July 4th

Well it's over! The 4th of July that is, seems like once it's the 4th of July bam you turn around and it's labor day. We just hung out at home for the weekend our youngest dog is deathly afraid of fireworks so rather than go to the lake and listen to fireworks the whole time and have a freaked out dog.... we just stay home and ya know that's kinda nice too. 
We are recovering from our chicken loss, we have decided to just let nature take it's course and since God left us with 3 hens and 1 rooster we are just going to see what happens. Bringing in more chickens is not as easy as you would think you can't just go and put more chickens in the coop, there is that whole pecking order thing and I guess I just couldn't bear to watch chickens be mean to each other.
I did start my unicorn and will be posting pictures when it's done, also got the order for more dolls from my grand daughters, thought I would make a twin for Kamilah's best little friend Eleanor too.

Sarah's yummy desert. Looks good enough to eat!

Just hanging out.

Steve the hubby!

Kamilah

Kamilah actually swam the length of the pool w/o help.

Jazz

snack in the shade time

small garden

our mysterious guest....  hehehe

just looking out back.

Well I have laundry calling me to be hung on the line, but thought I would share some pic's from the weekend. Hope you all had a wonderful 4th!

It's been a devastating week!

Well where to begin, we have had a very devastating week, started on tuesday night when the door of the chicken coop was not latched.  I was gone to Bible study and Steve fell asleep on the couch and our dog Mr. Mac was outside, we lost 12 chickens and I can't hardly believe how devastated we have been over it. I hate to even think of it, all the time, money and hard work raising them from day one of their lives they each had their own little personalities,  we have 3 hens and 1 rooster left.  The amazing thing is that we have (1) each of the three breeds we had, and we weren't supposed to have any roosters, but ended up with three of them, at least we have one left.  Funny how I can see God's hand in all of this, I don't know why it had to happen but I do know there is a reason for it. We certainly can't blame Mr. Mac he was only doing what comes naturally to him, he is our little hunter.

We are going to get 5 more hens this weekend that are a year old so hopefully this all goes well. It's really amazing how attached you can get to chickens but I guess since we picked them up when they were a day old, and took care of them how could you not grow attached to them right?  The rooster who I have named "Buff"  seems to be getting better, he was limping and moving very very slowly, his feathers are a bit disheveled but he seems to be getting better, moving around better, so hopefully he will recover completely.  We are hoping to allow the hens to sit on their eggs and have chicks we shall see I have heard that is a very amazing thing to watch and be a part of I think it will be really cool for the grand daughters to be a part of too!

So the fourth of July this weekend, got big plans?  We will be staying home as Mr. Mac is deathly afraid of fireworks so no cottage for us, but my daughter Sarah is having some friends over for a pool party on sunday, and then Sarah and her family will be spending the night on sunday night, staying in our trailer it's always nice to have them do that.   Supposed to be nice and hot too!

So the Big Ticket Festival was incredible!! I can't wait to go next year already, got to see  TobyMac live wow does he put on a show or what, saw quite a few young people give their lives to Christ, it was just awesome, also got to see www.lifewithoutlimbs.org  Nick Vujicic an incredible testimony WOW is all I can say, I had read his book a few months ago, if you would like to read an encouraging book this is it!  He was born without arms or legs and there is really no medical reason for it. I can't wait for next year we will be camping for the whole time and not leaving on saturday afternoon, it just didn't work out right this year but had just an incredible time and spend time with a very very dear friend, we did a whole lot of laughing! 
Finished another doll, sold two of them to my friend I went camping with, I started a unicorn last night from http://www.etsy.com/listing/76680682/rainbow-the-pegasus-unicorn-with-wings  Kamilah loves unicorns, hopefully it turns out as cute as the picture :)  I really do enjoy making the dolls though fun to make them all different. 
Well thought I would update and can finally talk and think about what a week it's been, but only can get better from here right?  
How about you big plans for the 4th, and ever lost a bunch of chickens? 
Have a great great weekend!
Blog at ya soon!

Doll number 3, isn't she cute?

close up of her.

trailer closeness before they added the next row behind us

Big ticket festival.

us underneath our umbrella's 

more Big Ticket 

Nick Vujicic up on the table he speaks from.

our crazy cat in his basket.

Val

Rainy days

Well it's raining outside and any ambition I had earlier in the day has been soaked.  I feel like doing nothing! so I thought I would catch up on my blog. Things have been busy around here, the garden is in (needs to be weeded already), still have pumpkins, and sunflowers to plant but its been such a wet spring, we had to wait til Steve could get the tractor into the dirt and it's been stuck twice, but the last week or so it's been drying out, we actually needed the rain today, didn't think I would hear myself saying that anytime soon after all we have had.
The chickens are growing up nicely, they seem to be a decent bunch of ladies, Steve swears he has heard a rooster oh well if we happen to have one apparently not to aggressive so that would be ok too.  We are going expand their pen area in the next few weeks, I feel as though they need more place to roam and eat, I would love to let them free range, but I don't trust our Mr. Mac I am afraid he would kill them, he's a hunter!  So stay tuned for that I guess.
I finally finished my purse, I like it it's cute, but if I were to make another one I would have the opening bigger for sure it's ok for a summer purse.  The lotion business is crazy, I don't seem to be able to stay ahead of orders but praising God for it all :) the money has helped out a lot! I like to make it as I get orders for it so it's always fresh when I sell it.  I have to have to have to get started making my soaps, I just can't seem to decide where I am going to cure it, not sure I have the best conditions so I might just wing it and see what happens.
Last saturday we went to an open house in Adrian, 3hr ride down and back 6 hours in the car makes for a long day for sure, but we actually got pictures of all the brothers and sister for a change that doesn't happen often I think last time they were all together was at least 5 years ago. 
Getting excited about next week, going camping with a friend of mine for 3 days, and we are camping at a christian music festival, it's called The Big Ticket Festival and they are going to have 110 bands, very excited, this is my first year going very, very excited.  3 days of praising and worshiping my Heavenly Father!
Just got another lotion order  YAY!!  It's really going well, I have to get myself some business cards or so I have been told, so I think I might work on that tonight too. The weather is supposed to be nicer tomorrow and through the weekend so I'll do my inside and computer stuff tonight and then I can be outside when its nice, I have to get the trailer ready too, probably have a few hours worth of work out there but I have another week so it will happen!

Steve's family, he is the tall one in the back

I am on the right of Steve's mom, sis-n-law to the left

my purse, I have since corrected the handles

made the girls a blanket tent on the clothesline.

they really had a good time in it.

Jazzy at the pool.

Jazzy and Kamilah after swimming. my two fish!

Coming up on another weekend!

Not sure how the time gets away so quick, but it sure seems the older you get the faster it goes. Why is it we always seem to have spare time until we go to use it? Hope everyone had a wonderful memorial day weekend, the weather could have been nicer, but at least it was time off of work.  We went to the cottage for the weekend, nice and relaxing the kids came up for the day on sunday the girls got about 2 hours of beach time if that and then it started to cloud over and got a little chilly, I guess a typical memorial weekend day. 
I have been busy making my lotion it has been a big hit, but wow all the legal mumbo jumbo, it almost makes you leery of seriously wanting to do it, the FDA has their fingers in it all as it is considered a cosmetic and you need all the testing and crap done, or you have to be sure and label everything just so, hopefully no one will try and sue me for all I'm worth, which isn't a whole lot anyways, at least not here my treasures are not here they are in Glory and no one can take them from me there!  woot woot!! 
The chickens are doing really well we continue to improve on their home (coop) ha ha. I will post some pictures before I leave this post. Still amazes me the personalities they actually have. 
I have also got another one of my dolls done, and a third one started they are really turning out very cute, I am surprised at myself.  I already have 3 orders for them, and really haven't shown them off too much, got too much other stuff going on it seems.
Hubby finished my soap mold for me today, so soon I shall make my first real batch of soap am excited yet intimated a little by it, I know once I make my first batch or so that will go away, maybe I should enjoy the excitement of it more? get in the moment! 
My purse is getting closer to being done too, will post that when I have it finished now that spring seems to be here I suppose I should hurry it up and get it done.
I have the grand daughters friday night for a sleepover that is always fun, our pool is up and running, had quite the ordeal with all of that, had to have a new liner put in, that wasn't fun at all! money, money money!!!
The garden is in, it's been so wet out back Steve hasn't been able to plow for us to plant our pumpkins, sunflowers, and pickles.  So maybe come november we will have all those.  LOL 
Well here are various pictures I have promised.

They love the door.

They were glad to see us after a long weekend

Rosie she's the boss !

The two I have done.

Kamilah

Robin's nest in our lean too, you can see all 4 birds.

Jazzy she has such a cute smile!

Another week gone by almost.

Well another week gone by, when your in it it surely doesn't seem to go that fast, but now that the weekend is upon us and there is only 48hrs in it, and I have like 148hrs worth of work to do,, hmmm it just seems overwhelming, I need to tell myself to just take a deep breath (which I have to do a LOT lately) and just do what I can, it doesn't really make any difference what all I get done to anyone other than me anyways right? So maybe my problem is it shouldn't matter so much to me!  I found out yesterday I am seriously suffering from anxiety, been having some issues lately just stuff you kind of chalk up to maybe getting older, or this or that, well yesterday I decided to check symptoms of anxiety and not so sure I should have if you know what I mean... I have almost every one of them, so I need a plan of attack. I'm the type of person that normally doesn't suffer from depression / anxiety stuff like that but when I find myself there I find out what is bugging me and take care of it!!  So I am seriously praying that will be the case here. 

I do have a lot to do today, and Steve is headed north again to help with the deck on the cottage, maybe if I were to make myself a list, and cross off as I get the things done today that might help me feel as though I have accomplished more than I feel I have.  Ok I'm gonna try that today!! 

We had a little birthday party last night for my youngest grand daughter as she turned flee as she puts it or in our language 3  :)  it's so cute when they can't quite say simple things like that, with her older sister we never had that Kamilah always talked as an adult, so no cute stuff it seems. I will try and post a few pictures later, it's much easier to post pictures when I am on my laptop rather than the table top, not sure why just not so stinking complicated I guess.  

Well I suppose I should get up, get dressed, and tackle today!

Hope you all have a wonderful saturday, and it doesn't rain where ever you are because it seems EVERYONE is having a cold, WET, spring!  Need to get out and wash the windows today, before it rains tonight!

Have a blessed saturday!

Val