Homemaking on the Homestead

This Week’s Menu

2012-01-30T05:40:00.000-08:00

Monday

Leftovers (leftover chicken noodle soup from last week)

Tuesday

Split peas soup w/bacon,pepperoni bread, salad

Wednesday

Taco pie (new recipe I’ll share this week if it turns out :), salad

Thursday

Lasagna, French bread, salad

Friday

Italian chicken & rice, salad

Saturday

Sausage potato soup,dinner rolls, salad

Sunday

Bbq ham & cornbread casserole, salad

Sweet Corn Muffins

2012-01-28T10:37:00.000-08:00

I made these muffins the other night to go with a yummy pot of beef noodle soup. I had cornbread on the menu but decided last minute to try something new. They were a huge hit and my family said they made a perfect addition to the soup..

Sweet Corn Muffins

3 cups whole wheat pastry flour (aka.. soft white wheat)
1 ½ cups cornmeal
2 cups cane juice crystals or white sugar
2T baking powder
1t salt
4 eggs
1 cup olive oil
2 cups milk

In a large bowl combine flour, cane juice crystals (or white sugar), baking powder and salt. Mix well. In a smaller bowl combine eggs, olive oil and milk. Pour into first bowl and mix well.

Grease 24 muffin tins very well. Fill each muffin cup with about ¼ to 1/3 cup batter. Bake at 350 for 25 to 30 minutes.

Enjoy!!

Correction..

2012-01-27T19:29:00.000-08:00

Update on my son Jacob.. Well I thought it was official when I posted my blog this morning butthere has been yet another change of plans for him.. he did not sign up today for the ArmyReserves and instead will be making different plans.. so I will watch and see how those plansdevelop this year!

Updates from the Homestead

2012-01-27T12:15:00.000-08:00

We have added a new member to our family!! Our sweet Alpine doe, Bonnie, delivered a little baby boy yesterday!! And he is so cute! He looks more Nubian than Alpine as his daddy, Clyde, is Nubian. His coloring looks just like mama. Since it was pretty cold out I pulled out one of my baby goat sweaters and put it on him to help keep him warm (http://thefamilyhomestead.com/crochetgoatsweater.htm ). By this morning he was all warmed up and walking around with mama dad…

Mom & Dad

January life on our homestead is pretty routine (other than the birth of a baby goat!). For Isaac and Sierra their daily focus is school and we are making good progress through the school year. At the beginning of the school year I shared that I was using Switched on Schoolhouse for my son Isaac. He is using it for English, science and history (we still use Saxon for math). After a half year of using the program I have to say I really like it!! It has saved me a lot of time in correcting papers and organizing a schedule to make sure we are on track. SOS does all of that for me. Isaac likes the program as well. I am pretty sure at this point that we will be using it again next year for him.

That is from the homestead for now!!

Meatballs for the Freezer

2012-01-25T19:38:00.000-08:00

Today I made a big batch of meatballs for the freezer. I used 5lbs of hamburger and followed the recipe for hamburger veggie meatloaf that I have here:http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/beefveggiemeatloaf.htm

I basically doubled the recipe and made a big bowl full….

I like to use my cookie scoop to make the meatballs. My scoop is 1T in size..

I scooped them out and put them on a greased jelly roll pan (actually it filled 3 jelly roll pans)…

Then baked them at 350 for 20 minutes ..

After they were baked I put them on a pizza pan to flash freeze (It filled 2 pizza pans, cookie sheets would work too). I did not want them to freeze in one big lump.

After they have frozen individually I will put them in a zip lock type bag and put them back in the freezer. Now I can take out however many I need for a meal. It’s a nice convenience to have on hand! My favorite recipe for meatballs is this one: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/bbqcrockpotmeatballs.htm

Healthy Breakfast Smoothie

2012-01-24T08:26:00.000-08:00

I’ve recently been making a breakfast smoothie most mornings and it is sooo good and packed full of nutritional benefits. This smoothie is easy to make and tastes delicious.

Orange & Apple Smoothie
1 orange, peeled, and separated into slices
1 apple, peeled , cored & sliced
1T coconut oil
1 T golden flax seed
1T honey
1 cup coconut milk (or almond milk or regular milk can be used as well)
2 handfuls ice

Put the orange and apple into blender. Add coconut milk, coconut oil and flax seed. Blend until smooth. Add ice to make it thick and slushy.

Here it is in pictures….

Assemble your ingredients…

Prepare the orange and apple…

Put the orange and apple in the blender…

Add the coconut oil, flax seed and honey…

Add coconut milk…

Blend until smooth…

Add ice..

Blend again and serve…

Makes a little over 2 cups of smoothie...

Enjoy!!

This Week’s Menu

2012-01-23T05:03:00.000-08:00

Monday
Spaghetti, French bread, salad

Tuesday
Yummy Pinto Beans,homemade dinner rolls, salad

Wednesday
Beef vegetable noodle soup,cornbread, salad

Thursday
Chicken n’ gravy overbiscuits, salad

Friday
Bbq crockpot meatballs,crockpot mac & cheese, salad

Saturday
Homemade chicken noodle soup,dinner rolls, salad

Sunday
Crockpot chili, tortilla chips & salsa, salad

Make Ahead Breakfast

2012-01-21T12:08:00.000-08:00

Yesterday evening my boys had a couple of their friends come over. The weather outside was quickly turning to ice and not looking so great.. They spent some time sledding down our big hill in the dark and on more ice than snow!! But they had fun. Needless to say the boys spent the night as no one was going to be out driving in such weather if they did not have to!

Before heading to bed I thought about what I was planning to feed everyone come morning time. To save myself some time and effort in the morning I got a breakfast casserole in the fridge.

Sausage Egg Breakfast Casserole

3T butter
3T whole wheat flour
2 cups milk
½ t salt
a few shakes of pepper
1 to 1 ½ cups grated cheddar cheese
2T butter
¼ lb sausage (such as Jimmy Dean)
3 large mushrooms, sliced
1 small onion, chopped
12 beaten eggs

Begin by making the cheese sauce. In a small pan melt butter over medium high heat. When the butter has melted add the flour and mix until combined. Add milk, salt & pepper. Stir with a wire whisk until it comes to a boil and thickens up. Cook for a minute or so and remove from heat. Add cheese and stir until the cheese melts. Set this aside.

In a frying pan melt butter and add sausage, mushrooms and onions. When the sausage has finished cooking and the veggies are soft add beaten eggs. Scramble and cook the eggs until they are set. Pour cheese sauce over eggs and mix to combine. Pour mixture into a 9x13 pan that has been sprayed with non stick spray. Refrigerate overnight.

In the morning bake casserole at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Then to go with the egg casserole I made a batch of muffins. I have apples and oranges as well to serve along with it this morning..

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins

2c milk
2c quick cook oats
2 eggs
½ c olive oil
2c whole wheat pastry flour
½ c cane juice crystals or white sugar
4T baking powder
1t salt
1c chocolate chips

In a small bowl combine milk and oats and let sit for 15 minutes. In a larger bowl combine eggs and olive oil and stir. Add flour, cane juice crystals (or white sugar), baking powder & salt. Stir together until mixed and add chocolate chips.

Spoon batter into muffin tins that have been sprayed with non stick spray. Bake at 425 for 18 to 22 minutes. Makes approx. 18 muffins

The effort last night made for an easy morning today!

Memorable Happy 18th Birthday to Jacob!

2012-01-19T17:43:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was Jacob’s 18th birthday. We woke up covered in a thick blanket of snow and no power. Tobin and I had to go into town to take care of a few necessary things and had to put chains on the car to get down the driveway and down to the main highway, then he pulled over and took them off. They had plowed, but it was still slow going. The city was just fine, mostly just rain. What little snow they had gotten was already melted.

I kept calling home to see if the power had come back on. At one point Jacob called the PUD (Tobin had already called them once in the morning) and they said they were still working on it. It was almost 6:pm when we got home and still now power. At that point it had been 13 hours. All our other neighbors had power but we did not, so Tobin called again only to be told that they thought they were done and had moved onto the next town! We were pretty frustrated.. but at times.. what can you do?? So we hooked up the batteries/inverters and had a little light, and could plug in our modem and router briefly and we got the camping lanterns lit and then started the barbeque. I had originally planed a Mexican Fiesta dinner for Jacob’s birthday.. but that wasn’t going to happen.. so we had bbq’d hamburgers instead! Since the day was so crazy I (or one of my girls) had not been able to bake a cake for Jacob.. instead we got very creative…

The whole evening turned out to be so much fun.. We spent our time together talking, laughing, and just having a great time.

Happy Birthday to my son Jacob! This was for certain his most memorable birthday ever!

Oh.. we did get our power restored at about 1:am.. 20 hours later…

Making Chow Mien

2012-01-17T18:42:00.000-08:00

I had a lady leave me a comment on my weekly menu post asking if I would share my chow mien recipe. Tonight we had chow mien to go along with ourorange chicken for dinner. So I took some pics to show you how to make it. I don’t really have exact measurements for it. It is one of those meals I just kind of “wing it”.

First I begin by cutting up my veggies. This recipe is pretty versatile; you can use a large variety of veggies. There are no certain veggies you have to have. For this meal I used: 1 small onion, 1 carrot, 3 red mini peppers, a small wedge of red cabbage and a small wedge of green cabbage. You could also use celery or mushrooms. If you only have one or two of the needed veggies, that works too. You can just a few veggies or lots of them.. it is up to you. I chopped my cabbages up, sliced my onions and peppers and cut my carrot into small sticks…

After I chopped the veggies up I measured out 10oz of whole wheat spaghetti noodles and put a pot of water on to boil…

While the water was coming to a boil I heated my large cast iron frying pan and then added some olive oil to it (enough to coat the bottom of the pan). Then I added my veggies….

While the veggies were cooking my water came to a boil and added the spaghetti noodles..

By the time the noodles were done cooking the veggies had finished cooking…

I added the cooked noodles and then added spices. I used about ¼ cup soy sauce, 1 tablespoon fish sauce and a ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes..

You could also add meat to this to make it a main dish; chicken, beef, shrimp, pork would all work well. You would cut up the meat into bite size pieces and cook it at the same time you were cooking the veggies.

Enjoy!

The Benefits of Having Children Read Classics

2012-01-16T18:24:00.000-08:00

I think most everyone would agree on the importance of having children read. As a homeschooling mom I read and saw a lot of really bad literature for children and young people and decided early on with my children that I wanted them to be exposed to books that have stood the test of time and are consider excellent literature, the classics.

Over the years as I would read classic books to my kids and they began to read them as well I saw firsthand many of the wonderful benefits that come from reading classics.

Reading classics will expand and increase vocabulary. Children will be exposed to a vast amount of vocabulary words that they might not hear otherwise. And when the words are read in context it helps in understanding what the words mean.

I’ve seen that reading classics gives children exposure to writers that have an excellent command of the English language. This in turn, I believe, will help make children better writers. When they read and see how our language is used they in turn can learn proper sentence structure and this will help them in their own writing. For some children reading also improves spelling.

I’ve seen that classic books most often have intricate plots. This can help improve thinking skills as the child follows the plot.

I also love how classics will give the reader an in-depth look into history. The books are typically set in various times in history and after reading the book the reader walks away with a much better understanding of that time period.

The best part of reading classics is that they are very enjoyable books to read! Many classics can be hard to get into; they take time developing the characters and the plot. But once you are into a classic book they become almost impossible to put down! There is a reason they are consider classics!!

If you would like a list of some classics and a few resources I have a web page with a book list that I used when my kids were younger:http://thefamilyhomestead.com/thereadingroom.htm

This year I assigned my daughter Sierra and son Isaac their book lists of classic books to read and here is what those lists look like:

My daughter Sierra is 16 and in 10th grade and my focus is on American Literature:

Rifles for Watie by Harold Keith
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
The Trumpeter of Krakow by Eric P. Kelly
David Crockett Scout by Charles Fletcher Allen
Up From Slavery by Booker T. Washington
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane
A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemmingway
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Joan of Arc by Mark Twain
Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beacher Stowe

My Son Isaac is in 8th grade and here is his list (more books may be added):

Call of the Wild by Jack London
Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
The Old Man and The Sea by Ernest Hemingway
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White
The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane
The Boy Knight by G.A. Henty
Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne

This Weeks Menu

2012-01-16T04:11:00.000-08:00

Monday

Clam chowder,dinner rolls, salad

Tuesday

Orange chicken , chow mien, salad

Wednesday

Tacos, chile relleno casserole,refried beans (Mexican Fiesta for Jacobs 18^th birthday)

Thursday

Leftovers

Friday

BBQ Ham & Cornbread Casserole, salad

Saturday

Delicious Italian casserole, salad

Sunday

Baked chicken legs, mashed potatoes, salad

Garlic Roasted Brussel Sprouts

2012-01-14T05:38:00.000-08:00

I’m working on adding a few more veggies to our diet. I make a fresh green salad pretty much with every dinner meal but I also wanted to include a few more veggies. I recently tried brussel sprouts. I've served them before and I have to say not many in my family were super impressed… until I cooked them this way.. and the last batch I made were completely wiped out at dinner time. The only one who did share everyone’s enthusiasm for them was my son Isaac.. but then.. he is not all that thrilled with any vegetable :) .. so I’m not really counting his vote in all this!

Garlic Roasted Brussel Sprouts

2lbs brussel sprouts, cut in half
4T olive oil (approx, could be a little more than this.. I did not actually measure, just drizzled)
1T minced garlic
salt and pepper, to taste
½ cup water

Put brussel sprouts in a 9x13 pan. Drizzle with olive and stir to coat all the brussel sprouts. Add garlic, salt and pepper and stir again. Pour water over veggies. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes, stir and check them. Cook for another 5 to 10 minutes or until fork tender..

Enjoy!!

Pizza Crusts for the Freezer

2012-01-11T19:13:00.000-08:00

We love homemade pizza! One thing I like to do is make a big batch of pizza crusts and then freeze them for use later on. If I don’t have any in the freezer on pizza night then I make up a batch of dough that will make 6 pizza crusts. My family eats 2 pizzas and the other 4 crusts go in the freezer.

Here is my pizza crust recipe:http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/wwpizzacrust.htm I double the 3 crust recipe to get 6 pizza crusts.

To make them for the freezer.. make the dough and let it rise once, punch it down and divide into 6 balls of dough…

Roll them out on the pizza pan (my pan size is: 14 inch) that as been sprayed with non-stick spray…

Par bake (prebake) them for 6 minutes… let them cool.. I have 3 pizza pans and bake one at a time and then slide them off the pan and reuse the pans for the next ones.

When the crusts have completely cooled I wrap them in plastic wrap and put them in the freezer….

When I want to use the crusts I pull one out of the freezer, remove the plastic wrap and set it on a pizza pan. It defrosts pretty quickly (an hour or so).. when it has defrosted I put my toppings on and bake according to the recipe…

Having the crusts in the freezer makes dinner pretty simple!!

Here is my favorite pizza sauce recipe:

Pizza Sauce
3- 8oz cans tomato sauce
1- 6oz can tomato paste
1T Italian seasonings
1t minced garlic, heaping
1t salt
pinch or two of cane juice crystals (or sugar) - according to your own tastes

Heat this up on the stove on low until hot.

Basement Storage Area Organization Project!

2012-01-10T19:25:00.000-08:00

This last weekend I did my basement storage area organizing project. Every year I go through things and clean up, downsize and organize it. And as the year progresses it gets messy and more things get added to the pile and by January it is time once again to clean up and see what can be tossed or given away.

So… here is what my storage area looked like before I got started…

I knew I would need a place to sort things as I went through it all. I have a room next to the storage area.. we use to call it the music room when I had more kids at home that played musical instruments.. nowadays the room is more of a hang out room for the younger kids..

I started by grabbing the bags of out grown clothing and piling them up in the room …

Then I started opening each tote. I have the tote’s labeled so I know what is in them but it always amazes me each year how much stuff I can get rid of or throw away. I was able to get rid of things and ended up clearing out 4 totes….

Then I attacked the table next to the totes and found things that could be reduced and gotten rid of. When I was done it looked so much better!!

I have already sorted through the clothing finding what could be given away and what needs to be tossed. Now I need to move on to cleaning out the kid’s closets .. and that thought makes me shudder.. LOL.. but I am determined!!

This Week’s Menu

2012-01-09T05:45:00.000-08:00

Monday:
Hamburger Veggie Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, garlic roasted brussel sprouts, salad

Tuesday:
Pizza, salad

Wednesday:
Split pea soup w/ham bone,dinner rolls, salad

Thursday:
Jambalaya, salad

Friday:
Leftovers

Saturday:
Southwest Stew,cornbread, salad

Sunday:
Chicken pot pie, salad

Proverbs 31:10

2012-01-07T06:23:00.000-08:00

Who can find a virtuous wife? For her worth is far above rubies

Every now and again in my Bible studies I like to come back and read about the Proverbs 31 woman. Each time a different verse will really stand out to me. Today it was verse 10. I spent a great deal of time on studying the word virtuous. I first went to the online dictionary and it said: “characterized by or possessing virtue or moral excellence; righteous; upright” and I looked up virtue: “Moral excellence and righteousness; goodness”

Then I went searching for the word in Hebrew and the word used in this verse is “Chayil” … and it means: “strength, might, efficiency, wealth, army” (http://www.studylight.org/lex/heb/view.cgi?number=02428 )

When viewing both definitions I see a woman whose strength is in her character and she possessed a wealth of righteousness and goodness. This “moral excellence” comes from our spiritual walk with the Lord. It comes from time spent in the Word, knowing the heart of God, His Word and the help of the Holy Spirit in our lives to make right choices each and every day.

And she also had physical strength as well if you read about the work of her daily life. It takes strength to accomplish the work of a homemaker. How many nights have we all fallen into bed exhausted from having cared for our families, cooking meals, cleaning the house and managing other responsibilities in our daily life? I think it would be hard to argue the fact that physical strength is also part of this.

And women like this are hard to find… “her worth is far above rubies”… rare gems. Not ordinary rocks you can find anywhere.. but rare gems.

May we all walk into 2012 with the desire to grow in our relationship with the Lord, rise up to the daily tasks of life and shine like rare gems…

Cupboard Organization Project

2012-01-04T19:27:00.000-08:00

I spent most of my morning going through several kitchen cupboards. I can’t believe how bad I let some of my cupboards get! I guess it is as I said in my last blog post.. we learn to function in dysfunction. In my quest for getting my coffee cups closer to the coffee maker I also wanted take to the opportunity to clean up and organize my spice cabinet. It was a big mess..

I had spice bottles and bags of bulk spices everywhere. Plus I had a few things in there that I had no idea exactly why they were there… :) .. So where do you begin when it is such a mess? I decided that I needed to pull everything out of that cupboard so I could see what I had and evaluate it all. So I removed all items from my kitchen counter, put them on my dining room table and grabbed my bottle of Basic H2 All Purpose Cleaner…

And washed the counter all clean..

Then I brought everything out on the counter…

I had previously purchased some empty spice bottles from Winco and planned on using those for some of the spices. What I found was spices I never use, spices I had bought but never got them into the spice jars, and way to many of some spices because I would buy them not realizing I already had them.. Really now.. who needs this much celery seed????

So I filled spice bottles and labeled them (I have a hand held label maker that I used for this, however labels could be made on the computer as well). For the bags of bulk spices I put the remainder of what I had (after filling the smaller bottles) and put them in canning jars and labeled the canning jars with labels made on the computer.

When I had it all done and much more organized it looked like this…

I took the bigger bags of unopened spices that I had and put them all into a one gallon canning jar for storage…..

Now it was time to get the spices back into the cupboard. This project has been on my mind for some time so I had already purchased (from Amazon.com) a nifty little stair step type organizing shelf that fit perfectly into my cupboard…

I put the spices that were most commonly used on this and less used spices above. I put the extra spices in the canning jars in the cupboard next to this because it had more room..

I did eventually get the coffee mugs moved too.. I have three cabinets next to each other and the center cabinet is a corner cabinet.. I moved the the coffee mugs to the cupboard on the left. My coffee area is next to my microwave.

In the middle corner cabinet I put all my coffee beans and coffee filters as well as tea bags….

I think I have it all organized in a logical way that will be easy to keep this way and no more functioning in dysfunction!!

This Week’s Menu

2012-01-02T05:00:00.000-08:00

Monday:
Baked chicken legs,crockpot mac & cheese, salad

Tuesday:
Turkey noodle soup (just spent the last couple of days simmering the turkey bones from Christmas dinner for this meal it is made just like I would makechicken noodle soup),pumpkin muffins, salad

Wednesday:
Mongolian beef over brown rice, salad

Thursday:
crockpot chili, corn muffins, salad

Friday:
Leftovers

Saturday:
Salmon patties,garlic roasted potatoes, salad

Sunday:
Chicken & rice enchiladas (scroll down to the middle of this page to see how to make the enchiladas),refried beans, tortilla chips, salad

Functioning in Dysfunction

2011-12-31T14:30:00.000-08:00

I like being organized. I like when things in my home function well. As my family life has changed over the years (from babies & toddlers to young people to teens and older kids).. my systems of organizing things have changed too, at least in some areas. I recently decided to give my laundry room a good cleaning. Last year I organized the pantry shelves and cleaning supplies and such. But I was still fighting with a few things in there, such as my vacuum cleaner, my Sh-mop, empty laundry baskets, etc.. it seemed I was shoving and stuffing these things and fighting with them when I needed them. That is when I realized that often times we will learn to function in dysfunction (I'm not talking about major dysfunction, just small things that can cause frustration and we don't realize it). We don’t really see the issue and we just keep working with a system that obviously does not work well… but it works enough to adapt to it or to function within the dysfunction.

My personal challenge for my home as I usher in 2012 is to start taking a better look at the way things are functioning and determine if it is working well. Each time I am trying to accomplish something within one of my household systems I will ask myself the Dr. Phil question.. “So how’s that working for you?” ~smile~ .. and then set out to determine a better method if needed.

My first stop is my kitchen cupboards. I will post about this in the next week (hopefully.. if life goes according to my plans!! :).. I have a few areas of dysfunction that we have all learned to function in. The other day as I was getting a coffee cup it came to me that I had us all walking to the other end of the kitchen from the coffee pot to get to the cups. To change this will require changes in a few other cupboards but I think when I am done it will function much better. I will keep you updated on my progress!!

Our Christmas & Moving into the New Year!

2011-12-29T19:38:00.000-08:00

We had an amazing Christmas! My kids and their spouses and grandkids began arriving at about 3 in the afternoon on Christmas Eve. I had pretty much done all the dinner cooking except for the ham in the oven and the turkey in the roaster oven were still roasting. My kids had a lot of fun just socializing, enjoying the goodies, sparkling cider and egg nog. We had dinner around 5:30 and spent the rest of the evening doing a lot of chatting and a bit of gift opening. It was very memorable for us all..

Sunday we enjoyed Christmas day with lots of relaxing and eating leftovers as I really had cooked for an army as usual. Monday with the help of my 3 youngest kids we put Christmas decorations away disassembled the Christmas tree and with a little moving and reorganizing of things in my basement we found the perfect home for the tree where it will now await the holiday season of 2012.

On Tuesday we loaded the family in the van and headed north to Port Townsend Washington to visit Tobin’s parents. It was a great visit and my mother in law treated us to a fantastic Norwegian buffet. The family got to enjoy a taste of food from their own heritage.

Today life went back to normal. Hubby headed off to work and the kids are enjoying time with friends during their break.

I am very excited to have my house all in order once again and with the holiday behind me I’m looking forward to jumping into the New Year with a lot of cleaning out, purging and organizing. My basement storage area has begun to show signs of chaos from the year’s accumulation of things. I traditionally go through everything in storage each year and see how I can downsize with bags and boxes for giving and throwing things away. It is the best feeling in the world to be on top of it all and each year I look forward to this task. So January will be the month for household organizing and I plan to post my progress here on my blog.

As for this evening, I am writing up this month’s menu and a grocery list for tomorrow’s trip to the grocery store and working on laundry.

My kids have plans for New Years Eve with their siblings and I plan to go to bed early.. or as my friend said to me today.. they are celebrating the East Coast New Year’s.. meaning celebrating it 3 hours early!! LOL.. I like that plan a lot.. ~Smile~

That’s all from the homestead for now!!

Christmas Menu

2011-12-21T19:11:00.000-08:00

My blogging has been spotty at best this month. I have been so incredibly busy.. so much to do!! Christmas gifts to finish up and wrap, orders to get out on time for my customers, school with my kids to wrap up for our break time, house work to keep on, meals to prepare, and it goes on and on.. as a friend of mine said not long ago.. “Looking for the bottom of my to-do list”… yea.. that is where I am at.. my to-do list continue to grows even as work hard each day!! But… Thank God for busy hands and a full life!!!!

I had a nice lady comment on a blog post asking me to post my Christmas Dinner menu. We are having our family Christmas on Saturday, Christmas Eve.. this leaves my grown children time to spend making memories with their own families and spending time with their spouse’s family on Christmas Day and for us to have a quiet Christmas day with the children we still have at home. I am most excited this year as it has been 6 years since all my children have been home for Christmas. Thanking God for my blessings!!

Now for my Christmas Dinner Menu

Baked Ham
Baked Turkey
Hash Brown Casserole
Sweet Potatoes
Green Bean Casserole
24 Hour Fruit Salad
Layered Jello Salad
Italian Green Salad
Dinner Rolls
Fresh veggies and chips w/dip
Cookies, Fudge, Candies for dessert

My girls are baking cookies and making fudge to bring and will be bringing some of the above dishes.

Hope you all have a very merry Christmas and a blessed time with your families!

Homemade Gift Idea: Dish Towel Apron

2011-12-16T06:40:00.000-08:00

Christmas is fast approaching! If you’re in need of a quick gift idea this dish towel apron may be just the project. It requires basic sewing skills and goes together very quickly. Using dish towels means no raw edges to think about!! :)

You will need 2 cotton dish towels that coordinate and some ½ or 1 inch twill tape.

I purchased my dish towels at Target. I got 5 in a package and the cost was $10. You will use 2 for the apron. I figured $4 an apron was pretty good (plus the cost of the twill tape, I had some on hand already). For my pack of 5 dish towels I got 2 aprons and an extra towel for my kitchen, or it could be put in a gift basket along with the apron.

You can find detailed instructions for the apron on this site:http://thepickledweasel.blogspot.com/2009/11/christmas-making-tea-towel-apron.html

Lay out your towels…

Sew them together….

Use the twill tape for the neck and ties…

And you are done…

Updates from the Homestead

2011-12-14T19:05:00.000-08:00

This time of year seems so very busy!! My niece Megan came and spent a week with us. She lives in Chicago and was here in July and was back again to spend time with our family. She is such a sweet lady. We had a very fun week with her. My girls kept her busy between trips to town, shopping, going to the mall and making sure she touched based with all her cousins. Yesterday I took her to airport for her flight home and she is now back in Chicago.. planning her next visit to see u!! :)

My spotty blogging this month is due to not only our visit from my niece but orders to pack, gifts to prepare and wrap and still keeping the daily home life rolling along. My kids are getting their Christmas break from our homeschool starting on Monday so that will be a nice break for me too!

Tomorrow Emily and I are planning on baking a few types of cookies to put in the freezer for Christmas dinner dessert. I basically have most all my Christmas shopping done… just one more gift to buy.. but oh my, I have a lot of wrapping to do!! So that is my plan for this weekend is to wrap up the gifts and get them under the tree. Kind of shocked me to see that Christmas is a week from Sunday!! Now that my kids are older I pick random numbers for each child and don’t let them know the numbers until Christmas morning. So I put the wrapped gifts under the tree and they have numbers on them such as.. 54, 36, 75, 81, etc… and no one knows whose gift is whose!! Haa.. haa.. I put their number in their Christmas sock on Christmas morning… then they know.. ;)

That is all for now from the homestead… it’s snowing tonight, first time this year.. all I can say to that is.. 188 days till summer!! :D

Homemade Gift Idea: Chai Tea Mix

2011-12-11T06:43:00.001-08:00

Here is a great little drink mix that is quick to put together and makes a wonderful gift. I make a few batches of it this time of year, not just for gift giving, but also so we can enjoy it too because it is delicious!!

Here is the recipe..

Chai Tea Mix
Crystal Miller

2 ½ cups cane juice crystals or white sugar
2 tsp vanilla
3 cups powdered milk
1 ½ cups unsweetened instant tea
2 tsp. ginger
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cloves
1 tsp cardamom

In a small bowl combine cane juice crystal’s and vanilla and allow to dry. After it has dried out break up any clumps. In a large bowl mix all ingredients well. In a blender blend 1 cup at a time of the mix to make it a fine powder. Store in a glass jar or ziplock bag. To serve mix 2 rounded tablespoons of Chai tea mixture into a mug and add hot water.

Enjoy often during this holiday season!

Here is how it’s made..

You first begin by making your vanilla sugar. You can purchase vanilla sugar but it is kind of spendy but oh so easy to make. Measure out your sweetener (cane juice crystal’s or sugar) and add the vanilla…

Start by mixing it with a fork but then use your hands to make sure it gets incorporated very well. Allow this to dry. I typically mix this together the evening before I make the mix and let it sit out to dry overnight..

In a large bowl combine the vanilla sugar, powdered milk, instant tea and spices…

Mix it well..

You will need a blender to mix the ingredients into a fine powder. I add 1 to 2 cups at a time and blend it finely….

Now put it into canning jars or any type of container you desire for gift giving…

Homemade Gift Idea: Super Simple Sock Rice Pad

2011-12-05T17:32:00.000-08:00

This is a fun and super, super easy project and a very frugal gift as well!! It is making rice pads out of socks. Rice pads are great for the winter time. You can heat them up in a microwave and take them to bed with you to warm up on cold winter nights.

Here is how you make them…..

Find some cute holiday socks….

Fill them about ½ to ¾ full of rice…

Sew the end of the sock closed….

And that is it!!!!

December Menu

2011-12-03T06:36:00.000-08:00

1^st – leftovers
2^nd – lasagna, French bread, salad
3^rd –black bean chicken chili, chips & salsa, salad
4^th – salmon patties, mac & cheese, salad
5^th – cream cheese chicken enchiladas, chips & salsa, salad
6^th –crockpot Hawaiian chicken, rice pilaf, salad
7^th –clam chowder,homemade dinner rolls, salad
8^th – leftovers
9^th –crockpot bbq meatballs,crockpot mac & cheese, salad
10^th –taco soup, chips & salsa, salad
11^th – chicken curry, rice, salad
12^th – spaghetti, French bread, salad
13^th – leftovers
14^th –Mongolian Beef, rice, salad
15^th –yummy pinto beans, muffins, salad
16^th – baked chicken legs, cheesy potatoes, salad
17^th –beef stew,homemade dinner rolls, salad
18^th – hamburger rice enchiladas, cornbread, salad
19^th – leftovers
20^th –sausage potato chowder, French bread, salad
21^st – marinated pork steak, brown rice pilaf, salad
22^nd –chicken cacciatore, dinner rolls, salad
23^rd – Family Christmas Dinner (still working on menu)
24^th –lasagna, French bread, salad
25^th – leftovers, snack types foods
26^th – chili, cornbread, salad
27^th – kielbasa, buttered noodles, salad
28^th –chicken pot pie, salad
29^th – meatloaf,garlic roasted potatoes, salad
30^th – leftovers
31^st – homemade pizza

Dutch Oven Cranberry Beef

2011-11-29T19:19:00.001-08:00

Over the weekend I was thinking about my fresh cranberries in the fridge that I wanted to use up. I know I can freeze them, but wanted to make something with them. So the idea that popped into my head was cranberry beef… and this was the recipe I came up with. I had no idea how it would turn out but took pics anyway. I figured if it did not turn out I would just toss the pics and not share. But if it did turn out I wanted to be able to share it with you. So I made this yesterday for dinner. And let me tell you it was sooooo good!! My family went nuts over it. So here it is…

Dutch Oven Cranberry Beef

Olive oil
1- 4 to 5lb beef roast
1 large onion, chopped
1T minced garlic
½ green pepper, chopped (or a few mini peppers)
2 cups cranberries
¼ cup water
½ cup honey
1t salt
½ t pepper

Heat your dutch oven over medium high heat. Add enough olive oil to cover the bottom. When the oil is hot set your roast into the pan and let brown for a minute or so and then turn and brown on the other side. Remove roast and set aside. In hot dutch oven add your chopped onions and peppers and let them cook until they are soft.

Add cranberries, water, honey, salt and pepper. Stir a few times to let it all get hot and some of the cranberries start to pop. Put the roast back in the pot and move it around some so the veggie/cranberry mixture is surrounding it.

Put the lid on and put in a 325 degree oven. Let this cook for 3 to 4 hours.

Now here it is in pics.....

Begin my chopping up your onions and pepper (I used several mini peppers)…

Heat a dutch oven over medium high heat and then add a layer of olive oil. When the olive oil is hot sear your meat. I had two roasts which came to about 5lbs. I had to cut up one of them so it would fit into the dutch oven…

When the meat has browned (a minute or so on each side) remove it and set it aside. Add the onions and peppers and garlic to the dutch oven cook them until they are soft…

Now add the cranberries, water, honey, salt & pepper…

Stir and let this cook until it is hot and the cranberries start to pop open a bit. Now put your meat back into the dutch over and smoosh it down and around so the veggies/cranberries are surrounding it all.

Put the lid on…

Put it into the oven and cook it at 325 for 3 to 4 hours…..

This meal is easy to make and tastes incredibly yummy!! I served it with buttered noodles, green beans and a salad. Lots of happy satisfied tummies last night!!

Enjoy!!

Homemade Gift Idea: Bath Salts

2011-11-28T06:19:00.001-08:00

Bath salts are an easy and inexpensive homemade gift. The basic ingredients can be found in most any store such as Walmart or Target. The exception to this is the essential oil or fragrance oil. If you are doing small projects such as this one the best way to find the fragrance or essential oil is on ebay.com. If you plan on making a lot of items that need these types of oil then you can also try SweetCakes ( http://sweetcakes.com/ )for a nice variety of scents.

Basic Bath Salts
Crystal Miller

1 ½ cups Epson salt
1 cup baking soda
½ cup sea salt
Essential oil or fragrance oil, your choice

Mix all ingredients together well. I find using my hands to do this does the best job. Put in glass canning jars or zip-type bags for gift giving.

Now, lets make some bath salts!!

Gather your ingredients together…

Measure the Epsom salts into a bowl…

Then the baking soda…

And the sea salt…

Stir it around real well to make sure it is combined…

Now add your fragrance oil (or essential oil). I used warm vanilla sugar from sweetcakes.com for this batch. The amount you add depends on how mild or strong you want the scent. Add several drops at a time and then use your hands to mix it in. Otherwise you will end up with tiny lumps of super strong bath salts! :) Smell it and see if you want to add more..

When you are done you can spoon it into any type of container for giving away. The basic recipe will fill 4 half pint canning jars. You put a lid on the jars and decorate with ribbon, fabric, a homemade label, etc.. This recipe can easily be doubled or tripled to make as much as you need.

Updates from the Homestead

2011-11-26T05:31:00.001-08:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day! I know our family certainly did. It was the first time in 6 years that we had all been together. It was such a fun day. My daughters did all the cooking except for the mashed potatoes and stuffing which I made the day before and they were warmed up in crockpots for our dinner. I was super impressed by the team work of my daughters! They did an awesome job putting it all together.

Here are a few pics from our day..

Now it is time to decorate the house for Christmas! A real live fresh Christmas tree has always been our tradition. However over the last few years I have wanted to buy an artificial tree. My kids were not into the idea but, I personally was tired of the mess of a real tree makes (needles falling off the tree are a constant daily cleaning job :). Not to mention that typically a tree makes it a couple weeks before it starts really drying out. I have always wanted to put the tree up the weekend after Thanksgiving and enjoy it a little longer. I talked with my hubby about the idea and he was fine with it. A few weeks ago we were in Costco and they had their artificial trees for sale and we purchased one. The kids are all warming up to the idea! ~smile~ I am super excited to get the tree up today! My plan this morning is to get the living room all dusted and vacuumed and the furniture moved around to make room for our tree.

After the tree is up and the house is decorated it will be time to start planning out Christmas baking. I will be making cookies over the next couple of weeks and putting half of them in freezer for Christmas day and for cookie platters to give to friends and neighbors.

Here are my favorite cookie recipes…

Peanut Butter Oatmealhttp://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/peanutbutteroatcookies.htm
Nadine’s Chocolate Chip Cookieshttp://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/nadineschocolatechipcookies.htm
Sugar Cookies: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/sugarcookies.htm
Gingerbread Men:http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/gingerbreadmencookies.htm
Cherry Cheesecake Bars:http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/cherrycheesecakebars.htm

That is all from the homestead for now!!

How to Roast a Turkey

2011-11-22T21:39:00.001-08:00

I am sure a lot of you reading this already know how to cook a turkey. But I also know that many ladies have never done it before. I was in my late 20’s before I cooked my first turkey. My grandma or mom or mother in law had always done that part. When I went to cook my first turkey I was reading lots of cookbooks and talking with my mother to learn. It is not like we have the opportunity to practice turkey roasting too often!

I thought I would just share from my own turkey roasting experience how I have done it. There are lots of ways to do this and tips, etc.. and I am sure I won’t cover them all but will share what has worked for me.

First is the actual buying of the turkey. I typically have purchased frozen turkeys. The week before Thanksgiving you can find turkeys at the best price of the year. In fact I usually take advantage of these great prices and buy another turkey or two for the freezer. A mini Thanksgiving dinner at another time of the year is actually kind of fun. A couple of years ago I bought a fresh turkey from Costco and it was good too.

If you buy your turkey frozen you will need a few days to let it defrost. Do not sit it on the counter to defrost. The outside of the turkey will start to spoil before the center has completely defrosted. This is especially true for bigger birds. I put my turkey in the refrigerator to defrost. Two days ahead of time for a small turkey (say 12lbs or under) and three to four days for a bigger turkey.

The night before Thanksgiving I open the turkey up and wash him and remove the giblets. I put those in a bowl and put them back in the fridge. The next day I boil those with some salt and use the broth for my gravy as well as cutting up the giblets to add to the gravy. I rinse the turkey off in cool water making sure he has defrosted completely. I put him in a large roaster pan, cover him up with plastic wrap and put him back in the fridge until the next day.

I also make up my stuffing the night before. Don’t put the stuffing in the bird the night before to save time. This can once again cause spoilage. After I make the stuffing I store it in the fridge.

On Thanksgiving morning I pull the turkey out, preheat the oven, remove the plastic and stuff my turkey. I find the easiest way to do this is to set the turkey in my clean sink and use a big spoon (or my clean hands) to spoon in the stuffing. Then I set the stuffed turkey on my roasting pan. I melt a cube (we call them cubes here in my parts.. some call them sticks) of butter and if it is a big turkey I melt 2 cubes. I take a brush and brush the top of my turkey with this melted butter. Cover the bird with foil and put him in the oven to start baking.

After he has baked for about an hour I use my trusty turkey baster and baste him with the melted butter that has drizzled to the bottom of my pan along with any other juices that have also accumulated.

I continue to cook and baste for the required amount of time. The closer I get to the finish time the more frequently I baste. I also take the foil off for the last couple of hours so the turkey can brown nicely.

Now for some specifics:

Temperature to Bake a Turkey:

325 is what I have always done

How Long to Cook:

If your turkey is stuffed:

8 to 12lbs about 3 hours

12 to 15lbs about 4 hours

15 to 18lbs about 4 ½ hours

18 to 24lbs about 4 1/2 to 5 hours

If you don’t stuff your turkey you can subtract about anywhere from 15 minutes to a half hour off the above times.

However my experience has been that this is a rough estimate. I have had it take longer or shorter.. Your very, very best guide will be your thermometer.

The temperature of the whole turkey, no matter where you put the thermometer (but not touching bone) should read a minimum of 165 (and that includes taking the temp of the stuffing). I actually like it when the temps are a bit higher than that say.. 180.

I also wiggle the drumstick and it should move very easily. When the turkey has finished cooking, take it out of the oven and let is sit for 15 to 20 minutes. This will give you time to make the gravy and mash the potatoes.

I hope you all have a wonderful day of good food, family and much thankfulness.

Homemade Cranberry Sauce

2011-11-19T20:32:00.000-08:00

What would Thanksgiving be without cranberry sauce?! It is always a staple at our home for the holiday meal. I like to make my own cranberry sauce. I think it tastes better and I know it is a lot more healthy than the store bought stuff in the can. You can buy fresh cranberries this time of year, they are usually located in the fresh veggie section of your grocery store.

Here is my recipe…

Spiced Cranberries

2 ½ cups cane juice crystals (or white sugar) or 1 ¼ cups honey
½ cup water
2 T lemon juice
4 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
1t ground cinnamon
½ t ground cloves

In a sauce pan add sweetener of choice, water, lemon juice. Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes. Add cranberries, cinnamon and cloves. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 12 to 15 minutes or until sauce thickens up. Allow to cool. Can be refrigerated up to 1 week or frozen.

First begin by gathering your ingredients together. I used honey to make mine…

In a medium size sauce pan put sweetener of choice, water and lemon juice..

Bring to a boil and let it cook for 5 minutes…

Now add the cranberries, cinnamon and cloves…

Bring it back to a boil, reduce heat and let it simmer for about 12 to 15 minutes….

The sauce will be a beautiful red color and taste delicious…

The sauce can be kept in the fridge for 1 week or you can freeze it.

Enjoy!

Sausage Potato Chowder

2011-11-16T19:10:00.001-08:00

Potato chowder of any type is really easy to make. I’ve come up with a simple way to make this soup that is not only yummy (according to my family) but simple and pretty quick and can be very flexible.

Here is my recipe..

4 lbs potatoes, peeled and cubed into bite size pieces
½ to 1 lb sausage (like Jimmy Dean type sausage)
1 medium onion, chopped
½ of a green pepper (or any other type.. red, yellow, orange)
1t minced garlic
2T olive oil
2 cups frozen corn (or 1 can of corn, drained)
Milk
2T butter
Salt & Pepper, to taste

Begin by chopping up your potatoes…

Put them in a 6qt soup pot and cover with water (the amount of water does not matter because it will be mostly drained off later, just add enough to cover the potatoes). Add about a teaspoon of salt..

Bring the potatoes to a boil and cook until they are fork tender, usually this takes about 15 to 20 minutes. While the potatoes are cooking chop up the onion and peppers (I used about 3 mini peppers that were red, yellow and orange). I also used ¾ of a pound of sausage…

Heat a large frying pan and add a little olive oil to the pan. Add your onions, peppers, garlic and sausage and cook until the sausage is no longer pink and the veggies are soft…

When the potatoes are done cooking carefully drain off most all of the water (a little at the bottom of the pot is just fine)…

Now add the cooked sausage and veggies…

Then add the corn (mine was corn that I froze from my garden)…

Gently stir it a couple of times…

Now add milk .. Add enough to cover the veggies slightly…

The amount of milk varies according to your tastes. If you like a real thick chowder add less milk.. the potatoes will break up and naturally thicken the soup. If you want more broth and soupy consistency.. add a little more. As you add the milk, stop and stir and see if you have enough or want to add more.

Add the butter and salt & pepper to taste and let the soup heat up on the stove to get nice and hot before serving…

The best part of this chowder is that you can substitute chicken, hamburger, kielbasa, or clams for the sausage to have any type of chowder you would like..

Enjoy!

Making Hot Processed Soap

2011-11-14T05:33:00.001-08:00

I have been making soap for several years now but I had never made hot processed soap before this last weekend.

If you are not a soap maker you may not realize that there are two ways to make soap. One is called cold processed and the other hot processed. Here is the difference:

Cold Processed (CP): This method involves combining your liquid/lye mixture with your oils and stirring until the mixture thickens (also known as “trace”) . Then pouring the mixture into molds. In a day or two you unmold, cut the bars and let the soap lay out on a flat surface to cure anywhere from 3 to 6 weeks depending on the recipe. This ensures the soap is free from all traces of lye.

Hot Processed (HP): You follow the same procedures as CP but instead of pouring into your mold you keep cooking the soap. The soap is heated and cooked all the way through to the end (meaning there is no traces of lye left in the soap). After you remove it from the mold you can cut the bars and pretty much use them right away.

I have always used the cold processed method for many reasons (the soap is smoother in texture, looks nicer, essential oils are easier to add, etc..). But every now and again I like to have a little fun time with my soap making. So over the weekend I made a batch of HP soap in my crockpot. It was pretty simple to make (this is coming from an experienced soap maker!), and it was fun.

If you are not familiar with making soap you will want to make sure you are prepared with information and the proper equipment before you start. I don’t go into a lot of that in this blog post mostly because I already have a few web pages on making soap (http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/homesteadcrafts.htm#Lets%20Make%20Soap ) and an entire ebook on how to make soap, step by step filled with pictures and information ( http://crystalscountrystore.com/handmadesoapebook.htm ) … so this little tutorial is showing just the basics of what I did. Please be knowledgeable on proper soap making procedures and cautions concerning the use of lye.

Here is my recipe…

Crystal's HP Crockpot Soap
26 oz olive oil
6 oz coconut oil
3 oz. castor oil

4.75 oz. lye
12 oz. water

1 oz fragrance oil

First of all I gathered together all my ingredients. In the picture below you can see my oils all measured out by weight (3 types of oils), the little dark colored bottle is my scent oil (I had a 1 oz sample bottle of Lemon Sugar fragrance oil and it was perfect for this batch) and on the right my water and lye…

Here is my mold… I used a small cardboard box (this recipe needs a mold that will hold 48 oz) lined with plastic..

I started by setting my crockpot on high and adding the coconut oil (any hard oils are added first to melt). While that was melting I mixed up my water and lye. When the lye and water were mixed and the coconut oil was melted I turned the crockpot to low and then added the olive oil and the castor oil to the crockpot…

Now it was time to add the lye/water mix.. unlike CP soap, the temperature of the oils and lye don’t matter when making HP soap. When you add the lye/water mix you should be stirring constantly, I found this a little hard to do and take the pic! :) ..

As soon as it was stirred in I switched to my stick blender and mixed it up..

Until the mixture reached “trace”… this is where the soap is looking like thick pudding/gravy... (it is can be hard to get a good pic of trace..).. Then put the lid on the crockpot and wait..

Now this is the point it would be put into molds if I was making CP soap.. but instead I continued to cook the soap and watched as it went through the various stages of its chemical reaction called, saponification.. this is the process of oils, water&lye becoming soap…

After about 15 to 20 minutes my mixture was looking like mashed potatoes..

After another 20 or so minutes my soap looked a bit like applesauce in texture..

And another 20 min later I had a waxy Vaseline look. I touched a bit of the soap and rubbed it on my fingers and it felt like soap, then I did the zap test.. put a little on my tongue. If there had been any lye still left in the soap I would have felt a little zap.. but I did not, so I knew I had reached my goal.

Then I added my scent oil ..

Now I was ready to spoon it into my mold. I had to spoon the soap into the mold and then every so often tap the mold on the counter to make sure I got any air bubbles out. The soap at this point is very thick to work with. When I got it all in the mold I used a piece of plastic wrap to help smooth the surface..

24 hours later I took it out of the mold..

24 hours after that I cut it into bars. I ended up with about 9 (5.25 oz)bars…

My soap is still a bit soft so I plan to let it sit and harden up before I use it. I suspect the reason it is still on the soft side is because the soap is made mostly from olive oil (olive oil takes longer to harden up than other oils). I am excited to try it out when it is done. Olive oil soaps are extremely mild and gentle on your skin.

Thanksgiving Planning

2011-11-09T07:22:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is about 2 weeks away now! I have the menu written out and as posted previously my girls and I will jointly be cooking and doing dinner this year. I wrote out a check list for things I need to get done so I don’t forget the little details. We are having our dinner at my daughter Hannah’s house so I will need to do some transporting of dishes, crockpots, and other items that she does not have. She is very excited to be hosting the dinner at her home this year.

This coming weekend my Thanksgiving to-do list looks like this:

Makecranberry sauce and freeze
Make dinner rolls and freeze
Pull out the fancy cloth napkins and get them ironed
Pull out the fall table linens and get them ironed
Be on the lookout for Turkey sales!

I know I have posted a link to this previously both here and in my newsletter but I thought I would post it again to help anyone who may need it: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/thanksgivingplanner.htm

Make a Thankful Tree

I love this project ~smile~ .. http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/makeathankfultree.htm

Apple Cinnamon Muffins

2011-11-06T19:21:00.000-08:00

I've been making a lot of muffins lately! They are easy to make and seem to go well as sides for dinner or snacks or go along with a smoothie for breakfast. These got rave reviews from my family.

Apple Cinnamon Muffins
Makes 24 muffins

3 cups whole wheat pastry flour
¾ cup cane juice crystals or white sugar
¾ cup Sucanat or brown sugar
3t baking powder
2t cinnamon
1 cup milk
2/3 cup butter, melted
2 eggs
2 cups grated apples

In a large bowl combine flour cane juice crystals (or sugar), Sucanat (or brown sugar), baking powder, cinnamon. Mix well. Using a mixer (Kitchen Aid or Bosch) mix milk, butter and eggs until well combined. Add grated apples and mix well. Add dry ingredients and stir until just combined.

Spoon batter into between 2 muffin pans (12 cup each). Bake at 375 for 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly brown and toothpick inserted comes out clean.

“Life isn’t about what you don’t have..

2011-11-04T21:00:00.000-07:00

It’s about making the most of what you have.”

These wise words were said by my daughter Emily several years ago to one of her siblings who was complaining about what they did not have in life. Contentment is an issue I am sure we have all struggled with from time to time. A pastor that I admire once said in a Sunday morning sermon on contentment, “How much is enough? Just a little more than I have.” If I just had this or that then my life would be great. But if we do get “this or that” then there is always something else to long for.

Many years ago my family was living in the city in an 1100 square foot house. We had 7 children in that 3 bedroom, 1 bathroom home. Oh how I wanted a life in the country with a bigger house and room for my kids to run and play. I prayed a lot for this and still nothing happened. There was so much in this situation to be discontent about! This situation provided one of the biggest lessons in my life on learning to not just be content with where I was at but to make the most of what I DID have. It is so easy to overlook the very things that are sitting right in front of us while wish, hope and pray for more.

So I decided that if I didn’t have my dreamed of homestead I would make my home on my 50 x 100ft city lot my homestead. I worked at the life skills that were needed for my family to live a “homestead” life right there in the middle of the big city. I worked to be a better house keeper and to keep organized in a small space, I learned how to cook frugal meals, bake my own bread, and I studied herbs and herbal medicine so I could do more home care when my family got sick. A friend of ours would come to our home in the spring and rototill my garden spot for me in my back yard. I planted veggies and was even able to have enough to can a few things. I took my kids out to the u-pick farms and we picked strawberries, peaches, apples and more to can and preserve.

During those years I was homeschooling and having those 7 babies and I learned so much on how to be organized with my days, how to plan and shop and cook to save us money. We did not have much extra income for entertainment but we found ways to have fun. My children and I spent countless hours walking the neighborhood, going to parks and the library. For very little money I was able to get my children involved in the activities that were at available at our local community center.

I still continued to pray for that home in the country. And after a great deal of searching we did find a home that worked for us. Today I am thankful for God allowing me to have the time and circumstances to understand what it means to make the most of what I have. Life is to short to spend wishing for more, better, different. Being thankful for today and making the most of the blessings that God has for us each day will make a content heart. What incredible lessons and blessings are there if we accept our lives for what they are today and not just accept them… but learn to make the most of what He has blessed us with!!

November’s Menu

2011-11-02T11:36:00.000-07:00

Time for November's menu! If you would like a menu calendar to help you plan your meals you can find that here: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/MenuNov2011.pdf

1^st – Homemade pizza
2^nd –baked ham, sweet potatoes, apple cinnamon muffins, salad
3^rd – leftovers
4^th –Mac & cheese w/ham, salad
5^th – salmon w/coconut cream sauce, acorn squash,dinner rolls, salad
6^th –taco soup, chips & salsa, salad
7^th – leftovers
8^th – tacos w/trimmings
9^th – Italian chicken,rice pilaf, salad
10^th –sausage potato chowder, pumpkin muffins, salad
11^th – leftovers
12^th – navy bean & ham soup,dinner rolls, salad
13^th – pepper steak, sweet potatoes, salad
14^th – spaghetti, French bread, salad
15^th – baked chicken legs, chili relleno casserole,refried beans
16^th –chicken noodle soup, carrot muffins, salad
17^th – leftovers
18^th – beef &veggie meatloaf,crockpot mac & cheese, salad
19^th –crockpot pork roast & sauerkraut, dinner rolls, salad
20^th – bean soup (of some sort :),dinner rolls, salad
21^st – leftovers
22^nd – lasagna, French bread, salad
23^rd – sub sandwiches and soup, salad
24^th – Thanksgiving Dinner!
25^th – Thanksgiving leftovers
26^th – leftover turkey made into enchiladas, chips & salsa, salad
27^th – Turkey noodle soup
28^th –crockpot bbq meatballs,crockpot mac & cheese, salad
29^th – salmon patties,garlic roasted potatoes, salad
30^th –split pea soup,pepperoni bread, salad

Proverbs 31: 26

2011-10-31T07:28:00.000-07:00

Proverbs 31: 26 “She opens her mouth with wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness”

According to the Free Online Dictionary wisdom means: The ability to discern or judge what is true, right, or lasting; insight.

Wisdom comes from our relationship with God and the study of His Word. It comes from time and experience living a godly life. I find it interesting to note that this is the only verse in this section on the Proverbs 31 woman that is directed at how she speaks to others. The other verses are about what she does in her life as a godly woman. I think there is a connection between doing and working the tasks of our daily life the Lord has called us to and the wisdom this produces in us.

I think of all the foolish things I have said over the years and how I have had to learn, sometimes the hard way, the wise thing to say in my communications. I’m still a work in progress. What comes out of our mouths is a reflection of our heart .. "out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks" Matthew 12:34. Our relationship with God is what changes the heart.

Can you really ever go wrong by being kind to others? The word law (again, according to the Free Online Dictionary) is: A rule of conduct or procedure established by custom, agreement, or authority. And our authority (and example) is the Lord… Isaiah 54:8 … But with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you, Says the Lord, your Redeemer and Psalm 36:10 Oh, continue Your lovingkindess to those who know You.

My desire is to continue to have a heart for the Lord and to grow in wisdom each day as I serve and bless my family, to learn more and more what it means to be kind. To speak wisely and kindly to my family and those around me and show them the love of Jesus.

Updates from the Homestead

2011-10-25T19:57:00.000-07:00

Well.. Thanksgiving is just one month away! So today my daughters and I got together to plan this years dinner. Wow, is all I can say about having grown daughters.. I love it!! Looks like I won’t be doing all the work to make it happen.. LOL.. so we planned the menu; everyone has their favorite dishes.. then we planned who would be making what.. then it was table settings, center pieces and so on..

Besides planning our Thanksgiving dinner we also celebrated Hannah’s birthday. She turned 23 yesterday. She is a super lady. She was my first homebirth so that is very memorable. Today Hannah is an awesome mommy to two lovely young ladies (Elizabeth is 3 and Rylee is 5 months) and she is a homemaker and just loves it. I am very proud of her!! :)

Some pics of our little planning/birthday party..

Hannah & Emily

Little Miss Rylee..

It is not to early to start thinking about planning Thanksgiving Dinner if you are hosting. I have a webpage that has info on getting organized in this planning process..http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/thanksgivingplanner.htm

Beef & Veggie Meatloaf

2011-10-22T05:54:00.000-07:00

This meatloaf recipe is a great way to add some extra vegetables to your meal. The meatloaf comes out super moist and delicious. My family enjoys it very much. I have even used the same recipe and made them into meatballs. I served buttered spinach fettuccine noodles and a salad with this meal. The recipe below makes 2 meatloaves. If that is more than you need you can cut the recipe in half or freeze one for another meal.

Beef & Veggie Meatloaf

2 ½ to 3lbs hamburger
1 onion
3 medium to large mushrooms
1 large carrot, peeled
2 eggs
2t minced garlic
1t salt
1t pepper
½ t seasoning salt

Put hamburger in a large mixing bowl. Now take the onion, mushrooms and carrot and puree them in your food processor. Add them to the hamburger in the bowl…

Now add the eggs and spices…

Using your hands mix everything until well combined…

Divide between two loaf pans..

Optionally, if you would like you can drizzle a little bbq sauce over the top before baking…

Bake at 350 for about 1 hour. There will be more juices than you would have normally for meatloaf. I carefully pour them off before serving. ..

Enjoy!! :)

A Favorite Website

2011-10-21T05:25:00.000-07:00

Are you an avid reader? I am! And while I love the library it is not always convenient for me to get there. So I have purchased a lot of books online over the years. I typically purchase them used through Amazon.com. I had quite a large collection of books accumulating when I came across a great site! It is called Paperback Swap. I have been using Paperback Swap now for about a year or so and love it!

The basic idea behind it is that you create an account with them, list the books that you would like to give away. Then when another member requests one of your books you mail it to them, with no shipping charge to the person who requested it (you pay media mail shipping rate and can even print out the shipping wrapper w/postage on their site) . This will give you one credit.

Now with your credit you can request a book from another member, they pay the shipping to send the book to you. You will get two credits for joining the site to begin with so you can request a book right away to get a feel for it. You will want to start your book list right away (entering in the books you have to give away) so other members can begin to request books from you. It is really easy to use and the site is big with a huge amount of books available to choose from.

Putting the Garden to Bed

2011-10-19T15:59:00.000-07:00

We had a nice string of dry days and it allowed my garden to be dry enough to rototill. My son Jacob came and spent a few days with us and while he was here he helped me (along with Isaac & Sierra) get the garden cleaned up and ready for winter. It took the 4 of us 3 hours to get it all done.

I left my cabbage plants and a few pumpkins. Not sure if either will produce much, but we’ll see. I also left my cosmos flowers because they are in full bloom and looking so pretty.

The goats got the corn stalks and were quite happy about it!! The rest went to the compost pile.

Here are some pics from yesterday’s garden clean up…

Fall Soap Scents!

2011-10-17T06:15:00.000-07:00

I have my country store stocked with my favorite and popular fall goat milk soap scents!!

Brown Sugar & Spice is a combination scent of brown sugar with a hint of spice and vanilla

Oak Leaves & Acorns is a great combo of rustic pine, wild violets and fall leaves!

I love these two scents and look forward to them each year at this time!!

Check them at Crystal’s Country Store

Pumpkin Recipes!

2011-10-14T06:25:00.000-07:00

One thing I do love about fall is pumpkin!! , I love to light pumpkin scented candles, use pumpkin spice soap and of course I like to bake and cook with it! I wanted to share a few recipes I have made recently.

The first is pumpkin muffins. The other night I made a big pot of chili and thought having some pumpkin muffins to go with the chili sounded yummy. So I made 2 dozen of these muffins and my family said they were delish and went great with the chili.

Pumpkin Muffins
Makes 12 muffins

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1t baking soda
½ t salt
1t cinnamon
½ t ginger
¼ t cloves
1/8t nutmeg
¾ cup dark brown sugar or sucanat
3T molasses
¼ c olive oil
2 eggs
1 c pureed pumpkin
¾ c soured milk or buttermilk

In a small bowl combine flour, soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and brown sugar or sucanat. Set aside. In a mixer bowl combine remaining ingredients. Mix until well combined. Add flour mixture and mix until all ingredients are just combined.

Spray a muffin pan with non-stick spray. Using a ¼ cup measuring cup fill each muffin tin. Bake at 400 for about 15 minutes. Let cool on a rack for about 10 to 15 minutes before removing from pan.

I love coffee and years ago I use to buy those flavored coffee creamers. When I became more health conscious I realized these had to go. But sometimes I really miss them. So, instead of giving in and buying them I decided I could come up with a flavored coffee creamer that was healthier and tasted better! A couple of years ago I came up with what is now our fall favorite, must have, coffee creamer… Pumpkin Spice.

Pumpkin Pie Coffee Creamer
1 cup half-n-half
½ cup cane juice crystals (can use white sugar instead)
3T canned pumpkin
½ t vanilla
½ t cinnamon
¼ t ginger
1/8 t nutmeg
1/8 t cloves

Combine all ingredients in a small sauce pan. Heat until cane juice crystals dissolved and ingredients are well combined. Enjoy in a hot cup of coffee. Store in refrigerator.

My good friend Erica posted this recipe on her blog ( http://www.thesierramama.com/2011/10/paleo-pumpkin-smoothie-recipe.htm )
and let me tell you, it is fantastic. And it is an easy treat or breakfast to make. I made it yesterday and my daughter’s and I enjoyed it for breakfast..

Pumpkin Smoothie (makes 3-4 smoothies)
Recipe by Erica

2 cups vanilla coconut milk (I use the So Delicious brand)
3 dates, pitted
2 frozen bananas (you can use one banana and add ice if you like to get it to the right consistency)
1/2 cup organic pumpkin (I used the Farmers Market brand today but I have pureed pumpkin in the freezer that I will use too)
dash of cinnamon (it was probably about 1/4 tsp)
dash of nutmeg (about 1/8 tsp)

Blend and enjoy!

Stop by and visit Erica’s blog!! http://www.thesierramama.com/

Updates from the Homestead & Fall Cooking

2011-10-09T15:25:00.000-07:00

I’ve spent the last few days dealing with some website issues. I needed to move my website to a new server. It was supposed to be a simple thing. But without going into a lot of boring detail.. it was not! But I do have it up and running again. Yea!! ~smile~ Now maybe I can get back to semi normal around here.

The days are getting shorter and cooler in my part of the world! I’ve had a fire going off and on. Yesterday was a beautiful fall day, sunny and mild. Rain is in the forecast for today and the next few days. With my attention being diverted to my website I am off my menu plan. So today I did something simple and made a pot of hamburger veggie soup. It was another “off the cuff” recipe. I also made a couple dozen carrot muffins for my family to enjoy with the soup.

My house has also suffered this weekend. So this afternoon I am working to restore some order and plan for the upcoming week. One item on my list for this week will be making another large pot of veggie stock. With all the soups I’ve made in the last couple of weeks I am almost out of stock. I like making veggie stock( http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/ttbveggiebroth.htm ) the most because it is simple to make and does not take as much simmering time as beef or chicken stock.

Now for the recipes from today’s cooking..

Hamburger Veggie Soup
8 cups stock (or water and bullion cubes), it can any type of stock: beef, chicken or veggie
4 cups thinly sliced carrots (I used my food processor to slice them)
about ½ a cabbage, chopped (I also sliced it in my food processor)
2lbs hamburger
1 onion, chopped
2 t. minced garlic
2 or 3 large mushrooms, sliced
1 quart (or 2 cans) green beans, drained
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 8oz can tomato sauce
1T chili powder
1t cumin
1T brown sugar or Sucanat

Put stock and carrots into a soup pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes or until the carrots are tender. Add cabbage and cook for another 5 to so minutes to cook cabbage.

While the stock and veggies are cooking fry hamburger, onions, garlic and mushrooms in a large frying pan. When the veggies are done cooking add the cooked hamburger to the soup pot.

Add remaining ingredients, stir and simmer for about 10 minutes. Taste and add salt & pepper to your liking.

Carrot Muffins (makes 24 muffins)
2 eggs
1 ½ c orange juice
1 c butter, melted
1c cane juice crystals or white sugar
4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
2t baking powder
1t baking soda
1t salt
2t cinnamon
4c shredded carrots

In a mixer combine eggs, orange juice and melted butter. Mix until well combined. Add cane juice crystals (or sugar), and mix well. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Add carrots and mix in.

Grease muffin pans with non-stick spray. Spoon about ¼ cup batter into each muffin tin. Bake at 400 for 15 to 20 minutes.

Soup for Fall Days!!

2011-10-04T22:08:00.000-07:00

Since the weather started cooling down here in the Pacific Northwest I’ve started making more soup. It started one day due to needing to use up some food in my fridge. So it was just off the cuff so to speak. I made potato sausage cheese chowder. My family went nuts over it. I wish I had a proper recipe to give you but I can give you the basics of what I did.

I measured out 4lbs potatoes. I peeled them and chopped them into bite size pieces. Put them in my soup pot and covered with water. I cooked them until they were fork tender. I drained off most of the water. While they cooked I chopped up one onion and cooked this in my cast iron frying pan with about 1lb of sausage (Jimmy Dean). After the potatoes were drained I added the sausage/onion mixture and 2 cups of frozen corn and about 2 cups of grated cheddar cheese. Then I added enough milk to make it the right soup consistency. Then added a couple tablespoons of butter. Heated this up until the cheese melted and the soup was hot (tasted it and added salt & pepper until it tasted right to me). I served it with zucchini muffins and a salad.

A couple days later I was trying to figure out what to make for dinner and it was another cool rainy day and thought about soup again. This time I cooked up 2 cups black beans in 8 cups water and 2 teaspoons salt. I let this cook for about 2 ½ hours. While the beans were cooking I chopped up an onion, a green pepper, a stalk of celery, a few mushrooms and some hot links (similar to kielbasa but spicy). I sautéed this until veggies were soft. When the beans were done cooking I added the veggie mixture and a can of diced tomatoes and 4 cups of veggie stock from the freezer. For seasoning I added about 1t cumin and a little brown sugar (or you can use Sucanat). I served this with the leftover zucchini muffins.

I have a couple more to share in my next blog post.. :)

October Menu

2011-10-03T05:21:00.000-07:00

Fall had arrived and so has the cool weather and so this month’s menu has a few more soup recipes in it. Nothing like soup and homemade bread on a cool fall day.

Due to some technical difficulties which I am dealing with my menu calendar is not posted on my main site but you can find it here: http://crystalscountrystore.com/MenuOct2011.pdf

1^st – bean, sausage & veggie soup, zucchini muffins
2^nd – leftover soup and muffins
3^rd – creamy chicken & veggie soup, cornbread, salad
4^th – beef stew, dinner rolls, salad
5^th – tuna or salmon patties, garlic roasted potatoes, salad
6^th – leftovers
7^th – baked chicken, brown rice pilaf, salad
8^th – sausage potato chowder, dinner rolls, salad
9^th – black bean chicken chili, tortilla chips & salsa, salad
10^th – leftovers
11^th – homemade pizza, salad
12^th – beef & rice chile relleno casserole, refried beans, salad
13^th – beef & veggie soup, cornbread, salad
14^th – leftovers
15^th – chicken pot pie w/cheesy biscuit topping, salad
16^th – baked ham, mashed potatoes, salad
17^th – bbq ham & cornbread casserole, salad
18^th – leftovers
19^th – lasagna, French bread, salad
20^th – chicken noodle soup, muffins, salad
21^st – crockpot potato, ham & cheese, salad
22^nd – leftovers
23^rd – lentil chili, tortilla chips & salsa, salad
24^th – spaghetti, French bread, salad
25^th – meatloaf, garlic roasted potatoes, salad
26^th – leftovers
27^th – pumpkin soup (w/sausage), biscuits, salad
28^th – tuna noodle casserole, salad
29^th – tacos w/all the trimmings

Emily’s Homecoming..

2011-09-29T20:42:00.000-07:00

Well Emily was up for 30+ hours and slept for 10 hours and got up this morning and we had coffee. After that she was ready to roll.. gotta love that girl! LOL… So I got a hold of the rest of the sisters and we had a meet up at our favorite Starbucks. It was so much fun! The grand kids were there too.. Lots of good memories made..

My Girls..

Me and my girls (and a couple grandkids! :)..

Me and Rylee.. she is almost 5 months old now!! Time flies!

Surprise, Surprise!!

2011-09-29T06:58:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I got the shock of my life! I was in the kitchen working on dinner preps when my daughter Leanne pulled up in her car and the next thing I knew she was in the house with a big “SURPRISE MOM” and who did she have with her but my daughter Emily!!! :)

Emily was going be home in November but her host family was moving to Bangladesh due to a job transfer and no longer needed an au pair. So Emily decided it was time to come home. She did not tell anyone she was coming home because she wanted to surprise us all!! And boy did she! I was in shock! But oh so happy to have my daughter home!!

Canning Spaghetti Sauce

2011-09-28T06:37:00.000-07:00

More spaghetti sauce was on my to-do list this last week. I had enough tomatoes to make another batch of sauce. My canning shelf is filling up and it is a great feeling. A productive garden is a blessing!

I have 22 quarts canned so far and am hoping to have enough tomatoes for one more batch before the season is over…

Here is my recipe:

Spaghetti Sauce (for canning)

20lbs tomatoes
3 medium onions, chopped
2 green peppers, chopped
2 cups chopped mushrooms
2T minced garlic
6T salt
3T Italian seasonings
1T oregano
1 cup red wine vinegar
½ cup lemon juice
½ cup white sugar
¼ cup brown sugar
3 – 12oz cans tomato paste

Wash & chop tomatoes in a food processor (peeling is optional). Put in large pot (I use a 14qt pot). Add remaining ingredients, except tomato paste. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1 to 2 hours. Add tomato paste and mix in well. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for another 45 minutes.

Put hot spaghetti sauce into hot quart jars. Process in a boiling water bath for 40 minutes.

Makes approx 10 to 11 quarts

We Now Officially Have a Winner!!

2011-09-27T17:44:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Julie Gonzales!!

Thank you to everyone who entered!!

If you’d still like a chance to get some free Basic H2 please check out Cathie’s Blog: http://cathiebryk.blogspot.com/2011/09/giveaway-update.html She will be giving away 5 samples to the ones who respond first!!

If you are looking for some really great home cleaning products I urge you give Shaklee cleaning products a try. I have been so pleased with them!!

http://cathiebryk.myshaklee.com/us/en/category.php?main_cat=HomeCare

Blog Giveaway Update!!

2011-09-26T17:27:00.000-07:00

I have not forgotten about the blog giveaway! I emailed the winner (twice) and have not heard back yet.. Here is the comment left from the winner:

Anonymous said...

Posted on FB, and sent to some friends. A co-worker of mine just had a party with these products. My e-mail is pastorleegonzales@*****.****

If this is you.. please email me (crystal@thefamilyhomestead.com) .. asap..

If I don’t hear from this person very soon, I will pick another name out of the hat! :)

Blog Giveaway!!!!

2011-09-22T08:19:00.000-07:00

This Blog Giveaway is now officially closed!! I will announce a winner tomorrow!! :)

It’s time for another blog giveaway!! My friend Cathie (www.cathiebryk.myshaklee.com ) asked if she could host another giveaway of her awesome Shaklee cleaning supplies! She is giving away another very generous Shaklee Basic H2 Cleaning Kit for your home.

I’m really excited for another lucky winner to get to try these cleaners! I can’t tell you how much I love the Shaklee cleaners! I don’t share about or promote things I don’t use or believe in. Last April Cathie gave me a 16oz bottle of Basic H2 super concentrated cleaner to try out. I’ve used it constantly since then. I’ve made countless bottles of the “basic cleaner”, “window cleaner” and “degreaser”. I have also used it for cleaning my floors. And about 5 months later I still have about 2/3rds of my bottle left. Because I have been so pleased with it I have even bought bottles of it for a few family members to try.

I encourage you to check out Cathie’s site and see all the great products that Shaklee sells for cleaning your home. The nicest part about the cleaner is that it is an organic cleaner without added chemicals. It is nontoxic, no fumes, hypoallergenic, and more.. You can see more about the cleaners here: http://cathiebryk.myshaklee.com/us/en/category.php?main_cat=HomeCare

Now for the details of this giveaway ..

The winner will receive the following items from Cathie:

1. 16oz bottle of Basic H2 Organic Super Cleaning Concentrate
2. 3 spray bottles to mix up cleaning solutions (and they are marked for you too.. “window cleaner”, “all purpose cleaner”, and “degreaser” and instructions to make the cleaners)
3. A super nice cloth shopping bag
4. A microfiber window cleaning cloth (personally, I love this cloth! :)
5. And.. a catalog of Shaklee products

Here’s how the giveaway works…

Post on your blog or Facebook page about this giveaway and give a link back to my blog and then post back here in the comments section with your name and link to your blog or some way to get a hold of you and let me know you have done this.

I will close this giveaway on Saturday September 22nd and pick a winner (I’ll draw your name out of a hat :) and I will contact you and let you know.

Proverbs 31:13

2011-09-21T09:00:00.000-07:00

She seeks wool and flax, and willingly works with her hands.

According to the dictionary the work “seek” means: To try to locate or discover; search for.

Wool and flax were used for clothing. It had to be spun, weaved into fabric and then sewn into clothing. Talk about a lot of work!

So does this verse mean we all need to be sewing clothing for our family to be a Proverbs 31 woman? In my personal opinion, no it does not. Some are incredibly talented in sewing. Some do sew their own clothing. And some seek and find their families clothing at department stores, thrift stores, garage sales, etc.

I go back to one main thought for this Bible chapter. Proverbs is a book of wisdom. I really don’t think Proverbs 31 is a checklist of skills to learn. If you’ve never sewn a stitch in your life it does not mean you are not a true Proverbs 31 woman :) .

The second half of this verse is where I see the wisdom, “and willingly works with her hands”. Willingly is the key. The definition of willingly is: Acting or ready to act gladly; eagerly compliant. The wisdom here is that when we endeavor on any task as a homemaker (no matter how large as just making clothing was a very large task), we need to do it gladly and even eagerly.

Willingly is also an act of the will. Monica is a very nice lady who leaves comments on my blog. She left a comment on my last post on Proverbs that was from her grandmother. When asked how her grandmother did so much she replied, "You just have to want to more than not want to". I loved that quote!

Remember homemaking is not some laborious tedious task to drag us down in life. It is a calling, a profession, a vocation which we are particularly suited for (how do I know this? Because God gave us a husband and family!). He also gave us wisdom in his Word on how to carry out our daily life.

With these thoughts on my mind this morning I am getting ready to tackle my day. My to do list is written out, my goals for the day are planned and it is time to willingly jump into my day! :)

Updates from the Homestead

2011-09-19T19:50:00.000-07:00

Another pause in blogging.. this time it has been spaghetti sauce and homeschooling. Life just seems busy right now. My tomatoes are coming on in force (not as great as last year, but I’m thankful for what I have gotten). I canned 10 quarts of spaghetti sauce on Saturday and hope to get enough to can up another batch in the next day or two.

We finished our first week of homeschooling and it went well. Started week 2 and it is off to a great start.

We had a rainy cool weekend. I even started a fire to take the chill off the house. First one in a few months. I thought for sure the summer was over. But today the sun came out again and the forecast is for the high 70’s and low 80’s this week.. Yea! Summer is not over yet. I’m still waiting for my corn to ripen so the more sunny warm days the better.

I also harvested my beets this last week. Made 15 pints of pickled beets! My canning shelves are filling up and that is a great feeling. When my kids and I were at the garden picking beets I took a few pics.

My beet harvest (filled a wheel barrow.. I kept some of the greens and froze them for making veggie stock later on, the rest went to the goats.. )

More pics…

That is all for now from the homestead.. more to come, including another blog giveaway.. so stay tuned.. :D

Canning Salsa and Starting our School Year

2011-09-14T08:01:00.000-07:00

My pause in blogging has been due to being very busy in the last few days! My tomatoes are starting to ripen up thanks to a beautiful stretch of hot sunny days. I’ve gotten about 45 to 50 jars of salsa made. I have another big bowl full of tomatoes and am hoping to get some more over the next few days and have enough for spaghetti sauce. I also canned up another batch of zucchini bread and butter pickles. Here is a pic of some of my salsa and the pickles..

You can find my salsa recipe here: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/cannedsalsa.htm

On Monday I was trying to decide if we should start the school year or wait another week. So I asked Sierra and Isaac (my only two students this year :) if they wanted another week off or if they wanted to start. To my surprise they were both ready to jump in and start the year. And that is what we did. This year begins my 24th year of homeschooling.. hard to believe it has been that many years.

For Isaac (8th grade) this year I decided to give Switched on Schoolhouse a try. I tried it several years ago and liked it a little but there were things about the program I did not like. I researched it this summer and found that they have made a ton of changes to the curriculum and addressed a lot of the issues that I did not like (apparently others did not like it either).. we are only a few days into the program but so far I like what I see. I am using it for English, science and history. Math for Isaac is still Saxon.

Sierra is in 10th grade. I am using SOS only for World History. I have another science curriculum I’m trying with her (http://www.timberdoodle.com/Integrated_Physics_Chemistry_p/570-chem.htm ) and she is doing American Literature (my own program) , Saxon Algebra 2, Art (she takes a weekly art class in town), and PE is running. She and a friend have started running together each morning. When the weather turns bad we will see where to go from there.

Today I do believe the plan is to pick all my beets in the garden and can up pickled beets. I’ll let you know how that goes!

Proverbs 31:17

2011-09-07T07:26:00.000-07:00

She girds herself with strength, and strengthens her arms.

Homemaking is an interesting thing. Because we, as housewives, are basically our own boss we set the level of household functioning wherever we want it to be. There are all kinds of books written on what personality types we are when it comes to home management. Everything from neat and orderly Martha Stewart types to the messy and totally unorganized. Some of that type of thing is not bad. I guess if I determine what type of housekeeper I am, I know the challenges in front of me better. But I don’t think this should be used as excuse not to always focus on a clean and orderly house. The biggest challenge I have had to fight over the last 27+ years is just plain laziness.

Homemaking requires tenacity. To "gird" is to tighten the belt up on the robe, or better put in today’s terms is to roll up our sleeves and get it done. Homemaking is hard work and our wise example from the Proverbs 31 woman is that her days were filled with productively working to manage and care for her home. And this requires strength. It requires physical strength but it also requires inner strength which comes from God (Psalm 18:1 I will love you O Lord, my Strength). It is not always easy to rise up and do the same jobs over and over each day. We can accomplish this by looking at the goal the Lord has set in front of us, our home and family and all the responsibility that goes into managing and caring for it well. In return the Lord gives us that inner strength to tackle the day. Psalm 18:39 says.. For You have armed me with strength for the battle.. and while housekeeping is not a battle field, sometimes the mind and will do it is certainly a battle! And always the end result of hard work is physical strength.

These are the thoughts on my mind this morning as I am thinking about our upcoming new school year and getting back into more regular daily routines. I need to work on some organizing and cleaning. It is time for me to start focusing on fall and schedules and cleaning up from summer.

Happy Birthday Lolot and Leanne!!!

2011-09-06T08:08:00.000-07:00

Two birthdays in one weeks time!!

My so very sweet daughter in law, Doneza (nickname is Lolot) celebrated her birthday last Tuesday. The family got together at my son’s house to celebrate. It was a lot of fun.. Lolot has made some huge changes in her life. She left family and friends and all that she knew and was familiar with in the Philippines to come to this country and marry my son. She has done a great job adjusting to life here. I know she misses her family but she has blended in with our family so well that I pray this helps some of the homesickness she feels. She and my son, Richard, are planning a trip back to the Philippines soon so they can visit her family. For now, she is working full time and loves her job and the fact that she is helping my son get through his last two years of college.

And.. Today is my daughter Leanne’s birthday! Where do all the years go? Leanne is my fifth child (4th daughter) and is turning 20 today. I always like to think back and reflect on the day my kids were born on their birthdays… Leanne’s birth was by far my fastest birth. I woke up at 6:am to the first contraction and she was born at 8:30am.. Midwife made it to my house 6 minutes before she was born!

She has been the sweetest daughter. She has always been loving and kind.. She is trustworthy, loves the Lord, and has a heart for helping people. I am so proud of my daughter!! As of right now she is 12 credits away from earning her bachelor’s degree in English. She is currently taking the last 4 classes so she should have her degree by the end of this year. She is itching to get on with life! She would like to do some teaching and eventually when she marries she wants to work with her local homeschooling community as a tutor. Aside from these plans, her biggest passion in life is ballroom dancing. She has been taking lessons for a couple of years now and is super good at it. Someday she would also like to be a dance instructor, just for the fun of it. For now she enjoys her lessons and dance parties and time with lots of good friends she has met in the process.

Leanne Dancing…

Leanne has an adventurous side.. This is her bungee jumping… (I could handle this.. she says she wants to sky dive.. that one I can NOT handle.. LOL.. )

4th of July (with Jacob and my grandson Caden)

Leanne with her sister Emily and friend Rona when she was in Copenhagen visiting Emily

Happy birthday to two beautiful wonderful women!! So thankful to have you both in my life!!

September Menu

2011-09-05T09:06:00.000-07:00

This month’s menu may be subject to change as I have some meal ideas floating around in my head, but have not taken the time to put it down on paper. But for now this is what I have planned. You can find a menu planning calendar for September here: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/menuplanningcalendars.htm

1^st – leftovers
2^nd – spaghetti, garlic toast, salad
3^rd – chicken rice stir fry, salad
4^th – bbq ham & cornbread casserole, dinner rolls, salad
5^th – chili dogs topped w/onions & cheese, watermelon & cantaloupe, salad
6^th – pizza – Leanne’s birthday!
7^th – hamburgers w/ trimmings, watermelon, potato salad
8^th – chicken cacciatore, dinner rolls, salad
9^th – salmon patties, sautéed zucchini, garlic roasted potatoes, salad
10^th – meatloaf, brown rice Florentine, salad
11^th – leftovers
12^th – delicious Italian casserole, salad
13^th – tacos w/all the trimmings, fresh fruit
14^th – Chinese rice w/chicken, egg rolls
15^th – leftovers
16^th – oven baked chicken, Laurie’s Mac & Cheese, salad
17^th – lasagna, French bread, salad
18^th – potato sausage chowder, salad, fresh fruit
19^th - leftovers
20^th – delicious Italian casserole, salad, fresh fruit
21^st – sub sandwiches, fresh fruit
22^nd – jambalaya, salad, fresh fruit
23^rd – leftovers
24^th – crockpot meatballs, crockpot mac & cheese, salad
25^th – taco pie, salad
26^th – ranch house chicken casserole, biscuits, salad
27^th – leftovers
28^th – beef & bean enchiladas, tortilla chips & salsa, salad
29^th – sautéed chicken & rice w/sauerkraut, salad
30^th – crockpot pot roast & potatoes, peas & carrots, salad

Bread & Butter Zucchini Pickles

2011-09-04T05:56:00.000-07:00

May tomatoes may not be doing so great this year but my zucchini and yellow summer squash are forcing me to work hard to keep up with them! LOL!! I had another bowl full of squash staring at me so I took the smaller sized ones and made bread & butter pickles and the larger ones I cut them into chunks and filled 2 more gallon size bags for the freezer (to use in veggie broth). As of now, until I pick more, I am on top of my zucchini game! :)

Here is the recipe (oh and there was a few left that did not fill a jar so we all taste tested those.. tastes like regular bread & butter pickles.. )

Bread & Butter Zucchini Pickles

16 cups sliced zucchini (I used both zucchini and yellow squash)
4 cups thinly sliced onions
½ cup non iodized salt (I used sea salt)
6 cups white vinegar
3 cups sugar
6T mustard seed
3T celery seed
3t turmeric

Put zucchini and onions and salt in a large pan. Cover with water and let sit for 2 hours. Drain thoroughly and rinse. Combine vinegar, sugar and spices. Bring to a boil and add zucchini/onions and simmer for 5 minutes. Fill pint jars and process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes. Approx. 7 pints.

Zucchini Pineapple for Canning

2011-09-02T07:30:00.000-07:00

I’m still working to use my zucchini up! One thing I have been doing is cutting the zucchini up in large chunks and putting them in zip lock gallon size bags. I plan to use this for making vegetable stock later in the year. I typically use 3 gallon size bags of frozen veggies when I make stock and I will use one bag of frozen zucchini each time I make it. You can find my recipe for veggie stock here: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/ttbveggiebroth.htm

Yesterday I made up and canned zucchini pineapple. I had an abundance of yellow squash so I used that in the recipe. I found similar recipes online and I tweaked this to utilize what I had on hand. Zucchini pineapple can be used in place of crushed pineapple. I also plan to mix it equal parts with bbq sauce to go over meatballs, meatloaf or chicken. It can also be mixed into fruit salads. Lots of possibilities!

Zucchini Pineapple

8 quarts grated zucchini
1 #10 can pineapple chunks in juice
6 cups sugar
3 cups lemon juice

Combine all ingredients (do not drain pineapple).. heat to a boiling, reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes. Ladle hot mixture into hot pint jars and can in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes.

Use in place of recipes that call for crushed pineapple..

Proverbs 31:16...

2011-08-29T06:24:00.000-07:00

She considers a field and buys it; from her profits she plants a vineyard.

This morning in my Bible reading I was looking at the above verse. It is one of my favorite verses concerning the Proverbs 31 woman. This verse has always said to me that she is a capable, intelligent woman. She has a good savvy business mind; which is very needed when raising a family, especially on one income in these economic times.

I’ve read many times where people will feel this verse means she was an entrepreneur. I can see how it can be looked at this way. But when I was a younger mom with a house full of young children and babies the last thing I had time for was a home based business. I think we miss the bigger picture of this verse when we focus just on that aspect.

Proverbs is a book of wisdom. The verses concerning the Proverbs 31 woman are to help us become wise in our role as a homemaker. I believe this verses bigger message is that we need to be making wise financial decisions for our family. There are many areas of finance in our family where my husband and I sit down and work together to make the best choices for our family. But there are many areas where I alone make the decision on what is purchased and where the money goes. Wisdom is needed when I make those decisions. Proverbs 31:11 says “The heart of her husband safely trusts her”. He is counting on me to make good and wise money choices in the areas that are my domain. Therefore I need to give a lot of thought in my spending.

When it says she “considers” a field, this means she is giving it some time and thought. How many impulsive poor spending choices have we all made in our lives? The first lesson then is to slow down and think before purchasing. Being wise with the grocery budget (just one example) means I spend time making menus, grocery lists and then spend time cooking and baking to feed my family so as to put the least amount of strain on our budget (and get optimum health at the same time :).

With the money saved it is now time to use it wisely. Planting a field to me means the money saved is put back into the family resources to be used wisely again. It also means calculating the labor involved in any project I take on and plan to spend money. I am sure the Prov. 31 woman in all her considering looked at how much time and labor would be spent in working that field so it could produce at a profit. It was not just some idea she decided to plunge into, she weighed (considered) it carefully. It is easy to have great ideas, spend the money on those ideas only to have the idea shelved and never tackled. Ideas are easy, spending money can be easy (and more so when spent foolishly). Part of “considering” means to look at the labor and time that will be used for the project. If it is more labor and time than is available, perhaps it is not the best use of my money.

With these thoughts on my mind this Monday morning I am heading off to Costco with my planned grocery list to wisely find the best deals for our family.. :)

Zucchini Sausage Soup for Canning

2011-08-27T11:07:00.000-07:00

I made my zucchini soup yesterday and got it canned. Here is the recipe…

Zucchini Sausage Soup for Canningmakes about 13 quarts

1 ½ lbs sausage
¼ cup olive oil
3 onions, chopped
3 peppers, chopped
24 cups cubed zucchini, do not peel
3 cans (14oz) diced tomatoes
3 cups sliced carrots
12 cups stock
6 cups water
1T salt
1T seasoning salt
1T. pepper
1T Italian seasonings

In a large stockpot (I used a 14 quart pot), heat up olive oil and add sausage, onions and peppers. Cook until the sausage is no longer pink and the veggies are soft. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil and let simmer a few minutes.

Fill the first 7 hot quart jars with the hot soup. Process in a pressure canner at 10lbs of pressure for 90 minutes. Repeat for the next batch.

Wednesday on the Homestead

2011-08-24T15:31:00.000-07:00

Today has been a nice day here at home. My son Isaac and I were the only ones home until just a few minutes ago when Sierra came home from her friend’s house. Isaac and I spent the morning doing chores together. It was nice one on one time. We got the kitchen cleaned up, he fed and watered the goats, I got my big pot of vegetable stock strained and bagged and in the freezer. I now have stock to make a large batch of zucchini sausage soup for canning. Isaac and I also went to the garden to see what was ready for picking. I have lots of lettuce and had already picked some yesterday. I was happy to see I had a few tomatoes to pick; the first ones! Isaac picked his favorite vegetable: the zucchini and summer squash. Always lots to find hidden in those big plants. And I had a few little cucumbers. Here is a pic of our haul today:

I had some fresh spinach that needed to be used up and some cream cheese that needed to be used too. I decided to make some spinach dip. I did not really have enough spinach for it, but in the end I don’t think anyone will complain! LOL.. I first wilted the spinach (heated a frying pan, added a bit of water and then my fresh spinach leaves and stirred it around till it had wilted, then put it in my strainer to drain). Then I proceeded to use it in this recipe: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/spinachdip.htm I am serving it with multi-grain tortilla chips ....

I am off my menu a bit due to having some nights where no kids were home and there were enough leftovers for me and Tobin. I was thinking of just putting together a little of this and that for tonight but my son Jacob called and said he was coming over (with his hearty appetite LOL) and so I figured I better get some food made. Tacos seemed like a good and easy choice this late in the afternoon. Plus I have watermelon and grapes to go with it all.

Hope you all are having a pleasant Wednesday on your homesteads! :)

Garden Updates and Zucchini Sausage Soup

2011-08-21T06:16:00.000-07:00

My kids and I did the 3rd picking of green beans on Friday evening. First thing Saturday morning I got up and canned them. It was the smallest of our green bean harvest..

But it did yield 6 quarts and 1 pint of green beans. That is the end of the green beans. There may be enough left now for a meal or two but that is it. In total I ended up with 26 quarts and 1 pint canned green beans and 12 quarts and 24 pints of 3 bean salad canned. Not bad for my single row of plants!

I love this time of year in the garden not only for the food it produces but my flowers are starting to bloom. I love planting flowers in the garden. Not only do they bring some beautiful butterflies and bees to the garden but they make the garden so pretty. Here are a few pics of some of flowers starting to bloom..

With the warmer weather finally kicking in my garden has started to produce a lot of summer squash. I have two types of yellow squash planted and two zucchini plants. Amazing how fast they produce! So now the challenge is how to use them up. For many years I have used some by grating them and freezing them for making zucchini bread in the winter. The problem I have with this is that I rarely pull it out to use it. It seems each season has its own types of fruits and veggies to use and the zucchini lay forgotten in the freezer. So it got me thinking of a way that I would be more apt to use it. I thought of soup. We eat lots of soups throughout the year. I came up with a soup that is really tasty! Everyone enjoyed it. Now my plan is to enlarge this recipe and can up the soup. It would also freeze well I am sure. But I really like having my own canned soups ready to go on the shelf. Makes great healthy, inexpensive convenience food! When I get the recipe rewritten for canning and can up a few batches I will post about that. For now here is the recipe I made last night.

Zucchini Sausage Soup

2T olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 pepper, chopped – this can be a green, red, yellow pepper: your choice
½ lb. sausage
8 cups cubed zucchini, do not peel zucchini
1 can (14oz) diced tomatoes
1 cup sliced carrots
4 cups stock, this can be chicken or beef or vegetable stock
2 cups water
1 t. salt
1 t. seasoning salt
1 t. pepper
1 t. Italian seasonings

In a 6 or 8 quart stock pot heat olive oil on medium high. When olive oil is hot add onions and peppers. Cook until veggies are soft. Add sausage and continue cooking until sausage is no longer pink. Add zucchini and cook for another 5 or so minutes. Add tomatoes, stock, water and seasonings. Turn heat on high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Serve with French bread or dinner rolls.

Gardener’s Salt Scrub

2011-08-19T06:38:00.000-07:00

I love this salt scrub! It is easy to make and works so well. After an afternoon of working in the garden my hands need a little extra attention and this scrub is just the ticket!! All you need is some sea salt and olive oil. If you have some essential oil or fragrance oil to add to it that is a bonus but it is optional.

Gather your ingredients together..

Measure the salt into a bowl..

Add the olive oil..

And stir it up…

Now add a little essential or fragrance oil. I added about 3 drops or so of lemon essential oil to give it a fresh citrusy smell. I put a little oil in the lid of the essential oil bottle and just poured that in…

Store it in a jar next to your sink. I used a wide mouth ½ pint jar. …

To use the scrub, spoon a little into your hand and scrub in well. It really helps to get all that garden dirt off your hands that just does not want to budge with just soap and water. When you are done rinse it off and wash your hands with some nice moisturizing soap, homemade preferred (http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/soapinstructions.htm or http://crystalscountrystore.com/goatmilksoap.htm ) Your hands will clean, moisturized and feel so soft!

Gardener’s Salt Scrub
Crystal Miller

½ cup sea salt
½ cup olive oil
Essential oil or Fragrance oil to scent

Mix altogether and store in a canning jar by the sink. Use a spoon to scoop out a small amount and scrub your nails and other areas of your hands that are in need. Rinse with warm water. It will leave your hands smooth and clean!

Garbanzo Bean & Veggie Burgers

2011-08-16T20:28:00.000-07:00

This last weekend I cooked up a lot of garbanzo beans for making my 3 bean salad. I had some leftover and I wanted to make something with them (hummus did cross my mind, but I did not have all the ingredients in my cupboards to do this). So I decided to makes some bean burgers with them. They were really yummy! We had them for lunch the other day and my kids gave them 2 thumbs up! :)

Garbanzo Bean & Veggie Burgers
Makes about 14 patties

4 generous cups cooked garbanzo beans
2 eggs
½ cup shredded carrots
½ cup shredded onions
½ cup shredded peppers (green, red, yellow.. whatever you would like)
1t salt
1t seasoning salt
1t pepper
¼ t red pepper flakes
½ cup finely crushed crackers, or bread crumbs or flour

I used my food processor to shred my veggies.

Put your garbanzo beans and eggs in the food processor and blend them part way. Then add veggies and seasonings and blend until mostly smooth (this does not need to be completely smooth). Put this mixture into a large bowl. Add the crushed crackers (or bread crumbs or flour) to the mixture and stir them in well. Let this sit for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Heat a large frying pan or griddle on medium high heat. Pour some olive oil over the griddle. Use a ¼ cup measuring cup to scoop out the bean mixture. You should be able to take this and form a patty. If it is too moist, add a few more cracker crumbs, if it is too dry you add a little olive oil to get the right consistency. Form a patty and lay it on the griddle. You can do this for however many burgers will fit in your frying pan or griddle.

Let them cook for 4 to 5 minutes and the flip them over.

Cook them for another 4 to 5 minutes on the other side. Allow them to cool slightly before eating.

You can use them as you would a hamburger to make a yummy burger sandwich.

Enjoy!

Monday on the Homestead

2011-08-15T09:08:00.000-07:00

A fresh start to the week!! I love Monday’s! I like to give my home a good cleaning on Monday. Usually the weekends are busy with all of us in and out of the house and by today, the home needs some attention. That would be especially true for my weekend with the canning that I did. On Saturday evening I canned up a second (double) batch of 3 bean salad; ended up with another 12 pints and 6 quarts. Plus my weekend had other happenings going on as well. So this morning I printed out my cleaning list for today ( http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/mondayschores.htm ).

Mainly I want to clean up the clutter around the house, give the kitchen & bathroom a good scrub down, sweep & mop floors, and wash a few loads of laundry. I’ll make sure my kids clean up their rooms and vacuum rugs, sweep and mop floors upstairs (where their rooms are). With all of us working I suspect it should not take too long. I am thankful for the help from my kids today as I kind of over did it with my elbow this weekend and I am feeling it.

After the house cleaning is done I was planning to get some weeding done in the garden… but the prediction is for rain today.. sad to say.. if it does rain then the most I am going to do is go pick some lettuce for tonight’s dinner. My menu says sub sandwiches and watermelon. I think it will be cantaloupe instead as it needs to be eaten first. I also wanted to make some dessert. Since today is on the cooler side it might be the perfect afternoon to bake a batch of oatmeal cookies ( http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/oatmealcookies.htm ).

My hubby does not have to work tonight (his weekend starts today), so the evening will be enjoyed with some family time and maybe watching something from Netflix.

Updates from the Homestead

2011-08-13T06:28:00.000-07:00

I have had a pause in blogging the last few days.. I’ve been dealing with some elbow pain that was diagnosed as bursitis. I’ve gone through all the normal treatments, including medication but so far it is still a bit swollen and a little painful. Has made some of the simple things in everyday life a bit more challenging! But, my youngest two have been a great help to me. Thankfully I am at the point where I can use it and that is good because my green beans were finally ripe enough for the first picking.

Yesterday my kids and I got them picked and I cooked up garbonzo beans and red beans to make 3 bean salad for canning. I also ended up with enough beans left for canning a second batch and set aside enough for another batch of 3 bean salad. By the end of the day I had 6 quarts & 12 pints of 3 bean salad and 7 quarts of green beans…

My garden is growing, a bit behind schedule but I am hopeful! While down at the garden yesterday I took some pictures….

Today I have errands to run in the city and my daughter has an art class. When I get home I plan to can up the other batch of 3 bean salad. If you are interested in this recipe you can find it here: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/3beansalad.htm

That is all the updates from the homestead for now.. Hope you have a great weekend! :)

New Goat Milk Soap Scent!

2011-08-07T06:38:00.000-07:00

I have a new goat milk soap scent available!

Lavender Vanilla!

It is scented with vanilla crème fragrance oil and lavender essential oil.. smells yummy!

Plus…

Oatmeal, Milk & Honey Goat Milk Soap

is.... Back in Stock!!

http://crystalscountrystore.com/goatmilksoap.htm

Getting Real with Weight Loss

2011-08-04T14:54:00.000-07:00

Seven years ago I was at the highest weight I had been at, well almost.. I did weigh more after having had my last child. I had lost that weight and more and then gained most of it back again. Does that sound like a familiar story to anyone who struggles with their weight? Gain some, lose some, gain more, lose some, gain more. An endless cycle. We reach for one diet or herb or miracle product to help us lose. Then discouragement sets in and we toss it all and gain weight once more and usually add extra pounds on in the process.

I’ve always hesitated to talk about weight issues. If you are anything like me it is a sensitive issue and can be a real personal struggle.

I spent 5 years losing 50lbs and have kept it off now for 2 years. Did I have a miracle diet or some awesome herb? Nope.. I got real with weight loss. Before I share my story with you I want you to know that I am in no way an expert, and I don’t have answers for everyone or anyone for that matter. I can only tell you what I did and what I still do.

First I realized one basic thing.. I ate more food than my body needed. I thought about this.. if I was stranded on a desert island with little to no food.. would I still gain weight? No, I don’t think so. However, that sounds simple but the human mind and body are not that simple. I looked at what the world has to offer.. weight watchers, jenny craig, slim fast, diet drinks or bars, controlled serving size meals, herbs, metabolism boosting pills, and on and on and on.. If they were all so effective would we still have so many overweight people in this country? Someone is making a lot of money on these things, but so many are still overweight.

Weight loss is a spiritual issue, at least from my perspective. Why do we eat more than we need? Why do we struggle with the temptations of food? I would say we have needs that we try to meet with food. I once had a friend say to me, “food is the Christian drug of choice”.. it is the only thing a Christian can over indulge in and it is OK. Alcohol, drugs, smoking, etc… are not acceptable in the Christian world but food is.. So we take the pain, issues, struggles in our lives to food.. instead of to God.

The realization came to me one day when I read in the Scriptures that self control is a fruit of the spirit (Gal 5:23) and gluttony is not something God thinks highly of (Proverbs 23:21 ), and the fact that we are not to be controlled by food (1 Corinthians 6:12&13 ) .. ever had a meal, dessert or anything else that you just simply could not say no to? Even though you were not really hungry? Yea.. me too.. That is when I knew it was/is a Spiritual issue.. God has given me everything I need to say no, I just need to go to Him and fight my battles with His strength not mine.

I lost about 10lbs a year.. because spiritual issues sometimes take time and God has so very many things for us to learn in the process.. it is still a process I am working through, but with His strength I have had success.

The nuts and bolts? I ate less food, cut my servings in half and then in half again, ate/eat only when I am hungry, fight with lots of prayer when I want to eat something and I am not hungry, learned that food does NOT have to control me.. I am in control of me with the power of the Holy Spirit.. it is a winnable battle ladies.. not hopeless desperation. Foods is no longer “good” or “bad”.. I just have choices to make. I do my best to make healthy food for my family. I enjoy the food that God has given us. I don’t deny myself foods because some worldly diet guru says it is wrong for me to eat it. But I also say no to foods if I am not hungry or even if I am and I have decided it is not the best choice for me. One of my main goals has been that I no longer want food to have a hold over me.. I want to be able to say NO because I just don’t want it.. no matter what it is..

As for exercising to lose weight? I have no problem with exercise .. but for me this was/is not the means to weight loss, it is being a good steward of my body. I have my times when I really get into exercising.. especially the winter months when I am not as busy. I love Leslie Sansone’s Walk at Home DVD’s. But when life gets busy and I am going from sun up to sundown.. I don’t worry about it.. all is not lost.. I am just focusing on more important things in my life like my family and home.

I do want to make one disclaimer.. I have friends that have struggled with medical issues or medications that have made weight loss near to impossible.. I am not referring to this type of situation.. I am talking to those who struggle with weight not related to medical issues.

Ladies.. this is a battle that can be won with the power of God.. go to Him for direction and self control.. the lessons to be learned during the process are priceless..

August Menu

2011-08-03T20:39:00.001-07:00

1^st – crockpot meatloaf, crockpot mac & cheese, cantaloupe
2^nd – tuna wraps, watermelon
3^rd – chicken cacciatore, French bread, salad, watermelon
4^th – navy bean soup (using leftover hambone from last month), french bread, salad
5^th – leftovers
6^th – organic chicken sausages sautéed with onions, peppers, pasta and homemade fermented sauerkraut, salad, watermelon
7^th – baked chicken legs, potato salad, salad
8^th – hamburger rice enchiladas, refried beans, chips & salsa, salad
9^th – leftovers
10^th – ham salad wraps (using leftover ham from last month’s ham), cantaloupe & strawberries
11^th – brown rice lasagna, French bread, salad
12^th – crockpot bbq meatballs, crockpot mac & cheese, salad
13^th – leftovers
14^th – chicken alfredo, dinner rolls, salad
15^th – sub sandwiches, watermelon
16^th – Chinese rice w/chicken, egg rolls, salad
17^th – leftovers
18^th – beef & chile relleno casserole, refried beans, salad
19^th – white bean chicken chili, cornbread, salad
20^th – jambalaya, salad
21^st – leftovers
22^nd – tuna casserole, salad
23^rd – tacos w/all the trimmings, watermelon
24^th – crustless chicken pot pie, salad
25^th – leftovers
26^th – cream cheese chicken enchiladas, salad
27^th – spaghetti, French bread, salad
28^th – pot roast w/potatoes, corn on the cob, salad
29^th – leftovers
30^th – yummy pinto beans, dinner rolls, salad
31^st- orange chicken with Chinese noodles, salad

Crustless Chicken Pot Pie w/Cheesy Biscuit Topping

2011-07-28T08:33:00.000-07:00

As promised I took pictures of my meal preparations yesterday. This is a fairly simple recipe to put together. I served it with a tossed green salad and watermelon.

Crustless Chicken Pot Pie w/Cheesy Biscuit Topping
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup chopped green pepper (I used several mini peppers)
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
1 ½ to 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken, cut into bite size pieces
4T olive oil
½ cup whole wheat pastry flour
4 cups broth – this can be homemade chicken, beef or vegetable broth. If you don’t have homemade broth you can substitute 4 cups of water and 2 to 3 bouillon cubes.
2 cans green beans, drained or 1 quart home canned green beans, drained
1 recipe cheesy buttermilk biscuits (recipe follows)
1+ cups grated cheddar cheese

In a large frying pan over medium high heat sauté veggies and chicken in olive oil until veggies are soft and chicken is cooked.

Add the flour and stir.

Add broth all at once and stir to make sure there are no lumps in the flour.

Bring to a boil and let it cook for about 3 minutes or until the mixture is thick and bubbly. Add the green beans..

Pour this into a 9x13 pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray.

Set this aside and make cheesy biscuits...

Cut out biscuits and arrange them over the top of the chicken/gravy mixture.

Sprinkle cheddar cheese over the top ...

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes or until top of casserole is lightly browned and biscuits are done.

Cheesy Buttermilk Biscuits
2 ½ cups whole wheat pastry flour
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
¼ cup butter
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 egg
¾ cup buttermilk

Mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt. With your clean hands, combine butter into flour mixture until crumbly like cornmeal. Stir in cheddar cheese. Blend egg and milk together. Add to flour/butter mixture. Mix until combined and knead until dough is soft and workable. Be cautious not to over-knead. On a lightly flour-dusted counter top, pat dough until it is approx ¾ to 1 inch thick. Using a biscuit cutter or drinking glass dipped in flour, cut dough into circles and put on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Arrange on top of beef pot pie. If baking these by themselves, bake in a 400 degree oven for 10 to 15 minutes.

Enjoy!! :)

Wednesday on the Homestead

2011-07-27T08:53:00.000-07:00

Today is going to mostly be a home-keeping and garden day. The house needs some attention. I have had some busy days and the house is showing it.. I will also need to run to the post office to get a few orders out. By late afternoon if we actually get to see some sunshine I may spend a little time relaxing by my pond.. we will see how the day goes!

My to-do list looks like this:

Load/unload dishwasher
Wipe down kitchen cupboards
Clean out fridge and wipe down
Laundry (about 3 loads)
Pick up clutter
Vacuum/Sweep/Mop floors
Weed garden
Make dinner

My menu got a little turned around this month so I do believe tonight’s dinner will be a crustless chicken pot pie with biscuit topping. This is a favorite of my family’s and I don’t think I have shared it .. so will take some pics to share soon.

My all time favorite days are the ones where I don’t have outside obligations and can simply focus on my home.. and thankfully this Wednesday is one of those days.

Hope you all have a great day on your homesteads!!

Cooking with Brown Rice: BBQ Ham & Cornbread Casserole

2011-07-24T19:58:00.000-07:00

This is another yummy recipe using brown rice. On Friday I baked a large bone-in ham and we had it for dinner on both Friday and Saturday. By today it was time to deal with what was left of it. I put the bone and juices and some of the meat in a zip type bag in the freezer to make soup later on. Then I chopped up the leftover meat and put some in the freezer and used some of it to make tonight’s dinner. This was a yummy meal and my family really enjoyed it. You can also buy a boneless ham and cut it into pieces to use in this recipe.

BBQ Ham & Cornbread Casserole

2 to 3 T olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 ½ cups cut up ham pieces
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup sliced olives
2 ½ cups cooked brown rice
1 ½ cups bbq sauce
1 cup water
1 recipe cornbread (you can find the recipe here: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/cornbread1.htm )

In a large frying pan heat olive oil on medium high heat. Add chopped onion and cook until onion is soft and transparent looking. Add ham, corn, olives, brown rice:

Now add bbq sauce. I wanted the recipe to fairly moist so I added 1 cup of water. If your bbq sauce is thick you will need the whole cup of water, if your sauce is thin you may need less. You want it moist, but not soupy.

Pour this mixture in a 9x13 pan (I sprayed mine with non stick spray). ..

Mix up one recipe of cornbread mix and spoon/pour this over the top..

Bake at 400 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes. Use a knife inserted into the cornbread to make sure it has cooked all the way through.

I served this meal with a green salad and fresh strawberries…

Enjoy!

Lessons from the Garden

2011-07-22T21:14:00.000-07:00

After 2 days of rain the sun came back!! And so did the weeds in my garden! I spent hour and half in the garden weeding today. My son Isaac helped me as well, so together we made great progress and I think the weeds are under control (at least for right now :).

You know I use to hate weeding with a passion, so much so that I rarely did it and my garden always ended up a jungle by the end of the season. Then one year I decided it was important to me have a well tended garden. My dad use to say, “Any job worth doing is worth doing right”… that may not be his original saying, but that is where I first heard it. So I took on a new attitude with weeding.. what good things come from it? For me this is the list.. I get some quiet time to think! Weeding is mundane work and it provides a great moment in my day to just think. I can also pray! I can be productive, have solitude doing this homemaking chore and spend a little time talking to the Lord. I am one who loves the sun and what a great time to enjoy it. Again I can be productive and soak up the rays and a little vitamin D while I am at it. Weeding and hoeing a garden my size takes a bit of physical strength. I do feel those muscles having been given a workout when I am done, so I get some exercise as well. Each time I spend an hour or two in the garden I always say when I am done, “Who needs a gym membership when you have a garden!”.

During that time I also decided that doing anything in my home required me to do it well. That is also when I realized I had way too much on my plate. So I started downsizing and not taking on new projects. I had these goals… I wanted a home run well, I wanted a home that was neat and orderly (as much as is realistic with a house full of children), if I was going to have animals or gardens or any other project or diversion in my life than they needed my utmost attention. Well, I am not super woman by any means so I got rid of a lot of goats, I don’t have chickens any more either.. I currently buy my eggs from my friend/neighbor and am happy to contribute to her efforts. I also wanted to give more to my homeschooling. I have been homeschooling now for more than 20 years and it gets tiring.. but I realized .. I had to press on as I am not done yet! I wanted to make sure my hubby was getting the best of my efforts in his life as well.

So I scaled down the farm animals, I did not start any new projects in my life, I made curriculum choices that worked better for me and gave me a little inspiration while still giving my children a good education, and I worked to keep my home in better shape. I figured when I had this all under control then I could take on more if I wanted.

Jump forward a few years and I am still pretty much in the same place. I guess it taught me what my strengths are and what my limits are. I can now easily say yes or (more importantly) NO to other things in life because I know I have found the equilibrium for my life that works. I also know my tendencies to take on too much and so I have to watch this all the time. The results of this so far are.. my house has not looked better in a long time, my goats are doing great, my garden not only looks pretty but provides us with a lot of food each year, my kids are doing well in their studies and staying focused (a focused mom = focused kids I have discovered), my hubby is happy (he was always happy but appreciates all my efforts over the last few years even more), and I am more content and less stressed.

It all started with a garden and time taken to weed and think and pray and make better choices overall for my life and the life of my family!

Wednesday on the Homestead

2011-07-20T10:13:00.000-07:00

As I was contemplating a variety of subjects to blog about this morning I thought to myself.. I should be blogging about summer related things, such as surviving a heat wave, cooking in the summer, staying cool type posts.. and honestly I wish could. However we here in the Pacific Northwest are still waiting for summer to arrive. Oh we’ve had a day here and there that was nice and gave the hope that summer was on its way. But many days have been just like yesterday. Cloudy, cool, rainy at times, highs in the mid to upper 60’s. Yep.. kind of depressing for someone who loves everything about summer.. the hotter the better (except humidity.. which is something we don’t deal with here.. hot AND humid is not that great). Anywho.. imagine my surprise when I woke up to sunshine this morning! The weather man told me different and he was wrong.. at least this time and I am thrilled that he was wrong! :)

So this morning I had to go outside and sit for a bit to enjoy my cup of coffee and thank the Lord for this blessing. I took a few pictures from my deck of the beautiful sunshine .. just in case it doesn’t hang around today I wanted to remember what it looks like!

Pretty.. :) One thing my garden does not show from this view is all the weeds that have cropped up in the last few rainy days. So my plans today, if the weather stays nice, is to go down and soak up as much sun as I can while I weed and tend to my garden.

Before I do that I plan to get my house picked up a bit. I did a thorough upstairs to basement cleaning on Monday so today is just pick up the clutter, do a little sweeping, tend to the kitchen and swipe the bathroom clean. Plus dinner preps. I looked at menu and saw today was supposed to be beef stew, but I am feeling more like bbq chicken and potato salad.. something more summer like!

Hope you are having a great day on your homestead today!

Sourdough Pancakes

2011-07-17T09:59:00.000-07:00

This month has been busy in my home and my sourdough starter was forgotten in the fridge. It had been a week or two since I had fed it and wondered if it had survived my harsh treatment. I took it out of the fridge and poured off a very thick and dark layer of hooch (the naturally occurring liquid that forms at the top of the starter. You can pour this off or stir it in. Since I had quite a bit of starter I decided to just pour it off). I fed my starter some flour and water and let it sit overnight. In the morning it smelled fermented and was bubbly. I was happy to see it was still alive! That day I made 2 loaves of sourdough banana bread and a batch of sourdough pancakes.

The banana bread recipe is here: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/sourdoughbananabread.htm

The sourdough pancake recipe follows…

Sourdough Pancakes

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1T cane juice crystals or white sugar
1t salt
½ t baking powder
½ t baking soda
2 eggs
3T olive oil
½ cup sourdough starter
1 cup buttermilk or soured milk

In a bowl combine the flour, cane juice crystals (or sugar), salt, baking powder and baking soda. Mix well. In a small bowl combine the eggs and olive oil. Add egg/olive oil mix and sourdough starter to the flour mixture. Slowly add the 1 cup buttermilk. Depending on how thick or thin your starter is you may need all of the 1 cup or you may need less. So add about half the buttermilk and stir and slowly add what you need to give you a pancake batter consistency (should be thin enough to pour into pan, but not spread out too much).

Preheat a frying pan to medium heat. Sourdough pancakes take a little longer to cook so you don’t want your frying pan temp to be too high or they may burn before they have cooked. Put a little butter in your frying..

Pour 3 to 4 tablespoons of batter into the pan. Let it cook until you see bubbles forming on the top.

Flip pancakes and cook on other side.

Serve with a bit of butter and real maple syrup or homemade syrup for a yummy breakfast!

After I was done baking I fed my starter again and put back in the fridge with a note on my fridge that reminded me of the date I need to feed it again (next week).

If you would like more information on how to make a sourdough starter you can find that here: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/sourdoughstarter.htm

You will also find other sourdough recipes on that page.

Cooking with Brown Rice: Brown Rice Lasagna

2011-07-14T10:59:00.000-07:00

Another brown rice recipe inspired by a family favorite recipe. We love lasagna and so I thought.. how about using brown rice instead of the pasta? It was delish!! My family really enjoyed it. Here is my recipe.

Brown Rice Lasagna

1lb hamburger
½ a large onion, chopped
1 jar spaghetti sauce (approx 28oz or 1 quart home canned sauce or the equivalent – about 4 cups- of homemade sauce)
16oz cottage cheese
1 egg
2t Italian seasonings
½ t salt
4 to 5 cups cooked brown rice (5 cups if you want to stretch the dish to feed more people)
3 to 4 cups grated mozzarella cheese

In a frying pan cook hamburger and chopped onions until the meat is no longer pink and the onions are soft. Add spaghetti sauce, stir and let heat up then set aside.

In a bowl combine cottage cheese, egg and Italian seasonings and salt. Set this aside.

Spray a 9x13 pan with non-stick spray. Spread half of cooked brown rice on the bottom of the casserole pan. Spread half the hamburger/spaghetti sauce over the rice. Spoon half the cottage cheese mixture next and then sprinkle with half of the mozzarella. Repeat layers once more. Bake casserole dish at 350 for 30 to 35 minutes or until it is hot and bubbly and the cheese is well melted.

Enjoy!!

Updates from the Homestead

2011-07-13T20:55:00.000-07:00

Wow.. July has been a super busy month on my homestead. It started with hubby & I celebrating our 27th anniversary.. which I already posted about. A few days later we had good friends that we have not seen in 10 years stop by to see and visit with us. It was soo great to see them and to see how their kids have grown! Why is it that your own kids can grow and mature but when you see your friends kids grown and matured it is so surprising?! :) During all this time our niece Megan came to spend a week with us. She is Tobin’s sister’s oldest daughter. We LOVED her visit. She is a full of life 25 year old and it was great to have all that energy in our home. Leanne kept her busy with trips to town and meeting up with all the cousins. It has been 5 or maybe 6 years since she has been here to visit us. (in the pic below... Sierra, Leanne and my niece Megan)..

On Tuesday Tobin tuned 50! We had a big 5-0 birthday party for him. We bbq’ed salmon and I made potato salad, green salad, watermelon was served strawberry's with a homemade angel food cake.. it was a great time..

This morning we put Megan on a flight back to Chicago.. and I came home and cleaned house, made bread and dinner and worked on getting life back into our normal hum.. :)

My garden has been slightly neglected during all this activity so tomorrow I plan to get out there and do the weeding. Tobin has been working on getting the winter wood in and is almost done! We need about 6 cords of wood to make it through the winter and we are almost there thanks to a couple of very big trees that came down during this last winter.

That is all the updates from the homestead for now.. :)

Shampoo Bars!

2011-07-11T06:55:00.000-07:00

Shampoo Bars are Back in Stock!!

Click here to order: http://crystalscountrystore.com/shampoobars.htm

Cooking with Brown Rice: Beef & Rice Chile Relleno Casserole

2011-07-08T07:03:00.000-07:00

The inspiration for this recipe came from one of my favorite casserole recipes, chile relleno casserole. I added rice and hamburger to it and it was really good! My family enjoyed it very much. I served refried beans and a salad with it.

Beef & Rice Chile Relleno Casserole

1 lb hamburger
½ onion, chopped
2 – 7oz cans chopped green chilies
5 cups cooked brown rice
3 to 4 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup milk
2T whole wheat flour
4 eggs
½ t salt

In a large frying pan cook hamburger and onion until meat is no longer pink and onions are soft. Add the chopped green chilies and brown rice. Stir to combine ingredients. Spoon hamburger rice mixture into a 9x13 pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray. Sprinkle grated cheese over the top.

In a bowl combine with a wire whip the milk, flour, eggs & salt. Pour this mixture over the casserole. Bake at 325 for 45 minutes.

Enjoy!! :)