Sweet Treat

Most candy dishes are filled to overflowing this time of year. Goodie bags are frequently handed out to children at schools, at Church programs and at Grandma's.

There is entirely too much of a not-so-good thing around.

How is a parent to keep their children healthy and happy through it all ... especially if one of the children is diabetic?

We've struggled with that for more than ten years now. Candy is deemed a reward, a good thing when in reality it is not. Especially to a diabetic, but just as certainly to every child.

The truth is sugar is deadly for everyone ... in the long run.

We can't always say "No" to a child when candy is in question. Oftentimes it also hurts them to be singled out as "different" & given their own "special" candy. To them it isn't special, they just want to be normal & get the same junk everyone else gets without limits like everyone else ... BUT diabetics CAN'T.

Sometimes it would be nice to change the world ... yet in reality? Life doesn't work that way.



So, what do you do to treat you children?



We have found a few things that compensate: one is gum & candies made with the sweetener called xylitol. "Spry" is the brand we've come to enjoy ... it was first recommended to us by our dentist. The bonus? Xylitol inhibits cavities and though it does have a carbohydrate count it does not cause a spike in the blood sugar. Win/win!

We have tried the Spry gum in four flavors: cinnamon, spearmint, peppermint, and fruit flavored - they have a new green tea flavor out now.

The Spry mints/candies are in four great flavors: lemon, berry, peppermint, spearmint and a new raspberry that we haven't tried yet, but the rest are yummy!

More candy ideas here.

At our house, gummy vitamins and flavored vitamin C work as "treats" also. Yay for Mom, cause I like 2 for 1's!!!! Acidophilus rates right up there with candy among my littles too. Of course, we limit these to the rating on each bottle.

There are other treats of course, inedible ones like floss pics, erasers, etc, but I'm always looking for more ideas.

Do you have any ideas, favorite treats? Let me know in the comments below. Thanks so much for sharing.


Disclaimer: Check with your physician before using these suggestions. This post is not meant to be taken as medical advice.

Talking Turkey

Wow, the weeks are flying by and we're already looking at the end of summer 2010!

This year we tried raising turkeys. We'd heard they are rather fragile & finicky their first 8 weeks or so ... and that was our experience also. Now they're growing good and happy in their portable sheltered home.

We have 31 of the original 50 turkeys left, but these are hale & healthy. Growing & garbling -- I actually kind of like their "turkey talk". What do you think? (You can hear our princess in the background too -- she loves the animals ... a farm girl through & through, lol!)



Having heard the phrase "talking turkey" I wanted to check out what it means. Do you know what it means? It's actually like someone saying to you "let's get down to business" ... or "Let's get serious and talk business now!"

Yup. Turkey is part of our business now.

Have you ordered your 2010 Thanksgiving/Christmas turkey yet? As you can see, supplies are limited. They are booked for processing at an inspected facility on September 30 ... just in time for your big Thanksgiving supper!

Potatoes

Everyone loves fresh garden potatoes ... just like we do! The smaller, the better! LOL!

Digging ...




... by hand digging potatoes got old fast. We're thankful to have a neighbor who is willing to come help us "dig spuds" once a week. We're shopping for a tractor that can do everything we need it to. Please pray with us that we will find the right one. Thanks.



Washing:

Another Smoothie

Breakfast for me is easiest when I make it a smoothie ... and the health I can pack into it is unbeatable.

It tastes good too!

Check out the secret ingredients posted on my Klasse Garden blog.

Changes & Learning Curves

Whew, what a week!

Monday - Molly arrived and threw us into learning curves with milking by hand. Hey, we're not the only ones, she had to learn with the guys what hand milking is all about. Apparently the milker we have has issues - we're trying to get those resolved.
- Corbyn's ticket was bought for his trip to Cambodia, March 30-April 14, 2010. He's going with his Uncle Darryl on a ministry trip for Children's Camps International. Please pray with us for them & those they seek to serve through this great opportunity!

Tuesday - we finally located and brought home 50 new laying hens. They're as hard to find in Manitoba as the proverbial "hens teeth", lol! From now on, we may just hatch our own in an incubator. Wouldn't that be fun??

- Corbyn started part-time work @ Rosehill Woodcrafters Ltd., but when he came home after his first day he was already full-time. Having him gone all day everyday has really made a huge change in all of our lives!! Of course, he has learning curves to go through at work, but we do too ... changes in schedules & responsibilities etc.

Wednesday - made our first batch of yummy yogurt. Whoohoo!
- Faith Mattaya decided it was worth it to learn how to walk with boots on so that she can go outside, see the animals & play with the kitties.

Thursday - A Happy 6th Birthday for Benjamin & Bronlin. It is so hard to believe that they're already six!! We really celebrated their birthday already on Sunday when Grandpa & Grandma Wiebe were here for a wonderful visit.

again a long day of baking & preparing for Farmer's Market on Friday.
- we made our first butter ... with great success!

Friday - Farmer's Market & shopping in Brandon.
- failed our first attempt @ making cottage cheese ... much to the delight of the cats & dog!

Saturday - resting up and preparing for Sunday & company (house cleaning).
- made our second batch of cottage cheese with success! Yay!

Thank you, Lord, for creating a Day of Rest!

Amazon: Free $4 Video-On-Demand credit

Right now, you can get a free $4 credit for Amazon's Video On Demand.

We heard about the following movie in summer. There is a link to view the trailer of Food Inc. on this post. All about manufacturing of food -- we know that food is made by God, not industries. It is best eaten that way or in a state as close to the original form as possible. The movie really is what we here at Klasse Woods Natural Farm are all about. This movie was just released in November, but from now until January 3rd you can go to Amazon.com and watch it for free:



They offer all sorts of films for $0.99 to $2.99, some good, but many not-so-good. So "Be careful little eyes, what you see ..."

"I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes ..."Psalm 101:3a

Here's how to get your free $4 Amazon video-on-demand credit:
::Go here and enter code AVODGIFT.

::Click "Apply" and the $4 credit will be automatically added to your account.

::Choose and watch a movie (or movies!) for free by January 3, 2010.

Thanks, MoneySavingMom!

One Way to Feed the Hungry

"He that giveth to the poor shall not lack:" Proverbs 28:27

I just ran across a way we can help give 1 cup of food to a hungry person around the world. Thanks Because He Gave blog.

Give a cup of food with two clicks:



All you have to do is click the button above. Then on the large yellow button on that page. Your simple click will donate that cup of food.
You can click everyday and make sure to give that hungry mouth a meal.

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16


Give Because He Gave

Jehovah Jireh

God has provided. Our faith is strengthened yet again.

The hunters were faithful in going out to hunt, but managed only to bring home two does -- we had estimated that we would need about five deer based on our consumption last year.

Well, the end of hunting season 2009 came and went and our hunters still only had the two does that God had allowed Carsyn to harvest. As a family, we discussed the concern that was on all our minds. We decided that since God knows our needs, we can trust that He has provided. We have venison enough for now, we have our own yummy, healthy chicken and beef as well ... with more beef in our pasture. We have MUCH to be thankful for -- THANK YOU, LORD!

It was nearly three hours after the hunt time had ended -- which means three hours after dark when suddenly we had a visitor at our door. Ken's brother stopped by. He had hunted solo all day, shooting his target buck finally just three minutes before the end of the hunt day. Thankfully, it was a good shot and the buck dropped just a few feet from where it was hit, no tracking needed. HOWEVER, it was a BIG buck, thus Darryl needed to field dress the animal (in the dark) then get it back through the bush to where he had parked his truck. AND in addition, when he had left the truck there before dawn Darryl had locked his keys into the vehicle! So after dark when he finally got back to the truck with his buck, he still had to figure out a way to get into his truck.

God got all the glory when Darryl told us that God had given him Divine wisdom in how to use what he had available to him to gain entry into his vehicle (CAA would have never been able to find him in the vast 120 square miles of the Spruce Woods park!). His method of entry was ingenious to say the least. Who would have thought of that without Divine inspiration?

Have you guessed by now that this story all ties together by the fact that Darryl stopped by to gift us with the meat from that big buck? Being a single guy and having already shot a doe with his bow in archery season, he had no need for the meat so he gave us the meat with its possession tag to make it legal for us to have it in possession in our freezers.

The men folk enjoyed the time spent together in our big shop, skinning and hanging the deer, talking and discussing their hunting expeditions all the while. Darryl didn't need to journey the rest of the way home with that huge task still waiting for him to do alone once he got there because it was already done. He measured the chest of that huge buck - it was 43 inches, bigger than any he has ever seen ... and he is an avid hunter with a lot of hunts to his experience.

So Saturday ended with a delightful Divine surprise for us and for Darryl. We now have approximately 225 lbs of roasts, cuts and ground venison wrapped and in the freezers. God has provided. If that is not enough to get us through until next season, God will have more provision for when we need it! We have no doubt about that.

We were also reminded again about the fact that venison is the healthiest meat available to us through my mother's reading of the book "What the Bible Says about Healthy Living" written by the late Dr. Rex Russell. We have read the book a long while ago, but it was good to hear this venison info once again, especially right now.

Decorative .... Butter?

I like this idea!


These decorative pats of butter add a festive touch to a special dinner. They are very easy to make using inexpensive candy molds.

Simply let the butter soften on the countertop for about 30 minutes. Then, using a butter knife or small spatula, fill the molds. Check the underside to be sure there are no air bubbles.

Set the mold in the freezer for a short time to let the butter harden (it will be easier to get out of the mold if you do this). By applying a small amount of pressure to the underside of the mold, the butter should just pop out. Do be careful though not to dent the butter.

Thanks to Amy from The Prudent Pantry.

Provision

While the bucks are still elusive, Carsyn pegged another doe yesterday afternoon.


Praise the Lord for His further provision of meat for our freezers. In the last week of hunting season, we're not being choosy about getting "the big buck".

Fun & Fresh Air

... excercise & woodsmanship, orienteering and exploration, that's about the most of what the hunter's in this area are getting this year.

Mostly due to the unseasonably warm temperatures, apparently the rut season has not yet really begun. We need a big snow with some colder temps ... in the next five days!

The hunting season ends this Saturday. While we are grateful for the one deer Carsyn shot already, supplying us with about 60 lbs of ground meat, we are still praying that God will supply more. In whatever way though, we know tat God will supply ALL our needs. That is an assurance He gives and we are blessed by Him to have that!

AND while my hunters are faithfully "out there", I'm busy here at home keeping the home fires burning and our "Littles" constructively occupied. Thus there is little time for updates ... besides the camera is also "out there" ready to capture the elusive buck shots, lol!

Fall Decorations

Tis the season for hunting ... it almost looks like we've decorated or something, lol!

Hunting garb, fresh and ever at the ready! If it gets rained on, we call it rainfresh scent and throw it into the dryer when necessary.

Muzzleloader hunting season opened this last Monday, but due to a local potato farm needing harvest help, our hunters are not out getting a doe or calling in a buck -- they've been out making dough and rolling in the bucks, tehe!

That reminds me of one our favorite jokes:

Q: What do you get when you cross 50 male deer with 50 female pigs?

A: (READ real fast out loud) A hundred sows 'n' bucks.


Just like God planned it in the first place, the species do not mingle.

That said, we're praying that the hunt will prove successful again this year as our venison supply is all but depleted -- and we use that almost to exclusion as our red meat. We do use our own home grown, delicious grass-fed beef to serve when we have guests.

True Blue

We've acquired some new laying hens. They are true free-range birds from a local farm ... raised by their Mother Hen!

That said though, many of them are not yet ready to lay - they are three months old now and a hen usually starts laying eggs at five months of age.

Mother hen is laying again though - she is Americana, so she lays blue shelled eggs. It's true, they're blue!

The color of the shell does not really matter though. These eggs may be a bit smaller, but they pack the same nutritional power as the brown eggs. Our wholesome chicken food will allow her/them to produce the same healthy eggs that our Isa brown layers have been providing:

Handy Baskets!

Our boys know already that they always have a handy basket with them when Mama calls on them to run an errand:

Saves time & steps!

T-shirts are easy to launder so ... why not?

Another day, another "job" ...

Like It Used to Be

My bread hasn't been turning out nice for the last two years. I've only had a couple batches that formed nice high loaves.



This week though, we had some success. Yes! Thank-you Lord! Just in time for tomato sandwiches for quick easy yummy lunches -- always a welcome delight for this gang!

It's a KEEPER !!!!

Our family uses a lot of salsa - Mexican dishes being our favorite meals ... In my years of making salsa, I've developed a superb recipe that others have frequently requested. That resulted in me adding it to the cookbook that I published in 2001.

Well. This Zucchini Salsa that I tried this year has topped that! Everyone in the family gives raves reviews on this one, asking that I make ALL my salsa now using this new recipe. Does that speak volumes or what??





The zucchini recipe that Ken found this week in the Manitoba Co-operator sent in by Joy from B.C. can be found on our Klasse Woods Garden blog.

Do give this a try. I'm thinking this will extend my tomato crop which always seems too little -- while using up the zucchini which is in ample supply. Not only that, but the sweetness of the processed zucchini eliminates the necessity of added sweetener in the recipe. Win/win!! Yahoo! I like it when experiments work out so well!

Food is Food ... Or is It?

A new movie is about to be released. It explains why we do what we do here @ Klasse Woods Natural Farm.



Watch a trailer of the movie here.

Action Zone

For those of you who are regular readers here, you may have noticed that it has been kind of slow recently? I know, I know, but you may wish to pop-on over here to see the action.


The garden is keeping us busy - and our tummies filled. Praise the Lord!

I'll still continue to post here though as that other blog is more specialized to being a weekly info pak to go along with the produce paks that our people get each week. Of course, you may feel free to use any recipes and ideas from there too if you like .

Johnny-Jump-Ups

Edible flower garnishes add beauty, taste, nutrition and elegance to your family meal table. Johnny-jump-ups are delightful in salads or to garnish a dish ... particulary chocolate or white desserts!


Preparation, uses, and tips:

Immerse blossoms in cool water to flush out any tiny insects, and dry thoroughly in a salad spinner. Add to field greens or use as a garnish for desserts.



Buying and storing tips:

Johnny jump-ups can be found primarily in specialty markets. Look for fresh blossoms with no signs of wilting or browning. Store them loosely wrapped in a paper towel placed in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.

What do You do with Chives?

Chives are ready early in spring. Though this year we're already into summer ... can you believe it??

Chives is something I look forward to using lavishly in our meals. They add color, nutritional health benefits and taste to our diet, waking up the taste buds to summer selections.

Chive cheese was introduced to us by some dear friends a few years ago. It is now a staple spread at our house throughout the summer:

Chive Cheese

1/2 cup chives, chopped
8 oz. cream cheese, softened

Use chive cheese: on bread, crackers, veggies, in egg, fish, or meat sandwiches ... and it is super good with a burger - it can even redeem a lowly hotdog!

- add chives to salads: green salads, macaroni salad, potato salad or egg salad.

- add to soups, sauces & casseroles.

- chop & freeze for use later in soups, sauces & casseroles


Did you know that the chive flowers are edible? Not only edible, but decorative as well. The chive flowers can be torn & tossed in salads adding a delightful color along with their delicate taste. Or use the whole blossom to garnish a dish.