Make your Own Caramel Mocha Coffee

I am guilty of liking the caramel mocha latte from McDonalds.....I know such a shame. It's not like I get it all the time, it's certainly a treat if we are out and about but I still like it.

This morning I decided to recreate my own, which is by far better than any McDonald's caramel mocha!

Here's how I did it.

Pour a cup of your favorite coffee (I used Dunkin Donuts Turbo Boost)...really like LOVE that stuff.
Add 2-3 Tablespoons of cream
1 tsp. cocoa powder
1/8 tsp. Watkins caramel extract. ( I use the watkins caramel extract in everything. Brownies, cookies, and baked oatmeal. Adds a unique and delectable flavor)

To view Watkins Caramel extract click the link here: Jr Watkins Caramel Extract 8 Oz.

Stir and Sip! It's that easy..... :) 

I enjoyed it with some Turtle pecan biscotti that my sweet man surprised me with last night. Ah-mazing!

Nonni's turtle pecan biscotti are so good, to purchase your own click here: Nonni's Turtle Pecan Biscotti, 6.88-Ounce Boxes (Pack of 6)

We started school back this week and it was certainly a sweet treat to begin my day. I so enjoy the books we are reading. We finished Little House in the Big woods and are now reading through Little House on the Prairie. Suprisngly I never read these when I was little, so I anticipate the turn of each page as much as the girls do.

Little House on the Prairie (Full Color)

The happenings that Laura and Mary experience are certainly different from the things we deal with today. I was reminded today what a Technology age our children live in when Heidi made me laugh out loud while we were doing school.

I have been working with her on capitalizing the first letter of her sentences. She really does a great job with Grammar but she is such an absent minded little thing that she hardly ever capitalizes or uses punctuation.

Today she held up her sentences and smiled big and said..."Mom I remembered to use 'Caps Lock'. Oh I busted up laughing. I can just see Laura and Mary's face if they had been here. A puzzled look it would have been, I am sure.

This is what made me smile today.......what about you, is there something that brought a smile to your face today?

Pies, Decluttering, and Encouragement

Here is a pic of the pie I made Saturday night. I was short on blackberries but it was still tasty and everyone enjoyed it for breakfast on Sunday morning.

With the extra crust I cut them in pieces, buttered them and sprinkled turbinado or brown sugar and cinnamon on top. Baked those at 350 for 6-8 minutes.  Hubby and I enjoyed them with coffee and the kiddos chowed down on them too.

Today I have Buffalo Joes in the crock pot, a yummy sloppy jo recipe I got from the Crock On cookbook, you can find the link to it on the right of my page here. If you are interested in crock pot cooking I really recommend her cookbook. You can get it on the Kindle for only $5. 

I really love Turbinado sugar. It is fun to bake with and makes a great topping for muffins, pies, and cookies.

To view Turbinado sugar click here: Turbinado Sugar - 1 box, 1 lb

I read this book this weekend on decluttering your home. It had some great tips that I put into practice and was able to declutter some in my bathroom and living room. I still need to hit the kitchen and my bedroom.

To view Declutter Your Home - How to Declutter your Home like a Professional click here: Declutter Your Home - How To Declutter Your House Like A Professional

Do you have any books you recommend on Decluttering?

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On another note I'd like to talk about being an encouragement.

Encourage

Buy This at Allposters.com

I have been very burdened lately about really being the hands and feet of Jesus. My desire is to really reach out to others. Now I truly believe that my children are my first mission field and I have no desire to put them on the back burner to help someone else. Doing that reminds me of the Scripture in Matthew 8:36 "For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?"

With that in mind I earnestly prayed last night before bed for God to show me how I can reach out. I live out in the country and homeschool my children so I was really questioning "how can I really be your hands and feet Jesus?"

Earlier in the week I had watched this video. It really hit a few spots in my heart and was encouraging to me.

This morning when I woke up the Holy Spirit spoke to me and I knew God had answered my prayer. He said "Write a letter of encouragement to _________" She is a newer Mom that I know needs the encouraging. I smiled in bed, God had answered my prayer. If we could only humble ourselves and pray that prayer everyday.......without ceasing even. And then act upon the command. 

What a blessing and encouragement we could be to others.

Farmhouse Lemon Poppyseed Yogurt Muffins

I made my first batch of homemade yogurt a couple of days ago. I was beyond excited, and I knew I wanted to make some homemade muffins with this homemade yogurt goodness.

Okay I know that jar says pickles, but trust me on this, it has been washed in very hot water so this is no strange pregnancy concoction (I'm not pregnant either)...just to clarify..........that I know of ... :)

So anyways Lemon Poppyseed muffins sounded delish and I have a super moist recipe below for you to try out. 

Farmhouse Lemon Poppyseed Muffins

You will need:

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup canola oil

6 oz. yogurt (I of course used homemade but you could definitely use store bought)

1 egg

1-3/4 cup white wheat flour

1/4 cup raw sugar

2 T. poppy seeds

2 T. lemon juice

2-1/2 tsp. baking powder - aluminum free

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. sea salt

If you want a more lemony batter flavor I recommend 1/2 tsp. lemon extract. I did not have it or I would have used it.

Mix all ingredients together and pour in greased muffin tin, baked at 375 for about 12-15 minute.

You can make a yummy lemon glaze with 1/2 cup powdered sugar and 3-4 tsp. lemon juice.

Drizzle the glaze on when they come out of the oven.

These are Glorious the next morning with a cup of coffee. :)

You might find these products handy to make your own Lemon Poppyseed muffins.

Purchase poppy seeds in bulk.

To view  Whole Black Poppy Seeds - 2 lbs. click here: Whole Black Poppy Seeds 2 lb

To view Spicely Organic Lemon Extract click here: Spicely Bottle Organic Extract, Lemon, 2 Ounce

You can find me linking up at:

2013 Homestead Goals

2012 was a busy year....an interesting year, scary at times with certain trials, but there were many blessings along the way. Our Sweet baby Jane, blessed our family in 2012. She was our first home birth and we cherished every minute of that amazing experience. You can read about that here.

We moved a couple times in 2012 and my homestead goals seemed far away at times.

Due to health issues I was not able to plant a garden but God provided. We moved into a Mennonite community and I like to call it the land of milk and honey. Within a couple of miles from our home I can buy raw milk, 3 miles raw honey, and 8 miles natural farm beef and pork. I also have access to the UNFI co op as well. What blessings.

I would love to share with you our 2013 Homestead goals. It is not a long list, but hopefully an attainable one. I will also share some great books and resources that I am reading this year that encourage setting goals, etc.

2013 goals

• start using some form of solar energy
• Get my garden beds ready for spring ( I like to do lasagna gardening, so I need to start getting my layers together)
• Put $100 in savings every month to start saving up to buy our own land. (It took us 5 years but we are now debt free...thank you Dave Ramsey, not sure how long it will take but we'd love to purchase our own land some day)
• Preserve and freeze as much as I can this spring and summer
• For the month of January we are trying to eat healthier. So no soda, or convenience foods. We like to eat out at Dairy Queen on Fridays or Sunday nights but we are going to stop that this month as well. 
• Most importantly we really want to teach our children about giving and praying so each month we are going to "adopt" a missionary family that our church supports and pray for them for the entire month. Our goal is to have a box and fill it with needs and treats that we can ship to them as a care package at the end of the month.

We are a busy homeschooling family of 6 so eating healthy without completely wearing myself out is made possibly by the wonderful crock-pot  I HIGHLY recommend 'Crock On' by Stacy Makes Cents. Her crock pot lasagna is amazing and simple, you will be in shock you made it in the Crock.

SOLAR ENERGY

I feel like the info on solar energy is so vast and my little brain has a hard time wrapping my mind around it all. If I do end up doing something solar it's going to have to be easy, otherwise I'm not so sure I'll be able to do it.

With that said I've been looking at Solar kits and solar lamps and lightbulbs, I'll share some below that I am interested in and looking at. If you have any info on solar energy, let me know.

This is the d.light S10 Solar LED Lantern, after much reading and reivews it seems that this is a very good solar lantern to have. My plan is to purchase 6-7 of these and let them soak up the sun during the day in our South window and then we will have them to use in the evenings. To view the S10 solar Lanter click here: d.light S10 Solar LED Lantern

This d.light has good reviews as well and is a bit cheaper.

To view d.light S1-Solar LED Lanter click here: d.light S1-Solar LED Lantern

I thought that these solar "light-bulbs" were an interesting concept as well.

If I decide to use these I thought I would purchase a tension rod and put in the window and hang these to absorb the sun. Then I would put hooks in the ceiling in various places in the house and in the evenings hang them from the hooks. To view LumiQuest Solite Solar Power Lightbulb LQ-200 click here: LumiQuest Solite Solar Power Lightbulb LQ-200

Setting Goals

If you are interested in setting Goals this year but need some major motivation here are a couple books I highly recommend. They definitely are motivating and I am excited about accomplishing these goals in 2013.

Holley has a way of encouraging and prodding without feeling controlling and pushy. Truly motivational book on accomplishing goals. To view The "Do what you Can" Plan book click here: "Do What You Can" Plan, The (Ebook Shorts): 21 Days to Making Any Area of Your Life Better

Crystal Paine is one amazing lady, I have been following her blogs online for 5 years (maybe longer) so I have to tell you I bought her Disciplined Life book the minute I saw she had a book out. To view 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life click here: 21 Days To A More Disciplined Life

These are some of the resources I am using this year to accomplish goals, I would love to hear what your goals are.

So what can you expect from Cottage Homestead Blog this year?

My goal is to keep you updated on our homestead happenings.

Any new recipes and meals I create in the kitchen.

Product reviews and things I just find interesting.

May you have a blessed 2013!

Calico Critters

If you are searching for a sweet and unique pretend play toy for your little girl you have got to check out Calico Critters. Each family is a different animal like squirrels, cats, cows, etc. And each has their own personality and interests.

To view  Calico Critters Furbanks Squirrel Family click here: Calico Critters Furbanks Squirrel Family

The Furbanks family enjoys acting and directing.

To view the Calico Critters Hopsotch Rabbit Family click here:  Calico Critters Hopscotch Rabbit Family

If you find some critters that you just can't live without check out these cute homes for them.

To check the adorable Calico Critters Oakwood Home click here:  Calico Critters Oakwood Home

If you want to go all out be sure to look at the Cloverleaf Manor. It boasts 9 rooms and 3 stories. It even has a chandelier that lights up.

To view the Calico Critters Cloverleaf Manor click here: Calico Critters Cloverleaf Manor

There is also some sweet little furniture pieces to display in the Critters home that I will be sharing soon.

Green Crooked Cottage

I love toys for kids that encourage them to be a part of the outdoors. The Green Crooked Cottage is an adorable play house for kids. It is suitable for children ages 3 and up and can fit two to three munchkins at a time.

They will be spending hours in their Green Crooked Cottage. I also love the fact that it is made out of solid wood construction.

My parents have an outdoor play house for our children and they absolutely love it. When their cousins come over they play all sorts of imaginary games in their little house.

To view the Green Crooked Cottage click here: Green Crooked Cottage

Perhaps green is not for you be sure to check out the Pink Crooked Cottage

To view the Pink Crooked Cottage click here: Pink Crooked Cottage

I love how the design of the Pink Crooked Cottage looks just like a little cottage straight from a fairy tale.

Let the fun begin.

HugglePod Hanging Chair

If you are looking for a super cute, super fun, and simply useful gift for your children you have got to take a look at the HugglePod Hanging Chair.

The one pictured below is awesome because it is a canvas indoor/ourdoor hugglepod. Not only can you hang this indoors as a great little nook to read you can hang it outdoors as well for lots of exciting times on a lovely spring day.

To view the HugglePodTM Indoor/Outdoor Canvas Hanging Chair in Pink click here: 

HugglePodTM Indoor/Outdoor Canvas Hanging Chair, in Pink

But maybe your not realy keen on pink. Good News! The HugglePod Hanging chair comes in an awesome red with blue trim as well.

To view the HugglePod Hanging chair in red click here:  HugglePodTM Indoor/Outdoor Canvas Hanging Chair, in Red

• I love the fact that these are machine washable. 
• They are perfect for ages 4 and up and they can hold up to 175 lbs. 
• Once you get one of these HugglePod Hanging chairs the fun will have just begun.

Want something a bit fancier? Check out the Hugglepod Hangout with LED lights. To view the Hugglepod Hangout click here: 

Nylon Canvas HugglePodTMHangOut with LED Lights

Express yourself....... on your walls

It's quite the thing now to have FUN quotes and sayings on your walls.
My friend has the one "Always Kiss me Goodnight" on her bedroom wall written in beautiful font. 

I've also been wanting to put Scripture verses on my wall in unique fonts and design but I wasn't sure where to get them. Most places have certain verses or versions already printed out but I just found out about a wonderful place called Uppercase Living. My friend is selling it. And you can totally customize what you want.

They have a wide selection of sayings, quotes, and whimsical artsy pieces, or you can completely customize a saying or quote yourself and they even do lifesize photo prints. Does it get much funner than this?

Here's what my amazing friend Leatta has to say about this fun business: 

"As a mom of 10 kids, I'm always looking for ways to make our home reflect the uniqueness of each child as well as the shared values of our family. Uppercase Living provides affordable, customizable options to help me make our home as special as those who live here. I became a independent demonstrator to help others find these great products too."

Possibly you are looking for a new income opportunity, Leatta says NOW is the time to sign up!!! 
You get lots of product samples (how cool is that).

Have you heard of Uppercase Living?