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quiltys41

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  1. Hi everyone..no I didn't drop off the face of the Earth. It has just been "different" around here lately and we are struggling just to keep ourselves upright and sane at this point. And now gardening season has begun and we are trying our best to get ours planted. Only have half done now and it takes up most of our back yard...1/3 of an acre maybe? I don't know for sure, just that it's as big as it can get lol!! Anyways, once things settle back down, I will be back to writing too. I just can't do it now, I wont post something that Ihaven't fully researched or put my whole heart into... Love and Q
  2.   August 12 - the Valley I didn't much feel like doing anything today. Still hurting over the loss of my friend, I prayed long and hard that they would make it to their new destination safely and would be able to get word back here by some kind of miracle that they were okay. Hubby got up with the children and made breakfast while I stayed in bed just a bit longer today. I laid there, listening to the sounds of my family gathering around the breakfast table without me. I worried about how they would make it if something happened to me. If I left them suddenly. I figured they would go on, but much like I was doing now, slowly getting back into the swing of things and praying for good. They were all having a good time out there and that did my heart more good than anything in this world could have done. Well just about anyways. There were a few things, like my other children and grandchildren being here too and Mother coming back, but those were just wishes that would probably never come true. I had to get up and go on. My family needed me now more than ever. I had to get a move on and direct what needed done before winter. I had been with mt3b and her gals on Friday. Oh what a great time we had out gathering things nature provided! We managed to even find some elderberry bushes too, which coupled with hubby's shine, would make the BEST tonics for flu and coughs that could be had out here in the wilds. I was SO happy to find those! I would be back in a few weeks when the berries were dark black to show them how to gather the heads and either dry or juice out the berries for it. One thing about picking your own, you HAVE to make sure you have the right kind! There is one kind of elderberry that can make you deathly ill if consumed. But knowing the difference from growing my own back in TN, I knew these to be the safe ones, which is what made me so dern happy to find them. We even found a bunch of milk thistle too and mt3b was happy to have that. I still had a little of the aloe plant left we brought with us and was trying to nurse it back to health, so I let her have all the milk thistle. Oh, there were just so many things we found that would be put to good use! See, it's things like that, the gathering from nature and helping others that got my behind out of the bed, dressed and went out to meet the day. And it was another busy one to be sure. I had tomatoes coming on and I had to get canning them into spaghetti sauce for this bunch. The next day would be just tomato sauce for what ever it was needed for during the winter and spring until the next crop came on. And the day after that would be for ketchup and BBQ sauce, of which we used tons of lol. Well having kids means having ketchup. I don't think they can eat meat without it, can they? Hahaha, I don't think so anyways. This bunch sure couldn't. Even Jerry had to have it on his burgers, along with hubby. If I didn't get it made, there would be an uproar at this cabin lol. So after breakfast was eaten and the mess cleaned up, the children and I went out to the garden to pick the tomatoes and a few other things that needed picking too. We had baskets of nice big red ripe tomatoes sitting on the kitchen table. A few baskets of green beans, which never seemed to stop bearing no matter what the temps turned out to be. A couple of green peppers too, which would be needed in the ketchup and spaghetti sauces. I had the children wash everything up while I gathered the jars, canning pots, ingredients and anything else needed for the days work. It had been so thoughtful of Jerry to pack in a few flats of lids for my jars and even a few boxes of large mouthed jars with lids too for our supplies. He knew that I canned and that I had since he was a small child. I was forever needing lids and jars lol. I got the recipes on the table, put the tomatoes we needed through the Victorio strainer that removed the skin and seeds without all the work of boiling them and such. I had pots of tomato puree at that point. I started adding dehydrated onion and fresh green peppers. I put in the spice bags and set them on the fire there on the stove. It's not easy cooking on a wood stove and canning is just a bit harder. But once you get the hang of it, it's pretty easy and lots of fun! I kept the wood going in all morning, just a bit at a time so that it didn't make a big temperature swing causing me to have to move the pots all over the stove. The smell by lunch time wafting out the cabin windows was enough to make anyone hungry! The guys came in to find me making sandwiches and wondered where their spaghetti was lol. I told them I was canning sauce today, but if they wanted it for dinner, it could be arranged. Their eyes just lit up. I told them it would have to be loaf bread garlic toast to go with it if they didn't mind. Nope, they didn't mind. Not as long as they got their spaghetti! So I had Ruth bring me a quart jar of chopped deer meat from the pantry for dinner and scooped out enough sauce for spaghetti for the seven of us. Seven? Wow, seven! Lucky number seven! LOL I kept right on stirring and sampling and adding until I thought the sauce was just right. I took it off of the heat and started ladling the sauce into jars that I had keeping warm near the oven. Lids were added as needed and bands too. Then they were put into the pressure canner outside where hubby had thankfully made a fire for me earlier. I had to sit there with the canner the entire time, so we sat and strung green beans for 90 minutes. The kids loved it and since it was their first time doing it, things were a little slow. But that's okay, they got done about the same time as the canner. I set that canner off to the side while I loaded up the other one and got it onto the fire. I would let the other canner slowly go down to 0 pressure before opening and getting the jars out. Then they would get reloaded and done all over again until we were out of sauce. It would take four or five canner loads from what I had figured. But that is only about 40 jars of spaghetti sauce. If we had it once a week we would need at least 104 jars of sauce for the seven of us. So, I would need to do this twice more, if I got enough tomatoes, to have enough for a year! Lot of food and work isn't it? Well, I am so tired from all the work today. And to think I get to do it all over again tomorrow with the ketchup! I am about asleep on my feet so good night all... Q  
  3. Okay ladies, I'll try. I wont promise anything but when I read what Martha and mt3b had both written, and others too, I felt like I was letting yall down. And I can't do that. But please do remember...it's spring. Our garden will be tilled up this week and the planting begins in earnest on Thursday. So I might be pretty busy here and I wont be able to post as much with all the work to be done. But I will try. Just for ya'll. Q
  4.   Sunday August 8th - The Valley Well it's been THE saddest day here in the Valley. My long time friend and helper, the one I had come to depend on for help here has left the valley. Her and all of her family picked up and left within days of receiving a letter from her brother. I can't say as I blame her, but I will miss her more than words could ever say. She had become my "sister" almost. Closer than some family with what all we had gone through. So when they note came that she would be leaving today came, I rushed to make plans to see her off. I had no idea they would leave at first light. I rode my horse as fast as I could push her, stopping only long enough to let her drink just a bit from the river, I pushed and pushed until the two of us were nearing exhaustion. I did SO want to give her one last hug, one last question to ask, one last note to pass to her only to be opened when they had been long gone from the valley. It was one that I had poured my heart out to her in. Where I explained all of my deepest worries about staying here without her to back me up. How afraid I was of the coming winter and worry about those who I knew without our help, wouldn't make it. I had to give it to her. I just had to. But as the horse and I, exhausted from the ride, arrived in the Hobbit, it was silent. No animals like there had been. No children squealing and playing near the houses. No men in the fields. No women out tending the gardens. Silence. I got down off of my horse and tied her to a post near the main house that I knew she had once lived in and worked in. How many hours did she spend here trying to keep it all together? How much time trying to get her family ready for the coming winter? How much energy and sweat was poured out in this kitchen which now stood unused? It was eerily quiet. I knew I had missed her. I stood there and cried. I cried the tears of one who had just unexpectedly lost a close family member. The tears just rolled down my face, the sobs loud and echoing off of the stone walls. I left the note, the one intended for her, on the cold stove. Maybe someone would know how to get it to her? I sure didn't. Hurt and alone I watered my horse, not caring if it would be dark before I got home or not, I rode away. Back toward my home. Where my family was worried about me. Where they had seen the tears and tried so hard to comfort me but I was inconsolable at that point. I rode home. At a lot slower pace than I had rode in here on.....and the note was left there with the words "For Mother, my Sister" written on the outside of it. Q
  5. And I cried too when you left the valley Mother. I don't know if I can write anymore after that. Really. I just don't know.... With all my love... Q
  6.     August 5 - The Valley Just a short note tonight since we are all tired and worn to a frazzle. We have all been busting behinds to get hay/wood/food in for the winter. The greenhouse is up and attached securely. I am slowly filling it with seedlings and plants for the winter. I am also doing canning and drying food most of the days with laundry thrown in for good measure. Ruth is proving to be invaluable to me. She has been doing the lions share of the meal preparations here lately. You would think she was a housewife instead of just 12 years old! I just thank the good Lord that her mother taught her how to get around in a kitchen! She is learning quickly how to prepare different foods and her best is still those biscuits which we have often with gravy and meat over them for a quick hot meal at night. Oh, the nights are cooling here on this end of the valley. I have started pulling out extra quilts already. I have to wonder just how many we will need once the snow hits? Oh one bit of good news to report...Jerry is back from the "hill" and brought his equipment with him that was brought in on the last wagon train. He couldn't pack it all on the mule train so it had to be brought this way. He has a huge looking thing he calls his cell phone. I guess the way he explained it is that it isn't dependant on towers but satellites? It's pretty high powered and he is supposed to have it near him always because Uncle Sam isn't ever going to be done with him due to the kind of work he did. So he now has it on and sitting on his dresser. If we hear it ringing, we are NEVER to answer it, just let him know that it did and he will take care of it. Then he has all kinds of different guns, ammo and equipment that I have NO idea what it is for lol. There are LOTs of ropes, that much I do know. And he has some crates that he had hubby help him put out in the barn. He said they are for "just in case" what ever that may be. I asked him if he was expecting the end of the world or something and it looked like a dark cloud went across his face. He looked at me so sadly and said "Maybe so Ma, maybe so." I don't like that look or the way he is acting now. It's like every time there is a loud noise, he jumps. I know that has to be from getting shot at. But this is a little more out of the ordinary. Like he is waiting for a dern bomb to go off or something like that. I don't know. But what I do know, he is expecting a call from some of his old buddies from the Army that he "worked" with. Great. Just what I need, a bunch of burly looking guys running loose eating me out of house and home! LOL...nope, not going to happen. I hope..... Well it's off to bed. Here's to hoping that phone belonging to my son never rings.... Q
  7.   August 3 - the valley We got a note from SF and mt3b's today and it seems their younger ones have gotten the chicken pox! Well I agreed we needed to get herb and such gathered before the next wagon train got in. So we will go this Friday for that. I sent a note explaining that we will still bring the children with us. They don't remember ever having "spots that itched" on them at all. So we will bring them, let the be exposed and if possible, get the pox. It will save them from the possibility of getting it later in life which could be deadly. LOL I remember when I was little and had them! Every child in the neighborhood was brought over one day to play with me so they could get it too. We just didn't realize it at the time that was what our parents were doing. We just thought we were all having some kind of play party LOL. And here we are, doing the same thing. But it will keep them from harm later, so it's a good thing all around. They also mentioned that the wagon train is due in any time. When we told Jerry that, he loaded up and took off for the hill. There was no stopping the boy, possible chicken pox or not lol. He was going. Period. But I know it had to be nice having others that were already in the valley there to help newcomers feel welcomed and to help them get in safely. So he went with our blessings. Not too much else going on now besides gathering up produce out of the garden and processing it either by canning or by drying. One disappointment though, even if we did screen the cherry tree, we got very little from it. Maybe enough for three pies? It was badly picked over by birds even through the netting. They are just too used to getting free food from it I guess LOL. So next year, if it is still bearing, we will try something different, right up to and including chasing them away at the start! We do have other fruit to make up for it and the rose hips to make tea from for extra vitamin C. I think we will do just fine. Other plants in the garden are producing well for now. They seemed to have slowed down in growth though? Maybe since the nights are starting to cool some. I have a few tomato plants rooting out in the garden and in about a week or so, I will be able to cut the main stems from the body of the plant and have another one. That will get dug up and put into a pot to go into the green house to over winter. If by some miracle it does bloom, I will take a bit of cotton on a stick and dab it into each flower and pollinate them myself that way by hand. Should be an interesting experiment. Our survival will NOT depend on having fresh tomatoes in the winter, but it would be nice though. Hubby and Jerry have gotten in quite a bit of hay and wood for the winter. Not as much as we will need for sure, but they have made a good dent in it with Adam's help. And Ruth and the youngers have been helping me can and dry veggies and their help also has been invaluable! I surely couldn't do it all alone either. Those 4 children have been a god send to us. Well another long day tomorrow so will close for now. Maybe this winter I will have more time to write! We have started putting plants in the green house though and the men did cut a doorway for me into the kitchen. They will rough in the door frame and that on a rainy day, but they have to make hay while the sun shines! Q
  8.   August 1 - The Valley We were up way before dawn today to get breakfast in, wake everyone up, and to get the wagon packed with the barter items we were taking up to the Lodge today. The children are staying here to do chores with their big brother Jerry who will be keeping an eye on them. He quickly agreed to stay here with them saying that it would be good for them all to spend time together alone and get to know each other better. And he needs them to teach him how to do the milking LOL. I got a chance to talk to Jerry about my fears last night after dinner. Hubby sat and listened as I explained what had me so upset that Jerry had seen it written all over my face. Smart man. So I told him all that I was worried about, building up this place, working so hard and maybe having it taken away from us right before it would become ours and given to the friends and family who only seem to be interested in hand outs and will not learn how to do anything out here! And that there are so many of them that we are supposed to feed and dress and build for? When did that come into the deal? He told me a real shocker...that he had talked to his brother before we had even left on the wagon train. He knew we were coming here and he also found out Mr. Rock needed good security people. So he signed on there just to be able to keep an eye on us!! I had NO idea! But he told me not to worry. That he was here to help us no matter what it was that we would need. And not to forget he still had lots of friends on the outside and still had to carry his .mil cell phone which had a lot longer, farther range than a normal one did. He was sure that if something bad did happen that he could be in touch with friends on the outside in no time. It was something he insisted on and so did the .mil lol. Still, it was a shock about his knowing, but also a comfort that he cares enough about his family to do such a thing! So we got the wagon packed, kissed and hugged everyone good bye and set out for the Lodge. We told Jerry not to worry if we didn't get back until tomorrow, that if trading was going well, we might stay later. We would head out and stay in the messenger shack over to the big river, get some fishing done in the morning and be back by about lunch time. If we were any later than that though, load up Adam on a horse, and come looking. Ruth could watch the two younger ones for a few hours. I didn't want to have to do that or leave her alone with the youngers, but if we come up missing someone would have to come looking for us. So we set out to the Lodge, way before the sun rose over the mountains. I was worried that we were leaving too early, that hubby wouldn't be able to see in the dark but he did just fine. I would have drove us into a tree LOL. When we got to the big river, it was still dark yet but you could see a little better letting us know that sunrise would soon be upon us. I snuggled a little closer to the hubby. Even though it was August 1st, there was a chill to the air and I couldn't help but wonder how soon it would be before snow fell here. Hubby and I rode along in silence for a long while. He seemed to be lost in thought over something and I didn't want to intrude upon what ever it was that he was thinking about. I get like that sometimes too. And I like having time to think even if someone is near to me. I got to thinking how much I missed seeing my friends from the wagon train. Especially those I didn't see often. I even missed Chef's cooking. Mostly because it meant I didn't have to cook lol and it was good. I was hoping to catch a nibble of something or other for lunch that Chef made. I got to wondering about him too. He was hired for the B's on the wagon trail to cook for them. I guess they had never been camping or cooked over an open flame, which only meant that they had never grill out either. Only folks I know like that are those really rich people that hire others like me or the hubby or Chef to do their grilling/cooking for them. Oh well, Chef was a good one and I did miss him too. Maybe I could get a tour of the green house and ask him a few questions now that I had one of my own that needed filled. If I was lucky, he might let me take a few cuttings of his spice plants before we left the Lodge. And I needed to check in at the medical building. It had been about forever since I had been in there. No one had come by our place with any messages either that I had been needed anywhere. I wondered if we were all that healthy? We could be with all the work we were doing and finally eating right, all of us getting away from sodas and junk foods. And the sun started coming up just about then, lighting up the tops of the western mountains. Soon they whole valley would be awash in sunlight and the water of the river sparkling like diamonds. Coming around a big bend in the river, we could make out the Lodge in the early morning light. There were people outside already moving around. I wondered if it was the folks living there in close to the Lodge or if it was some of us showing up early already like we had. Finally there, we pulled up out back to the corral. Hubby wasn't sure where they would have the trading today, maybe just off of the wagons for now. There were no tables set up this early anyways. I went over to check in at the medical building while hubby got the team unhitched and watered. I went inside and there were all new folks there. I asked after the old receptionist. No one seemed to know who I was talking about and I wasn't going to stir up a mess. I asked after Dr. Mt. R. and was told he was out at his homestead. They wanted to know if I needed to make an appointment with him lol. I just said no, turned and left the building. I guessed those that needed me would know where to find me. I would take care of the South end of the valley come winter and I had enough supplies for that. So I left there and went back with hubby to see how he was doing. He had a bunch of men he was chatting with out there so I didn't bother and went into the Lodge to find Chef. He was in his element, showing off his kitchen and green house to some folks lol. I didn't recognize them so I walked up and shook hands, introduced myself to them. They were very nice. Had come along with the second wagon train. I asked them how bad was it outside the valley? They told me that supplies were thin if you could find them and for a pretty penny too. The trucks were often hijacked and found along the roadside empty and the drivers long gone. Electricity was becoming spotty and there seemed to be rolling blackouts taking place, but unannounced. President Smith was still in office and on TV often, smiling and talking about how fine everything was in the country when folks could plainly tell it wasn't fine at all. Shootings and burglaries were on the rise and often times, no police showed up at all after being called to the scene. Firefighters were the same. No to little service at all. Some were tired of being shot at in different neighborhoods, some were mad at the Executive Orders being handed down and others just up and quit. And that strange bird flu was back making another round. That was why they came here, to get away from the flu mostly and certainly for the rest of it all too. They were from a large family but the only ones in it that seen what was coming enough to get out while they could. They were very worried about what would happen to the rest of their family but didn't want to take the chance of staying with them either. They had their own children to take care of, in fact they had 12! From ages 19 on down to 2. The oldest was their daughter Maria who was unmarried yet. A real beautiful girl who seemed to have a head full of smarts. Ha! Being the mother that I am, I filed away all the info on her I could get. I would tell Jerry about her later! She was so friendly too. I wouldn't mind having her for a daughter in law LOL!! Anyways, I talked to Chef for awhile then too. He took me around through the green house which was coming along beautifully! Everything looked so lush and green and healthy too. He promised to give me some cuttings in some water before we left today. Just to come back and let him know which ones I needed and he would set me up. What a sweetie! I promised to bring him up some kefir on my next trip to the Lodge so he could be making his own buttermilk and such with it too. He seemed excited to be getting it. I wandered around the Lodge for a bit and then went back outside. Mother!!! Woohoo! I ran over and gave her a really big gentle hug lol. I sure missed seeing her or sitting around the campfire talking with her! Annarchy was there too!! Only thing was missing was MT3B (she stayed home with cranky kids...hope they aren't getting sick!) and sent word back with SF that I would be more than happy to go with her out gathering stuff in the wilds of the valley lol! Mother and I got to talking and I told her about most of my fears of the valley since she IS on the counsel. I almost didn't though. I didn't want to add to her burdens and give her just one more thing yet to worry about. But she listened to what I had to say, to my worries. Instead of poo-poohing them, she did seem to pay attention and want to find answers for me so that I could lay those fears to rest. I got the impression I wasn't the only one having them too. Maybe it was just the pressure of getting ready for the winter and seeing so many that didn't seem to be ready at all that had me so upset. I wanted no body to be lost to what could happen when it is so cold. Cold and hungry is no way to be, believe me because I have been there, done that and the tee shirt is long worn out lol. Anyways, we did some trading with Mother. I gave her 4 quilts, made especially for winter. Some deer meat and jerky, some dried berries that filled a 5 gallon bucket. I was going to split it up to trade with others, but Mother looked at it like it was her long lost friend lol, so I gave her all of it. She has so many to feed anyways! That was all we had brought for the first trade, just enough to see how it went. We will try to bring more next time. Mother had some wonderful clay that would make some beautiful pots so I took that in trade too. I couldn't wait to get it home and try my hand at doing that, and it had been a few years but I knew I could do it. And since we had the children now, I was in dire need of larger mixing bowls and a few things to cook in that were of larger size. That clay was just what I needed! Hubby and I stayed for the service and had lunch afterward. We sat by Mother and Annarchy and SF even came over for a bit too so he could talk to hubby. Something about getting in enough firewood for the winter, so I guess the day that I go over to help mt3b gather some stuff in the wilds, he and Jerry will go over and help them get in more firewood for the winter. We are taking the kids with us too so they can all play with their neighbors. Should be a fun day! Sadly we had to leave early so we could get home. I went to see Chef again and got some cuttings in a little water of about 12 different plants he had that I wanted to try growing. And we just took a snipping of each big enough that it wouldn't hurt the other plant but would also be big enough to root for me. So I went back out to hubby. I knew that there was tons of work there at home for me to do before winter and I really needed to get to it. We talked it over and just skipped the fishing and went straight on home. We got there just before dark. Jerry was just finishing up dishes with Adam and Ruth there helping him while the two youngest ones were writing at the table by the sink. Oh, it was so good to see our friends, but even better to get home to the family! Hugs were freely given and received. Hubby told Jerry to watch for a message from SF. He would send one after talking to mt3b about coming over. They would be helping the guys there one day to get in firewood for the winter while us ladies went gathering food in the wilds. The kids just lit up with the idea of getting to play with everyone over there all day! LOL, they practically ran off to bed chattering about what they would play and how and how long they had to do what. Amazing that children are so easy to make happy with such a simple thing as going to visit others lol. But I wanted them to meet their neighborhood friends more often. It was good for the kids to get together and make memories they could all share when they got older. Jerry just nodded his head yes, thinking of all the "Missions" I used to let him and his brother go on out in the palmettos with their friends no doubt lol. It shaped his future. And we had 4 more futures that needed shaping too. Well I am off to bed now. It was such a good day! I can't wait to go again. I want to see my friends as much as I can now before winter comes. I want to make sure they are as ready as they can be too. Maybe I worry just too much...or maybe, not enough at the right times?   Q
  9.   July 30 - The Valley Well we had a rider come through to Mt. Dew homestead today. He brought us a message from Mt. Riders. Seems there is to be a new holiday here in the Valley! Adoption Sunday and it is to be held the first Sunday after the last wagon train comes in. They want to openly declare the children to be adopted by them. I think that is such a great idea that we will join in with them too. Hubby and I talked it over during the day today and then after dinner tonight we put it to Jerry and the other children. We wanted their input into this idea since we didn't want to go against their wishes. All of them seemed open to the idea and the younger of the four wanted to do this right away. Poor Ben, he said he is almost to the point where he cannot remember what his parents even looked like any more. That is so sad! I got really misty eyed when he said he wanted us to be his parents now. I asked Esther and she said about the same as Ben did. I expected as much with them being so young. They may end up not being able to remember what they looked like, but we will make sure they remember the good times at their uncles farm they used to have, if nothing else. We don't want them to forget their biological parents all together, but we do think it is time for them to move on and have a sense of belonging to a family that is "theirs" and some sense of security. Ruth was worried that she would have to "divorce" her mom and dad first lol. Isn't it amazing what children come up with on just the bits and pieces of the adult world that they hear about? We assured her that it wouldn't happen that way and that her first parents would always be hers to remember. Adam had no objections at all after he heard what we told the other children. Even Jerry had to admit that it would be nice to have some younger siblings around to pick on. LOL the kids got a kick out of that. Adam has a bit of hero worshiping going on with Jerry. It would be easy to see how that would happen with all the stories Jerry tells him when they are out together working. But the children all said they would love to have Jerry for their big brother, so I guess it is all settled. We too will join in the Adoption Sunday services at the Lodge! Now, on to the other note we got today...Mr. S. sent one asking us to give him an approximate count on the game and fish in our area. Wow. Now that's quite an honor and a chore. We could tell him right off about the fish LOL! There are way too many of the larger ones. They are crowding out the smaller ones here and they are turning into food for the large ones. At this rate, with the smaller fish being consumed by the larger instead of growing up within a balanced system, there will be a noticeable decrease in the amount of fish available in about two years from now. That is if we don't do some serious fishing down here at this end and get rid of some of the larger ones out of the general population. I think we need to look at this seriously. If we can fish out the larger ones and bring back some kind of balance to the system, then we should do okay here in the south end of the valley for many years to come. As for the game, deer are becoming a problem and a nuisance. They are eating the corn fields here. I don't know about over to mt3b's place if they had planted any other fields besides corn. But if they don't stop by other means, we are going to have to hunt them close to home. That would leave the populations up in the mountains and out in the unsettled areas to grow and reproduce without interference. It would give us meat and hides to use, help with the population control and get rid of a nuisance that could effect our even being in the valley if we cannot produce enough crops for feed for our own animals without having them eat into it. As for other animals...we did have a possible rabid animal the other day and I think that needs to be paid serious attention to. I only hope it was a lone incident and not something spreading in the valley area and surrounding mountains. But I think everyone needs to be warned about the possibility so they can watch the children and livestock closer. As for natural foods to be gleaned, I knew we had a ton of berry bushes here and grapes too that could be harvested and there were other natural foods such as arrowroot that had duel purposes. Some like rose hips for teas that could bring us much needed vitamin C during the winter months to prevent scurvy from becoming a problem. But these new folks coming in...seemed the majority of them didn't know a blackberry bush from a peach tree! Seems like mostly cityfied folks to me and the hubby. And if that was the case, either someone was going to have to do a fat lot of fast teaching or get the stuff gathered up for them in order to be anywhere near safe about it. That could be where the bartering/trading would come in and made no hesitation about noting so either. I don't want to see people starving this winter but seems to me, just handing it too them was draggin along into the valley the same kind of bs that we sought so hard to leave behind us. Handouts aren't any good for folks to get used to. They end up depending on it that ways. With the old tired line "Well you did it for me once so now you have to do for me all the time. I deserve it!" Which is another boatload of bs. I was all for them trading for the stuff this year. But by hanged they had best be off their behinds and learning and out getting their own next year because this family was having a hard enough time doing for our own, let alone have to do for some other unknown family too! Oh that just burns my keester! And I knew before he would even ask, so I noted that part down too and added a PS, yes I would help teach the parts I knew. I told him in the note I was already teaching those around me this year to help them help themselves, but they were willing students. Would these folks be willing? Or, were most of them just looking for a safe rabbit hole to hide in with handouts thrown in every so often? I sure hoped not. But until some of them started asking me to teach them, they were highly suspect. And I didn't know any of the other first families that had it any easier than we did. We are all struggling to get in our stuff before winter. But, since they owned the valley and this land we were working wasn't ours just yet, I kind of had to tone it down. Which just struck me and my blood ran cold with fear. Say we made all these improvements on "their" land. We worked it, improved it, raised all these animals, built homes, etc...I'm sorry, but I didn't know these men from Adam. And not our Adam either. What's to say they wouldn't pull the rug out from underneath us and kick us out after all was said and done. Turn around and hand out our places to all these new folks coming in, most of which were family to the J's, the S's, and the H's? I mean, here we uprooted lock stock and barrel. Moved to someone else's land that we had never even met before this. Heck, we never even heard of them before this trip. How do we know that it wont happen just that way? I didn't like the way thinking like this made me feel, but something is nagging at the back of my brain. Something just don't feel right here. I don't know what it is. Maybe I am totally off base here. I don't want to think this way about anyone, but isn't that what we are all about? I mean we are trying to save our family aren't we? To keep them safe, make sure they CAN grow up, to provide a roof over their heads, a bed to sleep in and food to eat and all that? How could we blindly trust these men we never even knew? I suppose we should have asked all that before we took off on this little trip huh? Well hind sight is 20-20 they say. I talked to hubby about all of this earlier as we laid down to sleep tonight. He thinks I may be on to something but that we will never know until or if that time ever comes. I asked him what the heck we would do if that time ever did come? He told me not to worry that he was going to talk to Jerry in the morning and they would start making a back-up plan. For just in case. Look, you may know what happened already dear reader. I don't. And it is my job as the Matriarch of this here family to see to their health and well being. If I notice something like this and let it go by without ever discussing it with my husband, the Patriarch lol, then what kind of wife and mother would I be? What kind of Proverbs 31 woman would shirk things off that are so important like that? That's right, N O N E none! So we will continue on just as before, hoping that all will be okay. We will continue to put our hearts and souls into the land yet again, just like we did to our place back in TN. And all the while, I will keep on praying that all this never happens. That if they have that in mind, that the good Lord will change them. But for now...now that I have it all wrote out on paper, I am beat. Tired to the bone. I think I will go back and lay down with Mr. Patriarch again lol. Maybe this time the old brain pan will stop working overtime and I can get some rest. Before the rooster starts crowing.... Q
  10. LOL I think that would have to be the big boss lady!
  11. And I promise to behave while she's not here too! Q
  12.   July 28 - The Valley Well hubby and Jerry did their hunting and found it was deer eating into the corn field. We have two bucks hanging and I will be tending to those in the morning. Most of it is going to go either to jerky or ground meat in jars for now. We use the ground meat rather quickly, so I don't mind putting it into jars. They will have a quick turn around time so I should have them empty again asap. I am going to jerk as much as I can though. Since it isn't cool enough to keep the meat, even in the spring house, for any length of time, I am going to have to do this or it will go bad. The dogs are going to love this because they are going to have some good eating the next few days with all the scraps they will be getting. I should throw some out to the pigs too. I want them as fat as I can get them. We are planning on butchering when the weather turns cold and stays that way. We used to wait for the first snowfall, but I haven't a clue as to when that will be here? I do know that we have to be ready for winter before we had ever even thought about it back home. But back to butchering. We are going to thin the herds as much as we can for the winter. It is totally unrealistic that we keep as many as we have now. There is NO way we can store enough corn or hay for them and I refuse to let them just starve. So, we will either sell or butcher. And we don't want to keep all that we butcher. Some of it is going to go to the Lodge one Sunday for barter for other things that we need. So here is the problem. We have to butcher soon enough so that we can take it to the Lodge without having to worry about getting stuck there in a snow storm and not being able to get back home until Spring LOL. So I imagine the good Lord will clue us in as to when the time will be right. We will also take up some live animals for trade/barter too. I need to make sure we have ALL of our stores in by mid fall here since we don't know when the first snow will be. That includes not only food, but the butchering and the bartering/trading done. And we need to make sure everyone has warm clothes for the winter. And either boots or I will make them all moccasins out of the deer hides I am fixing to tan. Every hide from now on gets tanned. We are going to need them at some point for shoes or even for clothing.   Hubby is a whiz at tanning hides! He has started the deer and brain tanned it. While they were out hunting what ever it was eating the corn, they also found a varmint out there that he said he knows hardly ever comes down off the mountains. That's why he killed it. Said something had to be wrong with it for it to come down this far in elevation. He didn't want the dogs or the kids messing with it just in case it ended up to be rabid. It's called a Marmet. I'm not sure on the spelling since I have nothing to look it up in out here. But hubby says they are kind of a western ground hog or woodchuck. They even call them a rock chuck out here or a whistle pig! That is because they live in the rocks at 5-6000' elevation and whistle back and forth to each other, warning of danger or just chatting away lol. Hubby says they are excellent food cooked on the grill and bbq'ed, but since this one had a chance of being rabid, we burnt the carcass. He did skin it out and used acorn tannin's to work it with instead of using the brain tannins. He told me that old trappers used these things for shoe leather often replacing soles or making shoe laces from the hides. He said some Indians used the whole pelt and made shoes from them, turning them inside out so that the fur is on the inside. He told me how you make shoestrings is the same way we used groundhogs back home to make them. You tan out the hide and then cut it into a circle about a quarter inch thick. Use the whole pelt. Then hang it up in a tree or out in the barn from something high up to dry. So, we will use them for shoestrings. Now, here is how you use them for shoes he says. You brain tan them, pounding the brains into the hide with a rock or he says a meat tenderizing hammer but he isn't using mine for that LOL. After you get it beat in good then hang it up to dry. Once that's dry,, take it down and beat lard into the pelt same as you did the brain then wash it out. Beating the lard in softens it up. He said otherwise we would have to do it like the old Indians did. I asked him how they did it and he said "The women chewed it" HA! Not this woman! I'll get out my old meat hammer first! But it is tough and will make fine soles for shoes as they start to wear out this winter and next spring. And I heard mention something about the men going up into the mountains this winter hunting. If they do, hubby says he will tell them abut these critters and have them bag a bunch of them. We are ALL going to be needing shoes soon. Well time to get to bed. Hubby is a waiting. Blessings to all... Q
  13.   July 25 - the Valley Well hubby and Jerry have about got my green house done! They started working on it yesterday evening after dinner and chores were done. They got it sort of laid out. Then this morning, they started cutting some of the smaller limbs to size that they had gotten from cutting down the trees earlier this week. What a great idea! They think they will have enough to make it fit since it isn't a huge green house, just a smaller sized one. But it is big enough to walk in it and it will hook onto the cabin once they have it all set up. That will save one side from having to be put up and they can use those pieces of Plexiglas for something else then. They are going to hook the other sided together then but it up against the house off of the kitchen and then cut an opening inside the cabin to it. I think they have plans for a door also for it. It will be one of those doors that are cut in half with you being able to open the top half to let in the heat and leave the bottom half closed. Kind of like you might have seen on a barn. I think it will work out just fine since most of the heat in the house is from the wood stove in the kitchen anyways. I just hope this will work out. Once they get it up, the first things I am putting in there is green beans and some lettuce. I will also take a start from a few of the tomato plants to pot up and set inside too. Then I will have to decide what else I want to grow in there during the winter. We may have to set up lights in there off of the solar panel that is out on the roof. We don't have anything hooked up to it yet, but it's been up there since he opened up the crate it came in and set it up. LOL we have gotten so used to not having anything electric that we just have stayed that way. The children are now able to do their chores without us having to help them but we are still right there in the barn if we are needed to help them or they have questions. I had to laugh at Jerry the other morning. Esther asked him where the hens get all those eggs from. Knowing that we try to be as truthful with the children as possible left him high and dry as to an answer for such a young girl. He just turned red and stammered and looked to us for help. LOL here is this big manly man trying his best to answer a child. I got so tickled at that! Hubby told her that the rooster mates with the hen and that makes the egg inside of her. Which really isn't quite the truth, but it will do for now at her age. When she gets older and can understand about fertile and non-fertile, then we will explain it further. But just to see Jerry have such a hard time was one of those moments you never forget as a mother. Seems it was not that long ago that I had to explain the birds and the bees to him too. Oh how they grow up way too fast on you! We had wanted to go to the Lodge tomorrow for services and to see everyone, but hubby mentioned to Jerry that something is getting into the corn field at night, so they are going to sit up out there tonight and see what it is and if they can run it off or if they will have to bring whatever it is down. I have a feeling it's raccoons, but if it's deer, I may have to spend the day dressing it out instead of going to the Lodge. I think the men will be too tired to go anyways. We can't allow ourselves to be eaten out of house and home by the local critters that way. Every ear of corn will be needed this winter to feed the animals with. And believe me, every ear out here counts! The more the wildlife eats, the more word spreads around it's out there and then comes more critters and they will eat it all till it's gone. The time to stop it is now. So they will take the tent down and cold camp. I will make them up a basket to take with them and a big pot of coffee that they can warm up with those warmer pack things out of the bob's. I will wrap it up with a quilt and such the best I can but I know by morning it will be cold. I suppose it is better than none, but we never thought to bring thermos jars with us. So have to make do the best we can. And I will pack some sandwiches and cookies to munch on. I can't let them sit out there all night without anything. I am kind of hoping that they do bring back a deer or two. That will meet our needs for a good six months as far as meat goes. With fish added in for variety, we will be just fine. Then they will have to get another one or an elk close to winter, or during it depending on how much meat we get off of that hog we will butcher too when it gets cold. I know I keep going over and over our supplies for food, but it really is needed. If I make a mistake on the calculations, it could be very dangerous for us as a family. I don't want that to happen. Nor do I want us dependent on anyone else for food. Oh and I was going to write down some things on kefir too and forgot. It is going to have to wait until another time because it is getting late and I need to get going tomorrow and get things done, like laundry, ugh! Blessings to all... Q
  14. LOL I know...was just playing around....sorry if anyone took it the wrong way. Seems to always happen. You know, with all the wagon trains and the mule train coming into the valley...by now we should have had some kind of bad guys in the valley too. You can't drag that many people in the modern day with olden wagon trains sticking out like a sore thumb and not have folks wanting to know what's up and following it too. I don't know if that valley could even supply that many people for very long either. I would think within two or three years, most of the wildlife that are usable for meat would be hunted out or scared off. There are so many folks there now, with more coming, that it's like a city already. But this is UNreality, so anything goes. But you're right, something like that doesn't teach much of anything except that we all want to drag what we left behind with us still. Q
  15. LOL and they LOVE to buzz by our place at least twice a day, every day. I think they get a kick out of seeing us wave at them when they go past! Q
  16. Mother, that could add an interesting side story...you know the son was military for a LONG time. He could have some friends that would be able to "drop off on the way" to somewhere else...some much needed supplies or what ever...we could use the cover of not having to file a flight plan that way or...they could come in with the last wagon train? via chopper *(I'm thinking a Chinook LOL)* following it along for cover in case of attack and also would be moving in, carrying tons of supplies inside and out...oh man...that really WOULD be interesting. As things fall apart outside and get increasingly worse, three of Jerry's best friends contact him via secure military cell phone. These phones are made to reach long distances due to the types of missions the men often found themselves involved in. Jerry was surprised to hear it ring at all clear out here in the mountains, but then again, he had been places more secluded than this and had it wring before. It was his friends "the Three musketeers" so named for their love of swords they had collected from various missions around the globe. Anyway, things were getting very bad out in the "real world" as they called it lol. They and many others were leaving the military in droves because of the Executive Orders the new president Smith was enacting. Basically, he was negating half the Constitution, making it illegal for regular folks to own guns, gold or keep supplies of food on hand. They had had enough. But having been in the military for so long, they were single and had no family to come back to. They needed a safe place to stay and were willing to provide security, supplies and even a helicopter if needed! :wink (2): They had plenty of money of course, but figured they had best find a place and invest those monies into supplies to make it through what was coming instead of holding onto useless dollars. They knew Jerry had bugged out long ago and figured he had found a place to settle by now. It was worth a try to get ahold of him and see if he had room for three of his best buddies. Hey, they had saved his backside on more than one occasion and he had theirs too. It was a tight bond they all had together and they knew with things getting rough, it would be better if they could all stick together somewhere and ride it out.............................................................. LOL, yep...this could be VERY interesting indeed!! So...what do you think???? I know the other pilot isn't coming, but this could add an interesting twist to things. It could also be a way to make an emergency flight out of the valley too should someone have a life threatening injury or illness too. One that would leave them hanging in the valley that could be easily delt with in the city. Or what ever else comes to mind.... Q
  17.   July 19 - the Valley Well it's been a busy week-end around Mt. Dew lane. With Jerry back to help, we have gotten a LOT more accomplished. He and hubby cut hay and wood all week-end after doing morning chores with the children. They have been a big help also to me! Adam and Benjamin caught enough fish Friday to have a good meal. Plus there were some to get into the smoke house also. Not to be outdone, the girls got into the act and caught more. So we have the smokehouse going right now too and it's full of fish that was caught, cleaned (mostly lol), and put on racks by the children after hubby took the time to fillet them out for them. Adam was watching and learning while hubby did this and by half way, Adam was filleting fish like an old pro. So now when they go fishing and catch too many, Adam can fillet them out. I had thought about trying to can some, but we decided that it would be better just to smoke them and save the jars for other things. They children have been doing most of the weeding in the gardens and in the corn field too. I have an adult go with them to the corn field since it is a good ways from the house. I don't want them down there alone without someone with a gun with them. Too many of us moving into the valley right now and that has the wild animals on the move. It would be way too easy for them to be down there alone and one wander through. I am taking NO chances with our children. You know, they have come a long way in a short time. I think they have settled in here just fine. Maybe it is all the love they are given and the remote location that also helps make them feel safe. I don't know, but what I do know is the younger of the two are starting to act like they are just kids that have belonged to this family all along. The older two are adjusting fine, just coming along slower. I do suspect that is because they are afraid of forgetting their real parents. I told them that it is no shame to keep them alive in their memories. It's okay if they do that and talk about them once in awhile. They seemed to be pleased that I told them that. And I think that Adam more than Ruth would rather forget ever having had that last day happen. He is still having an occasional nightmare, but hubby will often go up to him if he hears Adam call out. There is a very strong bond growing between the two of them. I am so happy to see that happen too. All part of blending a family. Today brings more green beans out of the garden. I have put those on the screens to dry after taking the last batch off yesterday. You would be surprised how small they become after drying. I think you could fit half dozen quarts in one quart jar after they dry. Sure saves on the jar usage too. I am trying to get enough jars saved so that we will be able to can up some convince foods like stew, chili, spaghetti and meat sauce and the likes. It would make life during the winter a whole lot easier! We are slowing down on the flour usage too. Even with what Jerry brought us it looks like enough to last until next spring or summer. But if we are careful, it might last even longer. I am taking great pains to make sure that we don't get things such as pantry moths by storing it in barrels that Jerry brought much of his stuff home in. He emptied them out by putting all the stuff in his room, the barn, etc.. then gave us the barrels to use for what we needed them for. I am just glad he had the foresight to pack things like that. One of the barrels is water-tight so it is out under the edge of the roof to catch rain water in. Hubby rigged up a filter for the top so most of the dirt is caught, the big stuff and the smaller stuff settles to the bottom and we scoop water off of the top of the barrel. I don't use it for drinking water, we have a pump in the house for that, but it is useful for the garden, rinsing clothes or watering animals with.   July 23 - The Valley Well we have been so busy here this week that there has been no time left in the day to do any writing. Jerry brought me some replacement kefir, so that was started in milk. It is some wonderful stuff kefir is. I'll talk more about it later. Let me catch you up on what has been happening on Mt. Dew Lane. First, Jerry has decided to stay with us until he meets a gal and gets married. He sees no use to building his own place right now to be the only one in it. He says his talents can be better put to use right here helping his family for now. Which is fine by his ma! So, here he will stay for awhile. He isn't looking for a wife for now he says, there is just too much to do to get us all ready for winter. The nights are still not that warm here, not what we are used to anyways. It's enough to make me start on more quilts for the family in the evenings, which is why I am not writing much, just been far to busy with family things. I want two to three quilts for each bed. We may let the small children double up in a bed to help them keep each other warmer. Even with stacks of quilts, we look for it to be mighty cold by our standards. Jerry, Adam and the hubby have been cutting hay anywhere they can find good grass to do so. They are packing it in the barn, just as much as they can get into it. We don't know if there will be a second cutting since there hasn't been much rain, so we will get it where ever we can. Same goes with the wood. They are getting all of the dead fall around the property and Jerry's too. That is all getting cut and stacked with some being made into kindling for the stove. Then they are starting on the larger trees around the homestead. They want that out so that it wont fall on the cabin should we ever get a bad storm. Pines are cut and left laying for now. The hard woods are what they are cutting to length and splitting up and stacking by the house. Next project for them will be moving the outhouse closer to the cabin for the winter months. I think we have enough rope to make it from the cabin to the outhouse and to the barn should a blizzard develop this winter. I don't want anyone going out without a guide rope on them so that they wont get lost or turned around outside. I think we will let the children help with chores if it is clear outside only. they wont need to be out in a blizzard for any reason. The garden is slowly getting around to producing stuff. Right now it's mostly greens which are getting canned up, and green beans which are being dried. The children have taken it upon themselves to bring in fish to be smoked and they also go out and catch fresh for dinner some nights. And with all of us to feed now, that is quite the chore for them to do. They have even gotten to where they make a sort of assembly (or disassembly lol) line out of cleaning them. They have done good helping out around the homestead and we tell them so too. You can just see their faces light up when we tell them how proud of them we are. That we couldn't do this without all of their help, even little Esther and Benjamin's help is needed and praised. I have gotten about all of the berries I dare take without hurting the animal population around us. I have made juice out of the last of them figuring that if nothing else, if we run out of syrup or jelly, I will have the juice to make more if it's needed. We have also picked out as much local and natural foods as we can. I have tried to be as careful as possible not to take so much that we short nature or ourselves for the next year, but to get enough to supplement our diets with it. It is a hard and fine line to walk doing this. Since it is our first year here, how do we know what is enough and what is too much for us to harvest? Like I said, it's a fine line to walk. Cherries on the tree are about ready and I have had Jerry and the hubby throw some netting over the part of the tree with the cherries on them so that the birds don't get to the fruit. We will need all the fruit we can get into our diets. Vitamins only last so long and then that's it. So I find myself wondering if what I am storing for the winter contains enough of this vitamin or that. I am lucky in that one of my nursing books that I had brought along contains info on nutrition and what is in different veggies and fruits. I am trying to balance out what us older folks will need vs. what the children will need to grow up good and strong. With the dairy products from the goats and our dairy cow the children had, that will give us plenty of calcium and Vit. D. The children and I both need those. And as for the others, I believe with the mix of veggies we are keeping, it will bring us good health. I don't want us to become like the pioneers of old and their poor health from their inability to feed themselves well. And in with all the work we have been doing, we are making sure the children have time to play and just be kids too. We let them go swimming most every evening if they are up to it. Of course, we like going too! Jerry has a lot of fun getting in the water with his younger siblings and playing around with them, even though he is 20 years their senior lol. And they are getting a kick out of having such an older brother too. They are also aunts and uncles to children older than they are which was confusing to them at first until we explained it on paper so that they could see the differences wrote out. Jerry helped with that one lol. And we let them play around the barn and the yard. Hubby is watching for an old tire, but I am afraid those are too precious for folks to let go of. He was wanting it for a swing. So until he finds one, he took part of an older board and cut it to about a foot long and drilled two holes in each end by hand drill. Then he threaded a long rope into each set of holes and hung it up on a tree near the cabin so at least they have some kind of swing to use for now. Jerry thinks he can make other things out of wood for them to play on also. We were talking about that one night as we were wondering about the children and Christmas time and what could we make here at the homestead for them? I think hubby has already started making dressers or footlockers or some such for them for Christmas. I will be making each their own special quilt. I do that for each of my kids and they will be no different. Jerry though, he wasn't sure what to make them. So when I said something about having stuff outside to play with, he went off to his room mumbling something about measuring out some stuff...I didn't quite catch it all. It will be interesting though I am sure. His training has taught him how to make do with nothing at all, so having all this here to use should be interesting lol. But all of us so far are happy here in the valley. Of course we miss all of those who didn't come with us. But as I have said before, we made sure they would never want for anything by stocking up the cave so well before we left. We had thought that we all would be staying there until the invite to come here came along. Now that there are three less of us at the cave, I am sure they will have more than enough. But I still miss them badly. Sometimes worse than others. I keep myself busy as possible so that I spend little time thinking about it. Or else I might be so blue and so depressed that I am of no use to anyone here. I wonder if sometime in the future, when and if things settle back down, if we will leave this valley and venture back home again? It's always possible I suppose. I count those who are here in the valley with their whole families very lucky. Well, I do suppose I should return to working on Adam's quilt before it gets too late. So I will close out this entry and try to become more regular about it again. Q
  18. First, my appologies to all. I had to attend to family business for the past week +, so I had no time to post anything. Second...thanks to the pm person! That sure helps a lot for us writers and it is much appreciated. Third....gee I missed yall so bad!!!!!!!!!! Q
  19.   Friday - the Valley Oh what a day this has been! I am overjoyed to have had such a wonderful day and praise Him for His goodness to us all. Let me start at the beginning before I run off in twenty directions at once lol. I do have a way of chasing rabbit trails don't I?! We got the children up after I had made breakfast by myself this morning. We let them sleep in a little later since they had such a time yesterday and got a little worn out with all that swimming last evening lol. It did them all some good, got them clean and let them relax a bit and gave us some nice bonding time with them too. I am coming to think of them as "OUR" children more with each day. It's about complete as to their being ours and I would hope they feel the same, that they feel safe and well cared for. I hope they can feel the love we have for them and see that we mean only good for them, want to teach them how to grow up to be real ladies and gentlemen. I think the older ones see that last part, don't know about Esther and Benjamin just yet though. They are still only youngsters. Anyways, hubby went up and got the kids awake and moving. Hubby told me later on that he had to have a special talk with Adam last night too. I had wondered what they were talking about but hubby knew the look I had and just said "guy stuff honey" and I nodded and left it at that. Poor Benjamin, he came downstairs this morning in hubby's big T shirt and tripped over thin air and fell. I think he is going to have a goose egg on his forehead where he hit the wall lol. All that is hurt is that and his pride so far as I can tell. I made a big deal, getting an ice bag with cool water in it, checking his eyes which are a beautiful deep pale blue, watching his head, etc... I think he felt so much better just from all the attention he was getting more than anything else lol. He's fine now. After the big commotion, I got everyone around and we finally got sat down to breakfast. Ops, no hubby? LOL he was still out in the barn doing chores. So I told the children to go ahead and eat after saying a prayer. I told them I would sit at the table with them and have a cup of coffee then eat with Papaw when he came in from the barn. So we bowed our heads and I asked a blessing on the meal, on our work today and on our family, especially for Jerry who was out there trying to get home to us and we didn't know where he was or what was going on. I asked that He would keep him safe until he was back home again. Amen. And then the elbows started flying LOL! I have seen children eat before, having had twin boys and a daughter not quite 2 years apart in age, but these 4 could put two teen age boys to shame in how much they ate! And you cannot make enough pancakes for Esther. She LOVES them and Mamaw's blackberry syrup lol. Adam just eats anything as long as it is on a plate, hot, cold, not moving, not nailed down lol...Ruth though, she eats well but she is dainty about it. Someone has went to great pains to teach that child table manners that would match the Queen of England! I am amazed by it and wonder what other surprises by her are in store for me yet. It makes me sad that I never got to meet their parents. Who we don't bring up or talk about unless the children bring it up first. We don't want to keep throwing it up in their faces that they aren't around. They will deal with this on their own terms in their own way and make it through okay with our help. About half way through breakfast, I heard the cabin door open. I was sitting with my back to it and just figured it was the hubby coming in from the barn for breakfast. Except I saw Benjamin's eyes grow large as saucers before my world went black!..... "Guess who?!" I heard a familiar voice say to me. Oh no, it isn't? It couldn't be...could it?! I found it hard to breathe as if all the air in the room had suddenly been sucked out of it. I got dizzy, the room was spinning. I thought I would faint. I went to stand up and promptly passed out on the floor, hitting my head on the table on the way down. It must have taken hubby and everyone all working together to get me into the bed. That's where I woke up sometime after lunch anyways. Complete with Benjamin's ice bag with cool water in it on MY forehead LOL! What a sweet heart to share HIS ice bag with mamaw...I gave him a BIG hug for that later. When I came to, Esther and Benjamin were sitting on the floor beside the bed coloring in an ABC coloring book that I had brought along for myself should I have another stroke lol. It really does help...anyways, there they were just coloring away. I watched them being so careful to stay inside the lines. I thought about that and realized they needed to learn to color outside the lines too, or think outside the box or the normal. Out here coloring inside the lines isn't always good. But they sat there chattering away, not noticing I was awake. "Do you think mamaw will be okay Benjamin?" "Yeah Esther, I'm okay and I hit my head too this morning. She will be okay because she has MY ice bag to use even if we don't have any ice." "But what if she doesn't wake up like our moms did?" My heart about broke with that one..."No, she will wake up because God gave her to us. I know He wont take her away because she and papaw have to make sure we grow up good. I heard papaw say that the other night to mamaw and she said yes." "Okay Benjamin, if you say so but she sure is sleeping a long time." "Maybe she is just tired from working so hard Esther, did you ever think of that?" LOL, I couldn't stand it any longer and started moving around in the bed so they knew I was waking up. I closed my eyes again so they wouldn't know I was watching them and listening in. Once I did open my eyes again, they were both standing over my side of the bed, staring down at me. "Are you okay mamaw?" I heard in unison. LOL, I grabbed them both and pulled them into the bed with me. "Yes, I am just fine" I said as the ice bag fell off onto the covers. I hugged them hard and for a good long time. I smiled at them and told them just how much they are loved by me and by papaw. Then I started tickling them and we all got the giggles. Evidently we made a big bunch of noise because next thing I knew, everyone else came banging into the bedroom to check and make sure all was well. I told them if a herd of elephants could make more noise than they just did, it would be a wonder lol. Now everyone got to giggling and laughing. I assured them all I was fine and I was ready to get up out of bed and had a hankering for a big big cup of coffee! One of them ran out to the kitchen to get me a cup as hubby helped me out of the bed slowly this time and get out to the kitchen. I stood beside the table watching MY SON get me coffee! MY SON! It really was Jerry! Oh how my mothers heart had longed for this day. How many times I had stopped what I was doing just to say a prayer for his safety. How many hours over the years I had worried and fretted and wondered where in the world was he and was he safe? Was he being shot at or worse, had been shot? And here he was all 6'3" of him handing me a cup of hot coffee! I told him to set that down on the table and give his mother a hug!! He grabbed me up off of the floor and hugged me tight to him. Why is it he has to do that every time lol. I know I am a foot shorter than he is but dang! LOL I loved every second of it. I cried so bad I think I soaked his shoulder. He kept telling me not to cry, that he was home. And the more he said that, the more I had cried. Hubby finally came over and helped Jerry get me sat back down at the table. I went to introduce the children to Jerry, but everyone laughed and said papaw already did that hours ago. Oh...ouch yeah the headache. I passed out at breakfast didn't I? Well duh said Jerry lol. Oh I loved that sassy boy and I had missed him so much for so many years. Hubby got he and Jerry a cup of coffee too and they both sat down so we could talk. The children, having already heard the tale decided they needed to go back down to the waters edge and see if they could find some gold again lol. Hubby told them it was okay to go but NO swimming unless an adult was with them. He charged Adam with watching everyone and then they were off. The door banged shut and my head pounded. It's still pounding some yet tonight but I have to get this down in my journal so I don't forget any of it. It is too important to me to loose any of it to future fuzziness of memory. Hubby asked Jerry how the mule train trip went. He said it was slower going than that of the wagon train. We thought it would be faster and Jerry said it would have been had they not had to dodge around towns, stay away from any roads or houses as much as possible including the homestead they had stopped at before. They were constantly on the look out for robbers and gangs. Even had come across one gang that was camping out in their path to here that caused a long bypass around them at night so they wouldn't be taking a chance on being seen. Jerry said it's hard to hide 12 mules during the day, but at night they just kind of blend in lol. He said his night vision goggles helped, but he had to take the lead mule and walk it instead of riding it so they didn't go too fast and spook the other mules or riders in the dark. I guess I understand what he was saying. So there were 12 mules? I asked him. And what were they carrying? Jerry said they had a LOT of early rye grain for seed, enough salt so that everyone in the valley would be getting 5 pounds per family that they could pick up at the lodge. Jerry was nice enough to bring ours to us along with a stack of letters and a few packages that went onto the pile of other unopened packages lol. I really DO have to get those opened just in case there is something in them that we could be using right now to help with gardening or canning. I already had my rooting powder and my half of a green house lol. I wondered what else we had sitting there? That's when Jerry handed me a very tiny package that he took out of his shirt pocket. He had brought it all this way there in his shirt. Just for his mom. Sigh.... I picked it up and looked at him, my eyes already misting over again. Such a day of happy tears! He asked me if I was going to open it and I told him yes, right after he finished his story. So he continued on to tell us that there were very few small packages that made it through and they were being sent on up to the Lodge for them to be picked up by the owners. Mr. S. was to check them for a name and then send a note by messenger to the family that needed to pick up their small packages. He said there were a few letters too that made it to the Rockin J in time to be brought out by the mule train. A good bunch of those were for Mt. R.'s from family there at the Rockin J that were getting ready to leave as soon as the oxen and wagons were back there and rested up from the last wagon train. He thought they may be there by now. He sent a rider up to Mt. R.'s, a 16 year old girl names Kelsey, to deliver the mail to them and let them all know that their family was safe and preparing to leave the Rockin J soon to come here on the last wagon train. He said he really needed to go up to Cleft in the Rock to talk to them. Seems he had helped rescue some of her family in a town called Carterville where they had been taken hostage by a bunch of thugs who stopped them from continuing on their journey to the Rockin J by car/truck. Seems that is happening more and more now out in the world. Jerry thinks it wont be too much longer before the military is called out to help keep the order, that it is not safe anywhere now. Which is unconstitutional, but the President is able to use emergency Executive Orders to get around that. Jerry is going to stay here in the valley. He figures if he is out in the world, they, they army, will be able to find him and make him go back in again. He wont do it either. He has had enough and says that this president is NOT his commander-in-chief. Which means he would NOT be able to follow any orders that were given by him. So to be able to help us in any sort of way keep the valley safe and secure, he is staying here now. And he wants Mt. R's to know their family IS safe and together and ready to come to the Valley. Since he was head of the operation to get their family out of that hostage situation, he feels like he should talk to them and answer any questions they may have about it and what ever else they have questions about. Hubby asked Jerry how close to the valley all the problems seems to be happening at. He said it was a good piece off yet, but when they made it down the hill yesterday, they went ahead and made camp at the base and stayed the night there just in case they were followed and could "take care of the problem" right then and there before they even got too far into the valley. Problem? Take care of it? It was going to take some getting used to, hearing my son talk of taking lives in such a way. It was like I was torn between what was right and what was just. I knew he had a good foundation in the Word, I saw to that myself with all the children when they were young. So I knew he didn't do it lightly or with no malice, but out of need for safety, either for himself, others or both. It still hurt for some reason. He also said there were 3 other people that came on the mule train with him, but they had went onto the Lodge with it. He decided to come straight here with one of the mules and his horse to bring us our mail and packages and to let us know he was HOME....Home. Finally my oldest boy, so many years spent away from me in distance only...was HOME. Yes, I cried again as Jerry put the tiny wrapped package into my hands and said "Here Mom. It's time, open this now please." I looked at him and could only nod yes. I opened it carefully, trying not to even rip the paper it was wrapped up in. I would save it forever. It was a little box. All in dark Scarlett velvet. I opened it up and a chain spilled out of the edge. And in the center, fixed there so that it could be read was a golden charm. It said #1 MOM on it fixed to a heavy gold hook and strung on a heavy golden chain. I cried in earnest then. Hubby took the box from my hands and looked at it. He smiled and handed it to Jerry saying "Here, it's only fitting and right that you put this on your mom." So Jerry took it out of the tiny beautiful box and hooked it around my neck so that the charm was in the front and could be read by all who saw it. He bent down and kissed my forehead. I looked at him, this tall young man in my kitchen. Suddenly I saw a small boy, dressed up in army camouflage the same as his brother and friends. They were getting ready to go out on one of their "missions" in the palmetto bushes out back of our home in Florida where they grew up. His face dirty and wet with sweat. He was saying that when he grew up, he wanted to be a "real" soldier. I blinked and saw him again as he was now. Tall, full of muscles, blue eyes twinkling as they always had. Yes, the little boy still lived inside there. I knew by that twinkle. I sighed and asked him the most pressing question on my mind at the moment. "So, you are going to stay here with us right? Is there a woman in your life yet Jerry?" "Yes mom, I thought I would stay here with the family if you don't mind. Larry said you all have a room for me here and I don't think it would be smart to go out by myself and build a cabin just yet. I would rather wait on that until I meet a young lady and get serious enough to get married. I will go ahead and get my 40 acres and I may work it for hay or something, but no building right now." So that answered my question and my prayers. I am happy beyond words tonight and just as tired lol. So I do imagine I should close this journal and get myself to bed. 5 a.m. comes early with youngsters around! It's so nice to have most of my children here now, from age 30 to age 7. It's a peaceful house right now as I hear my son and my husband snoring lol. Well off to bed for this #1 MOM! Blessings to all... Q      
  20.   Thursday - the Valley Still wondering when the mule train is coming in. Hubby is worried and so am I that something has happened to Jerry. I am spending the better part of the day pacing and worrying. I cannot help it, that's my son out there with no way to communicate that I know of. Silence is NOT golden in this case. Hubby is all but ready to go looking for them. He is afraid they may have been attacked for their supplies if it is getting that bad out there. I have to say that I agree, but that maybe we need to wait just a couple more days first. Maybe if they aren't here by the beginning of the week, he should go talk to Mr. S. about sending out some of the men to look for them. This is agonizing. I want to just cry, but that wont give anyone strength and we need plenty of that right now. Well I got some sourdough starter done today so we can get used to using it. Once the yeast runs out, all we will have is sourdough using the natural yeasts of the area in it. I don't often use potatoes since most all of them went for seed, so I just mixed up some starter with some of the yeast I have left. There were a ton of them on the internet and I had copied off a bunch and put them in binders before we left. I have binders for everything, but the kitchen one is what we are using the most of right now. I got that done and then went on to starting laundry. Ruth and Ester helped me out with that while Adam and Benjamin went with hubby out to the south pasture to check on the hay they rolled over yesterday morning. The barometer is dropping so they might have to bring it in before it's all dry yet. We will sit it near the doors on the front of the barn so that it will get the breeze and dry out the rest of the way if they do have to get it. I don't want the barn to catch on fire lol. But we do need the rain though. Some of the more tender plants in the garden are starting so show some signs of heat stress, and if the weather doesn't break, we are going to have to water by hand. Either that or hubby is going to have to use the PVC pipe we have left and run some kind of irrigation system to the garden. Which isn't a bad idea, but it would be quick and be sitting above ground for now. We would either have to bury it this fall or take it back up for the winter so the pipes don't break. I don't want to chance water getting back into the lines some how and bursting what little pipe we have left. There is no getting any more of it. On the plus side of the nice weather is the laundry is drying quickly lol. We got most all of it done today. I have two of the old fashioned scrub boards to use in the wash tubs, so that makes it easier than standing in them and stomping the clothes around with your feet lol. Although that might feel kind of nice with it being hot out! Hubby and the boys made it back with a wagon load of hay. They are going back for another one here shortly. But hubby says he thinks it is dry enough to just put away in the loft. I will go by what he thinks. They did stop long enough to grab a bite to eat and then they were off again. Adam watered the horses while they were stopped too. He is a real help around here. Sometimes I don't know how we made it this far without the children here to help us. They really are becoming a part of this family and hubby and I are growing very attached to them rather quickly. It wouldn't be the same around here without them now. All the giggling in the mornings, pillow fights in the evenings, chatter all day long, watching them play...all of it has a special place in my heart now. They are becoming "our" children. Well while hubby was out doing the hay, the girls and I went down by the spring house. I had seen some stuff growing down there that I wanted to check out. So we took my medical and wild food books with us. I found some arrowhead growing there and got a few up. They are still pretty small so I didn't pick any more. Out in the sunny areas I did find some patches of wild onion growing, so we did dig up a good bunch of that. I will use those in our cooking, even though they aren't as strong as a regular onion and really small, they do have a good taste to them. I just wish they were as strong as they smell lol. The grapes seem to be coming along fine. And we stumbled onto a patch of what they call Prairie potatoes. The pioneers used to eat them all the time, from about Kansas westward, and they look like a small sweet potato. They are a little smaller than one, but they are good raw, boiled or roasted. So I dug up a good bunch of those, leaving more than I took of them. I will use those tonight with dinner and see how they go over before looking around for more lol. There was one other thing I saw that I got bunches of and that was goldenrod. I got the entire plant. The root is good for burns and even the flowers are good for a sore throat or used in a tea for fever reduction. Sounded like something good to have around for cold and flu season! It is also very good in treating bladder and kidney infections. I have a feeling that's because of it's tendency to have a diuretic effect on people. It is amazing that there is so much out here in nature that we can use if we just pay attention to it. I have been looking at my herbal books at night before bed, wondering if any of this stuff grows around here. I bet Mother would know what basics are here. I need to write her a letter and find out so I can get some of this stuff put up before it's too late in the summer to get any of it. I know we have already missed the spring season for gathering, I would hate to miss the summer one also. Hard to tell just how long all our "modern" medicines will hold out. After hubby and the boys got back with the last load of hay, we all took off down to the river to go fishing for dinner. Ruth, Ester and Benjamin thought they would rather play than fish. That was until hubby told them if they didn't fish, they didn't eat lol. Boy did the lines hit the water then! He was kidding with them of course, but they didn't know that at the time. And he didn't tell them either. They have to learn out here in the wild that if you don't know how to feed yourself here, you wont make it. Yes, they are young still, but this is a different world than the one we left. It's harsh and mean and it doesn't give a rats behind if you are big or little. I want these children to know how to feed themselves if they ever got separated from us for any length of time. And they will have to have the knowledge for later on in life too. It wouldn't be a bad idea for the hubby to teach the girls how to hunt also. I mean who wants to live on fish all the time lol. What if they don't get married right away and decide they are tough enough to go out on their own? All things we as parents have to think about out here. It is a LOT different than raising children in town, in civilization. Well after a nice fish dinner lol, we all got in our shorts and a top and went back down to the river to cool off for awhile. We let the kids swim for a bit and we did too. It felt so nice after a hot day of working. I just floated around for a bit the got out and dried off. I sat there with hubby watching the children swimming around. Ester was doing good now! She had caught right on to what hubby had taught her and was able to swim on her own now. Most of the time, they were up walking along the shore though looking for "stuff" lol. I guess they thought they would find shells or something equally as neat. I told them to watch for gold in the rocks and their eyes got so big lol. Hubby explained that this river comes down out of the mountains and some mountains have gold in them out here in the west. And who was to say that one of those mountains where our river came from didn't have gold in it? Well that got their attention. I think they wanted to keep looking after dark with flash lights lol. Hubby told them they could always look again tomorrow after the chores were done, but that it was time now for bed. They all fell asleep tonight talking about finding gold rocks big as boulders LOL!! Hubby and I just giggled at them and said it would be nice to be that young again. Well I am back to bed now...blessings to all... Q
  21.   July 14 - The Valley Well here we are again. More work today toward getting us ready for winter. Adam and Mr. Q were out with the two man saw and hand saws cutting wood for the winter. They are cutting out the dead fall first since it wont have to age as much as the green wood would have to. They brought back a load in the wagon and will split it then stack it for us near the cabin. After lunch, they went out to the south of us and started cutting hay too. Tomorrow they will go back and wind roll it so that it will dry more evenly. Then in about three days after that, if the weather holds, then they will go out and bundle it up and get it into the hay loft in the barn. I think they are going to keep cutting wood on the half days for the next week anyways. We will go from there after assessing how much wood we have vs. how much we know that we will need because we have heated with wood many winters now. The other children and I have spent time out in the garden pulling weeds. Also got to the weeds in the herb garden too. That horseradish I planted down by the river when we first arrived is doing well too. About half of the berries are ready to be jarred up, the ones we had put on the drying racks first. They sure are a lot smaller than they started out being. But a good soaking should bring them about back where they started at. At least we will have some kind of fruit this winter. The old fruit trees will give a little too. The apple tree looks the best and the cherries are about ready. Another week and they should be ready. Only thing is, they are not sweet cherries, they are pie cherries so they are tart. I think the children thought they could just pick them and eat them lol. Sure got some sour looking faces. I like them dried, it sweetens them up a little that way. I don't like dried sweet cherries, they are too sweet for me. But we will have enough for a few batches of pie filling and maybe put up some just in water for making cobblers and such, throw some in a cake or what have you. The sunflowers I planted near the cabin are starting to look pretty. Hubby wants to dust them with a light coating of flour though. He is following bees. His grandma taught him how to do that and let the bees get it on their feet. He will try to follow a trail back to their hive with it. I don't know about that. Seems like looking for a needle in a hay stack to me, but hey, he is really good at looking for things like that, and if he can find a hive more power to him! I sure would like to have the honey! Would save on how much sugar we use. I know the honey isn't going to be a whole lot, but at least it would be some kind of sweetener for when the sugar runs out. It makes for good medicine too for cuts and wounds. And sore throats with a bit of lemon in it. That is going to run out too some day and then we will have to get creative. I have already cut it out of some of my canning, since I had never used it until a year ago. We will make adjustments to our canning times and have to pressure can some things to make up for the lack of it, but out here in the wilderness you don't have a choice. It's either make do or do without. Our little oxen has finally perked up some. Mom got switched to a new pasture last week and after that, she seemed to want to nurse again. I have a suspicion Mother was right about her eating something that was making her milk taste bad to the baby, so she wouldn't nurse right. She had no problems sucking my fingers with milk from the goats on them. None at all! She about sucked them off my hand lol. So I knew it wasn't that. Hubby finally out of desperation to save her, turned mom into the horse pasture with them. Now the baby is getting stronger and looks a lot more alert and ready to play lol. I'm just glad it worked out, I hated the thought of having to put her down. They pigs are growing quickly too. The older one, the male will be butchered this fall or early winter when it gets good and cold outside. Going to have to make sure we have the smoke house emptied and ready for that. I would like to have some honey for the hams when we are ready. I got to thinking this evening while finishing the pot of stew and watching Ruth make her biscuits that it sure would be nice if Jerry was home. We sure do need his help to get ready for the winter. Another adult male here to help chop wood and cut hay, someone to help with the corn harvest, etc...might even talk him into watching the children one week-end so hubby and I could go around visiting! Oh that would be so nice. I would love to go see Annarchy, Mother and Mt. R's! We see the SF's frequently, but hardly see Mother. I did get to talk to her a little bit while we were at the Lodge Sunday, but we had to leave right after dinner so didn't get all that much time to talk. Sad. If I had realized how lonely it would be I would have asked hubby to move closer to them. But he is a Southern boy and just had to be at the South end LOL. Well it is getting late and I imagine I should be off to bed. Blessings to all... Q
  22. July 12 - the Valley Well today was a fun day! We all pitched in together and got chores done before it was even light out yet. Ruth and I got breakfast done, a quick eggs, toast and jelly with milk/ coffee. We got all the children dressed and I got a picnic basket packed with some ham sandwiches from the left over ham the other night. I tossed in some napkins, a jar of sun tea and a jar of peaches and a few bowls, spoons, etc... I figured we might need it, or not. Never know. I grabbed the two loaves of bread that I had made two days back to take to the Lodge today. It was all I had time to make. Hubby grabbed some of the meat out of the smoke house to take also, didn't see what it was, too dark out lol. But we checked to make sure everything was okay for the day and we set off down Mt. Dew lane to the Lodge for the Sunday service. Ester and Benjamin laid down on a quilt in the back of the wagon and went back to sleep for awhile. It was still dark out and the children weren't used to getting up quite this early. Poor things, they were asleep in no time. Ruth and I sat in the back of the wagon just looking around, or trying too. Adam and the hubby had the front seat. Adam was visibly happy with his place beside his papaw in the wagon. LOL, just like men to put us women in the back! As it started to get light out, we could see a bit more. The valley had changed since I was in it last. I had been the one staying home to watch the place and it was a rare treat for me to get away. It was so dark with color, the greens and the mountains still in the shadow of darkness yet. By the time you could almost see, we were at the turn at the river to go north. Hubby stopped and looked thinking maybe SF's clan might be coming soon or had passed recently. He got out to check the tracks. Nope, nothing too recent. The dew was heavy this morning and he saw nothing disturbed yet. So we sat there a few minutes listening and waiting. No one had showed yet so we made our turn and went on ahead. We followed the lane that was becoming well worn near the river. It would take us right on up the the Lodge, or we could just go straight north over land, which was shorter, but not as well worn nor as pretty. We stayed with the river lane. Ester and Benjamin woke up as we neared the Lodge. You could see from a distance that there were many folks there already. Probably the ones who didn't have so far to travel being the first ones in. We would be one of the last and probably one of the first ones to have to leave. We couldn't stay too long after dinner in order to make it home before dark, but it was worth the long travel time just to see all the others again! As we drew near the Lodge, the kids eyes got wide and I asked them what was the matter? They pointed to a red colored sleigh and said "Santa is here!" I had to laugh...I told them no it wasn't Santa but it might be a good friend or an elf that would let them sit in the sleigh if they were good. I had to wonder just who was riding around in that? Looked like something Mt.R.'s or Mothers clan might have gotten ahold of. It was so cute! I wondered how hard it would be to find something that would stain our wagon red LOL. As we pulled up at the Lodge out back so hubby could unhitch the horses, I saw so many unfamiliar faces. I realized that in this valley that was so secluded, we were even more secluded down at the south end it seemed, for we knew no one. Sadly I got out of the wagon, no one recognizable to me. I told hubby that I would take Ruth, Ester and Benjamin with me and Adam could stay and help him if that was okay? Benjamin piped up and said he wanted to stay with the men folk. Hubby laughed and said "Okay young man, come help me unhitch these horses then and you can stay with Adam and I until time for services." Benjamin lit up, finally able to hang out with the guys lol. So Ruth and Ester and I made our way into the Lodge and out to the kitchen to see Chef. I took the loaves of bread and the other things we had brought like the meat and placed it on the long table with the other food already laid out there. So many people! I didn't see Chef. He must be in the green house or outside some where. So I took the girls and we went out into the Lodge to find a table to sit at and get places for the guys too. CeeGee's had a wonderful service. But we ate a quick dinner afterwords and had to tell everyone good bye so that we could get back to the homestead before dark. The children wanted to stay and play with some of the other children that they knew from the wagon train. I told them that it would have to be another time when we could stay longer. They seemed to understand, they didn't like it but they knew we wouldn't tell them that just to be mean. Thank goodness for that! So we loaded up and headed back to Mt. Dew Lane. It was a couple of hours on the trail again, with the younger ones oohing and aaaw'ing over the babies and moms out eating berries and playing near the river. We seen more than a few deer and it seemed like the fish wanted to all jump up out of the water at once. Hubby spotted a good place to go cat fishing too. He saw a bunch of them rolling in the shallows along one small bend. He said he would file that away for a later time lol. That meant he was going fishing pretty soon. For catfish. Ruth and Adam were pretty quiet going home. I caught Ruth nodding off more than once and told her it was okay to lay down and nap if she wanted to. So she and the little ones laid down in the back of the wagon for awhile. They woke up right after we made the turn to go home. Hubby and Adam got to talking about needing to cut some hay and get the barn loft filled for winter. And they also needed to get busy cutting the dead fall for heating wood for the winter and getting it stacked up. Hubby thought they would be able to use the two man saw for that. It would take awhile and it would be a whole lot easier if Jerry was home, but that they had to do with what we had now. And it was getting too late to just keep waiting for something that just might not happen from the looks of things. Which made me about cry, but hubby was right. We couldn't keep waiting for Jerry to show up. There were no guarantee's he would. So the plan for tomorrow is this, Adam and hubby will go to the south part of the homestead and start cutting hay. Then they will start cutting wood for the rest of the day. Once the hay dries in a few days after wind rolling it, they will bale it up best they can and get it to the barn via the wagon and get it stacked up in the loft. Same with the wood, they will chop and split it with the two man, the single saws and the maul axe and the wedges. It will get brought up to the cabin via the wagon and stacked there for the winter. Once it is up then they will work on a kindling pile too. They will be cutting the branches and stuff down for the kindling. Also in between there, they are going to have to keep on top of hoeing the corn field. Ruth, Ester, Benjamin and I will work on the garden hoeing, canning and drying and such. If Jerry gets here, we will set him to work with the guys. We need to stay warm this winter and we will have to have a way to feed the animals. The corn field is all dent corn for them. That will dry on the stalk and then get picked into the wagon and brought to the barn. We will do what we need to with it there instead of out in the field exposed to the elements. I discussed with hubby that I though even though we might have enough jars and such, that I think I will dry the green beans instead of canning them. It would save us over 5 dozen jars and lids that way. And the storage space would be smaller. He thought that was a good idea and maybe we could also do some of the other garden produce the same way. I agreed with him and told him that what ever we could dry or root cellar in the spring house, we would do instead of canning it. So tomorrow, the children and I will get the garden hoed and pick green beans and get them spread out on the large screen racks to dry in the sun. I have two racks now of berries that are dried and ready to put away. Those will get done tomorrow also. It will only take a very few jars to put them in verses what it would have taken had we canned them instead. I think we will do the same with the meat too. Dry it or smoke it instead of canning it. Our smokehouse isn't that big, but we could figure out a way to hang some in the pantry inside and some in the spring house too. That way, if it snows too bad to make it to the spring house, at least we will have some inside. I think we need to see about having some kind of storage space in the barn too. Once it gets cold out, it wont be too hard to keep things like it is during the summer months when it's too warm. So now we have our plan finalized. Hubby said he is also going to try and start fashioning some of the limbs the cut off the trees for the green house supports too. That will be nice if he could get that together by fall. I still can't believe we got all of it but the metal frame LOL....somedays you have to laugh or you will cry yourself to death out here! Once we got to our turn off, I handed out the picnic basket contents to everyone. I got them to eat now then we might get the children to bed once we get home and get them washed up. Going to have to let them play a little bit and work off some of that steam they built up sitting in the wagon all afternoon lol. So once we got to the homestead, hubby let us off near the cabin and he and Adam went to the barn to take care of the horses, get the wagon put back up and do the evening chores. Oh were the dogs ever happy to see the children back home. Well , yes, us too lol. But they have really gotten attached to the children. So Ruth, Ester and Benjamin took off in the yard playing with the dogs for awhile. I got inside and got beds ready for the night and checked to make sure all was well. It was. After everyone was in for the night and washed up, hubby and I tucked the children in together for once lol. They really seemed to like that too and that was good. Hubby and I enjoy it too! We told them all good night and gave out hugs and kisses freely. After we got back downstairs hubby said it was time for us to go too. We have a full day ahead tomorrow and he needed his rest. Said his knees were starting to ache too...hummm...must be some rain coming.... Q
  23. Someone say chocolate???? I know someone who actually makes these! And they might be a bit pricey, but oh are they ever good! And he is a world famous chocolateer (sp?) who makes other chocolates that are SOOOO GOOD! Here is a link if you want to look around. http://www.chocolatbydaniel.com/ LOL I wonder if I could get him to send me another freebie box to the valley??? Hhehehehehehe.... Q
  24.   July 10 - the Valley Well we managed to gather quite a few blackberries today. The bushes were good and full even after the storm we had earlier here. I imagine the berries were still green enough that they had a good hold and weren't easily knocked off of the bushes. Which was a nice surprise. I wasn't expecting to get quite so many! We went much as we did before with hubby leading the way to the spring house with the morning eggs and milk, the children and I with our many buckets. And the dogs. And the side arms. I take NO chances with our new family! Too many bears have been sighted in the valley eating berries for me to be foolish. I did trade hubby my .380 for his .45 though. Even though I knew it still wouldn't be enough gun to stop a bear, it would slow him down enough for us to escape (I pray). And while we were picking berries, Adam and the hubby went back to the cabin. Hubby was to build me a fire outside to do my canning in and he was to get the large granny ware canner full of water and set it to boiling so that it would be ready when I was. With all the berries near ripe, it didn't take us long to fill all those buckets, bags and baskets. I had made two more baskets with the grape vines. It held quite a few berries and they would have fell through the bottom, at least the small ones, if we would have not put just a plain piece of cloth in the bottom of them. It did work great like that. Which reminded me, I got to write Mother another letter! I forgot to tell her how I was making the baskets...duh! I think I will take her one on Sunday to the Lodge and give to her. She can use it to her place or take it apart so she can figure out how to make her own using that one as a guide. I'll write it down too and put it inside the basket for her. But if she is like me, I do better with a pattern I can take apart and play with better than written instructions. I learn best by sight and by doing. Others learn better by reading, then doing. I'm just thick headed or so says hubby lol. Well when we got back, I had Ruth pump us a sink full of water and then we started emptying some of the buckets of berries in there and got them sorted and washed up. I checked the water outside and it was pretty hot but not yet boiling. Man the water here takes forever to boil! That's why I had hubby start it while we were still picking. I looked over by the barn and saw hubby and Adam out with the compound bow and arrows shooting at a hand drawn target. Good! I was hoping that he would teach Adam how to hunt with the bow too. I knew Jerry and my other son Tony were experts with a compound bow and Tony had taught the hubby how to shoot with one. Tony never failed to bring home enough meat in the fall to feed his family for the year. I was so glad when hubby asked him to teach him how to shoot too. Hubby wasn't quite as good as Tony or Jerry, but he could hold his own. I was so happy to see him practice. This means he is fixing to go hunting before long and most likely for turkey...yummy! He always went turkey hunting back home, got one every year for Thanksgiving and we deep fried it. There is something about wild turkey that deep frying brings out the best of taste in it that way. And we only cooked the breast. Not much else on a wild turkey is fit to eat. The legs are so tough you can't chew them lol. Might make goot shoe leather though lol. And the dark meat is so stringy that it about makes us sick to eat it. So we only breast them out. We do the same with the wild ducks too. I can breast out a duck in two or three minutes depending on what kind/how tough the feathers are to yank out. Anyways...back to the berries! Ruth and the two younger children were at the sink picking out the good berries from the water and putting them in a colander. Once they had a good bunch I would put them into a pan and mash them one layer thick with a hand potato masher. Then I sat it on the stove on lower heat to get the juice cooked out of it. Then I put that into cheesecloth and hung it up over a bowl to drip out into. Little by little we all kept at it. The little ones were getting tired by now so I stopped long enough to make them a jelly sandwich and a drink. After they ate, I had them wash up and go take a nap. Just for a half hour, it was going to be a long day. Ruth and I continued to clean berries until we had all the containers emptied and sitting on the floor. We got all the berries washed up and I got them mashed and dripping into the bowl. I had enough already to start my jelly. So I got one large pan out and stoked up the stove. I measured out 6 cups of juice and 6 cups of sugar and a little bit of my precious lemon juice in it too and one pat of butter to cut down on the foaming. Which reminded me to call up the hubby. I sent him to the spring house to get the cream off the cows milk so Ruth could churn it up in our little glass jar that had the churn to it. We needed more butter! I showed Ruth how to work it and let her sit at the table doing that while I made the jelly. I got the jelly jars ready and got the lids in some water and set them on the stove to heat up too. I put the jelly on and started stirring. One thing about jelly, never put the heat to it and then turn your back on it. Just might boil over on you! I kept stirring and waited until it finally came to a boil. I let it go for 4 minutes then tested it on the spoon. Not yet. So I let it go another minute and took it off the heat. I knew that if it went more than 5 minutes back home, it would be so thick you would have to cut it with a knife. That's a little past jelly lol. I got the jelly spooned into the jars, wiped the rims off and got the hot lids and rings on them. I went outside to check the kettle. It was finally boiling. Hubby came inside to get he and Adam a little snack. I had gotten so busy that I had forgotten to feed everyone! No matter, hubby had it covered. He even got Ruth something too. I told him thanks but no thanks because I couldn't stop right then to eat. I did have him help me carry the jars out to the canner though so I could get them all in and going. He sat them on the camp table not far from the fire. Worked for me! I got the canner loaded and set the manual timer for the time and went in to check on Ruth. She had made her first batch of butter! So we got the jar open and I showed her how to get all the butter out and off of the paddles. Then I showed her how to squeeze out the buttermilk into a jar so that the butter didn't go bad. She used the large spatula and squeezed and squeezed the butter, turning it over and over almost like kneading bread. She did really goot! Then we got it washed up. And she did it again, getting the final little bit of water and buttermilk out of the butter. Once that was done, I had her put it into the butter crock and leave the butter milk on the counter. We would use that in the biscuits for dinner. I went back out to the canner and as I got there, the timer in my pocket went off. I lifted the batch out and using the jar lifter, got all of the jars out of the water. I left the basket out and had to wait for the water to come back to a rolling boil. I set the jars on the camp table, so I needed to cover them with a towel. That way if a breeze came up, they wouldn't shatter. That done, I went back inside to check on Ruth. Hubby and Adam were done with the bow and had went to the garden, both with a hoe in hand. Goot, maybe I wont have to do that after dinner now. Hubby knows when it is canning season that he needs to help me get other things done. This season more so than ever. This season would be our most important ever. It would be make or break time. And neither of us wanted broke. We wanted to be able to feed our family, so this garden was getting babied and pampered as much as possible. Ruth was doing fine. She had started putting the baskets back where they belonged and took the bucket to the barn and was sweeping up the kitchen floor for me. This girl seemed to be no stranger to doing work around the house. She was kind of big for 12 too. One look you would think she was 15 or so, not 12. But she was a real sweat heart. I was enjoying having the extra help and hands in the kitchen. Maybe when this winter comes and we have time, I will teach her how to sew and make quilts. There is so much that the children will have to learn to make a life out here in the wilderness. I hope we just don't fail them, that we remember everything. Oh my, well the water was boiling so I got another canner load in. As soon as I get this one out, I will can up a batch of plain juice. I can use that in cakes and such. It doesn't all have to turn into jelly lol. I think I have enough to make a batch of pancake syrup too. That we WILL have to have. Hubby really likes it lol. Well got the last batch out and it was getting late. I decided to use some of that country ham we had gotten back on the trail at that homestead place. I let Ruth make a batch of biscuits using the buttermilk instead of regular milk. I figured ham, eggs, biscuits and redye gravy wouldn't be a bad thing to have for dinner! And it is really quick to make too. Longest thing was frying the ham. While Ruth got the biscuits going, I got a batch of juice to boiling so that it would cook out all the bad germs and such. After it finally came to a boil, which wasn't much faster than water....I got it jarred up and rims wiped, etc...took it out and got it into the canner and set my timer. This wouldn't take long because it was just juice. But it did need to be done tonight. With no refrigerator to throw it in, even though we have the spring house, it is easier just to do it and be done with it. We were going to have to go back tomorrow and pick some more for drying. There would be plenty left for the wild life. We weren't hardly making a dent into what was out there. But we would take advantage of what mother nature and the Lord was providing for us. That made me wonder if I shouldn't just go ahead and do the jelly again too. Who's to say we would get another crop like this one next year? I had seen it happen too many times back home where we had a bumper season and the next few following ones were a bust. That settled it. We were going to make as much jelly as I could do. Or at least juice up the berries, can the juice and I could use that later to make syrup or jelly or what ever we needed it for. At least we would have the juice for it already. I talked to hubby about it at dinner. He thought it might be a wise idea to do that now that we had the children here. And I was right, in a few days he was planning on taking Adam out hunting for turkey. Benjamin wanted to go along too, but hubby explained to him that you have to sit very quiet, sometimes for an hour or more. Benjamin didn't think he could sit that long without moving. So hubby told him that when he gets older like Adam, he will teach him how to use the bow too and then he could go hunting turkeys with all the other guys too. That got a smile out of Benjamin. One of the few I had seen. He seemed to be such the serious sort of child. Always deep in thought. I looked for him to be a challenge when it came time to start the children in home schooling this fall. After dinner, hubby pulled out the big black rubber water tank from the barn. He poured the canner water in it and began to put cool water from the outside pump into it. Just warm enough for some children to get a good bath! Adam took his first, followed by Ruth and then the youngers. Hubby strung up a couple of blankets around it for privacy. Especially important for Adam and Ruth. They are at that age lol. Well you might as well have given Ester and Benjamin a sleeping pill lol. They went up to bed all on their own. But hubby soon followed to make sure they were tucked in good. Ruth went soon after and I went up to tuck her in even though she thought she might be getting too old for it. I told her you are never too old to get tucked. I even liked it when hubby tucked me in for a nap once in awhile. She thought that was funny and let out a laugh. She has such a beautiful laugh that is just infectious. We both got the giggles as I tucked her down into the bed. She reached up, grabbed my neck and squeezed it tight. Then she said that she was so glad that they all got to come here with me and the hubby. She was so afraid that it wouldn't work out or that they would all be split up. But she said it is starting to feel like home here and asked me if that was wrong? I had to asked her why. She said she felt like she was betraying her mom and dad by calling this home instead. I hugged her a good one and told her that I would bet her parents would be happy too that they are all together here and that they have a goot home. She smiled and said good, I hoped it was okay. I gave her a peck on the cheek and told her good night. As I turned to go out of the room, I heard a "Good night Memaw". I managed to choke out a "Good night dear Ruth" before I broke out in tears. I managed to get the jelly jars into the pantry with the help of Adam and the hubby. I told the hubby about Ruth calling me Memaw. He wondered what had set me to crying, he saw that my eyes were red and puffy lol. Adam looked at me funny. I asked him what was wrong. Seems he and the other children had been talking about what to call me and the hubby. They all had decided to try Memaw and Papaw, but not one of them had had the nerve to ask us yet. Well we were still kind of strangers to the children so I could understand that. But I told Adam that it would be just fine with me if they all called me Memaw. I looked at hubby who was a little on the misty eyed side lol. He said that Papaw would be more than fine with him. Adam smiled that big old smile of his looking like a big weight had been lifted once again off his small shoulders. He said good, he was tired and could he go to bed now? Hubby told him yes and he would be right up to make sure he got into bed okay. I gave Adam a hug and sent him up to bed. Hubby grabbed me and smiled. "So, how do you like being a Memaw?" he asked. I just choked out a "just fine thank you so much" before I set to crying again. It's okay, they are all tears of joy. So much joy.... Q
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