Need A Funny Caption

What's your caption for this week?

Last Week:

                                  "You may want to get mom,
                 I think the dog has given you fleas!"

Last weeks caption is from Clint Baker over at:

The Redeemed Gardener

I had a great laugh over this one Clint!!

Hop on over to his blog and see his re-purposed

garden chair.  It turned out so cute! 

He's looking for your advise as to how to use it.

Other captions were:

"Now this is a bark-o-lounger!"

by Jacky over at:

Dicky Bird's Nest

Little Guy says to Big Guy, "Well, if I were you, I'd pay to have it

professionally styled."
Or

Dog says, "Maybe if I just ignore both of them, they'll go away."

by Mama Pea over at:

A Home Grown Journal

"Dog-on-tired"...aka Dog Gone Tired...:)

by A Quiet Corner over at:

A Quiet Corner

Dude... dont touch the hair

by Jennifer over at:

Our Little Farm

Someone around here is shedding. Is it you?

by Michaele over at:

Sprout 'n' Wings Farm

"Whadya think, little dude?

Should I get my hair cut or let it grow out?"

by Chicken Mama over at:

The Tales of a Lady Homestreader

Don't worry Bro, just hang with me and the dog,

 the girls won't mind your hair!

by Sall over at: 

Sall's Country Life

                          "Hey, we've got the best seat in the house!"

by Marissa over at: 

Life On Our Side Of The Mountain

What's that smell? Did you do that?"
"No...musta been the dog."

by gtyyup over at:

Life at the Rough String

Mutual Admiration Society.

by Sandie over at:

Chatty Chrone

Thanks for playing everyone!!!

This was a picture of Future Leader Dog Trixy

(now working Leader Dog Trixy) and

Grandsons: Remington and Brayden.

Trixy absolutely did not let them resting on her, interrupt her nap!

.....dr momi

Mr. Lazy

Billy's favorite "perch" in the house.....at the top of the loft steps.
If he looks sleepy, it's because he is :-)  I'm disturbing his nap.
(But see his tail in the back?...it's thumping)

.....dr momi

Growing Celery


      Two years ago I really knew nothing about growing celery, but my chicken soup has got to have it. I only use organic celery because celery is one of the top 10 pesticided (new word :-) vegetables out there.  ....and since organic is getting a little pricey, I wanted to learn to grow it.  So, I started on a quest.  It really isn't something we regularly grow up north with our short growing season. (Wisconsin)

     Two summers ago I bought 6 started plants.  They grew beautifully, and I kept waiting for them to look like the ones I buy in the grocery store before cutting them.  That never happened.  Finally my husband wanted to plow that garden section for the end of the year, so I cut the tops that were there. (leaving the roots)  I was not impressed with the yield, and it had a rather bitter taste.  My husband dragged the garden.

     Imagine my surprise when the celery started to grow again!  He obviously hadn't pulled up the roots.  I actually got a lot more yield off those plants after I figured out that you can cut the top off and it just keeps growing. .....like I said, I knew nothing about growing celery!

     Last year, I started celery from seed in the house and then transplanted it.  It took a LONG time for it to get going, and then got smothered by a volunteer pumpkin plant I let grow.  I decided starting them from seed was a little too much bother, seeing as I don't have a green house.





My own picture of growing
celery :-)

        Enter Pinterest this year.  Pictures of the end of a celery stalk growing new leaves, were everywhere.  I had to try it.  I cut off the end of my organic celery stalk and set it in a bowel of water.  Within 2-3 weeks I had new stalks and leaves.  I planted it today.  When it gets planted in the garden I expect to keep cutting the tops off and getting a huge good crop to dehydrate or freeze.  I'll have to let you know how it goes.  If anyone has more advise on how to grow celery please share!  I'm trying to learn it all :-)





We'll see how it goes.



.....dr momi

Linked To: Homestead Barn Hop # 51
Linked To: Frugal Days, Sustainable Ways #16





Sunday in Pictures



This year's sweet potato plant has
already given me a couple of slips.



They are ready to plant.

...and my celery end has sprouted and is ready to plant.
Check out directions at Farm Bell Recipes at Chickens in the Road.
I hope to get a few more going before garden planting time.

This was Levi's 1st Sunday Night Supper with the whole family.
He slept through all the noise.
Big brother Brayden walked into the house *sing-songing*
"I got a baby. I got a baby."

We couldn't figure out if Zoe was left or right handed tonight.
Or maybe Grandma's chicken soup was just extra good!

Grandsons (brothers) Ryan and Brady (6 months)

.....dr momi

Linked To: Farm Photo Friday

Need A Funny Caption

What's Your Caption For This Week??

Last Week:

Where's Waldo?

Last week's caption coined by labbie1 over at:

The Adventures of Garrett Squared

Hop over and see her new Granddog!  Awwhhh.

Other captions were:



the shell game

by TexWisGirl over at:

The Run *A* Round Ranch Report

"The light...we must go to the light!"

by Candy C. over at:

Lazy J Bar C Farm

A sea of shells - to see the sea

byJacky over at:

Dicky Bird's Nest

What time does the movie start?

by Michaele over at:

Sprout 'n' Wings Farm

"Look, over there, it's Barney!"

by Sall over at:

Sall's Country Life

Stupid rush hour!

by Tina over at:

Our Rustic Roots



                                                                  Pete...Pete is that you?

by Melodie over at:

Laughing Duck Farm

This is a picture of baby snapping turtles that just hatched.

A guy in our town will take eggs people find in the "wrong" places,

buries them in his yard, and when they hatch will release them back

into the wild. We take the grandkids to see them every couple of years.

Thanks for playing everyone....it sure keeps me laughing!

.....dr momi

A Good Day To Be Born



Grandson, Levi Daniel, born this afternoon .
8 lb. 10 oz., 22 in.



Welcomed by big brother Brayden.

Born at home.

.....Grandma Jean

Canning 101.....Do I Need A Recipe?

     Not every canning recipe you find out there in blogland is necessarily safe.  A safe recipe for water bath canning is all about the pH of the total amount of ingredients in the recipe.  Water bath canning is only safe if all the ingredients together comprise a pH of 4.6 or lower.  If the pH is 4.6 or higher, you need to use a pressure canner.  If your ingredients are acid enough (low pH) they will not support the growth of Clostridium botulinum that causes Botulism.

     So how do you know what the pH of your recipe is?  The best way to be safe is to use a tested recipe.  All the recipes in the Ball Blue Book guide to preserving and the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving have been tested by their kitchen.  They know what the pH is. I'm sure there are more tested recipes out there -- probably from your extension offices, but, there aren't all that many.  Why?  It's expensive testing. (It's my understanding we are talking something way beyond dipping in a piece of litmus paper.)

     Now, there's lots of canning book recipes out there, but the recipes are not tested.  In general, those recipes will probably be fine.  If someone is writing a book about canning, hopefully they know what they are talking about.  But here's where I have a real hard time when I'm blog reading -- someones grandma's recipe that they've "added" to.  First of all, grandma's recipe could very well not be safe to start with, and then adding more ingredients (especially vegetables) could be making it all the more alkaline.

      Here's an example.  Say you start with a tested salsa recipe (or your grandma's recipe).  This is a recipe with plenty of vinegar in it and is just under that 4.6 pH.....but, it's safe to water bath can.  Your taste for hot peppers however makes you add in another cup of peppers, and you saw on someones blog that a great way to use up some of your zucchini is in salsa, so you add another cup of zucchini.  All of a sudden, you have a recipe over 4.6 pH that is not safe to water bath can.

Here's some pH values:

pH 3.0 - 4.0   ......apples, berries, cherries, lemons, oranges, peaches,  pears (Asian pears are
                            the exception), and pickles

pH 4.0 - 5.0   ......tomatoes with added acid (tomatoes are tricky, they will have their own post)

pH 5.0 - 6.0   ......carrots, beans, onions, peppers, potatoes, squash, and most meats

pH 6.0 - 7.0   ......corn, mushrooms, peas, and chicken






The Ball Blue Book is updated every little bit.
Mine is from 2009....time to maybe get a new one this year.



I use both books a lot.
....and I haven't even touched everything you can can.
Oh the possibilities!

Check out the rest of the Canning 101 series:

Canning 101.....Here's the Rest of the Tools
Canning 101 -- Tools Of The Trade
Canning 101.....Who Cares About Headspace
Canning 101 -- Why 2-Piece Lids?

.....jean


Linked To: Farmgirl Friday Blog Hop #45
Linked To: Homestead Barn Hop # 50

Need A Funny Caption

What's your caption for this week?

Last Week:

                                               
                              I'm all puckered up, come get your kiss!

This week's caption is by Rue over at:

Rue's Ruminations

Hey everyone....looks like Rue is just starting to blog.

Maybe we could all hop over and give her a good welcome?

Thanks for playing along Rue!

Other captions were:

S'more please :)

by Stephanie over at:

Caffeinated Homestead Dream

Want a lick? 

by Sandie over at:

Chatty Chrone 





Salad... what salad?
by Heidi over at:
 White Wolf Summit Farmgirl




"Oh, were you savin' that?"
by Kim over at:
Jabez Farm
(I've tried a bazillion times to highlight Jabez Farm in red,
I'm clueless as to why it won't. Hover over it...it's a link.)





"It's the newest facial mask. Why do you ask?"
by Mama Pea over at:
A Home Grown Journal




Alien, what alien? Ooooooh, I think I ate it!
by Sharon over at:
Fitzgerald's Family Farm




"Become one with the food."
by Candy C. over at:
Lazy J Bar C Farm




Was it yummy and gooey? Haven't seen it. Don't have a clue.
by Ronda over at:
The Pauley Principle




Willie wants a wet wipe!
by Sall over at:
Sall's Country Life



"Yes, I think this make my eyes look more blue?"
by Dicky Bird over at:
Dicky Bird's Nest




Who me? I didn't eat it!
by Madge over at:
The View From Right Here




"What? Did I miss a little?"
by Lisa over at:
Country Kids Farm




Can I have a spoon already!?
by Michaele over at:
Sprout 'n' Wings Farm





This is a picture of my Grandson Remington
at his 1st Birthday Party......he liked it :-)
Thanks for playing everyone!!!



.....dr momi

Sunday in Pictures

So.....this was the "dusting of snow" we got on Friday.
I took this shot as I was leaving town to go "up north"
for a three day weekend with some  friends.



I traveled straight up the middle of Wisconsin
on Highway 51.  Had to go through the town of
Mercer -- the "Loon Capitol of the World".  This big loon was at their
Chamber of Commerce.  They call it ClaireD 'Loon.
Only in Wisconsin....:-)



....and this big statue of Chief Hiawatha was in Ironwood, Michigan. (Upper Michigan)
LOL....only in Michigan???
He's not even on a main highway....right in the middle of a neighborhood.

This is the backside the neighbors get to look at out their windows.
I suppose you'd get used to it. :-)



My trip ended at Big Powderhorn Ski Resort at a friends ski chalet.
No I did not ski. I lounged :-)
I did play with Future Leader Dog Kimber.
Kimber goes back to Leader Dogs For The Blind in
Rochester Michigan in about a month and a half.

 .....dr momi

Canning 101 .....Here's the Rest of the Tools

The jar lifter:



.....no, not the CAR lifter, the JAR lifter!



Squeeze the handles together at the top
and the bottom grips the jars tight.

 
     Always use a jar lifter to take jars out of boiling water -- and to put them in for that matter.  I've tried fishing jars out with a spoon and potholder, now that's a great way to end up in the ER.  I have never had an accident using the jar lifter, they work great.






      We will talk pressure canners in a separate post.  To water bath can , (that would be your jams and jellies, fruits and sometimes tomatoes),  you'll need a deep pot.  Not necessarily a wide pot but a deep (tall?) pot.  In the picture is my large enamel water bath pot.  I have a smaller one too, that I use quite a bit.  You can use the wire "rack" that comes with it, (in front of the enamel pot in the picture) to pull your jars from the hot water, or, for me it's just as easy to only use that rack in the bottom of the pot, to make sure the jars aren't sitting directly on the bottom, and take the jars out with the jar lifter.  Every time I try to lift that rack out when it is full, I end up joggling jars all over the place.

     I use the stainless steel pot to cook my jams and jellies in, and also as a water bath canner.  (I usually use a smaller size stainless pot,  but there's chicken soup cooking in it right now :-)  The piece of metal in front of it is part of my pressure cooker.  I use it in the bottom of the pot to make sure the jars are not directly on the bottom.  You will be risking it if you put the jars directly on the bottom with nothing in between.  Jars will bust, and all your hard work will be gone.

     Side-Note...If you ever see that small piece of metal from a pressure cooker at a rummage sale, snatch it up.  Brand new they are $15.00 !  .....and if you ever see a pressure canner at a rummage sale, snatch it up ! All new parts can be bought for it, and you will end up with a great pressure canner for 1/2 the price.

     Of course some big spoons and ladles will be needed, and jars, lids, and rings are understood.  ....and don't forget the bubble freer we talked about in the last post of the series.  If you only get started water bath canning, you could put up lots of good food.

      Let's see, some of the things I water bath canned last year.  Dill pickles, bread and butter pickles, pickle relish, grape juice, apple juice, pineapple, peaches, cherries, applesauce, barbecue sauce, ketchup, blueberry spice jam, elderberry jam, strawberry jam, apple jelly, and apple pie filling.  I'm sure I missed something, and this barely dents what you can do with the water bath canner!  So, if you are eager to get your feet wet canning, this is the place to start! Next week we'll can some strawberry jam together.

Other posts from the Canning 101 Series:

Canning 101 -- Tools Of The Trade
Canning 101 ...Who Cares About Headspace
Canning 101 -- Why A Two Piece Lid?


.....jean

Linked To: Farmgirl Friday Blog Hop # 44
                  Homestead Barn Hop #49