Carbon Neutral

 



As I have tried to be disciplined and get caught up on my blog reading and maybe even blogging myself....I read Think Tank Momas blog post and thought I have to get in on this. Her friend Darla clued her in on how us blogging leaves a carbon footprint. The average blog receiving 15,000 hits a month, has emissions of EIGHT (8) POUNDS of carbon dioxide a year.
Now I am nowhere near that many hits in 6 months let alone 1 month...but I still think that giving back to our environment is terribly important....and I do spend an awful lot of time on Facebook so maybe I could off-set that just a bit and here is how.............
Plant a tree. You don't have to plant it yourself or even in your own yard...in case you live in an apartment and don't have a yard you can still do this.
All I had to do was post this "My blog is carbon neutral" blog., add a button to my blog to raise awareness. And then a tree is planted for my blog. EASY as 1-2-3.
You can too! Just go here  to find a button you like grab it and add it to your blog.










So what to do? Quit blogging? Certainly not! That isn't going to happen. BUT, there is something we can do. Plant a tree. And we don't have to plant it ourselves. Nope. I post this "My blog is carbon neutral" blog. I add a button to my blog to raise awareness. And then a tree is planted for my blog. EASY as 1-2-3.

ABC's of Me

It's early Sunday morning and I figured why not might be fun so here goes......thanks to Vicki at Frugal Mom

A. AGE: 39 the only reason I know this is I just had a birthday

B. BED SIZE: Queen

C. CHORE YOU HATE: Vacuuming....I have a special relationship with the vacuum

D. DOG'S NAME: Hutch the Husky

E. ESSENTIAL "START THE DAY!" ITEM: A few minutes of quiet before all the kids get up

F. FAVORITE COLOR: Green

G. GOLD OR SILVER: Silver.

H. HEIGHT: 5'4"

I. INSTRUMENTS YOU PLAY: I play the radio like a pro

J. JOB TITLE: Professional mom and all that is included

K. KIDS:  8...yes 8....2 mine, 2 his, and 4 foster...it's like a bag of skittles in our house

L. LIVING ARRANGEMENTS: cramped with 8 kids what more could you expect

M. MOM'S NAME: Stella

N. NICKNAME: Foster kids call me Ya-Ya, BFF's hubs calls me Red, everyone else just calls me CRAZY

O. OVERNIGHT HOSPITAL STAY: 2 c-sections

P. PET PEEVE: Poor speaking, you know like "I gots 3 toys"...Oh geez just typing that hurt

Q. QUOTE FROM A MOVIE: It's my island

R. RIGHTY OR LEFTY?: Righty

S. SIBLINGS: 2 older brothers and 2 older sisters

T. TIME YOU WAKE UP: Around 6ish

U. UNDERWEAR: nothing intersting thats for sure

V. VEGGIE YOU DISLIKE: Lima beans

W. WAYS (REASONS) YOU ARE LATE: When I have appts and caseworkers show up just as I am walking out the door

X. XRAYS YOU'VE HAD: Most recently my head

Y. YUMMY FOOD YOU MAKE: Egg Rolls...I think that might be on todays dinner menu...YUMMM

Z. ZOO ANIMALS YOU LIKE: The turtles

Day 1
So as I told you all before I have decided to try this 7 day no spend thingie.
 I have planned a menu for the next week and I have to admit that doing so was tough for me....I am not really sure why. When I owned my daycare I had all meals planned for a month at a time....(the state said I had to do this). But 7 years of not making menus has me feeling like I did when I had to make my first menus. WOW this is making me feel old and even more unorganized than I already knew I was.

So 12 hours in and I am realizing that, for me, going 7 days without spending reinforces that for me to succeed at being even a tiny bit organized I need to make lists....many many lists. I have also accepted that I make a gazillion runs to the store for whatever the mood strikes me. So this no spending thing is going to be a good thing for me in more than the wallet.

I want to say thank you to consumption-rebellion for this idea. I think I may come back to a more organized and frugal system....at least I am praying for that....:)

No Spend Week

I was inspried by Eilleen, over at
Consumption Rebellion to try this out and see how I do.

I have decided that starting March 26th for 7 days I will not shop for anything. This does mean that I have to get my act together and plan a menu for that week and get to the grocery store, but what the heck how bad can it be to not eat out or shop for 7 days.
Now this does not include what the Old Man will spend getting to and from work, his commute is about 100 miles one way so refilling the tank happens often. It will also not include medical stuff and the usual bills.
How many of you can try the same thing? If not for 7 days how about just the weekend? Maybe we could all make an impact on our own lives this way.

Whats for Dinner Tonight

Easy Bake Chicken Pot Pie

1 cup cooked chicken, cut into bite sized pieces

1 2/3 cups frozen vegetables, thawed

1 (10 ounce) can cream of chicken soup (I use low sodium)

1 cup Bisquick reduced-fat baking mix (regular Bisquick will work too)

1/2 cup nonfat milk or milk

1 egg



Directions

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Mix chicken, veggies and cream of chicken soup together and spread into bottom of non greased 9-inch round glass pie pan.

Mix remaining ingredients (Bisquick, milk and egg) and pour on top of chicken mixture.

Bake in oven for 30 minutes or until top turns golden brown.

And as you all know I add or substitute things as I see fit for that meal......so

I added more veggies than called for and added 1 can cream of mushroom soup, a can of mushroom pieces and stems. And doubled the bisquick topping.

Lawless Tuesday in Nebraska

If a child burps during church, his parent may be arrested.
--thank Gawd that was not a law in GA when my kids were little...they were gas factories

It is Illegal to go whale fishing.
--where would one go whale fishing in Nebraska?

It is illegal for bar owners to sell beer unless they are simultaneously brewing a kettle of soup.
--Can they serve the soup or just brew it?

It is illegal for a mother to give her daughter a perm without a state license.
--Such as a Drivers License or a Teaching License....who determines what type of License is needed?

Now I have done more reading on this hydroponic vegetable garden than I did on having a baby when I was pregnant, and I feel like the only way to make sure I understand what I have read is to just build it and see what happens. Up to this point I think I understand the building process.

Just need a tote such as this.....

cut some holes in the top of it for a little plant baskets, fill the basket with clay stones,

and plant with no soil on the roots

get a fish tank air pump and a sand stone.....fill the tote with water to the bottom of the basket and voila you have a garden. The pump keeps oxygen in the water...now you just have to add some sort of nutrient supplement to the tank.

Now according to all of the reading this should give a larger than usual yeild to a crop. So, we will be seeing as soon as our overnight temps are steady enough to get this going I will try to take a stab at it.

If anyone knows anything about this PLEASE let me know what you know.  Maybe sharing info can help us all.

OH and I am going to the farm store next week to see about the chicks...YAY ME!!!!

I discover earlier this week that not only is Spring Break starting for us on Friday...but they are letting the kids out of school early on Thursday...(today) And when I asked the question, that once I did I knew I really did not want the answer....
"why are you getting out early?"        "cuz the basketball team is playing state in Pueblo"  was the reply I got
Now I have to admit that I like us only having a 4 day school week and there are times that I am happy to have the kids home early.....but really they are closing school for a basketball game!!
SO the message to the kids is that it is ok to be stupid as long as you are good at sports.
GREAT!!!
I am just not sure that this is the proper message to be sending our youngsters. I am ok with the high school kids going to the game to support the team. I am just saying let's keep the elementary kids in school and teach them that academics should come 1st.

With the tad bit of warmer weather we have had this past week comes the desire for me to start planning on where to make a garden and to find out if I can house a few laying hens and a group of boilers.

I have done TONS of reading on the care of these chickens I am so wanting to have.....and I think I can make it happen. I only need maybe 5 laying hens to produce enough eggs for us. The Cornish Cross are what I want to get for my meat. These mature in 90 days or less so this could be a perfect fit for me. With the exception of the process to harvest the meat. I am thinking that I will just have to break down and pay the meat locker to dress my chickens.

Yes I am a big baby for sure!!!

Now for the garden....I met a fella once that had his garden growing in water with no soil. It was possibly the most interesting gardening set-up I have seen. It has been about 10yrs since I last talked to this person and I so want to mimic his garden. So raise a glass and wish me luck to my version of a hydro-ponic garden. As I plan and begin building I will be posting pics and let you all know how it is going.

Dinner tonight

Was a pretty good recipe. The kids LOVED it. The only changes I made were to add bacon, more eggs, milk and a bit more cheese. And, it only soaked for about 4 hours.

I think this may be a keeper


Original Recipe Yield 8 servings
Ingredients
1 pound bulk pork sausage
6 eggs
2 cups milk
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground mustard
6 slices white bread, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
Directions
1.In a skillet, brown and crumble sausage; drain and set aside. In a large bowl, beat eggs; add milk, salt and mustard. Stir in bread cubes, cheese and sausage. Pour into a greased 11-in. x 7-in. x 2-in. baking dish. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees F for 40 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean.

Lawless Tuesday

• In California you may not set a mouse trap without a hunting license.
• Los Angeles law forbids hunting moths under a street light.
• Molesting butterflies can result in a $500 fine.
• It is illegal to mistreat rats in Denver.
• Florida law forbids rats to leave the ships docked in Tampa Bay.
• Galesburg: There is a $1,000 dollar fine for beating rats with baseball bats.
• Kirkland: Bees are not allowed to fly over the village or through any of Kirkland’s streets.
• All bees entering Kentucky shall be accompanied by certificates of health, stating that the apiary from which the bees came was free from contagious or infectious disease. -KRS 252.130 (Passed in 1922; Repealed in 1948)
• You may not tie an alligator to a fire hydrant.
• In Maryland thistles may not grow in one’s yard.
• Minnesotans are forbade from teasing skunks.
• According to Ohio law, it’s against the law to kill a housefly within 160 feet of a church without a license.
• Cleveland: It’s illegal to catch mice without a hunting license!
• In La Crosse you cannot “worry a squirrel.”

What's for Dinner Tonight

I tried a recipe I found online for dinner.....it was a HIT!! This is what is left after 6 kids went nuts on the pan



I did make a couple changes such as I added a can of Campbell's Cheddar Cheese Soup, I did not use instant rice....I cooked it fair and square only because in my house (of 11) I buy rice in bulk bags. I used a whole stick of butter, 4 small green onions, and I did not use process cheese....I used the real deal...mixed a couple handfulls of shredded cheese in cooked it at 425 degrees for about 15 mins and then topped with a couple more handfuls and baked for another 15 or so. The one thing I did not add that I think would make it more yummy would be garlic.

OK so now I realize that I made more than 1 or 2 changes...but I am a "Dump" cook...you know the kind. I Dump whatever looks good in a pot and prays it comes out yummy....and it usually does.
Ingredients
2 cups water
2 cups uncooked instant rice
2 (10 ounce) cans chunk chicken, drained
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1/4 cup butter
1 cup milk
1 (16 ounce) package frozen chopped broccoli
1 small white onion, chopped
1 pound processed cheese food
Directions
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2.In a medium saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Mix in the instant rice, cover, and remove from heat. Let stand 5 minutes.
3.In a 9x13 inch baking dish, mix the prepared rice, chicken, cream of mushroom soup, cream of chicken soup, butter, milk, broccoli, onion, and processed cheese.
4.Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Stir halfway through cooking to help cheese melt evenly.