And looking cool.
Is he not the cutest thing EVER!?
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Note to self...
...and anyone else who has children and may ever go on a week long vacation.
BEFORE you leave for 8 whole days and are checking the house before you leave, make sure you flush all the toilets just in case one of your children, who most always forgets to flush the toilet, forgets again and that nastiness sits in a hot house for 8 whole days.
What a lovely thing to come home to after a 12 hour drive, hey?
Too graphic for you? Life with children is often not pretty and hardly ever smells like roses.
BEFORE you leave for 8 whole days and are checking the house before you leave, make sure you flush all the toilets just in case one of your children, who most always forgets to flush the toilet, forgets again and that nastiness sits in a hot house for 8 whole days.
What a lovely thing to come home to after a 12 hour drive, hey?
Too graphic for you? Life with children is often not pretty and hardly ever smells like roses.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Some Subtle Effects of the Birth Control Culture
Copied with permission from Making Home. This is a fantastic blog that I just found and this post pretty well sums up my thoughts on this subject. I hope you enjoy it!
Lately, I've been noticing some trends that I think are directly attributable to the rise-- indeed the expectancy-- of birth control use in our culture. I'd like to talk through them one by one so it's clear what I'm getting at. I believe that there are consequences that are a direct result of our culture's embracing of the birth control mindset as normative, and here are a few.
#1: Young couples are thought irresponsible when they get pregnant right away...
...because, the implication is, any "wise" couple would wait and follow the oft-given advice (even by pastors) that you should "take a few years to get to know each other" first. This basic assumption overlooks the fact that even with birth control usage, regular intercourse often leads to a pregnancy. Indeed, that is the general plan of God's design for marital intimacy.
It also overlooks the fact that children are a part of God's design for sanctification of parents, and that the continuation of a self-focused lifestyle has not served America's "Christian" marriages well.
#2- "Was it planned?" is no longer deemed a rude and quite personal question, but in fact, is seen as a natural question...
...because, the way our culture sees it, it is up to us to "plan" when life will begin according to our own time tables and goals. The abortion-on-demand mindset tells us that we can control when life ends, so why not believe that we have full control of when it begins as well?
#3- Children are often seen, and even referred to, as an "accident".
Perhaps you've been fortunate enough to not ever have actually heard someone call their child by such an insulting description (an "oops baby", or "our little accident")... but it's all too common. Linked to the idea above, this whole notion is a natural attitude when we believe that we are the ones in control of life.
#4- Large families are often seen as incredible (and thus, put on an undeserved pedestal) or insane (and thus, sneered at behind their backs)...
...because once you can control how many "little buggars" you get, someone who has more than the two (or maybe three, if your first two are of the same gender) MUST be either Mother Teresa, or one step away from the loony bin.
#5- Anyone who has clearly NOT bought into the birth control culture at any point is seen as fair game for jokes, criticism, or invasive questions, because (it is assumed) they "chose" something different...
...because now, the "norm" is obvious: it is assumed that you WILL limit your own family size, shape, and timing according to your own will. The family that has two children 14 months apart gets jokes ("Haven't you figured out how that happens?" hardee-har-har) and eyerolls at their (implied) stupidity. The couple that has struggled with infertility now feels obligated to share that very personal information, because others imply or outright state that they are intentionally avoiding children, calling them selfish or scared. (Talk about adding insult to injury!) And of course, there's the classic large family comments.
#6- By extension, because they "chose" their family size, the larger-than-average family is often expected to never lack, to never struggle with discipline, to never be tired, etc.... even by Brothers and Sisters in Christ.
Don't believe me? Think again.
If a two-year-old in a family of seven children has tantrums or is wearing mismatched clothes, it's because "the mom is spread too thin". But if that same child is the only child of two doting parents, it's because "bless his heart; he's a normal two-year-old" and because independent little two-year-olds love to pick out their own clothes.
If a mother of three children is exhausted as she's pregnant with her fourth, it's likely to be met with an "I told you so" attitude from those who have already inappropriately shared their thoughts about family size. And she rarely gets sympathy. More likely, she'll get a "you made your bed, now lie in it" perspective from most of the people around her. But a first time mother struggling with morning sickness gets sympathetic comments and offers for how others can help.
And lest you think I'm just whining as a mom of four, I'm really not... I'm just stating things the way I've plainly seen them. And these are things I hear from many of you, my friends and readers.
#7- A young professional women is "throwing her career away" if she opts to stay home with her new baby....
...because she could have controlled that for another 10 years, and really DONE something with her life, don't ya know?
#8- Couples are often shocked and dismayed when they struggle with infertility...
...because the whole issue is so framed by an "in control" attitude. It seems so easy to NOT have children, and thus, it should be easy TO have them, right? Sadly, many modern couples either aren't even marrying until less fertile ages, and then may find themselves desperate to have children... or they have followed the common advice to take some time for themselves, only to find that once they finally get off the pill, they struggle to get pregnant at all.
Even the couple who would love to have children and hasn't put it off or waited gets rude comments from family and friends because our culture has such an "if you want it, you can get it" attitude about everything, including children. And underlying all of it is the cultural idea of "rights"... that we have the right to have children or not have them, whenever we so desire.
#9- OTHER EFFECTS
I won't even go into the rise in casual sex (a.k.a. fornication), affairs (a.k.a. adultery), and abortion (a.k.a. murder) due to the ease of birth control procurement and use.
SO WHAT'S THE SOLUTION???
The answer isn't that we bang down the doors of the courts and seek to legislate birth control usage. That ship has sailed.
In my view, the answer IS that Christian couples should seek God's face and become that peculiar people-- a people that stands out as set apart and different from the world around us-- in this area of how we view children. A people who see children as blessings. A people who discipline our children in the Lord, so that we aren't so bowled over by our disobedient, bratty children that we can't STAND the thought of more. A people who aren't afraid to live as strangers in this world that kills and throws away imperfect children, medicates children instead of offering loving discipline, and that acts and thinks as though we are the ones in control of life. Heaven help us!
Lately, I've been noticing some trends that I think are directly attributable to the rise-- indeed the expectancy-- of birth control use in our culture. I'd like to talk through them one by one so it's clear what I'm getting at. I believe that there are consequences that are a direct result of our culture's embracing of the birth control mindset as normative, and here are a few.
#1: Young couples are thought irresponsible when they get pregnant right away...
...because, the implication is, any "wise" couple would wait and follow the oft-given advice (even by pastors) that you should "take a few years to get to know each other" first. This basic assumption overlooks the fact that even with birth control usage, regular intercourse often leads to a pregnancy. Indeed, that is the general plan of God's design for marital intimacy.
It also overlooks the fact that children are a part of God's design for sanctification of parents, and that the continuation of a self-focused lifestyle has not served America's "Christian" marriages well.
#2- "Was it planned?" is no longer deemed a rude and quite personal question, but in fact, is seen as a natural question...
...because, the way our culture sees it, it is up to us to "plan" when life will begin according to our own time tables and goals. The abortion-on-demand mindset tells us that we can control when life ends, so why not believe that we have full control of when it begins as well?
#3- Children are often seen, and even referred to, as an "accident".
Perhaps you've been fortunate enough to not ever have actually heard someone call their child by such an insulting description (an "oops baby", or "our little accident")... but it's all too common. Linked to the idea above, this whole notion is a natural attitude when we believe that we are the ones in control of life.
#4- Large families are often seen as incredible (and thus, put on an undeserved pedestal) or insane (and thus, sneered at behind their backs)...
...because once you can control how many "little buggars" you get, someone who has more than the two (or maybe three, if your first two are of the same gender) MUST be either Mother Teresa, or one step away from the loony bin.
#5- Anyone who has clearly NOT bought into the birth control culture at any point is seen as fair game for jokes, criticism, or invasive questions, because (it is assumed) they "chose" something different...
...because now, the "norm" is obvious: it is assumed that you WILL limit your own family size, shape, and timing according to your own will. The family that has two children 14 months apart gets jokes ("Haven't you figured out how that happens?" hardee-har-har) and eyerolls at their (implied) stupidity. The couple that has struggled with infertility now feels obligated to share that very personal information, because others imply or outright state that they are intentionally avoiding children, calling them selfish or scared. (Talk about adding insult to injury!) And of course, there's the classic large family comments.
#6- By extension, because they "chose" their family size, the larger-than-average family is often expected to never lack, to never struggle with discipline, to never be tired, etc.... even by Brothers and Sisters in Christ.
Don't believe me? Think again.
If a two-year-old in a family of seven children has tantrums or is wearing mismatched clothes, it's because "the mom is spread too thin". But if that same child is the only child of two doting parents, it's because "bless his heart; he's a normal two-year-old" and because independent little two-year-olds love to pick out their own clothes.
If a mother of three children is exhausted as she's pregnant with her fourth, it's likely to be met with an "I told you so" attitude from those who have already inappropriately shared their thoughts about family size. And she rarely gets sympathy. More likely, she'll get a "you made your bed, now lie in it" perspective from most of the people around her. But a first time mother struggling with morning sickness gets sympathetic comments and offers for how others can help.
And lest you think I'm just whining as a mom of four, I'm really not... I'm just stating things the way I've plainly seen them. And these are things I hear from many of you, my friends and readers.
#7- A young professional women is "throwing her career away" if she opts to stay home with her new baby....
...because she could have controlled that for another 10 years, and really DONE something with her life, don't ya know?
#8- Couples are often shocked and dismayed when they struggle with infertility...
...because the whole issue is so framed by an "in control" attitude. It seems so easy to NOT have children, and thus, it should be easy TO have them, right? Sadly, many modern couples either aren't even marrying until less fertile ages, and then may find themselves desperate to have children... or they have followed the common advice to take some time for themselves, only to find that once they finally get off the pill, they struggle to get pregnant at all.
Even the couple who would love to have children and hasn't put it off or waited gets rude comments from family and friends because our culture has such an "if you want it, you can get it" attitude about everything, including children. And underlying all of it is the cultural idea of "rights"... that we have the right to have children or not have them, whenever we so desire.
#9- OTHER EFFECTS
I won't even go into the rise in casual sex (a.k.a. fornication), affairs (a.k.a. adultery), and abortion (a.k.a. murder) due to the ease of birth control procurement and use.
SO WHAT'S THE SOLUTION???
The answer isn't that we bang down the doors of the courts and seek to legislate birth control usage. That ship has sailed.
In my view, the answer IS that Christian couples should seek God's face and become that peculiar people-- a people that stands out as set apart and different from the world around us-- in this area of how we view children. A people who see children as blessings. A people who discipline our children in the Lord, so that we aren't so bowled over by our disobedient, bratty children that we can't STAND the thought of more. A people who aren't afraid to live as strangers in this world that kills and throws away imperfect children, medicates children instead of offering loving discipline, and that acts and thinks as though we are the ones in control of life. Heaven help us!
Thursday, September 16, 2010
By popular demand
Easy peasy crock pot pintos
First start out by sorting and washing a pound of dry pinto beans (or about 2 1/4 C.)
You will also need:
- 2 qts. water
- 3 TBS butter
- 1 TBS. garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp. black pepper
- 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper (or more or less depending on the heat you want)
- 2 tsp. salt
Combine the ingredients in a crock pot and cook on high for at least 7 hours or until beans are tender.
Like I said in my previous post, I serve these over rice with butter, 1 Tbs. white vinegar and some Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce. So simple and so good!
First start out by sorting and washing a pound of dry pinto beans (or about 2 1/4 C.)
You will also need:
- 2 qts. water
- 3 TBS butter
- 1 TBS. garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp. black pepper
- 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper (or more or less depending on the heat you want)
- 2 tsp. salt
Combine the ingredients in a crock pot and cook on high for at least 7 hours or until beans are tender.
Like I said in my previous post, I serve these over rice with butter, 1 Tbs. white vinegar and some Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce. So simple and so good!
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Menu Planning
When I was growing up I remember clearly that my mom often drove us home from school asking herself, "What am I going to make for dinner?" If you know my mom, you will know she is ultra organized and a clean freak but she never had much of a plan for dinners most of the time.
I love you mom, but that's what I remember. BBQ chicken anyone?
ETA: I must say that my mom always made homemade meals every night. We very rarely went out to dinner and her meals were always delicious!
There were plenty of times when she did but not most of the time. This is something that I just cannot do, it seems, with 7 kids and a very big, burly, hungry husband.
I am going to tell you how I organize my dinners and, be prepared, this is going to be so easy, you won't know why you didn't do it earlier. Yes, it does take quite a bit of set-up before hand to actually get your menu settled and chosen but once that is done all that needs to be done is some typing or copying and pasting from the net.
Most of you, I am sure, have a recipe box where you keep your recipes, right? Get that out and go through it and sort. Pull out ALL the things you have tried already that your family has really liked. What is the point of choosing things that your husband doesn't particularly like? There are plenty of recipes that are in my box that didn't make it to the list. That's OK. Don't feel like you need to include everything.
For me, I have 35 different recipes. You may have only 15 or less. If this is the case you may want to spend a few weeks doing some cooking experiments with dinners while keeping a tally of the things you really like to include in your list. If you don't say, "Wow, that's yummy!" then don't put it on your list. Check out some really yummy food blogs. My favorite is The Pioneer Woman and you must, must, must make her Sesame Noodles. I'll talk about those a bit later.
Once you have pulled, or found online, your recipes you're going to write all the names down on a sheet of paper. It doesn't matter what kind of paper it is, just a piece that will fit all the names of the recipes you have chosen. Make sure you make a note of where the recipe was found cause you will need to find it in the final step.
Once they are written down, get another sheet of paper(again, it doesn't matter what kind or whether it has 2 year old hand prints all over it) and make a list alternating recipes while checking off the recipes from the original sheet. Clear as mud? I usually try to choose a soup, a beef dish, a chicken dish and a Mexican or Italian dish. I only have to make dinners 4 nights a week because of Jonah's schedule. Don't hate me because I get to stay home with 7 kids for 72 hours alone every week. Really, don't.
Once you have your final list in the order you want them hop on your computer for some typing time. All you are going to do is start a Word document and type all your recipes in the order you want them(which you should have already done on that 2-year-old-hand-print-sheet-of-paper). You are going to include the name of the dish, followed by ALL the ingredients you need to make it and then the recipe itself. This way, when grocery day is coming around you can hop on the computer and see what the next 4 recipes are and write down the ingredients needed. No thinking needed!
Then on cooking day you hop back on the computer and follow the recipe(if you have a laptop). For a long time I only had a big behemoth computer and so I printed out the recipe list and kept it in a folder. I am happy with only using the computer now as I never could seem to keep track of the folder or the pages ended up with sticky sauce all over.
This is what a recipe might look like:
Cranberry Chicken
- 6 Chicken Breasts - 2 bottles french dressing - 2 packets onion soup mix
- 2 cans whole cranberry sauce - 4 cups dry rice
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut chicken breasts into bite size chunks and put into a large Pyrex dish. In a medium sized bowl mix the rest of the ingredients and then pour over chicken. Cover with foil tightly! Bake for an hour and 15 minutes or until chicken is done. Serve over rice.
There, I've gone and given you my kids very favorite dinner. The most simple one I have and one I wish I could make every week just because it is SO easy. Please don't make 4 cups of rice if you are a normal size family cause you'll be eating the leftovers for weeks. We almost finish it all and because of Justus' allergy issues he eats rice every day with lunch or dinner. We always make a full pot when we make rice.
Then you would follow this recipe by the next in the list and so on.
Now, you may ask, what do we do for the 3 days that Jonah is gone at work? Well, I make things very simple and very cheap. I figure the kids aren't picky and it's a way I can save funds to make better dinners when Jonah is home. We have the same 3 recipes every week and the kids absolutely love them.
1) Quesadillas with sour cream and salsa
2) Sesame Noodles (check the website I linked above)
3) Pinto beans and rice. This is a crock pot recipe that is SO good and so simple. We serve it with butter, white vinegar and Sriracha to give it some spice. My kids like spicy things.
OK, one last thing for you. Once you learn your menu well you will know the main ingredients that are needed and be able to buy them ONLY when they are on sale. We use a lot of diced green chiles in many of our dishes. ANY TIME I see them on sale, I buy a bunch, that way I will never need to buy it at full price. Each time I go to the store I puruse the aisles to see if there is anything I know I use that is on sale. If it is, I snatch it up and put it in my pantry for when it's needed.
Easy enough? I hope this helps someone with menu planning!
And I hope you think it's as easy as I do.
I love you mom, but that's what I remember. BBQ chicken anyone?
ETA: I must say that my mom always made homemade meals every night. We very rarely went out to dinner and her meals were always delicious!
There were plenty of times when she did but not most of the time. This is something that I just cannot do, it seems, with 7 kids and a very big, burly, hungry husband.
I am going to tell you how I organize my dinners and, be prepared, this is going to be so easy, you won't know why you didn't do it earlier. Yes, it does take quite a bit of set-up before hand to actually get your menu settled and chosen but once that is done all that needs to be done is some typing or copying and pasting from the net.
Most of you, I am sure, have a recipe box where you keep your recipes, right? Get that out and go through it and sort. Pull out ALL the things you have tried already that your family has really liked. What is the point of choosing things that your husband doesn't particularly like? There are plenty of recipes that are in my box that didn't make it to the list. That's OK. Don't feel like you need to include everything.
For me, I have 35 different recipes. You may have only 15 or less. If this is the case you may want to spend a few weeks doing some cooking experiments with dinners while keeping a tally of the things you really like to include in your list. If you don't say, "Wow, that's yummy!" then don't put it on your list. Check out some really yummy food blogs. My favorite is The Pioneer Woman and you must, must, must make her Sesame Noodles. I'll talk about those a bit later.
Once you have pulled, or found online, your recipes you're going to write all the names down on a sheet of paper. It doesn't matter what kind of paper it is, just a piece that will fit all the names of the recipes you have chosen. Make sure you make a note of where the recipe was found cause you will need to find it in the final step.
Once they are written down, get another sheet of paper(again, it doesn't matter what kind or whether it has 2 year old hand prints all over it) and make a list alternating recipes while checking off the recipes from the original sheet. Clear as mud? I usually try to choose a soup, a beef dish, a chicken dish and a Mexican or Italian dish. I only have to make dinners 4 nights a week because of Jonah's schedule. Don't hate me because I get to stay home with 7 kids for 72 hours alone every week. Really, don't.
Once you have your final list in the order you want them hop on your computer for some typing time. All you are going to do is start a Word document and type all your recipes in the order you want them(which you should have already done on that 2-year-old-hand-print-sheet-of-paper). You are going to include the name of the dish, followed by ALL the ingredients you need to make it and then the recipe itself. This way, when grocery day is coming around you can hop on the computer and see what the next 4 recipes are and write down the ingredients needed. No thinking needed!
Then on cooking day you hop back on the computer and follow the recipe(if you have a laptop). For a long time I only had a big behemoth computer and so I printed out the recipe list and kept it in a folder. I am happy with only using the computer now as I never could seem to keep track of the folder or the pages ended up with sticky sauce all over.
This is what a recipe might look like:
Cranberry Chicken
- 6 Chicken Breasts - 2 bottles french dressing - 2 packets onion soup mix
- 2 cans whole cranberry sauce - 4 cups dry rice
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut chicken breasts into bite size chunks and put into a large Pyrex dish. In a medium sized bowl mix the rest of the ingredients and then pour over chicken. Cover with foil tightly! Bake for an hour and 15 minutes or until chicken is done. Serve over rice.
There, I've gone and given you my kids very favorite dinner. The most simple one I have and one I wish I could make every week just because it is SO easy. Please don't make 4 cups of rice if you are a normal size family cause you'll be eating the leftovers for weeks. We almost finish it all and because of Justus' allergy issues he eats rice every day with lunch or dinner. We always make a full pot when we make rice.
Then you would follow this recipe by the next in the list and so on.
Now, you may ask, what do we do for the 3 days that Jonah is gone at work? Well, I make things very simple and very cheap. I figure the kids aren't picky and it's a way I can save funds to make better dinners when Jonah is home. We have the same 3 recipes every week and the kids absolutely love them.
1) Quesadillas with sour cream and salsa
2) Sesame Noodles (check the website I linked above)
3) Pinto beans and rice. This is a crock pot recipe that is SO good and so simple. We serve it with butter, white vinegar and Sriracha to give it some spice. My kids like spicy things.
OK, one last thing for you. Once you learn your menu well you will know the main ingredients that are needed and be able to buy them ONLY when they are on sale. We use a lot of diced green chiles in many of our dishes. ANY TIME I see them on sale, I buy a bunch, that way I will never need to buy it at full price. Each time I go to the store I puruse the aisles to see if there is anything I know I use that is on sale. If it is, I snatch it up and put it in my pantry for when it's needed.
Easy enough? I hope this helps someone with menu planning!
And I hope you think it's as easy as I do.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Happy days!
This picture was taken just about the time Justus was the same age as Canaan is now and was taken right in front of where our house now stands. Look at those cute cheeks!
Anyways, I am proud to say that Justus is finally potty trained! After wondering if he would ever sit on the toilet without screaming bloody murder he has taken to sitting himself on the toilet whenever he needs to "go" or tells me if he needs help. Yippeee! I only have to wash one set of diapers now and that feels good. And lest you think it's weird that I am blogging about potty issues, this is my life and, right now, potty issues are what's on my mind ;)
Thursday, September 09, 2010
Country living
How many of you knew that I was a city girl? Born and raised and never, ever dreaming of living out in the boonies with all those crazy sorts of people who burn wood in a wood stove, tend a garden, cut down trees and bake their own bread. Never thought it would happen. Then my sweet, amazing husband came on the scene, we married and he moved me to the middle of nowhere. That first winter, since he was gone 3 days out of the week at work, he had to teach me how to actually start a fire. Not as easy as you would think, did you know that? Then there's the fact that you have to be able to tell the different types of wood apart. That took me, uhm, 3 years?
Fast forward 8 years and here I am, all countried out. I love living in the boonies, can't wait to start my garden and bake almost all our own bread. I'm living the dream I never had;) And, now that we have 7 kids, cutting our fire wood for the winter is a family affair and something I will look forward to every year (let's just forget the fact that I just stand around wearing the baby and taking pictures)
It was a lot of hard work(ahem, for everyone but me) but "we" got it done! Here's what it looked like.
Jonah splits the wood with the splitter(which we were very lucky to have borrowed this year) and the boys pick up the wood and throw it in the back of the tractor.
Look at how strong he is! He and Isaiah are sporting some serious muscles lately at only 6 and 7 years old.
Judah is such a great helper too and NEVER complains about it.
(Never mind Alana's ragamuffin look please). Alana and Sarah pick up all the bark laying around the splitter and load up the wagon to take to the burn pile.
After they trek out to the burn pile and dump in the bark they take turns giving each other rides back.
Sarah's rider is much lighter than Alana's.
Once the tractor is full Jonah rides it to the back of the house and unloads it all nicely on the wood pile. Then, the kids hop in the trailer for a ride back.
We are all done with wood cutting for the year and just last night enjoyed our first fire of the season!
Fast forward 8 years and here I am, all countried out. I love living in the boonies, can't wait to start my garden and bake almost all our own bread. I'm living the dream I never had;) And, now that we have 7 kids, cutting our fire wood for the winter is a family affair and something I will look forward to every year (let's just forget the fact that I just stand around wearing the baby and taking pictures)
It was a lot of hard work(ahem, for everyone but me) but "we" got it done! Here's what it looked like.
Jonah splits the wood with the splitter(which we were very lucky to have borrowed this year) and the boys pick up the wood and throw it in the back of the tractor.
Look at how strong he is! He and Isaiah are sporting some serious muscles lately at only 6 and 7 years old.
Judah is such a great helper too and NEVER complains about it.
(Never mind Alana's ragamuffin look please). Alana and Sarah pick up all the bark laying around the splitter and load up the wagon to take to the burn pile.
After they trek out to the burn pile and dump in the bark they take turns giving each other rides back.
Sarah's rider is much lighter than Alana's.
Once the tractor is full Jonah rides it to the back of the house and unloads it all nicely on the wood pile. Then, the kids hop in the trailer for a ride back.
We are all done with wood cutting for the year and just last night enjoyed our first fire of the season!
Monday, September 06, 2010
Smiles are hard to come by
Oh Mother, the silly things you do to get me to smile are so juvenile.
Well, I love you enough to oblige you just a bit.
Oh, you want more? If I smile will you stop with the silly antics?
There you go. Are you happy now?
Oh, yes son. That smile melts my heart and I will act like a fool for hours just to see it again.
Friday, September 03, 2010
Around the Manor
Even though the house building has been over for months there has still been way more than enough work to keep Jonah busy during all of his days off. The latest project was getting the top 5 acres fenced and Jonah has been working SO hard on it for the past many months. I am really proud of him for all he has accomplished. He had never pulled fence before and, in my opinion, did an excellent job. We now have the top property fenced so that the area where the kids play is cut off from our neighbors and the road so no trouble can be had.
In the future there is still plenty of fencing to go around but for now we are happy that this is done and we can move on to more projects like cutting wood for the winter(look for a post about this soon), getting and installing a new gate for the entry, trenching to get power to the gate, fencing a garden area and situating it/planning for next year(this is hopeful thinking) and building a chicken coop(also wishful thinking) for chicks in the spring. The list could go on and on and on.
Wednesday, September 01, 2010
Beans!
Dry pinto beans have become the greatest way to keep this 2-year-old busy while I school the older kids. He literally plays with this for hours putting the beans from the bowl to the measuring cup using his fingers, fists and his large spoon. Then he pours the beans back into the bowl and when he drops 2 or 3 or 50 beans on the floor he hops down, picks them up and keeps on playing. So easy and such good hand-eye coordination practice that it's almost ridiculous.
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