Yesterday, we got our first batch of chicks for this year. Scott brought one in to sit on Bean’s shoulder, with the resulting overload of cute! And our goat, Madrone, our very first goat – had two baby boys. It is difficult to get good pictures of the babies out in the barn this soon, with the light and everything. So Scott brought the one … Continue reading Today in Adorable-Land!
For the last week, I’ve been mulling over the reckless idea of a Singleness of Purpose. It floors me, the thought. I’ve been wondering about it almost nonstop – as if the quest for a Singleness of Purpose has been my purpose lately. Who are the people who seem to have one? People who dedicate large swaths of time to writing a book, who research … Continue reading Where to from here?
This weekend, in fairly typical fashion, Ben created about a bazillion new paper-craft projects. His imagination never stops. I spoke to Bean about doing a project with him every day when he gets home from Kindergarten. It dawned on me that Ben has always been able to come up with ideas for projects on his own. I never have to give him any direction whatsoever; … Continue reading Calvin & Hobbes… Erm… I mean… Ben & Bean
It has snowed a whole bunch in our area. (I am so cheating with this photo. It’s from a photo site and not one I took of our current storm.) Our snow is bad, but not this bad. It’s packed, it has stayed on the ground for almost a week, in six to eight inch depths mostly. The roads are icy and dangerous. Some parts … Continue reading Winter Storm Driving
As I worked in the kitchen this morning, I was thinking about the Independence we sought as a family regarding a food supply. It has been almost a year and a half since we bought any bread. Scott was making it while I was working, and when we switched to me being home and him working, I started making bread. We received a letter from … Continue reading Independence and the Food Chain
“Not Cool, Robert Frost!” It has been all the rage on the internet, at Ted Talks, on the Late Night Circuit – all over the place. If you have not yet seen The Pep Talk, by Kid President, please, go see it now. I will wait. My kids and I have watched this so many times, we have it memorized. We have gone on to … Continue reading Monkeys Flinging Poop, Friends Visiting and other Poetic Adventures
Yesterday, Bean got a chance to ride around the back field (under supervision from dad) on the back of our pig, Lily. The kids know not to go in the back field unless Scott is with them. Pigs can be cantankerous and they are huge animals. This one is only a few months old. There is also SweePea, who is pregnant and hormonal, so we … Continue reading A Few of the Joys of a Country Childhood
Suddenly, I’m not tired anymore. My last day at my job was a week and a half ago and I’ve been sick, and voiceless ever since my first day home. That was not the entrance into this new life of working from home that I was expecting. But it was a transition period. I needed some sleep. Tonight, we watched, Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium, with … Continue reading “Your Life is an Occasion: Rise to It!”
Never before have I been so turned upside down by setting the clocks ahead one hour. On Sunday morning, my iPhone alarm went off at 4:15, as usual. The rest of the clocks still said 3:15 am – which really does seem like an unnatural time to be awake for a day worker. We had even been up late the night before roasting hot dogs … Continue reading It feels like the Time Change punched me in the face this year
It turns out, our goats are not pregnant. Yes. We are beginners, and we thought they were, and didn’t really know what to look for, and were confused by how not fat they were. Birthing time came and went, and went by a long stretch, and nothing. We talked to our Goat Mentor, Sue, who had them out to her property for breeding, witnessed the … Continue reading A Happy Little Symphony
The animals have a large area to roam, but they really like to be walked by one of us. Here, Benjamin is walking the pigs and the goats. In the first picture, SweePea is getting really close to Ben, hoping there might be an apple or something in his back pocket. She’s the cutest, sweetest, 800-lb animal we have ever been around. Still, you want … Continue reading You Got Something in your Pocket?
That is Madrone (or Mama), one of our goats due to deliver any day, being super curious. These are not the clearest pictures, because those babies won’t stay still. But this shows how tiny they are right now. Continue reading Bottle Baby Goats are Here!
We have new baby goats, picked up today from our Goat Mentor, Sue. The babies like their new home and are dancing around. Our pregnant goats are all curious and crazy over them. This should be fun! Continue reading Baby Goat Dancing
Scott just loves this picture of a proud, happy, baby pig sunning himself in the mud! Continue reading Sunning Himself in the Mud
In summertime, we will once again have eggs for sale. Our Chickens are not producing a lot of eggs this time of year. This just cracks me up. Continue reading Look at the Size of that Egg!
This is our Benjamin. At eight-years old, he has become the Chicken Charmer. Every single one of our chickens will let him hold them. Sometimes, he swears, they snuggle. Ben and Bean with Cousin Olivia – bunch of Goofballs if you ask me! Continue reading Chicken Charmer
Our animals are so happy. Scott takes such good care of them. He takes them for walks every day. Continue reading Out Walking the Field with the Animals
I It’s crazy – the bunny is so blazing white, that he’s hard to see. That is our little Bean keeping the Bunny company while everyone else was chopping wood. The mural was done by Benjamin and me (Liesl / Mom) during our first summer up here in Oregon when he was six. Continue reading Hanging out with the Bunnies
It was so much fun to bring all the pigs home, SweePea and her whole litter. They are adorable running around out back field. Continue reading The Pigs Like Their New Home
Trying to build a barn extension for the goat babies that will be here any day, is like trying to do a building project with a toddler as a helper. They are all over everything. Continue reading The Goats are Always Trying to Help
The pigs were born on Election Day 2012. Scott got to race out to Sue’s farm to help deliver the babies. Continue reading Pig Babies are Born
This was in April of 2012. We would spend most of the summer waiting to get everything in order to bring her to our farm. But we knew right away that she needed to be with us! Continue reading The Day we Met SweePea
One of the things I love about the end of one year and the beginning of another, is looking over what we accomplished and setting our sights on new goals. This year was a bit of a highlight because I don’t think we have ever done so many new things in one year. We went from city kids to country kids in 2012. At the … Continue reading A Year in Review and My Calendar Conundrum
There are more tragedies in the world than I can fathom. The truth is, our world is so connected, we cannot help but know devastating details of incidents that happen across vast distances. Which is why I have unplugged recently. The recent cruelties and losses have been horrendous. I stopped listening to the radio. I haven’t been online in quite a while. It scared me … Continue reading Regrouping and Using Curiosity & Creativity Locally
My husband had our 8-year old helping make breakfast for our Big Country Breakfast on Sunday. It was homemade biscuits with homemade gravy and scrambled eggs from our chickens. Ben was cracking the eggs and whisking them. He was adding the salt and pepper, and noticing that we are running low on salt. He suggested going to the Bonneville Salt Flats for a refill. (He … Continue reading Simplicity: How Did We Ever Forget?
