Every Friday, for school, one of my subjects is life skills. For life skills I read a book called "Keepers at Home.". This book teaches me how to keep my own house.
Right now I have to keep a prayer journal and a regular journal for 6 months. Prayer journal is a journal where I keep all my prayer requests and record how God answered each prayer. Regular journal is what I write in about each day or event.
This book is kind of like a Girl Scout book. Whenever I complete each task, Mom has to sign and date it.
This book also has projects like candle making, basket weaving, and cooking. I can't wait to get further in this book.
Yesterday was our family's 6th time hosting an All Saints' Day party. I'm inviting you to play one of our favorite games: "Guess My Saint!"
I will go through our family and post a picture of each of us dressed as the Saint we portrayed with the clues we gave and in the comments you can post your guess as to who we are / were.
(Isn't that a cute little halo Andrew drew for us Saints to stand under? )
Ok, here's me and my lines, (yea, I have no shame!). 1. "I was a homely, blind hunchback with one leg considerably shorter than the other. I was rejected by my parents at a young age. I spent my life in the service of others. A friend once expressed sympathy toward my bodily afflictions, to which I responded with a smile and said: "If only you knew what I have in my heart!" I died at the age of 33 and I was a Blessed (not a Saint yet). Who am I?"
Annie's 20th century Saint. 2. "I was married in 1955 after considering a religious vocation, and happily raised three children. After two miscarriages, I discovered I was expecting my fourth. I began to have abnormal symptoms, and was soon diagnosed with a fibroma in my uterus. Although pressured to have an abortion or hysterectomy to save my own life, I refused, heroically insisting the baby's life must be saved, no matter the cost.
After giving birth to a beautiful daughter who bears my name, I suffered seven days before dying. I was canonized in 2004. Who am I?"
Here's Stephen and his paper hat (you becha! ). 3. "As an act of humility, I wrote my greatest sins on a paper hat which I wore while riding backwards on a donkey through town to the Franciscan Monastery, where I joined. Who am I?"
Theresa, the poor shepherdess, (with the deformed hand! ). 4. "My mother died when I was an infant. I was born with a disease called scrofula and my right hand was deformed. My father remarried soon after, and my stepmother persuaded my father to ignore me and keep me away from her children, not wanting my disease to spread to them. So, I became a shepherdess, spending my time praying and tending the sheep. When I returned at night, I was given scraps and treated as a servant. Many miracles happened through me. When I died at the age of 22, my body became beautiful, and many people then called me a saint. Who am I?"
Michael, the patron Saint of athletes and soldiers! 5. "I was a captain to a Roman emperor. Because I was Christian, I was sentenced to death. I was shot with arrows and thought to be dead, but wasn't. A holy woman found and healed me. When I was well again, I returned to Rome and was then martyred. Who am I?"
Lizzy, the little harpist. 6. "I came from a noble family in Rome. I was forced to marry a pagan but I converted him and we both died martyrs for our faith. I'm the patron Saint of musicians. Who am I?"
Johnny, the soldier, (for 3 years in a row! ). 7. "I was a Roman solider and I cut my cape in half for a beggar. Who am I?"
Okay, take your best shot at guessing our identities, (and 'member, no using the internet! ).
• Thursday, October 30, 2008 - Pictorial Cabin Update
Posted By The Daughter
Here's the long overdue cabin update. We put up these rafters last week. A windy, rainy storm prevented further work to be done this week. Today was our first sunny day and, (as it turned out), we got (some of) our winter hay delivered today. Anyway:
Satisfied I'm sure... Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy your day.
---Ooo! I have to include this cool panorama that Stephen took of winter hay supply. I know, it's a lot! but i'nit a cool pic?? ---
• Monday, October 27, 2008 - Angora Bunny Report :-)
Posted By The Daughter
Hi everybody, this is Theresa. Mary asked me to write a post regarding my little bunnies. I would like to introduce my fifteen rabbits: Mittens, Marbles, Minnie, Mia, and a new litter of ten!
Mittens is my oldest. I've had her for three years now. I got her with another one (Slippers) who ended up dying a year ago.
(Slippers and Mittens:)
So, I got another girl (Marbles) a few months later, to keep her company. Well, only two months after we got her, it became apparent that she was actually a he as I found a (dead) baby in the pen. Sooo, one of my girls wasn't really a girl... yup, sure enough Marbles was a boy! So, we quickly got to work making a bachelor pen for the poor guy.
(Marbles)
Then, about a month later (near Easter) I was watching Mittens, thinking that she was acting a little strange. The 'rabbit midwife' () in me was right. Yeah, she had a baby right there in front of me. After a few moments, it was apparent that she wasn't going to take care of it. So, I took the baby in and fed it with an eyedropper, and I also would take Mittens into the house to let her drink. When the baby got to be six weeks old we were able to find out that it was a girl. So, she was then finally able to get her name, which is Minnie. She lived in the house with us for at least three months, until it was warm enough for her to stay outside. Now she has a cage in front of the house and every time you walk past she practically screams at you: "pet me!!!" And who could resist?
(Minnie) I sure can't!
So, after a while, we all decided that we wanted babies again, and that maybe she (MIttens) would take care of them this time. Sure enough, a month later there were four babies and (thankfully) she was taking care of them! It was so much fun watching them grow up and seeing them bounce around their pen. Sadly, when they were six weeks old it was time to start selling some of my babies. A few hours in front of the local grocery store sold three of them. The forth one didn't sell (Mia) so she's been with us since.
(The litter. Mia on the right)
I had Marbles breed Mittens and Minnie a little over a month ago. Mittens had one baby outside her house. It was still alive when I found it, and I quickly brought him/her into the house. It's one foot was hanging out through the wire on the bottom of her cage and had some teeth marks on it, (cats?) but it seemed like it would be okay. He/she lived for three days, fine and very bouncy, but then we found it dead on the forth day, so we were thinking it probably had something to do with it's foot. His/her name was Muffin for its short life span.
(Muffin nursing on Mittens)
Then, Minnie had her first litter five days ago. She had ten (!!) big healthy babies, I was pretty surprised that she had so many, especially since her mom's biggest litter was four, and angora rabbits usually only have three or four at a time. Also, it was her first litter! I don't know how I'm ever going to name all these babies!! They're sooo adorable.
(Minnie's first litter)
I just sheered Marbles and Mia yesterday.
(Marbles getting his hair cut) (Mia after her sheering. Once sheered, we found that she has a multi colored undercoat. It's white and black spotted!)
I was supposed to sheer them like a month ago when it was warmer so that they wouldn't get cold. Since I didn't get to it, I made them both little coats .
(Marbles and his new coat)
Mittens and Minnie both pulled out a lot of their hair to make nests for their babies, so I didn't have to sheer them.
We'll be sharing pictures of the new litter as they get older . Hope you all enjoyed reading this! Theresa
---Hello all, this is Mary. First, thank you Theresa for the post (I would never have been able to keep 'em all straight!), you did a good job. Secondly, we saw our first snow this morning as we were sitting around praying morning prayer. Johnny said it felt like Christmas and I couldn't disagree. Big fluffy flakes always instills the Christmas spirit into me. Lastly, we have a fun, silly slideshow/vid to share with you all. Stephen made it on the boys' new movie editing program for the experience. Theresa's sheering and the Veggie Tales song brought about the idea. It turned out adorable so I hope you can all view it! God Bless!!----
Ok, I've already told you that I'm having a wonderful fall, now it's time to fill in the gaps with one of those big updates. Second to spring, I think fall is our most productive time of year.
The girls and I have been harvesting and processing both wild and cultivated treasures. Despite the fact that we've processed and put up numerous bottles, jars and freezer bags this week, our kitchen table is still buried.
We were given the leftovers of a neighbor's garden, which was mostly tons of tomatoes and hot peppers, so the girls and I have been putting up jars of salsa, as well as enjoying hot pepper eating contests in the evening when everybody is in.
(Peeling tomatoes)
(Operation Onion:)
Forty some tomatoes, forty hot peppers and nine onions.
Homemade tortillas, garden fresh salsa, cow fresh sour cream, homemade cheese and uh--purchased olives. Yummy!
We harvested black walnuts and have been making different tinctures from the hulls as well as getting the nuts, too. A few mornings ago, Mom, Mike, John, Liz and I all stained our fingers processing walnuts out on the picnic table.
From the garden, we've been harvesting carrots (did pretty good this year), broccoli, sunflower seeds, corn (did terrible this year!), root veggies (not so good, potatoes need help) and squash (did too well, ack!). Still covering Mom's greens and tomatoes at night.
From the wild, we've been harvesting dandelion roots (once dried and ground, they're a coffee substitute), wild mint (for us ladies winter tea needs), black walnuts, wild mustard, sumac and, of course, apples.
We got our first heavy frost a few nights ago. Time for those strawberries to go to bed! I got one bed put to sleep, three more to go!
I put Frysta (our half Icelandic pony filly) with the Icelandics a few frosty mornings ago. She's been getting to know them over the fence and really seemed to want to get in on the action and play with them in the big pasture. After a good romp, I put her back with Momma again, where she flaunted the fact that she had gotten to go out and play and Momma didn't get to come. When Momma burst her bubble with one of those discipline-type bites on the butt, Frysta settled down and took a long nurse to settle her stomach.
She was really running for awhile there!
Ah, lets see, the kids are still playing in the leaves, still playing on their ponies, still playing football, still enjoying life, um what else is new?
We have our winter supply of round bales being delivered today. We have to get them arranged up on tires, and fenced off from the pasture.
We have a storm blowing in this weekend. Even if the weathermen weren't predicting it online, we'd be able to tell due to these little fellas:
They're called snow birds, but around here we've picked up on Andrew's nick name for them: the prophets of doom. They crowd the roads, fields and parking lots a week or two before the first snow storm. These guys have been buzzing around us for at least a week now.
After two years of apprenticing, I finally did my first hoof trim on Lena a few days ago. It's been getting hard for Mom to bend over my new sibling (lol, she's pregnant!) to do the trimming, so it was the motivation I needed to give hoof trimming a try. Lena can be a spoiled little --ahem-- at times, which made trimming tougher then it should have been, but I was grateful that she was good to my new sibling! (And Mom.)
Here she is giving new baby a kiss.
We've been experiencing gorgeous fall sunrises and sunsets the past few weeks. I actually get treated with some pretty 'moon sets' occasionally. There were a few times last week that I woke at my normal rising time (about 7) to the moon spotlighting in my room and watched it set on one side of the pasture while the sun rose on the other. Camera simply can't capture it (especially when it's owner is still in bed).
Doesn't it just make you want to roll up your sleeves and get to work?
..or relax and kick your feet up after an accomplishing day?
Wheew. If I were more diligent about updating I wouldn't have these monster updates piling up (in picture form) waiting to go on. How'd that slideshow work for you as a way of picture sharing?
Well, I have a Cabin Update and a special Bunny Report (coming from Theresa!) in the works, so those should be up sometime next week.
• Wednesday, October 22, 2008 - Black Walnut Stain Removal, Bugs and Acne...oh my!
Posted By Melissa
I took Zech and Luke to the Mennonite farm and feed store in our area to sell the black walnuts they've been collecting this fall. They didn't gather as many as they have in years past but enough for a little money in their pockets. We had a lot of rain this year so the walnuts were nice and big but with the economy being so awful we saw a lot more people collecting them than in years past. I think the best year Zech had was a few years ago when he collected about 300 pounds
Anyway, the real reason I am writing about this is because of black walnut stains. Zech accidentally wore his new jeans to load the walnuts in the van and got the gunk all over them. He needed these jeans to wear to youth group tonight and we had a narrow window of time to get them washed and dried before he needed to leave. I have never had success in washing out black walnut stains. In fact, the year he worked so hard and collected 300 pounds, he just had an old pair of jeans he used when he worked on them. I never could get those clean with laundry detergent and all fabric bleach. They were forever stained.
So when we got home from town, I tried to look online for a home remedy stain removal for black walnuts. I found anything from peroxide to lemon juice to salt & vinegar. I had Zech scrub the stains with cold water and a bar of Octagon Soap (found at my local grocery store in the laundry section for 69 cents). There were a lot of stains, on the front AND back. Blah! I even told Zech that these new jeans may have just made a quick transition from goin'-to-town jeans to farm jeans, lol. We let the soap set in while I made a paste of salt and vinegar. The salt/vinegar paste worked wonders for removal of hard water stains and lime scale in my bathroom and kitchen about a month ago...the gunk literally melted off...so I decided I'd try that one first.
I applied the salt/vinegar paste and let that set while the washing machine filled up with cold water, then threw them in with my homemade borax/washing soda laundry detergent that I normally use. I also put in the same amount of all fabric bleach I normally use. I let it all wash together and thought I may even need to do this whole process a second time because the stains were so bad. Honestly though, I figured this pair of jeans was done for To my shock and surprise, there is not a single black walnut stain left on the jeans!!!
So was it the Octagon soap, the salt/vinegar mixture, the all fabric bleach or a combination of some or all? I don't know for sure but I am thankful to have found something that works efficiently and quickly for fabric!!! So now we're gonna try it on the carpet in the back of the van 'cause the boys forgot to lay down a tarp before they put their walnut bags in. Oops. Zech forgot he didn't lay a tarp down and ended up sitting in the black walnut goo in the back of the van at the feed store while he was watching the walnuts go through the huller.
I also did some reading on Octagon soap this evening and found that many people use it with great results for acne (my teen boys are always on the look out for something) and for ticks, chiggers and other pesky bugs because of it's lemon grass scent. Makes sense because I make up an inexpensive, all natural bug spray that has lemon grass essential oil in it every summer. Plus every spring we stock up on herbal soap made by a local homeschool mom that that helps keeps the bugs away. One has lemon grass in it and one has lavender. Gonna have to see if the teen boys will let me give them a facial with Octagon soap, hee, hee. Supposed to scrub it on, let it harden and dry for an hour before rinsing.
I bought a bar of Octagon for the first time this summer and used it only a couple of times but with great results. I have used Fels Naptha and Kirk's Castile soaps in the past but I think Octagon is going to be my favorite product now. Sorry Mr. Clean Magic Eraser...you're second in line. I have a new best friend.
Hello everyone... long time no see... AGAIN!! I love blogging, but other things take first priority right now. I will try to stop by as often as I can, because I love "talking" to you all!!
One of the reasons I haven't posted about my fabulous major is because I had to do a fact sheet for my major's introduction class, and I wanted to share it with you all as a simple way to explain the amazing major the Lord chose for me!
My wonderful major (as you will soon find out :), is a terrific blend of music, psychology, helping others and becoming and loving yourself. The more I learn about it, the more I love it. It's as though I were made for me!!
My major is {{{DRUMROLL}}}... MUSIC THERAPY! Here are 10 wonderful facts about this amazing occupation!
&Music Therapy is an INTEGRATED ARTS APPROACH (intermodal therapy), meaning that it uses more than one therapy.Music Therapists can incorporate drama therapy, art therapy, dance and movement therapy and others into a single session of therapy.
&The use of music as therapy is based on THREE FOUNDATIONAL FACTORS:
1)the physical components of music (beat, meter, timbre, etc.)
2) the fact that humans use music in their daily lives
3) the fact that humans react to music individually
&Music Therapy is an EVIDENCE BASED therapy.We know that music works as therapy because it has been researched, practiced and used by music therapists and others through the years.
&A unique element of music therapy is that there is ACTIVE CLIENT PARTICIPATION.Clients are involved in re-creating (performing), improvising, composing or simply listening to music.
&In Music Therapy, IMAGINATION is considered a “healing agent”.Music therapists use many different forms of music in helping client reconnect with their inner self.Having a strong mind-body connection makes people more aware of themselves, and helps them allow their bodies to heal.
&Contrary to popular opinion, music is NOT a universal language.Music is a UNIVERSAL EXPERIENCE.Everyone relates to music differently, but we all relate!We all have a musical language, and everyone’s is different.Music Therapists must learn their client’s music language so they can relate to their clients.
&Music Therapy is built upon the ways MUSIC WAS USED THROUGHOUT HISTORY.Many civilizations throughout the ages have used music in many different ways.Native American Indians used music in their healing ceremonies.They used chants and different instruments in their ceremonies to promote healing.The Egyptians referred to music as the “medicine for the soul”.The music healers were very privileged people, and associated closely with priests and other important government officials.If we study the lifestyles of ancient civilizations, we can learn a lot that we can apply to modern practices.
&There are several ESSENTIAL QUALIFICATIONS for music therapists.A music therapist must have emotional stability. Emotional stability entails having a healthy self esteem, being centered (not self-centered, but having a solid emotional foundation.), and having a balanced view of yourself, others and the world.Being creative and having a sense of humor are also essential qualifications.Sometimes therapy needs to be more serious, but a lot of times what is needed is a light hearted approach to life, love and living. Being selfless, compassionate and having empathy are also very important qualifications. Another obvious qualification is being a good musician.A music therapist must have musical skills such as playing the piano, guitar and singing.They must also have a wide and varied knowledge of many different styles of music including jazz, classical, popular and religious music.
&Jerold Ottley (director of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir) once said, “Something very intimate and personal happens when people make music together.”When people MAKE MUSIC TOGETHER, they create a special bond that can help one or both of those people overcome challenges in their life.That bond that is created can be between therapist and client, family members, or even within one’s own self.Music therapy can be used in helping individuals function at their personal best in society.
&Music has been called “the soul’s own speech”.Music has the ABILITY TO REACH people were words cannot.
A few weeks ago we got our first four eggs from our newest flock. Our new flock includes different varieties of hens and one rooster. Our rooster is named Doe (as in John or Jane Doe), because when we got this flock the hatchery threw in a freebie. So we couldn't tell if this chick was a boy or girl.
My favorite hen in this flock is Cinco. Cinco is a French hen that has five toes, feathers on the legs, and a beard.
Before these eggs, we got a couple white eggs, which we think it came from one of our Polish hens. But the new eggs are brown.
We are looking forward to getting more eggs from our lovely hens.
)
).
1. "I was a homely, blind hunchback with one leg considerably shorter than the other. I was rejected by my parents at a young age. I spent my life in the service of others. A friend once expressed sympathy toward my bodily afflictions, to which I responded with a smile and said: "If only you knew what I have in my heart!" I died at the age of 33 and I was a Blessed (not a Saint yet). Who am I?"
2. "I was married in 1955 after considering a religious vocation, and happily raised three children. After two miscarriages, I discovered I was expecting my fourth. I began to have abnormal symptoms, and was soon diagnosed with a fibroma in my uterus. Although pressured to have an abortion or hysterectomy to save my own life, I refused, heroically insisting the baby's life must be saved, no matter the cost.
).
3. "As an act of humility, I wrote my greatest sins on a paper hat which I wore while riding backwards on a donkey through town to the Franciscan Monastery, where I joined. Who am I?"
).
4. "My mother died when I was an infant. I was born with a disease called scrofula and my right hand was deformed. My father remarried soon after, and my stepmother persuaded my father to ignore me and keep me away from her children, not wanting my disease to spread to them. So, I became a shepherdess, spending my time praying and tending the sheep. When I returned at night, I was given scraps and treated as a servant. Many miracles happened through me. When I died at the age of 22, my body became beautiful, and many people then called me a saint. Who am I?"
5. "I was a captain to a Roman emperor. Because I was Christian, I was sentenced to death. I was shot with arrows and thought to be dead, but wasn't. A holy woman found and healed me. When I was well again, I returned to Rome and was then martyred. Who am I?"
6. "I came from a noble family in Rome. I was forced to marry a pagan but I converted him and we both died martyrs for our faith. I'm the patron Saint of musicians. Who am I?"
).
7. "I was a Roman solider and I cut my cape in half for a beggar. Who am I?"
Satisfied I'm sure...
but i'nit a cool pic?? 
I sure can't! 
His/her name was Muffin for its short life span. 
(Mia after her sheering. Once sheered, we found that she has a multi colored undercoat. It's white and black spotted!)
Yummy! 
To my shock and surprise, there is not a single black walnut stain left on the jeans!!! 
