Our little farm…

While we are waiting for miss April to progress in labor we decided to keep working, Torie helped me with these jeans for her big brother..

I am not done yet, they are taking me a very long time because they are very intensive sewing.  The machine doesn’t like the heavy denim and I loathe fly zippers :-).  We are making two pair, so I did two fly zippers today.  On the one hand that is good because it is kind of getting into my brain.   With out a pair of jeans at hand to look at and re look at, and Victoria’s help keeping me straight we wouldn’t have gotten this far.  We started these on New Years day! I’m not usually a procrastinator.  Now I can see the end.  Unfortunately for my son it won’t be today.  I’ve done all I can do, I need to rest my brain!!

So, I took a stroll out to the barn to check the goat.  She is so ready, it looks to me like maybe by supper.  Maybe sooner.  We’ll see.

I stopped to see little Pepin, she had her first litter of kittens yesterday,

She had five little black kittens just like herself.

And I stopped to see our chickens.  I love our Dominicks they are so gentle…

We also have a barred rock rooster, Rocky by name, given to us by a friend.  And some black australorps, golden comets, I think that is it. We enjoy the great brown eggs.  Well, I better go get some more work done.

Milking the goat…

It is evening milking time in the barn…

This is my 9 year old milking Coco, short for coconut.

She is a good little girl.  And my guy loves animals!  We had some friends over so I got out to the barn.  I usually only show up back there once in a while.  During labors and visits from friends.

It blessed me to see him getting in there and doing his part!  We have 3 does milking right now and 1, “April” is in early labor right now!!!

The older goats, especially the queen “Meg” won’t let the little ones milk her.  So we are thankful for Coco, because the younger ones can get their practice!  Yes, we drink the milk!  It is so good for us!

I’m glad it is Saturday…. Chrissi

Refreshing….

The other day I took pictures of the creek my style, untouched, flowing freely….  a bench and a table to repose and meditate on God’s goodness… Today here is the creek my children’s style…

While I was in the house this morning getting ready to get out into the sunshine, they had built this dam across the creek.

They parked their trike on the muddy bank…

We are talking, serious business here!  Now, mommy is always saying “keep the stuff out of the creek”   Today I sat down on the little chair, took out the camera and figured “They are having so much fun”  And I have been so busy sewing that I just took a refreshing “watch the children be children and have fun break”   The sewing will be there on Monday.  The children are growing so fast!  And mommy needs to take a little better care of herself!   Shalom!  Chrissi

Good Morning….

My littliest guy came down this morning as I was checking my e mails and said “Good Morning!!!!!!”  His brothers and sister put him up to it.  It was so sweet!  Usually he sits in his crib and calls “Mommy up!”  “Mommy up!”  This WAS a good morning 🙂

Life and pillowcase dresses…

This is so sweet, I am having a really hard time without too many details our family has been sick for going on two weeks.  It is getting close to down in the dumps here!  I go upstairs to check on the children and finish my breakfast and there is my baby girl, who is already 11, doing her kitchen chore.  I take a second look and see that she is dressed, matching, and has a pillowcase dress we made last year and a matching bow in her hair.  She is wearing it as a smock top over her t-shirt.

 

This month her chore is sweeping the kitchen floor after meals.

I got her to stop and come get this picture.  I have a friend who tells me “don’t think too deeply”,  I have a maker who made me to think deeply.  While I’m watching my daughter, I’m thinking….”Wow, those pillowcase dresses really cover up t- shirts that are too tight nicely!”, “I’m so pleased and proud of my little girl, taking time and care to dress herself neatly”,   “I’m so thankful, she is doing her chore cheerfully!”….. Even though we don’t feel the greatest, this too shall pass….. Even though we feel pretty yucky, there is fruit from the years of child training….sewing is benefitting my children…

The sun has been hiding for many days here too, but the Son can still turn our eyes and our thoughts to things that are good, lovely, etc…

I’m glad my neighbor told me about these pillowcase dresses!

Hoping for sunshine and health!  Chrissi

Rain…

My husband and son finished a roof job yesterday.  That is good news.  It continues to rain here, for our friends in drought, I am sorry.  For our friends in the south with flooding I am sorry.  For us here in Ohio, I am sorry!   Look at these guys working in the rain!  For them I am sorry, may they not get colds worse than they already have.  These men truly give their lives for us.

Praying for my self and all of us here in northeast Ohio, that this rain doesn’t get us down.  The grass is really loving it!  Chrissi

Industry….

One of our family’s life verses is 1 Thessalonians 4:11 “And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; verse 12 goes on to say..”that ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing.”  This has been good advice when the children want to know why a brother or sister gets or does something that perhaps all can’t do.   It is also very encouraging living on a mini- farm with so many chores and the animals putting  constraints on our ability to venture out a lot.   I wanted to include these pictures of some of us working with our hands, work is good, we are so thankful for it!

 

We trace our patterns to keep the sizes straight.  Our little guys help us cut them out.

Tracing takes a steadier hand than I have!!

We also study sewing articles for inspiration and technique.  Victoria really helps me, as I am visual,  she reads up and puts the instructions into visual form by doing them with me.  I can follow book instructions, but she and Olivia are much better at it.  It is good to be able to use one another’s talents when we work together.  We get much more done that way!

Thankful, Chrissi