New Granddaugher

Friday, 29 July 2011

• New Granddaughter

  What an exciting day!  Gordon and Kelsey are parents to another daughter...
  Morgan Dixie
  Born July 29th at 9:45 AM
  7# 7 oz.
  20 1/2" long
  Both are doing great!
  
  

   

  
  

  
  
  What a miraculous and amazing thing the birthing process is!  So thankful for a safe delivery and healthy baby.  
  
  Until next time.............

We Are Corny!

Thursday, 28 July 2011

• We Are Corny!

  Hey, what was that?  Did I hear you say "I agree?"  What kind of friend are you anyway?  Hee Hee!  "Corny" really does describe us, especially today.  Our normal source of corn did not have any available this year due to the drought and I was concerned that I would have to go to the produce auction, which is not a horrible thing, but the price probably would be.  Yesterday, a new source was discovered and I was told they would have corn today already.   Want to guess how much he picked for us?
  
  66 dozen - and it was wonderful!  We are extremely grateful for God's provision and for all the helping hands.....
   
  
  Another wonderful part of the day is that it rained all afternoon and into the evening!  "Thank you, Lord, for the rain!!!"  And here is a picture of a special little lady...
  
  Until next time..................

The Drought of 2011

Monday, 25 July 2011

• The Drought of 2011

  I cannot tell you the last time it rained.  I mean really rained.  Maybe 3 times we have had drizzle in the last 4-5 weeks, and today it rained in a nice manner, but so briefly that it will make no difference.  They are still calling for heavy rain this afternoon and tonight, so we are waiting to see if the weatherman is accurate.   We have been praying for rain and friends having been praying right along with us.  I know it will rain again sometime, but in the Lord's timing.  Lack of rain has a tremendous effect on the farmers!   I don't want to go into all the details of those effects right now, but decided to share a few pictures of what it looks like in our area.......
  This is one of our pastures......
  
  Part of our yard......
  
  Neighbors corn....the light color is dead corn....
  
  
  
  Another corn field.......
  
  We realize that we should NEVER complain about the rain!  A good soaking rain is worth thousands of dollars, literally.
  I don't like to always "spiritualize" everything, but this drought has raised alot of questions about our future as farmers.  We worry, our faith wavers and we wonder why God does things like this.  However, in the midst of it all, I realize that God is bigger than a drought, He is bigger than any changes this drought may bring, and I know that He will go on supplying all our needs.   I have been thinking about the 23rd Psalm....The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.  He maketh me to lie down in green pastures...........GREEN pastures?  "but, Lord there are none around here, so how are we to lie down in the sweet, tender grass and rest beside the still waters when the grass is brown and brittle and the creeks dried up?"  I have been attempting to wrap my mind around the deep meaning of these verses, for obviously there is a deeper meaning, for green pastures are not always available, along with a flowing creek.  Oh, I have this picture in my head...... wonderful, soft, green grass swaying in the breeze, a sweet rippling brook running through a grove of mighty trees, with birds singing in their branches, and the grass speckled with filtered sunlight.....I hear it all calling to me, "come, come and rest here.  Leave your worries and cares and find refreshment and strength in the midst of my peaceful oasis!"   That is the oasis that Jesus wants to be to us.  He wants to be our green pastures, our still waters of rest, our peace and strength in the times of drought in our lives.  He wants to be that place we run to when we feel parched and dried up and He will rain LIFE down over us.   He has so much to offer.......
  Until next time......................

Uriah is 10!

Friday, 22 July 2011

• Uriah is 10!

  Today, Uriah turned 10 years old.  He loves his birthdays and always looks forward to having a party.  He requested lasagna, cabbage salad, cake and ice-cream.  Kelsey made yankee bread and cookies.  It was soooo hot today, so we were thinking of recipes we can make that didn't require the oven.  The lasagna I put in the cooker, in the basement, so we wouldn't have that heat in the kitchen and I found a no-bake cake recipe.  It was good, but rich.  And to top everything off, we made ice-cream again.  Happy Birthday, dear Uriah.  We love you!   He wanted to decorate his cake ......
  
  

  

  
  

   

  
  

  
  No-bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake
  6 T. Butter
  3/4 C. peanut butter
  1 C. graham cracker crumbs
  1 C. powdered sugar
  1 C. chocolate chips
  Mix the first 4 ingredients together and press into a pan.  Melt chips and spread on top.  Put in fridge till ready to eat.
  
  Rich and filling!
  
  Until next time...............

If a Woodchuck Would.......Get Roasted

Sunday, 10 July 2011

• If a Woodchuck Would ......Get Roasted

  Another word for woodchuck is groundhog.  They are those animals that make these huge holes in the middle of your fields and all farmers would like to see them become extinct.  They are also an animal that is often seen squashed on the road - all smelly with flies and vultures picking at.  Well, Gordon has been talking about shooting one of them and seeing what they taste like.  Yesterday, Dave happened to see one in the pasture and decided that since Gordon's birthday is tomorrow, he is going to shoot it and give it as a surprise present to our favorite son-in-law.  He made a clean shot and the butcher of the family offered to skin and gut it.
     
  
  
  We put it in salt water over night and this morning I made a sauce of olive oil, garlic powder, onions, parsley, oregano, ketchup and water and filled the woodchuck's cavity and roasted it in one of our cookers.
  
  We were all really trying to be positive about this experience but we decided that maybe if we called it a woodchuck and not a groundhog it would help.  As the morning went on the odor from the cooker really didn't smell that bad, in fact, it was smelling pretty good.  Hey, just maybe we will like this cheap abundant meat, especially if we add lots of sauce!  I had also put 2 chickens, potatoes and carrots in another roaster and fried up fish that Dave and boys caught yesterday.
  
  The Bross family arrived, we sat down for lunch and Dave explained that we wanted to make an extra special treat for Gordon for his birthday and opened the lid of the woodchuck cooker.  Gordon guessed right away what it was!  And since it was for him, surely he would want to be the first to try it!  Yes, surely!  
  
  
  Every one of us, except Dave, tasted it.   Ben couldn't stand it (might have something to do with him butchering it?), the rest of us thought it was good the first bite and then we decided that MAYBE it was good and after awhile my mind refused for me to take another nibble!  It's these mind games!  Envisioning that I was actually eating one of those "roadkill" animals was just not a vision that I could "stomach" any longer.   Dear Kelsey decided that she is going to take the meat off the bones and maybe Gordon would eat it in a sandwich.  Or maybe he will take it to work and see if anyone can guess what it is?  (BTW, only 4 (or less) more weeks till baby Bross arrives!  Can't wait!)
  
  Well, the rest of the meal was good, especially the home-made ice-cream and birthday cake......
  
  
  Happy 24th birthday to Gordon!  We love having you part of our family!  Please be careful next year what you want for your birthday, though.  Dave might decide to provide it for you!
  All jokes aside . . .  some day we may be only too happy to eat groundhog, oh! I mean woodchuck, and I am positive in other countries they would be very grateful for it.   They are an animal that feeds off of grass and not garbage or rotten whatever that pigs eat.  And did you ever think what chickens peck at?  But, how we love sausage and fried chicken!  Like I said, I think it comes down to the getting it past our minds and noses and what we are accustomed to.  So, if a woodchuck would . . . . get roasted, would you try it?
  Until next time..............

The Prodigal Son's Mother

Friday, 01 July 2011

• The Prodigal Son's Mother

  The scriptures have quite a few wonderful parables, but the one that I ponder on the most is the one involving the prodigal son.  I think it intriques me because there are some unanswered questions about the whole situation.  Here is the story . . .  There was a man who had 2 sons and the younger one says to his father "Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth me".  In other words, "Dad, I want my share of the inheritance.  I want everything that I will get when you pass away, but I want it now.  I don't want to wait."  So the father hands it over, the son takes it and very soon turns all the assets into cold hard cash and wastes every penny on "riotous" living.  Did he think to invest it for the future?  Nope!  He has no thought for the future, or he would have never asked for his inheritance in the first place.  He wants to live it up and do whatever his flesh desires, and that is exactly what he did, but only for a short time.  Very soon, he became a boy with no possessions, no money and no friends.  In the midst of all this, a "mighty" famine comes upon the land, and he is in dire straights.  He finds a farmer who raises pigs and could use an extra hand and the boy is sent into the fields to feed them.  The job of feeding pigs was considered a very low down degrading job, especially for a Jew.  He became so hungry and desperate that all he wanted was to eat the pig food and to fill his belly, but even that was forbidden him.  The reality of his situation, thoughts of his home, all the luxuries that were being enjoyed by those living there, brought him to the end of himself and to repentence.  He decided he was going to go home to his father, confess his sins, ask for forgiveness and be content to be considered a servant, for he did not feel worthy to be called a son anymore.   You can only imagine how he looked . . . dirty, skinny, tattered and defeated.  He makes his way towards home and his father sees him coming way down the road, feels compassion, runs to him and kisses him.   The story goes on with the father asking the servants to kill the fatted calf and prepare a party.  It continues on telling about the older brother, and that is very interesting also, but I want to stop here.  This is such a moving picture of God lovingly waiting for those who have left Him or those who have never submitted their lives to Him.  I love this picture!  Reading over this parable I also have questions . . . .  how old was this boy?  what drove him to the point of wanting to leave home?  And he knew that by getting his inheritance early, he would no longer have any claims to his father's property.  What was the family home life like?  Did he have more siblings?  And where was his mother?  She is not mentioned at all, so possibly she was no longer living.  But maybe she was and maybe every day she stood watching for him while she done the dishes, or every time she passed a window she would pull back the curtain and peer down the road.  Maybe she would weep in her husband's arms, and he would reassure her that he was watching and waiting also and one day they would see their son again.  Maybe she wondered if she could've done something different to prevent this from happening.  Maybe she thought her husband didn't handle the situation correctly, or maybe she wondered why the younger son was rebellious and the older son so compliant?  I can only imagine the thoughts that would have been swirling around in her head, and I can imagine her sadness and pain in thinking of her son out in the world without her.  I can imagine that each day she knelt down and prayed for him, for his safety and salvation.  The parable lacks details, but if you are a parent, you can put yourself in this father's, and possibly mother's, shoes.   Did they think they messed up as parents and it was their fault he left?  How did they respond to the local gossip that was whispered through the streets?  I don't know the anwers to these questions, but I do know for sure that we have a Heavenly Father who is lovingly peering down the road watching . . . . watching and waiting for His son or daughter to come home . . . to come to Him with all the dirt and filth, with empty, hungry bellies and He will run to meet them, kiss away the hurts, wash away the filth and prepare a feast. There would be rejoicing for the prodigal has come home.   Oh, what a picture................
  Until next time...............