My Daughter-Quite the Photographer

Our daughter Juli who is mama to this little princess has begun to take classes in photography and I must say she is coming along quite well with it. Go here to see her latest photos of my little princess granddaughter.

The Government Can-Too Funny

Berries, Books, And Busyness

Life is busying up again in our home. The garden is still blessing us with an abundance of "work," berries are still popping up and into mouths and the children are digging deeper into their lessons. Summer is winding down and so is "easy" street!! Our goal is to keep everyone busy throughout the summer months with a little bit of schooling and they have done well but now we are slowly grinding our way back into a full workload of lessons. Schedules printed, books gathered, pencils in hand and off we go!!

Teaching latin is a breeze when someone else does the teaching!!

Big Brother Knocked Out My Tooth

Though, it was only an accident.  But nevertheless, it still hurt and bled because it wasn't all the way ready.  Next time Gregg is sweeping I better make sure I steer clear of the broom handle!!

Written by Janai, age 7 (for 2 weeks already)

Mothers Counting Their Blessings

In this trying economy it is easy to stress out over the mounting bills, rise in grocery prices, gasoline, etc, etc.  And when you have children who are dependent upon you the stresses sometimes can get overwhelming.  I found this poem the other day when thumbing through an old book I found on my bookshelf and it helped tremendously to put things into perspective.  If you are feeling a bit overwhelmed today then I hope these words can bless and strengthen.

My Neighbor and I

by Elsie C. Carroll

My neighbor rides in a shining car,

All dressed in a silken gown,

My neighbor lives in a mansion house, 

The grandest one in town.

My neighbor has flowers and grass and trees,

And pets from every hand,

My neighbor has servants to do her work,

Nor soils her soft, white hand.

And I--I live in a tiny cot,

My dress from cotton was spun,

My hands are hard, and rough, and brown,

My work is never done.

And yet I have seen in my neighbor's eyes,

As they gazed o'er the hedge at me,

A look of envy for my wealth---

The children that play 'round my knee! 

Happy Birthday to Janai

Janai turned 7 years old yesterday, on August 6, 2009.

She is our 11th

child and a sweet blessing and joy to our family. Happy Birthday my

lovely Janai.

God made the world with it's towering trees, majestic mountains

and restless seas,

Then paused and said, "It needs on more thing."

Someone to laugh and dance and sing, to walk in the woods and gather flowers,

to commune with nature in quiet hours.

So God made little girls

With laughing eyes and bouncing curls,

with joyful hearts, and beautiful smiles,

enchanting ways and feminine wiles.

And when He'd completed the task He'd begun,

He was pleased and proud of the job He'd done.

For the world when seen through the a little girl's eyes greatly

resembles paradise.

A "Peachy" Idea

Over the last several weeks around our home we have had lots of yummy

fruit we have been busy preserving. By the time my very last box of fruit was

brought to me I was plain tuckered out from all canning so I came up with an

idea for my peaches that was EVER so easy. I simply halved them, pitted them,

laid them skin side up on wax paper on a cookie sheet and froze them. After

they froze all the way I stuck them in zip lock bags and back into the freezer

they went. I'll answer your questions even before you ask. No, they did not

turn brown at all. And no, I didn't even bother to peel them. We have used

them in smoothies already and they are yummy. The kids take about

2 cups milk, 4 peach halves, and a banana and blend in the blender. Seriously

tastes like peach ice cream.

This picture was taken before I froze them and they still look just this.

Every peach kept their color. I completely expected them to turn but none of

them did.

Oh and lets not forget about the tons of zucchini I have gotten from our garden.

So far I have frozen 20 batches of bread. Which will come in handy when we start

back school full time. My kids love having it for breakfast so all I have to do is pull

from the freezer making breakfast a breeze. They love to smear a chunk of it with butter.