Wednesday, December 25, 2013

A Christmas Love Letter

This really spoke to me today. I pray it will speak to my other Homeschooling friends too. May GOD bless you this CHRISTmas.

HE is so good and ever to be praised!

A Christmas Love LetterDecember 25, 2013
I see you sitting there tired, worn out, and empty. Another year of homeschooling has used you up. You feel helpless like a baby. That's OK. I know all about being a baby. I was born one for you many years ago. I know the ache you feel to be held and loved, and that is why I came. I knew you would be sitting there in the future, praying and asking me to hold you, and I am, dear one. Let me give you a special Christmas gift of love as I breathe new life into the center of your soul.




Do you know that I think of you every moment of every day? I watch you patiently homeschool the children I gave you, and I know how badly you feel when you fail and lose your temper. I forgive you, my child, just as you forgive your children when they make a mistake. "It's OK. We'll try again," you say to them, and I'm telling you the same thing. I'm so proud of you and how you've followed me when I asked you to teach your children about me at home. Your sacrifice says that you love me. I know all about that, too. I left everything that was mine when I came from heaven. I know how you feel when the Father asks so much of you.

Look at me, my child. You may feel beat up, but do you know that you are still beautiful? I see that smile. Yes, you're still as beautiful as the day I created you. I love who you are, and I'm whispering your name. Can you hear me? Remember, my child, this is not your home. You really belong here with me in heaven, but I want you where you are now to love this family I gave you. Don't give up. I want you to trust me. I won't let you down. Every promise I've made is true, and someday, I'm coming back for you. For now, rest in my love, and tonight and even tomorrow when you wake up, I'll be here watching over you. I love you. Merry Christmas.

"Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities" (Hebrews 4:14-15a).
Published by Alpha Omega Publications

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Peace





Peace on EarthDecember 24, 2013
"He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me" (Psalm 55:18a).

The words on the Christmas card and the noise coming from our school room stood in stark contrast to one another. "Peace on Earth," the card read. "My, wouldn't that be nice?" I thought. I guess every homeschooling parent longs for a peaceful home, but hearing the crescendo in my children's voices, I knew that peace wasn't happening today at our house. Still, Christmas was coming, and I could hope, right?




As I thought more about peace on Earth, I wondered what Christ meant in John 14:27 when He said, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." Then, the truth of this verse dawned on me. True peace is not the absence of arguments, violence, or wars. True peace is experiencing God's love instead of His wrath because we receive the forgiveness of sins through the blood of Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit. That means fighting children, threats of war, and even interruptions to homeschooling days need not change to experience the presence of Christ's peace in my life.

Would you like to find peace this Christmas? Don't look for the absence of problems. Look instead to the peacemaker whose birth made the angels of heaven proclaim, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men" (Luke 2:14). Let the power of the Holy Spirit fill you this Christmas and give you the peace of Christ. Shalom! "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).

Published by Alpha Omega Publications.

Merry CHRISTmas!

Amanda
Matthew 6:33

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Summer Harvest 2013 (Thanksgiving from the Farm)


THE LORD has surely blessed us this year on the homestead. The harvest is offically over for 2013 and looking back, I see how richly HE blessed us and how much more we have to learn.

 Presenting the 2013 Piney Woods Homestead Harvest!


Greek oregano drying above the kitchen sink.


Here is the last of the dug taters and broccoli. Our fall broccoli crop did wonderfully. The taters were especially big this year.


Plenty of milk and cream. At least 2 gallons a milk a day since June 2012. VERY blessed indeed!

Butter galore!


More than enough BBQ to last until next fall.


The apples were really big. All the rain we had in early June really helped.


Over 250 ears of corn in the freezer. First time for that much in many a year.


Watermelon galore!


The surprise crop of cherry tomatoes. Courtesy of Angel's wedding.


The strawberry plants multiplied greatly. The spring 2014 harvest should really be a good one.


Plenty of homemade butter milk .


Squash galore!


The blueberry bush in the spring as the berries were starting to form.


Another blueberry bush in the early spring.


The blackberries were the winners this year. The bushes multiplied a lot last year which gave us a lot of blackberries this year.


The chicks were by far the best harvest. An unexpected blessing indeed! With 6 new hens to replace 6 old hens this spring.

Ain't GOD so good!

Amanda
Matthew 6:33


Genesis 1:29-30

King James Version (KJV)
29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
















Sunday, October 27, 2013

1892 Farm Wife Diary


I found this blog about a farm-wife in 1892. She kept a diary of her daily chores and the goings on in her life.

A simple GOD fearing woman whose concern for the souls of her family are clearly shown.



I  am always looking to learn from the past and this was an interesting read.

Hope you enjoy!

Blessings!

Amanda
Matthew 6:33


Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Onion Joes


Here's an easy recipe for busy nights.

1 pound hamburger
1 can French onion Soup (undiluted)
1/4th cup flour

Add soup to the drained/cooked ground beef. Add soup and bring to a boil. Add the flour and mix until gravy consistency.

I like to serve mine on any kind of hamburger rolls.



I also like to serve Easy Ranch Oven Fries with these burgers:

1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup parmezean cheese
1/4 cup ranch dressing (dry)
6 medium taters cut into wedges

Mix together and pour into a zip lock bag. Add taters and coat completely. Preheat oven to 375*. Coat a large cookie sheet with oil and then add the coated taters to the pan. Cook 15 minutes. Flip and cook another 15 minutes.



YUMMY
& Fast Dinner!




Blessings!

Amanda
Matthew 6:33

Monday, October 21, 2013

Homestead Chore # 13 (Fresh BBQ- Straight from the Backyard!)





Well, the deed has been done. *PIG-PIG* #3 has been butchered, cooked and turned into southern style BBQ. The decision to go ahead and do it ourselves was not made lightly. We really had no other choice though due to some unforseen circumstances. Let me explain.

This past Thursday, I noticed that *PIG* was having trouble standing up. Once she was up she was okay. That back leg of hers was just not able to keep up with her weight and getting around was an issue by the end of the day.

So we knew that she needed to be put down. So she would not suffer. It was a sad decision to make but one that needed to be made. 

On Friday morning Hubby went to work and told one of his co workers of our problem. The guy said that it would be ashamed to waste all of that meat. (You see, to take an animal to a processor, that animal has to be able to walk off the ramp and into the holding pen. We knew that *PIG* would not be able to do that without issues.)

So Hubby's friend said that he would come by on Saturday after work and *butcher* PIG for us so we would not have to waste all of that meat. Mr. Rusty showed up Saturday afternoon and did the *deed* for us.

I could not watch it or take pictures. I was way too attached to this PIG. Had I seen it being done, I would not have been able to eat it or even prepare it for the freezer. I know, I'm a wimp!

Anyway, it took about  2 hours from start to finish. We then took *PIG* to another friend of Hubby's that agreed to cook it for us. Another blessing! 

*PIG* weighed about 400 lbs. She was very fatty. Must have been from all that milk and bread ;-) The meat we did get though is awesome!

I am so thankful that THE LORD bought all of these people into our lives to help us out. We still have so much to learn and with hubby's friends we are definately learning.





We ended up with about 130 lbs. of BBQ. We split it with the friend who butchered *PIG* for us. The above picture is our share. That's a vinegar sauce on top of it.


All bagged and ready for the freezer.


There's about 1 1/2 lbs. of BBQ in each bag.


This is the sauce we used to put on the BBQ. It's made of:

Molasses
Apple Vinegar Cider
Ketchup
Mustard
Pepper Corn

Very good indeed!

Maybe next year I will be able to watch the process and help. I will admit though, if THE GOOD LORD sends someone my way to do *the deed*, I will definately share the meat for their *help.*

Hey, bartering is a good thing!

Blessings!

Amanda
Matthew 6:33











Saturday, October 19, 2013

Getting Up My Nerve



It's that time of the year folks. Time to butcher the hog. I am NOT looking forward to it this year. Instead of sending it out to be processed, Hubby and a friend will be doing it themselves. 

This is the 3rd pig that we have raised for meat. It is also the one that for some reason, I got way too attached to. BIG mistake!

Anyway, I hope to get pictures of the process. Or I might just get my son to take them for me. The thing is, we have been wanting to do it ourselves. Just actually thinking about it is the issue.

Hubby has a friend at work that has agreed to cook the pig for us. We are going to cook it for BBQ only. No sausage this year or chops. We also plan on splitting it up 3 ways once it is cooked as a payment for those who are helping us to *process* it.

The thought of actually knowing it is our meat that we are getting back is an exciting prospect. The last batch of BBQ we got back after taking it to the *butcher* tasted WAY too much like thier BBQ and NOT like a freshly processed pig. Not to mention that the BBQ we got back the last time was dry and hard. Yep, I am looking forward to knowing that we will be getting back *our* pig.

Well, gotta go. Saturday's chores are calling me.

Have a blessed day in THE LORD!

Amanda
Matthew 6:33




Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Another Week On the Homestead

Hello Dear Friends! Another week has just flown by. It's been pretty much business as usual with a little entertainment along the way, thanks to GOD's creatures. Here is our week in review:



I LOVE Mums! The 2 on the end of the table were from last year and the one in the middle I bought at the grocery store. The marigolds are the last from the summer and go right along with the mums. I LOVE autumn.



Finally got almost all of the taters dug. We have been digging and eating as we go since the middle of June. These ought to last us a good long while. There are still a few more 5 gallon buckets left to dig.


We are letting the *biddies* out to roam a bit in the evening. It's so cute when its time to close them up for the night. They will run up to me and expect me to pick them up and put them back into their little home. Their running to to me is the cute part all the while peeping away!


Our Pastor gave us some pears from his trees. They are a baking type of pear. PIG absolutely LOVES them!


Isn't that a sweet look from Carlos the Kitty. He was part of the entertainment this week. While we were pulling up into the driveway last Sunday evening after church, Carlos was in the middle of the driveway sitting. He wouldn't move. So we got out of the car and low and behold he was sitting next to a copperhead snake. He was playing with it like a rubber hose and it even striked at him. Hubby ran into the house to get a gun, came back out and shot the snake. Carlos was still wanting to play with it. CRAZY cat!

He had obviously and literally *played it to near death* until Hubby shot it. We were so worried that he had been bitten. Not one bite though and no problems with him since the inccident. I'm am quite sure that he lost one of his 9 lives that night ;-)


We needed a day away from the farm so we decided to go pier fishing. The beach is about an hour away so we loaded up and spent yesterday fishing. The winds on that pier were 30 knots ph. with the winds coming out of the northeast. Perfect fising weather.

Hubby caught this stingray. It nearly broke his pole.


Another view of the ray. Notice the fishing line in the rays mouth? Who knew that sting rays like shrimp (our bait?)


It was a HUGE ray. Hubby threw it off on the other side of the pier. Most people cut off thier tails and throw them back in. When you do that though, they lose the ability to keep away from other predators. I hate to see any of GOD's creatures maimed like that. This was a lucky one.

Needless to say, my son's pole was broke due to another ray later on in the day as well as my daughter's pole. I too lost a line and sinker due to these little pesky buggers. Oh well, they have to eat too and the shrimp must have been really appeitizing dangling on the line like that ;-)

So how was your week? Thanks for visiting and have a blessed week in THE LORD!

Amanda
Matthew 6:33










Sunday, October 6, 2013

Simple Sunday


Psalm 122:1

 I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord.

Have a blessed LORD's
 Day!

Amanda
Matthew 6:33


Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Homestead Chore # 12 (Providing Meat for the Table)


A warning for those who are squeamish. This post will show graphic pictures of dressing out a deer.

My daughter killed her first deer last night. She called about 8:45 p.m. to tell us and was absolutely ecstatic about it. So we all loaded up and went over to her and Justin's home to get a look at the deed she had done. She was absolutely giddy with excitement over her accomplishment.

 She went hunting a lot last year with no success and was determined to get her one this year and get one she did. She ended up with a 6 pointer which is really good for a first kill. She didn't use a gun either, she used her bow, the one Justin bought her for her birthday last year.

I was very doubtful of her being able to help dress out the deer with Justin. You see, Angel HATES blood. It makes her want to pass out when she has to get blood drawn at the doctors. Last night she proved me wrong though. She helped skin it and cut the pieces apart. What a trooper!

There were a few squeals though when the process started, according to her brother, who was taking the pictures as the process began.

So onto the pictorial for providing meat for your table- Homestead style!


Here is the huntress.


Angel showing us her deer. She said it took them an hour or so to find it once she shot at it.


Justin & Angel


Angel & Noah (her 14 year old brother)


The bow she used to shoot the deer with. She has a name for it, I don't know how to spell it though.



At the camp cleaning site to dress it out. 


Pictures for Justin


Okay, reality sets in. It's time to see the huntress go to work on her kill. There was a bit of squealing according to her brother when they started the process.


Stringing it up.


There he goes.


Just a bit higher dear!


The skinning begins.


Your doing great daughter!


All skinned and ready to be cut into pieces.


Fresh meat anyone?


Sawing the legs in half more more meat.


All processed and chillin'


No words needed!


Now for the huntresses prize. Justin cuts off the antlers. What a great son-in-law I have !


Happy dance! I got my trophy and meat on the table too!


Some sugar goes a long way!


What a mess!


Cleaning up.


Thanks to my son, Noah for taking these pictures! He said he could have taken some more graphic pictures but wouldn't because he knows me too well.

Are you ready to try some homestead style meat for your table?  

Proverbs 31:15

She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth meat to her household, and a portion to her maidens.


Blessings,

Amanda
Matthew 6:33