An Update and Announcement

Hello Friends! Yes, it's been one of those weeks. It seems as if I take one step forward and about 5 back, promptly ending up on my bottom!!! But things are slowly getting straightened out and coming together, as they always do. It is just so hard to forget that the Lord has a light at the end of our tunnel right when we need it, especially when it seems your blindfolded in a bottomless pit of errands, chores and commitments.

Anywho, I cannot get over this weather! It's been nice to get an early start to the yard and garden work, but chances are when the temperatures get back to seasonal, there will be colds running rampant. And I miss those soft, gray days of rain in the Spring as you slowly watch the land come back to life. This feels more like a "WHAM! You want Spring, I'll show you Spring!".

Boy, seems like I'm doing a lot of grumbling..... I'm sorry! Here are the updates. (They make me smile!)

• St. Patrick's Day was a bit of a non-event at our house this year. I made the typical corned beef and cabbage in the crock pot, but beyond that, nuthin' much special. Although, my Mom and Aunt Jeannie were here to share the dinner. (I'm the only one in the house that really likes it, everyone else had venison!)
• Sugaring season is over! This is both a blessing and a bummer. A blessing because we had syrup to make and my Dear Hubby was getting tired. A bummer because we didn't get as good of a run as last year, though we had some of last year's left, so we're good.
• DH and I decided to go in on an order of "Easter Egger" chicks with some friends, and we're expecting them soon. (O.k., my heart just seized up at the thought that I have. nothing. set. up. for. my . new. babies. N.o.t.h.i.n.g.) So the Light Brahmas are out this year, but there's next year!
• DH and I are currently in negotiations, well really discussion, about going in with some other friends for meat birds. UPDATE: DH came in while I was writing this and I asked him about it. We're going for it!!!!!!
• I have now watched a total of 3 documentaries on food/nutrition/agriculture/medicine while folding laundry. I've watched "Foodmatters", "Forks Over Knives" and "Ingredients". They all have got me thinking about so many things, more than this post allows for. I need to take some time to write things out (it's the only way I can really process information, writing it out in black and white. Or blue and white, depending on what pen I use ;) Once I've done this, I plan on posting a review/synopsis of sorts. Just a note, these will not be paid endorsements, just my humble opinion.
• Sunday afternoon was gorgeous! After church Daddy and the boys worked on yard work while Princess and I started her flower seeds. We sat out at the picnic table. enjoying the warm breeze.  Then the boys came up and started their little pizza garden kits they had received from a local gardening store for joining the kid's club. Good thing they were free. There is no way I would have dropped $10 each for these little kits! They had a good time watching the peat pellets expand and planting the seeds. Their kits came with oregano, basil, tomatoes and green peppers. Princess had a kit, too, though hers was and herb garden. All the trays are sitting up on top of the fridge, waiting to germinate!
• Nearly all of the green peppers that I started about two weeks ago have come up! Hurray!!!!!! I just need to get to my herbs and flowers. I also started some lettuce and spinach on Sunday. I'll have more on that soon.

And now, for that announcement! In lieu of the fact that it has been hectic for me lately, I've decided to focus on at least one weekly post, which I will be calling Thrifty Thursdays. If someone else out there in the blogosphere is using this, I really apologize. Sincerely, truly. But I have some really neat things to share, and I don't feel that I can commit to any more than one post a week at this time. Although, I'm thinking of sharing more things on my face book page, so if you haven't "liked" me there, you can find some more of me and my ramblings. Tomorrow I will be sharing my up cycled outfit from a pair of jeans and a second hand dress, so make sure you visit!

Thank you all, Friends, for stopping buy and taking time to read. I pray you have a lovely night.
Blessings,
Kelly

Friday Update

Friday greetings, Friends! Just a short update to let you all know what has been happening up on our hill, and some things to be looking for in upcoming posts!

• Youth hunting weekend starts tomorrow, so Daddy and I will be up bright and early to take the boys out. Prayers for a successful hunt would be greatly appreciated!
• I've been working since Weds. so I'm a little behind on house work, but so glad that I had my dinners planned out. I'm looking to next week's plan and will be posting that as soon as I come up with it!
• I finally got my printer unhooked from my piece of junk very old desk top computer so that the cord is accessible for my laptop.
• Yesterday I subbed for the receptionist, so I was able to bring in my laptop to work on my Holiday Planner sheets. I'm hoping to share these in PDF format, though I'm not very tech savvy, it's questionable!
• We have some chicken drama and trauma. Our poor hen, Fanny, is being very badly abused by her coop mates. There is something about her that the roosters can't resist, so her back is nearly completely bald. Despite repeated sprayings of Blue Kote, she is being terrorized by the other ladies. She stays in the coop for the majority of the time, but is skittish. I just don't know what to do to help her out. Any suggestions?
• We gave away 3 of our 4 roosters about 2 weeks ago. They are currently residing in my mother-in-law's cousin's garden to fatten up for the butcher block. They have quite a setup there, and I'm curious as to whether or not they all make it to the dinner table.
• I've been able to do some research on Thanksgiving traditions, Advent traditions and the Jesse Tree. This is only our third year of celebrating Advent, and would like to add the Jesse Tree to our tradition. The children really enjoy the Advent wreath, and it has truly enriched our holiday season.

Well, that's all for now! I hope to have a post tomorrow, though I can't guarantee it, what with hunting and baking! Have a lovely Friday!
Blessings,
Kelly

What I've Been Up To

Hi Friends! It's been a while since I've been able to write a post, although I have been able to read some of my favorite blogs while taking a break. As you can see from the photos above, I was very productive in the kitchen! My mother and I shared a table at one of the local craft fairs, and I decided to do baked goods this year. In all, I had 4 cakes, 9 dozen cookies, 18 mini loaves and 3 regular to sell. The bad news is I came home with almost everything minus only a couple mini loaves and a dozen cookies. The good news is the freezer is filled with baked goods, and I was able to share, as well.  I may have only made enough to cover the cost of the table, but I now have readily available snacks, goodies to offer unexpected company, and gifts. It was well worth the 2 days of baking!

Last Thursday I had a Four Wind's work shop, where I learned about beavers and muskrats. It's amazing how wonderful and unique each of God's creatures is! The children don't have school on Friday, so I think we might expand on our beaver/muskrat knowledge and make a fun "beaver lodge" out of chocolate "mud" and pretzel sticks. I'm trying to think of some likely places to find either animals (or at least signs of them) to go on for a "field trip".

Speaking of field trips, Saturday afternoon we went to an open house put on by a local Omya quarry. This is an annual event that we have gone to for about 4 or 5 years now. We always enjoy it, and learn something new. The kids, (mostly the boys!) love to see the huge loaders and dump trucks that work in the quarry. After donning a hard hat, you can get on a school bus and go down into the quarry. This year I opted out of this part, as school bus seats and my herniated disc just do not get along! I did get to see a double rainbow though! The kids came back to the van with bags of rocks that they had hacked away at with hammers. Next spring they'll join their brothers and sisters out in the flower garden. (the rocks, not the kids!!)

So that's what I've been doing. I'm hoping to get some more posts this week, as I have to more to share about using oatmeal and getting the home and garden ready for winter. Have a wonderful day!
Blessings,
Kelly

Happy Autumn 2011!!

O.k., so this is from last year. But I still love this pic!

Happy first day of Fall! Unfortunately, the weather doesn't really know it's autumn; it's warm and muggy. I'm hoping it cools down to a more seasonal norm for the temperature soon, like perhaps tomorrow, but I don't think that's going to happen!

I'm still feeling a bit yucky, and I have company today. Poor Wheels is snuffling and coughing, so we kept him home from school today with strict orders of rest and plenty of fluids. So far he's done a wonderful job of keeping the couch held down and the t.v. warm! I'm not planning on doing too much, either. I have some paper work that needs attention and I'd like to do some sewing and mending. I think the most ambitious I'll get in regards to house work is to get the kitchen ready for tomorrow's baking. I might have to make a trip to town this evening after dinner, too, but we'll see.

I'm looking into some activities to do with the kids for Johnny Appleseed Day on Monday. We're hoping to go apple picking Sunday after church, but the weather will be the deciding factor. It could rain and the temp looks like it's going to be steamy. We might decide to hold off until the following weekend. This kind of bums me out, but if the kids are under the weather, it might be for the best. (And besides, who wants to pick apples when it's 80 degrees?)

Well, that's all for now. Be sure to stop in tomorrow for a Preparedness Challenge post. I'm thinking of getting together a cold-care kit, so I might be sharing about that. Have a great day!
Blessings,
Kelly

Antique Tractors, Quilts and The Week Ahead

Morning to all! It's Monday, so that means joining the Barn Hop over at Homestead Revival! It's going to be quick today because I'm taking our Princess over to camp in New York. I thought I would share some pictures of our field trip yesterday to Billings Farm.

The quilt show is currently running, and they are beautiful! Making me wish that I could quilt (or even had time to get my sewing machine out!)! Quilting is one of those skills from the past that has turned into a current art form. This is one of the more traditional quilts, but there were many that used mediums other than your usual thread and calico!

The reason we came!:Teddy Bear is a tractor fanatic! Everyone else in the family enjoys tractors,too, but Teddy Bear can tell you sooo much about them. He has practically memorized his John Deere videos.

I loved how these sheep were all lined up along the fence together. They were t-ewe cute!

Teddy Bear watching the tractor parade.

Our family.

Princess and her Darling Daddy. Working the mud boots and skirt ensemble!

Don't let Wheels' scowl fool you, he had fun!



That was our Sunday, after church of course! We headed over to N.H. to pick up my new glasses and get a few groceries. Mondays are my usual shopping day, but with our trip over to the Kid's Camp, I won't have time today. I'm hoping to get the house picked up (it currently looks like a bomb went off in here!) before heading out, and I have to finish getting Princess packed up. (I know we should have been done before, I tend to procrastinate move at my own pace.)

This weeks goals are:

• finish school supply shopping
• take the boys shopping for a few new school clothes and essentials
• get veggies put up in same way, shape or form!
• start planning my daily routines for the school year
• get school supplies sorted and packed into backpacks
• finish items from last week that didn't get done
• finish reading the gardening book I started and hopefully do a book review

Hope you all have a good Monday, and see you soon!
Blessings,
Kelly

A Somewhat Wordless Post

My mother's kitten, Sunny

Wheelz with his 1st catch of  Memorial Day weekend

My planter with some store bought and homegrown plants.

Princess on her egg laying throne.

Many blessings all!
Kelly

Our Easter and The Search for The Right Coop



Our Family Faith Wall on Good Friday



The FFW on Easter morning!

We found the Alleluia and restored it to it's place of honor.

It's hard to see, but it says "With God all things are possible." So true!

The kids' stained glass crosses.

Breaking ground for our original concept for the coop.

A very "egg-cited" Princess!



Happy Wednesday! I'm VERY behind on my blogging, I had started this post on Monday!It's going to be short and sweet! I just wanted to share about our Family Faith wall (you can read this post for more info and to see what it looked like before Good Friday) and how it transformed. I also have some updates on the homemade cleaners from this post.

For our Family Faith wall, I hung up a sheet to cover it on Good Friday. I thought it would show the solemnity of the day and symbolize Jesus' coverings for the tomb. Saturday night after the kids had gone to bed, I went to work on transforming the wall into a picture of joy and life. I had planned ahead what I was going to use and got the flower garland made before hand, so it only took me about 5 minutes to put this up. I changed the middle picture, but kept the same Scripture verses. The large golden cross was a gift from my Mom and the quote on the wall is actually from the dollar store! I'm planning on keeping the Family Faith wall as is for the 50 days of Easter until Pentecost.

We had a lovely Easter day, and after our yummy dinner at my sister-in-laws, we went to work on our chicken coop plans. After to heading to Home Depot to get lumber, we realized that our original plan was going to be too costly, so we looked around at the pre-built sheds and brainstormed. After visiting a local garden and shed center, we found a coop that is pre-built and absolutely gorgeous, but entirely out of our budget! We've decided to build a close replica of it, and my dear hubby is sure it will be more cost effective of a design.

An update on the homemade cleaners: I'm very pleased with the dishwasher detergent! The few glass cups that we have look better than when we used Cascade and everything is nice and clean! As for the soap jelly, I tested it out on some really bad grass stains on Wheels' pants, and I've had to reapply and wash again. When I first treated the stains I used the Oxy Clean Max Force stain stick on one knee and the soap jelly on the other, and felt they worked about the same, but as every mother knows, grass stains are tough. I'm thinking that the soap jelly will work just about the same as any store bought stain remover for only about a fraction of the cost. (A bar of Fels-Naptha is only 97 cents at my local Walmart and i only used 3/4 of a bar!).

Hope you have a lovely Wednesday and I hope to post again either later or tomorrow!

Blessings,

Kelly

Items of Interest

A nearly full Sap moon. Pic taken from our deck.

Happy Friday everyone! Just a couple of things I thought I'd share about this weekend.

First, it is Maple Sugar house Open Weekend here in the beautiful green mountain state. You can go to this site to find a sugar house near you. We've visited a sugar house nearly every year for the past couple of years now, and even though we make our own, it's just plain ol' fun!

Also, Saturday night will be the full Sap Moon. It's going to be especially large, bright and beautiful! For more information on the this occasion, you can go here and here. The moon isn't full yet, tonight, but it was still absolutely gorgeous!

If you're in the neighborhood Saturday afternoon, we'll be boiling! And I might even have some goodies to share!
 Blessings,
Kelly