The Cool Season arrived

The frost covering the ground was the evidence of the cool season. I have always known I could live in cool season climate. Since, when it gets cool I am rejoicing. Maybe, that is from a child living in Kansas where it seemed to get cold by the end of October. I love the winter months of watching the snow come down. The next step is running to the phone to call my brother, we got snow. Due to him living in Kentucky he doesn't get much snow. I can't say my animals feel the same way about the snow as I do. The second sign of cool weather is we are in full schedule of schooling. The third sign is collecting of sticks becomes something we need to do everyday. The last sign is hanging clothes inside by the wood stove. Just another season God has brought me to.

Today we went for a hay run. With our new trailer that we built over the summer getting hay is a lot easier than loading a couple of bales in our minivan. Of course since we went and got hay we cleaned out our barn. Well, I have to confess its not really a barn, I just call it my barn. I do believe getting all that hay will make the winter much easier. Well, you could say I am on my way to being a better homesteader. Last week after our rain I got another area where I planted grass and spread my dirt. It was a leaf pile last year and this year it is dirt. I may not be able to do a lot but a little bit each day.

Pumpkins and Fall

Pumpkins and fall always seems to go together. I always look to buy pumpkins that are small as these are the best to cook with. If I am going to buy food I might as well put it to good use. Today, the children and I are preparing to make gifts of food to put in a Thanksgiving basket. We are donating everything a family would need for a Thanksgiving dinner. Purred pumpkin is where we began, of course we had to cook the pumpkin. Now, we are finally at the stove process. Spiced Pumpkin Pecan Butter will be going in our basket along with Pumpkin Cookies. I thought that would be a beginning.
Tuesday was Election Day here in New Jersey so on Monday my son and did some hunting for a candidate to vote for. The choices I felt were not very good, this is one area
we are praying about. I was happy to find a man running on the Constitution Party, John Leone. We have begun a new book in Government 1001 Things Everyone Should Know About The Civil War. To go along with this, PBS put a film out called A House Divided Abraham Lincoln. Which shows what Mr. Lincoln went through to become the President. Yes, he was home educated, or you could say self taught. It only goes to show any american citizen can become President.
Last week we also began a biology class by an author Jay Wile check out his website.
http://www.highschoolscience.com/
I love the way he set up his book, it is in my opinion the best I have seen. We are setting up a biology lab for other highschoolers to join in with us. It is amazing how much information my daughter retains . Yes, I am happy to say she helped her brother with classifing organisms. Science for a young home educated child is reading books on science related subjects. Sonlight, has a good program for science, when children are young. We used this when she was much younger. Now we follow a book, The Well Trained Mind , A Guide to Classical Education at Home, by Susan Wise Bauer and Jessie Wise. This book has helped me choose books for my daughter and I to read for her education.

Where did October go?

Well here is November, some how it seems amazing. I began to recall what got accomplished this summer when November comes. Well, my garden was a flop this year. There was too much nitrogen in the soil, my fault. The new part of the garden did wonderful, where the potatoes went. The joy of my summer was the baby sheep and having them in the yard. They are now living on more land than I am able to provide. I am lucky to have sold them to someone who I now talk to thru email. November is the month I allow the parents to mate as this way it allows the baby's to arrive in the spring. I am really hoping for females this year.'
The ground is covered with leaves, it is a beutiful site. I love when the leaves turn yellow and the raking of the yard begins. When, I was a child raking of the yard was something my siblings and I use to do. So, now as an adult I like to go out and rake the yard. I am sure my brother, who lives in Kentucky probably never rakes his yard. He never liked that job, but he also can't understand why I wanted to have sheep. I read the kansasmilkmaid blog the other day and I couldn't help but laugh about her cows. How I yearn for cows, well I know the Lord will provide what he wants me to do. You can say Farming is just in me and I know the Lord put it in my heart. I will just wait on him and trust him to provide for my family.
Well, my son and I finished our book The America's Providental History. What a delight this book was for us, its something every American should read. We are going to get more involved in our government. Even if it is just going to support a Christian Leader.
Sewing Clothes is going well. I have made a skirt for my daughter and I am very pleased with it. Now it is my turn for sewing a skirt for myself. What is so wonderful is God does provide all our needs. Weeks ago, I thought how will I ever find time for this. As usual, trust in the Lord and he will provide you with what you need.