Fourth Sunday of Advent Angels We Have Heard on High

Angels we have heard on high
Sweetly singing oer the plains,
And the mountains in reply
Echoing their joyous strains.

Gloria in excelsis Deo.
Gloria in excelsis Deo.

In a #sharethegift video, The Piano Guys, Peter Hollens, David Archuleta, and The Mormon Tabernacle Choir get together to sing "Angels We Have Heard On High"

Aquaponics and Iron

When I very first started learning about aquaponics I was under the misconception that if you kept the fish alive and happy the plants would automatically be happy.

How many of you have fallen for the mis-information touted by some who only want to sell you their aquaponics-related product?  They will tell you that an aquaponic garden is a totally closed system that only needs the addition of food for the fish.  I also read that aquaponic gardens require little to no care.  Pfffftttt.

My aquaponic gardens are in many ways more easier when it comes to care but they are not care-free.  One thing that is common to both aquaponic gardens and soil gardens is chlorosis, or a need for iron.  Because the deficiency interferes with chlorophyll it is fairly easy to spot.  The leaves will become light yellow but stay dark around the veins.

 Iron in Aquaponics Explained by Nate Storey is a great place to learn exactly how iron acts in an aquaponic situation.  In a nutshell iron may be unavailable in aerobic situations.  Since growing with aquaponics is aerobic, you need to dose with iron on a regular basis.

Here is a picture of one of my sweet basils that needed a dose of iron.  As you can see, other than the color of the leaves the plant looks "normal".  Tthis is not healthy for the plant but it is common in aquaponic gardens, especially if your pH gets on the high side of the scale.

I use Fe EDTA because it is available to the plants even in a high pH situation.  This isnt true if you use something like seaweed fertilizer.  I read lots of folks raving about seaweed fertilizer for their aquaponic systems but I dont see iron (either present or in a form available to the plants) ever listed on the label.

The Fe EDTA I use is just the iron in a 6% strength.  It works.  It is not terribly expensive.

Just look at how this basil responds in just a few days.  Hard to believe that is the same plant isnt it?  Looks much more tasty to me! 

Basil After Iron

The "experts" say to dose your aquaponic system on a regular basis with iron.  I only dose my system at home when it shows signs of chlorosis.  At the Together We Stand gardens, we dose about once a month because the pH of the water stays high.

Aquaponic gardens can be easier than gardening with soil, but it still requires your attention.  You just dont have to weed and water!  Instead you have to do things like feed the fish and monitor water quality for ammonia, nitrites and nitrates. 

Manitoba increases biodiesel tax incentive

From Farm Credit Canada AgriSuccess Express news letter
by Kevin Hursh


In its 2006 budget, Manitoba has eliminated all provincial taxes on pure biodiesel produced within the province. This more than doubles the provinces tax incentive to spur biodiesel production.

The province is no longer collecting the road tax and provincial sales tax on pure biodiesel that meets the American Society for Testing and Materials fuel quality standard. Manitoba says the incentive will remain in place for five years to give the industry time to grow.

The removal of the taxes provides an 11.5 cents per litre advantage over regular diesel and is in addition to the four cents per litre tax break offered by the federal government. The tax advantage applies to the biofuel portion of biodiesel blends.

As part of its biodiesel action plan, Manitoba is working on the establishment of a biodiesel fuel quality testing centre. As well, it is studying the feasibility of using specified risk materials (the components of livestock remains that are restricted due to BSE) for the production of biodiesel.

Biodiesel is made from vegetable oils (canola oil is preferred due to its superior cold flow properties), as well as animal fats and/or waste restaurant grease.

There are currently two pre-commercial biodiesel production facilities in Manitoba – Bifrost Bio-Blends in Arborg and Celtic Power in Rapid City.
Source Link Here

This is good news. It isnt directly aquaculture related, it is however an important step in support of sustainable farming and resource developments. It will be a hugh step for agriculture if someday we do see biodiesel made from using specified risk materials

Aquaculture sees surge in worldwide production

A new report by an international team of researchers, published September 07 in the online edition of The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), states that Aquaculture now accounts for 50 percent of the fish consumed globally.

Once considered to be a fledgling industry not so long ago, "Aquaculture is set to reach a landmark in 2009, supplying half of the total fish and shellfish for human consumption," the authors wrote.

Way back when, 20 or so years ago, I entered the field of aquaculture after witnessing first hand the ever increasing year to year decline in the traditional fishing industry. Back then we all felt to be on the verge of something new and big, today we can look back and see just how far the industry has come. The growth has been tremendous but it has certainly not been without challenges.

The report states that between 1995 and 2007, global production of farmed fish nearly tripled in volume, in part because of rising consumer demand for long-chain omega-3 fatty acids. Oily fish, such as salmon, are a major source of these omega-3s, which are effective in reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease, according to the National Institutes of Health.

This growth has placed ever increasing pressure on marine resources due to the need for large amounts of feed made from wild fish harvested from the sea. "The huge expansion is being driven by demand," said lead author Rosamond L. Naylor, a professor of environmental Earth system science at Stanford University and director of the Stanford Program on Food Security and the Environment. "As long as we are a health-conscious population trying to get our most healthy oils from fish, we are going to be demanding more of aquaculture and putting a lot of pressure on marine fisheries to meet that need." Sourcing sustainable feed ingredients is one of the largest challenges faced by the industry today.

One way to make salmon farming more environmentally sustainable is to simply lower the amount of fish oil in the salmons diet. According to the authors, a mere 4 percent reduction in fish oil would significantly reduce the amount of wild fish needed to produce 1 pound of salmon from 5 pounds to just 3.9 pounds. In contrast, reducing fishmeal use by 4 percent would have very little environmental impact, they said.

"Reducing the amount of fish oil in the salmons diet definitely gets you a lot more bang for the buck than reducing the amount of fishmeal," Naylor said. "Our thirst for long-chain omega-3 oils will continue to put a lot of strain on marine ecosystems, unless we develop commercially viable alternatives soon."

Naylor and her co-authors pointed to several fish-feed substitutes currently being investigated, including protein made from grain and livestock byproducts, and long-chain omega-3 oils extracted from single-cell microorganisms and genetically modified land plants. "With appropriate economic and regulatory incentives, the transition toward alternative feedstuffs could accelerate, paving the way for a consensus that aquaculture is aiding the ocean, not depleting it," the authors wrote.

Link to Full Story

Book Review Growing Into a Farm by Anna Hess

Maybe its because Anna Hess and our childhoods and childhood ambitions were so similar, or maybe its because both of our primary life goals havent changed all that much since age nine, but Hess new e-book resonated strongly with us.  Her easygoing and open writing style make the book a quick read (weve read several of her books, and finished each in a single session), and for folks like us, for whom homesteading is still a work in progress, its inspiring to read about the journey of someone who has made it for real.  And although Hess mentioned that this book is one of her more fluffy productions, there is plenty of practical advice for attentive readers.

The cover, featuring Anna and her homesteads first veggies.

The book takes an autobiographical tour of Hess life nearly up to the beginning of her full-time homesteading career.  (More details of the interim between then and now are given in her other books.)  For aspiring homesteaders (especially those seeking a secluded and rural property on a budget), Hess life lessons are an invaluable treasure.  Some of the most pertinent tidbits we gleaned from the book are:

Factors to look for when selecting a tract of land.  If the land is $300/acre, theres probably a good reason.  It might be polluted (e.g., from mining operations), land-locked, full of invasive plant species, 90% marsh etc.  Its also worthwhile to inquire about the level of the water table, especially if you are considering an underground house.  In the end, selecting land is an optimization problem with convenience, budget, seclusion, and start-up labor as variables.

How to screen partners/mates to make sure they wont get in the way of are on board with your homesteading goals.  Some folks start out with a fiercely independent outlook that theyre going to live off the land and do everything themselves, and dont need no help from no one!  (Jake may have been guilty of such aspirations.)  But not everyone is Dick Proenneke.  A second person can change the whole program in a good way.  They contribute a second brain to brainstorms, make the mundane tasks go twice as fast, and will come to look at the cool stuff you find in the woods, for example.

There will be setbacks, so stay flexible and positive!  The old farmhouse you planned to salvage might only be fit for condemnation.  Deer will devour your first crops.  A high water table will thwart your housing plans.  Your carefully planned schedule for moving to the property full-time will be demolished by unforeseen events.  But keep the ultimate goal in mind, and you will eventually succeed!  To return to the previous nugget, a second person can also make it harder to give up when things seem hopeless.

Dont wait until you move to learn the skills youll need.  If you want to grow your own food, do what you can with your current circumstances.  Start building stuff or prototypes of stuff you plan to use on the homestead, such as cold frames and food dehydrators.  It will make the eventual transition way easier.  Joel Salatin says the same thing about farming--experience is the key to success.

How to pester utility companies so they will connect your service.  One drawback of living in the boonies, depending on your point of view (and since youre reading this on the internet, well assume you would see it as a drawback), is that it can be hard to convince utility companies to connect electric and internet service.  With a tight budget (precluding an off-grid setup), personal pride (not relying too heavily on friends and relatives), and the power of the internet as an income-generating tool, utility connections are, for better or worse, a high-priority item in modern-day homesteading.

There are only two minor criticisms of the book we can conjure.  The first is that some of the details on Hess emotions, journal entries, and conversations with her future husband could have been spared.  For us, this was the fluffy part of the book.  For other readers, these details might resonate with their own experiences, so we cant wholeheartedly dismiss their inclusion as unnecessary.

The second is that some of the photos are blurry and/or unnecessary.  Pictures of everyday tasks, like baking cookies at an Aunts house, and pictures of other family members who werent part of the main story line kind of interrupted the flow of the story for us.  It was nice to see the faces of the folks who helped out along the way, but wed wager theres a fairly small subset of this books readership for which the photos will have real meaning.

In all, a book worth considerably more than the price of admission, and another great addition to Hess already great series of homesteading e-books.  Definitely recommend it.


Have you read this book?  Did you have a different impression than we did?  Let us know in the comments section below!

A Video from Church World Service on World Food Day 2015

As part of its observance of World Food Day 2015, Church World Service (the organization that brings you the annual CROP Walk), created this video to raise awareness about hunger. By the way, there are five CROP Walks scheduled in New Mexico in the next several weeks, Gallup (Oct. 18),  Las Vegas (Oct. 24), Albuquerque (Nov. 1),  Carlsbad (Nov. 7), and Los Alamos (Nov. 22).  Four Corners (Farmington) held its CROP Walk on Oct. 3 and Curry County (Clovis) on April 26.

Squirreled War I Quick and Dirty Strawberry Cage

**NOTE** This strawberry cage didnt actually do much to deter the squirrels.  The holes in the woven wire fence seem to be too big, or our squirrels are too small.  But please!...read on for an epic adventure in cage making nonetheless.

One of the more important tasks on a homestead is defense against destructive marauders, those pests that pass through a homestead, wreck a bunch of stuff, then move on to the next victim. Appropriately enough, if the homestead contains a Dad, the task of critter defense usually finds its way onto his to-do list.  So, this post is a happy fathers day tribute to those dads who tirelessly defend their castle against livestock-eating predators, driveway-destroying burrowers, and crop-destroying varmints.

Earlier this spring, we noticed that our strawberry patch was coming along nicely--the plants were lush, green, and full of flowers, followed shortly by green and increasingly large berries.  In short, the type of stuff homesteaders dream about all winter and spring.  Then, one day, almost all of the berries (without even a hint of red), were gone.  We were shocked and angry.  And although we were anticipating a perpetual battle with the neighborhood varmints, we knew this meant that the squirrels had struck the first blow.

What to do?  Having not yet perfected our squirrel flinger design and with the everbearing plants already on their second crop of flowers, we needed something quick.  Something that could be built in a couple hours while a frying pan of delicious root crops with rosemary graced the wood-fired grill on a Saturday evening.  And thus was born the quick and dirty strawberry cage.

The damage.  The berries, all but one plucked from their stalks.  What kind of monster would do such a thing?  They were just babies!

We constructed a 2 x 4 frame from free Craigslist wood to fit around the strawberry bed, then drilled holes just large enough to fit the wires of a welded wire fence (5/64") at the required spacing.  We figured out the spacing by holding the fence on the board and drilling next to the wires.  The wires are a little flexible, so it doesnt have to be perfect.  Remember, this is a quick and dirty project!  Also, it takes some care to not break off the drill bit, and its probably a good idea to have an extra (or two or three) handy.

Same thing with the wire fencing on the ends, which are trimmed to wrap around the arced part.  The most tedious part is getting all the wires to line up in the holes of the frame, but once they do, the slight variations in angle make it surprisingly sturdy.  i.e., dont use a drill press! :-)  Ours can actually support the weight of the frame just from the wire cage (which also probably means a squirrel wont be able to pull out the wires, either), but we made handles for extra support.  The handles are just more pieces of 2 x 4, screwed into the frame at an appropriate spacing.  Theres one on each end, partly because the frame is large and awkward to move with one person, but also partly because we dont trust each other to not eat all of the strawberries as soon as they turn ripe.  Come to think of it, we didnt actually see a squirrel in the strawberries, we just assumed it had been there because the berries were gone.  It could just as easily have been Katie!  There are no droppings to confirm one species or the other.  Now it seems like the cage is an even better idea.

Here are the strawberries, now fully protected.  Where the sections of fence come together, we "sewed" them together with one of the wires we trimmed off the fence.

How do you protect your berries from destructive marauders?  How would you do it if your strawberry patch was a lot larger (which we eventually hope ours will be)?  Let us know in the comments section below!

Are Our Nachos Healthy

When we wrote about our one-year meal plan a few months back, we had nachos in the mix for a not-insignificant number of meals.  After all, they take only a few minutes to prepare, are undisputedly delicious, and, with all the vegetables we tend to heap on top of the chips and cheese, surely not a poor choice nutritionally...right?

While the first two points are self-evident (and/or subjective), the last point was an assumption (or hypothesis) that we could put to the test.  A few minutes with the nutrition labels on our ingredients, and some additional help from the ol internets, and we could actually see (with numbers!) how our nachos stack up.

First, we need an approximate recipe, so heres a what makes up a fairly typical 8" plate of nachos for us:

THL Plate O Nachos
21 tortilla chips (a couple handfuls)
2.5 oz. shredded cheese
0.5 cup salsa
0.5 cup plain yogurt (instead of sour cream)
1 cup chopped greens (often, lettuce)
0.25 cup chopped avocado
0.25 cup chopped tomato
0.25 cup chopped sweet red pepper
0.25 cup chopped chicken

Now, if we pull the nutrition info off the chips, cheese, salsa, and yogurt in our pantry and fridge (Sprouts brand for the first three, Mountain High brand for the yogurt), along with nutrition info from the Self Database (for romaine lettuce, avocado, tomato, pepper, and chicken), we can put together a sort of nutrition label and compare to the recommended daily values from the FDA.

So, if were eating the nachos for one of our three meals (i.e., if we should hit about a third of our %RDV for each category), it looks like were pretty close for calories, a little high on the fat, cholesterol, sodium and protein, and a little low on the carbs.  Were also rockin the vitamins A and C, thanks to the lettuce and peppers.  But can these nachos make up a significant fraction of a healthy diet?  The nachos obviously arent perfectly balanced, but if our other two meals of the day are a little more carb-heavy (like oatmeal and PBJ sandwiches!), it looks like we probably wont get too far out of whack.

But for some extra perspective, we could also compare our nachos to other entrees that we might eat instead, if we werent so lazy busy.  We found data for another version of chicken nachos grande, and also for taco salad, quiche, spaghetti, chili, and the quintessential example of nutritionally-challenged food, a Big Mac.

Somewhat surprisingly, even with the veggies, our nachos dont stack up particularly well against anything but the other nachos, except for vitamins A and C, and calcium.  (Normalizing everything to 100-gram portions makes our nachos look better, but thats not very realistic if were actually eating the whole plate!)  Guess we better not make a regular habit of nachos for supper, unless we cut back on the chips and cheese, and ramp up on the other toppings. 

New house rule: nachos cannot be an entree if chips and cheese are initially visible through the layer of vegetable matter on top.

Thanks for keeping us in check, science!

Early Letters to Congress on Global Nutrition are Helpful This Year

Bread for the Worlds 2016 Offering of Letters urges Congress to increase funding for the nutrition and health of mothers, newborns, and young children in developing countries.  Here is the full guide for this years letter-writing campaign.

Hellen Mbithi

We have scheduled a workshop in Albuquerque on Saturday, March 12, to examine how local churches can become involved in this campaign. Our featured speaker is Hellen M. Mbithi, a nurse who was born and raised in the small village of Ngai in Kenya. She will tell us more  about how a lack of nutrition for mothers and infants can impact the development of children.

SPECIAL NOTE: Early Letters are Helpful: A major goal of this year’s Offering of Letters is increased funding for programs for the health and nutrition of mothers and children. This spring, Congress will be considering the funding levels of key global health and nutrition programs. As Congress begins determining next year’s funding priorities, it is important for your members of Congress to hear from you with letters early in the year.  Below is an early sample letter.

WRITE TO CONGRESS
Ask Congress to Support Global Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health and Nutrition
[Date]
Dear Senator__________ , or Dear Rep.___________ ,
Our country has led the way in improving the nutrition and health of mothers and children so they can achieve their full potential. We have seen tremendous progress, but our work remains unfinished. My faith calls me to urge that we continue until every mother and child has the chance to survive and thrive. Every life is precious.

As Congress considers funding for next year, I ask you to support at least $230 million for international maternal and child nutrition programs in the Department of State foreign operations appropriations bill’s global health account.

Sincerely,
[your name]
[your address]
[city, state, ZIP]

Here is a useful graphic from Bread for the World on a five step process how U.S. foreign assistance reaches people in need.  It all begins with our letters.

Offering of Letters Churches in New Mexico

TheByteMan (via OpenClipArt)

Please join us on Saturday, March 12, for our 2016 Offering of Letters workshop, at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church, 5301 Ponderosa NE (map) 9:30 - 12:00 Noon.

This years letter-writing campaign, entitled "Survive and Thrive," urges Congress to prioritize support for maternal and child health programs, emphasizing nutrition.

Here are the 18 churches  in New Mexico that participated in last years Offering of Letters. We are thankful to the organizers at each of the congregations and those who assisted them. (We apologize for any names we might have left out).

Albuquerque
Albuquerque Mennonite Church (Jeanne Elmhorst), All Saints Lutheran Church (Lucretia Tippit), Central United Methodist Church (Dodie Hawkins), First Congregational Church (Erik Medina), First Presbyterian Church (Kirsten Marr), Immaculate Conception Catholic Church (Rena Dragoo & Pat OMeara), La Mesa Presbyterian Church (Marlys Lesley), Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Catholic Community (Ellen Buelow), St. Andrew Presbyterian Church (Patty Emord), St. John XXIII Catholic Community (Angie Schaefer, Kate Parton, Mellie Meyer and Carlos Navarro),  St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church (Terese Bridges),  St. Paul Lutheran Church (Karla Ice),

 Elsewhere in New Mexico
First Presbyterian Church-Santa Fe (Jane Hanna), Peace Lutheran Church-Las Cruces  (Ellen Young), St. Johns United Methodist Church-Santa Fe (Pastor Greg Kennedy), Smith Memorial Presbyterian Church-Truchas (Mary Singleton), Westminster Presbyterian Church-Gallup (Kathy Mezoff),Westminster Presbyterian Church-Santa Fe (John Singleton and Barbara Medina),

Freezing Dandelions

As we were out in the yard this weekend, seeking some kind of gardening activity that didnt require digging in the still-too-wet-for-planting dirt, we decided it was time to weed under the chicken tractor row cover that was protecting our overwintered swiss chard and garlic.  The row cover is slightly wider than the garden bed, which meant that immediately inside the walls was a tall, lush layer of grass and dandelions.

Some of the dandelion flower stalks were a full two feet long, and the leaves were approaching a size that would make romaine lettuce jealous.  Those huge dandelion leaves, which grew much faster than their counterparts outside of the mini greenhouse, were naturally less bitter because the plant focuses more on biomass production than defense systems (in our minds, anyway).  Which is all another way of saying that, even though they were more than wed need for this weeks meals, theyd be a real shame to waste!  Why dont we try freezing some to save for later?

A quick search of the internets reveals that, of course, were not the first folks to formulate such a plan.  It turns out that blanching the greens just like spinach, chard, collards, or other things normal people eat, works just as well with dandy greens (although maybe we dont even need to blanch them before freezing).  Heres a brief rundown of our new protocol for preserving one of the most exciting parts of spring.

We rinsed all the dirt (of which there wasnt much) and dandelion seeds (of which there were a lot) off the greens, then coarsely chopped them and set them soaking in a bowl of water.  (Even though the plants had already gone to seed, chopping and soaking the leaves takes the bitterness down to an acceptable level.)  We usually soak twice with a change of water in between, and usually for half an hour per soak, although the second soak went overnight on this particular batch.

Then we drained off the water and transferred the greens into one of these-type pots, with a big pasta insert.  The outer pot has a couple inches of boiling water in it, and we steam blanched the dandy greens in two batches of about a half pound each, for three minutes each.

Steam away, little dandies! (We took off the cover to take the picture.)

Then we quenched in cold water for a minute or two...

...and transferred the chilled greens to a salad spinner to get most of the residual water out.  Just sitting in the strainer basket does a pretty good job, but actually spinning them really gets er done.

We put them in freezer baggies, and now theyre ready to hibernate!  Whats the easiest way to get the residual air out of the bags?  We seal them most of the way across, push most of the air out by hand, then press the unsealed inch or so to our lips and suck the rest out like reverse CPR.  While still applying suction, we seal the bag the rest of the way across.  Dont tell the NCHFP! 

Even though we froze the whole batch, we still wanted some for this week.  So almost as soon as they were frozen, we took one bag out and made a quiche, which also incorporated some overwintered green onions, dried tomatoes from last summer, and some frozen sorrel from last weekend. 

As a point of reference, the green stuff in the lower left part of the slice is some of the dandy greens (mostly leaf stems), and the top and right pieces of green are the sorrel. The texture of both types of greens were pretty good, so in addition to the blanched and tasty frozen dandies, it looks like just sticking the sorrel in the freezer works pretty well.

How do you preserve your dandelion greens?

Winter Growing Season

The winter growing season was a smash! The lettuce did quite well, and I harvested about eight salads that fed four to six people each from February through April, about two-and-a-half salads per month! The first six of those salads came from the clay pebble bed that had densely planted seeds. The dense planting stimulated quick, vertical growth. It also ensured that plants did not grow woody stems, keeping the growing tip low, just above the surface. I harvested this like mowing a lawn,, cutting at about 2” high straight across. The plants responded well! For the first two months I harvested at a staggered pace, which kept the demand for nutrients relatively constant because some plants were in the high demand regrowth stage as others grew slowly near full size.

Mixed lettuce in clay pebble bed on 2/18/2011 (top) and 3/26/2011 (bottom). 
Gray coloration on bottom is due to grow light being off. Note that the gravel 
grow bed seen in upper right of both pictures has significantly smaller plants.

Meanwhile, the gravel grow bed which had plants spaced about 6” apart, as recommended on the seed packet, grew very slowly, so I did not harvest until late March. The plants did bush out nicely, each producing far more lettuce per plant than the dense plantings of the clay bed. The bushy lettuce led to woody stems and larger leaves, which I found could only get a few harvests per plant before the leaves got too tough or bitter (lots of white sap in them). 

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Gravel grow bed on 4/28/2011 before the last harvest.

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Conclusion: unless I need pretty heads of lettuce, I should plant the seeds dense and harvest often.

And what about the other plants in the system? Well, the chard...

Read more »

Mercy is that which God likes Most

"Let us abandon all fear and dread, for these do not befit men and women who are loved. Instead, let us live the joy of encounter with the grace that transforms all."   -Pope Francis

The Cloisters Museum, New York

On Dec. 8, Pope Francis launched the Jubilee Year of Mercy, an effort to focus the mission of the church and of the faithful on mercy and forgiveness rather than on judgment. This is a call for both individuals and for the institution.

"This Extraordinary Holy Year is itself a gift of grace," Francis said during the homily at a Mass in which he proclaimed the start of this extraordinary effort. "To enter through the Holy Door means to rediscover the deepness of the mercy of the Father who welcomes all and goes out to meet everyone personally."

"If we were to forget, even just for a moment, that mercy is that which God likes most, every one of our labors would be useless because we would become slaves of our institutions and our structures, however renewed they might be," the pope said the next day at his general audience in St. Peters Square. "We would always be slaves."

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops offers five suggestions on how to answer this call to be merciful. In a post on the USCCBs Go Forth blog, education and outreach director Jill Rauh invites us to Pray for awareness of God in our own lives, to Pray with the Gospel, to Encounter, to Prepare to be Merciful, and to Realize that We are all in this Together.

"These exercises for prayer and reflection are only a start. Preparing our hearts for the Jubilee Year can help us live out Pope Francis’ vision in Evangelii Gaudium of a Church, which, “guided by the Gospel of mercy and by love for mankind, hears the cry for justice” and responds to Jesus’ command by Mark 6:37 (full context, Mark 6: 30-44) by “working to eliminate the structural causes of poverty” (no. 188)," said Ruah. "We start with prayer, then reach out to encounter others. Then we learn and discern together about how we might be called to act. The Jubilee Year of Mercy is the perfect opportunity to engage this process." Read full  blog post

Nutrition Important for Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

As of 2013, nearly 2.7 million grandparents stepped up to become parents to kids once again. This is an increase of about 64,100 adults from 2008. In nearly 900,000 of these grandparent-led households, no parent is present and the median income is $35,685, the U.S. Census Bureau reports.For more than 569,200 grandparents who are caring for their grandchildren, their incomes are so low that they are in poverty. In 2008, about 492,800 of these grandparents reported incomes below the poverty level. -   -Article in Equal Voice

- See more at: http://www.equalvoiceforfamilies.org/if-you-love-somebody-grandparents-raising-kids/?gclid=CjwKEAiA64uyBRCVmKyT2vuAjzgSJADfINB6S8iU4N98xhFF9pcBMbz0TTKvtq46qoNW9BhHRDXtohoCrePw_wcB#sthash.jaKSow5r.dpuf

There are many stories about grandparents raising their grandchildren full time. And there are several websites that offer resources to the grandparents who have found themselves as the parents, including Piecing Hearts Together Again and Grandfamilies. It is important that lower income families have access to public assistance including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF). And we must make sure that these programs are fully funded--so that they can support everyone who qualifies.

"Eligibility for SNAP depends on the number of people in the household and the household’s total income. Other expenses, such as dependent care costs, medical deductions, earned income deduction, child support, and some shelter costs are also considered in determining benefits," said a paper published by the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance. The members of the SNAP household must also be U.S. citizens or legal non- citizens. Eligibility requirements for SNAP are not reduced for grandparents raising grandchildren; as a result, the grandparents’ income is considered."

USDA-Funded Program Helps Part-Time Caretakers in New Mexico

The not-so-extreme situation is when grandparents become the caretakers of the children during the day when the parent or parents are working. Whether a grandparent is a full-time or part-time caretaker, it is important to ensure that the children have access to nutritious meals--and this might not be possible if the household falls below the poverty level.

To help the part-time grandparents, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has developed  the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP).

 CACFP provides aid to child and adult care institutions and family or group day care homes for the provision of nutritious foods that contribute to the wellness, healthy growth, and development of young children, and the health and wellness of older adults and chronically impaired disabled persons. Through CACFP, more than 3.3 million children and 120,000 adults receive nutritious meals and snacks each day as part of the day care they receive.

In New Mexico, the YWCA Providers Alliance for Nutrition (PAN) food program is set up to help grandparents who are caring for their children to gain access to healthy, nutritious meals while they are away from their parents. " Proper nutrition in childhood helps create healthy, productive adult members of society and helps to reduce many health related problems," said PAN-YWCA, which receives funding from the CACFP for the program.

To qualify a person must be caring for at least one child that doesnt live with them.  They also must be able to pass a background check and may be eligible to claim their own children under age 13 when the non-resident children are present.

Here is a three-step process for New Mexico grandparents seeking to participate in the PAN-YWCA program

1. CYFD Home Visit
To become a registered home child care provider you must contact Children Youth and Families Department (CYFD) to arrange for a Child Care Specialist (CCS) to visit your home and to give you all needed information on the registration process. Please call 841-4842 to receive a printed instruction packet and to ask any questions you may have. Follow this link to obtain an application for a background check. Follow the directions carefully and if you have any questions call 841-4842.

You will begin by having a background check completed and the charge for this process is $44  [My editorial comment: How are grandparents or parents on limited income able to afford this fee?]. The  instructions about how to complete this process can be found at the New Mexico Kids website or by calling 841-4842.

You will receive a clearance letter in the mail in up to 6 weeks. You will also need to have a brief background review for anyone in your home that is 18 or older. This process is different than the fingerprinting for you and you should call 841-4842 for more information on how to complete this process. There is no fee attached to the background check for your adult household members

2. Home Registration through CYFD
After receiving your approved background check clearance letter please call 841-4842 again to make an appointment with a Child Care Specialist. Registration costs $15 and is payable by money order at time of visit.

3. Call the YWCA PAN Food Program
After you have completed the above steps call PAN at 254-9922 and ask for a PAN staff member. You will be assigned a PAN field Representative who will visit your home and conduct an orientation to the program and help you complete your required paperwork. You have successfully completed the process and are off to a great start caring for our most precious resource – the children of our community! We are thrilled to work with you. There is no charge for this process.

Amount of Reimbursement
The average amount of reimbursement is roughly $90/month per child, depending on the number of hours you care for the child. You are allowed to claim two main meals and 1 snack for each child per day. The current reimbursement rates are listed in the box to the right and change annually. Your PAN Field Representative will discuss your specific situation with you to ensure you receive the correct amount of reimbursement.

Reimbursement Rates
Breakfast - $1.31
Lunch/Supper - $2.47
Snacks - $0.73

Stuffed French Toast Strata

A question: what is the best part of coming home to ones parents house after being away for a while? An answer: moms cooking!  Another question: what is an extra special treat during such visits, even among moms cooking? Another answer: stuffed french toast! 

Stuffed french toast is pretty easy to make, just like regular french toast.  Weve normally had it with french bread sliced double-thick and sliced halfway through in the middle of each double-thick slice (see here for an example)--but it works with regular bread, too, and weve even made the sausage-and-swiss style from the link above as just a french toast-grilled-cheese sandwich.  But then we thought, "wouldnt it also be great in a strata?" And were happy to report that it is, indeed, great in a strata.

Start by browning up some ground meat to make some breakfast sausage.  For 1 lb ground venison, we seasoned it with about a half-teaspoon each of salt, and pepper, and one teaspoon each of garlic powder, caraway seeds, and ground sage.

When the meat is cooked through and tastes like the type of breakfast sausage you want, make layers like the picture shows, in a 9 x 13" pan.  A couple of differences between this strata and our other recipes: this one doesnt have vegetables in it, so youll have to get them in a side dish.  (Dont skip them!  Remember, this is moms meal plan were emulating.)  Or maybe make an omelet to go with it or something.  Also, were not normally picky about what kind of cheese we use in the strata, but this ones gotta have Swiss cheese.

Add a second set of bread-meat-cheese layers, then pour a mixture of six eggs, three cups milk, and one teaspoon each of salt, pepper, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning (beaten together) over it.  The seasonings in the egg mixture could also be more traditional french toast spices, like vanilla and cinnamon, but we decided to match the sausage flavor instead.  Doesnt matter, well still eat it with syrup like Buddy the Elf.

Set it in the fridge to chill out for a while.

Then bake at 350 °F for 50-55 min until it looks something like this.

Look at those layers! Time for the syrup! Good stuff, Maynard.  House rules: when an entree is topped with real maple syrup, the plate must be licked clean.  No exceptions!

What do you stuff your french toast with?  Let us know in the comments section below!


The recipe:
~1 lb ground venison
 0.5 teaspoon each of salt and pepper
1 teaspoon each of garlic powder, caraway seed, and ground sage

10 slices of bread (at least)
1 lb shredded Swiss cheese

6 eggs
3 cups milk
1 teaspoon each of garlic powder, and Italian seasoning, salt and pepper

Brown the ground venison in a frying pan over medium heat, seasoning with garlic powder, caraway, sage, salt and pepper to taste (suggestions above).  The amount of ground meat can be adjusted, too--1 lb gives a two scant layers in the strata, two lbs. makes a very meaty strata.  Layer the bread, browned meat, and cheese in a 9" x 13" pan, starting with bread and ending with cheese, aiming for two layers each. Beat together eggs, milk, and remaining seasonings. Pour over layers and set in fridge for several hours or overnight. Bake at 350 °F for 50-55 min. Allow to cool and smother with real maple syrup.  Remember to lick the plate afterward.

Steve Garnaas Holmes Autumn Blessing

Prospect Park in Brooklyn

As the trees bear fruit and the harvest is bought in,blessings ripen in you.

As the earth holds dear the roots of trees,
God’s love for you holds you fast, and gives you life.

As the trees shed their leaves in beauty
and the garden gives up its riches in abundance,
you learn to surrender gracefully,
forgive deeply, offer gifts generously,
and in all your losses trust that deeper blessings are given you.

As the earth turns toward winters’ darkness
in its gentle dance of seasons,
you walk through life’s challenges without fear,
trusting the unseen spring yet to come.

As autumn’s colors pour into the world,
blessing unfolds in you;
as autumn puts its gold in your hands,
you grow in love and become more beautiful,
and make the world more beautiful.

And even the trees, amazed, thank you.

Steve Garnaas-Holmes
(From Unfolding Light blog)

Butcher Block Counter From Reclaimed 2 x 4 Lumber

A few weeks ago, we mentioned that one of our main goals this year was to finish the butcher block counter (and corresponding cabinets) we built to give our kitchen some extra horizontal work space and culinary device storage capacity.  Finally, after more than a year of testing it in-place, we slapped some doors on it and put a water-resistant finish on the top.  There are a couple naggly things to finish up yet, like deciding whether we also want to finish the cabinet doors, but by and large, we think the project is ready for blog-reader eyes.

This is what it looked like a year ago.  We made the top out of reclaimed 2 x 4s (yep, pine!) that we planed clean and glued together.  The end-to-end length is about eight feet, so we made each row out of a six-footer and a two-footer, alternating the two-foot ends (i.e., one row was 6-2, the next was 2-6, and so on).  Its about 16 inches front to back. Despite our best efforts, there was a stretch in the middle where they didnt line up perfectly.  It took us about a year to acquire a belt sander, which made the job of blending the slabs tolerable.

We also needed the sawdust from sanding to make some wood putty, of which a significant amount was required to fill in all the imperfections in the wood.

For example, there were a lot of nail holes like these.

After filling with putty and sanding, the same holes looked like this.  Theres a bit of discoloration around the nail holes yet, but they almost look like tiny knots.

Viewed from the angle of a typical adult human walking by, the now-filled holes look downright acceptable.  However, with a lot of board-to-board color variation like this, the sawdust used to make the putty doesnt actually match any of the wood colors perfectly.

Back in place in the kitchen, its time to add some water resistant coating.  We could have maybe foregone the finish, but Jake does a lot of drooling when Katies cooking.  Better not to risk it.

We used the Howards butcher block conditioner, which is a mix of mineral oil, beeswax, and Carnauba wax.  It definitely enhanced the wood color and soaked in pretty quickly.

Finished top.  Katie approves.

Theres a bit of a sheen to it, but not too bad.

Add some rustic-looking doors, and this thing is starting to get some personality!  Of course, if you build the doors while the top is off, they might not fit perfectly.

There, thats better.

Oh yeah, forgot to mention the shelves.  Theyre reclaimed pallet wood from the two best pallets weve ever acquired.  The top was hardwood (aspen, judging by the scent when cutting it), the bottom had some nice blue-stain pine.

Finally, seal the edge with some silicone caulk to prevent water from getting back there and to prevent potential admirers from noticing the uneven ends.

Done! (as long as we decide not to coat the doors...)

Hobby Farming and Good Food

Many people are starting to use simple easy to build low cost aquaponics systems to grow fish, veggies and herbs at home. It can be a rewarding and relaxing hobby, one that also produces great tasting food in a sustainable manner without using artificial fertilizers or pesticides.

These mini sized eco-friendly aqua farm units can be built as a “do it yourself” project and a family activity that provides wholesome nutritious food year round. They can be set up in the garage, basement, shed, empty building etc.

Is the idea of growing your own fish and vegetables without using chemicals, is appealing to you? If so read this article.

Octopus Slayer Part 2

If you remember from a prior post last year, we made some changes to the large A-Frame NFT system that was being used over at the Together We Stand Aquaponic Gardens.  It had been designed with a manifold at the top to feed water individually at each tube and to drain each tube individually. It had so many hoses going so many directions we called it the "octopus".  Classic exacmple of over-engineering to solve a problem that didnt exist.

When I wrote about how we changed the water flow I mentioned that instead of black tubing, my hubby cut a garden hose to make the jumper from one tube to the next. It was easy, quick, and most importantly cheap!

After I posted this, several folks commented on this blog and other places about the wisdom of using a garden hose. There was quite a bit of concern about the safety of the water flowing through the garden hose and the possibility of leaching toxic chemicals.

Quite honestly, for as "smart" and evolved as we are supposed to be, it never occurred to us that the hose might taint the water.  Hubby and I  both grew up in a very hot and dry area of South Texas and drank lots of water from the hose as youngsters and teens. While it did have a funny taste, I just always guessed it was from the metal bib of the hose.  That and the fact that all the water in that town tasted like crud, no matter the source.  But when you are hot and thirsty you will drink what is available.  Of course, this was back in the 60s and 70s so we didnt know about things like bottled water back then

But this is a new century and we are evolved and enlightened!  So a few days ago, hubby decided that the garden hose should be replaced.  You spoke and he listened!

 This did require a trip to Home Depot, but it was only a few dollars and the result looks clean and works well.  I think fighting the crowd of Canadians in the parking lot and through the store on a Saturday (remember this is Hollywood Florida and it is January and in the mid-80s so all the snowbirds have landed) took longer and was more effort than making the actual change.  Here is the new set-up. 

Here is another view.

Nice huh?

But this gets me to thinking about all the things we did as kids that people never do now....or they dont allow their kids to do now.  Maybe it was because we were from a small-ish town, but we rode our bikes everywhere and got into everything. I dont know how we survived.

How about you?