8-14-10 Oh What A Beautiful Morning

When I went outside this morning to capture the beautiful sunrise, it was unexpectedly delightfully cool. Alas, it didn’t last long; by 9:00 or so the extreme heat and humidity had returned. I know the Weatherman does all things perfectly, and I will not complain because “I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content,” but I will say we will all really enjoy cooler days after so many excessively hot days. But we decided that since we had hot sunny days in April this year (the kids were in the wading pool then already) and the heat really hasn’t let up all summer, we’ll probably have it into October or later too! So we’ll continue on, striving to find the nuggets of which there are plenty; sometimes in the busy-ness of life I haven’t taken time to focus on them though. This morning’s sunrise was a beautiful surprise, a gift for which I gratefully praise my Creator… “How Great Thou Art.”

Another precious morning nugget.

Dad went to work for awhile, leaving a list of jobs for the boys. We girls did kitchen projects which included stromboli (made solely by Kaitlyn!) for lunch, much to the delight of the boys; they were also very appreciative of the Dessert Pizza Tori made for supper. Although a few of our crew still prefer Malt Shoppe Dessert, more of us have switched to Dessert Pizza as our favorite.

Anyway.

Sarah was a great help cutting peaches.

When Dad got home, the boys were ready to grind corn which always makes me a tad nervous but with the littles inside everything always goes fine. I shouldn’t worry but only pray, right?

After grinding corn, Dad ran to Morton to do payroll, Levi returned the grinder to Marty’s, and the rest of us had lunch (I worked on a few school things too) and got ready to go swimming at Uncle Jerry’s. Had a good time – water was ‘only’ 89 which was about perfect, although by the time we left I’m sure it was higher than that. Aunt Marcia said that this week one day she was swimming with Kate & Lincoln and the water was 96 degrees! That is really really really warm – and our spoiled kids would very likely prefer the creek over that! But with the rain yesterday and a couple of (somewhat) cooler nights, it was about right today. So…home to chores and supper, and then Jesse, needing driving hours, took Dad, me, and the littles for a drive in Peoria. Not wanting to be left out, the rest of the bigs jumped in too, and we had a good time. Home for Bibletime and beds. Dad read in Proverbs 4, and we talked a long time about pondering the path of our feet (v. 26). There are so many things we can be tempted to do, or just do without even thinking about it, that really aren’t the most edifying or pleasing to God. This verse exhorts us to ponder (deliberate, contemplate, think about, consider) the path of our feet – where we go, what we do, what we say, how we spend our time, how we spend our money, how we live. No, we don’t want to over-think things, either, because that can lead to a whole host of problems too, but we should heed God’s Word and thoughtfully, deliberately make right choices.

8-10-10 Tuesday

No headache, hallelujah! Even though we had another short night (thunderstorm and Joshua up), I think getting to bed early helped a lot. Dad helped Tori and me cut apples for awhile; we started cutting at 6:45 and finished around 7:45. Breakfast was peach pie and fresh applesauce, and we cooked apples until 9:00; the kitchen was pretty much cleaned up by 10:00. The pressure cookers were going until right after lunch, and then we went swimming on a HOT HOT HOT day. Levi and Jesse milked, and Levi went to CIT while Jesse did math and jobs here then went swimming with us. Aunt Joyce, Carmen, Kate, and Lincoln came swimming too, and the kids had a good time – all except Joshua, who just wasn’t happy and fussed much. Home for naps, chores, playtime, and more school prep (I’m getting very close to being ready – hoping to start full schedule on Monday but we’ll see…). Supper, and then Dad and I went to a meeting; kids here played outside some before coming in to get ready for beds. We got home a little before 9:00, sang a little, Dad read in Proverbs, and then beds for all. That’s it.

8-3-10 4-H

I have decided that 4-H means heat, heat, heat, and heat. Today was SOOOOO HOT, and rather than cool down in the evening, I think the slight breeze that we could feel during the day died down and it seemed even hotter. I remember very few cool 4-H fairs, but this one was one of the hottest we could remember.

Anyway. First thing I took our desktop computer to town for Haas IT to work on; an hour later I went back to pick it up. Home to laundry, garden, first day of working with tomatoes: Tori and Ben cut them up for the freezer. When we have a large amount frozen, we’ll do spaghetti sauce factory day.

I worked on school prep and got another nice big chunk done. Little by little, I’m getting close. Since we’re taking a week off in September for Yellowstone, we’re hoping to start school Monday. Every year I’m pretty excited about it; this year is no different…still lovin’ it after 11 years, and the kids like it too. Aaah, life is good. Levi and Jesse milked in the morning; then Levi went to CIT. Jesse worked around here; then we all went swimming at Uncle Jerry’s after lunch. Had fun being with Carmen, Kate, and Lincoln, as always. Wish we could get there earlier to swim longer with them – with Joshua still taking a morning nap it hasn’t worked out much though. Home to chores, supper prep, more school prep. Supper, and all to the hot hot hot hot fair. Home to enjoy our air conditioning and put kids to bed. Met with Levi and Jesse; then Dad and I took the van to Mike’s Garage for some a.c. repair work. Home to beds finally; that’s it.

8-2-10 Monday

Today was a catch-up day but also a very productive one. We did lots of laundry as well as picked up apples from the orchard and tomatoes from the garden. After lunch we swam awhile then came home for chores and supper prep. Due to the 4-H fair and some milking schedule changes, the boys didn’t milk in the morning like usual; Levi went to CIT all day, and Jesse was at Uncle Randy’s. Levi milked in the afternoon then. After supper we were all outside enjoying a little cooler evening; Grandpa Steiner dropped off some things at one point. Dad and the boys were working on chicken waterers; the rest of us were playing ball of one sort or other. Inside for Bibletime and beds.

A couple of pictures…

Morning sleepyheads.

Evening maestro.

That’s it.

7-28-10 Still Hot

Joshua slept all night again – a very welcome step for me. I felt so much better getting a good night’s sleep again. He didn’t cry after a big long drink either; praise the Lord for His healing.

Heat index of 100 again, which meant even morning work was hot. Usually the first one up (of our home crew), Tori has been feeding Faline; then she watches her while she hangs out laundry and works in the garden. Faline doesn’t go far away; she just wanders in the backyard and garden and nibbles on different plants.

Joshua was a big helper when Jacob sorted and boxed the first of the potatoes.

Even though it’s ‘too hot’ to work much outside, my young entomologists think nothing of running all over the levee and farm for the newer and better butterfly or caterpillar. This one is a very young swallowtail caterpillar (worm)(larva).

Four in different stages of growth. Ugly as they are, it is amazing to watch them grow – they change every day. The one at the top was one of the two on a previous post (the other one got smushed when Jacob put some leaves in)(at least that’s what he thinks happened).

Various jobs this morning. Uncle Randy picked up Jesse to haul manure after he got back from milking; he was there until time to milk again. Levi went to CIT. Kate made bread – 100% solo- way to go Kate! Laundry, other kitchen projects, and lunch before going to swim at Uncle Jerry’s. Josh had more fun today but was still the first to be ready to go home. Everyone else (me included) was having fun and would have stayed longer, but there were things to do at home so it was time to go anyway. Chores and supper prep; it got dark quickly and we had a late afternoon rainshower before supper. We only got about a tenth inch of rain, but it was enough to cool things down a bit. After supper we were ready for church on time but the boys rolled in around 7:00, and we waited for them to shower and grab a bite to eat. So we were to church late, but that’s ok – I’m just glad we can all go. Dan preached on Joshua 5-6; the last verse in chapter 5 was my TakeAway: “And Joshua did so.” Simple, plain, instant, willing obedience; what a testimony and challenge for all of us. Enjoyed some precious fellowship and then home to beds for all.

7-27-10 Restmor

Notice anything special about these 2 photographs? Joshua is smiling! He had a better night, but still not stellar – and was relatively happy during the morning. He still cries in pain after a big long drink, but he IS drinking, and that’s the important thing. Thankfully we are not facing dehydration issues. We’re all so glad he seems to be on the mend.

As soon as Levi and Jesse got home from milking, we left Joshua home with Jesse; the rest of us went to Restmor. We were a few minutes late, which I had anticipated (I had asked Victoria to play the piano until I got there) but still got to sing (or listen, in my case) for most of the singing. Following the singing, Restmor hosted a junior volunteer appreciation lunch in the courtyard there at Restmor. It was pretty hot but the kids (and I) still had a good time. There were guessing games, a door prize, yard games, and a kid-friendly lunch that all enjoyed: hot dogs, chips, applesauce, popsicles, popcorn, and a delicious ice cream cake. It seems kind of funny to be considered volunteers, when all we do is sing and visit with the residents (which we love to do) or play the piano (which I love to do – especially on their grand piano), but that’s what they call us, and until they tell us not to come, we’ll just keep going every month that we can.

Home to the heat - so we headed down to Uncle Jerry’s to swim for awhile. Joshua didn’t enjoy it so much (??) but the rest had a great time. Back home again for chores and naps (including me – these sick nights with Joshua wear me down) and supper prep. THEN I spent almost an HOUR AND A HALF on the phone with DELL, talking to a service tech in INDIA(!) who was helping me with some issues on my laptop. FINALLY got that done, and my wonderful Tori had supper 99% ready – she does such a good job.

Supper, out for a walk with Dad, in for some administration issues, then back out to play catch with the kids. Joshua was pretty happy – more evidence that he’s getting over this nasty little bug that’s been afflicting him. Even after such a mild illness like this, I just rejoice more at his smiles and giggles – I know there are little ones that don’t get over their sicknesses (cancer etc.). We are so blessed; thank You, Lord for healing our precious Joshua.

In for baths, Bibletime, and beds.

7-23-10 Friday Already

Dad went in early today, Levi and Jesse milked, and Levi went to CIT after that. Jesse and Jacob spent most of their time mowing and trimming. Aunt Joyce took Tori with her to get groceries for me in Pekin; Jewel and Sarah helped her wash the van when they got back. She did some cleaning with Kaitlyn’s help, and then mowed the orchard while Jesse trimmed it. The rest of us worked on Friday jobs and did piano lessons, and Sarah had a lesson in making brownies. A few more times and she’ll be solo – and we’ll have another baker in the house. She did a great job!

Somebody finally caught Joshua’s adorable wave on camera for me – of course we all think it’s the cutest thing in the world, and I know we’re not one bit prejudiced, oh no, not us [smile]. As fussy as he’s been, he’s still the favorite entertainment around here…his giggles, jabbers, kisses, hugs, and waves are highly coveted and admired.

Swallowtail larva (fancy word for WORMS) are growing nicely. I think they’ve molted at least twice now.

After lunch, we all went to Uncle Jerry’s, and Levi joined us there later. It was possibly the hottest day of the year – heat index of 109, I heard. So the pool was greatly appreciated today…no one was ready to leave (except Joshua who needed a nap). Home to chores, supper prep, and supper, and then Jim and his 3 boys brought us their pet fawn, Faline, which we are going to deer-sit while they’re away on vacation. She is really really cute – pictures sometime this week. Spent the evening reading and listening to Bible tapes which Tori has been putting on the computer, and Levi went fishing. Then Bibletime and beds.

7-21-10 Home Grown Goodness

First thing this morning it was a bit drizzly. Boys milked. Checking cows, Jacob reported another big healthy black heifer calf sucking good! Mother is #89. Another calm morning; this time I got a good start on school planning. I have a ways to go, but at least I have a start made. Now all I have to do is finish [smile]. After milking, I took 3 littles with me to take Jesse to Uncle Randy’s. Actually, Jesse drove while I made lists, which worked out well. Sometimes my mind just whirls with thoughts/responsibilities/planning and I must write them down to settle my mind…then I know I won’t forget. “The weakest ink is stronger than the strongest memory” (incidentally, which I do not have). Various jobs, lunch, swam at Uncle Jerry’s, home to nap for Joshua and chores, supper prep, supper, and most of us to church. Milking got started late so Levi and Jesse didn’t make it home before we left; we missed them but thankfully this doesn’t happen often. At church we read in II Timothy 2; we were exhorted to study the Word of God. Tom also pointed out that we need to shun profane and vain babblings. In red (Jesus’ words), my Bible says, “That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment” (Matthew 12:36). Lord, help me to be more thoughtful, to think before I speak, to pray before I write. “For by [my] words [I] shalt be justified, and by [my] words [I] shalt be condemned” (v. 37). Written words can later be deleted, but spoken words cannot be erased. We all (me especially, with my trigger-tongue) need God’s help and grace in controlling that unruly member; praise God that He WILL help and guide us. “And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive” (Matthew 21:22). Enjoyed fellowship, then home to catch up with our boys before beds for all.

A few pictures:

New pet enjoying a meal (????yuk).

Ben’s truck – quite impressive creativity, I think.

Home grown fried chicken, sweet corn, potatoes, gravy (made from boiled home-grown chicken broth), cucumber salad. We also had applesauce, home grown and home made. We all kind of get a kick out of 100% home grown meals like this one. (Well, someone always points out that the mayo, milk, and sugar of the salad dressing, the sugar in the applesauce, the flour and spices in the chicken coating, butter on sweet corn, etc. aren’t home grown; I contend we could eat it all - and thrive - without those things, but it certainly is better with them.) And it was DELICIOUS!!!!!!!

“Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee. Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God, shall bless us. God shall bless us; and all the ends of the earth shall fear him” (Psalm 67: 5-7).

We do praise our God, and He does bless us, and so we do continue to praise Him…He ALONE is worthy!

We love cucumber salad in the summer – so tasty, cool, and refreshing.

Cucumber Salad

4-5 (?) cucumbers, about 3-4(?) cups (we don’t measure, just kind of guess), peeled and sliced thin

Whisk ingredients for dressing: 1/4 cup mayonnaise (we use Aldi salad dressing)

2 Tablespoons milk

2 Tablespoons sugar

Mix dressing and cucumbers. Enjoy!

A short tutorial on cucumbers:

The first time we made this (Monday?), we could not eat it because some of the cucumbers were so bitter. They were AWFUL. After a bit of research, we learned that cucumbers contain cucurbitacin,a bitter compound naturally found in the leaves and stems. Under stress, such as low moisture or high temperatures, it can be found in the fruit as well; we certainly discovered that! It concentrates near the stem and in the skin; I’ve been taste-testing each one before we use it. Most smaller cucumbers are fine; we’ve found that the larger ones are bitter near the stem end, but the opposite half is ok to use. We’re trying to pick them smaller…it’s NOT fun to taste-test a bitter one.

7-18-10 Beautiful Sunrise

I enjoyed time on the porch this morning before the rest of the house awoke (except Levi who went fishing). The peace and tranquility is beautiful and precious.

Church was full due to lots of visitors for a Fort Sam Reunion. Gary Maibach from Smithville had both services – with his experiences as a medic in Vietnam, his bold challenges to prayer and obedience, his clarion call to the lost, and his enthusiasm and excitement for the Lord, we were all inspired, encouraged, and convicted to a closer walk with our Lord. He spoke at length about singing and what a blessing it is to raise our voices in praise to God. Oh, how well I know that – but I could not sing today; not even tenor went very well. Chronic laryngitis is NOT life-threatening, it is NOT painful, and it is NOT even irritating. Actually it does help me to keep my voice lower when talking to the children, but yet…I do miss singing. It was so beautiful today, and I wonder what it is about singing that makes me want to join in. Why can’t I be content just listening?

Anyway, home to naps for me and Joshua, and Dad took 8 swimming at Uncle Jerry’s.

Chores and supper, and then to Grandpa Kaiser’s for awhile. They had pulled out an article from 1976 that featured Gary Maibach as a C.O. unarmed medic. It was a pretty interesting article; his faith was such an inspiration to the others in his group (platoon? barrack?).

Home and beds.

7-16-10 Sad Chick Friday

Dad and I were all ready to walk early, but before we left, the post office called; they had our chicks. So…he and Jacob went to pick them up —and 35 of 75 Cornish Cross were dead. Nice. If that wasn’t sad enough, the remaining chicks were so dehydrated and malnourished that they half-drowned themselves in the waterers in their eagerness to drink. So the girls and I babied them awhile, dipping their beaks in the water and making sure they stayed under the heat lamps until they dried off and were perky again. It really was amazing – there were a dozen that were sopping wet, all laid out, looking all but dead. A box, heat lamp, and a few drinks, and all of them revived. We lost a couple that had bad legs, which could have been from their rough (105 degree) journey; the hatchery is going to replace those as well.

Tori and Kate took turns being chick nursemaid until they were all on their feet again.

While the chick rescue operation was going on, the spray plane sprayed the corn field around our house. We enjoyed the show until, after the plane flew right over the ash tree, we felt rain. Yikes, that wasn’t rain we were feeling – but Grandpa was out by then and told us it wasn’t dangerous to us (it wasn’t Sevin). Well, ok, but next time we’ll retreat a bit farther into the garage.

Sleepy spectators.

Ben made this special pancake for Jewel.

Aunt Joyce didn’t come today, so we were on our own for cleaning. We got ‘er done all right; corners and high places didn’t get touched but that’s ok. Levi and Jesse milked, Levi went to CIT, and Jesse helped Jacob with the mowing. I mowed the orchard while Tori ran the lunch shift, and we were on our way to Uncle Jerry’s around 1:00. Swam all afternoon (always more fun on Fridays when Jesse gets to come); home to find Dad just got home. What a nice surprise! Chores and supper, and then Bibletime at the table tonight. After supper, the 4 boys went to clean/mow at CIT while the rest of us got a bit more sweet corn from Uncle Randy’s patch. There’s a lot there yet. We came home and started shucking; when the boys got home they pitched right in too. Although certain ones thought it was way too dark to see silks, most of us thought it was fine; so we kept going until it was done – 3 coolers full and ready to boil. Then in for a few baths and beds…and the chicks were doing very well by bedtime too.

Thank you Lord for another beautiful, busy, blessed, bucolic day. You are so good to us, and we are so unworthy.

“Who is so great a God as our God? Thou art the God that doest wonders: thou hast declared thy strength among the people.” (Psalm 77: 13-14).

7-14-10 Sweet Corn Day

We knew we had a big day, so we were up and at it early. Dad was out first, by 6:00, I was there by 6:13, and the next three were helping by 6:30. Grandpa and Grandma helped for a couple hours, Jesse helped when he got home from milking, and Aunt Joyce came to help and stayed until the last cleanup was done. We were so glad they came to help – one year the boys and Dad picked corn and just threw it into Dad’s car. Front seat, back seat, trunk. We decided the corn was multiplying in there…Jacob would get more for us to shuck and report, “There’s just a couple buckets left.” He said that probably 5 or 6 times, and finally we got tired of hearing it – we were SO TIRED of doing corn! We didn’t finish until after supper that year, and for us that’s difficult. When we start early, by noon I’m ready for the end to be in sight, which it was today. Besides being physically tired and ready for a break, it was the hottest day of the year – heat indices of 100-106. We were VERY GLAD to put the corn in the freezer and head to Uncle Jerry’s for a hard-earned break. It’s a big job, and a fun job, but one we are very glad to have done for the year. We ended up with 33 quarts of regular corn and 13 quarts of creamed corn (our favorite but much more time-consuming) for a total of 46 quarts. My goal was 50-55, so I wouldn’t mind a couple more bushels, but our patch probably has that much so we’ll wait a while until that’s ready to do. Meanwhile, we’re sure enjoying it fresh! Home from swimming, then chores, supper, and all to church. Curt preached on Mark ? – the crucifixion, which is always good to contemplate. After a busy day/week it’s just good to sit and reflect on the whole reason we are here: Jesus Christ and Him Crucified.

Pictures of the day:

“I shall tread upon the corn.” [smile]

7-12-10 Still More Beans

After only getting a bucket and a half of beans on Thursday, I really thought today would be a small picking. But I am glad to say I was very wrong. We ended up with 48 quarts canned, and Dad just shut the last cooker off as I’m writing this (at 12:19 a.m.). So today’s report will be short.

Levi and Jesse milked. On our walk this morning, Dad and I saw our fifth calf doing well with its mama. Thinking beans wouldn’t take long, I wasn’t in any rush to get to the bean patch; I went through all Aunt Jill’s photos, wrote about the weekend, and even published a post to Our Family Circus before heading outside. I quickly realized my bucket of beans was going to be more like 3 or 4 buckets. But everybody pitched in to help, and we had them picked and were all in the van heading to Uncle Jerry’s by 1:00. I did beans almost the whole afternoon, with kids helping me and swimming in shifts. We were there all afternoon, finishing the beans around 4:30. Home to chores and a nap for Joshua (imagine that), and Tori got the bean factory going right away, with Kate joining us when her chores were done. Once again I was very glad for my 2 pressure cookers and my basement stove and kitchen. We are so blessed.

Then our wonderful Dad came home early enough to grill steaks, and, with Kate’s help, get supper on while Tori and I raced to get jars filled. We had a quick supper and were right back at it; then Dad and Levi took the 3 littles with them to return the tractor driving contest stakes to our neighbor from whom we borrowed them. The other kids played on the haybales while I manned the pressure cookers. Bibletime was in between cooker changes, and then beds for all except Dad and me.

Now it’s my turn; thank you Lord for another beautiful, blessed, safe, healthy day.

Good night.

7-8-10 Still More Beans

Another absolutely gorgeous morning. Dad was to Uncle Jerry’s early, Levi took Jesse to Uncle Randy’s by 6:30 before he went to get gluten, and I was to the bean patch by 6:30 to beat the heat. I had long stretches of solo time because a.) littles slept late and b.) I got drizzled on about 3 different times. With my head bent over, I never got my glasses wet, though, so it wasn’t raining much. Tori helped me some but was mostly doing laundry, breakfast and littles. I figured why get 2 of us wet if it pours down, and besides I like doing it…even in the cloudy drizzle. Am I weird or what? Levi went to CIT after he got gluten, and was there until 3:00 or so when he went to Uncle Randy’s to help them move hogs. We got our beans done by noon and started in on onions, but I was so disgusted with them, and it was so hot, that we treated ourselves to a swim break before finishing them. Barely finished them in time for a quick supper before heading to the Granary to set up for F/S Night. Went good; home and to beds.

Here’s the question: How many of these jars will be filled by fall? Stay tuned…

I’m so thankful for 2 pressure cookers (I borrow Grandma Kaiser’s) – it saves lots of time (no waiting for cooling). And, I’m very thankful for my new used basement stove. Although I did it and survived last summer (no falls, trips, or drops), I really don’t love to carry jars and/or cookers up and down stairs.

Beans done for this time.

On to onions. Here’s our beautiful patch. Yup, we kind of got behind on the weeding.

Grandpa’s tomato plants got kind of blighted or something…

…as did ours.

We’re still hopeful for some sauce though.

Sweet corn is getting close. We should get a few meals anyway.

Onions. Stinky, moldy, buggy, slimy onions. We don’t have them figured out yet; many of them just molded in the ground. The girls and I went through them all and saved 4 gallon bags for the frig (next week we’ll dice and freeze them) and hung 3 bunches in the wood shed. Maybe with all the rain, this result was inevitable; then again, had we weeded them better maybe the ground would have dried out faster. Hmm. I’ll need to do some research for next year.

That’s all.