Prairie Oak Homestead

What a year this has been! There have been hard times, good times, stagnant times, and amazingly blessed times! I have gained a dad this year...probably the biggest blessing of the year. :) I had a long stent of feeling good for about 4 mos. :) My son turned 12 O_0, I started raising chickens, I butchered chickens, I butchered deer...lots of interesting things this past year... I look forward to what God has in store for me and my family this year. His love is so amazing that I am in awe so much of the time...I hope to grow closer to Him this coming year and closer to my family. I want to be a better wife/mother/daughter for Him. He deserves ALL of us. I want to surrender my life to Him even more this year. I usually don't have a lot of New Year's resolutions....they usually don't get fulfilled and then you just feel crummy...so I just set out to do my best for Him this next year and that will be that. :) Hope you all enjoy your evening and all be careful. I hope to...

Sorry I haven't been around for a few days...I've been sick. :( I've had a bad headache for 5 days now from sinuses. I went to the doctor because it started aggravating my Myasthenia Gravis. That is under control with a bit of steroids. :) It's just a severe sinus infection that has just thrown me for a loop. I have been in so much pain from the headache/migraine that it's been hard to sleep. I am hoping that today is the day it goes away! It is so hard to be a mom/wife and be sick...so much doesn't get done and it becomes overwhelming. My husband cooked dinner last night (steak) and dries the dishes for me...but there is just so much more to be done. I managed to dust and do the dishes this morning. I just have to do some laundry now. I was planning on going to the grocery store today, but I don't think that's gonna happen. I'll save that for tomorrow. I am thankful that I haven't been in this much pain for 4 months. This horrible p...

Here is one of my favorite scenes from LHOTP. It sums it up pretty well. ;)

No, not with the Jones'. :) With your housework.....Ugh. If you don't keep up with the work, it adds up and the task can become monumental. Here are a few tips to stay on track...so as not to feel like this... Get a schedule for cleaning...www.flylady.net is a good place to get tips for this. Pick a couple days a week to vacuum. Make a menu for a week or two and then take ONE day a week to go to the grocery store. That way you have more time at home to get things done. Recruit helpers...even small children can help in the chores. Give them a chore chart with little rewards like stickers or dollar store "bucks" that they can redeem. (Need to take my own advice here. It's easier for me to just do it all, but it wears me out so) Keep up with the dishes. I found saving them til after dinner and doing them once a day helps me not to be so weak. After I had help doing kitchen chores one night...I found that the following day when I woke up there were none to ...

I really like this time of year. Even more this year. I realize it can be overwhelming, sad, and lonely at times for some people. But, it can also be joyful, fun, and peaceful. It's a great thing to celebrate the birth of our Lord. He took on flesh and we have a high priest who can sympathize with us. :) It's also a fun time of year to be with family, eat cookies, sing, dance around goofy, play in the snow, drive around and look at the lights, and enjoy the peaceful evenings in the quiet of the house. Take time to relax and think on just what this season means. How much our Lord loves us...

Last night we celebrated Christmas early at our house with some special guests. They are wonderful people with big hearts and a love for God. I cooked ham, mash potatoes (with bacon, cheese, and sour cream), bacon green beans, and coconut cake. It was all really good minus the coconut cake. It was a little dry to me. But, hey, I ate it anyway. LOL. Here is Mama D wearing the apron I made her... This next picture I had to take to document this thing that had happened.... Dad and Ryan did the dishes! It was really nice to have them do that. I didn't know what to do with myself. LOL. I woke up this morning with NO kitchen chores to do...it was wonderful. :) It was just a wonderful time and I enjoyed spending time with them. You know, God loves me so much that He has blessed me in this way. Wow...and you know what? He loves YOU, too! He cares about us and the little things AND the big things like needing a dad. He is an amazing God whom I am glad to serve. I pray the experien...

Modesty I thought I'd say how glad I am that I decided to wear skirts again. It's been a few months and I am so much more comfortable than I was when I went back to jeans. I don't feel like a stumbling block anymore, I feel more feminine, softer, and believe it or not...warmer. I was much colder in my jeans than I am in my skirts. I can wear a flannel slip or petticoat, tights, etc. More layers. :) I haven't regretted going back to skirts. The key this time for me and my husband was not to be too plain. He really didn't care of the plainness. So I got some cuter skirts and tops and he seems to be happy with that. I don't feel so frumpy either. :) Do you know I get more respect from men from the grocery store? They hold the door, let me go ahead in line, just seem more gentlemanly (if that's a word lol) Not as many did that when I wore pants. Interesting.... If you could continue to pray for me, I'd appreciate it. :) My heart decided to get ...

are harder than others... Strength wise I have been a bit weak. It's to be expected. I just got used to feeling pretty good for a while there. Mind you I have had A LOT more good days since starting the experimental supplement. I am very glad for that. But, no matter what you do or take, it doesn't make this illness go away. There is no cure. Just good days and bad days. I have had a few bad days this week. But, I know that there are good days ahead. I just pray for some renewed strength... It can be frustrating to feel weak when you have a lot you need to do. It can get ya down...but I know that.... My heart has acted up these last couple days, also. I'd like that to stop. :) It's been doing very well with the exception of these last few days. Could you pray about that? I'm trying very much not to overdo it and trying very hard to not let it get me down. I can only do what the good Lord allows...

Hunter had another art class. This time he made a thumbprint Christmas tree. It was really neat for him to do. Here's the finished product...I think he did a good job. :) He enjoyed doing it. :)

When I was really little I had a dad that would put me in a closet when I cried, did drugs in front of me, ran from police, wasn't available to talk to, said things he shouldn't say to children, and would reject me when we had to call collect after my mom finally divorced him. I have spoken to him twice in 12 yrs. He doesn't want anything to do with me... My mom remarried and my step-dad was a good guy. He and I were not really close, but at least he didn't do the things my real dad did. He took care of us and loved us. He was killed 3 yrs ago... Now that all doesn't sound much like a blessing does it...Not really. BUT, the good Lord saw fit to restore to me some of the years that was lost without a dad. How amazing is His love for us! God has connected us with a man that has treated Ryan and I as his own children. The love he shows for us as a dad is truly amazing and selfless. For the past several months, we have grown closer to him and to Him. I have bee...

I have a sort of writer's block today. I've been tired and have had a headache for a few days...so my mind is kinda blank. ;) Haven't been up to much lately except for working on some Christmas projects. I enjoy doing those. I've also been doing the regular daily chores like cleaning, cooking, laundry, etc. But, this time of year it's fun to do them to Christmas music. :) Here's one we listened to last night while I was cookin' dinner. I was standing at the stove swaying to the music while Hunter danced around (he'll never admit it LOL) Never been to Hawaii...I bet it would be fun. :) Not too sure about the plane ride there though. ;) This month is full of blessings...God surely loves us. He is so good...how could we ever thank Him enough? By giving our lives to Him and loving others. Love...it's one of the best actions the good Lord has put in us to do. It can also be one of the hardest... What are some of your favorite Christmas cookies...

This past weekend up through yesterday was sausage makin' time. It was a tiring effort for me, but well worth it in the end. :) We ended up with breakfast sausage, italian style brats, and regular brats. That will feed our family for a while and it's all natural. :) Very yummy in my tummy. :) We had saved up some coin and saved enough to get a stuffer. We were using our grinder, but it just wasn't making it very easy on me. It grinds beautifully, but doesn't stuff so easily. So my husband bought a stuffer just for stuffing. It made the job a lot easier. I was glad for that. We were going to use the change we saved for a smoker, but that will have to wait til next year. Can you believe it's December already? Wow...this year has flown by. I must have been having a lot of fun. ;) Christmas is right around the corner. I love this time of year. Time to celebrate the birth of our Lord, time to spend making memories with family, eating lots of good food, coz...