This Re-Mix Is Amazing!

I heard this on the radio three times over the last month or so, and I couldn't believe my ears! This is great! I just "YouTubed" it this morning, the video isn't bad either. If you love county music, you've got to take a listen! I must admit, I don't know some of the most recent artists, as I favor the sound of the older stuff (all the way back to Hank Williams Sr) but they are still good!

And just because, I thought I'd add in a song I haven't heard in a long while:

Have a great Monday!

Little Forever

My boys are 3 and almost 2. Lots of folks would say "they are so young" and "they're just getting started" and things like that. And for the most part, yes, I would agree with them. When I think of the long and full life I hope they each get to experience, yes, this is the beginning and so much lies ahead. But, then there are moments. Those moments that make your heart swell and you wish things would remain as they are. Playing tickle monster, building a snowman, reading the favorite stories over and over. Or just cuddling them in the silence of the evening, breathing in the smell of their freshly washed hair. Hanging their tiny clothes out on the line to blow dry in the Spring breeze. The expressions of pure delight and amusement as they discover a 'new' creeping crawling thing and joyously show you in their grubby, little dimpled hands, smiling ear to ear.
     When I think of how much they have grown since they were born, it seems as though it has been at a dizzying pace. If you've read much on my blog, you probably have heard me talk a little about my thoughts of "time".
     I find "father time" a rather rude character. He just keeps on racing by, completely ignoring the fact that you don't want to travel at such a pace. He flits on through, dragging you with him whether you want him to, or not. He changes everything, nothing remains as it once was. One moment you are making boats out of bark, sticks and leaves after a big Summer rain and sailing them across large puddles. The next moment, you are standing in front of the mirror, the child inside of you staring back at a stranger. You wonder how you could have changed so much, because sometimes you still feel like that carefree child, playing after the rain.

If you have children, hold on to those moments. Drink them up like Summer sunshine. Really look at your child, listen to them. Hold them, play with them, talk to them. Never forget what it was like to be a child, and seek to make precious memories for your children to remember, simply by being present in their lives. And for heaven's sake, put down the stupid electronics. I am not anti-technology, but if our use of it started to become addictive, leaving life to go by with empty days and empty hearts, it would go. We have, and I have, taken internet breaks in the past, and will do so whenever necessary to come back to this fleeting thing called life, and partake of it mind,body and soul.
     We were having supper at my parent's house this past Sunday. My mother and husband were trying to get little Jack to eat his spaghetti. "So you will get big" they said. Jack replied: "I don't want to get big, I want to be little forever." Even though I knew he said that because he didn't want to eat, but to be excused from the table, I couldn't help but feel a lump in my throat and my eyes tear up. And on the night before his third birthday I said "you are going to be three tomorrow!" Jack said "I don't want to be three, I want to be two."

Well, Jack, I wish you could be little forever too. 💙

Freezer Meals: Chicken Nuggets

Buried Alive!

View out back

 The tip of the seat on the tractor, all that's left!

 There is a car under there...

 See the antenna??!!

 The junk car...

 We had quite a drift on the roof!

 Watching Daddy.

 Daddy's "Kikup".

 After my Dad plowed our driveway, (after I took this photo) we have the equivalent of a cow path for a driveway, the banks on either side are up to my shoulders!

Hope you were able to dig out! I spent the better part of the day yesterday in the kitchen. I made bread, brownies and 10lbs of chicken nuggets!
     Upcoming videos: Freezer meals and my bill paying system. Stay tuned!

"While the Earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, Summer and Winter, day and night shall not cease." Gen.8:22   Spring WILL come!

Sap Heads

 Pictured above is a new thin-walled fiberglass sap spout. It does less damage to the tree when tapped and the hole in the tree heals more quickly than when previous models are used.

 A collar, tee, and spout.

 One of the sap heads, making drops.

 Another sap head, also making drops.

 Both sap heads, discussing sap stuff.

 Rolls of tubing, ready to be made into drops.

 Getting ready to put out some tubing.

 A snowshoeing sap head.

 An icicle, in the calm before the storm.

My kitchen has become taken over in sap supplies. When you are married to a sap head, this is just an inevitable part of late Winter. One more reason I can't wait 'till Spring! Lol!

    I hope you are hunkered down and nice and toasty in this storm. Keep safe! Spring WILL come, eventually.

School With Daddy

Little Boy loves to push the stool over to the vent in the floor where the forced hot air comes through, it is his favorite place to sit!

Big Boy fell asleep with Mama's backpack on, so cute!

We are all sick with a cold now. Darling took some time off, as working outdoors in the freezing cold when you have chills is not fun. Big Boy wanted to do school, so he traced A's and matched pictures. He also colored his Bible story picture while Daddy read the corresponding Bible story.

 Then he did some name practice with a laminated sheet that Gran-Gran made him. It is one of his favorite "school" things to do!

Later on, Darlin and I played Cribbage. I've only played twice before (both times with him) and that was a few years ago! I had to learn the rules all over again! We couldn't play too long,the boys were up and Little Boy was determined to take our cards and climb on the table. But it was still fun. It reminded me of the "old times" when we would make tea and read gardening and farming books together back when we only had a dog! Boy those days were too quiet!

Hope you are enjoying all this snow. You would think it was Winter in Maine or something!

Ain't No Fun Bein' Sick

I've gotten a nasty cold, practically overnight. No fun taking care of littles while Daddy is working. It is times like these I wish I were a kid again, I miss just being able to lay on the couch all day, watching TV, drinking hot tea ( that was brought to me, by the way!) and not worrying about a thing except getting better. That just doesn't work when you're a grown up. The wood stove doesn't fill itself, the animals need tending too, and then there are two toddlers running around that need to be fed, clean, loved on and kept safe. I started to lose my voice last night, right before story time. We made it through "Little Blue Truck's Christmas" and I put them to bed. Big Boy was bummed that we couldn't read more. I felt bad, but at the same time I was just tired and sick and wanted to go to bed myself. I am still having trouble talking today, and that is frustrating. I almost didn't realize how much the boys talk to me, until it became difficult to answer them. They will ask me the same question 5 times before I can squeak out an answer, which really makes me mad sometimes, but it is no use because I can't raise my voice and tell them to be patient for me to answer (now, if that's not the pot calling the kettle black!) If anything, this situation, how trivial it may seem, is forcing me to think about the words I say, and how I say them, before I say them, not after.  

That means not much has been going on here. Just the minimum, really. I was feeling well enough to clean up the livingroom with the boys last night and get some laundry through the machines. I hope today to fold the laundry and wash the dishes. I made a cream chicken/broccoli/rice/cheddar soup in the crockpot yesterday, we will have leftovers for supper tonight. I have English muffin pizzas all made in the freezer, I will just toast those in the oven for lunch. I think I will make scrambled eggs and toast for breakfast.
I hope to feel better soon, so things can get back to normal. And I've been wanting to do more bulk cooking for the freezer.
     I hope you have a good day! God Bless!

Bulk Food Storage

Here is a quick video on how I store our dry goods. Hope it is helpful!