Handprints on the Wall

Months had gone by since I’d seen my friend Adelia at our last visit together at the Corn Frolic, and I was dying to ask her all kinds of questions about starting my garden. So, I called her up one day and asked her if we could come and visit later in the week; of course she said “Sure!” as usual.

I hadn’t been at her house long when Mrs. Hope came by with her kids to pick up some fresh milk. I guess her goats weren’t producing at the time, so she had to “settle” for cow’s milk. I listened as Mrs. Hope asked Adelia what she owed her for the 2 gallons of milk, and Adelia replied, “Awww, just bring me some bread.” I thought that was really cool. It makes me think that this must have been the way it used to be back in the “good ol’ days”; sharing and trading with your neighbors. How many of us today even know our neighbors?

Hope stayed a while, which was cool ’cause she knows a lot about farm living, and she was able to give me some good advice too. We all sat down in the living room, eight little ones crowded together on the floor watching a video while us Mommies talked. I jumped right into my questions.

I explained that I wanted to start a garden, but I didn’t know where to even begin. All I had was a big yard, ready and waiting. They both told me that really I should have had it “turned over” by now, meaning tilled up and rows ready. I guess it’s good to let it sit exposed to the weather for a few months before you plant in it. Immediately I felt behind on my project. I decided to go home and ask my dear husband that very day if he could borrow his mom’s tiller and get my garden area turned over.

I shared with the ladies how excited I was about ordering my first heirloom seeds off the internet. Hope asked me who I used, and when I told her Heirloom Acres, she knew of them and said that she had ordered from them before. I didn’t realize that she used heirloom seeds too. She told me next time before I order I should ask her and Adelia if they have any of the seeds I want. Wish I’d known that! Well, it was really nice of her to offer. This perked Mrs. Adelia up and she left the room for a minute, only to return with some jars of her own seeds. After showing them to Hope, she filled some bags for her to take home. She offered some to me as well, but I had already ordered the very same seeds. I learned my lesson though; ask around before I buy!

I went on to tell them that I had been reading up on how to take care of all of these plants that I planned on growing in my garden, and that it seemed to me like it could get quite expensive buying all of the recommended types of fertilizers and things. Adelia told me that gardening is like any hobby: you can go all out and spend a fortune on it, or you can do it in a thrifty, yet productive way. They both explained to me that neither of them use fertilizers or synthetic products on their gardens. All they use is manure. Chicken, cow, and rabbit manure. They asked me if I have access to any manure, and I told them that my parents-in-law have chickens. Adelia also said, “Well, there’s a whole pasture behind us full of manure that you are welcome to”. That was so sweet of her! (The inner voice in my city girl head is laughing right now at the thought of my joy over the gift of cow poop…). Really though, it was nice to know that I had some connections.

So I’m going to try gardening their way, the old school, frugal and natural way, and not use any fertilizers or pesticides. I don’t see the point in spending a fortune on a garden when the whole idea of it is to grow my own food to save money! I do want to learn the whole composting thing too. Mrs. Adelia doesn’t compost because she gives all of their food scraps to the pigs. I’m not sure about Hope… I need to ask her.

While we were talking, Adelia remembered that she had planned on showing me how to make butter while I was there. She went over to her kitchen table where she had about 5 quart jars full of the cream off the top of the milk. She handed one to each of us, and to the older kids, and asked us to shake them for a while. So, we all shook our jars as we talked.

I listened intently as Mrs. Hope told me all about her garden, and how to use the manure. She told me not to put manure directly into the hole with the plant, because it heats up and will burn the plant. Instead it is better to work it into the soil long before planting is done. And if, once the plants are in the ground, they begin to look malnourished, it’s good to spread a little manure in a circle around the plant, far enough out that it won’t soak down into the roots and burn them. (She told me all the technical terms and names for the gases emitted in this process and all that, but I couldn’t tell you what all was said. This is just my simple version of what I got out of our conversation.) Good stuff to know.

I expressed my concern that I may be overwhelmed with all that I am planning on planting this year. The ladies gave me some much needed encouragement. They told me not to feel like I have to get all of the harvest picked and canned at once. Hope said, “Even if you only get 10% picked and canned, that’s 10% more than you would have had.” They told me not to feel like I have to do it all at once. When the next season comes, I can try getting a little more done; to work my way into it. They both told me that it’s taken them 10 years to get where they are now. It was nice to hear that.

After about 15 minutes or so of shaking our jars, we started to notice that the cream was changing into a thicker, lumpy consistency. Adelia told me that that was the butter, and if I shook longer it would turn from the pale color it was, to a bright yellow like the butter we are used to seeing. When the jars were finished, she took them into the kitchen and poured the buttermilk out of the jars, leaving only the butter. As she was doing this she asked us, “Do either of you want some buttermilk?” I envisioned trying to drink a glass of fresh buttermilk and was immediately disgusted. “No, thanks,” I said politely. Hope declined as well. But a few minutes later Hope changed her mind, saying, “You know, I believe I will take some of that buttermilk.” I watched as Adelia poured the last bit of buttermilk into a quart jar and handed it to Hope saying, “I’m glad you spoke up when you did, I was just about to pour it out.” It was then that I realized that the buttermilk was not being offered as a drink, but to take home and cook with! Duh!! I kicked myself. I totally could have used that to make waffles or biscuits or something with! Oh well. I tried to hide my embarrassment.

I gotta start thinking more like a country girl if I’m gonna try to live like one!

Anyways, Adelia went on to show me how she makes the butter. She dumped the unfinished butter onto a cheese cloth and put it into a bowl of water. She squished it around, and worked the water through it, until the water came through clear. She said it will spoil if you don’t get all of the buttermilk out of the butter. Then she pressed the finished product into a small, empty yogurt container, and placed it in her freezer. There she stores it until it is needed. Pretty cool!

I totally lost track of time, and about 4 hours into our visit I realized I’d better head home for lunch. Little Titus had been busying himself in the kitchen playing with a big barrel of pecans. Adelia had him fill a grocery bag FULL of the nuts to send home with us. The older kids had migrated outside, and were running amok. I stepped out the front door to find Jada and Hope’s little boy, terrorizing the chickens, chasing them with long sticks and laughing together as they ran. (I don’t think she would really hit one with it, they were just enjoying the thrill of the chase.) I rounded up my reluctant little tyrant, and we said our goodbyes.

What a nice visit! I went home with a mission: to get my garden turned over, and to start collecting some manure! I’m so glad to have some help along the way!

Okay, to continue my story, if you missed the first part, make sure to read it first!

Oh yes, we were all sitting around outside the Summer Kitchen, peeling potatoes and talking:

My sister and I were picking the other women’s brains about everything we could imagine, from gardening to raising children.

Hope shared with us a little more about the corn frolic. Not only were they going to be picking the corn, but they were also going to be grinding it to make cornmeal. She showed me three different types of corn grinders that they would be using, all from different eras. Two were hand crank type grinders, and one was a huge, tractor operated grinder. She told us that the tractor grinder was actually really rare. The cornmeal is mostly used to make corn bread.

As Mrs. Hope was telling us about her corn, she also explained to us that there are two kinds of plants: “open-pollinated” and “hybrid”, the first of which is what she and Mrs. Adelia use in their gardens. I’ll explain the difference:

“Open-pollinated” means that the plants cross naturally; it’s pollen is carried by the wind, bees, and other natural ways. When the seeds of these plants are saved and replanted, the next generation will look just like the first. These plants may not produce fruits that are perfect in shape or color, but the taste is true, and far superior to any other. The seeds can be passed down for generations.

“Hybrid” plants are artificially pollinated. They are genetically modified to produce certain characteristics such as uniform shape and size, and increased productivity. In the quest for the seemingly perfect cross of plants, much of the flavor is sacrificed in the process. The seeds from these plants are sterile, or will grow a plant which produces no fruit, so you cannot keep the seeds; you’ll have to keep buying more.

The seeds that you buy in pretty little packages at the store are hybrids.

Heirloom seeds are open-pollinated, and have been passed down for a hundred or more years, from generation to generation. They produce the most flavorful, and beautifully unique fruits. Since they originated before the advent of pesticides and chemical fertilizers, they respond better to more organic farming methods, such as compost and manure. These are the kinds of seeds that Mrs. Hope uses in her garden, and I have ordered for my own. You can buy them from catalogs or online, or you may be lucky enough to find a distributor in your area.

I ordered my seeds from Heirloom Acres. I haven’t received them yet, so I don’t know how good they are, but Mrs. Hope told me that she has ordered from them before, and was happy with their products.

I had no idea about any of this. I’ve tried saving seeds from produce that I had bought at the store, thinking that I could just plant them in my garden, whenever I started one. I had no idea that had I planted those seeds, it would have all been for nothing!

We also learned about having a milking cow. See, I thought that a milking cow always gave milk, that’s just what she’s for. Well, it’s a little more involved than that. To get a female to be a milk cow, you have to breed her. The cow needs to have recently had a calf, or been continuously nursed (or milked) to keep producing milk. The animal is “fresh” when she is able to be milked. But gradually, she will dry up, and you will need to breed her again. (I need to find out just how long you can milk a cow before she dries up.) Adelia told me that a cow is like a nursing mother- supply and demand. The more you milk her, the more she’ll produce. So, she will be able to nurse the calf, and still provide enough milk for your family as well. You just have to make sure that the calf gets the colostrum (the first milk), or it won’t survive.

While we were sitting, talking, a few more people arrived. I got to meet another young couple about my age, who also had a small child. They, too, are on their way to self-sufficient living; far further along than I am though. They moved here from out of state, with Bachelor’s Degrees in Organic Farming. They also Bee Keep.They were very nice people. I’d actually love to get to know them better too! I’m sure I could really learn a lot from them.

Our conversation soon went towards the upcoming Winter, and our thoughts on how bad or mild it might be. Adelia told us of an old Folklore: if you crack open a Persimmons seed, the shape of the inside will tell you what the winter’s weather will be. If it’s shaped like a spoon, it’s like you’ll be shoveling snow, and it will be a heavy winter. If it’s shaped like a fork, the snow will be very light, like a dusting. And if it’s shaped like a knife, it will just be cutting cold. I guess it’s really hard to crack one open though! I thought this was pretty interesting, and it got me wondering about other ways of watching nature to predict the weather (that will be a whole other post!)

When we finished preparing the food, Hope had her daughter round up two large goats, and hook them up to a little carriage that they had fashioned for the children to ride in. Each child got to take a ride in the little two seater, as the goats carried them down the gravel driveway and back. Hope’s daughter walked alongside the goats, keeping them on course. I rode along with little Titus, holding him tightly as I was pretty unsure of the safety of the whole contraption! Jada had a great time riding along with another little girl. I’d say that whole thing probably wasn’t the safest idea, but I just kept my fingers crossed and the kids really enjoyed it!

All too quickly my sister and I had to be on our way. We were supposed to be home, cooking dinner for our hard working husbands. Mrs. Hope and Adelia were disappointed that we didn’t get to stay and actually watch the whole “frolic”. We rounded up our filthy, happy children and said our goodbye’s. Just before we left, Hope brought me a huge bundle of dried, colorful corn tied to a long string. She said she gives one to everyone who helps at the frolic. She told me that I could grind it to make cornmeal, or I could pop the kernels off and plant them for my own corn next season. Cool!

Me and “sis” talked all the way home about all that we had learned. We wanted so badly to be able to stay longer. Hopefully next year I’ll be invited again, and will be able to stay the whole time. I truly value the time spent that day, and all of the neat things learned. It’s so neat to be in the midst of people who have so much for you to learn from. I feel very blessed to have come into acquaintance with such neat people, and such different lifestyles.

This past October, Mrs. Hope (a friend of Adelia’s), who after hearing that I am interested in living more self-sufficiently, kindly invited me to her annual Corn Frolic. Not knowing what in the world to expect, I was very excited about the event. Mrs. Hope is a lot like Adelia, in that she is striving to be totally self sufficient, and is living very frugally off of her own farm, so I was anxious to be in her company as well as Mrs. Adelia’s. My sister was in town, so I brought her along with me, as she has been wanting to meet Mrs. Adelia for a while now. We loaded our three little ones into my van, and met at Adelia’s house to follow her down the winding country roads to Miracle Farms, Mrs. Hopes place.

Hope is a goat woman. She loves her goats, and boasts of the superiority (in her opinion) of their milk to any other. She also gardens, and has quite a bit of acreage of corn fields. Every fall she hosts a “Corn Frolic” in which she invites friends and neighbors to come for food and fellowship, along with lots of corn picking, shucking and grinding. It’s a fun social event, but it’s also a real help to Hope’s family as they have a lot of corn to manage.

There is even fun for the kids. As Hope plants her corn earlier in the year, she incorporates Red Corn into her crop. Then during harvest time, at the Corn Frolic, she makes a game out of finding the hidden Red Corn in the fields. The kids enjoy hunting for this special corn, and earn a dollar for every red ear they can gather.

As we arrived, we parked our cars in the grassy yard, and unloaded all of the kids. I helped carry some tables from Adelia’s van to set up for the supper later on. Hope was planning a Chicken Stew for the event. The first time I was ever invited to a Chicken Stew I had no idea what it was. I knew what chicken stew was, but not A Chicken Stew. For those of you like me, let me explain: in Fall it is popular in this area to host a Chicken Stew, where you cook a ton of the stew in a large pot, usually all day long outside, until the chicken is falling off the bone. I’ve heard that sometimes they add rabbit or squirrel to the stew as well, though I never ask! Usually tons and tons of people come. Many bring deserts, and all share in the delicious, piping hot meal. It’s always really good, especially on a chilly Fall night!

We had arrived at Hope’s a little early, so we helped with the dinner preparations. The kids all ran off to play in a sandy hole in the ground, while us ladies went to work. Looking around me I noticed three buildings, so I asked Hope what they were. She explained that the large old barn to our left had been on their neighbor’s land, and he had wanted it moved. So Hope and her husband painstakingly moved it onto their land themselves (as it would have cost them thousands of dollars to have it moved professionally) and are in the process of remodeling it into their home. There was a very small log home to the right, which had been Hope’s parent’s first home. They had also moved it onto their land with the intention of living in it while the other home was being worked on, but they ended up getting sick from lead paint inside, and were unable to stay there. And lastly, there was a small cinder block building in between the other two that Hope calls her “Summer Kitchen”. Her and her husband had gathered the blocks from a building that was being torn down. They washed them up, and built the little one room kitchen, which is now a great place to do the canning in the summer time to keep the heat out of the house.

We all pulled up a chair underneath a small covered place in front of the Summer Kitchen, and started peeling potatoes and shredding chicken. I was given a huge bowl of potatoes, and a knife. I’m so used to a potato peeler, it took a little getting used to using only a knife to peel. They didn’t seem to mind that our hands hadn’t been washed, or that the potatoes were probably getting dirty from the blowing winds. I guess they figured they’d be washed before they were cooked.

It was so incredibly peaceful sitting around with these other women on a beautifully warm afternoon, peeling potatoes and talking about gardening and livestock. My sister and I asked a ton of questions, some of which they smiled at, no doubt humored by our naiveté. Yet they were kind enough to share all of their gathered wisdom with the two newcomers. Every now and then one of the kids came toddling over needing something, but it was so funny just watching them, especially the littlest ones, off on their own, playing and not caring where Mommy was or what she was doing. What a wonderful life this is.

We learned lots of new things during our visit, about milking cows, growing corn, predicting the weather, and more, but I believe this post is long enough for now. So, this one will be continued… Hope you’re able to come back for more!

It’s Apple Pickin’ Time, and last weekend I had my first experience picking apples. My good friend, Mrs. Adelia, called me Saturday, and told me that they were picking apples and invited me to come join in. I was so excited! Me and Jada jumped in the van and went to meet them at her Father-in-law’s house. He has over 100 apple trees, all ripe and ready to be harvested!

When we got there, Adelia and her family, plus a friend, were already busy picking up the apples. I had never picked apples from a tree before, but I imagined that we would just walk around under the tree and pick ripe apples from it’s limbs. I was surprised when Adelia’s husband climbed a ladder beside one of the trees, reached over to one of the higher branches, and gave it a really good shake! The apples all came falling down to the ground with a hail-storm like thudding! We all made sure to get out of the way when we saw he was about to shake again.

Once the trees were empty, and the apples covered the grass below, we all swooped in to gather the beautiful fruit. We had “good” buckets, and “bad” buckets. The buckets that we filled with the bad apples were fed to the cows, and probably the pig too. I thought we would just pick out the good ones, but we got them all up, which made sense as we were able to weed the good from the bad easier. And the bad apples were picked up and not just left to rot. I wasn’t sure what classified an apple as “bad” though. Some had spots on them where an insect had clearly eaten some of it, but most of the apple still looked good. Adelia told me that they bad apples were the ones that looked like something had really eaten down into it. So, if there were minor blemishes, they were fine. I quickly learned to distinguish good from truly bad.

We had no problem filling bucket after bucket with really nice apples. Once the buckets were full, we emptied them into a big trailer that they were pulling behind a 4-wheeler. We picked apples for about 4 hours. I really enjoyed the whole gathering process, and especially the fellowship with friends. The only thing that was somewhat bothersome was that there were tons of bees, yellow jackets, and hornets all over the fallen apples. At first I was extremely cautious around them, but after a while of them not seeming to mind us, I relaxed a little and got used to them being there. But, about halfway through the picking process I must have grabbed an apple with a bee on it, ’cause out of nowhere I felt a really sharp prick in the thumb, and unexpectantly let out a loud “Oww”! I stood up and looked at my throbbing thumb to find the stinger still in it, pulsating into my skin. Mrs. Adelia’s friend helped me scrape it off, so as not to break the poison sack at the end of the stinger. One of the children immediately ran off to fetch some Plantain to ease the pain. They told me to chew the plant up good, then spit out the slimy greenness onto my thumb, and let the juices sit there for a minute. I did… not so great! But, it did help a little. I think I rubbed it off too quickly though.

Anyways, after picking from a dozen or so trees, the trailer was full! The others were trying to guess how many bushels full the trailer was. After they gave their guesses, they asked me, “Hey Kendra, how many bushels do you think that is?” Bushels? What’s a bushel? I laughed and said, “I don’t even have any idea how much a bushel is! I’m still trying to figure out where “yonder” is!” They laughed at me. I was so out of my element… but loving every minute of it.

We decided it was time for the fun part, the apple juice making part, so we loaded up to go back to Adelia’s house. The trailer was so full of apples, that the 4-wheeler could not pull it! They had to hook it up to a big tractor in order to get it back down the road. Once we got there, Adelia’s husband positioned the trailer beside the Cider Press that was sitting in the shade, all ready to go to work. Here is an idea of what their press looks like, this one is very similar to theirs:

The apples went from the tailer, into a wash basin to be rinsed. Then each whole apple was fed into the top of the press, where a grinder inside broke the apple into tiny pieces, which then fell into the bucket below. We would then slide that bucket down to the press part, which had a handle that would turn and press a round board down into the bucket, in order to squeeze the apple pieces and cause the juice to run out of the bottom of the bucket to the draining part. There we would catch the juice running out, in a container.

We were all anxious to try the first of the fresh juice, which they call “cider”. We each filled a cup and drank away. Oh, how delicious it was! The best way to describe it was just as Adelia had said, that it tastes just like biting into an apple. I realize that sounds funny, as you would already assume that apple juice would taste like apples. But after tasting this, I understand now. Store bought, processed Apple Juice will never taste as good again. There is nothing like the taste of freshly pressed, nothing-added-to-it, completely natural apple juice. I gave Jada a cup full, and we all laughed as she guzzled it all down without taking a single breath!

We worked till after dark; washing, pressing, filling containers. At around 8:30, Jada began to melt down in her exhaustion from such a long day (though all she had done was run around and play the entire time). So, I decided it was time for us to head home. I wanted to stay longer; I wanted to stay and help until they were done. At least they had another friend there to help them. They sent me home with about 6 gallons of fresh pressed apple juice (that was all I had room for!). I took them home and froze some, shared some with family and friends, and refrigerated the rest. They ended up making over 80 gallons of apple “cider”, with still more apples left. Adelia told me that she canned a bunch for apple pie filling.

She also shared with me a neat trick: she told me that you can use the fresh apple juice to make apple jelly. Just put as much apple juice as you would put apples, and add the Sure-gel. It’s that simple! I love her ways of doing things. I think I’ll make some for Christmas presents, like she does.

I learned a lot on my first apple picking day. Oh how it makes my soul yearn to have apple trees of my own one day… and a cider press. But for now, I thank the Lord for bringing Adelia into my life, and for her teaching me so many things I never knew anything about before. I feel I still have so much more to learn. I’m so eager to know everything right now, and to be able to put it to use.

Patience Kendra, patience.

I haven’t been able to go and visit my friend Adelia for a while now, with the kids being sick, and everything going on. The last time I saw her was when Titus had Pinkeye and she was kind enough to invite me over to get some Eyebright to treat him with. That was a couple weeks ago. And I was so sad last week… she had invited me over to make soap, and I was SO excited about it, but the morning I was to go Titus woke up with a 104* fever, and I had to cancel. That was the first time that she had actually invited me over too. Hopefully I’ll get to do it another time.

I do however, have a few things from my last visit that I can share. I think I’ll just list them for you to read:

She cooks with Enamel and Cast Iron Pots and Pans. She said that if your cast iron pan gets really dirty, you can put it in a fire and it will burn all of the crusty stuff off, and will also “season” it.

She uses a Food Dehydrator to not only make dried fruit, and fruit roll-ups, but she also has a cool trick using a tomato paste spread (like the fruit roll up process) which when done, she cuts into strips, rolls up and packs into jars. Then, whenever she is cooking and she needs a little tomato flavor, she just takes out one of these tomato rolls and grates it into her recipe. She said it gives a really strong tomato flavor, without all of the tomatoes. What a cool tip!!

She also showed me how she uses an Egg Slicer to cut her bananas into perfect slices for dehydrating.

She showed me her favorite Homesteading book called, The Encyclopedia of Country Living by Carla Emery. It is jam packed full of everything you need to know to be a Homesteader. I can’t wait to get this book and see what all I can begin doing now!

She told me about how she makes Strawberry-Fig jam using Strawberry Jello instead of Sure-Gel.

She doesn’t cook with any salt; if it needs some salt, they just put a little on before they eat.

We talked about homeschooling, and she told me that the cost of her home school curriculum for an entire year was cheaper than a year’s worth of lunch at the public school.

Birthdays aren’t a huge expensive celebration. One year, the youngest daughter was thrilled to death to go fishing with her “Pa” for her birthday. She even bought her own fishing rod with her birthday money. Imagine if more children were as grateful for simplicity as that!

We talked a little about discipline, and she asked me if I’d ever read To Train Up A Child. I told her that that is my absolute favorite book on the subject, and she showed me several more in the series that I hadn’t seen. I can’t wait to read them as well!

Anyways, that’s all I have for you for now. Just a few cool tricks, and some great advice. Read all of the cool things I’ve been learning from Butterberry Farm for more great ideas! And for even more frugal tips from others, visit Frugal Friday over at Biblical Womanhood!

I called Adelia early this morning, figuring that she would be up, and asked her if it would be okay to come by and bring along a little gift from Jada for her daughter’s birthday. I decided to use Adelia’s method of teaching her children to give by having Jada pick out something of her own to give to her little friend as a gift. It took Jada a little time to figure out what she was willing to part with. As she stood in her room that morning she looked around and sighed to me, “It’s just so hard to choose”! Finally she happily decided to give her friend a little Prayer Box necklace that has been a treasure of hers for a while. I was proud of her decision; I thought it was a perfect choice.

As we drove the 15 minutes to Adelia’s house, Jada sat in her carseat excited about the surprise gift she had in her pocket. When we arrived on the farm the oldest daughter met us at the car with a smile, and told Jada that her friend was inside excited to see her. Titus must have remembered the kittens he played with last time ’cause as soon as I opened his door to get him out he started saying, “Cat. Cat.” We walked around to the back porch where the Mama Cat was nursing her kittens. Mrs. Adelia stepped outside and said hello. We went inside to find Jada’s eight year old friend at the stove cooking breakfast for her “Pa”. She has her own little square cast iron pan which she loves to cook in. She was attentively frying eggs for an egg sandwich, while Adelia stood close by looking on.

I asked Jada if she had given her friend the gift yet, and Jada quickly pulled it out of her pocket and gave it to her along with a “Happy Birthday”! Her friend was very excited when she saw the necklace, and Adelia helped her put it on while she stood on her step-stool at the stove. The chain was a little too short, as Jada is quite a bit smaller than her, but she didn’t seem to mind and wore it anyway.

I watched as Adelia gently guided her daughter in her task of making breakfast, reminding her to get this and that, and to use the cover for the hot handle, and praising her for remembering to turn the stove off when she was finished. What great pride, I thought, this little girl must feel to be able to sit her father down to a nice, warm breakfast all by herself. I’d love to give Jada that joy when she gets a little bit bigger.

Soon the kids were out the door and scattering on the farm. Adelia needed to pick some blueberries for a friend, so I offered to help her. We got together some big bowls and walked down to the blueberry bushes. The bushes were full of bright blue berries, and I thought it would be no problem gathering a gallon of them pretty quickly. I was ready to start picking away, but slowed myself as I noticed that Adelia was studying the berries. I waited, and then she told me that we want to pick the berries that are closed at the bottom. Of course I wasn’t sure what she was talking about, so I asked her what she meant. She showed me the bottoms of the blueberries; some had a star like thing sticking out from the bottom, and some were completely smoothed out. She told me that they aren’t quite ripe until the bottom has “closed” and it’s completely smooth; no “star”.

Unripe Blueberries- notice the “star” on the bottom:

Here is a ripe blueberry- notice the bottom is all smoothed out now:

Huh, and I thought I knew all I could about picking berries! So, after her examination, she decided that the bushes simply needed a little longer before they were ready to be picked. We did pick a small amount while talking and walking around the bushes, and little Titus couldn’t stay out of the bowls! He stuffed his cheeks with as many blueberries as he could grab in one chubby little fist full. (I had to keep an eye on him!)

Our two girls were having a great time playing. I first saw them over at the grape vines, evidently picking grapes to eat. Then I guess they went over to the apple trees ’cause I spotted Jada playing with a small apple in her mouth. Next they came over to us while we were at the blueberry bushes, and they pretended to be deer eating the berries right off the bushes using only their mouths to nibble them off the stem. What a joy it is to me to watch my little girl truly enjoying nature, carefree and content. I dream of recreating such an environment at my own home one day.

Adelia and I went back inside and I noticed the incubator on her counter. My mother-in-law also has an incubator going with eggs in it, and I just recently learned a ton from her about chickens, and hatching eggs. Turns out my whole theory of how chickens and eggs work was completely wrong! (I guess a California girl like me has a lot to learn out here in the country!) As I peeked through the lid at her eggs I laughed at my previous understanding of how eggs hatched, and felt like I should share my naivety with Adelia. I guess I will share my silly notion with you as well:

Okay, so my idea about how chickens and eggs worked was that a male and a female chicken would get together, and the hen would lay some eggs. Then she would sit on the eggs and after some time the chicks would hatch. If you got an egg and cracked it before the chick had formed, it was edible. Sounds logical, right? But I always wondered how to know which eggs were okay to eat, and which might have a chick in them. Boy, did I have a lot to learn! I don’t feel so dumb though, ’cause I explained that to my sister and she had always thought the same thing :)!

After my mother-in-law so patiently explained the whole process to me, and answered all of my silly questions here is what I now understand to be how it works:

Hens will lay an egg every day, with or without a male; but just one egg per day. Some eggs are fertilized, and some are not. Obviously the ones that are fertilized are when there is a male present. The unfertilized eggs are just dropped by the hen and left alone. These are the ones we eat. You can tell if an egg has been fertilized because the hen will start to scratch around to make a nest, and sit on the egg. It takes a few days before the chick begins to form in the egg. My mother-in-law showed me the chick inside of one of her eggs through a process called “candling“.

When I told Adelia all of this she graciously smiled and added that Hen’s produce eggs just like we do, and like ours if they are fertilized and incubated they will produce a baby. If they are not fertilized then they will just be dropped. I never thought of it like that!

Still curious about the whole incubation process I asked more questions. She told me that the eggs would be hatching Sunday afternoon. I said, “So, you’ll just come in here and there will be a bunch of chicks walking around in there?” She told me that they will begin to hear the chicks peeping from inside their shells, and then the chicks will begin pecking all around the perimeter of the egg. Soon after, the chicks will kick and squirm and push that top part of the shell off and finally come out, with their feathers all wet. She told me that in the mean time the eggs have to be turned twice a day; she uses an automatic egg turner in her incubator for that.

We sat in her living room for a long time after that talking about many things. I think I will save those lessons learned for another time. I do want to say though that one of the big lessons that I have learned from Adelia is to be happy to open my home up to guests even when I feel like it’s too small to entertain in, or it’s too messy, or it’s not fancy enough to be proud of. It reminds me of a quote from a book I’ve been reading, a cookbook called Extending The Table, which reads:

“Do we find the unexpected caller a welcome guest or a frustrating interruption? We deprive ourselves and others if we feel we must have the house free of clutter and our desks cleared of urgent business before we entertain guests. A simple beverage and an attentive ear will honor a stranger or a friend.”

That’s the way that Adelia has been towards me and my children. She doesn’t tell me to give her time to straighten up before I come. She doesn’t tell me she’s too busy, or maybe another time. She just graciously lets me into her home, and kindly shares her time. I am ashamed to say that I have turned away friends who wanted to visit because I didn’t feel like my home was presentable. It is now my goal to accept anyone into my home, at any time, and not be ashamed that it looks “lived in”. It is more important that I minister to others than worry about my appearance. And I know that this is how the Lord would have us to be.

Another visit too quick to end, more wisdom for a curious heart. Until next time…

(Read more about my other visits to Butterberry Farm! And for more money saving tips check out Frugal Friday over at Biblical Womanhood… don’t miss it!)

I was fortunate enough to get to spend a few hours with my friend Adelia this week. Actually, I spent three hours at her kitchen table, breaking green beans and taking advantage of the time with her by making good conversation. I am not really a very social person, actually I’m pretty much an introvert when around people I don’t know. I don’t even hang out with my friends any more, ever. My life is at home, and I’m happy with that! But for some reason I am drawn to Adelia. I love spending time with her, probably because time spent with her and the conversation spoken is always so useful and rich.

When we first arrived at their house, we hung out in the front yard for a minute and they showed me their kittens again. They are SO CUTE! They tried to get me to take one home, but I just know Titus would terrorize the poor thing! Watching them nurse on their mother reminded me of how I’m trying to wean Titus, and I told Adelia about my attempts, and how I’m now giving him Soy milk. She said to me very cautiously, “Whatever you do, DON’T give him rice milk!” She told me of a friend of hers who has a son with Autism. He has to have a special diet, which included rice milk. At his latest checkup they did a blood test or something and it revealed dangerous levels of Arsenic. The baffled mother didn’t know how in the world he got that in his system, but when she started telling them what her son had been eating as soon as she mentioned rice milk they knew that that was where it was coming from. I guess Rice Milk does have Arsenic in it. Now he’s going to have to go through some sort of detox to clean his system out. Glad she shared that with me!

We soon went inside to get out of the heat. Adelia had traded some blueberries for green beans at the farmer’s market, and she had tons of them to prepare for canning! When I saw the huge boxes full of beans, enough to make over 5 gallons canned, I offered my novice help. Jada ran off to play outside with Adelia’s youngest little girl. I never know what they are doing, or where exactly there are off to, but I don’t worry when I’m there. I know she will be fine. They always come back laughing and absolutely filthy! I’ve learned very quickly to bring Jada in play clothes when we visit!

Little Titus had a great time opening all of her cabinets, and playing with plastic jugs and wooden spoons and things that he found around the kitchen. Adelia didn’t mind at all that he was into everything. I told her how I am trying to begin living with less stuff, and that I’ve had a really hard time purging the kids “educational” toys. She told me about how when she was a little girl and stayed with her grandmother all that she had to play with there was whatever her grandmother had. So with her own kids she did the same thing; she lets them play with whatever she has. Pots, spoons, mason jars, whatever is there, nothing fancy but just as entertaining. She pointed out that these things were doing double duty as useful household items but playthings as well. That really got me thinking! What a great way to save space in your home. I have now been inspired to get rid of all of Jada’s little play kitchen bowls and plates. I can instead let her play with her “real” dishes and our plastic containers when she wants to pretend cooking, saving space and using the items for double duty! Also I am going to get rid of Jada’s 50 piece box of Play-Dough cutters, and instead let her use my cookie cutters. (Hmmm, what else can I replace??)

We talked a while about the book Henry that she gave to me, and about living more simply. We discussed what would happen to us as Americans if we had to survive without power. Her mission is to be able to comfortably live independent of electricity and totally self sufficient. It was inspiring listening to her talk about using old fashioned tools and gadgets than don’t require power. Not that they live with no power, but if they ever had to, it would not affect their lifestyle much. She showed me the oil lanterns hanging on her walls, not only for decoration, but also for when the power is out. I started thinking, “Man, if we lost power, I wouldn’t be able to function!” and I think most of us wouldn’t know where to start, and things would go very bad, very quickly! I want to learn more about living independent of electricity. We discussed the Great Depression, and how things were back then, and what would become of the U.S. if it ever got that bad again. Thinking of not being able to feed my children, knocking on stranger’s doors asking for food or even having to steal to survive, makes me long for self sufficient living with even more desire.

I shared with Adelia that I canned for the first time last week with my sweet Mother-in-law. We canned potatoes. I was very proud of myself! I told her that my MIL didn’t think you could can potatoes, and I told her that Adelia told me that anything can be canned! I asked Adelia if she makes juice too. I knew she made Apple Cider, but I wondered if she made other stuff. Well, I learned that what she calls “cider” is what I call “juice”, so she was actually making Apple Juice. She also makes her own Grape juice, and Muscadine juice too. I asked her if she has to cook the fruit, and squeeze the juice and all that. She laughed and said, “No!” and she shared with me how she cans her own fresh juice. She was kind enough to make a copy of her recipe for me, so here it is, it is so simple!:

Grape Juice (Quarts)

1/3 c. sugar

1 1/3 c. grapes

boiling water

Wash grapes. Put sugar and grapes in jar. Fill jars with boiling water. Pressure cook jars for 5 min. at 5 lbs.

She explained that when they are done, the juice from the grapes fills the jars, and the grape skins fall to the bottom of the jar. She thought for a minute about whether she had any or not, and then retrieved a jar of juice from her cabinet. She opened the lid and poured a glass for me. I truly have to say that it was the BEST grape juice I’ve ever had! It tasted so clean, and fresh. I poured some in Titus’s sippy cup and once he started drinking I don’t think he took a single breath before it was all gone! It was really good.

I told her that my Mother-in-law has an apple tree, and she said that if I gather some apples I can come and use her apple press to make my own juice. I can’t wait to try that!!

She told me that the Ball Blue Book of canning was a great resource for recipes. BUT, she warned me not to use their recipe for canning corn. She said it’s not good. She did give me her recipe though:

Canned Corn (Pint)

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. lemon juice

Cut corn off cobs. Pack corn cold in jars. Pour boiling water to cover. Add salt, sugar and lemon juice. Water bath 30 min. or pressure 10 lbs. 15 min.

*Approx. 12 ears = 1 quart.

She told me that you can reuse the lids from the jars if you are careful not to damage them when removing. I knew you could reuse the rings around the lid, but not the flat part too! That’s good to know. She said she has some that she’s been using for years.

She also told me how she grows and cans her own Pimentos for making home made Pimento Cheese. In the winter time they especially love grilled pimento cheese sandwiches with homemade soup. I need to visit their house this winter… yummy!!

I asked her how she keeps the deer out of her garden. She smiled and said she doesn’t. But she doesn’t mind it if they get into it, she said, she’s gonna eat that deer the first chance she gets, and she likes to know what her food has been eating! I thought that was clever. She’s pretty funny!

We got on the subject of making shampoo and soap and stuff and I asked her if her soaps are made with lye. She said yes, and she has to order it from a catalog now because the stores have pulled it from their shelves. I guess people are using it to make Meth. How sad. So, she told me that she orders hers from Rainbow Meadow, Inc. and that it isn’t very expensive. (I checked out the website and there are lots of other cool things for sale there!) I told her I’m a little nervous messing with something labeled “Danger”, “Poison!”, but I do want to learn how to use it properly. Perhaps she can show me how sometime.

After about three hours of chatting and breaking beans, I realized what time it was and had to head home to feed the kids some lunch. We went outside and she took me to her little shed, which she calls her “grocery barn” cause it houses two large freezers full of meat. She asked her son to help her as she pulled out a humongous box full of mason jars. She told me that I could have them (since I had admitted to not owning a single jar), and they loaded them up into my van. I thought that was awfully kind! As they were getting the jars out of the shed I admired her water stove. I told her that I would love to have one, but they are really expensive to buy! She told me that the new ones are expensive, but she got hers from a greenhouse that was upgrading, for $150! She told me to look in the local classifieds and sometimes you can find them there. I will definitely be keeping my eye out!

As we finished talking, we looked around for the girls, but they were no where in sight. We figured they were down at the blueberry patch. Adelia told me that she has a dinner bell on the back porch. Whenever it’s snack or meal time, she just rings her bell and all the kids come running. How funny. We walked down to the blueberry bushes, and there were the girls, covered from head-to-toe with mud (evidently from making mud pies), filling their bellies with blueberries. I gathered up Jada, and loaded her into the van. We said our goodbye’s, and they told us to come again. I assured them that we would! I love that family! What a great time we had with them.

I finally was able to visit my friend Adelia this week! I’ve been so busy that I haven’t had time to make a trip to see her. So many times I’ve wished to send her an email, but it is impossible since she does not have a computer. When I had a not-so-busy day, I decided to go see her. I tried giving her a call, but was unable to reach her, so I hopped in the car with my daughter and off we drove. I didn’t know if she would be home, but she usually is, so I hoped we would catch her there. When we pulled up the house seemed lifeless; nobody was in sight. I got out of my van and went to the front door. I knocked. Nobody answered. I wasn’t sure if I should leave, or if maybe they were out at the barn. I didn’t want to be creeping around their house, but I thought they may be there, so I got Jada out of the car and we slowly walked behind the house toward the barn. I stopped and listened carefully, and was relieved when I heard voices coming from the barn. I yelled, “Hello!” in my friendliest, non-intrusive voice. I yelled one more time. Then the two girls came running out of the barn happily to see us, and the youngest yelled, “Jada!!” and ran to hug her. They giggled and ran off to play. I asked the smiling, oldest girl if her mom was in the barn. She said, “Yeah! We were just looking at the new kittens.” I walked with her to see the babies, and found Adelia. I sheepishly said, “I hope you don’t mind me just stopping by! I tried to call but couldn’t get you.” She was so kind, and talkative. She seemed fine with me just coming out of the blue.

The girls climbed up to the loft in the barn to watch as the new kittens nursed on their mother. There was also a new calf wandering after its mother in the pasture. A lot has been going on! We made small talk about the animals, and what’s been going on since we last spoke. After a while we wandered inside and sat on the couch for a wonderful conversation. They always impress me with their kindness and hospitality. I feel like I just invite myself over all the time, but they make me feel welcome and at home.

Somehow we got on the subject of herbs and herbal remedies. Oh, I know, I told her that I had Pink Eye last week, and how my doc. bill was $87! She said smiling, “You know, there’s an herb for that.” She told me that Eye Bright is used to treat Pink Eye, along with Allergies (and probably some other things as well). Then she told me a story of how her husband once got Shingles on, in and around his eye. It was a really severe case and the doctor warned him that if he didn’t get it treated he would go blind. Well, when he went to pick up the prescription he was astounded to find that even after insurance the cost for the med’s would be more than a house payment! He called Adelia and told her to break out her herbal books. She did, and by that night she had come up with a solution. She found that Chickweed is a great cure for Shingles. She made eye drops, a tea to drink, and a salve mixture using Vaseline to spread all over his eye. By the next morning she says it looked a whole lot better; and soon it was gone. Wow! I told her that I was calling her the next time my family had an ailment!

The discussion of herbal remedies prompted her to go and retrieve her newest gadget. She brought out this little thing called a “Cap-M-Quick”. It is used for making your own pills, out of whatever herb or vitamin you want! You just make your powder, fill these capsules, and there you go. Home made meds. She had bartered with her herb shop owner friend, and traded some bales of hay for this neat little device. I didn’t even know that they made such a thing. She hasn’t tried it yet though. She said it will be good to use with the herbs that don’t taste so nice going down.

She also told me during our discussion, that Flax Seed is very good brain food. She has a friend who has three autistic boys, and said that the flax seed really improves their behavior. She just mixes it into their chocolate milk, and they never know it’s there. (By the way, to get a free sample of flax seed call 1-800-333-5813, they are really friendly). I think I’ll give it a try.

I started telling her about my quest to become less of a consumer, and start trying to make more of my own things. She suddenly said, “Oh! Did I give you that book “Henry”?” I told her no. She jumped up and went to her room for a minute, and came back with a little paperback book in her hand. It was called, Henry and The Great Society. I couldn’t wait to get home and read it! She wouldn’t really tell me what it was about.

We talked a while longer about family and living on less. She mentioned a big family reunion that they have coming up. I told her how I just got back from California and my own family reunion. I talked about how I hadn’t seen just about all of them in over 10 years; cousins, aunts and uncles. She said that her family gets together every year for a reunion. There are many of them, by the sounds of it, and they all camp out and visit with each other for about three days. It sounds like a wonderful time of fun and fellowship. I told her how sad I think it is that so many family’s are like part of mine, and don’t see each other very often at all. I love that my family here, my dad’s side, is very close. We always get together for birthdays, and major holidays. I’m glad that my kids see and experience that.

She said that her small living room floor is usually full of sleeping people during these reunions, and her yard is open for tents to be pitched. I marveled at her hospitality. I told her that I feel like I can’t entertain because I have such a small home, but I realize that that shouldn’t keep me from opening my home up to others. I shared with her a recent account I’ve read of a family in a third world country who really has nothing, and a tiny shack of a home, yet they are so happy to invite guests into their humble home for a meal. Though they only have two bowls, nobody seemed to mind waiting until a bowl was washed for their turn to eat. Why can’t we be more like that?

Anyways, I had to leave before I wanted to (as always), so I gathered Jada up and headed back out to the van. They all walked us out and the girls said their goodbye’s. It was so good to hang out with them again. Adelia told me as I was leaving that she would like to take me to her herb shop friend to introduce me sometime. I told her I’d love that. I’m almost done reading the book that she let me borrow. I’ll have to write a review about it for you guys to check out. It’s really thought provoking!

Until next time,

I have to say, I’m having withdrawals from my new friend Mrs. Adelia. I haven’t gone to see her this week, and I’m just bursting at the seams with questions! It’s hard to find excuses for me to go to her house without just saying, “Uhh… can I come over?” But today I was going nuts wanting to get up with her again, so I called her and asked her if she was planning on going to the mill any time soon. I told her I’d really like to go sometime. She said she’d be happy to take me, so we’re planning on going some time next week (hopefully!).

Before I go on, I’d like to answer some questions from the last post. I would love to give out more info as to where the Amish stores are located, but I try really hard not to give too much information about where I live as a safety precaution, since I am posting pictures of myself and my children. We have had some really creepy people make disturbing comments before and the thought of them having some clue as to where I live really freaks me out! As far as sharing recipes goes, that’s something I’m considering. I’ve been holding out on them because I am pondering the possibility of turning this series into an e-book in the future… maybe. If Mrs. Adelia is interested in doing that with me, I would love to share her many recipes in the book. We will see!

Although I don’t have another meeting to share with you, I have remembered just a few things from my last visit that I forgot to share. So, here are a few tidbits on saving money from the Queen of Frugal herself:

As I mentioned in my first post, she makes her own bars of soap for her family and also sells them at the Farmer’s Market. Well, she showed me a frugal little trick she uses to make decorative soaps. Instead of buying a costly soap mold, she has used the plastic tray that chocolates came in to make small, decorative soaps. She also pours the soap into a PVC pipe, and once it’s hardened she just pushes it out and slices it however thick she wants it. Personally, she prefers the thicker, round soaps ’cause she says they are the perfect size for your palm. ( I think she said she also uses cookie cutters as molds. )

She buys her sugar from Walmart. She gets the huge bag, I think it’s like 25 lbs. It’s cheaper to buy it in bulk like that. She stores it under one of their beds in a big plastic bucket covered with a tight lid.

To save on gas, she plans to run all of her errands on one day. She rarely goes into town, but when she does, she goes everywhere she needs to while she’s there.

Instead of regular dishes, their family eats and drinks from camping Enamelware. When I asked her why, she told me because it doesn’t break if the kids drop it, and unlike plastic, it doesn’t melt in the microwave or dishwasher. She just prefers it’s durability. What a great idea!

Out of curiosity I asked her if she uses Ziploc bags. When she told me that she did, I asked if she washes and reuses them. She was a little chagrined as she nodded her head. Realizing she must think that I thought this was funny, I quickly said, “Oh yeah! I do that too!”.

As we talked during our last visit, she told me that often people will bring her stuff. She said that they feel bad for them, like “Oh, that poor family. They are so deprived!” She kinda laughs at that. I can see why. To me, they do not seem poor. They do not seem needy or deprived. To me, they are far richer than the world understands.

So, that’s all I have to share for now. Like I said, I’m planning on visiting with Mrs. Adelia again next week. Hopefully I’ll be able to share my first trip to the flour mill for next week’s Frugal Friday! So, keep an eye out for my next money saving adventure! (I’m so excited!!)

As requested, and due to the overwhelming popularity of my first post, I’ve decided to turn this into a series. As I learn, you will too. I will call the series, Lessons From Butterberry Farm. Since most of you expressed desire to read even more, I thought I’d write a bit longer this time. I hope that you will find it as intriguing as I did!

First off, I wanted to address some questions and misunderstandings from my first post (if you missed it, it’s a must read!). I didn’t make it very clear before, but there are now just three children, not five, living in the home. The two oldest are grown, and out of the house. There were a few questions as to what the Husband does all day. He is a handy man, and works many different jobs. He is also Assistant Fire Chief at the local Fire Station. I do want to say however, that I am not here to scrutinize every aspect of this family’s way of life. I am not interested in asking how much money her husband makes, how much money they have in savings, or if they have a retirement or college fund in place. I am not going to ask personal family life questions. All I am interested in is learning how this amazing woman provides for and takes care of her family. She truly inspires me, and I am eager to share her wealth of knowledge with you all so that you might be inspired as well.

I was fortunate enough to be able to meet with Mrs. Adelia again. I kinda invited myself over. (I couldn’t help it! I’m fascinated by her). I went to the Farmer’s Market to bring back a big bucket that she had sent home with me (filled with rabbit droppings for my blueberry bushes). After making small talk I finally blurted out, “So… I was wondering… if you aren’t busy tomorrow, would it be okay if I came over, just for a little while?” She shrugged, laughing, and said, “Sure! We aren’t very interesting, but you’re welcome to come over.” We made plans for me to visit.

The next day I got up early and headed out the door. When I pulled into their dirt driveway I saw in my rear view mirror the three youngest kids running up to greet us. I got out of the van and said “Hey you guys!” I opened the van door to let Jada out, and the youngest girl jumped in and started unbuckling Jada’s carseat. They’ve formed quite a little friendship, and were very happy to see each other again! As I was unloading the kids the oldest girl came over and said, “Mama wants to know if you want to go to the Amish store?” Cool! Of course I said, “Yeah!” The boy, about 11 yrs. old, unloaded my extra carseats to make room for everyone. He’s very helpful. Before we left, the oldest girl brought out some made from scratch blueberry pastries for everyone to eat for breakfast as we drove. We all loaded back into my van, and away we went. This was the first time I’d ever gone to the Amish store. I didn’t even know there was one around.

As we pulled up, and all began getting out, I heard the youngest say to my daughter, “Come on Jada! I’ll buy you something.” I thought that was incredibly generous (coming from a 7 year old)! I began asking Adelia how she taught her kids to be so thoughtful and unselfish. She said that when they go to the Farmer’s Market, the girls have their own things to sell (like lemonade and baked goods). Her son gets to work with his Father occasionally to earn his own money. Whatever they earn, they pay tithe off of first, then they can do whatever (with guidance) they want with the rest. They have a “Fun Funds” jar, which they all can contribute to. If there is something that all of them are wanting, like going out to eat or something, they get their money from there. They are learning the real value of a dollar. And, when a little friend of theirs has a birthday or something, the kids wrap up one of their own toys to give as their gift.

I was enthralled with this gift giving idea. What a wonderful way to teach your children to give, I mean really give from the heart! Then sadly I realized how frowned upon this would probably be by most people. Our society is so spoiled and ungrateful; most people would probably think that this would be “cheap” and unacceptable. Yet still, I am contemplating this method myself, at least with close friends. I’m ashamed to say though that I would probably be the one being greedy with the toys, and wanting to keep the “best” ones for my own kids. Nevertheless, teaching my kids such a valuable lesson would be a great way for me to learn as well about being more giving, and overcoming selfishness.

As we entered the Amish store, Mrs. Adelia showed me around. She led me up the narrow aisles, pointing out bags of baking needs, spices, candy and more. I noticed that a lot of the items for sale were quite over priced. I would not buy most stuff from there. She was right about the spices, however. They were priced very reasonably; much cheaper than the grocery store! I bought a 1 pound bag of Dutch Cocoa Powder for about $3.00. (My hubby just adores chocolate milk!) She said it’s way better than Hershey’s! She showed me how she peels the sticky label from the bag, and uses it to label the Mason jar that she stores her own in. We left the little shop, and went to a newer one up the road. I didn’t realize there was an Amish community so close to my own home! This next store was even more expensive. It was nice though. Adelia showed me her weakness; lacey, embroidered handkerchiefs. This is one of the only things she gets from this store. I kinda laughed and asked, “What do you do with these?” She said, “Blow my nose”, laughing at my ignorance. I was surprised! I didn’t know people still did that! I guess they don’t buy Kleenex. I thought that was funny… but frugal! The kids played outside in the handmade playhouses while we looked around. Jada enjoyed the sucker that her new friend had so generously purchased for her. She wanted to buy Jada some ice cream too, but they were all out.

After a little while, we decided it was time to go. As we drove home through the country roads, I began asking tons of questions. I asked about how she does her laundry, how she feeds her animals, how she stores her flour and sugar, how she makes her yogurt and bread, what kinds of herbs she uses, and on and on. She was very sweet to tell me everything I was so curious to know. Here are some of the things that I learned:

To keep her line dried clothes soft, she does use fabric softener. She gets the cheap kind from the dollar store, and pours it in a downy ball. It holds less than the cap does. She says one bottle lasts forever.

I asked her if she line dries every single thing, even tiny baby socks. She said yes. Every thing, one by one.

In the winter, she still line dries. If the clothes are frozen, they thaw when hung inside. She hangs them pinned to clothes hangers on the shower curtain rod. If it’s going to rain on washing day, she considers that her day off, and does it another day. If it’s going to rain for a few days, she washes all she can before the weather gets bad.

She stores her flour and sugar (about 25 lbs. at a time) in large covered buckets. She said she’s never had a problem with bugs in either. The flour from the mill is fresh, and doesn’t have bugs or bug’s eggs in it.

She has limited space in her humble home, so to make good use of what square footage she does have, she stores tons of stuff underneath all of the beds, and her husband has built shelves wherever he had space to.

To feed her cows she uses the hay from her field, her father-in-law’s 10 acres, and even from friends who just want their field cleaned up. The only cost is the tractor fuel.

To feed her pig she said that she has a couple of old ladies at the church who fill buckets for her of all the church’s leftover food scraps, along with their own family’s leftovers. There is also a man up the road who owns a small convenient store. Whatever goes bad he sends to her for her pig. Her own family’s leftovers go to the pig as well.

The chickens run loose, and eat whatever they find: bugs, plants, etc. They throw bread crumbs and stuff out to them occasionally.

I forgot to ask what she feeds the rabbits, but I’m sure it’s straight from her garden.

She does not compost. There is no need. The manure from the field turns it’s soil so black and rich, it’s perfect for the garden. Besides, the pig gets all of the food scraps.

Speaking of the pig, I asked her if she has to buy a new one every year. She said no, she breeds the one she has, and once the babies have been weaned, it will be ready for the dinner table.

She has an incubator to hatch chicken eggs.

They heat the Water Stove with junk mail (other people bring them theirs too), trash, boxes, and wood. They only have to burn one fire to heat three days worth of hot water.

She doesn’t buy trash bags; she has no need. Most of their trash is burned or fed to the pig. What little trash she can’t use just goes into a plastic grocery bag to be thrown out.

She has a bread maker, but prefers not to use it. She has a favorite bread recipe, and it doesn’t “agree” with the machine. She doesn’t mind making it by hand.

She does not have a yogurt maker. She said that to make her yogurt, she fills a gallon size glass jar with fresh milk, cream and all, and adds one cup of plain yogurt to it. She leaves it out all day, and by nightfall the whole thing has turned into yogurt.

She makes her own syrup from strawberries and other things.

She grows her own pecans for pies and whatever else.

She dehydrates fruit, and loves to experiment with new recipes.

She gets her popcorn from a Popcorn Farm just up the road from me. I never even knew there was such a thing! She said she’d have to take me there sometime. I asked her if she had a popcorn maker. She showed me what she had. It is an old fashioned looking pot, with a crank handle on it that turns a rod along the bottom of the pot to keep the kernels from sticking. It has a lid on it to keep the popcorn in as it fills up. It works with any kind of heat source, electric stove or fire. (That sounds like a fun field trip!)

She has a Pressure Cooker and a Canner, which is much bigger.

She makes her own Mozzarella and Cottage Cheese, but says she hasn’t mastered the aging process of the other kinds of cheese yet.

Instead of paper towels, she just uses any rag or cloth she can find.

I asked her if she got her kids immunized when they were smaller. She told me that she did not sign for all of their shots, just the ones that she didn’t have an herb for. Like me, she did not give them the Chicken Pox shot. She said she was the one who all of the doctors dreaded, she was “that mom”.

She showed me some herbs that she uses around the house. Burdock for teething babies (not ingested; she actually dug one up for me to take home), Plantain for bee stings. Eye Bright for allergies. She has a friend who owns an herbal shop, who hooks her up with anything she needs.

She gets bananas from that nearby convenient store owner. When they turn black on the bottom from the air, and nobody will buy them, he passes them her way. The ones that are still good she dehydrates. The others go to the pig.

She makes a monthly menu for her family, and sticks to it.

She had a great tip for making homemade pizza on a budget. She makes the dough herself. For the toppings, she goes to a nearby All You Can Eat Buffet and orders a salad to go. She then fills the plate with all of her pizza toppings: cheese, pepperoni, olives, onions, green peppers, mushrooms, anything! They sell it by weight; she said it costs her around $2.00. What a great idea, I thought!

She has learned how to make Pita type pockets in mason jars out of leftover meals. She bakes them in the jar, and cans them to store in her cabinets. She makes them out of anything! She calls them “Dump It’s” because when you open the jar, you dump it out to eat it. She makes breakfast and lunch Dump It’s for her husband to take to work with him, so that he doesn’t eat out, or just have a cold sandwich. She fills them with anything from eggs and bacon, to BBQ Deer meat, potatoes and corn. He puts them in the window of the truck, and by lunch time it’s warm and ready to eat. They don’t go bad either. Apparently you can “can” anything and it will not spoil!

When we got back to their home, the youngest announced that she wanted to make grilled cheese sandwiches for everyone’s lunch. We sat around inside, talking, and eating our yummy food. Adelia told me tons of stuff. She showed me her favorite herbal books, and favorite “Non-electric” catalog. It’s called “Lehman’s”, and they do have a website. They are the ones who make things that the Amish use, including that neat Popcorn Pot. She said that whenever they get their tax money back, she gets to splurge on something she really wants from this catalog.

Time flew by, and four hours later I realized how long I’d been there, and told them that I needed to get going. Before I left, I traded a tube of toothpaste with her for a bar of her homemade soap. My dear “other” mom was just telling me how much she would love to have some of her soap. As we were loading into the car, the little girl begged me to let Jada stay and go to church with her. I smiled and told her maybe another time we can plan on it. Realizing what I’d just said, I looked at Adelia and said, “I hope you don’t mind me asking, but what denomination are you?” She said, “Go ahead and ask! We go to a Baptist church.” “Oh, good.” I said. “I didn’t want to say Jada could go to church with you not knowing what you believe.” So, we said our goodbyes, pried the girls apart, and I went home with a head swimming full of information. What gets me is that Adelia is so humble. She thinks it’s funny that I find her interesting. I do though. I really, really do. I hope that this is the beginning of a long friendship with this amazing family.