A Herd of Four

Lady, Applejack, Cinnamon, Button (front to back)

On Friday we welcomed Lady to our farm.

What's Cooking ?

WOW OH WOW !!

This is an amazing salad ...

warm or cold ...

by itself or as a side ...

in a pita or wrap ...

OHHH MYYY the yummy-ness.

And it's healthy ...

and it can be made ahead

soooo easily too ... and then can be

lunch or dinner or a snack even ?!?!

Enjoy.

Peach Cucumber Barley Salad

Ingredients:
1 cup pearl barley
2 cups water, vegetable broth, or a combination (I used 1 of each)
1 cucumber
2 peaches
1 pint cherry tomatoes (I used grape tomatoes)
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
2 Tablespoons vinegar (cider or red wine)
1 Tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper
1 15 oz. can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

Place dry barley in a saucepan over medium heat and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring, until toasted.
Stir in water/broth and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 35 minutes.  Allow to cool.  Chop cucumber, peaches, tomatoes and basil.  In a large bowl, mix oil, vinegar and salt and pepper.  Add in barley and chickpeas, mix in vegetables.   Serve over lettuce.

Rural Lady's Planner

RURAL LADY’S PLANNER

For Tuesday, June 14th, 2011

Through The Windowpane ....  sunshine all week and the promise of some thunderstorms in the afternoons.

Thanksgiving And Praise ... Grandmommy Roth's continued progress, happy horses, tiny green tomatoes on the vines, children are thriving ...

Praying For … Grandmommy Roth,  Luke M., Boxing friends, our summer session of school.

The Learning Rooms ... Math, Bible, History, Science, and lots of reading ....

Reading From The Bookshelf ...  I just finished two Monty Roberts books (the Horse Whisperer) ... and have yet to decide what's next ...

From The Kitchen...

M – Baked tomatoes on bruchetta and salad.

T –  Marinated steak and vegetable sandwiches on pitas.

W –  Vegetable Stir Fry over brown rice.

T –  Arroz con pollo.

F – Chicken and sun-dried tomato orzo and salad.

S –  No-sauce linguine.

S –  Oven-baked "fried" chicken.

Creative Endeavors ... tooling around outside, mowing trails, trimming branches ... and I look at my sewing machine standing at the ready, thinking "maybe the next rainy day .....".  

Plans For The Week ...

M –  Home.  Small errands in town. Horseback Riding Time, School.  Scouts.

T –  Working our horses, School, weed big garden, and possibly the C family visiting.

W –  Home, Horseback Riding Time, School. And maybe a boat ride on the lake ?

T – Working our horses, swimming at lake with friends, School, MOWING !!

F –  Home, Horseback Riding Time, School, MOWING !!  Horseback riding lessons at HH farm.

S –  Working our horses, Dumma's arrival, boating ?

S –  Church.  Maybe boating on the lake ?

Around The House & Farm ... weeding, mowing, fence repairs (yes, already !), exercising horses, getting organized ... trying to find time and inspiration and materials to build a chicken house.

Through The Viewfinder ... blackberries (wild) are ripe and are very yummy ... temperatures in the 90s makes it feel more like August than June ... but WOOOO HOOOO it's summertime at last !!

Have a Blessed Day!!!  

One Thousand Gifts

#26  Freshly mowed grass.

#27  Blackberrys and sticky hands.

#28  Watching dives, strokes, and splashes.

#29  Sprinklers and hoses.

#30  Watching the sunrise.

#31  New recipes.

#32  Pitter patter of dog paws.

#33  Callused hands.

#34  Rakes and hoes.

#35  Sparking sinks.

#36  Baked tomatoes on bruchetta.

#37  Honey Wheat Pitas.

#38  Visiting with friends.

#39  The soft glow of evening candles.

#40  Bounce dryer sheets.

#41  Lavender blossoms.

#42  Cinnamon's tummy rubs.

#43  Button's joy.

#44  Applejack's silliness.

#45  Watching Dumma ride, after years of dreaming ...

If you'd like to know more about the Gratitude Community, and One Thousand Gifts, please visit Ann Voskamp's Holy Experience.

Rural Lady's Planner

RURAL LADY’S PLANNER

For Monday, June 6th, 2011

Through The Windowpane ....  sunshine and the promise of another HOT day ahead.

Thanksgiving And Praise ... Grandmommy Roth's progress, Luke's evaluation, seeds have sprouted, fields are mowed, children are thriving ...

Praying For … Grandmommy Roth, .  Luke M., Swim Team, upcoming Scout events, our summer session of school.

The Learning Rooms ... Math, Bible, History, Science, and lots of reading ....

Reading From The Bookshelf ...  I just finished LIFE ON THE MISSISSIPPI by Mark Twain ... and have yet to decide what's next ...

From The Kitchen...

M – Beef & Broccoli over brown rice.

T –  Hamburgers (grilling !).

W –  Vegetable Stir Fry over brown rice.

T –  Steaks (grilling !) and salad.

F – Chicken and veggies a la crockpot.

S –  Attending cook out (Mom's night off - yahooo !)

S –  Grilled chicken over fresh salad.

Creative Endeavors ... still arranging and re-arranging ... although we did manage to get the sewing area set up and also found the art supplies ... so maybe soon ?!?!??!

Plans For The Week ...

M –  Home Horseback Riding Time, School, Swim Team, Scouts.  Also Phase 1 (swap "library" with Master Bedroom).  Weed big garden.

T –  Working our horses, School, Library.  Phase 2 of swap.  Weed big garden.

W –  Home Horseback Riding Time, School. And maybe a boat ride on the lake ?

T – Working our horses, School, Swim Team.  MOWING !!

F –  Home Horseback Riding Time, School, MOWING !!  Three big boys to MB Clinic (Scouts).

S –  Working our horses, Dumma's arrival, RV Delivery and set up.  Cook Out at neighbors (yummy !)

S –  Church.  Maybe boating on the lake ?

Around The House & Farm ... weeding, mowing, fence repairs (yes, already !), exercising horses, getting organized ...

Through The Viewfinder ... blackberries (wild) will be ripe any day now ... temperatures in the 90s makes it feel more like August than June ... but WOOOO HOOOO it's summertime at last !!

Have a Blessed Day!!!  

Multitude Monday: One Thousand Gifts

To learn more, visit Holy Experience, and join the Gratitude Community ...

So much to do ... busy busy ... since moving to the beautiful farm.  We have moved, arranged, rearranged, cleaned, organized, plowed, planted, watered, thinned, weeded ... and so much more.


This beautiful place has brought such blessings ... it seemed fitting to begin our lists again ... anew.


#1  This beautiful farm, our family's long-awaited "forever" home.
#2  Cherub 3's efforts, long and labor-intensive, fencing and preparing ...
#3  Our family's a mighty army when we all work together.
#4  Dry sunshine-filled moving days.
#5  Snapper mowers ... which mows grass, pastures, and blazes trails.
#6  A beautiful library, only 12 minutes away, with shelves seemingly to the sky.
#7  Sweet neighbors.
#8  AT&T finally installing our DSL service.
#9  DadToCherubs being able to work from home once again.
#10  Boat rides on beautiful afternoons.
#11  Our cozy cabin, in which we're starting to feel settled.
#12  Wildflowers in the pastures.
#13  Brushlines filled with bits of bright red promise .... blackberries not-quite-ripe.
#14  Spring peepers and bullfrogs -- our nighttime lullaby.
#15  Tilled soil ... planted seeds ... and high hopes of a bountiful harvest.
#16  Brain storming and barn planning ... and lots of quality time with our equines.
#17  A rescued nestling ... a Northern Mockingbird ... growing and thriving ... beginning to fly ...
#18  Winding trails in the woods and grand adventures unfolding at every bend.
#19  Bedtime reading while all is quiet.
#20  Beginning the summer session of our school year ... with one who will be a Senior when we're through.
#21  Arrangements made for summer visitors - oh the fun we'll have !!
#22  Summer swim team's beginning.
#23  "Routines" beginning to peek through our chaos ...
#24  Cool evening breezes.
#25  Discussions ... the making of farm and future plans with the Cherubs.

A Very Exciting Discovery !!

We have lots of lots of birds here.

Many old friends, and some new-er friends too.

Eastern Buebirds, Robins, American Godfinches,

Cowbirds, RedWing Backbirds, Crows, Woodpeckers ....

and lots of INDIGO BUNTINGS !!

Needless to say, we are very excited !!

Planting Time

We're busy planting here at Two By Two Farm.  We decided on two gardens for vegetables, the first of which was planted late last week, and the second of which will be planted today/tomorrow.

So, what are we growing this year ?

Lettuce (Buttercrunch and Blackseeded Simpson)
Spinach (Bloomsdale Long Standing)
Tomatoes (Marglobe, Cherry, Roma, Krim)
Peppers (yellow purple and red bell peppers, and 1 jalapeno)
Eggplant
Cucumbers
Squash (yellow, zucchini, spaghetti, scallop, butternut, and acorn)
Corn (silver queen)
GreenBeans (bush variety)
Herbs - lavender, parsley, basil, oregano, chives
Watermelons (icebox size and Dixie Queen)
Cantaloupe
Honeydew

And pumpkins -- the small "pie" type, and some mammoth pumpkin seeds that promise a 200-300 pound pumpkin.

We have seen sooooo many rabbits here that we're concerned we'll be battling them for our harvests.  So any recommendations on keeping the rabbits from devouring our gardens would be appreciated (we've already decided that next year we will fence the gardens for sure).

What's in YOUR garden ?

First Horse Show

Cherub 2 and Applejack

Cherub 5 and Cute-As-A-Button (aka Button)

Cherub 2 with Cinnamon & Cherub with Button

Cherub 5 with Cinnamon

Cherub 2 with Applejack

Cherub 2 leading Applejack with Cherub 6 riding

Cherub 2 riding Button

Cherub 2 riding Cinnamon

Cherub 2 riding Applejack

Cherub 5 riding Cinnamon and Cherub 2 riding Applejack

Cherub 2 riding Applejack on the trail course

Another To-Do Is "Ta-Done"

Mr. M.C. came last week and plowed

both of our planned garden spots.

One will be for corn, melons, squashes,

and greenbeans.  The other will be for tomatoes,

peppers, lettuces, spinach, herbs,

and other yummy things.

Then yesterday he came back to fine-till.

The soil looks great -- dark, soft, and fluffy.

We're going to wait until May 15th to plant ...

too much going on just now to do it ...

It's sooooo exciting that things

are coming together !!

Getting Settled ...

It's very exciting here !!  We finally finished moving, lock, stock, and barrel, to the new place.  And for the most part, we've unpacked ... in between sunshine days we've spent outside and back to back activities (Scouts, Horse Trail Clinic, boxing, horseback riding here, horseback riding at the arena, volunteer opportunities, etc).

We still have some things (piles) to put away ... but overall we're settled ... and on rainy days, we work inside putting things away and getting organized ... and on sunny days we are outside.

The tornadoes last Wednesday in our area (actually, over much of the South) were horrible.  Thankfully we only had a few limbs down, despite watching funnel clouds walk the hilltop beside us, eventually touching down in the next town.  YIKES !!  We are praising God for His protection !!

And this past weekend we were out enjoying the sunshine. Soaking it up !!

On Saturday Dumma was here, so we went to the Mennonite farm to get strawberries and to check out the animals for sale (4th Saturday of the month is their animal sale) --- we didn't buy any animals, but it took every bit of willpower we had.  HA !!  Strawberries and peanutbutter cookies .... yummy.  Saturday was DadToCherub's 39th birthday, so in the afternoon we took the boat out for it's maiden voyage of the summer.  The water was cold, but DadToCherubs and our 6 Cherubs went swimming anyway.  And the lake was gorgeous !!  Then we had a nice Birthday dinner at the Marina's restaurant.  It was also Cinnamon's birthday - she's 27yo now.  We visited with her, gave some much needed tummy rubs, and hugged her dearly -- and she had some horse treats instead of cake.  :o)

Sunday afternoon was spent in the yard.  First, we hung DadToCherubs' hammock with hammock straps from two huge oak trees -- and he test drove it a bit.  Perfect !!  Then DadToCherubs, Cherub 6, and Cherub 5 gathered and burned some piles of sticks and limbs that were scattered about. There's a lot more to burn here, but those piles were a great start !!  Cherub 1, Cherub 2, Cherub 3, and Cherub 4 worked on finding the yard -- taming the yard really.  Weeding, mowing, trimming ... planting 5 huge Lavender plants that Dumma brought to us ... it' starting to look really nice.

Today M.C. is coming back with his tractor -- to till our garden spots -- WOOOO HOOOO !!  He came last week to plow (ours are never-been-gardened-before spots) ... after much discussion and debate, we decided on TWO gardens this year.  One near the pasture for corn, green beans, melons, and squashes ... and one closer to the house for tomatoes, peppers, lettuces, spinach, herbs, eggplant, and a few other things.  Very exciting -- in two weeks, we'll be planting our very first TWO BY TWO garden.  :o)  I fear we're going to have to fight the rabbits this year for our harvest ... I see sooooo many rabbits here.  But by next year, the spots will be fenced if the rabbis are an issue ... or at least that's the plan.  (There's simply not enough time to get it fenced this year, if we want to actually plant this year - ha !)

Once the yard is tamed and the pastures mowed again (wow the pastures grew up FAST !), we're going to start working on building a chicken house ... and then will be buying new chickens ... and some guineas to deal with the HUGE number of ticks and creepy-crawlies that live here.  Then we'll be working on thinning the treelines/brushlines between the house and the pastures ... and starting on fencing pasture #2 ... for cows ... for beef (and we're looking into maybe getting a family milk cow, but the decision is still out on that one until the research is done).  And somewhere in that will be working on a run-in shelter for the horses ... and then .... well, the list goes on and on and on and on and on ........

These are very exciting times indeed !!!

Almost Finished

We're loving the new farm, when we get to BE here.  We've done a lot of running back and forth between the old place and the new place ....

All of our belongings have been moved ... and at the old house, the painting is finished and now we're cleaning and making small repairs.  With God's grace and a lot of hard work, we should be ready to give the keys to A & N this evening.

At the new house, phase 1 of the driveway repair was completed and fared pretty well in the storms.  And the electrician came to install the stove outlet (yeah !!  our menu won't be limited to the grill anymore !).

Starting tomorrow, we'll be starting the process of unpacking and getting organized.

Fences

After much frustration, a lot of determination,

too many scratches and banged thumbs ....

THE NEW FENCES ARE COMPLETED !!!

Today, we'll hang the 2 pasture gates and will

finish mowing the pasture.  Then we'll set up the round-bale holder

so that we can have a round bale ready for a

WELCOME HOME treat for our horses.

Next .... we start actually moving household contents .....

hopefully later this afternoon.

HOORAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY !!

Some Pictures

On Thursday, Cinny was not feeling well.

She had a fever and the sniffles and wouldn't eat.

She said I'M SICKKKKKK ....

and we called our vet.

Dr. M arrived and gave her some meds.

He suspects her cold turned into an

upper respitory infection.

Poor Cinny !!

Kevin bought Cinny a new coat because

she had the chills .... toasty and warm.

And she's starting to feel better now.

Snug as a bug.

We have finished 3 sides of new fencing

for the pasture at the new farm.

(this view is looking down length of

pasture from driveway end)

Mount MUD ...

this is the driveway to exit our farm ...

at the top of Mount Mud

(top left corner of photo)

is where the driveway ends

and the neighborhood road begins.

Mount Mud is to be repaired soon

by an excavator, if the rain will stop

long enough.  In the mean while,

it's an interesting ride up ....

.... stay tuned ...

Slow and Steady

Well, it's been raining for f-o-r-e-v-e-r .... or so it seems.  Not sure that buying a farm was the wise choice ... maybe we should've built an ARK instead ?  Ha !!

Cinnamon, our senior horse, was sick earlier in the week with a nasty cold.  Thanks to our wonderful vet and a snug coat, she's feeling MUCH better now.  HOORAY !!

It's been a longgggg Dogwood Winter (usually just a few days in duration, and the first of our last 2 cold-snaps before spring comes to stay), the weather is finallyyyyyy making a change.  HOORAY !!  It seems we're going to have a warm and sunny weekend ... and then a few sunny warm (DRY) days next week too.

Next is the Blackberry Winter, within 2 weeks usually --- and it's usually only a few days in duration, so hopefully that'll hold true this year.

In between, hopefully (maybe), we can finally get this "show" going ....

We got the lower level of the outbuilding closed in and made some doors.  And then some of the Cherubs and I removed all of the old barbed wire fencing, repaired the field fencing that weaves through the treelines, and have managed to get new fence put up on 3 sides of the pasture.  It was quite a feat ... in the cold and mud and rain.  Hummmmmmmmmmm ......

Today, we hope to finish fencing the last "short" side of the pasture, to get 2 gates installed (one 12ft date as the "official" pasture entrance, and one 4ft gate closer to the house for a people entrance), and to get a bit of trimming (low branches) done and cleared away in the treelines.  Then, the pasture will be ready for it's new residents .... we're moving the horses to Two By Two farm next Wednesday if the weather stays nice.

Then, this weekend, while we're waiting to move the horses, we're planning to move LOTS of belongings to the new house (we hope to sleep there for the first time on Wednesday night) ... and in between picking up the horse trailer Saturday afternoon and bathing the horses on Sunday evening we'll be MOVING (three Cherubs and our 3 horses are attending a 2-day trail clinic here on Mon and Tues so our equines need to be clean and lovely) ....

With God's Grace, strong backs, and a few nice days, we can hopefully finallyyyyyyyyyyy make good progress moving ... and then will finish up moving the last of the non-essentials next week (Wed, Thurs, and Fri).

It's finally starting to come together .... if it can just stay dry for a few days.  :o)

Stay tuned ........

More Progress ...

The closing was finally held last Friday.  Yahooo !!

And this week, in between children's haircuts, horse haircuts, and a farrier visit, plus lots of childrens activities, we've been busy.

We've gotten the yard cleaned up a little at Two By Two Farm, and spent much of the week enclosing the lower level of an outbuilding.

We're still waiting for the water and electric lines to be marked so that the excavator can come do some work on the driveway.

Tomorrow we will begin removing the barbed wire from the pasture fences (uggggg), and then will be replacing it with barbless wire.  And we'll be mowing the pasture, which is starting to get nice and green.  Our horses will be pleased with their new pasture.

Once the fencing is completed, we'll begin the actual process of moving to the new farm ... just in time to enjoy the spring !!

A Delay

The closing has been delayed ....

Sorting, Packing, and To Do's

"BEFORE WE MOVE" TO DO LIST

DONE - Master Closets

DONE - Master Bedroom

Master Bathroom

DONE - Laundry Room

Children's Bathroom

Boy's Bedroom

Girl's Bedroom

DONE - Kitchen Drawers
DONE - Kitchen Cabinets

Library

Living Room

Office Area

DONE - Cellar

DONE - Barn Loft

DONE - Barn Storage Area 1

DONE - Barn Storage Area 2

DONE - Barn Stalls & Tack Area

DONE - Barn Workshop

Downsize Attic Contents

Clean Out Kitchen Cabinets

Clean Bathroom Cabinets

Clean Laundry Room Cabinets

Clean Kitchen Appliances

Clean All Light Fixtures

Schedule Spring Vet Appointment

Schedule Dog Grooming Appointments

Schedule Horse Clipping Appointment

REPAIRS

Fix Kitchen "Trash" Cabinet

Paint Touch Up (all rooms)

Mop/Polish All Floors

Polish Granite Counters

Repair Wind Damage to Screened Room

Replace Light Globe

Burn Fire Pit

Adjust Front Screen Door

Re-press Screens (loose)

Patch Picture Holes

Clean House

Clean Ceiling Fans

PROJECT RESEARCH

DONE - Measure New Pasture Fencelines (1400 ft perimeter)

DONE - Count New Pasture Fence Posts

Measure New Pasture Gate Openings

DONE - Research Fence Options for New Pasture

Buy New Fence Materials

CALLS & ARRANGEMENTS

DONE - New Power Company

DONE - Current Power Company

DONE - Current Internet Provider

New Internet Provider Options

DONE - Current Water Company

DONE - New Water Company

Collect Barn Building Estimates

DONE - Television Service Option Research

DONE - Septic Inspection & Servicing

DONE - Request Marking of Utility Lines

DONE - Arrange for Excavation Work (driveway)

Arrange for Horse Trailer

Arrange For Pick-Up of Moving Trailer

Call To Request Boxes

Van to Ford Dealer (repair)

The Best Plans ....

We said, "If all goes according to plan, and the weather cooperates, and the TO DOs get "done" .... in 6 weeks we could be moved, lock, stock, and barrel, onto Two By Two Farm" ... or at least that WAS the plan.


So -- what's left to do ?


        Everything.


What did we get done ?


        Nothing.


Two weeks ago, we made great plans to immediately begin very-serious de-cluttering and downsizing, realizing that it's simply silly to move all of this "stuff" that we never use and simply don't need, to the new place, only to clutter up another space.  


We had planned on starting in the barn (where much is stored, and precious little is ever used), and then coming into the house to "downsize" room by room.


However, the flu had other plans for us.  Headaches, chills, fevers, coughs, head congestion, nausea, and intense fatigue .... it was rough.


So, after nearly 2 solid weeks of family-wide illness, and while we are still struggling with coughs, we are "better", and so will begin again our efforts.  


TODAY ... after lunchtime.


IN THE BARN ...


...  this afternoon .... armed with the trashbags, boxes, and the van with trailer nearby .... out with the old and unused .... out with the "saved" things that we haven't touched or even thought of for more than a year .... out with the unnecessary ... organized inventory of the essentials ... and packed for the move ...


Then we'll head to the dump, the recycling collection area, and the donation centers.


With God's Grace, we'll finish decluttering the barn by this time next week (we hope) ...


 ... and then will begin our efforts inside the house ... downsizing, decluttering, and hopefully packing too.


It seems hard to believe that in 4 weeks, with God's Grace, we could be all moved .... and could be living on Two By Two Farm.


WOW !!

Lord, we thank You for Your protection while we were ill, and for your healing.  And we thank you for the excitement ... the THRILL ... the beauty that is to come ... all of the promise that a new farm can possibly hold.  Please Lord, help us as we prepare, guide us in our steps, as we finally begin to pare down unnecessary belongings, and assist us as we prepare to move to the new farm.  Keep us healthy, and protect the JOY in our hearts as we embark on this huge project ... bind us together as a team, because many hands make light work ... we humbly ask that You bless and multiply our efforts, and that you strengthen our bodies and spirits ... that, as we de-clutter our physical spaces, You de-clutter our hearts and minds.  We as these things in Your Holy Name.  Amen.

Moving Along ...

The inspections are done and went even better than we'd hoped.  And now all of the "details" are in the works ... and the closing should be on or before March 11th.

In the mean while we're cleaning out and de-cluttering, and will begin packing this week.  Since we have 10 days of warm sunshine ahead, we're going to focus our attention on the barn this week.  We have so many things "in storage" in the barn that we just simply don't need ... so why move them, right ?

Then we'll move to the house .... we're going to go through every room ... every since box, bag, drawer, shelf, and corner .... every closet .... weeding out and consolidating .... it just seems silly to move allllllll of this stuff that just takes up space and collects dust.

Maybe I am becoming a MINIMALIST in my 40th year ?  HA !

And school ... we're going to buckle down A LOT and try to make some serious progress on our school work.  We had hoped to start buckling down last week, but the FLU had other ideas.  So --- Monday --- we will begin working hard again on our school work in hopes of getting a lot accomplished before we move.

Our spring vet appointment will be finished before the move ... all of the critters will get their annual immunizations and well-checks.

The boat will be moved to the marina within the next 2 weeks.  The jetkis will go to the mechanic for good pre-season tune ups.

It's all in the details now .... and so much is dependent on warm sunshine-filled days.

Let's hope March comes in "like a lamb", and goes out like one too !!