Busy Saturday

 It's a busy day around here. Eric is busy harrowing the field and i can only stand here in amazement to think that i have a boy old enough to drive a tractor! How is this possible???!!! My boys are growing up to be fine young men and i am rather proud of them. Secretly of course. ;) Eric is also heading towards teenage years and let's just say mom no longer is the smart woman he thought she was for the first 12 years of his life. Still trying to figure out how a mama is supposed to treat her little/big boys.

 Ah yes, the first sign of spring. Daffodils. A girl i know and love presented me with my first yellow flowers of the year.

And here's my cheerful little helpers. Caleb was loving helping Emily to clean and i had to snap a picture. Now, lest you think we're just one big happy family without any problems, i can assure you that if you could hear the two year old of the family you would tell me to get off the computer and go "train up a child." So with no further ado, good by and happy weekend.

Mud, Cats, and Elderly Childbirth

I know, you thought i've forgotten about my blog.....and you. I haven't, it's just that there are SO MANY things I should be doing instead of sitting at the computer. I don't have anything exciting to brighten your day. But I do have mud....lots and lots of mud. You have never seen mud until you've waded through Snyder county mud.....on a farm....with cows.....and manure.....and many small males.......with many small boots.....and no stones. There's no stones in the forecast and so i brace myself for a muddy future. I used to get frustrated with my very practical mother when i was a very unpractical teenager. Practical was boring!!! Now i thank Jesus for a mother who had the foresight to have a big laundry with many closets to hide the soggy, muddy clothing and boots. I also thank Jesus for children to clean those nasty closets. I have other things to do. Like blog.

Anyone want to volunteer to clean my basement? For those of you who are considering a house cat, basements aren't really the best place to keep a cat. Outside is better........more litter box choices.

So now i have mud and a less than desirable basement.  But i do have many desirable children who have informed me that it is high time to add to the numbers. Preferably in triplet size this time, but they'll take twins if that's all i can manage. Eric has also taken the opportunity to encourage me to continue bearing children for at least 20 more years. Somehow the thought of labor and childbirth at the ripe age of 55 makes me feel less like celebrating and more like curling in a fetal position. I'm all for labor and childbirth (or the results of labor and childbirth) and i hope to experience a bit of that yet, but at 55 i will be very content to help Eric's wife figure out how to give birth. I do believe at that point of my life, I will be happy to celebrate my love for my man without the labor and childbirth part.

So there's my life at the moment. Mud and children. What more could a woman ask for.

Woodcutting.........and more.

It was woodcutting day at the farm. Lots of people, lots of wood and lots of food. It was great..........at first we weren't sure it was even going to happen, with the freezing rain and misery outside but in true Weaver fashion, the woodcutting happened anyway. And when the Weaver's get together, there's bound to be excitement. We had a truck and trailer stuck in the back pasture, a large tractor roaring in to help, and a small minivan that was needed for the large tractor in the pasture before the tractor could rescue the truck......still not sure how all that happened, especially the minivan part. I looked out the kitchen window in time to see the aforementioned minivan backing 2/3rd's of the way up the pasture before gaining much speed to make it up over the hill. The ladies encouraged the situation with many donuts, much coffee and large mugs of milk. From inside.........

Jonathan and Caleb spent all morning in the drizzling rain, "helping" and eating donuts like men.

My brother-in-law Matt and son Ringo splitting wood. I'm telling you, this gang knows how to work!!

Yep, that's the line up for supper and that's only about half the people. We had over 30 people in this house, which meant over 60 shoes in the laundry, and many piles of soggy coats, hats, mittens and gloves. It was great!!

Marlin's sister Dorcas, cutting donuts instead of wood. She is pregnant with number 7...beautiful, isn't she? And yes, that's Jacob eating raw donut dough. Being a relaxed mama is a good thing.

Emily and her cousin Vicki, who helped to fry the donuts and was my right hand lady the whole weekend in the kitchen.

I have so many other blog posts rolling around my mind......serious ones, the kind that have been burning on my heart, but the kind that can only be written when the moment is right. Some of those kind never get written............For us personally, God is taking us through another time of testing, stretching our faith and at the same time, drawing us closer together as a family. Our children are learning that nothing is too small to pray for, even another sick calf who is most certainly going to die.......they see their strong daddy fighting for it's life and they see mama eating yet another piece of cheesecake. (didn't expect that one did you.....actually, they have seen me eating very little cheesecake as i have mostly been eating it in hiding.) It's life, and it's what makes or breaks us and through it all, i look at my husband and i'm like, "come to mama!" He has never been more handsome to me or more manly........but since you really did not come to my blog to hear all that, i will now say, "adios" and good night.

Sour Cream

So you want to make your own sour cream, aye? O, you didn't know that? That's ok, i'm here to tell you that you want to make your own. Especially when you read the list of ingredients that are on the back of the average container of sour cream. I have been shocked....i mean, how many ingredients does it take to make sour cream? Well, it takes exactly two, and you don't even need a powdered culture from a specialty store, just two things from the grocery store (or homemade if you have a few cows lying around) and a few sophisticated pieces of ingredients. A bowl, some wash pins and a fuzz free cloth, such as an old clean t-shirt. Hey, in redneck country you learn to make do with what you have. Wally world is just too far away and all those electronic devices and people make hillbillies nervous. (Excuse me while i spit.......we had a spitting contest outside today and i almost hit Marlin's muck boots. Makes his heart feel fuzzy when i do stuff like that...happy to oblige)

So here's what you do. You may want to write this down so you don't forget. You take one cup of yogurt and one cup of buttermilk. Are you ready for this? You mix it together, take your cut up old (preferably a clean one if you have it) t-shirt, lay it over a bowl, pin it securely with your washpins and here's the hard part. You carefully pour your yogurt and buttermilk mixture into the t-shirt and let it sit overnight to let the whey drain out and voila! you've got sour cream. Yup, tastes just like the real thing. Things like that make me real happy, which makes for more saliva, which means i may yet beat my men at spitting contests.

We had a good Sunday evening. My parents were gone and we decided to have a simple family evening, eating popcorn and drinking chocolate milk and playing Apples to Apples. The kids just love that game and it's always fun to listen to them argue their points for why we should choose their cards. After food and games, we all sat around the living room while i read them a story of a street child, somewhere in South America, and how she found Jesus in the end. I had read it in the afternoon and it struck a chord deep within my heart and i knew i had to read it to the children. Eric had tears in his eyes by the time i was finished and all he wanted to do was build a gigantic house and start bringing these children in. Emily kept saying what a rich child she is and the twins sucked their thumbs and argued over daddy's lap, while Jacob crawled around, trying to find someone who would let him bite them. You know, that story really made me think. What are we really here for? It's so easy to get caught up in "life" and making a living, but is that all we want for our children? Is that all we want for ourselves? It is our heart that there would be placed deep within our children's souls a deep compassion for the lost, and an urgency to spend themselves for Jesus Christ, whether that's in America, or whether that's in another country. How dare we hold back out of fear, or out of the whole, "we are Americans and don't want either ourselves or our children to suffer" mentality. Or maybe that's not just an American mentality but a human nature mindset. :( Whatever the case, i pray that God would see fit to continue to use me for His kingdom, and right now, that means serving right where i am. I don't need to worry about next year or even tomorrow. It is enough that i pour myself out today.

Onto other things.......for those who are wondering how my father's house is coming along. We are hoping to start painting this week and Lord willing, the kitchen will be installed the first wknd. in November. Hopefully by the end of November they will be enjoying their new home and we will once again be a family. That also means that we will be inviting many friends to come up and enjoy weekends with us, or even just an evening. I am so proud of my dad for how he has been working. Not many 63 year olds would be building their own house by themselves. We had a couple of work days and a few people here and there who helped, and someone else is finishing the drywall, but other than that, he did it alone. It's how he wanted to do it, and he has pushed himself hard, so i think no one will be more excited than him to be finished. Well, i think we'll all be equally excited around here......

And for my friends who blessed me with parmesan cheese? You are the best. ;)

Beauty and Recreation......farmer style

Sometimes a girl needs a little beauty in her life. Sometimes it's new shoes, new curtains........or hamburgers carefully shaped, staggered, and stacked with parchment papers in between. Just like a butcher shop or a gourmet whole foods. I think i need a life.

Farm life has a way of changing a person. Take, for example, a denim skirt that i had tucked away in our other house. I was going to throw it away cause i thought it looked tired and wore out. After all, my man was working with carefully dressed women every day and i didn't want him coming home to a hag. We moved and i found the skirt the other day. I held it up for inspection and much to my surprise, it looks almost new. Wow, how exciting, to be living in my very own thrift store. I also ironed Marlin's barn shirts before we moved. Now i only hit the biggest creases on his Sunday shirts and figure it'll be wrinkly before we get to church anyway. Let me tell you, the children get dirty like no other and their mama? Spotless, crisp and edges pressed razor sharp. O wait, that was Marlin's pants in another life. I feel clean as long as i don't stay sticking to the sink. It doesn't help that we now have open ditches coming right up to my back door. That's not a tan on Jacob, that's dirt! The ditches are for the new water lines for both us and my parents. Fortunately for the children, they also cracked the sewer line so there's a great cheer when someone heads for the bathroom. The front door flies open and there's a rush outside so they can watch the crack. Sure enough, it's like their very own "show and tell." O wow, check that out.........does this make us weird? Or, oh horrors, does that make us rednecks? According to our children we are. The boys informed Emily one day that we are rednecks and she most heatedly told them we are not. "Yup," says Zac, "we're farmers and that makes us rednecks." The same child also informed me yesterday that we no longer have to worry about being clean since we're now farmers. Son, does this house look like a barn? Do i look like a slop? Well, ok, please don't answer too honestly. Underneath the tomato stains, sweat rings and cow poop, i'm actually quite clean and dainty. And someday i might even act it. :)

Of cows and Salvation

Beautiful lush green pastures, brown faced cows, rich creamy milk...i tell the children it's like living in a calendar page. We love it and we feel so blessed. But there's another side to the picture perfect scene. We just lost a third of our cows to an incurable disease, a disease we thought they had been tested for before we bought them. A hard blow for my men, both big and small. A hard blow to our faith, to our trust in God, and to our pocketbook. Those cows were not bought on a whim, and they weren't bought without seeking advice. So what happened? Did we hear God wrong? Were we actually outside His will when all we wanted was to walk out what we thought He called us to? I don't have the answers to those questions but i'm convinced of one thing. Our children are worth it and our Heavenly Father is still good. And i know that none of this took Him by surprise. I don't want to "over spiritualize" here, as the reality of it all was pretty rough on us for a bit, but the fact remains, it's this kind of stuff that shows what we're made of. Either we trust God and let Him refine us through the whole thing, or we start panicking and lose all peace. We're not on the other side yet, but i know beyond a shadow of a doubt that God is bigger than cows, money, and raw milk permits. (which we're STILL waiting for!!) I saw my man grow up some more in the last 2 months and if the way i feel about him is any indication, i can only imagine how his Heavenly Father feels about him. He's one fine man! ;)

We also had the unbelievable joy of leading Eric to Christ last week. That has a way of putting everything into perspective. He had come to us several months ago and after Marlin asked him a few questions, he encouraged Eric to keep praying about the work God was starting in his heart. We felt that while God was clearly moving, Eric didn't feel that weight of sin at that point. Last Monday night, he came to us and wanted to talk. We had been watching some fantastic lightning behind beautiful white thunderclouds, and Marlin made the comment that maybe Jesus is on His way. Unknowing to us, that struck some serious fear in Eric's heart. So we talked again and Marlin gently pointed him to Jesus Christ, explaining that there isn't anything we can "do" to become a christian, but that we need to accept. We talked about sin, got on our knees and Eric was a broken young man. His mama was a mess too, although i didn't let on, but what a privilege!! He's still a child, (he'll be 11 in November) and i know that Jesus will lead him gently. The time will come when he will be called to a deeper surrender as his understanding grows but what a wonderful Saviour to surrender our children too. After Eric went to bed i told Marlin that Emily has been quite a challenge lately and i think it's high time she gets saved. Maybe she's under conviction? Should i ask her? Marlin told me to relax, God will lead her the same way He led Eric. You'd think i'd get the point but i tend to get over zealous and think in terms of "one down, 6 more to go." Ah well, it's a good thing i have a solid leader, don't you think?

So is life on the farm worth it? Are the uncertainties and the learning curves worth the opportunity to work together as a family? Well, it's only been a month but let me answer that question with a shout. YES!! I asked Marlin last night if he likes working at home and being around us every day. After all, if the daddy of the family doesn't like it, it doesn't matter much if the rest of us do or not. His answer left me no doubt. The farm isn't for every family, and milking isn't for every man. Of course, we're hoping to take it much farther than just milk, but cows and manure are a very big part of the picture. The changes we've seen in the boys are amazing. Eric and Marlin have a rapport that simply wasn't there before. They loved each other but working and sweating together just does something for a relationship. They've had their moments, believe me, but the way i see Eric looking at his daddy, and the way those two belly laugh over something is worth every second of uncertainty. Zac comes in from his morning of milking, (every Tuesday Eric has off milking and gets to sleep in til his heart's content) glowing with pride over being a part.

I guess there's always reality to keep a balance. Cows get sick and die, thunderstorms go around instead of giving much needed rain, and you now understand why most farms are operating in the red. Life is like that and through it all, you keep your chin up and remember that it's worth it. We're not in it because we thought we'd get rich, (although a little money now and then sure has a way of putting a person in a good mood), we're in it because we have a goal far more important than money. So far there are 7 reasons why we're here and they're worth every second.

And for school? Someday we might actually have time to sit down and "do school" but i've also realized why farmers laugh when you talk about schedules. "School" takes a back seat when there's a calf being born or big daddy Weav needs a hand in the barn. But after all, isn't life the best school there is? A time for everything and everything in it's time.

We have internet.............

and mice.......(the bounty number is at 9) and flies. Lots of them, zooming around my head, sitting on my food. I'm thankful for the the internet, not so much for the mice and flies. Farming. It's not for the fainthear-ted. Each time we catch yet another mouse i grow up just a bit more. I still scream like a banshee when Eric brings in a toad the size no toad should be, scaring my poor father half out of his wits and causing Eric to wonder why his mama is such a wimp. He stomps mice on the head, puts milkers on large animals, and runs the skidloader with confidence. It puzzles him to see me act like a female. I, on the other hand, stare in amazement at my rapidly maturing son. I am seriously impressed at his fearlessness.

It's been quite a month. One month ago we moved in and i wondered if we had lost our minds once and for all. I decided i didn't want to do this after all and i drove away from our other house, the van full to the top with stuff, tears filling my eyes. And i grew up some more.

I now can make a farmers breakfast with ease, finding joy in serving my growing men. Emily and i wash innumerable dishes and hang out an unbelievable amount of stained jeans. My little men have a continual ring of dirt around some part of their body and we're learning that cows have personalities. Unfortunately the small terrier that wanders around here does not. We're hoping it will do us a favor and die, but so far no such luck.

It's been a tough month, a stretching month, full of fluctuating emotions alternating between discouragement and fulfillment. And yet when it comes down to it there's only one option. To do the next thing and to do it with the best of our abilities. To pray for faith to keep walking in spite of the ups and sometimes serious downs, and in the middle of it all, to remember the first and foremost reason we are doing this in the first place. To walk with our children according to Deuteronomy 6.

And now for the quick update.....

My father's sale went pretty good, in spite of record temps. and Marlin and the boys are over cleaning up. We are fighting some pretty nasty colds so i would appreciate your prayers. Packing with a sore throat isn't my idea of fun, but we'll make it. All things work together for good, right?

Marlin's taking us out to our favorite little ice cream shop for pizza and ice cream one last time tonight. It's a little family run restaurant and they bring the pizza outside for us to eat. I'll miss it.

I'll be honest, this isn't an easy move for me. I know we're doing the right thing and i have a peace to continue walking, but i know it won't be an easy transition. But God is good and i get to be with my best friend and children every day. This move has only made me love him more. So between him and God? I'll be just fine!

Of paint and food

Picking out paint for a house can put an interesting twist on a marriage. Marlin leans towards the classy.....khaki, sage greens, warm earth tones. Me? My favorite color in the paint aisle was called sour lime. Delish! Marlin just shook his head but did say i could paint a small room that color. A very small room. I can't wait.........

We actually will be doing very little painting at first, simply due to monetary limits. We're painting the kitchen and living room so i don't feel all weird and like i actually never grew up and got married and left home, and even that may happen after moving day. It's just a funky feeling to move into your parents home, like i'm somehow going to turn into my parents. I love them dearly but that is most definitely not my goal in life.

As far as having my man around every day? LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!!! He takes the twins along as often as he can when he runs errands and that isn't because i ask. What's not to like about that? It's like Saturday every day except that we don't go out for ice cream in the evening. I have to admit that Marlin and i both went through a period of sadness about his job at Martin Appliance being over. It was a wonderful stage of life and i was quite surprised to having feelings of loss. We both have wondered what our life will look like in 10 years...........

Our tentative moving date is next weekend and then? Dial up internet! Which means i won't be using the computer very much, which means.........not many blog posts. Besides, i'll be running after cows and making butter, churning ice cream and cooking, cooking, and when i'm finished with that, cooking some more. No wonder farmer wives tend to be good cooks, and a bit on the round side. That seems to be all i'm doing lately and hopefully i will eventually become a decent cook, without the round look if i can help it.

And i must now go clean up after cooking all morning. Ta-da!

What's happening in the Weaver house?

This is the first week of our "new" life as farmers and yet not farmers. I know, that made a whole lot of sense but let me explain. We still haven't moved, which means whenever we are actually farmers, we have to drive 30 minutes first. We still aren't getting up early to milk, since my dad is doing most of the milking til we move. We also are enjoying the luxury of central air conditioning, which will come to a screeching halt after we become true farmers. No air in the farmhouse. As far as when that moving day is, we're not exactly sure. Sometime in the next 3 weeks, whenever all the details get ironed out. A wonderful time for me to be a wife and be able to follow, not lead. As i told a friend recently, my job description doesn't change, no matter what's happening in our life. Actually, a friend told me that once and i never forgot it. (Thanks Licia, you are truly walking it out in real life) Wherever we are, and whatever we are doing, i am first and foremost a wife and mother. It is not for me to carry the weight of the farm, the moving or even my mother. It is for me to continue to feed and clothe my family, love them, and most importantly of all, pray for them. I want to walk through this as a woman of grace, not a stressed out frazzled heap, sobbing my woes out to my man at the end of the day. There's a time and place for weeping and snotting all over Marlin, but God forbid i drag him down when he truly needs a helpmeet. And to be honest, i am walking in a peace that only comes from my heavenly Father. How gracious He is and how often i am amazed at how He's working out the littlest details as i continue to trust Him. A cup of good joe in the morning helps to. :)

My father's sale is in a couple weeks, which means much work, but again, i am simply amazed at how people are pouring themselves out for us. I have several aunts who are insisting on helping us houseclean my parents house, which is a big job and not only that, they are also bringing part of the meal. I'm telling you, i'm so very spoiled.......the work and unanswered questions, it's all worth it when we watch our sons careening down a very bumpy pasture on the wagon, turning it just in time to keep from hitting the fence, laughing hysterically at the joy of being young and carefree. Or to watch Eric turning into a young man, driving the van across the pasture as his big daddy follows in the 8N Ford. And the excitement as they get dressed to go to the farm with dad, it just blesses my heart. It puts everything into perspective. Sometimes i get scared, thinking of all the things that could go wrong, either financially or even with the safety of my boys. I mean, Eric fractured his arm the other week just horsing around in the front yard! Farms can be dangerous places, especially with 2 ponds, albeit small ones, and a set of 2 year old twins who have no clue what fear means. (They have no qualms about going right up to a cow and checking it out) What to do but pray and try and keep a close eye on them at all times, but face it, i'm not perfect and i'm not all seeing, but i know who is.........

Sometimes i just want to fast forward the next 3 months, but since that's not an option, i will simply have to continue taking one day at a time. And after all, that really is all i can do, aye?