We still feel like we are experiencing summer and we are LOVING it!!
The new swimming pond is getting so much September use and the kiddos are thrilled to be getting some use out of it this year yet!!
We put this pond in later in the summer then we had hoped and then we had some leaking issues so it needed drained a few times...by the time it was set for some fun swimming hours school had already started and we figured we'd have to wait until next year to swim... but even today yet it seems to be this property's biggest "hot Spot"!
We still have some work to do around the pond but so far we are so happy with this swimming hole!!
I still sit outdoors to eat my breakfast and have quiet time. We are still enjoying the supper meals on the back porch to.
Breakfast is still my most favorite... Some days I don't get to it until closer to lunch time but its still my favorite meal of the day. Most days I make it really healthy... The day just goes better this way:)
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| To make this for your breakfast... Saute some yellow pepper, a mushroom, some garlic, greens like swiss chard, spinach, kale.(from my garden) cooked beets, (I keep these in the fridge) add a fresh egg... melt some cheddar cheese on top... Drop onto a bed of fresh greens, avocado, mini tomatoes, ground flax and chia mixture and drop some sauerkraut on top... It sounds complicated but once its lifestyle it can be whipped up real fast!...:) |
The Fall/Winter Ladies Bible Study has started back up this week. My sister Marilyn and I are going together every Monday morning and I'm excited to do this study on Gideon (by Priscilla Shirer).
We call Javon our "Little Runner"... He has just got it when it comes to running!
He and I did a run the other week... He a fun run. I a 5k.
My time for the 5k was 28 minutes.
The school sale day is one day that has Javon "none morning person" up real early on a Saturday because he is just that excited!! It is a fun day! Busy with all the auction activites but fun!
Dave and I were tied up at school Friday and Saturday last week in preperation for the sale but it is a great event and watching it all come together so quickly has some of the (new to the school staff this year) standing back in amazement!... We are so THANKFUL for this Christian school in our community where we have felt the hand of God move in so many amazing ways!
One of the things Jordan has taken on this quarter in high school is photography... He is often seen going off on the golf cart with my camera. He watches deer around the property many times a day! He takes pictures of them. He LOVES the outdoors and he takes some really great nature pictures!! I love this because for some reason I have kind of set the camera aside more then I used to! Now I have him taking pictures and he is really good at it to!
Jordan checks his trail cameras daily. He loves to hunt and anticipates the upcoming archery season but mostly he just loves to watch and dream as he keeps a watch on the wildlife and deer and the different patterns they have...;) He is growing his hunting skills and he is a natural for sure!
We are looking forward to a few upcoming cabin weekends to and Jordan always rushes to the trail cameras up there to...:) We always cheer for Jordan when it comes to hunting season because he just "lights up" with the season...:)
Saturday at the sale we bought the trampoline... Ours was literally falling apart and it has been so worth the years of use!! We decided to replace it and this has also been a "hot spot" here these days!!
Justin enjoys this thing just as much as Javon does...:)
This week I did up another batch of bone broth... This goes into so many of our foods here... Just simmer organic bones and veggies for anywhere from 24-72 hours! I jar it up when it fits my schedule.... Kombucha gets bottled up every ten days to! We ran out this last time and Dave would have paid dearly for an ice cold raspberry Kombucha over the weekend!...;) I tell him its not a bad thing to run out now and then but he don't think so.. :) Sometimes I just don't get to it on time!
As I sit here to post I have a live training "Leaky Gut" Webinar going on... It feels like I can never learn enough about how Leaky Gut affects the body. Here are a few of my notes... top 6
What causes Leaky Gut??
#1 GMO foods
#2 Antibiotics
#3 Gluten (once you have leaky gut gluten feeds the inflammation and causes real bad issues)
#4 Sugar
#5 Dairy (conventional dairy)
#6 Food Allergies (get testing or do elimination diet to figure out the trigger foods because every body is different)
Top healing foods for Leaky Gut....
#1 Bone Broth (repairs the lining of the gut)
#2 Coconut or Coconut oil
#3 Sauerkraut and other fermented vegetables (cabbage is very healing for the gut!)
#4 Goats Milk Kefir (I have never tried this)
#5 Blueberries (High antioxidants)
#6 Orange and Yellow foods (any kinds of squash)
Supplements... "Different for different folks but these are the best for healing Leaky Gut"
#1 Probiotics (50 Billion IU daily)
#2 Digestive Enzymes (helps the body break down food and gluten) Take with each meal.
#3 Adaptogenic Herbs (Ginseng, Aswaganda, Licorice Root)
#4 L-Glutamine
I still love to learn about how the body works and most of us have no idea how the body was designed to feel and operate and even how it is designed to heal itself if given the proper tools.
Anyway enough of that...:)
We are back into the full swing of school. The homework comes home everyday.
Jenika is the most stressed out with school but considering her personality it makes perfect sense. We stress that she does her very best and leave the rest. She has to work harder for good grades then her brothers do. She has grown so much in the responsibility part of her school work. At times she gets tears when she remembers she has a hard test or project due that she didn't give herself enough of time for.
At Linville they don't hardly get any recess and when homework is not complete they get what little they do have taken for the day. (This is so hard to watch yet it brings about better responsibility) She adores her teacher this year and for this we are so thankful!!
Probably the hardest change for me to watch (with changing schools two years ago) coming from the last school we attended first has been the very little bit of recess and so little time spent outdoors... along with all the homework.... we have adjusted for the most part and it has been a growing season in Jenika's life so I guess its not all bad.
Jenika has book ro read and reports and projects to go along with them, daily spelling activities, extra daily math requirements, tests to study for, science projects that have deadlines and sometimes it seems by the time she spends some time with her new puppy (that adores her!) she has time for little else. I know its a season but I have never been a fan of homework. (It's why we send them to school everyday... sigh)
Eva Jane goes for her drivers test this week!... We are all excited for her as she takes this next step... We are praying she passes this test! I get so nervous when their turn comes up for the test! Every time I take someone for these drivers tests my heart goes real fast until its over and done with!...:)
These two spend so much time around here and we never know what they are up to now... they are anything but boring so it keeps life here really happening....~gulp when I seen them with guns~
We love him because he is ours and we just can't help it...:) We love her because she is his and she has become one of us by now... Life with a dating son... its a fun journey... we thank God for Eva Jane!...
Javon has been struggling... Sunday he had a low grade fever when he awoke so we let Jordan home from church with him. Monday I got a call from school and rushed to get him there after Ladies Bible Study. He again had a low grade fever and was sleeping at school when I got there. Yesterday I kept him home and he rested extra much. I Doctored him off and on all day and by evenings he seemed better. He sleeps well at night. Today he went back to school but I got another call from school after lunch and went to bring him home. Again a low grade fever. He also has a limp. I'm not sure what is going on and we are praying for fast healing. (I'm watching him for Lymes as he seems fatigued and sluggish which is so not normal for this ball of energy) Today we Doctor him again and pray against sickness!
As I tackle my daily duties it seems to be a constant struggle these days as to know what to do first....
Anybody else?
Will I do food prep (could be a full time job here these days!)
Will I do food preserving? (I haven't gotten to it yet but its okay)
Will I do yard, flowerbeds or garden? (as they all scream my attention)
Will I do the piles of laundry and organize those closets that have been needing attention?
Will I clean the windows and dust the blinds as we prep for winter?
Will I bottle Kombucha and brew some more? (so we don't run out again)
Will I cook the pumpkin and make those pumpkin pies my guys beg for?
Will I sit at the pond and enjoy these very warm summer like days while they are here?
Will I take the extra devotional time to do my Ladies Bible Study Homework? (this is so rewarding every time yet it takes self discipline for me to stay focused and not get distracted)
Will I sit with the Little's and do homework practice and some extra reading? (I know this is huge for my two youngest)
Will I take Jordan to school or let him bike so I don't have to rush out the door?
Will I pack Justin's lunch right after supper so its done and over with or do I go with Dave for a walk before dark and do the lunch before bedtime? (his crazy work hours have me always packing at night)
Will I then take the time for those bedside chats that happen after everyone is already tucked in for the night?
By this time I'm so ready to get off my feet and get into my own bed... Yet its when and where I hear all the fun school stories and all the days drama to! Do I chance it to rush and miss something big laying on a heart?
I don't like to miss this part of the day where the kids mind seems to rest and they think of things they want to share... yet it is always this time of the day when my patience runs the thinnest....
SERIOUSLY I'm SO VERY BLESSED!!!
I'm so very THANKFUL to get to be here with Javon when he is not feeling well!
I'm so very THANKFUL to have the freedom and the privilege to serve my family in this season of my life!
I have realized over the course of this mother journey that life moves by so very quickly!!
I do go for those runs/walks with Dave more then I used to... (we ran together again this morning and I love this time of our day!!)
I leave work for another day more then I used to if it means not missing out on life with little people in the house that need me.
I have to pick my battles.
The work here is for real endless and I think it gets worse as I get older!
I used to look at people in my stage (with all kids in school) and think "Wow! They must get a ton of time to get things done!" or "Wow! All that alone time!!??.... What would one do with themselves!?"
BUT... Now that I'm here I see how my days fly by and I never even seem to get all my goals done!
I really do want to blog more but I get tied up with other life things and by the time I'm ready to sit and post it is supper time once again and we are once again starting the daily cycle over.... I have people saying to me "I used to be able to get your blog but I can't seem to get to it anymore?...:) I laugh and tell them..."Yes you can still get it... I'm just a lot less active these days!"
I have some pictures coming up that I want to put on Christmas cards so maybe this will be a good time to share each of us individually again. I get to the blog when I get to it and I never did stress about what gets posted and what gets left. I really do find it really fun to sit and read back on our lives so I hope and plan to stay active on here as much as I can in the season of life we are in.
Dave was in Dallas since my last post.... He is now part of the faculty when he attends "The Secrets of Successful Syndication"!
He has been such a great student over the years and I'm so proud of how he grabbed a hold of his education and is now in the heart of teaching and walking along side others on a similar journey as his! He follows his dreams and his passions and these are always something he is ready to openly share and talk about!
He still reads a ton!
He is disciplined and does hard things.... I think he makes them look easy but they hard no matter what he makes it look like... or no matter what I think...:)
He has grit to.... Working in the office has one getting a bit chubby (especially a Zook that LOVES food!!) if you don't get intentional about moving and making it count... Right now he bikes hard and far when he can not run. (because of his bummed ankle that waits surgery later this fall)
He squeezes as much into his daytime work hours that he possibly can so he can leave the evening hours for us. Some days I can tell he over did it that day.
Different syndication deals have him busier and more active then others. I can always tell when he has some "Big Thing" on his plate. His investor/syndication journey has its seasons and they go up and down just like anything else. We just tread softer over these times and we are always glad and breath easier again when that "Big Thing" passes from his plate....;)
He is so good to us and we are so THANKFUL for him! He is the one that swims with the kids when I'm trying to get them all ready for bed and making sure all the homework is complete! All of the sudden they all go for a swim when I think it is time to be winding down for the day!... Life is never dull here with a few of these personalities in the house! You just learn to "Roll With It"...:)
The airplane is fixed and Dave hopes to get into the air a few more flying times in before winter. The airplane was setting for a few weeks as it awaited a few new parts. It has gotten repaired now and Dave is happy about this... Me... I like the airplane better these days when its on the ground...:) After a few scary incidents I won't let the kids up with him. For now this is what it is and I pray real hard and cover my eyes when he goes flying...:)
The day is like summer... Javon is home... I hope he feels better real soon!
Enjoy the warm days while they are here!!
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