Look ma, I'm Spinnning!

I love my kids.  I love their enthusiasm for anything they see me doing that they think might be fun.  Today it was spinning.  Brand new to me wheel?  Check.  Roving to start with?  Check.  5 year old that wants to treadle like the wind?  Check.  13 Year old that wants to do the same?  Double Check! 

So off to the races we go!  I purchased "Start Spinning" off of the interweave website, (Spinning daily if you are interested...) watched the first few minutes, and then the begging began. 
"Can I try that?"  followed by "Mom, it's MY turn!  Abby had it a long time!"

I did manage to make a skein today.  It isn't gorgeous, but it's workable.  I had a bit of a problem with my brake band, and will probably end up going with the counter weight tension brake system, but for now the leather strap will have to suffice.  I also need to pick up some rubber feet or something, 'cuz she likes to glide right out from under me when I'm treadling...

Pics coming soon of my first skein on the Babe...

Making time for wool

I  have recently joined the "Tour de Fleece" on Ravelry... I am one the teams:
Team A Spinner's Study 2011

Team Rookies 2011


I can't wait to get started!  I am goiong to attempt challenge #2 for a spinners study - I am goiong to process some of the fleeces I have had sitting around here.  I got my fleece a year (2?) ago and have had it sitting in the garage in bags since...  So my ultimate goal is to process enough wool to spin a little each day. 
 
I also have a spinning wheel waiting for me at the post office.  It's a Babe Production Wheel with a total of 10 bobbins, an optional single treadle, and extra goodies.  I was able to find it here in North Dakota - the other side of North Dakota, but North Dakota none the less.  That made shipping ultra cheap.  Thank you Ebay!  I will post pictures of the wheel when I get it - the fleece I can add pics of before processing, but as far as the rest of it, I have to wait until July...
 
Vivé la Tour de Fleece!

New blog...

For anyone who's been wondering, I have a new blog.  It is my crafty side.  If you are interested, just look for me at http://erikasarts.blogspot.com/ and come see what crafty stuff I have in store... 

Other than all of that, I got new tires for my car, only to find out that one of my rim's is cracked - must be fixed or replaced.  So, I had to drive home from Dickinson on a donut, in a snowstorm at 50mph with no wipers, as they seem to be out as well.  What a great day for a drive!  (At least we made it ok, and before the worst of the storm.)  The family seems to be doing well, but my phone is a piece of junk.  It randomly makes calls, or just loses them.  Sometimes it doesn't ring.  Sometimes when I call my hubby I reach his mom.  Or the school.  Or a restaurant.  Just anyone in my phonebook, really.  I so can't wait for my new phone from AT&T.  At least I'll have a little while to decide if I want to keep my service.  Hopefully any problems will show up before I have to make my final decision...

More crafts...

I have been working more on paper crafts this week.  I made up another thankyou card - this time for my uncle who helped me when i was in a tight spot.  I need to come up with more occasions to send cards I guess, since I love making them so much!  It's just a quick easy craft that satisfies my desire to create as well as the whole instant gratification thing.  My cricut and gypsy bundle should be here on Wednesday, so I have spent the whole week updating my computer so that the cricutsync software will load correctly when it arrives.  I am so excited about all of this! 

First project with the Cricut will be a card for my daughter's friend - she moved away almost two years ago now and we miss her so much.  They still talk on the phone regularly.  The second project will be to help my son with his diarama for school.  The cricut will be arriving just in time!  I am so excited to already have a short list of projects to share with you once it arrives!  (Yes, there's more - but we'll make it a suprise!)  I do plan on making this blog a little more crafty in the year to come - more as a journal for myself to remind me of things I've accomplished than anything else.  I think we lose sight of that sometimes.

Crafty!

I ordered my new Cricut expression and Gypsy bundle from HSN yesterday - it should be here next week on Thursday if all goes according to plan...  Which it rarely ever does.  I am going to go pick up Cody this weekend to bring him back to Beach - he is not excited and I feel very bad for him, but life can't always go the way we plan.  You have to be able to "roll with the punches" I guess.  I do look forward to seeing Cody again.  We miss him alot when he is in Miles City.  It's going to be hard next year when/ if he chooses to go back there for his senior year.  He'll be 18 then, so it's his choice, but I wish he would stay here...

I made a card for the family he was staying with.  They really helped us out in getting Cody here to start with.  So without further ado...

...Sweetest husband EVER!

This year for a treat my husband has decided to buy me a kindle.  I think this is the sweetest gesture ever since he decided just for me - not because he wants one, not because he has some plan to spend a ton of money on himself, just because he loves me.  I am somewhat unaccustomed to this since we usually do a "we each have this much to spend" sort of deal...  How sweet is he?!

In other news, I have decided to start doing more with card making as a way to use up some of the little odds and ends that I end up with from scrapbooking...  I have found a couple of challenges to get me motivated, and so now I am "off to the races" as they say.  Card making is a lot easier than doing whole scrapbooks since I only have to pull out 1/4 the supplies that I do for a book, and I can have it done in no time.  I just need to find a better storage solution for all of these supplies that I am accumulating...

Not really a whole lot to update you on today, but there it is!  Oh, and if you are my sister, get ahold of me sometime?  I haven't heard from you in a while...

New Year!

I have (had) a plan!  I want to finish a mini scrapbook each month in 2011.  I am off to a great start - so far I have one done (started on the first...) and I have nearly finished 2 more!  So, when all is said and done, I guess I will have to just say that I plan on finishing at least 12 mini albums this year.  I recently discovered the Cricut cutting system and promptly fell in love with it.  I plan on buying a Cricut Expression with my tax return this year - along with some awesome cartridges. 

So far I have purchased the "Freshly Picked" cartridge and the "Trim the Tree" cartridge.  I have made a couple cute projects using the Freshly Picked cartridge... (Sorry - no looksies!  It's a suprise for someone!) and I am still waiting on my Christmas cartridge.  I hope that you all have a great new year, and that you have a ton of fun with your families and friends in 2011!  I know that's my plan!

Super cute bento!

I just found a super cute site for bento making!  I had no idea what bento was until about three days ago, and now I am in love!  Abby has decided that she wants a bento box for Christmas...  I just wish she could have decided earlier so that I could have ordered her one... 

Now that I have your curiosity peeked, I should tell you what bento is.  Bento is Japanese lunches - a full lunch packed into a tiny little box, and can be very decorative if so desired.  You really should take a minute to look them up.  Go ahead.  I'll wait. 

Back yet?! Cute aren't they!  If you're as amazed at this super cute foodie craft as Abby and I are, you should pop over to http://sonomabento.blogspot.com/ for some awesome tutorials and cute pics.  (And the occasional giveaway...  like the super cute bento giveaway going on now!)  Hope you enjoy it as much as we are!

@#$%*&^ SNOW!!!!!

How on earth do you get stuck in the snow in the middle of town when it stopped snowing over 24 hours ago!  I give this a HUGE WTF for the day.  I had to have my car towed out of 6" of snow in the middle of the road in Glendive today.  The city is "too busy" to plow the side streets.  REALLY?!  I will be sending them a copy of the towing bill, since if they had done their jobs Robin's service wouldn't have had to do theirs.

But anyhow, after all the fun involved in having my car towed, we had Dre's b-day party.  He had a pretty good time, everyone ate cake, and we all enjoyed each other's company for the rest of the night.  Nothing too exciting after the towing.  But, I did get a minuscule amount of Christmas shopping done.  I need to get one more thing for Mike, and just about everything that the kids need.  Why do I always wait for the last week or two to even start my shopping?! I must be nuts! That's my only explanation.

I hate winter.

Really, I do.  Winter blows.  Especially in North Dakota.  As in the wind is always howling across the prairie, snow drifting into my driveway, truck and car both getting stuck anytime we try to leave the house.  And I'll tell you right now it's a dang good thing that I love my husband so much because it's his fault I'm here.  I would be living in Oregon or Washington right now if it weren't for him loving his job and wanting to be close to his family...

Ok, so really it has worked out better this way - we were able to help Cody out when he needed it, can visit with the family when we want and have built an awesome sense of community in living somewhere so... small.  I actually know people who serve on the city council!  I know the mayor!  I know most of my neighbors, and most of the people in my neighborhood!  (None of these things are meant to sound prestigious - everyone can pretty much say the same thing after living here for two weeks.)

The point is, sometimes we need to be happy with mediocrity.  Sometimes good enough just is.  And sometimes we need to look around us and see with open eyes the things we have been missing and taking for granted.  With that being said, I hope that you go out and do something great for someone else today, and in the experience find that it was good for you too.

Stuff I got going on now...

Wow.  It's already December and I haven't posted since May!  I suck again!  But here I am, back again, trying to keep you updated on what goes on here. 

Homemade applesauce... yum!

It was a long summer and fall around here - we (my husband and I) took physical custody of Cody, followed by a court hearing in which we took legal custody of Cody.  (Cody is my youngest brother, youngest sibling)  He spent the summer here with Mike and I and the kids working on projects in and around the house.  We truthfully didn't get all that much done since we were doing a lot of legal business, and working away at our jobs.

Speaking of jobs... I am now working midnights.  Under a different supervisor, at the same place.  And you know what?  This job somehow seems way better now!  Far more tolerable!  Who would have thought that all I needed was to switch from mornings to nights?!

Cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving

As far as food goes, I have been lacto fermenting away some vegetables in my kitchen, and making up buttermilk with real live cultures.  After which I realized that I almost never use buttermilk.  So if anyone has a use for it other than fried chicken, pancakes, waffles or biscuits, PLEASE let me know?  There has to be something I can do to get my family to ingest this stuff!  (And just drinking it is out of the question...)  The lacto fermenting is going great though.  I made my first batch of sauerkraut and far be it for me to gloat, but it is WAY better than what I have been buying at the store!  It is slightly sweet still from the cabbage, yet zesty and zippy like a good kraut should be!  And it was cheap to boot! 

Dill crock - 1st attempt

We've also been making lacto fermented pickles - we had a batch of cukes for Thanksgiving, and a mixed dill crock as well.  It's funny, once I started looking for lacto fermenting recipes I found a few in my cookbooks over and over.  "Euell Gibbon's Dill Crock" was in about 5 of my cookbooks, but one suggested using straight vinegar and salt as the brine... Eewww!  (I should know, it was my first attempt - and my last before buying "Wild Fermentation" by Sandor Ellix Katz)  Let me just say, two books every human should own would be "Wild Fermentation" by the aforementioned Sandor Ellix Katz, and "Nourishing Traditions" by Sally Fallon.  After finding these I started a batch of Kim chi.  I can't wait to try that one out!

Kim chi!!!!

Well, it was a long one, but it's been a long time!  Hope things go well for everyone out there, and blog to ya again soon!

My canning efforts this season - minimal.

Long time again...

So I think at this point it would be fair for me to say that I'm irregular.  And I don't mean constipated.  See, the thing is that I'm just not all that egocentric.  I have no delusions of anyone actually reading all of the crap I put out there.  But I keep on going...  I wonder why?  This is what I have been doing this month...

and then some.  I have worked on several of my UFO's off of Ravelry, harvested a head of lettuce, several more meals worth of chives, moved the lovage to the front garden, planted the chard outside, and who knows what else!  I will say that I was able to go to Miles City to see Cody sing for District music festival... He rocks!  He just got a 1 at state for his solo as well as his ensemble.  And all I can think of is little Cody stadnig on the counter at McD's singing "I Beleive I Can Fly" for free toys...  wow how time flies!

Still loving the food!

So  I saw another person's blog where she had added up her whole harvest for a year so she and presumeably her readers could see what she had gotten for a harvest.  I have decided to do the same.  I plan on going month to month, with a grand total at the end of the year.  So, since I waited till now to do this, I will count the harvest from last month as well.

Sprouts: 6 lbs.
Mushrooms: 1 lb.

So far, so good!  I am hoping to harvest some chives by the end of the month, and next month I hope to have some peppers ready from the hydroponics room.  We are sprout crazy around here, so we have been sprouting alfalfa, lentils, beets, and mung beans.  We use them in eveything from stirfrys to soups to salads.  I didn't know how many different ways there were to use these amazing versitile veggies!

As far as the rest of the house, the girls and I have decided we need new skirts.  Drag out the fabric, drag out the sewing machine!  Hope to have a few done to post pics of this week!  (All of this was brought on by my long lost copy of "Sew What! Skirts")  Can't wait to have something a little different to wear on Sundays!

Food... I love food...

So, along with this growing my own food thing, I have decided to get more into foraging.  It's not as crazy as it sounds - you just eat the delicious things that grow wild in your area!  For example, there is a crap ton of wild asparagus in my area... if I can just get someone to give up the location.  And someone has posted that they had found wild morels around here!  Last year I harvested some wild lambs quarters and sauted them with a little olive oil and garlic.  Mmmmmm!  I have transplanted a stand of chives that had escaped captivity, and am looking forward to eating more of them this year.  The best part is that I don't have to do anything but sit back and let nature grow me a garden!

Along with "nature's garden" I have started to bake again.  Obsesively.  I wish I could tell you why, but it doesn't make sense to me either...  So tonites project was snickerdoodles.  I asked my sister for her recipe, but she sucks and never did send it.  So I went online and found one at allrecipes.com, and they turned out pretty darn good according to the one kid who was still up to try them.  I haven't eaten one yet, as my deal is baking but not eating the product.  That's what makes it even more spastic...

New leaf?

So I am really into my whole growing thing right now.  (I can tell it's almost spring!)  But the thing that really has me jazzed today is that my husband chose to go to the grow room without prompting to check on the babies!  I made sure, of course to tell him how very cool I thought that was, and how I am really glad that he likes something that I am into the way I like the things he's into.  I knew that he would never get into knitting, but I am suprised at how much he is getting into growing food!  And on that note, I need to remind you all that I have the coolest hubby in the world.  And that I am very lucky to have him in my life.  Woo hoo!  Now for some plant porn!  I hope you guys like looking at naked plants as much as I do, 'cause there's gonna be a lot of it coming up!

Happy growing to each and every one of you!

No, I won't grow weed for you!

  So I started growing things hydroponicaly. Rather, I am starting to grow things in a simple deep water culture set up. I am going to grow lettuce and spinach in a small aquaponic setup. This does not mean I will grow weed for you or anyone else. SO STOP ASKING!!!


That being said, I AM growing tomatoes, peppers, tomatillos and cilantro in this setup. So far the peppers have stated growing, the tomatillos are going crazy. The tomatoes aren't quite there yet - coming soon. (I've seen root hairs, no top growth.) This is all a part of me trying to do things more locally. I know I can get honey locally, I have a source of meat, and my father in law makes the worlds best artisan bread. I learned to make cheese, and am venturing out to get the supplies to try more than just ricotta. I have made my own yogurt - I have learned that it IS possible to live about 75-80% locally around here. (Locally to me is within 100 miles.)

I wish I could get a share in a CSA, but that is still a dream from here. So I will work with what I've got and be thankful for all of it! Oh, yeah, and I will try to post more often...

Falling off the wagon...

Bet you all thought you'd never hear from me again!  You should be so lucky!  Really, I don't think I've had a week this busy since I moved to Beach.  Even surgery week wasn't this crazy.  So, as you can guess, with a crazy week I haven't had much time for crafting, canning or anything else pertaining to myself or my home.  I did work on a doily I am making, but honestly it could have been done in a day if I had the time to sit down and do it!

I did get to go to garage sales yesterday with Lynn, and had a GREAT time!  I got a real deal on BHG's "Hip Knits" book as well as several others, got a new food dehydrator, some exercise equipment for this winter, and multiple other treasures.  It was really crazy going to some of these sales and hearing people say, "What is THAT?" knowing full well myself that it was a salad spinner.  Who can't identify a salad spinner?!  Is this what it's come to?  C'est la vie!

Growing things

So, Abby planted green beans in my window. It only took two days for them to start germinating. Leave it to her, 100% germination rate. Now, about 6 weeks later, we have green beans! Now, this did not go off without a hitch - there was the initial, "Wow, these are getting tall!" Then there was a secondary "Um, these are getting TALL!" Then they climbed the wind chime. And now they are everywhere. BUT TASTY TO BOOT!

So, I don't know how or why, but my bush beans were actually POLE BEANS. Marked wrong in the packet. Good thing it all worked out ok!

The tomatoes have been getting ripe lately, and they also are amazing! My girls sure can grow things! Kali was in charge of tomatoes this year. Can't wait to get Adrian planting this week!

As a parting comment, I thought I would remind you how beautiful sunrise can be... at 5:00 am...  from work...

Holy WOW!

So, the best thing to do when you're naseous is to eat chocolate cake, right?  'Cause that's just what I did.  It tasted amazing, but probably wasn't the right choice.  I had to try it because I just found this amazing recipe at http://www.stumbleupon.com/s/#1pSFrD/baconconcentrate.blogspot.com/2009/02/most-dangerous-chocolate-cake-recipe.html/  - Chocolate cake in a mug, made in 5 minutes!  I would suggest if you decide to try this that you whip the egg first, and think ahead of what you may want to top it with...  I was looking for caramel ice cream topping, but found homemade cherry topping that my father-in-law made.  Mmmmmm....  but like I said, not so good on the stomach when you're sick...

Eeewwww... bugs!

So, the bugs have arrived, and I do mean arrived! We had a moth in our house that was just HUGE! I didn't know that they came that big! We have spent a lot of time getting rid of bugs - just in time for the kids to leave the door open for more bugs to come in... grrr...


We haven't been doing much this week in the way of kitchen tasks. (Lot's of visits from family and friends.) I did make some yogurt and also made homemade granola... mmm! I am so glad that I found the crockpot recipes for those items! It made the day SUPER simple, and made it almost impossible to screw it up. (Just what I need!)

As far as crafting goes, I have finished the main piecing part of my table runner - just have to get around to making the bias binding and actually quilting it. I asked Mike what he thought and he said, "It definatly looks fallish." Pretty sure that isn't a word. But I'll let it go.



Gacy and Bundy are doing well - if they could just stop breaking their chains! We had just bought new ones for them - they lasted less than a week. Man do I need a new plan.