Neat video about this time of year. We don't subscribe to all of this particular denomination's beliefs, but this part is right on. - Ben

Sukkot Bible Readings

Here are some suggestions for some Scripture readings during The Feast of Tabernacles.

• Each Day: Read one or more of the following: Psalm 27 or the full Hellel, Psalms 113-118 seeking and Praising YHVH.
• Any Day: John 7 - Yahshua at the Feast of Tabernacles
• Day 1: Lev 22:26-23:44 - acceptable sacrifices. the feasts of YHVH; Zech 14: 1-21 YHVH will defeat the nations at Jerusalem. all will celebrate Sukkot there; Numbers 29: 12-16 - introduction to Sukkot.
• Day 2: Lev 22: 26-23:44-acceptable sacrifices. the feasts of YHVH; 1Kings 8:2-21 - Solomon brings the ark to the Temple at Feast time; Num 29: 12-40 - the eight days of Sukkot.
• In-between days: Ex 33:12-34:26 - YHVH promises His Presence, shoes Moshe His glory, gives 2nd set of Commandments; the feasts and offerings; Ezekiel 38:18-39:16 - YHVH will distroy Gog and makes Himself known. Numbers 29: 20-
• Shabbat during the Sukkot: Ecclesiasties - fear YHVH and His commands.
• Day 7 (Hosanna Rabbah): Numbers 29:32-34; John 7:37-39
• Day 8 (Shemini Atzeret) The day of praying for rain for the coming year: Deut 14:22-16:17, 1Kings 8:56-66,Numbers 29:35-30:1, Jeremiah 2:13-17:13, John 7-8:11

The Children of Huang Shi

A true Story - This was a whole other facet of WW2, The Japanese side and their infitration into China. This is an amazing story about a British journalist that was sent in undercover and ended up being a sole survivor trying to find his way in China. He meets up with a revelutionary Chinese soldier and a woman who works in the red cross and they effect his destinany greatly as he finds himself in a remote boys' orphange with no one to care for the boys - he becomes the one - this is the beginning of an amazing adventure that everyone should learn about! We highly recommend it!



The official site link
There is some adult content, so please prescreen this film before viewing it with your children.

The Ritchie Boys

We have been increasingly interested in watching WW2 movies, from all differnt angles. There are so many stories to be told from so many people who were involved in differnt facets of the war that you never knew exsisted. We are going list a few of our favorites.

This is a documentary about Special Intelligence Unit made up of Jewish American Immagrants, used to extract special information during the war. Below are a link to the main website and the trailer.

We highly recommend it!

The trailer:


The main site:
http://www.ritchieboys.com/EN/home.html

Paperclips

This is a wonderful documentary about an ongoing 8th grade classroom project of exploring the Holocost in rural TN that turned into something amazing. I was really surprised how much I cried! We highly recommend it!

Below is the trailer and a link to the main site for more infomation.



The main site:
Paperclips the movie

Yom Teruah has come!

This past Sunday evening, we sited the New Moon of the 7th Month from our farm in TN. It was a beautiful sight! The sliver was very large and had a hue of red. It was a very dramatic presentation , itawas a colorful sky that was parted for hwat seemd like the special event for those who where looking, it only lasted about 5-10 minutes. We all had a chance to blow the shofars and even had the delightful addition of a trumpet this year as our friend brought his. We were so thankful because it has been raining and over cast here with thick cloud cover for a week. For days in a row, we witnessed the thick gray cloud covered the sky, it seemed VERY unlikely we would sight the moon that would mark the first of YHVH's Fall Feasts and initiate the counting of the other Appointed Times. We go officially by the siting in Jerusalem, but we always try to site it where we are as an act or worship and obediance as we practice what YHVH has taught us to do in His Scriptures. Some day we will see it in the Homeland as it was originally intended. Going through these motions are packed with object lessons, practical and spiritual and we would not trade it for any predertermined Rabbinic dates or decorated pine tree in the world! :-) (No offense intended.)

We wished we had taken a picture of it (especailly since we had a professional photographer in our midst!), but we were so caught up in the moment - it didn't happen.

Does anyone else have moon sitings they would like to share for this special day? I would love to hear them.

Sarah's Tent Recipes - Sukkot 2009

Here are recipes I posted for Sarah's Tent for the Fall Feast Issue. Here is the link to whole magazine Sarah's Tent Fall Issue We hope you like....

I get so excited about the fall feasts! All YHVH’s feasts are wonderful and have such special meaning it is very hard to pick a favorite. However, we like to camp the whole week of Sukkot, which adds an extra special adventure to the holiday. The “doing” is such an active way to “remember”. It is also a wonderful week of object lessons as YHVH instills the truth in our hearts, that there will be a greater Exodus one day for His people. I am also reminded of the hard times that must be endured by His Chosen. In addition to studying the Scriptures, worship and prayer, we fellowship with others when we have the chance, we try to hone our survival skills, learning how to cook on the fire, hunt, brave the weather, do more with less, and learn about foraging in the wild. There is so much one could learn! This is one of the practical ways we prepare for our Mashiach’s return whether it be in our generation, or it be in the generations to come, we are teaching our children to do the same with their children and children’s children until YHVH brings His Fall Feasts into their fullness. My intent is to reflect a small amount of that here in the season’s edition of Sarah’s Tent. May you walk even closer than ever before with YHVH in this next season! Baruch Ha Shem YHVH!

Campfire Cooking:

Meat Hash

1-2C of leftover cooked meat crumbled or diced (burgers, hot dogs, chicken, tuna, pot roast, lunchmeat, anything),
4 potatoes, diced (or shredded)
1 onion, chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste (garlic, onion salt and other seasonings also taste very good!)
Butter or oil for frying

Fry potatoes in frying pan with some oil or butter until almost tender (on a grill, open fire or hot coals).
Add onions and meat and seasoning, cook until browned.

Good for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Especially tasty if topped with eggs over-light! Also very good if you add cheese or if you add diced veggies. This is also another great use for leftover baked potatoes. (It cooks in half the time!)

Fire Roasted Corn
This is my favorite way to eat fresh corn on the cob!
Get as many ears of corn as you need.
Shuck the corn by pealing back the outer leaves carefully because you are going to leave them intact. You go around the peeling one or two at a time because YHVH has laid them like the petals of a flower, follow His pattern. Remove all the silks and cut any rot away if needed. Carefully fold the husks back in place in reverse order, than put into a bucket full of cool water. (5 Gallon bucket or wash tub works great) Let soak in water for at least a ½ hour to an hour (longer is better). Get your fire started, be it gas, wood or charcoal. Lay your wet corn on the rack above your *cooking fire. Turn every 10-15 minutes. It will be done in a ½ hour to 45 minutes. Some of your husks will burn, that is OK. This method steams the corn while protecting it from the dry heat of the fire and there is a unique smoky-campfire flavor from the husks drying around the corn that makes it outstandingly delicious! The husks also keep the corn warm until you are ready to unwrap it and eat it (unlike boiled corn on the cob). Butter and salt to taste when served. They are hot to unwrap, so help the little ones. The husks make a nice “eating handle” and later, great kindling for the next fire after they have dried out again. Since you are outside, there is no need to fuss about the mess! Enjoy!

* Wood Fire cooking tip
A wood fire is best for cooking when it has been made hot but the flames are allowed to subside; when the flames are not licking your cookware or food. It provides a more even consistent heat. Kind of like a charcoal fire, that you want the briquettes to burn through and turn gray first, than they are ready to cook with. The same is true with wood, when the wood has turned to burning embers, you will get your best cooking heat. (Than you can always stoke up the flames again for heat as the evening gets cooler the kosher marshmallows come out.)

Burger Soup

Soups are super easy and so satisfying on cool camping evenings! You can substitute ingredients on this and it always comes delicious! You don’t have to fuss with measurements, just give it is a taste. Use whatever you have on hand at camp. Here is a fun idea; invite your camping neighbors to join you for a Community Vegetable Beef Soup Night at your site at the end of the week. Everyone will probably have odds and ends left over from the week, they can

bring something to throw in the pot! Visit while it simmers on the fire and enjoy it together.

1lb Ground beef
Large onion, chopped
Butter or oil
Celery, chopped (optional)
• Brown all these items together in a Dutch oven or pot.
• Add remain ingredients and simmer until cooked through.
Tomato Juice (or tomato soup or tomato sauce or diced tomatoes or V8)
Broth (Beef, Chicken, Vegetable or bullion/dry soup mix with water)
Veggies of choice (The sky is the limit here, just keep in mind cooking times for raw carrots and potatoes take longer and may need to go in first while you add peas or zucchini toward the end)
1T Onion Powder
1tsp Garlic Powder
Salt and Pepper to taste

*Cabbage is very tasty. Rice, pasta, couscous, orzo, barley are nice additions. Hotdogs or (non-pork) sausages are very good. Beans are also good. Spike is also a WONDERFUL all purpose camp seasoning that makes this soup very tasty. (You can use it in place of the seasonings listed above or add a smaller amount to it, season to taste.)

Dutch Oven Temperature Tips:
You can treat your Dutch oven like a pot or skillet on your stove or fire, or you can use it like an oven. Below is a handy chart which shows you how to reach specific temperatures so that you can bake any recipe you have in your Dutch oven outside.

Preheating Tips If you are using a wood fire, prepare your fire 30-45 minutes before you start cooking. If you are using coals prep your coals 10-20 minutes ahead. It is always best to preheat the oven itself before putting food in for temperatures/time sensitive dishes (like breads). Each briquette adds about 10-13 degrees to your oven. Fresh briquettes will give you about one hour of cooking time. (Keep that in mind if you need to preheat another set for something that takes longer than an hour to cook.)

Avoiding Small Hot Spots To avoid hot spots in your oven, place your bottom briquettes in a circular pattern 1/2” inside the edge. On the lid, use an even checkerboard pattern. Also, if you are baking breads, cakes or more delicate items, it is recommended, to rotate your oven one quarter turn every 10-15 minutes and turning the lid one quarter turn in the opposite direction.

Cast Iron Dutch Oven Baking Temperature Chart
Dutch Oven Sizes = the diameter of the pot in inches

I could not paste the chart effectivly here for some reason. My blog will not allow the table to oast. So go to Sarah's Tent for the chart.

Most pots have a number right on them. If you are using a deep Dutch oven (5”+) add an extra 2-4 coals to the lid.
Here is the formula for a moderate oven temp of 350 degrees: Take the size of your Dutch oven (diameter in inches) x 2. Then divide that number by 3. Put 1/3 of the coals under the Dutch oven and 2/3 on the lid.

Choosing a Dutch Oven Any new Dutch oven will have seasoning, cleaning and storing instructions with it, so I am going to skip that. But take note when choosing a Dutch oven as to it’s style. There are two basic styles of ovens, what I call inside or outside styles. If you plan to use your Dutch oven primarily outside (like described above) you want to get the kind that has rims on a flat lid and drop wire handle for the pot in addition the lid handle. This will allow you safely and effectively work with your oven using a tripod, on the coals or embers. However they are not handy to use on a stove or in an oven because of the legs. It can be done but it takes some creativity and can be dangerous if it is not stabilized properly. (A cookie sheet works well for the oven.) An “inside” Dutch oven looks more like your other kitchen pots, and are wonderful to have, but do not have feet, instead they have a flat bottom. It rarely has the loop handle or the lid, instead it has the side handle like most kitchen pots. The lid is tapered down with no rim to hold coals or embers. There is a difference. You could use an “inside” Dutch oven at camp, but you may need the aid of a short stand (sold by most iron dealers) to set it on to stabilize it and arrange your coals and you will need to fiddle with the top coals a lot more, it may not hold as many as you need, and it makes turning your pot a real challenge. You also will not be able to hang it from a tripod unless you rig something to the side handles – but again you need to keep stability in mind with a very hot and heavy pot. You can however us it n the tripod for soups and stews, if you have the hanging rack. However, it is hard to put in and take out and to get the lid off for stirring, because of the way the support chains hang around the rack. (Again, thinking of stability.) So think of how you will use your Dutch oven(s) when you make your choice and you will be able to hand it down to your kids one day, (along with great cooking wisdom and recipes) because it will last a lifetime.

Foraging: Good field guides are your best friend in this venture! I look for guides that are handy to carry (not too big), have colorful detailed pictures and handy keys for easy reference while in the field. Peterson Field Guides have been a favorite of mine for those reasons. They have one for just about everything, but consider their guides for Mushrooms, Edible Plants and Medicinal Wild Plants. http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/peterson/plants.cfm (Amazon.com will have them cheaper and you can also peak inside!)
Plants, herbs and fruits can be toxic, please don’t experiment without a guide of some sort, it is not worth the risk to you and your family’s safety!

Herbal Wound Care:
Plantain, you have all seen it. No, not the banana, I am talking the herb which most people see as a weed, it’s everywhere in the US!
It is a wonder-plant for drawing out infections, burns, and itch from all manner of injuries, swelling, insect bites and scratches when you are out in nature. You simply take the leaves, crush them (you can chew them if you need to) and apply to the affected area as soon as possible like a poultice. If you can wrap something around plantain which is placed on the wound, it holds the plantain in place (like a cloth, or bandage) that is ideal.

Jewelweed is another plant used for skin issues, especially poison ivy and poison oak and stinging nettle. When you are out in the field and find you have been exposed to one these unpleasant plants you can reach for the jewelweed plant and slice the stem, then rub its juicy inside on exposed parts. This will promptly ease irritation and usually prevents breakout for most people. Jewelweed can be best found in shady areas, wooded areas or river banks.

Clean Water: (No electric or plumbing in, can even filter pond water!)
http://www.berkeyfilters.com/
http://www.auquarain.com/

Dehydrating Emergency Food: http://www.excaliburdehydrator.com/ This is an investment, but this unit is a cut above the rest! I love mine! Get their dehydrating book, it is the most comprehensive dehydrating how-to book out there! Sukkot is a wonderful opportunity to experiment with using dehydrated foods! They are light, take up little space, no refrigeration and all your messy cutting, slicing and washing is already done. Almost ANYTHING, can be dehydrated.

Getting in the mood: A few of my favorite movies to get me in the mood for Sukkot (before we go) are Ushpizin! , Defiance, The Island on Bird Street (Please prescreen these films, they are mature in content and not for your youngest viewers!).

Home School Family

Turn Music off in the upper right had corner to before starting video.

We laughed so hard at this video, we cried! Maybe it's just us?!

The Government Can

Turn off music in the upper right hand corner before you play the video.

Vaccine - Funny Video

Great Music and Books

http://www.nazarite.net/
Various CDs, books, and free music.

Qodesh
Young Talent giving their all for YHVH!

Herbal Remedies for Teething Baby

The Encyclopedia for Natural Healing for Children and Infants,by Mary Bove ND
(my comments in color)

• Give herbs to reduce discomfort, sooth inflamation, and support the immune system. This helps to avoid secondary infection and fever. Use calendula flowers, catnip, echinacea, elder flowers, meadowsweet, lemon balm, or usnea. Mix these with herbs such as chamomile flowers, linden flowers, willowbark, oe wintergreen leaves to calm and decrease pain. These herbs can be used as teas, popsicles, glycerites or tinctures. Chamomile, Lemon Balm and Catnip would be my first picks. You could also add a little lavendar in the mix. Freezing tea in icecube trays or saturating a washcloth in an herbal blend and freezing it is a great way to to apply the herbs ot the gums. The cold is also benficial as an anti inflammatory and pain reliever. You can also use a dropper or for bigger kids let it cool and give them a sippy cup.
• Herbal chewing sticks are long thin pieces of licorice root or marshmellow root that can be given to the baby to chew on. The sweet taste of both herbs is very pleasant.
• Try teething tablets. Several combinations of homepathic remedies for teething are available in healthfood stores. (This was a popular alternative to many of my customers when I had the health food club. Hyland brand was commonly ordered.)
• Make an herbal gum rub. Rub the gums with a dab of honey combined with a dab of essential oil of clove or wintergreen. This reduces pain and swelling. 2-3x a day. (I am a HUGE fan of Clove oil for the teeth/gum issues. But i am very picky about which oil I use, all are not equal when it comes to medicianl use. I am a fan of YOUNG LIVING OILS. Clove can be "HOT" so you have to dilute it for the kids. I have always used olive oil (or other good oil), but this honey idea is worth trying! **
• I have also used Bach's Recue Remedy. You can rub it right on the gums, I have also dropped it on the nipple at feeding time.
  
  In the book Natural Healing for Babies and Children by Aviva Jill Romm here are few suggestions:

• Velarian Tincture (You can buy it at the healthfood store). Althugh it is strong smelling, she says it actually has a pleasant taste. 5- 10 drops rub right on the gums. She says it's one of her favorite teething remedies.
• Chickweed and Burdock Root (tea or tincture)are reliable in reducing gum inflamation. Rub directly on the gum.
• In a pinch, you can rub brandy on the gums.

** There are those in the main stream who recommend "no honey for the first year" for fear of botulism. Personally, I go light on the honey generally speaking for the infants, but have no concern about it in baked foods, because it is a mute point. Same is true in most medicine. For instance when honey is paired with clove oil, the clove oil's properties are powerfully antimicrobial, antifungal, antiseptic, antiviral (to name a few). I think it would cancel out anything that may possibly reside in the honey. The reason why it is a problem in infants (and not any older) is because it may be such a mild trace of these elements and babies are generally more susceptible as they are working out digestion issues. However, I also think it has A LOT to do with the health of the baby. For instance; I believe that nursing full term babies (from healthy moms) are more protected FROM ALL MANOR OF THINGS, where as formula babies would be at higher risk to uncooked honey when not mixed with other medicinal compounds. That is my 2 cents about it. However, I thought I should mention it because everyone should be aware and make informed choices.