Record Low Temps ~ Dehydrating Garlic

Last night, we hit an all time record low.  When Hubby called me from work about 7pm, it was already -17°F (actual temperature), with a wind chill of lower than -35°F.  The dogs are not taking the cold well at all.  My son said their legs start shaking after a few minutes outside to do their business.  Some times they won't even go, and he'll have to go out again.   It's too early to tell how the barn animals handled it.  As soon as the sun is up, we plan to do a quick check on them all.

Homemade Cough Syrup

(the beautiful snowflake kitchen towel was part of a Christmas gift from my Mom)

Here we go again.  Cough, cold, and flu season.  However, I used my youngest daughter's technique with Google ("no time to shop" but it's really no way to get out of the driveway,  and the fact I need to make it with what I have on hand and stay warm inside), and came up with a cough syrup recipe.  We got dumped with snow, and today by afternoon the temps will be that glorious -20° to -40F.  Even banks closed today.  So.... 
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Winston ~ Blizzard of '78

On the 26th of December, the plan was to drive Winston to a humane society about 1 hour from here.  They said they would take any animal, from any county, and not charge a thing.   Perfect, right?  Well, he didn't go there.  He's still here.  Sigh....

He has been quite the entertainment here lately.  Oh, don't get me wrong.  There are still cat fights, and growling, and cornering him by the other two boys here (in fact, I hear growling right now). They've had a few pee wars too (most likely why his last owner dumped him, and I will spare you my thoughts on dumped animals, but you probably already know them by now).

Day 2 - No Hot Showers

I let Jesse out to do his "business" early this morning, and there was one single star visible in the sky.  Kind of a cool sight, so I took a picture.  A benefit if living in the country - I can stand outside in my pajamas, robe and slippers, and my neighbors cannot look out their window and gawk at me in shock and horror.  They'd most likely think I was a creeper with my camera at that hour too, ha ha!

Frozen Pipes

Today, despite our best efforts, the hot water pipes are frozen.  It's 3°F with a wind chill of -20°F right now.

Yesterday was a challenge to say the least - frozen chicken water, a 2 foot drift inside the animal barn, drifts all over the drive, freezing kitchen and front room, etc.  "Big Boy" (Orion, the buck) got another bale of straw to keep him warm.  We need to somehow insulate his house for next winter.

Snow Storm and Frigid Temps

I'm not sure how much snow we got last night, but they predicted up to 5 inches.  As you can see, it's extremely windy, and more snow is predicted.  Drifting will be a huge problem out here.

I can't complain about the -1°F wind chill, considering the temps that Minnesota is fighting right now.

A Planner with Pizazz ~ New Year's First Day Tidbits

When my 17 year-old had asked me, "do we have to do anything today?" 

I responded with "eat, drink, and be merry!"

I got my crafting mojo flowing yesterday, and created a fun planner for 2014.  Thanks to Patty, at Lemon Lane Cottage, I dug out my scraps, decoupage and glue, and put some pizazz into a plain covered planner.  I'll admit, it felt good to craft without a plan, and without a deadline.  

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