Oh, To Find A Balance

I am a bit "free" in the way I think, speak, and act (and that's a nice way to put it).  I have a hard time focusing on one thing at a time, because I have so many great ideas firing off in my head!  Finishing things I start is also a bit of a challenge, especially if it's looking good and I can picture the final product in a positive light and know it'll be something I love (for some reason I think I'll get back to finishing it into something I DO love, right after I finish this other thing I've really been wanting to do).  OR if it takes more than a day to complete.  OR if I get side tracked by kids, laundry, dishes, meals, a phone call, or a million other things.

Needless to say, hum-drum daily tasks are not something that get me excited, so I'm always trying something new that will require less time, less thought, less of my energy, and still get it done because I would rather be working on one of the million fun ideas I have bouncing around in my head. I really dislike performing the daily tasks and the hum-drum of daily routine, but I love enjoying the benefits of delicious, inexpensive, home cooked healthful meals, a tidy house that's not embarrassing if someone stops by unannounced, being able to find things I'm looking for in their designated place, kids who are happier because Mom is happier, getting places on time, and the list goes on.

Here are a few tools I have found to be invaluable in staying organized enough to get household tasks done, but putting my twist on it, so it doesn't become too dull and boring.  I have combined the following ideas to get my cleaning routine down to a 20-45 minute speed clean every other day (everyone that's home at 8:00 a.m. helps with the speed clean routine, including the two year old twins), an additional 15 minutes a couple of times on Monday, Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday for laundry, and an additional 20 minutes of extra cleaning in designated rooms.

I made some changes to the designated rooms routine because many of those things are included in the speed cleaning routine.  I do find that our bathroom keeps up appearances much better using the speed cleaning method, and that the few things I do extra once each week in designated rooms takes considerably less time.  I also added in Sabbath day readiness on Saturday, which has helped keep a cheerful spirit in our home Sunday morning (we have 8:30 a.m. church) instead of feeling rushed and flustered trying to find last minute things (usually shoes and putting together snacks while trying to get a good breakfast in).

The speed cleaning is recommended every day, but it's just not a priority for me to keep it immaculate, and every other day keeps it pretty darn clean.  Since I started regularly including the kids in our speed cleaning routine and cleaning up after meals until it's DONE has really helped them take ownership of their messes and I don't feel like I am a maid cleaning up every day.

With a nine year old, four year old, and two year old twins, I don't hold bragging rights to an immaculate home...we do still live, love, and play here...but it's a manageable mess that's clean underneath!

We implemented a chore chart point system that is working really well for limiting the sense of entitlement my children have for extra things (i.e. friends over, treats, going to the park) and also eliminates my nagging and reminding, and their chores get done.  Our nine year old completes her chores totally on her own, but I do have to read the chores to our four year old (he chooses which order to complete them in), and then I do have to help him stay focused and complete them (he has the same problem his mother does...he still has hope of outgrowing it though).  All chores have to be completed without complaining (we added the eating of meals and helping clean up afterwards to the chore chart with points and this has almost eliminated complaints at meal time), some chores have to be completed before 10:00 a.m. and some have to be completed before 7:00 p.m. to receive points.  If chores are completed after the designated times they don't receive points.  If chores aren't completed at all they have a negative point value for that day.  My nine year old also has a list of bonus chores with designated points that are actually 'my' chores she can help with.  We also added a good attitude point value that is all inclusive for the day.  A good attitude (not getting in time out or breaking a family rule) earns them 50 points.  A bad attitude can cost them 50 points.  They each have their own individual lists of rewards, but our four year old still hasn't grasped the concept of cashing his in.  Our nine year old is saving hers up =).

I have also found that making seasonal rotating menus helps me spend less money making more healthful meals more often, and keeps variety in our meals, and I had to make less grocery shopping trips.  We live an hour away from Costco and Winco, so buying ahead makes sense if I know what I'm really going to use.  We also have two outdoor deep freezers, so I could really stock up on and freeze fruits, vegetables, and meat, knowing exactly what I was going to need for the next three months.  We were also not tempted to eat out as often when I kept up on it.

I have 28 meals for 4 seasons and I rotate through them for three months (Winter menu is rotated through December, January, February, Spring menu is rotated through March, April, May, Summer menu should theoretically be rotated through June, July, and August, and the Fall menu rotated through September, October, and November).

HOWEVER, I still can't seem to stick to the summer menu I made.  I need to spend some time remaking it to something I'll actually do.  Summer is too busy and too hot to want to spend time in the kitchen cooking and I need to make more allowances for that.

I also ended up taking inventory of my freezer and pantry for the last two weeks of each seasonal menu rotation and altering the rotating menu to use up what I may have overstocked.  I loved using this in the Winter and Spring because I felt like I spent almost zero time meal planning, and I could make a triple batch of sauce the first time I made it and froze the other two portions because I knew I would be making it again two more times.  It takes the same amount of time to triple a batch as it does to make one batch, I only have to do it once, and only wash the dishes once.  I loved it!  It felt like cheating sometimes.  It was fantastic.

My challenge with the summer has been #1: the heat, #2: less structured schedules, #3: my kids not sleeping as well because it's light outside for longer (we unsuccessfully tried black out curtains), #4: did I mention the heat?  We don't have central air, just a couple of window air conditioning units.  They're sufficient but I don't feel inspired to cook.  Plus with the larger variety of fruits and vegetables I'm not sure what's going to be available and when so that makes it harder to plan.  Those are my excuses.  Maybe I just needed a break from the structure the seasonal rotating menus provide, even though the benefits far out weigh the boredom caused by the routine.

I would love to get to a place where I have meal prepping for the week down to a small block of time, but as of yet, I've only been motivated to accomplish that once or twice in my lifetime.  I always seem to have something more attractive captivating my attention.

I know it sounds like all this takes a ton of time, but it actually saves us time and allows bigger blocks of time for the things we really love...like family and projects!

Bottle Calf Electrolytes Recipe

When our jersey bull calves arrived, we were elated!  The kids immediately named them. Aleska chose the name Cocoa for the larger calf, who was lighter in color, and Parker chose the name Pookie for the smaller calf, who has a darker streak of color down his back.  I did have to explain to them that these calves are  not pets and that we are going to eat them, and both of them look disgusted and appalled!  We had a hamburger and steak discussion, and how long we would have them before they would be butchered, and even though the information seemed to be accepted I still got glances of abhorrence after our talk.

The calves seemed to settle right in, taking to the buckets with very little assistance, and eating really well.  We were told to feed them two quarts of real milk (not milk replacer) two times each day twelve hours apart.  We had straw in stalls for them and we thought we were set!

Fast forward one week and they both have scours.  Ugh.  Cocoa is still acting healthy, but Pookie was shaking as I was feeding him and eliminating at the same time.  Everywhere.  And it had traces of blood.  We found this recipe and we're trying it, but replacing the pectin with gelatin.  Not sure if that is an improvement or not, but the pectin is vegetable and fruit based where the gelatin is beef based.  And we had it on hand.  We'll be following everything else she recommends.

Best Bottle Calf Recipe via Hub Pages and Leighr67

Calf Health

The weather here in Southwest Idaho has wreaked havoc on my bottle babies this year! I lost several calves to scours and dehydration or pneumonia. I tried all of the feed store brands of electrolytes but found them all lacking and over priced. My calves wanted nothing to do with them and wouldn't drink them! 

Here are a couple of the ways I have stopped my calf mortality...

Simple and Effective Recipe to Cure Scours!

This recipe I found online is the best and has brought my calves back from near death!

The price is also a fraction of that of commercial electrolytes!

When they will not drink anything else they will drink this! I have never had to tube a calf when feeding this mixed with warm water to equal 2 quarts.

1 can beef broth (not concentrate)

1 box of pectin(the kind used to make jello)

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp salt

Mix Broth and baking soda and salt, add pectin and mix with enough warm water to make 2 quarts( a full calf bottle). Feed to the calf laying down, standing up, whatever you have to do to get it down his throat. Once they taste it they usually want it and will keep sucking. 

Feed 2 bottles of this before returning to regular milk feedings and feed the milk in smaller amounts more often. 

Example: 1 quart of replacer 4 times a day or split 2 bottles into 3 feedings. Sometimes little calves cannot handle all that milk and over feeding is what causes the scours to begin with.

Shots

Another big help I have found is giving Selenium and Vitamin A&D. 

I inject Bo-Se 2.75 ml and 1.5ml of Vitamin A&D 

The minute I get my calves home. This has helped with preventing White Muscle disease. They go down and wont drink and do not have scours, lose their will to live. This has happened to  a couple of calves this year. Since I started these shots It has stopped.

B-12 helps to bring back their appetites when they are not feeling good as well. Ask your vet for prescriptions for that and the Bo-Se.

UPDATE: This home made electrolytes worked for the scours for one calf but we lost the other calf.  I would chalk it up to inexperience and not recognizing the scours for what they were early enough.  I'm confident this would work if given early enough.

"The Last Time" by Danniel J. Lennax

From the moment you hold your baby in your arms you will never be the same.
You might long for the person you were before,
When you had freedom and time,
And nothing in particular to worry about.
You will know tiredness like you never knew it before,
And days will run into days that are exactly the same,
Full of feedings and burpings,
Nappy changes and crying,
Whining and fighting,
Naps or lack of naps.
It might seem like a never-ending cycle.

But don't forget...
There is a last time for everything.
There will come a time when you will feed your baby for the very last time.
They will fall asleep on you after a long day
And it will be the last time you ever hold your sleeping child.
One day you will carry them on your hip then set him down,
And never pick them up that way again.
You will scrub their hair in the bath one night
And from that day on they will want to bathe alone.
They will hold your hand to cross the road,
Then never reach for it again.
They will creep into your room at midnight for cuddles,
And it will be the last time you eve wake to this.
One afternoon you will sing "the wheels on the bus" and do all the actions,
Then never sing them that song again.
They will kiss you goodbye at the school gate,
The next day they will ask to walk to the gate alone.
You will read a final bedtime story and wipe your last dirty face.
They will run to you with arms raised for the very last time.

The thing is you won't even know it's the last time
Until there are no more times.
And even then, it will take you a while to realize.

So while you are living in these times, remember there are only so many of them
And when they're gone, you will yearn for just one more day of them.
For one last time.

Danniel J. Lennax

Chef Salad

Anything is optional:

Greens (organic iceberg, spring greens, baby spinach, kale, endive, etc.)
Hard boiled eggs, sliced
Ham, cubed
Beets, cooked and sliced or shredded
Olives, diced or sliced
Cucumbers, halved and sliced
Carrots, shredded or sliced
Tomatoes, diced
Onion, finely sliced (red, yellow, green)
Cheese, shredded or crumbled (cheddar, Gorgonzola, blue, Parmesan, etc.)
Organic baby peas
Sunflower seeds, hulled
Salt & pepper

Add a dressing of your choice...viola...eat as a main dish or as a side!

Slow Cooker Asian Glazed Chicken

10 minutes prep/6-8 hours to cook

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs

½ c. soy sauce

4 t. honey

3 cloves garlic, crushed

½ t. ground ginger

1 T. Sriracha hot sauce

½ c. water

2 T. arrowroot powder

1 T. water

2 T. green onions, finely chopped

1 t. sesame seeds

Grease crockpot.  Place chicken in crockpot.

Combine soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, honey, garlic, ginger, hot sauce, and ½ c. water in a bowl and pour over chicken.  Cook on LOW 6-8 hours or HIGH 3-4 hours.

Once done cooking, pull chicken out and place on a large plate.  Mix arrowroot powder and 1 T. water in a small bowl and pour into remaining liquid in the slow cooker.  Turn heat to high and cook another 15 minutes.

Shred chicken and add back to slow cooker.

Serve over rice or steamed broccoli, topped with green onions and sesame seeds.

Pizza

24 hour soak/20 minutes prep/ 25 min to cook

2 cups yellow lentils
1 1/2 cups water (plus water for soaking and rinsing)
2 tablespoons oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons dried herbs of your choice (such as oregano or basil)
1/2 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder (optional)

Frozen spaghetti sauce

Desired toppings: SUPREME: sliced salami, crumbled sausage, shredded cheese (we omit the cheese and it's still delicious), sliced onions, olives, bell peppers, mushrooms, fresh diced tomatoes (added after it's cooked) HAWAIIAN: deli ham (we use a nitrate free, preservative free deli ham), fresh pineapple chunks TACO: ground beef cooked with taco seasoning, added taco seasoning to the spaghetti sauce, shredded lettuce, salsa, green onions, olives


Wash lentils (removing any stones or other impurities) and soak overnight. Drain and finely grind in food processor.  Add 1 ½ cups water, oil, salt, and herbs and blend until mixed completely. (If you have a high powered blender like a BlendTec or Vitamix you can skip grinding the soaked lentils in the food processor and just blend all the ingredients with the soaked lentil in the blender until a smooth batter.

The consistancy is a very thick batter, not a doughy bread.  Spread onto greased cookie sheet or pie pan. I like to use ground flax seed to sprinkle the greased cookie sheet with prior to pouring the pizza batter on it.  It seems to pull away from the sheet better after it's cooked.

Preheat oven to 400 °F.  Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

For best results if using for pizza, bake first, then add toppings and heat until cheese melts and toppings are heated (approximately 10 more minutes).

The pizza is easily removed from the pan if it is allowed to cool for about 15 minutes. If you like your pizza hot, it's still delicious and holds together, just the very bottom layer of the pizza dough might remain on the pan.

We like our pizza served with a green salad!

Seasoned Chicken

15 minutes prep/ 10-15 minutes to cook

2 full chicken breasts or 8 chicken thighs

¼ c. butter or other cooking fat, melted

2 T. Organic No-Salt Seasoning (Kirkland brand found only at Costco...it has dried carrots, basil, celery seed, oregano, , onion, garlic, and so much more.  It's a delicious blend and I use it for seasoning my veggies too.  If you don't have access to this particular blend you can make your own by combining any of the herbs listed above and expanding to others like rosemary and thyme, and just use approximately 2 T. of your own blend)

¼ t. salt

¼ t. black pepper

Mix last four ingredients in a bowl.  Baste chicken with HALF the seasoning mixture.  Grill at medium to low heat for 5-7 minutes on each side, or until chicken is done, while basting frequently until all of the butter mixture is gone.

This seasoned chicken goes with almost any side dish.  We love it with any kind of potatoes (baked, diced and seasoned, fries, potato salad, etc.), any kind of vegetable, or even rice.  It's flavors