And Here's What I Think

Here's a good article by Jennifer Roback Morse. She writes about the way the left is trying to obliterate the differences between the sexes. She keeps the tone strictly "secular", which begs the question "WHAT'S THE POINT?" I would have added the tons of scripture that backs up THE POINT: that God made men and women different for His own pleasure and glory. Since we are made in His image, it is in a sense our own pleasure and glory, too, right? It is sad to see it turned upside-down by the world - into something "socially constructed" and detrimental.

Here's another article worth discussing: One in 10 pre-schoolers may be suffering mental illness. I think there are many contributing factors to this problem. Here's one (don't boo and hiss me, please): diet. Both before birth (the mother's diet), and after.

Who Knew?

Pat Boone can write a decent column! I suppose he doesn't write when he's in a metal mood. :-)

Correction

It was a mink.

This Just Off the Wire...

The official head of household has just reported that "the weasel is no longer a resident of this area". That loud clucking you hear is a huge sigh of relief coming from our 9 remaining chickens (I guess they still don't know what's coming in another month or so). The loud "yahoo-ing" and raucous celebrating you hear is us. We're calling for a day of Thanksgiving and celebration. I think we'll set it for...Thursday. :-)

My Recent Culinary Adventures

Considering we had an abundance of milk and eggs this weekend, I decided to try custard. I used the recipe from my "normal" cookbook, only I substituted raw sugar for the white sugar. Only 1 out of 3 children liked it, though.

Another recent favorite of mine has been chicken noodle soup. Real soup, that I made. Not from a can. The real chicken stock is just excellent. I never realized how great it really was (I never was much of a soup eater).

Also on the soup front: black bean soup. I soaked the beans, made beef stock, and everything. I love black bean soup. Apparently my kids do not. No big deal though...I've lost track of the number of times I have told them, "OK, well, you know you won't get anything to eat until breakfast tomorrow morning if you don't eat all your dinner." Usually this line works, because they are always "starving" within one hour of the end of meal time.

I also made kefir for the first time this weekend, but haven't tried it yet. It has to sit for a while for the culture to...culture. I hope I like it. If I don't, I'm sure I won't be drinking it. Even though it is very good for you. Call me weird, but I just don't like to eat food (or drink drinks) that don't taste good. My husband says he'll drink it.

Another recent creation that did get rave reviews from all quarters: cinnamon-raisin rolls. I made them with my regular bread recipe. I just mixed up some cinnamon and raw sugar, sprinkled it over a layer of melted butter on the dough, added some raisins, and rolled it up and sliced it. Very good warm with butter. This tends to be the kind of treat we have occasionally since we don't do refined sugar. I haven't tried cookies yet with the raw sugar, but hope to once the Christmas baking season kicks into gear.

I guess I've been trying a lot of new things lately. I think that comes and goes in cycles. Sometimes I don't make anything different for weeks. Other times I try several new things within just a few days.

Family Update

We're now a quarter of the way through first grade. I must say, I am learning a lot. Much more than my son. I had never heard of Mohenjo-Daro before, and now I know how to build a Mohenjo-Daro dwelling out of air-drying modeling clay.

My husband has been figuring out ways of trapping the varmint that has been "eliminating" our 2-1/2 month old chicks. He thinks it's a weasel. That makes sense because there is no way a cat or raccoon could fit through such a small opening. We're also wondering if the same weasel is stealing our eggs. We just thought our chickens were moulting (they don't lay eggs when they moult), but we're not sure about that.

My book of the week: Robinson Crusoe. Wow! I'd never read it before. It was fun and exciting reading. I think the one I read was "thoughtfully abridged". It seemed to be a very high-quality editing job. Usually it's best to steer clear of books that have been abridged. I think this one was fine.

We're all excited about the Thanksgiving holiday coming up next week. We'll be dining at my sister's house. My boys have been decorating little "Happy Thanksgiving" stickers for everyone in the family. We'll see if they remember to bring them. I'm sure I won't. :-)

Note To Aspiring Chicken Farmers

Buy 10 more chicks for meat than you think you'll need for your family. Buy twice as many chicks for eggs than you think you'll need. You'll probably break even. Maybe. Until you figure out what animal has been pilfering your chicken coop and how to protect the chicks in the future.

Share My Excitement!

Here's what I'm getting for Christmas!

I Knew It Wouldn't Last Forever

Well, it's been almost three months since I posted a nutrition/health related blog. You knew the silence couldn't last forever, so here's some recent health news: Sauerkraut could fight bird flu, say scientists. This doesn't come as a surprise to a lot of people, especially over at the Weston A. Price Foundation. I've been reading since this summer about the theories of Weston Price. Back in the first half of the 20th century, he compared the health of native people who lived on a non-western diet to the health of the same people group after they adopted a western diet. One of the things he found was the value of lacto-fermented foods, such as sauerkraut. I'm thinking about trying to make some lacto-fermented ginger carrots (not too crazy about sauerkraut, although I haven't tried it in a LONG TIME). The fermentation provides your body with a natural probiotic (kind of like the acidophilus in yogurt) that is supposed to be very good for you. Who knows, maybe it could even help you fight off the flu?

Hey! I'm On a Roll!

I guess maybe this blogger thing is working again for me. I don't have much time to write, though. I've been spending my days lately going back and forth to the bathroom with my 2-year-old daughter. She decided it was time to start using the potty, and she's been using it, too - about once every 5 minutes. She must have a bladder the size of a dime.

I did get caught up on our laundry last night. Too bad it's not all put away. I also got caught up on the dishes, but now the dishwasher is full of clean dishes, and the countertop by the sink also has a large stack of hand-washed clean dishes and pans. It's a pretty impressively high stack. And already the dirty dishes are piling up again. I won't even mention the part of the kitchen counter known as "the clutter magnet". I should start on dinner. But it's time for my nap. :-)

How About This One?

If I don't post a picture, will it still work?

Will This Work?

Yes, I guess it did work.

I'm trying to blog but it won't work. All it will do is the title, no text.