Wednesday, May 11, 2011

TIGHTENING UP

First... let me say I do shop locally...small town hardware stores...mom and pop businesses...farmer's market... feed store...but with the cost of items skyrocketing... I do admit...yes I do...I shop Walmart...As most of you realize with illness comes the high cost of medical expenses...Winslow Homer as most of you know was diagnosed six months ago with diabetes...our first purchase of insulin $52.00 dollars...second bottle two months later increased to $62.00...on a whim my husband stopped by the Walmart Pharmacy and inquired as to their cost...$27.00! I confess I am a Walmart consumer...I hold my head high......Yes...today while at Walmart I happened to walk by the garden center...and the most wonderful fragrance was floating through the air...I recognized this lovely scent as Stock....a garden plant favorite and one that can be hard to find...if you have never made a place in your flower bed for this lovely fragrant flower I would suggest you do...and of course Sweet William too...and again the price was right... My new purchases will not be planted in the garden as of yet... as we here at Dog Trot Farm are still having a wood fire at night...just enough warmth to take the chill off...

The "peeps" Loretta is growing...forging ahead into that awkward adolescent phase...her feathers are filling in and her feet...I have never seen so many feathers on a girl's toes...

the nursery is always in motion... grand attempts at lift offs...and chest bumps...I must admit the chest bumps have me worried... in the past I had never noticed this type of behavior...ROOSTER...is this ROOSTER behavior? anyone...suggestions...? Introducing... Buttercup...a porcelain feather footed Cochin Bantam...a sweet little girl who likes to be held...and quietly endures a bath when needed...


Loretta...Buttercup...and Annabelle...a yellow Japanese Bantam...

and there you have it...I have publicly admitted I am a proud Walmart shopper...I clip coupons...and carry my reusable bags...in this economy it pays to find a bargain...goodnight from all of us here at Dog Trot Farm...sweet dreams...

25 comments:

Ginny said...

I hear you. Right now in PA milk a gallon of milk is the same price as gas, LOL. Cutting back on driving, etc. gotta stay the course if we are ging to get thru this.

Samantha said...

I'm right there with you. I shop locally owned as much as I can, but we also shop Walmart. Money (and vehicle wear and tear) matters!

The chicks are in that adorably awkward stage..loving the photos :)

A New England Life said...

A girls gotta do what a girls gotta do. Though I have to say I often feel bad for not shopping local often enough. Lately I just can't afford it : (

Stock? At Walmart? Holy cow I hope my local store has it too! I want to use it for window boxes!

The new little ladies are to sweet.

*Yay for reusable bags!!!

Sassafras and Winterberry said...

Who can resist fragrant stock? It's the best! Your baby girls are doing so well...again, I live vicariously! I'm right there with you on the dog meds. Gus is on 3 different pills currently and they are working. The vet wants to put him on one more and change out his food. I'm waiting until Friday to actually purchase these new things, when I get paid! But the little fur babies are so worth it, aren't they!
I can't wait to see the flowers in your garden!
Courtney

Rugs and Pugs said...

I was never a Walmart shopper ~ until they built one 5 minutes from my house. I confess I stop there on a regular basis. Here in northern Ohio, most of the mom & pops are long gone. There's not even a small hardware store. Sad actually but they just can't compete.
The chickies are growing so fast.
Hugs :)
Lauren

Farm Girl said...

I love stock!!! It gets to hot here and I have put some in before but it lasts such a short time. Your chicks look so good, Oh I hope you have all girls, but maybe you might try some boys names. :)I am keeping my fingers crossed for girls though.

Cathy G. said...

Cute pics of the chicks! They must be so soft to hold at that stage!
It's truly sad that Walmart has the monopoly on prices. That is a big price difference for the insulin! I will be checking them tomorrow for their insulin price here too as I just paid 60.00 for Smokey's and 30.00 for the syringes. Thanks for the heads up!
Hopefully you can get those lovely flowers planted soon!
Cathy G

Vickie said...

Me, too - most of my $$ goes to Walmart. I try to frequent the few Mom/Pop's left, too. But it's hard when you can get the same thing for alot less at WM. Sad...

Your chickees are growing fast. Chest bumping huh? Well, I guess you'll find out pretty soon! Take care!

The Barn Door said...

Am a Walmart shopper too! Those peeps are so darn cute! Growing fast too.

Ocean Breezes and Country Sneezes said...

They way I look at Wal-Mart is that it's a genuine American company! With the economy as it is you'd be foolish to throw good money away! We shop there also!

Love all the little peeps! Looking forward to seeing more photos of them!

Janet-Olde Crow Primitives said...

I was never a fan of Wal*Mart, but since DH and I lost our jobs due to our factory closing two years ago, I have had to make some drastic changes.
I have been shopping at Wal*Mart also, as the prices are better and also I have found Costco is much cheaper for prescription drugs than the typical pharmacies. We put in a huge vegetable garden too, and I am baking all of our bread. A gallon of milk here in Canada is over $5.00 a gallon, and so is our gas. Who knows what will happen in the future with the high fuel prices.
Have a great day!
Janet

From Beyond My Kitchen Window said...

I too I'm a Walmart shopper. When my kids started college I got all their desk supplies there. I have also started buying some of my Ball jars for this summer canning. Of course you know what I think about your darling chickens. Just adorable!!!!

Julia said...

Times are tough and I can't blame you for shopping at Wal Mart. I only shop there when I can't find something elsewhere. We belong to a Direct Charge Co-op and it's very big so their prices are way below the large chain store and they have specials all the time so I count myself lucky.

I hope that poor Winslow doesn't have to be accountable for where his medicine comes from, poor little thing. You are doing such a great job with him. I admire you. JB

Lisa said...

I shop at Wal-Mart and am ok with that!
I have picked up many of our organic seeds there for 1/2 or 1/3 of the cost of our local seed store. Also, I recently discovered that our Wal-Mart has a very small farm & livestock section which carries my preferred brand of fly spray for my horse. It is HALF the cost of what I have paid for it at the local horse supply! When our IW, Mr. Big, was very sick a few years ago, we got his prescriptions filled there. He had huge bottle of antibiotics that was a "whopping" $12! I know Wal-Mart is not everyone's favorite, but when you have a lot of mouths to feed, it makes $ense to spend less if you can! I patronize at local stores as well- but often, I just have to go where the best deals are located!

Pondside said...

We all do what we can, in this difficult economy, to stay afloat - and that price difference is ridiculous. I'd be at WalMart too.
We are too cold and damp here to plant anything other than shrubs - I am SO anxious for some warm weather.

DayPhoto said...

Hummm---chest bumps! Running up to each other and doing a hop and fly at each other....you could have boys...you really could. Keep us informed!

Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com

Rowan said...

The babies in your nursery are delightful:) As for Winslow Homer's insulin I'm not surprised that you nshop at Walmart for it, there's a big difference between $27 and $62, if you are buying it every two months - $210 dollars a year will buy quite a lot of groceries!

Peacemom said...

Hello Julie!

UH OH, chest bumps! All I can say is...you know my Rose is a Rooster (heretofor named Pete Rose)...and he and the dominant girl, Betty (at least we're hoping she's a girl, no crowing yet!) did this ALL the time. That goes on to the rangy teenage boy behavior of hoping up on the girl's backs. As I understand it, one boy in the pack is good for the girls, keeps them together and he adds protection...or everyone in the know is just trying to make me feel better about having a BOY in my coop! Keep us posted, Pete Rose started trying to crow at 7 weeks...~Vonnie, NH

missthesea said...

Hey, I love Walmart too!
Poor Loretta.. those teenage years are pretty terrible. ;)

My Farmhouse Kitchen said...

what a sweet post...and yep...me too...i cruise those WalMart isles.... that's great about winslows medicine...he seems to be doing good, huh?

LOVE that blue bucket with the stock and sweet william...and LOVE your new chickens...

what a joy to see all of this today...and a woodfire too...well...we were in the 90's a week ago...and rain for tonight...might be having a woodfire myself...

sending best wishes to you, julie and winslow...always HAPPY to see you at Farmhouse Kitchen...

kary and teddy
xxx

Anonymous said...

the little peeps are growing so fast.your new plants will look so bretty in new gardens.

Rowan said...

My comment must have been among thjose that disappeared I think. I don't blame you for going to Walmart for Winslow Homer's insulin, there's a saving of $210 a year which will buy quite a lot of groceries!

Patty Patterson said...

I shop Walmart, too! I've actually been purchasing more and more from Walmart and Sam's lately because I've come to realize that I save on gas by doing one-stop shopping and they're side by side so I can just park in the middle. I rarely go to the mall any more, but I really doubt the small amount of things that I purchase make much of a difference. However, if everyone is doing the same thing, other stores may run into trouble.

And the flowers are really pretty! I plan to do some gardening and landscaping soon, too.

Anonymous said...

When I worked for a vet it was not uncommon for us to prescribe meds to a local pharmacy. If it was a longterm thing and the pharmacy could fill it more inexpensively we wanted what was best for the animals and their people. If it was a one time dose of antibiotics or dewormer of course we would prefer to fill it. Naturally there is a mark up and a service fee so the vet makes money doing it. Keeping the customer happy and coming back is better for the bottom line.
I hope you get the proper doseage worked out quickly.
Give W.H. a hug and belly rub from me.

I used to like Walmart better in the old days but will shop there if something is a deal.

Debi said...

You really make me chuckle. We could be good neighbors. I live in small town USA and with gas prices, the closest is Wal-Mart, without driving all the way into big city. Wal-Mart KNOWS where to put their stores; they are a real money making businss. They are the largest employer in our state; go figure!! I try desparately not to cave into them,but sometimes you just have to ~ Debi