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I can’t believe we’re at the end of May already.  What a wild ride this year has been so far!  Our intense spring hustle season is thankfully coming to a close and whew…I’m limping to the finish line.  SO ready for a slower pace and the chance to fill up my empty tank with new ideas and restored creativity.

This was our first full week of summer break.  For the first few days, I allow everyone to watch all the TV and have all the computer time. To them, it’s the ultimate “school’s out for summer” treat!  Thankfully, after about three or four days, their brains are officially jello and they naturally rein in screen time back to more normal levels.

I ordered a few school things for next fall and they arrived this week.  Our geography skills need some reinforcement, so I purchased something new for my elementary aged kids.  The curriculum is called Legends & Leagues and it uses a story to introduce the skills.  I purchased the original Legends & Leagues story (along with the workbook) but it’s really so simple that I think we’ll work through it quickly.  Thankfully, I also bought the next in the series – “South” – and we should be able to complete both in one school year.

After a heavy thunderstorm, we had pieces of leaves from our tulip poplar everywhere.  I thought this little piece was interesting.

Summer Project Challenge update: I finished the last cross-stitch pattern and now I’m ready to get these onto pillows.

Our first processing weekend of 2022!  We had lots of prep work in the days prior: digging out all of the supplies from storage, setting up new crates, and getting bags and stickers ready.  We split up the 140ish birds into two days and hired a few friends to help.  Now we take a breather before 150 new chicks arrive on Wednesday and we start all over…

Week One of my frugal summer was really productive.  My lemon balm is growing like crazy and since it’s part of the mint family, it may soon overtake my entire garden!  I cut a large portion and dehydrated the leaves.  I plan to use them for iced tea and lemonade.  Other frugal accomplishments from this week:
+ I made a batch of sourdough waffles for the freezer.
+ I kept the AC off and the windows open.
+ I made banana bread with overripe bananas.
+ I reused old packaging to mail things I sold on ebay and Poshmark.

My book of choice this week has been The Filter Bubble: What the Internet is Hiding From You by Eli Pariser.  Interesting so far.  Here’s one quote: “Personalization is based on a bargain.  In exchange for the service of filtering, you hand large companies an enormous amount of data about your daily life – much of which you might not trust friends with.  These companies are getting better at drawing on this data to make decisions every day.  But the trust we place in them to handle it with care is not always warranted, and when decisions are made on the basis of this data that affect you negatively, they’re usually not revealed.” (p.16)  This was written in 2011, so I can only imagine what the algorithms look like today!

There are projects upon projects in process everywhere at the farmhouse!  This hand-sewn quilt is a true labor of love and I can’t wait to share the story about it someday soon.  Right now, I’m in the process of quilting it by hand, working on it little by little.  I also pulled out a cross-stitch project and have worked on that as well.  Feeling really motivated to finish what I’ve started…this may be a new goal for 2022!

Skim coating in the laundry room has begun!  It’s back breaking work, but working beautifully and I couldn’t be happier.

We’re reading Anne of Green Gables for book club this month – one of my favorites!  There’s something so soothing about L.M. Montgomery’s writing that puts me right to sleep.  I only get through a few chapters before my eyes start drooping at night.

Our first attempt at cast iron deep dish pizza!

Our oven has been on its way out and has been extra wonky this week; sometimes it overcooks and sometimes it barely browns at all!  We knew that with the current supply chain issues, we might have problems buying a replacement…and oh man, were we right.  After calling around, we discovered that there were no ovens available in the size we needed.  None!  I was having a minor panic attack, brainstorming all the alternative ways I could cook meals and bread and all the things, when nothing short of a God moment occurred!  Mark spoke to an appliance associate at Home Depot who casually mentioned that he had this “really old” model that was brand new but way in the back of the warehouse and it wasn’t even in the system and should he check and see if it might work?  Of course we said yes and miracles of all miracles, IT WAS PERFECT.  He gave us $100 off because it was an “older” model and while it still cost a pretty penny, I am so grateful we were able to find one at all in these crazy times.  Now to figure out how to remove and install an oven…

The new school year is still seven weeks away, but I feel like I should probably start checking off a few tasks on the list.  So I mailed the letter of intent and testing to the county.  I finalized a curriculum plan, noting the books I already have and jotting down the ones I still need to buy.  I also had my yearly summer freak out session when I panic that I’ll have to teach a high schooler, a middle schooler, three elementary students and one who will definitely demand to participate, even though he’s four.  Every year, I panic and question whether I can adequately educate all of these kids and yet somehow I do.

Currently on my nightstand (affiliate links ahead): The Devotion to the Sacred Heart and Promise by Minrose Gwin.

It is HOT outside, so we try to get our outdoor chores done first thing in the morning.  Our chickens are growing fast – the broilers are already 5 weeks and the hens are 16 weeks.  Our homestead failure story of the week: on Thursday, we let the ladies free range outside of their fencing and they were so thrilled.  By afternoon, they were super brave and spread out on the property (making me nervous).  By early evening, we had a huge, downpour thunder storm so the boys and I ran out to make sure the ladies were back in their coop….and could only find 15 out of the 16.  We looked until the lightning came, but then had to abandon the search.  Unfortunately, she never showed up, so I’m guessing some wild animal must have gotten her.  (Maybe one of those pesky raccoons?)  We’re so bummed that we lost one of our girls.  Obviously, their free range days are over.  Farming, man…it’s not for the faint of heart.

I spent a lot of time in the kitchen (which is a little ridiculous considering how hot it is outside, but whatcha gonna do?): S made her cookie bars again, I made English muffin bread, an ice cream treat from my vintage cookbook, and even experimented with carrot top pesto!

Some of the tabs I’ve had open on my computer:

• A Guide to Harvesting Potatoes
• Bravewriter literature guides // we’re going back to Bravewriter next year and half the fun is choosing the books!
• this Alpine Wayside Shrine // I recently learned about little shrines in Europe that are sprinkled throughout the wayside.  I think it would be fun to add one somewhere on the property.  Someday…
• Foraging Plantain // we have a ton of these plants in the yard!
• this two-ingredient natural bug bite remedy // seems simple enough
• The Saintmaker Catholic Planner

It was chilly again, but we’re setting our eyes on spring anyway!  Lots of new experiences are headed our way.  For one, I just started my first attempt at starting seeds under the grow light.  I’ve been checking in daily, testing water levels, turning the container so each side gets light evenly, and saying “I have no idea what I’m doing!” a ton.  There’s only so much reading you can do before you probably should just dive right in.  I’m praying for at least moderate success, but we’ll see.  The other big news is that we made final preparations for the 65 baby chicks that will be arriving by the end of the week.  I’m excited and terrified at all the unknowns, but I figure common sense and quick searches on homestead blogs will keep us afloat in the weeks to come.

My 12-year-old wanted to make something special for dinner.  After browsing the cookbooks and the refrigerator, he settled on stuffed peppers!

I’ve started collecting old Landmark Books from the 1950s. I’m trying to spend around $5-6 per book and have been pretty successful so far.  (I’ve had good luck on Better World Books and ebay.)  I wasn’t sure if the kids would find them at all interesting, but we’ve actually had some fun discussions while browsing through the Secret Service book.  Lots of talk about fraudulent currency and then checking out the little details on dollar bills.

I love the shadow that the little orange tree makes at dinnertime.

Don’t you just love a book that has a map inside?  I finished Better Off: Flipping the Switch on Technology on Friday night.  I’ll have a better review at the end of the month, but it definitely had me questioning the idea of how much technology is too much.  Where is the line where technology stops working for us and we become slaves to technology?  Everyone will have a different answer for that, I’m sure, but it’s an interesting thought experiment.  I’ve also been pondering this quote from the Epilogue: “The main three ingredients of technological liberation are a pinch of muscle, a sprinkle of wits, and a dash of willingness.” (p.228)

No photographic evidence, but I also…
+ made a decent dent in my green decluttering bin.  I posted a ton of Sophie’s spring/summer clothes from last year, along with a few doll toys that she’s outgrown.  They were snatched up on Trash Nothing in hours!
+ made a batch of granola.  It was gone in two days.
+ will be forever grateful for the new trampoline the kids got for Christmas – thanks Mom & Dad!  My four youngest will happily play out there for hours, even in the cold.
+ ordered a ThredUp Cleanout Kit as an alternative way to get rid of some of my reselling stock. I know that I won’t get nearly the amount that I would on Poshmark or ebay, but I’m ready to get these clothes out of my closet and move to a new entrepreneurial direction.
+ watched a turkey vulture sit pompously on the top of our basketball hoop. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an uglier bird.
+ dealt with water dripping from a recessed light in our basement.  So random and puzzling!  Thankfully, we know a guy who knows a guy (gotta love small towns!) who came out to help us figure out the problem.  He ripped up a piece of the ceiling and found the leak and it seems to be a pretty easy fix.  Ahh home ownership…there’s always something.

{Linking up with Rosie}

Mark decided to take Tuesday through Friday off from work.  Working 100% from home is a huge blessing, but it also comes with challenges and it’s hard to make a clear line between work and home.  He definitely needed the break.  We have never taken a school “Fall Break” before, but a four-day staycation with our favorite person was enough to convince me. But don’t think we spent an entire week just laying around!

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Well, this month was a blur.  During Labor Day weekend, I made a long list of projects I wanted to accomplish in September and….well, not much of that happened, ha!  Schooling obviously takes up more of my time and even six weeks in, I’m still figuring out how to fold extra tasks into the structure of my day.  What would have taken me no time at all seems to take forever now!  But it’s all okay.  They’ll all get done eventually…deep breaths deep breaths.

Instead of dwelling on the negative, here are a few highlights from this month:

• We had a great start to the school year.  This doesn’t always happen – on the first day of school last year, I sobbed and was convinced I had made a huge mistake!  This time around, the kids are enjoying most of the books and curriculum choices, are working hard and producing great work.  I couldn’t ask for more.
• We refinanced on the house for a much lower interest rate.  
• I finished out a very successful and fun first summer season in my garden.  I learned so much and am anxious to tweak things and try again next spring.
• I painted Sophie’s bathroom and while we still need to buy a few things for the walls, I can happily say that we are finally 95% done with that project.  Finally!!
• We celebrated two birthdays and now have a new 6-year-old and a new 8-year-old.  
• I’ve been a decluttering fool whenever I have a few extra minutes.  Really motivated to finish up the 1,000 Item Decluttering Challenge ASAP.

On my nightstand: I just finished Home by Marilynne Robinson and am almost done with The Hours of the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ by Luisa Piccarreta.  Next up is Versions of Us by Laura Barnett.

My organization project for the week was a unique one, but long overdue: I finally went through my TBR list on Goodreads and removed the books that no longer interest me.  I’ve had a Goodreads account for almost 10 years now and wow, what a time capsule!  Most of the books I removed were books that centered around parenting, family traditions, or cooking, all topics I was absorbing back in 2010 as I attempted to do this new motherhood thing well.  I blinked and suddenly books on teenagers are more appropriate than the ones about sleep schedules.  Time flies.