Weekend Links

In which I share my favorite posts from this blog's Facebook page.
Mama hen.


This post contains affiliate links. All opinions are my own. Please see FCC disclosure for full information. Thank you for supporting this site! 

"Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. Don’t grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!"

James 5:7


_______________________________

* Have I mentioned how much I continue to love my Instant Pot electric pressure cooker??? When I purchased it, I imagined it making my life a heck of a lot easier, come harvest season. And I was right! I love that I don't have to plan ahead to use this thing; I can even wait until the last minute to remove meat from the freezer! (Frozen meat can go right into the pot.) And I don't have to get dinner going during a busy morning. Plus, it doesn't heat up my house, and once I put food in the Pot, I can walk away and do other things. Cause I'm a busy lady ;)  Here's a very simple Instant Pot recipe I recently tried for crustless pizza casserole. It was quick to get into the Pot and everyone loved it! (I do recommend doubling the recipe for a family of four.) Not sure what an Instant Pot is or what to do with it? Click here.

* Mama hen is doing a splendid job. She has about 4 days to go, I think, so we may see baby chicks the first day of school! She only has 7 eggs under her now. I already knew she'd lost 2: One afternoon, I found two eggs just outside her nesting box, and I thought some of the other hens were trying to lay in her nesting box (chickens are funny that way) and couldn't hold their eggs any longer and dropped them in front of the box. I gathered those eggs...and a few days later, used them. They were bloody on the inside...and, yes, had partially developed embryos in them! Well, at least I had confirmation that our young rooster was doing his job! (And since then, I've taken to breaking eggs in a separate bowl before adding them as an ingredient to what I'm cooking.) Neither of the eggs was marked as one of the original 10 I put under Mama...so I assume that when she briefly goes to get a drink of water and a bite to eat, other hens and getting into her nest. It's all good, though, and we'll be delighted if we get even one live chick.

Some things I've been harvesting.
* The harvest season is the season for crisps (sometimes called crumbles) at the Seleshanko residence. I use the same basic recipe, no matter the fruit I'm using. Check out my simple recipe here.

* It's tomato season! If you preserve tomatoes and remove their skins, I hope you don't just compost or throw away those skins! You can dry them and turn them into a powder that's perfect for adding flavor to your cooking and can easily be turned into homemade tomato paste! I've been doing it for years

* Thoughts about homesteading with young children. (I wrote on the same topic, but quite a different article, years ago.)

* Of all things, I'm having a horrible time growing zucchini...you know, that veggie that is so easy to grow! The plant in the greenhouse is doing best, but two of the baby zucchini I had started turning yellow. A little research proved this happens when flowers don't get fully pollinated, so the plant "miscarries." That's a new one on me!
The biggest blueberry I've ever seen (next to a normal sized one).

* Do your dishes have dark scratches on them from utensils? Try this!

* It's become almost impossible to have a conversation with anyone - including people who consider themselves Christians - without hearing this phrase. Here's the problem...

* There are some great tips in this article on stopping the fussing in your home. I personally used the peace making couch with my 8 and 12 year olds...and it worked great! Why didn't I think of that before?? 

* Money is tight on the homestead these days, so I've been using my Swagbuck points to earn gift cards to Walmart, where I do most of our grocery shopping. It's an easy way to earn cash in your spare time! 

Oldies But Goodies

* Pierced ears closed up or irritated? This simple trick works for me.
* How to clean up soap scrum easily and naturally



No comments