Recycling Church Flowers

At our church when altar or other flowers are past their prime and not wanted by the person who donated them, I recycle them for the church. Our Pastor saves them; I bring them home and then add them to the compost pile. The containers are saved and used by me at a later date or donated to Good Will. This helps divert things from the landfill and adds to my compost pile. This is an easy thing people with compost piles can do and help reduce, reuse and recycle. Find out where "unwanted" altar and other flowers go at your church. Volunteer to take them home and recycle them yourself.

Last Frost Date

One of the big things that affects gardening in the spring (and fall) is the last (and first) frost date. I found this great tool on the web for figuring it out more specifically for your area in the United States. You simply have to plug in your zip code and it will tell you this information. Give it a look when you get a chance.
Last Frost Date United States by Zip Code

Nitrogen Cycle

I teach a small home school Biology class. Yesterday, we covered the nitrogen cycle. Many people assume our air is made of mostly oxygen since that is what we breathe. The actuality is though that it is mostly nitrogen. Our air is made up of about 21% oxygen, 78% nitrogen and then some carbon dioxide (0.03%) and argon (0.93%). Nitrogen is very important to life on earth as living things need nitrogen to perform the very functions of obtaining energy for themselves.

Nitrogen from the air is hard to obtain. As I told my students, it is very stingy about who it will mix with and how easily it will do it. Nitrogen fixing bacteria in our soil take the nitrogen out of the air and convert it to chemicals that like to more easily react with things. These chemicals are then used by plants and other photosynthetic organisms for energy. We then eat them to get nitrogen from them. Some nitrogen is returned to the soil naturally from our and other living things waste products. Most of the nitrogen is returned though to the air to start the process all over when they die and decomposing bacteria break them down.

In order to help my students understand this cycle more, I found this animation on the computer that explains it a little better. The only thing I do not like about it is that it shows a sprayer which would normally be associated with conventional fertilizer. Conventional fertilizer are unnecessary if we treat our soil properly in the first place but otherwise it does a good job of explaining it.  Nitrogen Cycle Animation

Learning about the how the natural process works helps us grow better gardens. Hope you will take a few minutes to learn about the nitrogen cycle.

Living and Dying

This week one of our friends was put in hospice and died after a very long illness. I spent the week going back and forth to the hospital to be with his wife during this difficult time. One of my other friends posted on facebook this week that death is not necessarily all about the dying but the living who will be left behind. My friend was in a coma for several days before dying. Although we were there for him to hear us and for him not to die alone, we were mostly there for his wife. We spent time with her to support her during this difficult time.

The other observation I made this week is how many people did not come. I am guessing they felt uncomfortable, did not know what to say or feared being around death itself. We seem to want to neatly pack it away in hopes that it will never happen to us. When I was growing up, our Pastor used to say that we all had 100% chance of dying some day. Although it is sad for those who are left behind, for many like our friend it is the end of suffering here on this earth.

If someone is dying, remember there loved ones. Sometimes just sitting with them helps pass the time. If you don't know what to do just listen or reminisce about the dying person with the loved ones left behind. When my Grandma was dying in hospice many people came to tell us the wonderful ways that she had helped them over the years. Many of them even her children did not know. It was a wonderful way to celebrate her life.

Baby Chicks

The McMurray chick catalog came in the mail this week. It gives me a sense that spring is only a couple of months away. It is so much fun to gaze through the pages and pick out our chickens each year. I always go in with others who are only ordering a few so we can all get the chicks and breeds that we desire. The minimum order without having to pay a heavy shipping fee is 25 baby chicks. If you cannot order this many chicks, other options would be looking or asking your local farm supply store. I know that Rural King and Tractor Supply all have baby chick days in the spring. You can usually get as many as you want. However, the minimum you should get is 3. These are flock animals and should always have company. There is nothing sadder than a lonely chicken. We always look forward to baby chicks. It is so much fun to watch them as they grow up.  

Roof-part 3

The roof on the house is about 3/4 complete. Hoping to get the rest of it done this week if the weather cooperates. Here are some pictures of the front of the house where they worked on Saturday. They started on the back of the house first to get the hang of it but it looks just as nice.

Roofing-Part 2

I received a comment on the last post that made me want to further clarify something because he is absolutely correct. Before attempting to do a roof yourself, try to find someone who knows what they are doing to consult with or even have help you. Offer to pay him or her to consult with you if it is not a close friend or relative. This gets back to my point that we need to be sharing our skills with each other. Many of the "old" self-sufficient skills are dying with older generations. We need to learn these skills once again. Not only has Chuck learned to put on a roof but we have had three teenagers plus our daughter helping who now have that skill to pass on and use themselves.

I grew up in a family of farmers and "do-it-yourselfers". When someone needed a roof put on, windows, doors or siding replaced, everyone went to their house a day or two and got the job done. The family who was doing the project fed everyone and made sure they had plenty to drink. When they needed help we returned the favor of free labor. My Grandparents and Aunt/Uncle's homes were pretty much built this way.  We also shared large tools and equipment. I grew up thinking that this was how everyone does it. There is nothing wrong with hiring a contractor or professional do these things. We have done this a few times for things we did not know how to do or were beyond our capabilities or time. Unfortunately, we do not have the money for this so we have to get these things done differently. Learning new skills gives you the option to do it yourself or to have someone else do it.

Family Memories

We did not have time before Christmas this year to make our form cookies so today we took the time to make them. Yes, they taste good but mostly this is a fun family tradition that I have done with the kids since they were little. This year, Mary even rolled out the dough and cut them out. This is always a fun time that the kids look forward to. We set out sprinkles and frosting along with the cookies and let them create. We do not try to make masterpieces or "perfectionistic" cookies. We use our creative juices and just have fun. Of course, we eat a few along the way. Family traditions are an important part of growing up and creating positive childhood memories. What are your family's traditions?

Roof Do-It-Yourself

We found out a week before Christmas that we needed to put a new roof on our house. Needless to say we did not have the money to pay a contractor to do it for us. Besides who wants to spend that kind of money when you can do it yourself. My husband had never done a roof before and it is something that you want to make sure is done properly. Luckily, my Dad has put on several roofs in his lifetime. He no longer can get up on a roof but he still can supervise from the ground. I ordered the materials with his direction. A great way to do this is to go to a major home improvement dealer and talk to their contractor sales person. They were able to help me figure out the amount of shingles and other supplies needed. In order to get an accurate shingle amount you will need to know the square footage of the outside of your house, the number of peaks (ridges) and the slope of your roof. Most homes are either a 4:12 or 5:12 ratio. If your attic area is about 6 feet high like ours you are a 4:12. If it is about 8-9 feet than it is probably a 5:12. In addition to shingles you will also need edging if it is not already in place, roofing nails, good box knife cutter with lots of extra blades, roofing nail gun, regulated air compressor, extension ladders, roofing square and a 2 foot x 2 foot (or so) piece of plywood to cut shingles on up on the roof. You can rent roofing nail guns but we found it cheaper to buy one at a pawn shop which we will later resell. We also already owned the air compressor.

My Dad came the first couple of days and showed my husband how to do the starter row, valleys and ridge caps. From there, My husband and his helpers have been able to do the roof themselves. My advice if you have never roofed before is to find someone to help you get started. There are also a lot of you tube videos available on how to do each of the above sections. I have to admit that I help with a lot of the projects but my help with the roof has been getting supplies and cleaning duty on the ground. My fear of heights does not make me a good candidate to be on the roof.

Putting your own roof on is a great way to save money but only if it is done properly. We were able to do a 3 bedroom ranch plus our small shed for less than $2000 in materials using 25 year shingles. Make sure to save your receipt. If somethings happens to the shingles, you will need the receipt to get them replaced. A friend of mine learned this lesson the hard way. Find someone who has done it before and is willing to help you get started if possible. Even paying him for their time will be cheaper than hiring a contractor.

 

Happy New Year

I apologize that I have been neglectful of my blog during the past month. We have had a lot going on around here along with the normal holiday festivities. I will be writing a little more about that later. Hoping all of my readers will have a Happy New Year and had a blessed Christmas season.