August 16, 2008 

  s normal, while I was searching for something on the net the other day, I kinda got sidetracked. I accidentally found this free FitDay site (which had nothing to do with what I was actually looking for) and just had to continue to read it as it has Nutrition Facts about pretty much anything I could put into the food calculator other than for Squash Soup. It even has the nutritional values of goat, moose and rabbit. 

On the activities calculator, type in 'farm' and it will tell you how many calories you are burning whether you are driving a tractor, maple syruping, chopping wood, milking by hand or chasing cattle. I have never seen anything like this calculator before. I found out that I burn about 3,262 calories a day on average and I had about 2,172 calories I ate on average for the last three days. I eat about 44% carbs as my daily intake. 

I know that just by fencing in May 2007, I lost 10 pounds in the first month of the 'summer of fencing'. But for general interest, I thought this site was well worth passing on.

In other news... The garden and animals are looking really good even with the cold wet growing season. 

Pictures Above: Good ole' "Crystal". She looks pretty good for being 10-11 years old. I did not shave her udder (or the rest of her) this year, although I may do that this weekend so my milk is nice and debris free for cheese, caramel and Peanut Butter Goat Milk Fudge for work. It always amazes me that she really is not white, which she looks like for 9 months of the year. She is really a dilute marked Boer X. But she shows her dairy heritage of Nubian and Saanen as well with her angle-ness. Her milk this year has thus far gone to the 'orphan' kittens and the hogs. Now it is MY turn!! Her udder is 'deflated' as I had just milked her out. She gave me 2 quarts in one milking. 

Picture Below: It was pretty hot yesterday, so I ran the water hose into the pig pen so they could wallow in mud. Pigs have no sweat glands, so it is more difficult for them to stay cool. Mud helps. The six of them had a load of fun I tell ya! Just check out how muddy they are!! I love their noses and always pet them when I am out there, so that is why they are crowding the fence. 

Pictures Above: Upper left: Potatoes starting to flower. Soon I can dig for baby potatoes. (Upper right) One of my "Red Acre" cabbages just starting to head. Lower left: Horseradish. Anyone need some??? (Lower right) "Royal Burgandy" snap beans blooming. Yes, although I loathe beans, I do grow them for their ability to fix nitrogen into the soil. 

Pictures Below: On the left is my special West Virginia garlic which I have grown since 1995. It is just top setting, so I will take some of that back to mom one day so she has a start of it again. On the right is "Five Colored Silverbeet" Swiss Chard which I have grown for about 7 years now. And which I shall be having for dinner tonight. I have a 25' row of it.

There is much praise over the new look of  the website. Thank you! It took a couple late niters this week (3 am and then 1 am) to build and then to fix a few things here and there that I messed up on, as I am still learning. But I am pleased to say I accomplished all of it on my own (and had fun with it), although there was a small panic moment when I wiped out all the PayPal buttons and then saved. And then realized what I had done. 

I know frames is 'old school', but it is all I know how to work on for now and I want to be able to do all my web stuff on my own. I have wanted to revamp the site for about a year now and only just now had time to do it. It is nice having time to do things again besides work. Things like breathing!