"Mom, What do you do if you work too hard?"

After 7 hours of shoveling, hoeing, bending over to cut grass and yank weeds, and hauling the resulting rubbish from the garden area to the ever growing mound of greenery at the side of the yard, I sat down with my family for dinner. I had brought in the shovels, the hoe, and the two hammers I'd used to pull nails from boards, then pound them into the earth to keep the beds in place. I could barely manage to pick my legs up high enough to make it up the 2 steps into the house.

I sat down at the table and stopped to inspect the 5 blisters on my one hand (good thing I was wearing gloves!), before dishing up my plate, and taking a very large drink of water. My 9 year old daughter who was sitting next to me took a bite of her food, chewed it up and swallowed before asking me, "Mom, what do you do if you work too hard?" I finished my bite of food, and took another drink of water before answering, "I may need your help climbing out of bed in the morning."

I'm so proud of my family. The kids were outside helping in the garden within 30 minutes of me. They worked, without complaint for several hours before asking to visit the neighbor kids. After giving them lunch we sent them on their way. They were gone about an hour and a half. When the returned they jumped right in and started helping in the garden again. They did take a couple rest and play breaks, but were such a big help.

Daniel was a huge help as well. We couldn't have accomplished even half of what we did without his help. My whole family "dug in", which helped turn a hard work day into a fun family event day. I was amazed when we finally all burned out, deciding to call it a day, and I looked at my watch. We started early, shortly after 10 AM. My watch now said 5:30.

Where did the day go?

Ma's Knittin' Misadventure

A few months ago, I decided it was time to move on from squares and rectangles, and try my hand at knitting a garment. Seein' as I have two young-un's at home, I couldn't very well knit for one and not for the other, so I ended up working on two at the same time. Oddly enough, the one I figured would be the most difficult ended up being the easiest, although they both had their challenges (at least for me)


My daughter wanted something soft and fuzzy, and I knew just the yarn to fit the bill, "Homespun". We took a trip to Joaan's and she picked out the color she wanted. We were all surprised when she chose a lovely lilac color, rather than the bright pink. Turned out it was an excellent choice. In the end, it was the weight of the yarn, and Ma's lack of skills and patience that was the problem.

The pattern Lindsay chose seemed simple enough. The yarn it called for was not the yarn we had chosen though, so I went online and checked the stats for each yarn. They seemed comparable enough. I think there was only 1 stitch differnce between the two. I had already made it most of the way through Nathan's sweater and it seemed to be sizing up nicely, so I figured why bother with a swatch.

Lesson 1: Always listen to Bev, and always swatch!

I set to knitting and was having a grand time with it, until I got to the second half of the front top. The pattern instructed me to slip 6(6.6,8) stitches to the stitch holder, then work as for the other side, reversing shapings. Okay. I could do that! I proceeded to slip 6, joined the new yarn and did my decrease. I got about halfway through the row when something didn't feel right... I reread the instructions. The way the pattern had printed, the "slip 6" was on one line, while the other options (for larger sizes) was on the next line. I should've slipped 8 to the holder! Oh No!

Lesson 2: Always read ahead! It's not a novel. You won't spoil the ending.

Froggy and I went to work, and were doing fine til we reached the dreaded decrease/yarn joining. I discovered the slip/pass technique works very well for locking the joining yarn in. I think it took me a full 30 minutes to get past that last stitch! I fiinally got it figured out and was off knitting again. Was doing fine 'til I got to the last decrease, the shoulder shaping. I was so excited to be almost finished that I forgot to reverse the shaping! Uggh!!! The shoulder was shaped, halfway bound off, and sloping into the neckline! I was so disgusted with myself, I just put it down, went in and decided to fix myself a comfort meal for dinner. To heck with the salad I'd been planning. It was good ol' Macaroni and Cheese to the rescue!

Lesson 3: Always have comfort food on hand, just in case.

I finished my comfort meal, returned to the couch, set myself down and called froggy over. Fortunately, we had become well acquainted on that joining/decrease row, and I was surprised when it all went quite well. I bid froggy a fond farewell (until next time) and was happily knitting, purling, and decreasing my way through the rows. Got to the last 7 stitches and realized I couldn't bind off there. If I bound off there, what would I use to purl the next (and last) row? No way was I going to join another piece of yarn to purl 6 stitches then bind them off! Thought about it a minute and decided to just bind off at the beginning of the next row. Once I was finished, and was thinking about how the shaping of the pattern ran throughout the rest of the front, I decided I had done the right thing.

I think it took me another week to finish the sleeves, knit the collar, and sew everything together. I finished the sweater in the evening, after the kids had gone to bed. The next morning, I finished Nathan's sweater and presented both at the same time.

Nathan slipped his over his head and we were both thrilled with the almost perfect fit. Then it was Lindsay's turn. I helped her pull it over her head, and place her arms through. It was HUGE! That thing was so big on my 9 year old daughter that I decided to try it on. It fit perfectly! A little short for my tastes, but other than that...She loves it, and has worn it several times. If it lasts that long, we figure she'll be able to wear it when she's a Mom!

Lesson 4: See Lesson 1

I have since managed to knit her a new top. I started by knitting a swatch. It fits! (Her, not me. LOL)

Okay Then! Everybody All Together Now...

On the count of three!

1...2.....3!

LAUGH!

Laugh LOUD!

Laugh Long!!!

Laugh some More!!!!

There! Maybe Mother nature will get the message.

We got the joke! It was funny!!!

The snow amazed us!

The rain and hail pouring down upon us as we gazed in awe at the sun, which beamed down at us the entire time was almost inspirational.

The wind was a bit much, but entertaining just the same.

Now, can we please get back to somewhat normal weather?

We have gardens to plant already!

Don't Sign It Til You've Read It!

We have an appointment with a member of the health care profession tomorrow. The clinic was kind enough to send the the required forms to us ahead of time so we could have it all filled out and signed, ready to hand over when we walk in the door.

I learned how to read a long time ago, and as a young adult was taught to use that skill, and never EVER sign a document, until I read everything, including, and especially the "fine print".
I read through the 4 page "privacy policy" last night, and had Daniel read it this morning. Quite frankly it left us both wondering why they wasted the paper printing it, when a brief paragraph, such as I've included below summarizing the whole thing would've done the trick.

********************************************
We believe privacy is overrated. We can share any information we glean about you or your family with anyone we please, about anything we please, at any time we please, including, but not limited to the taxi driver who dropped you off . If you disagree with this policy you may request, in writing that we not share with a given entity, but we don't have to honor that request. By signing this document you agree that the Patient-Doctor Confidentiality clause is an outdated notion.
*********************************************

As Americans of a certain generation, who have memories of a time when the government didn't have their collective noses stuck in the middle of most everytthing you can imagine, right down to the library books you read, when SS numbers were not considered a form of ID for anything other than employment or banking, when personal really meant personal, we were not comfortable signing this document, which amounted to little more than a permission slip for invasion of privacy.

This morning I called the clinic, and explained our unwillingness to give away our rights with the mere stroke of a pen. Evidently we are not the only ones in this county (this clinic seems to be the only provider of the services we are need of within this county), who bothered to read before signing. I was informed that, provided we were not requesting billing to an insurance company, we could request, and sign an alternate form when we arrive for our appointment.

We are keeping our appointment tomorrow, but you can bet we'll be totin' our fine toothed comb to assist in reading the alternate form.

We may be from the boondocks, but our parents taught us to use the brains God gave us!

Boondock Frugality in the Laundry Room

This morning I recieved an email from my sister http://www.xanga.com/toomanyhats , who is considering trying to make her own laundry detergent. It occured to me there may be other folks out there who are looking to save money, and may be interested in some TNT ideas. So, today, I am going to postpone my previously planned entry in favor of frugality.

8 or 9 years ago, I was becoming frustrated with the high cost of commercially available laundry detergents, especially the "gentle" ones, marketed towards families with infants. Although no longer an infant, my daughter had extremely sensitive skin so I was finding it necesary to pay those high costs. I found a "recipe" for homemade laundry detergent which promised to be gentle enough for diaper laundering, yet strong enough to clean a Homesteader hubby's soil covered jeans. I gave it a try and was amazed, not only at the ease of preperation, and the financial savings, but also at it's effectiveness, and how gentle it was for my daughters skin. I was sold! The recipe is as follows:
1 Box Borax
1 Box Washing Soda (NOT Baking Soda!)
1 (Bath size) Bar Soap (such as Fels Naptha or Ivory, I prefer Ivory)
Simply grate your bar soap as finely as possible, and mix together with the other ingredients. I find "sandwiching" the grated bar soap between the Borax and the Washing Soda in the container then mixing works well.
I went to the store and purchased a grater just for this purpose. I made sure it included a very fine grating option. I then grabbed a large bucket, and mixed everything together. I found, once mixed everything fit quite nicely (and handily) in two large coffee cans.

This mixture requires a mere 2 TBSP per load ( we have a large load capacity washer, and the 2 TBSP is sufficient) I use a medicine cup (such as is included in children's cough syrup, or "Nyquil") for measuring/scooping. Just pop it in the coffee can on top of the detergent. For cold loads, I "soften" the detergent a bit with a little hot water, before switching over to cold.

This detergent has no fillers, as you will find in most commercially available detergents. Therefore, you don't need to use as much per load. The other big benefit is your clothes will no longer pick up the dinginess from those fillers.
The last batch I made I was unable to find the Washing Soda, so grabbed a container of what I thought would be an okay substitute. I think I like it even better! I grabbed the generic brand of "Oxiclean". The available size buckets seemd smaller than the boxes of washing soda I had used in the past, so I used 2 buckets per recipe.

Important Note: Washing Soda is not recommended for wool or silk items! I'm not sure about the "Oxiclean", but I did forget tried felting a wool item in it with no repercussions. You might want to check the warnings on the label before trying it with wool or silk

A lot of folks find it necessary to add fabric softener to their laundry. I rarely use any additives for this purpose, but there are exceptions, such as bath robes. For these items, as well as towels I opt to simply add a 1/4 cup of white vinegar to the rinse water. You may also want to try mixing up 2 cups each of white vinegar and baking soda in a large container (an empy gallon size vinegar bottle works well). Once the excitement settles down, add 4 cups water. Pop the bottle in the laundry room, give it a good shake before measuring out 1/4 cup for your rinse water.

These options will reduce the static, but will not scent your laundry. Neither will it leave your towels smelling "sour" For "scent", I've found hanging my clothes outside on the line provides the best scent of all! Of course, I have found it wise to avoid this last procedure if the neighbors are burning ;-)

Startin' To Feel Like Spring!

What a beautiful day! I believe we made it into the 70s today. It seems like such a long time since we've felt the sun's warmth.Today felt like a celebration.

Last weekend we planted seeds indoors, for transplanting later on. At the time we were experiencing way more rain than sunshine, and I was beginning to wonder if the ground would ever dry out enough to work the soil for those transplants!

We have several seedlings popping up now, and are anxiously checking them at least once a day to see what progress may be visible. Todays warm, sunny weather found us venturing outside to survey the garden beds. While I was busy pondering the changes to be made in the size and shape of the garden area (we're planning a much larger garden this year), Daniel got busy working on removing an old tree stump which was in the way of the planned expansion, and the kids happily dug in to the weed patch that our former garden area had become. The cats weren't feeling quite so energetic, but they did enjoy laying near where the kids were working, just enjoying their presence, and soaking up the suns rays.

I've been concerned that since we moved back out here I haven't been getting enough exercise. I'm not seeing that as a problem now! A whole lot of digging, tilling, moving soil around,digging out pathways, and building up beds before we can begin the planting. Then, of course the weeds will do a fine job of keeping us busy throughout the season.

Funny how we're all so eagerly anticipating something that sounds suspiciously similar to hard work!

Leftover Magic: Cinnamon Rice

For some reason I haven't been able to come up with a new entry, which just doesn't seem right, considering I just opened up my new blog.

Today I found myself browsing through some blogs, and other sites. I found myself reading, and printing all kinds of yummy looking recipes. Perhaps that is why I have nothing but food and recipe related thoughts running through my brain, so I figured, what the heck, why not post a recipe of my own? I haven't done that in awhile.

Several years ago, when my son was a wide eyed toddler, and the two of us were home alone with no way to make a run to the store, I found myself craving something sweet. There was nothing fitting that description in the house to just grab and nibble, so I began looking through the cupboards, searching for something relatively quick and easy to satisfy my craving. Of course I couldn't treat myself without thinking of my little partner, so that limited my selection a bit. What I ended up creating has since become one of my childrens most requested breakfast treats, and a great way to use leftover rice! My children have dubbed this simple concoction "Cinnamon Rice"

When we have rice for dinner, especially near the weekend, my children get excited, because they know what is to come, if not the next morning, then surely the one after that. Rice for dinner means planned leftovers. If you don't happen to have leftover rice from the night before, you can always just make up a small pot of it, a yield of anywhere from 1/3 to 1/2 cup should be plenty for 2 good size servings, maybe even more!

So, for ingredients, you need:

Leftover cooked rice
Milk
Raisins and/or an apple, peeled and coarsely chopped
Cinnamon and sugar

I take my leftover rice, and combine it in a heavy saucepan with enough milk to generously cover.
I stir it around to break the rice up, and heat to simmer, stirring occasionally. After a bit I notice the rice is becoming more visible, and I stir more often. As it thickens, I usually find it necessary to add more milk, and stir constantly. When it's almost the thickness I desire, I toss in some raisins, or a coarsely chopped, peeled apple, or both! I continue stirring, letting the raisins plump up for a couple minutes, then I add cinnamon and sugar to taste (approximately 1 part cinnamon to 3 parts sugar) I stir that in good, and serve up some heaping helpings to my two eager little helpers. No matter how big the servings, I've yet to see a drop left over!

Let me know if you try it, or if you perform similar magic with your leftovers!