A few days ago, I said our family is full of celebrations now.  After writing about Chloe’s story, one observer remarked:

“Just as God brought precious Chloe back to life, He also brought back life to the two of you.  I can’t believe it’s been a year already.  Where did the time go?  May you both continue to grow in faith and holiness.”

Thanks Deb!!  This is so true!  It is so good to be alive.  Really alive and to enjoy simple pleasures God give us.

I also talked about one of our celebrations.  That is, we have celebrated big fish caught from the pond.  On Sunday, our anniversary.  Moriah decided to break a new record by catching a 22 inch large mouth bass at Granddad’s house.  My husband and I returned from a canoeing trip to find Moriah begging us to come see something amazing.  We could hardly get the canoe unhooked from the vehicle, she was that insistent.  Now I understand why.

Moriah's big catch!

Take two. It is a big one!!!

I can’t leave out a celebration from my youngest.  She was laying in bed obsessing about things that kids her age obsess about.  She was repeatedly messing with a loose tooth.  At 10:49 she emerged from her room excited beyond belief.  She lost her second tooth.  She exclaimed, “Now I have a bigger gap!”  Moriah made her a special envelope to keep her tooth for all posterity.

Praising God every day, in every way, for all He has done.  The Lord gives (big fish) and the Lord takes away (another tooth), Blessed be the name of the Lord.  Indeed, I know that sometimes God takes away things we want to hold tightly too.  However, we will endeavor to bless His name anyway!!

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

Looking back at my life, I can honestly say I have made a whole host of poor choices.  Sometimes I am embarrassed when I consider the foolish decisions I made.  I am a product of my upbringing though.  I was raised in a dysfunctional home and it took years to overcome the damage done.  Besides that, there is a culture to an unbelieving family.  Christians were relieved when I converted.  However, there was very little effort to disciple me.  Because I came from a hardcore pagan family, I desperately needed discipleship.  I can’t begrudge the fact that I had no clue how to live out a Christian worldview.  It was God’s sovereign plan for me to lead the life I did.  I learned a lot.  I learned it…the hard way.  It ain’t very pretty.  But what I did learn should give me PhD qualifications on making mistakes and poor choices.

Perhaps, that is why I am so melodramatic when I see the young people around me making poor life choices.  I get entirely worked up over young adults and families who harbor bitterness, encourage schisms in families or look for love in all the wrong places.

Despite a life marked with poor choices, I can assure you I have made many choices I do not regret.  The best decision I ever made was in the fall of 1997 when I gave my life completely to Christ.  Please understand, it was God who woke me up.  He opened my eyes and helped me to see clearly the dead and decaying carcass I was.  When I saw my depravity, I was shocked and horrified at all I had been.  While viewing my sins, He simultaneously  gave me the ability to see His marvelous grace.  It was irresistible.  I am ever so thankful He called me out of darkness into His marvelous light. Prior to that, I was living with one foot in Christendom and the other in the world.  I then experienced a domino effect.  Giving my life completely to Christ meant I gave up my career, began home schooling and devoted time to helping my children’s father with his dream to farm.  Despite the tragic turn of events in my marriage, I do not regret having the children, home schooling or learning to milk cows.   There is a great deal of pain in my past.   But, God helps us transform tribulation into character building opportunities.  With the amount of struggles I faced in life, I affirm I am quite the character.  Basically, I appreciate certain aspects of the children’s father and how he influenced me.

Setting all these great choices aside, there is one choice I made one year ago today.  It has forever changed my life.  Through this decision, my life and that of my children’s has greatly improved.  A year ago, I married a terrific man.  It is such a joy to have a godly companion who is tender and lives with me in an understanding way.  He regularly washes me in the word.  Over the last year, I remember waking in the night more than once and hearing my husband praying for me as he stroked my hair.  Our home is filled with authentic joy!!!  No more striving to turn lemons into lemonade.

As I reflect on our new marriage, I  review vignettes  in my mind.  Some of my favorite memories include seeing my husband play kickball and soft ball with the children.  I will never forget the children’s laughter as they played with their new Daddy.  Course, there were quiet moments with sudden outbursts.  When the children played checkers or chess with Daddy and then beat him, there was a sudden outburst of “Oh man!! Can you believe it? The twins beat me“.

It was not uncommon to gather in the living room at the day’s end.  My husband bought all the children bibles.  He has a family bible too.  Each child would open up the Book  and we would take turns reading the word.  After that we sang a variety of songs including ones he composed.  Sometimes, we would read from a book from his theological library.  We completed five of Richard Belcher’s books in the “Journey  in Grace” series.  The book’s gripping plot made it hard for all of us to stop reading.  With the peace in our home, the children advanced rapidly in their home schooling. All the children began reading save the youngest.  The older four children completed a Saxon Math program in three months, cover to cover and then started on another book for the summer.  With the love, encouragement and affirmation from their new Daddy, they are thriving.

Another great memory is when my husband recorded a improvisation on his electric keyboard.  He extended a hand to me and we began to dance.  I love looking into his eyes.  In his eyes, I find comfort, reassurance, and pure joy.  We were so absorbed in each other, it took us a few minutes before we saw it.  Each of the children partnered up and were dancing with us.

Learning to sing with my husband brought me great fulfillment.  After two semesters of voice lessons, I began singing with him more and more.  We once competed in a talent show.  Moments before, I panicked sharing how I never liked competition.  I told him I was a newbie and had no business on stage in front of an audience.  He responded by holding my hand and praying with me. It was just the right encouragement.  We placed first singing a song he wrote after his little boy passed away.  Though I am still a little stage shy, I do enjoy sharing his love for the music ministry.  Our first duet was at our wedding.  Since then, we have preformed together  in a variety of settings.  With his love and support, I overcame my stage fright long enough and sang “Mary, Did You Know” for a Christmas special.

A dream came true two and half months after we were married.  We moved to the family farm.  A farm that has been in the family for around 100 years.  The move while exhausting  demonstrated that God knew the desires of our heart and gave us more than we could ask for or imagine.  No matter what task was before me, whether it was unpacking boxes, cleaning up debris from active children, schooling the children, or providing meals, my husband was there for me this past year encouraging me every step of the way.  He praised me when I didn’t deserve it.  He told me he believed in me when I struggled to get it all done.  When we encountered heartache or stress, he was quick to wrap his arms around me holding me close while he called out to our heavenly father to help us.

We have celebrated much this past year.  We celebrated the children’s birthdays, the move to the farm, the completion of the children’s school goals, big fish caught from the pond, our purchases of draft horses, and recently the harvest from our garden.  We celebrate even when no event warrants it.  We can do so, because we know heartache and are thankful for what God has done.

After walking through the deep waters, I learned God does not abandon us.  He tenderly leads those with young to a better land.  God transformed my mistakes into experiences which taught me more about His sovereignty.  Despite my lifetime of mistakes, God in His great mercy and love, gave the children and I a second chance.    On this day, I have much to be thankful for.  I affirm that God does restore what seems wasted.  He gives us reason to rejoice and praise His name.  Read Joel 2:25 and following with me and praise the name of God, our redeemer and restorer.

25I will restore to you the years
that the swarming locust has eaten,
the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter,
my great army, which I sent among you.

²⁶ “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied,
and praise the name of the LORD your God,
who has dealt wondrously with you.
And my people shall never again be put to shame.

²⁷ You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel,
and that I am the LORD your God and there is none else.
And my people shall never again be put to shame.

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

Please accept my apologies for the long and unexpected absence from blogging.  It was bound to happen with  all the activity.  We plowed a half acre garden. That keeps us incredibly busy. We also have been working on building projects around the farm.  These tasks along with our regular household tasks make for a flurry of activity coupled with  complete exhaustion.  Our garden is doing well.  We have harvested squash, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans and peppers so far.

We continue our apprentice work with the plain people and are learning a tremendous amount through first hand experience.  Our garden would not be what it is today without the help of our friends. They often bless us with extra garden produce for helping them.  For example, we came home with 280 ears of corn after my husband helped the plain people put up hay.   I wish I had time to share all we have learned day by day.  Unfortunately, we have been too busy.  Often I found myself sitting at the computer at the day’s end falling asleep.  The work, though tiring, is invigorating. There is nothing so refreshing as  hard work that means something.  It is a joy to see the pantry fill up with food we have canned from our garden.  A few months ago, I was spending several hours a day tilling and clearing sod out of the garden.  The hard work is paying off.  I am pleased.

Our house was full this summer with my husband’s sons visiting  along with my husband’s niece.  The boys returned home and now life is quieter though still busy.  In just a few short weeks the posts for the stables and milk barn were set.  The cinder blocks in front of the house were replaced by the beginnings of a porch.  There is still much to complete, but we were ever so thankful for the help the boys provided.

Summer is a great time to reflect on God’s provision. Despite all the elements of nature, we still find with hard work and diligence there will be a bounty of crops.  As we harvest the fruits of our labor, I can’t help but think of Christ’s statement:  You will know them by their fruits.  So many times I see plants sprout up in our garden that look like a vegetable plant.  However, as time passes they are some dreaded weed.  In time, the absence of fruit and the presence of flowers or thorns tells me I was deceived.  Plants don’t just deceive us.  People do as well.  At first glance, we think a person is walking with integrity and perhaps a devoted Christian.  As time passes we see a falsehood and  shriveled fruit that resembles nothing of the fruit of the spirit.  It is shocking and disappointing to be deceived, but it is a part of this journey.  God even tells us that we will see wolves in sheep’s clothing.  We are not to be surprised when we are persecuted for we are promised we will suffer for His name’s sake.

Though I long to write more about our recent adventures, my eyelids feel heavy.  Today was just as full as the last several weeks.  I  spent time in the woods picking wild blackberries and wild cherries.  Each poke I received as I harvested reminded me of how pain often follows with a reward of good fruit.  As you work in your gardens this summer fighting the weeds, the bugs, the thorns, remember to reflect on the teachings of Christ.  It is in the garden that I feel closest to my Savior.  Lord willing, when this busy season is over, I can share all we have learned this summer. We have made good progress toward the goal of providing our own food.

Stay tuned for a review of our training with the plain people in gardening and draft horse farming.   We have also had many adventures with our Nubian goats and our Jersey heifer.  So much to share and so little time.

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

Last week came and went with a flurry of activity in our lives. We spent three days training with the plain people to work our horses. My husband worked in the field, while I spent time working in the greenhouse and kitchen learning all I could about a non-electric life. As I begin this article, I can’t help but express how great and awesome God is to take care of us as we begin this journey. I am so thankful for our friends and their willingness to invite us into their fields to work with them, into their greenhouse to labor with them and into their homes to eat with them. It has been an extraordinary week.

Day one of the apprenticeship was highly informative. We learned that our team had not been used to working. Had we taken them straight home we would have been in for a real surprise. Headaches would be more like it. As a result, Ruth and Rachel were hitched up with the other horses one at a time and rotated to give them a chance to build up stamina. My husband worked a well trained team running a clod smasher. He gained experience with a safer team. The goal is to get our team used to working and used to us before turning us loose with them. Again, I am so thankful for the expertise of our friends. They have saved us many misfortunes, headaches, and frustrations.

Our friends have 65 acres. They claim that is too much for them, but it was all that was available. Right now my husband is helping to prepare an eight acre plot for garden produce. We learned that to plow the eight acres we would need a team of five horses. A team of two could work at a pace of a ½ acre per day. Great care must be taken to keep the horses active and fit for farm work. Leaving them to eat hay for the majority of their days is neglectful and poor stewardship. On day two we learned how to keep the horses active on the farm. I will write more about that later. Another curiosity: Horses know plain clothing over flashy colors. The children approached Rachel to take a picture. She snorted loudly. My friend said, “The horses know and recognize clothing colors. They are not used to bright colored clothing. It will take time to get used to you. But they will”.

We were counseled that horses are dangerous creatures and respect must be paid to this fact at all times. Our friends demonstrated that as you make a complete pass in the field, you must stop and rest the horses for three minutes before continuing on. During the rests, the ladies bring the men snacks and water.

Day two was spent using the horses for hauling miscellaneous items around the farm. First, there were a group of steers penned in the barn. They needed to be moved to pasture. A small stock wagon hitched up to the team reduced the need for creating temporary alley ways with fencing.

Later, the team was used to move a heavy wood stove to the front porch. Watching our friend give commands to his horses as he backed the wagon into a tight spot was marvelous. I have watched my husband back a truck and trailer many times acting as his guide. Our friend was backing this trailer between a tree a large stump and aiming for the front porch so they could unload the heavy stove easily. In times past, my husband uses a mechanical steering wheel turning in the opposite direction of where he wants the trailer to go. If he is about to miss or hit something, I holler. I watched. Mr. G. back his team, pull them forward, angle differently, pull forward and back them up again with a series of commands. At one point, I about hollered, the horses were about to step on the plow if they kept going. Before I could say anything, the horse simply stepped over the handle that was in the way and continued working. If this would have been a vehicle, the handle would have broke. It was awe inspiring to see Mr. G. replace a steering wheel manufactured in steel companies with leather reigns made by a local craftsman. Gone was the engine, the gears, the power steering fluid. It was all replaced by living creatures who had a dynamic relationship with each other. A relationship based on trust, care and faithfulness. Further, our friends do what they do because they love the Lord God. They are using horses to take dominion of the land. I by far, prefer that method to Ford, Chrysler and Dodges way of taking dominion.

The training session ended with using the team to haul freshly pruned raspberry branches to a burn pile. We learned that keeping a team busy and active is crucial to the overall success of the farm. Working the team will keep them fit. It will improve the relationship between man and beast.

Day three provided more training on how to incorporate the horses into daily activities. My husband worked on hauling items to the market and from the market. The difference: this time they used our team. After working off and on for a week, it was time for the reigns to be handed to us with our team. My oldest son dominated the reigns and enjoyed himself immensely. Our time was well spent this past week. We concluded our work by sharing a meal with our friends. Everything on the table was raised on their farm, butchered by them, grown and canned by them. We had a hearty meal of home made pizza with farmer’s cheese. Even the mushrooms were home processed. We had green beans, home made cottage cheese and apple goody for dessert. I never knew food with out artificial flavors or enhancers could taste so rich. Perhaps the most shocking moment was when my friend looked at me and said, “What do canned green beans bought at the store taste like?” My friend was duly blessed and had never tasted anything but fresh green beans or those she had canned herself. Indeed, she has a life well lived.

Next time, I will share about my training. I am not working with the team, but am working in the kitchen and backyard learning amazing amounts about keeping a non-electric home.

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

I made a huge mistake. I read the children a story by Pat McMannus entitled, ” A bear in the attic”.  The story is summarized like this:

A man stumbles upon an orphaned bear cub. His friends tell him to pop it on the head. Instead of hitting the bear, he is hit with compassion. He decides to take it home to his wife who would mother a fence post if she could. He thought she could raise it and return it to the wild soon. If all else failed, they could have good bear meat. One thing leads to another and she raises the bear as a pet, names it Pooky. There is no way you can eat a bear named Pooky. The bear takes over the house, sits in his arm chair, snarls at him if he tries to get him out. The wife gives the bear his own fridge because he keeps raiding the meat out of theirs. It is a delightful story.

Now to my kids:

Zech enters the house breathing excitedly and calling me to come quick. He has something wrapped up in his shirt. It starts chirping. I didn‘t recognize the sound. He unwraps his shirt and reveals a gosling. Hank, the cow dog, apparently tried to eat him, but he kids rescued it. Zech had been asking for a duck for his birthday. He was delighted!! As soon as he unwrapped it, he told me they named it “Pooky”. UGGH! The kids researched how to care for geese in the Country Living Encyclopedia. They have become good readers and decided to use the index and get information fast so they could build their case for keeping it. Pooky slept in a tub in the kitchen last night with a heat lamp. All night I could hear it jumping to try to get out of the tub.

An aside:

Saturday we brought our first Jersey to the farm to stay. She is an eight week old heifer named Natalie born to Sunny. Sunny has been staying with our plain friends while we get settled. They plan to run her with a bull before we bring her home. She will arrive in a month or two. I will be a genuine milkmaid once again.

Using the stock trailer to bring home a small calf seemed overkill. We brought her home in traditional Kansas Milkmaid fashion. We loaded her in the back of the mini van. I didn’t have my camera so I will let you use your imagination. The calf was in the hatch back and all the children were fighting over who would sit on the bench seat to keep her calm. She did well for the entire thirty minute trip. This was a short trip. I have hauled two calves in passenger vehicles in the past. Mel rode from Oklahoma to Kansas. Majesty rode from Kansas to Missouri.

Last night I went to sleep with the sound of a bawling calf…she has just been weaned… and the strange chirping of Pooky. Are we not back on the farm or what? Let the adventures begin…

Greetings from the Kansas Milkmaid!!

The pace picked up last week on the farm. We had a house full of family this weekend which provided lots of fun and great memories.

The tomato plants are growing well. 50lbs of potatoes were planted using the straw method. The stock trailer was cleaned out in hopes of bringing our family cow home in a few months. We are also likely to bring work horses to the farm during this summer. Preparations are being made to purchase a team this weekend. We are excited and nervous. Our farmstead hasn’t been farmed by horses since 1951. It will be a real treat to return to plowing and harvesting with the aid of horses. The horses will remain with our friends while we build a stable for them. May God grant us the speed and determination necessary to bring a team home to help with plowing and harvesting our first crops in our first year back on the land.

I spent the weekend talking to my husband’s mother gathering the history of the land in hopes to chronicle the legacy long forgotten for our children as they assist in rebuilding the farm. I want them to know about those who have gone before us and labored on this land. Hopefully we can capture their dreams, learn from their disappointments and persevere with their faith. I love to hear the stories of how Momma checked for eggs while trying to outwit a mean rooster and a testy turkey. We poured over her grandmother’s diary together which was written with a quill pen. I love stepping back in time through the recollections of those who have lived a full life. The insanity of modern culture disappears for a few hours while I listen to the stories of old. Times were tough then. Times are tough now. But, we are still missing something today. Indeed, we have no sense of rural community, our families are scattered and such recollections unneeded by our busy fragmented modern society. Afterall, who cares when the land was last farmed by horses?  It is so vintage, right?  Think again.  Many people are forsaking tractors and returning to work horses, oxen, and mules. 

The busy weekend left me with no time to complete my writings for the week. There are several artilces started but not perfected.   However, several asked a recipe for Breakfast Sausage Bread. It is a delicious dish that was made in our family at Christmas time. I recently found the recipe. The bread is so good it is a shame to have it only once per year. Prepared in advance it saves me time in the kitchen. I like to prepare it on the weekend and make it available for the weekdays. Planning ahead allows me to get to the school room much sooner.

Breakfast Sausage Bread

2 loaves (1 pound each) frozen bread dough, thawed

(I make my own bread dough out of whole wheat)

½ pound mild pork sausage

½ pound hot pork sausage

1 ½ cups fresh mushrooms (I omit this–my crew doesn’t care for mushrooms)

½ cup chopped onion

3 eggs

2 ½ cups shredded cheese

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed

1 teaspoon garlic powder

Allow dough to rise until nearly doubled.

Meanwhile, in a skillet over medium heat, cook and crumble sausage. Add mushrooms and oinion. Cook and stir until the sausage is browned and vegetables are tender; drain. Cool. Beat 1 egg; set aside. To sausage mixture, add two eggs, cheese and seasonings; mix well. Roll each loaf of dough into a 16-inch by 12 inch rectangle. Spread half the sausage mixture on each loaf to within 1 inch of edges. Roll jelly-roll style, starting at a narrow end; seal edges. Place on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes; brush with beaten egg. Bake 5-10 minutes more or until golden brown. Serve warm. Yield: two loaves.

Lord willing I will be able to share some of our daily activities soon. Spring is a wonderful time of year. I am reminded of Christ’s resurrection when I see the seemingly dead trees bud and bloom.  Enjoy the fresh air, the sunshine and let the son shine in your life. 

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

Current status and today‘s accomplishments:

–Feet throbbing after long busy day on the homestead.

–Brain fogged from exhaustion.

–Overwhelmed at the newness of the tasks before me.

–Rendered more tallow. Perplexed. My recent batch looks more yellow, less white. Plan to fall asleep pondering this fat dilemma. Which leads me to my next point…

– After two weeks of rendering bovine fat, I have taken an keen interest in reducing…ahem…the amount of fat I carry. Tough topic. Lots of excuses. I am middle aged, a momma of six. I have much more enjoyable things to do than repetitive motion causing profuse sweating and intense burning sensation in my muscles. What can I say? Eating a Snickers wins out over exercising every time.

–Despite my no win battle with chocolate, I triumphed and burned 600 to 700 calories Monday through Wednesday. Let’s all chant, “You go girl”. Please, oh please do because I am so unmotivated to keep this up.

–Made eight loaves of 100 percent whole wheat bread with flax today. It is really 100 percent. Not a smidgen of white flour. I despise recipes that are titled “100 percent whole wheat” and include white flour as a second primary ingredient. It is homesteading heresy.

–Prepared peach cobbler for breakfast tomorrow. I know, you wonder about us. Cobbler for breakfast? Why not? The kids love it. My husband loves it and it is easy to make. Every body is happy and so am I. Hmmm…now I will have to stay on that repetitive motion machine longer tomorrow. Bleck.

–Cooked down some soap shavings to make two gallons of homemade dish soap. I used glycerin this time. The soap bubbled two seconds longer than then the kind I made without glycerin. In the end, the dishes were clean and the water looked similar to bath water where my children inevitably leave the soap in the tub turning to spongy mush. Still searching for ways to make a better inexpensive dish soap.

–Cleaned up the kitchen after my husband and children converted it into a miniature horticulture laboratory. They planted four varieties of heirloom tomatoes. The seedlings are resting quietly near the den window. I am waiting just waiting for the day when an exuberant child dashes by the table, trips and overturns those seedlings. It is bound to happen. We have whispered threats to them. Let’s see if they heed them.

Farming involves learning to cope with forces of nature around you. As we plant seeds, we realize from the time the seed goes into the dirt to the time of bearing fruit any number of events can interfere with the production of the final product. If the kids don’t overturn the potting containers, a hail storm or an escapee cow can destroy all the good intentions, dreams and goals. Disease, pests, drought, and disaster can claim the diligent daily work of the farmer. This is not just true for the farmer, but for anyone in life who sets a goal and puts it into action. Goals and dreams take effort. We must confront forces beyond our control squarely, honestly and helplessly. And sometimes, despite our best efforts we have little to show for a day’s work. It is here in the midst of the frustration that we find our only source of contentment resides in Christ. He gives us the strength to carry on. He gives us a hope beyond the sabotaged plans or personal failures. He gives meaning to the failure as we endeavor to walk closely with Him.

Closing this day thanking God for the completion of goals long talked about. I thank God for my aching feet. May He bless our family with many more days of working diligently together to keep dreams of farming alive. Moreover, may He guide those little footsteps away from that planting table and enable us to harvest the fruits of our labors.

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

As promised, I have returned to explain my lengthy absence from blogging. Time is of the essence so I will not labor long explaining the phenomenon taking place in my life. In fact, rather than explain what has what has already been said elsewhere, I will just point you the link and let you read what I wrote earlier.

Herrick Kimball retired from daily blogging and offers readers an e-zine of sorts. The once of month postings are lengthy but full of revelant and entertaining information. The demands on my time coupled with my short attention span usually allow me to briefly skim Herrick’s updates. This month’s update included an old fashioned picture of a rather stern man with a haunting expression on his face.

 Curiosity got the best of me, so I read intently to learn about this man’s identity. Interestingly enough, he was Charles Finney, a lawyer turned evangelist that my children and I had just studied in our home school. In fact, after reading Herrick’s article, I wondered if he had been secretly visiting our home while we were unaware. Herrick described all that has been on our hearts as a family as though he were a participating family member. This means only one thing. The Holy Spirit is at work laying convictions on the hearts of men every where in preparation for a revival. I have many friends who are wrestling with the same issues and doing what we are doing to reconcile with the moral, educational, and governmental decline of this nation.

Recently, I felt led to transform our methods of home schooling. I describe a little of the transformation on Herrick’s blog. Time and time again, I was drawn to the educational methods of colonial Americans. You can read more about the details of our home school changes here in the comments section of The Deliberate Agrarian.

We have been using the principle approach formally for nine weeks. The changes I have seen in my children and our household are so exciting. As I described on Herrick’s site, this method of education is daunting for both the teacher and the students. As a result, I have been pouring my all into understanding how to apply this approach and to teach it as well. It is time consuming but beyond rewarding.

I suspect that as we adjust to a more demanding and rigorous schedule I will find more time to share our journey. Indeed our lives are full right now. In between home schooling and keeping the home, we are still working to improve our homesteading skills. We recently joined our plain friends for a great time of fellowship and education. They taught us how to butcher a pig and  then later a steer. We witnessed first hand how to use real horse power to operate meat saws and grinders. It was a real treat to see a team of horses harnessed to a treadmill to assist us with the processing. Making scrapple and rendering tallow are just a few of the things I have been doing in my spare time. Lord willing, I will share how to render tallow from an amateur’s perspective. With the advent of spring we anticipate fulfilling some of our goals to live a simple off-the-grid lifestyle. We are cherishing this season as a new family and enjoying the approach of our first spring on the farm. The children are full of anticipation. I anticipate an insurrection soon if we don’t make quick progress on bringing the cows back home. The children inquire daily about our progress on the goals of turning this quiet fallow land into a booming farmstead. May the Lord give us strength to steward this land for His glory. I look forward to sharing our progress with you as time permits.

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

Several readers sent emails recently inquiring about my absence from the blog scene. Your concern and kind thoughts always inspire me. Thank you!!

My recent marriage propelled me into a new season of life, a rewarding and fulfilling season at that! I have longed to share our new journey more than before because of the authentic joy we are experiencing as a family. So why not? I will explain more later in another post.

For now, I must say there is nothing quite so precious as witnessing redemption from barrenness caused by suffering. Many of us experience trials that lay us low. At one point, I concluded that I would only see salvation from earthly woes that plagued me in the presence of Christ. I accepted my plight. I would suffer intensely the rest of my life. It was just my calling.

Surely, I was held captive by a distorted understanding of God’s love, care, and provision for His children. True, we will continue to suffer in this life, but God is a God of redemption. He is about redeeming His people both now and on the other side of heaven. You can see this attribute of God as you read about how He delivered the Israelites from captivity. He freed this unworthy ungrateful group of people into a land flowing with milk and honey. It was along journey filled with fear, rebellion, punishment, chastisement and ultimately a vast mercy.

You can also see the beauty of God’s redemption in the book of Ruth. This story has become my favorite story and my children‘s too. Why? We can relate to Ruth. We know the pain of complete loss. We know the feeling of uncertainty related to daily provisions. We know what it is like to be displaced from our home, the farm, and people we loved. We know the feeling of being a foreigner. We left many friends behind in Kansas and started all over in Missouri. We know the hard work needed to keep food on the table and make ends meet. But, more than that we know what it is like to have a kinsman redeemer. My husband, is my Boaz. He is a godly man who takes his leadership of our family seriously. Daily he strives to wash me in the word and to teach our children the commands of God. His leadership, his tender love, his joy in the Lord, his real and active faith has been a tremendous source of healing for me and the children. The shouting and violence is gone. Now, music fills my home. Music he composes for the glory of God, but also music from the children. Just this morning, the twins belted out “Rejoice in the Lord Always, Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow, and Amazing Grace”. They sang while they were completing various morning chores.

Okay, Okay, I must be honest. There is shouting in our home. The barrage of words comes after a long and sustained silence. Often I wonder if anyone is breathing because it is so quiet. Is silence due to fear you wonder? No. It is extreme focus. The shouting occurs when one of the twins beats Daddy in checkers or visa versa. It is always the same kind of shout “YES!!!! Woo Hoo!!!! I did it”. The checkers games are so serious. We now have game board perfect for traveling. Our lives have changed and we owe God the glory and praise for His mercy.

Stay tuned for more of what we have been doing at a later date….

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

Site meters are intriguing tools. I am amazed at how many different people log into this site and from all over the globe. With the aid of this tool, I can see who my regular readers are and their location. Many still visit even though I don’t post regularly. They are there every day logging in at about the same time. More than that, it is interesting to see how people arrive at the Kansas Milkmaid site. Some arrive here from emails sent by friends sharing an article I have written. Others come by directly googling the Kansas Milkmaid. Still other google topics I have written about like the James Washer, self-composting toilets, or living simply.

I have readers who belong to large organizations and companies like Hospira, the USDA, the National Weather Service, and recently someone from NASA logged onto my site. There are real readers behind these organizations. I have interacted with a few of them through private emails. They aren’t just spam bots.

That set aside, I was especially curious about why someone from NASA would be looking at my site. So, I clicked on the referring URL. Lo and behold, they came by a google search. They were interested in sawdust composting toilets. And, I thought I was confused when I posted on using the microwave by lantern light. Somewhere out there lives a space technician who dreams of roughing it. While I highly recommend a self composting toilet, I would be reluctant to try them in space. Though I must admit, I know nothing about sewage waste and outer space. Perhaps high technology and primitive living go together better then I suspect.

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid