Happy New Year

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."  

Jeremiah 29:11

You can find me linked up at:  Homestead Revival, Growing Home, Far Above Rubies, Skip to my Lou, Penniless Parenting, Titus 2sdays, Raising Homemakers, Frugally Sustainable, Women Living Well, Raising Mighty Arrows, Deep Roots at Home, Fingerprints on the Fridge, Farm Friend Friday, Life as Mom, Farmgirl Friday

Christmas Crafting

Christmas Welcome

Having a few weeks before Christmas, we choose this time to have some serious crafting sessions in our home.  We love having a homemade Christmas and have a continuous art class until Christmas "vacation".

Harvest Time in the Ozark Mountains

Pin It

As each season comes upon us, we celebrate and treasure what each one holds.  Autumn is no different and I have felt for many years that Autumn is my most favorite season of all.  We cherish the crisp mornings, the warm afternoons, the turning of the leaves and the harvest!  I wouldn't be being completely honest with you though if I didn't mention how exhausted we are by the time winter rolls around and we are just as grateful for the rest that winter provides with snuggling up in front of the fire with a mug of something warm and steamy to drink.  But for now.....there is work to do!

It seems I haven't gotten anything done on this blog except for posting a few recipes here and there and for that, I apologize.  There has been plenty of activity here on the homestead and I have taken many pictures, however, there never seems to be enough time to get everything posted.  I've been stashing posts away to complete through the winter and update everyone on our progress, but I thought I would give you a few ideas of what has been going on around here just this past week....

Of course homesteading isn't complete without canning.... and thankfully a lot of that got done this week.

We can never have enough green beans canned.  A friend of mine with five children cans 140 quarts of green beans every year.  When I first heard that, my jaw dropped,

Where Does the Time Go?

It's almost the end of March and it seems like February was just yesterday!  Spring seems to come on SO fast, I can't figure out where all of our time goes.  Each morning my husband kindly asks what my day is looking like, and as I think about what still needs to be done, I get very overwhelmed.  Each day seems to be filled with at least two weeks worth of work.

In the greenhouse, there are literally hundreds of tomato and pepper plants that are calling to be re potted, thousands of seeds that need to be sown, and shelves that need to be built...

Back to the Grindstone

The wonderful Christmas season has past, we finally put away all of the decorations today and its back to the books.  It feels good to gently settle back into our regular routine of home schooling even though this month we will add a lot of sewing time to balance out our book work.  Sewing is a nice way to compliment any curriculum, adding to many learning aspects including creative design (art), motor skills, reading, researching, math, history (in terms of historical clothing and home made items), home making skills, and science (what fabrics are made of and where they come from).  We somehow found the time to make several hand made gifts for Christmas, which in turn gave us more ideas of other things we would like to make and/or create.  Isn't that the way it goes though?  Once you are elbow deep in a project, it unlocks your creative mind and many other projects come into existence.

Also, even though our family is not a TV type family, we did discover some wonderful DVD's that are put out by Vision Forum on Creation Science that really compliment not only our learning in science, but our history and Bible study too.  Did you know that it is NOT against the law for a government school teacher to teach creation in their classroom?  They are strongly directed not to do it by most principals and school boards in order to avoid law suits, but by law, it is legal to teach creationism in the classroom.  Most teachers may not even know that.  I found that very interesting.

Another thing I recently listened to and appreciated very much was a CD called "What's a Girl To?"  How to Wisely Invest Your Daughter's Time by Douglas Phillips.  It was very eye opening and affirming all at the same time.  Here is the description of it.....A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways. The same is true of double-minded parents. Across America we have met evangelical parents who

Encouraging 2011 Predictions

With all of the problems our world is facing, it can be unsettling to the mind.  Today I will share with you ten predictions that are true!

Top 10 Predictions for 2011 

 

       1. The Bible will still have all the answers.

       2. Prayer will still be the most powerful thing on Earth..

       3. The Holy Spirit will still move.

       4. God will still honor the praises of His people.

       5. There will still be God-anointed preaching.

       6. There will still be singing of praise to God.

       7. God will still pour out blessings upon His people.

       8. There will still be room at the Cross.

       9. Jesus will still love you.

     10. Jesus will still save the lost when they come to Him.   

          Isn't it great to remember who is really in control,

         and that; "the Word of the Lord endures forever."  

                                                ( 1 Peter 1:25 )

Raw Milk

Obtaining raw milk seems to be getting harder and harder.  I didn't even know it was possible here in Missouri unless you were friends with a dairyman or if you happened to stumble across some at a Farmer's Market before the government scared off all the farmers.  In Wisconsin, if you live outside of the city limits, you are more than likely going to have a neighbor that will provide you with plenty of raw milk.  Every time they milk, there is so much milk that they pour pails of it into tubs to feed their surplus of barn cats.  The farms I knew always had an average of 20 cats or so.  Needless to say, my hope of finding raw milk here in Missouri has all but been abandoned until today!  A friend of mine mentioned a website that has began a campaign for Real Milk.  There is an abundance of information on this site including the pros and cons of raw milk and you can look by state and city at your local farmers that offer raw milk.  Unless you've been under a rock, you

The Little Drummer Boy

Finally!  A true dusting of snow.  Don't ever say I'm not easily pleased!  The north winds blew in last night and gave us a small glimpse of what winter could be like.  Of course it isn't anything in comparison to the blizzard of 2010 that took place last night in Minnesota and Wisconsin.  My son reported being snowed in around 8 o'clock last evening and as I write, it is 2 degrees there now with a wind chill of minus 14 threatening to sink to a minus 20 or a minus 30 before the night is over.  After living up there for 9 years, I sure don't miss that wind.  I do miss the snows and that's why I can be pleased with the teeniest tiniest wisp of snow here.  Nothing like waking up to a crisp clean snow with the sharp red cardinals at the feeders. 

This morning was our Christmas program at church and the choir really outdid themselves this year.  During the singing of The Little Drummer Boy, a group of young men came in with many different types of drums and gave quite a performance.  It was very moving.  It reminds me that even little ole' me has something to give, no matter how small and that I should do all I can to the glory of the Lord.  I'm not even a little drummer boy, but I rock the cradle of the future and believe me when I tell you that I do not take that responsibility lightly.  As a mother, a wife, a daughter, a cousin, a niece, a friend......I struggle daily to live, listen, teach, guide, speak, encourage and praise with love.  It is my calling, and as glorious as the drummer boys sounded this morning, they were giving all they could with what little they had, so with what little I have, I too want to sound glorious to the Lord in every word and deed to the family and friends and everyone else that God has brought into my life.

I pray that you will experience the blessing of God this Christmas season, enjoying family and friends as we celebrate the greatest gift of all, Jesus Christ.