Posted in Progress Is Good
I'm living it up for a while now, as I am in that middle-feeling-pretty-ok trimester of pregnancy. I am struggling to find a balance between getting as much done as I can (while I can), and making sure not to over-do it. While my experience has shown that a pick-ax is not the friend of a pregnant woman, I can't seem to leave it alone. It is just so tempting to get things accomplished outside quickly. Unfortunately, experience has also shown that I am pretty stubborn until the first time I can't walk after a yard-work session. I do thank the Lord for a family who fusses at me a lot-maybe it will keep me out of trouble. And out of traction. Grin. Here's what our week looked like: -New slate stone path laid from back sidewalk to shed and garden. - Mr. Visionary and kids relocated my clothesline to a more convenient place for me. This was no small job, as the post were set in about 80 pounds of concrete each. Yowsa! - Taxes were picked up from the accountant and delivered to post office. This was a late-night fun "guy trip" as Mr. Visionary and the boys went to the main post office downtown. - Three compost bins were built and started. - Made two new clothespin bags out of old jeans. The old bags were hanging by a thread (literally). - Made comforter for Miss Doodle's "big girl bed". -Mr. Visionary and the children reorganized the attic. - Made a new flower bed near shed. We planted a free (from the woods) dogwood tree, and some shared hostas from Old Mr. Clark across the street. - Relocated azalea bushes from front of house to hide the propane tank in the back yard. - Did more grading (with tractor) in the front yard in preparation for the grass planting (coming soon). -Got four skirts for the big girls almost done. -Pulled down kids' spring clothes from the attic. We will use this week to get them in order and decide what else we need. Then the winter clothes will go back to the attic. I love summer laundry-each outfit takes up so much less space, that the amount of loads I wash is less. As in, I can fit way more shorts and t-shirts (for the boys) in the washer, and the same jumpers for the girls now only need a t-shirt instead of tights, a turtleneck and thick pantaloons. Yes, less laundry is definitely in the forecast. Did I mention I love summer?
(Note to Reader: Please remind me of the previous statement when I am nine months pregnant in August.) |
Posted in Progress Is Good
How motivating it is to have the Already-Done list posted on our blog to have a reminder that something is actually getting done! Spring weather is pretty motivating as well...invigorating even. "...For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land..." Song of Solomon 2:11-12. Welcome Spring! Here are some of the early spring chores and activities we worked on this week: - We finally got that guest room in order. Please refer back to They're Outta Here - Mr. Visionary put up two sets of doors on the mudroom closets. Our mudroom is used by everyone as the main entrance, no matter how cute I try to make the front entry. It was a blessing to get my washer/dryer/cleaning supplies closet and the coat/shoes/hat/glove/scarf/misc. closet behind closed doors. Mr. Visionary also built a laundry-folding table with an extra piece of countertop. It is a dream: eight feet long with cubbies underneath, and room for baskets. Thanks, Honey! - We had our first Passover Seder complete with fancy dinner to celebrate our Lord who is risen. It was looonnng, but fun. (Note to Self: give children a snack before we start next time.) - We got that shed cleaned out! (Another project can be marked off in the sidebar.) - I weeded the Square-Foot garden for the first time! I don't think I plucked up any seedlings. I (gulp) hope they were just weeds. - I taught the boys how to mop/scrub the kitchen floor. When Summer is here, and I can no longer see my feet, I'll be sooo glad I did this. - The girls got a bunch of hamburger cooked and put in the freezer. - We got the second pasture's fencing hooked up, and Millie the Fussy Heiffer moved there. We are hoping that completely weaning the calf will help her disposition during milking. This chick could use an attitude adjustment! I can't blame her, though. I'd be a grouch, too, if someone pounded on me to get milk like the calf does to her. - Mr. Visionary and the boys installed a float valve on the cows' water tank. - I transplanted a full block of collards into the garden outside. - I took the children to a playground for a morning.
It is good for me to remember that progess is a gift from the Lord. Our responsibility is to honor Him in the process of life, and He will give the increase. We sow seed when He leads us to, we water when He leads us to. When and if there is a harvest is His to determine. Thank you for progress, Lord! "Better is a little (progress) with righteousness (honoring Him), than great revenues (lots of stuff marked off the to-do list) without right (honoring Him through obedience)."Proverbs 16:8 (parenthesis added).
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Posted in Progress Is Good
Granted, it is not much of a title, but it will serve. Last week I happened upon what I considered a major idea to help me with blogging. I determined to use Sundays as a Progress Report of sorts, but was still deliberating a posting plan for the rest of the week. Upon spending more time at HomesteadBlogger's Front Porch, I discovered that this was not a unique approach. Eureka! So I'm slow to learn, but it does happen eventually. Sundays will still be my Progress Is Good day, but I have adopted the HomesteadBlogger schedule for the rest of the week: In The Garden on Mondays, Critters on Tuesday, Healthy Living on Wednesdays, In The Sewing Room on Thursdays, In The Kitchen on Fridays, and All In The Family on Saturdays. The schedule was my significant accomplishment for the week. Other activities that took place include: -A half-day visit with the in-laws (AKA Grandma & Grandaddy) -I finally got all the carpets in the house cleaned! This task could actually double as aromatherapy. I used 1 cup of baking soda, 1/2 cup borax, and 12 drops of lavender essential oil in each filling of the rented machine. It made the house smell so "Springy". -I peeked at the garden 4.7 million times in the last seven days. It didn't help. -We picked up a "new" bed for the Blogger Lady and Mr. Visionary. It took a few hours of scrubbing and polishing with dark Old English to get it looking like new. It is all installed and I tried it out last night. I may need a stool to climb into it when I am great-with-child, though. (But no more balancing the box springs on cinder blocks-we have a real bed!) -I got all the monthly billing and paperwork done for our business. -We did the monthly Sam's Club run and got everything re-stocked in the pantry. -It has been rainy, so not much was done outside (except the peeking). -Today we begin a season of celebrating a real Sabbath. This will be a day when we really rest, spend time worshipping, enjoying the family, and focusing on the Lord. The plan is to have all the meals ready ahead of time, and use paper plates to make the day more relaxing. This is our first week, and we are hoping it will strengthen our relationship with the Lord (not our righteousness, either real or perceived) and be a blessing to us. -And of course, the usual: meals, laundry, school, critter care, chores, and a teething two-year-old. Life is good. |
Posted in Progress Is Good
Schedules help us with the rythmn of life. Lunch at one o'clock, naps at two, pizza on Fridays and chicken on Saturdays lend a predictable flow to the week. And so it is with blogging. Part of my motive in creating a blog is to have a chronicle to record that progress in life and on the the farm that is so difficult to perceive on a daily basis. "Know well the condition of your flocks, and give attention to your herds..." Proverbs 27:23. My day of rest is such a good time to take stock, and give praise to my Savior who has allowed any progress at all. I anticipate much encouragement from being able to look back at each Sunday's Progress Report, all the while realizing that my responsibility is to be faithful and obedient, and He will determine the fruit of my endeavors. Our first week looked something like this: -all the Spring seeds were planted in the garden -all the Summer seeds were planted in cute little peat pots in the house -I was able to get two maternity dresses cut out -Mr. Visionary almost finished getting "The Stump" out of the middle of the driveway -we got my brother moved into town -I visited with my neighbor Melanie -all the critters were fed and watered properly -homeschooling "the big five" with a toddler running around -and the usual (but not small) cooking, cleaning, and laundry for a family of eight was done and everything is caught up -oh, yes, and I started a blog!
To God be the glory!
"I am not what I ought to be. I am not what I wish to be. I am not even what I hope to be. But by the cross of Christ, I am not who I was." John Newton |