A Drive Down the Dirt Road...

Barnyard...

 I love our barnyard in the spring!  What could be more adorable than this little face?

 Except for maybe two of them!

 Okay, technically, there are FIVE of them...and they're all so cute!

I think she's even cuter! 

Wilburta and Winston are happy that spring has arrived... 

 So are Charlie and Apache!

 She's happy the water doesn't stay frozen nowadays and she can swim and bob 'til her heart's content.  We really need a pond!

 Apache is just cute.  No two ways about it!

Make way for ducklings! 

 Romeo is enjoying being loose in the yard now, after a winter of being cooped up.

 I'm a little worried for the ducklings, though.  It looks like a scene out of a scary movie!

Just ignore whatever it is that Charlie's doing.  He can't help himself!

Belated Birthday Dinner...

William's birthday was back at the beginning of the month.  When each of the kids has a birthday, part of the celebration is that they get to pick what we have for their special dinner. 

William wanted lobster.  We were going to take just him to Red Lobster, but we just decided it would be more fun to make it at home.  Not to mention that it was taking forever for us to figure out a time when we could go, since it's about 2 hours to the closest one.

So, we went to the grocery store and he picked out two that he thought looked good and we brought the stinky things home and cooked them.  I gladly let William do the honors of getting the lobsters in the pan!  They were still alive and uh...kicking when we took them out of the bag. 

Since they were pretty expensive, there was no way I was getting a lobster for each of us, so the boys thought it would be a good substitute to get a mess of crayfish.  To me they look like overgrown grasshoppers!

John Wesley took care of the crawfish.  And of course, what's a seafood dinner without some shrimp to dip?

Grandma & Grandpa came and she brought buttered, parsleyed potatoes.

Jonas baked some chicken nuggets for those of us who don't care for seafood.

And I fixed some garlic cheese biscuits, corn on the cob, and some butter sauce for dipping.

Then we ate it all up.  I have to admit it probably wasn't as good as Red Lobster, but it was way more fun to cook this meal in my kitchen with everybody contributing and doing the kitchen dance (trying to stay out of each others' way and dodge hot stuff as it comes out of the oven or off the stove) than to sit at a table waiting.

Matthew got a little tired of Daddy bugging him with the claw.

Jared wanted me to take his picture with the little claw on his nose, only the claw didn't really fit on his nose.  We pretended it did.

Then MaKenzie wanted me to do it to her.

This is all that was left of poor Bob the Lobster.  He's just a shell of a man...er...fish...crustacean... whatever.

Peace dude!

I think maybe she's told a few too many lies.

Brothers and Bratwurst

William asked for (and received) a meat grinder for his birthday.  He decided to put it to good use shortly thereafter, and John Wesley wanted in on the fun.  They spent time online looking for bratwurst recipes and finally decided on one that sounded good.

They donned aprons (don't tell anyone, though) and cut up an 11 pound pork roast into pieces that would fit through the grinder.

They ground the meat and seasoned it, then put it back through to stuff it into the casings.

John Wesley fired up the grill.

And finally...after all that work, they got to enjoy the finished product.

Mmmm, the sweet (well, in this case, it's more savory) taste of success.

I see a restaurant in their future.  They can call it "Brothers and Bratwurst."



Many Hands Make Light Work...

Seems that winter time left quite a mess around here, so we spent the better part of our weekend two weekends ago to start cleaning up and rearranging around the farm--a job that really is never done.

Everybody pitched in and we accomplished quite a bit.  Many hands do, indeed, make light work.  We got the compost mixed up really well and added quite a bit to it as we cleaned out the winter accumulation of straw (and other goodies) from the animal stalls and hutches.

Most of the animals' cages got a good thorough cleaning-out and got fresh new bedding. 

Boys worked with Daddy to move a coop to make room for more gardening.  Some of the fences were taken down and others put up and still others reinforced or repaired.

And when the work was done (done for awhile, anyway), we just enjoyed the day.  I love that here on our little farm the kids are able to sit someplace quiet and just enjoy the animals.

I love that they have the space to think their own thoughts and listen to the sounds of God's creation, and hear their own inner voice.

Where better to see and hear God's creation than on a farm in the spring time?  I can't think of anyplace better.

A Hoosier Cabinet!

Harold and the kids brought this hoosier cabinet home yesterday to surprise me!  What a wonderful way to make a momma feel loved!