Chocolate Chip Scones

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1 cup flour
3 Tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup shortening
1/3 cup oats
2 eggs
1/2 choc chips (or currents)
Mix it all together - in this order- and put on an ungreased cookie sheet. Mold into a circle and then cut like a pie into triangles. Bake at 450 for 8 minutes.

xoxo

tomatos and the end of being poo-free

yellow tomatoes showing some color.

And these pink beauties.

Day #7 of being poo free and the end of the experiment. I never felt like my hair was dirty, but the texture was making me crazy. I just can't do it. That's why it's an experiment, I guess. This one failed.

my yard

C'mon! turn red already!

Can't wait to make salsa!

I finally have a cucumber growing! Maybe the groundhog has given up? Doubt it...

This little friend was hanging out by the cucumber plants.

The girls love cheese.

day #6

I just don't know... not sure I can keep going!

poo and blue-berries

Poo-free day #5
I don't know about this... I'm feeling pretty greasy today. I wore my baseball hat most of the day. It still feels pretty good but it looks like I have a bunch of pomade in it.

We went blueberry picking yesterday with Megan. We went to the farm in Dexter. I love it out there. I would do anything to live in one of those farm houses on that dirt road. It's so beautiful. As we were leaving we got to sit and watch some deer jumping around in the woods.

So I got a few pounds in the freezer. It was my favorite summer treat to have in the dead of winter last year. We also made bluerries and custard yesterday and muffins this morning.

Three uses for one lemon

I had a lemon that needed to be used up- and every bit of it was used up!


The first thing I did was use the zest off the entire lemon in my zucchini bread yesterday. I don't usually add lemon but I really enjoyed this.


This morning I used the juice of the lemon in my hair instead of the vinegar. It sure smelled better but it left it a little dull and kinda greasy looking (not feeling though). I think I'm also just going through the withdrawl process from the shampoo.


And then I used the rinds to clean my kitchen and then put them in the garbage disposal which deodorized it and also made the whole kitchen smell lemony!

poo free #3 and boy shorts

Here is day three. It is a little flatter than usual, but that is actual fine because at this length, it tends to go a little bozo
The only issue I did have today was leaving for church with wet hair. I was very self-conscious that people would think I smelled like salad dressing. I'm sure no one really did, but I was self-conscious of it none-the-less.

New knitting project: boy shorts. I'm going to make them rainbow-y and use up bits of yarn that I don't have enough of for big projects. I'm just on the second color now.

poo free day #2

I promise I won't post pictures of my hair every day... but I'm pretty excited about this experiment.

I brushed my hair really well before I washed it today. I read online that that is important to the process of re-introducing natural hair oils to your scalp.
I have to say the only things I don't like so far are 1. the baking soda/water combo is cold on my head and 2. smelling like vinegar until my hair dries.

But so far I'm happy and my hair feels great.

poo free day #1 part 2

Here is the picture of it dry- considering the crazy humidity today, it looks pretty good.

new no poo livin'

I've been reading all around the net lately about going "poo free". It seemed like it was popping up somewhere at least once a day. So finally I gave in and started reading these articles and it started to sink in.
I'm too frugal (a.k.a. cheap) to buy the fancy shampoos that are chemical free and do minimal damage to the earth so this seems like a good alternative.

The articles say to use baking soda and apple cider vinegar. This makes total sense to me since that is what I use to clean my house already. You mix 1 tbsp of baking soda in a cup or two of water. Massage this into wet hair and esp. massage the scalp. Rince that out and then use diluted apple cider vinegar on the roots. Rinse that out and that's it.

So after my shower when I was combing my hair out, I noticed it was totally free on tangels. That is pretty amazing for my hair. I'll have to see how it dries. And maybe take another picture then.

This picture just makes me laugh. It also makes me laugh that my head smells like salad dressing.
xoxo

skivs

I knit all year round and sometimes I just run out of ideas. I was looking at patterns for bikinis and thought that seems kinda silly- really... who would wear a knitted swim suit? Not to swim in anyway...
So that led me to thinking about other sorts of under garments. Why not, since I knitted diaper covers, etc. Why not skivvies for me?
So this was my first try. I think I'll try boy shorts next. That might be more practical. And no, I won't be modeling them.

skivvies

Can they be knitted?

sometimes you can't get what you want.... but you get what you need

I've wanted a step stool like this forever. The cabin my Mom was renting last week had the absolute perfect stool in it and she wouldn't let me steal it! But I did take this picture. Check your grandma's basement, if she has an old one laying around, pass it this way!!



First batch of Yellow Squash Pickles done! I forgot the turmeric, so they are not the lovely yellow color they should be, but I bet they will taste about the same.

I needed a good project today, so it was the perfect day for a little canning. I love these pickles! Esp. with homemade baked beans and molasses bread. Yum.


xoxo

savory bread pudding

I love to read recipes. I read a lot of recipe websites and last week it seemed like they all highlighted this same idea. I kept seeing a Leek Bread Pudding reciepe that looked amazing. My leeks are still baby sized so I knew I couldn't do that but the idea kept circulating in the back of my brain.

Today I was going to bake bread but realized I didn't have any more baking powder. I used the last of it making a loaf of brown bread that didn't get eaten before it got hard. I was going to feed it to the chickens, but instead I thought about making it into some kind of savory bread pudding. I broke the bread up, and added the milk and eggs and then sauted 2 small zucchinis and a bunch of herbs from the garden. I added this to the bread, milk and egg and baked it at 400 for 35 minutes.

It turned out quite beautiful. And it tastes even better! I was afraid to make it too herby but it actually could have had a bit more sage.
(pardon the Rex feet in the picture... He is living in my kitchen until Isaiah decides whether he's afraid of him or not)

cucumber salad

Cucumber Salad
I can't wait for summer pickles, but until the cucumber crops really come in, I have to find ways to pickle them little by little. Yesterday I made cucmber salad and today it is perfect!
My mom gave me a bag of huge cukes. I sliced 3 huge ones with a red onion and layered those in a big bowl. Over top I poured a mixture of 1 cup of water, 1/2 cup white sugar, 1/2 cup veg oil, 2 cups of white vinegar. Mix it very well before you pour it over top so the sugar is dissolved.
You can eat it after 4 hours in the fridge, but a good 24 hours in the fridge is really what makes it the best.

more pickles pants

I made these Pickles Pants for Isaiah a few months ago. Soon after, I made this pair for my friend Elena. I was waiting until her shower to post this picture, but the the whole HFM disease thing happened, and I couldn't go to the shower... so then it was awhile before I was able to get these to her. But, finally now, she got her baby shower present and I can post a picture of these cute pickles pants! I love these colors. I really wanted to keep them for Isaiah. They remind me a bit of Brobee .

green in the yard