Bored Bunny Bombs

When our bunnies get bored they tend to do destructive things, like chewing up the things in their cage. Recently they totally ruined the bracket that holds one of their feeders.

It was my fault, I hadn't provided enough stimulation for them during the chaos around here this week. But I'm back on track now! One of the things I provide actually tackles another problem at the same time- wasted hay.

If I toss hay into the cage, most of it just ends up on the ground underneath. AND I needed a way to use up all the hay crumbles that are left after I feed the goats their share, YOU KNOW-the tasty hay morsels that are so small they just sift through the cracks in the hay feeder, the bits that are left after you've scooped and swept.

So here's my solution-homemade "Bored Bunny Bombs!"

Yep, I just fill up stuff and cram empty toilet paper rolls with that hay. Now the bunnies are actually doing some work for their dinner, keeping busy, and dropping less hay!

 Of course, a person could go to a pet store and buy some of these already made. But since I'm raising these for meat, I'm trying to be as frugal as possible. And I'm putting less paper products back into the environment- unless you count the awesome fertilizer these guys are providing, because my garden is producing more than I have time to harvest thanks to my bunny poo! 

 Happy rabbits, happy gardener, happy life!

P.S. My DH was impressed the first time I showed him this little trick. But wives, if you try this, be warned that just because a DH is impressed doesn't mean he will actually change an empty tp roll. (YMMV)

Just Once

I would like to go for a walk in the woods and see no trash.

On a brighter note- the trash was covered with (drum roll, please) GOAT CANDY! Yes! I managed to sneak Archie and Ronnie each a huge leaf for a treat. They were tickled to get it-we will just let the fact that the leaves had been on the ground be our little secret. 

And remember I'm learning to do my part to make less waste on God's green earth.

You can help me celebrate my one-year paper napkin free anniversary and enter to win these homemade cloth napkins by clicking here. 

Great-Depression

It's not one of my favorite places to be in, this great depression. But that is where I am. At least I've visited this place enough times to know that I won't be here forever, it's just a layover on the way to someplace better. I'm very blessed to have a home and animals that need tended to keep me going!  Maybe waking up to a lot of mornings that look like this lately has brought it on.

I will be glad when the sun is back on a regular basis!

 This has got me to thinking about my Grandma. She is one really sweet lady who lived through THE great depression. And to this day, I can see the impact it had on her. Nothing in my Grandma's home ever got threw away. Bread sacks, milk jugs, the plastic thingys that held soda cans together were all stashed in a drawer or cabinet or the garage for someday when "someone would need that." Now that she is in a nursing home, the pattern continues. We find her drawers and pockets stuffed with the jelly packets from the dining room and the little plastic cups for her water and medicines. So everyone in the family has little jelly packets stashed in their fridge now. But what to do with the little plastic cups? We're not talking about 1 or 2 a day. They bring her a new one every time she takes medicine-5 times a day! Those things add up quick! I'm making an effort to reduce the numbers of these in the landfill (and to respect my Grandma's wishes) by finding ways to reuse them. First, every cousin that has toddlers got some to use as stacking toys. Then I used some to plant some Forget-Me-Nots in:

I blended some honey, yogurt, and fresh blueberries. I poured that yummy mixture into a cup and froze it to make an afternoon snack. I also have some frozen coffee to mix into a cold coffee drink-no watery cold latte's for me!

The rest are stacking up until I find something to do with them. And I haven't had any brilliant ideas at all for the little medicine cups yet. I'm thankful they are so small. It makes storing them a lot easier! I think Grandma would be proud!
 I would love to hear your ideas for ways to reuse these.


Lamentations 3:25-26  The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.  It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD. 

Fingers crossed

Just got done starting the rose/potato experiment. Here is a step by step guide to what I did:

1. Cut a slit in the potato that is slightly smaller than the rose stem.

2. Insert rose stems into potato.

3. Place potato in potting soil.

4. Cover potato with potting soil, water, and wait.

I placed mine in a sunny spot. Can't wait to see if they take root!

watch out, I'm feeling crafty

When the power was out from the storms a couple weeks ago it broke my heart to empty the freezer of all the wonderful veggies we had grown last summer. I replaced them with value size bags of frozen veggies (not the same by a long shot.) Anyway, I opened one bag the other day to make the "rainy day soup" and I decided to use up the rest of it last night. My favorite way to cook veggies is by roasting. It seems to bring out the natural sugars in them, making them yuuummmmmy. So here is the recipe for the rest of the Normandy Blend veggies:
Line baking sheet with foil and spray with no stick spray. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Mix veggies with 3 Tbsp vegetable oil (I use Canola.) Stir in 5 cloves minced garlic, salt, pepper, and juice from 1/2 lemon. Spread on baking sheet and bake at 450 for 30-45 minutes. Time will depend on how frozen the veggies are.

veggies before baking

I added some strips of frozen precooked fajita chicken strips halfway through baking to make a one-dish dinner.

after cooking

Easy breezy!!! Delicious and healthy!!!

  On a different front: I worked on my reuse/recycle feed sack project today. I had searched the internet for ways to use these things. Some suggestions were- use them for trash bags, to hold compost, to grow potatoes, aprons, and tote bags. I went with the tote bag idea. A seamstress I am not! So I ran to the sewing queen (my mom) to help me with the pattern and to make sure I was on the right track. We didn't get one finished but we made it this far:

You can see I still need to finish the handles. They are in the top picture. This particular sack had been left in the open too long and a mouse had got hold of it. So while it worked well for a trial run, it's not the one I want to take close-up pictures of. This turned out to be a fun project and I will definitely be making more of these with better pictures to follow!


While I was at my mom's, she gave me the last of her Easter bouquet of roses. The petals are all wilted but the stems are putting out new shoots so I am going to try transplanting them. Hmmm, we will have to see how that goes...

A Plentiful Country

Working on some recycling and reusing projects today!
1st-What to do with all that junk mail? Taking it to the recycling center uses too much gas, so....

it's slowly being converted into a weed prevention mat. This strip is in between 2 rows of corn that hasn't popped up yet. This is great for the Hoosier girl who doesn't like to hoe-namely me!!

2nd- I found a great way to confuse Daisy Dog:

Feed sacks are washed and drying on the line. I found some neat ways to reuse these-more on that later.
And 3rd- check out my reusable mouse trap:

This is Porsche-named for her loud "motor." She discovered our new pet door and ventured outside for the first time last week. Unfortunately she had a run-in with some wildlife and got pretty banged up. Yesterday was her first full day of being up and about. No more limping! I think she will be up to the task of rodent patrol very shortly, if she has learned her lesson about curiosity of the outdoors!
God has given us such an abundance of good things and humbly we try to be good stewards.
Jeremiah 2:7  And I brought you into a plentiful country, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when ye entered, ye defiled my land, and made mine heritage an abomination.