Baking day

I love days like yesterday!  I felt like we accomplished so much.  In addition to our normal daily chores, I re-organized a kitchen cupboard, kept the baby happy, and in between pumpings and nursings baked.  We baked 5 pizza crusts, 18 large pumpkin-apple walnut muffins, 24 pita breads, 3 loaves of bread, lots of pretzels (shaped by the kids), carrot cake, and buttermilk biscuits.  I also made homemade butter and yogurt dip.  The kids got some other school done, and I even read a small amount of Plato for my class.

We have made a New Years resolution to eat more unprocessed and nutrient dense foods.  The more we look at it the more that it seems that the Lord intended for us to eat living food.  The more energy potential in it the better it is for our bodies.  The recently it was growing or able to grow the better.  This is why we grind our own wheat etc.  It is definitely not easy.  I go through the grocery store and 95% of what is there is not in line with what we want.  There are places that we could shop, but with 5 growing kids and one income the budget doesn't stretch that far.  Luckily I love to bake.  I have always loved it.  I think my children are inheriting that love (which is great, maybe when they are teenagers they'll take over baking day ).  This is something I feel confident about that I can do.

Then there is produce.  No matter how I try I can't mix wheat into carrots, tomatoes, and onions.  Plus even if I could they wouldn't have the growth and life in them that we need.  So I'm going to try to have a garden.  Again.  I haven't had the best luck.  My children have been thrilled with the very small returns we have gotten and every time they can harvest anything from the garden their eyes light up.  I have been happy to get something, but I know I should be able to do so much better.  So it's back to the drawing board.  It's figuring out what absolutely has to be, like bright sunlight unshaded by trees.  And what isn't so important like watering by hand so you are close to your plants.  A book I read recommended this.  it doesn't happen in this house.   We have had really good intentions for the past 2 years and worked hard, but when the weather goes over 100 with humidity close to the same. . .the last thing Any of us want to do is go and water the garden, or weed.  So I am taking lessons from a friend of mine who has successfully gardened here for many years.  She uses soak-er hoses and Lots of mulch to keep the weeds down.  Here's to a bumper crop!

The milk and meat have been something we have gone back and forth on.  We have finally decided to go straight to the farmer where possible.  We found a source for real milk in Harrisonville for $3 per gallon and have been drinking that.  However, being that we aren't huge milk drinkers, and it takes 1 1/2 hours to get down there and back we might opt for a source that comes closer to home, but is a bit more money.  We haven't decided yet.  For meat we are currently buying from Costco and eating it sparingly, but we are planning on clearing out our deep freeze and buying 1/4- 1/2 of a grass-fed cow.  And some free range hens.  The person who brings the milk closer has free range eggs too.  Yikes.  Lots and lots to think about and do.  We have been leaning this direction for some time, but it always seemed cost prohibitive.  Finally we've decided to do the best we can prioritizing which changes are the most important to us and trying to find ways to do them.
Advice is always appreciated!  Leave a comment.  (: