Oh boy, I wish I had 6 more hands and 10 more hours in the day! There is so much to do right now and it is nearly impossible to find help. I was supposed to have some folks come on the weekend but they could not get a ride and I was not about to go pick them up then drop them off at the end of the day. I am looking for some reliable adults who are not afraid to work. I can only afford to pay $15.00 per hour and despite everyone crying that they are broke due to the recession, they still won't work for that. 

So, it is me, me and me. I worked in my house again today. It is crucial to get it in order so the next load of bedding and clothing and books can come here. Formerly most of the books were in the bed and breakfast, but the shelves were removed in the flood and I brought them home and installed them in the dungeon for my soaping supplies. I will have three main areas to work in, plus a new sink downstairs, so I can make soap there instead of cart everything upstairs to the kitchen where it clutters up my living space. I need an area in which to sew and to house materials. I plan to make curtains and home decor items for sale from my beautiful designer materials and organics. I also need an area in which I can process wool in small amounts, so wash, dry, pick and card it and possibly felt it, again where a sink and water is necessary. And I need an area for the books and music, so once in awhile I might play the piano and sing, though I have not felt like doing that for the 5 years I have been here. Strange, that is, because I always did that, every night, for at least a couple of hours. 

I am going to sell the desk I currently use for the computer, a maple desk that I painted and antiqued, and take out the night table in the guest room, which has computer papers in it only. They can go elsewhere. 

I cannot decide whether to keep the large round oak table and chairs I refinished when my kitchen table was in storage for almost a year, or sell it and go back to my little table, which was big enough for me and one other guest, unless it was opened, then it could actually seat 6, albeit crowded. My big table has 2 leaves and can seat 10 easily, though I barely have the room to do that in my little kitchen. I will post pictures of my home because people keep asking me what it looks like. It is cute! 

Today I painted the screen door to the porch, the first coat, but the flies were driving me insane. There are thousands of them and hundreds came into the porch and now in the house there have to be 25. I tried to vacuum some but they are quick, so I smacked some instead. Then I have to clean up the remains...gross! But it is better than 25 flies flying around. I have 3 more doors to paint and they have to be done prior to winter or they may be subject to warping. I will do the front door screen door tomorrow and give the porch door a second coat. It takes a long time because of the fretwork on the doors. This is a primer paint and most likely not the permanent paint, but it will keep the doors safe for now. 

And I have been sorting the dishes and pots and pans out because some are still in the bed and breakfast house and some in my house and not everything is where it needs to be - yet. You can appreciate the amount of tasks. 

But that is not all. There are potatoes and carrots to harvest and process, and tomatoes to pick green and bring in so the next frost does not destroy them. I was lucky with the first frost in that it was light and the tomatoes were up against the house and did not get hit, but the squash in the garden is all black and done. I will pick the corn too and the peas, which are left now to save seeds. Whew! And that is today. How was your day?

I often have visitors here at the Fat Ewe Farm. They range from older folks who miss the mixed farm and all it has to offer, to very young ones, coming with their parents to view the animals. I was lucky the other day to show three delightful youngsters the critters on the farm. 

They came with their parents of course, and the mom is a professional master spinner with a wool company of her own. That is how we met. She had come to return some roving, now spun into a thick irregular chunky yarn. I am not sure what I will use it for as there is not much there really. I have another bag of roving I might convince her to spin too and then there would be enough for a mat. It would be perfect for that. 

We had to walk out to the pasture to see the sheep. I caught Rosy's little girl, who is as friendly as Rosy and not at all hard to catch, and they were able to pet her. Rosy and her lamb are purebred Babydoll sheep, and my favourite sheep on the farm. Karin Llama made quite the hit as she always causes some sensation when she runs over to investigate the newcomers to her pasture. She likes to smell the folks up close, so I instruct them to hold very still. Her nose tickles on the back of the neck or she will come right up to the face too, and smell the lips and breath of the people. Some are terrified of llamas only from what they have heard, that llamas are mean and spit. Any animal can behave poorly if not treated properly from young, but Karin was born here at the farm and she loves everyone. 

I think the ducks were the favourite of the little girl though. She loved their plump bellies and soft downy feathers, though the young ones are starting to feel prickly as their new adult feathers are poking out. They saw the potbelly babies and the bunnies and got an egg each to take home. It was a great afternoon and a little too short, but their drive was long to get back home. The daddy came along too and he is as gentle natured and kind as they come. We had a good time and I invited them back when they had another opportunity to come for a visit. See you then, kids!!

Clara came to the Fat Ewe Farm in the arms of her previous owner, a cute little pink and white piglet, a little shy and very sweet. She was cute as a button and Wilbur, her mate, and she grew up together. When Clara was about 8 months old, she had her first litter of piglets. Potbelly babies are so tiny and delightful when they are born, one cannot help but fall in love every time. Clara was a very good mother, more protective than I would have liked, because it was hard to tame the little piglets since she would not let me pick them up and pet them. The first ones were told to pet homes and I hope they are doing well. 

Clara and Wilbur had many litters, not all great successes. The ravens sat on their hut while she was having the piglets and took every single one except the last one, which she was then able to defend. The current litter is 29 days old, actually old enough to survive on their own and be weaned. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on which way one looks at it, one of the Meishan gilts, who is bred herself to farrow in a month, has adopted the piglets and is allowing them to nurse, which has brought in her milk. Technically, the 4 week old piglets no longer require mother's milk. It is a problem as well, because when the sow has her own litter, she will need the colostrum for her babies, and how on Earth would she manage two litters of piglets who are trying to nurse? Potbellies are small enough that to fence them off from her is nearly impossible. I will have to catch them and put them in the hoop shelters until the Meishan's piglets are well on their way. 

Clara will be sadly missed at the Farm. She was a fixture here, always seen in the pen with a grunt and a waddle. I think Wilbur will miss her the most. He was in bed when I removed Clara's body, but in another shelter and I felt he was grieving. The babies were watching intently and they too, knew that was the end for their mamma. 

Rest in peace, dear Clara. Your absence will be sadly noted. 

I do not recall exactly how we met, but I am quite sure it was something to do about an animal. Gail came with her daughter and we hit it off. They were delightful and genuine. It was a pleasure to meet them. Then her son and some friends came to help move some sheep and that was a good day too. 

We traded two potbelly piglets for her Meishan pigs and the friendship just continued to grow. She is a painter, a house painter, and helped me with the difficult area over the stairs when I recently painted the house again. Another day we shared a bottle of wine and some conversation. There is always time to sit and chat with a friend, no matter how busy we are. That is what makes life good. 

Then my fridge went, my truck brakes went and the washer in the bed and breakfast went. Boom, three very expensive items. The quote for the brakes was very high and I was a little beside myself wondering how I was to come up with the money to cover these necessities. I had a second small fridge which I am using for now, though I would dearly love to have my counter depth, bottom freezer fridge back. The only repairman in the area did not return my calls. I will try again, though. The washer was given away to some acquaintances who are doing their laundry at the laundromat. He is a handy sort and might be able to fix it. If not, it does wash clothes, but you just cannot choose how or the temperature of the water or length of cycle. 

Gail called and said her dear husband offered to fix my truck brakes for me and he could pick up the truck on his trailer. He did that and today they brought the truck back. He not only fixed the brakes, but did a complete oil change too! And, he did not charge me for anything, only the parts. How very generous of him. I had never met him. 

What makes the world a better place for you? Kindness is very humbling. Extended to me without expectation of reciprocity, I am overwhelmed with this generous gesture and left not quite knowing what to say. Of course, they are invited to a weekend at the bed and breakfast in the master suite with all meals provided. And somewhere along the way, whether it is for these most giving people or someone else, that which was offered freely without recompense will be extended to another, some way, some how. These kind of people do make the world a better place and I am filled with gratitude for knowing them. Thank you Russ and Gail. Thank you for the bottom of my heart.!

A pipe in the underfloor heating burst in the middle of winter and flooded the basement of the bed and breakfast house. Because it was so cold outside, the condensation on the exterior walls and windows caused much damage upstairs. The insulation and drywall had to be removed for the first 2 to 4 feet almost throughout the entire house and all the flooring on the main had to go as well. So then the moldings had to go too and it was a landslide, but there has been progress, finally, though not as soon as I wished for, and the bed and breakfast should be up and running for October 1. I had planned to reopen June 1 and am quite behind, but better late than never.  I have unpacked 70% of the contents now. There are quite a few losses due to improper handling, especially of the organic bedding. 

The total hours spent unpacking and cleaning is currently 135 hours for me and I did hire help for moving large items and boxes, for a total of 12 hours for 2 people (each ). I have not unpacked any of the boxes of books, except a few, or material (for sewing). There are likely at least 40 boxes of books and 20 boxes of material. Most of the books are in my basement of the little house and I am trying to make room for the sewing and material as well, though the books were originally in the b n b house. 
There is still unpacking and cleaning to do, though it is getting there.I have hired a cleaner for Tuesday to do the final windows and floors and wipe down. Bioclean is bringing the last load sometimes this week, I believe, but they did not give me a date. It is a small load with some boxes and the two large club chairs, the last two to leave. Some items took an inordinately long time to unpack due to being layered in plastic, first bubble wrap then shrink wrap and then tissue paper. 
I have hired a carpenter to restore damage on many of the antiques. Pretty much every single piece was damaged, either the finish, the joints coming unglued or breakage, because they were left in the house and suffered from the high humidity. I will need to hire an electrician to take down and install the light fixtures yet. 
The plumber picked up and installed the new washer. The repair person did not respond to my phone calls. He is the only person in our area who does appliance repairs and apparently he picks and chooses what he wants to do and my job was not one he cared for. At any rate, the new washer is in and up and running. I will have to hire someone to take the old washer to old washer heaven. 
I am extremely disappointed in several things. My organic foam rubber Greensleep bed was left downstairs amidst the worst of the flood and suffered through the construction dust too. The antiques upstairs were left as well and each and every single one sustained damage to the finish, buckling in the veneers or came unglued at the seams. The antiques in the sea can also sustained damage. The legs were broken off from likely dragging the green sofa rather than lifting and carrying to the back of the sea can. A table had a piece broken right off, and so on. The organic bedding, blankets and towels were also washed and dried as per regular Walmart quality things and many are ruined.  The silver mica shade lamps were also all left in the house. I am in awe that they did not delaminate because mica is a rock that is slivered then laminated to make the thin shade. Thus far they seem OK. The sideboard and huge mirror sustained finish damage. 
Prescription medicines were removed from the medicine cabinet. In the event should the contents company should encounter prescriptions again, they must be immediately given to the owners. Although I do not take any drugs to save my life, such as nitro or insulin, the removal of such could have had drastic consequences in another instance. 
There is a very musty odour in the upstairs bathroom and bedroom. I am hoping it can be alleviated. That is a premium room and I cannot have it smelling bad. 
And lastly for tonight, I have to shake my head in wonder at whomever did the packing. A set of black and white dishes was placed in a box in the basket I had sorted them out in. They were unwrapped and many were broken. Yet, a plastic monkey sign was bubble wrapped and then shrink wrapped and packed in tissue. My mother’s china, which was packed in a box that had moved from Vancouver to here and not a piece was broken, was entirely repacked for some reason. Some boxes had ridiculous items in them, such as only some bags in one box, a large one at that and hangers half filling another box. I suspect the company is paid by the box as well as by the hour because the boxes were not very full in a lot of cases. Some items of very little value, like dollar store candle glass candle holders were better packed than the hand made pottery dishes, which were only lightly tissue wrapped. the value of the dishes is 100 times more than the cheap glass items. Oh well, I am glad it is coming to an end. Moving is considered a high stressor, but the aftermath of a flood beats it hands down. 

Here in the frozen north, many perennial herbs must be grown as annuals. Some of my favourites, such as oregano and sage, do not survive the cold winters. I will pot the thyme, oregano and mint this year and winter them over and continue to add to the herb garden over the next years. Then in the very early spring cuttings can be taken indoors and started to give a quick start to the new plants. 

This year there are mint, oregano, thyme, basil and parsley. The parsely did exceptionally well and I clipped the lovely leaves so just in case we do not get an early frost, there could be an additional small harvest. The herbs were spread on old window screens to dry in the sun, but we did not get much sun yesterday and certainly have not seen it today, so they are in the shed for now. I do have dehydrators somewhere still packed in the fiasco move from the aftermath of the flood at the bed and breakfast. This year they are not available in time. 

I use dried parsley in soup and stews a lot when I have it. Oregano is a must on Greek salads and thyme is lovely with pork. The mint is for tea in winter and for soap and lotions infused in oils. It makes a good headache salve, but I never get headaches, thank goodness. 

I also harvested a few potatoes. I was distressed to see heavy scab on the purple potato grown on the berm garden, but the ones from the straw bale area were perfect. I gave them to the man working here, along with some baby carrots and a few runner beans. The beans are producing nicely, however, exactly on this day last year the first killing frost came and the entire garden was wiped out, or that is everything above ground was. The tomatoes are lovely though very green still. I picked them green last year and they ripened perfectly in the house. 

The garden is grown organically without the use of any chemical inputs whatsoever. What a delicious treat to harvest something from my own land and enjoy it for the cold season to come with great anticipation of planting again next year. I have always loved to garden. Now I have much land and can play to my heart's content. 

Wouldn't you love some fresh zucchini? There is a ton of it and I cannot give it away! It is a good thing the animals love it too. They get the greens that are discarded and the birds will be allowed to forage in the garden once the harvest is done. The guinea hens do go there now and glean the bugs for me, keeping the pests to a minimum, plus the design of the garden is permaculture style, so pests do not decimate any one crop.

Isn't nature so grand? I am grateful for my land and the food grown thereupon. I am deeply thankful for the abundance in my life. And today of all days, I am grateful for being alive 62 years!  

For over two years the steel building sat in waiting, a 24 x 30 foot structure that will act as a replacement for the decrepit barn that may topple under a heavy snowfall or powerful winds this winter. The new steel building will serve as a sheep and goat shelter, a garage for the lawn tractor and skid steer and also have a small insulated heated room for working in the winter. The contractor elected to put pilings in and more or less anchor the building with them, huge treated wooden posts. Atop the posts are treated planks which will be the sill to which the mounting plate will attach. There is no more time allotted to build this now, however; he will have time in November. Once the footings and base are in place the rest can be done even in the cold as it is primarily riveting steel pieces together. There is an insulated 9 foot garage style door and a man door and window at the back and the front will have a man door and a window and open to the insulated room. Fixing things, working on wood, even washing wool, can be done in the winter once that is finished. The masonry stove was purchased 3 years ago along with the steel building, but neither skilled labour nor money was available to erect the structure.

The very large circumference auger was attached to my skid steer and the holes were drilled for the foundation pilings. My farm is primarily beautiful golden sand with very little topsoil. One person remarked that I should sell sand and make my fortune, but I will leave that to another. I like my land as it is. Still, the lovely sand that was drilled up from the auger was pretty. 

I helped a lot with the placement of the auger and then the leveling and attaching of the pilings. It took an afternoon and there is some more leveling to be done after the settling prior to attaching the plates on which the building will sit. Then I dug post holes for a clothes line, finally, a real clothesline to have sunshine and wind smelling linens! And I augered holes for a fence in my back yard which could provide an emergency pen for small animals. Currently the Nigerian Dwarf goat male kids I want to separate can get out of any fence I put them in. The back yard fence will be of wood and hopefully will solve that problem. 

It was a very busy day and the beginning to a good end has begun. And that felt great!

I have been going full tilt for some time now, readying the bed and breakfast house for the content to return. The insurance company will pay only fifteen dollars per hour for moving help and unpacking, but so far, I have not found anyone willing to work for that. I did hire two young people at ten dollars an hour and they were helpful, but that was out of my own pocket. If I am paying via the insurance company, there are rules to follow. 

There is farm work that has been neglected terribly too. Lots of yard clean up needs doing, a bit of fence mending, and lots of tending to the animals, such as trimming hooves, checking for worms, separating the male lambs ( I did the goats) and still two areas in the pens have not been cleaned and readied for winter. 

But, at the end of these days, I am really tired and ready for bed. The old clawfoot tub waits for me to soak the bones and then sleep calls me. I have sorted many boxes so far, with lots of things to give away and some to sell. The books are my main dilemma. I must have around 1000 books! I would like to donate them to a small community to start a library and did find one interested, however; they backed out because there was no one to catalogue all the books. What does one do with so many books? 

At any rate, sleep calls. The sea can is empty, but the next load comes from Lloyminster tomorrow where it has been in storage and there may even be a third load thereafter depending on how much they fit in the sea can. The majority of the furniture is already accounted for, so it will only be contents. My little house if bursting at the seams primarily because all those books are in it, plus the sewing, the knitting, the wool for felting, the wool carder and picker, art supplies and the fabrics... and the list goes on and on. I suppose I could just watch TV like other folks and not do things instead. Well, maybe, I suppose not. That would just not be me. 

And I got 20 pounds of blueberries today, wild, fresh picked from a lady who comes every year to sell them to me. I need to make some pickles and freeze the berries tomorrow and start drying the herbs too. Oy. I need 5 more hands and more hours of the day..that is unless you are coming over to help.

I am sure you could not help but notice the interest in vintage relics lately. There is a trend going on. Old barn wood, once useless and forgotten, now has meaning and importance and earns a place in people's homes. Old tea cups, table linens, rusty buckets - well, almost anything old (except me) seems to be sought and bought and displayed with affection. New items are antiqued, painted with paint that cracks to give a worn through time look and sanded to appear well worn and used. 

This is a huge contrast to the 60's era, where modern, sleek and shiny was 'in' and anything antique or old was discarded with the trash. Why the resurgence? What is it the young people are missing that is bringing back what held no esteem whatsoever? 

I think people long for some connection to the past. The future is uncertain. It never has been certain, but during the developing years through the industrial age, there was the promise of a brighter tomorrow. People are longing for some meaning to their lives now, some semblance of belonging to the tribe, something that does not come from a factory and is mass produced. They want a piece of the past that provides some direction to their futures. 

Why is this not extended to farming, or is it? Perhaps there is also a slight resurgence of folks who want a simpler life, want to escape the bustle of the city, the consumerism and dictatorship of what to wear, what to decorate with, why, even what colours are 'in' because the masses do not have the ability any more to choose colours they actually like without being told. Gads, what has happened? 

I returned to a simpler life. Always a 'green' person, then an organic person, I am now just a natural farmer person. I donated the majority of my fashion clothing and opted to keep the furniture that meant something to me. For me it is the pieces from the 1940's era, when furniture was made of real wood through and through by skilled craftsmen who took pride in their work. The 40's was the last era to do so, for by the time the 1950's came along, modern was pushing out craftsmanship and by the 1970's, particle board disposable pieces were the norm. 

I think the return to a piece of the past has a lot to do with the future. Still, there is the 'fashion' of making items appear old and worn, and collections of 'stuff' that is old are just as apt to be seen as sleek, shiny disposable plastics. But on the farm, none of that matters much. We do with what we have and like it just fine. We do not rely on stylists to tell us how to present our farm suppers. We do not rely on fashion designers to tell us what to wear or colour stylists to tell us what colours are hot for the upcoming year. I remember being critical of my parent's home, how mismatched and hodpodge it was and why they did not update and modernize it. I finally understand. Their home and what was in it had meaning to them. My home and what is in it does too. So does my farm. It took 62 years and a lot of tears and laughter to get this far. I am glad I did. 

For all those who are 'finding' themselves in the past, truly enjoying rusty old hinges because ironically speaking, they are beautiful as they are, they are finding meaning too. What do you think?

Permaculture, permanent agriculture or crops that one does not have to plant year after year, is the absolute most fantastic way to produce food. Not only is it simple, easy and less time consuming, done properly, it uses little water in comparison to other methods and is self sustaining to a certain degree. 

This year the Parkland apple is spectacular for such a young tree. The apples are sweet and tart with a hint of blush, would be fantastic in pie or as apple sauce or butter and are scrumptious to eat right off the tree. There were maybe 20 this year, a good harvest for a little young tree! The other combination apple trees did not fare so well, but they are going to do better in the future. 

On each apple tree there are scarlet runner beans climbing up to produce lovely showy red orange blossoms and soon runner beans. Under the trees are berry bushes: gooseberry and raspberry so far. There are nasturtiums planted randomly and marigolds too, because pests often like nasturtiums better than my food crops, especially aphids and marigolds deter some bugs. Potatoes were once again laid on straw and covered with more straw and are growing nicely. The hugelkultur berm garden is the best this year that it has been thus far, teeming with roses, squaw corn, peas, potatoes and prairie sunflowers.

There are seven levels to a permaculture garden from the floor of the canopy. Each level can contribute food in a garden, plus the weeds are mostly edible too. I make a weed salad and cook weeds as greens too, plus harvest them for tinctures. Sunflower petals give a nice yellow colour to soap and cucumbers make a great bar too. Everything is important. 

The squash is forming, especially the spaghetti squash. The Kabocha squash will only be great if we have a long fall with on heavy frost. Otherwise the fruits are too immature to be of value. There is an abundance of kale and chard, golden beet tops and malva greens and there will be an abundance of carrots too. I have been harvesting zucchini for a week and it is outpacing me rapidly. The joy of the system is that very little if any watering has been done and very little weeding as well. Only the first set of large weeds were pulled to allow the seedlings to outpace the weeds. The weeds actually act as a green cover for the ground keeping the moisture in like a mulch. Where the ground is bare the plants need water, but where the weeds are thick, it remains moist. 

As time goes on, cuttings from the berries will be taken and rooted, but not in patches like a traditional garden. Everything is in a cluster instead and the clusters are far enough apart so if one becomes infested with a pest, the others do not suffer the same fate. Plus there is enough diversity around and inbetween the plants to discourage pests that like a particular plant exclusively. This works, folks. And it is only going to continue to improve. Swales , or shallow ditches collect the runoff water and help create a microclimate for the plants. Even small rains will collect in the swales and as it evaporates, the moist air will provide water. The plants that need the most water are closest to the swales and the drought tolerant ones are located some distance away. Root systems develop to draw moisture from the ground and the dew in the air too. 

Permaculture can change a desert to an oasis. This has been proven more than once. The key is diversity and understanding how Mother Nature gardens. Want to try it?