Herbal Momma's School of Domestic Arts

Storms, Trees, Power Outages

2012-01-28T21:30:00.000-08:00

By January 19th we had 12" of snow and a thick coating of ice on everything. It was beautiful!
But we lost power for 3 days and had a wonderful time with family bonding, becoming more skilled at using our wood cookstove and thriving without electricity.

Then on January 24th in the late evening a wind storm came that "blew" us away. Trees came down everywhere, including our property and our neighbors. One of their trees came down across the street into our trees and when it came down it took all the utility lines and the power pole with it. We had "live" lines in our front yard, drive and on our street. We were safe in our home for just over 24 hours. We were able to get out the back to do our animals and DH was able to go to work via the neighbors drive. But we had the adventure of watching power poles being put in and restored.

Today we were assisted by Travis (our Yakima farmer/produce man) and his brother, Troy Heine, Tree Master. They are both great Tree-men, bonded and licensed. Troy specialized in Fine Pruning and can take care of anyone beautiful and ornamental trees with great care. Contact 509-654-6054 or troyheine@live.com

Please call them if you need any tree removal or tree care!

Wildcraft Wednesday

2011-11-30T15:52:00.000-08:00

I have a few Herbal blogs that I really like that you might like to check out.
Woodwife's Journal
Common Sense Homesteading
Mind Body and Sole

They do a Wildcraft Wednesday that has links to others herbal preparations, including mine.

If you go to my post Making Autumn Herbals you can see that there herbals preparations that support the upper respiratory system. This is not just because it's that "season", but because I have been caught by some "walking pneumonia" type bug, that has lasted over 2 months now. The naturopath did a full blood screen and the main problem is low white blood count, possibly from immunizations when I was a child. In addition to the Autumn Herbals I am taking additional Vit. C & D, Fish Oil, homeopathics for deep seeded virus. Plus acupuncture, cranial, massage and Epson salt/essential oil baths.

The reason I share this is because, even those of us in the healing field have opportunities to learn and be challenged by ailments. I have improved, relapsed and improved again. It is giving me a new prospective, understanding and patience. I am learning to set new priorities and to reach out to others that can support my healing. My family has (is) learning to do more and support me better.

So all of this is a growing experience for all of us in a good way. My health and strength is much better and I am on the road of recovery. May you have a slower, more peaceful December with lots of joy and love!!! I am!

Do You Have the Right to Choose the Food You and Your Family Consume?

2011-10-22T07:11:00.000-07:00

According to a ruling by Wisconsin Judge Patric Feidler, you do not. Don't Have Right to Choose
This ruling was made September 9th, 2011. A fitting day for our Country and for the rights of Wisconsinites and Americans.

Five days later, Judge Patrick Fielder resigned, effective September 30th, 2011. Steps Down
Only to go to work for Axley Brynelson, LLP, which defended Monsanto against a patent infringement case filed by Australian firm, Genetic Technologies, Ltd. (GTL) in early 2010.

Conspiracy or not? I think not. After reading Omnivore's Delemma, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, Everything I Want to Do is Illegal, and many other informative books and DVD's, the conclusion I have come to is; There is a Conspiracy! It is to control many aspects of our lives.

What we can do about it?
- Plant a garden
- Have some of our animals
- Buy local foods
- Wildcraft
- Preserve our foods
- Network with like-minded folks who are doing the same.
- And continue to educate ourselves, watch the "real", accurate news, and teach our children and others.

Then the best part of all is to enjoy our lives, love our family and friends, look for the good and eat delicious foods!!!

Join Me on a Sourdough Adventure

2011-10-21T07:46:00.000-07:00

I have made Whole Grain Artisan Breads, but haven't really gone on the Sourdough Adventure yet. Not until this week. Now I have challenged myself to not only re-activiate a starter, but to use it in many ways over the next few months.

I grew up in the outskirts of the Bay Area, California. My mom had a sourdough starter going and made us dollar sized pancakes from it. It was an occasional treat. We had beautiful, tangy, Sourdough French Bread available to us. It smelled and tasted so delicious. That was before my conversion to Whole Grains 25 years or more. Though I still love that San Fransisco Sourdough.

So now I am experimenting and going to learn the "how-to's" of Sourdough Cooking.

I found a free starter from Calr Griffith's 1847 Oregon Trail Sourdough Starter that they so graciously mailed to me. I have also subscribed to GNOWFGLINS Sourdough eCourse and printed off the course to work through as my text course of study. The 1 1/2" binder is full and even my grand-daughter couldn't believe that Grandma was going to have to do that much school-work.

Today is day 4. My starter is just this afternoon starting to smell sour. Before it "stunk". It is bubbly and glutenous. My plan is the keep feeding it till day 7, then on day 8 make Tortillas.

Do you make Sourdough? Please share your experiences and knowledge. I will post my progress.

Secret Sauce Updated

2011-10-20T19:07:00.000-07:00

~This post was oringially made in 2009. It is now the time to make it again. Do you have a few peaches, tomatoes, along with the apples and onions? If not you can used some canned peaches and tomatoes, instead of fresh. It will still tastes great!~

Our family calls this delicious sauce, "Secret Sauce". Who would have thought; peaches, tomatoes, apples, onions, mixed together would make something so tasty?

We love it on; scrambled eggs or omelets, potatoes, over meatloaf, hamburgers or polish dogs, over chicken while it's baking served with brown rice, on grilled meats, etc..... We use it like catsup and LOVE it!!!

In 2007 I read, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. A book I highly recommend! In the back are some wonderful recipes, including Relish, Sauce and Chutney - All in One Day by Janet Chadwick. I made and changed it to suit our family's tastes and into one sauce that we use it almost daily.

This is a wonderful condiment that friends and family love to get as a gift. We usually double this recipe, but you'll need a big pot. I hope your family enjoys it as much as we do!

Farley Family Secret Sauce
Makes - 13 pints

In a large pot add;
5 pounds apples, peeled and coarsley chopped
4 pounds tomatoes, pureed
2 1/2 pounds onions, chopped
4 cups apple cider vinegar
3 cups sugar
1/3 cup sea salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons mustard powder
Simmer, uncovered, over medium heat until the apples are soft and the mixture is thick. Stir occasionally. This can take up to 3 or 4 hours.

In another pan add;
4 pounds peaches, peeled and sliced
4 1/2 cups sugar
8 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
1/3 cup water
Simmer, covered over a low heat till soft. Stir occasionally. Until fruit is very soft and this mixture is thick. If the peaches don't turn into a mush, puree in blender.

Add peach mixture to tomato mixture. Continue to simmer on low until it is the thickness that you want. Be sure and stir occasionally to prevent scorching. This can take a couple of hours.

Ladle into pint jars, place lid and ring on. Water bath for 20 minutes.

~The reason these need to be cooked separately is the apple/tomato mixture takes longer than the peach/sugar/spice mixture. If you add all the sugar the tomato mixture will scorch.

Enjoy and let us know the ways your family likes to use this Secret Sauce.

100 Skills Every Person Should Know

2011-10-12T21:08:00.000-07:00

~ This post came to my email today and I thought it was so important that I decided to share it with all of you. I really like to read Kevin Hayden posts and insights, you might enjoy his newsletter too.

100 Skills Every Person Should Know

Posted on Oct 10, 2011 in DIY Projects

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Borrowed in part from Popular Mechanics. Originally published at TruthisTreason on Nov. 8th, 2010

Automotive

1. Handle a blowout
2. Drive in snow
3. Basic vehicle troubleshooting
4. Replace fan belt
5. Wire in a new light
6. Conquer an off-road obstacle
7. Use a stick welder
8. Hitch up a trailer
9. Jump start a car

Handling Emergencies

10. Perform the Heimlich
11. Reverse hypothermia
12. Perform CPR
13. Escape a sinking car

Home

14. Carve a turkey
15. Use a sewing machine
16. Put out a fire
17. Home brew beer
18. Remove bloodstains from fabric
19. Move heavy stuff
20. Grow food
21. Read an electric meter
22. Use a shovel properly
23. Solder wire
24. Tape drywall
25. Split firewood
26. Replace a faucet washer
27. Mix concrete
28. Paint a straight line
29. Use a French knife
30. Prune bushes and small trees
31. Iron a shirt
32. Fix a toilet tank flapper
33. Change a single-pole switch
34. Fell a tree
35. Replace a broken windowpane
36. Set up a ladder, safely
37. Fix a leaky faucet
38. Sweat copper tubing
39. Change a diaper
40. Grill with charcoal
41. Sew a button on a shirt
42. Fold a flag

Medical Myths

43. Treat frostbite
44. Treat a burn
45. Help a seizure victim
46. Treat a snakebite
47. Remove a tick

Military Know-How

48. Shine shoes
49. Make a drum-tight bed
50. Drop and give the perfect pushup

Outdoors

51. How to swim
52. Hang food in the wild
53. Skipper a boat
54. Shoot straight
55. Tackle steep drops on a mountain bike
56. Escape a rip current

Primitive Skills

57. Build a fire in the wilderness
58. Build a shelter
59. Find or create safe water

Surviving Extremes

60. Floods
61. Tornados
62. Cold
63. Heat
64. Lightning

Teach Your Kids

65. Cast a line
66. Lend a hand
67. Change a tire
68. Throw a spiral
69. Fly a stunt kite
70. Drive a stick shift
71.Parallel park
72. Tie a bowline
73. Tie a necktie
74. Whittle
75. Ride a bike

Technology

76. Install a graphics card
77. Take the perfect portrait
78. Calibrate HDTV settings
79. Shoot a home movie
80. Replace your hard drive

Workshop Tools

81. Drill press
82. Grease gun
83. Coolant hydrometer
84. Socket wrench
85. Test light
86. Brick trowel
87. Framing hammer
88. Wood chisel
89. Spade bit
90. Circular saw
91. Sledge hammer
92. Hacksaw
93. Torque wrench
94. Air wrench
95. Infrared thermometer
96. Sand blaster
97. Crosscut saw
98. Hand plane
99. Multimeter
100. Drill out a stripped screw

Herbal Medicine Chest ~ My "Mypos Cure" | ~The Woodwife's Journal~

2011-10-06T23:07:00.000-07:00

Herbal Medicine Chest ~ My "Mypos Cure" | ~The Woodwife's Journal~

Making Autumn Herbals

2011-10-06T21:45:00.000-07:00

I've been making some Autumn Herbals and preparing for winter.

Herbal Cough Syrup
This syrup is fast working on most of us and also has some bronchial relaxing benefits.
1 1/2 cups water    1 1/2" piece ginger    3 medium branches horehound
Place into saucepan, cover. Simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes. Strain and measure.
Mine measured about 1 cup. Add 1 cup honey, stirring well. Add 20 drops eucalyptus essential oil. Stir very well. I put it into the blender to fully emulsify. Pour into bottle and label. We adults take 1 teaspoon as needed.

Composition Powder
This formula has been historically used for upper respiratory issues, sore throats, immune system sluggishness, fevers, flu, to increase circulation, relieve congestion, digestion and stomach disorders. It's like a "all-purpose" remedy that is good to have in every herbal home.
4 parts Bayberry bark powder     3 parts White Pine Bark powder
3 parts Ginger powder                 3 parts Cloves powder
1 part Cayenne powder

Fresh Catnip Tincture
~Aids digestion, promotes relaxation and stress-lessness.
Place fresh catnip leaves into blender jar. Add just enough 100 proof vodka to make a "slurry" consistency. Pour into jar. Make sure there is liquid on top of herbs, adding additional vodka if necessary. Label jar. Shake at least twice daily for 3 weeks or more. Strain. Bottle and label. Use by dropper.

Catnip Fennel Tincture
~ This herbal is great for not only digestion, but fluctuation.
2 tablespoons fennel seed                 catnip leaves
Place fennel seeds into blender jar with 1/4 cup vodka and blend till seeds are broken up. Add 3 times the amount catnip leaves and just enough 100 proof vodka to make a "slurry" consistency. Pour into jar. Make sure there is liquid on top of herbs, adding additional vodka if necessary. Label jar. Shake at least twice daily for 3 weeks or more. Strain. Bottle and label. Use by dropper.

Lung Tincture
~ This tincture supports the lungs and bronchial system. This formula uses dried herbs.
2 parts catnip                                 1 part horehound
1/2 part marshmallow                    1/4 part licorice
Place herbs into blender. Add 100 proof vodka double the volume of herb. Blend well. Place into jar. Label jar. Shake at least twice daily for 3 weeks or more. Strain. Bottle and label. Use by dropper.

~When labeling your jars I put the name of product and the date in which it was made. This helps me keep track of what it is. You can never remember, nor really tell by the smell when a tincture is finished, what it is. So label all your herbal products.

~I also keep a Herbal Notebook for my formulas with the dates, product information, uses for and instructions as I make them. I refer back to this notebook and it becomes a personal herbal "cookbook".

What herbals are you making?

Chicken SALE Coming

2011-09-21T21:49:00.000-07:00

Last night I was pulling some canning and realized that I am getting low on canned chicken. At a canning group event this morning a friend, Angie, showed her canning....Teriyaki Chicken. It was delicious! Plus she is sharing the recipe. So I really need the more chicken now.

I just got the announcement that Zaycon has boneless, skinless, chicken breast for $1.49.
If you would like more information check them out. Zaycon Chicken

We have purchased it previously and it has been wonderful!!!

To see some of my chicken adventures from my blog. Chicken Posts

Canning & the Harvest goes on....

2011-09-13T22:02:00.000-07:00

Wow, this is a busy time of year. Some of us are getting back into the swing of school, vacations and harvesting from the garden, now add boxes of fruit and tomatoes to be put up and we have a busy life...Don't we?

These days I wonder if life (the house) will ever be back to normal again? I would really miss all the canning and dried foods, if we didn't do it now while it's all fresh and delicious.

This past week we canned:
44 quarts peaches, some where white peaches
12 quarts dill pickles
9 quarts and 1 pint bread & butter pickles
8 pints and 1 quart pickled beets
13 quarts green beans
8 quarts and 7 pints tomato sauce

I grew Amish Paste tomatoes from seed. We planted the starts in large pots placed in front of our garage, facing south. Jacob, our son, is 6 foot, so you can see how high they grew. If only they produced heavy. It's a sparce crop this year, due to the cool weather. We will grow them again this way. We have just stopped watering them in hopes that the fruit will ripen.

I had a friend over for lunch and we ate in the garden. We had Zucchini Frittata, Tomato Basil Salad and Herb Cheese Biscuits. Delicious and delightfully easy. Yum!

FREE Class this Saturday

2011-09-07T14:28:00.000-07:00

I will be teaching, Healing Herbs, Healthy Herbs at the Orting Library at 1pm this Saturday, September 10, 2011.

This class will be a introduction to herbal healing. Like my other classes there will be things to taste and smell too. For further information please see:
Pierce County Library Calendar

August News

2011-08-24T15:11:00.000-07:00

Happy Summer! Wow, have we been busy summer with family, garden and projects.

I am excited to announce the following fun activity. Hope to see you there.

Kristine Farley’s 1^st Annual Herbal Evening
August 25, 2011 ~ 6 to 9 pm
~All FREE~ Bring a friend (sorry no children)

Light Herbal Supper Served, Garden Tour, even try playing Wildcraft.

Drawings for Free Items:

Books, Class Tuition, Energy Clearing Session, Herbal Products, Herb Plants, Handcrafted Herbal Soap and MORE…

Please RSVP as soon as possible ~ herbquilter@gmail.com

*Must come to sign-up for drawings*

Herbal Momma's School of Domestic Arts
Make Herbal Summer Sun Tea
Gather a handful of fresh Lemon Balm, Peppermint, Pineapple Sage or other desired herb.
Twist herbs with your hands and place into quart jar. Fill jar with water and cover with lid.
Put jar in sun for 3 to 4 hours. Strain, sweetened if desired and serve :)

Joyful Empowerment with Kristine
~Summer Stress Buster ~
Nature Gratitude ~ Take a few moments outside...look at the clouds, trees, sunset, etc.
Really look. Now take some deep relaxing breathes and feel gratitude for nature. Ponder this moment and treasure it.
Try to take time each day to enjoy the beauty around us!

I have a new website up ~ KristineFarley.com~ Check it out!

We also have something a little different to share:

Our Barn Cottage rental is available.
It's cute and approximately 800 sq. ft. Loft bedroom with large closet upstairs, kitchen, great room, 3/4 bath, and some garden area. $575 per month, includes power, heat, water and garbage. Plus great neighbors us. Call for more information. 253-359-7029

Summer Day

2011-08-03T15:35:00.000-07:00

It's beautiful and warm in Western Washington. Too warm for using the stove for too long. You may be one of those lucky ones who have an abundance of fresh chicken eggs. We don't have any eggs from our little flock yet, but we are hoping soon.

Here's great family recipe that we love anytime of year.

Crock Pot Tapioca Pudding

½ cup tapioca pearls, non instant

6 cups milk

1 Tablespoon vanilla

1 cup sugar

6 eggs, separated

Place tapioca, milk, vanilla, sugar & egg yolks into greased crock pot. Using a whip, blend completely. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. Whip egg whites into firm peaks and fold into pudding. Cool and serve. Great with some freshly whipped, sweetened cream.

I have been spending more time with grandchildren and three of them have recently moved with their parents to WA. It is so much fun!

Herbal Momma's School of Domestic Arts

Storms, Trees, Power Outages

Wildcraft Wednesday

Do You Have the Right to Choose the Food You and Your Family Consume?

Join Me on a Sourdough Adventure

Secret Sauce *Updated*

100 Skills Every Person Should Know

~ This post came to my email today and I thought it was so important that I decided to share it with all of you. I really like to read Kevin Hayden posts and insights, you might enjoy his newsletter too.

100 Skills Every Person Should Know

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Automotive

Handling Emergencies

Home

Medical Myths

Military Know-How

Outdoors

Primitive Skills

Surviving Extremes

Teach Your Kids

Technology

Workshop Tools

Herbal Medicine Chest ~ My "Mypos Cure" | ~The Woodwife's Journal~

Making Autumn Herbals

Chicken SALE Coming

Canning & the Harvest goes on....

FREE Class this Saturday

August News

Summer Day

Secret Sauce Updated