Saturday, March 31, 2012

Why is acceptable to lie about a child? Why do others allow it?

Matthew 19:14  Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."  I don't think there is a purer spirit than a child.  Children love and trust those that have authority over them.  Their dads, moms, older sibling, aunt, uncles, grandparents and generally the adults in their lives.  They go to them for help.  The Lord himself ask his disciples to not hinder them.  With that in mind, what what be your opinion of an investigation where the "people in authority", at an organization, reported an assault to the county attorney and the sheriff's office. But because they had "compared" there views on the assault, talked to the assaulter, pretty much told the county attorney and the sheriff's office the girls stories changed, so basically they reported but said the girls lied and down played the assault.  The sheriff office responded by investigating by speaking to those same people,  never once interviewing the victim, as according to the good church people they were liars so why interview them?  I wonder is the rights of one of their "good" members more important to them than the child that was the victim of an assault?  Does the sheriff's office always investigate assaults by never interviewing the victim and assuming the victim is a liar?  Some one dropped the ball and a child learned to fear the adults she was supposed to trust, was and is, afraid of the church that was supposed to protect her.  Maybe in the end that was the biggest motivator of the church, if the child was telling the truth what does that say about their supervision of the children under their care?  They don't want to lose the children that might come in the future so let's all believe the child lied, settles all the problems and closes it up in a nice neat package.  Well in the end it was a blessing to us, opened our eyes to the lengths some people go to protect their bums and God showed us we didn't want to be among those who maligned a small child under the pretense of leading them to the Lord.  If anyone really wants the truth start by asking the victim, isn't that sort of the logically place to start. I asked the victim in the beginning, one time, her story,  after isolating her from her sister, then spoke to the sister, amazing how their stories were the same.  I never asked again, thought that might, due to training, confuse the child.  The good church people, per the nice man, all asked the girls their story, sort of exactly what not to do, report don't investigate, and asking the child over and over their story taints the witnesses account, especially in a young child.  Sort of wonder why the sheriff office allowed it and never, not once, talked to the victim?  Mistake?  or ?? Maybe the powers that be? I don't know, no longer care.  Sadly my girls learned, not all church people can be trusted and why didn't the cops come then one of them was assaulted? They also learned, the church they once loved, considered them liars, and so did the sheriff, really helps them to believe either place is a place of safety in the future, doesn't it?

I did have a pleasant afternoon sharing time with the nice man that gave me a lot of info.  Bad, bad me, I knew better than to use a name, (just had enough and slipped up) so have always used coded names, so I must remember to stay with in the rules.  I never make the same mistake twice.  I promised him I would stay with in the rules, and would desist completely if left alone to live as a family with out continually having abuse rained down upon us.  I did say I would stay mum until the next incident, so I am going to be mum until abused again then, as I promised him I will blog and blog loud as no one helps and it is the only protection we get. Even his visit was prompted, finally, by a blog.  So, you will be glad to hear, and I am sure relieved, to know I will not speak of "the neighbor" again after the close of this blog, hopefully for ever, but I won't hold my breath.

The rain was actually very nice, we hibernated most of the day.  The grandkids are really sick and the girls had to be restrained from riding bikes in the rain.  We watch a wonderful family movie renewed our spirits and know that God loves us and is watching out for us, the nice man sort of reaffirmed that.  He did say,  if "he" can part the red sea he can help with "the neighbor",  amen..... tomorrow.

Friday, March 30, 2012

The rain is pouring down, but we had such a nice Spring break week.

The rain has poured down most of the night. The ping ping ping on my bathroom vent was almost melodious.  The air is cool and feels thick, if air can be thick.  The day makes you want to stay in and is not calling us to go out side to enjoy it.  We may just get to lay laminate.  We were supposed to all week but the days were so nice that we just couldn't turn our backs on its siren wails.  We spent the week raking pine needles, picking up scrap boards and things we burned.  We made a creep feeder for the little goats.  The mommas invaded it so we tweaked it.  We hope they won't still be able to sneak in but if so  we will tweak it again.  The girls played in the driveway and on the road with their bikes.  Boy learned to master the bike that Preacher brought and then he was on to his bigger bike.  The Little tried to ride a bike with some success but she didn't really stick with it long term.  Bubbie liked being in the walker in the sunshine.  Cubbie did cubbie things, and needed a wash more than once, explored and "found" lost treasures.  Poppie was please with the progress we made in the yard.  We have ignored our poor house and no laminating got done; but it was such a long winter we deserved the fun and enjoyment of spending a whole week in the sunshine doing alot of nothing, in the eyes of most, but accomplished so much.  We grew as a family just spending time together, cleaned the yard and revitalised ourselves for whatever is to come.

Hopefully we can get the floor in today.  We are going to have to put the furniture in the kitchen, and in the bedrooms.  We won't be able to put any of it on the porch it is really raining hard.  We may not get it done but the dead line to get it done is only in our heads, there is really no need to hurry it will be there waiting for us when the right day actually comes.  Poppie had to go save Herbalists son last night he had been out hunting mushroom and was just coming back to town when he lost his transmission or maybe just the clutch.  He coasted to the grocery store and called Poppie for help.  They towed the truck up here and Poppie took him home.  Poppie will try and determine what is actually wrong today.  It has an aluminum tranny so it shouldn't be hard for Poppie to check to let him know which it is, tranny or clutch.  Life is a meandering road we never actually know what is around the next bend or curve, adds a little spice doesn't it?....... tomorrow.

Thursday, March 29, 2012

"thank you Lord for my cancer" was part of the message of the Preachers sermon, I struggle daily but the Lord does lead me.

The Preacher gave a great sermon on Sunday, part of it was about a lady that had gone to church all of her life until she developed cancer late in her life.  She couldn't understand why the lord had inflicted her with this terrible disease.  She was overwhelmed with her cancer and soon no longer went to church, she had lost her faith and was no longer able to go to worship the Lord.  Along came a preacher or missionary out reach person to her door.  She was not very welcoming to the preacher at her door, she told him she had always worshipped the Lord and he had turned his back on her.  The out reach person prayed with her, shared the bibles words anew with her, through vigilance, and the grace of God, he showed her the way back to the Lord.  The Lord came into her heart in a way he had never been allowed before, she for the first time saw him as her true salvation and the blindness that had been on her eyes her whole life had been remove. She returned to church, I am not sure if it was a new church or not, but she returned to church to worship with new found truth in her heart.  Her cancer was eventually eradicated and her blessings was tenfold of what they had been before her cancer.  She for the rest of her life would say with great resolve "thank the Lord for my cancer", without which she would not have come to the Lord in the way he had called her all of her life.  She was saved and written in the book of life for it having been in her life. 

I have be given so many blessings in the last year, the travails I have had to go through, or my family has had to go through, have been the cancer that has helped us seek out the Lord in a more direct way and know we needed him so much more.  The Lord does work in mysterious ways.  I am hearkened back to the sermon I read months ago, I am including the link again, as it is a very good message and helps me to get through the hard times.   http://www.tillhecomes.org/Text%20Sermons/Luke/Luke%206%2028.htm,  Loving our neighbor is a commandment and I know in my heart that I do that on a daily bases, as most people do, it is very human to give to people in general.  I have been an emt, a dispatcher, a helpline member and domesctic violence advocate, and generally a helpful person most all of my life. I have also helped many a strange as did the good Samaritan.  I have newly found additions to my prayers and have included them in my prayers for months.  I prayer for those who by any standard or definition are my enemy.  No, I don't prayer for their demise or harm.  I pray for their health, I prayer for their children's safety, I pray for the Lord to talk to their hearts.  I would say that that is loving my neighbor by the standards the Lord has asked of me.  I am at ease with all that the Lord asks of me.  My life is full of many blessings from the Lord so know I am right with him.  I also sleep well at night knowing that I pray daily and the Lord shows me the way he wants me to go. I am blessed because of my enemies, sort of like the lady with cancer was for having had it.  I am asked by the Lord to pray and endure; that I can do happily daily.... tomorrow.




Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Ok, so no laminating got done, it was soooo nice outside.

I started the day with good intentions.  I got shelves cleaned in the laundry room, prepped boxes of wool to go in the place of the totes that went to the studio.  I sorted yarns and was on my way to cleaning nirvana and laminating bliss, and then the sunshine and the day outside called out so loudly I couldn't take it anymore.  Mokie, the kids, the ladies, Poppie and I escaped to the great outdoors when he came home from Belle's.  We spent time with the goaties, the piggies, and the dogs.  Poppie shoveled out the chicken coop, while I wheelbarrowed it to the manure pile.  We have a great large pile that is ready to go on to the garden, goat manure that the kids have sledded on and dug in all winter and spring.  Now that we have added the nasty smelly chicken manure to it the kids have been advised to stay off of it as it is really yucky.  I am sure I will catch them digging and playing trucks on it but hopefully the smell will detour them from it though.  Poppie blocked the chickens in their outer yard while we cleaned the coop and he had shewed the Peacocks out of the coop, they will be allowed to free range for the summer, I love the free range laws we enjoy in Montana.  The peacocks have a perch in one of our giant fir trees, they can see all the goings on and they call loudly when something that doesn't belong or is different catches their eyes.  Their stint in the chicken coop has made them more friendly and we can actually get pretty close to them,  they were shown the grain storage so they know where to get food as feeding them is pretty hard  due to their free spirits.  We had a burn pile and burnt wood scraps and such.  Teenager was here to play with the kids I think, it would be so funny to see his friends seeing him playing with all the little ones.  He is good with them but it would put a dent in his macho image.

We were happily spending a much needed day of fun and joy when Yogie answered the phone.  Preacher and Pianist wanted to come out and see the animal. We  told them they were always welcome.  They came out a little later and we got to share our little farm with them.  They were really surprised at how many animals we actually have.  Preacher had never seen a pig as big as our Miss Chops (Booboo has allowed us to drop the Swiss)  She was friendly as ever and let them see her piggies.  She had been upset and anger earlier in the day.  One of her new piglets had tried to go walk about and had gotten stuck in the fence to the mid size piglets pen.  The baby was screaming, the momma was screaming louder, Poppie knew as angry as she was not to get into her pen so he ended up wadding through the mud of the mid size piglet's pen.  He came into the house caring the little might.  The piglet was all muddy and crying Poppie had gooey mud to his calves that coated his shoes, and he was standing in the middle of my carpet.  See why I need it to go!  He took the baby back and momma was happy to see her little charge.  She was on hyper-mamma mode the rest of the day.  So Preacher got to see how protective momma's can be, now wonderful God made it so. Preacher had brought a little tricycle that had been in his garage for awhile, Boy was happy to be gifted with it.  His kindness made a little Boys day.

They had a great time and then went up to see Brother, Sister was in Zootown, the girls showed them the way.  Brother has had back trouble, much like Poppies for years, and was hurt at work this last week.  He will have to have surgery soon.  Preacher and Pianist were stopping by to meet him, and pray for him, that he gets better and has the best possible out come.  Sister and Brother have had blessed news.  They will be allowed to adopt the Little soon, they are truly blessed and have waited a long time for this time in their lives.  God is so good.

The girls and I went to Church,  it was wonderful.  The Little got to announce her wonderful new to all so they could share in her joy.  We had a wonderful lesson and a loving time with our Church family.  We had cake and ice cream to celebrate Momma Violinists birthday. It was a wonderful time, I got to have an individual conversation with each of the ladies at church.  One of our members is to have a baby in July, she has just found out she is to have a little girl.  She is so excited, it is wonderful to see the joy of a new mother to be.  Pianist sent a slice of cake home for Poppie and Brother.  It was a wonderful closure to a marvelous day..... tomorrow.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Laminating, Maybe to a birthday at Church later, a day of work good for the soul.

Poppie is off to do the last finishing touches of Belle's dishwasher.  The girls and I are going to start in the laundry room, we are going to move totes of material to the studio so we can restock it with the soap making supplies from the kitchen and wool from the tables I have been sewing on all winter in the front room.  Once we get the laundry room situated we will tackle the office.  We are hoping to get to make it into a sewing room with all three machines or maybe four set up and ready to go to create at any given moment.  The ladies have several sewing projects they can make they just need their own special space that the "kids" can't invade.  I am hoping Poppie will eventually make me a couple set of cubbies for the purposes of storage in there, no, not Cubbie, what a mess that would be in my sewing room.  I am going to box my knitting machine until I can actually learn or get brave enough to learn to use it.  I am hoping the spinning wheel will fit in the space it has occupied for the last year.  That should get all our many projects out of the front room and we can start the arduous task of moving the furniture and stove out of the front room so we can lay laminate.  I am not sure I will get to paint, I had originally thought of painting with the carpet still in the room, so I wouldn't get the under flooring dirty before we lay the laminate but have decided the carpet needs to be cleaned as it does clean up real nice.  Once it is clean we will cut and roll it up so we can install it in the studio, there is more than enough to floor the studio and it would add warmth to the floor as well as finishing the unfinished floors.  A win win sort of. Poppie really wants to put in a set of french door off the back of the living room where one of the large window is.  We think we could put a private patio back there that is fenced so the little dogs couldn't get out so would have to option of putting them into a small fenced yard.  We have the fence to finish the last of the big yard, the old pond and the garden so the whole yard will be fenced.  We had thought of putting a gate at the end of the drive that had access to Mokies but you couldn't watch the kids come and go all the way so have opted to keep a gate in the garden where we can see them go all the way from one house to the other.  We will have to reroute the path so it no longer goes across the garden, but around, but still safer than the kids going down the drive.  We are still going to put the fence half way down the drive to give more room to the dogs and goats to be in the yard.  We have really expanded the grassy yard area so that will be nice.  I am hoping to have good grass by the 4th of July,  I think this year we want to try roasting a whole pig, at our regular block party and maybe some friends, family and Church family will be invited. 

Today is one of the ladies at Churches birthday so there will be cake and ice cream after, the girls and I are going to go.  Poppie has a real difficult time setting more than a short time so in concentrating his attendance on Sundays but the ladies and I will be going.  I found some material among my many totes that I will give her with the promise of making it into a skirt or a few skirts if I can find more that is suitable for her.  I think a good hard day of working with the ones you love, then going to praise the Lord with loving church family is the prescription the ladies and I need to put our soul to rest and at peace..... tomorrow.

Monday, March 26, 2012

I beg forgiveness to those of you that are tired of hearing my problems.

I just want to make it perfectly clear, I am not a person that general airs my dirty laundry and I do apologize for the on going problems with my neighbor.  I want you to know that I have not mentioned her at all in months, check the blogs, mid January I believe.  I have tried to do my best but she continues to harass and stalk our family.  I have never said anything I can't proof or didn't hear straight from her mouth; but what she and her boyfriend, have done to us as an extended family is unbelievable so I don't really expect you to.  This week she had my daughter in tears and my daughter was told by the sheriffs office they can't help.  I now know why the state got a D+ when it comes to enforcing laws in this state.  The male neighbor was standing in the yard shrieking at the top of his lungs filthy obscene things at and about my daughter while 5 children under 5, not counting his own two daughters stand by his feet, stood and cried. His wife was jumping up and down like a lunatic laughing and  giggling cheering him on while he did it.  I said before they put water in our fuel tank well that is because they did, "the neighbor" told us straight out one time that she did it to her sons father to get even with him so when our tank got 2 quarts of water in it two days after I got the order of protection it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know she was getting even again. The diesel mechanic said it was impossible for the water to have gotten there any other way but being put there.  She grabbed my daughter by the arms in the cloak room at the church they were going to awanas at, in December and shoved her down when only my two girls were there so she has assaulted my daughter.  When we asked for help from the church they blew us off. The girls no longer want to go to awanas and love our new church.  She took my daughters swimming last summer and unbeknownst to me she was drinking and driving with them in the car, one of my acquaintance asked me why I allowed it, well the answer is I didn't know and I trusted her to not drink and drive with them.  I really should have known I can't remember talking to her once last summer after 10 in the morning that she hadn't imbibed along with her perscriptions. She taught my daughters to walk sexy and not tell their mom it would be their little secret.  If she had been a man the cops may have done something but she is a woman after all.  She has continually harassed my daughter and my sister over the well the three of them jointly owned.  The well was dug in 1984 and my mother and  me (the owner of the property Mokie now owns) paid for the well, my sister moved up later and bought into the well, and the three have jointly paid for the well ever since,  there is a binding well agreement at the courthouse.  She has tried to get a lawyer to get them thrown off the well but thank the Lord Montana has good water rights laws.  She now calls their rights to the well entitlements, well like social security I/they paid for it and it is mine, my daughters, through me.  Some one didn't just give me an entitlement to it, it's not welfare.  So for those of you who want me to stop blogging about her I sympathize with you, and I have held my tongue for a too long time. You will never hear me talk of her in public or on facebook but here is my forum for help without you I have no help.  The sheriff's office says they can't help. the judge says she can't help,  when something happens to us up here remember we did ask for help.  During the November hearing we asked about her husbands status as a registered violent offender, they told the judge he would be off in December, well that was a lie check out the registered violent offender list for Mineral County he is still there.  He has guns that we have seen numerous times, rifles handguns etc... they deigned having them, and with a violent history do you wonder why we are afraid? Why would he still be allowed to hunt?  So don't tell me I am a bad neighbor and judge me.  You have not had to endure continual harassment and stalking since last summer.  For those of you who blame this all on me that's ok, but take a look at my blog of late and facebook haven't I mentioned her in months? And even when I did mention her on facebook I let her words do the talking, check if you question my honesty.   I have been trying to not be anger, turn the other cheek and go on with my life but our every move is now watched by a security camera that they adjust to watch us, it can actually follow you, is that even legal?  It's aimed at 'their' well that has no trespassing signs all over it, the well agreement gives both my sister and daughter 10 foot easement and ownership of one third each. Several of my friends have said they feel bad about whatever she is saying about me on facebook, I don't know and don't care what she says.  I am a private person and those of you that have known me for years know that, I am also not a gossip or someone who makes things up,  most people that don't like me will still tell you I never lied to them.  Please give me some options do you know how to get help for us here?  If not I have found no resource but the Lord and now people are making light of my believe in the Lord. I can say with all honesty and love that this has made me make wonderful decisions about going to Church, one that loves and protected my daughters, and know that I am a saved person and right with God.  Read the comments from my yesterday blog,  I personally think "the neighbor" wrote it but if not some one is condemning me without any information or care that what we are going through is very real. I was coming home from Zootown today when Mokie called me she found her hanging over the fence taking more pictures of the pigs, she actually did take pictures of the pigs having sex last summer so I don't know what her issue is with pigs but probably not health, I am not making an insinuation I am out right saying she takes sex pictures of pigs.  I hate airing dirty laundry and don't think any of this is really any ones concern but you are my only option for protection. For those of you that think this is gossip look up gossip, gossip is spreading thing about people you heard.  I witnessed all of what I speak.   If it was happening to you wouldn't you want help?  Where is any help for us? If you have a suggestion that will get us any relief I am open to hearing it if not I promise to you if she leaves us alone or if it is inconsequential things you won't hear about it but when it becomes a danger to my kids, grand kids or family I am going to be blogging and blogging loud for help.  By the way "the nighbor" does read my blog, even though it states she can't in my order of protection, and she has sent me a no contact order to make me not blog about her but since that is a 1st amendment right she can't make me stop witnessing to you the atrocities she inflicts on us, sorry for your involvement in this, if you want you can stop reading my blogs I will miss you but will understand.... tomorrow.

I must apologize to the "the neighbor", I thought she was writting the awful church lady comments, they said that she was a friend of mine and the "the neighbor".  (No, she was never a friend of mine but meant her once and once was more than enough.)  I also should have know better, she doesn't know enough about God's word to write them, they are compliments of her lovers mom. Mrs. Jethro, I will not be posting any of them ever to comments, so no one need fear that will ever have to read them. I myself will just hit the spam button, never having read them either.  Just a little update.

Dentist trip, a new wand and NEW flooring. yay. Well starting tomorrow...

I have to take the Ladies to the dentist this afternoon.  Yogie had to have her braces adjusted and maybe a couple of baby teeth pulled to make more room, baby teeth are not adult teeth and the blessing is that she will not loose any adult teeth.  Booboo has had a spacer for a number of years from a tooth that had an abscess, but was not rotten or anything, it was probably hit when she fell no real way to know.  The dentist had advised that when the adult tooth started to come in to bring her in to have it removed so now is the time. We are going to stop and pick up a wand for my dremel, I have a lot of carving to do and know that my older one will not stand up to the pressure.  Poppie says I push to hard when I carve, but I can't seem to carve any other way.  I have a pile of old wands about a 10 to 20 deep, I guess that is better than having a pile of old dremels.  I do get a lot more use out of them as just a motor than as a carving apparatus.  I think we will pick up some socks and maybe something for dinner and be on our way home escaping the Zoo. 

Poppie is finishing up Belle's dishwasher this morning.  Mokie is taking Boy to the walk in clinic as he is really sick.  Cubbie spent the night with us last night.  Her first for just the pleasure of it.  She did really well.  Poppie said now that she has climbed that mountain he will be here all the time.  A blessing, or not.  I made baked chicken, 5 bean salad and whole wheat Israeli couscous for dinner last night.  The girls had not had the couscous before.  Cubbie said to me after tasting it.  "Nannie I like the goosebumps"  well I am glad but it was too funny to think of them as goosebumps.  It was a really nice day yesterday,  We did yard work, burning and generally had a great day.  Mokie and Nate were working on their pig pens, they are going to be moving their geese as well.  They will soon be putting up a security fence so they can get some privacy for their pigs. Odd how some people are fascinated with watching pigs, even when the pigs are wanting some privacy and alone time, never really wanted to watch, or get a camera to video tape it, myself can't understand why anyone would, outsiders are really different.  Nate figured his pigs deserves their privacy so is going to give them a security fence to protect them, which will be nice for the kids as well.

I am so happy for Poppie he is being drawn to the Lord more and more.  I know he has always believed in the Lord but not the way he is now.  He has started say things like "that was such a blessing", the Lord is really blessing us, that is a fact, the trials we have endured lately have brought new blessings from the Lord.  The Preacher's sermon spoke of travails,  I was amazed at how much it was in line with my being told by the Lord that trials are a blessing.  Travails and trials come when you are more in line with what the Lord asks of you,  and so are a blessing in and of themselves, and bring more of the Lords blessings.

  I was talking to the Pianist at Church, I told her of my father's plaque. "my house is clean enough to be healthy and dirty enough to be happy".  She said she had read one years ago the she liked,  "if you come to see my house call ahead, if you come to see me drop on in"  I loved it.  I find it funny that is similar to what Poppie has said for years.  "if you come to see my house don't bother to come but if you come to see me and mine come on over".   I am glad to have the life I live.  I hope that you are living the life that brings you happiness, trials and the Lord's blessings.... tomorrow.

Sunday, March 25, 2012

My friend is off to say her last goodbyes. Church and friends and when?

I got a message first thing this morning from one of my dearest friends.  She is off to be there for her sister, and her family together, for the last time.  She has known this day would come sooner than she is ready for.  She has prepared herself for the inevitability of the time but do you ever really get there until you are there?  Her sister has had cancer for around a year, I think, but am not entirely sure really for how long.  My friend got to go visit her sister last summer when her sister was still healthy enough for them to spend some good time together.  The time was not long enough for what they faced but they got to share the time they did. She came home knowing that the next time she got to spend time with her sister it would be hard to face and she tried to prepare herself for that day, I am not sure you can really prepare for the inevitable but she had time to try.  Today is the day she has tried to prepare for.  She is having a doubly hard time with her sisters dying as she like me is the oldest.  I think being the oldest is many ways is like being the mother, we are not prepared to out live our younger siblings.  She is going down with her mother so maybe the shared time and the shared strength will add some comfort to the tasks they both must do. They will have each other as support while they try to help their sister and daughter, her husband and kids, through these last days together.  I pray the Lord gives my friend all the strength she will need, the ability to share all her love for them, be what her sister needs during her time of going home.  I can't imagine the pain and hurt she will have to endure as I have never been asked to go through it by the Lord.  My friend has had to go through the passing of her dear in laws so I am sure she know better than I what is in store for her but that doesn't make the pain for her sister and her loss less. I can't take the pain from her, or really help her got through it but I can pray, in some ways that is so little to do for my friend but in other ways it is a great deal I can do for her.  I just pray for her love to spread a peace and balm on the ones she loves and that they all come to a place that gives them peace in these last days.  The Lord's will be done and Godspeed to my dear friends lovely sister.

Church this morning, we do so love our time with the Lord.  I think the Preacher was asking what Church means last week, he also had a Greek word that explained it, I know I don't remember what it was, shameful of me in ways.  Church to me has always meant being in a family of God.  I am not sure I am supposed to think that but that is the way God has always made the right church feel to me.  I get to go to Church and spend the time with God and my family in God, if not my family of blood.  I can't imagine a more peaceful, loving thing to do of a Sunday morning.  It gives me strength and the love of God each Sunday to go through my week.  God so loves us,  he did after all send us his son and who so ever believeth in him shall no die.... tomorrow.

Saturday, March 24, 2012

Today off to Belle's and then to milk goats at Herbalists later, girls day out while Poppie works.

This morning we are off to Belle and Groom's house so Poppie can install their new dishwasher.  The girls and I are going along for a day of girls fun.  The girls have  been invited by Missy for lunch, tea, artistic endeavor, a movie and an over all day of fun.  Belle and I are going to play with our drop spindles.  I have been practising with mine, I almost done with my first roving so soon will be able to use the niddy noddy to skein it.  I have decide I will dye my first skein with koolaide dye, a simple dye for my first time out.  I am going to save up all my first skeins and make Bubbie a sweater for this coming winter.  I will probably spend a great deal of time making sweaters for various grandkids, the girls and Poppie before I ever actually decide to selling any of it. Thinking that will be good in that I will be really good at spinning by then and the yarn will be of a good quality before I get a chance to have enough to actually sell, a good thing as all my family will have special items before I see it as a product.  I have gone on line and purchased three sheep shearings, not actually sure what they are called, will have to look it up for the right term.   I thought about getting rovings but number 1 they are expensive and two I think that would sort of be cheating as I am eventually going to have to spin raw wool so might as well jump right in from the beginning. It will give me incentive to get a drum carder or have Poppie make me one.  I have Valkyrie combs and carding brushes, compliments of the Herbalists, but am thinking they are a lot more work than a drum carder.  They will give me an appreciation for having a picker.  I think the best way to want to make working on anything easier is to do it the hard way at least once. Gives you a true appreciation for how hard it is to do and how hard it was in those good old days, that we that think we were born in the wrong time, all long for.  I am just happy to be on the road to learning to spin.  My mother, from the time I was a little girl, always wanted a spinning wheel, I think she actually wanted to use it but not really sure now.  I digress.  Now, if she really did want to learn I can teach her or at least show her the process.  I am a bit miffed that I have chosen the time to learn spinning at the exact same time we have to paint the front room and lay  the new laminate.  I will have to put the spinning on hold, as well as the dying and the skeining, but on the bright side the wool will have arrive by the time I will have time for it.

Mokie and I have to go out an milk two goats later, Poppie and the girls will be feeding the rabbits so a nice drive in store for us.  Maybe there will be new babies to see and make sure are safe while we are there but for now we are going to be off soon to help friends and give Ladies young and old some time to play.... tomorrow.

Friday, March 23, 2012

Mokie and I had an awesome day yesterday. Herbalist sent us her spinning wheel to use.

Mokie is looking to buy a female Angora or cashmere, goat probably an angora as they are more compatible with the Boers for breeding.  She found a couple of nice withers on craigslist but not females.  We can't wait to include one or more into our herd.  We are going to get spinning fever and want to be a head of the curve. D'Spice and D'Sugar are fitting into my herd real well, so still have one set of babies to deliver this year.  I will have a little buckling and a couple little does, all dairy to sell this year, and maybe a couple more depending upon what D'Sugar drops on the ground.  I call them that as their names were Sugar and Spice but as their momma was Herbalists full blood La mancha, named Daisy, I added the D' to their names, Poppie loved them so much when we got the opportunity to get them I jumped on it.  They are wonderful new additions to our herd.  We are hoping to get a creep feeder built for our newborn goats this year, it will accelerate the growth of the withers and little does as their mommas won't be able to eat all their food.  I caught Poppie hand feeding extra rations to Glenda and Gladys,  they need it but he was so sweet, he stood and let them eat out of a can and waved off the bigger does.  It was so smart of Poppie, they are both skittish and have not really become friendly to us yet, they put up with us but when Poppie had the can of grain they came up and ate out of his hand and got pets as he did it.  Poppie is now going to work with them atleast 3 times a week and they will love the extra food, and Poppie will love the bonding they won't actually know about.

Herbalist and Professor are going to a rabbit show for the weekend, so will have goats to milk out there.  Mokie will get to keep the milk for her bummers, that way they will get the good stuff and not the beef tallow that the feed companies think is suitable alternative food for a baby goat, they call it kid replacement formula milk, eeeww.  I asked Herbalist if I could barrow her spinning wheel before she went as I am coming along quite well on my spindle spinning.  She sent it and all the extras out for me, I am so excited, she also sent out an extra flyer, bobbin and maiden bar.  I was so excited to have it as it is just what Poppie needs to make me an electric spinning wheel, I had no idea she had it and that she would send it out.  Now Poppie can experiment with it and we can see if his design will work.  Poppie was also surprise to see how simple the spinning wheel itself will be to make.  He is going to make me a spinning wheel.  I have a lot of really nice maple, walnut and purple heart hardwood on hand and he will be able to lathe me a wonderful, made by him, wheel for me. I think it will make it such a special piece to have when he finishes it.  I know all of them will be special but the one that will look like furniture will be especially so, though maybe no the most used, but will be an heirloom to pass down to my daughter that is my spinner.  Mokie might just be the one with that in her but if not I am sure at least one will, if not Poppie might have to make one for each of them. 

Mokie was so excited to see it come to the house. She couldn't have been more excited, almost as much as me.  We had a wonderful day yesterday, a new spinning wheel to play with. Nice weather and kids in the sunshine.  God couldn't have blessed us, the day was one of those we will remember and know how good life it for us in our neighborhood and world.  She is working today, so I will get ahead of her on the learning, that way I can teach her.  She is so hoping to find someone to apprentice to learn to shear goats, sheep, llamas and alpacas.  We have Cinnamon as our victim, I mean learning apparatus.  Late last night the Crazy Goat lady, I sold Shamrock to, called to update us on his babies.  One of the two Mokie and I are to get had to be put down.  They had just determined that one of them was actually born with deformed eyes and couldn't see at all.  The vet said it is a rare birth defect.  She is going to let us get an alternative doeling.  She will still be one of Rosies granddaughters.  Life is good here on our little acres, we are truly blessed by the Lord with a nice quiet neighborhood with some really good neighbors and family to love.... tomorrow.

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Goats, Goats, books, Drop spindles, designs and patterns, motors and a foot pedal.

I have spent the last few nights knee deep in books, or can you be knee deep in a book, not sure, anyway.  I have read and reread my goat book, getting more info on what to feed, not to feed and how to creep baby goats.  I have read the ins, out and idiosyncrasies of line breeding and in breeding,  sometimes a good thing and other times not so much. I have read the energy derived from different grasses and grains and what makes a goat a better animal and what makes a chevon tasty.  I have also read up on my spinning.  I have read about the differences in spinning wheels, drum carders, pickers, lazy kates and about a niddy noddy.  I have explored the possibilities of Poppie making me several different ones of these apparatuses.  I think he is going to make me an electric spinning wheel to begin with, I got him a motor and foot pedal for a killer deal to make it.  I am hoping he will make me a drum carder as I know I don't have the money for a commercial one. He will probably make me a picker, a spinning wheel from and old treadle machine, one like the book charkha and eventually a nice traditional one on his lathe.  I love that Poppie is so clever and can make so many of these items for me.  I am also amazed that the price of most of these have shy rocketed in the last 30 years, so am more than blessed that he can make them. 

I have been practicing my spindling, not sure that is a word or what it is called but that is what I have been doing.  I have gotten a lot of slubs in my yarn, I am guessing a pretty common beginner problem but since as you get better it is something you do on purposes maybe I am just design orientated and a head of the curve, well maybe not.  I am trying not to be an inch worm and trying to remember that you have to always go clockwise, or I guess counter clockwise but not both.  I am getting some bits of yarn that is truly nice looking and others that are not so much.  Lady Knitter dropped by yesterday with the nicest chartreuse yarn she had died from tree moss.  It was truly gorgeous.  It was made with ammonia mordant a true success in her dying process.  I am hoping to try kool aide dying first then make up some of the mordants for later dying.  I am thinking I need to get a coping of her dying book mine has a little section but not nearly as nice as hers, so will need to get one.  I am finding that I will like the process of spinning, I suspected I would, I can listen to the girls read, maybe watch tv, kids and still have the peace of it at my finger tips, not always something I can do while, carving, sewing on a machine or drawing.  I am excited about the fibers I can acquire. goat, dog, rabbit, seen any buffaloes or llamas that will to part with some? 

I made some head way into getting things ready for laying flooring next week, but a long way to go before we are ready to start.  We are going to go out to Belle and Groom's to put in a dishwasher Saturday.  The Ladies have been invited to go have a special morning and early afternoon with Missy, their daughter.  The girls haven't been around each other for awhile so it will be a nice adventure for all three of them.  I have lots to get accomplished but knowing me, you know I probably won't stick to the plan but something will get done.  Coffee to start with and then the day.... tomorrow.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Mokie loses belief in a friend, a sad price to pay, All offend and fall short.

The first Bible school lesson we studied when we went to our new church was a lesson generated from the bible verse Proverbs 18:19-21,
19 A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city,
And contentions are like the bars of a citadel.
20 With the fruit of a man’s mouth his stomach will be satisfied;
He will be satisfied with the product of his lips.
21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
And those who love it will eat its fruit.

The study was very enlightening, the preacher went on to say "I will offend you and you will offend me over the course of our relationship" I believe he was being very truthful and upfront. Do you know a relationship in which you have never offend or been offended by the person you share the relationship with? I actually had never thought to offense as being such a sin in our lives until the day I heard his lesson. I have since thought, on it more than once, and have tried to be less offensive to those around me, and with my mouth sometimes that is a hard thing to aspire to. I have tried to study on these verses and be a better person, maybe a life time pursuit.

Mokie was subject to an offense in the last few days. It is, and has been hard on her. Some one she loves and respected a great deal told her something that offended her sense of right and wrong. Mokie is very black and white, and so has a really sense of outrage when someone she cares about is wronged. She was heartbroken by the situation she was told about. She tried to help in her outrage the victim of the situation, but in doing so she offended someone else unintentionally. Now her victim asked her about the situation and she has been made to look a fool by the friend she loved and respected. The friend either due to being cowardly, in a way I would not imagine, or not wanting to make the person she had originally spoken ill of mad at her said "she didn't say anything like that". She now says it was a mistake and now the person who was the victimizer is actually the victim but she spoke of the mix up to no one. Ok, so Mokie is either a seer and can conjure up and relate events she wasn't at or her friend did start the situation. Her friend is an older person that Mokie has always believed and respected, a known christian who is above reproach who would never lie to Mokie. Mokie has now been offended, she is disillusioned at this person. She now looks a fool for having cared about the original victim, who wasn't, she is now a victim but has victimized someone else, the same person that her friend had victimized to begin with. Sadly, Mokie is the victim and her friend is hiding in her cocoon of no one would belief she would do that. I am saddened for Mokie, sad she has to learn this lesson and saddened that her friend has put her in this situation and now casually walks away in all innocence. Sadly this is not the first time I have encountered this same results from her friend so had back off a little from this friend while back.

This reminds me that all are subject to offend, all are subject to sin and all fall short of the glory of God. It is just sometimes hard to remember that the great or very religious people in our lives are as much sinners as any of us. We can never put any one on a pedestal and think they are above all the rest of us. No, we all struggle with sin and wrong doing every day of our lives. I am thinking Mokies friend has gone on and has no idea that her failure to admit, she misspoke and accused, is causing Mokie so much pain and offense. I think if she knew she might be sorry for causing the problem in the first place with Mokie, though she didn't admit she had been wrong in the first place to the person she had accused. Sometimes I think it is interesting when a really strong christian makes an error, or sins, and is no braver than any other person about how to fix the mistake they made, or maybe they don't count the person they offended as important enough or not the same as if they had offended one of their brothers or sisters in Christ. It does make me understand that we are all human, with fears and deceptions, though we don't admit to it enough, God is watching and knows the truth, even the Christian lady no one would believe wrong doing of..... tomorrow.

Monday, March 19, 2012

I missed a day of blogging for the first time, Lady and I had a day away.

Got up early spent some time with my grandkids, discovered that my modem had bit the big one, called to make arrangements for a new one, a blessing of blessings, I had plans to go to Zootown so I made arrangements to pick it up.  Saved 10 buck and 10 days of waiting with out my Internet. I drove Lady to the Zoo for an appointment.  I had to make a call to Poppie so stayed in the car to make the call. I couldn't figure out how to get the key out of the ignition but finally stumbled on to the solution.  I went in the building to wait for Lady and we then returned a short while later.  We approached the car when Lady noticed the lights were on.  She asked if I had heard a buzzer, I hadn't but apparently there had been one as we couldn't start the car.  We tried for over an hour to figure out why, it didn't appear that the battery was dead but after much trial and error, and one call to her hubbie, and the dealership, the nice man with a jump starter kindly helped us and away we went.  We picked up the modem and did a little shopping and came home.  I am sure I will not be driving Ladies car again soon, but should by shear chance, I be asked to again I will know the ins and outs of proper key handling, light switch management and be more comfortable at my task.

I spent the last hour trying to lode the modem hardware, that was supposed to come right up, I finally gave up and called tech support, the nicest young man with the patience of Job helped me.  He finally got me on task and got my modem up and running.  He was almost surprised when I thanked him and wished him a good evening, after my case all has to be up hill for him tonight.  He was really nice and pleasant to work with.  I am now tired and thought I would tell the world I am not dead, so the reports or my death are truly just a rumor.  I do know that those of you that have been counting know that I haven't missed blogging for the first time in over 423 times or close to four hundred days.  I will be back in the morning bright and shiny as a penny but for now I an tired and going off to bed.  A long day and I am hoping for a nice sleep.... tomorrow.

Sunday, March 18, 2012

New piglets and all the goats have arrived for the year, I get a new floor, yay.

The newest batch of piglets came last evening, of course she chose to have them in the late evening.  She ended up having a total of 9 piglets this time.  I believe 5 males and 4 females, they are the most colorful litter we have had to day, pink, black and whites, red and whites, pink with black spots, a rainbow of colors.  The last of my baby goats were born this week so all my mommas are done for the season. It looks like the piglets are all good healthy babies,  I think we missed the date for the 4-h piglets by about 2 weeks but not sure.  Not exactly sure when they have to have been born, I do think they are definitely the right age for the Sanders County fair though.

We saw a special this week on laminate flooring so we broke down, or were blessed to buy enough for the front room and dining room, basically all are main living room, hall, and maybe just maybe both bathrooms.  It is a nice color that really nicely matches my cupboards. We are hoping to paint and put in flooring next week while the Ladies are one spring break.  Off to get ready for Church.  Love our new family in the Lord and can't wait to go.  I made the Ladies and the Grandladies dresses yesterday, they are mostly done, they were just sew togethers.  I have the straps to do but I think there ended up being 17, so a good days works anyway...  tomorrow.

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Childerns fingers, they get into everything, uhew, but that they can be.

I have often heard the the first thing a new momma does when given her new baby, into her arms, is to count the new ones fingers and toes.  Oh, how I love little fingers, four tiny little appendages and one marvelous little thumb together they make up the wonder of wonders, a tiny little human hand.  Oh, I like toes, alright, but nothing on a daily bases assures me more of God than the precious, almost see threw, delicate little hand of a new born baby.  They are so fragile and so magnificent.  How could anyone really think that they were a happenstance of carbons, hydrogen's, slithered from an unknown sea to land.  I can't think of a thing as amazing on earth, or that says to me God Is and God is our creator, than a tiny little hand.  That being said they are the most wondrous, naughty, expressive and communicative parts of a person.

I barely get over the site of a little hand, when it curls around my finger and grasps on to me telling me that I am loved and that tiny little gift from God needs me, I have gotten my first hand holding from my loving child.  My child needs me in a way they never will again, they are not old enough to love me, for me, but they are so in need of me that they have instinctively grasp out and held on to the warmth and love they have known for all the months of their life.  This time, for the first time, when they reach out they touch you, for the first time, not as their cocoon but as a separate and wholly independent, well futurely independent, but as a separate never to return to being a physically part of your being again.  They have begun their life outside of the womb, you get to raise them guide them and love them, but no longer are you, and you alone, in control of their existence.  Your sacred duty to growing them to where they can survive out on their own it over, now your duty is to teach them and help them survive, to grow to adulthood and to their eventually life totally apart from you. 

That little finger will be sucked on for comfort, it will scratch you in the beginning without intent and then with, and fascinate you; as it grows it will be pointed at you, shook at you with it's friend "no", it will spend time up noses, yours and theirs, it will eventually accuse you of innumerable things, it may even be sent to you as a bird. It will eventually, and periodically along the way, come to you, curl around yours again and remember that once at the beginning of your time together, it grasp out to yours and you took a hold of it without pause and you have been, and always will be, there to grasp hold and seek comfort from. I can't and don't know a more loving caress than the holding of a hand, a parent's, a child's, a grandchild's, a daughter's, a son's, a husband's and at the end of it all the Lord's.  I hope you get to hold a hand today and everyday.... tomorrow.

Friday, March 16, 2012

Routines, do you make them, do you keep them, are they good for you and yours?

I am not, or maybe I have not always been good at routines. I have always been more of a go with the moment sort of person.  My mom didn't really teach us that as children.  She was usually to busy to always show us why or how she did something, it was much easier to do it herself.  She has gotten much better with showing or teaching routines, including chores, with the second and her third little families.  I think of all my siblings I am the most free spirited that way.  I don't know if I just missed something of my brain does work that way.  I am therefore the worst of all my siblings at house keeping but give me an artistic puzzle, something to make, something to be made out of nothing, inside the home or out in the yard I can create almost anything.  My mother is that way as well, but usually purchases the items, she is not all that big on upcycling and my dad always made enough money to help her make purchase to succeed at fulfilling the needs of her creating.  I can make almost anything out of nothing, I can teach myself how to do almost anything.  The teaching of myself came from my dad, and his love or books, he so wanted to be a history teacher and never got to.  I have digressed, anyway back to routines. 

I don't do them well, and therefore don't teach them well.  I can get on a routine and be so obsessive compulsive that the people around me are happy when I fall off the routine bandwagon, so very like my Mom is now, isn't it a disorder?  I can lose 80 pounds and keep it off for years then I forget to get off the couch and walk because I have 10 baby sweaters sets I want to knit for a show, or 30 pairs of upluks, or have to carve hundreds of handles for various knife makers, and the list goes on.  I tend to fall into the sedimentary pitfalls and can't get out.  I am not a bad eater, per se, we don't eat a lot of chemicals in our diets, we don't drink pop, we are aiming at a completely organic meat and vegetable diet supplied by us lifestyle.  I can tell you almost to an exact amount the calories in anything, the sugar content or fiber in it as well.  My ladies have never been denied sugar but they do know that it is a food to be respectful of and taken in with care. They religiously know what sometimes foods are. They have been taught lifestyle routines about good eating, though it be in my round about way not as upfront as most would teach a routine of healthy style of eating.  They know the importance of exercise in their lives. I think maybe the pathways of my mind are cluttered to most peoples way of thinking, but in funny ways all my kids understand me, and put up with me, and maybe just maybe their minds have benefited from seeing how the semi-insane brain works.   Are you crazy if you think you are?  hmmmm.  

I am currently trying to teaching them to keep their rooms clean, as a matter of responsibility,  trying to teach them to take care of their rabbits, as a responsibility to another creature.  Ok, shouldn't most little girls learn to take care of a rabbits, turkeys, goats or chickens before they are eventually given the responsibility of a baby?  I know no one thinks that way, only the "semi-crazy",  see you think I am too.   I am have been teaching them to cook since their little bums could set on the cupboard by the stove and help stir.  One on each side of the stove, and yes two year olds with supervision and a parent their can stir sauce.  I got them their own paring knives and little cutting boards when they were two and three, yes, little finger did get little cuts but they can dice with the best of them now.  They can go into the kitchen and bake a cake without assistance, they can make small pasta meals, breakfasts and they are perfecting their pies and breads.  I don't know if that is a routine in the direct since of the words but it is in my mind,  again semi-crazy.  Do they know how to vacuum and scrub the toilette?  Yes, they do.  Is it more important than playing with their cousins, goats or the dogs? not always.   Can they milk a goat, know the process of cheese making or soap making and assist in it, yes.  Is having a spotless house more important than the rest of the things they have succeeded at in their short lives?  Not sure it is?  Can they clean the house and do a good job yes, do they or I always have time to? no.  Life is about choices, routines, loving and sharing with people.  We all get to make the choices that are right for us.  Is your routine more important than mine, though mine may be not what you would call a routine?  Why do you get to judge what my life should or should not be,  I don't get to judge yours.  I understand you have the nicest cleanest most wonderful house,  I am so proud of it for you.  I have kids that are good, love each other and the world in general. They are accomplished on levels that not alot of kids, in this day and age at their ages are, does that make my routines and lifestyle less than the accomplishments or successes of yours?

We are now waking up a little earlier everyday and my Ladies are learning to set aside a bit of time each morning to our Lord.  We read and discuss the bible so we have a better understanding of our Lord and the commandants, covenants and routines he wants us to have in our lives. I do know about the importance of routines in my life; but the ones I chose to enforce and develop in my life, and in my Ladies lives, have to make them better people.  We get to chose what makes us better people, what the Lord ask of us to be better people.  I think the Lord cares more about the time we give to others, the compassion we show to others, the happiness and love we give to others than whether my carpet has a spot on it or if there is a dish in the sink or a load of laundry not done right up.  I think routine is good and a wonderful part of life, but I think the routines we make about our spirits and souls are more important than the mundane.  I don't think I will ever quite get in the habit of doing the house work on time, in time or completely, but I do know how to live a happy life within the scope of God's love.... tomorrow.

Thursday, March 15, 2012

I am so blessed to have true friendships in my life. I love that I can share my life with them.

I wouldn't say that I am a overly friendly sort of person.  I tend to be a bit solemn and not a person you would call alot of fun.  I enjoy the companionship of a friend but as my life it so full of people and animals that need me I can't always find time to share as much time with my friends as my soul would want. I have two adult daughters that at various time in their lives have been my best friend.  One lives a long way away at this time and I have lost that daily sharing of my life with her which saddens me.  My other daughter and I spend a great deal of time together.  She is a great deal like me, and though that will surprise some, others not so much.  She is like I am now and not like I was at her age.  I had a lot of anger that she does not have.  She is like that mature me and not the young me.  I know some are thinking she is never loud or opinionated like Nannie, well not politically, but don't push her she is my daughter in every since of the word when pushed to her limit or protecting her young, a true little momma bear. 

I have a lot of good friends, sometimes I don't even know how many, which surprises me sometimes.  I have a lot of acquaintances which has never surprised me I was taught to be kind to people by my dad and I learned that well.  But true friendship was not something that I was taught well, with such a big family sometimes friendship was a secondary endeavor, I have seven sisters and that doesn't always leave a lot of extra time to develop friendships.  I would say my oldest friend is my sister, Sister.  we came up together weathered our childhoods, had babies together, have gotten grey hair together, and each proudly wear it.  We have become grandmothers together and both have an oldest granddaughter with the same first and middle names.  We are a great deal alike in our beliefs, our lifestyles and ways of thinking.  We live next to one another and rarely spend alot of time in each others homes but are welcome with out a knock.  She is my sister from the start and friend from the heart. 

I have numerous friends that I can not see or not talk to for long periods of time and when we get together we can finish the last conversation we were having without batting an eye or having to explain what we are talking about.  Twin and I have know each other since our teens, we are the ying and yang of politics and in many ways philosophical life styles; but we are also both avid crafters that share ideas, support one anothers successes and sorrow at each others losses.  I have hugged her through the loss of her momma, the loss of relationships, the growing of her kids and seen her joy in her grandkids.  She is my oldest friend not birthed by my mother.  I would say that Lady is my next closest friend we have known each other a life time, we have shared our crafting, our hopes, dreams, and concepts of life with our families, we have supported one another when the need arose and knew without a doubt the others support was there at a word.  We are a different as night and day, she is lady like, organised and on task at all times,  I have no care if I am wearing a sack and couldn't find a dress with out a hunt, I find organizations a puzzle of the mind that is deep in my brain, so don't move that pile on my desk, yes it is really a filing system if you can find it under last week's coffee cup.  On task is relative, I can't remember not having a least six project going at anyone time and who said they have be done on a timeline?  She puts up with me and all my idiosyncrasies.  Shorts has been my friend for ever, there can be years go by with out our seeing one another or a bunch of time spent in a short while.  We have rarely ever spent much time at one anothers

This last week has been a blessing, I spent a day on walkabout with the Herbalist, spent a day helping her bring a baby goat into the world alive, spent a day talking with her and having a girls night out.  I spent a day with Lady Knitter, getting to know one another and sharing the love and wonder of spinning.  I enjoyed the love of my daughter daily, and the kids that come with her.  I have plans to spend a day with Lady next week, shopping and doctors all in one day, that will be a joy.  I am to teach Herbalist to make sourdough bread for the Professor.  I am to go with Poppie to Belles, he is to put in her new dishwasher and our little ones will get to play together.  What a wonderful life I have been given, it is simple and the joys would seem as naught to some but they are special and happy to me. The speed of our lives is a choice we get to make and you should never assume you know what is best for someone else.  Warp speed is not all it is cracked up to be in the end, life at the speed of friendship is much more appealing, it gives you time to smell roses, wipe babies tears and get their hugs of love, nothing else quite like it..... tomorrow.

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Covenants, what ones to do you have in your life? Which do you honor and which will never be.

Covenant is a very interesting word and can mean so many many things and so many different things to so many different people. I read a book, years ago by James A. Michener.  It was a long boring read in many respects but I learned alot actually about the colonization of Africa.  I don't remember a great deal about the book itself so maybe it wasn't one of Michener's better books who knows, and I don't really care.  I had originally picked up the book thinking it might have been a more God inspired book and in the end it wasn't.  I usually think of the word covenant in terms of God, the promises he has made with us, the restrictions and commandments having a life with him entails.  I see the covenant with God as a good thing, a blessed life and a lifestyle.  I never really think of the covenant with God as a hardship, the choice to follow the Lord is not hard in the sense that the commandants or covenants he asks of us are actually the moral and humanly conscious way to life and in the past shaped the structure of most Christian society in the first place.  I find the daily living in our changing society is where my sins come in.  The societal acceptance of more and more sinful things that cause us to say "well everybody is doing it, so it must be the way" is where my sinning comes in.  I know the path to the Lord is narrow and have to stay on the narrow path to God.  The Covenant is not the only covenant's we have in our lives.

I have a covenant with my dear Poppie, second only to the covenant I have with God.  I chose to live my life with him, I chose to make promises and adhere to restrictions or rules that guide our life. The joy of marriage is a covenant I have found to be overall the most joyous promises I have made in my life.  I have covenants with my kids, that vary depending upon their ages.  I start my covenant with them from conception.  I made a covenant with them to do all I could to protect their life in my body, to do and did my best to raise them to be adults, wives, a husband, a good member of society, and to teach them to be Godly and walk with the Lord.  The adults are now in a different covenant with me, I am to let them live the lives, I helped them to have the skills to survive, and remember to let them live their lives, not my way but their way.  I have a covenant with the animals I keep.  I have a covenant with the friends I have in my life.  I have a covenant with the neighbors I have been given on this earth by God.  These are all covenants of responsibility and importance in my life. 

I am thankful to the Lord that I don't have to adhere covenants that are man made and prevalent in so many states, city and counties in other places.  I love that Montana has freedoms that other places have taken away from their citizens;  sort of like the restrictions that our country is allowing more and more of in our lives.  I hate the "let it be" attitude that is part of our country.  It is not the same "let it be" that was alive and well in the 70's when I grew up.  In the 70's "let it be" meant just that, now, "let it be" means you can't have God in our school system because it will offend some one. When did letting it be mean if you are a christian it is ok to make you restricted, you can't pray or even have a moment of silence to do so because you are offending someone, it is ok to "let it be" but don't let the Christians have equal time or it doesn't apply to them.  I wonder if I got down on my knees at school, or in a public meeting and faced Mecca would I be allowed to, probably or I would be being discriminatory, isn't that a double standard in itself?  I am glad in Montana, well except when out of staters try to take down a statue of Jesus, no, I forgot Montanans in general stood up and said let it stay, the outsiders didn't or haven't won yet.  I hope it gets to stay, I don't actually believe in the statue but someone does so we should "let it be".  We have lost the covenant that our country once honored and the forefathers adhere to, they would be aghast at the development of our destruction of God in our county, and don't kid yourself that they wouldn't.  Montana in general is the last best place, we haven't followed the rest of the country in the mindless discrimination of God by letting it be, and then not letting those who follow and love God be included in that acceptance.  We still have, and are allowed, to have some covenants with God and allowed to follow "in God we trust". 

did, we want to live our lives the way we want to.  I live in an area where I know not one of my Montanan neighbors is going to give up his or her rights to a committee just because and outsider decided to make our county and community a place where we can "let it be" at their will and standard.  No, we aren't going to let anyone in to our neighborhood decide be can't pray, or kneel to Mecca if we want, either.  We aren't going to let you decide where I can or can't put my pig pen, or how many I can have.  We aren't going to let you decide if we can have pigs or goats in the first place, because you don't like the smell.  We aren't going to let anyone into our communities and try to retrofit a covenant that is only to your liking. That is what is wrong with America in general today,  we are allowing people to retrofit the covenants that America was built on.  We as a people lose every time we lose one of our rights due to the mindless, I don't want to hurt anyone feelings so I try to stay in the middle attitude, you being in the middle means christian no longer have the freedoms we have always had in America.  It means you won't object to the left wing liberal agenda and you have let the "let it be' discrimination go unfettered. You are taking away my ability to pray or Love God because it bugs the liberals.  Thanks to all of you in the middle, who won't voice an opinion, with out which you have become the pawns of the ones pushing their agenda, our countries basic covenants, that once made us great, are all being destroyed and eroded.... tomorrow.

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Spinning, I am thinking I can do it, thanks to all the assistance from Lady Knitter.

I spent the morning watching kids, Bubbie was sick and had to go to the doctor, sinus and ear infection.  I will have the kids again today, as well, Cubbie knocked one of her caps off and Mokie has to take her to the dentist in Zootown to have it repaired.  I am not sure I will make CAKLS but still could. Tomorrow I am off to spend the morning with Herbalist to borrow her spinning wheel and her commercial sewing machine, my poor little one can't take the stress anymore. Plus I get to visit her and baby goats.

I had a wonderful time with Lady Knitter yesterday.  She has been blessed with inheriting her mothers spinning wheel.  It is a lovely piece of art and a working tool, very nice.  I have been reading avidly for awhile to get a feel for spinning.  I know, I study everything to death before I do it and I have at least learned some of the terminology so Lady Knitter didn't have to start with a complete no nothing.  She showed me how to use her carding drum, I love it.  Twin had shown be hers in the past but I had not actually used it.  It was a lot easier than I thought it would be, but then Lady Knitter had cleaned the wool before we started, Twin has told me, as has Lady Knitter, that cleaning the wool can be the hardest part and I don't doubt it with some of the wool or goat fiber I have seen.  I am hoping to get a pattern for a picker and have Poppie make me one. 

We carded a batt and off we went to the next stage,  she set up her spinning wheel.  It is a single or double drive, I am not sure maybe it is both, ok, so I don't know all the terminology but I am just learning.  I was fascinated with the way the maiden bar and the wheel worked to make the tension and how the ratio of one to the other worked.  She began to spin and the wheel cord kept coming off it was a good illustration of how being off just a little makes so much of a difference in the ease of using it.  Her hubbie aligned it and off she went.  She did it wonderfully well, I tried but couldn't seem to make my fingers do what my mind wanted them to.  She asked me if I had ever spun with a drop spindle and as I hadn't we went back a step and she showed me how to do that.  I was all thumbs but the process and feel of using the spindle will give me a better bases and feel for using the spinning wheel.  I couldn't quite seem to make the roving feed right, I did get the feel for rolling the spindle down my leg, but as I didn't pull the roving thin enough I was making it too thick before it spun,  I have a lot of work to do to get it right but Lady Knitter showed me enough to get me bit by the bug.  I can't wait to try more.  I also think that we found that we, Lady Knitter and I, have even more in common than we even thought.  We think a great deal a like, and both go out and learn what we want to get us to the next art or craft project. 

She is making the cutest little newsboy hats,  she is using woven wool to make them.  I have a lot of woven wool from a generous blessing of wool Twin gave me, so I told her I would pick out some that would work well for her caps and bring her some.  We are both developing our brands, so to speak, in different but complimenting ways so had lots to share and talk about the time went by so quickly we will have to figure out how to spend more time together sharing ideas, techniques and coffee, of course coffee.  I am glad I went and have strengthened a friendship that has so much room to grow.  What a wonderful day, and time, and I learned the first steps of a fiber art that may eventually consume a great deal of my time..... tomorrow.

Monday, March 12, 2012

Lady Knitter to teach me to spin, Potluck was great, a snowy blizzard surprised us.

We had a great time at Church, and what a nice potluck, it was called the Mexican feast.  We all brought our favorite renditions of Mexican foods.  We had enchiladas, tamale pie, two different rice dishes and salsa Verde chicken.  Pinto beans, chips and salsa, Coleslaw, various drinks, apple pies, Chocolate hot fudge Pie, and carrot cake.  All had a wonderful time eating and sharing bonding conversations.  We cleaned up and then had an afternoon singing, the children proudly sang song for our enjoyment.  We prayed then put the senior citizens building to rights and all were off to our own homes. 

We got home to find Thor starting his truck, it hasn't been run since Poppie had his accident, as he couldn't actually drive the clutch and we couldn't fill it up enough to warrant taking it in the woods.  It takes about 4 cord to fill it so there was not much point in taking it.  I did the chores, checked the does and their babies.  The piglets were all fat and sassy.  The momma sow loudly ask for her food.  I feed the rabbits, the girls had taken some items from the Preacher up to Sister, and ended up staying to watch a movie with the Little. I finished up the rabbits, and the bucks then came in the house. The time change is always such a hard time of adjustment.  I am getting more and more on the side of the people who wonder why it is even necessary anymore.  I read a comment this week that was attributed to an old native American saying.  "Only the government would think that cutting the top end of a blanket off and sewing it to the bottom end of a blanket would make it longer!"  duh, still the same amount of hours in a day, it just makes us more tired and causes extra accidents on the highways, what is the point?  We had a sudden burst of blowing winds and huge flakes of snow blowing down sideways and as quick as it began it was gone, it is truly spring, no better sign than that.  Sunshine and blowing snow and then a pleasant evening.

Today I am off to Lady Knitter's house to learn to spin, I have been reading up on it and exploring the possibility of getting a spinning wheel, a picker, a drum carder, carders and all the other equipment.  I have several wonderful friend that know all or part of the process or have equipment and wool to let me learn without putting out all the money up front.  I hope to be able to decide if I can do it well and enjoy it enough to justify the costs.  I think in the end it will be something I will truly enjoy.  I do still have to learn to use my knitting machine but it is costing me nothing to have it.  I do need to buy a manual for it but can't justify the 50 dollars it will cost me at this time or better yet someone who has actually used a knitting machine that might help me learn to use it.  I am still hoping to bag a second machine with one or find a used one, I actually want the dvd copy when I finally break down and buy it.  I have a copy on vcr but it won't play, I didn't actually buy it without one it just doesn't work.  I can't wait to spend time with Lady Knitter learning a new craft, I helped her learn to knit, but as she is alot like me I only taught her a few baby steps she did the work and the learning on her own merit.  I have work to do this morning, hopefully pen and inking and when off on an afternoon adventure..... tomorrow.

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Potluck today, our first with our new church, Babies, babies and more babies.

The Ladies and I spent the morning making our treats for potluck.  Booboo made sponge then bread, Yogie made pie crust, them both helped peel and chop apples for the pies.  Yogie got to make crumble for the top of two of the pies, she ended up making two one for the potluck and one for her dad.  Booboo made the double crust so in the end both rolled two crusts each, they are really starting to get the hang of forming their dough ball, roll, turn, roll turn,  they still get an occasional oblong pie crust or a thin middle or a thin edge but for the most part they can make a killer pie crust.  We always us lard as it is the best.  It was fun while making the pies one of them remembered that in church the Preacher has spoken of raising your children to be good wives and husbands not to be eternal children.  We had a nice talk about how that was what we were doing, and they both assured me they were wonderful cooks, I conceded that they were on their way but probably had a lot more to learn to be good cooks and potential wives. But they were the best 8 and 9 year old cooks I knew.  I layered up the tamale pie and out in the sun shine we went.  I put the pies and three loaves of bread in the oven to check periodically.  The fry bread we finished in the evening.

We feed the goaties, pigs, chickens, turkey and dogs.  The girls went to play with their cousins.  A short while later Yogie came to see if we would help Mokie and Son move a palette for the pig pen they are making.  It was heavy but with all of us it was soon done.  We talked a little while then we returned to the yard.  I shoveled up an old burn pile and Poppie lit a fire of some wood scraps that had no upcycle value.  Thor came by to work on his truck, the one that was part of the deal for my new car.  He wanted to see the animal so we showed him the goats, piglets and the bigger feeders.  We were just leaving the goat yard when Poppie spied two new babies on the ground at Gladys's feet, I still say my grandmother would be happy to have her baring her name.  Gladys is a bit shy so I walked in careful not to scary her.  There laying at her feet were two babies one small and one tiny, both females, which is what I wanted as they are all dairy.  The little one was very weak but I did get her to stand.  I finally checked their teeth and the little ones were not really erupted so she is a bit preemie.  Mokie took her as she wasn't going to make it on her own.  So now Mokie has two bottle babies besides Bubbie.  They are both females so that is a blessing for her, she had all males this year. 

Shortly after the babies were born I asked Poppie to call Herbalist and Professor to see if their babies were dropping, their older does should have actually been bred before my to young ones so should have been ahead or the same as mine. No answer, he tried several time to call, no answer.  It really worried me and I finally asked if we could go on a ride in my new car to their house.  When we got there no one appeared to be there so we drove down to the barn and Poppie checked their goats, two babies on the ground and one in hard labor.  Poppie called Belle, Herbalist and Professor were in Zootown, but she would try to call them.  I started working with the momma in labor.  Belle called back to say Herbalist was home.  Poppie and the Ladies went to get her. I stayed with Spice, the momma in labor.  Herbalist came down, Poppie had to knock hard as she was having a nap.  She and I finally ended up pulling the very large single baby.  I held momma down and talked to her, Herbalist pulled and pulled and we finally got a giant very alert baby.  It was wonderful, had we not gone out there momma and baby would most likely have died.  I had wanted to trade for one of her Daisy's babies but with all the work Herbalist and I did to save them and make a shared memory I asked if I could trade for Spices new baby.  She was happy to say yes.  I named her Saffron, her momma is Spice, it started with a S and she is orange and white in color.  Thanks TO the Lord he sent us out to help, I just couldn't ignore the feeling he kept sending me so away we went and the need was there.  Have a great day and remember to answer the Lord when he tells you to go...... tomorrow.

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Poppie gets me a new to us car, Raked and spent time in the wonderful sunshine.

Poppie bought us a new to us car yesterday,  he had worked out a deal for it earlier in the week.  Thor and his wife had bought a new vehicle and we got to buy their old one.  It is going to be nice to have a car again that I can drive around, I could actually drive the jeep but it was to stressful for Poppie to have me drive it, so I didn't.  Poppie is hoping to get the truck fixed soon but it doesn't get the greatest fuel mileage so it was good to get the new vehicle anyway.  We are hoping to get to go on a little ride this afternoon to try it out good.  I has fairly low miles on it so it should serve us well for years to come.

Mokie and I wormed and inoculated all the goats that needed it yesterday.  The little ones really put up a fuss for their moms, or maybe for attention, just like any little one getting it's shots.  I rakes a little and spent the best part of the day watching the kids play in the backyard.  I cleaned most of the porch up before the baby made a fuss and I had to hold her.  Mokie took Pansy down to the school so the girls could share her with their classmates.  Today is to be just as nice so hopefully we can get out and enjoy it as well.  The girls and I have to make apples pies, fry bread and tamale pie to take to potluck tomorrow.  We will get the bread dough rising this morning and the pies done.  Hope to get the tamale pie into the crock pot for taking hot. We are going to do the floors and then escape to the great outdoor, we hope to get some burning done and outdoor cleaning done.  I do so love the spring, I think it is my most favorite season of all, then again there is fall..... tomorrow.

Friday, March 9, 2012

Trust and obey, What does that mean to you?

I love the song, Trust and Obey, it is one of my favorites and has been for as long as I can remember.  I think it is probably a favorite of many a person.  I wonder how many of us listen to the words as we sing them from our hearts and souls.  What is trust? and do we obey?  I know that in my life when I have had hardships I have gone to the Lord, but then so do a lot of people, even those who don't really believe do that.  Hardships tends to bring out the "belief" in God more than anything else.  I worked at the sheriff's office for many years, and I can't count the amount of men in jail, and some of the ones we dealt with were federal prisoners going away for a long time to a federal prison, not a nice place; who had found the Lord.  They found the Lord, read their bibles and talked to the Preachers that would come along to study with them.  I had an opportunity to speak with one of the Preachers once, his name was Frank Williams, and he was the most faithful Preacher I dealt with when I as at the sheriff's office.  He never missed a Sunday, he came rain or shine, other Preachers came and went, some came for their members but Preacher Frank came because God had called him to minister to the prisoners and he was fulfilling his obligation to the Lord.  I asked him how many of the men he spoke with were really interested in the Lord for real, he said he had been ministering for years, much longer than I had been at the jail, and he said if he found one in a hundred that continued their faith in God, after they left the jail or prison, he felt he had done his job.  So praying to the Lord in times of need and distress is something many a soul will do but how many trust and obey the Lord on a daily basis.  Do you trust the Lord when you are having great and fortune filled times in you life?  The bible says "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God" in Mark 1:25 and again in Matthew 19:24.  Does that mean that the prosperous person thinks they have no need for the Lord and they can do it on their own?  Does it mean they forgot to praise the Lord for their good and prosperous lives?  Do they believe? Do they trust? or is it so hard for them to obey?

I know in my life I have had hills and valley on the path of my belief. The young person in me wavered between believing, and doing as the Lord ask, and being rebellious and doing it only with the Lord somewhere in the back of my mind. I believed in my authority and not the Lords.  I have heard it said that the older a person gets the more they feel the need to seek out the Lord.  How sad that so many only seek his love in their waning years.  Is that the fear of God and death speaking to them?  I have always had a love relationship for the Lord, I have never once questioned that he is, that he is my Lord and I love him, but I have sinned many at time in my life and fallen short of obeying him.  I have trusted him without failing, but to obey is much harder for me.  The song says to trust and obey for there is no other way to be happy in Jesus but to trust and obey.  I, as an aging person, am no different than so many before me, I seek out the Lord more fervently.  I am finding such joy in the Lord, and in the process, that I did not or could not find in my youth.  I have read my bible many times, not as much as I should, but many a time in my life, but the reading was never as joyous as it is now. I didn't find the I wonderousness of the Lord I sought then, as I do know.  I used to have problems and would open the book willy nilly knowing the Lord would lead me to the words he wanted me to hear, and the solutions I sought, but did I hear the words the way he intended me to hear them?  Did I believe the way he wanted me too?  Did I obey the way he wanted me too?  I don't have answers for those questions and maybe, or mostly likely, it doesn't matter, the past we can not change, the present is where we decide what we are to do next and the future is in God's hands. 

I have learned so much in the last year, God has worked so many blessings into my life.  I have learned that it matters not what others think of you, what others say of or about you,  what they do to you or what society in general does, matters not.  We are to live on this earth but we don't have to be of it.  We have only to answer to God, trust and obey, and his Grace will fill our lives.  I have been blessed with so much this year, and to the unaware, it is of naught, but to me it is so much. Blessings are of the soul and don't have anything to do with material things, because in the end can anyone, ever, past or present, take anything that isn't of the soul with them..... tomorrow.

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Why do people do what they do? I think that those who long, shouldn't, they may just get it.

I don't know how things went in the "olden days" not sure I even know when the "olden days' were.  It seems everyone I ever meant, all my life, talked about them but when my 93 year old great grandmother spoke about them they weren't the same time as when my mother speaks about them.  So the "olden days" must be a lot like the "they" that knows so much about everything.  All joking aside I think the "olden days" is surely a romantic remembrance of the days of someones past or what they perceive as a better time.  I can't count how many people I know who say 'I wish I was born a hundred years ago' or 'I should have been born in this era.'  Really?  Did they stop and think what they are saying or do they really even know anything about the time they long for.  For the most part the woman a hundred years made the most industrious person you know look lazy.  The people I hear, most often, saying this are generally not the most industrious people I know.  Yes, it was simpler back then and maybe longing for simplicity is a good thing, but if you want simplicity go out and get it but you aren't cut out for the shear hard work, isolation, hunger, and no safety net that was the reality of life a hundred years ago.  Oh, I know they have romanticized it but there were no food banks, no welfare, no food stamps and no supermarkets, so if you didn't grow it, store it, smoke it, and work your tail off, you didn't eat.  I can't imagine some people even putting their canner on the stove and turning it on so how could they have managed?  Did they forget they would have had to chop the wood, bring it in, keep the stove going, take care of the kids, hoe the garden, do the laundry in a wash tub with a scrub board, milk the cow, the goat, feed the chickens, slop the hog, and then get breakfast on the table before they started their day?  Do you really know many people in this day and age of cars, computers, coffee shops, mega stores and instant gratification that could live up to that want?  I don't?  I think God knows who to put in what time and he didn't make a mistake at your house anymore than he did at mine, we are too lazy and complacent to have lived a hundred years ago or in any of the "olden days or the good old days". 

I see so many people now that cheat others and go on about their day like nothing happened and think it is totally acceptable.  Why is it that people think it is perfectly acceptable to live together and both claim head of household on their taxes, isn't that tax fraud?  Why do the people think it is acceptable to live together and count only one income to get food stamps and medicaid, medicaid fraud? or both use the food bank as single parents, then have money for all the extras that make their world go round.  These people are committing theft at our expense,  most of us know someone doing it and we don't complain, we let them cheat us, don't we pay the taxes that fund the agencies they cheat?  Our age has made it so people can steal and go on about their way with out even thinking of it as stealing.  I read about a mother last week in Zootown that was arrested for leaving her 16 month old at home, when did it become acceptable behavior for a mother, or any parent, to leave their infant at home to go shopping, and don't tell me 'they were sleeping.'  What about the daycare worker last year in Texas that left boiling oil on the stove went to the store and returned to find the fire department removing 7 bodies from her home, she fled to another country.  Why would anyone do such a thing, isn't your infant, your toddler, your child the most important thing in your live if they aren't they should be.  People get real.  Where is our conscience? where is our sense of fairness and honesty? where is our sense of responsibility? These are but a tiny few of the things that we do in this day and age what they wouldn't have done in the "olden days".  Really, do we hang men from trees because he was the wrong color and talked to a girl of a different color?  Do we work our children 16 hours a day because they can crawl into a smaller mining hole that is in danger of crumbling?  Do we let men beat their wives and kids with a stick the size of his thumb, as long as he doesn't kill them, because he is their owner?  All ages have their problems, short falls and dangers, it is a romanticism that that other time was surely better than mine.  It is a bit like a mother and child birth, a mothers mind forgets or never considers the pain, when she looks at that new child and as we idealize that place in time the "olden days:.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Kids, kids and more kids, ground meat and cooked up goat shank.

Poppie was in alot of pain yesterday and tried to relax, he is my first and most important kid.  The grand kids and pseudo grand kids were here.  Mokie has to work two days this week, for being a once in a while worker she is getting to have a pretty regular schedule.  I had Curious and Cartoons as well as her kids.  Oh, and I had Pansy.  Pansy was pretty good spent most of the day sleeping so that was a blessing.  Curious was in panties here for the first time.  We told her to use the pottie, showed her where it was and she was able to use the little pottie or the big, I have my own little pottie as I usually have a little one around most days.  She did great and didn't have an accident on my new comforter or linens, a blessing to be sure as we just put them on the bed two days ago.  She ate her lunch good and is speaking so much better.  When her mom picked her up her mouth was all blue, she had been eating Bronco chips and the blue die was all over her mouth she obviously enjoyed them.  Her mom was glad to see her still in the same outfit and was proud of her for not wetting her panties. 

I spent the day cutting up three small goat and grinding meat, I mixed it with some brisket and some pork loin, that way it makes for nice burgers and meatloaves plus Poppie can get to like the taste.  I was cutting up the two littlest one when I decided use their four upper back legs as shanks much like lamb shank.  I seasoned and flour them, seared them and braise them in chicken broth with au jus and tomatoes.  They thickened in to a nice red gravy after four hours in my dutch oven.  I served them with mashed garlic potatoes.  Poppie loved his, the kids all ate theirs, all had seconds.   I think goat meat is becoming more of a win win at our house.  I just can't imagine people who love their goats, and boy babies are a natural part of having goats not respecting their animal enough to eat them and respecting their sacrifice as sustenance to their bodies.  I know you can sell them but really aren't they getting eaten somewhere down the line, man up and love them so you can care for them to their end.  I love my goats and loving them has resposiblities to the harvest.  I ended up with over 50 pounds of meat. I made up small package of plain goat meat to take to the Preacher and Pianist, I am also taking Violinist and V-Mom a package of the mixed. 

I have kids again today but Poppie will be gone this morning, he is feeling a little better but I am sure he will over do it and be sore again this afternoon.  I have some longies to make and some handles to pen and ink, then photos and listings.  That is between, diapering a baby and a baby goat, feeding both bottles and one is now eating fruit on a spoon.  She also likes smile and talk time, two almost three year olds and a three year old.  Boy will be at pre-school and won't be home until after Poppie is home. Busy morning, and there is laundry, dishes...... I am glad it is coffee time, just thinking of my day is getting exhausting.... tomorrow.