Chicken coop

Chicken coop
Spring

Monday, May 31, 2010

Dad's are forever

We set up camp at a friend's camp ground Sunday after church, and settled in for some fun on the river for Memorial Day.  I had worked until 3:30 that morning, so I was dragging a bit, and my husband kicked into high gear and set up both tents and all the odds and ends.  He and the children swam in the French Broad River until they were all exhausted and positively happy to the bone.  After dinner, I went back to work for a 7P-11P short shift to return to bed down with the family.  Early that morning it started to rain....drizzling at first and then the flood gaits opened.  We went to breakfast at 6:45AM, and went back after to finish packing up the wet tents.  After arriving home, everyone was so cheerful and happy...not exactly what I expected after 24 hrs of lots of work, lots of fun, and lots of rain.  I had to run back to the hospital for several hours to work on my Pear report and upon my return trip home I heard a program from Focus on the Family about a gentleman remembering his father and his great love for him and just how pivotal his relationship with his Dad had been.  He related all his success and failures to this first true relationship of love.  I immediately thought of my own husband and the relationship he has with his own children, our children.  How he regularly cries thinking of them, their successes, their struggles, their lovely ways, and the gift they are to us.  My husband spends every weekend caring for our small brood, as I work at the hospital to help ends meet and get a dose of humanity outside of our home and continue my lifelong ministry of nursing.  I never had to remind him to "feed the children", or to get them to bed on time.  He sees to every need, like a mission and he delights in the small special moments.  This radio program brings me back to center, and stills the pendulum of my busy life to see the miracle that is my spouse.  He nearly died two years ago, and I would be living a very different reality and my children would miss their Father forever, as I am MOM and he is DAD.

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Linen Closet

What is the deal with the linen closet?  I open the door and stuff falls out.  I carefully organized it 6 months ago...and it's back to it's disorganized self.  This will be first on my list for Tuesday.  I pull everything out and reorganize, throw out the old and tattered and again in  months things will be falling off the shelves.  This reminds me of the sin in my life...occasionally I will sort through it, throw things out, deal with the mess and close the door.  Then it keeps throwing it's dirtiness at my feet and I'll deal with the stinky sinful me.  Note to self...get to confession monthly so the stuff doesn't pile up.  That is my ah ha moment for today.  In the meantime, I'm going to clean, organize, and throw some stuff out!!!  Thank goodness for Dow Scrubbing Bubbles!

Friday, May 28, 2010

Forever 26

Okay...seriously, when I am not near a mirror I swear I am 26.  You heard me right, 26, not 36!  It blows my mind when I have trouble doing a cartwheel in the yard with the kids...or climbing up the stairs of my kid's tree house...why is this hard...oh yea, "I'm 44."  Crazy.  When I'm 70 will I still be 26 in my head?  When does this change.  Now I'm officially the age of my dear mother when I thought her officially OLD.  Am I old?  No...but definitely middle aged, but the soul is still a young girl.  My daughter said to me the other night that I am too old to have a baby.  She is just mimicking my mantra, but still I paused and said, "Hey...I'm not old."  Yes, another of life's paradox.  When does the soul and body reconcile to the same age grouping?  Not sure, I will let you know if this ever happens.  Until then, I cartwheel away....when no one is looking of course.

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Book Sale

My friend Jen B says that books are her crack!  I totally agree.  We journeyed to Winston-Salem for the Homeschool conference and attended the book sale.  This is a huge conf center with wall to wall vendors selling their wares.  It boggles the mind and frankly all the senses to see the sea of people who have chosen to school their children at home.  The once very hot topic has become status quo as everyone knows someone that homeschools.  This is so popular that a school system in Florida offers option out of the public school system.  We made our way to the booths that caught our interest and made our purchases, then it's back to the cool green mountains where we belong.  It's back to mommy duty.

Eggs, eggs, eggs

Joe just brought me 2 doz eggs from the coop in a big yellow dump truck..."I didn't have a bowl...I dropped one and Mickey ate it."  Mickey is our mentally challenged Labrador.  The method of delivery was a first...should have taken a picture.  That Joe...he is amazing.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Grandma's house

My older two children are spending the night at Grandma's house....well Grandpa lives there too, but it is referred to by all as Grandma's house.  This house has the magical fridge, at any moment she can pull dinner for 12 out without any notice or planning.  It's just like she has been expecting you!  The bathrooms are always clean, and the children love to be there.  Upon telling the said children that their Grandparents are away, these same children will insist that you drive by...just in case.  There is always Sunday Brunch, Diet Coke with Splenda, cold can beer, and munster cheese in the fridge.  You will never have to ask for a kiss as they are freely given, and Grandpa will steel away from his adult children as they gather to talk with his brother on Skype across the big ocean...their devotion palatable.  Their TV will never have more than 5 stations, and the Sunday paper will be spread across the coffee table, along with the newest Ignatius Press Best Seller.  There is a rosary in every chair, a crucifix in every room, and prayer is just easier there.  This is a little piece of heaven...home.

Swimming at the "P's"

Had our first swim date at our friends the "P's"....short for a very long Polish name with lots of vowels that none of my children can say....the water, extremely chilly, crystal blue and way fun!  The "P" children left us on our own to swim while they went in for showers, because it was too cold.  Pan in to my crazy children that were all in the water.  This reminds me of my childhood in Florida and how our cousins from NJ and NY would come and swim in March, which was a month too early for us.  The was the plight of the "visitors".  Does this make us the "visitors"?

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Bedtime

All the little people that live here are in their beds, quietly detoxing from their day.  I love the evening stillness.  Thinking of the book sale on Thursday and I'm almost sure I will be going with Teaching Textbooks.....just love the computer driven teaching and immediate feedback.  Kids are reading Saddles, Stars, and Stripes The Pony Express and I must admit, I am enjoying it as well.  Just finished a book on Purgatory....I need to pray more.  Will try my parents on Skype.  Goodnight!

Chicken coop has been mucked

Okay, so you should muck out your chicken coop twice a year....well it's been a year and we are just getting to it...and when I say we, I mean hubbie and first son. We have a coop that is 24x24 with a wood floor and wooden sides on 3 walls and the 4th is chicken wire that we cover with a clear plastic product used for greenhouses. This gives our girls plenty of ventilation.