Hatfield House (in the city)

Dealing with Moles in the Garden

Moles are such a huge nuisance in my garden. They dig tunnels all through and wreak havoc with my veggies, uprooting them and such.  The watering we do sometimes ends up down the mole hole instead of the plant roots.  I was getting very tired of fighting them for another year.  So I started doing a little research on how to get them out of my garden.  Poison was my first thought..  but I didn’t want that stuff in my garden.  Traps are effective but expensive. So I looked for more affordable remedies.  I came up with one that is easy to do.   You make a mixture of castor oil and Joy dish soap (2:1 ratio).  You add a few tablespoons of this mixture to a gallon of water and pour it down their holes. 

I have been doing this with some success.  The reason it can work is that moles have a heightened sense of smell and can’t stand the smell of castor oil.  They also don’t like the feel of it on them.  After a couple of applications some of the holes were not bothered any more but I still had some.  So the next time I put in more of the castor oil mix into my gallon of water and made the applications a little stronger.  I had been using 2 to 3T tablespoons per gallon..  so I doubled that.  Well I am happy to say that yesterday while in the garden I saw that all my mole holes had not been disturbed again..  so success maybe?  We will see.     

If my pesky mole just makes holes in other areas of the garden I will try another solution I read the other day and that is bubble gum.  You drop pieces of bubble gum (or Juicy Fruit I also read they like) into their holes.  The reviews I read said this was effective and will end the problem permanently!  I guess their digestive systems can’t handle gum..  they are eaters not chewers.. haa.. haa.  So if castor oil does not solve the problem..  I will try bubble gum.   

Just thought I would share this bit of mole info for anyone else battling them in their gardens this summer..  

Amish Vanilla Pudding Friendship Bread with Starter

Starter

Day 1:
2 cups flour
1 cup warm water
1/4 ounce dry yeast

Stir the ingredients together well in a large bowl. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and let sit for 24 hours.

Day 2:
1 cup milk
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour

 Add to Day 1 mixture, and stir well. Cover lightly with plastic wrap.

Day 3, 4 and 5: Stir.

Day 6:
1 cup milk
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour

Add to previous mixture; stir well.

Day 7, 8 and 9: Stir.

Day 10:
1 cup milk
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour

Add and stir well.

Fill 3 containers with 1 cup of starter. Give two of the containers away (along with the recipes). Store the remaining container in the refrigerator. This will leave enough starter to make the bread. To keep the starter going, start the process over at the step for day two. Use the container you saved in the refrigerator as the step for day one.

Vanilla Pudding Friendship Bread
1 cup starter
1 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup milk
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)
1 large box instant vanilla pudding

Mix the starter, vegetable oil, milk, eggs and vanilla extract.

July 4th menu & activities...

I would like to start off by wishing everyone a "Happy 4th of July"!  This is my favorite holiday.  I love spending time with  my family and watching fireworks.  This morning for breakfast we had a simple sausage, egg bake and fried potatoes, & O.J., for a late lunch we had Italian shredded beef on toasted hoagie's, homemade cole slaw, mustard potato salad, fresh white sweet corn, fresh lemonade, and a delicious homemade sour cream apple pie!!!

Later in the afternoon we headed out to buy fireworks and stopped at the ice cream shop for our favorite ice cream.  We plan on watching fireworks this evening.

 Blessing's,

Heidi

It will soon be green bean season here

My green beans are blooming so you know what that means I will soon be up to my elbows in green beans! Nothing tastes like fresh green beans straight from the garden to the table in the same day.  One of our family favorites is to cook fresh green bens in a pot with a piece of ham and some new potatoes, serve it up with a hot pan of cornbread and a fresh green salad and you have one of our favorite meals. Another way we use fresh green beans is by cooking them with fennel and feta cheese;

 1 pound fresh green beans

1 fennel bulb, cut into thin slices

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

Fill a saucepan half full with water and bring to a boil. Add the green beans and fennel slices; cook until just beginning to become tender, about 4 minutes. Pour into a colander to drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking process.

Return the empty pan to the stove and set heat to medium. Pour in the olive oil and let it heat for a minute. Return the green beans and fennel to the pan. Season with basil, salt, and pepper; cook and stir until coated and warm, and toss with feta cheese.

 Does anyone have any other green bean recipes they would care to share?

Preparedness, when properly pursued, is a way of life, not a sudden, spectacular program. -- Spencer W. Kimball, 1976

~Happy 4th of July~

~HAPPY 4th OF JULY~

  In the words of Herbert Hoover, "My country owes me nothing. It gave me, as it gives every boy and girl, a chance. It gave me schooling, independence of action, opportunity for service and honor. In no other land could a boy from a country village, without inheritance or influential friends, look forward with unbounded hope."

Sincerely,

~Mary-Ann~

Praying for the Sun to Make an Appearance Today!!!

Happy Birthday America!!!!  Let's all cheer for the Red, White and Blue!!!  I love the Fourth of July, and the cookouts, family gatherings, and fireworks.  But this year, we aren't sure if there is going to be much fireworks.  We might be able to still arrange the cookout, and just eat indoors.  But is is difficult to celebrate with fireworks when it is raining!!  UGH!  The weather reports aren't sure if the rain will stop before sunset and the big firework displays or not.  DARN IT! 

Matthew took off earlier this morning with our Noah, 3 years old, to pick out some fireworks.  We always wait until the 4th to buy ours because of the wonderful sales they hold the day of.  He alsos picked up some sausage and milk on the way home for our breakfast....sausage gravy and biscuits!!  YUMMY!  He even made breakfast for us.  Matthew never cooked (except for Hamburger Helper) until he met me.  LOL  Now he is the breakfast expert and won't let me in the kitchen when he is making pancakes or his specialty of biscuits and gravy. 

The rest of the day we are going to hang out, relax (finish putting away laundry, do a few dishes) and just enjoy having daddy home!   Tonight we are going to my brother's house for a cookout (possibly cook in...depending on the whether), and then back to town for the city wide fireworks display.  I am looking forward to seeing my family today.  We are all so busy, and it seems working schedules conflict that we don't get together more often.  Looking forward to seeing how big my neice Megan is getting with her first pregnancy.  She is due in October, and I am sure she isn't much bigger than her little frame was before, but maybe a tiny bit. 

Matthew's family is all scattered this weekend.  We made a comment last night that if everyone wasn't gone, we would have loved to get them all together at our house this weekend.  Oh well.  His parents church is having a 3 day meeting, his sister lives in Washington,DC area and unable to come home, and his other sister, her hubby and 5 year old daughter just started their 5 day trek back to Missouri from California and today.  They visited Sea World, Disney, etc. and had lots of fun.  I can't wait to hear about their trip!

Trucking Around

URGENT PRAYER REQUEST!!

BLESSINGS!

   I ASK FOR URGENT PRAYER FOR HOMESTEADBLOGGERS COUNTRYMOUSE (SISTER CARRIE). SHE WAS INVOLVED IN A CAR WRECK YESTERDAY WHERE HER VEHICLE WAS T-BONED. SHE WAS LIFE FLIGHTED TO A HOSPITAL, TREATED AND RELEASED TO HOME.

   HER HUSBAND CONTACTED US AND TOLD US THAT ONLY GOD IS RESPONSIBLE FOR HER LIVING THROUGH THE CRASH AND ASIDE FROM SOME INTERNAL BRUISING, CUTS AND SCRAPES SHE SUFFERED NO BROKEN BONES!! GOD'S HAND IS ALL OVER IT.

   AS I ALWAYS TELL FOLKS, GOD IS NOT SILENT AND YES HE STILL PERFORMS MIRACLES. THANK YOU JESUS!!!

   PLEASE LIFT SISTER CARRIE AND HER FAMILY IN YOUR FERVENT PRAYERS BOTH IN SUPPLICATION AND PRAISE. SHE IS GOING TO HAVE A TIME OF IT AS SHE HEALS FROM THIS. PRAY FOR HIS HEALING HAND. AND FOR THEIR COSTS TO BE COVERED AS THIS CAME AT A TIME WHEN THERE WAS A LAG IN THEIR INSURANCE.

   I KNOW YOU ARE ALL SUCH WONDERFUL PRAYER WARRIORS AND KNOW THAT GOD WILL HEAR!

GOD BE WITH THEE!

SISTER LORI

Happy Fourth of July!!!!!!

Happy Fourth of July to everyone, I hope all of your plans for picnics and get together’s go well today and that you take just a few moments to ponder the freedoms we enjoy here in the country and say a prayer of thanks to all the brave men and women that have served our country in the past and present.

July 4th