Countdown to 30!

This is the year. The year of dread. The year of anticipation. The year I say "Oh sh*t, I've accomplished nothing on my list......I better get a move on." This is the morning I woke up and realized all this, dyed my hair black, wore my eye make-up a little thicker than before and hugged one of my greatest accomplishments. Here's to 2008. May the goals I set out to achieve not be overshadowed by responsibility, duty, fear or laziness. May I suck it up, sweat it out and beat it down! Honestly, here's to me!

It's ugly outside....

So, we woke up to cold and wet and gray and as the day progressed it actually got colder and darker and now....it's torrential. What a nasty day. Your first reaction is "Wow, what an awesome day to curl up under the covers, watch movies and read." Then the screams start, and the crashing of undoubtedly unrepairable things, and the whining of the dogs to be let out, and 8 million other things that immediately ruin your perfect rainy day and remind you that those are the dreams of a single woman without children. Then again, there's nothing better than a warm little body, all snuggly in fleece pajamas, squeezing your last ounce of breathe out of you as he sweetly whispers, "I love you mommy. You're my best friend." 2 minutes later - screams and temper tantrums ensue. Ah, the joys of the Jekyl and Hyde nature of a 3 year old.

On the upside, we visited the Gainesville mall today and were so happy to find a sense of familiarity that we missed. The Ocala mall has nothing. When I say nothing, I mean we've been there 3 times and every time have walked out in 5 minutues because we have both, walked the entire mall (not joking) and could not find anything we were looking for. So, the Gainesville mall was definitely a welcome change. Then we decided to take the scenic route home. First of all, may I say that the UF area of Gainesville is one of the most architecturally beautiful places I have ever seen. The town itself is very...."bricky." Seriously, nearly every building is brick and old and crisp - like the feeling of a perfect fall day. We took 441 home through these beautifully historic little towns like Micanopy and McIntosh. Little towns where the people have things like "Historic Days" and everyone dresses up in period garb and reenacts how life was like in the 17/1800s. Can't wait until we can check one of those out. Beautiful scenery - giant trees, weeping with Spanish moss, decaying buildings dotting the countryside as a moment frozen in time. Perfect area to build a photography portfolio!

So, now we're back home. Back to our conveniences and electronics and preoccupations. 2 laptops open, Guitar Hero being played on the Wii, iPod blaring. But just outside, past the white window panes and the glare of artificial light lies beauty. The beauty we are desperately trying to incorporate more and more into our daily lives. The beauty we are striving to instill in our children. The beauty that is so rarely appreciated by Floridians living just a few hours south of us, waking up in their cold, concrete jungle they so willingly lie to themselves and call paradise. Though no one thought so when we made the decision to move, I wholeheartedly contend that we "moved on up" and 5 acres of open sky is better than a "deluxe apartment in the sky" any day!

So we needed the .22 today....

So...Big Poppa had to be put down today.


Strange thing about animals....they are all basically wild, I suppose, and can be completely unpredictable. When I fed him this morning - totally fine, sweet, grunting, rolled over for me to rub his fat tummy. Went out to give him water this afternoon, he greeted me, happily drank and promptly turned and attacked. Bit me, chased me, slashed with a tusk, chased some more - all while I'm screaming like a freakin' school girl. (Which in and of itself was embarrassing and an annoyance. For those of you who know me, I am in no way girlie - until, apparently, a 150lb pig is chasing me with a certain look of death in his eye. Then I scream like a freakin' 5 year old girl running in her prettiest Sunday dress away from the neighborhood bully.) Guess I made one too many bacon jokes and he just snapped. According to Jeremy, now he has to crackle and pop, pop, POP too. Sad, really. He was sweet and friendly and loved to roll over and let us rub his tummy. But now, we can't even approach the paddock without him charging the gate and frothing at the mouth and snapping. Rabies? That's what I thought at first. But then I read that male pigs can turn for no apparent reason, froth and posture. Or he could just be sick. Either way, he's ridiculously aggressive and a danger to us and the other animals now. We can't approach him to quarantine him and no vet will come out and deal with him. Neither will animal control.

I'll save you the gruesome pics of the bite marks on my leg and the tusk slash across my knee cap. Just know that it hurts like a *bologna sandwich*.

So, farewell Big Poppa. We hardly knew ye. May you run through fields of the freshest dandelions. May your mud wallows always be fresh and cool. And may your bacon be the best damn bacon we've ever had! Amen.

Our Solution to the Problem

Though we can't pick up and go to Africa to right all the wrongs, we chose to right some wrongs and get involved in a situation a little closer to home.

Haiti is one of the poorest countries in the world, besieged by violence and extreme
poverty. It’s people are beautiful and long for a better life for themselves and for
their children.

For HIS Glory Outreach seeks to meet the needs of those in such dire conditions. The orphanage is currently home to over 150 children and provides jobs to over 200 Haitians. They provide the children with 3 meals per day, clean drinking water, an education and a chance at a better life. Sadly, there are more than 80 children turned away each month due to lack of funds. They are seeking to make 1000 friends in 100 days to make a commitment to help change the lives of these children. $1 per day - $30 per month can literally make the difference between life and death for these children.

We have chosen to partner with For HIS Glory in both support and the adoption of 2 of the children in the orphanage.



Watch the video we created below to learn more about Haiti, For HIS Glory Outreach and how YOU can get involved and change a life!

www.forhisgloryoutreach.org

Invisible Children

Imagine a world torn and divided by war. Imagine being displaced and having to "live" in camps. Imagine your children, as young as 4 - your boys, forced to kill and be part of this war - your girls, sold, kidnapped, forced to be sex slaves. This is the atrocity that the Ugandan people must live with every day. Knowledge is POWER. Get informed. Get INVOLVED. Go to www.invisiblechildren.com to learn more about what you can do to help.

***Thanks to JohnnyB for the killer photo of my boy! Check out his myspace at www.myspace.com/theremedyishope85 to learn more about and support his endeavor to go to Uganda and become part of the solution!***

Finally! A working farm!

So, my supposedly pregnant goats have still not kidded and I doubt at this point they will. So, the farm motto ere is: if you can't contribute, you can't stay! Went and got a beautiful Nubian mommy with her kid today.


The kid'll get one side and I get nearly a 1/2 gallon out of the other side - per day! That's more than enough milk for us plus some for butter and soap as well. MMMMMMM! The chickens are producing beautifully - we're getting 12-18 eggs per week. I love my little working farm!

We got the kids a pony for Christmas. She's a painted Palomino, but with her winter coat in, she's pure white with CRAZY blue eyes!

She's so sweet and loves Logan to death. Whenever he comes outside she runs up to the fence and pokes her head through. The kids were hysterically laughing at her yesterday as she acclimated to her new home. She was so happy she was bucking and racing around the pasture and talking so loudly!


Okay - I think we're done. No more animals. We have what we need for food and pleasure and can't handle NO MORE! Jeremy doesn't believe me, but I promised I would try to keep my obsessive/compulsive tendencies in check! ;0)

My Kids

Are STINKIN' cute! I LOVE black and white photography and they make great subjects!

Little Christmas on the Farm

So, we had a nice little Christmas...our first ever by ourselves as a family. We spent Christmas Eve together at home, reading the Christmas story and watching A Charlie Brown Christmas.

When the kids woke up in the morning, they enjoyed their new slide and art supplies while daddy made a special Christmas breakfast.


After they opened the rest of their presents, we spent the day outside playing with the dogs and our new toys


playing tag with daddy

wishing the animals Merry Christmas


and flying Logan's new airplane.....or at least trying to.


We spent the rest of the afternoon monkeying around and playing games inside while waiting for Christmas dinner to finish cooking.


All in all? Stress free, relaxing and really merry. How do you like the new handmade sweaters from gramma? My mom rocks!