EKjourney Backup

Summer has come to an end and Autumn has arrived.  I can feel it in the air, I can see it in the lighting.  It is bittersweet to have Phil go back to work but the Fall is my most favorite season. We have packed a lot into the past couple of weeks.  The house is more or less cleaned up.  The pantry and kitchen got a thorough cleaning and the rest of the house didn't get the purging I had envisioned but closets were cleaned out and hot spot piles were sorted and organized. I am planned for homeschooling and we are almost ready to start the new year!  We changed our strategy from last year which had morphed into workbooks and no one was very inspired by them.  This year, we visited a curriculum (Sonlight) that I previously dismissed because I felt like I could put together a similar program myself for a lot less money.  Truthfully, I probably could but I don't have time.  The program is all laid out for me - every day, every page, every chapter. ...

Yes, this is a blog post all about my pantry!  The plan was to finish all the outside projects and then move onto a big house clean, then homeschool planning, and then school would start and everything would be finished, beautiful, spick and span, organized, and we would be greatly inspired by all our accomplishments....ha ha ha ha!! We moved our pantry (white shelves) into the livingroom in the Spring in anticipation of hot weather and trying to keep our dried goods out of the inferno that we call our garage in hot weather.  Hmmm, the weather for most of the summer was cool except for as soon as we moved the pantry back to the garage!  And the entire house is just as hot as the garage.  I mean so hot that I don't want anyone within 5 feet of me or their body heat and sticky sweat would push me over the edge. (Glorielle doesn't quite get this concept and still insists on nursing.) This lovely pantry area all cozy and organized is in our garage!  I love how we ha...

Two weeks left until summer officially comes to an end.  I can't believe how hard we (mostly Phil) have worked!  LOL!  We are still right in the middle of all the projects plus we are trying to do some clean up.  Hopefully, the roof will only take one more long day to finish so that will be one BIG project officially crossed off the list.  Phil undertook so much this summer with siding, painting, and roofing. I love 6 year old toothless smiles.  Bruised apples off the ground ready for saucing.    Black currants ready for jam and cordial.  Perhaps making the carrot row a mud mess will make them easier to pull.    Well, the tip is still on where as most of the ones I pulled were snapped in half.  Sweet smile and a burrito face.  An end of the summer tragedy... I have been interested in fiber animals for quite some time and learning to spin and dye my own yarn.  I decided to add a couple of angora rabbits to my urban far...

           

These babies were born just an hour and forty minutes apart.  It is amazing how much alike they are.  Both petite little girls weighing almost the same.  Both fair skinned and blond. Regarding each other    I find this picture so funny!  Glorielle (with a string of drool) is holding the paper.  Rebecca is looking innocent...  2 seconds later...Glorielle looks a bit confused and sad, Rebecca looks innocently satisfied.   

We so enjoyed our visit down to Southern Oregon! Exploring the pond  Real Farm children swim in ponds such as these...  Fun in the creek  and the mud  Looking for beautiful rocks  Making our way through the treacherous cow poop swamp    Trying to get the babies to cooperate    13 children between us! 

Meeting the farm animals  Brighton normally doesn't care a hoot about our cats but he seemed to really like this one!  Sawyer got to ride Grady all by himself!  Incidentally, Grady is a 20 year old donkey and I knew him back when he was a newborn! Gabrielle was wonderful giving donkey rides.  Poor Grady had had it by the last little Kelly though and planted his feet and refused to move without much prodding!  Now, one might think that Brighton was actually scared of riding a donkey.  Not so!  He loved it and was very upset when his ride ended. The boys are deciding who gets to be the good guys  Who knew that Brighton was a farm boy in disguise.  He loved it!!  He rode a donkey, he chased chickens, and he spend an entire hour feeding the goats the fallen apples.  Mud castles  Friends (aren't they sweet!!)