More Peppers

This afternoon Elizabeth picked a peck of peppers (I just had to say that) from the pepper bed.  It yielded 4 trays of diced peppers for the dehydrator.

One of the red bell peppers had a green baby pepper inside it.  I thought that was rather weird.

She also picked several hot peppers.  The last time I tried to dry those in the dehydrator, it about killed me. They were so hot,  that it put off fumes that burned my eyes and made it hurt to breath--even after I tried to move the dehydrator to the garage.  So, I will have to come up with a different plan for the hot peppers.

5K to Support the Pregnancy Resource Center

5K Run and 1 mile Family Fun Walk 

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Run for a Child is a benefit event for Rachel House Pregnancy Resource Centers. Rachel House has three locations in the Kansas City area: Lee’s Summit, Paseo Bvld. and the Northland. They are dedicated to helping meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of those who seek assistance when dealing with an unplanned pregnancy. Their focus is to protect the unborn and provide spiritual guidance in a Christ-centered environment. They administer free pregnancy tests, perform many life-affirming ultrasounds and provide for material needs such as diapers.

• Event Details

Date:  Saturday, Oct. 12, 2013 (rain or shine)

Location: Penguin Park, Kansas City, MO 64119 

• N.E. Vivion Road and North Norton
• Visit us at www.runforachild.com 

• Entry Fee
• Registration until 10/9 - $30
• After 10/9 & Race Day registration - $35
• Child 0-12 years old - $15

• Registration
• Online at www.runforachild.com until October 9, 2013
•     By mail, postmarked by October 5, 2013
•     On race day: registration is available 7:15 to 7:45 a.m. Race day registrants are not guaranteed a t-shirt, to be in the results or to receive a packet.

Rachel House – Run for a Child

4605 Paseo Blvd. Suite 200

Kansas City, MO 64110

816.921.5050

• Questions
• Contact us at runforachild@gmail.com

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State 4H contest

This past week has been busy.  Very busy.  I taught Tuesday, watched kiddos Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  Saturday was also the state competition for 4H .22 for Rebecca, and speech contest for Emily.  (Rebecca also qualified for state speech, but for some reason this year 4H did both contest on the same day, so she had to pick and .22 won).  So, Friday night, Emily, Rebecca and the little one I am watching loaded up and went and spent the night at my parents .  By staying there, we are 1 1/2 closer to Columbia, which made the Saturday early morning drive more enjoyable.  My mom went with us, and went to the speech contest with Emily while Rebecca and I headed to the range.

The range is outside of town, and a long hike from where you park to where you shoot .22.  A very long walk, as in a mile hike through the woods on a gravel path.  Last year I learned a trick--many families take a wagon to pull their stuff in to the range (gun, lawn chairs, food, drinks, shooting mat, ammo, diaper bag and baby).  That worked well going downhill to the range.  Then, we had to come back uphill to the car.  Lets just say my thighs were screaming by the time we got back to the car.  I also am developing a bone spur on the bottom of my left heel.  I was feeling that too.  Of course the two year old loved it.  "I love wagon rides.  This is a long wagon ride".  Yeah, a real long wagon ride.  I tried to get her to pull me, but she told me I was too big.

I still managed to get a couple more jars of tomatoes canned, and some peppers dehydrated.  I still need to get some more onions dehydrated as well.  The garden is slowing down, and the fall beans and peas are getting closer to being ready to pick.  I also went in and volunteered a shift at my fire station as well.  Between the canning and poison ivy, I had not been in for quite some time and was missing it.  With the garden slowing down I will be getting back into my routine with that fairly soon.

Thursday, my aunt passed away.  She was 94 years old  Please keep my cousins (her children) in your prayers, as well as the rest of the family.

The OffGrid Homemaker: My First Post

She is back!  I know some of my followers also followed agodlyhomemaker blog.  The internet ate it....so, she is back, with a new blog and I just wanted to share her first post and her new link.  It is below. 


The OffGrid Homemaker: My First Post: Welcome to my blog. The name says it all- I live off grid, meaning no electricity, and I am a homemaker. I am married to a truck driver and ...

Missing girl from my home county in Missouri

Please check this out, and pass it on.
This young lady has been missing now for 4 days--since Sept 8, 2013.  She lived in the area where I grew up and lived for almost 40 years.

MISSING

Elizabeth "Lizzy" Roseberry
DOB 6 May 1997 Age Now 16 years
Missing 8 Sep 2013 Sex Female
Height 5' 4" Weight 102lbs...
Eyes Blue Hair Red
Missing from Centerview, MO
Elizabeth has taken a small, brown and cream mixed breed/daushaund dog with her. 

She has been known to dye her hair coal black. 

If you have seen or have any information about Elizabeth please call the Johnson County Sherriff's Office at 660-747-5511 or 1-800-THE-LOST.

Her friends and family are desperate for her return.

Lizzy, if you can see this-please call your family, or a friend, or the sherriffs department and let them know you are ok or go to a police department, fire department or hospital.,  If you can't get home by yourself, they will help you. 

Not quite....

Poison ivy is not quite gone, but its finally ALL off my face now, and most of the places where I scratched it open and raw in my sleep are starting to finally heal.  After almost 6 weeks of it, its about time.

And, the lima beans, not quite ready, but getting close.   (See I can where my rings again!!  My fingers were broken out and swollen to the point I went a couple weeks without wearing my wedding rings and that just felt strange).

They just need a little more rain, and little more sunshine and a little more time.  Most of the lima beans I will freeze.  My husband prefers his lima beans frozen over canned.  And, since he is the biggest lima bean consumer of the house, I will grant him that wish.

Any idea where the lima bean originated????

Probably not where you think.

Lima beans have a long history.  They have been grown commercially in the United States since around the 1800's.

But, the earliest record of them, has them being grown in what is now coastal Peru by the Moche people in 2000 BC.  There are pictures of lima beans in their pottery.

Next weeks project

Next, I need to move the last canning spree pile from this week to the basement pantry from the dining room table....Our table is a large (14 foot) heavy harvest table.  Even as large and heavy asmy table is, I was afraid it was going to make the table start to bow.

That is 13 dozen jars filled of food.  There are a couple dozen more that I canned today (green beans, spaghetti sauce and tomatoes), but they are still cooling in the kitchen.  But, at least I got these moved to the top of the basement steps.  That's a start.

We need to get more shelves up--I am almost to the point that we are out of shelves.  And, I am almost out of jars again as well--down to just a few dozen left.

So far, all my jars have sealed (although some of the Main Stay brand from Walmart had to be reprocessed for seal failures).

I also decided that I know the real reason women had summer kitchens in the past years.  It really wasn't to keep the heat out of the house.  I think it was to keep the family out.  While I am canning today....my sterilized jars got moved by dirty hands, my sterilized sink to wash beans in got dirty dishes put in it, husband knocked over a glass and broke it, someone put dirty dishes in the dishwasher that had clean sterile jars in it, a plate of pizza got put on a hot burner, and an empty cat food can appeared on the counter, oh-and someone wanted to boil and egg in with my jar flats....  Next week I am sending them all out when I can.  Of course, when I asked who wanted to help snap beans, no one was to be found....

Green beans

Thursday I read the post on the Farming on Faith blog  about Jamesport MO and told my husband I would like to visit Jamesport, as I had never been.   His response was to take me this morning.  I can say I will be going back, and soon, and have a couple of friends who are interested in going with me.  We spent several hours shopping, and I got pectin and clear jel in bulk, as well as red hot candies to make some spice apple rings.  We also bought some produce, visited the harness shop (next time I will take a suitcase with me to have the leather handle replaced).  Since the bulk store in Cameron closed, I have had no place to purchase my flour and sugars in 50 lb bags.  I found 3 places that sold it in Jamesport--a 50 lb bag for LESS than what Walmart wants for a 20 lb bag.  We also visited a couple of auctions as well.  I was on the hunt for green beans, but found none....

But....daughter #2 lives near Clark MO where the Amish have a produce auction every Tuesday and Friday.  And, she was wonderful enough to go for me.  She got me 3 boxes of green beans and one of tomatoes.  She told me the green beans were 15 pound boxes--but, the one I weighed (after I had already snapped quite a few of them, weighed 22 lbs).  Green beans normally come out to 1 quart per half pound.  The first box has yielded 13 quarts, with the last batch in the pressure canner now.  I am going to have her pick me up some more the next time she comes up.  They received more rain and the produce in that area is more abundant and going much cheaper.  I was told that the same size box in Jamesport was $45 at the last auction.  She paid around $5 I think. (husband paid her, so I am not 100% sure on the price).

If you can green beans--remember they are a low acid food and must must must be pressure canned--not hot water bathed.

This box was actually around 26 lbs. before it was snapped.

All that was left after the ends were snapped off....

Outcome from the first box was 13 quarts.

I also cooked down several pounds of tomatoes that I picked from our garden last night.  I think I will do spaghetti sauce with them.  Since the stove was busy for the beans, I cooked them down in the electric roaster, and it worked out very well.

Kearney MO Mt Gilead School Days Programs for Septemer-November

All events will take place at the historical Mt Gilead school house on Plattsburg Rd in Kearney MO.  You need to call for reservations and for payment info.  Payment is $10 per person.

The School Day programs are traditional 1800s style school days with a focus on different topics.

   September 23 - War of 1812

   October 21 - Oregon Trail

   November 18 - Our Nation's Flag

It is a 4-hour program, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., for children in grades 1 - 8. Children will need to bring their own lunch. There is no microwave or stove to heat food.

Advanced reservation and payment are required.  For more information, call the James Farm & Museum at 816-736-8500.

Waiting on the Canner

Waiting on the canner to heat back up for tonight's last load to be canned.  Before next years canning season, I will get a new stove...I say that every year, but I will do it.  This one is the one my husband had in the house when we married.  The burners are sized so that I can only run one canner at a time, and I can only do a 16 quart canner.  It won't heat up my 23 or my 30 gallon ones--the burners are just too small, and according to the book with the stove, if the hot canner hangs over too far, it can crack the glass top.  I have my moms old stove in the basement, but we still have not gotten an outlet to it.  That is also on my list to do before next years canning season--then, I won't be heating up the entire ground floor and taking over the main kitchen.

My ideal stove is an old gas 5 burner stove--1950's style.  I used to have one and loved it.  I could run 2 canners at the same time and still cook a meal.  I have found a couple on craigslist, but someone always beats me to them.  So, the search continues.

As of tonight, I now have canned tomatoes, corn, dill pickles, bread and butter pickles, peaches, peach pie filling, apple pie filling, applesauce, apple jelly, and apple pancake syrup.  This weekend daughter #2 is bringing me a bunch of  green beans from an Amish market.  Those will also be canned.

The fall garden still looks good, so I also will be adding pumpkin pie filling, horticulture beans, peas, carrots, potatoes and lima beans.

Of course there is also the food I dehydrated as well--onions, potatoes, mint, spiced apple rings and more.

When all done, I will head to Aldi and purchase by the case where we are lacking.  The pantry will be all stocked for the next year, except for what we have to get or bake weekly, such as bread, milk, lettuce, eggs and such.

I will also be canning some soups and chilis-but not until it is cooler out.

I must admit, it will be nice to have the kitchen free of apples and peaches now--they were starting to draw in fruit flies, and I am getting tired of always wiping down the sticky it causes.

Tomorrow I also have to take everything canned so far down to the basement pantry.  I have been stacking the jars back into boxes and have piles of canned food on my table, kitchen bench and floor.  Then I can start all over this weekend with the beans.

Apple Jelly

Last night (actually more like very very early this morning) I added 9 pints of apple jelly to the pantry (well actually to the dinning room table as I have not made the trip downstairs with them yet).

I first cooked the apples down and mashed them, then they dripped through jelly bags that I had set all through the kitchen.   Then, the juice was processed into jelly.  It isn't the cleanest adventure....Kind of sticky--I think apple residue could double as kids glue.

What is left will become applesauce, but not until I run into the city to get a couple more bags of sugar (I get mine in 40 and 50 lb bags).  Since we lost Bob's Super in Kearney, I can't find it in large bags at a reasonable price, so as much as I hate it, I have to get it in Liberty or St Joseph at Walmart.

On a poison ivy update, I can now open both eyes, have good vision, and I think I can again venture out into public without scaring young children.  Yes, it was that bad on my face.  I even had a little kid at homeschool coop ask me what happened to my face.  He thought it was mosquito bites....

I'm in a music video

http://speedblog.speed.com/speed/video/exclusive-video-jordan-loves-stickers-premieres/

This music video was filmed at Kansas Speedway while I was working.  You can see me, and my partner, Paramedic Ben, in our golf cart/AKA infield rescue cart from the back. I'm the driver.  You can see me at 1:38.

Civil Air Patrol for Lee's Summit (Kansas City MO area)

Our Civil Air Patrol squadron open house for the public  will be held on Tuesday,  Sept 10 at 7 p.m. at the hanger located at 2525 NE Douglas (at Lee's Summit Airport).  

Civil Air Cadets are aged 12-18 years, Civil Seniors are 18 years and older.  If you are interested, you can join our group.  Or, you can just come and check us out!

Don't know what Civil Air Patrol is (CAP)?  It is actually a division of the United States Air Force, but for civilians.  You can read more about it at http://lscap.org/

More apples and sadly, more poison ivy...

The poison ivy continues to spread....ugh...I have a little more on my face, and a lot more on my arms, legs and hands.  Someone suggested I try tea tree oil on my poison ivy-and I have been, except on my face. Meanwhile, benadryl continues to be my best friend....

I am working more on apples today.  I have some apple chips in the dehydrator right now.  Just like potato chips, but made of apples.  Easy to make.

Peel and core your apples into rings.  Soak in lemon water.  Dip in cinnamon and sugar, and place into dehydrator.  Simple and yummy.

It will take several hours (as in all night) to dry them out to a nice crispy state.

While they are drying, I am working on making more apple pie filling, and some candied apple rings.  Hopefully I will finish up this bushel tonight.  I ran into town earlier today and bought 5 more cases of quart jars.  Hopefully that will get me through the rest of the canning this year.

Apples...

Yesterday (Saturday) it rained all day, off and on--or so I am told (I was in a benadryl sleep induced fog most of the day).  Storms came through during the night, and this morning when we got to church we discovered most of the town had no electricity.  So, like our forefathers, we had church by candle and lamplight.  It was kid of neat.

Afterwards, we headed up to Maryville for my cousin Bills 65 birthday party.  I saw a couple of cousins who I had not seen in several years, so that was nice.

Tonight, I started in on my apples.  I have a bushel plus.  I got the "plus" part worked up to 6 quarts of apple pie filling.  And, I have about run out of quart jars.  I could do the apple pie filling in pints, but, since a pie takes a quart of filling, it makes more sense to conserve jars, rings and flats and just can it by the quart.

It was really a simple project...sort of.  The hardest part was getting my peeler/corer fastened onto the cabinet.

It is so much faster to use this device, although it does make a mess.  I tried to put a paper bag or cardboard under it when fastening it to the cabinet, but that just makes it slide.

After peeled and cored, I slice the rings into fourths.  Its kind of cool--the peel comes off in one long piece, and the apples come off in a spiral.

The slices are then soaked in a mixture of cold water and lemon juice.

Then, I made my gooey syrup  filling stuff--I used a 64 oz jar of apple juice, about a  1/2 cup of corn starch, and about 3 cups of sugar and a tablespoon or so of *apple pie spice*, and a teaspoonful of salt.  As it cooked, I added some more water as it started to thicken.  (Sorry, but I am one of those people who doesn't exactly measure.  And, I don't know the technical name of the gooey syrup stuff either.)  You have to keep stirring it or it will stick.  *I get apple pie spice from an Amish store--it is a mixture of nutmeg, clove and cinnamon.  You can easily make your own, or just season to taste*

I  rinsed off the apple pieces, packed tight into a quart jar, then added the gooey stuff to about 1/2 inch from the top.  I removed the bubbles, put on the flats and rings and put them into a water bath canner for 25 minutes.

After 25 minutes, I turned off  the heat to the canner, removed the lid, and let it sit for about 5 minutes.  Then, I removed them from the canner and placed on a towel.  Never let a cool draft near your jars--I had one crack once when I did that....

I am down to only 2 quart jars left, so tomorrow I guess I go round up more jars!