Suzette Thib

Eight in the home. Five pets. We clean every day, something or the other and I try to declutter/ pare down an area every weekend or the evening if I power through!

Thank you for the many ideas! This is so wonderful.
My neighbor is hugely into processing foods so I shared half with them. Kept 10lbs to experiment with. Have to get some more smoked sausage and then I will update on methods that worked. I will try the baking soda first. Our kitchen does not have room for me to add another pot at this time, but I will keep my eyes peeled during thrift store runs. In the meantime I will go through kitchen cabinets in hopes of clearing space for a classic pressure cooker.

Tereza Okava wrote:

tel jetson wrote:
I do want to briefly mention that there are still a number of places in the world where a college degree is either free or nearly so. ... if one of those places appeals, immigration might be an option.

Funny enough, that is exactly what we did! moved to a place that has free federal universities with top-flight science and engineering, if you can pass the entry exam.

I liked my college experience in the US, but I can't imagine having paid full price for it (luckily I received many scholarships and fellowships, along with work study and jobs on the side-- and back then it was relatively cheap!! I shudder to think about what it costs today).
Even with an almost-free ride, I graduated with 20K USD in debt (gotta eat something and sleep somewhere even if school is free...). Thankfully I was able to pay it off with my first job, but I know talking to my peers that I was very, very lucky to owe "only" that.
I really didn't want that for my daughter. It was a big gamble, since it's hard to tell what a kid will want to study, but it was a big factor when we decided where we wanted to live long-term. Not a choice for everyone, but something I've never regretted.

Wow! What a thoughtful decision as a parent. That is really beautiful and really neat to hear you have not regretted it. Thank you for sharing.

I have tried a 24 hour soak with a water change at the 12 hr mark. I had also tried to long 12 hr soak plus "blanching" them with boiling water at the end, and then putting them to boil as usual. I have also tried a 12 hour soak and then normal boiling, cool to room temp and add water and boil again. I will try to do the soak with the baking soda. I believe I tried that one of the times, but it is worth it again. We Cajuns love our red beans and rice!

So far I do not have a insta-pot. We are in an old home (1940s) and last time I used my insta-pot, I blew a fuse and fried the insta-pot insta-ly HAHA

Edit to say: I just cook them water no seasoning. I only season once they are finished. In my above attempts, the pots of beans never passed the 7-bean test but it was time to eat so I seasoned, simmered and served.

Hello!

Our pantry has a huge bag of dry red kidney beans that will not cook. I have tried many methods of soaking and prepping and even still they are just terribly unpalatable by serving time.We are looking at probably about 20lbs remaining (of 25lbs). Compost? Garbage? Plant as a kill crop? What to do?

Erin Cross wrote:Thought I’d share some pics from two years ago when I claimed the whole backyard for growing. Looking back, I’m actually surprised how fast the fruit trees have grown in just two years. But here are the pretty pics. You can do a lot in a small space. The first three pics are from April 2023, the last is from May 2023.

This is incredible! Is that possibly May 2025? We are looking at 1/3 acre and this gives me lots and lots of hope!

Not so long ago I was in an HOA and turned my 1/3 acre into a food forest and found out that someone* just before closing, mowed down all of it, sparing two of the  three apples trees in the  backyard. It's so strange to me. There wasn't a chigger or tick problem - it was simply just to do it.

*a trespasser

How has the homestead developed over the years? Do you like the earth-sheltered greenhouse?

Hey Annette! How did the straw bales go?

The only time I had compost that didn't take 6-9 months, my son turned it about twice a week for us and within three months it was usable! That was very very nice. I have gotten into the habit of adding worn out jeans, because the jean holds moisture very well during dry spells and it breaks down very well.