Amy Doyle

My great grandmother is named Amy Doyle.  My sister Amy was named after her.  She is someone who is an inspiration to me, though I only know her through the stories my grandmother has written about her.  She didn't live very long, only 36 years.  I am 35 now.  That means I would only live one more year if I were to live to her age.  She must have had a short mission on this earth.  Short and difficult.  She lost her first husband when he went out on a fishing trip and was pinned under a rock.  Nobody found him until he had died.  She was left with a little baby girl named Frankie. She went on to marry my great grandfather, Ferdinand Desoto Graham, and they had my grandmother, Cleo, and her twin sisters, Delia and Dorris. 
I love the way my grandmother describes her.  She was caring, gentle, ambitious. She loved to sew, cook, garden.  I think I would have loved to know her.  She also suffered much.  Living out on a farm was toil enough, but she also suffered from arthritis, "dropsy" or swelling, and a heart condition probably related to the edema.  She would have to go to town  and have her fluids "tapped" to relieve the pressure which my grandma says must have been very painful.
Amy passed away when my Grandma was 11 years old, but her memories of Amy are very vivid.  She gardened, and had beautiful flowers like lilacs, snowballs, tulips and peonies.  She canned fruits and sewed dresses for all her girls- those skills must have passed on from mother to daughter and to grand-daughter for my mother and grandmother also did those things.
Grandma even tells a story of  having to take cod liver oil that was sent home from the school because of her sickly appearance. Amy took compassion on her daughter and threw the bottle of mint-flavored fish oil out.
I also remember my mother telling me that Cleo, her mother, would often sing "Rock of Ages" because it was something Amy would sing.  I too enjoy that song, and find great comfort and strength in the words. 
I am not sure why I needed to write this, but I have had it on my mind.  I feel a closeness to my ancestors when I think about them and read about them.  I want to know them better, and know what life was like for them.

FUN WITH DOLLS

By Eleanor






yesterday we made our dolls dresses and aprons it was
a lot of fun
my dress is pink and Cora's was checkered my apron was pink Cora's was yellow
we also made new hair my hair was red and Cora's was yellow.
the kitten seemed to want to help.

The Gratitude Game

The other day I played a game with my kids because they were bored and cranky and complaining about petty things. I could see that their focus was really in the negative, and needed to be turned around. So we played a gratitude game. What usually happens when I ask them to name things they are thankful for is they say things like "the world" or "our home", and they say it with a huff in their voice that shows they believe this activity to be useless and tiresome. So I changed it a bit. We had to say what we were thankful for, and how and why we were thankful for it, and do it in a way that it sounded fun and even poetic. I started out by saying I was thankful for the trees that shimmer like silver in the sunlight when the wind blows on them. I was also thankful for chubby baby fingers that reach out to touch my face so I can kiss them. By the end of the game we were all giggling and the spirit of our home had changed.

Gratitude is so powerful. I have seen it work wonders in my life. One time I was perplexed by all of my weaknesses, and considered making a list of all of my weaknesses and then seeking to work through each one until they were gone. I was determined to change, but the spirit guided me in seeing that if I did this exercise it would only put me further into despair. I felt impressed to instead focus on my blessings, my gifts and my talents and seek to improve and use those to bless others. I then changed my thoughts and felt a literal weight lift off my shoulders and a pain go out of my heart. I felt like I was walking on air. I could no longer see my weaknesses, but I saw joy and contentment.

I have been doing a study of the Prophet, Thomas S. Monson, and spending each morning reading all of his General Conference addresses. I love him. He is a man that understands gratitude and positive thinking. He is definitely a prophet for our time. Just listen to his words, confirming my own experience:

When we encounter challenges and problems in our lives, it is often difficult for us to focus on our blessings. However, if we reach deep enough and look hard enough, we will be able to feel and recognize just how much we have been given.

We have all experienced times when our focus is on what we lack rather than on our blessings. Said the Greek philosopher Epictetus, “He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has.

The other day I had to exercise a little gratitude myself. Again I was caught up in perceived weaknesses, and sorrowing because all these other people around me seemed to be 'with it' and all put together. They were using their talents in inspired ways and doing beautiful things that I desired to do, but I can't seem to get over some obstacles of disorderliness in order to do them. I was really in despair again and as I was trying to get the baby to nap, I was praying and really trying to change my mind. I knew something wasn't right about my perception and it needed fixing, but I couldn't see how. Then I was prompted to remember something I had heard in that Celestial Education seminar. She said that in a Celestial Education we would read biographies about great people not so we could see what wonderful people they were and desire to be like THEM, but rather to see what great blessings God had given them and then believe that it was possible for us to receive blessings as well. That really impacted me, and I was able to change my thoughts.

It is like the PollyAnna game. Whenever PollyAnna comes to a situation where she is uncomfortable or sad, she tries to find the positive in it and say why she is glad. I am glad that I have people to look up to and inspire me that God can bless me too.

Picture note: These are some wool felted toys I made for the kids a few years ago. We got them out again and I put them on our Hearth to play with. I am thankful for little wooly toys that are so colorful and bright and bring to life the fun and imagination of a child.

My Stewardship ring

Yesterday I was having a long, but spontaneous talk with Cora about education. She was wondering why education was necessary if all she wanted to be was a mother, or a cook if that didn't pan out. I had to smile a little when she said that. I answered by pulling out my home schooling Master plan and vision-- so excited that someone was actually interested in the "why" of education. We talked a little about having a personal mission from God. I testified to her that I believed that God had sent me to this earth to perform certain things for others and my family, and that I need to prepare for that future. I also need to prepare for the things ahead- in the next life, and to be a celestial person. I know that we progress eternally and eventually will know and understand all things, therefore we should start now and seek to understand the things that God would have us learn.

So then we moved on to the "how" of education. I believe that I personally have been given some insight into how to educate my children through a simple illustration. At a time when I was seeking to know the "hows" of education, I started to think of education in terms of a stewardship. I felt impressed to understand what those stewardships were, and to break them down into certain categories. I came up with seven. They are: FAITH, BROTHERHOOD, BEAUTY, BODY, EARTH, LIBERTY and SCIENCE. At the same time I was figuring these divisions out, I was also studying a little about Celtic knots, and found there was a figure that was a continual and overlapping ring of loops that had seven loops in it, and it had no beginning and no end. I chose this figure to represent our stewardship education, with each loop taking on a different category of stewardship, yet all of them intertwined on a single endless rope. It represents the eternal perspective of education as well as the wholeness and interconnectedness of it.

Each stewardship is broken down into the different pieces that give us education. For example under LIBERTY we learn about history, government and the the things that make us free- such as being able to read, write and use proper grammar. Then I have certain books to read and programs to use at different ages under each category. It is really well thought out and planned. I am really good at the thought and planning, but not so good at the follow through. Therein lies my weakness- yet in the Lord lies my strength.

I still believe that this life is a journey, with lots of bumps and twists and turns. We will get through it and get educated with faith and God on our side.

Celestial Education

I am posting a link to a video I watched today. It is 2 1/2 hours long, but to me it was worth watching, even if you only watch part. It is the latest buzz in my home schooling circle, and really takes all that I have been learning about education and sums it up a lot better than I could. I really enjoyed it, and feel like the principles are worth hearing.

http://www.utahsrepublic.org/education/celestial-education-by-michelle-stone/

Let me know if you watch it. I would love to hear your comments.

Rhythm

I have been thinking about schedules lately. They seem to be a bit non-existent in my house. I have tried for years to make up perfect schedules, but I am the one who does not want to follow them. I get distracted and do something different than planned. It is fun, but I usually regret it later when something does not get done when needed. I have tried making very rigid schedules, and very loose schedules. Neither seem to work. Sometimes I get going on a good schedule and leave the rest of my family behind. Then I get a little sore that they won't stay on my schedule. It is frustrating.

As I have explored into different home schooling philosophies, I have looked a little into Waldorf education. There is something that strikes me as a good thing from their methods. It is living life in a rhythm. There are many different rhythms to life. One rhythm that I seem to keep well is our morning rhythm. I love to read my scriptures in the morning and get that boost to my day. Then we usually have breakfast and take care of our animals, and then do the daily chores.

We have a weekly rhythm. Sundays are of course the Sabbath; Mondays are Family home evening. Fridays we have a fun movie night, and Saturdays are a big work day or big play day.

With having animals and gardens I am learning seasonal rhythms. Spring for planting, autumn to harvest. Summer brings us bounties of the garden, and our meals are full of vegetable goodness. Winter is a time to stay in and be cozy. I make a lot of soup in winter. A lot of my rhythms center around food.

Life has a rhythm too. I recently read a book that talked about tribal cultures, and they went through the role of each tribal member. Youngest children were for practice for the older children, Older children were for examples to the younger. Parents had their duties and responsibilities, and would still look to their elders for guidance. The Grandparents were the teachers of the children and would share histories and pass on the stories of their tribe. It is a beautiful thought.

My goal for my family is to get into some good (you could say celestial) rhythms. I want us to be living our lives purposefully. I really shy away from useless and wasteful practices. Our music, our food, our parties, our school-- I don't want to waste it. Life is much too precious.

Pictures: Just some random photos. Top is a big mushroom I found in our yard. The bottom photo is a picture of our elf shoes-- a bit of a waste of money as Cedric's already have holes.

Plane ride

Yesterday we went to the airport for a little event they were having and Rich, Cora and Ian went up for a ride in an airplane. Here are the pics.
Waiting in line for the plane

Up in the air.

Feeling a little green?

Back on the ground safe! (They didn't know that Mom spent the whole time praying that they would come back safely)

72 hours

I have started working on re-doing our 72 hour kits-- or bug-out bags as some people call them. Previously we just had a bunch of food stashed in a tote that we could haul with us in our car, but I am changing that to individual backpacks. We have 3 nice backpacking packs that we are going to use while they are not in use for backpacking, and then I bought some nice school size bags for the kids at the DI thrift store yesterday for $2 each-- what a bargain. I am going to get some kind of rolling tote for the baby stuff so if we have to walk then we can carry it or roll it.

Yesterday we also shopped for the food. I found a pretty good list that we are going to use to put our kit together here. I bought the food they suggested and just put mine in large ziplocks instead of milk jugs as they suggested. They ended up being about 4 lbs for the food alone. I may have to modify to lighten it (fewer cans-- more dehydrated) either way we will have weight with water. I haven't figured out how to do the water. We do have a backpacking water filter which will come in handy.

I will update as we get them going, and also add pictures later. I want to have them all finished by July.

Mallows

I've been foraging again. I am really interested in learning about the plants that are right in my yard. I don't like it when I look at a plant day after day and I can't even name it. I like to know what I am pulling up and why. So I looked up this weed. I'm sure you know it. It has little pink flowers. It is nearly impossible to pull up. It has such thick roots that you need a shovel to remove it.

It is called a Common Mallow, and I found out it is edible, and nutritious, and the flavor is very mild. So mild compared to most weeds, that we decided it needed to be sweetened. We got the idea because it is a relative to the Marsh Mallow, which used to be the original ingredient in marshmallows. Mallows have a mucilaginous property (like okra) which makes them get a little slimy(not quite, more like foamy) when you chew on them. We found that if you coat them in sugar and chew them slowly then, if you have a good imagination, it will taste like a marshmallow (or if you don't then it tastes like grass with sugar on it--says Rich.)

The kids thought it was great. See?

We also put them in a fruit salad. It is our mallow-fruit salad. We just put in oranges, bananas, mallows and coconut-- just what I had on hand at the time. It went great with our stromboli.

There you go. We are official weed-eaters! Want to come to dinner?

a spring suprise

By Eleanor

Today I went outside and found a honeysuckle it was covered in white flowers.
there were flowers all over the ground i love honeysuckles

Rings and such

By Cora

Today I found a sleepy little kitten on my bed

She is so cute. we call her Una pronounced oo-na. we call her Una cause its like the french word un which means one. she's the oldest. so the kitten's names are Una, Deux, Trois and Quatre or in otherwise One, Two, Three and Four.

I have been making rings for a while now. my cousin gave me one and I just copied it.
Here are some of them.

Cool. don't you think so?




these two are my favorite

Garden Fort

Hey! Wanna come play in my secret garden?

Cedric and Everett are loving it.

Here are some pictures of our deer fence we have been building around our garden. it looks a bit like a fort. We have it 3/4 finished, so I hope the deer don't hop over the weak side before we have a chance to finish it. Actually it hasn't been deer that have been the problem this spring. It has really been the chickens. They ate off all the leaves of my cabbages, dug up my squashes, and took dust baths in my carrot beds making carrots grow in the aisle instead of the beds! I can't wait until they can't get in anymore either.

Rich is such a Handy Man!

Here is Fort Woodruff. I decided I want to put a sign on the gateway that says "All the Earth's a Garden Sweet."

Projects

I have several projects going on right now, at least in my head I do. I am going to try to blog my progress on here so it actually looks like I am doing something and throw in some pictures now and again for the people who only come to look at pictures. (It's ok, I do it too sometimes.)

So here are my projects:

Preparedness For reasons I have become privy to, I feel a pressing need to get my food storage in place. So I have been working on doing that. I printed out a food storage calculator with all the stuff I need to get and have been steadily buying up the things I need. First I bought all of the Wheat I need, and now I have beans and sugar coming on Friday in a big bulk order. I need to find some more buckets. I have also been buying Olive oil and peanut butter.

Home School Because the preparedness bug has hit, I figured we would do a little homeschool adventure based on the Pioneers. I want the kids to have an inquiry and a project each week. Our first inquiry is going to be "How far did the Pioneers travel across the plains, and what did they pack in their wagons?" I am going to research it myself. Some projects we might do are

Outdoor Cooking
Wild food foraging
Herbs and Medicine
Dress and Quilt making
Basket weaving
Making Cheese
Laundry outdoors
Making candles, soap or lotions
Packing and hauling wagons or handcarts

Then we can have some historical field trips to Chesterfield or the pioneer village in Salt Lake, or camping to practice our outdoor cooking skills.

We are just lacking in some good pioneer literature to read. I wasn't impressed with any of Deseret Book's selection. Anyone have any suggestions?

Enjoy pictures of our trip to American Falls yesterday. The river was really roaring! I was able to identify 3 plants. Cleavers, poison ivy and golden currants. I think I found burdock, but I didn't dare take any because I was not sure if that was what it was. I read that it is edible. More research on that one. Anyone want to munch on this?

Everyone else is doing it...

I've decided this blog needs a purpose... more than it is now. I like chronicling the things we do, but it isn't quite happening the way I want it to, so I need to tweak it a bit. We are home-schoolers in need of a bit of a push in a new direction. This year we have been in the mud bogs when it comes to school. Even though we moved, had a baby and open heart surgery in the last year, I really think we could have done a little better on the school end of things. OK, a lot better.

So I am going to try something for a while. I haven't quite got it all figured out and planned yet, so I'm not going to write much about it. You might have noticed a new page at the top. I have volumes of stuff I have written down in various files and notebooks about how I want to educate my children. So I am going to post some of it there for now, and see what comes of it. This is going to evolve-- slowly maybe-- but I think it will be good.

Tip toe through the Dandelions

Today I did something I have always wanted to do. I made a dandelion salad out of the weeds in my own yard. It was actually really good. I made it a wilted salad, with a hot dressing and potatoes in it. I looked up a few recipes and then made it up myself with the ingredients I had on hand. I am familiar with the salads with hot bacon dressing, but I didn't want to make it that way. I am really trying to eat a lot less meat. After raising and slaughtering chickens, I know what it takes to live on meat, and I am not sure I want to live that way-- at least not so much meat. I am going to post the recipe, but not here, I will put it on my sister's blog called The Cooking Dilemma.

Chickens and Kittens, What can I say more?

These aren't the best pictures, but it shows what we have been up to. Our Cat had 4 kittens and we had 51 chickens come in the mail. 25 for eating and 26 for eggs (we got one freebie). The kids are loving all the babies in the house. Did you ever see a kitten kiss a chicken?


Babies are so sweet.

What a good mama.

Tender Mercies and Angels

Last Friday was a most beautiful and warm day. It was one of those days you dream of when the weather is cold and overcast. I had a bit of a camel's hump last week, and was getting to be quite wretched, so it was wonderful to get out and dig in the dirt again. The kids and I played outside all day.

Our school was gardening; P.E. was swinging and digging and running. We dressed in gardening skirts and hats and had a picnic out at the juniper. I even planted out some seedlings using my soil blocker tool that makes little cubes of soil and you just place the seed right in the top and cover with soil. I put them all in a cardboard box and they are growing in my greenhouse. And things are growing in there. I have spinach and lettuces and all sorts of greens. We had a salad today with claytonia in it-- which is an interesting green that the kids thought looked like lily-pads. Think of that, waterlily salad. It sounds like something you would read in a Beatrix Potter book.

Saturday and Sunday were so nourishing to my soul. I felt the feast of General Conference fill my spirit to satiation and arm me against the fiery darts for another week. I loved all the talks. I kept making mental notes that we needed to do this one for Family Home Evening, or I wanted to re-read that one. Then there were some that really touched me. Two in particular. I cannot remember who gave the talks now (because we were listening on the radio, so I didn't have a visual) but they both talked about surgery and guardian angels.

First I need to lay the foundation of why they were so significant to me. The night before Everett's surgery, we gave him a blessing, and I also asked my Dad if he would give me a blessing of comfort. He did, and it was a very powerful blessing. In the words of the prayer he talked about how some things happen in our lives that we don't understand why, but then he asked that the Lord would maybe part the veil a little and let me understand more about Everett and his surgery. The next morning I awoke at 3:30 Am, the last time Everett could eat, and I fed him, then I lay him in bed next to me and just watched him sleep. My thoughts ran the gamut as I considered the possibilities of the day, but I was not sad or afraid. I felt much peace. I was sustained by all the prayers in our behalf.

As I lay there thinking, I considered the times he would be away from me, and when he would be unconscious. I had had earlier thoughts about how I could not be there for him at all some of those times, yet I knew that the Savior could. Then I also I prayed that angels could be round about him to bear him up and as I took hold of that thought I realized that they would not just be any angels, but the angels of my own family. My Grandmother Cleo Hunter, my grandfather Conrad, my cousin Melissa, my grandmother Leona, William V. and Janette Walker, My brother and Sister, Everett's cousins Hanna and Jordan, and others. I felt impressed that these angels would be there for him when I could not.

There were times during his recovery when he was very drugged and looked off into the distance rather that at anything. At one of these times Rich commented that he was "talking to Angels" again. I believe he was.

Then when I was listening to General Conference on Saturday, I distinctly remember I was doing the dishes during the time when a speaker talked about surgery and gave a story of a young girl whose father witnessed her speaking about angels in her room. She asked her father why her grandma was there, and uncle so and so and why there was a man standing next to her father that looked just like him (he had lost a brother many years before.) This talk and another one spoke of the same thing. I was very moved after that experience, and felt a confirmation that Everett was truly watched over and cared for when I could not be there.

Sunny spring days and Angels. What Tender Mercies the Lord gives me!!