Pioneer Woman at Heart

From the Homesteading Journal . . . While hanging laundry on my clothesline, I kept hearing a woodpecker nearby.  My clotheslines are run off of 3 large, older trees.  They were there from the previous owners.   I stopped what I was doing, and walked in the direction of the middle tree.     In the top portion of where a tree limb was broken off, I found this. The last few tornado seasons, brought in bad winds and tore down many thick branches.  Birds now make a home in this portion.  I sure hope the barn cats don't see it. We are drying Peanut (our goat in milk) off for breeding.  We are down to 1 pint of milk a day.   I will sure miss it over the winter, but will be blessed with more milk next year. Wood splitting came to a halt.  Our chainsaw blade went bad.  Now, it's just a matter of hubby getting the time to put the new one on.    From the Family Journal . . . This past weekend was full of surprise...

Do you remember Jasper, the cat who loves to play under my rag rug? Well, a few days after I deep cleaned one entire wall area in my bedroom, I noticed small items behind my book shelve again.  I asked who was in my room and why there were items knocked down behind it.  No one knew. A few days ago, I figured it out.   I saw Jasper, the sneaky cat, running through the house with my cow!  My oldest daughter brought this home for me after an FFA trip for school (after two daughters have made trips, I have a 3 cow collection of different types). Do you see the discolored face on the cow?  It's all dirty compared to the rest of the cow? That is how Jasper is carrying my cow around the house.  I put it back, and he got it out again yesterday morning.  I actually had to hide it in a dresser drawer so he would find another toy to play with.  For some reason, Jasper loves to carry around small stuffed animals.   I wish I had a photo so s...

The one reason we don't raise rabbits for meat is Milo.  He's our indoor pet bunny and he's as pampered as the rest of the gang. In the photo, Milo is having bunny yoga on one of my daughter's legs.  He's so relaxed in this position, he simply takes a nap.  He so funny.  As for me.....ugh.... I have been keeping our meals very healthy, I have increased my liquids, swept up the allergy causing dust and dander, and went to bed early. I woke up feeling worse than yesterday.   It has been raining here, during the day, and at night it's not too cool.  The moisture is so bad inside, that my bathroom rugs are still wet after 3 days.   I woke up very tired (even though I got more sleep), congested, watery eyes, a continued cough, and a runny nose.  Over the counter allergy medication just doesn't cut it.  I even mixed my raw honey/organic apple cider vinegar mix yesterday.     I love the country, but the count...

I just read this on another site, and had to share.  JUST A MOM? A woman, renewing her driver's license , was asked by the woman to state her occupation. She hesitated, uncertain how to classify herself. 'What I mean is, ' explained the woman at Registry, 'do you have a job or are you just a ...?' 'Of course I have a job,' snapped the woman. 'I'm a Mom.' 'We don't list 'Mom' as an occupation, 'housewife' covers it,' Said the recorder emphatically. I forgot all about her story until one day I found myself in the same situation.. The Clerk was obviously a career woman, poised, efficient, and possessed of a high sounding title like, 'Official Interrogator' or 'City Registrar..' 'What is your occupation?' she probed. What made me say it? I do not know. The words simply popped out. 'I'm a Research Associate in the field of Child Development and Human Relations....

My mother gave me the celery leaves she cut from her celery over the weekend.  I dehydrated them for several uses. I will use them to add flavor and color to soups, saute them in with onions for many recipes, and they can be added to salads also. I did some quick research after dehydrating my celery leaves, and this is one vegetable I will want to continue to buy organic from now on.  It is in the top two of the "Dirty Dozen" list. My dehydrated, garden grown jalapeno peppers came in handy over the weekend also. I cooked up a pot of cabbage and bean soup, and added about 4 crushed rings of these peppers.  I didn't have a recipe really, I simply used broth, water, cooked dry beans (whatever I had at the time, which was navy and pinto), cooked up some fresh picked Swiss chard, added chopped cabbage, and even about 3 Tbsp. of our canned Zucchini Salsa.  I used garlic and dehydrated jalapeno's for flavor.  It turned out to be delicious and healthy.

I am very late at passing this award on.  I received this award from The Fearless Farmgirl . "Liebster" is a German word meaning dear, sweet, kind, nice, good, beloved, lovely, kindly, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing, and welcome.  The Liebster is awarded to spotlight up to coming bloggers who currently have less than 200 followers. Now that I have won this award, I not only want to pass it on, but need to do the following:  1. Thank the giver and link to the blogger who gave it to you - Check 2. Reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving them a comment on their blog - Check 3.Copy and paste the award on your blog - Check 4. Have faith that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers - CHECK 5. And most of all - have fun!  Check! Here is who I awarded (these reasons are not limited to the few I posted, they all have exceeded in earning this award): The 3 Foragers , for their unending help in foraging, their kindness, quick respons...

My family already thinks I'm nuts, but thanks to The 3 Foragers , I have collected foxtail grass seeds to dry and eat (see disclaimer on blog, always get expert advice when foraging).