We've had a few morning visitors the past two days. Black-Jack and his wife have been nibbling on our scrub maple trees for breakfast. Of course, this sends my dog in a tail-spinning tizzy as she observes them from our glass windowed door in the dining room. Tomorrow I'll have to venture out and see how our little fruit trees are holding up .. and whether or not the 'moose' cages I put up around them last spring (and nearly ruined my shoulder over) are working.
In a week it will be time to do MAJOR grocery shopping. We are scraping the bottom of some barrels and I've got just enough $ to buy some milk and eggs without dipping into next months budget. My family seems to be getting on board .. the financial diet plan .. and are not complaining too much. We will be stocking up on wheat and a sundry variety of pantry staples. I hate running out of stuff .. but it's good to stretch our meal planning and be creative with what's available. Last week's bread was turned into crunchy croutons and used in a quiche type egg casserole that included farm fresh sausage, Swiss chard (pulled from the freezer from last autumn), etc. There's not much waste in our kitchen any longer .. leftovers are often packed in lunch boxes quickly in the mornings .. or added to supplement the dog's diet.
I've been working on perfecting making the water kefir. So far I've made three batches and use it as a base with a few tablespoons of fresh juice added to a six ounce glass. It's a good way to 'stretch' your juice supply as well as get the health benefits of the kefir. I promise to post pictures and instructions soon.
8 comments:
Oooh, Moose visitors! How incredible! What a treat to see them so close.
Wow, you have two moose now, hope they leave your fruit trees alone. Hope they don't come to my yard.:) I'm lookking forward to hearing more about your water kefir...we have never tried that before.
Hello Mrs. Mac. I have seen your comments on a few of the blogs that i follow and decided to check yours out. I really like what you have here. Seems like our families have similar lifestyles. Enjoy your day!
Dear Mrs. Mac,
You are fantastic clever when it comes to a
modern homestead house hold. I enjoy reading about all your new ways of thinking quality and economy.
Am I brutal when I ask why you don't include wild animals such as moose and deer on your menu?
I know they are beautiful and majestic to look at, but they are also very tasty and not endangered species.
Most of them have lived healthier than domestic livestock and in fact have had a good life.
Not for me to tell people what to do, because we don't hunt at all, but I do buy expensive deer or moose steaks now and then.
From Felisol
dear mrs. mac..i saw this post on donna's side bar and decided to see what it was about.
i think i will look through your posts because bernie's pension has been cut three hundred dollars but i know that there ARE ways of stretching the budget...so many ways not to waste!.
two weeks ago when my sister was down visiting mom and dad golden, she made a real delicious salad in which she put two cans of mandarin oranges into ...oh did my heart sink when she put the juice down the drain...oh what a waste!
and my sister, grace knows that i will have her hide if she pours down the sink, the potatoe or the carrot water ...i use it to make the gravy!!
what could be better, eh?
i am glad that you have this site here. i know i am already a tightwad but there is always room for more ideas, eh mrs. mac?...love terry
Mr. H. I'm sure you might enjoy the water kefir as a refreshment .. especially during the summer .. say hi to Mrs. H. I think we need to get together soon :)
meemsnyc - it is fantastic to see wild animals in your backyard .. but the can wreak havoc with the gardens if not fenced .. and one has to be very selective about which ornamental plants and shrubs to plant in the yard.
Welcome Geno .. I checked out your blog and the hiking adventures with your family are wonderful. Thanks for stopping by.
Felisol - we do eat venison when it's available .. our son hunts. Moose meat is extremely expensive .. and in our area (unlike, perhaps, Alaska) only a few may be hunted per year. Elk meat is often available. I have a cousin in Montana that regularly eats antelope. The beef we buy is from a ranch just north of us and is very good.
Miss Terry .. $300 is quite a big chunk to be cut out of Bernie's retirement check .. ouch! Keep reading here as you might pick up lots of thrifty hints.
Hard for me to imagine looking out and seeing a moose in the yard! (Incidentally, what is the plural of moose?)
I have a long way to go to match your admirable efforts in frugality. We live simply but I don't do a lot of preserving, etc. Mainly thrift stores and careful grocery shopping--cooking from scratch, etc.
Was happy to hear that you have found a church in which your whole family is able to worship and find support. (Don't know if I missed a post about that or when it slipped into your profile.....)
Hi Rebecca .. the plural of moose is moose. Same as deer = deer and sheep = sheep. I think I posted about finding a church on my other blog a few posts back 'Whatever Happened To ...' This is the third week Nathan has attended and he's behaved perfectly! We are now going as a family. I just recently edited my profile to include that tidbit of news :)
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