Gifty Goodies!

 This year at the school we were so happy to see the Christmas break that I think most of us just went home and collapsed in a heap!  I did at least!  I needed that nap so so bad!  We have been "at school" in building since the middle of August with only two breif closures that we did "remote learning".  It has been so hard and stressful for us, for the kids, and for the parents too.

We had sort of a "fun day" at the school with the kids for the last day and it was nice to see that there could still be some joy to be found with the kids - socially distant and mask wearing all the while.  We had classrooms with board games, and some with movies, and some with crafts projects, as well as Gingerbread House making!  So Fun!  We also had a contest for door decorating - My door won a prize!

I did not decorate my door - the young man you see above did - he has done it for the past couple of years and we (he) always are in the top three!  In case  you cant tell that is an elfen ski slope complete with lifts and snow drifts and and a ski lodge!  My door won second!  

We also had a "Secret Santa" gift exchange this year among the staff at the school, but I had already started making some gifts for some of my people (stay tuned for those) so I didnt really do that, but I did get some wonderful gifts from some of my peeps that I thought I would share with you!

My people know me well!  These won't break the bank but they are gifts of the heart!  Tea and Chocolate and a little popcorn and you can't go wrong!

The popcorn bag says "Here's to a Poppin Winter Break" and the Cocoa packet is a wonderful "Melted Chocolate Snowman"  With all the fixins!  

This is parts of a couple different packages with treats in them, but they all warmed my tired heart and filled my bucket with joy!  

When I got home and realized I get to have a few days off, I got started on some gifty things that will go to family members and friends, or will be stocking stuffers.  I thought I would show you a few more gifts that don't break the bank and will warm hearts too!

These little jars are infused honey.  There is Rosemary, Thyme, and Sage honey and I printed out little labels to show what can be done with these.  All three of these can be used as cough medicines in some way, or in recipes! 

Then I realized how huge the tag labels were and I reprinted them so they would fit the jars better. 

These are simple little gifts to make.  Some small jars with lids that wont leak, some raw honey and some fresh or dried herbs.  I grew these herbs in my garden, and in the indoor garden window.  Smash the herbs a little to start releasing the oils and place them in the jar (about 1/4 full for dried herbs and half full for fresh).  Cover the herbs with the honey and stir to remove air bubbles.  Finish filling the jar and stir again to remove air.  Let sit in a warm spot for a few weeks to infuse, label the jar and put a bow on top - gift away!

Here is one of the labels - I knew most of this information but Google has tons too.

Rosemary Infused Honey

Ingredients; Raw Honey, Fresh Rosemary

Rosemary honey is so versatile!  Rosemary is a memory herb, providing clarity of thought and easy retrieval of memories. It is also an immune and circulatory booster, and helps relieve muscle pain.

Use it in tea, or just by the teaspoonful!

Also useful in dressing, BBQ, chicken, pork and the list is endless!

Check out Country Living Apple Pie with Rosemary Honey recipe for something new and tasty!

Here is another easy gifty idea that makes a nice change from all the sweets at Christmas and the holidays.  It makes a good hearty meal and a pretty jar on top of that!

Cowboy Beans!

You can review the recipe on my earlier post here.  It is a staple here at the farm and we have these often, even in the summer.  Works great in a crock pot or in a Dutch oven in the oven and would even work on a wood stove.

All it takes are a couple of jars, some dry beans, and a spice packet (check the recipe for ingredients).  I use the little "snack" bags that are zip top bags to put the spices in.  You can easily add this to a neighbors or co-workers gift bag, or give one to a family you know has a need, and a lot of mouths to feed!

  

If they might not have all the ingredients, it would also be easy to build a gift basket with the ingredients as a gift - leftover meat goes well with this one too!  The jar on the left is a double batch for a bigger family.

Ill have some "quilty" gifts to show you later - might not be before Christmas, but it will give you a head start on next year!

I won't lie....the Holiday season is still VERY hard for all of us here.  We try to keep marching and put smiles on our faces and do the things we are "supposed" to do.  We do our best and that is all we can do.  It is okay if that is all you can do too.  

I hope your holidays are warm and wonderful, and that you have enough.

May 2021 be better and not the drunk sibling of 2020!

Blessed be.

Daily Affirmations - the Struggle is Real!

 This past week and weekend I had the opportunity to ....stay home some more!!!  Of Course!  The weather was crappy and our school was closed again - I work at home when that happens, using all sorts of technology that may or may not work correctly where I live, or when the weather is terrible! On the weekends and after hours, my time is mine and there is so much to do and so little time!!  I was feeling a bit "frenetic" as I call it and I knew I was headed for a meltdown if I didn't get my poop in a group so to speak!

This is what it looks like at the farm right now - yes that is snow and what you cant see in the picture is that it is raining! On top of the snow!  Then it snows some more!  Then it rains again!  So Frustrating!

So I got out my "Gifts of the Goddess" cards and decided I should pull a card for inspiration for the day.  I already had at least four lists on my desks and just couldnt get to a space where I could settle down and get some of the things crossed off of them.  These are daily affirmation type cards by Amy Zerner and Monte Farber.

As I pulled a card and looked at it, I kept feeling like I needed to pull another.  Not sure if I just wasn't in the zone at the time or maybe I wasn't listening the way I needed to about what card I needed, or that I just couldn't settle down and relax into the vibe,  but I ended up pulling 7 cards!  Yes that is a 7!  One is behind another in the picture.  I decided in order to not get overwhelmed I better pare it down somehow so I went throught the 7 cards and felt my feelings as I read them and was able to pare it down to two for the day.

Here is what I ended up with:  " I am patient in the face of obstacles and delays"  and "I am flexible and can adapt to the challenges of our modern age"!  Perfect!

So the Patience card says "use this gift when you are upset because you.....are encountering situations that you obvoiusly have no control over at the time.  Patience is a great teacher - a sign of maturity and wisdom.  If approached with calm and patience, difficult situations have a remarkable way of working out".

SO... in addition to the weather,  here is one of the obstacles and delays that tested me this weekend!

Here are the two screws that fell out of my office chair for no reason at all whatsoever!  It took me only about half an hour to figure out where they came from and get the thing back together - should have been shorter but.... I have two dogs.  Nuff said.

Last week I also had fatal death of my cell phone.  Luckily I realized that it was dying and was able to save everything to the "cloud" (where ever that is).  I was able to get a new cell phone the next day, but now it is a learning curve again that I would like to have avioded.  

In addition, the Viking Queen sewing maching had to have a part ordered - I HAVE run 80 bobbins through it since April 18th.....so, yeah.....breakdown was probably overdue!  My Viking guy (Gary from Garys Sewing Works) was abe to talk me through the problem over the phone and I have the part on the way.  Still an obstacle that I am feeling thwarted by this week.  Even with back up machines!

The election has also been a stressor and a challenge this past week.  Just all jacked up!

Second card says "I am flexible and can adapt to the challenges of our modern age.  Use this gift when information overload, constant change,  and ....the rapid pace of modern life owerwhelm you.  Modern "convienences" have eliminated the cushion of time necessary to properly absorb and consider information and concepts.  To achieve true knowledge and wisdom, you must take time each day for quiet reflection".

So I stopped.  I stopped making lists and trying to follow them and I looked out at the beautiful snow that will protect my plants for the winter and I reflected.  I reflected on all that I have here in my warm house, with my winter herbs growing in the window.  I watched the landscape begin to look "a lot like Christmas", and as the flakes slowly floated down, I rested for a moment in peace.

I hope that you can find the time to reflect in the coming days, and to get to a place of peace in turmoil.

Blessed be.

Pumpkin, Pumpkin everywhere!

 It is not often that we get a pumpkin anymore or try to grow them even- we havent had anyone to help carve them in the past few years, and we haven't had any trick or treaters either - especially now with the Covid going on.  We haven't had much luck growing them either out here in the Burg- just not enough grow days that are warm enough. With the big Blue Full Moon on Halloween I felt like I needed a pumpkin this year!  It also happens to be my Father in Laws birthday that day so there always needs to be a slightly spooky element to the day.  Just a little something to have fun on Halloween and a birthday!

None of my people claim to like very "sweet" things so birthday cake is out - he won't eat it, but the Krispy Kreme doughnut holes in the cup are perfect to put in the freezer and then he can have just a "dabble do ya" whenever he wants!  The Hubby is also not a fan of Pumpkin Spice anything (twigs and berries he calls it)!

(not my picture - it's from the Krispy Kreme site)

They are also not huge eaters of anything overly "pumpkin"!  I always feel bad about having a pumpkin that never gets a use other than roasting the delicious seeds and eating them like popcorn on Halloween night.  Another reason I hadn't got a pumpkin in prior years.

So this year I got the dads tiny pumpkin and I also got one for Hubby and I - a "baker Pumpkin" it was called.

 

We got some tasty seeds out.  Actually a lot of tasty seeds!  We put a little olive oil on them, a little salt and pepper and we roasted them on a cookie sheet for about 20 minutes at 400 degrees - stir once!  Forgot to take a picture of them!

After we got the seeds taken care of and we enjoyed the pumpkin for a day or two, we baked it up into a delightful dinner!  Don't use a candle in your pumpkin if you plan to eat it - use Christmas twinkle lights instead - they put off a nice glow without making it unhealthy to eat your pumpkin.

Baked Stuffed Pumpkin

1 small Baker Pumpkin - hollowed out and cleaned - rub with olive oil

1 Lb Hamburger - we used a mix of beef and pork sausage

1 C Cooked seasoned rice - I like the dirty rice from Zatarans but any will work even plain

1/2 C Diced onion

1 large Garlic Clove - finely diced

2 Tbsp Tomato Paste

1/4 C parmesan cheese

2 Tsp microplaned jalapeno (dice it fine if you dont have a microplaner)

1 Tsp Italian Season (if you dont use spiced rice)

Brown the burger and set aside in a bowl.  Saute the onion and the garlic for a few minutes to get that good flavor out - the onions should be a little bit soft.  Mix with the meat in the bowl and add the other ingredients.  Mix it well and then stuff that pumpkin!  Pack it pretty inside pretty good but dont overfill too much.

Place the stuffed pumpkin in narrow baking dish - I used a bread pan and it worked well.  Place the lid on the pumpkin and bake at 375 for 1 hour or until a fork test tells you that the pumpkin is cooked.  The pumpkin skin will be tougher than a zuchinni might be but its still tasty!  Serve with a little more parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!

We served ours with roasted turmeric Cauliflower as our side.  Easy - just put your cauliflower florets in a baking pan (again I used a bread pan), drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with 1 tsp of turmeric and a little salt and pepper.  Roast in the oven covered for anout 30 minutes at 375.  We put ours in about half way through the pumpkinn cook and it worked great!

I hope you had a fantastic Halloween and that you have just the right amount of Pumpkin and Spice for the rest of the season!  

Be Well - Blessed Be!

Everything Changes - Like it or not!

We have a New Normal at the school these days, and at home too in a different way.  At school, there is a sort of masked chaos, that is often uncontrolled and rivals that of a the "Friday the 13th" style theme park! Kids and grown ups everywhere, and some of them in and out of the office all day long with horror stories that would rival Flowers in the Attic!  Everyone with a mask on!  Like Halloween on steroids. There is no quiet space, not for grownups and not for kids and it breaks some of our people.  We are open, we are closed and we are working harder than ever to educate kids and keep them safe and healthy.  My office looks like I have set up a hockey rink - lined with plexiglass dividers so that I am socially distant and I can take my mask off once in a while.  I hate this change, and that it changes sometimes daily, and there is no time to adjust or sometimes no time to breathe and just be!

                   The plexiglass dividers that envelope my office space now.

Sports have been started, stopped, changed, started again, and stopped.  Our people are stressed and confused about what is real and what is not, and by the ideas that swirl around from the media and the rest of the world, and by the two men who want to run the world fighting and scrapping like school yard boys on television and internet in front of the world.  They are sad too, about the things they are missing so that we can get through this.

The lonely "socially distanced" parking lot.

My bosses have some reminders that they send out at the beginning of each week that I really love and try to follow, and it looks something like this;

    "We are attempting to do something that has never been done before,

    We will do the best we can with the safety of our students and staff at the forefront.

    We will adjust as needed to increase our chances of success."

I think the intent is to remind us to give each other grace as we try to navigate the weirdness that is COVID and that has been our "New Normal" since November of 2018 when the earthquake struck and we all had to pivot and move under one roof.  We had staff members leave because our school became very hard at that point and other schools weren't at that time.

I also add to that; "Our highest and best achievement will be that ALL of our people survive this".  I shudder to imagine if we cannot make this so.  

I also add to "Keep f'ing going!"

(Custom candle that Riley got me for Mothers Day - it's a great reminder)

At home, Reedo has moved out, which makes it really weird for hubby and I - and probably for the him too.  The sounds of the house are different, and it is very quiet!  We are stuck together in the same space often now that we are socially distancing and staying home, especially since it is getting colder now and outside is not so inviting!  In total contrast to the school, we relish the silence most of the time, but sometimes we miss the sounds of our children, and for me even to watch him sleep. To know he is breathing and blissful.  Alive.

We hear and see a lot of postings and radio ads about "Can't take it with you" and "You never see a hearse with a trailer hitch", and other "why are we working so hard for things when we should be having experiences" mantras.  They are all true, but we still, in our world, need a little money, heat and shelter to survive!  We need money to pay for the hearse and the funeral for that matter, and to make sure the kids have a little something left when we are gone.  And, now, in our world, experiences are a little more difficult and a little more stressful.  Especially for some of our at risk families, who may or may not have lost jobs during the pandemic, or who have health risks that cause them to need to be at home most of the time.  Even the experience of grocery shopping has drastically changed.

(Click list shopping cart)

"You can run but you can't hide" - that's one that no one says at the funeral!  But its one that all loss mothers, and actually anyone who has lost a dear loved one seems to experience - moving doesn't help!  My friend Christy tried it, Meemaw tried it, and we have wanted to move about 100 times but we know that it wont help,(we have talked about it often) and our house still feels like home but it is still missing something - and always will.  The kids moving was a way to run, but it still feels like something is missing even at their house for them.  Someone always missing.

What I hear the most from the most of my people is "I HATE COVID!"  When mothers can't go into the hospital with their children for a surgery.  When daughters can't go into the hospital with their mothers/fathers for a surgery.  "I HATE COVID" when special events are cancelled, or when a memorial for a lost child has to be very small or postponed.  When our communities can't come together to uplift a loss mother and father with memories of their sweet child and surround them with love.  I HATE COVID.  When a lonely Veteran cannot make another day in quarantine and makes the ultimate sacrifice himself to end the pain.  I HATE COVID.  

Mrs Barney - the safest gal in the Burg!

We will get through this, one day at a time, the same as I have been doing for the last 4 years.  We are badass for getting out of bed, and we will continue to do so.  We will continue to do the hard things because we CAN do hard things, the Zoom, the classroom and the Zoom both at the same time.  We will wish for an "easy" button that is no where in sight.  We will reach out to our Veterans, our elders, and our at-risk people, and we will reach out to our teachers, caregivers, helpers, and our heroes to make sure that everyone can keep f'ing going.  There is no Highway option.

I hope that you have all that you need and I wish you enough.  Blessed Be!

The Dog Days of Quarantine!

A few weeks ago, I had to quarantine to wait for COVID test results!  It took 5 days!  I'm not a teacher so I couldn't get in the fast lane for results.  So I stayed home.  Normally this is not a problem as I usually have more than enough supplies to get me through anything - quarantine included!

However...... I did NOT have enough dog cookies!  As you can see by the sad pitiful face and the resigned nap slouch, the fur babies were not happy!  Brix (left) would sit and "nudge" my hand while I was trying to do anything and Ripley (right) would just sit in the entry, thinking a cookie would magically appear!  Pitiful!

I remembered some dog treat recipes I had saved from some time ago - just in case! So I got them out and started to fab up a cookie that my pooches would love! It was fortunate for me that someone had given me a bag of whole wheat flour a long time ago, when they discovered that they can't eat it anymore!  Ripley is allergic to seafood/fish, so we have to make sure we have treats that don't have any of that.  Many of the store bought treats have fish oil in them, so home made is best.

I googled to see if stale whole wheat flour would hurt my dogs and found that it in fact will not!  So I googled some more and came up with this recipe:

3 C Whole wheat flour (stale is ok)

3 C. oatmeal

2 eggs

2 C bone broth 

(Pinterest has lots of recipes for this - I use one with Turmeric in it - see below)

1 C. Peanut Butter

I use this bone broth in my cookies.  We actually got this for Reedo as a recovery product and joint assist after one of his surgeries.  I am not putting the brand on it as I don't want them to hate me, but this stuff is awful!  We have not been able to find a way to eat or drink it that it is palatable!  The dogs on the other hand, love it!  This is the only use I will have for this product and when it is gone, I will make my own bone broth.  Pinterest has lots of recipes for bone broth - check it out.

Mix all the delicious doggy goodness up in a bowl.  It will be thick like a heavy cookie dough.

I roll mine into "cookie slice" rolls and refrigerate them for an hour or so.  It isnt mandatory but makes it easier to get your "cookies" uniform.

Slice them into 1/4' rounds (as much as possible) and put on a lined or greased cookie sheet.  If you are using the dough right out of the bowl, drop by teaspoonful onto the sheet and then press flat with the spoon or with a fork like peanut butter cookies.  Bake at 350 degrees for an hour, or until desired crispiness has been developed and your cookies are golden brown!

Store the finished cookies in airtight containers.  If you don't cook all the cookies you can freeze the dough just like regular cookie dough and use when you next need dog treats or are on quarantine and run out!  Im pretty sure my pups will be turning their noses up at store bought cookies from now on - of course! 

When the alarm rang on the first day I was allowed back at work, Brix cried as if to say "What?!? We are doing this again?"  But a good cookie as I went out the door solved that toot sweet!

I hope that you have blessed days with your pets, and may you never run out of cookeis!

Blessed be.

Cherries on Top!!!

 Mom and Daddy have a great orchard!  They have a number of varieties each of apples and cherries and both of those produce like a peach orchard in Georgia!  They even have a plum tree that produces!

This year has been odd in so many ways, but one of the ways is that the cherries outproduced the apples for the first time that I can remember!  

Duchess apple tree with blossoms in spring.

We were a zero apple farm again this year (lots of blossoms but no fruit this time).  We think it may be a fertilizer issue this time - but maybe not!  Could still be a bee problem, even with the mason bee house and the bee attracting plants!  See that post here.  We worked on them some more this year and will see if we can't improve next year again!  Our cherries did produce, and better than last year!  They do a little more each year, and this year since we were home on "lockdown" for most of the summer we were able to keep the critters out of them a little better! 

These are our cherries - this one is the Bali/Evans Cherry that is out front by the lake.  It has produced faithfully for the last three years - especially well since we wire wrapped it so the moose can't get to it!

Check out my post about Mad As a Momma Moose here to read more about that!

Here are the green cherries on the Bali/Evans.  Its so fun to see it and watch them grow and ripen!  We got two quarts of cherries this year - so we doubled production on the cherries!  It still wasn't as many as I wanted to have so I popped on over to Snowfire Gardens and picked to my hearts content!

These are the cherry trees at Mom and Dads!  Absolutely loaded with cherries!  These have already been picked twice also by other people - these are what is left!  These trees are Bali/Evans, Carmine Jewel, and Crimson Passion.  The Bali/Evans are the bigger cherry but not as sweet, the Carmine Jewel are smaller and sweet, and the Crimson Passion are medium on both size and sweet.

I recommend that you make a rule for yourself from the get go - never pick more cherries than you want to pit!  I got about three gallons and pitted them all.

I use a chopstick.  Mom uses a bobby pin to pit, and some of the Aunties use real cherry pitter thing-a-ma-bobs!  I have tried the cherry pitters (hand held) and found that they aren't my favorite way to pit - they kind of tear up the cherry and I like to pit above my bowl so I can save all the juice that drips off too and the pitters kind of splash it around.

Yum!  Winter delightfulness in a Ziplock bag!  This is a quart bag.  I was able to get 6 quart bags with 4 cups each from the cherries I brought home and made a deep dish cherry pie for a Sunday Supper with the kids with the rest.

I saved all the juice from the pitting process and canned it for use during winter also.  Cans up just like apple juice and you an actually do your cherry and apple in the same canner.  I have several recipes that take cherry juice, and we also use it when the Hubby has a gout attack.  It is really delicious mixed with the apple juice and has way, way less sugar than the store bought.

After I had picked my "all I want to pit" amount of cherries, Aunt Cyn  (far left) and Aunt Char (middle) showed up and picked with my mom (right).  Even with all the picking the trees still had an enormous amount of cherries on them!We all laughed when Aunt Cyn said she once went to a U-Pick farm in Washington and "accidently" picked 85 gallons of cherries in two hours!  She was in the zone! The farm owner offered her a job!  

So as you can see - we were a Cherries on top farm this year!  Better than nothing, and we will have both next year Im sure!

I hope that where ever you are, you can have beautiful days, cherries on top, and an apple if you want one!

Be well.  Blessed Be!