The Big White Farmhouse | intentional living, little by little

May 12, 2022

No.645: Five Good Things // No.10

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1 // SIMPLE MEMORY KEEPING

After a two year hiatus, I’m back to recording little snippets of our everyday life with the 1 Second Everyday app. I love this type of memory keeping.

2 // HOMEOPATHIC ALLERGY RELIEF

Springtime has not just brought new growth and sunny days, but also our favorite friend: allergies! In an attempt to save a little money (and avoid some side effects from conventional choices), I decided to try out a homeopathic version. Honestly, I had low expectations but I’ve actually been highly impressed! My worst symptom is a runny nose and one pill clears me right up. My husband and son suffer worse than I do and even they feel like it helps. And 60 tablets for a little over $6 can’t be beat. I purchase from iHerb, but you can also get them on Amazon.

3 // READING THE BIBLE IN A YEAR AS A FAMILY

My husband followed the Bible in a Year podcast with Fr. Mike Schmitz in 2021 and enjoyed it so much that he requested that my oldest two sons listen for 2022. We’ve had such great conversations dissecting what they’ve been learning! In March, I incorporated it as part of my Lenten discipline and haven’t missed a day yet.

4 // HELP FOR HEALTHY TRANSPLANTS

I heard about this organic mycorrhizal fungi powder from a gardener on Youtube and decided to give it a try. The claims are astounding: it is supposed to promote vigorous root growth, deceases the amount of watering needed, enables the soil to retain nutrients longer, and reduces transplant shock. I’ve used the powder for all of my transplants (including fruit trees!) and they’ve all done great so far.

5 // GOOD ADVICE FOUND ON A NOTECARD

I recently found this little card below while decluttering. I have no idea where it came from or how it came to be in my house, but I loved the rules and taped it up on my mirror. With everything going on at home and out in the world, I am specifically working on #10: Live one day at a time. Tomorrow will take care of itself, right?

May 9, 2022

No.644: Homemaking Notes on a Monday // Vol.26

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The weather outside is //

As I look outside my window // I see the results of two days of constant rain – everything is soggy and there’s so much mud. We actually had to move pigs into new paddocks on Saturday because they were at the far end of a slope (the worst possible paddock for this weather!) and the rain had flooded their house and made quicksand of the entire area. You should have seen us slipping and sliding as we worked to move everything to drier land! Definitely looking forward to some sunny days this week.

As I look around the house // I can tell that summer break is near because the list of house projects in my head starts growing! So far, I’d like to do another round of decluttering, organize a few trouble areas, paint my back doors and finally finish the laundry room (the project that never ends…).

Thinking // deep thoughts as I’ve been spending hours upon hours outside these days. There is a propulsion to grow as much as possible, to buffer ourselves from the precarious financial situation our country finds itself in. At the same time, I’m driven by something more noble: I want to create something lovely and beautiful in this space! Do I sound a little crazy? I feel a little crazy.

Keeping // this quote from Wendell Berry front and center: “We have the world to live in on the condition that we will take good care of it. And to take good care of it, we have to know it. And to know it, and be willing to take care of it, we have to love it.”

On this week’s to-do list //
– finish up the last few remaining school subjects before testing next week (summer break is on the horizon!)
– design stickers for our chicken packaging and order
– clean and vacuum out the cars
– weed the front flower beds
– unsubscribe from a ton of marketing emails
– decide on reusable hankies (I’m thinking this set or this set?)
– decide on a new way to read my favorite blogs (Bloglovin’ has had problems off and on for months now…does anyone use/like Feedly?)

Smiling // about the daily question I get asked by my five-year-old: “What day is it?” And when I respond, whether it’s a Monday or a Tuesday or a Saturday, he always answers, “Oh I love ____!” From the mouths of babes…a good reminder that each day is a gift.

Currently reading //

Fiction: News of the World by Paulette Jiles
Nonfiction: Escape from Camp 14: One Man’s Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West by Blaine Harden
Religious: The End of the Present World and the Mysteries of the Future Life by Fr. Charles Arminjon

On the menu this week //
Monday: one pot sausage, peppers and rice
Tuesday: pasta with homemade meatballs
Wednesday: chicken leg quarters with mixed vegetables
Thursday: Refrigerator Cleanout Night
Friday: sourdough pizzas

May 4, 2022

No.643: Living Intentionally in May

“When April steps aside for May,
like diamonds all the rain-drops glisten;
fresh violets open every day:
to some new bird each hour we listen.” – Lucy Larcom

Eating Seasonally

I am so, so excited to start picking food from our garden!

strawberries
rhubarb
asparagus
lettuce
spinach
new potatoes

Celebrating the Liturgical Year

The month of May is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. It also completely falls under the liturgical season of Eastertide. “The world is resplendent with Spring’s increased light and new growth. It is Mary’s month in the Easter season and all of nature rejoices with the Queen of heaven at the Resurrection of the Son she was worthy to bear. During the remainder of Easter time, let us endeavor through the prayers of the Holy Liturgy and the Holy Rosary to deepen our gratitude for the mystery of our Baptismal rebirth in Christ.” (from here) Other feast days in May:

Athanasius (2)
Philip and James (3)
Our Lady of Fatima (13)
Isidore the Farmer (15)
Philip Neri (26)
Solemnity of the Ascension (29)
Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (31)

Homesteading and Self-Sufficiency

Lots and lots of planting and sowing!
Stock up on feed.
Prepare everything for broiler processing.
Process the first batch of meat chickens!
Get area ready for the second batch of chicks.

Homemaking

Deep clean and vacuum the cars.
Organize the garage.
Clean out the gutters.
Go through the little kids’ clothes, pull out everything outgrown, and make a list of needs.

Family Fun

Celebrate some silly holidays:
- Brothers and Sisters Day (2)
- Star Wars Day (4)
- Cinco de Mayo (5)
- Dance Like a Chicken Day (14)
- National Hamburger Day (28)

May 3, 2022

No.642: What I Read in April 2022

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#21. THE KITE RUNNER by Khaled Hosseini // ★★★☆☆
(amazon // bookshop // better world books)

Man, this one was brutal. Well written and I liked the pacing, but the scenes of rape and child sex slavery were tragic and terrible. (I went into this one completely blind and was pretty shocked when I stumbled on them.) If you go into the book prepared for a tough read, I’m sure the experience could be different. Solid three stars.

#22. MERCY FALLS by William Kent Krueger // ★★★☆☆
(amazon // bookshop // better world books)

Book #5 in the Cork O’Connor series! Not every book in a series is a show-stopper; this one was good, but not great.

#23. A MEMORY FOR WONDERS by Mother Veronica Namoyo Le Goulard, PCC // ★★★☆☆
(amazon // bookshop // better world books)

This one is a memoir/conversion story about a French girl from a Marxist family who grew up in a wild Morocco frontier. She ultimately converted to Catholicism and then became a religious nun. Interesting.

#24. BREATHLESS by Amy McCulloch // ★★★☆☆
(amazon // bookshop)

From the description: “A high-stakes thriller set in the world of extreme-altitude mountaineering that takes a dark turn when a series of deaths can no longer be written off as accidents.” I learned a ton about mountain climbing (and now have no interest in ever doing it myself!) but I felt like the “thriller” part of the book fell flat. An entertaining read, but somewhat forgettable. (Breathless will be released on May 3, 2022. Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book!)

#25. THE LIGHTKEEPER’S WIFE by Sarah Anne Johnson // ★★☆☆☆
(amazon // better world books)

This book was nothing like I expected it to be from the blurb on the back! While I liked the descriptions of the coast and the lighthouse, the book primarily focused on gender and discovering sexuality. Not necessarily a bad thing for the right reader, but definitely not for me.

#26. THE RISE AND FALL OF MOUNT MAJESTIC by Jennifer Trafton // ★★★★☆
(amazon // bookshop // better world books)

Our read aloud for April. A fun one with some laugh out loud moments. The kids loved it.