I went to a kefir and yogurt making workshop a few weeks ago hosted by Warren Taylor of Snowville Creamery. (I LOVE Snowville…their products as well as all they stand for!!! And after the demo I have a huge crush on Warren too!)

He is a wealth of information and a great speaker. He is a self proclaimed dairy evangelist. Most of the photos I took of him look like this

He never stops moving or talking! His love for yogurt and kefir and all things dairy is infectious! The most exciting part of the demo was all we learned about kifer and kefir grains. (yes I know I spelled them differently)

The grains look like small pieces of cauliflower. He showed us a large  container of fermented milk with the living kefir grains in it. Next he strained out the grains.

The colander held the living grains

And the kefir that was ready to drink was strained out into the bowl (and then into a pitcher)

A small taste of the keifr was passed around for all to try

It was delicious!! I loved it!! all sour, fizzy and unsweetened. From the first taste I was hooked! My friends prefer their kefir made into a smoothie-I like mine straight up! And first thing in the morning, to coat my belly and intestines with all those good bacteria. Mmmmm   Even those that are lactose intolerant find they can tolerate fermented dairy products.

We were each sent home with a small amount of kefir grains to make our own kefir.

About 2 Tablespoons worth. I brought them home and put them in a small amount of Snowville milk and let them sit for a day and then strained and drank the kefir and added more milk to the grains etc.. etc.. over the past few weeks.

Here is a photo of my kefir. The grains are on the top and the whey has settled to the bottom. A good shake after straining mixes it all up .This photo was taken about over a week ago and I have almost double the amount. My kefir grains are healthy and multiplying like crazy!!

Now I have so many grains I can share them with one lucky reader!! Aren’t you so excited!

I will send the winner approximately 2 Tablespoons of my kefir grains and directions for how to take care of them.

If you want to be entered in the Keifr Grain Give-A-Way leave a comment below. If you tweet about this give-a-way leave another comment telling me.The same goes if  you link back to this give-a-way or if you share it on facebook. So you really have four different ways to enter.

I will close comments and announce the winner Tuesday mid-morning.  (2/15/2011)

Good Luck!!!!!

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Post tags: Creamery, dairy products, evangelist, Fermented, good bacteria, grain, grains, kefir, kefir grains, keifr, kifer, milk, rain, smoothie, snow, snowville, Sour, Warren, warren taylor, whey, workshop, yogurt

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When we finally had enough empty milk and juice cartons to make blocks I cut the tops off the cartons, the kids dripped various combinations of food coloring into the cartons and we filled them with water and put them outside to freeze.

A couple of days later we peeled the cartons away from the ice blocks…some were frozen a little more solid than others.

The colored water that dripped out made for pretty snow to play in

Colorful snow balls!

Now I am back to hording the empty cartons and yogurt containers to make more colorful ice blocks!

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Post tags: art, Blocks, color, colored water, Colorful, containers, empty milk, food coloring, ice, juice cartons, Outside, Play, snow, snow balls

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Here are a few highlights of the weekend.

We always go to my Mom’s for Christmas eve. She cooks delicious things and makes everything pretty just for us! This year she surprised Ginger with a karaoke machine! And a Hannah Montana CD…. Oh boy! Does she LOVE it!

Molly asked “how early can we wake you up?” Joe told her 5 AM…guess what time she woke us?

We are pretty good about sticking to the kids lists. Buying them things they want and not as much stuff that I think they should have. Yet there are always a few surprises thrown in. This year I hit a home run with my surprise for Molly!!

Bento boxes for her and Ginger along with a Bento cookbook and all the little tools and treasures. The perfect gift for my little Martha in the making!

It didn’t matter that we just had a huge breakfast, she couldn’t wait to get to work making lunch!

One of our other Christmas traditions is Molly’s Christmas day cake. This year she made a red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting from scratch. Look out Cake Boss!

I LOVE the week between Christmas and New Years. I feel like I can breath a sigh of relief and just enjoy. I wrote all about it last year too.

We are anxiously waiting for a friend to arrive in a few hours to stay with us for the week along with a cousin who will also be visiting. We are looking forward to some sledding today before the snow melts, a trip to the movies and the zoo to see holiday lights, sushi and chocolate fondue with friends. It will be a stay-cation around here and I am loving it!! Hope your week between is filled with more holiday joy!

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Post tags: bento boxes, book, Cake, chocolate fondue, Christmas, christmas day, christmas eve, christmas traditions, Cook, Cookbook, cooks, cream cheese, cream cheese frosting, holiday, holiday joy, holiday lights, Home, karaoke machine, Kids, lunch, Molly, PepperPaints, perfect gift, photos, red velvet cake, red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting, sigh of relief, sledding, snow, tradition, traditions, weekend, zoo

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I posted the photos backwards as to not ruin our secret to getting this roaring fire started

We hear there is more snow heading our way!!

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Post tags: art, fire, Night, perfect night, photo, photos, roaring, snow, snow fire

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I swear to heaven above that these really do taste like Sour Patch Kids. Only they are a little more healthy!

I saw this recipe on local, Columbus blogger Rachel’s,  Hounds in the Kitchen. I knew right away that I would love this sweet and Oh, so sour concoction!! And boy was I right! I barely have any enamel left on my teeth after eating almost a whole bag of these sugary, sour goodies.

You will need to mix :

2 T of honey with 2 T of hot water in a bowl. To that add grated orange peel, 1/2 t cinnamon (more or less)  and 1 teaspoon (more or less)  vanilla extract.

Rinse a bag of cranberries and add to the bowl, mixing to coat.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment and pour a mix of 1 to 2 cups of powder sugar and granulated sugar.

With a slotted spoon, add cranberries to the sugar mix and coat well.  Let sit about 30 minutes or until sugar hardens. Store in a jar for 3 to 4 days. I didn’t use a slotted spoon so  mine are still drying since this morning. But that didn’t stop me from eating them all day!!!

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Post tags: AKA Snowey, blog, blogger, cinnamon, Columbus, cranberries, goodies, Homemade, honey, Kids, Kitchen, ORANGE, orange peel, photo, photos, powder sugar, recipe, snow, Sour, sour patch kids, sugar mix, Sugared, sugared cranberries, Thursday

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Broken humerus snowboarding with friends today.

Lucky he had a helmet on!

Bad timing!

We are leaving for an Unschoolers Conference at a water park for a few days, we have a quick ski trip planned, he has several circus performances coming up, helping out with a music video in the girls breakdancing class, and he and Joe were going to Jackson Hole for snowboarding and snowmobiling. (which may still be possible if he heals in a timely manner).

Ginger is sick and I spent most of the day at the hospital with Jake,  so packing and shopping for our trip is not happening. So, I will be cramming in what I can tomorrow and then off for a few days of R&R. I’ll be back next week, hopefully with better news. Or at least I’ll be well rested.

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Post tags: circus, circus performances, dancing, friend, friends, Ginger, hospital today, Joe, park, photo, photos, snow, snowboarding, unschool

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There was also a friends birthday to celebrate!

The snow continued through the night and most of the day today. We spent all day digging out, sledding and playing in the snow.

When we came in, we attempted to make Maple Candy. I followed the directions but no luck. Most everyone I talked with that had tried this was also unsuccessful.

I boiled the syrup until it was lacey on top and 255 degrees. But it never hardened, it just melted the snow. Anyone have any tips to pass along? What did I do wrong? HELP??

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Post tags: Candy-help, chinese new year, chinese restaurant, friends, maple candy, photos, playing in the snow, sledding, snow, syrup

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Especially if you have really cute puppies!

Then you should make Snow Ice Cream!!

Beat 1 cup of milk with 1/2 cup of sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla till fluffy. Then add enough snow to absorb all the liquid.

This is sooo tasty! But of course I had to alter it, so I tried it with Almond milk, maple syrup and vanilla and it was Mmm Mmm good but of course that wasn’t enough! I added some shredded coconut, cocoa nibs, a few raisins and some chopped up macadamia nuts-Then it was perfect!!!!!!!!!!

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Post tags: almond milk, cocoa nibs, cute puppies, macadamia, macadamia nuts, maple syrup, photos, puppies, shredded coconut, snow, snow ice cream, Snows, syrup

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Not all of our homeschool classes have started yet. So this week we eased back into our routine, slowly! Since  Jake and Molly were younger and naps were a thing of the past, I would try to set aside time most afternoons for some quiet time. We called it Tea Time. In the afternoons we would make a  pot of Red Zinger and have little snacks while I read to them.  We still look forward to our afternoon break! And even though Jake only occasionally joins us for the snacking part, the girls and I use this time to catch up on our latest chapter book or some poems. One of the books I plan to use more ideas from is COME TO TEA by Stephanie Dunnewind. It has lots of ideas for tea party themes, crafts and games.

We also made a trip to the zoo this week.

While Molly and a friend attended a zoo class; the little girls and I walked around to see a few animals enjoying the snow.  Then a quick  hot cocoa break!

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Post tags: animals, craft, Crafts, homeschool, homeschool classes, photo, photos, quiet time, snow, Stephanie Dunnewind, Tea, tea party, tea time, walk, zoo, zoo class

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It was fun to meet some new people as well as catch up with some ladies (her, her, her) I haven’t seen in a while.   (Sorry if I caught up with you and didn’t link to you, I had Jenl’s ice cream on the brain and it took my techy self way too long to do that many links!)

Abby made sure I didn’t forget about her- or she might kick my stretchy pants covered butt!

They are trying out a new add campaign and we got to preview it and comment and snack and all that good stuff.  Best of all we get to customize a free T-shirt from a local vendor!!  Definitely the best gimme!  Anywho, there campaign is based on what Columbus doesn’t have.  I am a bit leary of this ad concept.  I get that we don’t have bragging rights to the Eiffel Tower, or the Alps.  I don’t think anyone in the three hour radius (those who most visit for leisure) is looking for those things.   I am guessing you would be coming here to visit family, you probably have kids..or you are coming here to shop or visit OSU.   Most every city has a zoo, malls, possibly a science center, art museum etc…I think there ad should focus not only on what we do have but the oddities, off the beaten path, free, and different things Columbus has to offer.

Because I do not have three hours to type out a really great add for Columbus, I will just list some of our greatnesses!

1. The short North-try to visit the art district on the first Saturday evening of any month, year around and you will not only be entertained by the street performers, the open galleries  and stores, many different  eateries and bars, but by the people that attend.  Some of the best people watching around. We are The Indie Arst Capitol of the World you know!  And the short North will prove how serious Columbus takes its Art.

2. The Park of Roses-Come here anytime through out the summer and be amazed by the Award winning rose gardens.  Or come in the winter and hope there is some snow!

3. In the summer you can check out either one of these great free water attractions with your kids:  The Dancing Bunnies or Homestead Park.  Now neither of these are in Columbus proper but really no matter where your staying, it is fairly easy to get around here.  Especially is you aren’t in rush hour traffic.  But if you want water and you want to stay in the city-there is not only shopping galore (for those with money to spend!) but there are also free fountains to play in at Easton .  There are waterfalls to play in here in Columbus  too.  Did you know that?

4.We have great shopping!!  Some of the best thrift stores are here!  Village Discount, Ohio Thrift as well as several Salvation Army’s and Goodwills and Volunteers of America stores.  Antique stores like crazy!

5. Music and Food.  Where do I begin??  Every type of authentic ethnic food as well as American eateries can be found here.  We have many vegan and vegetarian options also.   Now as far as music-well I think we have another title there too-aren’t we like the best new up and coming talent, hot live music scene too?

Well I could go on and on, beleive me I have so much more,  but this took me too long and  maybe someday I will do an insiders scoop of Columbus on the cheap-with and with out kid activities.  Or better yet maybe someone will PAY me for all my good info!

So in a nut shell – Come visit us!  There’s lots to see and do both ordinary and extraordinary.  If you are planning a trip to our fair city and your are looking for something to do-drop me an email and I can certainly point you in the right direction!  I can be like your internet travel guide!!

Moooooooooooo from Cowtown.  Go Bucks.  O_H_I_O We have a little bit of EVERYTHING here!  That’s my new add campaign :

COME TO COLUMBUS-WHERE THERE REALLY IS A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING!

© admin for Pepper Paints, 2008. | Permalink | 10 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: dancing, park, rain, snow, vegan, vegetarian

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