Will the Real Mary Poppins Please Step Forward...

Yes, it is true.  I am the real Mary Poppins!  This was me at my grandparent's house and of course my brother was photo bombing my picture.  I had the umbrella, the dress and the hat.  My grandmother's pointy toe shoes were also often worn, although I apparently went the bare foot route on this particular day.  I would pretend for hours that I was indeed Mary Poppins.  It is these kinds of memories that bring me such joy!  All I needed to entertain myself was a closet full of my grandmother's clothes.  This is what inspires me to provide a lifestyle that is slower and more back to the basics with my family.  Living in the country provides opportunity for creativy and imagination to be set free.  The country is the ultimate playground!

A co-worker was telling me the other day they read a study that said children spend 50 percent less time outside than in the 1990's.  That is an alarming fact.  Since education is my career, I see the results of children not spending time outside playing with whatever they can find.  When it comes to writing, this generation of students does not have the imagination that we eighties students had.  Creativity and imagination are being lost.  No amount of technology can replace making a fort out of wood leftover from a construction site, making a dirt maze and home for your pet gerbil, or dressing up and pretending that you are someone else. 

You don't have to live on a farm to cultivate creativity and imagination.  You just need to encourage our younger generations to put down their devices and experience play the old fashioned way. 

Healthy New Year!

With the start of the New Year, many make resolutions. These resolutions could include spending more time with family, exercising more, or eating healthy. If you have resolved to eat more healthy foods this new year, try eating farm-fresh eggs!

We love having chickens, not just for the entertainment, but also for the nutritional value they and their eggs provide for us. 

Unlike when eating the eggs from a grocery store, we know exactly where our eggs are coming from. We know how old our eggs are. We know what our chickens are eating and how much time they are spending outside. Can you say the same thing of the eggs you buy at the store?

A New Year Full of Promise and Progress

Becoming self sufficient is a process and a journey.  I want to know where our food is coming from, and I would really like to get away from spending hundreds of dollars a week at the grocery store!  It is a fun challenge to become self sufficient and live a life that is back to the basics.  I am not an extremist though.  I still plan on using toilet paper and taking showers in whatever length they need to be for me to feel clean.  No sharing of the bathtub water here.  However, there are things that we can do that will help us live a healthier life style.  I just don't mean physical health either.  Our goal is that our family will be spiritually, physically and mentally healthy! 

2013 was a great year for us because we were able to realize our dream of owning a small farmette!  God has been good to us indeed.  We are looking forward to what 2014 will bring.  Our goal of becoming self sufficient still weighs heavy on my heart.  It helps to reflect on what has been accomplished in a year's time.  Although we are on our way to becoming self sufficient, we still have a long way to go.  This is what we accomplished in 2013:

• Purchased 10 acre farm
• Purchased laying hens (we are currently getting 2 dozen eggs a day)
• Put in a wood stove to heat our house (It is only heating part of the house)
• Planted apple trees
• Planted berry bushes
• Planted and harvested a small test garden
• Set up chicken coop and surrounding area
• Installed storm doors for the house to help with utilities
• Bought a new dishwasher and oven
• Began setup of outdoor kitchen

Goals for 2014

• Put in a much larger garden and can enough fruit and vegetables for a year
• Make our own cleaning supplies, including soap (Maybe to sell)
• Test products for future Farmer's Market booth
• Purchase more laying hens and hens for meat
• Expand and grown our chicken coop
• Set up the rainwater system
• Put in another wood burning stove or heater to eliminate need for gas
• Plant more apple trees
• Plant more berry bushes
• Make more homemade foods (get away from processed)
• Reduce our grocery bill significantly

We thank you, friends, for following us this past year, and we hope you continue to do so this coming year!

Family Traditions and Pinterest

For our family Christmas is about the birth of our Lord and Savior and spending time with family.  Over the years my husband and children and I have enjoyed many traditions.  Part of that tradition is reading from Luke in the Bible about the birth of Jesus.  Each year we go to a Christmas tree farm and cut down our own tree.  We always open one gift on Christmas Eve and we buy the crackers that contain really cheap gifts and paper crowns.  My daughter and I always have a Christmas movie marathon.  We love a mix of the old movies such as, "White Christmas," and new ones like, "Elf." 

We decided to start a new tradition this year.  My nieces and my daughter and I made Christmas yummies using mostly pinterest recipes.  With the exception of the fudge and the chai tea truffles, we consulted Pinterest.  All of the recipes turned out yummy and we had a great time!  I think it is important to have family traditions that can be passed down through the generations.  It is never too late to start a new tradition.  Please feel free to comment on family traditions that you enjoy.  We would love to hear from you.  Here are some pictures of our special day making new memories and starting a new tradition.    Happy New Year everyone!

 

 

 From left to right, Kaitlyn, Courtney, Alli and Me!

 

 

 We kept the computer near by so we could check and double check recipes.  We made peanut butter balls, peanut butter, chocolate rice krispies, chai tea truffles, fudge, cranberry bark (our own recipe made up of leftover ingredients) and a yummy almond cookie. 

 My daughter and niece getting ready to dip the chai tea truffles in almond bark.  We have found that almond bark holds up better than white chocolate when heated.  White chocolate can seize up and can be difficult to fix. 

 For lunch I made my version of a Chipolte bowl.  I make white rice and add cilantro.  I heat up a can of pinto beans and cook some chicken with fajita seasoning.  Then we add whatever toppings we want.  Usually the toppings consist of lettuce, rotel, sour cream and of course cheese.  It doesn't taste exactly like the real deal, but it is a close second and when you live out in the country you don't always have access to restaurants. 

 We made a really terrific Christmas punch recipe off of pinterest.  It was made up of cranberry juice, orange juice, pineapple juice and ginger ale.  It was delicious and refreshing because baking is hard work.