Vacation Time!

Vacation is finally arriving. When Luke gets home from work tonight, we will head off for the beginning of our busy fun filled week. We are looking forward to many adventures waiting to become life memories. And will be fun seeing the week through our children's eyes. Sleeping in their first hotel, riding a train at the museum, having a carnival birthday party!

Also, we will be attending tent services throughout the weekend. It's been a long time since I have been to any tent services so it will be an awesome time worshiping outside with my parents church family.

After we come home, we are going to be spending a day at some local attractions, such as Olivier Soapery, where we will enjoy a special soap making demonstration, the Kent Museum, where we will learn local history and Irving Eco-centre, enjoying the beach, boardwalk and gardens.

We are excited to take a day trip to visit an aquarium and a Historical Village as well. I know that the boys will love seeing the fish. I know I am excited about seeing seals. :) And the blue lobsters. It is sure to be an awesome time.

Another day will be spend visiting a zoo, exploring a train museum, seeing Butterfly World and playing. I will share some photos of our vacation time.

Our vacation is going to be partially a stay cation. We are going to be spending a few nights away from home at my parents home but only will be paying for one night in a hotel. The rest of vacation we are checking out our local attractions and enjoying a day trip away. It isn't the money or places you go to, but the time making memories with the ones you love that is important.

Throughout the next week I will be away, so I won't be posting as often but will share some vacation photos later on. :)

You can enjoy your own stay cation. Get your local travel guide and check out the attractions close to you. Enjoy learning about the place to call home.

New Brunswick Day Crafts

I have searched Pinterest and found some crafts that can be made for New Brunswick Day. Enjoy making these with your children this week as you celebrate.

Tissue Paper Purple Violets


Stained Glass Black-Capped Chickadee

How to Draw a Chickadee

New Brunswick Day

New Brunswick is my home. On August 3rd, we celebrate New Brunswick Day.  Are you looking for some fun ways to celebrate with your family?

You can get some free worksheets for New Brunswick at Kids Zone.

At Family Fun Days they have a great list of fun things to do in New Brunswick with kids.

I will share some more New Brunswick fun throughout this week as we prepare to celebrate New Brunswick Day with family.

We are going to be on Vacation during New Brunswick day week so I will share some photos from around New Brunswick after vacation.

Homemade Dishwasher Tabs

Yesterday I used the last dishwasher tab I had bought. I decided to try to try homemade tabs. They were extremely easy to made and although I was a little unsure as to how they would clean my dishes, I am very pleased with the results.

I just don't have the time to rinse and scrape every dish before putting it in the dishwasher. That is time consuming and so I needed a dishwasher tab that would power clean my dishes. And this is an awesome dishwasher tab. Not only does it clean my dishes but they were dry as well. With my store bought dishwasher tabs and rinse aid, my dishes were usually still wet and I would have to dry them before putting them away, which was very frustrating. 

Now that I have found the perfect dishwasher tab, I am pleased to use it everyday. It is easy to make, will save you lots of money and you know exactly what you are putting in it. 

I found this recipe at The Makeshift Nest and I absolutely love it. Only 4 ingredients needed, Borax, Washing Soda, Vinegar and Lemon Juice Concentrate. I had all the ingredients on hand from the last time I made homemade laundry soap.

Chicken Starter

We have 12 baby chickens that we have been buying chicken starter for. We decided to try making our own chicken feed for them. Baby chicks need extra protein and a finer grain to ensure they are healthy and growing well. We have created our own mixture of healthy grains for our baby chicks.

Chicken Starter is an easy mixture of 5 grains. Measure equal amounts of Wheat, Corn, Oats, Millet and Barley. Grind the grains into small pieces for easier digestion. Millet does not need to be ground. After grinding up grains, mix them together in a container. Keep the food covered and sealed tightly.

The chicken starter that we made is healthier, easy to make and full of protein to keep our chickens healthy and give them a good start.

When we were grinding up our grains, we switched to a food processor because our corn was taking a long time to grind. I have a new food processor and blender combo so the old food processor still worked great and was able to grind up the grains in a matter of minutes. We are going to use it to grind our grains from now on.

When your chicken are 12 weeks old be sure to switch them to our DIY Chicken Grower. They will love this healthy feed as well.

DIY Chicken Feed

We decided to try making our own chicken feed. We read many different mixes from many different bloggers and we decided to mix our own. It is much healthier for the chickens and higher in protein and mineral. It will hopefully save us some money as well.

This feed is intended for chickens from about 12 weeks. Follow my blog so that you don't miss out on my special blend of chicken starter. We are going to be making our own layer feed when our hens get bigger. The roosters will continue to eat this feed.

Our chickens love this feed. As soon as Luke filled their feed dishes, they started happily munching.

Chicken Feed

4 cups Oats
4 cups Barley
4 cups Wheat
4 cups Sunflower Seeds
4 cups Corn
2 cups Rye
1 cup Millet

Mix together.

Joseph's Beautiful Coat Craft

B and M love making crafts. Today, we had a mini Sunday School at home. I sat on the floor with the 3 boys and we sang Sunday School songs. One of B's favorite songs is Jesus Love is Very Wonderful. We sang a few other action songs and then I told them the story of Joseph and His Colorful Coat. 

Then we made an easy craft for toddlers. Joseph's Beautiful Coat! This story is found in Genesis 37.

I cut a simple coat from Black construction paper. 

Then I cut rectangle pieces approximately 1"x 1/2".

We covered the coat with glue and then stuck the colored pieces all over for a beautiful colorful coat.

They are now on display in our kitchen.

More Garden Photos

Summertime is beautiful. We love to enjoy nature by walking through nature parks and trails enjoying the beauty of God's creation. One of our favorite places to go is the Irving Eco-Centre.

No matter what day it is, it feels like vacation when you relax in the natural setting.

Preserve Chives

I have had fresh chives growing in my garden for about 3 years. This year I decided that I was going to use them and preserve them so that we will have chives all year. There is a lot of chives in my garden so I will have no need to buy them at all.

Freeze Chives: 

1.Wash your chives and cut in small pieces. Allow to dry.

2. Put in bags and freeze. 

When you need some chives, take out your desired amount. 

Dry Chives: 

1. Hand stems upside down until dry.

2. Cut into small pieces and place in an airtight jar.

Sun Dried Chives:

1. Chop stems into small pieces.
2. Line a baking sheet with wax paper. Spread chives evenly across paper.
3. Dry in the sun for about 6 hours, Store in an airtight jar,

Freeze Dried Chives:

1. Line a baking sheet with wax paper. Spread chopped chives evenly on paper.
2. Place in freezer for 30 minutes,
3. Remove from freezer and store in airtight container.

Colored Rice

My big helper and I made colored rice together. 

Mixing rice with vinegar and food coloring.

Enjoying playing with colored rice.

Colored Rice Recipe

1 cup Rice
1 tbsp Vinegar
Food Coloring

Mix a few drops of your favorite food coloring in vinegar until it is the shade you desire. Add to rice and stir. Spread the rice out on a piece of wax paper until dry.

Then, it's time to play with the colored rice. And a bonus, it is easy to sweep off the floor.

Kouchibouguac National Park

We took the boys to Kouchibouguac National Park last week. 

Here are some photos of the park for you to enjoy. 

Week of Strawberry Recipes

For the Past Week I have been sharing Strawberry recipes. Strawberries are one of our favorite fruits so we love this time of year when fresh berries are bountiful. In total, Luke picked over 38 lbs of strawberries and I have made many recipes and froze a lot for later use.

If  you haven't had a chance to check out all of my strawberry recipes, I have compiled them into this post for you. Just click on the photo and you are on your way to a delicious treat. These recipes have pasted the delicious scale by myself, my husband and my toddler boys.

Sunday Recipe

Monday Recipe

Tuesday Recipe

Wednesday Recipe

Thursday Recipe

Friday Recipe

Saturday Recipe

Strawberry Cheesecake Chimichangas

This is last recipe in my week of Strawberry recipes. Please enjoy this unique recipe for Strawberry Cheesecake Chimichangas.

Strawberry Cheesecake Chimichangas

6 Corn Tortillas - Do not cook until after filling is inside.
Cooking Oil

Filling

8 oz Cream Cheese
2 tbsp Sour Cream
1 tbsp Sugar
1/2 tsp Vanilla
1 cup chopped Strawberries

Coating:

1 tbsp Cinnamon
1/2 cup Sugar


1. Mix filling ingredients together in a small bowl.

2. Divide filling in 6 parts. Put each section in center of tortilla and roll up like an eggroll.

3. Fry chimichangas in cooking oil. Brown all over and remove from heat.

4. Mix cinnamon and sugar. Roll chimichangas in coating mixture.

Makes 6 Chimichangas. Enjoy!

Strawberry Buckle Dessert

Strawberry Buckle Dessert

1/4 Canola Oil
3/4 cup Sugar
1 Egg
1/4 tsp Salt
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/3 cup  Rice Milk
1 cup Gluten-free Flour

Mix and Spread in greased 8x8 pan. Spread on 1 cup chopped Strawberries. Cover the berries with the following crumb mixture.

Crumbs:
3/4 cup Sugar
1/3 cup Corn Flour
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/4 cup Butter (Earth Balance)

 Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

If you are looking for an option that is not allergy free, you can substitute the gluten-free flour for regular all purpose flour.

Follow my blog to get free strawberry tried and delicious recipes everyday from July  5-11.

Strawberry Swirly Rolls

Strawberry Swirly Rolls

Filling:
1 1/2 cups Strawberries, chopped into tiny pieces
1/3 cup Sugar
1 1/2 tbsp Cornstarch

Dough:

1 cup Warm Water
1/4 cup Cooking Oil
1 tbsp Sugar
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tbsp Baking Powder
3 cups Flour







Glaze:
1 cup Icing Sugar
1/2 tsp Vanilla
1/4 cup Milk

1. Make filling. Heat chopped Strawberries in small pot on medium heat until berries are softened and juice is released. Add sugar and cornstarch and cook, stirring constantly for 2 minutes. The mixture will thicken up during this time. Remove pot from heat and transfer filling to a small bowl. Chill about 1 hour, until filling is completely cool.

2. Make dough. Mix all dough ingredients together. Add more flour if needed until you can roll it out with a rolling pin. Roll into a large rectangle. 

3. Spread cooled filling over dough, leaving about an inch around the edges. 

4. Roll into a tube. Slice and put pieces in a pie plate. 

5. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes and then 350 for 20 minutes or until golden. 

6. Make glaze. Stir glaze ingredients together and pour over warm strawberry swirly rolls. Let set until cooled and then remove from pan and enjoy.

For more strawberry recipes, check out my blog everyday from July 5-11.