Urban Homesteader

Let me start by saying, those of you who have read my blog know what a time we have had finding a home. It has been a long grueling process and unless the Lord tells us to move, I do not want to do it again. After all of the searching, there is no doubt this is our home. It's not the perfect house I had envisioned, with the big farm house kitchen, but it is perfect for us. Here are a few pics.

This is the view from the road. Isn't that grass beautiful. However, it has to be cut once a week. I'm not crazy about those little vertical windows but they work. It has a metal roof that will last forever.

This is the front door/entrance. It and my mailbox post will be painted red very soon. Can you see it? We also want to change out that gothic looking light fixture.

Here is the living area. That door leads to the back porch. It has a wood burning insert. That will be nice come winter. I plan to paint the walls tobacco road and the built ins a bright glossy white. I want a big rustic mirror over the mantel. (I have so many plans and very little money, LOL)

Here is my very lacking, to use the word loosely, kitchen. It is not the big eat in farm house style that I just knew I would find but it does work. It's very useful. It came with all practically new appliances. The oven is TINY but so far so good. We hope to extend it by 4 feet on the wall with the fridge and stove. That will give us room for a big island and more work space. It will be perfect then. The doorway that you see goes into a very LARGE laundry room. It has cabinets on three walls and a sink. We will expand 4 feet in there too and make my sewing area.

Here is the dining room. It is a very large rectangle room. I debated over using this as the living room but the fireplace won out. I will be changing that blue color too.

This back porch covers the span of most of the back of the house. We do not have nearly enough patio furniture for it. We love it and have had many meals out there. We have to figure out how to get rid of those rust stains on the chimney.

Here is the view we see from the porch. We have muscadine vines and fruit trees. My chickens are just past the muscadine vines at the end of our property. All of that high grass will be bushhogged by our neighbor. We would like to fence that area in for some animal. We are just not sure what. We plan on putting a pig or two behind the barn.

Here's the barn. It's not beautiful but it is huge and has electricity and water. So basically, it works!!!

And last but not least, here is a view of our side property that is fenced in for the horses. That's the new horse.

Not pictured are 3 nice sized bedrooms and 2 nice sized bathrooms. We also have hardwood through most of the house with carpet in the bedrooms and ceramic tile in the kitchen/laundry area. It's a very low maintenance house. I guess that's good because we have so much maintenance outside.LOL

I want to end by saying we are sooo thankful. It's not everything I had hoped and dreamed of. However, God knows our needs and He has put us right where we need to be. We have amazing neighbors. We are so thankful.

Whew, where does the time go? Our move in pictures.....

It has been almost a month since I have posted. It has been a whirlwind around us lately. We obviously found a house and have bought it and moved. We made our offer, she excepted it and 2 wks. later we were closing. We closed on the house on Monday, May 19th. We closed at 5:00 p.m. and went straight to the new house to clean. I cleaned until late in the night and all day Tuesday. We got the U Haul on Wed. morning and had it all moved by Wed. night (mostly). We finished up all the odds and ends by Friday. Then I spent the whole next week and a half unpacking boxes. Most of the boxes are unpacked now. I have about 10 left that are mainly school related. I am going to take my time on those. Here are a few pics of getting the U Haul.

It took 3 large U Haul loads and many, many, many, small loads in the van and surburban and trailer to get us moved. It went very smoothly praise the Lord. We had to stop a couple of times and pray about our attitudes but God was faithful. I will post next pictures of our New Home!!!!

Walking by Faith

His Journey's Just Begun

My husband Duane E. Moll passed away April 14, 2008. My family and I have been showered with hundreds of cards and emails. As I have time, I will be posting sentiments and notes from some of my most favorite cards. All the cards have been special, cherished and read over and over again.

His Journey's Just Begun

Don't think of him as gone away--
his journey's just begun,
life holds so many facets--
this earth is only one.

Just think of him as resting
from the sorrows and the tears
in a place of warmth and comfort
where there are no days and years.

Think how he must be wishing
that we could know today
how nothing but our sadness
can really pass away.

And think of him as living
in the hearts of those he touched...
for nothing loved is ever lost--
and he was loved so much.

E. Brennenman

The sentiment above was on a card sent by a former employee, Pam Palmer, who worked for us from 1998-2000. Inside the card Pam writes a very touching tribute to Duane:

Dear Marilyn,

I am deeply sorrowful for you and the kids. A friend kindly forwarded the information regarding Duane's sudden passing to me last week. I can only tell you that your whole family has meant so much to me. I feel as though you are part of me/family and the sudden loss of Duane's life chokes me up too.

I had called and spoke with Duane a few months ago to give TUH my new name and address, so I am glad, his voice still is in my memory.

I know that the work load will increase for you, so that causes me to pray more for you, I wish I could help more than that, but God will provide you with all that you need. Pam

Another:

Dear Marilyn,

I wanted you to know ow sorry Iwas to hear about the loss of your husband. Know that our family has been praying for your family.

I also wanted to let you know how grateful to God I am for using your husband to give us spiritual help/advice regarding our daughter Grace. God blessed that and the principles he conveyed to u are ones we always keep in the forefront of our minds. We are thankful to him for lovingly pointing us to Christ, keeping our eyes on Him and encouraging us in the faith.

I know you are thankful for having had such a Godly husband and we are thankful to have had contact with him, though not on a daily basis but one that has made such a large impact on our lives.

To God be the Glory!

May God's grace abound to you and your family and abundantly bless you,

Your sister in Christ,

Jennifer

Canton Flea Market.... Look at my finds....

Yesterday was the bi annual Canton Flea Market. It is a huge flea market that happens the first Thursday in May and the first Thursday in October. They have over 1000 vendors and around 40,000 people go through it in one day. I have never been before but have heard about it all my life. Well, now we live about 30 minutes away so I went this year. It was amazing!!! I took my kids, which is something I wont subject them to again. I could have stayed and looked all day but only stayed til lunch. Here are my great finds.

I got this for $19.99. For this size online they are around $50.00 - $100.00. I was so excited. We knew that when we move to the new house the first thing we wanted was a bat house to control mosquitoes.

As Dh and I are not even race fans, this will be going on the wall in the boy's room.LOL

Then youngest DD bought a purse and a $5.00 necklace. I saw lots of Christmas ideas/cheap, that I will be going back in October to get.

Grieving through Mother's Day

Many of you know my husband Duane, age 56, died suddenly and unexpectedly on April 14. I am now a widow and single mom of three. My youngest daughter Mary is 14 and still at home. Together with my children we are trying to pick up the pieces and keep Duane's vision for our family business, The Urban Homemaker, going. A friend has urged me to share some thoughts and memories on my blog.

This year, Mother's Day will be most bittersweet for me. It will be the first Mother's Day in nearly 25 years that my husband won't be making me breakfast in bed, one of my most favorite family traditions. My first Mother's Day was also bittersweet in another way because I was very pregnant, in fact, two week overdue in delivering my first baby girl, Laura Christine.

My girls, Laura and Mary, and I have planned my first Mother's Day, as a widow and a single mom, to focus our energies and thoughts positively on memories of good times with Duane. We are going to be pulling together pictures from my “archives” of pictures and gathering mementos of Duane for a Memorial Album. Yesterday, I stumbled on some cards he gave me during our engagement. In one card he wrote a little poem, a portion of which follows:

Marilyn, you're good for me,
and I thank God the more.
Together we'll join lives as one,
and live life evermore.

This ring I give to you,
a symbol and a trust.
And pray it will endure,
as God knows it must.

I love you, I do.
No truer words, can I give to you.

My husband was not perfect, but I thank God for his love and faithfulness for nearly 25 years of marriage.

As I mentioned last week, I have received literally hundreds of cards and emails sending sympathies and condolences. Many of you have taken time to write about your memories of Duane and encouragement for moving through the grieving process. Ultimately, I think the outpouring of love that I and my family have received will be the foundation of a future book on hospitality.

One memorable card quoted Saint Francis of Assisi who said: “Preach the gospel at all times, if necessary use words.” I love this simple quotation because Duane was a quiet and gentle person, and I had no idea how many lives he touched.

I wanted to share a few of my favorite comments.

Linda of North Caroline writes:

“Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory, no one can steal.” Linda encourages me to “let the tears come, let them water my soul.”

Karen writes:

“Your husband is not far from you. Heaven is very near, nearer than we imagine. He is now in possession of the mansion that is prepared for him, a glorious inheritance. We pray God will provide you with peace and strength to get through the valley and we know he will.”

Mrs. H from Illinois writes:

“Duane has always been thoughtful and helpful with our orders. We will miss him, and know the loss for you is irreplaceable.”

Becky of Colorado writes:

“I can't tell you how much I have appreciated the work you and Duane and the girls have done, and I have loved watching your business grow and develop into a truly needed company and ministry over the years. I'm sure thousands of hearts have been touched and blessed by you all.”

These precious cards and emails continue to strengthen me and encourage me, “ For you have need of endurance, so that you may do the will of God and receive what is promised.” Hebrews 10:35

I struggle with the fact that there is no more earthly husband made of flesh and blood to cuddle with or embrace. That day, my lifelong friend Connie Wilson's card came in the mail with a sentiment written by Donna Fargo, a country music singer. The sentiment says in part:

“What if the spirit of your loved one has not left you, but has moved inside your heart to live, never to be forgotten? Once we love someone, that person becomes a part of us and remains with us for as long as our memory of them lasts. Treasure your memories now. Try to focus on the time you did have. Let the blessings that you shared bathe you with love, encourage you with comfort, and inspire you to go on.”

Thank you Karen, Mrs. H, Becky, Connie and hundreds of others who took time to write beautiful and encouraging notes of sympathy and encouragement to myself and my family. Again, I emphasize that each note is read, cherished, and saved.

When life literally vanishes in seconds before your very eyes I believe one can choose to count your many blessings or not which reminds me of an old hymn called “Count Your Blessings”, written by Johnson Oatman, Jr.. I have clung to these wonderful words through other trials over the years as well. The first stanza goes like this:

When upon life's billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings name them one by one,
and it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
Count your blessings, name them one by one and so on.

Duane and I go out for a big night on the town to celebrate in January 2000.

This Mother's Day I have many blessings to count. I am so thankful for my three healthy and wonderful children, food in my pantry and freezer, and most importantly a mighty, most loving Heavenly Father and Husband. Here is a small collection of verses from Psalms that I have clung to these last few weeks:

“He heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds.” (Psalm 147:3)

“The Lord is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made.” (Psalm 145:9)

“Who is near to the brokenhearted, and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the Lord delivers him out of them all.” (Psalm 34:17-18)

“The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. And those who know thy name put their trust in thee, for thou, O Lord, has not forsaken those who seek thee.” (Psalm 9:9-10)

Adventures in house hunting....

I was very hesitant to even write this post, as we have had so many ups and downs in this whole thing. We put in an offer on another house and were assured we had it. However, the homeowners were going through foreclosure and it was a mess. Needless to say it did not work out. However, we had peace that God was sparing us from something we could not even see. He has our best in mind.

Then we went back to look at this house. It sits on 8 acres and has a barn. It is a 3 bedroom and 2 bath house. The house is not as nice as the previous but the land is exactly what we wanted. About 6 of the 8 acres is fenced for horses and it has the barn. There is a huge garden site, muscadine vines, and a huge productive pear tree. All we have to do is add some blueberry bushes, a fig tree, and many other fruit trees. There are water spigots in all the right places, at the barn, at the little shop area, and at the garden site. The shop and barn have electricity, too. It has a back porch that spans the length of the house. I don't know what all I will put out there. It also has a wood burning insert. That will save us on heating in the winter. One of the negatives is the tiny kitchen and oven. My daughter calls it an Easy Bake oven. My husband already has ideas as to how to expand the kitchen by closing in the garage. We are not garage people anyway.LOL

The other house was a better investment but this is a house I think we could be happy in the rest of our lives. We put our offer in and signed the contract yesterday. We are supposed to close on the 16th. However, we have done this before and it fell through, so I am just going to wait to get excited when the keys are in hand. I am packing because regardless we are eventually moving somewhere.LOL

Another new addition to our homestead.....

This is the newest addition to our homestead. His registered name is Go Max Shooting Star . We will call him shooter. I liked the name pistol but I got overode. My girls have watched him for sale for about 3 or 4 months. We were not interested in buying another horse but you know how that goes. They just wear you down.LOL I must admit he is so beautiful. We will go to pick him up on May 19th. Or better yet Dh and the girls will go. I hate pulling a horse trailer. It makes me a nervous wreck. He lives on the Coast of Ms. So it will end up being about a 4 -5 hour drive pulling trailer.

He comes from excellent stock and hopefully will make a good 4-H project for my middle DD. I think he will show well.

Lord willing, we will get the keys to our new house on Friday the 16th and he will be able to go straight to the new house on Monday the 19th.

This colt has been tested with UC Davis Veterinary Genetics Laboratory for coat color verification. He is a Smoky Black-he received one copy of the cream gene. His results are: Ee, aa, N/Cr. He has very unusual coloring. This colt can produce buckskins, palominos, or smoky blacks when bred to a mare of a base color. He is very smart, willing, and has a great disposition! He leads and backs easily, stands tied, trailers, and lifts all 4 legs very willingly. He has been clipper trimmed on his body and had his feet trimmed by the farrier and did great. Also takes shots and worming without problem. This guy will make someone a really great horse.

A Simple Woman's Daybook entry

Outside my Window...flowers blooming everywhere. Beautiful just beautiful.

I am thinking...I have so many things to do and so little time to it.

I am thankful for...so so many things, my Salvation, the blood of Christ that covers all my multiples of sin, my wonderful family, and the opportunity I have to be at home with my family.

From the kitchen...Breakfast was biscuits and bacon, lunch is sandwiches on homemade rolls, and dinner will be grilled hamburgers and french fries.

I am creating...not a lot of creating going on but a lot of packing!

I am going...no where today or tomorrow. Praise the Lord!!!

I am wearing...black sport pants, pink T-shirt and black flip flops.

I am reading...I am currently jumping around in the Bible by topics.

I am hoping...that the buying of our house goes according to plan.

I am hearing...the sound of the birds chirping and my husband mowing.

Around the house...are boxes everywhere!!!

One of my favorite things...the site of my daughter sitting at the table planning the cake she will make for a sweet friends birthday on Wednesday.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week...do some more packing, cleaning, and tending my families needs.

Drumrollllll please......my new mixer (pictures)

On my other homestead forum, I had posted the question what kind of mixer would you recommend. Let me preface by saying that I have made my whole wheat bread in a bread machine on the dough cycle for years. It has really served me well but I could only make a loaf at a time. Well, my bread machine has had it. I have to very carefully put the pan into the machine or the bottom will fall out and all my ingredients with it.

So I had been researching bread machines and mixers for literally months. We decided on a mixer because it just would be so much more useful. My oldest daughter is taking a cake decorating class, so it would be very helpful for her. The majority of people recommended a Bosch Universal but I wasn't totally sold and for $350.00+, I wanted to be sold. I have a hard time spending that kind of money, considering how hard DH works for the money. If my wonderful hubby hadn't just insisted I buy one I would probably still be dreaming. I loved the style of the KitchenAid Pro. 600 but it didn't get rave reviews on bread making (my whole purpose). So I kept looking. I finally decided on this one and it came today:

It is a 5 quart Viking Stand Mixer. It has an 800 watt motor. It came with the dough hook, whip beater and a V beater. It's great!!! There are several reasons why I went with this one but one of the main reasons was that they are made right here in Mississippi. I love being able to support the state we love so much. Here are the pics of what we have done so far:

There are a few negatives; while it is narrow it is very deep. The bowl is very tight in the base. It may loosen with time but overall we are verrrrry happy. My oldest daughter is now making a cake from scratch for her cake decorating class tomorrow.

Urban Homesteader

Our New Home!!!!!!

Whew, where does the time go? Our move in pictures.....

Walking by Faith

His Journey's Just Begun

Canton Flea Market.... Look at my finds....

Grieving through Mother's Day

Adventures in house hunting....

Another new addition to our homestead.....

A Simple Woman's Daybook entry

Drumrollllll please......my new mixer (pictures)

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