Happy 16th Wedding Anniversary to my Favorite Farmer!

16 years ago I married Farmer Chris... of course he wasn't a farmer then and I am pretty sure he didn't tell me that his intentions were to marry me, have four kids and become a farmer and feed thousand's good food!  I met him at Ball State University...

Chris and Michelle visiting his sister in Boston!

...he was a nerd (although he disagrees) and wanted to become a teacher...and guess what he has.  His classroom is our kids, me, customers and pretty much anyone that will listen to him.  It has always amazed me how much knowledge he has...he does a lot of reading, something I don't enjoy much of, but he has passed that wonderful gift on to a couple of our children.  After college we moved to Chicago (for the city girl in me)...and had a ball getting around town and enjoying the sites...and once we started talking about kids we knew we had to move back home to be around our families!

We lived in Chicago for 6 years before moving back to Indiana/Michigan...and my kids pointed out that he is wearing farm gloves in the picture...haha -- they said I should have known!

July 1, 1995
I married my best friend....

(1991)
Chris outside the barn at the farm he now goes to daily....I guess the clues were there!

The Hebron's today!!!

Everyday is an adventure with you Chris...and your mom warned me about that 20 years ago...but I always knew she saw us together forever...she just wanted to some day tell me "I told you sooo"!  I love you and thank God everyday I have you in my life and that you are such a loving husband and father to our kids....and the several hundred animals on the farm!  I can't wait to see what this year brings us...I don't dare try to imagine!

Happy Anniversary!

Mother's Day...

Mother's day was great in our house this year, but really everyday is mother's day...I thank God every day I have little monkeys yelling "MOM"!  Last Year we went and picked out this dog....

Jones!

And this year....this dog

is HUGE and still my puppy!  This year Farmer Chris packed a picnic and we went to a park!

and I got to hang out with all of the kids!

My little farmers...

Playing in the creek!

And of course the day ended doing the evening chores...because we have many mama pigs that need to know they are appreciated also!

Sorry the posts have been lacking but I am hoping once the kids get out of school, posts will pick up!

The Spring Activities race has begun and what is a mom to cook?

The race has begun... I feel like I am constantly running and late, and I am the kind of person that has to be 5 minutes early to feel like I am on time.  Jackson is playing baseball and Trap Shooting and Cyrus is playing baseball.  Jorja May (4) is constantly running and luckily doesn't mind being shuttled back and forth with the boys and Kyra (12) is recovering from foot surgery but a huge help even though she has a boot on her foot, so no sports for her this summer.  We are nearing the end of school like everyone, so our schedules are very full and with the Farm in the busiest season with the gardens and now pigs going to camp every week I needed something easy to cook.  We just started having smaller Ham Roasts cut out and they are awesome - they fit right in the crock pot, I even put this one in frozen, with chicken broth, carrots, potato's and onions and cooked it on low all day!

And of course I forgot to take a picture after...but everyone was very happy and we got everywhere we needed to be even if we ate at 8:00!

Have a great weekend!

Corned Beef Brisket...recipe handed down from Chris's Mom Carol...

Every St. Patrick's day I get excited to make Corned Beef Brisket...it was a recipe Chris's mom (Carol) gave to me...and I love to cook anything she used to make so it gives him another awesome memory of her.  She could take anything she had in the cupboards and make something awesome and usually with little time, something I have not been gifted with, but she gifted me with a husband that can do the same!

While it has been almost 12 years since she passed...she is in our thoughts daily.  I laugh to think what she thinks about Chris, Richard and her husband Tony (Grandpa T) and what they have created on the farm.  Tony and Carol bought the land together many years ago and built a cabin hoping to one day live in it.  I know she would be proud and I am pretty sure she has been behind them every step of the way!  So since I live with a farmer we don't always do things on the right day but we usually try to do them with in a couple of days that we are suppose to. 

This past week our son Jackson (10) has been taking Hunter Safety Classes so he can do Trap shooting...which required transporting him three days up to Dowagiac and thank you to Mom, Dad and Grandpa T and the smarts of Jackson he got his license.  Yay for Jackson and now he can follow in his cousins awesome foot steps and go trap shooting weekly! 

So today....Chris took my five little piggies (Kyra, Jackson, Cyrus, Jorja May & Jones (dog)) to the farm so I can have some alone time and as I thank you I am making Corned Beef Brisket!

Here is the awesome recipe...and as I always promise...it is easy!

CORNED BEEF BRISKET

Ingredients:
1 Corn Beef Brisket
1 Cooking Bag
BBQ Sauce
Garlic
Pepper
Carrots
Potato’s

Put the corned beef in the bag (fat up – I have to put that because I had no
idea it mattered J),sprinkle the beef with pepper and about 2 TBL spoons of garlic, cover with your
favorite BBQ sauce, cut up potato’s (usually three or four for us) and carrott’s
put in the bag and add a ½ can of beer.

Cook at 300 degrees for about 2 ½ hours

Hope you enjoy it!

Flip flop wearing Farmers Wife!

Oh it is hard not to get excited!  I pulled out my flip flops yesterday... well they weren't ever put away, but I got to wear them outside.  Yes, have you ever seen a flip flop wearing farmer's wife?  It is really the only way this lady rolls in the spring/summer/fall (or no snow weather) -- they are easy to clean, although they sometimes get stuck in the mud, but really comfortable feet make me a Happy Farmer's Wife!  And as we were loading to get into the truck to head to the farm, my 4 year old also made me find hers...because after all if mom has to wear them, she does!

Jorja May and I have been going to Kyra's school (middle school) and help teach skating, or in some cases pick up some of the kids.  It has been a great two weeks, I guess you take some things for granted!  I used to skate home from work in Chicago from the loop to Lincoln Park - it was faster then the "L" or driving, and it felt great!   Some how we always have stakes around our house --- people hand them down to us so the kids have followed in my skates and enjoy it....now we have to find some to fit a four year that will probably whoop our butts once she gets going.  It has been great watching several of the kids who have never been on skates and two weeks later they are skating around the gym!  It is exhausting, and I am grateful the gym teacher fought hard to get this program for the kids.  We have been going for two classes every two days, I can't imagine teaching it everyday all day long, but it confirms why I am so grateful for the teachers that love their jobs, we have been blessed at both of our kids schools with teachers who love what they are doing and have really become a part of our family!

I found these flip flops, they might be too dangerous to wear while doing the chores... I am pretty sure if I had a wedding renewal I would wear flip flops this time, although I wore ballet slippers the first time I got married and everyone thought I was crazy, but that confirms how much I dislike shoes!!!

I hope you get to go out and wear your flip flops soon!!

Happy Valentine’s Day or Happy Monday!

I am wishing all of my friends and family a special day. I know it is a "Card" holiday...but it is one more day I can make sure my friends and family know how much I love them.

I hope you got to spend time with someone you love! Farmer Chris splits his time between me and his Pigs (and the other couple hundred animals) --- and believe me they know how much he loves them.

As I was standing at the bus stop this morning (around 6:20) with my 12 year old daughter she was telling me a story! Kyra's class was discussing who was smarter - dogs or pigs. Most of the kids said pigs and her teacher thought they should test that theory and asked if anyone had a pig. Some kids jokingly raised their hands and Kyra spoke up and said no that she really did have pigs. The teacher said oh ok a Guinea Pig? and Kyra said no we have like 100 big pigs at the farm. Needless to say she was a little shocked. Kyra agreed that pigs are very smart, they know when her dad shows up they are going to be fed, they know if they bump Chris he will rub behind their ears, they know how to get out of the weather, they know not to touch the fence, a mama pig can deliver 15 babies all by themselves!

Don’t worry I am not jealous, I am just happy I married such a loving and caring human being!

Have a Great Valentine’s Day no matter how you celebrate it!

Crunchy Garlic Chicken...Cyrus' pick!

If you have been following me you know I try to cook a favorite meal for each child once a week...don't worry they are all Farmer Chris's favorite!  This one is Cyrus' favorite...we hope you enjoy it also!

Crunchy Garlic Chicken


1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted


2 tablespoons milk

1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives or parsley

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

2 cups Cornflakes cereal, crushed (1 cup)

3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1/2 teaspoon paprika

6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1 3/4 lb) -- this time we cut into strips, before we leave the breasts whole!

Heat oven to 425°F. Spray 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray. In shallow dish, mix 2 tablespoons of the butter, the milk, chives, salt and garlic powder.


In another shallow dish, mix crushed cereal, parsley and paprika. Dip chicken into milk mixture, then coat lightly and evenly with cereal mixture. Place in pan. Drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons butter.

Bake uncovered 20 to 25 minutes or until juice of chicken is clear when center of thickest part is cut (170°F).

And it was so good Jorja May wanted it for breakfast!  She was being my shy girl!

 

We hope you enjoy this as much as we do!  Have a great Sunday and stay warm!  In this house we route for the commercials!

 

Snow days = Beef, potato casserole in this house!

You are probably sick of hearing about it...but we have had lots of snow days.  So on the menu was Beef potato casserole...it was a hit with 3 out of 6 Hebrons, but really all I care to please is Farmer Chris since he is the one that is outside most of the day!  Every meal I plan I try to make it a favorite of one of the little Hebron's in the house - and this one is Kyra's!

So here is the recipe...I posted it on facebook and several friends have already tried it --- many of the ingredients can be Family Farms Cooperative's -- so that is even better!  One of our customers made this for a Purple Porch Potluck and it won --- she makes the mushroom soup part from scratch - but usually I don't have all of those ingredients in my cubbard!

An easy ground beef casserole with potatoes and cheese.


Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds lean ground beef, browned

• 1/2 cup chopped onion

• salt and pepper

• 3 large potatoes, sliced (I literally covered the top of the dish)
• 2 Carrots, shredded

• 2 can cream of mushroom soup

• 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

Preparation:

Brown ground beef in a skillet with chopped onions; cook until onions are tender. Drain off excess fat; transfer ground beef and onion to casserole dish. Add layer of sliced raw potatoes, sprinkle with salt and pepper; shred carrots to cover potatoes. Put soup over carrots. Bake at 350° for 40 to 50 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Sprinkle shredded cheese over top and bake for about 5 minutes longer, or until cheese is melted.

This easy ground beef and potato casserole serves 4 to 6.


I hope everyone is staying warm!

WARNING Bragging is involved....

My nephew Gideon made the paper this week and I couldn't be prouder of him! He is a great kid, he works hard on the farm with his mom, dad, Uncle Chris and Grandpa T! I have always loved how he has taken my son (Jackson) and showed him how to do things, helps him do chores and he takes him trap shooting (Gideon's passion), and now he is teaching Jackson it is important to make a difference...this was in the Cassopolis Vigilant this week:


Article taken from: http://www.cassopolisvigilant.com/2011/01/20/student-gives-back-to-art-class/

Student gives back to art class

Published 4:57pm Thursday, January 20, 2011
The Cassopolis High school art room is ringing in 2011 with brand new tables.

Well not exactly — but it sure looks like it. Thanks to Gideon Hebron, a student at the school, the room looks rejuvenated.

Last spring Hebron told teacher Shelly Johnson that he wanted to fix the gouged and abused tables. The rough surfaces made it difficult for students to do artwork. Every divot and scratch came though onto the paper above.

Hebron wrote a proposal letter stating his desire to fix the tables. This fall he was given the go-ahead, and he spent the last three months sanding, filling and finishing. He worked many lunch hours and much of his own time (coming in even when school was closed) to bring the tabletops back to their original beauty.

Hebron comes by his talent for woodworking by watching and learning from his father, Richard Hebron, who owns a private saw mill in Cassopolis. Richard graduated from Cassopolis High School in 1983, and he too kept the art room tables in top form.

When Hebron was asked why he wanted to refinish the art room tabletops, he responded by saying that he wanted to make a difference before he left high school. Hebron is a senior this year and plans to pursue farming and Olympic Dreams Trap Shooting after he graduates.

Great job Gideon....

Happy 4th Birthday Jorja May

Four years ago today Jorja May (pronounced Georgia) -- nickname JJ, was born (January 12th, 2007)...she was born at 7:16 p.m. weighing 6 pounds, 14 ounces and measured 19 3/4 inches long.  She was born early and in the NICU for 11 days... but don't let her fool you... she was just laying around getting ready to make a difference in this world!

She is very free spirited...crazy and keeps you on your toes!

This beautiful girl is turning 4 today... she loves to draw, paint, drink milk, and anything that her brothers and sister can do!  She has a huge heart, but is very shy most of the time.  If she talks to you... IT IS A BIG DEAL!  She spends a lot of time with her mother (I call her my shadow), going to the farm and going to the kids school...and I am currently trying to sneak her in at the boys school because she feels most comfortable among the teachers and staff!

Jorja's sister Kyra made this and framed it for her for Christmas...

She loves working on the farm collecting the eggs!
She is my "GIFT" that keeps on giving and I thank God everyday for having her in my life!

Happy Birthday Jorja May!

Much love...

It's cold out... so we are having....Crunchy Chicken

It is cold out... and snowing, which is good since I don't like it just being cold!  I am hoping for sledding this weekend...fun times for the kids - and me of course!

Tonight we are planning on having Crunchy Chicken... the last time I made it Cyrus wouldn't stop eating it... which is rare, so I will try to make it often.  If I could alternate Flank steak (in a special marinade I will post soon) and Crunchy  Chicken he would eat every day!

Crunchy Chicken 

Ingredients

• 1 egg, beaten 
• 3 tablespoons milk 
• 1-1/4 cups crushed cornflakes or finely crushed rich round crackers (about 35) 
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed 
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper 
• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted 
• 2-1/2 to 3 pounds meaty chicken pieces (breast halves, thighs, and drumsticks)

Directions

1. In a small bowl combine egg and milk. For coating, in a shallow dish combine crushed cornflakes, thyme, paprika, salt, pepper; stir in melted butter. Set aside. Skin chicken (I did not). Dip chicken pieces, 1 at a time, into egg mixture; coat with crumb mixture. 

2. In a greased 15x10x1-inch baking pan, arrange chicken, bone side down, so the pieces aren't touching. Sprinkle chicken pieces with any remaining crumb mixture so they are generously coated. 

3. Bake, uncovered, in a 375 degree F oven for 45 to 55 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink (170 degrees F for breasts; 180 degrees F for thighs and drumsticks). Do not turn chicken pieces while baking. Makes 6 servings. 

I served the chicken with Potatoes and cut up potatoes with a side salad and of course a big glass of  milk in a cold cup(frozen), can't get any better then that.

Have a great day!

Happy New Year!

Well we surrived 2010. We had many ups and downs with our biggest being the barn fire that happened one year ago on January 6th, but I always believed after that...the year could only get better, and it did. We made many new friends and got to spend quality time with our old friends. I ended my long run on PTO board at the kids school and now can just enjoy volunteering when I want to or I can just go in and hang out with my kids.

My four kids still amaze me and I still can't believe I was blessed to be their mom.

                                                  Cyrus, Jackson, Jorja May and Kyra

We lost our dog Mcgee to old age...(14 years old)



Mcgee (14 years old)

 and gained Jones who has wiggled his way deep in my heart.



Jones (puppy)



Jones (9 months old)


My husband the farmer still surprises me with his crazy ideas...which his mom warned me about .... about 20 years ago. I know she is in heaven saying I told you so, but I know she wouldn't have it anyother way.

I always try to look at the positive side of things...so this year we all have grown as a family and as farmers! I never try to imagine what I will be doing in 10 years, because as long as I have Chris by my side, my kids and my friends...I know things are going to be just right! Besides living with Chris one never knows what we will be doing in TEN years...but I am pretty sure it involves muddy boots and more animals!

I wish everyone a Happy New Year and I am hoping to make a difference this year!

ps. I forogt to mention another huge event in 2010 -- Farmer Chris started a blog...so now there is proof I don't make this crazy farmer up!