Pioneer Woman at Heart

Grab a cup of java.  I apologize, this post ended up too long.   October was a busy month for us.  We had so many plans, our plans had plans.  Whew!   Three weddings - one in another state up on a hill (they drove us up with a tractor and wagon) over looking a river, the other on a hill at a castle, and the third we didn't make it to. There were car shows, trunk or treats for the littles, a long distance trip to re-stock baking/cooking supplies (it's hard to find organic non-gmo in our area), garden work,  yard work and more.   One thing that did not happen, was our last camping trip, and it's probably a good thing considering.  The state put a burn ban on the campground, and the nights were down to the 40's.  The whole point to go camping (for us anyway) is to go off grid, enjoy nature, campfire cook, and enjoy an evening campire.  No being allowed to have a campfire, was the ticker that crossed the last camping trip off the c...

  I have been making this homemade toner all year, and it is ridiculously easy to make.  It's great to use after a hot day of work outside, but overall I love it.   You simply add 2-3 dried flowers to your witch hazel (double distilled, organic), and let it sit overnight, then add the last ingredient.  I store mine in amber bottles, but it is very pretty in clear glass jar. The recipe is online, and it uses 3 ingredients - Butterfly Pea Flower and Witch hazel toner.  Thank goodness it is that easy to make, because the days here are ridiculously commited to one thing or another.  We had a few hours of one day to get supplies for the new coop.  I kid you not about this.... At Menards you walk to the way back to place your order for lumber, then take the paper all the way back up front and pay.  you then drive thru a gate and get your order yourself, and drive out as they check your order. We literally got to the register, and my husband could n...

A quick apology to those who commented on my blog (as far as back as 2010!).  I just read Leigh's post about blogger randomly putting good comments in "SPAM" in comments automatically.  I have checked all of the comments, and was shocked that even my own comments were in the spam folder.  Be sure to check yours.  Read about it on 5 Acres and a Dream Blogspot.   Comments in Spam  © October 2024 by  Kristina  at  Pioneer  Woman at Heart

  Hot mess express checking in for a quick minute.  October has been, and still is a crammed month of commitments, projects and whatnot.  More so on the commitments (preventing other work to be done). I feel like the days are so out of control, but I dug out my new jars and recipes.  I realized I had not dehydrated comfrey or plantain, and needed it for one recipe.  Of course, we just mowed too. The kitchen is full of baskets of herbs and medicinal weeds, which are all waiting their moment in the dehydrator. Our weather changed rapidly, so I am working quickly.   Sticky notes to the rescue!  Without them, I would be a double hot mess express.  I finally made a phone call for a quote, that should have been done a year ago.  I was to complete that job today, but someone took the wrong vehicle to work this morning. Purging continues, but not as productive as it should be.  Garage clean out remains on the to-do list (did I mention too m...

  Years ago, someone suggested to put an old funnel over the top of the chicken feeder, to keep the chickens from sitting on the top and poo'ing into the feeder. Well, we finally found a metal funnel that fits over the feeder.  Considering we have not yet finished the new coop (story of my life, ha ha!) we had to come up with a solution.   We did find some very old feeders at an antique store, but they were all rusted.  However, they had a metal piece in the center top, with a hook to hang them.  I will be searching more places to find them in decent shape.  Or we may build our own.   Anyway, for now, the funnel is a perfect way to keep them from roosting at the top of the feeder. Chicken Feeder Cover Tip © October 2024 by  Kristina  at  Pioneer  Woman at Heart

  I have to share this, as the skunks are on the move at night here.  Something upset one the other night and it sprayed near the house.  I woke up at 5am to a nasty odor lingering into the house. I got out my diffuser and put even amounts (per my diffuser, as some only hold so much water) of ecualyptus, lemon and tea tree essential oils.   The diffuser rids the indoor skunk odor that lingers in through a window etc. However, once I had that odor removed, I went outside to let the chickens out and smelled not one iota of skunk smell.  Strange how it can spray, and the odor wafts into the house, and by the time I got out there, there was no odor. I was prepared to mix up a skunk spray and spray under windows, but I did not have to do that.  Anyway, the essential oil trick works great. Skunk Odor © October 2024 by  Kristina  at  Pioneer  Woman at Heart

  A quick post.  My chickens would not leave their run the last few days, and now I know why.  I had a feeling something was a threat to them.  It was literally watching them, so I may need to come up with a way to net the entire coop to cover their current run.  I'm hoping it just moves on.  Between everything needing done or going on around here, we have not finished the new coop yet (and I wish we had). I picked these balls of yarn to decide on my next go-to project ( with very limited free time ).  All of them were in my stash.  The color on the left may end up a winter hat/scraf for my husband, and the right was chosen to crochet a new baby blanket pattern.  My husband was shocked the white and pick were in my stash (huge on pound from Caron).  Yes they were.  I was an ambitious person when I did baby items for craft shows. Current crochet project.  A big thank you to Betsy at Blogspot The Simple Life of a Queen .  Sh...