Brigmania - A Slice of My Life

Emergency Essentials Giveaway

2011-09-14T22:39:00.001-05:00

For those of you interested in food storage or preparedness, Emergency Essentials is having a giveaway including a year's worth of emergency food. Yes! You read that right. ...because I am apparently link-posting challenged, you will probably have to copy and paste this URL into your browser...

"Emergency Essentials Giveaway"

Nutrimill Giveaway!!!

2011-09-06T14:12:00.005-05:00

I am SO excited about the Nutrimill Giveaway that Heavenly Homemakers is having!! I have been wanting to purchase a grain mill as part of my food storage plan. The selection of grain mills varies so much that it has been difficult to make a decision. This would be a great opportunity to continue on our self-reliance journey...

Check it out! (I can't get the link to embed properly!)
http://heavenlyhomemakers.com/nutrimill-giveaway-from-paulas-bread/comment-page-57#comment-111825

Bunnies!

2011-04-26T17:40:00.009-05:00

We got two bunnies for the girls on Saturday, April 16th. SO sweet!

Natalie's bunny is named Peter Pan.

I wish I had gotten these pictures posted earlier, because after only a week, Peter Pan died. :( SO sad...

Allison's bunny is named Bugs Bunny.

Is this a pullet or not?

2011-04-15T23:29:00.002-05:00

...I have looked at so many pictures of amber link chickens - which is what I *think* this one is - and I some pictures show chickens that look like mine, with long wattles and they say it is a hen. SO - If you know, please reply! I don't really want a rooster right now, but I don't want to get rid of this one without knowing for sure. This is the sweetest chicken I have!

A New Venture

2011-03-06T22:04:00.004-06:00

Well... I really don't know who reads this, so this may or may not come as a surprise to you... BUT ...I have been converted into a country girl. I grew up in Memphis and when I married Keith I thought he was taking me out into the sticks! My niece even says (after she gets to my house) that she passed civilization twenty minutes ago. HA! I am okay with that. To tell you the truth, it doesn't feel much like the country anymore. Our road is always busy with people flying by. Our neighbors across the street love to play their music loud and party until three in the morning. I could be wrong, but I *think* I heard a gunshot one of the nights/mornings they were still out partying.

For anybody who's been around me over the last few years, it is a well-known fact that we are planning to move to our property that we purchased near Henderson, TN four years ago. I am really itching to get up there and if I could figure out a way to keep my job and work from home I'd do it in a heartbeat. BUT - moving would mean that Keith would have to commute to Millington for four more years. It would be an incredible hardship for him to do that for that length of time...so for now, we wait. I cannot say that I am patiently waiting, though.

It is our dream to be self sufficient. What that means to us is growing our own food on our own land. We have seventy acres to work with and a lot of big plans. All we need now is time to accomplish them. We currently have two fields fenced off. Both of them have access to water (we are bordered on two sides by creeks and there is another small creek that runs across the East side of our place). We plan to grow our own fruits and vegetables in order to feed our family year round. We plan to sell the extra at the farmer's market and can whatever is left.

Keith's nephew also raises pigs. Currently, there is a conspiracy between my husband and his nephew to build a finishing facility up there. This is where the piglets will go after they are weaned from their mothers. This conspiracy of theirs must come to fruition soon as Timmy has seven sows that will be having piglets in about four to six weeks. Since pigs usually give birth to between eight and ten piglets, that means he will soon have between 55 and 70 little pigs running around. (Man, that is a lot of pigs!)

Keith is also building a barn. (The barn project is currently on hold until the maison de pig is built.) The barn is going to be 25' x 60' in the main section and two side sections measuring 16' x 60'. In the center part, Keith will have his shop area that can be closed off as well as driven through if he needs to work on the tractor or drop off other implements or equipment. The right side will house three or four stalls for the cows to have their calves. (We (Timmy) already have cows there, but we will be adding more of our own including a dairy cow. More about that later.)

The left side will have two or three sections. In the back, there will be a milking stall for the jersey cow that I'm dreaming about buying. I had planned on having a milk room between that stall and the front part of the barn, but that is still up for debate. ;) The front part of the left section will be a little store front type area that will be all mine. There will be a kitchen area in part of it that I will use for canning and making homemade dairy products (cheese, butter, ice cream, etc.) We plan to have commercial freezer and refrigerator space to sell our meats as well. I am here to tell you, once you start eating farm raised beef and pork, you don't want to eat what they sell at the grocery store. It is a world of difference. I want to have shelving around one side for canned jellies, jams and other foods. I'm hoping to be able to sell homemade items like my jewelry or quilted placemats.

Big dreams...

But, snapping myself back into reality - I know that this is all long term stuff, but because I just can't stop thinking about all of the things that I want to do out there - I have talked my husband into letting me have some chickens here at our house. We are planning to get six from Tractor Supply tomorrow or Tuesday (whenever their new shipment comes in). I have been totally fantasizing over these things for the last few weeks. I can't believe Keith finally gave in! (If I could figure out a way to get a jersey heifer on our 2 acres that are not currently fenced in, I'd do it in a heartbeat!) For now, I will start with the chickens. I have several breeds that I would really like to get, but I am at the mercy of Tractor Supply and the pullets they have available. I would like to have the following: Speckled Sussex, Buff Orpington, New Hampshire Reds, Single Comb Brown Leghorns, Black Star and Araucanas / Americanas. http://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/standard_breed_chicks.html?cl=crumbtrail

I will take pictures whenever we get them. Allison has already gotten their box ready. It is really a dog kennel. She went out this afternoon and put pine shavings in the bottom and got the feeder and waterer put in there. She is SUPER-excited. To tell you the truth, I am too. I have chicken fever!!! I can't wait.

It's been almost a year?

2010-11-18T23:02:00.001-06:00

Wow. I haven't updated this blog in almost a year. No wonder I'm going crazy!!!

Well, you know if I'm updating this thing, I am in serious need of a brain dump. BUT - since it is now after 11 p.m. and I have to get up in 6 hours to go to work, this will have to do for now.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!

The birth of a Savior

2009-12-21T18:59:00.002-06:00

As we prepare to remember and celebrate the birth of our Savior, I am reminded (thank you BJ) that it is his death that is the cause for celebration. Without His death there is no hope for me. Without the sacrifice of Christ, there is no mediator between God and man. Thank you Father for providing a way for me when I could not provide my own way. You are merciful and gracious and holy. I praise you and thank you for teaching me by Your Holy Spirit and making my heart believe. You are gracious in allowing me to see even a small part of your plan. Let your joy be spread to the nations!

How Deep The Father's Love For Us

2009-12-17T21:58:00.000-06:00

My value does not lie in how much I do or don't accomplish in my home. Sounds good, right? I wonder how many times I have to say or type that before I believe it.

I lost my patience tonight with Allison because she wanted me to help her find her lost slipper to wear to school tomorrow for the pajama party. Everywhere I turn, I see something that is undone. The girls room is full of boxes of my mother's things that have been sitting around since she moved to my sister's house about 2-3 years ago. Her shed is packed full to the brim with STUFF and I need to do some creative rearranging in there to make the boxes fit. The last time I went in, I realized that the front corner of the shed was home to a massive swarm of wasps.

I am currently waiting for the dryer to stop so I can go to bed. I don't like leaving it running and going to sleep...just in case the dryer lint decides to try doing magic tricks and ignite. I did get the dishwasher loaded and one half of my kitchen clean (including shining my sink). The result is that my hands smell like Ajax. I suppose it's better than onion stench that lingers for days.

I know that my value lies not in how many loads of laundry I get washed, dried, folded and put away, but in the fact that I am His treasure. "I will not boast in anything - no gifts, no power, no wisdom -but I will boast in Jesus Christ, his death and resurrection"! It is not these earthly distractions that give me value. How easy it is to forget why I am here at what my purpose is.

Hottie

2009-05-31T20:14:00.000-05:00

By the way - is my husband not one of the finest men you've ever laid eyes on? Yowza. I love that boy!

Living LIFE

2009-05-31T20:08:00.000-05:00

I am so thankful for the blessings God has given to me in the form of friends. I got to see my best friend today after a very long time. It had been about 9 months since we had seen each other (this must NEVER happen again!) and even though we visited for only a few minutes, my spirit was refreshed. I also re-connected with another friend from college. It was a good day.

Right now, I’m taking a little break from making preparations for next week. I’ve even managed to fit in some de-cluttering today. In fact, after a 15 minute clean up session in the bedroom, I headed to the sunroom to put away the card table and folding chairs that have been up since Mother’s Day (yeah, yeah - sue me.) when I discover my 6 year old with a pile of napkins on top of a puddle of something brownish colored on the rug. At first, I thought it was soda, but it wasn’t soaking up into the napkins like one would expect. I walked over and picked up the pile of napkins and dripping from the napkin was not soda, but stringy, sticky syrup. -a very huge puddle of log cabin lite was soaking into the rug. As it turns out, my little chemist was readying herself to make a mixture of syrup and something else (not sure she had made up her mind up about the other ingredients). She loves to concoct all manner of mixtures in cups. One time, she put a raw egg in the cup with her paint water. (Thank goodness I didn’t forget about that cup!) Anyhow, somewhere between bringing the syrup into the sunroom (presumably to hide from mom) and getting the cup for the “mixing colors” as she calls it, she knocked over the bottle of syrup and stepped on it. There must’ve been ½ a cup of syrup or more on the rug. I do not think that Resolve is going to beat that one. I did the best I could to clean up the gooey mess, but I think that rug will forever smell like pancakes.

I will try to update this again at least one more time before I have my surgery, but I won’t make any promises. For anyone who hasn’t heard and wants to know, I’ll be having nasal surgery on June 17th. I’ve been told I’ll be out of work for 2 weeks. It could be a strain financially and I know it will be in other ways, like taking care of my family and the mundane tasks of life (like housekeeping, grocery shopping, cooking, etc.). I truly covet your prayers over the next month or so. To be honest, I’m freaking out a bit about having the surgery. I know in my mind that this is the best decision and I know in my heart that God is sovereign and that nothing can fall on me that hasn’t passed through his hands.

BUT - I’m scared. So, please pray for peace for me.

…

I love you!

2009-02-20T16:40:00.000-06:00

Yes. This is my pathetic excuse for a blog. It is often neglected…but I am thankful that I have it when I need it.

Do you ever have those days where you have so many things spinning around in your head that you don't know which way is up? I've been having a lot of those lately.

I have recently taken on some additional responsibilities at work. The person that left the company is the one who hired me on three and a half years ago, so I was already very familiar with some of the things that he did, because I used to work for him, so I was the logical person to take on these responsibilities. The only trouble with taking on more duties is that you begin to be spread too thin. I'm afraid I'm settling for mediocre on all and excelling at none.

…and so it goes…

Random thought #1: Songwriter
You know, sometimes, I really wish that God had blessed me with songwriting skills. I read an article on Kelly Clarkson one time and her mom was talking about how, as a teenager, she would just get be so overwhelmed that she would break down in tears and hysterics for no apparent reason and her mother advised her to write. She would just sit down and write a song to get it out.

I wish I could do that. I have a lot to say (usually too much! I'm sure a lot of people wish I would just shut up!). I suppose the good Lord knew that it would probably be a source of pride for me and that I probably would use it for my own glory…but I sure do wish I could get all the brain clutter out of my head in the form of a song. I also wish I could play the guitar, but that would require the discipline to practice and I doubt that would happen.

Random thought #2: Difficult people
Why is it so difficult to love the unlovely? After all, aren't we unlovely to someone? I have a co-worker who just plain rubs me the wrong way…pretty much everything she does gets on my nerves. The main reason that I have problems with her is because she is very vocal about saying how good God is when the little, good things happen in her life (which is not a bad thing, mind you), but she treats some of her coworkers (me included) as if their jobs are less important than hers. I just don't think you can separate your relationship with Christ and the way you treat people.

The stupid thing is: I'm being prideful by thinking that I'm a "better Christian" than she is. How pitiful! I hate how sin touches every single part of our lives. My prayer for myself is that I would remember who I am in light of Who He is…a sinner in need of God's grace and forgiveness. It is not my nature to be good or seek His righteousness, so I pray for the Holy Spirit to convict me daily of the things for which I need to repent.

End of Random Thoughts…

Maybe in a few more months, I'll brain-dump again. It's amazing how this relieves all the pent up anxiety. :)

Super Tuesday!

2008-11-04T13:00:00.000-06:00

What a day it was. I started off the day by dropping off my kids at school. Our polling site had been moved to their school from the Volunteer Fire Department. There were 2 districts voting in the same place with six lines to check in the voters. There were four lines for one district (which had 10 people MAX (combined) in line at one time) and two lines for the other district which was backed up all the way to the door. The second district had at least 50 people in line the entire time I was there. Guess which line I was in.

After spending 45 minutes in line, I was told that my name wasn't in the book and that I should go check in the other district's book. (I knew I wasn't in the other district, but okay, whatever.) Nope. Not in that book. After going through both lines, they told me to check in the "other" book of inactive voters. Third try's a charm, right? Apparently, it's not. I gave my i.d. to the man I will refer to as "the runner" so he could investigate. Apparently, the election commission hotline is extremely busy on election day (go figure), so he kept getting a busy signal. Thirty minutes later, the runner came back and took me to the front of the first line I was in. I was in the book after all. She was turning the pages so fast and I couldn't read upside down…so I spent way more time there than necessary.

BUT - while standing in line, the principal went through the morning announcement and the kids whose birthdays are that day get to recite the school's mission statement and the Pledge of Allegiance over the intercom. It was fitting that as I was about to do my civic duty, the voices of our future were reciting the pledge. It brought tears to my eyes. This one nation is under God, the creator of the universe and in that one true God I will trust. The election did not turn out like I wanted it to, but my faith is in Christ. I know that the one who provides for me everyday will be faithful to continue providing for me. My desire is to be as faithful to Him.

2008-09-30T15:31:00.000-05:00

I love our farm.

Last January, we bought a place up in Chester County. My friend likes to call it "The Compound". I can assure you, however, that there is no snake handling or animal sacrifice going on (unless you count running across a copperhead while you're carrying a 500 - that's an entirely different story).

We always wanted to have a place that we could pass down to future generations. We looked on and off for about 3 years without any luck before finding this place. After finding the listing on one of the Realtors' sites, we called the Agent. He was on vacation and couldn't show us the property, so we decided to mapquest it and see if we could find it. After a bit of driving and enjoying the country, we stumbled upon the place. (This was no small feat if you know anything about country roads. There are never any street signs and the same road can have 3 or 4 different names.)

From the road, it didn't look like much, but you couldn't really tell what was over the ridge. We decided that we'd just park at the road and walk up the driveway since the gate was locked. The moment of truth was when we got to the top of that first ridge. We didn't go any farther because we didn't have the agent with us, but we both knew that this was the place immediately.

We decided right away what we were willing to pay for it. If the seller couldn't take what we were offering, we wouldn't buy it. Although it was our dream, we were not willing to burden ourselves with something we couldn't afford. We made an offer the day we saw it with the agent and within 2 or 3 hours, the seller had accepted our offer.

We had to wait about a month to close. It went by so slowly. The seller had promised to rent the trailer to someone else so we just got the land. I am so glad it worked out that way because we are almost done building our own little cabin. Keith is spraying on the "knock-down" finish on the sheetrock upstairs today. After we prime and paint the upstairs, we'll be able to put the (already purchased for $35) carpet down and then we can set up the bedroom furniture. Aside from trim and moulding, the upstairs will be done. YAY!!!

We need to finish the plumbing for downstairs (putting in drains for the sinks and washing machine), kitchen countertops, flooring, wiring the ventahood and stove outlet and trim and moulding and downstairs will also be done.

I love our place. Keith and I built it together. (Yes, he did most of the work, but I helped and learned a lot of stuff that I didn't know before.) I am so thankful that I have a husband who can do anything that needs to be done at our house. Even if he's never done something, he's never afraid to try and even when I'm mostly in the way, he lets me help him. I think we make a great team. I can't wait to grow old together.

2008-09-23T14:01:00.001-05:00

I have to brag on myself for a minute. As of yesterday's weigh-in, I have lost 45.2 pounds since January. Yay me! I just love Weight Watchers. What I like about it most is that you learn to live in the real world with real food choices. No foods are off limits. You can eat what you want, but you have to balance the less healthy foods with other lighter options.

When I was doing Body for LIFE a few years ago, I lost 26 pounds. I was really proud of myself because I was more in-shape than I had ever been in my life. I was working out 6 days a week (3 cardio days and 3 weight training days). I was fortunate enough to have a fitness center where I worked and it only cost me $7.00 a month to use it. For anyone who isn't familiar with BFL, it is a 12 week program. After the 12 weeks, you can take a week long break and then start over or just keep going. I opted to take the break and never went back to working out consistently.

Over the next few years I gained the 26 pounds that I had lost plus about 14 more. I also took a new job that did not have the benefit of a fitness center. As my kids got older and life became demanding, I found (find) it hard to get all of the required things done without even attempting to throw in going to a gym to work out. The weight crept back on slowly and I watched all my hard work and progress go down the tube.

Back in January, a coworker decided she wanted to try WW. Shopping for clothes for our company Christmas party had been a wake up call for her. I wasn't all that thrilled to go because I know my tendency to not stick with things, but I started going to meetings with her. I lost 13 pounds in the first month. The best thing is that it wasn't really that difficult. By the end of the second month, I had lost 23 pounds. I couldn't believe it. What it all came down to was educating myself on nutritional information. If I have 3 pieces of pizza for lunch, it's probably not a good idea to have a slice of chocolate cake after dinner.

Cutting down portion sizes at first was really difficult. I was eating double portions most of the time. I can remember going to the Indian buffet for the first time after starting WW. Before WW, I'd visit the buffet line twice and then go back for a bowl of rice pudding. On my first "Post - WW" visit to the restaurant, I didn't fill my plate up, but I still went back for a second serving of one of my favorites (and the bowl of rice pudding). I paid for it the rest of the day. I was sick as a dog - not exactly what you want after eating Indian food. The flavors and smells are so strong. Lesson learned. I limit myself to one plate only.

I love Weight Watchers because you don't have to buy any special foods or drink nasty shakes or anything like that. I read every label and watch portion sizes. I think WW teaches you the things that you must learn in order to be successful in maintaining a healthy weight. Any program will work if you DO THE PROGRAM. Personally, I need something that I can maintain. BFL was just too hard for me to keep up with - no fault of the program, I'm just not at a point in my life where I can't invest the time that is necessary to succeed with that particular program.

Anyway, I guess that's enough of me singing the praises of WW. If anyone is interested, I keep track of my points on a spreadsheet. You just have to alter your points allowance at the top of the columns.

2008-09-19T11:07:00.000-05:00

A day in the life…

Time… Time is one of the things I covet. I don't necessarily wish that I had more of it, but I do wish it could be spent differently. I start my days by waking up at 5:15 - 5:30 (the alarm clock radio starts playing music at 5:15 and I dread getting out of the bed for at least 15 minutes). I must be dressed and ready to go and prepared to get the kids up by 6:15. Any later than that and there will be hate and discontent overtaking our home. The kids are usually eating breakfast by 6:30 and then it's on to getting dressed, brushing teeth and hair, finding shoes that are never left in the same place twice, putting on said shoes (and socks - after 3 minutes of pulling and stretching and getting them on 'just right'), getting lunches from the refrigerator (that were made the night before in an effort to minimize morning chaos), packing snacks and drinks in backpacks and getting everyone in the car to leave. With any luck, I will have remembered that today is "hat day" (PTO fundraiser) and that the kids must have $1 to participate. Money for them to attend the play and the Scholastic book order are both due today. Hopefully, I will have already written out the check. This morning, I had to find $3 per child (luckily, I had cash in my purse which is unusual these days) for hat day and the play. I also had to find the book order paper and fill out the form. I also had to write out the check to pay for them.

I'm already tired and I haven't even dropped them off at school yet.

By 7:15, we're on the way to school and I'm breathing a sigh of relief that the mad dash is over - for today anyway.

I have a one hour commute each way to work, so when I'm not rushing in the mornings to get everything taken care of and get to work on time, I'm rushing to get home so I can pick up the kids and do the evening routine, which is slightly less stressful but still full.

We get home about 6:00 (unless Daddy is off work and has already picked up kids. In that case, I get home around 5:45). Let's pray to God that I don't need anything from the grocery store. What's for dinner? Corn dog nuggets, chicken strips, fish sticks? You want a cheese quesadilla again? Okay. At least they like fruit, I tell myself. Do you have homework? Of course you do. Sidenote: was I spelling words like precipitation in the 2nd grade? After homework is bath time… every other night, anyway. Put your clothes in the hamper! Go to the bathroom before you get in the shower please! Would you stop aggravating your sister? You are not the mother. Do not tell her what to do! You two are driving me crazy! Stop yelling. (and this is all before either of them gets lathered up!)

After showers, it's time to get underwear and pajamas on and hair brushed. If we're lucky we get teeth brushed, too. It's now 8:30 and time to go to bed, but it'll take another 30 minutes or so before they're wound down enough to fall asleep.

Me? I need a margarita.

My floors haven't been vacuumed or mopped in a couple of weeks. The laundry is not too terribly out of hand because I busted my hump last weekend getting caught up. I have two sinks full of dirty dishes. There are piles of clutter on many of the flat surfaces in my home. The only thing I can think of right now is how quickly I can get my contacts out of my eyes and get in bed.

Let's do it all again tomorrow!

I now know why they invented Prozac.