family

Life on the funny farm

/ Jeanette / Leave a comment

It has been anything but funny around here. More like chaotic, overwhelming, stressful and a nightmare.

It all started with homestead problems. Our well started pumping sand. So that was a month before we could get our new one dug and an unexpected expense. Then we had one chicken problem after another, from incubators not holding temperature to sick chicks from a feed store. UGH you name it; it happened. There was a lot of lost on the homestead.

Then started the personal problems.

My oldest daughter moved across the country. It was for the best. She needed a reality check and she wasn’t getting it with Mom and Dad. So she moved in with my brother-in-law and his family. But it wasn’t the easiest thing to do.

Hubby’s business just died! Nothing for almost 2 months.

Then my granddaddy suddenly passed away. It was a long 2 days of being at the hospital. He went from walking, talking and living on his own to relying on a ventilator in a matter of 12 hours.

At the same time, we were in the middle of a huge homestead fence project. Thankfully, my hubby wasn’t working and he was able to be there for the kids and work on the project while I took care of what I had to do.

Then my special needs daughter start having a rough time. I guess it’s all too much for her. Too much change; too fast. So we found an autistic school that she will be attending next school year. That will give me a break and her something to do.

Next was my son’s unexpected surgery. He came through like a champ. But Momma was a wreck.

Now we are nearing the end of our fence project. My son is healing nicely. Hubby’s phone is ringing. And Brianna is getting ready for school.

So there’s an abbreviation of the past 3-4 months of my life.

It was anything but funny!

 

Country Cooking From a Redneck Kitchen~Book Review

/ Jeanette / Leave a comment

Hi, My name is Jeanette and I have a cookbook obsession.

I am constantly buying cookbooks. Most of the time I stick with the ones I know and trust. But this one spoke to me on so many levels. I mean the title alone is basically my life.

Country Cooking from a Redneck Kitchen

Francine Bryson does a wonderful job including all the redneck favorites Chicken and Dumplings like Mama Made it to Granny Style Macaroni and Cheese. These recipes really do remind me of good old southern comfort food.

It took me a while to narrow down what recipes I wanted to try first. I was all for the Squirrel Pot Pie, but 2 of my kids vetoed that one. City slickers!

So we first tried the Cheese Grits. Now I have a tried and true Cheese Grits recipe. It’s really detailed and a lot of work. This recipe tasted better and was easier. In fact, I’ve made it twice in the last week! It was that good. So good, I bought 15lbs of grits from BJ’s and then realized I was a crazy lunatic, but that’s how I roll around here.

Cheese Grits

Next, I tried Schoolyard Peanut Butter Bars. These were delicious. But probably would have been better if I had the right size pan. Mine came out more like a brownie instead of bar. It was user error; not recipe error. My kids and Hubby never noticed and really enjoyed this sweet treat. But believe me, I am on the hunt for the right size pan now.

Schoolyard Peanut Butter Bars

I really enjoyed this cookbook. I can’t wait to try more recipes and am looking forward to receiving the first cookbook from Francine Bryson.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

April is here

/ Jeanette / Leave a comment
I feel like screaming too!

I feel like screaming too!

 

We flipped another page in our calendar. Can you believe it’s already April!? But it’s here and so far is looking like a slower month for me. I truly need that and will try my hardest to limit activities this month. Since January, I feel like all I have done is run errands, go to doctor appointments or have some kind of activity to get the kids too. My spring break wasn’t even a break.

I am an introvert. So by nature this kind of schedule has been hard for me. But one of my new years resolutions was to be more present for my kids. And so far I have been doing it. I’ve been saying yes to activities and not coming up with excuses why we can’t go. My anxiety has been under control which has been so nice. We’ve been enjoying life.

But this mom needs a little slow down. I think that is good for everyone. No matter what kind of person they are.

I want to dig my hands in the dirt. Hang out with my chickens. And complete some projects I keep putting off.

I also feel this is a good time to get our eating and budget habits back on track. I have to admit since the holidays I feel like it’s been nothing but sweets, candy and fast food. I told you life has been crazy! But now it’s time to get back on track. With hubby’s kidney problems and our daughter’s behavioral problems, good food is very important. I have noticed a lot of behavioral issues popping up with my girl. So time to catch it before it’s out of control.

Last month, I made dinner menus for the next 3 months. So I am ahead of the game there. I also got the majority of my grocery shopping done for the month last week.

This week I am focusing on organizing and few areas of the house. While also learning how to live without some of my major appliances.

YUP! The well broke. I tell you what…you can tell it’s April because it just poured 3 days into it. We have sand mixed in with our water. And of course it happened on a Sunday. Hubby tried to fix it but couldn’t. Looks like we are looking at a new well.

Like Hubby said we take 2 steps forward and 5 back.

A couple of weeks ago, we finally got the majority of our building project done that we had been working on for months.   We were planning for some other projects and business is going good. We were feeling accomplished. And now this!

My mom was here when it happened and said man, ya’ll can’t catch a break. And it’s true. This is part of living on a homestead. Fix one thing and another thing needs fixing. Mom and I walked through and talked about how to fix the fence until we have money and time to replace it.

So we can take showers. But I can’t run my dishwasher or my fancy washer. Luckily we bought a cheap old washer and will use that. I have to use bottle water for cooking or drinking. Recycling truck is going to love us this week. We are only washing pots and pans. Everything else we are using is disposable. It’s killing me. I all about reuse and limiting our garbage as much as possible.

OH well! (Pun intended) It is what it is. A few days or so; won’t kill me……I hope!

 

Best January ever

/ Jeanette / 2 Comments

Growing a large family

 

I feel like I have accomplished so much in these first 3 weeks of January.

I turned 34! My birthday was quiet and uneventful. So YAY! to a drama free birthday.

I have stood up for myself and told 2 important people in my life that they will not disrespect me or walk all over me or my family anymore.

We started back to homeschooling and I feel like we are doing pretty good. Some days are better than others, but yesterday was the best yet. I felt like just in that one simple activity so much was learned. We talked and discuss while they used their hands to create something so wonderful. It was definitely a proud mommy moment.

My youngest daughter has been working with a wonderful therapist for the last month. Up until now she has resisted any kind of therapy, but she has really connected with this therapist and I truly see a difference. Then this week, the therapist got us in for an appointment with their psychiatrist. And let me just say, WOW! Where has he been my whole life!!! When our therapist asked how it went. I told her she was a life saver. He just knew what he was talking about and none of this well it could be A or B or Z. He nailed it and talked to my daughter not just about her. Wonderful man!!! I am beyond thrilled because it has been a long 10 years of trying to find a diagnosis.

As I am writing this, I am sitting here looking at my 4 brooders. That’s right~count them FOUR brooders. First one has my baby chicks that hatched on January 2. Second one has a week and a half old Pekin duck with a couple of chicks flying in and out. One chick has really taken a liking to my lonely duck and is very protective if any of chicks come in. The third is full of Cayuga Ducklings about 4 days old~19 of them to be exact. And last but not least~ more Pekin ducklings. These are 4 days old. I have 19 of them also. Most of these will be sold with the exception of the chicks and 4 ducklings. I sold 15 ducklings at the beginning of the week. So my new little business adventure is very productive. Keeps me busy that is for sure.

Growing a Large family

I am also setting up the incubator so I can set 24 eggs for a Valentines day hatching. Or as I like to call it The walking dead hatching. We aren’t big Valentine’s Day people. It’s just too close to Christmas and my birthday. I will probably just cook a nice steak dinner, so why not also hatch some babies!

I also have a couple of pre-orders on some female chicks that I am keeping. Just trying to add some interesting chickens to the flock. My first order comes the end of February and my last order won’t be here until first week of June. Who knows what other kind of trouble I can get into between now and then.

Growing a large family

This post is partying over at the Our Simply Homestead Blog Hop

Hard

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photo-1438201743149-3cc16cd4cddd

 

Recently someone said to me, “You just don’t get it, life is hard.”

 

This someone was a family member who I was extremely close to until this last year when he just disappeared.

Apparently life got “too hard” to pick up the phone.

But please don’t assume because someone looks like they are living the perfect life that they don’t understand how hard life can be.

Hard is not knowing when your next job is going to come. Hubby hasn’t worked since November 30. Today, January 13, is his first job in 5 weeks.

Hard is marking off those calendar days and still not hearing the phone ring.

We had 2 months of our mortgage to pay, kids to feed and a homestead to run before even a phone call for a job quote came in.

We don’t live with our significant others family and work at a restaurant the gives us free food.

Hard is knowing we have 4 kids to feed and hoping we can make it through.

I had to scrape together meals the best I can with what I had to work with. My kids never starved, but they also knew we couldn’t grocery shop like usual. And that leftovers had to be eaten. We just didn’t have a choice.

Hard is losing a pet.

Realizing that they will never be there at your feet anymore.

Hard is starting your day at 4:30 in the morning and ending it at 9 at night. And knowing tomorrow you have to do it all over again.

Hard is realizing your another year older and the ones you love and trust aren’t going to be around forever. Hard is knowing tomorrow isn’t guaranteed and one day you will have to say good-bye.

Hard was my Hubby being in the hospital for 24 hours while I am unable to be there. I had no one offer to watch the kids unless it was an absolute emergency.

Getting up, going to work and coming home~ is not hard.

 

Life is hard, once you have lived it.

Life is also hard when lived alone.

 

 

 

My Ducks made me sick

/ Jeanette / 6 Comments

Cayuga Egg~Growing a large Family

 

All my life I have been a lover of ducks. When we moved out to this property, Grandpa use to say we can get some chickens. And I always said, no I want ducks. I just love them so much! Well as everyone knows I got ducks last year and ultimately ended up with 2 females and a male. My females are laying all these gorgeous eggs and I have been baking up a storm with them. Then the first incident happen.

I was making brownies and of course tasted the batter. Within a few minutes, my throat got itchy and swelled and my lips were tingling. But I thought it had to be the new spices I used on my pork chops. I have used duck eggs several times before.

Then I made a batch of cookies with Dakota. As soon as I ate one, I had the worse pain in my stomach. A few days later, ate another one and the pain was back but this time I threw up once.

Next, I made some cookies for the kids and I didn’t even eat one! I just licked a small amount of batter off of my finger and within an hour, pain. I couldn’t even cook dinner that night.

Well you think by now I would have learned my lesson. But I made brownies Monday night and I was up all night throwing up and the pain…..oh my god, unbearable! I almost told my hubby to take me to the ER. I mean I birthed 2 babies and 1 with no epidural and that didn’t even come close to the pain I was experiencing. The crazy part is I was at the doctors that morning. And we both thought it was my anxiety flaring up. But I thought that was strange because it would hit when I was at home watching TV and relaxing. What do I have to feel anxious about?

So this last time, I put 2 and 2 together. I know I should have taken notice with the first incident. That was bad enough. And it explained why all the medicines I took to help stomach symptoms weren’t doing a bit of good. I needed to treat an allergic reaction. But I had no idea that is what it was.

The next day after all these events, I would feel wiped out and still had soreness in my stomach. I would take the day to rest and that would throw the rest of the week off. Let’s just say I am not happy about spending my holiday season on the couch. I feel like I missed out on so much activities with my kids. But now that I know, I will take better caution.

Now I have 3 ducks and at least a dozen eggs a week that I can’t use. So I am selling them. NOT my ducks, the eggs. I made that clear to my hubby and he said he wouldn’t have asked me too. I have a lady that buys them for her dog because he is allergic to chicken eggs. It will be a way to pay for my feed.

I just hate to think if I had gotten brave and tried to eat one scrambled. I may not be around to write this to you.

 

This post is hopping at the Clever Chicks Blog Hop

I am thankful….

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I am thankful that my Hubby puts up with me as much as he does. I do love him even if I did say I wanted to buy a donkey and name it Babe (my pet name for him).

Growing a large family

I am thankful for my kids. Parenting is stressful, tiresome and some days down right awful. But without them I don’t what I would be doing or who I would be. I was meant to be a mom.

Growing a large family

I am thankful for my family. Sometimes they are stupid, crazy or weird. And some of them are all of the above all at once, but how would I know how to be normal if I didn’t have something to learn from. (To all the family members that read this, that wasn’t meant for you. Nope would never say that about you.)

Growing a large family

I am thankful for being able to homeschool and being able to have a homestead. I guess that falls under being thankful for my Hubby since he works very hard so that I don’t have too.

Growing a large family Growing a large family

I am thankful for my Autistic daughter. I am thankful it is only that and not anything worse. I have friends who are dealing with the possibility of death as an end result for their children’s condition. And I am very thankful that my daughter can walk, talk and function at a higher ability than some with this diagnosis. I know it could always be worse.

Growing a large family

I am thankful for my grandparents. Without them, I wouldn’t be half the person I am today. They stepped up and made sure I had a stable home and a place to call home. For that I am forever thankful. Even though 2 are gone, they are never far from my heart or my thoughts. I am an introvert like my Grandma. I only keep a few close friends. I am a farm girl like my Grandpa. And also got his love of Country Fried Steak and dumplins.

Growing a large family

I am an animal lover like my Grandmom and also got her need to feed and take care of people. My Grandmom was a picture of grace until you got on her bad side. Then the gloves were off. I feel like I am like that. I will always be polite, even to someone I don’t care for, but if you insult me or my family, you better watch out.

 

 

 

 

I have my Grandaddy’s sense of humor. In fact, I was just telling my hubby and kids that my Great-Grandmother (his Mother in law) never liked Grandaddy because of his sense of humor and the way he would eat his food. Like fried chicken, she always used a fork and knife, where Grandaddy would pick it up with his fingers. I notice my hubby using a fork sometimes where I am like it’s finger foods, I’m using my fingers! So in the end, I am convinced that my great-grandmother wouldn’t like me either. And especially not now that I named 2 different chickens after her. See there’s that sense of humor I was talking about. He also taught me about love and devotion. Seeing him still committed to my grandmother after she has been gone almost 22 years is inspiring. You don’t see love like that nowadays and I hope my marriage is just like theirs, Strong and withstanding time.

Growing a large family

So what are you thankful for?

 

This post is partying over at Simple Blog Hop

 

 

 

Holidays upon us..week 7

/ Jeanette / Leave a comment

Well it is here. The holiday craziness is officially upon us. I know I am a little behind because of illnesses and remodeling. Yes, we decided to remodel in the middle of the holidays. We did the same thing 4 years ago too. We are just crazy like that. But thankfully it is done and now I just have to reorganize my house. I am also writing this while dealing with a very sick little girl and a million things on the to do list. But I always pull it off. Sometimes by the skin of my teeth. But hey that’s life.

So what should you be doing….

Hopefully you already shopped, are ready to shop, going shopping for everything!

Grocery shop for Thanksgiving no later than this Friday. It will save you from dealing with the massive crowds.

Make a plan for your Black Friday shopping. I am not participating because it seems the stores open earlier every year. I like to enjoy my Thanksgiving with my family and friends and shop on the actual Black Friday but I will just be shopping from this very computer I am writing you from.

Christmas shopping should already be happening. We have had boxes coming in at least 2-3 times a week here. I am almost completely done with my family outside of my household and just need to concentrate on my kids now. Hubby already bought his present so that’s one less person for me to worry about.

Hopefully you found my Holiday series helpful. I enjoyed writing it.

Happy Holidays ya’ll!

Christmas Planning…week 6

/ Jeanette / Leave a comment

Last week, I came across this fantastic post by Christy Jordan. For those of you who don’t know, she runs a blog called Southern Plate and also has published 2 cookbooks. She is my blog idol.

Anyways.

She posted about how she makes a Christmas Notebook. It was so easy and simple. And I thought what better way to get organize than to have one place for everything.

I always have half used notebooks lying around so I put one to use and turned it into the Ford Family Christmas Notebook. Her is very fancy, where I just took a sharpie to the cover.

I did everything she did, but I also added in a page for Thanksgiving menu and grocery list.

And I will be adding pages for Christmas Cookies to bake, Elf on the Shelf Tricks and our 25 days of Christmas activities.

I hope ya’ll will find her blog and post as enjoyable as I did.

OH I forgot… Target and Walmart black friday ads is up on the site.

 

The veterans I love

/ Jeanette / Leave a comment

Veteran’s Day was just a random day off from school or work. I never really put it all together and realized what it stood for. I have to admit I was one of those Americans that took our freedom for granted and was self absorbed in my own life. 9/11 made an impact on me like it did everyone watching that day, but I still didn’t get it.

Growing a large family

Then my grandpa passed away. A veteran himself. He was buried at the Florida National cemetary. It truly affected me. Seeing all those stones,watching the rifles being raised in the air and listening to the anthem of a fallen soldier; impacted my life in a way I never expected. I grew stronger, but I also grew more patriotic and selfless.

Growing a large family

I still have a veteran in my life. My 94-year-old Grandaddy. He is going to be 95 in a month. He still lives on his own, walks around fine with the help of a cane here and there and loves his rum. And like I told my Mom “if he’s not streaking down the neighborhood, what’s the harm, he’s 95 years old.” He can hold a conversation about anything from politics to sports or just life in general. And he still tells some funny jokes and loves to get under my Mom’s skin. He is slowing down a bit, but not too much.

I can’t even imagine what all he has seen in his life. But he has always stayed true to who he was, what was right and what was wrong. When we lost my grandmother, it was tough on both of us. But the conversation I remember the most was when I asked him if he would ever remarry. See all of my grandmother’s brothers would up and remarry a few years after their wives died. So me being 12, thought this was the normal thing to do. Until I heard my Grandaddy’s response, he said, “No I could never replace the love of my life. Your Grandma was it for me.” That has stayed with me for my entire life. And that was what I wanted and eventually found.

See these two amazing men stepped up for me as father figures and shaped and molded me into who I am today. And I am so proud to call them the veterans I love. They served our country, kept us protected and gave us our freedom. Not because they had to or wanted to but because it was the right thing to do. My grandfather’s are military to the core. And for that I thank them and all veterans for everything they have given us. Because remember some gave all and there are no amount of words to express our thanks for that.