Category Archives: Scrapbook

Mud boot planter – step by step

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My weed patch flower gardens look like this (click here to read more on that…)  :

(Isn’t it amazing that any flowers can still bloom in there, lol?!)

…when I received this beautiful Gerber Daisy from Mike’s sister & her husband for Mother’s Day, an alarm bell went off in my brain…

“Now I will EITHER have to weed my weed patch flower garden, OR COME UP WITH A ‘PLAN B’…”

Still fresh in my memory banks was the inspiration I received from Jill about my mud boot dilemma.

OBVIOUSLY, that’s the direction I went… 🙂

Here’s where I wanted the planter to go.  I thought it would be nice & easy to attach it to the gate.

So, I took my broken boot, marked it with chalk, & and started cutting.

Next, I poked drainage holes through the bottom of the boot.  I knew better than to use a hammer to pound a screwdriver through the boot (I had made that mistake once before…), so I THOUGHT I was being ever-so-wise as I dug through Mike’s toolbox… and found this…

WRONG AGAIN.  😦 I was informed I used a tool incorrectly AGAIN, and was graciously forgiven for (slightly) denting the tip of Mike’s punch tool.

Mike decided to offer help with my project now (wonder why??), and drilled some drainage holes for me. 🙂

He also said he didn’t think the gate was a good place to hang it.

With all the “action” it gets, he thought the rubbery boot would not be sturdy enough & the flower could fall out.

So, a more stationary position was sought.

Next, I had the boys collect some rocks to put in before the dirt.

Once I planted the flower, I realized something was needed to hide the emptiness of the tall part of the boot.

I’ve had this bag of moss in my craft corner for YEARS – thought it might work for this…  (So glad I never threw it away, lol!)

Next, came the tricky part.  Attaching the boot to our porch railing.

I decided to use braided twine.

About 3 baseball seasons ago, I braided a big crate of used twine that came off our hay bales as I sat & watched the boys play.

(No, I’m not kidding.  I love to create or do things with my hands while I’m sitting!)

My original intention was to use the braids as Christmas roping to decorate our picket fence.  That didn’t pan out, so I have a stash of pretty, braided twine in my craft corner, too. 🙂

I must tell you, though, I am NOT an accomplished “tie-er”.  You’ll see in this pic from the backside, that I basically just kept wrapping & knotting until the boot seemed sturdy.

Here’s a pic for Susy over at Chiotsrun – I finally got to use my Ethel gloves for this project! 🙂

I knew right away what I wanted the tag to say.  I am always praying this for myself, so it is fun to apply it creatively in something I can visually see.

A remade remnant, just like me! 🙂

celery, broccoli, & cabbage in today

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Originally, we started our own plants from seed, in newspaper pots. We had good success at first, but steadily declined from that first year.
We began with growing them in our basement on top of our chest freezer (just like my Grandpa used to do…) under lights. 🙂 That worked well for the first couple years – until we started using our freezer more, lol. So, we switched to our heated garage under fluorescent lights. It worked well for a couple years – until our heater died… Then this year we used our milkhouse since it’s also heated. Once we started milking, though, we moved the plants to Mike’s parents’ heated garage. And just as they started looking really good, mice found them and ate off most of the tops! Grrrrr… Guess we just aren’t ready to start the amount of plants we need from seed!

How thankful we are for our friends at Skipper’s Greenhouse in Carrollton!! We picked our plants up this week & Lord willing, will be getting everything planted soon.

[Garden Journal: Today we planted 16 celery, 12 Red Acre cabbage, 16 Danish Ballhead cabbage, & 20 Packman broccoli.]

Sometimes it’s hard for us to admit we can’t do it all. But when the dust clears from failed efforts, the path becomes more clear. Thank you, Lord, for preparing us to be receptive to help, and for surrounding us with support & cooperative efforts. We pray for the “fruit” of these plants and our efforts. May the harvest be plentiful. Amen 🙂

Clearing the path…

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One of the tasks in the milkhouse is carrying out the crates that hold all the bottled milk. These aren’t light, so strong arm muscles are a requirement. As I watched a son struggling with a full crate, I noticed how he took extra steps to avoid tripping over a bucket that had been placed directly in front of the doorway. I thought it was interesting how he never took the time to clear his path to make his walk easier. He just kept avoiding it to get out – even though that meant awkward movements with a heavy load. Me? I would have moved the bucket FIRST – in hopes of smoother sailing with my heavy load. So, I wonder, which perspective is better? Or is it not really about one being “better”, but about what our focus is on?

Since I’m older than my son, I’ve experienced “falls” from not taking the time to prepare. But I could also say that I’ve had scenarios where I’ve spent so much time preparing, that I turned the entire situation to being about me, instead of what needed done. So, while I can see the wisdom in advising my son to clear his path first, I think I should also commend him for not allowing an obstacle to deter him from his task.

Father, thank you for giving me this moment with my son. Thank you for opening my eyes to the beauty of innocence in a world where the push is for our children to be mini-adults before they are ready.  In our urgency to complete the tasks before us, help us to learn how to clear the path to You, so that the obstacles will not hinder us from the REAL task, fulfilling Your Will, not ours. 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 says: Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. Father, I echo Paul’s words. May Your Truth continue to make Itself evident to me as I search for You in every moment. AMEN

Redeeming the “nooks & crannies”

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Michael asked me what was wrong the other morning, as I was a bit frazzled & cranky.  Both boys were eating breakfast, but stopped to look at me for my answer.  I started to explain how there are just so many “things” we’re trying to get done right now, but some days it seems like you’re going backwards.  Everything seems to depend on something else to be done FIRST.  I sometimes struggle with where to begin, and in my uncertainty, I allow my circumstances to determine my attitude.

Both boys listened to my ramble & acted as though they understood… Then Michael said he was amazed at all the “nooks & crannies” there were… I smiled.  He WAS listening! 🙂

Made me reflect on my daily prayers.  I KNOW that the Lord is in control.  I KNOW that since I am one of His children, I am on the side of Victory in the end.  I KNOW the words to pray for His Strength to get me through this day, and I KNOW the words to pray at the end of the day to thank Him for helping me throughout the day… SO, why is it, I allow Satan to win in the “nooks & crannies”??   Well, I know the answer to that, too:  Because “we live in the shadow of ‘the fall’.”

Father, I thank you for pointing out that You don’t just want to help me with the overall picture – You care about even the most mundane tasks.  Clarity will come if I allow Your Peace to roadblock Satan’s traps.  Seep into all my “nooks and crannies”, Lord.  May I allow You to help me be victorious in all the little battles throughout my day, and may I remember this lesson, fresh each day.  Amen. 🙂

One of my favorite music groups is Selah.  They sing a song called “Unredeemed”, that I absolutely love, and have on my playlist.  One of my favorite lines is, “We live in the shadow of the fall.  But the cross says these are all:  Places, where grace is, soon to be… so amazing…”  Just thought I’d share the rest of the words.  🙂

The cruelest world
The coldest heart
The deepest wound
The endless dark
The lonely ache
The burning tears
The bitter nights
The wasted years

Life breaks and falls apart
But we know these are
Places where grace is soon to be so amazing
It may be unfulfilled
It may be unrestored
But when anything that’s shattered is laid before the Lord
Just watch and see
It will not be unredeemed

For every choice that led to shame
And all the love that never came
For every vow that someone broke
And every lie that gave up hope
We live in the shadow of the fall
But the cross says these are all
Places where grace is soon to be so amazing
It may be unfulfilled
It may be unrestored
But when anything that’s shattered is laid before the Lord
Just watch and see
It will not be unredeemed

Places where grace is soon to be so amazing
It may be unfulfilled
It may be unrestored
But you never know the miracle the Father has in store
Just watch and see
It will not be
Just watch and see
It will not be unredeemed

Cute, but NOT REALLY….

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I can’t even begin to tell you the sickening feeling I felt this morning as I walked home after milking. I looked out toward our house & saw a beautifully colored herd of calves IN OUR FRONT YARD DOWN BY THE ROAD!!! I yelled to Mike & our bodies went into “adrenaline mode”… Thankfully, the happy herd came toward ME & away from the road. Our backyard has an old picket fence around three quarters of it, so we managed to get them to go in one of those corners, by our house. The boys and I were able to keep them here while Mike scrambled to put up a temporary fence along the open section.

 

So what did Mike use for the temporary fence?? Extra metal fence posts & old cattle panels from when we took our “eggmobile” apart several years ago. They’ve been “waiting” for us to clean them up, but we hadn’t gotten to that yet…

Once the “fence” was complete, we all felt more secure. If this mini herd decided to run together, at least this should keep them contained in our back yard. Fortunately, all it took was coaxing from the lure of a bottle bucket to get a couple calves following us. The rest followed suit, and all babies are back in their home, safe & sound! 🙂

Dear Father – we are so thankful that none of our calves were hurt this morning as they adventured outside of their fence. Too often we’ve forgotten about the “function” of our picket fence, because we dwell on how it doesn’t “look” nice, with peeling paint & loose boards. You showed us today, the value of its function, and we THANK YOU! It’s so amazing to me how you incorporate our “mistakes” into Your plan. May we not be discouraged with long “to-do” lists, but be encouraged that as long as we do our best to be wise with our moments because we are ALWAYS working for You, You can use ANYTHING to help us.  May this incident cause the four of us to be extra diligent in backing each other’s work up – like double checking gates, so that we don’t repeat this same mistake again. AMEN

 

Thank You, Lord, for sending some rain!

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10 As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

ISAIAH 55:10-11

Quote from Ray Kane

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Just heard this quote on WCRF – Midday Connection: “We can’t do anything without God, & He can’t do anything without us.” I love this – what a neat way to visualize our partnership with Him. I think it’s amazing how God works through relationships. 🙂 Good thing he’s patient with me, because I sure haven’t always embraced that thought…