Friday, November 28, 2008

Vision Forum Buy Any 2 Get 1 Free!!


IN OUR CONTINUING EFFORT to find creative ways to provide family-building, encouraging books, media, and toys for our customers this season, Vision Forum is offering a 48-Hour special savings opportunity!
Here’s how it works: Until midnight on Saturday, November 29, 2008 (CST), buy any two items* in the Vision Forum web store, and receive a third item of your choice absolutely free! Your free product can be any item* in the Vision Forum web store that is equal to, or less than, the lower value of either of your first two products. There is no limit to the number of free items you can receive during these 48 hours. Just add the products you want to your cart, and at checkout, one out of every three of your products will be marked FREE!
Make your purchases from any of Vision Forum’s four product categories — Books and Media for the Family, the All-American Boy’s Adventure Catalog, the Beautiful Girlhood Collection, and Grandfather’s Classic Toys. This offer is good only for orders placed online and cannot be applied retroactively to previous orders. Free items must be in-stock items. This special buying opportunity expires at midnight on November 29, 2008 (CST).
We hope this offer is a blessing to you and your family as you seek to provide God-honoring books, toys, and resources to your children and loved ones. Thank you for shopping with Vision Forum and for supporting us in our mission to encourage and equip the biblical family.


Thursday, November 27, 2008

Thanksgiving Day!!

I am late in posting a Thanksgiving Post, but I wanted to be sure and put one up. I am so blessed, that I want to be sure and share my Thanksgiving. I am thankful for my God, my husband, my son, my daughter-in-love, our extended families, our friends, our farm, warm heat from the wood stove and so much more.

Today, we went to Michael's parents for Thanksgiving. Normally, everyone will show up at some point, but others have already gone or couldn't come that year or were sick, etc. Today they were all there at the same time, so we got some pictures.
Here are his parents, Michael and his siblings.


From the group above, came this group of grandchildren.

Here is a picture of the whole gang.

The Bible tells us in many places to give thanks in all things. I am very grateful for my many blessings.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Are We Asleep?

I was able to go on a date with my husband today. The main place we were going was up to our feed store that is about an hour away. We had to get some kelp and some salt for the cows. It was time to share with each other. Time to be silly a little, time to talk, time to just enjoy being together. On the way out of our driveway, we stopped and got the mail. We had ordered the new Casting Crowns Christmas CD and it arrived today. So, we took it along to listen to in the car.

One of the songs has very thought provoking lyrics. It is called..."While You Were Sleeping".
Here are the lyrics to the song.
Oh little town of Bethlehem
Looks like another silent night
Above your deep and dreamless sleep
A giant star lights up the sky
And while you're lying in the dark
There shines an everlasting light
For the King has left His throne
And is sleeping in a manger tonight, tonight

Oh Bethlehem, what you have missed while you were sleeping
For God became a man
And stepped into your world today
Oh Bethlehem, you will go down in history
As a city with no room for its King
While you were sleeping
While you were sleeping

Mary shivers in the cold
Trying to keep the Savior warm
Born among the animals wrapped in dirty rags
Because there was no room for Him in the world He came to save

United States of America
Looks like another silent night
As we're sung to sleep by philosophies
That save the trees and kill the children
And while we're lying in the dark
There's a shout heard 'cross the eastern sky
For the Bridegroom has returned
And has carried His bride away in the night

America, what will we miss while we are sleeping
Will Jesus come again
And leave us slumbering where we lay
America, will we go down in history
As a nation with no room for its King
Will we be sleeping
Will we be sleeping

United States of America
Looks like another silent night

The line that got me to thinking is in a different color above. The whole song has a wonderful message, but that particular line showed me once again how off our thinking is here in America. We have been lulled to sleep. In Romans 1:21-23 it says...
Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.
People worship and serve creation instead of the Creator. I am not sure of what the laws are now, but when we lived in Florida, if I had a 13 year old daughter, she could not have her ears pierced without my written consent. However, she could go into an abortion clinic with (at the time) health standards that were less than a vet clinic and have a surgical procedure and I did not even have to know. If I went to the beach and just touched a turtle egg (an unborn turtle), it was automatic jail time. However, I could kill my unborn child. What are we thinking about? Are we truly lulled into a complacent sleep?

Oh Christians in America, wake up. Let's all wake up and get on our faces before God. Let's repent of OUR wicked ways. Let's look to the God of all creation and search out what He wants and not what we are spoon fed by other people and the media. Let's cry out for change and revival. Let it begin with me!!

Homeschool Video

I thought this was really funny. I thought you might enjoy it.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Enter the Give Away!!

Do the items below look like something you would love to have? Then get on over to Spun By Me and enter her giveaway!!!!

Tuesday at the Farm

Today is a very busy day for us. I am taking a short break with a WARM cup of coffee. It is cold today. The thermometer says it is 36 degrees, but the wind is blowing and it is snowing and it feels much colder. I will try and get some pictures of the snow outside. It is warm by the stove, but out in the store area it is freezing cold as it is not heated. So, the warm cup of coffee is feeling good in my belly!!

Today was co-op day, so I had a truck to unload this morning. I sorted the orders and am waiting on people to pick them up. It was also turkey butchering day. The turkeys are all cooling in ice water and waiting for their new owners to pick them up. :)

We have someone coming to look at our ram to possibly buy him when we are done with him. He is coming this afternoon sometime.

I stuck everything in my Zo (bread machine) to make us bread, because I did not have time and we did not have bread. I also made some homemade chicken and noodle soup for lunch. I am trying to figure out what is going to be for supper.

Hope you are having a good day!!

Here are the pictures I said I would take. The snow does not seem to stick on the grass, but you will notice the field behind us on the third picture... it is covered. It has been snowing all day.





Here is a bouquet from my Aunt's funeral. They sent it home for us to enjoy.

Monday, November 24, 2008

Count Your Blessings Monday!!


Here is an opportunity for all of us to give thanks unto the Lord for a blessing in your life. I have changed how I am going to do things for these posts. I talked to some friends and got some feedback. Many people don't like the Mr. Linky part. Others, felt that they had trouble remembering the right day to come and comment on something. So, if you would like to take part great. If not that is OK too. If you would like to share your blessing, just leave it in the comments. If you want to use the picture above and list a blessing on your own site, then leave a URL to your site in the comments. There is no pressure here. I just know that I am incredibly blessed and I would like to share that and give thanks to Him who all blessing come from. This is a way that we can encourage one another. I know that I am often encouraged when someone shares a blessing with me. I think that many times we forget that it is a blessing to be able to breath, to get out of bed, to hold a baby... Share your blessings with us. We can share so many other things.... special gifts, recipes, let's take the time to share how God has blessed us!!

Today, I am thankful for family and a godly heritage. I went to my Aunt's funeral this past weekend. She, like my Mom left a wonderful legacy to follow in. My Mom crocheted things for people. Aunt Darolyn made quilts and quilted items for people. They both reached out and helped when they saw a need. They were encouragers and did not distinguish between rich or poor or color or anything else. I want to follow in their footsteps. I want to be remembered for being God's hands to others here on earth. I had 2 good examples.

It was also a blessing to get to see family this weekend. I have not seen my one cousin since 1974 at Thanksgiving. It was so nice to get re-aquainted.

Thank you Lord for family and for godly examples who went before me.

What are you thanking the Lord for today?

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Just sharing some pictures.

We got snow this past week. It would snow about an inch and then quit. Then it would snow over night and there would be about an inch on the cars. When we were leaving on Friday, we had a pretty landscape all capped in white frosting.



I took this picture in Kentucky on the way to my Aunt's funeral. It was so much prettier than this showed, but I thought it turned out pretty good for taking it inside a moving car.

On our way home, I saw something way off in the sky. We were about 35 miles south of Columbus. I asked Michael if he thought it might be a blimp. It was so far away, you couldn't tell. He thought it might be the blimp as there had been an Ohio State game that day and there was a blimp docking place in Southern Ohio. As we got closer, I thought it looked more like a hot air balloon. However, it was in the 20's and I did not think they could go up in that cold of a temperature. Well, as we got closer (we never did get close - I had to use the zoom) we saw that it WAS a hot air balloon. They had to be freezing up there. We have had unseasonably cold temperatures. This morning when we woke up it was 11 degrees.

I actually took this picture on Tuesday of last week. Brittany and I were up in Holmes County. It is snowing in this picture all though it is hard to tell. They had their laundry hanging out dancing like wild men in the stiff wind and snow.

Friday, November 21, 2008

Happy Birthday Mom!!!

Today, would have been my Mom's 77th birthday. She is greatly missed, but I would not wish her back for anything in the world. I use this occasion to remind people to make right any wrongs between you and another person. Call and tell those you love that you love them. None of us are promised a tomorrow and you don't want to have regrets.

Here are some pictures of my sweet Mom.




Happy Birthday Mom!!! I miss you greatly!!!

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Beautiful Girlhood & The Little Boy Down The Road


ONE OF THE SWEETEST ASPECTS OF BEING A MOTHER is seeing your daughters imitate you as they play with their dolls and toys. When a girl plays with a doll, she is preparing to be a mommy. Her first role model is her own mother, and her first opportunity at role-playing is with her dolls. With this in mind, we offer four beautiful 18” dolls and a precious 15” baby doll, from the Beautiful Girlhood Collection for your girls to cherish for years to come and then pass on to their own daughters someday.

In addition to our dolls, the Beautiful Girlhood Collection features a full lineup of thirteen historical doll dress costumes, an expanded lineup of quality doll accessories and furniture, wicker carriages, heirloom tea service, patriotic costume dresses, fun kitchen items, handwork kits and crafts, instruments, book collections, and much more — each certain to delight the hearts of little girls everywhere.
For six days only, enjoy 20% off all in-stock products from the Beautiful Girlhood Collection. In addition to enjoying the last week of free shipping (specialty items not included) you can take advantage of our special giveaway offer.

Every purchase of $125 of merchandise or more will include a free 3-volume hardback set of our Young Ladies Classics Collection. This illustrated series includes Heidi, Black Beauty, and A Little Princess, all beautiful stories that have withstood the test of time, providing hours of delight for readers young and old alike. Take advantage of this special and save on the Beautiful Girlhood Collection products today. Offer ends at midnight on Saturday, November 22, 2008 (CST).



What’s in a Name? Maybe More than You Realize

BY DOUGLAS PHILLIPS:
Your parents give you many things, but one of the most important is your name. You begin and end your life with it. It is the one moniker that you carry with you all the time, wherever you go. It never leaves you.

In fact, the gift of your name is so significant that, long after you are dead and buried, your name will continue to be used by others when they are talking about you. If you happen to be a famous person like Noah or Alexander the Great, that could mean thousands of years. At the beginning of your life, your name is a form of identification, a term of endearment, and sometimes a window into the priorities of your parents at the time of your birth. As you mature, so does the value and meaning of your name. As people get to know you better, your name becomes more than simply a word for identification, but the verbal personification of what you are as a man or a woman. This is why “a good name is more valuable than great riches.” It is why one of the most precious inheritances a parent can leave for his children is a good name. By the end of your life, your name has become synonymous with who you are, or at least what others perceive about your life work and your character.

Your name is likely to become one of the most widely used proper nouns in your vocabulary and the vocabulary of those close to you. Over the course of your lifetime, you will probably hear someone call you by your name between two and four million times, depending on factors like where you live, your profession, your involvement in church and community, and the number of people in your family. So get used to it.

And that is just the amount of times you will hear yourself addressed by name. This does not include the potential tens of millions of times that others will use your name to talk or write about you when you are not with them. Some names appear better suited for certain individuals than do others, but in a universe ruled by the sovereign God of the Scripture, we can be assured that no name is ever given to an individual which does not carry with it some providential implications for that person’s life.

In twenty-first-century America, there are many factors which influence a parent’s decision about what to name their child, including personal preferences, whim, and status. There is even a trend for some parents to select names that provide a perceived competitive edge in the professional world.

There are parents who check Social Security number data to avoid names that are overly trendy. The Wall Street Journal reported that some parents living in a market-driven society and feeling intense pressure to give their children names that will help them in the work force actually hire professional baby-naming consultants to help them to “brand” their children. These consultants employ mathematical formulas and data search engines to determine whether or not a particular name has positive or negative associations. These experts also evaluate names based on their ethnic origins, phonetic elements, and popularity.

Sometimes the difference between true vision, on the one hand, and genuine foolishness, on the other, is clearly a matter of perspective or divergent worldview. In other cases, foolishness should be pretty self-evident. Consider the 2008 example of a New Zealand couple who lost temporary custody of their nine-year-old daughter for naming her “Talula Does The Hula From Hawaii.” The naming of his son and daughter Dweezil and Moon Unit, respectively, by celebrity rock musician Frank Zappa never raised custodial issues, but certainly caused the general public to scratch their heads.

Marketing strategies? Competitive edge? Obvious foolishness? Does any of this make sense to the Christian parent?

I don’t think so. But neither does it make sense to me that parents should pick a name based purely on whim. John is a fine name, and so is Mary, but giving them to a child for no reason other than that you can’t think of another name will do little to inspire your child in the future. Both are excellent names are rich in meaning, history, and profound biblical significance. How much better to name a child for one of these reasons?

My thesis is this: The naming of a child is one of the most important decisions you will make on behalf of your son or daughter, so be deliberate. Make an “epistemologically self-conscious” choice. Be biblical. Consider your reasons and motivation for the name.


Make sure they are consistent with Scripture. Be prepared to carefully articulate your reasons to others. Consider also the message this name is sending to your child and the world with which he or she will spend the rest of his or her life interacting. When picking names, it is fine to consider sound, meter, popularity, ethnic background, meaning, association, and family history, but, in the final analysis, you should use his name to motivate your child and encourage him to persevere before the Lord. This means selecting names with the understanding that the day will come when you are prepared to give a meaningful, biblical explanation for the name of your child.

The above is just a portion of the chapter “The Coming of Mahershalalhashbaz,” from the book The Little Boy Down the Road: Short Stories and Essays on the Beauty of Family Life. To read more, download the rest of the chapter available here.

Thursday Product Highlight!!


On Thursdays I plan on highlighting a product that we carry in the General Store. This will give people a chance to hear about why we chose to carry that product.


Today, I want to talk about the L'Equip Vitamill.


The Vitalmill, mills a wide variety of whole grains and beans into fresh, nutritious flour quickly and easily. 12 cups of wheat becomes 20 cups of fine flour in less than 3.5 minutes! The fineness of the Vitalmill's flour will enable you to make the light textured baked goods you and your family enjoy.

Stores compactly, measuring only 9.5" wide, 11.5" long, 13.5" high.

The micro-milling chamber works without the grinding friction of old fashioned stone burr mills. Mechanical wear is virtually eliminated, ensuring trouble-free use.

Vitalmill's milling chamber incorporates a new pre-cracker design, so unlike some impact mills, the Vitalmill allows you to add grain either before or after the mill is turned on.

Separator cup and air filter keep flour in mill, not on your home surfaces.

Advanced engineering keeps flour in the safe-temperature zone, ensuring the maximum nutritional benefit of milling whole foods.

Mills wheat (both hard and soft), whole oat groats, rice, triticale, kamut, spelt, dried pinto beans, dried green beans, popcorn, split peas, buckwheat, barley, rye, millet, sorghum, dried mung beans, soybeans, dried corn and chick peas. (The Vitalmill is not suitable for herbs, spices, oilseeds like flax or sesame, or fibrous materials.)

Among high speed impact-style grain mills, the Vitalmill is the outstanding choice for milling field corn to flour because its inlet handles corn kernels better than any other mill in this category.

Balanced milling chamber and hopper lid reduce sound level to that of a vacuum cleaner.

The Vitamill is on sale right now in the General Store. Come on over and see what we have to offer. Several of you have asked about aprons. If you are giving them as Christmas gifts get your orders in right away. Each one is made to order.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Goodbye for now Aunt Darolyn

My Aunt Darolyn was my Mom's older sister. She was a twin to my Uncle Darold. They both had red hair. My Mom was next in line and she and Aunt Darolyn have always been close. Aunt Darolyn suffered a stroke earlier this year. It took the starch out of her, but she seemed to be recovering. My Dad and I went to see her at the end of July. We were amazed at how well she was doing from where she had been. She has since suffered 2 seizures that are not uncommon after this type of stroke. Both of them weakened her. This morning in her own bed, surrounded by pictures of her children and grandchildren she went home to be with Jesus.

She was a wonderful person. She was a wonderful wife and mom. She lost her oldest son, Danny at the age of 4 to Cystic Fibrosis. One week to the day of his funeral, she gave birth to her second son, Tim who was born with the disease. He lived to be 44 years old. In the end, she just prayed to go home and be with the Lord and with her boys. God ushered her into His presence. She has 2 daughters, Rebecca and LeeAnne. She has 2 grandbabies whom she loved dearly.

I will miss Aunt Darolyn greatly. She and I would talk on the phone (not very often) but we would talk about my Mom and how much both of us miss her. I look at the picture below and see my Mom, Aunt Darolyn and their Mom, my Grandma. They are all together now with the Lord.


Here is a picture of her with Uncle Maurice and their 2 grandchildren.

This picture is my Mom, Aunt Darolyn and a good friend of theirs from way back.

Here is Uncle Maurice, Aunt Darolyn and my parents.

These next 2 pictures were taken on Thanksgiving of 2004. It was my Mom's last Thanksgiving. Uncle Maurice and Aunt Darolyn joined us for the day.

The two sisters....
I will greatly miss Aunt Darolyn, but I know that I will see her again one day. Please pray for her family as they say goodbye.

Monday, November 17, 2008

A Little Ride

My dear sweet Michael came home and told me that he wanted to take me on a ride to the end of our road and back. It was a winter wonderland. Of course I took the camera with me. :)









These are my Echinaceas around the birdbath. :)

Let it Snow!!

This morning I woke up and went to look outside. The ground was covered in snow and it was coming down lightly. I wanted to get some pictures of it, but I also wanted to snuggle by the fire a bit and get warm. By the time I thought of taking a picture, most of the snow was gone. So, I figured I missed that photo opportunity. We have had a few flurries off and on all day. I just looked out side again and this is what it is doing now.





Count Your Blessings Monday!!


Here is an opportunity for you to give thanks unto the Lord for a blessing in your life. If you have a blog, please sign Mr. Linky below and post on your blog. Please link back to this blog and you may use the picture above. If you do not have a blog, leave a comment on this post telling us what you are thankful for and what you are counting as a blessing today. This is a way that we can encourage one another. Many of our blessings we will have pictures of and we can share those as well. I think that many times we forget that it is a blessing to be able to breath, to get out of bed, to hold a baby... Share your blessings with us. They encourage others. We can share so many other things.... special gifts, recipes, let's take the time to share how God has blessed us!!



Today, I want to count the blessing of the bounty God gives us from our farm. We don't have to buy a lot at the grocery store, yet we eat like kings and queens. I am so grateful for our rich, grass fed jersey milk. We are not big milk drinkers, but when we do have a glass, there is no milk (to us anyway) like this milk. It is wonderful to cook with and make white sauces. I know where it came from and how it was cared for. In this picture I was skimming the cream off to make butter and you can see I make a mess while doing it. :)
Here is the rich thick mounding cream we get off of our milk. It makes wonderful whipped cream. My big treat is to lick the ladle after I am done skimming all the cream off. It tastes better than ice cream.
We have good healthy butter that we make from the cream.
Our layers give us farm fresh eggs to eat and cook with. The yolks are a very deep yellow (in the spring they are truly orange) and they taste so good.

We raise our chicken, turkey, beef and pork. We are only able to do this through the blessing of God and for that I am very thankful. He has truly blessed us with a rich bounty!!