Friday One Liners

Plantain tea (1 teaspoon dried plantain weed, 1 cup of boiling water - steep) is good for an upset stomach.

Comfort food - Pumpkin-Sage Macaroni and beets.

Random Tidbits

Our "grandson" has been staying with us for the last few days. He may be here for a while yet, while our "Vet Tech-in training" daughter gets her move straightened out.

We now have a "dog" blanket over the bed quilt so the dogs don't ruin it.  However, "grandson" Jesse has been given soul rights to the blanket for now.  He's old, and he can barely get on or off the bed anymore.  He's been getting spoiled by us.  

The hot pepper pickled eggs have been delicious on top of chicken or tuna salad (made with my home canned sweet pickle {or zucchini} relish).  Yum! 

Reminder:  Check the batteries in your smoke alarms.

Blueberries

I was directed to another blog, by a blog follower, which has a different type of blueberry oatmeal muffin recipe.  Thank you by the way.  

I have to admit, I did not follow the recipe entirely.  I switched

The Good ~ The Bad

The Good:  we are still being provided with frozen, mashed garden grown sweet potatoes (and they taste great when reheated).  

The Bad:  I didn't can applesauce this past fall.  Organic apples are too expensive yet, and our trees have not produced.

Sunday Fun

I always try to call work fun, so I don't get down and out about doing it.  Actually, it was Hubby who said he's glad we had to go out and cut wood yesterday.  He said it's good to get fresh air in winter.   Then again, he's the first to say, "why do we do this?" when we run out of wood and we haven't planned early for it, ha ha!

The last few times we split wood, I found beauty all around us and went back out with my camera.  Hubby laughs at this, and calls me "crazy."

Here are the photos I took:

Snow Storm/Drifting ~ It's a "Grab a Cup of Java" kind of post

Warning:  This may be the most boring post you'll ever read.

There are two rooms that drive me nuts (and I mean NUTS!), and for 3 years I have attempted to clean them out, purge, organize etc.  Hubby jokes to me all the time, saying "what is it this time, going on 3 years?"  

A stay-at-home Mom should have the house superbly spic and span, right?  I mean that's what we are home for, to keep things in order, run the kids from here to there (which we are still doing)....the CEO of the house and family.  Ha, yeah.  It's a battle for me, considering I do all things self sufficient.  Those things take time, and I am a busy, busy gal, but the rooms cause me mental chaos when I have to enter them.

Random Tidbits

It's been nice to be back in the kitchen baking breads.  First on the agenda - biscuits.  I'm playing around with different size cutters, to obtain just the right size for a breakfast sandwich.  Oh we slobbered over our recent sandwich with farm fresh eggs, cheese, and organic bacon.  Yum.

I use my 2 inch cutter when the biscuits are for sausage gravy or hamburger gravy.

. . . from the handiwork journal ~ Finished but one (and then some) ~ Storm blowing in

. . .  lavender bags finally made.  It's been on the "after craft show" to-do list.  I used scrap fabric for the bags, and the smallest scraps of yarn to tie the bags with.  My dresser drawers now smell lovely.

. . . finished this granny square scarf for upcoming craft show (if they still hold it, weather may be an issue).

Pickled Eggs with Hot Peppers ~ Trial #1

Have you ever made or eaten pickled eggs made with hot peppers?  

We love them, but I need to work on tweaking the recipe now.  

First, boil your eggs, cool and peel them, and place them in a wide-mouth canning jar.  My home layers lay large eggs, so I could only fit 10 eggs in my quart jar.

I made my first jar of them, using habanero peppers that I froze last fall.  I am almost out of jalapenos, but this has me thinking of different hot peppers to plant and grow this gardening season.

I also used organic non-gmo white vinegar, and homemade pickling spice (you can find recipes all over the internet for this too).

Breakfast ~ Weather ~ Elf Ornament

Frittatas continue to be Hubby's on-the-go breakfast meals.  This one is rather hot.  I added more jalapenos to it, and less potato, and more zucchini.  Loads of dandelion greens too.

Happy Homemaker Monday

I'm joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay-at-home Mom today.  Traffic outside is moving like a turtle today.  Oye.  Only in our state can weather go from negative temperatures, to snow , and now rain within 24 hours.  No wonder so many people are getting sick.  Not us....we are outside often to get wood, and tend to animals, and we do not keep our heat at high temperatures either.

Anyway, let's get started with today's business, shall we?


On the breakfast plate. . .

Homemade yogurt, homemade granola and pure, local maple syrup.  


The weather. . .

Fruit Muffin Recipes

I have had a few requests for the Blueberry-Strawberry Muffin recipe.  It is on my blog, just click on:

Blueberry Strawberry Muffin Recipe

This and That ~ Goodbye Netflix ~ Staying Fit in Winter

There is a book at the library, I've had on hold for a long time. There are only two copies, and people are renewing and renewing, and I am still 18 on the wait list.  I'm considering buying it, but I don't have time to read this month (just yet).

Garden Planning ~ Lunch Packings ~ Chicken Treat

Looked what arrived in the mail.  It's my current "read."  Thank you Leigh for telling me about this company.  I am having a fun time looking through it, and planning the garden this coming spring.   What is your favorite seed source?  


I got the "Mom!" alert yesterday. School lunch packings were at a minimum.  

Random Tidbits ~ Homemade Tea bags

It's cold.  Very, very cold.  However, we warmed up to a 10°F this morning.  It actually feels warm, ha ha!  The high today is 11°F.

My kitchen is back to the basics and we are loading up on greens.  It was so nice to have enough eggs to make a

Pickled Garlic ~ Mullein ~ Supplies ~ More Repairs

I strained the pickled garlic, and a jar of infusing mullein.  I totally forgot to check the calendar, but I was only a few days late on both jars.  I can't wait to taste the garlic.  It's the first time for me to pickle garlic.  I've made mullein tincture for a few years now, so that's not new, but needed.  Just in case.

So far, we are staying rather healthy, and keeping germs away (using homemade "lysol" wipes, a diffuser in my

Homemade Reusable "Cotton Balls"

I'm on a roll with posts this new 2018 year.  I'm also on a roll in getting things done and lists crossed off.  I literally have a list that I never finished from bike week, and one to do after the last craft show.  

Well?  They are both getting crossed off. It was actually fun doing something different than crocheting or knitting.

I have been wanting to make reusable "cotton balls" for years, and just haven't found the time into making them.  I decided to hand sew them, but I'll be getting the sewing machine out soon. I needed my hand sewing skills renewed anyway.

I apply apple cider vinegar toner to my face daily, so we were going through a lot of cotton balls.

If you are not aware, I also have a blog, where I post recycled, up-cycled or scrap type projects/crafts/handiwork.  

The DIY "cotton balls" are eco-friendly, and help keep our homestead on the path to a deeper self-sufficiency.  

How I made my reusable pads:  S.C.R.A.P. Blogspot

I made them using scrap fabric and old flannel twin bed sheets.  The flannel bed sheets had been used on my bed as a child, then passed down to my own kids. The elastic is worn out on the bottom sheet, and I had kept them to use in one way or another.

Now if I can just carve out a day to dig out my sewing machine, I'll be heading into new learning territories.    I love receiving scrap fabric from those who sew, and can't use the scraps (or have too many of them).  The fabric I used to make my cotton pads with was gifted to me.  I am so ever grateful for that.

Happy New Year! Random Tidbits ~ Handiwork Updates

Happy New Year!  Did you stay up until midnight and watch the ball drop?  We did not, ha ha!  We were fast asleep watching "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel."  We'll have to back up the next time we watch it, ha ha!  Hubby fell asleep way before me. 

The deconstruction process of the Christmas decor has already started.  We'll have to bring in the totes and take them back out in one trip.  It's cold.  I do not make "resolutions" for the new year, I simply keep on, keeping on (but better).


I made my first cup of hot basil tea.  Not "Holy Basil" but regular, good ol' herb garden basil.  I keep a fresh pot growing indoors during winter.  I ran out of dandelion root, then ran out of dandelion teabags, so I made basil tea for a "detox" tea.  

It is said to help fight off illnesses and infections, clean the kidneys, builds the blood (purifying it), and kills bacteria. It's also said to be a circulatory stimulant.  My brain could use a boost of oxygen, so I made the tea.  It was pleasantly delicious.  I could also simply eat the basil in a meal too.  It's good for preventing tension headaches, as it strengthens the nervous system as well.

Finished!

One more double wrap infinity scarf with a matching slouchy hat.  The slouchy hats are selling quickly, so I hope January goes slow.  Really slow.  I need to restock items.

....this will become another scarf soon.
   

Here was my dilemma.  The one on the left was the yarn color I could not locate.  I was one granny square from re-creating a scarf I made back in 2010.  I made one for a daughter and it came up missing.  I even have a matching hat before I realized I needed more yarn.  Hence why I bought yarn keys.

The colors are so nice together, so I have kept the two granny squares in case I do find it.  It's like a cranberry color, but with orange in it.  I can't remember if it's Red Heart or Bernat.  I want to say Red Heart. So, hence the burgundy squares for the scarf this time.  It's not even close to the color.  I found one similar (Lion Brand), but the skein was small, and the price was twice what the other brands are.

I also crocheted myself a "messy bun" hat using the free pattern on Ravelry, but skipped rows 9-11.  It's still not as tight as I'd like, so I'm making it again with a smaller hook to try and get a better fit.  That's the problem with free patterns.  I get better luck using patterns from books. 

I got a few more heart keychains crocheted.

I'm back to finishing this baby blanket now too.

It's a whopping 3°F here this morning, and Hubby said, "it's actually warm in here today."  Ha ha!  It's dipping back down again before it warms up.  The sun is shining, so that is good.