Dash at Home

Meal posts, garden pics, and funny mom stories

[dashathome]

2026 Goals:

1. Expand the garden by 2 beds

2. Mushroom log

3. Get 2-3 more chickens

4. Woodworking

5. Picnicking at different parks

6. Camping at least 3 times this year

7. Make 3-5 scarves

8. Successfully grow 3 new vegetables or herbs I've never grown before

9. Get back into soap making

10. Try my hand at crocheting

11. Finish at least 3 stories this year

12. Learn 10-15 new recipes and actually put them in the recipe books

13. Make new traditions with my family

14. Get into hand sewing

15. Make homemade skin care

16. Make a couple paintings

17. Start using my throwing axes and bow again

18. Make a composter

19. Research bee keeping

20. Learn at least 10 zero waste methods

21. Pickle and jamming

22. Go berry picking

23. Grow pumpkins for the fall

24. Get really good with cleaning, gutting, scaling and filleting fish

25. Outdoor cooking

26. Get 5 camellia sinensis plants

27. Grow 10 more herbs for a tea garden

28. Grow roses of any variety

29. Learn new crafts to gift for birthdays and holidays

30. Set healthy boundaries with family

[dashathome]

Mini garden harvest + salad my three year old made before he covered it in cheese (he's very proud of himself). I wasn't expecting the carrots to get this big to be honest since the weather has been all over the place.

[dashathome]

POTATOES

My successful small harvest of potatoes. I was experimenting with a few methods I learned and now that I know they work, I'm going to grow them on a larger scale next grow season.

[dashathome]

So I'm already getting so much flack from my family and coworkers about how I don't give my toddler candy or junk food and I'm just...

I had such an issue with sugar and junk food growing up and I don't want my kid to have the same issue. I still make sure he experiences normal childhood treat staples like ice cream (which I make myself with honey and farm eggs), pizza (either homemade or from a restaurant that uses good ingredients) and once a year he gets his favorite gingerbread cookies.

I want to create tradition and respect for food in my house so I garden, I raise chickens and make food from scratch. That's what I want to do and all I ask is that people stop telling me that I'm being extra and that my kid is going to be weak...

Like I don't tell people how to raise their kids, that's none of my business.

And it's not just with food but me wanting to homeschool him too... It's just why..why is anyone bothering me with their opinions on raising my kid and the funny thing is, MY COUSIN IS GOING TO DO THE SAME THING FOR HER KID AND SHE'S NOT GETTING ANY GRIEVANCES ABOUT IT

So yeah, I'm a bit frustrated that people are getting in my business about this because why just me???

[dashathome]

First egg from my chicken Sadie and it goes to my kiddo! Homemade bread and a fried egg with smoked paprika.

[animenightcrew]

[theawkwardvirgin]

Ok I tried this and it was a HUGE hit!

Main recommendations: Season the dough AND season the filling. Also, make smaller loafs, about the size of a spatula head, for easy flipping!

Here’s how they look! Recipe below (doubled bc I have a big family).

Loaded Potato Loafs

Poke holes in and boil 6 large potatoes until soft

Peel potatoes (do this after boiling to retain nutrients and get the texture needed for the dough)

Mash into a smooth puree

Add 4 tablespoons of melted butter

Add 10 tablespoons of flour

Add a bit of pepper and a good amount of garlic salt

Mix until it forms a soft dough

Lay out plastic wrap and grease with a little oil

Place 1/8 of the dough into the plastic wrap and flatten it into a round shape

Add shredded cheese, shredded chicken, bacon bits, more garlic salt, chives, and Italian seasoning.

Grab the plastic wrap and use it to fold each edge of the dough over, starting with parallel ends. Make sure the dough is sealed all over and doesn’t break. It should be about the size of a spatula head for easy flipping.

Airfry two at a time. Fry one side at 450 degrees for 7 minutes

Flip with spatula and airfry other side for another 7 minutes

ALLOW TO COOL BEFORE EATING

[rattle-my-stars]

🥔 picture perfect babey🥔

Couple of notes:

Season the shit outta this thang

Like it’s actually fucking crazy that neither cook in the video mentions seasoning 🤨

Don’t overstuff with fillings if you’re frying in oil bc it might lose structural integrity and fall apart on the flip

I filled mine with just cheese and hot dog bits (it’s what was immediately available and I’m lazy) and topped it with some ketchup + mustard to go with the hot dog theme

It was bomb as fuck chef kiss 😚👌💋

I’ll definitely be making again and trying new fillings; this recipe is pretty much endlessly customizable

[dashathome]

2025 Home & Garden

1/30/2025

Garden & yard goals before spring (March 20th):

Get the garden beds ready

Mend the dirt in the yard

Prep a work area for yardwork & gardening

Start a compost area

Get a storage bin for seasonal items

Prep and clean the recreational area

Create a play area for kiddo

Set up outdoor lighting

Clear porch off

Firewood pile

Home goals for 2025:

Start a ginger bug

Create syrups

Pickling

Jams/ Jellies

Dehydrating

Prep homeschool areas

Secure eggs/ honey from locals

Crochet/ Loom/ Soapmaking/ Perfuming/ etc...

Learn to bake bread

Have my deep freeze filled and fridges organized

Have the cast iron properly seasoned

Meal prep/ make ahead meals & ingredients

Outdoor goals for 2025:

Rockhounding

Fishing

Outdoor cooking & grilling

Berry Picking

Visiting Farms

Collecting free lumber

Woodworking

Taking my hobbies outside

Picnicking at parks

[dashathome]

I am happy to say I did everything but number 7, 8 and 9 for my outdoor goals. I had a baby lol

[dashathome]

Burger bowl for the little one because unlike him, I actually like mustard and tomato paste mixed together.

Currently on my weight loss journey after having kid number 2. Found some solid advice, exercises and a diet that works for my age, height and lifestyle

Protein bowls have been a great form for me to enjoy food again while being more considerate to myself and my needs. It's been fun doing research and coming up with ideas for meals I can share with my kid.

So far burger and taco bowls have been a big hit.

[thecollectibles]

Art by Yuming Li

[dashathome]

Sugar substituted lavender cardamom oatmeal cookies

First off, I say sugar substituted because these are not sweetener free cookies. I just don't use any white or brown sugar in any of my baked recipes for my toddler.

That being said, you can use agave, honey, date syrup, or maple depending on preference and taste.

Makes 6 cookies

Set oven to 350°F

1. 1 banana, mushed

2. 1 cup of oatmeal

3. Half a cup of flour or oat flour

4. 1/2 tsp salt

5. 1/2 tbsp lavender

6. 1 tsp cardamom

7. 1 egg

8. tbsp butter

9. 1 tbsp maple syrup

Mush the banana and lavender together in the mixing bowl, add egg and mix. Add in salt and oatmeal and mix. Add in flour, cardamom and butter then mix until the batter is thick. Add in maple syrup or sweetener of preference.

Scoop small spoonfuls of the batter onto your baking tray. Bake for 10 minutes.

Let cool and enjoy.

This is a great recipe for the little ones to get involved with or just do themselves. I was basically the human recipe book for my little dude XD

[dashathome]

Here we go again!

1/30/2025

So now that things are settling down and we're reaching a level of normalcy and routine I think I can try to garden this year.

I over shot it too much last year and it got to a point where I couldn't manage my time, taking care of my baby, my house, myself, and the garden.

Now that we're in a smaller house, my son is older and listens really well, I'm healthier, and have a better grip on my time... I think I can successfully garden this year.

Our new yard is a lot nicer and has better space with better areas for full and partial sun~

We're also aiming to be a little eco friendly and use pallets that we're going to deconstruct and buy from our local dirt people.

I'm slowly getting things ready, burning up leaves and sticks for wood ash to balance soil ph and mend the dirt in our yard (it's typical yard dirt but we want a healthier yard for wildflowers)

Good sticks get saved for crafting and the left overs are either burned or will be stacked and scattered for the buggies. Hoping that the sticks and wildflowers will attract good pollinators!

[reasonsforhope]

By the way, you can improve your executive function. You can literally build it like a muscle.

Yes, even if you're neurodivergent. I don't have ADHD, but it is allegedly a thing with ADHD as well. And I am autistic, and after a bunch of nerve damage (severe enough that I was basically housebound for 6 months), I had to completely rebuild my ability to get my brain to Do Things from what felt like nearly scratch.

This is specifically from ADDitude magazine, so written specifically for ADHD (and while focused in large part on kids, also definitely includes adults and adult activities):

How to Sharpen Executive Functions: Activities to Hone Brain Skills

Executive functioning skills range from working memory to cognitive flexibility to inhibitory control, and beyond. They power our daily func

Here's a link on this for autism (though as an editor wow did that title need an editor lol):

Enhancing Executive Functioning Difficulties in Adults with Autism

Practical Strategies for Enhancing Executive Functioning Difficulties in Adults With Autism - Living with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) as

Resources on this aren't great because they're mainly aimed at neurotypical therapists or parents of neurdivergent children. There's worksheets you can do that help a lot too or thought work you can do to sort of build the neuro-infrastructure for tasks.

But a lot of the stuff is just like. fun. Pulling from both the first article and my own experience:

Play games or video games where you have to make a lot of decisions. Literally go make a ton of picrews or do online dress-up dolls if you like. It helped me.

Art, especially forms of art that require patience, planning ahead, or in contrast improvisation

Listening to longform storytelling without visuals, e.g. just listening regularly to audiobooks or narrative podcasts, etc.

Meditation

Martial arts

Sports in general

Board games like chess or Catan (I actually found a big list of what board games are good for building what executive functioning skills here)

Woodworking

Cooking

If you're bad at time management play games or video games with a bunch of timers

Things can be easier. You do not have to be stuck forever.

[wizard-email]

hey, don’t cry. one half flour one half yogurt knead into dough and fry for easy flatbread and dip in balsamic vinegar, okay?

[rudjedet]

After three batches, my findings so far:

I use full fat Greek yoghurt and self-rising flour

Ratio by weight

Add a pinch of salt

Knead until no longer sticky, adding more flour if necessary

Roll them with olive oil instead of flour and fry in an otherwise unoiled, preheated pan (medium heat) (trust in the lord; it will seem like it's going to stick to the pan at first but they'll unstick in about 15 seconds)

Roll them thin but not too thin; mine take about 45 seconds on either side

Serving with garlic butter is also a very good option

[strangeducks]

I’m gonna be eating these for a month

[alex51324]

This actually works?? Two-ingredient bread??

I gotta try it.

[bitletsanddrabbles]

That's...naan.

That's naan?

*runs to Google*

HOLY SHIT THAT IS NAAN! HOW DID I NOT KNOW NAAN WAS THAT EASY TO MAKE?

[pikaole]

Check out the printable content on my patreon

[dashathome]

Planning a move (again)

8/26/2024

So I've had to move quite a lot in the past decade from one state to another and then back to the state I came from. From house to house while getting back on my feet and then into an apartment when I finally got a stable job. From apartment to a mobile home rental when I got pregnant and then to another rental when the home was sold to a new landlord who didn't want tenants.

Well, we have to move again! The house we've been in is slowly falling apart, rats too refuge in it during the hurricane, there's damage beyond repair and to make matters worse, the A/C died over the weekend.

My husband and I are of course ~very~ stressed by this but we're trying to look at the upside of this mess. For me, it's giving me the opportunity to go through my stuff and either sell or get rid of a lot of shit I don't use, want, or need. Also we'll be able to save for the move and utilities since we have a "free" month with our deposit agreement.

I'll be going through and methodically packing non-daily things or comfort items to make this move ~A LOT~ smoother.

We have our hopes up since we've been able to find some decent rentals so far within our budget and we'll be touring some of them this week.

*crossing my fingers* I'm also going to be requesting a $2k increase in my salary due to increase cost of living. I think it's a reasonable request and the worst they can do is say no.

[dashathome]

Potatoes & Projects

I love growing potatoes. Very low maintenance, once it gets going it can't be stopped, pretty leaves and flowers, and it's very easy.

I started with the chaos bed that just grows whatever it wants from kitchen scraps. We currently have five potato plants, four tomato plants (pretty sure by the leaves that they're tomatoes), and a mystery melon (most likely watermelon).

I have six other potato plants that I just kind of put wherever and they seems to be flourishing with very little help. I'm kind of doing some garden experiments with this to test to see what the best environment for these tubers will be over all and which species is best for my area. I have three species of potatoes in several different environments so I'm eager to see which one produces the best results.

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On another note, I'm working on some craft projects.

I have a fairly decent side business of selling perfumes and room sprays and I'm hoping during summer I can start making salves, balms, and hair & skin oils like I used to.

I'm also trying several crafts that aim at using every bit of the material/ plant you have. Like with Avocadoes, since I give my son at least 1 a day we go through a lot of them so I'm trying to make buttons with the pits and composting the skin.

[onlytiktoks]

[agallonofmilky]

can we stop promoting the idea that nature has to look beautiful to be good?