Ridgetop Farm

This Week

2012-02-17T08:29:00.000-08:00

Our first "good" storm of the season!

Looking out my kitchen window.

The Farmkids celebrating Valentine's Day by making 50 care packages for the homeless!

Not quite ready to take down the Valentine's decor.

Made 36+ jars of Confiture d' Citron.

Preparation for my Mom's French themed 60th birthday party on Sunday.

(Thanks Tutu for all the lemons)

Have a wonderful weekend!

For the Love of Chai Tea

2012-02-06T21:55:00.000-08:00

My husband & I just completed my 4th (his 1st) 30 day whole food detox. The 1 thing I missed the most this time around......was a really GOOD chai tea latte. Since I couldn't have sugar, milk or caffeine it pretty much ruled out anything you could find in the store.

After 30 days of experimenting I finally mastered the perfect (for me) Chai Tea Latte!

Here's my recipe.

You will need a 2 quart pitcher.

Add to the pitcher:

1 tsp. ground ginger

1tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground cloves

1/2 tsp. ground allspice

1/2 tsp. cardamom

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1/8 - 1/4 tsp. white pepper (depending on how spicy you like your chai)

12 tea bags (I used decaf Irish breakfast tea)

After you have all your spices & tea in the pitcher, fill almost to the top with boiling hot water.
Note: If using glass, you may want to run hot tap water over your pitcher to preheat the container, or it may crack.

Next, add 3/4 cup honey & 3/4 cup agave.

Stir well to dissolve sweeteners.

I like a little vanilla in mine.....totally optional.

I added 3 tsps.
Let tea steep for about 7 minutes & remove tea bags.

To use your concentrate fill a mug half full with your choice of milk. I use coconut milk.

Give the concentrate a good shake or stir & then fill your glass the rest of the way with the concentrate.

I like mine hot, so I popped it in the microwave.

Yummy!

Nothing like hot spicy chai.

My 30 days are over, but I have permanently replaced my coffee habit.

Slow Sunday

2012-02-05T20:13:00.000-08:00

Seriously.......the best yogurt EVER!

But isn't everything better when it's homemade?

Hard boiled eggs.

Our chickens have been laying like crazy.

They are just as confused by this weather as I am.

Spring garden planning!

So much fun.

We want to attempt potatoes this year. We will also be planting peas, carrots, radish, spinach, lettuce, cilantro & onion in a few weeks.

And we did throw in a couple Super Bowl parties, but I didn't take pics of that.

We aren't huge pro football fans.
It's fun to spend time with family and friends anyways.

Hope you had a super Sunday!

A super SLO Thanksgiving!

2011-12-01T07:05:00.000-08:00

It started with a Monterey Half Marathon for me!

It was sooo much fun.

It was beautiful running along the ocean, down Cannery Row, through old town Monterey.

They do an amazing job organizing this event.

I shaved 20 minutes off my time.

It was awesome.

Then we had a little Christmas at Hearst Castle.

Everything was so pretty!

We had LOTS of family beach fun!

With some of our extended family staying in Avila.

Tide pool fun with our cousins & our favorite Uncle! :)

Me & my sister Kari!

The big college Kidos!

A little bit of a challenge to cook a BIG Thanksgiving dinner in a little college apartment but it was fun!

My parents & my sister joined us!

Tables ready for our feast.

It was a wonderful Thanksgiving!

What was I thankful for the most........

that I was able to be with my kids, all of them! :)

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-30T06:35:00.000-08:00

6:30 am

5:55 am

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-16T06:48:00.000-08:00

Canning Party

2011-11-15T06:58:00.000-08:00

Want to make a TON of homemade gifts for Christmas??

Have a canning party!

It's much more fun to share the work with some of your friends.

We made a gigantic mess, made a TON of stuff, & had a blast!

Ready to chop onions & jalapenos for BBQ sauce!

In the midst of the mess!

A whole lot of apple cutting for pie filling.

Amber got cold. :)

Sunny maning the canning!

We canned 60 jars of homemade BBQ sauce & 55 jars of apple pie filling!

Sunday

2011-11-14T07:05:00.001-08:00

Morning

I love watching the sunrise.

Noon

Ugh. 8 painful miles.

Night
Breakfast is ready for a busy Monday morning.

Happy Monday!

Apple Cinnamon Bread

2011-11-13T07:33:00.000-08:00

On one of my loooong runs the other day my running buddy starting talking about apple cinnamon bread. Of course, we were starving at that point. I had never had apple cinnamon bread before but it sounded amazing. She went into great detail explaining it to me......torture.....but I thought "hey, I can totally duplicate that."

So here's my attempt.

It is everything I imagined it would be.

Delicious!

I started out by making a basic sweet dough in my bread maker.

Here's my recipe:

3/8 cup milk, 3/8 cup (warm) water, 1 egg, 2 cups white flour, 1 cup wheat flour, 1 tsp. salt, 4 tbls. butter, 1/3 cup sugar, 1 1/2 tsp. yeast.

Make sure all your ingredients are room temperature & set your breadmaker to "dough."

While your dough is going, make the filling.

I peeled & chopped 3 medium sized apples.

Melt 6 tbls. butter in a skillet & add apples.

Sprinkle with 2 tbls. sugar & 1 tsp. cinnamon.

Saute on low until apples are tender.

When your dough is finished roll into a rectangle on a floured surface.

Yes.....that's a rectangle!

Ahem.....clearly you don't have to be perfect at this recipe.

Spread your apple filling over the dough rectangle. Don't get too close to the edge so that you can pinch your seams.

Next, sprinkle with an additional 2 tbls. of sugar & 1 tsp. of cinnamon.

Roll the rectangle into a log & pinch your seams closed.

Mine wouldn't stay closed.

Not to worry, it still turned out.

Again, perfection is not required.

Place log into a well greased bread pan.

Cover & let rise in a warm oven for 30 minutes.

Remove from oven & preheat to 350 degrees.

When your oven is ready bake for 30 - 35 minutes.

It smells so good when it's baking.

Let cool for about 15 minutes in the pan & then remove to a cooling rack.

Slice & EAT!

It's delicious at 6 am with a hot cup of coffee sitting in front of the woodstove. :)

I bet it would also make some seriously yummy french toast.

Thanks Jean for the inspiration!

I am sharing @

Choosing Peace

2011-11-11T07:26:00.000-08:00

Most days I dread my email inbox.

Bills, ads, junk.

One day last week a blog post popped in from a blog I regularly follow.

The title caught my eye.

Peace......we all need more of it.

We all strive for it.

This blog post spoke to the very core of my being.

It is beautifully written & so very true.

Please, take a moment & read this very short but very powerful post.

What Choosing Peace Does Not Mean by Steady Mom

Pumpkins

2011-11-10T08:09:00.000-08:00

Did October FLY by for anyone else or was it just me????

Wow!

Where did the month go?

We did find the time to introduce Tobi to American pumpkin carving.

It was such a beautiful fall day!

We sat on the front porch & made a HUGE mess.
Lucky for us, our chickens LOVE pumpkins & they cleaned it up for us!

We ended up with some double sided jack o' lanterns.

Some of the chickens "carved" the back side of our pumpkins.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-09T08:34:00.000-08:00

Recharging

2011-11-08T09:00:00.000-08:00

My brain.

That's what I have been up too.

It feels good.

These past few months I have been taking a break from:

My blog

My business (the being gone every weekend at shows part)

The feeling of being overwhelmed right before the holidays

I have been focusing on:

Adjusting to my 2 oldest being gone in SLO.

Having a foreign exchange student from Germany.

Running my next half marathon.

Helping others with the 28 day detox.

Getting outdoors as much as possible (hiking, backpacking, running, farming).

Spending time with my youngest 2.

I have to say, it's been nice.

It's giving my brain & my body exactly what it needs right now.

I feel so ready to tackle all that lies ahead.

Reorganizing & getting my business back on track.

Continuing to spend as much time outdoors as possible.

Running more marathons. (I am an addict)

Continuing my healthy eating habits & sharing with others.

Spending more time investing in people; my farmgirls, my family, my friends, & even total strangers.

And this might sound silly but......working hard to cross things off my "bucket list."

& I will try to blog more.

It's just been hard. Sometimes I feel like blogging is putting myself on display. At times I am ok with that & other times not so much.

I will try.

I promise.

Ridgetop Farm B&B

2011-07-22T16:10:00.000-07:00

Ooops.

Haven't blogged for awhile.

I have been on vacation.

San Luis Obispo & San Francisco.

I have lots of pictures to share.

Yesterday on my way home I stopped at Ikea.

I LOVE Ikea.

LOVE LOVE LOVE.

We were there for over 3 hours.

Thankfully, they have free daycare. (Averie loved it)

I promptly got up this morning and did an overhaul of our downstairs guest suite.

Knowing that I was going to redecorate made even the deep cleaning part fun!

The empty room.

Pre-Ikea overhaul.

The new Ridgetop Farm guest suite!
I still have some pictures to hang & a little more work in the bathroom but I was so excited I couldn't wait to share.
So who will be our first guest???

Typical Tuesday

2011-07-12T11:06:00.001-07:00

Tuesday doesn't really get much notoriety.

It's kind of a ho hum day of the week.

I am working in the garden today, so I gave Averie my camera.

I just love getting her perspective on things.

After 2 minutes of snap pea picking.......ugh.

Save meeeee!

I love this!

I could eat berries every single meal.

Sugar snap peas.......not so much. :)

Aver's pic of a bee.
I just love how they can sound like angry old ladies arguing sometimes.

Immediately after this picture was taken we had to have a discussion about the Birds and the Bugs.

No, sweetheart those bugs are not Siamese twins. ;)

I love that girl.

This makes me so incredibly happy.

My first raspberries!

Again, I love berries, a lot!

My sweet girls hanging out in the shade of the oak tree.
I adore my chicks.

Averie's picture of me.
She also tried her hand at photo editing......not to shabby for her being 7!
I think this is a definite candidate for What I Wore Wednesday! HA!

Happy Tuesday!
Anyone else have anything exciting going on? ;)

Front Porch

2011-07-11T12:48:00.000-07:00

I have been wanting to decorate my front porch for as long as I have lived here.

I am finally getting around to it. :)

It is one of the coolest places to sit in the summertime.

My animals figured that out right away.

There is alway a cat, dog or chicken lounging on the porch somewhere.

Here's the before picture.

We had to start from the ground up.

Matt sanded & restained the decking first.

I love my rummage sale chairs & round table!

I spray painted the chairs red!

The table cover is my Aunt MaryJane's. I think she made it.....awhile ago. I hope she doesn't want it back. ;)
The little bird used to be a poop brown color. It was on clearance at Target for $1. I spray painted it Robin's Egg Blue. Much better!
I found the cute enamel pail at Home Goods.
The Welcome Summer blocks came from Etsy.
That amazing antique door I scored at Three Speckled Hens last fall when I was working a booth. It was love at first sight.

I love my little wreath.
And I am not above shamelessly plugging my friend Lisa's home decor products!
I love them!!!!
Her pennant banner makes this whole wreath!
The wreath literally took me 5 minutes to put together.
I love quick n' easy!

These lights......I hated them.

Until I got ahold of a can of spray paint.
Now I LOVE them!

I am going to dub this "The Summer of Spray Paint!"

I have been spray painting everything.

My fingernails & toenails are black from all the spray paint.

It's almost done!

I am on the hunt for a hanging porch swing for that spot all the way at the end of the porch.

Can't believe I am having such a hard time finding one.

Anywhere!!!

I had to hose the deck down. :(

My chickens missed their Mother Hen (me) this weekend & they decided to hang out on the porch all day long waiting for me (and pooping).

Puffballs & A Summer's Eve

2011-07-07T07:55:00.000-07:00

One of the really amazing perks to having one of my Bff's being a photographer.........

when she visits she takes really cool photos with MY camera! :)

I just love these pics!

They saved a few for later!

The girls picked the vase.

I was picking sweet peas!

One of my favorite things to do.

What's a summer's eve without a sherbet float........

YUM!

I heart Joni Lloyd Photography!

Best Summer Idea

2011-07-05T08:26:00.001-07:00

I seriously LOVE this idea from Somewhat Simple!

Everytime the kidos say I'm Bored they have to go to the jar.

It's not all good in the jar either! (Love that part, tee hee)

She even provides printables.

LOVE IT!!!

The Ranch

2011-07-04T07:27:00.001-07:00

My grandfather owns some acreage about 2 miles from our house that is affectionately named "The Ranch."

Our whole family spends a LOT of time there during the summer.

It is one of the coolest spots on the mountain & there is always lots to do.

My kids love it!

Kids taking the raft out on the pond.

Averie waiting for dinner to be ready.

Fields full of my favorite flowers, Lupine!

The peaceful pond.

Baylee is waiting for her next victim to scare on the golf cart.

Ready to roast marshmallows!

My favorite time of the day!

S'more Time!

Being at The Ranch is always quality family time!

Our Fun 4th T's

2011-07-02T16:39:00.000-07:00

Averie's fun 4th T!

I finished up our T's n' Tanks for the 4th!

I used fabric scraps I had, buttons, & basic T's n Tanks from Old Navy.

These are SUPER easy to make & do not require a sewing machine.

Which was nice for me since I have no table to sew on.

My deck furniture is squashed into my dining room. Makes my dining table unusable.

Anyways, here's what I did.

I made flowers!

I tore. Yes, tore. Strips of fabric in 3 different widths depending on what size flower I wanted.

They were 2"x 12" for the large flowers, 1.5" x 10" for the medium sized & 1"x 10" for the small.

Then using a needle and thread (I used 2 strands of white embroidery thread) with a knot on one end, sew a loose running stitch along one side of the torn fabric strip.

Pull the thread to gather the strip.

Overlap the edges of the fabric strip and secure by sewing a button in the center.

I used the same thread to sew the flower & button directly on to the shirt.

So make sure you have a long piece of thread.

Here's my tank!

I lightly pressed the flowers just a bit.

These were sew easy & only took me about 30 minutes!

Can't wait for the 4th!!!

I am sharing at:

Fun Places to Go in Slo!

2011-07-02T08:00:00.000-07:00

This week we went for a quick trip to SLO.

My big kids had found an apartment they wanted me to look at, so we drove over for just 1.5 days.

We had a TON of fun!

I had my little girls & my Aunt MaryJane with me.

Of course, we had to go to Ruby Rose!

My girls LOVED & I mean LOVED this store!!!!

The owners are sooo much fun, we had a blast.

The girls ready to hunt for treasures!

Averie found what she wanted before we even went in the store.

I covet this.

Not in my price range this trip. :(

Note: The rest of the pictures below were taken by my 7 year old Averie.

Want to have a whole new perspective through the lens???

Give your camera to your kids!

LOL!!!!

It was hilarious!

I loved this dress.

Alas, it didn't fit me.

Averie took a picture for me so I could always remember that dress.

Something I did buy!

This absolutely PERFECT for my house letter F.

I love it & Aver's pic of it.

Something else I bought!

Morgan wants a cool looking pinboard.

This frame was perfect for what she wants.

Again, the photo was all Averie's idea!

A pair of clogs that Averie really wanted.

Tee Hee......:)

A little to big.

She took the pic of them on her feet.

My Aunt MaryJane dreaming of this lovely vintage gown!

Cute stuff everywhere!

I was in treasure heaven.

I just love Averie's pictures!

She is quite the little photographer.

After a fun morning shopping we really needed some caffeine.

The shop owners at Ruby Rose sent us to the cutest little coffee shop.

Sally Loo's named after the owners pit bull.

Super yummy coffee drinks!

Great atmosphere!

They also had the most incredible assortment of fresh baked goods.

We wanted to try everything but we limited ourselves to 3!

Chai Blueberry Coffee Cake, Oatmeal Raisin Cookie & a Berry Crumble Bar.

Everything was delicious & obviously homemade.

We met my dear friend & her son for lunch at a great little place called Laguna Grill & we ended our day with a walk on the Avila Pier.

It was a fast fun 36 hour visit!

Summer Ideas for Kids From Around the Web

2011-06-29T07:08:00.000-07:00

Have you tried Pinterest??

It's a really fun way to catalog & save all those ideas you find on the internet.

I am totally hooked.

I thought I would share some of the things I have pinned on my "Summer" board.

Enjoy!

I love how easy these are to make!

Sherbet Floats

Handmade Checkerboard

So cute!

Rainbow Art Canvas

The kids could save all their summer treasures & make this at the end of summer!

Fabric Scrap Memory Game

I know a lot of you out there have TONS of fabric scraps!

Much healthier version of the cupcake cone.

No baking required!

Graduation

2011-06-28T08:21:00.000-07:00

Our 2 oldest children graduated from High School this year. :(

It happened several weeks ago but I have been having a really hard time.

They both decided to move to San Luis Obispo.

We are a really really close family.

It will be a hard transition but I am really proud & excited for them.

I know that I have said this a million times but we really lucked out and were blessed with the most amazing teenagers on the planet!

They both are so wonderful, I went ALL OUT on their graduation party!

Months in advance I scoured the internet for graduation party ideas.
BLEH!!!! I did not like what I found.
Then a lightbulb went on!

I call our house "The Nest."
We are positioned so we are on a cliff almost, looking down at the tops of the trees.
Most days we sit and watch many many birds perch from the tops of all those trees.
Makes me feel like I am sitting in a "Nest."

So, I decided on a "Flying the Nest" theme!

Definitely different from your typical graduation party theme but it totally suited us & where we live.

We also had TONS of fun with this theme.

Our centerpieces were stacks of vintage books with recycled glass jars filled with flowers from my Mom's yard.

Super cheap! Most of the books I already had & then I borrowed a few from a friend. The glass jars were pasta sauce, salsa, syrup, etc. that I just washed and removed the labels from.

I stamped the little tags with a cute little bird stamp from Micheal's & my dear friend Joni did all the writing. Freehand. Isn't she amazing??!!

Each tag had a different bird related saying. Flying the nest, spread your wings, take flight, etc.

Back deck party area.

I purchased $5 twin sheets in my kids favorite colors to use as tablecloths. (Walmart)

For the table runner Micheal's has burlap in rolls for super cheap.

This was my favorite part.

The dessert table.

I would dream about this. Scary, I know.

I wish we had some close ups of the amazing desserts.

I made Oreo cream filled cupcakes & the cake. My girlfriend Julie made the most beautiful cookies on each of the 3 tiered stands. (Julie totally rocks at making super fancy pants cookies.) We had an assortment of my kids favorite candies in the little cups. Kettlecorn in bird stamped bags. Rice krispy treats went on the empty white plates.

It was awesome!

The cute Congrats banner was made by Oh Buckets. & The 2011 cupcake toppers were made by Little Pumpkin Papers. Gotta LOVE Etsy!

My entryway? Random but cute. :)

Front porch gift table.
They each had a manzanita tree, spray painted black, that we hung photos & little birds from.

Another one of the super cute banners from Oh Buckets & a little clothesline with the words "We're Flying the Nest" clothespinned to it.

Jacob next to his tree.

Baylee next to her tree.

Front porch.

1 of 2 refreshment tables & my Grandparents arriving in the background.
I had 2 separate party areas. The front porch area & our back deck area. I had a refreshment table in each area.

Front porch party!
You can finally see some of the many many feet of pennant banners that Julie & I made.
The rest of the banners stretched across the entire railing on our back deck.

Another cute tag handwritten by Joni.

The cutest graduation gift idea I have ever seen.
Have I ever mentioned that I have some of the most talented, creative & wonderful friends??
These were made by Luke & Leesa.
College Survival Hobo Packs.
Each item in the sack had a functional purpose & a meaningful heartfelt saying that went with it.
Of course I cried while reading but we had a lot of fun with them as well.
See pics below.

And their off..........
on a whole new adventure.

It's time for these birds to spread their wings & fly.

I would like to take just a quick moment to thank every single person who has been apart of our kids lives these past 17-18 years. It takes a village & boy did we have a VILLAGE!!! You are all amazing wonderful people and have blessed our family & our children in so many ways.

Joni, Shauna, Andria, Leesa, Julie, Kari, Mary Jane & Mom - You helped make this party rock! I love you all more than words can say. Thanks for everything!

I am sharing at Today's Creative Blog!

Green Bean Summer Salad

2011-06-27T07:07:00.000-07:00

I was sooo excited about this.

I don't know why.

I am a geek.

It's our first ripe red raspberry. Ever!

I have never grown raspberries before & I was screaming in hysterics calling everyone outside to look.

Thankfully, Avers was just as excited as I was, so I didn't look like a total freak.

After I snapped the pic she immediately popped it into her mouth!

I had an abundance of green beans.

I had bought some at the Farmer's Market & then when I picked up my CSA box this week there was more.

I love it!

Here's what I did with all those beauties.......

Green Bean Summer Salad
Steam 1lb. trimmed, cut & washed green beans for 5 minutes.

Immediately plunge into an ice water bath.

Strain, dry & add to a bowl.

Chop 2 large tomatoes & add to bowl.

Chop 1 large red onion & add to bowl.

Drain, rinse & add 1 can white beans to bowl.

Dressing

In a small bowl add 4 tbls. olive oil, 2-3 tbls. red wine vinegar (I like a LOT of vinegar so I add 3.), 1 large minced garlic clove, 1 tsp. fresh chopped dill or 1/2 tsp. dry, 1 tsp. fresh minced parsley, 1 tsp. dijon mustard, salt & pepper to taste.

Whisk dressing well & pour over veggies.

Toss!

You can also add 1/2 carton of feta cheese. The cheese is really delicious in this recipe but I was trying to keep it vegan for my "Detox Friends".

I doubled the recipe in this picture because I was taking this to a potluck!

This salad keeps really well in the fridge & it's also great picnic fare.

Enjoy friends!

FAM JAM 2011

2011-06-26T07:42:00.000-07:00

Want to have a really good time this summer???

Get a bunch of families together & host a Fam Jam!

Sooooo much family FUN!!!!!!

Our hosts Da MH Bomb Team!

Also known as the Mullins-Hoekstra family.

They are the creative force & directors of our little Fam Jam.

There was a t-shirt contest this year.

The Far Out Furrer's!

We are totally groovy!

We were last years dominating team & the winner's of the coveted Fam Jam trophy.

Peace Man, Peace!

The Chrisman Crushers!

Serious competitors.

Team Allen!

Amber cut out all those letters! Go Amber!

Team McLovin McDonalds!

1 team member down in this pic.

I am missing pics of The Patino Crew & The Bombdiggity Bartons! :(

But here's the back of their heads! Tee Hee!

Water Balloon Toss!

Limbo!

Go Avers Go!

Family Relay Race!

Crab Walk, Bear Crawl, Lemon Squeeze, 1 Foot Hop, & Somersaults.

Zach McLovin McDonald taking the somersaults to a whole new level!!

Watermelon eating contest!

Patino Crew girls giving it their all.

Again, Zach McLovin taking watermelon eating to a whole new level, mountain style! ;)

Pretty sure I heard banjos playing.

Just kidding.

Winners of the contest with their down to the rind melon!

Go Far Out Furrer's!!!!

Final score board!

2011 Fam Jam Winners........

The McLovin McDonald Family!!!

Congratulations guys & A big shout out to the MH Family!!!!

Thanks for another amazingly fun Fam Jam!

Roasted Summer Veggies with Pasta

2011-06-25T07:36:00.001-07:00

I made this recipe vegan for my friends who are on the "Detox Diet" & it turned out really good.

Morgan had 4 helpings......no joke.

Rough chop some summer squash, tomatoes & red onion toss it into a pan.

Next, mince 6 cloves, yes 6, of garlic. Toss it in the pan.

Drizzle your pile o' veggies with a ton (not an actual ton but I like a lot) of olive oil.

Sprinkle with sea salt & fresh cracked pepper.

Now give that pile o' veggies a good toss & spread evenly in the pan.

Roast in the oven at 375 until veggies are soft but not squishy. :)

Start cooking your pasta noodles, any kind, while your veggies are cooking.

I used 3/4 of a package of spaghetti.

When your pasta noodles are finished cooking, drain them well.

Add them to a big ol' bowl & drizzle with another ton of olive oil & sprinkle with salt & pepper.

Toss.

Dump the entire pan of roast veggies right on top of your seasoned noodles. Juicy drippings & all.

Then add a big bunch of chopped fresh basil.

Toss the whole mess together & serve.

Yum.

This was a very light & refreshing pasta dish.

If you aren't doing the Vegan thing you could add some parmesan cheese.

It would be delicious with some parm!

Hang in there Detox friends! I know you can do it!

Snow Cones

2011-06-24T07:59:00.000-07:00

I love Target!

Seriously.

$18 for a snow cone maker!!!!

Who wouldn't love that???

I am not loving the plastic straws that came with the paper cups but we washed them in the dishwasher & reused them.

(Makes me feel a little better.)

Who would have know that dye colored sugar ice would make my girls sooo incredibly happy! ;)

They love making them & it's really pretty safe for younger kidos to use on their own.

I am really loving that part!

Years ago we had one but my kids used it so much I think they blew up the motor.

I completely forgot how much they loved it.

Gotta love Target, reminding me of these things.
The day we went to Target I think it was 104 degrees in town.

Snow cones sounded really really good!

The girls made dessert last night!

@ Kirsten - Red totally rocked these chairs!

You were right!

Lovin it!

Aunt Heidi's Oakie Mokie

2011-06-23T07:34:00.000-07:00

Yes, we live in Auuuuuberry!

We are Oakies. :) Not really, but what a fun name anyways.

My Aunt Heidi drinks these all summer long & they are GOOD.

She has my entire family hooked on them.

Easy, yummy & refreshing.

My kind of recipe.

Get yourself a big ol' glass.

Add 1 heaping teaspoon of instant coffee.

Add some cool water to just about half the glass.

Give it a good stir until the coffee dissolves.

Next, add 3 heaping teaspoons of Nesquick.
Give it another good stir until the Nesquick is dissolved.

Then add your choice of milk leaving just a bit of room for ice.
Add some ice cubes.

Sip away!

There's nothing like an ice cold coffee drink on a warm summer day.

Well......maybe an ice cold tea drink but that's another blog post. :)

I am sharing at:

Summer Fruit

2011-06-21T21:08:00.000-07:00

I love summer fruit!

Yum!

I have been getting 2 baskets of strawberries a day from our berry patch.

All the wet weather we had this winter has made all my berry plants go crazy.

I can't wait for the raspberries & elderberries to be ready.

I picked up some peaches in Avila this weekend at The Barn.

And some really nice person, I can't remember who, brought me some fresh blueberries and put them in my freezer. That might sound strange that I can't remember, but it was the day of the kids graduation party and there was about a hundred people in and out of our house.

I had some sweet friends bring some delicious cherries, a different friend brought fresh picked blackberries & then there was the mysterious blueberries.

If it was you, I am sorry I forgot. :(

Anyways, with all this fresh fruit I decided to make a cobbler.

And I ate it for dinner.

Yep, for dinner.

Peach Blueberry Cobbler

I just used the same recipe that I use for my cherry cobbler.

It was gooooood!

What's your favorite summer fruit dessert?

Un"list"ed Summer

2011-06-20T07:21:00.000-07:00

I know it's been awhile since I have blogged. Bad blogger!!! It has been a crazy couple months to say the very least. We had 2 of our kids graduate from high school and move to San Luis Obispo. It was a happy, sad, strange, exciting, depressing experience all at once. I have lots of pictures to share but I didn't feel up to reliving it all today.

As I was driving home from dropping the kids of in San Luis last night I was thinking about our summer to do list & it really started to stress me out. I came home and promptly threw it in the trash. A bit dramatic......I know.

I was just starting to feel overwhelmed by the idea of having to do things because it's on a big bold list that everyone can see and hold me accountable to. I don't want that.

Our entire school year was so structured and full of lists and projects and obligations.

I decided I need a break.

No lists, no plans, no projects, no obligations.

Here's how this will work.......

I will wake up in the morning and drink my coffee.

About an hour later the little girls will wake up.

They will say "Mom what are we going to do today?"

I will say "What do you want to do today?"

They will say something like "Let's go to a movie, take a hike, go visit Butter n Sissy, go camping, go shopping, work in the yard, go visit Butter n Sissy, make ice cream, lay around in our pj's and watch TV, go visit Butter n Sissy, go to the library."

I will say "Let's do it."

Simple.

We will do whatever we feel like doing on any given day.

It's the ultimate in flexibility.

Just what our family needs right now.

Empty rooms in our house.

Moving my kids away has been one of the hardest things I have ever done.

It really hit me hard.
It was also a big ol' wake up call.
The message.......slow down and savour every single simple moment with your children.

In the blink of an eye you will wake up one morning and they will be grown.

The reason behind my "unlisted summer."

I want to take this summer as slow as possible, try to be in the moments with my kids and give them the freedom to do whatever, whenever.

I do love the summer list idea.

We have done it for years.

I just can't wrap my brain around it this summer.

Weekend Fun

2011-05-28T14:16:00.000-07:00

Beauties from my CSA box.

I was doing a LOT of this last night & more today.
Graduation Decorations!!!

Morgan's 7th grade class was having a HUGE rummage sale to raise money for their DC/New York trip next year.

There was some really good stuff.

I just couldn't resist this cute little owl.

Or this stack of vintage books.

Set of bird prints.

I think I will put these in my guest bath.

Unopened box of jelly jars. Score!!

Some vintage fake strawberries.

Some new to me front porch furniture!!!

Biggest score of the day.

I want to spray paint the chairs.....just not sure what color.

Any ideas on what I should put on the table???

I also ended up with some water carafes, a wrought iron dress form, & a wicker tray.

I just love rummage sales.

Detox Diet: How I Did It

2011-05-25T07:56:00.000-07:00

I wasn't really going to write a post about this but.......I am. :)

I have had many many people notice my weight loss lately.
I have also had many of my friends ask me how I did it.

It worked so well for me that I want to help others with it. So here goes......

Warning: It's NOT easy.

AT ALL.

It is so HARD.

But it was sooooo worth it. I lost 15 lbs and I am still loosing.

I don't know what the website claims but I truly believe that it reset my metabolism and definitely shrunk my stomach. It also changed my mindset in relationship to food and eating. I still love food and I still eat sweets, I just have a different attitude about it.

The plan I used is the 28 Day Action Plan from Whole Living.

It's more than just a detox. It's a lifestyle change.

There's a lot of clicking on links and reading this or that and a TON of prep work.

I will attempt to simplify most of it for you. It will make for a really LONG blog post.

Just forewarning you. :)

So first things first:

You will be eating Vegan, Gluten Free, Soy Free, Corn Free, No Caffeine, No Processed or Refined Foods, No Sugar.

What do you eat??

That's where I can help you.
Also, use the website for their recipes.

Step 1 - Sign up for the daily emails (some are really helpful, others not so much)
It helped me to see those daily reminders in my inbox either way.
It was like someone saying "HEY, you are doing this!!!"

Step 2 - Read through all the recipes & decide which ones sound good to you.

Step 3 - Make a Week 1 shopping list & buy all your supplies. (Week 1 is the hardest so it helps to clear all the junk food out of your cupboards, fridge, etc. and you MUST be prepared.)

Week 1 Tips:

The website has you starting on a Monday. If you work, don't do it. Start on a Friday or Saturday. You WILL FEEL LIKE TOTAL CRAP!!!!!!! Who wants to be at work when you feel like you want to bite someones head off. Literally. The first few days are tough. Have faith....it gets better and becomes so much easier.

Don't plan on going crazy with exercise, the first few days you need to take it easy. Walking or yoga are good choices.

Also, don't start this if you have any parties or events during your week 1. It's just too hard.

Anytime you leave the house for any reason take water and food with you. Every time. Trust me. Even driving by certain restaurants would make me hungry.

Try to eat 6 times a day. It was really hard for me. Most days I could only manage 4 or 5 times.

Ok so here it is......

What did I eat & drink??

My drinks.

I used these glass jars and filled them with water & some type of natural flavoring.

Some examples sliced lemons, limes, oranges, cucumbers, pineapple, mint leaves.

I always had these ready and waiting in the fridge.

And if I left the house I would make a 32 oz Nalgene bottle with the same water.

Breakfast & Morning Snacks

Every morning around 6:30 a.m. I would eat a bowl of my tweaked granola with almond milk & fresh berries or hot oatmeal with agave, almond milk & dried fruit.

I cheated and had a cup of green tea with agave the first few mornings.

My morning snack was my green smoothie.

I put 1 frozen banana, 1 scoop Amazing Meal (Whole Foods), 1/2 cup frozen fruit (peaches, berries, mango, pineapple, etc.) & almond milk in my magic bullet cup.

The smoothies are great portable snacks or meals. I just put them in a mason jar & I could keep them in the fridge or freezer at work.

Notes about breakfast foods: You will have to purchase Gluten Free oats. (Whole Foods)

You will have to look carefully for unsweetened, soy free almond milk. (Mar Val has it in the refrigerated section by the regular milk or Whole Foods)

Lunch & Afternoon Snacks

Every day for lunch I had some form of salad. At the beginning of the week I chopped up lettuce, carrots, celery, onion, tomato, beets, mushrooms, avocado, etc.

So I could quickly throw together a salad.

I would always add some type of beans & nuts for protein.

Examples: pinto beans, white beans, garbanzo beans, kidney beans, sunflowers seeds, pumpkin seeds, almond, pecans, walnuts.

I would top the whole thing off with olive oil & balsamic vinegar.
I also made an experimental dressing here's my recipe:

I put an avocado, cilantro, lime juice, & olive oil in my magic bullet blended until smooth.

My afternoon snacks would typically be veggies or crackers & hummus or some type of nuts/trail mix.

(Mar Val has a brand of crackers in the health food section called Mary's. They are vegan & gluten free.)

Here's an example of a salad. This is a week 4 salad (notice the corn) & it's huge because it was my dinner. I have my avocado dressing on it.

Dinner & Evening Snacks

We used several of the recipes from the website & they were actually really good.

We made the Millet Bowl with Black Beans and Vegetables, Almond Chicken Soup (Week 4), Quinoa Salad with Toasted Almonds, Two- Bean Vegetarian Chili.

I also used some of my own recipes which I will write up & post in the coming days.

I made a lot of roasted veggies.

I still had to cook for the others in my family so I would make them some kind of protein (meat for Matt) & a carb.

Here's an example of some of my roasted veggies.
Surprisingly, these are very filling.

Ok so there's how to start in a nut shell.

I will provide more in another post later.
If you have any questions or comments feel free to email me.
Best of Luck! :o)

Moving Day & True Love

2011-05-24T07:00:00.000-07:00

Our Chicken Mansion is finally finished!!!!

We call it Fort Clucks!

I love my super cool ladder!

Matt made it using a manzanita branch.

We have a LOT of manzanita at our place.

The girls are excited about moving our chickadees into their new home!

They LOVED the roosts!

Trying to coerce the chicks through the door.

This man.......he loves me.

I know he does because he worked every weekend for over a month building me my dream.

I have wanted chickens....forever.

The irony in this story......he is allergic to eggs.

That's how I know it's true love.
He did it all, just for me.

In My Kitchen

2011-05-22T18:56:00.000-07:00

There were some amazing spring onions in my CSA box this week!

It inspired me to make my Caramelized Onion Quiche.

It was sooo delicious I thought I would share my recipe.

You will need about 7-8 cups sliced onions & 6 tbls. butter.

Add them to a large skillet and cook over medium low heat, stirring occasionally until carmel colored.

It will take about 20 minutes or more.

While I am caramelizing the onions I make my pie crust.

I use my Grandmother's recipe.

Spread 2 tbls. dijon mustard on the bottom of the crust & bake for 9 minutes at 450 degrees.

This is what your onions should look like.

Once the onions are finished & while my pie crust is baking, I put 4 oz cream cheese & 1/2 cup milk in a blender and blend until smooth.

I add 5 eggs, some salt & pepper to the blender & blend.

Then I begin layering my filling.

1 cup of grated cheese.

The caramelized onions.

Top with another cup grated cheese & then add the egg mixture.

Bake at 350 for 35 - 45 minutes.

Check for a set center and a slightly browned top.

You can adjust this recipe and use any combination of veggies, meats, or cheese.

Some of my favorites are asparagus & red onion, spinach & bacon, or broccoli & ham.

This is by far one of my favorite things to make.

Only because I love eating it soo much!!!

Friday Evening

2011-05-21T07:54:00.001-07:00

What do I do for fun on a Friday night???

I hang with my girls........

chicks.

Pick a few radish from the garden.
Attempt to weed my spinach bed.

Marvel at the columbine blooming in my garden.

Enjoy a beautiful spring sunset.

In My Kitchen

2011-05-14T18:47:00.001-07:00

Simple Veggie Stir Fry

I chopped carrots, broccoli, cremini mushrooms, red onion, sugar snap peas, & water chestnuts.

In a large pan heat a few tablespoons of sesame oil.

Add veggies and stir fry for 5-10 minutes. (I like my veggies to still be a bit crunchy.)

Add one jar of Trader Joe's General Tsao Stir Fry Sauce and simmer for just a minute until heated.

Serve over white or brown rice.

We had potstickers with our veggie rice bowls.
Yummy!
Most of the veggies I used came from my CSA box.

My Entryway

2011-05-06T20:35:00.000-07:00

It was such a beautiful day today.

I did a little redecorating in my entryway.

Fun little wreath I put together using my pendant banner from Lisa Leonard & 3 little birds from Micheal's.

Finally framed some of my pictures from our photo shoot with Joni in November!

My kids senior pictures, and some of my little eggs.

So happy to have some warmer weather, it inspires me to finally finish up some of my awaiting projects.

In My Kitchen

2011-05-05T19:26:00.000-07:00

I got my first veggie box for the season from our local CSA today!

I was soooo excited.

I love fresh organic veggies.

I think I just really love food.......

there I said it.

I LOVE FOOD!

Beautiful rainbow chard & spinach.

I removed the stems, rough chopped, rinsed & dried.
I sauteed 2 minced garlic cloves, 2 tbls olive oil, & the greens until tender.
At the end I added a splash or two of balsamic vinegar, sea salt & pepper.

Dinner.

Cheese tortellini with tomato basil marinara & sauteed greens.
It was yummy.

Giant heads of lettuce from my veg box.

My box was packed full of goodness.
For those of you who aren't familiar with what a CSA is check out Local Harvest!

It's a good thing.

Just in Time for Mother's Day!

2011-04-29T17:45:00.001-07:00

Introducing 2 new products!

A Soothing Salve! It's amazing on dry, chaffed, cracked skin, feet, elbows, or lips!

It's a super powered moisturizer.

It makes a great gift paired with a Gardener's exfoliating soap.

$8.50 for an 8 oz jar.

Special Mother's Day farm pail with a Gardener's soap & Soothing Salve only $15.00.

My new favorite thing!

It smells like lemon pudding! Yummm!

A Lemon Sugar Scrub only $7.50 for an 8 oz jar.

Goes great with a Rise n Shine citrus soap!

Special Mother's Day farm pail with a Rise n Shine soap & Lemon Sugar Scrub only $14.00.

Mother's Day gift pails will be available starting Monday, May 2nd @ Bubba Lu's Java Time or email me for more information or special orders!

In My Kitchen

2011-04-28T07:04:00.000-07:00

Beets!

Yes, I said Beets!

Not only are they good for you, they taste good.

They are also super easy to prepare.

If the only beet you have ever had is the pickled kind..........

you need to try a fresh beet.

Serious.

Give the beets a good scrub under cold running water.

Remove the top & bottom.

Place in a pot.

Cover with water just a couple of inches over the top of the beets.

Then boil until tender when poked with a fork.

Remove beets from hot water & let cool for a few minutes.
Remove the skin by either peeling it with your fingers or use a paring knife.
(The skin usually just slides right off)
I sliced my beets in thin rounds but you could also cut into chunks.

I used Chioggia & Golden beets from Whole Foods Market.
They are beautiful!
I love them plain, tossed into a green salad or I use this recipe:

Beet Salad
2 lbs. chopped, cooked, chilled beets
Make a dressing using 4 Tbls. olive oil, 1 1/2 Tbls. red wine vinegar, 2 garlic cloves (finely chopped), 2 scallions (chopped), coarse sea salt.
Gently toss beets with dressing and serve.

You can find more information & recipes here!

I Am In Love

2011-04-26T07:17:00.000-07:00

I have wanted chickens FOREVER!!!!!

Probably about 12 years.

My wonderful hubby finally gave in & agreed to build me a hen haven.

Or should I say Fort Knox.

We have bobcats, mountain lions, raccoons, coyote, hawks, etc, etc.......

His safety plan is pretty intense.

Thank goodness because I would be devastated if I lost one of my girls.

I am already totally and completely in love.

Who wouldn't be in love??

This is Hazel, she is an Ameraucana.

She is the absolute sweetest thing in the whole wide world.

I adore her.

Yes......I let them in the house.

Guilty as charged.
They are just tooo cute.

The black Barred Rock is Ruby, the brown Leghorn is Henrietta, & the white Brahma is Justine Beeper. (Justine used to be Anne but she liked to sing so much that we renamed her. Plus she had the bang comb over for awhile. teehee)

Right at home in the baby brooder.

Aka, plastic box from Target.

I know this pic is blurry but I just love it.

The girls had an obstacle course set up and were running the chicks through it.

"They needed proper exercise."

Ruby, the escape artist!

Time to relocate!

The girls on a outdoor field trip!

They are already getting their big girl feathers.

The chicken Shepperd.
She takes her job very seriously.

She even has the stick.

At home in their new brooder.

A reclaimed rabbit hutch that we borrowed from our friends Luke & Leesa.

I love these girls!

StRaWbErRy JaM

2011-04-25T09:15:00.000-07:00

Yummm!

I love berries!

It's currently strawberry season & I am elated.

Strawberry Jam is our 3rd favorite.

Elderberry being #1 & Meyer Lemon Marmalade #2.

Every season I end up making about 6 cases of Strawberry Jam.

We have some regular customers that buy jam from us.

It makes the most delicious PB&J sandwiches & it's a great last minute gift.

You will need to start with 2 quarts washed, stemmed, quartered berries.

It doesn't matter if they are a little overripe, as long as they are not molded.

Our local fruit n veg stand offers a discount for day old berries.

Place them in a heavy pot & mash the berries with a potato masher.

Then add one package powdered fruit pectin & 1 tsp butter.

On high heat stir constantly until mixture comes to a full boil.

Add 7 cups of sugar all at once.
Return to boiling and boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat.

I keep my jars waiting in a boiling water bath until I am ready to use them.
I work very quick and remove the jars with tongs.
I don't worry about the lids until after I have filled my jars with the jam.

Skim any foam off the top using a metal spoon.

Then using a ladle fill your jars, leaving a 1/4" headspace.

I wipe the rims of my jars using damp paper towels.

I then remove my lids & rings from the hot water.

Adjust lids and screw on rings nice and tight.

Process in a boiling water canner for 5 minutes (don't start the timer until the water is at a full boil).

Note: If you live at a high elevation, like me, you will need to add an additional 1 minute for each 1,000 feet of elevation.

I do 10 minutes, which is probably more than I need, but I feel it's better to be safe than sorry.

Also, my "canner" is just a giant enamel stock pot purchased from Wal Mart & my canning rack that fits inside is from Sur La Table.

I couldn't wait to try some.

I immediately made a peanut butter & jam mini bagel.

It was sooooo good!

For some really cute labels & decorating ideas try:

Postcards & Pretties

Martha Stewart

The Sweetest Occasion

I am sharing at:

Debbiedoos

Eggs, Family, Fun

2011-04-24T21:47:00.000-07:00

Dying some eggs.

I just love how brown eggs look when dyed!
A little bingo.

All the "kids" ready for the hunt.

My niece Cambria found the golden egg!

Isn't she cute??

The Cousins!

Our little family.

Bay and Cambria.

Bunny birthday cake for my sister Sarah.

Everyone blowing out the candles!

It's All About A Half Marathon

2011-04-14T20:45:00.000-07:00

I owe you a post about my half marathon.

I don't know what's been taking me sooo long.

So let's start from the very beginning..........

I have this friend, Shauna, she's one of my farmgirls.

We were having a phone conversation one night waaaay back in January and she says to me "I want to actually stick to my fitness goals this year, let's run a race." Now I don't know if she actually meant it or not but a few days later I signed up to run the River City Half Marathon. Most of my friends know that if you verbalize a goal, Amy (Me), will find a way to push so that you achieve that goal. I like to push myself as well.

(I think they are afraid to tell me things now! teehee)

So feeling the heat, Shauna signed up as well. Followed by Julie, another farmgirl, and then Sunny, also a farmgirl. My 17 year old son Jacob also joined the pack.

I am not a runner. So this was a real stretch for me.

We trained our hearts out for over 2 months!!

We became runners & walkers.

Sunny and I at packet pick up.

This was a very nerve racking moment for me.

It meant no turning back.

It made it all too real.

Just leaving the starting line!

Jacob in the bright yellow shirt.

Sunny in all black.

Shauna in the bright blue long sleeve.

Me with the beige hat & big ole grin in front of Jacob.

Julie in all black directly in front of me.

Team J&A at mile 8.2!

Still going strong and feeling pretty good.

We ran the WHOLE way.

Julie's knee was bothering her most of the race but she toughed it out and stuck with me.

Jacob (ahhh, youth) was about a mile ahead of us.

Team Shauna & Sunny were power walking the race so they were just a bit behind.

Sweet Success!

The finish line.

I am putting my hands in the air & balling my eyes out.

Our time was 2 hours 50 mins!!!! It was my all time personal best.

(The time clock was set for the marathoners, they started an hour before us.)

Honestly, one of the happiest days of my life.

Nothing feels as good as setting a MAJOR life changing goal......and fulfilling it.

It really truly makes you feel like you can conquer the world.

I couldn't have done it without my dear friends.

They encourage me, inspire me & motivate me to be the best me that I can be.

Thank you girls & Jake for the incredible experience.

I am sooo grateful that I got to share something so amazing with such amazing people.

Look out world.....here comes the Farmgirls!

Breakfast

2011-03-31T10:39:00.001-07:00

Quite a few blogs had breakfast on the brain today!

Mine included!

It was such a beautiful morning.

These beautiful farm fresh eggs are from my friend Melissa's chickens.

We trade eggs for jams.

I make some yummy jams!

My breakfast!

I am on a pretty strict detox diet so I had my homemade granola (tweaked), with fresh organic raspberries & almond milk.

I took my original granola recipe but substituted coconut oil for the butter, blue agave for the brown sugar, & pecans for the macadamia nuts.

I didn't add dried fruit.

Here is Aver's breakfast.

She called it her Robot!

Super cute!

For another cute breakfast idea check out Lisa's Blog today!

The Color of the Day

2011-03-24T15:20:00.000-07:00

Is........WHITE!!!

A tree in our front yard.

We are being pounded with a massive winter storm.

It's been like a white out at our house for almost 24 hours now.

It's like where's Waldo except it's where's the driveway??

Can you find it??

My poor buried garden & that's one of my elderberry bushes.

My clothesline looks like a little tree sticking up out of the snow.

I am almost done shoveling off our deck.

The snow bank it created is sooo high, the kids and I are going to jump off the deck into it.

When you are snowed in and tired of shoveling snow, Jake will show you how to make food creatures. This is his apple swan.

My son is very talented! :)

Hope everyone is enjoying their Thursday!

WIWW

2011-03-22T20:13:00.000-07:00

What I wore Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday..........

Yep.

It's this Sunday.

I am sooo excited.

So if you are interested in seeing a 30 something mother of 4 go from 0 to half marathon in 9 weeks stay tuned.

If I make it back alive I will surely blog about it!

I will get back to my regular WIWW when my entire life doesn't revolve around running.

Running pant & long sleeve Patagonia shirt - REI

(Yes, I am wearing skin tight pants. I haven't worn pants like this since I was 17. It was a little embarrassing at first but they do make a big difference.)

Asics running shoes - Sierra Running Co.

Super cool T - Made for me by the fabulous Julie Chrisman.

(Just in case you can't see, it says "Run Farmgirl Run!)

I love it!

Do I look like this when I run??

HA!!!

A girl can dream can't she??

I am linking up to the Pleated Poppy!

Organize Your Ideas

2011-03-21T17:52:00.000-07:00

Inspired by several recent blog posts, I have decided to join those who are tackling the paper monster.

Mine was sooo bad that I couldn't see my laundry room counter.

Taking advantage of being snowed in, I also got my taxes done & did some organizing in my idea binder.

That's one area I am quite good at keeping up on.

So I thought I would share my organizational system with you.

It's kind of like Pinterest but a little more tactile. :)

Keep in mind, I don't like to save magazines.

(Except for Mary Jane's Farm & Backpacker)

They take up too much space.

I remove what I am interested in and recycle the rest.

#1 box is for magazines yet to be browsed.

#2 box is for all the things that I liked and ripped out of the magazines.

(or things I printed off the internet or ideas from friends, etc, etc)

I also store my plastic sheet protectors in box #2.

I decorated a plain white 3 ring binder.

(The bigger the better, more room for all those ideas)

Now you need to label some dividers, I used the following categories:

Gardening

Decorating

Organizing

Keeping

Holidays

Gifts

Good Things (It's a great misc. category)

I also have a tab for my Farmgirl Sisterhood Stuff.

I don't do any recipes in this book because I have a separate binder just for recipes.

I then sort through box #2 and make piles according to the categories.

I slip the pages into the sheet protectors; or if they are too small, glue them to a sheet of white paper first.

I will also trim the edges a bit just so the pages look neat.

Then just put your sheets in the proper place & there you go!

At the very front of my binder I have my "bucket list" journal & my Farmgirl Sisterhood membership certificate.

I love organizing all my inspiration.

It's like having your very own custom magazine.

Good Luck tackling the paper monster!
Now I am off to tackle the mountain.....of laundry.

Dollar Store Spring Wreath

2011-03-20T15:32:00.000-07:00

This project seriously took me about 15 minutes.

I just hot glued some moss on a dollar store wreath, added some plastic eggs & a little bird ornament.

Wreath & moss from the Dollar Tree.

Eggs from Micheal's.

Bird ornament from Pottery Barn's holiday super clearance.

I love Pottery Barn clearance.

I hung them in my dining room windows.

I can't wait to show you the whole room, when I am finished.

This morning poor Bay had a Dr's appt at 8am in town but we are stuck in our driveway.

Happy - because I don't have to go anywhere this morning. More time to play.

Unhappy - because Baylee seems miserable. (Her wisdom teeth wounds are still bothering her.)

My poor husband is outside right now on snow patrol.

Wish me luck, that we get out of here at some point today. :)

I am linking up to:

30 Handmade Days
&

Egg-Spiration

2011-03-20T13:53:00.000-07:00

It's snowing here today.

I am bored.

Decided to get out the spring decorations.

I wanted to give my plain bag of plastic eggs a little umph.

So I made some inspirational eggs.

I printed out some inspirational words on craft colored paper.
Cut them out, glued them on with a little mod podge, let them dry, & then I added a layer of mod podge over the top.
The bag of natural colored eggs came from Micheal's.
I used gloss mod podge because that's what I have but I am thinking matte might look better.
Super easy!
So excited to finally have a little spring, even if it's only indoors!
I am linking up to:

3o Handmade Days &

& Debbiedoos

I Can Use My Camera!!!

2011-03-20T08:11:00.000-07:00

My dear friend Joni, who has become an amazing photographer, hosted a camera/photo class for our little Farmgirl group.

Thank goodness because I have had my camera for 9 months now & I had no idea what 98% of the buttons were for.

Of course, in typical Farmgirl style we had to have a little food first.

Yummy salads!
She even made us reference guides!

I learned sooo much about my camera & I am sooo excited to try all the things that I have learned.

Thanks J for taking the time to teach us & to help us earn our Shutterbug badge!

My Kind of Sunday

2011-03-18T20:08:00.000-07:00

This past Sunday we took a family group hike to the top

of Black Mountain!

We had a fabulous docent Tyler Wright who helped us identify our local flora and fauna.

It was 5 miles round trip, climbing several large hills.

I was so proud of all the young ones who were such troopers!

All the kidos in our group.
The views from the top were breathtaking.

Amazing spot for a picnic!

I really love were we live.

We are surrounded by such beauty & there are so many great places to hike!

Couldn't imagine a better way to spend a Sunday morning.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

2011-03-10T17:34:00.000-08:00

Cream together 1 cup softened butter, 1 cup white sugar,

& 1 cup brown sugar.

Add 2 large eggs, 2 tsp vanilla extract.

In a separate bowl mix together 3/4 cup flour, 3/4 cup wheat flour, 2 heaping tbls. wheat germ, 1/2 tsp. baking soda,

1/2 tsp. salt.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet.

Stir in 3 cups rolled oats, 1 cup chopped pecans

& 2 cups chocolate chips.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 12-15 minutes.

We had these for snack today after school.

:o)

I feel a little guilty for making these today.

Bay had her wisdom teeth out and she was feeling bad that she couldn't have any.

Poor little chipmunk cheeks is hungry.

I think I will go put some in the freezer for her.

It's Time To Get Your Garden On

2011-03-06T16:21:00.000-08:00

If you are thinking about planting a spring garden, now is the time!

There are MANY cool weather veggies that like to be planted 6-8 weeks before the last frost.

Here are some of my babies ready to be planted.

Planting day organization.

I use graph paper to map out where everyone is going to be planted.

I do all my research before I make my map.

You have to make sure that everyone in the same bed will get along. :)

The one thing I didn't plan for.......a wet & cold planting day.

Here's my adorable assistant.

She has about 20 layers of clothes on.

Yes, that's still snow on the ground.

We prepped all the beds by adding a generous layer of our homemade compost, and tilling it all in with a pitch fork.

I turn most of the soil in the bed over, making sure to break up any lumps.

I smooth it all out with a rake and then begin planting.

My assistant was in charge of the peas n 'carrots bed.

She loves peas n' carrots.

When the peas get bigger we will use the stakes at the end of the bed & some twine to make a lattice for them to grow up.

My other assistant.

We found a TON of these guys in our beds.

I LOVE it!!!!

We prepped & planted 4 beds today.

I saved the others for succession planting.

It was wet, mucky, cold & muddy but we will reap the rewards in a few months.

We planted kale, swiss chard, lettuce, peas, carrots, & radish.

I tucked my babies into their beds using floating row covers.

They protect my babies from frost, insects, birds & heavy rains.

You can find them at Intermountain Nursery or any online garden supply store.

I personally LOVE Peaceful Valley Farm Supply!
Happy Planting!

It's Almost Time For Some Irish-American Corned Beef

2011-02-28T18:16:00.000-08:00

Yes.

I am a nerd.

I love St. Patrick's Day.

More than Christmas.

I am Irish.

I have been to Ireland.

I love it.

I am elated right now that tomorrow is the 1st of March!

I can officially make this recipe once a week and not get strange looks.

I call this recipe Irish - American because while in Ireland, we ate at a different pub, in a different Irish town every night and no where to be found was anything close to corned beef n cabbage.

When we asked a B & B owner about this she explained that it was an Irish - American thing.

That's ok by me.

I still love it.

Get out your slow cooker.

In the bottom throw in a bag o' baby carrots, about 8 cubed potatoes, & 2 medium onions cut into wedges.

Set a 3lb corned beef brisket on top o' the veggies.

Sprinkle the seasoning packet over the top. (If there was one)

Add 2 tbls. cider vinegar, 2 tbls. sugar, 1/2 tsp. pepper, 4 cups hot water to the pot.

Cook on high heat for 6 hours.

Remove the lid and put one head o' cabbage cut into wedges on top.

Replace the lid and cook for an additional 2 hours. (I forgot to take a picture of this. Lame, I know.)

Carve the beef into thick slices or shred (if it's that tender) and serve with the veg & some wholegrain Irish mustard.

It is sooo good.

If you are lucky enough to be Irish, than you are lucky enough! :)

I linked up to:

Tater Tots and Jello

My Perch

2011-02-26T16:20:00.000-08:00

This is where I have spent my entire day.

I am completely engrossed in this book.

I can't put it down.

It's a true story and strange as it may be, it's completely fascinating to me.

How Much Do I Love My Hubby???

2011-02-25T14:19:00.000-08:00

I wanted to live at the beach.

He's a mountain man.
Please tell me there is some kind of badge for this????
Bright side......I got my cardio/upper body in for today! :)

I Tweaked the Pioneer Woman

2011-02-24T17:21:00.000-08:00

Yes, Kari (my sister), I tweaked a recipe.

1 - Because I am lazy sometimes

2 - I am lazy sometimes

I tweaked her Lasagna recipe. BIG TIME.

And it was GOOD.

Real GOOD.

So here's my version.

My recipe makes 2 huge pans of Lasagna.

Which is great for me, again, because sometimes I am lazy and I don't want to cook dinner.

I put the second pan in the freezer. :)

Brown 1 lb lean ground beef, 1 lb spicy sausage, 2 chopped onions, & 6 minced cloves of garlic in a HUGE pan or stock pot.

Drain if needed.
Then dump in.....and I really mean dump in.
28oz can plum tomatoes with basil
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
25 oz tomato basil marinara sauce
2 cups good red wine
2- 6 oz cans tomato paste
2 tsp italian seasoning
1 bag shredded carrots
2 bags baby spinach (you may have to add a bit at a time and let it wilt a little before you add more)
Salt & Pepper to taste
Let it simmer while you make the cheese mixture. Stir every few minutes to let the spinach wilt.
Stir together:
32 oz carton of lowfat cottage cheese
2 lb carton of ricotta cheese
4 eggs
12 oz bag of grated parmesan cheese

Sauce is now nice and simmered.

Spinach should be wilted.

Now to put it all together.

But wait.....did I miss a step???

Ohhhh NO, we are using 2 packages NO cook lasagna noodles.

That's right, I said NO cook.

I hate cooking lasagna noodles.

And why should I do it when I don't have to??

I make both pans at the same time so that I can make sure that they are even.

Start with about 2 1/2 cups sauce on the bottom.

Put a layer of the NO COOK noodles. Make sure they overlap just a bit.

Next make a thick layer with the cheese mixture and sprinkle on some grated mozzarella.

(I used a 16oz bag of grated mozzarella and it was enough for both pans)

Top with another 2 1/2 cups of sauce.

Repeat.

You will have some noodles left.

Add one more layer of noodles and sauce and then top them off with some quattro formaggio cheese blend.

(I used 1-12oz bag for both)

Bake in a 350 degree oven covered with a foil & on a cookie sheet for about 45 minutes.

Remove foil and bake for another 15 minutes.

Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Enjoy the deliciousness!

If you are feeling lazy, like me, you don't have to make a salad.

Guess what?

Veggies are already hidden inside.

Just an FYI: I bought most of my ingredients from Trader Joe's.

A Little Fun & Some Sun

2011-02-23T19:04:00.001-08:00

WARNING: there are a LOT of pictures in this post!

We took a little vacation to the coast. (FUN)

It included a college tour & some apartment hunting. (Not so fun)

This is what it looked like the morning we left.

I am NOT going to miss it.

We are on our way!

And this.......awwww......is what it looked like when we arrived.
Bliss.

We immediately hit the beach.
I had my flippy floppies on before I got out of the car.

Our first nights dinner.

The BEST, and yes I mean it, seafood I have ever had!!!!

It was soooo worth the 1.5 hour wait.

Matt getting "bibbed" at the Cracked Crab!

Now what do we do with all this stuff???

Visiting the Bassett's at the RV Park.

Our second nights dinner.

BBQ!!!!

I was laughing too Sydney.

Morgan is silly.

This was the infamous fat wool sock with flippy floppy night.

No pics but I am sure you can get a visual.

Wake up Jake!!!!!

I could eat breakfast here every morning.

I adore succulents.

Alas, it's to cold at my house.

Pictures will have to suffice.

Lots and lots of beach fun!

And lots of pool fun.

My kids think that it's "AWESOME" to be able to swim in the winter time.

Worked for me.

I laid in the sun and caught up on some reading.

Oh, Powell's candy shoppe.

How I love you.

You provide endless hours of fun.
See below.

Jumbo pack of "staches", best 5 bucks I ever spent.

I have no idea who those people are.

Hmmmm......

What fun is the gum wall if you can't freak your Mom out???

Awww.....heart shaped gum!

Bay's addition to the wall.

Peace gum.

Headed home today.

We prefer to travel in style.

Mustache style....that is.

We had to stop and visit some family first.

Now that we're men.......

Anna gettin in on the action.

Key key trying it on for size.

Represent.....the stache.

We are the Furrer's after all.

And were off.

Back to the real world.

Big Thanks to the Bassett Bunch & the Leonard Family for having our furry crew over for dinners. We appreciate the hospitality tremendously!

Double Chocolate Delciousness......I mean Cookies.

2011-02-13T18:02:00.000-08:00

Preheat the oven to 350.

Melt 1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips in the microwave.

(I used Ghiradelli 60% Cacao)

In a bowl, whisk together 2 cups flour, 3 tsp. baking powder, 1/2 tsp. salt.

With a mixer cream together 1 cup softened butter, 1 1/3 cups brown sugar, 1/2 cup sugar until fluffy.

Beat in melted chocolate.

Add 2 eggs & 2 tsp vanilla and mix until blended.

Add the flour mixture and stir until just blended.

Stir in 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips & 1 cup chopped pecans.

Drop dough onto greased cookie sheet by heaping tablespoons.

Bake for 15 minutes.

These are SOOO good!
Great for the chocolate lover in your life.

Farmgirl Friday!

2011-02-13T17:38:00.000-08:00

I hosted a Mountain Farmgirl Sisterhood open house in the hopes of adding some new members/groups to our chapter. We had 20 ladies attend!!! It was tons of fun.

Taco Bar Farmgirl Style!

What artistry!

It was delicious.

For more information about the Farmgirl Sisterhood visit the Mary Jane's Farm Website!

WIWW: New Reality

2011-02-09T20:08:00.000-08:00

Yeah, this week is pretty lame.

I was sick with a horrible sinus infection for a week.

You really didn't want to see those outfits.

Trust me.

Finally back to work!

Cargo Skinny Pants - Old Navy

Black Top - Miley Cyrus for Wal Mart

Cardi - Target

Boots - Chinese Laundry

Necklace - Lisa Leonard

Here's my new reality!

I wear these.......a lot.

I am training for a half marathon at the end of March with my Farmgirls.

Hopefully I will still have time for blogging!

For now, all my free time is spent running, walking or doing yoga.

Here's to my 2011 fitness goals!

Did you make any health/fitness goals for this year??

Get Well Soup

2011-01-27T19:51:00.001-08:00

Today we have 5 out of 6 in our home fighting some form of sickies.

This is my go to soup to help fight off colds & respiratory crud.

Saute 5 minced garlic cloves & 1 large onion in 3 Tbls. olive oil over medium heat for 5 minutes.

(Yes, 5 large cloves of garlic. Garlic is a natural antibiotic. My husband actually swallows whole cloves when he is sick.)

Dump in 2 1/2 32 oz cartons of chicken broth.
Next, add 1 cup chopped celery, 4 cups cubed potatoes, 2 cups diced carrots, & 2-3 cups chopped or shredded chicken.

(I used a whole rotisserie chicken from Costco)

Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes.

Next add 1 package cheese tortellini.

Return to a boil & simmer for 11 minutes.

Now add 3 large hand fulls of baby spinach.

Simmer for about 2 minutes to let the spinach wilt.

Season generously with salt & pepper to taste.
If you have any fresh parsley you can chop some up and add that too.
(I didn't have any)

We all had this for dinner tonight!
Here's to feeling better!

WIWW: Better Late Than Never

2011-01-26T19:28:00.001-08:00

These are backwards.

But I am sick......you will forgive me.....right??

I cleaned out my closet.

So one would think I would have done better this week.

Alas, I am sick, feel terrible, have no motivation to get dressed.

I didn't iron at all.

Does anyone else have this nasty cough that is going around??

I am soooo over the kids being sick & sharing their germies with me.

Poor kids......poor me.

Dragging myself to work day!

Jeans & Ruffled Cardi - Target

Grey Ruffled Shirt - Old Navy Online Tall
Necklaces - Lisa

Work & Costco

Jeans & Black Tee - Old Navy

Grey Sweater - Boutique in San Fran

Black Boots - Chinese Laundry/Gottschalks
Necklaces - Lisa

Jeans - Target

Grey Tee - Apothecary Designs

Crop Sweater - Old Navy

Obviously my favorite black boots!

Necklaces - Lisa

Cute Hair Flower - Sunny

This day just makes me laugh! HA!

I was obviously not having it.

Sweater, T, Jeans - Old Navy

Shoes - Keen (my feet were made for Keen's & vice versa)

Grey Ruffled Scarf - Claire's

This is my fave this week!

Work Day

Black Dress - Gottschalks

Leggings & Long Sleeved T - Old Navy

Boots - Keen (I have mentioned that I LOVE Keens?)
Super Cute Scarf - Julie Vogue

I am linking up to the Pleated Poppy!

Have a Great Week Everybody!

Some Really GOOD Muffins

2011-01-24T18:53:00.000-08:00

I got a wild hair today and decided to play around with a muffin recipe I have been working on.

I really needed it to be a bit healthy (Pioneer woman is killing me) & I wanted to make a large batch (so I could freeze a bunch). Here it is. I don't know what to call them so if you have any suggestions.......

I used my Kitchen Aid mixer but a regular hand mixer should work too.

I beat 6 eggs, 1 1/3 cup oil & 1 tsp. vanilla.

I added 2 1/2 cups shredded carrots & 1 can crushed undrained pineapple.

Then I threw in 4 tsps. baking soda, 1 tsp. salt, 2 cups brown sugar, 4 tsps. cinnamon, 2 1/4 cups white flour, 2 cups whole wheat flour & 6 Tbls. wheat germ.

(If you are using a hand mixer you might want to blend your dry ingredients in a separate bowl first and then add to the wet ingredients)

Last but not least, stir in 1 cup chopped walnuts & 1 cup golden raisins.

Bake at 375 for 18 minutes.

Made 32 muffins.

I had one for dessert tonight. They were SOOO good!

Oh Baby

2011-01-20T20:34:00.000-08:00

I found this little treasure in a bag of hand-me-down notions from my Grandma.

Look at the price!

I didn't want to open it, but alas, I did.

I really really needed that color. (See below)

We currently have a baby boom going on in our circle!

So it gives me the oppurtunity to try my hand at all kinds of baby related projects.

I really am having so much fun!

I am attempting some tutorials, so stay tuned.

Some Fun Freebies

2011-01-19T20:14:00.000-08:00

Here are some really fun blogs with some super fun Valentine's freebies!

Ok, so the first one isn't Valentine's related. It has to do with my current organizing projects.

Free printable bookplates @ Our Humble A{bowe}d

I am working on my bookshelves & since I love sharing my books, these will do nicely!

Some cute Love Coupons @ Inspiring Creations!

I LOVE these fun printables @ So Not Donna Reed! I already printed mine.

Fun little baggie toppers @ The Hands-On House.

This is an entire Valentine's Classroom party pack printable @ It's always a party at the Parker's. A-mazing!!!!!

Another fun set of printables @ Catch My Party.

This is my absolute fave, but if you are a close personal friend of mine, or one of my pay it forward ladies guess what I am making you??? Check it out @ 30 Days

Enjoy!

Ever Have a Bad Clothes Week?

2011-01-18T20:48:00.000-08:00

WIWW

Definitely not my best week.

:o)

Still tryin tho. That counts for something right?

Work Day!

I had about 15 minutes to get dressed, do makeup & hair.

I was really just looking for things that didn't have to be ironed.

Sage Tunic - Gift from local boutique

Skinny Jeans & Taupe Sweater - Old Navy

Brown Boots - REI/Keen

Family Tree Necklace from Lisa

Late for a baby shower.

The reason for the mess I made of our bedroom.

I really do NOT like the bottom half of this outfit.

Skirt, Tights, Boots, & Cardi - Target

Ivory Tank & Pearl Necklaces - Gift

Work Day

Ivory Tunic & Cargo Skinny Pants - Old Navy

Sweater - Tilly's

Brown Boots - REI

Necklaces - Lisa

Close up shot of my vintage spoon necklace from the Junk Girls & From up here necklace from Lisa Leonard.

Work Day
Black Ruffled Tunic, Aqua Cardi, Skinny Jeans - Target
Black Boots - Gottschalks

This is probably my favorite day.
Grey Wool Sweater Dress - TJ Maxx
Black Long Sleeve T - Old Navy
Skinny Jeans - Target
Black Boots - Gottschalks
Aqua Scarf - local boutique Julia Vogue

A special note for us tall girls.
Old Navy online has lots of shirts in TALL sizes.
I am 5'8". Not super tall but I hate when I wear jeans, bend over and feel like my whole back is hanging out. The Old Navy tall shirts are soooo much longer than their regular sizes. I have to buy one size smaller than I normally wear but they are perfect. I LOVE them!

I am linking up to the Pleated Poppy.

Last Weekend

2011-01-17T21:50:00.000-08:00

We sat outside on our deck and watched the fog roll by.

It was the strangest site.

Nature never ceases to amaze me.

Bedroom Update

2011-01-16T13:22:00.001-08:00

Did a little redecorating in our bedroom today & some serious closet, drawer, cabinet cleaning!

Felt Great!

My goal is to deep clean & finish up any projects, one room, every weekend, until my whole house is done.

This dresser was a hand me down from my Uncle.

I just sanded it down, gave it a couple coats of paint, & some new hardware.

I love it!

The lupine photo was taken by my husband's friend Sye on one of their "manly" backpacking trips. Lupine are my favorite flower. I ordered it on canvas from Costco online.

Matt installed these really cool ledges that I got on clearance from Pottery Barn.

I am really happy with how this turned out. The pictures are from backpacking trips.

2 were taken by a friend, Greg and 1 was taken by Me!

Again, they are canvas from Costco online.

The really cool birch candles were on clearance at Target. They were considered "holiday".

All the pine cones we found around our house.

The little potted tree was another clearance item from Pottery Barn.

We both LOVE the outdoors & the mountains.

It was like bringing the outside in.

Avers Healthy Banana Cupcakes

2011-01-13T21:22:00.001-08:00

We made these healthy delicious cupcakes for Avers class on her birthday!

1/2 cup shortening

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup mashed ripe bananas

1/4 cup buttermilk

1 cup flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

Cream together shortening & sugar. Add the eggs, vanilla, bananas & buttermilk. In a separate bowl mix flours, baking powder, baking soda & salt. Add to banana mixture. Spoon into lined muffin tins.

Makes 18 cupcakes.

Bake at 350 for 15 - 20 minutes.

I frosted them with a cream cheese frosting and they were so yummy!!!!!!

Enjoy

Snickerdoodle Obsession

2011-01-12T19:48:00.000-08:00

I have had a thing for Snickerdoodles this winter!

Snickerdoodle soap, lotion, cookies, candles you name it.

So when I came across a Snickerdoodle Coffee Mix I just HAD to try it!

Of course, I can't find my orginal picture of my cute little jar filled with the mix.....the jar is empty now. It was REALLY good.

So here's the recipe and a picture of my living room all back to normal after all the Christmas decor was put away.

Snickerdoodle Coffee Mix

1 cup sugar

1 cup powdered milk

1/2 cup vanilla-flavored powdered non-dairy creamer

1/2 cup baking cocoa

3 Tbls. instant coffee granules

1/2 tsp. allspice

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Combine all ingredients. Makes about 3 cups mix. Add 3 heaping Tbls. mix to a cup of boiling water.

The reason for this picture.

1 - I couldn't find my coffee pic.

2 - I am working on some redecorating projects and I was wondering if anyone had any ideas for those funky little shelves waaaay up high on my living room wall.

I may just break down and remove them.

They were here when we moved in.

I have a sense of humor....so don't hold back! :o)

WIWW

2011-01-11T17:08:00.000-08:00

Ok, let's try this again.

Not because I like taking pictures of myself.

NO THANK YOU! I am terrible at it.

In my attempt to be more organized this year I am also trying to catalog outfits so it makes it easier for me to get dressed in the am.

Will see if this works.

I emphasize the word TRY.

An attempt at a pic.

Hmmm....not going so well.

Work Day!
Long sleeve T, cream tunic & black cropped sweater - Old Navy

Skinny jeans - Target

Black suede boots - Gottschalks

Vintage Spoon Necklace - Junk Girls

Work Day!

Indian Tunic - gift

Long sleeve T - Old Navy

Cardi - Target

Brown Shoes - Target

Just another work day!

Black Turtleneck - White House, Black Market

Sweater - Tilly's

Jeans - Old Navy

Black Boots - Gottschalks

Work Day & Student of the Month assembly! (Go Avers!!!)

Latte colored long sleeve T - Old Navy

Ivory Ruffled Tank & pin - Present from Australia (Aunt Mary Jane)

Cardi - Target

Skinny Jeans - Old Navy

Brown Boots - Keen/REI

Necklace - Lisa Leonard

This is a really really awkward learning experience.

I really don't like taking the pics.

I am going to get over it....for the sake of my new years goals! :o)

I am linking up with the Pleated Poppy!