It's Over!

Well, today is November 30. That means that NaBloPoMo is now over. I can't believe I actually posted everyday for the entire month. Not that I had anything profound to say, just that I was able to stick to it, complete something I started. Yeah!
I'm going to be working more this month, coupled with my normal child rearing duties, holiday duties and wifely duties I really don't think I will be able to keep up the daily posting. I do, however want to thank my faithful few for keeping it real.

FEMA moving at government speed

In August of 2005 Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans and the Mississippi gulf coast.

Three years later FEMA's trailers still sit in Hope, Arkansas. Now there's government bureaucracy at work.

Chicken Run

I was planning on spending a nice day, just me, a book, and some music. Instead I came home from a big Thanksgiving meal to find one of our girls had flown the coop, again. Not too many nights ago Ladybug, Manchild and a neighbor scoured the yard in 33 degree temps in the pitch black looking for Little Red Hen. Well, she's did it again today except that it was just me.
I don't know if you've ever tried to catch a chicken, but it's not a one person job. I found her at the neighbors. She kept getting back in the brush. I have numerous scrapes on my arms to prove that she is a tricky little bird. I finally gave up and started walking out the gate when lo and behold here she comes. She actually followed me home. Dang if I had know it was going to be that easy...
Thankfully all the girls are in their coop, tucked in for the night. I'm think maybe chicken and dumplings sound good for tomorrows dinner, what do you think?

Happy Thanksgiving

Wishing all a wonderful day full of love, hope and thankfulness.

Hurry Sicknes

Are you suffering from Hurry Sickness? You can diagnose yourself quite easily.
Are you constantly focused on getting things done?
Are you preoccupied with escaping?
Does it seem that time is passing too quickly?
Do you have a constant sense of urgency?
Do you desire a simple life?
Do you have little time for love?
If you answered yes to most of these questions then you have Hurry Sickness, not to be confused with being busy. Being busy is an outward condition. Hurry Sickness is and inward condition of the soul having to do with competing priorities
So here are five thing you can do to cure what ails you.
1) slow down
2) say no
3)declutter
5) use leisure in life giving ways
To be content is not having all you want, but to want only what you have.

Are You Suffering from S.A.D.?

Thanksgiving is upon us, the perfect time to examine what we have to be thankful for. As Americans who live in a country where we can worship freely and voice our opinions without fear of retribution, why is it that we are always complaining? I think the we are just down right ungrateful.
What does it mean to be ungrateful? The dictionary says it's being thankless. I think that we are blind to the the blessings, we always want more I wish I had this or that. Our pastor calls that condition S.A.D. The S stands for stressed, the A for angry and the D for depressed. Look at 2 Timothy 1:3 tells us

"I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers."

If we have poisoned ourselves with S.A.D. Then what we need to do is stop blaming others and make a decision to change our attitude. Yes, it is a choice and it is up to us to stop magnifying the bad. When we put the negative parts of our life under the microscope they get distorted and we are not able to look at the big picture. So many times we say if God would just speak to me, tell me where to go or what to do, well, guess what He is speaking to us. In Ephesians 5:20 He says,

"always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."

To give thanks in all circumstances, this is Gods will for us. Not just when things are going well, but all the time we are to give thanks. When we focus on God's blessings we will be blessed.
If you don't believe me just look at this study here. Dr. McCollough and Dr. Emmons conducted a study on gratitude. Basically, people were divide up into several groups. One group was instructed to focus on everything that wrong in the world while another group was instructed to focus on the goodness. The results were outstanding. The gratitude group were less angry, more energetic, determined, joyful, they exercised more and had fewer illness. I think that says a lot for what ails this country, myself include. We are all suffering from Eeyore syndrome. As you know from the old Winnie the Pooh cartoons, Eeyore was always under a cloud of misery. Let us remember that when we choose to live like that we won't be able to see sun shine through.
Have you ever wondered why people who have been raised in some of the worst circumstances rise above all of that? It's because of their outlook on life. The choices that you make not only have an effect on you, but the effect those around you. I want to use this up coming holiday to focus on the blessings in my life. To have and attitude of gratitude. I think this simple choice will make a big difference in my life, anyone else willing to give it a try?

My Twilight Review

I just got home from seeing Twilight for the first time. I'm listening to my playlist and mulling over how I want to word my opinionated view of the movie. I didn't go alone, I took my twilight converts with me. We were probable the oldest people in the theater. Obviously, the majority of the people in the movie were under the age of 20, but what would you expect from a teeny-bopper movie.

Now to get on with my review. If you haven't seen the movie I must warn you that there are spoilers. Over all we agreed to give the movie 2 1/2 stars. I know that may seem harsh, so let me explain myself. If we forget for a moment that I've read Twilight three times and the first twelve chapters, that Stephenie Meyer's herself released, of Midnight Sun, I would still have to give it a low rating. The best way I can describe the acting is, well, down right ridiculous at times. They didn't appear tormented or strained by the tension. They look constipated. There, I said it. I was actually embarrassed for them at times.

Jasper was bugged eyed and too tense the entire movie. Emmett, however, was absolutely perfect as was Esme. Dr. Cullen was made over and a bit creepy, but still possessed that charm we expected form him. Rose could have stood to bleach her root out again, but was otherwise pretty right on. Even thought Charlie was not what I expected, I think he did a great job.

Some of the worst points, other that the pathetic interpretation of the tension were when Edward literally covers his nose the first time he see Bella in Biology class and again in the office. The dramatic scene where James realizes that Bella is human was poorly acted also.

Now lets compare the movie to the book for just a moment, there were some cute elements that were left out. Like when Edward takes Bella to the prom and she's all dressed up, Come on leggings and a tennis shoe, really now what were they thinking? And what about Eric thinking he was going to take Bella to the prom? Yet another cute part that wouldn't have killed them to include. More importantly the meadow scene was a let down. They weren't supposed to have that happened during a school day. Would it have killed them to of left that part alone. Sadly, Edward didn't dazzle anyone.

Now that's not to say the movie was a total loss. There were some very good spots too. I loved the way they played up the vampire trio. There were wonderful scenes of them hunting. Really, someone deserves a pat on the back for that brilliance. I'd also like to say that that Edward playing his lullaby was very touching even though they didn't let the audience know that he had written her that piece. By far the baseball scene exceeded my expectations. I think they did an outstanding job making the game truly fun. I'm still out on Edward's sparkle.

So there you have it. My likes and dislikes. I'm not a professional movie critic, just a TwilightMom. I don't even know if I'm looking forward to taking my sweet Ladybug to see this one. I would, however, love to hear your opinions of the movie, feel fee to disagree with me, I can take it.

Beloved Pets

As I was looking through old pictures the other day I saw one of a dog I used to have. She died shortly after my husband and I were married. She got me to thinking about all the other pets I've had and how they have effected me throughout the years. I remember my parents telling me that I was afraid of dog as a little girls. Apparently, they would encourage me to pet friendly dogs we encountered until I wasn't afraid anymore.

The first dog I brought home was part German Sheppard and part Colly. We named him trouble. Now I don't know if his name was a self fulfilling prophecy or if it was just his nature, but he was trouble. I remember that he would grab hold of my shirt sleeve and lead me around the yard. He dug holes everywhere. Eventually we gave him away to someone who could handle a big dog.

On my eight birthday I got my first poodle. She was black, but turned silver over the years. I named her GiGi after the Gaffer girls at the old Gaffer's department store. Being an only child, that dog became my best friend and I was heart broken when she died.

The next dog I got was a poodle too. She was white and tiny as could be. I named her Giggit after the Giggit movies. She was there with me during some of the worst times of my life. She's the dog that died after my husband and I were married. I think he loved that dog more than I did.

We adopted Ayla as our first baby. We named her after a character in the book Clan of the Cave Bear. She's a sweetheart. Don't get me wrong, there have been times I wanted to toss her out the door. Like when she'd bark and wake the baby up or pee on the carpet. That's probably why my husband and her have such a close relationship now. He wasn't there when I had taken such care to get the baby to sleep only to have her screaming in her crib all because the dog was barking at a squirrel in the front yard. I know that she will die one day and that there will be another dog in our lives, but I just can imagine life without Ayla.

Soap Making 101

I have a friend who makes old fashion lye soap. I have been hounding her to teach me how, and today was the day she was able to teach me. Just to give you a little history, soap is made from lye and animal fats. Many years ago lye was obtained by pouring rain water through hard wood ash that had been burned at a high heat in a sort of filtering system.
My friend told me that you can make your own filtering system out of a water tight wood barrel. You will need to put the barrel up on blocks in a remote location so that it can't be knocked over. Then you can drill a hole near the bottom of the barrel and place a cork in the hole. Next, you will need to add a layer of river rock, followed by a layer of hay, then top it off with the hard wood ash. Finally, you will pour in rain water; leaving up to six inches from the top of the barrel.
This will need to sit for three days. After that you can place a container under the cork and fill the container deep enough to float a potato. If the potato doesn't float a quarter size piece above the water line, the solution is too weak. In this case you will need to either add more ash or drain all the water and pour it back through the barrel letting it sit for another 3 days. If the potato springs up, the solution is too strong and you will need to add more rain water. Remember not to use metal containers or utensils because the lye will react with metal.

So, back to our process.

My friend does not make her own lye, she buys Red Devil Lye. As you remember lye was taken off the shelves about three years ago. You can now purchase it on line specifically for soap making.

The following are all items needed to make a basic 10 pound batch of soap:

3 three pound cans of Crisco. Yes, for now it HAS to be Crisco
4 cups cold water
1 18 ounce can of Red Devil Lye IT MUST BE RED DEVIL 100% LYE!
large stainless steel spoon
10 qt pot for melting 9 pounds of Crisco1
measuring cup
candy thermometer
2 qt plastic pitcher
Large plastic bucket (must be able to hold all the oil with room to stir)
shallow rectangular cardboard box (like the kind used to hold a case of cokes)
2 white kitchen sized plastic garbage bags
2 old thick blankets
goggles
Playtex rubber gloves
old clothes
Optional items that we used in making our soap:
1/4 cup honey
3 tbs oatmeal (finely ground)

First we measured out the lye by weight.

Next we added the lye to the water. The lye and fat need to be within 5 degrees apart between (100 and 120 degrees)
Always add the lye to the water, not the other way around.

As you can see the lye heated up room temperature water to almost 217 degrees.

Next we melted the lard.

It took the lye a while to cool down, but when the two were within 5 degrees of each other we mixed them together in this large plastic container.

Once we reached trace** we added honey and oats.

You can add other essential/fragrance oils if you like.

We then poured the mixture into our box mold that we had lined with a plastic garbage bag.

At this point you must cover the soap and allow it to cure** for 24 hours.









**TERMS:

Cure time- the length of time to let the soap air dry and the water content of the soap to evaporate.

Saponification- the chemical process of making soap

Essential Oils- these are natural oils that are extracted by various means from plants and fruits to form scent. Rose Essential oil etc. These are extremely volatile and not stable when making cold process soap. They are also extremely expensive.

Fragrance Oils- these are man-made or synthetic oils. The hold up very well when used with cold process soaping. They are inexpensive and easy to use.

Lye Solution- water or milk after Lye has been added.Setting up- when the soap is left ALONE UNDISTURBED (no peeking) for 24 hours to turn solid.

Trace- refers to the stage of soap where the soap leaves a "trace" of the spoon trails. The consistency of the soap is similar to thick pancake batter.

Twilight the Movie

Just in case you've been living in a cave for the past year, Stephenie Meyer's novel Twilight has been made into a movie. Today the movie hits theaters! I have tickets to go with two Twilighters Sunday night, so until then we will have to make do with the review here written by Sara at the Novel Novice Twilight.



Please do not leave spoiler comments

Who am I?

When I was younger, I wanted to please my parents. I tried to dress like all the preppy kids at school (you have to remember this was the 80's) and fit in, but I never felt like I fit in with everyone around me.

When I went off to college I thought I wanted one thing, then another. I changed and remade myself may times over. Then, I got sort of stuck in this one very comfortable place as a new age sort of hippie and I like it there. When I graduated from college and stared my career. I think I must of gotten lost again or maybe I was evolving, but when I look back I'm not really sure who I was for a long time.

It was during this time that I met and married my most favorite husband. We had kids and I quit working outside of the home.

Now I had to reinvent myself again. I never wanted to be a "soccer mom" or a "housewife" even thought I was those things and more. I have to say that I like the spot I'm at right now. I don't think I'm too far off center from where I want to be. I mean we all want to have more of this or less of that, but basically I like being a SAHM that homeschools her kids. I like having chickens in my backyard. I love that people accept me for who I am. I consider myself to be a fortunate woman who has a loving and supportive husband. Not all people are as blessed as I am, and I need to remember that.

24/7

We recently finished a study where the following question was asked: What is our purpose? I got to thinking about how we, so many times, look outside at the world to fill up that emptiness inside of us. If I have the right house or the biggest SUV or I weigh less, then everything will be okay. Why is it that we keep looking for worldly things to fill that emptiness?

Our Bible tell us that our purpose is to worship God. I don't mean for an hour on Sunday mornings. I am talking about worship that effects our whole lives. When we worship we are to submit to Him, to pay service to Him, to glorify Him, and to make a sacrifice to Him. In Romans 12:1 Paul says that in view of all that God had done for you, you are to present your whole body as a living sacrifice. In other words, we are God's twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. What happens in that hour on Sunday morning should set the stage for every other hour in our lives.

In a recent survey, business owners were asked the simple question, how are you doing? The majority responded by stating that they were tired. I know I feel tired most of the time too. Isaiah 40:30-31 says that those who wait on the Lord will have their strength renewed.

We were asked who we serve? Do we serve God or the all mighty dollar? If I answer that question honestly, I don't like the answer. The Bible tells us that if we don't serve God then we will grow weary. But if we serve the Lord then our strength will be renewed.

So, we are to take our daily tasks and do them as service to God. We were also told that worship takes preparation. How many times have you fixed the kids lunches and laid out their clothes the night before going someplace? When we take that time to prepare for the next day things go much smoother. Worship is the same way. When our lives are all about knowing God, then we will know life. We are to worship everyday and focus on submitting to God then we will know and abundant, joy filled life.

Tee Time

Our manchild has been taking golf lessons at the First Tee. The World Golf Foundation created The First Tee back in 1997. Not only do they teach golf skills, they also teach core values. We are lucky enough to have a location here in Arkansas. Once a week for the past several years our manchild has participated in group golf lessons. He is in the TARGET class . What I really like is that he seems to soak up the lessons he's learning in these Life Skills classes. They teach personal and social skills including respect, interegity, good sportsmanship, self-reliance, self-control and and goal setting. So for only $50.oo a year he can be a member of the First Tee and for and additional fee he's able to participate in these classes. I am hoping to get him involved in individual classes early next year. Just think, you may be looking at a picture of the next Tiger Woods.

What Happened To Thanksgiving?

I started working at a home decor store last year when our ladybug needed braces. I found that I sort of like working outside the home a couple of hours a week. My favorite husband is a restaurant manager, which means he's off different days during the week. If he's off during the week he does the kids schooling while I'm at work. At first it was difficult for both him and the kids, but now they seem to be in a pretty good groove.
The thing that I don't like about work is that, in the retail business, we start getting Christmas decorations in as early as September. Apparently in retail the only holidays are Valentines Day, Mother's Day, Halloween and Christmas. Whatever happened to Thanksgiving? Who was it that made the decision that we would just skip from Halloween right to Christmas? Don't get me wrong, I like Christmas in fact, I would have to say that I love Christmas, but after a long hot summer I want to enjoy fall and that means Thanksgiving.

Raising Chickens

Not having grow up around chickens I can't say that I knew too much about them. I certainly know more today that I did a year ago. For example, did you know that a Female chicken under the age of 1 year is called a pullet and a male is called a cockerel?

Did you know that pullets start laying eggs at about 18-20 weeks of age. And that when she starts laying regularly she will lay an egg every 25 hours. I've also learned that hens require about 14 hours of light each day to lay on a regular schedule. That mean that they will decrease their egg production in the winter unless you use artificial light as a supplement for them to have that all important 14 hours.

I didn't know up until a month ago that chickens are cannibalistic. There are several theories as to why chickens behave in such a manor. Some believe it's a lack of protein in their diets while others believe that it's because they don't have enough foraging opportunities. Can you imagine, they will actually peck at one another. If you look closely at Little Red Hen's wing you can see where she has been pecked. We are increasing the amount of protein they eat and their time in the back yard in hopes that this will stop.

Oh and speaking of pecking, do you know what pecking order really means? Pecking is an expression of dominance. It's the whole social hierarchy in a flock of birds. Each dominate bird pecks subordinate birds and the subordinate bird submits to being pecked by dominant birds. It's pretty interesting to watch when one get out of line or decides she's not going to take it any more.

We Have a Voice, Now Let's Use It

Barack Obama has consistently voiced his support for organic agriculture. We, as organic consumers, have an incredible opportunity to shape the future of federal food policies. President-Elect Obama is in the process of formulating policy and assembling his transition team. He is considering nominees for The Secretary of Agriculture, who is responsible for directing the U.S. Department of Agriculture and its $90 billion annual budget. Obama has said that he wants to hear from the public in order to formulate his policies. So, let's take him up on his invitation. The Organic Consumer Association has a petition letter to President-Elect Barack Obama that you should sign and urge him to take a stand in support of organic food and farming. Please go here to sign the petition.

School at Home

One day, several years ago, I sat down and listed a few of the reasons we decided to homeschool our children, just to have it in black and white. I had all but forgotten about that list until the other day when a friend of mine sent me an e-mail. She was telling me a cute story about some comment one of her children had made to her and her husband. She followed the story up with a remark that I haven't been able to forget. She said, "[My husband] and I never really talked about[that] with either of the boys… so I think they have been getting some feedback at school." Now this couple is very loving and also very involved in their kids activities. The comment just struck me that so many parents are detached from their children educations.
One of the many reasons we chose to homeschool our kids was that we wanted to be involved in their education. I just think is sad that so many parents don't know or even worse don't care what their kids are learning. Here is an excerpt from that original list.


Schools have the one-size-fits-all approach. At home we can teach each child in the way that they learn best and at the rate that is appropriate for them. If they don’t “get it” the first time we can spend more time on what they need help with and move along with ideas and concept that are easily understood.
Schools tend to have an atmosphere that is overly controlling; lining up kids, moving them around like herds of cattle, and a disciplining them inappropriately for the problematic behavior. At home children are able express their individual personalities and only receive the appropriate amount of discipline for the infraction.
Schools have an institutionalized environment. At home children are loved and nurtured.
Schools spoon feed children what they want them to know. As our children grow they will have the opportunity to experience self-directed learning. They will acquire the basic skill to learn independently.
In the school setting our children will be exposed to outside influence that we feel are not safe for our children. Examples of such concerns are bullying, cussing, fighting negative influencing of peers, and illegal drug use. Many times these factors are over-looked or unseen by school officials. At home we have the ability to mold our children and shape them with high moral

standards, and to teach them right from wrong. In other words we are able to be their parents.

Schools have set schedules. We are able to study each subject when the time is right, travel if need be, hold ‘class’ during the hot summer months and enjoy the out-of-doors when the weather is pleasant. Flexibility is one of the perks of schooling at home.
Why would I want to send my children to school when the schools are admittedly producing poor quality students? There is violence in the school. The teachers and staff are unable to protect the students. The courts have ruled that once you drop you child off at the door of the school you no longer have to direct your child’s education.

I would just like to add that this so-called socialization issue is not an issue at all. Socialization is the process by which children and adults learn from others. Really now, isn't that what homeschooling is all about? In fact I'll top that one. Most children I've met that are schooled at home interact better with a wider age range than do your so called socialized school children.

What A Mess

I've never been mistaken for Martha Stewart, but seriously, how hard is it to pick up behind yourselves?

I love the other people who occupy this house. I really, really do. Now having said that, what I don't love is the mess they leave behind.

What's this? My loving husbands shoes? Yes and why are they in front of the sofa? That would be because he sat down on the sofa and took off his shoes when he got home. Why oh why can't these things just get put where they belong?

What's this? It's a shirt. Why is it on the back of the chair? I don't know!

Oh look an open bag of chips on my counter. If the bag was empty I'd expect it to go in the garbage which is just a foot from where the bag sits, but surprising it's not empty. And why you ask would a bag of chips be left open on the counter all night? I don't know, but now they're going in the trash now.

I would have posted pictures of my children's room except that I don't want the Health Department to condemn my house. I don't expect my house to look like June Cleaver lives here, but it would be nice if unnamed individuals that live in this house would pick up behind them selves, that all I'm saying.

Liquid Laundry Soap

I have a recipe for sud-less laundry soap I thought I'd share. If you've never made your own soap I challenge you to give it a try, it's really not that difficult and you will see a difference in your pocketbook.

Here's all you'll need:

1/2 cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
1/2 cup 20 Mule Team Borax
1/2 bar Fels Naphtha Soap

Grate the Fels Naphtha with a food grater. Put in a saucepan with 3 pints of water. Heat slowly to melt the soap.

Add washing soda and Borax.

Stir to dissolve all the powder.

Put 1 1/2 quarts of hot water into a 2 gallon bucket. Add the mixture. Stir to mix.

Add more water, making 2 gallons total.

Pour into separate containers.

The laundry soap will be ready to use the next day. Use 1/2 cup per load.

Green Living

I hope you are using cloth grocery bags! At Kroger we get 10 cents back for every bag we have. In less than 10 visits to the grocery store the bags have payed for themselves. I absolutely love to go into the store do my shopping get in line, hand the clerk my bags, and watch her subtract money off my total all because we brought in our own bags. And yes, I am that obnoxious person in front of you that turns and says, see it pays to be green!

Another good idea that we love is Freecycle. If you haven't heard of Freecycle then you are really missing out. Freecycle is a grassroots movement to keep perfectly good stuff out of landfills. Membership is free and they are nation wide. All you have to do is go here , search out a group in your hometown and sign up. You can get daily e-mails with posting of items that people are giving away.

If you know if any other green ideas please post them here. I always love to hear how others are helping out mother earth.

Have you ever considered raising chickens?

I never in my life thought I'd raise chickens until my son ask if we could get some chickens after attending a homesteading class at our local homeschool co-op. He was six at the time. My husband and I thought if he had a good argument as to why we should get some chickens then we'd hear him out. He talked about how much he loved eating eggs and how we could save money. But his winning argument was that he would be responsible for the chickens. We gave in and I think you should to.

Now you may be asking yourself, why would I want to raise chickens. Well, one good reason is that they lay eggs. Not only can you eat the eggs but, you can sell them. We sell ours for less than the grocery store, and still have enough to pay for their up keep.
They are also great to have around because their poop, once composted, is a great fertilizer. We use it on our garden. Of course we compost much of our left overs, but our girls are great for eating up items we don't compost like meats and pastas. The consider our leftovers a real treat. Another good reason to raise chickens is that they are great little pest controllers. We just let our girls out to forage and they eat all the flees, ticks and other unwanted intruders. And a final reason for raising chickens is that they are very low maintenance. Once we enclosed a shed for their coop we really haven't had to do much at all.

Jump Down, Turn Around

Before WW II, in the Arkansas River lowlands, it was common to see people out in the fields planting cotton with harrows being pulled by mules. During the fall, those same people were out in the fields picking cotton. Everyone was expected to help with the most time consuming labor in the cotton industry. In the evenings, after picking cotton all day, they sat around and removed the seeds by hand. In 1793, thanks to Eli Whitney, the cotton gin took over the tedious task of stripping the seeds from the cotton.
Yesterday afternoon we went on a field trip to the Plantation Agricultural Museum in Scott, Arkansas. Having an opportunity to experience the process of picking cotton, trying to remove the seeds by hand, using a small hand cranked cotton gin and even combing the cotton first hand gave my children the thrill of a life time. We even had an occasion to see what some of the first cotton gins looked like and tour The Continental Gin Company.
We learned that pickers would drag 9 foot long bags behind them, if the sack was packed tightly enough it could hold up to 100 lbs. The cotton was then weighed on scales suspended from a homemade tripod. The pickers wages depended upon the selling price in the open market. In 1938, Scott, AR pickers were paid .50 cents for 100 lbs. Many pickers were able to pick up to 300 lbs in a day, bringing home only $1.50 for a days wages.

What Makes Food Organic?

Organic foods must not be genetically modified. They should be produced according to certain production standards, meaning they are grown without the use of conventional pesticides(including herbicides), artificial/synthetic fertilizers, human waste, or sewage sludge, and that they were processed without ionizing radiation or food additives. Organic production standards also include strict rules on the composting and application of manure.
Organically raised livestock must be given organic feed and kept free of growth hormones and antibiotics. Organic farm animals must have access to the outdoors, including pastureland for grazing.


When buying organic, look for the following regulated terms on food labels:

Food labeled "100% organic" has no synthetic ingredients and can legally use the USDA organic seal.
Food labeled "organic" has a minimum of 95% organic ingredients. It is eligible to use the USDA organic seal.
Food labeled "made with organic ingredients" must contain at least 70% organic ingredients. It is not eligible for the USDA seal.
Meat, eggs, poultry, and dairy labeled "organic" must come from animals that have never received antibiotics or growth hormones.

Go here to read more on organic safeguards.

Why Recycle?

If you've ever wondered why you should recycle

or thought, "what's the use it's just one aluminum can"

then please read the following.

Each of us uses approximately one 100-foot-tall Douglas fir tree in paper and wood products per year.
To produce each week's Sunday newspapers, 500,000 trees must be cut down.
If you recycle a 4 foot stack of newspaper you will save a 40 foot tree.
If only 100,000 people stopped their junk, mail, we could save up to 150,000 trees annually. If a million people did this, we could save up to a million and a half trees.
Recycled paper can also be made into paper towels,construction products, notebook paper, envelopes, copy paper and other paper products, as well as boxes, hydro-mulch, molded packaging, compost, and even kitty litter.

Lighting consumes up to 34 percent of electricity in the United States.
Compact fluorescent light bulbs are an energy-saving alternative to incandescent bulbs. CFL's produce the same amount of light, use one third of the electricity, and last up to ten times as long.
If every household replaced its most often-used incandescent light bulbs with CFLs, electricity use for lighting could be cut in half.

About 75 percent of the water we use in our homes is used in the bathroom.If just 1% of American homes replaced an older toilet with a new Water Sense labeled toilet, the country would save more than 38 million kilowatt-hours of electricity. That's enough electricity to supply more than 43,000 households for one month.
The average bathroom faucet flows at a rate of two gallons per minute. Turning off the tap while brushing your teeth in the morning and at bedtime can save up to 8 gallons of water per day, which equals 240 gallons a month.
A full bath tub requires about 70 gallons of water, while taking a five-minute shower uses only 10 to 25 gallons.

Americans throw away enough glass bottles and jars every two weeks to fill the 1.350-foot towers of the former World Trade Center.
Glass never wears out, it can be recycled forever. We save over a ton of resources for every ton of glass recycled.

Every year we make enough plastic film to shrink-wrap Texas.
Americans go through 2.5 million plastic bottles every year. If every American household recycled just one out of every ten plastic bottles they used, we’d keep 200million pounds of the plastic out of landfills every year.

Recycling one aluminum can saves enough energy to run a TV for three hours. An aluminum can that is thrown away will still be a can 500 years from now.


I hope I've convince you to start recycling. Remember you can make a difference.

Ode to Autumn

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,

Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;

Conspiring with him how to load and bless

With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run;

To bend with apples the moss'd cottage-trees,

And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;

To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells

With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,

And still more, later flowers for the bees,

Until they think warm days will never cease,

For Summer has o'er-brimm'd their clammy cells.

Who hath not seen thee oft amid thy store?

Sometimes whoever seeks abroad may find

Thee sitting careless on a granary floor,

Thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind;

Or on a half-reap'd furrow sound asleep,

Drows'd with the fume of poppies, while thy hook

Spares the next swath and all its twined flowers:

And sometimes like a gleaner thou dost keep

Steady thy laden head across a brook;

Or by a cyder-press, with patient look,

Thou watchest the last oozings hours by hours.

Where are the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they?

Think not of them, thou hast thy music too,--

While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day,

And touch the stubble-plains with rosy hue;

Then in a wailful choir the small gnats mourn

Among the river sallows, borne aloft

Or sinking as the light wind lives or dies;

And full-grown lambs loud bleat from hilly bourn;

Hedge-crickets sing; and now with treble soft

The red-breast whistles from a garden-croft;

And gathering swallows twitter in the skies.

by John Keats

Chicken recipe

Normally I don't post my recipes on this blog, but what with NaBloPoMo, I can't afford to miss a single day so I wanted to share one of my recent successes.

Cream Cheese and Pesto Stuffed Chicken Breast

All you need are:

8 TBS of cream cheese

4 TBS basil pesto

4 chicken breast

breadcrumbs, egg and milk mixture and cooking oil.

I butterflied the chicken breast, pounded them, filled them with the mixture of cream cheese and pesto and closed them up. If they won't stay closed you can use a tooth pick or some butchers string.

Next I dipped the chicken in the egg and milk mixture and then dredged it in the bread crumbs.

I cooked the chicken in the oil for about 2 minutes on each side. I then baked it at 375 until it was done (thermometer should register 170 degrees Fahrenheit)

This was so easy. You can serve with your favorite vegetables.

Enviromental Issues

If you haven't been keeping up, I have some very strong opinions on environmental issues.

Now I'm not going to tell anyone who to vote for,

I just hope that you know what each candidates plans to do about our environment.

Senator McCain's Policies are:

That he plans to establish a market-based system to curb
greenhouse gas emissions, mobilize innovative technologies, and strengthen
the economy.

He plans to work with our international partners to secure our energy
future, to create opportunities for American industry.

He proposes cap-and-trade system that would set limits on greenhouse gas
emissions while encouraging the development of low-cost compliance options.

To support the cap and trade system, he will promote the innovation,
development and deployment of advanced technologies.

He will foster rapid and clean economic growth.

He believes that there must be a global solution to global climate
change.

He will also develop a climate change adaptation plan based upon national and
regional scientific assessments of the impacts of climate change.

Senator Obama believes:

That the U.S. must take aggressive action now to reduce the emission of
greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change.

That one of the greatest threats facing the Great Lakes is aquatic
invasive species and he was successful in ensuring that Illinois receives
adequate federal funding to operate a barrier to prevent Asian carp from
entering Lake Michigan and disrupting the balance of the lake's ecosystem.

That mercury contamination in can cause serious developmental problems
in children. To address this problem, Senator Obama introduced two bills that
would significantly reduce the amount of mercury that is deposited in oceans,
lakes, and rivers.

In the elimination of childhood lead poisoning.

Please vote with a conscious.

The South Will Rise Again

The other day we climbed into our gas guzzling time machine and traveled back to the 1860's. We drove south to Historic Washington State Park .

There is just something about visiting a living history museum. On this particular trip we attended the Civil War School Day Exhibit. There are many other events you can attend, but this is by far one of my favorites. I love to see the kids wide eyed, soaking up a bit of history. My ladybug even got a tad queasy listening to the doctor talk about bleeding, leaching and amputations. They were able to see and hear the artillery men demonstrate the proper firing of an actual gun used during the Civil War and learn the basics of infantry drill.
Later that day we were able to visit a farmer at his humble home and compare their life to that of the Sander's who owed a slave. I think the visit with the slave was the most enlightening for the kids. They were able to see her living quarters and questioned her about her daily life. We also visited the candle shop where we were able to dip our own candles.

Fabulous Fall Outings Part 1

We recently went to a local family farm.
There were so many things to do and see.

There was a small petting zoo with chickens, rabbits, sheep, goats, and a pony.

The kids got to ride in a John Deer train.


There was a country merry-go-round.

and a zip-line.

We went on a hay ride and

even took home pumpkins.

HAPPY FALL Y'ALL!

NaBloPoMo

Visit NaBloPoMo


This marks the beginning of National Blog Posting Month.
I started this blog just over a year ago, having never really read another blog. A friend of mine suggested I join NaBloPoMo last November, against my better judgement, I did.

National Blog Posting Month is a place to "set the habit of blogging by doing it
every day for a month, including weekends, [bloggers] can go here for moral support, inspiration, and the camaraderie that only marathon blogging can provide."

So we're off...