Now What?

Starting the life of self sufficiency has its challenges. I mean when you begin to provide for yourself, you have an entirely new set of things to learn.

I mean after you bought organic heirloom seeds, planted them, tended to the plants, and then harvested your garden...then what do you do?

To be honest looking at this photo a few years ago would have confused me. Aside from a few things I definitely could not identify any other foods. In fact, the star items would have made me wonder if they were even edible!

Now here is the next step, it is so easy- eat it!
Or preserve it or even store it!
But how? Well I will give two simple recipes for you to use or cater to your own needs. Storing squash is pretty easy, as you can wrap each item in a brown lunch sack and keep it in a cool, dark place. Squash keeps for several months.

Now to Recipe #1

Casserole Anything

Large Zucchini- sliced in thin slices
Ear of corn- scrape the corn off the ear
Small can of cream of celery soup
1 lb of ground beef(browned)
any type of cheese(grated or thinly sliced)

~Mix the first four ingredients in a bowl. Place it in a casserole dish. Bake at 350 F for about 20 minutes. Place cheese on top and bake for another 10 minutes.

This has the word anything in it because that is what casseroles are made of. Please be creative with the foods you grow and enjoy the results.


Recipe #2

What A Crock!
variety of squashes( I used six today)
onion diced
three or so carrots scrubbed and peeled and diced into thin rings
jalapeno
green beans
corn scraped off the cob
1 bouillon cube
1 tsp. cilantro-washed and cut up
2 cloves of garlic minced
1 lb of stew meat

~I put the above ingredients in the crock pot on high for five hours today. Salt and pepper to taste.


It is surprisingly easy to prepare foods that you grow, and I am living proof that anyone can make a lovely meal with these items. Prepping is living a bit of living outside of the box(as if you all don't know this!) We have been conditioned as a society, to eat a certain variety of vegetables. This is most likely because it is easier for the commercial farms to minimize their products that they grow.

This is the same with milk, as many people are shocked to learn that we have goats and that we milk them and use the milk to drink and make cheeses etc. from. Shocked! I used to think this way too, before I moved to our farm.

Become a Prepper requires deprogramming from standards set up by the world.
So readers start your deprogramming today!!

Jennifer

(c)Double Nickel Farm

Common Sense

As a prepper we must always remember that common sense should be first and foremost.

Chicken Tip

I have been raising chickens for a few years now. I would have never guessed that in this short period of time that I would become the go to gal in my area, when one has questions about the birds. Funny thing is that I have learned a good deal about chicken raising, chicken health, and much much more.

Raising chickens should be one of the least expensive prepper things that you do. Now in today's society we are sold a bill of goods on even the needs of chickens, and many people have fallen in the trap of spending far too much.

One thing I realized after being the poultry person for the county fair was that most people do not realize that you can feed your chickens your food waste. This is so simple and so important. Every peeling, every egg shell(crushed into small pieces), every bone goes into the bucket. I have an ice cream bucket to toss the "slops" for the day in, that we give to the birds mid-day!

It is pure excitement when we call the chickidoodles! The slops are a highpoint in their wee pea brained days and for me, I have reduced giving more feed to them. In fact, we have a family in town that saves their food slops for us to give to our birds. We provided the buckets and they call when the bucket is full(how easy is this?). The slops provide an array of nutrients to the birds that specialized feeds try and pinpoint. A bonus is that the waste from the table is not wasted and if you usually placed this in a compost pile-then don't worry, you still can~ after you clean the chicken coops. Instead of the foods it will be the hay and waste of the birds.

Do not forget- any food item-bones and all go to the chickens. They love everything. A fun afternoon is to watch the chickens chase and fight over a spaghetti noodle!

Please remember that the path of the prepper most often takes you on a path of simplicity and less waste and less cost. Learning how to have animals that utilize less commercial feeds is a great start. Modern thought is that this is not possible nor healthy for the animals. I am here to document my path and that it is indeed possible and successful.
(c)Double Nickel Farm
Jennifer

Irony?

First off, when I titled this post Irony, it was an attempt on my part to see through the smoke and laugh. The truth is that the Left- although having control of the Congress and the White House shows its true colors. You see they still have to pander. I am disgusted by the political class and cannot hold back anymore. One wonders why the raffle would be held by the Democrats considering their platform is loaded with tremendous gun control.

I say this: Have the moxie to stand firm in your choice. I could care a less- except the wishy washy- raffle shows me how pathetic the party truly is. If you are against something then stand firm in your dissent. This booth and its raffle show me that the Democrats are willing to say or do anything to get a vote. Remember this if you wish to disagree...I live in a state that it is ILLEGAL to ask for Identification when one votes~ which party supports this??? The Democrats. I am ready to stand tall and begin having my voice heard~once before our nation had to remove itself from under the monarchs and royalty- Now we need to do so again- and the monarchy today are the elected officials. They are exempt from everything and have written laws to legalize the bribery that occurs(lobbyist). We need to push hard to have term limits- just like the office of the president.

Obama and the Second Amendment
Firearms, Gun Control, and the Second Amendment
The Democrats and Gun Control
Gun Control and Policy Issues

2nd Amendment Problems?

This is NOT a joke...at the Otero County Fair, here in New Mexico, the Democrat's are raffling off a .30-06 in their booth.

I was without words!
I will add pictures tonight or tomorrow.

Please feel free to discuss as you will.
I am still busy at the county fair.
Jennifer

So Where Are We?

When I was a kid growing up in northwest Ohio, I recall many tornado drills in addition to several times having to go and duck in a ditch near the grade school and once while in high school. We were prepped beyond belief and to our discomfort for a very real situation that occurs in Ohio.

Believe it or not we also had nuclear emergency drills. Does anyone else remember those? Pretty hilarious now, because we were told to get under our school desk, but our country was under the cloud of the Cold War and it seemed being proactive in things was better than sitting and twisting our hands. Clearly those in charge knew that children going under desks would not do anything, aside from eliminating panic for those that had no control.

As preppers we all understand that some things that can and may happen have no prep measure available. We understand that in crises of any form, natural or man made, location has much to do with results.

Yet we still proactively plan and prep for the what ifs. We are resolute in the notion that when the crises clear that you will see us first. We are the First Responders so to speak, as we have had our heads in the game. We may see things that will level us inside, but we have prepped for so long that our actions will be rote.

When my husband had his accident while on duty, I was told he had not made it, but I mentally in a second decided that my kids would not know until I could go and say goodbye to my love. I therefore planned to give my kids a school desk for a few moments, until I had returned from the accident scene. Now the good news was that on the way to the accident scene we heard rapid radio traffic calling for Flight for Life, and my husband did survive. But you get the point. We need to have some wiggle room for our psyche.

None of us will be immune to the anguish or stress one feels post a crises. Believe me the most stressful moment in my life still is the day an officer came to my door at 10 pm to tell me my husband had died. This still is a hard thing to recall and brings me to tears now~This is what I hope to address in a few posts down the way- how to maintain and go on in the aftermath of anything. I wanted to allow you all to toss a few thoughts on the complete prepper attitude and how to be strong after any crises physically(needs met-food clothing-shelter) and mentally.

I am not a big fan of psychology in the blame game scenario, but I am one to see prepping full circle. So what are your thoughts?
Jennifer

Trying To Find Like Minded Folks?

As I prep to haul items off to the county fair, I came up with a brainstorm moment! The county fair is filled with many who can and preserve and grow gardens and raise animals- they are halfway if not further on the path of self-reliance and therefore could be a prepper.

These people may be ones who can become co-contributors to your local state prep site! I will be looking for others who sense the need to prep and talk to them about the prepper movement. I thought I would share this idea to you all!
Jennifer

Modern Day Pioneers(Preppers)

Prepping is an attitude as much as it is a lifestyle. Preppers are constantly thinking and looking ahead all the while living in the moment continuing on in our daily lives. We should and do enjoy the day to day activities as we store items for a time when such days may seem like luxurious days.

As preppers we also understand that no matter the name we give ourselves-even survivalist, that our attitude is not mainstream. Most people we talk to think that we are a bit off speaking of bug out bags, stockpiling, and self-sufficiency. In fact, our society has become so "fast food-ready made" that most do not know how to do any basic survival tips.

Baking in the average home consists of taking a tube of cookie dough and slicing it to a pan. Home made bread is frozen loaves from the Schwan's man.

Cleaning consists of Wet-jet mops, dynamic dishwashers, stain fighting laundry detergent and air fresheners that mask formally normal smells in a home environment.

Protection in the average home consists of a network wired up to some middle of the country state-that then will call the local police or emergency personnel.

Road guides and atlas's have been replaced by GPS systems.

Natural remedies and simple health tips have been replaced by bi monthly visits to the doctor and prescriptions for everything(which then require a second prescription to treat the side effects of the first prescription).

Games and entertainment consists of plugged in systems where one or two people interact side by side, not face to face. People spend more time in front of a box then interacting with their families.

Education consist of parents sending children off from age 2-3 in Head Start programs and doesn't end until the child is recognized by the state as an adult(this educational system fills in the day with sports, music, and all kinds of filler that remove the family as the child's central group).

Preppers have learned to take apart a food item and make it themselves from scratch. They have learned that flour can even be made from the mesquite beans in their backyard. Preppers understand that baking and knowing how to prepare multiple foods from a basic list will make them more prepared as one can store 200 pounds of flour for a good deal longer than bread. The bonus of baking from scratch is that less preservatives make a healthier person.

Preppers have learned that with baking soda, lemon juice, and vinegar all cleaning jobs in the home can be mastered. The benefits of less cleaning products is less toxicity in the home. With all the cleaners the home of 2009 has-comes a cleaning cocktail that is causing who knows what to the health of the person.

A prepper understands that the safety and security of the home is theirs alone first. The prepper also keeps an eye on his neighbors homes not as a peeping tom, but as one to keep his neighborhood safe. Preppers understand that the ripple effects of securing our homes, then secure our neighborhoods, to our states, to then our nation. We protect from the smallest unit outwards. A prepper also understands that machines are fallible and we may use GPS, but understand how to use topographical maps, atlas's and compasses. We know where the sun rises and sets. Funny that this simple knowledge has been lost.

Preppers have studied how to live and be healthy by their own actions. Yes cancer and major diseases hit preppers but we have tried to learn how to be our own doctor first, by exercising, eating a balanced diet and getting enough sleep. We have studied simple herbal remedies from days gone by to take care of the common cold and so on. We are not against modern medicine but against the societal problems of mass hypochondria that seems to be common place with the number of people on medications.

The prema-donna complex of our children has been removed by preppers. We have come to understand that the child needs to learn basic skills and even morals and values before attaining adulthood or it will be too late. Our children are not to be worshiped and given everything materialistically but they are to be trained to be the torch carriers of the next generation.

Preppers may send their children to public schools, but also have homeschool in the evenings,weekends and then some because every moment is a teaching moment. We teach our children how to bake, use weapons and maintain them, store for the lean years, grow and put foods up, and as much self sufficiency as possible.

We are not perfect, we preppers are just man with all its shortcomings. But we are the modern pioneers that trekked West in the US. We are willing to leave all we have and head to unknown horizons because we understand that a situation may require this from us. We modern pioneers are most certainly aware that crises do occur, and we desire to be able to rise above the storm and carry on. We are of solid stock, we preppers, as most of us are from North America- we can trace ancestors before us who did all we do and considered it a great life. We too must reflect upon our lifestyles and understand this too. Eureka, we preppers have found our own bit of gold that will provide for us in any time and in any place.
(c)
Jennifer

Please Read This

This is a post I wrote for my farm blog. Please take a moment and read it...Ignoring the Voice of the People.

The time is now folks...we are no longer prepping for some unknown day in the future coming, but today.
Jennifer
Double Nickel Farm

Turn on the Radio...

"Turn on the radio, who do you hear? Elvis Presley doing a cheer!"

Okay I admit it, New Mexico has some pretty powerful solar radiation which causes its residents to become a bit loopy!

The real reason for this post is that the prep world is once again hitting the airwaves(via blogradio) and participating in James Stevens' Family Preparedness Guide Radio Show on blog talk radio.

Please tune in at 2:00pm/EST and listen to Phelan (Kansas Preppers Network), Prepared in TN (Tennessee Preppers Network), Ernie (Indiana Preppers Network) and Kymber(Canadian Preppers). You can listen to the show live and call in with your questions (347-326-9604), or you can download the show later using this link.

Olive Oil

I love olive oil. As a prepper olive oil is something that you should have in your storage for many reasons.

This site gives 25 alternative uses for olive oil. This is one tip listed: Cure an earache. Very carefully, use a cotton swab to apply olive oil to the outside ear cavity to help with earaches and excess wax.

Olive oil can be used in oil lamps. This is a great link that shows the how to's of making an oil lamp.

I switched to olive oil long before I took on the label "prepper" as I had gall bladder issues and was told that mine needed to be removed. Instead of opting for surgery right away, I researched how I could make simple changes to possibly change the need for having my gall bladder removed. I discovered that switching 100 percent to olive oil in my cooking/baking, would be beneficial. Well I had the issues in 1999 and was told that I would need it removed immediately, and ten years later I have not had one flare up.

That is a prepper trait too, by the way. Preppers should be prepared to resolve a situation by assessing all the data before acting. Now sometimes this is a split second decision, but most times you are granted a bit of time before acting. Be sincere in your actions and determine things based on all the information instead of what our society deems to be best.

What I mean by this is what my doctor told me. He said Americans will not give up their foods, so instead of suggesting to me a change in habits,he instead suggested that I should just remove the problem. {Crazy how lazy we have become }

As a prepper I have several gallons of olive oil on hand. As one who tries to make most if not all of my foods from scratch, I have found that olive oil can be used in place of any and all oils and impacts the flavors very little, and if it does it is for the better.

Olive oil is a base for your preps and should be on hand for its versatility. Using this LDS food calculator site, my family needs to have 10 gallons of oil on hand for a year. Do not minimize food storage in your prepping as it is one of the big three: Food~ Shelter~ Clothing.

Double Nickel Farm
medicinal uses for olive oil
8 surprising uses of olive oil

(c) Jennifer

And The Winner Is Winners Are

All four of you who left comments!!!I am going to send you all something for your prepping made by little ole me.

For the books offered as the giveaway prize-I had my second son pick a number from 1-7(minus #6 which was my comment)

DGR- you are the grandprize winner woohoo!!

Please email me your addresses so I can send you a New Mexico/Double Nickel Farm Prep gift!
Kymber
Candace
MatthiasJ
DGR