Kids & Kids

We had a houseful this weekend—two-legged kids and four-legged ones, and honestly, I’m not sure which were louder.

The grandkids came to visit, which meant Roxie, our English Shepherd, was in full-blown doggy heaven. She had someone (actually several someones) to throw her toys over and over and over until I’m pretty sure she collapsed that night with a squeaky hedgehog under one paw and a look of blissful exhaustion on her face.

Meanwhile, I had a whole crew of enthusiastic helpers down in the barn, bottle-feeding the goat kids. It was adorable chaos: little hands holding little bottles for little goats with little tails wagging like metronomes on espresso.

Yes, I know the barn is a mess. But in our defense, the kids—both kinds—were in the workshop area, which also doubles as storage for tools, buckets, extension cords, tractor parts, chicken feeders, and approximately eleven different types of twine that we might need someday. So before anyone gets judgy, just squint a little and focus on the cuteness, not the clutter in the background, or the smells.

Farm fresh doesn’t always smell like flowers, folks. Sometimes it smells like hay, baby bottles, and whatever mystery item the dog rolled in.

WE Surround Them

Now this should be interesting. Anyone else going to send in a picture and/or watch this?

From Glenn Beck. "Have you ever felt like you're the only one in your community who see's what's happening to America? Well, you're not and on Friday March 13th at 5pm ET on the Fox News Channel, Glenn Beck...and you...will prove it. Many Americans, both Republican and Democrat, understand that Washington is broken. Many times it seems that the political solution is the problem. No more. Our founders knew the solution is We The People. This will be a must-see show and we highly recommend that you watch it with friends, family, and neighbors who share your concerns."

February 20, 2009 - 3:00 ET

We Surround Them-The Unveiling
March 13th on FOX News 5pm ET

Do you watch the direction that America is being taken in and feel powerless to stop it?

Do you believe that your voice isn’t loud enough to be heard above the noise anymore?

Do you read the headlines everyday and feel an empty pit in your stomach…as if you’re completely alone?

If so, then you’ve fallen for the Wizard of Oz lie. While the voices you hear in the distance may sound intimidating, as if they surround us from all sides—the reality is very different. Once you pull the curtain away you realize that there are only a few people pressing the buttons, and their voices are weak. The truth is that they don’t surround us at all.

We surround them.

So, how do we show America what’s really behind the curtain? Below are nine simple principles. If you believe in at least seven of them, then we have something in common. I urge you to read the instructions at the end for how to help make your voice heard.


The Nine Principles
1. America is good.
2. I believe in God and He is the Center of my Life.
3. I must always try to be a more honest person than I was yesterday.
4. The family is sacred. My spouse and I are the ultimate authority, not the government.
5. If you break the law you pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it.
6. I have a right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, but there is no guarantee of equal results.
7. I work hard for what I have and I will share it with who I want to. Government cannot force me to be charitable.
8. It is not un-American for me to disagree with authority or to share my personal opinion.
9. The government works for me. I do not answer to them, they answer to me.

You Are Not Alone

If you agree with at least seven of those principles, then you are not alone. Please send a digital version of your picture to: wesurroundthem@foxnews.com and then stay tuned to the radio and television shows over the coming weeks to see how we intend to pull back the curtain.

THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT

This was posted on Bethany's blog and I definitely think it's worth passing on. Awesome message! I am always impressed when a young person has the courage to stand up for what's right.

THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
12-year-old steals day with pro-life speech
Teachers threaten disqualification, but girl chooses to speak against abortion
Posted: February 16, 2009
8:36 pm Eastern

By Chelsea Schilling
© 2009 WorldNetDaily

Despite facing threats of disqualification, a 12-year-old girl took first place in a speech contest when she eloquently argued for the rights of unborn children – after an offended judge quit.

"What if I told you that right now, someone was choosing if you were going to live or die?" the seventh-grader begins in a video recording of her speech on YouTube. "What if I told you that this choice wasn't based on what you could or couldn't do, what you'd done in the past or what you would do in the future? And what if I told you, you could do nothing about it?"

The girl, a student at a Toronto school identified only as "Lia," continued:

"Fellow students and teachers, thousands of children are right now in that very situation. Someone is choosing without even knowing them whether they are going to live or die.

"That someone is their mother. And that choice is abortion."



But what made the 12-year-old choose to speak about abortion?

"It was really a family thing," her mother explained on the blog Moral Outcry. "I saw Lou [Engle] speak at a conference several years ago. I came back to my family with the Life Bands, and we all wore them, made our covenant, and prayed the prayer for abortion to end. … We were invited to participate in a 'Life Tape Siege.' Once my kids heard of this invitation, they all agreed: 'We have to do that!' Since then, Lia's passion for seeing abortion end has continued."

Despite Lia's enthusiasm for her topic, her teacher "strongly encouraged" her to select a different one for her class presentation or she would be considered ineligible for an upcoming speech contest.

"[S]everal teachers discouraged her from picking the topic of abortion; she was told it was 'too big,' 'too mature' and 'too controversial,'" her mother wrote. "She was also told that if she went ahead with that topic, she would not be allowed to continue on in the speech competition."

Lia's mother continued, "Initially, I tried helping her find other topics to speak on, but, in the end, she was adamant. She just felt she wanted to continue with the topic of abortion. So she forfeited her chance to compete in order to speak on something she was passionate about."

Lia's teacher was so impressed by the speech that she allowed her student to advance as the winner. Lia presented her speech to judges in front of her entire school on Feb. 10.

The school principal and teachers called Lia's presentation the "obvious winner" – but the judges suddenly disqualified her the following day "because of the topic and her position on abortion," her mother said.

Lia's father later revealed that the judges had a "big disagreement." One was offended by the speech and voluntarily stepped down while the others reversed their earlier decision – declaring her the winner.

Now Lia plans to take her message of life to a regional speech competition, and more than 130,000 visitors have viewed her presentation online.

"Why do we think that just because a fetus can't talk or do what we do, it isn't a human being yet?" She asks in the video. "Some babies are born after only five months. Is this baby not human?

"We would never say that. Yet abortions are performed on 5-month-old fetuses all the time. Or do we only call them humans if they're wanted?"

She continues, "No, fetuses are definitely humans – knit together in their mother's womb by their wonderful Creator who knows them all by name."

I've Got An Award!

My new blog friend divahick presented me with this award which, I'm told, is for "excellence in blogcasting". Divahick will go down in my memoirs as the 1st person to award me anything! Thanks.

I'm also told that there are a few rules: 1) Post the award on my blog; 2) Pass it on to some friends, up to 15; and 3) I have to let them know they've received the award. So, here's some of the people I enjoy associating with and this award is now theirs to pass on.

1) This Thing Called Life & All Things Frugal 4-U I know, I know, that's 2 blogs. But they're the same person. Plus she's family so I can do that. She's the most coupon-y (is that a word? well, it is now) person I know. I have got to have her teach me how she gets the stores to pay her to shop there.
2) Silk Creek Alpacas Not only does Bil have great alpacas, which I think are the most adorable animals, but he's got a chicken blog as well.
3) Meadow Turf Andrea has some great pictures and stories of New England life.
4) Building A Log Cabin Shelley also has great pictures and cool pajamas. She has another blog with more great pictures at Northern Michigan Experience
5) Hot Belly Mama is the only person I know that has designer diapers.
6) Cheesychick is a fellow believer is keeping kids busy.
7) Hidden Haven Homestead who's goats have the cutest outfits!
8) A New England Life Just love the photography!
9) Asher Acres What can I say - Bethany is just the neatest, coolest kid (young person, not goat)!
10) City Mouse, Country House
Well, the Mouse is just a cool dude!
11) Farmhouse Blessings Lea has a great website and coolest stuff. Plus she even gets snow to fall on her background! Her website states that it's an award-free blog. But, hey, I'll give her an award anyway cuz I think she's cool, no strings attached.
12) Asylum Farm I enjoy following her stories. Right now she's got lots of adorable English Shepherd puppies - I love puppies!
13) All Natural Simple Life Tonia has lots of goat babies, good stories, and I'm in complete agreement with anyone who has this statement on her blog "I've seen the village, and I don't want it raising my child".
14) A Homesteading Neophyte I had to look up in the dictionary what the word neophyte meant. I'm not going to tell you, you'll have to look it up for yourself. Phelan has great stories, lots of things to learn, like butchering hogs, cuts of meat, some great recipes, a little of this and a little of that. Plus the header picture cracks me up!
15) Post Menopausal Ponderings The name says it all! Plus, she's written a novel "First They Came for the Cows: An Activist's Story". I'm getting a signed copy! That's another 1st for me.

Well, that's 15. There are so many more I could have listed, so many neat people out there in blogland. Hopefully, all the links work correctly. I'm not exactly a computer genius but I'm starting to get the hang of this blogging thing. Now for the final part - I've got to let everyone know they have an award.

Great Video!

Met a new blog friend today and there's a great video on her blog you have to check out. I can really relate to it in my life - I think we've all been there in one way or another, or at least pretty close. Click here for the Lifehouse skit taken to Carnival in LA. Enjoy!

Testing

This is a test for DH to see if he can fix his problems at work loading the blog.

P.S. - When he read the blog he wanted to know what DH means. I told him it's darling husband. He asked "Are you sure it's not dumb husband"? That's one of the things I love about him - he makes me laugh!

Our American Form of Goverment

This is one of the most informative videos I've ever seen about our American system of government. A definite must see. You homeschoolers are going to love this as well.

Good Night!

Well, it’s official: I’ve got bottle babies. Because apparently, Genevieve has filed for early retirement—with benefits.

She gave motherhood the old college try for, oh, maybe 18 hours. Thought it was kind of neat at first—tiny creatures that looked like her, smelled vaguely of warm milk, and made cute noises. Adorable, right? But by day two, she’d figured out the dark truth:
They’re either starving, snuggling, or springing around like caffeinated popcorn kernels in a hot skillet. No breaks. No boundaries. No bathroom privacy.

So this morning, Genevieve marched up to the gate, looked me dead in the eye, and said, in no uncertain terms, “You. With the thumbs. Get me out of here.”

She is now back in the barn with her adult friends, blissfully unbothered and refusing to acknowledge she ever had children. If she could have slammed a door behind her, she would’ve. I even caught her humming.

Meanwhile, I’ve got two pint-sized squatters living in Roxy’s dog crate in the house, which they’ve converted into a goat AirBnB. They are tucked in, warm, and sleeping like they paid rent. And Roxy? She’s equal parts fascinated and insulted. She keeps checking on them like a worried big sister but can’t understand why they won’t play tag or let her join them in her own crate. I told her no hooves, no crate privileges. She's currently pouting and giving me side-eye.

So, two baby goats, one displaced dog, and a very relieved doe who’s pretending she’s single and child-free.

Good night from the madhouse. Wake me when they’re weaned.

Sky Angel Cowboy

Meet Logan Henderson and hear the phone call that touched hearts all around the world. What an incredible young man! Just wanted to share this touching story with you.

Anyone Want to Become An Illegal Alien?

OK, so here's my plan. I'm going to move to Mexico and establish citizenship there, learn Spanish, then cross the border illegally and say "No habla ingles".

You have got to watch this! The house minority leader called this proposed legislation "a piece of ----". What I want to know is why aren't ALL the legislators calling it that and voting appropriately? Who proposed this? And who's voting for it? Let's find out who they are and vote against them next election!

Maybe I'll Finally Get Some Sleep Tonight

Genevieve says no.

Genevieve, one of our high-maintenance Nubian does (I say that with love and eye bags), has been very pregnant for what feels like the last twelve years. According to the calendar, she was due any day. According to her behavior—dramatic sighing, shifting around like she couldn't get comfortable in her own skin, and throwing side-eye at anyone who asked how she was feeling—she was due yesterday, last week, and also somehow last month.

So I started the drill. For the last two days and nights, I’ve been checking on her every two hours. Yes, even at night. Yes, even when it was 10 degrees and the wind was coming in sideways. I have personally gone out to the barn in a bathrobe, parka, snow boots, and a headlamp, looking like a cross between a prospector and a half-deflated lawn Santa.

By last night, I looked at Genevieve and said, “Look, girl, either have these babies or tell me if I need to cancel my plans for the rest of the decade.” She gave me a blank stare and shifted her weight like she was rearranging furniture in there.

Well, turns out she heard me—because after being in labor all night (and I do mean all night, with the kind of groaning that had me wondering if she was birthing twins or trying to pass a philosophy degree), she finally delivered: twin boys. One came in at a solid 8 lbs., the other just a hair under 7, both healthy, hollering, and already bouncing off the walls.

Genevieve is fine. Smug, even. She’s standing there like, “That wasn’t so bad,” while I look like I just came out the wrong end of a goat tornado. I think she was holding out just to see how long I could function on no sleep and cold showers.

The babies are adorable, of course. Wobbly legs, floppy ears, that wide-eyed, slightly confused look like they’re still deciding if gravity was a good idea. They’re nursing well and making the kind of tiny sneezes that instantly lower your blood pressure—until they poop on your foot, and then we’re back to reality.

Now, since Genevieve is a dairy goat, we had to decide: milk her and bottle-feed the babies ourselves? Or let her raise them, and just take a little of the milk for us?

Let me tell you something—I’ve raised kids. Human ones. I’ve done my time in the baby foxhole. I’ve earned the right to say, with great confidence and very little patience: I am not bottle-feeding anyone else’s offspring. That’s not goat farming. That’s babysitting with extra laundry.

So Genevieve gets to do the mom thing, and I get to sneak a bit of milk here and there. Fair trade. She raises her own twins, I don’t lose my last functioning brain cell, and we're all happy in the end.

Here’s hoping tonight I finally get more than 90 consecutive minutes of sleep. But who am I kidding? I’ll probably be out there in my pajamas again by 2 a.m., checking on the babies, because once you've lost sleep to goats, you never really get it back.

Welcome to the farm, boys. Try not to start a mutiny with the chickens. Or the sheep. Or me.

Ready for Summer!

By someone who has worn the same winter boots since October.

Well, Groundhog Day has come and gone. Again. Just like clockwork, that overgrown hamster known as Punxsutawney Phil popped his furry little head out, saw his shadow (because of course it was sunny), and sentenced us to six more weeks of winter. Figures.

I don’t know what the weather was like in your neck of the woods, but here in the Great North Woods, it was blindingly sunny. You know—the kind of sun that makes you hopeful for warmth but only exists to bounce off the snow and blind you with all the intensity of a welding torch. My corneas are still sizzling.

And can we talk about Phil for a moment? The rodent has his own fan club. A website even. Merchandise. People travel from miles around to cheer him on like he’s some kind of meteorological rock star. Meanwhile, I’m just over here digging my car out of the driveway for the third time this week and wondering why my shovel seems shorter every year.

According to the “experts,” Phil is right about 50% of the time. That’s not predicting the weather—that’s flipping a coin while wearing a top hat. Which, by the way, those handlers in tuxedos really lean into. I don’t want to sound bitter, but I’ve yet to see anyone roll out a red carpet for me when I crawl out of bed, look outside, and grumble about the forecast. (Although to be fair, I don’t usually wear a tux.)

Anyway, despite what the marmot mafia says, I am officially declaring it spring. That’s right. I’m done. I’m wearing short sleeves inside the house. I’m flipping through seed catalogs like they’re fashion magazines. I even put on my gardening gloves the other day just to feel something different.

The chickens are with me. They've been lined up at the barn door like they’re waiting for a Target opening on Black Friday, staring out at the snow like, “Nope. Not doing it.” One particularly bold hen actually tried to stage a walkout—made it two feet before sinking like a ship. She’s still mad. Giving me side-eye through the coop window and muttering about unionizing.

The sheep? Oh, they’ve had it. They’re standing in a group, glaring at me like I personally extended winter just to ruin their social calendar. They’ve been fluffing up their wool like it’s a protest statement. Every time I come outside, I get the same look you’d give someone who just said “we’re out of coffee.” I’m pretty sure one of them is knitting a sign that says “SPRING OR STRIKE.”

I have mentally packed up winter and shipped it off to somewhere it can be appreciated—like Antarctica or a ski resort in need of fresh powder. I’m tired of my laundry consisting entirely of flannel, wool, and whatever socks I can layer over other socks. I want to see grass again. Real grass. Not that flattened, matted straw stuff under the deck that smells like broken dreams.

So here’s hoping Phil is wrong (again), spring is early (somehow), and we can all dig ourselves out of the snowbanks and into a lawn chair before June.

Because let’s be honest: I’m not sure how much longer I can keep pretending that hot chocolate counts as a vegetable.

And if that little groundhog pops up again with bad news next year? Well... let’s just say Aunt May had a recipe for stew, and I’ve got carrots.

Aunt May’s Groundhog Stew

For when winter just won’t take the hint.

Prep Time: Depends how fast you can catch him
Cook Time: Long enough to melt the snow
Serves: One very satisfied Northerner (or four annoyed chickens and a sheep)

Ingredients:

• 1 overconfident groundhog (fresh from his 15 minutes of fame)

• 2 cups carrots (extra pointy for dramatic flair)

• 3 potatoes, peeled and chopped

• 1 onion, diced while muttering “I’ll give you six more weeks…”

• 2 cloves garlic (or more if the groundhog's fan club shows up)

• 4 cups beef broth (or water from melted snowdrift)

• 1 bay leaf (because Aunt May said so)

• Salt and pepper to taste

• Dash of vindication

• Optional: a splash of red wine or leftover Christmas frustration

Instructions:

1. Preheat your wood stove to "furious."

2. Sear groundhog chunks in a cast-iron pot until they stop predicting weather.

3. Add onions and garlic. Stir while practicing your “See what happens?” speech.

4. Add carrots, potatoes, and broth. Toss in the bay leaf for class.

5. Simmer for 2-3 hours, or until the bitterness melts and your boots finally dry.

6. Serve with cornbread and a sunny disposition. Garnish with smug satisfaction.

Note:
Substitute chicken if groundhog is unavailable (but don’t tell the hens—morale’s already low). For a vegetarian version, just eat the carrots and scream into a snowbank.