Yesterday was...to use a dear friend's word...AWESOME! Sunday was rainy, and we sang a song in church called "Showers of Blessing." Neither Mike or I could figure out how the person who picked the song a week earlier knew it would fit the weather, but that was all I could think about yesterday as the day went on. I'm going to give you a list of praises here...
1. Mike had to take his car to get repaired, and it took less time and less money than they said it would!
2. On the way home, since he had extra time, he went fishing, and caught a beautiful 14 inch trout, which we ate for dinner!
3. We had to get paint for the chicken coop. Rory had his little heart set on red, but there was no can of red paint on the discount shelf. The paint technician at the store actually made us a custom red gallon for the price of a discounted can! (about $30 savings)
4. I finally figured out a sourdough rye recipe that works!
5. I went to pour a cup of tea, and the lid fell off the teapot. Instead of landing on the floor and breaking, it landed on the pile of grocery bags I hadn't put away yet! (and no-one tripped over the bags before I got them put away.)
6. My favorite coffee was on sale for $2 off!
There were probably even more awesome things, but that's what I remember right now. God is good!
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
The Gap
Have you ever heard of the "Gap Theory?" No, it is not related to fashion. Our pastor was talking about it in Sunday School last week, and I was totally amazed. I had never heard of it before. I knew about the "Evolutionary Theory," and the "Young Earth Theory," but had never heard about "Gap Theory." It basically says that in between Genesis 1:1, where God created the heaven and the earth, and Genesis 1:2, where the earth was void, there is a time gap. If so, this is where all of the ancient extinct animals, like dinosaurs and mammoths, and even man-like creatures like Neanderthals lived. Then, because of the fall of Lucifer, or Satan, the world was destroyed, much like Noah's flood, but worse, leaving the earth void and in darkness. After this total destruction, God started over with the six days of creation to create a new world. Huh! I've since looked at some websites on the internet, some of which agree with this theory and some of which don't, but it does seem kind of plausible. It would explain the problem between the biblical account of the world, which would place it at about 6,000 years old, and the geological account, which would place it at billions of years. It would explain why evolutionists can't find the links between the different species - there isn't one, they were all created that way. It would also explain why there are no dinosaurs in recent history (the last 6,000 years or so) - there weren't any. Anyway, this gives me something else to think about!
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Odds & Ends
I finally used the canner I got for my birthday! I canned chicken stock, and I think it even worked! I had to start over, because I didn't have the gauge on tight enough to begin with, and it was leaking steam, but I figured it out! So, I have eight almost pints of chicken broth to use whenever I want. Right now they are on top of my cupboards. They are almost pints, because the instructions said to leave an inch of space. I might have left a little too much space, but anyway, they are canned! I'm also trying to make ginger ale, from the Nourishing Traditions cookbook. We'll see how it turns out. It calls for Rapurda for a sweetener, which I don't have, so I used sugar, and it called for lime juice, which I don't have, so I used lemon juice. It could be ginger ale when I'm done, I guess!
The chicks went to the garage about a week after we got them, because they started jumping out of their pan. I didn't really want chickens in my bed! The chick with the sore wing has fully recovered. They have about half of their feathers, now. We installed a 10 X 10 dog run behind the garage, and Mike started putting the chicken wire around it yesterday. We need to put some sort of wire over the top, and build the house to go inside next.
Rory entered a baking contest at our homeschool support group last Tuesday. He made peanut butter cookies. He didn't win, but the cookies turned out really good! He had to make them all by himself. The only thing I could do was put them in and out of the oven. Boy, was that hard to watch! I wanted to help so much! But he did it! I was also very proud of him, because although he was sad when he didn't win, he did not get visibly upset, and he went right back to playing with his friends. That is a big thing for him - he tends to get upset over everything. So, it was a good contest even though he didn't win. Plus, we got to eat peanut butter cookies!
If you're wondering where my second curriculum review went, I decided not to do it. We actually did try the curriculum, which was about firefighters. However, neither of the curricula that were sent were really something I would have picked for myself, and using them took time away from our regular studies. From what I understand, I could receive up to 70 different things to review in a year, which is more than 1 a week. It took me most of a morning to write the review for the one I did, (especially since I always have so much "help" around here), so I decided it wasn't really worth my time to get involved in it.
I am currently looking for a new math curriculum for Rory for next year. He has done okay with the one we used this year (Singapore Math), but it seems to be moving very fast for him. I actually skipped a little of it, because it seems to go in a different sequence than most curricula. I am considering using Math Mammoth for next year. Any math people out there, please take a look at it and let me know what you think! I did order one of their single-subject e-books on place value, because that seems to be something Rory has continually had trouble understanding. He has done a few of the pages, and said he liked it. One thing I like about it for him, is that it has very basic illustrations, instead of the colorful ones in his current book. He gets distracted easily with too many pictures, even when reading books, so I think this may be easier for him to concentrate on. I also like that it is only one book, instead of three different ones for each level like the current curriculum we have.
I set Rory up with his own computer account this morning. He also has his own version of Google Chrome, which at this point has Webrangers and Lego.com on it. He doesn't have e-mail or anything, and I didn't show him how to search for things, but this way he can start to learn how to navigate things by himself, without my having to find his programs for him. It gave him something to do this morning, since his baseball game was cancelled because of rain.
Mike has been having severe stomach problems for the past few weeks. He went to the doctor Monday, and was found to have H. Pylori, which is a bacterial infection in the stomach. He is now on two different antibiotics, as well as Prevacid, twice a day. Please pray that this will work, and that the antibiotics will not mess his digestive system up worse than it already is! If anyone knows of a natural way to deal with this infection, let me know. The doctors only want to prescribe pills. They didn't even mention that he should be eating yogurt (which he hates anyway), or taking acidophillus (sp?) pills along with the antibiotics, which I only know from having to have antibiotics for Lyme Disease years ago. They also told him that ginger would not help with the nausea. I guess they have never been pregnant! Of course, teething doesn't cause babies to get sick, either. Hah!
I guess that's all the news that's fit to print, right now! Off to the rest of my day. Happy Saturday!
The chicks went to the garage about a week after we got them, because they started jumping out of their pan. I didn't really want chickens in my bed! The chick with the sore wing has fully recovered. They have about half of their feathers, now. We installed a 10 X 10 dog run behind the garage, and Mike started putting the chicken wire around it yesterday. We need to put some sort of wire over the top, and build the house to go inside next.
Rory entered a baking contest at our homeschool support group last Tuesday. He made peanut butter cookies. He didn't win, but the cookies turned out really good! He had to make them all by himself. The only thing I could do was put them in and out of the oven. Boy, was that hard to watch! I wanted to help so much! But he did it! I was also very proud of him, because although he was sad when he didn't win, he did not get visibly upset, and he went right back to playing with his friends. That is a big thing for him - he tends to get upset over everything. So, it was a good contest even though he didn't win. Plus, we got to eat peanut butter cookies!
If you're wondering where my second curriculum review went, I decided not to do it. We actually did try the curriculum, which was about firefighters. However, neither of the curricula that were sent were really something I would have picked for myself, and using them took time away from our regular studies. From what I understand, I could receive up to 70 different things to review in a year, which is more than 1 a week. It took me most of a morning to write the review for the one I did, (especially since I always have so much "help" around here), so I decided it wasn't really worth my time to get involved in it.
I am currently looking for a new math curriculum for Rory for next year. He has done okay with the one we used this year (Singapore Math), but it seems to be moving very fast for him. I actually skipped a little of it, because it seems to go in a different sequence than most curricula. I am considering using Math Mammoth for next year. Any math people out there, please take a look at it and let me know what you think! I did order one of their single-subject e-books on place value, because that seems to be something Rory has continually had trouble understanding. He has done a few of the pages, and said he liked it. One thing I like about it for him, is that it has very basic illustrations, instead of the colorful ones in his current book. He gets distracted easily with too many pictures, even when reading books, so I think this may be easier for him to concentrate on. I also like that it is only one book, instead of three different ones for each level like the current curriculum we have.
I set Rory up with his own computer account this morning. He also has his own version of Google Chrome, which at this point has Webrangers and Lego.com on it. He doesn't have e-mail or anything, and I didn't show him how to search for things, but this way he can start to learn how to navigate things by himself, without my having to find his programs for him. It gave him something to do this morning, since his baseball game was cancelled because of rain.
Mike has been having severe stomach problems for the past few weeks. He went to the doctor Monday, and was found to have H. Pylori, which is a bacterial infection in the stomach. He is now on two different antibiotics, as well as Prevacid, twice a day. Please pray that this will work, and that the antibiotics will not mess his digestive system up worse than it already is! If anyone knows of a natural way to deal with this infection, let me know. The doctors only want to prescribe pills. They didn't even mention that he should be eating yogurt (which he hates anyway), or taking acidophillus (sp?) pills along with the antibiotics, which I only know from having to have antibiotics for Lyme Disease years ago. They also told him that ginger would not help with the nausea. I guess they have never been pregnant! Of course, teething doesn't cause babies to get sick, either. Hah!
I guess that's all the news that's fit to print, right now! Off to the rest of my day. Happy Saturday!
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Down on the Farm
So we did it... we got chickens! We went through all sorts of ideas, and were just about ready to buy a few laying hens (8 months old) from a nearby farm, when we had to go to Tractor Supply for something else. Boy, the chickies are cute! So, we went with the babies for the fun factor. I understand they tend to be easier to get along with if you've had them from chicks, also, so hopefully that will be true.
I thought I was about done with babies in the bedroom, since Lily is almost two and usually sleeps through the night now, but now I have six fluffy babies in a bin in my room. We couldn't figure out anywhere else to put them to keep them away from the cat until they can go outside. Right now, they have to have a heat lamp all the time. So, not only is my room noisy (peep, peep, peep), but it has a red glow 24 hours a day. Oh, well. This too will pass. The kids love them, and even Mike said he had to go check on "his peeps" the other day.
We also had our first chick injury scare. I was checking on them, and noticed that one seemed to be pecking under her wing. When I picked her up, it was all bare and bloody there. So, I looked on line and found not very much of use, but I tried washing it with a saline solution. After that, she started preening more than picking, and it looks much better today. Hopefully that will be the end of that.
I can't believe how fast they are changing - and I thought human babies grew fast! They were a few days old when we got them, so they had a few feathers on their wings, but now some of them have almost all of their wings feathered, and they are starting to get tail feathers, too. That looks pretty funny, with all the fuzz!
The bunny has a new fence. We only let her out of her hutch when we are outside, but at least it gives her a little mobility. She doesn't like going back in her hutch at the end of the day, though!
The kids and I planted some seeds in pots last Monday. Lily has sunflowers up, Rory has a morning glory and some zucchini, and I have cucumbers and tomatoes. The onions are also coming up in the garden, and today we have asparagus! We only planted them last year, though, so we won't be able to eat them until at least next year. (sigh).
We've been having sump pump problems (again). The pump is working, but the float switch broke. Therefore, we have been having to go downstairs every hour or two around the clock to turn it on and off. PAIN! I had to order a new switch, because the store we got the pump from does not carry replacement parts for it. It finally came today, and wouldn't you know it, I couldn't get the old one off to put the new one on. I'll wait for Mike to get home to do that, so I don't strip the screw (one of my talents). The depressing thing was that I had the part, but still had to run up and down the stairs all day. Well, I thought of using WD-40, since "if it doesn't move and it should..." but then I decided to plug the thing in and try it unattached. It works by turning the pump on and off at the plug, and it has its own cord, so I reasoned that it didn't really have to be attached to the pump to work. Well, I was right! Then I had to figure out how to make it tip up when the water got too high. Well, everyone knows that "if it moves and it shouldn't..." use duct tape! So, I duct taped it to the side of the sump pump hole (with a whole lot of tape, because it's wet in there and doesn't stick real well). So, it looks strange, but it's actually working! Hallelujah! Now I just have to convince Mike that it really should be put in the right way, as I don't know how long the duct tape will hold.
Rory is back to school today, after having a week off for Easter break. He's trying to figure out how he can be a fireman, a policeman, and a builder of some sort all at the same time. I told him he doesn't have to decide on a career quite yet. He's very concerned about wanting to get a job. A couple of weeks ago he wanted to be a lawyer, and he's also spent time wanting to be a doctor and a teacher. Now he's thinking he'll sell eggs. Maybe we will have enough to sell - who knows? I guess we'll find out when the hens start laying.
I thought I was about done with babies in the bedroom, since Lily is almost two and usually sleeps through the night now, but now I have six fluffy babies in a bin in my room. We couldn't figure out anywhere else to put them to keep them away from the cat until they can go outside. Right now, they have to have a heat lamp all the time. So, not only is my room noisy (peep, peep, peep), but it has a red glow 24 hours a day. Oh, well. This too will pass. The kids love them, and even Mike said he had to go check on "his peeps" the other day.
We also had our first chick injury scare. I was checking on them, and noticed that one seemed to be pecking under her wing. When I picked her up, it was all bare and bloody there. So, I looked on line and found not very much of use, but I tried washing it with a saline solution. After that, she started preening more than picking, and it looks much better today. Hopefully that will be the end of that.
I can't believe how fast they are changing - and I thought human babies grew fast! They were a few days old when we got them, so they had a few feathers on their wings, but now some of them have almost all of their wings feathered, and they are starting to get tail feathers, too. That looks pretty funny, with all the fuzz!
The bunny has a new fence. We only let her out of her hutch when we are outside, but at least it gives her a little mobility. She doesn't like going back in her hutch at the end of the day, though!
The kids and I planted some seeds in pots last Monday. Lily has sunflowers up, Rory has a morning glory and some zucchini, and I have cucumbers and tomatoes. The onions are also coming up in the garden, and today we have asparagus! We only planted them last year, though, so we won't be able to eat them until at least next year. (sigh).
We've been having sump pump problems (again). The pump is working, but the float switch broke. Therefore, we have been having to go downstairs every hour or two around the clock to turn it on and off. PAIN! I had to order a new switch, because the store we got the pump from does not carry replacement parts for it. It finally came today, and wouldn't you know it, I couldn't get the old one off to put the new one on. I'll wait for Mike to get home to do that, so I don't strip the screw (one of my talents). The depressing thing was that I had the part, but still had to run up and down the stairs all day. Well, I thought of using WD-40, since "if it doesn't move and it should..." but then I decided to plug the thing in and try it unattached. It works by turning the pump on and off at the plug, and it has its own cord, so I reasoned that it didn't really have to be attached to the pump to work. Well, I was right! Then I had to figure out how to make it tip up when the water got too high. Well, everyone knows that "if it moves and it shouldn't..." use duct tape! So, I duct taped it to the side of the sump pump hole (with a whole lot of tape, because it's wet in there and doesn't stick real well). So, it looks strange, but it's actually working! Hallelujah! Now I just have to convince Mike that it really should be put in the right way, as I don't know how long the duct tape will hold.
Rory is back to school today, after having a week off for Easter break. He's trying to figure out how he can be a fireman, a policeman, and a builder of some sort all at the same time. I told him he doesn't have to decide on a career quite yet. He's very concerned about wanting to get a job. A couple of weeks ago he wanted to be a lawyer, and he's also spent time wanting to be a doctor and a teacher. Now he's thinking he'll sell eggs. Maybe we will have enough to sell - who knows? I guess we'll find out when the hens start laying.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
