raw milk under fire...again

well, i'm coming out of hibernation to alert the texans out there of some new legislation looking to be passed. please read the following information and make your voice heard! if you'd like the short version, here goes:

1. consumers will have to pick up their own milk straight from the location it is produced. this means my friends that switch weeks to pick up each others milk will no longer be able to do so.
2. my farmer will have to turn in my name and any other persons name that purchases raw milk from her. excuse me? do i live in a world where people can buy porn and cigarettes at the corner store, but you want MY information for wanting some milk?
3. if you produce milk on your property you are not allowed to take it anywhere for consumption other than your own property.

here is the official long version:

Proposed Rules for Raw Dairy and Cheesemaking
The Texas Department of Health is working on new rules governing milk and dairy products in Texas. It is important that everyone who cares about having access to raw milk and farmstead cheeses speak up during this process!
For several years, raw milk farmers in Texas have struggled with the restriction that raw milk may be sold directly to the consumer "only at the point of production, i.e. at the farm.&#xu201D; The draft rule would make it even harder, by requiring that the farmer "offer for sale and distribute raw milk directly to the final consumer only at the point of production, i.e. at the farm.&#xu201D; This new provision would prevent people from picking up their milk through carpools, agent arrangements, etc. The draft rule also requires raw milk farmers to turn over a list of their customers to the government, and prevents people from even possessing raw milk that is not labeled and graded outside of their home.
The draft rules also create extensive permitting and regulatory burdens on family farms making farmstead cheeses. Currently, small-scale cheesemakers are required to have a single food manufacturing permit, but the draft rule would require two permits, each with higher fees, and expensive infrastructure and equipment.
The draft rules are available at http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/milk/draft.shtm
TAKE ACTION
The deadline for submitting comments on the draft rule is March 6, 2009. Please note that the agency plans to formally propose rules in April, so this is just Round One!! This is a chance to speak up relatively early in the process, which is the best time to make real changes.
Send your comments via email to Gene.Wright@dshs.state.tx.us or by regular mail to Gene Wright, Manager, Milk and Dairy Group, Texas Department of State Health Services, P.O. Box 149347 MC 1987, Austin, Texas 78714-9347.

if even if you're not a texan, this should matter to you! it is safe to say that once small freedoms like these are taken in one place that it could easily happen where you live.
take action!
are you with me?!?

thankful

today i am thankful for...

• my little buddy keeping his breakfast down (for now!)
• the wonderful immune systems we have been equipped with
• probiotics
• quilts made by grandma kathy and aunt teri
• clean, accessible water
• the aristocats
• lots of good books

favorite book friday

my little buddy woke up in the night throwing up. poor little guy- he was in the church nursery more than usual this week and just couldn't withstand the bug going around. so in honor of my little man, i present buddy's favorite book (this week):

i cannot count how many times we have read this book this week alone! but i don't mind it at all- it is such a wonderful story. one of determination, doing what you say you're going to do ( "i meant what i said and i said what i meant, an elephant's faithful 100%" ), not being lazy and then wanting the reward of hard work. if you don't have this book in your home library, first slap yo'self upside the head, and then go get it.

in my humble opinion, this is dr. seuss' finest work- his opus, if you will...

what's your favorite dr. seuss book?

sweet potato black bean burgers

a couple of commenters wondered about the recipe for this tasty looking burger. (i say 'looking' because i haven't actually made them yet, ***grin***, but how could sweet potatoes and black beans do me wrong???) the recipe can be found here. i found it through here. i will be making the burgers tonight for dinner so i'll let you know...
dum, dum, duuuuuummmmmmm....

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>UPDATE<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

alright, made the burgers last night and they were delicious!!! here's what i did differently:

• i didn't have quinoa on hand so i used brown rice. i used one cup instead of two.
• i used half an onion instead of 2 whole onions.
• i put the skillet mix into the food processor (carrots, onions, black beans) and blended up- THEN added the rice and sweet potatoes, etc.
• didn't add onion powder or caraway seeds or adobo sauce.
• i made mine extra big so it only made about 10 and i had to bake them for about 30 minutes instead of the 15.

so that's it. they were great! but they were not a quick. i had to bake the sweet potatoes, make the black beans, make the rice, make the bread crumbs, etc...so not hard, but definitely time consuming. all that said, i say worth the work!!!

menu plan

i've never participated in i'm an organizing junkie's menu plan monday. i must confess that planning out my menu for the week has made me feel more organized- at least in one area of my life! here's the menu for the week:

monday: local roasted chicken, baked lentils, cauliflower au-gratin

***to do: soak black beans overnight, soak granola overnight, make bread***

tuesday: sweet potato black bean burgers, roasted new potatoes, fresh salad

wednesday: pizza night (spinach), fresh salad

thursday: verde chicken enchiladas, black beans and brown rice vegetarian shepherd pie, fresh salad

friday: vegetarian shepherd pie, fresh salad (going out of town for a mom's conference)

saturday: getting home from conference- if time roasted veggies and yogurt sauce over brown rice. if not- leftovers!

sunday: chalupas (local beef for the hubby, beans for me and kids)

breakfasts: whole wheat waffles, banana ww pancakes, muesli (oats, seeds, nuts, fruit), eggs & toast, oatmeal

lunch: chicken salad, green salad, pbj, veggie tacos, pita broccoli melts

favorite book friday

today's favorite book friday is in response to some comments on my post about herbs. i am a lay-herbalist, if you will. i have had no formal training, but i look forward to one day being able to become a master herbalist. until then, here are some of my favorite herb books:

this is a great guide to growing your own medicinal herbs- something that i'm slowly beginning to do. there are directions on how to make tinctures, salves, and poultices. she also gives a comprehensive guide in the back to 101 herbs with picture guides, growing info, and companion planting guide. great book!

this book was written by a medical doctor and herbalist. it's not my first herb book to pick up, but it is still full of really great information. the reason i highly recommend this book though is because it tells you when to stop messing around and get your kid to the doctor without being hysterical. there is a guide in the beginning about herbs that are safe for children, along with pictures of the plant. there is a section on antibiotics too. then the book gets into the specifics. it is divided into chapters based on ailments (like allergies, flu, pink eye, etc). each chapter is very detailed. this is probably why i don't grab this book first- it's not a quick reference guide. however, it is highly recommended as it gives a good balance of medicine and herbs. this is a great first book to start with!

i love this book! it is usually the first book i pick up for information (however it has been stolen by a friend- you know who you are). it is divided by ailments as well- all alphabetical. the info over each ailment is only about a page long. she gives information on herbs and what form it is best to administer. really good!

and of course, what list could be complete without the BIG mama! if you do not have this in your home library, you need it. if nothing else, you need this book! it is full of nutritional information, supplemental information and herbal information- all in a handy graph form that lists in the order of essential to important. however, information for children is lacking.

i hope this is a helpful guide. there are some herbs that i mix myself (by buying single herbal tinctures and mixing them), but i also use pre-mixed formulas. i love the herbal tinctures by wish garden herbs. they carry a great line for pregnant, lactating women and children.

good news!

apparently the strike has ended and the chickens are laying again! yahoo! we got two beautiful brown eggs today. the first in many (many) months.

and in other good news, when i asked the kids what they wanted for lunch today, they both replied 'salad'. buddy's with 'tans' (pecans) and moonpie's with almonds.

oh happy day!

******update**********

i just ordered my seeds! more good news for this beautiful day! i mean really, check out our weather:
http://weather.yahoo.com/forecast/USTX0152_f.html

got the sicks

we have been fending off colds and such lately, so i thought i'd pass on some herbal remedies for the yucks.
***disclaimer: i DO use doctors! they are necessary and i would never avoid seeing one if i felt like my children were REALLY sick.***

pink eye: we had pink eye go around. but it was awesome because we kicked it really fast! i caught buddy's the moment it came on and applied a warm compress with eyebright and water. i then gave him eyebright orally for 2 doses. he then went to bed and woke up clear eyed. i repeated the doses just to be safe. his never came back. moonpie and i woke up with eyes sealed shut. so i wasn't able to catch it as quickly. after a day of eyebright, we were still bleary eyed. so i gave us a dose of olive leaf tincture and rubbed it all over moonpie. it was gone the next day. mine came back because i accidentally used some infected mascara ( am i in jr. high?). but it was gone by the end of the day.

ear infections: the pink eye led to a cold and double ear infections for both kids. i don't think the infections ever got full blown, but they looked pretty nasty. really red inside. i gave them 3 doses of garlic/willow/calendula ear oil for 2 days. by day 3 they were gone. ears back to normal.

cough: for the deep chesty kind i give marshmallow and mullein tinctures in some juice. and rub it on their bodies- chest, armpits and feet. at night i like to use cherry bark. and we humidify!!!

we are back to a nasty cold for buddy. poor little guy!
so the treatment begins again.

does buying organic really matter?

well, if you've spent any time here, you know my answer is YES!!! here is some information i lifted off of www.mountainroseherbs.com. this was my first time on their site and it is a great resource for ordering teas, herbs and oils. as a matter of fact i found that they carry a 1 gallon tub of coconut oil for $41! that is so cheap (comparitively speaking). i'll be ordering from them when it's time to stock up.

on with the quote:

Use At Least 10% Organic For A Better World

Here are some statistics
concerning the incorporation of organic products into our own lifestyles which
we find to be faithful and staggering.By converting at least 10% of your food,
fiber and cosmetic purchases you will;
Eliminate pesticides from 98 million
daily U.S. servings of drinking water.
Assure 20 million daily servings of
milk that are produced without antibiotics & genetically modified growth
hormones.
Assure 53 million daily servings of pesticide-free fruit and
vegetables. (Enough for 10 million kids to have five daily servings.)
Eliminate use of growth hormones, genetically engineered drugs and feeds,
and 2.5 million pounds of antibiotics used on livestock annually. (More than
twice the amount of antibiotics used to treat human infections.)
Assure that
915 million animals are treated more humanely.
Fight climate change by
capturing an additional 6.5 billion pounds of carbon in soil. (That's the
equivalent of taking 2 million cars, each averaging 12,000 miles per year, off
the road.)
Eliminate 2.9 billion barrels of imported oil annually. (Equal to
406,000 Olympic eight-lane competition pools.)
Restore 25,800 square miles
of degraded soils to rich, highly productive cropland. (An amount of land equal
to the size of West Virginia.)