Granny Squares Everywhere ~ Reclaiming Home and Garden

It was bound to happen.  I got bit by the "granny square bug."  I made several bottle cap keychains with round granny squares for garden.  These can be made into magnets also.

I made several bottle cap necklaces (and more keychains) as well.

Frugal Tip ~ Dehydrating Cottage Cheese

I am learning to be much smarter with my dehydrator, and saving money at the grocery store.  They had 16 oz. tubs of organic cottage cheese marked down for clearance.  I paid $1.49 each, for two tubs.  They are normally $4.89 each.  They fit nicely on the 4 trays in my dehydrator. 

I Got Notered

(sharing another awe-inspiring sunrise)

My 11 year-old is writing notes again.
 
"Hi mommy I love you.....he he he"

I received it in my inbox.

Goat Fencing ~ Homemade Parmesan Cheese

I'm still hacking away at the garden weeds, and it's been a long week.  Orion (aka Big Boy), has his "stink" on.  You can smell him everywhere now.  And guess who gets to babysit him, and water him?  Ugh.  Yep.  Me.  I need to call him "stinky la' pew."

Garden Surprise ~ A "Get'er Done" Project

From the Homesteading Journal . . .

Garlic was planted this weekend.  It will be harvested next spring. The heat wave we had is over, and they are calling for much cooler weather. 


I also made homemade seasoned salt. I used my homemade garlic and onion powder to make it.  It's the first time making it, so I am comparing it to the smell and taste of Lawry's from the store.

Recipe I used:

A Felt/Glue Experiment

While working on making our bottle cap-embroidered necklaces, I found that E6000 glue gives off an odor.  I went in search of advice, but decided to do my own experiment with types of glue, using felt. 

I used, from left to right, regular tacky glue, clear gel tacky glue, crafter's adhesive (Locitite, odorless and dries clear), and felt glue.  As you can see, I glued them to a scrap piece of cardboard.

Ironically, the felt glue left a white residue on the felt.  The same thing with regular tacky glue (it's difficult to see in my photo).  The crafter's adhesive left the felt hard where the glue dried, and a somewhat darker color.   The winner is the clear gel tacky glue.

I'm now another step closer to posting the bottle cap necklace tutorial.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Peppers, Bats and Rats

I just had to share this.  We got three habanero peppers from the garden this year.  That's all.  I think we planted 4 habanero pepper plants among our 50-some pepper plants this season.

Check out how small they are too.  Hubby had to laugh when he saw them.  I'm not sure what I will make with them yet. Possibly a second trial run on a hot pepper jelly.

I got three cayenne peppers too.  Those went in the salsa I recently canned.  I think we got one very small green pepper and some super chili peppers.

I'm praying that next year's investments will be producing more bounty overall. 

Only in our house.....will you watch the sunrise, sip coffee, and chat with your kids about what bat and rat poop looks like.  

We have a rat and a bat living in the upper loft of our goat/chicken barn and rat traps are being set.  However, my 16 year-old was attacked early morning by a bat, while tending to her goats.  She laughed, and said she used her goat's mineral feeder to cover her head and run.  Bats are great, but not when then they take over the barn.  I am thinking we really do need to build a bat house.