through the Bible in 90 days

  This isn't really regular programing here,  but I wanted to write about something I'm doing.  I've started reading the Bible in 90 days.  I've done this once before so I know what I'm getting myself into.  I'm really excited.  These past few weeks have been really tiring and it's become increasingly apparent that the most important thing I can do as a mom is read my Bible all the time.  Reading on a fast schedule like this puts everything in a different perspective.  For instance, it was once a drudgery to get through Leviticus,  it was so long and by the time you're near the end you could really care less who the Levites were and why they had a bunch of laws.  On this schedule Leviticus takes 2 and a half days and it's actually really fascinating in the perspective of the Exodus account.  The reading takes me about 45 minutes.  I read here and there throughout the day and then just finish up when the boys are in bed.  I like reading around the boys because they inevitably will ask about what I'm reading.  It's made for some memorable conversations.
Anyways,  that's what I'm doing these days.  If you're interested here's the schedule.

Ranch Dressing

We are pretty addicted to this stuff.  When I was pregnant with Bennett we started going through bottles of ranch dressing like nobody's business.  We almost never eat salad, but we put ranch dressing on everything. Have you ever looked at the ingredients?  First of all there are tons of them and sugar is only third on the list.  I'm a bit on the hypoglycemic side so I need to limit my sugar and it really bugs me when something that is not even sweet uses up my sugar quota.  There is also MSG and a bunch of ingredients I can't say.  Since this is hardly 'real food' there is no longer a place for bottled ranch dressing in our home.  This is not as sad as it seems because I have finally found a recipe I love.


'Real Food' Ranch

homemade sour cream
onion flakes
parsley flakes
dill
salt
apple cider vinegar

No measuring, just throw it all together until it tastes good, add yogurt or kefir to make it a bit more like dressing.


this post was shared at domestically divine tuesdays, Real Food Wednesdays and healthy 2day Wednesdays.

Baby Bum Balm

I love this stuff!!  It's really easy to make and really cheap and it really works.

Baby Bum Balm

3 parts olive oil

1 part beeswax

vitamin E oil.

put the olive oil and beeswax in a jar and place the jar in a pot of boiling water.

I'm also making hand lotion.

When it's melted, add a little bit of vitamin E oil,  about 1/4 tsp. 

I poured it into an old diaper cream tin.

Let it cool in the fridge.  That's all you have to do.  This stuff works really well,  Bennett had a pretty good diaper rash when I made this for him and it cleared it up super fast.  It's so cheap you can use it at every diaper change to prevent a rash.

My master plan is to have an amazing garden this summer and to grow calendula flowers in it.  Then, I will infuse the oil with calendula flowers before I make the bum balm.  Apparently calendula is really good for treating rashes, eczema and even fungal infections.

Also,  I couldn't find beeswax in stores,  maybe I didn't look in the right places or maybe stores don't carry it because nobody else is interested in making things from beeswax.  So,  I called up a local bee keeper,  they had lots of beeswax they were happy to get rid of.  It was a win win.


This post was shared at Simple Lives Thursday and Your Green Resource Thursdays.

Spaghetti Squash Casserole

Sorry I've been away for awhile.  We've been having some internet issues, so posting has been difficult.  Things seen better today,  so I'll give this a try.

This is something I tried the other day.  I really love the not eating wheat thing, however sometimes I just don't know what to eat.  I'm so used to noodles and sauce.  So, I bought a spaghetti squash.  I cooked it up with spaghetti sauce and lots of cheese and it was delicious.

Spaghetti Squash Casserole

There is a strange urge deep inside me that makes me try to cook everything in my crock pot. So, In case you ever wanted to know,  yes you can cook a spaghetti squash in your crock pot.

I cut it in 8 pieces, removed the seeds and added about an inch of water to my crock pot.  It cooked on low all day, when I wanted to make supper it was ready.

I scraped the squash from the skins and put it in my casserole dish and added butter and salt and a good layer of cheese.

 Then I added my spaghetti sauce and some more cheese and baked it in my oven for 20 minutes at 350 F.

Here's my recipe for spaghetti sauce

1 lb ground beef
1 onion
1 red pepper
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp each of oregano, basil and salt
28oz. diced tomatoes

Brown the ground beef,  add onion and pepper,  cook until soft. Add garlic, oregano, basil, salt and tomatoes and simmer for 15 minutes.


This post has been shared at Real Food Wednesdays,  Healthy 2day Wednesdays, and Frugal Days Sustainable Ways.

Pictures of our trip

Indiana, Bennett and I checking out the bearded dragon

Indiana

Aleksei playing with bubbles

How I spent my morning,  visiting with an old friend.

Our super-cool friends Teegan and Travis who let us stay at their house.

Road Trip!!!

We are heading out for a weekend of fun.  We are going to meet my family at the science center and visit some muchly loved friends.  We often do short road trips in the summer but it never occurred to us that we could do this in the winter too.  Since we are homeschooling,  it's about high time that we made field trips a priority, I say.
So,  the point of this post.... What are we going to eat?  A day or two of fast food can really send us for a loop. We are now mostly a wheat-free family, so sandwiches are out.  Lots of fresh fruit and vegetables are great, however I need some protein or I'll fall over and we can't eat nuts because of  Indiana's allergy.  So, I tried something new and I'm so glad it worked out, cause I think this is our answer.

Roasted Chick Peas

I cooked some chick peas in my crock pot.  Then I dumped them onto a towel and dried them.

 Then I put them on a baking sheet and drizzled them with olive oil and stirred them around a bit.  Next I baked them at 400 F for 40 mins.  I stirred them every ten minutes.  When they are crunchy, not soft, they are done.  As soon as they were out of the oven I sprinkled salt, curry powder, cumin and paprika on them.

YUMMM... the boys love them too.  I'll have to make more before we even go on our trip.

Shared at Recipe Swap Friday at grocerycartchallenge.blogspot.com