Gifts From The Heart #3: Family Traditions

 Gifts From The Heart  1 Response »
Dec 072009
 

Family traditions are a special way to build closeness.  We all have meaningful times we look forward to each year.  As Christmas gets closer our family looks forward to our yearly light drive.  We pick a evening when the weather is nice, make lots of hot chocolate and pile into the van.  Off we go to town to slowly drive around and look at the beautiful light displays.  The children especially look forward to this every year.

What are your favorite Christmas traditions?  Please share about them on your blog and include a link below.  Do you have more handcrafted gifts, please share links for thoughts as well!

Busy Weekend

 Around The Homestead  No Responses »
Dec 062009
 
Its been a busy weekend around here.  Sat. dh took a load of rabbits to market.  We’ve kept a few but cleared out the barn until spring.  We want to do some big renovations that will be easer with the barn empty.  Also just don’t want to heat the barn right now.  That cost us a lot last year…

When he got back we all headed out to the town we do our bulk shopping in.  3 of the little one were sound asleep and another had a sore tummy.  So I staid out with them and kitted while dh did the shopping.

After that I stopped at Riverside Yarns.  I needed some needles and found some nice greenish/blue wool on clearance.  I love the color and will turn it into something for myself.  What I’m not sure yet…ideas?
I also picked up a bulk skein of cascade eco+.  It’s a nice bulky wool that I wanted to use for balaclavas.

After that I stopped at Walmart.  I  needed to get snow pants for dd7.  I was surprised they had almost NONE left!  All the winter jackets that were left were on clearance.  I couldn’t find any snow pants, but did find ONE jacket/pants set that I thought would fit her.  Then I found ONE snow pants in the boys section.  It was on clearance as well so I picked that up just incase the other didn’t fit.  But I’m glad to say the jacket/pants set fits great and she loves it!
I picked up the last Christmas gift for dh.  I thought I was done shopping but he hinted about something. lol
I wanted to pick up the black fleece for my blankets there.  They have always had a good selection and a much cheaper price then the closer walmart.  But they had NONE!  Much of there fabric area had been cleaned out and the displays gone….So I’ll have to try the closer one and hope they have it, even if it’s a little more money.

When we were on the way home we stopped in the town we normally shop in.  They were having their Christmas parade!  Dh bought us some pizza and found a place to park so we could see some of it.  Kids loved that!

Today I spent the morning cleaning.  Then this afternoon decided to wind the skein of wool into a ball and start my next project.  Only problem was I didn’t have anything the right size to hold the skein…that’s on the to do list.  I turned around and dh was standing by the wood stove.  heehee “Oh honey can you hold this for a minute?”   He was supper sweet and held the yarn while I wound it all up.  It takes a while to do 8 oz of bulky wool. lol  I got a little over half way done and discovered a mess.  Much of the yarn inside was matted and tangled together.  Some of it had un spun sections sticking multiple strings together.  ACK!!  That ended up taking me hours to untangle. (sigh)  So no knitting tonight my arms are to sore from untangling that.  But it’s ready to go tomorrow.
I am almost done the doll as well.  Just an arm and a half left to go!
Kids did have fun playing in the snow this afternoon though.  We’re up to about 4 inches now.  Just waiting for a big snow storm to come along and dump a foot or two.  LOL

Some of our Advent favorites

 Faith Series, Homeschooling  No Responses »
Dec 032009
 

Our family has really been enjoying celebrating Advent this year.  In addition to the free Advent devotions and Jesse tree ornaments I posted already, we’ve been using the Advent calendar on DVD 2.

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I have to say we’ve been really enjoying this video!  This edition focuses on Christmas carols and the history behind them.  Each day there is a mini documentary about 5 minutes in length.  They cover all the interesting points well and are still short enough to keep a young child’s attention.
In addition they also have a advent coloring book, half an hour of instrumental Christmas music, daily Bible readings in 4 versions and a printable song book.
I’m hoping to get a copy of the original version as well.  It covers the history of Christmas symbols.

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We have also been reading Jotham’s Journey.  I thought at first the chapters might be a little long for our 3 year old, but no even she loves the story.  They can’t wait each day to find out what happens to Jotham next.  I also like how Bible history and scriptures are woven into the story. Has anyone read the other two books in the series?  Are they as good?

Gifts From The Heart #2: Crochet Snowman Ornament

 Crafts, Gifts From The Heart  1 Response »
Dec 012009
 

Welcome to the second edition of Gifts From The Heart.  I can’t wait to see what you’ve been crafting this week!  Please add your links to the bottom of the post.

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I’ve had an idea in my mind for a snowman ornament.  Today I sat down and wrote it out.  These would be so cute covering a Christmas tree.  They would also make great gift decorations, or glue magnets on the back for some super cute ornaments!

Chain 4, join with a slip stitch.

1st Row work 10 dc in the center of ring.  Join to the first one with a sl.  Chain 3 turn.

2nd Row *Work 2 dc in first stitch, work 1 dc in next stitch. *  Repeat ** all the way around, join with sl.

Repeat row 2 until desired size is reached.  In my example I stopped after row 2.

Weave ends in.

Hat

Row 1 Chain 16, slip stitch back through all chains.  At the end slip stich backwards 4 stitches. Chain 2

Row 2 *Sc in 8 stitches.  Chain 2 turn.*

Repeat ** until hat is desired height.  Cut yarn, weave in ends and sew to snowman face.

I used google eyes and sequins for the mouth and nose.  However I think mini pompoms would be very cute to!

giveaways

Gifts From The Heart #1: No Sew Fleece Blankets

 Crafts, Gifts From The Heart  4 Responses »
Nov 252009
 

Welcome to Gifts from the heart, a handmade Christmas.  This is the 1st of 6 weekly sharing posts.  I’m looking forward to seeing the wonderful creations you’d like to share.  Decorations, recipes, gifts, tutorials, traditions anything that makes your Christmas season special.

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The best part of giving and receiving handmade gifts is the love that is shared with them.  The special memories that cherished and held close to the heart.

This week I’m sharing a gift that I made last year.  I enjoyed making them and will be making more this year!

No Sew Tied Fleece Blankets, these are easy to make and go together quickly.   They make wonderful gifts for adults and children a like.

First you need to decide what size your going to make.  Last year I made one bed sized (about 2 meters) and one couch throw (about 1 1/2 meters).  This year I’m planing to make car blankets so I will make them 1 meter long.

Once you have decided how long you want your blankets, lay two pieces of fleece out on top of each other.  I like to use a print for the top and a solid on the back.  Cut the pieces to the same size.  I’ve found it helps to cut both at the same time, other wise they can “magically” end up a little different.  Fleece likes to slip around a bit.

Lay the two pieces out flat on top of each other.  Now I like to pin the fleece together ever foot or so, about 6 inches in from the edge.  Cut a 4 inch square out of each corner.

Now starting at one corner cut straight lines into the blanket 4 inches deep.  It doesn’t have to be exact, this is very forgiving.  Cut the strips about an inch wide, again this is forgiving.

Once you have gone all around the blanket, it’s time to start tying.  Take the two fringe pieces and tye them together like a shoe lace but with out the bows.  I do this twice for each piece, being careful to match the top and bottom fringe up correctly.

Once you’ve gone all the way around your done!

If your having a homemade Christmas I would love it if you shared your links to your Gifts From The Heart in the MckLinky below.

Gifts From The Heart A Handmade Christmas Meme

 Crafts, Gifts From The Heart  No Responses »
Nov 242009
 

Homestead Acres

What are gifts from the heart?  Christmas is my favorite holiday of the year, although Thanksgiving is right up there to.
I prefer to make gifts when ever possible.  There is just something special to me about a hand crafted gift.  I can see the time spent making it, the planning that went into it.  And when I use the item through the year it brings back a special memory of the gifter.

Gifts From The Heart meme is a place you can share the hand crafted things your doing for Christmas.  Share your ideas on your blog and visit here to add your link, so others can see what your working on.

Ideas to share

  • Gifts you are making this year.
  • Gifts you have made in previous years.
  • Tutorials for making gifts.
  • Favorite holiday recipes.  I love giving baked gifts!
    Traditions

    • What are your favorite family Christmas traditions?
    • Are you starting new traditions?
      Each MckLinky will be open for two weeks.  This will give everyone lots of time to get your posts in.

      If you make more then one Christmas related post perweek, by all means add each one to the MckLinky.

      Posting dates for Gifts From The Heart Meme
      • Nov. 25 (yes I’m late, this should have been on the 23rd but we’ve been sick)
      • Nov 30
      • Dec. 7
      • Dec. 14
      • Dec. 21
      • Dec. 28 This last week will be to share gifts we couldn’t share before Christmas.

      Please copy the button code at the top of this post to link back to.

      Homestead Series How To Roast A Chicken Or Turkey

       In the Kitchen, Recipes  No Responses »
      Nov 112009
       

      Every year around this time I see questions popping up on forums all over the internet.  How do I cook a chicken or turkey?  There are many things we didn’t learn at our mothers knee.  But there is no need to be afraid to cook tasty meals for your family.

      Another problem I see often is “Help, I forgot to that the turkey!”.  Really unless your wanting to stuff the bird, there is no need to thaw.  Except for one Thanksgiving year, I have always cooked my chickens/turkeys from frozen.  This saves a lot of space in the fridge, since you don’t have a big bird taking up space all week.


      How To Cook a Chicken or Turkey
      • Remove chicken from it’s bag and rinse well.  Place in a roasting pan.
      • Add a little water to the roasting pan.  I use a cup or so.
      • Sprinkle desired seasonings over the bird.  I like garlic powder, pepper, rosemary, marjoram
      • Place your bird in the oven at 350F.  I usually cover my roaster as I find the breast meat is more tender that way.  But if the lid doesn’t fit it’s not a big deal.  Add a cover of tin foil in the last hour of cooking.  This will help keep the ends of the legs from burning.
      • Check on your bird every few hours and baste with cooking juices.
      • For a dark brown skin, brush with olive oil.
      • Cook the bird for 20 minutes per pound.  If you have a thermometer the temperature in the thigh should be 180F. If you do not have a thermometer, your bird should be nicely browned the legs should be loose and movable away from the body.  Cut between the leg and the body and the juices should be clear.
      Our video showing step by step, how to roast a chicken.

      How To Make Cranberry Sauce and Can It

       Canning, Recipes  2 Responses »
      Nov 102009
       

      Making your own fresh cranberry sauce taste so good. It also saves a lot of money.  In our area one small can is close to 3.00.  You can make your own for much less.

      Print
      Homestead Series How To Make Cranberry Sauce and Can It

      Homestead Series How To Make Cranberry Sauce and Can It

      Ingredients

      • 1 cup water
      • 1 cup sugar
      • 1 bag cranberries (3 cups per bag)

      Instructions

      1. Bring water and sugar to a boil.
      2. Add cranberries, return to a boil. Turn down and simmer for 10 minutes.
      3. If your using it now, cool to room temp then chill in the fridge. If you would like to can it, pour into jars.
      4. Remove air bubbles, wipe rims.
      5. Place lids on and can for 15 min in a water bath canner.
      http://homestead-acres.com/blog/recipes/homestead-series-how-to-make-cranberry-sauce-and-can-it/

       

       

       

       

       

       

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