We Lift Our Eyes Up

After only 2 weeks of having my computer down, our wireless system is up and functional yet again!  Therefore, I can once again access my own computer…the one where I keep all my “blogging” files and such. These past two weeks have been HUGE. SO much has happened as we, that is our 4 children, 24 chickens, and 1 spastic dog have moved down on the farm….along with all of our earthly belongings.

Just to wet your appetite, in these first 2 weeks, we have not only moved ourselves, but also “inherited” 12 sheep, 3 goats, and 4 turkeys. Once word gets out that you have land, and are in the homesteading way, people start bringing you animals. Its the craziest thing. The 4 turkeys we received as a “housewarming” gift have already been moved to a new home. You could say that we “regifted” them…as they had this very nasty habit of setting up camp on my back deck and pooping some foul substance that looked exactly like hot asphalt all over our entry rugs. Hmmm, not a good way to make friends with your new owners I think!

Anyway, more to come, and some photos too, tomorrow I hope. I don’t know who possibly might be reading this, but if you are, thanks for hanging around.

I’ll be going dark for a bit, not that I have been writing much anyway! Our DSL will be down until next week.

This is the last night we will sleep in this house. It is a strange feeling. I have never before been so settled in a home. Everything here is so familiar and friendly. I know each nook and cranny, and this house has been a place of much happiness and beauty. Three of our four babies came home to this house. We have made it our own, just as if we would live here forever. The style and look fit our personalities well. It has been a place of much hospitality, and many dear ones in our lives have enjoyed time spent here.

And now we are moving on. In general, I am not sentimental when it comes to material things. I easily let go of baby items, wedding gifts, and the like, when they are not longer functional. If I were sentimental, leaving this house would be very hard.

Tomorrow we start a whole new lifestyle. There are so many unknowns. Of course, worry is right at my door. What if we don’t actually like the farm lifestyle? What if it only looks good in books and email lists? Will I ever feel so completely settled in the new house, as I do in this one?

Sigh…but moving we are! Its off to bed for me now. There will be more to do tomorrow than there is time in the day!

There are about 8million details swimming around in my head right now…including by not limited to, how I am going to quickly unpack all my boxes and create, quickly…if the new flooring will EVER get finished,  some sense of order in our new house so that our little ones can exist there peacefully, how we are going to built a child-proof fence around our backyard pond (we’ve tried twice now, but the ground is bog-like…), how I am going to scrub 7 years worth of gooey finger prints, and fill 7 years worth of wall anchor and nail holes, and touch them all up with paint that I can’t find or doesn’t match anymore in our current house, and then sell it in this market where “nobody is buying anything”….

I wish so much that I could just “smile at the future” as that amazing lady in Proverbs 31 does. Instead, I try to figure everything out, make a plan, and when I can’t make a plan, I stress, and plague my poor husband. I struggle to trust my husband that this decision is the best thing for our family, which ultimately is just a symptom of not trusting God.

Amy, at Sonshine Cottage wrote a beautiful post today that touched my heart. She is so humble, and she really encouraged me to get on my knees and just pour is out to the Lord.

I know this time of transition will pass, but oh, to have faith through the trying times…wouldn’t that be something!

Friday marked our official close-of-escrow day on our farm, yet it will be at least 2 weeks until we sleep in the new house. There is a quite a bit of “freshening up” that needs done first.

Its seems that my husband and I have a strange attraction to homes built and decorated in the 1980s. We have now owned two of these mauve and blue beauties, with bright brass fixtures and country ducks all about. (Actually, our FIRST house was a 1970s delight…with green shag carpet…original!) And as many of you may know, wall paper was BIG in the 80s.

It is a little known fact about me, but I am a wallpaper-removal expert. Between our 2 homes, and the many rehab projects we’ve done over the years, I have probably removed a foot ball field worth of  wall paper. Each wall paper has its own little personality. A precious few are fully vinyl and come off in large, untorn sheets, leaving no residue behind. Oh, what a rare treasure that is! Most come off in two pieces, the vinyl top coat first, and then the paper undercoat. Often, the outer vinyl layer will come off in large pieces without water, but the undercoat almost always needs a good soaking. The worst case scenario is that both the outer and inner layers need much water, and only come off in teeny, tiny little curls. Oh, that is painful.

Our new house hadwallpaper. However, I am wise enough to recognize that for an 80s-built home, it was used sparingly. Only the masterbedroom, 2 wall of a child’s room, and a border in the guest room needed removal. I took only 1 1/2 days, for which I am grateful.

As for other projects, we are keeping it SIMPLE this time. God has been showing me some places in my heart that I really need to give over to Him, and one is my tendancy to focus way too much on the aesthetics of my home. We have been working for 7 years on our current, charming Farmhouse-replica. I realize that really, I have not had my priorities right. Too much thought, energy, and money has gone into making our home look just so. You know, our culture really praises a beautiful home. But truly, improvement projects make me a stress case, and funds could be used in better ways. My children will not remember what kind of flooring we had, or what color the walls were painted.

I am striving for balance. I want to live in a comfortable, orderly, cozy home. A jar of wildflowers on the table and pretty throw pillows on the couch are great. But remodeling the entire bathroom because the vanity and tile are not exactly what I like…no way. Not this time.

So, on our home improvement projects list are the following:

Immediately (before we move in)

*Remove 20 year old mauve carpet and beat-up linoleum from main living areas and install laminate click-and-lock flooring from Costco…its nice looking, nearly bullet proof, and you can’t beat the price.

*Install new carpet in bedrooms. We got a GREAT deal on a roll of carpet at a discount carpet warehouse.

* Paint whole house, minus bathrooms.

* Replace 2 gigantic brass/fake oak ceiling fans, and “krystal” chandelier with basic canned lighting.

That’s all folks.

In the future, we would like to replace the interior doors with some fresh ones, and paint the cabinetry. The cabinets are in very good shape…just a little dated…but a coat of fresh paint will do them wonders. But I am in no hurry.

To be honest, I can’t wait to get the house settled and GO OUTSIDE. The property is so beautiful. More to come later on our big move!

I’m not sure if anyone else has this problem, but frequently, my 50# bag of organic whole wheat flour will go rancid before I can use it all. Granted, I am not using it as quickly as usual right now because with the busyness of preparing to move, I’m not baking so much. However, it makes me wonder how long ago that wheat was ground! I buy from a co-op, and the brand is reputable, but it does get a strong, nasty taste after just a couple of months.

I am planning to buy a grain mill sometime this year. I bit the bullet and year ago and invested in a Bosch mixer. It was a huge purchase, but I use it ALL THE TIME. It make 100% whole wheat bread a snap. The grain mill is the next step. It will not only allow me to use a greater variety of grains for baking, but whole wheat berries, or any other kind of whole grain for that matter, last indefinitely. Once the grain is ground, its lifespan is short.

So…back to the title of this post…what does one do with approximately 15# of rancid flour????

Here’s a suggestion…make some “cakes!” (Yes, there is likely a less wasteful use…I’m all ears. They little ones were in HEAVEN though!)

I have heard about those homeschooling families who never take a break from school. Life and learning are so closely fused that there is no need for a break, and one cannot tell where living life ends and school begins.

I am not one of those families. By the time May rolls around, I am DONE with school.

But am I really? After 3 years of doing this, I am discovering more all the time about the homeschool lifestyle. I am learning that there are really two distinct components that account for learning in our home.

The first I will call “Active Schooling.” In my definition, Active Schooling is what may actually somewhat resemble a traditional image of school. It involves books, paper and writing materials, lessons, a plan, sometimes curriculum, and many times takes place around a table. Active Schooling in our home may include but is not limited to the following:

• Math Lessons and Practice
• Reading and writing instruction and practice
• History and social studies read alouds, lessons, and activities
• Science read alouds and activities.
• Anything that resembles a lesson, and requires me to have a plan.

When I say I am DONE with school, I am referring to Active Schooling. I must admit that this component has not been all that I had hoped it would this year. Our two darling toddlers continue to present constant distractions. I never felt like I was able to fully catch my breath and plan the way I would have liked. Active School requires a great deal of energy on my part, and I find that I cannot sustain teaching my children this way, day after day, indefinitely. I need a break. But despite my shortcomings, my children have all progressed academically this year. Thank you Lord.

The second essential component to our homeschooling is what I will call “Passive Schooling.”  I am convinced that with only Active Schooling, my homeschooled children would be receiving a very limited eduction. Passive Schooling simply means living intentially alongside my children, pulling them into whatever I are doing, and passing along knowlege and wisdom. It is creating an environment that supports a lifestyle of learning. Passive Schooling is not exclusive to homeschoolers. Parents with children in tradtional classrooms can surely be intentional about living with their kids. However, as homeschoolers, we enjoy the blessing of TIME. Our children are with us more, during the daytime hours, and thus we have plenty of opportunity for Passive Schooling.  Passive Schooling in our home includes, but is not limited to:

• Access to quality play materials that stimulate creativity
• Access to educational play things, such as puzzles, games and building materials, audio books, etc. that stimulate learning.
• Access to books and research materials to facillitate finding more information on subjects of interest
• Access to books, books, books, for the love of reading to oneself, and being read to.
• Access to Mom, to help facillitate the above mentioned resources
• Plenty of outside playtime…soon at a farm, with diverse ecosystems that include meadow, pond, creek, forest…yippee!
• Access to creative art and craft materials, and writing materials
• Access to good music.
• Plenty of good conversations about life.  Discussing how values and faith play a role day to day
• Pulling children in to daily tasks, and explaining why and how things work. For examply, do you know why yeast is needed to make bread? Why whole wheat must be kneaded more vigorously than white flour? What is gluten?
• Plenty of opportunities to do real work and learn real tasks…what it takes to run a home, care for animals, grow a garden, help a neighbor.

Passive Schooling never really stops in our home. But Active Schooling is officially dismissed for a while. I require that my older children (age 11 and almost 8 ) read daily, write in their journals, and read their Bibles. The 11 year old is also going to practice some math facts.  I have begun to trust more in Passive Schooling, and stop feeling guilty or worried that I am not doing more with my children. I am truly looking forward to the break, and will hopefully be refreshed and ready to begin anew come September.

   We are moving. I can hardly believe it. We’ve spent the last almost 8 years making this house the home that we thought we would live in into our old age. Life often throws curveballs, and at least this is a very pleasant curve.

Years ago, when I dreamed of homeschooling, I also dreamed of a designated, separate, homeschool space.It would be a beautiful classroom, where learning could happen freely, messes could be made, and school materials and educational playthings could be stored. Part of my desire for such a space was due to my hyper-focus on the aesthetic. I like things to look nice, sometimes to a fault (although having 4 young children at home 24/7 is drilling it out of me!) I didn’t want my living room or dining room to look like a classroom. Part of my vision also undoubtably came from my public school teacher mentality that sought to recreate the ideal classroom at home. At one end of the house, there once was a very non-functional attached garage, that was both too narrow and too shallow to park a family sized vehicle. When we decided to build a functional new garage, we also decided to convert the old garage to living space, and voila, I had my “School Room.”

So for three years, we have enjoyed this special space. At times, it does look beautiful…like after a deep cleaning. But on most days, it is a mess. We do use it a lot, and a lot of learning and playing has happened inside it 400 square feet.

Now I am moving to a house with no School Room.  Many of my friends, and even my dear husband, have expressed concerns for my losing the school room, so I guess it is time to let the truth be known.

I have a love-hate relationship with The School Room.

 I love, love, love that we have a place to store our school things. I love that it allows child-sized furniture and display spaces for many of the lovely Montesorri and hands-on materials we like to use. I love that the floor is covered in bullet-proof plastic fake-wood that they kids can paint and build volcanos on.

But I HATE that it is separate from where we live.

When the kids are in the school room, I am held hostage there with them. (OK, I’m being a bit dramatic.) But truly, there are so many days (like everyday!) that I really need to multi-task while the kids are busy with school work. Because their school space is separate from the kitchen and living area, I cannot cut veggies, load the dishwasher, stick something in the crockpot, without leaving the room. Since my children are so little, when I leave their sight, things can go downhill very fast. The littlest ones find unimaginable messes to make, and the big ones just cannot stay on task.

Homeschooling is about “togetherness.” It is about blending learning with life. It is the epitome of multi-tasking. A homeschooling mom who was further along the road that I was said to me when we were planning the school room, “ya, I thought I wanted a school room too, but in the end, you always end up around the kitchen table.” She was so right!

Our new house has no school room. It does have a large open family room right off the kitchen though, and you better believe that is where we will all be, along with the toys and school materials. Aesthetics mean less to me than they once did. Or maybe I just see beauty differently now.

There will be more to come on how we use the new space.

We have some big news in our family. Currently, we are in escrow to purchase an 11 acre mini-farm on the outskirts of town. No one could possible be more shocked than me over this latest development. I was fully prepared to enjoy grandchildren and die of old age in this house.

However, life can quickly change, and I believe this change will be for the better. My hubby feels very strongly that this new property is where he wants to be, and that it affords many wonderful experiences for our children. I can’t help but agree. It is a return to our “roots”, as both Jacob and I grew up on diverse, small farms. The land is beautiful, with a gravity fed irrigation ditch that keep lush pastures green, ponds, a creek, barns, and a large ranch house with a functional floor plan. I am blessed. As with all real estate transactions, there always exists the possibility of things falling through, so its certainly not a done deal yet. But it looks like we are headed this way.

Here are some photos.

I have been attempting to eat through our pantry and freezer this month, in an effort to use up what we have on hand before it becomes too old to be edible. Here is what I came up with in the last few days:

Day One: Ingredients already on hand–

Frozen Chicken Breast

Canned Marinara Sauce

Bag of Frozen Shredded Mozzerella Cheese

Bread Crumbs

Mayonaise

Packaged Fusilli Pasta

I cut the chicken into strips, tossed them in a bowl with mayo, and then rolled them in breadcrumbs. I backed them single layer on a cookie sheet at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, until they were crispy. Then, I placed them in a 9×13 pan, poured a jar of marinara over, topped with shredded cheese, and popped it in back in the over for 30 minute.

Voila! Chicken Parmesan! Served over fusilli pasta and with a side salad it was a yummer dinner.

Day Two: Ingredients on hand–

Leftover chicken parmesan and fusilli

Canned diced tomatoes

Canned chicken broth

Canned kidney beans

Celery, carrots and 1/2 onion

In the crock pot, I placed the leftover pasta, and chicken paremsan…cheese and all. (I cut the chicken into smaller pieces.) I dumped in the canned tomatoes, broth, and beans, along with diced celery, onions and carrot. With a good amount of Italian seasoning, and simmered all day, it will be a yummy, cheesy, chickeny, minestrone-type Italian soup….perfect for after church.

I

I am pretty good about decluttering and purging stuff I don’t need or want. However, I still impulse buy way too much. This year, I’ve been trying to make the connection that decluttering and living simply actually starts in the store, not at the point that I am clearing out the closet. Careful consideration before making a purchase eliminates the need to declutter unwanted items later.

So today I had a breakthrough. I was on the freeway, headed south to that 50 mile away city that you locals all know, where one can actually find real stores that do not exist in our mountain village. I was on my way to roam Target and possibly Old Navy for some needed summer clothes (for me!) I was 5 miles out of town, and I said to myself “No way.” I am driving 100 miles round trip, buring $25 worth of gas, to spend money and bring home junk that I don’t need! (Because everyone knows that one never just gets what is on one’s list at Target!)

So I turned around.

I went to my local downtown resale shop where I purchased 2 skirts and 2 pairs of capris for a great price. Then I went home and ordered some Old Navy Tshirts online…the same ones that I buy every single year because I know they fit…for $7.50 each…and a pair of flipflops.

Summer shopping done for the year.,..only what I needed and no impulse buys. Yeah for me!!