Momucious the Wise - Hair Cuts

Momucious say,
"She who cuts hair down wind, is itchy all day!"

Momucious the Wise :-)

Standing with Israel

You can't help but notice...YHVH wants "The Church" to see - THEY ARE ISRAEL...Halleluyah, May HIS people hear His call and may their hearts be turned to Him and His ways. May they be willing to leave behind the things which they THOUGHT THEY KNEW for HIS Truth. May they TURN (Teshuva) to live a life devoted to HIM and set apart for His purposes, so that YHVH and Y'shua may be glorified in the latter days! This speech took place at the CUFI confernce in Washington DC this past week.

Here is a highlight clip:


Here is this same speech in full:

Untitled from Naked Emperor News on Vimeo.

Dehydrated Food Storage

I LOVE my dehydrators! I know I only use them regularly all year round, they are always out, plugged in and 'at the ready'! This will be one of those kitchen tools, I would hate to be without it if I had no electricity. :-) While I got it, you bet ya I am gonna USE it!

I wanted to share some encouraging and informative links on my Homestead/ Food Page about dehydrating, but thought I might post them first. In the midst of this, I took a bunny trail (as I often do) into making my own MRE's (Military term for Meals Ready to Eat). An official MRE would not need to have water added to it...where as mine are designed to be re-hydrated. In MOST desperate times with no access to water, you could just eat the food dry - but it wouldn't be as pleasant. :-)

365 Meals I came across this guy who speaks about food storage and preparedness to LDS churches. He had some great ideas in regards to assembling your own dried MRE's (Meals ready to eat - just heat with water). It got my wheels turning. This has always been one of those things I have had on the back burner of my mind. (I have LOTS of back burners in my mind!) But seeing this video was an inspiration to me to start applying this idea ASAP! In a nut shell, the concept is that you pre-assemble and package 365 hearty dehydrated meals for your family - so you know you have 1 year's worth of ready made wholesome (no brainer) meals at the ready to last you a year. It takes up very little space, and the food value lasts much longer than canned foods. (Like 15-25 yrs done right! Talk about "fix it and forget it"!!) I also liked what this guy said about being able to help people with it. I think it is important to have diversity in all things in what we grow and what we prepare and store. Doing this will allows us to better bless people in need. If you can get past the "bird flu" stuff in this video - I think you will be able to glean some good ideas. :-)

I think dehydrated meal packs in bags is the most practical way to have food stored if one finds oneself in a mobile situation or wants to be ready to feed others in an instant with no strings attached. Doing it yourself does require your personal investment of time, preparing and planning, but it will save you money and you will not have to compromise on food quality if that is a concern for you. You will not put dies and additive in yours (i hope), which is not always the case with the Food Storage Companies that get premium prices for their foods.

I see two approaches to this project:
1. To assemble already dehydrated ingredients into meal kits.
2. Cook meals and dehydrate the prepared meals.

I plan on doing both since I have a supply of dried foods to pull from already - yet want to experiment with dehydrated prepared meals. If you have 30 recipes, than you could have a different meal every day for a month, not bad! I might like to find a little more variety if I can because I am spoiled American. :-)

Here are some books that I recommend if you are able to build your kitchen library in this direction:

Preserve it Naturally - If you have a dehydrator or want to get one, this book is an extensive guide in dehydrating. It is very thorough and covers how to dehydrate individual items and how to use your dehydrator for all sorts of things. It has charts, instructions and recipes. It is a wonderful "foundational book" for dehydrating if you want to dehydrate your own foods and use it to build your meals. If you like a book that has pictures and can be a quick reference for about anything Dehydrated (like an encyclopedia) this is the resources for you.

The Dehydrator Bible If I had to review this book in one word, it would be "SCORE!". That is , if it is a huge selection of simple whole food recipes to make with dehydrated foods is what you want. This book has over 400! These recipes are JUST what I was hoping for, they are creative (not repetitive) and most of these recipes are whole foods you can make yourself in the dehydrator (unlike other books who use commercially made ingredients as a rule). There are some that have fresh ingredients in them...but because of the huge selection...it still leaves you very satisfied with your options for variety and simplicity for emergency food storage. This book makes me want to increase my dehydrated food supplies for the sake of our regular everyday use too. I am really excited about this book! It is the most appealing dry foods cookbook, I have seen yet!

Dinner is in The Jar - This book was written with dried meal storage as it's primary goal. It is a simple but specific book, which contains 30 recipes. The author uses TVP (textured vegetable protein) for some of the meat item in her recipes. She also discusses using Mylar bags and oxygen absorbers, but uses jars as her references. If you want a "plug and play book" that you don't have to "think about" this one might be for you. You can just buy the ingredients at the bulk food store (like milk powder, cheese powder, butter powder, buttermilk powder, dry gravy mixes, etc) than this will be a good book to start with. No dehydrator necessary. Some recipes use "add ons" like a can of diced tomatoes and some fresh ingredients like sour cream and fresh shredded cheese. I am steering clear of these types of recipes, because I want the meals I make to require nothing more than water and fire to make them delicious. :-) Her style is very "American creamy comfort food style". (She has a couple Mexican recipes too.) Most of her recipes, will also have add-ons like a "pint of ground beef" or chicken. Which would need to be canned and stocked ahead of time. You need to know how to do that yourself. So you should know those are elements to her recipes before you buy the book. Personally speaking this book was my not my favorite. I could see how it would be very appealing to some folks, but for my money and needs - It did not make the mark. I returned it.

Consider going to Amazon and searching books that cover this topic if you search words like "trail meals" or "backpack cooking" things like that. They may have more "just add water" recipes or ideas in them than some typical dehydrator books since that is ideal for backpacking. I have the Backpack Gourmet. It gives lots of recipes for you to make and teaches you how to make the meals ahead of time, at home and how to dehydrate them for storage, then how to reconstitute them on the trail! I was a afraid the recipe might only be fore one to two people being a back pack book, but I was excited to find that most of her recipes serve 4+. She uses whole foods (and some TVP, but has lots of recipes with out). This is a wonderful "plug and play" style book for this method of make the meals ahead and dehydrating them. She doesn't require the "add ons" like the Dinners in a the Jar book does, which in my opinion, makes it more inclusive and practical for emergencies situations. This book is a wonderful resource for this method of dehydrating pre-made meals!

Mary Bell's Complete Dehydrator Cookbook - This is one of the newest additions to my dehydrating library. It is a delightful and thorough resource. If you are a food reader, like I am, you will appreciate this book. She explains things and had lots of "tips" through out the book, that you will find as you read it (just for fun!). She has recipes and incites on backpacking foods, she devotes a whole chapter to it. Even though, I have yet too read every page of this book, I quickly found "new things", like dehydrating yogurt like fruit leathers! There are no pictures in this book, it's very plain in that regard, it appeals to the "reader". However, I am pleased to add it to my library. It's a keeper!

I have lots of cookbooks that have small dehydrator sections and they are nice to "give you the gist" but I wanted to "go deep". :-) I am NOT listing any of those here.

These are the books the guy in the video used (and suggests) for his food storage. It is the assemble dry ingredients approach.
Gifts in a Jar: One Dish Meals
Gifts in a Jar: Soups

Here are links for free dried meal recipes FREE and at your fingertips (I have not tried them yet.):
Budget 101
Dried Soup and Chili Recipes
Dried Soup Mixes
Dried Baking and Seasoning Mixes

Now I noticed a lot these recipe use beans as a base, which is GREAT for food storage unless you need to eat fast or on the move. However, after digging around in my cookbooks, I learned the key to "fast beans" is doing the prep work ahead. Cooking them THEN dehydrating them. They become "instant beans" then. They will rehydrate right along with your others items. No worries!

2 Wonderful online resources for dehydrating your own food are:
Dehydrate 2 Store
Backpacking Chef

It is always best to try to find local coops to buy bulk from. However, if you don't have any in your area or want to get food now, here are some links. (Be sure to police your ingredients and be discerning consumers!)
Frontier Coop
Bulk Whole Foods
North Bay Trading Co
Bulk Foods
Azure Standard
GardenSpot Distributors
Dutch Valley
AaoobFoods

I shared this Post at Preparedness Challenge #17

Home, Sweet Home! (Poem)

Home, Sweet Home
Mid pleasures and palaces though we may roam,
Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home;
A charm from the sky seems to hallow us there,
Which, seek through the world, is ne'er met with elsewhere.
Home, home, sweet, sweet home!
There's no place like home, oh, there's no place like home!

An exile from home, splendor dazzles in vain;
Oh, give me my lowly thatched cottage again!
The birds singing gayly, that come at my call --
Give me them -- and the peace of mind, dearer than all!
Home, home, sweet, sweet home!
There's no place like home, oh, there's no place like home!

I gaze on the moon as I tread the drear wild,
And feel that my mother now thinks of her child,
As she looks on that moon from our own cottage door
Thro' the woodbine, whose fragrance shall cheer me no more.
Home, home, sweet, sweet home!
There's no place like home, oh, there's no place like home!

How sweet 'tis to sit 'neath a fond father's smile,
And the caress of a mother to soothe and beguile!
Let others delight mid new pleasures to roam,
But give me, oh, give me, the pleasures of home.
Home, home, sweet, sweet home!
There's no place like home, oh, there's no place like home!

To thee I'll return, overburdened with care;
The heart's dearest solace will smile on me there;
No more from that cottage again will I roam;
Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home.
Home, home, sweet, sweet, home!
There's no place like home, oh, there's no place like home!


John Howard Payne, 1822

Laundry on the Fringe

Hanging clothes on the line is my favorite chore. I like to do several loads in the morning when there is still shade over my line, because it is such a cool and pleasant time of spiritual reflection for me. The girls also like to help me and when they do, I enjoy it for different reasons. It moves quickly and they enjoy it and when you work side by side with your children - there is great joy in that! Sweet conversation are had in those moments. My little girls are too small to reach the line, so I put them to work handing me clips from the bag or sorting and handing me laundry from the basket. It is nice to put things on the line in the order of which we put them away. (Like grouping them by bedrooms and towels, etc.) So I will have them get me "all the boys clothes" or all the diapers and they like sorting through the things. The chore becomes a fun scavenger hunt. They also turn things right side out for me and match socks. Our team can make short work for 4 loads of laundry in the 'cool' of the summer morning. ( A good thing in a family of 8 that uses cloth diapers!) Since I found it more productive (and fun) for the girls to sort through the laundry than hand me clips, I just started filling my apron pockets with the clips from the bag for ease. However, today I didn't have apron on or pockets . Me and my 4 year old daughter came up with a fine solution, she would clips a row of them on the bottom of my shirt, and I would easily take them from their as I hung things. We had one more load to go and I let the girls decorate my whole shirt rim with the clips (knowing I would be using them as soon as I pulled the last load out of the washer). They thought that was a real blast. We all laughed and called them my Messianic Keeper at Home Tzit Tzit because it was a "fringe" all along the "four corners" of my garment and there was even "chords of blue". They were fun for all, stylish, obedient to YHVH and practical for my home keeping chores... Win - win - win! :-) (Tee hee)

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YHVH spoke to Moses saying, "Speak to the people of Israel, and tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a cord of blue on the tassel of each corner.And it shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of YHVH, to do them, not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, which you are inclined to whore after.
Numbers 15: 37-39

Our Feast Notebook

In the beginning....the Feasts were very confusing! There was so much to learn and sort through in regards to YHVH's Appointed Times. There were (ARE!) calendar differences and teachings, traditions to consider. The relevant Scriptures were peppered here and there in The Bible and wanted to keep track of the threads of evidences of the Feasts in not so obvious places, as we discovered them outside of the initial Torah instructions too. It was SO much to keep up with! So I decided to start a Feast Notebook. This notebook has nothing but FUNCTION in mind. Organizing my thoughts from one year to the next is important to me as I desire to see the "big picture" of His plan and how He has unfolded our own walk as we learn to synchronize our lives with it.

These are other elements that I try to incorporate into my Feast Notebook:

• I chose a notebook that was rugged enough to last through the years, and could handle being toted with us, shoved under the car seats during trips to special events and to withstand the riggers of camping trips for Sukkot. I wanted a notebook with lots of room, and secured pockets too. I love the zipper element of this too. It helps hold in loose odds and ends that may get tucked in "on the fly" and it keeps them safe until I can get back to it and properly secure and organize them. This notebook was the perfect choice for us.

• I also wanted a place to tuck teachings that were helpful or instramental in our walk in regards to the Feasts, as well as links.

• I wanted to provide a place to journal our personal experiences, each year for each event. How we observed it and the personal little thing you don't want to forget, like mishaps, and things related to the development of the children, as well as our spiritual revelations and growth.

• YHVH always puts new people in our path during the Appointed Times. People whom we can minister to and others who minister to us. We are so encouraged by seeing what Yah is doing in the lives of others and the work that he is doing in the hearts of His people as He is restoring them to His Word and Himself in mighty ways! This too, is something I want to keep records of. This helps me keep these folks in prayer year after year, even if we never have the opportunity to meet again. This community is like none other...there is a true sense of FAMILY that is built in keeping Yah's Appointed Times together. It is like brothers and sisters coming together to honor the Father they love at His request, they gather and celebrate Him. This is also a place for a "directory" to stay in touch with those folks, since they are often from far away places. It is so precious!

• Decorations, centerpieces, teaching tools, and things like that were also things I wanted to make notes about or even save in a "feast tub" to reuse if we really liked them. The notebook would provide a central place for that. Maybe that centerpiece we used that one year, didn't "do anything" for me...but one of the children remembered it as very special and they would like to recreate it when they start keeping Feasts in their own home. One may never know! SO a picture or even a little "how to" that was saved might really bless them in the future. It might bring a little piece of "home" with them when they find them selves far from us or maybe we have passed on.

• I have a divider with a pocket labeled for each Feast. These are placed in order of the Biblical Year. On the front of each divider is a "practical" element of the timing of the feast (which was so helpful in the beginning!!). The pockets allow me to quickly tuck in loose papers, pamphlets, keep sakes etc.

• I wanted to have a place to collect special feast recipes. I have our Pesach Lamb recipes, Charoset, and lots of Matzah recipes. Food is always intermingled into the Appointed Times in some way, so I wanted to be sure I recorded my successes, and even my failures if they are things I want to be sure to learn from.
  
  Now, don't get me wrong. I love things to be beautiful too...and I really enjoy the creative process of making things beautiful and special! However, I had to accept that there is 'a time and season for everything'. So I came to terms with the fact that for now...in this season (of likely SEVERAL years), I am going to try to just record as much as I can...then when the kids are grown and I have more time on my hands...if Y'shua has not yet returned....I will turn this eclectic collection of materials into a beautiful keepsake for each of my children. That was a compromise I decided I could live with.
  
  Keepin' it Real: When it comes to cataloging things, I seem to always fall short of my intent to do the grand things I plan. I start things and don't follow through to my satisfaction...but that is changing as I learn to be more practical about my goals and limitations and stop beating myself up over my ideals and my reality. I still aim high, but I have learned to push through my imperfections and make lemonade out of my lemons (instead of pitching the lemons in the trash, because I originally planned for was 'peaches')! With persistence and grace....each year, I get better and may add a new element or habit to the process to make it more complete and thorough. One year I might be really good at adding recipes, while another year I may be really good at journaling. One year I may forget about it all together, while the next year I become diligent to update and contribute to all the elements of the project.... And so it is...an accurate record of our walk after all..isn't it?!!!
  
  
  

Magic Erasers

Here are some photos of last Preparation Day. We don't always get to scrub the nooks and crannies of the house like we did this week, but we I LOVE when this gets done. I make most of my cleaners but there is one store bought cleaner that I just can't seem to duplicate..The Magic Eraser. Have you ever used one of these things? They are AMAZING!

The first time I was 'wowed' by the magic eraser was when I used one as a last resort to get Sharpie marker off my (claw foot) bathtub,( in the beautifully restore bathroom in the 1oo+ year old federal style brick house we sold before we moved here)...it worked! It came off like butter! Before I tried the araser, I had tried bleach and every cleaner I had, but it did not budge! The magic erasers are a wonder cleaner for any kind of mark or scuff you may find on your wall , base boards, door jams or other surfaces. I have cleaned pen, marker, scratches, scuffs and crayons off with ease. If you have little ones, these magic erasers should be one of your secret cleaning weapons! It makes chrome sparkle and door trim, light switches and my (white) cupboards shine. The walls behind my counters that (ALWAYS seem to be splattered ) and the stove (also constantly splattered) are often visited by my wet Magic Eraser. My white fridge that gets 8 sets if hands on it all day long also knows my magic erasers well. (Ok...maybe not well enough!!) It is one of the few commercial cleaners that I am comfortable letting the little kids use...and they love to use it...cuz it work like magic! :-)

The only thing that would make these little sponges any better would be if they didn't disintegrate during use...they are a very consumable item. Also, I might mention that we use a damp cloth, in one hand and the eraser in the other because it will leave a milky residue if you don't. So I wipe behind the eraser with a damp cloth...it still is so worth it!

By the way, the generic and off brands work just as well as the name brand one (that is what I buy, since I am training myself in frugality)...so don't pay the extra money for them - get the cheap ones!

If you have spring cleaning on the brain, don't forget your Magic Erasers!!

Cloth Pads

Sorry, Fellas - this post is for the ladies only.

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In recent months I was toying with idea of going back to cloth menstral pads. I have used them in past, I even made my own. So it wasn't a new topic for me. I just found myself in a different season of life and went back to store bought pads. I blessed someone with my cloth stash (I did the same thing with diapers in that season too and just recently had to replenished that supply!) Now that we are living on the farm and I am "training myself in frugality" in order to put every spare penny we have toward paying off our farm and developing it into something we can making a living from. I could not ignore the disposable nature and repurchase of this monthly need when I am not pregnant. Well...as I was pondering all these things and "leaning back in that direction" to convince myself to sew up a batch of pads...I found myself actually developing a sensitivity to the commercial paper products I was using. My procrastination was turning into a real urgent issue when that time of the month rolled around! The commercial pads made me itch and chafe! Yikes! That's not OK! So in the midst of my NEED, I started searching for them online. I came across a lady that makes and sells them on Etsy and purchased a pack. I was so pleased with them that I decided to give her my business instead of making them myself. So I bought more (probably more than I relly needed - but now I am well stocked for many many years to come and for me and my daughters to use.). I think she makes them better than I would anyway! I have been asked in the past for resources regarding this topic and this maker excels all the others I have suggested/used in the past. So I wanted to share her information with you.

Rachel (a.k.a. Pleat on Etsy - linked above) makes a "all in one pad" in several sizes. I personally own every one (with the exception of the thong style!). There is a panty liner, regular, overnight and an extra long overnight. Her descriptions are very thorough and detailed if you visit her page on Esty, so I will leave that to her. Below is photo of some of my (used) pads to show you the difference in scale between all 4 sizes. (I also want to show you how nice you can keep them if you wash them the way I do.) In addition to size coverage, they have different thicknesses to keep you covered in obsorbancy too. She quilts the different layers into a sturdy one piece pad, which seems to make the absorbancy more effective than the pocket style (in my opinion/experiance). Rachel (at Pleat) has thought of everything!

I have really come to appreciate the "all in one" style over the "pocket style" that I used to use. The pocket style pad is one that has inserts (usually folded to the thickness desired) and tucked into a pocket of the main pad. These are said to be advantageous because you can take them apart for cleaning and drying and customize the level of thickness/protection you need. However, I found them (in comparison) to be cumbersome and less comfortable than the "all in one" version. Depending on the brand/maker they can feel "wadded" and even slip some. Than you have lots of pieces to deal with in washing and storage. They seem bulkier to me than the "all one" design that Rachel makes. Because that was all I had used in the past, I was concerned about the idea that I might not be able to get them clean and or that they wouldn't dry effectively. However, I am very pleased to find out that I actually prefer the cleaning process with the "all in one" style pad!

Caring for the pads are easy. I just wash most of mine by hand in the sink after each use by using very cold water, and ringing them until he water runs clear. Then a add a squirt of my foam pump liquid castille soap I have on the counter with warm water, scrub it together and ring and rinse until it rinses clean. Than I ring the water out and hang it on a hanger with a clothes pin to dry. Or throw it in the dryer if I have another load going in at that time. Sometimes, I will do a partial rinse and throw it in a load of wash that is going it at the same time, but I rarely do that. Washing them right awat by hand ensures that I leave no stains behind. If I let the pads sit unwashed (like in a can or waterproof bag) they are more suseptable to stain. But hand washing at each change with cold water does the trick! They are so pretty, so I would like to keep them that way as long as I can. :-) It really is a simple process. When I go away, I just have a opaque waterproof bag, I carry in my purse or diaper bag. If I am in a place where I am not comfy rinsing them (like a public rest room) I will just do it when I get home or change to paper for that short time. I still keep some paper in stock in case company needs one.

Another thing I really appreciate about Pleat's design and function is the heavy duty snap she uses. I have used velcro before and had ones with cheaper snaps that were not constructed as strongly as these. The velcro, can become uncomfortable if it is not lined up just right. It also can collect lint in the wash, if you use a machine. I didn't like having to pick lint out of the sticky side of the velcro to get them to continue to hold together well! The cheap snaps wore our quickly, while I have not used these for along time, it is very obvious that the construction on these pads are much more solid than the other brands I have tried. Which was another reason why I just went ahead and stocked up hers instead of trying to make them myself.

Lastly, my oldest daughter is entering into this new season of life. I wanted to teach her how to use cloth right from the start. W would not have to pay for the expensive organic disposable pads to avoid the chemicals yet she would be protected. I like that!

Cloth pads are a little bit of an investment right up front...but it pays for itself in so many ways down the line! I feel really good about my choice to (finally) get back to cloth.

So if you are considering, a safe, soft, comfortable, effective, pretty, chemical free and sustainable alternative to commercial disposable personal care...I highly recommend checking out Rachel's Pads over at Pleat. I believe you will be as satisfied as I am.

(This is not a paid referral or affiliate program. Rather, just a satisfied customer who would love to send business Pleat's way because she has produced an exceptional product! You also might like to know that, the sales of these pads are the primary income for there family at the time of this writing!!) We have a developing friendship (they hope to homestead one day and thinks outside the box too, so we have some things in common!). So, go ahead and tell her I sent you. She'll know who you are talking about! :-)

This post was Shared at Simple Life Thursdays

Cuttin' Hair

I have been cutting my family's hair for several years now. It helps save us some money, it is more convenient than running out to do it and they are willing. :-) I thought it would be fun to post our last haircut. I like to get as many haircuts done at the same time as possible, so these day's Sunday makes a good Hair cutting day, since Papa is home. The males in the family are my biggest "clients".

I trim Hailey's a couple times a year. I also recently started cutting Naomi and Eliana's with the clippers every couple months. I have decided to keep their hair short in this "season" of our lives. We are a "low maintenance crew" and their hair really is high-maintenance if it has any length to it at all. When they get older and can care for it themselves. I will let them grow it out - but time and money at the salon and hours (and hours) every week doing hair...seems like a really vain waste of time to me. They are so beautiful...they don't need to do all that! ( I did the same thing with Hailey when she was 5 too...although it was not the same style, it was a short low maintenance cut.)

This is my son Gideon. He will turn 5 next month. During this hair cut he asked me, "Am I handsome, Mamma?" Oh my heart melted! Answer: " Yes, Baby! You are a VERY handsome young man!! VERY Handsome!" He lit up with delight and satisfaction at my answer.

Speaking of handsome...this is my Son Elijah (10). I could stare into His deep brown eyes all day long! I can't explain it...they have always had that effect on me ever since he was a baby.

My youngest boy (13 months) has not yet had his first hair cut.

I spent lots of time in salon's and similar places in my 20's. I was a professional make-up artist (in what seems like my "former life") and also worked for cosmetic companies. Maybe my approach now is part of my "turning away" from the vanity of it all...if you saw what I saw...you would understand. Anyway....I never went to "beauty school", nor was I formerly trained to cut hair, but being in "the business", I had lots of hairdresser friends and worked in a few salons, so I have seen it been done several times. I was around the "shop talk" a lot. That is how I learned, just by observing and experimenting. Every one's hair is different too...so I have learned what works for one head, may not look the same on the next! :-) Every one's head has different growth patterns, cowlicks, hair texture and thickness which adds to the learning process. My husband wanted to provide me with a proper 'Before and After Picture', by looking grumpy and unsatisfied in the "before" and then happy in the "after". Gotta love Him! Every time I cut his hair, it seems his beard gets longer. :-)

My husband's hair is the biggest challenge and is what started it. When we met and were engaged he had hair down the middle of his back. That's a lot of hair for a man who is 6ft 5in tall! We lived in San Franciso... Oh... how times have changed! (Halleluyah!) Then he started in sales and got it cut to be "respectable" at the council of his employers. He came home with so many bad hair cuts, I finally said, "I can do better than that" (Never having cut hair before! BTW) And that is what started it. He has gotten a few intermittent haircut in those years for "convenience", but now I am all my boys' exclusive barber. There was a learning curve, and I still get a slip of the wrist now and then. :-) But we have pretty much found our hair cutting groove now.

Haircutting is a wonderful skill for a momma to have! I intend to teach all my girls how to cut hair.

This post was shared on Simple Lives Thursdays

Homemade Cleaners We Use

For The Love of Work (with Little Ones)

It has always been a value of ours to raise our children with a strong work ethic. Some people might think that this is something only "farm families with 10 kids do", but that could not be further from the truth. We started this right from the start with our family, when we only had 2 kids and rented a house "down town" with about .27 acres of land! So I want to dispel that myth from the start. :-)

Now that we are on the farm and those first two kids are really at an age that their training for the years prior is showing it's fruits. They are a big help! Since we have chosen to homestead and our family has grown, there is no lack of opportunities to learn and do things. This is also a value we cultivated way before we ever kept Shabbat or knew there was such a thing as "Preparation Day"...yet like everything that YHVH leads us to do on Preparation Day is a wonderful exercise to put these principles in action! And it is followed by another wonderful object lesson of balancing our love of work by resting on Shabbat. It helps us to learn to be still as we sit back like YHVH did in the beginning and be satisfied with the work of our hands, the blessings that He has poured upon us and the ability turn it all off for Him. It's a beautiful thing.

Dehydrating

We have canned peaches in the past...but it is so hot this year I just can't get into it. So we are dehydrating them instead. They make an amazing dehydrated snack food. (great for traveling in the car we found out last week) We just completed our 5th case of them this summer.

In the winter time, the peaches rehydrate for cereals, muffins, pies, sauces, even jam. I just watch for good deals...buy lots (of the things I don't grow yet) and eat some, use some and dehydrate some for later. With dehydrating you have the ability to preserve you foods with enzymes still intact by not exceeding 115 degrees...its a slow process one or two days depending on the item being dehydrated and the relative humidity. It has become something I actually enjoy. It has become a very natural thing for me..some thing I can do on any given day in the midst of other chores or even leavin the house. It is simple and safe enough for others to help as well too. (Help is good, right!)

I have 3 dehydrators 9 tray (2 Excaliburs and a knock off I got on ebay). I have used other brands in past, but in my experiance the Excalibur is the best. The others make it more trouble than it is worth for me. If anyone knows of better unit .. please tell me. (I may replace the one "knock off" I still have.) I have a machine with the timer and one without...the timer is a wonderful feature, I do prefer it wiht the timer. It gives you more freedom to go about your day and leave home without worrying about how much time is left on the machine. I am told that they keep the timers exclusively to sell direct from the main compay and other wholesalers have the ones without the timers. (I learned this when I accidently bought my second one without a timer from an outside company thinking I was getting a good price, but not realizing it was a slightly differnt model. Oops.)

I have the dehydrators permanently set up on my back porch (other wise known as my pantry, summer kitchen and my husband's office). It is a very convenient way to preserve food. It takes up very little space and only uses the electric you need to process it (unlike a freezer which draws electric all year).

I am making a conscious effort to switch more and more of my food preservation to dehydrating. It takes a little commitment because you have to change how you think, cook and preserve...but I think the pay off is worth it. I have been pleased with everything I have done thus far. It also fits well into this whole new "slow food" mentality I am learning to cultivate.

Dehydrating is also a nice way to use use extra produce before it goes bad. You can prepare seasonings, and teas from fresh herbs. I dry my own herbs and elderberries. The family LOVES my jerky! It doesn't have the junk the store bought has in it; its organic grass feed beef; it is so easy to make and its fun to experiment with different marinades! I have also started using it incubate my yogurt..which is more convenient than the hot crock or thermos method I used to use and more consistent too. I make raw crackers and other yummy raw food creations.

The process of dehydrating is much more "child friendly" than canning too. There is washing, cutting, loading trays with fruit and in the machine. Our first couple of batches, I blanched the skins off like you do for canning...but didn't have time to do that last time so we just washed them cut them up and threw them in before we had to leave the house for the day. (You can't do that with canning!) We were very pleased with the results. No more blanching/skinning for me...I much prefer the simple alternatives in life whenever possible! There is little to no pretreating needed...I dunk my apple slices in a little lemon water while cutting...but out side of that..I haven't had to treat anything else.

Excaluber has an out standing dehydrating manuel that covers everything and anything on the topic, which I highy recommend. There are probably other good ones out there too...but I have not needed to hunt them since i have this one. There is also a wanderful website done by a lady who does lots of dehydrating videos in her kitchen.

This Post is linked to Simple Lives Thursdays

No More Poo

I started the "No Poo Challenge" Inspired by Mrs. Dixon's Invitation . The timing is perfect for me. I have been trying to formulate my own shampoo, with no success. I have very fine hair. It is like baby hair...but really thick and long. I have been using organic and natural store bought shampoos for about 20 years. I found a couple that work for me (after trying many and formerly using salon products). But still I would always have to have 2 kinds on hand and alternate them..otherwise there would be a build up on my fine hair. (Conditioner is never an option for me. My hair is super silky only with shampoo.. again think baby hair). Organic/natural shampoo is expensive and now that I have a house full of 8 using it...it's no longer a practical option...which is why I was hoping to learn how to make my own. 5 of the 8 of us have "my hair". While the other 3 have very different hair. I figure if this challenge works for me...most of us will be covered right off the bat, then we'll figure out the combination that works best for the other 3.

I read links and materials that were offered at the challenge and thought it would be worth a try. If you are interested, follow the link above. But the general idea is this: Instead of using a commercial shampoo, you make a solution of 1T of Baking Soda to 1C of water. Mix it well and wash with it. (although that will last you a couple washes) Apple Cider Vinegar is used as a conditioner (for normal people!). :-) The challenge is to try this for two weeks and see if it works for you.

I washed my hair for the first time with it today...it was WONDERFUL! I was SO pleased with the results. My hair is squeaky clean and full of body. I had a couple little baking soda flakes left in my hair upon inspection...but I will just take greater care in rinsing next time since I don't have the vinegar rinse to aid that. ( The specks brushed out with no trouble anyway.) I spent last weekend at my dads..both he and his wife smoke. When I got home, I scrubbed my hair a few times with both of my other shampoos and their was still a faint smell of smoke (YUCK!)...but after my soda wash..there was not trace of the smoke smell anymore! So that was also a wonderful thing!! 1 soda wash did what 2-3 shampoo washes couldn't with the smoke smell!

I may be a little too enthusiastic...but if there is no adverse effects of continuing this method as a full time way to wash my hair...I think I am hooked! I will report back with further washing to let you know how it goes. If you would like to take the challenge please go to the link above and sign on.

Really....It is no wonder this works...I make my own deodorant and toothpaste with baking soda as primary ingredients. I also use it in a homemade flea powder and homemade scouring powder for cleaning. Why didn't I think about it for my hair?? This also has me thinking...how would it work on washing the dishes??? Hmmm... I think I'm going to have to experiment with that!

Getting Antsy

Do you struggle with ants? We had an army desend on our kitchen. They found my baking cupboard which holds the honey, agave and molasses. They came out of the woodwork in every direction to devour our sweet syrups... We emptied the cupboards, and wiped everything down..4+ times - but they still came! It seemed impossible for us to manage. We use the honey it regularly and have "several cooks in the kitchen" so there was always a drip or a smear that would draw the army in.

I started leaving the "bait" on the counter so I could better moniter it and try to stop it. I put "ant repellant" on my "remember board" in the kitchen to remind myself to start researching herbal deterants...than..... a lightbulb went on in my brain ( i like to call Him the Ruach ha Kodesh!)...."put it in a bowl of water". So I did. We have not seen an ant in the kitchen since! (Except for when we forget to take out the compost bowl at night!) The honey pictured here is a 5 pound jug. It doesn't take much water to do the trick, just about a 1/4 inch deep and an inch wide moat around the bait. We also found we could stack our qrt jar of molasses on top of the honey in the same water-bowl. As long as there is no bridge over the little moat, it is secure. We plan to do the same for our pets' food bowls (in a shallow pan).

Ant Free Kitchens Unite!

Copy Cat Recipes

I came accross a really cool frugal site recently that has LOTS and LOTS of copy cat recipes. Recipes for things like:

Wheat Thins
Boboli Pizza Crust
Ben n Jerrys Ice Cream recipes
Hidden Valley Ranch Mix
Hershey's Chocolate Syrup
(the list goes on and on)

There is also a VERY extensive list of recipes of "mixes" of every kind. (Just keep scrolling down.)

If that is isn't enough, there is the longest list of recipes for household cleaning and assorted things I have ever seen! It is arranged and broken down into alphabetical sections..it is so long!

It's worth a visit! I have added it my domestic links.

The BEST Deoderant

I got this recipe from a friend who raved about it. Then another friend tried it and raved about it. Since I have been on the lookout and tested what seems like EVERY natural deodorant on the market for 20 years (I am not exaggerating...I used to run a whole foods business!) I was a bit resigned to the fact that one must reapply natural deodorant and one must
freshen up through the day. Those days are over! I am so absolutely tickled!!! It is simple and easy to make too.

Equal parts Corn Starch and Baking Soda (you might try 1/4 C each) and Coconut Oil*.

You just put your powders in a bowl than take a spoon full of (hard) coconut oil and work it through the powders with the back of the spoon to form a smooth paste in the consistency you like. I store it in a little Pyrex jar or 1/2 pint jelly jar. Scoop a little out with your finger and apply to your pits like lotion. It doesn't stain, it doesn't show, it goes on "dry feeling", it lasts ALL day and night, it has no scent**.

*For storage sake -note: Do not substitute another oil for coconut oil. If you are not familiar with it, it gets hard when cool (room temp) and wet (like olive oil) when warmed in storage. So keep that in mind...I just keep it in my bathroom and it stays solid, but if it gets super hot or stored in a car while traveling in summer or something - it will soften or "get wet" in storage. It doesn't hurt it...you might want to keep that in mind with your container for travel.

** I plan to make another batch with essential oils for fragrance and added bacterial protection, however, it is nice to have one unscented so you have other fragrance options (and DH doesn't smell like lavender!). I like to use oils and flower essences from time to time.

p.s. It doesn't sting after a shave either!

Ticked

In the last 48 hours we have removed 11 ticks from our beagle; 2 from my 4 year old; 3 from my 9 year old; 1 from my 3 month old; and one from my 3 yr old and one from my husband. Welcome to farm life...this is our first Spring here.

Does anyone know of an herbal remedy for ticks and fleas THAT WORKS? (especially ticks) Safe for people and pets. We have tried several over the counter premade herbal products, that do not seem to work. I would LOVE to find a homemade recipe THAT WORKS. We have resorted to Frontline for the pets...but would love an alternative for them too.

Desperately Yours,

Canning Dry Beans

I have stocked my pantry with dry goods and we are buying very little prepared foods from the store these days. I am learning to created my own "convenience foods" from scratch. By doing this, I know how the foods were prepared and exactly what went in them. This year I stopped buying canned beans. This was an item I always had stocked in my pantry to whip out for quick meals that didn't take much thought. I use black beans, white beans, aduki and pinto beans regularly. When I stopped my Health Food Club, I really started to see how expensive organic has become in the stores. I tried to "compromise" with non-organic...but if you ever read the label - you would see- it's not good. I was not comfortable buying them....so I decided I would need to learn to plan ahead and use my dry beans. It works well...as long as
I think ahead for soaking! I learned a few tricks for soaking beans: You can soak beans WAY ahead, drain them and store them in the fridge. They keep for a week + and they are their when you need them. That was very helpful...except for taking up precious fridge space. :-) I really missed that pantry convenience. I started searching for recipes to can dry beans, and after sifting through (what seemed like) a hundred green bean recipes....I finally found one to can dry beans! This was so exciting for me! So I thought I would share it with you - in case there is anyone else out there as crazy as me. I still use my dry beans when I think ahead - but it is so nice to have that fast food option on my pantry shelf as well! (Keep in mind you can do this same thing with any baked bean or prepared bean recipe you like! Just make the recipe and can it with these instructions.)


You will need:

A Pressure Canner/Cooker with a gauge
5lbs of dried beans of your choice = 7 Qrts
or
3 1/4 pounds of dried beans of your choice = 9 Pints
1/2tsp per pint jar OR 1 tsp salt per Qrt jar


The Day Before Canning: Rinse and Soak Beans for 12-18 hours (put in large pot and cover with twice as much water)

Canning Day:

1. Drain water and cover with fresh water (about an inch to 3 above beans) cover and boil for 2o minutes.

2. Prepare your canning jars and lids (sterilize and keep hot).

3. When beans are done boiling, put salt in each jar and add cooked beans with cooking water, leaving 1 inch head space. Wipe rims clean and affix leads.


Processing:
Pints = 75 minutes at 10lbs pressure
Qrts = 90 minutes at 10lbs pressure

Enjoy!

I have shared this post at Homestead Revival.

Agar Agar

I have discovered Agar Agar as a fine substitute for gelatin. Try it sometime... It is a plant based powder found in health/bulk food stores.

If you have any tricks/recipes to share about it - please post them here under "comments"!

Canning Without Sugar

Canning and Preserving Without Sugar, by Norma M. Macrae, R.D.


This book has turned out to be a wonderful resource for canning without sugar! It has several alternatives to sugar, grape juice, apple juice and honey to name a couple. It also explains how to use Agar Agar for a thickener instead of gelatin for thickening jams and such (instead of gelatin). It is a valuable tool for those who want to preserve things a better way. It is loaded with recipes and charts and general canning knowledge. I was confident to fiddle with things myself after reading this book, it really helped take the "mystery" of canning for me. Most people don't even know you can can without sugar because there is so little guidance out there in this area. I'm here to say, "YOU CAN - CAN WITHOUT SUGAR AND IT TASTES GREAT!"

I've made blackberry jam, peaches, peach butter, and tomato sauce so far. I've got a lot more planned, it takes a little doing to get started...but its easy once you get going!