Raising Thrifty Kiddos

Update to the previous post about Noah's birthday...

 That's what I thought we were gonna do.  We did end up going out to lunch and getting the stuff for his special dinner.  But there was an unusual turn of events.

 While we were roaming around Kroger collecting the ingredients for chicken cordon bleu, at some point Noah must have done the math in his head.

Happy Birthday Noah!

Who knew that my best, quietest, most easy going, sleep-through-the-night baby would turn out to be my loudest, most outgoing, friendliest and loudest, yes, I said that twice on purpose, teenager?

 Not me.

Life is funny like that.  And wonderful.

New Meaning to Tangled

Have you ever seen this before?

When It Rains It Pours

Do you ever have so many different things going on at the same time that you forget your phone number and neglect to buy soap and toilet paper?

I do.

Right now.

Pruning a Vineyard and Starting Cuttings

Yesterday we took a homeschool field trip to a research farm here in Kentucky.

They invited us to help prune the vines and clean up the vineyard.  What we actually got to do was learn a lot.

This is the farm.  It's really cool.

Dr. Noah's First Patients

Well, today has definitely been a learning experience.  On several fronts.

It started first thing this morning.  Elijah went dashing out the door to run the trash to the road, since he forgot last night.  He noticed a chicken laying by the coop door, panting.  That's not good, especially since everybody else was tucked safely inside.  Something was wrong since she missed coming into the coop the night before.  Something chickens don't do.

Frankenbirds

 
Hey, I think I finally got this figured out!

We've been wondering where these kind of freakish chickens come from.  They're certainly not selected by nature, and if they were, they wouldn't survive long enough to make more.  They're the kind of chickens that most Americans are used to eating.  They're the standard rotisserie chicken.  They're what restaurants use.  They are what we buy in the grocery store.

 But what exactly are they?

A Good Weekend

I've always wanted to do a corny family portrait like this.  You know, instead of holding violins...  This one just sortof happened spontaneously.  Too bad Benjamin was taking a nap and I was taking the picture.  Don't they all look so friendly???

Anyways, here's how it all panned out.

Building Raised Beds

A few friends have asked me about this lately.  I know it's really popular to build your own raised bed gardens and there's lots of websites to show you how.  I just wanted to add to that by saying that if you don't have any woodworking experience and you don't even own a saw, you can STILL build yourself some of these and have a nice little garden going this Spring.

Here in Kentucky, the weather is nice but the soil is not.  Our land consists of boulders mixed with rocks and boulders.  Covered lightly with a deceiving layer of topsoil that makes you think you might actually be able to dig a hole.  But don't kid yourself.  You will hit a rock... and then another.  Never fear... Raised beds are here!

And the Winner Is....

Congratulations, Tiff, You're the Lucky Winner!!

And here's the lucky comment, chosen by Benjamin through a random number system...

"---'just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, he became a butterfly' posted on my fridge.     This when helps when I'm feeling low."

Isn't that cute?

Just email me your address and I'll  pop your necklace in the mail ASAP.  (vaughns4jesus@yahoo.com)

Yippee!

Also, thank you all for participating and leaving comments.  I'm not sure why but I'm kindof obsessed with getting comments so you really made my day.  : )

Seedlings, Schooling, Potatoes & Prizes

After only one week, these babies are reaching for the light.

Here's my rig-jig operation.  So far... Hey, it works!

Help From the Blogosphere

Yes, God does work in mysterious ways.  He speaks that way, too.

I've heard him in his Word.  In a song.  In a sermon.  On a billboard....

Who knew that He spoke in blogs?

Here I am wondering, in the back of my mind, which vacuum I should buy.  Mine bit the dust several weeks ago and we've been using our tiny camper vacuum for our huge amount of very dirty floors and it's getting just a bit comical.  At least for me, since Jacob is the one who vacuums around here.  He finally said that enough is enough, we need a new vacuum.

My Little Garden Buddy

Peas are the perfect seeds for little hands to plant.

What a great little helper! 

Family Haircuts... How to Cut a Little Boy's Hair

I just finished eight haircuts this afternoon.  Saved my family at least 120 bucks!  Hoo-ah.

(It's a military term for "Oh Yeah, I just did something really cool!" ....And other things.)

 
Today is the dreaded haircut Saturday that I put off for more weeks than I should.  I don't hate cutting hair that much, there's just lots of other things I'd rather be doing.

The boys were looking a little shaggy.  The Captain was looking like Jack Frost.

 Now they are all spiffy again.  : )

Why I Like Teenagers

Some Bad Hair Days Are Unrelated to Hair

What is up with this?  Yep, it's a bad hair day here at the big happy nest.  I'm not sure how everyone else's hair styling is going upstairs, but mine is a disaster.  I've re-fixed it so many times that it is in a total state of frizz and beyond repair.  It doesn't help that it is raining, either.

 Well, maybe that will help.

100 Posts, First Giveaway!

When I started this little blog a few months ago, I was planning on keeping it a secret.  It was going to just be my little cyber journal, where I keep my thoughts and pictures semi-organized.  But it has grown into something else.  It's like a little community.  And all of YOU make this so much more fun!

So, In honor of the 100th post,

 and to show you guys how much I appreciate you,

I'd like to give away one of my handmade necklaces from my Etsy shop.

It's based on Psalm 1. 

Old Man Winter's Grand Finale

Yesterday morning we woke up to this beautiful surprise.  Two days ago we were wearing shorts.  Weird stuff.  But I am now free to enjoy winter, since I know that it's on its last leg.

Amazing Sunrise...  this is not photo shopped.

Starting Seeds... A Happy Surprise

Hello there, little thing.
 

In Defense of Contentment

Hey Jen,
I had a question for ya.  What do you think of Pinterest?  I've noticed that you're not joining and I wondered why not.
--An Avid Pinner

OK, good question.  I'm glad you asked.

First off, I'll tell you that Pinterest is very cool.  Every time someone has introduced me to it and I've browsed it for a few minutes I absolutely Loved it.  Like tiramisu.

Something Beautiful and Sweet

I just found this artist on Etsy... You can check out her shop here.


I just love this.

12 Random Things... Did You Know?

That you can balance a broom.  But only at certain times of the year.

A Dog and Her Boy

Noah and Annabelle.  ♡