A few snapshots of our day

I thought I’d bring my camera along with me today just to see if I could get anything interesting.  And if it wasn’t interesting, I’d try to make it!

Our chicks have graduated out to the coop.  Good thing, too, because our house was beginning to smell like a coop.  Rachel put up a sign at the door, just to make sure there was no confusion.

 Our 52 Rhodies were doing well in their new quarters.  We are so thankful that we haven’t lost any and have had zero problems with any of them so far.

Every other Monday, we go to the library.  We were almost ready to load the van, when Lauren yells, “Momma, there’s a stunk in the yard!”

“Pardon?”

“A real black and white stunk!  Come and look!”

Yep, there was our “stunk”.  What I didn’t get a picture of was this fella coming up our first step.  I ran back inside rather quickly.  I’m wondering if it was rabid.  Surely it’s not normal for a skunk to approach you!  It did go on it’s merry way, and we decided to go on to the library.  I do think I’m going to be cautious before I run out the door for a while!

Due to thunderstorms the night before, the roads were pretty muddy.  Josh had warned me at lunch that the roads were slippery.  This is looking down our driveway.

Well, the driveway wasn’t that slippery, but the gravel roads were a different story.  I finally learned to drive in the very middle of the road so I would at least remain on it while the van slid from side to side.  Thankfully, I didn’t have too far to go before I hit a paved road.

By God’s grace we made it safely there.  Going to the library is like going to Disney world to my girls.

Yes, I know.  My boy will outgrow me in about six months.

Well, that was at least half of our day.  On the way home, the girls thought I should take a picture of our nearest neighbors.  I have to say they are pretty quiet.  They don’t give us a bit of trouble.

 

 

C’mon, just one more, Dad!

A skirt-swishing good time on the homestead!

You know, Rach, maybe I should learn to walk before I dance!

Oh, the possibilities….

    Tuesday I picked up my husband from work on the “big” farm and we took a little drive. I must confess I had a few butterflies in my stomach as we drove. Wouldn’t you if you were about to stand for the first time on the ground that you might be going to raise your family on, grow your food from, hand down to your children, and be buried on? OK, scratch the last one, that’s a little weird to think about. You would think on such a momentous occasion I would have made sure the camera batteries were fully charged, but no. Hence, I only managed to get three pictures.

 

 

    Joshua said I should tell you all that we do plan on fixing up the house a bit before we move in. You know, clean up the rubble in the house and put some plastic or something over the windows.– OK, as much as I’d like to let it go at that and see what kind of responses we get, maybe I shouldn’t. The house is much too far gone, although Lauren seemed to think it would do just fine. (That girl would be happy in a cave!)

 

    I wish I could describe how remote this place is. I think we’d be the only ones for a couple of miles. I thought the gravel roads out here were quite humorous, but the road the land is on doesn’t even have gravel! Yep, we’re talking about a good old-fashioned dirt road that is only passable when it is dry. We hear they might put us some gravel down if we build out here. The girls thought it quite an adventure to even get into the property– climbing under fences and dodging cow patties.

 

    We haven’t decided on this place for certain, but we certainly are leaning in that direction. A lot depends on the price. Josh’s boss owns the property, so Josh gets to work on him everyday! We are hoping for less than $1500 per acre. We also could buy a few acres at a time, as we could afford it, allowing us to not have to go into debt. Isn’t God good! Please pray that He will give us wisdom as we make this important decision.

 

Getting more Word in my Day

With little ones, the highly revered “quiet time” of reflection and meditation on God’s word is often elusive. Mothers, we must be creative! God really does want to meet us where we are. We can actually bring him along with us throughout our day!

There are many ways to increase our intake of his life-giving Word, even if it is never quiet. Remember, we have so many responsibilities and tasks that we can’t not be in the Word. I have recently put a spiral-bound, flip-thru book of scripture verses on my bathroom vanity. There is only one verse per page. Each time I wash my hands, (and with washing out diapers and potty training a two year old, that is quite frequently), I get a moment to meditate on the same verse. Every little bit helps.

Now I need one for my kitchen sink!

 

“I want to know one thing,” said John Wesley, “—the way to heaven: how to land safe on that happy shore. God himself has condescended to teach the way. He hath written it down in a book. O give me that book! At any price, give me the book of God! I have it: here is knowledge enough for me. Let me be a man of one book.”

Working Ourselves Out of a Job

    Our children have always contributed to the running of the household by being responsible for their chores. However, until recently, their share seemed like tiny drops in an overflowing bucket. The times- they are a changin’ round here! Thanks to my husband’s persistent encouragement to train them to do BIG jobs, I am finally seeing results. I’ve read numerous things from older, wiser, mothers of many that attest to this very thing. Many children can be a big burden or they can be a big blessing, properly trained.

    Guess what!

I no longer have to make bread!!!!!!!

    I have two, beautiful bread bakers in my home now. That’s huge! Either Ashlynne or Rachel makes bread every morning now. For so long I thought it would be so hard to teach them, I just gave up before I started. It turns out that it took me about a week of supervision each morning. And somehow, Miss Ashlynne bakes better, bigger loaves than I do. (I’m going to have to keep an eye on her, I think she’s sneaking in extra yeast!)

Give her of the fruit of her hands,

and let her works praise her in the gates.

Prov. 31:31

    Bread making isn’t the only thing I’ve been relieved of. I don’t have to clean up after dinner! I’ve been waiting for this since I was a girl. Yes, once again, Beloved stepped in and insisted.

    “Be-lov-ed, do you have any idea how long it will take to teach them this?”

    “Guess you better get to it, then.” Told you he was charming.

    This one took a little longer than a week, but, oh, was it ever worth it. Now I’ll let you in on a little trick I’ve learned. Lists are great!!! My girls love to check off a list. Wonder where they got that from? I divided up all the the steps it took to clean the kitchen by three and all of a sudden it wasn’t so hard anymore. Since then, I’ve went a little list crazy. Now we have lists for doing a load of laundry, making bread, washing hair, cleaning their room, wiping down the kitchen… well, you get the point! I’ve had a few good laughs when Rachel, faced with a daunting task, would say, “But, Mom, I need a list!”

    Now some might say we give our children too many responsibilities, but I would have to disagree. They absolutely love to do a “big” job. They love the appreciation their daddy shows when he comes home to freshly baked bread for lunch. They beam when we brag to others about how well they can fold laundry. They are earning self esteem by doing something that is needed. Now our only problem is no one wants the “little” jobs anymore! That’s okay, we have a whole crop of new recruits coming up, he he he!

    You know, if the Lord should graciously give us more children, I may be living the life of a queen one day!

1. nurse the baby
2. read to the children
   
3. take a nap
   

Prince Caleb

I’ve heard sympathetic comments regarding Caleb’s misfortune in being the only little boy in the house. I don’t think he sees it as a disadvantage yet.

Never has there been a more doted on guy. We never hear him cry because he is constantly toted around and entertained. This week alone he has played the starring role in their Bible skits. He was very convincing as baby Jesus and Moses, though he did crawl out of his basket a time or two.

I frequently hear, “Mommy, can you please bring Caleb up to our room to play?” I suppose a real live baby beats a doll any day. I have found him swaddled like a newborn and smiling blissfully, under a tent of blankets sucking his fist contentedly, and even playing the part of an Indian prince with no shirt on. Yep, poor guy.

Exciting day on the homestead!

This morning we got a call from the Burr Post Office. Our chicks were finally here! The girls finished their chores in record time and waited anxiously for our Beloved to bring them home.

They’re here! The first animals for our farm!

We thought it was just great that you could mail chicks in a box. Oh, are they ever cute!

So, where are we going to keep them? Maybe in the den for a little while.

Have to get the warming light set up.

Sweet little fuzz balls. I’m glad they are for eggs, not for meat. Allows you to attach yourself a little. The girls have already named a few. I think I’ve heard the names Buttercup, Sarah, Felicity, and Filemina (Ashlynne is very non-traditional in the name department). I’ve already forgotten what the house sounded like without 50 peepers. They might quieten down if the girls would leave them be. Maybe they won’t be so fascinating after a few days. The next big event is at lunch. Beloved is bringing home chicken feed from the Co-op and we get to see these babies in action. I’m dreaming of fresh, brown eggs already. I’ll probably be dreaming until August or September.

Is it spring yet?

Today was the second day of mid 60 degree weather. I can’t begin to describe how wonderful it feels after being inside for so long. I told the girls to soak up as much sunshine as they could because it’s not here to stay. Snow is in the forecast this weekend.

The girls are delighted to have their very own clubhouse in the front yard. It’s actually an old chicken coop, but they still have big plans. Today they informed me that they had swept it out and scrubbed it a bit. I don’t have any idea what they scrubbed it with, but I decided not to ask.

One thing I was glad to leave behind in Tennessee was the red dirt. Half of their clothes still bear the stains. I figured Nebraska must be a much cleaner place to raise up a brood of young’uns. Well, let me tell you, black dirt is a whole different story. Sure, I’m going to appreciate it come garden time, but now, it bears an eerie resemblance to manure. And when there’s so much manure around anyway, you have to do the sniff test to figure out what you are dealing with.

Here are the very first dirty feet of spring:

And here is the cutie pie they are attached to:

Visit from Tennessee

My parents came for a four day visit this past weekend. I guess you don’t realize how much you’d missed someone until they come back! I think we were beyond the legal limit of grandchildren spoiling, hugs and kisses.

My mom pretty much took over the running of the household while she was here. I even got to read some! And I took 2 naps! It was great! I can’t recall when I have done both in one day. She also tackled my stash of diapers that needed fixing and got almost all of them finished. You know, maybe she was trying to remind me of what I left behind. It worked.

My dad took the opportunity to scout the land around here for pheasants. Yep, my daddy the poacher. He had no luck, though. Mostly he lounged around in front of the stove watching Little House with the girls and spoiling Caleb.

I thought I had recovered from my lack of picture taking disease, but I fear I’ve had a relapse. Not one single picture the entire time they were here. Hopefully, it was just because I was enjoying the pleasant company so much. And we even got an unexpected snow while they were here!

Next month we are due a visit from Josh’s parents. Maybe I’ll do a better job with the pictures then!

In the meantime, here’s a cute pic of my dad and some of his grandkids shortly before we moved:

Quote of the day from Katharina:

Katharina usually wakes up from her nap sour and grumpy, and today was no different. In an attempt to lighten her mood, I commenced snuggling and smooching her sweet cheeks.

“Don’t tickle me , Mommy,” she snapped in two year old disdain.

Putting on my most nonchalant attitude, I spoke back coolly, “Oh, no, Kate, I wasn’t going to tickle you anyway.” And on I went, pretending to ignore her.

“Mommy,” I felt her tug my skirt, “You can tickle me if you want to.”

And I did. The end!