Chicken Poo Power

I once lived in a town that was run by hydroelectric power. I've seen cars that run on electric power. My friend at work has a charger for his Iphone that runs on solar power. My kids watch a cartoon that has lots of puppy power. I have done seen a lot of things but I've never seen a town that is run on chicken poo power.....until today.

Take a look at this article from the BBC website about a city in the UK that is run on chicken poo power. According to the article two farmers invested in a biogas plant will take chicken litter, pig manure, wheat and corn and generate enough electricity to power 350 homes.

I am a big fan of chickens and I am pleased with how much the chickens we have had reduce our waste. However, I have never thought about using their waste to produce electricity. I like the idea though. Let us raise our glasses to chicken poop, may it continue to warm our homes, and our lives.

P-Day is back! Mother of All First Aid Kits- week 5

Alright, I have to apologize to those of you who were actually making The Mother of All First Aid Kits, and then I just stopped. I took a month long trip to Texas, and I just didn't think ahead of time to get everything together and to write the posts before hand...then life got busy.  But, I have gotten enough emails and comments from readers to inspire me to keep going. I really thought that nobody really cared about it. So, I'm glad to see that some of you are!!!

So here we have it week 5's grocery list:

Hydrocortizone Cream- $4.98
Calamine Lotion- $1.27
Body warmers (found in the hunting sporting goods section) - $1.97 (package of 3)

 If you are just joining us and want to make your own Mother of All First Aid Kits here are the other posts: week 1, week 2, week 3, week 4.

Homemade Applesauce

I LOVE  *L-O-V-E* Honey Crisp apples. I wake early Saturday mornings to get to the farmers market before they even open to get my 1/2 bushel of honey crisps. Last week I threw a couple peaches in the box of apples and then left for the weekend. The peaches got really ripe and even started molding which caused a chain reaction in the apples making them start to rot. Just when I thought I had gotten all the bad apples out, I would find more.

I didn't want all the apples to go to waste, so I decided to make them into applesauce. Since I don't have any of the right equipment to make it, I had to do it the hard way. It wasn't too bad, (my hand is cramping as I type) I did all the peeling, coring, and cutting with a knife.

1. I first washed the apples by cleaning out my sink, filling it with water, and placing the apples in it.

2. I cut each apple in quarters, cored them, and peeled the skin. 

3. I boiled some water, threw the apples in and cooked them till they were nice and squishy.

 4. I used the cheese grater attachment on my food processor to chop up the apples.

5. I then placed the chopper attachment on the processor and dumped in some cinnamon and mixed it up. 

6. I didn't make enough to justify canning it, so I placed it in tupperware containers and froze it.

Baby loves it!

Know Your Apples

I really like this apple chart from Blame it on the Voices.

Vending Machine Sells Free Range Eggs

I came upon this article on yahoo yesterday about stange vending machines. Take a look at the article. I have never wanted to buy a pizza or a gold bar from a vending machine. However one of the vending machines caught my eye.

This photo was taken by Josh Berglund. It shows a free range egg vending machine spotted in Japan. According to Yahoo you can also buy free range eggs via vending machine in Santa Cruz California at At Glaum Egg Ranch. $3 for 24 cage free chicken eggs. This seems pretty cheap to me. There isn't a legal definition for "cage free" chickens but many farmers will tell you that"Cage Free" eggs come from chickens that are not caged but they don't have as much room to roam as "Free Range" chickens.

Now if I could just get some nice crispy bacon in a vending machine, everything would be right in the world.

Spelling City

 My husband and I have a friend that brags about being a 6 time spelling bee champion (he's pretty cocky about it....you know who you are, Thatcher). I definately was no spelling whiz, so when it comes to teaching my kids spelling, sometimes I feel a little inadequate. That is one of the reasons I like Spelling City so much.

Whether your kids homeschool or go to public school, it doesn't matter for this great site. If you haven't checked out spellingcity.com, you should! You enter the child's spelling words, name the list (ie. Reece unit 2), then they are able to practice their spelling words in fun games, and then take a spelling test. My kids play at least one game and take the test each day of the week, just for practice. The kids love it because they get to play games, and the best part is, IT'S FREE!

*I was not paid or reimbursed in any way for this post. I just really like this site and wanted to share it with other parents!

~marisa

Canning Peaches

My friend April

Canning peaches is surprisingly easy....and so yummy. If you can get a really good deal on peaches or pick them from a tree it can also be very economical. I bought my peaches for $.50 per lb and it worked out to be about a dollar per quart.

If you've never canned, don't be afraid....if I can do it, so can you!!!

Here is how I did it:

Supplies
Peaches
Canning Jars/Lids/Rings
Pot for water bath
Pot for boiling peaches
Small sauce pan for boiling lids
Sugar
A friend to help (not required)

Start by boiling your peaches for about 30 seconds so the skins will peel right off. 

Cut the peaches in half and take the pit out. 

Make sure your jars are nice and clean.

Add one cup of water per quart jar.

Microwave for 1 minute.

Add 1/3 cup sugar, stir till dissolved.

Now that your jars have sugar and water in them, you are going to fill them with peaches.

If you are really fancy, you make sure that the pits face the inside of the jar.

*I'm not fancy, I just shove my peaches in.

Make sure you leave 1/2 inch from the top clear, but put enough peaches in that they are all covered in the water/sugar syrup.

To make sure you get a nice tight seal you will want to:

1. Boil your lids for a few minutes (not the rings). 

2. Wipe off the top of each jar before placing the lids on.

Place the hot lids on each jar, and screw on the rings.

Place your jars in a boiling water bath for 30-35 minutes. 

After their water bath, let them cool and the lids should be sealed. If you can push the top down, you don't have a good seal and you will need to eat that jar quickly, the others can be stored long term. 

Now, let's hear from you! What are your tips and secrets to canning? Or leave a link to your own blog where you describe how you can. Let's educate and inspire each other!!!

~marisa