Burns Best Farm

Happy and Content...

On Thanksgiving I was blessed not to have to cook.  It was a nice meal that my MIL had prepared.  My husband's nephew and his (nephew's) girlfriend came up to visit from Colorade.  It was really nice to see them.  They are nice kids... can I say that???  LOL... they are younger than me!  LOL. 

Last night I picked up my nephew and he spent the night with us, wanting to share in the Friday morning sales.  This has been a tradition for us, although it is becoming apparent that a NEW tradition may need to be started.  We only needed "two" things this year and so we got up early (3:30 am) and went to get the items.  We had to hit 4 stores to try to get the best price, so we split up... my daughter taking another daughter and I took my nephew and another daughter.  By 9 am we were done shopping... really didn't have anything we wanted... so we went out for breakfast... the funnest part of the tradition, I guess... the kids enjoy getting together and when we eat out, somehow we can eat what we like and my nephew what he likes and everyone is happy.  (and I don't have to do dishes or cook!) 

Since we were done with early bird sales, I went to Menards to get some room paint for my kids' rooms.  After the rebate we'll pay about $3.50 per gallon of paint.  I got 4 gallons of paint and that is enough to do 3 bedrooms!  They needed painting so the paint rebate sale was a blessing for us!  That wasn't an early bird special... just a sale that we happened to want to hit.  I also hit a Friday sale at JoAnn Fabrics.  Our family tradition is to get new pajamas each year.  Looking at the prices, I just sighed... I opted instead to buy some fabric on sale and make our own.  Flannel was on sale for $1.49 a yard and I figured I could make a pair of pajamas for  between $3 and $6 each. 

My girls happened to be tired of shopping and opted to go home while I ran some needed errands.  I stopped by the  bank, filled up the car with gas and that is then when I stopped at the fabric store and enjoyed a peaceful time of looking at material and patterns without a little one trying to steal my attention.  I arrived home to a clean house.. the girls cleaned the house and even mopped the floors. 

I am tired tonight.  From being up so early, I imagine.  That is Okay.  After watching so many people today... I have been pondering much about my interactions, our traditions, etc.  I long for the quiet and some time to think.  After each store we retreated to our car which played softly playing Christmas music.  It was soothing.   Our favorite part of the day was simply just eating and talking together.  My kids have enjoyed this 5AM tradition of shopping (I got up at 3:30 simply because that's when I woke up).  I realized they just enjoy getting together with their cousin and spending time together.  They don't have much in common with him, so the "Shopping" was a way to connect.  But today they found they connected by just eating together and making conversation.   Perhaps God is leading our hearts to change!  Perhaps it is time for traditions to change. I saw my nephew open up today.  My youngest, Paige, cried when I picked her up at 7:45 am so Dad could go to work.  She wanted to be with Daddy.  My nephew quietly watched her cry (and I noticed a sympathetic expression in his manners) ...I simply kissed her and said... I like being with Daddy, too.  It was enough... Enough to have someone understand her little heartache.  That heartache, however is a longing with my nephew that he just doesn't talk about at all to us.  His Dad has never been around for him since birth.  He talked to him a couple times on the phone, but to my knowledge has never met his Dad.  When my sister came to pick him up, they talked a bit and she shared that her other son was visiting his Dad and she was upset that he wasn't a good role model and my nephew just simply said... at least he has a Dad, I'd give anything to spend time with my Dad.  My sister just pushed that aside and changed the conversation.   I just was amazed that my nephew said that outloud.  He has often shut down, cried but would never open up...(not even to his Mom and especially not us) and to have him open up today... was quite amazing.  It had to be God working in his heart!  So tradition is good in the sense that it got us getting my nephew comfortable with going shopping together for 3 -4 years now... and I'm hoping that with him feeling able to open up a bit, that perhaps we can connect on a different level than "shopping".    Much to think about and ponder!

For now, I am content and happy.  

Warmly, ~Melissa

A Great Thanksgiving Day

We had a super great Thanksgiving with most all my love ones here. Our new little granddaughter sure made for a special time. I didn't get to hold her much b/c of cooking but GreatGrandma sure did .

We had 14 people in all, 5 being our grandkiddies, our new SIL parents even shared our Thanksgiving with us, what fun. His Mom got right in the kitchen and help make gravy while her DIL (our DD) was helping with the other goodies. I loved it.

Lots of food and of course we overate. In the warm afternoon we all went walking on the trails (except new grandbaby, mommy and greatgrandma) and checked out the Outpost. In the 50's, I was sure tempted to camp out but I will wait for the snow.

Heres our cutie,she changes a little bit each time I see her.

We have the cradle which my Dad gave me for my babies, in the living. Not knowing at the time how many more beautiful babies would be sharing a sweet nap. A ture Blessing.

I did some junk store finds and found this neat hat holder with hats, perfect for the kiddies playclothes in the spare bedroom. I'm decorating it up Christmascy for them this weekend.

Here they all are in their new/old dress up clothes, hamming it up for gandma. The littlest guy didn't have any playclothes so he found a knit hat to put on, thata work. So I will be looking for lots of play clothes for them.

What fun they have dancing and singing in the living room.

Tomorrow DH and I will go to town and find a Christmas Tree. We use to take the family out to a Tree Farm and cut the most beautiful tree on the farm, (we always told ourselves this). Some would be whoppers up to 14ft tall , using extention ladders to decorate. But we have scaled down to 9ft and 10ft trees after the kids left home. Last year I think I got a tree leaning against the Hen House store while my sister looked on in the warm truck. This could be payback from a time when Mom, sis and I were getting a tree and sis got out in the rain as we had thumbs up or down for the perfect tree. Poor wet sis,

Oh and all the orange comes down, orange wreaths, orange pumpkins, oranges decorations and even the orange slipcovers in the living room. Its red and green time. Inside and out. And speaking green we are scaling down the lights on the house this year, kinda sad but DH needs a break. I put up the garlin and lights over the front door and will be putting out the sleigh and iceskates and pincones. But if I get a second wind I might put up more lights and light the trails. Just not sure yet. Less is more but then again someone told me more is more and less is really less. And then we got the being green going on too.

Chickens:

Oh boy are they doing well, up to 20 eggs a day. Nothing like cracking an egg for the Thanksgiving peacan pies, just freshly laid that day.
Go Girls Go!!!

Just for fun:

In some past post I share of a group I have joined late this summer. Mary Jane Farm Connection. I was new to the magazine and new to the forum. What a great connection from the get go. This "get er done" Mary Jane inspired me to make up my Outpost, she and other "out their women" inspired me to camp out for 13 weeks in my own Outpost. Make a reading tree for my grandkiddies and take a bath in the woods again like I use to.

Now I'm on a major cleanup here on the homestead, when you got a big roll off dumpster , its major clean up. One thing that I was going to toss out was my kids Barbie dolls, oh they were a mess and no way I want my grandkiddies playing with these , so why would I give them away to good well. Yucky, I tell ya, they were in very bad shape.

Now just before the toss I had a moment, a moment that I could not do, I'm throwing away my girls dolls : (, how could I do such a thing. Then the light bulb came on, I thought how Mary Janes Farm and the sisterhood is all about women Who Can and to raise little farmgirls Who Can as well. So why not clean up these dolls and make farmgirl Barbies for my own gandgirls to play with, a good wholesome image and recycle at the same time. And there it was, Farmgirl Barbie, Mary Jane style.

I shared with my farmgirl friends in Mary Janes forum and it was a hit, with the thread stating "What do you do with a big bag of wild-haired naked Barbie dolls?" Many ideas and others wanting to do the same with their DD Barbie dolls, and many wish they had not thrown their dolls away.

Heres a picture of one of those dirty wild-haired Barbie dolls that I cleaned up and made an apron for her (Mary Jane believes in aprons, there is power in an apron).  She is called  Farmgirl Barbie the Herb Gatherer

Barbie cleans up pretty nice.

Now all this gets even better.

Mary Jane herself has an artical about this in her Nov /Dec magazine.

I was so surprise that she liked my idea that she featured it heading and all "What do you do with a bag full of wild-haired naked Barbie dolls. Her write up was wonderful and I'm so honored to be mention in your magazine. Thank you Mary Jane .

This is a wonderful magazine so do check it out. I got my copy at Borders but you can also subscribe. Check out her forum to Mary Janes Farm   , lots of wonderful Farmgirls, all ages from all over the world, country and city. Talk about Kindred Spirits. You will find many there. I sure did.


Happy Holidays to you all , thank you for stopping by.

My heart and prayers go out to those in India. What a sadness this brings. A sadness for the loss but also a sadness that many have so much hate in their hearts to do such things. May Peace On Earth happen soon.

Blessings
linda

What I'm Thankful For

At the very very tippy - top of my "thankful list" ... waaaaaay above everything else, are these guys:

And my Bible.

I am a beloved wife. I am a needed, love mama. We have Scripture, in multiple copies, in our own home, in our own language.

God has so richly blessed me.

Everything else . . . and I mean everything else in my life is just . . . "fluff".

"Me" time is fluff.

Storybooks are fluff.

My pretty clothes and food to eat are all tremendously extra, rich blessings.

Seriously.

I am so incredibly blessed to be pursued by little sticky fingers and a husband that loves to hold me.

Thank You, Jesus. May my humble life somehow bring You honor and glory.

~Ashley~

Happy Thanksgiving !

I wanted to stop in this mornin and tell everyone Happy Thanksgiving !!!!

We have alot to be thankful for today, I hope that everyone has a blessed day filled with love and the company of family and friends. May the Lord bless you and keep you.

Blessings

Linda

Happy Thanksgiving!

To each and every one,
Happy Thanksgiving from our homestead to yours!
May God bless you today and always.
My Cup Runneth Over...
~Chas~
Chasity L. Burrell
Senior Editor Homesteadblogger
Heritage Acres Farm

TOS Black Friday Sale!!!!

Are you ready?  Get set!  Go!!!!!!

The Old Schoolhouse^® Magazine is having an amazing sale on subscriptions during their annual Black Friday Sale November 26 – 30. For those 5 days only, they are drastically reducing their one-year subscription price to $7.95! That's the price you would usually pay for just one issue at a bookstore!

This is their lowest price ever on the magazine and they want all of you to take advantage of this offer and share the info with your friends.

Please don't miss out. Your one-year subscription will pay for itself time and time again as you receive practical tips and Biblical encouragement to keep going strong in your commitment to homeschooling and to the Lord. Since it's a quarterly magazine, they even have a monthly subscriber's only E-Newsletter called Teacher's Toolbox that will give you seasonal teaching ideas and a free E-Book download! It's like joining a unit study of the month club! The free E-Books alone are valued at almost $250/year. It's really perfect for people who are homeschooling on a shoestring or just wanting to add in some little extras to your teaching.

Plus during the Black Friday Sale, they have all kind of bonus gifts when you spend $50, $75, $100, or $150. Some are electronic downloads that you can download immediately, while other are physical products mailed from various vendors directly to your home.

AND, their Win Big contest is going on so if you just happen to be customer 67,000, you will receive a prize package valued at almost $500 which includes a $150 gift certificate to the Schoolhouse Store! Who couldn't use that? And you can qualify to win it no matter how much or how little you spend!

Mark your calendars for November 26 - 30^th and do a little shopping from your seat, not your feet at the Schoolhouse Store's Black Friday Sale!

www.TheOldSchoolhouseStore.com

Our Thankful Trees

We wanted to make a craft for school to help count our blessings.  I love the whole Thankful tree idea... but I am ready for Christmas around here.
So instead of a Autumnal tree, we made Christmas trees and on the ornaments we wrote what we were thankful for.

I know what *I* am thankful for... :)
From My Homestead to Yours,
~Chas~
Chasity L. Burrell
Senior Editor Homesteadblogger
Heritage Acres Farm

My Thanksgiving Menu

Right now we have eight folks coming for Thanksgiving but that could change to more. And then later in the early evening we have more folks coming to have left overs and desserts..

So I would like to share my menu with you..

Thanksgiving Dinner

Turkey # 25 pounds

two different kinds of stuffing

gravy

homemade rolls

sweet tater

smash tater

buttercup squash

turnip

onions

pea's

corn

cucumbers

cranberry sauce

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

now my favorite part dessert

choc pie

vanilla cheese pie

choc silk pie

pumpkin pie

deep dish apple pie /with french vanilla ice cream

pecan pie

pumpkin spice  pie 3 layers

choc chip pie

cheesecake pie

pilgrim hat cookies

turkey cupcakes

Happy Thanksgiving

From our home to yours

Brenda

I would like to wish Everybody Happy Thanksgiving

I will be very busy from now until after Thanksgiving I would like to wish everybody a happy safe Thanksgiving..

From Our home to yours

Blessings Ray and Brenda

For Sale or Trade: Faithful Acres Benjamin (purebred reg. MDGA)

Faithful Acres Benjamin : 6th gen . reg. MDGA as one of the first Purebred Mini Nubians in the US.  Born 9/23/08.  He is eating grain and hay , drinking water so he is ready for his new home.  He has excellent breed character , long pendulous ears and is not disbudded.  Asking 250.00 with papers

Would trade him for the following :

LGDs, Fencing or stock panels,  Reg. Nubian Does

All serious offers considered

Linda

931-589-3823