Pioneer Woman at Heart

  I've been using a sample size of horsetail salve, to see if it will help with the very dry cracked skin on my hands (joys of gardening).  I did a bit of reading (like a tiny bit), and it apparently is good to help brittle fingernails too.  I do not make the salve.  I, honestly, never heard of it, until we bought some earlier this year.  So far, it's helping restore my hands and heal the very dry cracks.   Garden planting is still on-going.  The rain has now moved later into the week, so watering newly planted seeds and plants is happening.  I obtained a few packets of organic collard seeds, and have a new plan for them this year.  I read that if they are planted next to thyme, they thrive better (we'll soon find out). Our garlic is starting to grow scapes, and the radish plants have not even sprouted due to late planting.  The two together, make the most delicious dip.  I don't need to cut the scapes just yet, but I read they...

                  I've been spring cleaning so to speak.  Really, the entire house needs swept and mopped, so I'm tackling one room a day when I can.  I am moving furniture and washing any rugs.   I have also been washing bed covers/comforters.   The weather is up and down for using the clothesline. I pampered myself with a home hair treatment.  It saved me  $$ from going to the salon.  Well water is not my hair's best friend.  We all deserve to pamper ourselves. Another "finish" for April - set of cotton hot pads to donate.                               The deer have started to roam the homestead, and we are not happy.  We have not gotten the fencing up (deer jump fence if it's too short).  There has not been time to do it. Heck, we haven't even had time to buy the rest of the supplies to get the job done....

  One day we spotted about 20 "dots" out in a field.  Sure enough it was a larger herd of deer.  The few photos I took were not that great, as they were way out in the field.  I am still looking to upgrade my camera. New recipe tried. Einkorn flour Greek yogurt pancakes. Source online:  Peanut Butter Fingers (name of their site). Love these, but be aware it makes a lot!  I froze the extras, and it will come in handy for busy mornings or mornings I need a quicker, healthy breakfast.  I added blueberries to ours (I freeze a lot of them in the summer).  Side these with scrambled eggs, breakfast sausage, chicken or turkey "sausage" patties, fruit or eat them as they are.  Very filling, high in natural protein (no protein powder), and you can top them with your choice of topping. I had gone to the kitchen to heat up a cup of tea and noticed water all over the utility room floor, and mostly from coming under the sink in there.  Hm.  Close...

I purposely get up early enough to recharge with coffee, and watch the sunrise.  I also go outside to take in a breath of fresh winter air.  Even if it's just a minute.  Some days, I catch a beautiful sunrise, some days I see animal tracks, some days I see the beauty of mother nature in wild animals. I took these photos, not realizing I what I would see.  It was quite a sight to watch, as it appeared the largest buck was standing guard, while the rest of the herd got into the woods nearby. What I didn't expect to see in the photos.  A stalking coyote. Keeping an eye on the coyote. I hope you enjoyed the photos. They are not the best, as I am using an older camera, but still pretty good.  My husband gifted me a new camera for Christmas, but due to a problem with it, it had to be returned.  A new camera (we are going with something else this time) is being sought out, and hopefully soon. We are getting more snow, and they are still predicting a big dip i...

  I was not too excited for the Labor Day weekend.  First, we were invited to a cook out event (not my favorite, as there is very little healthy food), and two, my husband made several plans, where I was hoping for some finishing touches on projects and some good ol' R & R. We decided to visit a produce stand to pick up zuchinni (ours produced very little with the drought), another dozen ears of sweet corn (frozen on the cob this time), some plums, cucumbers, and local honey. First dig - about 5#.  I wasn't even going to plant the potatoes this year, but threw them in the ground willy-nilly.  We were both shocked, because I did not water them heavily during our drought.   One haul of hot peppers, and the jalapenos are hot this time around.  Hot banana peppers had zero heat.  I bought the plants from a different place, and I really think they were not labeled correctly (sad for us). We have enjoyed fresh salsa, as the tomatoes provided.  T...

  Giving this new tea a try.  It is similar to the Traditional Medicinal teas, and it is good.  I have also ordered something new to try. The carpet is all out upstairs.  It is almost completely out of the stairway as well.  It may be an all year long project, but at least the carpet is gone. I got my stand for my starter seeds moved.  I'm starting seeds two weeks earlier than last year.  I do need to check the grow lights today. There were a total of 9 deer out early evening last night.  I heard my husband talking and looking out the window saying, "you all better stay over there."  Ha ha!  They were all out eating the winter wheat.  The temperatures have dropped to the single digits, so it is back to cold here. Down memory lane:    I was looking for a specific photo and remembered I made flan for a fiesta/salsa party/tasting night.  That was the first and last time I made flan, but it was good!  You c...

  Long, but busy weekend.  While our handy-man had the weekend off, I was working hard to paint bathroom door trim, and juggle the laundry, put things back where I painted another smaller area of a kitchen wall, do dishes, cook, garden, and stock up. The bathroom repairs continue.  The floor is in.  He had to make some changes with the new sub-floor.  The new shower base drain hole was about 1 inch off of where the original drain was. The kids, when they lived here, took long hot showers, so the paint on the ceiling was literally coming off.  It's been cleared, sanded, and areas filled.  It could be another 3 days before the drywall can be put in.  The ceiling will be painted with kilz, then re-textured, and painted with ceiling paint.  Each step taking a day to dry, so I'm trying to be patient. The garden is starting to roll in bounty.  I pulled the last of the lettuce plants and made us a big salad for these humid and hot days.  I...