HALLLAND 1896

THE YEAR OF....

2011-01-03T06:39:00.004-05:00

Happy New Year!!

Anyone else look at the year and shake their head? Where does the time go? I can still remember printing the changing years in public school in the 70's. When only the years ticked by....now entire decades go missing.

Tomorrow, Big Daddy will head back to work. Having him home over Christmas has been soooo good! The household is different with him here 24/7. I can sleep, for one thing. Knowing he's on guard duty, allows me to sleep deeper...noisier. :) We put some finishing touches to the new house plan while he was on holidays. This is the year...finally... we will begin building at our land. THAT land is truly the only place I'm at peace! Almost seems blasphemous to build a behemoth up there on that hill...just a simple cabin, tucked into the trees seems more fitting. I'd be quite fine at the cabin...but "we" wouldn't be...so a big house it is.

SOME CHANGES AND THE YEAR OF THE....doing?

I've been through the Year of the Dreaming. Definitely been through the Year of the Prepping. So now it's time for the Year of the.....really, there has to be a better word than "doing". Anyway, one of the things that I will be "doing" this year is read the bible. A couple of years ago, I read the entire bible - cover to cover. I was waaay calmer that year! LOL I have to admit, there were times that I felt I was just reading words on a page....I didn't seem to get anything from it. Huge sections of just "dryness", I slogged through. I made it though and I'm glad I persevered. This time it will be different....I have a yearning to know the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. I'm just hoping that I can handle the truth! Yipes!!

I'm using THIS SITE as my calendar this time. And I'll be posting my thoughts and questions here on the blog. Yes, right here on my blog!! Let the stampede to the exit sign begin....hahaha

I'm giving you one last chance....stop reading now if you aren't ready for this! :)

Here we go.....
January 1 2011:
Raining and +6
Genesis 1 - 3
(Notes to follow)

January 2 2011:
Flurries and -5
Genesis 4 - 7
(Notes to follow)

January 3 2011:
Sunny and -11

Notes on Genesis 8 - 11

Would it make sense, with the age of Noah and his wife that he ONLY had 3 sons? Would he not have had daughters who were drowned in the flood? Even other sons?

Genesis 9:3 "Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things."
Is this the first time that man was told he could eat meat?
Because back in Genesis 1:29 - 30 it says "And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
30And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so."

Is it likely that Noah's sons were childless when they entered the ark? Or did their children get swept away as well?
Genesis 10:22 "The children of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram"
Genesis 11:10 "These are the generations of Shem: Shem was an hundred years old, and begat Arphaxad two years after the flood"
So Shem was about 98 when the flood came? And no children??

WELL...THAT WAS A LONG MONTH!

2010-12-10T06:16:00.002-05:00

That one month reprieve that I needed turned into 8. Mama was more stressed than she realized! hehe

We've definitely settled into our new place....stripping wallpaper, repainting, installing hardwood floors, updating the kitchen...you know, the usual for us! The old place is finally on the market. Come on buyers! Big Daddy hit the "one year to retirement" mark this month...not that he's counting. He's also settled into his new routine - home on weekends with us girls. This next year will fly by....like all the rest. Then we can start another new chapter.

The last 8 months have flown by and we've certainly had our share of adventures. We turned 7, 44, 4 and 54 during that time. We've all been riding horses - something I've always wanted to do. One of us had a good case of shingles. I'm telling you...the only place you want shingles is on your roof, my friend! Yipes! A good case of pneumonia...followed by the 100 day cough is on my plate now. You know, I'm beginning to think that God is trying to tell me something. Ummmm, slow down and get my house in order? Yup, that's what I'm thinking too! hehe

One of the reasons we moved was to get Rylee into a good school. And you know how I feel about the public school system...yeah, but really we needed to do SOMETHING! I couldn't take it anymore. Anyway, she went for the mornings in the spring time and it looked promising. However, last month it all unravelled and she's back home. J started JK this fall....and she loves it! I didn't think she'd last, since she's pretty stuck to me. But really it's like playtime 2 days a week and she's loving it! I knew she'd be staying when she told me one morning, "Mommy don't cry I'll come back!" That's my girl!

My Mom has had her own battles over the past 8 months. Her stint in the hospital turned into almost 3 months of torture. They just couldn't figure out what was wrong with her. Finally, she was diagnosed with Stage 4 Multiple Myeloma - a very nasty cancer of the bone marrow. She was weak, had lost 45 pounds, could hardly walk, was throwing up all the time....just awful! She had given up! We moved her in with us in July and waited for the inevitable. Well, she changed her mind and decided to live! :) And she moved out a week ago into a retirement place so she could have some independence! Cool eh?

There are other changes here but I'll leave that for another day....
Have a good one!

UNDER PRESSURE

2010-04-09T13:14:00.004-04:00

Bear with me....it feels like I'm drowning....we have so much on our plates right now...and I'm not keeping up.

The girls and I are moving at the end of the month. There's so much to do.
I'm putting Rylee in a new school. The guilt surrounding that decision is immense.
The pups are home and fabulous....but still adding to the craziness here.
Have to get seeds started or there will NOT be a garden again.
Ten year anniversary in May...supposed to be special.
Everyone's in a hurry.
Put my Mom in the hospital Wednesday night. Scared me.
Did I mention, potty training puppies....yipes.
Purchasing, surveying and fencing part of our neighbour's land.
Second-guessing living apart (through the week) from Big Daddy.
Sourcing appropriate foods for Ry.
Day-to-day dealing with Autism.
Keeping up with my blog...everyone's blog.
Paperwork.
I feel the need to be baptized....NOW.
Preparing this house to be sold....eventually.
Extended family responsibilities.
Lifestyle changes....some friends and family are NOT on board.
I feel the need to just SLOW our lives down...kill the tv...radical, I know.

In a month from now...everything will look different...I'm sure. Hope you're here when I get back....

MY LITTLE HELPER

2010-03-31T08:55:00.005-04:00

Jayme has always been a very special little girl. Right from the minute we met, I knew she was delicate, quiet and sensitive. She clung to me and basically hasn't let go! LOL At 18 months old, she started helping me empty the dishwasher...she just wanted to be with Mommy. You gotta love that!

Now at 3, she sets the table, gets glasses of water for her Daddy (cause he's always so sirsty), folds face cloths and socks like a champ, pushes the appropriate buttons on several appliances, etc. Now before you call the CAS on me, this isn't forced labour...she just likes to help!

So yesterday while I was getting dinner started, she wanted to "make the carrots". Ohhhh too funny. We ended up peeling many more carrots than usual....almost 2 lbs worth to get 4 little servings. She started with just peeling then she ended up whittling the thing....trying to get it

"fmooth".

Look at that concentration:

Now she's getting the hang of it:

Whittled flat:

I NEED...

2010-03-25T10:09:00.003-04:00

....laying hens, some goats, black angus on the hoof, wheat in the field, 100 meat birds, and a jersey cow.

As you know we've been switching Rylee (and of course us) to a better organic way of eating. And until I have that list of "needs" on my own farm, we will pay:

$10.99 for 3L of organic milk
$5.99 for a dozen free range organic eggs
I won't scare you with the meat prices...

I have ordered up some cheese making supplies which should be here in the next couple of weeks. I can't wait! Of course that all started because I read the Omnivore's Dilemma, and The Unhealthy Truth, and found THIS BLOG. I read it right from the beginning. Incredible! Just when I thought buying wheat and grinding it yourself was a big deal, Kat, one ups me and grows her own wheat. She's also kicked Juan Valdez to the curb....yeah, she grows her own coffee too! Love it!!! Go and check the blog out...I think you're going to really like it.

On another note, I think I'm going through a mid-life crises. Not the normal symptoms of heightened shoe shopping or husband changes. No, I find myself daydreaming about farm tractors, planting crops and making artisan cheese from my Nigerian dwarfs. (Janice, don't be concerned...they're goats.) So, be warned, my 4 loyal followers....there are changes coming....big changes. And if you happen to see pictures of me with ankle length denim dresses and my hair covered...oh and maybe in rubber boots too, don't stop reading here. It's still me! Just figuring out my life and where I'm supposed to be heading....okay? Okay!

PRETTY GOOD WEEK

2010-03-22T19:32:00.003-04:00

We had a pretty good week around here last week. Grandma was here for awhile so I got "out" of the house A.L.O.N.E. Hopped in my truck with the tunes just a blastin'....singing my little heart out. Sounding a little like Dolly with a bit of Trace Adkins mixed in for good measure. LOL

First stop - shoe shopping. I had my eye on a strappy little number with a 3" heel. ROFL In another life maybe...

Actually, I hit the hardware store....pockets loaded with gift cards that needed redeeming. I bought 4 more cases of canning jars, new oven mitts, some mini bread pans, cheese cloth, big honkin' cheese grater and one of those stick blender thingies so I can puree soups right in the pot. 1 1/2 hrs later, I was back in the yard (still singing), done with my adventure and ready to pull the draw bridge back up.

The weather was mighty fine here all week too. Could NOT get the kids off the swings!!

Friday night we took the girls to a farm to JUST HAVE A LOOK.....lol

Introducing Jasmine and Kailyn:

Look at those little faces....aren't they sweet?! They can come home in 11 sleeps! I can't wait....I mean, the kids can't wait. hehe

BOOKS, BOVINE, AND BLOOD SPOTS

2010-03-03T07:48:00.003-05:00

On Day 1 of what we're now calling Ry's little miracle, a stack of books came in the mail. Big Daddy is always ordering from Chapters and Amazon. Happily, one of the books was a present for me - The Unhealthy Truth: How our food is making us sick and what we can do about it - by Robyn O'Brien. To this day, Big Daddy has no idea why he ordered it....he just did. Just another part of this mystery/miracle.

I read through the first 3 chapters....then started again! This was definitely not going to be a run-of-the-mill book. This was a "destroy with a pink highlighter" kind of book! LOL This book was good...really good...and it will make you mad. Mad at the mega companies who make the sick rules and back room deals surrounding our food supply. It was an eye-opener!! We immediately switched to organic milk. It was a small step...but a step in the right direction. It also got me to thinking about foods that Rylee was consuming....did she have an allergy to something or maybe just a sensitivity? Could it have been part of her "little miracle"? The only change in food that occurred during that week was orange juice. She drank tons of orange juice but that week, for some reason, she didn't have a drop. She was all about water and milk. Could that have been part of this mystery?

The second book that I highly recommend is Kenneth Bock, MD. Healing the New Childhood Epidemics: Autism, ADHD, Asthma and Allergies. I'm afraid I destroyed this one too with my trusty pink highlighter! LOL We searched for organic beef and started Rylee on a better vitamin program after this book.

The 3rd book that absolutely everyone should read is - The Omnivore's Dilemma. This book is excellent! It will make you mad. It will make you sick! It will make you want to buy everything organic. Then it will make you want to be a farmer so you can raise and grow your own unadulterated food. Then it will make your husband wonder why on earth he ever bought the book for you in the first place. LOL

BOVINE:
We have a quarter beef on order. It's been grass-fed. It has NOT been injected with hormones or antibiotics. Not much need to do that sort of thing because he's been healthy - in the fresh air, eating food he was meant to eat. And the best part....we saw where he was born and raised. We met the farmers who kept him. Very important!

BLOOD SPOTS:
Now if the 3 book recommendations haven't swayed you to change things, perhaps this little story will. This past weekend I cooked up the last beef roast I had in the freezer. I had it in the crock pot all day, and it was smelling mighty fine by supper time. Half way through Big Daddy's slicing, he came across this small egg sized pit of blood. You could actually see where something (I'm guessing a needle) had probed the beef and left this disgusting spot!

Yeah, we ordered pizza...

I don't want you to leave here all sick and disgusted, so I'll leave you with a funny. I was knee deep in the Omnivore's Dilemma when Jayme (3) asked me what I was reading. When I told her it was about cows, she says "ohhhhh cows, my favourite." "I'm going to reach under him and turn on his taps so I can get a drink for me and Rylee." LOL

WHERE DO I BEGIN...

2010-03-01T08:18:00.003-05:00

I've been absent. Yeah, I know...but I have a lot on my plate these days. I've wanted to write about what was happening here, really I have, but I just didn't know where to begin.

I want to make one thing clear before I start this....my purpose in sharing our struggles is to give other moms dealing with Autism some shred of hope. Okay?

In January, Rylee's behaviour took a turn for the worse! She was defiant beyond words...screaming her dislike for everything and everyone. She would tell me several times a day that she didn't want to be part of this family and certainly didn't want me to be her mom. She did NOT want to be a girl anymore either. Her tantrums, several times a day, were outrageous and out of control. And before you say, oh all kids go through a few tantrums in their day....uh yeah, witness an Autistic kid's tantrum first hand and then we'll talk! The best way to describe her is primal. In that moment, she is all animal, non-thinking, just reacting! And mean!! She would just strike out at anyone who got in her way. J would try to hug or kiss her to make her feel better and Ry would just kick, push or scratch back! We were beginning to fear for J's safety...it was getting that bad!

By the third week in January, we were in desperation mode....a family in crisis - sleep deprived, upset, hurt. It was time for medication. I called the Paediatrician for help! Her assistant told me that because we hadn't seen the Dr. for 18 months, we'd have to go through our regular Dr. to get another referral...that would take weeks...and frankly, we didn't have weeks! We just couldn't go on like this! I'm afraid I lost it completely on the phone...I was crying and desperate. She took pity on me and scheduled an appt. Finally, some hope.

Well, the appt didn't go as planned. LOL Instead of drugs, the Dr. instructed us to give Ry Melatonin to help her sleep. She also felt that if we gave her a daily laxative, it would alleviate some of her problems. She set another appt for 4 weeks out but I could call at any time if I felt we needed to. I gotta tell you, I was not exactly on board with this so-called solution. We had tried Melatonin before and it just didn't work for her.

Well, wouldn't yah know it...the melatonin did work this time! Yeehaw! And we actually got her moved into her own room to sleep. Baby steps. Her sleep habits improved but her meanness was still in full force. I had to schedule another appt. This time, Ry stayed home so I could really talk with the Dr. She agreed that Rylee had some other issues and was quite the complex little girl. Yes, she had Autism, but she was very high on the ADHD scale. Then there was the whole abandoned/mentally abused part of her past that was always just under the surface. I cried during this appt....sad for us as a family and definitely sad for this 6 year old little girl who was born on the other side of the world, abandoned and left to languish in an orphanage. She would spend endless hours alone in her crib, sick and crying.....but no one came to help. The Dr. said she will probably never get over that!! And I cry some more..... Then she told me something that I will carry with me the rest of my days....she said that I might not be able to mother her and that Rylee needed me to be her therapist first and foremost!

Well, we talked about all of the options in medications that might help her....and all of the side-effects!! Just wild! We agreed on a small dose of Resperidone but first we'd need to do some blood work. So, off I went with a prescription for a powerful drug that should lessen Ry's aggression, a request for blood tests at the lab, and a prescription for Ativan to help Rylee get through the bloodwork. That was Tuesday Feb 9.

On Wednesday February 10, we witnessed a miracle! Big Daddy and I took Ry in for her bloodwork - yes all jacked up on Ativan - and she did great!! She was a totally different little girl for the rest of the day. Just after supper, she was still feeling the effects of that pill, which she shouldn't have. I found her at the top of the stairs dancing with her coat....she was hallucinating and singing to her "partner". It was a little scary. I coaxed her into her pj's in between bouts of falling to the floor in a heap, crying and babbling incoherently. She crawled into her bed by 6:30 and the mean and aggressive Rylee never came back!!

We're still not 100% sure what happened. We have a few theories that I'll share with you later, but in the meantime, our old Ry is back!!! She is happy, healthy and in no need of Resperidone.

BACK TO SCHOOL

2010-01-08T12:33:00.005-05:00

It's been quite a week - getting back into the school groove after all that time off! Poor concentration, short temper, lack of enthusiasm....and I won't even mention how bad my students were! hahaha I don't think I'll do that again! Doesn't work for us very well.

It's been a week of sleep issues around here too. You know it's becoming a problem when you lie awake trying to remember all the names of the Dugger children. You know you have "other" issues to deal with when you get super excited that you can remember them all. ~Sigh~

And speaking of the Duggers....doesn't anyone else think it's the least bit strange that out of 19 kids, NOT ONE has something "different" about them? Hmmmm? They're all smart, they can all play an instrument or 4. I mean really, do the math....wouldn't the odds go against them - so many should be autistic, so many diabetic, heart problems, hearing....

I mean not even a pair of glasses on any of them.....just things that come to mind at 3 a.m.

I guess after all the fun and frolic up north, Ry's having a hard time settling at night too. Every little thing wakes her up and sets her off! Gimme a break, it was just a little snoring...not truck-driverish! She's tough enough to handle, but without sleep - that's usually when I start googling Swiss Boarding Schools.

And then THIS arrives at the door:

Ohhhhhh Big Daddy, we're having problems with long and short vowels.....you know....in the English language....and you want me to learn and teach Chinese?!?!

Oh brother....what would Michelle Duggar do?

WHO'S WATCHING?

2010-01-06T13:46:00.004-05:00

He looks like just an ordinary guy.
But he does something unthinkable.
He contacts young girls over the internet to meet up with him....you know, just to talk.
How many did he meet?
This time the young girl is really an undercover cop.
Got him!
A handful of years later, he resurfaces.
Should we be worried?
Is someone watching him?
Probably not.
Afterall, he has paid his debt to society, right?
Some jail time = rehabilitation, right?
Isn't that how it works in our society?
And he's married now....with a child.
So he must be harmless, right?
Just moved into a new house too....on the busiest corner for kids walking to school, which he can also see from his house.
How can this happen?
Isn't anyone monitoring his movements?
No one.
Sad isn't it?
That's what we say, when we read about him and those like him.
They're everywhere you know.
In every city, every town, every neighbourhood.
This time it's different.....
He's 5 doors down.

Do you know your neighbours?

PRESENTS, PAST, AND FUTURE

2010-01-05T07:14:00.007-05:00

PRESENTS

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and a safe but fun New Year. We did things a little differently around here this year. Like OUT with the turkey and IN with the fondue. We had soooo much fun! We headed north and spent a few days with Grandma....eating, playing in the snow, prepping for the next round of foundue....it was great! We came home for Christmas Eve so Santa could find the girls. Yeah, he found them...and us! lol Big Daddy got theme gifts this year, from all of his girls.

You thought I was weird, I mean wired before....well after sitting through 27 episodes of Jericho, my pantry room and preps just aren't going to cut it....I'm ready to build safe rooms, get armed to the teeth...maybe go into hiding! LOL I got the book idea from Selous Scout and I'm glad I ordered it...I just started to read it and can't put it down.

Santa brought me another Barefoot Contessa cookbook, a garden journal and......

I've nicknamed her the Beast! She's a beaut! Big Daddy had to have running boards installed because I couldn't reach the kids' car seats! LOL

PAST

Certain events that took place in December, shaped the look of our Christmas this year. One in particular was a snowstorm that ripped through, shutting down the highway and leaving everyone stranded. Yeah, we were in the middle of that mess with the kids and the dog, driving the van and towing the snowmobiles. There were lots of lessons learned that day!

#1 Being somewhat prepped wasn't good enough

#2 People are going to panic

#3 Tractor trailer drivers aren't who/what they used to be

It just happened that the OPP detoured us into the town where I grew up, and although it had changed, I was familiar enough with the area to make a plan B. Drivers in big 4x4's who knew the area and had driven in wild weather definitely had the advantage. We watched people panic - not knowing where they were or where they might head to wait out the storm. I'm sure most of them didn't have $10 cash on them. I don't know what happened to all the cars stranded on the highway...did everyone have enough gas? Apparently they closed it down for 24 hrs. Unbelievable! We happened to find an unguarded entrance onto the highway and kept moving along. We did just fine! The kids travelled like champs...singing and chatting away. Mama kept a good face on, but I'm telling yah, I prayed like crazy!!

Sooooo now all of our trips look way different....big truck, full gas can in the back, extra preps. No fooling around!

FUTURE

We made a decent driveway and dug the hole for the basement to our new house up at our land 2 months ago. My Dad says it looks like a Walmart is going in. lol It's not THAT big! haha Big Daddy has BIG plans but even now that looks like it could change. We were sledding with the kids in the pitch black on Grandma's hill, snow falling...just a gorgeous night and it hit me....it doesn't matter how much money you make, we'll never get this TIME back! Kids don't care how big their house is....they sure will remember spending time with us having fun though!

Those house plans might just get changed a little and that retirement date might be coming way sooner than originally planned.

All that northern fresh air makes a person think clearly....you know what I mean??

BACK AGAIN

2009-12-16T11:16:00.004-05:00

I can't believe how time flies...how long it's been since I last posted.

Mid November, my computer had swine flu or something and was down for some time. The repair guy said he'd never seen such a mess. Oh well.

Baby J turned 3 and made it all the way to 3 feet tall. Can't quite make it to 30 pounds though! She's such a little peanut!

Lao Lao and Papa scurried to Florida for the winter. She delights in sending weather reports to us....on a daily basis!

We've been busy with school and play...lots and lots of play.

Yeah, I know....shut up and show us pictures of the kids...that's why you're here! lol

So without further ado....

J was soooo excited about her crown cake:

Every Princess needs a 6-shooter:

Big Daddy and Ry waiting for the sleigh ride:

Mommy and J - what a cold and windy day:

Merry Christmas:

1, 2, 3

2009-11-16T14:33:00.001-05:00

1 GORGEOUS WEEKEND:

2 MORE LOST TEETH:

3 DAYS FROM TURNING 3:

IN THE SCHOOL HOUSE

2009-11-06T13:01:00.006-05:00

One month of homeschool under our belts and Ry is doing great!!

We try to work on these areas every day:

Bible

Printing/Reading

Math

French

Science

Geography

Science

Art

Sign Language

When Rylee is having a "good" day, we just fly through the subjects. When she's having a "less than stellar" day....well, we just pick a few and carry on.

All last year, we could NOT get this kid to try reading. I have a feeling that something went wrong at school during reading and she ended up having a sit 'n think. It totally put her "off" reading, spelling and printing. Sooooooo, I've started her right back at square one....mastering letter sounds. I also found the Dolch List and she's zipping through these sight words, twenty at a time. Soooooo very proud of her!!

Making sentences with the Dolch Flash Cards:

We started a little weekly program, called Country of the Week. She gets to choose any country

and we do a unit study on it all week. She quickly got bored with this so it has morphed into Flag of the Moment. lol She loves to locate the chosen country on the globe, draw its flag, study the facial characteristics of the people, learn a few of their words, and listen to their style of music.

Here's her flag board:

I showed her what Continents are so it's easier for her to pinpoint her chosen country:

Math:

She was good at patterns, but she just couldn't get the adding and subtracting thing down, when she was first home. She got it within a couple of days...now we're skip-counting by 5's and 10's to 100. This week she learned how to tell time at the 1/4 hrs. Today she caught on to the 5 minute intervals....amazing!!

Sign Language:

We have a set of DVD's called Signing Time....and I love them!! She's been watching them for a couple of years now, but she still enjoys them.

Science:

We are also reading all the books from the Science of the Week list. They are terrific!! I can't believe how much I've learned already! LOL

From the Series: Let's Read and Find Out Science.

One of the experiments/activities had us roast pumpkin seeds:

French:

So far she's mastered body parts and simple phrases. I'm trying to join French and Sign Language together right now. She "signs" a word, says it in English, then says it in French.

Art:

I'm going to need a "real" teacher for this one pretty soon.....

HEALTH AND WELL BEING

2009-11-04T11:12:00.004-05:00

I'm NOT a pill person....however I have thanked God many times for aspirin and the odd Robaxacet. Come to think of it....Demerol was high on the list after a couple of surgeries too! lol

So when I waded into the whole health and well-being field, you can imagine my shock. There are shelves of vitamin pills to choose from...starting with every letter of the alphabet. Some for your skin, some for your nails, some for your libido, some for your kids.....and every brand is "the best"! Yah know?

So being the skeptical and tin foil hat wearer that I am, I went with the bare minimum.
Vitamin C, Vitamin D, Flax Oil and eat lots of garlic.

Both girls get 500 mg of Vitamin C. 1000 mg when cold/flu season hits. They have their own brand for now because our C was too strong and tart tasting.
They also get 500 IU of Vitamin D. I was crushing our pills and hiding it in a spoonful of yogourt until I found Vitamin D Gummies. They happily take their pills every morning.

Big Daddy and I both take 1000 IU of Vitamin D...which we will double now that cold/flu season is here. And we both take 1000 mg of Vitamin C...again we double since it's that time of the year.

I'm big on garlic...the little people can actually eat it raw now! Too funny!

And my newest trick is Flax Seed Oil. It kinda smells and tastes like rotten walnuts but I tell you since I've been taking it....my hearing has improved and my coat is shiny! lol Just watch out for the burps....woohee.... I now have Big Daddy gulping it down with his juice in the morning and I'm sure I can properly disguise it in smoothies for the little people.

Well that's it for us....now, what do you take?

42 ARE DONE

2009-11-03T09:39:00.002-05:00

Pints of apple butter? Nope, years I've spent on earth. I wish it was the apple butter scenario. hehehe As I turn 43 today, I realize I have come to that place in my life where.....I don't care one bit what people think of me. Somewhere along the line, being a size 8, having perfectly coiffed hair and wearing the latest clothes became highly unimportant. Oh I know, some of you will think it coincides with the arrival of the kids....maybe. But I'm thinking it has more to do with not needing to impress anyone....and a real need to be happy! Afterall, when Mama ain't happy....well, nobody's happy.

It dawned on me that I didn't have to conform to anyone's standards. I don't have to live in the burbs, send my kids to the "right" activities, get my nails done, buy things on credit, be a good little drone....I DON'T HAVE TO!!! It makes me "sane" in the eyes of the regular folk to follow the rules....but it makes me UNHAPPY! When weighed, HAPPY wins out over perceived sanity.

So, I will happily embrace my inner hillbilly, canning and dehydrating food....all the while clothed in ankle-length denim dresses and packing a few extra pounds. lol I will knit and sew, homeschool, stack firewood, live, laugh and love! Ahhhh, life is good!!

43's going to be great!

DEHYDRATED APPLES

2009-11-02T10:42:00.005-05:00

I have a Nesco All-American Harvest Dehydrator....and I love it! Mine came with 4 drying trays but since I've started drying apple rings....well, we definitely need 8 more.

Okay, so here's what happened during my first attempt:
With all the apples I've been playing with, I figured it couldn't hurt to pick up one of those fancy cutter/corer/peeler thingamajigs. If you haven't seen one of these babies in action (ahem, Janice) you're missing something! lol
It peels the apple in one long ring:

It even slices the apple - NOT thick enough for me though

Uh oh, it's all in one long piece too.

My babies thought it was neat though:

So I ended breaking up that long curl into pieces. Not the best, believe me! The instruction booklet that came with my dehydrator suggests using a pre-treatment on the apples before drying so they don't oxidize....well, I'd never heard of ascorbic acid mixtures. I knew darn well I wouldn't have any of that on my pantry shelf...and I wasn't heading to the store....so I just poured some apple juice in a bowl and soaked the apples in that. WORKED PERFECTLY! The instructions also said it would take between 4 - 10 hours to dry. I let mine go waaaay too long and they were too crisp.

Okay, so here's a shot of the end product:

For being a first attempt and too crispy, they still ended up being polished off by my crew.

My second attempt fared much better. I sliced the apples by hand - nice and thick.

Soaked them in apple juice:

Dried them for 5 hrs:

They came out nice and soft...and the batch was devoured in 2 days! Like I said...Mama needs more drying trays.

So what have you been drying?

A IS FOR APPLE

2009-10-30T09:15:00.006-04:00

Well...it all started with a sale....47 cents a pound to be exact. I bagged up over 30 pounds amidst the stares of the regular shoppers, danced through the check out, and skipped all the way to my van.

I knew I could make apple sauce with some of them...but what about the other 25 pounds? Time for a few experiments...

First up, apple butter. Oh and here's the kicker....I've never eaten apple butter. Didn't even know what it should look like, but it sure sounded good, and I could bust out the water bath canner and practice with it as well. I found a great and very easy recipe from One Acre Homestead.

Crockpot Apple Butter

Put 3 quarts of apples, sliced thin in a crock pot and cook overnight on high. Next morning add 2 tsp cinnamon, 3 cups of sugar and 1/2 tsp cloves. Cook all day on low. Tastes like old fashioned apple butter cooked in a copper kettle.

Sounds great, eh? Off to the kitchen I go....first problem...how many apples in a quart? Back to the computer. Apparently there are 4 large or 8 medium apples to a quart. Problem solved.

I cut up 25 Gala apples, which filled my crock pot to the gills, turned her up on high at 2:30 pm and six hours later....added the sugar and cinnamon (no cloves for me thanks) and set it on low for the night.

By 7:30 am, it was looking dark, thick and rich and smelled like heaven. I firmly believe that heaven smells like cinnamon...know what I'm saying? Mmmmmm

Re-read my canning instructions for apple products and dove right in.

I turned out 8 - 1 cup jars of this super delicious treat!

I will definitely do up another couple batches of this...it disappears fast!

Next up....dehydrated apple rings.

HALLLAND ACADEMY

2009-10-22T07:43:00.004-04:00

Well that has a nice ring to it, don't you think?! Actually, the original name we came up with was: Hallland Academy - School for Young Ladies Doing Everything in Their Power to Drive Their Mother to Drink. But we opted for the shortened version. lol
Okay, so let's see if I can make this long story, short.

Before we ever met our first baby, we knew we'd homeschool. It just felt right to us. Ry came along and was the perfect student. She was one smart little cookie and eager to learn. This was gonna be great!!! Sometime right before she turned 3, her bahaviour changed. She would have these wild fits and was doing harm to herself. She was still smart as a whip, but this "change" in her was upsetting for all of us. At 4, she was officially diagnosed with Moderate Autism. Wham! Well that changes everything!! Right?! And this is where I should have stayed the course, but I gave her up to the system because well....we're talking about people who know all about Autism, right? They've dealt with this hundreds of times, right? They have all those fancy letters behind their name, right? They assured me that if I would send her to "regular school", she would do much better. She would get the chance to see what other kids do and would follow along. They assured me that they knew what they were talking about. They assured me that they were prepared for her. They assured me that she would be safe.

Okay, so I sent her off to Senior Kindergarten and during the year, she totally forgot everything we had worked on. She got into trouble....a lot!! She had "zero" desire to learn anything. The meeting I had with all the bigwigs at her school at the end of the year was an eye-opener. They essentially told me that she was a smart girl and would pick things up along the way...but their focus was socializing her. Unbelievable! Oh but here's the kicker...I sent her back for Grade 1. Oh I know...no mother-of-the-year award for that move!

So Grade 1 started off pretty well...first week whipped by and everyone was happy! Whew, maybe this wasn't such a bad idea afterall....
The next two weeks didn't go so well. One morning while I waited for her in the school yard, before class started, I watched a group of older girls poke fun at her...egging her on to act silly. 3 days later, one of the kids made fun of her Chinese eyes. She was getting into massive trouble every...single...day and I was summoned to the school 3 times to come and get her. The third time I was called, they had to physically restrain her. ENOUGH!!!!

So I did a mad scramble to find some appropriate curriculum to use, sent our letter of intent to homeschool to the Board, and on October 5 2009, with Big Daddy's full support, we officially opened our homeschool.

In just 2 weeks, she's made huge strides!! She's happier, more relaxed and eager to learn once again. I am so very proud of her!

NO FAIL POTATOES

2009-09-15T08:11:00.006-04:00

With my one year of gardening experience, I've come up with this no-fail method. I'm serious...if you want to grow the tastiest taters then you must follow my instructions...to the letter! Okay, ready?

First, you start with a plot of land that hasn't grown anything but weeds and small trees for 90 years.

It's important that you plant during full bug season....wearing the latest in gardening couture.

Have it snow as soon as everything is in the ground.

Now don't skip this step....don't, whatever you do, finish putting up the fence. You need the local bears, deer and moose to tromp all over your freshly planted garden. Very important!

Check on your garden at least 3 times over the growing season.

Complain about the bloody weeds and small trees invading the garden.

Swear you'll NEVER attempt to garden again.

Don't fertilize.

Water it twice. This is crucial.

Wait 3 1/2 months.

And voila....dig up 35 pounds of the little beggars....all the while dreaming about next year's crop.

Proclaim to your husband, that you are the greatest farmer ever!!!

Add some olive oil, kosher salt and garlic - bake at 400 for 30 minutes.

Serve with a side of peameal bacon. Yes, the taters are the main component to the meal when they smell and taste this good!!!!!!!!

If you follow my method...you too can be a farmer! hahahaha

DARK RYE BREAD

2009-09-09T11:59:00.005-04:00

Our brand new Bulk Foods store opened on the weekend...oh me oh my! I was like a kid in a candy store...well I guess I really was! In my glory as I walked all the freshly scrubbed aisles. Barrels of chocolate, nuts and grains....ohhh where do I start?! Focus...time to check the list....I was on a mission...ingredients for dark rye bread.

This was a fabulously easy recipe and we will definitely give it another go.

In a very big bowl add:
3 cups of flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 pkg yeast
1 Tbsp caraway seeds
1 Tbsp salt

In a medium sized pot, warm the following:

1/3 cup molasses

2 Tbsp butter

1 Tbsp sugar

2 Tbsp oil

2 cups water

Add the warmed mixture to the dry ingredients.

Beat on low for 2 minutes.

Beat on high for 3 minutes.

Add 3 1/2 cups of rye flour by hand.

Knead, shape into loaf, cover and let it rest for 20 minutes.

Punch down.

Divide and shape into 2 round loaves.

Place on greased sheet.

Brush with oil.

Slash the tops.

Cover and let rise for an hour.

Bake at 400 for 25 - 30 minutes.

For a first try - it was great! I'm sure we'll get to tweaking it over time, but it was still deliciously hearty with a big bowl of soup!

So let me slice you some while we dream about our next adventure to the Bulk Foods Store! Pass the butter....

FLU PREPS

2009-09-06T08:36:00.005-04:00

Honestly, I don't know if we should be concerned/worried/paranoid about the whole swine flu deal. There was only 1 reported case in our area. But if it was mild, maybe lots of others had it and didn't recognize or report it?! You know?? But now it has mutated and we're coming into the regular flu season...tons of kids heading back to school along with our big girl...

So we made a family plan.

First and foremost....if there's even one whiff of it, our big girl will be pulled from school faster than you can say this little piggy went to market! All extra curricular activities - terminated!

Secondly, I put together one of these and stashed it front and center in the panic, I mean, pantry room:

So here's what I've stashed in there:

Aspirin

Vitamin C

Vapourizer

Tooth brushes

Rags

Bucket

N95 masks

Vicks

Werthers candies

Vicks Inhaler

Halls cough candies

Sucrets

Liquid soap

Benylin all-in-one

Little noses saline spray

Decongestant nasal spray

Children's tylenol cough and cold

Children's liquid tylenol

Disposable gloves

Hot lemon drink

Kleenex

Lysol spray

Lysol wipes

Paper towels

Face cloths

Thermometer

Garbage bags

Old pillow cases (8)

Baby monitor

Copies of our health cards, immunizations records

Phone number for Telehealth

We stocked enough soups, jello, frozen juices, frozen berries and even frozen bananas (for smoothies) to last for weeks. We even stocked some new pillows so I can throw ours out after a bout with this flu.

I guess my fear is that I'll get violently ill and won't be mobile for awhile. Having everything bought and in one spot ensures that Big Daddy won't be running around trying to find stuff that we need or have to go out with 2 kids at some weird hour of the night to get medicine or supplies.

See, I'm not so weird afterall...

Guess I better not tell you about our "quarantine plan" then...hehehehe

WELL, SHOOT!

2009-08-10T11:23:00.005-04:00

As promised, Big Daddy and Uncle Bill set up a little shooting area down by the garden so I could practice with my 12 Gauge. Waaaay too much fun! lol

The fellas talking it over:

Big Daddy in action:

Yeah, that's right - holding my ears! The noise from a shotgun blast just rattles your body!:

Weapons down please:

Checking the target:

After a few rounds, they had me load 2 shells in and fire - I guess I didn't have it back to the right position when I took that second shot....oh yeah, that left a mark on my arm! LMAO It was really heavy too.

Reach for the sky - you dirty horse thief! lol:

Now let's try the rifle - much easier with a scope. The kick made me take 2 steps backward.:

Anyone can hit a target, but it takes a real pro to hit the post holding the target hehehe! The fellas hit 2 each, closest to the bullseye. I hit the bottom ring and see that white flowery weed. I put the stem through the post as my marker:

I'm pretty sure you could slot gun people into 4 categories. There's Cautious, Comfortable, Cocky, and Crazy.

I'm definitely in the Cautious category....we are very particular to do everything on the checklist. The whole time we are holding a gun, we are thinking, "holy crap I'm holding a gun!" lol The hair on the back of our necks is standing up and we're very aware of the power and danger that's in our hands.

Big Daddy and Uncle Bill are in the Comfortable category....they grew up around guns. They still understand that it's dangerous but they aren't bristled by it.

The Cocky gun owner is the one that doesn't give a crap about what category other gun people are in, while in their presence. They are a little reckless. I've met a few hunters in our area that fit this category. They don't seem to have a healthy fear of what's in their hands.

Then there's Crazy. I can't even imagine the mindset it would take to shoot someone on purpose!!! But that bear that's terrorizing my gas cans better watch his step! lol

RANDOM SHOTS FROM THE WEEKEND

2009-08-05T07:39:00.006-04:00

Baby ducks heading to the water with their mommy:

Is this a poppy?:

The bees were lovin' this:

Choke cherries aren't quite ready:

Storm rolling in:

Big Daddy pruning one of the apple trees:

Look at these handsome fellas out for a walk:

He'd go great with my taters eh?:

ALL IS NOT LOST...

2009-08-04T08:13:00.004-04:00

Have you ever lost your way? I mean, have you ever planned for something...spent endless hours researching and making calculations, purchasing the right resources, working the plan to the best of your abilities...while others sat back and watched you or maybe worse, scoffed at your plans and hard work?! Then to have it all blow up in your face! You start to question your plan...and worse...you start to question yourself and everything you believe in! You just lose your way....

Just when I thought I couldn't take it anymore and Prozac was looking reeeeal good, we headed up to the cabin for an extra long weekend. I got a surprise!! My garden - my source of embarrassment - had survivors in amongst the knee high grass and dogbane that had taken over. I couldn't believe it!! After a few hours of tilling and weeding, we now have.....

POTATOES - lots and lots of tasty little potatoes:

ASPARAGUS - 64 pencil thin ferns:

RASPBERRIES - 6 plants that even had tiny fruit on them:

BLUEBERRIES - 2 healthy plants

TOMATOES - small plants but they are flowering:

.....and no need for that Prozac prescription.

ALL IS NOT LOST!

15 MINUTES LATER, THE POLICE CAME.

2009-06-14T13:17:00.003-04:00

It has been a month of weirdness around here....

LAND:
Let's start with our shipment of plants from the East Coast...the strawberries were D.O.A. and everything else was on life support. We had snow the last day of May and 2 very hard frosts during the first week of June. Hundreds of dollars of asparagus plants and berry bushes were destroyed!

HOUSE:
Next came the busted sewer lines, sewage back-up and subsequent clean-up. $9500 and our insurance company won't cover it.

VEHICLE:
The brakes and brake lines went on Big Daddy's old beater. Another $1000

JOB:
There have been oodles of employees walked out the door where Big Daddy works. Benefits and holidays have been slashed. Wages are probably next on the chopping block.

KIDS:
Thursday night as we were not so patiently waiting for Big Daddy to return from the States, I was in my jammies and blowdrying my hair when I hear this scream! Not the kind that says "hey she has my toy". No this was the kind that means "I'm terrified and in extreme pain". As I raced to the kids' room, I met Ry in the hall looking reeeeeally guilty. I'm yelling "where's Jay?" Then the closet door opened and my wee babe, with eyes the size of saucers and a terrified face steps out still screeching! Again, I'm yelling "what happened...where are you hurt?" She reaches for me and puts her little foot in my hand...OMG!! I'm yelling again "OMG, OMG"! Her baby toe was squished beyond recognition! It was a mad dash to get some clothes back on, throw the kids in the van, and off to the hospital we go.......

What a scary place...

The women in the glass booth wore masks. The nurse who did the initial assessment of J's injury was less than helpful. The waiting room was crowded with masked patients - mandatory if they come in with any flu-like symptoms. All I could think about was - we're here for a toe and we'll probably catch something dreadful just waiting. Anyway, 1 1/2 hrs later and with only 1 person being called in to see a Dr.....we were outta there! At this point J was able to walk on her hurt foot and the toe was back to its normal shape and colour - just a few layers of skin missing.

SAFETY:
Friday morning there was an "incident" here at home. I won't get into any specifics but let's just say I wouldn't have been much of a match for this 6', strongly-built stranger who was "high" or in need of one. 5' 4" me, dress and apron on, alone with 2 little girls....I locked all the doors and windows, called the police, watched and waited....

I must say, the 2 officers were fabulous!

I was really upset by the incident!
I'm upset that I allowed the incident to scare me!
I don't want to live afraid!
I'm upset at myself for becoming emotional in front of the police officers as I apologized to them for having to call!

There were lessons to be learned from all the stuff that has happened over the past 30 days...big lessons...and I feel like I'm being tested. A little like Job....but without the boils....but there's always tomorrow. LOL

GLOBAL WARMING AND GARDENING

2009-06-01T12:21:00.006-04:00

FRIDAY: Temperature - pretty warm. My shipment of 225 strawberry plants are D.O.A. Just a slimy and/or blue mold mess. Fence is still not complete. It's a beautiful day nonetheless.

Path leading down to my garden:

SATURDAY: Temperature - a tad cooler but nice for planting 9 raspberry plants, 6 blueberry plants, 72 asparagus crowns, 1 rhubarb and 28 hills of potatoes. Bugs - well let's say I could hardly see out the mesh of my bug hat! Fence is still not complete. It's a beautiful day nonetheless.

Mama planting the garden:

SUNDAY: Temperature - cold enough to snow! I now have the entire garden on life support! Fence is still not complete. It's a frustrating day - we went home...

Big Daddy working on the corner posts:

Snow falling on May 31:

BLACK FLIES AND BLACK EYES

2009-05-26T10:41:00.006-04:00

We had 10 days to complete 3 major projects - oh I can hear your snickers already...

1) New steel roof on the cabin

2) New 10 x 19 shed was to be built

3) Garden was to be fenced and planted

Like I've said - double the budget and triple the time allowed! Hooboy! My garden....posts are in and my 225 strawberry plants are on life support! I did manage to get 12 tomato plants, 6 basil plants and 6 pepper plants in the ground though. The shed project....well....I'll leave that for another post!

Big Daddy and Papa Bob finished the steel roof during the worst bout of black flies I have ever seen! The bugs were freakin horrendous and the men were real troopers!!!

The men got a counter/sink working for me and put up a couple of cupboards. Hey Penny, don't get excited - still no running water - my sink drains into a bucket! lol

They also got my well working - oh joy!!!!

They tore out the old stairs (a.k.a. death ladder). You can see the angle it was on. They moved the door to the bathroom. Then made some new steps with a landing. My freebie buckets store perfectly under it! hehe Good job fellas!

The girls went riding - bringing buckets of sand up to the cabin.

.....so I could make a safe fire pit.

The inside of the cabin is coming along.....

This is what happens to yah....when you tell me the garden fence won't be finished. LOL

THINGS I'VE LEARNED THIS WEEK

2009-05-13T12:16:00.006-04:00

Paint WILL freeze inside the cabin in the middle of May.

Whatever budget you set for projects - double it.

Woody's Mexican Lime Vodka Coolers can be opened with a variety of garden tools.

When you've overworked your shoulder/knee/hip - the best treatment is to work it some more.

"We can have that out to you by Saturday" - really means it will be there on Tuesday, 2 weeks later.

Whatever time you've allowed to finish a project - triple it - something WILL go wrong.

9th anniversary is NOT pottery afterall - it's farm equipment.

Old treasures:

You know you live in the north, when......

FOOD PRICES

2009-05-12T07:54:00.003-04:00

Anyone else going into cardiac arrest at the grocery checkout? Unbelievable! If you've been reading here, you know that I am...ummmm....frugal. I buy quite differently than the herd! At first it was just fun to see how much I could save but not anymore! Mama's gotta get serious!

Because we've been spending a lot of time at the cabin getting things fixed up, I've been neglecting things on the homefront. I was out of bread on a Sunday night so I just picked up what we used to buy all the time....$3.29!! Then they were going to charge me 5 cents to put it in a bag! All of our grocery stores are doing this now...no more free bags...bring your own or pay 5 cents each.

I'm just mad at myself for being unorganized...I'm home...I should be better prepared! There's no need to be throwing any of Big Daddy's hard-earned money away! Heading to the kitchen now....enough said!

The offender - $3.29 - never again!!!

Whole wheat with flax:

Sourdough:

My newest creation - challah - it is soooooo good fresh from the oven! It also makes fabulous french toast on Saturday mornings! Penny, you'd love this bread!

LOADED UP THE TRUCK...

2009-05-11T12:28:00.005-04:00

....and they moved to Beverley....Hills that is! lol Well not quite. Big Daddy and I hauled our stuff up north on Friday in a rented cube van. Fence posts, wire, shop equipment, shed kit, and furniture all made its way to the farm. I love it! Oh and did I mention that the black flies were finally out. They were still stupid though and didn't know that they were supposed to bite.

Saturday we drove up again and got to work....Big Daddy moved all the posts down to the field and got the shed kit in place - all 1000 lbs and 1000 pieces....while I worked my field once again! And it poured down! We were both soaked to the skin!

Sunday it snowed! I kid you not! Did a number on the black flies too! Gotta love that!

Loading the truck:

Big Daddy moving all the posts down to my garden:

Just taking a break:

I'm almost done. My garden measures 160 x 120:

Rock wall that we found:

It's 4' high, 8' wide and 350' long:

OLD FOUNDATION

2009-05-05T07:13:00.003-04:00

There are so many neat things on our property that we've found over the years. One of them is the "old foundation". It measures about 18' x 26'. The walls are close to 2' thick! They just don't make 'em like they used to. lol

The first step's a lulu:

Big Daddy measuring it up:

Trees growing in the doorway:

Don't think Home Depot will have a window to fit this:

It's going to make one fabulous root celler, don't yah think?!

WEEKEND IN PICTURES

2009-05-04T08:10:00.003-04:00

Future pond - the water is just bursting out of the ground here:

Fresh paint and little girls - not a good combo:

Not a very flattering picture of Mama lol but...that's my new toy:

Now who's been down to the garlic field? A fair sized bear!

Wild rhubarb?

RODENTS, RAIN, AND A GREAT LOOKING RACK

2009-04-28T11:59:00.005-04:00

What a great weekend we had! Just the 2 of us - it was like old times. We drove Big Daddy's old "beater" up to the cabin and good thing. The road/path was horrendous! Trees down across the road, wash-outs in a couple of spots and mud....knee-deep boot-sucking mud! I haven't had the ummm pleasure of riding in his old CRV for quite some time - with the cracked windshield and unmistakable smell. lol We had our first date in that old car....ahhhhh the memories!

We took Belley girl for a little walk as soon as we got there. Over to the hill where we'll eventually build; down to the old foundation; through the garlic field. There were tons of moose and deer tracks....and we found this:

The sun was shining...man I love our little chunk of paradise!!

So back to the cabin to get things fixed up. What a mess! What a smell! It was worse than Big Daddy's CRV. We got the windows open, donned our masks and started by clearing the place out. Everything went outside....and that's when the rain started! Tooooo funny! It poured. We got soaked! Finally found the source of the smell - a total of 10 dead mice. Then the generator wouldn't go so we couldn't finish what we had planned.

I guess that's the downfall to being a weekend homesteader. We only have a limited amount of time to get a huge list of stuff done. And no matter what happens, we still have to head home on Sunday night.

So let's hope everything runs a little smoother this weekend. I've got a field that needs tilling! Long range forecast - 90% chance of rain....hooboy, here we go again! LOL

Belley girl - a little cold, wet and tired:

PLANS

2009-04-20T13:13:00.004-04:00

I can't believe it's almost May!! After months of making plans, budget-making, revising those plans and budgets, doing our part to stimulate the economy, and dreaming big dreams, our Pull The Trigger Project finally starts this weekend!! Woohoo! And good thing too...our yard is starting to look like Sanford and Sons. lol

Big Daddy and I will head north without the little ones (gulp!) to do a major clean-up at the cabin. Hopefully we can drive right in this time. We had to hoof it in (about a half mile), last month. We had perfect conditions though...we could walk right on top of the snow without sinking. Here's what it looked like:

So our plan is:

Weekend #1 - clean up and disinfect the cabin. Hopefully remove ALL the unwanted ummm tenants. Not as easy as it sounds, believe me!

Weekend #2 - Build the forms for the new shed base. Start tilling my field. Yippee!!!

Weekend #3 - Pour cement pad. Continue tilling my field. Then visit the chiropractor! lol

Weekend #4 and start of 10 days of holidays for Big Daddy - erect the new shed and rent a cube van to move fencing materials, equipment, tools and toys up north. There's a LOT of stuff here.

Of course the field needs to be fenced and my garden needs to be planted all before May 24 too.

Yup, it's going to be busy but we can't wait! The little ones are soooo excited about staying at the cabin this year and to rip around on Mommy's new toy...I mean totally essential farm equipment! hehe

So stay tuned for the Pull The Trigger Project adventures....gonna need a bigger first-aid kit, I just know it! lol

CANNER

2009-03-02T12:37:00.004-05:00

Ever since Chris over at Johnson Family Farm blogged about canning, I've been itching to get me one! lol Well, mine finally arrived last week! Woohoo! I did some serious bird-dogging online...but finally settled on a 23 quart Presto Pressure Canner. It was the best bang for my buck and my local hardware store brought it in for me. Man, I thought I got some wild stares and snickers when I pick up my freebie buckets....but that was nothing compared to the hoopla over the canner!! Waaay too funny! What I couldn't believe about it...was how flippin big it is!

It's supposed to handle 7 quart jars, 20 pints

or 25 pounds of love!! LOL

I can't wait to get this thing fired up! Okay Chris...what do I can first?

IT'S A BUG PLANET

2009-02-12T10:51:00.004-05:00

In preparation of the onslaught of mosquitoes at the cabin this year, and knowing full well that spraying my little ones with DEET is not an option, I have opted for full body armour.

It is very apparent after years of swatting and swearing, we cannot beat 'em...so we might as well join 'em. Become one with the bug!

The search was on for the ultimate bug jacket and I found 3 possible sources.

The first company had fabulous deals...$14.99 for a full hooded jacket. One problem, they don't stock them! Okay, strike 1.

The second company had them for $19.99, but honestly the mesh/screen used in the hood part was way too dark. I could just see our little people bumping into things or tripping, the jackets would be off in a flash, they'd be bitten from head to toe, then they'd swell up like a carnival balloon, hospital visits would follow....well you get the picture.

Then I found this:

Look at this happy family, having the time of their lives, laughing at the bugs! Now that's what I'm looking for. Oh they were a little more expensive at Lee Valley, but I did get a surprise when I ordered them...the kids' jackets come with a set of leggings. Neat!

Now I can't wait for spring....bugs and all.

MASON JAR LIGHT

2009-02-11T09:33:00.005-05:00

Look what Jim found!! I'm so excited!! Turning a mason jar into a light source is just brilliant! Did you know that these little gems existed? Such a great idea, I ordered up a ten pack!! lol Thanks Jim!!! Oh and if you missed his link, you can order them from here.

IN A PINCH

2009-02-10T15:59:00.004-05:00

If you ever need a very fast and easy dessert that can be pulled out of thin air...then this is it.

You're going to need:

1 can of crushed pineapple

1 angel food cake mix

Here comes the complicated part:

Dump the can of crushed pineapple - juice and all - into a medium bowl with the angel food cake mix. Beat for about 1 minute.

Pour into one of those "fancy" pans and bake, using the temperature and baking time from the cake mix box.

Cool, invert pan, slice up and top with whipped cream....oh and some berries would be nice too!

Big Daddy loves this dessert because it isn't heavy and overly sweet! Silly man!

SOURDOUGH ENGLISH MUFFINS

2009-02-05T12:34:00.005-05:00

Well, I'm back at it...sourdough everywhere! lol I whipped up a second batch of starter and haven't put it in the fridge...and it's working marvelously! Thank you Garden Girl for that tidbit! I've been baking sourdough every other day, getting the hang of it. I was feeling a little adventurous so I thought I'd try Garden Girl's sourdough english muffin recipe. They are wonderful!

Okay, so here's what you'll need:

1 cup of starter

1 1/2 cups of milk (warm)

5 - 6 cups of flour

1 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

Mix 1 cup of sourdough starter with 1 1/2 cups of milk and 3 cups of flour. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit for 2 - 24 hours.

When your sponge has developed, mix the sugar, salt and soda into 2 cups of flour. You're supposed to just stir this into the sponge, but really it's much more fun to use your hands to mix it. If you can get a bit more flour into this mixture - go ahead - I couldn't. Cover and let it work up to an hour.

Flour counter and hands. Turn your dough out and knead for 2 - 3 minutes until smooth. With a floured rolling pin, roll out the dough to 1/4 - 1/2 inches thick. Cut out circles 3 - 4 inches in diameter. Place these muffins onto a cornmeal sprinkled cookie sheet and let rest for 15 minutes.

Place 4 - 5 circles on a lightly greased skillet on low, low heat with the cornmeal side down first. Cook for 10 minutes. Gently flip the muffins over and cook another 10 minutes. Cool on a rack.

Split the muffins, toast them, smother in butter and have at 'er!

Okay, so I have to fess up to making a couple of mistakes....nothing we couldn't eat though!

My cutter wasn't big enough afterall...next time I'll use a washed out can like Garden Girl.

I also didn't roll the dough out thin enough. They looked fine here on the cookie sheet but....

as soon as they hit the heat....they got too puffy and didn't quite get thoroughly cooked in the middle. Didn't really matter, the toaster fixed that problem.

You can see how tall they got in this photo. Oh and when Garden Girl says cook them on low, low heat for 10 minutes....it doesn't mean on medium heat for 6 minutes! hahahaha I was just saving time. Lesson learned.

Okay, so here's the final product:

I'm going to need some practice with this recipe....next time: larger cutter, thinner dough, lower heat. Go visit Garden Girl and see her final product - they're gorgeous! Thanks Garden Girl for another sourdough adventure!!

I'm trying bagels next....stay tuned!

On the right path...

2009-01-29T14:38:00.003-05:00

Last night we had something happen that let Big Daddy and I know that we're truly on the right path...

A young man between 15 - 20 (it was hard to tell) came to our door, looking to snowblow our driveway for a set price. There was some hesitation on Big Daddy's part. You see there was something different about this young lad. It was apparent that he had a mental disability of some sort.

Well, the price was set, he got to work, and Big Daddy kept an eye out for him. When the job was done, he came back to the door in his thread-bare mitts, for payment and a kleenex. He looked cold and tired. Who knows how many driveways he'd already finished.

Big Daddy paid him, then offered him some supper. He had a tough time handling utensils. That's when he launched into his story about his Dad getting him a shovel at 7 years old and by the time he turned 13, he had paid for that snowblower all on his own.

Now here he was going door-to-door all alone and so unaware of any danger that could befall him.

As Big Daddy relayed the story, I couldn't help but think that we were definitely on the right path. Not only on the path to self sufficiency, but on the path to setting up a family business at the farm. Something that our girls could carry on. Some place safe.

You see, our "big girl" is Autistic and as much as I fret over what lies ahead, it's her future that I truly worry about.

Thank God, we're on the right path....

SEEDS ARE HERE!!!

2009-01-28T11:22:00.004-05:00

Oh look what came in the mail last night! I'm doing the happy dance! lol

And since today it's snowing like stink, I'm going to keep curled up with my little one and a very hot cup of coffee while I read about my seeds.

Come on spring...

IT'S DEAD, JIM

2009-01-26T09:32:00.003-05:00

After 3 batches of the most fabulous bread I've ever made, I made a so-so batch. Hmmmm. Then last night's batch...well...what can I say...it went straight to the garbage before it even had a chance at the oven.

After a thorough examination of the "starter", I pronounced it D.O.A. Dough Otherwise Active! lol

Not a complete failure though...I did get 6 very large loaves of fabulous bread from one tbsp of yeast...that has to count for something, right? Now off to figure out what I did wrong....

ANOTHER GOOD RECIPE

2009-01-21T12:33:00.003-05:00

I found this recipe over at Angela's blog. I originally found her when I was researching a wood cookstove and she had just bought one. She's living my dream!!! Totally off grid....love it!

Anyway, this is super simple (for you Janice) and everyone will have all of the ingredients in stock. That's important to me.

FRUIT COCKTAIL CAKE

Grease a 9x13 pan and preheat the oven to 350

2 cups of flour
2 cups of sugar
2 tsp baking soda
2 eggs
1 tsp salt
1 - 16 oz can fruit cocktail undrained

Combine all the ingredients using an electric mixer (or by hand if you're off grid) for 1 -2 minutes. Pour into pan.
Sprinkle top with:
4 - 6 Tbsp brown sugar (oh you know I used 6)
1 cup chopped walnuts

Bake 45 minutes. Cool completely. Top with whipped cream.

This is soooooooo good! It was even better this morning at breakfast! I think I need a sweets intervention! lol

GARDEN PLANS

2009-01-20T12:49:00.004-05:00

We finalized our seed order the first week of January and some of it should be arriving in the next week. I really thought it would be easy. Flip a few pages, pick some neat things and be done....man it was tough. Finding plants that will thrive or even survive in our zone, choosing from early, mid to late harvest, hybrid versus heirloom, etc. I am sooooo excited to be planting our test garden this year at the cabin. It still amazes me to put a tiny seed in the ground and have plants and food come from it! I am in awe of the process!

We ordered the following from Vesey's:
Asparagus - Guelph Millenium - 72 roots It takes at least 2 years to get a crop, so we're getting a jumpstart.
Yellow beans - Gold Rush, Gold Mine, Indy Gold
Beets - Detroit Dark Red Supreme. I made pickled beets this past year for the first time and will definitely do up a whopper of a batch this fall.
Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Cauliflower, Celery - I originally had them on the list, but we decided to put more energy and money into berry plants.
Carrots - Napoli, Resistafly
Corn - Spring Treat, Applause, Honey Select. This package had different qualities and harvest times.
Cucumbers - Calypso Pickling. We'll try our own pickles this year too.
Garlic - Spring Garlic Sets and Fall Garlic Sets
Leeks - Giant Musselburgh Heirloom
Lettuce - Baby Leaf, Sangria, Paris Island
Onions (green) - Parade
Onions - Red Beauty
Peas - Lincoln Heirloom
Peas - Dakota, Dual, Wando. Lots and lots of peas...
Potatoes - Norland (red) and Yukon Gold. Our soil is soooo set up for growing potatoes.
Radishes - French Breakfast Heirloom. These were a funny shape.
Spinach - Tortoiseshell

For the tomatoes and peppers, I opted for starter plants that will be shipped here in the spring:
Tomatoes - Applause - 6 plants
Tomatoes - Red Alert (cherry size) - 3 plants
Tomatoes - Window Box Roma (dwarf plants) - 3 plants
Peppers - Carmen, Fat n Sassy - total of 6 plants

Since berries take a long time to fruit, we ordered up a bunch to get a headstart:
Strawberries - Veestar - 50 plants
Strawberries - Cabot - 50 plants
Strawberries - Seascape - 50 plants
Strawberries - Kent - 75 plants

Raspberries - Boyne - 9 plants

Blueberries - Blueray, Bluecrop - total of 6 plants
Blueberries - Chippewa - 1 plant

Rhubarb - Crimson Cherry - 1 plant Must have a strawberry/rhubarb pie.

I don't know enough about herbs. I can see us studying them in detail...but just not yet. So I ordered what I do know and use a lot of:
Chives
Basil
Parsley

We also ordered flowers for the garden. I don't know if it's really true, but Marigolds - the French type - are supposed to repel bad critters. Order 1000, I said:
Yellow Boy French Marigold
Early Russian Heirloom Sunflowers - just because they're so beautiful

We already have 6 ancient apple trees on the farm but we thought we'd get a few more fruit trees to round them out. We found a guy near Sudbury (Ron Lewis) who specializes in really hardy fruit trees. They come in from Manitoba and Saskatchewan - yup should be hardy! lol Since he doesn't know what will be available until the spring, I can't give you the names of the trees just yet. But, we will order:
Apple trees - 6
Pear trees - 4
Cherry - 2
Cherry Plum - 2

I think it will be a good start...a real learning curve for sure!

LAUNDRY DAZE

2009-01-18T11:13:00.005-05:00

I have been known to do some laundry by hand...not just my unmentionables, but other clothes that shouldn't spend a lot of time in the wash machine. Along with my clothesline, this is my very simple set-up:

Simple washtub and toilet plunger

Notice I have "Laundry" printed on the plunger just in case Big Daddy gets any big ideas to use it for something unsavoury! The toilet plunger works great on fine items but it would turn itself inside out a little if I was really using my muscles. So, I upgraded to the more sturdy type of plunger - the one on the right.

Since we will be spending a lot of time at the cabin this year and it is off-grid, I thought we should invest in a better set-up.

This week, I ordered the rapid washer:

and a glass washboard from Lehman's.

and this really cool hand wringer from Kleen-Rite Corp for about $60 less than Lehman's.

God love you Americans...and your retail set-up! lol I just called them up and had them deliver to my Mom in Florida. She'll bring them all home with her in the spring.

Now if you want to see how laundry is really done....go visit this fabulous family. They are living the simple life and it makes me smile every time I visit them. Thanks Leslie for the product recommendations!

And just for fun, I found a cute little place called Pickens General Store and ordered up a pair of these Blizzard lanterns for $12. Did I mention how much I love the U.S.?! lol

SOURDOUGH STARTER, BREAD AND BATCH 2

2009-01-17T15:39:00.008-05:00

My first attempt a couple of months ago at a sourdough starter was a complete failure. Last week I found Garden Girl who made it look soooo easy. So I decided to give it another go. I'm glad I did, because it turned out fabulously! You're going to love it!

Before you get to the bread making part of this whole deal, you first need to make the starter.

You'll need:
2 cups warm water

1 Tbsp sugar or honey

1 Tbsp yeast

2 cups flour

2 - 5 days of patience

Day 1:

Get yourself a big bowl. Dissolve the sugar then the yeast in the water. Gradually add the flour. .

It looked like lumpy pancake mix:

Cover the bowl with a piece of wax paper and set someplace warm. Let sit for 2-5 days, stirring twice a day

By night time Day 1:

Day 2: Really burbling along

Day 3: It separated a little and that's okay, just stir it back in.

CLASSIC SOURDOUGH BREAD

1 cup sourdough starter

1 1/2 cups warm water (bottled)

5 1/2 - 6 1/2 cups flour

1 Tbsp salt

1 Tbsp sugar

1 tsp baking soda

Day 4:

Blend starter thoroughly. Pour 1 cup of starter into a big glass bowl and set aside. You'll deal with it in a minute, but first replenish the starter with 1/2 cup of warm water and 1/2 cup of flour. Give it a good old stir and don't worry about a few lumps. I put my bowl inside a ziploc bag that wasn't zipped tight and put it in the fridge.

To the 1 cup of starter you set aside, add your warm bottled water and 3 cups of flour. Beat vigorously. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let it do it's thing for 2 - 24 hours. The longer the better.

18 hours later the dough (sponge) looked like this:

Blend the salt, sugar and soda into 2 cups of flour. Mix this into the sponge. This is where I abandoned the spoon and just used my hands to mix it right in the bowl. When the dough starts to hold together, turn out onto floured board and knead for 4 - 5 minutes. Add flour as needed to make a stiff dough (I only had to add 1/4 cup).

Put dough into greased bowl wrapped tightly with plastic wrap. I also put a hand towel over the bowl for extra warmth. Let rise for 2 - 4 hours.

After 3 hours I gave the dough a test poke:

It didn't spring back on me, so I knocked it down and shaped it into 2 long french bread style loaves. I Placed them on a cornmeal sprinkled (put lots on or they will stick) baking sheet, covered with a tea towel and let them rise another 2+ hours.

Preheat the oven to 450 and put a broiler pan (don't use a cookie sheet like I did - the sheet warped) on the bottom shelf to heat up.

Slash the loaves and brush with cold water.

When your oven is ready, pour 3 cups of water into that broiler pan and put the loaves in on the rack above the steam and bake for 25 minutes.

And voila! I always brush my bread with butter as soon as it comes out of the oven.

This is a really good bread!! The crust is soft and thin. The bread is moist and just yummy! I'm going to replace our usual homemade bread with this sourdough....it's that good!

BATCH #2

And then for the big test...did my starter survive?! It had separated but I just stirred it in and I am now in the process of making my second batch!

PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE

2009-01-16T10:56:00.004-05:00

The best time to learn and perfect a new skill is definitely NOT when you're under the gun. You need time to make a few mistakes along the way and learn from them. For me, 2009 will be the year that I finally take all of the knowledge gleaned from countless books and blogs and actually put it into practice. I had thought about posting a list of things that I will be trying this year and checking them off as I go along, but really it's just too much pressure. Better that I just post about it after my attempt even if I failed miserably....like this....

How NOT To Light An Oil Lamp:

Can you spot the difference between the two lamps? Can you guess which one I tried to light for the very first time?

That's right...the one on the left. And right after I cleaned up the little bits of charred wick, wiped off the ceiling, put the fire out and stopped laughing, I realized that as simple of a job that this is, I still didn't know how to do it properly. What if it had been a life or death situation? It's one thing to stockpile items you think you may need, but unless you practice with them, we're simply not prepared. Lesson learned. Resume laughing...

DON'T FORGET THE KIDS

2009-01-13T10:59:00.005-05:00

Okay, you now have cases of soup and tuna lining your pantry shelves. There are hundreds of pounds of rice, beans and wheat in bins. Your emergency medical supplies are in order. Lots of ammo at the ready. The SHTF.....regular life is interrupted....for how long...who knows! If you're like us, you have kids who need to be educated and not everyone has curriculum stashed away. I would suggest getting some old time school books on your shelves. Just the basics, like readers, math, grammar, geography, etc. They're cheap and could come in handy one day. We also keep cases of paper on hand and dozens of pencils. Don't forget the kids!

While you're at it, throw an old farm book on the shelf too. One that includes childbirth, raising poultry and recipes all in one. lol

BEST BEFORE DATES

2009-01-07T10:37:00.004-05:00

If you're going to invest your time and energy into creating and stocking a pantry, you're going to have to learn about best before dates. I hit mine around the age of 34, but that's neither here nor there!

We don't have a universal code in Canada. Every food manufacturer has their own tracking system, and the stamped numbers make absolutely no sense to the purchaser. So, I contacted some of them to get the answers.

Primo: never returned my email or phone inquiry.

Unico: Their canned tomatoes have a 2 year shelf life. Example: If the can reads CR25206, the tomatoes would expire 252 days into 2008

Compliments: This is a Sobey's or IGA company. Their canned fruit has a 3 year shelf life. Example: If the can reads LIP 237 The middle letter is I=2006 J=2007 K=2008 237=237th day of the year.

Quaker Oats/Aunt Jemima (all owned by Pepsi): By far the most helpful company I talked with. Most of their products have a 1 year shelf life from the manufactured date. Granola bars only 6 months. Example: 01 23 P 8 The first set of numbers is the month, second set is the day, the letter represents the facility where it was manufactured and the last number is the year.

Allen's Apple Juice: 1.2 L tins have a 547 day shelf life. Example: R81207 1500 338 J The expiry date would be 2008, 12th month, 7th day, 15:00 hour. At 3:00 all hell breaks loose!

General Mills: They have 3 separate coding systems. One is a best before date stamped which is used for refrigerated dough products - nothing that I would/could stock anyway.
For Pillsbury branded products, all Green Giant and Old El Paso brand proudcts the code can be interpreted as follows: C6FT25D
The first letter stands for the month (C=March)
The next number stands for the year (6=2006)
The next 2 to 4 letters stand for the manufacturing facility
The next 2 letters stand for the day of the month (25)
The letter code for each month is as follows: A to L (January to December)
For all other brands including General Mills, Cheerios, Betty Crocker, Bugles, Nature Valley, etc. the manufacturing code appears as follows: D615RB6
The first letter stands for the month
The next number stands for the year (6 = 2006)
The next 2 numbers stands for the day of the month (15)
The next 2 letters stand for the manufacturing facility.
The last digits stand for the time of day or the system the product was produced on.

Most Campbell's soups have an easy to read best before date - usually 2+ years.

I have noticed that I have a better chance of buying "older" product from a discount grocery chain. I've had challenges with the high-end grocery stores too though. It's much easier for me to keep track now because we buy cases of items. I'll take my 3x5 deciphering code card to the store to make sure I'm getting "new" product. Once we're home, I write the best before date in simple language right on the case.

We'll continue with this system until I can grow and can the bulk of our food....in the meantime...buyer beware!

CATCHING UP

2009-01-06T09:26:00.005-05:00

It's been a gruelling couple of weeks...Rylee caught some "wild bug" and then it was passed along to all the members of Team Hall. Baby J and I are still fighting the good fight. I hate being sick! Just one more reason to keep the drawbridge up! lol

Laying around the house does have its benefits though...we worked out this year's plans for the cabin. We also sourced and priced our fencing and finished up our seed order. Last fall, my Dad bulldozed the top layer off the "garlic field" for us and that's where we'll plant some more trees and my garden. It's about 120 feet by 160 feet and as soon as the snow has disappeared...sometime in May (I kid you not), we'll get to work. Fast and furious!

For Christmas, because I'm such a high-maintenance woman, I asked for a cheese book and a new kitchen sink stopper. Got the book...umm, still miffed about not getting the stopper though! lol The first book, about home cheese making looks really good - easy stuff too.

We found some nice oil lamps on sale before Christmas. They were such a good deal, we bought 6 large and 2 small ones. Just plain jane, but I think they're sweet! They'll be great at the cabin this year. Big Daddy bought some coloured oil so I think we'll try them here first. Set the mood!

Scored some more free buckets over the holidays too, along with 2 from Home Depot. When I picked up this last batch of bakery buckets, the lady asked if I still wanted them to hold the buckets for me....since I've picked up quite a few already. As she's handing them to me she looks me straight in the eye and says "do you mind me asking what you're using them for?" I told her "sure I can tell you, but then I'd have to kill you." Well, she gave a nervous little chuckle and headed behind the counter. Since I want more buckets, I eventually did tell her that it was for my farm. Some people just can't take a joke!

FIRST AID KITS

2008-12-19T10:51:00.004-05:00

I know for some people, the whole idea of stocking food, survival gear and weapons is out of their realm...for now...so let's start nice and easy. No matter what, everyone should have a kick-ass first-aid kit.

Big Daddy picked up a couple of these durable tool kits on sale awhile back...and I thought they'd be great to stock our first-aid gear in them. They'll take a beatin', that's for sure. They won't float worth a flip but that's another story....

The top has these 2 slip-out see-through containers, that I'm sure are meant for little nails or screws or whatever...mine hold band-aids. And if you're married to Big Daddy, you must have very portable and easily accessible band-aids...more on that...

So here's what's in this brute:

First aid booklet

elastic bandage

gauze bandages - lots and different sizes

gauze tape - lots and different sizes

heavy duty scissors

latex gloves - lots

needle and thread - in an old pill bottle

Aspirin

alcohol prep pads

wet naps

safety pins

hand sanitizer

tums - cabin coffee isn't the greatest yet

immodium - excellent choice when there isn't any indoor plumbing

exlax

robax - back pain pills a must have

tweezers

nail clippers

pointy scissors

kids' thermometer and nail clippers

sodium chloride pour

hydrogen peroxide

q-tips

bar soap

throat lozenges

eye dropper

polysporin

after-bite - I swear the mosquitoes up there have mated with ravens - you should see them!

kids' after-bite

vaseline

There are 2 more items in there that require a little explanation:

1. dryer lint stuffed into an empty toilet paper tube. If you have to make a fire pronto - get a little vaseline in there too and this will help start it. That's a Survivor Man trick.

2. Maxi-pads - oh there go all the male viewers lol - hang on fellas this won't last long....there will be times when a bandaid or square gauze just won't be good enough to cover a major wound.

Should probably pack some matches in there too, come to think of it. I always carry a small knife and lighter in my pocket, so it isn't an issue for me. Ah geez, now I just lost the female viewers - she carries a knife? lol

So there you have it...I'd appreciate any feedback...I'm sure I'm missing stuff!

COMMENTS

2008-12-19T08:59:00.003-05:00

For some reason, I can't comment on my own blog...arrrgh!

Warren: Thanks for your interest. I'm sifting thru tons of early days pics that I'll post soon.

Hey Scavenger: I'm going to post some "real" snow pics for yah soon! Snow like you wouldn't believe!! lol

Penny: Pennyworld is a fabulous place too! lol

A LITTLE HISTORY

2008-12-18T10:37:00.005-05:00

In May of 2001 BC (before children), Big Daddy and I were out for a drive up north - hitting all of the backroads. We ended up in the middle of nowhere on a dead-end road...well road is not quite the right description - this was more of a path. At the very end, we spotted this old cabin...and wouldn't yah know it, a dilapidated for sale sign hung at the entrance. This place had been for sale for years and no one wanted it! Two old dolls from the city had purchased the place 15 years prior and were going to have a little goat farm one day. Well that day never came for them and they decided to sell it - dirt cheap! As soon as we bought it, we got the real skinny on the property and the surrounding area.

In 1896, Isaac and his family were deeded this 100 acres. The house that he built is long gone, unfortunately. A massive rock fence, 100 year old apple trees, and the square-cut stone basement is all that's left of his hard work. Oh and a ton of broken glass and rusted iron in the 3 dump sites. lol

In 1899 the area got its first one-room school house which happened to be at the bottom of the big hill leading up to Isaac's/our property. I actually have a picture with the kids all standing in front of it, some time in the early 1900's. Over time, the original log school house was dismantled and moved to be used as an Antique's Showroom. Then it was dismantled and it took one more trip....up our hill and landed right on our property. So that lovely old cabin at the top of this blog, is the original school house in the area! Isn't that cool?!

It sure was a mess when we first saw it! There was a tree growing right in the doorway - no one had been in there for quite some time. Okay, no people had been in, but my word, it had been party central for the local wildlife! Sure enough, the littlest of the wildlife still drop by for a visit.
We cleaned and disinfected, painted, and put in a new woodstove. We also installed hardwood floors...well sort of...we actually used 2 x 10 plank. Best wearing floor on the planet! lol And the cheapest too!

So that's our retreat - Hall Land 1896...no hydro and no plumbing...just lots of fun and lots of love.

LIST MAKING

2008-12-16T10:12:00.008-05:00

Making a list
And checking it twice.

Gonna find out

If I've stocked enough rice.

Big Daddy built a terrific pantry for me last spring and I got busy filling it up...little by little...week by week. Looking back, I made a few purchasing mistakes, but nothing outrageous. We figure we saved a couple thousand dollars this year just by buying differently. Just think how much we could save if I stopped playing around at this and really got down to business!

The first thing I started with was...you guessed it...a list. lol Actually it was a small binder. Each food item that we normally purchase had its own page with a dollar figure, date and place of purchase. I tracked them for a few months until I could see a pattern. When gas prices were zooming through the roof, food was following suit. I watched a 25 lb bag of flour go from $11.99 in April to $13.49 in June. I also noticed a cycling effect. One store would carry "x" on sale this week and then that same item would show up on sale someplace else the week after. Dog and cat food goes on sale every 4 months. Of course some things NEVER go on sale, so we stocked up and paid 2008 prices.

I also started a SHTF reserve. Oh for those of you who are new to this - SHTF is (shit hits the fan). You just never know what's going to happen!

Anyway, I stocked 100 lbs of flour, 75 lbs. of sugar, 50 lbs of rice, 50 lbs. of pasta, 20 lbs. of salt and dried beans, 20 cases of water, and 30 lbs of coffee. It's not nearly enough for any major hit of the fan, but it was a start and we're adding to it.

Okay, so how do we keep/store all of this stuff? The canned goods all sit on a series of cheap IKEA shelves. I can see it all and can rotate stock easily. Bags of sugar, flour and boxes of salt are stored in their original packaging, and kept in new garbage bins. This will keep the dampness and mice (if you have any) out. Lately, I've been collecting buckets/pails from the local grocery stores. Food-grade buckets are hard to come by...actually I can't find a source for them in Canada. So I get these fabulous buckets with great fitting lids from the bakery depts for free. I keep bulk spices, dried fruits, choc chips, etc. all in their original packaging in these freebie buckets.

It's hard to take pictures of my pantry because it's really tight quarters, but I tried. Now I'm off to....make another list.