Showing posts with label farming. Show all posts
Showing posts with label farming. Show all posts
late night talking
Gavin sprained his foot, badly.
and keeping him off of his foot has been insanely hard
...he is my go-go-go all the time boy and this has been torture for him.
Especially during harvest. sigh.
my garden is still producing like crazy
...and I am savoring each and every basket full.
the last 4 nights we've had at least one of the littles climb into bed with us
...they seem to snuggle up to dad more than me
I think they've missed him being so busy with harvest.
the girls are practicing their baby crawl and baby walk
...so they can teach the baby
they've also been rocking & singing their babies to sleep in their cradle.
I think they are practicing.
they gave my belly a hundred kisses tonight...
and then prayed that the baby would love them. oh my.
The girls and I took Ozzie out to the field to ride with dad this afternoon
...the combine was broken down so we monkeyed around in the pick-up
and when he was finally ready to roll Ozzie had changed his mind.
I think the fact that he had eaten everything out of his lunch box had something to do with it. ha.
Grayson has been out with the men from morning till night...
driving the pick-up, manning the service truck, un-hooking trailers, filling fuel
...and that's just what I've seen him do.
It's only a glimpse of what this farm is going to be like when there are 4 {or more} boys out there working the farm with their dad
...and that amazes me.
We had popcorn topped with crushed kale chips and homemade raspberry ice cream for dinner.
...because that's how we roll when mama is tired and already cooked for an army today.
The phrase barefoot, pregnant and in the kitchen has been coming to mind a lot lately. ha.
Feeding a family of 8 three meals a day is hard work
not to mention snacks and now all the packed lunches for the field.
I honestly love preparing healthy food though
...it's the cleaning up I could do without so much of.
There were 2 skunks fighting in the farm yard near our house last night.
they were screeching and spraying, oh my!
The boys shot at them with pellet guns and a pistil and the skunks didn't care one bit
...they finally ran off but not without leaving behind their nauseating stench for us to enjoy all night and most of the day.
oh, and I had left clothes out on the clothes line. sigh.
The kids are already talking about snow,
and making plans for what they are going to build in the snow
...oh and snow ice cream.
I am 28 1/2 weeks pregnant
...seriously how did that happen, it's going by so fast
yet so slow, I am still in awe of this little miracle growing inside of me.
This little babe has had the hiccups quite a bit this week
...which means I can tell that he/she is already head down.
All of my babies tend to go head down early and stay that way,
we'll see what this little one does.
It's been so long since I have sat down and just wrote
...blogging has always been and ebb and flow thing for me.
finding time to sit down at the computer is rare,
at least I have instagram now.
I guess that's how my life goes, and i'm okay with it.
that's about it friends
for now.
:: Todays thoughts ::
After spending a beautiful day outside with many willing helpers...
we can officially say we've started planting the garden.
We're about 7 rows into our 20 row garden.
{which may end up being bigger if I can find the space because I have no idea where to plant the cucumbers, squash, zucchini & melons}
We planted salad greens, stir fry greens, spinach, swiss chard, kale, cilantro, basil, red onions, white onions and half of the carrots.
Our garden is full of heirloom organic seeds this year.
I purchased almost all of them from Baker Creek Rare Seeds.
We are all bursting with excitement to see some of the unique varieties come up this year.
I think the Atomic Red carrots are at the top of the list oh and the strawberry popcorn.
Everyone was covered with dirt from head to toe by the time we were done.
Although that is really no different from any other day on the farm. {grin}
The boys... big, medium and small
tilled the garden, made the furrows, raked the debris,
picked rocks, pilled the mounds and played around a lot.
I am so blessed to have so many willing and able helpers.
It really made my job a lot easier.
I most just picked what went where and put the seeds in the ground.
Every year I marvel at the tiny seeds and the amazing machine God created in the earth.
To plant a tiny seed and watch it grow and blossom into something spectacular
...is nothing short of awe inspiring.
I always get a little anxious while the seeds are still covered in the dirt.
Did I plant them deep enough, too deep,
do they have the right amount of water,
when are they going to come up?!?!
And then when I think they must not be coming,
they pop up.
I'm still learning patience....
in the garden and every other part of my life. {grin}
We quite possibly have the most affectionate, beautifully fluffy, wild farm cats ever!
They come up to play anytime you step foot outside...
and with a family of 8 on a farm in beautiful weather, that is all day long!
The girls carry them around like babies,
Ozzie puts them in his dump truck and drives them around the garden.
They climb into your lap every chance they get and purr their little hearts out.
They catch mice and snakes and eat any left overs we send their way.
They are also quite possibly the most pampered wild farm cats ever! Ha!
The girls made dirt birthday cakes for each other....
complete with rock sprinkles and twig candles.
Ozzie delivered endless loads of dirt with his convoy of dump trucks
and the big boys watched the action while adding their encouragement to make the cakes bigger
and the big boys watched the action while adding their encouragement to make the cakes bigger
They sang Happy Birthday and You are my little sister bear
{to the tune of You are my Little Panda Bear}
while dancing around and twirling until they fell to the ground.
I wished I would have stopped to take a picture...
but I was on my knees in the dirt with muddy hands.
Ozzie drove his trusty dump truck up and down the rows rock picking....
in his pajamas.
Yeah, that's how we roll around here. {grin}
The leader of our brood. I am so thankful for this boy young man. I am still in awe that he is 11 and that I am the mother of an 11 yr. old!!
Despite the fact that I didn't do most of the hard labor, as I mentioned above, I was still worn out by the end of the day. I told the boys I thought we should just snack for dinner and they jumped up and offered to make Almond waffles. Well okay then, I'll agree with that!
So while the boys Grayson made Almond waffles and
Gavin and Vance goofed around in the kitchen keeping Grayson company.
Paul took me and the littles on a ride through the fields and down to the lake.
I love this country, it's beautiful never grows old.
Ozzie found his new best friend yesterday...
a yellow and black caterpillar he name Milo.
Which is coincidentially the name of his kitten,
who took to the woods with the feral cats while we were gone this winter.
He kept Milo by his side all day and night.
He asked me to take a picture while we were out driving around the field...
so I snapped this quickly.
Later that night he asked to see the picture and I showed him.
When he saw it he looked disappointed and asked if I would take another picture.
I told him I would in the morning and asked why.
He replied with this....
"I want a good picture of Milo so I'll remember him after he dies."
and yes... he wore his pajamas all day,
but not to bed.
He needed a bath and fresh pajamas to sleep in. {grin}
:: this was written last week ::
:: Well hello there ::
I've been staring at this empty page for 10 minutes now,
thoughts of what to say coming and going,
but nothing feels right.
I've been gone so long it's like I've forgotten how to do this whole blogging thing...
and maybe that's a good thing.
being away from the computer,
away from watching others lives through a window,
away from sharing with others online...
it's helped me rediscover some things.
There has been lots of change going on around here,
spending almost 4 months on the road....
has a way of doing that to you. {grin}
We've grown as a family, learned as a family & discovered so much.
I'll have to write an entire post just on that.
We have been home for a nearly 2 weeks,
and I still haven't unpacked the rv.
Well, we all brought a few things out, but not much.
It's still our home and it won't be long before we're back in it
...we already have a couple summer trips planned.
Adjusting to being back on the farm has been harder than I thought
...we really settled into the simplicity of life on the road.
Less space, less stuff, less distraction.
Not to mention we came home to sewer trouble. sigh.
Funny story...
I had big plans for our first trip to town when we got back to the farm.
One of the stops being the grocery store.
Myself and all six kids marched into our local grocery ready to stock up,
We quickly filled the cart with what looked like a lot of food.
...remember we had been shopping for a small rv fridge for the last few months.
At the check-out the cashier commented on how "healthy we ate".
We're defiantly back in meat and potatoes North Dakota!
On to store number 2 where did the same thing,
and heard a very similar comment from the cashier.
It looked like a lot of food...
until we got home and started putting it all in the fridge.
It only filled up half of one fridge and a quarter of the other fridge.
I guess we were really out of the habit of buying big and being an hour from the store.
I didn't make the same mistake this week...
our fridges are now bursting at the seams! {grin}
We haven't had much, scratch that, any down time since we got back.
Farming is back in full force,
the farm yard is full of semi trucks, tractors, gators, & trucks
and the lull of big engines is continual.
Even in all the chaos there is such a peace about farming.
My awesome husband tilled the entire garden for me.
I have a pile of organic heirloom seeds waiting to be planted
and now it's just a last frost waiting game.
Any day now, any day.
I can hardly wait!
We're back in full swing with school.
well as full swing as this eclectic, unschooling, homeschooling mama can get.
We ordered a few new school books for the summer
...i'll have to share what we're doing in another post.
Vance had his 1st of 2 days of homeschooling testing today,
we missed it over the winter so he is making it up with a local friend & teacher.
She already graded the first part and he scored a 99 & 98, ranking at 7.9th grade.
I have so many stories and pictures to share with you from our trip.
I had picked out my favorites and edited them when I could along the road,
hoping to share them before now. Ha!
Well, now that we are home we realized that they didn't back up and I lost them all. sigh.
At least I still have the negatives.
I promise i'll be sharing very soon,
I am bursting at the seams now that we are home.
although, I'm not sure if anyone is still around here?!
::::::::crickets chirping::::::::
I am not one to be too concerned with stats,
but I was a little sad when I saw I had lost so many readers.
smaller is better, right!!
Well I think I have filled you in on almost everything
...for today that is.
It's great to be back friends!
Talk to you soon!
thoughts of what to say coming and going,
but nothing feels right.
I've been gone so long it's like I've forgotten how to do this whole blogging thing...
and maybe that's a good thing.
being away from the computer,
away from watching others lives through a window,
away from sharing with others online...
it's helped me rediscover some things.
There has been lots of change going on around here,
spending almost 4 months on the road....
has a way of doing that to you. {grin}
We've grown as a family, learned as a family & discovered so much.
I'll have to write an entire post just on that.
We have been home for a nearly 2 weeks,
and I still haven't unpacked the rv.
Well, we all brought a few things out, but not much.
It's still our home and it won't be long before we're back in it
...we already have a couple summer trips planned.
Adjusting to being back on the farm has been harder than I thought
...we really settled into the simplicity of life on the road.
Less space, less stuff, less distraction.
Not to mention we came home to sewer trouble. sigh.
Funny story...
I had big plans for our first trip to town when we got back to the farm.
One of the stops being the grocery store.
Myself and all six kids marched into our local grocery ready to stock up,
We quickly filled the cart with what looked like a lot of food.
...remember we had been shopping for a small rv fridge for the last few months.
At the check-out the cashier commented on how "healthy we ate".
We're defiantly back in meat and potatoes North Dakota!
On to store number 2 where did the same thing,
and heard a very similar comment from the cashier.
It looked like a lot of food...
until we got home and started putting it all in the fridge.
It only filled up half of one fridge and a quarter of the other fridge.
I guess we were really out of the habit of buying big and being an hour from the store.
I didn't make the same mistake this week...
our fridges are now bursting at the seams! {grin}
We haven't had much, scratch that, any down time since we got back.
Farming is back in full force,
the farm yard is full of semi trucks, tractors, gators, & trucks
and the lull of big engines is continual.
Even in all the chaos there is such a peace about farming.
My awesome husband tilled the entire garden for me.
I have a pile of organic heirloom seeds waiting to be planted
and now it's just a last frost waiting game.
Any day now, any day.
I can hardly wait!
We're back in full swing with school.
well as full swing as this eclectic, unschooling, homeschooling mama can get.
We ordered a few new school books for the summer
...i'll have to share what we're doing in another post.
Vance had his 1st of 2 days of homeschooling testing today,
we missed it over the winter so he is making it up with a local friend & teacher.
She already graded the first part and he scored a 99 & 98, ranking at 7.9th grade.
I have so many stories and pictures to share with you from our trip.
I had picked out my favorites and edited them when I could along the road,
hoping to share them before now. Ha!
Well, now that we are home we realized that they didn't back up and I lost them all. sigh.
At least I still have the negatives.
I promise i'll be sharing very soon,
I am bursting at the seams now that we are home.
although, I'm not sure if anyone is still around here?!
::::::::crickets chirping::::::::
I am not one to be too concerned with stats,
but I was a little sad when I saw I had lost so many readers.
smaller is better, right!!
Well I think I have filled you in on almost everything
...for today that is.
It's great to be back friends!
Talk to you soon!
Did I tell you
about the time
I drove the big tractor
to mow a big field
and I brought a riding partner
and we chatted for hours
about field mice & birds & tractors & pink & purple
and it was fun.
Sunday Ramblings {and photos}
Our farm is a happening place this time of year...
the cowboys {my husbands father and a family friend} just left
they were here to help with harvest.
My Mother-in-law flew in for a few days
and brought cousin Brilyn to play with the girls.
While they were all here the hunters arrived
and then they left
and then another group arrived
and when they leave another group will arrive.
This group has 3 boys with them
...needless to say my boys are thrilled!
another Papa {my dad} arrived last night
and we started off our visit with a campfire until midnight
then we had to drive an hour home from our neighbors
but since we brought the RV
me and the littles slept on the drive home
I can't help but smile and mutter some kind of
ahhh, loooook, eeeek
every time I see the kittens
{I might have a problem}
I know it's hard, but don't let our sweet mud room carpet distract you
...look at the picture closely can you see something
...something unique about the kittens?
It's their tail{s} or lack there of
Two of them are manx cats...
just like their mama & feral father
they get their extreme fluffiness from their feral father as well
It's been a dry harvest season
which is good {mostly}
but it was time for rain
and it came the other night
the most beautiful, soft, peaceful and refreshing rain
despite it being dry for the last 6 weeks
we still have hundreds of roads underwater
including ours...
which is completely washed away now with no plans to rebuild
the cowboys {my husbands father and a family friend} just left
they were here to help with harvest.
My Mother-in-law flew in for a few days
and brought cousin Brilyn to play with the girls.
While they were all here the hunters arrived
and then they left
and then another group arrived
and when they leave another group will arrive.
This group has 3 boys with them
...needless to say my boys are thrilled!
another Papa {my dad} arrived last night
and we started off our visit with a campfire until midnight
then we had to drive an hour home from our neighbors
but since we brought the RV
me and the littles slept on the drive home
I can't help but smile and mutter some kind of
ahhh, loooook, eeeek
every time I see the kittens
{I might have a problem}
I know it's hard, but don't let our sweet mud room carpet distract you
...look at the picture closely can you see something
...something unique about the kittens?
It's their tail{s} or lack there of
Two of them are manx cats...
just like their mama & feral father
they get their extreme fluffiness from their feral father as well
It's been a dry harvest season
which is good {mostly}
but it was time for rain
and it came the other night
the most beautiful, soft, peaceful and refreshing rain
despite it being dry for the last 6 weeks
we still have hundreds of roads underwater
including ours...
which is completely washed away now with no plans to rebuild
at least I don't have to worry...
about driving over this pass in the winter now.
I'm off to work in the garden.....
now that I've blogged to myself {grin}
anyone else ever feel like that?
I guess it is just a fancy family public diary after all.
Happy Sunday everyone!
they're BIG
...combines that is
they look BIG in the yard
they look BIG in the yard
the header looks really big up close
they feel big when they drive by
{especially with the auger out}
they look big next to semi-trucks
they sound big emptying beans
big machines for a big job
{and I'm really happy I had a big enough camera lens to capture it!}
{and I'm really happy I had a big enough camera lens to capture it!}
late night talking
we've been locked out of our van for 5 days now...
the back window is slightly cracked so I attempted to use a coat hanger today
...didn't work. sigh.
thinking we might have to call a locksmith. sigh {again}.
our van is about to turn over 100,000 miles...
wahoo, that means we've traveled a lot of road
...and our van still has life left in it! {grin}
tonight after I tucked the girls in bed and said prayers...
Eliza asked "mama if we had butterfly wings could we fly to heaven"
to which Nolia replied ...
"no Liza, we have to wait until Jesus comes down to get us first....
then we can fly to heaven with our butterfly wings, right mama"
LOVE THEM!
Gavin {7} drove a pick-up back to the farm through a field
...about 4 miles away today. {passing no traffic at all}
gulp. gasp. sigh.
He's been in training and he does natural abilities for driving and we live in a farm
...but I serious had to take a deep breath when I saw him pull in.
we've been on harvest break last week and part of this week
...there is just way too much to do during harvest to keep up with school too.
The boys have obviously LOVED having a break...
even though they have been working {some}
I however really miss our days with school
....there is something so special about them.
I have never wished, like I wish right now...
that I had blinds or any type of window covering for that matter on all of our windows
especially my bedroom and bathroom
I am not used to having people outside my windows
and there are people, hunters, outside my windows this month.
I think I need to put a note in the bathroom so I don't forget! {grin}
Now let me ask you...
what would you like to see me post about next
...the painting I've been up to
or
...more combines and harvest?
I'd also love to have your input on comment systems
...blogger comments seemed to be great
that was until I started to become bombed with spam.
hmmmm...
so I'm thinking I might switch back to Disqus.
thoughts?
enough rambling tonight
goodnight friends
the back window is slightly cracked so I attempted to use a coat hanger today
...didn't work. sigh.
thinking we might have to call a locksmith. sigh {again}.
our van is about to turn over 100,000 miles...
wahoo, that means we've traveled a lot of road
...and our van still has life left in it! {grin}
tonight after I tucked the girls in bed and said prayers...
Eliza asked "mama if we had butterfly wings could we fly to heaven"
to which Nolia replied ...
"no Liza, we have to wait until Jesus comes down to get us first....
then we can fly to heaven with our butterfly wings, right mama"
LOVE THEM!
Gavin {7} drove a pick-up back to the farm through a field
...about 4 miles away today. {passing no traffic at all}
gulp. gasp. sigh.
He's been in training and he does natural abilities for driving and we live in a farm
...but I serious had to take a deep breath when I saw him pull in.
we've been on harvest break last week and part of this week
...there is just way too much to do during harvest to keep up with school too.
The boys have obviously LOVED having a break...
even though they have been working {some}
I however really miss our days with school
....there is something so special about them.
I have never wished, like I wish right now...
that I had blinds or any type of window covering for that matter on all of our windows
especially my bedroom and bathroom
I am not used to having people outside my windows
and there are people, hunters, outside my windows this month.
I think I need to put a note in the bathroom so I don't forget! {grin}
Now let me ask you...
what would you like to see me post about next
...the painting I've been up to
or
...more combines and harvest?
I'd also love to have your input on comment systems
...blogger comments seemed to be great
that was until I started to become bombed with spam.
hmmmm...
so I'm thinking I might switch back to Disqus.
thoughts?
enough rambling tonight
goodnight friends
Brittany
running
I'm running to the fields
running from the fields
running to bring food
running from one semi to another
running to pick up someone
running to drop someone off
running to the grain elevator
running to take pictures
running to make food
running to town for parts
running to bathe children
running to watch children
running to move trucks
running to town for food
running to find someone
running to meet someone
running to follow combines
running to keep up with the house
running to find time to tell you about running
running to finish laundry
running to help anywhere
running to finish harvest
I thank God I'm able to run
I thank God we have a harvest to run for
I thank God for his strength to keep us running
I thank God our running blesses our family
I thank God we have many willing hands to help us run
I thank God we won't always be running
I better go now...
I gotta run! {grin}
running from the fields
running to bring food
running from one semi to another
running to pick up someone
running to drop someone off
running to the grain elevator
running to take pictures
running to make food
running to town for parts
running to bathe children
running to watch children
running to move trucks
running to town for food
running to find someone
running to meet someone
running to follow combines
running to keep up with the house
running to find time to tell you about running
running to finish laundry
running to help anywhere
running to finish harvest
I thank God I'm able to run
I thank God we have a harvest to run for
I thank God for his strength to keep us running
I thank God our running blesses our family
I thank God we have many willing hands to help us run
I thank God we won't always be running
I better go now...
I gotta run! {grin}
you know you're a farmers wife when...
...the last date night you had was riding together in a tractor at midnight.
...you meet in the middle of a field with lunch and 100 gallons of fuel.
...you decide what to pack in your husbands lunch box based on if it's easy to eat while driving a tractor or not.
...you have enough work clothes to fill an entire washer, everyday.
...your husband tells you he's going out to mow and you know this means 3 mowers, 2 days & miles of mowing
...you hear your name on the radio and go for your flip-flops, pick-up keys & phone before responding to the radio.
...you call your husband for dinner and it gets broadcast across the county.
...going to visit your husband in his office, means finding him in a tractor, semi-truck or heavy equipment storage building.
...the weather can change your plans at any moment
...your seasons are renamed planting, spraying, harvesting & winter
...you have to learn to drive anything with wheels, as a necessity
...when you hug your husband you can tell if he smells like oil, fuel, hydraulic fuel or just dirt
...when you are given the title "farmers wife"
...you have to learn to drive anything with wheels, as a necessity
...when you hug your husband you can tell if he smells like oil, fuel, hydraulic fuel or just dirt
...when you are given the title "farmers wife"
who knew
these beans we won't eat...
in all their genetically modified nastiness...
overpowering corporate evilness...
manipulated and over used...
so far from the way God made them...
and over produced in masses...
would make such unique pictures {grin}
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