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The Big White Farmhouse

intentional living, little by little

June 27, 2022

No.657: Homemaking Notes on a Monday // Vol.29

This post contains affiliate links.

Thank you so much for your well wishes and prayers on my last post!

The weather outside is //

As I look outside my window // We were able to assess the damage throughout the entire property and while it’s extensive, it’s nowhere near as bad as some of our neighbors and farmer friends.  Some of our moveable Premier 1 fencing was mangled beyond repair.  There was damage to the chicken coop and my enclosed garden, but we repaired them with materials at home.  Our perimeter property fencing was crushed in a few spots.  We hired our go-to company to chop up some of the larger and more precariously hanging trees and my husband cut the rest.  (We had four completely uprooted trees, which was wild.)  The weekend was spent cleaning up the mess and there’s more to do.

As I look around the house // We were without power for about 52 hours and were beyond happy to see those lights come on again!  I have some major laundry catch-up to do…

Starting // the planning process for next school year.  I’ll have all six kids to teach, 10th grade down to K, and I’m a little in shock at how fast time flies.  My kids are so big!  Hoping to finalize the curriculum selections (using mostly things I already own) and then get myself organized for the year ahead.

On this week’s to-do list //
– move the old curriculum out and new curriculum in
– order the last materials needed for next school year
– deal with the Japanese beetle issue on the fruit trees
– make a batch of iced peach tea
– hang flag fan banners on the porch
– continue working on emergency binder
– send two pigs off to the butcher (a bittersweet day!)

Currently reading // 

  • Fiction: Nothing to Hide by J. Mark Bertrand
  • Nonfiction: Hidden America: From Coal Miners to Cowboys, An Extraordinary Exploration of the Unseen People Who Make This Country Work by Jeanne Marie Laskas
  • Religious: Christus Vincit: Christ’s Triumph Over the Darkness of the Age by Bishop Athanasius Schneider

On the menu this week //
I’m going to try bulk cooking in an attempt to save some time and electricity on these hot, summer days.  Maybe a bunch of chicken, hamburgers and brats on the grill?  We can then use the meat throughout the week for chicken salads, tacos, burgers, etc.  It should be easy enough to whip up some simple sides each night.  We’ll see how this goes.

June 23, 2022

No.656: Rejoicing in Our Sufferings

The past two weeks have been a bit of a nightmare.  The kids caught this weird low-grade fever/cough situation, which knocked them out, one by one, like dominoes.  Around the same time, one of my sons started exhibiting some troubling skin issues.  We were afraid it was MRSA, but it was finally diagnosed as impetigo.  I was his primary caregiver and within days, I started exhibiting some of the same symptoms inside my ear and on my face.  So scary.  We were both put on antibiotics and my son responded much more quickly than I did.  (I’ll spare the gory details, but let’s just say that I looked way worse before I got better.)  Anyway, we’re on our way to a full recovery, praise God.

And then…this happened:

On a seemingly normal summer afternoon, a severe thunderstorm with 80 MPH winds ran through our county and left a ton of destruction.  We watched in horror as huge trees were uprooted and branches snapped everywhere.  We watched pieces of our infrastructure bend and break.  (The photos above are just a few examples.)  The power pole at the end of our street snapped in half, leaving our area without power.  Thankfully, we are all fine and our animals are all alive.  But the damage is significant for our neighbors and our fellow farmers.  A kick in the teeth in an already difficult financial time.  In your charity, we would appreciate your prayers.  I hope to be back with cheerier news next week. XO

More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. – Romans 5:3-5

June 13, 2022

No.655: Last Week at the Farmhouse // A Time to Weep & A Time to Laugh

I’m a worker bee.  Give me a goal and I’m off to the races!  2022 has been no exception; I have been intensely focused on the expansion of our farm.  It’s been hard physically and (arguably) harder mentally – I’ve never been more aware of the things I don’t know and need to learn.  And while I love the challenge of big projects and hard work, I also know I’ve been ignoring the telltale signs of exhaustion and burnout.  (Despite creating even more work for myself, ha!)  Life has a way of knocking you back a few notches and forcing you to slow down and change course for awhile.  A few of my kids got sick.  One son starting exhibiting some troubling health issues.  We received the news that a dear family friend passed away in an accident.

This week jolted me back to my first vocation and my eyes back on my family.  I’m now focused on getting them all healthy and holding them tight.  I’m intentionally planning and creating a few frugal summertime adventures.  Work will always be there, especially on a farm, but these people right in front of me are really the most important.  The food forest can wait.

A few other highlights from the week:

I made a few sourdough loaves.  I definitely need a sharper knife for my crust design, but getting closer on “the perfect” loaf.

Lots of new wildflowers!  They are so unique and beautiful.

Our two lady pigs, Phyllis and Fiona, are three weeks away from their Processing Day.  We have enjoyed them so much and will miss them.  Bittersweet.

More progress on the scrap quilt.  It’s turning out to be a little narrower than twin-sized and I’m more than halfway there.

June 9, 2022

No.654: Five Good Things // No.11

This post contains affiliate links.

1 // A SAFER NAIL POLISH

Have you heard of Piggy Paint nail polish?  They are a small business focusing on non-toxic, water-based nail polish.  I stumbled on them while looking for Easter basket ideas for my daughter and ended up buying her this gift set.  She loved it.

2 // STICKERS!

I decided to try Sticker Giant for the first time and was so impressed.  I designed my sticker on Canva and it was a quick process to upload it to the site and order.  I appreciate that they send you a proof before printing so you can see exactly how everything will line up on the sticker.  We picked the matte finish so we could write on them and it was perfect for our needs.  Our chicken looks so professional!

3 // A REUSABLE SWIFFER PAD

With supply chain issues and the rising cost of everything, I’ve been trying to invest in more long term solutions.  And if I can purchase from a small business, it’s a win/win!  My latest find was from the shop, JuniperSeed Mercantile.  I bought a set of washable, reusable Swiffer mop pads and I love them!  Great quality.  (I also purchased their reusable bamboo hankies, but haven’t tried them yet.  They are on the smaller side, but really soft.)

4 // A SWEET TREAT FOR ALL THOSE STRAWBERRIES

It’s strawberry season!  One of our favorite treats is strawberry shortcake and I use this recipe for the biscuits.  Quick, easy and delicious.

5 // EFFECTIVE FRUIT FLY REMOVAL

Having my sourdough on the counter attracts fruit flies, which is so annoying.  Thankfully, I found a nontoxic trap-type thing called Fly Punch and it’s quickly gotten the problem under control.  I bought mine on Grove, but you can also find them on Amazon.

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