10/2/12

Club shopping tomorrow!

I'm excited (and yes, I'm easily pleased!)... tomorrow we are visiting a brand new Sam's Club that has just been opened within 30 minutes of our home. Yay! Still debating whether to get a regular membership or splurge and buy the upgrade (it's $60 more but you get a $40 gift card and one of the benefits is that they automatically add coupons to your card for instant savings... yay!). Guess I'll be up late compiling a grocery list! Oh, and don't forget... Sam's offers members-only free samples on their website... not to mention all the free samples in store. I just hope I don't overdo it tomorrow!

9/30/12

Pumpkin Pancakes


I LOVE all things pumpkin (especially recipes!), so when I came across this recipe, I knew I had to try it. I've tried a different one, but the results were so-so (the inside just never felt fully cooked, but they tasted great!). I'm very happy to say this one turned out PERFECT! You can get the recipe HERE.
 
The spices smelled sooo good!
 


I'm not 100% sure the liquid part was supposed to be this runny, but you could also try whipping the egg whites separately and then folding them into the mix.
 

See all those yummy spices? Nice and thick, too!


The finished product... I cannot tell you enough how awesome these smell! They tasted great, too, but if you REALLY want to make them spectacular, try topping with a little whipped cream and maybe even some candied pecans. I do believe I'll be trying pumpkin muffins next... Enjoy!
 
 
 


9/23/12

Roses are red...


A few months ago, we heard that a local grocery store had all of it's potted roses on clearance for $2 each... so of course we ran out and grabbed several! I had no clue what kind they were until we got home with them. We'd never grown roses before, but these were "Knockout Roses" and were supposed to be very easy. I must say, I have been very impressed with these. They grow pretty quickly and they bloom ALL the time (continuously all summer, so far!). We planted them in a bed of Southeast Texas gumbo (tilled in a little bark mulch and red sand), and I'm happy to say they actually did pretty well (most plants won't grow well in gumbo).



We also planted a larger rose (pictured below; I believe it was called "Strike It Rich" and it's a Weeks' rose) in the same bed of gumbo. It also did VERY well. This one gets really tall and the roses start off peach and then fade to pink at the edges after a day or so. I wanted a stronger smelling variety, but my husband fell in love with the crazy coloring of this one and had to have it.

 
 So if you're looking to start growing roses, be sure to try Knockout... I highly recommend them for a first timer!

9/22/12

My Hair Problem


So my hair has been feeling a lot like straw here lately, and I've recently come across the idea of using coconut oil to treat it. My hair is naturally curly, so as long as I'm not straightening it, it really doesn't endure a lot of heat styling. We do have a well, so I'm dealing with hard water. I really have high hopes for this coconut oil cure, because I've read SO many awesome reviews from people who claim that it worked miracles for them. I really want to try a "cleansing conditioner" in place of regular shampoo and see if it works. I'm ready to have my once-soft hair back! I've got my hair saturated and wrapped up for the night... I'll let you know how it turns out in the morning after shampooing and styling! Goodnight all!

9/12/12

Progress

So after DAYS of soaking the roosters foot in sea salt water (and rinsing with betadine), the scab finally came off. The top of his foot is still swollen between the toes, but he's finished his antibiotics and on the road to recovery. We did have to wrap the foot to prevent further infection, and he's still a prisoner in his crate (poor thing!). We have also cut the size of our chicken pen in half and managed to clean the yard up in the process. We hope to start building a new coop soon, and I'll post picture updates when we get around to it. Our 10 new chickens are really taking to their new home (they can finally scratch in the dirt!). I believe that at least 3 of them are roosters, so I'd like to find them a new home. We really have no need for more than 1 rooster. Our oldest hen, Mama, is in the process of molting. The poor thing has almost no wing feathers left! She really looks a fright, and there are feathers EVERYWHERE in the coop. Well I can hear the hummingbirds griping outside my window, so I'd better get a move on. Here's to a PRODUCTIVE day!

9/5/12

Bumblefoot

Finally figured out what was wrong with the roosters foot... something called "bumblefoot". It's pretty gnarly looking, so I'll refrain from posting any pics! I did look it up on YouTube and found several videos of people performing "home surgery" to remove the problem... yuck! I can not see myself doing that! I'm just gonna continue his antiobiotics and start soaking his foot twice a day in sea salts and betadine, as others have suggested doing. Sure hope it helps! For more information on bumblefoot (and how to prevent it!), visit http://poultry.allotment.org.uk/advice/chicken-health/bumblefoot .

8/30/12

Rooster Nurse!


Yeah, you heard me right... I am presently filling the role of "rooster nurse"! Our only rooster, (a Golden-Laced Wyandotte), has somehow managed to hurt his foot. He began limping about a week ago, and after 3 days of antibiotics he wasn't showing any improvement. Against my better judgement, I allowed my concerned husband to talk me into taking him to the vet. Apparently this is a bit unconventional, because we were only able to find 1 vet in a 30 mile radius that would look at him (I assume we were the "joke of the day" after we left!). The vet prescribed more antibiotics and a daily foot soaking in betadine (really?!), and also told us to keep him pinned up. So guess who got the job of attempting to administer meds to a rooster? You guessed it! Luckily, we had a small dog crate we were able to put him in. The chickens seem none too happy to have him locked away, either! (I haven't gotten an egg in days!). In any case, we were already planning on building a new coop, but his injury has spurred us on to get it done a little quicker. I'm assuming he cut it in the messy chicken yard, as no one has bothered raking the yard in months (guess I'll get to do that too!). The only good thing that has come out of all this is that I've FINALLY  gotten over my fear of this rooster and he seems a little tamer because of it. I'll just be glad when it's all over!

Baking Soda Uses

I am a BIG fan of vinegar & baking soda, (they're all I use to clean around the house!), so here's a list of 31 uses for baking soda. Bet you learn something new! Click HERE to find out!

8/29/12

Best.Cake.EVER!

This is a recipe from my mom's family's personal cookbook. I have no idea where the recipe came from, but it is INSANELY good! My favorite of all time, by far. It is a simple pound cake with no frosting... doesn't sound very good, does it? Trust me... you have to taste it to understand! Enjoy... and try not to eat the whole thing yourself!
 
Apricot Brandy Pound Cake
 
3 cups white sugar
3 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup + 1 tablespoon apricot brandy
1 cup sour cream
1 cup butter or margarine
6 eggs
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon orange extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and lightly flour a 12-cup bundt pan. In mixing bowl, combine sugar, flour, baking soda, salt, brandy, butter, sour cream, eggs, and extracts. Mix all ingredients with electric mixer, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 80 minutes. Cool for 20 minutes, and remove cake from pan. Cool completely.
 
 

8/23/12

Get your coupon for this GOODIE!

I LOVE Kashi Layered Granola Bars! Even my kids eat them... and they make a great snack for lunchboxes! Hurry over to VocalPoint to snag a $1.50/off coupon* today! Click HERE!




*Must be a member (or sign up to be one) in order to print coupon!

 

8/21/12

Awesome curling method!

I'm so excited about this! I have naturally curly hair, but it takes a lot of shine solution, mousse and hairspray to tame the frizz and shape my curls. I just came across this YouTube video for NO HEAT, NO PRODUCT curls and it looks AWESOME! I will definitely be trying it tonight! Check it out HERE!

Addicted!

I messed up and finally logged on to Pinterest... needless to say it's now past midnight! Headed to bed... if I can just bring myself to close this laptop! :o)

8/4/12

And we're back!

Been awhile, but we're back online. We've just added 10 chicks to our brood, and the kids are very excited!