CeeGee

Sunday Service...... I asked MrGee to let me do the service today... One of the most popular passages in the Bible is Nehemiah 8:10: "Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." Why is joy important? Because the "joy of the Lord is your strength!" Joy produces strength. And strength is needed to fight. You are called to "fight the good fight of faith" (1 Timothy 6:12). Friends, today we rejoice in the Lord that He protected our loved one, Mt. Rider and brought her back safe to us. We also, rejoice that He has brought us this far with only minor mishaps and small calamities. We rejoice that He has provided for us a place to go in these times of trouble and turmoil. And that He has knit us together into a strong and caring community. We rejoice that He is our strength and will give us the strength to get to our valley of peace. And to "fight the good fight of faith." Amazing grace! How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me! I once was lost, but now am found; was blind, but now I see. 'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved; how precious did that grace appear the hour I first believed. Through many dangers, toils, and snares, I have already come; 'tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home. The Lord has promised good to me, his word my hope secures; he will my shield and portion be, as long as life endures. Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail, and mortal life shall cease, I shall possess, within the veil, a life of joy and peace. When we've been there ten thousand years, bright shining as the sun, we've no less days to sing God's praise than when we first begun.

I haven't tried it yet. I just found the recipe yesterday. Here is where I found it. Cast Iron Pan Candy I do plan on making some soon.....

“Grandma, where is Florida?” “At the other end of the country. Why?” “Well, you keep saying why this valley couldn’t be in Florida. Grandpa says if you don’t stop talking to your self he’s going to start to worry…..” “Well, OGS if it doesn’t start to get warm soon, I might start worrying too!” This is the conversation that OGS and I had today as we were going up and down those blasted HILLS. I am beginning to think that we should have installed seat belts on the wagon benches! Wait…maybe we should have put the captain’s chairs from my van instead! Oh, well hindsight is 20/20. I have some laundry swishing in plastic totes in the back and will be glad to get that hung out to dry. I was talking to Mother this morning about laundry and she said that she would miss the automatic washers after we leave the trail. Maybe I can start a business strapping totes of laundry in the wagon and driving around all day! LOL! Don’t we have to keep the wheels turning to keep the freezers going too? Maybe tonight if anyone has any extra butter that I can trade for, I will make some cast iron pan candy to share. I am sure that all of the kids (and adults) would like a bit of a treat. (recipe will be posted on the recipe thread)

How to make Cast Iron Pan Candy: 1 cup of butter 1 cup of brown sugar, packed 1 teaspoon vanilla Melt butter in a cast iron pan over medium-low heat. Add brown sugar. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, for 15 minutes as sugar gradually blends with the butter. At this point, turn it up a little, to medium. At first it looks as if the butter is separating from the brown sugar. Keep cooking and stirring non-stop–the butter and brown sugar will meld together as the mixture thickens. Be careful not to overcook and burn it–you should finish with a nice, rich caramelized color. In the last few minutes, stir in the vanilla. Butter waxed paper very lightly to prevent sticking before pouring the candy out. Let the candy cool and set up. After it’s firm but before it’s competely set, cut it into pieces. Then you can shape it, roll it, twist it, whatever you want to do to pretty it up. Store in an airtight container.

So sorry the I have been MIA. We have had a very BUSY couple of weeks. Got our DD moved, but GS is still with us for a bit. We started home schooling him and want to get him to a certain level before he goes. Plus, DD needs to find a job and all of that. Then we got her house ready and rented out. Then we had a pipe in the laundry room freeze and burst..... and on and on it goes! We have been very cold, but no snow until today. So, I have been reading and trying to get caught up on the trail and I couldn't find myself! LOL!

Carr, I don't know if you have checked out this site. I really learned a lot from watching her videos. http://dehydrate2store.com/videos/

Q, No, we are not out of town yet. We leave next week for a few days. This is the week end that my DD is moving back to Denver and I am having a bit of a hard time with it......be back to "normal" soon I hope. CeeGee

Well, the morning has started out rather chilly so we built up the fire and started water for tea and chocolate. Of course, MrGee already had some coffee going. After the events of yesterday, we decide that we would have a time of prayer before we started on the clean up from yesterday’s events. I went over to Mother’s fire and told her that we would start in about 15 minutes. I passed Michael on the way and asked him to pass the word, too. As everyone started to gather, MrGee began singing…. When peace, like a river, attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll; whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well with my soul. Refrain: It is well with my soul, it is well, it is well with my soul. 2. Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, let this blest assurance control, that Christ has regarded my helpless estate, and hath shed his own blood for my soul. (Refrain) 3. My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought! My sin, not in part but the whole, is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more, praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul! (Refrain) 4. And, Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight, the clouds be rolled back as a scroll; the trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend, even so, it is well with my soul. (Refrain) As everyone gathered, we all joined hands. MrGee prayed for strength, wisdom, peace and healing. Then we closed with; What A Friend We Have In Jesus Hymn What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer! O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer. Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere? We should never be discouraged; take it to the Lord in prayer. Can we find a friend so faithful who will all our sorrows share? Jesus knows our every weakness; take it to the Lord in prayer. Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care? Precious Savior, still our refuge; take it to the Lord in prayer. Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer! In his arms he'll take and shield thee; thou wilt find a solace there. Amen. Now we will begin our time of repairing….our wagons and our spirits. Thank you, Michael for bringing around the doughnuts. Did everyone get some of the fresh fruit that was sent? I heard one of the deputies say that he was pretty sure that the mayor’s wife and not the mayor was responsible for a lot of what was being sent out. I think that I heard that Mrs. Mayor might be bringing the daughter out to help us. I have a feeling that a lot of our supplies will be replenished while we are here…….

The sunrise this morning was absolutely beautiful! What a way to start a great day. Or so I thought anyway. That was before our world went crazy! We had just finished our lunch and everyone was gathering up get back on the road. OGS wanted to run over and pester P for just a minute before we loaded up. Every since the forks in the road incident Mt3b’s boys have taken OGS under their wing so to speak and he takes whatever chance he gets to go over and talk to them. I was just walking back from making the last bathroom break before getting back on the road, when chaos erupted! Animals were running in all directions, people yelling, and wagons flying by! I rushed back to our wagon to check on everyone. DD had gone to the medical wagon; she thought that OGS was with me. I told MrGee and the rest that OGS was over at Mt3b’s and we needed to check on him and then we would need to start to assess the needs of everyone. We sent BT (going to be OGS’ step dad) to check at Mt3b’s. He came rushing back yelling “he’s missing”! I told YoungerSonGee and his girlfriend, AM to help BT look for OGS, that the rest of us would be helping the others. Of course, if they didn’t find him right away to find us and we would all search for him. I was pretty sure that he was with P and wasn’t too worried as I knew that P would take care of him. Little did I know how well P would take care of him. Sorry, I am brushing away the tears….. The first person that I ran into was Mother. She was looking for me to ask us to help calm everyone down. I told of course we would and I told that for now we would head over to the medical wagon to start there, but if OGS wasn’t found soon we would be looking for him. As we turned to go to the MW I said a prayer for Mother, that she would have the strength to deal with what was ahead…..that we all would. Before we could get to the MW, YoungerSonGee ran up and told us that OGS had been found and was okay, but that P had been hurt. We ran over just as the medical team was getting ready to load P up, we prayed over him as they whisked him away. Please, let P be okay, give him strength. We got OGS calmed down and sent him off with BT back to our wagon while we head off to comfort those that we can…. Now that the sun has set things have calmed down some. There is still a lot of coming and going. Those going to town to check on their loved ones, those coming back, bringing back the ones that weren’t kept in the hospital. We have made sure to have a large fire going with plenty of hot coffee, tea and chocolate for any one that needs to come by and talk. DaughterGee and BT are taking turns holding on to OGS. He is so worried about P. We keep asking if anyone has heard how he is doing….no word, yet. The guys have their guitars and are softly playing…..

Thank you, Mother. That was from the pen of MrGee. (IRL he agreed to write a service for us) I will have to say that OGS had so much fun hunting eggs this morning. Thank you to all that made that possible. Oh, MtR and MrMtR the rolls were so yummy! Thank you for sharing. Did everyone who wanted get some of MrGee's cinnamon coffee and my French vanilla hot chocolate? For our Easter dinner I brought peach cobbler made from freeze dried peaches cooked in one of my dutch ovens. In the other dutch oven I brought venison vegetable soup. It was made from freeze dried veggies and some of the venison that we were able to freeze in Mother's freezer. I wonder how much longer we will be able to keep those freezers going (maybe they will be like the Energizer Bunny and keep going and going and going....)? It has been nice to have a short lay over here, but I am ready to get back on the road. I am ready to get to my new "home" and start our new lives. I will say that I am grateful for the "company" that I keep. I don't think that we could find a finer group to start a new community with. Did I tell you what my boys did to their sister's SO? You remember that he is a computer geek....and he HAS learned a lot since we have been on the trail.....so last night as we were sitting by the wagons after supper, youngerson started talking about how this was snipe country and olderson said yeah......and the hunt began! I hope that we didn't bother anybody with the hoopin' and hollerin', but it was fun and BT was a good sport. I do have a feeling tho that he is planning something..... Well, I am off to fold the laundry and start packing the wagons.....

Hymn: #224 I Love to Tell the Story I love to tell the story of unseen things above Of Jesus & His glory, of Jesus & His love I love to tell the story because I know ‘tis true It satisfies my longings as nothing else would do I love to tell the story, ‘twill be my theme in glory To tell the old, old story of Jesus & His love I love to tell the story, ‘tis pleasant to repeat What seems, each time I tell it, more wonderfully sweet I love to tell the story for some have never heard The message of salvation from God’s own Holy Word Good Easter to you, each & every one. We gather beneath a vast expanse of blue sky to celebrate our risen savior. But ever as we do it seems that same sky may be falling in on us. I am here to assure you that this, in fact, is not true. The very fact that we are here on the road, with our loved ones in tow, is proof of God’s providence. The Word is absolutely replete with beginnings: “In the beginning” is the opening phrase of the creation account; Noah was called to go forth & replenish the earth after the flood; Joseph, who was to have met his end as a slave instead had a new beginning as one of the most powerful men in the land; and the list goes on & on. We have been given the opportunity to share in this great adventure of life by striking out, IN FAITH, to begin again. And to this Holy charge we commit ourselves most heartily. After all we have His promise, “all things work together for the good to them that love the Lord, & who are called according to His purpose.” Jesus, was questioned by Nicodemas by night, “How can these things be?” He replied pointing out that they, as teachers of Israel, should know who He was. “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” He died for that new beginning for us in His new kingdom, we, in turn should be as committed to this new beginning set before us. “He Who began a good work in you is able to complete it in you.” Let’s celebrate His resurrection as we resurrect a new world from the old. Celebrate Jesus Celebrate Jesus Celebrate…..Celebrate Jesus Celebrate He is Risen, He is Risen …..And He lives forevermore He is Risen, He is Risen Come on & Celebrate, Come on & Celebrate The Resurrection of our Lord

(Just a note....IRL we have our Sunday commitments, so I will post our service a bit later)

Good morning, all...... Gee, Michael, little bit quiet this morning. Are you feeling okay? I told MrGee that there would be time for worship tomorrow. We are looking forward to it. Maybe after we can pool our resources and have a communal meal. This morning as we were breaking camp, we had leftovers for breakfast. Since the nights are still a bit chilly leftovers are holding over for now. I know that this will change as the weather warms. I also made peanut butter sandwiches for lunch so we could get back on the road quickly after our noon stop. I also put our unmentionables in a tote with some hot water and laundry soap. That way when we stop for the night I just have to rinse and hang them out. I made sure that the lid was closed tight. Don't want any thing like what happened to Stephanie......or OGS to decide that I need his help. I also put some tea bags and water into a closed pitcher and I will make sweet tea tonight and put it in the stream tonight. I plan on doing some cooking for the next week while we are stopped tomorrow. I think that I will make cornbread, tortillas and a few loaves of bread. Today OGS will do a lot of walking with the fellas and have some on the trail training. Maybe that will keep him occupied, if not it should tucker him out and he will sleep tonight! Time to load up and head out.........

Well, I knew that he was bored, but never did I think that he would be that creative! I tell you, that boy will drive me to drink! Anyone have any sweet tea? Thank you, for getting my flatware back for me....... Got to think up ways to keep that boy's mind occupied! (IRL we have been out of town, sorry to have missed some of the trip. Hope we can jump back in) Mother, I have a lot of that venison that we preserved and would be happy to let you have some for Sasha Bertie. Maybe we could work out a trade for a pup. Anyone know where we plan to be for Sunday? Do we plan to have a day of rest? If we do, we would like to have a time of worship and fellowship. Let me know so I can let MrGee know. We are all getting used to the rhythm of the journey. The girls and I are getting used to working together. We can now do our chores with less instruction and can enjoy a few minutes of conversation while getting things done. The guys are finding muscles that they forgot they had (well, I guess we all are)! The stiffness and soreness lessens everyday. So, Michael one of these days my boys want to challenge you to a duel.........of show tunes! They have had a very well rounded musical upbringing! So, say the word......

Sorry, this will be a short report. After all of the excitement and getting used to being on the trail I spent most of yesterday in the back of one of the wagons with a migraine! I don't have them often but, when I do they are bad. I don't think that the rain helped. We are getting into a rhythm here. Someones gets breakfast while everyone else packs up and get the wagons ready. Then we gather at the fire to pass out breakfast and a quick prayer and we are off and running. I have an idea for our security detail. I have bandannas that I use for napkins in lots of colors. Why don't we rotate colors for whoever is on guard? That way we know in a glance who is supposed to be guarding.

Well, I was driving one of our wagons. We had decided that since the terrain was city streets the girls and I would drive the wagons so that the guys would be free to help keep things under control. I am so glad that I made OGS sit up with me on the wagon. He sure wanted to down with the guys and "helping", but I was worried that something might happen. I think that we made the right choice. The is something in the Gee family DNA (DH's side) that is amazing with animals. They are able to calm them in most situations (actually it works with people too). Remind me some night around the campfire to tell you the story of MIL with a skunk. Any way....the guys were able to help calm the animals and get them back where they belonged. I think that the gentleman that came for the manure overheard MrGee say that it sure was a shame to lose that good compost. OGS had a wonderful time at the story telling tonight.... As we bank the fire and get ready for bed, MrGee and sons bring out the guitars and begin....... "Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, That saved a wretch like me.... I once was lost but now am found, Was blind, but now, I see. T'was Grace that taught... my heart to fear. And Grace, my fears relieved. How precious did that Grace appear... the hour I first believed. Through many dangers, toils and snares... we have already come. T'was Grace that brought us safe thus far... and Grace will lead us home. The Lord has promised good to me... His word my hope secures. He will my shield and portion be... as long as life endures. When we've been here ten thousand years... bright shining as the sun. We've no less days to sing God's praise... then when we've first begun. "Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, That saved a wretch like me.... I once was lost but now am found, Was blind, but now, I see. ........................................................................good night

Good morning, all. Well, it was a bit easier to get up this morning. I am not a coffee drinker, but I think I may have to learn. OGS is up and roaring around chanting "when are we going to leave, when...when"? Oh to be 6 again...... Any one know what the weather will be today? I was thinking about strapping a solar oven that I found just before we left to the south side of one of the wagons and putting a venison roast in it for supper tonight. Does any one have any fresh eggs to trade for a bit of venison? Did anybody remember to ask whoever will be escorting us to please not use the sirens? Sure don't want a repeat of yesterday? Hey, Rusty (Michael) did you get your wagon repacked last night? I see a break in the line to the public potties, so I better get my teeth brushed....

Mt_R, I will trade you for the rabbits. I will trade extra for training on the care and breeding. You see, I am a city girl...don't know nothin' 'bout birthin' bunnies (hope you get the movie reference there). CGA, freezers! Wowzer! You sure know how to travel! I tell you when the siren started blasting I was about to jump out of my skin! I think that we all aged at least a year or two. I am so glad that all of the permits and such were all in order. I think that if we had postponed this train much longer, no amount of paperwork would have been enough. Things are getting downright scary! Mt_R, thank you so much for including my family in you invitation to join. I thank you for your trust in us. And I am not sure that I am buying into that story from Rusty and Emma about repacking.......are you all?

Yes, we are here. We decided to only go with 2 wagons so that our drivers could rotate and that they might be able to drive the special wagons in trade for some of the supplies that we were unable to get since we decided at the last minute that we needed to join the journey. We also are willing to trade hard work for supplies too.

Well, we had a few grumblers in our camp this morning (me included). Just got to get used to this and I am sure that we will be okay. I forgot to mention last night when we arrived in camp, but I have several ice chests filled with fresh venison. Yesterday after church service, one of our congregation members who is a hunting guide offered me the meat of 25 deer (not POUNDS, but DEER)! I knew that we wouldn't be able to preserve it so, I brought all that I could fresh. We will need to get it eaten or if any one has any thoughts on preserving for the journey. I am willing to barter and share. OGS is so excited today, but I am afraid that it won't last for long. Of, course he will follow his Papa and uncles anywhere. This will also give him the opportunity to get to know the man that will soon be his step-dad. May the Lord be with us and guide us on this journey.

Well, here we are ready to join. Here is our supply list. Animals and supplies: No animals ( I need to find “magic beans” to trade for animals…..like Jack in the Beanstalk) Kitchen: butter churn wheat grinder cast iron dutch oven and skillets Smith & Wesson knives Henkel knives, pressure cooker, Berky water filter Butter bell Water bath canning equipment Pressure canner Protection: 30/30 plus ammo, 2 side arms plus ammo, 2 shot gun plus shells,cross bow plus bolts Entertainment: 3 guitars plus replacement strings (strings can also be used for making snares) Health/sanitation: Dry Chlorinated Bleach-Powdered Chlorine Bleach 100lb. Drum Laundry soap making supplies Rag box for cleaning and tp Bucket for mixing bleach Bucket potty (shower curtain for privacy) Medical: I just grabbed the foot locker full of supplies, will have to inventory later Shelter: 2 6 man tents 1 double air mattress for the old folks Clothing: 500 pounds total of jeans, t-shirts, fleece jackets, down coats, long johns, underwear, socks vacuum packed to save space Down blankets, down comforters, bedding Tools: bow saw ax 2 man saw bike repair kit shovels, hoes, scythe Lighting: solar yard lights Food: Powdered milk Dehydrated butter Dehydrated eggs Dehydrated carrots Dehydrated celery Dehydrated peppers (red, yellow, green) Dehydrated onions Dehydrated bananas Freeze dried corn Freeze dried peas Freeze dried strawberries Freeze dried blueberries Freeze dried peaches Freeze dried raspberries Freeze dried apples Instant potatoes Tomato powder Oats Quick oats Pinto beans Black beans Chicken bullion Beef bullion Olive oil Vegetable oil Sugar Brown sugar Powdered sugar Flour Red wheat White wheat Corn meal Bacon Salt Spices Vanilla beans Honey Grits Rice Vinegar Tea Coffee Hot chocolate mix Cocoa (5#s) Tuna in packs For when we arrive: Seeds Bike (2 rider, 4 seater) Extra: 100 #s of supplies for “kitchen cosmecuticals” (I plan to barter with these lotions and potions) I am sure that there is more that got placed in the wagons and I will find it as we go. Also, we will have 2 extra drivers if any one is in need.

Well we were up most of last light convincing our family to come along. Tried so hard to talk our friends into joining us, but they declined. They just can't see the danger in staying here. They keep telling us that everything will be fine, this is just a bump in the road. I will surely miss them, but we know that things will only get worse. I think that things might look good for a while, but not for long. We know that we just have to go. However, we were able to convince all of our children and their significant others to come. What a relief! I just almost couldn't stand to leave with out them. So we have: People: CeeGee and MrGee Skills: MrGee: Parson, musician, Boy Scout with lots of merit badges in wilderness stuff, animal trapping and tracking, carpentry, camp fire cooking Skills: CeeGee: Parson, camp fire cooking, canning, dehydrating, crocheting DaughterGee: Medical Assistant, cook BT(soon to be SIL): Computer Geek-don’t know his other skills yet OldestSonGee: Minister, musician, artist, great knowledge of knives and other blades YoungerSonGee: Musician, plumber, locksmith (former Royal Ranger), campfire cooking AM (younger son’s SO): Animal person, crochets OnlyGrandsonGee: Cute We will need 2 wagons and 2 teams of oxen. Since we haven't had much notice to go on this grand adventure, I know that we will not have adequate supplies. However, I believe that God will be on our side and our trust is in Him. I am sitting in the dark writing this list as the folks here in town know that something is going on and keep pounding on my door (IRL I ran out of candy and the trick or treaters are still out and about). The rest of my family is out gathering the last of our supplies. I am so thankful that I decided to dehydrate this growing season instead of canning. Plus most of my purchases for long term have been freeze dried. This save so much weight! I am off to finish my packing after tucking OGG (OnlyGrandsonGee) in for the night.

Mother, I love your wagon! Kind of makes me think of the old circus wagons! Now I have the sounds of an organ in my head.....doot doot (you know....that circus music) A taxi service...what a great idea! CeeGee shuffles thru the stuff in the garage looking for the bike repair kit.....

For a good light weight material for our wagons we should consider titanium. We have a bike that is titanium and it is soooo light! I am hoping that we can find room to bring it. CeeGee rushes off to a family meeting to talk the kids into coming too.....

Over at Dehydrate2store in one of the videos ( I think it is the Class Prep one) she uses dehydrated lemons to make lemonade. It really looks pretty!