Baby Chicks, Dealing withChick Deaths, and Helping Chilled Chicks

We recently got some new chicks and a new chicken coop.  We bought nine which is a few more than what we needed due to the fact that you often loose a few.  Our old chickens are almost 4 years old and are getting to the end of their laying lives.  Surprisingly they are still laying very well.  We have 7 chickens and get 7 eggs a day almost every day (except when they succeed in getting out to hide their eggs).

 

 

We got a mixed bag of hen chicks

 

 

 

This one will either be a white hen or a golden

 

 

And then disaster!  This morning I went out early to check on the chicks and saw immediately that the heat lamp was out!  This was very bad news especially since last night was extremely cold.  I rushed and opened the door and saw the dead chick below.  The heat lamp above had somehow shattered in the night.  We got lucky that it didn't start a fire that could have spread to our house!

 

 

Another one that was under the pile of surviving chicks.  It was most likely crushed to death.

 

 

I immediately brought the survivors in who were severely chilled and put a heater fan above them.  They are doing fine now but it just goes to show you how fast you can loose chicks due to the heat lamp going out.

 

 

Here is Bremmer who thus far has had little exposure to them.  He has been fascinated all morning.  He has been laying next to the box in herding guard dog position.  He won't let the cats get near the chick box.  Samson our golden retriever is totally uninterested.  He came over for an inquisitive sniff and then went and laid down.  He has never had more than a polite interest in our rabbits or chickens.  I just watched Bremmer watch Samson go over and sniff above the chicks and chase him away.  He is a great protective herding dog.

 

 

He did this same thing when my daughter brought home a newborn kitten that had been abandoned on a road. I have never seen anything like it because we have never had a herding dog.  He literally never left the kittens side and protected her from our other dog, and our parents in law dog.  He groomed her and licked her bottom and followed her around the house.

 

 

This morning its a trip to the feed store for a new heat lamp and two new chicks.  The kids are very sad and today we are going to bury their chicks, the thought of just throwing them away shocked them so we have to hold a memorial service.

Review/Giveaway - Preparedness Heirloom Vegetable Seeds Package and 5 Gallon Food Grade Buckets w/Gamma Lids

So this is going to be an interesting review.  Either you believe in being prepared or you don't.  But maybe you are just wondering about what would happen if you lost your job and couldn't find a new one and all the social safety nets weren't available.

I believe in being prepared and it has served me well in my marriage.  My husband has had several job losses and having a good food storage supply and the ability to grow my own food and produce my own eggs has saved our butts more than once. I love to grow veggies and fruits which of course helps.  Over the years I have used heirloom seeds more and more.  I find the flavor and diverse varieties much more satisfying.

Preparing for economic hardship is just good common sense.  Producing your own food is the first step to true independence.

Pleasant Hill Grain, based in Nebraska is a company that carries all sorts of products to help you live a more self sufficient life.  From grain mills, juicers, bread ovens, and different food processors to long term food storage, baking supplies, whole grains, and Long Term Storage Garden Seeds.


 In fact they have several different packages to supply you with all you need to produce your own food and even medicines.

Heirloom Vegetable Seeds (open pollinated, non-hybrid)

Herb Seed Collection

Fruits 'N Such Seed Collection

Medicinal Herb Seed Collection

Ancient Seeds Collection

Salsa Collection

Ultimate Seed Supply (Bundled)

 

Pleasant Hill Grain sent me their Heirloom Vegetable Seeds that retails for $44.99 and two of their food grade 5 gallon buckets with gamma lids.  The buckets sell for $6.99 and come in several colors.  This is good if you are setting up long term food storage because you could use a different color for different food types.  Such as blue for rice, red for wheat, etc.  The gamma lids are very important because they keep your stored items safe and fresh for years.  Here is a description

 

 This remarkably practical two-part gadget transforms a standard plastic bucket into a rugged, gasketed, resealable storage container that's both air-tight and water-tight. Just snap the outer ring down onto your bucket. The threaded lid turns easily with molded-in grip bars. These lids are heavy duty for years and years of service. The ring has a polymer gasket where it seats against the lid of your bucket, and the threaded lid has another polymer gasket, giving the container an air-tight, water-tight seal that excludes not only such freeloaders as mice and insects, but moisture too.

 

 The Gamma Lids come in several colors and sell for $8.95 and are reusable.  They are food grade and fit standard buckets.

 

The buckets and lids they sent me worked great and I used them to store sugar.  I love how easy the lids were to use. Sometimes storage lids are so hard to work with!  The Heirloom vegetable seeds come with many varieties that I already use and love and come with enough seeds to plant 3/4 of an acre of garden and are open pollinated and GMO free.  You could just use this as a starter garden kit and not for emergencies at all!  If stored at 70 degrees these seeds will keep for 4 to 5 years.

 

The Varieties Are

Sweet Corn, Country Gentleman, 5 oz.
Onion, Utah Yellow Sweet Spanish, 10 grams
Spinach, Bloomsdale Long Standing, 10 grams
Winter Squash, Waltham Butternut, 10 grams
Squash Zucchini, Italian Stripe, 10 grams
Radish, Champion, 10 grams
Tomato, Rutgers, 5 grams
Swiss Chard, Lucullus, 10 grams
Pea, Early Frost, 10 ounces
Beet, Detroit Dark Red, 10 grams
Cabbage, Golden Acre, 10 grams
Broccoli, Green Sprouting, 10 grams
Lettuce, Paris Island Cos, 5 grams
Cucumber, Straight Eight 76, 10 grams
Carrot, Scarlet Nantes, 10 grams
Pepper, Yolo Wonder, 5 grams
Bush Bean, Strike, 5 ounces
Cantaloupe, Hales Best Jumbo, 10 grams

 

I would recommend Pleasant Hill Grain to anyone looking for well priced preparedness, self sufficiency items, or high quality baking supplies and grain mills.
 

Connect with Pleasant Hill Grain

 

Website

Facebook

 

Giveaway!

 

Pleasant Hill Grain has been super generous by offering to give one lucky Thrifty Housewife reader The Heirloom Vegetable Seeds (open pollinated, non-hybrid)  and two 5 gallon buckets with gamma lids!  That's a $77.00 Value!  Use the rafflecopter to enter, all entries are optional, all winning entries will be verified for completion.  Good Luck!
 

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/33ddb993/" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Thrifty Housewife was not compensated for this post, I did receive a sample product(s) for the purposes of review. This did not influence my review or my opinions. My views are 100% my own. This giveaway is not affiliated with facebook, pinterest, twitter, or any other social media website.  The winner will be chosen through the rafflecopter form which uses Random.org.  Winner will be notified by email within 48 hours of contest end.  Winner has 24 hours to respond to the  email.  Failure to respond will result in a new winner being chosen.  Open to US only.

 

Allergy Buyers Club Oransi V HEPA Max Air Purifier Review and Giveaway! ARV $479.00!

Do you know what's in the air you breathe?    It has been proven in studies that the air in homes is more polluted than the air outside due to the wide range of common chemicals people use on a daily basis for cleaning, air freshening, and off gassing from furniture and wall paint.  Obviously using nontoxic cleaners and natural air fresheners is a good way to reduce exposure.  But it doesn't solve the problem completely and it cant help with things like pet dander, dust, dust mites, and outside contaminants coming in.  That's why having a great air filter is so important!  Really if I could recommend two things everyone should have to improve their health the first is a good air filter and the second is an excellent water filter.

 

My husband has terrible allergies to pollens.  It is so bad that he has to be on meds almost all year long.  Also our house has two dogs, two cats, four children, and a wood stove that produces lots of dust and contaminants in the air. So when Allergy Buyers Club offered to let me review an air filter I was thrilled!

 

The health benefits of a good air purifier are huge.  They help with allergies to pets, mold, pollens, and dust.  And can really help with people who have chemical sensitivities.  Air purifiers are essential to people with asthma and allergies, and can even remove smoke and gases from the air!

 

One thing I love about Allergy Buyers Club is how helpful they are.  When you get on their site an online representative pops up and can answer any questions.  They were able to help me choose the best air purifier for my needs and size of space I needed filtered.  They do this with any product they carry!  And they don't push the most expensive thing, just what is going to work for you.  I love that kind of customer service!

 

The air filter I choose was the  Oransi V HEPA Max Air Purifier.  This is a large room air purifier that covers a maximum of 1,238 square feet, which is a house!  It effectively removes over 99% of mold, pollen, dust, bacteria, pet dander and other airborne particulates as small as 0.3 microns.  It even filters out viruses! .  That is pretty amazing!  I noticed right off how effective it was in a very tangible way.  We have allot of dust in our house due to our wood stove.  It is terrible!  I dust every week but it is so thick on my furniture I just knew that our air quality needed help.  Just to test it out I dusted and vacuumed right before I turned it on.  Then I could judge how effective it was by how much less dust accumulated on things.

 

Frankly  I was amazed!  The dust is so much less that when we stop using our wood stove I probably wont have to dust every week anymore!  Also the Oransi V HEPA Max Air Purifier is very quiet and is fairly small and unobtrusive in our living room.  It's very attractive and easy to use as well.  Within 5 minuets of taking it out of the box I was able to get it going.  I love the fact that it has a Anion negative ionizer. This ionizer emits nano piezo-electric ions to freshen and balance the air, making your room more like a natural environment. The Anion negative ionizer helps neutralize the surplus of positive charges from TVs, computer monitors and other electronics.  This filter comes with so many features that I love besides that.  It has 4 different fan speeds, a timer, an air quality sensor and  a great 10 year warranty just to name a few!

 

I noticed the air is fresher and much cleaner.  When I vacuum I turn the filter to its highest setting to help pull all the stuff that gets stirred up and it really helps.  When I cook something stinky like fish the purifier eliminates the odor really fast and if the wood stove smokes it pulls that right out of the air.  I cant help but think of all of all the things I cant see or smell that it is helping to eliminate!  Also something interesting is that I have had bronchitis for the past 3 weeks and have been hacking all over the house, and yet my 4 children have not gotten it.  I have been running the purifier the whole time so I believe it has helped to cleanse the air of germs  as it does filter bacteria!  For a mom like me that is amazing!  This would be so great for people who have weak immune systems or who just don't want to get sick!

 

If you want a highly effective, quiet, easy to use, and attractive air filter this is a great one.  But Allergy Buyers Club has dozens and dozens to choose from to suit every need.  If your just wanting to filter one bedroom to full house filters they have something for you. Join their email list for exclusive offers and deals by going HERE and also sign up to get their free catalog by going HERE.

 

Connect With Allergy Buyers Club

 

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Pinterest

 

The Giveaway!

  

Allergy Buyers Club has been super generous in offering to give one lucky Thrifty Housewife reader an Oransi V HEPA Max Air Purifier of their very own!  That is a $479.00 Value!  Use the Rafflecopter to enter, all entries are optional, all winning entries are verified.  Good Luck!

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/33ddb992/" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

The Thrifty Housewife was not compensated for this post, I did receive a sample product(s) for the purposes of review. This did not influence my review or my opinions. My views are 100% my own. This giveaway is not affiliated with facebook, pinterest, twitter, or any other social media website.  The winner will be chosen through the rafflecopter form which uses Random.org.  Winner will be notified by email within 48 hours of contest end.  Winner has 24 hours to respond to the  email.  Failure to respond will result in a new winner being chosen.  Open to US only.

Review/Giveaway More Than Alive Raw Nuts Package

 

I have recently made a big push to go with a real food diet for our family.  This is not as hard as it is for some people.  I have long made almost all of our foods from scratch, at first out of necessity due to it being cheaper, and then as an added bonus of tasting amazing and being better for us.  But still, our diets had tons of room for improvement.  The more nutrient rich and organic I can make my cooking the better.  So when More Than Alive offered to send me some items for review I was thrilled. 

 

 

More Than Alive is a company that carries food storage, high quality water filters, bulk foods, bulk herbs,  supplements, books, and clothing accessories.  They focus on natural health and promoting health through high quality products.

 

They have an extensive Bulk Foods sections where they carry things like nuts and seeds, nut flours, black teas, spices, and cacao powder to name a few.

 

 

 They sent me their Nut Package for review.  I use nuts all the time in my cooking and snack foods.  Nuts are extremely healthy.  They contain tons of minerals and healthy fats.  The minerals are especially important to the healthy function of our bodies.  I received one pound each of Raw Almonds, Raw Cashews, Raw Walnuts, and Raw Pecans.

My children love having nuts mixed into their yogurt as a treat, or mixed into snack mixes in the afternoon.  This is one of the best ways to get them minerals in my opinion.  Another way I use these nuts is mixed into my morning oatmeal. I like the walnuts personally and use steel cut oats which metabolize much slower into your blood stream so there is less of a sugar spike from the carbs.

I used some of the almonds and pecans in my Homemade Healthy Granola.  The almonds were big and plump and had a great sweet taste.  The pecans were huge and full halves.  The quality is obviously very high.  The cashews we have just been eating out of hand as a snack and with yogurt.  They are really yummy.  I haven't used the walnuts because I am saving them for holiday pies, but I did sample a few and they are very good.  Sometimes walnuts can be bitter but these are not.  Walnuts can be used in many recipies that call for pecans and I have had a great walnut pie that is like pecan pie.

 

I would recommend these nuts to anyone, they are at a good price and would make great additions to the diet or use in holiday baking.

 

Connect with More Than Alive

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Facebook

Twitter

 

The Giveaway!

More Than Alive has generously offered to give one of my lucky readers a Nut Package full of the same items I received. That's one pound each of Raw Almonds, Raw Cashews, Raw Walnuts, and Raw Pecans.  Use the rafflecopter to enter.  All entries will be verified.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/33ddb991/" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

The Thrifty Housewife was not compensated for this post, I did receive a sample product(s) for the purposes of review. This did not influence my review or my opinions. My views are 100% my own. This giveaway is not affiliated with facebook, pinterest, twitter, or any other social media website.  The winner will be chosen through the rafflecopter form which uses Random.org.  Winner will be notified by email within 48 hours of contest end.  Winner has 24 hours to respond to the  email.  Failure to respond will result in a new winner being chosen.  Open to US only.

  

Sevengill Design T-Shirts - Review And Giveaway

 

My eldest son loves the ocean.  At age 3 his favorite TV shows were on animal planet about giant squid and whales.  By age five he new more about the ocean than most adults.  His interest has not faded with age (although he loves Lego's now too).  His room is decorated like a Ship cabin and he still loves watching shows like Planet Earth and Blue Planet.

 

So when Sevengill offered to let me choose two of their cool ocean inspired T-Shirts I knew exactly who they would be for! 

 

Sevengill Design is a company that specializes in t-shirts about sharks and other marine animals and also some land animals.  They carry lines for babies, children, and adults as well as sea creatures in ornaments, magnets, and figurines.  I like their designs.  They are neat looking without getting too cutesy.

 

I let my sons each pick a shirt on their own.  My eldest son, the ocean lover, choose the 44 Sharks t-shirt.  It was no contest and he proudly tells people that it has all the sharks species on it.  Not sure if that's true, but oh well :).

 

My younger son who is 5 surprised me with his choice.  He wanted the Hyena Shirt.  In his words "They are cool meat eaters".  It is a really neat shirt.

 

I like Sevengill because the shirts are very high quality cotton, come in a wide variety of unique pictures, and also are affordable.  These make great gifts for ocean lovers in your life or if you are just looking for something different than the run of the mill walmart shirts.

 

Connect With Sevengill

 

Website
Etsy

Facebook

 

Giveaway!

 

Sevengill has generously offered to give one lucky Thrifty Housewife reader their choice of two t-shirts or onesies!  Use the rafflecopter to enter, all entries are optional, all winning entries are verified for completion.

 

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/33ddb990/" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

The Thrifty Housewife was not compensated for this post, I did receive a sample product(s) for the purposes of review. This did not influence my review or my opinions. My views are 100% my own. This giveaway is not affiliated with facebook, pinterest, twitter, or any other social media website.  The winner will be chosen through the rafflecopter form which uses Random.org.  Winner will be notified by email within 48 hours of contest end.  Winner has 24 hours to respond to the  email.  Failure to respond will result in a new winner being chosen.  Open to US only.

Pics Around Our Place and Our First Fishing Trip!

I have been chomping at the bit to get out and fish.  I love fishing and now that children are older fishing trips are much more fun and spontaneous.    We were up by a little town nearby and saw that one of the fishing ponds were finally unfrozen.  So we raced back home and threw our gear in the back of the van and headed out for a few hours of trout fishing. 

 

 

Boy was it worth it.  We caught 6 trout that were all above 13 inches and fat!  It was so lovely to be outdoors again listening to the birds sing with joy for spring and watch the children bring in those big trout!  It so funny because my three youngest love to fish.  Especially my 10 year old son.  He was the first to bring in a fish.  The kids are already talking about our next fishing trip!

 

 

 

The Kitten interested in the candles

 

 

 

our dogs Samson and Bremmer staying warm next to the wood stove

 

 

Bremmer watching TV

 

 

The kitten looking like "Man I am NEVER drinking again!"

 

 

 

Playing with our kids toys, she did this for a good half hour

 

Leather Charm Bracelet From Penny Auctions Canada - Review

Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial. http://www.tomoson.com/?code=TOPc21bfbf13e7607fcf5268ba9d1c3ea47" rel="nofollow">http://www.tomoson.com/images/front/pixel.png

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Have you ever heard of Penny Auctions Canada before?  I sure hadn't until very recently.  Penny Auctions Canada is an online bid site where you purchase your bids, pick an auction, and bid on it!  Simple!  To find out how to get started click HERE.  Penny Auctions Canada has tons of items you can bid on such as computers, jewelry, children's toys, housewares, TV's and much more.

 

 

One such item is this super cute charm bracelet that is all the rage right now in fashion.  It is very well made from Leather, alloy, wax linen cord, and suede with silver alloy charms.  My teen aged daughter loves it and wont take it off!  They come in all sorts of colors and styles.

 

Penny Auctions Canada is offering a free promo code to my readers.  Using the code Tomoson25 at the check out you will get 25 free bids with a 25 bid purchase.  Also any new sign ups get 5 free bids with no purchase necessary.

 

Even though Penny Auctions Canada is located in Canada they are also open to the USA.

 

Thank you Penny Auctions for sending me this adorable charm bracelet for review!

 

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using http://www.tomoson.com/?code=BOTTOMc21bfbf13e7607fcf5268ba9d1c3ea47" rel="nofollow">Tomoson.com

. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

How To Re-Purposing Old Picnic Baskets into Produce Bins With Chalkboard Tops!

I really needed some good produce bins for my apples, potatoes, and onions.  I have been using wicker basket but the problem is that they have no lids so animals can get into them and they are exposed to light which is bad for both onions and especially potatoes.  Proper storage of temperature, air circulation, and light will extend the quality of your produce.  I buy in large quantities because I not only cook  for our family of six, but I use lots of fresh produce as part of my cooking.  I rarely buy convenience foods so having tons of especially potatoes on hand is important

When potatoes get exposed to light their skin turn green, which is poisonous, and also they tend to sprout which is also poisonous.  Nor can I put them in the cupboard because I first of all don't have the space, and second of all end up forgetting about them and then find them months later after I notice a smell!

What I wanted was a basket made of wicker or wood with a lid.  They sell them new but the price is way out of my range at $30.00-$60.00 each.  The standard wooden potato bins usually have a window on them, which defeats the whole no sunlight thing.

Thinking on this problem I remembered all the old-fashioned picnic baskets I have seen at yard sales and thrift stores for a few bucks.  The old ones are made of wicker which is good because you need air flow, and they have lids which blocks out the sun.

I found one for really cheap at $3.00 in great condition and started my little project.  I wanted to paint the lid with chalkboard paint (so I can write what's in it) which costs about $12.00 per small can at the hardware store.  You can get chalkboard paint in all sorts of colors now! Doing a project like this I only used less than a 1/4 of the can.  All told it probably cost me about $5.00 for the whole project.  I cant wait to find more of these baskets so I can do one for onions, apples, and sweet potatoes.  I am planning to build a shelving unit to fit each one in at an angle so you can see the lid and open it up to get your veggies/fruits.

 

The Basket Before

 

 

After cleaning a bit

 

 

The Lid Shows Some Water Damage

 

 

After Three Coats of Chalkboard Paint

 

 

My sad attempt at being artistic

 

 

Tons of room for a good 20 to 30 lbs of Potatoes!

Easy Grow Home Mushroom Kits Review and Giveaway!

http://www.easygrowmushrooms.com/This winter has seemed to go on and on.  I am just longing to get outside and plant something!  Growing anything indoors is a good alternative to keep my gardening obsession in check.  So when Easy Grow Mushrooms and Composting offered to let me review their Shiitake Mushroom Kit I was thrilled!  Not only would I be growing food indoors, but I worked this into a great science home school project for my children.

What are Easy Grow Mushroom Kits?  Well these are kits that are pre seeded with edible culinary mushroom spoors and shipped direct to you.  You follow the easy instructions and within a few weeks you will have delicious, fresh mushrooms!  Easy Grow Mushrooms and Composting carries several varieties of mushrooms Shiitake, Oyster, Enoki, Reishi and even Morels!

Here is a little info about their products

 

Growing delicious, edible, gourmet mushrooms has, in the past, been a venture that was not well suited for the average home grower. The expensive cost of equipment needed, as well as the extensive knowledge and labor required, made gourmet mushroom growing impractical. Fortunately, those days are in the past. The Easygrow line of mushroom grow kits are inexpensive, prolific, and very easy to use. Someone with little or absolutely no prior experience or skill in mushroom growing can quickly become an expert home cultivator. All the mushrooms that are produced from our kits are edible. They are also mighty delicious!

Many of our mushroom kits not only produce abundant crops of mouthwatering, gourmet mushrooms, but they also have great environmental attributes as well. For example, the Composter mushroom garden, once established, is a great tool for recycling yard debris (especially wood waste such as sticks, twigs and chips). The nutrients and minerals locked up in excess wood waste can efficiently be recycled back to your land and flora. Accordingly, converting wood and other yard debris into delicious, gourmet mushrooms is not only good for your table, it is good for your environment as well.

Whatever your reason for growing mushrooms, be it environmental or culinary (or a little of both!), we are sure you will enjoy using our kits. All of the kits are guaranteed to produce. We are confident that you will enjoy great success growing fantastic, delectable mushrooms!

It was really neat to watch the mushrooms grow.  The children checked them every day.  We studied about the life cycle of fungus and it was a great learning experience.  Here is a poster one of them did.

As to how hard they are to grow?  Pretty much all I did was moisten the kit with water every day and that was it!  The kit is small enough to fit on a kitchen counter and doesn't smell bad as it grows.

When it came time for harvest I was so excited!  I sautéed them with spinach for dinner and oh my goodness they were good!  Much better than store bought with a sweeter nutty flavor.  We are big mushroom lovers here.


These mushroom kits from Easy Grow Mushrooms and Composting  are so fun, affordable, and inexpensive that I would recommend them to anyone.  Do you know a gardener?  This would be a great gift, especially right now when winter seems to never end.  Any mushroom lover or foodie would be thrilled with this.  And as a homeschooler this was a great fun project that helped bring the life cycle of mushrooms to life for my kids.  If you want to try something fun that produces delicious food this is a great idea!

Connect with Easy Grow Mushrooms and Composting

 

Website

 

Win Your Own!

Grow Mushrooms and Composting is giving one lucky Thrifty Housewife reader their very own  Shiitake Mushroom Kit.  Use the Rafflecopter to enter.  All entries are optional, all winning entries are verified for completion.  Good Luck!

 
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/33ddb989/" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Thrifty Housewife was not compensated for this post, I did receive a sample product(s) for the purposes of review. This did not influence my review or my opinions. My views are 100% my own. This giveaway is not affiliated with facebook, pinterest, twitter, or any other social media website.  The winner will be chosen through the rafflecopter form which uses Random.org.  Winner will be notified by email within 48 hours of contest end.  Winner has 24 hours to respond to the  email.  Failure to respond will result in a new winner being chosen.  Open to US only.