Public Service Anouncement

My heart is heavy tonight for a family in my town that I don't even know. A family whose 14 year old son is fighting for his life after being shot by a police officer. That 14 year old had pulled a FAKE gun out in the police officers presence.

Please pray for the King family and for the officer involved and his family.


I was just talking to my children about this very issue at the end of October.

My husband found a fake gun while working on at a Fear the Farm, a local zombie hunting place open for Halloween. Someone had left it behind and it had been altered to look more real. It had the orange tip removed. My husband was startled by it being there, until he picked it up and it was plastic.

Please teach your children to NEVER pull a Gun , real or fake, on a police officer.

Teach them to raise their hands and announce that they have a FAKE or real gun on their person and where it is located at. Let the officer retrieve the gun or wait till the officer tells them to remove it from themselves.

Fake guns should not be painted or altered to look more like real guns. They have that orange tip for a reason. To save lives. The lives of the person holding the fake gun. Usually a child. If it doesn't have a orange tip, consider painting the tip orange.

I am not against kids playing with guns. My boys play with toy guns. They have air soft guns. They turn sticks into guns. But I suppose if your child is not capable of understanding how to behave around a police officer with a gun, real or fake, then you might want to consider not letting them play with guns. Or maybe you don't let your children play with guns and think that is enough. No, please  still educate them. They may end up with friends playing with their guns.

EDUCATE your children starting NOW how to behave if a police officer is around or questioning them in public.

Along for the Ride

I woke up this morning at 9 am. This is normal for me, I am not one of those 5 am farmer types. My gals get milked around 9:30 am and 9:30pm.

Life has been so busy around here that I when I seen the time my first thought was, "oh no was I supposed to be somewhere this morning?!" The second thought was "what day is it even?" 

After figuring out that it was a normal Wednesday with no where special to be, I leisurely crawled out of bed and began my day.

Life has been going by so fast lately I feel as if I am just along for the ride. Not really even slowing down long enough to ENJOY the ride.

Tomorrow I get to stay home all day... oh wait it's Halloween, never mind.

Phillipians 4:14

I started out feeling discouraged this morning.

Monday we got about 4-6 inches of rain in less than a hour, maybe even less than a half hour. I wasn't home, but I was gone for a about an hour. We came home to a trench washed out in our driveway and our roof developed a leak!!!

When we entered our home from our walk out basement there was a puddle of water on the floor, in the basement? Where is this from? Why?

Upon first inspecting the problem we thought our old dog had peed on the floor above and it ran down into the basement. So we moved on with life. A few hours later I noticed the ceiling was sagging in the kitchen over the fridge. I pushed on it and sure enough, it was soft and wet. Oh boy!

I put a quick call into my insurance agent to start the claims process. They told me to get an estimate for the damages. So I called a couple roofers. Got the news that I need a completely new roof. We have the insurance adjuster coming out on Friday and they will decide what, if anything, will be covered by them.

I'm praying and trusting God through this, but it isn't easy for this control freak to do that~!

I was feeling so discouraged, we are already robbing Peter to pay Paul to get our 1/2 cow this year, but we can't afford to not get the cow this way. If we had to go to the store to buy meat it would cost us sooo much more in the long run. So, this money really does have to come to us from God. We can cash out our IRA's there is almost enough in them to cover the cost of the roof. If that is what God directs us to do.

When I told my friend just how much our deductible is for our insurance she replied, "oh yeah never mind. That's too much. God can't possibly do that!" I laughed and was reminded by her sarcasm just how big our God is!

I already see God working in this. Preparing us for it, if you will. I have been canning like crazy this year, even though we didn't even put in a garden this spring. And my 100+ tomato seedlings turned into less than 10 plants! Our God is bigger than that!  Our 9 apple trees are overloaded with apples. So, I've done apple sauce. A friend invited me to pick beans with her. I put up 21 pints of beans from that FREE adventure! That same friend gave me about a bushel and a half of tomatoes. 16 quarts worth plus some sauce I'm boiling down overnight. Another friend gave me a 1/2 bushel of tomatoes, I turned that into 8 quarts and a meal of goulash. I have pears coming from another friend at the end of the week or so. They graciously give me their extra pears year after year. I am so blessed!

Here is where I need YOUR help. Help me show my problems just how big our God is!

I'm having a soap sale to help fund our roof project. Offer expires 9/30/2013. Buy 2 get one of equal or lesser value free! Make sure to email me your free bar choice, do not add it to your cart.  I know God can provide enough buyers to completely sell me out, if that is His will, with out even saying a word about it. He's that BIG. I know He could also provide the money from some other avenue. But I also know that God calls us to help one another to be proactive and be the hands and feet of Jesus.

My favorite verses is found immediately after a more well known verse in the Bible. The well known verse is "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13

I feel many of us forget the verse that follows it. I know I do that is why I have made it my favorite and memorized it.

"Nevertheless, you have done well to share with me in my affliction." Philippians 4:14

This verse reminds me that we are to help each other in times of need. It helps remind me to take a meal to family who just had a baby or illness. It helps remind me to help clean a friends house, with out being asked, in times of stress. It helps remind me to call a friend when they are having a difficult day to cheer them up. It reminds me to slow down and spend time with the ones I love and the ones that love me.  It reminds me to be the hands and feet of Jesus.

Can you help me spread the word about this sale? Pin my page, share on Facebook, tweet about me, or email your friends? Maybe even buy a couple bars?

Help me show my problem just how big our God is! Thank you in advance.

Adventures in Wonderland...

Here is our story of Alice in Wonderland Syndrome. Our real life "trip the rabbit hole".

October 2011 was an eventful month for us, health wise. I had the unpleasant experience of having a bulging disc in my lower back accompanied with an illness that put me in bed for weeks.

In addition to MY health troubles, my daughter Elaine was 6 at the time and she was also sick with the same illness. She got the worst of it, in my opinion. She had a fever of 103 every night for 10 days, then I finally caved and gave her Tylenol. Then her LOW body temperatures every night started. Despite me sleeping with her and having a heating pad on her all night her temperature did not go over 90-91* till morning came and her fever of 103 returned. I was never so thankful for a child to have a fever than those 2 or 3 mornings. Her low temp was considered mild hypothermia!  Hers turned into pneumonia and SHE choose to have 2 antibiotic shots vs. taking oral antibiotics. I like to let my children help direct their health care and learn to trust what their bodies are telling them.

But this story is mostly about my middle son, Collin. He also was sick with this same illness. We were tired all the time, we ran fevers at night. All three of us. Collin however started screaming bloody murder at night. He'd go to lay down and just the act of moving his covers sounded like a freight train was coming through his head. He would say things like, "mom your nose is HUGE!" or "why are you so far away?" When I was inches from his face. His senses were all out of whack, as if he was in Wonderland. The floor was uneven, to him. He lost all sense of time.

I took him to the doctor with no answers, no tests ordered. I think she thought we were making it up. I searched the Internet for some answer to what my son was experiencing. That is where I found Alice in Wonderland Syndrome. It listed TWO known causes. 1. a brain tumor or growth and 2. The Epstein Bar virus (EBV), commonly known as mono.

We returned to the doctor armed with my knowledge of the syndrome and demanded he be tested for EBV. He tested positive, of course. It fell into line with all the symptoms we were all having. Tired, fever, etc.. But the doctor didn't think it could be that, as the kids spleens were not enlarged.

EBV has no treatment, you wait it out. There is treatment for complication such as pneumonia like Elaine was unlucky to get, but not for EBV itself.

Elaine also had a few episodes of Alice in Wonderland Syndrome, but not as severe as Collins. He continued to have episodes almost every night for about 2 weeks, then it tapered off to 3-8 times a month for the next year ish. He's also developed "flapping" like an autistic child would do when he is upset or excited. So, we believe that to be also caused by his EBV.

So, that concludes our story about our trip "down the rabbit hole". It was the most worrisome and scary moments of motherhood for me, to date. Including Corey (my oldest) being diagnosed with a benign tumor in the neck of his right femur. I was irrational myself with illness. I would call my sister telling her I was dying, that we must of all caught something off our calf. Add to it my child having symptoms doctors could not explain, I was frantic!

Whining...

Well last year we had  drought around here. I whined.

I whined about rising feed costs. I whined about the dry heat. I whined about the drought.

This year we have had plenty of rain. Making plenty to whine about.

I whine about the cost of hay. Can't make hay in the rain, it needs to be dry! I whine about the mosquitoes. I whine about the muddy goat stalls.

And now, NOW, I whine about HOOF ROT! ugh. My girls got a mild case of hoof rot started the last time hoofs were trimmed. Got it all cut off and cleaned up. Thought that was it. NOPE. It's back, with vengeance.

What hoof rot does to a goats hoof is to separate the outer hard part from the inner soft part. It's a bacterial infection that breeds and takes root easily in, you guessed it, WET conditions.

So the whining continues.

Christmas In July Sale

We are having a sale on our soaps.

Buy 3 get one FREE!

Offer ends July 31st 2013.

Piano recital

My daughter was in her second piano recital this past week. I was a heel and did not video record the first one.

So here is the second public appearance of the great pianist.

Spring on the Farm

Spring time here means Kidding season.

No I don't mean we play jokes on each other. I mean the kind of kidding where baby goats, kids, are born!



We often video tape the birth of a kid.

If you don't like yucky stuff then don't watch the video.

Blogging, life and a pole barn!

While my total blog views over all clicked past 10,000 this past month, my views this month have tanked.

I'm lacking time and effort into this whee little blog. Sorry.

I would like to say it will get better, but it won't anytime soon.

I'm going to the INCH homeschool conference this coming weekend.

After FIVE long years of saving we finally had enough money to purchase a pole barn! We did not, however, have enough money to pay for labor. So, that means our summer will be spent building the pole barn! Along with of our most loving and generous friends.

We had the land cleared last week. Holes drilled in the ground for the poles to go in yesterday. That part was worth higher out. We had access to a dirt cheap (pun intended) Bobcat owner with a post hole digger attachment. $160 for all 25 holes drilled AND the 40X40 plot cleared. You can usually expect to pay $20 per hole drilled! We are so blessed.

Today we had 6 of those loving generous friends over and put up all but one pole for the main pole building. We were short one pole, but I'll just give a shout out to Delton Pole Building on Monday and we will no longer be short a pole.  They are wonderful people to work with. They take customer service to new heights. 

We also have 7 more poles for a lean to that need to go in the ground.

Over the next 2 weeks we hope to get all the horizontal boards boards on the poles. Then give another humbling shout out to our dear generous friends and put up the trusses. Then roofing, siding, doors...etc...

What an adventure!

HOW RUDE!!!

I sign up for e-mail newsletters. More than I can possibly read. I just delete most of them. Usually I end up unsubscribing after a few months of just deleting them.

I've found a new one, that I will tell you more about in another post.   I've actually read some of them. I file most of them away in a folder I've made in my email specifically just for this one newsletter. Never done that before.

Anyway,  my point is..

I get this newsletter today and I actually read it (I usually just file them into a folder in my email, remember, helpful right?! LOL)

Anyway it talks about your "critical voice" the voice in your head that tears you down...says your fat, can't do this or that...etc.. and how to overcome it.

But the part that got me is the thought that if some stranger came up to me and said these things that I think to me, I would think they were mentally ill or really rude, to say the least. I might even be a bit scared of them and either punch them in the face or run the other way.

So, why do I allow myself to be rude to me?

 

"How rude!"

 

 

I had never thunk of it that way before.

I am worth more than my rude way of self talk... I mean for pete's sake...God sent His one and only son to die for ME...even if I was the only one who ever accepted His gift of salvation He would of done it all over again. He loves me that much, why don't I love me half that much?!

 

 

Where did March go?!

Wow, where have I been? More than a month has passed since I last posted.

So, just WHERE was I?

Lets visit where my calendar says I was.

2nd- Winter Carnival at church complete with God's Helping Hands puppet show.
3rd- Kids sang at church
4th- Homeschool Partnership bldg for the kids classes Art, ballet/jazz, piano, and guitar.
5th- Massage therapy appointment for my back and leg pain
6th- Homeschool Partnership bldg Quick look at great books/Fencing and East Fork Farms and Kids
        church programs/our date night
7th- took my niece to her doctors appointment
8th- Acupuncture appointment for my back and leg pain
10th- Church
11th- Homeschool Partnership bldg for the kids classes Art, ballet/jazz, piano, and guitar.
12th- Massage therapy appointment for my back and leg pain
13th- Homeschool Partnership bldg Quick look at great books/Fencing and East Fork Farms and Kids
         church programs/our date night.
15th- Acupuncture and new herd share owner picked up milk the first time. :)
17th- Church
18th- Homeschool Partnership bldg for the kids classes Art, ballet/jazz, piano, and guitar. Vision 
         Screening for Collin for Vision therapy.
19th- Massage therapy
20th- Dentist appointment for fillings for 2 kids, Homeschool Partnership bldg Quick look at great
         books/Fencing and East Fork Farms, vision therapy results of screening meeting with
         Opthamologist (which I apparently can't spell or blog spot doesn't know how to), and Kids
         church programs/our date night. (I was running from place to place
         literally ALL day.)
24th- Church. Family Easter party at my house.
25th- Homeschool Partnership bldg for the kids classes Art, ballet/jazz, piano, and guitar.
          Elaine had PJ day at her ballet/jazz.
26th- Got the Furnace Annual maintenance done. Massage therapy.
27th- Homeschool Partnership bldg Quick look at great books/Fencing and East Fork Farms and Kids church programs/our date night.
30th- Had my friends 2 sons all day.
31st- Church. He has RISEN!!! :) Son Rise service with Baptismal, breakfast, Easter service with Communion.

Phew, is that all!?

I'm sure many of you are busier than this and some of you are not this busy. But I am ready for summer. I am ready for the busyness of school activities to stop. I'm sure we will just fill it up with something else, but I am ready.

And now I am running twice a week more than this taking Collin to his Vision therapy appointments. This too shall pass. :/

Chicken Wounds

While making my Store front on my blog, I came across a video Collin made of me cleaning up a chicken wound.

This chicken was attacked by another rooster. The hurt chickens name is Mache. Sounds kinda like maze and mange slurred together. It's the part of Dalmatian that says Mache. We had three roosters all at once. One named Doll. One named Mache. The final one damed Shun. I think, as Shun didn't live long.

Mache is our mascot of sorts and was the former picture on my blog header before I recently updated my blog.

SO, I thought it fitting to share more about him.

He has a life long home here. We won't be eating him. So much that he doesn't reside in the chicken coop. He lives in the goat barn. So, the other roosters won't attack him.

Here is the old old video of us trying to clean him up. Enjoy my goofy kids. Poor rooster, just remember he is all healed up now!

Piglet...

 

 

 

Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind.

“Pooh?” he whispered.

 

“Yes, Piglet?”

 

“Nothing,” said Piglet, taking Pooh’s hand.

“I just wanted to be sure of you.”

 

― A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

 

 

I am often like Piglet. Insecure. Scared. Wanting to be "sure" of those I love, that they love me, too.

 

I don't often speak that out loud. I keep it inside. I make jokes. I try not to get close to people, so I don't get hurt when they walk away.

 

I often have to remind myself that Pooh didn't walk away from Piglet. He stayed right there. Kindly guiding him.

 

God is my Pooh. I am His Piglet.

 

"So do not worry, because I am with you. Do not be afraid because I am your God. I will support you with my right hand that saves you." Isiah 41:10

 

That verse is on my wall above my computer. To remind me God is with me, always, just as Pooh is there for Piglet.

 

 

"We'll be friends forever won't we, Pooh?" said Piglet.

"Even longer," Pooh answered.

 

― A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh



 

 

 

He said WHAT?!

My 11 year old Collin is such a ham.

I have been suffering with back and leg pain since Oct. 2011. Bulging disc in my low back. I've done Chiropractic and Physical Therapy. I started massage therapy yesterday.

When told I was going to therapy my dear son Collin says this...

"Mommy's getting therapy, the nightmare is over."

I'm sure it comes from some movie, as most of his antics do.

I'm also gonna ignore that the original version probably refers to mental health care.

He's my big joker. What can I say!?

COMING SOON!!!

Soon, YOU will be amazed at my ability to follow directions and ASK for HELP!

I am working on setting up a store front on my blog and possibly on my Facebook page!

This option will hopefully make it easier for you all to order my wonderful Goats Milk Soaps and stuffs.

WHAT??!! You didn't know I sold stuff?!

Yes, another reason I am opening a store front. :)

Don't worry this blog will still remain a fun loving place to come and read about my crazy life stories and recipes. :)

In the meantime, please ignore the mess while I am updating Ye Ole blog.

Humor in the Hard Times

I recently had a horrible day with my 15 year old, Corey. Concerning attitude and school work.

Lindsey comes home and I begin telling him what happened. This is the conversation that takes place when Corey begins to get upset about us talking about it.

Corey, "We've already dealt with this. My dad chewed me out." (Corey is Lindsey's stepson.)

Lindsey, "We aren't talking to you right now. We are having a parent teacher conference."

Corey rolls eyes and smirks and says, "My Dad already talked to my mom."

Lindsey, "I'm meeting with your teacher on behalf of your mother."

Of course we all laughed, since I am both his teacher and his mother.

100% Whole Wheat Waffles Recipe - using whey!

I only buy Whole wheat flour, then make my family deal with it when I make things.

I buy Prairie Gold 100% Whole wheat flour. But thinking of switching to a sprouted wheat flour. I've heard good things about that.

Here is my waffle recipe.

6 cups 100% whole wheat flour
1/4 honey
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 1/2 cups whey (left over from cheese making or draining yogurt) or Fresh Raw Goats milk or milk product of your choice.
1 cup plus 2 TBS of melted coconut oil
4 Large eggs from free range hens.

          Combine all ingredients, in order listed, in a large mixing bowl. I use my Kitchen Aid mixer. Let batter rest while heating up the waffle maker.

Pour 1/4 cup of batter per waffle onto waffle maker. Or the amount your manufacture says. I use 2 cups of batter on my 4 waffle maker. Close the lid. Wait for the sound. Carefully remove waffles. Cool Slightly.

Cut with a pizza cutter. Top with your favorite waffle topping, ours is maple syrup or "chocolate frosting".

Enjoy!

Cackling...till I cry

Have you heard my laugh, err cackle? Seriously, click the link. Check it out. I cackle when I laugh.

Tonight, I cackled so hard I cried and cried.

I'm sure it won't be as funny to you as it was to me. But I was in just the right mood at the right time and bam...laughter.

So, here is my story. I'm probably writing this down more for my benefit than for yours. Using this ye old blog as a journal tonight.

I was having a really crappy day today. Complete with crying, loneliness, helpless, and pain. When Lindsey got home, I got dinner ready. All. By. Myself. I sat down to the table set for five. All. By. Myself. Despite having called for everyone to come to dinner.

I poured me a glass of Lindsey's Mountain Dew and was reminded of a good friend pointing out to me that I only "hit the dew" when I've had a bad day. Lindsey joined me at the table and started to dish up my plate. He mentioned that I was drinking the last of his Mountain Dew. To which I reply, "Then you should be asking me what's wrong, because I only drink your dew when I've had a bad day."

I had a serving spoon full of spaghetti. Spaghetti is the food I once threw a whole plate of against the wall, when I had a fit years and years ago. Lindsey bows his head and begins to say grace and it goes like this...

"Dearly Beloved."

He instantly looks over at me, surprised with himself.

Followed by 5 minutes of me Laughing uncontrollably. To. Tears. While he just sits there grinning ear to ear that he can make me laugh so hard. :-)

Then he calls for the kids to get there rear ends to the table so he can start this wedding.

Followed by more of my cackling.

Calling All Soap Loving Bloggers...

Do YOU blog? Do you just LOOOOVE soap?

I make Goats milk soap. You can see them here.

I would LOVE to send your blogging self a free bar of soap in exchange for an honest review of my soap on your blog. I would also like to send one of your readers a free bar of soap. So YOU get to do a giveaway!

SO, send me a link to your blog and facebook page and we can talk details. :)

Child Training Bible Giveaway winner!!!

Stephanie Hale Eidson YOU are THEE winner!

Congrats.

I hope you are MORE diligent than myself in implementing it's use!

Continue to pray WITH me in that regard. :) PRAYER WORKS!

Should I capitalize ONE MORE THING?! hehe

Child Training Bible Review and GIVEAWAY!!!

I was not so recently given the opportunity to review the Child Training Bible. I'm a bit behind on writing up my review on this. Mostly because I feel like a failure in instituting the use of it.

So, let's move forward with what I have done with the Child Training Bible, mm kay?

If you haven't seen a single thing about them, please take the time to go to the above link and look over their product to see how it functions. As I am not reinventing the wheel here people..simpling giving my honest review and a few helpful tips that I may have ran across along the way.

OK...

My 7 year old daughter helped me put together the top taps of the bible... don't mind her unbrushed hair. She is still just as lovable. :-)

I bought the markers and post it flags at Staples, for a smidge less than $20.

I used a study bible I had bought for my personal use a few years ago. I had already highlighted some stuff in it. But God worked it out, so that those things I had highlighted that coincided with what I needed to highlight for this were previously highlighted in a lighter or same color as I needed to change it to. Sorry if that don't make sense...I can't think of how else to explain it. and I forgot to take pics. My point in saying that is, don't be afraid to use a previously highlighted or used bible it will work out. The point of this system is not to go broke trying to get it set up...or to wait around to do it because you don't wanna spend money you don't have to.

I used a separate Bible from the one I take to church. I want it to be special and set apart for this. I didn't want to spend 4 hours putting it together for it to get wrecked.

I hope to use it along with the S.O.A.P method of bible study that I learned about from Smockity Frocks.  By picking one character a week and going through Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer journalling with that character trait. We have done SOAP in the past and have falling short on this for months lately. :(

I didn't already have highlighters or post it flags so I purchased them. If you have them, don't buy new silly people! I thought about making my own "post it flags" with pieces of colored paper and tape. My time was worth the $10 spent on something already done for me. And in my opinion your time is too!

I took my bible, highlighters, post-it flags and Child Training Bible kit with me when I took the kids to homeschool classes. I would sit and wait for them and work on it. All together it took me about 4 hours to put this thing together.

I have used myself a few times, but I have failed to get it out and use it WITH my children. I want to...but frankly we haven't been doing ANY Bible study time at all. sigh. Pray for me? please. :)

So, one question I received was "How many times does same color highlighter get used for different topics on the same page of the Bible?" My answer is this... It depends on your bible. grin. I had it happen 2, 3 times max.

SO, do you have any questions?

I would love to answer them the best I can.

I would also love for you to enter my Giveaway to receive your very own Child Training Bible Kit!!!

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/e5e0791/" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway