Homested happenings

There has not been a lot going on this last week.  We have been busy, but with what I could not tell you.  Josh is off working for the next couple of weeks and the milking has been turned over to me, baahaaahhaaa!  The very first time I milked her I cut my arm on the gate, she got mad and did a flip knocked the panel over on me and fell on me, and before I left the barn Elizabeth's heifer head butted me.  Then tonight I fell face forward in the front lot of the barn.  Needless to say I am a little sore right now!!!  

I was able to visit a very sweet friend this afternoon.  It is always a treat for me to be able to visit with other like minded women.  It is nice to just be able to sit down and talk.  I always feel so much better when I leave from her lovely home.
 I think hospitality is a dead art these days.  We never seem to be able to have time to go visit someone or even let them come see us.  Social media has taken over.  A good old fashion sit down face to face is good for the spirit, body and mind.

Here are few pics from this week:

 

This is a picture of Cora that I posted last week in my dress when I was her age.

 This is a picture of myself at the same age as Cora.

 

J.C loves his little sister and loves to help me give her a bath.

Sweet slobbery smiles is what I love!

We had a 4-H craft workshop this week and made lots of goodies to take.

Last week Cora wore my dress this week she wore her big sisters dress.

I was trying to learn how to use a sling that was given to me as a gift, Cora and I went and watered the plants together several times, I still have to work on getting her situated just right.  I liked to have dumped her out once.

 

J.C's newest project!  A gift from a great aunt.

Nothing like the smell of fresh sheets off of the line!

Flowers doing well and me playing with the camera.

I love fresh figs and so do the birds!  

 

Fresh raw milk.  It does a body good!

A new experiment!  I found a recipe for a cleaner that sounded very good.  It is vinegar with orange and lemon peeling in it.  You add a tsp. of salt and the peelings add to vinegar and let steep for 2 weeks then add borax  and dissolve and strain into a spray bottle.  We shall see if it works!

God bless ya,

Tara

Homestead happenings

Well things are trying to get back to normal around here, whatever normal means.  We are through with the garden right now and am about to turn it over and try to get started on a fall one.  The Good Lord has blessed us with so much rain this summer.  We have only had to haul water for the house once and that was my fault, I forgot to turn off a hose after washing the porch off and it busted.  Lets just say my sweet husband was not happy with me!  We did have a batch of storms go through the other night and we lost power for about 6 hours, needless to say it was way to hot in this house!

Little Cora is doing well, she had her 2 month check up this past week and weighs in at 13.10 and 24in.  She is getting so big.  She is not eating that much formula either.  I may break down and start her on some cereal soon and see if that will help her rest at night better.  
Here are a few new pics.  I finally got a new camera and am still learning how to use it, so a couple of the pics are kinda fuzzy.  

 This was a cute outfit some dear friends gave me when she was born.  

We just had to wear one night to VBS this week.

 This little outfit was mine when I was the same age as Cora, in fact I had my 

picture taken in it with a blue blanket behind me.  My mom picked butterbeans

to be able to buy it for me.  It is something I will hold dear to me!

 I love these sweet little fat toes,  She has some of the biggest feet

I bet she is going to be tall.

Well that is all for now,

God bless ya,

Tara

Homestead Happenings

Well our summer is running by fast and it seems we have not gotten much accomplished but having a baby and trying to stay cool.  I am through with the corn and peas, and am now working on tomatoes.  I was able to put up 50 qts of cream corn, and 100 qts of purple hull and zipper peas. Little Cora is doing well and gaining weight.  I thought I would post a few pics.

 This is the 3rd batch of corn we did and they all had about the same amount.  

I know it will taste wonderful this winter, but right now I care nothing to look

at another cob of corn.  All 3 batches were cut off and creamed except for about 10 gallon

bags that I put up some that I left on the cob.  

 This was little Cora last Sunday.  She looks really big in this picture, 

I guess it was how close I was, but she weighs 11.9 lbs now.  

She was not happy with me at the time, just look at her expression on 

her face.

 We love this bouncy seat it is our best friend right now.

 I could just kiss on those sweet cheeks all night long.

Well that is all for right now. 

Gob Bless ya,

Tara

Homestead happenings

Well things have been pretty busy around here lately.  I am still struggling trying to recover, but hopefully I will have my strength back soon.  We had a pretty busy week last week.  My mom came for a visit for a few days.  I was so good to see her.  We have not seen her for over 2 years, and that is a long time.  She got to get lots of little kisses and to feed little Cora.  She was also able to help me put up at least one batch of our corn.  I have done one more since she left and have I know one more to go.  Little Cora is doing well she is now weighing 9.1lbs and she is 20.5 inches long.  Cora has decided she likes the nighttime better than the daytime.  She has gotten them a bit mixed up.  One night this week, she didn't go to sleep till 5:30 in the morning,  that happened to be on a day we had somewhere to be that morning.LOL.  Here are a few pics of our little sweetie.

 This is what little Cora looks like at 3:00a..m..  It's like hello mommy I am ready to play.

 My mom with Cora.  It was bitter sweet when she had to go back home.

I just love this little pic.  I think green might be her color.

God bless ya,

Tara

Well everything here on our little homestead has been very busy.  Our sweet little Cora Mae made her grand entry into this world last Wednesday.  She weighed 8.11 lbs and 19 inches.  Here are a few pics of the great event.  

Elizabeth was with me in the operating room.  I think she liked it, or at least wearing the scrubs part of it. 

 She let us know she was in the world very quickly, they did

not have to worry about her lungs! Like mother like daughter.

 All the nurses couldn't get over how sweet and fat she was.  

You couldn't even see she had eyes for her sweet fat little cheeks.

 How precious to have Elizabeth in with me and for her to get

to see the birth of her sister.

 Look at all that dark hair!  She has a head full!

 Look at that sweet face and chubby little cheeks.  She looks so much like

J.C..  She has his little chin and nose.

 We were getting ready to come home.

I think big brother is very proud.  

In fact J.C. can't stay away from her.  Since we have gotten home, he

goes and looks at her or touches her every time he passes her cradle.

Today is also my birthday, and what better gift could I have ever gotten than this precious little angel.

God bless!

Homestead happenings

We have had a pretty good day today.  It has been a busy one, but a good one.  I received lots of encouragement from a dear sweet friend this morning.  It is always nice to know that you are not alone  and that there other ladies out there that struggle with the same issues that you do.  I believe that the Good Lord has sent her to me for blessings and encouragement.

 Jeff and the boys did a little cow work this afternoon and wormed a few momma's and moved them to the big pasture. They also had several little jobs at the house that needed some attention.  Dear hubby will be off work next week and I have a list a mile long for him HA< HA:  Everything here is so pretty and green right now.  We have been blessed with a lot of rain.  This time last year we were already about to blow away.  We are even still having nights in the 30's and 40's sometimes.  The garden is slowly coming along.  We got some tomatoes and peppers out, but not all of them.  JC enjoyed his afternoon of riding little Checkers around.  

Little checkers!

 In baby news I am still struggling with my sugar levels, but i am determined to keep it at bay.  I am living off of salads these days.  In fact for supper tonight I had some fresh butter crunch lettuce and green onions from the garden.  I got to finish the bumper pads and the skirt for the cradle today and next I am going to make a couple of new sheets and a blanket for it this week.  I happen to find some cute material in my stash and am going to use it.  It is not baby material, but it will work and plus I didn't have to buy it!!!!  Then I will work on the crib stuff. Maybe I can post some good everyday pics soon.  I still have not gotten a new camera yet.

God bless,
Tara

We have been pretty busy around here this last week.  The circus came to town last week and the kidos and I got to go.  We had a pretty good time.  We had a pretty good turn out considering out little town.  

In farm news, the baby chickens have finally been moved out of the house and down to the brooder box.  Now to get the chicken tractor fixed so they can go in there when they get a little bigger.  All of our cool season things are growing and doing well.  Our potatoes are finally popping out of the ground.  Dear hubby buried them so deep I am surprised that any of them have come up.  He got a new plow that had hiller disks on it and was trying to learn how to use it.  The corn is up and looks like we won't have to drop much.  Most of all of it came up.  I told dear hubby someone else was going to have to help him reseed the spots that didn't come up, I was on strike!  We had to plant the beans twice, but I noticed this morning they are trying to finally come up.  We have been fighting the crows and the weather with them.  We are expecting a frost Saturday morning, so  I am glad that I have not gotten my tomatoes and peppers out yet.  This should be the last frost of the year and we can get them out next week before the next round of rain.

In baby news, everything seems to be going well enough.  I am fighting my sugar right now, and that has been very tiring.  It is sapping the strength out of me, but I keep telling myself that this is only for a season and the new little one will be here before I know it.  I have got to get on the ball and get started sewing her bedding, I finally got the material the other day and now to find the energy and time to do it.  I also have kitchen curtains waiting to be sewn.   If any one wants to come on over and help one day you are more than welcome too.  

The kidos broke my camera this week and now I will have to get one pretty quick.  Here are a few pics of last week at the circus.  
Until next time
God Bless ya,
Tara

An elephant ride is always a must and the circus!

Best part of the show.

 

http://www.oursimplefarm.com/

 I encourage you to go over and visit this blog  and see what this challenge is all about.  We have been trying to do this with our garden for several years, but the weather has not cooperated very well with us the last couple of years.  Last year was really hard for  us money wise and our food and household supplies were lets just say a challenge.  I want to encourage you to join me in this challenge, I am determined that this is going to be a better year for us.  I would love to be able to just go to the store once a month for the bare essentials.  Besides not going very often, there will be health benefits to a more whole foods diet.  I don't think the Good Lord intended for us to eat a lot of what is being put in our food.  All we have to do is look around us and see all the sickness we have.  I will try to post my progress along the way and maybe we can all benefit from this challenge.

God Bless ya,
Tara

Well we are now back on line Yaa--hoooo!  It is beginning to get a little busy around here.  The new baby will be here in about 8 weeks and I am no where ready for her yet.  In farm news, we have all the cool stuff planted and just waiting another week or so to get out the tomatoes and peppers.  The baby is going to be here right in the middle of canning season.  I need everyone's prayers to see me through it.  JC got his 4-H baby chickens in last week and currently they are residing in the house with us.  I don't here them during the day, but boy at night you can.  Most women would kill over having a big tub of chickens in her home, but not I it just goes with having farm kids.

JC scrubbing the tub getting it ready for his chicks.

The new chicks!

These are some carrots we found in the garden when we turned the cows out into it.

 

This is our 4-H coffee that was held to recognize journal winners.  Josh won district also.  

The journals are so much work, but they are worth it. 

4-H robotics class.  JC came home and tried to take everything

apart to get motors to try and make his own robots.

A trip to the science museum on a cold wet day!

 The gang!

 God bless ya,

Tara 

It is a beautiful day here.  We received about an 1 1/2 inches of rain this past Sunday and now it is a beautiful blue bird day.  We have been busy working on getting everything ready to plant.  Hopefully this week we will be able to get quiet a few things done.  My list keeps getting longer and longer.  We have baby chickens coming at the end of the month and we still have to get everything ready  for them.  The pigs are growing well.  We have one that is beating the rest off and it is a lot bigger than the other ones and we may go ahead and take him to get slaughtered and so the other ones can try and catch up.  I think we will go ahead and get some more piglets and get them started. 

In baby news, everything seems to be going well and I now have more weeks behind me than in front.  I need to start getting things together.  It has been a long time since there was a baby in our home, and I am going to have to get  a little bit of everything. 

Hopefully as soon as I get our internet situated I can post some pictures.
Untill next time,
God Bless,
Tara