AWOL...And Our Full Freezer

True Story: Yesterday I needed to check on my blog to look up some information for a friend.

Except...I couldn't remember what the name of my blog was.

Blog?

I have a blog?

It hasn't really been that long since I last posted, just about a week and a half.  So I'm afraid that the forgetfulness has more to do with an advanced case of Mommy-brain (am I the only one who has that?) than anything else.

My brain can apparently only hold so much information at a time.  And when I add new stuff into it...it obviously leaks older info out. 

And we've had new and different stuff going on here lately.

For instance...

We officially started our 2013-2014 school year.  I have First-Day-of-School pictures, and that deserves its own post.  

And we also, ummmmm...let me see....well, no, school starting up again is the big thing we've had going on lately.  It takes up lots of my brain power...not to mention my time!

But we did do something new and different - and very fun - this past weekend.

Can't you tell how excited Jas is?

What's that he's holding?  Why, it's beef.  Grass-fed beef, to be exact.


On Saturday, we went here...

...in this...

We let G drive part of the way.  Or not.

...and picked up a whole cow (dead, you understand) to split with our dear friends, the S Family.  

When we got home Jas, Rick, Melissa and I sat down in our kitchen - amongst many coolers - and split up all the packages of beef.  Needless to say, we have a freezer full of beef now. It is a beautiful site. Oh, it makes my heart sing!

And then the S family stayed the night with us.  Talk about a great weekend!  Our (combined) eight cuties from China had a great time together.  We four parents had a great time together.  And we now have healthy meat waiting for us...for months.

This grass-fed meat is more expensive than meat we could buy at local grocery stores.  Five years ago I would have scoffed at the idea of paying more.  But I've learned over the past few years about the advantages to grassfed beef:

(Caution: I'm going to use real technical terms here)

Being on grass makes for happier and healthier cows (they are ruminants and God designed them to eat grass)...

...and therefore...

It is healthier for us!

Rocket science I tell ya!


We've got 48 pounds of ground beef, along with short-ribs, sirloin, t-bones, etc., etc., etc. .  Oh, and bones.  YAY for bones!  I've been making Perpetual Broth in my slowcooker since the beginning of the year (the kids love it and drink it like tea with breakfast) and I definitely know what to do with those bones!

Now, to figure out how to prepare all these different cuts of meat that I've never encountered before...like shanks!