Rosemary Gladstar's Famous Face Cream ~ Tidbits

I've had this recipe on my "to-do" list for many months now.  First I had to infuse the oil.  The recipe is in this book, and so is the recipe for the Four Thieves Vinegar.  I have more recipes yet to try this year, so stay tuned for more updates as I get around to making them.

Winter has been harsh this year, and dry skin is an issue.  I even resorted to putting my calendula lotion on my face, it's been that harsh of a winter.

Step one - let the first ingredients cool and turn into a creamy mixture.

Step 2: Add next ingredients with a blender.  I have a hand blender I use specifically for lotions/creams. Recipe states it lasts up to a year, but I know it will be gone quickly.  It can be used for face or body.

I will continue to make my calendula cream too.  It's great for super dry winter skin like hands and feet.

I had a rather less hectic day in the kitchen, with only needing to make banana bread, and dinner prep.  Hubby requested I put chocolate chips in the banana bread this time.  Hemp seeds went in, in place of flax seeds this time.

It was time to drain my Four Thieves Vinegar too.  Only two more months of "flu" season, but I now make this to have on hand year round.

 During the stage of cooling in step 1 of the lotion, I decided to pull out a drawer and organize it (again).  We are moving from plastic to glass, but I haven't cleaned this out since our last daughter moved out.    As I went through the drawer, I went through the cupboard next to it to find containers to match with lids.  

I found no containers.  Hmpf.  The nice part of all of this cleaning?  I can find what I need and can now buy more glass containers with BPA free lids.  I have one more drawer to organize.  

The cabbage dinner didn't last long enough for a night of leftovers.   Hubby and Daughter loved it so much, they took the rest to work and school for lunch.  That meant I had to make dinner.  

Breakfast for dinner it was.  Fish is on the menu next.  I really miss eating a nice fresh radish or tomato or.....

I asked Hubby if he could build me a "she" shed.  I have determined I need one to crochet and knit away from eyes in the house.  Youngest caught me crocheting another sunflower keyfob and asked for one.  Every time she sees something new or cute, sigh....

Home again.....home again.....

One of the last stops on the way home from our honeymoon trip.  Best chicken yet.

There were two things that we didn't like at the cabin.  One - the money game.  The first cabin we ever stayed in did this and we first found it fun, but it took much of our time looking for the hidden money, hiding it again, and leaving clues in a journal.  This cabin had the money hidden so we could see if without hunting for it.  We didn't re-hide the money, just left one or two and wrote down the clues.  We wanted to spend our time with each other and taking off on adventures.

Two - they could use another large skillet.  We almost bought one, but when we return we will take one for this cabin.  I guess not all people cook a homemade meal like we do.  Breakfast time we had difficulty (or should I say Hubby) in getting eggs, french toast, bacon, fried potatoes all done for one meal.  I have however, learned how to cook my bacon in the oven now.  Saved so much time and space cooking too. We found a grocery store like ours, but it was very limited with organic food.  I forgot to take rosemary and cinnamon, and found that, but it was very expensive.  Next trip, I'll remember to take my herbs and spices.


Back to homesteading and self-sufficiency, I got another quart jar of 4 thieves vinegar started...

...and another jar of sage tincture.  We ran into so many people who said their spouse was sick or someone they knew.  We of course shared our remedies, but had the oddest looks given back to us.  I swear by them.  

During that time, Hubby fired up "Big Red" and brought me a load of wood for the wood stove.  The old barn "rubbish" has supplied us well.


It's taking a bit of adjustment to get back to reality at the homestead.  I will be working on responding to comments now that I'm back home.  We rarely had phone service (relying on road signs and maps), so I couldn't access my blog via the internet on my phone either.  To be honest I sort of liked not having service most of the time (ha ha!).

With the trip right after Christmas, our Christmas trees remained up.  Those have to come down this week, along with outside lights.  I have lots on my hooks and needles and will post photos soon I hope.

I'm excited to try new things in 2019, and can't wait for more 20th celebrations with Hubby.  Of course I'm looking forward to more new motorcycle rides as well, a bountiful garden year, hoping we can raise meat birds and new homesteading experiences.  Time (and money) will tell, but I'll give it my all.

Here's to a new year, and lots of new experiences.  And finding yarn sales (ha ha ha!). I am very relieved for the holidays to be over now, and the baking and cooking back to normal at the homestead.  

Sunday Wrap Up ~ Elixir Inquiry ~ Tidbits

I succeeded in restocking all of these for a craft show yesterday.  They were the hot sellers in the previous show, and sold out of all the camper ornaments and scrubbies, and most of the headbands.   This last show?  Well not one camper or headband sold, but I sold other items.  As well as an opportunity (would be my second location) to sell my soap saver bags on consignment with a local business.  I made one outside sale, possible two more as well.  So all in all, a pretty good December.  However, I am whooped.  Tired.  Worn out.  Looking forward to the rest of the month off and enjoying family and friends.

Question:  Does anyone have a recipe for elderberry elixir?  I have lost mine.

We woke up to a brisk 15°F.  Our pole light would not even come on, it's that cold right now.  Of course I woke to no wood on the hearth, so once I got that job done, it was coffee time.  I was up at 4:30am.  Not sure why I can't sleep, so I'm going to down some Valerian tea tonight.

My hen is in isolation now.  She has a new splint, and is by herself in the "emergency" coop.  She is eating and drinking, so hopefully over time she'll heal up like Sparta did when he broke his leg.  I have no idea how she did it, but glad my daughter was out to help the other day.

Finished and other Tidbits

The camper ornaments are restocked.  I have 3 more I can assemble for extras if I have time too.

I finished another Harley Davidson inspired lapghan.

I have 3 snowflake dishcloths made too.

I hope to have photos soon of our Christmas trees.  I've been crocheting like a mad woman, so only about 15 ornaments made their way to the main Christmas tree.  Needless to say, the housework isn't getting done and I'm so far behind on my to-do list, ha ha!

I forgot to fetch a load of firewood last night, and Hubby came home feeling ill.  It's on top of the to-do list today. 

Daughter took my car to drive herself to the school for musical auditions, we were to drive over later to meet up for the National Honor Society Induction.  We dressed up and headed out to the truck, only to find it wouldn't start.  We had not used it since it was borrowed, so we think they put cheap gas in it.  We hope to get it running soon.  We were pretty sad we could not be there for Daughter, but she was understandable with us.

I'm so thankful I made sage tincture.  It's been a blessing for sore throats here.  It will be doubled next year, making 2 jars vs. 1.  I may plant another sage plant in the spring too.  

My hen that we put a splint on, is doing okay.  She's still hobbling around, so fingers crossed.

Chicken Noodle Soup ~ Craft Show

Friday morning Youngest woke up feeling the crud.  I felt it in my throat too, so teas were brewed, essential oils dug out, and so forth.  I pulled out all the stops for the both of us - rubbed tea tree oil/oil carrier on our feet, rubbed oils on my chest, ran the diffuser, sprayed down everything with anti-ill spray, and even had my first cup of slippery elm bark tea to sooth a small case of laryngitis.  Just the thought of all the germs brewing this time of year in a doctor's office had me motivated to mix up new tea brews for our throats.

I spent the day finishing up touches to the pig ornaments, made 4 more wine cork keychains, a few pairs of earring/necklace sets and more necklaces.  I worked on the lapghan (photo coming soon) after I took care of the hens, fetched firewood, and got the mail.

In the midst of all of that, I made some homemade chicken (no I didn't go to the coop for the chicken...not yet) noodle soup with homemade noodles, carrots I put in the freezer, celery cubes I froze, herbs from the garden, and bone broth.  I knew Youngest would really appreciate it in her condition, and I as well.  It sure was a blessing to have all the ingredients in the pantry, freezer, etc.  My special ingredient is tying some organic peppercorns in cheesecloth, and putting that in the soup until I add the noodles.  It aides in reviving energy, boosts the immune system, and other good stuff.

Oldest daughter came out for a visit and of course I fed her.  She is dealing with the struggles of adulting.  She is always looking for homemade cookies, but this time got a banana muffin.

I also stamped some brown paper bags for customers on Saturday.  My ink is running out, but it did the job.  

About 4pm, just as it started getting dark and while taking Jesse out, 3 very large deer (one a buck) came out of the woods behind our place, and ran across the road.  Jesse went nuts, and at the same time one of the eagles flew over the house.  Jesse does not like anything that flies and went ba-zerk!  It was truly like "Wild Kingdom" for a few moments.

Saturday morning I scrambled about and packed up the car for the 1st craft event.  It ran from 11am to 4pm, and Hubby and Youngest helped me set up, watch the tables, and tear down. 

We also woke up to rain and much colder weather.  Rain poured down all day, with evening thunderstorms and an evening high of 48°.  The weather has been very strange.

We sold every single camper ornament, and a lot of other items.  I came home last night and watched the football game and started on more camper ornaments.  I sold some pig ornaments too - we are in corn country, so lots of farmers.  We did not sell one snowflake or tree necklace/earring sets though.  I haven't checked the inventory, but we sold a lot of my dish scrubbies and knitted dishcloths.  We were very busy for a small town event, and thrilled at what we sold.  I even sold some soap saver bags and a set of pot holders.  

Today it's warm out, but a bit wet.  The high is said to reach up to 58°F.  Sunny too.  I mentioned to Hubby over coffee that we should clean the coop, but he has other ideas, ha ha!

First Frost ~ Sweet Potatoes ~ The Last Dig

Mia was intrigued with my yarn.  She was sniffing it and wondering what it was as I crocheted.  So funny.  I tried to get some photos, but they just wouldn't sit still, ha ha!  Jesse is with us now too, and they get along well.  Tiger is just not happy.  He comes in my room at night to his "safe" space and curls up right next to me to get his "love" time now.

Oh my gosh, it was cold yesterday morning.  I had a ton of things that needed done, and it didn't heat up very fast.  We had a freeze warning last night, so the last of the jalapenos were picked, and we woke up to a temperature of 31°F.

I got soup beans into the crock pot, got my breakfast, and washed the dishes, in hopes to get to the garden.  A freeze warning is upon us now.   I dug up all the sweet potatoes.

Here's what they look like.  .  .

I harvested about half of what I normally get, but they are larger than I thought they'd get.  I didn't weigh them yet, but I am happy I got what I got.  They won't last all winter, but it's less I'll have to buy.

Apparently I fed a few rodents.  Thankfully, only losing about 3 or 4 this time.  It was rabbits.  Thanks to one of the dogs for letting me know.  The rabbits were living right along the west side of the garden.  

Hubby has been working 10 hour days (6 days straight), so I'm a one woman machine in getting everything done - hence why I don't have a rinse stand built yet.  

I literally saturated myself with the garden hose getting the sweet potatoes rinsed.  I had to dump them all out on the grass to do it, due to the wet mud on them.  When I was done I washed out the watering unit for the chickens and let the sweet potatoes dry off before bringing inside.  

Although my sleeves and pants were saturated, I rinsed off the 2 inches of mud on my muck boots and trudged out to fetch fire wood.  Several trips back and forth, I was done with enough for a few days.

Back inside I stripped and tossed my dirty clothes and jacket into the washer, to start putting away the clean dishes.  Oh the work continued.

I took a short medicinal tea break on the porch, and soaked up more sunshine.

I needed to prep a cabbage for dinner.  We were not impressed, so the cabbage will be fried with potatoes and bacon grease tonight.

On a side note, I had plans to put Mia on a tie out (prior to knowing that we'd get Jesse too (while in the garden), but I left them indoors.  They are behaving wonderfully, so I am thawing homemade dog treats to give them when I come in from a few hours of garden work.

Youngest Daughter got me good with the plastic rat.  Sigh.  I have to get her back, ha ha ha!  Little stinker.

I got a mullein tincture started.  I am getting pretty low in supply of that.  

I found some nice broad leaf plantain growing in the garden, so back out I went hoping I didn't get dirty (other than boots) to gather some of it.  Despite a frost.

It was blanched and put into the freezer for soup and stew.  I sliced it Julianne style so I only have to thaw it.  Sorry for the bad photo. I was trying to take the photo one-handed.  I stacked the leaves and sliced them like you would basil.  I then blanched them for 2 minutes, and put them in an ice bath for 2 minutes.  Drained them and put them in freezer bags in the freezer.

That's now all I got done.  A large batch of double blueberry pancakes were made ahead for breakfast.  I got about 4-5 times the amount in the photo.  Just need some sausage to go with it now.

Finished!  Got it done while taking a second short break.  Man I was so tired at the end of the day.  If forgot how much work wood takes, as well as working back to regular hours in the garden.  

Lemon Balm Tincture ~ Echinacea Tincture ~ Sage Tincture

Remember all of that lemon balm I grew?   I dehydrated it for teas and tincture making.   Well it's tincture time.  I'm making all three mentioned.  Only one will be made later, as it is currently out of stock and I did not grow it this year (echinacea).

Not only will they be utilized individually, but together.  I have a daughter who often gets canker sores in the fall, after school starts, and this combination is said to work.

You can read about the canker sore relief at LearningHerbs.

The lemon balm tincture can be helpful as a sleep aid, and a lemon balm tea can be used to help sweat out a fever. Lemon balm is soothing and also an astringent.  It helps relieve colds and flu.  It's also known for helping reduce a headache, and an aid to reduce or prevent cold sores.

The sage tincture aids healing sort throats and mouth irritations due to it's antiseptic and astringent qualities.

The echinacea tincture aids the healing process of wounds.  Echinacea has been known to purify the blood.

Preparing for flu season ~ Preserving Lemon and Lime Juice

I highly prefer freshly squeezed lemon juice in my homemade remedies etc.  To prepare for winter here is what I do to preserve real lemon juice.

I do not have a juicer, which now I'm wondering if I should buy one.

I used my hand lemon squeezer, but either will work to juice fresh, organic lemons.

Pour juice into a clean, empty ice cube tray and freeze until solid.  Each cube (in my tray) holds 1-1/2 Tbsp. of lemon juice.

Remove cubes and place in a freezer container or freezer bag, label and place back into your freezer.

There you have it - real lemon juice on hand all the time.

...and of course I didn't waste the zest.  It went into the freezer as well, as these were organic lemons.

I use freshly squeezed lemon and lime juice in my homemade ginger-ale, so I froze lime juice too.

My goal has always been to purchase a Meyer lemon tree and grow my own, but that'll only happen when I have an extra $50.00.  That is how much they cost here.  Of course you can purchase organic bottled juices as well.  I have used them as a back up plan, to make homemade ginger-ale.

Random Tidbits

Woke up to a sick daughter.  Whipped up some homemade ginger-ale, and got a crock pot of healing bone broth soup started.  Sprayed everything I could with "anti-ill" essential oil spray.  

I made cornbread to go with the soup, and it'll be part of tonight's dinner too.

My day went lick-ity-split fast due to the drive to the store for fresh organic lemons and limes, and a few groceries.  Followed by a mountain of laundry I wanted to get done in case the rain came as predicted today.  

Baked a cheddar and chili egg casserole for our "grab and go" breakfast this week.  It's delicious with real maple syrup on it too (odd but good).  I was lucky to get organic cottage cheese at a good price.  The other container will be frozen for future baked goods.

Hubby's work accidentally gave him (and many others) a $1,000.00 bonus (only some were to get them).  Now they are taking $500.00 out of each of his next two checks.  Wonderful...

We went from nice cool weather back to hot (lower 80's).  The snakes are back and they are sunbathing everywhere.  Oye.  It was much easier to weed without surprises when it was cooler out.

Worked on some crochet work. Not much, but a bit of progress.

Lima Beans ~ Random Tidbits

Lima beans are high in iron and also benefit bone growth, hence good for hair growth.  I whipped up a "greek" version of lima beans the other day and they were very good!  Here's how to make them.

Rinse and drain 1 lb of dry organic lima beans.   Place in a pot with enough water to soak them overnight.  In the morning drain, rinse and drain again.  I cooked mine in the crock pot the entire day, drained and cooled them.  The next day I took them out of the fridge and place them in a baking dish.

In a sauce pan, saute one diced onion in a bit of olive oil.  Once the onions are ready, add enough frozen/thawed garden tomatoes to equal about a can of dice tomatoes.  Add 1- 4oz. jar of home canned tomato sauce, 1/4 tsp. organic ground cloves, a few tablespoons of honey, 3 minced garden cloves of garlic, salt and pepper.  Heat until it thickens.  Toss in fresh chopped parsley.

Pour the mixture over the lima beans in the baking dish and bake at 350°F for 30 minutes or more until it's bubbling and thick.  

Enjoy!  

It's my next go-to side dish, and possibly the dish that will be a side at the holidays too. You could also half bake the beans and just add water to the tomato mixture, but bake longer at a lower temperature.

So this happened.  Someone ran into one of our driveway posts and blasted the light off, which landed over 10 feet away from the post.  See the tracks?  It happened just after I returned home from running a form to the school, and before Hubby got home from work (while I was inside preparing dinner).   I never heard it, nor saw it, but the Sheriff came out and looked at the tracks and even questioned our neighbor.  We'll see if we can get to the bottom of this.

We are still seeing some beautiful sunrises here at the homestead.

Friday was a misc sort of day - put stuff back in the camper, cleaned up the front porch, and made a visit to the garden.

I dug up some carrots and beets to see how big they were, and decide to dig or leave them in a bit longer.   Carrots?  Fail.  Popcorn?  Fail.  Beets and Sweet potatoes?  Maybe.  I can leave those two in another month, but everything will get pulled now, but the tomatoes.  Sweet potatoes and beets are small, but there is hope unless we get a frost, then the plants won't grow.  It's too wet to work out there, so the garlic bed has not even been put in yet.

Checked the berry bushes too.  Picked 4 red raspberries.

I got a bit of rosemary into the pantry, but not enough for medicinal purposes.  Will keep harvesting until our first frost.

Thyme harvest has been small this year, as well as green onion and chives.  Parsley did pretty good.  The two new sage plants grew nicely as well.

I started roasting pumpkins.  These were the hardest sugar pumpkins I've ever cut in half.  They are tough.  I kid you not.  The skin was about 1/4 thick.  Any tips on softening them to cut them more easily?  Otherwise the rest may become target practice.

Made some of our delicious Whiskey Bacon pumpkin seeds too.  The guts were treated to the chickens.

I also got some crochet work done (photos to come soon).  Hubby kept texting me all day for a date night out, with a motorcycle ride, and just as I went inside to change clothes, he canceled on me.  He worked over (sigh....).   Daughter went out to a football game, so it was little ol' me by myself for several hours.  I immediately changed to PJ's, and binge watched netflix with crochet work.  That's a lot for a Friday.  We'll see what happens over the weekend now.  Thanks for reading through all of this.