We've been getting lots of emails from readers lately asking about our financial situation and how we fund our homestead. They usually take me by surprise. WHAT? Why would people be asking that?! Perhaps because it was pretty public knowledge that last year, in Alabama, Dave Ramsey ran out life like the tightest of ships. Like serrrrriously tight. Tighter than those maroon pleather pants I wore in … [Read more...]
I'm totally terrified of being a mother again. There, I said it. Change is always hard - especially for a tend-to-be-tightly-wound-and-like-things-to-go-according-to-plan kind of person like myself. Am I worried about loving this little one and snuggling it until it can't possibly be snuggled any more? Of course not. Lawd knows I love my babies and I truly believe that each one is a … [Read more...]
The stares get a bit old. The looks of sympathy. The "Oh, poor thing!" glances. Please. Spare me the sympathy. Sure, sometimes I'm dragging fussy children through the store - a year and a half year old hobbit trying to climb out of the cart, grabbing at shelved (and most likely breakable) items and corraling an almost four old with eyes full of tears that I won't let her buy that Hello Kitty … [Read more...]
Three weeks ago, I spent a night in the hospital. Not by choice, naturally. The day began as normal - cow milking, children wrangling, and breakfast baking. A few hours later, I noticed that I had begun spotting. That's a scary sight for a pregnant person. Especially one with uterine abnormalities like mine (you can read more about my condition here). I immediately called my OB who … [Read more...]
Work on the homestead is almost unbearable this time of year. I'm in a variety of homesteading groups and in each one the message of Spring is the same. We're all OVERWHELMED! My Mom invited us to dinner the other night and I quickly sent her back a text message: "Shaye is dying of exhaustion. Shaye has now died. Shaye is dead." Of course, I hadn't really died. But at 4:45 in the afternoon I … [Read more...]
Seven years ago, I walked into a bar with a very unfamiliar bridal party. Even though I was the florist for the wedding and was good friends with the bride in college, the rest of the girls were strangers to me. Sure, we'd spent the day lounging around a pool together and were all coordinated in our bedazzled tank tops, but other than that small connection I was alone. As these things go and … [Read more...]
I want to make one thing very, very, very clear. I believe, with each ounce of my being, that God is good. In all things. And even when circumstances seem insurmountable... overwhelming... suffocating... God is not only at work, but he is working all of these circumstances for His purpose and for His glory for those who love him. And we know that for those who love God all things work … [Read more...]
As many of you know, a few weeks ago, our family fell victim to the stomach flu. I'm talkin' buckets hangin' out by bedsides and midnight rushes to the bathroom. It was awful. Literally. It was my hell. Anyway. Since that fun passed, we still haven't totally recovered. Our appetites still aren't quite what they used to be, we're still shakin' the tired feeling and the desire to nap every … [Read more...]
It's not a secret that food issues tend to divide, isolate, and ruffle feathers. After reading an interesting post a few weeks ago, I found myself chewing and chewing and chewing over the same question: Does God care what we eat? The more I chewed on this topic, the more I realized how impossible it is to answer in one blog post. Stuart and I even kicked around the idea of writing a small … [Read more...]
I'm a terrible parent. No, no, before you try and come to my defense, let me just tell it to you straight. I am. But being a terrible parent is such a large topic, I think it's important to break it down for you. Where to start... wait a second... I think I just heard Owen drop something in the toilet... ...no worries. He was just licking the toilet bowl. Perrrrrfect. Now where were … [Read more...]