center of attention.

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Well, Robin and Stitch found mutual friends in each other and stitch even sang to her. Yes the silly chick coos and sings-not Robin!  It was Stitch singing!

This week has been one of those weeks.  Our 4 wheeler blew the water pump and we are looking for parts, the chicken ordeal rattled me and it seems as if I am constantly moving yet getting nowhere. It is times like this I reflect upon a quote from Mother Theresa which goes something like this “I know God will not give me anymore than I can handle. I just wish he didn’t trust me so much”. This too shall pass but I am thankful during these times for my faith to carry me through.

It is the time of year that I everything is moving forward and I of course with an already overloaded schedule have to begin my crafting.  In the last 2 weeks I have made soap, Instant cocoa mix with goats milk powder, Lip Balm and with the goats producing milk it is cheese making time once again.  Yay!!! I do love making cheese but since I use old recipes and do things the old ways it is very time consuming.

Goats milk, Coconut oil and Honey Soap
Goats milk, Coconut oil and Honey Soap

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Soap Curing
Soap Curing

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Lip Balm made with Organic Coconut oil, Beeswax and Grapeseed oil
Lip Balm made with Organic Coconut oil, Beeswax and Grapeseed oil

The soap must cure for another 3-4 weeks and then it will be available for purchase.

All of our products are  made with natural ingredients and we use organic materials whenever possible.

If interested in soap, lip balm or goat milk hot cocoa mix message me for more details.

I will leave you all this evening with pics of my goat milk cheddar fresh from the press it is almost perfect except my new oak pressing plates I burnished to seal and it left a couple of charcoal colored spots on the wheels but that shouldn’t effect the taste.  to finish  drying, then waxing and finally the aging.    I will let you know how it tastes in 2 months after it has aged properly.

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Cheddar Cheese
Cheddar Cheese

l pray you are all safe, warm and blessed beyond measure.

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The many faces of Mom

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Moms you all know what it’s like to have many faces. To smile when you really want to cry, to keep a straight face when you want to burst out laughing and to not show fear when your scared to death because you are the glue that keeps it all together.

Yesterday felt like it was going to be a typical day and around here I guess it was but never the less it was challenging. Critter chores done and breakfast cooked I was starting the kids on schoolwork when Caleb announced he didn’t feel well. Alright straight face in place I now must determine is the a real sickness event or one of the “I want to get out of doing something illness”. No real symptoms and his appetite proved the illness was the latter I played along. Up to bed no going outside to play until your feeling better. Exactly 10 minutes later he has a sudden recovery. Not being one to let someone off the hook that easily I send him back to bed with schoolwork in hand. 4 hours later he is completely healed! Yes, I am a miracle worker. Still not giving in on this I tell him I’m not convinced he is all better yet but if he could split wood surely breaking a sweat would force out any bad germs that could potentially cause a fever. 30 minutes later the wood box is full but I’m still not totally  convinced he is not sickly and before I could figure out another chore to prove his illness was faked he finally fesses up. Score 1 for mom. I send him on his way to play 2 hours later than if he would of just gotten up, done his share of the chores and his school work without the drama of pretending to be ill. Somehow though it doesn’t feel like a win but an irritation at the time wasted trying to get out of chores.

Making my usually mid morning rounds while kids were inside doing school work and likely fighting I discovered one of my chicks severely injured. It’s neck skin severed completely and the muscle and bone all exposed. Time for the yes it’s gross and makes me want to cry straight up mom face. Looking like I don’t have a care in the world I convince all my little minions it is no big deal and yes I am super mom and YES I can fix it! I carefully clean it up and suture the skin back in place with 6 tiny little stitches. I am happy to report the patient is still doing well eating, drinking, pooping and doing the normal things chicks do. Barring any infection I predict a full recovery.





That excitement over with it was on to more mundane things like cleaning pens and preparing meals but I did take time to plant some tomato seeds in pots and dreaming of fresh tomatoes in a couple of months.

Now to go add sutures to my shopping list as I have discovered I am running low. You all have a blessed day and keep smiling because smiles truly are contagious!

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Oh the adventures begin…..again!

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Well it’s that time of year again when bears come out of hibernation and I become a klutz!
Made a trip to town today to deliver a couple of Banty roosters to new homes and make a milk delivery. On the trail in I caught movement in the corner of my eye and slowed down (stopping is neither easy nor advised on this ice as getting restarted in a hurry could be a problem ) what I saw was a young black bear taking a stroll. He looked like he had wintered well as he was pretty fat and wasn’t in a hurry to go anywhere. Glad though I had my sidearm on just in case.
My trip in from there was uneventful and my first stop was to see my friend Mary, the recipient of one of the ugly little Banty roosters. She of course thinks he’s beautiful and I’m happy he’s found a home but never the less he and his brother are homely little fellas! My friend Maura was there and she gave the other little beast a new home. Bless her heart she is such a sweetheart and deep down I think she believes he’s ugly too but felt sorry for him. I left Mary’s 2 roosters lighter and with a bag of salmon filets for several meals! What awesome friends I have!!!!

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My next stop was to deliver some milk to my friend Carly who surprised me with a pair of earrings that are beautiful. They are scrimshaw with a moose head on each and such a thoughtful gift. She said they reminded her of my little farm.

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After a stop at the post office I was back on the road again heading towards home and had the urge to stop and see Shana who is always good for a giggle. Shana can make the
Most mundane things exciting and is quite a storyteller. I was met in the yard by a friend of hers Dani who was burning spruce boughs and sending out smoke signals-new friend!!!!! Yay!!! She didn’t bat an eye when I got out of the pickup and said “hi, I saw your smoke signal” she just giggled and said hello then directed me to Shana who was hiding in plain sight behind the smoke screen. After a few giggles and chatting about this beautiful weather I was off again and headed home. That’s when the trouble started.
I turned off the main gravel road onto the trail, stopped and put the pickup in 4 low and proceeded slowly across the ice. All was going well until I was suddenly going sideways down an incline a sharp right ahead and deep ditches on each side. Knowing I was potentially in much trouble I said a quick prayer that went some thing like this “oh God, Oh God-do something please! The pickup rear end swung around as if righting itself and then it was going straight…….the road wasn’t though. In a split second I found myself literally teetering on one wheel and the underbelly on a chunk of ice. Worried I was going to roll I exited said vehicle by swinging the door open and landing on my backside.
I managed to right myself then walk back to the gas plant where two very nice men came to my rescue with a big beautiful loader. After they chained the truck to the loader and made sure it wasn’t going to roll they had me crawl back in, over the gear shift and other things that can get in the way of boots with ice cleats on them, I finally got in the drivers seat and got it in nuetral. It was about this time dear hubby arrives (I had called him to let him know I was a little delayed. He pulls up and remarks-boy you almost done it that time! Ya think? Was the only thing I could respond with. He also made a couple remarks I chose to ignore about the truck seat and potential stains but that’s as far as we are going with that.
Those nice fellas got me out of the ditch and once again I was on my way.

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I guess without a little adventure life would be boring and hey-we all need to test the old ticker once in awhile and apparently mine is fine once again as it’s still thumping.
All in all a good day and even though it had a couple of challenging moments God was once again watching over me and I am thankful for his blessing me with safe travels.

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What will today bring

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Sitting here with the fire crackling listening to the wind blow and waiting for the coffee to perk. I’m going through my head the lists of tasks that must be accomplished today and wondering what else will pop up- isn’t there always something?
Yesterday I transferred chicks to the outside coop as they had been without auxiliary heat indoors for a couple of weeks and they were getting huge! Will check on them at sunrise and see how they did overnight. Say a prayer the transition went well.
Roosters are crowing as is their norm from 4:30 every morning until about 7 ever night and I hear the Tom turkey gobbling at his hens. Apparently the bleating period is now over after weaning baby goats as they have been quiet all night.
Today a trip into town is needed as I have a milk delivery to do and I need to get paperwork for some goat shares out. Not going too crazy as still have 4 goats to kid and then milk production will be in full swing.
Our low last night was 39 and water is running everywhere. There are a couple of chilly days and nights ahead but for the most part I think spring is here and we are gearing up for an even busier time.
Loving these longer days as I have more daylight hours to accomplish tasks but do wish the rain would stop-looks like a few sunny days ahead though.
Hope your all staying warm and dry wherever you are and your critters are too. Have a blessed day from all of us at Two Moose Farm.

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Busy days at Two Moose farm

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It’s been quite hectic here at Two Moose as of late. New pens to build as babies being born, new inventions to build and use and the crafting time has begun.
We completed the weaning shed and pen (much to the dismay of little Racer and Etta who would have prefered staying with their momma. You will see in the video what Racer thought of penning him in!

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The Turkey Tractor is complete also and the turkeys have found it quite to their liking.  My daughter thought it would be great fun to play different calls to them and see what they would do.

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Of course no one can be left out on the farm and roosters especially as they have to be in the limelight ALL the time as you can tell from prior videos the voice their opinions frequently.

The goats are our biggest source of entertainment here at Two Moose.  They never cease to amaze me with their antics. Here is Bella who was ready to be milked. When I refused to acknowledge her as it was still hours away from milking time she proceeded to crawl into the feed pan and begin bleating very loudly at me.

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The test tap I did on a Birch tree last week is finally showing signs of the approaching run.  There are a few drops of sap making a show but not enough to tap the other trees yet but soon.  My soap I created last week is aging nicely and although unscented has a beautiful clean scent about it.  I will be putting the website online shortly and the soap along with leather crafts, hot cocoa mix made from powdered goats milk and many other items will be available for sale for those of you wanting a little taste of Alaska I will have the Birch syrup available as soon s the run is complete.

Life here is about constantly moving forward and work is a big part of our lives but there is also time for learning and fun.  The children have been working on school work but their best education I believe is seeing how providing for the animals is returned by what the animals provide for us.  Cati has become quite proficient at milking and loves the goats as much as I do, Caleb is all about the rabbits.  He enjoys feeding them and can tell you which rabbit is due to have babies.  He also is a great hand at splitting firewood.  Cami is our little get it done girl who makes sure every creature has adequate bedding and with her sister Cati they are the ones who monitor the pens for cleanliness.  I still have to assist but am proud they love the animals as much as I do.

We did take a trip to the beach the other day where the kids enjoyed playing with a friend from town and they also gathered a bunch of coal for our cookstove.  Simple things mean a lot to us and a couple hours of beach time gave everyone a break from the daily routine.

Its getting close to chore time again so I must go but will try to post a bit more frequently.  I will leave you with a picture of my favorite view and a prayer God blesses you with health and happiness.

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Spring? Let’s hope!

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What a difference a few days make. It’s a beautiful sunny 36 degrees and much happening on Two Moose Farm.

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Chicks in the brooder almost completely feathered out and have removed all auxiliary heat from them.

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The non electric kerosene brooder is a success and will have plans available soon if anyone wants to build one.
The incubator is full and so far is holding right at 100 degrees but will not know until hatching if it is a success.

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Pigs growing like crazy and unfortunately Charlotte is showing signs of being in heat again. That will mean almost 4 months until she farrows if she takes this time. Have about 50 more pounds to put on the 2 I want to butcher so looking at about 3-4 weeks of finishing on them. They grow so much slower on a diet with no corn but the taste will make up for it.

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Still using every free moment to whittle taps for the birch tap that is coming soon. With the warmer weather I will do a few test taps to see if the run is coming. The 3 weeks of the run will be very busy here for sure.
Goats are doing well and had a friend out to visit. She had her first lesson in goat milking today!

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One last thing I want to share is this book on straw bale gardening. My friend Cathy sent this to me and it’s a wealth of information. The book is published by Cool Springs Press and is called Straw Bale Gardens Joel Karsten is the author.

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Time to get busy once again so I bid you all good day and pray your blessings be bountiful.

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Too cold for work? Ha!

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It was definitely a chilly day today. Was 6 degrees at. 11 a.m and windy so with the wind chill was minus 48. I must be honest, I do not miss the cold temps at all. I have been enjoying wearing my crocs this winter but it’s back to snow boots. Thank heavens it’s only for another couple of days as I really hate wearing closed in shoes!
Milking this morning froze my hands but my girls being troopers they stood like champs. They were rewarded for their good behavior in less than ideal conditions with a bit of extra grain with molasses. They must have liked it as they were ready for another go this afternoon when I went out to check on them even though I am only milking in the mornings. Evenings are for the babies and since it is so cold they will get the morning milk too as I don’t want to separate them from their mommas warmth tonight.
Many things accomplished today with the kids helping. Loft walls 90 percent finished, incubator is set up and warming and we are all warm and cozy with fully stocked firewood in the cabin.
Hubby went to town today to pick up the 4 wheeler tires that we desperately needed and by Gods grace we were able to purchase for pennies on the dollar-he always provides!
While in town dear hubby picked up some hatching eggs from my lady friends in town and I will be setting them in the incubator tonight. Will have many chicks in 3 weeks as I have 7 dozen chicken eggs and 3 dozen quail eggs (minus a few that were cracked).
Supper is finished and for a treat tonight I’m making goats milk ice cream. I no longer have my hand cranked freezer as parts were lost in the move but it will still be tasty and is outside freezing as we speak. Super simple recipe if you would like to try it. 2 quarts goats milk-3/4 cup sugar-2eggs mix then cook until almost boiling. Let cool add 2 tsp vanilla and put in ice cream freezer or to make the old fashioned way put in a shallow pan and freeze it either outside covered if cold enough or in a freezer stirring every 15 minutes. Don’t let it set up too long or it will separate and form ice crystals. It’s done when you can no longer resist the urge to eat it!
My chicks in the brooder are doing very well but they have quite the attitude now. They insist on the lid being open enough to stick their heads out or they peck it constantly making quite a racket. Betty is still the number one girl but Sassy is vying for the position. They each feel slighted if they can’t get out for a bit each day and chatter on my shoulder.
Received a care package today from my dear friend Cathy. She always send the coolest stuff! There are new water proof insulated gloves for pumping water at the spring, books for the kids, a wood project book and for me she sent a straw bale gardening book! I am going to do a combination straw bale and vertical garden this year and am very excited to dive into that book!
Warmer weather is on it’s way in the coming days so posts may get scarce at times but please know it will only be a brief time until I get everyone caught up on the happenings in our world.
Hope you are all having a blessed weekend and are safe and warm. Pictures of my incubator heated with kerosene lamp, Bella on milking stand.

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God is so good

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As many of you know I have been trying to locate tires for our 4 wheeler. Wow a few minutes after prayer I look again at craigslist-bammmm there’s exactly what I needed for pennies on the dollar of what they are worth. Yes, God is good-all the time!
Dear hubby has been quite busy working on my honey do list. Today he completed my milking stand. After a few modifications he made it is perfect and I don’t even have to stoop to milk!

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Tonight will be a long night I’m sure as I pulled the 2 goat kids from their mommas so I can milk in the morning. They are put to bed with full bellies and a warm bed but the mommas are throwing a fit. Funny how hard we worked to get them to accept their roles as mothers and now they are frantic over their babies being separated from them by a few feet.
Looking forward to this weekend as I will be starting the incubator to hatch some chicks. I haven’t hatched chicks in 3 years but it’s always such fun. My kids get as excited as I do when the pipping starts.
Now that everyone is fed and bedded down for the night I need to finish putting up the granola I made today and wind down from the day. Tomorrow will be a busy day but that is a good thing. I’m thankful for the strength God has given me and the blessings he bestows upon me each day. Good night all and may you be blessed beyond measure.