My baby is seven, and I can’t even believe it. She has grown so much, and is just as silly as can be. She is such an animal lover, and always wants to help out. I want to remember that she loves to make my sandwich for my work lunch right now.
1. What is your favorite color? blue 2. What is your favorite toy? legos 3. What is your favorite fruit? cherries 4. What is your favorite tv show or movie? The squirrel movie that I got from the library (scaredy squirrel) 5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? macaroni!! and chicken nuggets! 6. What is your favorite game? Sleeping Queens! 7. What is your favorite snack? hmmm. cheese its! 8. What is your favorite animal? cheetah! and chicken! and ducks! 9. What is your favorite song? umm.. I don’t know yet. 10. What is your favorite book? hmmm… Nibbles! 11. Who is your best friend? *shoulder shrug* I think that me and Abby are friends 12. What is your favorite cereal? honey cheerios 13. What is your favorite thing to do outside? swim in the pool if it’s really reaaalllllllyyyyy hot 14. What is your favorite drink? sweet tea and water. mostly water 15. What is your favorite holiday? Christmas and Easter 16. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? ten million stuffed animals 17. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? cereal or chocolate chip waffles if we have them 18. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? pizza and macaroni 19. What do you want to be when you grow up? I don’t know! A librarian probably just like you are 20. What makes you feel happy? This duck and that I got the lego set that I really realllllllyyyy wanted
I had really been hoping to share a lot of stories from the garden this year. Ah, the dreams of gardens in winter.
What really happened was INTENSE rain just a few days after we transplanted our starts that killed all but two of our tomato plants. We replanted them and had drought. I can handle that since we water the garden. Then came 7+ inches of rain in a weeks time. The tomatoes did not handle that well. All of the blooms turned brown and fell off. Ugh, rip my heart out.
Everything in the garden was green. What we had direct-sowed sprouted and then it was like time stood still. No growth happened for weeks. Nothing was dying, but everything was staying the same. Things have started to pick up this week. We have 7 tomatoes growing from our 8 tomato plants. I know, look out world. Our celery is continuing to grow. The carrots and radishes are growing. Our green beans have a lot of beans and flowers on the plants. The dragon tongue bush beans have the same. We made this teepee trellis and planted more green bean seeds.
We decided to try succession planting this year so that we aren’t overwhelmed with all of the beans, carrots, radishes, etc. at once. It is hard to see empty spaces in the garden, especially at first when everything was so small. But, it has been worth it. I don’t have a pressure canner (YET) and can’t safely can vegetables, so succession planting just makes sense for us. I do have a deep freezer that I can utilize, but hope to one day be able to can more.
Our potatoes have been doing really well and so have our onions. I think I may have started and planted our onions a little late in the year, so we will see what happens. We did a storage variety of yellow onion and flat of italy onions because I am curious what they will taste like. I am anxious to see how it all looks in the fall when it’s time to harvest. So far, so good. If we can just stop getting the downpours of rain, we will be set!
We have harvested over 90 heads of garlic this year. (We planted 3 pounds of seed.) I am so thrilled!! It is currently hanging to dry in the garage. I keep saying that if everything else fails this year, I at least have garlic! If you are wanting to plant garlic this fall– Filaree Farm is where we ordered from. Every head of garlic is perfect! They are currently taking orders to ship in the fall so HURRY! Garlic sells out quickly. I plan to do a post all about this from start to finish. I still can’t believe we grew all of that!
If you want to start a garden, I encourage you to just start! I started with a three tomato plants and a jalapeño plant in a pot several years ago. Every year, our garden has grown as I have learned more and become more confident. I heard someone say that every thumb can be green if you stick it in the soil long enough. We are blessed that we can do a quick internet search to help us troubleshoot if something is going wrong. There are books galore on the subject of gardening! I certainly am not a pro-gardener, but you can learn and make mistakes alongside me!
Our chickens have started laying again. We went four months without fresh eggs. Well, we would get an occasional egg from the chicken that moved to live with us. We also got a duck egg every day from our adopted duck. But, that was not enough to feed our family without buying from the store.
It is so fun to go out and check the nesting boxes every day. We have a lot of chickens that lay green eggs this time. Thankfully, we have only ended up with one rooster, which is our bantam silkie. We have five chicks in the brooder still. I’ll be so glad to be done with brooders. We have had some baby, whether duck or chicken, in a brooder since February. Yikes.
We currently have 26 animals– 10 ducks and 16 chickens. All four of our original ducklings ended up being drakes. We have to get rid of them since we have SIX drakes to one hen right now. They were mating her to death and had ripped out the feathers on the back of her head and causing wounds. We separated her and she has healed really well. But, we have to get rid of the jerks. They serve no purpose here. We are just feeding them and keeping them locked in the run so they don’t hurt any of our hens.
We free-range all of our chickens, the female duck, and our ducklings. They live such a full life, and I LOVE looking out the window and seeing them happily foraging for bugs. Today was the first day that I found an egg in a random place. Our duck (Matilda, because we name them.) laid her egg in the middle of our yucca plants.
We’ve been toying with ways to sell products from the homestead, but nothing is set in stone. If you think that owning chickens will give you cheaper eggs, you are wrong. But, if you want a QUALITY egg from chickens that are fed the best quality of food, owning chickens is the way to go. That is why farm-fresh eggs generally cost more. You get what you pay for.
Our garden is growing also. The garlic is getting close to harvest time. We go out and pick our salad for meals. We did have to re-plant quit a bit since we got some pretty bad storms immediately after planting the garden. It has been a challenge, but we are trying to not be discouraged. Scott and I are learning so much, and so are the girls.
Life in the kitchen has been pretty quiet. During the hot months, we try to grill or make simple meals so that we aren’t heating up the house. Monday felt like fall, so I baked a loaf of bread. It was so nice for a change. If you have any good summer meals, send them my way! I feel like I’m in a rut, and it happens every summer even though we have access to fresh produce.
We thank God every day that He brought us here. Scott and I were talking about it all last night. We both have grown closer to the Lord, our marriage has grown stronger, and our children are so full of joy since we moved out here. We didn’t know what God had in store when He closed doors several years ago. If we had seen what was coming, maybe we wouldn’t have been so hurt and struggled so much. But that struggle and pain stretched us and we grew. Growth is often painful, isn’t it. We still hold everything with an open hand. We know that the Lord directs our paths. We prayerfully approach everything in our lives. There is no better way to live.
We are a hiking and exploring family! Often, we will pack up a picnic lunch to keep in the cooler in our vehicle and eat after we’ve completed a long hike. But, picnic lunches can be boring and repetitive. We always pack sandwiches, chips, fruits, and veggies to keep it simple. Oh, and water. Lots and lots of water. Sometimes, simple ends up being boring. If we are going to continue doing this so often, I need to get more creative and pack something fun. On our last picnic, we brought along WayFare plant based pudding. It was a fun addition to our typically predictable meals.
When we aren’t out hiking, we are working on the homestead. There are a lot of animals to feed and care for. Plus, a really big garden to weed and water. The kids play outdoors most hours of the day. I want to fuel their bodies with healthy foods that will help them grow and maintain excellent health. I don’t just feed them good foods, but I explain to them why we do so and what makes each food healthy. Thankfully, they have always enjoyed learning more about nutrition and food. I don’t bore them yet.
Heart disease and diabetes run heavily in my family. I have always been aware of the genetics that are chasing me, and now my daughters. I’ve studied and researched the best ways to care for our bodies. I also wonder if it is the habits that get passed from generation to generation that have the most impact. Either way, I want to teach my kids healthy habits so that they have a solid foundation for health when they are adults. They know that treats are just that– a treat. Treats are something to enjoy every now and then, while still choosing the best options. They are not something to be consumed in excess. WayFare pudding was a yummy treat for everyone to enjoy. It is a treat to have a small cup of pudding with our meals.
Look at those sweet faces. Gosh, I love them.
I received this product, WayFare Pudding, for free from Moms Meet (momsmeet.com) to use and post my honest opinions. Compensation for this post was provided and this page may contain affiliate links.
WayFare puddings are free from the top 10 allergens. If you are new to the food allergy world as I was, you may not know what the top 10 allergens are. They are Dairy, Wheat/Gluten, Eggs, Tree Nuts*, Peanuts, Shellfish, Fish, Soy, Sesame, and Mustard. *Highly refined coconut oil is used in their foods. The process used makes it virtually free of allergenic proteins.* Harper, my youngest, was born with a dairy allergy. It was horrible. I had to completely give up dairy while breastfeeding, and the tiniest amount would make her be violently ill. Back then, finding dairy free options was really difficult. Finding tasty and healthy dairy free options was nearly impossible. While she has mostly grown out of the allergy, she still gets an upset tummy if she has too much dairy in her diet. I am still very careful with her because I don’t want her in pain. Also, dairy irritates the lining of her intestines, so damage could be done internally that I’m unaware of. I am so thankful to have found a pudding treat that is safe for her.
WayFare pudding comes in three flavors– chocolate, butterscotch, and vanilla. We all tried every flavor, and all three were completely delicious. At first, everyone wanted to try chocolate or butterscotch. Vanilla is usually boring, you know. The chocolate was in the lead ahead of butterscotch, though I was in the minority loving butterscotch the most. When the kids didn’t have any other option, they gave the vanilla try. Wow! Vanilla was the favorite! It tastes just like cake batter. You really cannot beat cake batter flavored anything, in my opinion. I almost hid the rest of the vanilla to keep for myself. Almost.
WayFare puddings are plant based. I’ll be honest. I’m usually completely turned off by seeing the phrase “plant based” because the product is usually fully of unhealthy ingredients. That is NOT the case with WayFare, and I am so happy. Their base is organic butter beans and organic oats. How they made butter beans into something that tastes so delicious is completely beyond me.
WayFare pudding is certified organic, kosher, vegan, and gluten free. It checks off many boxes that consumers are looking for. Just a couple of weeks ago, I was telling my dairy free coworker about this pudding. WayFare was only shipping to 36 states. I just saw the announcement on their instagram page that they are officially shipping nation wide!! This package was shipped to me, where the temperatures have been miserably hot, and the pudding was still plenty cold. If you would prefer not to have it shipped, you can check out their store locator to find a store near you that sells WayFare. It is typically sold at Wegmans, Lucky’s Save Mart, Mom’s Market, Festival Foods, Woodman’s, and Tony’s Fresh Market.
WayFare started when their family faced some terrible diagnoses. They decided to switch to a plant-based diet to heal, and saw their health issues reverse. They developed their own ultra-green, zero-waste, sustainable food manufacturing system. How incredible is that? You can read more of their story here. I love stories of people taking control of their health and healing. Knowing that they built this great company as the result of all of that is just even more incredible. Thank you, WayFare for making such a yummy treat and sharing it with the rest of us.
You can go to wayfarefoods.com to place your own order for the most delicious pudding on the planet. Seriously, get the vanilla. I have a special code to share with you where you can get 20% off any product. You can use the code shareWF20 for your discount on any product that is good through April 26, 2022. Be sure to check out the many other products (cheese, dips, cream cheeses, sour cream, etc. ) that WayFare has to offer while you are there.
As a mom, I always want to do the best for my child. I want to use the best and safest products for them. When my second daughter was an infant, we discovered that she had eczema. My youngest was later diagnosed with it as well. I started researching the best ways to help their skin stay smooth and comfortable. I didn’t want to just treat eczema when it came up, I wanted to avoid it rearing it’s miserable head at any point. Some of the biggest tips were to eliminate dairy, use lotions without any added fragrances and completely clean ingredients, and use organic cotton pajamas. **This is not medical advice, just what I found in my research.**
I received this product for free from Moms Meet (momsmeet.com) to use and post my honest opinions. Compensation for this post was provided and this page may contain affiliate links.
Needless to say, when this package showed up at my door, I was thrilled. Pact sent their Dream Big Pajamas for us to try out! I have heard about the PACT brand for quite a few years, but had never taken the plunge on purchasing anything. I have filled up many a shopping cart on Pact’s website. I got an adorable set of Pact Dream Big Pajamas for one of my children for this blog post. I loved them so much that I bought more for the rest of my children almost immediately. They had to be matching, of course. This combination is Rainbows and Tea Rose.
Not only are the prints on these adorable, but they are also so soft. One of my children declared that they wanted their pillows to be made out of these pajamas, so that tells you how soft they are! Since we spend so much time in our pajamas, it is important that they are comfortable and free from anything that can further irritate eczema. Most children spend approximately half of the 24 hours of their day in pajamas. Being a homeschool family, my kids often don’t change out of their pajamas when we start school. Comfy Cozies forever!
I feel good knowing that what is against their skin, the largest organ, is not harmful to them.
That post-pool hair life.
We know that the Dream Big Pajamas are incredible. But, let’s learn more about the Pact brand, shall we? Pact is a fair trade certified company– meaning that the producers in developing countries are paid a fair wage. I know that it is a big buzzword (buzz phrase?) at the moment, but it is so important to support companies such as Pact who are doing such great work.
PACT is the Earth’s Favorite Clothing company. The cotton used is also GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) certified organic cotton– free from toxic chemicals. (Did you know that traditional kids pajamas are sprayed with a toxic flame-retardant that is incredibly harmful? Please don’t just take my word for it, do the research.) Anything that you put on your skin will be absorbed into your bloodstream. That includes any chemicals that are used in clothing and pajama production. I love that Pact is free from this toxicity. They also use 91% less water than conventional cotton production. This helps to save the earth’s most valuable resource– water. Pact is so environmentally friendly, and I love that. We were only given one beautiful earth, and everyone should do their part to take care of it.
Dream Big Pajamas are so soft. Have I mentioned that already? You know how stiff and uncomfortable most pajamas like this are. They have snug fit with a pull on waistband and banded cuffs at the wrists and ankles. Dream Big Pajamas have a tag free design, which makes them even more comfortable. No itchy tags to bother your children– especially those who are sensitive to sensory stimuli. They are available in sizes 18 months to 10. For reference, my oldest (in pink) typically wears a size 12 and is wearing the 10. My middle daughter is also wearing a 10, which is her usual size. My youngest is wearing a 7, and typically wears a 6. I prefer to give them some growing room, but these do seem to run a bit big. The fabric is pre-washed and shrink resistant. We’ve been wearing and washing them for a month, and have had no shrinking or pilling. These are quality pajamas.
They typically retail for $30, but you can currently get 20% off your first purchase with the code MomsMeet20 until December 31, 2021. You can purchase them at wearpact.com. This code is only valid on first time purchases and is not valid on any sale items or in combination with any other discount.
Pact makes clothing, pajamas, and underwear for children, babies, men, and women. They even have some bedding. Pact has a “fit happens guarantee” and will take care of you if you aren’t happy with your purchase. (You will be!) I CANNOT recommend these pajamas enough.
I received this product for free from Moms Meet (momsmeet.com) to use and post my honest opinions. Compensation for this post was provided and this page may contain affiliate links.
Olive Oil is one of my favorite cooking oils. Ten and a half years ago, my dad underwent open heart surgery. His cardiologist said that his children needed to be proactive NOW so that we can take care of our bodies and try to keep from getting heart disease. I immediately started looking into what I was eating. I was using really unhealthy oils to cook with, and that is where I started first. Olive oil became my new go-to for cooking. Not only is it so good for us, but it is also so delicious. I was happy to make that switch!
When I was given the chance to try this 100% Italian extra virgin olive oil from flavor your life, I jumped at it. “The Flavor Your Life campaign aims to educate North American consumers about authentic Extra Virgin Olive. We are debunking misconceptions while empowering consumers – and sharing the delicious culinary culture that’s been growing for untold generations.” This quote was taken directly from flavor-your-life.com . This is a mission I can get behind!
Extra Virgin Olive Oil is a cold pressed oil, which allows the nutrition to stay true. Other oils are pressed using heat or chemicals, which is certainly not ideal. It has less than 1% acidity, which is excellent for heartburn sufferers such as me. Probably the best of all is that extra virgin olive oil has a high smoking point. That means you can use it in virtually anything from a salad dressing to baking. It is so much more versatile than one would think. The trick for keeping your 100% Italian extra virgin olive oil pure and delicious is to store it in a cool, dark place when you aren’t cooking or creating with it. I have a small cabinet where I store all of my cooking oils to keep them at optimum flavor.
So, why European? This is 100% Italian extra virgin olive oil. Olive trees have been held high in Europe for centuries. Aristotle wrote about olive trees in the Athenian Constitution in 300 BC. That is thousands of years for olive trees to be loved and cared for. The farmers have evolved hundreds of varieties of olive trees. They know the best way to grow olives for the highest and most delicious yield.
The specific extra virgin olive oil I tried is Le Stogioni d’Italia, which means “Seasons of Italy”. The name represents the connection of land and nature, which are the heart of their entire business. Knowing that this company has great respect for their farmers makes me want to be a lifelong customer. Supporting farmers is something that I am all about. They have a completely traceable supply chain, which is incredible sustainability. That is something that many of us have a goal of being–sustainable. It is harvested in Italy. It is gluten free, vegan, and has no additives or preservatives. Hallelujah! Amen. It has a really robust flavor, which I am a huge fan of. I love flavorful olive oils. One 500 mL bottle typically retails for $19.99.
I am going to share a bit of a different recipe for 100% Italian extra virgin olive oil. When I first started brainstorming what I was going to create, I thought PASTA! I. Love. Pasta. If you haven’t gathered my love of carbs from my other blog posts about food, you haven’t been around long enough. But, then my mind went elsewhere. Story time.
After Scott (my husband, for those who don’t know) and I had our first baby, we didn’t go on a date for quite some time. Scott knew that my parents were going to be in town, so he asked them if they would baby sit. They, obviously, said yes. So, we got into the car, and I tried not to cry all the way to the restaurant. Leaving your first baby is HARD. He had done his research and found this beautiful Italian restaurant for us, knowing that pasta is my favorite food and I find it so romantic. We ordered, and the waiter brought out a loaf of warm crusty bread and dishes of herbed olive oil to dip the bread in. I was on cloud nine.
I decided to create an herbed 100% Italian extra virgin olive oil to share it with you all today. I cannot compare it to that dish from the restaurant– which I am still convinced had some sort of magic contained inside because I cannot get anywhere close to it. I sure do try. But, I did create a pretty delicious dip with a bit of a kick to it. I really wanted this 100% Italian extra virgin olive oil to be the star. If you haven’t tried something like this, I invite you to give it a try and fall in love with the flavor beautiful oil.
For this recipe you will need:
1/2 cup 100% Italian Extra Virgin Olive Oil 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper 1 teaspoon of rosemary 1/2 teaspoon of oregano 1 large clove of garlic 1 pinch of salt
Combine all of your ingredients into a mason jar and shake it up. You can start dipping right away, but I recommend letting it sit for at least 4 hours so that the flavors really meld together. The more crusty the bread, the better! I’ve actually dipped soft bread sticks into this and loved it also. I just love this appetizer any way. It would also make a delicious marinade for chicken. I do want to say that a fresh clove of garlic does add quite a bit of spice. If you do not like a lot of heat from spicy things, I suggest omitting the crushed red pepper.
If you are looking for more recipes for using 100% Italian extra virgin olive oil, you can go to the Flavor Your Life website to be inspired. This olive oil and apple cake is on my list to try.
Your support for me means the world. I am so grateful for you supporting me. Your support for these amazing brands means so much.
It has been such a busy season around the homestead. Our biggest projects are complete. Is it possible to even say that? Duck house and run, chicken coop and run, garden and fence.. check, check, check! Nothing is ever truly complete, but we like it that way.
I have seen this meme floating around Facebook, and I really like it. We don’t want to rely on the grocery stores for our produce. If the past year has taught anything, we should see how fragile the “food chain” is in our country. Self-reliance is a huge goal of ours. That is why our family garden is such a big deal to us. I’ve been toying with a post all about this, but can’t seem to put my words together well. Hopefully soon I can organize my thoughts. Anyway.. We expanded this year to add a 13 X 24 foot garden on our homestead.
Because we were starting with a section of our yard, we borrowed a tiller to work the ground up. It was tricky to choose a spot. We have many low spots in the yard where water pools when it rains. We also don’t want it too close to the fields where they are spraying chemicals every year. If you know me, you know I’m all about avoiding chemicals. Avoiding too much shade was also important, obviously. It is next to a tree that has lost most of it’s branches. Thankfully what is left of the maple tree doesn’t create much shade here.
We hope to not have to till anymore after this year so that we don’t lose more topsoil. If you are familiar with the back to eden method, that is what we hope to achieve. It won’t be easy, but nothing easy is ever worth it. We have the wood chips to mulch the garden once the plants have a good start. You can get a free wood chip delivery by signing up with Chip Drop. It is a huge truck of chips, so be prepared when they call you!
The whole family got involved in carrying bags of topsoil to the garden. We also did some bags of composed manure. The kids wouldn’t get anywhere near that.
Once we had the topsoil taken care of, we started planting. We had all of our seed starts to put in the ground as well as plenty of direct-sow seeds. We are also going to try growing potatoes this year, which I’m so excited about! We planted foods that we actually eat, which I find to be incredibly important. Plant what you like instead of taking up space with what is popular. We did plant some chocolate pear tomatoes and pink celery just for fun. I have also found that the kids are more likely to try things that we have grown ourselves. They don’t always like it (cherry tomatoes, for example) but at least they try.
Our weather has been all over the place lately, and I am concerned about possibly losing our little plants. We started them too early this year. We are making notes in our homestead planner so that we don’t make the mistake again next year. They were getting root-bound, and we knew we were going to lose them if we kept them inside any longer. If you have seed starts– don’t forget to harden them off! Take them outside for 2 hours and increase the time each day until they are out for a full 24 hours. Otherwise, they get shocked and die easily. Hopefully the weather will stay warm enough for them all to survive.
Succession planting is something that we are excited to try this year. We have several bush bean varieties planted, and we will succession plant so that we have a greater harvest. We are doing the same with our carrots, radishes, etc. I planted some carrot seeds several weeks ago, and we planted a row of rainbow carrots yesterday. Radishes are fun to grow because you can harvest them approximately 25 days after planting. It’s a great encouragement since much of gardening is a waiting game. Then, when you least expect it, you are overwhelmed by your harvest in the best way.
I planted two strawberry plants last year. They have spread and grown a ton this year, and we are seeing a lot of little baby strawberries growing! It’s all so exciting!! We put some new blueberry and raspberry bushes in the ground this year, and it will be fun to see them produce over the next several years.
This has been so much hard work. All of our free time has been spent preparing and working–whether building coops and runs or raking and working the soil. It has been busy and at times overwhelming. It is so rewarding to see it all coming together.
Screen time. This is such a hot topic. Over the last year, has your family’s screen time increased or decreased? I would venture a guess that all of us would say that it has increased. Ours has. More time at home tends to mean more screen time. Studies have shown that screen time has increased by 500% for children since the pandemic started. That. Is. Crazy. Nearly half of American children spend 6+ hours a day in front of a screen. Throw in distance learning, and we have a huge problem. That makes me sick. I would venture a guess that most of us parents are wanting to change that for our families, but how? Where do we start with breaking the habit of screens?
Circle Home Plus is the #1 comprehension screen time management solution. Circle wants to make families’ lives better both online and off. They help us set healthy limits for screen time, allowing us to build good habits. We can get wonderful experiences from our time online rather than being completely consumed by it. Circle has become the easiest way to manage all of our family’s devices from anywhere and keep them safe while online. You, as the parent, can control and filter content for all internet-connected devices. This includes smart phones, TVs, tablets, and gaming consoles.
I received this product for free from Moms Meet (momsmeet.com) to use and post my honest opinions. Compensation for this post was provided and this page may contain affiliate links.
One of my favorite features of the Circle Home Plus app is the Bedtime feature. Screens go off at the time you set, and don’t come on until the time you set. Every profile can be set to specific times, making arguing over it a thing of the past. When it is bed time, your screen turns off for the night and that is it. End of story. I love this feature for myself also! I am forced to put my phone away and relax at the time I set. Mama needs a screen detox also. We can’t just point fingers at the kids. You can check out Circle’s sleep hacks here.
Did you know that technology is often what stands between our children and a good night’s sleep? Blue light from our phones and computers disrupts our sleep cycle. That is pretty well known. But, have you ever thought about how many times you reach for your phone to check it throughout the night? Teenagers do this even more. Notifications go off that wake us up, and we *obviously* have to check it. Late-night scrolling is such an issue for all ages. The Bedtime setting puts an end to all of that nonsense.
Circle Home Plus not only helps to manage screen time, but can also make screen time safer. You can set age appropriate filters for websites and apps– even blocking some all together. Time limits can be set for individual apps as well as categories of content (social media, games, etc.) You can also Pause or temporarily turn off the internet for the whole family or just a single family member. Focus Time can be set to help kids stay on track while doing research or distance learning. No more browsing the web instead of focusing on school. How cool is that?
Circle has so many different features. You can locate a family member’s device using the location feature. The history feature allows you to see a family member’s history. This allows you to see sites that have been visited as well as content that Circle has filtered out. From there, you can select to have a website allowed, not allowed, or unmanaged. There is also the ability to see a family member’s usage– where they are spending most of their time while online.
As if all of that isn’t cool enough, you can also send rewards to family members. If someone earns extra screen time or a later bedtime, you can do that all from the Circle Home Plus app. Misbehavior cause a reward to be taken away? That can also be done from the app! My circle app has a passcode, so no one can log onto the app and send themselves rewards or edit the time they are allowed. I have the control, and it is so easy and reassuring.
Reducing screen time enriches our family’s lives. Instead of sitting and watching TV, scrolling social media, and playing video games, we have more time for each other. Board games come out more often. We spend more time outdoors playing together. We explore our state and see so much more than the TV or phone screen.
We only get 18 years with our children. EIGHTEEN. My kids are 10, 9, and 6– all very close to their next birthdays. I feel that clock ticking down more rapidly with every passing year. I CERTAINLY am not going to look back on these years and be thankful for all of the dumb screen time. I want a thriving life with my family. I want to play while they want to play. I want to braid hair and read books. I want to see art and visit museums and explore. I want them to know that they matter to me more than anything in this world. They aren’t going to know that if I am staring at my phone. I want to know their hearts, their fears, and their dreams. I won’t get to know any of that if they spend their time on tablets and watching TV. That is not a fulfilling life. I want to LIVE LIFE, and Circle helps keep us all accountable.
Save 20% on your purchase of a Circle Home Plus device + 1 year app subscription or Circle Home Plus device + lifetime app subscription at momsmeet.link/circlehomeplusshop with promo code MOMSMEET2021. Valid until 10/15/21. One promo code use per person.Circle Home Plus typically retails at $69 for a three month subscription, $129 for a one-year subscription, or $299 for a lifetime subscription. All plans include the Circle Home Plus Device and Circle App access.
Do you like that headline? It’s like a fun news story.
We had beautiful weather two weekends in a row– both weekends that I worked at the library and projects that required two sets of hands couldn’t be completed. Then, a weekend off. A rain, cold weekend off. Scott and I did what we could on Friday evening while it was nice, but Saturday was gross out. We went to Menards (again..) and picked up the last of what we needed to complete the coop. We think.
Sunday morning, we got up to get ready for church. I was getting dressed and coming out to make breakfast when I heard Scott call for “anyone” to come help. He just tells me to follow him. I go downstairs where we have a duck running around free. Apparently she figured out how to flutter enough to fly over the side of the brooder. We caught her and put her back in the brooder.. and made the call that we were about to have the most miserable Sunday. haha! We had our ducks in a large brooder space in our basement (cellar, whatever you want to call it). Our furnace, water pump, etc. are also downstairs and having a duck wandering whenever she pleases is not even close to safe for any involved.
I guess I need to back up. The chicken run shouldn’t affect the duck run, right? We finished the duck house and run many weeks ago. It was at the same time that a friend asked if we could take one of her bantam hens that was escaping their yard. I said yes, absolutely. We knew she would be just fine in the duck house and run while we finished the chicken coop and run. But, when the ducks suddenly need their space, Carmel (the hen) can no longer hang out in the duck area. She is very small, and the ducks are very curious. So, that is why we had to rush to finish the chicken run in order for the ducks to be able to come outside full time.
We spent our entire Sunday building the chicken run. We honestly thought the run was going to be easy. All we needed to do was build the walls for the run and screw on the hardware cloth. W.R.O.N.G. The walls went up so quickly. Framing the door was tricky and took a little longer, but still not terrible. Getting the hardware cloth pulled tight without any slack was a whole different ballgame. We bought an old barn door on FB marketplace that we needed to cut down and reinforce because it had definitely seen better days.
We got the door to the coop put on after dark and filled the coop with pine shavings and moved Carmel over to her new and permanent home. The ducks came outside, also in the dark, and enjoyed their first cozy night in their house. Everyone seems very happy in their new locations. The ducks forage and munch all day. I take our 10 chicks out during the day to hang out with Carmel. It is still getting in the 30s at night, which is too cold for 9 week old chicks. They go back in the brooder at night.
Here is a picture of the coop– it stopped raining while we ate dinner. The picture is so deceiving and makes it look like we had a beautiful day.
We were honestly so cold. We wore our Carhartt overalls over our clothes. We had our hats and coats on with work gloves. We were soaked to the core. I felt like we would never be dry or warm. But, we did it! I am SO proud of Scott. He planned this completely on his own. We built it from the ground up.
Once we get it 100% completed, I will share more pictures and hopefully rope Scott into writing up the plans so we can share them here. We still need to paint the rest of the wood, build a true roost, and bury hardware cloth. None of those will take much time. This weekend, we plan to work up the ground for our big garden– which I think we will call our potager. Potager means “kitchen garden”, which feels fitting. It is great fun, and while we certainly would have preferred a dry day to finish this project, we are thankful to have it almost completed!
March has been BUSY. Every weekend has been spent outside working on a project. We have picked up more fast food than I’d ever care to admit. Last weekend, I’d had enough and determined to make all of our meals despite working outside because I was sick of wasting money. I never took pictures– honestly I often don’t get pictures of dinner dishes because we are all hungry. But, I’ll try to do better since it’s fun to share. Sunday’s dinner was the Chicken Piccata from the Come and Get It cookbook. So good.
Chloe made this cake all by herself. I was actually outside with Scott while she made it. I told her to come get me if she needed help with anything. I’ve baked with her for years and trusted her ability to be safe, and I’m so proud of her. It was also delicious!
I had been dying to make bagels. I topped half with everything but the bagel seasoning and half with cinnamon and sugar. They aren’t my favorite, but they were pretty good for a first try.
This was Harper’s request. We love to make braided bread. She made it with chocolate chips inside and sprinkles on top. Can you tell we like sprinkles?
Chloe made these muffins by herself also. She is really doing a great job. I also just noticed her toothpick tester in the picture. haha!
MY sourdough is going really well! It’s doubling in size after about 4 hours. In another week, I should be able to bake bread with it! Would anyone like me to share how I made my starter?
The sourdough starter isn’t quite ready to raise a loaf of bread yet, but I was able to make a batch of herb crackers. They are pretty good. I ate some with raw cheddar, and YUM.
This was my favorite new recipe of the month! Have you ever made a dutch baby? It was so cool to watch rise. You start with such a small amount of batter, and it just grows and grows. We topped ours with a bit of powdered sugar (more for looks) and maple syrup. It was so yummy.
