Home Is Where My Heart Is

It's Raining Today....

and there is something wonderful about chilly, rainy days!!  I'm making soup (broccoli cheese soup) to warm up the little ones when they come in from romping in the downpour, oh, and homemade cornbread too....yummy!  God is so good to give us rainy days!  I may not be able to get the laundry done, but it certainly cools us off, fills the well and the pond, and makes us pause and be thankful that God knows EXACTLY what we need when we need it.  Thank You, Father!!

Love, Cherylann

Working Hard

I have been spending the summer making up lesson plans for the upcoming homeschool year...our tenth year.  I absolutely can't fathom where those ten years have gone!!!  I was so nervous when we first started out on the homeschooling journey, but had a clear sense that God was calling us to the journey.  He has been so faithful to see us through the rough spots, and I can truly say that homeschooling is the hardest and yet most wonderful thing we as a family have done.

So, as I said, I've been working hard this summer on the lesson plans for the upcoming year.  We have made some changes to our curriculum over the years, and so lesson plans that were previously used with my older children have to be revamped.  I use a wonderful computer program called Homeschool Easy Records to make lesson plans, print daily assignments, and keep track of grades.  The program makes things easier, but I still need to be spending many, many hours at the computer, getting things ready.

Sometimes I start to feeling sorry for myself when I think of all the fun things I could be doing with my summer...spending more quality time with the children, building my spinning and knitting skills, working in the garden and with the animals....but there is always that gentle, quite Voice in my heart which reminds me that I am serving HIM by serving my family, and that I am doing just what HE wants me to do.  I know there will be plenty of time for the more "fun" things in the future, and, for right now, I just thank My Father for the reminder and for the precious opportunity to serve Him and my family in this way.  God is always so good!!!

Have a wonderful day, Dear Ones...Love, Cherylann

Remembering...and Missing

Something today is making me miss my mother who died three years ago from a sudden stroke at age 67.  I guess it's the fact that her birthday is coming soon, or that she always made summer such fun for me (her only child) when I was young.  In any case, I'm missing my Mommy today and my heart is heavy.

Even so, I praise my Father that He gave me a mother who loved me with every ounce of her being.  He knew that I needed her and He let me have her for 40 years, and He knows that I'll be fine now that she lives with Him.  Thank you, Lord Jesus, for Mother...and please give her a kiss for me today.

Love and hugs, Cherylann

A Beautiful Day!

I've just finished my third load of wash, and it's not even noon yet!!  Having two washers is a wonderful thing!  It's a lovely day today with low humidity and a few puffy clouds in the sky.  The kind of day you wish would last all summer.  The children are enjoying the outside time and the nice break from sweating buckets like we have been for the past weeks.  All except for my Noah, who cut his toe badly a few days ago and has to stay off of that foot for awhile.  Poor little guy....he's not happy about it, and has read pretty much all the books we have for his age level.  Hopefully he'll be able to be up and around by tomorrow....but still no swimming for Noah, and he's usually a regular little fish in our pool!

Well, I need to get back to my lesson planning.  I just wanted to drop a note about my day and say hello to all my fellow homesteaders.  Will you join me in praising Our Father for the abundant blessings He has given us all??!!!

Love in Christ, Cherylann

Shaving Rabbits

Oh my, but it's been hot this summer!  Along with my other domestic rabbits, I am caring for four angora rabbits.  I plan to use their wool to blend and spin with sheep's wool to make socks for my family in the near future.  The angora rabbits really are minding the heat, so I decided to shave them a second time this summer.  I had previously shaved them in early April and thought that would be sufficient for the remainder of the summer.  Because the heat here in PA has been in the mid-90s for weeks, my angoras barely want to move these days...hence the second shaving.

Shaving my angoras might not be my favorite thing to do on a hot day, but they do so appreciate the feel of the cool air on their skin.  And, I have to admit that as the wool comes off and I collect it for future use, my mind wonders off to the things I plan to do with the wool.  Maybe one or more of my Dear Ones will be blessed with something I have made for them from this wool, and will find themselves warmed and reminded of my love for them in the middle of a cold winter's day.

I'm thankful to Our Father that He made fiber animals to care for and use for our good, and I'm so thankful that I live in a place where I can raise and care for them right alongside my Dear Ones.  God is soooo good!

Please stay cool today, wherever you are!

Love, Cherylann

Again on the Laundry Theme!!!

This past Friday, my husband and I went to pick up a SECOND washing machine!  I have to imagine that I am probably one of the only people in the country who has TWO washing machines and no dryer!!!  Since I have plenty of laundry lines outside (and inside too), my husband (Rick) felt that I would best benefit from a second washer in order to try and get a handle on the piles of dirties that fill up my laundry room each day.

So, yesterday (Saturday) was the first day I had the two washers running simultaneously and, guess what????  At the end of the day yesterday, ALL THE LAUNDRY WAS FINISHED  (at least for an hour or so).  That has NEVER happened since I've been a mommy of many!!!  And I'm here today to thank the Lord for my new second washing machine, and for my precious husband who suggested it.  The sense of peace and accomplishment that came with having all the laundry done at one time was a very special treat at the end of a busy day!

I pray you enjoy your Sunday!  Love, Cherylann

Hayfever

I just love spring here in Pennsylvania.  Our homestead is blooming and buzzing, and new life is all around me.  Why, even just this morning I was so pleased to discover three baby bunnies in a nest constructed by my favorite doe, Posey!!  Spring is a wonderful time.....that is, all except for my hayfever!  I can't remember a year when my hayfever has been worse than it is this spring.  I am mostly allergic to tree pollen.  How ironic is it that I'm allergic to tree pollen when trees are my favorite plants?!!  I have planted countless trees on our homestead over the past 17 years, and I guess that's what's contributed to my bad hayfever...but I wouldn't have it any other way.

I don't understand why I have been blessed with my hayfever.  But Our Father, in His infinite wisdom has decided that it is best for me.  I know that suffering with hayfever makes me so thankful to Him that I am not suffering with anything more serious.  He is always good, and I thank Him for all His provisions....good and bad.  I am also thankful that my children don't really suffer with allergies as I do.

Well, I need to get back to our schoolwork.  We're finishing up our next-to-last week of school for this year.  I can't believe that we have almost completed nine years of our homeschool adventure.  My oldest Dear One (Rachel) has been graduated from our homeschool for a year already, and she is doing SO well in her chosen career as a veterinary assistant/veterinary technician in training.  Thanks for stopping by my blog and for taking the time to read my ramblings.  I pray your hayfever isn't too bad today!!

Love in Christ, Cherylann

Enjoying My Family

God is so good, isn't He?!!

He give us such good gifts even when we are woefully unworthy.  Sometimes I feel as if I fail Him utterly, and yet He blesses me beyond measure each day.  Every morning when I wake up I have the precious privilege to be a helpmeet to my dear Rick and mommy to our nine sweeties.  I don't deserve that privilege, but by My Father's grace I am able to enjoy every minute of my life with my family.

Thank You, Father God, that You, in Your infinite wisdome, have decided to bless me with my sweet husband, three lovely girls, and six handsome boys.  You are an Awesome God!!!

Don't you think so too??  Love, Cherylann

Chicken Pox!

My youngest five children are in various stages of coming down with chicken pox!!   My oldest four had them many years ago.  For some reason, my 13-year-old son, Ben, developed shingles about three weeks ago.  I know that shingles is related to the chicken pox virus.  Now the younger children are getting the pox.  Noah (age 7) was the first and is definitely the worst right now, followed by Isaiah (age 5), Jesse (age 3), Esther (9 months), then Joey (age 9) is just now starting to spot.

Needless to say, my dear ones are in the process of becoming very miserable.  I'd surely appreciate prayers on their behalf!  I know that Our Father causes all things to happen for His purpose, and I'm looking hard to find His purpose in chicken pox.  I am starting to believe that His purpose this week in this illness it to give me additional practice in patience.  He knows that I need that, and He is always SO GOOD!!!

Have a lovely day today, Cherylann

A New Family Member to Love

Willie is here!  No, he isn't a new child added to our full quiver of nine.  Willie is a teacup pomeranian puppy!  He's a black and white cutie, born on March 22nd and weighing not much more than a feather - now brimming over with playful antics and puppy breath!  What could be more fun?

Willie has been my heart's dream puppy for so many years, and now that he's finally here I can hardly believe it's so.  He is so tiny and so fragile, and I must take such tender care of him lest he be hurt by my little ones' potentially rough lovins'.  But, oh, what joy this little bundle has for living.  He doesn't know how tiny he is, because his heart is so big and the world needs to be explored.

I see a parallel here in my relationship with my Heavenly Father.  I am so small and the world is so big.  He needs to shelter me and protect me from all potential harm.  I must trust Him for my care and protection, just as Willie trusts me.  I must look to His face and rest in My Father's care, just as  Willie turns his precious puppy eyes on me and licks my cheek to say he loves me.  I have always believed that God created puppies just so that His children could hold and love tangible proof that He cares for them and wants them to experience happiness and unconditional love.....His unconditional love...but only if we have asked Him to be the Savior of our souls.

So now I say thank you, Father, for the gift of Willie, and for the tiny reminder of Your love for me.  You are so good!

Don't you agree?  Love, Cherylann

A Down Day...

I don't know what it is, but I'm feeling down today.  I just can't seem to smile today.  Lots of things are going on, and I think those things are just crashing down on me today.  I can't do anything to bring myself out of this....but I know Someone who can.

Father God, I need You today...I need You every day.  Thank you for loving me and my family.  Thank you for caring so much that I don't feel like myself today.  Thank you for my health, for our homestead, for my hardworking husband, for our precious little ones, for the promise of salvation in You.  Thank You, Father....just thank YOU!!!

There....now I feel much better!!

I pray all is well with you too.  Love, Cherylann

Flowers...and Grubby Hands

Spring is finally here in Pennsylvania.  For awhile there it seemed as if spring was on vacation in a warmer climate!  But, this weekend has been in the upper seventies and my crew has been enjoying the beautiful sunny weather with bare feet aplenty.

I was busy yesterday (Saturday) tidying up the rabbitry and cleaning up winter debris.  As I was hard at work, my little Jesse (he's three) came up to me with his face all streaked with spring-fresh dirt and thrust out a grubby little hand in my direction - beaming a beautiful blue-eyed smile that always melts my heart.  In that outstreached hand was a rag-tag bouquet of flowers he had collected whilst trekking about the homestead.  Is there any store-bought bouquet more beautiful in this world to a mother than the precious little weed arrangements offered by the pure and loving heart of a much-loved child??  Oh...thank You Father God for the privilege of being a mother!!!!!!

Enjoy your day...and don't forget to hug your children! Love, Cherylann

Wind...and Little Boys

It surely has been windy and rainy for the past few days here on our little Pennsylvania homestead.  There has been a "nor'easter" pounding our area since early Sunday with no sign of letting up now on this Tuesday morning.  Last night the weatherman said that this weather pattern will probably continue until the end of the week.  Isn't it supposed to be spring???

Well, this terrible wind at night has really been frightening my three younger boys:  Noah, Isaiah, and Jesse.  They get so fearful at night when they are put to bed, asking if the wind howling around the eaves of our home will "get them."  I softly remind them that God is in the wind, as He is everywhere.  They should see the wind as tangible evidence of His presence and rest peacefully in this reminder of His love and care for them.  When I assure them that it is God Who makes the wind blow, and it is God Who makes the trees stand fast even in the face of such wind....and it is the same God Who holds their very lives in His hand - that's all these sweet boys need to nestle down in their warm beds and slumber through the night.  After all, who couldn't sleep peacefully when God is right outside the window reminding them that He loves them!!

He loves you too...remember!!  Love, Cherylann

Diapers....and a Mother's Love

Last night I was getting my baby Esther ready for bed (she is 8 months old).  I was loading her up with her incredibly thick "nighttime" cloth diaper, intended to catch every drop of every single nursing session throughout the night.  It does a good job, too.  But as I was tucking in all the corners and edges of this chunky diaper around my precious little sweet pea and attempting to cover the whole process with a hand-made wool soaker, I reflected on the awesome rosy-cheeked privilege which was lying there at my fingertips smiling at me.

Esther is my joy.  (Actually, all nine of my children are my joys, but this time I'm just reflecting on her.)  She is my third daughter, but she came to us after having six boys in a row and has been a refreshing glimpse back into lacey-pink baby girlhood.  She prefers my company to anyone else's.  She has never used a bottle or cup, since I nurse her exclusively.  So, as I was diapering her last night before bed, it really struck me that every drop of liquid which fills this diaper has come to Esther from me, and every precious infant whom I have had the privilege of nursing over these past almost 20 years has come to me as an indescribably precious gift from my Heavenly Father.  I feed and care for Esther, and He sustains and cares for me on a daily basis - no, on a second-by-second basis.  There is no possible way that I could achieve anything, or even take my next breath, without Him making it possible.

Now...diapering is one of those daily chores that we mothers can't get around, especially cloth diapering, since you can't just throw them away and forget about them!!  And as I replaced Esther's soggy cloth diaper this morning and pulled out a new bright, clean rectangle of cotton to swaddle her sweet little bottom for the next hour, I couldn't help but feeling my heart swell with praise to God for the gift of soggy diapers.  Isn't He just so very good???!!!!!

Enjoy your day today, Cherylann

Raining....But Still Laundry!

I've had some really nice comments about my thoughts on laundry.  I would never have thought that such a topic would hit a chord with even one other person!

God is sending us rain today here in Pennsylvania.  Rain means a full well and pond, it means a much-needed drink for the flowers and trees, it means freshly scrubbed walkways and newly-opened leaves, it means mud in the cow and chicken pens...AND it means laundry hanging inside the house! 

We live in a rather small house considering the size of our family.  We have always said that we prefer a smaller house if it means more land to roam.  Living in a small house with a large family means moisture build up, so we keep a whole-house dehumidifier running all year.  At the same time I purchased the outside laundry pulleys from Lehman's, I also purchased a round "device" with clothes pins encircling it which hangs from the ceiling.  This I load up with the wet laundry and let the dehumidifier do the rest.  During the time the laundry is hanging on the "device" (I don't know what else to call it!!) the house smells so fresh and clean from the drying clothes, and, incredibly, it brings a little bit of outside freshness into our home on an otherwise gloomy day.

The laundry never takes a holiday in our home, but I am so thankful to God that He has given me so many ways to provide clean clothes for my family while adding little bits of happiness and pleasure to our day.  While I'm at it, I'm also thankful to Him for giving me this blessed opportunity to serve my family at home and teach my children to love and honor Him!

Thanks for stopping by, and may your day be blessed too!  Cherylann

More Laundry...and Wool

I'm sure that you are familiar with the Lehman's Catalog.  This is where we were finally able to find pulleys for my laundry lines which could withstand the daily winds which blow - and not always gently - here on our homestead.  It's no wonder we call our place "Windy Hill Farm."  The pulleys we ordered from Lehman's are made in Canada.  We have two lines set up and going from the back porch door to the boys' treehouse for one line, and a large choke cherry tree for the other line.  Having the lines come off the back porch makes it nice because the porch is right off the laundry room, so I don't have to go far.

So now I need to learn how to wash raw sheep's wool.  Too bad I won't be able to throw that in the washer and hang it on the line!  I've been a hand knitter for a long time.  Recently I purchased my first spinning wheel (an Ashford Traditional, double treadle) and my first two raw fleeces (a shetland and a "rambo").  They are sitting in their boxes looking at me and begging me to wash tham and get them spun into some delightful wool to use for diaper soakers.  I'm so afraid of the washing process, but I guess I'll need to take the plunge soon and get these fleeces washed before my dogs decide to help themselves to the delightfully smelly wool!!

Well, it's getting late here and the last load of laundry for the day (towels)  needs to come down and find its way back into the linen closet.  The schoolwork for the day needs to be marked and put away, the animals need to be tended to, and the children need to be bathed and put to bed.  What a wonderfully ROUTINE routine!!!  God has been so good today, as He always is.

Have a peaceful night, Cherylann

Laundry!

Laundry!  Oh my, but a family of eleven (including a little baby girl in diapers) surely creates a lot of it!!  Rick and I have six boys and three girls.  This time of year our homestead is a muddy mess, and my boys definitely aren't afraid of dirt, mud and grease!

In my neverending quest to be a good steward of our family's resources, I choose not to use my dryer, so our laundry is hung, piece by piece, in heat or cold, by my own hands.  Sometimes I look longingly at my dryer as it stands empty on the porch - teasing me to use it, while laughing at me for my frugality.  Sometimes, I say....but not very often.  Every day as I truck my heavy loads of wet laundry outside to the pulley lines, I praise My Father in Heaven for the beauty of our homestead, for the scents of soil, farm animals, fresh air, flowers, and for the gift of those lingering scents on my clean laundry.  My family enjoys the smell of our clean laundry..they tell me so, and I enjoy making my family happy.  Making them happy makes me happy, so it's outside again to the pulley line for another dose of happiness!

God is so good.  He gives me lots of laundry to dry so that I have the chance to appreciate every single day that He has given me.  I love doing the laundry, I love my family, and I love My Father in Heaven!

Have a wonderful day!!