Butcher Day

Dad called me last night saying we had a problem.  A steer broke his leg and needed butchered.  Luckily it was not one of our steers.  People in the area know Dad butchers and processes his own meat.  When a critter has a broken leg and cannot walk into the locker plant on its own they will not take it.  Therefore, call Jerry Juenemann

This farmer was working cattle to castrate them and one did not take too kindly to the idea of getting his male parts cut off.  He tried to jump the head gate and got his leg caught and fought too hard before they could get him out and he broke his leg.  We went over to look at the critter last night and as we were leaving was told that part of the deal was to take the Rocky Mountain Oysters that they had cut that day.  He had a tub half full.  We loaded them in the van and came home to clean them up. 

Dad had called Derrick's hired man about it because he helped with the last steer we got and loved having the meat.  He had asked just last week if Dad knew of any animals that needed butchering.  Dad called Jeff and he and his wife came out and helped us clean the nuts.  We ended up with 5 gallon Ziploc bags full. 

Today Dad & Jeff went to the farmer's place and killed and bleedout the steer before bring him home.  Once here, I went out to help (watch and run errands) as they skinned and gutted it.  Dad's walk-in cooler was in Colby so he and Mom went to town to get it and I stayed home and kept spraying the hangingcarcass with cold well water to help get a lot of the body temperature out and to keep it cool.  Later, Dad & I got it cut into sections and hung (laid on cloth covered pallets) in the walk-in.  He is now chilling out in there for a few days before we are ready to process him.  I think we are splitting him 4 ways-1/4 for each of Dad, Jeff, me, and the farmer's hired man. 

Mom wants to can beef chunks and have hamburger ground for this summer's family gathering the end of July.  I want to can both some beef chunks and browned hamburger as well as put some burger in the freezer. 

Yesterday Mom and I both bought pork loins to can because they were only $1.79 per pound.  I had planned to can today but butchering came first. 


When Dad & I quit at 4:30 today my phone showed 97 degrees.  No wonder we both were so hot and sweaty.  We cooled ourselves off with the well water trying not to get heat exhaustion.  I was so hot and my house a/c unit had quit earlier in the day but I did get it running again when I got in.  I was even too hot for a cool shower.  I just stripped and lay in front of the fan on the bed for a couple hours. 

Tomorrow we need to get the hooves, hide, tail and innards out of my back yard.  We were too hot to load them up to haul to the pasture.  I have them covered with a tarp but hope wild critters (coyotes) do not come up to the house to eat tonight.   I hope that will be a first thing in the morning project while it is cool. 

I actually do not have a problem with cleaning or frying bull fries.  I like to see how all the guts are stuffed inside the animal.  It does not bother me to help butcher, skin, gut, and cut or process a cow, bull or steer.  Once the cow was pregnant and I was able to see the fully formed baby calf that was inside.  That was really cool for me.  I think it will be cooler over the weekend and we can process the meat or at least cut up the steer and freeze large chunks of it until we are ready to work it.  Dana needs the cooler back for a big event the following weekend and Dad has a doctor appointment in Wichita mid week next week.

Hard, hot day but will be so worth having the meat.
Rose

Random Thoughts

Just want to share a few random thoughts about random things.

     1.       Doctor appointment today:

Today was a 3 month follow up appointment after removing me from one of the high powered blood pressure medication.  My blood pressure was a little higher than before but I had not taken any of my morning medications yet.  I also have lost 7 pounds since my last appointment. The doctor was happy with that and asked what I was doing different.  Nothing.  Well, he thinks I should be doing something different but the only thing I can think of is being off the Tekturna medication.

2.       Essential Oils:

I have finished the Life Long Vitality pack and now have begun taking the GX Assist, a GI Cleansing formula, and am almost done with that.  Once finished I will take another round of the PB Assist, a probiotic blend.  I hope that this will get my gut back in order.  I do not know if this has had anything to do with the weight loss or not.  I have not started the Slim N Sassy and will not for a while yet.  I do like drinking the Wild Orange in my water and love the Lime in my Diet Pepsi.  The thought was to cut back on the pop but that has not really happened.  I just plain enjoy the fizzy and flavor of pop.  I am still using the Lavender oil & White Fir oil at bedtime and am sleeping through the night most nights.  Over all I am sleeping much better.  One day I got the clicking in my ear that I have had off and on ever since I had Bell’s Palsy.  I used a mix of Lavender, Peppermint, and Tea Tree Oils in front of and behind the ear as well as down the neck.  Within 30 minutes my ear and whole side of my face hurt terribly.  I put the oils on again two more times every 30 minutes and before going to bed the clicking completely quit and the pain eased up.  Usually the clicking lasts several days to a couple weeks.  I was happy about that.

3.       Wrecked Knee:

Monday I went out on the Ranger with Mom & Dad because a couple cows and a calf were in the wheat field instead of the pasture.  I walked high-stepping some in the wheat field trying not to damage it in any way to get the cows out.  I rolled under the electric fence and continued following them through the neighbor’s stubble field.  The cows saw me following well behind them and took off on a dead run.  When Mom & Dad caught up with me with the Ranger, I got on and Dad went chasing them across into a newly plowed field that he plans to plant cane in.  With the heavy rains we had Saturday night there was a wash-out and he hit the brakes hard.  I went flying.  My knee hit the dash hard.  I was hanging on to the top roll bar and the side rail and that is all that kept me from going over the hood.  I could just see that hanging on is not good enough and usually do wear the seat belt when we ‘rodeo’ but did not this time.  So many things run through my head all at once-I’m going over, landing head first on the ground and the Ranger running over the top of me.  Thankfully, hitting my knee helped stop my forward motion as well as the Ranger getting stopped before hitting the ditch too hard.  I did not notice my knee again until I knelt down on the floor yesterday afternoon and fell completely to the floor. The knee was swollen and very tender.  I now notice the pain more that I did right after it happened.  I’ll be fine in a week or two.  Next time I will put on my seat belt even if there are three of us on the Ranger. 

4.        Rain & tornado:

We have had some nice rain over the past couple weeks.  Saturday night we had about an inch of rain in 30 minutes with high winds and 4 tornados on the ground at one time between our farm and Selden.  We did not have any damage.  The tornado tracked from somewhere near Monument Rocks to near the Nebraska State Line as far as I know.  It is raining so nicely again tonight. I noticed that my rain gutter is about to fall off the house at a joint above my living room window.  It is very bowed down.  I do not know what is causing that unless the drip I have had there has caused all the water to run to that spot at once with the heavy rain over the weekend and weakened it.  Once it is dry again I will go out to investigate and fix the problem.  I have had the furnace turned off for about a month now but I turned it on again tonight.  I just can’t seem to get warm.  It is hard to believe that it is May 13 and have the need for the furnace again.

5.       Garden:

Two weeks ago I planted 3 tomato plants and 5 pepper plants in barrels in front of the house.  I put big buckets over the top of the plants on Saturday before the heavy storms came in fear of hail.  We have had so much wind it is terrible.  Sunday & Monday nights we had frost advisories so I left the buckets on to try to protect my little plants.  I also bought some flowers to put on a couple pots but brought them into the house to protect them.  I still have not planted them because of the wind.  I took the buckets off the plants yesterday afternoon and this afternoon I noticed that the peppers look like something has eaten off all the lower leaves.  The tomatoes look like they are mostly laying down instead of standing up.  I hope they pull out of their slump and grow.  I guess if they do not, then I was not supposed to have a garden this year either.  I love to can but not to garden in the ground.  Planting in tubs works better for me.  I have also been pulling grass out of one of the flower beds in the back of my house.  All my flower beds are looking pretty good.  I hope that continues.

Well, that should be enough rambling for one evening. 

Rose

More Kitchen Cleaning

Today I have been cleaning in the kitchen again.  Today I cleaned off the side cabinet top with the bookcase on it.  I wish I could say that the kitchen is as clean as it was but it is not quit there but it is not too bad.  A little more work and the counters can be totally cleaned again and I need to cover some more magazine boxes and the table will be cleaned off again.  The floor needs to be swept and scrubbed again.  I'm doing better that I ever had in the past. 

Here is a picture of the cabinet and shelf.

     Looks good, doesn't it? 

 

Rose

Essential Oil update

I am a bit of a sceptic about the value of essential oils but am willing to give it a try.  My goal here is to document what I do and the effects I see from it.  I have been taking the Live Long Vitality Supplements for around 3 weeks now.  I also took the PB Assist +.  I have also been using Lavender and White Fur oil on my feet at bedtime.  Sometimes I drink the Wild Orange oil in water.  I have also tried the Peppermint oil in water. 

I started out only taking 1 pill twice a day of the supplements and one PB Assist+ once a day and after about a week I doubled it to the recommended amounts.  The first thing I noticed was that I only pooped 2-3 times a day and it was more solid than liquid.  This is a great improvement.  But...I bloated severely and had a lot of fluid retention.  I could not wear the jeans I have been wearing and had to get out the jeans that are 2 sized larger than usual. At first the scale did not show any weight gain but then showed a 5-6 pound gain.  Several days later the scale showed my weight back down plus 1-2 pounds less that at the start. Dana had me use the peppermint on my tummy twice a day.  I only did this a couple times but the bloating improved.  I have run out of the PB Assist+, which is a probiotic.  The first thing I noticed is that the poop was 3-5 times a day and more liquid but not as bad as before starting any of this.  I am going to finish the Live Long Vitality Supplement and take the GX Assist first then follow that with another round of PB Assist+.  My understanding is the GX will work to get rid of the bad bacteria and the PB is to replace the good bacteria. 

Now let's talk about the oils.  I do not really like the scent of the Lavender but understand it is to help with calming and sleep.  The White Fir is to help with the muscle and joint discomfort.  My hopes it that it will help calm the aches from the fibromyalgia.  I do not know if it has helped that but I was in a mild flare-up when I started using it.  But I did notice that I sleep longer at a time.  Instead of waking up every 3-4 hours, going to the bathroom and getting a drink to then go back to sleep, I sleep 6-8 hours straight.  Boy, do I need to go to the bathroom when I wake up!  I have even slept 10 hours at one time a couple of nights.  If it is the Lavender or if it is from less discomfort from using the White Fir, I am not sure, but I will keep using these at bedtime.

I like the Wild Orange oil mixed with my drinking oil.  I like the flavor and can refill my glass once or twice and still have some of the flavor remaining in the glass and water.  I tried the peppermint oil in water once and liked it but it was really strong.  My mouth actually felt fresh and cool but felt a but of a burning sensation for about 30 minutes.  Either I need to put it in more water at a time or suck it up and enjoy the sting. 

I want to try the Lemon Oil in water.  I read so many benefits of drinking lemon water.  I also would like to try the Deep Blue to assist with the Fibro pain. 

That should be enough to try for now.  I'll keep you updated on how it is going.

Rose

Essential Oil Experiment

I have been curious about the benefits of essential oils.  I have been doing some reading and found out that my niece is a doTerra essential oil dealer. I just did not know where to begin.  A week ago she took me to the spa to have my hand scanned to see what was all out of whack in my body.  There were 36 of 76 out of line-22 PB Assist, 8 White Fir, 5 (I can't remember and can't find my sheet), 1 Cleary Sage.  That is better than I thought and none of them were for obesity.  Most of it was for gut issues and some for muscle and connective tissue issues.  That makes sense since I have had diarrhea several times a day for several years (supposedly side effects to some of my medications) and I have fibromyalgia.  Today I got my order from Dana.  I got the Lifelong Vitality (that must have been my 5 number), PB Assist, Peppermint Oil, White Fir Oil, Wild Orange Oil for a total bill of $224.01. 

I began by taking the pills tonight with my evening meal.  I am supposed to take 2 pills twice a day but to start with 1 pill twice a day with meals of the Lifelong Vitality and 1 pill three times a day with meals but will start with 1 pill twice a day with meals. These are to help with the gut issues and organ cleansing.  I am to use two drops of the White Fir on each foot at bedtime for the muscle and connective tissue (fibro) issues.  I got the Wild Orange to put in my water that is to help with fluid retention, depression, and lymphatic system. I read a year or two ago about adding Wild Orange and Lemon EO to water to help drink more water and quit drinking soda pop.  I got the Peppermint Oil because it is supposed to help keep spiders, insects and mice out of your home when you mix it with water and spray around doors and windows.  After all the trouble we have had here the past six months with mice I wanted to give it a try.  I have not had mice for 2 months now and am so grateful but will try this in hopes to keep them out. 

Now I must admit I am a bit of a sceptic about this but am willing to give it a try.  My goal is to try it and journal about my experiences here.  You can quit reading now if you do not want to know some personal bodily issues.  I mentioned diarrhea.  It was so bad that every time I used the restroom I had more liquid poo than urine.  Doctors have told me it is side effects from medications.  After changing doctors I am now off several of the meds.  It has helped some. I actually have gas sometimes without worrying I am making a mess. 

I had to quit working full time because of severe stress, anxiety and panic attacks as well as uncontrolled blood pressure and blood sugar and fibromyalgia with chronic fatigue syndrome.  In the 9 years since I quit the blood pressure and blood sugar are both much better controlled.  Those are the medications I have been able to decrease.   Anxiety and depression are better most of the time.  When I get too much going on at once or I get over stimulated I have anxiety and panic issues.  I can't sleep, I dream of whatever activity I've been involved with over and over that just won't quit, I get really crabby at people and feel mad at the world.  There is so much more but I won't explain that more at this time.  When I get stressed or overdo in activity I have much more pain and fatigue from the fibro.  When I feel good I seem to do all I can and then I have over done and hurt and feel wiped out and all I can do is rest (if I am not too restless).  I feel so drained and fatigued that I feel I can hardly lift my arms and all my muscles feel like they are made of cement.  My brain does not always click.  When someone talks to me I just can't seem to put what they are telling me all together in my brain to understand.  I feel like there is a glass wall in front of me blocking the information from reaching me.  I hate the muscle aches.  I ache all the time, just more at some times.  My lower legs, ankles and feel ache all the time and my legs hurt to lay on my side with one leg on top of the other.  The knees hurt where they touch.  The aches are here, there and everywhere but not always in the same place.  There are times that shower water hurts as it hits my body, my legs feel like I have a severe sunburn, my feet feel like I have hot needles poking me and then the knife stabs and severe cramps hit.  I just want to cry and begin to feel so negative as much as I try to stay positive. At these times I try to hide in my house and not associate with others so I don't hurt them by my grumpiness.  All this only helps contribute to the depression but Zoloft helps tremendously. 

My hopes are that the essential oils may help deal with some of these issues if nothing else but to help lift my mood.  I'll keep you posted on what I think of them.

Rose

My View

Looking out my front door
Across the corral and through the pasture
Cattle crowning the top of the hill
Spread out to eat their hay and cane.
How much better can it get?
I love living in the country
On the family farm!

Craft classes at the Oberlin City Library

The Oberlin City Library has been offering craft classes that have been so much fun to attend.  The first one I went to was Crochet Rag Rugs.  I know how to crochet very basic and this fit the bill.  You tear old sheets or clothing or fabric into strips, tie them together, then crochet with a basic single crochet.  I used a flat king size sheet that had stripes running from top to bottom in a few repeats on a white background.  I tore the sheet from side to side.  This created color splotches throughout and looks like confetti when it is crocheted.  This rug is made from just one sheet.  It is a little slick on the wood floor so I put it on the carpet in the living room in front of the TV. 










The second class I took was Pine Needle Baskets.  I got pine needles from branches Ron had trimmed around their house in Wichita.  I pulled needles from the branches and soaked them in water for a week.  Using these green pine needles and hemp twine I made this little ring/earring basket.  It sits on the shelf in the bathroom.  Now I do not have earrings scattered all over the counter.

Then I attended a class to upcycle magazine boxes.  The library had a lot o magazine boxes that they no longer use.  We took them and using craft paper, scrapbooking paper, and wallpaper to cover them.  There are so many uses for them besides keeping magazines. The green one I made holds crochet edge baby receiving blankets.  The red one is just sitting and looking pretty right now while the blue one has bottles of lotion, shower gel, scrubs, etc. sitting on my bedroom vanity table.  I also covered a couple cracker boxes with the blue paper into pretty baskets for little bottles.  It sure makes my table look more organized. 


I have learned a new skill, used a known skill in a different way and just had some good crafty fun.  I have enjoyed these classes so very much.  I look forward to more classes.  Next week I will take a calligraphy class and a crochet class.  They also have a Stampin' Up Card making class the last Friday of every month.  I have made friends with some sweet ladies that have a lot of the same interests as I do.  After the classes most of us go out for lunch together. It has been fun.  Jeannie has resigned as director of the Oberlin City Library but I (selfishly) hope that this type of activities will continue.  I wish we could do something like this at the Selden Library but I do not know people in our community to know what talent is there.  It seems hard enough to just get activities for the summer reading program.  Maybe I'll think on this for a while.

Rose

Tempting Spring

The last couple days have been tempting spring.  It was in the mid 70's and no real wind.  BEAUTIFUL!! I love it.  I opened the windows and my house warmed up.  Yesterday I worked some in the garage and went through a trash can that has been full of things from my garage at the house in Colby.  8 years and it has been sitting outside under the eves of the garage.  It contained some paint and stain as well as my camping lantern and several propane bottles.  I threw the paint away since it was dried up, laid the stain on the work bench and put the bottles in a bucket to have Dad look at them to see if they are ruined or not.

This afternoon I decided to try the recipicating saw I got at Harbor Freight last summer.  I needed to cut a landscape timber to finish out the border around the flower garden around the house. I did it-all-by-myself.  The saw worked really good and I had no trouble with it.  I think I can do more projects that I have in mind by using this saw.  I'm getting excited to do some fun projects.   I may need to trim the one board depending on what I end up doing with the downspout drain.  The rabbits have been eating the plastic on the drain so I may need to do something different there.


Now that the border is finished, I need to put mulch around the bush on the corner of the house.  My 4-wheeler is out of gas and the gas hose on the tank is broken.  The little trailer that I can pull with the 4-wheeler is in the barn full of wood Dad has cut to use for shelves.  The mulch has been dumped in the big garden area across the drive.  I decided to put together my dumping garden wagon I got at Christmas in Wichita at Northern Tool.  I decided I'd try to put the wagon together myself instead if waiting for Dad to help me.  I need to learn to do more projects myself. 

I did it, twice.  I read the instructions and looked at the pictures for more detail.  I'd put something together then when I was ready for the next step, I'd have turn something around or upside down or backwards.  I started out sitting on the porch step to work on this.  The first thing that happened was I dropped a screw and washer and it was lost in the dead grass that is covering the sidewalk.  I was lucky that I did find it.  This happened several times.  The unit was pulled one way, slid another way, turned on end, turned over, fall on me.  Before I was done I was kneeling on the sidewalk, sitting on the grass in the yard, laying over the porch.  I was covered with dead grass and dirt and my hands looked like I had worked in the shop.  I need to work harder to not swear when something happens.  I need more patience and less frustration.  It is like working with my father but I do not swear as much or as bad as he does.  I will have to repent tonight in my prayers.  I had Dad look it over to make sure I had it done right before tightening the lock nuts.  I did it right.   This builds my confidence in my handyman abilities.  Overall, the project went together well.  Now I do not know where to store it since my garage is full.  I really do not want to leave it outside in the sun, wind, rain, snow and ice. 

Now that the wagon is put together, I am too tired to pick up mulch and put it in the flower bed.  It is a good thing that the next few days are also supposed to be nice. 

Are we having an early spring or are we being teased before another big blast of winter?

Rose 

Kitchen is clean

I know this is not a big deal to most of you but it is a really BIG deal to me.  I have had so much trouble with mice and my cabinets were a mess.  I took everything out of all the cabinets, scrubbed them, washed everything that was inside and put it all back in organized.  All my cabinets are clean and organized.  All my counter tops are clear and the kitchen table is clean.  I pulled out the stove and cleaned behind it and plugged all holes in the kitchen that I could find.  I swept and scrubbed the floor also.  It looks so nice.  I have not had any mice for 3 weeks and the kitchen is still clean.  I am actually proud of myself. 

Today I began organizing recipes.  I put each of my favorite recipes that I actually cook with on my Evernote app.  I can access it through the desktop, laptop, and the cell phone.  I will have them with me all the time.  I have cleaned out a lot of the paper recipes that have been torn out of magazines that I have never made and doubt I will ever make.  I still have a lot of papers but most of them are organized into file folders by category.  I have all those along with the cookbooks in the side cupboard that Allen built in the kitchen.  It is all contained in one area and can not be seen normally. 

Over the weekend, my brother, Kevin, helped Dad to put a heat/ac register in my kitchen.  I have not had a vent in the kitchen since we put in the new furnace and central air conditioner 5 years ago.  They put it in front of the dishwasher and it looks good.  I am excited to have the air (especially a/c in the summer) in the kitchen. The wood stove has always kept the kitchen plenty warm but it is still hot in there in the summer.  Not any more.  Kevin told me he swept the kitchen floor for me to clean up the mess they made during the project.  Thank you.  Then he tells me there is a lot of mouse poop under the dishwasher but he could not find a shop vac to clean it up.  I do not have a shop vac so one of these days I will need to get the one out of the shop and do some more cleaning. 

Here are some pics of the before and after in my "new" kitchen.  I just could not show you the very gross inside the lower cabinets.  The mouse tracks and holes were just too disgusting and embarrassing to share.

                                              Before                                                         After

            

     

     

 Three-four weeks after getting the kitchen from this before to this after, I am pleased to announce that it still looks this good!!

Rose

Kitchen counters

As a way to get my house decluttered and cleaned I have started following this Facebook group and trying to work along. I have tried to follow Flylady.com but have not stuck with it very well. If you know me, you know that my kitchen counters and table are always cluttered.  I do not do a lot in the kitchen.  I hope that when I get this done that I will keep up with it and maybe even cook a little more.  This first week focus is the kitchen counters.  I will post a few pictures as I complete tasks.  This is my accountability.

 

Kitchen East Counter (Before) This looks normal for my kitchen.

 

Kitchen East Counter (After) Have you ever seen this counter top this clean?

West side of kitchen (Before) My kitchen is such a mess.

West Kitchen Counter (After) This is good for me.

 What do you think?  Sure I still have the table and floors to work on but next week when we do the cabinets, I am ahead of the game on the west side of the kitchen. 

2015 Goals

I am setting up 2015 goals which is based on projects I did not get done during 2014 and the regular household and spiritual goals for each year. 

 --Unfinished Quilting & Sewing Projects--
1.  Quilt Off-Set Blocks quilt
2.  Quilt Storm at Sea quilt
3.  Quilt Garden quilt
4.  Quilt Garden quilt wall hanging
5.  Finish Hand Quilting Embroidered Baskets wall hanging
6. Quilt Embroidered Flowers Quilt

 --New Quilting and Sewing Projects--
1.  Island Sunset Paper Pieced Quilt
2.  Camping Appliqué wall hanging
3.  Harvest Moon wall hanging


  --Household--
1.  Clean and organize storage in basement
2.  Clean and organize bedroom & closet 
3.  Clean and organize laundry room
4.  Clean and organize mud room
5.  Clean and organize kitchen cabinets 
6.  Clean and organize sewing room/office
7.  Clean bathtub
8.  Install shower surround
8.  Seal bathroom window
9.  Vacuum or wash curtains
10.  Wash windows inside and outside


  --Spiritual--
1.  Read scriptures daily (Note: I have not missed a day in 2 years now)
2.  Pray daily
3.  Attend church services and meetings weekly
4.  Attend temple 2 times (if not more) 
5.  Journal in a jar topics
6.  Work of family history
7.  Family search indexing
8.  Read monthly Ensign magazine

--Physical--
1. Exercise 2 days a week
2. Drink more water
3. Drink less pop
4. Cut sugar intake
5. Lose 15 pounds
6. Cut down medications

Once again I do not expect to accomplish every goal but do want to work on each one.  I want to be a better person, do more, waste less time. 

2015 will be a great year.  I am looking forward to it.

Rose

2014 Household and Spiritual Goal Review

The year is finished and I want to review my progress on the goals I set at the first of the year.  I had set daily routines and have followed them some but not completely.  I do it for a while but then something comes up and I get busy with other things and let it all go.  Below are the goals I set and are ready for review.

Goals:
  --Household--
1.  Clean and organize storage in basement
2.  Clean and organize bedroom & closet  (Bedroom Done)
3.  Clean and organize laundry room (Done)
4.  Clean and organize mud room
5.  Clean and organize kitchen cabinets  (Done)
6.  Clean and organize sewing room/office
7.  Clean and caulk bathtub  (Note 10-14-14: Shower surround is cracking and the entire thing needs replaced)
8.  Seal bathroom window
9.  Vacuum or wash curtains (Done)
10.  Wash windows inside and outside
11.  Install rain gutter down spouts (Done)

 --Spiritual--
1.  Read scriptures daily (Note: I have not missed a day in 2 years now)
2.  Pray daily
3.  Old Testament Seminary Study
4.  Attend church services and meetings weekly
5.  Attend temple 2 times (if not more)  (Done-attended 3 times)
6.  Journal in a jar topics
7.  Work of family history
8.  Family search indexing

Review:
--Household--  Done
1.  Clean and organize bedroom & closet  (Bedroom Done)
2.  Clean and organize laundry room (Done)
3.  Clean and organize kitchen cabinets  (Done)
4.  Vacuum or wash curtains (Done)
5.  Install rain gutter down spouts (Done)
These projects I did work on but did not get done.
1.  Clean and organize storage in basement
2.  Clean and organize mud room
3.  Clean and organize sewing room/office
 4.  Clean and caulk bathtub  (Note 10-14-14: Shower surround is cracking and the entire thing needs replaced)
 5.  Seal bathroom window
6.  Wash windows inside and outside

 --Spiritual--Done
1.  Read scriptures daily (Note: I have not missed a day in 2 years now)
2.  Attend church services and meetings weekly
3.  Attend temple 2 times (if not more)  (Done-attended 3 times)

I needed to work on these a little more.
1.  Pray daily
2. Old Testament Seminary Study
3.  Journal in a jar topics
4.  Work of family history
5.  Family search indexing
I do pray every day but my prayers are a lot of little prayer snippets and not as much as formal, on my knees prayer.  I got side tracked early so quit working on the OT Seminary study.  I did pick a few topics and write about them but not as much as I would have liked to.  I feel so overwhelmed every time I get out family history to work on it.  I did sign up for Ancestry.com and have Root Magic program but have not gotten past the anxiety.  I did not even try to do any Family Search indexing. 

I never expected to get everything done but to at least have a listing and guideline for the year.  I feel good about all I did accomplish.

I will now need to set new goals for 2015. 

Rose

White Out

Last evening we had a little snow and a lot of wind.  Results: White-Out.  Mom & Dad took my Cadillac to church because a pack rat ate through wires on their van.  It started snowing while they were in church. As they were ready to come home Mom called me to let me know it was bad out and they were on their way home.  Surprisingly Dad actually had the cell phone with him and very grateful he did.  15 minutes later I got another call from Mom saying they were in trouble.  I thought they were probably in the last mile, could see my yard light and was giving me a hard time.  I was wrong! They ran into a white-out blowing across the road and could not see anything.  It felt that they were going off the road on the north and as Dad over corrected and  ended up in the south ditch.  He could not drive forward nor backwards. 

Dad thought it was too bad for anyone to come get them so he said they could just stay in the car till it quit during the night.  I threw a fit and he agreed to at least call Derrick to see what he thought.  In no time I saw Derrick on the Ranger going to the shop and he instantly came flying through the ditch and down the road in his 4 wheel drive pickup.  He picked them up and got them home in short order.  Dad said he had to push snow away with the door to get out and there were drifts on the Wachendorfer hill but Derrick was able to bust through.  Dan and Delores called Mom & Dad to check on them.  They had gone off the road twice on their way home and got concerned about my parents.  Thank you for checking on them. 

The snow was to quit around midnight but the wind was not to let up till later in the morning.  The forecast was for -4 degrees.  At this time I decided it was a wise choice to stay home from church this morning.  Nobody should be out on the road in these sub zero temperatures and even colder wind chills.  At 6:30 Sharla texted me that she was not going to church either because of the roads. 

Thank you, Derrick, for being home and able to help Mom & Dad (G-ma & G-pa).  I do not think I could have gotten my Dodge Journey through to get them.  Calling Judy and Steve would have been the next option to get them to safety. 

Today, in the sunlight, Judy took this picture of my car in the ditch.  It was not me that put it there!  So grateful Mom & Dad are safe, home and warm.

I have always said that if I have to put a car in the ditch and have it towed out I'd rather it be the Cad instead of the Dodge.  Once the road crews clear the road, we will get the car pulled out and back home.  Winter in Kansas.

Rose

2014 Goal evaluation for quilting anad sewing

As the year comes to a close in a week, it is time to evaluate some of the goals I set at the first of the year.  Right now I am only going to evaluate the quilting and sewing projects.
Here is a reminder of the goals I set. 

--Unfinished Quilting & Sewing Projects--
1.  Quilt Off-Set Blocks quilt
2.  Frame Welcome Embroidery piece (Done)
3.  Finish tiny wall hangings (Done)
4.  Quilt Storm at Sea quilt
5.  Quilt Double Irish Chain quilt (Done)
6.  Quilt Garden quilt
7.  Quilt Garden quilt wall hanging
8.  Finish Embroidered Baskets wall hanging
9.  Finish Embroidered Baby Sun Bonnet Sue baby quilt (Done)

--New Quilting and Sewing Projects--
1.  Embroidered Flowers Quilt
2.  Island Sunset Paper Pieced Quilt
3.  Camping Appliqué wall hanging
4.  Harvest Moon wall hanging

Here is the evaluation of what I did get done during the year.

--Unfinished Quilting & Sewing Projects--COMPLETED
1. Framed Welcome Embroidery piece
2. Quilted Spring Mini wall hangings
3. Quilted Double Irish Chain quilt
4. Pieced and quilted Embroidered Baby Sun Bonnet Sue baby quilt

--Unfinished Quilting & Sewing Projects--IN PROCESS
1. Pieced Embroidered Baskets wall hanging and being hand quilted

--New Quilting and Sewing Projects--NEW
I did not work on any of the new quilt projects this year but I did several new projects that came up during the year.
1. Noah's Ark baby quilt
2. Baby Broeckelman's baby shower quilt
3. Crochet edged baby receiving blanket
4. Macie's dress
5. Take Away The Blues! comfort quilt
6. Flora's Doll quilt

Other projects I worked on:
1. Helped Karen make a quilt top for Kinsley's big bed.
2. Helped the Altar Society quilt and bind their quilt for Mardi Gras next spring.
3. Designed king size Double Irish Chain quilt for Mom.
4. Helped Mom on borders for embroidered postage stamp borders quilt.
5. Helped Karen with applique on her North Dakota quilt.
6. Quilted baby quilt Judy made for another teacher at school.

OK, so I did not get everything done that I had listed but I really did do a lot.  10 finished projects, 1 project in progress and 6 projects I helped others with.  I am also crocheting on another baby receiving blanket. That is more than I ever really thought I would get done. Nice year for quilting and sewing projects.

Now to set new goals for the new year.  I look forward to see what comes about.

Rose

A new Christmas story

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house,
Not a creature was stirring except for the mouse.
He was so brave that he ran around and played.
He was eager to come out in the light.

Sticky traps are around the baseboards
but he wants to run in the middle of the rooms.
I could not catch him no matter how hard I tried.
I went to bed in hopes that the traps would be filled.

On Christmas morning I checked the traps
Unfortunately they were empty.
I am so frustrated
What do I need to do to catch this critter?

I heard a rattling in the kitchen
To find he was chewing on a piece of dry bread.
He disappeared between the cabinet and the stove
Not to be seen the rest of the day.

I see his 'tracks' on the counter tops in the kitchen
I see his 'tracks' in the bathroom cabinets
I watch him run around the living room
I watch him run around the sewing room

It is now Christmas night
The mouse again is running around
He does not want to stay to the baseboards
Were the sticky traps are waiting for him.

Poison has been set out for weeks
Some have eaten and some have died
Then the smell begins
And the searching takes place.

Lately the mice ignore the poison
Lately the mice ignore the traps
Any holes are filled with steel wool and expanding foam.
I do not know where they are coming from.

I caught 3 mice and 1 gopher already this week.
I have lost count of all I have caught this summer and fall.
I am so tired of rewashing dishes and towels
I am so tired of always having a mess.

When I get ready for bed tonight
I am setting every snap trap I have
In hopes that the mouse will partake
And the trap will snap.

Plug any more holes
Catch all I can
Clean the whole house
Goodbye, little mouse.


Yes I know I am terrible at poetry or anything like that.  Forgive all my errors in form and format but enjoy the story behind it all.

I have had a nice and quiet Christmas day which falls between a couple of busy weeks.  I will get to see most of my family during this time. 

As we celebrate the birth of Christ, our Savior, I remember the reason he came to earth.  I am so grateful for all the blessings in my life.  My prayer for you is a life filled with love and joy that comes from Heaven above.

Merry Christmas all.

Rose