Mother’s Day 2013

This year for Mother’s day my wonderful mom had the fabulous idea of going to the “Sheep and Wool Festival” and I do have to say that it was simply lovely. There were sheep things everywhere. And really, how could you not smile at people with sheep hats, barns full of roving, smiling llamas and sleepy sheep? It was beautifully simple and so totally us.  We were all inspired. Since then, I think we’ve all been caught thinking to ourselves on whether or not we could possibly manage to fit a few llamas and sheep onto our lot. While that may be a few years down the road, it’s always good to dream.

We are so totally blessed to have a Mom who loves us so much. It would take me all year to tell you about how amazing she is… Most mornings when I begrudgingly roll out of bed and stumble to the kitchen, there she is… smiling with a pottery mug full of coffee and a joy that’s infectious. She’s a strong follower of Christ that constantly challenges me and encourages me at the same time. We’re pretty much opposites, so while I can get on her nerves (and vice versa :) ) we still manage to have a great time. It’s always an adventure, but it’s been a great one, speed bumps and all.

Happy Mothers Day Mom!

my house has been invaded by bandits

and desperados.

and cowboys.

and dogs-turned-cattle and horses.

There have been shoot outs in the living room,

masked bandits reclining on chairs,

target practice set up on the bathroom door,

and even the dog has decided to take up ranching.

What sparked this invasion, you may ask?

The re-discovery of the ever powerful nerf guns,

the gift of two black cowboy hats from my dad,

plus the reading of several fictional cowboy stories.

.

dodging flying bullets and galloping horses out on the range today with my family of Wild West Hooligans.

enjoy your memorial day, dear friends!

jk

To Move a Coop

This past year, my sister has acquired a new name for herself: The Chicken Mama. It has been a blast to see her build a coop, raise 6 chickens from 2 weeks old, and now, to move them outside.

My grandpa and grandma up north helped her to build the coop, and it was housed in our garage for a few weeks. The older chickens (who are now 4 months old) moved into the coop in the garage, while the younger ones (now 10 weeks old) took their place in the large rubbermaid container in the basement.

Now that the weather has warmed up, we were able to get the chicken coop to it snew location in the backyard. If only we could lift it all the way back there (the coop weight at least 150 lbs).

To save our arms and backs from pain, my parents devised the idea to back our minivan up and into the garage, then lift the coop only the 12 feet to the back of the car.

And praise God, it worked!

this picture below is a photo of the new area where the coop will be going. It looks much cuter now, as we have put up the fence, black metal gate (so charming!) and strung grapevine along the fence to add some sweetness. This summer, my sister Lillie will be putting in 4 raised garden beds in this now fenced area.

To say the least, my dad is a great driver, and managed to back the van across the vacant lot next door and into the chicken area- great work, Dad!

A few minutes later, we lifted the coop off of the van and onto its stand, connected to the run. These chickens are living in high style with a beautiful coop and nesting boxes, and a large run to, well, run around in.

We are so excited to start getting possibly 3 eggs a day (about 21-24 eggs a week!) from our girls, and are so so happy to have them outside and all settled in.

In case you wanted to get an inside view of “Ruthie’s Rhode Island Red Resort,” here’s a photo of the interior of the coop:

The stick-on tile is attached to a board that slides out for easy spray-off cleaning :)

And the nesting boxes attached to the left there.

Who knew that we would get chickens? It still makes me laugh some days…

Have you ever heard the tale?

or known where heroes are?

Or heard of the valiant deeds

of the conquering Sir R?

With a sword of blue hue

he conquered the foes

and fought off the dragon

and stubbed all his toes.

He vanquished the dragon,

then made her a knight,

But the dragon wouldn’t do it,

and she started to fight.

Sir R sought the famer

to help to him to hide.

the farmer was Monkey,

a soccer ball at his side.

They ran to the barn

and rescued his pals

rode out the earthquake

when off the cliff they fell!

The dragon, Sir R said

would come and fight him!

So Sir R disappeared

and ran into the night then.

 

He goes by a name

that is funny but true:

Purple Fox Soccer Knight

is how he is known to you.

So now he travels

incognito, he moves

protecting the kingdom

never to lose.

 

(what a fun morning we had! off to be a train engineer! Have a great day!)

Kaye :)

To live out here…

is, when wondering which road to take home, consider which you would be the least likely to hit a deer on.

Driving home tonight from work, the dark night air swirled around the van as it forged its way through the damp fall weather.

No headlights, taillights in front of me, or in back.

Just dark. No street lights out here.

The whir of the engine and the glow of the dashboard the only things breaking this lightless silence. 

It kind of makes me twitchy, all of these ‘wide open spaces’.

I press the radio button and off the walls and into my ears sing praise songs, worshipful melodies.

See the faint glow of red up ahead of me, I release my shoulders a little.

I don’t care for country night driving.

But to live out here is to live in the country, and I think of all the times that I’ll be driving this route, high beams on and radio loud to keep my mind focused and relaxed.

So I take a deep breath and whisper scripture the whole way.

James 1, Romans 8:37-39,

and my all time favorite, 2 Corinthians 12:9- for when I need to remember that his grace is all sufficient.

And I pray like crazy that the reflectors I see in the ditch isn’t a deer.

And it wasn’t.

God is good.

hello friends….

life has sped up quickly and poof! school has started again.

and spending 3 hours a day on the computer with school is…

enough.

So when my time tapping keys lessens,

more posts will be coming!

Thanks for your grace!

Kaye

Three City Things to Love, Three Country Things to Love

if you were to come and ask me today about our new house, here’s what my answers would be:

Yes! God is so good!

Yes! The house is perfect for us!

Yes! The country is a beautiful place to live!

and Yes! I do miss our little city house.

It takes time to get used to things.

And though 6 months seems like a long time,

17 years of my life (aka all my life until 6 months ago) centered around this 1500 sq foot home base.

So what do I miss about it?

The charm.

The easy access.

the memories tucked in every corner.

But do you want to know something?

I love this new house of ours.

It is so us…

so me.

While being three minutes from shopping, I am also a window away from farm country.

I can have the beauty of living near a farm, watching corn grown, seeing silos at sunset,

and still be 15 feet from a neighbor, a community of homes with street lights.

Because God is good.

And I couldn’t have written this story myself,

and am thankful each day that He is eternally in charge and trustworthy- so trustworthy.

So I follow,

watching the trees like shadows against a dusk sky, the silos standing guard over the jungles of corn, and the sun peeking through one last time under the incoming clouds,

and the bright white lights from the outlet mall signaling the Mother Ship to land.

:)

May God bless your today friends-

Kaye