PrairieMouse's House

Sounds of Spring are here

Today was just so pretty out that I decided that I should sit outside and get some hand work done while soaking up the sunny rays. While sitting there, the birds were just chirping away like crazy, the mason bees were buzzing around my feet, and hubby and I could hear a woodpecker in the background pecking his little heart away. Oh the sounds of Spring, I just love it.

I did get my other mini greenhouse filled today with new garden seeds. I put in bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, carrots, mexican red beans, great white northern beans and greeen onions. Man o man, are those the tiniest seeds I have ever had to handle. It was almost a tweezer time with the onions and peppers. We love chili in our house so I am starting some mexican red beans for the first time along with the white northerns. Come winter time next year, we will be set for chili and bean soup.

Hubby and I did get some black plastic anchored down on the four garden beds today. I am hoping that it helps to heat up the soil plus kill of any weed seeds that may have gotten in there. I plan on keeping it covered for at least a couple of weeks so it does really good. That's the nice thing about raised beds, you can do it fairly easy. I am hoping by then to add my fertalizer and get planting the rest of the way. They say for our area to start putting things in the ground four weeks before the last frost and that should be about right. My fingers are itching to get dirty!

I guess I should go and see about some supper. Hubby and I watched a movie earlier and ate a bowl of popcorn, so now dinner is gonna be a tad bit late. Oh well.

Oh, and the good news, daughter called me from the grange to let me know that the chicks will be arriving on the 30th of this month. They will have all kinds to choose from. Hubby and I plan to get two of each, maybe three. At $2.33 each, I think that will work out great. Doing the happy dance here.

What projects are you ladies working on????

I just read on Crystal's message boards that several of the ladies are working on crochet projects, knitting projects and yes even sewing projects.  I felt a little like the black sheep of the family when I posted that I am currently working on 3 recipe scrapbooks.  LOL  I don't crochet or knit, and I wanted to finish these projects before starting a new sewing project.  Two of them are for Christmas presents for my SILs and are more than 70% done I would say.  The third one is for a friend and I haven't even started it yet.  I am hoping to get my goodies out tonight and do some work on them though.

I am done with baby quilts for now (which I took pics of and uploaded on the computer and now can not find.  LOL  So I have requests out to the mommy's to send me pics of the babies with their quilts.  When I get them I will try to post for you all!) and will move on to Noah's quilt, and then the sisters and neices aprons for Christmas presents.  I love sewing up aprons.  Many moons ago every woman had several aprons to wear while housekeeping and cooking.  Now a days, I find many of my family and friends don't have one, but when they see mine they want one so badly!  LOL  So hopefully the girls will love their aprons when they receive them.

So, the question is....what projects are you working on right now??? Perhaps you are dipping candles like Chas, or making a new Spring table runner.  Tell us if you are making jelly, or sewing up pajamas (another project for the littles for Christmas this year!), or scrapbooking.  Enquiring minds want to know!

Virtual Kitchen Garden Planner

What a beautiful day today is gonna be. We have been having sunny days for the last couple of days and I have been outside and soaking up the sun. I am getting around better, which is good, and am getting things caught up. Yesterday hubby and I went out to the front yard and got some weeds pulled and some raking done. I am so excited to get some bulbs planted but will have to wait about three more weeks to do that. By then I will be able to bend the knee better and sit on the ground. In the meantime, I have been watching my seeds pop up their little heads in the greenhouse garden down in the basement. I have noticed that some seeds did not  come up yet and hope that they do soon. I will need to take the heating pad out from under them soon to start more seeds in the next greenhouse. I have 72 cells to fill and lots of seeds to plant. I have found this wonderful site that I thought you might like. This company sent me a catalog and it is a keeper. Gardeners is a very useful site as it has a virtual kitchen garden planner that you can go to and set your garden beds up with. I usually do it on graph paper, but this site is fantastic. I couldn't believe how much more I am able to plant in my 4 by 8 feet raised beds. I sat one night and played around to do all four of my beds and was able to print it all out. Great for those that keep records of what they planted where, so they know what to do next year. I can't wait to go get my hands dirt!!!

As for today, my daughter is bringing over the grandbabies and me more floss. I am making a waist apron out of red gingham and doing some cross stitch work on it. I have the pockets done but am now working on the borders at the bottom. I hope to have it done this weekend and put in the shop. I need to hit Wal-Mart at payday time to get more gingham in other colors as well. Working with the little checks makes my eyes go buggy but I have found a secret that works for me now. With that in mind, I can work on more aprons using this material. I also need to go and turn off all the fans in the house. I mopped the floors this morning and didn't want to see kitty foot prints all over the floors.  Since all the laundry is done, oh it was so good to sleep on sun dried sheets last night, I think hubby and I will work on getting started on those kitchen towel holders today too. Lots and lots to do.

Take care and enjoy the website.

A Pretty Day....

It is so pretty today!!! We are trying to get our school work finished so we can spend sometime out doors:)

We planted onions, lettuce, brocolli, and cabbage last night. We have our potatoes so we can now plant them anytime. We bought 50 pounds so we hope to get a few potatoes this fall:) We also have our tomatoes growing under lights we have now transplanted them the first time...we might have to do this at least one more time. They are looking healthy:) We are also looking into getting a few cherry trees:) Our fruit trees are doing so well.

I have been getting a little spring cleaning done...I have cleaned all the windows it is good to be able to look outside with out finger prints everywhere:) We are working on our downstairs living area too! We have decided to build some built in book cases...we are getting wood for that this weekend.  I don't think we are going to make an extra bedroom now...we just want to get the room finished and painted that might get done at a later date.

I took a lot of great pictures of the chickens yesterday I hope to post them soon...they are also glad things are greening up....we gave them some green grass yesterday they look like they were jumping for joy:) I will be glad when we can get them back out into the chicken tractor. They have been such a joy to have in our little homestead..how very blessed we are!!!  I am still wanting to get rabbits but we are now just getting used to having the chickens. I was surprised that winter wasn't as hard as I thought....it only got  to freezing a few days. I know rabbits need to be kept warmer I think? Always something to learn:)

Many Blessings,

Renee

Get It In Gear Girl!!!

I have to admit I have more energy than in previous weeks of this pregnancy, but I haven't accomplished much with that extra energy.  LOL  I am still dragging my feet a little, and I just need to get my booty into gear!!!  I have made a goal to get this house back into working order by next Friday!  I will work hard on it this weekend with a little help from hubs, and finish up the last details and grocery shopping and pantry organizing next week while Noah is in school!  I feel so disorganized and not myself when the house is in disaray, there is laundry waiting, etc.

So, today is Friday and Noah has no school.  He will be helping me in the toy area cleaning up, putting away and organizing.  He is a wonderful help!!!  After that is done, I will dust all the tables and such and vacuum.  Noah loves to wipe down the tables, so perhaps he will help with that as well!  In between cleaning, vacuuming, etc. I will try to get the dreaded laundry caught up today and put away before the weekend really begins.  For me that means, no laundry during the weekends.  We like to have at least one thing we don't worry about on the weekends.

Matthew will help me with dishes since my hip has been bothering me and I just can't stand very long right now.  It's one of the things he honestly doesn't mind doing.  I am thankful for his help, and hanging out in the kitchen usually puts him in the mood to bake.  LMSO  So maybe we will have some muffins or biscuits this weekend from hubs. 

Tonight Matthew has an appointment at 6 with our tax lady.  I have all the paperwork in order on the family's finances, etc. but since he has his own electrician business, he needs to talk to her about what she needs, etc. to figure his side of the taxes correctly.  We are praying for some BIG MONEY on our tax return, because I have a few bills that need to be paid in full soon.  If the tax refund is as big as I am hoping, we should be debt free except for our mortgage by the end of summer, or the end of the year at the latest!

I wrote our picture appointment for Easter pics down on the wrong day....so pics are TOMORROW, not today.  LOL  I am glad I checked with Renea last night instead of just showing up on the wrong day.  LOL I got NOah some cute sorts and polos yesterday, so I am thinking he will wear his choice of them.  

Well ladies, that is the boring antics of our household.  LMSO  Nothing too exciting here this weekend....taxes, coffee with the girls on Saturday morning, pictures that afternoon, etc,  LOL

Candle Making

part of the learning experience.

First Ride of the Season!!!

Yahoo! We finally got the bike out and rode the better part of today! I didn't get my laundry done, or my floors mopped or my kitchen scrubbed...
What I did get is time with my husband, doing something we both enjoy, that didn't cost an arm and a leg...

I think we all need "days off" sometimes to just relax and enjoy life, don't you? The housework is always going to be there tomorrow, and the memory of the fun that was had together will last a lifetime...

Go out and enjoy today, for tomorrow is not promised...

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood.....a beautiful day in the neighborhood.....

I woke up to birds chirping outside my window.....a cool crisp air.......a little boy laughing......a hubby's kiss......oh what a wonderful day!  LOL    Ok, so I wanted to sleep in (but Noah had school), but most of the rest is true!!!  While I was running errands I had the window down from some fresh air and I have enjoyed the sun today as well!!!!!

Noah quickly got ready for school today because I spent an extra 10 minutes in bed trying to wipe the sleep from my eyes....and when he was gone on the bus, I went to WAL-MART!!!  Wally World and I have a love/hate relationship.  I love going there......and spending money.......but I hate going there....and spending money!!!  LMSO  I ended up finding a few winter shirts for Noah for next winter on clearance for $5 each and then found a pair of shorts and polo shirt he can wear for pics tomorrow.

Noah is having Easter pics taken tomorrow.  It is cheaper to have them taken now when they are running a special than to wait until his birthday in April to have his 4 year old pics taken, so I am taken advantage!  LMSO   He better smile is all I am going to say!!!

Noah's bus was LATE today coming home.  I was wondering if they were every going to bring my boy home.  LMSO  I called the school and they had some bus problems and were running late.  When they got here, the bus driver said it was their 3 bus of the day!!  UGH!!!  And since they have 19 kids in kids carseats, that means they moved carseats and had to rebuckle, etc. 3 times today! UGH!

Friday, Matthew is talking to our tax lady.  I already have the paperwork all ready for her, except his receipts and such on HIS business.  So the rest is up to him and her.  I am praying for BIG MONEY< NO WHAMMYS!!!  LMSO  I already have alot of the money allocated for one thing or another, so I am hoping it comes in quickly so I can pay off some bills.  I think by the end of summer, or at least by the end of the year for absolutely sure, we should be debt free again except for the mortgage.  Then we will start putting our extra money into paying off the mortage again!!!  YEAH!

This weekend, I am having coffee (ok I dont' drink coffee, so I will have chai! LMSO) with the girls at the coffee shop.  I don't get to make it often, but when I found out my girlfriend from California is going to be there, I put it on the calendar and told Matthew I needed to go and he was in charge of Noah!!!  LMSO

Well all, I hope you have a fabulous day!!!

Life, up date

It has been a long time from my last post.  I am doing some what better with the loss of my beloved Hope.  some days are better than others.  We did adopt a puppy her name is Issabella.  We enjoy her, but she can not replace Hope.  

Kristi our baby turned 18 years old.  That one is hard at times. where did the time go??  She is a senior in high school and going to college, time has gone by so fast.  Our oldest daughter Dejah is expecting our fourth grandbaby on my birthday November 1st.   We are so happy and can not wait for the new baby.

My friend Annie's daughter, Jennifer, who is 25 years old, had emergency surgery due to she has cancer.  Jennifer is getting married in December. Her husband to be and his family are a blessing to them all.  They are sad that Jennifer can not have babies any more, but they say they will love any child brought into the family.  Annie is having a hard time, she is heartbroken.  Jennifer is waiting for her results to start cemo.

I think that is it.  I will be posting more, getting out of this rut.

Blessing's Mj 

Kombucha Tea: Part 3

Alrighty... by the magic of blog-a-vision we are now a week later and ready to bottle up our Kombucha!

I brought my jars out of my closet and snapped a pic of the mushrooms floating in the tea.  They almost look like a Jellyfish!  They can float, they can sink, they can rise all the way to the top.. it is all fine!

As you can see, this one floated to the top of this jar.

A healthy culture. 

Ok, now what I do is take the tea and run it through a strainer and collect any gunk that forms in the tea, little bits of the yeast.  It isn't going to hurt you to drink it but it is NOT pleasant. I strain it into a large measuring cup that has a spout for pouring...

Here is a picture of some of the collected yeast that is strained... it is a bit like a glob of mucus... Yes, I know it is gross! But remember the good qualities, plus you are not drinking this part!

Now I place a funnel into our bottles... I got these from a place that sells the stuff to brew your own beer and wine.  These bottles are GREAT because they are resealable so there is no need for new corks or new caps!
I fill them as full as I can get them.

I have 10 beautiful bottles of Kombucha ready for the second brewing stage.  I had 12 but I broke one and one is loaned out.  I also have almost 8 cups of Kombucha left over that I don't have bottles for.  I am thinking about buying another case of bottles for Shannon for Christmas, he loves the stuff!

Ok, this is what you do now.  Place the bottles or jars or whatever you store it in, back in a dark storage area for 5 more days... ***I used to not do this step...*** I do now because it makes  a HUGE difference!!!!
While in the storage for the second brewing the Tea becomes bubbly, like soda or champagne and mellows a bit... It really makes a tremendous change!
So make sure you don't forget this step.
Now you are ready to start the process over again!