And We're Off!

After two busy days of loading, cleaning, fixing a wobbly side mirror, etc..... WE'RE OFF on our week long camping vacation!

If I don't have an Internet connection, then I wish you all a wonderful week and we'll catch up when we get back!

Till next time,

Wore Slap Out!

It's not even 8:00 p.m. and I am wore slap out.  I don't even know what I did today that would wear me out so much!  Country Boy and I went to pick up our RV this morning, then he washed it while I was making some bread.  I cleaned the windows and dashboard while Country Boy cleaned the fridge.  It's amazing how dirty stuff can get!  We loaded the RV with a few things then decided it was time for supper.  We tried something new tonight.  We have pokeweed growing all over the property and for years Country Boy has been wanting to make some poke salad.  Only problem is... neither one of us knew how to make it.  A neighbor was over this morning and he pointed out the poke salad and briefly told us how to make it.  I googled it for further directions, so we decided to try it!  We were nervous though because supposedly, it can be poisonous!  I googled that also.  When the stalk is red, over 18" and the plant has berries on it you shouldn't eat it.  And you're to eat the tender leaves.  Anyway, we gave it a shot!  It looks like spinach and tastes like greens!  Not too bad!  It's been almost two hours and we're both OK!  But, it will be to bed early tonight!  More loading to do tomorrow after church...

The moon seems to be out a lot during the day lately.  These were taken several months apart.  Looks like the same phase of the moon though.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Till next time,

Good News, Critters & Such

Happy Friday everyone!

Country Boy and I finally got word that our RV was fixed and running great.  Whew!  Nothing like cutting it close especially since we took it in a month ago... we leave Monday morning for a vacation.  A lot of things were wrong with the engine all at once and a lot of work had to be done to it.  We were dreading the total tally of parts & labor.  But, the Lord blessed us and they kept it right at the quote that they gave us!  Yay!  I'm a happy girl!

~~~~~

I went grocery shopping this morning and got all the yummy food that you just have to have when you're camping... hot dogs, chips and dip (a personal fave of mine!), meat for hamburgers, makings for a fish fry, baked beans, potatoes, eggs & bacon.  OK, you get the idea!  We don't usually have any hot dogs or chips in the house so I'm really excited about that!  There's nothing better than a hot dog roasted over a fire!  A weenie roast!  And I have always loved chips & dip.  There are movie clips of me as a toddler dipping a chip into the dip.  OK, so maybe I was 'scooping' the dip instead of dipping; what can I say, I LOVE French Onion dip!  It's a good thing there are hiking trails around the campground because I'm gonna need to work off this yummy camping food!

~~~~~

This afternoon, I took a book and sat on the bird-watching patio.  Not a lot of action today but I managed to get some reading done and get a couple of decent shots!  The orange tree saw more visitors than the feeders!

The squirrels love to hang out under the feeder.  Lots of goodies there!

So far these guys haven't figured out how to get onto the feeders but this one sure is pondering a way!

He saw me looking at him and taking his picture so he's trying to blend in... 'you don't see me lady'!

I liked how the wings showed up on this guy.

Mourning Doves

And there ya have it!

I hope you have an awesome weekend!

Till next time,



Life is Good

The mornings Country Boy isn't heading off to work we have our usual routine.  Either he comes home from work or we wake up and go sit on our back porch to have our morning coffee.  That is, of course, once all the cats are fed, otherwise, there would be no peace and quiet!  We sit and talk about what went on during his shift, we talk about our dreams, we make plans and sometimes we sit quietly and listen to the birds and the wildlife around us.  The other morning it was extremely foggy.  Country Boy took this shot when the sun finally broke through the fog (I was in the house getting us some more coffee and nature doesn't wait for you to refill your mug!)  I'm so glad he grabbed my camera and got this shot!

Such a lovely view to start the day!

~~~~~

There was some excitement both in the garden and kitchen today.  While I was kneading the bread dough, Country Boy came in with our first crop of green onions! 

We really enjoy seeing (and eating!) the fruits of our labor.  I'm not sure if everything tastes better because of the effort put in to grow it or if it's because they're picked when they are ripe.  Either way, we reap the benefit!

I also had great success in bread making today.  I tried yesterday to make the same bread but my yeast was old and the bread was flat as a pancake and hard as a rock.  The coons and squirrels enjoyed it though!

This is after an hour long rise time.  Looks pretty good so far!

And for the finale...

It was delicious!  Country Boy had a couple of pieces with our homemade peach jelly on it for lunch and I had a slice with butter.  Yummy!

I will post the recipe on my Recipes page.  So check it out if you are interested!

~~~~~

Speaking of Recipe page, for those of you who have been following for awhile, did you notice the format change of my blog?  What do you think?  The cats have their own page now and the new chicks will probably have their own page as well!  Eventually, I will add a few more tabs.

~~~~~

Even though the title of this post is 'Life is Good', please don't get me wrong and think that our lives are perfect with no stress or troubles.  I know it can sound like that from reading what is posted on my blog, but I tend to post things that are positive and make me happy because I am hoping to help someone else look for the blessings in their life as well.  Everyone has positives and negatives in their life.  Choose to focus on the positives and the negatives will seem, well, less negative!

We are currently praying about Country Boys' job situation.  Some changes are going to be made six months from now and we're praying for wisdom, guidance and direction.  Our RV is also currently in the shop undergoing some major engine work.  We don't even want to know what the total expense will be on that.  But you know what?  We're believing Phillippians 4:6-7

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.  NIV

So, yea, our Life is Good!  We are very blessed and will continue to focus on our blessings and pray for wisdom and guidance in all the other areas of concern.

I hope you can name and be thankful for the blessings in your life!

Till next time,

The Best Things in Life Aren't Things

While I was working crazy hours as an EMT, I began to feel overwhelmed with just about everything.  I was too overwhelmed to make healthy food choices; too overwhelmed to keep up with the housework; too overwhelmed to put things away when I was finished with it; too overwhelmed to read my monthly subscription to Country Living.  After awhile, all I could see when I was home was more work that needed to be done. Maybe it was because I was tired all the time but it got me thinking about what was important in life.  Am I working so that Country Boy and I could have a cool cell phone or 120 channels or more of nothing on TV or the latest electronic gadget that is obsolete by the time I get it home?  These 'things' are just not important to either one of us so we decided it was time to simplify our lives.  It is a process and choices have to be made along the way but once the decisions are made and you are in the process of decluttering, it is rewarding and freeing.

I have slowly been making my way around each room in the house.  Today, it was time to tackle 'the office'.  I have dreaded this room more than any other mainly because, not only is my desk (with tons of paperwork that you never know if you need to keep it or not OR how to file the odds-n-ends papers *sigh*) in there, but all of my crafts are there as well.  I enjoy doing all sorts of crafts from scrapbooking to crocheting and many in-between!  So you can just imagine all the stuff I have in there!  I had to decide which ones I enjoyed the most and let the others go.  This may sound a bit harsh, but I am finding out that I don't have enough time to do them all and they were just adding to the clutter.  I have come to despise clutter of any sort and I have a difficult time being creative while I'm surrounded by clutter.  I read the following recently on eartheasy.com about Simplifying and I think it explains what I was feeling perfectly...

Clutter fills more than our shelves and closets - it permeates our lives.  We work hard to be able to afford things, many of which require care, cleaning, storing, insuring, protecting... and the media and merchants are constantly offering us the next "must have".

I have a long way to go yet in the office but I made a really good start today and I am happy with my decisions.  Bonus:  the office is already looking better!

You ask what I'm doing with the stuff I'm clearing out?  I'm going to have a yard sale sometime in April.  Should be fun!

Let me just clarify that Living Simply will mean different things to different people. For some, it may evoke images of a low-income or a back-to-the-land lifestyle which may be unappealing, impractical or unattainable.  Don't let what others (may or may not) think determine how simply you want to live.  The choice is up to you.  And, if you are true to yourself, you will be happy with your decision and what others' think won't bother you.

I know this is getting long (and it's getting late) so I will wrap it up before I lose you (if I haven't already *smile*)!  I came across this scripture recently and it pretty much sums up what Country Boy and I are trying to achieve in our simple life; living a quiet life, working with our hands and depending only on our Lord...

I Thessalonians 4:11-12

Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.  NIV

I could say so much more, and maybe I've been talking in circles, but I challenge you to take some time to decide what's important in your life and then start by making some simple changes that will help you focus on those things rather than all the 'clutter'!  Make a decision to stop being overwhelmed and then take it one day at a time.  You'll be glad you did!

~~~~~

That's enough serious talk!  Now I'll leave you with a couple of photos I took the other day...

This hawk has made a nest in one of my neighbors' trees.  I took this shot before I went to visit my neighbor and I couldn't tell with my naked eye if she was even on the nest.  (Maybe I should start wearing my glasses all the time!)

This was on my way out.

~~~~~

I'd love to hear some of the things that are important in your life and some ways you are tackling the clutter head-on!

Till next time,



Garden Update

It's Barn Hop Monday #5 so those of you that have been Following my blog for awhile know what that means!!!  I'll be posting about our latest Homesteading efforts.  Today, it's all about vegetables, fruit and herbs.

Spring came to us a couple of weeks early so we're a little ahead of the usual planting season.  The following were sown directly in the ground after our last frost...  green onions, potatoes, garlic, onions, purple hull peas, okra and cucumbers.  (Although we did have a scare one night a couple of weeks ago; temps dropped suddenly to almost freezing but everything is OK, whew!) 

Cucumbers and Potatoes

Garlic and onions

Purple hull peas and Okra

Several tomato plants were rescued from the chicken run and the others were started in the greenhouse in late February and are still in the greenhouse.  Country Boy repotted them today.  Once they get a little bigger he'll transplant them into the garden.  Several of the rescued tomato plants have blooms on them already!

Tomato plant

I planted Basil, Parsley, Chives and Dill in an above ground wooden planter.  They are slowly coming up.  I had several surprise plants coming up as well because I used some composted dirt in the planter.  Turns out they are bell peppers that are doing quite well!  A nice surprise!  Gotta love compost!

We also have wild blackberries and grapes on our property.

Blackberry buds

Grape leaves and vines

We had small caterpillar like worms on our apple, pear, orange and tangerine trees.  I mixed up a solution of 1 tsp. hot sauce, 1 quart of water and 4 cloves of garlic in a blender then strained into a garden sprayer.  Country Boy used this to spray the trees and it has helped keep the bugs off.  If anyone has another all-natural 'recipe' for bugs I'd love to hear about it!

For other great Homesteading tips and projects, please click HERE!  Happy Homesteading!

Till next time,

Wings of a Feather

It's official, Spring has Sprung!  It certainly has here and I hope it has in your neck of the woods!

This is going to be a long one folks so grab your favorite drink and snack and sit back and enjoy!

As promised, here is the long awaited bird condo courtesy of Country Boy!

Front view

About a year ago, we noticed that the tree next to our pump house had died.  It hangs over the power line to our house so we called the electric company to inform them.  They called someone to come out and cut it down.  Country Boy told them to leave about a ten foot stump.  He had plans for that stump!  Of course, the men cutting the tree down thought he was crazy but at the same time they were happy because it made their job easier!  Ever since then, the stump has been standing there looking somewhat silly.  Until now!

Rear view.  Love the car parked out back!  He's so creative!

It has eight condos; four downstairs and four upstairs.  We're wondering who will move in first... the birds or the squirrels!

While Country Boy was putting the finishing touches on the condo this afternoon, I sat on my bird-watching patio and got some great shots.  I can't wait to share them with you.  But first...

I came across this poem today in an old issue of Birds & Blooms and thought it was perfect for today's post (since this post seems to have 'gone to the birds' already *smile*)...

Half a Year is Not Enough

Spring arrives on hummingbird wings;

Of this I have no doubt.

When they arrive, I know it's time

To put sweet nectar out.

I realize they've traveled far

To spend six months with me.

So I will do my very best

To make their visit worry-free.

I'll cultivate sweet blossoms,

Filling beds and pots with red.

They will supervise the job

As they buzz high above my head.

They ask so little, give so much,

Adding sweetness to my days.

Half a year is not enough

To behold all their winning ways.

By Bernice Maddux

Also as promised, I managed to get some better hummingbird photos for you.



A male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

American Goldfinch

This is so cute!  It's a cardinal pair on the cake feeder at the same time!

Chipping Sparrow

Then all of a sudden there was a feeding frenzy...

There were birds on all five feeders at the same time.  I didn't know which way to aim my lens!  I kept going back and forth trying to capture everybody!

Can anyone tell me what bird this is?  I didn't see anything that resembled it in my bird book.

As you can see, I had a great time this afternoon.  I am so happy that more and more birds are arriving each day and such a variety of birds as well!  Thank you Country Boy for building the bird feeder station for me!

~~~~~

Did you go outside last night and check out the Super Moon?  I had to drive to a main road so that I could get these shots...

You can barely see the top of a tree at the bottom of the moon.

~~~~~

I hope everyone had a great weekend.  It's gone by fast for me, although, with Country Boy's crazy work schedule, I usually don't even know what day it is!

Till next time,