Posted by mikayla on May 19, 2013
***My daughter, Mikayla, has taken over my blog today to give me a much needed day off…I was a bit scared when she was okay with doing this…***
Hello inferior life forms!
This is the almighty Mikayla, daughter of Heather Harris. Mom asked me to write a post for her blog, She said I could write anything I wished. My mom’s blog is, as you might know, all about teaching you how to be just like her, in the self sufficient way of course… she’s not at all slowly turning you into a homemaking, harrisheather worshiping zombie army!…
And as your reading her blog you might wonder what goes on behind those pretty pictures of jars filled with everything organic and grass-fed, and her witty posts about how you to can make you very own jars filled with every thing organic and grass-fed! Well I’m going to enlighten you!
When ever you have read a post about a dish she has made, that has been a dinner that Mom has stopped us in the middle of eating it! And declared “This is soooo a blog post!”, got out her camera, rearranged the food so you can’t see the part we’ve already chewed on and snapped a photo. Only after she’s happy with the picture can we go back to eating.
The pictures of chickens on her blog were so fun to get! NOT!! To do this we have to chase a chicken around the yard for about 20 minutes until it gets bored of our little game of cat and mouse, and lets us catch her. We then bring in the cranky, smelly bird into the dinning room stand it up on the table. (yes, the table we sometimes eat on!) and “pose” her until we get the perfect pic. All the while the bird is making very rude comments in Chickenese!
Canning is a blast too! The kitchen gets to a balmy one million degrees, which is so refreshing while we run countless jars up from the dungeon. (Dungeon is the nickname we gave the basement because of it’s uncanny resemblance to a mideval dungeon). Preparing the food to be canned is a lot of work too. If it’s corn, we sit on the porch shucking what feels like 100 burlap bags of corn, while our neighbors watch with amusement. And I’ll never forget Mom’s first year at the produce auction. She bought enough green beans to feed a medium size third world country! And we; meaning Myself, Nicholas, Aaron, and any of our friends who came over at the time, had to snap the ends off of each and every one of them! I snappped so many my hands turned green!
And gardening, oh gardening… When ever mom or dad so much as utters the word my brothers and I run and hide before they decide to put us to work! It almost never works though, and while gardening I imagine I am a Hebrew slave working for a Hysko pharoh. (I say Hysko because when I was obsessed with ancient Egypt I found out that the pharoh at the time of Moses was not Egyptian at all! But in fact part of a group of people known as Hyskos who invaded and took over Egypt just before they inslaved the Hebrews. And I am very OCD about historical acurcy!)
As your reading her blog you might think to your self “Gosh! She must know everything!” Actually, it takes at least three tries before shes happy with the results and can then proceed to blog about it! Like movies, the final product is not everything.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this insight into the harsh, cold reality behind the glamour of the blog.
Posted by Heather on May 18, 2013
What is tallow? Well, it’s rendered beef fat.
Rendering means that you have melted it down, and “extracted” the fat. It removes any leftover stuff in the fat, and makes it smooth, creamy, and easy to use. You are basically changing the composition.
So, lets get to it, shall we?
First, you will need to obtain some beef fat. Our local butcher sells it as “suet”, and it generally runs for $.25/lb. You can also have them save it for you when you order a part of a cow.
Yummy looking, right?
You will want to place this in a large crockpot. If it doesn’t fit in all the way, you will want to cut it to fit.
Turn the crock pot on low, and let it go for several hours. After a while, it begins to look like this:
And this:
After it has “cooked” for about 24 hours on low, you will want to get a jar or two ready. Make sure they are clean and DRY. Trust me on this. Hot oil+any bit of water= nasty, ouchy mess!
I set a canning funnel on top of a wide mouthed quart jar, and topped with a double layer of cheesecloth.
Filter your hot tallow through the cheesecloth, being very careful not to burn yourself!! You will now have this:
Set it aside, out of the way for several hours. When it’s completely cool, it will look like this:
Yummy!!! All this next week, I will show you some ideas for using tallow in your daily life. Happy rendering!
Posted by Heather on May 17, 2013
Have you ever wanted the taste of eggs that you collected yourself that morning? Are you short on entertainment, and wanting something more out of your days? May I recommend you begin keeping a backyard flock? Of chickens, that is 
Don’t know anything about chicken keeping or where to begin? No worries! The Urban Chicken is here to help! This ebook will guide you through the steps of getting chicks, building a home, collecting and keeping eggs and even recipes for making great tasting meals! You will also learn why you should make your neighbors lemonade and why a rake isn’t proper chicken catching equipment. Trust me, it’s hilarious!
Check this book out here, along with all the other fantastic ebooks in this sale!
Click here to get this bundle now!
Posted by Heather on May 16, 2013
Making the decisions about what animals to keep on your homestead is hard enough. Do you add chickens or ducks? How many? What about goats or cows? And, of course, you have to wonder how to keep those animals safe on your homestead. Whether you are in the country and deal with larger predators like coyotes, or you live on an urban homestead and deal with smaller predators like raccoons, you have choices.
Do you have the space for a large dog? Llama? Donkey? And why are these animals important to a homestead? How do you choose?
In Livestock Guardian Animals, by Marie at Rural Living Today, learn how donkeys, llamas, and livestock guardian dogs deal with threatening predators. Read about the instincts, abilities, and limitations of each type of livestock guardian. Then evaluate your needs and make the right livestock guardian decision for your farm, ranch, or homestead.
Normally $2.99 by itself and a worthwhile investment, this book is part of the homesteading ebook bundle and you can get it with 6 other valuable resources for $12.97! Click here to buy it now!
Posted by Heather on May 15, 2013
It’s every homesteaders dream to make a living on their lifestyle. Of course, where to begin? I mean, you can sell eggs, or honey, or even meat birds, but what can you do if you don’t have enough of those goods to sell? You can always try making your own soaps to sell on Etsy, or at a farmer’s market! How do you do that? Well, Susan Godfrey’s book, Making Hand Milled Soap for Fun and Profit can guide you on your way!
With tips to starting out and selling your soaps and over 50 delicious recipes to get you started, this ebook is a can’t miss deal! Some of my favorite recipes are Orange Creamsicle and Vanilla Milkshake. They are easy, simple recipes that will get you started on making your own hand milled soaps today!
This ebook is part of the homesteading ebook bundle deal you don’t want to miss!!
Posted by Heather on May 14, 2013
Have you ever wanted to do something radical, something great and you didn’t know where to start? Perhaps fear of failure kept you from working toward achieving your goal. I know it did for me, and still does at times. But you have a purpose. And, in Aaron Broyles’s book, Do Great Things, you will learn how to overcome your fear.
First, yo
Then, you overcome your fear, and discover your true voice. Who you really are, and what you have to say.u need to change your thinking. He calls this the paradigm shift. The example of the 4 mile minute runner was used. Simply put, there was no one in the world who could run a mile in under four minutes. Doctors said it was humanly impossible, that people could not go that fast. But, one runner in the 1950′s by the name of Roger Bannister said he would do it. And, his record breaking time was 3:59.4 for the mile. Countless others after began to break his records. Why could they do it now? They had a paradigm shift…they believed they could.
The fact is that people will place their own expectations on you, and you will be faced with a choice. Will you do what pleases those around you, or will you do what pleases God? God created you to serve Him.
You will be encouraged, and strengthened with the idea that you can do great things! I loved his writing, and that I was challenged to change my way of thinking. In his conclusion, Aaron says,
You have an amazing opportunity! You have the opportunity to fulfill a place in the world that only you can fill. There is no one in the world right now who can stand in your shoes…I believe you were destined for greatness. You would not exist today if that were not true.
So, what’s been holding you back? Get challenged to embrace your uniqueness and live as an original! This book will give you the tools you need to believe in yourself, change your thinking, overcome your fear and do great things!!!
**I received a FREE copy of this book for the purpose of this review, and no other monetary compensation was recieved. All opinions are 100% mine**
Posted by Heather on
You don’t have to have 10 acres to farm to be able to grow your own food.
You don’t have to have a dozen milking cows or goats to get fresh milk.
You don’t have to have your own flock of chickens to get fresh eggs.
But, do what you CAN do. If you have a small space, like an apartment with no balcony, then grow some herbs in your widowsill. Instead of houseplants like ferns, grow a tomato inside in a bucket. Grow some lettuce in that planter. Use your space. You can utilize farmer’s markets for fresh fruit, veggies, and eggs and at the same time help them grow more food.
You don’t have to be an expert canner and put up gallons and gallons of food each year to eat off. It’s okay to start out small, with only a quart or two of applesauce if you want. It’s all about a journey. If you need further encouragement, I *highly* suggest Melissa Norris’s book, Pioneering Today. With this book, you’ll get practical and useful advice on how to:
- Decrease your grocery and energy bill
- Improve your family’s health by cooking from scratch and over 40 delicious recipes
- Grow and preserve your own food
- Reduce your time in the kitchen without sacrificing taste and nutrition
- Expand your view of God in your daily activities
Whether you live in the middle of the asphalt jungle or on the side of a mountain, you can experience the pioneer lifestyle and start your own homesteading journey. When you surround yourself with things made from the hand of God, you can’t help but see Him.
And, it’s part of this amazing ebook bundle! Click here to learn more and get your bundle of encouragement and homesteading help today!
Posted by Heather on May 13, 2013
Welcome to the monthly eBooks Bundle featuring eBooks authored by members of the Nourished Living Network. Each month, we feature a themed bundle of informative eBooks at a reduced price. Yours truly is included in this sale, and you won’t want to miss this! If you have any questions or hesitations about getting started homesteading, this bundle is for YOU! Perfect for Father’s Day, or for that burgeoning backyard farmer as well.
In Pioneering Today-, author Melissa K. Norris explains practical and easy methods to cook from scratch, garden, preserve your own food, and see God’s fingerprint in your everyday busy life. You’ll learn how to:
- Decrease your grocery and energy bill
- Improve your family’s health by cooking from scratch and over 40 delicious recipes
- Grow and preserve your own food
- Reduce your time in the kitchen without sacrificing taste and nutrition
- Expand your view of God in your daily activities
Whether you live in the middle of the asphalt jungle or on the side of a mountain, you can experience the pioneer lifestyle and start your own homesteading journey. When you surround yourself with things made from the hand of God, you can’t help but see Him.
132 pages / Retail Value: ebook-$2.99 Paperback $9.99
Follow Melissa K. Norris on Facebook.
Learning how to raise chickens doesn’t have to be difficult. In fact, The Urban Chicken by Heather Harris will walk you right through each step of the way, from choosing a breed to where it will live, all the way to processing. A simple, easy to read guide that will quickly expand your knowledge and making getting fresh eggs and meat from your own backyard seem like child’s play.
41 pages / Retail Value: $3.99
Follow the Homesteading Hippy on Facebook.
Would your farm benefit from a livestock guardian animal to defend your property and stock? In Livestock Guardian Animals, by Marie at Rural Living Today, learn how donkeys, llamas, and livestock guardian dogs deal with threatening predators. Read about the instincts, abilities, and limitations of each type of livestock guardian. Then evaluate your needs and make the right livestock guardian decision for your farm, ranch, or homestead.
23 pages / Retail Value: $2.99
Follow Living Rural Today on Facebook.
Drawing Blood from Your Goats by Starlene Stewart, is a helpful instructional guide which will walk you through the process of drawing blood from your goats, complete with photos, labeling instructions, how and where to send the blood for testing. Instead of calling out your local veterinarian and shelling out $$$, learn to draw blood yourself and save money on your homestead!
19 pages / Retail Value: $4.95
Follow Starlene Stewart on Facebook.
Making Hand Milled Soap for Fun and Profit by Susan Godfrey includes instructions and 52 recipes to teach you how to make your own designer soaps at home! It also includes many tips and resources for making a profit selling them!
45 pages/Retail Value: $3.75
And with this cool package, comes 2 FREE ebooks!
Remember – this sale is for ONE WEEK ONLY!
It disappears forever on May 20th at 11:59pm!
Have some questions about the technical aspects of the bundle? Visit our Customer FAQ page.
**this post contains affiliate links, see my disclosure policy here**
Posted by Heather on May 12, 2013
Why can milk? Hmmmm…well, if you are only able to get groceries once a month like I am, buying several gallons of milk makes sense. BUT, trying to store the milk in the fridge and freezer is very space constraining. So, being that I use a lot of milk for cooking, I decided to try and can some. And you know what? It works! The flavor doesn’t change, and the texture is just fine! We use it to cook, and if I need some for granola or drinking, I just chill it well before opening. The following tutorial is based on my research, and what I felt was the best method for doing this.
So, here’s how I can milk!
First, you are going to start off with well washed jars. I used pints because it was much easier to work with in terms of storage, and usage. My hubby even knows one pint jar for a batch of mashed potatoes…
I then rinsed them out with vinegar to sanitize them. I didn’t want any water in there, nor did I want the jars hot, so this was what I came up with. I then rinsed them out to get rid of the vingear and placed upside down on a towel to dry.
Then, I got the lids simmering…this softens up the seal and gets the lid ready to can. Muy importante!
I then poured the milk into clean, rinsed jars. Yes, this milk was cold, so that’s why I didn’t want to have hot jars.
Wiped off the rim, added the lid and band, and screwed on finger tight.
Placed in the pressure canner, closed the canner up, THEN I turned on the heat. Waited until steam vented, and then let the steam vent for 10 minutes. This part took about 35 minutes to get to, then the 10 minutes=45 minutes of waiting time total.
Added the rocker for 10lbs. pressure.
As soon as the rocker began to rock, I IMMEDIATELY turned off the heat, and let the canner cool. Removed the jars, wiped off, and viola! Canned milk!
Posted by Heather on May 11, 2013
Can I get three cheers for pinterest? I love it! I found this idea on there, and wanted to try it for myself. We have a soda stream and the syurp add-ins are full of high fructose corn syrup, preservatives, and other stuff I really don’t want my family to have. The next best thing? Make my own syrup to add! I tried it, we loved it, and so I decided to make a huge batch to have on hand all the time.
Follow me on Pinterest to see other neat ideas I’m hoping to try!
Behind the Scenes
