Finally! It was the computer again! Does anyone have as many problems as we do??? I still seem to have something lurking. We've worked through several problems, some that were hidden by the technicians working on this beast last time. They could not fix the problem, so tried to bypass, that worked for a while until.........Now there seems to be a conflict between our anti virus and our server..........I run on while I could be writing about some fun stuff.
I've been buying our milk from a farm nearby. The milk soooo yummy! One fun thing is that it comes with cream.
If you look carefully, you can see the line between the milk and the cream. I whip some of the cream to have on mocha's and hot chocolate. I use most of the cream for butter.
Right now, I'm making it in the blender. I know, sure way to burn the motor out. I'm hoping to find a small churn soon.
I like making fresh butter. It's a relaxing process. "Churning" the cream, washing the buttermilk out, then adding salt. I know what the cow ate and how the cow is cared for. I know that my family is eating dairy that is pure, no gmo's, no hormones or additives. I like that. I also have been making yogurt, cream cheese, and other simple cheeses.
I made a gentle face and body scrub. I use oatmeal for the base. Then add dried roses, calandula (pot marigold), and lemon peel.
First, I grind the oatmeal in a small coffee grinder. It's a grinder that I use only for herbal things. I don't want my herbal things to smell or taste like coffee, and my husband doesn't want his coffee to taste like herbs. I grind the oatmeal to a powder. Oatmeal is very nourishing to the skin and is a gentle exfoliate.
After putting the oatmeal in a jar I grind small roses saved from last summer. I pull the petals off. In the center are small seeds that I add. Then grind.
Then I add some calandula to the jar. You can see about how much I add. I don't measure too closely.
On top of it all I add about 2T of ground lemon peel. This is anti bacterial, cleansing, and exfoliating.
Now it's time to mix it all together.
When You want to use it, just scoop out about 1 1/2 T. I have this cute little soap dish I put it in.
Then I add a little warm water, and stir it around with my finger. I scoop a little up with my fingers, and rub it onto my face. I gently rub my face all over, then rinse it off with warm water. Then rinse again with cold water. It's refreshing. I love the way my face feels afterward. I have very oily skin. This really helps without making the cells produce more oil. Again, it's something very natural and gentle for me. No additives. I can say the name of every ingredient.
I also started a larger project. Look at this horror. It's a large closet that we have used as an office. Lots of years ago the kids wanted to paint it the way they wanted. They wanted to have fun with it. I let them. Every wall was a different, bright color. It suited them at the time. Now they are gone. My husband wants to use the space for his at home office. One daughter is back home for a short time. A HA! She gets to paint the base coat of paint. With that done, I get to have some fun with the walls.
I'm sponging on some greens and copper, and making some swirls in antique bronze.
It's very random. It's hard to see in these pictures. When I get the room (closet) finished, I'll see if I can get a picture that gives you the feel of the whole room. It has an old world feel. I don't usually use white or off white, but with no windows, and small space I went for it. It's called Primitive White by Dutch Boy. It's kind of fun to rub and swirl paint on here and there. The walls in our home are lath and plaster. All the bumps and ridges that you see are really there. Painting a more modern look wouldn't would look out of place. It's great to finally change this wild look.
Did I plant enough? I knew I wanted lots. Two plants last year just didn't make enough. Back in May each plant was so small. Twelve plants, two different kinds. That should be enough to dry some and make pesto, I thought. Maybe I should have gotten one more six pack of plants. Ha!This year the plants are sooooo much bigger. They are growing and growing. Maybe it is do to the chicken contribution. I've cut bunches to dry. Yesterday I harvested more. I made 18 batches of pesto to add to what I made earlier. The basil plants are still healthy and growing. I'm sure I will have much more in the end. Did I mention, there have been basil give aways too. There will be more. Anyone live close by??
Then there are the cucumbers. I haven't made pickles in years. I unearthed my old recipes and "put up" a few jars.
The green beans are still going strong. 32 pints. I made a few pints of dilly beans too. The peaches are yummy! Quarts and quarts of peaches are waiting in the pantry for the time in the winter when we want to bring back the taste of summer. Then I've made peach jam and syrup. Maybe I'm doing more this year because most of the kids are gone. Wow, they took up a lot of energy! There will be food in the pantry when they come visiting.
I've been enjoying "putting food up". Each day I've wanted to do something has been a cooler day, in between our heat waves. So it has been enjoyable. There is still lot to do in the garden. It's satisfying. 
