Heidi Schweitzer

Yessss to poop shelves and pdz! My system as well! Works so nice and keeps all the straw on the floor clean. The girls will scratch through and mix up whatever poop might land on the floor so I just add a little more every few weeks. Also use pdz under the straw as a base and in nest boxes (with pine and cedar shavings & straw on top.   We also use pdz in our self built compost toilet in our skoolie! (With saw dust from my husband’s carpentry job)
Also If you have a chemical free farmer nearby ask if they can sell you chem free straw! I found out our Amish chemical free feed connection grows and mills all his own ingredients and his own straw for his animals. Just ask around for organic/chem free options!

Hello!
I’ve tried to ad ACV from apple scraps to my homesteading cache the last few seasons and it’s been so- so. I have 2 half gallon ball jars wrapped and brewing on the counter as we speak. The last few days have been very fragrant in my kitchen as the apples start to ferment and break down! I’m on about week 2 I think. Hoping for a good batch this time. Here’s the recipe I’m using.
2 TBSP Sugar per 2 Cups of water over apples. Do that till covered then weigh down with a smaller jar, cheese cloth the top. Here you go: https://wellnessmama.com/recipes/apple-cider-vinegar/#wprm-recipe-container-222153
I also add a few splashes of the acv (with the mother) that is currently almost empty to the new batches to help get it going.

Also with that recipe, I’ve found not being overly picky about rise time- meaning forgetting it for hours longer than it calls for or shaping and pan rising overnight makes for a beautiful tall loaf.

Here’s the recipe and the one that finally clicked for me. I love this woman and her recipes!
https://venisonfordinner.com/kates-soft-sourdough-master-recipe/#recipe

This is great! I’m always up for talking starter and bread so I’ll share what’s worked for me- even though getting a solid starter going took a looong time.
Somehow after a year of on again off again bubbles, I got a goodie by trial and error. The trick was feeding it with organic wheat flour from the grocery.
It goes crazy over it! I’m able to keep about 8-16 oz in my frig for a weekly loaf and a pizza crust. I don’t do discard anymore since I use a 1/2 cup each time I bake. I’ll take it out, feed it, let it sit (or not) overnight then start the baking process in the morning, then feed it a few times over a day or two to build it back up, then back in the frig it goes. It rises and bubbles then goes back to sleep in the frig. I bake with organic white flour then but my bread has the yummy flavor and texture of a little wheat from the starter. I am in love with the sandwich loaf recipe I have! I slather the crust with butter while it’s warm and the crust stays nice & soft and chewable. So good!

Hi!
I’m a laundry lover… really. I enjoy cleaning our clothes as naturally as possible and hang everything outside year round. We don’t own a dryer since we live in a skoolie but we do have the sweetest little washer that fits under the counter. My all time favorite clothes line is the spool of the “green stuff”. I guess it’s heavy duty vinyl over wire. Never had one break in all my years. I use the toggles to connect to a hook end to tighten it good. Nothing better than clothes blowing in the sunshine on pin straight lines! Cause you know- nothing else will do!

The summer season flew by but I’m thankful for a productive harvest from a little garden in a rocky pasture, new young hens laying beautiful eggs, my newly added cutting garden for bouquets! Looking forward to Fall and the woodstove and crisp days & nights.🤗

Made this a few weeks ago! Love it and have missed my small ponds of the past before bus life…
So peaceful and easy to do. I will take it with me if and when we change locations!
Happy Spring!

I finally made another little pond a few weeks ago! I had one similar before bus life and also a small inground pond before that. I’ve been missing the comforts of past gardens so this year I just decided not to wait anymore. I’ll take it all with me if we change locations someday! It has added so much peace and joy to our little spot… I don’t know why I waited so long! So easy to put together!
Happy Spring!
(I’ll post a few pix separately if I can figure it out…)

Esther ter Reehorst wrote:

Heidi Schweitzer wrote:
Lovely! How do you make the wax stamps?

You melt wax (soy, bees or rapeseed), add some oils for a nice smell, pour it in some sort of mall (I actually used silicone cupcake malls).

When the wax is still molten but starts to solidify, you add the decoration. I used pieces of dried citrus, dried flowers and those little cones you get from a tree that I don't know the English name of .

Thank you so much! I can’t wait to try them and always have beeswax onhand!

Then you hope it turns out nice. I actually used a blow dryer (that I had to borrow 😂) to sometimes melt the top a little extra so I could make some adjustments.

I used orange, clove, cinnamon and pine oil to give them that nice and wintery smell.

That's all!

If you try it, be sure to let me know how it turns out!