Busy, Busy, Dreadfully Busy....

I read an e-friend's blog where she made her own mozzerella...this interested me so I gathered the ingredients and decided to make some, too! So here are two pics, imagine a gallon of milk being the before...

This is the curd separating from the whey...

The finished project...(I know you're hungry!) with a tomato from Farmer Julie's farm, and basil from my own garden. Tomorrow, some good EVOO with a dash of freshly cracked pepper...

Today I canned some beets, again from Julie's farm.

I have a huge amount of squash that I will can as relish pretty soon....probably Monday afternoon. I just need a couple more ingredients.

I ran out of dishwashing soap today, so I substituted it with a couple of tablespoons baking soda with about a teaspoon of Mrs. Meyers Lavendar all purpose cleaner - it worked great! I have been trying my best to use all natural cleaning products, so I may switch to that. For general cleaning, I have been using a solution of 4 parts water, one part vinegar, and a squirt or two of Dr Bronners Peppermint. It works really well.

I have to git...bedtime!

Because I needed MORE to do....

I participate in a local CSA (oxymoron???) - CSA is Consumer Supported Agriculture. There is a very lovely local farmer, who for the last four years, has been farming more than just row crops (like wheat). Row crops were becoming less and less profitable, meanwhile, they were discovering that people were becoming more and more interested in what they put into their bodies, as well as eating local, seasonal foods. She and her husband discovered that they were making decent income just from people who stopped by to purchase their corn. One thing led to another and their former family garden has become a 35 acre vegetable farm! I have been a member of this CSA, meaning I pay a monthly fee and receive a bag of fresh veggies once a week, for about a year. I must tell you that the vegetables are absolutely wonderful. They are picked right before distribution, so members get the freshest possible. The family also sells their goods at farmers markets throughout the area.

Yesterday, the farmer sent out an email asking for help on the farm. She needs help with things like picking, mulching, weeding, etc. I answered, asking about hours, if I could bring Little Guy, etc...and we made arrangements and I worked today! D was a trooper, and I got three hours of good picking in. I picked about 20# of green beans (I don't know how good that is, but for a first day, not too bad). I made a little cash, got some hot TX sun, and fell in love with farming.

I have been reading blogs, articles, and more, about being a localvore, and now I feel very encouraged to pursue this....to eat locally, and to support our VERY HARD WORKING farmers.

I gained such an appreciation for the life these folks live and the living they make.
And now, I am tired and sore, and looking very forward to tomorrow. I feel so blessed and thankful to be involved in this.

You have to watch this.

I was reading Eugene Cho's blog and he had this video featured. Wow. Please watch - you won't regret it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdrCalO5BDs

Haiku

Olivia wrote me a Haiku poem for Mother's Day...

Look in the garden

I see my mother in there

Planting many seeds

Happy Mother's Day!!!

I love being a MOM!

To all you Moms out there, Happy Mother's Day! May it be a day filled with love, happiness, and peace.

PLAY!

Go to http://www.freerice.com/index.php and play the vocabulary game - for every correct answer, 20 grains of rice are donated to people in need. It's really fun, too!

My Garden

Here is a little clip of my garden. It is ever expanding, and I am trying to plant new stuff weekly to have an extended harvest. What you see are tomaotes, green beans, Jalepenos, Serranos, some zinnia volunteers from last year, and parlsey. What you don't see is cilantro, lavendar, aloe, rosemary, mint, chives, watermelon, and wax beans. Coming soon are cucumbers and pole beans, and hopefull we'll clear off another spot and grow some melons and a few other things.

How about some cookies???

Peanut Butter Kiss Cookies

A cup of sugar, a cup of pb and an egg! Roll into 1" balls (cookie scoop!) bake for 15 min at 350.

Put a kiss into each warm cookie when they come out!

That's it!

YUM-O
(my note - I used 1/3 each - white, brown, and powdered sugar)

Updates....

My KOZY girls have been making these, so I thought I'd make some too! I am almost done the 2nd one.
I can never get enough pics of the kids feeding lorries.
Me (looking like a tourist!) and my baby girls.
More feeding Lorries. : )
Here is Big Boy, on his own bed, holding his full sleep through the night chart. He is so proud of himself.

Mr Not-A-Geek is the BOMB!

I mentioned earlier that I was having trouble getting on to my Blogger account - I tried several different options. I called Mr Not-A-Geek and he asked me to check on my computer calendar date and time - to find out that my date was set on June 6! So he told me to restore the correct date and time, and voila! It fixed my problem!
So, Thank you, SIR! You ROCK!