Spring has Sprung

Rain, rain, rain! It has made the ground so soft, so much easier to work with than usual. Yes in places it has been just downright sopping, but, I would rather have the rain than none! My hair on the other hand could do without all the humidity! Oh well!
     It has been a VERY fruitful spring so far here on the homestead. Almost 3 weeks ago, Toastie my cat, had kittens, 6 adorable kittens. There are 2 males and 4 females, she had them in a box in our bathroom (like any good cat should).  Two nights ago she decided for whatever reason she wanted to move them. I imagine it is because she felt I was taking to many liberties with picking them up and petting them. I was started to let the kids pet them and I assume she just felt they would do better under my nightstand. As long as I know where they are, I am fine with that!
     We have had a brooding hen ( a black silkie) for about five weeks now. I have never seen a brooding hen in action before, it is VERY neat. Basiclly she sits in her nesting box ALL DAY, she seemed to have started laying on one or so of her eggs. Now that the other hens know she is brooding, they climb up in the box with her and lay their egg (pretty much on top of her) and she scoops that egg into her clutch and sits on it. This hen DOES NOT get up. We have a hen that *thinks* she is a brooder but she gets bored after about 2 days and gets down. I suspect she has ADD and just can't sit still that long.  :) Anyway this hen had about 10 eggs under her at one point. Unless you mark them ( which we should probably start doing) there is no way to know which egg is which. So you just wait for a chick. A chick hatched last friday, it is such a cute little thing. It seems to be doing well. This is an experiment, letting her hatch her own eggs. We will have to see what the chicks disposition is like , my philosophy is "everyone does better with a momma" so we will see!
---------WARNING EXPLICIT CONTENT--------- I wanted to update the chick section of this blog. Last night I brought in a bunch of eggs from our ADD hen. I told Stewy that since she doesn't sit on them consistently we need to make sure they are taken from her.  He started cracking the eggs ( there are sure to be embryo's in them we are just uncertain of the stage) he cracked an egg and it started chirping!!! I almost started crying as I said, "STOP STOP!! Take it back out and put in under the momma!!!! " So hopefully, we didn't damage that one to badly and it will hatch in a few more days!!------END EXPLICIT CONTENT-----    Sunday we added a new line of mammal to the farm.  I purchased 2 GOS (Glouchester Old Spot) and Large Black (creative huh?) mix hogs.  These both are rare heritage breeds and are meant to be raised on pasture (which is better for them anyway than raising them on grain , IMO) The meat with these guys is said to be much richer and smoother. Now, I already LOVE pork so a better tasting pork sounds GREAT to me. They are also AMAZING rooters. As long as they stay where they are supposed to, we plan on putting these girls to work having them turn over the land. We can then reseed and move them to another area of pasture. Between the chickens and the pigs, I am anticipating GREAT things! We got two females. My intent is to see how the summer goes with raising them. If we decide that pigs aren't our thing ( like we did with goats) then we will butcher both girls. If I like the idea and it works out well we have talked about butchering one and breeding the other. I named them "scrapple", the one that I anticipated that we would be eating, and,  "sweetie", the one that I anticipated that we would be breeding. However their dispositions did a little flip flop and Scrapple is the one who wants the attention and Sweetie is the one who thinks she is being murdered when you try to pet her.  They come when they are called (it's so fun to watch them come running). They have big floppy ears that act as blinders, so they are not as jumpy as some other pigs that you've seen. This is a neat new venture that I am very excited about!
    As far as the humans go, we are all doing well. The kids love the animals (especially the kittens) and #1 is always eager to go get the eggs for us. They are all such a big help (some days more than others, but we are working on that). We are still doing school and will continue with at least math and reading all year around. We plan to take breaks here and there as needed. That is the beauty of Home Schooling is you can do what is best for your children and for you ( but more of that for another time) .
    Enjoy the rain, God has given it to us for a reason.  Yes, it makes things hard to mow, and yes, there is lots of mud; but, there are SO MANY worse problems we could have. So my recommendation is go with it! The August dry heat will be here before you know it!

How YOU feelin??

     I started reading a book called Adrenal Fatigue  By Dr. James Wilson. It was recommended to me by a friend. She had started making diet changes and really started feeling so much better. So I thought I would look into this whole adrenal fatigue thing.  While reading the book it turns out that (according to the test in the book) I have moderate adrenal fatigue. My guess is that most all of the working moms, home schooling moms, have a certain level of adrenal fatigue. The thing is, it's something that can be fixed with diet, exercise, sleep, vitamins, etc. All the things that you need in your life anyway.
     So I started eating better, I cut way back on my carbs and cut out a bunch of sugar. I stopped drinking caffeinated coffee. I actually stopped caffeine all together ( and didn't have any migraines!) I increased my veggies, trying new ones that I hadn't tried before (endives, I don't recommend them) I LOVE Brussel Sprouts, always have. I got fresh ones though and not the ones that are frozen in a bag with "sauce" . I have been steaming things left and right. The book recommends trying different veggies and cooking them all different ways. Cooking the same vegetable different ways releases different nutrients. My alfalfa sprouts are growing in the kitchen right now. They should be good to eat tomorrow. I say all this to say.......
       I fell off the wagon Thursday night.  You see,  Thursday is our pizza night. Pizza sounded so good! Now, I could've just had one piece and stopped (I didn't ) and you know that with pizza you have to have soda ( my soda of choice is of course PEPSI!) After our dinner, we were watching our movie and I thought "Oh! we have ICE CREAM!!" So we ate ice cream. It was yummy.

~Oh wait..... did I tell you how GREAT I felt on Thursday ?(before I fell off the wagon)  I had felt so great because I had been GOOD for like a week or so!..... On top of eating better, I had been samba-ing around the house for about three days to the Rio Soundtrack. (The kids love it! especially Adelaide) My abs are killing me BTW...~
    
      So after my bingeing on Thursday I expected to not feel so well on Friday.  I actually felt OK. When I talk about feeling well I want you to know this is not just a "physically" well, but a "mentally" well.  I felt good on Friday but definitely not GREAT like I had felt on Thursday. Today is Saturday and I have felt like CRAP! Emotionally ,in a puddle on the floor and feeling like there is not a thing that I shouldn't eat.
     I say all of this to say. I am going to hop back on that horse in the morning. 1) Finish reading the book ( not just read enough to be dangerous , that's how I take my antibiotics! )2)  Eat better for me and for my family.3) Help my family eat better too!
      I really recommend checking out the book and see if any of the symptoms fit your life. Tired, wired,( actually Tired or Wired is the name of another book recommended to me, I haven't read it yet) weight gain, depressed, tons of other things like fertility issues, fibromyalgia, diabetes, there are all sorts of things that are effected because of your adrenal glands. It's worth a look! You never know what you might find! 

Nit-picky

     How important is it for you to be right? How important is it for you to make your voice heard? I had a struggle with this yesterday
     My wonderful, caring, considerate, husband was not doing things the way * I * would have done it.  I really let it get to me. He wasn't doing anything wrong, it definitely wasn't hurting anyone and I got all bent out of shape about it.  WHY? What good did it do? All day I tried to just let it go. For some reason I couldn't let it go until I talked to him about it. Thankfully he heard me out and did not get his feelings hurt, even though were the situation reversed I most likely would have.
     I am reminded of a quote I read from Debi Pearl " no man has ever crawled out from under his wife's criticism to be a better man- no matter how justified her condemnation". He doesn't go around the house telling me all the things that he wishes that I would do differently (sometimes I think it would do me good).
     I am making a resolution to adjust my heart. Before I start getting carried away with the things that he does or doesn't do, I want to look at myself and try and see things through his eyes. What do I do that drives him crazy? Laundry undone, dishes in the sink, floors unswept ( although not usually all at the same time ;) ?
     I challenge you, next time , before you criticize think of something you could do to help fix the problem. Next time the trash isn't taken out and it is overflowing try tying up the bags yourself, then take them out of the trash can, (that wasn't so bad was it) , might as well just walk it outside! Are you still alive? ( I only say that because the first time I did it, it didn't kill me either)
 I am sure that not all of these things apply to every household, I am sure though that you have your own things you could insert. Next time instead of blaming him, look to yourself. 

Being Feminine

I have had so many blogs on my mind and heart for a while now. With a gentle nudge from a friend I opted to go with this one.  First let me say that with most all of my blogs this is my opinion. I have a lot of opinions. I am not meaning to offend anyone or say that my way is the best way. Just another way.
   

      When you think of feminine what do you think of? A girl/woman with long hair? A woman wearing a dress or skirt? I used to think that being feminine (and modesty)  was more about what was on the inside than what was on the outside. How do you know which bathroom to go into at the restaurant? Because one of them has a dress on!
      I have always been more of a "tomboy" I never liked the idea of parading around in a dress, and doing "girly" things. I wanted to do what the boys were doing. Growing up, there was a period in my life where I was made to wear dresses or skirts. Unless I was doing something that was more practical to do wearing pants. (like riding a horse or hiking, etc). That lead me to rebel as soon as I was able! From that point on I very rarely wore dresses, only if it was a fancy occasion.
     I have recently been giving this whole modesty and feminity thing another chance. It started out because of my girls. They both LOVE dresses and skirts (well Adelaide likes skirts, Charlotte has no love for them). I on the other hand, most ALWAYS wear pants. Lets face it. One of my biggest concerns is having my 3rd born come up behind me, when out in public and lift my dress up, or go to the bathroom and accidently tuck my dress into my underwear!  I just felt that as a mother to 5 young kids it was more "practical" wearing pants. 
       How will my girls become Godly, modest, feminine women if I am not modeling that for them? Sure they can learn it from someone else. Why would I want someone else to be the influence in my childrens lives? God gave these children to ME to raise. He didn't give them to someone else! I am responsible for the way they dress, act, and live.
     That being said, I have revamped my wardrobe. Now I am not saying that I am ALWAYS going to wear dresses or skirts. I can't say that. I don't think that it is something that I HAVE to do. I do feel better about myself though when I am wearing something a little more dressy then my cotton knit capris ! Charlotte about peed her pants when I came out of the bedroom the other day wearing a dress (it was a casual dress). She said "oh Momma, I LOVE your dress, can you twirl?" Bless her heart! She was so thrilled that her momma was wearing a dress. If I can do something so simple to encourage her and build her up. Why not do it?
     If you are interested in a wonderful blog on modesty go to her site www.yourcourageousliving.blogspot.com She is a woman much older and wiser than I. She is in the season of her life where she can help us younger women to understand why we should not  dress in a way that is provocative to men and our brothers in Christ. I HIGHLY recommend checking it out.
      I hope that you have a great week. I hope that it won't be another month before my next update! There are lots of exciting things happening here at the homestead!

Power Tips

These are from a lecture I went to a the beginning of the month. The topic was "Being a Better Mother" the speakers name was Diane Sandusky.

                                                          POWER TIPS
1. Start your day by praying for patience and calmness for yourself and your children. Teach them to remember their Creator in the days of their youth.

2. Take a look at yourself, someone made a difference in you, so you can make a difference in your child.

3. Take TIME for yourself, have a 10 minute "power party" daily. Have a cup of coffee , tea, chocolate, etc.

4.Communicate with your friends. Many of them are facing the same struggles, they really are! You could have a double "10 minute power party". A cup of tea and friends.

5. Keep your sense of humor. It will calm your nerves and endear you to your children.

6. Remember to have plans, but, also remember that plans can and will change, its okay!!

7. Make bedtime a pleasent experience. Many children open their hearts at this time.

8. Be thankful for each day and learn something that will make tomorrow better.

9. Understand that sacrifices will have to be made at times.

10. Your children will make mistakes. Allow them to grow, let them choose sometimes.

She recommended putting them on your fridge. I did exactly that, I laminated them first though, there is always stuff flying around in my kitchen :)

I FEEL GREAT!

      I started to title this blog "It's kind of depressing". However, you get more flies with honey than you do with vinegar. (Did I really just call all of my friends flies?) I figured that people would be more likely to read a blog entitled "I feel great" rather than "I feel like crap". :)
     The truth is I do feel great! This is the first time in FIVE PREGNANCIES that I have felt wonderful.  I have had Post Partum Depression...let me back up. With Jake, I had the "baby blues", that's pretty normal. With Charley, I had some slight depression and even went on *GASP* medicine for a little while.
     With Abe, it was HORRIBLE!!! I have never felt so bad in my life ( that I haven't blocked out). I felt absolutely awful! I withdrew from everyone. The only people I even wanted to talk to were my husband and my mom. I didn't answer the phone. I didn't want to talk to anyone. I would go on walks and want to just keep walking. I knew I was making my family miserable, I felt miserable , and I just knew that I everyone would be better off if I wasn't around. Not dead, just not around. I have never wanted to hurt myself or the kids, I have just wanted to start walking and not come back. This was horrible. Thankfully, I have a wonderful husband who knew to look for warning signs of depression and told me to call my midwife ( he may have even called, I don't remember) . Anyway, I went on meds again and with the exception of a brief period around the time right before I got pregnant with Adelaide, I have been on them ever since. 
     I used to be of the mindset that "I shouldn't have to be on medicine to deal with my life". Some of you may feel that way. Yes, everyone has good days and bad days. Everyone has ups and downs in their lives. There is a disease though called depression. Sometimes it is temporary, sometimes it is chronic. There are different ways to handle depression. Some medicate . With chocolate, meds, alcohol, exercise, etc. There are good ways and bad ways to handle yourself. After Laidey I was OK, things weren't nearly like they were with Abe but it was still a pretty good bout of PPD. There was a time when I would (what I call) "rage". I would scream, yell, and lose control of myself over the most ridiculous things. It makes me cringe and cry to think about it now. To think about my little ones faces. They didn't deserve the misery I put them throughNo one deserves that. I would be as good as I could manage when people were around, but, when I was alone with them. It was like I couldn't control myself.  It makes me so sad to think of how I handled myself. Most of the time I would approach the children and ask for forgiveness for my behavior. At that point though, it's to late! The damage had already been done. After Adelaide I have been on medicine consistently. This is a good thing, it is not a shameful thing, it helps me to be a better mom and I won't feel bad about that.
     Now, back to the beginning. I FEEL GREAT! I really feel that I can say that 10 weeks post partum, this is the best I have EVER FELT. A lot of that I know is my attitude towards things in life. I have really been trying to go with the flow and not let the little things wreck my day. So, Abe ate all my Reese Cups (which is a SEVERE offense) , oh well. I didn't really need them. So, Charlotte spilled her cup at lunch AGAIN! oh well, just have her get a rag and clean it up. So, the tire is flat AGAIN, oh well, you really didn't need to drive the truck today anyway. These things are OK. Not because I am medicated but because I can handle them. I am in control of my emotions, they are not in control of me. I am still on medicine ( I am sure there will be a point where I don't need it anymore, but if not, that is OK).  My outlook is great. Sure I still have bad days, doesn't everyone? I  just look for the silver lining and am not cranky about the clouds. I am enjoying my kids more. Stewy used to say to me, "I just want you to enjoy your kids".  I would be so insulted by that "of course I ENJOY my kids, I'm their mother, I have to enjoy them!!!" I really didn't enjoy them though. Charlotte touched me too much and Abe was always (he still is) into something, Jake is so sensitive and he just needs to "man up" (he was FOUR for Pete's sake!!!) Now I really am enjoying them. they are fun, crazy, kids. I am so very very blessed that God chose me to be their mother. I really have no idea what I would do without every single one of them. God gave me these little souls to steward, train and return to Him unharmed. I am doing my best. I am so thankful that I am not alone in this journey. I owe so much to my husband. He has always been so very understanding and empathetic with me. I never would have made it this far with out him.
     Anyway, that is my story, well, just a bit of my story. (If I told you everything we'd be here till next Sunday!!) I hope that you all are enjoying this ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS weather we have been having! It's still March so we know to expect a few more chilly days , I will take the sunny days when I can get em. Have a wonderful weekend and I hope you feel GREAT!!!

Knitting and such....

     I am sure that any of my FB friends that saw this title just rolled their eyes and opted to not read this *wink wink* .  I know that I have gotten a bit obsessive with my new found hobby but let me tell you I LOVE IT!!! I can be productive with out having to make a mess out of the kitchen by dragging my sewing machine out.  I can be productive in the truck when we are driving to Columbus (about an hour of knitting, one way) . I have made four scarves, one coaster, and I have started a shawl. The shawl is going to be a bigger undertaking than I anticipated ,due to the length of my needles. I love making things, I love looking at something and realizing that I did that. I am the same way about delicious meals. I WANT my family to LOVE eating the food momma makes for them. I don't think that it is prideFUL as much as it is having a sense of pride in what I have made. Anyway I am excited!!!
  Recently we have been discussing Family Entrepreneurialship (that's a word! Listen to Doug Phillips 200 Year Plan, www.visionforum.com) What can we do, as a family, to make money to support ourselves? My first thought is raising chickens for those who are interested in natural chickens and not ones that have been pumped full of junk.  My second thought is raising pigs, again for the same reason. My third thought is having bees, because honey is EXPENSIVE!! I know I have lots of ideas and we will just have to see where they lead us. These are not just my ideas, a lot of them came from Stewy too.  My fourth thought, is knitting my little heart out and selling things at Farmers Markets.  My fifth is teaching my children to knit and having a sweatshop in the back of our truck on the trips to Columbus!!  You can see where this is going and I won't bore you with anymore!!
   I have also had the interest, several of my friends have inspired me, to eat naturally. Eat food in the form that God intended it. Not in all of its processed glory.  I have conflicting thoughts but, I think that those will be laid to rest once I put my ideas in actions. Since Stewy is diabetic, I have been to a couple of "how to eat cause you are a diabetic classes". In the classes they promote eating some man made foods because the stuff God made isn't good for you. Like butter, which, should be eaten in moderation anyway right? Yeah, tell Abe that! So I have started learning some things from www.heavenlyhomemakers.com (thanks Laura) and we have some of those documentaries about the food industry in our Netflix queue. This is just something else that I am excited about!!
     As far as the weight loss goes, it does not go well. I haven't gained, but I haven't lost either. I am not motivated at this point to add this into my day. I am drinking more water, and trying to eat less (sometimes) but this is my downfall. Right now, I am OK with that. :)
    This is the first pregnancy in five where I have not had at least a small amount of PPD. I had it the worst with Abe, it was a little better with Adelaide. This is something that I struggle with and I have been very happy to feel pretty normal in these 9 weeks since Isaac.  I have changed my attitude a lot and I know that this has helped.  I am trying to give more things to God and trust in Him that he will take care of us.  Easier said than done, but, I feel pretty confident in where I am.
    Well, I know that it has been a while since my last post. Hopefully the next one will be sooner. I am busy you know......knitting!!!