Muddled Updates

When I read over my previous blog posts from last month, I realized how empty it sounds. I don't share much of the interesting details of our life because I always feel like there must be a photograph to accompany each post. I'm too busy to snag my camera for pics of each neat experience, then upload the pics and edit them. So. Here are some thoughts on my mind, with no photo to capture the moment. (Other than these pictures of Sarah that have nothing to do with the blog content. She's just cute, that's all.)

I absolutely love swinging on our tire swing under our big oak trees with my baby in my lap. We lie back together and gaze upwards into the stretching branches of the tree above us, pointing out bird nests in the process of being built or squirrels playing tag among the leaves. It's beautiful, peaceful, and it feeds my soul. The slow movement of the swing is hypnotic and we sway back and forth listening to cheerful birdsongs over our heads. I wish you could experience it. My heart is so content on afternoons like this. I try to capture the moment forever, closing my eyes and memorizing the smell of Diego's skin as he nuzzles against my cheek and the sound of leaves dancing in the breeze. 

Last weekend our family drove through the scenic hill country to reach Sweetberry Farm, where we spent the afternoon picking baskets of strawberries. We spent hours playing and harvesting together. Diego became an expert at picking the prettiest ones and popping them into his mouth. His face and hands were covered in red berry juice when we left. My sweetheart and I spent hours washing, sorting, and slicing fruit to dehydrate. Our dehydrator ran all weekend, filling the house with the delicious aroma of ripe strawberries. The smell was so powerful I expected the air to look pink! 

We had a lovely trip last weekend to Louisiana. This is our first time really visiting Louisiana (because passing through on a road trip doesn't count, you see). Nathan's parents live there in an enchanting house built in the 1930's, which is SO fun to explore. My heart loves old buildings, and I delight in imagining the lives and stories of the people who lived there long ago. The entire neighborhood was picturesque with historic buildings as far as I could see. I loved it! We ate gumbo for the first time (and would you believe it? it's delicious!) and crawfish (well, only Nathan ate crawfish. I'm not a fan of anything that looks like insects, thank you very much.) Our family enjoyed the visit and left rejuvenated and inspired. I love being around people who feed my soul.

Have I mentioned we started selling eggs this month? We deliver eggs to the nearest town twice each month. There is a food co-op there that buys everything our hens can produce. We just received a shipment of plain egg cartons to sell our eggs in, so whenever I get time (right...there's a good joke!) I can design our family label for our product. It's kind of fun to finally sell our eggs in our own cartons rather than reusing mismatched store brand cartons. It's very satisfying.

I do feel more and more like a 'farmers wife' the longer we live here. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I do feel so strongly about the importance of being self-reliant and producing our own food, but it's not glamorous one bit. It's easy to romanticize the 'simple life' idealized by country living, but it's really not simple at all. It's much more work than city-living was, and mucking about in dirt or manure is not very feminine. I spend so much time working that I don't really care anymore whether I have makeup on or whether my hair looks nice. (Why put on makeup when the only creatures likely to see me are the chickens? Not happening.) When friends stop by for a visit, they see the unadorned me, wearing plain working clothes.At first I felt the sting of humility when I greeted them at the door. Now I find that it really doesn't matter. I am feeling much more confident and comfortable in my own skin. 

I've been teaching Sarah and Matthew how to knit on a knitting loom this month. Matthew in particular really enjoys this activity and has been busily making a blue hat. He is so proud of his work and spends hours happily working on it. I enjoy watching them learn new talents. 

I've been busy planting lots of veggies for our garden. We have lots of plants growing right now: lettuces, spinach, pumpkin, squash, basil, carrots, peas, beans, beets, onions, etc. We'll see if any of them last long enough to harvest. We keep having animals eat them. Last week my goats figured out how to open the garden gate, and they partied like there was no tomorrow. They ate everything in sight and trampled the rest. I had the /delightful/ task to replanting my entire garden that afternoon. That was the day I bought an electric fence. 

Even with drawbacks like that, life is good. Really good. There are certainly mundane things about it, but it's a life still full of joy (even when I muck out the chicken coop I feel joy. Seriously.) I am filled with overwhelming gratitude to the Lord for the life I live. I'm thankful for our property and home and don't mind the loads of work it requires.  I am surrounded with beauty and that feeds my spirit. I try each day to reach out in service to others, and I am happy. I have been pondering this thought- material goods do not bring true joy....real joy is found in doing what is right in the sight of God. It's so true. My happiest days are when I forget myself and serve someone else. 

I hope you feel joy today. Life is too short to live without it.