We now have 3 different kinds of chickens, we have a mama and a daddy chicken, 17 “teenage” chickens and 12 new baby chickens. We gave our two small ones to a friend who doesn’t have a rooster. And lost a couple of the Red ones we bought. So we got 6 Orppingtons and 6 Barred Rocks. We …
This whole wheat pancake recipe is made with freshly ground whole wheat and has a tasty nutty flavor. You’re family will love this healthy breakfast option. I really love making pancakes for our family to enjoy on days when we have time to have breakfast together. But none of us like pancakes made with all …
Growing potatoes in the home garden is a really fun project. Potato plants require sun, well-drained soil and regular water, if you can give them those things, you can grow almost any potato variety. If you’re short on garden space, potatoes can be grown in containers or grow bags. True Potato Seeds or Seed Potatoes? …
This easy homemade pizza recipe, includes a pizza dough recipe, topping suggestions and even freezing instructions. Use this recipe to make family size pizzas, individual pizzas, or calzones. It’s a super versatile recipe. Pizza crust is a great recipe for beginner bread bakers because it’s very forgiving. This recipe will result in soft chewy crust, …
This weekend we planted another corn patch. We have around 45 plants that we planted 6 weeks ago and they are now about 2 1/2 feet tall. (it’s hard to measure since we’ve had alot of wind and they are almost laying on the ground). They should be ready to harvest in the next 6 …
When we planted our spinach last fall I noticed that the dirt smelled like onions. Then I remembered that our green onions (sometimes called repeater onions) went to seed last summer and instead of pulling the head off the plant, we just let them fall. Some were already starting to send up green shoots. So …
On Friday afternoon Phoebe and I ditched all real work and made some baby shower gifts for a friend who is expecting her first baby. We grabbed some onesies and cloth diapers at the store and went to work. I’ve always used cloth diapers as burp rags, but apparently this has eluded Phoebe since she …
Sometimes zucchini gets a bad wrap, but if you’re serious about feeding your family from your garden then growing zucchini is great way to do that. Unlike winter squash that will produce just a few squash per vine, zucchini will produce many squash per plant. There are three main types of summer squash; zucchini, yellow squash (sometimes …
Banana bread muffins have all the moist, tasty goodness of banana bread in a tidy handheld muffin. These muffins pack a lot of nutrition when you use freshly ground whole wheat flower and add some ground flax seed. I’m not sure why but my kids prefer muffins to a loaf of banana bread – something …
Tomatoes are probably the most popular homegrown vegetable. Homegrown tomatoes are so much better than store bought tomatoes and that’s why so many people grow tomatoes. Even people who don’t garden will often plant a tomato or two in containers or sneak them into the back flower bed. For the most part, tomatoes are pretty …
We call these peanut butter balls or peanut butter treats, but most people call them no-bake peanut butter cookies. Since I don’t flatten them, they don’t really look like cookies. We also don’t eat them like we do cookies, these no-bake cookies are packed full of nutrition so we use them for snacks and packing …
For the vast majority of our marriage, Carl and I have used a “cash” only system for budgeting our money. It works well, if we don’t have the cash for something we just don’t get it or we save until we do have the cash for it. What I haven’t done so well in the …
I probably shouldn’t admit this, but my poor husband has to fend for himself for breakfast. Even if I’m up when he is getting ready for work, I can’t ever get it together enough to make a hot breakfast for him. So here’s our routine, every couple of weeks I make tons of waffles for …
The chicks are here! Friday, Phoebe and Benjamin became the proud “parents” of 25 baby hens. We spent the weekend working outside, enlarging the chicken coop and making some pens for these little girls to be in after they leave our mudroom but before they go into the chicken yard. The older boys have decided …
Remember when I said that Phoebe and Benjamin wanted to start an egg business. Well, some friends wanted to tidy up their back yard and so they gave us their hens. These were really more like pets than livestock, and came with cute names, such as “Fluffy, Tweetie and Blackie”. They are fitting in just …
We, as in Phoebe and I, decided that the girls needed matching Christmas dresses this year. Because of their age difference, we had a hard time finding matching patterns. So we used several different patterns and altered them… it’s good that I have a thing for NOT following instructions. The rest of the photo shoot: …
When I started sewing, I really knew nothing. I knew I needed needles and thread, pins, scissors, a sewing machine and fabric, of course. But I didn’t really know what kind of scissors or pins to buy. I made a few buying errors along the way that served as teaching tools. I hope with the following …