Lil Miracles

Every so often something happens that makes us step back, thankful for those little things in life. Such was the case this past year. I don't recall all the details or even the date but I do remember how I felt. Finances as usual had James and I stressed to our limit. Where was the extra cash we needed to get by? Why does this always happen? Does anyone care? What are we going to do? We were trying to be strong for each other but we were reaching the ends of our ropes. Something was going to snap!

The bills for the month had been gathered and nothing was adding up. We were quite frankly, Screwed! We had tapped out the usual "Hey Ma, we need to borrow cash." and the savings well that was dust in the wind. Although I don't recall the bill that was causing the headache, I do remember that whatever it was if it didn't get paid we we're doomed! $110 was all we needed to come up with. No biggie, right? Yes, for some that's pocket change but for those of us in the real world living paycheck to paycheck that was enough to send the strongest couple to their knees.

My Mother-in-law was headed over that day to help with the little ones and I was trying to be upbeat and positive. She saw right through me. I told her what was wrong and told her I know God will provide and this is just a test of my faith but honestly I was cursing Him with every step. Why was he doing this to us AGAIN! Blame was shot back and forth as to who's fault it was in the first place but that was getting us nowhere.

It was just before noon and I heard the mailman pull up. I slipped out for a few minutes to take out the trash and get the mail. As I walked to the mail box I tried to take in the fresh air and say a little thanks for the beautiful day, although inside I felt as if the world was crashing in on me. I dreaded James coming home from work knowing he would be expecting me to of figured out a way to make it all work. No such luck and he'd be home in a few hours. I scanned through the usual mundane junk mail and went inside. Mom-in-law (Linda) was washing dishes and smiled saying how much she loved doing dishes. "Comical", I thought, only she would love doing something like that. As I put the mail down an envelope slipped from between a grocery circular, I knelt down to pick it up. Our address neatly handwritten, thinking perhaps a invitation to a party I quickly opened it. A tiny handmade card with a simple message requesting an order of a dozen cloth diapers from a previous customer, whom I had done business with nearly a year earlier. There in the crease of the card was folded a check for $113 just $3 more than what we needed. I nearly hit my knees in tears. "Oh my God! Oh my GOD! Look!" I cried to Linda, "What are the chances of that! It's a freakin' miracle!" That day of all days to receive a check in the mail for the exact amount plus change to spare. If that's not a miracle what is?

I couldn't wipe the grin off my face the rest of the day and everyone I talked to heard about it. God works in all sorts of ways and just when you think you just can't take one more minute and the stress is squeezing the life out of you, stop and breath for a moment and thank your Creator for giving you this life. No matter how bad it may seem to "suck", there are those little moments I like to call miracles that push us through another day. These types of things happen all the time all around us and yet we tend to over look them or take them for granted. Sometimes He just has to put us on our knees to see the big picture.

Blog Slacker!

Yes so I keep hearing, "whats with the blog?" Honestly...writers block or I've just been too lazy to bother. So I will try to get back on the ball so to speak. I have tons of projects to share and the girls are keeping the humor in my writing.

The Holidays went by so fast and it's back to the grind stone tomorrow for all of us. I'm sure it will be a challenge since the wee ones got used to daddy being home. It's going to be "test mommy" day tomorrow and I'm sure by noon they'll be begging for Daddy. Apparently I'm the meanie but when Daddy barks they jump. How ironic!

Jocelyn received a kitchen set for Christmas and has been playing with it nonstop. It took James and I nearly 3 1/2 hours to assembly and the first thing he wanted to do was shove the cat in the dishwasher! Thankfully Jocelyn was already in bed and didn't witness us torturing the cat. LOL!

She has a fairly reasonable stash of toy dishes but was lacking in the fake food. I started pricing play food and found it all cheap plastic or expensive wood and felt. So I set out to design and create my own. Talk about fun! Little fried eggs, bananas, strawberries, beans, pretzels, sandwiches etc. It's kinda addicting. I'll write more later on the subject and post some pics.

Santa got Jocelyn her first sled just in time for the snow! James already has her going over wee lil jumps, oh dear!

Hope everyone had a beautiful holiday and best wishes for the new year!

Eco Fest... Good Bad & the Ugly

High Expectations for the annual

2009 Renewable Energy and Sustainable Living Festival.

I totally envisioned a jam packed event that would send me home begging for more. With stands of practical info, hands on demos of gardening, solar, and wind uses. Lets just say I was slightly disappointed, granted I went home with loads of info but the experience itself left me dry and empty.

(photo of Jocelyn drinking her Capri sun that I recycle sitting under the wind turbine that I wanted to steal!)

First off you would think with vendors spending over $300 for a spot not to mention the $1 parking and $12 entrance fee, you'd be inundated with cool demos and products. Quite the opposite, the majority of tables were strewn with pamphlet after pamphlet of info I could of stayed home and found on my computer. Okay so maybe helpful for the computer illiterate. Mind you most of the folks behind those tables were more than eager to point out how their product was far superior to the next gentleman's across the row. Yes, please tell me how you $40,000 solar home system is better than the exact same one I just saw 5 minutes ago. Or how about those windows that every company across America produces. What's so darn special about yours? So you want to come to my house and do a energy audit just so you can tell me what I already know....my hundred year old home is drafty and far from efficient. Now you can sell me that ridiculously expensive product that will make it all better! How about this take that product and put it where the sun don't shine and allow me to show you how I can conserve energy for just pennies. (If you really want me to tell you wait for another blog post!) Okay so maybe I'm being a little harsh but seriously the average American can only dream of having these wonderful products. We have children to feed, bills to pay, homes and vehicles to repair. Last thing we need is another loan to cover the cost of the gadget that won't even pay for itself until 2050. Yes government grants..blah...blah...blah, um? Your going to depend on Uncle Sam, have you learned NOTHING! (We're not going to talk politics because you know I'll just argue with you and tell you how stupid you are for voting for you know who soooo...) Okay so back the the festival.....

I did crack up when I took the girls to the bathroom to discover they overlooked a green factor...no low flow toilets or water saving faucets. Just funny.

One vendor in particular stood out for me. She was displaying a liquid vitamin that she insisted I should sample..."Here have a taste, it's the best thing you'll ever do." Um...hello? Sure I'll just drink some of your poisoned mystery beverage and drop dead together with everyone else. I don't know whats in that stuff! Not to mention fruits and veggies hold all their vitamins when they are fresh....process and bottle them with chemicals...how is that green? Seriously whoever was in charge of picking these vendors doesn't have a clue about the "green" factor.

Have you heard of the group who believes the only thing we can do to better our environment is "genocide". Yes you read it right, they are convinced that in order to cleanse and better our planet we need to wipe out the human race and start over! These people are going to extremes that I'm not even willing to post here. God have mercy on us all!

On a positive note there were a few pretty awesome stands (I'll include a list of my favorites at the end) like the recycled toothbrushes, hemp goods, bamboo clothing, Rodale books (I LOVE! but prefer to buy them used online), local farmers with honey, goats milk and cheese, herbs and indigenous plants. Experimental vehicles run on various biofuels and homemade mystery fuels.

The food stands which we passed up due to their high festival prices were providing a small variety of foods that you wouldn't find at your average fest. Wheat pizza, organic snacks, local free range meats, and of course plenty of vegan dishes. Apparently the extremists think my chickens I'm raising for eggs is a strike against my "Eco" standing.

Everyones view on "eco" or "green" is different and by all means you have the God given right to believe whatever you want. Personally I believe living simply, being self sufficient, using sustainable products, living along with nature not against it, being thrifty with what you given, teaching and sharing with those around us, fair trade, renewable clean energy, blah...blah...blah... I could go on but ...LOL!

We need to look at life as the "whole" picture. It's not just us right now. It's not just what you're doing this second. It's how it's going to affect others, where it's going, will it harm anything? I've noticed that a large portion of the older generation and the uneducated feel there's no point in doing our little part to save the environment. To them I say, If you care about your children and grandchildrens future you'd do something. It's up to us right now to secure their futures with clean air and clean water, to teach them how to provide for themselves and how to share with others. If we don't teach them someone else will and you may not like who they become. May we each do our part in securing our childrens future..... recycle something, lend a hand to your neighbor, replace one cleaning product with a safer eco-friendly product, walk or car pool to run your errands. DOING SOMETHING IS BETTER THAN NOTHING!

http://www.gp.org Green party of the US

www.gpofpa.org Green party of PA

www.rodaleinstitute.org check out their Shumei Natural Garden

www.breezedryer.com line dry and save our sky!

www.WashTyme.com check out what this soap is made from!

www.bamboulaltd.com Support African artisans

www.usludgefree.org

www.woodspoon.com beautiful sustainable utensils

www.hempzels.com super yummy goods from hemp

www.buylocalpa.org

www.radiustoothbrush.com

www.AMERIgreenBio.com

www.solatube.com

www.lvfood.coop

Check out these cool sites for green energy, buying local, even green political stands!

(PLEASE pardon any grammer errors along the way....when I get going I don't look back!)

Life and more time!

Fall is fast approaching and time seems to be slipping through my hands. My list of "To Do's" just keeps getting longer with no end in sight. There is just so much I want to do and things I want the babies to experience. Tomorrow is a day out with just me and the two little ones. Errands... the only thing that drags me out of the house when I have too much to do already. Sunday I'm taking the wee ones and hopefully James cousin to the PA renewable energy and sustainable living festival in Kempton PA. Was kinda a last minute thing but I'm so excited. Mingling with some like minded folks who are just as excited about "free sustainable living" as I am.

I've been putting my "career" on hold for a while now and just picking up a client here or there. But I decided it was time to stretch out a bit, so I just accepted a job with a local organic spa as an independant contractor providing Massage Therapy. Only picking a few evenings a week for right now since I don't want to stretch myself too thin.

Now it's off to do some research on a few projects...... seeding the hillside with a cover crop, rigging my rain barrel, finishing my green roof chicken coop, building the cold frame for some winter veggies, how to finish an attic, a dozen remodel projects, and how to get rid of those darn bees!

Although the sun refused to shine today it turned out to be one of the best days I've ever had with my hubby! So ya it's been 5 years since I walked down that aisle and publicly agreed to love and cherish one man for the rest of my God given days. 5 YEARS! Okay so that may not seem like a big deal to you but in recent years with divorce rates on the rise and young couples barely surviving the honeymoon I say we're on a roll!

Tradition has it we watch our wedding video, go out to eat at Olive Garden, maybe see a movie, and retire early for bed. Not this year, we decided it was a year to really celebrate how far we've come, how much we've changed, and how much we love each other. So being that James is on the river every single weekend as a river guide in his kayak (that was his early birthday present!) I decided I wanted him to take me kayaking for our anniversary.

Can we just say so awesome! I loved it! A little anxious at times not knowing totally what I was in for but all in all it was great. James says I did a really great job although I think he's just being nice. I did freeze up for a second going through some rapids, I just stopped paddling for a second until I heard James scream "PADDLE!!!" Blink back to reality I was looking five feet in front of me and the only this I saw was a rock and a wave about to take me under. I survived and squealed and laughed all the way through it!

It was by far the best day I've spent with him. The quiet moments of nearly still water just taking in the panoramic views. A few King Fishers and plenty of ducks, and lets not forget the tourist taking pics of us from the banks of Jim Thorpe, that was kinda weird. I have a new respect for James on the river in his kayak. It certainly takes skill and an eye for the river.

Here's to many more years to celebrate and a love that just keeps getting stronger! (and here's one to those who said it'd never last! Now who's laughing!)

Educating our babies! NEI HO!

(Jocelyn planting trees in the spring)

Tonight I was reminded of the woman I strive to be but seem to fall short of, in my opinion. You know her...the Proverbs 31 woman. She's so freakin' perfect! I sat and read it to Ariana tonight in hopes that in reminding myself of who I wish to be maybe my baby girl will find it a worthy goal of her own someday.

That got me on a whole new chapter to think about, education. One of the greatest gifts we as parents can give our children is the gift of knowledge. If you step back and really try to grasp that whole concept it's a bit overwhelming. It's my responsibility to provide my baby girls with all the know how and skills they need to carry on through life. What if I forget something? What if it's not good enough? Will they survive the constantly changing environment? The questions just go on and on.

(Jocelyn planting her flowers)

My girls will be or should I say ARE second generation home educated kids, what an exciting challenge! From the day each of them came into our lives, the lessons began. Starting with simply seeing and hearing the world around them and learning cause and effect. "If I cry, people respond and provide for me" What an amazing thing, their already figuring out how the world interacts. Jocelyn is well on her way of learning all sorts of new and interesting skills. We're learning our letters, colors, numbers, emotions and reactions, cause and effect, size relations, etc. Everything is a learning experience.

She gets excited about recycling ("wecycling" in her words) even. We started by sorting the trash and she carries the recyclables to their designated bin. She watched the recycling truck arrive and pick up the very items she had placed in the bins and then after a wave and a thank you we took the opportunity to recycle some items of our own into new things. She sat intently watching as I took some Capri Sun pouches and turned them into a purse just for her. Boy was she excited! Now she helps wash them and prepare them for items to sell. What a big girl! Getting her excited about the environment and contributing and doing her part makes me very happy! Shes planted trees and flowers and even picks weeds in the garden!

(Helping Mommy wash) "I'm washin' mommy"

It's those little things in life that make you smile!

Those moments that make you stop and remember why you do what you do.

I'm still doing extensive research on what methods I want to use for their education. Of course how they respond to certain methods will have a bearing on what I choose to do. I have established so far that in some way I want to incorporate a very well rounded ethnic program. I feel in our current and changing world it's extremely important for them to have a complete understanding and respect for people and lifestyles around the world. Our simple start in that direction, Jocelyn learned how to say Hi in Mandarin nei ho(pronounced ni hao). I want to instill in the girls that all people are created equal. Learning the history, skills and languages from other counties I think will be a good start. Emphasising not just what is learned, but how it is learned.

Buzzing BEES

Yikes....been crazy busy and too hot to sit in the corner and update this blog but it must be done! What do I hear everyday in the kitchen? Buzz Buzz... well the sound of busy buzzing lil' honey bees, of course! Recently there was some construction going on up the road from us on an abandoned home. Within 24 hours of construction there was suddenly a swarm of bees outside the kitchen window looking for a place to call home. They managed to find a small hole in the siding that apparently was left from some old wiring or something. After totally freaking out not being sure they were honey bees, I killed one to get a better look. Sure enough they're good old honey bees! We tracked down a "Bee man" named Joe who was able to come over a few days later and survey the situation. Turns out he knew a guy that had built this really cool contraption that acts as a vacuum and sucks the bees "gently" into an enclosed portable hive. After locating a gap between the wall and the ceiling that they had managed to find and use as access to the kitchen, he went to work cleaning out as many as he could. With the hopes of getting the queen as well. Mind you, during the main event I shuffled the girls out of the house and hung out at hubby's cousins until the coast was clear.

Now weeks later after sealing up what we thought was any and all entrances, the remaining guests seemed to have found another tiny way in. So back to sealing up tiny places. It's a shame to loose the queen and the remaining workers but without totally dismantling the wall we can't possible save them. We did save hundreds of them with the vacuum contraption and those have been introduced into a young hive that needed some more workers. It breaks my heart to kill the rest but we're in no position right now to start a kitchen remodel! Bees are becoming scarce in our region and it was surprising to find these. I welcomed the little guys since my garden benefited from the pollinating of the bees. But since they've arrived Jocelyn and Cleo have been stung and we can't go anywhere near that side of the house when the bees are active. I did learn a thing or two about the bees like how they only sting when threatened or they feel their queen is in despair. They one sting once and only use it as a last resort since it is a suicide mission. Once they sting they die. Unlike yellow jackets who will sting continuously and won't die unless you beat them with your shoe!

That blob you see on the side of the house is the large swarm of bees! YIKES!!!

It's been quite the experience, certainly a reminder to seal up those tiny little holes because you never know who might wish to make a home of it!

This one is Jocelyn's first close up look of bees in the portable hive.