Thursday, October 19, 2006

Home at Last!

I am finally home again! My Mom is doing great, thank you to all of you who wrote to me and prayed for me...I truly needed those prayers. It has been many years since I have been up every few hours at night for weeks on end. I will say that I handled it much better 8 years ago than these last few weeks...perhaps my age is showing!

I am so proud of my boys who handled the home front by themselves! I know you Moms (especially the mothers of boys!) are shrieking in horror at the thought of a home run solely by 3 boys for 6 weeks....are you picturing snow shovels to get a path through the home? Although there were some things left undone, for the most part the boys handled it all with flying colors. I think there are just some things (many things) that a Mama does that no one notices and therefore they don't think to do them either. But my kitchen looked great...even the refrigerator was cleaned inside...and just as good as I would have done. The laundry was kept up and rooms were fairly neat. I can't tell you how good it felt to sleep through the night for the first time in 6 weeks!

The first day home was a doozy...they were predicting our first frost. I was like a maniac in the garden trying to get all the herbs harvested. I picked oodles of parsley, oregano, dill, rosemary (there is a cow story here!), sage, calendula, comfrey, plantain, and more! My laundry room now looks like it has a garden hanging from the ceiling! But they will taste SO good this winter :) We also picked the last of the tomatoes and a bushel of peppers (pimentos, jalapenos, cayennes, habaneros, sweet Italian frying peppers and red, yellow and green bells)

About the cow story...that evening about 9 p.m., I stepped outside to see the stars...we are far enough out in the country that stargazing is a glorious past time. Just knowing that each one of those star was put in its place by God and stays
there by the word of His mouth....well it takes my breath away each time I look up. Oops, back to the cows.....I heard the sound of walking through the dried leaves on the ground. I asked one of the boys about the sound and they were sure it was one of the dogs. I got the BIG flashlight and wouldn't you know it.... ALL the cows were out (except for Nora...I LOVE Nora!) - I was looking at a group of big beautiful Jerseys...it looked like they had gathered under the apple tree to have a chat. Perhaps they were throwing me a welcome home party.

They had broken through the fence - to much repair work needed for that time of night so we had to get them into another field. My job was to man the flashlight and aim the headlights of my truck in their direction to keep an eye on them . Jeremy and Josiah went to move the horses before they escaped also. Once the horses were secure, it was time to go after the cows.

The boys started them down the hill towards the next pasture when they bolted and headed right for my truck...I waited until they were within 10 feet and then I layed on the horn. They all froze...I mean instantly! No one twitched, blinked or moved....it was like a still life picture! It was hard not to burst out laughing but I was afraid I would ruin the moment!

The boys quickly got the cows turned around, herded them down the hill, through the gate and into the next field. Whew! Safe for the evening! Then it was time to round up the boys and head for bed...the roosters get started early in the morning :)

The next morning we found that the cows had been trying to get into the garden. One of the gates had been pushed partially in and now needs repair and two of my rosemary bushes had been stepped on....some really large branches were broken and laying on the ground. I don't normally harvest that much rosemary at one time but I couldn't let it go to waste. I will use it in my Gourmet Shampoo Bar and in my most popular soap Remy's Rosemary and Mint. Guess I will be making lots of soap! I'll talk more about soapmaking in my next post...lots of exciting news!

I have missed "talking" to all of you these last few weeks......It is SO good to be home!

6 comments:

  1. Cheri! So glad to hear that your mom's recuperation is successful and that you're home. I can imagine the blessed relief. It's good to see you blogging again. After reading your cow story, I am glad I only have to chase chickens and guineas, although I'm having my share of adventures with them. As I write they have all decided that the porch is an excellent place to wait out the rainy day. Time to get the broom! :) God's blessings to you!

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  2. Hi Emily,
    Thank you so much! I know that chickens and guineas can keep you plenty busy...the broom is a great idea! Blessings!

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  3. Welcome home and welcome to a whole different kind of drama.
    Looking forward to your future posts and pics.

    fpn

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  4. It is good to have you back. Your herbs look great. Mine did not do too well this year.

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  5. Bradshaw family and Marci,
    Thanks, it is so good to be back! Marci, have you
    been able to figure out why they didn't do well?

    ReplyDelete

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