Pretend Snow Day ~ Homesteading Tidbits

The snow did not arrive as the forecast predicted.  The wind came with a small bit of it, and that was it.  I had Saturday night and Sunday to do whatever I felt like - no demands, no errands, no schedule, pretending I had a few snow days. This morning we have a -9° wind chill.  The bitter cold has moved back in on us.

Grab of cup of coffee or tea.  It's a long Monday morning ramble. . .

Reflections of 2013

 

I enjoy reflecting on the previous year, as we bring in a new year.  So grab of cup of coffee, tea, or your favorite beverage, and join me.
 

Made my first hay net. 

Click on "read more" for more reflections in no particular order, and definitely not all of them. . .

Kitchen-ness

One thing I keep in my freezer:  ginger root (and cranberries)

One thing I keep in my pantry:  honey

Homemade Ginger-ale is often requested, although I give the recipe out to the family so many times.  It truly is a staple for when anyone is sick or experiencing nausea.  I wish there was a way to make a giant batch, and can it.  

I would also buy my fresh cranberries in October, and put them in the freezer for Christmas.  The cranberries would be used for Mom's Hot Cranberry Punch recipe every year.  I however, did not buy any cranberries this year.

So, cranberries were often found in my freezer too.

Banana Chocolate Chip Baked Oatmeal - another new recipe tried. The recipe is online with The Real Food Dietitians.  I borrowed their cookbook from our library, but the recipes they post online are not in the cookbook.  We are very much enjoying the breakfast oatmeal bake recipes.  There are about two more of their recipes to try.

The recipe for this bake was a one bowl mix, only uses one egg (you can substitute flax), and the only sugar in the bake is the 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips.  You can top it with peanut butter, yogurt, honey, or syrup.  I ate it plain and it was delicious.  You could top it with homemade whiskey butterscotch sauce too.

How I freeze my ginger root:

I wash the ginger root first, then let it dry on a veggie drying mat.  I then wrap it in plastic wrap, and then put it in a freezer bag (labeled and dated).  I take it out when I need it, and put it back in the freezer.   

Kitchen-ness © Nov 2023 by Kristina at Pioneer Woman at Heart

Recovery ~ Sadie Update

We are recovering.  The sickness got three of us (if I could only teach one to wash her hands more often).   We used hot herbal teas (ginger, mullein, thyme and others),  homemade vapor-rub, eucalyptus inhalation steams, homemade ginger-ale, and homemade elixir.  I encouraged them to gargle with salt water too.  It really helped me.

A Deserving Day Off

This bird is annoying the heck out of me, and trying to take over my front porch.  I have no idea what type of bird it is, but the beak on it is longer than most birds.  The sound it makes is sooooo annoying.  It would come all the way to the door when I was inside, squawk, and fly off before I could get a photo. I keep ringing my dinner bell to keep it away.

....just another day in the life of our homestead.

So?  Did we get more rain? 

First Herbs ~ New Additions to the Homestead ~ Tidbits

I am happy to say my herb garden is springing to life again.  I chopped my first chives of this year.  Boy was it a good feeling.  My kids thought I was nuts when they saw me smelling them while walking in the house.

They went into the butter I made for the steaks yesterday, and I chopped more for eggs.  It really is a good feeling. 

I also added a tab divider in my recipe box.  I reads "butters."

Guess what I brought home? 

Hot Peppers and tidbits

I had a mess of hot peppers to take care of, so I made one last batch of hot pepper jelly.  I'll be freezing the rest, or using them in recipes such as salsa etc.

I froze a bunch of mad hatter peppers.  I'll use these in recipes that call for red bell pepper and in many recipes.  I have a ton more to freeze today or I lose them.

Army worms have invaded our state.  I have yet to see any at our property, but some friends are dealing with their entire yards gone.

I brewed up a batch of homemade ginger ale for Mom.  She has had no appetite and loves my ginger ale.  I wanted to make her favorite snack, but decided it was best to not right now.  She says the only thing she can eat right now are tomatoes and popcorn.  My tomato plant has new tomatoes on, but nothing ready to pick, so we'll check the produce down the road.

Speaking of Mom, she has had two more falls since I last posted.  We went into town last night and helped do some things and feed her cats, but didn't get home until dark.

Daughter K had to work late, so we had dog duty, had to feed her cat, put the chickens in and when that was all done we were literally drained of any mental/physical energy.

My kitchen sink and counters are full of dirty dishes, laundry was left on the line all night, I didn't have time to make a breakfast for my husband to take to work this morning, and we are both mentally and physically exhausted.  

No Spend results ~ Dehydrated Celery

Meals were from the freezer and pantry.  Remember all that onion soup I froze?  Well, I pulled some, along with frozen corn we put up, a jar of home canned potatoes, and with pantry goods, created a potato/corn chowder.   Honestly, this was so good.

I have homemade baking mix on hand, so I pulled shredded zucchini for some muffins for school lunches.  Evening snack was popcorn, which we still have plenty of.

Sickness ~ Hubby ~ Homemade Graham Crackers ~ More Hand Lotion

The only reason I am up this morning, is to locate the school's transportation number and cancel the bus today.  Both kids that ride it are sick with fevers and whatnot.   As luck would have it, the school was calling me as I was calling them, and they closed today due to snow and bad roads.  Traffic outside, is moving extremely slow.

As for me?  I woke up at 4am freezing cold.  I knew at that point I was the next to get the sickness (that our 15 year-old brought home from a sleepover).  My temperature was 101.4 and I am not feeling so well.   

Random Tidbits

It's beginning to look brighter, earlier in the days here.  Sunrises are pink and beautiful,and it does help with rising earlier now.  This cold winter has made me lazy in the mornings.  Happy Valentine's Day, by the way.  

Hubby had to fix the gas line on our daughter's car (18 yr.).  Luckily, it's was fixable without buying parts.  However, my car needs back brakes now.  Not sure when or how it'll get done (too cold to work outdoors, and with his hours).

I've been reading "sheet pan" dinner cookbooks from the library lately (when I have a few minutes).

Random Tidbits

After trying to convince our youngest daughter to go back to bed, she was on the bus to school, only to text and asked to be picked up.  She slept the entire day yesterday, and I whipped up a batch of homemade ginger-ale for her.  

And speaking of whipping up a recipe.  I made the homemade make up remover wipes - water, jojoba oil, vitamin E oil, and virgin coconut oil.  The recipe is in this book:

I will be back with an update, after the girls give them a whirl.   I sure hope they work.  Buying "organic" ones from the store is robbing my wallet.

Update:  11/7/2017 - these wipes starting growing mold on them yesterday.  So saddened, as these really worked, and I had hoped to cut down my costs for the girls.  I can't add an essential oil, as they are used over your eyes, and I can't put them in the fridge either.  They were tossed out.
 

The kale is growing like wild fire.  I am super happy too.  So is my swiss chard.  They survive a hard freeze, and the best part of this colder weather?  No bugs, so there is more to eat and stock up with.

I decided to put some of the kale into the crocky too - Lentil Barley Soup (recipe from the book above, and thank you Mama Pea for the book suggestion).  A wholesome meal packed with warmth and nutrients. 

I added a finely diced habanero for heat and health as well.    I didn't have a leek, so I used chopped green onion and one shallot.  I still didn't have a lot of spice to the pot, so I ended up adding some "fire powder" and red pepper flakes.  Fire powder is just a mess of hot peppers dehydrated and ground up (at the end of the season).


Apparently Lagom (Swedish) is the new Hygge (Danish).  I just read an article on it, and I pretty much try to live that way - living life to the fullest, staying spontaneous,  trying new things, yet being responsible.


I've been using simply borax to scrub my toilets.  We have a septic system, so I have to be careful of what I use.  I just read a blog (Hibiscus House) that suggested you use baking soda, white vinegar and tea tree oil.  I did some more research, and from what I found, it's also septic safe. I gave it a try, and it works great.  

Send good thoughts and prayers my way.  I'm writing a short story for a contest.  A contest is always a shot in a million, but I love writing too.  There is a pay out for the winners too.

I'm making progress on the mug sets.  They are looking pretty good so far.  I need to crochet the straps on next. 

Happiness is when I find another pint of homemade granola in the cupboard.  I love it on my yogurt.

"Fire it Up" Herb/Spice Mix (aka Full Throttle Herb/Spice Mix ~ Good/Bad

We woke up to all the white stuff melted.  All of it.  I am so glad to see that.  It was an ice rink walking to the barn, to fetch wood and to get the mail.  It'll be sloshy out there, but I'll take warmer weather and mud over ice and freezing temps at this point.


There are so many nutritional and medicinal benefits of herbs and spices, so I won't go into detail of each one.  However, I mixed the following together for their benefits, and tried it on eggs, on sandwiches, meats etc.

Although I called it "Fire it Up" we like to think of (or call it) "Full Throttle" because it fires up our "engines."

A body boosting, immune boosting, sickness fighter, overall health boosting mix.

First I picked dehydrated garden parsley, and my home ground garlic. 

Stitching More in Red ~ Puttin' Up Squash ~ I'm a Winner!

First, I apologize for the long "coffee hour" post today.  It started out short, but it kept raining, and I kept typing.
 
Thursday and Friday cooled down to the lower 70's - perfect camping weather.  It was just the most amazing porch talk weather, the best ever sleeping weather this summer yet.

I've been bug picking, coop cleaning, and simply staring at our garden.   I am starting to worry that I am running out of exciting, happy moments to post here.

 A dentist visit allowed me

Weeding

Spent Sunday weeding rose bushes.  Good thing I waited to do it last.  I was going to pull an entire rose bush, that I had thought died over winter.  After weeding and cutting it back, I found one tiny new sprout of growth.  Oh happy day!  It's my most fragrant rose bush I have so far.

Herb Garden Happenings ~ Tidbits

The rain came and went on Monday, so we worked accordingly.  I did not, and do not, feel good anyway.

Rain flowed in again Tuesday, but I was able to check in on the herb garden(s).  Today, we were to get bad storms early this morning, but we got fog (and a school delay) instead.  I was happy with it, as I go to sleep in.   Here is what is currently happening (including medicinal herbs) in the herb garden:

Happy Homemaker Monday

(area where the new coop will go, so we are "getting two birds with one stone - wood cut and clearing it off as we go, but we have a lot of work to clean it all up).

Saturday morning started off with car and truck repairs.  We'll, an attempt anyway.  We needed a new alternator for the truck and the car was leaking antifreeze.  We just can't catch a break.  As for the car, it's the intake, which will require an entire weekend to repair.

We were completely out of wood, so that also needed done.  We had one day to do it all too.  Or so we thought.  Saturday night (late), Hubby got the call that Sunday overtime was canceled.  

We got up early and him-hawed over our to-do list.  We decided to take a look-see at the larger pellet stove and assess what repairs would get it running vs. trying to remove it and install the smaller one (requiring many hands to move the very heavy large one).  

We worked on the larger pellet stove, need one part, and have plans to fire it up in a few days.  We decided to repair the big stove, since it burns corn as well as pellets.

The humane society is closed for renovations, so I have no one to trap the two stray cats.  They are driving Romeo nuts.

On a good note, with a combination of medicinal teas, tinctures, rest and four thieves vinegar, I am feeling a bit better.

I shopped from the garage again.  One of the kids left a small, flat bottom lined basket.  It went to the kitchen to hold bottles of club soda (that don't stand alone on the wire shelving).  We keep a few bottles year round for homemade ginger-ale.

If you were looking to buy a heart bookmark from my other blog, the light blue one is sold now.

I am taking advantage of a semi-sunny day, but warmer than yesterday.  I had laundry out on the line at the crack of dawn.

Today I'm joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom, although this Monday, my post lacks photos.  

It's not very often I pull a hand towel with the right day of the week on it.  I do need to make new ones this summer.


The weather outside is . . .
We may get up to 55°F today, but cloudy.  Yesterday we had a wonderful day of sun!  Snow is to return tonight.


How I am feeling this morning . . .
A bit on the mend, but up and at 'em this morning.


On my mind . . .
The garden and vacations.


On the breakfast plate . . .

Another round of coconut waffles and homemade blueberry syrup.  Coffee too.


On the reading pile . . .

Kiss the Girls, James Patterson.  Definitely not passing this book on to my daughter.  The book definitely has more details than the movie, and it'll be recycled when I'm done.  I have printed out the series in order for Joanne Fluke and one other author.  I'll tote it along to any book sales and thrift store visits now.  I'm already 1/2 way through this 400-some page book.

On the TV . . .
Movies on Netflix, Movies from the library



On the menu this week . . .
-Chicken teriyaki, wild rice
-Spaghetti Squash Casserole
-Crock pot pork chops, sweet potatoes
-Leftovers

On the to-do list . . .
-Laundry
-sweep/mop kitchen
-dishes
-dinner prep
-breakfast for the next few days
-master bath
-work in garage for a bit
-Making lotions and lip balm (still on the list)

What I am creating . . .
Slowly finishing an overcast colored XL hot pad, and starting a different bookmark.  

From the camera . . .
I almost had a picture of a red headed wood pecker, but he was too fast for me.

We had some beautiful colors in this morning's sunrise.  


Looking around the house . . .
It all needs a good dusting.  Again.

Chore I am not looking forward to this week . . .
No chore really.


To relax this week I will . . .
Read, write, crochet.

Prayers . . .
Mom, personal requests, our own family.

Tuesday Teabag Tidbits ~ Holiday Baking Starts ~ Cashew Brittle

Canning took up most of my morning yesterday.

We've been out of Candy Apple Jelly for over a year, so some of this is going in the pantry.

I had to whip up a batch of homemade ginger-ale syrup.  Youngest texted me that she was feeling pretty sickly.  Thankfully, I have club soda on hand, but now I'm out of honey.

Made my first batch of organic cashew brittle.  I hope to make one or two batches more yet.

Dinner was easy yesterday.  I used leftover mushroom gravy, combined with homemade condensed mushroom soup, and cooked pork chops it in the crock pot.

Random Tidbits

I said I was not going to use my stove yesterday, but I did.  Hubby brought home some ginger root and club soda yesterday, so early in the morning I made a double batch. This is so refreshing on a muggy day too.  This is one of the recipes I most likely will have ready for when my older two are home.  They have been writing home about recipes they want me to make.

Cooking from Storage ~ Pasta e Fagioli

Oldest Daughter was pretty sick, and is still sick.  I whipped up a batch of homemade ginger ale for her, and that is the only thing she could keep down. Thankfully, I had all the ingredients, aside from lime juice, to make it.

I offered her elixir, but she said no.  Her fever continued all day.  She was the only one who had a flu shot too.  She's miserable.  

I'm sanitizing just in case.  Not that I don't, but just being extra careful.

Sickness ~ Alias Update and Other News

It happened.  

I caught the plague that the kids have been toting around. Ugh.  I blame it on forgetting to take my vitamins with me while camping.

I am just plain miserable.  My head hurts, the bridge of my nose feels like it's being squeezed by vise-grips, and my eyes are watering uncontrollably.  I already used a box of kleenex (which I insisted on buying the kind with lotion in them).  Thank goodness I have one jar of homemade vapo-rub made.

And I know I look as bad as I feel.  Hubby took one look at me and said, "you look like h*#!!"

He told me, "go back to bed" and that wasn't happening.

I had to prepare a birthday dinner (chicken alfredo and steamed broccoli) along with an apple and peach pie, get ice cream, and so forth.

Ha....go back to bed?  

Not happening. 

However, thankfully my son was off work Monday, and was able to help me by taking Alias to the vet.  He came home and said Alias got a clean bill of health.  Yay!  He is healthy and now current on his shots.

As for an update on the second inspection of the stove piping....didn't happen.  The second company we called, never called as they stated they would, nor came out.  Hubby said, "don't call them again."

I have now called the third company, who is scheduled to come out next week.  They would be here sooner, but are swamped with calls, as it is getting colder in our area.   I'll have an update on the inspection late next week.

Today, I am paying for not "going back to bed."  I am more miserable today than yesterday, and promised my 11 year-old I would do all of the dishes (she was getting a migraine last night and the other kids went to the movies).  

I did spend some "sitting time" working on some Christmas gifts, but I can't post photos until after I gift them.  

I will be going back to bed, after the kids get on the school bus.  I'm hoping that I have a few more glasses of homemade ginger ale in the fridge too.