Simple living is all the rage right now. Of course, everyone’s definition of simple living is a little different as it should be but one common thread I often hear, is how living simply can change the world. I honestly don’t think that my choice to live a simple life impacts people outside my family…unless …
Having a cheesecake bar is a great dessert option when you’re hosting a large crowd. The cheesecakes can be made ahead of time and frozen until being served which makes the day of the party go much smoother. Serving dessert to a crowd can be a challenge some times, especially if you’re serving a full …
There’s nothing quite like slipping into a warm herbal bath after a long day. I realize some people have thing against baths and only take showers but I’m defiantly in the Team Herbal Bath group, especially when we need a little extra self care in our lives. Whenever my kids aren’t feeling well they are …
Yep, those weeds that sting bare little feet as they run over them are great for helping with seasonal allergies. I use stinging nettle in several different ways to help with season allergy relief. Several of our children struggle a bit with seasonal allergies and I often find myself with itchy eyes when the mold …
Right now we’re eating quite a bit of swiss chard and kale. Chard and kale are great because they grow year round here and they are my “filler” vegetables. And right now we’re needing that filler as we no longer have any broccoli or cabbage growing and the green beans and summer squash isn’t producing …
We love sourdough bread but I’ve been a little intimidated to try to make it. The whole thing about having to feed the starter regularly or you’ll kill it has always been a little bit to much responsibility for me. Goodness, I have kids to feed each day, I certainly don’t need the pressure of keeping a …
Last week I found myself with extra milk on hand. Apparently, I ordered 6 gallons not our usual 4 gallons from the co-op. Gabriel has been wanting me to make spinach lasagna and I’ve been wanting to try my hand at homemade ricotta cheese for a while. Perfect opportunity. So we pulled out Homemade Pantry …
Note: Each week I try to share a popular post from the archives. This post was originally published in February 2014 Saturday we’re having Gabriel’s Eagle Scout Court of Honor here at our house. He passed his Eagle Scout Board of Review in October but since he wanted to have his Court of Honor here we …
Growing a fruit garden on your property will give you years of harvest as most fruits are perennial plants. Your backyard orchard will provide food for your family and wildlife and add beauty and shade to your property. Since the day we moved here (even before that really) we knew we wanted to grow a …
Kenyan samosas are fun to make and freeze very well. They’re so versatile, you can use whatever ground meat and vegetables you happen to have. Just make sure to make extra for snacking on later. We have some dear friends who moved here about 10 years ago from Kenya. To say that their friendship has …
Our family isn’t much of a cake eating family. But brownies, oh, we can put some serious hurt on a pan of brownies. Over the years we’ve looked high and low for a gooey homemade brownie recipe. And through a lot of trial and error we finally have one. The key to this recipe is …
Poultices are a staple in our homemade first aid supplies. I like to keep a few homemade comfrey poultices on hand for when we need them and I’m going to show you how you can make them in advance too. A few years ago our oldest daughter bruised her big toe at dance (pointe ballet). …
If you’ve been hanging out with us for very long, you’ve probably realized that we mainly cook from scratch. But we’re also not food purists. Occasionally we’ll eat processed foods and we go out to eat at times. But for the most part we try to avoid processed foods. And sometimes that’s hard to do. …
I grew up on sweet tea in the South – the kind that’s made by the pitcher and drunk by the glass all day long. It took me most of my adult life to discover there was a whole world of tea beyond that. Now I plan entire sections of my garden around the herbs …
Being from Texas, Mexican pinto beans are a staple in our home. We serve them with cornbread for a simple dinner, mash them to make bean burritos for lunch or a snack, and serve them as a side dish to help fill hungry bellies. I like to make a big pot of beans and freeze …
Aww, fruit trees! It’s been said that the best time to plant a fruit tree is yesterday – because they take so long to produce. And while it’s true that you won’t get fruit the first year you plant a fruit tree it doesn’t have to take years and years to get fruit either. There …
Edited to add: This is our New Year’s day post from 2015. I’m happy to say that 2015 was a wonderful year for us and huge part of that was me saying “no” to things that don’t really matter. There are many things in life that we cannot change, but how we respond to those …
Inexpensive gifts CAN be meaningful, in fact, they are often more meaningful since they are often made by the giver. I’ve rounded up some of my favorite inexpensive Christmas gifts that cost a dollar or less to make. For many years our family lived at or below the poverty level. Carl, my husband, was in …
This post was originally published in June 2011. A while back I made a great creamy chicken recipe in the crockpot and I loved it. However, I love black beans and most of my family does not. Now, just because my family doesn’t love something doesn’t mean I don’t still make it. You know, because …
Welcome to week four of our nine weeks of getting ready to have a handmade Christmas. Several people have asked me about why I’m doing this series in October instead of close to Christmas. I’m normally a “one holiday at a time” person. When one holiday is over, then I can think about the next …