Mac Attack

Our family has not stepped into a McDonalds restaurant since 2004. Yes, that's right we have been Mac free for almost 5 years!

After watching the documentary "Supersize Me" the kids refused to frequent McDonalds any longer (which was just fine with Husband and I). We were very impressed that our kids, ages 8 and 10 at the time, were able to recognize that lack of nutritional value in fast food meals and could made this decision on their own.

The other day a commercial for McDonalds appear on TV and it featured a Big Mac. I said to Husband "We haven't eaten at a McDonalds for 5 years and yet I can still vividly recall the taste and texture of a Big Mac". His comments was "Yeah... I wonder what they put in there to not only make you remember it, but also to want it."

We no longer frequent any fast food places that serve hamburgers and french fries. A decision we made as a family and we have all kept to it. I have tried to tempt the kids into it a couple of times to see what they say, and it is usually "Oh yuck! Can we get a pita instead?".

Daughter has made the confession that she went through the McDonalds drivethru with a friend's family... "but I only had a yogurt, honest!"

Baby Its Cold Outside

Yesterday morning's temperature... -36C (-33F)! It was cold, but I knew it was coming.... just as it does every year.

The hen house was fairly warm, but the watering containers froze. I took the hen's container into the house to thaw which took about an hour. One of the ducks decided to lay on the floor and the egg froze. I later found out that Husband when building the hen house did not insulate the floor, but did insulate everything else. We will make do and it doesn't usually stay this cold for extended periods.

I also found out that the new vehicle I purchased in November 2007 came without a block heater! Poor Husband was looking for the cord to plug in for quite a while before he finally gave up and nearly froze his fingers. Luckily the car did start in the cold. I took it to Subaru and it turns out that they forgot to install it. They quickly put in that afternoon at no charge and a huge apology (which I expected!)

Kaiser, our boxer, went out several times yesterday - but it was no surprise that he quickly wanted back in.

Today is already warmer at -24C (-11F)

Of Ducks and Eggs and Seed Catalogues

With the cold snap I feel bad leaving the hens and ducks indoors. But it is cold enough to partially freeze their watering containers inside even with the heat lamps.


Here is our henhouse in the snow. It is separated into compartments; the chicken are on the right and have the larger area, and the ducks have the left. In the middle are the nesting boxes which open and a small feed storage area. At the back each have their own runs - though when home we let them have free range in the yard.




We were not sure when the ducks would begin laying so we never built any nesting boxes for them. The are now laying about 4 eggs per day and have made their own nest in the loft area of their house. Yes, they are modern ducks with a ramp and loft!




Here you can see the drake with the dark head and tail feathers and the five hens. The ramp to the loft is on the left and the bottom of the heat lamp.


Some of our lovely eggs. We are getting about 2 dozen everyday.


Luckily we have a steady supply of egg buying customers - coworkers, neighbours and friends. We even have two people that buy our duck eggs. I was surprised at the duck eggs as they are white and around the same size as the chicken eggs. They taste better than the chicken eggs but do have a firmer texture.


When I tell people about our ducks I am always amazed at how many people exclaim "What? Ducks lay eggs?" and "You can eat a duck's egg?" Ducks are birds... I'm not sure how these people think they procreate. Perhaps I am too practical and take these things for granted.


On another note.... the first seed catalogue arrived in the mail today. They always come when we have a cold snap. I think it is to tease us.

Cold

The cold weather is upon us. We have been fairly lucky this year and it has been rather mild, but over the past few day the temperature has dropped. This morning it is -23c (-9f).


The other night Son was babysitting next door, and I walked over to bring him some dinner (it was a late dinner night for us and the young children he was looking after were already asleep). It was cold and dark and I had forgotten to bring the flashlight along - but it didn't matter. The sky was completely clear and the stars and moon were shining. I could see the Christmas lights on the neighbouring houses, and the tall trees were full of snow standing out against the night sky. It was so peaceful, and this is one of the reasons we moved into the country.




I like the cold weather and that may seem strange to many people. I have thought about the things that appeal to me:

• I like to smell the smoke wafting from neighbouring homes that use wood to heat
• I like to hear the squeek of boots on the snow when it is really cold
• I like the way sounds are muffled by the snow
• I like to watch huge snowflakes falling gently to the ground
• I like to see the birds descend onto the Mountain Ash trees to eat the berries
• I like seeing birds all puffed up to insulate themselves from the cold
• I like to feel the squeeze of cold air on my lungs when the temperatures dip to -35c or lower
• I like the coziness of looking out the window while I sit by the fireplace knowing that I am snug indoors
• I like the way the snow sparkles on a sunny day - like it has been strewn with diamonds
• I like to think of the homesteaders and pioneers that came before us, and marvel at how they managed in this climate with very basic necessities

For me Christmas is cold weather and snow - this is what I am used to. I spent two Christmases in Germany and it didn't feel right as there was no snow; just rain. I couldn't get into the holiday spirit as for me that most vital for the season was missing.

Roosters

Yesterday's butching of the roosters went well. We kept one rooster named Cockzilla and he was the largest of the roosters that we had.

Husband did the actual killing, myself and daughter did the plucking, and I did the eviscerating and cleaning, and son did the running around.

I was very surpised at how easily the feathers came out once dunked in hot water. The only thing I didn't like was how feathers stuck to everything, including my hands.

Roosters and hens in the 'happier' times this fall.

Bagged Americauna waiting to go into the freezer. They weighed between 2 1/2 to 4 pounds each.

This morning I went to the hen house and found a rooster we missed! He must have been hiding amongst the hens yesterday as he is one of the smallest roosters. He has been named "Lucky"!

It has been a very long time....

since I last wrote on our blog. It seems that life over the summer and fall was just a very busy time for us and I rarely had any spare time.

Today we will be butchering the roosters. It is a bright and sunny day and the temperature is 0c, so it is not too cold. I have never done this before, but am excited in a way to be able to process and eat our own poultry. I have to go and dig up my big canning pots to scald the birds before plucking.

I'll post some pics later.

Perseid Meteor Shower

Wow! What a light show!

Daughter and I arrived home shortly after 10pm after dropping off my visiting sister at my parents home. On the drive home I noticed a shooting star and remembered the Perseid Meteor shower was happening over the next couple of days.

We stood outside on the driveway and craned our neck skyward. The next half hour was amazing! We saw many meteors quickly falling and they seem very far away. There were others that seemed to hit the earth's atmosphere and they fell slower, were often an orange colour, and left a large smoke streak which didn't disappear for numerous seconds.

The most spectacular meteor we saw was a slow moving one that actually exploded! We saw two very large flashes of light like an explosion and the smoke trail lingered for a very long time. It was absolutely incredible - I have never seen anything like that before!

I feel very lucky to have seen this as not an hour before was a huge rain storm. I can't believe the sky cleared up so quickly and we were able to see the shower. I'm also thankful that we live in the country with no lights - 'cause if we were still in the city I would never had had the chance to see this.

For more information about what is happening during the Perseid Meteor shower you can find more information here and here.