Homemaking on the Homestead

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 ...

I made my zucchini soup yesterday and got it canned. Here is the recipe… Zucchini Sausage Soup for Canning makes 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.  

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 r...

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...

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 mois...

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).  P...

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 ov...

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…. ...

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    

  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 c...

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 , refri...