What's been going on?

• cleaning
• laundry (now that we have a new dryer I can get all caught up from all this rain!)
• playing catch with June
• drinking herbal tea and fighting off a miserable cold the last two days
• thinking about baby things
• reading
• started writing the book I've always wanted to write
• coming up with ways to get important papers and documents organized
• working on reorganizing all my favorite recipes
• our trout fish for the pond came
• trying new recipes like :whole wheat pita-pockets with hummus and veggies *yum!* and pork/pineapple kebobs
• enjoying peaks of sunshine today after a long stretch of rain
• we have hens sitting on eggs

That's pretty much all that has been going on in the last few days. Hope you all are having a great day! God bless!

P.S.

Thank you Sis, for the link. I liked the trackers and it was waaayyy easier than when I was trying to add one earlier. You're so *smat* lol. Love you!

BABY!!!!!!!

Today was the ultrasound (it was moved a day due to a more urgent situation). I have to confess: up until today I was in a sort of denial. I was happy about the baby, of course. But having two consecutive pregnancies end in miscarriage, I was a bit skeptical. In a way, it didn't seem completely for real, if I'm making any sense. Obviously I felt pregnant, my tummy was growing, morning sickness, the whole nine yards. But the whole time, I was wondering; Is it for real this time? Is the baby actually ok? Is there really a heartbeat? I hadn't realized how much I was worrying about this until Darling and I were in the waiting room. I had the butterflies so bad I could have thrown up, and also wanted to cry-I didn't realize I was so scared. We got called in. Here we go, I thought, It's going to happen all over again, isn't it? Glad I remembered to put on my waterproof mascara, I was thinking. (I know, crazy, right?)
 So when that screen came on, and I saw that baby, our baby, I thought, Ok, this is a first, a bigger baby, good so far. Then our little love moved and wiggled around, and I heard that heartbeat, a strong, steady heartbeat. It was like a huge wave of relief and excitement came over me. Our baby IS ok, it's going to be ok! It was so beautiful to see him/her, and hear the heartbeat, tears started running down my face, I just couldn't help it!
     So now, introducing our baby...

I think the 3D is so neat! And, If you look close, looks like our little one might be a boy! Although it is too early to say for sure, but time will tell. Anyway, the big thing is that Little Love is healthy!!!!!!

Oklahoma

While I type this, I am sitting in the safety of my home, knowing my loved ones are safe. In Oklahoma, parents watched helplessly in horror as the hurricane ruthlessly made its way toward schools, day cares, and their homes, some still not knowing if their children are alive. Tonight, I also had a hot meal. In Oklahoma, people are sifting through what's left of their homes, wondering when they will have their next meal, how they will feed their children. I have a warm, dry bed to sleep in tonight. Some of these folks don't even have a car left to sleep in. I have clean clothes to wear tomorrow. They have the clothes on their backs. I get to see my husband come home from work, and give me a kiss. Some husbands and wives are now left behind, never to hold each other through this terrible time, or the good times to come-and don't have any photos left of their true loves to carry with them. Parents lost children. Our child is safely tucked away, growing inside me. As I sit here, I feel a little guilty. Because some of these people have lost EVERYTHING, and I am so blessed. There are trailer trucks headed out with supplies, food, water. The Red Cross is in action. Fellow Americans are wrapping victims in blankets, and offering comfort. Those of us at home can help too. We can pray, donate funds, supplies and blood.
     This terrible ordeal has reminded me to keep in touch with family. To thank the Lord for each day He gives me with Darling, for our home, baby, food, clothing, vehicles and animals... How about you?

10 Weeks

Little feet at ten weeks.
 
                                                   
                                       (Photo courtesy of Google Images)
8 Days until ultrasound and counting! Can't wait to see our little love!!

~Thinking about:~
*Finding some clothes that fit! (besides Darlings shirts lol)
*Crib sheets
*Baby names
*Oranges

Darling is so sweet, on Mother's Day he brought me a gallon of orange juice and some Tim-bits from Tim Horton's *yum!*

Craving

Ok, I think it is official. I have a craving...oranges and orange juice! Gotta get some when I get groceries!!!

I never had to have it before, it was ok, but not essential. A week from this coming Tuesday we hope to see the little heartbeat of our angel, and should be able to make out the little arms and legs too.
Awwah, soooo cute! Doesn't that just make you want to yawn? Lol.

Make your own egg scrubby

For those of us with chickens, we sometimes have to wash the eggs*. For spots that were hard to get off, I used to use a steel wool. But it was really too harsh to use on the egg shells, and a couple of times I broke one. So today, I've made an egg scrubby that is much gentler on the eggs, and still gets the job done. To make a scrubby you will need:

1. an empty orange bag (the plastic mesh kind)
2. scissors

First, cut the label off the bottom of the bag.

Then, tie a knot in the bottom. This will allow you to put the scrubby on like a mitt.

Trim the opening of the scrubby to the size you like, as the bags are kind of long. And that's it, you now have a nice, new scrubby to wash your "home raised" eggs, and you recycled something instead of throwing it in the garbage!

*When washing eggs, you only want to wash the ones that really need it, because eggs have a natural oil coating that keeps bacteria out of the egg. When you wash the eggs, it removes this protective coating, making them more susceptible to contamination.

News...

 9 weeks pregnant!!!!!
(photo courtesy of google images)

Bathroom: As good as finished (about time!)

I'm going to re-post the old pictures of the bathroom before each new one to refresh you memories (it's been awhile!)...                        
Remember the shower? How cluttered it was with bottles of shampoo and body wash?

Introducing....the shower caddy! I bought this at Walmart for $12.00. The suction cups came with it, they keep the caddy from sliding back and forth when removing bottles of shampoo. Plenty of room for our shower items, and we each have a hook for our "poofs". No more clutter and mess, or knocking bottles off the shelves and tripping on them! You might notice, I placed the caddy on the opposite side of the shower from the shower head. Alejandra does this also, to avoid excess splashing. I did it more out of necessity because we also have a removable shower head which would create too much clutter for easy use.

I bought this hook for less than $1.00 and Darling screwed it in for me. It is rugged enough to hold the caddy with no wobbling.

This is the uncluttered shower...(and soap scum lol I need to scrub my shower!)

The sink, and shelf cluttered and in disarray. Mess like this clutters my mind and stresses me out.

*Sigh*, that's better.

Underneath the sink was a disaster! It was hard to find anything, and there was stuff in there I didn't even need, or knew I had.

I bought four containers with nice, clicking lids at Walmart for .97 cents each! I broke the items up in 5 categories:

      1 Nail Care

2 Travel 

3 Refills 

   4 Medical

          5 Feminine care    

 The pink bag is all my make up, about 2/3rds full.

 I took a screw and screwed it in far enough for it to hold my flat iron, but not poke through the cabinet door. Now it is coiled up and out of the way. I don't have to shuffle it around in the cabinet to find what I want. Everything is neat, and in view, nothing is buried.

I couldn't find an old picture of in behind the mirror, but this is what it looks like now that I've organized it.

 I kept the Ibuprofen out because that is most likely to be used than the other medical supplies and is in easy access on the top shelf. The other items are my make up remover, facial soap and lotion, and deodorant.

 The bottom shelf is Darling's things, shaving cream, after shave, etc.

 This is a little container is magnetic, I got it in the school supplies section for lockers. I keep the q-tips in it, again, out of the way, yet easy to get at.

The towel cabinet was quite cluttered as well, I wish I had a picture of it, but now everything is neat...

 A close up. I went through all the items in the bathroom and found several that went in the trash, and some in the "give away" pile.

 A look at all my hair products, perfumes and I have two hair brushes.

A look at it before painting...

And after...

Ta-Da! That's all folks! Hope you enjoyed this, and maybe got some ideas or inspiration! 

Farm Fish

Darling and I got a permit to have Brook Trout in our pond. We are pretty excited.

 June, going for a swim.

 This is the large pond where the trout will be.

 Wild flower on the pond path. Anyone know what it is??

 This is the little spring Darling dug out with the tractor, the pvc pipe drains water out.

 And because it is a spring, it never gets empty.

 The set up is going to work as an aerator for the trout, Darling will use a longer pipe, this was just a test run.

The fish should be here some time this weekend, I can't wait! I'm hoping the dog doesn't kill them all (he,he).

A Day to Restore Order

Today, I am going to restore order to our home. It is my second day off in a row, and the better part of yesterday was spent getting groceries and running errands.
  A quiet start today. Got up at 4:15 to make Darling's lunch for work. Then I made some coffee and sat out on the porch.

The sunlight starting  on one side 

The moon still in view on the other side

                       Sunny the steer going over to check out the selenium salt lick, June right beside him.

                               My heifer Gertty

                           June, chilling out

                         Mountains in the early morning

Hearing...

• An assortment of birds greeting the day with their beautiful songs so sweet
• Turkeys drumming and gobbling in the distance
• Hunters, imitating owl calls 
• Slurping pigs, enjoying their breakfast in the barn
• The roosters crowing, trying to "out-crow" each other

The air smells so fresh and good.
   
Today's to-do list:

• Fold and put away laundry
• Wash and hang out another load
• Pick up clutter
• Sweep the floors
• Dust
• Vacuum the carpet
• Give June a much needed bath
• Work on home office/guest room
• Start supper
• Reorganize the pantry
• Wipe down fridge shelves
• Write a letter
• Pay some bills

Tonight's supper:

• Beef rump roast
• mashed potatoes 
• gravy
• steamed broccoli
• iced tea
• cherry cheese cake for desert *yum* lol

Waiting for my purple lilac trees to blossom! I love lilacs, they smell soooo good!

Attention all Ladies!

Okay, this might seem a little weird, but I'd like to talk a little about women's lingerie, bras in particular. Only because I think it is very important and I'm speaking from a first hand experience. Yesterday I went to a lingerie store and got sized in order to find a perfectly fitting bra. Guess what? I thought I knew my size. I always thought that bras were just hard to shop for, as I rarely ever found one that I was perfectly happy with, or fit really well. So, I found out that I had been shopping for the wrong size for years! I never would have thought that I am the size that I discovered I really am, after all, bras do tend to look bigger on the rack than they actually are. So ladies, I beg you, get sized-it could change a part of you life! Don't worry about being immodest in front of a sales woman, you can be measured over a thin shirt, such as a t-shirt or tank top. So far, I have only found my size at Victoria's Secret, but will do some more searching. But, I will tell you, I'm all done shopping for bras at Walmart. Because, first of all, they don't carry my size (at least not at the nearest store) and, they don't last but for a couple of months. Like shoes, I'm not wasting my money on "Walmart fall aparts". I understand that most of us are strapped financially in this hard economical time, but as one of my girl friends put it "I consider bras to be a good investment. Why buy something that you are going to have to replace in three months? The money you spend on cheap ones in a year, could buy four good ones that will last for a few years."  Victoria's Secret is expensive, but it is so worth it. The bra I got yesterday was $52. But my friend Tara gave me a rewards card that she wasn't going to use and it took $10 off my purchase.  

                                          

Take away points:

• Get measured!
• Buy only good quality bras
• Use a lingerie bag when laundering your bars for long lasting wear
• Air dry to retain elasticity
• Remember, it's an investment
• Get measured
• Feel good that you've found your perfect size!