Good Morning, and what a great day this is going to be!  Not much will be done today because we're going to Gainesville for a day trip.  As Jim said, I LOVE to teach and, hopefully, will teach some of you something you didn't know how to do.  This year we hope to get our greenhouse built and start our aquaponics system, transplant some berry bushes we have rooted and make some wine from our blueberries and grapes.  I look forward to sharing our experiences with anyone who is interested in our homestead.

Times… They are a changing...

Wow, where does the time get to?  Trish and I have been talking about changing this blog's focus and scope to illustrate more about Florida Homesteading in current times.  I hope to turn this over to her with the purpose of adding weekly content aimed at the challenges and solutions of homesteaders.  We have recently discovered that many of the skills we have developed are not widely held by many people that are younger than us.  So part of the focus will be to teach, as well as pass on, the skills we have acquired that are moving us towards our goal of a more self sufficient lifestyle.  So with that said I am passing this part to Trish;   A really good teacher!

Wow, didn't realize it's been over a year since this was updated. Been really busy, and still are, but now I (Trish) decided to try updating this blog. Jim is still working at the car dealership as well as trying to accomplish a few things on his "honey do list". I've been working in home health, but recently quit because of internal problems. Michael and Brianna, our grandchildren, are coming down this weekend for a 2 week visit so I'll take some time off. When they go home, I'll probably go back to a different agency and get a few assignments.

We're still working on the homestead; trying to get things done while you're working is really difficult. I've been trying my hand at a couple of new things. I incubated and hatched bobwhite quail and chickens. I now have about 28 quail that are doing pretty well and 29 chickens of various ages (from 17 weeks to 4 weeks). Hopefully, my oldest ones will start laying eggs here pretty soon. Some of the roosters are going to be sold because I don't want any fighting and you can't have but 1 rooster for every 10-15 hens soooo. Thought about having them for dinner but I think I can get a better return by taking them to the auction.

Of course, since I wrote the above 2 of the roosters apparently got into a fight and one of them is injured. Need to figure out how to separate them or he might be going into the pot after all.

Well, gotta get back to work, get ready for the kids.

Is it Spring Yet?

NO, but I can wish... What a winter we have had so far. It even snowed for about an hour two weeks ago but no accumulation. Folks, it is not suppose to snow in Florida... So much for global warming, what a scam.

So... We are rushing spring... I always wanted a green house to get the jump on spring so we built a 12 X 20 hoop style green house for the first time so we will see how things go. It is 89 degrees (F) in the green house today so I know the seed Trish planted yesterday are loving that. She started 72 pots of seed for tomato, cucumber, and pepper plants. We plan to start a flat of 72 each Saturday for the next four weeks. These are all heirloom seeds so we are trying something different. We hope to have plenty of plants for our garden (30 x 50) and sell the rest for $1.00 each. I'll add a picture of the green house and update next week on the new seedlings... Stay warm and pray fro early spring!

JC

The Silence after Christmas

Well what a Christmas season we had this year! We had all the kids and grand kids here for the holidays and now they are gone. Jimmy and his family left two days after Christmas and Christi and JJ left yesterday. When Trish and I returned home from the airport it was so quite... We decided to just take it easy for a couple days and start taking down the decorations. We will spend the next few weeks planning 2010 and the next chapter.

Today, however, I must thaw some water pipes so we can have water. The last few days it has been so cold, 19 degrees last night. The wind blew the door open to the pump house and some of the pipes froze. I put an electric heater near the pipes early this morning so we should have water soon. More later... JC

Happy Thanksgiving to all!!

WOW ! Where has the time gone?? This year is really flying by for Trish and I. We are still working on the old farmhouse and things are coming along everyday now. We decided to cook Thanksgiving dinner today in a temporary makeshift kitchen in the house. I hooked up the stove last night and set up a couple of the cabinets with plywood countertops and cut a 4 foot square piece of plywood for a table top. This should be an adventure! You know one thing I am most thankful for is Trish's ability to make lemonade from a lemon... She always makes things work out.

We are waiting on Lowes to deliver the rest of the appliances today so we will have a fridge to store all the food she and Christi are cooking today. It is a very special treat to have Christi and JJ here for the holidays. It's so much fun to have them here and a real adventure through the eyes of a 4 year old. I stay tired but am happy! Jeremy is still in Bagdad until February so we prey for his safety everyday and look forward to his return, even though it will be to Japan. Christi is due to leave here on January 9th and I know she can hardly wait to see Jeremy. JJ talks about "his Daddy" all the time and so I know this is so hard on him as he really misses him.

I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving and stay safe. We are looking forward to some quality family time. We sure wish Jimmy could be here but he has started a new Job so he has to work. He is trying to work it out to come down for Christmas so maybe we can all be together which would be great. It has been quite a few years since we have all been together for Christmas, which would be spectacular.

We sure miss everybody, it is just about time for a family reunion. Hope to see you all soon in 2010!

Remodeling The old Farmhouse Inside

Well now that the new metal roof, windows and siding are finished it's time to work on the inside. During the demolition work of the inside we decided to remove all but one ceiling and all the interior walls except the bathroom. We changed the arrangement of the kitchen/dining and also we turned two small bedrooms into one large master bedroom. So when we finish it will be a two bedroom, living room, kitchen dining area, one bathroom and a laundry room. 1100 square feet in total. Should be just right for the two of us... They delivered the drywall a couple weeks ago so as soon as I finish the electrical rough in the drywall crew will be scheduled and we can begin to paint, install floors and move our stuff into the house. I hope to spend the winter finishing up the clearing of brush on all property lines. Our one site RV park should be open for a visitor by January of 2010... I will add a few pictures of the interior as soon as the drywall begins to take shape. More later!