Minimal and Green :: Kindle Reader

We seek to be rationally minimal and to be good stewards of the world God has given us. For this reason, the Kindle makes a whole lot of sense!

I have talked to/read blogs from people who resist the kindle saying that there is nothing quite like holding a book in your hands while reading. To be honest, I used to be one of those people!

However, I am an avid reader. Our bookshelves were filling quickly. And, my book wishlist was continuing to grow. The potential for our book collection to grow into some sort of unreasonably large collection was very real. So, I gave in and purchased a Kindle.

And, I love it!

I cleaned out my book collection, donating all of those that I did not see reading again. For those that I believed I would read many more times, I purchased electronic versions using gift cards earned through our insurance company and swagbucks. Then I donated my paper versions of those books as well. The books that I currently have on my bookshelf are: homestead reference books, books not available on kindle, and children's books (because I still believe that children need to see and hold real books - it's part of the learning to read process).

I love that I can haul my whole book collection around the house and out into public with a very small and lightweight item. I am known to read as many as 10 books at one time, and I can have them all available to me wherever I am as long as I have my Kindle with me.

I also love that many books are less expensive in their electronic form than in print. Within a few months of purchasing the Kindle, the savings in cost of books had made up for the cost of the Kindle. That's not even including all of the free classic literature as well as the various freebies offered daily.

It was something I never thought I would do - but I believe buying a Kindle has been a great decision both for our minimalistic tendencies, the simplicity of traveling with books, and financial savings!

A Quilt for a Friend

A sweet sweet friend of mine is expecting a baby in just a few short months. She and her husband are the kind of people that Cole and I just love hanging out with.

About a year ago, I was she and I were together crafting when she saw this pattern and really liked it; at that point I knew that it would be the pattern for a blanket for their someday baby. I began collecting fabrics in anticipation of a fun and BRIGHT quilt. The fabrics came from Iowa, Wisconsin, Amish Country, and Kansas. 

Altogether they are so bright, cheery, and beautiful! I just love the bright batik prints against the black! 

Hopefully Baby enjoys the bright fabrics, as well.

Amazing Granola

I absolutely LOVE this granola recipe! It's super healthy and incredibly yummy.

3 cups rolled oats (I use certified gluten free, of course)
1.5 cups nuts/seeds (I use 1/4 c. hemp seeds, 1/2 c. raw sunflower seeds, & 3/4 c. slivered raw almonds - but you can use any combination you want)

Mix all of these ingredients together in a bowl.

In a saucepan, heat until melted through:
1/2 c. juice (I prefer cranberry or pomegranate)
1/2 c. honey
1/4 c. cold-pressed coconut oil
1 T. vanilla extract
1 t. sea salt
1/2 t. cinnamon

Pour the liquid over the oat/nut/seed mixture and mix well. Spread evenly on a cookie sheet and bake at 325 for 40 minutes. Your house will smell great while this is baking!

When the granola is done baking, break apart, and allow to cool and harden completely. Mix in 1.5 cups of dehydrated fruit (I highly recommend cranberries!).

Store in a ball jar and enjoy alone as a snack, with milk, or with yogurt for breakfast.

Puppy Wash

This weekend our pup, Isis, got a bath. She HATES baths - and Cole got some funny pictures!

Finding My Way Eating Gluten Free

For the past several months I've been scouring the internet, recipe books, the library, pinterest, and friend's brains in going gluten free, I think I've begun finding the way that I enjoy eating gluten free. I call it paleoish....

I eat a lot of meat, a lot of veggies, and a lot of fruit. I also eat quite a bit of dairy, oats, and peanut butter....which are not really considered paleo.

I've tried several types of breads, even posted some of the recipes here on the blog...but what I think that I've decided in the end is that I'm happier without many carbs in my diet. I eat some pasta dishes. I have a waffle recipe and a pizza crust/bun recipe that I LOVE. And sometimes a "bread" just sounds yummy (especially at Jason's Deli!).

But many of the foods that I absolutely loved before going gluten free no longer have the same appeal - I would rather eat produce instead.

I have come to love spreading some cream cheese over lettuce leaves (choose your favorite type), adding lunch meat, and rolling it up. I would rather have that than a sandwich on sandwich bread most of the time.

Eggs scrambled and mixed with fried hashbrowns and bacon/ham (and, if you like - salsa or tabasco) is also super yummy eaten with a fork; it doesn't need rolled up into a burrito shell as a breakfast burrito.

It's a constant experience and I'm always trying new things and making new yummy food discoveries - something that is a bit scary and all together exciting!

All this to say...while I still have several pasta/bread type foods that I like a great thing has come from going gluten free - I have drastically increased my intake of real foods, more specifically, produce as a part of meals. And that has been great - both for flavor, variety, and my health!

Garden Update :: May 2013

On Sunday, Cole helped me to plant out all of the plants that I started as seeds on the kitchen table. So far, this experiment is going well ... I hope that the success inside is going to continue now that those plants are outside!

Here is what the gardens currently look like:

Bed One: Raspberries

Bed Two: Blackberries

Bed Three: Strawberries

Bed Four: 5 Butternut Squash, 5 Summer Squash

Bed Five: Currently Empty

Bed Six: 8 Broccoli, Sugar Snap Peas, 5 Cucumbers

Bed Seven: Currently Empty, Except for Peas

Bed Eight: Peas, 6 Kale, 2 Broccoli

Weekly Plan :: May 6

I am so excited about all of the growth that is happening around this house! Several of the plants that I brought back from my Grandma's last summer and due to the heat was unsure if they would make it....but they are coming up nice and strong; like this hosta:

There are only ten days left in this school year - that is so crazy! So, that means lots of fun goings on at work - and lots of exhaustion in the evenings. So thankful for a meal plan to help me still feed us good food despite the craziness :) This week we will be eating: 

1. tater tot casserole
2. chicken cordon bleu
3. stuffed peppers
4. lasagna (need to find a recipe to try!)
5. chicken and rice 
6. tangy pulled pork 
7. grill out (yes! - it's finally warm!)

We eat hard boiled eggs, yogurt, smoothies, etc for breakfast and leftovers for lunch. We have a fridge & pantry stocked full of fruits and veggies for the week too!