Homemade Chicken and Vegetable Broth

It has been weird to not have any animals here. I had no idea how much food scraps the dog and chickens ate back home! I started saving all of my vegetable cuttings, like the ends of carrots, brocolli stems, celery base, etc... in freezer bags in the freezer and just kept adding to it for about a month with the plan to make vegetable broth with it. Then I got a chicken back from Sea Breeze Farms (which is basically just what is left of a chicken once it's breasts, thighs and legs have been cut out to sell separately), so I decided to throw that in too. I didn't have any seasonings so I didn't add any, but I would have at least put in Bay Leaves if I did it again. But it tastes great.... smell's DELICOUS! And it was so nice to make use out of vegetable scraps that would have otherwise been thrown away.

I filled this pot about half full of water, brought it to a boil and threw all the vegi scraps and chicken back in. I turned the temp to low and cooked it for about 6 hours. (I read you want to do it for at least 4). 

Then I placed a strainer over a large stainless steel bowl and scooped it all out and poured into that, straining all the solids.

It has nice deep color, full of all the nutrients from many vegetables and the chicken, smells incredible and tastes delicious... I added some salt after- which maybe I would add during the cooking process next time- I had no idea how much they must salt the store bought broth to get it to taste as salty as it does. This was not salty at all... so salt to your preferred taste.

I would have loved to pour this into Mason canning jars to store, but I can't find a store here that sells them, so I just poured it back into the big pot and put it in the fridge. I will use as much as I can in my cooking in the next three days and then freeze the rest. I read that it will keep in the fridge for 5-7 days and can be in the freezer about 3 months or longer. A great idea I came accross was to let it cool and then pour it into ice cube trays to freeze that way, then once frozen you could put them in a bag and easilly just grab a few for a recipe...

Super easy, smell was heaven, tastes delicious and perfect for the season... even if we are in Miami...

"We're being mischevious!"

The kids were having so much fun in the kithen, I thought they were playing with toy trucks...however....

Believe it or not, that is a happy face...

How could I say "no, stop" ? They were having so much fun!

So I decided just to laugh and get the camera.

Elle says, "Look mama, we're being mischecvious!" (One of her latest new words)

Thank you Quaker Oats.... they had a blast! =)

Elle's Soccer Ball

Elle made this at the park! It started with the grass thing on the right... she wanted a ball and we didn't have one so we made one with grass stuffed into a leave wrapped around and tied with long grass- it actually held! And then it just went on from there... Elle found all this stuff and made her own "soccer ball"... Looks kind of like a canoe to me... you?

1 degree to 75 degrees

BRRRR... Wisconson was FREEZING... actually well below freezing... 1 degree actually. What a neat little farm and a wonderful family. The dad had just had brain surgery and they thought he would be "down and out" for weeks, but he miraculously healed SO FAST and was super capable even by the time I got there. It was such a fun visit, not nearly as much work for me as I had anticipated. Their two girls were PERFECT playmates for Elle, she had a blast. They were so sweet to her and shared all their dolls/toys, they taught her how to sew and helped her make a little stuffed fish, it was adorable how well they played together. Christian was a bit of a wreck, which was tough, but they understood (they have 5 kids and the 5th in particular is a tough kid) and after the first day we realized that his ear was bothering him and putting slightly warmed garlic oil in it immediately helped him.
They have the CUTEST baby Jersey cow ever. I have never seen such an adorable animal. Their mama pig was about to give birth and they had the sweetest pony. Elle got to ride her and loved it. Their older boy, Miles, was so fun to watch ride her- he loved to make her run. They road bare back of course- in the snow and it was a terrible photo opportunity to miss... They had another horse that wasn't quite broke yet and I was in love. My grandpa had horses when I was young and so I know a little about them. I have a real special place in my heart for horses. They don't seem realistic as they cost a lot and don't make any money- but I just love how they become your friend and I love their spirit and energy. There is something wonderful about brushing them, petting their soft ears and noses and of course the thrill of running them. Maybe someday... My aunt and uncle have a horse that will massage you with it's lips! It is the wierdest, most wonderful thing! The family also had the dada pig (boar) and a bunch of chickens. All these animals live in the barn in the winter- as there was about 16'' of snow in their pasture. It made me thankful for Washington weather- our animals can be out on pasture all year round. If you think 5 months of rain can drag on- could you imagine 5 months of snow on the ground and temperatures that rarely reach above freezing- often getting so cold that if the kids went outside to play without gloves, they could easily get frostbite!? For us, it was so fun to see snow- Elle was begging from Tennessee on (where we first saw snow on the side of the road) for me to pull over so she could eat some. She had fun sledding and eating snow to her hearts content.
The family had so much love from nearby family and friends. So many people brought meals. It was an incredible example of how willing people are to help and support one another. I was so glad to be a part of it. We didn't stay as long as we had thought we would, as they were so well taken care of and we missed Michael since we had just been gone the week before in Washington. It was a lot of driving in one week, but the kids did remarkable.
 Love to the Harrison family- thank you for having us!

New Adventure

The kids and I are off on a new adventure! Tomorrow we leave the warm sunny skies of Miami, Fl to drive to Hortonville, Wisconson. There is a family there we have become friends with through their efforts to help beginning homesteaders. http://www.homesteadcommunitypost.com/ is their website. They are such a sweet family and are really going through some hard times and so we are going to go lend a hand however we can. It will be such a fun adventure for the kids and such a nice and welcomed change from this city. We will certainly miss Michael, but he is happy for us to go and help this family.
 I am so excited to see snow! We have missed this epic cold winter the country has been experiancing and we will surely get our "dose" in Wisconson! I am sure I will learn a few new fun little tidbits to share with you all as they are friends with many Amish families (they are not Amish) and do things a little more old fashioned. Their homesteading video's are so wonderful- very real- good step by step instructions, recipies, and it shows how they do it as a family. Everything from making maple syrup to butchering chickens, growing vegetables gardens, milking cows, etc...
It should be a beautiful drive. It's about 26 hours so the kids and I will take 2 full days to do it. Finally those snow tires that we have had on our van in Miami this whole time will come in handy! =)

Elle's idea of ART

This is a "train" Elle made. Yes, those coins are glued down, and everything else is glued or taped together.... I'm not quite sure this is going to fit on the fridge...  =)

That is a "bowl" with a bell in it that Elle made on her pottery wheel, that is now secured with tape (Elle's favorite "tool" of choice) it is the "caboose".

This is something she made with her birthday tape. (Elle's birthday was a couple days ago and I got her 16 rolls of scotch tape!) She is telling me about it.... "the ruler is the holder upper thing" and then lid to the bottle of glue is to "poke any raccoons that come in from the woods"....

"and this is where the penguin's cage is."

There is nothing simple to Elle's art... although... I don't think I will be framing any of it anytime soon. =)

My Kids Cleaning

My kids love to help clean. Elle's recent favorite is scrubbing the tables and counters. We use the peppermint Dr Bronners pure castile soap and it makes a really good lather and smells really good which I think entertains her.

She is suprisingly thorough... the table is cleaner than when it was brand new.

Christian is finally happy to use the vaccum when it is ON! He has loved pushing it around for a couple weeks now, but having it on scared him. But now he is no longer scared and likes that he knows how to turn it on and off. He pretty much just went forward and back about 30 times... so that one strip of carpet was SUPER clean. =)

They really love to help me clean. I have always tried to make it fun. (For them and for me, even if they are not helping-I want to make it clear that I do not dread it.) They never have HAD to do it. I have never used it as punishment. They don't get "sick" of doing it, because honestly, we don't do it much. The place gets pretty messy and dirty throughout the day- we aren't really "clean as you go" type people. By the end of the day it is quite disaray. But just before Michael gets home from work, we turn up some music and dance and clean. The kids LOVE it. They run around putting things where they go, scrub, sweep, vaccum and place dirty clothes and towels into the washing machine. They probably really do only 10% of the work, but they are cleaning the whole time I am cleaning and they are happy doing it. I make sure that whatever they do is always good enough. If it is clear that Elle is not doing something thoroughly or putting things away "wrong" than I address it another time when we are not being the "pick up crew". I will just have her watch me do it the way I would like to see it done and we talk about what it looks like. They don't always get it perfect (if ever) but that's not the point....They are learning that they are a valuable help to the family.... THAT is the point. These methods may not work when they are older, but they work now and I can honestly say that it is fun to clean our home.

Oregon Trail Sourdough Starter

Oregon Trail Sourdough Bread

I sent a self addressed stamped envelope to:

Oregon Trail Sourdough
P. O. Box 321
Jefferson, MD 21755 USA

and they sent me starter that originated along the Oregon Trail. Click HERE to access website with more information. It is a really special history they are preserving. And the bread is delicious. =)

Think outside the box

We didn't have tape or glue... but Elle REALLY wanted to "build a box"

I have heard/read some GREAT ideas this week that I thought I would share and I think I am going to try and do a "think outside the box" post every month or so to share what comes up along my path that I think is just fabulous. =) Here are some of the latest things, PLEASE, PLEASE feel free to add/share more- I think this could be a fun source for sharing creative ideas for kids, home, life, etc... If you want credit for your ideas please tell me and please don't flatter me thinking these are all MY ideas- they are not!

1. My sister in law has a friend that loved the little leather shoes with elastic for her kids, but they grow out of them so fast and are $20-30 a pair, so she went to the goodwill and bought a cheap-highly outdated I am sure- leather jacket and some elastic and made her own! She has plenty of leather to make multiple pairs.

2. My friend Zoe wanted to change her childs carseat from pink to a more suitable design for the new little boy she is expecting so she took the cover off, undid the seams and used it as a pattern to cut out "boy" fabric and sewed it right over the pink- leaving all the cushioning in tact and woo-la! A "new" carseat. She even re-did the shade cover.

3. This one was from this past summer, we were playing volleyball at some friends house and Emily was watching my little boy and he was in a phase of loving keys.) Emily's yard is BEAUTIFUL- she is a Master Gardener (program through WSU) and it shows. The grass is lush, flowers abundant, so many great places to for keys to "hide". Emily didn't skip a beat, she went to her van where she had a ballon and took the yellow string off and tied it to the key ring. I STILL have that string (although it is barely hanging on by a thread and not so "yellow" anymore) on my keys. It makes them so easy to find in my purse/diaperbag/lunchbox/file cabinet, I can easily hand them over to Christian to play with and can always find them when he is done.

For the Birds

My mom had a little get together for Elle while we were there and the kids made these bird feeders. Take a pine cone, roll it in peanut butter then roll it in bird seed and add something to hang it with. (string, wire, twine...) It was a fun project for the kids, and even more fun for them to get to watch the birds come and enjoy such a treat... especially this time of year.

Back from a trip home!

It was so nice to be home in Washington for 11 days. What a wonderful trip! The kids had SO much fun. Carpeted floors where as good as heaven for them. They rolled and played, jumped and fell and danced to their hearts content without any worry for the pain they endure here with these rock hard tile floors in every room. I haven't blogged for a while, I haven't really taken many photo's lately and I know posts are more fun with photo's, plus I have a few "how to" things in the works that are not done yet.

Florida:
My hands are soft, nails long and never dirty.
Washington:
Nails broke, caluses, dirt under nails, blackberry scratches and thorns in my fingers... not to mention washing my hands in the large water trough that sits in the field.... only to find out 2 1/2 hours later that there was a dead squirel at the bottom....

I had no idea how clear the air is in Washington (or how unclear it is in Miami) until I got back and realized how far I could see THROUGH the air... I had never felt like I couldn't see through air, until I realized I was... interesting...

It is nice to be in warm weather, the kids got stuffy noses and coughs at home and it is a good reminder of how nice it is to live in a warmer climate during the winter.

It was so fun to WORK on our property. I LOVE it. Even in the winter when it is much less than it's glory, it is so beautiful there. So many people expressed pity to me for having to go back and work on hauling bark, rock and cleaning out a smelly chicken house and clearing blackberries. But that is what I enjoy! That is was makes me happy. It was so uplifting to be back home and do those things. Even though we are not going to be there to enjoy all the beauty and suprises spring brings or to see all the hard work we have put into it all, it is still very much worth it, not only because it is right to take care of what is ours, but because it takes care of us.

I planted something!

I have really had a hard time living here in a condo in Miami. I miss working in the dirt, growing things, going out to harvest fruits, flowers, vegetables etc. We do have two verandas off our condo. The one off the living room gets NO sunlight and the one off the master bedroom gets a few hours in the morning- however, there is a huge (6"?) drain in the center that they have not put a screen over even after 3 requests (starting back well before Thanksgiving) and I have been sort of waiting to do anything out there until they put that in since I want the kids to be a part of it and either one of them (although I am most concerned about the 16 month old) could step in there and their leg would disappear all the way to their hip...not good... anyway, I just couldn't wait any longer and since strawberry season is beginning I set out to find some strawberry plants yesturday. Even though it doesn't get enough sunlight to really do well, even if we just got a few berries the kids (and I) would love it.

On sort of an additional note... it is so odd shopping down here... the stores (that I have been to anyway) aren't like what I can so easily find back home. The grocery stores only sell groceries, no plants, flowers, hardely any choices for things like body soap, diapers, etc. I went to home depot (mainly because I knew where one was and thought for sure they would have plants) and they had a small rack out in front of the store with literally less than 60 plants on it (maybe 6-8 different choices is all). I went in thinking there would be more in the garden center.... NO garden center! I chose two off the rack (Sage and Stevia) bought them and decided to find the "Gardeners Market" store I had seen in passing a few times in the same neighborhood as Home Depot...Thinking I would have more success there... I found it. There was a gal sitting out front at a little bistro style table. I didn't see any flowers/plants set out by the entrance or anything and through the windows it looked like baskets and candels. I didn't want to haul the kids out of their car seats again without knowing that I was going to find a plant selection. I stepped out of the van and polietly asked the lady sitting there (now realizing she was eating soup) if this was a plant store. She looked at me shocked I would speak to her (people just don't talk to people they don't know down here- even to say "hello"- it catches people off gaurd when you acknowledge anyone but yourself) let alone ask her a question... she didn't say anything for a moment and I thought maybe she was trying to finish her bite of soup or didn't speak english, there was no one else around so I knew that she knew I was speaking to her. I asked her again, slower, in case she didn't speak english (although she was white- but that tends not to always mean english speaking) well and needed me to speak slower (I tend to be a fast talker and sometimes mumble) She took another bite of soup barely looking at me, shaking her head like I was an idiot for asking if the building with the huge sign reading "Gardeners Market" sold plants. She then said, (in perfect english) "why don't you go to Home Depot?" pointing in the direction of the store. It was obvious she would be no help to me and had probably never even looked to buy plants before. I stepped closer to the windows and saw it was a cafe/gift shop type place and left.

So anyway, that is my failed story of trying to find strawberry plants... I had googled for plant nursery's the day before (and a few other times) and there wasn't anything within about 45 minutes of where we were at and I couldn't even be certain by the info if they sold plants, let alone strawberry plants... they all seem to sell palm trees and bushes and not much else. It is so funny what you CAN'T find down here.... even on Craigslist for all of South Florida. Mason Jars for canning? Nope! Strawberry plants or other vegetable/flower plants? Nope! Vegetable starts? Nope! There are plastic surgery offices on every corner, every other add on the radio is for lawyers who will "get you money even if the car accident was your fault", stores with $300 jeans are a plenty... but Mason Jars? Strawberry plants? Not even Wal Mart has those here. It is a shocking revelation to me that there is simply no demand for them here...

So anyway, I went "home" and planted my two little herbs from Home Depot in some great colored pots and put them out on the veranda. I'm not sure if they'll really get enough sun to really thrive, but it still relaxes me knowing there's something planted there and I enjoyed planting them...never realized how much I needed to feel dirt on my hands... if nothing else this city living has made me REALLY appreciate (although I feel I already did quite dearly) country living. I will never forget how deeply I long to get out of this city and how apparent my (and my kids) need for dirt, land, space, friendly people and animals is.

In order to save a little on soil, and recycle a paper bag from the grocery store, I tore up a bag and put it in the bottom of the pot to take up that extra space. It will just compost into the soil eventually. This is a great way to save money on soil if you are ever potting a bunch of plants it can make a definate impact on how much soil to buy/use. If I had a paper shredder I would shred all scrap paper and use it for this purpose (or throw it on the compost pile like back home). THAT would take care of identity theft from disgaurded mail! ha! =) 

There they are! Yey!

Everyone Smile!

This photo sequence my mom took cracks me up! The kids are too funny, especially Elle's face expressions.

Homemade Candied Pecans

I found this recipe at http://www.allrecipes.com/. I got the raw pecans from my beloved Sea Breeze Farm (up north from Miami about 2 hours, but delivers down here every other week).

Ingredients:

1 egg white

1/2 Cup packed brown sugar

1 dash vanilla extract

4 Cups of pecans

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper. Spray paper with cooking spray.

2. Beat egg white until stiff. Add brown sugar and vanilla. Stir until smooth. Mix in pecans and stir unitl coated. Pour the nuts onto the cookie sheet. (spread out to make one layer of nuts)

3. Bake until browned, about 10-15 minutes (mine took a little over 15 minutes)

SO good! The kids love them, they are great in salads or with chopped up apples and other fruit. I am excited to try this with the walnuts from our walnut tree back home.

The Goat Whisperer

Amelia Erheart Park near Miami... My little man is quiet the goat whisperer! (Don't mind the fact that he's wearing his sister's hat!)

LOVE this one! (My mom took these photo's)