Muddy Boots

Featured Blogger~Haflinger

Congratulations to this weeks Featured Blogger

Haflinger at the C Farm!
...Welcome folks..A little about our farm I have a great partner in crime (Ray) we have over 160 acres to play with. . We have six guinea hen we have two goats Mike and Blarney they are Allpines. We have added a bunny name cocoa and have greeter dog (dew) and a cat (puppy) nothing gets by them. Come and enjoy recipes and crafts hear about sawing lumber and gardening.. Thanks for stopping by...

I remember when I first made my way over to Homesteadblogger, she helped me get started. :)
Go by and congratulate her for being this weeks Featured Blogger! :)

Blessings,
Chasity L. Burrell
Senior Editor Homesteadblogger
Heritage Acres Homestead

foodie shopping & Father's Day gifts

Before the rains came thundering in today the kids and I made a trek to the Amish Store. It’s been 2 months since our last trip and it could have waited a couple of weeks except for some necessary items for Father’s Day.

Here’s what we bought:

Regular Purchases:
1 lb. Farmer’s Cheese $3.22
2- 1 lb. pkgs. Butter @ $1.79 each
2- 10 oz. pkgs Smok~y Links @ $1.39 each
6 lbs Cheddar Cheese $12.62
Throat Coat Tea $4.49
Bigelow’s Lemon Tea $2.19
2 lbs. Whipped Topping Mix $3.79
.5 lb. Cheddease Powder $2.18
2 Cans Soup @ 55 cents each (Cheddar & Split Pea)
1.5 lbs. Dried Cherries $6.73
Total Regular Purchases: $42.68

Non-Grocery Purchases:
Cabin Crunch Snack Mix $5.64 (Father’s Day- Dad-in-law)
2 lbs. Vanilla Ice Cream mix $7.34 (Mr. Steady- Father’s Day)
1 lb. Dutch Chocolate Ice Cream mix $3.69 (Mr. Steady- Father’s Day)
19 oz. Apple BBQ Sauce $2.89 (My Dad- Father’s Day)
Toothpaste- for kids $1.50
Battery operated toothbrush (for Mr. C) $1.50
Flower hankie (gift for niece) 49 cents
3 wooden word blocks (gifts) @ $1.49 each
2 card making kits (1 gift- 1 for kids) @ $1.59 each
Total Non-Grocery Purchases: $30.70
plus tax: $.78 = $31.48

Splurge Purchases:
3 cartons of Chocolate Milk @ 35 cents each
1 pkg cowtails candy 49 cents
1 pkg. 8 in. baked pizza crusts (4 crusts) $1.99
5 lbs. Cooked Bacon Crumbles $24.95
Total Splurge Purchases: $28.48
Total Spent: $102.64
Total Spent on Groceries: $71.16

Today’s grocery purchases came from the Squirrel Fund- shopping at the Amish Store is one of the main reasons I started the Squirrel Fund.
Some day I will price calculate what the price difference is between purchasing 1 lb. of cooked & crumbled bacon vs. doing it myself- but for now, this is a splurge Mr. Steady and I both agree on; we love to add bacon to so many different recipes. The milk, candy & pizza crusts were purchased for the kiddos- worthy splurges for such great helpers (and cheap splurges too!).
As you can see, I did my Father’s Day shopping at the Amish Store. Guys are so hard to buy for, at least in the frugal sense. I find it best to stick to foodie items. We don’t do big over the top gifts for Father’s Day here- mostly try to stay in the $10 price range.
However:
The kids bought Mr. Steady an ice cream maker (he’s really been wanting one) and so we had to purchase some ice cream mixes to go with it. Wow, are those things expensive! But who can resist such wonderful homemade ice cream!
Not me!

Question on food storage

Summer Garden

Summertime has settled in to my part of the world, along with triple digit temperatures!  That means the garden slows down in production somewhat, and the gardener slows down, too. 

 I still have peppers, tomatoes, squash, okra, cucumbers, and melons that are setting or ripening fruit; but the cooler weather crops such as lettuce, greens, green beans, etc. have pretty much died from heat exhaustion.  

 I only venture out to the garden in the mornings before the heat sets in, and sometimes in the late evening when it starts to cool down a bit.  The biggest garden chores right now are keeping things watered and the veggies and herbs harvested.  I add a bit of mulch where needed, fertilize when necessary, and add a bit of compost or soil to the container gardens, and then  water, water, water!   The rest of the day is spent inside trying to keep cool, starting seeds for some indoor greens and some for the Fall garden, and planning what to grow this Fall.  I've been experimenting with different ways of preserving the harvest.  Still attempting to learn to ferment veggies, playing with the dehydrator, gathering recipes, etc.   I hope to plant some container grown fruits this Fall, so I'm dreaming of my own little potted orchard right now! 

I know some of you are still just getting started with your garden seasons, and some of you may be in a completely different season than I am in Texas.  Please share with us what June brings to your garden.  What's growing, what are you harvesting, what garden chores are going on where you live? 

Blessings,

Catherine

We have a winner!!! Finally ;)

Posted by Purewater (69.176.34.143)

I need a book like that for myself, but I will share it with the children if I win! Please put my name in the hat!

Thanks for the contest and also for letting us know about this great resource.

~Eric

Hooray for you Eric/Purewater! :) Please contact me via email or message with your address and I will get it right away to The Hoffman's. Also if you are interested in purchasing your own Knot4Fun book.

Check out the site.

Knot4Fun

Blessings,

Chasity L. Burrell

Senior Editor Homesteadblogger

Heritage Acres Homestead

Common Sense Ideas for Going Green

Over the last several months I have gotten lots of email asking questions regarding how to teach kids green methods of doing certain tasks and making changes within the family to promote an earth friendly lifestyle. Many have asked for my opinions on going green and global warming. Over the next few weeks I will be posting answers to a lot of those questions while offering tips and ideas that promote simple ideas for green living.

So no one is confused, I don’t have an answer to global warming. I do not take a side, because I don’t feel there is a side to be taken. The truth for me lies in a logical thought alone; the earth is a planet of clean resources. If those resources are abused, mistreated, and squelched into non-existence, the planet must change to accommodate. This means that you cannot cut down trees and other vegetation endlessly and recklessly at a quick rate and expect the air quality not to be affected. God made earth with a perfect balance to support life. Plants give off oxygen, which supports animal life. Animal life gives of carbon dioxide to support plants. Destroy this intricate balance without concern and there will be problems. God’s design for life is intricate and complex and we were given the task to care and respect His design (Gen 1:26-28 and Psalm 8:7); a simple concept in my mind. God in His omnipotence already knew what man would invent over the ages, how many humans would inhabit the earth, and how the earth would be treated. Yet, we have been given free will to follow His commands. So, my official stance is, live, but be careful and mindful as much as possible.

So today I offer a few simple ideas for incorporating earth friendly lifestyle choices. Lift this topic in prayer. Ask God for wisdom and guidance on how He would use you and your family to care for His earth. Remember, every change takes time. If your family currently doesn’t have a focus on how many water bottles they dispose of, you will not change this overnight. Take it step by step and soon your motivation and mindset will be changed, because your focus is on glorifying God and respecting His creation, not because it is the politically correct thing to do.

• Water your lawn and gardens in the early morning or in the evening, helping to reduce evaporation and allowing you to use less water to do so.
• Create a common place for a recycling center, even if it is only one bin to place all recyclable items.
• Consider taking recycling items to a recycling center on errand day. You may be surprised at how much money you can put back into your wallet. We do not have a specific schedule of how often we go, but we average $80-$100 on each trip.
• Purchase items in bulk whenever possible. Make certain you are getting the best bang for your buck; not all bulk items are a good purchase. When it is cost effective, you will also have less waste, due to less packaging.
• Avoid using any spray cans that use CFCs (cloroflorocarbons). Instead purchase items that come in stick, pump spray, or creams. Believe it or not, CFCs remain in the atmosphere for over 50 years! That cannot be good for your in home air quality, or for the atmosphere in general.
• Use rechargeable batteries instead of disposable. They are a very inexpensive investment now, and will save you a fortune for all those battery operated gadgets such as flashlights, clocks, video devices, remotes, and toys. The additional benefit is that all those batteries will not be leaking lead into the earth’s surface.
• Check out stationary stores for deals on recycling printer cartridges. Many offer return policies that either give you a coupon for cash off your next cartridge or will give cash back just for bringing them in. Some cartridge manufacturers give you postage paid return envelopes to send the used cartridges back, so they can be recycled properly. Consider saving yourself money by refilling or having your cartridges refilled for a fraction of the cost of purchasing new ones. These won’t last forever, but by refilling them until they need replaced and then taking them to a store that will give you cash or coupons towards purchasing replacements, you will save a bundle and reduce trash all at the same time!

Try incorporating one or two of these over the next month and your family will be well on their way to helping improve and maintain a healthful balance of the earth’s resources.

These are my thoughts.

Leslie Valeska

~Contributing Writer~

HSLDA ~ USA Today Gets Homeschool Story Wrong

On May 28, 2009 USA Today published a story based on a report from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), which is part of the Federal Department of Education, titled “The Condition of Education 2009.” The headline of the USA Today story was “Profound shift in kind of families who are homeschooling their children.” A few days later the title was changed to “More higher-income families are homeschooling their children.”

Regrettably, among other problems with the article, USA Today made one blatant error and one very misleading claim. The blatant error is USA Today’s statement that homeschoolers are increasingly white. We do not understand how USA Today can reach this conclusion. Simply by reading the NCES report you will discover that the estimates for white homeschoolers, as a percentage of the entire homeschool population, were 75.3% in 1999, 77% in 2003 and 76.8% in 2007. The obvious conclusion is that for the years 1999–2007 white homeschoolers consistently represented just over three-quarters of the homeschool population.

HSLDA asked the NCES to comment on the USA Today article. Below is a statement from JoAnn Webb, a spokesman for the NCES, “The percentage of all homeschoolers who are White, non-Hispanic has not changed over this period (in the mid-70 percent range).”

Another misleading claim, as the revised title for the story states, is that more higher-income families are homeschooling their children. Again, USA Today failed to correctly read the report. In order to make their point, USA Today defines “higher-income” as families whose household income is over $50,000. How many people really consider $50,000 in household income “higher-income?” For comparison, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2006 married-couple families with one or more related children under age 18, the median nationwide income was $74,049. It is very misleading for USA Today to boldly assert that more “higher-income” families are homeschooling when out of the 60% of families they cite as being “higher-income” — (26.8% in the $50,001–$75,000 bracket and 33.2% in the $75,001 or more bracket) the 26.8% that USA Today believes to be “higher-income” actually have below average incomes.

Also, as has been confirmed by the NCES, the income figures between 1999 and 2007 were not adjusted for inflation. This means that the same type of person answering the NCES survey in 1999 that fell in the $25,001–$50,000 income bracket could easily find themselves in the $50,001–$75,000 bracket in 2007 since an income of $45,000 in 1999 becomes $55,518.63 in 2007 after adjusting for inflation.

It’s a shame that in an era when hundreds of diverse media outlets are able to accurately report on the homeschool movement a major newspaper has made such simple errors.

Perhaps the writer was just in a rush to be first, since his story was published on the day the NCES report was released online, or perhaps he has an agenda to falsely paint homeschoolers as rich and white, thereby dismissing the full range of people who are making tremendous sacrifices on limited budgets to ensure that the next generation receives the best education and upbringing available. Either way USA Today should make additional corrections to their factually inaccurate story.

Herbal Hair Rinses

Below are recipes for 2 herbal hair rinses I plan to make today.  I scribbled the directions down on index cards, and tucked them into my Idea Pile (I have a Recipe Pile, too....no files, just piles).  I have no idea now where I got these... I need to keep better notes. 

Elderberry Rinse

3 handfuls Elderberries

2 1/2 cups vinegar

Bring to boil.  Simmer 30 minutes.  Strain.  Use as final rinse.

*My Notes:  I wrote this just as my copy reads.  Now I don't know if the recipe meant fresh or dry berries.  I only have dry and I think I'll not use 3 handfuls...maybe 1 cup or so.  I plan to use apple cider vinegar, and I think it might need to be diluted with some water.   I'm just going to put mine in a jar and set it out in the sun for the afternoon.  It's sure to simmer in the triple digit temps. today!

Update:  I handful of dried elderberries was about 1/3 cup...but I only added about 2 handfuls.  They make the vinegar very red...might be a good thing, might be very colorful!  I will dilute with water after it has simmered in the sun for a while. 

Nettle Rinse

1 cup dry nettles

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1/2 cup filtered water

6 drops rose essential oil

Simmer nettle, vinegar, and water in a covered pan over a double boiler, for 1 hour.  Cool.  Strain.  Add essential oil.  Use as a final rinse.

*Notes:  Again, I think I'll just put mine in a jar out in the sun for the afternoon.  I may try some different essential oils in different batches- rosemary, lavender, bergamot. 

Update: I had to add more liquid- probably more like 1 cup of water, 1 cup of vinegar. 

Anyone else have a favorite herbal hair rinse recipe to share with us?  I love making things like this!

Blessings,

Catherine

The Fridge and finding my happy place

Our Life in Pictures....

I wanted to put on a few pictures of what we have been doing... I hope you Enjoy them:)

This is my nephew Jonathan at his t-ball game

This is our youngest daughter at her baptism

This is our rooster  " Big Rob" that we gave to my mom today in exchange for a new hen

This is one of our hens I don't think she has a name:) She is Very excited to get into her new home!

This is a picture of our garden beds.

This is the ground hog that likes our garden....bad ground hog!!!

We had a great time at the baseball game last night.

Mary and Laura happy that their team won...Go Reds!!!!

Another Rainy Day......

Many Blessings,

Ma/ Renee