For Caleb....the One Great Turkey! (pics below)

We have a pretty rockin' friend from Pennsylvania who PROMISED to read my blog if I give him an honorable mention somewhere in my next post. So, although this post is going to be all about my girls......it's also about Brendan Caleb Way who we love and who is maybe going to come visit us sooooon! You rock, Caleb. Truly you do. If ever I have another boy, I just might name him Caleb - that's how much we love you!

On to my chickens......

Have you seen my girls lately? Have I mentioned how much I love them? Do you even remember what they used to look like? I didn't think so! So, let's do a few "that-was-then-and-this-is-now" kind of pics. Fun! Fun!

This was Turk when she was just a wee babe:

And this is her now! She's the Mama of the bunch. Not sure if she's going to make it to the Thanksgiving table......She looks scary, but she's a gentle giant. The kids lug her everywhere!



My baby ducklings:

My big girls now who enjoy the kiddie pool more than the boys do!


And my wee little chickies - Spotty, Blackie, Chloe, Clementine, Lucy, & Chipmunk:

And here they are now:
Well, at least a few made it in this picture. The ones in the front are the Americaunas. I have three of these, two barred rocks (my favorite, and the prettiest, I think), and a black sex-link, (I think). She was supposed to be a barred rock. I got tricked. But, we love her. She's Kaden's fave. The smallest and the naughtiest of the bunch!

And this is pretty much what they do ALL day....they hang out in their own little club.....wandering over our whole yard.


I LOVE them.
AND.....you're welcome, Caleb. :0)

A Promise

Okay. So continuing on a wee bit from my last post....

I hereby, do solemnly swear to be honest and forthright in my struggles, my weaknesses, and my insecurities in this whole journey of motherhood and parenting.....oh heck....let's just say in LIFE. I promise to try my hardest not to sugarcoat things and make them appear perfect when they are far less than that. I promise to try and encourage and uplift other Moms and women. And I promise to not portray myself as a "Supermom" online where it's really easy to show the world just one little speck of our lives when there are SO many other sides that people never see.

I mean, seriously, when you think about this whole "blogging" concept.....no one truly KNOWS anyone if this is all we ever get of each other. Good grief - I can post the most beautiful pictures and entries and my life could be in total shambles.....but no one would EVER know.

So, here's the deal. Let's all be honest with each other as we walk this journey. Let's share the good, the bad, and the ugly. (Without invading other's privacy's, of course. Poor Kevy - the dear man has married someone who doesn't have a whole lot of reservations with ANYONE!) So....within reason, right? When it could serve to encourage others....let's be real. Let's be vulnerable.

Because, when just one of us dares to make the first move and let down our walls to let others TRULY see our hurts, our needs, and our insecurities.....you can literally hear other's walls coming down. It's good stuff.

So, I'll go first. Here are just a smattering of things that I am CURRENTLY obsessing/struggling/thinking about. Depending on the day, it's one of those three options.

1. Homeschooling Kaden. I'm a bit paralyzed by the whole idea, but I feel like this is something that the Lord would maybe like for us to try. It suits our ministry lifestyle and our desire for simplicity. We shall see where it leads us.....and if Kaden will actually learn to read this year. It could be sketchy. But, I'll be honest...I promise. As the days progress, I'll keep you posted!

2. Comparing. I'm always comparing myself to others - their bodies, their homes, their mothering, the obedience in their children. Not a good standard. The Lord alone needs to be this....and He is sloooowly teaching me - slowly humbling me. Slowly showing me areas of pride that need to be dealt with. Painful but good.

3. My quiet, alone time with Jesus. Emphasis on "quiet" and "alone". I need to get up earlier or be a better steward of naptimes. It is not at the depth or consistency that it needs to be. If I was married to Jesus (which He is supposed to be our true Bridegroom, right?) than our marriage would be struggling. A marriage needs more than "survival prayers" and a Proverb a day kind of deal. Our relationship needs more quality dates. More intimacy. When THIS is good - all other things fall into place. What needs to be priority becomes priority and all other things fall by the wayside.

So there you have it. Just a smattering. And more will come. I promise.

True Confessions of a Wannabe Super Mom

NOTE: THIS POST HAS SINCE BEEN EDITED TO PROTECT THE INNOCENT......I would never want to hurt anyone by what I write here; AND I'm sure that hearts were in the right place when conversations were had.....


I've had a couple of interesting conversations with some women in my stage of life this past week. They are more acquaintances, really. I don't know them well, by any means; but being a fellow mom with any young woman gives you an instant sense of comraderie whether you've known them for a day or ten years.

After one of these conversations, I left feeling very drained and like I had just been in the presence of a "super mom" who I would NEVER be able to live up to. And after the OTHER conversation, I left feeling energized and refreshed, KNOWING that I had just encouraged another fellow journey-er in this current crazy, insane stage of life.

Upon processing these two VERY different conversations, I have determined that I am SO done with the "Super Mom" persona. I'm SO over it - .......

Yet, in my heart of hearts.....I know I'm not.

Who doesn't want to come across to their friends and peers that they look like they have it all together? Who doesn't want to look like - at least on the outside - that they always have all of their ducks in a row, no hair ever out of place, and that they just love every single thing that life throws at them? I know that's what I want people to think of me! I know that I want others to think of ME as a "super mom." But, really ---- what does that do for everyone else?

My second conversation with a very new mom went a lot like this: Throughout the course of the evening she asked me with tears in her eyes: "Why is it that we moms can't just encourage each other? Why do we always have to act like everything is always perfect even when we know it's not? Why do we have to brag up ourselves and our children just to make ourselves feel better? Why can't we just be real with each other when we're struggling? When we're lonely? When we feel like we don't know what we're doing? When we maybe aren't even really enjoying this stage of life like we thought we would?"

So what does the "Super Mom" persona do for a young mom like this? Anything? I don't think so. And I know I'm guilty at times. I know I do it. I KNOW I do.

I am well aware that I have to limit MY interactions with super moms. Otherwise, I would find myself always comparing and coming up short, constantly discouraged, and feeling like a perpetual failure! Comparison DESTROYS contentment. But, that's what we girls are SO very good at. So, upon processing both of these conversations, I have been asking myself if there are women in my life who feel that they have to limit their time with ME? Do I make some of my friends feels this way?

Because if I do...it's a nasty thing...and I want to be done with it. It does no one any good. We need to be about coming ALONGSIDE each other - not ONE UPPING each other. Yucky stuff. It's no good.

More to come.......

A Little Slice...

.....of Heaven, that is.

THIS

is where we just spent the past 8 days for our family vacation! A little A-frame cabin on an island in Rangeley...you get there by boat....there is no electricity.....no computers....no frills....just us.....AND IT WAS AWESOME!

Kev and I spent half of our honeymoon here eleven years ago to the week! We spent our first week in Cancun, Mexico with all of the touristy stuff that comes with a place like that: parasailing, all inclusive meals, snorkeling, etc. It was wonderful. And then we came here for our second week. And I have to say, I enjoyed the second part of our honeymoon just as much as the first. Two such extreme contrasts, but I think one without the other might have been a little disappointing. Here, it was just so restful and relaxing. We spent our days swimming and boating, going into town for ice cream, exploring all over the lake, building fires, and playing games by lamplight; and then we would fall asleep to the sounds of the loons and the waves. It was so peaceful and lovely.

WELL - coming here with three boys, it was not NEARLY as relaxing and restful as it was eleven years ago! One morning Kev said: "I think a quiet, get-away, island retreat with three boys is an oxymoron!" So true! We are not quite in the stage of life yet where vacations are "restful" or "relaxing" per say. Our days were just as crazy and busy - and sometimes more - making sure no one fell off the wharf or tipped the canoe etc. etc. But, they were so fun! And any kind of "work" is always more fun when you're camping - cooking, dishes, cleaning - whatever - it's all just fun!

We spent our days swimming and playing in the water, exploring the neighboring islands, catching a kajillion crayfish and minnows, going to the bog and looking for moose, riding into town for a pizza and ice cream, feeding ducks, playing games, building fires, watching sunsets, and falling asleep to rain and waves.

There was a whole lot of this:

and this:
(canoeing with our "Red-neck outrigger" custom made by Kevy himself)

and this:

Oooooh, and this:

AAAAAhhhhhhh....it was glorious!

Jammin'!

Okay. I have THE EASIEST freezer jam recipe known to man. It is SO easy that my six year can practically do it all by himself. Do you want it? I thought you did. So, here goes:

Step 1. - Decide what kind of berry jam you want to make: strawberry, strawberry rhubarb, raspberry, blueberry, currant - which we just tried today, or mixed berries of all sorts - and smash them to peices. You can even blend them if you'd like - it all depends on how chunky you like your jam. We like ours fairly chunky, so we just smash it by hand. You need to end up with 4 cups of the crushed deliciousness.

Step 2. You need one packet of the "Ball" brand powdered - NO COOKING REQUIRED! - pectin. I prefer the low sugar kind. Stir that together with 1 1/2 cups of sugar. I also prefer the raw sugar, and it works just as well. (Someday, I'll use the pectin that doesn't call for ANY sugar; it just takes a few more steps plus a little bit of baking on the stove. I kind of like this lazy way......)

Step 3. Add the smashed berries to the sugar/pectin mixture. Stir for 3 minutes. Ladle into jam jars of choice, and let it sit for 30 minutes before devouring! Voila! Easy Sneezy.

Just a wee note: One batch only makes about 5 - 8oz. jars of jam. We practically go through one jar on our toast at breakfast. I recommend a kajillion batches, so stock up on your pectin and berries. This was how I nested last summer and fall when I was pregnant for Ransom! There were no casseroles or meals prepared for my family in my freezer - only about 800 jars of jam! And we JUST ate the last one a couple of weeks ago.....

Then, as we Bookers like to say: "Savor the flavor!"

The Balance Beam of Life

Happenings

~ The boys are outside - completely naked - playing on their slip n slide! And I must admit - it really does work MUCH better when they're in the buff as opposed to having their swimtrunks and rash shirts on. It's SO hot, and the house completely hides them - and they're having SO much fun - it's all good.

~ We just got back from a glorious long week-end up at my parent's house celebrating the 4th of July with them. We went for long canoe rides, which Ransom did not totally approve of; we swam in the lake; went for long 4-wheeler rides; saw the parade; and took the two big boys out for a night on the town to go on some fair rides and see the fireworks. They didn't get to bed until almost 11:00 that night, and they had an absolute blast! And they LOVED the fair rides! We would see brief looks of terror cross their faces sometimes, but they were always followed by hoots of hysterical - way overtired - laughter. So, it was just wonderful. And although, I am getting a wee bit tired of living out of my suitcase this summer, it was totally worth it.

~ My garden has gone gangbusters. I have about four bales of mulch hay on it, and whenever I'm home, I spend an hour or so a day in it, but other than that - it's on its own!

~ Once again, I have acquired some poison ivy. I was expecting this. Last week, I was pretty sure that I mowed over some of it and had it spit all over my legs. Awesome. I'm at peace with its perpetualness in my life, though. Not sure how else to deal with it.

~ Little Rancey Pants is on day 2 of baby boot camp. Poor little guy - it's really our fault - traipsing him all over God's green earth. He's started waking in the night at least once and often two and three times, and now he's come to expect a midnight snack every night. I appeased him while we were at our grad class because there were people all around us, but now we are home. He's doing much better. We're getting back on track....and that makes for a much happier Mama.

~ The girls are ginormous. I think that Mr. Turk believes he's their Mommy. She flutters around like a mother hen and is always corraling them from wandering too far away. It's pretty cute. They're going to be lost come November......

~ It's hot. We have no A.C. I think I'm molding. It's time to go and make some milkshakes, methinks. Signing off! Happy week, friends!

A Booker Breakfast

I've given this bread recipe to everyone and their dog, I think. It's so healthy and good, and it's what we have for ALMOST every single breakfast of our lives. With some natural peanut butter and homemade strawberry jam, it doesn't get much better - and it sticks with us better than anything else we ever have. And with my boys - I want something to STICK....at least until 9:00a.m. where we often have a second breakfast!

This bread recipe can be tweaked to your heart's content. As long as you keep roughly the same proportions of dry and wet ingredients - you can do a lot of interchanging of ingredients. I rarely make the same exact recipe. With the exception of the yeast, salt, and wheat gluten - mix it up! Change out the honey for molasses; or the seeds for wheat or oat bran - go wild! Any way you make it, it's fantabulous.

Here goes - my CURRENT fave way to make it:

3 tsp. yeast
2 heaping TBlsp. wheat gluten
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup ground flax seed
1/3 cup wheat germ
1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
2 cups unbleached white flour
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (or white whole wheat flour for a fluffier bread)
1 TBlsp. poppy seeds
1 TBsp. sesame seeds
1/3 cup honey
1/3 cup olive oil
1 2/3 cup water

Here's where I cheat hardcore:

Dump all of the ingredients in roughishly that order into your bread maker, put it on the dough cycle, come back in 1 1/2 hours and flop it into a greased bread pan. Let it rise as high as you like, and bake at 350 degrees for 33 minutes exactly.

Voila! Delish.

Or - if you have no breadmaker, get a nice little arm workout and knead away till it's at the elasticity that you'd like - let it rise once in a greased bowl. Gently form it into your loaf pan and let it rise for the second time there before you bake.

Again. Delish. It just takes a lot longer........

Brotherly Love

My littlest is napping and the two biggies are running around in their undies setting traps in their room for "the bad guys." I should be taking advantage of this uninterrupted happiness to do something a little more productive than this, but I just wanted to share one quick story of what happend while we were away....not a story of OUR adventures....but of something that happened with Kaden and Jesse while they were up at Mom & Dad's.

We're never been away from them for more than a handful of days, and all the time leading up this decision - really right up until the last minute - we waffled back and forth as to whether or not we should do this? How long is too long? How often should we play this game? and on and on we went. In the end, we talked to a lot of people older and wiser than us, we prayed a lot, we scrambled and FINALLY got our will together, and we handed them over to Mom & Dad. Mind you - the boys weren't worried about this plan AT ALL - in fact, right as we were getting ready to head home, Kaden asked Mom to ask ME if they could stay a few more days! THEY thought that the plan was pretty rockin.'

Anyway....

One night, Mom, Dad, Kaden, & Jesse were all having a camp out of sorts in Grampy's cabin. Dad had fallen asleep and Mom was just drifting off when she heard the boys talking to each other in their bed. She said that she could really feel a sense of urgency in Kaden's voice so she started to pay more attention to what he was saying. As she listened in, she said that Kaden was totally witnessing to Jesse! He was telling him that he was going to go to Heaven when he dies and that he's asked Jesus to forgive him from his sins etc. etc. and that Jesse needs to do it too! So Jesse said: "I want to do that too, Kaden! I want to do it right now!" So, anyway - long story short, Mom got up and talked with both of them and Jesse prayed with Mom and Kaden and asked Jesus into his life! How sweet is that? And how special that Kaden played a pretty pivotal role in leading his own brother to Christ.

And such an awesome gift from the Lord to me - proving, once again - that He is the one who ultimately takes care of my kids whether I am with them or away.

HOME

An awfully nice place to be.

We just got back from Pennsylvania after taking a grad class for ten days of training. Ransom came with us, but the older boys stayed with Grampy and Grammy Quint. That was the longest we've ever been away from them, and it is SO nice to be back together again.

The classes were amazing - too much to even wrap my brain around right now. I typed 100 pages by the end of the week - single spaced - if that tells you anything! Crazy good.

And now I'm home to a garden gone gangbusters; chickens, ducks, and a turkey that look like they've been on steroids - they've grown so much since we've been away; strawberry season in full swing, and I'm desperate to pick and make some jam......and there's just not enough days in the week to do all that I want to do! It's shaping up to be a nuts-o summer.

But, for now I am just savoring being home - chaos and all - and it is wonderful.

Beautiful Messes

I'm supposed to be doing homework. Kev and I are taking a grad course for some training that is coming up, and we are supposed to complete a little over half of the work before we arrive. Not gonna' happen. Not for lack of trying, but there's just one me, a whole lot of others who need me, and not enough hours in the day to get 'er done. That's okay. I'm growing. My OCD anal self would be stressing to the max a few years ago. Now, I get done what I can in snippets of time throughout the day and one evening out a week. My goal is to have it done by Christmas.

In the meantime.....


Look at this room! Pretty trashed, eh? But, do you know what it symbolizes for me each morning? Every day after the boys and I wake up, snuggle in bed for a couple of seconds, and I feed Ransom....after this initial flurry.... all three of them camp out in the big boys' room while I shower and get ready for the day. For the most part, they are in here with the door closed for the better part of an hour while I get some sanity and perspective to start our day out on the right foot. I honestly don't care what they do in there as long as they are relatively quiet, happy, and no one is getting hurt. So, this chaos represents a whole lot of peace and harmony for this Mama. And some sweet brotherly love on good days.....


These feet are filthy - the big ones anyway. I can't keep them clean. And they are almost always scabby, bruised, and a wee bit stinky. But they belong to my "lover" boy. My wild child who nearly drives me to drink, yet who loves his baby brother with a somewhat reckless abandon.

The boys and I have a new little tradition since the chickies have arrived. A new little rhythm to our day, you could say. And I love it. Like I've said before, I'm usually a conquer the world type of person once I start my day - kind of like a whirling dervish. But, my chickies soothe me. They help me to slow down. We all put on our wellies - either before or after breakfast - and we tromp out to the coop to see how the girls fared the night. Each of us kind of has the thing that we "do." Kaden lets them all out, Jesse terrorizes them, Ransom watches from a swing, and I give them feed and fresh water. Then, we open the coop and let them free range for awhile while we stand around and talk about how cute they are, how much they've grown, how naughty they are, how HUGE Mr. Turk has gotten, etc. etc. It's slow. It's chill. And it's "our thing" that we all do together. I love it.

And lastly, my table is never without "fresh" flowers from my boys. Ahem. With pride I am sporatically handed these little messy gifts - often with roots still intact. And here they sit, proudly displayed until a new little bunch is offered.

Stinky, dirty messes galore. But it's my life right now. And I love it. A day will come when my house is spotless, when the beds stay made, when I have flowers from a shop on my table, when I actually get to see and visit some of my old girlfriends! (I just had to throw that in there. You all are still living, right?), and when my homework (or whatever work I have at the time) is done on time.

And, I bet I'll be a little bit sad when that day comes.

In Process

I feel like right at this moment I have about a kajillion irons in the fire and a thousand projects started with nothing completed yet! I think that's the way summer often tends to go, but as we increase livestock (well, mini farm animals) and as gardens grow, I'm increasingly convinced that people who are "true" farmers and gardeners must stay home a lot more than we do! Or, at least, they maybe don't go away for huge chucks of time like we do. Just wondering. It feels like we are just barely treading water in trying to stay on top of these things! But, they're all fun, and they're ALL good. There are just so MANY! Whew.....

Anyway, here's a pictorial blog entry of all of the goings on here at the Booker household -In process projects galore!



This is my ginormous garden. I really have no idea how it got to be so big - I fully intended to take baby steps this first year as I don't have a clue what I'm doing. I blame my little old neighbor, Lou. He said: "You've got the space, you might as well stick some stuff in the ground!" So, that's what we did.....



These are my tomatoes alone - all 18 of them! Again - how did this happen??? I also have a row of green beans, and entire row of potatoes that Lou planted for me because, and I quote: "You have 4 boys. You need an entire row of potatoes." I have corn, carrots, swiss chard (which I've never eaten in my life, but Lou assures me I'll love it), radishes, yellow and green peppers (Lou says, "Horrors!" to the yellow peppers), two kinds of onions, cucumbers, yellow summer squash (Lou says that summer squash is: "Horrid!"...I don't think he likes yellow veggies....), two types of winter squash, pumpkins, and some melons....which I'm quite confident will bite the dust.

Right now, this is my main project that I am working on and racking my brain trying to figure out ideas of how to lay down cardboard, mulch, hay - you name it - WHATEVER to keep weeds at bay. Methinks it will probably be quite the jungle down there by summer's end. Ah well. It's a learning summer.

Here's project Number two:

Our chicken coop that was ORIGINALLY intended for three chickens, yet somehow it's needing to house 6 chickens, 1 turkey, and 2 ducks. Again......WHAT? I have a sickness, I think.
I can't stop.

It's functional, yet it still needs a ramp, a window, nesting boxes, and a run for my girls. It's divided into two compartments inside because the turkey and the chickens really shouldn't live together, but every single blessed night he jumps over and when I go out to them in the morning, all the chicks are nestled all around him. SO - he'll just stay over on the girl's side, and the other will be our duckies new digs. It's all good.

And another big, but really fun (I can say it's fun, because I did nothing to help put it together in the two ENTIRE days that it was worked on) project is this:



For the boys' birthdays this summer, rather than have all the uncles, grandparent's, and us buy gifts for the kids, we all pitched in to get this lovely swingset. It came with about a million pieces, but it's almost done, and the boys LOVE it! The fort on top still needs to be finished, and a little picnic table needs to be attached, but for all intents and purposes the kids can still play to their heart's content right now.



And SOMETIME in the near future, I hope to replace my fire-engine red shutters and doors with other more shall we say, "Amy-like" colors. But, that's for another day.

Right now, there's THIS little bit of deliciousness that is completely distracting me.....


Seriously.....that head....those ears....he has NOTHING to do with this post....but, oh my!

Ramblings

Did you know that Hitler once said: "Give me a child until he's seven, and he'll be mine forever?" Crazy.

Studies show that by the age of seven, our children have been molded into the people that they're - pretty much - going to be. Obviously there's some big time maturing and character development that will take place all throughout the years, but by this age - so say "the studies" - the major foundation of their entire lives has already been established.

Now, obviously these studies don't take into account the transformational power of Christ and the work that He does in individuals' lives to mold them into the people that HE wants them to become. But - all of that set aside - if these statistics have any merit or any weight AT ALL......MISTER MAN! That's absolutely nuts to think about.

A fellow teacher at my little school that I work at were talking about this stuff this morning. Her kids are about ready to graduate highschool, so she's viewing parenting and LIFE from the other end of the spectrum. I'm just barely starting out on this journey - Kaden is just NOW ready for school, and here she is wrapping up the school years. I'm finding that I'm constantly searching out mothers who are "on the other side" - trying to glean from them. Wanting to find out mistakes they've made, lessons they've learned, things they feel they've done well, things they wish they could do over, what they wish they could re-live, what they'll miss the most....

Because this season is FLEETING. It'll be gone in the blink of an eye. I always talk about savoring, because I know I need to do a better job at it. I'm so task oriented. I like to conquer my days. But, I so want to just SAVOR my kids. Heavens - Kaden is already six years old. When I look at Ransom, I can hardly even remember Kaden being that tiny!

Just thoughts rolling around in my noggin. One of MANY reasons why I'm so seriously contemplating homeschooling, I guess. In some ways, it cracks me up, because I never in a MILLION years would ever have dreamed about even CONSIDERING the idea. Yet, here I am. God knows what's best for my kids and for my family, so I rest and I trust.

Meanwhile, I process and I gather info, and I glean wisdom, and I stress a little, and I give it back to Him, and then I'll some days take it back FROM Him, and we continue to walk this journey of life together, He and I.

Tenting!

Sooo, the motto of this past weekend was: "It's no big deal!" And we repeated it over and over again! Like, on the day before we were to leave, my ducklings were ready to be brought home. Hmmm. Not the most ideal of times to introduce 2 babies to 6 larger chickies while I'm gone for four days. Well.... no big deal. We'll just bring them with us!



So, we scrounged up a couple of hot water bottles, some fuzzy blankets, and just brought them right along with the rest of the crew! No big deal.

It also forcasted rain for almost all of the weekend. With no opportunity to plan a rain date, it was kind of like "now or never," so we all decided a little (or, as it turned out a LOT) of rain was really not a big deal - we've done it before last year. So, we packed up. In the pouring rain. And set up in the drizzle. And camped all weekend (except for 1 day) in the rain. And unpacked again in torrents. No big deal.




The other "no big deal" we decided on was - who really needs to be able to see your kids on the drive? They can fend for themselves, right? I actually found it quite nice when Jesse sang at the top of his lungs for the entire drive and I could juuuuuust barely hear him past all of our junk-ola! Not a bad set up, me thinks! Ha!



Here's where we sat most of the weekend. More pics to come in later posts. Over all, it was nice being with grandparents and aunties and uncles for a long stretch of time. A highlight for all of us, too, was reconnecting with a kindred spirit from Bible school days who has three little girls of her own. The kids had a blast running wild - swimming, catching things, and playing with their "slug club," and she and I were able to sit around the fire drinking camp coffee. It doesn't get much better.

A good time was had by all!

Busy Bees

Holy Heavens!

It's been a busy Memorial Week-end....one normally spent canoeing the rapids with my family up in the County....but not this year. So much to do in so little time. Six years ago, on this very week-end - one of my most fave holidays, by the way - I was told that I would indeed NOT be canoeing with my oh so prego belly. I would, rather, be getting induced because my body was starting to freak out. I believe my words were: "Can't you do it on Monday? I am supposed to go on a canoe trip with my family today!" My doctor informed me that she had never heard anyone respond in such a way as this - especially with their first baby! I was not impressed with the whole induction idea, let me tell you.

But... my boy - was he ever worth it - induction and all. By far, my most horrid labor experience, but I would do it over a million times again for him. He rocks.

Anyway, I digress....

Busyness is what I'm supposed to be typing about! Two birthdays to organize, a 4 day camping trip to celebrate, a day of work thrown in there, a ginormous garden to plant, a SWINGSET/JUNGLE GYM birthday gift to set up, and a chicken coop to finish have been the doings here as of late.

With the help of my little old man neighbor, Lou, we spent 8 hours in the garden yesterday, putting the ENTIRE thing in! Amidst lots of mocking of my plant choices, lots of giggling -on his part - at the sad state of affairs of most of my seedlings, a broken back from wearing Ransom in the backpack, and lots of "help" from the boys - not to mention MANY a deep, cleansing breath on my part while they worked alongside me, we got 'er done! I may have gone a little crazy with my tomato plants - somehow there are 18 of them down there. But, I'm excited.

The chickies love their coop.
I have done nothing to prepare for camping.
The swingset is going on two days of assembling, but she's almost done.
Pictures will be coming forthwith.
Kaden is SIX! Jesse will be three on FRIDAY! HOLY HEAVENS!

It's a good life. We are blessed.

Ponderings.....

This family is seriously thinking and praying about starting a crazy new adventure come Fall. Here's a clue.....

Behold:

Happenings of Late

Oh my - the weather is glorious these days. We have practically been living outside. I love those kinds of days. Nothing major in the happenings going on as of late. Our chickies and Mr. Turk are growing like crazy - we're talking like every morning when we come out to say "hello," they are looking different! Crazy! Still very precious and sweet. I clean them out twice a day, so they're not stinky yet. But, they are getting too big for their box. Many attempts at escape have been made with our kitty, Risso, looking on licking her lips in anticipation. That would not be good.....

We had a ginormous yardsale yesterday. Boxes upon boxes of stuff gotten rid of - sold, given away, or taken to the dump. We came home with only six wee little boxes for a sale in the fall perhaps. We made a bunch of cash, the kids made some as well, and we even came home with a bed to boot for our guest room/nursery. Good times good times.

Daddy took the two big boys on an overnight tenting/fishing trip with a friend and his little boy this week. They has a blast, and Kaden even caught a huge trout all by himself. Ransom and I also enjoyed a blessed quiet couple of days with some uninterrupted Mommy time, as well. Very cozy and nice. And while they were away, a friend came over and we rearranged a room together - per our usual! Very fun.

My Marmie is coming over this afternoon to spend a few days with us. Looking forward to some nice walks, tea on the porch, quality time spent with her and the boys, and maybe even a free babysitter so Kevy and I can go on a date. Can't beat that with a stick!

This Saturday is my eldest's 6th birthday! Oh my word - how the time has flown. I can hardly wrap my brain around it. And Jesse's 3rd birthday is four days later. Nuts. We're going to go on a camping trip again to celebrate. But this year, instead of everyone getting them gifts, we are all chipping in together and are going with one big present - a super fun swingset for the backyard. Shhh. Don't tell.......

Enjoy the rest of your week-end friends!

Our New Additions....

Okay. Here are just a couple of pictures of our newest littles. This is their new pad that they'll have for a few weeks. Our turkey has to be separated because he eats different feed, and the chickens can carry a type of "disease" (for lack of a better word) that doesn't affect them but can be fatal for Mr. Turk.

Until they get super stinky, they'll hang out with us in the corner of the our kitchen. I want them to get used to our voices and the kids' handling them, because I want them to be super people friendly once they move outside.

This is Mr. Turk. He's the friendliest of all of them, and I must say that I am quite in love with him. He loves people and will cry to be held. As soon as he is picked up, he'll tuck himself right into our hands or arms and fall immediately asleep. I don't know how anyone could not love that.

I did a little research on keeping this particular brand of turkey for pets...ahem....but all that I've read says that he'll get to be so big that he could potentially have heart and leg problems - carrying around all of that excess weight. This breed is not intended to be for pets. So, we'll give him a rockin' life and then he won't know what hit him come Turkey Day.

That's the plan anyway....hmn.



And these are our baby chicks. The three black ones with white spots on their heads are Barred Rock. They'll be really big and hearty. They're gentle birds and get along well with other breeds. And the chipmunky striped ones are Americaunas, and they'll lay greenish blue eggs for us. Kinda' fun.

I love my new babies.......

Our Babies Have Arrived!

We have 7 absolutely adorable little bundles of fluff residing in our kitchen right now. Three baby Barred Rock chicks, three baby Americaunas (that will lay green eggs, by the way), and one little Baby Turkey that Blue Seal just gave to us because he was the only one left and they were anxious to get rid of him; and we were suckers for a little ball of fluff......that I know full well will soon become a stinky, ginorous gobbler.

Ah well, I couldn't help myself.

So for now, the plan will be for Mr. Turk to be our main course come Thanksgiving....but in my heart of hearts, I will be shocked if this plan actually comes to fruition with all of the tenderhearts that reside in this house. But maybe it will - if he gets really gross and poopy...or if he's mean to the girls.

We shall see.....

Pics will be coming forthwith. They're hanging out in our kitchen for the first week or so - until they start to stink up the place. Which won't be too long from now. But, I actually really want them to be handled a lot while they're young so that they become really kid friendly.

I don't think I could ever become a true farmer. We gave three babies to a friend yesterday, per a previous agreement. When she put them in with her ten layers, and the layers immediately began ganging up on them, I almost scooped them back up and brought them home. I know that there really is a true pecking order with chickens, but did it ever hurt my heart! I'm going to try to teach my girls some manners.

And the poor little turkey so wants to be with the others, but he has to have different feed. So, we put up a screen separater so that he can at least see them. And it's so sweet - they all lay against the screen together, so that he still is touching them. (And also, because the heat lamp is directly above them, right there. But, I still love that they are able to snuggle together).

Oh, I love it.

There were also baby goats at Blue Seal selling for the low low price of $100.00. Had they been $40 or less, I would have brought one of those home too and told Kev that's what I want for my birthday.

Best to start small, though, methinks. I'm still trying to fanagle a couple of ducks out of him, too. Anybody got cute chicken name ideas? So far we have a: Blacky - (Kaden's choice), a Spotty (Jesse's choice), and a Chloe (Mine). We need three more!

Why I Savor

"Empty Nest"
by My Mother - Lynda Quint

My house is growing emptier
As children leave the "nest"
The days are getting quieter
The nights seem long, to rest.

I lie awake in bed at night,
and wonder how they are --
Not long ago, they slept here too -
But now they're scattered far.

No "late night chats" - "no goodnight kiss"
Just quiet empty rooms
Bear witness to the changes here,
And add to "Mother's gloom."

How fast the years have hurried by
Since childhood days of play -
How is it that they've grown and gone
And brought me to this day?

Sometimes I'd like to turn the clock
Of time back just a bit -
To see their little faces smile
And hear their childish wit!

But I cannot - and life goes on
Though one day I shall see
Their image, in their children's eyes
Looking back at me.


The days may be long, but the years are fleeting............