Christmas Highlights 2009

I already have every stitch of Christmas packed up and in the attic. I love Christmas, but once it is over, I am ready for it ALL to be over. We have had a nice season of visiting Christmas concerts, programs, watching movies, baking cookies and of course unwrapping presents. We kept it simple and we even stayed on budget!

Here are a few highlights:



Don't you see the victory on his face? A WAY cool Lego set!

This was the year of the knife and the gun.... andWarHammer...... Keith finally got the GPS he has been wanting and I got a luxurious wool scarf and glove set. I think everyone was please and I am just thrilled we are all healthy and blessed with a job that pays the bills. I hope you are feeling blessed this holiday season, and the new year to follow!

Who knew?

The ultimate snuggler!

So, Michael finds this precious lost kitten under our barn, and plops her on the island. Oh, no! We are not adopting another cat. The last several adoptions we have made have been complete failures. Cats these days are just lousy. There are none that can hold a candle to our beloved Chloe, who blessed our lives for nearly 17 years. She made the car trip to Louisiana, survived the addition of four boys and then came with us to Georgia, where she received loving, elder care from all of us. Every single stinkin' cat we've tried to add to our family since then, has been a total loser. Two of them received hundreds of dollars of vet care and then left in the middle of the night. One of them has been banished to permanent outdoor life because she was pooping in the beds and wailing all night long, while pacing the hall outside our bedroom door. No, thank you!

One was given to us, and he thought it was a good idea to pee in our bed at 2am. I literally tossed him out the front door. Within a couple weeks, he was taken to the shelter for attempted murder on Mittens. Good-bye, Sammy. (I did get a call from the shelter saying he got adopted.) Then came Lucy, who is not too bad, but does not like you to pick her up. Her evil growl is very intimidating.....

Anyway, so our luck with cats has been terrible and I have sworn I would not get any more cats unless they were Chloe clones.

You would have kept her, too!

Until 2 weeks ago, when that cute little puff of orange was placed in our life. Daisy is a wonderful cat! She is loving, playful and SO CUTE! Even Lucy the grouch likes her. I would have never guessed Lucy would take to another cat, but it is obvious that she loves Daisy! I always thought older cats had a secret pact to never accept another cat into the family, but I was WRONG! Who knew?

Lucy & Daisy

Let there be snow!

I LOVE snow! Love it, love it, love it! Being in the south, we rarely get snow, so when we do get some snow, we enjoy it to death cause it will be gone within a few hours. Here are some snow pictures to enjoy!

I want to be a One Minute Friend

How long do you have to be a friend to someone before you share the Gospel with them? One minute? One day? One week? One month? One year? I saw this on my favorite show the other night (Wretched) and it really spoke to me. I want to be a one minute friend! But how? I think it is somewhat easier if you have a church home to invite them along with you, but we are without a church home right now. How do you share the gospel with strangers? Please give me some suggestions - I am ready to be a one minute friend.

Can I brag just a minute?

I simply can not shout this loud enough how proud I am of my sons! They are such wonderful boys, but much more than that, they have a heart for God! Over the last 20 weeks (so sad it is over!) we have attended a class with some friends. It was on financial freedom, but not Dave Ramsey's approach, but a more spiritual approach. Anyway, it has been the best 20 weeks of spiritual devotion I have ever invested. I think you could find out about it at Institute in Basic Life Principles.

So, the leader is my boss (I work for him part-time doing accounting work) and he is very gentle, but with very high expectations. It's all good. We were given a challenging memory verse each week, for 20 weeks. He challenged us to meditate on the verses every day, and commit them to our heart. Then he challenged us to recite all 20 of them (KJV mind you) at the final night for a little competition.

Of course his daughter took first place - she learned them so easily! Such a SWEET girl!!! You would love her! Guess who took second? Yes, of course it was Chris. Third??? Any guesses? Of course it was Andrew! How about fourth? Who would take fourth? ME!!! The Braud hat trick! Gotta love that, and ALL for His GLORY!!!

I may go into a depression now that we are not meeting for the next 2 months....

Thanks for letting me brag a bit, which, if you know me, is something I rarely do.

A Tale of Two Cows

A person has two cows, and depending on what type of government he lives under, these are his options:

SOCIALISM: He must give one of his cows to his neighbor who has none.

COMMUNISM: The government takes them both and then gives him the amount of milk they think he needs.

FEUDALISM: You have two cows. Your lord takes some of the milk.

BUREAUCRATIC SOCIALISM: You have two cows. The government takes them and put them in a barn with everyone else's cows. They are cared for by ex-chicken farmers. You have to take care of the chickens the government took from the chicken farmers. The government gives you as much milk and eggs as the regulations say you need.

FASCISM: You have two cows. The government takes both, hires you to take care of them and sells you the milk.

RUSSIAN COMMUNISM: You have two cows. You have to take care of them, but the government takes all the milk.

DICTATORSHIP: You have two cows. The government takes both and drafts you.

PURE DEMOCRACY: You have two cows. Your neighbors decide who gets the milk.

REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY: You have two cows. Your neighbors pick someone to tell you who gets the milk.

BUREAUCRACY: You have two cows. At first the government regulates what you can feed them and when you can milk them. Then it pays you not to milk them. Then it takes both, shoots one, milks the other and pours the milk down the drain. Then it requires you to fill out forms accounting for the missing cows.

PURE ANARCHY: You have two cows. Either you sell the milk at a fair price or your neighbors try to take the cows and kill you.

CAPITALISM: You have two cows. You sell one and buy a bull.

**portions of this should be credited to http://sabbah.biz/mt/archives/2007/01/07/politics-explained-with-two-cow-analogy/

nothing exciting, just an update

It seems like we have been so busy lately, I haven't had time to blog. I think Facebook seems to take the place of the blog, I guess. This was supposed to be the weekend we went camping with our friends, but alas, they have swine flu. It looks like they like us enough to drive all the way up here next month. YIPPEE with lots and lots of exclamation points!!!!!

The boys have been having airsoft gun battles with their friends, attending birthday and Halloween parties, and just doing school. The weather has been beautiful the last week, especially since the rain has given us a break. Falls colors are still vibrant, but fading quickly as the leaves fall to the ground, almost looking like colored snow. You really have to get up here next fall and stay a while. Between the apple festivals and such, we could have a great time!

Chris now has his learners permit. These will be some scary and exciting times for us. He is doing pretty well in school and is not really ready to decide where he wants to go after school. I think the Air Force is a possibility, but the local colleges are a great option, too. He will be 16 next month!

Andrew is moving up the ranks in Civil Air Patrol - he is now a technical sergeant! He is still playing piano, but he won't play loud enough for us to hear him. I am hopeful he will overcome this soon, as I miss hearing him play.

Michael and James are best buddies and keep each other occupied. Sometimes they are having fun and sometimes they are annoying each other, you just never know what you will get each day.

The other day we went to town to help raise the American flags for Veteran's Day. Several hundred were raised and we played a small part of it. It felt very patriotic and I plan to make it something we do regularly, for each Holiday that they are raised. If you want your children to love their country, it involves action, not just preaching. Same goes with anything you want your children to take with them into their adulthood - you have to do it, not just say it.

We are unfortunately church shopping - again. I don't think I have ever been so frustrated in all of my life. For now, we are having church at home with Keith leading. The kids have said they are learning more from homechurch than they have from other church, but I am feeling the loss of fellowship that we once knew, but it seems will never happen again. I am sure it will happen again, but right now, I just feel like we are looking for a church that does not exist. Really, people, homeschoolers are no different from you, we just learn at home. We do not live in a cave, we do have lots of other homeschool friends and our blood is red. Really.

I was able to split 7 new bushes off of my black raspberry bushes! I am so thrilled so now I have nine bushes! Next year, I am certain I will be able to can some jam. I also have a plan to make another huge flower garden in the back. I have several plants I can transplant and then add some seeds for a bountiful butterfly and hummingbird garden. I have been collecting seeds all year so it won't cost me much at all and will have loads of color! The vision I have in my head is incredible, now if I can only make it happen......

I have been doing a new exercise routine and it has been so wonderful, I have to share it with you! It is called T-Tapp, and it is named after its creator, Theresa Tapp. I have had so many benefits from the last 6 weeks of doing it, I plan on making it a part of my life. I am being patient about having inches lost, but the other benefits I am having are enough to keep me tapping. Please check it out and give me a call if you want firsthand testimony of what it is doing for me!

Well, this was not the most exciting blog entry I have made, but at least it is something. Let me know if you get any of the T-Tapp videos and what kind of results you get.

Until the next exciting update....

Rejoice in the Lord!

You have no idea how excited we are in the Braud home! Satan has been defeated with our firstborn becoming a Christian! Chris has always had a heart for God and is a very wonderful young man. We have been studying more deeply in the last few weeks and he made the commitment to give his life to Christ. There was not a dry eye in the place, at our dear friends' home who happen to have an indoor swimming pool. We were going to go to our favorite waterfall but the rain has been so horrible, I don't think we would have been able to climb the steep walk without injuries. Not to mention the water would have been frigid.

Actually, I think this was even better, because we got to share with our Bible study group and they were all moved by Keith and Chris's confession of faith. We have some songbirds in our group that sang a beautiful song they wrote. It was simply perfect!

"I have no greater joy than to know that my children walk in truth" 3 John 4.

I will post pictures later.

Fall is in the Air!

The mornings are cool enough to leave the kitchen door open. You get to listen to Jacque Clousea crow 900 times. Did I tell you another one of our French birds is also a stinkin' rooster? DRAT! He may have to go if the bloodbath starts, but so far, they are sharing the 35 ladies with poise. I guess we need another French name for him - any suggestions? Pierre? Jean Claude?

We went to a beautiful lake last weekend. It is full of little inlets and you can picnic right there, almost in the lake. The boys swam, we grilled, played games and the water people gave us plenty to see (jet skis, boats, knee boarding, etc.). Quite a nice day indeed!

We are back to school (as if we ever stopped schooling?) and we are really enjoying our time together. World geography, ecosystems, missionaries and deep discussions fill our mornings. They are really soaking it up and eager to know more about things each day. I have really enjoyed playing the geography game with them, learning all those little countries in North America that we often forget exist.

A friendly game of poker the other day was all the more fun when we used chocolate chips and combos as our chips. Chris had quite the pile of goodies on his plate! I finally gave in and ate my "chips".... We are upping the stakes next time with peanut M & M's and skittles.....

Chris is becoming quite the artist with his creative color schemes on his Warhammer army. I am impressed with his attention to details and the amount of hours he has spent. He and Andrew are teaming up in a tournament this weekend - what fun!

Andrew is ever serious about his Civil Air Patrol career. He has recently promoted to Sergeant! He went on a weekend camping trip where they learned first aid, map reading and ground team skills. He is beginning to think about trying to get into the Air Force Academy! He would be an excellent cadet - I have no doubt about that!

Michael is the kind of big brother every little boy dreams of having. He treats James with such love! They are always playing together and snuggling to watch a movie. Michael also is so quick to make sure James is safe if we are out hiking or in a strange place. I couldn't be more thankful to God for him!

James is really excelling lately in his schooling. He wants to spell well and read more challenging stories. I am delighted with his perpetually sweet personality. Right now, he is learning how to draw animals with more detail. I think he has his dad's gift of drawing, just like Michael and Andrew! How lucky am I??

I have been befriending my sour dough mother, almost on a daily basis! I have made countless loaves, waffles, rolls, etc. I really love it and especially love that it is so much more healthy for your gut. I have noticed I am not bloated after eating the sour dough baked goods. I have been doing many sewing projects, including some Roman shades to match Chris's new quilt. It's really going to look good when it's all done. I repaired an old quilt I made my dad almost 20 years ago, and it is good as new! I have several other projects in the works and it gives me that business that I need.

Keith and I are doing a very intense study with some friends of ours on how to handle your finances God's way. It is one of the most challenging courses we have ever done. Each week is more provoking than the last one. We feel so blessed to have the fellowship with our like-minded friends! They are such sweet families and the kids are thriving with it as well. Of course we always share wonderfully good meals together! Gotta love that!

It looks like we are going to have an early fall, so if you are wanting to see some fall color, you may need to get over here in middle October! We always have room for you, so give me a call.

Domesticated, but not tame

It's been a very nice summer, but during the summer, I often take a vacation from many of my domestic talents. Sewing, creating, cooking and such are put on hold until the flowers have stopped blooming and the air is cooler. The kids and I have had much fun with many fabulous friends to visit, hike and picnic with in great locations. We've had many great fellowships and potlucks, but it is time to get back into a more productive routine. The kids have really wanted a routine back, where the meals and the schedules are dependable.

Last year we made a feeble attempt at unschooling. It bombed, to say the least. I am sure it is because I didn't do it "right". The kids just want to learn together and discuss together. They want to have our daily talks with God and then walk into a country or an era or a science project together. They may not openly admit they love learning new things, but I am their mom and I know they do love it. They flourish when we are learning something new, sometimes it is even new for me. (nothing against unschooling, I think if it works for you, go for it. We wilted trying it)

We are studying countries, cultures and missionaries this year. So far, it has been very fun. Who knows, we could have a missionary in the making... They are studying Spanish, Algebra 2, biology and several fun computer games. We plan to have a relaxed schedule, always having time for a friend to stop in for a visit. Chris and Andrew will be responsible for 2 meals a week - this should be interesting. I hope they will be brave and try something new....

I have been freezing lots of goodies, making jam and have two quilt projects going. Today I made 5 dozen butternut squash muffins. They won't last long. Tomorrow I will make granola bars for Andrew, who is going camping for the weekend. He is excelling in Civil Air Patrol and is setting his sites on getting into the Air Force Academy. That would be so awesome!

We have friends coming in from LA next week and we couldn't be more excited. The kids are asking for homemade donuts and another trip to the waterfall. What can I say but yes?

Keith has been told there is a potential, don't get your hopes up, expansion. This would make his site one of the the top ones in his division. We are in much prayer about this and have no doubt that the Lord will Bless it, even if the answer is no.

I am looking forward to apple season in Ellijay, fall colors, winter soups and lots of board games being played together. The blessings abound, in more ways than I can count.

Beware of Hartz Flea Treatments

PLEASE do not use Hartz flea treatments for your cats. We gave Lucy a treatment yesterday and today she is not playing and has tremors in her paws. I was gone much of the day so didn't think anything of it this morning. I thought she had gotten her paws wet and was just shaking the water off of them. When I got home, I noticed she was still under the weather and still had shaking paws.

Still in denial, I figured it was nothing. Just before going to bed, we decided to do a search and have found out with Hartz products, seizures and even death can occur! We immersed Lucy in water ( not fun) and have prayed over her. If she is not well in the morning, I will be making a vet visit.

I have written a letter to Hartz and I will NEVER buy another Hartz product ever. I hope you will use the same caution.

We are Taxed to Death

Literally, every single aspect of our lives are taxed. Why do we tolerate such nonsense?? Have we forgotten that the money we earn, really does belong to us? Why do we so freely and without resistance, allow our hard earned money to go to the government?

The inheritance tax.
Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL license Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Excise Taxes
Federal Income Tax
Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax
Fuel Permit Tax
Gasoline Tax (currently 44.75 cents per gallon)
Gross Receipts Tax
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Inventory Tax
IRS Interest Charges IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Taxes
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Personal Property Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service Charge T ax
Social Security Tax
Road Usage Tax
Sales Tax
Recreational Vehicle Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone Federal Excise Tax
Telephone Federal Universal Ser vice FeeTax
Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Taxes
Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge=2 0Tax
Telephone Recurring and Non-recurring Charges Tax
Telephone State and Local Tax
Telephone Usage Charge Tax
Utility Taxes
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft Registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax

STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY? Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, and our nation was the most prosperous in the world. We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.
What happened? Can you spell 'politicians?'
All of these taxes exist, because we allow it.

Does this make you want to come visit or what?

How refreshing

What can I say? It was such a refreshing weekend having Pennie and the girls here. It was a long, cool drink alongside a roaring waterfall, literally and figuratively. Being that Pennie is a sister in the Lord, it was totally priceless to me to reconnect with a sister. When you move out of town and still haven't found that special sister-in-Christ, your old church family relationships become all the more valuable. The same feeling happens when Connie comes. Refreshment, deep connection and priceless.

Friday we awakened to a very rainy day, and cinnamon rolls. It wasn't so bad until we sensed the kids were getting restless. Being that it was still gray, we opted for bowling. The thought of bowling made me yawn; they can bowl any time, they came here for the mountains! I wasn't about to fret about it, I went out on the porch and prayed. Can I tell you that within an hour, the skies were clear? The mountains it is! We went to a great creek that had fabulous boulders and rocks to climb. All the kids got barefoot and enjoyed the cool, rushing water! Then we drove up the mountain and walked amongst some ominous boulders! Mission accomplished!

Saturday we drove to one of my favorite waterfalls and swam in the very cold water. The waterfall was really coming down, unlike the trickle we had last visit. It was therapeutic in so many ways. Keith treated us to some freshly grilled burgers and we lingered as long as we could, to drink in every last drop.

Sunday was special because it has been 3 years since I have worshiped with any of my old church family. I don''t think I can even put it into words how it made me feel. Pennie, thanks so much for making the long trip, and thanks for being YOU! The girls were delightful as usual! I can't wait to try Todd's new bacon burgers - I'll let you know how we like them! Our home is your home, come back anytime!

The Verdict...

Well, we, I mean Keith, finally culled out one of our hens. She had us all fooled! She was our biggest hen in the flock and had such huge "looking" breasts - NOT! When it was all said and done, it was all FAT under those feathers! Her carcass was very puny, but we stewed her up anyway - Cajun style of course!! The verdict is that it was too much work for what you get. We will just send the old ladies over to Sam's house to retire a happy life on her 30 acre farm. Or sell them on Craig's list. Either way, we are no longer fantasizing about all the gumbo we will have this winter.

Sky Angel

We just got Sky Angel (Christian cable) this week. I am really liking it, for the most part. It is lacking a few channels that I like, but I think the more people that subscribe to it, the more they will add the better channels. There are also a TON of old movies and TV shows in it that may bore the average American to tears, but it offers clean, uplifting programing that the whole family can enjoy. MOST of the channels have an automatic 48 hour playback feature, and that is extremely cool. The monthly rate is only $24.99 for 70 channels, so that is quite a bit cheaper than our old cable. We are still not sure if they play live football, but I would hate for that to be a deal breaker since the good totally outweighs the bad. It has Fox news and several other channels we love, so for us, it is great. You can try it for 30 days risk free or just come over and check out ours. If you decide to give it a try, let me know and I can give you my referral code so I can get a free month of service. Let me know what you think about it - I'd love to hear your opinions.

Hiking, bouldering & sweating

We had such a great time hiking this afternoon with some friends from church. The water was low, so we really couldn't swim, but the hiking was great, the scenery was gorgeous and the sweating was profuse! James fell in the creek and Michael got mighty muddy, but there were no injuries or deaths. We can't wait to go back - probably in two weeks when some friends from Louisiana come for a visit. I think they would enjoy it!

There were some guys bouldering on some of the really big boulders, but we really didn't have time to do that today. Maybe next time.

This rooster's a keeper

Not like our last one who was like a prison warden. Bella, our first rooster, ruled the roost in such a militant way and he was obnoxiously noisy. He crowed for no reason at all, all day long. I really wanted to shoot him.

Jacques Clouseau, our newest crooner, is much more quiet and more mannerly. We will keep him! He is quite handsome, too! Of the rare French Cuckoo Maran breed, we plan to breed him with the two other cuckoo marans we have. They lay chocolate colored eggs. Although none of them are of laying age yet, it will be any day now! I can hardly wait to see that first dark egg!

Silent Night

We just watched a very poignant film this evening, based on a true story. This story is set in Germany on Christmas Eve of 1944, as a German mother, Elisabeth Vincken (Linda Hamilton), and her young son, Fritz (Matthew Harbour), face invasion of their home by both American and German troops. Against all odds, the mother and son try to persuade the soldiers from both sides to temporarily call a truce so that they may all join together and break bread in the spirit of Christmas.

It grips you very early into the movie and keeps you captivated throughout. I rented it through Netflix, but I am sure you could get it anywhere. Some of it was difficult to watch and listen to, and much of it really pricked me. There was triumph and adversity, elements every good drama needs. Some of it may have you thinking about our own times and government as they exist today. Maybe not. But I do recommend it if you like history.

June is Birthday Month

A big Happy Birthday to the many people I know with a June birthday!!! Marj, Joe, Sophie, Maggie, Joshua, Willow, Andrew and who did I miss??? If I missed anyone, just remind me next year!




Andrew had some guys (and one very brave girl!) over for an airsoft gun fight. We had sweaty guys, bee-bees everywhere and plenty of fun. We made homemade pizzas, salad, CANDY and plenty of cake. All of my guys are whooped today. I am so thankful there are no more children's birthdays until December.


Happy Birthday, Andrew! I hope it was what you wished for!

It's all about me

I thought it would be fun to post 25 random things about me, some you already know, some you don't. I figure my kids may want to know this stuff one day and I better write it all down before I forget!

1. I am the youngest of 12 children, well, actually 13. A baby boy died shortly after birth.
2. I can actually say I walked to school in knee deep snow, uphill both ways of course
3. I moved to Maryland when I was 19, on a whim, and stayed there 7 years.
4. I attended night school at Anne Arundel Community College and the University of Maryland.
5. Was an accountant in Washington, DC for 3 years.
6. Quit my job in DC exactly one month after my mom died.
7. Was without a job for 3 months, used up all of my savings and had $134 left until I was broke.
8. Got a job closer to home and met my future husband all in the same day. Of course I didn't know he was going to be my husband at the time.
9. I owned a cockatiel named Vesuvious for 7 years.
10. Gave Vesuvious to my bother Charlie and he had him for the last 7 years of his life.
11. I often lived on couch change when living on my own.
12. Started spending time with Keith "as friends" in early 1992.
13. Married Keith in fall of 1992 - I guess we became really good friends.
14. I used to eat potato chips in the middle of the night. In my bed.
15. My friend Sue lived with me two separate times. When I moved to Louisiana, she took over my apartment house.
16. Had my house broken into while I was sleeping - that was very scary so I moved.
17. I like order, organization, clean countertops and can't stand clutter. When I see clutter at your house, I just want to clean it up for you.
18. I became a Christian shortly after the birth of my first son, on May 1, 1994.
19. My last son was born at home after only 45 minutes of VERY intense contractions.
20. Had a cat named Chloe for almost 17 years - she died in Andrew's arms on the way to the vet. WAH!
21. I am claustrophobic but had no idea I was until I was in a cave 250 below the surface and nearly panicked. Maybe I did panic...
22. I love to cook and I love to see how healthy I can make the meal using the freshest, wholest foods I can get. I just want nutritionally dense food, what can I say?
23. I love to play board games and I especially love winning.......but I can lose with some grace, but not much.
24. I love to use foreign accents and often can't quit. Lately I have been talking like inspector Clouseau from the Pink Panther.
25. After nearly 20 years, I still miss my mom every day. And my dad, who died nearly 9 years ago.
26. I know I said 25 things, but that last one was a joy killer, so this one will be more fun: I love reading other people's 25 random things lists so go make you one so I can read it. It really was fun!

3 Sisters from 3 Different States Visit!

We had a wonderful visit with Keith's three sisters along with their dad and his lovely wife, Gail. We ate some very delicious homecooked Mexican enchiladas, Andrew's famous loaded chocolate chip cookies and then visited lots. We played many games, went to church (which, for me, was the highlight!) ate at a local restaurant, walked the farmer's market where we ate tons of kettle corn, took the grand tour of Keith's plant and then shot several games of pool.

Gail is so sweet and doting on daddy - always taking excellent care of him. She joined in on the games and even shot her first game (or so she says) of pool. You'll never guess who won......... Yes, she sure did! We all think she was a pool shark in her youth.

I was delightfully surprised at how well it all went and am so thankful for the treasured memory for all. The boys made out like bandits with all the aunts loading them up with $$$$. Can you imagine the box of Warhammer that arrived yesterday with all that money??? SHEESH!

Ya'll come back again next year - it was great to have you in our home!

New Plant Species Discovered

You just never know what kinds of plants you will find at the local nursery. This is a new variety of pumpkin.

I've been tagged

Which means I am being coerced into blogging. Thanks http://lili313.wordpress.com/


The Rules:
* List Six Unimportant Things That Make You Happy
* Mention and link to the person who tagged you
* Tag six of your favorite bloggers to play along

1. flowers and all the butterflies & hummingbirds that visit them
2. waterfalls, especially the kind you can swim in
3. friends coming to visit
4. seeing a new bird at the feeder
5. going to craft shows and farmers markets
6. when we sing a really great song at church and the whole church belts it out

I tag these 6 people: Sam, Mindy, Susan, Kim, Joe & Jimmy

Burgers, marbles & friends

Andrew, Shelby & Maggie

Connie & Two SWEET Girls
The Whole Gang, minus Chris, who was at work camp.

It was a lightening fast visit with our friends from Louisiana, but I do think we milked every minute of it and made another precious memory for our kids. Hayden was true to form checking for eggs within 3 minutes of jumping from the van. Emma & Maggie were on the trampoline in record time, too. We were all a little surprised that the first game of choice was Star Wars Risk, but the Wii was not on the shelf for long after that. Michael was gracious enough to build the girls a marble drop, twice. Once it was knocked down, he rebuilt it without one complaint. Thank you, Michael - that is a beautiful spirit you have with small children. Quinn was anxious to play his latest accomplishment on the piano and it was very impressively done! Chris entertained (or tortured) us with Guitar Hero songs and was helpful as always (he's the best gopher on the planet) and James was simply James. If you know James, you know that means he was awesome. What a bunch of great kids we have!

Andrew's new dog, Shelby, did great with all the "strangers". I was a little concerned about how she would be since she is such a shy dog.

Thanks, guys, for going off the beaten path to see us - I know it was not on your route home, but gosh, it sure was a blessing to see ya'll.....

Thank God I'm a Country Girl

NOT! I am a country girl wanna-be. I can't lasso a calf. I don't like to wear poop-kicker boots and walk amongst animal droppings. I get squeemish at just the thought of having to do real farm work, like helping a goat give birth (or worse). Nope, none of that is for me. I just like my beautiful chickens and have been quite thrilled the last 3 years that they are mainly maintenance free. You feed and water them and get wonderful fresh eggs.



Until now. We injured one of our young hens and she now has two broken legs. She can't walk. You would think it would be no problem to just slaughter, pluck, season & cook as desired. But we can't bring ourselves to do it. We are not real farmers. We are wanna be's, and not even very good wanna be's at that. I know, it is just a chicken and it would put her out of her misery, but to take a beautiful life just simply feels wrong.

We have her isolated and keep saying today is "the day", but we have been saying that for 2 weeks now. So you see, I am not a real country girl, but quite frankly, I am just fine being a wanna be.

Bob the Builder

Did your sons subject you to watching that show when they were toddlers? Mine sure did and naturally that stupid opening song would play over and over in my head for days. What torture! Well, I don't have a Bob the builder in my house, but I sure do have a Keith the builder.

He builds me all kinds of wonderful things! I could never list all the things he has built me over 16.75 years, but they all came out great and were incredibly useful. How thankful I am to have a handy husband! I have heard several of my friends say their hubbys never touch a hammer - how sad is that? I sure hope the boys get his gift for building things - especially if their wife wants something like this:

We have kicked the chickens out of the barn and into their own coop. It will free up quite a bit of space in the barn for more woodworking projects and such.

Thank you, Keith, for such a wonderful coop! The hens love yah, too!!!

My Baby turns 9!

Happy Birthday, James!

Can you believe it?? He sure is cute, ain't he?

Teenager Bathes in Purple Smoothie

Don't ask. I have no idea what happened.

Since I don't have a real job...

...I get to spend my mornings doing things like this:



Making fresh donuts from my freshly milled flour! I have this incredible donut recipe that makes the fluffiest donuts you have ever eaten.



And of course you must drink ice cold, farm fresh raw milk with them!


It's a tough job, but someone's gotta do it!


I tell you, this not having a real job thing is pretty fun. I think everyone should try it.

Summer Goals

My goals this summer are going to be ones that are attainable. I don't want to get disappointed, so I am going to make them simple so I can feel like I have really succeeded. What are your goals this summer???

1. Swim at Foster Falls as often as possible
2. Bar-B-q lots of goodies
3. Pick lots of berries
4. Watch lots of birds and butterflies in my garden
5. Pick lots of flowers from my cutting garden
6. Sweat like a hog
7. Drink lots of iced tea
8. Make smoothies
9. Invite friends over
10.Have fun, fun, fun

Sunday Grilling

But it wasn't meat that was grilled. It was me. By two teachers. Back to back. At church. While we ate lunch. They don't get it. They stare blankly at my disdain for institutional education. I am not qualified to teach. How can I possibly teach high math? Who tells me what books to buy? How do I report to the government? They know a homeschooler. Who can't read. Or add. All homeschoolers, therefore, must be ill-educated. They ignore the fact that homeschoolers out score all other students. They win the national bees. Frankly, I don't care about test scores. Or bees, unless they are bumble. And then, I love them. Because they make honey. And honey is really incredible.

But I did not like being grilled. Or singed. I forgot all those clever come back answers I had rehearsed. I made one of them mad. I hope. I said moms know best. She left the table.

Next time, I will leave the table. Or say something clever. Or turn up the fire.

Cat on a Warm Barn Roof

Mittens has an afinity for napping on the apex of our barn.


She got aggravated to have her slumber interrupted with all the picture taking, but you couldn't tell by looking at her face, could you?

It's a good thing looks don't kill.

Wanna play cards?

Here's a fun card game to play (with me) and you could end up with some really cool non-cash prizes.

For instance, if you play your cards right and come over to visit, say in 2-3 weeks, you could have some very fresh black raspberries. My bushes are LOADED with buds and should start fruiting very soon. And if you really know how to play cards, you could get a hot from the oven raspberry crisp.

While you're at it, if you draw an ace or two, you could very easily win a hand at some of the best bird watching in the southeast. I currently have indigo buntings, goldfinches, housefinches, bluebirds, woodpeckers, nuthatches and the elusive great-crested flycatcher. The rose brested grosbeak should be making his way through here ANY day now. Now that would be a winning hand, eh?

We just got another load of the best grass-fed beef you can find, so if you play your cards right, you could land some freshly grilled burgers. Or fillet mignon, depending on how you play your cards...

Oh, there are simply too many goodies to list, but for me, it's all about the game. I love games and I especially love games where everyone's a winner. Let me shuffle the first hand and see how it plays out, dueces are wild.

Boring update #999

We are just not exciting people. We are not sky diving, solving world hunger or world peace, for that matter. It is a simple life for us, and it is just the way I like it. I hear from my friends who are driving to 5 places in 1 day and have their kids in 3 activities each, spending every Saturday sweating on a bleacher from 9am til 3pm. That is not for me, and it never has been. Praise the Lord that I married a guy who shares my penchant for being cozy at home. There really is no place I would rather be than to be at home. We do not live in a lavish home, but we feel like we have such a park-like setting here, we really have no need to leave.

So my updates may sound dull and non-evenful, but really we are living the good life and are content to just be.

We made a huge jambalaya last weekend for our Life group. Daddy would have been very proud of how it turned out, even with brown rice! He would have never guessed it was brown. We sat around the table chatting and eating 99 different flavors of jelly beans. What more do you need?

Tax season is over! WHEW! I have really enjoyed my little part-time job and especially loved the little extra "fluff" money I earned. I felt so proud when he gave me a bonus after my first week, little did I know I would get one EVERY week thereafter! WOO-HOO!!! Can you say "new washing machine and dryer"??? Cha-ching!

As if that weren't good enough, my boss wants to hire me permantly and set me up in a home office doing various accounting projects. I am thrilled! It will really bolster our budget and allow us to get a little cush money in the bank. Thank you, Lord!!!

So, we may be boring and predictable, but truly, we are living a life of abundance, contentment and harmony. And to that, I give all the Glory to God!!!

A Camping We Must go...

... a camping we must go, hi-ho the dairy-o, a camping we must go. Sorry, but I just had to sing that little jingle first.

The kids went camping the last 2 nights:



We have been itching to pitch that tent since the day we got it from Uncle George and Aunt Deanna as a Christmas present. It was finally above freezing at night, so a tent pitching we went.


Doesn't it look like we drove up the mountain and camped in a state park? Nope, we be back yard camping! We used to backyard tent quite often with our friends the Callahans and several times with our Cub Scout pack. We wanted to give the kids the camping they were craving without being surrounded by a zillion other campers and not have access to a private bathroom. Oh, we will be going to one of those places, to be sure! But to break the tent in, we were thankful to just camp in the backyard, burn a huge fire and enjoy! They had a blast with their flashlights, snacks and cats to snuggle.

Our newest flock!

Look at our precious peeps! I am so excited - I have finally gotten the Cukoo Marans breed, which is a French breed that will lay chocolate colored eggs! I can hardly wait! I also got some more Americanas, they lay both green and blue eggs, Rhode Island reds and a couple of cochins - they will have feathered feet! We got 20, but have lost 1 last night. They are fragile little things those first few days. If it is warm enough tomorrow, I will let them run around in the grass - they simply will love that!

Box Sledding

We went with some of our church family to an awesome "mound"and sledded down the hill in a box. Imagine that! Andrew was flying down on this ride!


Where I am from, you sled ride on, um, snow.

It was very fun and we are all looking forward to doing it again!


We had a wonderful time, awesome food (Bea's chicken was as good as the hype!) and the immeasurable joy of being with your Brothers and Sisters in Christ!

My blog thoughts are clogged

Can't seem to put a decent blog entry together. I have started several and then deleted them. One was a political rant, one was about my new washing machine (BORING) and that's as far as I get. I'll probably delete this one, too. I don't want to waste anyone's time on boring, mundane stuff.

We are doing well, though. Our new church has literally breathed new life into us and we are back in the groove of worship, Bible study and AWESOME fellowship. It feels so good to be excited about church again. A two+ year dry spell without all of the above can really affect you. Thankfully, we are jumping in head first, regardless of the water temperature and fully immersing ourselves in our new church home.

Chris just started a computer programming course and he is very excited! We have been looking for one for years, and one was finally just released. It was published for homeschoolers and promises to have more advanced courses added later.

Andrew is dreaming about playing the acoustic guitar, so we are on the hunt for a good bargain. I have no doubt he will be able to pick it up and just start playing it. He has this musical talent on loan from God, I swear.

Michael will have his 12th birthday next week, so he is anxious to join Civil Air Patrol. He has been counting the days to when he was old enough to join. Happy Birthday, Michael!

James is like my little buddy. He reminds me so much of me when I was his age. He absolutely loves working in the kitchen with me and going on jaunts around town. I get so much joy from him and his infatuation with me.

And as for me, well, I have taken on a part-time job working with one of my friend's husband who is a CPA and is snowed under this tax season. It will be the first time I have worked outside of the home in over 15 years. I start tomorrow.

Ok, I guess I will post this one. I know it is not very exciting, but I fear if I don't post something, I may never post again.

Home at last

Well, our search for a church home has finally ended with that deep sigh of relief you feel when you get home from a long trip. Home at last! The search often seemed arduous, frustrating and sometimes resulted in some tense Sunday afternoons, but we persevered. We just so happen to look on-line one "last" time to see if there was a church we missed and sure enough, there was a new Church of Christ and the website (www.gracebridge.com) made it looks so good, we drove up to the building just to have a look. I had a feeling it was formed as the result of split, because CofC's just don't pop up out of nowhere. About 100 people from a large CofC split off to be a little more progressive, in a good way. These people seem to be on fire for God and already we feel like family. I am actually talking in Bible class for the first time in over 2 years (bet you didn't know I could keep my mouth shut for that long). They have connect (life) groups and we have already plugged into one that fits us perfectly.

I really feel God telling me that I need to never forget what it is to be new and searching for a church home. Once I get to know the faces at church, I am going to make it a point to greet visitors with a fervor I have never had before. Isn't it the most vulnerable thing to walk into a church for the first time, knowing no one?? Being a greeter was never my bag before, but now that I have learned this lesson that the Lord wanted me to learn, I plan to greet like never before. I hope I don't scare anyone off....

Jambalaya, Crawfish Pie, Fillet Gumbo!

Son of a gun, gonna have some fun on the bayou! I love that little jingle, especially when it preludes actually cooking either the gumbo or jambalaya (you can have the crawfish pie). While in LA last month, Daddy gave us one of his big iron pots so we can cook jambalaya here in Georgia. We gave it a go last weekend and it turned out perfectly! It was a wee bit cold outside to be cooking on the burner, but we roughed it. Keith helped out quite a bit, thus making it a joint effort. We can hardly wait to cook a pot for our friends!


Keith wearing my dad's old flannel shirt (the last shirt he wore before going into the hospital).......wah!

Beautiful Cajun jambalaya!!! Ca Cést Bon!!!

The Wall-less family

Since Connie had to have her trip to our house postponed last month, I will post the missing wall pictures. We love the missing wall house now and are saving up for wide plank floors through out. If you know us very well at all, you won't be surprised that when we decided to take down the wall, we did the next day. It was totally completed by Christmas Eve! Come on over and see!

Before

After