I've Gone Country A blog about a city girl learning a whole new world

Everyday there is something that reminds me of 9-1-1…….however, it is always sadder  when it is the actual anniversary day.

I, like many others, remember exactly where I was and what I was doing when I heard the news and then saw it on the television.

I  was then and still am today,  saddened that there is so much HATE in the world.

Life is precious….it is a gift from God.

As I watched things unfold that day…..I couldn’t help but think of the many people who would not have their loved ones coming home to them……ever again.

A church placed these little flags in the shape of a cross on their lawn in memory of the lives lost that day.  It reminded me of the steel beam cross that was later found in the rubble.       Somber thoughts of eleven years ago.

My heart still hurts for the families of each person represented by these flags.  Spouses that surely lie awake at night missing their loved one.  Children who are trying to understand why Mom or Dad didn’t come home.  Older parents who lost their grown child….everyone is somebody’s baby, no matter how old they are.

I have found when losing loved ones in my life that time helps the wound, but it never goes away completely.

When my father passed away suddenly, I was just a child, it rocked my whole families world.  We had to create a new “normal”.   It is something that touches every part of your life….for the rest of your life.

Years ago, all three of us girls took our kids to the beach to spend some time with my Mom.  While we were there a gentleman drowned in the ocean.  A helicopter came….paramedics tried to revive him… eventually they air lifted him away.  I will never forget how we all stood at the window of the high rise hotel and watched as it lifted off the beach.  Mom took that opportunity to share how this was about to change a families life forever.  She took that time to teach us and her grandchildren a beautiful lesson.  We all stood hand in hand as she prayed for the family who was about to receive this horrible news.  I often reflect on that….she knew how that felt for her many years earlier.  She also knew that it was God that walked with her and brought her through those terrible days of grief.

I do not know what happened to that family….I only know we up held them in prayer.  God knew who they were and I have no doubt that He was there to comfort them in a way that only He can do.

So, as I remember 9-1-1,  I pray for those who were directly affected even though I do not know them.  I pray God will continue to heal the broken hearts and wipe away the tears that still fall.

Through the years many families have had their loved ones serve in the Military.   Much prayer and appreciation goes out to all soldiers striving to protect us each and every day.

I am also reminded in Scripture ……..

Matthew 5 :44

But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.

May we always remember….and always….humble ourselves and pray.

Billy and I did a little work on the chicken coop this past weekend.

A cedar tree had fallen several months ago…so I salvaged a branch.  Billy cut it to fit perfectly.  That will hopefully be where the chickens will roost at night.

Billy really has to do all the work…but he lets me get a lot of the credit.

He had to cut each and everyone of those little pieces of wood for the walk board.  I did nail them…but that wasn’t hard.  It was pretty fun though.  I can’t wait for the chicks to use it.

A friend of ours made the nesting boxes.  There are 12 of them…so there should be plenty of places to lay eggs!

I purchased a poultry drinker…I was sooooo excited!

We made three walk boards in all.  Each side of the coop has a little door and a plank.  Billy made me the little feeder on the right.  He is so smart.  He cut a PVC pipe in half and screwed it into the wooden legs.  Perfect dining room table for the girls.

This is the other side….see…I did a little work.  And Billy made another feeder as well.

Last…..but certainly not least…were the flower boxes Billy put under the windows!  How cute is that!

I still need to stain the outside.  I had placed the blocks in front to step up on so Billy said he would have some steps built for me…. YEAH!

Just a little more tweaking and it will be time to go pick out some chicks!!!!! WOOO HOOO

The building of the coop has begun!!!!! Woo Hoo.

Things have been busy all Spring and Summer, we are just now being able to concentrate on chickens.

I was very excited when the floor system went down…..

The next day the front wall was built…

Then it really started taking shape.

Billy designed this coop.  I think it is going to be soooo cute when it is finished.

This wood siding has a ” log”  look .  Too cute!  It will look similar to the building by the gold fish pond…only different…ha.

Billy was trying to explain to me what it would look like so he could make sure it was what I wanted.  However, I am not real good with being able to visualize buildings.  Size always messes with me.  I usually tell him to walk it off so I can get a mental picture.  Or ask him to show me another building that is comparable.

I suppose that is why I get so excited when I see it taking shape…because it is THEN that I really start seeing the whole picture.

Now when it comes to decorating….I usually have LOTS of ideas floating around in my head.  I can’t always make it look like my mind sees it…but I have fun trying.

I bought a chicken book months ago….I am learning that I still have a lot to learn about chickens.

Also about protecting the flock from predators.   One article talks about the different critters that will be a problem and how you can know what you are dealing with if you see certain things after attack.  If you find a bird with its head and neck missing, the killer may be an owl.  If you find just feathers scattered near a fence post, the thief could have been any flying predator that perched on the post prior to its attack.  Then they tell about Bobcats, they will bite off the head and leave puncture marks on the neck, back and sides.  Raccoons usually just go for the guts….Pretty gross huh?!?  Fox, Coyotes, and snakes just run off with the whole bird.  I suppose that is the food cycle of life.

I really hope I do not have to encounter all those things.  However, a rattle snake was in the road right in front of the coop just the other day.  He had about eight buttons or rattles on him.  Yikes!

This is a hawk that Billy was able to take a picture of from his truck on Saturday.  It is rare that you can see one this close.  He is pretty, I have a feeling that hawks and owls are going to be around more and be hard to deal with.  I probably won’t think he is so pretty with one of my chickens in his grip….flying away into the sunset.

I will have to concentrate on ways to protect them the best way I can.

Meanwhile I am excited about the day we get to have FUN picking out our girls!

I have been saving my egg cartons for months.   My neighbor said she would tell me how to Pickle eggs.  I have several gallon sized pickle jars ready for that as well!

For now….we just have to finish the coop….

It shouldn’t be much longer.  I will post more pictures as we continue to make progress!

When Mabel first came to live with us…she really managed to twist Billy around her little paw…..

Seems to still be that way…..

He is telling her that it is time for bed….she acts like she didn’t hear a word he said…..

We decided from the start that she would be an outside dog.  A dog that would stay in the fence and be the goats best friend.

Since I zip tied her little spot….things have been much better.   Ellie and Mabel have been running and playing, chasing each other until tongues hang out.  They really seem to be enjoying each others company.

In the evenings they come in and spend some time with us as we all settle down before bed.

Mabel lays on her back and stretches out when she is really relaxed.  She used to sit in Billy’s lap…but she has grown too big for all that now.

However, each night he picks her up and takes her to her bed.  She LOVES it!  No matter how tired Billy is….or how sore he is from working….he picks that big baby up.

And she goes to her apartment for the night…

I know it doesn’t look that comfy…I had padding in it…but she prefers it this way….and it is her apartment after all….

First thing in the morning….Billy takes Ellie and Mabel to retrieve the paper….then they get a dog bone…for a job well done.  After Billy does his routine of things then they go into the fence together.

Mabel has decided that being in the fence isn’t so bad.  And Ellie….likes having someone to hang out with.  They check out the goats…run and play….then they settle down for a little snooze.

Yes, she seems to have adapted just fine.

I can’t believe it is already time for school to start.

Riley is going into the second grade and Andy is going to start Kindergarten.  Layla has one more year and then it will be her turn.  One of the weird things about getting old is remembering when you went to kindergarten yourself, then you’ve raised a family,put your own kids in school, and now it’s the grandchildren’s turn…..yet  you remember being there yourself like it was yesterday.   WEIRD….

Billy and I went by my elementary school this past weekend….maybe it is because I just turned fifty….or because the grandchildren are about to go to school for a new year, I don’t know but I had major flashbacks.

First off…that school is soooo small.   When I was going there it was much… much…. bigger.  I saw some of the original playground equipment from when I was there.  The monkey bars sure weren’t as intimidating as they used to be.  Bet I could make it across now.

There was a special place under an awning that a bunch of us girls would sit and eat packaged, sweetened,  dry koolaid….. with our fingers.  All of us, with wet slobbery fingers sitting indian style, passing it around in a circle…dipping wet finger after wet finger  into one Koolaid package.  We would all end up with a purple or orange finger, and some strange  colored lips..  No wonder stomach bugs go around when school starts……

I saw the place where you were “dropped off”  for school if you rode in a car.  Patrol kids would open the car door for you.  I remember my little sister was a patrol girl.  I was  proud of her with her little strap vest thingy on.  She looked very official.  If I am not mistaken there was a hard hat, white gloves and a badge that with with that attire. Oh…and sometimes she got to carry an orange flag.   She was really something else….

I also saw the crosswalk where my lunchbox opened and it all fell out while I was in the middle of crossing.  Oh!!! how embarrassing!  I was trying to hurry and pick it all up…I mean gracious there were cars….they were stopped…but still I was in the middle of the street.  When you are a kid…that stuff is major.

I saw the door that came out of one of my old classrooms.  The teacher would let kids take turns during the week beat the chalk board erasers.  If you were the lucky one…you got to go outside and pound the erasers on a metal grate attached to the brick wall.  It was a lot of fun.  Chalk dust would fly everywhere.  Your hands would be chalk white.  It was sooooo cool.

I didn’t go in the school the other day, matter of fact I haven’t been in that school since my own son went there.  But, I remember how that bell sounded in the mornings….and the way my heart would beat faster if I was late to class.  I remember saying the pledge of allegiance and having a school prayer to start the day.  I can still recall how it smelled when you entered the building early in the mornings.  The excitement of getting to sharpen your pencil….and the smell of the shavings.  The  nervousness and excitement all rolled into one when chosen to take something to the main office for the teacher.  I loved smelling the fresh rolls cooking for lunch, and eating the peanut butter balls, they were awesome.  However, I never liked the milk.  It was never cold enough or something…I still am not a milk drinker.  Of course I blame it on that.   We took our lunch most of the time, but we bought that old nasty milk.   My Poor Mama…she made a lot of  peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, she would cut oranges up to make triangle slices and we would always have some sort of cookie.  Now, that may sound boring…but I really liked it.  I would cringe when she would put a tuna fish sandwich in my lunch….or a banana….do you know how gross that smells by lunch time.

As Billy and I drove away on those old familiar roads, I couldn’t help but smile.  We had a lot of fun in the walls of that school.  Lots of childhood fun, running, playing, laughing all in the midst of  learning.   Many teachers still come to mind that helped and guided me along the way.

The other day Lindsay was talking about Andy going to kindergarten.  She kinda hates to see this day coming.  Her baby…going to school.  It can be so hard to send them off those first few days.  They just look too little to be going to school.

I thought about how I felt the day I had to do that.  It puts a lump in your throat for sure.  Ok…..so it makes a Mama cry…

The hard part is….not crying in front of them, you know…when you have to be a “big girl”, and tell how much fun they are going to have….while your heart is breaking.

I have great respect and admiration for teachers.  It is not an easy job, if  they are taking their job seriously.

Each year I would pray for whomever my son would be getting as a teacher that year.  I know they can make a huge impact on a child’s life.   We were blessed to have a lot of wonderful teachers through the years.

About  Twenty Two years ago…. as my son finished kindergarten… I reflected back on the year, and I  wrote a poem about it.   I am not a real poem writer by any means.  Matter of fact I haven’t gotten any better at it even after all these years.   HA HA

For some reason I can’t seem to write anything unless it rhymes or gets close…..  So I suppose it is just ….thoughts of mine….put to rhyme.

I am really going out on a limb here… so…….don’t laugh….this is meant to ease other Moms that have knots in their stomachs as they take their babies to school.  If nothing else it will make them stop crying and start laughing.

Kindergarten

Nervous as we went down the hall

It was a new experience for us all

Garrett and I were holding hands so tight

As we turned the corner to meet Miss Wright

She was ever so patient, as I delayed my leaving

For she could see my heart was grieving

Independence is what we all want for our child

But wanting a teacher gentle and mild

Already leaving “silky”, the blanket, in the car

I knew we had already come so far

But did she know all she needed to know?

Why, who would kiss his little stumped toe?

He broke both arms only last summer

What if he needed his mama and no other?

Did she know he sucked his thumb when tired?

And sometimes cough medicine would make him wired?

Yet everyday my mind was put to ease

As I saw her gentle pat and loving squeeze

Firm in discipline yet gentle and kind

It soon wasn’t hard to leave him behind

Cutting, Coloring, Shapes and Sizes

Three good notes could win you prizes

Couldn’t wait to go to school the very next day

After learning to skip and tie a bow the right way!

So very organized everyday

She made her work seem like play

Making holidays fun for each season

I could see him understanding their reason

Straight across and down from heaven

Now even Mom could make a seven

Reading, Writing and Arithmetic

I like that teacher behind that hickory stick

I believe God sent you from above

To teach our children with your love

Let me polish your halo and straighten your wings

As you prepare next years kindergarten things

I thank God that in our Public School System

We still have teachers who love and listen

Thank you is all I know to say

For teaching Garrett in a wonderful way.

Surprise, Surprise, Surprise…..

I hit the big “50”.  WOW…that is a BIG ONE.

Billy told me we were going out for dinner on my birthday.  After work we went home to change clothes and head to the restaurant.  I was getting a little anxious..he had already driven so slow all the way home and I was behind him.  He also pulled into the farm and wanted me to show him real quick where I wanted  to put a building we had been discussing.  I needed to change and time was ticking.  I couldn’t believe he was doing this right at this particular time.

Once we got home…..he asked me to run up to the cabin with him he wanted to check on something.  All week he had been putting in a lot of long hours, working hard on some projects that he was longing to complete.  I didn’t think a lot about the request…except that he is usually the one saying hurry…we are going to be late.  This time I was the one saying…we are going to be late…we don’t have time to go to the cabin.  He tells me…well, I told you 6:00 so we wouldn’t be late—— we really do not have to be at the restaurant until 6:30.

OH…..I see…..(What was he trying to say?  I mean really…. I’m not usually THAT late…well….he does usually beat me to the car…..most every time we go somewhere…but that is beside the point)

Off to the cabin we go in the golf cart.  I was showing him where the dogs were in the fence and talking about feeding the goats earlier in the day…BLAH….BLAH…BLAH….while we traveled up the dirt roads.

As we round the corner to the cabin I see cars…..I turn and look at Billy…He smiled that   “Gotcha”    kind of smile!

As we pulled up I couldn’t help but cry.  In my family…at least with us girls…we cry.   We cry when we are happy, we cry when we are sad…we cry if something is sentimental, we cry if something is just sweet….we just cry.  I was overwhelmed.  That entitled me to a cry…..

Most all of our immediate family was there….another reason to cry.

Billy had planned the party and had it catered…..sooooo sweet…another cry….

Everything looked so pretty!

We sat at little round tables with table cloths, fresh cut  flowers and elegant, yet simple, decorations while in the midst of the woods.

It was Perfect….just perfect.  It was supposed to storm…but it didn’t even sprinkle…. It was just right!

This picture is not so great…but the people in the picture are.  They are my family.  They love me…they support me….they really, really know me.   I LOVE EACH AND EVERY ONE OF THEM!!!!!!

Since this was my party….I ended up on this side of the camera.  I prefer to be the one taking the pictures.

I treasure having these memories on film…um…. I mean ….on… memory card. Things really have changed in 50 years!!!!

Billy said a few words before we cut the cake….and I cried…..again….

They all sang “HAPPY BIRTHDAY” to me….it was sooooo sweet.

Then I blew out a “citronella” candle…..Loved it…    Things are a little different when you have a party in the woods!

I only had to blow out one candle….of course the joke was made that they didn’t have enough of them in stock for me to have   “50”!!!!!

The pictures are few….however I did get a picture with my brother and sisters.

This is from left to right….Debbie, Me, Charlotte and Tommy.

I had a wonderful time visiting with everyone.  I just wish I had more pictures of everyone else.

I appreciate so much all the time and love that was put into making this day so special for me.

I’m still overwhelmed and humbled by all the love that was and is always given to me through so many special people.

Thank you Billy….I love you.

I think I’m going to cry…..