See ya next year!

Good Bye 2011. You were a weird year, to say the least! I’m not happy that your done but I don’t feel bad about it either.

This year we learned a lot, for that I am grateful. We were able to care for our family and a few friends. There is enough food to keep us fed and there is enough money to pay for heat and a roof over our heads. Oh, and I can’t forget I got a cow named after me… so kewl!

The monsters have grown in size and in maturity. They are at that age that I know they will be grown and off to their own lives way before I’m ready to let go. But this year I was able to see the type of adults that I have raised. I’m proud of these monsters.

Enough of this year and on to the next! I have so many plans…. we will just have to wait and see if I have what it takes to make them happen.

By the way do you know resolutions are? They are your to do list for the first week of January…. LOL!

We are staying in and eating junk food with the monsters and having a safe new year’s eve. See you all next year!

Yart

Never to Early

My head cold is getting better as it travels down into my chest. So this is going to be one of those lets lay around and do nothing really. We played with the Wii today. Last night we got started on the Harry Potter Marathon…. one movie each night. Before the week is over we need to go to the zoo. They have the entire zoo strung with Christmas lights. Normally, we try and get done there before the holiday but this year I thought it would be easier to wait.

With New Year’s right around the corner, I thought that I should give some thought to it. I plan on going back to eating better, loosing more weight, finish the school course I signed up for and finally get the store opened.

Since we have the first week of the New Year off, I am hoping that we get some snow so that I can take the monsters sledding. We are really hoping for snow as the the monsters want to make snow zombies this year. I will get pictures cause this is going to be to funny!

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Till we meet again

Its over! At least until next year!! Thank the Gods for that…. LOL! Everyone had a great time and loved all the gifts! There are a ton of leftovers so no cooking for a couple of days…. except for the stock and the bean soup!

But I have a raging head cold, now. I even took it easy this year and I still got sick. I am just up after a 3 hour nap. Hopefully, I feel better tomorrow….. I DON”T WANT TO BE SICK FOR ALL CHRISTMAS VACATION! Ok, that tantrum is done!

I will have pictures up when I feel better. We didn’t get snow, instead we had 40 degree weather. I loved the sunshine!

Yart

Merry Christmas

I wish you all a Joyous and Happy Holiday Season!

From My House to Yours,

Merry Christmas!

Yart

One Week Countdown

Right now I have one gift left to make and that is for Mouthy. All gifts have been bought and wrapped. Even the stocking stuffers are ready to go! I still need to make the cookies and candies. But since I cut the types down to three cookies and three candies, it shouldn’t be to bad.

Tonight I will be making toll house and chocolate candy canes & pretzels.

We are making really good progress on the shirt I am making for Grim. It is simplicity pattern # 2895. Just need to finish the collar, add the cuffs and the sleeves and it will be done.

 

Eventually I will make the vest to go with it. But I do still have material to make a second one in black. So I think that will happen before the vest. At least it will keep me busy all winter… LOL! Plus, I have this really cute gypsy skirt pattern I have been dying to try so I guess there is no time like the present!

Yart

Wednesday Ramblings

First I wanted to let you all know that the cornbread recipe that I posted the other day was really good. The only thing was that it was a little dry…. But that could be because I didn’t use buttermilk, I used the substitute instead.

I made Banana Snack cake yesterday! Huge success! You can get the recipe here.Valerie over at Prepared LDS Family has a lot of great recipes so check them out while your there!

Here is a recipe that I want to try but haven’t had the time yet to make. Vegetable Pot Pie Pockets…. They look so good! You can find the recipe at Budget Gourmet Mom.

Phelan over at A Homesteading Neophyte shared some love. And I think that this site could use a little more love as I plan on purchasing soap from them in the very near future. The soaps are called Abundant Life Botanicals. They can be found here.

Aren’t they pretty! And only .97 cents and ounce!!!

Domestic Witch is hosting the 3rd annual Christmas Balls Blog Party! If you want to participate or just look for new recipes head on over! I have taken part for the last two years and am looking for a new recipe to share!

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Red & White Yummies!

Over at Jamie Cooks It Up!, Jamie has these yummy looking White Chocolate Cherry Cookies! You have to head over there and get the recipe. I know I said I was only going to do a couple cookies this year…. But I think I am going to be adding 2 more!

Then I found these! Ashley at The Shine Project has PinWheels! Oh I can’t wait to try both of these out!

Yart

Monday’s Projects

I am making crockpot chili for dinner as Picky monster and I will be at bowling practice and I don’t want the rest of the family to starve… LOL! But I vowed that once the convenience products ran out that I would be making from scratch. Of course I go to the cupboard and there is no mix for cornbread. Good thing I picked up a bag of cornmeal awhile back. So the picture above was taken from CAN YOU STAY FOR DINNER? Blog…. The recipe is here! And did you know that you can use 1tbsp of vinegar and a cup of milk as a buttermilk substitute? I didn’t but do now. LOL!

I have been working my fingers to the bone since I found this site LOST IN STASH, picture and pattern. I absolutely love these. I have an entire box of them that I will be adding to the store in January! If you want to learn how to make them go here.

I still need to sew up the tablecloths for the living room. Just add it to the list!

Yart

Weekend Adventures

This weekend wasn’t quite as productive as I would have liked it to be. But my mom is helping me to learn how to read a pattern. I can sew, but I have never really tried to do anything major. Over the summer I bought a ton of patterns from Joanne’s. One of them is a cowboy type shirt and Grim picked out white and black cotton for the shirts. Since it is winter and most of my stash of to be finished project have been finished it was time to sew. I think that we will be working on it for a couple more weeks. It is very slow going.

I cleaned the hallway. Washed the walls, floor and all the doors. Next will be the bathroom. I got 2 loaves of bread made and 2 that I only let rise once and put in the freezer. I really hope they turn out. It will be so nice to be able to just thaw and bake. Oh, and I made more instant oatmeal. The monsters aren’t complaining to much about the lack of cold cereal. I am hoping to have time this week to make more pancakes.

I still need to make cookies. Just add it to the list!

Yart

300 in 3

After my miserable start in October, I tried harder in November. I got 60.8 miles in. For a two month total of 80.28 miles. I would have done more but my heel having issues. So far this month I have only done uncounted walking. Not enough to even consider. But realistically, I did more in two months then I had done in awhile. So this challenge wasn’t a complete waste.

On to other news….

I went to have my teeth cleaned today. The molar that the crown broke off in the earlier part of the year is now infected. No wonder I have been feeling crappy. I am on amoxil and have an appointment for January to have it yanked out. YEAH!

I was able to get the two main gifts sewn up. I still have one more to try and do. I just don’t know if I am going to get the time to do it. Way, to many people in and out of the house at all hours. Every one is on a different schedule. If there is a will, there might be a way… LOL!

I am going to try and get some baking done this weekend. Hopefully, all of it. This year I am only making toll house, m&m, almond cookies and buckeyes. I might dip pretzels in chocolate, this is debatable though. Not important to me… LOL!

Next week we have practice, 2 competitions, 1 meeting for IEP, dentist for Grim, plus a secret shopper assignment for me, oh and Christmas party at the bowling alley. Then the week before Christmas we have two practices.

I can say that I am not stressed out this year. Loving that!

Yart

Wow, Where did the week go?

I have been busy running around finishing up the last of the Band Performances since last Wednesday. Then we had 3 bowling practices and league on Saturday. All the while trying to get some things taken care of for Christmas.

I made calzones with the leftover turkey and Stromboli with sandwich pepperoni. I have also been working on a new pattern for dishclothes. I will share later as I didn’t take any pictures yet. But I do have a ton done as I have been sitting and waiting most of last week.

This week is already no better. We had our first competition tonight. I’m not sure if we won or not… Will find out on Thursday at practice. I was able to get some sewing done. Can’t say what cause I have some nosy readers… LOL! I still have at least 2 more projects to get done. Oh, bread bags have been started. Need to do more though. Once I open the store I want to have a big selection of items to sell.

Yart

Winter Edition

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Victorian Farm Christmas

I happened to stumble across the Christmas Special. It is very informative with a ton of great ideas.

Yart

So You Want to Live in Montana...

This was shared by Patrice over at Rural Revolution!

WARNING*** Don't drink anything while watching this video..... You may have an uncontrollable urge to spit out your drink from laughing to hard*** Don't say I didn't warn ya!!

Yart

Chestnuts

I thought that it would be a great idea to cook up so chestnuts for the meal. So I tossed some into a glass pie plate and into the oven they went. About 45 minutes later I smelled something. It wasn’t a burning but it was off. So I looked into the oven and saw that one of the nuts had exploded. So I figured it was time to pull them out.

Grim and the older two monsters were in the kitchen with me and we were laughing about the one that exploded in the oven when one decided to explode on the stove top. First let me say no one was hurt. But Grim and I were the worst hit. Since I didn’t think to take pictures let me give you a mental image. We were covered in what looked like very fine mashed potatoes. Our hair, our clothes and our kids all had to be cleaned up!

I guess that is why they say to score them before you put them in the oven. Oh well, that’s what I get for try to take an easy route! Better Luck Next Time... LOL!

Yart

Can you help?

Jenna at Cold Antler Farm is running a contest and I entered. She wanted mason jar covers to help keep her coffee warm. I made felt covers and sewed them with embroidery thread.  And of course I couldn’t just do one. I made an entire set.

To have a chance to win, Jenna is going to go off of who likes which one from the response in the comments.

If you want to go over and vote you can do so here

Yart

Happy Thanksgiving

I hope that everyone had a good day! Ours went well. I did make the dressing and the pumpkin pie filling from scratch. I am thankful that no one died from eating either… LOL! The cranberry yuck I made was a hit. Yes, I called it cranberry yuck because it is not what I like. I make for the others! Its more like a compote since I add walnuts to it.

Our menu consisted of:

Turkey

Dressing

Potatoes

Sweet Potatoes (baked)

Acorn Squash

Corn

Veg tray & Dip

Gravy

Deviled eggs

Cranberry Yuck (1bag cranberries, 1cup sugar, 1/2cup orange juice and 2 handfuls of walnuts)

Chestnuts **Story to come about the Damn Chestnuts**

Sourdough Dinner Rolls

Pumpkin Pie (homemade pumpkin puree)

Angel Food cake

Whipped cream (made from heavy cream)

Blackberries

So the only processed food was the pie crust, canned corn, angel food cake, mayo in the eggs and the can of sweetened condensed milk. Not to bad. Next year I hope to make my own of all the above listed ingredients.

Yart

Goodbye / Hello

 

Good Bye Stovetop! Hello Homemade! This is the first time I will be making dressing from scratch. There are still a few things I need to learn how to make and this one will be able to come off the list!

Photo: Con Poulos/Woman's Day

Basic Herb Stuffing Recipe – Thanksgiving Recipes at WomansDay.com:

 

Active Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Serves: 10

 

Recipe Ingredients

• 3 Tbsp olive oil, plus more for the pan
• 1 small loaf country bread (about 1 lb), cut into 1/2-in. pieces (about 10 cups)
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• Kosher salt and pepper
• 2 large carrots, cut into 1/4-in. pieces
• 2 stalks celery, cut into 1/4-in. pieces
• 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
• 2 large eggs, beaten

Recipe Preparation

1. Heat oven to 375°F. Oil a 3-qt casserole dish. Place the bread on a rimmed baking sheet and toast until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes; transfer to a large bowl.
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions, 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until very tender and beginning to turn golden, 6 to 8 minutes.
3. Add the carrots and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 6 to 7 minutes. Add the broth and bring to a boil. Stir in the parsley and thyme.
4. Transfer the vegetable mixture to the bowl and toss with the bread. Fold in the beaten eggs. Transfer to the prepared baking dish, cover with foil and bake for 10 minutes. Remove the foil and bake until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes more.

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Dinners for Occasions

Last year we were at the Living history museum around Thanksgiving and I was able to pick up a listing of a menu from Dinners for Occasions.

Thanksgiving Dinners

Menu No. I

(New England)

Our rural ancestors, with little blest,

Patient of labor when, the end was rest,

Indulg’d the day that hous’d their annual grain,

With feasts and offerings and a thankful strain.

~Pope.

Oyster Stew,

Celery,

Oyster Crackers,

Roast Stuffed Turkey,

Brown Gravy,

Cranberry Moulds,

Oak Hill Sweet Potatoes,

Turnips and Carrots in White Sauce,

Boiled Onions,

Chicken Pie,

Mince Pie,

Squash Patties,

Fruit Pudding,

Brandy Sauce,

Assorted Nuts,

Raisins,

Café Noir

My Menu will be a tad bit less impressive! LOL!

Yart

Laundry Soap Concentrated

Now I would love to take credit for this idea but alas, (not smart enough to come up with it on my own)…. LOL!…. The credit for this goes to Dana at The White Silk Purse.

I followed her recipe to the letter. She said that the recipe should net 4 quarts I got almost 5. Not complaining just letting you know so that you don’t wonder why so much or so little. I will only post the ingredients here, but for the full explanation please go over and see Dana for the rest.

2 bars Fels Naptha

2 cups 20 Mule Team Borax

2 cups Arm & Hammer Washing Soda

6 cups of hot water (+ more water as needed)

 

Soap Grated

Borax and Washing Soda

Water and Melting Soap

Separated Day Old Soap

Cooled Soap Top View

Whipped Soap

Of course I forgot to take a picture of the finished product. I will be making more. Dana says she figures she needs 18 quarts for a year. I’m going to see how long this lasts and then determine our needs.

Yart

Thunder, Really!

Yep, we are in the middle of a thunder storm. It is November 14th and we have low 60’s and rain. Where is the snow? The squirrels are so fat that they can barely walk. The little black caterpillars are everywhere. So I wonder how long we will go without snow!

As with most things I only got a couple things accomplished that I had planned for this weekend. First I was able to make the laundry soap. I have a website, directions and photos to share tomorrow. And we were able to get the Christmas lights up. The soup bones must have been old, because the broth is milky. So that will go into the trash. The reason I didn’t get everything done was because my mom decided it was time to clean out her freezer. Everything that she wanted to replace came here. Some of it was good, some not so good! But I have 3 pork loins in the fridge thawing so that I can pressure can them up tomorrow. She has a couple more waiting for me to have time to cook them up. There was also a turkey found. So that will be used for Thanksgiving.

She was cleaning out her pantry so I got quite a bit of canned stuff as well. I know your wondering why she is giving me the food. She will only keep food on her shelves till they are close to expiring and then replaces it. Same with what is in the freezer. If it is getting close to the time, I get it because I will use canned goods past the use by date and I will can up any meat that is 6 to 12 months old.

With tonight I have 5 more bingos to work. That is all I am signed up for. I am counting them down. I really can’t stand the bs that goes with the program. What happens is that regular workers like me are bumped up to management and then become power hungry. So it is not the best work environment. But like I said 5 more! Then next year I only have to work 3 and that can be at my leisure. I get paid into my monsters student credit account to work bingo. I have been doing this to pay for band camp. I will have 1/3 of it paid for by the end of this year. I just need to decide if I want to continue to do this next year or just pay cash. I will probably work, it is just one of those rock and a hard place things.

Enough babbling!

Yart

Weekend Adventures

This weekend will be ever busy…. I will be making soap, laundry soap and beef stock!!! Plus, bowling and putting up the Christmas lights.

I will share pictures as soon as I get them!

Yart

Oh where oh where has the blogger gone!

We have been so busy since Halloween. Mouthy monster is now 8. Monster High is the thing here now. At least it isn’t that suck up B**** Barbie… LOL! Teenage monster is now done with Band, for the year. They went to states and scored in the top 5! Very Proud of her. Picky monster went and got her physical yesterday as well as two shots. She is all set to go to the tryouts for bowling next week. I think she will make the team. Her running average for the league is 118. If she makes the team she will be getting a varsity jacket for her birthday in July.

I have been baking bread, knitting a scarf and finishing up Pride, Prejudice and Zombies. I would be remiss if I didn’t say that I had been spending a ton of time on Pinterest. I absolutely, love that place. I have so many pins. I just hope I will have time to follow up on most of them.

Here are few things that I wanted to share that I found. They are good for any time but with the holidays right around the corner, they are perfect!

Chocolate-dipped Peppermint Sticks

Give the Gift of a Homemade Spa Day

Free Mandala Printable Sheets

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And so it begins

Yep, you guessed it…. The silly season is now upon us!

This year is actually going to be very easy for us. The monsters will each be getting one big gift and a few small items and the rest will be homemade.

For family and friends I will be doing homemade. And this year will be made simpler by checking out Pinterest. They have a huge selection of things. If your not aware of what Pinterest is then you need to check them out. Great site, Lots of information. I have found salt scrubs, mint eucalyptus foot scrub, Candy cane sugar scrub, plus food items that make great gifts!

Yart

Happy Halloween

I have to share something that happened tonight…. It is so funny!

Grim and I are passing out candy…. I am sitting near the lit pumpkins, wearing my wool trench coat. All of a sudden I smell toast and comment to it and then ask Grim am I on fire?

To which he replies….

No honey we aren’t burning witches tonight….

LOL!

I laughed about that for awhile. Mainly, because I thought I would smell like toast if I was on fire… Who knew!

Yart

Welcome to my Witches Tea Party (pic heavy)

Poison Toadstools

Thank you for attending my Tea Party!

I hope you enjoyed yourself!

Yart

300 in 3

I have a confession to make…. I signed up for a challenge at the beginning of the month. It is to do 300 miles in 3 months. I have failed miserably. I have done 19.48 miles for the month of October. The only excuse I have is that life has gotten once again in the way of me exercising. I’m not going to beat myself up. The 20 pounds I lost at the beginning of the year is still gone. I really did hope to lose another 20 before the end of the year.

There is still hope that I can pull this together. Only 280.52 miles to get done in just over 2 months. I guess I better get on that exercise bike. LOL!

Yart

Falling asleep on my feet

I wrote this last night!

I need to get this typed up while I am waiting for Band monster to get done with practice. I am so afraid that I am going to fall asleep since this is the first time all day I have sat down.

After I dropped the monsters off at school I came home and emptied and washed the last 30 jars. Then I got started on cutting up the onions to dehydrate. I think that it was about 5 pounds. Altogether I got 7 trays of diced onions. I would have done more but I could no longer breathe or see… LOL!

Then I got started on cutting the cabbage for kraut. Grim was a huge help with this as we did 3 heads that weighed in at 21 pounds. So this took all his strength to muddle the cabbage. Man what a job. But it is done and awaiting its final home in the basement.

I got 2 loaves of French bread made. I also made for the first time Sourdough Dinner Rolls the recipe can be found here…. They came out great. Will be using my starter for this on a regular basis from now on. Since I had so much starter to use up I also made 3 batches of Sourdough buckwheat pancakes…. Minus the buckwheat… the recipe can be found here. I made so many because I am trying to get the monsters off of cereal in the mornings. It isn’t healthy and its expensive.

For dinner I made 2 pounds of pasta, 2 pounds of hamburger and beef gravy…. mixed it altogether baked for 1/2 an hour. Everyone really liked it. I liked it cause it was quick and easy.

And the dishes I have done all day… They just kept multiplying. I hate when they do that…. My shirt has dish pan hands, from where I lean against the sink…. LOL!

Yart

Sweet Paul

I want to send a big shout out to Liesl & Miles over at the Nest for posting about this wonderful site!

They shared a new to me site…. Sweet Paul Magazine…. It is to die for!

They have the greatest ideas and the recipes are fab!

The Galette, Pretzels and a ton of other great recipes and design ideas!

Yart

I did a very bad thing

I spent our whole pay check… The bills are paid and there is money set aside for expenses till the next pay. But I spent everything else.

I bought:

Farmers Market 50lbs potatoes 25lbs peanuts 25lbs turnips 1 bushel of apples 6 pumpkins assorted squash lettuce parsnips tomatoes celery peppers 5 cabbage green onions cranberries pomegranates bananas radishes dried figs	Grocery Store toilet paper dish soap shampoo conditioner razors dental floss sandwich bags laundry soap blueing agent vitamins thermos
Specialty Stores cereal safflower oil pizza crust mix halloween candy milk eggs sharp cheddar cheese cottage cheese salami tortilla tortilla chips parmesan cheese	Extra Shops Bag sale at church $2 ~ twin flannel sheet set, 6 paper backs, glass globe, knitting needles, mitten pattern book Micheals 4lbs glycerin, 3pk color, 1 scent, 2 skeins of yarn, 1 bag of melts Ukazoo Book Store Idiots guide to knitting and crochet, interview with a vampire, pride and prejudice and zombies, and sense and sensibility and sea monsters

Now wasn’t that fun…. LOL! Sometimes you just need to see it in writing before it sinks in that you bought a ton of stuff. But this will last at least 2 weeks. Some things will last well into the winter. Next pay I should only need food and baking supplies (butter, baking soda… I guess I should start a list now… LOL!)

And of course I will be heading back to Ukazoo. I told Grim about it and he is looking forward to checking it out. Gotta Love new stores! I will try and get some pic the next time I’m there.

This ended up being much longer then I originally intended.

Yart

Punkin Chunkin Time

Here are a few recipes that I stumbled across that I thought you might be interested in.

Pumpkin Bacon Pasta

Pumpkin and Pancetta Pasta

Pumpkin Pierogies with Pecan Sage Cream Sauce

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds with Sea Salt

Apple Pumpkin Soup

Pumpkin Chili

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