Darlene

Jeeps, I have 3 varying sized freezers in the garage and just bought a 4th one last week, plus the refrig/freezer in the home. My experience, and from all the research I've done over the years, is that the main difference between an upright and a chest freezer is: A chest freezer keeps a constant temperature which keeps the foods inside at a constant deep frozen temp. Ice will eventually build up on the sides as a reaction to the opening of the lid over a long period of time. Every few years (4-5 or more) you can manually defrost the freezers and start again. The downsize is that unless you organize things in the chest freezer, it can sometimes be work digging down through the layers of frozen food An upright fluctuates its temperature with increased air flow like the standard freezers on our refrig/freezers in the home, which stops any ice forming on the side of the freezer. The downside is that the foods inside are exposed to these fluxations of temperatures and air flow and the shelf life of the foods inside are statistically not as long...even though anything frozen extends shelf lives. The upside is that it's easier to organize things because the unit is built vertical vs the horizontal chest freezers. I've always had chest freezers. Last year I bought an upright with the thought of cycling meats out of the chest freezers into the upright for ease of organization. But, the chest freezers are the units I count on for preserving these foods longer. Last week, I bought another large chest freezer because my other chest freezer is starting to fail and I don't want to be in a position where I have a need with that and no ability to fulfill that need. I have to take another steer in for processing on Thursday so I'm trying to time things between the 2.

I wanted to make an announcement here on the Sunporch to let everyone know that Dee has agreed to share something that I have fallen absolutely in love with. Down in the Country Homesteading forum, and pinned at the top, you will see a new thread Dee has created called, "Dee's Country Journey". In this thread she will periodically post 2-3 minute videos, sharing memories she has from various things over the years on her farm. It is a glimpse into someone's journey that has really captivated my heart. Please take a minute and check out this out! Here's a clickable link that will take you straight there!: Dee's Country Journey

I am so ecstatic that you are sharing these with us Dee. I have absolutely loved watching them and I think others will too. There's nothing like hearing the tales from someone who has 'been there, done that'! ((((Dee))))

Yayyyyyyyyy! You're back!!!!!!!!! I was about to drive to your house and get on your computer and figure out one way or another how to get back into MrsS. I'm so happy you finally made it through! Yay God! lol

Oh my gosh! You finally were able to get back in! I am so happy!!!!!!!!!

Inquiring minds wanna know. More specifically, *I* wanna know because it's now 4:28pm and I'm tired from the long day so far and don't feel like posting at the moment. But, I tend to have lots of things to say in the morning after my first couple cups of coffee. So what kind of poster are you?

Yeah, they do that over in Asia and has always resembled to me, an octopus lol

I don't blame ya. I thought it would be far more complicated but it is actually very intuitive and was a constant surprise where I'd think, "that makes sense!". Now I have a hard time remembering the PC way of doing things.

Awesome E, thanks!

To see if I can crack the code of making bread with fresh ground flour from the whole grain, into a lighter, less denser, loaf of bread. I've begun some researching and one suggestion I've found so far that confirmed a thought I had, is to sift home ground flour through a fine mesh strainer (I would think not TOO fine of a mesh), and to take the bran and add it to some hot water to soften up. It appears that you would take the sifted flour and use that to begin making the bread, with the hot soaked bran strained and added later to the bread. It appears that the bran and other natural parts of the wheat kernel tend to cut the strands of gluten that develop during the rise. Anyway, I'm going to try this experiment. Who knows when I'll be able to start doing it...I'm currently making a fresh batch of sourdough starter and will probably try once that's matured enough and is healthy. The reason I'm posting this experiment that hasn't started yet lol is just in case anyone has any experience, suggestions, ideas or tips. IF things were to get that bad, I'd like to have figured out some of these things before hand, because I would imagine my brain would be full to the brim with immediate, pressing concerns at that time.

I looked it up Mother. 5lbs of zucchini nets about 1/2c of flour after it is dried.

I have used bread machines for years, and they really are nice for just dumping in the ingredients and letting it handle all the kneading and everything that goes with it. I had a sourdough starter that I had sitting in the fridge for a year and a half and kind of tried to get it going again but got impatient and am starting again from scratch. I definitely want to spend some time working with the freshly ground whole grain flours because I've always been leary of depending on the store bought flours.

That's an understatement. While I have the gardening bug and have visions of a variety of beautiful vegetables growing in my garden, the thought of preserving it all makes me groan lol. I've already alerted my youngest daughter that THIS year we will be doing even more than we usually do, with a reminder of how nice it has been for her to come grocery shop at mom's house throughout the year. That usually helps them to remember that there really is a good reason to put all that work in.

A couple of years ago, I gave up on PC's and switched over to Mac's. For me, with the type of work I do, it was the best thing I ever did.

I, too, fell into a type of preppers fatigue for a while. Still had all the preps, and couldn't stop buying extra of 'whatever' from to time to time, but went into overdrive when Covid first hit and it all came back and was a reminder of the value and wisdom of many types of preps. Not only that, but all the price increases I've watched over the last couple of years, definitely made me shore up some areas I hadn't looked at for a long time. From the beginning when the war started in the Ukraine, I just had this gut feeling that I needed to splurge on some key areas and continue to bring supplies in on the smaller areas for as long as we can. Regardless, we're so happy you're back and it goes without saying, if we can help in anyway, please let us know.

awwwwww you're so sweet Give your MIL a hug from us!

Beautiful! Love this song.

That is very beautiful TMC

Cows, sheep, chickens, bees and an idiot goat I tried many different animals and settled on those for various reasons. Oh, and an abundance of livestock guardian dogs. That's enough to keep me more than busy for sure.

I’ve often thought about you too!!! it’s a blessing to see you here again!

I never knew that Dee. That’s an awesome tip and one that I will definitely try on the next load!

Thank you for sharing Eliana. I'm a few hours north of you up here in the mountains. One of my daughters lives down in your area so I am quite familiar with it. It is beautiful to see the work the Lord is doing in your life through His Spirit. The "I will trust You (no matter what)" is a theme I've watched the Lord cement in many peoples lives over the past couple of years. The stories I could tell about my encounter with that T in the road where I had to make that same decision of whether I would/could, or not, are many. The rewards have been enormous, even if it sometimes took time and I'm learning that the letting go is the only thing that enables Him to do all He desires to do. Shalom.

Cat, Cat, Cat... She is the epitome of what MrsS is all about and we dearly, dearly, love her.

Curiosity is a good thing. It is sometimes a spark that will lead us through a door we would have otherwise never gone through. The load of responsibility you carry is heavy and I'm sure it often weighs heavy on your heart. Perhaps you came come to MrsS sometimes to lay those burdens down for a moment and share whatever you need to share. So many of us have carried heavy burdens too, and while the path we have taken might not be the same path as yours, it has been equally draining so we understand. We may not always have 'words of wisdom' to offer, but we can definitely listen and show that we care. You are one of the few that was here from the beginning, through all our ups and downs and I think the thing that you remember in spite of all she has been through, is that there still remains an honesty and genuineness at her core. I am praying for your mom, that the Lord's will be done, and that His peace that passes all understanding would fill not only her heart, but yours. We were never meant to walk this life on our own. Perhaps He can use MrsS to give you that 'cup of cold water' you, and all of us, sometimes need.

Many years ago, I started making lotions with lard and tallow. I gave some to my feed guy's wife and she was blown away and shared how her grandson commented to her one day as she held his hand... "Grandma, how come your hands aren't scratchy today?" She replied "because of the tallow lotion I use on them". I guess all the commercial products worked, but never really did work, whereas the lard and tallow lotions really DID heal and protected her skin. Most people would turn their nose up at a lotion made with those fats, but truth be known, they're superior in many ways.