Hello friends,
It has been almost two years since I have been on here. I apologize for that.
A great deal has happened on our little hill side since my last update. The saddest thing being that our Sweet Mother who was the author and creator of this blog has now passed away after a four and a half year long battle with breast cancer. I am sorry for it taking me so long to come on here and give an update on how she was doing things got very busy and hectic. But as I have been going through her paperwork and accounts I ran across this one. Thank you all for your prayers and thoughts for our family over the last couple of years. And we ask for your continued prayers as we carry on and find our new normal in life.
Amanda C Harris
Saturday, February 29, 2020
Friday, April 6, 2018
Thursday, April 5, 2018
Wednesday, April 4, 2018
Saw a new doctor today.
He said that the wound is looking very good now, having no drainage on the dressing. Her blood work all looks good, and blood pressure is back up to normal. Her temp has stayed under 99 all day but just a few min ago it was at 99.4 which is still under 100! So we are really praying that it will stay down from this point on. She is having some pain today but is manageable. Also she is off of the IV antibiotics! They are trying to use oral antibiotics now and see if we can hopefully go home in a day or two. 😊
He said that the wound is looking very good now, having no drainage on the dressing. Her blood work all looks good, and blood pressure is back up to normal. Her temp has stayed under 99 all day but just a few min ago it was at 99.4 which is still under 100! So we are really praying that it will stay down from this point on. She is having some pain today but is manageable. Also she is off of the IV antibiotics! They are trying to use oral antibiotics now and see if we can hopefully go home in a day or two. 😊
Tuesday, April 3, 2018
Hey there friends!
Mamma had a pretty long night last night because of some pain and muscle spasms. The nurses here are wonderful ladies that reacted quickly and work hard to relieve and relax her as fast as possible. The pain is more manageable now than this morning.
Her blood work was very good news this morning as her numbers were good ended that she didn't need any transfusions or extra meds through IV other than the antibiotics. Her temp has been great today staying under or close to 100. 😊🎊🎉
Mamma had a pretty long night last night because of some pain and muscle spasms. The nurses here are wonderful ladies that reacted quickly and work hard to relieve and relax her as fast as possible. The pain is more manageable now than this morning.
Her blood work was very good news this morning as her numbers were good ended that she didn't need any transfusions or extra meds through IV other than the antibiotics. Her temp has been great today staying under or close to 100. 😊🎊🎉
Monday, April 2, 2018
Good evening y'all!
Today has been a pretty good one.
Mamma's temp spiked one time around midnight last night, but came down quickly and stayed normal (even got down to 97.8 😎) until about 6pm then it started to climb just a bit (to about 100, but came back down quickly).
She has felt really good today eaten very well. She hasn't had any pain meds in two days! Her blood work today was better, but she did need another bag of platelets today but tolerated it very well.
Thank you so much for your prayers, and keep em coming! Because we are seeing results. GOD IS SO GOOD!
Today has been a pretty good one.
Mamma's temp spiked one time around midnight last night, but came down quickly and stayed normal (even got down to 97.8 😎) until about 6pm then it started to climb just a bit (to about 100, but came back down quickly).
She has felt really good today eaten very well. She hasn't had any pain meds in two days! Her blood work today was better, but she did need another bag of platelets today but tolerated it very well.
Thank you so much for your prayers, and keep em coming! Because we are seeing results. GOD IS SO GOOD!
Sunday, April 1, 2018
Hello Friends! Sorry this is late again.
Mamma has been a lot stronger and had more energy today than yesterday. Her appetite has also been much improved.
She did end up having to take more potassium and they had to give her platelets, but she tolerated that very well.
They have her doing some deep breathing exercises to keep her lung functions strong. She has been getting up and walking around the room some and has had not had to ask for any pain or nausea medicines all day.
Her temp has stayed under 100.4 all day and is currently sitting at 99.2 for the last few hours. She is reclining back and resting nicely at the moment.
So I will say that today has been a very good day.
Mamma has been a lot stronger and had more energy today than yesterday. Her appetite has also been much improved.
She did end up having to take more potassium and they had to give her platelets, but she tolerated that very well.
They have her doing some deep breathing exercises to keep her lung functions strong. She has been getting up and walking around the room some and has had not had to ask for any pain or nausea medicines all day. Her temp has stayed under 100.4 all day and is currently sitting at 99.2 for the last few hours. She is reclining back and resting nicely at the moment.
So I will say that today has been a very good day.
Saturday, March 31, 2018
Sat. 3/31/18
Good evening everyone. Sorry I am so late in posting today, but it has been really busy all day long.
Mamma did very well yesterday and last night. Her temp did spike to 102 and they took some blood cultures in hopes of getting more answers as to what is still causing this problem. Around 6 am the nurses came in and said that mammas blood work was not very good. So, they pulled a few tubes to do a few extra tests with. Turns out that her red blood and platelet counts had dropped to very low, her potassium and magnesium had also dropped So they gave 1 unit of blood to see if we can bring it back up. Also her potassium and her magnesium is still low so they are doing extra of each of those.
Today hasn’t been an easy day because she has been very weak and tired, but except for that one time her temp has stayed to the low side of 100 and a few times today it has even hit 98.4 for a little while. She has struggled with pretty low Blood pressure all day, so we are hoping to see it come back up soon.
Mamma did very well yesterday and last night. Her temp did spike to 102 and they took some blood cultures in hopes of getting more answers as to what is still causing this problem. Around 6 am the nurses came in and said that mammas blood work was not very good. So, they pulled a few tubes to do a few extra tests with. Turns out that her red blood and platelet counts had dropped to very low, her potassium and magnesium had also dropped So they gave 1 unit of blood to see if we can bring it back up. Also her potassium and her magnesium is still low so they are doing extra of each of those.
Today hasn’t been an easy day because she has been very weak and tired, but except for that one time her temp has stayed to the low side of 100 and a few times today it has even hit 98.4 for a little while. She has struggled with pretty low Blood pressure all day, so we are hoping to see it come back up soon.
Friday, March 30, 2018
We saw the doctor today. He's concerned about her temp still spiking during The night and that She now has a slight rash on her stomach. So he is thinking about maybe changing some antibiotics incase she might have an allergy.
He is pleased because her pain levels are much improved. And we have a huge praise! She has been able to move her left arm very little but doing so with out any pain, and she is relaxed enough that she can comfortably lay back against the bed if it is set up (still can't lay flat but reclining) with my head on the pillow. She has not been able to do that in quite some time so that is a definite improvement. So hopefully the Neurontin is helping to calm the aggravation on the nerves in her arm and shoulder.
So this morning has been very good! She is still tiring quickly due to still having the fever spikes. And just plain being tired. But that is improving because she is actually RESTING when she sleeps. Keep the prayers coming! They are working. 
😊Thursday, March 29, 2018
Hey everyone!
Sorry I’m so late in getting on here. I am probably going to keep the posts down to once a day. Unless something major changes. 🙂
🙂
One of Mamma’s friends came and let me go home last night. But they said she did really well through the night. When I came in this morning Mamma was sitting up and eating breakfast (she managed to get more than half of it down). Her temp was 100.4 this morning and has pretty much held there. This evening it has gone up to 100.8 but they are still seeing this as good because we are still under the 101 mark. They have done Tylenol for it so we’ll see how it does through the night. If it continues to stay level and go on down they may switch to oral antibiotics and look into going home. But how she is in the morning will determine that.
She has been able to recline back a bit today which is something that she hasn’t done in several weeks. Also got up and walked around the room a bit and stretched her legs some. So all in all it has been a very good day. 😊
😊Wednesday, March 28, 2018
Hello everyone!
This is Amanda. I am reopening this blog to use as an update page for Mamma. I apologize in advance for grammar errors and typos that will be in these updates LOL! Grammar was never a very strong subject for me. Also, I apologize that my posts will not be as well written as the ones that my mother writes. she is way better at things like this than I am. :) However, I will do my best.
Mamma was diagnosed with stage 3C breast cancer in September of 2015. She has since had several surgeries and gone through four separate chemo types. We found out in December of 2017 that the tumor had returned a third time, and it is inoperable because of being about 7cm and in heavily vascular area, around a nerve bundle. She has been on an oral chemo to try and kill or at least slow down the growth of the tumor.
On March 13th, she had a PET scan and found out the tumor has grown to just over 9cm. Since the oral chemo isn’t working, her doctor had planned on starting a new round of Chemo infusion on the 19th, but they noticed that she has an infection under her arm and began a 7 day round of IV antibiotics instead.
Now, fast forward to March 27th. Mamma has completed the antibiotics and was pretty badly dehydrated. Home health came out that afternoon and did a bag of fluid through IV. Mamma began to show signs of feeling better and perked up a bit.
That evening around 10 p.m. Ferrell called and asked me to come over because she had gotten sick and was not getting any better. When I got there we checked her temp and it was high so we came on into the Baptist Memorial Hospital ER in Columbus. They diagnosed her with cellulitis and she had become septic from the infection. They admitted her around 2 a.m. Tuesday morning and have continued to give several IV antibiotics. There seems to have been good response so far as her fever is sitting around 100.8 now so it is slowly coming down from the 102 she was at when we got here. Well.... They just came in and checked her temp which is now at 101.4
so more tylenol and hope it will come down again soon.
March 28th.
We are still at the hospital receiving IV antibiotics. Last night things got kinda rough, her temp went back up pretty high and she had a great deal of nausea. The nurses here are wonderful and they were able to get things back under control fairly quickly. This morning things are starting to look better. she was able to eat some breakfast and had sat up for a while and was more alert. She does tire out very quickly though.
This is Amanda. I am reopening this blog to use as an update page for Mamma. I apologize in advance for grammar errors and typos that will be in these updates LOL! Grammar was never a very strong subject for me. Also, I apologize that my posts will not be as well written as the ones that my mother writes. she is way better at things like this than I am. :) However, I will do my best.
Mamma was diagnosed with stage 3C breast cancer in September of 2015. She has since had several surgeries and gone through four separate chemo types. We found out in December of 2017 that the tumor had returned a third time, and it is inoperable because of being about 7cm and in heavily vascular area, around a nerve bundle. She has been on an oral chemo to try and kill or at least slow down the growth of the tumor.
On March 13th, she had a PET scan and found out the tumor has grown to just over 9cm. Since the oral chemo isn’t working, her doctor had planned on starting a new round of Chemo infusion on the 19th, but they noticed that she has an infection under her arm and began a 7 day round of IV antibiotics instead.
Now, fast forward to March 27th. Mamma has completed the antibiotics and was pretty badly dehydrated. Home health came out that afternoon and did a bag of fluid through IV. Mamma began to show signs of feeling better and perked up a bit.
That evening around 10 p.m. Ferrell called and asked me to come over because she had gotten sick and was not getting any better. When I got there we checked her temp and it was high so we came on into the Baptist Memorial Hospital ER in Columbus. They diagnosed her with cellulitis and she had become septic from the infection. They admitted her around 2 a.m. Tuesday morning and have continued to give several IV antibiotics. There seems to have been good response so far as her fever is sitting around 100.8 now so it is slowly coming down from the 102 she was at when we got here. Well.... They just came in and checked her temp which is now at 101.4
so more tylenol and hope it will come down again soon. March 28th.
We are still at the hospital receiving IV antibiotics. Last night things got kinda rough, her temp went back up pretty high and she had a great deal of nausea. The nurses here are wonderful and they were able to get things back under control fairly quickly.
This morning things are starting to look better. she was able to eat some breakfast and had sat up for a while and was more alert. She does tire out very quickly though.
Spoke with the doctor a few minutes ago and he said that if we can go without anymore fever spikes tonight that he will back off on the antibiotics through tomorrow. After that, if all is going well with no more fever then we can talk about going home.
In the meantime her appetite has returned!
👏🏻 she ate a really good light lunch and ate most of her supper as well.
In the meantime her appetite has returned!
👏🏻 she ate a really good light lunch and ate most of her supper as well.
One of Mamma's friends is coming out to stay the night with her so i can go home and see my children and gather a few things. I will be back tomorrow and hope to have good news to update with then.
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Thanksgiving Blessings
As we approach this Thanksgiving Holiday, I can't help but think about how different this year will be from last year, and how different last year was from all of the previous years.
At this time last year, I was preparing for the holiday knowing that it would be the last one I would share with my precious mother. In previous years, Thanksgiving was always a time of fun, laughter, music, and food. Most of all food. Last year, we had the food, and we had the music, and we had the special love for each other that has always defined our family. For that I am thankful.
This year, I am trying hard to stay focused on the many, many blessings that God has bestowed upon our family, and not the loved ones that are absent. Not only will my mother not be with us this year, but my middle son Caleb will not be able to be here. He is blessed to be living in Texas close to his future in-laws, so I know that he will have a wonderful holiday, but he will definitely be missed here.
We are planning to have our usual Thanksgiving menu this year and because I want this holiday season to be a blessing to the little ones here, I am working hard to stay focused on just how much God has blessed me this past year.
Here are a few of the ways God has blessed (and is continuing to bless) me this year:
My family is healthy.
My daughter and her children are living with us at the moment. I have the blessing of spending time with my grandchildren on a daily basis.
My Dad is also living with us now. Even though his health has gotten worse, he is still able to take care of his basic needs and just needs someone to help with meals, medicines, and helping him not fall on bad days. I am thankful that God has chosen to allow us the privilege of caring for my Dad.
Even though I will not be able to attend the wedding, because of caring for my Dad, I am so thankful that Caleb has been blessed with the precious young woman that will soon be his wife. I am also thankful for her sweet family.
I am thankful that my daughter is engaged to a wonderful young man, that is very good to her and has accepted her children as his own. He encourages the children's relationship to their "real" dad, while making sure to be there for them himself. In some ways, he reminds me of my own husband and how wonderful he was with my children from a previous marriage.
There are really WAY to many blessings to name, but suffice it to say, I have been greatly blessed. God is so good!
At this time last year, I was preparing for the holiday knowing that it would be the last one I would share with my precious mother. In previous years, Thanksgiving was always a time of fun, laughter, music, and food. Most of all food. Last year, we had the food, and we had the music, and we had the special love for each other that has always defined our family. For that I am thankful.
This year, I am trying hard to stay focused on the many, many blessings that God has bestowed upon our family, and not the loved ones that are absent. Not only will my mother not be with us this year, but my middle son Caleb will not be able to be here. He is blessed to be living in Texas close to his future in-laws, so I know that he will have a wonderful holiday, but he will definitely be missed here.
We are planning to have our usual Thanksgiving menu this year and because I want this holiday season to be a blessing to the little ones here, I am working hard to stay focused on just how much God has blessed me this past year.
Here are a few of the ways God has blessed (and is continuing to bless) me this year:
My family is healthy.
My daughter and her children are living with us at the moment. I have the blessing of spending time with my grandchildren on a daily basis.
My Dad is also living with us now. Even though his health has gotten worse, he is still able to take care of his basic needs and just needs someone to help with meals, medicines, and helping him not fall on bad days. I am thankful that God has chosen to allow us the privilege of caring for my Dad.
Even though I will not be able to attend the wedding, because of caring for my Dad, I am so thankful that Caleb has been blessed with the precious young woman that will soon be his wife. I am also thankful for her sweet family.
I am thankful that my daughter is engaged to a wonderful young man, that is very good to her and has accepted her children as his own. He encourages the children's relationship to their "real" dad, while making sure to be there for them himself. In some ways, he reminds me of my own husband and how wonderful he was with my children from a previous marriage.
There are really WAY to many blessings to name, but suffice it to say, I have been greatly blessed. God is so good!
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Menu Plan 11/11/12 thru 11/17/12
Well, after taking a look at the amount we have spent on groceries this past month I have come to the conclusion that it is time for me to begin menu planning again. Things have been hectic lately, but I can no longer use that as an excuse. Here's our plan for the upcoming week:
Sun. - Pork loin, rice, gravy, steamed broccoli, sourdough bread
Mon. - Leftover Rice and Chili from the freezer, tortilla chips
Tues. - Meatloaf, peas, squash, sweet potatoes, turnip greens, cornbread
Wed. - Leftovers or soup made from leftovers :-)
Thurs. - Chicken Enchiladas, Salad
Fri. - Soup (Taco & Potato), cornbread and sourdough bread
Sat. - Leftovers
Breakfast - crockpot oatmeal, biscuits w/turkey sausage, cold cereal, yogurt, smoothies, fruit, pancakes
Lunch - leftovers, sandwiches, fruit w/cheese & crackers, soup
Snacks - popcorn, fruit, cheese/crackers, yogurt
As always our menu plan is subject to change. Hopefully, I will be able to stay on track and "shop" our freezer and pantry for a couple of weeks which will really help get our grocery budget back on track.
Have a great week!
Sun. - Pork loin, rice, gravy, steamed broccoli, sourdough bread
Mon. - Leftover Rice and Chili from the freezer, tortilla chips
Tues. - Meatloaf, peas, squash, sweet potatoes, turnip greens, cornbread
Wed. - Leftovers or soup made from leftovers :-)
Thurs. - Chicken Enchiladas, Salad
Fri. - Soup (Taco & Potato), cornbread and sourdough bread
Sat. - Leftovers
Breakfast - crockpot oatmeal, biscuits w/turkey sausage, cold cereal, yogurt, smoothies, fruit, pancakes
Lunch - leftovers, sandwiches, fruit w/cheese & crackers, soup
Snacks - popcorn, fruit, cheese/crackers, yogurt
As always our menu plan is subject to change. Hopefully, I will be able to stay on track and "shop" our freezer and pantry for a couple of weeks which will really help get our grocery budget back on track.
Have a great week!
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Good Morning!
Good morning! I'm enjoying my coffee on the porch. Pull up a chair and join me :-)
Hope ya'll have a great day!
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Simple Pleasures
Lately I have been "re-learning" how to enjoy the simple pleasures in life. Here's a list of a few of the things I have been enjoying lately:
uninterrupted prayer time
sitting on my porch in the early morning quiet
water pistols with the kids
reading
popsicles
watching hummingbirds
"piddling" around in the garden
browsing through cookbooks for new recipes
a cup of coffee/hot tea
conversation with a friend
playing with my grandchildren
listening to the laughter of children
I am so thankful that God allows us the "simple" pleasures. What have you been enjoying lately?
uninterrupted prayer time
sitting on my porch in the early morning quiet
water pistols with the kids
reading
popsicles
watching hummingbirds
"piddling" around in the garden
browsing through cookbooks for new recipes
a cup of coffee/hot tea
conversation with a friend
playing with my grandchildren
listening to the laughter of children
I am so thankful that God allows us the "simple" pleasures. What have you been enjoying lately?
Monday, May 28, 2012
Strange, but it Works!
As I have mentioned in previous posts, my family and I have had quite a few unexpected (and unprepared for) things going on over the last year or so. As a result, our finances have become even tighter than usual. AND as often happens, when things get tight, it seems like one thing after the other comes up that requires a cash outlay. Well, we are in the midst of the one thing after the other cycle at the moment. One of the "things" is the central unit in our home has gone out. I had the "air conditioner repair guy" out this past week to check it out and it will take close to $600 to replace the part that needs to be replaced, which is totally out of the question for us at this time. As a result, we have been trying to find ways to reduce the amount of heat we are generating in our home. Some of the things we have been doing are: hanging all laundry outside (which we usually do anyway), using the crockpot more, have more cool/cold meals, keep lights off, and not using the stove except when absolutely necessary and then only in the early morning.
Today, my youngest son and I took aluminum foil and covered the windows on the back of our house and two of the windows that get a lot of sun on the front of our house. I know that sounds strange and is probably not something most people would consider, but it really doesn't look as bad as it sounds and it immediately lowered the temp a few degrees. Since we live in a mobile home, located in a sunny location in the south, I think, that the appearance of aluminum foil on the windows is definitely something I can live with until we can get our unit replaced. Hopefully, that will happen sooner, rather than later ;-)
Since I have not been feeling well the last several days, and am having a few "hysterectomy related" issues I am not going to attempt a menu plan as such, for the week. We will most likely be having quite a few salads (pasta, potato, lettuce), sandwiches (pulled pork, chicken salad, ham, turkey, etc) on a variety of breads (homemade, hoagie rolls, hamburger buns, etc.), grilled meats and veggies, crockpot potato wedges, and fruit and veggie trays.
Hopefully, I will begin to feel better soon and can step things up a bit around here. There are soooo many things that need attention in the VERY near future.
Hope ya'll have a great week!
Today, my youngest son and I took aluminum foil and covered the windows on the back of our house and two of the windows that get a lot of sun on the front of our house. I know that sounds strange and is probably not something most people would consider, but it really doesn't look as bad as it sounds and it immediately lowered the temp a few degrees. Since we live in a mobile home, located in a sunny location in the south, I think, that the appearance of aluminum foil on the windows is definitely something I can live with until we can get our unit replaced. Hopefully, that will happen sooner, rather than later ;-)
Since I have not been feeling well the last several days, and am having a few "hysterectomy related" issues I am not going to attempt a menu plan as such, for the week. We will most likely be having quite a few salads (pasta, potato, lettuce), sandwiches (pulled pork, chicken salad, ham, turkey, etc) on a variety of breads (homemade, hoagie rolls, hamburger buns, etc.), grilled meats and veggies, crockpot potato wedges, and fruit and veggie trays.
Hopefully, I will begin to feel better soon and can step things up a bit around here. There are soooo many things that need attention in the VERY near future.
Hope ya'll have a great week!
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Menu Plan for Week of May 6, 2012
I have been very slack on menu planning the past several months and it seems that everytime I think I will get back on track with it life happens. This time it's in the form of a complete hysterectomy for me. I had the procedure done this past Thursday and am starting to feel pretty good, although I'm still a little weak and tired.
During the couple of weeks leading up to my surgery, Amanda and I decided to get busy and cook enough meals to get us through the first couple of weeks. Here's a look at the menu for this week:
Sunday - pulled pork sandwiches, baked beans, and chips
Monday - Taco chicken bowls with rice, chips, and green beans
Tuesday - Meat Loaf, peas, mashed potatoes, cornbread
Wednesday - Leftovers
Thursday - Chicken Enchiladas and tacos
Friday - Italian Chicken and steamed veggies
Saturday - Hamburgers
Breakfasts - cheese toast, hot and cold cereal, fruit, and smoothies
Lunches - leftovers, sandwiches, fruit, and soup
Snacks - fruit, smoothies, cookies, peanut butter and crackers
Amanda has had her hands full the past week or so taking care of her family of little ones and also taking care of me and all of the men folks at my house. She has become a very capable young woman and has been willing to serve her family without complaint. I am VERY proud of her.
I am also thankful for the willingness of my husband and sons to pitch in and help do whatever they can to make things easier for her (and me). I am very blessed.
During the couple of weeks leading up to my surgery, Amanda and I decided to get busy and cook enough meals to get us through the first couple of weeks. Here's a look at the menu for this week:
Sunday - pulled pork sandwiches, baked beans, and chips
Monday - Taco chicken bowls with rice, chips, and green beans
Tuesday - Meat Loaf, peas, mashed potatoes, cornbread
Wednesday - Leftovers
Thursday - Chicken Enchiladas and tacos
Friday - Italian Chicken and steamed veggies
Saturday - Hamburgers
Breakfasts - cheese toast, hot and cold cereal, fruit, and smoothies
Lunches - leftovers, sandwiches, fruit, and soup
Snacks - fruit, smoothies, cookies, peanut butter and crackers
Amanda has had her hands full the past week or so taking care of her family of little ones and also taking care of me and all of the men folks at my house. She has become a very capable young woman and has been willing to serve her family without complaint. I am VERY proud of her.
I am also thankful for the willingness of my husband and sons to pitch in and help do whatever they can to make things easier for her (and me). I am very blessed.
Monday, March 12, 2012
Moving Along and Menu Plan
Although I haven't blogged much recently life has been moving along at a pretty steady pace around here. Recently, we've been tackling a few projects that didn't get the attention needed during the last year. One of those projects was completely redoing our strawberry bed. It had gotten VERY out of hand, so this year we have just rebuilt it and started over. I have some beautiful strawberry plants blooming right now and cannot wait to pick the first berries out of our "new" strawberry bed :)
My Dad also ordered some pecan, hazelnut, chestnut and apple trees that we were able to set out last weekend, as well as the usual mulching, weeding, trimming, rebuilding, etc. and so on that never seems to cease. That's a good thing though, since I have been battling bouts of depression since my mother passed away. It's nice to have something productive to focus on.
Besides working on our little homestead, I have been caring for my Dad. He broke his kneecap two weeks ago and has been having quite a bit of pain with that and since he is a very stubborn and independent man, he is definitely not taking care of it as he should. I am very thankful that my children are all close by and able to help keep him company.
I've also been working on trying to clean my house a little bit, since we are expecting a visit from Hannah this week. Needless to say, Caleb is VERY excited that his "bride to be" is coming for a few days :-) We are all looking forward to having time to get to know her better and to hear about all of the wedding plans she has in the works. Since Hannah lives twelve hours away we haven't had time to get to know her as well as we would like, so her visits are always special to us as we learn to love her more each time she comes :-)
It's hard to believe that BOTH of my older boys are engaged and will be married by year end! I am very thankful that God placed Godly young women in their lives and I am so excited for both of them.
Heath's "bride to be" only lives a half hour from us so we have had the opportunity to really get to know her and she has been such a blessing to our family. I LOVE the fact that she is willing to pitch in and help around the homestead and has great ideas to share.
My boys are so blessed to have future mates that are so well suited to them. As a mother, that means so much.
Well, I guess I have rambled on in a disjointed way long enough. I guess I'll share our tentative menu for the week. So here goes:
Menu plan for week of 3/11/2012 - 3/18/2012
Sunday - The band was in Arkansas so I didn't cook
Monday - Taco soup with tortilla chips
Tuesday - Roast, potatoes, carrots, salad, bread
Wednesday - Chicken pilaf, salad, bread
Thursday - ham, potatoes, green beans, biscuits
Friday - chicken strips, crockpot potato wedges, baked beans
Saturday - Caleb's birthday so he gets to decide :-)
Sunday - Bar-b-que Chicken, crockpot sweet potatoes, peas, salad, and cornbread
Breakfasts - hot or cold cereal, fruit, smoothies, muffins
Lunches - leftovers, sandwiches, or soup
Snacks - peanut butter crackers, fruit, popcorn
Well, I guess that's it for now. Hope everyone has a great week!
My Dad also ordered some pecan, hazelnut, chestnut and apple trees that we were able to set out last weekend, as well as the usual mulching, weeding, trimming, rebuilding, etc. and so on that never seems to cease. That's a good thing though, since I have been battling bouts of depression since my mother passed away. It's nice to have something productive to focus on.
Besides working on our little homestead, I have been caring for my Dad. He broke his kneecap two weeks ago and has been having quite a bit of pain with that and since he is a very stubborn and independent man, he is definitely not taking care of it as he should. I am very thankful that my children are all close by and able to help keep him company.
I've also been working on trying to clean my house a little bit, since we are expecting a visit from Hannah this week. Needless to say, Caleb is VERY excited that his "bride to be" is coming for a few days :-) We are all looking forward to having time to get to know her better and to hear about all of the wedding plans she has in the works. Since Hannah lives twelve hours away we haven't had time to get to know her as well as we would like, so her visits are always special to us as we learn to love her more each time she comes :-)
It's hard to believe that BOTH of my older boys are engaged and will be married by year end! I am very thankful that God placed Godly young women in their lives and I am so excited for both of them.
Heath's "bride to be" only lives a half hour from us so we have had the opportunity to really get to know her and she has been such a blessing to our family. I LOVE the fact that she is willing to pitch in and help around the homestead and has great ideas to share.
My boys are so blessed to have future mates that are so well suited to them. As a mother, that means so much.
Well, I guess I have rambled on in a disjointed way long enough. I guess I'll share our tentative menu for the week. So here goes:
Menu plan for week of 3/11/2012 - 3/18/2012
Sunday - The band was in Arkansas so I didn't cook
Monday - Taco soup with tortilla chips
Tuesday - Roast, potatoes, carrots, salad, bread
Wednesday - Chicken pilaf, salad, bread
Thursday - ham, potatoes, green beans, biscuits
Friday - chicken strips, crockpot potato wedges, baked beans
Saturday - Caleb's birthday so he gets to decide :-)
Sunday - Bar-b-que Chicken, crockpot sweet potatoes, peas, salad, and cornbread
Breakfasts - hot or cold cereal, fruit, smoothies, muffins
Lunches - leftovers, sandwiches, or soup
Snacks - peanut butter crackers, fruit, popcorn
Well, I guess that's it for now. Hope everyone has a great week!
Friday, January 20, 2012
Goal Setting
In January of last year I made a list of goals for myself that I felt sure I could reach by the end of the year. The fact is I did reach quite a few of them before things got so crazy around here, but there were others (not all of them posted) that I did not reach and I realize now that in the grand scheme of things the goals I set really were not all that important anyway.
The only problem for me is, that without goals, I tend not to accomplish much. So, although they be a little late getting posted, here are my goals (at least some of them) for this year.
*Continue to draw closer to God (He is my comfort and strength)
*Spend more time in God's Word
*Be sure to let the people I love, KNOW that I love them
*To be more compassionate to others that are facing trials
*Be more of an encourager to those I meet everyday whether they be close family or mere acquaintances
*Continue to exercise and try to lose the 10 pounds I wanted to lose, but didn't this past year
*Continue working on our little homestead (more chickens, bigger garden, etc.)
*Enjoy my family more every day, because we never know how long we will have them
I'm sure as time passes my list will grow longer, but for now these are the ones that I plan to focus on. I haven't taken time to read many blogs lately, but I'm looking forward to "catching up" with my blogging friends. Hope everyone is having a great week.
The only problem for me is, that without goals, I tend not to accomplish much. So, although they be a little late getting posted, here are my goals (at least some of them) for this year.
*Continue to draw closer to God (He is my comfort and strength)
*Spend more time in God's Word
*Be sure to let the people I love, KNOW that I love them
*To be more compassionate to others that are facing trials
*Be more of an encourager to those I meet everyday whether they be close family or mere acquaintances
*Continue to exercise and try to lose the 10 pounds I wanted to lose, but didn't this past year
*Continue working on our little homestead (more chickens, bigger garden, etc.)
*Enjoy my family more every day, because we never know how long we will have them
I'm sure as time passes my list will grow longer, but for now these are the ones that I plan to focus on. I haven't taken time to read many blogs lately, but I'm looking forward to "catching up" with my blogging friends. Hope everyone is having a great week.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Back on Track
After a long and stressful eight months I finally feel as if I am getting back on track. Ferrell has been able to focus on school a good bit the last two weeks, which is something that we have not had much time for in the last eight months. Thankfully, he is disciplined enough that he has plugged along in spite of my absences and distractions.
Today I am cooking big pots of dried beans for the freezer. I had intentions of canning them, but decided this morning that I'm still not up to doing that. I am, however, working on a few other things for the freezer which is something that I haven't taken time to do in months and I am really missing my freezer meals.
Amanda and I went and took inventory of Mama's freezer this week and found that there is quite a bit of stuff that we will be able to use for our families. Daddy is thrilled that we will be using the things in the freezer, because he knows that he won't be cooking that much and really hates to see it all go to waste. Since there were a couple of hams and a turkey in there I will definitely be including those items in some upcoming menus. If I ever actually get around to planning a menu again :-)
Well, I still haven't gotten back into the swing of blogging so I guess that's all for now. Hope eveyone is having a great week.
Today I am cooking big pots of dried beans for the freezer. I had intentions of canning them, but decided this morning that I'm still not up to doing that. I am, however, working on a few other things for the freezer which is something that I haven't taken time to do in months and I am really missing my freezer meals.
Amanda and I went and took inventory of Mama's freezer this week and found that there is quite a bit of stuff that we will be able to use for our families. Daddy is thrilled that we will be using the things in the freezer, because he knows that he won't be cooking that much and really hates to see it all go to waste. Since there were a couple of hams and a turkey in there I will definitely be including those items in some upcoming menus. If I ever actually get around to planning a menu again :-)
Well, I still haven't gotten back into the swing of blogging so I guess that's all for now. Hope eveyone is having a great week.
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