This Great Life...

Make It Yourself: Lime Rice (Like At CHIPOTLE GRILL)

2011-06-16T17:07:00.000-05:00

Our family LOVES Chipotle Grill. I mean, we looooove it. For its tasty food, of course. And because they are fairly cheap. But also because of their green practices. The use quality pastured meats, some organic vegetables, and other natural products. All their food is simple and freshly made which of course makes for a DELICIOUS product.

Okay, okay... I think you get it.

Now, one of our favorite things is their Lime Rice. Corky adores it. That and the "green dip" (guacamole). So, of course I had to find a way to recreate it at home. I've made this recipe several times and it has always turned out perfect.

Lime Rice (Like Chipotle's)

2/3 cup Basmati rice
1 T butter
1 lime
1 cup water
1/2 tsp. salt
2 T chopped fresh cilantro

*Rinse the rice in cold water to remove excess starch. This step is important so that your rice won't be too sticky.
* In a sauce pan (use one with a lid), melt butter and add rice. Toast rice just a little.
*Add the juice of the lime to the rice and cook for a minute over medium heat.
*Add the water and salt, bringing everything to a boil.
*Reduce heat, cover and simmer until water is evaporated.
* Stir in cilantro and serve.

Try not to lift the lid while cooking or you will end up needing to add water and your rice will be less fluffy and more sticky.

I used brown Basmati rice so mine didn't turn out white like Chipotle's. Also, I only had dried cilantro on hand so you can't see the pretty specks of bright green that is usually there.

I served it with BBQ pork oven tacos (one of our favorites).

And since Corky is afraid of tomatoes... she got a quesadilla and frozen peas (she loves them-- but only frozen).

Today I'm participating in the Pennywise Platter Nourishing Gourmet. Click on over there and browse around!

Using Lemon Balm To Treat ADHD Symptoms

2011-06-11T01:25:00.000-05:00

While searching for natural ways to treat my daughter's ADHD symptoms I came across various herbal remedies. One of the most commons herbs used is Lemon Balm, also known as Melissa Officinalis. Lemon Balm has been known to promote a calm demeanor, reduce stress and anxiety, ease the digestive system, and help maintain proper blood pressure. Lemon Balm can be easily purchase in capsule form, however I couldn't imagine trying to get Corky to swallow a pill.

So.... I bought this:

... a Lemon Balm plant.

The leaves (dried or fresh) can be used to make tea which should be easy enough for Corky to drink. Also, the leaves can be plucked and frozen to preserve until needed. This is definitely a trial period to see how this works so I'll post results later.

Here is a recipe for Lemon Balm Tea:

1 heaping tablespoon of dried leaves or
2 tablespoons of fresh leaves

1 cup of boiling water
(Or make sun tea by placing herbs and cool water in covered jar in the sun for a few hours.)

Strain before drinking.

Make It Yourself: Homemade Cream Cheese

2011-05-24T01:18:00.000-05:00

Homemade cream cheese? Oh yeah! Well, I guess you could call it yogurt cheese (I think that's the technical term). It's so easy, and with the added bonus of aquiring whey which is extremely beneficial when used to soak grains.

First, I make plain yogurt in my crockpot . Refrigerate overnight. The next morning place a fine sieve over a large mixing bowl and line the sieve with a tea towel. Pour the whole crock full of yogurt into the sieve and wait. The whey will drip into the bowl. It takes a while... sometimes all day...

When the yogurt is fairly thick, tie the corners of the tea towel so that you have a neat little package of cream cheese. Tie the contraption around a wooden spoon and hang it from... well, somewhere. I used my kitchen cabinet handles. Make sure the bowl of whey is still underneath because it will continue to drip. Leave it hanging until it is no longer dripping.

When it stops dripping whey, unwrap the towel and using a spatula, scrape the cheese into a container. This makes somewhere between 16 and 20 oz. of cheese depending on how much you strain it and how thick you like it. In this last batch that I made, I got over a quart of whey!

By The WHEY...

Whey can be used to soak grains for easier digestion (for those who have trouble digesting wheat -- like myself -- this can be especially useful).

Whey can be used for lacto-fermented veggies, salsas, and other condiments (I use it for pickles and sauerkraut).

Some people swear that drinking a few tablespoons of whey every morning cures a host of ailments (I haven't had the guts to try this yet).

Whey can be used in smoothies for added nutritional benefit.

Whey can be used as a fertilizer (50% whey and 50% water).

There are probably a million other uses for whey but these are just the ones that I know of!

Natural Air Purifiers

2011-04-14T04:28:00.000-05:00

Looking for a natural way to clean the air in your home? It might be simpler than you think...

Yep. Houseplants are the best natural defense for filtering toxins out of the air. All green things work magic with the air during their natural exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide. But certain types are especially beneficial. For example, the Snake Plant (Sansevieria) helps filter formaldehyde and benzene (both known carcinogens) from the air. These contaminants can be in your home without you ever knowing about it since they are found in household cleaners, paint, adhesives, foam, and various building materials.

Below is NASA's list of the most beneficial houseplants for air purification.

1. (Philodendron scandens `oxycardium') heartleaf philodendron

2. (Philodendron domesticum) elephant ear philodendron

3. (Dracaena fragrans `Massangeana') cornstalk dracaena

4. (Hedera helix) English ivy

5. (Chlorophytum comosum) spider plant

6. (Dracaena deremensis) `Janet Craig', Janet Craig dracaena

7. (Dracaena deremensis) `Warneckii', Warneck dracaena

8. (Ficus benjamina) weeping fig

9. (Epipiremnum aureum) golden pothos

10. (Spathiphyllum) `Mauna Loa', peace lily

11. (Philodendron selloum) selloum philodendron

12. (Aglaonema modestum) Chinese evergreen

13. (Chamaedorea sefritzii) bamboo or reed palm

14. (Sansevieria trifasciata) snake plant

15. (Dracaena marginata) red-edged dracaena

Easy Spring Dinner: Crockpot Chicken Cheesy Potato Soup

2011-04-10T07:18:00.000-05:00

Here is a super yummy, super easy meal for the crockpot. It was one of those let's-just-try-it-and-see-how-we-like-it recipes...

6 medium potatoes, diced
1 chicken breast, diced or sliced
1 small onion, diced
1 quart chicken stock (homemade is best) + 1 cup of water
2-3 bay leaves
1 cup half and half (could use less if you want)
3 cups shredded cheese (I used sharp cheddar and swiss)
1 cup frozen corn

Add the potatoes, chicken, onion, stock + water, bay leaves to the crockpot. Cook on low for 6 hours. Add the half and half, cheese, and corn. Cook until the cheese is melted and smooth.

... as you can see by the almost empty crockpot, we LOVED it!! Yum, yum, yum...

Frugal Finds: The latest...

2011-04-05T07:38:00.000-05:00

Here are my latest frugal finds... proving, yet again, that you don't have to spend a lot of money to eat healthy. You just have to keep your eyes open!

~ Grass-fed* Organic Ground Beef: $3.81 per pound (Target)

I usually get beef from our local meat shop. They offer grass-fed* beef from a local farm but not organic (which isn't as important as the fact that this stuff was cheaper and organic) so when I found this bargain at Target, I snatched it up!
* Did you know that cows that eat grass instead of corn do not contract ecoli?

~ Zevia Diet Rootbeer: $2.99 for a six pack (Whole Foods)

I LOVE this stuff. It's all natural and made with Stevia instead of aspartame or splenda so it is safe for Corky (I will post later about why ADHD kids should never have aspartame). Oh, and I forgot to mention that it tastes great.

~ Applegate Sliced Ham: $3.99 BOGO (Whole Foods)

I like this because it is nitrate free and it is from certified non-antibiotic, pastured pigs. That is hard to come by in our area and it was cheaper than the Oscar Meyer lunch meat (which I find tastes a little like plastic). Though I'm not a big lunch meat person, my husband loves this stuff. So... yay.

Your Kids ARE What They Eat... so stop feeding them junk!

2011-04-04T05:04:00.000-05:00

Since Corky started preschool, I have spent a lot of time worrying about what she's eating. I pack her lunch every day but the school provides snacks. At first I thought: Oh, this is good. Schools have to serve healthy snacks, right...
Wrong.

Cupcakes, cookies, candy, Cheetos... just to name a few of the more prominent options. There's also chips of all sorts and various other "snacks" that Corky has never liked. Oh, but she likes them now....

Yes, gone is the child that loved broccoli and carrot sticks. Say adios to the kid that would choose a banana over a piece of chocolate. They have corrupted my baby!!! *boo hoo*

Anyway, I could go on and on about how awful the eating habits are in our tiny town and how disappointed I am in the schools... but that would take all day. So, I've been trying to make the best of things by reinforcing our eating style at home...

So....
When we were at softball practice the other day and the coach announced that the team would be provided fruits and vegetables for game snacks, I was ready to whoop and holler (that's southern for "shout with excitement"). Actually, I kind of got vocal about it...

"Yeah, that's great!" I said, way too enthusiastically.

You could have heard crickets chirp. There we were, a group of about twelve parents, and I was the only one who was glad about the fruits and veggies. Several (and when I say several, I mean more than half) of them made comments about how their kids wouldn't eat the fruits and veggies. Several of them suggested snack cakes as an option.

I was mortified. Horrified. And most of all angry.

This is the health of our children we are talking about here, people. Good eating habits start at a young age. Your kids will like what you like. They will eat what you feed them. They will value what you value. I understand this well, being someone who has struggled with being overweight my entire life.

My experience with the school taught me that good eating habits have to start in the home. My experience with the softball parents taught me that the schools (and other public associations) will change their good intentions to suit what the kids will be more inclined to eat...

So where does the buck stop?

When does someone put their foot down and quit feeding kids junk?

A Truly Good Vegetarian Meatloaf Recipe

2011-03-27T23:40:00.001-05:00

For a while now, we've been playing around with meat-free dinners in hopes of cutting down our meat consumption. Since we started buying grass-fed beef and free-range chickens our meat budget has been harder to meet. Haha, pun intended. But it has been worth the change (even my husband thinks so). It is amazing how the meat that we buy now actually tastes like... well, meat. Beef tastes like beef; chicken tastes like chicken... ect. We used to buy our ground beef at Walmart until one horrible eye-opening night when my thoughts on meat changed forever...
I had already watched Food Inc. so I was aware of the dangers of the meat industry. And I was going to start making changes to our meat purchases. I really was... really. But one night I opened up a package of ground beef from Walmart. It smelled fine but it looked strange, sort of an off color. I went ahead and cooked it anyway and didn't think twice about it. I noticed as I cooked it that it was very crumbly. So I tasted it. And had my husband taste it. It did NOT taste like hamburger. At all.
So I threw it out.
To this day, I have no idea what was in that package of meat.
Immediately, we stopped buying meat from unknown sources and started visiting our local meat market. We were shocked at the difference in taste quality. If you normally purchase meat from a grocer that sells pre-packaged "fresh" meat, you probably don't even realize what you are missing out on as far as taste goes. We didn't.
Better meat is more costly, however. Since we decided it was worth the extra money to have better quality meat (and that it is safer), we decided to cut costs in other ways. Like eating less meat products.

Bringing it back around...
I found a mock meatloaf recipe and tweaked it a little. It turned out GREAT!!! The whole family loved it. Here's my recipe:

Vegetarian Meatloaf

2 eggs
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 Tbs. water
2 Tbs. tomato paste
1/2 med red onion, shredded
4-5 cloves of garlic, shredded (I use a small hand-held grater)
1 roasted red pepper (from a jar), diced
2 cups fresh spinach leaves, chopped
1/4 cup shredded carrot
3/4 cup cooked oatmeal (save some from breakfast in the morning, or you could use quick cooking oats)
1 1/2 cups cooked lentils (I cooked mine with beef broth. You could also use mushroom broth.)
1/4 cup asiago or Parmesan
2 oz. feta, crumbled
4 oz. falafel mix (I used a third of a 12 oz. package)
3 Tbs. whole wheat flour
2 Tbs. ketchup
2 Tbs. barbecue sauce

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, oil, water, tomato paste, grated onion and garlic. Stir in the next eight ingredients and mix. Add just enough flour to make the mixture hold together.

Form into a loaf and place in a shallow baking pan. Bake at 350* for about 30 minutes. Make sure the internal temperature reaches 150*. For the last five minutes of cooking, spread the ketchup and barbecue sauce over the top and return to oven. Allow to cool 5 minutes before slicing.

*Tip- I used a butter knife to butter the loaf pan, just like you would a piece of bread.

The Tiniest Plane...

2011-03-01T19:42:00.000-06:00

She was born at 8:50pm...
And she wasn't breathing...

My niece, Delylah, was immediately life-flighted to St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa while we waited, hoping, praying that she was okay. I remember watching as they wheeled her tiny, listless, body down the hallway in an incubator. Tubes were stuck down her throat. Machines were beeping. Nurses were talking. But she was silent.
We watched as she was loaded onto the waiting helicopter, watched as it lifted off the ground carrying precious cargo.
The next day we were told she was born without her right lung, her heart was severely deformed, her esophagus didn't connect to her stomach as it should, and she had spinal deformities. They diagnosed her with VATERL syndrome. It is a very rare collection of abnormalities that a child is born with. Tulsa had never seen a case of it and were not prepared to offer her care. So they immediately sent for transport to Texas Children's Hospital.
As we visited with Delylah and waited for the plane to arrive, we took time to get to know the little bundle of joy. I remember my sister pointing out that Delylah had my fingers; the way the pinky curves inward toward the other fingers. I snapped a picture of it.
When the nurses from Houston arrived to take her, we were told that her mom couldn't ride along because she'd had a c-section. Sis was horrified at the thought off Baby D going alone. So I did what any aunt would do...
I volunteered to fly with her to Houston.
Oh, but I didn't realize what a teeny tiny plane we would be flying in. Nor did I realize that it would take us almost two hours to get to Texas Children's Hospital.
The ambulance ride was daunting. But I was okay until we pulled up to the tarmac and I got a look at the little tinker-toy with a kangaroo painted on the side of it. Then I swallowed back bile. I didn't mind flying-- not at all-- but I am severely clausterphobic. In a major way.
But I smiled and crawled into my seat-- I had to haunch over in a 90 degreed angle just to get to it (and I'm only 5'3'').
All the way there I kept remembering how my dad had told me I should never ride in a small plane... because Pasty Cline and Buddy Holly had died on small planes...
Through major breathing exercises, plastering my face to the window, and sheer luck... I made it there without hyperventillating and Delylah was placed in the capable hands of the NICU.
I learned a lot of things that day... some of which I can't put into words. But most of all, I learned that a parent's (or aunt's or uncle's or granparent's) love can overcome the greatest of obstacles.

Better baby formula??

2010-04-27T20:53:00.001-05:00

I'm posting these links because my sister's newborn is having a lot of trouble with commercial formulas and breastmilk. Hope this helps.

Here are some links about homemade baby formula:

http://www.westonaprice.org/Recipes-for-Homemade-Baby-Formula.html
http://www.realmilk.com/formularecipes.html

Good News In the Supermarket!

2010-04-16T20:59:00.001-05:00

Good news!! For those of you who are trying to avoid high fructose corn syrup (watch Food Inc.) there are some brand new item coming to the market.

After watching Friday's episode of The View, I was thrilled to see that some mainstream brands are starting either eliminate HFCS all together or are creating new products that are HFCS free.

Watch this segment:

I'm definately going to try the Sprite Green which is made with sugar and stevia-- the same combo I use for my sweet tea!!

Make it Yourself:Homemade Hamburger Helper

2010-04-13T19:15:00.001-05:00

So everybody likes Hamburger Helper, right? I know! Me too!

But wait, what's in that little envelope of powdery yumminess?

I DON"T KNOW!!! Hehe!

I found this recipe the other day and thought I would give it a try. I wish I could remember where I found it so I could give them credit but I've racked my brain, So if this is your recipe, I'm sorry and thank you!!! Because it is GOOD! And so easy. It is just as easy as making the stuff from the box-- I promise.

Also, I am not kidding when I say it tastes just like the original. You're gonna love it!

Hamburger Helper

1 lb. ground beef

1/2 lb pasta (I used the mulit-colored veggie pasta from Whole Foods)

2 c. water

1 1/4 cup tomato sauce

2 tsp sugar (or whatever sweetener you use)

squirt of mustard

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp onion powder (I ended up using a real onion- small)

salt to taste (at least 1/2 tsp?)

2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Brown and drain beef. Stir in pepper, onion powder, tomato sauce, sugar, and mustard, water and pasta. Bring to a boil and reduce heat; cover and simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until the water is absorbed and the pasta is cooked.

Turn the heat off and stir in the cheese.

There you go: yummy "Hamburger Helper" and you know all the ingredients!!

I especially love using the veggie pasta for this because the nutrients don't get boiled away in pasta water.

Each color is made from a different vegetable: Purple- beets, orange- carrots, green- spinach. It's a good way to sneak in a few more veggies.

Be Yourself-- Some thoughts

2010-04-07T20:29:00.000-05:00

Lately I've had some things on my heart that I wanted to address.

I'm sure some of you have read a blog that had some great information, valuable resources that you found very helpful. But by the time you were finished reading, you might have felt badgered or down on yourself. I have. Sometimes bloggers can be so passionate about their ideas that it comes across as very judgemental.

That is exactly what I don't want my blog to be like.

I am very passionate about eating healthy whole foods, recycling, reducing paper waste, eliminating processed items, being frugal, spending quality time with my family and kids, and many other things. However... I don't want people to feel like I'm condemning them if they don't do things exactly like I do!

The way I see it is: you do things your way (whatever works for you) and I will do things my way. No judgement.

Surprise! I still use *gasp* paper plates. Yes, I do. It's just easier for our family. So I try to reduce waste in other ways (using cloth towels, baby wipes, cleaning wipes, ect.) This is what works for me. But I've had some bloggers tell me that my efforts are in vain if I just turn around and pollute the earth with my paper plates; that I might as well do nothing at all. To them I say "Sploothsp!" (that's me blowing them a raspberry).

I believe that there are no efforts that are in vain. Any step you take in the right direction is a good one.

Also, when I am visiting friends or family, I eat whatever they have fixed. I don't turn my nose up to it just because it isn't what I have in my fridge at home. I've had people try to go out of their way to fix food that they think I will like- this is sweet, but crazy! Fix what you would normally fix. It won't kill me to eat a little velveeta or canned chile!! I guess what I'm saying is people should be themselves. Just because I eat different or do things different, doesn't mean you have to!!

I mean, if you came to my house, I would fix my normal food. You would get a sampling of my wacky habits and you would be expected to eat it!!! Haha!

Anyway, my point is that whether a person has an average view on food/life or whether they have a more crazy old-fashioned view (like me), it should not be cause for strife or contention among friends. I like Lindsay's article about this topic.

So keep in mind as you read my blog, that I'm just sharing my experiences and if you choose not to try these things or even if you think I'm half crazy, I do not think any less of you!! To each his own!!

Frugal Find #2: Muir Glen Organic Soup

2010-04-03T04:15:00.001-05:00

I LOVE it when I find a really good deal. It's kind of like a drug for me. It makes me so happy. My husband thinks I'm a little crazy because I can get so worked up over a really great frugal find!

"Oh my gosh! Honey, look what I found! Muir Glen canned soup for ONLY A DOLLAR! Can you believe it?!"

And then he rolls his eyes while I literally fill up my cart with more cans of soup than we could eat in a year.

Ahh!! But when I do eat that soup, it will taste ten times better because I will remember-- this can of soup only costed a dollar! And I WILL remember- I'm a freak like that.

Frugal Find #2

Item: Muir Glen Organic canned soup

Place: Dollar Tree

Price: $1.00

Happy Birthday Hubby!!

2010-04-02T04:29:00.002-05:00

Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband!!!!

I hope you have an amazing day and I love you so much!!!

Make It Yourself: Sour Cream

2010-03-31T03:50:00.001-05:00

This is the first post for my Make It Yourself series!!

Drumroll please....

Sour Cream!

Well technically it is Creme Fraiche (European style sour cream) but it is amazingly fantastically delicious!!! And EASY to make-- really.

All you need is:

One pint of heavy cream (HAS to be unpastuerized or at least not ultrapastuerized as it is in most stores-- I used raw from the dairy.)

2 Tbs of cultured buttermilk

A glass Jar with a tight fitting lid

On the right is my homemade buttermilk- a byproduct of my homemade cultured butter.

All you do is:

Pour the cream and buttermilk into the glass jar. Shake. Place in a warm spot to culture for 2-3 days (DO NOT OPEN the jar to check it for any reason). After a couple of days, turn jar over to see if the cream has thickened-- it should still look a little runny but be thicker than it was when you put it in. If it has thickened, refrigerate completely before opening. If not, find a warmer place to culture for a few more hours, then refrigerate.

Sour cream culturing in a warm spot above my fridge.

Voila! Sour cream! It. Is. So. Good. You will never buy store bought sour cream again!

Here are a few other homemade items that I will be talking about in the next few days:

L-R: Cultured raw butter, saur kraut, garlic dill pickles, chicken stock from my crockpot chicken.

The pickles and stock are almost gone so I will probably post about the pickles soon.

Also, everything that I post, I have already tried for myself and liked it. My family liked it as well-- even some who weren't into healthy food! So don't be afraid to try it even if it sounds crazy!!

Recycled Coffee Can Planter

2010-03-29T15:49:00.000-05:00

My escapades with the Milk Jug Tomato Planter got me thinking about other things I could recycle and I came up with this:

A Coffee Can Planter!

I used an old plastic coffee can to plant my cherry tomatoes in (don't forget to drill drainage holes in the bottom). It will sit out on my porch instead of hanging from the porch.

The real reason I did this is because I didn't want to make another milk jug planter last night! It was a lot of work!

Now I need to figure out what to do about the strawberries!

2010-03-29T00:33:00.000-05:00

Today I thought I would share with you my attempt at apartment gardening. We have a VERY small apartment with a garage so first I had to figure out what items I needed the most. I decided that tomatoes, strawberries (Corky's favorite), and herbs are what I use the most.

I started with the herb garden. I chose basil, parsley, arugula, and dill (for my homemade pickles and ranch dressing, which I will post about later). I planted them in a window box using organic soil. In the pictures you can see where I put the broken up peat pot (peat pots are biodegradable earth friendly flower pots that my herbs came in) in the planter along with everything else.

The finished product will be placed on the window sill of my garage window where it will get plenty of sunlight.

Next, I decided to use a hanging upside down tomato planter. But... I thought I could make one instead of buying one. I chose an old milk jug to be the sacrifice for this experiment. Using my husbands drill, I made a few drain holes-- one on each side and one on each bottom corner. Then I drilled a hole in the center of the bottom of the jug.

Using a sharp knife, I CAREFULLY (So I wouldn't have a repeat of cutting my thumb off) cut a cross in the bottom. Do a small cross first because you can always make it bigger later if you need. Also cut the rim of the spout off in order to make it easier to fill with soil.

Then, carefully take the tomato plant out of its planter and shake as much of the soil off of the roots as possible (this is easier to do if your plant is dry- mine was wet as you can tell by the messy pictures below).

Insert the roots of the plant up through the cross in the bottom of the jug. You need the cross to be big enough for the stem and roots to fit through but small enough for it too stay put. Shove as much of the stem into the jug as possible.

Now for the hard part! Fill the jug with soil by putting it in the top of the jug (this will be where you water the plant as well). At first some of the soil will fall out of the hole in the bottom of your jug but keep going, soon it will pack in there good enough where it wont come out anymore.

I looped a chain through the handle and hung it from a hook on my front porch.

So... it worked in theory but we'll see if it produces tomatoes! I'll keep you updated!

Easy Spring Dinner: Cheesy Chicken Corn Tostadas

2010-03-23T19:43:00.001-05:00

As of late, my dinner menus have been really chaotic. Actually, our life has been a little chaotic... A family head cold that just will not go away, a brand new baby niece, trying to catch up on all the household things, ect. I threw this together the other night (when I forgot to defrost hamburger) for a quick dinner. And we absolutely loved it. So I thought I would share the recipe. I didn't measure any ingredients. I just kind of tossed it all together.

Shredded chicken (left over from my crockpot chicken)
Thawed frozen corn
Cream Cheese
Sour cream
White or pinto beans
Shredded cheese
Green onions
Green chiles

Mix these things together until it resembles a creamy chicken salad. Spoon the mixture onto corn tortillas and top with a little shredded cheese. Bake at 400 degrees until gooey and tortillas are crisp (I prebaked my tortillas a little). Top with sour cream and avocado.

My Raw Milk Source

2010-03-20T06:23:00.001-05:00

I recently made the switch from regular store bought pastuerized milk to raw milk straight from the dairy after learning about the benefits of drinking raw milk from grass fed cows. And I LOVE it. I'm a little squeamish so I wasn't sure if I would like it. Something about thinking of where milk actually comes from... Anyway, I love it.

I had a little trouble finding a raw cows milk source at first. There were a lot of raw goats milk sources but not many for cows milk. Also, I was a little concerned about the price and how it would fit into our budget. Many of my blog friends pay upwards of 6.00 per gallon. That is a little pricey when you can buy the stuff in the store for for 3.50 per gallon.

But alas... I found my source: Swan's Brothers Dairy in Claremore, Oklahoma. For anyone out there looking for a raw milk source in Northeastern Oklahoma this is it! At only 3.75 per gallon it is a great deal. They sell raw milk in whole fat, 2%, and skim. They have great raw cheese and heavy cream as well. Also they are certified by the state and you can watch the milking process at the dairy (which is really fun for the kids-- I'll take pictures of our next visit to the dairy). Their cows are exclusively grass fed and they use no pesticides on their farm.

The only downside is that it is a 45 minute drive one way from my house. So I generally buy 3 or 4 gallons each trip and make two trips per month. I store the milk in the freezer until I'm ready to use it. Some people don't like freezing unhomogenized milk because the creamy fat separates a little when it is defrosted. I just shake it up real good and it doesn't bother me-- and I've had no complaints from my family.

Also, some people don't like to store their raw milk in plastic jugs. They prefer glass jars. But Swan's Dairy packages their raw milk and cream in plastic. I don't mind this though.

Fair warning: For those of you aren't familiar with raw milk, you WILL know when it goes bad! It smells so bad you could never acidentally drink it. It is so much worse than pastuerized milk! It kind of smells like vomit and a dead animal. I make my husband smell check whenever I'm worried about it spoiling.

Chicken Spaghetti minus the Velveeta

2010-03-19T18:23:00.000-05:00

A few years ago my husband and I were introduced to a recipe called Chicken Spaghetti. Its a cheezy mexicanny version of spaghetti and it is DELICIOUS! It quickly became my hubby's favorite meal. However...

The recipe calls for Velveeta and canned cream of chicken soup... Two things which I am trying to avoid for dietary reasons. So it has been months since I've made it.

While perusing recipes online the other day, I ran across an amended one for Chicken Spaghetti and I thought I would try it. It turned out very good but the taste was a little different. So I adapted it further. Here is what I did:

Chicken Spaghetti

1/3 c. butter

1/2 green pepper, finely diced

1/3 c. flour

1 1/2 c. chicken stock (I used the homemade from my crockpot chicken)

1 1/2 c. milk

4 c. shredded Sharp cheddar cheese

Salt and pepper, to taste

1/2 t. cumin

1/2 t. chili powder

1 15 oz. can Rotel

1 lb. chicken, fully cooked and cubed

16 oz. spaghetti, fully cooked (I used whole wheat)

1. In a large skillet or saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.

Add green pepper and cook 2-3 minutes. Add flour and cook an additional 2

minutes. Slowly add chicken stock and milk. Whisk or stir well to prevent

lumps.

2. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat and simmer about 3 minutes, until

slightly thicker than a gravy consistency. Stir in Rotel. Add half of the cheese to the sauce and whisk until smooth.

3. Stir in spices, cubed chicken and spaghetti until combined.

4. Transfer to a baking dish. Cover with remaining cheese and bake at 350 degrees until bubbly and brown.

I divided mine into two pans. I froze one and baked the other. Yum!

Sorting Colors

2010-03-14T22:27:00.000-05:00

This is a project that I did with Corky before our sick break. She doesn't like sorting projects very well so it didn't last too long (I guess I will keep trying) but it got a few giggles.

I used three colored bowls and then gathered various small objects of like colors: pieces of pipe cleaners, ribbon tied in knots, hair bands, small squares of construction paper, foam shapes, ect.

I let her match the colors of the objects to the bowls. It was easy for her-- maybe that's why she doesn't like sorting that much. Other kids love this stuff but not mine! Anyway, maybe this will help another mother!

Hello again, do you remember me?

2010-03-14T21:06:00.000-05:00

So... I took a little break from blogging. Partly because my kid (and me) has been sick. For like a month. No kidding. Really.

Okay, I was only sick for a week or so. But Corky is still sick. We are going on week five of snotty nose acompanied by a fever. And it sucks!

The doctor says it's a virus and we need to let it run its course but it taking FOREVER! In the meantime, I'm giving her lots of Elderberry Syrup.

As a result of our sick break, my house is a wreck-- you should see my laundry pile! But now that I'm on the mend (and hopefully Corky will follow soon) it's time to play catch up.

Here's my to do list:

Lots of laundry
Dishes (Hubby did pretty good keeping up with these)
Clean bathroom
Menu plan
Make sour cream
Vaccuum
Make saur kraut
Start my tomato planter (I will blog on this later)

2010-02-10T08:16:00.001-06:00

Playing in the snow...

2010-02-06T20:57:00.000-06:00

Snow Ice Cream

2010-02-06T20:46:00.000-06:00

The massive snow storm that barreled through here last week inspired me to make snow ice cream for Corky. She actually preferred eating just the snow, but Hubby and I loved it! Here's how I did it:

1. Fill a bowl with snow.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine 1 pint of Heavy Cream, Agave Necter (make it as sweet as you like), and 1/2 Tbs. Vanilla Extract.

3. Mix together, but don't whip it (You can do it by hand, I just wanted an excuse to use my mixer!).

4. Pour slowly over the snow. Stir it all up until it resembles ice cream. It usually has the same texture as freshly homemade ice cream!

5. Enjoy!!

Stevia- My Splenda Alternative

2010-01-20T19:40:00.001-06:00

For years I have used Splenda as a sweetener. Of course, everyone has heard the dangers of artificial sweeteners, especially Splenda. Their moto used to be "made from sugar, so it tastes like sugar". Thus, leading people to believe it was a more natural sweetener. But they were forced to change it when they were sued for false advertising! I loved Splenda because of three things, 1) It measures cup for cup like sugar, 2) It is fairly cheap, and 3) It's a no calorie option. It is hard to find something that meets all those qualities. I did though!!

It's called "Stevia In the Raw". For those who don't know, Stevia is an all natural sweetener. You might know it by the brand names Truvia, SunCrystal, ect. Stevia In The Raw comes in a bag just like Splenda, measures like sugar, and its no calorie! It costs only a dollar more than Splenda, which I'm willing to pay for a healthier option! The only bad thing is that it isn't available everywhere. I can't seem to find it at ANY Walmart. But I did find it at my local Reasor's (grocery store), and I haven't checked Target yet.

So, no more sweetener to sugar ratios for me! Yay!

Make It Yourself: Crockpot Yogurt

2010-01-18T15:17:00.001-06:00

You can make yogurt in your crockpot... did you know that?? I discovered this fact a few months ago and tried it out. It is super easy and it makes the most delicious yogurt for a fraction of the cost of buying it!
This is what I do:

First, gather the ingredients. You need a half gallon of milk (organic, raw, or regular pasteurized), 1 1/2 cups of powdered milk, sweetener (I used honey and agave), vanilla extract (or some vanilla beans), and 3/4 cup of yogurt with live active cultures. Also, you need a 2 quart crockpot (I bought this one especially for yogurt making for $4.00 on black friday).

*** Edit*** I no longer use the powdered milk and the yogurt still turns out great!

Pour the half gallon of milk into the crock and set it on low for 2 hours and 45 mins.

Now turn the crockpot off and let the milk cool with the lid on for 3 hours. When 3 hours have passed, remove 2 cups of the warm milk to a bowl.

To the bowl/milk, add 3/4 cup of yogurt with live active cultures. Wisk well.

To the crock, add the rest of the ingredients ( if you want plain yogurt, just leave out the vanilla and sweetener) and mix well.

Pour the yogurt mix back into the crock and stir. Replace the lid and wrap the whole crock in a thick bath towel.

Let the yogurt sit in a warm place for 8-12 hours. In order to culture, the yogurt has to stay warm. Since my house stays pretty cold, I warmed my oven a little (too hot will kill the bacteria in the yogurt), then turned it off and placed the whole bundle in there.

After, it cultures, chill thoroughly before eating.

At this point you can add fruit if you like. I don't suggest putting the fruit in until it is completely finished. So easy! Try it!

What to do with a whole chicken... or what I did anyway...

2010-01-17T20:23:00.000-06:00

I recently posted about changing my poultry habits. Since it costs more to buy "good" chicken, I took the cheaper route and purchased a whole chicken. You could just take your whole chicken and roast it or cut it up, but I don't really like dark meat (did I also mention that I detest handling raw poultry? I do it, obviously, but It really grosses me out!) but my husband does and I was determined to get the most out of my chicken so... I got creative.

First, I figured out the easiest way to cook it was in the crockpot (because you don't have to handle it much, of course). I just plopped the bird (mine was approx. 3 1/2 pounds) in the crock and added enough water to cover the bird halfway. I added a quartered onion, and some parsley and thyme. Then I just let it go. It only took about three hours and it was falling off the bones! Next, I removed the chicken to a plate and stripped the skin off. I pulled out as many bones and junk as I could and threw it, with the skin back into the crock. I let this reduce into a nice little chicken stock. I then strained it and poured it into quart jars (this chicken made 2 quarts) and stored one in the freezer and one in the fridge! It turned out very dark and gelatinous (it tasted very good too)!

Now for the meat... I let the chicken cool and shredded all the meat. You could chop some, slice it, whatever... I used the white meat to make chicken salad, enchiladas, ect. For the dark meat, I added BBQ sauce and my husband had BBQ sandwhichs. I also found that I could add some of the dryer dark meat to the chicken salad and it didn't offend my palate (it's the slimy dark meat that I don't like)!

I was very satisfied that nothing went to waste. Also, having shredded chicken on hand made putting dinner together a cinch!

New Year's Resolutions: Part 1

2010-01-09T16:19:00.000-06:00

Well, it might be a little late to write about New Year resolutions since January is almost half over, but... oh well. I'm gonna do it anyway! After watching Food Inc., I decided I was going to try to do even better with our family's food supply. Starting with our meat. The information that I learned about how commercial poultry is raised was particularly disturbing to me. So I'm starting there! I used to buy Tyson, Purdue, and other big name brands of chicken. When we started to go more natural with our food, I was delighted that these same brands provided a "natural" alternative! Yay!

But wait. Read the package closely. What makes it "all natural"? When I took a closer look, I noticed that there was nothing on the package that said, "No antibiotics, No growth hormones, Not cloned, ect.". It just claimed to be natural- no more information! Usually these "natural" products were priced a little higher, so I was dissapointed that I was duped by this scam. But you live, you learn, right?

So I set out in search of a better chicken...

We don't have a Trader Joes or a decent co-op in our area. We do have ONE Whole Foods Market, but it is an hour drive, one way. There are some family farms that offer natural, free range chickens, but the price was a little out of our budget. The main source of shopping in our area is Walmart and a few limited grocery stores, which aren't usually stocked with natural foods. However, when you look really hard, sometimes you have some luck!

At our local Reasor's, I found a brand called Smart Chicken. Which claims to be hormone and antibiotic free, and naturally raised. They also offer an organic option. I have not tried this one yet.

At Target, I found a brand called Bare Natural. They have all the necessary requirements on their label as well. I have tried this brand several times when I found it super cheap on sale.

At Walmart, my mom found a brand called HarvestLand. This has been my favorite option, so far. It is truly all natural and it is raised on small farms (where the chickens are allowed to see the sunlight!). And it fits within our budget! I got whole chickens in this brand for $1.98 per pound! Compared to the local farm chickens that are $5.99 per pound, that is a good deal (although I would love to support these local farms, we just can't afford it right now. But I plan to keep looking for a better deal)!

So, I had to do some looking around but I managed to find a naturally healthy chicken that didn't have unusually large breasts for a decent price! Yay! That's one resolution- done!

(I'll let you know what I did with my whole chicken later. I'm a white meat girl, so a whole chicken was a challenge for me. But I managed to use every last bit of it!)

Food Inc.

2010-01-09T16:10:00.000-06:00

Have you seen the documentary movie Food Inc.?? I watched it the other day with my mom and husband and boy oh boy, was I SHOCKED!! My husband was already on the "real food" bandwagon, but this just reinforced our decision to eat better and most importantly, know where our food comes from and how it's made! It was so shocking to see how cattle is raised (they are left to stand crowded together, knee deep in cow feces)- it's no wonder we hear of a different ecoli outbreak or beef recall every month! And I'm sure you've noticed how big chicken breasts have become in recent years. I kept saying to my mom, "Look how huge these breasts are, it's unatural! They must be giving the chickens something..." Well, guess what?? THEY ARE! The poultry industry has actually messed with the chickens to make them grow bigger breasts because that is what most people eat! Not to mention, all the growth hormones they are given to make sure they grow into these huge chicken monsters in record time! They also keep the chickens in total darkness twenty four hours a day to make them grow faster! It's disgusting! I live in the mid-south where poultry farming is a huge industry and I didn't know this stuff was going on!

There is much more information in the movie- cloned animals used for food, genetically modified foods (gmo's), ammonia cleansed beef (yes, that's what I said! Watch out for those fast food burgers. In an effort to head off ecoli contamination, they are having their meat "cleaned" with a process that uses ammonia!), and it also spotlights some good farming practices.

So, if you are interested in your own health. Or you have been concerned by the ever-so-present food contamination scares. You should check out Food Inc. It will change what you put in your mouth!!

Who knew it could be so easy... Part 2

2010-01-04T14:37:00.000-06:00

Corndogs... who doesn't love them?? But...the ones that you can buy in the store are full of junk, fried in trans fats, and who knows where those hotdogs came from! In walks the perfect solution: Corndog Muffins!!!

They are super easy! Line your muffin pan. Cut each hotdog into thirds (use all beef or all chicken). Fill each cup 1/4 full with your favorite cornbread batter. Add one hotdog piece, then more cornbread batter. Bake at 400 degrees. Here they are:

Don't they look yummy (pardon the abused muffin tin)!

These are really easy for kids to eat. They are a good portable food as well, great for school lunches, ect. Also, they freeze really well so you could make a big batch and go straight from the freezer to the microwave for an easy lunch!

Your kids will be pleasantly surprised to find a hotdog in their cornbread!!

Who knew it could be so easy...

2010-01-03T20:39:00.001-06:00

Tonight for dinner I tried a new recipe. Easy Mac-n-cheese, found here. I don't usually like to make homemade mac-n-cheese because it is a two-pot process. One to boil the pasta and one to make the sauce... oh and you have to make a roux and... let's admit it. It is easier to just resort to the box stuff! Especially when you have a three year old pulling on your pant leg! Well... say bye bye to the boxed macaroni that is chalk full of junk that you don't really want in your body! This was sooooooo easy!
One pot.
No waiting for water to boil.
No straining the pasta.
No making sauce.

Are you ready?? Here is the recipe:

Easy Mac and Cheese*

2 1/2 cups whole wheat pasta

3 3/4 cups whole milk

1 t. sea salt

2 cups shredded cheese (I use white cheddar and colbyjack)

Mix pasta, milk and salt in a large sauce pan. Cook over medium-high heat STIRRING ALMOST CONSTANTLY until the pasta is tender (10-15 minutes). Remove from heat. Add cheese and stir until melted. Serve immediately.

This is what it looks like when you start:

Here it is when it is all finished:

It looks a little soupy in the picture but its not. It turned out really thick and creamy. The starch from the pasta mixes with the milk to make a super simple sauce. No flour or butter needed! I know it's hard to believe, but it really is that easy! You gotta try it to believe it!!

*The recipe above is not the original. I tweaked the original a little (added more salt, milk, and cheese- I like it really cheesy). For the original recipe, visit the link above.

Wordless Wednesday: White Christmas!

2009-12-30T05:02:00.001-06:00

How to refill Swiffer Wet-jet solution

2009-12-28T06:00:00.001-06:00

A few weeks ago I posted about how I make my own Swiffer Wet-jet pads. I just realized that in that post I promised to tell you how to refill your Wet-jet solution container! In my crazy, pre-Christmas mindset I forgot. So here it is:

It's super easy. Start by filling a large glass measuring cup half way with boiling water. Next, add a couple splashes of white vinegar. Insert the empty solution bottle upside down in the water (it will suck up some of the water so that it won't float). Let it soak for 30 minutes. Remove. Using a towel to get a good grip, you should be able to remove the lid. Now you can refill with whatever solution you like. For an anti-bacterial cleaner that is safe for all floors including wood, use this recipe:

1 cup white vinegar
1 Tbs. dish soap
1/2 Tbs. lemon juice
1/2 cup water

This solution has worked well for me on my tile and linoleum.

Fun Fridays: Our First Gingerbread House!

2009-12-25T05:07:00.002-06:00

This year Corky was old enough to make her first Gingerbread house! It turned out beautiful* and she was surprisingly cooperative! For those of you who know my daughter, you know that she is extremely independent and stubborn. So I was thrilled when she let me show her what to do. She normally doesn't give you the chance to give any instruction, she just wants to do it herself. So... going into this project, I expected the end result to be something like a pile of gingerbread pieces with huge blobs of frosting and candy pieces scattered everywhere! It was nice to have some toddler cooperation!

* Notice that the chimney is sideways?? Mommy's fault!

She had lots of fun decorating the "gingy" house. This is something we will have to do again next year!

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas...

2009-12-12T21:22:00.000-06:00

2009-12-02T07:37:00.001-06:00

So, your wondering right?? Well, this is a project that Corky and I did this summer (I'm just getting around to posting about it) called Color Adventure. She named it herself, after the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse episode of the same name! In that episode, Mickey and friends discover that all the color is draining out of the clubhouse. To fix it, they must go on a scavenger hunt to find an object that represents each color of the rainbow. Well, when I made this little game I didn't realize that it was basically the same thing! She did however (so perceptive)!

Anyway, to make this, all you need is an empty egg carton and paints of various colors of the rainbow. Simply paint the inside of each crevice with a different color. Then take your child on an adventure. It is amazing how you can find each color right in your own back yard (flowers, rocks of various colors, a penny, some paper, mysterious piece of black plastic, leaves, a marble...)!! She still plays with her Color Adventure around the house when its too cold to go out!

Homemade Reusable Swiffer Wet-jet Pads

2009-11-30T07:49:00.001-06:00

So, have you noticed how expensive Swiffer Wet-jet Pads are?? Not to mention the added waste that ends up in the landfills. I LOVE my Swiffer, but I needed a cheaper and more earth friendly alternative (read here about the huge trash swirl). I needed something thick and absorbant and something with some texture to make the pads. So I found these at our local Ross store:

They are 12x12 microfiber cloths. Since the microfiber doesn't fray, I just cut them into thirds.

This resulted in three pads that were slightly smaller than my Wet-jet surface. When I used them, it seemed to work out well. However, next time I might just cut the cloth in half to make them a little bigger.

These are great because they stick to the velcro on the bottom of the Swiffer very well and are quite absorbent. When I'm done with them, they go in the bucket with all my other dirty cleaning rags and get washed along with them. Easy! It is very simple step to being more frugal and green.

In tomarrow's post, I'll tell you how to refill your used Swiffer solution bottle with your own homemade cleaning solution!

Making your own Gatorade

2009-11-27T19:10:00.000-06:00

We had a terrific Thanksgiving!! The dinner was the best one yet in my opinion! I can post the recipes if anyone wants them, just let me know!

On to todays post... I came across this recipe for making your own gatorade (or rather, a gatorade type drink) on the Dr. Oz Show . They have not posted it on his website, but luckily I had the show DVR'ed. It's terribly simple and can save you a ton of money. Also, you know exactly what you are getting- no artificial sweetners, preservatives, ect. So here it is:

Electrolyte Drink

1 liter of water
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt (or regular salt)
2 T agave nectar or honey
Fruit juice (optional)

Mix together. Add a little fruit juice for flavor if you desire.

Easy right? Now this won't be Kool-aid type drink, but it is a good option for a workout or dehydration from illnesses.

Thankful Thursday

2009-11-26T07:00:00.003-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Our Thanksgiving Menu

Roast Turkey
Scalloped Sweet Potatoes
Roasted Broccoli
Corn Fritters
Clover Leaf Rolls
Gravy

Deviled Eggs
Mini Spinach Quiche

Pumpkin Pies (one sugar-free with whole wheat crust)
Pecan Cranberry Pie
Lemon Meringue Pie

Wordless Wednesday

2009-11-25T07:00:00.001-06:00

Grinding Your Own Flour

2009-11-23T07:10:00.012-06:00

This is something I have been exploring recently. I learned that whole grain flour loses many of its key nutrients in the first 36 hours after it is milled. This means that grinding it on an as needed basis is key to maintaining its nutrient value. You can buy a flour mill or a mill attachment (for stand mixers) but they are fairly expensive. So I decided to try using my Magic Bullet to grind flour. I used the grinding/ whipping blade (the flat one) and organic whole wheat berries. It worked like a charm! I have used it to grind rice, oat, and spelt flour as well. In the long run, I might invest in a good flour mill (that would probably result in a finer flour than the Magic Bullet) but for now this method works great!

Homemade Oatmeal Bath

2009-11-21T18:20:00.000-06:00

I was originally inspired to post this because of my poor little 11 month old nephew who contracted... duh duh DUNN... Chicken Pox! The poor little guy was COVERED with it so we found a recipe for homemade soothing oatmeal bath and adjusted it a little:

Homemade Oatmeal Bath

1 cup each Oatmeal, ground to a powder (food processor, blender, or use baby oatmeal cereal), epsom salt, powdered milk. *Also, you can add 1 cup of baking soda if using for Chicken Pox or Excema*

Mix all ingredients together and store in an air tight container. Use 1/2 cup (or more) for each bath.

This is a very frugal alternative to buying oatmeal bath and it worked great on my sweet little nephew!

After seeing that The Nourishing Gourmet was hosting a Handmade Gift Carnival, I figured this would make a good entry! This would actually make a great gift for a new mother (to use for herself or the baby!) or really for anyone who takes a bath (which should be everybody!). You could jazz it up with a decorated jar and some ribbons- possiblities are endless!

A Fantastic Frugal Find!

2009-11-21T16:27:00.001-06:00

Okay, I couldn't resist the alliteration! This is a good one for all you coffee lovers! My mom and my husband are MAJOR coffee drinkers, and they have to have the cream and sugar with it. I love coffee too, but I don't drink it as much because of my high blood pressure. However, when I do, I would describe my drink as being mostly creamer with a little coffee! We all love the liquid creamer the best but it can be quite pricey (over 2.00 for a 32oz. bottle). This would be ok if we just used a little bit- but we use alot! So my mother went on a mission to find a better option... and she succeeded! She figured out how to turn powdered creamer (which is much cheaper) into the liquid form. It worked great and actually tasted better than the liquid we were buying! Maybe it just tasted better because it was cheaper!! Here is the recipe:

Homemade Liquid Creamer

2 cups boiling water
2 cups powdered creamer
2 cups cold water

Mix the powdered creamer with the boiling water, until creamer is dissolved. Then combine the mixture with the cold water. Store in the fridge. Easy! This recipe make a little more than a quart of liquid creamer.

The cost difference is drastic: The CoffeeMate liquid creamer is $2.98 per quart. The CoffeeMate brand powder is $3.25 for 22 oz. The 22 oz. powder makes 3.2 quarts of liquid. It would cost us $9.50 to buy the liquid and only $3.25 to make it!

Fun Friday: Healthy "Lunchable"

2009-11-20T02:52:00.001-06:00

Okay, everyone has probably given their kid a Lunchable for a quick meal, right? Well, I decided that they were too expensive and likely full of things that aren't very healthy (is that real cheese??). So, today, when Corky asked for a "wunchable", I substituted with my own version!

I used diced, fresh, pears, whole wheat crackers, and real cheese. I used a cookie cutter to make the little cheese flowers. She was so excited about the cheese...

You could easily create many variations, using chunks of chicken, berries, carrot sticks, pretzles, ect.

Not only was this a more healthy option, but it was more fun! I'm sure she would much rather eat cheese flowers than cheese circles!!

Nourishing Crockpot Carnival

2009-11-17T07:00:00.001-06:00

Today I thought I would participate in the Nourishing Crockpot Carnival hosted by Passionatehomemaking.com! I am just beginning my journey of healthful eating (well we have been making small changes for a year, so we are on our way at least!). My contribution is called Chicken Crockpot Pie. The great thing about this recipe is that you put everything in the crockpot frozen- no defrosting!!! Hope you like!

Chicken Crockpot Pie

2-3 boneless skinless chicken breast, frozen
3 quarts chicken stock or broth (homemade is best)
1 med onion (I chop mine ahead and pop them in the freezer, then they are ready when I need them)
1 small bag (12 oz.) of frozen mixed vegetables or equivilent of vegetables that you prefer
2 potatoes, chunked or diced
3 Tbs. whole wheat flour

crust:
3 cups whole wheat baking mix (I use Hodgeson Mills)
2 Tbs. olive oil or melted butter (could also use coconut oil)
2 Tbs. milled flax seed
2 tsp. chopped parsley
pepper to taste
enough milk or water to make a thick but pourable consistency

Put first five ingredients in crockpot, reserving 1/4 cup of the chicken stock. Cook on high 4-6 hours or until chicken is nearly done, depending on your crock. Next, in a small bowl, mix the 3 Tbs. flour and reserved chicken stock until smooth. Add spoonfulls of the hot broth from the crock, mixing to make sure there are no lumps. When the flour mixture is adequately warmed, add it to the crock and stir. Next, to make the "crust", In a medium bowl mix the flour, oil, flax seed, parsley, pepper and milk. You want the consistency to be very thick but pourable. If you make it too thin, it will fall to the bottom of the crock. Pour the mixture over the chicken/vegetable mixture and spread all over the top. Replace the lid and let the dough steam (like chicken & dumplings) for 25 minutes. Don't lift the lid!! The dough on the top of the "pie" will have a texture similar to a dumpling. Spoon into bowls and serve!

Happy Birthday Corky!!!

2009-11-16T08:00:00.001-06:00

My little baby is growing up too fast!! We had her third birthday party at Fun City, on Saturday. It was a Minnie Mouse party. She was so excited when she walked in and saw all the Minnie Mouse things! My mom and I made her a Minnie Mouse cake that looks like a cost a hundred dollars. However, I am pround to announce that it costed next to nothing - somewhere in the ball park of fifteen dollars!

She had so much fun playing in the ball pit!

Opening her presents...

Happy Birthday baby girl!!!

I'm alive... I promise!

2009-11-15T16:45:00.003-06:00

Well, a break was needed- so I took one! I know I haven't been blogging for very long but My family and I had such a crazy summer that I needed to put priorities first- forget about blogging for a while- and get things in order! Things aren't completely "in order" but it's time to get back in the groove! So let's just play a little catch up:

The summer started out good- lots of pool time and playing at the local park!
Mid July, my family, along with my mom, took a trip/ vacation to Arizona to see my grandma. I will post on that later!
Early August, we achieved potty learning!!!! YAY!!!! More on that later!
Mid August, my dad who was already in poor health, began to deteriorate further. Within a week he had passed away. Although he was in bad shape, we didn't expect him to pass that quickly. I have four sisters (two of whom have small children) who traveled in from California for the funeral. My poor husband, who was very close with my father, acted as a permanent shuttle to and from the airport. Since my parents live in a rural area, it was an hour and fifteen minute drive, one way! He also kept all of us girls fed- nobody wants to eat and you forget to, so he reminded us and cooked for us (we developed a great love for quesadillas, he even memorized our specific orders!) Yeah, I know, he is just that awesome!
Needless to say, it was very hard on us all. It was interesting to see how our feelings manifested in each of us: One sister made a lot of jokes (she kept us laughing even in the sad times), one sister lashed out angrily at EVERYONE (she made us angry a lot), one sister was very sad and cried a lot (she reminded us why we were all together and what had happened- that was a good thing, in my opinion), my other sister was trying to be a peacemaker (she tried to make sure all the family was together for this hard time), all the kids (including mine) were confused and acting out (normal for a tragedy), and my mom was in business mode (she took care of everything... which is a lot! There is so much to do when a loved one dies. And you are expected to suck it up and take care of it all!). How did I handle it?? Well, I don't really know how I was that first week- I feel like I was in a fog. However, after all my sisters went home I COOKED. Yes, I cooked. I made bread, pasta from scratch, tortillas, rolls, lasagna, soup, tarts, cake, muffins, biscuits, cookies, more cookies, granola, granola bars... you get the picture. I cooked so much that I practically emptied our fridge/freezer and depleted our food budget for the month. I cooked more than our little family of three could possibly eat... so what did I do? I put it back in the freezer! I also made a lot of other stuff. Like bows for Corky, tutus, a place mat for her, a board to hang her hair bows on, ect. I guess for me, I needed something to do. Something that would keep me REALLY busy. I think I needed to be numb for a while.
After that phase was over, I became very irritated. Everything annoyed me: the way my house looked, if there were dishes in the sink, any amount of clutter, the fact that I don't have a headboard on my bed (we have wall hanging thingy), sometimes even my most comfortable clothing would annoy me (I just didn't like the "feel" of it). I realize now that I felt out control of things so I needed everything in my home to be controlled and in order. Sounds crazy right?? Nope. Just grieving!
Things are starting to get better now though. This is my absolute favorite time of the year so that helps my spirits. Also, today is Corky's third birthday! So I thought this would be a fitting day to begin blogging again.
Things are okay right now- the holidays are coming and soon it will be time to put up our Christmas tree! I have so much to tell you about but this post is long enough, so I'll save it for another!!

I'll be back...

2009-08-29T17:14:00.002-05:00

Hey everyone! Just wanted to let you know that I haven't forgotten about this blog! I have had a tough summer (sickness, my dad passed, ect.)! But I will be back soon and there is lots to tell! Corky is potty trained, our vacation pics, pics of my four sisters who I rarely get to see because they live in Cali., my experience with cloth diapers, on and on... Anyway, I will blog again soon!

2009-07-04T15:05:00.001-05:00

Happy Independence Day!

Ice Paint!

2009-07-02T14:59:00.004-05:00

This week Corky and I made Ice Paint. To make it, you just fill an ice tray and add food coloring. Then cut drinking straws into thirds and add them to the tray (these serve as handles) and freeze. We made the ice on Wednesday. I let her put the food coloring in the tray (once she figured it out, she squeezed the little food coloring bottle as hard as she could- so funny). She also got to put the straws in. When it was time to put them in the freezer, she was a little reluctant! She wanted to paint now! I told her that we would paint tomorrow. As soon as she woke up on Thursday, she said, “We play with Ice Paint?” So of course, that is exactly what we did!

This was a really great summer project. We just took the paint outside that way she could get a little messy (it kept her cool outside too since she decided to eat the ice when she was done painting)!

*I got the idea for this project from the blog, Chasing Cheerios.

2009-06-30T14:49:00.000-05:00

YAY!!! I’m so happy! Our air conditioner is fixed and our house is so cold! Yay!! Ok, I’m done celebrating now! Now it’s time for me to catch up on my laundry. I let our laundry go as long as I could while our AC was down because it made the house hotter (I was desperate- anything to make it a little less hot). Plus, our washer and dryer are in the garage which is not insulated or air conditioned. And since I was trying to stay as cool as possible, I only ventured in there if I absolutely had to! Even Corky didn’t want to go out there! I refer to it as our “sweltering jungle”. Anyway, I just piled it all in front of my washer. It looked a little something like this:

Four loads later it was a little better:

Still pretty bad! I guess I will keep working on it!

How To Save A Roast

2009-06-27T20:56:00.006-05:00

Since we spent the weekend at my parent's house, and it was my dad's birthday today, my mom and I decided to grill a pork roast on the outside grill (low and slow so it would be tender). Well, "something" happened and it looked like this:

Actually, the roast isn't in there, but you get the idea- burnt! We were delighted to find that it was very delicious and tender on the inside. so we decided to save it! First, we scraped off the fatty layer, which was really the only burnt part (there was a little burnage on the bottom). Then we placed it in a covered dish with about an inch of water (I've heard of people using watered down apple juice to revive meat but we didn't have any so we used water).

We put it in the oven, very low. when it was done, it was falling apart and delish- so yummy, so yummy (Yo Gabba). This is the half eaten finished product:

Anyhow that is how we saved our roast!

Arts and crafts...

2009-06-27T20:56:00.005-05:00

Friday and Saturday, Corky and I had fun making some things:

First, She decorated one of those foam visor hats with foam flower stickers! Oh how she loves stickers! I didn't get a picture of it but she went a little overboard! Foamy sticker on top of foamy sticker... It was on both sides of the visor... so cute! Afterward, she carefully peeled the stickers off so she could put them back on again!

While she was busy with that, I decided to make her some play food out of those foam craft sheets. I got the idea to do this because I caught her using real food in her play kitchen! She was also trying to feed her stuffed animals with real food! I don't really know why I didn't think about getting her play food before. She has a play kitchen, play dishes, play silverware... but no play food! Silly mommy! Anyway, it turned out pretty good and she played with it for hours when I was done! I got a picture of it, but by the time I peeled it from her Chef Boyardee hands, she had already misplaced the orange, broccoli, a piece of bacon, and a pretzel!

On Saturday, she made Papa's birthday present! Papa has a huge boat and ship collection, so we got him a little wooden toy boat and Corky "painted" it with markers. She had fun doing it but then she wanted to give it to him right away. I tried to explain that his birthday is tomorrow, not today... it took a lot of convincing. I think I had success when I mentioned something about happy birthday cake!

2009-06-25T09:35:00.001-05:00

I am so thankful today!!! Remember how I don’t like summer all that much? Well, our area has been in a heat advisory for the last week and a half! It’s been in the triple digits for a solid five days now. To top it all off, our AC has been on the fritz and we have had a horrible time convincing our landlord that it needs to be replaced! He thinks its okay to keep your house in the 80s in the dead summer heat! Grant it, 84 degrees feels good compared to 102 outside. But as for me and my house, the 80s stink!! Anyway, I am thankful today because he finally decided to replace it!!! But not until Monday. So in the mean time, we are doing whatever we can to stay cool. I finally had an epiphany and rigged a fan underneath the vent above our refrigerator, in order to blow some cool air into the kitchen (the air is cold, it just isn’t blowing very strong). We will be spending the Saturday and Sunday at my parent’s house to stay cool over the weekend, and then Monday our AC problems will be OVER!! Hopefully! Here is a picture for you to laugh at…

The Ramp

2009-06-21T19:15:00.006-05:00

My parents recently had a wheelchair ramp put in for my dad. It is huge and we all think it's hideous! The shiny metal blares against their beautiful log home! Everyone think it's ugly except my daughter... Corky loves it. She thinks it is a big shiny new toy, just for her! She likes to roll her ball up and down and chase it. She also likes to hang on it. She has a lot of fun at Papa and Granny's!

Puddin' Paint

2009-06-21T16:31:00.004-05:00

We spent father's day weekend at my parent's house. My dad is very sick (terminal) so we often travel 120 miles to their house and stay for the weekend. This is good because they get to see Corky and we all get to visit. She loves to go to Granny and Papa's house! Today, she was in a very crafty mood so we made Puddin' Paint! It's easy, all you need is some vanilla pudding cups and food coloring. You can also use different flavors of pudding if you don't want to add the food coloring. Or you could color it with natural things like blueberries. Her favorite color is purple, so we just made purple and pink. The best part is that it is completely edible. Surprisingly, she painted more than she ate! Here are some of her masterpieces!

Home Made Baby Wipes

2009-06-20T17:00:00.004-05:00

Recently, I happened upon an idea for making your own baby wipes. I thought, "What a brilliant idea for saving money!" Also, have you ever looked at the list of ingredients on the back of the box? Even the ones that are "gentle", "for sensitive skin", "fragrance free", ect., still have loads of harsh ingredients! It is no wonder that babies scream when wiped with these things! Any how, I thought I would test it out on Corky, because after all, it is her bottom that will be the judge! So, I looked at all the various recipes online- there are a million! They all have a basic formula:

water, something to sooth, something to clean, disinfectant, and something to wipe.

Some people use the all-in-one wipes method. Others keep the wipe and cleaning solution separate (in a spray bottle or something). Also, you can make them disposable or washable/reusable. I chose to do all-in-one disposables (I know disposables aren't as good for the environment, but I needed something easy- I might try washables with our next child since Corky should be potty training soon!).

This is what worked for me:

3 cups warm water

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup baby wash

4 drops tea tree oil

I mix it all and store in an airtight container (shake well before each use). Usually a batch of wipe solution will make about 4 batches of wipes.

Next, for the wipes, I use Viva paper towels because they are the softest. I have also used Bounty- they work well, they just aren't as soft. Also, I don't recommend using "select-a-size" type towels unless you have a small baby. Cut the paper towels in half cross ways, so they resemble a large roll of toilet paper. Use one half for each batch of wipes. Place the roll, cut side down, in an air tight container and pour a little over a half cup of solution evenly over the roll (if you use "big roll" towels, you will need to adjust the amount of solution). Then turn it over and repeat. Let it sit for an hour to saturate. It will seem like it isn't wet enough, but after an hour it should be just right. After an hour, pull the cardboard center out, and pull wipes from the center. If they are too dry, add some water, but be careful not to get them too wet! The first time I made them, they were so wet that I had to wring them out to use them- they were too soapy too!

* The reason this recipe is not exact is because all the recipes I tried were failures. So I adjusted it to fit my needs. I chose to mix a batch of solution, and just use what I need for each individual batch of wipes. Also, the amount of solution needed will vary depending on the brand of paper towel.

Substitutions:

Many of the ingredients that I used can be substituted with items more suited to your individual baby. Here are some suggestions:

Water- you can use filtered, tap, or distilled

Something to sooth- baby oil, mineral oil, olive oil, baby lotion (be careful about ones that contain alcohol).

Something to clean- castile soap, any liquid baby soap that works for your baby (something gentle).

Disinfectant- This step can be skipped, tea tree oil, lavender oil, vitamin e liquid from capsules.

Wipe- Any strong paper towel, blue shop towels, strips of soft Cotton fabric (for washables).

*Note- Some of the sites where I found recipes stated that people have had trouble with the wipes mildewing. I have never had this happen. I don't know if it is because of the tea tree oil or because I use them so quickly. Anyway, keeping them tightly covered and out of the sunlight should help.

2009-06-16T08:51:00.001-05:00

Well, summer is in full swing. Most people love summer, but it is actually my least favorite season! I like it for like a week and then I’m ready for the cool weather. The one great thing about summer is the swimming! I love to take Corky to the local pool- she absolutely loves it! I love to watch her at the pool because she has so much fun! It just makes me happy! Most of the time when we go, she has a blast and it’s great. But today was a different story…
She knew we were going to the pool after her nap, so she refused to go to sleep! I guess she was excited. Anyway, by the time we got to the pool, she was very tired and extremely cranky. To make matters worse, I forgot to bring her Mickey Mouse floaty (or donut, as she likes to call it)! Well, apparently she can not swim without that Mickey Mouse floaty, so my husband walked back home in the 95 degree weather to get it (we had walked to the pool- five blocks). By the time he got back, we had already had a severe meltdown! I breathed a sigh of relief as I saw him approach with that lovely red and blue “donut”! I thought, “Now everything will be okay- no more meltdowns!” Regretfully, that was not so! The remaining two hours that we were there, were a disaster! Sometimes I wonder why I bother to take my two-year-old out in public! I mean, I really didn’t want to go swimming. I would have been content staying inside with the air conditioner! I was doing that for her! Then she repays that act of kindness with tantrums, screaming, and even KICKING!!! My mom says, “She’s two...” That’s her answer to every tantrum (really that is the only answer that makes sense)!! So I wonder… She turns three in four months… will three be any better?! God knows I love her to pieces, but can three PLEASE be better?!
When we returned home, I realized that our house was rather warm. I ignored it, thinking that I was just overheated from dealing with a cranky toddler. By the time I was done cooking dinner, I realized something was wrong with the air conditioner! It was 80 degrees in our house and the thermostat was set on 72. So, I’m guessing that our AC is going out soon… Ahhh, summer!!! Don’t you just love it?!!

2009-06-12T08:57:00.001-05:00

I love coupons! Really, I do. I admit that couponing takes a fair amount of work, but I am such a penny pincher that I think it is worth it (especially if you are trying to eat healthy or have specific dietary needs)! The trick is to not “clip” coupons. Instead, keep them in a binder until you need them. I will write about my coupon system later, in another post. For now I just want to rave about my good deal this week!

This week, Walgreen’s had a sale on Kashi and Kellogg’s cereal- 3 boxes for 10.00 (with a 3.00 Register Reward). I also had a 1.50 manufacturer’s coupon.

3 for $10.00 – $3.00 Reg. Reward – $1.50 Man. Coupon = $5.50 Total

That makes each box $1.84! That is a good deal!

I have been dying for some Kashi GoLean Crunch but refused to buy it because it is almost four dollars at Wal-Mart, at regular price! I just couldn’t live with myself if I paid that much for a box of cereal! I know, I really am a cheapskate!! But I love to save money and live sensibly. Paying four dollars for a box of cereal is not sensible (for me anyway)! However, by using coupons and smart shopping, I can still have the finer things in life… like Kashi cereal… hahahah! My mom thinks I’m crazy… maybe I am… muwhahaha!!!

Wordless Wednesday

2009-06-11T09:04:00.001-05:00

2009-06-07T15:59:00.005-05:00

I usually don't write on Sundays but I wanted to make an exception today. At our church service today, the worship team sang the song "I Need You To Survive" by Kirk Franklin. Part of the song says, "I'll pray for you, you pray for me, I love you. I need you to survive. I won't harm you with words from my mouth... I need you to survive". I've heard this song many times but today I really got it. About a year ago my family and I were members of a church in which there were many people who we grew up with. Most the members had known us for years and loved us (we thought). Through circumstances that are unnecessary to explain, we were given a ministry position. This wasn't our first ministry position, but we were young and quite capable of making mistakes. Anyway, have you ever heard the phrase, "If you try to please everyone, you will eventually please no one"? Well, let me tell you, that is true!!! In our quest to do everything right, we ended up being hurt by a lot of people that we love. Mostly it was just nasty comments or criticisms masked by the phrase, "trying to help". My husband and I were at fault too. When you are in the ministry, God is supposed to be your "boss", not people! We often forgot this fact. Eventually, we resigned our position and moved to a different city (because of my husband's job) and are currently attending another church. Today, when I heard that song, I realized that part of being a Christian is realizing how your actions and words affect others. Would things have been different at our former church if everyone had followed the lyrics of this song? Praying for each other and being careful not to hurt people with words from our mouths may have bettered the situation we were in. I am very thankful for where those experiences have brought us, however, next time I hope to remember this song and put these words into action! Here is a link to the song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2ioId0zSiQ

Corky's Garden

2009-06-05T14:36:00.006-05:00

When spring first sprung, Corky and I planted flowers in front of our house. We used seeds because I wanted her to see that those tiny little seeds could "grow up" and produce beautiful flowers! So we cleaned out the flower bed together- dug out all the rocks and weeds (she loves to play in the dirt). Then we planted all the seeds and watered them as needed. Soon after, we began to have horrible thunderstorms in our area (mid-south) and we had 19 days of rain in a row!!! We were a little worried about our plantlings (I make up words all the time), but after a few dry days we began to see lots of sprouts! They are coming along slowly, due to the extreme rain, but soon enough they will be flowers! When I was thinking about this post I realized that Corky is growing so fast I can hardly believe my eyes!! Just "yesterday" she was a little seed! Now she is a sprout. Soon she will be a big beautiful flower! I would like it if she could remain a sprout forever!! Well, I better stop before I cry. Here is Corky and Daddy watering the flowers!

2009-06-02T14:59:00.000-05:00

More steam bag recipes:

Steamed fruit:
3 cups of sliced fruit (stone fruits, apples, and pears work best)
2 Tbs. apple juice
2 Tbs. brown sugar or natural honey (or both)
Dash of cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice

Mix together the apple juice, brown sugar, and cinnamon until smooth. Combine all ingredients in a steam bag and microwave for 3-4 minutes. Let cool for 2 minutes. Shake bag slightly to distribute ingredients. Serve with ice cream, frozen yogurt, whipped cream, or enjoy by itself! Also makes a great pancake topper!

Chicken Italiano:
1 chicken breast, raw, chopped into bite sized pieces
14 oz. can diced tomatoes
½ cup chopped artichoke hearts
¼ cup chopped mushrooms
½ cup chopped zucchini or eggplant
6 oz. dry rotini pasta (whole wheat)
1/3 cup chicken broth
1 Tbs. minced garlic
1 Tsp. onion powder
2 Tbs. diced sun-dried tomatoes

Combine all the ingredients in a steam bag and microwave for approx. five minutes or until pasta is soft (feel through the bag- do not open the bag). Serve with garlic bread and a salad. Serves two.

2009-06-01T09:21:00.003-05:00

I love it when I find something that makes my life easier!
In an effort to get healthier, my husband and I walk a mile and a half every evening (mostly every evening). We usually eat dinner afterward. So our walks have really cut into my dinner prep time. When I've had a really crazy day and didn’t set anything out to thaw, our dinner ends up being pretty late.
So I set about trying to come up with easier solutions. I hate those pre-made frozen meals-n-a-bag that you pop in the microwave because they taste cardboardy and have tons of sodium. However, they gave me a good idea. I found a product (you may have heard of them) called Glad Simply Cooking Steam Bags. These are amazing. You can have a complete meal made in about 10-15 minutes, including prep time!
They are very versatile. You can put uncooked pasta, veggies, raw meat, potatoes, eggs, anything in these bags and it is perfectly cooked in minutes! Also, you can make the meals up ahead of time and store them in the freezer. Then you just pop them in the microwave. Add some bread or a side salad and you have a meal! Here is a good recipe:

Pork Lo-mien
2 small/ 1 med. boneless pork loin chops, sliced into bite-sized pieces
½ cup chopped broccoli florets
½ cup sliced carrots
½ cup snap peas
1/3 cup diced mushrooms
½ Tbs. minced garlic
2 Tbs. chopped scallions
4 oz. dry spaghetti (whole wheat)
2 Tbs. soy sauce
1/3 cup beef, chicken, or pork broth
2 Tbs. teriyaki sauce (try light or sugar free)
Place all the ingredients in a steam bag and microwave for approximately five minutes. Let the bag cool for two minutes. The veggies should have a vibrant color, pork should be firm, and pasta should be tender. You should be able to feel this through the bag (handle the bag carefully- it will be hot!). Serve with spring rolls or fried rice. Serves two.

2009-05-29T08:53:00.001-05:00

Potty training. Oh the dread! No, seriously! DREAD! We first got a potty chair for Corky when she was about 18 months old. Since she was a very musical baby, we got one that plays music when you “go”, thinking that it would help our case. She loved it. Until she realized that she was supposed to put her pee-pee and poo-poo in there. Because why would she want to go and put her stinky poo-poo in her brand new, musical toy? Because she was still so young, we decided not to push the issue. While we waited for her to become ready to use the potty, my husband and I read every potty training article, book, method that you can imagine. Finally we chose one that claimed you could potty train your child in one weekend. Yeah right! I figured it couldn’t hurt to try. So a month before she turned two, we tried it. It’s the one where you get rid of all the diapers and put your child in big kid underwear. Then you make your child go to the potty every twenty minutes, whether they need to go or not. Eventually they go in the potty and you reward them with stickers and they love it and they go in the potty forevermore!!! NOT! We tried this method for four days. We dragged her, kicking and screaming, to the potty for four days and she didn’t go pee or poop in the potty once! She has a bladder of steel. She would hold it until time was up on the potty, then she would go in the floor, on the bed, on the couch… There was no amount of bribing or coercing that was going to convince her to put her pee-pee in the potty. So we waited another three months. Next we tried a potty seat that sits over the big toilet. She loved this. She could sit on the big potty just like mommy! She still wouldn’t actually pee in the toilet, but she would pretend. She would even pretend to wipe with toilet paper. Still, no success! At two and a half, we tried to force it. We made her sit on the potty “until she went”. That didn’t work either- bladder of steel. She sat there for three hours straight! And we got nothing!! I felt horrible about doing this, so we haven’t done it since. To this day, she has not gone pee or poop one time in the potty! Since then, I’ve tried to just bring the subject up on a daily basis. Every time I do, I am met with grunts of annoyance (she grunts when she doesn’t like something). She says, “No. I no want go pee-pee in the poddy!” She even “helps” me change her diaper. She loves to wear her diaper… I can see her, twenty years down the road, getting married in her diaper! Okay, maybe not, but I will be so glad when potty training is OVER!

2009-05-27T08:49:00.002-05:00

So, recently our family has started to “go green”. It all started when I watched Oprah’s Earth Day show. I was mortified by the news that there is a monstrous “trash swirl” in the Pacific Ocean that is over ninety feet deep and twice the size of Texas!!! It’s just hanging out there, getting bigger by the minute! Also, the show enlightened me about the dangers of plastic bags.

We already were doing some things right, like using CFL bulbs and a water filter on our faucet. But I didn’t realize that we could be doing so much more! So our first step was to make sure we recycle EVERYTHING that can be recycled. For us that is plastic and paper/ cardboard. Next we decided to limit our plastic bag usage by buying reusable shopping bags. I always thought that they were too expensive or a waste of money, but the blue ones at Wal-Mart are only fifty cents. Also, some stores like Reasor’s offer an incentive when you use their brand of reusable bags. This was my favorite thing that we changed because I had no idea how dangerous plastic bags are to wildlife! And the reusable ones are bigger and sturdier (Is that a word? Spell check says yes!) than plastic. Right now we are working on switching out all our detergents and cleaners to eco-friendly versions. Surprisingly, homemade, eco-friendly cleaners are very inexpensive and work just as good!

We are still learning of things we can do, but for now it feels good to know that we have made some baby steps in the right direction!

2009-05-25T21:19:00.003-05:00

Welcome everybody!! This is my very first blog post! I'm very excited (I love to write) but I am very new to all this. I can tell there is much for me to learn. My husband is very techno savvy so I'm sure he will be a lot of help! Anyway, since I am a busy mommy it will take me a little while to get going strong on here. So I hope you all will stick with me while I start this blogging adventure! Here are subjects that I love and will be blogging about:

Green living
Recycling
Spirituality/ Christianity
Recipes
Natural foods
Frugality
Parenting
My adventures with Corky (my daughter)

Music