Queen's Edge Farm: The Start of A New Week

Monday, December 15, 2008

The Start of A New Week

Whew! very chilly here this morning. Yesterday's forecast said it would be in the high 70's today with possible thunderstorms. It is misty this morning and 40! With only a high of 52. With the wind blowing outside this morning, it's VERY cold out there....I went to let the dog out to potty, and she turned right around and came back inside, and sat by the heat. Right now she is just about on top of it, and in danger of catching fire, but if you try to move her she growls, and will move right back. She's so grumpy when she is cold. Hopefully, she won't singe her fur this time, that really stinks when she does it.

We are off to the credit union, and to pick up Hannah's baby bunny that is ready to leave it's mom.

I managed to get the playroom/nursery in some kind of shape. I threw away lots of trash, put everything neatly on the shelves, and put the crib in the closet. I know that sounds bad, but with the doors open, it will be fine. The girls have a double bed in there also, so when it's cold, I can have all three kids sleep in there with the small heater, and they will be warm. I had the crib next to the bed, but the room gets so cold at night, I was worried the baby would get sick. So he's sleeping in the closet. This will allow me to close the nursery door partially in order to keep the heat in there....The room is about 8 X 8, so it's cramped in there, but since they only sleep in there right now, and aren't playing, it'll work.

I also started packing my bag for the hospital, but need a few toiletries in there as well as, getting a nightgown for the hospital. Next on my list for this afternoon, is to wash dishes, clean kitchen, finish the laundry, and HOPEFULLY get the refrigerator cleaned out.

After that, I'd like to get all the laundry folded and the bathroom cleaned, but that will be for another day. I am hoping to get someone to come help me clean the tub, as I can't reach over the side. I may ask April, but I know she won't want to come do it for me, but I'll ask anyway. Or maybe I'll ask Rodney??? I think I can scrub the floor, but the tub's side gets in the way of my stomach.

We are officially on Christmas break for school. It's a little early, but I have several things I need to accomplish before then, so it's time.

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Well, we are back home. We went to the credit union, had lunch at Chick Fil A, went to check on renewing my driver's license early and then came home. We weren't able to get the bunny as the breeder had an emergency this a.m., and wasn't able to drop it off. We'll try again tomorrow. We went to the grocery store, where of course I spent more money than I had planned, but the thought of waiting closer to Christmas to get my supplies for my Christmas meal (primarily the ham) kind of scared me. The lines are alway so long the more I wait.

Well it's after 2 p.m., and it's only reached 43 degrees, so more than likely we won't reach today's high. I have the fire started in the wood stove, so the house should warm up soon. It's way warmer than outside, but still quite chilly once you sit in here awhile.

I just wanted to post here something strange that happened at the grocery store.. Lauren said there was a lady walking around our, and she stopped right in front of our car and wrote our license plate down. Lauren showed me which car she got into so I am going to list her car description here and license plate number. I don't have her physical description, but just in case my house gets robbed or something, I want the information to give out to someone later.

It was an old car. Couldn't see a type (Cheverolet, Ford, etc.) It was dull white, with gray primer on the roof. It reminds me of an LTD, but not sure of my car names. The license plate number is L18 YKR, Texas. So, if anyone hears of my being robbed, killed, etc., this is my first suspect ;-)

Well, I am off to clean the kitchen and get my chili started for dinner. It seemed a good day for chili. I was going to make cornbread, but they grocery store had fresh french bread, so we'll have that instead.

Have a good night, and stay warm.

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Grandma's Yummy Cinnamon Rolls

2 pkgs active dry yeast or 5 tsps if using bulk yeast
1/2 cup warm water (not too hot)
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup shortening, butter, margarine
2 tsps salt
2 cups milk, scalded
1 1/2 cups cold water
10 to 12 cups flour (white or whole wheat)

Yield: 4 loaves

Soften yeast in warm water, springkle in a tsp of the sugar
In LARGE mixing bowl blend sugar, shortening, salt and milk until shortening is melted. Add cold water, cool to luke-warm. Stir in yeast. Gradually add flour to form a stiff dough. Knead on floured surface until smooth and satiny, 5 to 10 minutes. Place in greased bowl, turning dough to grease all sides. Cover with foil or damp towel. Let rise in warm place (85 to 90 deg) until light and doubled in volume about two hours. Punch dough down by plunging fist in center. Knead dough for about 5 minutes.

Roll out one fourth of dough to a 16 X 12 inch rectangle. Brush with 2 TBSP of melted butter. Combine 1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar, 1/3 cup sugar and 1 1/2 tsp of cinnamon (or more to taste). Sprinkle mixture over dough. Starting with 16 inch side, roll jellyroll fashion. Either cut into 16 1 inch slices or leave as a whole loaf. Place on a greased pan, cover and let rise in warm place until light, about 30 to 45 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees about 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Mix one box 10X sugar with 2 tbsps water. If too stiff, add more water until icing consistency, add a drop of vanilla too. Spread on baked bread while bread is still warm.

2010 Homestead Stats

Laundry Soap

Homemade Laundry Soap:
1/3 bar Fels Naptha or other type of soap, as listed above
½ cup washing soda
½ cup borax powder
~You will also need a small washpan or bowl that holds about 2 gallons.

Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan. Add 6 cups water and heat it until the soap melts. Add the washing soda and the borax and stir until it is dissolved. Remove from heat. Pour 4 cups hot water into the washpan. Now add your soap mixture and stir. Now add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir. Transfer soap (using a funnel if necessary) into empty plastic laundry holders, milk containers (I use my empty glass milk bottles and old Fab containers) Let the soap sit for about 24 hours and it will gel. You use ½ cup per load.

Wild Mustang Grape Jelly

Wild Mustang Grape Jelly

5 cups grape juice (about 3 1/2 pounds of ripe grapes)1 (1 3/4 ounce) box of sure-jel pectin7 cups sugarBefore getting started it is best to clean the entire kitchen, making sure the sink is empty. Bleach the sink and all utensils used in making jelly (I do this as I sell my grape jelly as part of my homesteading business.)

Wash the canning jars in warm soapy water, and rinse well. Set off to side.

Place a large pan of water on the stove to heat. Once it starts steaming, place lids and rings in the bottom, and 2-3 jars (depending on if you use actual jelly jars or pints) to sterilize.

Next make the grape juice using clean washed grapes (make sure you use rubber gloves when picking or washing wild grapes)To 3 1/2 pounds of clean grapes (6 cups of grapes) add 1 1/2 cups water.Bring to a boil and simmer covered for 10 minutes.Strain and squeeze out all of the juice with cheese cloth (see paragraph below)
I didn't have cheese cloth, so I poured the grape mixture into a large spaghetti strainer with a large pan underneath. I had to stir it around some as the skins and seeds would sink to the bottom, and clog the colander up. Stirring allowed the liquid to drain out. I then used a large metal spoon and squished it some to get more of the juice out.

In a very big pan, put 5 cups of the juice (it’s okay to add no more than ½ cup water to even out amount)Add the fruit pectin to the juice.Mix well.On high heat, bring to a full rolling boil, and boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly.Stir in sugar all at once, and bring back to a full rolling boil, again boil hard for 1 minute stirring constantly.
Remove jelly from heat, skim off foam
Use a large spoon inserted inside the jar to lift CAREFULLY out of the water. DO NOT TOUCH THE INSIDE OF THE JAR OR THE RIM WITH YOUR HANDS.
Ladle jelly into hot jars, place a lid and ring onto jar (do not tighten yet).
Set jars to the side. After a while you should start hearing “pings” as the jar seals.
When jars are completely cool, tighten rings and store on pantry shelf.**SIDE NOTE: Wild Mustang Grapes are normally ready the end of June, so be prepared. Keep an eye open for vines on the side of the road, or any that friends and family may have growing in their yard. Many people just let them grow and don’t do anything with them, so it shouldn’t be hard to find a good supply. Also, the more you pick off the vine, the more the vine produces new grapes, so you probably won’t EVER run out of grapes to use until the vine dies or you get sick of making jelly. Good luck and feel free to contact me at queensedgefarm@yahoo.com for questions.