Only 8 days till the wedding! Everything seems to be going quite well. Whew! Serenity made all the bread for the rehearsal dinner the other day. Rosemary bread to go along with the lasagna we’ll be having. I’m having so much fun getting together things for the rehearsal. I’ve used my Silhouette machine quite a bit. Still loving it. I was so proud of Serenity. She had a long day making all the loaves! Justus’s birthday decorations were still up. But I finally took the time to remove them after this picture. Aren’t you proud of me? It was only a week after his birthday. Brushing on the egg glaze Beautiful finished loaves Sliced, buttered and in the freezer. Thank you, Serenity!! A daughter is…
Looks Good & Tastes Better – Rosemary Bread Loaves
Friday, May 10th, 2013 at
5:31 am
Comments (2)
He’s Now 10!
Monday, May 6th, 2013 at
6:57 am
My little guy, Justus, is now 10. Having 6 kids I have learned first-hand that there are no two personalities alike – even in the same family. They all have their own little twist or bent. But that is what makes it fun and keeps it interesting. Of course, along with that comes the challenges. You think that after a few kids you have this raising kids business down pat. Uh, huh. Easy peasy. Sure there are some similarities amongst their own sex. Boys tend to be quite active and not as refined as the girls and the girls have just a wee bit of interest in their appearance whereas boys not quite so much and girls, of course, are just generally more gentle and soft. But…
2013 EXPO Show & Sale
Monday, April 29th, 2013 at
6:00 am
The EXPO show and sale is over. The kids had a lot of fun and placed well in their classes. Justus Wallace – pig farmer After the confirmation class, where Justus placed 1st in the Yorkshire division, Whitey went back to his pen and stretched himself out with his head in the food bowl. I guess he was wore out. It must be hard work being a prize pig. Audrey zipped around on her bike for 3 days. I was so proud of Serenity. With her being on the shy side, she has had to work on this. This year she went into the ring exhibiting confidence. She won Reserve Best of Class for lamb confirmation. Sale day arrived and it was time to…
EXPO Time! Loading Up the Animals
Thursday, April 25th, 2013 at
3:00 am
The 4-H EXPO Show & Sale is here once again! Serenity & Justus are both showing an animal. This is Justus’s first year. Last year Serenity’s lamb died a month before the show and so she sewed 2 aprons for the show & auction. Thankfully, her lamb did great this year. Yesterday they loaded their animals. Our big fat cat (not fat on mice!) relaxin’. The pig, after much coercion, finally went into the trailer. Audrey was adorable – running around helping where she could. Here she’s getting some water for the pig to cool it off after it’s strenuous walk up the plank into the trailer. Loaded and ready to go. Today Justus shows his pig and tomorrow Serenity shows her lamb. It…
The Ending of Our Trip
Monday, March 25th, 2013 at
7:33 am
The Sunday after the wedding, our gracious hosts showed more hospitality and had a luncheon with all the out-of-towners. It was lovely and although they live in small quarters, it just shows once again that you don’t have to be in a big place to be accommodating. You can do it and people will still love it. Monday most everyone left (except for us) and so we waved my sister and her family, as well as Seth the wanderer (my son), who went home with them for a week and doesn’t come home till tomorrow. Time with family and friends… is always delightful… Happily, our next reunion will be in May for Zachary’s wedding. Our last day in Michigan was Tuesday and Russell decided we…
Never Assume
Friday, February 1st, 2013 at
5:00 am
Justus had just poured the dry ingredients for the waffles we were making in with the wet batter. The Kitchen-Aid was turned on but didn’t get the sides clean. I suggested that Justus get a spatula. He did. But it was a metal spatula, and metal spatulas just don’t work too well when cleaning the sides of a bowl. Never assume they know the basics. I felt like I had Amelia Bedilia in the kitchen; you know, the lady who takes everything literally. It’s just so completely adorable how these little guys think. Enjoy the moments with your small children today, they pass quickly.
An Unusual Place for an Engagement Party
Monday, January 14th, 2013 at
5:00 am
Did you know it is possible to throw an engagement party in an airport? My dear husband decided we should welcome back the happily engaged couple who had went, along with my son, to a youth retreat in Tennessee and then up to visit friends in Michigan, as well. It was a red-eye flight, the airport was quietening down after a day of thousands bustling through its corridors. Restaurants had closed but not before we had received permission to set up in one of them. Justus and Audrey were so happy to see their brother Zachary. Since he became engaged they have really latched on to him. Pretty nice, Russell. Pretty nice. (I think he did a beautiful job, don’t you.) Hey, we look pretty good for it being past…
A Blessed Thanksgiving Holiday
Tuesday, December 4th, 2012 at
9:54 am
Thanksgiving for me always brings to mind Family Friends Food Thankfulness for the many ways we are Blessed This year we flew to Pennsylvania for 10 days and spent Thanksgiving with my sister and her family as well as mom and dad. We had some interesting flight times. We woke from our beds at 3:00 to catch our 6 a.m.morning special flight and would have spent the rest of the day in a fog except the airlines was kind enough to arrange a 5 hour layover for us in Chicago. So we decided to see if we could get all 6 of us people’s that were flying into the United Club lounge on 2 passes. At first it was a no-go but then the…
Our World War I Co-op Speech Day – Part I
Tuesday, November 20th, 2012 at
10:00 am
I have learned that… morning functions are a bit challenging.(cough, cough) Our World War I speech co-op day was held Saturday with guests arriving at 10:30a.m. so that we could begin at 11a.m., the time the war ended. But because of the challenge of morning functions, we officially started about 11:15 with the shooting of our cannon and 30 seconds of silence. We had a really good day, the event was smaller than some of our others have been but for some reason I enjoyed it so much. Headquarters was in a canvas wall tent with a wood burning stove to keep us toasty or hot as some probably were. It was a perfect setting. I had a drink station set up outside the tent…
The Day I Faced My Dread
Thursday, October 25th, 2012 at
4:38 pm
Never underestimate the power a picture of a family simply living life together can have on another. Because that’s where it all started for me. You know, most all of us influence somebody by the things that we do, and the way we live, and the things we say. We influence somebody. Somebody is watching your life. — W.M. Branham These pictures of another family made me think. Go ahead & click, I’ll still be here. “You don’t have to be a person of influence to be influential. In fact, the most influential people in my life are probably not even aware of the things they’ve taught me.” ― Scott Adams Because of these pictures, my cardinal rule of NEVER be involved and make…
We Made it Home by a Thread – Our Trip to Zion & Other Places
Friday, October 5th, 2012 at
7:53 am
There’s one thing on kids’ minds when they go camping and that’s Fire Early the next morning, Justus and Audrey got right to that. I can only imagine what it must have been like for the early Indians and pioneers who had to make gathering and cooking their food as a main part of the day. So much work! I wonder if they ever thought of becoming more organized and scheduling their days better? Somehow I just can’t picture that. Can you? After awakening from a cozy slumber and hearing the quiet sounds of twigs being snapped and the murmurs of Zachary, Justus and Audrey, I emerged from the tent to this gorgeous sight. Do you enjoy cooking when you camp? I do. I get…
My Kids Love Doing Chores – How to Make Your Own Chore Board
Monday, July 30th, 2012 at
9:19 am
That title was a good attention grabber wasn’t it? It’s true. I hardly believe it myself. I keep thinking it will wear off. Do you think it’s possible that it may not? I don’t know but… until then, I’m thrilllllled. The first thing Justus and Audrey do in the morning is check out their chore boards. There are some days that they’re more eager than other – I cannot tell a lie. But overall I have kids who are eager to do their chores. Even on Saturdays! They ask me to give them jobs on Saturday’s, too. Today I’m finally going to share with you how you can make your very own. It’s not rocket science which is exactly the kind…
Youth Camp in Ohio – Part III
Monday, July 16th, 2012 at
6:38 am
There are so many facets to camp that it can be hard to express what it means to me. I love seeing old friends (people I’ve known since I was a teenager) meeting new ones and seeing my little ones excited to go because they so enjoy all the activities geared just for them. They even have their own church services (it’s geared to ages 10-14 but Justus at age 9 understands, too). Camps are a wonderful opportunity to set aside the cares of life and put your focus on the Lord. And when you turn your heart towards God, He never disappoints. This year was such a blessing to me but even more important, the kids who came to camp were filled, renewed, blessed and are committed to running and…
Youth Camp in Ohio 2012 – Part II
Thursday, July 12th, 2012 at
7:24 am
At the youth camp there was always a lot going on. Volleyball, Basketball, Choir Practice, Sewing, Girls Only Talks on Modesty, Boys Only Talks, Campfire with Testimonies on 2 nights (one night it was just TOO HOT for a fire, so we stood around a fire pit that had wood minus the fire. That worked, too. ) I didn’t get pictures of all these things but here are some of the other activities that went on. Plenty to do for all ages, that’s for sure! I love seeing Justus and Audrey’s enthusiasm when they are planning to go to an activity. They are very aware of the time and they make sure they get where they’re supposed to be at the right time. One afternoon there was a…
How to Motivate Your Kids to Do Their Chores
Tuesday, July 10th, 2012 at
6:02 am
Wouldn’t it be a dream if your kids woke up each morning and ran to look at their chore chart to see what they were to do around the house? Well I have recently made chore boards for my kids that pretty much is working that way. I cannot believe how successful this has been with my 9-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter. Let me tell you about it. Do you remember when Choreganizers came out several years ago? It was basically a visual way for your children to do their chores. Each child has a chart with 5 pockets and you put a chore card (a stack of chore cards come with Choreganizer) that has a picture in each slot. As the child did the chore, they then removed it from its slot and…
Touring the Canadian Rockies
Thursday, June 21st, 2012 at
6:58 am
After leaving Vancouver, we headed for the gorgeous Canadian Rockies. Being from dry Arizona, it was amazing to see water everywhere. Rivers, water flowing along the ditches of the road in many areas, coming down off the mountain in a waterfall. There was so much water that it got to a point where everyone almost quit looking when you said waterfall. Glaciers, snow capped mountains like this one. And of course, there were the clouds. It was usually raining or threatening to rain. The clouds were interesting to me; I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many low ones. There would be little solitary wisps of clouds suspended quite low. Driving along, in the middle of nowhere. Nowhere pretty much means anywhere in Canada that is…
We Visited the State Whose Motto is “She Flies with Her Own Wings”? What’s Its Name?
Tuesday, June 12th, 2012 at
3:44 pm
Okay, what’s your guess? Did you answer Oregon? After saying goodbye to our relatives in California we were Bound for Oregon except we had the comforts of our Suburban instead of a bumpy wagon. The old pioneers of our nation were pretty impressive, weren’t they? Men and women of grit! I digress. Back to 2012. We decided to celebrate Justus’ birthday (that was in April) while on our trip. After having a little fun on the way, we drove all night… Can you believe Audrey rode this? 175′ tall and you’re not in a cage! …and arrived in Oregon at daybreak. I love this state. As we were driving up the scenic highway, we came upon an elk viewing station where you could watch Roosevelt elk.and a variety of birds….
The Start of My Gorgeous & Fruitful Garden
Friday, May 25th, 2012 at
1:36 pm
I finally got the garden all planted… well, mostly. All that will probably get done this year. With Zach gone, it fell to me to be the Master Gardener around here. I really should take a lesson from Lily (have you read her blog Bountiful Blessings yet? if not, you should) and get my kids to work with me. Justus & Audrey did for a while but I think it would be better if we did the whole garden all together. I find the garden to be so soothing and I’m hoping it will be rewarding me with bushels of veggies in several weeks. I picture something like Lily’s garden… or the Strite’s garden they have in their greenhouse… Beautiful but sadly, my garden may look like…
EXPO 2012 Has Ended
Monday, April 30th, 2012 at
9:30 am
EXPO’s over. Saturday was a great auction day – beautiful weather and buyers were really generous. The last few years the price’s were lower but this year was really good. Audrey got to be part of the opening ceremonies with the Clover Bud kids from our club. Serenity sold her 2 aprons with matching potholders for $300. Wesley had a great year with some new buyers & some really loyal bidders entering into the bidding process. His pig sold for $5.50/lb. for a total of $1,452. Whoa! He was so excited since it was way more than he was expecting. I made a variety of treat packages. Some for the 4-H leaders, others for kids that it was their last year, and plastic baggies for those…
And the Award Goes to… Serenity!
Friday, April 27th, 2012 at
8:19 am
It was another bad-weather day at EXPO. The weather turned cold and it poured rain. Mud, mud, mud! Thankfully, Justus brought his mud boots because he needed them – but it wasn’t enough to just walk in the mud and smoosh it around, he had to scoop it up in his hands and watch it ooze. No picture, but it was quite a sight. Wesley didn’t place but he did very well. For showmanship he placed 3rd in his class beat by two other girls that are in our club. Wesley and Molly, who’s on the far right, used to always be neck and neck in showmanship and one or the other would win 1st or 2nd place but for the last few years, Molly’s pulled…
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