A Happy Post

Here's a big happy post about little happy things that we hope make you a little happier today! :)

(Once again, all these happy pictures come to you through Miss Lizzy's lens!)

Our princess and her morning goat milk bottle = happy! :)


Protecting the farm = a happy little brother.


Flowers in bloom = me happy! :)


Cantering horseback in a green field = happy kids.


(Btw, today is Theresa's sweet 16th bday!)





Being used, feeling productive = happy horses!





Missy is wearing a fly mask already... hopefully the flies won't get too bad this year.


Thankfully, the ponies don't seem as bothered by those buzzing, bothersome bugs.

 Ooh, another trip to the beach!





This time some big waves made it interesting.





Love this picture! :)











A bunny visiting the local hair salon...


The kids have been climbing into the boys' tree fort and checking a robin nest every day. Look what they discovered in their last climb!


Waving from the tree fort.


Areal view of the homestead from the tree fort. These rows behind the cow shelter were tilled with mule power and planted with corn last week.


From her vantage point, Lizzy also spied Andrew checking on the bees.


Then the dueling twosome romped down to the creek for some more fun pictures.






(Johnny took these pictures!)




Finally, when good prevails over evil, the dragon is slain and we have peace in the land again, the prince hands the lovely princess a beautiful bouquet of wildflowers.


Well, there you have it. Hope you're feeling just a little happier now after browsing our happy post!:)
What little things make you happy?

One Man's Junk is Another's Treasure... AKA: 101 Uses for Pallets!

Sitting on the porch, watching the sheep munching away at the new feeder I had just constructed (with Mike's help) for them, I was thinking of the invaluable resource used in its construction; pallets.

It's always cool when you can take society's "garbage" and turn it into something useful. There are a lot of "unnatural resources" out there to tap into if you look around and use your creativity. One of our most plentiful materials happens to be the humble pallet. And the best part is how economical they are to obtain: $0.

I thought I'd take a walk around and highlight some of the ways we've found to utilize these versatile, albeit cumbersome modular building components. 

For starters, there's the obvious solar shower that recently earned its own post.

Here are a couple of potato bins down in our root cellar... (It was dark down there, btw. I had to navigate by the light of camera flash...) Yup, the reserve is getting low.. there are a few bags in the left bin, but it's exciting to have a whole field at work out there producing this year's harvest!

What's a yooper without his firewood pile? And what's a firewood pile without pallets underneath and on the ends to support it? All knocked over and in a big mess, that's what. Been there, done that.

Steve used pallet planks to build this swinging bench last year. We've actually made numerous chairs and benches that feature reclaimed seats and backs.

Ah, yes. The new hay feeder... We've procrastinated on building one of these for way too long! If we had known it'd only take 10 minutes and a few pallets, maybe we would have built it a long time ago...

And... The goats got their own new feeder too! This one took a bit longer to construct, mainly due to the fact that the playful animals were jumping all over our project and knocking it down before it was completed... See the guilty look on her face? No? (That's cuz it was actually the other one...)

A base for a grain storage bin..

This is what happens when you try to get all artistic and down low... A cat comes running over and gets in the shot. Though, I guess I can't blame the cat for my thumb over the lens...

And--pallets for putting stuff on! Who'da thought, right?

Pallets over logs as a free roof. (In this case, over our little cordwood barn.)

And--Don't forget to save the best wood for small projects like games and toys! Steve laminated hardwood pallet planks and turned them on the lathe to make our family's Chess set! (We let him win occasionally to show our gratitude...)

Never thought wheels could look "cute" on a horse, but these little Christmas toys have changed my thinking.. Made completely from pallet-procured oak!

Well, that's all I've got for now. I know, I'm not quite up to 101 yet... though I'm sure there's plenty of things I missed.. Just thought I'd share, and maybe give ya' a couple of ideas! Oh, and if you can think of a new way to put some pallets to good use, let us know in a comment below. We're always looking for new ideas!

Andrew

Horse and Buggy Vs. A Car

Yesterday, we enjoyed a long rainy Monday of practicing music and partyin' it up while in the back bedroom I could hear the chugging away of the treadle sewing machine where Theresa was persistently and patiently coaxing production out of its worn wheels, hinges and belts. She was occasionally coming out to me with her half sewn project seeking ideas for pattern fitting, hemming on the curve and things like that.

Finally, near the end of the day, when my fingers were aching from practice, I poked my head in the bedroom to see how she was doing...

"This is like the difference between a horse and buggy and a car!" was her reply.
"Well..." I decided to shoot for the next logical question; "Then why not just use the electric one?"
"Because," she huffed, threading the treadle for the 286th time, "I don't want to have to use electricity and I do want to get good on this thing!" She spun the wheel with her hand and started treadling away only to have her thread break after a few inches yet once again. (The tension gauge has some age-related issues. I can get it to work for a little while if I clean and oil it, but it tires out fast!)

"And besides," Theresa added, licking the end of thread and rethreading it for the 287th time:

"I am stubborn."

I raised a brow and mentally agreed.

But thinking further on it, you know, you really do need a healthy dose of stubbornness to persist at such a backwards lifestyle as this. Everything takes more persistence, more patience and more stubbornness in this lifestyle vs. one of them 'ordinary' lifestyles. And maybe that's why we find everything about our life so much more fulfilling! 

Take this adorable little handmade pajama for example, sewn without electricity by my stubborn sister:

Sure, maybe we could have bought one at the thrift store for .75, but it would have been 100% polyester and pumped out of a factory line in China somewhere. Tell me, where is our humanly fulfillment in something like that?

This little garment is full of good ol' fashion handmade love and stubbornness. :)

 Donna watched and encouraged Theresa every step of the way, marveling in her two year old wonder at the finished product.

She loves it!

Oh,

and just so you don't get discouraged or anything, 

Theresa did use the electric machine for hemming those curved sleeves.

I guess everyone has their limits. ;)