Its too hot to can

     Yesterday I pressure canned 3 pints of taco meat and 3 pints of sloppy joes.  Then I steam canned 5 pints of pickled okra and 1 quart of pickled jalapenos.  The temparature in the camper got up to 95 degrees and took all day to cool down to the 80's.  I think I am pretty much done with canning everything except things I can steam can until we get into the new house.  Its just too hard on me in this heat.
      I love to can and worry about the rising prices so I wanted to can as much as I could while we could still afford to buy the food but I think I am just going to have to say I am done.
Maybe when we get moved and settled the prices wont be too bad and I can find a local butcher shop and can some more meat.  I love home canned meat, it is so much tastier than store bought canned meat and if you live too far away from the stores its a good thing to have on hand.
     Once we get moved I want to start a garden using Christinas method of burying buckets that have the bottoms cut out.  I will try the winter crops in them and see how they do.  There is a small greenhouse at the new place which will come in handy to start seeds.  I wont be needing to grow anything in it because of the mild weather we have around here.
     The new house is on a lake so there may be some difference in temperatures there with the water so close. 
      Here is a picture of the house we are buying.

And here is the small greenhouse.

More old canning pix

Wife and child of tobacco sharecropper. The littlest girl comes in from outside for something to eat while mother is doing her housework. The child next to the baby is called in this country the "knee baby." Person County, North Carolina, 1939

1940 canning demo

Canning milk with pressure cooker in project family's home. Terrebonne Project, Schriever, Louisiana, 1940

‎1943... Washington public schools go to war. The public schools of Washington, D.C., like those in most other sections of the country, have revised their curricula to fit the pupils for fuller participation in the war effort. They have gone all-out for the Program of Civilian Defense and at the Margaret Murray Washington Vocational School, courses in home-making and the preservation of foods are now taught all young women. Photo shows Miss Laura Russell removing a can of string beans from pressure cooker

Workers in Astrakhan factory canning and weighing caviar.


Location: Russia

Date taken: May 1960

Missonary update

From: "Brenda Lange"


Subject: Blog, Sunday, July 28, 2012

Date: July 29, 2012 2:40:40 AM CDT

DRIVING TEST was really fun! So why am I not laughing?

Our tester has a reputation as a strict guy. When he was passing out tests, he started to hand me a test, and then jerked it back, giving me a different one.

I was the only NON Mozambican in the room so I stuck out like a sore thumb. Even the students were staring at me. The test I had to take was on “Auto-Estratas”-- Multi lane FREEWAYS of all things! They don’t even exists in Mozambique! Of 25 questions, I think I missed 2, but only time will tell. No one knows how many you can miss and still pass. Results are supposed to be out in 2 weeks. So I’ll keep you posted. VERY frustrating to find out that 10 of the 25 questions asked were not even in the study material. GRRRR! Goes the Rabbit!



STILL NO RESPONSE FROM ANYONE, ON WHO THE LORD IS SENDING TO HELP WITH THE TRUCK DRIVING.

Please understand that YOU may be the person who knows the one the Lord wants to send.

PLEASE follow His leading if the Lord is asking you to contact someone on our behalf.

We WILL fine sponsors to help with a ticket. The trip will be at GOD’S expense.



I just drove in from Pemba (3.5 hour drive) after dropping off our last 2 visitors at the airport.

Didn’t make church today, but had a refreshing time of praise and worship time with Jesus as I drove home.

My 2 “guards” in the back seat enjoyed the music also. Both are members of our church.



BABY FORMULA SHORTAGE

All was NOT going well as we scurried from shop to shop yesterday at the Pemba port, where all the warehouses are. (I call it my SAM’S warehouse, MACRO to all of you in RSA) I was desperate to find baby formula for our 13 babies! The town was basically SOLD OUT, and we had only a 2 weeks supply left.

Many new orphaned babies entered into the program last month, and no one told me our stock was getting low. (I try to keep 3 months ahead of the need because shortages are common in Mozambique.)

We got a few cans here and there, but I needed at least 10 CASES to keep our babies for a few weeks. None of the store owners knew when more formula would be shipped in. We had basically run out of places to look, when I remembered a small “barracka” next to the hardware store I frequent.



A BARRACKA is a small general store, usually in the market place of a town, which is owned and run by a Mozambican. Spotting a few cans of formula on the shelf, I asked to buy all he had. He said he could get me 7 more CASES if I’d wait an hour or so. It took 2 hours and 3 trips to his store before he finally had someone bring the cases from his home. Persistence and perseverance PAID OFF as he found 8 CASES! Just like God to provide more than we asked for via a non-believer.

Our babies will eat well for August, thanks to God’s provision, and your Love Gifts that pay for this precious gift of life.



Lots of Love and REMEMBER to keep your ears/eyes open for the one God is sending to be our truck driver!

Thanks!

Bush Bunny Brenda

Homemade glow stick

Debbie Haston's seasoned taco meat to can

I Season my own tacos and don't use a package seasoning.

Here is my recipe. This is for 6 lbs of hamburger. I start with 3 yellow onions md. to lg. diced and 3 Tablespoons Cumin, 3 Tablespoons minced garlic,

 8 Tablespoons chili powder, 6 teaspoons of cayenne pepper. I put that in a very large skillet and bloom the spices (let them get hot) then add the hamburger and fry all together until done.

 Drain well saving the juice off of the meat. Fill jar to the bottom mark on jar with the meat juice then pack with cooked meat. I added a half teaspoon of better then bullion to each jar. so did not add salt.

 Since the meat is already cooked we only pressured for 60 min at 10Lbs. I use this meat in Tacos, burritos, and for a chilli base.

I hope this helps.

Missonary update

Bush Beat Blog
From: "Brenda Lange"

Subject: blog July 26, trucker requirements

Date: July 26, 2012 2:10:30 AM CDT
A FOLLOW-UP RE: NEED FOR TRUCK DRIVER
For those thinking about the trucker need, I wanted to add some facts.

If you don’t have a commercial license, DO NOT worry about that. We can organize a temporary permit over here.

You just need to bring an International driver’s license from AAA.

What we are looking for is someone with some experience or WHO IS WILLING TO LEARN how to driving these medium size SINGLE body trucks (not a fifth wheel). Any experienced driver can learn these trucks quite quickly, just as I did.
Please contact me if you have the time to come and we will chat about this.

BBB Brenda@orphansunlimited.org

Canning picture

Demonstrating process of canning corn at community canning kitchen near Atkins, Arkansas, c. 1935

Missionary update

From: "Brenda Lange"


Subject: Blog, July 25, 2012

Date: July 25, 2012 5:36:24 AM CDT

JESUS FILM RESULTS IN 16 NEW SALVATIONS!!!!

The film was completed Sunday night after a Saturday night power failure. After the film was over, 16 teenagers came forward from all parts of the crowd to receive Jesus. Our pastors are following up this week.


URGENT NEED for TRUCK DRIVER from Sept. to November.

Don was our backup driver for these months, but he was called home in July due to family obligations. We have a hole that needs to be filled.

I found out last week that I can’t handle the big rig for multiple trips as the steering is causing too much shoulder and back pain afterwards. Truck driving in these rough conditions requires a strong back and shoulders, so we need someone to give us a hand.

Why?

We have to move 200+ TONS of corn and beans in Balama county alone for the food hand outs that begin next week so that our 1,200 Balama orphans living in remote villages won’t go hungry.

16 trips are needed to haul 108 TONS of corn and beans to Meluco where 515 orphans live. Manuel, our only truck driver, will be kept running just to do that as each trip takes 2 days (18 hours of driving).

That leaves most of the Balama driving to DE BUNNY since Eric will be gone till the end of Sept. (cause there isn’t anyone else who can do it).

We also realize now that more bricks will have to be made during these months, as the government is requiring lunch rooms to be built for both the children’s complexes currently under construction. These 2 lunch rooms will require an additional 10,000 bricks to be made.

YOU GIVE YOUR TIME, AND WE’LL PRAY IN YOUR TICKET!

Anyone qualified to drive a 6 ton truck, who can give 3 months, should contact me immediately.

You must have a passport in hand as there is no time to wait for one.

Brenda@orphansunlimited.org


THERE’S NO WORM LIKE A DEAD WORM!

Thanks to the help of Dale, David, and our 8 man goat herder team, de Bunny was able to deworm all 70 goats at 6a.m. today. Worms are the LEADING CAUSE of death in goats, and with the ever increasing numbers of our herd, we are seeing more worm problems even with open range grazing. It was a fun time as only 2 goats spit in my face! Nothing like slimy, half chewed greens to make your day! Before we do this again, I plan to build a chute leading to a low table so that the goats and I can “see eye to eye” on this matter. This squatting down 70+ times to give each of them an oral drench is not conducive to old bunny muscles. Ugh!


BUNNY HAS TO TAKE WRITTEN DRIVER’S TEST IN PORTUGUESE THIS FRIDAY

Got a call today saying be there or be dumped off the list for the driving test. I’ve studied, but doing this in Portuguese will be a real challenge. Could use a few angels to whisper the meaning of words into my ear when I get stumped by a question. I know the information, but it’s trying to figure out what they are asking that is the challenge. No English/Portuguese dictionaries allowed. Prayers would be appreciated that I can pass this on the first try.

Eric and all the visitors bug out this weekend. I’ll be in Pemba all weekend taking visitors to the airport, so no more blogs till next week.

Eric goes to South Africa for our annual supply trip for things we can’t get in Moz.

Dale and David fly to the USA on Saturday.

Dale has had a blast teaching and giving object lessons with everything from oranges to sponges soaking up water.

David now counts bricks in his sleep as he has moved over 5000 this week alone. (360 bricks per truck load) It keeps him busy.
WATER WELL REPAIR TEAM OFF TO MELUCO

Your water well funds are hard at work as the Administrator of Meluco County called me personally on Monday to BEG help. SEVEN WATER WELLS were down with broken parts. Most can be repaired for $100.

We used the last of our water well repair funds to buy parts 2 weeks ago. Our fund is now empty.
Know that all of us LOVE and APPRECIATE ALL OF YOU!

Your prayers help us through all our challenges.

Stay tuned till next week, when the Bush Bunny will once again blog away!
Love and Hugs,

BBB

Why grease must be saved

Why greases must be saved. A soldier of the home front--and there's one in every American kitchen--saves all waste fats and greases so that they can be processed into ammunition for America's soldiers on the battlefronts. Pan and broiler drippings, deep fats, renderings from bacon rinds, these are some of the fats which should be put through a strainer to remove meat scraps and other solids, and poured into wide-mouthed cans such as coffee or fat cans... 1942

Daily shower spray

1/2C Hydrogen Peroxide

1/2C Rubbing Alcohol

1/2 tsp Dish Detergent

2 tsp vinegar

1 1/2C Water

Mix in a spray bottle and spray shower daily.
Recipe can be doubled

I love old canning pictures

The canner on the stove looks like a modern one, the kind that dont use gaskets.  Someday I hope to get one of those.

BREAD AND BUTTER JALAPENOS

(makes about 10 pint jars)

These are addicting. Use on any sandwich, burger or anything. Very popular in our farmstand.

18 cups of sliced jalapenos

2 cups of sliced onions

7 cups white vinegar

3 cups of honey

1 Tablespoon ground ginger

1 Tablespoon mustard seeds

1 Tablespoon celery seed

1 ½ Tablespoons turmeric

Combine honey, vinegar and spices in large pot and bring to a boil. Boil syrup for 10 minutes. Add jalapenos and onions and heat to just boiling. Ladle into prepared pint jars leaving ½ inch headspace. Process for 15 minutes in boiling water bath.
I want to try this, I will just make the juice and can them up as I get them.  Or I can pick up a bunch at the store next time they go on sale.

Christina's brilliant bucket gardening method

My dear friend Christina came up with an amazing and brilliant new way to garden.  She had her husband cut the bottom out of a 5 gallon bucket.  They then dug a hole the exact size of the bucket deep enough to bury the bucket about 2/3rds of the way.  In other words the top 1/3 of the bucket was left sticking out of the ground.

After the bucket was buried in the ground they mixed up peat moss and potting soil and fertilizer and filled the bucket with the mix.  They then planed their vegetables and topped with mulch in hopes that it would help keep the soil moist.

Its easy to water, feed and weed the buckets of vegetables this way.  Just fill the bucket with water and it slowly drains into the ground.  Those are pepper plants Kaitlyn is watering.  I have never seen pepper plants that large.  The bucket by Sammy had a tomato plant in it but Bill had just pulled them up for the season.

Missionary update

From: "Brenda Lange"


Subject: Sunday blog, July 22, 2012

Date: July 22, 2012 6:43:14 AM CDT

POWER FAILURE DISRUPTS JESUS FILM

Last night’s crowd to watch the Jesus Film numbered over 1000 people!

But just as Jesus “calmed the storm”, we had a power failure with the equipment.

The word has been spread that the end of the film will be shown TONIGHT.
No new people came to church today, but Dale had a great time teaching with his “object lessons” to the 40+ adults and the 50 plus kids who were there.

I did not get to go this morning as 2 goats decided they needed my presence urgently.

Sad to say, but saved one and lost one.
One has simple diarrhea and should be fine. She’s a bit of a pig and likes to over eat.

The other ate some type of grass that didn’t agree with her and bits of corn which she found in the bush.

Whole kernel Corn can be very toxic to goats and it caused her to colic and bloat.

The pressure builds inside her body until her heart stops from the stress.

I spent 2 hours working with her to relieve the stomach blockage, but nothing worked.

We put her down to save her further suffering.

Very upsetting to all of our goat team, as she was carrying twins.

Blessings from Balama,

Bush Bunny Brenda and team