It was really nice and warm outside today! I didn't even need a jacket! (Well, after I got sufficiently warmed up!) Dad and Levi worked on the raised bed this morning, adding a metal bar to the center of it to hold it together better in the middle [the pressure of all the dirt inside was pushing the boards out], while Mom and I worked on working up the dirt in the other raised bed and getting all the weeds out, so Mom will be able to start her seeds whenever she's ready!

I think just about everybody was enjoying the warmth and sunshine today! As you can see from the picture below, the goats were just laying on the other side of the fence taking a sun bath, and watching us work! At one point, Shadow was laying completely over on his side, and he looked so funny! I went to get a picture of him doing it, and Hannah saw me and got up, which in turn made Shadow jump up, so I didn't get a picture of it this time. I'm pretty sure he'll be doing it again though!

Here's me — driving the tractor! This is probably only the 2nd (or possibly 3rd) time I've ever driven it. Dad asked me if I wanted to when we went to put the tractor away, so I did. I was kinda nervous at first, but it really wasn't that hard, and it was kind of fun! Dad hopped up on the back and was helping me figure out how to drive it. Things like when to take my foot off the clutch, and the brake, and how to change gears, etc.

I raked up some of the leaves in the barnyard today, and it sure was laying wet underneath all those leaves, so hopefully the ground will dry up a bit better now, and more green grass will grow! The goats were happy that I'd raked them a few leaf piles to lay in.. LOL! The chickens, well, they just decided the leaves shouldn't be in piles and should be scattered back all over the ground again! At least it gave them something to do!

I decided to be nice today and let the hens out early, and in turn they only gave me 2 eggs. Tsk, tsk, bad chickens! Hopefully they'll pick up production again soon! I remember when we were getting 13 and 14 a day! And, with Gabriel on patrol in the barnyard, I'm hoping the rooster fights won't be as bad this year, though I'm sure I'm going to have to separate Danny and Jacob if they start fighting that bad again. I don't look forward to all the separating animals again… lol, maybe I should just let them all fight it out!

Gracie is doing great, and still giving us about 2 gallons of milk per day! We use a lot of it just by drinking it at breakfast, lunch, and dinner! Mom has been letting the goats in with her sometimes in the mornings, and so far everything has been going well. Shadow and Hannah headbutt her, but she doesn't pay much attention to them. (Good cow!)

I suppose I should stop rambling now. Oh, and thank you everyone for the happy birthday's.

Yeppers, we've gotten even more snow since my last post.  Quite unusual Virginia weather! We lost our electricity this morning sometime around 4 AM, and got it back (praise God!) around 8:30 AM. I had expected the power to go out (as had everyone else) so yesterday we had been preparing for it… getting the house all cleaned, storing plenty of water in case it was out for a while.. things like that.

Front yard view from my window.. It's even whiter now and much more snow has fallen since I've taken this picture. This snow is a wet one, mostly, so it is really sticking to the tree limbs. Of course, all the sleet we got didn't help that any.

View of the barnyard and the tops of the trees..

Well, I just wanted to post a short little update lettin' ya'll know what's going on, in case the power (or the internet, for that matter) goes back out and I wouldn't be able to post anything for a while. As I'm siting here typing this, it is still snowing steadily outside. I wonder how many new inches of snow we've got so far?

- Lacy

Update @ 3:40 PM: The milking's done, and it's still snowing, and we still have electricity (right now ).. Dad says it looks like we have between 10-12 inches of new snow right now.

Gabriel and Sunny ~ pals

Howdy there folks! Sorry for the abrupt disappearance, I had a sudden lack of inspiration and couldn't think, I mean absolutely couldn't think of anything to post! Quite strange, seeing as I usually would post what's been going on and things like that, thought of course there really hasn't been that much going on around here to post about.

I changed my braces [aligners] this morning for my upper teeth.. Now on set 14 (I think it's 14) of 21! Yippee! Getting close to the end!

While I was thumbing through some of my books today, I was going through 'Uncle Arthur's Bedtime Stories' and started reading Doreen's Jewel Box, and realized I had never posted chapter 3 up here for ya'll to find out what Doreen actually did get on her birthday! (I've posted Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 so far.) So I've started typing up Chapter 3, and hopefully I'll be able to get it finished and posted here before too awful long. Perhaps many of you have already guessed what Doreen got on her birthday… lol.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

We went and picked up some hay today for the goats and cow. It's always quite a job to get all of that unloaded, carried over to the barn, piled in the middle, and pulled up into the loft one-by-one (Levi stacks them up there. Mom hooks them up to the rope, and both Levi & I pull them up).

It's nice to be able to go up in the loft and sit (provided you don't mind getting hay all over you ( ). Especially now that the air is blocked off (mostly, at least) by the plexiglass "windows". Sunny loves it up there too since we made him a little hay bed in the corner to lay in when it's cold!

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

Just in case I have another episode of lack-of-inspiration, would there be anything that the readers of my blog would like to hear about, want me to blog about, want to know, any questions that you have about me, our beliefs, or anything that I could answer possibly in a future post… anything to give me extra inspiration for the future!

Brr, it has been cold out today! It's soo nice to have a warm wood-stove fire in the barn though, to be able to go there and warm up! Gabriel and Sunny are enjoying the heat too, I think. It's a lot better to be in there than to be outside where it's so cold with the wind blowing!

Megan and I were examining my braces / aligners earlier today, checking out the very first set I ever had and comparing them with the set I have in now.. and my, what a difference! It's kind of weird to see what my teeth looked like before, by looking at little plastic molds of them. In cold weather I kind of like having my braces, as it shields my (sensitive) teeth from the cold wind and air!

Oh, I finished reading Worth Dying For.. I thought it was a good book, though I didn't agree with the numerous references to a "sinful nature", otherwise it was a very good book to read. Next book to read on my list is Deliver the Ransom Alone by Verda J. Glick.

I thought ya'll might enjoy getting to see one of my new Scripture wallpapers. Since I've had TWF, I don't seem to post them here as much. I'll try to do that more often. Oh yes, and if anyone wants a custom wallpaper or blog tag done, please do request it. I enjoy doing requests!

Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever.

- Hebrews 13:8

Is it really true that today is the first day of 2010? Indeed, it seems not too long ago since last year began, and now it has flown by already and a new year has begun. It seems impossible that yesterday was actually the last day of 2009!

I wondered and wondered what I could post for the beginning of the new year, and decided to post one photo from each month to recap/review the year. Enjoy! By the way, does anyone realize how hard that was for me, to just pick ONE photo from each month?   (In order, from January to December)

In the year that now is before us, I pray that we all would seek the Lord more earnestly, draw closer to Him and strive daily to become more like Christ. I pray that those who call themselves "Christians" would come to realize the truth of what is taught in God's Word, and not be deceived by false teachers, preachers, pastors, or prophets. Oh, that they would turn from their sins and follow Christ with their whole heart, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts! Let all who name the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

May those who are truly following Christ be faithful, stedfast, unwavering. Let us constantly seek His face and His will, studying His Word to shew ourselves approved, rightly dividing the word of truth, and obeying the truth without hesitation, choosing like Moses, to suffer with the people of God, rather than enjoying the pleasures of sin for a season.

Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: (Isaiah 55:6)
Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. (James 4:8a)

In conclusion, allow me to leave you with some quotes to ponder on…

The Bible no longer has a lawful places in most of our schools and colleges; family prayer is generally a lost habit; our Lord Jesus Christ, God's only begotten and well-beloved Son, is discredited and dishonored in the house of His professed friends; corporate testimony on earth is over; the call to Laodicea to repent unheeded; and our Lord's promise of communion with Him is now to the individual. — Richard L. Roberts

Only those who are thus earnestly following Christ are worthy to be called Christians. – Mabel Hale

'August Emperor,' Macer cried, 'I am a Christian. I will fight wild beasts, but I will not raise my hand against a fellow man. I can die, but I will not kill.' — from The Martyr of the Catacombs

We chose His cross deliberately, and together. It is His cause. As He died for us, so we must be prepared to die for Him. His grace is our only strength and His promise our hope. – Margareta Sattler

Those are without faith who have not ceased from sin. — Michael Sattler

Are the things you are living for worth Christ dying for? — Leonard Ravenhill

We ought to be willing to live our lives, and if necessary, give our lives, in His service. If our faith is not worth dying for, it is not worth living for. – Worth Dying For

Hehe, it's kind of funny that we've had snow for a week now and hardly any of my blog readers knew about it. Sorry about that, I just never got around to posting about it, so here goes now!

It started snowing Friday evening, and continued snowing Saturday. I was glad it waited until Friday evening to start, as Dad and Levi had to come back home from W.V (they went to pick up Megan).

^^ And there's what everything looked like when it did stop snowing.

A good bit of it has melted away now, since it started raining yesterday. Now it's mostly mud in the barnyard. The guineas just got to get out today after a week of being cooped up, which they are thoroughly enjoying! They were beginning to get a bit irritated at being penned up, I think, but I couldn't help it since they won't hardly step in the snow, it's not like they would've gotten out and played around anyhow!

The goats didn't mind it too much, they were my little snowmobiles, especially when I had the scratch bucket! They would just follow me anywhere, so long as I had that bucket. Of course, when I was done, I'd give them each a little bit of sunflower seeds.

I think we ended up getting about 16-17 inches of snow, which was even more than we got earlier this year! Wow!