Tears in the Garden

Easter Sunday is coming, friends. 

But first, we have Good Friday. 

The older I become, the more emotional I am on Good Friday.  The older I become, the more overwhelmed I am by ultimate sacrifice of Jesus.  The older I become, the more significance I find in simple things.  Like gardening.

Today, I went out to the garden to plant the first seeds of the season.  After a bitter, cold and snowy March, the ground finally thawed enough in the last few days for me to plant peas.  It seemed fitting to me that today would be a good day to plant, a good day to bury seeds that appeared to be dead and dormant, but would soon burst forth with new life. 

The garden beds were ready and waiting, prepared last fall.  After a bit of raking to smooth the soil, I dug shallow furrows and painstakingly began to place the seeds.

And that's when I found myself with tears streaming down my face, wetting the soil near my hands. 

Each seed I placed represented my sins.  Too many to count.  I gave those sins names as I placed them in the furrow.  Pride.  Hatred.  Complacency.  Lies.  Self-Centeredness.  Gossip.  Conceit.  Bitterness.  Unjustified anger.  Covetous Thoughts.  Vanity.  Contempt.  Selfishness.  Lack of concern for my neighbor. The list went on and on.  I felt broken, dirty, ruined.  Despicable.

After all the seeds were place, I began to bury them.  With each swipe of my hand, the seeds were covered by the soil, no longer visible... just as Jesus came to earth and sacrificed Himself on the cross so He could cover up all my sins.  My sins.  Not just the sins on the whole world.  He did it for me.  He would have suffered in the same way, even if I was the only human on earth.  And He would have done the same thing for you. 

This was all too much to take in.  This ugly, wrinkled insignificant looking seed will grow.  It will thrive.  It will produce food that will nourish and bring health to my family.  And it's just the same with my life.  Jesus takes my sin, my ugliness, my weakness when I confess those things and hand them over to Him.  He transforms me into someone who is whole and has purpose.  I am complete only in Him.  As I knelt in the garden, naming and confessing my sins, Jesus covered up all my sins and I left the garden with a clean heart, a clean mind, a clean soul.... ready to grow and thrive for Him, so that I can nourish and feed the souls and bodies of His children.  I discovered renewal in the garden is not just for plants, but people as well. 

Today I shared tears in the garden with my Savior.  Tear of grief, tears of regret, tears of shame.  Tears that He had to suffer for me.  Tears that He had to weep in a garden too...

Sunday is coming.  Today is a day to mourn, friends, but in two days my heart will be bursting forth with joy and praise.  I hope you'll join me.

How to Make Ricotta Cheese

If you really want your friends to think you're turning into a DIY over-achiever (or a crazy hippie), share with them that you have been making cheese in your very own kitchen.  Be prepared for looks of disbelief and awe.  Allow them to sample your delicious cheese and allow them to believe that you slaved away in the kitchen for hours, wearing a hair net to boot.  Whatever you do, don't let them know how easy it actually is to make cheese...

I found this super simple ricotta cheese recipe in the book "Homegrown and Handmade" by Deborah Niemann.  This delightful book reads as part life story and part instruction book on how to live a more self-reliant lifestyle.  Niemann's book is easy to read and inspiring, demystifying some of those homesteading skills that seem beyond the ability of us mere mortals.  Her section about cheesemaking encouraged me to try the ricotta cheese recipe and I was not disappointed. 

I actually made this recipe for the first time when I was planning on bringing a pan of lasagna to a friend who recently had a baby, but discovered I didn't have any ricotta cheese.  Instead of running to the store with two tired kids in tow, I decided to try making my own.  I was pleasantly surprised by how easy (and fun!) it was.  It's the perfect cheese for a beginner cheesemaker to try. 

Here is what you need to make 2-4 cups of cheese (about a enough for a pan of lasagna):

• 1/2 gallon of milk (not ultra-pasteurized).  The higher the fat content of the milk, the more cheese you will get.  I recommend using whole milk.
• 2 tbsp white vinegar
• Large pot
• Food thermometer with a clip
• Colander
• Cheesecloth, flour sack towel or tea towel

1.  Pour the milk into the pan and attach the thermometer to the side of the pan.




2.  Heat the milk to 180 degrees, stirring occasionally.




 3.  When the milk reaches 180 degrees, add the vinegar and stir gently.  The milk will begin to get "chunky" looking.  What you are witnessing is the curds separating from the whey.  Remember "Little Miss Muffet, sat on her tuffet, eating her curds and whey"?  Curds are the cheese.  The whey is considered the by-product of cheesemaking.  Most people dump the whey, but you can use it for soaking grains  or you can drink it, if you like the taste.  I don't care for it, but I've heard of people adding lemon and sugar and calling it "wheymonade".  If you have pets or farm animals, they will gobble it up -it's especially good for chickens and hogs.  In fact, you may have heard of "whey fed pork" - some cheesemaking operations keep and sell hogs, simply as a way to use up the whey and convert it to delicious pork!





4.  Once the curds and whey have separated, put the whole pot into a sink full of cold water.  The water level should be at the level of the milk in the pot.  Stir the curds.  You want to cool the curds and whey quickly, down to 90 degrees.




5.  Once the curds and whey have cooled to 90 degrees, carefully transfer the contents of the pot to a cheesecloth lined colander. You can set the colander in the sink and let the whey go down the drain.  If you are saving the whey, place a bowl under the colander to collect the whey (we feed it to the chickens, hogs and barn cats).  Allow to drain until the whey is gone and the curds are crumbly. 



 
 
6.  Use the cheese immediately (fabulous for lasagna!) or store it in a covered container in the fridge for up to a week. 
 
 
 
This really is a simple recipe.  About the only part you could mess up is the temperature.  If you add the vinegar before the milk reaches 180 degrees, the curds and whey might not separate.  Make sure you have a reliable thermometer and you shouldn't have any problems. 
 
As for time commitment, this recipe takes about 30 minutes tops, with only about 5 of those minutes being hands-on time. It takes a while for milk to heat,  then cool, and the curds to drain - you can do something else in the kitchen during those times. 
 
Traditionally, ricotta cheese is made from the whey leftover after making a batch of mozzarella cheese (which is really fun, by the way, and not nearly as scary as it sounds!), but that method yields only a small amount of ricotta, maybe a 1/2 cup or so.  This method makes a much larger batch of cheese, but the texture might be a little different than what you buy from the store. 
 
Have you ever tried making cheese before?  What kind did you make?  Want to come over and make cheese with me?!?
 


March Therapy - Starting Seeds

March.  The most dreaded month of the year for me.  Piles of dirty, nasty snow.  A hint of warm air, followed by days of chill, just to break your spirit.   Brown, dead grass.  Cold rain and dirty, muddy boots. No snow for kids to play in.  Too cold and mucky for them to play outside. A winter's worth of mushy dog poo in the yard waiting to be stepped on. 

I despise March.  I dread March.  I wish we could go right from snowy February to cool, rainy April.  But nooooooooo..... we have to endure March in all it's depressing, disgusting glory. 

March.  There is only one redeeming factor and it is this - March means I can start planting vegetable and flower seeds in my basement.  March means I can seriously start plans for the garden.  And sometimes, March means I can actually go out in the garden and get some dirt under my fingernails.

I guess March isn't so bad after all...

After my post about selecting seeds and planning the garden, I had several people ask me how I start my vegetable seeds.  Now, I'm no expert at seed starting, but I have been doing it for a few years, so I can share some tips and pointers.  Again, I want to stress: Gardening can be as simple or as complicated as you make it.   You can be super fussy about how you start your plants and maybe you'll get healthier plants and better yields, but I still think you can get good results without driving yourself crazy. 

Who should consider starting plants?  It's certainly not for everyone.  If you plan on having small garden with a handful of tomato and pepper plants, then it might be in your best interest to buy the plants from a garden center, ready to go in the ground, instead of trying to start them from seed yourself.  However, if you plan on having lots of plants in your garden, buying them can add up fast, considering each plant can cost around $2-3.  You can buy a whole packet of seeds for less than that and grow 30-40 plants, instead of 1!  So, if you are looking to save money, need lots of vegetables and want more control over what you plant, starting seeds is for you. 

I'm not going to lie - starting plants can be complicated. There is a lot to think about and quite a bit of planning ahead (which is not my strong suit). I'm going to try to make this as simple
as I can. Bear with me - I know some of my readers will find this information to be terribly boring, while others will love it. If you don't plan on starting seeds, skip this post and tune in next time!

I.  Thinking Ahead

1. Determine what you want to plant this year.  If you have not ordered seeds by now (click here to find my favorite seed companies), you should head to the nearest garden center and check out their selection.  Try Fruitbasket Flowerland - I feel they have the best selection of conventional and organic seeds in West Michigan.
2. Carefully read and examine the instructions on the back of the seed packet.  You should see one of two phrases:  "Direct sow" or "Start indoors".  "Direct sow" means you can literally just stick the seed right in your garden - no fuss, no muss.  Often, these are quickly maturing plants and some are even frost hardy.  You can start some of these indoors, but it's not absolutely necessary.  "Start indoors" indicates that this plant needs more time to grow, so you need to give it a headstart indoors for a few weeks before you can put the plant in the garden.  If you try to plant these from seed in your garden, many will not mature before the fall killing frost. Some of these plants are not frost hardy. 
1. Examples of "Direct Sow" plants:  Lettuce, spinach, beans, peas, cucumber, corn, carrots, kale, radishes, etc.
2. Examples of "Start Indoors" plants:  Tomatoes, peppers (sweet and hot), eggplant, etc. 
3. Figure out what Plant Hardiness Zone you live in and the Estimated Frost Dates for your area.  Hardiness Zones are especially helpful when planting perennial plants (regrow every year in the same spot), such as trees, shrubs, flowers and herbs (some are perennial and some annual). Knowing your Zone helps you determine if the plant will survive harsh winter weather.  Here in West Michigan, we are in Zone 5 or 6, depending on the geography and proximity to Lake Michigan. Some seed packs will tell you what month the plant should be direct sowed or started indoors based on your Zone.  If not, the seed pack will say something like "Start indoors 6 weeks before last frost date/planting date/transplanting date".  How do I know when is the last spring frost date, you ask?   Check out this site to find the approximate dates of the spring/fall frosts.  Enter in your state and it will pull up information about the cities in your state, letting you know when it's safe to plant warm season crops that are killed by frost. This chart is used by fruit and vegetable growers to determine the last frost of the spring and the first frost of the fall - the time between these two events is considered the "growing season".    Here in the Grand Rapids, MI area, we can expect our last spring frost between April 29 - June 2 and our first fall frost between September 15 - October 10.  That gives us roughly 120 days to grow warm season crops, like tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, melons and corn.
4. Sort through your seeds and put them in two piles - seeds that can be direct sowed and seeds that need to be started indoors.  Be aware that some seeds may fit into both piles.  For example, broccoli should be started indoors in the spring and transplanted after the frost date for a summer crop, but can also be direct sowed into the garden midsummer (July) so that it produces a fall crop in September or October.  Read seed packs carefully.  You will find all this information there.
5. Find a calendar and choose a date for when you plan to transplant your "start indoors" plants into the garden.  I chose May 12 as my projected date.  From this date, I counted back 6 weeks (the length of time most plants need to grow indoors) and determined when I should be starting most of my plants.  By late March/early April, I should be starting my indoor plants.  You don't want to start them much earlier than that, or the plants may get leggy or start to set flowers.  Older plants do not transplant well. 
6. Now you're done with the hard part and ready to start getting you hands dirty!

II.  Gather Supplies

1. Gather your supplies.  Again, you can make this as complicated or as simple as you like.  Regardless of how you do it, at the very least, you will need these things:
1. Seeds - New seeds are best.  You can certainly try using leftover seeds from last year, but be aware that most seeds lose viability with time.  I've had decent luck with old tomato seeds, but old lettuce seeds are usually a dismal failure.  If you don't need to buy a whole pack of seeds, consider buying seeds with a friend and splitting the cost. 
2. Growing Medium/Soil - Get thee to a garden center and ask for seed starting/growing medium.  This is not the same as potting soil.  Some seed starting mediums contain fertilizer.  This is ok, but not necessary.  If you're trying to stick to organic growing methods, it would be best to skip the Miracle Grow type stuff.
3. Containers - You can get fancy here or go super simple.  I tend to reuse the little black plastic cells that flats of flower come in (you should wash these thoroughly to prevent spreading diseases from different plants).  I also save all the yogurt, sour cream and cottage cheese containers we use during the year.  Poke a few drainage holes in the bottom and you have a fabulous growing container.  You could also start small plants with shallow roots, like lettuce and onions, in egg cartons.  Whatever you use, you should also have a tray to put your containers in, to protect your table or work surface from water damage.  If all this DIY stuff sounds like too much work, you can buy seed starting kits from a garden center, home improvement store or on-line supplier, like this one from Territorial Seed Co.  When you are first starting the seeds, you will need to keep the soil constantly moist.  You can achieve this by using a seed starting kit with a clear lid/dome or cover your egg crates/yogurt containers/cells with plastic wrap.
4. Water - Regular watering is essential for success.  If the soil dries up at any time while you're waiting for the seed to germinate (sprout), it could prevent germination.  The soil MUST stay damp.  Not soaking, but moist.  If you have softened well water, do NOT use this water on your plants.  Softened water should NEVER be used on plants - the high salt content weakens and eventually kills plants.  If need be, go outside and fill a bucket with water from an unsoftened source or buy water from the grocery store. 
5. Light - You have two options: natural light (sunny window, greenhouse, etc.) OR artificial lighting.  Plants need about 12-14 hours of direct light to grow quickly, so artificial lighting might be best, depending on where you live (we don't get much strong natural light in Michigan this time of year).  We use a timer to turn the lights on/off.  If you have access to special lighting systems made for starting seeds, more power to you!  If not, you can certainly use a fluorescent shop light hung above your containers.  It's recommended that you use a combination of warm and cool bulbs for optimal growth.
6. Fertilizer - Once your babies start to grow, they will need to be fed.  As a general rule, light fertilizing every 2 weeks should be sufficient.  Make sure you are using an organic type fertilizer - you'll be eating these plants, so you don't want to be using any toxins.  I've been happy with the fish emulsion type fertilizers.  When it comes to fertilizing, I have learned two things: 1.  Under-fertilizing is better than over-fertilizing.  You could easily kill or damage a plant with over-enthusiastic fertilizing.  Follow directions on the bottle carefully. 2.  Take care to apply the fertilizer at the roots, not the leaves.  Some fertilizers can burn or damage leaves. 

III.  Plant the seeds

1. Fill your container with seed starting medium.  I find it easiest to pour all the medium in a clean lidded garbage can, mix it with unsoftened water until it's the right consistency (not to wet, not too dry) and then fill my containers right over the can.  This helps keep the mess to a minimum.

 

 2.  Read the instructions on the seed packet to see how deep the seeds should be placed.  Some need to be planted 1/2 inch deep, while others, like the tiny celery seed, you could simply sprinkle on the soil and then lightly crumble some more soil on top. 

 

 3.  Be sure to label your containers immediately!!!  I can't tell you how many times I've lost track of what I planted or got things confused.  Keep a rag handy, so you can wipe your hands off and write your labels.  Or write your labels ahead of time and place them in the containers. Write the date on the backside of the label, so you will know exactly how long it took for the plant for germinate.  I write my labels on wooden craft sticks I got from the craft store. 

 

 4.  Ta-da!!!!  You have started your own seeds!  Now make sure to cover your trays/containers.  Remember, the SOIL MUST STAY WET.  This will make or break your success.  Check on the containers at least once a day and mist them with a squirt bottle if needed.  The squirt bottle is best while you're waiting for germination because it doesn't disturb the seeds.  After the plants germinate and are sturdy, you can use a watering can. 

 

 5.  Write down what you did in your journal.  I make notes of what seeds I use and how old they are.  I had a bunch of old seeds from 2009 that are probably not viable, but I decided to try them anyway.  When the seeds begin to germinate, I also record that in the journal.  A garden journal is a very helpful tool.  Long ago, I learned I cannot trust my brain to remember all the details about each plant and when I started them.  That job belongs to the garden journal.

 

6.  Wait with breathless anticipation!!!!  I planted basil on Feb. 27 and it germinated 3 days later.  I literally gasped in wonder and ran upstairs to tell my husband the good news.... and he was napping.  As excited as I was, I decided waking him to tell him basil was sprouting was probably not a great idea...

 

7.  When you babies start to outgrow their little cells/containers, you can carefully transplant them into a larger container, if need be.  When the risk of frost is over, you can begin "hardening off" your plants.  This involves bringing the plants outside for a few hours each day, so they can get used to being outdoors.  Start with a few hours the first day and gradually increase the time over a week or so.  Keep the fragile babies in shade/partial shade so they don't burn to a crisp.  If you try to plant them in the garden without hardening them, you could easily lose all your plants and all your hard work would be wasted.  Don't rush this process!  After about a week or so, you can then plant them directly into your garden.  Shed a little tear as you watch your babies thrive, all grown up and ready to face the world on their own. 

 There you have it, friends!  As you can see, actually starting the seeds is not that difficult.  It's the planning ahead that requires the most work.  Have fun starting your seeds and remember, Gardening can be as simple or as complicated as you make it.  What works for one person might not work for you.  And keep in mind that we learn best by making mistakes.  Lots and lots of mistakes! 

What are you planning to grow this year?  Have you tried starting your own plants before?

Adios, Winter

Can you believe that winter is almost over?  It may be hard to imagine, but in a few short weeks it will be time to start planting seeds in the garden, prune fruit trees,  raise baby chicks and get ready for piglets.  We're eagerly looking forward to spring and the flurry of activity it will bring.  While there will be plenty to do around the farm, it's nice to know that we won't have as much to do.  Last spring (when we bit off more than we could chew) was spent laboring over fencing and transforming sod into a 4,000 + sq. foot garden.  Thank goodness we don't have to do that again!

This winter has been good to us.  We really did not get any decent snowfall in West Michigan until after the new year, so it has seemed like a short winter.  The goats and chickens were able to roam and forage all the way up until January.  Since the snow came, they have been living in the shelter of the barn.  We open the door most days, so they have the option of going outside, but everyone seems happier indoors, though I can tell they are starting to get some cabin fever.  I find myself thinking of "Enrichment Activities" (that's what they call it at the zoo) for the chickens, trying to come up with things to keep them occupied.  I like to bring them special treats, like animal bones with meat on them (remember, chickens are omnivores and love meat) or veggies, maybe some leftover popcorn.  I scatter the food around the barn, so they have to spend the day searching for it.  This makes them happy.

Toro, our Alpine goat, is especially restless.  This past February, Lacy, the goat we borrowed to be Toro's winter time companion, came down with pneumonia.  Poor Lacy looked horrible.  The vet came out and gave her a shot.  We were not terribly optimistic about her outcome, as she was a 12 year old goat, but we hoped for the best.  And she improved!  Within days, she perked up and a week later, she seemed like her old self. 

Then, the day before we left for a vacation in Florida, I went out to do the morning chores and found Lacy laying dead in the stall.  I was shocked.  When we'd put her to bed the night before, she had seemed fine.  It was such a sad day.  My son had followed me out to the barn without my knowledge and saw her laying there, so I had to explain to him what had happened.  He seemed to take it in stride, better than me.  The loss of life is so painful, no matter how many times I have to deal with it.  I hope and pray that I never become immune to the pain, that I continue to cry over every creature that passes on our farm.

So, now Toro is terribly lonely and we honestly don't know what to do next.  Our original plan was to keep Toro as a companion animal for the beef steer that we intend to raise.  We had figured on buying a calf this spring, but the more we consider it, we're not sure our newly planted pasture can support a calf just yet.  It would be wiser to wait another year.  In the meantime, we're considering raising a few goats for meat.  The goats will spread their manure on the pasture and help control weeds.  Come fall, when their fertilizing and mowing work is done, we'll send them to the butcher.  We shall see... perhaps we'll have a bunch of adorable goat kids running around soon.  In the meantime, I try to go out once a day to play with Toro.  My husband built him a "jungle gym" from old pallets and boards.  He enjoys climbing on it (and prances around like he's hot stuff), but only when I'm out there with him watching, of course. 

 

Toro on his "jungle gym"

It's also time to start getting serious about the garden. I'm starting to get a wee bit giddy! Ok, more than a wee bit... My brain has been in high gear, trying to synchronize all my planting schedules for the vegetable garden.  Oy.  It can be an organizational nightmare trying to to keep track of what plant needs to be started when, when plants need to be fertilized, which plants are cold hardy enough to be planted outside, etc.  I try to write everything down in my garden journal and planting calendar, but I'm sure things slip through the cracks.  Thanks to my garden journal, which records my numerous slip-ups, I make fewer mistakes each year.  That's how we learn right?  Lots and lots of mistakes.

On top of all the garden planning, I'm scrambling to map out and plan our small fruit orchard.  Last year, I purchased 4 apple trees and intend to purchase an additional fruit tree (peach, cherry, pear, apricot, etc.) each year.  This year, my main focus will be putting in strawberries, raspberries and blackberries.  As soon as the soil warms up, I better get out there and start preparing and amending the soil so I can plant as soon as possible!  Our property is located on a corner with good traffic, so we're thinking we could make a tidy little profit selling fresh organically grown berries at a small roadside stand.  And if not, we'll have plenty of berries to share and everyone I know will be receiving a jar of jam for Christmas!

To add to all this excitement, my husband was involved in an accident at work 2 weeks ago.  An extension ladder collapsed on him while he was setting it up, and his left thumb got caught in the ladder rails.  God was watching over him - I cringe to think what would have happened if his whole hand had been caught.  After several hours in the ER, he walked out with a severely cut, mangled and broken thumb... and the doctor's orders of no work for 8 weeks.  It's been incredibly frustrating for him as he sees all this work to be done on the farm (firewood to be cut, chick brooders and hog houses to be built, fence wire to be run, fruit orchards to be turned over) , but is unable to do most of  it.  A broken thumb sounds like such a small injury, but it basically renders the entire hand useless for many tasks.  Shoelaces, buttons, jars, doorknobs... we certainly take our opposable thumbs for granted!  Somehow, we'll get all the work done.  And if not, there is always next year. 

Today I saw my first robin, the sure sign of spring, and my heart about overflowed with hope and joy.  See you next year, winter.  Here comes spring!

Chocolate Peppermint Lotion Bar/Lip Balm

I don't know why I'm posting this recipe right now.  Really, I should have posted this way before Christmas, when all the Pinterest folks were scouring the Internet for homemade Christmas gift ideas.  But let's face it, I can hardly keep my act together around the holidays, despite my numerous charts, lists and repeated attempts at organization.  I used to be one of "those", an organized soul who could keep everything straight, who had binders full of schedules, routines, lists, ideas...  Then I had kids.  It's like my brain exploded and I couldn't make sense of anything anymore. Heck, we consider it a good day if we all get our teeth brushed by noon.  Wait. Where was I?  Oh yeah...Christmas.

Well, let's just say gift funds were a bit tight this year, so I officially declared to my family that this was going to be a Homemade Gifts Only Christmas.  And much to my delight, everyone was thrilled with the idea!  During the summer, I had planned ahead a bit (shocking!) and made some canned goods intended for gift giving, such as jams, pickles, bruschetta topping, pickled jalapenos and salsa.  But after we harvested our honey in October and I found myself with a pound of beautiful beeswax, I decided to try my hand at making a lotion or lip balm for gifts as well. 

This recipe looked so easy and fabulous that I just had to try it out.  It passed my test of "recipe with less than 5 ingredients" (I'm no gourmet, folks.  More than 5 ingredients in  a recipe makes my eyes cross and I totally lose interest). Even better,  I already had most of the ingredients.  For what I didn't have, I went to the website Mountain Rose Herbs and bought it there.  Mountain Rose Herbs has an excellent selection of herbs and oil for culinary and body care use.  They also sell all sorts of containers for body care products, such as lip balm tubes, round tins, glass bottles with droppers, and glass or plastic jars.  To be honest, I found the website to be a little overwhelming, so I requested a catalog in the mail, which allowed me to see everything at once, instead of jumping around from page to page. 

I ordered a few items - Cocoa Butter for the balm, glycerin, some essential oils, small tins and lip balm tubes.  Everything looked lovely, even the box they arrived in!

 

My loot from Mountain Rose Herbs

As Christmas approached, I gathered up the supplies needed to make the lotion bar/lip balm.  In case you are wondering "what is a lotion bar?", it's quite simply a lotion in solid form.  When you rub the bar on your skin, the heat of your body melts the bar and allows the lotion to spread.  Lotion bars also make excellent lip balms.  They are especially nice because they don't make a mess and are easy to travel with. 

 

Only four ingredients!  Coconut oil, cocoa butter, beeswax and peppermint oil.

Here is the recipe!  I can't remember exactly how much this recipe makes, but I think I filled at least 12 lip balm tubes, 6 lip balm tins and a muffin pan (1/2 dozen pan).  You will need:

• 3 oz or 1/3 cup beeswax, in chunks or pastilles (you can buy it from Mountain Rose Herbs or check your local health food store, like Smart Choice Market or Harvest Health Foods )
• 3 oz or 1/3 cup cocoa butter
• 3 oz or 1/3 cup coconut oil
• 2 tsp peppermint essential oil
• Scale for weighing the ingredients.  If you don't have a kitchen scale, you can just measure using measuring cups, but it's a little tricky because the beeswax and cocoa butter are hard.  You'll have to find a way to chop them into small pieces so your measurements will be somewhat accurate.
• Containers for the lotion bar/lip balm.  If you are making lotion bars, you will need to find molds to pour the mixture into (check at craft stores for candy or candle molds).  Or you can pour into muffins tins to make round disks which can be stored in a container (grease the tins with coconut oil).  Lip balm can be poured into tubes, pots or tins. 
• An old double boiler, or an old pot or bowl that will fit propped up inside another pot.  Make sure this is a pot that you don't intent to use for any other purpose.  It will be very difficult to get clean, so you don't want to use your everyday pots. 

1.  Heat the water in the bottom part of the double boiler.  While waiting for the water to boil, lay down some newspaper or wax paper on the counter and arrange your containers on it.  This will make clean up easier if you drip on the counter.

2.  Add the beeswax, cocoa butter and coconut oil to the top part of the double boiler.  Beeswax is flammable, so make sure you melt it in a bowl/pan over boiling water, NOT directly over the heat source. 

3.  Heat the beeswax, cocoa butter and coconut oil until melted.  Stir to combine with an old spoon  (one you don't mind sacrificing) or bamboo skewer. 

4.  Remove from the heat.  Stir in the 2 tsp of peppermint oil. 

5.  Quickly (and carefully!) pour the hot mixture into your waiting containers.  The mixture will begin to harden up almost immediately.  Use caution - hot wax will burn your skin!
 
6.  If the mixture begins to harden in the pan before you have a chance to pour it all out, simply scrape the hard parts to the bottom on the pan and remelt over the hot water.  Repour. 

7.  Clean up.  Uggggg.  The worst part.  Do your best to scrape the pot clean with a butter knife or plastic scraper.  After that, you will have to use VERY hot water and soap to melt the beeswax and get the pot as clean as you can.  This is why you don't use your everyday cooking pots.  This pot should be set aside for body care products only. 

 

 

Lotion bars on the left and balm on the right.

 

 



I ended up using 3 different pouring methods.  Some I poured into lip balm tubes, some I poured into round tins to be used as lip balm,  and some I poured into muffin tins to make bars ( I popped them in the freezer for a few minutes and they came out of the tins easy as pie).  The lotions bars from the muffin tins fit nicely into the round tins as well, but could be removed from the tin and rubbed over the whole body. 

This lotion/balm smells absolutely delicious and the peppermint leaves a pleasing tingle.  If you like chocolate and peppermint, then this is the lotion/balm for you!  Everyone loves it, especially my kids (and bonus - I don't have to worry when they eat it, because it's perfectly edible. You might want to eat it too because it smells so good!).  It makes a fabulous lip balm, hand cream or all over body moisturiser.  I love multi-purpose products!

You could have all sorts of fun giving this lotion/balm as gifts.  The options for molds and containers are endless.  If you are crafty like a fox, I'm sure you could figure out some way to decoupage some pretty fabric or paper onto the container.  Get wild and crazy. 

So now, all you organized souls, go write this down in your binder labeled "Ideas for Christmas Gifts".  Because I know you have one. Don't try to deny it.   Enjoy!

Don't Let Perfect Be the Enemy of Good

"Don't let perfect be the enemy of good."

Such words of truth.  I have been chewing on these words, rolling them around in my mouth... and trying to figure out where I stand.

Here's the deal.  John and I have been brainstorming, throwing around ideas for how a small farm (micro-farm, if you will -we have 3 acres) like ours can best support itself by selling products.  Produce?  Honey?  Hogs?  Goats?  Meat chickens?  Eggs?  All of the above?

We have been researching, planning, scrapping ideas, going back to the drawing board... and each time we find ourselves letting perfect get in the way of good.  Inevitably, we keep finding ourselves drawn back to chickens and hogs, 2 creatures we have come to enjoy immensely. 

 

But here's the problem. Chickens and hogs, in order to grow to the size that people expect and in order to be financially viable, must eat corn or soybeans or both (well, I guess "must" is a strong word.  Hogs can be raised on pasture, vegetable/table scraps and milk.  Dairy farms and cheesemaking operations are the perfect candidates for raising hogs - the hogs will eagerly gobble up the leftover milk or whey from making cheese, and the proteins in the milk/whey will make them grow quickly).  This dependence on corn and soy creates a huge set of problems, along with moral, spiritual and ethical issues for John and I.  We want to be responsible stewards of God's creation, but things are far from simple. Let me explain.

First, almost all corn and soybeans grown in the US for animal feed are Genetically Modified.  We called around to the feed mills in our area and they told us all their animals feeds are GM (except Organic feed, which cost nearly twice as much).  Many GM seed patents belong to a giant corporations, such as Monsanto, Syngenta, DuPont and Dow Chemical Company.  These companies personally go against everything I believe to good, pure and trustworthy. In my humble opinion,  GMO seeds are an abomination against nature - these are organisms that could never occur in naturally - they have to be created in a lab.  As Joel Salatin says, "Folks, this ain't normal."    However, if they want to develop GM seed and sell it, fine. I hate it, but I can't stop them.  But one of the major issues comes when one farmers GM plants pollinate another farmers non-GMO plants.  The farmer with the non-GMO plants can and often is accused of "stealing" patented seed.  These farmers end up being sued by giant corporations and losing their farms... for no reason other than happening to be downwind from another farmer's GMO plants.  I have a big problem with this.  If we buy conventional animal feed, we will be padding the pockets of this despicable system that preys on anyone who doesn't join their "club".  And yes, every time you buy non-organic pork, chicken or grain-fed beef, you are also supporting this system. 

Second, even if we do decide to give Monsanto and the like companies the finger and purchase organic feed instead (the only way to avoid GMOs), we still cannot escape the fact that we are directly causing massive amount of fossil fuels to be burned.  Organic systems are far from perfect.  Contrary to popular belief, simply "buying organic" is not going to save the world.  Fields still have to be tilled, planted, fertilized, and then harvested by diesel guzzling tractors.  Then the crop is transported to a grain elevator and ground up.   From there, it's packaged and sent to a feed store.  More fossil fuel, more pollution, more destruction.  We don't have enough land to grow our own crops, so we're stuck supporting this system.

Third, the way America farms commodity crops (such as corn and soybeans) is not sustainable.  It's a broken system reliant on exhaustible fossil fuels.  When oil prices spike (when, not if),  the system will slowly collapse and food prices will skyrocket.  Animal feed will become ridiculously expensive and farmers who raise hogs, chickens and grain-fed cattle will find themselves underwater.  With limited oil to run the tractors, there will be smaller harvests.  There will be less animal feed.  There will be less conventionally-raised chicken, pork and grain-fed beef.  America will be in an uproar over food prices and lack of availability.  We're already worried about being able to afford the cost of animal feed this year, due to the crippling droughts of 2012. 

John and I are considering these facts and don't know where to go from here.  In our opinion, the only sustainable meat option today is grass-fed beef.  Unlike hogs and chickens, which are omnivores, cattle are herbivores and thrive on a grass-only diet. Grass is a perennial that regrows each year by itself, unlike the annual crops of corn and soybeans that need to be planted each year (and fertilized and sprayed with herbicides).    Grass keeps growing  and the cows harvest it themselves by grazing.  Yes, we will still need to use tractors to cut hay for the cows to eat in the winter, for those of us living in northern states, but southern states could graze cows all year long. 

Unfortunately, we only own 3 acres, which is barely enough land to support 1-2 cows and we would have to buy hay because we don't own enough land to grow our own.  So, do we pursue raising hogs and chickens, these animals that are almost completely dependant on a broken, unsustainable system?  Do we overlook our moral and ethical objections to these problems?  Or, if we choose to feed our animals organic feed, will we be able to find any buyers willing to pay the higher price? Is this what it's like to be a farmer?  Wishing you could do what your heart feels is the right thing, but finding it nearly impossible to do it, because the very people that say you should farm the "right" way will start complaining the minute their food prices increase? 

Friends, WE the consumers are the problem.  We have been living in a world full of illusions, carefully constructed by the food industry.  We demanded more and farmers delivered.  These are intelligent, resourceful and hardworking people.    But in doing so, we forced the farmers to do things that make all of us uncomfortable.  We demanded cheap food, but it comes with great hidden costs.... and when these true costs are finally revealed, they will shake our foundations and change the world as we know it.  Now many of us are asking for "clean" food, but then complain when it costs more than conventionally grown food.  What is a farmer to do?  Grow clean food, but not be able to sell it because people say it's too expensive OR grow cheap food with toxic synthetic chemicals and then have people blame them for using them?  Geesh. They're damned if they do, and damned if they don't.

I wish I didn't have to think about these issues.  Many people dismiss me, and say that I'm being a pessimist, that I should just not think about these things so much. But I'm here to say that we don't have the luxury of NOT thinking about rising fuel costs, our broken food systems and it's effect on human, animal and environmental health.  We need to pull our heads out of the sand and admit there is a problem.  A huge problem.  And it won't resolve itself.  I look into my children's faces and sometimes want to weep thinking about the enormous debacle we have created for them to deal with.  We have selfishly sacrificed our children's future so that we could maintain our greedy, self-indulgent lifestyles.  This fact fills me with such shame, such regret that I live so carelessly, so flippantly. 

"We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children."
- Native American Proverb

I keep hearing these food experts (most likely working for Big Ag) saying that in order to keep "living life as we know it", we need to blah, blah, blah... (insert plug for how GM crops will save the world here).  And I want to scream at them "But we SHOULDN'T continue living life as we know it!  We are on a path to destruction and it will only get worse until we admit that "life as we know it" cannot continue.  We must change."  Life as we know it is bad.  Very bad, but most of us don't care to enough to pay attention - it's easier and much more fun to ignore the problem.  We're torturing animals, polluting the waterways, pumping the soil full of toxins, throwing away half of the food we produce because of lack of distribution systems and resulting spoilage, filling our bodies with genetically-engineered food, toxic synthetic chemicals and other modern food "inventions",  mindlessly filling the earth with trash (there is not such thing are throwing things "away" - away is just a place where someone else - our children - will have to deal with it later). We're sick, animals are sick, the earth is sick. Why in the world would we want to continue living this way?

So where do we start?  Boy, I wish I had the answer for that.  I suppose the first step to any sort of change is simply recognition- admitting there is a problem.  Asking questions and truthfully evaluating ourselves comes next.  Sometimes the truth is painful. 

Now, to get back to the point.  What do John and I do?  How are we to farm?  Do we stick to our moral, ethical and spiritual values?  Or do we end up having to sacrifice those values in order to make a profit?  How do we keep perfect from being the enemy of good? 

 As Jen Hatmaker says in her life-altering book "7: An Experimental Mutiny of Excess", " Do the best with what you know.  When you know more, adjust the  trajectory."  Even though we will not be able to raise our hogs and chickens "perfectly", we can at least comfort ourselves with the knowledge that we are providing a humane, comfortable existence for the animals in our care.  Our animals will be raised outdoors, with room to roam and engage in the very activities for which God created them.   We may not be able to solve the world's problems, and perhaps some of our choices will exacerbate those problems.  We are imperfect people living in an imperfect world.  We are doing the best we can with the skills, knowledge and resources that we have available at this time.  And that will have to be good enough.

Dreaming

 

This is what my counter has looked like for the last few days.  A bright ray of hope and light to brighten up the cold, dreary days of February. 

 

Yup, it's that time again folks.  Time to oogle over the seed catalogs, circling the promising-looking varieties, hemming and hawing about choices... and being filled with a sense of absolute delight and anticipation. 

 

We do this every year.  Every spring, we gardeners are filled with a ridiculous amount of enthusiasm and hope.  All our tomatoes died last year from blight?  No worries.  This is a new year, a new beginning.  Droughts last summer?  No biggie.  We'll be fine this year.  We gardeners are a hopelessly optimistic bunch.    I suppose we have to be, or we'd have given up long ago!

 

 

 

Last year, my garden was astonishingly successful, producing more than my wildest dreams.  By the time fall rolled around, the canning shelves in the basement were groaning under the weight of all the canned goods and we ended up having to buy another chest freezer to hold all the produce.  It almost made me feel like I knew what I was doing!  Almost...

 

 

If there is one thing I have learned about gardening over the years, it is this:  Gardening can be as simple or as complicated as you make it.    If I want to, I can take soil samples and have then analyzed by Michigan State University (I did), I can test the pH of my soil to determine optimal growing conditions (I did), amend the soil with compost (I did), analyse seed/plant spacing for increased production (I did), graph out garden beds (I did), orchestrate crop rotations so the same plants won't grow in the same beds year after year (I did),  and carefully record in detail when, where and how I started each seed in the garden (I did). 

 

Or, I could just walk around the garden and randomly stick seeds in the dirt and see what happens (I did that too). 

 

Gardening doesn't have to be so complicated, friends.  When you boil it down, gardening just is sticking a seed in the ground and watching it grow.  The beauty and wonder of gardening is based on this simplicity.  As it says in my Seeds of Change catalog: 

 

"One of the most satisfying activities in the history of the world is the act of planting a seed in the ground, tending to that seed and eventually harvesting a vegetable that provides sustenance and happiness.  Plant a seeds and open wonder."

 

 

I am in my early 30's and I still feel a thrill course through my body when I watch a seed sprout.  It never gets old. Ever.  Watching something grow that you purposefully planted is a powerful moment.  My husband laughs as me when I come rushing into the house, breathless with excitement "The peas are sprouting!  My babies are coming to life!"  And yes, I do consider them all babies.  They are living, breathing beings, each one full of endless potential. 

 

 

Many people ask about my gardening plans, wondering if I plan everything out, make graphs, charts, etc.  The answer is yes and no.  Over the years, I have realized I have a unique brain (that's a nice way to say weird).  Part of me adores organized lists, charts, graphs, plans and notes.  I like things to be logical, sequential, orderly.  Then the other part of my brain, the artist side, thinks only in flowing lines, colors and shapes.  This part of my brain seeks beauty, balance and varieties of textures.  I was told these separate and distinct qualities made me a successful art teacher, able to handle both the creative and analytical sides of teaching.  And I think they also help me immensely as I plan and plant my garden.  In order to garden well, in my opinion, there must be a marriage of these two mindsets.  There needs to be form and function - not only should the garden be beautiful, but it should also be productive.  Of course, you can garden according to just form or just function, but what fun is that?  A garden should be a place of beauty and peace, somewhere you desire to linger...

and just be. It should nourish both your body and your soul.

 

So each spring, I draw up a graph of the garden and spend hours deciding what to grow in each bed.  There are many things to take into consideration, such as:

•   What did I grow in that bed last year?  I don't want to grow another crop in the same "family" because they may harbor similar pests or diseases. 
• Was the crop I grew last year in that bed a heavy feeder of nitrogen (or phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, etc.)?  If so, I need to amend that bed or grow a crop that requires less nitrogen, etc.
• What other plants will be growing around this bed?  Will they attract pest insects to this crop? Or will they deter pest insects? 

 

I try my best to arrange the garden in a logical way, taking these things into consideration.... but sometimes I have to break the rules.  It's ok.  And if I decide to change something, no big deal.  Everything is written in pencil.  It's a flexible plan, a rough draft, if you will.

 

 



The next task I have is to figure out the timing of starting seeds.  Some plants need to be started from seed indoors and allowed to grow for a few weeks before being planted outside. Other plants can be "direct sowed", which means you simply walk out to the garden and plant the seed.  About half of my crops need to be started ahead of time and kept safely indoors until the danger of frost has passed.

 I ended up finding a 2013 calendar and using that as my guide.  First, I determined the Estimated Date of Last Spring Frost in lower West Michigan, which is April 30 to May 30.  I chose May 12 as my date and then counted the weeks backward to determine when I needed to start growing tomatoes, peppers, etc.  According to this, the first week of April is when I should start the majority of my warm season plants, as most should be grown for 6 weeks before being transplanted outside.  On this same calendar, I also determined when I should direct sow crops and how often.  I learned last year that I need to stagger my plantings of some crops so that they don't all mature at the same time and leave me with a fridge full of cucumbers or radishes. 

 

Then, of course, we need to buy seeds.  I've been known to drool over seed catalogs.  So many colors, so many options, so many wonderful crops to try!  I have a hard time narrowing down my choices, but after countless lists with lines scratched out, I finally have my picks.  As much as I love ordering seeds, I don't love the cost that goes along with it.  Last year I decided I was going to start buying as many Heirloom and open pollinated seeds as possible so that I could gradually start growing and saving my own seeds.  Many modern vegetable seeds are hybrids, which means they don't breed true.  If you try to save the seeds and plant them, you end up with the genetics of one of the parent plants, not the plant you were trying to reproduce.   

 

I also like to buy certified Organic seeds as much as possible.  In general, these plants have been bred to grow and thrive under organic growing conditions, not requiring pesticides to survive. 

 

Here are some seed companies that I like to buy from:

• Seeds of Change - 100% Organic seeds
• High Mowing Seed Company - 100% Organic seeds.  My favorite.   I feel they have the best prices and selection of Organic seeds.
• Territorial Seed Company - wide selection of conventional and Organic seeds. 
• Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds - not certified organic, but all seeds are heirloom/open pollinated, meaning you can save your own seeds to reuse year after year.  Their catalog is stunningly beautiful, like a fashion magazine for vegetables. If you are looking for rare or unusual seeds, look no further! Click on the link and scroll to the bottom and click on "Request Catalog". 

I also love to visit garden centers and check out the seed selections there.  I'm like a moth to a flame - there is no resisting those colorful displays of lovely seeds.  So many possibilities!!!  My favorite store in West Michigan for seeds is Fruit Basket Flowerland.  They have a great selection of conventional and Organic seeds.  They also sell seed potatoes, onion sets and flower bulbs.  Be sure to stop by!

 

Are you busy planning your garden too?  What are you going to grow this year?  Where do you like to purchase your seeds?