I wonder ....
• Sunday, May 11, 2008 - Happy Mother's Day
Happy Mother's Day!!!
This morning I was startled awake ...... our youngest is in his crib which is literally right next to my side of the bed. Well, this morning he reached over & was rubbing my arm. It was actually cute once I realized that it was him. I reached out and rubbed his hand .... he looked over and smiled ..... as if he were saying, "Happy Mother's Day." I must have dozed back to sleep because the next thing I knew, my bed room was filled with the voices of 7 children wishing me a wonderful day. Then my oldest made her way through the crowd with a tray filled with breakfast goodies. I had pancakes, bacon and a glass of orange juice. My favorite part though was the pile of hand made Mother's Day cards and a cleaned baby food jar that was used as a vase for paper flowers that had been cut out & colored. Ahhh .... I have the BEST job in the world!!!
I hope you each have a wonderful day!!!
~ Happy Trails ~ |
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• Friday, May 9, 2008 - Tick tock, get a new clock
I woke up this morning to find my husband still soundly sleeping next to me ..... odd ...... it was 6:00 a.m. & he should have been gone already. I woke him up & he jumped out of bed to get ready. He wakes the children so they can get breakfast eaten & chores done ...... kisses me goodbye & darts off to work. A few minutes later he came back in & told me it was only 5:40 a.m.  Some how our clock was changed ..... poor guy LOL It's now 6:30 a.m. & children's chores are all done ........ great start for the day!!!
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Speaking of time .... it's time for a couple of my children to have their yearly check ups .... and some are due for immunizations (according to the doctors schedule) .... I sure hope we don't have any issues to deal with when the dr's find out we don't immunize. They know we haven't with our 1 year old .... which they're not happy about .... but I think they're expecting a delayed schedule.
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Do you use wooden bowls to mix recipes in? Do you use them to eat with also? Where's a good place to get them?
Do you use cast iron pots & pans? Where's a good place to get them?
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Today we'll be making a solar oven out of a pizza box. Once we get the hang of cooking in it, we'll make a more advanced & larger version ...
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• Wednesday, May 7, 2008 - 81 acres
• Saturday, May 3, 2008 - Rambling
The season is changing ...... and with the change comes a cold ..... settling in to at least 4 of us here  I do not have time to be sick!!!
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We are having to keep our cats contained in 1 room at night ..... they have found a way to get out & until it's repaired, we want to know that they haven't become some animal's dinner!! We have them in the dressing room off our bedroom .... there is s step stool in front of a mirror .... they all congregate on that stool LOL .... and each time we walk in to that room, we can bet they'll all be there, staring at themselves in the mirror. HA
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We have been busy getting packed .... getting rid of things we don't want to take .... I am excited thinking that this will be the last time we ever move!!! We've been trying to figure out how we're going to set up our land .... gardens, animal quarters etc. I guess we won't know for sure until we've picked a property .... HA ... yes, that would help!! We're pretty sure which one we'll be taking .... but nothing is for sure until we're moving our stuff in!
~ Happy Trails ~ |
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• Sunday, April 27, 2008 - Checking in
Blog host, blog host what should I write
being creative has been such a fight
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We're getting closer to our reaching our down payment goal. We're not close ..... but we're closer.
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We got a call yesterday, from a family member that will be visiting soon .... she's bringing some cast iron pots & pans. I am excited!!! I'm sure that will help in my journey to not being anemic!!!
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We're still searching for property ...... I don't think we want to settle for anything less than 5 acres.
~ Happy Trails ~ |
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• Saturday, April 19, 2008 - Loving my "job"
I really love my life!!! I love being a wife and mommy ....... & all that comes with those roles. I thoroughly enjoy cooking .... I enjoy seeing the satisfied looks on my family's faces when they're done eating. It's almost a love language for me. No one really *taught* me how to cook ...... but my mom once told me that the key to a good cook was not the ability to read & follow a recipe ....... but their ability to think outside the box & be creative. I love watching my children grow & learn .... from books & life experiences. Cooing, first words, first steps ..... all awesome!!! Cuddling on the couch with my hubby, to watch our favorite shows .... the greatest!!! Hearing him say, "I love you ......." still stops the world from spinning!!!
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We need to buy an upright freezer!!! We are running out of room for the meals we prepare in advance.
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We've been talking about our upcoming move ..... we're really excited ..... but we know we have much to learn about owning land and livestock. We figure if we start small and slow, we'll learn a lot more than if we just rushed in to it. I'd like to master worming and chickens before we add cattle or goats. We'd also like to work on building some furniture .. cowboy style ........ rustic log furniture. Not sure how that will go over with how I'd like to decorate our bedroom though LOL Maybe we'll just make the furniture to sell? Hmmm .... only time will tell.
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Do you use oat flour? Or some other uncommon flour? Do you use them in place of regular flour with out having to adapt recipes? Either way, I'd love to have your recipes if you're willing to share!
~ Happy Trails ~ |
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• Friday, April 18, 2008 - Home Blessing
I finally finished making changes to my "Home Blessing" notebook. I am excited. I've had it for a few years & make changes every once in a while according to our schedules and home ..... but the changes I made this time seem like they will withstand our changes. It's very flexible & I LOVE that!!!
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I don't understand something ..... I know that it's to each, his own ..... but I've always thought that when a man & woman get married, they become one .... meaning that everything they have becomes the others as well. I am always curious as to why a couple would have his bank account & her bank account. No judgments .... just seems odd & something I'm unfamiliar with.
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Homemade chili & cornbread for dinner last night ...... yum!!! Only reason we have left overs is because I quadrupled the recipe 
Tuesday my husband & I will be doing a massive cooking .... beef stew, hamburg soup, meatloaf, boneless/skinless chicken breast .. some to chop up for Chef salads, some for chicken enchiladas, some for chicken salad, some for Izout .... an entire turkey, turkey bacon .. we'll be chopping onions, bell peppers ...... dividing foods, packaging them all & popping them in to the freezer. I think my husband wants to make a brisket too.
~ Happy Trails ~ |
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• Thursday, April 17, 2008 - Plans, plans
Plans, plans .... so many plans to make. Plans for the garden, for the worm growin, for the food storage, for the huntin, maybe even plans to build a home .....
I am excited about everything going on in our lives. Once we get settled I'd like to take a quilting class at our local college. I'd also like some one to show me how to can foods. I can't imagine how much we could store if I'd learn to can. Oh, the excitement!!!
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Do you love Scholastic books? I LOVE them so much & am thrilled that our home school group started getting the little fliers. I've been thinking about getting some new books for our home "library" & this gives me the perfect opportunity.
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I have sooooooo much energy again. Cleaning, working, eating healthier, getting healthier (read = losing weight) does that for me. My children are having a hard time keeping up with me HAHA ..... gotta love those Supermom vitamins!!!
~ Happy Trails ~ |
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• Monday, April 14, 2008 - Vermiposting
• Saturday, April 12, 2008 - American Women 2
In an earlier post I mentioned American women being overwhelmed. I got some interesting feedback. I wanted to explain a few things though ... I should have been more specific with my thoughts.
I know one mom who stays at home with her 3 children, gets up early enough to cook and clean before her children rise. She also works from home to help make ends meet, home schools and does what ever she can to fill the Biblical role of wife & mother. She does not get involved with every ministry under the sun because her family is her ministry right now. She does go to one sporting even during the week. Why is it that she is over whelmed? Is it because she's bought in to the lies? I don't think so. I truly believe it's because she has no help. There is no tribe to take on some of her responsibility. The servants back in the Bible days were there for a reason .... what was it? The tribes were family, yes ...... but they each served in a role that would benefit the rest of the tribe.
It's not always possible to have your *tribe* living with or even near you. In those circumstances, what's that overwhelmed mother to do? Hopefully she'll have a neighbor that will reach out to her .... some one that can be a stand-in tribe member .... some one that will lift her up, encourage her and grab a dust cloth as she starts her cleaning dance.
~ Happy Trails ~ |
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• Saturday, April 12, 2008 - Untapped resource
In the world of high tech gadgets, outer space and MySpace, social networking has set the net on fire. Get ahead of the crowd! Check out the newest, untapped networking resource join 3gb community www.3gb.biz
Sign up is easy, the settings are simple and the entire e-vironment is refreshing! Join a group, start your own or just use your site to speak your piece. Get plugged in, build a network for your business, flaunt your artist abilities or just listen to new music. I hope see you there!
~ Happy Trails ~
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• Saturday, April 12, 2008 - What's wrong with American women?
Some one I know from a forum asked why American women seem to be overwhelmed, tired etc.
Look at the Bible's example of how families lived ........ they lived as tribes. Women had servants to help with every aspect of being a home maker. Yes I know ...... we have dish washers, washers and dryers .... but I don't think they are even close in comparison. It doesn't bring the companionship that a servant may have brought .... the adult conversation that a stay at home, mother with many needs every once in a while. It definitely provides a service .... but that service is not complete ... it doesn't load itself or even empty itself.
I hope this isn't coming across as sounding lazy ...... that's not it at all ... but I truly believe that women are overwhelmed, stressed, and emotional because we are expected to do much more than the women of Bible times.
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Another thing I noticed in an online forum was some one's signature line ......
" If this nation elects Obama, will that make us an obamanation?" LOL ....... I LOVE it!!!
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I've been bidding on some writing projects. Hopefully I'll get a few of them ..... that would help drastically with our fund raising efforts toward the down payment of a new home.
~ Happy Trails ~
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• Thursday, April 10, 2008 - He has plans
We didn't make our deadline on getting the money in to hold the house. So obviously the Lord has something different for us. Maybe more land ..... maybe a bigger house .... maybe a combination of both!
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We found the perfect egg collecting basket among some of the things I inherited when my dad died. The handle on it is country blue & white .... my colors. It's as if it were bought a long time ago, specifically for me.
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Things I want to buy :
Aprons
Prairie dresses for my girls
Overalls for all the children
night caps to help keep the girls' hair from tangling
Cowboy boots for every one
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Thanks to all who contacted me or left your well wishes after my miscarriage. Your prayers & words of encouragement mean the world to me!! My husband & I have decided to name the baby Angel. The name means, "messenger of God" ..... the message he/she brought was one of hope .... faith ..... & strength. I don't know that I can explain ... but I'll just say that out of our many losses, I have peace through this one. I know God is in control and that He has plans to not hurt me .... but to prosper me. He knows what He's doing!
~ Happy Trails ~ |
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• Monday, April 7, 2008 - Resources?
Where do you get your:
Chicks
Egg cartons (do you use those?)
Seeds
Cattle
Horses
Mason Jars
and anything else you use on your homestead
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What time do you go out to gather eggs? The only thing I've heard is that chickens usually lay in the early morning. Is that your experience?
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If you had to limit your homestead to ONE animal, which would it be & why?
~ Happy Trails ~ |
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• Monday, April 7, 2008 - A bloggers paradise!!!
It's true, you really CAN get paid to do something you like!! I did a search on Google, on making money writing and found the greatest place ever; PayPerPost. You can actually get paid to blog. I joined in hopes to raise some money toward our down payment but in looking at all the possibilities, I realize that this is bigger than *just* a down payment. This could be future mortgage payments, a new car or even some farm animals and a trailer to haul them here and there.
In searching the site I've found that there are quite a few people making a great deal of money. I'm sure it's taken them a while to make large sums of money but doesn't everything? Why not get paid to do something you've already been doing for free?! There are some great opportunities! You can decide what to write about and when, therefore there is only one person controlling how much money you make and when.
If you are a company looking for ways to get the word out about new products or services then blog advertising
is a great resource. Think of how many at home mom's blog daily about their personal opinions. Even greater than that, think of how many other people are reading those blogs or some how getting wind of and being persuaded by that one bloggers opinion. Now look at the entire picture and see just how many people you could reach, for an amount that won't swallow your bank book.
Does your spouse spend countless on the road or at the office, trying to make ends meet? Sign up at PayPerPost, pick some topics to blog about and bring your loved one home a few hours early. If you chose the right topic, your honey might be able to get the entire day off. How about writing one paid blog post per week so junior can have guitar lessons? Maybe you could even find a guitar store to blog about that pays. Really, the possibilities are endless.
I look forward to looking through the topics. I'm sure I'll find plenty to not only keep me busy but to also bring some extra cash in.
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• Monday, April 7, 2008 - School's out for the week
Due to our recent loss, my husband has decided that we will not do school on an official level this week. Instead the children will have books they can read on their own, about farming, animals, up keep & the old days. They'll also have shows they can watch on the RFD channel .... we LOVE that channel!!! We're having a mellow day today though ... the children are all sitting in the living room watching Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (one of my absolute favorite movies). I think it teaches great morals ..... and encourage my children to watch for the lessons.
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We are having a fund raiser (for lack of a better term) in order to raise money for the down payment to the property we want. We have antique furniture to sell as well as Greeting Cakes. If any one's interested please check out SweetSentimentz
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If you are homesteading, farming, ranching etc what lessons would you pass on to those just starting?
~ Be thankful for your trials ~ |
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• Sunday, April 6, 2008 - One line
• Saturday, April 5, 2008 - Pressure
My 14 year old daughter asked what my food weakness is .... I think I'd have to say egg rolls. I LOVE them!!! I try not to eat fried foods very often and when I do, it's not that much .. but if it's egg rolls, I'm in trouble LOL One other fried food that I love is Apache Fry bread ....... YUM!!!
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We told the owner of the property we wanted to go ahead & sell it to who ever has the money right now. His niece is a mortgage lender & has been calling, using high pressure sales tactics. We told the owner, in the presence of his niece what our terms were ..... he agreed .... and then all the sudden his niece starts calling, saying that he really wants us to have the house ...... but ...... some one else came up with the down already. We told her to go ahead & sell it then ..... because we can only work so fast in getting the down & that we would not buy property under stress nor would we want the owner to hold on to it for us if it stressed him out doing so. Funny ....... when we told her that, she totally changed her tune. I bet her uncle has no clue what she's doing. Now she called to tell us that he wants to wait because he really likes our family. I'm betting there was never any one else interested in the place to begin with. I can't stand high pressure sales people The sale is still on though ... fortunately we won't have to deal with the niece.
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Did you know that feed stores sell dog crates? We had no clue. Not only does ours sell them but they're also less expensive than any other place around here. We need to remember to check there first for all our animal needs!!!
~ Happy Trails ~ |
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• Friday, April 4, 2008 - My day to rest
Today I'm not feeling very well so I'm taking a break from all manual labor. I'll switch in to paper work gear so I can organize our plans. Budgets for moving, cost of getting animals, gardens and other things.
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Do you have to register a homestead name?
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Depending on what size property we buy, I have the lay out of how we want our gardens & animal area. First thing we'll do though is to make room for horses. We'll be setting up a boarding facility to offset some of our expenses. We're also thinking of breeding purebred dogs as a form of income. I don't think any one in our area can afford to purchase a purebred anything though ...... so I need to find out about shipping animals. We could deliver to the tri-state area if needed. Now to pick a breed.
~ Happy Trails ~ |
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• Thursday, April 3, 2008 - Growing
Our plans are to eventually be growing a good amount of the foods we eat:
lettuce
cabbage
tomatoes
celery
cucumbers
carrots
beets
radishes
bell peppers (all colors)
onions
pumpkin
We haven't decided whether or not to grow fruit trees.
Where do you purchase your seeds from? How do I find out the gardening zones for seasonal information?
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Just thinking of a simpler life brings such a calm ..... I picture ma Ingalls, washing clothes while watching her children play in the field. Pa working on the barn or pitching hay, while the dog Jack runs circles around the hay stack. After dinner pa plays his fiddle and every one dances in circles in the dining/living room. What a wonderful day and an even better ending to it!
~ Happy Trails ~ |
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