Home School

How much more fun is school when you can sit outside under a big shady tree and watch the kittens play? We have had hot temperatures here for the last few days. Not as hot as it is at Jessica’s but hot for us, anyway. I went out early this morning in the garden to work. Hoping to get it finished before it got too hot. I left Julie and Grace inside doing dishes and other inside chores. I much gather work outside than in, even if it is hot. Anyway, I got the garden finished weeding, replanted some tomato plants, planted some beans and some corn. Everything is in the ground now so we’ll see how it does.

I thought you all might enjoy seeing how big the baby geese are. They are almost as big as their parents. Geese are definitely good parents. They are very watchful and protective-always together.

We have piano practice this afternoon so I better get busy. We have another load of clothes to put on the line before we leave and a folded basket to put away. Enjoy your day and God bless.

May 31, 2011 5

Cherries

Look at these beautiful cherries. David’s mother has 2 of these cherries trees in her yard. She graciously gave them to us. Thank you, Donna. We went down Friday morning as Hubby was having difficulties with his computer too. While Dave and Hubby worked on the computer, Jess and I with the kids went to pick cherries. We picked 3 gal. and didn’t even hardly take a step.

Look at how the limbs are just bowed down to the ground. You could just stand and pick. No tree or ladder climbing. I really liked that.

We ended up staying Friday night and most of the day Saturday getting Hubby’s computer up and going. When we came home I put the cherries in our steamer juicer. We got 5 1/2 qts of juice.

Sunday morning just before we left to go to church, Jess calls and says Dave needs Hubby’s help. Their shower drain has come loose and flooded under the house and the heat pump was not working. This of course means no air conditioner and for a pregnant woman that was bad. It is really hot where they live with lots of humidity. Well, we changed clothes and headed down to help Dave. While the men went to Lowes, the girls and I went to pick more cherries. We got 2 1/2 gal. I have one batch in the steamer juicer now. I think I will make jelly from some of the juice and then just can the rest. It is very good. We had fresh cherry juice with our breakfast this morning. The Lord is so good to provide us with treats like that.

Well, I have clothes to go on the line and much to do today. Enjoy your day and God bless.

May 30, 2011 4

Wild Roses

Remember the rose bush up by the fence that had not bloomed yet. Well, this is it. It is full of tiny white bloom. Very pretty.

I thought I would share with you all how my plants look. This is what the cucumbers looked like before we transplanted them.

This is what they look like now and this is one of the better looking ones. Oh well, live and learn. I am going today to a local greenhouse and hopefully get some cucumber plants. Yesterday, after school, the girls and I worked on weeded some of our flower beds. We planted some cosmos seed, some columbine and some seeds that just said “cut flowers”. It is a little late getting the seeds in the ground but I think they will still have time to make flowers.

Temperature here is beautiful. 70 with sunshine and a good steady wind. I have clothes ready for the line and another load to wash. Enjoy your day and God bless.

May 26, 2011 3

Irises

Here is a picture of our irises that are blooming in the green swing area. These were given to me several years ago by a good friend who attends our Friday Ladies Study. Thanks again, Barbara. I just love their purple color.

Yesterday, I made buttermilk. I have attempted several times to make cottage cheese but I keep doing something wrong. So I decided yesterday to change gears a little and try making buttermilk. It turned out great. It tastes a lot like kefir. Here’s what I did. I used almost a qt. of our raw milk. I did not skim off the cream. I then added 1/4 cup of whole milk buttermilk I had purchased from the store. I shook it up and sit it out on the counter for about 20 hrs. I was told there is no set time for how long to leave it out. It all depends on the temperature of your house. This same rule applies to kefir. The warmer the temperature the quicker it will set. It is ready when you turn the jar over and it all leaves the side of the jar in one clump. Shake the jar for about 5 min and put in the refridgerator to chill. I am very happy with the results and definitely will be making more.

This is a picture I never get tired of seeing. I LOVE hanging my clothes on the line. I LOVE seeing them hanging on the line and I LOVE smelling them after they have dried hanging on the line. To me, drying my clothes on the line is one of the luxuries of being a stay at home wife and mother.

I hope you all enjoy your day and God bless.

May 25, 2011 3

Mr. Frog

Check out the size of this frog. He is huge! He was soaking up the sun yesterday afternoon in front of our car when we were leaving for piano practice. We, of course, could not resist taking a picture of him.

Yesterday was a nice day. Temperatures were in the lower 70’s with sunshine. My plants looks (maybe) just a little better but I do not think they will make it. The tomatoes look strong but the cucumbers look the worst. The squash may be okay-not sure yet. Lesson well learned. I suppose it was too hot when I transplanted them. Maybe if we had waited until the sun went down to transplant them, it would have made a difference. Not sure.

We had a nice visit with the Horn’s yesterday. We ate pizza and a strawberry crisp she had made from her fresh strawberries. It was delicious. We walked around her yard looking at all her flowers that were up. Her chicks and ducks. Everything. I love doing that. Just walking around with her looking and talking. I am so thankful she is my friend.

We hope to finish science this weekend. We are on our last definitions. Today looks to be nice. The sun is shining. The garden is still too wet to work in but we have plenty of other things to do. Enjoy your day and God bless.

May 24, 2011 4

Trout Fest

Remember a similar picture from last year. Same little girl perched on the drainpipe. Obviously she really likes the spot.

Now its brothers turn to sit for a while. We really had a nice day with about 90 people showing up all total. After we came home from the fishing we worked in the upper garden. Hubby tilled, and the girls and I set out the plants. They looked great. But then they wilted badly. We watered them when we planted them, again the next morning and again yesterday evening before we went to church. Last night the Lord watered them for us so we are hoping they look better now. I haven’t went up to the garden yet to check on them. If they do not perk up, I am afraid they will not survive. We’ll just have to wait and see.

We plan on going over to the Horns today for lunch and some play time then on to piano practice. I don’t think I told you all but we have ducklings now-12 of them. They are very shy and it is hard to get a picture of them. Mama duck keeps them hid most of the time. I’ll keep trying though.

Time for us to get busy. I have a load of clothes to hang out on the line and several more to get done. Enjoy your day and God bless.

May 23, 2011 5

Free At Last

Our chicks. Look how big they are getting. Today we finally finished their fenced in area and let them out from their little house. They were very excited and loved pecking in the grass and dirt. They are so much fun to watch. Now when Daniel comes up, he will be able to see them much better.

Today has been nice here. We worked on the fence and made the gate. Then Hubby and I went to get haircuts. A lady from our church cuts our hair. She does it at her home and always has home baked goodies to share with us. It’s like a visit instead of just a hair cut. We always sit around eating a snack, drinking coffee and talking after our hair is cut.

Tomorrow is our church’s trout fest day. Hopefully I will get some good pictures to share with you all. Maybe, after we get back, our garden will be dry enough to do some work in it. I hope to get the plants in the ground from the greenhouse. They are definitely ready to be planted. Next year, though, I don’t think I will plant any pepper or broccoli seeds. They just did not do well at all. The tomatoes, squash, and cucumbers though are huge.

Enjoy your evening and God bless.

May 20, 2011 3

Little Tomatoes

Aren’t they so cute! These little guys are on the big tomato plant we bought. Makes my mouth water just looking at them. Today has been dry at least. No rain. We were able to hang clothes on the line. YEAH!

We received a wonderful blessing yesterday. Billy gave us a quarter of a beef. You will notice on my canning log a new entry. Thank you, Lord. My computer is out of commission-so sad. Dave says he thinks it is the hard drive. I will be using Hubby’s computer for a while. I miss my computer already. Hopefully, we will be able to get it fixed before too long.

Time to take one of the canners off. Enjoy your day and God bless.

May 19, 2011 4

Fire Pinks

On one of the rare occasions Sunday that the sun actually peeked through the clouds, we happened to be at Smartview Park. These beautiful fire pinks were blooming everywhere.

I thought you all might like them. We are always looking for different types wildflowers and quizzing each other to see if we can remember their names.

Today is STILL overcast and foggy. We had rain most of the day yesterday and more last night. Our temperature this morning was 40 degrees. I finally decided to just go ahead and build a fire. I washed a load of clothes on Monday and hung them up inside. This morning there were still not completely dry. It takes a long time for them to dry if I don’t have a fire and besides the house was a little chilly and damp.

Time for school. Enjoy your day and God bless.

May 18, 2011 4

Rocky Knob Picnic Area

Some pictures of the area we went to Sunday for our picnic. The rocks formations are very pretty.

They have lots of picnic tables set up all around the picnic area. We hope to go back soon when everything is not so wet.

Being wet, however, did not stop adventures. Daniel had a wonderful time playing. Today is wet still. We had lots of rain pass through last night and it is still extremely overcast with fog. A little chilly this morning, mid 40’s. I think the rain makes it feel much chillier. We are working on school today. We are almost finished with history and science. YEAH! Well, I better get busy. Enjoy your day and God bless.

May 17, 2011 3