My Own Front Porch

I have been reading!  I have so many books to read and websites to peruse that I sometimes wonder if I’m ever going to find time to try out all the new stuff I’m learning!  lol!  Here’s a list of some of the books I’m reading currently:

• Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon
• Real Food: What to Eat and Why by Nina Planck
• The Devil in the Milk by Keith Woodford
• In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan
• Omnivore’s Dilemma (also) by Michael Pollan

Some websites I’ve been bookmarking (because I keep coming back over and over again): Read the rest of this entry »

Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon

Where to begin?  We have a lot going on in our household these days…plenty of things to share with you.  I want to tell you about a book that I’m reading (life changing stuff); it’s called Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon.  I should probably tell you that I’m not too quick these days to jump on anyone’s band wagon, but I AM a very “common sense” person.  When I ordered this book, I knew in my heart that it would have answers to questions I didn’t even know how to voice.  I was right!  We’re already reaping rewards of some changes that we’ve made in the way we eat.

I’ll be very up front with you here, it’s a lot to digest (no pun intended), but it makes such sense and addresses many of our family’s issues.  As hard as it is for me to have to wait, there are some things about this way of eating that I can’t put into place just yet.  Some tools are out of reach for us at the moment, but we’ll do what we can with what we have.  Honestly, I was feeling a bit overwhelmed, until…

Just when I think I’m in this thing all by myself and there’s no one around to teach me about how to prepare the foods that I’m convinced will return my family back to health and wellness, someone comes along and offers an e-course!  Wardeh Harmon is offering her experience and expertise in this area and I am so grateful.  Check out the link below if you’d like to find out more.

There’s some new wallpapers available over at Growing Home!  Here’s a preview.  Once you get there, scroll down and choose your monitor dimensions.  Right click and download as desktop background.  (Ctrl + click on a mac)  It’s that simple!

…and here’s a funny video my husband made while he was out ice fishing with a friend today.  Enjoy!

Pete, Tammy, Julia, Becky, Brayton & Hannah Mcconnell wishing you a Merry CHRISTmas!

Merry Christmas all!  Just wanted to take a moment and send some Christmas greetings your way from our family.

Considering that I didn’t get ANY Christmas cards out last year, I was pleased as punch to get some letters done last week.  Each complete with a photo…we had to take an intermission during our photo shoot!  lol!  It was fun though.  Read the rest of this entry »

Hannah:  “If you want to be happy, just say ‘boodle oodle oop‘.  You’ll be instantly happier!  Try it!  You’ll see.”

This one statement today has (thankfully) snapped me out of the sadness of my grandmother’s passing.  I’ve realized that she wouldn’t want us all to be miserable because she died.  She was 87, had a full life and was ready to move on.  I am grateful for that and will fondly remember her always.

Hannah, Julia, Brayton, Becky, Gracey (sleeping in the chair), Stephanie & Kent

I have so much to be grateful for.  I started dropping hints a few weeks ago to my adult daughter (who lives 5 hours away) that I was missing her.  She surprised us with a visit this past weekend.  Having all my kids together in one spot again really makes me thankful for all the things I DO have…and gives me new resolve to make the most of every minute with them.

You don’t need a life-altering event to give your resolve a jump-start.  Just say ‘boodle oodle oop‘.  Try it, you’ll see. 

Winter CAN be beautiful!

I’m seasonally dysfunctional.  My likes and dislikes are trading places and I’m not sure what to do!  lol!  Summer was my favorite season in Upstate NY.  Now I live in Nebraska (have for almost five years) and the seasons are different here.  Winter brings lots of cold wind and very little snow.  I don’t like winter, but try to make the best of it.   We take the kids sledding at Brickyard Park and keep the house warm all winter by baking up special “comfort foods” and hot cocoa. Photos like this one on the right make winter a tad more bearable. 

Summer is too hot for too long.  I swore I would never complain about the heat after living in the cold for most of my life.  I should never swear anyway. Read the rest of this entry »

When you’ve had a bad day, under NO circumstances should you get in your car and go to Walmart!  If you manage to get into your vehicle (no one stops you) and start driving… DON’T EVER turn on the radio! They might play a song that makes you blat like a baby and you have to sit there for quite some time to pull yourself together before you can go inside. Read the rest of this entry »

Whew!  It’s been a very long day!  Admittedly, I had more downs than ups today and it was very hard to keep smiling.  Although I don’t like having days like this, I can see where they might fit into a bigger plan.   So, I’ll try to learn from my situations and move on…hopefully to bigger and better things.

Sipping coffee and perusing the web for some info on Orphan Trains (homeschool fodder), I thought it might be fun to dabble in a little genealogical research.  I punched in my maiden name and was instantly stunned by the results.  Staring back from the page was a woman I hadn’t seen in about 15 years.  She stood up for me at my wedding and I’m embarrassed to tell you…I haven’t seen or heard much from her since then.  Yes, we are related…distant cousins.  Her last name was the same as mine, before I got married.  The article in question was…her obituary!  Worse yet, it was dated for the end of August (almost 2 months ago)! Read the rest of this entry »

Warm chocolate chip cookies

I had apple bread on my mind this morning when I woke up.  Even though the first snow has come and gone, and the furnace has been shut off because of the recent “warm-up”, I’m still thinking fall!  So I set out (online) to find the perfect recipe for apple bread!

My girls had other comfort food in mind…chocolate chip cookies!  We use this recipe so much that it’s been printed out and posted on the side of the fridge, so I was quasi-unaware of their undertaking.  I think every time we make these, they get better!  Try ‘em out yourself…here’s my recipe.

Apple bread?  Found a recipe…will see how that goes later this week maybe.  Hey…it’ll still be fall. 

Budgeting and meal planning; they go together, don’t they?  I’ve been buying my own groceries for more than 25 years.  You’d think by now I’d have this down to a science.  Well…there’s always something new to learn…go figure! Read the rest of this entry »