April 2021

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#31. THE BAKER’S DAUGHTER by Sarah McCoy
★★☆☆☆
Another book from the beginning of my Goodreads TBR list. This was a dual-perspective novel set in two time periods: 1940s Nazi Germany and current day El Paso, Texas. The modern day protagonist is a journalist for a local magazine who interviews the owner of a German bakery for a story. The two women strike up a friendship of sorts and we learn more of the baker’s past during World War II. I was invested in the historical fiction parts, but did not find the modern day compelling at all (which is like half of the book). I also couldn’t really figure out what the connection the author was trying to make with the two time periods. Ultimately, just an okay read for me.

#32. AN EVERLASTING MEAL: COOKING WITH ECONOMY AND GRACE by Tamar Adler
★★★★☆
This is one of those books that you can pick up and set down easily, grabbing a bit of inspiration each time you read it. I typically have a hard time when people wax poetic about things, but I really enjoyed this book about making delicious food with simple ingredients. As someone who prefers a recipe with exact measurements, I really have had to stretch my culinary muscles to follow her instructions…and that’s a good thing! My biggest takeaway is that good food doesn’t need to be complicated or expensive to be satisfying.

#33. THE DOLOROUS PASSION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST by Anne Catherine Emmerich
★★★★☆
This was my book for Lent this year. Beautiful and descriptive and heart-wrenching and hopeful all wrapped into one book. I really enjoyed it and hope to read it again.

#34. SAWBONES by Melissa Lenhardt
★★☆☆☆
Another one where I closed the book and said, “What in the world did I just read?” I heard about this one from someone on Youtube and she raved about it, but I had quite the opposite reading experience. The story is about a female doctor who is wrongfully accused of murder and has to disappear into wild Texas territory. It sounded right up my alley, and it was, except for the fact that the beginning was a bit too “I am woman, hear me roar!” for my taste. One example that had me rolling my eyes:

I watched Harriet walk away with pity, which I suspect she would have loathed. She was a woman with no place, save by her brother’s side. Unmarried and without a profession, she most likely relied on the charity of her brother or surviving parents. Reliance meant subordination. She could not be her own person and would naturally resent a woman like me who could. (p.177)

She’s talking about a young woman who lost her fiancé in war. I mean…condescending much? The rest of the book redeemed her pretentious character a bit, but had so many gratuitous descriptions of Indian massacres and sexual assaults and I was just done. Definitely won’t be continuing on to Book #2.

#35. THE COLOR OF BEE LARKHAM’S MURDER by Sarah J. Harris
★★★☆☆
I don’t think I’ve ever read anything like this book before. The main character is a 13-year-old boy with autism and synethesia (experiencing sounds as colors) as well as an inability to recognize faces. He is convinced that he killed his neighbor and the book explores the events leading up to that day. I found the concept interesting, but there were some icky situations that were uncomfortable for me (think Mary Kay Letourneau) and the constant use of colors to label other characters was confusing. Not sure it’s one that I would widely recommend, but definitely a unique read.

#36. A CATHOLIC GUIDE TO SPENDING LESS AND LIVING MORE: ADVICE FROM A DEBT-FREE FAMILY OF 16 by Sam and Rob Fatzinger
★★★★☆
This is the personal finance book I wish I had read shortly after getting married! The Fatzingers are further along on the parenting/financial journey than us, but we have learned many of the same lessons they describe. There’s nothing particularly new or ground-breaking, but financial freedom isn’t all that complicated in the first place. I loved the reminder to be good stewards with the money we have, whether that be a lot or a little. I also particularly liked the section about saving and early retirement, two ideas that are definitely on our radar these days! 3.5 stars, rounded up. (A Catholic Guide to Spending Less and Living More was just published on April 23, 2021. Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book.)

#37. THE DOG STARS by Peter Heller
★★★☆☆
This was a post-apocalyptic novel about a pilot who survived a terrible super flu that killed everyone he loved except his dog, Jasper. The first half of the book focused on his grief and his day-to-day survival and while the writing was a bit rough (stilted sentence fragments with weird punctuation placement and no quotation marks), I did enjoy the story. The second half fell short for me and felt a little cheesy.

#38. I’LL NEVER TELL by Catherine McKenzie
★★★☆☆
The premise of this mystery was intriguing: a group of siblings are forced to figure out “whodunit” on an unsolved murder case from twenty years ago. They all gather at the family’s summer camp to read their father’s will and then learn that the murder will have to be solved before anyone can collect the money. It had a bit of a closed room feel because one of the siblings committed the crime, but who? A super fast read, but tons of sexual “secrets” and too many unlikeable characters. Wavering between 2.5 and 3 stars for this one.

One of my favorite Youtube homesteaders, Justin Rhodes, often says that working on your farm each day, getting better just 1% at a time, eventually leads to big results. After a tiny trial run last year with the garden, we’re excited to ramp up our efforts. But how intimidating! How overwhelming! We don’t know what we’re doing! But as another favorite, Joel Salatin, says: You can’t Google experience. So we’re jumping in!

Because I love a challenge, we are committing to 100 days (with Sundays off) of intentionally working on our homestead. We officially started on March 10, the day our first batch of broiler chicks arrived. I want to document these days for accountability as well as a way to tangibly see the progress we make. Here are a few of the highlights from the first 30 days (March 10 to April 13):

+ The chicks arrived a day early and we were not prepared! We had set up the wire play pens in the garage, but I hadn’t finished securing them before excited children started dipping beaks in the water and letting the chicks free. The scene was seriously out of an I Love Lucy episode: some of us were trying to tape cardboard boxes around the outside, kids were dipping beaks, chicks were easily pushing themselves through the wire and running free through the garage. It was chaos, but we can laugh about it now.

+ We fixed the garden door and gave the whole fence a fresh coat of paint.

+ We learned so much about chick care: dealing with pasty butt (so gross), adding a little apple cider vinegar to their water once a week, and being in complete awe of how much little chicks can eat! We learned that you should lift feeders and waterers up on blocks (thank you, Rosie!) and that they go crazy for salad scraps.

+ We transplanted broccoli, brussels sprouts and two types of cabbage from seedlings started under the grow light. I also direct sowed a few types of lettuce, spinach, carrots, onion starts and peas.

+ We started a bunch of flower seeds indoors.

+ Mark and I went on a quick date to the garden center and came home with two more blueberry plants, a lavender and a rosemary. I’m thankful we have tons of seeds because those plants are not cheap!

+ We tilled two in-ground beds and filled them with compost. They looked so beautiful and pure! We then promptly “ruined” one of them by trenching three rows and planting two types of potatoes. We had horrible luck with potatoes last year, so we followed these directions this time. Praying for better results!

+ The kids helped me set up the new squash tunnel. It’s huge!

+ Mark and the older boys built moveable tractors to keep the broilers on pasture. (I painted them so they’d be functional and a bit more pretty.) We moved them out on April 6 and the chickens seemed so happy to be out in the fresh air. We planned to electrify a line around the bottom of the tractors, but had to wait for a specific part….and six days later, disaster struck. We woke up to two gnarly rips on the side of the tractors and chickens walking all over the yard! After talking with a farmer friend, we think a racoon managed to rip the plastic sheeting off and got six chickens in the process. We felt a little defeated that day, but quickly moved to fence off (and electrify!) until we can proceed with the original plan. So far, so good.

+ We cut up some trees that fell around the property this winter and the boys chopped them into firewood.

PRODUCTS I’M USING AND LOVING

+ Gurney’s Seed Starting Kit and Grow Light
+ The Backyard Homestead Seasonal Planner by Ann Larkin Hansen
+ All New Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew + Behr Barn & Fence Paint in Barn White

+ Chick Stands from Premier1

We had such a wonderful Spring Break week, the perfect mix of hard work and relaxation.

Our biggest project of the week involved moving the broilers out to pasture. They seem really happy to be out in the sunshine and fresh air and I am super happy to have them out of my garage!

I added these mosquito wipes in my latest Grove order and hope they’ll help when we sit outside at night this summer. I’ll report back.

A new set of eggs in the nest on our porch fan!

I’m reading The Color of Bee Larkham’s Murder (affiliate link) and it is such an original concept. The main character is autistic and has synthesia, which is when sounds evoke sensations of color. I’m not sure what I think of the book as a whole (I’m only about halfway), but it’s so interesting to see life through his eyes.

No photographic evidence, but I also… + cancelled our Amazon Prime subscription! We weighed the pros and cons ad nauseum, but are really content with our final decision. It doesn’t necessarily mean that we’ll never shop there, but will definitely take away the tantalizing two-day temptations and prompt me to shop small first. And if we find we miss it, we can always sign back up.

+ made a batch of cinnamon sugar apple chips in my new dehydrator. Six hours to make and devoured in minutes! I also made a pitcher of iced peach tea.

+ took a rosary walk and remembered how much I loved it. Why did I ever stop?
+ watched another lecture from a free course I’m taking on the Constitution. Very, very interesting and thought-provoking.

For this month’s recipe, I wanted to try my hand at Hot Cross Buns, which are traditionally made on Good Friday. (This post shares some of the history behind it as well as a way easier version that I’ll be keeping in mind for busier seasons.) After I made the dough, the little kids helped me with the last half of the process and they turned out so perfectly imperfect. The kids declared that they were delicious and gobbled them right up!

¼ cup milk
⅓ cup sugar
¾ tsp salt
½ cup butter
2 pkgs active dry yeast
½ cup warm water 110 to 115°
3 eggs
4 cup sifted flour about
¾ cup currants
1 egg white
1 tsp cold water
White Frosting

Scald the milk, then add sugar, salt and butter; cool to lukewarm.
Sprinkle yeast on the warm water; stir to dissolve.
Add eggs, yeast and 1 cup flour to the milk mixture; beat with electric mixer at medium speed about 2 minutes, occasionally scraping the bowl. Stir in currants and enough remaining flour, a little at a time, to make a soft dough that is easy to handle. Beat well. Place in lightly greased bowl; turn dough over to grease the top. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1½ hours. Punch down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface.
Roll or pat to ½” thickness. Cut in rounds with a 2½” biscuit cutter; shape cutouts in buns. Place about 1½” apart on a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
With a very sharp knife, cut a shallow cross on the top of each bun. Brush tops with unbeaten egg white mixed with cold water.
Bake at 375° for 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool on wire racks about 5 minutes. Then, with top of knife or teaspoon, fill in crosses on buns with the White Frosting. Best served warm.

White Frosting Recipe Combine 1 cup sifted confectioners sugar, ½ tsp vanilla and 2 Tbsp. hot water. Mix until smooth.

A QUOTE

There is no evil to be faced that Christ does not face with us. There is no enemy that Christ has not already conquered. There is no cross to bear that Christ has not already borne for us, and does not now bear with us. And on the far side of every cross we find the newness of life in the Holy Spirit, that new life which will reach its fulfillment in the resurrection. This is our faith. This is our witness before the world. – St. John Paul II

A RECIPE

We plan to make these Easter egg cookie cups later this week. Looks festive and easy!

WHAT’S IN MY TAB BAR RIGHT NOW

A RECOMMENDATION

If you love beautiful editions of classic books, the Bluestocking Bookshelf is the website for you! You’ll find curated lists, along with the corresponding ISBNs, for so many collections. I want to read them all!

A MOMENT OF HAPPINESS

Two big moments so far this week: my daffodils finally bloomed and the “dudes” (the broilers) went out on pasture!

Oof, did I really miss another two months of Mother Culture? I seem to be unable to consistently invest in myself in this way! Thankfully, I’m no quitter and I’m going to try again in April. My five assignments for the month:

ASSIGNMENT #1: Complete a month-long nature phenology wheel.

ASSIGNMENT #2: Write a creative snail mail letter to a penpal.

ASSIGNMENT #3: Get back to regular Latin lessons on Duolingo.

ASSIGNMENT #4: Discover a new musical artist and listen to some songs.

ASSIGNMENT #5: Read a book written before 1950.

Happy Easter! We are an Easter people and Alleluia is our song! We are on Spring Break this week and I’m looking forward to a healthy mix of relaxation and getting caught up on life.

The weather outside is //

As I look outside my window // Spring has arrived! The grass seems to have turned green overnight. I’m anxious to get out in the garden.

As I look around the house // it could use a little spring cleaning, ha! We have been so busy with projects and the chickens and schooling and something has to give. I’m planning to get all caught up this week.

On this week’s to-do list //

– do the finishing touches on the chicken tractors
– drop off books at the ReStore – bake applesauce muffins – buy a few more pots for the garden

– list a bunch of clothes and books on ebay

Beginning // a new health “regimen” to strengthen my immune system and get me as healthy as I can for whatever may come my way. The plan is: no dairy (due to my intolerance), no sugar, daily walks for a dose of Vitamin D (on top of the gardening/homestead work that I’m already doing outside), less caffeine and way more water. We don’t eat a lot of processed food, but I want to get back in the routine of making most things from scratch. Nothing too crazy, but definitely beneficial for my health as a whole. (And give me a little wiggle room in my jeans too.)

Considering // going on a spending freeze after a very expensive few weeks. We’ve been frequent shoppers at Tractor Supply for the chicks as we figure out what and how much we need for them. We had to buy a new refrigerator after our old one refused to keep a constant temperature. And then we have scheduled tree removal on a ginormous dead poplar (that has been dropping huge branches at random and I’m terrified will hit one of the kids) and one that is leaning precariously over the road. Yeesh…money’s just flying away at this point.

Currently reading // After a month of a bunch of “meh” reads, I feel like I’m in a little slump!

Fiction: Sawbones by Melissa Lenhardt // unless something drastic happens, this will probably be another 2-star read
Non-Fiction: All the President’s Men by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward // this is about the Watergate scandal and despite the barrage of names that are hard to keep straight, really interesting so far
Religious: Diaries of the Chinese Martyrs // going back to this one since I finished my Lent book

On the menu this week //
Monday: leftovers from Easter
Tuesday: sheet pan roasted chicken with veggies and rice
Wednesday: D’s famous homemade pizza
Thursday: chili and cornbread
Friday: creamy tomato tortellini soup and grilled cheese sandwiches

For Lent this year, our family gave up screens. I hate to blame everything on the “‘rona”, but fewer places to go and endless news updates had us all falling into some poor habits the past year. We slowly became passive consumers, spending far too much time staring at glowing boxes and not nearly enough time breathing fresh air and creating something new. Lent seemed like the perfect time to reset our priorities and help us make intentional goals for its use in the future. It was hard (no screen to babysit a whirlwind preschooler while I tried to make dinner!) but it was also so, so fruitful. Easter is just around the corner, so I thought I would write down some of the beautiful things I’ve noticed in our home during these 40 days.

morning calm as the kids trickle out of bed, one by one seeing my daughter reading chapter books independently! drum and guitar music throughout the house the way the little ones want M to teach them how to play guitar too! paint by sticker and extreme dot-to-dot books watching one of my boys squat a new personal record in our home gym the noise of six kids playing, creating, sometimes arguing, laughing… train tracks and block towers all over the living room books read in record time big brother “cooking class” for some of the younger ones (they made pancakes!) long walks/runs with Lucy laughing until we cry at old home videos hours of fun on the trampoline, even in the freezing cold middle of the day bathtime…because why not? artwork made by proud artists taped on walls and the refrigerator sibling belly laughs from some inside joke I wouldn’t understand watching little baby chick antics working together on homestead projects and chores Lego creations everywhere

after dinner dance parties