The Library and Other Random Stuff

I have rediscovered the library. Lydia and I went yesterday because there was a book that I wanted to check out and I thought we could start making a weekly date with each child individually. I had a lot of errands to run yesterday and Nathan was working from home, so Lydia and I took off to the library. When we were getting our new library cards I discovered that I hadn't had library card in my hometown since 1995! By the way, same librarian. There was some guilt, however, because I currently have 2 books that I checked out under Nathan's name when we were either dating or first married. Either way, they are about 5 years overdue and that's a late charge I can't afford. I will return them, I just can't figure out whether to drop them off in the book drop with money inside the book, or to actually take them inside and be thoroughly honest. Thankfully it's under Nathan's name so I have time to figure it out.


I hosted a pampered chef party last night and we had a lot of fun. My mom rounded up my granny and Aunt Elsie and made them come with her :) It was nice to have a bunch of girls at our house and just get to eat and talk. I still don't know what I am going to get with my hosting benefits, but I need a really good knife, spatula, whisk, pastry blender, and I want the garlic press and this really pretty deep covered baker for cooking whole chickens and such. I will definitely have to narrow my choices down. Another benefit to hosting this party is that my house is clean, still/again. It's been a week or more of cleanliness around here (except when I let the dishes go over the weekend), and Nathan fixed the sink so it no longer leaks! I still have a lot of laundry (always!) and our bedroom is almost un-walk-through-able, but the rest of the house is presentable!


Isaiah is now able to take scraps out to the chickens. This is fan-tas-tic. He has also been Kung Fu-ing all over the house since Christmas. (He got the movie Kung Fu Panda) He is a Kung Fu Master by now and he bows all the time.


In other random news, we have colds. Toby is the worst right now, I'm right behind him, Lydia is getting over hers, Isaiah will probably not ever get it because his immune system is apparently the bomb (wait...are we still allowed to say that...I vaguely remember that being a saying when I was in middle school which was about 10 years ago. I wonder what the new "bomb" is...Let me know if you know so I don't sound like an old fogey.) Poor Toby and his snotty nose and sad little sick eyes. At least he's more snuggly when he's sick which I just love :) Oh and Nathan will probably be orange juicing up and vitamin c dropping so he doesn't get it.


And, I have a confession... I bought bread. I bought hot dog buns for the mini hamburgers we made for the pampered chef party last night (which I am not even counting) and I bought a store made (like by the Kroger bakery) Italian sweet loaf, AND I bought whole wheat bagels. I have missed bread. I haven't made any since I was in Texas. So I broke down at the store yesterday and went crazy. The bagels rock. And I bought doughnuts. Oh dear.
Wow, I had no idea what I was going to write about today, but I just keep going and going....I think I am going to go read my library book now since it is nap time :)

Just a couple of photos from a month or two ago. I rarely ever get them all together!

Chickens and Haircuts

Well, today Nathan killed 2 chickens. One had gotten a hurt leg and the other, I think, was crowing just a little too loudly in the mornings. So, while we were getting all our supplies together and I was putting the scalding water on to boil Isaiah asked if he could wash the chickens. Now, I'm sure he had seen part of the chicken killing process before, but certainly not the death or evisceration, but he somehow knew that Daddy gets to use the water hose to wash the blood off and he volunteered for that job. We thought since he knew so much about the process already that he should be ready to help out some. So, Isaiah helped Daddy kill two chickens today and wasn't even phased by the process. He said that he liked the blood because it looked like red paint, and then proceeded to do a song and dance about eating chicken. As Nathan and I were plucking the feathers off, Isaiah said, "It's white!", but he was not grossed out and is beyond ready to eat chicken very soon. As Isaiah was singing, his enthusiasm was contagious. I, too, cannot wait to have some delicious, home-raised chicken! What am I going to make with our chickens? I haven't had chicken at home for months! I am so excited!


In other news, I gave Lydia her first haircut this week. Her hair is so thin that in the back where her hair was longer than the front was really stringy and we thought it might thicken up if we cut off the extra that was hanging down in the back. I did not cut any around her face, just the longer part in the back and it turned out really cute!

This is the before shot. She was actually excited about getting her hair cut and wanted to use the buzzers like daddy and Isaiah use. We decided to go with scissors instead.

This is the during photo. She ate a banana to keep her still throughout the cut. It only took a few minutes. Notice how long her hair is on her back!

This is the after photo. After she got her hair blown dry and "styled" otherwise known as brushed. Isn't she a cutie?!

Finally!

Today I got the call from the guy to set up an appointment for the state people to come and make an offer on the house! Wednesday at 6:00pm!!!! I can't believe the day is almost here. We've been anticipating this day for a long while and really have no idea what they might offer us. Please pray that all goes well and that we get an offer that we can actually work with. Now I should really be cleaning the heck out of my house! I don't want those people coming over and thinking, "Hmmmm.... this place doesn't look like it's worth that much!" Also, I am considering asking my dad or some other "elder" to be present for the negotiation because we are considerably younger than most of the people the negotiators deal with. Do you think that would make us look even more inexperienced, or that it might help with the negotiations? I always like a confirmation or second opinion, but I also know we can probably do this on our own. We have never had to make offers/counteroffers on a house before so we really don't have any idea how this should work. Also, since we are dealing with the state, basically, they are going to take our house so the road can come through no matter what we get paid. We can't stop them or just not sell our house if the offer isn't enough for our liking, so really we have to approach this sensitively so as not to get kicked out of our house and have it condemned and therefore worthless.
BLAH....I don't feel like I am being coherent today! It has been such a long day of cleaning and keeping kids in line! How many time should I really have to explain to the children in the house that it's not okay to hit each other in the face with the ball, or jump on the bed, or take toys away from the others....yeah, yeah, yeah I know it's all normal mommy stuff, but, whew! I am tired! And my nephew called my daughter a dumb butt today. Yeah, really nice, and now all my kids know that word, though at this point they dare not use it.
Okay! Time to clean and fold, wash and scrub!

Traffic Signals

Don't you wish there were a way to let other drivers know exactly what you're thinking....No, no, no I do not mean ugly hand gestures. I mean how do you tell a person thank you in the dark. I am a big believer in "the thank you wave". If I let someone out/in I expect one and would definitely give one if someone was to let me out/in. But how does one show their appreciation in the dark? Should I start a new thank you signal by signaling to the left, then right, then braking lightly twice? I don't think that would go over very well. Also, HOW do you let someone know that their signal has been on for the last 15 miles? That is one I would really like to get started. What should I do? Turn my signal on and leave it so they notice my signal has been on forever and maybe they will think to check their own? Maybe a hand signal, like opening and closing my fist while hanging it out the window? Again, though, what about in the dark? You see, my brain has so many important thoughts... Yikes.

Do you have a signal you are dying to get started? Like maybe the signal for "your brights are on and you're behind me so I can't flash my lights at you".

S-N-O-W

Before I forget and never ever write it down anywhere, Isaiah SPELLED his first word last week. He spelled s-n-o-w. Of course I helped him sound it out, but he knew each letter on his own with no additional prompting from me other than the actual sound the letters make. Yay! An appropriate first word to spell considering how often it has been dusting us with snow lately. Supposedly we're getting a foot of snow tonight, but that's impossible with global climate change, right?

This makes me excited for homeschooling! I even started moving all the homeschooling stuff together in the dining room so I can have a nice place to sit them down when we do sit down stuff.

I've been thinking.....

I have been thinking lately. I mean really thinking about everyday decisions that I make. I never really questioned before. Until my husband insisted that, yes, chickens in our backyard were a great idea, I had kind of just gone with the flow. Really, my entire life. I was pretty good about obeying my parents, I have never questioned my faith, I was great at doing school (until I got to college). I mean, there was always something a little different about me compared to my friends growing up. I never really "fit" into any specific group entirely, partly because I don't really like to exclude those who want to be included. I had a few friends who I stuck with for the most part, but I was the one who befriended the new kid. I had a great new-kid friend in elementary school that moved away a year later, and I had a great new-kid friend in high school who eventually found a crowd she "fit" with so we drifted. I had a very manipulative friend who disappointed me greatly, and she actually passed away a couple of years ago, after our friendship was kind of nonexistent. I had a group of guys I hung around with for years, but I've drifted probably because I am married with 3 kids now. My "group" growing up kind of held me at a distance, I think, because I was always befriending someone new. I love them, but sometimes I felt like I didn't fit with them. Now my place doesn't determine my friendships and I have a super-cool best friend now, and I am so grateful to have someone I can go to no matter what. Plus, my husband is the best. It is so cool to choose your friends.
Anyway, I'm glad to be thinking and questioning now. I don't just believe everything I hear or read, or someone tells me. I like to find out if it's that way for myself, or I ask Nathan to find out for me since he's always been a thinker--it comes more naturally to him. I am running into some trouble with all this thinking, though. What do I do when my mom disagrees with me. That's been happening more and more lately, and I hate it. I love my mom very much and to cause her grief or worry just plain sucks. But now that I have started down this path, it seems there is no going back to accepting everything just the way it is presented. The worries began with the chickens, but that was just the beginning. I think the dissension really began when we chose not to vaccinate Toby, and is growing over our decision to hopefully move to a farm and live as sustainably as possible. I think it's really hard for her to accept that we may one day live without electricity and milk our own cow and use a composting toilet. (not yet, but someday.)
On top of this I am feeling far away from God. It might be because all this questioning has raised some issues. Not really about my belief. I really truly deeply believe in and put my faith in Jesus. But sometimes about how I might defend my faith if needed, or about following what Jesus might ask me to do. I struggle with being unwilling, disobedient, and especially undisciplined. I have never been a faithful reader of my Bible, and although I pray often, lately it seems like the prayers are more like conversation in my head than conversations with the True and Living God. I am also struggling with the issue of birth control and what to do/not do about having more and more and more children. I think I am afraid to pray about it because the answer might not be one I am going to like-or one that I am willing to obey. I don't want to disobey God--but I also don't want to have 20 kids. Although, I know, I know it would be a blessing. (The prior sentence reads a little too easily--this is a struggle--and a paragraph that I cried through--I really need some peace about this) In this regard, please pray for a hunger to read God's word, wisdom in decisions about more children, and that I will have the courage to obey if the answers I get aren't the ones I hope for. Or you could just pray that God will tell me to tie my tubes : )
I guess I never really faced opposition before, because I never really opposed those around me. Now it seems like all the things I get really excited about are things that will cause some sort of dissonance between me and the family that surrounds me. Who knew that the number of children you have could be an open topic of discussion around the table between the women of my family? What about homeschooling? Although, not nearly as hot a topic as immunization or baby count, still something we differ on with some of the relatives. Also, who cares if I have a cow? Apparently there are some who would adamantly demand that I never have one. (Well, just one, actually.) Who needs to be concerned about the type of dwelling we choose to reside in after we move? Lots of those people, too. They can't talk me out of wanting one of these though.
I love my family dearly, and I just hope we can find a way to live in peace now that I disagree with some of the things they think are best for me. By family I of course mean those outside of my home, you know, Nathan and I agree on the big stuff we are choosing to do together. By living peacefully, I of course mean they will come to fully accept, understand and convert to my way of thinking ;) No, really, just no anger or disappointment would be fantastic. Or worry. No worry either.
Well, being this honest has made me hungry. I may go make some potatoes the way Kristin taught me. Nathan's new favorite breakfast. But seeing as it's 11:15 pm I'll probably just have some cheese or something. We got some really awesome cheese at the Amish store. It's almost gone so I'd better be quick.

Real Quick

Okay, okay I'll blog! I have so much I want to write about our trip to Texas that I never seem to find the time to write a huge post. It was so much fun, so relaxing, and I terribly miss my friends now. And Toby got huge while we were gone.

I made lemon muffins last night and they are gone today. Yum. I think I may make orange muffins next.

I'll write again really soon. Really.