Blueberry picking…

On Monday our friend Jill set up a blueberry field trip for school.  It was so nice.  The blueberry farm was just 5 minutes away and we started at 9:00.  Mr. Vence gave each child a green quart container and set it in a bucket and just let us loose to pick.  Last year we picked at an abandoned blueberry farm it was over grown and very hard picking.  Mr. Vence’s is kept up wonderfully!  He mows between his bushes and there is netting over all to keep the birds out.  I was picking barefoot!  Monday it got up to 91 degrees so, 9:00 a.m. and barefoot were great for me!

So, there were lots of pickers! And to be sure, lots of berries went into our mouths.  Mr. Vence also took the children around and talked about how he started, what he did to the soil to make it acidic enough for the berries, mulching etc.  It was educational and fun to get together with other home educating moms and families.  As a gift Mr. Vence gave each child the quart they picked!  That was more than generous! seeing some of the families had 5 and above children!    We also picked extra and went home and put them up for the winter.   We were able to put up 16 quarts of blueberry pie filling and 5 quarts of  jam.

Blueberries look so pretty in the jar!

I am enclosing the pie filling recipe for you.  Just a tip from our low sugar kitchen.  We decreased the sugar by 2 cups and the filling was very yummy last year.  I am writing the recipe for the amount of sugar it called for.

Blueberry pie filling:

6 quarts blueberries

6 cups sugar

2 1/4 cups Clear gel ( we get this at our bulk food store)

7 cups cold water

1/2 cup lemon juice

Wash and clean berries of stems and leaves.

Whisk clear gel  and sugar to blend.

Cook clear gel, sugar, and water on high, stirring constantly.  When it thickens and to  boil , add lemon juice and stir for 1 minute.

Put the hot gel into a very large bowl,  add berries and gently fold the two together trying to avoid breaking the berries.

Then you just put this mixture into your jars, we used a wooden spoon and just spooned it in, it is very sticky and isn’t a pouring consistency.  We leave a good 1″ head space put our lids on and water bath for 20 -25 minutes.  It almost always  oozes out some in the water bath.  But that is o.k. if your lid is sealed.

I am not sure if you can freeze this or not.  Does any body know?

Slippery Rock Pennsylvania….

For the 4th of July our family went to a State Park in Pennsylvania.  We are close to the border so, it was about a 1 1/2 hour drive.  Vacations haven’t been an option for us in the last few years, so this day trip was very special.  It is good to have a change of scenery, and I have always enjoyed traveling with my family.

The Park is McConnell’s Mill State Park.  It is a large park with extreme hiking!  It was extreme for this out of shape lady!  The children were not having any problems!  Quite a lot of climbing, rocks, roots, etc.  There is a mill that is powered by the Slippery Rock Creek.  And it was run by turbines instead of a big water wheel.  Very interesting!  Then we drove to another part of the park called, Hell’s Hollow, there were two hikes here a hard one and an easy one.  We took the easy one! 🙂  For dear mom!  This was a relatively flat hike, but it was definitely very wonderful!  You walk along a little creek, with a very rocky bed, and huge trees and rocks all around you.

At the end you are rewarded with this delightful waterfall!  The creek was low, so we went right in and the boys had a blast skipping rocks, Olivia sketched the falls, and I just enjoyed the sight and sound of falling water!  We had a lovely day. We came home tired and refreshed.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow…..

Chrissi

Goat’s milk soap…

This is some of my favorite goat’s milk soap!  The lady who makes it, Angela,   is super nice and she uses our goat’s milk to make the soap 🙂  This is my favorite kind, Sea Salt Soap. It has a nice clean fresh scent!  She lives in Brimfield, so if you live nearby you can just stop by.  She usually has cookies baked.  🙂    I’m thankful for great hand made products!

 

She has a website and an Etsy shop.  http://www.sunnybrookgardens.com  She sells day lilys and all kinds of other bath products too.   We were just there today to get our soap and she had the cookies ready.

Have a blessed 4th of July weekend!

Little campers…

This is so fun, yesterday I started the boys on building this fire pit.  Their reward was hot dogs over the fire last night.  Then they all asked to sleep out.  The baby had to stay in but quite a few slept out.   This morning I look out and they had stirred up the fire and were pretending to have breakfast cooked on the fire.  I thought that was precious!    They actually had granola.  Children can be so imaginative and spontaneous!  They are truly a blessing from the Lord!

Hope this brings you a smile today!   Thanking the Lord for small joys!

Chrissi

A big sewing day…

Today I finished these bloomers for a custom order…. When Olivia shipped it, I turned my attention to a graduation present for a party we were attending today…

This was a fun project, although it took some home work.  Gifts for people you love seem to just go smoothly.    Sewing for customers is a heavy responsibility.  I am thankful for work.  But making gifts is definitely a delight! 🙂

Well, once the machine was hooked up and rolling, my 5 year old comes to me with a shirt he wants to wear to the parties.  It was filthy!  You know, a shirt he really likes!   Well I soaked it and it didn’t come clean.  So, plan B….  I had purchased some t-shirts with the intent to do some embroidery on them for summer shirts for the boys.  I also had a half  jelled plan of what I wanted to do on the shirts so, I went for it.   This shirt has an elephant scene that is in my machine, then I have a computer program that has quite a few different fonts and I wanted to add some text.  This particular text I had played with a few weeks ago in the program and so it was ready to go… A small problem arised, namely, I didn’t have the thread colors that the pattern suggested.  I improvised, My 11 year old daughter was my interpreter and every time the machine had a thread change which was more times than I care to count 🙂  my little interpreter reminded me of the color we were using instead.  The boys watched the machine draw the pattern.  It would have been a blast except we were getting late to go to the first party.

Finally finished,  here is the end product:

I like it a lot, but have already seen where I am going to make changes for the other boys, who of course, are waiting for theirs!  Believe it or not, I continued sewing and began one of our ladybug dresses for an order.  Just wanted to have a head start for Monday, since there is a lot of hand work and I promised the mom to ship it on Tuesday so it would get there for her daughter’s birthday.   I love to be prepared if I can be.

Well, it is Saturday night, time to get ready for our day of rest!  Yeah!

Work is good and profitable for mind, soul, and body.  But how I am thankful for rest.  And how sweet that rest is after the work is completed.

Just a side note, as I am writing this Olivia  is upstairs playing hymns on the piano, this is not something she gets to do often.  She is always working on something else,  a few of my children play, but all have different touches and techniques…Olivia, whose name means “peace” plays just that way…peace and rest flood my heart when she is playing.

Shalom!

Chrissi

My health journey…

Look what I got to have for a snack today!!! :-0

Isn’t that pretty!  My dear daughter tries to present things so pretty, i.e. my grandmother’s china plate, color full and artistic.  Now, the pill is an isa flush from Isagenix.  What I am doing is a cleansing and fat burning system.  In 2007-2008 we lived in Florida and a dear neighbor down the road introduced me to the Isangenix products.

I don’t feel well when I am over weight. I struggle with SAD.  I’m 40 something.  I have 11 wonderful children.  I’ve got to feel well!  So, my dear husband, who was sick of me being sick and tired came home one day about a month ago and said “I called Miss Erma and ordered Isagenix for you.”  Being the sweet, submissive, yielded personality that I am, I said “what? we can’t afford that!!! :-)”  And was secretly glad because it really did help me in Florida, plus I wouldn’t spend that much money on myself!

So, the product arrived, and I started a 30 day cleanse.  There are shake days, where you drink 2 shakes for 2 of your meals, in the a.m. you have an ionix supreme which has vitamins and stuff in it. Then you get two small snacks, and take a pill recommended by them as shown above.  And at lunch a 400-600 calorie meal.   Then with the 30 day program there are 4 cleanse days where you drink your vitamin drink and 4 cleanse drinks and lots of water and that is it!  I must add that because of the organic,  very thorough scientific research put into  the blend of their products, I am actually not really hungry.  My body is getting fed. I am receiving nutrition. Whereas before I would eat all the time and still be hungry and tired and weak.

Tough regime, but my weight was out of hand, and I felt terrible, mentally, emotionally, and physically.   Drum roll please….

As of today, the 29th day, I have lost 15 pounds!  Whoo Hoo!  I have signed up with Isagenix, because it gives me the wholesale price and I want to maintain, so I’ll continue to use some of their products,  just won’t have to be so tough on my self.   I am not where I want to be weight wise, but Oh I feel so much better and such a nice head start!    Here is a link and you can look for your self  if it interests you.  If you have questions for me feel free to ask.   www.chrissistauffer.isagenix.com

Off to have my 400-600 calorie lunch!!

Chrissi

Peasant Dresses!…

I love peasant dresses!  For us, it covers our shoulders, keeps the sun off, and you don’t have to find a shirt to match.  Just slip it over your head and you’re off!

These dresses were made for my neighbor, she wanted that easy on- off for her two little girls.  She ordered 16 dresses, 8 each.  She gave us the freedom to pick fabric and colors, she just wanted her girls to have some play dresses this summer.  My  girls and I cut them out on Thursday, sewed them on Friday, and clipped the threads on Saturday.  Whew! It was fun seeing them come together!  It is so wonderful to finish a project.

Don’t worry if you count them and don’t get 16, she took a couple with her, I asked her to leave the rest so I could get this picture 🙂

Chrissi

Strawberry picking…

We went last Wednesday and picked strawberries at our usual farm.. Walnut Drive Gardens in Mogadore.  We got there on the first day and picked 8 half pecks in 1/2 hour!  It was fun.  Then we came home and put up 63 pints of strawberry jam.  Yum.

Summer time….

The berries were huge!!

The fruit of our labors!  At least the part we canned.  The rest is in the freezer!

Aahh.

Looking forward to Sabbath rest…

We have had a week!  I am so thankful that God commands me to rest on the sabbath to remember Him and His creation.  If He didn’t command it, me being the order taker that I am, I would work myself to the ground.  He knows our frame, that we are dust… descriptive huh?  True? of course true, The truth said it!

I stand amazed at His care for all of His creation!

Is this not a beautiful Hibiscus?

Happy Birthday Olivia…

Olivia is 20, unbelievable!  Happy belated Birthday! to a very talented, loved, and appreciated young lady!

   Our two oldest..they have been buds all along!

The whole gang celebrated and we had dinner outside!

This fruit salad was a great side dish, her sister made it for her!  We are grateful!  Cherish your children, put all you have into them and listen to everyone who tells you ” they grow up so soon”  It is true!!!

Chrissi