By Faith

Stuart is back!

2010-04-20T23:49:00.000-06:00

We raised two baby squirrels last spring. Stuart and Gribley. Gribley hasn't been seen since last fall but Stuart stuck around until it got pretty cold. He showed up recently on our porch looking for a handout. We were SO glad to know he made it through his first winter.

Two weeks ago, Drew was out walking for his morning quiet time and who did he see? Stuart and a girl squirrel hanging out together romping around the woods. :)

I'm so glad he survived the winter. That scar on his back tells me maybe he almost didn't.

Coming along nicely...

2010-04-20T23:16:00.002-06:00

This picture was taken in January. I love the porches - especially the sleeping porches. This view is of the back of the house. Orchard on this side, raised bed gardens on the other. Drew built 19 !! with the boys' help. I am so happy. God is good.

Stairs!! They are complete now and am I glad.

The garden beds last month. (Taken from the porch off of our room upstairs.) Since then we've been digging, digging, double digging. Lots of amending too. Lots. I should post a recent picture. It is much more encouraging. They are now planted with green plants coming up everywhere. The yard is still NOT a yard but that will come later. At least it's not mud anymore like in this picture.

How time flies...

2009-12-14T20:17:00.003-06:00

The house! We haven't been camping since it got quite cold. The Lord has blessed us with a nice place to stay when not camping. We've been able to keep our household things there all summer too.

We'll be moving up to the house as soon as our wood cookstove arrives. It seems I can feel the wonderful heat and smell the soup simmering already. :)

By the way, this picture was taken in October. All the doors and windows are in. Thankfully. ;)

SOLD!

2009-06-12T00:26:00.005-06:00

I can't believe it's been almost a YEAR since I last posted!

Well, our house sold in March. How encouraging it is to see God working. We've purchased 80 acres and are about to begin building as soon as we can get a road in. (Once we get to the property, we travel up to our campsite on the ATV.) We've set up housekeeping right there in the woods. :) This is part of our current "driveway".

This is a sample of one of our meals. Oh it was so good. It's been a few weeks now and we're all getting pretty good at campfire cookery, although we lost a few pieces of toast along the way. ;) Everything just cooks so much faster!Well, I have lots of pictures and weeks of adventure I could write about. I'll have to save it for another time...it's really late and I need to get to bed. We're down in town for a few days so I thought I would take advantage of an available internet connection.

Our house is for sale...link is below

2008-06-20T13:38:00.004-06:00

A Country Home

he's finished!

2007-12-14T15:41:00.001-06:00

I am SO proud of Levi. All in all, his sick day hasn't been very bad. He's kept busy with his bear most of the time and was determined to finish it before his daddy and brothers got home. He looks at the pictures we took of the pattern and pieces of felt and remarks that he can't believe he did this all by himself. It's been a good day. When his fingers would get tired of pushing the needle through the felt, he sat on the couch absorbed in the new seed catalog we got in the mail today from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.

felt teddy bear

2007-12-14T13:08:00.000-06:00

Levi hasn't been feeling so well since yesterday. He spent most of his time laying on the couch looking at books and watching nature videos. I decided last night that if he was still down, I would give him a project to do. He loves to sew:

We found the idea and pattern to make it at Hearts and Trees. I will post a picture of his completed bear later. :)

He took a break for awhile and helped me to make more crackers to put in the dehydrator. This time we made sprouted wheat with onion and chives and also sprouted wheat with caraway seeds. I'm looking forward to the onion and chives crackers with some sunflower seed sour cream!

busy week

2007-12-14T12:33:00.000-06:00

We've had a busy week with school... we seemed to have more projects than usual. Also, I've been experimenting in the kitchen with some raw food recipes from Rejuvenate Your Life by Serene Allison. We made some Italian Flaxseed crackers in the dehydrator and they were a big hit. We also made some raw pate' recipes: Mexican Chereezo Stuffer and Zinc Veggie Nut stuffer which are very good on the crackers or with corn chips. I wish I had photos to share. It made an attractive and colorful meal. I had a whole bunch of sprouted soft wheat that needed used up so we made crackers out of that too. I tried some in the oven and some in the dehydrator. I was surprised that we all preferred the dehydrated crackers over the oven ones. More raw, so that is good. I never expected them to be so crispy and cracker-like. They really are delicious!

God's goodness has been so very evident this week. We have heard and seen prayers answered for family and friends who have trusted in Him and believed that His timing is best.

window stars

2007-12-07T08:01:00.000-06:00

My first Sew Crafty Friday! I've been doing a few crafty things here and there but haven't ever taken the time to share. This one is so fun so I thought I would post about it.

When we first started, we practiced on regular wax paper. Those turned out nice...sort of like snowflakes. Once we had the basic folds down we tried it out on the special colored paper.

We hung them on the windows in our dining room. We have bird feeders outside so we can watch the birds while we eat, but once in awhile they fly into the windows. Since the stars have been up they haven't hit the windows anymore.

We purchased the kit at Hearthsong.

If you would like to participate in Sew Crafty Friday or even just to see what others are working on, you can go here to Shereen's blog.

the Treehouse

2007-12-02T12:35:00.000-06:00

Now I'm not talking about the "Family Treehouse" that we started last year...this is Levi's own treehouse that he built with Drew during their father/son week. We will be working on our big treehouse again this week. The camera I used in the beginning construction stage didn't take the best photos so I'll start here with the better photos:

The posts are in and the platform is in place and secured.

Next, the walls go up.

Here they are cutting the OSB for the roof.

Levi handing a section of the roof up to Drew from the deck of the scaffolding.

As soon as the rain and clouds go away I will go out and take some photos of the (almost) finished treehouse. They have the sides on, the shingles on and now all he needs is a door and windows.

Firewood

2007-12-02T10:58:00.000-06:00

Something else that Silas wanted to do on his father/son time was to get firewood.

Last year we had some of our acreage logged which left us with an abundance of firewood and a lot of tree tops and brush to clean up. In three days they were able to get several cords cut, hauled to the house and stacked. They kept the brush piles burning too and the woods is really shaping up. In North Idaho we burned a lot of firewood and we always had so much fun getting it. Here in Missouri, we won't need nearly as much but they still had a lot of fun.

Backpacking

2007-11-16T09:55:00.000-06:00

Silas and Drew went on their father/son backpacking trip and had a great time! They did a 12 mile portion of the trail in 2 days. We knew what time we were supposed to pick them up so we got a meal together and met them at their campsite. It was such a beautiful Fall day. Drew and I sat in the sun together while the boys played at the pond.

Silas found these HUGE puffballs. It was too bad they were over the hill. I'm sure they would've loved to have made them into puffball "steaks" for lunch.

This is Silas on the trail with his 20lb. pack! Drew said he did really well.

The end of Day seven

2007-11-06T22:28:00.000-06:00

The roof is ready for the shingles. We're not sure when that will happen, but hopefully soon! As you can see, the gable ends still need put on and some finish work needs done before it can be stained. In time, a few windows will go in as well. What a week!

Day seven - Monday

2007-11-05T18:49:00.000-06:00

By the end of the day, the whole roof was on and the tar paper was down. It is so nice to see them working together like this. :)

Doesn't he look happy? :) He has enjoyed this so much. I will post more pictures of the progress they made today. They were also able to get the sides on his cabin. It still needs more work but Drew is off this project for a time and on to backpacking with Silas. They leave tomorrow!

Day Six - Sunday

2007-11-04T14:45:00.001-06:00

Roof rafters!! What a difference this step has made.

A view from the front. Ukiah has chosen where he wants to place bird feeders and a salt block so he can watch the birds, deer and other wildlife. I can already visualize him sitting on his front porch when this cabin is completed. :)

My Great-Grandma's Clematis

2007-11-02T15:24:00.000-06:00

I want to tell you the story of this clematis. When I was a little girl, my Great-Grandma had a clematis so huge it covered one quarter of the garage behind her house in Pennsylvania. Now the garage wasn't that big but when the clematis was in bloom it was stunning! Masses of purple flowers cascading from the roof and down the sides. I wish you could have seen it.

She passed away when I was 15 and her husband remained in the house until he also passed away quite a few years later. I was now married and my great-uncle asked me if I would like to come and dig up the bulbs and any other plants in her yard. The house was going to be sold. Without hesitation, I said yes. Drew and I went and dug up literally hundreds of bulbs and many plants. The one thing I wanted most was a start from her clematis. Someday I would have a sea of purple all my own.

We took the bulbs and plants back to our home and found a special place for all of them. The clematis went in at the corner of our potting shed. Years passed and it did not do very well. A few blossoms here and there but not much more. I always hoped that one day it would just take off and grow right up over the top like hers did.

The time came when we decided to move to Idaho. As much as I wanted to take them along, I just couldn't do it this time. After three wonderful years in Idaho, we found ourselves on our way to Pennsylvania then Missouri to another new home. This time, Drew would be coming along behind us in another week. We had all been staying in PA until our MO home was ready. He needed to finish up some work. While there, my beloved husband was thinking of me and my Grandma's flowers. One day, he went to visit the people who had purchased our PA home and asked if they would mind if he dug up a few starts. They said "Take as much as you want!" When he arrived in Missouri he had a special surprise for me. As I remember that moment, tears are flowing. I opened boxes and containers filled with bulbs and yes, a start from my Great-Grandma's clematis. What you see in the photo above is the first bloom from that start, here in Missouri.
It bloomed this week! One single bloom. Earlier this spring we had rows of her daffodils blooming. I'm thankful that I have flowers to remind me of this special woman.

My husband's thoughtfulness and love amazes me. Yet I know that God loves us even more!

Day Five - Friday

2007-11-02T13:03:00.001-06:00

This is SO exciting to watch. I told Ukiah that I want a cabin too!

Right now they are building the rafters. All four walls are up and it is really taking shape. When the siding goes on it's going to make a HUGE difference. I'm afraid I have "building cabin fever". This is just too much fun.

Day Four continued

2007-11-02T10:34:00.000-06:00

Day Four - Thursday

2007-11-01T12:42:00.001-06:00

We all joined them down at the building site in the morning. I arrived as they were finishing up breakfast by the fire.

Day Three - Wednesday - the floor!

2007-11-01T11:30:00.001-06:00

Last evening, they stoked the fire and made up beds on the deck for their first night "at the cabin".

Day Two- surveying the progress

2007-11-01T10:39:00.000-06:00

This is Ukiah and Drew at the end of the day on Tuesday. The foundation is complete and the joists are in. It is hard for them to quit! They are having such a good time. I tilted the camera so that is why it looks lopsided - really, it is level. ;)

Day Two - Tuesday

2007-10-31T23:49:00.000-06:00

Working together.

Day One - Monday

2007-10-31T23:12:00.000-06:00

They built a fire for the sticks and refuse they cleared from the site and got busy on the foundation. There is something about having a fire going when we're working outside in the Fall. Good smells and a place to warm our hands.

In this photo, they have stacked blocks for the piers and located the beams they will use.

Applesauce

2007-10-31T21:16:00.000-06:00

The Cabin

2007-10-31T15:32:00.000-06:00

Where has the time gone???I can't believe almost a month has passed since I posted last. We've been busy keeping up the house, cleaning out the garden and flower beds, working on school activities and canning applesauce. It is SO good to have all those jars of applesauce in our cabinets again. 100 total and 19 jars of juice.

Now, we are watching a cabin materialize right before our eyes. It has been Ukiah's dream to build a little cabin with his dad. He's looked at countless books and magazines for years, formulating ideas. Well, early Monday morning the building commenced. They are really making progress! They located a spot not too far from the house but not too close either...just right for a 12 year old boy. ;) They cleared the area, cut down a few trees and began setting piers for the foundation. Right now they have the whole foundation completed and floor joists put in. It is a 10'x14' cabin with a 7' porch. This is their special father/son week so when I went to get more building supplies today, Silas and Levi went with me. I came home with a trailer full of lumber and wood for the floor and walls. Shingles too. Drew found a great place that sells seconds and we were able to purchase the materials for far less than regular lumber yard prices. What a blessing! This time they've had together has really been worth the sacrifices needed to make it happen. Next week Silas is going to have his time with Daddy and they are going on a backpack trip. Levi will be next and has chosen to go canoe camping. They'll canoe the river awhile until they locate just the right spot for camping. Then, they'll pull in for the night and set up camp.

Silas and I have taken a lot of pictures so I'll try to post some tonight. I'm amazed at how fast this cabin is going up. Surely God is blessing Drew's efforts and commitment to spend this special time with his son.

One pet leaves..another one moves in

2007-10-02T17:14:00.000-06:00

Ukiah found this little lizard last year when we first arrived in Missouri. She traveled with us all over - Pennsylvania, Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky and more! Well, it's been a year and he was thinking he wanted to return her back to the wild. She has eaten well for us and even laid more than 20 eggs! That was really neat. Too bad they weren't fertile...that would have been even better. So, three days ago he took her out to a sunny spot and said his goodbyes.

I wondered how long it would take him to find something to put in his aquarium...

Today he found this:

This praying mantis has the same voracious appetite that his lizard had! It's a good thing Ukiah likes to catch insects. :)

A charcoal experiment

2007-10-01T20:51:00.000-06:00

We've decided to try to make charcoal for medicinal uses. Since we've never done this before, I knew it would be an interesting experiment. We researched to find out what would be the best wood to use and ultimately chose willow. After we found the willow that was the right size, we stripped the leaves off and the boys cut it up into the proper lengths.

From what we read, we needed an airtight container to put the willow sticks in. The best thing we could come up with was one of my canners. I figured we would put the lid on and then secure it with C clamps.

So far, so good. The boys had a fire going so I tightened the C clamps - any tighter and I would've cracked the enamel. Then...onto the fire.

They cooked and cooked. THEN, I noticed that some smoke was escaping from under the lid. So it wasn't airtight after all. :( We were supposed to let it cook for 1 1/2 hours and then remove from the fire to cool entirely. If we were to take the lid off while it was still hot, the oxygen would cause the charcoal sticks to burst into flame and turn to ash. So, after determining that it was indeed leaking, we took it off the fire. When it was almost cool, the lid was removed. Curiosity was getting the best of a particular boy. ;) It didn't burst into flames-it had apparently cooled enough- and we discovered that we had made charcoal pencils! Those sticks were in the pencil sharpener in NO time. lol. So...that was our first attempt at making charcoal. It was fun and we ended up with something usable. Now, I just need to come up with something airtight that can go over the fire. Any ideas?

Tamale dollies

2007-09-30T18:24:00.000-06:00

My friend Ruthie makes the BEST tamales. One day Drew was up at their place working with her husband. When it was time to come home, she sent along a big package of home-made tamales. After we devoured them for supper, Ukiah decided to wash off the corn husks and make corn husk dolls. Aren't they cute??

A beautiful week...

2007-09-14T14:43:00.000-06:00

It has been so nice here. The air is starting to have that crisp feel in the mornings and it smells so good. It's been a typical week...catching turtles and snakes, riding the pony, school in the morning and working in the afternoons outside with Daddy. We've been finding ourselves making more cups of tea. Maybe it is the sense that Fall is on the way. We enjoyed 2 nights just sitting around the fire by the pond and talking. Yesterday we went to the river thinking it may be our last chance to swim...the water is starting to cool down. We had a picnic lunch first and Drew and the boys kicked a ball around. We bought Levi a Slinky for his birthday recently and they had a great time watching it go down the steps of the sliding board where we had our picnic. Life seems to have slowed down a bit even though school has started up! I know I'm making an effort to notice the small things in life that can bring so much joy. Speaking of that...I have added a new blog to the "Blogs I read" section. It is called Eyes of Wonder. Oh, how inspiring this blog is! The photos are a feast for the eyes...so rich. Such a full and gentle life.

Ukiah and I went to town today to purchase chicken scratch and to pick up our books at the library. We always come home with more than just what we get on interlibrary loan. lol. We found a good treehouse book...some inspiration to get back to work on our treehouse.

I can smell that lunch is almost ready to put on the table so I should close for now. Veggie chicken rice, tomato sandwiches, and red peppers from the greenhouse.

Opossums go to school

2007-09-05T13:02:00.000-06:00

our little opossums

2007-08-29T18:12:00.000-06:00

There are three little 'possums snoozing in a slipper. One of the boys thought it would help them feel like they were in a pouch. I thought that was a great idea and apparently, so did they. :)
Just finished up eating and are ready to climb under the towel and go to sleep.
Drew took this picture of the boys and I at the county fair last Thursday. Our church had a booth and we took a turn sitting there, greeting people and handing out literature. After our shift was over, we decided to walk through and look at the animals. Can you guess what is in my basket?? Yes, baby opossums. They were with me just about everywhere I went. Now that I know they are able to feed themselves from a dish, I do not have to 'possum-sit.

orphan opossums

2007-08-29T07:59:00.000-06:00

We've had a new project lately. On the way to church 2 weeks ago, we saw a mama 'possum that had been hit in the other lane. As I passed, I noticed babies crawling on her! We didn't want to just let them there so helpless so we turned around and went back. Drew found three little survivors, scooped them up and brought them to the van. We quickly found something to put them in and headed for church.

Now, we are not new to this type of thing. Actually, we've rehabilitated quite a few animals. We have also given some to local rehabbers who were better prepared to handle the particular situation...like hawks or porcupines, but we have always made room if it is something we can handle. These little one were likely making the transition to living out of their mama's pouch and so they have been fairly easy to care for.

As a child, my mom and grandparents always had an interest in animals and the outdoors. I have very fond memories of a mischievous pet raccoon named Zeke. He was orphaned when his mama and siblings were killed on a construction site. Our cousin automatically knew where to bring the little baby. My mom also raised a baby opossum and I remember her riding around on my mom's shoulder, under her hair, with only her pink tail showing. We didn't do everything right back then. They slept with us and ate with us. We treated them too much like pets and weren't prepared for the day when Zeke matured to an age when he would be seeking a mate. It seemed like his temperament changed overnight and he was no longer friendly. He was released and I was so sad to not have him in my life anymore.

The opossums have been quite easy to care for and the boys are enjoying every minute. We made some phone calls to opossum rescues to get specific info. on their care. We also have a great book called "Care of the Wild, Feathered and Furred". The boys look for insects and worms and they help prepare their "milk" and other food. We've done some internet research together. I will include photos of this experience, along with some of the information we have gathered, in the boys homeschool notebooks. I am really happy they are getting the opportunity to make some memories like this. There is so much we can learn from nature and our wonderful Father who created it.

a new thought...

2007-08-15T16:52:00.000-06:00

I think I've discovered one of the reasons why I'm having these huge gaps in between posts lately. I always want to have pictures to post along with what I write. That takes time...time I don't seem to have right now. The green beans have been coming in and we are now up to 117 quarts. Boy, that feels good. We have also been drying tomatoes and peppers. So far we have 2 gallon jars full of Principe Borghese tomatoes, all sliced and looking quite pretty. The peppers are coming along nicely too...about half a gallon so far. I am happy we decided to dry them so we can enjoy them all through the year. The plants are still heavy with developing peppers...this is so rewarding. The corn however has not been a huge success. First, we had raccoon problems. Then drought. Well, all in all, Drew processed 7 quarts for the freezer yesterday while I was laid up on the couch. We consoled ourselves with the lessons learned and that every little bit helps.

We've had a couple bouts with sickness, first stomach then respiratory. I'm not sure what's going on, but hopefully we're on the mend now. My fever is at 100 and I actually feel a lot better, just very tired.

Well, Silas just made spaghetti and green beans and heated up some baked acorn squash. I am feeling so blessed.

A butterfly surprise

2007-07-16T20:57:00.000-06:00

One day we were all walking around the flower gardens seeing what interesting things we could find. The butterfly weed was in full bloom and especially pretty so we had a closer look.
Although this photo doesn't show it, there were MANY monarch caterpillars crawling all over it...munching away on the leaves.

For several days, we watched them grow. It is amazing how fast they grow! One day, we saw this: Then, a few days later...

Can you see its wings?! Wow. I thought this was incredible. I thanked God for showing us something so beautiful that we could share with the boys.

Then...the finale!!

The bike ride

2007-06-18T09:25:00.000-06:00

Last week, Drew announced that it was time for the long-awaited bike trip to the river to take place. It is 6 miles on gravel from our driveway to the river. He suggested that I meet them at our chosen spot with the truck and we could all go for a swim before loading up the bikes and heading back home. They had SO much fun! Next time we will have to arrange it so I can ride too. I was happy this time to have a little while to sit, read and relax in the quiet. We had a great time swimming and looking for pretty rocks.
Coming down the final stretch...

They made it! All were smiling and saying "When can we do that again??"

Copperhead

2007-06-17T18:37:00.000-06:00

We have 4 poisonous snakes in Missouri and this is one of them. We haven't seen any at our house yet but we have seen Copperheads along the road. As much as there is good reason for caution, I do enjoy them and think they are beautiful as does the rest of my family. I took this photo while Drew had the snake on one of his snake sticks. People kill many Northern Water snakes each year believing them to be Copperheads. We take every opportunity we can to educate people on their differences and how to properly identify them.

Catching up...

2007-06-11T07:50:00.000-06:00

I have wanted to post but we have been spending a lot of time together as a family since Drew came home and I just couldn't seem to fit it in. Now we are getting back into a routine and I think I'll have more time.

The garden has grown amazingly since the photos I posted awhile back! I will post some new pictures this week. We harvested cabbage, radishes, mustard greens and will have quite a few zucchini by the end of the week. On the "To Do" list for next week: make zucchini bread and freeze.

The day lilies are in full bloom and are a beautiful splash of orange throughout our flower beds. Pictures coming soon.

Also, Yolanda asked about how we organize our homeschool into binders and I will share that as well. Sorry for the delay Yolanda...I didn't forget. :)

The boys have been picking red clover tops and drying them in the dehydrator. We will mix them with spearmint leaves for a tasty tea.

Well, there is much more I could say but I must get on with the day. We may be going to town today to get some more furniture if Drew can get the trailer lights to work. We bought mattress sets for 2 boys on Friday.

I hope you are having a good day with the Lord. He has been so good to me lately especially.

Building raised beds

2007-05-17T18:42:00.000-06:00

Before Drew left he tilled up 3 long rows for strawberries. He didn't have time to build the boxes but he did get out all the boards so the boys and I could work on it. Well, today we finally built one! It didn't turn out as nice as I had hoped it would, but it will work. We are using salvaged lumber that was in the barn when we bought this place. Can't beat that!
The beds on the left are the ones Silas built with his Grammy. The next 3 are strawberry beds. You can see one is in the process of being laid out and one is done.
Here it is! Something is really weird on the right side. We used 12" 2x4's with the end cut like a tent stake so it would drive easier. We pounded those in as we went-flush with the tops of the boards-and then screwed the side boards into them. Some weren't pounded so straight and with the boards already a bit bowed, well, it's a little wibbly. Now, we have 2 more to build and we can plant strawberries! I wouldn't have wanted to do this without my 3 willing helpers.
This is me getting a board into place. Almost all of the boards needed to have the ends cut off so they would be straight.

Making one of many cuts. :) I am looking forward to making the next two. We made a few mistakes with the first one and now I think I have it figured out. The next two should go much faster.

Our greenhouse

2007-05-17T18:10:00.000-06:00

Ann, over at His Grace To Me , asked me about our greenhouse and requested pictures. So, here are 2 pictures of our little greenhouse:

I really like it. Even on a chilly, dreary day, we can go in there and it's so nice. The air is fresh, things are green and growing and there is life long after the frost has gotten everything else. I am considering hanging my hammock chair in there this fall. :)

It is a metal framework that I believe was originally intended for some kind of carport thing. The previous owners stretched the plastic over and used it as a greenhouse. There are 7 raised beds inside with mulch on the walkways.

another opossum

2007-05-16T11:17:00.000-06:00

This is our Barred Rock Pip. She is Levi's chicken and Drew's favorite. She is such a friendly chicken, following us around waiting for treats.
This is Raoul. He is quite old and doesn't get around very well anymore.
Last night I heard clucking when the chicken house should have been quiet. I had already been in bed and the boys were in bed also. I got up and that is when I heard the clucking. I called to Ukiah and Levi who bounded out of bed and ran out to the chicken house in their bare feet. Another opossum! This time it had a hold of Pip's tail feathers. Ukiah chased it off and up into a corner of the screened in part of the chicken yard. We weren't able to catch this one as easily as Drew had caught the last (by the tail). I didn't want to just grab it and I didn't want the boys to either. So I ran down to the workshop and got a big fishing net. Ukiah netted it and we put it into a big barrel. He spent the night in our workshop and was relocated in the morning. I wish I had pictures of the whole event to post. The boys sure are making some memories AND, Levi is getting much more diligent about locking up the chickens at night. :)

more chick pictures

2007-05-15T18:18:00.000-06:00

The ones with the chipmunk stripes down their backs are Aracaunas. The white one is a white Silkie - they have blue beaks! The black one with his beak in the air is a Black Australorp. The black with white spot on the head is a Dominique. The golden is a NH Red. The little one in the middle, to the right of the Silkie is our Mystery chick!

Insect collecting

2007-05-15T18:10:00.000-06:00

This is Ukiah's prize Luna moth along with a few others. We are working on labels.

The chicks are here

2007-05-15T17:56:00.000-06:00

They arrived yesterday morning. 27 chicks! Silas made up a little countdown "calendar" when we placed our order over a month ago. It was so cute to watch him cross off each day. Levi got white Silkies, Silas got New Hampshire Reds, Ukiah got Aracaunas, I got Black Australorps and Drew got Dominiques. We also got a surprise exotic chick. :) A few have already been on an excursion outside to eat grass clippings and bugs - courtesy of the boys.

A visitor

2007-05-15T17:47:00.000-06:00

This little bird must have hit one of our windows and decided to take a rest on the deck. Our deck is not a safe place for birds to rest so we moved it inside just long enough for it to recover. Isn't it beautiful? We think it is some kind of warbler.

Tomatoes!

2007-05-15T17:39:00.000-06:00

Levi and I were out in the greenhouse today doing some weeding. I knew we had a lot of blossoms but Levi spotted some little tomatoes! We were so excited. This plant is an heirloom variety called Principe Borghese. It produces nice small tomatoes that are good for drying.

Ukiahs' insect collection

2007-05-13T16:19:00.000-06:00

Ukiah is fulfilling a long-time desire to make an insect collection. We made a net, prepared a jar with plaster for killing the insects, fixed up some display boxes and ordered a few inexpensive supplies like pins and a spreading board. He already has quite a few specimens and works daily to get more. Here are several of his butterflies and moths on the spreading board:

We found a very large dragonfly today to add to the collection. We are using an older 4H entomology manual that we found online as a guide.

Mystery lily

2007-05-13T16:15:00.000-06:00

At first I thought this was some type of unusual iris. After looking more closely at the foliage, I think it is a lily. They are so delicate and beautiful.

muffler repair

2007-05-09T14:51:00.000-06:00

One of the things on my "to do"list was to repair the muffler. I needed to get the truck inspected and we didn't think it would pass in the condition it was in. So, yesterday I got out the cold-weld stuff my husband told me about and got to my task. It was actually kind of fun...and cooler under the truck. The dogs must have thought so too because they joined me. :)

I got out all my supplies. Read the instructions. I had everything except the gloves, but I needed to forge ahead. I figured I would just be careful not to touch it. So...mix Bottle A with Bottle B...stir for 3 minutes. Add powdered aggregate to achieve desired consistency. Hmmm. What consistency do I want for this job?? Start out thinner, add more if necessary. The kit included a short paint stirrer kind of thing. That is how I am going to apply it...I think. :) Here is what the muffler looked like before:
So I started applying it all around the edges to seal the crack. Then, I would press in the strips of fiberglass tape I had pre-cut. All the while trying to do this with that awkward paint paddle. Well, the stuff started heating up which took me by surprise so I figured it was going to begin to harden...I better hurry. Finally, I ditched the paint paddle and started using my fingers. Bad I know. I applied a coat on top of the fiberglass to keep it in place.

Here is what it looked like when I was finished:

Now...here is what happened. I let it cure all day and all night. I decided this morning I would take it in for the inspection. We looked at it before we left and it was solid just like the directions said it should be. When we were almost there - like I could see the mechanic's sign - I heard the muffler get really loud. Silas said "I think it came apart!" I had to agree. Just then I sensed the Lord prompting me that nothing happens without it going through Him first. Because of that, I could have peace. We proceeded to the garage even though part of me wanted to pull in somewhere and look. The mechanic inspected it right then and there, passed it! and only charged me $12! I am so thankful. We will take care of the muffler as soon as Drew gets back but until then, at least it is legal. :)

A tree frog

2007-05-08T18:17:00.000-06:00

Yesterday morning I decided to walk down the lane to get the mail and the boys could ride along on their bikes. It was such a peaceful, warm morning. Then I heard "Mama, Mama! Look what we found!"

Since they were on their bikes they couldn't hold it the whole way back home so they handed it to me. I didn't want to hold it because I knew my dry, salty hands wouldn't be good for it so I carefully put it in my shirt pocket. lol As soon as we took some pictures, we let it go. Isn't it beautiful? The yellow under it back legs was so bright!

Listening for worms

2007-05-08T17:55:00.000-06:00

The other evening, a very excited Ukiah came to me and said he could hear the worms popping up out of the ground. We've listened to a book on tape where a boy describes his wilderness adventure and Ukiah remembered that this boy said he could hear the worms after a rain. We'd recently had a lot of rain so he decided to listen. Imagine his surprise when he actually heard them! We gathered his brothers and all went to listen for worms. There were little popping sounds...sort of like Rice Krispies when you put the milk on. :)

Excitement in the frog pond

2007-05-07T06:59:00.000-06:00

The other night, the trilling of toads in our frog pond was SO loud. I guess for those few nights it was a TOAD pond.

It wasn't quite sundown yet so we could still see very well. The boys very excitedly came to me and said "Come, come...you have to see all the toads! Can you hear them??" I had been hearing them and was enjoying the sounds of Spring.

The males were trilling in an effort to identify themselves to the females. Levi can trill perfectly -just like one! So when they would quiet down, he would get them going again. It makes me smile just to think of it.

Can you see the eggs trailing behind them?? It was so neat. There are loads of them in the pond now! All in all, we counted 20 toads and I'm sure there were more back under the rock ledges - we could hear them trilling. This went on for three nights and there are still a few out there waiting for mates I suppose.

Our little pond is in need of some repair and I had been thinking I would drain it, sand it and reseal it. But now it has become a tadpole pond and that job will have to wait. :)

Today's "catch"

2007-05-06T22:11:00.000-06:00

Our family loves reptiles. Especially snakes. I think it is a requirement when raising children...especially boys. :) If you don't enjoy reptiles, this post may be a challenge for you.

Today was mowing day for the two oldest boys. Before they mow, they walk through the yards to make sure there isn't any wildlife that could get run over. They found one Three-toed Box turtle, one small alligator snapping turtle and a black rat snake that wasn't small.

Now that picture really does no justice to these creatures, but the boys wanted a picture of their "reptile zoo". Here are a few more - close up. :)

This is the Three-toed Box turtle. We identified it as a female because of the brownish color of her eyes. She ate worms right from the boys hands.

The snapper.

I wanted to add this one too because I laughed so much when I saw the expression on Levi's face! He said the turtle didn't smell so good.

This is the black rat snake. Ukiah saw a commotion ahead of him in the bushes while he was mowing. I was hanging laundry and saw it also. It turned out that there was Brown Thrasher on the ground in great distress, trying to lead an unwelcome visitor from it's nest. I initially thought it was Ukiah mowing that had the bird disturbed...but it was this snake. He spotted it slithering through the underbrush and leaped out to catch it. But that was not all for the day...no, we had another snake show up later. This one, same kind, was even larger.

This is the kind of stuff that makes boys just jiggle with delight!! I love it. :)

A laundry thought

2007-05-06T16:25:00.000-06:00

I hung up several loads of laundry today. It is something I really enjoy. The quiet, good smells, warm breeze... Anyway, I had the thought that since the lines are so low the children could take over this chore. Hmmm...seems like a good idea...I should do that. It will help cultivate those important character qualities of thoroughness, perseverance and also help them to develop a sense of satisfaction with even the most simple yet tedious jobs. As I continued to hang up the boys clothes I began to reconsider. I will always have laundry to look after but it will not always be our boys clothes. I took a special joy today in shaking out and hanging those small shirts and pants - I won't always have them in my life. So, for now, I may enlist a young helper at times but I have to decided to keep the job to myself. :)

The BIG garden

2007-05-04T18:24:00.000-06:00

Here is the main garden. In time, this will be transformed into mostly raised beds-excepting the corn, potatoes and green beans. But for now, it is a standard row garden with some raised beds mixed in. The beds are not in boxes but just heaped up. We are working compost into to all the beds which really takes time. I'm pretty happy with it though because just 2 months ago, it was plain pasture. Sod. I believe Drew said it is 75'x120'.

Right now, with all the rain we've had, it is laying heavy with water. The clay soil holds it in so much and it seems to take a long time to dry out. We are praying our corn and bean seeds don't rot. By the way, the little foil collars on the tomato plants are working! :)

Weeding the greenhouse

2007-05-04T17:56:00.000-06:00

We've had several rainy days lately. We all wanted to get outside so we decided to spend some time in the greenhouse. The lettuce has gotten out of hand and really needs cut back or it is going to go to seed.

We have tomatoes, sweet peppers, and lettuce growing. We also have some volunteer kale, beets and some hot peppers from the previous owners. We let the chickweed grow over the winter so we could juice it with our carrots. It is good in salads too...just a little though...it is tart.

It was so nice to spend some time outside. The air in a greenhouse always smells so fresh and good. I have often thought of doing school out there on dreary days.

They're here!

2007-05-04T16:45:00.000-06:00

The Indigo Buntings have arrived. Where we come from originally, these birds could be spotted once in awhile and it was an exciting treat. Today, we had a whole flock in our driveway including 7 males and at least that many females. They were all feeding on the ground.

Irises

2007-05-03T08:45:00.000-06:00

They are so beautiful and they smell sooo good. My husband especially enjoys them. Over the years in his landscaping business, he has planted hundreds of irises for his customers. He really enjoyed the work and learned so much about flowering plants. I know he will enjoy these photos from home while he is away. (We love you and miss you Drew!)

I was expecting them to all be the standard purple for some reason, like this...

Here is a picture of one of our beds. You can see our greenhouse in the upper left corner...sort of. Over there is where Silas's beds are and the soon-to-be strawberry beds.

Once more began to open, this is what we saw: This peachy, sweet-smelling beauty!

And these crimson irises! More are coming every day.

One last photo:

"Foiling" the cutworms

2007-05-02T06:02:00.000-06:00

We set our tomato plants out in the garden several days ago. 30 of them. The very next morning I found 2 of them snipped off right at the base. They were 2 of the 6 Cherokee Purple that I am so looking forward to. I dug around to see if I could unearth a cutworm, but I didn't find it. The next morning...2 more down. This time they were the Pineapple tomatoes. I was talking with the neighbor and she said to put foil around them. I was going to set cans down over the plants but thought this foil idea might work better. I'm not sure if she meant to do it like this, but so far it is working!

a growing puppy

2007-05-02T06:00:00.000-06:00

Here is a recent picture of our puppy. She is growing so quickly and is always into something. She especially likes stealing laundry. :(

No doubt she is looking for her next flower bed adventure in this picture. She is still "puppy" or "puppy girl"...the name we gave her didn't stick. Any suggestions?

Another watercolor

2007-05-01T12:02:00.000-06:00

This is a cardinal painted by Silas. The boys worked on their Nature Notebooks yesterday. Ukiah sketched a tiny Sassafras tree and Silas and Levi drew pictures of the irises. I will have a post about the irises soon...

Surprise in the garden

2007-05-01T11:28:00.000-06:00

This is who I found in the garden early this morning. I was not pleased. I checked all the gates and fences and still cannot figure out how he got out of the barnyard pasture and into the garden. At first I thought he had just somehow escaped into the big pasture but as I walked closer I saw that he was actually IN the fenced in garden. His name is Hackey -he is a Hackney pony- and he doesn't like me very much. I opened the gate to the garden, said a prayer for help to catch him and you know what he did? He walked right up TO me! I was thanking God out loud. I got him by the halter and with the help of angels I am sure, walked him straight into his stall in the barn. That is where he is going to stay until I figure this mystery out. Here is the REALLY good news...he didn't do a bit of damage to the garden! All he did was leave some hoof prints and fertilizer behind. ;)

Watercolor

2007-04-30T13:07:00.000-06:00

We love taking walks and exploring the outdoors as a family. Ukiah and I especially like drawing and painting so we decided to mix the two. Most of our library time is spent in the non-fiction section getting how-to books, biographies and more books on the things in nature. Sometimes we take our inspiration from the pages of books. I thought I would share a few of our watercolors with you.

This is my dragonfly. I had a lot of fun with it because things kept going wrong so I had to change my ideas of what I wanted it to look like.

This is a bullfrog tadpole that Levi painted.

This is Ukiah's bullfrog.

This is my spider.

Levi's newt.

It is such a nice medium to work with because if you make a mistake, you can just change it into something else! I will try to find something that Silas has done and post that too.

The BIG one!

2007-04-29T22:50:00.000-06:00

We have a couple ponds on our property which they boys take special delight in. They wade, canoe and generally muck around...but their favorite thing to do is FISH. Well today was a very big day because Levi, our youngest, caught a HUGE large-mouth bass. At least it is huge to us. :) They said they've seen it but could never convince it to bite. Daddy is away but heard all about it on the phone tonight and he requested that we put up some pictures on the blog. They aren't the greatest...being snapped off in all the excitement...but you will get the idea. :) After all the picture taking, they quickly let it go back into the pond. We are vegetarian. :)

Here is Levi, the big fisherman, with his catch. Silas was our camera man.

Disaster in the chicken house

2007-04-28T15:57:00.000-06:00

When we bought our home, it came with 7 chickens and 5 Pygmy goats. Several months ago, one of the chickens was killed by some unknown attacker. Then, 2 weeks ago, we awoke to find that the attacker had struck again. This time it got Ukiah's pet Araucana named "Owl" and our Bantam rooster. We rounded up the remaining chickens and put them in their house that night. This has now become a regular evening chore for Levi. That same week, just as we had returned home from prayer meeting, Drew saw an opposum in the chicken yard. He and the boys jumped out of the van and went after it. Upon careful inspection Drew discovered that it was a mama and she had a pouchful of babies! As cute as the family was, they needed to be removed from our property. She was SURELY the culprit who had been caught heading back for another chicken dinner. After spending the night in a make-shift pen made out of our wagon, the family moved several miles away to a nice, quiet place away from roads. We couldn't resist taking some pictures before she and her little ones were released.

I have seen many opossums in my life, quite a few up close and one as a childhood pet, but I have never seen babies this small. :) This was the only one that came out of the pouch but we could see other tails hanging out. It was snug in the pouch when she was released.

Since her departure, all has been quiet and peaceful in the chicken house. :)

Hyacinths

2007-04-28T15:48:00.000-06:00

Our hyacinths have bloomed! We had several nights of very cold temperatures a few weeks ago when they were just starting to come up. I have quite a few glass gallon jars so we covered them up the best we could and prayed for their preservation. We must have at least 20 plants. They were at their peak last week when this photo was taken. The irises began to open yesterday. :)

Silas's project

2007-04-20T13:28:00.000-06:00

While my mom was visiting, each of our boys chose a project that they could work on with her after school. Silas, who is 10, is really into gardening and wanted an area of his own outside of the BIG garden. He decided on raised beds for his precious heirloom plants. :) Orange-glo watermelons and St. Valerie carrots are among some of his choices. He received these seeds as part of an exchange we participated in with our online homeschool group.

Drew tilled up the spots for them while they were building the boxes. They used old boards but I expect they will last for a couple of years and will suit his purposes perfectly!

Sprouting

2007-04-18T11:23:00.000-06:00

We have an abundance of lettuce growing in our greenhouse and in the beds outside of the greenhouse now. But this past fall and winter when we didn't have much, we grew sprouts by the gallon to add to our salads and sandwiches.

We use glass gallon jars and 6"x6" squares of double cheesecloth. I put 1/3 of a cup of alfalfa seeds in the jar, cover them with warm water and secure the cheesecloth on top of the jar with a rubberband. I let this sit overnight to soak. In the morning I drain all the water out and rinse until the water runs clear. I let the upside-down jar in the sink to drain until after breakfast. Then it goes on the counter on its side. I rinse the seeds/sprouts about 3 times a day and I make sure they are drained well. This is important otherwise they begin to decompose. After the brown seed hulls begin to come off of the sprouts it is important to scoop them out. I have found they are the biggest culprit of sprout failure. If they are not removed, they decompose also and begin to break down the sprouts. I carefully pull the sprouts out of the jar and put them into a big bowl. I fill it up with cool water and swish them all around to loosen as many hulls as I can. They get scooped off and the sprouts get drained. Once they are drained I put them into plastic food storage containers with a paper towel on the bottom so they don't lay in any water that might still drain off. They keep in the refrigerator very well this way and it is SO much less expensive than buying them.

2007-04-18T10:56:00.000-06:00

This is the underbelly of a male Eastern Fence Swift. If you could have seen it up close...it was a metallic blue! I am continually amazed at all the places the Lord gave so much attention to detail and beauty. Seriously, this is the underside of a "lowly" lizard who was rather difficult to catch. How would we have known of this remarkable creation if we had not set out to look for it? I really appreciate the inspiration I receive from our children. They are always seeking treasures in nature.

2007-04-18T10:50:00.000-06:00

This is a male five-lined skink. The boys catch these quite often. The juveniles have the most beautiful, irridescent blue-purple tail. As the males mature their heads turn a rusty orange. I love the grubby little fingers in this photo. :)

2007-04-18T10:43:00.000-06:00

Isn't this exquisite? It is a Spring Beauty and they were all over the place.

Camping

2007-04-18T09:59:00.000-06:00

Well, it seems so long ago now that the boys and I went on our camping trip. I thought I would share a little before I move on to the next thing.

As soon as we arrived, the boys went about setting up the tents and making a fire ring. They dug it out about a foot and began building our fire. We decided to make our camp down in the big pasture, along the edge of the woods. On the other side of the pasture is a big hill and in the evening, for about 5 minutes, the sun would shine right on it and caused it to glow a beautiful orange. In Idaho we called in alpenglow. We planned to stayed in the big tent and the dogs were supposed to stay in the little one. As night came, we decided to keep them in with us. :) It was so beautiful...like sleeping in a huge planetarium!

In the morning, the boys gathered kindling and more wood to revive the fire so we could have a cozy spot to sit for worship. Such a relaxing, peaceful time.

We did a lot of reading and exploring and generally had a nice time. I tried to post pictures of some of the treasures we found, but I am having difficulty with the text, picture, text, another picture thing. Any suggestions?

So busy...

2007-04-02T23:16:00.000-06:00

Oh, I am not very good at this blogging thing. I just haven't taken the time to write. A lot has happened though that I would like to write about.

First of all, Drew completed his real estate course and scheduled his final test for next Monday! I am so happy for him.

Next, we had a bit of a garden drama. Huge garden, plowed but not tilled and we had SO much rain making it too wet to till. Our not-so-little plants are needing to be transplanted. It was sunny and windy yesterday...sunny today also and so the garden dried out enough to be tilled. Praise the Lord! It took Drew several hours using a borrowed rototiller - another answer to prayer - and it is done. :)

My mom arrived safely from Pennsylvania on Saturday evening for a month-long visit. We have many fun things planned and we are accomplishing a lot here at home.

We successfully rehabilitated and released the cardinal. What a joy it was to see him take off and land up in a tree!

Our camping trip was a great success. I have pictures for a lot of these things and more. I'll see what I can do. :)

Going camping

2007-03-21T09:58:00.000-06:00

The boys and I are going camping for a few days. Drew is finishing up his real estate course and I think it will go better if he doesn't have any distractions. Besides, the weather is beautiful and I know the boys will have a great time exploring. We are just going a few miles away to my brother-in-laws property and Drew can come over in the evening. We have packed up our backpacks with some school books, some good books to read, watercolors, brushes and paper and plenty of good camping food. I'll tell you all about it when we get back. :)

The puppy

2007-03-19T15:23:00.000-06:00

Ukiah celebrated his 12th birthday recently. He really enjoys anything that has to do with caves, so for his birthday we went to a fairly remote cave to explore and have a picnic. On the way we saw a tiny puppy dart across the road. We stopped and boys and Dad poured out to try to catch her. She was suspicious and not easy to catch but they succeeded. She was dirty and had patches of fur missing - the missing fur and the pot belly were tell-tale signs of parasites. "Can we keep her just long enough to get her well and then find a good home for her?" I asked. Drew just smiled. We really weren't looking to get another dog. Orphaned and hurting animals seem to find us. :)

We drove to the nearest house to see if maybe she had just wandered away. They said they saw her on the road the night before and almost hit her but had no idea who she could belong to. We came to the conclusion that someone had dropped her off. It was a lesson for all of us just how much God cares for the "little things" in life. The previous night the temperatures had been in the high 50's. The night we found her it went down to freezing. As young and sickly as she was, she wouldn't have made it. We were glad God allowed us to cross paths.

Well, she's been with us for awhile now and with the help of some herbs and a good diet, her health has improved very much. What a delight it must be for little boys to find a puppy - especially if it's your birthday!

Any idea what breed(s) she might be?

Our week

2007-03-18T12:58:00.000-06:00

This past week has been interesting. Sunday, the boys and Drew put up the bracing for our long-awaited treehouse.
Monday, the boys found a juvenile male cardinal trapped in our chicken coop. A quick examination revealed that he had broken one of his wings. He is currently residing in our downstairs bathroom. (Least traffic and the most cat-proof) He is eating well and is able to hop up onto a low perch about 12" off the ground. This isn't the first injured bird we have cared for and I'm sure it won't be the last.

Tuesday was fairly uneventful. After we finished up school, I took the boys to the river to catch minnows with their nets. We have a small tiger muskie living in our fish pond and he always seems to be hungry!
Wednesday was the day that I really noticed the daffodils and hyacinths beginning to bloom. Oh they are so beautiful and cheery. :)

We have decided that we would like to take a family trip to the Everglades. The boys found out that the local recycler will pay them for aluminum cans. So, do you know what they are doing?? Collecting cans for our Everglades Fund! Ukiah had already collected cans and scrap metal while cleaning up a property that his uncle recently purchased. He made $9.89. He was amazed and so happy with that check! After school on Thursday found the boys and I out collecting cans.
Friday we took our barrel of cans to the recycler and walked away with $8.25. The boys are loving this. Never mind the gas money we are using driving around for cans ;0...the boys are willing to work and cheerfully contribute to the Everglades Fund. It is cleaning up the area and I think the gas is worth it.

Lastly, we have been busy keeping after a tiny new puppy. We found her on a dirt road in pretty sad shape. But that is a story for my next post.

My prayer

2007-03-12T15:04:00.000-06:00

As I have given thought to starting up this blog, I know that I will be tempted to spend too much time here. So my prayer is:

Dear Father in heaven, please guide me as I spend time on the computer. Help me to always glorify you in all that I write. I don't ever want to be found here when I should be spending time with my children or being a helpmeet to my husband. Please whisper in my ear if I should stop and give me the strength to obey. Thank you Lord for being my father. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.