Pioneer Woman at Heart

It's been a crazy week, and more to do yet.  Oye.  In the midst of it crazy weather. I made sure there were no hanging icicles on the barn when I went out the other day.  I didn't want one falling on me, and it sounded like an avalanche with all the ice dropping to the ground.  There is flooding now everywhere and many people without power (we are talking thousands and it won't be on until Friday) due to downed lines.  Thankfully we were not one of them, although I was prepared for it. We were bee-bopping around the kitchen getting breakfast, coffee started, animals tended, fire stoked, and Youngest went off to school.  Not long after that I got a message she was sick.  I got on the phone and finally found a daughter to pick her up for me.  I'm worried it's strep, and her speech contest is this week, so I wanted to get her checked out ASAP.  Right after I gave her tincture and teas of course.  I then wiped down the house with anti-il...

On Tuesday, the weather was horrible.  Woke up to freezing rain pouring down on layers of ice.  The temps warmed up later by noon, but then snow moved in.  What a stinking mess and I was so worried about Hubby getting to work (has a 1 hour drive that goes north of us and into worse weather areas).  There was so much heavy ice, the tree branches were touching the ground.  Cell service went in and out as well.  Hubby made it to work safely, but gosh it was bad.  The trash pick up was behind due to road conditions and arrived an hour later than normal. I popped open a jar of pumpkin butter for toast and rolls.  Mmm.  Cannot wait for this garden season. Our daughter made it out for her birthday dinner, but wind picked up late last night.  It's still windy with a windchill of 8°. Thank you all for the kind comments regarding the baby booties.  There is a story behind them.  A very short story. I was working full-tim...

Today I'm joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.  This photo is not from today, but if the weather is good, I'll be using my clothesline next week. On the breakfast plate. . . Farm fresh eggs, toast and coffee The weather outside is . . . Snow.  Enough to delay school today.  More like slush out there, but enough to make roads slippery. Right now I am . . . . . . thankful.  Thankful we found a truck load of split wood for only $60.  Snow moved in too quickly for us to cut our own.  I'm also secretly hoping school is closed.  I could use an extra hand at decorating the cake today. Thinking . . . It's gonna be a busy week.  We have a birthday dinner to have, and a wedding in the family.  Oh, and Daughter's Cosmetology speech contest is this week too.  Also, I'm "wait-listed" for a March craft show.  By the time I found out about it, it was already booked full.  Our Army daughter's Co. was deployed, but ...

The weekend went pretty quickly, although we had to get out of the house, even with these ridiculous temps and wind lately.   Daughter had Winter Homecoming Friday night, which if you have girls, you know you get the "I need it" list last minute.  We ran to one of the "Big Cities" in search for neon knee socks (it was a casual glow in the dark event), and I took that trip to an advantage and went to the craft store. Saturday we had a lunch date with our 19 year-old and her boyfriend.  We have only met him once over the course of a year or more.  I can finally tell you the bad news about this daughter - she lost her job as manager of the movie rental store.  They are officially closing.  The previous movie rental store she used to work at cut their hours, and I'm sure will close as well.  Luckily, she was re-hired at her other previous job and is applying elsewhere as well. We ran errands and forgot to pick up chicken feed.  We were so t...

In lieu of watching the mail lady (to avoid someone possibly stealing it), I decided to plant myself in an area I can see better, and get some insurance points out of the way (at the same time) before garden season.  These videos we have to watch are sooooo boring.  Financial ones are superdity duperity boring. I earned this sign on the porch for a reason, ha ha!  There has been some questionable activity, but nothing to do anything about.  Maybe they have noticed I'm watching them now? I'm glad I am remembering to get these points out of the way.  I'm always in a rush come fall to get them in before the end of the year.  I'm cheering Hubby on too.  Pre-planning has worked out great.  Plus, it's a perfect way to sit and watch for the mail (and possible activity). I made these yesterday.  They'll be gifted to my step-daughter, who is expecting a boy in late April.  Yep, we'll be grandparents again for a 3rd time. We'...

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.  Hub...

When we returned from our ride on the Harley the other day, Hubby took a nap.  A well deserved nap.  He snored so loud that Jesse popped his head up in alert, ha ha!  I let him sleep as long as he needed. A ride on our "sanity saver" always replenishes my energy.   I made homemade sausage and homemade meatballs ( recipe at Lazy J Bar C blogspot ).   Laundry soap got made.  I still have some of our homemade goat's milk soap too.  Youngest Daughter is competing in regional contest this month for Cosmetology.  It's a speech contest, timed without notes on a certain subject.  We are not able to watch the contest, but we can attend the awards ceremony. She needs black dress shoes, and while (ha ha!  This is sort of funny since I'm mostly in muck boots/work boots etc) I was scrolling through stores online, I saw a pair that I liked and remembered I had a pair!  I ran into the closet and low and behold found...