How Does Your Garden Grow

Mary, Mary quite contrary
How does your garden grow?
All the flowers, all the colors
All in a perfect row
First the seeds
And then the water
Keeping a little space
Tomatoes here, broccoli there
Each one has their place

(Okay, okay, so the tomatoes and broccoli aren't really in this poem, but they so much more fitting for my garden)

It's been a glorious day here at the farm. It is a warm 84 degrees outside and promises to be about 90 tomorrow. Grass (and weeds) are growing like crazy right now and it is the season for flood irrigation around these parts. This year is the first year that my husband is going to be changing the water and making sure all the horticultural wildlife thrive. For years upon years the 40 acres behind our house has been used as a summer grazing spot for 30 pair of cows. They've done a splendid job of fertilizing the fields the natural way and so we've decided that this year the back 40 can have a rest and we'll be haying it instead. The grass is so beautiful and I am excited with this new venture. My dad used to hay our fields growing up so it's not necessarily 'new' to me, but this is the first time that I've been involved as an adult. And so it will remain a new venture.

The chickens are thriving and growing like weeds (pun intended). They've really grown into their feathers and are such a joy to watch. To be honest I am enjoying the chickens far beyond my expectations. They are such weird crazy silly creatures. I must admit, a lot of my enjoyment is from watching my little munchkins play with and hold them. These fowl are truly a livestock animal that is suited for children. There's almost nothing (barring cleaning the poop...that can wait) they can't help with and they are usually more than willing to help with the chores. I really like our Buff Orpingtons, Ameraucanas, and even the skiddish Welsummers but I am really not a fan yet of our Rhode Island Reds. I have heard from everyone how great they are and that they are amazing layers. They better be because they are rather ornery and have the personality of a well, chicken.

Our seedlings have taken off like you wouldn't believe. Our green house is doin' it's job and I couldn't be happier. It does get quite hot in there considering how warm our days have been getting and so to remedy this I just open up both of the doors and let the air flow through to cool it down. I learned the hard way a few weeks ago and scalded all my broccoli and my calendula. Such a disappointment, but thankfully I learned from my mistake and moved on.

Last week we thought our beloved walnut tree was dead. I was so sad and Seth was thinking about cutting it down and using it for firewood. I know that this is the best thing to do with a dead tree, but it was so hard for me to really think it was dead. The walnut tree right next to it is fully clothed in leaves and it just left me puzzled. Why would one tree live and the next one die? We couldn't see anything that looked like a fungus on it and we really have no explanation. Today however, I have a glimmer of hope! The supposedly 'dead' tree is starting to get some leaves and so we are going to wait and see what happens. I really hope that we don't lose this gem on our farm.

Tonight my hubby and I plan on mapping out our garden area and deciding where we want to put what. I am so excited for this and have been trying to wait patiently on this part of our gardening venture. We watched this video last summer and it has totally revolutionized our thinking when it comes to gardening, watering, AND weed control. The gentleman in the video talks about his journey to figuring out how nature works and replicated it himself. His garden is just amazing and he is truly a wise soul. I highly encourage you to take the time to watch it. If I was your mama I'd make you watch it. And if the video weren't just amazing in and of itself, Paul is a believer and his whole outlook and approach to gardening is biblically based. How much cooler could it get?!

We haven't had any rain in over a month and have been having very warm days. We've implemented some of Paul's techniques, mainly the tree chips and I'm amazed at the results thus far. I dug down to the soil and lo and behold, the soil was wet! If I squeezed it I bet I could have gotten a drop or two of water from it. I'm thrilled and I'm thinkin' this might work. Using Paul's technique you won't need to water, weed, or have to worry about soil quality. It takes sometime for the full effect of his technique to really work, but WATCH the video and you'll see that it is VERY worth the wait.

Watch the video, please.

Now with all this warm weather, growing seedlings, and just basic life on a farm, would you believe that I've been sicker than a dog? Oh yes, unfortunately it's true. It started coming on two nights ago and yesterday I couldn't stand without feeling like my head was going to throb off and I was so dizzy. My back, neck, and shoulders ached like nothing I've ever felt and I was freezing, but was warm to the touch. The never ending headache was terrible and my appetite...gone. If I wasn't a nursing mama right now I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have eaten a darn thing over these past two days, but my baby comes first and so I've choked down...everything. I love to eat and so I know I'm sick when food just doesn't sound good. My appetite still isn't great, but it's coming back. Today a feel a bit better, but I could do without all these symptoms. I still have them all, just not as bad as yesterday.

It was so great getting to get my hiney outside and enjoy the sunshine. Leah and I got some MUCH needed vitamin D and I got to look a a naked baby.

I hope you are enjoying Spring where you live. I'd love to hear about your garden ventures and what your going to be planting this year.

I just know that the first taste of produce from our garden is going to taste so good. Can't wait!

Of Gypsies and Caravans

I have a confession to make. There is something about me that not many people know about.

Heck, I'm not sure if my hubby knows. He will now.

I have always been fascinated with gypsies. The colors they love and decorate with, their sense of style, their independent spirits, and their lack of care for what others think.



What is it about gypsies that makes them want to stand apart from everyone else? What makes them go against what everyone else is doing and find a new way, a different path, and a more unconventional way of living.

Freedom? Maybe.

Life on the road; never having a permanent residence; always a change in the scenery, but always having your loved ones with you. Sounds like a recipe for a lot of fun. Or it could spell disaster if you don't like your family I guess.



It's got to be fun and yet I am sure there is an exhausting side to it as well. The never ending packing up and making sure everything is where it needs to be. Come on, you don't have enough space to be messy when you travel in a caravan and only have so much space. You probably have to be VERY objective when it comes to your 'things'. Not enough space to have everything you want.

However, I would think that everything you want would be there. A bed (or something) to sleep on, food to eat, a place to call home...even if it is on wheels. Plenty of sunshine to be had and I'm sure the stories that gypsies can tell are amazing along with their songs.

And then comes Winter and I'm sure life ain't so great then. What do I know? I've never lived like a gypsy and so I'll keep thinking it's fantastic.

I just LOVE how they decorate their 'homes'. The color and attention to detail is wonderful!







I'm not sure about you, but I'd love to take a bath here.

When I think of gypsies I tend to think about how that kind of life could relate to another.

As a believer I can kind of relate to the gypsy folk. Curious?

Let me explain.

When Christ saves someone (I'll use myself as an example). When Christ saved me He gave me a new heart, took the blinders off my eyes, and gave me the ability to 'see'. This earth is not my home and I know my stay here is temporary. Heaven is my eternal resting place and I look forward to it greatly. So I guess, like the gypsies who wander from place to place never really settling down and always feeling like they don't fit in with the world, my soul is here for a while, awaiting the time when my eternal and permanent home is ready. Sure I'm enjoying the life that God has blessed me with, and if your wondering I'm not wanting anything to be sped up. I love raising my babies and lovin' on my man and so I am very content to wait on God's timing.





So who knows what lies in the future. I'm sure gonna be enjoying today and today I'm lovin' me some gypsies and caravans.

Is there something that not everyone knows about you? Do tell!

So long as it's appropriate that is...

The Path Less Taken

I live a blessed life. Truly, I have a blessed existence. The Lord in His providence saw fit to place me here and gave me strong convictions about life and purpose. I have many thoughts coursing through my mind and at times, it is difficult to sort them through, to place them in the highest order of importance, and it can be draining to someone who wants to fix the worlds problems (me) and realize that I cannot. Only God can. I am His tool however and I pray that I will be used mightily.

My intention for this blog is not to show off my accomplishments (they are few) and to make much of myself. No, that is not my goal and I hope it doesn't seem to be. My goal for this blog is to journal mine and my family's life here on our farm so we can encourage others who would like to do the same. I want to be the Proverbs 31 woman. This may seem silly to you, but I desire to be her with every bone in my body. I can get discouraged when I read of her because I can see my failings so clearly, but God gave us this woman as an example of what a godly woman can and should be. I therefore conclude that He can also give me the strength to fulfill the role He desires for my life.











Every morning and evening when I go out to do chores I see God and His hand in creation. Life is bursting here on the farm. The fruit trees are already getting heavy with fruit. Apple, peach, plum, and pears - just to name a few. The walnut trees are absolutely majestic, so big and grand with their long branches and broad leaves. My seedlings - even under the care of a black thumb - are doing amazing. The tomato seeds I planted last week are growing like crazy! It seems like they grow every time I check on them, which is often. My pumpkins are still the greenhouse kings and they let the rest know it. Already, their vines are taking shape and towering over the other seedlings showing off their distinct leaves and quick growing ability. The chickens are pretty much full grown and we still have worries of a rooster. I hope we are wrong in our assumptions. *Only about 30 minutes after writing this post it was confirmed. We have a rooster.*

My sheep are another story. I called our shearer the other day and he's supposed to come out soon to clip them of their winter wool. I am awaiting this day with great anticipation because we aren't positive they are bred. Our ram is pretty young and even though his effort was never ending, we just aren't positive that he was - ahem - 'ready'. Time will tell and we still have a little while before we can officially say yea or nay. I so desperately want lambs this year, I may shed a few tears if we don't have any. Sniff. Wouldn't you?

I often wonder about this life that God has led my husband and I to. What is His plan, purpose, and direction for it? I read about, hear about, and witness people all around me getting the 'bug' so to speak. Right now it seems that people are really wanting to go back in time a bit and live a simpler life. People want to witness life in all it's forms. Really we all are wanting to see God and it is so easy to when you live this way. I'm not sure how you can deny His existence when you see a lamb be born, or your very first seedling pop up from the soil. It's truly a thrill! I believe 100% that the most miraculous event (physical...not spiritual. Salvation of course reigns supreme.) that a person experiences is the birth of a child. There is nothing sweeter than the reward of a child after the hours of travail and grueling pain. The sweet smell of a newborn, the warmth of their skin, looking them over intently and meeting the new little one that God has given you. I'm almost to tears right now, I love my babies!



Are you one of those people? Do you yearn for a garden, livestock, a simpler life? Do you desire a spouse, happiness, children? These are great things to desire, but I hope that all of us desire God the most. I hope that we surrender our lives to Him and let Him guide us. It is easy to get distracted these days; there are so many things that can take away our attention. The Lord is merciful and is always patient with this child of His - moi. He always gently leads me to the Rock that I can lean on, the River where my thirst will forever be quenched.

Physically my family is taking the path less taken. Farming is not necessarily glamorous and it seems that celebrity and glamour are what a lot of people want today. Farming is definitely not the life of ease.  We want a life that is spent growing, raising, and nurturing life so it can in turn nurture us. We desire to spend our time helping others, for we truly desire with our farm to bless others. Right now we are still figuring out the kinks, but this farm is not ours, it's God's and we want to use it to bless others, feed others, and point others to the One that matters.

Spiritually we are living the path less taken. It seems that the idea of God is attacked from every corner. And let me just say, God is NOT an idea. He is not just some moralistic 'being' that floats in the sky and tells us the things we cannot do. He is not some goody-two-shoes that is a pushover and merely makes suggestions for how people should live. He is not a figment of the imagination that people have created so they can explain away their fears. No, He is the embodiment of perfection. He is truth, He is holy, He is righteous, and He is just. He is the Creator of life and without Him, we wouldn't be.

May my life, my family, and yes, this blog point in one direction...up. I am living proof that God loves and saves sinners. Lord willing, my life will not be lived in vain. Lord willing, my husband and I will use what we've been given to bless and teach others.

When I am old and my life is spent, I hope to look back and see Christ and all the He's done through His servant.

I hope I will always continue to take the path less taken.

Life

If your in the need of a new and fresh perspective of life may I suggest you go outside, look up in the sky, and feel how grand God is and how small we are.

Life.

It's a gift, whether you realize it or not.

I've been in tears for the past hour reading about this family and the hardships they have been through and are going through. Everything can seem so trivial, even the everyday events of our life. What is our purpose? Why do we face such hardships? Why do we have to experience loss?

Christ. That is why. He is the reason and the hope for trials that we Christians face in this life. I am thankful to God that the Spirit is at work in my life and that I have a heavenly perspective. I pray that you do as well.

If you don't know who Jesus is, or just plain don't want to, I pray that God would soften your heart and give you a new one.

And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       Ezekiel 36:26

I am resolved with the guidance of the Holy Spirit to live everyday as my last, or my child's last, or my husbands. Our days are numbered and I'd rather live loving than live regretting.

So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.                                                                                                                                          Psalm 90:12

Praise be to His name!

Gettin' You Guessin'

I will be honest.

I have a black thumb and it's a pretty bad one too.

I make a better shepherdess than I do a gardener. I can easily know when one of the ewe's isn't well. I know that they need to have plenty of food, water, and shade in order to survive and thrive. I watch my sheep daily to see if any are showing signs of lambing and if you really want to know, I got my fill of watching the lamb-making process this Fall. I don't necessarily enjoy the scene, but I love the thought of having lambs in the Spring and so every time I happened to see nature do "it's thing" I was happy. I grew up a shepherdess, but I was only an apprentice gardener.

Now I need to be both. Shepherdess and the one who tends the garden. I am above and beyond excited to get to grow food for us, but my lack of experience has already shown.



I had started my garden about three weeks ago, had bright green seedlings peeking through the soil, only to have most (not all) fry in the green house because it got too hot. The lesson was learned and now the doors are propped open during the day to allow for some circulating air. An experienced gardener would have known that on an 80 degree day it is unnecessary to have both doors closed. My broccoli were demolished save three or four, my calendula wilted to nothing, my cucumbers partly burned, but my pumpkins were the champs! Oh my, you should see their stalks, proudly boasting of their resilience to all the other not-so-fortunate's.

Yesterday, a second chance was given to my failing seedlings. It was another gorgeous sunny day and I replanted all that was lost. I am a bit wiser now and so hopefully the newly learned knowledge will show. Hopefully. To many of you this may seem small, trite, and down right silly. For me, it's a step in the right direction. Experience really is the best teacher and I've learned quite a bit already.

I am really liking my time planting and gettin' my hands dirty. Except for dirt under my fingernails...it really creeps me out, but I'm getting past it.

The one thing I am good at is my herb garden. You should see it! When we have company over I always have people stare amazed at how big my herb plants get. I think it is mainly due to them being planted on the eastern side of my house. They get the morning sun, but do not get sizzled during the hottest part of the day. My basil (which isn't shown) gets to be downright enormous and don't even mention the smell, you walk outside and it smells like heaven. I'm pretty sure if someone made a basil and mint perfume I would wear it.

I have a little game for you. I'm sure most of you will pass with flying colors. Can you guess which herbs are which? Answer in the comments, I can't wait to see how right you are!



Ready, set, go!

What is Man?

 Oh Lord, our Lord how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens.

Out of the mouth of babies and infants, you have established strength because of your foes, to still the enemy and the avenger.

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,

what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?

You have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor.

You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet,

all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

Oh Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Homemade Tallow Balm

For the past year and a half I have embarked whole heartedly into my whole foods journey. I have always had more of a "natural route" approach when it comes to feeding and caring for my family. In finding out about the Weston A Price organization I had an 'ah-ha!' moment. It was like I found what I never realized I was looking for. An organization - more like a group of people -  who are dedicated to eating what is nourishing to our bodies and are committed to helping others do the same. I became a member immediately and in doing so I received their quarterly journal quickly in the mail.

I devoured it. I read it. I scoured it. And I learned from it.

I can't emphasize to you enough of my enjoyment of reading that lovely journal. In it I found a jewel, one that I have been looking for long and hard.

I have been battling diaper rash with my daughter for months. It seems like I have had an issue with it since she was born last July. It has been terribly frustrating to not be able to figure out why it wont go away and not have any home remedies work in healing her poor bottom. Weston A. Price to the rescue! In the quarterly journal there was an article about tallow balm, it's history, it's healing properties, and a 'how-to' in making your own. There even was mention of a mama using it on her baby's diaper rash and it was cured. Say no more, I decided that I was going to try it out. What was there to lose? Nothing. Absolutely nothin'.

There I was, standing in my kitchen looking at something that should be in a sci-fi movie sitting on my counter top. I had made several calls earlier in the week and had walked into a local grocery store/butcher shop and finally obtained what I was looking for. Beef tallow or as the butcher called it suet (I will proceed to call it tallow/suet since I have had so many people call it these two names). Since I have my quirks and like to have fun with my food I decided to name the newest addition to my REAL foodie journey.

Meet 'Little Miss Suet'.



Isn't she disgustingly awesome?

I think so too.

I'm serious, she was and is awesome in so many ways. I never knew the greatness that I had before me. Before we get ahead of ourselves, let me give you a few facts on tallow balm and why I am so excited about this. Once rendered you can cook with this, bake with this, and make your own skin care products with this. You heard me correctly. Skin. Care. Products. This is where I am heading with this post. Food tastes amazing using tallow/suet and it is full of natures goodness, but I want to focus on what it does for your skin.

In the article it states that, "From biology, we know that the [human] cell membrane is made up primarily of fatty acids, a double layer, to be exact. Saturated fats constitute at least 50 percent of the cell membrane. Since saturated fats tend to be more solid  than unsaturated fats at a given temperature, they help give the cell membrane its necessary stiffness and integrity for proper function...Healthy, "toned" skin cells with sufficient saturated and monounsaturated fats would undoubtedly make for healthy, toned skin. Interestingly, tallow fat is typically 50 to 55 percent saturated, just like our cell membranes, with almost all the rest being monounsaturated, so it makes sense that it would be helpful for skin health and compatible with our cell biology."

Isn't that just so amazing? I love learning about how the Lord made our bodies and how intricately we were designed. Did you also know that "tallow also contains fats like conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which has anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties, as well as palmitoleic acid, which has natural antimicrobial properties?" (quotes cited from article)

I could go on, but I'll spare you. I'm hoping this will lead you to do some more reading and research on your own.

*wink, wink*

Back to my baby's diaper rash. I'll admit, this was my last ditch effort before I resorted to more drastic measures. I am so glad that I tried this because it really worked wonders and I love that I'm putting something on my baby's skin that not only is helping her, but is also healing her.

Tallow/suet balm is so easy to make. If your interested in learning how to do it follow along and then...get you some suet!



You'll want to cut up the suet in small pieces and cut out anything that isn't hard and waxy. The kidney you can either throw away or if you have a dog...give the dog a treat! Franco loved his treat so much he buried it. What can I say?  He's a smart one. There is major sarcasm going on here.

Once that job is complete, put the tallow/suet in glass cooking dishes and preheat your oven to 220 degrees. Just a warning, it takes quite a while to cut up this hunk of fat, so make sure you do this early in the day. By early I mean, start in the morning so you can have this whole process done well before bedtime. And yes, I was straining tallow/suet while the rest of the family was snoozing. I didn't get the early start that I'm advising...



You'll want to bake the tallow/suet for 6+ hours, or until all the fat is cooked out and the hard tissue is floating in the rendered fat. During the cooking process I took my potato masher and gave everything a good smooshing.

Once this step is finished you'll want to put a metal strainer over a large bowl and strain out all the large chunks. You will need to do a final strain through a cheese cloth to make sure that you got everything. I draped the cheese cloth in the metal strainer and then re-poured the fat through the cheese cloth. It was pretty simple. Don't worry about your cheese cloth, after I used it to do the final strain, I rinsed it out with warm water, gave it a good hand scrubbing with dish soap, let it sit overnight in soapy water, and then washed it the next morning with my laundry. It was as good as new. Whew, that was a mouthful!

Pour your liquid gold into jars and let cool. The rendered fat will stay good for a looong time in your fridge. I use it for all my cooking now and let's just say...it's delicious.



I didn't make my tallow balm right away and so I just let it all cool. When this stuff cools it turns white and once you place it in the fridge it gets hard. When it came time for me to whip up some tallow balm, I just took a jar out of the fridge and let it warm up a bit so it would easily mix up with my other ingredients.

Long post made longer, here's my recipe for my tallow balm.

Homemade Tallow Balm

Recipe Type: Home Remedy

Author: Noël McNeil

Here's a wonderful skin balm that has a wide range of uses. Such as face lotion, hand and body lotion, diaper rash cream, and etc.

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons soft tallow


• 1 teaspoon organic olive oil


• 4-7 drops lavender essential oil* (or desired scent**)

Instructions

1. Mix tallow and olive oil together in a small glass bowl.


2. Add essential oils and mix.


3. Once the desired consistency and scent is achieved transfer to a small glass container with a lid, keep at room temperature, and enjoy!


4. Makes approximately 2 oz.


5. *I would start with a few drops and then add more if you are wanting a stronger scent. You can always add more, but you can't take away.


6. **Use essential oils that are known for being good for skin and skin health. I wouldn't use anything strong that could be an irritant. Peppermint for example would NOT be a good choice.


7. ***I wouldn't recommend using any essential oils that aren't 100% pure therapeutic grade. DoTERRA essential oils are what I use and I highly recommend them.

3.2.1226

I hope you love this tallow balm as much as I do.

However, I know that not everyone is up to making their own skin care products. If you are still wanting to have this skin care goodness but don't want to make it you can go HERE and buy some. You won't regret it.

And just so you know, I also use this on my face. Don't be shocked, it's wonderful.

If your in need of essential oils click HERE and you can find everything you need.

*** Excerpts in this post were from the article written by Andrew J. Gardner titled, "Traditional Nourishing and Healing Skin Care". It can be found in the Winter 2012 Volume 13 Number 4 edition of Wise Traditions.

One Is Good, Two Is Better, Third's a Charm!

I have three things that I MUST share with you.

Two are related...one is not.

One-

I LOVE grapefruits. When I was younger I would cut them in half and douse them with sugar. I know, I know, way to make something healthy...not. Well, I can safely say that my palate has matured and I can eat these things like oranges, sans the sugar. They can be tricky to enjoy and so I am here to say, "there is a better and easier way."

Let me show you.

Once you cut the top and bottom off of these gems, carefully slice off the rest of the peel angling your knife just so.



Next, you'll want to section the rest of the fruit out of their skin.

The regular method has you holding the fruit in your hand and using the middle of your blade slicing your pieces from the outside in. Confused? Look HERE. (If this is the way you'd prefer doing it, then by all means, go for it)



I like to do it a bit differently. I start with the tip of my (very sharp) knife at the top of the grapefruit right where the sections meet, then I cut down. I proceed to do it on the other side of the section. I continue on until the whole fruit has been sectioned.





As soon as I've finished with this step, I simply pick the juicy mess up and pull out the gems and place them in a bowl. You can practically flip the skins like a book when your doing this step. Pick out sectioned gem, flip skin, pick out sectioned gem, flip skin, and etc. You get the picture.

Literally.



The final step is to squeeze out any extra juice.



Are you drooling yet? Oh my, I ate this already today and after working on this post I'm pretty sure I'm going to have another bowl. One of my favorite ways to eat this is to slice some banana and mix the two. The two textures are great and the flavor is amazing. Oh, yum!



Two-

If your so inclined you can also use the grapefruit peels and make some delicious smelling all purpose cleaner. Just slice them up, put them in a jar, add some white vinegar, wait a few weeks, strain, and voila! You'll have some amazing, homemade cleaner that you'll have no problem using around your little ones. Doesn't get better than that!



***Just a note- make sure you check back a few times the first day and add a little more vinegar. The peels absorb a bit.

And here is the Charm-



Anyone that knows me, knows that I LOVE kefir. It is so good, so easy, and can be used so many ways.

You can drink it straight, bake with it, make a smoothie with it, or you can (drum roll please) make sour cream with it!

And you better believe it is finger lickin' good and so easy.

All you'll need is a pint of cream (I buy the organic heavy whipping cream from Trader Joe's. It's the only kind with out additives that I can find.) and 1/4 cup of kefir. Mix the two in a jar, set it in a warm, draft free part of your house for about 12 hours, and when it is thick and not running up the side of the jar when you tip it, stick it in the fridge to let it set. After a few hours you'll have some rich, creamy sour cream that is full of probiotic goodness.

I'll say it again, this is a charm.



Did you ever think wholesome and nutritious food could be so simple?

Ah, sure you did.