Growing Lettuce

I tried to grow lettuce last year but it didn't work out all that well.  This year, I started from seed just to see what would happen.  Check it out!

We have already harvested our first crop.  It tastes yummy!  A few nights ago, we had burgers with homegrown meat, homemade hamburger buns and our very own lettuce.  You just can't beat that!

Health Magazine

When we ordered our latest bulk food order, we were given a copy of a magazine the company puts out.  I have read quite a bit of it and it’s very interesting.  Did you know the top two killers in the U.S. are heart disease and cancer?  Could this be due to the American diet?  I don’t see why not.  Most Americans eat a diet high in fat, preservatives, additives, hydrogenated oils, etc.  How much processed food is in your cabinet?  Heart disease and cancer are not diseases you get just because of age.  I believe, for the most part, they are diseases you get because of poor lifestyle choices.  You cannot expect your body to remain healthy when it is fed junk and never exercised. 

According to Dr. Esselstyn (a doctor and researcher featured in the film Forks Over Knives), 

“Cardiovasuclar disease is a benign, food-related illness that can be halted.  Cardiovascular disease is almost non-existent in China, Papua New Guinea, central Africa, and the Tarahumara Indians of northern Mexico.  These are largely plant-based cultures.”   

Now, I don’t believe your diet has to be completely plant based, however, most Americans don’t eat very many plants at all.  The sauce on your pizza should not be your only vegetable! 

“Eighty-five percent of common, chronic, killing diseases in Western civilization are diet-related,” Dr. Esselstyn says.  “The single most important thing is what goes through your lips.  That determines whether your disease progresses or regresses.  If everyone started eating to save their heart, we’d really empty out the hospitals.  This same approach doesn’t apply only to the heart.  It applies to other organs as well.”

This is my kind of magazine!  I am amazed at what people eat and consider it to be healthy.  Most of the time, they just don’t consider it at all.  They don’t think it’s a big deal to eat all that junk.  Changing your diet and lifestyle happens one step at the time.  You can’t do it all over night but you should try as hard as you can.  Make significant changes.  Follow the baby steps I have outlined to get you started. 

I’ll be honest.  The hardest part about it is the outside world.  People will look at you funny or even give you a hard time because you won’t eat everything at the potluck.  They may criticize you or call you weird.  We have been through it all…sadly.  Most of it came from people we are closest to.  Why is it that when you make a better choice for your life, like eating right, people get so worked up about it?  They are actually the “weird” ones because they choose to fuel their bodies with chemicals and nothingness then expect a doctor to fix it all later. 

No matter what, take the leap.  Do what is right and you will feel much better.  Your body will feel great and you will get tougher over time as your loved ones question you.  Stand strong and do it.

By the way, just because a food is healthy doesn’t mean it’s nasty.  We don’t eat lettuce and tree bark for supper.  (Just check out some of the recipes on this blog.)  In fact, we think our food is much tastier than traditional American food!  Maybe that’s because our taste buds are awake and not coated with additives and chemicals?!

Clean food is fulfilling

Did You Know?

Did you know that organic plain yogurt can be used in the place of sour cream?  We put organic plain yogurt on tacos, baked potatoes, you name it!

I like this idea because there is less to buy at the store...I don't need to buy sour cream.  Anything that makes shopping faster makes me happy!  PLUS, I know we're getting something good because the yogurt is organic.  You don't get all those live, active cultures in sour cream!

If you haven't noticed, organic plain yogurt is pretty versatile.  For example, you can also make dip with it instead of sour cream.  Like this taco dip  or this ranch dip.

So, get with it!  Toss out that sour cream and buy yourself something good.
 

from here

Homemade Ranch Dip Mix

Ok, so, I like ranch dip and I wanted to learn how to make it myself so I could make it healthier.
Here it is!
1Tb dried parsley
1/2 tsp garlic
1tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp salt

Mix that together and add it to 3/4c of plain, organic yogurt.

Then stick a carrot in it and enjoy!

As you can see, I had already eaten a bunch!

Our Favorite Things

I added a special section in the sidebar called "Our Favorite Things."  Here you will find links to some of the products we regularly use in our home.  These are natural products, of course.

It has taken us two years of research to come to where we are (and we're still learning) so hopefully this section will give you a headstart.

We order these products from Lucky Vitamin.  There is something magical about having them shipped to your house!  I don't like to shop and these things aren't offered in any store I've been in so Lucky Vitamin makes it easy.  We order in bulk to get the free shipping and it also cuts down on the number of times we have to order.  Love it!

Check it out and enjoy!

Love, the homesteaders :)

Sweet Potatoes in the Front Yard

A perk to "farming" a suburban lot is you get to be really creative!  As we were planning our garden several months back we decided to use the flower bed in the front yard wisely.  Tomatoes would look silly growing there but sweet potatoes would look almost ornamental!  So, that's what we did.  We planted sweet potatoes in the front yard.

Yesterday was harvest day so Mr. Right started digging.

A big one!

Lots of sweet potatoes!

Hubs found this snake in the flower bed too! 

After a bunch of scrubbing, I finally ended up with these pretty things.

All the sweet potatoes together weighed in at 4 1/2 pounds.  (The pan weighed half a pound so it reads 5 lbs on the scale.)

We didn't fertilize or water much, there were two other bushes growing in the flower bed too and it still had some lava rocks from sometime before.  So don't think you can't do it!  Plant a few sweet potato vines next year and enjoy the fall harvest!

The Beef is Coming! The Beef is Coming!

My sister-in-law and her husband have been raising serveral cows to split with family and friends so we can have some natural beef.  Well, I got an email from her that said the beef would be ready November 13th.  Whoo!  In about two weeks, I'll have half a cow in my deep freeze.  I need to get busy and make sure there is room!  I'm not sure how much our cow weighs so I don't know how much meat to expect but I'll take anything.  It's been too long since we've had beef!

Steak, brisket, ground beef.....makes my mouth water.  I think we'll have meat every night for a week!

photo from here

There is so much to learn about the beef you buy in supermarkets.  If you get started researching, you might not eat your supper tonight....but that's ok.

According to Food Inc., "Approximately 10 billion animals (chickens, cattle, hogs, ducks, turkeys, lambs and sheep) are raised and killed in the US annually. Nearly all of them are raised on factory farms under inhumane conditions. These industrial farms are also dangerous for their workers, pollute surrounding communities, are unsafe to our food system and contribute significantly to global warming."

Here is some information I found on MotherEarthNews:
"The [supermarket] beef contains traces of hormones, antibiotics and other chemicals that were never produced by any cow. That hamburger looks fresh, but it may be two weeks old and injected with gases to keep it cherry red. Take a closer look at that “guaranteed tender and juicy” filet of beef. The juiciness may have been “enhanced” with a concoction of water, salt, preservatives and other additives.
More ominous, the beef also may be infected with food-borne bacteria, including E. coli 0157:H7. Some experts believe this toxic E. coli evolved in cattle that were fed high-grain diets. Every year, hundreds of thousands of pounds of beef products are recalled. One of the largest recalls to date took place in October 2007 when Topps Meat company recalled 21.7 million pounds of hamburger because of potential E. coli contamination. The massive recall actually put the company out of business."

Read more: http://www.motherearthnews.com/Sustainable-Farming/2008-02-01/What-You-Need-to-Know-About-the-Beef-You-Eat.aspx#ixzz1cOHshZyv

Just remember, that's not beef you're eating if you bought it at the supermarket.  It's manufactured meat and the process it took to get it to you is astounding.

Do yourself a favor and watch Food, Inc.  Here's the link: http://www.foodincmovie.com/.  It's a very researched and thoughtfully put together film.  This is the push that really got us going on our real meat journey.

Keep in mind that you don't have to know someone who owns a farm to have good beef.  There are local markets that offer grass-fed beef.  Look beyond the supermarket.  Here is one in the Little Rock area http://www.argentamarket.com/.  It may cost a little more but it's worth it for your health.  It may just mean that you don't eat beef as many times a week as you'd like.  There is more to life than beef for dinner!  

If you don't have a family member who will raise a cow for you (and most people don't), shop wisely.  Here is a short "decoder" to better help you understand what is on your beef's food label:

• USDA Certified Organic — 100% organic grass, corn, grain; “access” to pasture required, but not defined; antibiotics only given to sick animals, which are then removed from the program; growth-hormones prohibited; animal welfare criteria vague.
• American Grassfed Association – Grass only; access to pasture required, animals spend the majority of their lives on pasture; antibiotics only given to sick animals, which are then removed from the program; growth-hormones prohibited; animal welfare criteria vague.
• USDA Certified Grassfed – Grass, if an animal consumes something other than grass it must be documented, but it can still bear the label; “access” to pasture required, but not defined; antibiotics allowed; growth hormones allowed; animal welfare not addressed.
• Certified Humane Raised & Handled – Grass, corn, grain allowed; access to pasture not required; antibiotics only given to sick animals; growth hormones prohibited; animal welfare requirements quite specific addressing health, shelter, and handling.
• Food Alliance Certified – Grass, corn, grain allowed; access to pasture required, animals spend the majority of their lives on pasture; antibiotics only given to sick animals; growth hormones prohibited; animal welfare requirements quite specific addressing health, shelter, and handling.
• Animal Welfare Approved — Grass, corn, grain allowed; access to pasture required, animals spend the majority of their lives on pasture; antibiotics only given to sick animals; growth hormones prohibited; animal welfare requirements quite specific addressing health, shelter, and handling.  foodrenegade.com

Can Goats Travel?

This is just a rant...
It would be really nice to have fresh milk.  However, our backyard is too small for a cow (I'm not sure the city would allow that anyway!) and that's A LOT of milk.  But a goat....a goat would be perfect.  We could get a little goat.  There's a problem though.  We like to travel.  When we go see Hubby's family we load the dog up in his crate and he rides in the back of the SUV.  Guess we could get a goat crate?  If we went camping, we could take the goat.  It could go for walks with us like Ranger does.
But...what about when we go places where pets aren't allowed?  Ranger has an automatic feeder so he's good for a weekend or so but someone would have to milk the goat.  Maybe we could train the goat to operate an automatic milker.  I'm sure with Ranger's help, they could figure it out.  OK...not really.
I guess I've found my answer.  Goats can't travel or stay alone and we would need a REALLY good friend to milk twice a day.  That's too much of a burden.
Eh... no goat for me.

Do any of you have goats?  What do you do if you want to leave town for a few days?

Looks yummy!