Raising Seedlings in the Cold

     A few weeks ago, Just as my wife was getting into house organizing in a serious way I decided to throw a serious wrench in the works.  I had been spying on several apple trees in out neighborhood for several weeks.  Ever since we finished canning peaches actually.  It turns out you really don't need to go to all the trouble to grow fruit trees in order to generally end up with all the fruit you could wish for.  Simply keep your eyes open as you go about your daily activities, and you are sure to notice fruit trees burdened with fruit which the owner of said tree curses as the bane of their yard.  That's right, fruit is generally free for the asking, all you need do is be forthright and courteous...oh, and a promise of a little finished product never hurts either.      So, the tree in question is an apple tree located on the property of a local circle K gas station.  Somehow I don't think the sign posted by the ...

About three weeks ago, something in me snapped. (If you ask those at Bettendorf Chiropractic that do my prenatal adjustments and massages they would say it was my back and hips, 3 pregnancies in 2 1/2 years has done a number on my body.) But no, it was nothing physical it was the domestic diva section of my frontal lobe! I looked around my house and I was disgusted! I have living this house 3 years and there was so much I never did or cared to do, and it showed. I wanted to make a change, so I did, and boy does my house look better in those three short weeks:-) I owe all the praise for my home's transformation to my mother (Love you!) and Pinterest (love you too!) I will also give myself a little credit for also doing a lot of time consuming organizing, and pitching of accumulated crap.   The biggest transformation was my kitchen! My mother and I (mostly my mother) redecorated my breakfast nook to provide seating and storage for under $200. It looks fabulous and I now have redu...

Orange Cranberry Oatmeal Muffins 1 2/3 quick cook oats 1 1/4 flour 3/4 cup brown sugar 2 tsp cinnamon 1 tsp ginger 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp baking soda Put oats in blender and pulse until a coarse meal. Mix in the other ingredients listed. Make a well in the middle of ingredients In a separate bowl, mix 1 cup buttermilk 1/2 cup orange juice Zest of one orange 1/4 cup vegetable oil 2 eggs Whisk these ingredients together. Pour liquid into the well you created. Mix dry and wet ingredients just until combine. It will look a little thin and lumpy. Mix in dried cranberries. About a cup. Bake at 400 for 16-20 minutes.

“ In that world, you'll be able to rise in the morning with the spirit you had known in your childhood: that spirit of eagerness, adventure and certainty which comes from dealing with a rational universe ”- Ayn Rand This week I was fortunate to be dealing with a rational universe. Everything seemed to be going my way, and thus I believe this may explain my unusually adventurous spirit this week. We had many adventures this week as a family that we do not ordinarily experience. Monday- House Guest (Our good friend John, thus a new recipe I will post later:-)) Tuesday- (Big Day, waiting for weeks for this day) We bought a house at an auction for very little and we are planning on fixing it up and making some money. B & N LLC our first financial adventure as a couple.  Then there was TJ. TJ, our almost 2 year old, just has not been talking like he should for his age. Our pediatrician suggested we get his hearing evaluated due to TJ's many ear infections ov...

The last several years Josh and I have an excess of sweet potatoes. I had to figure out a way to cook them that everyone enjoyed including TJ, our almost two year old. I invented the following recipe, and everyone in my family loves it. I hope yours does too! It is low calorie and very healthy! Sweet and Spicy Roasted Sweet Potatoes or Sweet Potato Chips 3-4 Medium to small sized sweet potatoes, sliced thin 2 tsp Pumpkin Pie spice (or a combo of ginger, nutmeg, and cinnamon) 1 tsp of cumin 1 tsp chili powder 2 Tbsp of Honey 2-3 Tbsp of Olive Oil Preheat oven to 425. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Spread on a cookie sheet, try not to overlap pieces. Bake for 15 minutes, you may want to do longer if your pieces are not very thin. Take them out at this point if you want roasted sweet potatoes. If you want chips turn on the broiler and place the cookie sheet on the top most level of your oven. Broil 2 minutes then turn, broil another two and they should nice...

DIY: Pacifier Clip  So for the last 4 months I have been kicking myself for buying a pacifier clip for Jack. Especially after I got mine in the mail. It is made of approx. $1 worth of material, and I paid $8  for a really cute one. I felt taken and just a little envious of the company I bought from for being able to convince someone like me to hand them 800% profit on an item. Sigh.... So I decided to do something about it. I examined my pacifier clip I purchased and designed the following tutorial.  1. Gather the following materials:  Scissors Sewing Machine 6in of 1/8in wide braided elastic 10-12 inches of ribbon ( I recommend 100% polyester) 1 Suspender clip (usually come in packages of 2, approx. $2 a package)  2. On one end of your ribbon take one inch and pull toward the other end. In the loop you just made add your suspender clip. There should be a place to look fabric through on the clip. Pin through both ...

Building an Economical Greenhouse. March 01 2012        First, I think it would be valuable to have a little background on just how it is that I became interested in greenhouse gardening.  Going way back to the beginning briefly may provide some interesting perspective.  So, childhood; I grew up in a large, thrifty family and gardening was a large part of my childhood.  All of my siblings helped out in the garden which was roughly one-half of an acre in size, but somewhere along the line I took a special shine to it.  During high school I even did a little truck crop gardening.  I grew roughly one acre of crops, mostly your average Midwestern garden fare, which I sold at a weekly farmers market in town.  In hindsight my methods were pretty crude, and the amount of work I put in was pretty huge for the amount of rewards I reaped.  After college I moved here to Rock Island, Illinois, and bought a small house on a small ...