Willow Branch Garden Structures

(This post has been a long time coming because I thought I had more pictures. I don't. So here it is!)

A couple months ago my in-laws' willow tree at the parsonage where they live suffered some serious ice damage. It was really a shame because it is the focal point of many pictures for all of us, and it is just so amazing. During our church's yard cleanup day, the mess got cleaned up and the branches cut down to a manageable size. The tree is still there, but no longer in its former glory.

It wasn't all bad, however. I had had various trellis and arbor projects in mind for my garden but the materials I had hoped to use had turned out to be impossibly expensive and that was by using the cheapest materials. So I had an idea to use the downed willow branches. Best part, this plan was almost free! (screws, nails, and twine aren't free, but we already have them around so it feels like it) Collecting the branches proved exhausting because they had been bulldozed into a pile precariously at the edge of a gully dumping area. It was not easy to get them untangled without falling to my death. But here I am.

First I wove an arbor over my lettuce bed. I used larger pieces for the basic shape and support by screwing them into the sides of the beds and then used the long rope-like pieces to connect it together and create more lattice for the plants to climb on. I used a variety of methods to use the thin pieces - braiding, twisting, and wrapping. I held it fast with twine. I'm hoping it will eventually harden enough to go without the twine.

 

My plan for this bed is that as the summer gets hotter, my pole beans will fill in over the lettuce bed, filtering the sunlight and extending my lettuce growing season. As it cools down, the beans will peter out and I can cut them down and let the lettuce have full sun again. That's the theory anyway. I was going to do it last year, but with the drought and the hungry bunnies it brought I didn't get any lettuce or beans.

Next, Zac screwed some more branches to the sides of the other beds. I'll be running twine between these for the other beans to climb. I've also got peas now going up some of these willow lattices.

I was a bit nervous at first that it was looking tacky. And I think that the next time I build an arbor I'll have a better idea of how to approach it. But now that it's done I actually think it looks quite nice.

 

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Superfood Molasses Sourdough Muffins

Atticus rarely eats meat. It is a little annoying at times, but I also realize it isn't necessary that he does and that he'll probably get around to it eventually. In the meantime, however, I've been in a bit of a scramble to make sure he gets non-meat sources of iron as well as vitamin C to help with absorption. It isn't as easy as I had assumed.

To help with this, I've developed a superfood muffin that provides a generous helping of minerals and other great for you things. These were a big hit. They are very soft and airy, not particularly sweet.

I'll admit upfront, you might not have these ingredients in your pantry, but I think they are well worth picking up and keeping on hand. Also, this recipe calls for unfed sourdough starter. I pulled mine straight from the fridge.




Superfood Molasses Sourdough Muffins

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
heaping 1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp turmeric (this adds a boost of health, but if you don't have it don't worry about it)
2 eggs
2/3 cup unsulphured blackstrap molasses
1 cup unfed sourdough starter
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1/2 tsp fresh lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup chia seeds

Grease a 12 muffin tin with butter. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (I do 325 with my dark nonstick pan.)

Whisk together the dry ingredients (except the chia seeds) in a large bowl. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, molasses, sourdough starter, coconut oil, lemon zest and juice, and chia seeds. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry until well incorporated.

Spoon batter into the muffin tins. Bake about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool before serving. They go great with milk.

Recipe adapted from this recipe at cate's world kitchen.


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So this post is a long time coming. Probably one proof that my life is greatly in need of some organization. We are settling into routine and for my little family that is a big deal. Ever and always changing has been the theme of my life since marrying Eric. But after five moves in four years I can safely say we are at least staying in the home we have had for almost a year... another six months. I know that doesn't sound like a lot but for us... It's a long term commitment.
My life is different in many ways from my sister's. We do not have a big house and none of my home projects include renovation of any kind. We rent a two bedroom condo and my projects mostly include making due with what we have and making things work the way they are. This has involved borrowing (we still need to buy our own) a wagon for the long hauls with groceries, baby gear, ect. from our garage to our condo. Utilizing every nook and cranny for storage. Once again ridding ourselves of things we don't need. And rearranging furniture numerous times.

Projects on the horizon, hopefully:
*Installing shelves in our hall closet (so I can make myself a pretty pantry)
*Installing a shelving system in our garage (so we can rid our house of boxes we have no where to store)
*Beautifying our patio and making a play space for Esmond outside
*Turning the second hall closet from a catch all to an organized office closet/ art space
*Finish Esmond's room
- he has no lights...
-installing bookshelves
-making a seat/storage system

Below is a project I can say I have finished. Hurray! For four years Eric and I have been talking about having our very own coffee/drinks bar. We have finally done it. My parents got us the Delonghi espresso machine and my grandma the vintage bar/cabinet which we painted black. This wall was incredibly blank and lacking in purpose and is now a space to entertain.

House Projects Beget House Projects

We've been working on installing a new vinyl floor in our kitchen. We started last Saturday and got back to it today. Well, we got back to prepping the other side of the kitchen to finish but we never actually laid any of the tiles. That's because, in response to an offhand comment by Zac about how much he hates that cabinet, we decided to replace one of the cabinets!





This is Zac starting to tear off part of the countertop to allow us to remove and replace the old cabinet. It is eventually our intention to replace the whole countertop, now we are committed.





Here you can see where the cabinet was. I can't explain why there appear to be two different walls back there. It's an old house. One thing to note is that the corner isn't square. We don't like this as it makes for a weird cabinet and reduces counter space (which is scarce), but our original plan had been to just install a square countertop over the weird cabinet and leave it at that. This was to save money on new cabinets.

However, I made the delightful discovery that a cabinet of drawers we had brought down from the kitchen upstairs (the house had been a duplex) would fit perfectly in that space. Moving it from where it was isn't a problem because we need to install a pantry in that space anyway.





So here is the "finished" product! Mismatched for now, but it's in place and we can worry about painting it all later. One nice feature of this cabinet is the pull out cutting board. When we get the new countertop installed we will replace the cutting board and give the kitchen a little more prep space.

So we didn't finish the floor, but we actually did all the prep for it so we are hoping to get right to laying tile on Monday evening. Plus I feel really great about fixing a problem I didn't think we would be able to fix. That's a great Saturday.

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Chalkboard Highchair Tray

I got bit by the chalkboard paint bug. I've got a few projects in mind, but this first was an original so I thought I would share.

First, a little background: our highchair tray, which is removable, has another tray layer which is also removable. We used to use the top tray and then we wouldn't have to remove he whole thing to clean it after meals. However, during a bought of teething, Atticus started biting it and making it pop off, so we just stopped using it. This led to the discovery that it was really almost just as easy to clean the big tray. So the top piece just sat around collecting dust. Until recently!

I decided to put it to better use and give up on the idea of ever using it for food again. I painted it with chalkboard paint!






I used a sponge brush and painted two layers. Note that I did not paint meticulously. I'm sure you could, but if I had set up that kind of standard for this project I never would have started. So squiggly edges it is for us! Also, the surface isn't smooth, it actually has a very brushstroke texture to it. However, following the advice on the can of paint to rub a piece of chalk all over it first, then erase it all, to prime the chalkboard really seemed to mitigate what might have been a texture issue. As an eraser I used a scrap piece of felt.





Atticus took to it pretty quickly. He colored much in the way he does with crayons right now, mostly lines with the occasional scribble. I was mostly just glad that he wasn't breaking or eating the chalk. He also picked up on he word "chalk" almost immediately, so that will be interesting.





I suppose it will eventually crack. The tray is plastic and made to bend, so it seems inevitable. So far so good though, and maybe if we are careful we can get a good amount of use out of it. I plan to use it primarily to give him something to keep him busy while I'm cooking.

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Lentil Stew

I've been working to incorporate more legume based meals into our diet. There are so many health benefits, plus they are a great source of inexpensive protein. In particular, I've been exploring the possibilities with lentils. One of my new go-to meals is Lentil Stew. It's easy to keep the ingredients on hand and can be modified with whatever ad-ins you happen to have on hand. Serve with crusty bread and a glass of wine.





I like to use Trader Joe's Red Split Lentils, but any lentils would work, you just need to adjust cooking times and may need to add more liquid depending on how thick you would like your stew. I took my inspiration from the recipe on the back of the lentils bag; it recommends sweet vermouth and I have found that it adds a great flavor element, a little sweet. The recipe below is how I happened to make it most recently, but I've included variation suggestions as well. Enjoy!





Lentil Stew

1 T. bacon grease
1 T. extra virgin olive oil
3 small carrots, peeled and chopped
1 small onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 bay leaf
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup water
1/4 cup sweet vermouth
1 cup red split lentils, rinsed
Salt and pepper, to taste
Cayenne pepper, to taste (Don't omit this! Even if you only add enough for a little flavor but no heat.)
1/2 cup frozen spinach
2-3 slices bacon (I like to use nitrite free), fried crispy and chopped

1. Heat grease and oil in stew pot over medium heat. Add carrots first, and sauté, then add onions and cook until translucent. Add garlic and cook until vegetables are fragrant.
2. Add thyme, bay leaf, stock, water, and vermouth. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Let simmer until carrots begin to get soft.
3. Add lentils and simmer partly covered until they are tender, about 12 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and cayenne to taste. During this time you will likely want to add some water. The goal is to cook the lentils and have a consistency that appeals to you.
4. Add spinach, bring stew back to a simmer to heat spinach through.
5. Dish it up and serve garnished with bacon crumbles.

Variations:
Omit the bacon, or sub Italian sausage and use the drippings from browning in place of the bacon grease.
Add diced celery, sweet potato, or turnip.
Use leeks in place of or with the onion.
Try rosemary instead if thyme or pick another favorite earthy herb.
Substitute vegetable stock.
Use white wine in place of vermouth.
Use French green lentils if you would like your lentils to hold their shape.
Use any green you like wilted. I love to use frozen arugula from my garden for dishes like this. But don't limit yourself to frozen greens, fresh would work also.
You could even throw in some frozen peas or frozen cut green beans at the end.

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Potty Training, pt. 2

So I said I would explain why we started training when we did. I read a post on domanmom.com that made a lot of sense and resonated with me, so I decided to give early potty training a try. I was also emboldened by talking to my mother-in-law and her mom who both potty trained their kids pretty early, with almost all the kids being trained well before the age of two. Genetics was on my side!
Basically I wanted to catch him while he was still very aware of his bowel movements and before he would be unwilling to stop his playtime to use the potty. We seem to be entering that sort of transition right now so I think I caught him just in time.



So today we started by sitting on the potty, with no results. Then I put him in his new cloth training pants. He seemed pleased. However, after three accidents in the space of 30 minutes, I needed a new approach. He was very upset when he wet himself, so that was good, but to get repeatedly upset wasn't what I was going for. I don't want this to be agonizing for either of us.
Approach #2 was the naked baby method, so he was wearing a shirt and socks but no underwear or pants. Additionally, I put him in the kitchen to play where he would be right by the bathroom. (It's an old house, weird layout.) That worked so much better! He went an hour with no accidents. When he needed to pee he quickly crawled to the bathroom and I helped him get on his little potty. He went twice in that time and had a couple false alarms.
Things fell apart when I had to put him in his playpen for a minute (fortunately I had a towel under the sheet left from when he had the flu). He peed in the playpen and then he had a series of accidents that made him really upset. He also didn't want to use the potty. It didn't take me long to figure out the problem: he was tired and needed a nap so I put him down for one and we let the potty training take a rest for the day. He didn't ask to go anymore, so I didn't put any pressure on it and I just kept him in the Easy Ups for the rest of the day.
Tomorrow we'll work on it again, but I'll start right off with the naked baby method and I'll get him into a pull-up before he gets too sleepy. I'll also try to keep the training up throughout the whole day as long as he seems receptive to it. Because he had already been coming along so well before we all got sick, I'm optimistic about this next phase. Watch for updates!
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