This Space

July 30, 2015July 28, 2015 / makingofahome / 8 Comments

From the time I was young, my mom always encouraged me to be my own person. Not to be afraid of what others thought of me, but to instead dare to be the person I believed I was meant to be. As I mentioned in this recent post, over the last several years I lost a bit of this independent spirit. More often than not, I began to do what I thought was acceptable by the majority, rather than doing what my gut was telling me.

Recently, while attending a presentation by Joel Salatin, he said, “If everyone else is doing it, I would tell you to do the exact opposite.” These words stirred something deep within me. Am I doing what I truly believe is best, or am I just moving with the current and doing what everyone else is doing? I began to feel this pull deep within me to not fear being different, but to instead embrace those “differences” and run with them.

Homeschooling is something I have had on my heart and mind since my eldest daughter began kindergarten. I never actually considered it a real option because it existed so far outside the realm of my daily life. The people by whom I surrounded myself would never consider homeschooling, and being a teacher by trade, I faced a great deal of skepticism and resistance any time I brought up the topic with other educators.

But I believe God places people and circumstances before us which can aide us in the making of very tough decisions. I believe He is the one that gives us that feeling deep in our gut, telling us what is best. It is just up to us whether or not we want to pay attention to Him. I believe He placed me in my teaching role at Cathedral of St. Peter School the past year and a half to build my confidence in two subjects I often feared. I believe He surrounded me with other educators who were open to non-traditional means of education if it best meets the needs of the child. And I believe He gave me two girls, who like me when I was young, appear eager to try something different and new. And with all of this in my back pocket, I decided to follow that feeling deep down inside of me, and embark upon the road less traveled by, and homeschool my girls this fall.

Now I don’t want to pretend that this decision was met with rosy eagerness by all, because that would be a very false statement. However, throughout this summer I have been working to find fabulous homeschooling resources and create a space that fosters a positive experience for my girls. And it is in the creation of this space that I feel confident to move forward in this new endeavor.

First Garden Post of the Season

July 28, 2015 / makingofahome / 2 Comments

Friends, I do believe this is the my first garden update of the summer. How is this possible? Oh my. There is so much happening out there right now that I struggle with where to begin. Let us begin with the herb garden…

I am trying out some new herbs in our herb garden this year and, although it appears to be quite “junglish” right now, I am happy with what is coming out of it at this time.

We are growing lemon balm for the first time this year, and I have begun drying it for tea and some other medicinal salves I hope to make this winter. Lemon verbena is also new to our herb selection this year, and I have a liqueur in the works right now. I promise to share the details of this venture as the process nears an end in three weeks. We also grew quite a bit of stevia this season, and this week I ran it through our dehydrator and then our spice grinder. We now have a fine stevia powder to use in drinks throughout the remainder of summer and into fall.

Next, along the south side of our house, we have a raspberry bramble that is booming this year in a way I have never seen. The bees flock to the raspberries each day, and at any given time we can count almost 50 of them swarming the forming fruits. I cannot wait to see the bounty we receive from these plants this year.

Our apple trees are actually producing some fruit this year, which is very exciting. However, the Japanese beetles have slowly began taking them over, and each day I find more and more leaves have fallen prisoner to their wrath. I fear we may lose all our apples before fall.

Finally we move into the main garden space where our beans are also finally coming in. This year we are growing Bountiful, Purple Pod, Golden Wax, and Dragon Tongue (our family favorite) with it’s beautiful purple stripes.

The extreme amounts of rain this summer have led to some of the tallest tomato plants we have ever had, but unfortunately they bear very few fruits. My hunch is the cool temperatures this summer have inhibited fruit production on these plants. My hope is as the temperature rise this week, we may see some tomatoes begin to form.

Thank you for joining me on my first garden tour of 2015! I promise it will not be long until we venture into the garden again.

Cherry Crisp

July 20, 2015July 27, 2015 / makingofahome / 1 Comment

Last week my girls and I, along with my sister, ventured to my in-law’s home and spent the afternoon tangled up in branches and brambles. It was picking’ time! By the time the day was done, we ended up with two giant bowls of tart cherries and black raspberries. Simply marvelous!

The black raspberries quickly became freezer jam, with the help of my six and eight-year old sous chefs. And the cherries, well, the cherries ended up going into an absolutely amazing cherry tart. I don’t often like to toot my own horn, but friends, it was good. Very good. Let me share the recipe…

Cherry Crisp

6 cups pitted tart cherries (This measurement was taken AFTER the cherries were pitted.)

1 cup local honey

2 T Non-GMO corn starch

Mix these ingredients in a large bowl and pour them into a 9×9 baking dish. (I use this baking dish because then I can serve the crisp table-side and it looks as good as it tastes.)

2 cups oats

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 stick cold butter cut into cubes

Mix all these ingredients together in a large bowl (such as one of these sustainably harvested bamboo bowls) using a pastry blender. Pour the crumbled mixture onto the cherry mixture.

Bake at 375 degrees for one hour. Allow 20 minutes to cool before serving. Enjoy!

*A note about all my recipes: I use all organic ingredients, local when available. I use non-homogenized milk, and all of the dairy we use is from animals raised on pasture. I also use oils that are non-GMO verified. All our meat is raised locally on organic feed, and our beef is grass-fed, grass-finished. All our spices and cane sugar are fair-trade certified and purchased through a cooperative.

Kairos

July 17, 2015July 13, 2015 / makingofahome / Leave a comment

Kairos—“a right, opportune, or supreme moment in which something special and unique happens”

If you are so inclined, share a link to your “Kairos Moment” in the comment section. I hope you all have a blessed weekend!

Eternal Gratitude

June 30, 2015August 28, 2015 / makingofahome / 7 Comments

“Why does God send us here, where things hurt so much? Why does he make us love things that he knows we’re going to lose? […] We don’t love people because we will have them forever; we love them because loving them changes us, makes us better, healthier, kinder, realer. Loving people makes us stronger in the right ways and weaker in the right ways. Even if people leave, even if they die, they leave us better. So we keep loving, even though we might lose, because loving teaches us and changes us. And that’s what we’re here to do. God sends us here to learn how to be better lovers, and to learn how to be loved, so we’ll be prepared for heaven.” ~Glennon Doyle Melton

You have changed so many people, Mama. You have shaped us all into better lovers of life, and for that we are eternally grateful. Rest now. Rest.

Searching for the Good

June 29, 2015August 28, 2015 / makingofahome / 4 Comments

“The basic element of joy, then, is profound peace, that imperturbability in the Spirit that remains with us even in the most painful, excruciating moments.” ~Pope Francis

When arriving on the oncology floor at The University of Wisconsin Hospital last week, I felt an overwhelming feeling of absolute panic wash over me. This is not an unfamiliar sentiment, as I have had a phobia of hospitals and doctors’ offices ever since my youth. But my mom’s recent illness has brought on a whole new level of panic every time I set foot inside those glass doors. Even seeing the sign reading “oncology” when the elevator doors opened on the 6th floor was enough to just about send me over the edge. I looked around me and thought, “How do all of these people, these doctors and nurses, wake up every day and come and work here? This would be the most depressing place in the world to carry out a career.” These sentences have probably circulated through my consciousness at least a thousand times over the course of the last 4 months.

But after a few days of sitting beside my mom’s bedside, I decided to open a book that a dear friend gave me to help me through this tough time. While reading, I came upon the following passage in Glennon Doyle Melton’s book, “I respect people who don’t try to escape permanently. Who run toward the pain. Who allow themselves to suffer with others, to become brokenhearted. I respect people who, enlightened or not, roll up their sleeves and give up their comfortable lives for suffering people.” I was drawn to tears. Because, as I reread this passage, I thought back to my family’s experiences the past few days. I thought of the young doctor who held my mom’s hand each and every time he came in her room, and when taking her vitals held her and said, “Let me hold you. I am here to help.” And I thought of the nurse who pulled my dad, sister and I into a private room to truly listen to us, console us and cry with us. She told us that she can tell my mom is an amazing woman because of the unmatched sense of family she feels every time she enters our room. And then we cried some more while she embraced each of us.

I believe these are the people of whom Ms. Melton is speaking. These are the people who willingly go to work each day, knowing that it will be difficult, awful even, and do it anyway. And in reflecting upon this, I realized that it sometimes takes the most terrible of situations for us to see the true good that exists in the world. We are constantly bombarded by so much hate, negativity and loss that we often fail to look up from our despair and see that within the disastrous storm of life, there are people doing good. Despite all that evil, they are working their damn hardest to make a positive difference.

This journey I am traveling right now has been awful, but it has also allowed me to raise my eyes above the hurt and see a kind of good in people that I was unable to see before. I think I now agree with Ms. Melton in that “I am grateful for the beauty in the midst of suffering. I am grateful for the treasure hunt through the minefield of life. Dangerous or not, I don’t want out of the minefield. Because truth, and beauty, and God are there.”

Pesto with a Kick

June 24, 2015June 18, 2015 / makingofahome / Leave a comment

I love making pesto with early summer greens. It just makes me feel good. It’s green. It’s a great way to pack tons of vitamins and minerals in my kids’ bodies. And, there is cheese in it, and anything with cheese is a must have in my book.

I have written about making pesto before, like in this post, where I also discuss how I preserve my pesto for those Midwestern days when there is no green growing outside. This pesto is a bit different in that I didn’t use any herbs to impart flavor. This time I used kale and mustard greens. If you have never had mustard greens, they are amazing. They are incredibly earthy tasting, but very spicy. They are also another one of those cruciferous vegetables that have fabulous health benefits. I like to think of this pesto recipe as a cruciferous cancer-fighting bomb of deliciousness 🙂

This recipe made a giant batch of pesto, so feel free to adjust as needed. You may also need to make it in batches, depending upon the size of your food processor.

Here’s what to do:

1. Wash and spin dry (I adore my salad and berry spinner. Summer would not be the same without it. I use it Every. Single. Day.) 5 cups of kale and 3 cups of mustard greens. (Fyi…I jam packed the greens in the cups when measuring.) Set aside.

2. In a food processor, combine 1 cup raw walnuts and 6 cloves of garlic. Pulse them in the processor.

3. Add the washed greens to the food processor. (Again, you may need to do this in batches.)

4. Slowly add in 1/2 cups olive oil while the food processor is running.

5. Add 1/2 pound good shredded Parmesan cheese to the food processor.

6. Slowly add an additional 1/2 cup to 1 cup of olive oil depending on the consistency you would like.

7. Add salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste.

Enjoy!

Culinary Inspirations

June 22, 2015September 1, 2015 / makingofahome / 2 Comments

Just to give some forewarning, today’s post is going to be Monday-ish. You know how Mondays are? It’s the day when you wake up and have a million thoughts, plans and lists going all at the same time–that’s this post. Monday-ish.

So, here we go…Give me a good book and an even better piece of produce and I am a happy camper. Last week, I reached for two of my favorite books and some of my favorite spring-time produce, and I was off. I have often talked about this book before in past posts, but Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver is a book that will change your world. Not only is it a beautifully crafted piece about Kingsolver and her family’s journey toward eating locally, but it is also filled with the most delicious recipes! I looked out my kitchen window to find our strawberry and rhubarb bed was overflowing with goodness, so I knew this was the book I needed. I went with one of my favorite recipes in that book: the strawberry rhubarb crisp. This recipe is a family favorite, using very little refined sugar, and I love cooking it up in my small stoneware baker because I can cook in it and serve from it. This time, I chose to dish up this gooey creation in our nourish soup bowls, which I thought looked just lovely because of the matching color profiles. The other reason I have so many of these bowls on hand is because $2 of every bowl is donated to Feeding America.

Also growing in our strawberry and rhubarb bed is asparagus. We didn’t have a great crop of asparagus this year, so we supplemented our own with some from the farmers’ market. I tried a new recipe, pistachio-crusted asparagus with feta vinaigrette, from Ashley English’s Handmade Gatherings to showcase this delicious perennial. It was absolutely divine. In fact, every recipe I have tried from this book has been a crowd pleaser.

Now you may have noticed that when discussing the strawberry rhubarb crisp, I mentioned (and linked to) a few of my favorite kitchen essentials. Please understand, it is not my intention to lure you to my blog with discussions of holistic living and sustainability and then try to sell you something. Instead, I would love to share some of the kitchen items I use every day, because they help to make my life easier. My hope is that in sharing this information, I can also help to make your meal preparation easier.

The other reason in sharing this information with you is to provide a means to contribute to my family financially. After 3 years of debate, I have decided to leave teaching for good and homeschool my daughters. I have wanted to homeschool ever since my eldest went off to kindergarten, but always held back because homeschooling was just too very far outside the box at that time in my life. But as I mentioned last week, I need to do what I believe is best for my family, and for us, homeschooling is where it’s at 🙂 I have never beed more sure of a decision in my life, but the fact of the matter is that there will be a gap in our income. I have worked (or maybe I should say dabbled) as an independent consultant with Pampered Chef for over five years, and I believe it’s business model is one that is keeping with my family’s belief structure. It is based in Illinois (where we live), many of the products are made in the U.S., they provide funding to Feeding America and the American Cancer Society, and they allow women and men to work from home and put their families first. So, from time to time, I will share some products that I use, and it is up to you whether or not you would like to link to them and find out more information. I hope you understand my reasoning in doing this.

Well, if you have followed me through to this point, you have made it thought my Monday stream-of-conciousness post. Books. Produce. Recipes. Pampered Chef. Homeschooling. Lots of Action.

I wish you all a wonderful week, in which you can work through all those thoughts, follow through on all those plans, and check off all those items on your lists. Happy Monday, friends.

The Ladies: A Lesson in Love and Loss

June 18, 2015June 17, 2015 / makingofahome / 2 Comments

Do you remember on Tuesday when I told you I didn’t ever really like to put myself out there and go too far outside my comfort zone for fear of upsetting others? For this reason, I have never shared (in this very public space) a simple fact about our family’s suburban homestead: We have a flock of backyard chickens. Oh, and we have had them for over two years now 🙂

When we first brought them home as chicks, I didn’t feel comfortable talking about it here on the blog for fear that we may not end up being able to care for them as they needed. I didn’t want to appear weak for having to give up on something that had only just begun. Then as months passed, and the chicks became laying hens (Well, one ended up being a rooster and thus was scooted quickly out to a farmer we know.), I still didn’t share any stories about the chickens because it just seemed like too much time had gone by, and it would be strange to introduce the concept so late.

But in keeping with my promise to myself, to remain transparent and open, let me tell you a little bit about our backyard coop convent.

These ladies have taught our family more than we ever could have envisioned when we picked them up from the feed store so long ago.

Did you know that chicks sometimes need a little booty soak and wipe when they are first born in order to prevent their vents from becoming clogged? I sure didn’t! But there I found myself, sitting on my basement floor with a warm cup of water, a three-day-old chick cradled in my hands, giving her the best spa treatment imaginable.

Did you know chickens each have unique personalities? We had no idea this was true until our gal Limey (She was named by my then-four-year-old.) came along. She had the most loving demeanor and just loved to be in on all the people-action. In fact, she would often fly out of the run, walk up to our back door, and scratch her claws against the screen door in order to get us to go outside and play with her.

Did you know laying hens are more than just egg producers, but members of the family? We definitely had no idea of the emotion impact we would face this past winter when our Limey would again fly out of the run without our knowing and was lost to a predator at night fall.

These feathery ladies have given us so much more than an egg a day. They have taught us valuable life lessons of love and loss that I believe have helped to shape our family.

Here is a little photo tour throughout our two years with the ladies…

Rebirth and Return

June 16, 2015June 15, 2015 / makingofahome / 7 Comments

In the past year and a half, my life’s journey has seen many peaks and valleys. More so than I ever thought to be possible. I have had the privilege of teaching an amazing group of young people who helped me to spread my wings as an educator in ways I never thought possible. I worked with a group of individuals who have compassion and an unshakable will to do what is best for kids day in and day out, and who support one another in a way I have never before seen in a professional setting. And I have experienced hardship and trama that has sent shock waves to the very foundation of my beliefs, and daily impacts the core of who I am.

The crazy thing about life is that there always seems to be something gleaned from the journey itself. Throughout my time away from this blogging space, I feel I have truly found myself. Life’s obstacles have forced me to look at what it is I truly want to do with my life, and do it.

My entire life I strove to not ruffle any feathers. My husband always joked with me that his one worry in marrying me was that I was so incredibly passive, and he feared that throughout my life people would walk all over me. And the fact of the matter is…He was right. I always seemed to find myself sacrificing what I wanted, or what I thought was best, so that everyone around me would stay happy. But something inside of me changed over the corse of the last 18 months. I realized I owe it to myself to do what I think is best. No matter the fall out, if I truly believe in something with every fiber of my being and in the very deepest caverns of my gut, I need to at least give it a try.

So now I find myself at a point in my life in which I have never been. I have abandoned what others think is normal or correct and I plan to pave my own way toward a path I feel will lead myself and my family to places we never dreamt possible. I invite you to come along with me. Welcome back to Making of a Home!

“When you begin taking that road not normally taken—Robert Frost poem—when you begin going a different direction and you find it very rewarding and satisfying, you wake up the next morning and you suddenly say, ‘Well, what else have I been missing out on?’ “ ~Joel Salatin

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