What Happened to the Water??

Well, it finally happened this week...we ran completely out. of. water.  As in, I'm standing in the shower mid-rinse and drip, drab, it's gone!  There have been two other times this has happened and we normally just switch over to the other well.  This time that did not work.  Eight people living in one house use quite a bit of water, not to mention our animals needs as well.  We will be sure to have a deep well when we build our next homestead.  There was a lightning strike a day ago that took out our router, computer monitor, and our Vonage device.  We are beginning to suspect it may have affected the well pump also.  In the meantime we are continuing to pray for rain since we are officially in a drought situation here with the average rainfall between 4 and 7 inches below average for this time of year.

Our sweet Muscovy Nellie Olson sitting on our Ancona eggs.  These Muscovy are great mothers!

Two day old fuzzy Ancona duckling with Little Lyss.  They already love the water!

Getting some sweet snuggles with the other duckling before he's eagerly back in the  pond!

Last week we were celebrating the arrival of our 4 sweet Ancona ducklings that hatched.  Sadly, only two of the little yellow fuzzies made it to this week.  We fear something came up from the woods behind the duckhouse and got them as there has been no sign of them.  The remaining two are getting huge in just one week's time.  They grow much more rapidly than baby chicks and the sight of them out in their little pond swimming around is the absolute cutest!


We'll see you 'round the homestead,
Melissa

Lazy Days of Summer

Chief chicken chaser on his way to find "his" chicken.

Here chicken, chicken...where are you?

Our silkies safe from hawks in the run.

Girls in the sandbox which - I am surprised to say - has not become a chicken dust bath ;-)

While the kids enjoy some time off from school and we don't have a lot of gardening or harvesting to do they love to play in the sandbox and Mama loves to play in her garden box!  This is one of my raised beds that is really having a bit of trouble this year.  Just a week ago it was FILLED with dense, thick foliage on the squash and tomatoes.  Now, just rot remains in most of the bed.  I have decided that with all of the rain we get here in the summers there was simply not enough air circulation to keep the leaves dry.  Hindsight tells me that I should prune the squash leaves and tomatoes heavily.  Lesson learned.

The nice thing about my raised beds though has been that the chickens do not get in them much at all.  They are much more concerned with pecking and scratching the ground than in digging up my raised bed plants.  The powdery mildew in this bed has been a constant battle.  With the abundance of rain and poor air flow due to density, this is one battle I have lost for sure.  Oh well, it's all part of Dixie Living, right?





See you around the Homestead,
-Melissa

Amazing Overnight Blueberry French Toast Breakfast Bake

Blueberries oh how I love thee...
This was not always the case for me.  Many blueberry seasons came and went with no heed, summer berry salads were passed over due to their inclusion of blueberries, even blueberry muffins were a big. fat. nope!
Then I read and read again of the wonders of these dark, super food berries.  These nutritional dynamos that were loaded with antioxidants and anthocyanins, and I just HAD to give them another chance.  Enter my favorite breakfast to save the day...my beloved friend French Toast.  But wouldn't those dark little berries ruin everything?
I was overjoyed with the flavor combination of cream cheese with the berries amidst crispy, tasty mounds of delicious sourdough bread.  Could it get any better?  Oh yes, yes, yes it could and it did!!  The second time I made this scrumptious delight I decided to include the Blueberry Sauce.  Allow me to add: Mind. Blown.
Taste for yourself and see.  Even with a family of 8 one pan is more than adequate for this overnight breakfast delight.  You will thank yourself again and again in the morning. This is also a perfect dish to prepare when entertaining overnight guests.

Now updated with recipe video here:

Ingredients:

12 Slices stale French Bread

12 Eggs

2 Cups Milk

1 T. Vanilla Extract

1/3 Cup Maple Syrup

2 8oz Pkg. Cream Cheese

1-2 Cups Fresh Blueberries

2 T. Cornstarch

1 Cup Sugar

1 Cup Water

Your children and husband will lavish you with praises while you reply it is no big deal.  After all, you are the mom.  By the way, could we please stop saying I’m JUST a mom? We are so much more than merely moms. We are chosen by God’s to be His child. We are treasured, dearly loved, and bought with a price. It is not right for us to belittle that which our God holds so precious. Isn't it a privilege that we are Mamas, enabled to carry a life, and blessed with a sacred job to do.

Melissa

Summertime Redesign for the Blog

This summer I plan to start a new format with my blogging. I am thinking it will be easier for me to do a weekend update post. I plan to include a Sew Cute section (for my creative endeavors), a Taste Test section (for new or interesting recipes), Homestead Happenings (to update you on our progress) a Keeping Hearts & Home section (for uplifting or thought-provoking musings, and an additional section known as Family Matters that will have the sole purpose of allowing me to blog about my wonderful blessings. Somewhere in one of the sections I will also plan to post my Deal of the Week as I have had a great time super couponing.
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Sew Cute: We recently learned that my husband's sister and her family will be relocating to Charlotte with her job. We are excited for her but disappointed that we will be missing out on a lot of time together with her two little boys. To give them something to remember us by, the girls helped me design and create a couple of hooded towels. This is a project that went together really easily. Once I got the designs embroidered on the back, Freckles was able to help me choose a fun train-themed fabric that would suit their boyish tastes. These towels should last them several years. It is our hope they will think of us giving them a great big hug every time they wrap up snug and warm after their baths.
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Taste Test: Some of our “first fruits” from the summer garden are in and Tender Heart is here with me to share the beginnings of our bounty. The onions are some that are still left from the spring garden and the squash is what is coming on now. Yellow squash is not one of my favorites but it will be plentiful so I decided to get my family off on the right track with a tasty recipe to start the season. I have been trying to do a meatless meal one night per week as a matter of health as well as frugality. To stretch the meal you could add in some corn. Feel free to substitute your favorite cheese variety instead of mine. This recipe was well-received by my gang and not a bite was left!
Squash Strata
5 to 6 large squash
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
Salt & Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 cup crumbled butter-type crackers (Ritz or Club crackers)
3-4 T real butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup shredded Colby jack cheese, or similar
2 eggs slightly beaten
1/2 cup milk
6 slices Asiago cheese
Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Butter a 9- by 13-inch casserole dish.
Clean the squash then slice into 1/4-inch circles. Here I've used the mandolin slicer.

Arrange the slices of squash in a strainer or rack over 1/2-inch of boiling water. Cover and steam just until barely tender, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat, drain any excess liquid from the squash, and mix in the onion and garlic.

So that I could do something else I've used my steamer instead.

Arrange half of the cooked squash mixture in the prepared casserole dish. Add a layer of crumbled crackers, butter pieces, and 1/4 cup of the shredded cheese; then continue layering with the remaining squash, butter pieces, and shredded cheese to use it all. In a small bowl, mix the slightly beaten eggs into the milk with a small whisk or a fork, adding the salt and pepper while you are mixing. Pour the milk/egg mixture over the top of the entire dish and cover with the sliced Asiago cheese.

Here it is ready to go into the oven.
Cook approximately 30 to 40 minutes or until just beginning to brown on top. Serves about 6.
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Keeping Hearts & Home: I was so humbled this week by God's faithfulness. While working together in our garden my son was given the job of hoeing between the rows while the rest of us girls picked weeds from the plants. Even in the morning it was hot, hard work especially for him. Sometimes we sing as we work or just talk casually as a though strikes one of us. Here in Georgia the red clay in our soil can really bake pretty hard making the dry ground quite unforgiving. As Freckles pounded away he stopped to remark, “Mama, this ground reminds me to keep my heart nice and soft for God.” I smiled, thrilled that he had made his own application but as I continued to work it was hard for my grateful heart not to give thanks to our Faithful God who promises us that His Word will not return void.

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Family Matters: We are having a good summer enjoying more leisure time. It has been nice to have time off from formal school work, etc. I am not taking time off from frugal living though. This Deal of the Week comes from CVS, courtesy of those wonderful Extra Care Bucks! Again, I made money shopping. Here's what I got paid $10 to buy:

I bought a $9 fancy Schick Hydro Razor, used a coupon for $5 off so I paid $4, scanned my Green Card, and got $4 in Extra Care Bucks. They were out of the body wash I had also come there to buy so I visited another CVS on my outings. This time my coupon was for a BOGO any Gillette body wash. My husband really loves his body wash so I was excited to have this coupon. I grabbed the last two off the shelf, scanned them, scanned my Green Card, scanned my coupon, scanned my ECB card, then paid with my existing Extra Care Bucks. I left with a store coupon for my next purchase of $15 or more and $10 in Extra Care Bucks! This of course does not include the money they loaded on my Green Card too. Lest I forget I am also waiting for a check from Schick for $4 since they are offering a Schick Hydro Try Me Free rebate for the purchase of this razor. My earnings may go up to $14. Now if we could just turn off the lights when we leave a room...

Enjoying Dixie Living,
Melissa

Keepers in Training

Our family is pretty large (6) and so is our laundry pile. We are still small enough in number that looking neat still matters to me. I don't like anyone to have stains on their clothes, nor do I like them to dress sloppily or in wrinkled clothing. Consequently, I have to scan each item before it's washed and treat items for stains. Hands down I have found that Oxi Clean can get out pretty much anything my kids do to their clothing. From baby blowouts to grass smears and ketchup they are gone! I keep a soak bucket for treating these stains and am always pleased with the results. That takes care of the stains but there is still the matter of ironing to keep clothes looking crisp and sharp. I used to do all of this myself, but who has the time? Furthermore what am I reinforcing in my kiddos? So many times our children ask, "Can I help, Mama"? or "Can I do that"? My standard reply used to be "No, thank you. This is too hard." But after watching my girls play they gave me the courage to let them iron. Now they iron their own skirts for me. What a blessing!

Here is Lil' Lynnie in action with an idea she came up with while playing...simply raise the ironing board only half way. Mine still locks in place and she is able to do her ironing at her height. That's a real win-win if you ask me. She is so proud when she gets to iron "just like Mama."
In constant pursuit of ways to train keepers at home,
Melissa

Cooking Up Fun

Part of our job as parents is to produce individuals who are capable of successfully caring for a household of their own one day.  Rearing kids that are producers vs. consumers is a challenge.  My husband and I want our son to be a loving provider and protector of his own family. That is why everyone (not just the girls) takes a turn at being the Kitchen Helper on the chore rotation. I know for a fact that he prefers this job to his tasks as Baby Helper for the week. One way he can provide and care for his wife is by ministering to her needs during illness or after the delivery of a new child. Some men also find time in the kitchen enjoyable. I know my son enjoys every minute of mess-making in there! Here are a few shots of Freckles as he prepares his Chicken Fingers. I'll jot down the recipe below.

Now run to the pantry and refrigerator and collect these items:

2 Cups Shredded Wheat Cereal (not Frosted) 1/2 Cup grated Parmesan Cheese

1/2 tsp. Seasoned Salt 1/4 tsp. Paprika 1/8 tsp. Garlic Powder

1/2 Cup Mayonnaise 1 T. Honey 2 tsp. prepared Mustard

1 lb. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 3/4 x 2-inch strips.



Crush up the cereal and pour into a shallow pan for coating. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine cereal, Parmesan cheese, seasoned salt, paprika, and garlic powder in shallow pan. Combine mayo, honey, and mustard in another shallow dish. Stir chicken strips into the mayo mixture, roll in cereal mixture to coat evenly. Place on rack in shallow baking pan. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until strips are no longer pink in center. Or, you can place them in a deep fryer in small batches as I have done here. Enjoy your meal and your time together as family.
Enjoying Dixie Living,
Melissa

Where have you been?

Chores, preserving, homeschooling and fall gardening have taken a backseat these last 2 months.  I've been very busy lately with my latest creation...well, actually it's not mine at all. God did allow me to borrow this lovely little one for a while. Like the others he has blessed me with, I plan to rear this one to love and serve Him with all her heart.

Vital Stats:

Name: Merridy...means "a happy song"

Born: Two Weeks LATE!!!

Enjoying new life here,

Melissa

Pancake Mix

Even with the meal planning I do, I am constantly plagued with the same question each morning, "What's for breakfast Mom?" It is nice to be able to refer them to the list and know that there is a healthy breakfast waiting to start their day. However, I also am VERY interested in convenience as well. So often the convenience foods available at the store are some of the worst things we can use to fuel our bodies. The following is a great recipe for a Pancake Mix that I keep in the refrigerator so that it is ready to use and simple enough for even my 9 year old to prepare.






Start by assembling your ingredients for the mix as pictured here. You will need the following:



4 Cups Quick Oats
1 Cup Nonfat Dry Milk
2 Cups All-purpose Flour
2 T Ground Cinnamon
2 Cups Whole Wheat Flour
1 T + 1 1/2 t. Salt
3 T Baking Powder
1/2 t. Cream of Tartar


Simply stir the dry ingredients together and store in your refrigerator. When you are ready to use the mix you will need to prepare the pancake batter.


1. Beat 2 Eggs 2. Add 1/3 C Vegetable Oil

3. Beat in 2 Cups Mix and 1 1/4 Cups of Water





Prepare on griddle or in skillet as usual, top with a little real butter and some honey. This is a tasty breakfast you and your kiddos will enjoy!



Many thanks to my demonstrator Tender Heart who was kind enough to prepare this and several other breakfasts. You are such a help to this busy Mama. These happy smiles and full tummies are a great way to start the day.
Enjoying Dixie Living,
Homespun HoneyBee