Freedom Acres Farm

Corn Dogs More Healthy than Store Bought

2012-01-26T09:05:00.000-06:00

Yes, I'm a softy as a mother and I give in to their desire for Corn Dogs. However, the store bought ones give me the willies not knowing what's in them things! So I've sought to learn to make all those convenience foods at home instead. You know things like chicken nuggets and corn dogs.

Today it's corn dogs!

Corn Bread Mix
4 C flour
4 C yellow cornmeal (if you have a NutriMIll grind up some organic popcorn for this - works great)
2 C milk powder or buttermilk powder
2/3 C sugar
4 T baking powder
1 T salt
1 T baking soda

In a large bow combine all ingredients. Stir with a wire whisk until evenly distributed. Pour into a container with a tight fitting lid. I use a half gallon canning jar. Store in a cool, dry place. This has a shelf life of at least 10 - 12 weeks.

CORN DOGS

vegetable oil for frying
4 hot dogs (we always double the recipe and it comes out perfect for a package of 8 dogs)
1/4 C corn bread MIX from above
2 T flour
1/8 tsp dry mustard
pinch of paprika
1 egg slightly beaten
1 T water

Pour oil 2 - 3" deep and heat it in a heavy pan.
Dry hotdogs with a towel.
In a pie plate combine MIX, flour, dry mustard, and paprika.
Stir in egg and water until thoroughly combined. Batter will be stiff.
Roll hotdogs in batter, covering completely.
Use tongs to lower into hot oil. Turning once, fry until golden brown, 2 - 3 minutes.

6 years already!

2012-01-24T16:06:00.000-06:00

Wow, how time flies! Happy Birthday Nathaniel! We are so blessed to have you in our family. We love your quick answers, bright spirit, and how you never stop thinking!

24 Years Ago today....

2012-01-22T12:28:00.002-06:00

... I became a mother for the first time. Those years have flown by and today I can honestly say that my biggest regret in life so far is not having more children!

I am so proud of you and I love you with all my heart!! And to think that you'll be getting married this year and starting a family of you're own. I was older than you are when I had you so I hope you don't take too long to start giving me grand babies!! Love ya!

Happy Birthday Bud - we love you!!

New P.J.'s

2012-01-19T07:00:00.001-06:00

I had nothing to do yesterday (Bwahahahaha) so I quick whipped up these two pairs of pajamas. It's chilly in our house in the mornings but too hot at night for flannel so these interlock/t-shirt fabric jammies fit the bill just perfectly! I just grabbed some coordinating colors from my stash and they look like they were made to have matching cuffs and such!

I made them from scraps that I had made other things from already so the cost was.... $0 Gotta love that!!!!!!

I used the Kwik Sew Sewing For Children Book. I bought it YEARS ago (but it's still in print) when the big kids were little. This book has been invaluable to me!! I've sewed jackets, shorts, t-shirts, jammies, pants, skirts, and the list goes on........ SO worth the $24.95 I spent 20 years ago!! Good classic clothes for kids that never go out of style! AND they can always be changed up to look fashionable with trims, coordinating fabrics, etc...

Family in the Old Days

2012-01-18T09:35:00.003-06:00

Little Heathens by Mildred Armstrong Kalish

A dear friend mailed me this book for my birthday! I got through chapter 6 last night after receiving it in the mail yesterday and it was hard to put down! I'm going to try to refrain myself today and save it to savor each evening before bed to make it last longer. You might say, a "Charlotte Mason" approach!!

In the book, author Mildred Kalish describes in detail! her life and times of growing up during the great depression on her grandparents' Iowa farm. Her writing is easy to read, very entertaining - I had a hard time not laughing and hubby was asleep next to me in the bed LOL, gives lots of details but in an easy to read story!

This quote touched me last evening! From chapter 4 entitled "Thanksgiving" where she describes family get togethers back in the days of her childhood, the days of the Great Depression.

"These people genuinely liked each other. Whenever they were together there was an atmosphere of merriment and good cheer, with lots of joking, poking fun, and camaraderie. I loved the kitchen at these times. Tongues worked as fast as hands. Talk flitted amiably from one subject to another and none of it ever seemed too trivial. Anything you ad to report was considered interesting. Gossip, some of it whipered or delivered sotto voce, was eagerly dispensed. Do you know how frustrating it is to have some juicy tidbit and no one to tell it to? Now was the time to unload everything you knew. And so the chatter went:"

I do not quote this in praise of gossip or to give credence to it in any way. I was touched by this section in regard to the fact that these people liked each other and enjoyed getting together! They had fun and camaraderie - they never dreaded having the family over. My mind goes back to a simpler (albeit not easy) time where people enjoyed fellowship with each other and used these occurrences to relax and enjoy. Now-a-days all you ever hear about is the stress that getting together as a family brings. My heart breaks at what our society has become.

When the economy really tanks again and we have another "great" depression, when the world revolts against Americans because we've lost respect from the world, when (notice I don't say "if") hard times hit with gale force winds - it makes me wonder what it will look like. How will people band together to survive with others that they don't really like?

My grandmother and grandfather took all 7 of her brothers and sisters into their home during the great depression. It's what you did, you banded together to help anyone and everyone survive. I can't wrap my brain around what it will look like with families spread across the nation now and many of them estranged to each other besides.

Give a hug, call someone today,..... after all relationships is what life is all about!

Cream Cheese marks another thing off my shopping list!

2012-01-17T14:21:00.001-06:00

Slowly but surely I'm perfecting (for my family at least) each dairy product that we use. So I thought I'd share how easy it is once you quit being afraid of that big stock pot full of milk.

Cream cheese is SO easy and it's so much richer in flavor than the blah store bought kind. THEN there is always the option of adding strawberry jam to make strawberry cream cheese that Philadelphia would swoon over or any herb or combination of herbs to make your own unique flavor! We often add just plain dried basil from our garden for a little garden freshness in the middle of winter! We use so much more cream cheese than we ever did when we had to buy it. I use it in recipes now, we spread it on anything and everything!

Here's how!

Take 1 gallon of milk plus one pint of heavy cream. I just use 2 - 1/2 gallon jars of un-skimmed raw milk right from our cow. Well, I chill it first ;-) Right now we're getting a solid+ cup of cream on every half gallon of milk.... gotta love a Jersey!!

O.k. so you pour your milk into a large stock pot. I use my 8 quart one. and heat it to 86 degrees.
Add 1 packet of buttermilk culture from New England Cheese. These run .60 per packet when you buy them in bulk. They keep a year+ if you store them in the freezer.
Add 4 drops of single strength rennet or 2 - 3 drops of double strength Rennet.
Stir really well.
Cover the pot and let this sit in an out of the way spot in the kitchen where you won't trip over it. Let it sit for 24 hours.

Line a colander or bowl with a cheese cloth or butter muslin. Pour or scoop your solid curd into the cloth. Take opposite corners and tie together forming ties to hang the whole curd up above your pan. Let it hang there (I use a cupboard door handle) above your pot for another 24 hours.
Take the cloth off. Chill and store in a covered container or bowl. This lasts a solid week, 10 days it's still usable, by 2 weeks it begins to get fuzzy - if it lasts that long.

When I make this recipe I get 2 solid pounds of cream cheese to use for delicious Cheese Cake. Mmmm sounds like a good idea for another post :-)

Oh My, Giddy On!

2012-01-15T06:00:00.003-06:00

I've been planning to hack this blog for a while. Since last October to be exact ........ for today is my dear Ma's wonderful birthday!!!! This is what you get when you give your daughter the password to your google account. *Smiles*

I Owe It All To Mother!

It’s your birthday, Mom.
So I will raise a cheer.
Without you, my special, loving mom,
I would not be here.

Yes, I owe it all to you, Mom.
From the time that I was small,
You encouraged me in everything,
And tried not to let me fall.

Throughout my life your caring,
Brightened each and every minute.
You loved me and enriched my life,
And I’m so glad to have you in it!

Source

Since three of her six children are all around 20 years old I think this song is very appropriate. It's called 20 Years Late by David St. Romain:

~*~*~*~

It's Your Birthday, Mom!
Washing, cleaning and cooking
Plus ironing and grocery shopping
These chores are bone breaking
Mom, at least for a day stop working
Let it be a time for relaxing
For it's your birthday we're celebrating!

"From Cradle to College and Everything in Between". That's the book that Ma and I have jokingly said we are going to write someday! The fact is, she could write this book in a heartbeat and probably a series of books after that! She has one of the hardest jobs in the world raising her "First Batch" and "Second Batch". She can go from helping with college planning or finishing up taxes to washing diapers and cooking dinner without batting an eye. She does it all without expecting anything in return, and while we aren't perfect, I'd say she's done a pretty darn good job raising us. I pray that I can someday acquire half the grace, dignity, strength, compassion, love, diligence, forethought, discernment, and wisdom Mom has!

Happy Birthday Mom! I hope your day is special. We all love you and hope that we make you proud!

Love,
Bud

“A mother is she who can take the place of all others but whose place no one else can take.” - Cardinal Mermillod

Some Mom-isms:
“I know you better than you know yourself.”
“It’s spelled m-o-m not g-o-d!”
“I’m only serving ONE meal.”
“Put the seat back down when you’re finished!... Some day your wife will thank me.”

To the fastest taxi driver, the yummiest chef, and the most reliable source of information, to our referee, seamstress, surgeon, barber, audience, and cheerleader: Thanks for always being there for us – We love you more than we could ever begin to express.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Love,
Andy and Rachel

If our Ma has blessed you in anyway
please comment and wish her a happy birthday.

Weaner rings aren't a guarantee....

2011-12-30T08:52:00.001-06:00

We've had, let's see.... 4 calves here on our farm. And so far 50% of those have figured out a way around their weaner rings. Smart cows! So if anyone tells you that a weaner ring is a guarantee - don't believe them!

So we have had to build a cow shed and fence off a part of our barn yard so "little" Stewy doesn't get Mable's milk - and we DO!!

We are very thankful for adult sons that are willing to come help when needed too! Thanks Bud & Drewski! The guys actually built this AND went and got a large load of firewood ALL in one day! Oh, to be young again with that much energy LOL

Not much fun in the cold and wind to be building but at least we didn't have any snow to hinder the building. Hard to believe that it's almost the new year and we've got no snow on the ground. I'm willing to forgo winter this year. Let's just get right on with spring! Anyone with me??

4 square walls all neat and tidy!

All is well once again - we're back up to 2.5 gallons per day. And Stew is back on his hay like he should be. Ha! Guess we fixed that little snitch didn't we!! Gotta be smarter than the cows! LOL

Living for a Blessing!

2011-12-28T14:21:00.001-06:00

Our home made improvised Hannaukia

I've heard tell that some are concerned for us as we search out and learn about our Hebrew roots. When we've shared what we're doing and learning with others we've been met with well, an attitude that we've gone off the deep end, joined a cult or are in dire need of someone to save us.

Let me assure you that our salvation is won and guaranteed by our Messiah, Jesus Christ. We just happen to call him by his Hebrew name now - Yeshua.

Instead of worshipping Yahweh (God's given name in the Bible) by celebrating Christmas & Easter that share the day with Pagan gods, we have chosen to celebrate His feasts outlined in the Scriptures and as He commanded they be celebrated, FOREVER. (See the book of Leviticus, it is VERY interesting reading!) We have been blessed so far and have no reason to believe that we will do anything other than be blessed in the future.

We are choosing to follow Him and His ways in a more literal sense rather than just speaking of living for Christ in an abstract way week after week. We have prayed for a long time that our relationship with Him would change our home life and our faith growth. We have prayed that He would be a real part of our daily life. In the past 9 months our relationship with Yahweh and our faith have increased exponentially compared to the last 40 years.

We have spent the last 6 months deep in His Word, listening to various teachings on what the Hebrew words really mean and how they were communicated IN context to their initial readers as well. We've had many revelations and learned much of what the original writers were trying to communicate. With historical background, learning idioms of the people in the day of Yeshua, and Hebrew meanings we have been able to understand like never before!

We have chosen to believe what He says in Scripture about being blessed or cursed by following his instructions or not following them, respectively. We have come to believe that God does not change. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Why would he change His heart's desire for us to be His people and for Him to be our God?

We feel these choices are bringing us closer to the heart of our Messiah and know that as promised in Scripture they will only bring us abundant blessings! We thank those of you that were worried and have concerns about our spiritual welfare. Rest assured that we are growing in Christ by leaps and bounds.

I will not have comments open on this post because frankly I just do not have time to research and explain all of the "yes, buts" that will/could come. If you are interested in what we are learning I encourage you to check out any of the following links:
Passion For Truth Ministries
Wild Branch Ministries
Hebraic Heritage Ministries
El Shaddai Ministries
Wisdom in Torah
119 Ministries
Yah-Tube

And here are a few Torah observant bloggers that I love to be inspired by too:
Standing at the Crossroads
Our Wholehearted Family
New Life on a Homestead

Cling to your roots that your days may be long and that you will prosper in everything you set your hand to do. ~Shalom Alechem!

Agrarianism

2011-12-12T08:00:00.000-06:00

"From the beginning it was always possible to find farmers who were intuitively suspicious of the industrialization of agriculture. Perhaps they objected to the increased authority of suppliers and experts. Perhaps they felt the discord between machinery and living creatures. Perhaps they had a rational fear of toxic chemicals. Perhaps they disliked paying cash for energy and fertility that they had previously received in kind from their farms and their good work. Among at least a few, for whatever reasons, there was a persistent distrust."

—Wendell Berry

New Family Photo

2011-11-21T13:48:00.001-06:00

Our family photo that we had taken a few years back was way out of date. As we gathered for our Thanksgiving celebration yesterday, I asked if we could update it. Everyone was in agreement until about the 4th try and everyone had had enough LOL

This is what we came up with. Could have been better if the little ones had cooperated a bit more. And here I was worried that the big ones would be the difficult ones LOL

Sewing Room Photo Shoot

2011-11-17T16:33:00.000-06:00

I always love seeing others' sewing room layouts - I guess I'm weird like that. My oldest daughter and I moved our whole sewing room today. It's nice and handy on the main level now so I can bake cookies and sew all at the same time ;-)

We lost our closet so we had to get creative and go UP! I think it'll work fine!

I just can't help myself!

2011-11-16T06:30:00.002-06:00

EVEN without a sewing room at present, I HAVE to sew. It's like an adrenaline rush for me or something. I'm definitely addicted LOL I had to drag my serger and sewing machine upstairs for the room switch-a-roo anyway. So I set up "shop" for the afternoon at the kitchen table. Gosh what a hassle! I'm never taking my sewing room for granted again, I promise!

My little girl loves these skirts and they go together in just a few minutes! Girl size 7 is 2 panels 34X30 sewn together. Elastic in the gathered top, hem the bottom and it's done. She's feminine and comfortable, I'm happy and not nearly as poor as I'd be if I had to buy them!!!

McCalls 6035

2011-11-15T12:09:00.000-06:00

McCalls 6035 - all finished :-) Now I've gotta take a sewing break, we've decided to move the sewing room so it's all torn apart. I'm really wanting to get it set back up. Hopefully the painting won't take too long and we can do the room switch-a-roo yet this week. I have so many items that I'm wanting to sew!! Tis the season, ya know?

One down, two to go

2011-11-09T07:00:00.001-06:00

Timeline is Finished

2011-11-08T12:43:00.000-06:00

I have wanted to put up a time line for a long time. I want the kids to see a big overview of God's History. I want them to know that Noah & Abraham were not living at the same time that Laura Ingalls Wilder or Christopher Columbus were. I think it will help us put all of our Bible readings, Lit books, History books and everything into perspective to be able to "see" it up on the wall. I'm thinking that it will have the same positive effect that our big wall maps have had for understanding the "where" of our readings.

I stole this idea off of Google's image page :-) It was on some forum so I don't really know who to give credit to but whoever she was, she is my hero! Thanks whoever you are :-)

Each color is 100 years. Some centuries get just one "bar" of line and some get 3 & 4, depending on how much activity there was during that century.

I can't wait to have the children start to color some art to clip to it!!

A Houseful of Hunters

2011-11-06T11:25:00.001-06:00

It's hunting season here! I've got big hunters with big appetites that I'm trying to fill and I've got little hunters that are in training that want to do it just like Daddy and the Big Brothers :-) I'll post more pictures as they are made available. Hopefully some of deer!!!!

My Resolve is Strengthening

2011-11-04T08:45:00.000-05:00

photo courtesy of Google

I had slacked off a bit on my frugality endeavors. But lately as I watch my meager grocery budget continually refuse to meet the demand, I'm forced to redouble my efforts and attack again. It truly is a battle.

Karen Lynn over at Lilsuburban Homestead wrote this awesome but discouraging LOL article. In it she links to this New York Times article.

What I don't understand is... the side bar FYI says that

"According to the Consumer Price Index, food prices have risen about 3.5 percent this year, with the most substantial increases in the food–at–home category.
Consumers now pay about 5.4 percent more than last year for food at the grocery store. Food in restaurants, on the other hand, has increased at a slower rate of 2.6 percent, largely because their biggest cost, labor, has been stable in a weak economy."

If this is true, then my $300 budget would have increased by a mere $16.20. Sorry but I've had to up it quite a bit more than $16. My budget numbers are up over $400. If I add animal feed each month, I'm up over $500 per month. That's a far cry from $16.

My question is... where do these rummies get these fairy tale numbers???

Look out folks, brace yourselves, and start planning big time! It's coming friends. We can no longer continue to stick our heads in the sand. I'm off to continue brainstorming MORE frugal ideas, planning, and plotting my strategy!

Popcorn Balls

2011-10-28T14:58:00.000-05:00

An online friend of ours works for the website Gling, which is a gluten free site. Even though nobody in our home needs to be gluten free (thank goodness) she shares recipes and we have fun trying them!! We love you Valerie - thanks for sharing!!

Here is her recipe that she shared.

We made them in about 15 minutes flat this afternoon - Super Easy - Super fun for the littles!!

New Jumper

2011-10-25T06:38:00.000-05:00

Simplicity 2232

It is finished. I liked the pattern, it went together easily, and I'd sew it again. There's your pattern review in a nutshell :-)

From Garden to Sewing Room

2011-10-24T08:46:00.000-05:00

Everything else in my life stays constant... kids, schooling, dairy, cooking, cleaning, .... but when the garden is done - that means sewing time!! Yay!! I think I need a bumper sticker that says "I could be gardening, but I'd rather be sewing" LOL

So this past week in-between trips to the wood lot to get fire wood I got back to sewing.

This is project #1 this year - The jumper dress view A in a beautiful hunter green sportswear!

Pictures of the complete project coming soon........

Next project will be bottoms: leggings, pants, and skirts for a dear little girl :-) She has holes in everything LOL

What kind of sewing projects are you working on this winter??

Hebrew Roots in a Nutshell

2011-10-21T14:09:00.002-05:00

Recently a blogger I follow posted on her new found excitement of celebrating the Lord's Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot). I commented that it was wonderful that she had found a fellowship to gather with and noted how when one mentions Hebrew roots types of things people will often look at you cross eyed. Next another commenter replied with an inquisitive post. To which another commenter made a beautiful explanation in a nutshell. I was so blessed by her response that I asked if I could quote her and she gave her blessing. So I thought I'd share it here with you all.

It is very easy to misunderstand that Jesus coming to "fulfill" the law did not do away with the Law. If the Law is done away with then what would tell us we are sinners and in need of a Savior? What would be the purpose of clinging to our Savior and Messiah for our Salvation?

Here first is the commenter's question
"This makes no sense to me. There is no Jew or gentile today in the Body of Christ. We are all ONE in Christ Jesus. And Israel was under the law and we are under grace. This was a law ritual. Why not celebrate the gospel of the grace of God? This is religion. There is no religion today." "Hebrew roots?????"

Here is Deb W's response. She shared that is wasn't necessarily eloquence as I had praised her for but that she's had 30 years of practice explaining it :-)

"Oh where to start! First of all, celebrating the Feasts of the Lord outlined in Lev. 23, does not make us any more spiritual or anything (that's where the grace comes in), but from the perspective of the New Testament, we can see that those 7 Feasts are a ‘prophetic picture’ of the Plan of God for the earth – the first coming of Jesus in Passover through Pentecost, and his second coming in the last 3 feasts, the Feast of Trumpets through the Feast of Tabernacles.

That’s what is meant by Jewish Roots – 2 Tim. 3:16 “ALL scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for INSTRUCTION in righteousness.” ALL scripture, both Old and New Testament is profitable to us, so our NT faith is rooted in the OT. Simple! Who wouldn’t want to know all God has for us in His Word! Romans is a good place to find scriptural ‘bridges’ that link NT to OT.

In Lev 23 (and elsewhere) the Feasts are not referred to as the Feasts of the JEWS, but the Feasts of the LORD – and if you read carefully, you will see that God says some of them are to be celebrated FOREVER. If God were finished with the Jews (as Paul says, “God forbid!), God would have said to celebrate the feasts until the Messiah comes, or until I establish My Church, but no, He says FOREVER.

Wonderful types, shadows and pictures of our Lord Jesus coming back to the earth, fulfilling His promise, and dwelling here with us? What’s not to celebrate!!!!! Find good teaching on this and dig in! You will be blessed!"

Thanks again Deb W for blessing me by sharing this beautiful response and allowing me to share it!

Some Mom Fun

2011-10-20T07:00:00.001-05:00

You Know You're a Mom if You've Ever...

MomSense Magazine 8/10

1. Have you ever spit on a Kleenex to wipe another person's face?

2. Have you ever excused yourself to "go potty"?

3. Have you ever danced and/or sung in celebration of someone else's potty success?

4. Have you ever carried on a conversation with an imaginary playmate?

5. Do you pack for a trip to the grocery store like you're preparing to climb Mount Everest?

6. Do you possess extensive knowledge of another person's bodily functions?

7. Have you ever performed an extraction of a piece of cereal from an ear/nostril?

8. Have you ever developed a weight loss plan that included avoiding eating food from your kids' plates?

9. Have you ever looked at your legs halfway through the day and realized you've only shaved one of them?

10. Have you ever gone to bed with one person, and woken up with three?

11. Do you remember the last time you went to the bathroom without an audience?

So...what was your score?

Herbed Potatoes & Carrots

2011-10-19T08:33:00.000-05:00

Another new recipe. None of my new recipes are anything exotic - I'm concentrating on ridding ourselves of the boring but at the same time keeping it simple! I found this one in my MOMY's cookbook and it was contributed by a Heather Mason. I tweaked it a bit of course ;-)

As you can see in the picture everyone loved them and I realized a bit late that I should take a picture and blog about them LOL Yummy! Even those were gone by the end of the meal :-)

Herbed Potatoes & Carrots

4 - 6 Large potatoes, chunked and boiled until soft
16 ounces baby carrots, boiled until soft (I used a pint of my canned ones that were already soft)
1/2 C butter, softened
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 T dry or fresh chives (I used fresh, it's the only thing left green in the garden)
1 tsp dry basil

The trick is to boil the potatoes and the carrots in separate pans so that each veggie can be removed from the heat when it's done. The individual flavors are preserved better this way too!

I boiled my potatoes until soft. I warmed up my carrots in a bit of water. I drained both veggies. Then I folded the veggies gently in a bowl with the butter and herbs.

Bow Tie Noodle Salad

2011-10-17T06:00:00.008-05:00

I LOVE when I try a new recipe, tweak it just for fun and it turns out! I'm one of those that gets bored with my food easily. There must be a "ism" for that......

Bow Tie Noodle Salad

8 ounces bow tie noodles boiled for 7 minutes or so, drained

A sprinkle of Parmesan cheese

1/4 C chopped green pepper

several squirts of Italian salad dressing

Toss it all together and enjoy. We have always just done this with plain Italian dressing but the Parmesan cheese and the green pepper gave it a more unique flavor.

God's Glory

2011-10-14T07:10:00.000-05:00

I love this time of year! I revel in the beauty of God's earth. Yes, Spring time is a time of rebirth, and summer has lots of growth. Even Winter has it's positives of gathering near the fire and reading good books and of course sewing :-) But Autumn is glorious in all it's splendor. I just have to share this picture that my daughter took. It's hard to capture God's beauty but she succeeded quite well, I think.

Who needs fancy toys?

2011-10-11T09:35:00.000-05:00

I am a firm believer that 98% of the toys sold today are worthless, stupid, and usually have no imaginative value. I'm of the old school - give em a box and they'll make their own fun.

This time it was the croquet set and a simple jump rope that transformed our yard into the Wild West, complete with horses, wagons and reigns! I'm so pleased that they still have imaginations!! I'm not sure how the dog was involved though LOL Other than she is ever vigilant to keep the children safe!

Homemade Velveeta

2011-10-10T06:50:00.000-05:00

I have L.O.T.S. of milk right now!!!! It is spilling out of my fridge, I've made dairy products until I'm just about cheesed out! But.... I had to try this recipe for home made Velveeta over at Chickens in the Road. Suzanne over there is my hero!! It worked, makes great mac & cheese, and melts up beautifully for chips & cheese!!

I will definitely make this again!!

Sewing Room Revamp

2011-10-09T06:00:00.001-05:00

I'm slowly getting out of gardening and canning mode and beginning to think winter sewing. So... between making cheese this past week I putzed in my sewing room. I had to completely take ALL the fabric out of the closet and sort it all, refold a bunch of it, and make it all + more fit back INTO the closet. Not an easy feat!! I had a bit of help but she's still an apprentice. She claims she hasn't worked in 4 fabric stores and so she called herself my grunt LOL

Now to get back in here and get some sewin done............

Yom Teruah

2011-10-07T06:00:00.002-05:00

I thought I'd share some pictures of our Yom Teruah celebration last week. This weekend we'll be celebrating Yom Kippur - Day of Atonement. We're hoping it's as wonderful of a celebration as we did with Yom Teruah - Feast of Trumpets.

Leviticus 23:23 - check it out!!!

Fall Leaves Fun

2011-10-06T07:00:00.001-05:00

We decided to get the children out into nature in a big way today. What fun! We went to the neighbor's woodlot and had lots of fun finding leaves. Then came home and used them in our journals and our windows. Simple, fun, educational, and fun!

Apple Cider Vinegar

2011-10-05T07:00:00.001-05:00

is finished. I followed the directions from one website and then half way through I switched to follow the Deliberate Agrarian.

I merely sat 5 half gallon jars on my counter for 5 weeks with cheese netting screwed to the top with canning bands. I stirred mine a few times but I won't do that again. Then I was going to heat it to preserve it indefinitely but decided there was no need because it won't last that long around here. So I strained off and bottled it up! Smells great, so glad I attempted this!!

Grass...grass...gotta find grass....

2011-10-03T14:47:00.000-05:00

Tis the season for the grass to s.l.o.w. d.o.w.n. it's growing. But of course until the snow covers the ground the cows try determinedly to find more.

You know you're a homesteader when you are so desperate for grass that you tell the kiddos that they can't play in the sandbox for a few days because the cows need your back yard!!

The first clue is how close the electric fence is to the side of the house. Thank goodness the cow pies will disintegrate before next spring.

Yes, the leaves are a changin.... snow will be here soon. Time to fire me up a wood stove :-)

Sabbath Days

2011-09-27T06:30:00.005-05:00

We have been spending our new habit of observing the Sabbath day of the Lord by doing some study and teachings in the early part of the day and visiting various state parks in the afternoon. We hope to hit a few more this fall to enjoy the leaves changing color.

Here I share a picture of our last Sabbath Day in all it's glory!! Isn't God magnificent??

Clean and room for more!

2011-09-26T06:30:00.006-05:00

I have a few quarts of pumpkin to can yet this year and a bit of grape juice with my new Bosch berry press. Otherwise it is clean, stocked and ready to accept big bags of grains in order to be complete. I'm excited to order bags of grain to finish stocking it. It has been exciting to use my new Nutrimill!! Azure...here I come........

Between this one and the big kitchen pantry I have 2010's remaining "stash" (which I didn't count) and..... this year I have canned up 275 quarts and 221 pints of food in 2011.

I'm tired but feel satisfied! Now, I'm ready to put the garden to bed for the winter and visit my sewing room for a few months - until cabin fever settles in LOL

Refrigerator Pickles

2011-09-22T13:20:00.000-05:00

This is a little late in the season but was requested by one of my readers. So... before I forget....

Here is how I make refrigerator pickles when I have too many left after a batch of dill pickles. They stay just fine in the fridge for several months! I just make them up and stick them in the back and pull them out as I need them :-)

6 C sliced cucumbers, peeled or unpeeled
1 C sliced onions
1 C vinegar (5% acidity)
1/2 C water
1 1/4/ C sugar
1 tsp pickling salt
1 tsp celery seed
1/2 tsp mustard seed
2 cloves garlic

Combine cucumbers and onions in a large bowl. Mix well. In a large saucepan combine all remaining ingredients except the garlic. Bring to a boil. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Pour hot vinegar mixture over cucumber mixture, mix well. Place one clove garlic in each clean jar. Fill jars with cucumber mixture. Cool completely before refrigerating. Refrigerate at least 24 hours to blend flavors. Store in refrigerator for several months. Yield: 2 quarts or 4 pints.

As you can see they never make it the couple of months... they go quite fast :-)

Apple Cider Vinegar

2011-09-19T08:27:00.002-05:00

I am attempting Apple Cider Vinegar. I'm kind of going over board I suppose. But.... the "if I can do it myself, why should I pay someone else to do it for me" bug is bitten me in the last few years and I just keep trying the next thing. So... this year we're attempting vinegar. So far it seems to be working.

I got the directions here and in my Back to Basics book. They say that you can add a mother culture or that you can add a special kind of brewers yeast but I opted for the simple process first just to see what I would get. It has turned to hard cider (I didn't try it but my son did!) and now we await the vinegar.

It's fun to try new things when they won't put you out a lot if they fail but will benefit you so much if they succeed!! Gotta love this homestead life!!

It is finished

2011-09-15T13:11:00.002-05:00

Tuesday night we had a frost but my garden survived. Last night we were scheduled for a hard freeze down in the 20's. So out we went.... it's our annual "clear it out" party LOL

Good thing we did! Freeze it did and it froze hard. Wasn't anything green when I first got up this morning. Every blade of grass was white. These pictures were taken a bit later in the morning when all the frost that was left was what was in the shade.

Apple Pie Filling

2011-09-12T08:33:00.000-05:00

This is easy apple pie filling. I use it for pies of course but I use it for apple crisp too and it could be used for any number of recipes that need a carmel type, syrupy, apple mixture. Here is a picture of a canner load done this past week.

Apple Pie Filling

Peel, slice, and dip in a fruit fresh or ascorbic acid mixture (to keep them from browning) enough apples to fill 7 - 1 quart jars.

4 1/4 C sugar
1 C cornstarch
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
10 C water
3 Tbls lemon juice

Mix sugar, cornstarch, nutmeg, cinnamon and salt. Add water, then cook until thick. Add lemon juice. Pour cooked mixture over the apples in the the jars. Seal and process in a hot water bath or a steam canner for 20 minutes.

To make Pie: Add 1/2 C sugar, if desired, to 1 quart of apple pie filling. Place in unbaked pie shell, cover with top crust, cover edges of pie and bake at 375 for 20 minutes. Remove the foil from the edges and bake for 20 - 25 minutes more until crust is light golden color.

Eat and enjoy!!

2011 Pantry Tally

2011-09-09T15:41:00.000-05:00

I love my little helpers this year. They have been a big help getting our pantry stocked for the winter. We have one more batch of spaghetti sauce, one more canner load of carrots, hopefully a batch of raspberry jam if we're blessed, and pumpkin when they're ready and we're done. We'll add some stews and soups for grab and go meals throughout the winter but for now the garden is close to being done and mostly canned up.

Here's what we've got so far in our two pantries -

53 pints of spaghetti sauce that we use for pizza and lasagna too

39 quarts dill pickles

5 quarts refrigerator pickles

6 pints bread & butter pickles

42 quarts peaches

42 quarts apple sauce

39 quarts green beans

6 pints green beans

30 pints strawberry jam

7 pints blueberry jam

21 pints carrots

11 pints apple butter

15 quarts apple pie filling

4 quarts grape juice

7 pints blueberries

8 quarts strawberry lemonade

9 pints chicken

3 quarts strawberries

48 quarts apple cider

9 quarts apple cider vinegar

15 pints salsa

51 quarts corn (frozen)

Not too shabby for a weird garden year and lots of help from littles!

26 year old Salsa

2011-09-08T09:15:00.000-05:00

I have been making the same Salsa for 26 years. It has always gotten rave reviews and I have had many people ask me for it so I guess it's a winner. I tend to stick with winners when I find them!

SALSA
15 lbs tomatoes, sometimes I skin them sometimes I just chop up Romas skin and all!
3 C jalepeno peppers, cut off stem tops and chop up the rest of it entirely
2 Tbls Coriander
4 tsp Oregano
2 tsp Cumin
3 C Cider Vinegar
6 C onions
6 tsp salt

Mix all ingredients in a large cauldron type pot, just to simmering. Can it in a water bath or steam canner for 15 minutes. This recipe makes 14 - 16 pints, or 7 or 8 quarts.

Touch Down! Oh Yeah!

2011-09-07T08:27:00.000-05:00

Can you see me? I'm running into the end zone.... I'm spiking down the ball.... I'm doin a victory dance.... I'm singing "I did it, I did it, oh yeah, I did it!"..... I'm dancing the Macarena dance.... oh, yeah, oh, yeah!

I MADE BUNS!!! AS GOOD AS STORE BOUGHT ONES!!

I have tried for years to make a good hamburger or hot dog bun that my family would not turn their noses up at. They grudgingly have ate all of my attempts but it has become a family joke. "Can we have store bought buns, please?" is heard frequently in my home LOL

Well, yesterday I DID it! I've tweaked and twiddled and I finally got it!! They were soft like store bought, nicely risen like store bought, they tasted great AND they were more healthy than store bought! I probably should admit that I got it by accident really, but that's inconsequential right??

Here is a close up......

Perfect Hamburger Buns

2 T yeast
3 C Warm water
2 T cane juice crystal
1/3 C olive oil
1 T salt
5 C fresh ground SOFT white wheat flour
4 C unbleached white flour (I use organic)

In my Bosch I combined yeast, water, and cane juice crystals. I let this stand for a few minutes while I ground some fresh flour. I added the olive oil, salt, and 5 C SOFT whole wheat flour (I have always used hard wheat but didn't have any this time). I stirred this up until it was all mixed in. Then I added 4 C unbleached white flour, one cup at a time until the dough cleaned the sides of the mixer bowl. I kneaded this on speed 1 for 5 minutes. I pulled out the dough hook and let it rise right in the mixer bowl. I covered it and let it sit for 45 minutes.

Then I pulled the dough out of the bowl, rolled it out into a big rectangle on my floured counter about 1 inch thick. I cut out circles for the buns with a glass that had a 3.25" diameter dipped in flour. When the rectangle was used up I rerolled it two more times before I was out of dough and had 24 biscuit looking circles. I placed 12 on each of 2 cookie sheets that I had sprayed with non-stick spray.

I let them rise for about 20 minutes. Then I baked them at 400 degrees for 14 minutes. I only baked one cookie sheet at a time in my oven. When I pulled each sheet out I brushed them lightly with butter using a pastry brush. I let them cool. I bagged up 2 bags of 8 for future meals and we ate the other 8 for sloppy joes for supper.

I do hope I have figured it out and that it wasn't just a fluke.........

"Liebster" Award

2011-09-06T11:53:00.000-05:00

The lovely Kim over at Jabez Farm has awarded me the Liebster Award!???!!! I've never received an award before :-) I'm just a humble homesteading wife and mom journaling our life and am pleased as punch if or when someone finds something useful to use from it.
I am humbled and appreciative Kim - Thank you!

Now to pass the award on - here are the rules.....

The Liebster is awarded to spotlight up and coming bloggers who currently have less than 200 followers.

How fun is that? Now for the rules...

1. Thank the giver and link back to the blogger who gave it to you.

2. Reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.

3. Copy and paste the award on your blog.

4. Have faith that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers.

5. And most of all - have fun!

These are 5 fun blogs (in no particular order) that I like to visit :-)

1) Mrs. Dewey Smith over at plainhomesteading. She keeps me abreast of what's going on in the world and her commentaries are very informative!

2) Jane at hardworkhomestead makes me think in uncommon ways about uncommon things on my homestead - Truly an inspiration!

3) Stephanie at ourwholehearted family is irreplaceable! We have only just begun our Torah observant lifestyle and we have learned SO much from her blog. It has impacted our family's spiritual life more than Stephanie will EVER know!!

4) Julianne at providencelodge is another one that has inspired me! Her quiet and gentle ways always relax me on my harried days!!

5) Gina at homejoys is a favorite of mine. Her gentle spirit and yummy recipes are always a joy to read about!

Aren't they pretty?

2011-09-03T08:35:00.000-05:00

This is 1/3 of what I picked yesterday. Tomorrow they will be turned into yet more spaghetti sauce.

In addition to these I have been working on the following this week - so much canning, too little blogging!!

Apple Butter
Apple Pie Filling
Beans
Apple Cider Vinegar
Grape Juice

This coming week I'll be doing lots more spaghetti sauce, salsa, more corn, and hopefully I'll get to start on raspberry jelly soon!

I miss blogging but canning season has me quite busy. Filling our pantry for a family of 6 for a whole year takes a lot of time :-) There was so much I wanted to share about our homestead this summer but somehow I haven't found the time. In the winter there isn't much to blog about and in the summer there is no time to blog. I might have to figure out a way to save pictures and ideas and blog about the summer in the winter. Hey - it might even help lift the cabin fever yuckys!

Don't do as I do

2011-08-29T16:45:00.001-05:00

I don't follow the FDA or the USDA regulations when I can. So don't do as I do. But hey, it works so..... what do they know anyway?

First of all I sometimes use cornstarch *gasp* to thicken my spaghetti sauce. :-). I'll try to remember to post the other 2 ways that I make it later this week. Tis the season so it's what my life is about right now LOL

CANNED SPAGHETTI SAUCE

1/2 Bushel tomatoes, wash and grind up in the Vita Mix
1 C vegetable oil
8 cloves garlic
1 C green peppers, chopped
2 medium onions, chopped
1/2 C salt
1 tsp basil
1/8 C oregano
1/2 C sugar

Cook onion, garlic, and peppers in vegetable oil until soft. Add oil with veggies to ground up tomatoes in a large stock pot. Add seasonings. Boil until desired consistency. When close to right consistency, but probably an hour or so to go yet, take 2 C of the sauce and cool it in a sink of cold water. Add to this 2 C of sauce 1 Cup cornstarch, blend well. I usually blend it in my Vita Mix. Then add that whole mixture back into the whole stock pot of sauce. Continue to boil until correct thickness. Be careful as once you add that mixture it can start to burn so stir much more frequently. Then I can my sauce.
**Update: forgot to tell you and a comment caught me! I put 1 Tbsp of lemon juice in each pint before I can it up. Sorry, forgot that tidbit!**
But.... shhhhh I use a steam canner. I have actually not used my water bath canner yet this year. Anything that I can use a waterbath canner for I've used my steam canner for the last couple of years. I haven't had any spoilage and I've had very good sealing success. My steam canner uses so much less water & fuel and saves so much time because I only have to heat up 8 cups of water instead of gallons and gallons.

That's a picture of my steam canner on the left without the cover. How it works is... there are two tiny holes in the bottom of the cover and you start timing when the steam stream is 6 inches long. The picture below is of the canner with the cover on.

I love it and I'm fairly certain it would take a lot for me to go back to a waterbath! But please don't tell the authorities that I'm doin it wrong. Thanks.

Shhhh..... I've been very quiet again....

2011-08-22T10:01:00.000-05:00

because I've been busy doing this...... It's getting there. The one pantry is almost full. There are still plenty of holes in the other one though. More beans yet to go, grape juice is coming, pie filling, and new this year will be apple cider vinegar! Stay tuned how that pans out :-/

And a new week begins....

2011-08-08T16:29:00.000-05:00

Help! Help! I'm drowning in peaches and apple cider!! Aaaaaah! And of course I have LOTS of help!! Love it!! Now the goal would be to have them love helping just as much when they are 16, 15, & 13!!

On to canning the abundance.......

The Week is Over

2011-08-05T21:20:00.000-05:00

This is the art work of my darling husband after a long day of canning pickles and peaches!! He's good! He can get SO many dishes in one tiny little sink. He is truly amazing in so many ways.

I have cucumbers to can into pickles, green beans to put up, peaches and MORE peaches to be canned AND my neighbor came tonight and told me he didn't want me getting bored. So ... he wants me to come clean up his apple tree. He has so many apples that it is dilapidating the tree. I got a few early ones last year too but this year he says there are even more! So on top of everything else to preserve in the next few days I have apple cider to can as well, which I wasn't planning on!

Whew this time of year is so tiring but so fulfilling at the same time.

Gathering fabric

2011-08-03T07:58:00.001-05:00

Do you see all those tiered skirts out there that look so cute and so easy to sew? But when you start gathering your tiers to connect to one another you soon realize WHY people buy them ready made?! Yes, gathering the old fashioned way is tedious - but here is a revolutionary way to do it that will keep you from getting that frustrating headache!!

And just in case you think you need to BUY a pattern here's one more for you! See sewing can be easy AND inexpensive! This tutorial tells you the measurements to cut your tiers and how to put it together. Very simple and creates a nice comfy skirt.
Tiered Skirt Measurements

Happy Sewing!

We're still here....

2011-07-29T11:58:00.000-05:00

I've had several people contact me and let me know that I've been falling down on the job of keeping up on my blogging so that you can keep up with us! I apologize. I got in a funk. I went into a tailspin. I was overwhelmed with life and the first thing to go was blogging LOL I'm still trying to get back in the swing but hopefully I'm on the come back.

Since the beginning of July you have missed:
a lot of heat & humidity
moved a son
gardened our butts off
canned 80# of strawberries
sewed a swimsuit and a scrub top
cut a bunch of hay only to have it get swamped
failed at keeping up with schooling the children
and to be honest I'm not sure what else has caused me to end up in this funk.

My days are busy and full filling pools with water, wiping butts, and trying to make cool meals so I don't have to turn on my oven :-( Oh yes, living the dream......

I hope that you all will forgive me and allow me to catch you up with a tour of our farm today.

learning that the number 15 is important

creative battleship games

bread and butter pickles "played" with by my computer guru daughter

finally a bit cooler respite today - still humid though

Help I'm swimming in beans

Tomatoes and Corn are coming right along

The dill is behind the cucumbers - I can NEVER get them to come at the same time!

Cukes are doing well too

More computer guru daughter

Getting Big! Way bigger than his Uncle Hank was at this age

New layers 1 week old in the brooder

Darling Skirt

2011-07-07T08:43:00.000-05:00

She LOVES it. It's already got a stain on it and I can't get her to take it off!!

I made this skirt for my daughter last week from a tutorial I found at "On Just a Couple Acres". The author did a great job explaining it and it was fun to make up.

The best part is that she loves it so much. I will definitely make more of these. In fact, I'm wondering if I don't end up making enough for her to live in them LOL

Old World Haying

2011-07-05T09:36:00.000-05:00

We have been haying and putting it up in a small loft in the barn. This weekend we began our outdoor stacks. In doing some research we learned that a stack 8 X 8 X 8 = approximately 1 ton which is 2000 pounds. One of our normal large round bales around here weigh in at a sad 800 - 1000 if we get lucky. So each of our stacks will be close to 2 of those with a little lee way either way.

What surprises me the most is how quickly it adds up. Cutting really doesn't take long at all. And with the whole family helping putting it up is a quick process too.

Once we get our pasture growing well and the weeds controlled by staying ahead of them, our goal is to cut all of our own hay. It won't happen this year but hopefully each year a little more and a little more will come off of our own farm!!

This tarp is 8X8. It's all we had right now. But we are going to purchase a couple of 10X10's. Not sure how many we'll need yet. Hopefully we'll have to come up with money for many because that will mean it's been a good year for haying!!
P.S. No, this is not the only shirt he owns. It just so happens that on haying days he picks an old white one to stay cool in. And he happened to grab this one again! He was worried people would remember LOL

Fire Fighter Color Guard

2011-06-29T06:00:00.002-05:00

One of our sons is part of the Color Guard unit for the fire department where he is a paid-on-call fire fighter. He is also a Paramedic for an ambulance service AND an ER Tech at a hospital. These poor emergency workers - it is sad that they have to make 3 and 4 jobs work together just to make a living. They are so taken advantage of!!

Here are some pictures of the parade he was in this past week - we're very proud!

Grad Party

2011-06-27T07:23:00.000-05:00

I am so behind because of technical difficulties. Some days I'm lucky this computer doesn't fly through the window!

But the grad party was a success despite rain off and on all day. In our family's typical fashion we didn't let a few silly rain drops damper our bonfire. We've been known to have many campfires with umbrellas in hand!

She's done with high school, she's moving on with life, she wants to continue to learn, and she was gifted enough money to buy her beloved spinning wheel. All is good!

Thank you to everyone who helped us celebrate her accomplishments!!

26 years ago today...

2011-06-22T09:15:00.000-05:00

I want to honor 26 wonderful wedded years to my very best friend by sharing 26 reasons why I love my husband.

1) He loves our Lord Jesus Christ
2) He loves me
3) He has discernment
4) He is a devoted father
5) He is humble
6) He loves to learn
7) He spoils me
8) He puts God and family first
9) Frugality is a talent of his
10) He protects me
11) He can make me laugh no matter what
12) He gives his all to provide for us
13) He can fix ANYTHING
14) His heart's desire is to follow God's commands
15) He creates beautiful children
16) He's resourceful
17) He respects me
18) He can build anything
19) He wields a mean scythe
20) He can take apart an engine and put it all back together again, and have it work! Amazing!
21) He likes to do puzzles and play board games
22) He hardly ever gets sick but when he does, he goes to work anyway
23) He has an awesome sense of humor
24) He can get children and cows to do things they don't wanna do
25) He is on the same page as me
26) He has never forgotten our anniversary!

My heartfelt prayer is that I will get to spend at least another 26 years with this man of my dreams! My knight in shining armor. My very best friend!!

This post could not have been possible with out my daughter the computer guru - thanks H!

Technical Difficulties....

2011-06-20T19:05:00.000-05:00

Unfortunately, I will be AWOL this week from blog posting :-( Our computer is not happy and we have ordered a part to fix it but until then I'm very limited by my old archaic laptop. It's equivalent to posting on a dinosaur to be sure. Gosh but technology sure is moving at an alarming rate!!

Hopefully I'll be back next week with some tasty dairy posts, some broiler chicken updates, some Thursday farm tours, and maybe even by Monday for a Barn Hop post.... we can always hope!!

My Big Girl

2011-06-17T06:00:00.004-05:00

Our oldest daughter has graduated high school this spring and tomorrow we'll celebrate!! I've been a busy beaver here this week getting things ready for a crowd. It's a lot of work but she has worked hard and deserves a celebration in her honor!!

Her future goal is to be a wife and mother. Accordingly, at this time she is planning to stay in our home, help our family reach our goals where she can, watch to see where God can use her and concentrate on growing her relationships with her God and her family until such time that He might bless her with a husband that she can care for.

Many would see that as a worthless goal but we think it's a fine one! May she be blessed and may she bless many throughout her life!!!

The hand that rocks the cradle rules the nation and its destiny.

William Ross Wallace

Thursday Around our Farm

2011-06-16T06:00:00.002-05:00

What a good idea Farmama has to share photos of our farms on Thursdays! I love it! It's so much fun to see many different farms.

Hope you enjoy this week's tour of ours..........

Stewart is 4 weeks old

Rain finally came after 3 very dry weeks

Teeny Tiny grapes

Haycock full of hay

Lettuce ready for harvest

The neighbor's guinea chicks that hatched under our broody hen

Brocolli is growing well

Sour Cream

2011-06-15T06:00:00.004-05:00

I am taking this opportunity to disperse any fears that anyone might have about making Sour Cream from scratch. It really could not be more simple! Although some of my friends have had trouble and realized that their cultures were old, I have not had that problem. One of my friends even takes raw cream and sets it out on the counter over night to make her sour cream. When I tried that.... all I got was rancid cream. Sour doesn't begin to describe what I woke up to that morning!

So, for .60 and a quart of our abundant cream from our darling Maybelline, we have tasty sour cream that is very nutritious to boot! What could be better than nutritious sour cream??

So this is how I do it step by step.........

1) I place an order of sour cream cultures from New England Cheese (I really think I should ask them for a commission LOL)

2) They come in the mail and they make me smile

3) I heat 1 quart of raw milk or cream to 72 degrees. I just put it directly on my stove and heat it on low for just a couple of minutes. I just want to get it the right temp for the culture to work properly. I do NOT want to get it so hot that it kills any of the good bacteria that is in raw milk
4) I open the tiny miracle packet of starter and pour it in
5) I stir for about a minute or two

6) I leave it sit on the counter either in my Yogotherm or wrapped in a towel if the Yogotherm is full of yogurt or buttermilk and let it culture for 12 hours - 24 hours depending on the temp in my kitchen. Basically until it's nice and firm

7) Refrigerate
8) Eat it on yummy tacos, stroganoff, salads, dressings, and many more yummy dishes!

"Surviving Off Off-Grid" Book Review

2011-06-14T06:00:00.004-05:00

I have finished reading Surviving Off Off-Grid by Michael Bunker once and I'm currently reading through it AGAIN much more slowly. I read through it quick first and then passed it onto hubby. He's now read it and passed it back to me and we're discussing lots of things as I come to them.

It is NOT what I expected - at all. It is from a Christian World View and, while I don't agree with every opinion that he has in the book, there is SO much to chew on. Bunker advocates Agrarianism as a way of life and I think he is spot on! This book resonated with my heart big time!!

He begins with a solid historical background. He speaks of Rome, the Greeks, and the colonized life that they had with aqua ducts, hot water, etc..... He makes subtle comparisons to our lives in the U.S. without ever coming out and stating the obvious. Very enlightening and thought provoking to be sure!

Next he gives background on U.S. history to help his readers see how we got to where we are (far from agrarianism) as a consumer driven culture. The most important part that effected me in this section was reading that rural people that did not have electricity in the 1950's did not consider themselves poor at all until someone TOLD them they were poor. Namely, advertisers!!! That to me was very sad.

He finishes out the book with TONS of ideas on "new" ways to look at processes, lifestyles, choices, and thinking. Bunker shows us how to think differently than the media, advertisers, government, and society as a whole has brain washed us all to think. He shows you how to decolonize your mind.

Excellent thought provoking book that has changed my life and will more than likely change yours too!

Proud Mama

2011-06-10T06:00:00.003-05:00

Our son graduated from the University of Minnesota with a degree in Aerospace Engineering with a Minor in Astrophysics. Believe me, he got the brains from his father - but we're both so very proud of him!

We're so VERY proud of our boys - they've both completely put themselves through school, paying it all themselves as well as paying for room & board AND car insurance. We have paid nothing for them in their college years. In today's society that is quite an accomplishment!!

Congratulations Drewski!! You make us proud!!

Around our Farm

2011-06-09T06:00:00.002-05:00

I'm joining Farmama today and showing what's going on around our farm.

Haying has begun

Haycocks are being filled

Meat birds are in the tractor and growing fast

Flowers are blooming

Garden is in

Except the tomatoes and peppers in the cold frame

Strawberries are blooming

New school year has begun

Pool is blown up and being used heavily

Calf is healthy and growing like crazy

And the milk is coming on...oh, yeah!!

A Fun One Today

2011-06-08T06:00:00.001-05:00

I have a question for all of you out in blog land. We homesteaders spend much of our summer growing a garden to preserve and can for winter storage. We pressure can veggies, we steam can jams, jellies, peaches, applesauce.......the list goes on and on. Here on our homestead we even harness the sun and "store" it in a bank of batteries to be used later.

Why in the world has no human ever figured out how to bottle this heat and let it out in January?????

This is my picture of canned warm air. Hope it won't get moldy or go rancid on me!

Ideas? Comments? Thoughts?

Meat Birds to the Tractor

2011-06-07T06:00:00.001-05:00

This week we emptied the brooder into the chicken tractor. We started with 25 birds this time. We're doing the Freedom Rangers again. We have lost 3 and hope we'll be able to butcher the 22 that remain.

Butchering day should be the first week of August. We're actually hoping to get one more batch started in the brooder by Mid-July. We shall see.....

The laying hens think they're missing something I guess. They really have their own water source - they're just jealous I guess of the nice home in the tractor.

1st Haying of the Season

2011-06-06T06:50:00.003-05:00

This weekend we started our first haying of the season. Hubby cut quite a bit on Saturday and then with a forecast of rain for Sunday night we got it up onto haycocks. With his scythe he figures he can cut about 1 acre every 3 hours. No gas fumes, just peace and quiet with a peaceful swish swish of the snath. He could stay out there all day - and to think I was afraid he'd have a love-a-fair with a tractor some day. Nope just his scythe.

What's a haycock? Well, ours are wooden frames that are built. Two of them are leaned together and then the hay is loaded on from the bottom up. Each of our racks hold approximately 100 pounds of hay. It is left for several days to dry and then it is put up in a more permanent place for winter storage.

I'm loving our new hay rake! It works so much better than the garden rake I used last year.

Please ignore the ugly white legs. They will be tan soon LOL I went out to help in flip flops! I asked if I should put shoes or boots on because there are some thistles out there. I was told that the thistles were all cut and piled up. Yeah, uh-huh! Let's just say next time I'm going for the shoes.

It sheds the rain better than just leaving it lay in windrows. Here is a website that also describes this process.

Now the rain can come. And when it's finished we'll cut and stack again.... Lovin this gas free, slow paced, self sustainable life!! Now if we could do it for days at a time instead of in the evenings after Hubby has already put in a full day's work we'd be doin great!

A New Laundry Basket

2011-06-03T12:55:00.000-05:00

I have sworn off of plastic. If I can help it in any way shape or form - I will never again buy plastic and bring it into our home if it can be avoided. So when our plastic laundry basket cracked this week, I had to get creative.

We had picked up a couple of bushel baskets at an auction last fall. We planned to use them for gathering produce in the garden. Maybe even storing potatoes in the cold closet. However, needs sometime over-ride plans. Today one of them became a laundry basket. Hopefully later this week the other one will too.

I cut a 44' diameter circle. I did this by folding fabric cut edge to salvage and cutting the resulting square. Then I found the middle. I measured from a center point while it was folded in half 22" in several directions and marked the spot with pins. I then connected the "dots" with my rotary cutter. Circle made.

I then took that middle marking and put it in the bottom of the basket, smoothed out the sides and marked handle holes. I made giant button holes (next time I will enforce them with interfacing so they don't get floppy) where the handle marks were.

Then I surged the whole circle around the edges. I folded it down about 5/8 inches and sewed an elastic casing. I threaded the elastic and pinned it together. Arranged the fabric around the elastic, over the handles, and down the sides of the basket.

I now have a very utilitarian laundry basket and it's even out of homespun fabric that my mom had given me so it's "country" too - gotta love it!

Butter made in the Bosch

2011-05-30T06:00:00.003-05:00

I used to make all of our butter in my Vita Mix. It worked great and made lovely butter. I would make it in 2 Cup batches of cream at a time. It tended to stay rather hard though for spreading and was literally rock hard when stored in the refrigerator. It also seemed to sour faster than I liked even when I washed and washed it and stored it in a butter bell.
Well, since I recently purchased a Bosch mixer and visited a dear friend who makes her butter in her food processor - I decided to give the Bosch a whirl (pun intended)

This is how I did it and I don't believe that I will ever go back to the Vita Mix for making butter! It was amazing - made a ton of butter in very little time - resembled more of a whipped butter and spreads like a dream - AND even stays somewhat soft in the refrigerator. Soft enough to scoop and when taken out and left on the counter for just a few minutes was splendidly spreadable!

I put 2 quarts of fresh raw cream, that I had allowed to warm on my counter for approximately 1 hour while I tidied up and finished up a couple other projects, into my Bosch mixer.

I attached the wire whips. I ran it on speed 2 for about 5 minutes and 53 seconds. First it became whipped cream, then a soft stage of whipped yellow, and finally separated into butter with sloshing buttermilk all around.

I poured the buttermilk off and set it on the counter to culture for other yummy recipes.

I then poured filtered water from our Berkey onto the butter in the Bosch. About enough to half way cover the butter blobs. Ran the Bosch on speed 1 for about 30 seconds. Poured off the milky water and repeated this step 2 more times.

Next, I took a rubber spatula and scraped all of the butter onto a platter. I took a big wooden spoon and squished the butter just a couple of times to get out the rest of the water.

Out of 2 quarts of cream I came out with 3 Cups of perfect butter. I filled the butter bell and it stayed fresh until it was used up and that was the morning of the 3rd day. The rest I put in the refrigerator to be used later. It stayed soft and fresh to be used up in the days following.

Butter in the Bosch is a winner!!

Mulching Paths

2011-05-25T06:00:00.001-05:00

We have quite the unique system for keeping the weeds down. Actually the system isn't unique just the WAY we go about it LOL We mulch our paths with feed bags and cardboard. Then cover it with excess hay from the cows being messy and the barn refuse too. The girls had fun, not sure hubby did, as that stuff can get pretty heavy!! I mostly just hauled the feed bags from the barn and then held it in place. Of course it never fails, every year on the days we need to get this job done it is windy - Gotta love spring!!

God's Promises.....

2011-05-24T12:53:00.000-05:00

...... keep us ever hopeful and thankful for all His goodness!!

Blue skies like this make life worth living!

Jeremiah 6:16

2011-05-23T06:00:00.005-05:00

Our neighbor has been working with us through all the rain last summer and now this spring to try and disc our pasture field, harrow it, seed it, and harrow it again. The weather has been against us for 11 months!

Finally we got a few days without rain, the field had dried quite a bit and it was good for spreading pasture seed. It had gotten compacted over the winter from the heavy snows. So, he brought over a 4 horse team to pull a harrow. It was fun for the kids to see. Us too.

This morning as he was getting ready to come finish after we spread seed last evening for hours and hours it started to *spit* again - so he finished with the tractor. He was out there with his tractor as I was planting my corn. I decided that tractors stink - give me a horse anyday, they don't smell :-)

Gardening Update

2011-05-20T07:25:00.000-05:00

So far my gardening journal reads:

4/23 Started 16 Cayenne peppers, 28 California Wonder peppers, 40 broccoli
5/7 Started 32 Amish Paste Tomatoes

5/10 planted Chadwick's Rodan, Black Seeded Simpson, and Red Romain lettuces, spinach, and radishes. Started 28 cabbage, 8 cherry tomatoes

5/11 began repotting broccoli

5/12 repotted rest of brocolli, started 16 Emerald Giant peppers. Started 8 American Melon, 8 Oka Bizard Island Mellon, 8 Watermelon Chris Cross.

5/14 Started purple basil, italian basil, oregano, 24 Solli Beiler Cucumbers

5/17 planted Davners 126 Half long, Parisienne, and little finger carrots, yellow & white onion sets, and Geante Blanche turnips

5/18 planted potatoes

Stewart has arrived!

2011-05-18T09:23:00.000-05:00

Yesterday morning at 7:20 we had a new arrival on the farm. Next year's hamburger! So far Mable is being a wonderful Mama and when she was milked last night for the first time (to relieve her and make her more comfortable) she did beautifully. Went into the milking stall, we brought her the babe, and she did really well. She went potty on her tail and swished it in hubby's face but only kicked at the milker once. We got almost a gallon of colostrum out of her and saved it in case of emergency this week. Probably no need though - he's nursing fine!

Stuff Everyone Should Know

2011-05-18T08:06:00.002-05:00

Denim Jacket

2011-05-17T06:16:00.000-05:00

A good friend, Larry was willing to barter his wonderful talent for some milk, cream & eggs. I guess sometimes when you have fresh, grass fed, raw milk to barter with you come out on top! This is my daughter's jacket and our (she thinks its hers) first cow.

Just in time too because as I type this post our new milk cow is in labor and this one will be going to the locker soon. She was supposed to be bred and we were going to wait to cull her until the fall after the calf was weaned. We found out this spring that she didn't get bred so she'll be going soon to help save on grass for the others.

If you like this jean jacket and would like one of your own - check out Larry's Rare Air He is SO talented as you will see in his gallery. If you order anything tell him I sent you, maybe I'll get a commision I can put toward my next order :-)

Love ya Larry and thank you for blessing my "little" girl with your talent! She loves it!!!

Shifting Paradigm

2011-05-16T09:06:00.000-05:00

A few years back, as we were starting our farm, I was under the assumption and belief that one would need a lot of money to get started and keep going on this adventure. I figured we would need to scrape and save for many of the tools that we would need to make this venture a success.

With years & experience, searching & learning some wisdom finally starts to invade one's thinking though. We have hit several plateaus but never the less continue on our paradgm shift. A new way of thinking, doing, and being. As we've continued our journey "out" of this world and away from societal norm we increasingly have trained ourselves to think outside of the box.

We have become better scroungers (still working on this one), we graciously accept *odd* gifts that others have given us, and our creativity in looking at things and repurposing them has grown and already saved us quite a bit of money. Now if we can stay off the plateaus and continue on steadily onward and upward.

We have come to the point where we buy very little (and store even less, nearly nothing) in plastic any more. We buy in bulk mostly. And for those things such as window wash for the car where it's impossilbe to buy without plastic we first try to be creative and find an alternative. But...when we have purchased these items we try hard to repurpose those *jugs* into useful tools on our farm. Who needs more than this for scooping feed for an animal? Lord knows this plastic will last years and years - it certainly would in a landfill so why not use it for all those years?

What are some odd things that you have repurposed? I'd love more ideas!

Cow Tie Outs

2011-05-13T06:00:00.003-05:00

We are that weird family in the neighborhood that gives you a giggle every time you drive by. For you see, we use the old fashioned technique of tying our cows out on a picket line.

Any day in the summer you will see anywhere from 1 to 3 cows picketed out in our yard. They might be on the side of the house in the heat of the day where there is shade. It might be smack dab in the middle of the front yard. We no longer mow. Wastes gas and wastes food for the cow!!!

Our whole outlook on things has changed drastically around here. Our ultimate goal is to do away with needing fuel (gas or propane) at all. We feel that if we could achieve this goal it would bring us closer to our sufficiency goals by leaps and bounds!

First the aesthetic aspect disappeared in my home decorating. Now it's functional! Now we are more concerned with functionality outdoors as well. I'm loving this journey!!!!!!!! I wish I could convey and share how exhilarating it is to think new thoughts and ways outside the box and buck society's acceptable ways of doing things!! I love being a radical!!

So much for my organic garden........

2011-05-12T07:00:00.004-05:00

I am thinking there has got to be a place to move or go where this sort of thing could be avoided?!?!? Hubby is ready to head for the north woods - would there be peace there??

For the past 5 years, since the tree farm was planted across the street from us, we have been subjected to yearly visits from a really cool helicopter. At first it was cool to watch it rise and dive, flying right up and over our house and swooping down again. Wow, we thought this is fun to watch.

Then we became an organic eating family and now we flinch and get frustrated when the "fill-er-up" truck comes down our road and we know that the chopper is soon to follow.

This morning I took picutres and decided to share some web info on what was literally sprayed right on top of us so that thousands of people can have Christmas trees some day. *sigh*

I decided to walk down to the "fill-er-up" truck and ask the workers what exactly they were spraying on the trees. It is directly across the street from us. Thankfully this year there is little wind and what breeze there is is coming from behind us and blowing it away from us. Not so in previoius years. One year it was SO hot the day they sprayed and we had to have our windows closed for hours and hours afterward to protect ourselves and because it stunk so bad.

The men told me that they were spraying Simazine 90DF and Lorsban Advanced. I did a quick google and the Simazine is an herbacide and the Lorsban is an insecticide. What scares me is the info below about how long the reentry time is for each of these products. The Lorsban is labeled 'warning'. Thank goodness (said wryly) the Simazine is "only" a 'caution'.

From Washington State University's Website:

Signal Word (Precautionary Language) for Tree Fruit Pesticides

The signal word provides the applicator with important information about the toxicity, irritation and sensitization hazards associated with use of that pesticide. Word category is determined by the results of six acute toxicity studies submitted by the pesticide registrant (ingestion, inhalation, dermal absorption, eye effect and skin irritation tests). Danger/Poison products are the most toxic, followed by products marked Danger, followed by products marked Warning, whereas Caution products are the least toxic (Source 40 CFR 156).

In general, "Danger/Poison" and "Danger" chemicals require a 48 hr REI (72 hours for organophosphates used in areas with less than 25 inches of annual precipitation)." Warning" chemicals, in general, require a 24 hr REI and "Caution" chemical usually require a 12 hr REI. Note: Product specific reentry requirements are set by the chemical's registrant. Read all labels carefully to determine the right reentry period for the product you are using.

Hot Dog Bun success!!

2011-05-11T07:00:00.002-05:00

I have tried and tried to make hotdog or hamburger buns - with somewhat success, but no competition to store bought in the light and fluffy department.

Thanks to my Bosch I have now achieved my goal. I got the recipe from Marmee's "Bread Basket" book. So many yummy breads to try - I highly recommend the book!!

Sandwich Buns
Put the following in your Bosch in this order:
4 C warm water
1 C dry milk powder
2 eggs
4 Tbls butter, very soft
1/2 C sugar
5 C unbleached bread flour (I made my own by adding 1 tsp baking powder & 1/2 tsp salt to each cup of all purpose flour)
1 Tbls sea salt
3 Tbls yeast
Mix on medium speed until combined. Then add more unbleached bread flour 1 cup at a time until sides begin to clean from sides of bowl. I used a total of about 11 or 12 Cups of flour. Just until you get a soft workable dough. Knead for 4 minutes on a medium speed. Turn dough out onto a clean oiled surface and divide into 4 equal parts. Let dough rest for 20 minutes. On a lightly floured surface form the dough into buns. I used my rolling pin and rolled them out a bit and then rolled it up from the long side, tucked in the ends to form my hot dog buns. For the hamburger buns I just made a ball of dough and smooshed it.
Brush tops with egg wash. (2 eggs and 2 Tbls water beat together until frothy)
Let rise for about 1 hour - until doubled in size.
Bake at 350 for 14 minutes. Buns should be lightly browned on bottoms and tops.
I got about 16 hot dog buns and 16 hamburger buns out of this recipe.

Back from Vacation

2011-05-09T15:21:00.002-05:00

Back from packing, vacationing, and unpacking, oh, and laundry. Vacations are wonderful but they sure seem to be a lot of work with little ones.

We headed for the home of some dear on-line friends who recently moved to Southeast Missouri. 700 miles. They are no longer on-line friends. They are kindered spirits and dear "real" friends now :-) What a wonderful 3 days we spent with them. Thank you so much ~M & ~B for your hospitality!!

We visited about homestead things, politics, religion, homeschooling, and lots more! We drove over to Mansfield MO in the Southwest part of the state and visited Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds' Planting Festival! It was wonderful. Would have been even better if it had been dry and warm :-/ We also visited the final homestead of Laura Ingalls Wilder and the Rock House that her daughter Rose built for her. It was fun to see the real thing that we've read so much about.

We played in their creek, visited some more, and had a bon fire before heading home. Nothing like a nice 5 day road trip to give us a break and re-energize us for our homestead!

Monsanto Facing GMO Lawsuit

2011-04-26T19:01:00.000-05:00

I read this article at Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds and felt the need to share this info with you. It's FINALLY some news and power being exerted by the little guys. This could be huge if they actually could win. Monsanto has thrown it's ugly power around for far too long - It's time for them to be stopped!

April 11, 2011 by admin

A class action suit has been filed by a group of plaintiffs connected with the organic/natural foods movement against the gene-splicing giant, Monsanto Corporation. The suit, filed March 29, 2011, in United States District Court, Southern District of New York, in Manhattan, seeks a declaratory judgment against Monsanto. If granted, the judgment will prohibit Monsanto from suing for patent infringement in the event that its patented genes, such as the glyphosate tolerance gene, should turn up in seeds or plants grown by organic or heirloom farmers......

Read the whole article here.

Tortillas in the Bosch

2011-04-22T10:24:00.001-05:00

I'm loving my Bosch!! It makes quick work of chocolate chip cookies, whipped up cupcakes in nothing flat, stirred up some yummy soft pretzels, and produced delectable tortillas. Everything is so well combined and at a very quick speed too! I loved my Kitchen Aid but I love my Bosch even more!!

6 1/2 C flour I use a couple of cups of fresh ground wheat flour and then the rest I use white unbleached organic flour.
2 Tbls baking powder
1 Tbls sea salt
1/2 C Coconut oil
2 C Warm water
Mix all these ingredients in the Bosch until everything is well combined and not sticky. Sometimes I have to add a titch more flour.

Shape into balls that are bigger than a golf ball but smaller than a baseball.. I grease my hands with oil left over in the cup to do this. It prevents a crust from forming.

Cover with a towel and let sit for 10 - 20 minutes.

Sprinkle the counter with flour or use a pastry mat like I do. Roll one ball at a time out onto the mat until 1/16 inch thin.

Heat tortillas in a hot skillet. I use a cast iron pan. When tortillas form light brown bubbles, turn and cook the other side. This only takes about a minute or less on each side.

This recipe makes enough for 2 meals. I use 8 for Enchiladas and the rest a few days later for tacos. It makes about 16 tortillas. They keep for several days in a zip lock bag stored in the refrigerator.

Spring Cleaning

2011-04-21T07:52:00.000-05:00

Along with Spring and getting a new mixer comes cleaning out things like the pantry and the lazy susan cupboard. All 3 of the adults that live in this house hate that stupid lazy susan so we decided to empty it and not use it. I'm not sure what I can do with the space or if I even will. In this "segment" we will share our version of how to clean out a lazy susan.

First you give birth to a really skinny helper. Then you wait 18 years for her to grow up and be able to help! Then you tell her to climb in.

Then you hand her the rag from the bucket. She wipes up back there and hands the dirty rag out to you. You rinse and repeat.

Then you run and get the camera because this will make a really funny blog post!

You have a few more good laughs!

You give her a hug, thank her for being skinny and willing to help, and laugh some more! Then you write a blog post about it so you can share with all the world how wonderful and skinny your daughter is!

No she is not anorexic - her dad is tall and skinny too!

She eats well, is very healthy, and usually willing to help her mama.

Could Have Waited 7 Months

2011-04-20T08:24:00.002-05:00

However, I was NOT waiting for this. I could definitely have waited a full 7 months or more for this! I guess it'll be a while longer yet before I can get in that garden eh?

And it's still coming down!!! Ugh!

But it's all good because I can go "play" with THIS......... Yea! It came in the mail yesterday! Ain't it purty?

Waiting

2011-04-19T09:17:00.002-05:00

I have little to post about lately because it seems all I'm doing is waiting.

I'm waiting for my newly purchased Bosch mixer to arrive!!
I'm waiting for one of the cows who was not bred (bummer) to fatten up so we can butcher it.
I'm waiting for the weather to warm up so I can begin to start seeds in the house.
I'm waiting for books that I purchased at the Homeschool conference this past weekend to arrive.
I'm waiting for the calf to be born to the cow that was successfully bred (Yay!).
I'm waiting for the weather to warm up so I can get my hands in the dirt.
I'm waiting for Saturday so I can make up Easter baskets without the risk of them being found.
I'm waiting for Easter Sunday so I can celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior.
I'm waiting for Easter Sunday so I can have my whole family home.

So much waiting......... I guess I'll go sew Easter outfits while I wait ...............

No Bored Kids

2011-04-13T09:46:00.000-05:00

One of the best things about living in the country and especially on a homestead or farm is that the kids never have a chance to get bored. There are always animals to play with or seeds to plant.... or if all else fails, they can play in the wheat berries while mom is grinding the grain to make bread! Gotta love it!!

And if that doesn't keep the attention for long enough.... hand them the camera and they'll make their own fun!

Our Berkey

2011-04-12T13:53:00.000-05:00

We didn't win one in our recent attempts so... we bought one! Our Berkey water filter arrived last week and we've been testing it out. We can not get over how pure and well, pure the water tastes. No chemicals, no chlorine, nothing!

We live with farms all around us which are, unfortunately, not organic. Wouldn't that be a dream?? To be surrounded by organic farms? Wow that would be so awesome. Anyway... we heard the prices were going up April 15 so we scooped one up.

We purchased the Royal and it seems to be enough each day for drinking and cooking. Can't wait to use it during canning season too!!

Now to get those gutters and rain barrel set up so the garden can get fresh water too!

Plant Starting Soil

2011-04-05T11:08:00.001-05:00

This year we were able to find organic seed starting mix at Lowe's. I so wish I had found Sue Robishaw's page on her blog about making our own last fall!! Here is what she has to say and a link to her page too. You can bet I will SO be preparing better for next spring this coming fall. We'll be doing more preparing of beds AND getting seed starting soil ready for the spring.

From Sue's site...............
I tried a lot of different combinations for making my own potting soil in years past and they were great if over elaborate homemade mixtures that took hours and a motorized shredder/grinder to mix. Buying dirt in a plastic bag just wasn't my thing so that wasn't an option but the noise of the shredder was hardly a pleasant experience (besides which we sold it). I decided I was making this project far too complicated and too hard, so I looked around for another solution.

And the solution was right there in front of me. Well, at least it was when I was in the garden. It was there in the compost pile (see the Compost article for information on making compost).

At first I simply used straight compost and that was it. Sometimes I would sift it through a 1/2" hardware cloth screen first, other times I'd wait till I needed it then sift it. For fine seeds I use a 1/4" hardware cloth screen). Maybe I'd mix in some sharp sand.

The plants and I were fairly happy with the results. But the compost tended to be rather heavy, and I occasionally had trouble with damping off. I would spray the seedling flats and pots with a strong chamomile tea and that would usually take care of it. Sometimes I would "water" my filled flats and pots with boiling hot water before planting (letting it cool off first). But my soil is alive and I didn't like the idea of knocking off some important whatevers with the boiling water. So I came up with a mix that is fairly easy but works better.

I have no exact recipe but in general I put a 1/2 inch screen sifter on a wheelbarrow and shovel in and sift:

♣ a half dozen shovels of compost

♣ a few shovels of garden soil (we have sandy-loam soil and I usually take it from the outer perimeter which we keep tilled -- the rest of the garden is in permanent beds). I don't always include garden soil.

♣ several shovels of sharp sand (sifted gravel type sand not the soft sand of most soils. I often use Lake Superior beach sand)

♣ a generous dusting of wood ashes

♣ several shovels worth of old sawdust or shredded dry leaves or well dried grass clippings

Mix it all up with shovel or hoe and you have a generous supply of great healthy potting soil. I do this in the fall, filling a galvanized garbage can in the greenhouse with the mix so I have potting soil ready at hand whenever I need it all winter and spring.

You can just mix it all up without sifting, of course, then sift later as needed (see Soil Sifters article). Works both ways. This is a live soil and I often have to weed my flats of odds and ends of weeds and unwanted seedlings that come with the mixture. It's a rare occasion now that I have damping off or mold but a watering with strong chamomile tea takes care of it if it occurs.

Now I've also potted up small transplants and full sized plants out of the garden to bring in the greenhouse using plain garden soil and they have done just fine. But my experience using garden soil for indoor winter and spring potting soil hasn't been good and I prefer the potting soil mix. Garden soil tends to pack too much making it hard to water and I had more trouble with damping off when I used it. I'm sure this would depend on your soil, however, so experiment.

One way or another, there's no reason to buy potting soil. Make your own! If you eat, you can make compost. If you live where you can't have a regular outdoor compost pile, check out the indoor worm composting method. It looks like fun and I know many folks who swear by it. Your attitude makes a big different in all this, too. Healthy plants start with healthy soil, and a healthy outlook on life will give your potting soil that extra dash of magic that can't be replicated from a bag.

Copyright © 2009 by Susan Robishaw

This woman is a GENIUS!! You MUST check out her extensive site!!!

Loading the Woodbox

2011-03-26T16:37:00.000-05:00

Empty Woodbox

Hopefully loading the woodbox for this year is almost over. We're hoping hard for spring! But before we're done for the year I thought I'd share how we get our wood into the house quite easily. We used to carry it armload by armload down a steep 13 step flight of stairs. That is not only dangerous it is quite time involved. So my ingenius hubby came up with our woodbox and ramp a few years back and it's been working wonderful since then. I think we have been doing it this way for 6 years now.

Wheelborrow loaded

The woodbox can last us anywhere from 3 days if it's really cold to almost a week if we're only doing small fires in the evening to keep the house warm over night.

From inside the house

An outside shot

Here comes the wood

Of course daddy always has lots of helpers on the outside and if it's too cold mommy has helpers on the inside. It's great fun to fill the woodbox don'tcha know!


Just about full

On this particular day the ground was a bit mushy so hubby went easy on the load. He is a wiz at mounding that wheelbarrow SO full that he can pretty much fill the whole woodbox with one load if the ground is frozen solid. He's perfected it as an art!

Enola Gay on Femininity

2011-03-24T07:54:00.001-05:00

I don't often link up to other bloggers. However, when I find an article that they have written that says something in my heart SO much better than I could ever explain it.....well, then I make an exception. I too read the article that Enola refers to in Above Rubies. It touched me but she does such a wonderful job of expressing what I was thinking as I read it.

Enola Gay at Paratus Familia wrote about my life's longing, my life's goal. I pray this same goal for many women in my family and life. I often think of how the world would be if we women all sought after this goal. Enjoy her article if you have a moment - it's just a short one.

Paratus Familia: Quintessentially Feminine

The Cheese Whiz

2011-03-19T16:39:00.001-05:00

We have been making a ton of cheese and dairy products around here lately. I buy my cheese cultures from New England Cheese, affectionately known as NEC around our home.

We make sour cream, yogurt, cream cheese, buttermilk, kefir, ice cream, butter, mozzarella cheese, cheddar cheese, and occasionally use the excess that we can't possibly use as chicken, dog, and cat food.

NEC has cultures, rennet, and all the tools needed (cheese cloth, butter muslin, thermometers, wax, drying mats, etc) to make all these delicious products that have so much more flavor than store bought AND all for pennies compared to store bought. Think 60 cents for a quart of yogurt or sour cream - this is a breath of fresh air as prices continue to rise all over the grocery store isles! I'm able to do it for 60 cents because I buy it in bulk.

Have I mentioned lately how much I love being a cow owner?

Hubby Tea

2011-03-12T11:26:00.000-06:00

My hubby is sick this week. So today I am pampering him. He works so hard all week long. Long hours being bored at his place of employment, lots of driving, and dealing with stupid people all put a strain on him. Last Dec. when all the rest of us were sick he never got it. Now...he's got something. It started as congestion and a sore throat. It has now added mucous and has begun to include his chest feeling like it's on fire too.

I've been giving him Elderberry Syrup, Echinacea Tincture and Licorice Root Tincture. These are our stand-byes for any and all sickness that comes into this house.

I also started a batch of kefir this morning. Why I didn't get one going earlier in the week when he started coming down with this, I don't know.

He's also had one eucalyptus steam treatment already and will have another one this afternoon. Then I made him some yummy tea.

Here's how I make tea from loose herbs.

I heat a kettle of water to boiling. In a pint jar I placed 1/2 tsp of each of the following herbs:
Echinacea Angustifolia Root
Astragalus Root Slices (about 4)
Lemon Balm
Elder Flowers
Peppermint Leaf
I pour the boiling water over the herbs, cover with a small plate and let steep for 10 - 15 minutes. I then strain the herbs out as I pour the liquid into the mug. Add a dollop of honey, stir and sip.

America's breadbasket aquifer running dry; massive agriculture collapse inevitable

2011-03-10T09:45:00.002-06:00

(NaturalNews) It's the largest underground freshwater supply in the world, stretching from South Dakota all the way to Texas. It's underneath most of Nebraska's farmlands, and it provides crucial water resources for farming in Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma and even New Mexico. It's called the Ogallala Aquifer, and it is being pumped dry.

See the map of this aquifer here: http://www.naturalnews.com/images/O...

Without the Ogallala Aquifer, America's heartland food production collapses. No water means no irrigation for the corn, wheat, alfalfa and other crops grown across these states to feed people and animals. And each year, the Ogallala Aquifer drops another few inches as it is literally being sucked dry by the tens of thousands of agricultural wells that tap into it across the heartland of America.

This problem with all this is that the Ogallala Aquifer isn't being recharged in any significant way from rainfall or rivers. This is so-called "fossil water" because once you use it, it's gone. And it's disappearing now faster than ever.

In some regions along the aquifer, the water level has dropped so far that it has effectively disappeared -- places like Happy, Texas, where a once-booming agricultural town has collapsed to a population of just 595. All the wells drilled there in the 1950's tapped into the Ogallala Aquifer and seemed to provide abundant water at the time. But today the wells have all run dry.

Happy, Texas has become a place of despair. Dead cattle. Wilted crops. Once-moist soils turned to dust. And Happy is just the beginning of this story because this same agricultural tragedy will be repeated across Oklahoma, Nebraska, Kansas and parts of Colorado in the next few decades. That's a hydrologic fact. Water doesn't magically reappear in the Ogallala. Once it's used up, it's gone.

"There used to be 50,000 head of cattle, now there's 1,000," says Kay Horner in a Telegraph report (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/83...). "Grazed them on wheat, but the feed lots took all the water so we can't grow wheat. Now the feed lots can't get local steers so they bring in cheap unwanted milking calves from California and turn them into burger if they can't make them veal. It doesn't make much sense. We're heading back to the Dust Bowl."

The end of cheap food in America?

It's a sobering thought, really: That "America's breadbasket" is on a collision course with the inevitable. A large percentage of the food produced in the United States is, of course, grown on farmlands irrigated from the Ogallala. For hundreds of years, it has been a source of "cheap water," making farming economically feasible and keeping food prices down. Combined with the available of cheap fossil fuels over the last century (necessary to drive the tractors that work the fields), food production has skyrocketed in North America. This has led to a population explosion, too. Where food is cheap and plentiful, populations readily expand.

It only follows that when food becomes scarce or expensive (putting it out of reach of average income earners), populations will fall. There's only so much food to go around, after all. And after the Ogallala runs dry, America's food production will plummet. Starvation will become the new American landscape for those who cannot afford the sky-high prices for food.

Aquifer depletion is a global problem

It's not a problem that's unique to America, by the way. The very same problem is facing India, where fossil water is already running dry in many parts of the country. It's the same story in China, too, where water conservation has never been a top priority. Even the Middle East is facing its own water crisis (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/...). This has caused food prices to skyrocket, leading directly to the civil unrest, the riots and even the revolutions we've seen taking place there over the last few months.

The problem is called aquifer depletion (http://www.eoearth.org/article/Aqui...), and it's a problem that spans the globe. It means that today's cheap, easy food -- grown on cheap fossil water -- simply isn't sustainable. Once that water is gone, the croplands that depend on it dry up. Following that, erosion kicks in, and the winds blow away the dry soils in a "Dust Bowl" type of scenario.

A few years after that, what was once a thriving agricultural operation is transformed into a dry, soilless death pit where nothing lives.

"The Ogallala supply is going to run out and the Plains will become uneconomical to farm," says David Brauer of the Ogallala Research Service, part of the USDA. "That is beyond reasonable argument. Our goal now is to engineer a soft landing. That's all we can do." (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/83...)

Such is the legacy of conventional agriculture, which is based almost entirely on non-sustainable practices. Its insane reliance on fossil water, petroleum fertilizers, toxic pesticides and GMOs will only lead our world to agricultural disaster.

Be prepared and be safe

I want all NaturalNews readers to be prepared, informed and safe when facing our uncertain future. We know that trouble is stirring around the world, and much of it is either caused by or will lead to food shortages.

The GMO companies, of course, will exploit this situation to their advantage, claiming that only GMOs can grow enough food to feed the world. This is a lie. GMOs and patented seeds only enslave the world population and lead to great social injustice. The days of food slavery are fast approaching for those who do not have the means to grow at least a portion of their own food.

As part of our effort to help people become more self-reliant -- with greater food security -- throughout 2011 and 2012 I plan to bring you more articles, videos and webcast events that focus on home food production, self-reliance, family preparedness and sustainable living. Recently we announced a live webcast event on financial preparedness but the available seats at that event sold out in a matter of days (http://www.naturalnews.com/Economic...).

Based on the huge demand for this event, we have decided to roll out a second preparedness event in April, focused on food preparedness and security. Watch for an announcement on that soon.

In the mean time, I am personally working on growing more of my own food and will be creating a new series of videos and articles based on some of what I learn along the way. From living in South America and producing quite a large amount of food there, I have a fair amount of experience on home food production, but of course there's always more to learn, right?

My gut feeling on all this is that learning to grow and store some portion of your own food is going to become a crucial survival skill over the next few years. And that means understanding water, soil, open-pollinated seeds, organic fertilizers, soil probiotics, insect pollination, growing with the seasons, sprouting, food harvesting, food drying, canning, storage and much more. It's a whole set of skills that have faded away in America in just two generations, leaving very few people who now know how to live off their own land.

What's becoming increasingly obvious from events such as the drying up of aquifers is that home food production is going to become a critical survival skill. I want NaturalNews readers to know and practice these skills as much as possible so that you can experience the comforts (and freedoms!) of genuine food security.

Watch for more stories about preparedness, home food production and self-reliant living here on NaturalNews.

Sources for this story include:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/83...

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/031658_aquifer_depletion_Ogallala.html#ixzz1GDBrxW00

Yearly Schedule Success!!

2011-03-07T14:13:00.003-06:00

We have been homeschooling for 10 years. Six of those years we have been homesteading also. I have yet to figure out how to have a consistent flexible schedule and not continually get behind, all while having enough days for the children to learn a lot. Last evening I had a revelation and I THINK it's gonna work. Now I really hope I can explain my plan.

We have schooled year round for the most part. Usually we would take a month off here or there. Sometimes we'd take weeks off and then it was always so hard to get back on track and to not have some subjects suffer while others stayed okay.

We will begin each new school year in June like we have for quite some time. Our year runs June - May. Then I divide the year into 3 Trimesters. June - Sept, Oct - Jan, & Feb - May. Each of these trimesters have 17 weeks plus one extra week at the end of May which will always be a week off. With those 17 weeks I did a bit of math. Follow me here now - 17 weeks X 4 days per week = 68 days. My goal was 180 days total so I only need 60 per trimester. Having a 4 day week will ensure a single flex day per week AND we will have the flexibility to take 8 other days per trimester for life as it comes. If not all 8 days are needed for "life" then we'll have 2 weeks at the end of the trimester off thus instilling even more flexibility.

Okay........now here's the most beautiful part of my brainstorm... We will not do Monday thru Thursday with Friday always off. If we have appointments on Wednesday, that will be our day off. AND to insure that no subject areas routinely get missed we will not call our days by weekday names but rather day 1, day 2, day3 and day 4. Monday would be day 1, Tuesday - day 2, Wednesday we take off for appointment, Thursday - day 3, and Friday day 4. If Tuesday needs to be the day off the next week then we'll just continue on with whichever day is next on Wednesday. If 2 days need to be taken off in a week then we continue on the next week with whatever day comes next. A continuous rotation of the 4 days. With this method all 4 days get equal attention of 15 times each.

Planning this will be so easy. As I plan, nothing will get out of order or consistently missed. We just pick up where we left off and keep going. The 60 days per semester (180 days), choice of 2 days per week (30 days) or 3 (45 days) or 4 (all 60 days) will all give me LOTS of flexibility for each subject area and how different curriculum and/or lesson plans are normally written. It will also fit nicely with our Charlotte Mason style of schooling for music, picture study, poetry, etc.. that have either 3 or 6 people/areas studied each year. They can either have a whole semester or 2 months for each if we need to cover 6.

TONS of flexibility and still 180 days loaded with learning each year!!!!!!

I am just loving this idea!! I hope I've explained it well and that someone reading this can benefit from my ah-ha moment. I can not believe the flexibility for planting, harvesting, canning, appointments, etc.. this will give us on our homestead and our momentum won't suffer in the mean time. A day here or a day there and we're right back into the swing of things without having to regroup and restart again and again. It might sound complicated but when mapped out on the calendar it makes SO much sense.

Radical Anti Must Haves

2011-03-02T07:00:00.001-06:00

Have you ever though about all the things that society, advertisers, and fellow humans convince us that we need to have? As our lifestyle has changed drastically in the past 6 years I have frequent thoughts about what we've finally had the courage to cut and let go of and how much more we still can. These items can range from packaged grocery items to activities to home decor to... well, the list is endless.

I've thought a lot about living a simple life lately. I've decided that often times technology has done anything but simplify our lives. Just think about all the time and energy we'd save if we didn't "have" to answer texts, surf the net, browse facebook, or answer emails! The mantra is that these things help us communicate. Do they? I don't know about you but I'd much rather have a cup of tea with the real person and take the time to chat about politics, religion, the weather, whatever our hearts desire to chat about.

I think the key to simplifying isn't in technology but rather letting go. Letting go of possessions, activities and such that rob us of time to enjoy the life that we want to live. I've come up with a list of ten of my random thoughts of Radical Anti Must Haves - things that the world tries to convince us we absolutely can't live without. Things that our ancestors 100 years ago would laugh at if we told them we couldn't live without it!

1) A tv in every room
2) A dishwasher
3) Sports activities for your children
4) Grocery shopping once a week
5) a bedroom for each child
6) kleenex and paper towels
7) A car for every driver
8) frozen prepared packaged foods
9) Xbox, cell phones, GPS's, blackberries, and ipods
10) A 2 - income family

We have been conditioned to believe that all these things and many more are necessary to enjoy or even just plain live life. We've been convinced that our very survival depends on these things. Does it? I think not.

I'm proud to call myself a Radical. I'm excited to be on a journey of simplifying. I'm eager to resurrect ways, ideas, and paths of old. It might take a bit more time but the process will be so much more enjoyable. Our ancestors knew that relationships were important, discipline & hard work made a man prosperous, and that diligence paid off. Why do we no longer live by these principles? I anticipate sharing these lessons with my family.

Stand at the crossroads and look;
ask for the ancient paths,
ask where the good way is, and walk in it,
and you will find rest for your souls

Jeremiah 6:16

Made Deodorant Today

2011-03-01T15:11:00.003-06:00

I was almost out of deodorant - TMI?

Sorry... but I love when I can make stuff like this!! This is livin' the dream to me. Being able to make and provide as much for ourselves as we possibly can. Each little thing is just one more step in the ultimate dream of being debt free, hubby working from home, and living off of our off-grid farm. So while it's only deodorant, it represents SO much more!

Here is the recipe that I used today. Last time I used Orange E.O. but the whole time I used it I always thought I smelled like my husband's orange hand cleaner that he uses after working in the garage. I decided that Lavender or Spearmint would be a bit more feminine. Today I used Spearmint.

You can find the recipe here Deodorant Recipe

New Daily Bread Recipe

2011-02-28T13:36:00.003-06:00

While our bread recipe that we've been using for a solid 3 years was a good one, I have found an even better one!! I found it on Home Joy's blog. The only thing I do different is add a bit of fresh ground wheat flour, about 2 cups. I'll increase it a bit more as the family gets used to the recipe. They say they like it much better. I haven't figured out if that's because the first few times I've made it I used all white flour or not. Time will tel.

2 T yeast
2 C warm water
In KA mixer bowl, disolve yeast in water.
Add:
1/4 C honey
1 T salt
1/4 C olive oil
2 beaten eggs
3 C flour.
Beat until smooth.
Stir in just enough of the remaining 3 1/2 - 4 C of flour to form a soft dough.
Knead in mixer for 5 minutes. If the dough has some stickiness in the bottom as you're kneading feel free to sprinkle a bit more four in. But JUST a sprinkle!!
Place dough in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise until doubled - about 1 hour.
Punch dough down and divide into 3 blobs. Place blobs in loaf pans.
Let rise. Bake at 375 for 27 minutes.

Milk Straining

2011-02-27T15:56:00.004-06:00

It has come to my attention that some people purchase disposable milk straining cloths. I didn't even know such a thing existed. I guess I really am an old fashioned person. I used to be so caught up in easy, disposable, least amount of work no matter the cost or the environmental impact. I have done a 180 in the past 6 years. LOL Now I don't buy hardly any disposables at all and I guess I'm ignorant to those that are available even!

I've shared before that we use a bucket with bounty paper towels to clean the cow's udder. Then we use a reusable Tupperware cup as a teat dip cup. I guess we could make or buy reusable towels for washing her udder but when you're coming in from the barn with a bucket full of milk it would seem to me to complicate things by having to bring in dirty towels too. Further more, our goal in washing the udder is to get it as clean as possible (cows are VERY dirty if you didn't know) and we've been advised and have come to experience that re-dipping an already soiled towel to continue washing is not as sanitary as we'd like to be.

Our washable straining cloths are approximately 9X9 and fit over the funnel just fine.

We want to make sure no rocks or debris would get mixed into our milk some how. We are fastideous about our milking but once in a while a teat cup has been laid down and the possibility is there. A clean, washable, reusable, serged together double layer of butter muslin does the trick. At first we used cotton calico fabric cloths but the butter muslin is tightly woven enough and yet allows us to get the straining done much faster!! Gotta love efficiency!!

Broccoli Cheese Soup with Homemade Cheddar Cheese

2011-02-26T10:40:00.004-06:00

The other night I made broccoli cheese soup and I used our own homemade farmhouse cheddar cheese for the first time in it. It was SO very yummy. I am so glad that we got the cheese figured out and don't have to buy it any more. Here is the recipe that I used - real simple!!

2 C diced potatoes
1 C chopped onion
1 C carrots chopped
1/2 C minced celery
1 C water
Cook together for 5 minutes.

2 C chopped broccoli
Add and continue to cook an additional 5 - 10 minutes

3 C milk (I used half cream and half milk)
2 chicken bouillon cubes
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste
Add and heat to boiling

1 C milk
1/3 C flour
Blend until smooth by shaking in a pint size jar. Stir into the soup and cook just until thickened. Turn off heat.

1 C cheddar cheese, shredded
Add and stir until melted

Winter is the time to Sew

2011-02-25T07:41:00.004-06:00

I'm still trying to get this whole "flow with the seasons" thing. My heart wants to garden but of course it's way too early yet for that. I can't even start seeds yet here on the tundra. So.... I sew.

2011 Fabric Prices

2011-02-24T12:54:00.002-06:00

I have been hearing and reading all over the news that cotton prices are going to double in 2011. So... I went to my favorite fabric haunt yesterday and priced them. I am blogging about it so I can have a record of what prices were before they sky rocket. Just future info for me but if you want to use it too - go ahead.

Funky flannel 4.99
shirting 3.99 - 5.99
Homespun solids 3.99
broadcloth rems 1.49 sale 1.29
Dan River shirting 2.99 - 3.99
shirting plaid flannels 3.99
juvi flannel 3.99 sale 2.99(rems)
juvi flannel 3.99 - 6.99 (bolts)
juvi knit prints 4.99 sale 3.99
denim 3.99 - 4.99 sale 2.99
chambray 3.99 - 4.99 sale 2.99
fashion knit prints 3.99 sale 2.99
t shirt stripes 2.99 - 3.99 sale 1.99
wool 6.99 (I have a ton of this in my stash that was given to me)
terry toweling 4.99
gauze calcutta 3.99
sweatshirt solids 3.99
sportswear solids 3.99
sportswear pretty colors 3.99 sale 2.99
corduroy 3.99 - 6.99 (rems 3.99)
Easy knit interfacing (this is THE ONLY interfacing I ever use. I buy white and black of it in bulk) 3.45
3/4 non roll elastic .99
Tulle 1.09 (I have weddings coming up LOL)