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Showing posts from April, 2007

Trusting in more than chicken and other subjects

Now that I'm pregnant, hubby went to the big boss about a promotion. Big boss said no. No promotion, no raise. This puts us in a slight financial burden for when baby arrives. So, now I have to trust God for more than just chicken. He knows our situation. He knows how hubby feels. He knows what our bills look like. So, I won't worry, but I'm a believer in meeting God half way. In 3 months time, it'll be time for me to review our budget and add the baby onto the budget. We don't have room, but the Lord always provides one way or the other. We need to look at where to cut back or cut out. Who knows? Perhaps by that time hubby will be offered a promotion anyway? In other news, I love my composter. I was given one by my neighbors and finally set it up earlier this week. Every day, I've been adding whatever I can to it. Coffee grounds, tea, egg shells, fruit and veggie matter.... It has also cut back on the amount of garbage I'm leaving at the curb

How God Blesses and a Happy Hubby

As you may have read in a recent previous post, I ran out of grocery money and thus started to get a low in the food supplies. So, I treated it as a challenge to make meals with what I have. (Yes, I did go grocery shopping today to take advantage of some great sales, but I used May's grocery money and can't use the groceries until May). Well, I had one chicken breast in the freezer. I needed two to make my chicken strata. I just figured I could still make the strata, but just be slim in the chicken department. Well, God feeds His sparrows, doesn't he? Hubby announced that he was going to visit a co-worker of his who was having a party. I bid him a good time. He returned later with half a chicken! I had MORE than enough chicken for the strata! Hubby had cold chicken for lunch too. He likes that. So, today we had chicken strata for dinner. Yesterday was chili. Tomorrow is beef barley stew and Thursday is stroganoff. Friday, Saturday and Sunday, we're eating

Busy Day

We've been having lovely weather here. I just love this time of year. Especially now that the ground is a beautiful shade of green! My biggest news, of course, is my ticker up top there. That's right! I'm pregnant! Hubby said I could name the baby if it's a girl. Hmmmm........ I've got a small list started already. I've got a busy day today. I'm going to take advantage of some great grocery sales. Plus, I need to buy prenatal vitamins. Bubby needs black shoes. We could use another disposable camera. Night at the Museum is out on DVD today. Hubby wants that. He also asked me to pick up some bags of landscape pebbles. I love going to home improvement stores, so I'll be glad to do that. Thank God, I still have some energy and no morning sickness yet. I get exhausted mid-day and need to lay down, but I'm usually up and running in the morning and evening.

Sunny Saturday

I'm exhausted. Today was one busy day! Most of April was miserable; rainy, snowy, and cold. So, now we have all our spring clean-up to do in just a short time before the gardens need planting. I am completely tuckered out and actually dozing off as I type this.......zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Anti-bacterial soap bad for septic?

I just read in a forum that anti-bacterial soap and cleaners can be bad for your septic tank because it kills the good bacterias needed to break down your solid waste. Now, I'm not one to dump my anti-bacteria stuff in the garbage, but I think I will do more research on this.

Today....

Today is finally a gorgeous day! The sun is out, it's warming up, and spring is finally here! Today, I visited my parents with Bubby and our dog because they told me they missed him. During Bubby's nap, my mom had taken my sister to her job, so I used the opportunity to declutter and organize her house a little. She was so pleased when she got home. Today, I am in deep prayer for Candy. What an unfortunate situation her family is facing now. Today, I am making Cheddar Bacon Penne for dinner. I think I have some veggies still in the freezer from last year that I could use as a side dish. Today, I am happy because Sanjaya finally got voted off American Idol. Today, I praise and worship my loving Savior!

Conservation Part 3

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www.allposters.com photo by Klaus Nigge Imagine how little waste we'd make if our landfill was in our own backyard. Not so many decades ago, this was the case for many people. The only place to dump waste was in the back corner of your property. I'm only 26 and even my neighbors burned what little garbage they made in a pit in their backyard. I admit, it's way too easy to just toss something in the trash and forget about it. Lately, I've been really careful about what I throw away. I don't like making so much waste. I'd like to see how little waste I can produce. As a side note, I noticed that when I carefully tend to my rubbish and bag it correctly, the garbage men take better care of my trash can. If the bag is about to burst and not tied shut very well, they usually throw the can rather rudely into the yard or driveway and leave the lid by the road to be run over. So, be nice to your garbage men and bag your garbage well.

Clean Refrigerator and Running Out of Food

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www.allposters.com Did you ever wish an appliance would die so you'd have to buy a new one and not have to clean the old one? I have. For a year, I've been wishing and saving for a new refrigerator. Then, the other day I got down to business and cleaned it. Looks as if I don't need a new fridge after all. It's just fine now. :) It's amazing the accumulation of wasted food that ends up in the fridge, particularly condiments. I was good though, in maintaining the spirit of conservation, I washed out and recycled all the bottles and jars. Yes, I'm running out of food. I've been trying to do all my shopping at the start of the month. The problem is, I run out of money and food. I don't mind. I like a challenge. I'll keep you updated on the meals I'm making with what I have left. Thankfully, I've enough meat to get me through. Tonight we're having a pork roast with the three potatoes I had left, baby carrots and an onion. I found a frozen bag

Window Sill

Bethgem over at www.bethgem.blogspot.com has a lovely post about her window sill. This inspired me to clean the window sill in my kitchen. It holds 4 plants, a hedgehog figurine and the garage door opener. The plants needed some cleaning up and shed dead leaves all over the dusty window sill. So, I cleaned it up, cheered it up and now I have a lovely view while I give my hands a bubble bath (wash dishes). My other window sills I keep clear. They're too shallow to put anything on without the major risk of knocking it down. ladyscott

Conservation Part 2

Plant something! A tree, a bush, a flower, anything! A plant provides so much for us. It drives me crazy to see a fairly new house on 5 acres of land with no trees around it whatsoever, just acre upon acre of unused, but oft-mowed grass. Plant a tree!

Sunday at home

We at Taigh Beag never made it to church today due to the snow storm. It was a long day at home. I managed to get a petticoat made for Bubby (toddler boys in the 18th century wore petticoats) and I got more work done on his pudding cap. It'll be finished either tonight or tomorrow. Otherwise, I didn't get much else done. Bubby was up to mischief and the dog wasn't much better. He's taken to whining (Bubby, that is) over every little thing. We're working on correcting that. What's cute is that today he said, "no," "here," and "ok" for the first time! We watched the race. Yes, we watch NASCAR. Hubby's just glad Jeff Gordon didn't win. I was cheering on the rookie Juan Pablo Montoya. I made an early dinner since hubby and I skipped lunch. I was in the mood for chicken and tried a new recipe, "Deviled Chicken." I think I might add it to my recipe book. It was quite tasty. I just wish it had a different na

Conservation Part One

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www.allposters.com Housewife, Vintage by Galloway I've always been intrigued by the women of yesterday who had the keen skills to "waste not, want not," "make do or do without," and "make something out of nothing." I admire women who can turn an apple, potato, fat piece of meat and some flour into a 3 course meal. I look up to women who never flinch in lean times and keep the house running smoothly, the family fed, and the finances in safe order. Today, we're so used to automatic and disposable everything that we don't realize the waste we're making and the money that's going out of the window. Cutting back can not only help the environment, but put some cash back in our pockets as well. So, in remembrance of our fore-mothers, here's a list of ways to cut back: -Buy in bulk -Keep errands organized and to a minimum -Vacation locally -Unplug...even if your toaster oven is off, it's still drawing some electricity -Switch to wate

Christian Conservation

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Earth day is just around the corner. Now, I'm not one to throw my arms up in the air for "mother earth," but I do believe we are to take care of God's creation. I also feel very disturbed by the rampant waste and materialism of our current culture. I believe in Christian Conservation. After all, God made us stewards of this earth. So, from now until Earth Day, I'm going to have a small series on what I'm doing and what we can do to take better care of God's creation. This will be an open forum, so please leave your comments and suggestions as well. The first article will be about cutting back to conserve not only the earth, but money. Will you join me?

Scratch that....

Ok, I'm not going to use my uniquely covered Moses Basket. I showed hubby the basket and he said it just wouldn't do. I showed him the peapod and answered his questions. I think I'm getting a Peapod Plus. As for the tent.....well.....I think my excitment surpassed my skills.

I've been defeated....

I started out just fine with that tent. I worked through my son's naptime and got a good deal of it together. Then, I was faced with getting it to stay erect and not come crashing down. I have a good idea as to how to do that, but it's beyond my capabilities at this point. So, the tent is abandoned for now. However, I found an alternative. My son slept in a Moses Basket for re-enactments last year. Amazingly, he still fits. So, I grabbed some leftover caning and rigged it up with mosquito netting covered wagon style. It's perfect, other than I have to place it between chairs or something or else Bubby tips it over. It'll work for this first event at least. After that, I'll have to find something else.

Changes, Yummy, and a Project

Sorry for all the recent changes to my blog. I just felt so cluttered with the other template. I prefer this cleaner look. The other day, I was in such a mood for something my mom used to make, Tuna Rice Patties. So, I called her up, got her recipe and whipped up a batch. They were so good and satisfying. Even Bubby loved them! I'm including the recipe in my Recipe Book I plan to publish (possibly sometime this year.) I have a big project to do and only a short time to do it in! Our first re-enactment is coming up and I have no place for my little boy to sleep! I thought of getting a Peapod Plus Travel Bed, but the cost is a bit more than I can afford right now and it hardly looks 18th century. Then, I remembered I had some tent canvas in the basement. I'm making Bubby his very own little wedge tent! It'll be self standing (no staking needed) and it'll be in our marquee tent. I'm also adding vents made of cheese cloth to keep the air quality good inside

A "back of my mind" dream

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www.allposters.com Red Schoolhouse M. Caroselli I've been day dreaming lately of different scenarios and things. Don't get me wrong, I couldn't be happier in the life I have now. I'm just a thinker. My mind doesn't shut up. Something I thought of recently was how neat it would be to open up a private one-room school house and classically educate children. My neighbors have an old brick one room school house on their property. Right now it's full of storage, but still has the old desks, blackboards, piano, etc. Our neighbors want to turn it into either a room for their pool table or store their ATV's in it. *gasp* If it were on my land, I'd turn it into my homeschool school and activity/craft room. I know several women who wouldn't mind a cooperative one room school house. However, my state has some sticky issues when it comes to creating a school.

I've got the joy joy joy joy....

Some people attack the joy Christians have and accuse us if seeing things through rose-colored glasses. After all, we're just too unrealistically joyful to be based in the reality of the world. *tsk tsk tsk* Christians who have the joy of the Lord don't see things through rose-colored glasses. We see them through the eyes of God's grace. As the children's song goes: I've got the joy joy joy joy down in my heart..... I've got the peace that passes understanding down in my heart.... I've got the wonderful love of my blessed redeemer way down in the depths of my heart.....

Happy Resurrection Sunday!

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Resurrection www.allposters.com I don't really eat candy. Bunnies aren't really my thing. Spring has decided to move to Florida and we're stuck with snow showers and cold weather. Even my crocuses gave up. With so much failing me for Easter, I'm glad I know my loving Savior and can praise him this Resurrection Sunday! I've been to many church services for Easter. They usually have a similar sermon about how Christ died for our sins and how horrible it was and how dark the world got, etc. It really blew me away when I started attending the church I'm a member of now and the whole service was a worship and praise that Jesus Christ is Risen! He died for my sins, but that's not the end of it. He's Risen. He's alive! He's here with us right now! I can't wait for tomorrow! I'm eager for the whole day. The worship, the family, the food! It's a celebration of Christ's Triumph!

Housekeeping Reminders

I've been thinking of yearly housekeeping reminders (ie. change the batteries in your smoke detectors at daylight savings). I thought of another one: Flip your mattress at every season change. I can plant my delicate seedlings on the first full moon after the lilacs bloom. That's when the danger of frost is past. Tuesday is garbage day, so that's when I clean out my fridge. Can you think of any?

A Disliked Chore Made Easy

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One of my least favorite chores is cleaning the bug spittle off of light fixtures. I think bug spittle has got to be some of the ickiest stuff out there! On the other hand, I enjoy a clean spittle-less house so much, I'd rather do the chore than not. So, the other day, I decided to tackle the brass hanging light in the dining room. The shade was really dusty, dirty and had spittle all around the edges. I grabbed my magic erase sponge (you know, the ones you just wet and wipe with) and off came the spittle! Easy as that! No srubbing. No ruining the brass. Dust, dirt and spittle gone in one easy swipe! Of course, you'll want to follow up with something to kill the germs.

My Recipe Book

Greetings Readers, I started working my recipe book. I'm hoping to publish it this year. I haven't decided if I'll e-book it, print it out myself, or go through one of those fund-raising do-your-own-cookbook things. This is a recipe book of tried and true recipes approved by the men in my life. (Husband, Father, Father-in-law, Brothers, Cousins, Hubby's Friends). Each recipe features a commentary by me about the recipe. I'm also going to offer a way to contact me with questions regarding the recipes. I'll keep you posted! I just finished the salads section this morning.