gophers kidnapped julia child

ugh

double ugh

triple ugh

a couple of weeks ago, we planted 61 gorgeous tomato plants...all in a row, perfectly spaced, bordered by marigolds. it took hours.

2 days later we noticed that rabbits had nibbled on the leaves of a few, and 2 plants had disappeared completely

i drove to town, picked up supplies and fashioned a secondary fence to protect the plants

6 more plants disappeared....and fresh gopher mounds appeared in their place

we planted gopher bombs, traps and ran water in the tunnels...and went to bed

the next day, all looked good

3 days later...

julia child was gone

a special tomato that i can only imagine would have been colorful and plump

a real vivor

 we will never know

a gopher kidnapped julia child and michael pollan and 40 other tomato plants

this is what the tomato patch looked like when it was all said and done

decimated

no ransom notes, just holes, mounds of dirt & tipped name plates--where julia, michael, cherokee and others once stood

rather than feed another generation of gophers, we pulled the plants, and are starting again.  we transferred the plants to larger pots as a transitional step.  it was slightly heartbreaking, as they were  rooting really well, and had begun to sprout roots from the deeply planted stalks.  i gave them a good feeding and mixed up a delicious soil (1 part dirt: 1 part organic potting soil: 1 part compost) and crossed my fingers

today

the plants we saved are doing very well...and should produce a nice healthy crop of tomatoes

soon

we will plant again. in gopher safe-raised beds

(this post is from my other blog which catalogs our journey on our new ranch--www.keepingupwiththeclampetts.blogspot.com)

homemade fire starters {diy}

i love the chill of winter

the scent of snow

and

chimney smoke

no matter my hurry

a crackling fire

shifts me to pause

...if only briefly

i repurpose 

simple household items

to make these

useful goodies

 

fire starters

paper egg cartons

dryer lint

cotton kitchen twine

bees wax or leftover candle bits

place the wax/candles in an old can or jar with a wide mouth and place in a saucepan with water filled so it comes about halfway up the jar.  place over low to medium heat, to indirectly melt the wax.

meanwhile.  cut the top off the egg carton, and then cut the egg cups apart. tightly pack lint into each cup, leaving a bit of headroom, so you can close the tops, but folding the corners in.  tie into a bundle using kitchen twine, allow for a fairly long wick, so you can use it to dip the cup into the wax. 

once the wax is liquid, dip each cup into it, allow it to be fully immersed.  i use disposable chop sticks or skewers to shimmy the cup, to make sure it is fully covered.  lay on wax or kitchen paper to cool.  once cool, trim wick and you are ready to go!

*the wax is used to keep the starters waterproof...which is great for campers and hunters.  if you will be using the firestarter in your home, you may not want to add this step.  i always do, because i love the smell of beeswax

**if you really jam pack these with lint, they will burn for 10 minutes or so and smolder for quite some time as well. i find it enough time to get the kindle lit and the logs on their way...

keeping up with the clampetts (new blog)

i am city folk

however

an old dog can learn new tricks

if

milking a goat

is considered a trick

we are making a move

first emotionally

then

physically

you can follow our progress

through a new blog

written with two voices

mine 

and

hubster

the words aren't

stylized

or

triple worked

the photos

unfiltered

just simply

the happenings

our feelings

triumphs

and

stumbles

with

lots of humor

beginning with the name

we were trying to think of names for the ranch

and summer was in full swing

what was green in the spring 

is now brown

hubs affectionately began calling the place

brown acres

and 

i added in a tag line

keeping up with the clampetts

save for the 

occasional surprise pregnancy and trial separation

(livestock only)

will be more

jed and granny

than

kim and any poor soul with a k as his first initial

as we were making a list of all the equipment we need to purchase

we thought

we really should call this blog

honey i shrunk the nest egg

all references to pop culture

more accurately (gran)pop culture

hey

it is our blog

and we will call it what we want

even 

if it is only funny to us

i do hope

you follow along

so you will be good and ready

when we need a house-sitter 

follow us here

Keeping Up With The Clampetts