The Abscess

The weeks and weeks of rain paid off with a nice cutting of hay.  I hope to be mob grazing next year with movable fencing and then keep standing hay for winter. This year, though, we needed to get some hay put up for winter food for cattle and sheep.

It is always nice to get the field cut. It looks tidy and trim. I am hoping we get some good rain the next few weeks so that it will grow nice and tall before the first frost in October.

Molly has yet to fully recover from foot rot. Her back foot is still bothering her so I had the vet come out and tend to it.

Cows are not like horses in that they do not volunteer to have their feet held up and inspected. We got Molly into the milking stanchion to feed her grain and then proceeded to tie her back foot and pull it up and out with a rope so the vet could look at it.

He cleaned it all out of muck and then saw the issue. She did have a considerable abscess on the bottom. He slit it open and was able to get a fair amount of thick pus out.

She is still not walking very well, although some swelling has gone down. We gave her another antibiotic shot last night, hoping to see more rapid improvement in a day or so.

In the meantime, I am keeping her close so I can watch her and feed her.

I have 4 cows I am sending to a neighbors farm to  be bred by his beef bull soon. While sorting out those 4 cows, I noticed one had a huge and hard udder. 

Annabelle has been dry for several months, but I brought her in to see if it was a milk issue.

I was not an udder full of milk, but it was swollen and very hard, so I had the vet check her out too.

It was an abscess as well, so he slit and drained the huge volume of pus. I do not know how she got this infection, as it could have come from a simple poke by a twig. It was gross though and I am sure she feels better with it drained.

I am also keeping her close to watch her and make sure it keeps draining some. 

Meanwhile, Indiana and Willow got to spend a night with their grandparents. I was in charge of their chores and discovered one of Indy's pigeons had escaped. I tried for two days to catch her but failed. Luckily nothing got her during the day or night, and Indiana was able to catch her. 

Finally, I am slowly getting my homeschool books and activities and schedule figured out. One activity Rose wanted to do was sew a quilt for her bed.

I found a free pattern that is quite simple and pretty and then we ordered her fabric. She has it sorted out and should be ready to start sewing this weekend. The pattern uses pre-cut fabrics known as a Layer Cake.  I am excited to see her finished quilt top!

Also, in preparation for the school year, I am decluttering and deep cleaning the house....room by room. It will take me an entire month, but so far I have deep cleaned one bathroom and the laundry room. I focus better when the house is clean, and I know the days will get more hectic as the wedding of Journee and Jared gets near. Like I said, one room at a time. I have a list of all the rooms and I mark them off as I finish them. 

Happy Thursday Ya'll!

Peace,

Sam

Enjoy the Ride

I have been up off my feet for a week now. Today my foot is only slightly swollen, but it sure does throb still.

I am referring to my wild weekend, a week ago. It was my high school class reunion weekend, and like everything I do, I have a great time. Here is the picture from that weekend, and it perfectly sums up me and Devin. Life is nothing if it is not a big, fun adventure.

It started out nice enough with a dinner and a local music club. My BFF brought her family up from Atlanta and we headed out for a fun night with high school pals.

After dinner, we headed to a local joint that was featuring an 80's cover band. Who could resist that kind of excitement? Well, not us.
The next day we decided to throw together an impromptu back yard gathering at the farm. We had a spread of food, lots of marshmallows and chairs tucked in around a fire pit. Add some great friends and conversation, and you have the makings of a fabulous evening.

Then there was Sunday.

                                     ****My cheering section during the volleyball match****

Sunday was the day of the Alumni Volleyball match. I played volley ball back in the day, so very long ago. Among the more young alumni, there were was me and 2 other gals. We were the "oldest" of the players, but we had a great time playing. I had a fabulous time playing until I experienced my very first sports injury ever.

I fell on my ankle and tore the ligaments. Although I am very happy a bone did not break, my week has consisted of limping around in pain.

 

It was a memorable weekend. It is lovely how friends can be separated by so many years, and yet feel like the best of friends still when they are together. Years can separate us, but history keeps us close.

We are planning a gathering for October and hope to keep meeting every couple of months, despite our busy work and parenting obligations.

 

Finally, because I wanted to branch out and get back to my interests rarely followed since having kids, I rested my foot all day Monday and then attended an audition for a play at a local theater. I am finally at a stage in life when I can leave in the evenings for an activity, so the timing seemed right.

I am happy to say that I got a part and will be performing in October.

 

This, of course, means only one thing. I must get my schedule ready and planning in gear for the school year and farm year. We will begin some lessons the first week of September and I suspect Lucy will be calving by that time, or close to it.

 

It's all in the logistics and planning. I will be busy this week planning meals, lessons and activities.

The Shiitakes have been fruiting this week as well, so I hope to get some dehydrated for winter use.

 

We also got a new batch of meat bird chicks to process in October and placed an order for pullet chicks to be delivered in 2 weeks. My laying hen numbers are low and I am hoping to replenish my flock by spring. The farm never stops.

Sometimes you just have to hang on and enjoy the ride.

Happy Monday Ya'll!


The Wayward Tooth Fairy

Back when we had only a couple of kids, we had a really great tooth fairy. She always managed to sneak in while the children were fast asleep and trade a baby tooth for 2 shiny quarters. She had another fabulous quality too: She was always prompt!

As our family grew, her reliability waned. It would not be uncommon to find a tooth still sitting in a child's room the next day. I guess she had a really busy night sometimes...or maybe she was extra tired and dozed off to sleep before 9pm.

Whatever the issue was, the children could get her to come back the next night if they would draw for her a pretty picture. This was, of course, my suggestion.

"Oh! I bet if you draw her a pretty picture she will come back with 3 or 4 shiny quarters!"

It always worked. The tooth fairy has quite a collection of pretty pictures, most of them have dollar signs drawn on them too. My kids are so very subtle with their hints.

Fast forward to present day. The tooth fairy has a fairly easy job these days. She no longer has to find a tooth in a dark bedroom. No, that was becoming too much of a chore to walk upstairs and sneak around the bedroom. These days the kids use a cute little chicken treasure box to place their tooth inside. It even sits majestically on the kitchen counter for all to see (and hopefully not forget)!

Rose lost a tooth last night and she placed it inside the chicken box for the tooth fairy. The tooth fairy had Rose's tooth on her mental list of things to do during the night.
I really don't know exactly when the tooth fairy became so wayward, but it happened, nonetheless. I try not to focus on negatives anyway.

Oh that wayward fairy! She somehow forgot to pick up the tooth and leave 2 shiny quarters. Poor Rose!
Of course I reminded Rose that the fairy really enjoyed pretty pictures, and I urged Rose to get busy with a drawing. I suppose even Rose is a little tired of the tooth fairy antics, because she didn't even want to bother with using crayons for her picture. Take THAT wayward tooth fairy!

Hopefully the tooth fairy will make an early stop here to the house with 4 shiny quarters for Rose, assuming the snow storm doesn't keep her from making it to the house.
She really is a pathetic tooth fairy, Devin and I both agree, and we are both grateful our kids can be bought off with only quarters.

Happy Snow Day Ya'll!

Follow Through: Large Family Management

One of the most often asked questions I receive is about chores and how I manage to get things done.

I am not going to lie. I do get *lots* done in a day, but do not think for a second that *everything* needing to get done happens. My house is a disaster right now. I am waiting until spring weather, and we will take a week off to deep clean and organize.
The kids will be helping, of course. Chores are what keeps this house running smoothly.

Chores are part of life. Chores teach kids about responsibility and about contributing to the group. Chores build self confidence and allows one be an active member of the group.
Chores, which are part of a daily routine, should not be "paid chores."
Chores are what keep a mom sane. Seriously.

In this house I have a chore chart. It rotates weekly.

Rotating weekly will make sure the kids are learning all the chores and it also keeps them from feeling bored of the same chore. I have my oldest and youngest daughter paired up so the younger one can have a "mentor" as she learns. 



Now, in this house things such as making a bed, bringing down dirt laundry, cleaning the bedroom , etc are NOT consider chore chart chores. They are, instead, considered something that is done without a second thought. Wake up and make your bed. You shouldn't need a chart for that task.

I admit my chart is ready for a revamp too, as my oldest is in college and working a job. She is often times not here and the others must pick up the slack.

Outside and farm related chores are an entirely different ballgame. I have no chart for those chores. I have no sense of *fairness* or equal distribution either. Here's is how farm chores work: I decide who does what and things get done. It can change daily too.

Typically Quinn stays inside to clean the kitchen and filter milk while I head outside to milk cows. Indiana and Willow feed all the outside animals and fill water troughs. The young boys hang out with me while I milk. Even at their young ages, the boys learn quite a bit about cows and milking just by watching and talking to me.

There are, of course, days when I have so many projects in the works that I assign the milking chores to Indiana or Journee. Both girls are great cow milkers and I trust them to fill my shoes. Of course, there was a process of them learning this task. I taught them both how to milk so that I would have some back up. It is really nice for days when I am making a batch of cheddar!

Of course there is always the question of how I manage to get the kids on board with all of this work plus their school work. I have a simple answer: Follow through.

Follow through is the most powerful weapon in the parenting arsenal. The kids learn quickly to follow through on their chores and responsibilities when you, as the parent, show them you have great follow through with punishment.

If I threaten to take away all electronic devices for a week due to lack of chore or school follow through on their part, trust me when I say I make good on my threats. I always follow through. Always. Even if it makes my life a pain in the bootie, I follow through.

The kids know I am serious because I have proven myself.

                               *The little ones playing a game before chores and school*

As with anything, your attitude will reflect on to the kids, so keep a positive attitude towards chores.....but always follow through. You'll be glad you did and so will your kids!

Happy Monday Ya'll!

Large Family Meals: Fast Food

*This is not a paid review. The authors of this book have not asked me to review it. This is just my opinion and experience, hoping it can help others families.*

Like most large family moms, I spend about half my day (everyday) thinking about food and meals and grocery lists. It can be an exhausting aspect of running a large household but it offers many lessons in being prepared and organized.

Of course there will be days when activities consume the day and meals are difficult to prepare. There are also days when one or more family members is sick and meals are difficult to get on the table.
Ya'll I am the first person who LOVES a greasy fast food burger, seriously, but I really do try to eat healthy and I haven't the cash to be buying burgers for 7 kids at a whim.
 Prepared moms have a plan, and after a few hours of work yesterday I am once again a prepared one.

Enter freezer meals.
I admit right now that I am not a lover of casseroles. I am not a fan of processed cream of anything soups. Many of the freezer meal plans have never worked for me, until I found this book

.
This book does have casseroles, but it also has food such as Sweet Asian Chicken. This meal consists of chicken pieces frozen in a homemade marinade that, once thawed, is cooked as a stir fry you can eat over rice.
I also made Pecan Crusted Chicken. This dish is again chicken frozen in marinade. The instructions include a separate bag to freeze that contains a special panko and pecan breading to roll the chicken through once thawed. The result is a delicious crispy baked chicken strip.

Of course those two examples require a minimal amount of preparation for a home cooked meal. For days when I just have no time at all I did prepare a couple of casseroles. I made lasagna (my kids' favorite), chicken enchiladas (my favorite) and a chicken-broccoli bake that is served over rice.

A new recipe I also made consisted of making and pre-baking Salisbury Meatballs that have been frozen with a made from scratch Salisbury sauce. Once thawed it can be reheated in a skillet and eaten over mashed potatoes.

Finally, I decided to prep for quick lunches, especially for Journee, who is working 2 jobs and attending school full time. I cooked up refried beans and seasoned ground beef to make 30 bean and beef burritos. These are wrapped individually and ready for a quick heat up.

You will not find any cream of soups in this book either. All of the sauces are made from scratch and are simple. There is also advice on exactly how to organize a grocery list for this type of bulk shopping and meal prep.

I chose foods that can be eaten with rice because I have a rice cooker. Families need rice cookers! It is an absolutely easy way to cook wholesome rice without making a mess and it is very quick. Rice in bulk is inexpensive and versatile. Rice cookers will also keep the rice warm after cooking, so you don't have to be perfect in your meal timing either.

A few hours of kitchen time resulted in 18 entrees and 30 burritos. This will be a great supplement to my  weekly meal planning, and on hectic days I know that I have meals ready to go.

Of course I now have the task of organizing my freezers and making sure I have everything where I can see it. This picture of my freezer is just what I made yesterday, but I still need to pack my roasts and chickens back in the space. My morning should be interesting.

Now all I have is to finish going through school books that arrived via my favorite brown truck yesterday.

Happy weekend ya'll!

A Cold Reminder

I am back from the living dead. OK, that might be a little dramatic, but I must admit that having a bad head cold in the middle of summer is not fun at all. Of course when is a cold ever fun?

Being sick when you are single is one thing, but adding a farm and 7 kids into the mix takes on a whole new meaning. With that said I was reminded this week of some important aspects to running a large family.

1. It pays to teach your kids early how to do chores. This week would have really been terrible except Indiana and Willow are well versed in farm chores and they managed to keep everything done on time. This includes milking the cows. Journee and Quinn kept the house picked up and everyone pitched in caring for the youngest 2 kids. Laundry? They can all do that as well, so at least I didn't have to worry about daily house and farm chores.

2. I do not have nearly enough meals frozen and ready in my freezers. I would love to say that we ate healthy meals while I was down, but that is so far from the truth I am ashamed. I think some pizza and taco takeout were eaten, you know , the take out crap. What can I say? Lunch was peanut butter and jelly sandwiches but dinner was a quest for anything. Normally, in months when I have my act together, we have several meals in the freezer for hectic days and times when I am not up to par. Today I plan to write up a store list and menu plan and get my act together.

3. Blue Bloods is now one of my favorite shows. Yes, I laid in bed and watched several episodes now that it is on Hulu. Tom Selleck and Donnie Wahlburg? (sigh) I have always liked shows about the NYPD, I am a life long fan of NYPD Blue, and now I have a new show to love.
 Of course, this has nothing to do with managing a large family except sometimes mom needs a show to watch.

Now that I am back with the living, I am trying to get everything organized for the new school year.
Yesterday I spent hours at the kitchen table organizing curriculum and getting a *plan* ready for the first 12 weeks of school.

One thing I am doing differently this year is our math. I have always used Math U See until the kids get to Algebra and then I switch them to Teaching Textbooks. This year everyone is using Teaching Textbooks, except Zeb (kindergarten).
It was an expensive switch, but I think it will work best. Math U See made changes to their books several years ago I never did like, and Teaching Textbooks has been a good program.

We are also going to concentrate on one state each Friday. This is an idea I learned from  Kris at Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers. We will start with the west coast and move east.

It's all in the logistics. It's all in keeping things organized. It's all in having a nice cup of coffee each morning to get motivated!

Happy Sunday Ya'll!

The Real Life

It has been a crazy day. Crazy.
In case any of ya'll look at this here blog and think we have our act together and that I have everything under control all of the darn time, I am going to bust that myth.

We live a real life over here.

If you look past the house lamb wearing a diaper, the shoes on the floor, the table piled with books, and the other various items strewn all over the floor and table, you will notice two brood boxes.
We getting all of our milking buckets ready when I got a call from the post office this morning to come get my baby chicks, only I hadn't ordered any chicks.
Apparently the hatchery was confused and sent me my chicks that I had received 4 weeks ago. Yes, I have 105 meat chicks  now in addition to the 100 I have outside on pasture. It was a huge hatchery mix up.
I am happy that my girls were able to construct brood boxes last minute for me.

While we were milking Rose hurt her knee jumping on the trampoline. It was nothing serious, but we wrapped it and gave her ibuprofen under the advisement of her doctor, also known as her daddy.

Today she will be taking life easy and not putting weight on her knee much.
*Please note that my living room has toys, books and the other boot on the floor.

I had high hopes of finishing up a sewing project this week, but just look at my sewing room!
Yes, it is also my laundry room, but I am usually able to keep it halfway cleaned up. This morning I can hardly find my machines, and that kitty cat there managed to once again unthread my serger. (Grrr)

Today would be a great day to start some spring cleaning except, you know, I am overwhelmed with farm animals and an upcoming prom for my two oldest.

Life is messy, and when you have a large family and a farm it can get messy often.

Today I will focus on the most important aspects: 1. Feeding and caring for kids and animals 2. Feeding myself  3. Reminding myself that this is a real life and some days are just crazy 

Seriously, this kid isn't bothered by a mess or disorganization. Why should I?

Happy Thursday Ya'll!!! Hope you are blessed to have a real life too!

Chore Chart Update

My little Rose has been begging to get her name on the "chart." She, of course, is referring to the chore chart. Although she does have certain chores to do each day, she really wants to be part of the big kid chores. I have been mean to get a new chart made since Christmas but today I actually sat down and crafted a new chart.

I simply cut the center out of a paper plate and drew lines to divide it into 4 sections. Instead of giving Rose her own section, I simply added her with Journee. The idea is that Journee can help show her how to complete chores plus she can simply assist Journee with certain chores she could not possibly do on her own, such as bathing the boys. Rose can gather towels and pajamas for Journee easily as well as carry dirty clothes to the laundry.
Each week the chores change by turning the center name section.

I cannot stress how important small tools like a chore chart help make a large household run smoothly. There are certain chores the kids like least, such as dragging the trash cans to the end of our drive. This chart makes sure that each child takes on that chore equally. The chart also allows everyone to master each chore.
We have had this type of chart for 2 years now and it works very well.

I usually hang the chart on my kitchen window, just above my sink, but I am going to hang it on my Picasso style cork board in the kitchen instead. I am a little worried the boys will play and pull on it, but we will give it a try and see what happens.

So now I have completed my chore of working up a new chore chart, and my Rose is one happy girl!

Happy weekend ya'll!