Déjà vu, irony and sweets

Dh was in a car accident this morning (yes it was a year and 3 days ago) . . . this time none of the kids were with him, thank God! Some cows escaped their fence and came running out onto the highway (yes I am fully aware of the irony). As dh tried to avoid the brown cow, he slammed into the black cow. She flew over the car and was last seen slowly walking away. The local police officer made it out and verified what happened, took pics and secured the scene as they waited for the deputy to arrive. Dh believes the car is totaled, guess we'll know more later. Please keep us in your prayers, especially DH as he has to be on the road so early in the morning. :( I don't think I'm gonna be catching up on my sleep after all :(

In other news: stay tuned for our next blog giveaway and review :) The kids and I have been busily working on hot process soap making, lots of baking and fun gifts to share. If you still have someone on your list that you haven't found a gift for, here are a few of our favorite homemade gift ideas from across the web.

1. Hot Chocolate on a stick (with Marshmallow)

2. Marshmallow Bonbons

3. Cream cheese chocolate fudge or peanut butter fudge

Sorry I've been so quiet

There is so much I'd like to say but can't . . . shouldn't. :( So much is going on and all I can do is ask for your continued prayers for our family.

Small farm update: Twitchy was hit by a car, Spunky was sold. The big pigs will be going to the butcher next weekend. Cows are on total lock down with hay and chickens are yet to be butchered. The trials of this summer have not been a result of the difficulties of farm life, more like the difficulties of small town living. I hope to look back on this summer (now moving merrily into Fall) and laugh but for now it seems unlikely (not impossible).

Baby update: JM is doing very well, he is much more awake and alert this week and has recovered very well from his bout of Jaundice. The local dr seems anti breastfeeding but we are taking it a day at a time. My little man nurses like a champ even though he is petite. He will go back next week for another weigh in.

Birthday season is upon us once again. AR is going to officially be a teenager next week and HG will be 7. We are all excited. We will do all that we can to make it special for them both. We are scheduled to see some friends next week so they are very excited about that too :)

GH is adjusting very nicely to JM, she loves to give him kisses and hugs. She is also acclimating to her new bed. Though she is not too thrilled about it yet.

Please keep my mom in your prayers also as she will be going in for surgery in the next two weeks. Thanks

Down to 1

Notch seemed to have made a speedy recovery while at the sale barn last week as they "nursed" her back to health, the day after the sale they went to move her via fork lift and she promptly jumped out of the bucket. Monday, however, she mysteriously too another fall and wouldn't get up just in time before getting a chance to cross the stage. We are now in the insurance process, though we haven't heard much about what all will be needed. I am guessing that she will be put down :(

The truck appears not to be salvageable. The options don't even include rebuilding the existing engine. Though the mechanic did say that we might have some luck trying to find a wrecked truck that we could switch the engine out, I'll look into that tomorrow I guess, there is no way we could afford a rebuilt or new engine at this point. So now we are down to just the Focus.

On the bright side, baby looks good. He is head down and weights about 5 lbs 5 ounces. He seems rather cramped, but just a few more weeks. He has more than enough fluid and the cord looks good, as do his tiny little organs. :) It was nice to see him this week and I'm glad he is getting in position :)

Chip seems to be a electric fence jumper :( Which explains why we are constantly having to fix it, he will be steered soon, hopefully that will tame him down a bit, he should make a very nice beef steer. Dolly is a WAY better mama than Blackbird and has practically adopted little Ebony. DH went to bring them in for the night and all the cows came in and Dolly raced back to the pasture to get Ebony, Blackbird hadn't even noticed that she was missing.

Ebony is still as tiny as ever. She will be a true miniature, it is so odd to see her next to Chip who is only 5 days younger. She still looks like a newborn or a big toy and can easily be picked up, not that she likes that at all. This makes her a fencing nightmare as she can easily stoop down and crawl under the electric fence. This drives Dolly crazy.

Well as always keep us in your prayers, thanks :)

And she was called. . .

After days of debate we have decided to call this little lady, Eva. She is a feisty little one, running up and down the corrals but she is Lot's daughter after all :) Treva loves on her and watches as she moves around but is not the overprotective mama type. We have been milking her out since baby cannot consume that much colostrum, and we will freeze it just in case we have another bottle calf. Next week we will begin milk sharing with Eva and see how it goes, so far neither baby nor mama seem to mind us doing some milking. :)

On a side note, next week we do our training for Dh's business, we will be hitting the ground running from then on. Please pray that we can successfully get this going in the next few weeks. Thanks.



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Praise and Prayers needed

The toddlers appear to be healing very well, the younger is 2 today and her pain seems to have let up quite a bit. I spoke with my bosses boss (Bob) today and he felt that a compromise is doable, however we are both aware that this will be an uphill battle to convince my boss and his (Bob) boss. Please pray, it will take a small miracle to get this through. He proposed working from home 3 days a week, I am very pleased with his response and I am praying that he will be able to get agreement from them tomorrow. (My boss will/should be back in town tomorrow).

DH or for the purposes of this post, since he said not to mention it (lol) HD (lol) got a 8 inch cut on his head from the chicken coop roof yesterday and we are praying that it will not be anything more serious than a little scar.

The hens did a wonderful job last week and surpassed expectations and laid at full capacity (110 eggs). I have practically sold and bartered all and hope the other layers begin laying soon. I am really happy with how they have been doing, though they seem to be taking a little break this week.

Treva is due to calve any day now and I am praying that it will be uneventful, this is our first Jersey birth and sometimes they can have trouble with things like milk fever etc. Please keep her and her baby in your prayers.

I want to thank you all for the outpouring of support and prayers that you have given my family. We are really touched that so many have taken the time to remember us, the emails and comments were a welcomed surprise.


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Bungee Cord

The bungee cord is a great invention and a useful tool on a farm. It should be noted however that they should be replaced every year. We have been using bungee cords on our gates since we moved here. It was easy to operate even one handed. This morning dh came home to find the gates open and the cows sitting by the chicken coop. In a way it was almost like daring him to try to stop them from escaping. When he got to the gate he found the bungee cord broken and on the ground. He locked them in with another and we left to make deliveries in town. Please pray that they love it and refer us to everyone they know ;)

Anyway, I got my tags done on the way home and given that it was the hottest part of the day we thought nothing of not seeing the cows immediately. That is until I suggested we go over there, that's when I saw it. The bungee cord was just hanging on the gate as if they had taken it off and left it there. They weren't by the chicken coop this time, they were split up, with Judd and Treva in the neighbor's corn behind us and Lot and Quinn across the street in the wheat field. NOT GOOD!!

I drove down the side street where they were and Quinn and Lot began to take off into the field, I was getting stressed. Dh got out and they turned back to the road. They walked for a bit and crossed the street once they saw Treva and Judd. Dh continued to follow them through the neighbours corn and as he'd get a couple moving along, 1 would fall back and stop. He'd go and get that one and it would start all over again. I am thankful that he stayed calm the whole time. In fact he dropped Treva and Judd off by the barn as the boys ran off toward the east pasture. I walked Treva and Judd into the third corral. Not five minutes later dh was bringing the boys back in. Treva and Judd walked out of the third corral and I walked the boys into it and locked them in.

Treva and Judd are now happily in the barn and promise not to cause any further problems. :) Quinn has already made his way to Buttercup via the small opening between Corral 2 and 3, much to the dismay of Lot who is 2 inches taller and many more inches wider, lol. I have talk to them both and explained that they will meet the butcher sooner rather than later if they break my fence or gates. I'll let you know if they listened.

The chickens are laying rather slowly right now :( I am a bit discouraged. I know that the heat is a factor and I received a lovely tip via email from someone in Wichita:

I was just reading your blog and I thought I would let you know what I do to combat heat stress in my flock. I always give them watermelon as a snack because chilled it helps cool them down and contains a lot of water. I also freeze gallon milk containers as well as juice and 2 liter pop bottles, it doesn't do much for the air temp unless it is in the hen house but they will gather around them to cool off. This seems to help.

I am thankful for any tips on keeping my girls cool so that they can lay well again :) Feel free to send me tips on anything you can think of, I enjoy learning from other. :) I will also post tips for everyone in a series of posts.


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Back to Work: Day 1

Well I did it. I woke up, took a shower, fed the baby and went to work. Dh brought her to visit the skeleton crew at the office - long weekend and all. I sorted through the 1000+ emails, sadly no exaggeration. I discovered that my annual review was scheduled for today. YAY! NOT!! Whatever, I have been fighting with them all year, what's one more day, even if it is the first day back. Not new actually, it's better than the last time when my first meeting was scheduled to chew me out for not getting all the things they wanted done. Even though I had gotten the intermittent FMLA approved my "attendance issues" were used against me, again whatever. He talks about knowing the reasons behind the issue but never mentions it in the printed review, jerk. Unable to find any critical errors from the last year he uses one found while I was out on leave, that affected 1 customer from the entire state of NC. Funny how non-critical that seems, considering how many customers we have there and the fact that the error was not made by me. Can you tell I'm a bit ticked off? You know me so well :)

The rest of the day was wonderful. I bought some tops right after the baby was born that were a size too small, they didn't fit yet but I planned to lose the weight in time for my return to work. This morning I put one on and not only did it fit, but it had room, lots of room even in the arms, YAY!!! I have lost 32 pounds so far and I feel great. I am glad that I have stuck with Weight watchers and hope to be more consistent with my T-Tapp. I am hoping to start walk/running once I am a bit lighter and settle into a routine with work, home and farm.

Thank you all for your encouragement and continued prayers. Did I mention that my boss will be gone all month, it should be a nice transition back into work without the horrible pressure. :)



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Sunday

AR had a game yesterday and a double header today since his team made it to the next round (not sure what that's called in baseball). The downside is that it takes 2 hours one way to get there so it's been a long weekend. I stayed home with the others and dh and him went to the game.

I have been taking care of the animals with HG, a great little helper. She is the egg lady and checks several times a day for me. She never tires of it, I think it's because she loves getting to go outside - even if it is hot as heck.

The bulls have found a way to get out, not too sure where yet. IT is strange since they were on lock down and the back barn doors have not been disturbed. I think it may be the garden fence that is getting pushed :( That will need to be fixed this week.

In other news, I saw what I thought was a fox yesterday again, I googled it and it's a coyote :( I am fairly sure that that is what attacked poor Dusty and the 1 half eaten meat bird we found a few weeks ago. Of course I was all the way over by the chicken coop and it was down by the house when I saw it. I had the 2 middle children and got scared that IL might wander outside looking for them. I left the water running and kept them close as we went back to the house. I wish I had had the shotgun with me :( I am worried that the meat birds will not be safe as they free range all day but I am hoping that Sammy will keep them safe.

I asked dh to bring home some ice cream as it was a humid day, though not as hot as it has been. We still have not put on the A/C, I am holding out for as long as possible. We have 4 fans running at full blast all day and when it gets nicer out we open the windows. It has bee ok so far, I was really surprised to see the temp read 104 yesterday, it felt much cooler. Anyway, i was listening to dh with the kids and heard him say, "you're not licking ice cream off your sisters face." I laughed so hard. The toddlers are so funny, I am always surprised with the things they come up with.

Well, I put of the inevitable for as long as I could. Tomorrow is my 1st day back to work. I am thankful that it will only be a 3 day work week and 4 next week. It will give me a chance to ease back into the swing of things and let me keep enjoying the baby for a bit longer. This is dh's last week and we are so excited. Things will be tight but we will be stronger for it. God has always provided and our struggles have brought us closer. Keep us in your prayers as we try to launch this business and get the farm to a sustainable place. The Lord seems to be growing a customer base and I am going to try to keep up with it. :) Praise God for His many blessings.



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It's not you, it's me

Usually when people say that it means it's totally you but not today. Lately I have been depressed as the 1st day of work looms. Actually it was supposed to be today, but I couldn't do it. My mind said I should but everything else in me said HECK NO!! There seems to be a notion that going back to work after the first baby is the hardest and that it gets easier. I'm here to tell you that that is not exactly true. My oldest and I were together for most of his first year until I started college, he is a very social child and so there was never any issues leaving him with a sitter or at a day care, he actually enjoyed it. This was a real relief to me and I was comfortable by the time my daughter came along. She had her brother and they were great. My second daughter spent most of her first year in her daddy's arms, a real challenge when he started working let me tell ya. I was going to school and we lived around the corner so my time away from her was limited. By the time I started working I was a bit more comfortable since my hubby had her. She was not the kind to stay with a sitter or go to a daycare without issue. I was home once more and finishing college with #4 and graduated when he was 18 months, leaving home started to become difficult. They were growing up so fast and I didn't want to miss it. #5 came along and I cried and cried as I headed back to work, it wasn't the kids that cost too much it was the debt that we had that made staying home seem impossible. Things got easier as she really loved being home with her daddy but looked forward to me coming home. She would take my shoes and purse at the door and walk me in, lol. I missed them dearly when I was at work, I cried at my desk as I knew that my working was necessary. They are getting so big and there is so much I miss. Now we have 6 and once again the time is here and I don't want to go, I don't want to miss a moment. I want to hold my babies and laugh at the little things that they do and the crazy things they say. So today I have delayed the inevitable and for one more week I will live, drinking in all the sites and sounds that I will come to miss and capture what I can with my camera. For one more week I can hope that it can be forever this way.

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Moving in faith

For the past few months we have been praying about a business opportunity that presented itself. We have recently been working on the business plan and have since opted against borrowing money to get it started. We will try to go into this debt free, but we were not sure where we would find the money. We prayed about that last night and this morning the answer was there. We were so thrilled.

I was chatting with a friend about some recent articles I had felt led to read and they all had to do with sleep or the lack of it. I began to realise that my hubby has been going without for far too long and I had been seeing the effects for sometime. I was conflicted as I didn't know what I was to do with this information, I describe it as the feeling you get when something is on the tip of your tongue but you can't quite get it out. I knew it was there but what was it I was it.

Figuring that it would eventually come to me I put it aside and began working on the money. I called the company and was not very pleased with what they had to say, the options were very clear; either dh quits his job and we get the money or we could lie and they will give us less than half. Well, my God doesn't operate in lies so dh is putting in his notice tonight. Oh and as I thought about it further I realised that it was the answer I was trying to figure out with the sleep too. I serve a funny God :)

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A year ago today

We signed the papers for our little farm. As I sit here listening to Sammy bark at who knows what, I remember the joy that filled us and the anxious feeling that carried through till it was all done at 4pm. God is great, His love is endless and His grace is sufficient. I wish you every blessing this fine day and pray that neither your house nor mine, be disrupted by chaos. :)

On a side note, our well pump is having some issues, and we are going to have to have someone out to take a look. Please pray that whatever the problem, it is one that can be easily (read: cheaply = cost, not quality) be repaired/replaced. :)

Oh and HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY SWEETIEPIE!!! She was our first calf:)

Brief life and farm update

Well I spent the better part of Friday in the hospital thanks to what they think maybe some bad acid reflux, they wrote me yet another prescription and sent me on my way. Let me just say that I am sick of pills!!! It seems like every time I see the inside of a hospital or doctor's office they are giving me something new, not really but it seems that way. There are no real answers just new suggestions on what it could be and everything seems to hang in the balance of the pregnancy. It is the easy fall back position, when in doubt it must be pregnancy related :(

On the upside I will have another ultrasound soon and maybe the baby will let us know for sure if we should be getting little pink or blue things ready. Were there no health issues on my end this would be a dream pregnancy, but alas it's not. It's funny thought, I think I always thought that a pregnancy free of morning sickness would be so great and now I see that it is no different, they are all just unique.

Sweetiepie has been escaping, though she doesn't go far, she likes to visit the tree across from the corrals. Marian AKA watch dog, is in fine form and has been a great alarm to alert us to escapee cows, lol. Months ago Lot had broken one of the bars in the arena while playing with the wheelbarrow. Since the weather is not as cold and the grass has begun to green, he and sweetiepie would wonder through it and mosey on down to the pasture. DH wedged a piece of wood to try to prevent these little trips and we returned to find that the wedge provided a really nice opportunity for them to break the lower bar too :( Luckily the Lot didn't go far, he got bored in the pasture and wandered off to the neighbors field in the back. The sheriff was very nice and just gave us a call, he must have heard that our cows aren't the difficult kind. Since then dh has fixed that section with some hog panel but it looks like we may have to re-evaluate the fencing in the arena as Sweetiepie has been slipping out again and we just noticed that a bar is broken over by the old garden.

We had another bidder on the mobile home and the deal was all wrapped up, then an hour later, we got a call that they changed their mind :( To say that I am very frustrated with this is probably an understatement. I wish I understood the plan, but I have learned that God's plan is far greater than my own so I will keep chugging along. I just wish He'd give me a heads up before I spend the propane money on the needed paperwork next time :(

Easter was wonderful, I really enjoyed the homily, so much so I will share the opening joke that Fr told us:

A US naval ship communication with an unknown vessel.

Americans: "Please divert your course 15 degrees to the North to avoid a collision."

Unknown: "Recommend you divert YOUR course 15 degrees to the South to avoid a collision."

Americans: "This is the captain of a US Navy ship. I say again, divert YOUR course."

Unknown: "No, I say again, you divert YOUR course."

Americans: "THIS IS THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN, THE SECOND LARGEST SHIP IN THE UNITED STATES' ATLANTIC FLEET. WE ARE ACCOMPANIED BY THREE DESTROYERS, THREE CRUISERS AND NUMEROUS SUPPORT VESSELS. I DEMAND THAT YOU CHANGE YOUR COURSE 15 DEGREES NORTH. THAT'S ONE-FIVE DEGREES NORTH, OR COUNTER MEASURES WILL BE UNDERTAKEN TO ENSURE THE SAFETY OF THIS SHIP."

Unknown: "This is a lighthouse. Your call."

There's a storm a brewing

The weatherman (can't trust those guys) says we can expect anywhere from 7-15 inches of snow between tomorrow and the weekend. I'm really not in the mood for snow, isn't there someone I can call or write to take care of this? There really should be.

We posted the piano from the mobile home on craigslist for free, someone is coming to pick it up this afternoon. The mobile home has had a few offers, we will be continuing to accept offer through Sunday and make a decision on Monday. Please pray that we can have this over with quickly.

On a high note, I was very pleased with my new doctor and hope that she will understand/comply with my wishes to have very little to no poking and prodding from the nurses etc on the big day.

Loose ends and prayer requests

This weekend we hope to get the mobile home in viewable shape, we have opted to pay it off and sell it. Please keep us in prayer as we do this, I am still sore and having to take Lortab to get through the day :( We need to get this done, we cannot afford to continue paying 2 mortgages.

SL will be going in for surgery on Monday, we will have to be there at 8am. Please pray that it will all go well and that he will not be kept overnight. I am praying that he will not be too afraid, when the time comes. Maybe they'll let us be there so that he won't be so scared, I don't know. Anyone have this done for a child?

Judd has been out with the herd for some time now and has really become part of the herd. I think Treva is a bit frustrated being 6 months pregnant and having him always following her around. She has given birth to 3 calves but she has never had one by her side, I imagine it is a bit of an adjustment.

Quinn will be have a chance to be of Service this year as he heads off to a friend's farm to service Zella. He is young, eager, willing and ready, lol. I'm sure Sweetiepie will be relieved to get a break from his constant attention, lol.

I am a bit concerned about Christmas, she doesn't look as big as she should if my date estimates are correct, I guess time will tell. But I could swear she was much bigger when she was pregnant with Sweetiepie, to be fair that is based on seeing her the day before she gave birth, lol.

Pregnancy and garden update

I want to thank everyone for keeping us in their prayers. We miss her terribly and the shock really hasn't quite worn off.

In other news, I went for my check up and discovered that my due date has been moved up a week. I also discovered that even though I have kept my weight gain within 5 pounds thus far, I will not be able to deliver at the birth center as my height and weight are not within their guidelines (Read: I'm too fat) :( My glucose test came back normal, the ultra sound revealed that the placenta had moved up and is no longer an issue, my blood pressure is good and overall things are looking good. Keep praying that baby will move head down as she is in a transverse position. We are still waiting to hear from cardiology about the echo and the heart monitor results.

Our sweet hay guy came by while dh was off picking up AR from school and began burning our garden area. The kids and dh were really thrilled by the big tractor as it tilled the ground. They all desperately wanted to ride on the thing, lol. When he was done he wished dh good luck, both men think the garden area is quite large and are wondering how it will all get done. To be honest it is smaller than I'd hoped but I was not home to give directions. I am told by my dear friend Stacy that I will be able to fit a lot more than I imagine, I'll take her word for it :) A few things have been started and are getting and are waiting in the pantry. Dh is looking to get some rakes and we will go smooth the ground as suggested. Stacy pointed me to an awesome garden planning blog. Here is the pic from her blog: (click on image to view larger)


I had hoped to use this a my guide but I think I will need to work up to this plan:


All in all, farm life moves on weather we are ready for it to or not. Friday is the yoder auction and we hope to pick up the rest of the chickens we will need to get us through the year, for eggs, replacements and meat. We will also be picking up a Jersey bull calf while there for AR to raise and for us to produce pure bred Jerseys.

Difficult lessons and close calls

This morning we woke up to find that Valentine was listless, her breathing was shallow and we couldn't even get her mouth open to give her the bottle. :( I told dh to take her to Marian, it seemed to be my natural response as she is her mother. Marian sniffed the calf and went on her way. Sweetiepie and Quinn stayed with her. DH left to take AR to school and I left for work. Immediately I called the doctor in the city to see what time they opened and if they could get her in. God's grace was upon us and the doctor was already there (before 8am) and would see her right away.

She was loaded up onto the front seat of the expedition as dh drove as fast as he could. Exhaustion was a factor and directions made little sense but eventually he found the place. The dr gave her a shot as he was concerned that she maybe coming down with pneumonia and she was a little dehydrated. Dh explained that she was not drinking the water that we put out for her and the dr gave him some electrolytes to be administered via feeding tube. We will also be getting a goat nipple for the bottle to see if she prefers the softer texture (didn't know they existed). She will get another shot in the morning and will move from 3 feedings to 4 (depending on how much we can get her to take each time). Overall she was in good condition but there is some concern that she may have water on the brain (genetic condition), but we'll be keeping an eye on it for now.

I can't tell you how relieved I am that she is alright. We will have to find some kind of balance for the next calves born on the farm. Valentine is our first baby on the farm and much like a first child we feel such terrible guilt if we aren't able to anticipate her every need to keep her safe and healthy. I imagine this will be a very long learning process, hopefully we'll be on the right side of the learning curve and can make sure there isn't a next time. :(

Cardiologist

Today was a great trip to the cardiologist :) This was the first time seeing her and she was not pleased with the other drs I've seen. She feels very strongly that they've all just been passing the buck and she is re-running the tests so that she has her own baseline and pictures :) While my EKG was normal for the most part today there were some slight blips that would be indicative of a recent heat attack though mild. She has given me an additional med for any palpitations while I'm on the daily med, but this one is as needed. We chatted about the nursing issue and she has said that she will change the med or take me off of it so that I can, she was very clear that I should if I wanted to. I was so happy. She said the most that could happen is that I may need to pump for the first 2-3 days and dump - while coming off the med but that's it. I cannot tell you how wonderful this news is. Anyway, thank you all for your prayers.

Farm update

I was over at Homesteading neophyte and I realised that I haven't really given you all an update on my babies. The cows are enjoying the winter for the most part, yesterday they found it to be cold and spent most of their time in the barn. The biggest challenge has been water, dh goes out at least 3 times daily to make sure that they have water, often he has to run about 50 feet of hose from the well-house since the pipe by the barn is frozen. :( They have really enjoyed the weekly hay delivery schedule we set up with the old owner. He is such a great guy, we feel really blessed to get the bales at such a great price delivered. I had noticed that hay prices were rising but I have not experienced any increase since the first bale we ordered in the summer.

The cows haven't escaped in a long time, and they have had opportunity. There have been several occasions that the electric fence has been out, happens from time to time when the winds pick up. Lot has taken to raiding the pig food to check for his favorite fruits, lol. Marian is waddling more and more, we'll have a baby soon. Christmas still has a little ways to go before we have another baby, but she is looking good. Treva is such a sweetie, the kids have been helping dh more with the milking and she is very patient with them. The calves are still as playful as ever, they both look so fuzzy with their winter coats on, lol.

The pigs are so big now, it is amazing to see them. I am glad that they have the smaller section of the barn to roam. Unlike the cows they get restless and often need to go roaming the property. It hasn't been too bad, they usually just wonder around eating any green grass they find, then follow us around back to their pen. I imagine that they must really love all the warm milk they get.

I am looking at different options for keeping chickens this year, we would also like to keep bees. The only home improvement project will be to have a fireplace put in that can heat the house. The plan is to put it on the backside of the other fireplace as that is the heart of our house. I am planning to do a really good purge of all the clothes we own, now that we know that our dryer is gas we will need to make sure that the clothing being washed and dried are actually part of our current wardrobe. (I don't expect to like this project). I have been feeling better, my energy seems to finally be returning.

I made butter 2 days ago as EE's bus driver wanted some and I wanted to get back to doing stuff :) The mixer worked very well but it takes so much cream to make a pound of butter, I see why it is so very expensive at little farms. I hope to get to making some cheddar cheese soon, my friend Jennifer made some and it looked so very delicious. Being a cheddar lover, I am very excited to make the white cheddar I grew up eating. The little antique store in the town before us is going out of business and the owner is always willing to make a deal :) He has been getting me all the canning jars he can find in his warehouse, I am preparing my storeroom to be able to accept all the canned food we can do this year. He also had several (16) pie pans that I opted to take off his hands, bring on your pie recipes :) I have a tree order that will need to be placed soon, the Kansas department of forestry has a great deal on trees and shrubs (200 trees for $158 delivery included). I plan to order trees that are fruit bearing along with several wind break trees. I still haven't figured out the tractor dilemma, for this year's food planting but a tractor isn't a necessity for this task, it is more of a luxury. We have to pay off the debts we have incurred (medical etc), so that is where the bulk of our tax refund will go, and the rest we will leave in God's hands and pray for His guidance. Well, that's where we are right now.

Quick side note: make sure you don't have a toilet that is continually running, the water bill will be astronomical. We just got a bill from the mobile home for this months and it is 10 times what it normally is, they claim we must have a toilet that is running constantly even though we haven't lived there in all this time. Pray I can find the right words to deal with them. :)

Managing my stress load and stuff

As many of you know I am a busy mama, in light of the recent health issues I decided to try to lighten my load. I had just started a class 2 days before I was in the ER so it seemed like the logical thing to drop since it is a 6 week class and they can be really intense. Well I will have to find something else to drop, the school has no policy for giving incomplete, nor do they have any kind of medical leave that would allow me to drop the class without being charges for the entire week. The financial aid counsellor told me that it would be best to try to work something out with my professor. My academic counsellor (very nice lady), will be scheduling time between my classes so that I am not having to take 24 weeks of stress. I know you must be thinking that it's only 24 weeks but to be honest, I really just cannot do it right now.

Anyway, since I do have a little more energy I plan to work on making some butter. EE's bus driver is interested in buying some and I'm interested in building a clientele. :) My darling mother (thanks to the persuasive powers of my sister) has gifted me her mixer and I am positively thrilled, that thing has every attachment and it was bought in 1974, lol. It is amazing how little the technology has changed during that time for that industry. Anyway, I am really excited to start using the meat grinder, I remember vividly watching her try new things to get us to eat healthy. Her favorite was ground liver, YUCK!!

Winter is such a lazy time of year for me, I would much rather hibernate than work, but I'm sure there are things I should be doing in preparation for Spring. I'm working on making a list, feel free to offer suggestions :) Well I'd better get back to my paper, pray I get through this class with a B or better :)

A few quick notes

We are working on home butchering 2 of the pigs in 2 weeks from Saturday (yes there will be pictures). I look back at how far they have come and I feel so close to them, they are so much like a puppy/toddler combo. We really want to keep one to breed but there are concerns, like the fact that these are feeder stock pigs, not breeding stock. On the other hand, these pigs are so sweet and responsive, there is no guarantee that another pig will have the same sweet temperament. We've taken pictures and plan to send them to a guy who raises pigs for his thoughts on the matter.

School is back in session and I am relieved that we were able to get back into the swing of things and get the kids where they need to be, on time :) EE started her new school and is really loving being bussed to and from. Due to budget cutbacks HG will not be attending Pre-K this semester and will wait to begin school in August. I am still trying to convince SM that he wants to go then also.

We have began an offensive strike against the mice and so far we have won several battles. Their numbers are deteriorating and that is always good. We tried the poison packets but that seemed to be more like candy than poison, very disappointing. Now we are using a combination of glue traps and snap traps, personally I was quite skeptical about the snap traps but I am really impressed with their effectiveness. Turns out Mrs Butterworth is a real treat for men and mice, lol :) The glue traps are effective to a point, they are great to catch 1-2 mice but a 3rd can really foil the plan and offer the leverage to freedom. The other key to the glue traps is to make sure there is nothing close by that can by used to add leverage, like paper or small sticks or anything they can stick in the trap. Oh yeah and they squeak really loudly for a while, frankly the snap trap seems far more humane at this point.

On the pregnancy front, I have been having a bit of problems with my energy level, heart and kidneys. Even the short walk to the parking lot would leave me winded and it felt like there was a strangle hold on my heart and kidneys. Last night dh got me some cranberry juice to try to help, and it seems to really have done the trick. There is still some tightening in the chest but my kidneys feel a lot better and my energy level is much higher, frankly, I feel a whole lot better. Praise God. I will be seeing a cardiologist in February, as a precaution.

AR is getting so big, it is amazing to me how fast these 11 years have gone. This is his final year of elementary school. He has been helping dh with the milking on evenings and is really enjoying that time. He is such a focused child in certain areas and so scatter brained in others (ie he is totally normal, lol). I am so thankful that he is the big brother, God hand picked him to lead my little band of children and I don't think I could have made a better choice.

That's all I've got for now. Tune in tomorrow when I walk you down memory lane in celebration of our wedding anniversary. :)