Good morning everyone! It is a cool and cloudy morning here in SE Ohio. In the high 30's with temperatures expected in the mid 40's and a chance of rain turning to wet snow.

The kids are of to school, and Cale to work, so it is just me here with a house to clean! I think I keep it pretty nice, but when Monday morning comes there is plenty to do!

Today I have some laundry of course and the general cleaning as well. I want to hose off my porch, as it has plenty of mud tracked across it! My husband's cousin loaned us a dehydrator and jerky maker. You put the ground meat in this press and it comes out in either flat pieces of round sticks. I laid out some meat last night, and I am going to put some spices in it and try it out today.

We had a somewhat busy weekend, I worked at the Library on Saturday, cleaning and sorting books. Also helped the kids clean out all the barns.

Cale put slate on the overhangs and eaves of the east side of the house, now he only has to do the back and west side. We want to put shingles on in the spring. We only have rolled roofing right now, and we finally made a decision to put brick red shingles on. We did this to our barn, and it looks pretty good with the slate. We didn't want gray or black, and we don't care for green. So the red is a good choice for us, very old-fashioned looking. The way our houe sits back into the bank, I think it will look very rustic and different.

Sunday we had company, my Mom, Aunt, and Grandmother. I cooked dinner. I made some baked apples that were great. I cut up 3 different kinds of apples (4 green, 4 yellow, and 4 red) into a baking dish, added about 1 cup of water, sprinkled with some brown sugar, and cinnamon, and baked them coverd afor about an hour (low heat) They were so good! There were some left, so I know what I am having for breakfast.

I also made pumpkin bread. Whe I bake it there is always a little pumpkin left over, so I make a spead to put on the bread. I don't measure, so you will have to make it to taste if you try this. Use about 1/2 can of pumpkin, 1/2 container of cool whip, 3-4 TBS of frozen Orange juice concentrate, about 1/2 cup powdered sugar, and a handful of pecans. I put it in my new blender and mixed it well. Add cinnamon to taste, I use a lot. I have been making this for several years, but this is the first time with the blender, which made it easy. Sometimes I add a little cream cheese if I have a half a pack or so that needs used up. This makes a great topping for pumpkin bread. It is a little runny, almost like a glaze.

Last night I worked some more on my blue jean quilt. Making slow progress! I thought I had it all cut, but found some more jean material to use. I also did some tax work this weekend as well.

Cale was able to go horse back riding this weekend. He hadn't been for about a month with the weather and working, which is unusual for him.

The kids kept busy this weekend reading, painting, playing games, helping outside a good bit, and doing their share of squabbling too! It is kind of funny. Lindsey and Brady had an argument, and I sent them both to their rooms. Later Brady wrote a note to Lindsey that said,

" To Lindsey I am sorry I hit you. I love you. Let's try to forget what happened. Love Brady"

He drew little pictures all around it, it was just so cute. I am glad that even when they get into little spats, they are able to make up with one another and be kind. I didn't tell him to do this, he just did it on his own, so that was even better.

Maybe someday, I will get them raised!!!

A little quote, "May the bare spots in your yard remind you that you are raising children, not grass!"

Last summer the kids made a huge water slide down the side of the yard. They used some heavy plastic, and had it set up for weeks. Of course it killed the grass. Their friends couldn't believe that they were allowed to do this. But they had so much fun, and what harm was done? The grass ALWAYS grows back! So why ruin their fun worrying about such a silly thing? I never get upset about things like this, or mud tracked in the house, or building huts, and hide-outs and things like that. It can all be cleaned up and the memories last forever!

Have a good day everyone!

-- Melissa (me@home.net), January 14, 2002

Answers

Sounds like my day as well, except I will be making bananna bread instead of pumpkin (although I have quite a bit of that still in the freezer from last fall). I'm hoping to get on top of laundry, clean and attend a mom's bible study at church today. It's a blessing that the grandmothers of our church truly take care of us mothers and pass along their knowledge and love.

My kids squabble like yours too. I think they have become closer living in the country with no friends who can walk over. We still cart them in sometimes, but for the most part they make their own fun and play alot with each other. They have the same interests exactly so I think if they thought about it--they couldn't find a friend with the same interests like that.

At this point in the gardening year--anything seems possible in the spring. It's like the first day of school--everyone is an "A" student!

I'm making baked beans from scratch in the crock pot. I've been trying to incorporate more beans into our diet and would like to make them from dried beans as that is such a savings.

Hurray! I finally found out that the CO-OP sells 25 and 50 lb bags of baking soda. I use that for cleaning and I cut the dishwasher detergent in half with it. Someday soon I plan to make my own laundry soap so need to look up the posts on that. Pennies make dollars!

IT's so true what you say about kids and messes! They are only little once for a short time.

-- Ann Markson (tngreenacres@hotmail.com), January 14, 2002.

We went to my oldest nephew's house and had pizza and brownies for supper last night to see their new malamute puppy - she's a horse in disguise I think, and play with the baby.

Both of the boys fell asleep on the way home, but then Mitchell got up sick to his stomach at 10:00, just as I had gotten in bed (early last night!). Then again at 11:30, and again at 1:00. So, I'm dragging a little this morning, but the good news is he is feeling better. I'm going to see if he will eat a little toast, and then we have to run to the fire station and take Lance his belt (he forgot it), and some money, and we will also pay a couple of bills while we are out.

That's the big plans for today, and then of course I have plenty of housekeeping to do, including a good scrubbing of the carpet next to Mitch's bed (YUCK, and thank goodness for the hand-me-down carpet cleaner we received a couple of months ago!)

I'd let you in on the weather here today, but I haven't even seen any for the last couple of days! Yesterday was beautiful, though, and the boys played outside for a little while in just their sweatshirts and stocking caps! I'm hoping for a repeat!

-- Christine in OK (cljford@mmcable.com), January 14, 2002.

Melissa, your story about Brady and Lindsay reminded me of what happened yesterday. One of Sarah's friends at church said something to her that was really mean and cruel, but she hadn't meant it that way. Sarah was really upset, and in tears (it takes a lot to make Sarah cry). I talked to the other mother about it (something I don't often do, but she was the one who mentioned it to me first), and after we got home from church the other girl called Sarah to apologize. She was crying so that she was not able to really talk, so the mother talked to Sarah for her. Kids are often thoughtless, not purposely cruel. When you get them to just THINK about what they said or did, they are usually really sorry. Anyway, Sarah immediately wrote a little note to her friend and tucked it into her Bible so that she would have it ready next time she sees her. She is so forgiving, she sometimes makes me ashamed.

-- Cathy N. (keeper8@attcanada.ca), January 14, 2002.

Good Morning-I'm up and about today though still moving REAL slow. I have one child home with the dreaded stomach flu, he was sick yesterday, feeling better today but just not up for a full day of school. My husband kept up with laundry and dishes while I was down and out, but the house is terribly dusty-I still think I'm going to put off cleaning a day or two though. My kids squabble a fair amount too-yesterday morning they got into a shouting match that rattled the windows. By afternoon, they were building a Lego fort together. We finally sold the mobile home we were living in when we built the house-it took a while, and we were getting sick of looking at it parked in our frount yard, but a young couple wanted it-they are tired of living in the city and want to get back to living on the land!-her Grandmother was giving them some property. I'm so glad its going to someone like that! One person was interested in it as a rental property, but I didn't have a good feeling about that. Of course, there was a problem-for at least three weeks, we've had cold temps-below freezing and the ground was nice and hard. The day this couple want to move the thing, it warms up to fifty degrees, rains, and the field is a sea of mud. Now we have to wait till it either gets cold again, or the fields dry up, but anyway, we've signed it over, its theirs now-hurray!

Since everyone is still feeling a little touchy at their tummies, for supper, we are having baked potato bar, (the grocery had some nice big ones and theres all sorts of goodies in the fridge for toppings) a green salad, and hot turkey sandwiches. Have a great day everyone!

-- Kelly (homearts2002@yahoo.com), January 14, 2002.