11/30/2009

Black Friday Shopping Anyone?


While the kids were fast asleep early Friday morning the Mr. was able to sneak out to get a digital camera for $50 at Best Buy for our daughter. After the girls were awake and helping put up the Christmas decorations I made my way to JoAnn's for some great deals on fabric and patterns. I was able to get a great deal on fabric by buying the remnants of the fabric on special. All remnants are 50% off the current price. Which make for a real steal!

Later in the day I finished my Christmas shopping at Target and online. I didn't get any real good deals at either, but I stayed within my budget and bought stuff on the kid's Christmas wish list. The only Christmas gifts left are the ones I have to make. I have everything but the time now!

Did any of you go shopping on Friday? What kind of deals did you get? I would love hear about your Black Friday! Feel free to either answer in the comments add a blog post link below.

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11/24/2009

Breakin' The Law: Raw Milk


Raw milk sales in 28 of the 50 states are perfectly legal. Michigan, is not one of those states. In fact they have some of the most strict laws here in the Great Lakes state. Since 1948, raw milk sales have been illegal here. What's not illegal is consuming raw milk from your own cow.

So since we won't be adding a cow to our long list of pets here on the one acre in town ranch, how is it that we can consume raw milk legally?

A good question. And the answer varies from state to state.


Why raw milk? Why now? Why not?

Pasteurization not only kills off the good bacteria that is naturally in milk, but also kills off the enzymes that some of us need to process lactose. Due to my intolerance, we've been buying two kinds of milk for some time - organic and lactose-free. While the lactose-free milk does not wreak havoc on my digestive system, it is kinda like consuming white sludge. Result? I could never drink it straight. Cereal and cooking only really. I could only drink a glass of it if I laced it with chocolate syrup.

So we're keeping two kinds of expensive milk - both of which can be difficult to get a the grocery store. The solution? Raw milk. Beautiful, delicious, raw milk.

For about 70% of those who are lactose intolerant, switching to raw milk will solve your issue. It did for me. We discovered this after trying some raw milk from a friend. After that, and discovering how amazing it tastes, it was only a matter of time before we signed up. Now, we are the proud owners of half a cow share - allowing us one and a half gallons per week.

But wait - What's a cow share?

Imagine buying stock in a company. By doing that, you now own part of that company. Usually, that amounts to about 0.000006% of ownership. Our half-share gives us, by my estimates, gives us 3.4% ownership, by which we have rights to 3.4% of the milk which comes out to one and a half gallons per week. Now we still have to pay for the milking of the cow. The cost is comparable to the price of organic milk at the grocery store, except here, all of the profit goes to the farmer - not a bunch of middle men. I like that.

The best part? Everything you can do with it.

Now raw milk doesn't come to you like that processed stuff from the grocery store - its' raw. Not pasteurized. Not homogenized. And that's just the way we like it. For one, you can decide how you like the milk - skim, 2%-ish, whole - as the cream is resting on top. That's right, you can skim it to your taste, and best of all, have the cream to use elsewhere. More on that later. Also, it's all intact, just the way God intended it to be. Enzymes, good bacteria... in their absence, bad stuff comes in. Leave a bit out in a cup for a few days along with a cup of it's processed counterpart. The difference is amazing.

By now, you've figured out how important quality food is to us. Raw milk is no exception. We subscribe to the theory that if you have the best ingredients, you don't need all the fancy recipes and seasonings. The simplest dish will stand on it's own. Here is a few things we have made with our raw milk that have absolutely rocked our world.

Butter: As much as the Mrs. would enjoy it, we aren't doing this with an old fashioned butter turn like her Grandmother's. No, no, you can make this in you food processor or blender. Just add cream, and switch it on. After about 5 minutes, it will 'pop' and solidify, taking on that distinctive yellow color (yes, real butter is quite yellow). And the taste? It tastes like butter is supposed to taste and that spreadable garbage in the tubs will never fully emulate. I'll take it a step further. Take that fresh butter and stir in a bit of sea salt for the only spread you'll ever need for crackers or bread.

Ice cream:
You've seen the Mrs.'s blueberry ice cream (which was amazing), but we didn't stop there. At a gathering with friends, we brought our ice cream maker and ingredients. Cream (from raw milk), raw milk, sugar, and eggs (from our hens). We made it on site and served it up fresh with our peach syrup. Our friends devoured every last drop. Now, back to our theory from above - notice what was missing from the ingredient list? Flavoring! No vanilla, no chocolate, no fruit, no nuts. It is actually the Ben and Jerry's Cream Base recipe which is intentionally unflavored. No one noticed.

Whipped Cream: Add a little sugar and vanilla and whip until stiff peaks. This stuff is thick and rich.

Yogurt: Some friends of ours get raw milk solely for making yogurt. There are several ways to do this.

Oh, and it's pretty awesome just to drink too.


So, just how deliciously illegal is raw milk? Very.

Ever tried it? Ever wanted to?


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11/22/2009

Auntie Em's Holiday GiveAway

I, Mrs. Not the Jet Set, am actually Auntie Em. Yes, I know, I didn't come out and tell you yet, I also really didn't hide it either. I have never really wanted to make a big deal out of my Etsy shop because that is not the point of this blog. However, I did want to offer our lovely blog readers an opportunity to win a gift certificate for my shop as well as offer free shipping to all our loyal readers as well.

Here are some of the wonderful items that are in my shop this Christmas season. I also do custom orders so feel free to ask!



What can you win? A $20 gift certificate to my shop! Even if you don't win the gift certificate you are all still winners in my book. Everyone can use the code:NTJS to receive free shipping between now and December 6th.


The Rules:
There are several ways to enter to win the giveaway. Make sure to leave a separate comment for each entry. You can enter six ways, but use each method once per giveaway. So you can have up to a total of six entries per giveaway.

  1. Tell me what your favorite item is in Auntie Em's House.
  2. Heart the Etsy shop.
  3. Add us to your blogroll and let us know in the comments.
  4. Follow us on Twitter, RSS feed, or email subscriber.
  5. Blog about the giveaway with a link back to the giveaway post in the comments.
  6. Link to one of your posts in the Two Cent Tuesday MckLinky.

This contest ends on November 30th at 5:00pm EST. The randomly selected winner will be announced on Tuesday December 1st. An email will be sent to the winner. They will have 48 hours to provide a valid mailing address.

Thanks for checking out our giveaway!



This giveaway was sponsored by Auntie Em's House. If you would like to sponsor a giveaway we are open to sponsors. Please email us for details.

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11/21/2009

Bagnesia Winner



We have a winner! Comment number six by Brandilynn was the winner of the Bagnesia reminder kit.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the giveaway. Stay tuned for another giveaway starting very, very soon!

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11/18/2009

The Creative Family


Have you heard of Amanda Blake Soule? I had never heard of her until about three months ago. That was when I had read a book review for her last book on another blog. Which led me to Amanda's blog (Soule Mama). The more I read it the more I want to read her books her two books.

creative family

The Creative Family-
The Creative Family is her first book which was published in 2008. I was able to obt
ain it through the library's inter-library loan program. I'm so glad that I took the extra effort to request this book. I love it!

I have learned more from this mom then I could have expected. Yes, I did find a some great project ideas that I would like to try, but it was more then that. As actually read the book, I learned that the book was more then projects. It was about fostering an environment of creativity in your home while maintaining a simple home. Not letting the clutter of a creative family take over.

My favorite take away from this book was the idea of a collaborative craft show. The idea is really three fold. One, you remove the clutter of your child's art work from your home. Two, you build their confidence by having others look at their art. Three, your child (and the other kids) have the chance to give their own earned money to a good cause. I'm sure that we will be pulling this together with other families soon.

This book is so good that I'm actually going to save up my pennies to buy my own copy! That says a lot about a book.

Have you read this book? What did you think?


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11/17/2009

Two Cent Tuesday

Welcome to Two Cents Tuesday!

Two Cents from the Mrs.
"Christmas is right around the corner. Revisit last years Thrifty Christmas series for some great ideas on celebrating the holiday on a budget "

Now it's your turn!



You can link to posts that are related to living on a "Not the Jet Set" budget. This could be anything from ideas to save money around the house or garden, DIY home repair, using cash envelopes, to planning your low cost vacation. We do ask that you refrain from linking to posts about weekly store deals, contests, paid ads and the like.



I look forward to reading everyone's ideas on ways to live on a "Not the Jet Set" budget. Please take the time to view other blogger's posts as well as add our button or link back to this post.



















Your Two Cents:

Make sure to also use this as a giveaway entry in our current giveaway!

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11/16/2009

Simple Times

Do you sometimes wish for a simpler time? A time when life was not full of distractions? No cell phones constantly ringing, tons of emails to check, TV, 24 hour news, tons of school activities.

I know I do! Sometimes I just wish I could go back to a time when life was centered around a self sufficiency and survival. Just raising my family on a small family farm. The kids would only go to school a few months of the year during the winter when they were not needed in the field. Most of our time was spent together with none of the distractions.

Recently I got a taste of what that would be like.

My grandmother has an old fashion glass butter churn. It was handed down to my 82 year old grandmother by her uncle. She was not sure how old it was but thought that he might have been given it used himself. She used it for many years when they had their own dairy cows after WWII. We asked her if we would bring a half gallon of fresh raw cream if she would let us use it. Of course she agreed.


When we got to her house she had it all cleaned up and ready to go. It was amazing that after setting for 40 years it worked so well. We all had a blast sitting around the kitchen table visiting, listening to old family stories, and taking turns churning the butter. Grandma said she never remembered it being this much fun back when she "had" to do the butter chore, but that day with her grand kids and great grand kids she enjoyed it. There was no distractions of life that day, no tv, no cell phones work on the farm, no running to do.


It was all so simple that day.


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11/13/2009

Holy Simplicity

I just finished reading the book Holy Simplicity this week. I thought that this 86 page book on Simplicity would be an easy and fast read. Boy was I wrong! I don't think that it has ever taken me so long to read a book honestly.

Now don't get me wrong, I learned a lot from the book, but it is not a simple read. To truly get the most out of the book I felt like I could only read a few lines and then reflect and study those lines. I do feel like I learned more about spiritual simplicity from this book so it was a worth while read.

Here are some of the many interesting things that I learned from this book.

  • The simple soul has one goal. That is to please God.
  • The only motivating force you should have is to love.
  • "A soul of holiness does not strive for that holiness. It strives to love, to love wholeheartedly; there lies the difference."
There was so much more that I learned. I think that in maybe a year I'll pick this book back up and read it again. I'm sure I'll learn even more the second time around. This book focuses on learning holy simplicity from the Saints and Scripture. However, even if you are not Catholic (or even Christian), you can still learn a lot about how to simplify our complex inter-souls. It never hurts to work on bringing internal peace to our bodies.



This review was written as part of the Catholic book Reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Holy Simplicity.

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11/11/2009

Bagnesia Product Review/ Giveaway

How often do you forget your reuseable bags in the car when you go to the store? We have talked about this topic before. It is frustrating and not the easiest thing to remember in our busy fast paced lives.

I was lucky enough to get the chance to try out the Bagnesia Reusable Bag Reminder Kit. I have to admit that I was a little skeptical about it's effectiveness going into the "trial". Would I really notice the reminders or would they get tuned out after a couple days? Three weeks later I can tell you that they really did work! I still notice the door tag and the steering wheel wrap. If you or your loved one has problems remembering your bags this product might just be your cure for Bagnesia!


The Bagnesia Reminder Kit contains simple, effective products that work together so
you always remember to take your reusable bags into the store. The kit includes an eye-
catching door hanger imprinted with the words “grab your bags” reminding you to put your bags in the car. They have developed a neoprene wrap that attaches to your steering wheel at eye level labeled with the words “grab your bags”
prompting you to take your bags with you as you exit your car. Bagnesia’s stylish compact bag unrolls from the size of a cell phone and expands to hold the equivalent of 3 plastic bags
worth of groceries. It is both durable and washable. A convenient clip included in the kit
allows the user to slip the bag onto a key chain or belt loop or clip several bags together. All of
the products included in the kit are packaged inside a reusable drawstring pouch that can
double as a handy place to corral several compact bags, keys, coupons or a cell phone.

What a deal for only $14.99! And they offer international shipping too. This makes a great gift for your earth friendly friends.

Would you like to win a free reminder kit? If so then check out the rules below.

The Rules:
There are several ways to enter to win the giveaway. Make sure to leave a separate comment for each entry. You can enter six ways, but use each method once per giveaway. So you can have up to a total of six entries per giveaway.

  1. Tell us something new you learned from Bagnesia's website.
  2. Stumble two of our posts, then comment saying which posts, and your stumble username.
  3. Add us to your blogroll and let us know in the comments.
  4. Follow us on Twitter, RSS feed, or email subscriber.
  5. Blog about the giveaway with a link back to the giveaway post in the comments.
  6. Link to one of your posts in the Two Cent Tuesday MckLinky.

This contest ends on November 20th at 5:00pm EST. The randomly selected winner will be announced on Monday November 23rd. An email will be sent to the winner. They will have 48 hours to provide a valid mailing address. Bagnesia does offer international shipping so everyone is welcome to enter.

Thanks for checking out our giveaway!

This giveaway was sponsored by Bagnesia. If you would like to sponsor a giveaway we are open to sponsors. Please email us for details.

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11/10/2009

Two Cent Tuesday


Welcome to Two Cents Tuesday!


Two Cents from the Mrs.
"When trying to save money don't always think big. Think small, everyday small. It's the little things in life that add up to large savings. "

Now it's your turn!



You can link to posts that are related to living on a "Not the Jet Set" budget. This could be anything from ideas to save money around the house or garden, DIY home repair, using cash envelopes, to planning your low cost vacation. We do ask that you refrain from linking to posts about weekly store deals, contests, paid ads and the like.

I look forward to reading everyone's ideas on ways to live on a "Not the Jet Set" budget. Please take the time to view other blogger's posts as well as add our button or link back to this post.



















Your Two Cents:






An extra bonus! If you add your link this week and/or next week you will earn extra entries into the new giveaway starting tomorrow. Make sure to come back tomorrow to enter the contest.

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11/09/2009

Craft Show Results


I spent weeks working on projects and days fretting about the success or failure of my first craft show. Did the hours of table display prep work pay off?

Financially, no, educationally speaking yes. There was three other large sized art and craft shows going on that same day in our town. So there was lots of competition and the fair I was in was most peoples last stop. I had lots of people come through who talked about what great ideas I have. But didn't buy. Some of them I could tell were shopping for ideas while others were looking for steals. I also didn't think that it helped that a little old grandma was set up across from me who was basically giving her sewing projects away for free. She had prices like one dollar for a burp cloth, 3 dollars for crayon roll and $10 for a good sized flannel quilt. I'm not even sure how she could make money even though she was selling a lot.

All this info helped me to decide that my time is more valuable then what people are willing to pay at craft shows. I'm not going to spend $12 on materials and charge a total of $15 making my three hours of work worth nothing after paying for slot, business cards, price tags and other associated business expenses. I don't think that I'll try it again. Instead I'll stick to my Etsy shop and making gifts for friends. Even though everyone says I should sell my stuff, no one is really willing to pay for it (at least in this economy).

Hopefully the items will sell in the Etsy shop. Keep an eye our for a lot of new fun listings soon!

Have you tried an art and craft show this year? How did it go for you? I'd love to hear!

Don't forget that tomorrow is Two Cent Tuesday! Please join us by linking back to one of your posts from the past week or two.

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11/05/2009

The Missing Mrs.

It feels like I have been missing for two months but it really has only been two weeks. Things will get back to (our) normal after this Saturday's craft show. It has been a very busy couple weeks finishing projects for the show, working on potty training, an have kids at home because of school closers due to flu outbreaks. Anything but normal!

Starting next week you can look forward to some great posts, reviews and giveaways! I don't want to give to much info away but I think that you will enjoy having me back.

Until then have a great weekend!

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11/03/2009

Two Cents Tuesday

Welcome to Two Cents Tuesday!

Two Cents from the Mr.
"There's lots of ways to save as winter draws near. For example, the Mrs. just finished putting up apples for the year. She's also done strawberries, blueberries, peaches, peppers, tomatoes, pumpkin, and butternut squash! We're ready for a long winter."

Now it's your turn!



You can link to posts that are related to living on a "Not the Jet Set" budget. This could be anything from ideas to save money around the house or garden, DIY home repair, using cash envelopes, to planning your low cost vacation. We do ask that you refrain from linking to posts about weekly store deals, contests, paid ads and the like.

I look forward to reading everyone's ideas on ways to live on a "Not the Jet Set" budget. Please take the time to view other blogger's posts as well as add our button or link back to this post.



















Your Two Cents:







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Guest Post at Debt Free Adventure

Be sure to tune in later for our Two Cents Tuesday post (and leave your two cents, too!), but first I want to direct your attention to a guest post we wrote for Matt at Debt Free Adventure on Tithing Our Time. It's a new concept that we've been considering and finally pulled together.

So head on over to Matt's site and and give it a read. Be sure to leave a comment, as we'd love to hear your thoughts. While you're there check out some of Matt's posts and don't forget to subscribe.

Here are some posts not to miss at DFA:

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