Oct. 6-12, 2019 Dh and Dd in Indiana, Canning, Trip to Gene Porter-Stratton Home with Heather

Oct. 6-12, 2019 

Dh and Dd in Indiana, Canning, Trip to Gene Porter-Stratton Home with Heather

Dd hugging Dickens

Hello Friends,

That Emgality shot, to prevent migraines, sure did give me fits this week.  I took the shot on Friday and had a headache Saturday and Sunday, migraine on Monday and Tuesday, and then back to a headache on Wednesday...yikes.  It didn't help that it rained and rained all week long.  I had to turn on the heat lamp for the chickens starting on Friday night.

Farm:

Dh and Dd spent the weekend at the family farm in southern Indiana having a wonderful time. 

Dh built these walls and painted them, camo-style, to add on to one his hunting stand.

Dh bought the wood and built two ladders to get up to his improved tree stand.

 I honestly have way too much canning and chores to do before winter to go.  Dh wanted to paint our walls this fall and I am still not nearly done.  There is so much to do when you paint--move all the furniture, take off all the fixtures and outlet covers.  I've slowly been moving the furniture back into the living room, bedroom, etc. while all the tools and wood flooring is still stacked up in the corners!  Dh want to figure out how to do the hardwood flooring in the hallway that wouldn't interfere with him redoing the treads on the stairs going into the basement.  He hasn't been able to figure it out and so our flooring project has been on hold for weeks and has no signs of being resolved any time soon.  I am getting the walls all painted and done while he keeps figuring.

Garden: Canning

Sunday I picked green beans while the chickens free-ranged.  I also dug up all the volunteer potatoes and the beets I'd planted.

Monday: 8 quarts of green beans.

Wednesday: 8 quarts of green beans and I let the chickens free-range while I picked more green beans.

10 pints of mix of green beans and potatoes
Saturday: I picked green beans while the chickens free-ranged again.

Cut Sage and hung upside down around our house to dry.

Chickens:

On Sunday Brenda was healthy enough to return to the flock!!!   Then on Monday, Chesapeake was sick and had to go into my little infirmary.  Chickens are so difficult to keep healthy! 

I'm still picking green beans and while I'm out there I let the chickens free-range, to their pleasure! 

After spending the summer painting all the wood around the house I can finally see it as a job accomplished.  I've just had little areas to touch up this fall.  It looks really good.

Home Improvements:

I've been working on painting and re-painting the hallway downstairs in the basement.  Dd had put a coat of paint on top of spackle she had put down to cover flaws and didn't sand down the spackle before painting, so it looks pretty bad.  With each coat, I put down the flaws was less and less obvious.  I was surprised she did that chore without discussing it first.  I painted that hallway over a few days to get the layers built up.

I cleaned garage---trying to think about getting it opened up for getting our cars back in. 

Carpal Tunnel:

I've been really struggling with carpal tunnel problems in both my hands this summer.  Besides bothering me off and on during the day; it is even worse at night!  It wakes me up repeatedly throughout the night.  My hands are all tingly and numb and having little fits of aggravation all night long!  I'd complained to my doctor twice and finally asked her to refer me on.  This week I went and had EMG tests done on both hands.  I have mild to moderate nerve damage in my hands and they recommend I have surgery.  I am scheduled to have my right hand done on Nov. 6th and my left hand on Dec. 4th.  

Gene Stratton-Porter's House:

I met my dear friend, Heather, at the home of GSP.  She is the author of many fine books.  Heather had told me to read:

A Girl of the Limberlost

for years.  I finally read it a year or two ago and fell in love with the book; especially the first half of the book before she fell in love with a fella and jumped the shark a little bit.  Since Heather and I both were such fans of GSP and one of her homes (national park) is almost exactly between our homes we decided to meet there.  We both drove a little over two hours and met up for a few hours together.  We took a wonderful tour of her home and had a lovely picnic on the grounds before heading back home.

Hike with Lori:

I was blessed by having two different women take me hiking this week.  



Lori took me to the Wittenbach AgriScience Center for a hike in the woods that lasted a bit over an hour. 



I was a bit nervous when I saw the high schoolers and school buses in the parking lot, but they were leaving as we arrived.  We didn't really see anyone on the trail and had a nice tranquil hike; enjoying the birds.

Bible Study:

My first impressions of really liking my Thrive Bible study group were spot-on!  I am *really* glad to have this opportunity of getting to know these really nice ladies.  They are so open, kind, loving, and inclusive.  I am still really struggling to find a connection with my BSF group.  Both studies are academically and intellectually challenging and rewarding, but it is an added bonus to have fellowship with the Thrive ladies.  I would be so glad to find a friend in Michigan!  So many acquaintances and so little 'friends.'



Our book from Ada is:
An Unexplainable Life: Recovering the Wonder and Devotion of the Early Church ( Acts 1-12) by Erica Wiggenhorn

Dd's Academic Week:

Dd arrived home with Dh Sunday night at 10:45!  She had a great time seeing some family and spending time with Dh.

Date:

On Thursday she went on her first date with Seth.  

Grace Co-Op:

Science: Anatomy/Physiology (Apologia)

Art: Painting Studio

History: The American Civil War

Writing/English: Analytical Writing for Essays and Research Papers (IEW)

Math: 

Algebra II with a math tutor

Physical Therapy: 

Last session this week

Next Week:

Winter clothes down from the attic, and we turn on the heat!  Winter is getting ever so much closer!  Lots of peeling wallpaper from the basement stairwell.

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Sept. 29- Oct.5, 2019 Seth, Canning, Emgality, Dh & Dd to Indiana, Grape Jam

Sept. 29- Oct.5, 2019 

Seth, Trip to Indiana (Dh and Dd), Canning, Emgality, Meditation Class, Grape Jam

Grape Skins

Hello Friends!

It is hard to believe it is already October!  I am still working like crazy trying to get my garden harvest in.  To my surprise, this week Dd asked to talk to me about how she has taken a liking to a young man named Seth.  That sort of explains why she spends so many hours in her bedroom; she has been texting and getting to know him these months.  I was completely taken off guard, as many mothers before have probably experienced.  She wants us to think about her going on some dates with him....

Garden:

Potatoes: This year we planted four different kinds of potatoes.  Thursday:  20 pints and 7 quarts of potatoes.

Friday: 10 pints of a mixture of green beans & potatoes combined, 

6 quarts and 2 pints of just potatoes

Saturday: 10 pints of potatoes

I picked and brought in all the Butternut squash and other various squash varieties.  I tried canning those last year but the cans spoiled, so this year I am going to keep them in the basement's utility room.

The PULP of the grapes...yes, I squeezed every.single.one!

GRAPES:

Last year Dh made grape jam from my grapes, but this year he has been too busy.  I couldn't wait any longer as I could see I was already losing more and more grapes each day as they fell to the ground in the wind so I decided to try and do it myself.  All the video's I saw on youtube said to just cook down and puree the grapes, but Dd had his own way.  He had me pick the grapes, then squeeze the pulp out of each grape putting the skins in one bowl and the middle pulps in another one.  This took me hours and hours over 2-3 days...what a chore!  It was like milking grapes!!!  

I think I spent three days this week on getting the grapes done.  After I got the grapes separated, pulp from skin, then I had to puree the skins.  I had to cook down the pulp and that helped the pulp to get watery and helped me to get the seeds away from the pulp...but that was still difficult.  Then I put the pulp (without seeds) into my crock pot.  After I got everything separated and sorted I put all the ingredients together in big pot on the stove.  I just had to add sugar and cook it at a low boil for a while and then I could can the jam.  I think I made about 9 pints of jam---three days work for 9 jars!  It is amazing how much time it takes for our homemade food.  We only had 3 1/2 pints last year, so our grape vine was way more productive this year; imagine if I had picked the grapes when I should have (two weeks earlier).

Vergennes:

We switched from AT&T to a local company last week.  We are still trying to sort it all out.  It took me three tries to get AT&T's router mailed back to them and numerous phone calls; only to receive a letter that said I didn't have to return it after all...oi.  Dh spent three evenings this week trying to get the internet hooked up to my computer.  I was without my computer for almost two weeks.  It really turned out to be a LOT of work and effort for Dh to get us up and running again.

Migraines:

September was a great month for me as I only had 2 headaches and 4 migraines, but I am beginning to feel the side effects of the new medication I've been trying the past 2+ months; Emgality.  I've had extremely intense and painful chest pain, lots and lots of heartburn, constipation beyond discussion, joint pain, and hair loss.  I took my shot on Friday but immediately began to regret it as it sparked a long cluster of headaches and migraines.  I've decided that was my last injection of this medicine as the side effects outweigh the benefits.

Herbs/Flowers:

I have started the transplanting of my herbs to pots so I can bring them inside for the winter.  Last year I didn't started later and didn't manage to get them all in before the frost and lost my favorite basil herbs.  I worked on this for a few weeks and in the end, I brought in fifty pots!  Seriously, 50!  I had to rearrange the sunroom and move furniture out of it to prepare for all the plants coming in soon.  This took me most of Saturday.

Brenda: Buff Orpington:

I'm stillwashing her wound and it is healing well.  She isn't eating very well, but has begun to fuss a tiny bit when I am washing her; which is a great sign.  I have been afraid to hope she could survive this 'fly-strike' attack, but now I am beginning to see there is a chance she just might make it through this possibly.

Chickens:

I've been free-ranging the chickens as much as I can.  I often pick green beans, most days, and while I pick I let the chickens out.  I let Brenda out of the tractor to free range with the other chickens so they keep her as part of the flock and not reject her when she eventually gets reintroduced back into the flo

Bible Studies:

Both my Bible study groups/studies are coming along fine.  The Thrive group on Thursday nights is really great.  I'm so glad to meet some very welcoming women!  The Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) isn't nearly as much work as the Thrive assignments; which I thought it would be the other way around!  I thought BSF would be the more academic of the two, but the book we are using at Thrive is very detailed.  It is called:

An Unexplainable Life: Recovering the Wonder and Devotion of the Early Church ( Acts 1-12) by Erica Wiggenhorn

The Art of Letting Go:

Can you believe it?  I signed up for a meditation class!  It was a really nice class and I learned a few breathing practices.

Trip to Indiana:

Dd and Dh drove to Indiana on Friday and returned back home on Sunday night at 10 pm.  They worked on building, moving, repairing the deer hunting stands in our woods at the family farm.  Dh's best friend, Mark, also joined them to work on their stands.  They had a great time!!!  For the first time, Dd got to drive the old tractor!  I don't know if she or Dh was more excited!  They also had a weeny roast (hot dogs) with Giz and Grampy.  It is now that time of year that Dh can only think about preparations for deer hunting time!  I am quite used to it; especially since last year Dh had to miss deer hunting for this first time in over 30 years because of his detached retina emergency.  He is chomping at the bit.

Dd's Week:

Dd is still keeping to herself like she has most of the summer.  It makes it very difficult to document her academic progress!!  She has become a very independent person and I don't see her much at all,  This is a hard and difficult season for me.  Glad she went to church with me this week.

Grace Co-Op classes:

Science: Anatomy/Physiology

Art: Painting Studio

History: The American Civil War

Writing/English: Analytical Writing for Essays and Research Papers (IEW)

Math: Algebra II (Saxon)

with tutor.

Reader:

Diary of Anne Frank

I've assigned a chapter each day...hoping she can get through it.

Read Aloud:

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

Dd seems to be VERY un-interested in me reading to her - even if it is Dickens, but I am trying to bring back out RA's...not very promising though with her new schedule.

Bible Study:

Dd says she has restarted her Bible study again.  I don't have any details, but am glad to hear it.  She went to church with me on Sunday.

Physical Therapy:

This week at Dd's PT, her therapist said he thinks next week will be her last week!  She had PT twice this week.

........

Sept. 22-28, 2019 Canning Green Beans All Week! Thrive Women's Bible Study Starts

Sept. 22-28, 2019 

Canning Green Beans All Week!  Thrive Women's Bible Study Starts.

Pictures Coming Soon!

Hello Friends!

I'm actually typing this up late.  I don't think I have ever been more busy than I have been this year and confess to being unable to keep up my blog as well as I'd like.  I'm also trying to fit in my fall to-do's before the snow arrives--- this week I had my annual eye exam and got a new prescription.  I was thankful Dd went with me to order my new glasses.  I also had my annual visit to the dermatologist and had no new cancer spots!  It was nice to have a good visit, most years my doctor finds something to freeze off.  It's nice getting some of my fall things behind me.

Garden:

Monday I picked green beans

Canned 10 pints on Tuesday

Wednesday picked green beans

Friday picked green beans

and canned 10 pints and 7 quarts

I try to make some progress each day.

Chickens:

Free Ranging---While I am outside picking green beans I've begun to let the chickens out with me as their shepherd.  They love eating all the bugs and grass and I love them getting to!  I know how important it is for them to have a healthy diet and am glad to incorporate more free-ranging into our fall schedule.  I made them cooked rice 3x this week, just for fun for them.

Brenda: Buff Orpington

I am continuing to keep Brenda in my infirmary, in my garage, in a chicken tractor while her bum heals from the 'fly-strike' last week.  She still isn't eating very well, but I can see healing happening.  

Podcasts:

I know I'm late to the party, but I've also begun listening to podcast while picking

Thrive Women's Bible Study:

This week my second Bible study started!  The Bible Study Fellowship group on Monday mornings is on week three and now I have a Thursday night study as well.  I am hoping I can do two groups since they are both focusing on Acts.  The "Thrive" group is through the church I have been going to all summer.  My first impression of this group is extremely positive.  The women are very honest and didn't put any effort into putting up a facade that their life isn't difficult.  I could immediately relate to this group and hope they are as down-to-earth as they seem.

The Thrive Study is using this workbook first:
An Unexplainable Life: Recovering the Wonder and Devotion of the Early Church ( Acts 1-12) by Erica Wiggenhorn

Church:

I have to lament that I am still very distraught over having to walk away from our last church after years of attending and serving there.  I'm also saddened that no one has asked WHY we left!  It's all a bit unfortunate and I have to admit to having a heavy heart about it all.  

Home Improvements:

Paint hallway on main floor.  Peel wallpaper in basement stairwell.  Clean garage.  

I spent hours working on the main floor hallway.  I took down all the paintings before painting--a light blue color.  I also worked on peeling the wallpaper in the stairwell going to the basement.  This is a different kind of wallpaper than what we had everywhere else in the house, not paper but more a very thin plastic that doesn't peel off except in tiny pieces after great effort.  I worked for hours just to get a small area cleared off.  This is going to be a very difficult project!  I want to paint the stairwell going downstairs as well as the hallway on the main floor, but I have to pick all the wallpaper off first.

Dd's Week:

With Dd busy going to work a few days each week and spending more time in her room working on her studies, I just don't get much feedback on how she is doing.  This summer has been gradual separation.  She really is consciously, or unconsciously moving away from me.  It is normal rite of adolescence, but I do miss her.  The silver lining is all the chores I now have time to do...that's good, right?!!!

Dd sick:

Dd's stomach was off all week and so was her appetite.  She even napped a few times this week; which she never does.  She looked tired and bleak this week.

Grace Co-Op:

Science: Anatomy/Physiology (Apologia)

Dd is actually LOVING this class!!!  So glad.

Art: Painting Studio (2 hour block)

History: The American Civil War (going super well!)

Writing/English: Analytical Writing for essays and Research Papers (IEW)

Math:

Dd drives to her tutor (45 min drive each way) each week.  Algebra II is going well.

Work:

Dd loves working at the pizza shop and feels like they are all one big happy family.  She works up to 30 hours each week; which is way more than I want her to do!  I hope she can find a better balance.

Physical Therapy:

Dd's PT is going fine.  I take her in twice a week for her "Chronic Compression Fracture."

Next Week:

October!  Oh my!  Plus, more canning.

...........