Saturday BlogRoll call

I messed up. Here is another item we can list under mistakes. I have to take my three year old into the doctor this morning, I brought tainted peanut butter into the house. I am not overly concerned that he does have salmonella, he has had "flu like" symptoms for the last few days. But of course it is better to have it checked out. I feel bad that I was unable to produce enough peanuts to last between harvests this year. Guess this makes me even more determined to get it right.

While I am gone, I am going to send you over to a few new to me bloggers,

Gina over on Cauldron Ridge Farm has a paragraph of descriptions for herself. I have been neglectful lately, so I am behind on her posts. She is a compactor, homestead lover and soon to be mom.

Celeste writes over at C's Life. A grandmother at the tender age of 47, she lives and writes on a small farm in Georgia.

Message from my yard, now this is an interesting blog, full of all kinds of good tidbits.

Walter is the creator of NoNAIS.org and his own personal blog Sugar Mountain Farm. Go check it out and see if you can guess what his mystery picture is.

Have a great weekend everyone, and remember, it's always best to eat local.

I am grateful

I am grateful that we didn't get the snow like some of you have received. Of course we could use the moisture, but 100 inches of snow just doesn't float my boat. We did have a nice long day of rains, instead of the snow that they were calling for. Unfortunately it froze that night. I had a hard time getting my truck doors open.

I am grateful that the pipes under our house have been wrapped and heated. Unfortunately my water lines for my washer are against the north wall, unprotected and I haven't been able to do laundry for two days.

I am grateful that we have had more than a full week below freezing, this should help lessen the tick population. Unfortunately it hasn't been that many days in a row that it has been below zero, and the tick populace will not decrease that much. {I can tell it's spring when I start removing ticks from my children's hair}

I am grateful that my father is off the vent and that his lungs are doing better. Unfortunately we are now waiting for him to have a massive heart attack that will kill him. We are hopeful that he will be able to have the open heart surgery before that happens, but the heart specialists don't seem that optimistic.

I hope all of you have something you are grateful for, even if there is an unfortunately that follows.

A better day

I am happy to report that we have decided to go with Centennial Log homes. We are working with them on customizing our home. And the best part is, if we decide to allow them to completely build the home for us, it falls well within our budget.

So far our sales rep has been attentive and more than just a little helpful. To this point our experience with this company has been positive. Actually all the dealers we have spoken with have been wonderful, but there is just something about this one my husband likes.

The Company is out of St. Louis. In March they have a free DIY Log Home work shop, which we will be attending. If you are in the area {or in driving distance} I suggest checking it out. If you go maybe we can have lunch together.

Katie, thank you for the wonderful card!

Father update; he has been removed from the vent and is talking to us. We have to wait a few days to see how his lungs are doing. If they are well enough he will be able to have the open heart surgery. One hurdle down, several more chronic illnesses to go.

My father

He did not come of the vent yesterday.

I have been neglecting my animals, I feel bad. But at least they are not starving to death.

We feel that this will all be over within the week, one way or another. He can not stay on the vent for much longer.

As you can tell I am a little scattered this morning.

Welcome to the stumble upon lurkers, my apologies for not being what was expected right now. Things should be back to normal soon.

Maybe I should do another Q&A session.

Thank you

Thank you for your kind words and thoughts.

Today is a big day for my father, he may come off the vent. If he does, they will be able to preform open heart surgery sometimes this week, if not. . . well we all know the if not.

It's hard sitting up in the ICU waiting area. I left some books at a makeshift lending library, we all need something to pass the time. I met a wonderful woman and her daughter there. The woman's husband is in the ICU, he is recovering. I also cried as I listened to a daughter wail over the death of her father, she's a little older than I am.

The waiting room is so small, and the halls are so empty.

The price of freedom is visible in these walls.

that's the sign that hangs in the front lobby. and it's the most truthful thing I have ever read. So many of these men in there have no one. The ICU is full, but there is no one there to see them.

When this is all over, I plan on making it a point to volunteer at the VA.