thin wheat sandwich bread

My kids love these new flat, wheat, sandwich rounds they sell in the grocery store. So, after buying about 40 bags of them, I decided it would be a lot cheaper to make my own. And, I could control what's in them.

ingredients:

1 1/4 c warm water (110 degrees F)

1/4 c sugar

1 (1/4 oz pkg) or 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast

1 egg

2 tsp oil

2 c whole wheat flour

1 1/4 c bread flour

1/4 c flaxseed meal

1 tsp salt

Directions:

In a large bowl, sprinkle the sugar and yeast over the warm water. Mix in the egg and oil. In another bowl, sift together the flours, flax and salt. Add 1 1/2 c flour mixture to the liquids. Let rise 30-40 minutes. Add the rest of the flour and knead for 10 minutes by hand, or 5 minutes in a stand mixer with dough hook. (I prefer the mixer, since the dough is very sticky.) Grease & flour a cookie sheet. With well-oiled hands, divide dough into 2 oz. pieces. (Makes approx. 15 pieces, but only do enough to fill one cookie sheet. Save the rest in a covered bowl, in the refrigerator, until ready to use.) Drop the pieces onto your cookie sheet. You don't need to shape the dough, it will look better after it rises. Let rise until doubled. (I put the cookie sheet in my UNHEATED oven to rise. Because the dough is so sticky, I thought covering with platic wrap would be a mess.) Bake in a 350 degree oven for 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown. Do not overbake. When the buns are cool, just slice & eat.

this ain't no fairy tale garden

I was mad as a mama bear this morning, when I ran out to the garden, only to find that somebody's been eating my pumpkins! How will my garden ever grow with Mr. McGregor's cottontails hopping all about? Cinderella will have no ride to the ball. Peter Peter's wife will be homeless. And, this little piggie will have no pumkins for the market! I guess I can't blame it all on the wild things. It may have been my own, dear chicken little. Maybe this little red hen should just stick to baking bread.

While the kids are away...

Kids FINALLY went back to school today. Hip Hip Hooray! They were almost as excited as I was. With the house all to myself, my options were to clean, or... anything.

I've been saving these feed sacks all summer, waiting for the free time to make them useful again. (ok, they make great trash bags. but that's no fun). So, my chick feed bags are now my go-to-market bags. Or, my new go-to-library bags. Or, my apple-picking bags. Or, my wet-clothes-at-the-beach bags. Or... well, the possibilities are endless!

from the Farm Belles Library

The last time my sisters & I took the kids to see Grandma, my daughter told us "When I grow up I'm gonna have a farm all to myself". Living there her whole life, my Grandma knows a bit about living on the farm. We all cracked-up laughing when my Grandma's advice was "Honey, you gotta have a man to scoop the poop" So, when I discovered the book "How to Shovel Manure and Other Life Lessons for the Country Woman", by Gwen Petersen, at our local library, I had to grab it for my daughter. Unfortunately, she hasn't had a chance to read it yet, because I can't put it down!
"How to Shovel Manure" is a great little book every country girl will enjoy. It's packed full of practical advice we Farm Belles need to survive life in the country. Unlike other how-to books, this one includes as much humor as advice, which makes it so easy to read. Gwen writes about farm life through the seasons & how to handle all that life throws at her. How to plant, harvest, dress (floppy hat, muddy chore boots, husband's cozy sweatshirt), raise animals and children, even how to deal with city visitors and Mrs. Super Rancher.
Sneaking a glass of medicinal bourbon seems to help all of the above chores run a little more smoothly. Of course, the best tip I learned from this book was "Occasionally you will meet a truly mean chicken - usually a rooster. The treatment of choice is to plan stewed rooster for Sunday dinner"
As if all that advice & humor weren't enough to interest you, Gwen throws in some wonderful poems, the "Country Hick Dictionary" and yummy country recipes.
For those who live there, you know women in the country can sometimes feel a bit isolated. "How to Shovel Manure" is like sitting down with a good friend to swap stories and have a few laughs - even when the snow is 2' deep and road travel is impossible. (As I write, it is snowing AGAIN!)
So, grab the book here, pour yourself a bit of your favorite medicinal bourbon and take a break from the chores. If Hubby finds you sitting on your butt, not "working" just tell him you are studying how to be a better farmhand, and the more you read, the better you'll be.

It's beginning to look a little bit like Christmas

It's way too cold to play outside, so we've spent the last few days putting up the Christmas decorations. The canning jars have gone from holding sand & shells, to storing mini Christmas ornaments. One jar is still full of sand, to hold-up our Wyoming Christmas tree - Tumbleweed!

Since this will be our only tree this year, I hung only the best onrnaments on it. There is an "evergreen" garland draped on the shelf & intertwined with a string of lights.

Almost FREE Christmas

With Christmas nearing, and my cash disappearing, I have been looking for ways to give my kids a fun christmas, while spending as little money as possible.

Here's some ideas I've come up with so far.

1. the library is FREE. (just don't get any late fees!) So, just before Christmas, I am going to rent my limit of children's books, wrap them up & let my kids read all they want. Once they've read the books, they have no use for them anyway, so buying a stack of new books seems a bit "extravagant", at least for this year.
2. Let the kids help cook Christmas breakfast, supper... They get what they really want most & that's your time and attention. I let my kids write up a "menu" on a piece of construction paper, then take "orders" and serve supper. They love it!
3. Any family with kids, probably has toys they don't want or need anymore. Take any toys still in great shape & host a "swap" with friends. Trust me, the kids probably won't even notice the toys are used, especially if it's wrapped-up all fancy. (a swap would also work for those fancy "Christmas picture" outfits that the kids only wear once.)
4. All craft stores have free, project idea sheets for knitting, crafting etc. I have collected a bunch that look simple enough for kids. I will add these to a notebook I am building for my kids. The notebook is a collection of free patterns or instructions I have found online.
Some websites I like so far...
http://www.instructables.com/
http://www.crochettoday.com/default.aspx
http://www.freepatterns.com/
I'll wrap-up the notebook, add a bag full of any fabric scraps, yarn, glue, glitter that I can find around the house. Hopefully this will keep them so busy, they won't realize they didn't get that big screen TV they've been begging for!




To get you started, I made a pdf pattern to sew this cute stuffed chickie.
I can't figure out how to add a pdf to my blog. But, if you'd like a copy of the pattern, just send me an e-mail & I will send you the pattern.

If you have any other ideas for a free, or very cheap, Christmas for kids, please leave me a comment. I'd love to hear other people's ideas!

vote!
It's just that simple.