Happy Birthday Little Lovey

Happy Birthday Ruthie Claire!

Today you are 2.

You have an exuberance that is unlike any other.

Your face is full of animated expressions.

Your eyes catch everything in sight. You are the most observant child I've witnessed.

Ruthie, there is excitement and laughter in your soul. It's so sweet to watch you get worked up about something.

The words you say are music to my ears. You are talking so well. The other day I was helping you do something and you blurted out in full sentence,"I can do it."

No doubt there are some quirks about you that are to be mentioned. You aren't a fan of water (i.e. bath time). You can't stand stuff on the bottom of your feet. You get this from your momma.

And "I ont some" ("I want some") is your favorite sentence.

You love to sit and read books. And you are already such a little momma helping out with your baby sister, Exie Jo. Your favorite toy is your stroller and baby doll. And the pig is still in your arms 24/7.

Ruthie, I pray sweet blessings over your life and that the Lord would grab a hold of your heart at an early age. I pray that His kindness leads your little heart to repentance and a saving faith. And that the same exuberance you have now as a child, would be used in ways unimaginable as a daughter of the King.

"The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you;
The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace."
Numbers 6:24-26

Here are some cute photos of your sweet self.

A common face....

This is you in your "pig coma".


Our sweet big 2 year old! Look at those curls!


Daddy and helping his excited princess!




Mama helping you open your presents because you were more interested in the cake.

Your family loves you so much Ruthie Claire!

Happy Birthday Eldest Love

Happy Birthday Eldest Love,

You are a delight to this home.

My days are sweet with you alongside me. You are my right-hand gal- my "go to". Always eager to help, serve, love. It is pure joy to watch you with your sisters and how you dote over them so proud and grown-up.

Kaylyn, your brain is filled with creativity. Your need to create always keeps me on my toes- and sometimes wears me out because I can't keep up.

Yesterday, you brought me a man made out of leaves.

Your speech in Classical Conversations a few weeks ago was about what you want to do when you grow up. Your answer: a seamstress who made modest "stylish" clothing.

And what 2 1/2 year old knows what the color "magenta" or "chartreuse" is???? You my dear.

In watching your little life, I'm reminded of the gifts that God lavishly gives us to serve His kingdom and for His glory. I pray it's all used for His glory and His alone.

You wake up eager to create and inspire and want the biggest and best thing that the day holds for us.

Lovey, you are full of surprises! You love to give gifts to people that you specifically create for them. It's one of your favorite things to do.

You are also our little joker around here. You love to laugh and tell jokes. You are learning the art of telling a joke. And another favorite thing of yours is to play practical jokes on people.....good ones, not gross ones.

Our firstborn, you came into this world glowing.....literally. We battled jaundice for 2 weeks and had a billirubin light in our living room the whole duration of that 2 weeks. You were our little glow worm. I always knew you had the gift of "lighting up a room".

Kaylyn, you are a blessing to this family. We love you beyond words.

Father, give Kaylyn the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, and the knowledge of You. That the eyes of her heart be enlightened that she will know the hope to which you have called her, the riches of Your glorious inheritance in the saints and His Incomparably great power for us who believe.
(Ephesians 1:17-19)

And just for fun, here are some things I found on my camera yesterday as I was loading pics. A few weeks ago you had a fashion show and wanted me to photograph you.




And then these were extra special because I discovered that you had a photoshoot of your own with your stuffed dog "Flower". So funny! Again, you are FULL of surprises. AND apparently you know how to set the timer on my camera too. Could you show your momma this trick???

I love you sweet girl!

Laney Rae, you are joy....

Happy Birthday my little joy wonder.

Laney Rae, you are 4 today.

How in this world this has happened is beyond me.

Your most favorite thing in the world is to run free. Outside immersed in nature is where you are most comfortable.

I learn so much from watching your uninhibited little self.

You live each moment to the fullest.

Whenever I read Jim Elliot's quote,"Wherever you are, be all there," I can't help but think of you.

Little one, you hit the ground running and don't look back.

Laughter is your song and the music of your heart. Your belly laughs are contagious.

Your love language is touch. You love to be snuggled.

Laney Rae, you are the ultimate farm girl. And that's what you proclaim to people when you meet them- that, you are indeed a farm girl and a very good one at that. You are so much help to your daddy and a true companion to him as you work alongside him daily.

I pray that the joy that fills your heart will be used for good and that the Lord would be the ultimate joy that fills your heart. Jesus, complete Laney Rae's joy in YOU. I pray that as you walk through this life loudly and wildly, that that your adventurous and tenacious spirit would be used to affect the Kingdom.

I pray this verse over your life precious girl.

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13

I can't tell you how many times I catch the eyes of your daddy as we sit in wonder at the little girl before us. Teary-eyed and smiling we can't help but utter the words,"We love that girl."

And that about sums it up right there. Laney Rae, we love you. Happy Birthday lovey!

The Perfect Boiled Egg

Rumor has it that our pasture-raised eggs are hard to peel.

I would most definitely agree with that statement.

My girls love to eat and snack on boiled eggs and I'm delighted to feed them to them. However, I use to secretly dread making them because I never knew if they were going to "turn out" or not.

Through trial and error I believe I have found a way to boil and peel our eggs perfectly- as opposed to looking like you got the shell off with a hammer and a chisel.


Step 1: Place your eggs in a saucepan and cover with water about an inch about the eggs on HIGH heat. **IMPORTANT: SPRINKLE SEA SALT IN THE WATER.**


Step 2: Once your eggs begin to boil, reduce heat to medium (so that they won't crack) and set a timer for 9 minutes. Continue to let eggs boil on medium heat.

Step 3: Once timer goes off. Remove eggs from heat.

Step 4: Immediately place eggs into cool water and let water run over them.

Step 5: Lightly tap egg on the counter top to loosen the shell up.


Step 6: THIS IS THE TRICK: There is a layer of skin between the shell and the egg white called the "inner membrane". This tends to be a little thicker on pasture-raised eggs. But THIS is the trick. You have to find that skin and get under it and peel that off along with the egg shell. It should come off relatively easy once you find it and should pull the shell off at the same time.


Step 7: Find a sweet little helper. This really is a great way to get kids to help you in the kitchen. Once they get the hang of peeling eggs, its a piece of cake for them. My girls LOVE to peel eggs.


Step 8: The final product is shear beauty.




And tastes mighty delicious too!


AND you can also save the egg shells and use them as a natural plant fertilizer and sprinkle them in your garden.

{{{Papa}}}

If you take a step back and look at the bigger picture, you'll see a sweet man who has served and loved his whole life. This is a man who would do anything for his family.

My friends, this is my grandfather. He is precious to me. I can't tell you how overcome with thankfulness I become when I think about my grandfather being a close part of my children's lives; as in, we seem him at least once if not twice a week. As an 80 something, he could put most 50 somethings to shame.

Papa is the rarest of gems in this world.

And oh does he love to sit and hold babies! That is what he loves best.

Ruthie thinks that our Papa is her best friend. There is nobody on earth that she prefers over her him.

If children spell LOVE, T-I-M-E then Papa's love seems endless. Time is his gift to us. He will sit for hours and read and play living in the moment. Nothing is more important than living in those moments to him. I've learned so much from watching Papa love and serve our family.

I want my girls to know how much they are loved by this man. Not many people in this world get to say that they know their great-grandparents. I'm grateful that our girls do. And as I sit here a grown (almost) woman with a family, there has never been a time in my life that my Papa's presence in my life has not been felt. And for that investment, there are no words.

who said.....

Let's talk about this picture for a minute shall we??

Who said my baby could grow up this fast??

There she sits; in the wheel of tractor.

Toothless and all.

With her big girl-haired self.

It's just not right. It's just SOOOO not right.

I love this little girl. She is my buddy. My sidekick is she.

Whatever I'm doing, she is usually right beside me doing the same or an even more awesome version.

She started cracking jokes too.

And she has such a funny sense of humor. She laughs watching "Nacho Libre" in all of the right parts. Oh how I love this girl.

I keep begging her to stay on the farm with me forever. I've even bribed her with the possibility of her very own ALL-pink cottage. But, she just laughs and says she is a city girl.

This momma thinks she looks mighty beautiful sitting there in that wheel of a tractor.

And in case we need one more reminder....

look at this little girl. She has officially entered girl-hood.

This photo says it all.

Life has been lived here

Thankfulness. Thankful. Thanks.

Words that are often used very loosely, but mean much your soul.

Simply speaking these words mean little, but actually feeling them do something to your insides.

I've been thinking lots lately about the practice of being thankful and seeing things in a different light.

This lady just sort of does that to you. If you don't follow this blog, you should. I recently condensed my blog reading from a list of about 200 (no lie) to a list of about 25. She definitely made it in the Top 5 for sure.

My girls and I have started a "Thankful Journal." Reading what they jot down is precious and makes this momma grin.

I've been re-inspired to pick up my lens once again and take a mental picture of this beautiful life that the Lord has given me. I want to remember every single detail of this life and choose to put on thankfulness and take off the dirty old rags of ungratefulness.

A life that is filled with sharpie marker adorning the butcher block counter top,

.....Little girls stirring pots and peeling potatoes in the kitchen.

.....A baby girl holding another baby girl.

......newborn smells and tiny eyelashes.

......painting and loads (no MOUNDS) of laundry to prove that we've most certainly painted; and we laughed while doing so. I laughed at the mess!

......map pencils in the floor and sisters coloring.

.......Number 4 in mommas arms while her sweet little big toe peeks up through the seam. A sure sign that this outfit has seen better days, but has kept many a little girl warm and cozy.

.......Nap times filled with creativity with momma and the eldest.

.......Tiny sewing machines for tiny fingers and sewing the perfectly imperfect pocket all by her big self.

These are the memories that I'm most thankful for today.

His words tell me to,"Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful." Colossians 4:2

Be prayerful. Be watchful. Be thankful.

Lord, please don't let me sleep through this life. Don't allow me to be on autopilot and simply coast. I don't want to be friends with regret. Through your kindness and your mercy show me how to BE watchful and BE thankful. Fill me up full of all of these things.

I'm thankful for this house that has been worn and used and that LIFE has been lived here.....today.

Lord, tomorrow when my feet hit the floor, help me to remember this sweet truth that you spoke over me today. Help me to get dressed with the garment of thankfulness.