Bluebirds 2016

This is my fourth spring blogging.  Every year I write about the bluebirds.  Until I moved to Princeton, I had only seen a bluebird a couple times in my life.  The first time I saw one up close was the first year we lived here in 2002.  We heard there were bluebirds around, but we never expected to see them.   A friend gave us our first bluebird house, and we put it up the next spring so we could see it from the kitchen window.  One day I was talking to my mom on the phone.  I used to talk to her every single day and sometimes twice.  That was the hardest adjustment I had to make after her death in 2012.  As we were talking I saw a bluebird check out the house.  I held my breath because I couldn't believe what I was seeing.  Those bluebirds stayed and raised a couple of broods.  I was hooked.  Every year since I watch carefully for them to show up in the spring.  It is usually in March sometime.  We even made another duplicate house and put them back to back.  We have had bluebirds in one side and tree swallows in the other.  It doesn't happen often but we leave it as is.

One of the first photos I took of a pair of bluebirds in Princeton Wisconsin.

We have had our ups and downs with the birds.  The weather and house wrens have been our greatest challenge.  Sometimes we lose eggs to the wrens.  I write about my disdain for them every year.  I won't go into that yet again, but if you search the blog for house wren, you will see what problems they cause.  A few years ago we had the bluebirds arrive, but we didn't have any young ones the entire summer.  I have learned a lot to improve the success rate.

Here are some photos from this year.  For the first time ever, the birds have switched houses.  They are living in the tree swallow house.  For some reason, they got there first and the tree swallows aren't fighting back.  The bluebirds are very fussy about the size of their house and especially the size of the opening.  They like it  1 1/2 inches and no larger.  Last winter either the squirrels or woodpeckers made the hole slightly bigger.  That may have been enough to send the bluebirds elsewhere.  Fortunately we had another house that met their specifications only 15 feet away.  This gray-blue house was also given to us by a conservation club.

Damaged birdhouse opening.

This year the bluebirds showed up right on schedule.  I can usually hear them before I can see them.  At that point, I put a few dried mealworms in a a small dish near the birdhouses.  Once they get a taste of them, they usually stay.  It is probably bribery, but it works.

This is the flat blue tray I use for the mealworms.

 
Another pair have been trying to become neighbors with our nesting pair, but the male doesn't want any part of it.  I think that is why he tries to scare off his own reflection.  He thinks that the bird he sees in the window is his competition.  If it is bright out, he wakes me up about 5:00am with his tapping on the windows of our house.  He moves around to the garage windows and recently the RV sitting in the driveway.  At some point he will stop.  I don't know if it is when the young ones hatch or when he is comfortable with his surroundings.   All I know is that it happens every year and then he settles in.

This is probably another pair trying to move in, but they are always chased off.

I can see why he thinks there is another bird on the other side of the window.

University of Wisconsin Varsity Band Concert 2016

"ON WISCONSIN"

 Last night, April 16, 2016, we attended the University of Wisconsin Varsity Band Concert titled "We've Done It Our Way".  It was everything we expected and more.  I had seen the band in other smaller venues without the entire band of over 300 students and without all the fanfare.  For those who aren't familiar with this university band, it is amazing.  It is due to all the outstanding efforts by the students but the main reason for their success is the band director Mike Leckrone.  He has been the band director since 1969 and has continued to make being in the band an honored experience and something for every student involved to be proud of.  How these students can participate in over 150 performances throughout this school year and still attend class and succeed in school requires a lot of dedication and hard work.  It surprised me that 35% of the band members are engineering students and only 4% were music majors.

Mike Leckrone is not only a terrific band director and arranger, he is a true showman and performer.  This year he made his entrance with Bucky Badger in a boat sailing down from the ceiling on a wire and landing on the stage.

The show was almost three hours long and included songs from the Eagles in honor of Glen Frye,  Frank Sinatra who Did It His Way, a Richie Valens hit La Bamba, famous TV themes, songs from Les Miserables plus all the favorites Wisconsin fans know and love.  Another big entrance was made by Mike after intermission.  He flew in on a rocket made of cheese.  Wisconsin and cheese go together.

Then if that wasn't enough, this man who is 79 years old, came flying above the crowd on a wire.  He did somersaults and flips as the band played.  It was an amazing sight to see.

I imagine all universities have bands who play at sporting events and major celebrations but I think the University of Wisconsin Varsity Band is unique.  Thousands and thousands of people attend performances throughout the state every year.  It shows that practice makes perfect and they are as close to perfect as they can get.  It will be a sad day when Mike is no longer able to direct the band.  I think he will be a hard act to follow, but his legacy will continue into the next generation.

The Benefits of Bone Broth

When I started writing this blog a few years ago, I wrote more about recipes and homemade helpful tips.  Throughout the years we have been so overwhelmed with recipes online, I haven't posted as many of them.  The same is true with homemade products.  I still make my own laundry detergent, deodorant, kefir, sauerkraut and many other things, but all of these recipes or a variation of them are posted daily on facebook, pinterest and other social media.  I started making my own healthy products and living this way because of my situation with uterine cancer.  This is a woman's cancer that doesn't get the media attention the pink ribbon campaign gets, but it is just as devastating for the women involved.  As with breast cancer, there are different types.  Some require very little treatment and others require a lot.  I had a very aggressive type that required surgery, chemotherapy and radiation.  I was lucky and it was caught early.  This week it has been nine years since my last chemo treatment.  Doctors have told me that now I am not at any greater risk of cancer than anyone else my age.  Although that is a relief, once you've had cancer it is never far from your mind.  I try to do everything I can to improve my odds of a healthy life.  My husband taught me that there are no such words as always and never.  Instead I use often and seldom, so I admit I often slip and eat junk at times, but overall I try to eat healthy.  It is hard to do, but by making real food I know what is in my meals.  I try not to get carried away and go off the deep end with trends and off the wall ideas.  It has to make sense to me.

Recently I have seen a lot of information about the benefits of bone broth.  Bone broth is the broth that results from slowly cooking meat or poultry bones in water for an extended period of time.  The time depends on the bones.  Smaller chicken bones cook for 24 hours and dense beef bones as long as 48 hours.  This makes sense to me because ever since the discovery of fire and the cooking of meat, people have been cooking bones to get all of the nutrition from an animal and stretch their food supply.  History shows broth being made by the early civilizations.  This food is very easy to digest and is soothing to the gut.  Bone broth contains the vital amino acids of glycine and proline, as well as glucosamine and chondroitin sulphates. True bone broth is a rich source of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and potassium, in easily absorbed forms. It’s also an excellent source of collagen. The gelatin in the bones supports the bones, muscles and joints.

*Update:  I wrote this blog 4 months ago and have learned a few things.  I mentioned the broth is made from slow cooking the bones for a long time which works great, but I discovered using the electric pressure cooker works even better in a lot less time.  I put about 2 pounds of bones in the cooker with organic carrots, celery, onion, a few cloves of garlic, sea salt and 2 tablespoons of cider vinegar.  I set the timer on high pressure for 99 minutes (that is as high as my cooker goes).  I do this two more times for a total of 297 minutes or almost 5 hours.  It may not take this long for chicken bones but I have very large beef bones.  The result is awesome.  All of the collagen and goodness is leached out of the bones.  Although the slow cooked broth is filled with nutrients, the look of this chilled broth is noticeably different.  It looks like thick gel.  If you don't have 48 hours to devote to cooking bones, this method is great.

Chilled bone broth from the pressure cooker.

After the chilling, the fat is very easy to remove.

I recently got an email from https://www.aubonbrothbonebroth.com/  They listed the following reasons to drink bone broth.  I sent this to my daughter and told her how good this stuff was especially for leaky gut.  She almost gagged at the words "leaky gut" and "bone broth".  I guess the names don't sound appealing even if it's good for you.  I will have to replace these two terms with better words like stomach and broth.

It Enhances Your Immune System
Bone broth supplies amino acids and minerals that really augment your immune system. The collagen content helps to repair the  lining of your entire digestive system, which not only makes your entire body vastly more efficient, but also more able to handle any bacteria or viruses that may try to sneak their way in.

Anti Inflammatory
Key amino acids like Glycine, Proline and Arginine help to regulate inflammation and how your body responds to damaged tissue. Inflammation is a natural and beneficial reaction in most instances, but if your body isn't in perfect balance, inflammatory responses in the body can get out of hand quickly and cause more harm than good. These amino acids are crucial to keeping inflammation in check and healing damaged tissue to avoid inflammation in the first place.

Antioxidant
Speaking of these amino acids, Glycine has another fascinating benefit to our bodies. Glycine can actually 'clean' antioxidants. What this means is, once an antioxidant binds with a free radical, Glycine can restore the antioxidant to a pristine state so it can continue to pull other free radicals from your body. Thankfully, bone broth has large amounts of Glycine.

Rebuilds Your Body
Collagen is the main connective tissue that keeps your body together, quite literally. Every part of your body has collagen in it, and your body is 25-35% collagen. It only makes sense that adding more of this to your body makes it much easier for your body to rebuild itself. The gelatinous aspect of bone broth, what makes it congeal and jiggle, is the rich collagen in it. Consume this connective tissue to make it easier for your body to replace connective tissues wherever they are in your body (hint: they're in every part of you!).

Helps You Sleep
If you consume gelatin before bed, you will find that you sleep much more soundly and your rest is more rejuvenating. The gelatin and collagen being pulled from the bones goes right into you with each cup of bone broth, helping you to sleep better and therefore feel better each day. If you took the effort to get a good bed to sleep on, you should get a good source of gelatin, like bone broth, into your body before you sleep.

Cleanse and Detox
Bone broth helps to fortify your liver with its wonderful Glycine content. By bolstering the connective tissue and also recycling your body's antioxidants, it both strengthens your liver and also makes its job easier. The Glycine in bone broth also helps balance the amino acids in your body, which makes it far more efficient in its use of vitamins and minerals.

Specialty Minerals
We could all do to have more calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium in our bodies. These minerals work together in your body in bone and joint health, nerves and electrical impulses in the body, blood health and many more crucial functions. Bone broth can supply a healthy amount of all these minerals.

Proper Digestion
Not only is bone broth very easily digestible and hydrating, but it also gets rich collagen right to your digestive system, allowing it to repair easier than otherwise. By drinking bone broth, you help to improve and maintain digestive health. If your digestive system is fine tuned, your body absorbs nutrients easier and quarantines the rest of the body from harmful bacteria or particles that have not yet been broken down, dealt with and made safe for the rest of your body through the blood stream.

Fight Cold and Flu
From reducing inflammation to boosting your immune system, bone broth is a truly nourishing dish when trying to fight or prevent colds and flu. It eases symptoms, helps rest, thins mucous, and is a wonderfully healing food.

Don't think you can just go out and buy a box of chicken or beef broth.  Those products are not the same and don't have the same medicinal properties.  You can buy real bone broth online, but it is quite costly.

After reading all about it, I wanted to make some but I couldn't find a good source of organic bones.  I didn't want bones from an animal who was injected with all kinds of things to make it grow fast in unhealthy conditions. After all, I would be boiling these bones to leach out every speck of what was inside.  I didn't want some of that to include bad things.  That would defeat the purpose.  My grandpa Dux was way before his time.  He said that cancer means that cells reproduce themselves  and grow out of control.  He thought by adding hormones and raising an animal from a baby to the butcher shop in just a few months meant they were doing the same thing with the animal.  They were forcing the animal's cells to multiply quickly.  He did not want to eat those animals treated this way.  None of us would if we would think about it, but full disclosure about what we eat isn't always possible.

I finally settled on buying two whole organic chickens from Costco.  I roasted the two chickens and pulled off all the meat.  Then I put all the bones in the slow cooker with a couple tablespoons of apple cider vinegar.  I added filtered water, some sea salt, carrots, celery and onion.  This is like making carcass soup but you cook it on low for a full day.   After 24 or more hours, I strained the bones and vegetables out leaving only the broth.  The only problem I had was that it smelled really good cooking during the night and it disturbed my sleep.  I kept waking up smelling food cooking.

This was the best product I could find.  There is so much controversy.  I read recently that "No Antibiotics" means nothing to the consumer.  It said that all animals have to be off antibiotics for a period of time and that no antibiotics can be detected in the system before they go to market.  The article also mentioned that without antibiotics diseases would be spread.  I think the key is there should be no over use of antibiotics and there should be easy testing to find out if the laws are being followed.  Notice the label says No added Hormone...ever but it doesn't say No antibiotics..ever.  Vegetarian fed could mean a lot of things.  If the chickens are fed grains, hopefully they are GMO free to be considered organic, but I can't prove it.  At some point you just have to have blind trust.

This is my second batch of broth.  In my first batch I used unlabeled beef soup bones and it also turned out great. I have no idea where these bones came from or if they were organic but neither did the store employees. 

I have been drinking a cup of broth everyday and really look forward to it.  Even if the benefits are all hype, I like it.  If you want more information about the benefits, all you have to do is search the internet.  There is a ton of information. Here is one example:  http://traditionalcookingschool.com/2016/01/06/82-ways-to-heal-your-gut/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_campaign=fermenting-formulas&utm_medium=FBAd&utm_content=82ways2&imt=1

Storage Idea For Batteries

Today's blog is going to be short and sweet.  Recently I saw a great idea on Facebook.  It was a Good Housekeeping post with organizational tips.  They showed how to store batteries in a clear tacklebox.  I thought that would be an easy project, so we took a trip to the lumber store.  Actually we were going there anyway for some other things.  It so happened they had a plastic latching stowaway box in the perfect size.  It was also on sale for $5.83.  When we got home, we gathered all of our batteries.  Most of them were stored in a drawer in the original packaging.  Some had fallen out of the package and were laying loose in the drawer.

Since the compartments in the box are adjustable, they can be placed to fit each size battery.  When we were done, all the batteries were in one place.  It was amazing to me that all of our batteries fit in the box with a lot of room to spare.  Now when we are running low on a size, we can see it at a glance.

The post had all the batteries labeled, but I don't think that would be necessary.  It is pretty obvious which is which.

Latched and ready to put on a shelf.  No more digging for the right sized battery.

Spring and Summer Will Come Eventually

We know Spring will come eventually and stay, but right now it seems we are taking one step forward and two steps back.  Today is no exception.  It is cold and rainy.  I guess we should feel fortunate it is raining and not snowing as it is in the northern part of Wisconsin.  Some years it is this cold in May so I shouldn't complain, but I still want it somewhat warmer.  I would be happy with sunny days and temperatures in the 60's.  I don't think that is too much to ask.

We have a lot of work to do outside.  We need to clean out all the flower beds, pick up sticks and rake hundreds of pine cones.  With the strong winds we have had, there are even more sticks and pine cones to deal with.  Even the birds are patiently waiting to nest.  The male bluebirds arrived several weeks ago, but now the female is also here.  She is just sitting around and waiting.

I don't know where this pair spends the day, but every morning and evening they hang out near the birdhouses.  Once in a while another bird tries to check out the property, but the bluebirds quickly chase them away.

Our pond is fully flooded so the number of ducks we have seen is less than usual.  I think there is so much water in the area for them to swim and feed, they are spread out this year.

Maybe when the weather improves we will have more wildlife visitors, but for now we are only seeing the more common ducks, birds and animals.  

The blue winged teal.

We have a lot of geese.

Wood ducks are looking for nesting spots.  This is a female wood duck.

The yuckiness continued this past weekend.  A couple years ago we purchased an older model RV.  We had planned on taking my dad with us on adventures and thought it would be easier for him than staying in motel rooms.  He was excited to try camping.

We tried to rig up a comfortable sleeping space for him, but it never happened.  Now that he is gone, we thought we either need to sell the camper or use it.  We decided to give it a try.  If we don't like it, we will sell it and move on to other things.  Last weekend we decided to open up the camper and get it ready.  It will be warm sooner or later.  

Oh lordy.  We opened it up after winter storage and at first we were pleased to see no sign of mice.  We had heard horror stories of mice taking over campers during the winter.  My elation came to a halt when I saw the area over the cab was leaking.  Water was running down the window and soaking into the mattress of the over the cab sleeping area.  Now we have to figure out where the leak is coming from.  We got some help from friends.  It seems the leak is from some aging caulking on the roof.  The first step is to fix the damage.  The mattress got thrown away and the insulation and plywood removed.  They will have to be replaced later.

Right now we are running fans and making sure the area is perfectly dry.  My husband put some temporary caulk in place until the weather warms and a more permanent solution can be accomplished.  

Notice he is caulking with his winter coat and hat on.  BRRRR!

So here we are.  Old people taking on a new venture.  We know nothing about camping, but we are willing to learn.  It may be comical at times.  At least I won't be sleeping on the ground or walking a mile to the toilet.  Stay tuned for further adventures, if they aren't too embarrassing.

Our Aerocart Purchase Worked Out

Every now and then for the past two years, I would see my husband watching a certain infomercial.  I didn't say much about it.  He likes to watch infomercials and QVC.  He especially likes "In The Kitchen with David", for some reason.  I guess he likes kitchen gadgets.  I usually suggest we keep checking the thrift stores for some of the interesting items.  If there are a lot of them at a thrift store, it probably means it doesn't work as advertised.  Sometimes we find great things at a fraction of the original cost.  The particular item he was watching last week was an Aerocart.  It claims this cart is so much better than a regular wheelbarrow.  You can maneuver it with barely any effort, and it doesn't tip over or so they say.

I decided it was time to investigate this item.  I researched it and found some positive comments.  I found a business that sold them for $35 less than the infomercial, and it also had free shipping.  I researched the company slightly but couldn't find many reviews, but the few I found were positive.  After a lot of debating, we pulled the trigger and ordered the cart on March 26, 2016.  I was a little nervous because I had never heard of the company.  I used paypal because that is the only payment this company took.  To me it was another red flag, but I also knew paypal insures purchases.  Just for the heck of it, I decided to look to see where the item would be shipped from.  The hair on my arm raised when I read about the company.  This is what it said.

Camape Store online shopping website is a small business running as individual and home-based, we buying and selling most things that could help you to get interesting goods list with best ever price, plus free shipping. We always working to looking for cheapest goods resource and selling to you, help most people get things with maximum of discount. From time we launched our online store, we have received many question such as how safe to shopping with Camape Store ? And now we want to let's you know that we only received payment by Paypal, which give you 100% of protect and for sure, you totally get full refund of money when you don't get your order delivered. - See more at: https://camape.net/about-us#sthash.81GUAWni.dpuf

Camape Store online shopping website is a small business running as individual and home-based, we buying and selling most things that could help you to get interesting goods list with best ever price, plus free shipping. We always working to looking for cheapest goods resource and selling to you, help most people get things with maximum of discount.
From time we launched our online store, we have received many question such as how safe to shopping with Camape Store ? And now we want to let's you know that we only received payment by Paypal, which give you 100% of protect and for sure, you totally get full refund of money when you don't get your order delivered.

Oh boy, what did we do?  The broken English in this statement was another red flag and the paypal payment was being sent to someone with a name I couldn't pronounce.  I decided I was going to believe it would be fine and this small business was just trying to make a living.  I would wait and see.  If the item didn't arrive in a few weeks then I would go through the Paypal protection process.  I had no idea where this item was being shipped from.

Well lo and behold, two days after I placed the order, I received an email that the item was shipped.  I still didn't know if it was on a slow boat from far away, but it was encouraging.  Looking at the invoice more carefully, I discovered it was shipped from South Carolina.  I breathed a little easier.  Then on April 1st a big box containing the Aerocart appeared on my porch.  April Fools to me.  The item arrived in six days.

The box looks a little tattered, but the item inside was in perfect condition.  We still don't know where or how this company gets its products, but it worked out this time.  Hopefully this cart will do everything the infomercial says it will with little or no effort.  I can't imagine moving a refrigerator with it, but stranger things have happened.   

It will replace this old relic we have had for a long long time. 

Maybe the new Aerocart won't replace the old, heavy, tried and true wheelbarrow.  We have had it for a long time, and it has done a lot of hard work.  It is still covered with concrete and scratches from carrying heavy loads.  I should say the Aerocart will be a nice lightweight addition to the old one.

Camape Store online shopping website is a small business running as individual and home-based, we buying and selling most things that could help you to get interesting goods list with best ever price, plus free shipping. We always working to looking for cheapest goods resource and selling to you, help most people get things with maximum of discount. From time we launched our online store, we have received many question such as how safe to shopping with Camape Store ? And now we want to let's you know that we only received payment by Paypal, which give you 100% of protect and for sure, you totally get full refund of money when you don't get your order delivered. - See more at: https://camape.net/about-us#sthash.S02TdF8D.dpuf

Camape Store online shopping website is a small business running as individual and home-based, we buying and selling most things that could help you to get interesting goods list with best ever price, plus free shipping. We always working to looking for cheapest goods resource and selling to you, help most people get things with maximum of discount. From time we launched our online store, we have received many question such as how safe to shopping with Camape Store ? And now we want to let's you know that we only received payment by Paypal, which give you 100% of protect and for sure, you totally get full refund of money when you don't get your order delivered. - See more at: https://camape.net/about-us#sthash.S02TdF8D.dpuf

Ewan's 6th Birthday

Last night we got to celebrate our youngest grandson's 6th birthday.  He is so much fun and even if he is my grandson, he says the funniest things.  I hope his mom is writing all of his cute comments down.  Almost everyday they have conversations about subjects he is interested in.  Recently his family went to the Milwaukee Museum.  Learning all about Wisconsin history and walking the streets of Old Milwaukee, Ewan decided he wanted to be a Native American when he grew up.  Whatever he does, he is interested in it.  He went through the fireman stage, the cowboy stage, and the knight in shining armor stage.  Once in a while he revisits these characters, but right now he is all about being a spy.  He also likes being a scientist and loves the American Science and Surplus store in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 

We had never been to this place, so last week we took a drive to check it out.  Oh my gosh, what a fun place.  http://www.sciplus.com/  It has so many hard to find items that are scientific from beakers and bottles to educational items like mini motors and circuits.  We will be returning.  While there we found real cloth lab coats.  They even had children's sizes.  Perfect for our little scientist.  Knowing his other grandma was getting him spy gear which they also had at this store, we decided to buy the lab coat for Ewan.  We also found a EMS bag which we filled with medical equipment.  He can play doctor with it or a mad scientist.  With his great imagination I'm sure he will get a lot of use out of it.

Doctor Ewan at your service.

He got several other things.  He got his own shovel and bucket to dig worms.  Although with all the rain we have had recently, the worms are crawling across the sidewalks and driveways.  The robins and other birds are taking advantage of that situation.

Ewan with his own shovel and bucket.

He got a scooter.

Gifts galore for this special little guy.

We had a cake, but it isn't over yet.  He still has his sushi dinner to look forward to with his family.  Nana and Papa will bow out of this one.  As I have mentioned a few times, sushi is not on my list of edible foods.  Then he will be having a friends party this weekend.

Happy Birthday Ewan.  Always stay as sweet as you are.