"What's In The Bible" Volume 1 ~ Review

I am ALWAYS on the lookout for good, wholesome entertainment for my family.  We are very "particular" about what we allow our boys to watch.  And since we no longer have cable it's much easier to monitor what they see and hear.  But these days, even "children's" movies aren't really fit for children. So I was THRILLED when I was given the chance to review Phil Vischer's new series "What's In The Bible" Volume 1.  




I'm sure you remember Phil Vischer.  He's the creator of Veggie Tales.  We loved Veggie Tales!

My boys are older now (9 and 12) so I was worried they wouldn't be interested.  Boy was I wrong!  My 9 year old, Logan LOVED IT!!  My 12 year old, Dawson even enjoyed it. He wouldn't want you to know that, cause um...he's cool and 12 ;) 


Now this isn't your normal, run of the mill "all about the Bible" deal.  They break it down for a kids level, but still give it that "meat" that we are all looking for!  I was even learning things...like I was going WOW!!  


It has hilarious characters; granny with her chart, two silly brothers that crack you up, and Anchorman Buck Denver! It's also full of super cute music and TONS of fun.

Logan keeps running around saying, "Where are the PONIES!!"  


You can check out the awesome free resources to go along with your DVD here! 
Free stuff like:
-coloring pages
-Bible flashcards
-Study Guide
-and so much more! 

They even offer a whole section on the website for Christmas materials and have a church edition with curriculum!  It doesn't get much cooler!


It's of course part of a complete series.  8 Volumes to be exact!  Volume 8 is the Church Edition.  You can view clips of the series here!


Be sure to stop back by and tell me how much you LOVED What's in the Bible!!!


Blessings,

"I was selected for participation in this review and given the What's in the bible DVD as a member of The Homeschool Lounge Review Team. All thoughts and opinions are my own."

How to cut up a rabbit

After my last post about butchering rabbits I had a couple of people ask me about how to cut it up.  So when we butchered rabbits today I thought I'd take some pictures and show y'all how we do it.  

Before we get started first, let me say; we are NOT professionals in any shape, form, or fashion.  The way we do things may not be the best way, easiest way or even the right way; but it's our way!

If you are new to meat rabbits and want to know how to butcher them, you can see a post on that here!

Now let's get started!!

Get your tools ready.  You will need a VERY sharp knife, a good cutting board, and the materials for wrapping your meat.

So this is what you will start with...

To me, rabbit is a lot like deer, in that there are little pieces of slime (I know that's not the technical term) that you have to cut off.  So you want to clean the meat up the best you can.  I'm anal so that part takes awhile.

Now you can freeze your rabbits as a whole.  You don't have to cut it up!  If I know I'm going to use it in a soup then I just freeze it whole.  But if I plan to fry it, then of course it must be cut.

The next thing I do is start at the hind legs.  You can see the fold...just cut there.

I will tell you that you have to twist the leg and break it off from the socket.  It sounds gross I know.  But you can do it!

Just twist!

Next I cut the front legs.  They are sort of like chicken wings.  You can see the joint and can cut right under it.

Next I cut the back into sections.  They fry up much better that way.  I also cut the stomach flaps. They make nice, boneless cuts of meat.  They are thin, but it's still meat, right! :)  You can see them in the picture below laying to the side.  

After you are done, your cuts will look something like this...

I wish I had taken a picture from up above, but I'm a germ freak and I didn't want to touch my camera, so I had my lil' guy taking pics for me.  I think he did a bang up job, don't you?!


Anyway,I then soak mine in a mixture of vinegar, salt, and water.  Just to make sure that all the nasty stuff is off.  {I told you that I'm anal!}

Well, that's it.  I use gallon freezer bags sometimes and other times I use commercial saran wrap, then wrap it in butcher paper.

Haha...you will have to over look the redneck duct tape, but I was out of paper tape and Hey, we have to use what we have, right!?

So, that's it.  Not bad at all.

What did you think?

Blessings,

The day I deleted Facebook!

{Photo courtesy of http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/}

These days it's all about Social Networking.  It seems that everyone has a Facebook page.  My mom even had one; which now isn’t that unusual.  Facebook has become the new “Cool” thing to “do”.   You can share pictures with family and friends; you can share videos, or just your random thoughts.  You can even find FREEBIES (which I love by the way!!!)  Innocent enough, right?

Well, not for me.   I had been convicted for some time about the amount of time I would spend on Facebook.  Time that could be better spent with my husband, children, or better yet…the Lord! 

I would ignore the prompting of the Holy Spirit and hope that the conviction would “go away”.  It didn’t.  The longer I resisted, the stronger it got until I couldn’t get on Facebook without feeling terrible!

Now, I’m sure you are thinking, WHAT IN THE WORLD IS WRONG WITH FACEBOOK!?  But before you move on to another awesome blog and chalk me up as “eccentric”, “crazy”, or just plain “MAD”; please hear me out. 

I would often get sucked in to the lasted gossip or find myself thinking, OMGOSH I can’t BELIEVE she said that or wore that or did that or…well you get my drift.  Before long that way of thinking turned to me casting judgment.  And judging is not my place…that would be the Lord’s.  We are not called to judge, but to walk in love. 

{“Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way.”  Romans 14:13}

{“This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” John 15:12}

So, after months of procrastinating I did the unthinkable….I DELETED MY FACEBOOK PAGE!  Yep, I did it.  And it felt GREAT!! 

I have to say that I have never felt so free.  Free from the bondage!  And time, wow…I have SO much more time to devote to things I had let go before.  I devote more time to my Lord and my family…and even my blog. 

I’m not saying everyone should go delete their profile, but that was “MY” conviction and I’m so glad that I finally gave heed to the Holy Spirit and did it. 

I do challenge you…if you find yourself feeling the tug, go without Facebook for a few days and see the difference. 

I pray that in that time God can show you a revelation of all He has in store for you when you make more time for HIM! 

Blessings,

Preventing Heat Stroke...in your rabbits.

So in the South it is like 1000* lately!  Not really, but seriously with the heat index we have been seeing triple digits!  When it's that hot you can imagine that your critters may experience some discomfort.

I try to check on my animals at least twice a day.  ESPECIALLY in the Summer time!

I look for signs of heat exhaustion:

* The rabbit refuses to eat or drink.

* The rabbit has rapid or labored breathing.

* The rabbit's tongue is hanging out.

* The rabbit is lethargic/won't move.  

If you suspect that your rabbit is having a heat stroke, immediately take the rabbit into a cooler area.

You can also wipe the ears with a cold cloth.  I personally will dip mine into cool (NOT COLD) water up to the neck.  (I know some people don't approve of this method, but I've never had any bad experiences doing it.)  Do not submerge the rabbit completely in the water.

If they don't respond pretty quickly you should seek the help of a vet!

Now, a few things that we do to help prevent heatstroke in our bunnies is to place frozen 2-liter coke bottles in their cage (a GREAT tip that I got from a fellow homesteading friend).

We change the bottles out twice a day.

We provide them with PLENTY of fresh water!!  We put two water bottles on each cage.  You can see the two bottles on the middle cage, especially when you have multiple rabbits in a cage.  (We actually have 3 bottles on this particular cage.  These babies where slowly being weaned...a little late I might add, but we had just moved them to the new cages and didn't want to change everything at one time, ya know?!)

We also made sure that we built our cages to have proper ventilation:

The air can flow through all sides of the cages making sure that the rabbits can catch a nice breeze from all angles!

We also made sure to put the cages in an area that is shaded at all times.  As you can see in the picture above, most of the cage is shaded, with the exception of a small area that is only in the sun for about 2 hours of the day.

You can also put a fan pointing towards the cage, but not directly on the rabbit(s).

So, that's how we do things.

How do you keep your critters cool in this crazy heat??  I can't wait to hear all your great tips and tricks!

Blessings,

*Update* Our journey through Learning Disability...

Well, it’s been some time now since I’ve done a post about our journey through Learning Disabilities.  Honestly, I just didn’t have any new information.  But yesterday was the day!  We had an evaluation with the SRF.  And as I suspected, my lil’ man tested W.E.L.L. below average.  And based on his results they do feel he is dyslexic.  They also feel that he may have High Functioning Asperger’s and possibly a visual processing disorder??  I’m not sure what that means really…time will tell.

Anyway, the eval yesterday was just the first step.  We have to see an Occupational Therapist as well as a Speech & Language Therapist.  I was able to find a place that offered both within the same office, which from what I understand is hard to find.  We got our appointment made, but before we go to the appointment next month he has to have a current eye exam as well as a physical from his regular doctor.  So needless to say we will be busy with doctor appointments for the next few weeks. 

I feel a sense of relief but also a little sad.  It’s nice to feel like you know what direction to go in, but at the same time I’m sad that he has to go through all of this.  But I’m optimistic that we will find a way to help him and that he WILL learn and will finally have some self-esteem!!!! 

In the meantime this mama is on a mission!! 

I’m going to share some links and some info that the O.T. gave me that maybe you will find helpful in your own journey.

www.earobics.com

www.interdys.org

www.talkingfingers.com

www.lexialearning.com

{I have not personally looked at all of the above websites, so I cannot say whether or not they are helpful.}

Prayers are appreciated.  I will continue to update as we know more.  

Blessings,

How To Butcher Meat Rabbits

*WARNING: This post is VERY graphic.  It does show very detailed pictures of the complete process of butchering a rabbit. *


Our little farm has grown in the last year and I love it!  It's growing daily!

One of the things that we have ventured in to is raising meat rabbits.  We chose New Zealands for 2 reasons.

1.  They are a bigger rabbit.  Adults weighing anywhere from 9-12 pounds.

2.  They are white, so I find it easier to see mites, wounds, etc.  I know that may seem silly to some, but I find it a good reason :)


I find that you can cook rabbit the same way you would cook chicken. I won't say it tastes exactly like chicken, but it is very similar.
  
Ok, so lets get down to business.

The best age is 8-12 weeks.  You can butcher an older rabbit, but it's like with anything, the younger the better.

You can withhold food for 24 hours to make sure there is nothing in the digestive track.  We have withheld food and also done it without withholding food.  


There is much controversy about "how" to actually kill the rabbit.  But we keep it simple.  My husband grabs them by the back legs and whacks them on the back of the head.  One blow and it's over.  

(Ok, it might be a little bit redneck, but the actual butchering is done on the back of the truck :)

Now, some slit the throat and hang them to bleed out.  We have done that before, but not always.  I always soak them afterwards which seems to do fine in either case.  I'll post more on the soak later.  


Next, you take a very sharp knife and poke a hole in the skin.  

Then you just pull the jacket right off.  If you can't pull it easily, you can cut.  My husband finds it easier to just pull it.

Once you have removed all the skin, this is what you will have.  

Then you take a small hatchet and cut the head and legs off.

And of course, you must remove the tail.

Yes, you will have some hair stuck here and there, but it will wash off.  I promise!


Next you are going to start from the bottom of the rabbit's stomach and cut very carefully and not too deep.  

Continue cutting all the way up the rabbit.

Once you have made your cut all the way up, you can start to remove the guts.  As you can see in the picture below, our guy had a full bladder.  You will want to take special care that you don't bust that.  Like with a deer, the urine is very strong in odor.  And while I don't think it would ruin the meat...why chance it?  So carefully, very carefully cut and remove the bladder.

Now, I ALWAYS soak my rabbits in a sink full of very cold water, salt, and vinegar.  The salt and vinegar will draw out any blood.  And vinegar is a natural disinfectant, so it makes me feel better about the fact that it was cleaned on the tailgate of a pick up :)

I usually let it soak for a couple of hours then rise and repeat.  But I'm a little bit anal.  My husband says it's over kill but I'd rather be safe than sorry.  

And lastly, you cut your rabbit up for freezing or cooking.  I cut these up for the freezer. 


Isn't it beautiful, white meat!

So, I hope you find this helpful.  We don't claim to be experts...not even a little bit.  We have learned a little each time.  And our method may not be the best way for you.  But it works for us.

Stay tuned...I will be posting in the future on the best way to cut your rabbit up and on how to save the hides.

Blessings,

*I dedicate this post to my wonderful homesteading buddies Bobbi and Stephanie!  You gals ROCK!*

The farm life for me!

So I've been gone for over a month....again :)

SO much has happened in the last month.  I got terribly sick and stayed sick for nearly 3 weeks.  We got more pigs, planted our huge garden, started running fence for cattle, and started planning for....goats!

I'm so excited.  We had a guy give us some T-posts and barbwire just for taking it down.  It wasn't much but it was F.R.E.E.!  So I was happy.  We have so much work cut out for us.

This is the hill that we are fencing in for the cows.

We moved our pigs to a new pin so that we can clean up the pin and prepare for the goats.  We are getting Nigerian Dwarf goats for milking!  I'm super excited to be able to have fresh milk everyday...and to be able to make goat cheese, and goat milk soap, and just having goats in general!

Can you tell I'm excited?!?!?!

THE END =D

Blessings,