Tuesday Twister

I am finally getting around to posting a Tuesday Twister, hosted by Wardeh at GNOWFGLINS.

After a rough year & a very rough summer, I jumped in the kitchen, after the whole family came down with a stomach bug & decided I HAD to get back on the wagon. And.stay.there.

On Thursday I got my act together & did water kefir, dairy kefir & kombucha.

We've also fallen in love with the egg drink. It's made the table regularly in an effort to cram as many nutrients in as possible. I've also added trace minerals, powdered vitamins & powdered greens to it, to pack more of a punch.

Yesterday was stuffed jalapenos for the freezer (after we snacked on a few).

A few other things we've worked on the past few days:

I cut up 2 heads of red cabbage. I pulled out 8 cups to make a double batch of coleslaw. Coleslaw is a semi-rare treat around here. This was SO pretty going together!!




The rest was layered in a 9x13 pan with salt & whey for kraut.



I also decided to try escabeche after seeing this recipe. It went into cold storage yesterday. It smells absolutely YUMMY! I'm looking forward to trying it! Again, this was so colourful & pretty!




Dinners started out bland after being sick. Chicken & rice; beef short ribs, mashed potatoes & watermelon (we've had a LOT of watermelon this past week to help combat dehydration); and yesterday we were able to eat spaghetti. I still have some cheats in my kitchen until my energy returns, but as it does, those cheats slowly will be weaned away again. Thankfully those cheats are organic, HFCS-free, natural, etc.

And totally off topic & not in the kitchen, I couldn't resist showing you this picture. We are loving this little critter.

A couple pics from around here lately

We got a new kitty!!! This occurred on Sunday, August 15th.

My poor babies, in the midst of being sick were actually getting along!!!

And wonderful things to those that are patient. My wee bub lost his first tooth on Tuesday, the 17. But not just a tooth..... TWO teeth!!!


Seriously, how lucky can a first-time-tooth-losing-kid get???

My week long "internet sabbatical" in review

"A sabbatical is a period away from your normal routine - a time to immerse yourself in a different environment, a chance to see your life from a different perspective"

This past week I have taken time away from the internet to refocus & play a little game of catch up. I did get online each day to check emails, as that's how my jobs are doled out & how I head up the food co-op & homeschool group. I went into this week knowing that there was no way I could catch up 100%, but I wanted to begin.This is only part of the week. I have another post lined up with more pics & more stuff that we did. I also plan on catching up on more stuff over the weekend & & next week.

After the year I've had, I have gotten so far behind in...... well, everything. My home has taken a hit. Our homeschooling has taken a hit. The garden, the animals & "homestead" projects.... all have taken a hit. As a friend of mine said "it's been an armpit of a year."

So, I decided to shower my year, add some deodorant & pray for the best......Here is my week in review:

We spent Monday at the lake with some people we know. I think I found a true & good friend. They also helped BIG time when we had the sewage flood. I got burned horribly on my lower shins. We had fried chicken & chips & cake, and we fished. The kids got to go 4-wheelin'! It was a blast!



I got my bathroom back on Tuesday..... The sanitation crew came & took their last 3 fans & the dehumidifier



More importantly, I got my bedroom back!!! I love my bed!

I made another batch of mayo. This stuff is the bestest!

I used the delicious mayo to make a batch of coleslaw

I made a batch of homemade spaghetti sauce

We enjoyed that sauce with pasta, spinach salads & watermelon....

I started a batch of kraut in my new-to-me glazed crock. I got it for 2 bucks at a yard sale last weekend!

I made time to enjoy some hot tea. Mmmm.... Madagascar Vanilla Red.....

We played Uno

I did lots & lots of laundry. The good news is- I caught up from the sewage flood we had.

I fixed the gate to the chicken run

We enjoyed some DELICIOUS hard boiled eggs from the backyard. Oh.my.yum!

We watched the puppy play. We played with the puppy. We laughed at the puppy. We even had to get on to the naughty puppy some.

The joys of having a St. Bernard..... We vacuumed lots of fur..... lots.

I got sunburned twice. In the same place on my body..... YOUCH!

The bestest..... We had brotherly love.

We enjoyed many breakfasts & lunches together. Usually, I don't eat at the same time as the kids, so we tend to miss out eating together (except at dinner). This was one of the best parts of my week


I made kefir cheese

We had BBQ ribs in the crockpot


We did a lot of dishes..... A.lot.

I got to go to a "pre-yard sale" sale at a friend's house. We got some books & a rug, and a pair of shoes for Kee to grow into, and this (I have wanted one of these for ages!):


I made chocolate syrup


And I rescued my dairy kefir grains from the fridge


I rescued my sourdough starter from moldy neglect, only to find out..... it didn't work :-(


I made Amish Friendship Bread. Instead of mixing & baking, I allowed it to soak for 7 hours, just to see if it's work. I didn't get a pic because it went that quickly. Oops. Yeah, it worked!


I enforced some child labour


But we got the walkways dug & the garden beds raised. That aforementioned boy ROCKED!!!




I finished 2 of my recycled lilac limbs trellises


We planted bean plants & bean seeds, pepper seeds, squash plants & seeds, carrot seeds & I covered the corn plants again.

After going to the lake, the poor Uplander was in dire need of some TLC. We vacced & wiped & scrubbed the inside of that baby..... Sand, dirt, puppy fur be gone!

We tormented the poor little kitty. OK, no we didn't.


We fed the puppy a.lot. Another joy of having a Saint puppy.

I finally filled the pepper shakers. No more pinching it from the tub & then **OOPS** touching our noses. HAHA!!!


We tried a new recipe for pancakes..... RYE pancakes. Oh yummy!

I'm hoping to get back to blogging more. I'm aiming for at least once a week for now, so if I do that, expect longer picture-heavy posts. I hope you've enjoyed this one!