To Isabelle, on the eve of your trip to summer camp…

Dearest Isabelle,

As usual, I waited until the last minute for finishing up some sewing. Perfect “me” thing to do, huh? I just finished another skirt for you (minus putting in the elastic) for your trip! I hope this one is fuller for you. I think it matches your boots so wonderfully!

It is just after midnight. Hard to believe this afternoon I will be driving you down to summer camp. I have so many emotions about it; excited, nervous, worried, happy, overwhelmed, proud…

Because your first summer camp experience, 3 summers ago, was so bad and very much not like a summer camp, this is like your first summer camp! And to spend a week riding horses, making friends, and growing in your faith sounds amazing. I admit I wish I were young enough to go, too. I so want this experience to be perfect. So I conceded on some things. We are fortunate they will let you ride in skirts. How can I argue with your sweet and modest style? 🙂 Still, I worry. Every good mom does. I think because of what our family has been through makes me all the more nervous. But I know you will be safe. I have to leave some things in God’s hands. Yes, I will pray for you, every day. Because I love you and I already do anyway. It just may be a bit more frequent…lol!!

And I know you will show respect and remember your manners. You will stand your ground on what is right. I am so proud of you and the young lady you are becoming. That, too, will shine through!

But tonight, as I was topstitching, and thinking about what I still needed to pack or remind you of, and imagining how much fun you will have (Oh the memories you will make!), I realized something profound. See, because we are always together, I don’t see changes in you too quickly. Life is gradual and so is change. Change is also relative. But you will spend a week learning and growing. I suspect many wonderful things will come from this week of camp, a bit of blossoming. I wonder what changes I will see for you?

I love you. Have a wonderful time. But be safe!! Make memories and relish in this fun while you can.

Love, Mom

PS- Don’t forget those 3 things…EVERYDAY! Sometimes twice! 😉 We are going to miss you!!

Farmgirl Saturday!!!

What a day!!

Yesterday, June 13, the Southern Indian Chapter of the MaryJane Farmgirl Sisterhood held its first meeting. There were four Farmgirls in attendance, Ruth Ann, Katelyn, Cecily, and myself, as well as one Farmerette, my daughter, Isabelle.

I managed to finish my “Americana Hen” skirt just in time to wear it! I had Matt snap a quick picture before us gals headed out.

Isabelle and I had a quick stop at Stevenson’s General Store before heading over to The Overlook to request our table. I managed to snap a quick photo of Isabelle checking out the river!

Then I nearly forgot about my camera! lol!!! We had such a great time I forgot to get more pictures. Silly me!! The ladies and I sat at a nice round table overlooking the Ohio River and talked about everything! Life, Faith, children, homes, land, gardens, cooking, sewing, scrapbooking, critters….Anything we could think of! It was so wonderful! And I got the cutest hair clips from Cecily!! I should have gotten a picture of them all, but here is the one I wore today!

Before we parted ways, we made plans to make plans (ha!) to have a meeting in July where we will work on some sewing. And Isabelle took pictures!

But this one is my favorite!! As ladies. From different walks of life, brought together by a common theme, Farmgirls. Here we all are in our aprons, each with it’s own story. New budding friendships are wonderful, are they not!? It is all thank to MaryJane. It is so amazing how many Farmgirls are brought together and become friends for a lifetime. I am honored to by part of the Sisterhood!

And, though we headed home, my Farmgirl day was not finished. Oh no, Sisters! In the mail was a package from Linda (aka quiltee). Yay!! Swaps!! She is QUICK! This was for our July 4th Brooch Swap. Isn’t it lovely!! And the tucks! I really LOVE the S&P shakers! Too cute!! My boys took the necklaces and Isabelle wants to card to hang on her wall! 🙂 Thanks soooooo much Linda! I love it ALL!

And what kind of Farmgirl would I be if I didn’t get the family out in the garden and harvest dinner? 🙂

Farmgirl Hugs!! Alicia #5232

Busy, Crazy

No sooner than I nearly get a project done, my mind is mapping out another! This week, I got a large cut of stretch denim and twill to make Isabelle a couple more riding skirts for camp. I I couldn’t resist using a bit to start on a skirt last night! Now as I lat tossing at 1 am yesterday morning, I blended fabrics in my head and pictured Henrietta Hen , with some 3d flowers (yo-yos? crochet?) alongside. I couldn’t sleep, so I got up and got started cutting and sewing.

My dreams were a bit crushed when I couldn’t get Henrietta to come out clear in my software. I got a better file today, so I am really hoping it works!! I have another few chicken fabrics that she would be PERFECT on!!!! Anyway, I was lucky that I found another apron- donning hen. She isn’t as special as Henrietta, but she looks ok with my Americana Chicken skirt. Still not finished, but what do you think?

Another project I worked on this week is a table decoration for tomorrow! Tomorrow is a special day for me!

I am a proud member of The Farmgirl Sisterhood! MaryJane is just the most wonderful Queen Bee to have brought together so many amazing women. All of us have one thing in common; our hearts seem to long for Farmgirl ways. Many of us live is cities, we are from all walks of life, but we have a can-do attitude! If this sounds like a place you might fit in, come “visit” us at MaryJane’s Farmgirl Connection.

Of course, some of us take it a step further and join the Sisterhood. That’s me! Sister #5232! And as much as I love my gals on the Connection and in my Henhouse, Scattered Prairie, I have wanted to meet face-to-face with other Sisters for a while. So I started a local Chapter! Tomorrow is our first “meeting”! Though it is only lunch at The Overlook restaurant in Leavenworth, I am still so very excited! This will be on our table! 🙂

If you are in Southern Indiana, and you think you are a “Farmgirl at Heart” please consider joining us! If not tomorrow, another time!!! 🙂 And, yes, I WILL be wearing my apron!!!

Wednesday walk in God’s world

Of course, here I am slow to get pictures of our Wednesday walk in God’s world up. It has been a whirlwind of a week! Wednesday morning I had to get a cavity filled, so the boys and I got our walk in plenty early!

More roadside wildflowers are in bloom! God is some artist, is he not!? The palette is always perfect, no matter the medium. Gabriel reminded me of that when he asked me, “Did God paint our lips?” We had a nice chat about His perfect hand. And my thoughts went all the many ways He is perfect. Reflect upon this;

“He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all His ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is He.” Deut. 32:4

I must remember that no matter what path I choose, God is holding my hand. And though bad things happen along the way (be it a simple cavity or a car accident wrenching away a loved one), His ways are just. These things are not His doing. He loves us too much to hurt his children.

Often, when people hit a speed bump (or a block wall) they are quick to blame someone. Often God gets a good brunt of that blame. But as He has faith in us, we, too, must remain faithful to Him. Seek his guidance and find illumination in a dark place.

So I enjoyed my walk, put on my big girl boots, and headed for the dentist. Bad teeth are NOT fun. I take very good care of my teeth. I eat very little junk. I just have poor teeth. I was scared. I have nightmares of the dentist! Which is why I put it off for 5 years (I didn’t realize it had been THAT long). It’s silly to some, but I was worried and tense going in. I suspected several bad spots. I was fortunate, though. Only one! I won’t lie, I prayed that it wouldn’t be as bad as I feared. Prayer works…. lol! I am a happy gal!

Thanks for “walking” with me this week. I am a bit jumbled and tired! Ha!!! God Bless!

There is just something about eating from your Garden

How does your garden grow? Mine has been doing very well! I am quite pleased and we are eating quite a few meals from it. During the past week we included fresh produce harvested from our patch of goodness several times!

I am not entirely sure why I love sharing my food photos. But, today I think I grasped a bit of it. As I plated dinner, I said, “look at the color!” mostly to myself. Isabelle replied, “It’s JUST food.” And I exclaimed, “No! It is ART!” lol!!! 😀

Aside from being aesthetically pleasing (I get complemented on that often, so I guess that is the artist in me!), I think I have such pride in knowing I am providing, wholesome, nutrient dense, well- rounded meals to my family. I feel like food is so important. Gardening isn’t always easy. After all, just look at Genesis 3:17. “To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’ “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life.” NIV

And that is OK, because I find peace knowing I am following His will. It is hard (and painful at times), but Good!

And along the way we learn and grow, like our garden. “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31 I am thankful, because He has guided our knowledge. We really do feel quite blessed!!

So these 3 meals from the past week got photographed! lol!! I made a yummy chicken (oops! That is Venison. Some of the last of it for the year. 😦 ) stir fry with a side of sesame noodles. The carrots needed thinned, so this was a wonderful way to incorporate all those juicy baby carrots!!  😀

Last night we had a “pizza and movie” night. Our “pizza” was handmade calzones! Kale, mushroom, and ricotta, enveloped in homemade pizza crust, with a tomato-y pizza sauce to dip in. Sure wish tomatoes were ready! Would have been better than canned ones! The boys LOVE helping make calzones. Gabriel chops mushrooms, Sawyer shreds kale, they also like rolling out dough!!

Today I used some local ground pork and a menagerie of goodies to make a skillet meal! Served with a loaf of homemade bread, it was bright and yummy! The only veggies not from our garden was a sweet potato. Isabelle, of course, said I ruined this with that addition! lol…. She really dislikes sweet potatoes. Those, and cucumbers (unless they are pickles), zucchini (which I add to a TON of stuff), and avocados. Other than that (and she still eats them all), she is NOT a picky eater!

We have really made the push to eat local raised meats. The meat industry is pretty darn scary! Since we can’t raise our own, it’s the best we can do.

Well, I hope I haven’t left you hungry. 😉 Thanks for letting me share my art, Eating from the garden. It’s just food for my body and my soul.

Prayers for the people who have lost their gardens and crops to the torrential rains in the TX/ OK area. My thoughts are with you and your families.

Goodnight, God Bless.

Birthday fun

My baby turned 5 Monday. Yep, Gabriel is getting all grown up. How does that happen? 😦

Wasn’t it JUST last summer when we were cuddled on the couch?!

Or Playing at the lake??

Or meeting Mickey for the first time??

Or becoming a Big Brother?

Or starting PreK???

5!!! Wow….. We had a simple birthday. He picked out a new toy, I got him a game, and he got a new fishing pole. He picked out a cake and we had lunch at one of his favorite places, Moonlite BBQ. It was a good day. We continued the fun with a fishing trip where he got to use his new left handed reel. 🙂  Of course, fun was had by all!

God’s World Wednesday- Late again, so sorry..

The kids woke up early and were READY to greet the day! So I got some quick breakfast and we headed for a walk in God’s World- at least OUR neck of it!

Another beautiful Wednesday greeted us, cool, quiet, and relaxed… We saw dozens of dragonflies, watched Indigo Buntings flutter through the wheat, and found some curious tracks to explore!!! Deer and donkey, in the same row. Our neighbors recently acquired a small donkey. Apparently, he enjoys walks like a puppy! 🙂 Isabelle saw and of course, bantered about how cute they are and how great of a pet one would be…. lol!

To watch the delight in my boys’ eyes while on our walks is such a blessing! My quote for this Wednesday comes from Ecclesiastes.

Ecclesiastes 11:9 You who are young, be happy while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth. Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see, but know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.

Have a great day!!!

God’s World

It is almost midnight, the moon is almost full, and it feels glorious! Cool and breezy… and quiet, save the natural sounds of an early summer night.

In another few minutes it will officially be my husband’s birthday. He blessed us with a gift tonight. His CHIN! lol!!! Those who know him will understand. 😉 My youngest was quite excited to learn Daddy had a chin, just like he did!

I took these photos a few days ago, but the week turned into craziness (we even had to put down Copper yesterday. 😦 ) and I never got them uploaded. So I thought I would sit on the porch and work on this overdue post.

“He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.” Ecclesiastes 3:11

On a walk with my youngest son, we witnessed the beauty the Lord provided for us to see. We hadn’t been on a walk in a few days down our road and we witnessed many changes. It was foggy and added another veil of beauty. It is amazing to me to consider how much things change in minutes, days, or many years. It leaves my heart full to imagine all the changes God has led me to in my life, as well. Like a slowly blooming flower, He guides each petal of our lives in their own time. Only when we are truly ready does another open, providing us with a choice, and sometimes putting our trust on the line.

But for this day, this beautiful day that the Lord has made (we started singing this hymn on our morning walks a few weeks ago), Sawyer and I just enjoyed the peace. Let me share it with you.

Isabelle joined us toward the end. 🙂

In the afternoon we worked in the garden and played in the yard.

It was a blessed day!!

I hope you have had a blessed day. Sometimes it may seem life is crazy and confusing. God’s timing is perfect. Even if we can’t see it. We can’t imagine the perfect plans he has made in this world for us. We just have to hang on! And wait for that next petal. Good night!

Today has been all over the place!

It has JUST been one of those days. And before I post the draft I was working on, I need to interrupt your regular blogging enjoyment….

Before I get too far, I would like to ask for prayers. A cousin I haven’t seen in years passed away tonight after being caught in a house fire yesterday. I pray her soul finds peace. Love and strength to her children, my aunt and uncle, as well as her siblings. She was in a dark place and we do not know if she accepted Christ. I have prayed that at some point she did, that the Lord has mercy and shows the grace only He can give.

Thank you…

How does your garden grow???

I took some pictures on Monday evening and haven’t had a chance to post them. 🙂

To be honest, it has changed a bit since then. For one, my bean row is fuller. And I think due to the rain and then hot sun, the leaves are wilty?? What do you think? They have washed out spotting, too.

In other news, Isabelle got her first real pair of western boots!! Aren’t they cute??

I have more to share, but I think it can wait. For now, I am going to pray for my cousin some more and head to bed. Many Blessings…Night.

Darn near perfect

Sunny, yet breezy, a comfortable 72 degrees, sitting near a creek, having a picnic with my family. It doesn’t get much better!!

Even though Matt worked last night and has to work a 12 tonight, we had a family day. We had a bit of a drive, so our day started off with a new Audiobook. We started the series, Little Britches today. It fits in with the genre we enjoy. Families surviving by God’s will and hard work, typically in the 1800’s. This series is a lot like Little House, only a boy is the main character; Ralphie is lots of fun!

Our first stop was Orleans. The Orange County Homegrown Saturday Market opened it’s season today. I have been trying to get to an Orange Co market for 3 years! It was rather nice! I, honestly, am not sure I recalled being in Orleans before. I suppose any other time I was going to Mitchell, I had gone through Shoals. Anyway, lovely and clean small town. My kids really enjoyed seeing Amish buggies. 🙂

Orleans puts on a nice market with a great park to let the kids play. It was a bit smaller than I imagined, but I think it is incredibly early for many booths. Yes, Isabelle INSISTED on taking Araya….

While I was contemplating a buy, a couple of sweet ladies donning Orange Co Homegrown tshirts approached me to ask about and admire my skirt. I had been itching to wear my “Farmer’s Market” skirt since I finished it WEEKS ago! This seemed like a perfect time and they seemed to agree! See the pictures they took HERE. Not the best photos of me, but here is another!

After stuffing a loaf of Amish Sourdough, a jar of plum jam, and some baked goodies in my reusable strawberry bag, Gabriel grinding his biscuit in the dirt upon falling off the merry-go-round, and fighting our wired puppy around all the “SMELLS AND PEOPLE”, we headed out. Booths were packing up to leave, so we headed out, too.  A sweet wood maker gave my boys these lovely boxes as he was packing. He told them to put their treasures in them! How sweet! Yep, great impression of Orleans! 🙂

Our next stop; Spring Mill State Park. If you have never been to Spring Mill and are within 2 hrs, you should visit! There are caves (one with a boat ride), Inn, Nature Center, Trails, and a Pioneer Village with a working Grist Mill. On Memorial Weekend they host a Civil War reenactment. We went year before last and thought it would be fun to visit again. We picnicked by the creek, talked to the reenact ors near the battlefield, and walked a trail on our way to the village.

A thought I didn’t have until we got to the park was, indeed, fact. Dogs aren’t allowed in the village. So Matt and Araya waited on us. 😦 He said he didn’t care and he probably didn’t, but I was still bummed. There were lots of crafters working today and that is always fun! The man spinning was especially nice to my boys, even gave them each a piece of roving. We didn’t go through everything as well as we usually do, figuring a return summer trip is a must. We did visit the Mercantile on the way out. I admired the tea set I had admired in 2013… A creamy base with lacey chocolate flowers. So pretty!!

We headed out, catching up with Matt, who found a quiet bench by the creek. The kids kicked their shoes off and waded into the icy water as quickly as they could!

Of course, Gabriel fell in, twice. lol!! That’s why I brought a change of clothes! 😉 We left as the battle was getting ready to start, so we stopped and waited a bit, sucking on sassafras candy and gazing at the fish in the water. All was well until the cannons went off…. BOOM, BOOM…BOOM!! Well, Araya flipped out! And we ran to the car. Poor baby was so scared she jumped into the kid’s floorboards.

All in all, a wonderful day though!!! I am so blessed!