Monday, April 30, 2012

April 30, 2012

WOW....I cannot believe that we are already through April....
I remember New Years Day like it was yesterday

We finished the month at $195 for our groceries...so $35 over budget for the month,
still not bad...less than $50 a week.

we have a very busy week of events and commitments this week,
so not many meals will be made....mostly leftovers.

Looking forward to making a recipe from the Lowney Cookbook of 1912



this is what the last few pages are devoted to....helping women in the kitchen by giving you a guidline, or some suggestions of what a DAYS worth of meals could be...


just look at monday....
BREAKFAST...oranges, oatmeal, ham & eggs, potatoes, muffins and coffee or cocoa
LUNCH.......chicken, cheese custard, bread & butter, peach preserves and cookies
DINNER.....corn chowder, steak, horse-radish cream dressing, baked potatoe, scalloped tomoatoes, celery salad, brown betty (this is like an apple pie or cobbler but it uses bread crumbs instead of dough) and coffee


not sure how many calories this is but clearly this was a meal plan
before the 2000 calories a day was adopted....lol

Pleasant Dreams!!!

Sunday, April 29, 2012

April 29, 2012

had an amazing day at church today...Pastor Bob ended his series on the Power of a Dream....todays message was SAY IT....SEE IT....SEIZE IT......here is the link if you want to take a listen http://www.h-hcc.org/

working with the chickens today....trying to get the timers all set so they get the right amount of light.


the Rhode Island Reds (laying hens) need 14 hours of light a day for consistent egg production.....so we set the timer in the coop to come on at 4am.....and go off at 7am......I generally do chores (feed & water) before 8am......I return about 4pm to fill the feed again and check the water......then at sundown the chickens go to their roosts, get some sleep and it starts all over again the next morning.

here are the REDS a couple of weeks ago on their roosts
(these are old gates we found on the farm)


here they are today....


they will typically start to lay between 4 - 6 months...it has always been right at 5 months for us....
which will be the first of August...we will keep you updated.

Pleasant Dreams!!!

Saturday, April 28, 2012

April 28, 2012

it was a rainy, damp day...got into the low 50's ......i was at a Women's Tea at church until noon...we had a wonderful time....when i came home Ross had made a fire in the fireplace and kept it going all day....I love a warm, cozy house.....it inspired me to bake breads......

First I made some sandwich bread (recipe on january 29th) I love this recipe because it works GREAT every time.....this time I used 1/2 white and 1/2 wheat...it came out perfect.

then we found a recipe for Pretzel Buns and gave it a try...we found the recipe at Food.com but we changed it a bit.

Pretzel Buns:
1 1/3 cups water
2 1/2 tsp yeast
2 Tbsp milk
2 Tbsp melted butter
1/3 cup light brown sugar
4 cups flour
1/2 cup baking soda
pretzel salt

this recipe has a two steps....just like when you make Bagels....you have to boil these for a bit.

mix 1/3 cup warm water and the yeast in a small bowl and let it sit until it dissolves

in another container mix the 1 cup water, butter, brown sugar and milk...stir to dissolve the sugar

in the kitchen aid with a dough hook on....put in the flour...combine the yeast mixture to the other water mixture and add slowly to the flour...I use a medium speed....add a little more flour if needed. Mix for 2 min.

Roll into a 2 foot long log and cut into 12 even pieces



cover dough with plastic wrap and a damp cloth and let sit for 10 minutes

form dough into balls and cover with an oiled piece of plastic wrap...let rise for 30 minutes



while these are rising, you can do the rest of the prep work for step 2.....preheat oven to 425 degrees....grease 2 cookie sheets......in a stockpot boil 2 qts of water....bring it to a rolling boil....at that point add the 1/2 cup of baking soda (slowly...to avoid an instant boil over - learned this one first hand..lol) 

After the 30 minutes...place 2 rolls at a time into the boiling water.


no more than 15 seconds each side...drain and place on cookie sheet...6- 8 per sheet

sprinkle with pretzel salt and cut a criss cross in the top



bake for 10 - 12 minutes....switching pans from top to bottom shelf and front to back


we were going to have spaghetti for dinner, but when these came out so nice....
Ross decided that these would make a great hamburger bun and so we had hamburgers and salads instead



Pleasant Dreams!!!


Friday, April 27, 2012

April 27, 2012

the white ROCK chickens are getting really big...they are 7 weeks old....
at least one of them is really close to making the Cock-A-Doodle-Doo call....
sorry neighbors...you will only have to hear it for a couple months.



Pleasant Dreams!!!

Thursday, April 26, 2012

April 26, 2012

a little rainy and overcast to start the day...then the sun broke out this afternoon....
it never got warm though...barely made it to 50 degrees.

Tonight was Ross' birthday celebration at the ballpark in Lansing Michigan to watch the Lansing Lugnuts play...when we first moved here, we had seasons tickets every year....then the hour drive each way just got to be too much....we still try to go back a few times a year.




A few years ago they took some of the Suites out and remodeled the area into The Clubhouse, a bar/restaurant with seating inside and some out on the balcony.....tickets are a little more, but it is so nice to go outside to watch for a bit and then come inside to warm up and get something to eat/drink




we were really glad that we had  the clubhouse reserved for tonight because it
was in the mid 40's with a really strong breeze



Had a wonderful evening....GO NUTS!!!!!

we have a pet sitter named Penny that stops by the farm when we go out of town or just out for the day, the general rule is if we will be gone less than 5 hours, then the dogs , kitty and chickens will be fine......tonight we were gone for just over 4 , everyone was fine upon our return.

Pleasant Dreams!!!

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

April 25, 2012

the winds have dropped off a bit, great sunny morning and then turned rainy this afternoon/evening.

Ross started getting sick yesterday and so today he stayed home.....wanted to make him some soup for dinner and realized that another meal I haven't made yet this year is Pepper Soup.....it is a recipe we recived from the kids grandpa Dick...we can a bunch of quarts every year and all you need to add is hamburger (and salt & pepper to taste)

Pepper Soup: (family recipe tweeked a bit)
12 quart stock pot - 3/4 full of tomatoes (blanched)
bring to a rolling boil

cut your bell peppers (red, green, yellow or orange) into 1 inch square pieces
(about a large pepper per jar)

fill the clean hot jars with peppers....about 1/3 - 1/2 full and then add the stewed tomatoes ....leave about 1/4 head space......we use the hot lid/ring system and then we put the quart jars in a pressure canner for 20 minutes at 10lbs.






today when I made dinner....I took out 3 quarts of Pepper Soup and added 2 lbs of hamburger to it......served it over rice with the jalapeno bread I made the other day.






Pleasant Dreams!!!

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

April 24, 2012

another crazy windy day here.....lost power for awhile 

looked through the recipes and discovered that i hadn't made Rice Crispy Treats 
yet this year.....here is our recipe.....just a bit different.

Rice Crispy Treats:
3 Tbsp butter
1 package of marshmellows (10 oz)
2 tsp vanilla
6 cups of rice crispys





melt butter in a pan on stove.......add the marshmellows and vanilla....stir until creamy....add rice crispys and whatever else you desire......nuts, dried fruit, m & m's, chocolate chips.....stir it all together.







spread onto a cookie sheet....we lay waxed paper down first.....HELPFUL HINT......before you smash it flat with your hand or spatula......rub butter all over it and then nothing will stick.








the plants are growing well in the greenhouse....we don't use any kind of heating system......just let the Sun warm it up during the day and try to control the temperature inside by opening the door, window and roof vents.....the actual air temperature at night has been in the low 30's on average and during the day is has been in the mid to upper 50's on average




in the mornings it is about 40 degrees inside the greenhouse, during the day it can get into the 100's if I am not careful.....and a few hours of that can wilt / kill some of the plants......I try to keep it about 80 as an average and so far I have been able to do that each day.   FULL DISCLOSURE....we do have a ceiling fan and a fan in each peak of the building to suck out the heat if it gets too hot to control....we haven't needed to do this yet.


....so I head out to the greenhouse each morning to water the plants....then I return a few times each day to open or close things to regulate the temperature.

when I planted the flats....I put a seed in each end of the individual container.....so once they get a bit bigger, I will replant them into another container...so if you figure that each flat could be doubled...that is 20 - 28 flats at about $10  each......before the greenhouse we would buy 10 - 14 flats a year of veggies and flowers.

so far this year....I invested in a bag of planting soil and a couple envelopes of seeds...under $7....I would say that we are coming out WAY ahead on this deal!!!



got some chili out of the freezer and had chili dogs for dinner

Pleasant Dreams!!!

Monday, April 23, 2012

April 23, 2012

Today  is SMUCKERS 10th Birthday....she walked up the driveway almost 10 years ago
and decided she was home......all 4 of the dogs are strays....God given Blessings to Ross and I.


Opened the chicken door today to see if they would come out...it appears as though they sent out 1 scout and the rest huddled at the door....how funny!!!


I am trying to find the bright side to how crazy windy it has been....
hanging laundry on the line....it is dry within minutes....lol



had leftovers for dinner

Pleasant Dreams!!!

Sunday, April 22, 2012

April 22, 2012


today is my husbands 57th birthday
he was born on April 22, 1955 on a Navy base in Charleston, South Carolina




this is how the dogs greeted daddy this morning...


and the kitty wanted to get involved too.....


our Sheba dog (who is 14+) was like WHATEVER....of course if you convert her age to human years she is right at 100.....she wore the sign but wouldn't be bothered with coming into the front room to say hello!!!

here is some "This is your Life" stuff for Ross.....

  • His Dad was in the military so they traveled around a lot 
  • he would rather be fishing than be at school as a kid
  • he wrestled in high school
  • he loves old cars and motorcycles
  • he served in the Air Force from 1972 - 1980 (some of it in Germany)
  • he has 3 great kids
  • we met in 1992
  • started Tri-State Technical Services in 1994
  • bought the farm in Hanover in 1995
  • got married on the front porch in 1996
  • we now have 15 wonderful grandkids
  • he loves doing anything outdoors
  • he loves woodworking....something he learned from his grandpa
  • when he retires he wants to make wooden wagons, toys, clocks and furniture
and the rest....as they say....is yet to be....

this is what he made for breakfast while i was at church....looks great!!!
not your typical breakfast...but hey...it is his birthday and he can eat whatever he wants!!!


tonight for dinner....we had pork chops on the grill, corn, apple sauce and a salad...
with 1000 island dressing of course (recipe on April 21)

 


Pleasant Dreams!!!

Saturday, April 21, 2012

April 21, 2012

this is my 100th post.....I am really having fun doing this each day.

There was a Schwan's fundraiser at church today....worked there for a few hours this morning, then Ross and I had to head into town for some supplies to work on the landing......it is coming along nicely.

We had the tater-tot casserole from January 13th for dinner.  Tomorrow is Ross' birthday and I wanted to make some 1000 island salad dressing for dinner tomorrow....lots of firsts.....I have never used the food processor before.....Ross normally does that.....so first I had to make Mayonnaise....

Mayonnaise: this is from our LOWNEY cookbook from 1912

helpful hint.....make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature....so I took the eggs out of the fridge earlier today so they would be ready....

1/2 tsp ground mustard
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
2 Tbsp white vinegar
2 cups veggie oil  (it said to use olive oil....i will try that next time)

in the food processor, combine ground mustard, salt, eggs and vinegar....set the processor at a medium speed and gradually add the oil in...put into a container with a lid and store in the fridge....EASY.... and it tasted great as well. It has a yellow tint because this recipe included the entire egg.



the mayonnaise went into the fridge to cool, we went into the living room to watch a movie and then a couple hours later I made the 1000 island dressing.

1000 Island Dressing: (family recipe)
1 cup ketchup (homemade)
1 cup mayonnaise (homemade)
1/3 cup relish (homemade)
2 tsp worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp sugar

mix all the ingredients together...if it is too thick....add a little milk....put it in a container with a lid and into the fridge to cool.....it tasted wonderful.....it should be even better tomorrow.


did some grocery shopping while we were in town (which is about a 30 minute drive) spent $63

Pleasant Dreams!!!


Friday, April 20, 2012

April 20, 2012

Ross and I went to work together today...then Tri-State treated us to Rocky Top Cafe in Jackson,
great place to eat.....had a wonderful early dinner.

Today is the 100th anniversary of Fenway Park   (another 1912 - 2012 connection) ....Thanks Tim for the heads up......one of my favorite movies is Field of Dreams which of course had Fenway Park in it......that movie also inspired Ross and I to make our own Field of Dreams here at the farm when we first moved in....this is in the back yard....and we did indeed plow under a corn field to turn it into a ball diamond. Our hope for the future was that we would have enough grandkids to play a game between parents and kids.....now with 15 grandkids....we have enough for 2 teams.

This picture was taken in the fall of 1996


here is another shot from the cupola....looking into the backyard....
this picture was taken in the summer of 2004 and there were
 soybeans not corn planted next to it that year.

Over the years, this field has had many games played on it and even had the local little leauge team use it for practice one year when our son Joe was the coach.
Pleasant Dreams!!!

Thursday, April 19, 2012

April 19, 2012

got all the plans sorted for our trip to PA in June....thanks Cindy for all of your help!!!!

looking forward to seeing the old Miller homestead and the other places that my ancestors helped start, change or maintain......history is VERY exciting!!!

had a great night at prayer meeting....every thursday night...
lots of activites happening at the church over the next 3 months...also VERY exciting!!!

got home late....ross had dinner ready to go....chicken & pork chops on the grill with a salad



Pleasant Dreams!!!

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

April 18, 2012

we had one of those days where 10 things were going all at once...will be glad to get to bed

making final arrangements for our trip to Pennyslvania in June....several events will be on the itinerary including going to the grave site of Elbert and Alice Miller...my great grandparents.

here are some of the tulips from the garden....the colors are so bright....they almost look plastic....
you can see some of the pantry in the background of the picture as well


Pleasant Dreams!!!

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

April 17, 2012

we made jalapeno cheese bread today...liked the recipe from allrecipes.com but we basically changed almost the whole thing....will do some things differently the next time we make it....

Jalapeno Cheese Bread:
4 cups flour
4 cups cheddar cheese
1 cup jalapeno peppers sliced (we used canned ones from our garden last year)
4 Tbsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup hot water (110 degrees)
3 3/8 tsp yeast
2 Tbsp vegetable oil

combine the water, yeast and 1 Tbsp of sugar....stir and let sit about 10 minutes

in my kitchen aid I combined the flour, jalapenos, cheese, rest of the sugar, salt and mixed it well

then add the oil into the the liquid mixture....pour into the bowl a bit at a time until and mix until the dough comes off the side.....knead in the mixer for 10 minutes


place dough in a large greased bowl and let stand until double..about an hour...punch dough down and divide into 2 portions.....I didn't do this....I put the entire batch on my pizza stone to rise again for about an hour.....next time I would divide it into 2 portions for sure.



after it has risen again to double...heat the oven to 325 degrees and bake for about 1 hour or until it is dark brown.....and it does become darker than I was used to seeing for bread....Ross said that it tasted great though....I cut off the ends so you can see.....next time I will use chunks of cheese instead of shredded and I will use this same recipe to make 2 loaves...outside of that it worked well!!!!


we had baked potatoes and salads for dinner.

Pleasant Dreams!!!

Monday, April 16, 2012

April 16, 2012

bad storms through the Midwest all weekend...over 130 tornadoes.....6 people killed....this same time last year there were several hundred tornadoes that touched down killing over 300 people....crazy weather....this morning about 1 am we started hearing the wind....we have had a hard wind ALL day long....most times between 20 - 30 mph with gusts easy above 50 mph....I have been picking up furnishings that have been moved by the wind all day long ......if you have ever visited the farm.....you know that it is always windy here...the wind is a blessing in the summer when it is warm....but not so much in the winter and spring.

plants are coming up in the green house...
the first seeds to pop are Cabbage and Lettuce...planted 04-06-2012


we had Spaghetti for dinner......homemade noodles, sauce and bread.....recipe on 01-01-2012


weatherman says that when the winds die down tonight we are supposed to get a hard freeze...bummer!!!

Pleasant Dreams!!!

Sunday, April 15, 2012

April 15, 2012

had a wonderful time at church today.....
check out Pastor Bob's sermon at http://www.h-hcc.org/

today is the 100 year anniversary of the Titanic sinking......with all of the research my Uncle Dave did....it is safe to say that I didn't have any ancestors on the ship from my dads side.....you can google a list of everyone on the ship and look through the last names. I am intrigued by all the underwater pictures.

the tulips in the front garden are blooming such beautiful colors...


Ross and I enjoyed a movie marathon this afternoon / evening.....
popcorn, shrimp and chicken wings for dinner!!!

Pleasant Dreams!!!

Saturday, April 14, 2012

April 14, 2012

it was a rainy, overcast day....not as motivated as I wanted to be.....

the potatoes are ready to be planted


red, white and yellow


plant about 4 inches deep with the eyes pointing up....should have tatars in about 3 1/2 - 4 months


had left overs for dinner...watched a couple of movies tonight....enjoying some RELAX time

Pleasant Dreams!!!