Here is the website where I found the recipe for the bagels I made the other night:

http://hubpages.com/hub/Homemade_bagel_recipe_Make_great_nadrolled_water_bagels__its_as_easy_as_baking_a_loaf_of_bread

A ridiculously long link, I know, but for some reason I can't figure out how to make proper hyperlinks (can anyone tell me how to do this? The ol' "a href" thing doesn't seem to work on this site, does it?), so you'll have to copy and paste for now. It's worth it - the bagels are amazing! I cannot WAIT to make them again. Actually, I'm home alone tonight so I may go bake to keep myself occupied. I want to try cinnamon raison! MM! Also, the recipe uses a surprisingly small amount of flour. I'm sure if I wanted to use less yeast, too, I could let it work overnight, which would probably yield something of a sourdough taste. I'll have to experiment. If anyone makes these, let me know! I'm pretty much ridiculously excited about it. (Can you tell? X-D)


My yogurt efforts, however, are still not doing very well. >.< I tried another batch with a different recipe, and this time let it incubate on a towel-covered heating pad under a glass mixing bowl with a sweater over it (as I was setting up this contraption, both my husband and my hedgehog were giving me very odd looks), so I know it was plenty warm. The results were almost identical to my first attempt: definitely yogurt, but in liquid form, with no body to it to speak of. GRR.

However, I refuse to be vanquished. When I was glancing at the ingredient list of the cup of commercial yogurt I was using as a starter, I noticed the one ingredient I lacked in my own yogurt: pectin!! I wonder if this is the missing link in my quest for perfect, thick yogurt? I have no experience whatsoever with pectin, but I figure now is as good a time as any to learn. Is it heat activated? If so, I imagine I could just toss some in when I'm heating the milk and see what happens. Worst case scenario, we just have funny-tasting milk over our cereal tomorrow morning. :-p

Other quick updates: Franklin's foot is healing nicely; he has a follow-up vet's appointment this Thursday to make sure that everything is going as planned. He finished his antibiotics, for which we are both grateful (there's nothing quite like wrestling a *hedgehog*, of all creatures, into letting you stick a syringe in his mouth and squirting sticky pink stuff down his throat twice a day. Ouch!).

Also, Todd and I are continuing to work on that research project at Harvard, the one for his uncle's book. We haven't had much time yet to really devote to it, but this week we are going to crack down and put in some good library time (our main project is tracking down letters exchanged between Theodore Roosevelt and one of Todd's uncle's ancestors over a twenty-year period, bringing them into the best focus possible on the microfilm machine, and then burning them to CD). It took us most of this time figuring out just how to get into Lamont Library, since technically only Harvard students and faculty are supposed to be allowed into the Harvard libraries, but we did it! Since the TR letter collection belongs to the government, they technically had to let us in if we wanted to see them. I felt so sneaky running around that library when we were there yesterday. :-)

Alright. I think I'm going to putter around online a bit longer and then go make BAGELS! Yay!

Well, yesterday was a failrly productive day... you know those days when you have so much to do but you have no clue where to begin? I had one of those... so really, not a whole lot was accomplished.

DH went to our son's house to have some coffee in the AM with him, and brought back our beautiful little granddaughter... so that was a good thing... except when she started getting tired, and fussy....

She refused to lay in her little portable bed that Grandpa and I have here for all the grandchildren, so she made a little attempt at the couch....with Grandma rubbing her little face and hair, she finally went to sleep...At least until the rambuncious and loud Uncle Logan woke her up....

Amelia went to work for her first day yesterday... and boy! did she look spiffy in her uniform! She said all she did was serve coffee, but that's pretty good for her 1st day, eh? She was excited, and I hope and pray that this will help her understand finances a little better. She just doesn't understand the concept that money really doesn't grow on trees.... do any young ones really understand that though?

I am proud of her....

Here's after work....and with her neice that never leaves her side when she's home....

And of course, DH and I did some impromptu grocery shopping after we dropped Amelia off at work. Weren't going to, but they had some 10 for $10 sales going on that we couldn't resist! When we came home, we straightened up our pantry downstairs and took inventory, so we have a running list of what we have and don't have. DH did it, but I can think if certain things he missed, so I think I will double check today. It was in pretty big disarray down there, and he was cleaning up as he was going, so that's probaly why things were missed.... and that's ok. I'd like to have a list of what's in the freezer too...

I have started the $5 a Week Food Pantry List ( http://theideadoor.com/Preparedness/food_storage_for_5.htm)  and want to be prepared, so I need to see just what I have down there.

Hey! I did get 2 buckets from Meijers bakery yesterday! The ladies gave them to me! Now when I buy in bulk, I can put separate baggies into the buckets and keep critters out of my food! I'm washing them up real good today, and I have some wheat that needs to be stored, so I will accomplish that today.

And that was yesterday....

Today has already begun... at 3:30am as matter of fact... with a crying baby who didn't want to go back to sleep until 5am for her Grandma. But that's ok. It gives me time to read my Bible a bit, and make my family a good breakfast.

So see? Waking up early is a good thing... even when you DON'T have to work that day!!

~Blessings to you all~

Dora and her family from church came by last night for me to worm and give their dogs a set of shots.   It is so funny how people see things .   Dora was watching Jeffie how he was with Michelle (she stopped by for a bit) and she also watched how Jeffie is with Shayna. 

Dora told me with tears in her eyes " Shayna is his mom"  I gave a sad smile and said I know.   She remembers them from church events and other home schooling events.  Dora knows Shayna is his aunt (tea as he calls her) and that Shayna has raised him for a lot of his life.

We are blessed that Shayna at 15 years old took on the roll.  They have such a strong bond.  He cries every time he has to go.

Here are some of Shayna's senior pictures taken last year at this time.  Shayna was 17 and Jeffie was 2.5.  We bought the hole cd so we have the funny ones too:

Jeffie will be 4 in January.

God Bless, mj

Last night Harold and I went grocery shopping.  We left the kids at home.  We did get some rain, but not to much.  Boise got over an inch of snow. 

Today we got up late.  I was getting ready to fix breakfast when Josh reminded us that we had to take the turkeys in today to be butchered.  The place is only a couple of miles from us, so it isn't to far to take them in.  When we got home, Harold and I ate breakfast.  The kids had eaten already.

I did a couple of loads of laundry today.  We hung one load up outside to dry in the wind.  The other is hung up in the living room.  I have a clothesline from one side of the room to the other side.  I then hang my clothes on hangers on the clothesline.  The heat from the wood stove gets them dry.  I don't mind having them in my living room as long as they don't hang there to long.  I haven't used my dryer for 4 or 5 years.  In fact, we moved it out to the barn last year.

Supper tonight is chicken noodle soup.  I cooked an old layer hen in the crockpot yesterday.  I heated that up today and then added carrots, celery, onions, and noodles.  We will have Jalepeno cheese bread and whole wheat rolls to go along with it. 

Harold got the door for the wood cook stove done today.  It looks good.  He worked on a cap for the chimney.  Every time that it rained, the water would come down the pipe and get everything wet.  We still have a little piece of pipe to put in before we can use it.  I worked on grape juice today.  I am juicing the green grapes, and they don't seem to be as juicy as the concord grapes.

I had so much fun last night - I made bagels and yogurt!

The bagels were an absolute snap to make - I had no idea it was so easy. I make all of my own bread so I'm sure it was easier for me than it would be for someone without that experience, but still, it took only a little over an hour (including rising! Part of it is that they don't really rise, just rest). And it was so much fun to roll them and get creative with toppings (I dipped some in cinnamon sugar, some in cornmeal, and made some plain), and they were SO. SO. DELICIOUS. I would recommend it for anyone! Probably the best part, though, was seeing the look of amazement on the faces of Todd and my roommates and hearing them say, "Bagels!?? Don't you need a factory to make those?" X-D Hee hee!

The yogurt recipe is one I got from one of my favorite, FAVORITE websites, hillbillyhousewife.com (if you've never heard of it, please go there IMMEDIATELY!). You can view the recipe here. I've never made yogurt before, so it was definitely a learning experience!! I followed the directions to a tee and set up the batch to incubate in our toaster oven overnight. The lowest setting it has is 200', so I set it halfway between OFF and 200', right when the light clicks on. I'm not sure it was actually making any heat, however. :-S In the morning, I definitely had yogurt - it tasted like yogurt and was a bit goopy. However, it hadn't set up. :-( It wasn't a total failure, as it did in fact have the taste and basic texture, it was just quite runny. Todd and I mixed it with frozen berries and wheat germ this morning for a *splendid* yogurt drink. MMM.

Overall, it was a fun experience and I can't wait to try it again! I am determined to become an expert on this homemade yogurt  business. We love yogurt, so it will save us a good amount of money, and I thought it tasted fabulous - very sweet, with just a hint of sour. I like the sour yogurt from the store, but I love this one, too. Does anyone know why it didn't set up, though? Do we think it was too cold? I know it didn't overheat, because I was careful about that. I didn't kill the bacteria, because it did in fact turn into yogurt. What's the difference between runny yogurt and thick yogurt if it's still yogurt? I don't fully understand the science yet.

Any comments and critiques from experienced (or beginning!) yogurt-makers would be most welcome!! What other incubation methods should I try? I have a heat pad for our hedgehog, but I don't know if it would be too hot. I think it hangs out around 120 degrees. If I put a towel over it, the yogurt on that, and a bowl over the whole contraption, would the heat be less concentrated and more even?

(My next project will be to see how many times I can use the word 'yogurt' in just one blog post... >.<)

Day Seventeen: October 11, 2008
23 days, 15 hours and 30 minutes left until election day.

For Issues of Faith and Prayer to Remain Key in This Election

Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
-- John 8:32

Holy Lord God, You are strong, mighty and powerful, and You move among us so that we cannot miss Your presence and activity in the world.  You reveal Yourself in the beauty, love and kindness that surround us.  You know all things, and all things are revealed by You and before You. 

How I praise You, God, that prayer has been freely spoken of during this election!  I ask that the importance of prayer will remain key in this election as the date draws near.  May all citizens long for the truth that is available only in You, and may they find that truth and the freedom that accompanies it.  In Jesus' holy name, amen.

 

This is a reprint of the 40 Days of Prayer, Praying for the Vote

 

but we did manage to get most things done on my list. Grabbed all the boxes that were available, packed up the rest of my canned goods. Will do some more packing today, would like to get the walls washed down in some of the rooms, but I think that will have to wait till I get it more empty as is it becoming a surround of boxes in here.

Well were still waiting on in the insurance company to get someone to insur us. We should be hearing something on Monday. He was trying to get us farmers insurance.....I said it maybe near a year before we get any farm animals....why should I be paying for something that hasn't happened yet. So he's looking for homeowners insurance.....DUH!!! Like were made of $$$$.

It is a good thing Brian decided to wait another 2 weeks to close as this was an unexpected expense, having to pay for a year of homeowners insurance in advance. Probably looking at $600-700.

Sitting here looking around at all that has to be done....it's overwhelming, but I'm telling myself not to stress out, take a deep breath that it isn't so bad, take one step at a time. Got myself a list of things that need to be done (just so I don't forget anything).

It doesn't help that the kitchen faucet quit working the other day....so I go to the bathroom and draw my water from there (it's a inconvience, but atleast I have running water). Brian is suppose to look at it today, sure hoping we don't have to purchase a new one.....no more expenses! Only have 6 more days till we move....and yes I can do with out a kitchen faucet till then if it come to purchasing a new one.

Going to work at the orchard for a bit today, then I'd feel better if I got a few more boxes packed.

Dear bloggers,

I am sorry I so offended everyone with my last post. I don't know what to say. I'm sorry my wording didn't come out the way I intended  - I wrote it at 4 am and was just thinking and wondering. I'm kind of in shock. I have been extremely misunderstood.

I guess I did not make clear in my last post that I have been disillusioned by both homeschooling AND PUBLIC SCHOOL. My post was written with the hopes that someone could help me in deciding how my own children should be schooled when they come along. Instead, I was ridiculed and made to feel like a complete scumbag. I am not judging anyone here!! I am asking people for PROS on public or homeschooling. In my EXPERIENCE, neither worked out for me, and I'm sad about that. I want my children to have a better experience in school than I did, be it in public or home school. I'm not lying when I say that the homeschooled children I grew up with had a hard time socially. That doesn't mean that that's true of all homeschoolers, or that I think that! I was hoping for positive stories that would help me lean toward homeschooling without the trepidation I have now regarding it.

Ugh. I feel sick. I'm really sorry. Please forgive me. I didn't mean any of that last post the way everyone thought I did. I just wanted to hear people's opinions and feel better about my childrens' options for school, I guess. I don't even know now. This is a nightmare. I love this website and the people here and I'm so ashamed that I've gone and made everyone think I'm a basher or something. I'm not! I was ranting about my own negative experiences with school and hoping that someone could tell me some good ones regarding theirs or their childrens'.

I'm going to bed.

Well, hubby is back safe and sound from his overnight to Kentucky. I called him this AM when I got up for work, and all was well. He had a partner with him, but he said that he (DH) drove on the way home. I kind of figured he would. He drives on 98% of our trips anywhere. He's a good driver, and besides, I tend to sleep whenever I am in the car )passenger side)! LOL!

We finally have Amelia set and ready for work. She starts tomorrow!  She got her physical and we went to pick up her uniforms today. Of course, she looks adorable! Black pants, white tuxedo shirt, black vest and black tie. We just returned from having to search at the Mall for some black shoes. I wouldn't have went there, but they closed our Payless Shoe Source this spring! I'll post pictures when I get some (probably tomorrow) of her in her work uniform....

Last night, Amelia slept with me. She asked if she could, and who am I to say "No" to my 15 year old? All too soon, I won't have her and she'll be grown with a family of her own.... So, my baby girl slept with me last night.  I woke up about 1:30a to do what I always do in the middle of the night, and I saw the upstairs light still on, and 2 children (11 year odl son and 14 year old daughter) up there giggling and carrying on.... so I told them to turn the lights out, and of course, when I got back to bed, I still hear my very disobedient young man still carrying on. But 4:00 am comes way too early for me anyway, and if I would have gotten back up, I would have been awake all night.

THIS TIME, I let it go, cause I KNEW he would get tangled in his little snare before the day was out... and he did. He asked the same question of both DH and I 3 times today and got the same answer... he wanted to go out front to play.

Now mind you, he's grounded, but we have been allowing him a bit more freedom these days due to good behavior. But after asking 3 times if he could go out front, and being told 3 times, "No, you cannot."

DH came in the house to talk to me about his trip, and within 2 minutes.....

Our son had snuck outside and down the road!!!!!!!!!!

Because he said, "I wanted to walk...."

Can we say.... "Grounding again, with a more strict regimen this time?"

*SIGH*

What are we gonna do with him?

Any suggestions?

Anyone?

~Blessings~

I wish for us all to join together to pray for our country.  Each day I will have a new prayer from the website in the previous post.  Go there to see on join me here - whatever you do, please pray for God's will.

My posts keep getting blocked and messed up but I am trying to stay diligent and so here goes...

****************************************

For Members of the Media to Remain Open, Forthcoming and Truthful

 

Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body.
--Ephesians 4:25

Loving Lord, You are the God of all Truth, and there is nothing impure or false in You.  You bring all things to light, and nothing is hidden from Your sight.  Before You all things are laid bare and every detail, whether large or small is known.  All praise and glory to You, O Mighty God! 

I ask You to move and work among the members of the media this day, O Lord, keeping them from any form of falsehood.  Let them lift up only what is true in these campaigns, Lord, that as a nation we may be discerning as we consider those whom we will elect to the offices of our government.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.