Pioneer Woman at Heart

  Homemade lip balm has been made.  I originally made it with calendula infused oil, but now make it with lemon balm infused oil, plus essential oils. Instead of buying the holder to hold up the tubes, I just wrap a few with rubber bands, and it works great.  I save the rubber bands from any mail delivery.  I also use a can, washed and dried (from chickpeas/beans etc.).  I bend a "spout" for easy pouring. I did not write down the source for my recipe, but there is one on Mountain Rose Herbs online, and many other recipes to use online.  Trust me, it took some work to get the binder out of my office, ha ha!  I'm just glad this is done.  I use the lip balm all the time. I try to keep notes on my recipes.  I had written this makes 10, but I got 9 tubes.  I guess it will depend on tube size.  Anyway, the benefits of growing medicinal herbs.  

Finally!  After 2 1/2 months, my pressure canner has arrived.  We are still waiting on about 3-4 more orders from months ago. I accidentally made the first batch Calendula (because I was reading my recipe.  I re-wrote it now, so I reads "Lemon Balm Oil" as well.  I have to put the lemon balm in tubes, so I can take them on motorcycle rides.  The slide trays work at home though.  Not sure where I got my recipe. \ Red bellied woodpecker? My feverfew bloomed for the first time ever! We got a 10 minute rain storm late evening.  Thankful for the rain.  However, all day they kept saying an all night threatening storm.  I stripped my porch, took hanging pots down etc.  Now I have to put it all back.  All for 10 minutes of rain.  No 70mph winds they kept saying we'd have.  Oh, and no tornadoes.

We finally had a few dry days, which for me meant weeding.  Lots of weeding and a garden hoe.  Although not completely weeded out, I dropped my zinnia seeds into the flower beds, as rain is coming back today.  I also planted my rosemary, lavender, and dropped some miner's lettuce seeds.  I also got my lavender and rosemary planted. Asparagus is still coming up too. I brought in the smallest egg ever the other night.  I was surprised it had a yolk, ha ha!

King has pulled another "king -tas t rop he. " He is my lea st favorite dog and will remain on tha t list until I get over what he did.  Ugh. I hurried out the door with Zuri on a leash, and Jesse.  No different than any other day.  I t ypically take Kin g first, b ecause he does his bu si ness rather quick.  Yesterday, I took Zuri first. I went back to the door and guess what?  That #@* # dog, jumped on the knob and locked me out.  I had no phone, all of the vehicles gone for the day, no keys, entire house was locked up as tight as F ort Kno x , and I had one screwdriver and a metal no -trespassing sign to work with.  I debated to get the lad der a nd cl imb to check the second story windows, but put the la dder back.  To o ri sky.  Something just told me don't do it.  I kn ew exactly which window I'd break if it came down to that though.

Like most of you, my hands, face, and lips are feeling dried up and awful already (cold and wind).  My younger two girls love the homemade lip balm, and we are almost out of homemade hand lotion.   That is now on my to-do list now al so. The last time I made the lip bal m I used small plas tic , round cont ain ers.   This time I u sed lip b alm tubes.  I used 10 of them.