Hello, good morning, and happy Friday! I just finished writing out the five things I wanted to share with you today and scrolled back up to the top to write this intro juuuuust as Finley decided that she is ready to walk right now. So I’m keeping this intro short and sweet and let’s go ahead and dive right into this week’s FIVE…

ONE: This Week’s Reader Favorites

• Maps – home library must have
• Fall embroidery beginner kit – everything you need included
• Acrylic bookends -night and day difference for neat book organization
• Famous art cards – to learn to easily rattle off title and artist of famous paintings
• Rechargeable lightbulbs so you can put a lamp anywhere
• Complete Baking Book for Kids – so your child can also bake cookies and cakes daily
• Artisan Sourdough – simple and foolproof sourdough success
• Ranger’s Apprentice (Book 1) – my 13 year old’s current favorite series
• Keeper of the Lost Cities (Book 1) – keeping my 11 year old thoroughly engaged
• Natural Flea & Tick Daily Supplement Powder – for the naturally reared dog

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TWO: The Jiggliest Bone Broth I’ve Ever Made

I’ve never met a trend I wasn’t slow to warm up to, so go figure a decade after it got popular, I finally decided I needed a 6qt Instant Pot. I’ve now used it to make French Dip sandwiches, which were good. I hear I must try it for rice and boiled eggs, which I plan to do. And I’ll be honest, I still have a deep fear it’s going to explode anything I hit go on it.

However. yesterday I made the hands-down jiggliest beef bone broth I’ve ever made (and IYKYK that the jigglier the better). Seriously, though, I can scoop it up and hold it in my hand. I am psyched to have proof of all that gelatin goodness and it took less than four hours start to finish. I combined a couple recipes and ended up with this combo:

• 3 pound beef knuckle (got it from our cow share)
• 4 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 3 celery stalks, roughly chopped
• 1 small onion, peeled and quartered
• 1/2 a leek, roughly chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 inch ginger, peeled
• 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp peppercorns
• 2 bay leaves
• 9 cups of water (to just below the max fill line)

Then I did high pressure for 3 hours and let it naturally release, then switch to keep warm for about an hour because I wasn’t home. I strained it into my Cambro to put in the fridge overnight to easily scrape off the fat and woke up this morning the the jiggliest result I’ve ever gotten ever. My mind is blown.

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THREE: Busy Season Mindset

Last night I attended a mandatory parent meeting for the musical theater program my girls are auditioning for. It felt like the kick off to what is sure to be a fun fall season of commitments including co-op, soccer, piano, musical theater, and possibly more. Since moving, I know many of these commitments are a further drive than we used to have to make and I think in spring when we first moved here, that threw me for a loop.

But for the fall I’ve made up my mind to enjoy the heck out of this busier season, both in the year and in life. I won’t get to drive them to the things they enjoy forever so right now I’ll treasure it. I’ll bring a Spindrift to sip and I have different audiobooks lined up to enjoy (K and I are listening to Percy Jackson, all three of us just started Where the Red Fern Grows, and H and I are going to list to Pride & Prejudice). And while they’re doing their thing I’ll run errands or bring my computer or sneak in and watch them if I can. Here’s to embracing our seasons!

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FOUR: Home and Garden

I want to do more dedicated posts to our home and garden and chicks because I’m having so much fun working on them all! But none are really at a “done” kind of place. Here’s the short updates:

• garden: zinnias, peppers, and basil are still thriving. I ripped up the beans, cucumbers, tomatoes, and herbs that had dwindled. I replanted cucumbers that seem to be doing decently well? I hope to add some soil and plant some fall things (TBD). The pumpkins we planted in mid-July are thriving!! I’m hoping to keep the squash bugs at bay.
• chickens: they’re so big now! They’ve learned to drink through nipples, eat food from the fancy feeder, enjoy some treats (parsley is their fav), and are mostly all in the coop ready for bed by the time our automatic door closes right after sunset. Progress! All chicken favorites found here.
• home: the living room is getting so close to a “pause” point that I could take pictures and share. I need to order family pictures for our frames but having a hard time choosing. The home gym is pretty much done so I’m excited to share that space soon! I’m still searching for art for so many spaces. I’m counting down the days until we pull out our fall decor (Labor Day!)

FIVE: Natural Beauty

I’m not an expert in this arena, but I’m constantly learning towards embracing certain aspects of getting older and choosing my tools wisely that I want to employ to keep looking and feeling my best. On the hair front, I’m SO close to having just my natural hair. I straightened my hair yesterday for the first time in a while and it definitely highlighted my need for a haircut. I can’t wait until I cut the last of those dyed ends off and fully embrace my natural color.

On the face front, I’m all over the place. I’ve heard 40+ is less about the perfect products and more about more regular treatments. Treatments are pricy and a definite luxury, but since I’m going to be splurging on them, I’ll take you along. I’ve done an IPL twice for redness and discoloration and I just booked my first microneedling appointment. If you’re into skin treatments can you tell me which ones you’ve found most impactful? I’ll share my microneedling experience once I have it done!

The plan for this weekend is to cheer our girls on at auditions and embrace the flex time we’re still enjoying by knocking out some projects like organizing the garage, adding dirt to the garden, canning some broth, and adding magnets to our pocket doors to get them to stay. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a lovely weekend!