I've Been Tagged and Asked Four Questions

My friend Deb, from Stroll Through Storyland, tagged me and asked me four questions.

1. What's your favorite store to go into?

Ok... hands down it is the King Arthur Flour Store. I know ~ lots of jealous folks out there ~ because I live so close and can go anytime I choose. I could spend hours in that store looking at all of the baking supplies and ingredients... and tasting all sorts of bakery treats while I shop. What can I say? I love to cook and I love to eat.

2. Do you keep a journal or diary?

No, I never really got into that sort of thing.

3. What time do you go to bed?

Most nights it is 10:30 or 11 PM when I fall into bed for the first time. Then it has been 2 or 3 AM after feeding grand baby while her momma is working the graveyard shift then I go back to bed for the second time. We've had a couple nights of no waking up, so that is good for me.

4. How many hours, on average, do you spend on the computer?

Hmmmm...if you count the number of hours I sit at the computer at work ~ lots...but it is work and no fun. At home it greatly depends on what is going on. Two grand babies keep me pretty busy in the evenings so some days I never even log on to the computer and use the cell phone to check out what's going on. I'm finding the traveling Internet on the cell is a golden highway as it reduces the amount of time spent sitting at a computer....but the down side is that I can't do as much online with the cell.

Now it is my turn to tag four people. Mountain Woman from Red Pine Mountain, Teresa from Life, Homesteading and Everything, MamaZ from Two Zany Zebras and Lily my dear friend over at Fusion Art Jewelry that I'm hoping will come out of hiding for a little bit of bloggy fun.

Should you accept, Here are you're Four Questions:

1. What is your favorite season and why?

2. If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?

3. What is your least favorite household chore?

4. Do you like your toilet paper hanging over or under the roll?

EtsyBloggers October 11 Blog Carnival

Welcome to the October 11th, 2010 edition of the EtsyBloggers Blog Carnival!

Here are this edition's themes:

1. What are some fun activities you like to do in the fall. (travel, apple
picking, etc)

2. Show us some awesome photos of autumn in and around where you live.

Enjoy!

Laurie Jackson presents Fall in Colorado posted at Indulge Your Shelf.

gilliauna presents Seattle in the Fall and Steve Raley Photography - A Rare Post by Leal posted at The Meandering Musings of a Consummate Shopper.

TiLTcreations presents Etsyblogger Carnival: Fall Fun posted at Crafts, kids, home and life.

Linda B presents October 8 Blog Carnival - Autumn the Season posted at Linda B's Blog.

Patti presents MMM...Mustard! posted at peacoxcreations.

Jessica presents Blog Carnival: Fall Fun posted at Cut Your Heart Out.

Jordan Pulliam presents Finally Fall posted at Jordan Necessities.

cindy devine presents My favorite time of the year posted at Devine Designs Jewelry.

Charity presents BlogCarnival – Fall Activities posted at Eternal Stardust Jewelry, saying, "Sorry it's kind of short. "

Erika presents Here Comes the Fair posted at NICO* Designs.

Alicia Mae presents The leaves, the leaves posted at Crafts and Cooking.

storybeader presents Etsybloggers Carnival - fall in Oklahoma posted at Stroll Through Storyland.

Linda Wheelock presents The Roads Less Traveled posted at Spotted Cow Soaps.

Lydia Schrandt presents Where are you autumn?? posted at Glowbug Design.

Joey & Aleethea presents apple picking time posted at J o e y & A l e e t h e a.

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of etsybloggers
using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

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The Roads Less Traveled

The grand display of colors this time of year is breathtaking, indeed. Along any road in Vermont there is a photo opportunity waiting to be captured. Here is a road less traveled in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont where the wildlife is plentiful. Ever been along the Kancamagus Highway in New Hampshire? Keep watch and I will share some photos of our trip. It is an amazing stretch of road that draws thousands of tourists (leaf peepers) each year.

Time for the Chocoholics to Unite!

Today's flavor of the day is all about chocolate. I love chocolate anything, and this scrumptious Chocoholics Unite Sugar Scrub is sure to bring decadence and delight to your bathing experience. This scrub is a truly euphoric adventure to be explored. Bubbling with excitement that one experiences with an intense chocolate explosion from the world's best chocolatier. This is definitely not for the faint at heart. Let the adventure begin!

Never leave home without our scrubs. We now package them in a convenient 4 ounce jar. These also make great stocking stuffers for the Holiday's. And, if you reside within the US you will enjoying FREE Shipping on our regularly priced products. Each of these chocolate explosions will ship for free if you reside within the US.

Maple Sugar Heaven

I just love Maple Sugar....Yummy Maple Sugar dripping all over pancakes or poured over snow, maple cream on toast, or perhaps a candy treat....and now, you can bathe and scrub in the essence of Maple Sugar year round. There's nothing like the smell of boiling sap in a sugar house each spring and these products capture that essence dead on! Great gift idea for the Maple Sugar lovers in your life.

We've taken our Whipped Soap and combined it with some sugar ~ creating a fabulous exfoliating scrub! Leaves your skin feeling clean, soft and moisturized. Best of all, this product is Paraben Free. A little goes a long way with this fabulous Whipped Sugar Scrub. Simply remove desired amount of Whipped Sugar Scrub from jar. Rub into skin; add water to create a delightful bubbly sugar lather and rinse off.

Our Maple Sugar Whipped Sugar Scrub comes in two convenient sizes. If you are not quite sure about our Whipped Sugar Scrubs, the 4 ounce jar is perfect for you! This size also makes for great stocking stuffers ~ hint, hint! :) If you have come to love our Whipped Sugar Scrubs or you are a Sugar Scrub "Junkie", then the 8 ounce jar is just the ticket.

We certainly could not make a scrub without offering a luxurious bar of Maple Sugar Handcrafted Soap. This superfatted soap formula is made with Olive Oil, Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Canola Oil, Sunflower Oil, and Shea Butter. It will leave your skin feeling extra pampered and loved. Each handsome handcrafted bar of soap weighs between 4.5 to 5 ounces.

Best of all, our US customers have really been enjoying FREE Shipping on our regularly priced products. Yes, I said FREE Shipping! Each of these Maple delights will ship for free if you reside within the US.

It's Autumn in Vermont!

It's fall in Vermont. Fall colors have slowly been emerging and it looks to be yet another spectacular show of colors, as always. This Autumn Leaf Soap is one of many new creations I've been working on this past month.

I know it has been a while since I last wrote on my blog, but that's life sometimes. In the past month I've spent a great deal of time processing fresh local veggies for the school...tomatoes, corn, peppers, melon, green beans...and the fall crops are coming in shortly. The freezer is really bursting with the bounty from area farmers and growers. We've helped the local economy by purchasing the produce, but the farmers and growers have been so generous and we've had an equal amount of produce donated by these same folks. It has been awesome! The kids at my school are getting the best of the best, and I'm proud of that.

I've also been working on preserving the bounty from my own garden at home. The tomatoes have gone crazy this year and made up for last year when all of my 20+ vines were stricken with early end blight. The tomatoes this year are going bonkers and I have been giving the excess bounty away to anyone that will take them. My freezers at home are filling right up!

Big changes with a toddler and a newborn in the house. And even bigger changes for their mom when she returned to work after maternity leave. The shift she had been working was eliminated and she's on a 3rd shift position. The grandbabies keep me busy in the evenings, and it's a small miracle if we have dinner before 7 PM. Then it is baths, bottles, diapers...and just when you think you about blogging you realize it is bedtime once again.

Back to School with a Freezer Full of Local Produce

It's that time of year where preparations are well underway for the new school year. No backpacks, notebooks, crayons and pencils for this chick! Managing a Food Service program for a school is a never ending job well after the students leave for the summer and before students return in the fall.

I feel privileged to be among the leaders in this country that are making positive changes for their students that participate in the National School Lunch program. Many Vermont schools are already cooking healthier. Prepared spaghetti sauce from a can? Not in my school kitchen ~ scratch cooking is the thing to do! Not only is it cheaper, but it is healthier for the kids. No concerns over sodium laden sauces, added sugars, dyes, preservatives, etc.

A culmination of planning and efforts between myself, farmers and interested community members is now reality. This year I am extremely excited that we are taking some of the scratch cooking back to the roots and closer to the vines where food grows. Farmers and interested families within the school community have agreed to "grow a row" for the school.
Produce Processing Parties have been planned where volunteers will (under my direction) assist with the washing, peeling, chopping, blanching and freezing the bounty of local produce. Students will enjoy that bounty over the course of the upcoming school year....corn, beans, tomatoes, peppers, onions, squash, root veggies, and more. None of this would be possible without the generosity from within the community and the passion I hold for true cooking from scratch.

Last spring the 3rd grade class planted some heirloom tomatoes along an old flower bed behind the school. Students enrolled in summer programs have been maintaining the garden over the summer. How exciting it will be to have students pick the tomatoes in the morning that will be served on the salad bar for lunch!