random notes and chit chat from the insanity of our life

Peek into our life and see how crazy it can get with 6 kids, homeschooling, sewing, and now farming. We're in our first year on the land, and entertaining the world with what we don't know. By the grace of God, we're learning, day by day, so pull up a chair and laugh with us!

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

A confession...

I have a confession to make.  My favorite time of day is...bedtime.
I know, I know.  Bedtime?  What an awful thing for a mom to say, right?  (joking).  But it is.  Not for the usual reasons, though.
I love bedtime, because I am a terrible mother, and I snuggle my children to sleep.  Not the older 2.  DD1 (15) and DD2 (almost 11) would not go for that anymore, being so "grown up".  My little 3, however, DD3 (7), DS1(5) and DS2(2) are my snuggle bunnies.
There is nothing like snuggling my darling children to sleep.  Whispering together about the day.  Discussing random questions that pop out of their mouths.  Hearing their sweet and silly prayers each night, learning what seems important to THEM each night.  Then holding them as they go limp, and looking at their sweet faces, asleep and relaxed and still for a few moments...
I remember, even at the end of the longest day, why I do this.  Why I stay home with them, homeschool them, put everything that I am into raising them, even on the days that it seems I am failing.  Because they are my greatest gifts, and I thank Him for them every night as I tuck them in and head to my own bed.

Moving a calf, or how NOT to do it!

We had a bit of fun here yesterday.
DD1(15 years) decided that the beef steer (4 months), who is still in his small pen by the house, was sad and wanted to graze on green stuff.  He's eaten every bit in his pen, so is eating hay till we can move him to the big pasture.  So, without checking with me, she got a halter on him, and dragged him out under the fruit trees.  Chained him to the plum tree with a dog chain, filled a bucket of water...and that's when I happened by a window.
I'd wondered why suddenly, all the kids were outside, lol.  Now, I knew.
Went out, and sure enough, he was grazing happily on the chain.  Ok, well, it's YOUR responsibility to keep an eye on him, DD1.  Don't let him get tangled in it, or off of it, etc.
Couple hours later, I look out, there he is, grazing away.  5 minutes later....GONE!  ACK!  SO, leaving DD2 (11 years) to watch DS2 (the 2 year old), we all went out to hunt.  Finally found him, behind the pond, grazing away at more green stuff.  He came frolicking over, till he got about 10 feet from us, then he stopped and looked at us like "uh oh, the fun is over, huh?"
DD1 managed to catch him pretty easily, but MOVING him was another story.  She's hanging on the front of the halter, on the ground, on her belly, and he's backing up, head low, dragging her, lol.  I sent DD3 (7 year old) for the bottle, told her to fill it halfway with water.  Couple minutes later, she's back, with it full.  She waves it, and he trots over, leaving DD1 in the dust, lol, literally.  She takes the bottle from DD3, and starts to try to .... tempt him back to the pen, but he's having NONE of it.  He wants that bottle, and NOW.  So she's RUNNING to the pen, and he's running circles around her, tripping her, mooing frantically...She's got the BOTTLE!!  Finally, she makes it to the pen, gets him in there, and feeds him the bottle of water. 
Needless to say, the rest of us were NO help, rolling on the ground laughing as we were.
And no, he didn't break the chain.  Somehow, it unlatched itself from the halter.  She forgot that it used to do that for the dog, too, which is why we don't USE that chain anymore.....