Giant spider, a gigantic black box one.

SHE IS BIG

SHE IS BLACK

BEWARE:

Her web is "woven" and she is waiting for : YOU....

Enter her web if you must , enter her web if you dare..

Grandma says, enter her web with

great care...

and only with a grownup nearby to rescue you...

ready set go...

you know sometimes you just have to DO IT, you have an idea and you keep thinking, tomorrow, or later or?

This summer I am working on everyday actions. Putting the rubber to the road, so to say.

Thanks to my ever constant supply of business tips and trainings, I am seeing how you can apply these same techniques to every aspect of your life. Dreams, what do you really want? Take daily steps to make it happen.

There is what is called doing the daily 8, ( I learned these via my SOC friends, thanks Kody, you can see and hear Kody's story , at www.sendoutcards.com/27588 ) I enjoyed the video about acting on a prompting, which is primarily geared for sending cards. With my farmers heart and thus a vetran of crop gleaning 101, I enjoy gleaning and salvaging ideas, from all sources. So if acting on a prompting piques your appitite, click on the watch DVD (in the red bar across the very top) then click on the introduction dvd. The last half of this dvd has a romantic ending so grab your box of tissues.

This summer I am applying some , newly acquired , just do it attitude , in all areas of my life.

Thus my box spider dream of several years ago, finally "hatched".

I have plans to make a more durable spider, but hey look at how adorable she is right now.(or as one friend told me formidable and scary)...

What is kicking around in your mind or heart to accomplish? If nothing , stop for a few moments, take a deep breathe and let it surface, there are dreams there, even little ones like my black box spider are important. Give yourself freedom to dream, to create, to hope, and then accomplish.

Don't let another day go by ...

Go build that dream, perhaps just one "silken" strand at a time , with daily consistant actions. (daily 8's)

viola' you will (well..git ur dun! )

even if your "web" savvy son who happened to work with a blimp crew, shakes his head at your knots and reties them for you...

(YAY for a knot savvy son)...

Smelly feet, Grandpas home remedy

Grandpas smelly foot home home remedy below

As farm funnies "mom" , I have learned a "few" things, and "discovered both old and new products, over the years that WORK.

Hard as nails horse hooves? If you clean and or trim horses feed and have a hard time with hardened frogs and hooves ,see if you can locate a product called Hoof Marvel.

I bought mine at a local farriers supply place, now I won't be without it... ever.

It is organic and the label claims it will make hooves workable. My experience has been with even hooves that seem hard as iron ( such as the day I first tried this product) two applications about 25 minutes apart and I could clip through that "iron" with my hoof nippers..

The bottle has phone Number, it is 1-800-600-9078 . I tell so many people about it I should get a commission, but I don't. I just love sharing and helping.

Another hoof tip, cleaning the hoof and applying what else but... lard ... a pioneer "tool" that helps to soften the hoof and keep the frog softer.

Cuts,wounds,skin problems? Here is another item I won't be without, us humans use it too...amazing stuff

It is called Schreiners, again I should get a commission. go to http://www.schreiners.com/
I haven't check out the site, but I have used the original Schreiners herbal solution for years.
I've used it one even fowl. again it is truly amazing stuff.

Lumps,bumps, "pending"bruises? Another good product, Arnica, it is used to help prevent bruising. I first learned about it in a Grace Livingston Hill book ( these are Christian romance novels with good morals and teaching, if you have teenage girls especially , find one of her books and introduce them to her , we even read them out loud even to our teen age son, he is a real "guy" but he did laugh at some things and I think if I held him down or promised my "famous" wild blackberry cobbler, he might admit to enjoying them they are just not the same for our guys as the Hornblower books. ( hey I like those too) . The Arnica was mentioned in one of her books called the Substitute Guest.(which most of our family has their own copy now and has a tradition of reading it every year at Christmas time ) other favorites, The Enchanted Barn, Matched Pearls, The Best Man. I read my first one ,Crimson Roses, when I was an 8th grader. Those who are fans of the author can generally tell if you are a Grace Livingston Hill gal , I believe what you read does effect you..
Look for Arnica in your local health store, or ask a Pharmacist to order some for you.( some one close to me who happens to be a Pharmacist and also had read the same book and knew I had, reminded me of this bruise remedy wonder). Arnica is not very inexpensive, I feel it is a must if you have little kids. It doesn't sting and it is cool and soothing.

Speaking of Christmas, watch for a new post, I am working on, called Christmas in July...I know, July is over, but I am working on something for this and since I figure I was the original coiner of the phrase
I, of all people, deserved the liberty to " celebrate" that a bit late.

I was serving in a women's ministry over 30 years ago in a Village Missions Church. We had several missionaries and it took months for one of them to get any packages. We figured if they were to get anything from us for Christmas we would have to get on its way in August and so I came up with Christmas in July , in order to help create excitement about doing something for their Christmas. I had never heard the phrase used, nor was it ever mentioned in ads like it is now until many years later. A good idea someone ran with. I happened to like my usage better however.

Back to bruising, of course you could try an old Indian method . This is ouchie but I found it does work, hmmm could it be, because I'm part Indian :-) I used this method for years , long before I discovered (well, rediscovered and TRIED) Arnica.

When I first receive a "hit" or "blow" (latest one is I garnered is from my two year old grandchild, no Arnica on hand of course. ) If I'm pretty sure I will get a bruise, I rub the area as hard as I can endure, and put ice and repeat the rubbing often, until the area is less painful ( or maybe numb due to coldness?) I found rubbing towards my heart works the best, it is supposed to break us the of damaged blood cells, I have found this to be true.

Smelly Feet? I'll leave you with my Grandpa's smelly feet home remedy . we found it works like a charm and my Great Grandma's home remedy for diarrhea .

Smelly feet remedy: Before going to bed. Make a thin paste ( a little thicker that white glue)using 1Tablespoon of boric acid and 3 Tablespoons of salt with water, apply this to your feet (or if you make it a bit thinner you can soak in it for 1/2 hour). Do not rinse, let your feet air dry, put on a pair of socks. Repeat this before bedtime on the following evening.

Body odor, home remedy: the same "recipe" and "procedure" has successfully "cured" body odor for a friend who decided to try it ,when the family physician was unsuccessful in helping with the problem. Nothing ventured, nothing gained is my motto, when it comes to reasonable home remedies...plus guess what? The needed "item" is typically in your own cupboard and TADA lots less expensive that the local pharmacy. Good luck, drop me a line for how any of these work for you. betty@bettyframesuccess4u.com

Great Grandma's Diarrhea... home remedy: Look on the shelf , of your local health food store (herbal tea "spot")or ask your local health food store to order some horsetail tea for you, if they do not carry it.

Take a pinch and chew on it until the "flavor" is gone, we never swallowed it.

You may need to do this a couple of times after each "problem" if you have a more severe case of diarrhea.
We have found it to stop even the worse cases. and never travel with out a tea bag of it.

You should always consult with your own physician before using or trying any home remedy or method.

Starving Artists....

I have several dear friends, who are wonderful artists. They are professionals and very very good. Check them out:

---------Do you love iron sculptures, garden art, or hand sculpted ceramics?------

Tim and Vicki Tanner's creations: I am helping Vicki learn how easy it is to start her own blog the 2nd week of Aug. Until then e-mail me at http://www.bettyframesucess4u.com/ to find out more about their work.

Vicki' polar bears are beautiful , the bear in the photo above ,was graciously donated by Vicki, to be used in a fund raiser, for a little girls surgery that I was helping with,

I did finally get one of her bears for my very own, I love it.

Tim's 7' iron stallion is incredible. Wow I wanted that one myself...

Both Tim and Vicki paint, teach and are such warm big hearted folks. Their work will warm you heart too.

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Incredible painters

Bob and Virgia West: I am currently going to a class with the West's and find them excellent instructors, they have unique teaching skills and can help you pull out what you have "inside" and put it on your canvas.. visit them at http://www.rainbowartsonline.com/ check out their incredible paintings.

Verdie Blackney: A fellow student in Bob and Virgia's class...wow every time I see her next painting I am blown away at her abilities...go Verdie: http://www.kcarts.net/

Joyce and Patty, I would love to include these two long time art friends and classmates, but they don't have a site or blog "yet" I will keep working on them...

Jeanne Warren: Where can I begin... Jeanne was first my instructor when I wanted to learn how to paint hair on animals that looked real., Jeanne sells originals, prints, and cards that have prints of her paintings, I have many prints and have used many of her cards in my coaching business...

WOW, this award winning artist not only generously shared much of her skills and techniques, she has become my dear friend who shares her heart as well, I love you Jeanne, I am waiting for you to become so famous, I can say I knew you way back when.... http://www.jwarrenart.com/

Under starving artists on the side bar I will be adding links to other fellow artists that I know and support or those whom I just admire their work.

As I personally use an or enjoy products or crafts, I will also add links to obtain these for yourself. A recent product , I just purchased and found I love ,is a hand cream made out of goat milk, I don't know these people. The cream I bought is a wonderful pineapple scented hand cream they had in their booth at a Saturday mkt. It is fantastic, and smells divine. It is the best hand cream I've ever used..AND it is made out of , what else but ,(no kidding, :-) )goat milk...

Here at farm funnys, we (I do at least) love goats .I am on the lookout for a few to replace Vera Ellen, (wow ,could she pirouette )and Frosty. Both of these gals lived good long lives and are now resting in peace. I just got a "lead" on a couple of Boer "gals" from a fellow horse lover...a young gal I taught some basic horse training skills and foal imprinting to , a few years ago, prior to the advent of her foal Bree. This young gal has don an amazing job, and is now riding Bree...Go Amanda...thanks for the goat info, as you well know, I need all the help I can get to keep the brush at bay. ( while hubby's John Deer tractor, lounges in the shade)

Have a great day, now everyone reading this go hug a kid, both 4 and 2 footed....

Horton and Maisy, how they got their names

A Turkey is faithful 100 %

If you are a regular at my blog you have probably already"met" Horton in a previous post

you just didn't know his REAL name...

Drum roll please.....Will the real Horton please stand up?

Yes, Horton was inadvertently dubbed one of the Smothers brothers, however , here at farm funnies, names sometimes "need" a bit of shifting.

Occasionally a name doesn't "fit" . Sometimes as a critter "settles" in to life here, or matures into something "else", a name needs "correcting" .

As experienced as I am ,at who "is" what, I occasionally make a mistake . Black Jewel ,a sweet little black girl kitten, was "discovered" by the vet, to be a handsome fella...ok by me, since the critter "fee" for altering is about half the cost of spaying. Jewel is still just as sweet, and I'm sure the mice never even noticed the difference.

Back to Horton, this is the rescued turkey with a broken wing, ( Horton has healed very well, by the way, Doc Betty take a bough... aww shucks, just in a day's work )

As you may remember, in a previous "turkey" post Horton was faithfully sitting on eggs. Itty Bitty call duck eggs, by the way. Farm Funny's Hubby, coming in after a farm " walk about" said , hey I have a name for that stupid turkey...Horton. You know the one..Horton the elephant , a kids story about an elephant who is faithful 100%, enduring many trials, who eventually hatches an egg, which had been abandoned by flibbity jibbit mother Maisey.

By the way, Horton, faithful turkey that he is, inspired Little Black . She was a lonely little banty hen. I placed her in my "rescue" pen, after she had suffered much abuse from some old biddies one day and was badly injured ( why do chickens have such a morbid pecking order I wonder? She recovered very nicely too. Horton literally took little black under his wing, to learn the "ropes" to egg sitting 101..

Every one is content, UNTIL:...

RING, RING, RING...Betty....would ....you consider,....rescuing a pair of abandoned birds?

My pottery teacher's and good friends Tim and Vicki had neighbors who lost their home due to foreclosure . They just left these poor things to fend for themselves.

Into the car goes my handy dandy bird netting, and off I go... vrooom

The hen was already caught, we hunted and hunted for her fella, with out much luck He is a big bird and we saw him when we first arrived, where could such a big bird hide so well? The hen had an egg in the pen with her, which she was neglecting. (in all fairness, birds generally don't do much with their eggs ,until they have a clutch... unless the bird is a canary, they often start setting on their first egg, not a good plan...( as #1 hatches earlier, guess who grows the fastest, has a bigger mouth, and gets the biggest share of specially "prepared" mom and pop " chow, thus baby "brother" may not get enough nourishment , and rapidly wastes away. While this is very sad in and of itself, at $100+ a pop for singers, one especially doesn't want this to happen . Not that I've had any for sale , recently and this year is a "replacement" singers year, for farm funnies.

On to Maisey, what is she, and how did she get her name?

Maisey is evidently a WOW hot momma, peafowl. I am assuming that is true, because 100% faithful Horton, kind of "flew the coop". With out so much as a by your leave, he left Little Black, high and dry with those duck eggs.

It seemed fitting to call the new arrival Maisey , since she was batting her eyes at Horton, and apparently could care less where her egg was. A day later she had decided Horton was a REAL turkey!

Maisey has since left two more eggs in a little hallowed out hovel. I guess I need to do some research and brush up on peafowl 101., I need to especially know what I'm writing about for them. You may have already imagined, I had never dreamed of getting peafowl, but when life brings you a lemonade, why enjoy it !

I guess you could say , this past week the "home" health care "provider (me)...well ,I do feed, water, care for, patch up AND clean up after them.." fowled the poultry up but good.

In the dark of night the duck eggs were transferred to another black banty hen, who just so happened to have "mysteriously" received some RI red and Araucana eggs a week or so earlier, while she was the setting mode. Then just as "mysteriously" Little Black, eggs enlarged in size.

I remembered reading somewhere , that some birds remain fertile for a while after their mate is gone. I guess I'll tuck in a prayer for Little Black to not become bored with the extension to her incubation period , to see if this info hold true for peafowl. Little Black was about due to hatch the duck eggs, this transformation with the "mystery" eggs adds 15 to 21 days, to her brooding. So I am guessing 40 some days on her little nest "ark" w/o rain, running around ,scratching in the dirt, looking for bugs, or just fun in the sun. When the peafowl male is finally captured, perhaps Noah would be a fitting name .

Ok Horton, faithfull

Zucchni dreams?

( scroll for zucchni relish recipie)

Do zucchni's dream? I don't THINK so... trust me.

In the middle of the night, they are busy doing what zucchini's do best...GROWING...



I have proof, if you sneak up on them, in the dark, and are very ,very quiet, you can catch them at it.



Now what do we do about all this stealthy zucchini growth?
One can find countless stories about what others do with zucchini.
We've all heard the ...leave it on the neighbors door step, ring the bell and run like crazy.


Well ,here at crazy critters we have some excellent ideas, and much more practical, hey I can run a bit now, but i don't run like crazy anymore! I go for purpose and passion.


Tonight I sliced some small chunks into some lean browned hamburger, I added a can of green beans plus the liquid. I added a package of beef stew from our 5&1 "cupboard" for flavoring and healthy nutrition. Yum... (would you like to learn more about how to add nutrition for quick and easy meals? e-mail me betty@bettyframesuccess4u.com and request some recipes, I am happy to share more ideas)


Here is a great hand me down zucchini relish recipe . This recipe was written by my baby sister, and pasted into my notebook of family favorites. Kid sis was still at home ,when I was in the fray of a young mom putting by stuff for winter, hugs kiddo and thanks mom for sharing this.!

Grind 10 cups of chopped zucchini. 4 cups of chopped onions, 1 red (or green) bell pepper.

Add 2 TBSP of salt. Let this set overnight. Drain in a colander and rinse salt brine off.

Blend in 4 1/2 cups of sugar, 1 tsp of celery seed, 1 tsp of turmeric powder, 1 tsp of black pepper, 2 1/2 cups of apple cider vinegar. Bring this to a boil. Pour into canning jars. Adjust lids and process in a boiling water bath, for 5 minutes...( it has been some time since I've made this, and I would check with foodday or your local home extension for any revised processing times .

yield is approximately 6 pints.



Still have zucchini?

OK now for a real practical solution, after the zucchini bread is baked and frozen ( I'll try to find that recipe, it is one of my favorites) your jars are full. You've fried it ,stuffed it , baked it and put it in a yummy stew...

Try an timeless and innovative "machine"



Viola' , while these are a "remake" of some forgotten era, never-the-less ,this is a wonderful top of the line zucchini processor/compactor (of course you may need a few additional attachments , such as a way to house this zucchini compactor :-)


This model is called henretta, what else? Please notice this model, she has ruffles, cute isn't she ?

Please note the added feature, no extra charge. This model is awake at night.

Trust me this is a very important "feature"...

This 2007 model is quite advanced in design and is very affordable, and she even provides
a wonderful packaged source of protein to have for breakfast.

Can't wait? Ready to sign on the dotted line? O k get ready.....


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Man, what a manwich...Man eats dog - food

Chang, ah, a dogs life !

Farm funny's hubby tell this story about a little nasty tempered Pekingese dog that belonged to his Aunt Martha.

Aunt Martha, treasured this little dog, (no one else did) and kept his unused special dog food in the refrigerator after she opened it.

One time the label was missing , just waiting in the fridge for some unsuspecting person.

Yes ,you guessed it, Uncle John had his tooth set for a nice deviled ham sandwich. Yum

When Aunt Martha came home , later that day. Uncle John, who had really enjoyed his sandwich, asked her what was the brand of deviled meat she had bought.

What meat,

The meat in the fridge,

There wasn't any meat in the fridge,

Yes, there was, there was an opened can down on the shelf.

NO... you didn't

I didn't what?

You ate Chang's dog food.

Lots of gagging and frothing at the mouth ensued,

Never fear, little Chang still got his dinner...

Uncle John, well I doubt he ever recovered..

Horses, horses, horses, I love horses

I have loved horses for as long as I can remember,


Here is a fantastic video of some fantastic horses and their amazing human

come join me in watching Lorenzo, the flying frenchman. Then why not look in my archives where I have a post about foood for pegasus .

Video Lorenzo : the Flying French Man... - obatala, dvd, cheval, lorenzo, eque

Fireworks for the 4th

Look, is it a bird ? is it a plane? Is it super firewoman running ?

No , No, No and...

No, it's not a fire in the grass,
No, it's not phantom firework
No it's a fire praying mantis bug

Just what is it?



Here on the farm, we often have power outages.

Our motto, when there is a pending storm, be prepared.

High on the list, fill the tub with water.
Make sure the dishes are washed,
The clothes are all washed, the vacuuming done.
The stock tanks filled.
A canner of water filled, for cleaning of any cooking utensils.
Paper plates, towels, candles,lanterns ,kerosene,and propane ready.
Flashlights located and spare batteries on hand.
A pellet stove, while nice for hubby who really has put in his fair share of time chopping and stacking wood, simply doesn't "cut" it for power outage. Try Nil. Try 2 weeks w/o a heat source, in the middle of a frozen storm, with down power lines across your way "out" . Brr, my bones still shiver to remember that winter. Besides did you know you can complete the bulk of a Thanksgiving dinner, with all the trimmings with the help of a wood stove? So romantic, well at least to one half of our farm team ( three guesses who !)

The 4th is almost here, I love the 4th of July, I am so thankful for the men and women who fought and still continue to fight for our freedoms. Thank you. I thought I'd post this photo in honor of all of those who work and sacrifice to give us light, life and liberty. This is a photo of the power repair guys , taking down wires in the middle of the night after another tree decided to put us in the dark. I found the photo fascinating, it looked like the whole process was electrifying, in reality, none of that showed in real life.

What are your plans for the 4th?

Today I purchased the "grub" and supplies for our 4th of July celebration . There will be some family members camping out , so a late supper, breakfast,lunch supper 4th of July smores, and breakfast again. A stack of flapjacks anyone, or as my Grandpa would say lets have some dough gods and gaskets. (heavenly biscuits and pancakes)?
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"program, legal pancakes"

If you are one of my clients, try the recipe for the pancakes on the box of apple cinnamon oatmeal.

I was able to imagine pancakes with this recipie while I was losing my weight and I know you can too. TADA , it will only be a short while ,then you won't have to imagine those skinny clothes anymore. Cause you will be wearing them ! Yay.

I will be wearing my usual ear protective head set let the party begin !

Tribute to John Tesh, and Alive dancers

Time out from chasing the Nene's who thought they would give me a run for their "money"
whew!

Time for a cool refreshing berry flavored water, a new "treat".

Time to kick back and watch a fun video.

I love to listen to John Tesh, I love John Tesh's radio program, with all the helpful tips, and hints, plus I enjoy the music he selects for his program.

I love to watch his shows, and of course I have some John Tesh CD's and videos (well ,that was before DVD's became popular )

Here is a link , why not stop what you are doing and watch it with me ?

Enjoy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-rIMMhjfUg