Exciting News

Recently I mentioned that lots of big things were happening this year and that there would be lots of announcements so today I’m going to make one of those announcements. The feed store building is officially finished. Yay! We just had our 2nd load of feed brought in and we will be officially opening for business next week. It’s such an exciting thing for my husband and his dad. They day dreamt of this for a long time and I’m so happy for the both of them. Quality cattle, horse, sheep, goat, chicken, dog, and pig feed will be offered. We will also be selling produce on the weekends this spring and summer. Brian decided that this would be perfect for our children to do with us. The money will go into their savings accounts. It will be our own home grown produce and such a great act of responsibility for the kids. We are all so excited. 

 It’s the best. Life is extremely crazy right now for us so i will probably be taking a long break from the internet (I’ve already been slacking majorly on instagram if you haven’t noticed) but I will be back in April with a HUGE announcement. You won’t want to miss this one. I promise 🙃

Happy Valentine’s Day

Happy Valentine’s day to you all. I hope that whether you celebrated it or not, you had a great day. Aside from the usual making Valentine’s boxes, sending candy and balloons to the kids at school, and getting each other little gifts (We don’t go big because we give each other surprises/gifts regularly) — We also cooked a big dinner as a family and watched a movie with the kids. They picked Jurassic Park which was clearly fine by me ha. After school we picked my niece up (picture of the kids in the car was parked in the carpool line) and then went to see my grandma. We met her at my parents house because my mom had gotten the kids gifts as well. My dad is still in the hospital and had another surgery this morning so I’ve honestly not been in a holiday mood but i did have a good day. It was forced at times but that’s okay. My kids won’t know any different. They’ll just know the memories that we made 💌

Creamy Tuscan Pasta Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons salted butter (Earth Balance is our vegan alternative)
• 6 cloves garlic, finely diced
• 1 pound shrimp, tails off (Optional/Vegan-Vegetarian friendly)
• 1 small yellow onion, diced 
• 5 oz jarred sun dried tomato strips in oil, drained 
• 1 3/4 cups half and half (Ripple plant based half and half is what I use but you can also make your own with soy milk and Earth Balance butter)
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 3 cups baby spinach leaves, washed
• 2/3 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese (Go Veggie or Thrive vegan Parm. You can also make your own mozzarella substitute. I will do a recipe on that next. It’s my favorite go to for cheesy meals.) 
• 2 teaspoons dried Italian herbs
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley 

Instructions

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Melt the butter and add in the garlic and fry until fragrant (about one minute). Add in the shrimp and fry two minutes on each side, until just cooked through and pink. Transfer to a bowl; set aside.
2. Fry the onion in the butter remaining in the skillet. Pour in the white wine (if using), and allow to reduce to half, while scraping any bits off of the bottom of the pan. Add the sun dried tomatoes and fry for 1-2 minutes to release their flavours.
   
3. Reduce heat to low-medium heat, add the half and half and bring to a gentle simmer, while stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper to your taste.
4. Add in the spinach leaves and allow to wilt in the sauce, and add in the parmesan cheese. Allow sauce to simmer for a further minute until cheese melts through the sauce. (For a thicker sauce, add the milk/cornstarch mixture to the centre of the pan, and continue to simmer while quickly stirring the mixture through until the sauce thickens.)
5. Add the shrimp back into the pan; sprinkle with the herbs and parsley, and stir through.
6. Serve over pasta, rice or steamed