Daybook - Thursday, March 25th

outside my window . . . it’s a bit overcast but there are signs that spring is coming

in the kitchen . . .  chaos reigns but I will soon be going in there and getting things in order.  We are having surf and turf tonight in honor of Andy’s birthday…crab legs and London broil…Yum!

around the house . . .  We are all around the house. The kids are dispersed about resting and relaxing.

on my iPod . . . I’ve been ODing on the newest BBC version of Emma.  Lately I’ve also been downloading lots of opera …Pavarotti, Flores and Fleming

from our studies . . . we are almost done with our study of World History. 

thinking about . . .  not much. I’ve been so tired lately that fog reigns in the brain.

listening to. . . blessed quiet

thankful for. . . my hubby who is 50 today!

pondering the words . . . “Do the Next Thing” Can you tell I’m in survival mode?

to foster rhythm and beauty . . . oh boy! Need to work on that.

one of my favorite things . . .  sleep.  I can’t get enough of it lately

milestones in the past week . . . besides Andy turning 50?

a few plans for the upcoming week . . . next week we look forward to Chase coming home for a long weekend for Easter break. We will celebrate his 19^th birthday and later have friends over for Easter Sunday.  It will be a fun week.

Words for Wednesday

This is like so cool...ya know?


Typography from Ronnie Bruce on Vimeo.

Happy Dependence Day

As Mark Steyn put it, Sunday, March 21, 2010 is Dependence Day....and a sad day for our country.  I feel that I now must respond in some way to this travesty inflicted on our country.  I will be praying about what my response should be...but I am thinking about becoming more active in the coming elections.  I also plan to educate my children even more carefully on our country's Constitution and what it really says.  I want them to be educated and thinking citizens who will not fall for hollow rhetoric.  Here is a great quote from Thomas Jefferson:

"Government big enough to supply everything you need is big enough to take everything you have ... The course of history shows that as a government grows, liberty decreases."

Funny...but sadly, true

Friendship

Well, we were talking about Blogs today at co-op and so...I think I'll start trying to blog a little more often. I began looking around at some of my favorite blog and I found the following lovely quote about friendship. I have been blessed to have such a friend....and I'm so thankful!

All kinds of things rejoiced my soul in the company of my friends--
to talk and laugh and do each other kindnesses;
read pleasant books together,
pass from lightest jesting to talk of the deepest things and back again;
differ without rancor, as a man might differ with himself,
and when most rarely dissension arose
find our normal agreement all the sweeter for it;
teach each other and learn from each other;
be impatient for the return of the absent,
and welcome them with joy on their homecoming;
these and such like things,
proceeding from our hearts
as we gave affection and received it back,
and shown by face, by voice, by the eyes,
and a thousand other pleasing ways,
kindled a flame which infused our very souls
and of many made us one.
This is what men value in friends.

~ St. Augustine

The Current View

I've seen blog entries where they answer a series of questions and I thought I would give it a try.

What I Hear:
Distant thunder.

What I See:
Abby playing with Legos

What's for dinner:
Sausage and Fennel in the Crockpot

Where Everyone Is:
I am sitting out on the screened in porch with the fan on. Chase is in his room. Hanna is on the couch under a blanket. Not sure where Andy, Brooke or Abby is.

Recent Music:
Created an Andrea Bocelli radio station on Pandora (www.pandora.com)

Recent Books Seen Around the House:
Kite Runner...I read it first and then had Andy read it. We both liked it very much. The Complete Works of Jane Austen, Selected Essays of Russel Kirk, The Red House by Milne, Gilead

Weather:
Overcast...waiting for rain to get here. I can smell the rain. It's not that hot so the fan is making me cold. I should get up and turn it off...but I'm comfortable in my chair. :)

Thoughts:
My cold heart toward God...Pastor has been preaching about our sin and how we can backslide so easily. He's preaching to me.

What I’m Working On:
Getting ready for school...not this minute...but I will be working on it this week.

What I am Happy About:
Having 2 weeks without too much to do but enjoy summer.

What I’m Not So Happy About:
The behavior of some of my children. :(

Spiritual Focus:
Getting my heart right with the Lord.

Recent Kitchen Events:
Not much of anything...Kombucha & Kefir are fermenting.

Formal Academics:
None

Informal Learning:
None

Culture:
How about anti-culture? We watched Fat Albert last night. Terrible!

Movies:
I watched Regarding Henry also on Netflix Instant Viewing. I love that movie...although there is too much bad language.

Wearing:
Fresh Produce T-dress

Creating:
Does a website count?

Grateful for:
Family & Normalcy. We are all under one roof and having a regular schedule of meals and bedtime. I don't know why I like that so much...but I do.

Some things I want to do this week:
Get plenty of time in the sun.

The Morning the Cows Got Out

I have to tell you about my morning. I woke up early and decided that I would go for a run. I got all ready, walked out the door and I could hear the cows mooing. Our barn is about a 1/2 mile from our house. Now hearing the cows from the house is not that unusual…but they did seem a little louder than normal. So I warmed up, stretched and was on my way. As I was coming closer to the barn I noticed the cows making a lot of noise. I thought that maybe they were very anxious for Andy to get up there. Andy goes up every morning to do his morning chores. I crossed the creek and looked over at our neighbor’s property…and there were our 13 cows…out..loose….Holy Cow!

They were over there visiting the 2 cows that our neighbor has. I turned around and took off at a sprint back for the house….but the house is a long way off…it would take me forever to get there. I quickly changed my mind and decided it would be better to go to the barn. It was closer. So I sprinted to the barn. I am just starting to run regularly so I am still a bit out of shape. I ended up getting so out of breath as I ran up the hill to the barn that I had to stop and walk, which was very frustrating because time was of the essence. As I came to the barn I noticed poop everywhere out front…where poop is not supposed to be. I ran in and called the house and thankfully Andy answered….”The cows are out!...They're at the neighbor’s! ...Get the kids!” I grabbed the grain bucket and jumped in the truck and took off. I’m getting good at this. LOL! I helped a friend chase her cows a few weeks ago.

I went tearing down the driveway…and I mean tearing. I saw the cows venturing away from the fenced cows in the direction of the road. So I came to our neighbor’s driveway and parked the truck crossways to help block them in. I jumped out with the bucket and started running and banging the bucket. We call the cows in everyday by banging the bucket. The bucket means grain...and they LOVE grain.

They were back by the fence when I got there and very interested in me and the beloved bucket. I walked up slowly…thankfully I quickly figured out how to open the fence to the neighbor’s fenced in pasture..opened it up and walked in banging the bucket. They weren’t sure at first but they began walking into the fenced in area. All you have to do is get some of them in and usually the rest follow. Andy got there by this time and helped coax in a couple of strays. Bam! Fence closed…cows caught. LOL! That was easy! That was when the kids showed up in the gator. Mommy had to show off a little cause I caught the cows...practically by myself.

Now we had to get our cows back to our pasture. Andy went and got the stock trailer. The neighbor’s pasture has a little corral attached to it which has a chute off to the side. So Andy backed up the trailer to the chute. We then had to get out in the field and coax the cows toward the corral. That wasn’t too hard but it takes time. You have to be slow and patient with them. So we get them in the corral and weed out the neighbor’s cows.

Seems like it will be easy from there…but it wasn’t…it was much harder. We got some down the chute but they would stop dead in front of the trailer and refused to go in. Then we get too many down the chute…some heading in, some heading out. They would get all wedged in there and not move. We were pushing and kicking and shoving. I was climbing up and down the fence, which was really high, trying to coax them in. Pushing them with my feet...twisting their tail. FRUSTRATING! Finally…after MUCH effort…. we got them in. Two loads.

I was covered in poop, dirt and hay. I was exhausted because I was up and down and up and down this fence…pushing..shoving..opening and closing the trailer door. I have to say that cow wrangling is much more tiring than running. I came home, ate breakfast, took a shower and now I am back in bed. Everyone’s gone…maybe I will take a nap.

The whole novelty of chasing cows has worn off for me. I hope I won’t be doing it again for anytime soon.

Oh, and it was Andy’s fault. He had to take down some of the electrical fence when he was baling yesterday. He didn’t realize that it caused the fence to go down where the cows where. They must have been out all night….partying.

So that was my morning. Just had to share.

Winter Vacation

Here is a view of the beach from my lounge chair. Yes, those are my toes. I loved that we sat back in the trees a bit. We rarely saw anyone on the beach. It was like being on our own little deserted island...except now and then a man would come ask us if we wanted something to drink. Paradise!

Attitude and Diligence

Something to think about. Have my heart attitudes been pleasing to the Lord during the day? Have I been resentful of the demands on my time? By the children? By my husband? By the church? By friends? By duties that must be done?

Some more good questions to consider. Does my husband or family have physical or practical needs that I have not been meeting? Do I make myself available to my husband - to spend time with him, to listen to him? Do I express guenuine interest in the things that are important to him?

Do I delight to do God's will? (Psalms 40:8) Do I serve the Lord with gladness? (Psalm 100:2)

Do I work with a negligent hand or a diligent hand? In raising my children? In running my school? In teaching my children? In running my household? (Proverbs 10:4) The King James Bible doesn't say a negligent hand but a slack hand. A slack hand shows that work is being done. Just not thoroughly. Not with energy. Not with a good attitude. The slack hand is also deceitful, pretending to do work and yet not really working. I have a slack hand in many areas of my life! With diligence I might have a continual feast...but not with negligence. The feast and riches come from diligent hard work. "Our idle days are Satan's busy days," says Bishop Hall. "The diligent servant is honoured with an increase of his grace (Matt. 25:29)..." Charles Bridges in Proverbs. I could have many more riches in my children if I were more diligent in training and educating them. Lord, show me the way to go. And grant me the diligence to do it. Please help me to put off a slack and negligent hand and to put on diligence.

Summer school planning

Been planning my heart out these last few days. Also cleaning out the school room. I hope to be done soon. I hope to be able to relax for the rest of the summer. At least to have the planning done.

We are signing up for lots of lessons this summer after a quiet summer last year. My Energizer Bunny wants to take Horseback riding lessons and she was asked to be on the local gymnastics team. I want her to take Violin lessons. They are all taking swim lessons. At least I hope so. Sign up is tomorrow. Oldest Son is signed up for Sax lessons. Think we are doing too much? Me too!

We are also organizing all over the house. Needless to say it is a mess. But, Lord willing, it will be peacefully organized soon.

A pretty poor start to my Blog...but you gotta start somewhere.