Category Archives: Just stuff

happy wheatie reading!

by nebraskawheatie

These past few days have been interesting, to say the least!

When I was asked to write a post for Housewives of Rural America, I struggled. I struggled because it was the same ‘ole story that seems I’ve told over and over again. Who is going to want to read this again? But I wrote and as I wrote, the words came easier than anticipated and before I knew it, I had a fairly long post. I even apologized to Jenny and Katie for the length. They didn’t seem to mind, though, so I was excited to see how it would be accepted by the rest of the blog world.

What I didn’t expect was to open my email later that same day and read this in the subject line, “Congrats, you’ve been Freshly Pressed!”  I was so excited (to say the least)! It was like I had won the multi-million dollar lottery! My heart started racing and I began to furiously post everywhere (Facebook and Twitter) that my post was liked by the WordPress editors. I had always wondered what it would take to get on that particular page. Only…it didn’t show up. I started feeling like maybe they had made a mistake and decided it really wasn’t good enough for the honor. And then I got discouraged and told myself that it just wasn’t meant to be.

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feeding 20 million

by nebraskawheatie

While we were in Limon, CO, the girls and I took our turn one evening to help with the supper meal. Although everything worked out just fine, it seemed like an overwhelming task considering we have a “Barbie” sized oven to cook in. After I mentioned the items the girls and I cooked in my post, it began only 17 days ago, I had a couple of people ask me for the recipes. If you read the post, you’ll also understand the title of this post.  I will share the recipes with you – but first, I have to tell a story about the cookbook they came from.

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thank you, dear farmer! (video)

by nebraskawheatie

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I am NOT a farmer. Our livelihood, however, depends on the American farmer. If they didn’t raise the crops that we harvest, we would have no reason to do what we do.

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This is Nebraska Football (video)

by nebraskawheatie

“This is Nebraska football!  A tradition filled with passion…loyalty…excellence…accountability…most importantly – family. It’s game day at Nebraska!”

IMG_3293Entering Memorial Stadium

Another field trip. This time with preschoolers. And where do we go? Memorial Stadium in Lincoln – home of the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Another good day to be a bus driver!

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STILL waiting!

by nebraskawheatie

Jamie’s due date was Monday, April 1. Tomorrow will be the week beyond the day she was expecting to give birth.

IMG_3138Last week’s doctor appointment      

I saw her today. Poor girl…she is MISERABLE! We had some really yummy peach/apricot wine (thanks Dale!) to sample this evening. She decided she’d have a few sips. She was paying for it big time with severe heart burn the rest of the evening. I remember being at the point she is now – just ready for my body to be back to “normal”.

While she was sitting here, she pointed to her belly and exclaimed, “watch this!”  I made it over to her just in time to see her lop-sided belly start to  move. One jab over here – another over there. While the whole family was gathered around her very swollen belly, we all began trying to coach that baby to make its appearance SOON! “Please, baby, come tomorrow”. “Stop being a bad baby and make your appearance”. “Come out NOW”!

She asked me to go to her dr. appointment tomorrow. No turning that request down! Maybe it will be her last. Jim’s birthday is Tuesday. I wonder if this baby is just waiting for Tuesday to roll around so it can celebrate his/her special day with Grandpa?

On another note, I hung clothes on the line today AND began cleaning garden debris from the flower gardens. I just can’t believe how therapeutic it is to dig in the dirt! My back is yelling a little tonight but I’m hoping I can get back out there again soon! It’s been a LONG winter and it sounds like the “S” word is making its way back in the forecast later this week.

It will soon start feeling like harvest is around the corner. The trailer house is coming out of storage on Wednesday. It has an appointment to get a few issues taken care of before the big trip south. I’m anxious for harvest to roll around but I’m NOT anxious to leave a six-week old baby and come home to a five month old. I will miss so much – it makes me want to cry!

 

BIG business catering to gluten-free diets

by nebraskawheatie

Thanks to one of my readers, a link to the Celiac.com website was shared with me. After I visited it, I became aware of at least three interesting facts I’d like to share. I definitely believe there are people who genuinely suffer from Celiac Disease and gluten issues. I DON’T believe we should all stop eating wheat – simply because of the ridiculous claims that are being reported through our media sources.

  1. Celiac Disease is hereditary.

Celiac disease, also known as gluten intolerance, is a genetic disorder that affects at least 1 in 133  Americans. Symptoms of celiac disease can range from the classic features, such as diarrhea, weight loss, and malnutrition, to latent  symptoms such as isolated nutrient deficiencies but no gastrointestinal symptoms.

2. There is clearly a difference between Celiac Disease and Gluten sensitivities. They are defined as “non-celiac” and “celiac gluten sensitivity”.

3. Catering to gluten-free diets is BIG BUSINESS!

$6.1bn spent 2011 on gluten-free foods in the USA—and a 30% growth from 2006 to 2010 in Canada to $2.64bn—indicate “Big Business” complete with the risk of missed, omitted, and mis-information for the goal of promoting greater consumption of gluten-free processed foods.

According to this CNBC.com article published on May 20, 2011, titled Gluten-free Foods Paying Off Big:

“Gluten-free ingredients can be pricey — Kupper estimates a gluten-free product can cost two to three-times more than regular items — but that has yet to dent their growth.

In 2010, gluten-free foods racked up $2.5 billion in global sales, accounting for more than a quarter of all food-intolerance purchases, according to Euromonitor International.”

A Wheatie’s View on Wheat

by nebraskawheatie

Ok…that’s it…last straw…now it’s my turn!

I heard about cardiologist Dr. William Davis and his book, Wheat Belly: Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight and Find Your Path Back to Health quite some time ago. The first time I remember seeing mention of this guy was when a friend of mine posted his concern about the popularity of the book on his FaceBook page.  We are both harvesters and have been in and around wheat all our lives. Neither of us grow wheat, but we harvest wheat so it came off as ridiculous to both of us.

Yesterday, I opened my email’s  home page and what’s staring back at me? An article written by George Dvorsky titled, Why you should probably stop eating wheat. Whaaaaaaaatttttttt?????

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Why I Am the Way I Am – Part 1

by nebraskawheatie

I received an email from a gentleman in August asking me if I’d consider doing a presentation about custom harvesting at a meeting (involving agricultural engineers) at the AG CONNECT show the end of January. I remember where I was and what I was doing the very instant I received this email. Why? Because it instantly made me sick to my stomach thinking about talking in front of anyone, let alone educated engineers!  I was sitting in the buddy seat of the combine with Jim in Montana. I read the email to him and his next words were, “Maybe you should see if Jon would do it”. Incentive enough to reconsider the idea that I couldn’t do it and show Mr. Jim I COULD do it. I was hoping for a little encouragement but he probably knew how I was feeling (terrified) and was trying to make it better the only way he knew how. I thought about it for a while before I answered with my “yes, I think I can do this”. I decided God had opened this door for me and I needed to walk through it. Continue reading →

#1 Post for 2012…”We cut wheat today!” (video)

by nebraskawheatie

“Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God’s side, for God is always right.” Abraham Lincoln

The day I wrote this post was one that had been long awaited!  We cut wheat today  on May 16 after sitting for days of waiting for moisture levels to get low enough to cut. The perfect moisture to cut wheat is 13%.  We sort of figured out it was probably due to the early spring and already ripened wheat. The wheat was ready to cut but the dew and cooler temps in the mornings (like a typical spring in TX) were messing with our ability to get it cut. It was after 3:00 when we FINALLY got started. Reading this post and seeing the pictures makes me really excited about heading south again. 

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#2 Post of 2012 highlights “Small Town” Caring!

by nebraskawheatie

When I started looking for this post, I could have swore Marcy’s fundraiser was this past fall. Silly me…the time goes way too fast! It was held in March. I was overwhelmed by the number of views this post received – but not really. Living in small town USA and being fortunate enough to experience neighborly caring has been something I will NEVER regret. You can keep the big city life and all that goes with it! As for me…my heart’s in the country and small town living. Read “When Community Comes Together” and you’ll understand where I’m coming from.  On a side note, Marcy is doing VERY well! Surgeries have revealed the cancer is gone and she’s going to continue living life to the fullest! PRAISE GOD! It’s New Year’s Eve. Our plans are to be home (babysitting my two favorite little girls) where it’s warm and safe. 🙂 For all of you who are heading out to bring in 2013 with a bang…BE CAREFUL! We’ve already seen what a “small” wreck can do to a person’s way of thinking. Have fun and here’s to 2013! New trials, new roads to travel, new fields to enter and new memories to create!