Spring is in the air!

The temp on Sunday was above 60 degrees!  I had the windows open in the house and it felt amazing to finally air out the stuffy house from the winter.  Now I know here in Nebraska we still have a while to really be out of the woods for snow.  But it was a great reprieve from the dreary gray days of winter.

We started some seedlings this past weekend in anticipation for spring.  We have our first round of seeds for tomatoes and peppers started.  Our plant date is not until May and this allows for the plants to be big and ready for the outside when the chance of a late frost is gone.  We also started Yarrow and Lavender, we plan on planting this throughout the garden this year to help with pests and bunnies.

We also order new baby chicks this past week.  They will be here the week of March 24th.  I still cant believe we ordered 15!  Eeekkk....but so excited!  We got several different kinds including an Easter Egger that lays colored eggs.  We got about 7 different kinds of chickens so our flock will have lots of color and our eggs will too!  The current chickens we have now will be butchered.  Their meat won't be good for just baking and eating since they are 2 years old, their meat will be tough and its best for soups and stews.

Look for future posts for when the chicks get here.

Sliced Apples Fresher, Longer

I love apples! But I hate to bite into them as the skins get stuck in between my teeth.  I used to cut them in the morning and put lemon juice on them to keep them from turning brown.  However, that left a sour taste on the apples.  Which is ok sometimes...when you want something sweet yet tart.  I found a pin on Pinterest that just seemed too good to be true so I thought, why not...I'll give it a try.  And guess what the slices kept from turning brown, even a week later!  They were still crisp to bite into too!  The trick is soaking them in lemon-lime soda.  The lemon lime soda acts like an anti-oxident that keeps them from turning brown.  Yes the slices may absorb some of the sugars from the soda, but it makes it 100 times easier when packing a lunch in the morning.  Just grab from the fridge and your set.

How to keep apples fresher, longer.
From One Good Thing by Jillee

Directions:

1.  Pour lemon-lime soda in a large bowl.

2.  Cut apples using an apple slicer.

3.  Place cut apples in a bowl with the soda.

4.  Allow to soak for 10 - 15 minutes.

5.  Place slices in sandwich bags and store in fridge.

Yes, it is that easy!