As the flower fades.......

The whole purpose of this blog for me is to document our life. You know, so that as I forget all of these great memories, there is a record somewhere. I have not done a great job of it the last year and I hope to do better this fall. Here is a little of what our summer has entailed. It's been a great summer.

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This is my chalk board in my dining area. We have had this verse on it for a few weeks. The grass is withering and the flowers are fading, sniff sniff, but we have the assurance that God's Word stands forever. Praise the Lord!!

It seems as though the season has flown by but here is a small glimpse of what we have done and seen. We have watched many beautiful sunsets over the pastures.

The girls have spent a great deal of time with these guys. They haven't ridden a whole lot, as this summer has been SO hot but they have done a lot of caring for them. This special guy went to the trainer almost 2 wks. ago and Lord willing, will come back a perfect gentleman just right for riding. The girls miss him terribly and even shed a tear when he left.

My honey has done a lot of grilling for us. And it has been soooo good. We grill though, even in the dead of winter. Ha Ha Oh, how I love this man!!!

I had this little nook of space beside my cabinets that I really wanted some type of storage system in so Mr. Wonderful also built this for me. He took an old ugly dresser apart cut it down and added shelves. I love it!! I am having the best time scouting out glass canisters and jars for all of my baking supplies. I found the huge one, holding my Prarie Gold Wheat Berries, at Old Time Pottery in B'ham for $3.99. In hindsight I wish I had gotten 3 of them. At the time, I didn't know if they would fit my shelf. I like the idea of all the different shapes and sizes. It gives a rustic feel. I think. Ha Ha

We've had a turtle race. Our little nephew, Ace, has now entered his 3rd turtle race at Lena Day. This turtle was named Hot Junior. He loves it and it causes us to have many laughs!!
We watched the fireworks on Lena Day, 4th of July. They were great, as always.
Cousins got to bond again over the summer. This is our youngest girl cousin Jessica. She has 4 brothers and would love to come live with us part time.
This has also consumed my summer. We were getting a 5 gallon bucket of tomatoes a day. It was a blessing but it took every moment of my day. Oh but the rewards are so worth the effort. God is good!! Prov. 3:10I have been filling my freezer. It's even fuller now. I have been filling my pantry. Oh, it is so satisfying to be able to look at the fruits of ALL your labor. The tomatoes, tomato sauces, spaghetti sauce, ketchup, and salsa are over flowing on out in the laundry room. I need more shelving and places for shelving. Ha Ha

Now the pears and muscadines are ripening but I don't think I am going to make very many preserves and jellies. We have an abundance from the last two years we need to eat up. I do hope to make and can some muscadine juice.

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And last but not least, here is the newest member of the family.......

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Her name is Phoebe and she is a 6 wk. old miniature pot bellied pig. My oldest daughter, Katherine, has been wanting one for quite a while. So about 3 wks ago we found one at the flea market and I told her if that is how she wants to spend her money then go for it.....Ha Ha..... and She did.She is supposed to live in this pen that was custom built for her until she gets big enough to go out in the pasture.

However.....

She thinks she is a dog..... and has been living on the back porch during the day and sleeping in her nice pen at night. Too funny.

She cracks us up....I mean literally my Ronnie watches her and just starts laughing.

We have also taken a few trips, Baton Rouge, New Orleans, and Vicksburg to name a few. We have one more planned in 2 wks. to Tn.

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So it's been a great summer and we are so sad to see it leave but I am ready for some cooler days. We have already got the hammock hanging and the girls have started laying out in it and reading. So I know fall is in the air even if its still 90+ degrees outside.
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Oh and by the way, School starts at our house on Monday.