Chicks, Gardening, and more ...

Good evening all. Well, a lot has happened in our house since I last posted! This very day a week ago after I posted, we got our first batch of baby chicks! Then, on Wednesday, we got 7 more for a total of 18 baby chicks! Talk about busy. Those little chicks keep us hopping, but we are so enjoying them. This is definitely one homeschool project that my kids have not experienced before. However, I am glad that we did take the time to include this project in our schooling this year as we are learning so much.

Funny thing is that I was only going to look last week as I was quite sure they wouldn't have all 4 or even 3 of the breeds that I was looking for at the feed store as I have been looking for them for weeks. Well, funny story is, they had the 3 breeds (Ameracauna, Buff Orpington, and Black Australorps) that I have been looking for ... indeed. I saw the Black Australorps and then the Buff Orpingtons and then when I heard a customer say to the gal who was waiting on him, "I will take 4 of those Ameracauna's, I almost passed out ... as I wasn't quite ready to be a Mama to baby chicks yet! After trying to rationalize with myself for a minute or two, I asked the lady how long she thought she would have these breeds and she told me that they would be gone by tomorrow. Well, then, I made my purchase immediately! Indeed, I called the next morning and EVERY CHICK they had the previous day was gone! I even went in there a couple hours later to return something and saw it for my own two eyes! Wow, they go fast. I am hoping to post the pictures tomorrow.

Also, we have been trying to garden in between all the rain we seem to be getting here on the East Coast. However, I am not going to complain too much as the garden does need it and as we all know, I am sure it will go dry as we get closer to summer. I believe that I mentioned in an earlier post that when I do things, I have to do them right or should I say BIG? Here is what we have/are intending to plant this year: potatoes, strawberries, aspargus, brussel sprouts, broccoli, lima beans, cantaloupe, watermelon, squash, cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes, spinach, peppers, herbs, and I am sure there is a few more since I don't have my papers in front of me right now! Since we switched to raised beds, everyone tells me that gardening is so much easier. So far, it has been. We will see.

Poultry and Eggs

Good Morning. This morning, I was reading my Refined to Real Food book and have gleaned some more info. on eggs and all the good nutrients that they give us. It is amazing to me that the naturalness of the good nutrients that the eggs give us depends on how they are raised. Eggs from pasteruized poultry (allowed to forage on grasses) contain less fat, more vitamin A, and up to 400 percent more omega-3 fatty acids, and less cholesterol than soley grain fed birds that are caged. I am just so floored by the poultry industry and how it is all about fattening them up for $$. Since our family has been eating better (very little to no processed foods), we find ourselves eating more and more eggs every day. Of course, the cost of the "good eggs" (cage free, grass fed, etc.) is quite expensive. So, I have been working on getting some hens of my own. Realizing that this all takes time, I find God taking us back to the simplier days of life. I actually have been getting outside more to garden and secure a place for our chickens. It has given me more of an appreciation of God's awesome creation each day. God is growing us everyday even when I go kicking and screaming sometimes! I look forward to sharing my chicken experiences with you too. In the meantime, when making changes for your family, consider eating better eggs. Remember ... it is baby steps. Making one change at a time. Enjoy your day!

Gardening Update

Well, yesterday it was just too beautiful not to be outside. So, I planted 16 onion sets, 2 brussel sprout plants (that I didn't put out with my other plants that froze), and cleaned out some beds to plant more! Today, I purchased 12 new broccoli plants to replace the ones that froze and 16 more onion sets. In between the rain, I have planted them all. I feel like I have accomplished something, but still have plenty more to do. I have about 12 herbs here that need to be planted out, but not sure where I will put them yet. I finally feel like spring is upon us. Also, in our quest to restore our family's health, I am slowly, but surely realizing that the kids are changing and more cooperative in all ways. They are willing to try more things and they have started to choose to eat things that I thought I would never see them eat. The healthier choices are so exciting to witness. God is so good and he continues to amaze me in the way that he provides for us. Hope you all enjoy this rainy (but great for the garden) day!

Brunch Egg Bake

Good Morning. This morning I would like to share a Breakfast Caserole that I made. A friend of mine shared this recipe with me and I adapted it a little to "healthy it up" a bit.

Brunch Egg Bake

3 cups shredded cheese

1/3 cup onions sliced

4.5 ounces of sliced mushrooms

1/2 cup chopped sweet red peppers

4 Tablespoons butter

30 ounce package of shredded potatoes

2 cups of fully cooked ham or bacon cubed or cut into pieces

8 eggs

1 3/4 cup milk

1/2 cup flour

2 tablespoons of minced fresh parsley

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1. Spray bottom of your 13 x 9" baking dish with Olive Oil. Place your shredded potatoes in the bottom and add 2 Tablespoons of butter to dot the top of them. Bake on 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

2. While this is baking, cook your bacon or ham and set aside.

3. Saute onions and mushrooms in 2 tablespoons of butter and then set aside.

4. Beat eggs. Add milk, flour, parsley, basil, salt and pepper. Mix well and set aside.

5. After shredded potatoes come out of oven, add 1 1/2 cups of shredded cheese on top, the onion and mushroom mixture, and then add your meat.

6. The next layer will be the remaining 1 1/2 cups of shredded cheese.

7. Add egg mixture.

8. Bake in oven on 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

I cannot wait for the onions, potatoes, and peppers to come out of my very own garden. Of course, I have to plant them before I can reap the benefits. This is the kind of weather that I am looking for! I did attempt to plant some cold weather (not freezing, but cold weather)broccoli and brussel sprouts right before we had the last cold (freezing) spell. Since I thought that the worst of the cold was "gone", I didn't cover them for one night! Needless to say, I paid the price as they ALL died. However, I cried my river and got over it and now I am ready to plant again. Going to get some more plants tomorrow morning and start all over again. This is the kind of weather that gets me all geared up and excited about gardening. This will be our first attempt at organic gardening. We have made some raised beds and used organic soil to get us started. We also have a composter that is "brewing" some awesome compost for us right now. This will give us some more organic soil to plant with soon. I will be keeping you posted on how the garden is going from time to time.

Going back through a previous post, I realized that I gave some incorrect information and omitted an ingredient in the Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe that I shared. Here is the correct info. and I will attempt to edit it in my previous post.

1/4 teaspoon salt (this is the correct amount)

1/2 teaspoon baking soda (was omitted)

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my blog today!

Simple Way of Life

I think back to my grandparents and I had so much fun on their farm growing up. There was so much to do to be entertained. I would go and stay a week or two each summer. We didn't watch T.V.; we were outside during the day as there was always something to do on the farm. I remember helping my grandmother to gather the eggs and watching her clean them and prepare them for others who would purchase them from her. Monday was wash day and on Thursday she would get her hair done and we would go to the grocery store. She would buy me Chicklets gum. Ah, those were the days. Not a care in the world. She was never in a hurry and always took time to include me in what she was doing. I have to remember this. There are many days when I want to "get done" and I seem to always be in a hurry. This makes it hard to always include the kids in what I am doing. However, I am getting better at it. Days when I feel like I am never going to get out of the kitchen. Then, I count my blessings. The kids are no longer complaining that things don't taste as good as they used to (when they were processed) and they are more willing to try new things and help out. All this comes with time. Even though I feel there is never enough hours in my day, I try to always remember to count my blessings. We are feeling better, losing weight, and generally have more energy. Sometimes too much ... when some of us don't know when to stop (usually me). I find that we must seek out a more simple way of life. It won't just find us. I must schedule that time in if I want it to happen. All other things get put aside. I have found myself saying "no" to things that I wouldn't normally just say no to. I realize that if I take something else on, it will compromise my goal of a more simplier way of life. I challenge you all to do the same thing. Believe me, I know how hard it is to cut things out of our schedule. It is easier when something ends, to just not replace it. It doesn't always work, but that is our goal. Good luck! Posting some answers to some bean questions that I received: I soaked my Northern beans for 8 hours (during the day) and then I cooked them in a water level just above the beans in the pan for 45-50 minutes. Afterwards, I mixed them with some rice that I had cooked separately. My kids would never just eat the beans. However, mixing them with rice, they don't have a choice!

Beans

Wednesday, I soaked beans for the first time. I was so proud of myself. I have been wanting to do this for a long time! I think that I attempted it one other time, but when I cooked them, I didn't give them enough time. Last night I cooked the beans that I soaked on Wednesday and they were delcious. I then mixed them with rice that we were also having for dinner. Yummy! I have been trying to incorporate more beans into our meals. Now, I have to admit, they are not a favorite with my children, but they do tolerate them. Funny that I used that word "tolerate" as our character study for family discipleship last week was tolerate. Beans have such great nutrition value. They are a good source of protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals. I knew that beans were nutritious, but I didn't realize until recently that a soaked bean is more likely to retain maximum nutritional value. This is most likely due tot he shortened time required for cooking. The longer you have to cook the beans, the less nutritional value will be retained since many vitamins and minerals are destroyed with added heat. So, if you have intended to soak your beans, but haven't yet, I urge you to give it a try. If you plan ahead, it really doesn't take that long! Enjoy your weekend.