[Sunstone]

Have you tried putting a couple other thermometers and hygrometers in the incubator to check? Sometimes the built-in meters don’t work very well and you could be running it too hot or too cold or too dry.

Also, how old are the eggs your’e putting in? Past a week the fertility really drops off. I would probably not let them get more than 3-4 days old before starting them honestly, because the hatch rate is so much worse if the eggs aren’t really fresh.

Final suggestion, have you cracked open the eggs that dont’ hatch? You can tell a lot from those. I’ve used this reference (https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/egg-failure-to-hatch-diagnosing-incubation-problems.67011/) as a guide in the past. If you notice a pattern you may be able to isolate your problem. If I do everything right I can get a 80-90% hatch rate, so you can definitely get it up.

I’ve never heard of taking away oyster shells before collecting eggs for hatching – I’m no expert but I can’t imagine that’s the cause of the problem.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 2 months ago by  Sunstone.

[Sunstone]

NH is not the bastion of freedom it once seemed to promise to be. I don’t know what happened up there but I think the libertarian movement got watered down or the liberal statists made a supreme effort to take back control. It’s still a bastion of *relative* freedom to people in nearby New England states (speaking as a former resident of one). But you can definitely do better, especially if you want a longer growing season.

As a transplant to western NC (in the foothills), I have to say there’s a lot more of a homesteading movement here. Been here only 6 months and have found a lot of freedom-minded people, farmers, homeschoolers, and generally more open-minded people and less controlling government. Depends on what specifically you’re looking for of course, but your background and reasons for moving sound a lot like mine, so it might be worth looking into.

I would also recommend this book, Strategic Relocation (https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/1735015407/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1). It’s got a guide to every state in the US and tells you about climate, environmental issues like air and water quality, government regulations, crime, population statistics, as well as detailed maps showing various hazards that a prepper/homesteader might want to avoid. We really tried to be thorough when planning our move and looked at every region, ruling most out based on climate, and then zeroed in on regulations and restrictions and a few other qualifiers to figure out the best place for us. It really depends on what’s important to you, so you need to have as much information as possible to make a good decision.

[Sunstone]

I used to play some violin. Probably still could a bit, but never have the time anymore since having kids.

Can mess around a bit on the piano but nothing good enough to actually perform. Never had lessons on it, but with enough time I can work out simple melodies.

If I had a lifetime to spare, I’d probably try to master violin, piano, guitar, possibly cello…Eh, maybe when the kids have all moved out.

I’d love to play the sax as well but I don’t think I could ever get used to a lung-powered instrument, let alone a reed.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 2 months ago by  Sunstone.

[Sunstone]

Most simple is baking soda solution for shampoo, ACV solution for conditioner. You can also add essential oils for fragrance. Very small amount of tea tree oil added to the “shampoo” is especially good as I think it helps clean or exfoliate or something.

But to be honest, the effort of mixing it is too time-consuming for me lately, so I’ve just been using goat milk bar soap from a small local business. If you can find a small batch soap maker, just check the ingredients and make sure you can identify every ingredient, and avoid any fragrances that don’t come from essential oils as anything labeled “fragrance” or “parfum” is likely toxic. If it’s a good locally made bar soap, there’s unlikely to be anything in there (other than the fragrance) that’s not safe to have in your greywater, even if you’re pouring it on your garden.

[Sunstone]

Depopulation agenda? New World Order? Build Back Better? WEF globalist one-world-government? CCP infiltration? Election fraud? (Potato, potahdo).

Everyone knows the difference between conspiracy theory and fact, right?

…about 3-6 months, and shrinking.

[Sunstone]

Ah yeah I can see how that might be less time consuming… a lot more expensive, though, unless you’re processing your own. I actually used to be vegetarian for a long time. Finally started eating meat a couple years ago, maybe in part because I got suspicious when legacy media started pushing veganism and bug-eating, and billionaires started buying up all the farmland. So naturally now that I want to eat steak and salmon, the prices have skyrocketed and I have to curb my appetite anyway to save money. I guess that’s what I get for being a contrarian.

[Sunstone]

That’s some high quality survival food. We have a lot of canned beans and dried grains that we’ve built up over many years and cycle through so that nothing gets too old. Nothing fancy but at least it’s organic so we won’t be stuck eating GMOs. And short of nuclear winter or other environmental catastrophe, we should be able to grow fresh produce and hopefully get some from neighboring farms as well. But I’ll still have to prepare them…not a lot of pre-made meals in storage.

[Sunstone]

That sounds like a good policy. I’ve known far too many people who are so used to their parents doing everything for them that they can’t even pay rent, shop for groceries, or clean up after themsevles (because they still live at home and their parents continue to enable their laziness). It’s my eventual goal to have my kids doing more cleaning up after themselves, but right now I only have one that can reach the sink…I should probably make him start getting his own dishes into the dishwasher instead of just taking them to the counter. They do help me a bit with the laundry, mainly sorting and pushing the buttons, and I’m trying to train them to put their clothes in the laundry room instead of all over the floor.

I think I just spend so much time redirecting them and yelling at them to stop doing this or that, I just don’t want anything new to yell at them about. So I pick my battles and hope I’ll be able to add to their chore list later. I don’t know maybe I should be setting higher standard to begin with. But I also don’t want our house to feel like boot camp where they’re constantly being corrected and reminded.

[Sunstone]

Yup. But the covid injections may be a close contender…the final scores for each remain to be seen.

[Sunstone]

Yum!

I recently looked into freeze driers…then saw the price tag and sadly looked away again. I’ll put it on the list below a pressure canner, a plucker, a cow, and farmland…

[Sunstone]

Oh, if we’re including singing, I’ll put that as my number 1! Voice is the best instrument as it’s free and no one can break it or steal it from you. And no matter how bad it sounds to other people it always sounds ok in your own head =D

Irish songs are great! Might be my ancestry but I have a major weakness for Irish and Scottish folk music.

[Sunstone]

That makes me feel a little better lol. I also try to wash dishes as I go but often I’ve got 2 or 3 different dishes going at once so usually if one thing goes into the oven, I switch over to chopping vegetables or adding spices or whatever else. So there’s usually a pretty big pile of dishes by the end of the night, especially once you add the ones everyone’s eating off of.

But I know people who manage with way more kids than me. I have a friend who has 6 kids, one a newborn, and her husband works 2 hours away and so she’s home taking care of them all day with no help. And I’m always thinking, how does she ever manage to get out of the house? How is it she can handle 6 by herself and I can’t seem to keep up with only 3, and my husband working from home and available in emergencies? I just feel like there’s got to be some trick I’m missing or skill I have yet to develop.

[Sunstone]

Prep work is included. Doing it ahead of time wouldn’t really make much difference since it’s still the same amount of time, just possibly earlier in the day. But as it is I’m pretty busy homeschooling during the day so I can’t get much else done until evening.

When you say carnivore, do you mean strict carnivore, as in nothing but animal products? We eat meat for dinner roughly 2 days out of every 3. There’s not much difference in time though because I try to have veggies on the side regardless. So steaks are quick and easy, but then I have to make a salad or roast some veggies or something to go with it. Or I might make a single dish with veggies in it, but that’s still a lot of prep time. Occasionally I’ll do some pre-made sauerkraut or the previous night’s leftover salad as the side but I like to vary the veggies since every plant contains a different combination of nutrients.

I know there are faster options – I can heat up canned chili or make pasta and throw some canned veggies in it. But my first goal is our health – I want us to be eating fresh, unprocessed ingredients as often as possible.

Washing the dishes would definitely be easier if people helped, but that’s not likely any time soon. I’d like to recruit my oldest (6) to help but he’s often still finishing up his school work right up until bedtime, so I don’t want to interfere with that by adding extra chores at the moment.