Garden Update

Our garden is booming right now, praise the LORD! Our garden has always been a big resource in feeding our family. 

We have had each family member to pitch in and help as they could. On the right is our red potato plants. I am so excited for them! We have dug out a few but I can't wait until it's time to dig them all up. I think that the harvest will be good. The next three rows are our green beans. It's another good green bean year. 

While string beans may taste best, we just grow the snaps. It would be impossible for us to string all these beans. So we sacrifice taste for ease. We've been eating the squash as fast as it comes in with the exception of one meal. We are thinking of planting more squash. We're still waiting on the tomatoes to ripen. I want to get a Victorio strainer. From what I've seen on YouTube, they make tomato sauce and juice easier. I'm praying to miraculously find one at a yard sale this coming Saturday. Yes, God is bigger than anything I need or want! Happy gardening!

Graduation Time

Much work goes into raising a  child. Many hours of work, worry, work, thinking, work, money, work, praying and work. Yes, it's a long, long process but then so very short. I suppose the process seems much longer while homeschooling. All of those times of wondering if you're doing all you can to develope your child into what is pleasing to the Lord. Sometimes you think that the work will never end. Then all of a sudden your child hits high school age and you know time is running short. The idea of less work in teaching is a welcome one. The idea of your child growing up is not. Seeing pictures of all those years... a picture of the first day of school, ball games, recitals, baptisms..... they're all precious. Time that can never-ever be recaptured.

We had the privilege of attending a graduation of some friends of ours. The family's two oldest (twins) were graduating. It was a homeschool ceremony at a local farm where the boys  young men have and work with horses. Everything was  put together so well. The attendees composed of dear family, friends and church family. Each set of guests had their own special way of knowing the graduates. Each had special stories they were recalling in their minds, I'm sure. The family's Pastor spoke at the ceremony. The mom spoke and gave her heartfelt love to everyone that was there. Then it was time for the dad to pass on the diplomas.

With the passing of the first diploma, there was pause as tears rose into the dad's eyes. A face of bitter-sweetness was displayed. Yes, it is so bitter-sweet. Was there even a dry eye there? The tears rolled as he caressed the diploma cover before handing it over. The graduates cried too. Yes...many memories and many years and many, many prayers...  Once the dad could finally utter out a blessing from within, he promised he'd do better with the second. Those words were hopeful but unfulfilled. His voice cracked with the dread of another moving forward into adulthood....yes, all those hours of teaching, driving to ballgames, prayers, church events... It's almost as if passing the diploma over would close the door on life as was. Yes, precious memories....

May the next chapter in life be as sweet as the first.....and God forbid the emotions arise at our daughter's graduation in a few weeks! Oh, but those feelings of joyful surrealness. Afterall, wasn't it yesterday when we were holding those bundles? I suppose one must rest in this being God's plan, no matter how hard to swallow. God is so good to us. Dear Lord, please keep our children safe all the days of their lives.

It Feel Like Christmas!

Okay, so I don't know if you can see this tag too well. I hope you can. It has on it $7.00. Hold on. I am about to scream again!!!!  When I first the box, I noted a hand driven food processor. Then I saw some other kitchen goodies of which I knew I'd want. Okay, I automatically totaled up seven bucks in my head in a hurry. The rest is a bonus.

On the way home, I was so excited about this box and couldn't wait to get home and open it up.

Yeah, I'm a kitchen geek! This is all that was in it....spatulas, ladels, measuring tools, knives (I love knives!), pizza cutters, utensils....

Some of the items still had tags on them. Then one of the children helping me to look pulls out this Bible. My heart lept! I said, "Dear God, please let it be a KJV Bible. " IT IS. I about cried. First, I knew this box was there for me but I really knew it was for me when I saw that Bible. Praise God! It's a good leather bound Bible. My five year old has been wanting one. It is now hers.
This was too much fun. Really. All of this for $7.00. It feels like Christmas.

Quiet

Yesterday was a wonderful day of rest for me. I didn't realize how much I needed, and how I hope to re-create this rest more often. James took the children out fishing a few hours before lunch and then again in the afternoon. I was all alone in the morning. All alone. It was soooooooooo quiet. I don't ever remember such quiet. The last time I was all alone like that, I was sick so it wasn't the same. What did I do? I read. I read my Bible in quiet. I read excerpts for books in quiet. I sat and listened to...quiet. I worked a little in the garden, loaded the dishwasher, wrestled with the washing machine and hung out laundry....in the quiet. I guess that you don't remember what quiet is when you have years of  no quiet. Don't get me wrong. I love my children dearly but it's good to have a slight break from anything. Even good things. In the afternoon there was only the 14 year old here with me. He worked on the computer quietly. I took a nap, in the quiet. Wow. I felt soooo rested last night. I don't remember feeling so rested and didn't think it even possible. I thought age was catching up with me. Could it be that I was just tired and needed rest? My face looks more rested as well.  Odd. Anyway, so I think James has more fishing trips lined up with the children a few hours here and there. I also need to get the children to bed sooner and my getting up sooner so that I won't forget what quiet sounds like! :D

Stock-Pile Update

 Someone asked me about how our stocking up plan is going. I am sorry, I cannot address who it was because no name was left in the comments. It has went so well! We are due for another stock up in less than three weeks, although I have given myself liberty to pick up stock up items out of the stock up budget, beginning last week. The items I am buying now out of stock up money is marked to be used only after this month. It has been nice to not have to go to Sam's Club or Aldi for a good, long while. This has saved us a lot of time, gas and labor. I have a whole less thinking to do too! There's less thinking of what to buy and what to cook. A basic menu is planned when we go for a big stock up trip. Our freezers are still full! I suppose since I allow a small amount, between $250 and $300 a month for sale items at local stores. With having much stocked up that we need, I can redirect our funds toward what is on sale. Before I couldn't do that as I needed those funds to supply our basic needs. My motto is to buy big while prices are low and never buy high. When something is on sale, for instance Cool Whip at $1 each, I buy 10 or more cartons and not 1-2 like I would before. If pork loin is on a rock bottom sale, I don't buy just 1 like I would before but 6 or so... enough to last 3 month's time. For the most part, I over estimated what we would need. Of course this is a blessing. I did under-estimate shredded cheddar cheese by about 2-3 pounds but over estimated the mozzerella by 5 pounds. I underestimated the mayonnaise by 1 jar. Sugar will be short by about 5 pounds. We will be over on a lot of things too; mozzerella cheese, bread flour, ramen noodles, pancake mix and syrup, oatmeal, canned fruit, tortillas....Of course this is fine as it's just less we'll need to buy this time. We spent between $900-$1000 last time. We're estimating $600 for the stock up budget this time with keeping our monthly spending at about $250. In the end, the average spending for each month will be about $515 for food and non-food. Not that we'd really need to spend that much to sustain ourselves but that it would cost that much to keep supplies up. We have ate better these last months than we have in a very long time. Before, at the end of each month we'd have to become very creative to put together meals until shopping day. With this plan, we allow enough money during the month to stock up on deals to keep a good supply and variety to our stockpile. We've only had beans once in the past 2 and a half months and I was inspired to cook those. It was not out of need. With garden season coming upon us, we will be eating much from that. I really estimate I won't be spending near as much as I am thinking now. So, we will see. I am excited to see how things are in a full year. It is true, that it takes money to make or save money. Being able to stock up on any item while on sale is much better than having to buy a smaller box/carton/can,etc. of something because that's all we can afford. Initially, you have to put money forward on it. It is well worth it, to have the food in the pantry and know that mostly the rest of the grocery funds can be devoted soley to sale items. When nothing is on sale, it's okay because we don't have to buy. We are stock with plenty. :D