New Digs!!!

Hey Y'all,

Come visit me at my new site and bookmark it for future reads!!:

 www.farmingfolks.com 

(We're still working the design, but I am too excited to keep it under wraps!)

Look forward to hearing from you there,

Leanne

Prayer

"Charles Spurgeon once remarked that "the best style of prayer is that which cannot be called anything else but a cry." Isn't that what God invites us to do all through the bible?

"Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know"(Jer.33:3)

God is not aloof. He is not disconnected. He says continually through the centuries, "I'll help you, I really will. When you don't know where to turn, then turn to me. When you're ready to throw up your hands - throw them up to me. Put your voice behind them too,  and I'll come and help you."

~Excerpt from Jim Cymbala's Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire~

Caramelized peaches with fresh rosemary...

Is what we haven't been eating lately. Unless the peaches are canned and the rosemary's been freeze dried. 

What I'm trying to say is, the budget is going very well .. heh. Perhaps a little too well. The pantry's been hit hard, and what used to be full shelves are now starting to look a lot like the Canadian Target's shelves. (ouch...too soon?) The fridge lights now penetrate to the lowest shelf, no longer darkened by a full top shelf of half full condiment jars. Said jars are being emptied and used in my frugal yet tasty recipes! I was also able to use my rarely touched cornmeal for some delicious blueberry cornmeal muffins...yum-o.

I have been relying heavily upon dear ol' Pinterest to give some creative recipes to percolate through my meal planning mind. I'm proud to say we ate out only twice this month, and both were within our dining budget. Boo-ya baby, I do believe that may be a record at the fifty!

The best part is that most of the meals have been slow cooker meals, which are my set-it and forget-it days...pure joy my friends. 

We've had a pretty wide variety of meals including: Shanghai Noodles, Beef Stroganoff, Chicken Alfredo, Chicken Rice soup, Fajitas, and one of my personal favs - breakfast for dinner :) There's been enough leftovers for The Hubs lunch nearly every day...except for the breakfast for dinner night...cold scrambled eggs...*shiver*

Even the old wrinkly apples were used up this month...Oatmeal apple cinnamon muffins were a highly prized snack :) 

Peels n' all ...

Foto Fridays on the Fifty..

Thought I'd start up a recurring theme here on the fifty, Foto Friday.

(Does it annoy you that I chose 'foto' rather than photo? heh. Well, it's a throwback to my Oma who has heavy dutch accent, I can just picture her saying ' Oh vat a lovely foto!' )

Heres a picture from our backyard on a windy, sunny day. These are our 'hammock' trees, planted in a triangle with hopes that one day we'll be able to hang a couple hammocks from them :)

There is beauty in this harsh season, we just have to look a little harder to see it!

Ruby and the Amaryllis..

Samurai..

     It was a regular afternoon, I was happily chatting away the hour with a fellow mom, sipping coffee and enjoying a talk about things that interest people over 3 feet tall:) Our children were playing, three of which I could see through the big picture window in the living room, as they bounced away on the trampoline.
I took a lasting sip from my vanilla hazelnut blend, and peered over my mug rim...and that's when I saw it...Saw him... through the window on the back lawn nearing the children.
He had an awkward gait, slow and laboured, more of a saunter - with a mission...my eyes quickly fired a message to my brain, which sent a message to my legs to 'GET UP!'. Quickly realizing this wasn't a familiar fellow...but a stranger, I ran to the back door as my friend looked on wondering what could possibly make me get up from our delightful conversation so abruptly.  I opened the door and instantly knew, this guy was sick.
I turned back to my friend and said 'It's a racoon, definitely sick, either distemper or rabies', and I was off, to the garage I flew to grab the only thing I could think of that would keep a distance between me and the creature, and still pack a punch if need be.
A golf club.
Ya, you read that right ..unfortunately.

I pulled that putter out of the golf bag like it was my samurai, my adrenaline was pumping, I ran and practised a few slashes in the air as if I were a ninja. I came around the house with my warrior cry, "HIIIIIYYYAAAA!!!!"...hoping to distract the masked intruder away from the trampoline.

As my eyes met the scene in front of me, I faltered a bit, losing my initial boldness and replacing it with a disbelief. He had already made it to the children, drawn to the laughter in his zombie like state he was reaching up to them from beneath the black trampoline mat with his freaky human like hands, and was nearly licking their toes.
By this point, my girl was beside herself in fear, with her brother and his friend holding her back from scrambling out of the zippered net, thinking the creature may seize her ankles. I ran towards them shouting, gaining speed and waving my death instrument and that's when his beady little black eyes met mine. The drums began to pound (in my head) ... and I went straight for him.

(As an aside in this moment, I had a mental exchange with myself likened to Mel Gibsons Freedom speech in Braveheart...(all changes to the speech my own...))
"Aye, fight and you may die, Leanne. Run, and you'll live... at least a while. And dying in your bed, many years from now, would you be willin' to trade ALL the days, from this day to that, for one chance, just one chance, to come back here and tell this coon that they he may take my life, but he'll never take... MY FREEDOM!" 

As I ran towards him from one corner of the backyard, I noticed that my friend had come onto the back porch armed with what she thought constituted a death instrument....an apple. Ya, you read that right, unfortunately. 

She whipped that apple with all her might, her cheeks rippling with the force of chucking that red gala. It was of no use, he had his gaze locked onto me and my shiny putter and was approaching with intensity in his trance like state. At first I invited the chase, as I knew it was leading him away from the poor scarred children, but soon I realized it was on .. like donkey kong. He came at me with enthusiasm...each swipe of my samurai bringing more interest. Within 30 seconds I could handle it no longer, his creepy little human like hands were stepping too quickly towards me. I completely chickened out and hightailed it back to the garage as soon as I saw that the kids had scrambled out of the trampoline to the back porch. I ran and screamed like the princess I became, I whirled my samurai club around and around behind me, hoping to putt his head off. 

Once indoors, I locked the door...because you know...creepy human hands and all.

I held my poor shaking daughter in my arms while I called grandpa to save the day. The true farmer ninja came wielding his samurai of the heavy shovel variety, and saved the day. 

Needless, to say ..my request for a BB gun seems slightly more logical now doesn't it?! (By the way, I did receive said gun for Christmas, and suffice to say I think it will make for a better deterrent than my 'samurai' ;) 

Finally, because I know you're thinking how cute raccoons are, and because those previous pictures don't give reasonable doubt as to their true nature....I leave you with this. 

You're Welcome.

Fresh..

There's nothin' like a freshly born year to make me fill my brain with all kinds of new beginnings. Already there are new habits developing. 5 Days in and I've cracked the lid on a couple new plans. The budget has been re-vamped and we've drawn in a few notches on the ol' budget belt. There are times when I quite enjoy being cheap, and there are times when I quite despise it. January 1st brings a sweet new feeling of el cheapo to life and I have no problem saying 'uh uh' to fast food and frills. (that's exactly why we shop at no frills..heh)

I also have a new zeal for re-vamping the extra padding on my body...I wish it were as easy as scribbling down a few numbers, like the budget...but alas, this new beginning involves hard work. So, the children and I are now members of a homeschooling program at the YMCA that gets us moving. (this Y just happens to be 10 mins away from us...and we live in the country, so it's pretty fantastic!!) The kids get to play sports, while their moms walk the track indoors then we go swimming. AND the best part is I don't need a pricey membership to go! It was a flat rate that was quite 'cheap' I might add :)

My new meal plan is keeping me in the kitchen a little more, but so far so good, the hubs and kids are enjoying my creative food concoctions, and I've stayed well within my new 'Crazy Frugal' grocery budget. Exciting!!

Wish me luck on this new beginning would ya? Let me know what you've changed for 2015!

2015..

All's quiet on the homefront as I type this New Years Eve afternoon. We had a fun morning of going to see a movie, (care of Oma and Opas gift for the children this year, they even bought our tickets!) the choice was 'Night in the Museum 3'. It was the typical humour we would expect and everyone found a one-liner to repeat afterwards :)

I shed a tear at the end when Robin Williams said his final line and put his sword in the air....who would've known while creating that movie, what a poignant moment that would become.

The children are all asleep .. including my big kid ;) They're all looking forward to staying up late playing Jenga, Uno and scrabble whilst munching on yet more goodies.

Here's to a New Year full of new memories, new experiences, and new life and laughter. So thankful for Gods love and mercies in 2014, May you and yours always know His Goodness. 

Eve Squared.

Then again, maybe it's Eve to the power of three? Christmas Eve's eve's eve? Whatever you call it, it's the 22nd of December today and the list of to-do's is long and curled around my ankles, and yet here I am for some writing therapy!

Yesterday, the kids had their Christmas recital and as much as I LOVE my children learning all matters of musical goodness, the recital is the culmination of their lessons thus far and always brings stress and diva drama to our home in the days leading up to it. Their teacher has been great for our kids as she is so creative and kind of 'out-there' so it pushes them creatively, in a creative way...creating creativity..... *crickets*)

Anyhow, she herself is a phenomenal singer, guitar player, and pianist so she rubs off nicely on my three. This was Edens very first recital and she played a duet with her teacher which always sounds lovely, because what would be just a finger picking melody becomes a beautiful tune with the harmony being played as well. She was a hit :) Gabe played a Jazzy version of 'We Three kings' and he did great, God's given that boy some talent in the music department and he just really enjoys his time on the piano.

Ashlyn began vocal lessons this year, following her stellar performance of Jamie Grace's 'God Girl' last year for the end of year recital, in which she sang and played piano.  This time around she chose 'All I want for Christmas' by Mariah Carey.

yep.

MARIAH CAREY.

Have you heard the difference between Jamie Grace and Mariah Carey? Both are amazingly talented singers, but the VOCAL RANGE OF MARIAH, PEOPLE.

My poor red, she has learned a few things over the last month or two about a vocal breaking point and that God has not given each and every one of his children a voice that knoweth no bounds. But, alas, the show must go on and her teacher encouraged her to push through and perform the song to the best of her ability. And that she did, without a nervous bone in her body....(which is beyond me. I couldn't have done it, now, or when I was 9.) That girls got nerves o' steel and she actually has fun performing!

Today brings me a day of no piano practice reminders, of which I'm grateful for. It's the little things, right? :)

Not what I used to be..

It was a Wednesday night miracle.

Supper was done early, the dishes were done and I was free to shop till I dropped. The Hubs sent me away promising to run the ship and tuck the kids into bed...ahhhh Bliss! (I had a twinge of guilt as I saw the kids pull out the farming board game, and that look of horror in his eyes, knowing what the next few hours would bring)

But for me the possibilities were endless, would it be home decor?or Christmas stocking stuffers?, or perhaps some new threads, I had a hop in my step and some Ramsey cash in my envelope wallet.

It wasn't long before I realized my shopping stamina is not what it used to be... I was out for a total of three hours and came back with nary a Christmas gift.  As a side note let me just say... I also came back home with a total drop in self esteem and a dent in my pride. There may have been some skinny jeans and knee high boots involved...I've come to the conclusion I shalt never don the gay apparel of the aforementioned. And that's all we'll say about that. Yes, I realize a photo would probably send my blog hits skyrocketing, but there are things better left unseen, those kinds of images can be hard to forget. 

Lucky for me I've got a man who wouldn't be caught dead in skinny jeans nor any of the latest 'metro' fashion and he loves me just as I am in my yoga pants :) 

'You'll shoot yer eye out!"

I'm a ready.

The holly jolly season is at the doorstep and I'm ready to fling the door open and let in all the madness. ... well almost all of it.
Gift giving on the fifty, in times past, was to buy presents..as many as needed to cover all the grounds of underthings, readable things, play things, and wearable things .. AND to try to find that fine balance of making sure each child has as much as the next.
That tradition is now dead to me.
This year, it's one gift each and a stocking. Can I just say I'm already breathing more joy from Jesus as I put the King first and the 'stuff' behind.
Deep breath in ......deep breath out......see?? that's pure joy right there.
The kids all have an idea of what they'd like their special gift to be, and I can see already it's going to be an internet Christmas. Love you, free shipping.

You wanna know what I asked for? 
A daisy BB Red Ryder Rifle. 

The thought of blowing a pop can off a stump in the distance brings me such glee, I can hardly explain it. Call it a country thing, or a farm girl thing, or maybe even a self-protection thing. Yes, I said self-protection... perhaps the BB gun won't protect me from much ... not even a wayward raccoon from what I hear, but it's a start. And yes, there's a proven need to protect myself and my kids from wayward coons here on the fifty...I don't believe I've told that story yet, but I will. It deserves a post all it's own.

Anyway, soon it'll be time to dust off the holiday totes from the basement and put on the Christmas music, and come December 26th, I sure hope it's time to raid the recycling bin for some shootin' practice ;)

Rubi-licious...

 There's a new fluff ball in town. Ruby. Part persian, part himalayan and all ploofy.

(Sorry about the photo quality, these are off my phone.)

Mornin'

Rolled out of bed this morn and rubbed my eyes open to a beautiful splash of pink and purple covering the eastern sky. I look at these moments of visual deliciousness as a gift from the master designer and my first thoughts are always to preserve these moments through the lens. So I grabbed my camera and my bible ...before even having had my cuppa joe I might add..a small feat in and of itself! 

 

This was through the iPad lens, which doesn't even come close to what my eyes attached to this morning. 

Then the fog rolled in and that coffee was getting pushed further and further away... 

Never thought I'd say this, but there are better ways than caffeine to wake up ;) Psalms under the sunrise is definitely awesome. (And probably better for my gallbladder!) 

Go East young man...and family...

It was done in typical Garrett fashion, booked a mere month before departure. Mrs. Vaunda had a cancellation and was letting our 5 rent her oceanfront cottage for the week... And oh what a cottage it was. 

It occurred to me on approximately the 19th hour 'ol Bess had been driving, that there was a slight chance I had done something rash by booking a pricey cottage so last minute and putting down a deposit when only having seen website photos

...the fear caught up with me as we saw the little road sign at the end of the red dirt lane....what had I done? 

We pulled over the hill and upon first glance i hoped upon hopes that ours was the one at the base of the steep hill, that was almost licking the ocean....

Vaunda gave us the quick tour and in a easy eastern accent she said 'if ya's need a thing I'm up the hill, in the white cottage' and she was gone. I think she could tell by our faces that we were in dire need of some R&R after some 20 hours of driving.  One of the first things we did after we chucked the suitcases into the cottage was race down the stairs to see what wonder beheld us at the ocean shore.

 

The children took to calling me 'crabadile Dundee' by the end of the week, I just couldn't get enough of those little bubbly faced cuties. There's something to be said about being on the ocean shore, if it weren't for the crazy tides, we'd have spent the entire waking hours down there. I've been far blessed with this land lovers paradise of 50 rolling acres, but those at the coast have a whole different playground to enjoy...and enjoy it we did. 

There was a bit of land based entertainment to be had as well, our favourite being the ceilidh ... An east coast music experience that is busting with authenticity and people who really love to entertain. 

Even the kids agreed this was one of the major highlights of our trip :) 

We also did the expected as tourists, and attended a matinee of the 'Anne of Green Gables' musical, that has been running for over 50 years ...

We also toured the factory of the best ice cream in all of Canada! COWS dairy, Mmm. The workers there work for 2 months straight in the ice cream factory, concocting delicious tubs of ice cream loaded with extras like cookies, chocolate bars and sauces and once they've reached their quota of the good stuff for the year (based on previous years sales) ... They return to their previous job of ...shucking oysters! Who'd a thunk! 

Feel free to comment on the utter dorky-ness of my hat as opposed to my family members...I won't forgive them for not telling me. 

This is our darling daughter Gabe, who is posing with the Tim hortons card his friend told him to take with him and get pictures, holding it in various PEI locations :) ... This ones for you Kaden! 

Oh, and this one... 

And one more :) 

We also visited the homestead of Anne, Marilla, and Matthew....what a hopping place that was, everybody and their brother was there. Here I am a-posing as Le-Anne of Green Gables...tee hee. My husband is the stellar photographer with the big thumb ;) 

And this here is Anne's bedroom! ....you kind of have to go with an open mind, as neither the home nor the musical are exactly like the movie (which set a wonderful and high standard in my opinion...Anne's voice in the musical is so far from Meghan Follows' voice that it's a little surprising at first...) 

We even did the 'haunted woods' trail, thankfully there were no ankle twisting graves freshly dug...and no creepy fog either ;) ....( But I do spy another gratuitous timmies plug for Kadens sake...) 

I think you get the idea that we had copious amounts of fun...so I'll wrap up for now with a quote from Lucy Maud herself...and I can now say I understand exactly where she's coming from :) 

Moments...

God, in His all knowing ways, gives me moments each day where the regular world slows to a crawl, the movements creep along, my focus is razor sharp and all else fades...if only for a minute. These moments are those that will remain, I hope, long after alzheimers strikes.

The moment: making cupcakes without help.

She stood beside the sink, red hair all aglow in the island lights. She was taking her time filling the measuring cup to brimming with water, all the while tip toeing her feet in place to the classical music spilling from the kitchen radio tuned to CBC. She slowly walked to the bowl, water splashing onto the counter. I said nothing, choosing to enjoy watching her rather than reprimanding her to bring the bowl closer. It won't be long before she gets it...when she knows to put the bowl beside the sink and pour the water right in, instead of walking all the way to the other side of the island to pour it out. I stood and enjoyed the great deal of concentration that played on her face, struggling to tame the sloshing, while her feet still wanted to dance...she hasn't lost that innocence yet...the world is still delightful and hers for the taking.

Sun for 2 days..

And what a beautiful 2 days they were. Seems as though spring has come and gone in these parts,  today it's 15 cm of the white stuff and some crazy wind. Both yesterday and the day before, the kids dug out their bikes and we went for a stroll to the end of the road and back....it was soooo wonderful!

So far March break has been pretty quiet and just a wonderfully mundane week of regular ol' life. We'll be enjoying a day in beamsville on Friday to visit cousins and aunts and thankfully the weather is looking like it'll be in the positives again!

Here's one from a couple years ago, Wasn't that a beautiful morning shot? 

Eternal weight of Glory

This morning I sit in peace, light slowly rising through the windows and read this,

'So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.' 2 Corinthians 4:16

It's verses like that, that make my heart skip a beat in anticipation...

G'mornin mom and Christin!

My two devoted followers whom have both mentioned its time to blog something new again ;) and so here I sit with my new (woo!) iPad and thought I'd write a little post for y'all.

The children and I have decided it would do us a great deal of good to observe lent this year. For several reasons, the most important of course being the desire to strip all things bare and fully re-focus on Christ. So, seeing as the hubs and I have already given up on sugar, salt, caffeine, and processed foods in general, I decided my observance of lent would not giving up another thing (to be  honest I wasn't sure what else there was!) but instead to make a priority of Christ in my life. Instead of getting up and hopping on my computer..or iPad as the case may be... I would instead pick up the  Word and begin my day with Him. The kids decided to give up tv during the day, so no more netflix during school time...I was thrilled when they decided in this one...yes I could have told them to just  do that, but was thankful when it came from them, their decision.

Do we have a problem with TV during the day, no, but there are times when I'm tired and should say no more than I do...so here we go! Bring in the books ...even more!

Today I read this verse and it'll stick a with me as I go about my day today, maybe for you too!

' For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life.' 2 Corinthians 2:15

Budget '14

Here we are back into cold wintry mornings with crisp sunrises. The kind that make your lungs buckle with frosty air.

The hubs and I are giving it a go, again. The zeal of money managing has been stoked and we're off and running with the budget of 2014. We've a clear direction now, thanks to many wonderful blogs I read that help to gently pluck those budgeting heartstrings. Yes, I have budgeting heartstrings...they lie next to my shopaholic strings...it's a dangerous place in my heart...there's a constant orchestra being conducted and it's either playing one tune or the other.

In keeping with a Dave Ramsey style cash budget for the past 8 or so years, we've done a great deal of good. We're moving up in our baby steps (for those of you who aren't familiar with Mr Ramsey...please google. His baby steps are your key to financial freedom.)

Looking forward to a few baby steps being crossed off this year...yahoo!

Here's a link to a blogger whom I very much admire, she's real and funny and she and her husband love the Lord. It's Stacy from Stacy makes Cents. http://www.stacymakescents.com/10-reasons-youre-broke  there's a link to one of her husbands articles.

Anywho, off to feed the babes! chat soon!

Reasons..

It's for reasons like these that we don't do the door knocking, treat taking tradition. http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2013/10/30/for-some-wiccans-halloween-is-a-real-witch/?hpt=hp_c2

But hey, to each his own, and if you do go out, hope everyone can stay dry tonight!!