A sad day

We started hauling off the remaining 5 cows today. This afternoon I took my cow Anna (in the picture below...isn't she the most prettiful cow you've ever seen?) and another cow to the stock pen. They'll be sold tomorrow. *sigh* The last 3 cows will be taken off in the morning. Sad day. :O( I can't remember the last time these fields did NOT have cows on them. Jacob sold all of his goats the other day, so this is one quiet farm now. No moo-ing. No maa-ing. All I hear is a rooster crowing.

What? Who me? No, I'm not crying. I haven't shed a single tear all day. (But I did cry a bucketful yesterday) :O)

I will be glad when the wearisome drought is over.
II Chronicles 7:13-14 If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people; If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Back to the lake....

Monday afternoon found us out on the lake again. It was hot, but we picnicked in the most shady, cool place! We anchored at the bottom of a rock cliff. It was just so peaceful and relaxing. Those barbecue sandwiches and icy cold Dr. Peppers sure hit the spot! I could've stayed there for hours!

Took an interesting picture while Rachel was dangling her feet in the water....

And this, ladies and gentlemen, is one content man.Along other news, it's still smooth sailing with school. We set specific goals for each of the kids in the beginning of the year, and they all seem to be moving in the right direction. We're thankful for that.

As far as the farm goes....well, we're still VERY dry here and the pasture is turning brown again quickly. Unless things change this week, we'll be selling the remaining 5 cows this weekend. :O( We just don't have much choice at this point. So....*sigh*....anyway, that's just the way it's gotta be for now. Lord willing, we can start over in the spring. We'll just see what the Lord has when springtime comes. :O)

That's about all for now. Hope everybody is well and happy!

The Boat

For those of you who know Matt....you know that he's wanted a boat for years now. Well, this past Monday, he took the plunge and finally bought the boat of his dreams. After recovering from the shock (we never thought he'd actually do it), I must admit we spent a very enjoyable Monday on Cherokee Lake. We rode out to Cherokee Dam (about 10 miles) then stopped at one of the many islands near the dam to eat and take a break before heading back home. *sigh* These big boys and their toys! Oh well....at least it's something the whole family can enjoy together! :O) I think we'll just have to make the best of it....shouldn't be hard to do. I've got a feeling I know where we'll be this weekend! :O)

Campout!

Rachel and Katie decided (absolutely positively for sure) that they were going to "camp out" in the back yard last night. They put up the tent, put their pillows and blankies inside, got into some comfy sleeping clothes, then settled in for a nice, cozy night. Oh, and just for security purposes, they put our killer pup, Diamond, in the tent with them. The dog loved it, but of course, she was the first one to conk out for the night. It was about 10:00 pm last night when they finally got settled in for the night. How long did they last?? Actually, alot longer than I thought. Rachel came in about 11:30...oh it wasn't that she was scared or anything like that. No siree Bob. She came in because her "tummy" hurt. Really. Felt much better once she got inside. :O) So anyway, Katie and Diamond hung in there until about 12:30. Katie's teeth were chattering (it got down to 54 degrees last night) so she came in and got in her bed. In the end, only Diamond remained. :O) But they all had fun trying. Another memory made.

Field trip!

Yay! We all love field trip days! Today we went to the Nathanael Greene Museum in Greeneville, TN. We never dreamed they'd have so much "stuff" in this place! We were pleasantly surprised. Though the museum is named after Nathanael Greene, they have just one or two artifacts of his. Instead, it covers much of Greene County's history, and was really was very interesting.
It contains many artifacts from Andrew Johnson's life....

Lots of old antique farm tools that were used in this area....
Tons of Civil War relics...Katie would ONLY pose with the Confederate soldier :O)....
There was also a room called the Greene Adventure Room where kids can go and "pretend" lots of things. Rachel was an "old" pioneer woman....
And Katie enjoyed posing as Davy Crockett. :O)
Jacob was busy looking at all the "serious" stuff. :O) All in all, it was a very interesting day...educational too. Yesterday was a school holiday (Labor Day) and today was a field trip. Tomorrow we have GOT to get back to the books! :O)

Just a brief update!

All is well on the homefront here, and hope all is well wherever y'all are! Let's see...nothing new and exciting to report...we're just going on with our little routine around here (which is fine with me!)

Garden is putting out a few tomatoes, bunches of okra (pronounced okree), and just a few cantaloupe. The cantaloupe are on the small side, but very juicy and yummy!

School is moving right along. Between the three different grade levels, we're covering everything from multiplication tables to thesis statements...and everything in between. :O)The new pup, Diamond is just full of her little wild puppy-self. She drags off anything that isn't nailed down! I'll be glad when the puppy stage is over. She's just so cute though!Thought I'd also post a few pictures of my little helpers in the kitchen. Here's Katie making some fried cornbread (mostly unassisted) and Rachel in charge of the stove. How nice that they're old enough to be such a big help!

Busy, but fun week!

I'll start this post by saying....I decided not to post any pictures of my beautiful canned produce. (Do I hear a roar of applause out there?) :O) And, YES, I have been canning again! Want a rundown on our winter store? Wonderful! I'd be glad to share that information with you...since you asked, of course. So here we go:
Tomatoes - 54 jars
Salsa - 5 jars
Green Beans - 61 jars
Apple Jelly - 3 jars
Chow Chow - 4 jars
Cucumber Relish - 14 jars
New Potatoes - 6 quarts
Freezer Pickles - 7 containers...but these little babies aren't going to survive the winter. We're eating them so fast I only have 3 containers left!
I'll probably still have more tomatoes to can. (We use alot of tomatoes in the winter for soups and chili and casseroles.) But I think the bulk of the tomatoes have already been squirreled away.
Along with other news, Joel, (Matt's brother) and his wife, Ivy, have been in from California for a visit and we have thoroughly enjoyed spending time with them! We don't get to see them often enough.
And....HAPPY 50th ANNIVERSARY to my sweet Mommy and Daddy!! Not only are they blessed with a long and happy marriage, but I consider myself VERY blessed to have them. :O) Anyhoo...that's just a (very) brief update of what we've been up to this week. Be posting again soon!! Tata for now!