5 Chicks and a Farmer

And just like that.....

2012-02-17T10:00:00.000-06:00

she is fixing her own ponytail.

It literally happened overnight.

One day she is free roaming around the farm with tousled hair- except when we leave the farm. Then it's fixed.

The next day she stands in front of the mirror with brush in hand setting out to gather it up into a ponytail.

"Mama, I fixed my own hair today!" she exclaims with wide proud eyes coming out of the bathroom.

I only wished I could have seen her sweet hands hard at work tackling this.

How did my squishy baby turn into this precious ponytail fixing girl?

Valentine's Day Recap

2012-02-16T16:52:00.000-06:00

This Valentine's Day was so many adjectives.

Sweet. Memorable. Fun. Weird. Disasterous.

How can one day be described by all of those words? Life is just interesting like that.

One minute you can be fully engaged in the sweetest of moments and the next minute can be in the midst complete chaos. Maybe that's not your life, but it is certainly mine. There are 6 lovely variables living in this house that can fill up a day with both wonder and havoc. And we have not even entered into the teenage years yet- bless our souls!

Valentine's Day started off with a heart-shaped breakfast. We had eggs and sausage in the shapes of hearts and strawberries with chocolate yogurt. In regards to the yogurt, my kids proclaimed it indeed still "tasted like yogurt." I think they were secretly hoping it would have turned magically into ooey gooey melted chocolate. But, alas, it was homemade yogurt mixed with sucanat and cocoa powder.

This girl melts when you look at her. She is bashfully sweet. This happens to be one of my most favorite things about her.

We all received rain boots for our Valentine's gifts.

What girl doesn't like roses from their daddy?

We meandered around the farm in our rain boots because it was conveniently raining so we got to try them out.

The girls received "Secret Heart Messages" from the Farmer and I. They had a blast uncovering the hidden messages.

This is sweet Laney Rae uncovering her message that said,"When you giggle, I giggle." It's true. Her laugh is contagious.

After lunch we went across the driveway to our cousin's house for a popcorn dance party. We got dressed up and got crunk. Their honey and I showed them what was up to the tunes of "Ice Ice Baby" and "You can't touch this." We laughed our heads off and left breathing hard- like a good dance party should do.

Here is the white chocolate popcorn buffet. Delish!

Crazy cousins!

The toddler two!

Laney Rae cracking up at her cousin, Ashton.

The Farmer had deliveries on Valentine's Day so it was up to the girls and I to create our own memories for our Valentine's Day supper. Originally I was going to take the girls to the airport diner just down the road from us. I was bound and determined to see an elderly couple sitting on the same side of a booth sipping on a milkshake and discussing what track to play next on the jute box. This diner is precious and they wear real poodle skirts and some of them even skate.

It was a good thought while it lasted, but our bubbles got popped. The diner was closed.

Note to self: this is not a big city. It's a town. There is a difference and businesses can choose to be open whenever they dang well please. Call ahead of time always.

We ended up at our local favorite mexican food place. Let's just say homegirl right here had lost her ever loving mind bringing four girls to a restaurant by herself on Valentine's Day. We left with bumps, scratches, and a bite mark on the hand of my baby girl from a roaming toddler (not my toddler, mind you). Our meal was filled with screaming and tears. After an awkward moment with the owners, we left and I got to the car and exhaled a big sigh. This was not a good end to our day.

Good thing we had plenty of other sweet moments to look back upon and be thankful for this day that is meant to honor those in your life that you love.

However the lovely or mishmash my day turns out to be, there is not any other five people on this earth that I wouldn't want to be in every part of these moments.

God's word does not say that love is E A S Y. I'd venture to say that love (real love) is downright hard sometimes.

His word says that L O V E is....

patient
kind
doesn't envy
doesn't boast
isn't proud
doesn't dishonor
isn't self-seeking
isn't easily angered
doesn't keep records of wrongs
delights in truth
always protects
always trusts
always hopes
always perseveres
and N E V E R F A I L S!

1 Corinthians 13:4-8

Natural elements nativity.....

2012-01-20T20:27:00.002-06:00

Two craft posts in a row....I promise this is not normal in my life.

And further more, this craft post has nothing to do with me making anything.

This post is so last Christmas, but my Christmas tree still happens to be up. So there. I have a competition with myself to see who can leave their tree up the longest and I always win.

For one of our Christmas Advent activities, we set out to make a Nativity scene out of mostly natural elements from around the farm and around the house.

Our girls were still struggling to grasp the characters of the very first Christmas. We had asked the littles one too many times "Who was Jesus' mother?" and got the answer "EVE!" one too many times.

I was all gung-ho until about 15 minutes into this and realized,"This is going to be way too tedious! We'll be here all night long!" And the girls were not feeling the nativity love.

Example:

But, you CAN easily see who was feeling the love. Busted!

Jason is a pro at anything tedious. He thrives at doing things that are meticulous. There have been so many times in our 11 years of marriage that I take on something detail oriented and about 15 minutes into the project and me throwing in the towel and giving up, he comes in and totally takes over to finish- this is one of his sweet gifts to me.

This was definitely not the family activity that we had in mind. What I got out of this deal was a bonafide nativity heirloom made by my man. There were several times that he said,"I'm having so much fun doing this!!" This made it even better.

I think he did an amazing job. I love that I have an acorn Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus. I have pecan wise men. My shepherds have cute little almond feet. The sheep are made of cotton. We used twine, jute, burlap, wood, moss, and pine cones. He exceeded and blew my expectations out of the water when he started building an actual stable. I was just hoping for some nativity peeps. It's just perfect!

I plan on leaving it out year around to enjoy....my tree on the other hand has got to go in due time. We'll see if it makes it until Valentine's Day!

Tye Die Tees with Sharpies

2012-01-19T23:25:00.000-06:00

Does the sound of that title scare you?

Don't let it. I promise. You will not find a complicated craft around these parts.

I can appreciate a good craft with the best of them. I'm just not a fan of crafts that are tedious or drawn out for hours or (even worse) days.

I'm all about quick results. And so are my girls. We like instant gratification when it comes to making stuff.

If it requires more more than a few basic instructions AND complicated supplies, it gets nixed rather quickly (there goes about 95% of my craft options, right??).

My other criteria for a good craft is that it usually has to be something the girls can do with me. My girls are craft leaches. If they even think their mama is up to making something, they won't let me out of their sight. I ~~love~~ embrace this in them. "If you can't beat them, join them."

Now, I will say that since this craft had Sharpies involved, we waited until the littles were napping. The very word "Sharpie" evokes such fear and trembling in my 2 year old. We've had a few casualties with our little "destroyer of leather furniture". If she even so much as sees a stray Sharpie on the ground (we have a very specific home for them in this house), she will run it immediately to me as if she is holding a knife. It very much is a forbidden weapon to her. And she has "killed" many things with Sharpies.

This craft was inspired by this post on the blog "The Art Girl Jackie".

It was so simple and we had a blast doing it!

Have you every wondered what to do with a basic stained white tee?? They would be so great to re-purpose for this craft.

Laney Rae getting her craft on.

Kaylyn getting her craft on.

Supplies:

I found some of our ugly white shirts that had seen better days.
A boatload of Sharpies
Rubbing Alcohol
Dropper
Plastic Cup
Rubberbands
(The link above shows a bedazzled embellishment of some sort...we went for simple. That's our thing. But, by all means bedazzle if you want to.)

I'm not going to copy the exact instructions here since I pretty much did exactly what Mrs. Jackie did. So head on over there for specific instructions.

They took us all but 30 minutes to make. And it was really neat watching the colors transform.

By the end of it all, I was glad that we did this craft. That doesn't happen very often. All I can say is
S I M P L E and cute!

Moments Captured, not Silhouettes

2012-01-15T11:05:00.002-06:00

Here dies another day

During which I have had eyes, ears,hands

And the great world round me;

And with tomorrow begins another.

Why am I allowed two?

G.K. Chesterton, Collected Poetry Pt. 1

I set out to snap some photos of thegirls for a Christmas project. The photographer in me wanted to feel defeat. But, the mama in me fought through and found delight in whathad been captured.

Although this was a failed craft and Ididn't get the images I thought I needed, I walked away withsomething much more. Something I now like even better. Moments ofpure sweetness.

A back sugar from sister.

A photo of the little being held by theother little because she just had to be near.

The little one. You could forget hersitting still since her world is all discover and only stillness when she sleeps.

Those curls. Look at those curls.

And this look because “Why am Isupposed to turn my head sideways and not smile?”

This punkin head with her pooched lipsand her messy big girl bun.

And the eldest. Such a sweetie. Sittingso straight and tall.

I would have missed all of this if I would have entered into this moment with clinched fists and my mind made up just so.

"Wherever you are, be all there." Jim Elliot

New Look, New Post, New Perspective

2012-01-13T17:20:00.002-06:00

I'm back! Like, really really back.

I took a much needed break from blogging and reading them (mostly). My google reader is going haywire I'm sure. I haven't checked that thing in ages. Six months to be exact.

The break from blogging gave me a little bit of a new perspective and
F R E E D O M. I was really at odds with blogging in general.

Can I be honest? This whole "mommy blogger" movement creeps me out a little. It just does.

I wanted so badly to believe that blogging was a good way to connect with other women and learn from one another. I do feel like this can be the case. I still have blogs that I adore reading whether it be because it's thought provoking, witty, inspiring, or just pretty to look at.

But, I feel blogging has potential, and maybe already has, to turn into a way for stay-at-home mommy's to have an audience of some sort- you know, besides the audience of little people and husband living with them. I mean, women surely got by in past decades without blogging about their child's poop and uploading a picture within minutes of it happening for the whole world to see right? Did they have the need to dissect with their words the latest and newest (sarcasm should be noted) craze of cleaning with baking soda?

Frankly, I just didn't want to be a part of fighting this battle in my own heart of needing an audience outside of my home or be a part of "feeding" into that for someone else. I know it's presumptuous on my part to assume that I would be doing that for someone else. But, let's be honest. It does feel good for any human to hear accolades of how awesome we are because we (fill in the blank) or can do (fill in the blank).

On the flip side of this, I would hear comments of women who would read blogs and walk away feeling discontent because they don't feel like they are doing enough like a certain super mom blogger or because they're not as creative as this blog mommy or because their home doesn't look like this mom who homeschools and runs a photography business all at the same time.

Is that paragraph up there all one sentence? I really need to work on my writing skillz!

Back to the point.

We can all agree that seeing what goes up in a post on a blog (or even facebook) is not an entirely accurate picture of someones life. Right? Behind the staged photos or the funny stories or hard posts about trials there is sometimes much much more going on. Sometimes it is what it is.

And I wouldn't even go so far as to saying that bloggers even have an obligation to be bare bones real in all areas of their lives and fully disclose everything with mostly complete strangers who aren't in close community with them. Some may choose to do this and that is their choice. Others may want to pick and choose what they want their readers to know about them. I don't think it's a black and white issue. But, I've heard from other women out there who like different bloggers because they are "real". There are blogs that I love for the "real" factor too. However, I believe it is hard to get an accurate "real" picture of someone based solely off of their words and the photos they choose to post. That's all I'm saying.

I think the thing to embrace here is for those of us who choose to be a part of blogging is to extend grace towards one another AND to ourselves. We shouldn't read blogs and leave with the feelings of discontentment or that we're lame losers because we don't do (fill in the blank) in our homes, with our families, or in our kitchens. We must know that we are only seeing a glimpse of someones life and what they want you to know. Not the entire story. Playing games of comparison with other women who you really don't know entirely and accurately is harmful and a waste of our time.

I got tired of reading blogs (mine included) in which the author starts off after not posting for days (gasp!) by apologizing profusely for their lack of posts and how they were so so sorry. Why apologize? Why did I feel I needed to apologize? Was it because the blog quickly became all about the audience rather than the content? Most likely for me, this was the case.

I'm choosing to blog without obligations. This blog is about the things I love, celebrate, and what I want to write about. There pressure is off. I don't want to fit any molds or keep up with any trends. Most likely you'll find things in written form about my Savior, farm life, my girls, the farmer of my dreams, simplicity (or trying to achieve it), foodie stuff, hippy stuff, and whatever else I find joy in.

I'm not terribly well-written, but it is something I do enjoy and hope to practice. I've wanted to be a journal keeping kind of gal, but sitting down with a pencil is just not my thing. I can crank things out much quicker by typing.

One of the things I noticed about being gone so long from blogging is that I didn't document these precious little girls' and our family's lives well. I missed that. I missed putting into words how wonderful they are, pausing to document and capture, and delighting in that.

There is something truly special about taking a thought and putting it into words to weave a story. Writing makes you dig deep and pick exactly just the right word to express the sentiment you are feeling- and the Thesaurus is always helpful too!

Thanks for popping by our little neck of the interwebz. I'm not perfect. I DO want to be as real as possible. But, there is always a pile of laundry behind the scenes of any photo taken in our home. This is for dang sure! Heck, I may even post photos of the real live insanity.

And one day in the near future when I have my act together enough (will that day every come??) these blog posts will be put into a printed book for my girls to have for years to come. In the meanwhile, I'm just glad I can hit "save" and it's done.

I'll leave you with a snapshot from yesterday of my girls playing together smiling and happily...a rare moment.

Busy Bags:::: Geoboards

2011-09-05T23:32:00.000-05:00

I have some of the craftiest friends around. My friends Kirby and Chelsea organized a Busy Bag Swap!

A "Busy Bag Swap" is basically where 26 mamas make 26 of one single craft and then swap them with the other mamas making 26 of their craft. Brilliant! So basically you do 26 of the same craft and then walk away with 26 different crafts for your children to enjoy. That is way too many numbers in one sentence.

This past year in homeschooling, having activities for my younger ones to do was (is) a challenge for me. So, I was thrilled when I heard about this opportunity!

We had to do a blog post with directions and information on our projects so I thought I might as well give my untouched blog some lovin' since I did the work to make a blog post and all.

For more of these Busy Bag Projects, head on over to these gal's blogs and look at all of the wonderful projects that were in our Busy Bags.

Kirby's Blog
Chelsea's Blog

Family: I've been happily married to a farmer and the man of my dreams for over 10 years. I've got to give him shout outs on this busy bag project too! Thanks Jason! We have 4 girls: Kaylyn (7), Laney Rae (4), Ruthie (2), and Exie Jo (7 mo). We live on a farm in Brenham, TX.

Our Farm: www.YonderWayFarm.com

Our Family Blog: www.YonderWayFarm.blogspot.com

How do you spend your free time?

I think most of us mommies chuckle at this. In all reality, my free time is devoted to catch up on things I can't do when I DON'T have free time. Is that vague enough for you? Good. I love cooking and experimenting with recipes. I'm a foodie. Dork alert: I love reading natural health books and alternative methods of health treatments. I do love being crafty and creating things although I don't get to do it very often. The beauty of this has been that as my girls have gotten older, I have included them more and more into this aspect of my life. We have fun with that! I also thoroughly enjoy photography.

When you were a child, what was one of your favorite ways to spend your day?

I remember playing school with my sister all of the time.

Fondest memory with your mom as a child?

I loved going garage sailing with my mom on the weekends. She was also so sweet about letting me pick out some 25 cent decoration for my room. I thought I was quite the decorator. It also always seemed as though she had some fun activity for us to go and do.

What does special time with your children look like?

I like to take just one or two of my girls at a time with me on special errands. I have found this to be such a fun way to spend one on one time with them. My girls LOVE to play beauty shop so we are always playing that. We also spend a lot of time in the kitchen together. My older girls are becoming fond of cooking and this makes my heart so happy! As much as I can, I try and include my girls in whatever activity that I am doing around the house.

Favorite outdoor activity with the kids:

We live on a farm, so we are constantly outside doing something together. I guess one of our favorite things to do is collect eggs in the evening with daddy. We pile in the bed of the truck and go driving around the farm at sunset. This is one of my favorite times of day! Another favorite thing we do is school outside on pretty days. We lay out a quilt on the grass and have school there.

A favorite tradition that you want to pass down to your kids:

Whatever the holiday may be, I feel like one area that we are firm in is opening up our home to family and friends and surrounding ourselves with lots of people on holidays. We love having people over and celebrating!

Our family picture.....this is comical. We currently do not have a family picture of ALL of us since our last baby girl was born. So, we had to make do with a snapshot of me on the couch with the girls. My hubby was behind the camera. And I may or may not have just told my 2 year old "Smile, or you'll get a spanking."

Busy Bag Activity:

Geoboards are so versitile and can be used a number of ways in teaching a variety of concepts. My 2 year old all the way up to my 7 year old have enjoyed playing with their Geoboards.

You can teach basic geometric shapes using these boards.

These are so fun for my girls to sit and do together. I also find this to be a really easy activity that doesn't require very much assistance from me. And its really sweet to see the older kids teaching the younger ones their shapes on their boards.

For the older children, you can create geometric shapes that are a bit more challenging.

Or you can teach your child some of their numbers and letters too on the boards.

We even like to freestyle and see what shapes or patterns we can come up with on our own! The possibilities really are endless.

Another thing my girls have enjoyed doing with this project is drawing their shapes directly onto the grid cards as well. This would be a simple thing to throw into a diaper bag or backpack on the go.

Here is how I (mostly my husband) made them:

In all reality, if I were making just ONE geoboard, I might consider using THIS method of buying a wooden pre-cut plaque with routered edges. They are about $6 a piece at Hobby Lobby and you could probably get one for half price when they go on sale. However, they weren't on sale when we were purchasing materials for this project, and we were making a lot of them so we had to keep our cost down. I don't know if I'd use the thumbtacks, so we opted for something a little more durable and used nails instead.

Since these were mostly for small children (preschool aged), we chose to do a simple grid of nails of 5 across and 5 down.

Breakdown of Supplies:

1. We used a 2x8x10 board. My husband cut them down into 8"x 8" squares. We used 2 boards total to make 26 of them.

2. We measured out a grid (this will depend on the size of board that you use) on cardboard as our template for nailing the nails into the boards. ****Honestly, this was the hardest part of the whole process was figuring out the grid and the measurements for it.

3. My husband graciously nailed in 650 nails into the boards in our grid pattern.

4. We spray painted them after the nails were in. I wanted this look over the unfinished look, but you do NOT have to spray paint them.

5. I designed the grid cards (file below) in photoshop with various shapes. I also included a row of blank grids so that you could free-hand other geometric shapes, numbers, or letters. I used the Bakers Family blog grid template and then designed my own shapes on the cards verses leaving them blank.

6. Printed them on cardstock at home. I then laminated the 8.5 x 11 sheets of cardstock and cut them into rows.

7. I put these cards on a metal ring along with a pencil bag and the cloth potholder loops and hair rubberbands so it would all stay together. ** The potholder loops were a little lose for the shapes that weren't so spread apart, so I included some hair rubberbands in there as well.

Price Breakdown:

(2) 2x8x10 boards of wood: $12 ($6 each)

(1) large box of nails: $6

(4) cans of spray paint: $12 ($3 each)

(3) large bags of potholder loops from Hobby Lobby: $12 ($4 each) I put a handful of loops in each bag.

(26) metal rings from Walmart: $8 (pkgs of 8@ $1.88 each)

(26) plastic pencil bags: $6.50 (4 bags for $1 at a local dollar store)

***For printing and laminating, I used my own personal printer and my own laminator. I would estimate about $10 for me to do this. However, it will vary if you print them at a copy center or laminate them somewhere else.

Total cost for 26 Geoboards: $56.50 OR $2.17 each.

Downloads:

Shapes Page 1

Shapes Page 2

Sisters Playing

2011-05-30T22:24:00.004-05:00

A sister is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost. ~Marion C. Garretty

It's not always roses and sunshine around here.

Our life is not perfect. It's perfectly imperfect.

And I'm so thankful for the gift of living this life; my life. And not just living it as merely to survive it. But, living to embrace it for all it's perfections and imperfections.

Praying that in the perfect moments I overflow with thankfulness.

Praying that in the imperfect moments I produce growth.......and humility. By His grace alone.

I captured one of those "thankful" moments the other day. I'm trying to be better about that and seizing the opportunity to just stop. and. pause.

"Take it ALL in and slow down," I have to remind myself.

Looking through the lens of a camera helps me do that. I see things I want to forever remember and never ever forget.

How little chubby knuckles held both Thomas'.

How her face was fixated when caught in a moment of creativity.

How sister smiles and belly button parties looked.

Snapshots that I want to etch in my memory when the years have gone by and I'm trying to remember how it once was in this season.

These pictures will one day make me cry- I'm sure of it. What seems as "everyday" now, will one day be but a memory and a photograph.

There is so much more life to behold and take in. But, I want to pause and remember the moments as we meander through it.

Some kids have lemonade stands.....

2011-05-24T16:11:00.006-05:00

Our kids sell beets. I feel a Dwight Schrute joke coming on.

It's official. The cousins are back!

And the entrepreneurial spirit is running rampant around here.

If you come out to farm at any point this summer, you might leave with something a tad on the interesting side.

The "Cousin Store" is open for business!

Oh, but you don't eat beets, you say???

Well how about a peach and frog. Delish.

Last summer it was rocks and cow bones for sale in their cute little storefront. This summer they have real live vegetables and critters. I tried to get Kaylyn to make rose flower arrangements to sell to no avail- we have lots of roses.

Kaylyn has requested to sell all sorts of odd things so I sound like a broken record repeating,"Honey, let's stick to selling things that people buy on a farm."

Exie Jo {{{4 mOnThS}}}

2011-05-23T10:09:00.004-05:00

Exie Jo is almost 4 months old!

I think I say this with every single girl in this house.

I. Can't. Believe. It.

Exie Jo is the most smiley baby.

Yesterday she was worked up and crying because she could not see me. When I walked in front of her, she immediately turned off the tears and turned on the smiling.

Her favorite thing is to be held and sit in my lap. I'm so thankful to have a baby that likes to snuggle!

And she is sleeping through the night and on a very amazing schedule so this mama has absolutely no complaints.

Here are some more pics of her precious self!

Happy Birthday Little Lovey

2011-05-22T10:52:00.004-05:00

Happy Birthday Ruthie Claire!

Today you are 2.

You have an exuberance that is unlike any other.

Your face is full of animated expressions.

Your eyes catch everything in sight. You are the most observant child I've witnessed.

Ruthie, there is excitement and laughter in your soul. It's so sweet to watch you get worked up about something.

The words you say are music to my ears. You are talking so well. The other day I was helping you do something and you blurted out in full sentence,"I can do it."

No doubt there are some quirks about you that are to be mentioned. You aren't a fan of water (i.e. bath time). You can't stand stuff on the bottom of your feet. You get this from your momma.

And "I ont some" ("I want some") is your favorite sentence.

You love to sit and read books. And you are already such a little momma helping out with your baby sister, Exie Jo. Your favorite toy is your stroller and baby doll. And the pig is still in your arms 24/7.

Ruthie, I pray sweet blessings over your life and that the Lord would grab a hold of your heart at an early age. I pray that His kindness leads your little heart to repentance and a saving faith. And that the same exuberance you have now as a child, would be used in ways unimaginable as a daughter of the King.

"The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you;
The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace."
Numbers 6:24-26

Here are some cute photos of your sweet self.

A common face....

This is you in your "pig coma".

Our sweet big 2 year old! Look at those curls!

Daddy and helping his excited princess!

Mama helping you open your presents because you were more interested in the cake.

Your family loves you so much Ruthie Claire!

Happy Birthday Eldest Love

2011-04-26T08:37:00.006-05:00

Happy Birthday Eldest Love,

You are a delight to this home.

My days are sweet with you alongside me. You are my right-hand gal- my "go to". Always eager to help, serve, love. It is pure joy to watch you with your sisters and how you dote over them so proud and grown-up.

Kaylyn, your brain is filled with creativity. Your need to create always keeps me on my toes- and sometimes wears me out because I can't keep up.

Yesterday, you brought me a man made out of leaves.

Your speech in Classical Conversations a few weeks ago was about what you want to do when you grow up. Your answer: a seamstress who made modest "stylish" clothing.

And what 2 1/2 year old knows what the color "magenta" or "chartreuse" is???? You my dear.

In watching your little life, I'm reminded of the gifts that God lavishly gives us to serve His kingdom and for His glory. I pray it's all used for His glory and His alone.

You wake up eager to create and inspire and want the biggest and best thing that the day holds for us.

Lovey, you are full of surprises! You love to give gifts to people that you specifically create for them. It's one of your favorite things to do.

You are also our little joker around here. You love to laugh and tell jokes. You are learning the art of telling a joke. And another favorite thing of yours is to play practical jokes on people.....good ones, not gross ones.

Our firstborn, you came into this world glowing.....literally. We battled jaundice for 2 weeks and had a billirubin light in our living room the whole duration of that 2 weeks. You were our little glow worm. I always knew you had the gift of "lighting up a room".

Kaylyn, you are a blessing to this family. We love you beyond words.

Father, give Kaylyn the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, and the knowledge of You. That the eyes of her heart be enlightened that she will know the hope to which you have called her, the riches of Your glorious inheritance in the saints and His Incomparably great power for us who believe.
(Ephesians 1:17-19)

And just for fun, here are some things I found on my camera yesterday as I was loading pics. A few weeks ago you had a fashion show and wanted me to photograph you.

And then these were extra special because I discovered that you had a photoshoot of your own with your stuffed dog "Flower". So funny! Again, you are FULL of surprises. AND apparently you know how to set the timer on my camera too. Could you show your momma this trick???

I love you sweet girl!

Laney Rae, you are joy....

2011-03-30T16:13:00.005-05:00

Happy Birthday my little joy wonder.

Laney Rae, you are 4 today.

How in this world this has happened is beyond me.

Your most favorite thing in the world is to run free. Outside immersed in nature is where you are most comfortable.

I learn so much from watching your uninhibited little self.

You live each moment to the fullest.

Whenever I read Jim Elliot's quote,"Wherever you are, be all there," I can't help but think of you.

Little one, you hit the ground running and don't look back.

Laughter is your song and the music of your heart. Your belly laughs are contagious.

Your love language is touch. You love to be snuggled.

Laney Rae, you are the ultimate farm girl. And that's what you proclaim to people when you meet them- that, you are indeed a farm girl and a very good one at that. You are so much help to your daddy and a true companion to him as you work alongside him daily.

I pray that the joy that fills your heart will be used for good and that the Lord would be the ultimate joy that fills your heart. Jesus, complete Laney Rae's joy in YOU. I pray that as you walk through this life loudly and wildly, that that your adventurous and tenacious spirit would be used to affect the Kingdom.

I pray this verse over your life precious girl.

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13

I can't tell you how many times I catch the eyes of your daddy as we sit in wonder at the little girl before us. Teary-eyed and smiling we can't help but utter the words,"We love that girl."

And that about sums it up right there. Laney Rae, we love you. Happy Birthday lovey!

The Perfect Boiled Egg

2011-03-25T15:07:00.003-05:00

Rumor has it that our pasture-raised eggs are hard to peel.

I would most definitely agree with that statement.

My girls love to eat and snack on boiled eggs and I'm delighted to feed them to them. However, I use to secretly dread making them because I never knew if they were going to "turn out" or not.

Through trial and error I believe I have found a way to boil and peel our eggs perfectly- as opposed to looking like you got the shell off with a hammer and a chisel.

Step 1: Place your eggs in a saucepan and cover with water about an inch about the eggs on HIGH heat. **IMPORTANT: SPRINKLE SEA SALT IN THE WATER.**

Step 2: Once your eggs begin to boil, reduce heat to medium (so that they won't crack) and set a timer for 9 minutes. Continue to let eggs boil on medium heat.

Step 3: Once timer goes off. Remove eggs from heat.

Step 4: Immediately place eggs into cool water and let water run over them.

Step 5: Lightly tap egg on the counter top to loosen the shell up.

Step 6: THIS IS THE TRICK: There is a layer of skin between the shell and the egg white called the "inner membrane". This tends to be a little thicker on pasture-raised eggs. But THIS is the trick. You have to find that skin and get under it and peel that off along with the egg shell. It should come off relatively easy once you find it and should pull the shell off at the same time.

Step 7: Find a sweet little helper. This really is a great way to get kids to help you in the kitchen. Once they get the hang of peeling eggs, its a piece of cake for them. My girls LOVE to peel eggs.

Step 8: The final product is shear beauty.

And tastes mighty delicious too!

AND you can also save the egg shells and use them as a natural plant fertilizer and sprinkle them in your garden.

{{{Papa}}}

2011-03-21T13:38:00.003-05:00

If you take a step back and look at the bigger picture, you'll see a sweet man who has served and loved his whole life. This is a man who would do anything for his family.

My friends, this is my grandfather. He is precious to me. I can't tell you how overcome with thankfulness I become when I think about my grandfather being a close part of my children's lives; as in, we seem him at least once if not twice a week. As an 80 something, he could put most 50 somethings to shame.

Papa is the rarest of gems in this world.

And oh does he love to sit and hold babies! That is what he loves best.

Ruthie thinks that our Papa is her best friend. There is nobody on earth that she prefers over her him.

If children spell LOVE, T-I-M-E then Papa's love seems endless. Time is his gift to us. He will sit for hours and read and play living in the moment. Nothing is more important than living in those moments to him. I've learned so much from watching Papa love and serve our family.

I want my girls to know how much they are loved by this man. Not many people in this world get to say that they know their great-grandparents. I'm grateful that our girls do. And as I sit here a grown (almost) woman with a family, there has never been a time in my life that my Papa's presence in my life has not been felt. And for that investment, there are no words.

who said.....

2011-03-14T22:17:00.002-05:00

Let's talk about this picture for a minute shall we??

Who said my baby could grow up this fast??

There she sits; in the wheel of tractor.

Toothless and all.

With her big girl-haired self.

It's just not right. It's just SOOOO not right.

I love this little girl. She is my buddy. My sidekick is she.

Whatever I'm doing, she is usually right beside me doing the same or an even more awesome version.

She started cracking jokes too.

And she has such a funny sense of humor. She laughs watching "Nacho Libre" in all of the right parts. Oh how I love this girl.

I keep begging her to stay on the farm with me forever. I've even bribed her with the possibility of her very own ALL-pink cottage. But, she just laughs and says she is a city girl.

This momma thinks she looks mighty beautiful sitting there in that wheel of a tractor.

And in case we need one more reminder....

look at this little girl. She has officially entered girl-hood.

This photo says it all.

Life has been lived here

2011-03-11T16:09:00.007-06:00

Thankfulness. Thankful. Thanks.

Words that are often used very loosely, but mean much your soul.

Simply speaking these words mean little, but actually feeling them do something to your insides.

I've been thinking lots lately about the practice of being thankful and seeing things in a different light.

This lady just sort of does that to you. If you don't follow this blog, you should. I recently condensed my blog reading from a list of about 200 (no lie) to a list of about 25. She definitely made it in the Top 5 for sure.

My girls and I have started a "Thankful Journal." Reading what they jot down is precious and makes this momma grin.

I've been re-inspired to pick up my lens once again and take a mental picture of this beautiful life that the Lord has given me. I want to remember every single detail of this life and choose to put on thankfulness and take off the dirty old rags of ungratefulness.

A life that is filled with sharpie marker adorning the butcher block counter top,

.....Little girls stirring pots and peeling potatoes in the kitchen.

.....A baby girl holding another baby girl.

......newborn smells and tiny eyelashes.

......painting and loads (no MOUNDS) of laundry to prove that we've most certainly painted; and we laughed while doing so. I laughed at the mess!

......map pencils in the floor and sisters coloring.

.......Number 4 in mommas arms while her sweet little big toe peeks up through the seam. A sure sign that this outfit has seen better days, but has kept many a little girl warm and cozy.

.......Nap times filled with creativity with momma and the eldest.

.......Tiny sewing machines for tiny fingers and sewing the perfectly imperfect pocket all by her big self.

These are the memories that I'm most thankful for today.

His words tell me to,"Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful." Colossians 4:2

Be prayerful. Be watchful. Be thankful.

Lord, please don't let me sleep through this life. Don't allow me to be on autopilot and simply coast. I don't want to be friends with regret. Through your kindness and your mercy show me how to BE watchful and BE thankful. Fill me up full of all of these things.

I'm thankful for this house that has been worn and used and that LIFE has been lived here.....today.

Lord, tomorrow when my feet hit the floor, help me to remember this sweet truth that you spoke over me today. Help me to get dressed with the garment of thankfulness.

When the baby becomes a big sister.....

2011-02-24T13:27:00.008-06:00

Where do I even begin? Life has been a wonderfully sweet roller coaster that hasn't stopped since our new little girl, Exie Jo, has made her presence known in our family.

She was and still remains a wonderful little infant.

Today, Ruthie brought me to Exie Jo in her swing in the living room. I found her just like this.

Her outfit was unsnapped and her diaper was halfway off.

Ruthie proceeds to tell me,"Poop momma." So I bent down to take a whiff and sure enough, there was a filled diaper.

Whoever claims that breastfed babies don't have stinky diapers are not telling the complete truth. I can smell them and so can the other 3 mini-mommas that live in this house.

Ruthie left the room and came back with her cotton ball, alcohol, wipes, and a diaper. She was determined that she was going to change Exie's diaper.

But, I'm not quite ready for that just yet. So, Ruthie settled on changing her pig's pants.

And then I managed to steal a photo of Ruthie's new favorite face to make. How funny! She is one very animated little girl.

And this is one to grow on.

Exie Jo is here!

2011-02-01T17:09:00.012-06:00

Exie Jo is here.

She was born yesterday at 8:01 am via c-section. The Lord was so gracious and good to me. I feel really good considering the surgery.

We couldn't be more thrilled. She is perfect and oh so sweet.

And she has 4 mommas. Her sisters are extremely in love with her.

Laney Rae refers to her as "my baby". And Kaylyn cannot stop saying "she is so cute".

So, I'd say that Exie Jo has stolen all of our hearts.

Here are some pictures of her arrival.

This is me holding Exie Jo for the first time. Bliss!

Daddy and some of his girls. What will this man do with all of these girls? I'll tell you. Love them to pieces. He is the best daddy in the world to these girls. I'm so thankful for him.

Sweet sisters. Laney Rae was holding Exie saying,"Come here baby. Momma has got you." Ha!

Little Miss Ruthie doesn't really know what's happened quite yet. I think she will figure things out a little better when we get home from the hospital and start doing life again.

Momma and Exie Jo. I can't get enough of this girl.

And neither can these girls....

And just because. We had us a little photo session in the hospital.

nEsTiNg::::: the big girls' room

2011-01-22T10:18:00.009-06:00

With the arrival of our 4th girl in just 9 days, you better believe I've been nesting like crazy.

Living on a farm, I realize that nesting is just a normal part of life for humans and animals alike.

Something happens when a woman is expecting a baby- whether in the womb or through adoption.

We fluff our nests, clean like crazy, re-organize, craft, paint, and find ourselves tackling projects we've put off for months all because a little one is about to grace us with their presence.

One of many projects we've tackled is converting Kaylyn's room into a room for her and Laney Rae to share. They were sharing her full bed, but let's just say that one of these girls sleeps a little on the crazy side (bet you can't guess which one) so two twin beds were in order.

My sister found the perfect twin beds at a gigantic antique sale for a bargain. We painted them a watermelon pink to match all of the pillows and linens that my friend and designer, Holly, had given us for Kaylyn's original room.

The other two pieces of furniture that are new in the room, is the great pink shelf my friend, Robyn, purchased at a garage sale and the white double locker I picked up at Warrenton this past year.

And let me just mention the monkey on Laney Rae's bed. My friend, Kirby, made that for Laney Rae along with 7 other kiddos in our homeschool group. It has become a favorite of Laney Rae's and she sleeps with it every night. I'm so thankful that it happens to be adorable and sentimental.

Do I have some great friends and family or what? I love that there are so many things in this room that were given to us or found for a great price with this room in mind.

**side note: You should go check out each of the lady's blogs mentioned above. They don't disappoint when it comes to "all things cute". Promise.

The prints above their bed are from Sarah & Abraham that used to be in the schoolroom.

I've gabbed long enough.

Here are photos of the finished product of the girls room that they now share.

More nesting projects to follow.

A snapshot of my day

2011-01-04T22:03:00.005-06:00

The girls and I loaded up in the "farm buggy" and drove around for a bit today.

As we were driving around, I was taken aback by the glitter, cheetah print, and PINK!

I snapped this photo to remember this season of life.

Little girlie feet out and about on an adventure. Oh how I love those little feet!

And this photo serves as a reminder to never ever ask my girls to say "CHEESE" to capture a photo. It just doesn't work in these parts.

When a pig gets a bath.....

2011-01-03T13:39:00.010-06:00

Ruthie has a stuffed pig that she is VERY fond of.

Actually, it's not just a stuffed pig. It's an "Aurora Lolly Gagz" pig to be exact per a phone conversation with the manufacturer of this pig.

This desperate momma phoned the company last week only to find out that they quit making this pig in 2009. Bummer- in a major way. The last purchase of this pig was by "Tuesday Morning".

Consider this a plea if you will.

If you see this pig, please buy one. Or better yet. Buy two. I will pay you back and pay the shipping.

This pig goes everywhere with her. When it's out of her sight, her radar goes off. She knows. He/she has no name other than "pig". It's easy for her to say.

She always insists that I give her pig a kiss goodnight too. There are times when I cringe and hold my breath in order to grant her request.

Sometimes, her pink pig turns into a brown-ish pig.

I think (actually pretty sure) I traumatized Ruthie today when her beloved pig got a bath today. After searching for near an hour, she found her pig like this.......

I decided to air dry the pig and let mother nature's sunshine do its disinfecting magic. But, little Miss Ruthie discovered that her beloved pig was literally being "hung out to dry" and she was not a happy girl.

As a matter of fact, this is as tame as it got......for almost an hour. She never left the porch.

So, as you can see. I'm desperate and dreading the day that our beloved pig is no more or lost or decapitated. I tremble at the thought. Our whole family shudders even thinking about this. We are all conditioned to perform a "pig check" when we get in our vehicle to go any place.

Who would have known that we should have scurried down to the local hospital gift shop and purchased everyone of these pigs because she would love it so?

Consider this alerting the masses....

Allow me to introduce myself

2010-10-13T08:35:00.017-05:00

Hi there. I'm Lynsey.

I've finally done it. I hit "new post" on this forgotten blog. It's all good though.

My lack of silence around here as been a very good thing. And also a very hard thing. The Lord has used this time to do some amazing things in my heart. Amazing! He has given me freedom in areas that were once taken captive.

Although I would love to get into the knitty gritty right off the bat, I feel like it's time we get ourselves reacquainted.

This isn't about a New Year's resolution. I sort of have a comical relationship with those and know that ultimately the Lord is in control and sovereign over everything in our lives.

The best resolution I could possibly come up with would be to abide more in Him, buckle my seat belt in the passenger's side of the vehicle, and let Him do the driving.

With this absence from blogging, I've realized how horrible I am at capturing and documenting my family's life. So, that's what this is about. A lot has changed in and around us.

Like long lost friends reuniting for a cup of coffee after months gone by, allow me to catch you up to speed with the "Top New Things....." in my life if you would be so kind as to humor this behind momma.

I was going to do "Top 10" things, but just to alleviate the pressure, we're gonna go with it and see how many I can come up with.

1. We are having our 4th precious girl!!! I'm due January 31st and we couldn't be more thrilled. See??? This is what happens when you let months go by in posting and documenting your family's lives. I've grown a baby in my tummy and she is about to be here really soon.

All I'm saying is how does the manliest of men end up with 4 girls?? I will tell you. He is an amazing daddy to our little girls. It takes a special man to be the father of girls. Jason shows them what it is like to be loved unconditionally and tenderly. And just between us, I think they each have him wrapped around their delicate, dainty little fingers.

The joy of having a 4th girl is that you have to buy basically NOTHING.

2. Homeschooling is going great this year. We are part of a community called "Classical Conversations" and we are loving every minute of it. I will have more to say about this in the future and would love to share our experience with you.

This community couldn't have came at a more perfect time in my life. Being new to homeschooling is overwhelming. However, with incredible support and also the clear Christ-centered vision of this community, the road untraveled has been sweet so far.

3. The Lord has brought us through a rough season and plopped us down in a new church. The church is new to us, but several of the families have been part of our lives for years. We are so blessed to be a part of this community of believers.

4. Ruthie is walking. Well, she's been walking for a while now since the beginning of November. She has been our latest walker so far (17 m0), but she skipped the "new walker" stage and went straight to running.

Here is a progression of her new found talent.

5. Farmer Jason's sister and husband packed up their boys and moved to Haiti. I wanted to mention this so that you can be praying for their family and keeping up with their story. They are so dear to us. So, although this change isn't directly in our lives, we love and care for them deeply. Their journey has inspired and humbled us. It's put various things into a much different perspective.

Our summer was spent surrounded by them out on the farm. And now our Christmas break has been spent much the same. Sweet cousins playing, sister in laws laughing, good food, late night talks, sitting by the fire, and (oh yes) recovering from a whole slew of illnesses.

In just a few short days, they will return to Haiti again staring situations and people in the face that I can't even wrap my brain around most days and can only see in pictures on the news.

Go subscribe to their blog...that's assuming that you already aren't a reader and fan along with the bazillion other people who are.

6. Cloth diapers....I quit them. But, I need to un-quit them because I really do love them. Ruthie received a horrible ammonia burn from them because our water out here on the farm is super hard (even with a softener). They weren't getting rinsed out completely even after 2 or 3 cycles in the washing machine. So, I'm trying to figure this all out since baby #4 is on the way and I will have 2 in diapers again.

Anyone out there with hard water and use cloth diapers??

7. I've updated on sweet Ruthie but not the older girls. Really, Kaylyn and Laney Rae are just getting sweeter and sweeter. We, of course, still have our moments, but I love my girls!

Laney Rae is quite the character still. She is full of joy. You never ever know what she is going to say. Be ready for hilarious Laney Rae stories in the near future.

Kaylyn is learning and maturing so much. She has definitely embraced the role of eldest daughter and lead sister. Kaylyn is so helpful. She is showing sweet fruit in her life and loves to sit and read her bible. I catch her often throughout the day with her bible trying to figure out words.

8. The Farm.....it's growing! There are lots of new things happening around and on the farm. Expect lots of updates on that in the near future too.

I'll leave you with some more updated pictures of the girls. Thanks for dropping by! I hope we can continue this long-lost relationship.

Liquid Sunshine

2010-06-16T09:47:00.003-05:00

I know the health posts on this blog are few and far between around here. Or really any posts for that matter. We have lots going on these days.

Honestly, I’m sort of “over” the internet right now and over blogging. I want to push through this phase because I know what is written here on this blog helps document our family’s life and has also been (hopefully) used for good.

After I heard feedback and stories from women who tried the OCM (Oil Cleansing Method) and saw amazing results, I was encouraged. The stories are still coming in.

Who knew something as simple as slathering your face with a bunch of oil that smells good could be so beneficial to our skin?

I love hearing stories of natural methods helping people and taking the things the Lord created to bring healing.

Enter Chlorophyll.

We had a customer out to the farm a few weeks ago who has struggled with severe anemia. And to top it all off, she is a mom of 8 kids. Not a good combination. I think anyone would need a nap after feeding that many kiddos.

She did some research and talked to her natural doctor. Her findings and doctor’s recommendation led her to try Chlorophyll.

She noticed an increase in energy very quickly and overall felt much better. I didn’t get into great detail with her, but as with most things I wanted to look more into this.

Energy??? I could use a little bit of energy myself. I’m all about that.

I happened to have some on-hand- I used it to treat an illness that Jason had came down with a while back (colitis). But, I had never thought about taking it for myself.

The things I read about Chlorophyll made me want to try it for myself. In my research, I’ve learned that this is an all around good supplement.

Here is a quote from this site:

“Chlorophyll is miraculous. It has SO MANY health benefits it makes it a true wonder-food. However, the most marvelous and amazing benefit it gives comes from the fact that its molecular structure is absolutely identical to hemoglobin except for the center atom. In hemoglobin this is iron, whereas in chlorophyll it is magnesium. This means that when ingested, chlorophyll actually helps to do the job of hemoglobin (hemoglobin is so vital to the health of our blood – in fact, blood is approx 75% hemoglobin). It helps to rebuild and replenish our red blood cells, boosting our energy and increasing our wellbeing almost instantly.”

Here are some other claims that come with using Chlorophyll as a supplement:

Help cleanse your blood
Aids in digestion
Increases oxygen in your body
Removes heavy metals from your body
Helps balance your pH levels
Detoxifies your liver
Anti Carcinogenic

As with anything, I encourage you to do some research before you decide to take this supplement.

I will most definitely continue to make this a regular part of my diet. I use the liquid form of Chlorophyll. Within a few days, I noticed an amazing increase in energy. So much so, that when I "thought" I wanted to take a nap, I could fall asleep. I've struggled in the past with digestive issues and this seems to be helping things move in the right direction also. Overall, I feel better.

I would recommend drinking this in the morning. I've heard from a few others that this has been known to keep them awake at night- which the hubbies might seem to like. Just sayin'.

There are a variety of Chlorophyll brands out there. I chose THIS one solely based on taste. The reviews all said that it was the best tasting one. A lot of the brands claim to be "tasteless". I refer to this as my "cup of fresh". It is indeed refreshing for sure!

You can also receive chlorophyll from eating RAW veggies including parsley, broccoli, brussell sprouts, and Spinach among a whole host of green vegetables.

From my understanding, Chlorella is referring to chlorophyll found in algae. Chlorophyll is simply the green pigment found in both plants and algae. So Chlorella is a specific type of chlorophyll; algae-based. Both are extremely beneficial to our health. I have found Chlorella to be very expensive and so I chose to use a liquid form of Chlorophyll instead.

You can view some articles on NaturalNews.com HERE pertaining to chlorophyll.

HERE is another article on The World's Healthiest Foods website.

Disclaimer::::: I am not a doctor. The things I speak about on this blog regarding health are things that I have personally benefited from using. This information is supposed to be used to inspire and motivate. And should not be taken as medical advice. The methods discussed here have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Summer Lovin'....some favs

2010-06-01T14:28:00.010-05:00

I love summer. Let it be known that I don't love 110+ degree heat though.

So far, our summer has kicked off pretty awesomely.

I shot these photos of the girls playing with their new wagon a few days ago. They were sitting in the middle of the yard eating strawberries by the carton when the sprinklers came on.

This turned into instant fun and much laughter. I stopped what I was doing and grabbed the camera to capture it all. Such a fun unexpected moment. One minute you are sitting in a wagon in the blazing heat eating strawberries. The next minute you are drenched from head to toe leaping over sprinkler heads- clothes and all.

Summer lovin'.

Speaking of summer lovin'. Here are some things I'm majorly loving these days (in no particular order):

- Doing 5 LOADS of laundry and not folding ONE pair of socks. I'm loving our laundry in general- pool towels and bathing suits.

- Jason's sister and her sweet crew are here for the whole summer- really loving that! There are 7 children on this farm so needless to say they are all plumb exhausted at the end of the day. They are leaving to be missionaries in Haiti beginning in August. The Lord has totally moved in this situation and has done amazing (Would you expect any less??) things during their journey. Follow their story by clicking on the link above to go to their blog. You will be blessed!

- I'm also really loving Chlorophyll....a.k.a. Liquid Sunshine, as my friend Mandi referred to it as. It's the truth. I think it deserves its own post so that is in the works. I've seen amazing results in just 2 weeks of adding this to my diet.

- Earth Balls. You must make these. They are so addicting and really good for you. The recipe is really flexible. The possibilities are endless! This is a good treat or snack to take with you or have on hand. They are pretty rich so you can eat two at a time and feel like you just had a real treat. They also go well with a glass of raw milk!

(loosely adapted from the Whole Foods cookbook)

1 cup organic peanut butter
1/3 cup honey or maple syrup (I've used both of these)
2 teaspoons of unsweetened cocoa powder or carob powder
1/2 cup raisins
3/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/4 cup hemp hearts (you can substitute sunflower seeds or chia seeds)

Mix the peanut butter, maple syrup or honey, and cocoa powder together. I use my Kitchen Aid mixer. Stir in raisins and 1/2 of the coconut . Put this batter in the fridge for about an hour until chilled. In a separate bowl mix the coconut and hemp seeds together. Get the batter out of the fridge. Roll the batter into small balls. Then roll the balls into the coconut and hemp seeds. Keep chilled until you serve it.

Hope you are enjoying your summer!

Ruthie:::: ONE year

2010-05-22T21:53:00.009-05:00

Wow. How does a month go by so quickly??

Or rather, how does a whole year go by this quickly??

My baby, Ruthie Claire, is ONE today.

This is just crazy. I can still smell the hospital room where I held her for the very first time.

I was smitten over this baby from the moment I laid eyes on her.

She is summed up in one word; sweet.

Ruthie Claire,

We love you so very much. I could hold you in my arms forever- and you'd let me.

You have taught me how to slow down and enjoy each moment.

You have 3 mommas- bless your little heart. That explains why you aren't walking yet. You get around just fine doing your commando crawling; no worries there. And I'm perfectly fine with not rushing things. I want you to be the baby as long as you can be. And your other 2 mommas "oooohhhh" and "aaaahhhh" over you all day long. It's pretty special for this momma to watch.

I pray that Jesus would capture your heart at an early age and that you'd fall deeply in love with Him and His unfailing Word.

Happy Birthday my love.
Momma

Oil Cleansing Method (OCM)::::

2010-04-26T23:02:00.004-05:00

I've been doing an experiment some months and I've been loving the results so far!

I have a very dear-to-my-heart friend, Mandi. Go check out her blog...you will learn cool crunchy hippy things.

Mandi is a kindred spirit. She also has glowing, radiant, beautiful skin- and striking green eyes (but that is besides the point...back to the skin).

Upon one of our many conversations- me learning and she enlightening me- I asked her what she "washed" her face with.

Much to my surprise, she told me about how she cleanses her face with oil. Gasp!

Instantly my brain thinks through how this would NOT work for me because I have oily acne-prone skin. I would be committing skin suicide if I put oil on my skin, right???

I had bought "oil-free" everything my whole entire life per the costly dermatologists requests.

There lies the problem.

For the majority of my life since I've been old enough to have pimples and bad skin (which most likely dates back to the ripe ole' age of 7.......not really, I tend to exagerate. It just seems that long.) I've struggled with skin issues.

I won't deny that a lot of my skin issues in the past have been hormonally related (PCOS), dietary related (the SAD diet), and an imbalance of good vs. bad bacteria in my stomach.

That whole statement above really irks me! What is the first thing a dermatologist prescribes for someone with acne?

Birth control and antibiotics??? Ding, ding, ding! That's right! And then they tell you to lay off the chocolate. Much to my surprise, chocolate was the least of my worries.

Well, I don't know that a dermo can technically "prescribe" birth control, but I know it was suggested that I use it to help with my acne and so I went to the "other" doctor to get on the pill- who highly recommended the pill for acne. Do you see the cycle?

Okay...I need to focus. I can't get into all of that right now because I don't want to bore you to tears with a reaction chain of all-things-wrong.

We're about solutions around here.

A large part of my problem has been what I've put on my skin on a daily basis.

From the www.oilcleansingmethod.com:

"The reasons we have so much trouble with mainstream skin care products are numerous, but two reasons, in particular, lead the pack. These products strip the oil out of our skin, leaving our largest organ trying to repair itself by replacing the oil stripped away. This leaves us in a cycle of being tight and dry followed by the inevitable oil slick. Each time we strip the oil away, our skin over-compensates for the lack of moisture by creating more oil. On top of the drying effects, these products are highly-scented. Fragrance is one of the top skin irritants and strangely enough, even the so-called "unscented" products usually contain fragrance. See for yourself and check the labels. Dry, irritated skin replaced by oily skin, inflamed and trapping debris."

After talking to Mandi and reading that paragraph above, I had a light-bulb moment. I love those!

I had no idea that taking care of my skin could really be this easy.

I'm not claiming that I have perfectly spotless skin, but during "a time" when my skin is usually the worst.....it looks pretty good I must say.

And on "normal" days, my skin glows like it never has and looks better than it has in years. I do attribute this to the oil since my eating habits have mostly been on track and I've changed my cosmetics over the years.

I really noticed the most improvement when I switched to the Oil Cleansing Method.

I have normally oily skin. When I'm done oil cleansing, my skin feels balanced and soft. Not squeaky clean and not overly oily.

I've noticed a big decrease in blackheads. I can't tell you how many times I've declared war on those suckers.

I cleanse my face with oil at night to wash off my make-up. In the morning when I wake up, I just rinse my face off with water as a good refresher.

Side note.....Another light-bulb moment for me was when I realized that I was washing my face every morning after only sleeping on a newly washed face before I went to bed. How dirty can your face get sleeping??? Not very I don't think.

I will never use soap on my face again. Never! And I will never spend another dime towards expensive cleansers, moisturizers, or toners claiming to be awesome. They are not awesome.

I noticed a HUGE drastic improvement of the "feel" of my skin in just a few days of doing this.

Here is a post on The Oil Cleansing Method website with recipes and information.

Here is a post on Mandi's blog with her great recipe.

I made some modifications for my facial oil based on my skin type. I do have oily skin naturally (my momma says I'll be thankful when I'm older) so I use a little more castor oil than normally balanced skin people should use.

Some people like to use Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) in place of the Sunflower Oil.

But, this is where I like to have a little fun.

The recipe on The Oil Cleansing Method website suggest only Castor Oil, and Sunflower Oil. I suppose you could do that. But, there isn't a whole lot of fun in that now is there?

So, like Mandi, I added Neroli and some essential oils for fragrance. Many many many essential oils are so great for the skin. At the top of the list is orange oil. Not only does it smell scrumptious, it does wonderful things to your skin.

The main thing is to keep it simple and do some experimentation on what works best for your skin.

Try and use medicinal or therapeutic grade (organic is possible) essential oils if you choose to add them.

Before you spend another dime on a bottle of "the next big thing", try going simple and back to basics of skin cleansing. I think we tend to over-complicate things in this world of ours.

Cleansing your skin can really be as simple as using two ingredients (or 4 in my case) and not a list of ingredients the length of your hand with a million words you've never heard of claiming to do things they were never intended to do in the first place.

If you give this a whirl or have used it, give me a shout out and let me know!

Ruthie and the sink bath::::: 11 months

2010-04-22T21:53:00.006-05:00

My sweet Ruthie Claire is 11 months old today.

I still can’t believe in one month she will be ONE!

I’m really digging the sink baths after messy meals these days. It’s so easy. I seriously thought I’d never be a sink bath kind of momma (you know… because of the germs), but it sure is looking that way.

I can do dishes, clean the highchair out, sweep the floor, and bathe my baby at the same time. How efficient is that?

I give my sink a good scrub down before I put my little one in it. And before you start lecturing me about the sink being dirtier than the toilet, I’m not scared. Poop is my life.

And besides, I’ve never even understood how a sink could possibly be dirtier than the toilet.

Back to Ruthie. She is as sweet as can be in every sense of the word. Her sisters are smitten over her. Her daddy and I adore her and love to sit and talk about how wonderful she is.

She is clapping. Saying “momma” “dada” “tae tae (KK)” “ni ni (night night) “da (dog)” and “ni (no)”. Ruthie is sorta kinda crawling…..show the girl some love. She has two older siblings who do EVERYTHING for her. And she is eating everything in sight. I haven’t found one thing that she doesn’t eat. We are still nursing. But, I think she is starting to taper off big time on her feedings since she has developed an insane appetite.

Here are some sink bath photos!

Leave a comment if you’ve ever bathed your children in the sink!

Bluebonnets:::::The Keepers

2010-04-14T09:44:00.016-05:00

Because the post below is freaking me out on a whole new level, I now bring you, "the Keepers."

Score! I love this one of all three girls.

Little Miss Ruthie....

Minus Laney Rae....she wasn't feeling this at all.

My fun one!

And THIS is totally her smile and the way I think of her.

So sweet of these two!

Watch out Little House on the Prairie. Ha!

She has got this down!

And this!

And she is just herself. No matter what.

Ruthie sitting in a suitcase.

So sweet!

Bluebonnet Bloopers::::Installment Uno

2010-04-10T12:25:00.008-05:00

***can i just say upfront how annoyed I am with the font situation in this post??? but, since i've been working on it for 4 DAYS now, i'm surrendering to it being all out of whack.***

We live in one of the most beautiful parts of Texas this time of year.

Everything is green. Blankets of colors paint the rolling pastures.

It would only seem reasonable that I would try and capture a photo of my beauties in the bluebonnets along with the other 90 million tourists that brave the trip here.

Let me just say here that I’m honestly not a fan of bluebonnet pics. I have yet to find a way to be creative (with 3 kiddos) and not make them look entirely cheesy. I'm sure there are ways (and I've seen them), but I'm not really feeling the creative juices when I'm trying to capture just ONE picture of my girls in the bluebonnets. I'll take a "sit and smile squinty-eyed" photo any day.

I set out for what I thought might be an easy and almost nostalgic photo session. The weather was perfect. I even planned ahead and borrowed a stinkin' awesome baby carriage from THIS dear lady (thanks Aunt Berte!!!).

The girls wore the most precious smocked dresses from Aunt Debbie for Easter. I wanted to get a photo of them in their dresses in the bluebonnets with a prop. That was the goal! Seems easy enough.

Remember the Victorian Era?

Most of the children in Victorian photos are sitting stone-faced still.

I know that they didn’t have Benadryl back in the day. Honestly, how on earth did they do this?

Did they bribe them with Figgie pudding?

Did they even smile in those days? Was the goal for them NOT to smile?

“Sorry Jim Dandy. The kids smiled. We need a re-do.”

Okay sorry. That photo is now starting to depress me. I'm getting a little to carried away here.

There were three adults present- my sister and friend Robyn. Surely if a man (assuming the Victorian photographer was a man) with a big non-mobile camera hiding under a curtain can make these children all sit still, surely I can pull it off in the digital mobile age.

We were quite the sight lugging our old antiques through the pastures. We had an old baby carriage and an old suitcase. If there would have been a steamer train present, you might have confused us with regular ole' Victorian travelers about to go visit our dear Aunt Rodie to tell her that the old gray goose was dead. For sure.

At one point, we noticed that a couple photographing their dogs were having much better success than we were having.

And there were several people just taking pics of the flowers. Why didn't I think of that one?

Here is a series of photos I shot of the girls in all of their glory.

These are SOOC and required no editing. Because why even bother with that? These won’t be making the cut….that’s for sure.

The first shot: Laney Rae was extremely upset because she didn't get to hold the handle of the stroller. Off she goes.....arms crossed and everything. KK scooted over from holding the handle bar in order to make peace with Rae Rae. But, it was too late. This momma just kept shooting.

Okay, new strategy re-group. You both get to do the "pushing" from both ends. Brilliant! Let's give that a whirl. This could work.

It did in fact work well enough for one shot (you just need one), but then Laney Rae had a new idea.....

To march herself up to the foreground......

and plop herself down. She is pretty thrilled with this decision, but Kaylyn is not. Zoom in and take a look at that face.

Or this one....sheesh.

We did get some definite "keepers". I just thought this little series was funny and worth sharing. All jokes aside, my girls really were troopers. I was the doof wad that decided to have a picnic before hand to get them comfortable with their surroundings and feed them Cheetos- the bad kind- IN WHITE CLOTHING. Not smart and definite rookie bluebonnet picture mistake.

But, I had a smile on my face throughout {{mostly}}. I did say "are you kidding me??" lots of times.

I went into with the mindset that it may not workout and be the day for me to get the "perfect" bluebonnet picture of ALL three together. With children- sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

The "keepers" post coming soon!

Around the house:::: Nap Time

2010-04-08T15:55:00.007-05:00

There is something a bit magical about nap time.

The box fans booming.

All of the lights are turned off and blinds closed shut.

There is an unspoken need to walk on tip toes. Our floors in this old farmhouse creak anyways.

Today the oldest decided she needed a nap too. Triple bonus.

The coffee pot is brewing. The worship music is playing.

I've got a laundry situation just waiting to be tackled.

While they sleep, this momma will be conquering laundry. And it's no small task.

But, there is still a certain giddiness because it is nap time, after all.

As I look around at much work that needs to be done by yours truly, I am overcome with thankfulness for this life the Lord has chosen for me and take delight in the things He has laid out before me.

Abel & Sarah Katherine::::::e-session

2010-04-07T09:18:00.013-05:00

I know I've said here before that I'm no longer "doing" the photography thing- or at least building and growing a photography business.

But, I could not pass up the opportunity to photograph and participate in such a sweet couple's special day. Here is a link to their sweet blog.

Sarah Katherine's family is super special to our family and go to church with us. And in the process of meeting and getting to know Abel, we cannot be more thrilled that the Lord has chosen to knit their hearts together.

They are beyond sweet to one another and already "get it". Sarah has such an amazing heart ready to serve and love her man. Abel's heart is to lovingly lead and guide his woman. The beauty of Christ shines in these two.

So, when they asked me to photograph their special day I said,"of course."

We headed to downtown Brenham for their engagement session and it didn't disappoint. Downtown Brenham is perfection to photograph in. I've shot there so many times, but each time we go exploring during a photo session, we discover a new spot.

Abel loves working on cars and has the mind of an engineer. So, I'm hoping that the shots with old cars and trucks look extra groovy in their home.

On a photography related note, I'm in LOVE with THIS lens. I've been renting it from THIS company and can't seem to part with it.

LensProToGo.com has excellent customer service and make it super easy to get your hands on some of the most fab lenses around. I'm one that likes to try it before I buy it. I've been super impressed with them and highly recommend using them!

I shot this entire engagement session on this lens because I love it so much and its consistency is the bomb.

The majority of these images are SOOC (straight out of the camera). Who can beat that??

Here are some of my favs from my engagement session with Abel and Sarah Katherine. Enjoy!

You know you live on a farm when.....

2010-04-05T13:50:00.012-05:00

This post was inspired by the previous post below upon discovering a rooster feather in our sweet baby girl's crack.

At the time, I just chuckled about it and went about my business visiting with good friends.

But, I quickly realized that some funny, sweet, incredible, and unpredictable events have transpired since we've moved to the farm.

You know you live on a farm when.....

(1) you go to wipe the hiney of your two year old and there is a rooster feather in her crack. Gag! This is the only item on the list that a picture will not be present. Thank the Lord!

(2) you use guinea fowl as your alarm system.....and truly take them seriously when they go off.

(3) you brood baby chicks under your family nativity scene on Christmas and it doesn't bother you one bit. The "not bothering" part is when I finally realized that I'm an official farmer's wife tried and true.

(4) the sight of your man getting out of the tractor makes your heart do funny things. If PW can talk about how fine her man is with his wrangler wearing self, so can I.

I simply adore this man.

(5) your idea of FUN is blasting gophers out of their holes with the Rodenator. The name says it all doesn’t it? And it is indeed fun.

(6) you regret taking photos of your kiddos eating dirt even still after 2 years later…should’ve thrown that lesson in there with “Never eat snow on a farm.”

(7) having a car seat in your ATV just seems normal and somewhat safer than the alternative….because babies are suppose to ride in ATVs in the first place. For the record, we are NOT rednecks. There is a difference between farmers and rednecks.

(8) you wake up and the first thing you experience is your daddy guttin' a hog in a tree. Well, I guess this might disprove #7 just a tad.

(9) you have a real live “Charolette’s Web” happening in your barn minus the word-spelling.

(10) a rooster tries to jack your Honda civic.

My Three Year Old

2010-03-30T15:18:00.005-05:00

Happy Birthday Rae Rae lovey.

You are so precious to me, your daddy, and your sisters.

Your laughter is as big as life.

I have enough stories in just these three short years to fill up an entire lifetime.

Like the time we wiped your hiney a few days ago and there was a rooster feather in your crack. We are constantly thanking the Lord for the reminder to laugh through you.

Our house is quiet when you are sleeping and animated when you awake.

The first moments of your day are spent running.

Thankfulness is constantly echoed in your scratchy, raspy, two year old voice. Except you say,”Thank Em.”

The free spirit the Lord has given you I pray is one day tamed by God alone and used for His glory. The things He will do through you and the stories you will one day tell…. makes this mama very scared to even think about.

You see no boundaries.

“Slow down lovey,” are the words I most frequently speak to you. But, one day I pray that you run full speed right into the arms of Jesus and go about your faith in reckless abandon.

The possibilities are endless, sweet girl, once the Lord gets a hold of your soul.

Oh, how I beg and plead for His mercy, favor, and compassion to fall on you and the life that is ahead of you.

We love you so much and are thankful the Lord has chosen us (and thought we had enough energy) to parent you.

Love,

Momma, Daddy, and the sisters

Final Stretch

2010-03-20T23:25:00.003-05:00

(photo credit)

In a few short (or maybe long) days, Farmer Jason will be home from Brazil.

He has been gone 8 days thus far. This is by far the longest stretch of time that we’ve been apart.

Are you doing the math here?? 10 full days apart with only words on a computer screen exchanged between us. I’m such a wimp aren’t I??

I’ve sat down a few times to write a post (because I put imaginary pressure on myself to keep up with my silly little blog) since he has been gone. But, the only words I could muster up at the time were, “I miss him. I miss him. I miss him.”

We are finally on the downhill slide.

Things have went relatively smooth since he has been gone- aside from a full day of sickness from all THREE girls.

As I sit here, I feel overwhelmingly blessed by incredible family I am surrounded by and dear friends.

I can’t wait to sit and talk with Jason about what the Lord has done in his heart. Or where his feet took him on this journey. I want to hear about the lives that his hands touched or the words the Lord spoke through him.

I can’t help but- a part of me- feel as if I’ve missed out on this experience with him. But, I’m so thankful that he got to GO. I truly am.

Honestly, the Lord has done amazing things in my heart while he has been gone too. It’s almost as if I’ve had my own little missionary trip right in my home.

I sent Farmer Jason with specific instructions to take lots and lots of good pictures. I will be posting some of those here when he gets back along with a summary of his mission trip. Their mission area was the slums or “favelas” of Sau Paulo, Brazil. The people they went to share the hope of Christ with were the families and children in these areas. There is already an amazing group of Brazilian missionaries established and rooted here that they went to join their efforts.

Please pray as they make their way home and begin to process all that the Lord has done in and through them.

Farm Snapshots

2010-03-11T21:02:00.002-06:00

The Spring is our favorite time of year around the farm.

Things begin to come alive. Grasses become greener. Wildflowers sprout forth. You can feel the warmth of the sun pressed up against your face.

Today felt like our first real glimpse of Spring. It was almost poetic around here. The animals seemed a little giddy.

But, then again, so did I.

I snapped the above photo of the chickens meandering through the pastures. You can see the cows in the background (way back there) up on top of the hill.

We follow our cows with our chickens. The chickens go behind the cows and help clean up the pastures and break up the manure.

They also help when the flies get back as it gets warmer because they eat the fly larvae out of the cow manure.

In other news, we recently purchased a small herd of Spanish Goats.

The purpose of these goats will be for natural pasture renovation and parasite control.

Goats won't compete with the cows for grasses since goats are browsers and cows are grazers. The goats eat things that cows won't eat.

It is quite a sight looking out into the pasture seeing the goats romping around.

The goats won't let us get too close to them yet. We aren't use to our animals keeping their distance from us. But, in due time I'm sure the goats will come around as well.

The girls can't hardly stand this though. They've made many trips out to the pasture that the goats are in with many coaxing efforts to end in,"They just aren't ready yet."

They have taken a liking to the dogs though. The ranch that they came from worked them with dogs. We can't wait to see what kind of goat wrangler Max will end up being.

We had a momma sow farrow the sweetest litter of piglets to date. She had some very uniquely colored piglets. Some where speckled and one of them was brown. We don't have one single brown pig on this farm, but little one.

The sow is doing quite well at being a first time momma. She is young and this is her first litter of piglets. But, we've been impressed with her so far. She had a total of 10 and hasn't lost any yet.

Losing piglets tends to be just part of the game sometimes. We've had tremendous success with huge litters of pigs. The average loss is usually 1 to 2 piglets per litter- sometimes none, sometimes more. Most of the time, they are stepped on by the sows or crushed by them when they lay down to nurse.

Today, we were outside playing in the yard. I heard the loudest piglet squeal coming from the barn. Instantly, I rushed over to the barn (common protocol) because I knew the owner of the squeal was in a very precarious position.

When I arrived, I saw the little piglet half under the sow and pinned up against the fence. I made the sow stand up and quit nursing the piglets. I'm just glad that she kindly obliged and didn't give me any resistance.

The little guy was up and running in no time.

And I felt like I had bonded with the piglet over saving his week old life.

the booty at church

2010-03-08T20:36:00.002-06:00

There comes a time in every momma's life, I suppose, that you may reach a point to where cute little things your kids do out in public no longer embarrass you. A simple chuckle and a "aren't they so cute" could do wonders in a certain embarrassing sitch, right?

Wrong.

I am NOT to that point.

I am a mommy to Laney Rae, after all.

Just when I think she has no more tricks to pull out of that little bag of hers......

- like the time she painted the whole church green on a volunteer workday (Well, not the whole church. Just the children's wing, sanctuary, and carpet in these areas.)

- or the time she got the whole side of her hair stuck in a fly strip attempting to pilfer candy.

- or the not so distant event in which she gave Ruthie a mohawk with sunscreen and stripped her down naked.

- or the endless moments of sheer nudity around the farm.

Home girl strikes again!

This past Sunday was a typical Sunday in the Kramer home. We went to church as we normally do.

I walked back to our children's area to check in my girls. Ruthie is first because her class is the first one that get to.

So, I checked in Ruthie with Laney Rae standing there by my side.

I took a few moments to pass Ruthie off to the preschool worker and give a few minor instructions- poor dear. She is the third so it's usually,"There are no instructions."

I turned around and Laney Rae was nowhere to be found. I walked down the hall to peak in her class to see if she went in there.

Nope.

I peaked around the corner in Kaylyn's room to see if she went in there.

Nope.

About that time I hear,"Mommmmmmmaaaaaa!" in a raspy scratchy two year old girl voice.

I knew it was my girl. Except I didn't know where she was since I had checked the two preschool classes.

Between Ruthie's class and Laney Rae's class are the toilets.

These two bathrooms are single toilet individual bathrooms- girls and boys. There are no stalls in the bathroom itself. Just a sink and toilet. The only thing that separates you from the unsuspecting people in the hallway taking their kids to hear about Jesus are the doors.

After I heard her screech for me I ran to the girls bathroom.

I knew that was a call to wipe. As mom, you can totally tell the difference between the call of your child if they need something or if they need to be wiped.

Except, she wasn't in the girl's potty.

Heck-to-tha-nawww!

I looked over at the boy's restroom and the door was WIDE OPEN....at church, in a busy hallway full of holy people who I'm sure weren't expecting to see the bum of a 2 year old at church that Sunday.

The light was off, the door wide open, and Laney Rae was sitting sideways on the potty "doing her bidness" with her booty cheeks facing the door for all to see.

The worst part is (if you are the slightest bit grossed out by poo, I suggest you not read this part) she had a "friend" still dangling in her crack in plain sight. Gag!

I WAS MORTIFIED. MORTIFIED.

I immediately looked around in the hallway to see if there were any signs of awkwardness or people scratching their heads or dry heaving.

But, come on.

Who would even want to admit to seeing that?

Wouldn't you pretend you DIDN'T see it and just keep on walking?

I still have no idea if anyone saw her "doing her bidness".

All I know is that I swung the door closed super quickly, cleaned her up, and gave her a good talking to.

Then, I got to look like the moron coming out of a boy's restroom who couldn't tell the difference between a dress and no dress.

Honestly, that was the least of my concern.

Life with this little one sure is fun. There is NEVER a dull moment. And nothing is ever normal. I thought to tell her of the "normal" things to remember that day in regards to public conduct- speak to big people when spoken to, obey your teachers, share, etc.

But, it never occurred to me that I needed to warn her about disappearing to poo in the boy's bathroom AND closing the door.

I guess the "bright" side is that the light was off- although you could still totally see in. If she would have been able to reach that switch, it would have revealed some horrific-ness and would have been a lot more obvious.

One of my favs...

2010-03-03T21:35:00.003-06:00

I recently received this cookbook this passed Christmas (thanks Bubba).

How did I live all of these 29 years without having discovered this gem?

It's almost as if I'm discovering cooking all over again. I'm the type of gal that likes to know the "why" behind everything. This cookbook answers all of that and then some.

Joy of Cooking is one of the most thorough cookbooks to date.

I love opening it up and reading it just like a book.

I made the most wonderful Chicken and Dumplings the other night thanks to this cookbook.

For some reason, that is a recipe that I always FAIL miserably at. My dumplings either turn out too dense as if you were eating sand. Or dissolve into chunks. Or I've burned them. Yuck! When I came across the dumpling recipe I thought I'd give it another shot. After all, Chicken and Dumplings are one of my favorite meals.

This time around, my dumplings came out perfectly. And I owe it all to this cookbook with its amazingly thorough directions.

This cookbook is officially one of my favorites.

What are some of your favorite cookbooks?

The Smile

2010-03-02T12:51:00.003-06:00

I can't even really articulate what all is stirring in my heart right now- good things, hard things, truth things.

But, I know that when I look at these pics, I just smile.

I'm so glad that I was able to capture this smile on camera. I heard her doing this while she was playing in her room so I peaked around the corner quickly with my camera to snap it.

Ruthie has this smile that cracks me up. I make a big huge deal and cheer with laughter each time that she does it. She doesn't smile like this all of the time. Just to be silly every once in a while.

Ruthie closes her eyes tightly "squinched" together, pants out of her nose in a repetitious pattern, and opens her mouth to reveal her mouth full of teeth- all of which are at different lengths right now.

Jason and I are hoping she maintains this smile throughout the teen years.

An unsuspecting teenage boy might decide to ask her out on a date (over her daddy's dead body) because he thinks Ruthie is cute.

Ruthie thinks a moment and then flashes this smile back at him.

The boy runs away shocked that this beauty can contort her face to such odd proportions.

Date avoided. Mommy and Daddy are relieved.

See??? Win win.

And this baby head.....sigh.

I wanted to remember what her sweet little head looks like for years to come.

I want to smell that head and press my cheek up against it.

She has a precious head.

I just love this little girl. She is oh so sweet.

Snow Day: In pictures

2010-02-25T08:50:00.014-06:00

It actually snowed here on Tuesday. You would never know that by looks of things today, but it did indeed snow.

The best part about it was that the snow decided to stick around for a bit.

Craziness fell from the sky in the biggest bunches of snowflakes that these parts have seen.

The snow beginnings.....

A reason to celebrate

In the midst...that is our farm store in the background and an excited 5 year old in the foreground.

Dudley was our only pig out and about.....the rest were nestled snuggly in the barn with their babies.

We had several hot chocolate breaks because, after all, it was SNOWING.

Laney Rae wasn't too thrilled with the snow. She wouldn't even pay me a glance at the camera. She woke up from her nap only to find that her surroundings were covered in "white tuff, momma."

We had some stick-to-yo-bones Potato Soup....for the recipe GO HERE to our farm website. This is a favorite around here as of late. I'm not promising it's low cal- raw butter, raw milk, and raw sour cream make this dish delish!

Ruthie Claire, Naked, & Sunscreen

2010-02-21T20:11:00.008-06:00

Ruthie is 9 months old today. Wow!!

She is pretty much eating everything that is put in front of her.

Ruthie has started feeding herself.

Here's the little doll enjoying some raw milk cheese and bananas.

and her chubby hands....

I love all of my girls' mouths. They've all managed to come out with the same lips.

"Kramer girl lips."

Isn't this mouth just too much??

I had a loser mom moment a few days ago. You know, the kind of moment when you literally want to call CPS on yourself......

You've probably never had a moment like that.

A few days ago I was outside working in the yard.

Kaylyn and Laney Rae had came in the house to play while Ruthie was in her room taking a nap.

I had the monitor on in the house and about every 10 minutes or so I'd open the door to see if I could hear the baby. I did this numerous times.

About the last 3 times of peaking in, I had noticed that Laney Rae was awfully quiet. I decided to take off my rubber boots and go look for her in the house.

I walked in and towards the back of the house where the girls' bedrooms are. When I arrived to the hallway I heard the most adorable giggling from Laney Rae and Ruthie.

My first thought was,"How sweet. Their having a sweet sister moment."

But, my second thought was,"OH DEAR. Laney Rae alone with the baby is NEVER a good thing."

I turned the corner into Ruthie's room. My second thought came full circle at that moment.

Ruthie had been stripped NAKED and Laney Rae was sitting in her crib with her. They were both smiling at one another and having a big time!

"Laney Rae, why is Ruthie naked?" I asked my 2 year old calmly who was beaming with pride.

"Diaper and clothes wet momma," she explained back to me.

"Oh, her diaper leaked and you were trying to change her diaper?"

"Yeah," in her cave woman laugh. If you know Rae Rae, you know what I'm talking about.

At this point, I'm taking everything in and trying not to overreact or burst into laughter. After all, it was my fault.

I notice that Laney Rae had gotten out an old package of newborn diapers, opened them, and had them scattered in the crib with them.

I also noticed that Ruthie had a mohawk with some sort of goo textured and flowery fragrance in her hair.

Upon further investigation, I found out that Laney Rae had rubbed sunscreen all over Ruthie's head- Laney Rae had taken it upon herself to also put "lotion" on the baby while she was changing her.

At least it was "organic" sunscreen, right??

Laney Rae helped me give Ruthie a bath. I helped her finish changing Ruthie's diaper....wink, wink.

{{{pUpPy LoVe}}}

2010-02-19T10:37:00.002-06:00

Many of you know that our beloved Rowdy, farm dog extraordinaire, was hit by a car in November.

We've been wanting another farm dog, but were waiting for the right one to come along.

A man literally drove up our driveway and gave us our newest addition to the farm. Therefore, we assumed that this was indeed the "right one".

Meet Max. Isn't he a cute little fella?

He is a 7 wk old Australian Shepherd. He has to be one of the smartest, calmest, and cutest puppies I've witnessed to date.

The girls are smitten over him. I have to admit. I am too.

He is quite fond of farm life and has received a total of 3 baths since he's been here- for a week.

On one occasion, he was sprayed by a tom cat. Can we say GROSS???

On another occasion, he discovered mud.

On the last occasion, he decided to eat pig poop. Have you smelled pig poop???

I feel like I have a newborn living in this house all over again. Puppies are hard work. But, oh so fun!

Tot Shred

2010-02-18T07:40:00.012-06:00

I snapped some photos of the girls doing Jillian Michael's Shred with me.

I seriously had to capture the moment because they were so into it and too darn cute.

I was seriously wishing I had stamina like a 2 year old and calves like a 5 year old as I took my place behind these two workout pros.

Laney Rae got out her "mat"....aka The Sheep Pillow.

Kaylyn got out her water bottle...aka Raw Milk with some cocoa powder.

Laney Rae decided she needed to work towards her abs of steel.

But, first she had to loosen up by doing some knee circles.

And more knee circles.

And more knee circles. Because can knee circles get any cuter than this?

Her push-ups are perfection;)

And so are hers. Kaylyn's tongue is what makes her push-ups extra perfect.

Ruthie was quite entertained by watching all of her favorite people partake in all sorts of weird gyrations.

Laney Rae has found that holding her cheeks really does the trick in helping her get through her crunches.

And when its all said and done, you get legs like this to adorn beautifully with stickers. Ha!

Laney Rae's legs are seriously my most favorite part of her. They are absolutely squishy and wonderful!

And this momma ended up getting no workout time in whatsoever because I just HAD to capture these two in all of their workout splendor. Excuses, excuses!

I also think its pretty hilarious that Laney Rae is missing her shirt in the above photos, but missing her pants in the latter photo.

This is typical around here. She is our free spirit. It's a monumental accomplishment if we even make it through the whole day with one stitch of clothing on at all.

We once had a visit from a preacher during potty training.

She totally mooned him.

When I potty train my girls, I put long dresses with no underwear underneath. You may call it immodest, but I call it practical. Except, I do think I should have remembered to put some drawers on her before the preacher showed up. That, I regret.

On a separate occasion we had a visit from the UPS man. Laney Rae ran to the sidewalk to greet him (when you live on the farm, the littlest things excite you). The UPS dude noticed that she wasn't wearing shoes outside.

"Where are her shoes?" He asked in a confused voice looking at my baby girl's feet pressed up against the warm concrete.

To which I explained,"You are just lucky she is wearing undies."

I should not have said "undies" in the presence of a UPS dude. That, I regret.

But, it was the truth.

Eggs in a tree

2010-02-15T22:08:00.008-06:00

You've probably heard the saying,

"Don't count your chickens before they hatch."

Well, I have a new one for you.

"Don't lay your eggs in a tree."

Bad things can most definitely happen.

I looked out of the schoolroom window this morning and saw a chicken in our oak tree (see above photo). This sight alone sort of shocked me.

But, as I took a closer look, I noticed she was sitting on eggs and was clearly troubled because some had just fallen out of the tree and on to the ground

Duh???

Poor gal.

And I'd like to draw your attention to those yolks. Yes, those beautifully vibrant orange yolks.

I did not alter the coloring in any way in this photo. They are naturally that orange.

When you raise chickens on pasture, their yolks take on an orangish color. This is how you know if they've in fact been raised on grass.

I use to think that egg yolks were yellow. But, in fact, they are orange- or at least should be.

Who knew?

Here are some facts about the eggs that hens lay that are raised on pasture (from Mother Earth News):

1/3 less cholesterol
1/4 less saturated fat
2/3 more vitamin A
2 TIMES more Omega-3 fatty acids
3 TIMES more Vitamin E
7 TIMES more beta carotene

With all of the food labeling that is being done these days, things can get a little confusing.

Did you know that the government owns the term "free-range" now?

They bought this term so that farmers now have to pay big bucks in order to label their eggs using this terminology.

That is why we have to say that our eggs are "pastured".

Not to be confused with "pasteurized".

You'd be AMAZED at how many people call our farm asking to buy,"Some of them there PASTEURIZED eggs." I digress. Geez.

Still trying to figure that one out. Not sure how one could pasteurize and egg if they so desired. I suppose then, that would be a hard boiled egg that would need a good shellin'.

Okay, sorry, back on task here.

But, what is even more troubling is the way that the government has defined what "free-range" even means.

From Mother Earth News in "Meet Real Free-Range Eggs":

""A statement on the American Egg Board’s Web site says “True free-range eggs are those produced by hens raised outdoors or that have daily access to the outdoors.”

Baloney. They’re trying to duck the issue by incorrectly defining “true free-range.” And the USDA isn’t helping consumers learn the truth, either: “Allowed access to the outside” is how the USDA defines “free-range.” This inadequate definition means that producers can, and do, label their eggs as “free-range” even if all they do is leave little doors open on their giant sheds, regardless of whether the birds ever learn to go outside, and regardless of whether there is good pasture or just bare dirt or concrete outside those doors!"

We say this all of the time around the farm, but farmers can't imitate a chicken raised on pasture.

They can try and stick whatever "free-range" label you want on the carton, but the proof is in the yolk.

an oldie but a goodie

2010-02-10T10:40:00.004-06:00

{{{Community}}}

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you might remember this photo I snapped in May of 2008.

Just typing that gives me chills. Mainly because May of 08 feels like yesterday.

I came across this photo yesterday as I was getting things together for a magazine article about our farm and family that will hit the stands in March.

I wanted to re-post this photo because it does me some good on a cold day like today.

I caught this piglet and kitten taking a nap together on a warm summer's day.

Here's to looking forward to those warm summer days.......

Can't you just feel the warmth of the sun pressing against your face?

Or smell the watermelon and basil?

Or hear the green leaves blowing in the trees?

Oh, summer, how I long for thee.

Seriously Good Spice Cake

2010-02-03T15:11:00.003-06:00

I got this recipe from Tammy's Recipes.

There are a lot of great recipes on this site all made from scratch. I have to modify some ingredients, but overall I thoroughly love browsing through a lot of her recipes.

If you are ever in a "what in tarnation do I fix for dinner??" rut, check her out. The website is filled with lots of wonderful menu ideas.

There is even a recipe on how to make your own "Cream of Chicken Soup" so you don't have to buy the canned stuff. I've tried it in various casseroles when I can slip a casserole by Farmer J and the soup has turned out wonderfully.

Here is the recipe for the yummy spice cake. I honestly don't like molasses too much. But, it tastes good in this cake. I substituted the flour for 100% whole wheat flour and it was still really moist and yummy!

Oatmeal Spice Cake

1 1/2 cups flour (I used 100% whole wheat)
1 cup quick oats
1 cup brown sugar (I used organic)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup butter, softened or melted
1 cup water
2 eggs
2 tablespoons molasses

Coconut Topping Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter
2/3 cup brown sugar (I used organic)
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup chopped pecans
3 tablespoons light cream or whole milk (I used raw milk)

Instructions:

1. Measure all cake ingredients into a large mixing bowl. Blend 1/2 minute on low speed, and then for 3 minutes on high.

2. Pour batter into a greased 9 x 13 baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until cake tests done. Cool cake slightly.

3. To make coconut topping, melt butter in sauce pan. Add brown sugar and stir over medium heat until sugar is mostly dissolved. Add coconut, pecans, and cream. Spread topping over cake and broil cake for 2-3 minutes, until topping is bubbly and browned.

Farm Update

2010-02-01T09:50:00.006-06:00

I haven't posted about life on the farm in a long time....it's been fast and furious around here but in the most wonderful way imaginable.

The Lord's favor has fallen on our farm. That is the only way to explain the amount of growth we are experiencing.

Last night we were out in the farm store filling orders and realized that we are just about plum out of everything- even things we typically always have like pork chops.

We were all overcome with thankfulness as we stood there glancing into our empty freezers. Never once did we think last year that we would be where we stand today. God gets all the glory for this. We've not done anything to gain this and certainly don't have a "marketing strategy" in place.

From the very beginning since we moved to the farm, our prayer has been this:

"May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us- yes, establish the work of our hands." Psalm 90:17

Here are some scenes from around the farm. Despite the coldness of winter, things seem to be fairing alright around here.

The cows and chickens remain one big happy family out in the pasture. We follow our cows with our chickens to sort of "clean things up", if you will. Chickens scavenge through cow manure eating insects and broadcast their poo throughout the pasture. Both of these animals put good things back into the soil by fertilizing it with their manure.

The Guinea fowl are still as loud as ever. They are considered the alarm system of the farm. Have you ever heard a flock of disturbed guineas? The speckled guinea drop the most beautiful feathers.

Our laying hens have been tolerating the cold pretty well. On the coldest of days, they stay hunkered down inside their coop, but have the option to roam and forage in the grass if they so desired.

Cabbage is still growing.......we re-planted after the freeze wiped all of our cabbage out.

The carrots are almost ready....

The swiss chard is looking pretty.......because honestly, that is all its good for to me. I don't really enjoy eating it, but it makes my garden look good.

Our shallots turned out well too.

We lost a whole lot in the freeze including broccoli, brussell sprouts, potatoes, and cauliflower. I wasn't too thrilled about loosing all of this.

Our Spring garden is in the process of being re-vamped so that gives me something to look forward too.

Got Milk???

2010-01-27T09:14:00.002-06:00

Last night on Nightline, there was an extremely disturbing story about commercial dairy farms and the milk industry. The video is posted for you below.

If you drink milk, you need to watch this.

But, as you are watching this video, keep in mind that you do have options. This story fails to mention the side where the grass is greener- literally. You don't have to give up drinking milk all together.

I'm not even advocating drinking "organic whole milk"- there are skeleton's in that closet as well that I encourage you to look into.

There is a wonderful site filled with information about drinking raw milk and buying milk from local dairies. In the state of Texas, to my knowledge, there are 3 "Grade A Raw for Retail" dairies and probably more are popping up all over the state.

People immediately become fearful at the thought of drinking raw milk and its safety. But, what the government deems as "safe" is shown in the video.

At the dairy we buy from, you see cows in pasture eating green grass in the fresh air. The milking room is clean and not filled with poop.

Our family switched over to raw milk 3 years ago. We absolutely love it!

Raw milk definitely costs a little more than "organic whole milk"- you are looking at anywhere from $5 to $10 a gallon.

But, in my opinion, if you were to make a few changes in your diet towards a healthier lifestyle, dairy would be one of the first areas I'd start closely followed by meat.

the schoolroom......my favorite room

2010-01-22T11:23:00.011-06:00

(prints from Sarah & Abraham)

I haven't really blogged about this yet.

I wanted to make sure that it was going to for real stick- that "IT" being homeschooling.

We heard very clearly from the Lord in October that were to homeschool. Kaylyn started Kindergarten this year at a WONDERFUL local Christian school. There were no "issues" with the school in the least. In my mind, it was near perfect.

We just felt a very strong impression from the Holy Spirit. Jason has felt strongly about the Lord leading us to homeschool for a while prior to October. But, he was so patient with me and wanted the Lord to change my heart about all of it since the majority of the homeschooling responsibilities would fall on my plate.

This gal didn't go down without a fight though. I'm not proud that I fought the Lord about this. But, I don't want to give the impression that it was the easy for me. I fought, I questioned, I bawled, I feared, and at the end of it all I said "let's do it".

I don't have any fancy words to describe the homeschooling experience thus far other than "it fits". Our lifestyle out on a farm is very conducive to homeschooling since a living and breathing schoolroom awaits us (I don't think you have to have a farm to homeschool though).

I think what I've learned the most through this process is that there isn't an exact formula to homeschooling. That is sort of the beauty of it, but also hard for a brain like mine who likes to stick labels on things.

If you asked 10 homeschool moms how they "do school", you would get probably 12 different answers. Those numbers don't even go together. But, what I found is that some moms have schedules they follow to a "T". Other moms throw schedules out the window. And some moms have different schedules depending upon what day it is and what the weather is like.

For me, the balance is somewhere in the middle knowing that have small babies at home but we also need structure and routines. I love to embrace the flexibility of homeschooling, but I personally know that I do need structure in my life or chaos takes a toll on me and our home.

I most definitely don't have everything figured out. And that is okay. All of this is to say, there isn't a "method" to homeschooling- just lots and lots of prayer involved. If the Lord has called you to homeschool, He will equip you.

One of the things I beat myself up about the most is the fact that I don't have a college degree. I didn't even make it half way through college.

But, something was off in my brain to think that because I don't have a teaching certification I'm not qualified to teach my children. That is a bogus thought. If you are a mother, you ARE a teacher regardless if you homeschool or not.

Finding the right curriculum can be overwhelming in and of itself. I asked several wise women who homeschool in my life and narrowed it down to a few to really dig deep into. It helped me to write down goals I wanted my girls to walk away from their schooling experience.

Wow, this post is a lot longer than what I intended it to be.

So far, I've LOVED homeschooling. There are challenges most definitely (i.e. time management on my part). Kaylyn has really loved homeschooling too so that makes me happy that she looks forward to it everyday. We try to incorporate things she loves to do in to our learning- cooking, sewing, crafting, whatever. I've seen her grow so much and I've seen our relationship grow so much.

I made our little office/computer room into more of our schoolroom. I don't think that you need a schoolroom to homeschool. I've seen families do just fine without one. We had the space already.

This little area has became my favorite spot in the house. These photos were taken after I had everything all cleaned up. If you were to come over to my house on any given normal day, you would find pipe cleaners everywhere, beads on the table, legos on the floor, and books piled a mile high next to the couch.

One thing I do KNOW for sure.....we are NOT a pinto bean playin' kind of family. Those are for eatin' in this house.

I decided to take a rubbermaid storage container and fill it with beans and funnels and cups and lots of other fun things. I even put a sheet under the box for the girls to play on. Somebody just slap me upside the head. What was I thinking??? I'm still finding beans all over the house.

Messes are fun- if they are easy to clean up. The bean box has officially been retired.

Homemade Lip Balm and Sugar Scrub

2010-01-19T09:30:00.007-06:00

For some Christmas gifts the last few years, I've made homemade lip balm and sugar scrub to give to various people.

The lip balm I've found to be somewhat addicting and extremely moisturizing. Bottom line....it works.

A lot of lip balms and lipsticks out there sold in stores contain petroleum.

I've adopted a good rule of thumb over the years in regards to what I put on my body as well. If you can't drink it or eat it (as in, not die from it....who would enjoy eating lip balm??), it's probably not safe.

A good resource to look up the toxicity level in the products that you use on your body is the Skin Deep: Cosmetic Safety Database. You can look up virtually any product that is out there for hair, face, body, and baby. You will be amazed at the things you learn about common products you use every single day.

Did you know that your body absorbs 60% of what you put on your skin? That is a crazy number. If you put a clove of garlic between your toes, you would taste the garlic in your mouth in just a few short minutes.

The recipe I used for the lip balm was surprisingly found on Martha Stewart's website. I liked all of the ingredients that were used so I decided to give it a go.

Homemade Lip Balm:

3 teaspoons of grated unbleached beeswax (ordered mine from Majestic Mountain Sage)
5 teaspoons of carrier oil (sunflower, avocado, jojoba) I used avocado oil...has a longer shelf life and doesn't go rancid easily (see link below for a carrier oil resource)
6 drops of essential oil (I was going for "minty" so I used peppermint oil from Young Living)
1 teaspoon of honey

Melt the beeswax and carrier oil in the top of a double boiler. This is basically a metal bowl sitting on top of a saucepan with water boiling in the saucepan underneath the bowl. Stir really good so that the two combine. Remove from heat and add the remaining ingredients. Pour the balm into your container to cool. It will solidify back again once its cooled. I also purchased my containers from Majestic Mountain Sage.

For a good article that explains carrier oils and their shelf life along with storage, CLICK HERE.

The sugar scrub is also wonderful!

Cane sugar naturally contains glycolic acid which is a natural alphy hyrdroxy acid that exfoliates the skin.

Farmer Jason uses this stuff on his hands and it cleans all the dirt out the nooks and crannies leaving his skin smoother....not smooth, just smoother because he has really rough hands. I love em' though.

I adapted my recipe from this one and added a few things I knew that were good to moisturize and heal the skin.

Sugar Scrub- pictured above

50 % turbinado sugar or sugar in the raw (love the bigger sugar granules)
50 % vegetable glycerin (this can be bought at a pharmacy, I didn't have this so I used avocado oil)
small amount of aloe vera gel
7 drops of lavender essential oil
7 drops of neroli essential oil (rejuvenates the skin and has calming effects)

Mix everything together in a bowl, and put in a jar. How simple is that???? Really!

RuThIe {{8 months}}

2010-01-17T21:14:00.007-06:00

Ruthie is almost 8 months!

I held off as long as I possibly could, but Ruthie is officially eating solids. She has been eating them consistently for about 3 weeks now.

She is enjoying real food quite well and momma is not enjoying the diapers. I had to call (on the phone) for backup for the first real food poop diaper I changed. I was so ill-prepared and did not know what to do with it. The poo was smeared into the diaper so flipping the turd into the toilet was not an option. Jason suggested I go out and get a water hose after it, but really, how practical is that every single poo diaper. And besides, it's really cold outside too.

Oh the joys of cloth diapers and motherhood. Poo is definitely a frequent topic of discussion.

No worries, I think I've got it figured out now, but I'm ALWAYS open for suggestions from cloth diaper mommas out there. Just don't tell me to soak them in toilet water. I ain't doin' dat!

I haven't given her grains of any kind yet, but so far she is eating....

carrots, potatoes, avocado, yogurt, meats, raw cheese, beans, peas, apples, pears, bananas, and I'm sure other things I'm missing.

All of these foods I'm either mashing up with a fork or pureeing them in a blender. I try to give her the foods as fresh as possible, but I've also frozen big batches in ice cube trays too. I wait until they've frozen all of the way through in the trays and then pop out the cubes into a big storage bag and put it back into the feezer.

Her little personality is really starting to come out. She is definitely laid back in every single way.

Funny thing happened....right before Christmas (about 7 mo) she was sitting up on her own unassisted. I know this is late, but I'm okay with that- she is my baby and sitting up leads to crawling, which leads to walking, which leads to driving, which leads to leaving and cleaving: hopefully on the farm of course.

Well, about a week later I went to take a photo of her sitting up and she wouldn't sit up. I guess she decided it was overrated or something. Since then, she will sit up, but she'd prefer not to.

Ruthie is just so darn sweet and is a total momma's girl. When I walk into a room, she knows it. And when I leave, those still in the room with her know it.

I found such an awesome resource for starting solids- "Super Baby Food" by Ruth Yaron.

This book is filled with a wealth of information, practical tips, and wonderful recipes. I've thoroughly enjoyed flipping through it. I highly recommend it.

Here is a few photo of her first bite of food.

And here is one just because:).

how do...

2010-01-16T20:00:00.008-06:00

babies go from this

to this in just one short year.

Or from diapers

to dishes in just one short year.

It's simply not cool to this momma......well, the dishes part is. Look at that blue jean booty. Cute, cute, cute!

These photos were taken of Laney Rae exactly a year apart. I was going through photos organizing all 25,000 of them and was amazed at how much my "Rae Rae" has changed in one year.

This also served as a good reminder to me. I took the photos exactly a year ago fully intending on posting them to document this sweet ones journey. But, never got around to it. The next thing I know, she is washing dishes and wearing blue jeans.

I want to be better about documenting our little family's journey. Oh, and I'm looking into ways to printing my blog instead of scrapbooking.

Has anyone printed their blogger blog yet???

Did you like how it turned out?

Laney Rae had to take a picture with momma. She "posed" me and everything. So cute!

cooking with kids

2010-01-12T22:26:00.018-06:00

My girls love to cook and they love being in the kitchen with me.

I have to be honest. This use to drive me crazy!!! Selfishly I knew it was more work for me too.

You know…. the all to familiar battle most mommies go through- doing it yourself vs. teachable moments. Tasks are much easier (and quicker and cleaner and….) if you do them yourself.

However, I have grown to LOVE having my girls in the kitchen cooking with me. We have a total blast.

I can see them growing in the area of cooking and that makes me smile.

My hope is to raise little girls who love to cook and appreciate good wholesome REAL food.

I bought KK this cookbook for Christmas. I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE it! The artwork is spectacular, the recipes are fun and simple, and it creates a sense of good ole’ home cooking nostalgia when you open it up that makes you want to grab an apron and whisk and whip something up.

There is a whole series of the books for girls and I highly recommend them. We also have the "See and Sew" book by Tina Davis and it's a gem as well!

Here are some photos over the last week of us hanging out and cooking together.....from scratch.

Kaylyn cutting her ham and pineapple. She is already so careful and great with knife. I let her do a lot of my food prepping.

My little dough girl, Rae Rae, spreading the homemade pizza dough.

A good reminder for me.....this is suppose to be "FUN"! Put a smile on your face momma and make a mess!

Kaylyn, spreading her sauce and building her pizza....the sauce was NOT from scratch.

I cold busted Rae Rae eating the sauce instead of spreading.

But, who could get mad at a face like that.....momma, laugh, I say. Laugh!

Because, there will be messes. Lots and lots of messes. Flour flying, sauces slinging, cheese crumbling....it's only part of it.

And there will be dishes. Lots and lots of dishes. A sink full of dishes to be exact. But, its okay. We had fun....and not only can my girls learn to cook, they can learn to do dishes too:). My momma always taught me,"A good cook always cleans up her mess."

The reward is far worth it and the flavors are unlike any other. Especially paired with a Virgil's Natural Micro-Brewed Root Beer. Heavenly. A real treat!

On a separate occasion last week, Kaylyn decided she wanted to make a chocolate cake from scratch. So we got out her cookbook and I let her pick her recipe out.

I was SOOOO proud of her. She made her chocolate cake all by herself without my help- not once.

Cracking the egg. She is pretty much a pro at this. I'm amazed that she can manage to crack 12 eggs and not get shell in the mix once (unlike her momma who is reckless abandon).

Stir, my love, stir.

Sifting her flower for the cake.

Oh and I would like to show you what the cake looked like, but it was gone far too quickly to capture it in all its beauty.

On the real......her chocolate cake was the BEST chocolate cake I've ever tasted. Ever. I think there was only a handful of ingredients too all of which were wonderful clean ingredients.

Keeping in step

2010-01-05T09:21:00.006-06:00

I could go on and on about the imagery that pops into my mind over this photo.

Do you see it?

***it is a mystery as to why blogger decided to make these fonts all different. i've tried to fix it but can't. so annoying. oh well. ***

Apparently these are actual shoes for sale somewhere in the world. They are called “Dance Shoes”. How fitting.

This is such a beautiful picture that I can totally wrap my brain around. It will make more sense as this post progresses. Bare with me here. I’m a visual learner.

This post is hard for me.

I’ve sat down to write it several times only to find myself speechless.

How can I put into words all that has happened in my life and heart in one year?

I cannot. There is just too much. This already monstrous-size post that probably only my mom will read (love you mom) would be even longer.

How can I explain the anticipation and excitement that a new year holds without getting overwhelmed by a list of resolutions?

I’m very excited! There is just something refreshing about the start of a new year. But, how quickly I forget that is EXACTLY how the Lord is daily (Lamentations 3:22-23). His mercies (some versions say “compassions”…I love that) are new every morning. His faithfulness is on display every single day.

I almost didn’t write anything acknowledging the fact that it’s another year. I just don’t know where to begin.

How can it even be 2010? Saying “0-9” had such a nice ring to it. But, “10” or “2010” or whatever we are to call it….not so much.

For the sake of documenting my family’s little journey, here goes a very poor attempt to verbalize my thoughts at this point on the journey.

I don’t feel like I “owe it to my fans” to post something. The Lord knows that using the words “fans” and “my blog” simply don’t exist together.

This isn’t an attempt to fish for compliments either- just a fact.

I’m not a big fan of resolutions- they are fine if you dig that sort of thing.

Well, maybe I’m not a fan of resolution lists- again, just a personal preference of mine.

I tend to find myself overwhelmed looking at all of the things that I WANT TO ACCOMPLISH OR LEARN. I feel weighed down by all of the tasks and skills that have yet to come to fruition and the road that I know it will take to get there.

And I know that the Lord’s desire for me is not to live in an overwhelmed state of mind focusing all of my efforts on myself. He wants me to abide in Him and keep in step with Him.

My favorite scripture that has played throughout my mind often this year is found in Galations.

“Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” Galations 5:25

For me, it’s a victory cry and reminder not to get boggled down and overwhelmed. Anytime we focus on those things entangling us, we find ourselves focused on self and not “in step” with Him.

A lot of things that I may want to pursue might not be in line with His will for my life. And if we are being totally honest here, I feel like if we are right in our relationship with Christ and keeping in step with Him, some of those things on our list will happen (spending time with Him more, honoring our bodies, eating better, spending more time pouring into the lives of our families, etc)- as long as they are within His will for our lives.

I realize saying all of this is much easier than actually doing it. Boy do I know this story all too well!!! I find myself smack dab in the grip of this struggle between keeping in step with the Spirit or off doing my own thing. I’m definitely not saying that I have this figured out and know how to do it perfectly.

My prayer over these last few days has been for Him to leave no stone uncovered until ALL aspects of my life are laid bare before Him and EVERYTHING in my life is His. EVERYTHING! I know there are still lots of things I’m holding onto and not giving over to Jesus.

My nature at this point in the year is to look back at my failures. It would be very easy for me to look back on the year and beat myself up over the things that I said I wanted to change at the beginning of 2009, but have yet to see growth in. Or all of the things I thought I would be doing by now, that have yet to be learned.

I use to live my life in constant regret from the moment my feet hit the floor. This is a very depressing state of mind to be in always looking back and never looking forward.

I’m a city girl trying to learn how to be a farmgirl. Of course that so-called list would be miles long! I’m learning so much.

I said I wasn’t a big fan of resolution lists, but I am a fan of growth and pressing forward taking the next step.

I can honestly look back at 2009, and see the hand of God growing me and molding me throughout the year. I’ve had victories in some areas and light shed on some very dark areas that still have yet to gain victory.

For now, I choose to rejoice in the victories and pray for the victories to come knowing that I have so far to go on this side of heaven in my relationship with Him in the way I do life.

This year, I resolve to be PURPOSEFUL. One word that I hope permeates my life.

2009-12-25T00:19:00.004-06:00

(photo taken by the gifted Ryan Price of Ryan Price Photo)

Merry Christmas from our family to yours! May it be filled with wonder and awe that God loved us so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to this earth as an atoning sacrifice for our sins (1 John 4:10).

I read this excerpt on Randy Alcorn's blog yesterday....

"The prayer of my heart this Christmas is that people would understand that Jesus is the person they were made by and made for—that they would understand that He loved them enough to go to the cross for them and pay the price for their sins so that they could live forever with Him on the New Earth, the eternal Heaven.

There's a true story of a Christ-loving man who lay dying. His son asked, "Dad, how do you feel?"

His father replied: "Son, I feel like a little boy on Christmas Eve."

Christmas is coming. We live our lives between the first Christmas and the second . We look back to that first Christmas and the life of Jesus on the earth for some 33 years—but we look forward to the Christmas in which the resurrected Christ will return and we, his resurrected people, will live with him forever on the New Earth. And right when we think "It doesn't get any better than this"....it will!"

Shirts, Chicks, and a Book

2009-12-23T16:42:00.011-06:00

I made a last minute craft last night for the girls to wear for Christmas......Nativity Shirts! When I saw this template in Sophia Grace's Etsy store I had to make them.

You should go check out some of the other templates in her store. A little boy in my life will be sporting the owl and neck tie shirt too!

They were extremely simple. I used Heat N Bond and the template from Sophia Grace.

It's not too late to make your little one a nativity shirt. If you have scrap fabric, heat n' bond (walmart), and a plain shirt....you can do this. They are extremely simple. I made 4 in under an hour.

As life on a farm would have it, I had to rescue some baby chicks from dying in the winter chill a few days ago.

Their momma hen literally "counted her chicks before they hatched" and got off her nest while her eggs were still hatching......hmmmm, that phrase totally makes sense now.

I found some abandoned chicks that were newly hatched and wet out in the yard roaming around chirping for their momma. I knew that within a matter of hours they'd be dead.

I put them in a basket with a heat lamp on them. And there they reside, below the nativity scene in my home.

I kind of love this imperfect look. It just about sums up my life.

Farmer Jason was a bit in shock that I, the festive Christmas nazi, put these little boogers in the midst of all of Christmas decor. But, for me, it's just a good reminder not to get too uptight about things and focus on the overwhelming JOY of the birth of my Savior. Without the birth of Jesus, there would be no CROSS.

I'm overcome with thanksgiving and shear awe at what the Lord is doing in our home and in our hearts. He is so amazing.

Jason and I have been reading this book and needless to say, it's one of those that can change your life if you let it. The book is infused with scripture on every single page and is filled with TRUTH.....some really hard to swallow truth. And yet it is simple.......Jesus demands our all. Not our leftovers, not a little, not half, not the majority....our ALL.

From the website:

"Does something deep inside your heart long to break free from the status quo? Are you hungry for an authentic faith that addresses the problems of our world with tangible, even radical, solutions? God is calling you to a passionate love relationship with Himself. Because the answer to religious complacency isn't working harder at a list of do's and don'ts — it's falling in love with God. And once you encounter His love, as Francis describes it, you will never be the same.

Because when you're wildly in love with someone, it changes everything."

So good to be reminded of that this Christmas.

The Non-Annual Gingerbread House

2009-12-17T16:07:00.006-06:00

:::::Kaylyn, disturbed at our un-sightly creation:::::

I wish I could report to you that our Gingerbread house decorating experience was a success. But, that simply is not the case.

A "disaster" is a more fitting way to describe it.

I'm just keeping it real.

That tiny little house caused my whole dining room to explode. I have witnesses...Holly??? Robyn???

One thing I am glad about is that I didn't decide to be all stupid-crazy and home make my own gingerbread, icing, and do raisins for trim instead of purchasing this pre-fab kit in a box.

I'm pretty sure that the end result would still be the same. Maybe my kids wouldn't be high from sugar.

That was not a smart move to take this on right before nap time. And I tried telling them NOT to eat the do-dads, but that wasn't fair. Seriously. They are walking around like crazy people all wide-eyed and twitching.

I'm not quite for sure exactly how ours went so wrong so quickly. I definitely do NOT like tedious detail-oriented crafts. That could have been in it. Nor is a detail-oriented craft a grand idea for 3 kids under the age of 5. What was I thinking???

One thing is for certain. I'm pretty sure we will never again make a Gingerbread House. I had good intentions of starting a tradition of making a Gingerbread House and taking a photo of them every year. How grand would it be to look back upon our beautiful pieces of art we've created over the years?

Mark my words. And I'm totally more than okay with never making one of these things again.

Pea Shooter

2009-12-11T15:20:00.007-06:00

One of my main terms of endearment for Ruthie is 'Pea Shooter'- for no reason in particular. I've not ever heard this before, nor is it something you typically hear when a parent refers to their child.

But, for us, it works. And I love it.

You can imagine my delight when my friend, Holly, showed up at my house with this adorable knitted pea hat. There is a little knitted pea pod on the tip top of the hat that is just precious!

I thought I'd snap a few photos of my 'Pea Shooter' in her hat.

Enjoy!

The praying 'Pea Shooter'.....doesn't it look like she is praying??

Kaylyn could not stop telling Ruthie how cute she was and of course had to have pic of her with her baby sister! Ruthie gets lots of kisses!

Big Girl Room

2009-12-10T00:12:00.012-06:00

When we had Ruthie and added on to our house, we re-decorated Kaylyn's room and gave her all new furniture (our old bedroom furniture).

Her previous room was in vintage schoolroom-themed decor- scroll down to the bottom. Our house has changed a lot since that post since we added on (more pics to come).

We recycled Kaylyn's old room and gave it to Laney Rae. It seemed to fit Laney Rae's personality a little better and was more "fun" and "playful".

When I began brainstorming on Kaylyn's new room, I knew that I wanted it to be girlie. Kaylyn's main two requests were that it be PINK and have a PINK CHANDELIER.

I wanted the look to be somewhat of a vintage shabby almost flea market look, but I didn't quite to know how to pull it off or pull it together. I didn't want all the pinks to match nor the greens.

I also wanted her room to grow old with her. I wanted it to be appropriate for a 5 year old and an 18 year old. I also wanted it to serve as a guest room when we had visitors. So, it had to be inviting and cozy for adults too. I really didn't think it was possible to make all of this happen while achieving the "look" I wanted.

Enter- the amazing Holly Mathis of Holly Mathis Interiors....

She is a dear dear friend of mine and so talented. Holly has a heart of gold and has a passion for helping mamas just like me take their vision and make it happen leaving behind a beautifully functional home.....and not breaking the bank in the process. Holly is so good about taking your style and making it come to life.

We had a blast together on this project. She made it effortless and fun- I was pregnant and hormonal at the time so I greatly appreciated that!

Budget was also a concern of mine because I was re-doing three rooms at once. We re-purposed our old bedroom furniture and used it in Kaylyn's room. Most of the accessories were purchased either at thrift stores, resale shops, antique stores, or were given to me by Holly (she was re-doing a room at the time too so I hit the jackpot:) or Missy, another friend of mine.

The curtains, shabby flag banner above the bed, and rug were all purchased from Target. Those were the only new items in the entire room.

I even found the chenille comforter and chenille slipcover at a thrift store for dirt cheap. They were white and in perfect condition.

Holly helped me with Ruthie's room and also our bedroom (pics to come) too. I'm so thrilled with how everything turned out. I could move in to Kaylyn's room myself....I love being in there and curling up with Kaylyn and reading a book. Its exactly what I wanted her room to be!

Head over to Holly's site and check her out. Holly would be thrilled to help you out with your next decorating project.

Below are some more pics of Kaylyn's new big girl room.

I made this wreath out of burlap, linen, and fabric using THIS tutorial.

this basket is lovingly referred to as "the baby doll basket"

The Awe Factor of God

2009-12-02T13:54:00.003-06:00

This left me speechless. Please take 3 minutes to watch this. It's titled appropriately,"The Awe Factor of God."

Its from Francis Chan's website CrazyLoveBook.com.

I've been wanting to read through "Crazy Love" for some time now.

Ruthie's 1/2 birthday

2009-12-01T07:24:00.010-06:00

(taken by the insanely talented Ryan Price of Ryan Price Photography.....check him out)

Ruthie's 1/2 birthday came and went over the Thanksgiving holiday.

It's hard to believe she has been in our arms for 6 months because it feel like she has been here forever.

She is nothing but sweet- such a cuddly happy girl. I could count on one hand the number of times she cries in a day.

Even a cold and horrible cough wouldn't bring her spirits down.

I'm really treasuring every moment I have with her during this first year of life.....those pre-mobile days. I often find myself just sitting with her in my rocking chair and cuddling.

I've sang all of my girls this lullaby- heard in Dumbo, Beaches, and also sang by Allison Krauss (love this version the best).

My heart leaps hearing my older girls sing it to Ruthie, which is quite often around here. Not because she is crying, but just out of the blue.

Baby Mine

Baby mine, don't you cry.
Baby mine, dry your eyes.
Rest your head close to my heart,
never to part,
baby of mine.

Little one when you play,
don't you mind what they say.
Let those eyes sparkle and shine,
never a tear,
baby of mine.

If they knew sweet little you
they'd end up loving you two.
All of those people who scold you
what they'd give just for the right to hold you.

From your head down to your toes,
you're not much, goodness knows.
But you're so precious to me,
sweet as can be,
baby of mine.

If they knew sweet little you,
they'd end up loving you too.
All those same people who scold you,
what they'd give just for the right to hold you.

From your head down to your toes
you're not much, goodness knows.
But you're so precious to me,
sweet as can be,
baby of mine.
Baby of mine

{gRaNdMa}

2009-11-25T08:08:00.005-06:00

I captured these photos of my momma (aka Grandma) and Ruthie when we were visiting her the other day.

My mom was sitting sweetly on the couch enjoying my precious girl in her lap.

I thought in that moment,"I'm so blessed."

Mother: Author Unknown

In her eyes

the look of loving,

In her smile

The warmth of caring.

In her hands

the touch of comfort,

In her heart

the gift of sharing.

I love you momma! What a gift and treasure you are.

{{rEcIpE}} Broccoli Salad

2009-11-20T10:31:00.002-06:00

I’m addicted to this salad!!!! This is an original concoction of mine and I’m so pleased with how the recipe turned out.

It’s soooooo good.

I make it and keep it in the fridge. When I have the urge, I open the door to my wonderfully awesome salad that is waiting to take me to broccoli heaven.

My girls love it too. They could eat broccoli and cauliflower right off the stem (I can't even do that) so I knew that they would love this salad.

Broccoli is in season right now, so this is perfect timing.

This salad is also super good for you and has all nutritious ingredients in it.

I’ve had similar recipes that call for mayo and sugar for the dressing. But, since I’m mayo-a-phobic, that won’t work for me.

Here is the recipe:

Broccoli Salad

3 heads of broccoli cut up into florets

1 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds

½ cup raw cashews

¼ cup chopped red onion

1 cup shredded carrot (I peeled a whole carrot into the salad with a peeler)

½ cup shredded cheddar cheese

Optional: shredded chicken for added protein (the picture is shown w/ chicken in the salad)

Dressing:

½ cup cold-pressed olive oil

½ cup apple cider vinegar

¼ cup red wine vinegar

4 T organic maple syrup

3 T whole grain mustard (I use organic central market brand)

1 lime squeezed

salt, pepper, onion powder

Cut up and add all of your veggies and nuts. Mix up dressing and whisk together so dressing is mixed well. Pour on top of salad and mix together. Yum!

A note from Farmer J on "molting"....

2009-11-17T23:42:00.002-06:00

We're experiencing an egg shortage around here. Just in time for Thanksgiving.....yes!

Its not fun having people drive up to the farm store for eggs only to tell them "we're out".

"What? How can this be?" They ask.

Well, you see, doing things the "natural" way doesn't always lend itself to our convenience. You would never know that chickens go through a molting process as a grocery store goer based on its endless supply of white eggs that magically appear on shelves all year long.

Sadly, our faithful customers know that this is not the case as does our family who is use to eating almost a dozen eggs for breakfast. What can I say, we love protein!

Laney Rae wakes up in the morning proclaiming that she wants "Eggs Momma Eggs!"

Chickens don't always lay eggs every single day.....unless you force them. And Farmer J will have no part of forcing his feathered girls. He is quite the patient farmer.

He posted the following post on our farm website HERE- we are posting regularly on the farm blog now!!

I really loved that my man wrote up this here post, so I thought I'd put it on here too for a glimpse into the mind of a farmer.

“Brenham, we have a problem.”

Due to chickens being chickens and in their natural environment, exhibiting all of their chicken-ness, we are extremely low on eggs right now. This time of year is a rather difficult time for egg producers- not the chickens. They continue to do the chicken things that chickens do each and every day but their conversion of feed and sunlight are going through different phases. Let me explain.

This time of year, chickens tend to reset their bodies. The most evident is in their displaying of new feathers. This amazing feat performed by the chickens is called “molting.” Throughout the year, they lose their feathers in different sections, putting new feathers on as they go. This keeps them from losing all the feathers at once for this would cause serious protection problems for the chickens. Then, about this time of year (late October – November) they do the big molt. New quills start sprouting from all over and these amazing new feathers begin to form.

Once it starts, there is drastic growth each day. It is rather amazing how these animals are made. However, because during the molting process all of their energy is going to putting this new plumage on, their egg production virtually becomes non-existent until they are done. Not all of our flock is molting right now. I would say about 60% of them are. These are the main contributors to our lack of eggs.

This leaves the remaining 40%. When fall comes, we begin having shorter days. Right now we have about 11 hrs of sunlight. Chickens are very finicky animals and feel they need 14 hrs of sunlight to ovulate at optimum production levels. The chickens that are laying currently aren’t laying an egg a day like they normally do. I hoping that they are laying at least every other day, but there is no way to tell with a flock as large as ours.

So, what to do? This is what we are asking ourselves. We can’t do anything about the molting. This is a natural occurrence that chickens go through. I don’t believe in forced molting that is performed in commercial industrial models. The chickens are starved from food and water for several days until the process stops. They start back up laying eggs once food is introduced again. These chickens look terrible with extreme loss of feathers, which I guess they feel they don’t need since they are packed inside buildings in tiny little cages.

For right now and for the sake of keeping things “natural” around here, we will just live with the molting part of chicken-ness. The shorter days can be remedied. It would be easy to put lights in the house and plug it into the wall for a couple hours a day after the sun goes down but their house moves everyday since they are out on pasture, so that just won’t work. This is where solar lights will come in handy. We are currently figuring out a way to run some lights off solar polar. I feel this will greatly improve production from the non-molting chickens. We’ll see.

All of this is to say, “Please bare with us”. We try to allow our animals to live in the most natural environment possible, which leads a lot of time to natural processes out of our control. We have 400 new layers that should start laying in a few weeks. Our hope is that they will greatly fill in the gaps.

Thank you so much for your support of our farm. Honoring God and His perfect creation, being caretakers of it everyday, and producing healthy food for families is our passion and we are so thankful for families and individuals that allows us to do this everyday.

Our little dancer....

2009-11-16T10:00:00.007-06:00

Kaylyn recently started dance class. This is our first "organized sport/activity" endeavor. I DO feel like dancing is a "sport" so boo yah! Have you seen the figures of those who have been dancing their whole lives? Hello, you don't get abs or legs like that unless you are working your boo-tay off!

Kaylyn has fallen in love with dancing. I kind of saw that one coming....but she has REALLY fallen in love with dance.

Kaylyn wore her dance uniform three days in a row.....and I even let her wear it to the "city" when we went to run errands. I had to make her take it off so I could wash it because the pink tights weren't so pink any more.

Here are some photos I snapped of her a few days ago. She was practicing her "moves" in front of the mirror on the armoire on day 3 of wearing her uniform.

Ruthie {aLmOsT 6 mOnThS}

2009-11-13T12:38:00.007-06:00

Ruthie is still as sweet as ever! I still can't believe how laid back she truly is.

Most of the time, she is either in my lap perfectly content looking at the world or playing on a blanket in the floor. She has plenty to watch with her older sisters and plenty of little kisses throughout the day from them too!

She is a wonderful sleeper too so I'm very thankful for that.

Ruthie has two teeth. And they aren't just barely in....they are two big teeth. All three of my girls have gotten their first tooth by 4 months old.

She hasn't really started a whole lot of solids yet. I plan on following the Weston A. Price's recommendation for "Nourishing a Growing Baby"- minus the feeding liver part. I still can't do that!

I made lots of whole foods for Laney Rae and didn't do the baby food in a jar thing- just my preference. We eat lots of steamed veggies so this was fairly easy for me to do.

But, I didn't hold off on giving grains until one year like WAP recommends doing. This time around, I'm going to try that out with Ruthie. It makes perfect sense since grains are harder for our bodies to digest.

I've been reading a lot lately about natural whole food diets in general that are rich in fruits, veggies, and meat. So far, this makes the most sense to me, but it's the entire opposite of what I did Kaylyn (our first) and what I knew then.

Some of the first foods they recommend at 6 months are:

- Boiled Egg Yolk (not the whites since that is where the allergens are)
- Pureed Meats
- Vegetable Puree of either squash, sweet potatoes, parsnips, rutabagas, carrots or beets- Individually
- Fruit Sauces of peaches, nectarines, apples, blueberries, cherries, pears, or berries

Basically anything that is considered a real whole food.

Ruthie was too cute sitting in our mother daughter chair in the living room yesterday. I wanted to capture the moment and savor it forever.

Goodbye Rowdy

2009-11-11T08:06:00.005-06:00

This morning we awakened to a horrible tragedy.

{RoWdY}, our farm dog, companion, and friend was found hit and killed by the road.

If you've ever been out to the farm, you've met Rowdy. He was our Blue Heeler. What a character he was- full of energy and personality.

He was a terrific hand out on the farm herding cattle, pigs, and chickens.

If we were out working in the pastures, Rowdy was right there with us.

If we were in our little farmhouse, Rowdy was on the porch waiting for us to come out and take on a new adventure together.

If we were sitting out by the fire, Rowdy was there snipping at the embers that drifted away to the stars- we always thought that was a little weird, Rowdy biting at fire.

If we were blowing bubbles, Rowdy was there leaping through the air chomping away at the round shiny floating clusters.

We thought we had broken him of the habit of chasing cars. Blue Heelers by nature are chasers and herders. It's what they live for. Rowdy had his whole entire muzzle ran over by the trash truck before. He walked away with the most mangled up teeth you'd ever seen. The top part of his mouth was split in two. Rowdy was rushed to the vet in town. They vet said he'd be just fine. And he was.

But, last night a car got the best of him.

We've lost two amazing dogs to the road we live on. It's a busy highway.

I don't know if I can bare to have another dog. We love them, raise them, train them, and welcome them as part of our family- then they are gone. Sounds a little dramatic, but it's true.

But, what is life in the country on a farm without a dog?

Rowdy, we'll miss you.

We are very sad not hearing your "broken bark" as the farm buggy fired up this morning.

You were such a wonderful asset to this farm! It won't be the same without you.

a very happy farmer's wife....

2009-11-05T22:39:00.003-06:00

{taken yesterday on our anniversary}

Can I just take a moment to tell you how amazing my husband is?

He pulled out the big guns this year and blew my socks off!!!

I've been wanting to grind my own wheat for quite some time now for my homemade breads. The only problem was that I didn't have a wheat grinder.

And I really wanted a hand wheat grinder in case we are ever without power for long periods of time....that's another post:).

There is something fun and magical about turning a handle to grind wheat.

Jason gave me The Country Living Grain Mill for our anniversary and I couldn't be more excited!! This was such a great gift. He is the BEST gift giver and always goes all out.

Thanks Honey!

I can't wait to try it out and begin grinding my own wheat, corn, and beans. How fun!!!!

I just need a reliable source to order my wheat berries from.

Any suggestions???