I agree completely…

Posted on January 26, 2012 by Melissa Kunze

I am not the #1 fan of technology, not by any stretch of the imagination.  I prefer a paper, bound book over an electronic one any day.  Yet, I understand why electronic is becoming a necessary “evil”.  In my case, several books I want to read, but am unwilling to pay $15 – $20 for and I can get a Kindle for $100.00 and download the Kindle ones of the same title for free.  Ugh!

Anyhow, there is a lot of that in this crazy world, and my heart longs for evenings by the fire with my hubby and kids ~ talking, reading, playing games…by candlelight.

I know, I’m weird right?  But I like weird…it’s different.  And that is probably why Kelly’s post today, over at The Morris Tribe, really made my heart sing.  She is absolutely correct in what she is saying and my husband and I are slowly reverting back to a lot of these simple, yet connected ways of life.

Can I encourage you to pop on over to Kelly’s blog, read her post today on Resisting Automation, then shut down the computer, and connect with your activities today.

Be Blessed.

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A Simple Woman’s Daybook…1/16/12

Posted on January 16, 2012 by Melissa Kunze

FOR TODAY

Outside my window…it is sunny and warm.  An exquisite mid-January day.

I am thinking…about all the little projects I have to get done right now…all towards goals for 2012.

I am thankful…for the wonderful deal I got on curtains for two of my kids rooms the other day.

In the kitchen…ooo, it is a mess, but will be cleaned up and become peaceful again so I can begin preparing for our dinner guests this week.

I am wearing…jeans and a comfy, cowl neck sweater…and of course, my slippers.

I am creating…a home management binder that will help me keep things organized and that my family can reference as well.

I am going…no where today…that’s nice.

I am wondering…how I am going to revamp my pantry and cellar to work most effectively and efficiently.

I am reading…“Piercing the Darkness” by Frank Peretti (I just finished the first book “This Present Darkness” and by this evening I will be to the final book in the series, “The Prophet”. 

I am hoping…that my day and this week continue to progress peacefully.

I am looking forward to…my oldest son’s birthday this weekend.

I am learning…how to plan meals for a month so that I can grocery shop once a month.

Around the house…damage from Ivan dog is being repaired, rooms are being deep cleaned and decluttered.

I am pondering…what my order of things to get done is right now.

A favorite quote for today…“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

One of my favorite things…going to the coop and Calpurnia wanting her cuddle time.

A few plans for the rest of the week: deep clean and declutter 2nd floor living room, dinner with friends on Wednesday, and hopefully finish planning February meals.

A peek into my day…


I am linked up with The Simple Woman’s Daybook

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Chicken Management Binder…

Posted on January 12, 2012 by Melissa Kunze

I am so excited to share this with all of you!  It is the completion of my Chicken Management Binder!  I know, lame right?  Wait, ducks are lame…or are they?  They are kinda cute…and tasty.  But hold on one cluck, we are talkin’ chickens here…right now. :)

Ever since we got our cutie patuties last year, I have wanted (and dreamed) of putting together a binder to manage our chickens.  I mean, I can easily fall in love with just about any animal…okay, except pigs because they are just g-r-o-s-s!  But I digress, so on with the chickens.

I used a standard, one-inch, 3-ring binder.  If it comes to it in the future, I can always expand into a larger binder, but for now this will work well.  As you can see, I put a printout of my beautiful babies in the front sleeve. Yes, I admit it, I am completely enamored with my chickens.  Calpurnia is my cuddle-bug.

Inside my binder I have a plain piece of notebook paper for recording all of our feed costs for this year.  I can record feed, scratch, oyster shell, grit, oats, diatomaceous earth, or any other treats or necessities we may purchase.  Some items, such as stuff for the first aid kit will obviously not get used frequently (I hope) and will need to be rotated out.  The way I see it, that is not any different than our “medicine” cabinet for humans!

I made tabs for each article/section that I keep in here from masking tape.  Okay, so I am totally dorky, but that is okay.  I was clever and creative ~ since I did not have any little page tabs at home, and I did not want to go spend money on them, I just made some up. :)

Some of my tabbed items are articles that I have found incredibly helpful in regards to raising chickens online that I did not want to search again for later so I just printed them off.  Others are for records and we will probably be adding another tab in here soon for the new coop plans.

This is what I came up with for keeping track of the girls egg production.  On the far left hand side is the date (and yes, in my own quirky, organized fashion every day of 2012 is accounted for ~ including Leap Day).  The next two columns are labeled ‘Gem’ and ‘Calpurnia’.  I can record whether or not the girls laid an egg next to the date under their column and then total them up for each month.

Obsessive? Maybe, but I want to cover all my bases.  These are not just our pets, but also providing eggs for our family.  When I can go pay about $3.00/dozen for farm fresh eggs around here, I want to know if I am being cost effective in what we are doing.  Yes, I know exactly what they are eating, and that is (as far as I am concerned) an invaluable cost.  I also know that these chickens are not being abused or crowded in.  I know they are not being given unnecessary antibiotics or steroids, or any other mysterious items.

Another page I want to add to my Chicken Management Binder is a list of my favorite and most helpful chicken websites.  Would you like me to share my list when I have it done?

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Revamping organization…

Posted on January 11, 2012 by Melissa Kunze

As with anything else in life, change happens.

I do not always like it.

But it comes nonetheless.

As the seasons change outdoors, the seasons in our lives change as well.  And with these changes, there is always a rippling effect.  For instance: for years I have been homeschooling three children, but with the graduation of my oldest last June, well, I am obviously only homeschooling two children now.  This may not sound like a huge change, but it was for me.

The ingrained habit was planning, prepping, grading, and evaluating for three.  This is time consuming, rewarding, and requires balance.  The unexpected change was going from two grade levels to one grade level, which required significantly less time for the above mentioned.  I was not prepared for that.

But I am adjusting…still.

The same seasonal adjustments are occurring in other areas of our lives as well.  We are chicken farmers (so to speak). :)   We are gardening more.  We are eating closer to home, which includes more berry picking and apple picking.  And this year, I plan to include more Farmer’s Markets as well.  These too require planning, preparing, and evaluation.

How much is it costing us to raise our chickens (who are pets as well as providing us eggs)?  Is it cost effective?  Is the cost worth it as we know exactly what they are eating?

What about all those garden seeds, and tools, and supplies for canning and preserving?  How are the costs stacking up?  How can I decrease these costs without decreasing, or outright compromising, quality?

These and so many more questions are floating around my mind.  God, in His grace and wisdom, has set me right here.  In this home.  With my husband and children.  With great gifts, come great responsibilities.  I want to be a good steward of all the blessings the Lord has given us.  And I truly believe that one of the ways I can fulfill my desire of being a good steward is to manage what I have been blessed with effectively.

This means asking questions, monitoring activity and costs, evaluating results…

being better organized.

I’m working on my Home Management notebook today.  This is NOT just for my benefit.  If I am sick or gone for a few days then my Oak Tree and our children can go to this book for information they may need.  If my Oak Tree wants to know how much we have spent on pet management over the last three months, he can go to the notebook and look at the information.

While I re-organize our home, how it is managed, and the tools that we use I hope to share what works for us…and what does not work for us along the way.  I am still learning and growing in this even though I have a natural bent towards organization.  As seasons change, so do the ways they are organized.

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Nearly complete 2012 Goals list…

Posted on January 5, 2012 by Melissa Kunze

I was asked to share all 50 of the goals I have for 2012 around our little homestead.  Well, how about nearly all of them (trust me, there are some you really don’t want to know :) ).  So, here they are in no particular order, although I do have them categorized out on a large poster board in my kitchen.

Install 1/4 round trim at base of walls to floor

Complete 12 Mary Janes Farm merit bages

Get birthday cards sent out in a timely fashion

Have all Christmas cards mailed out by the day after Thanksgiving

Create and successfully manage a budget that includes making all purchases via cash.  (Think the envelope system that Dave Ramsey promotes).

Eat more vegan meals (follow a more Mediterranean Diet)

Buy a Berky water filtration system

Exercise Daily

Incorporate a daily prayer/praise time of 1/2 to 1 hour long

Plan, prepare, seed & harvest garden

Can/preserve more from garden

Shop more Farmer’s markets

Increase amount of berry picking and apple picking

Make all Christmas gifts (I know, really ambitious right?!) :)

Finish all Christmas shopping, & have everything prepped and shipped by December 1

Farm fresh eggs only (going to be easier now that one of my hens is laying)

Make soap (can’t wait to do this!)

Make a straw hat (I have a pattern from an old Mary Janes Farm issue)

Follow GF diet ~ I cheat way, way, way too much and pay for it.

Declutter whole house

Read a minimum of 12 books (love to read…time is the issue)

Build a new chicken coop

Make lotion

Fence yard

Repair garage windows/door, paint and organize garage

Read Bible through in 90 days…twice

Eliminate all HFCS (last hold is Coca Cola ~ yes, I am a junkie and I am owning that…first step towards recovery. :) )

Finish my oldest son’s quilt

Repair damage from the Village Idiot, aka: Ivan the dog

Put together holiday folders

Redecorate kitchen (trust me…it needs it.)

Well, there you have it.  Nearly all 50 goals.  As we are attacking some of these, my Oak Tree and I are sitting down and developing a step-by-step plan that includes short-term and long-term (i.e: completion) dates.  For example, I have until the end of January to declutter the Living Room.  This process includes the entertainment center, bookshelves, my end table and the ottomans that have built in storage.  I would like to have it completed before the due date, but this date gives in leeway for unexpected stuff ~ oh, come on, you know what I’m talking about. :)

Be Blessed!

Posted in General, Homesteading, Life, Organizition | 2 Comments

2012 Homesteading Goals

Posted on January 2, 2012 by Melissa Kunze

My goals for this year can truly be summed up in this one paragraph:

I want to become a more faithfully obedient daughter of the Reigning King.  I want to be a better wife and mother.  I want to be a better manager of my home; doing everything “heartily as unto the Lord.” I want to be a better steward of all the blessings the Lord has given me and my family.

As such, my homesteading goals are a reflection of this paragraph.  They include items for personal growth, spiritual growth, learning more new things, being better organized in every aspect of my life: including record keeping.

Here are a few just to give you a glimpse into my goals for this year:

*Follow GF diet well. As such, learn more and become better at preparing GF foods.

*Declutter the whole house, including the garage and it’s loft of mysteries.

*Learn to make soap. I’m really excited about this.

*Eat and use only farm fresh eggs. Easier now that one of our hens started laying last week.

*Shop Farmer’s markets, do more berry picking and apple picking.

*Make lotion.  I had a recipe for this once from my pharmaceutical days, but I bet I can find a better one…without chemicals.

*Plan, prepare, seed & harvest garden.  We are planning to increase our garden this year which will make achieving the next a better possibility.

*Increase canning/preserving of garden harvest & farmer’s market goods.

*Pray through “The Power of a Praying Wife.”

*Pray through “The Power of a Praying Parent.”

*Fence Yard

*Complete 4 personal Bible studies.

*Paint garage and do repairs to windows & doors.

*Eliminate HFCS from our diets completely.  (The biggest holdout on this is me…I enjoy my daily Coca-Cola.)

There are many more goals, (I have 50 total), but this is a good overview.  When you have only 1/3 of an acre, you must focus your goals on what you have (and thus being content), and expand your knowledge and talents as the Lord directs.

I hope this has triggered some ideas for you!

I’m ready to dive in to 2012, goals in had, and plan in place…and of course, flexibility for the Lord’s little surprises. :)

Be Blessed.

Linking up to:

Photobucket

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Happy New Year 2012

Posted on December 31, 2011 by Melissa Kunze

As we say good-bye to 2011, I would like to pray a blessing over my dear family and friends.

Dear Lord,

I thank You for all of the wonderfulness of You this past year.  As myself, and many others, have faced trials and tribulations, You have always been there; strengthening us, guiding us, protecting us, providing for us, and most of all…just loving us.

As we walk into 2012, may we all strive to develop strong spirits, live our lives in faithful obedience to You, reject the opinion of man, and live to glorify You!  May we remain humble and teachable, may we cast off spirits of pride, arrogance, bitterness and unforgiveness, and seek only to love others as You love us.

May we remember, that wherever we are in our gifts and talents, there is always someone out there who is more developed in those same talents.  Let us seek them so we may learn.

Let us remember to never despise small beginnings, or forget just how far You have brought us.  Let us keep in our hearts the treasures that You have placed within us: diligence, perseverance, thankfulness, joy, peace and love.  Let us remember that the Light will always cast out the darkness.

As we enter into this blessed New Year, let us be mindful of those things in which You have placed us as stewards over.  And let us never forget, that stewardship is not just over gifts, talents, or material possessions, but is first and foremost over our relationships ~ beginning with You.

Lord, I lift up all my family, friends, and readers of this blog to You.  Keep them, guide them, protect them, strengthen them, and above all, let them seek You first and Your kingdom.

I thank You Lord for all these that I believe will come to pass in the New Year.

In Jesus Precious Name I pray…Amen.

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An adoption love story….

Posted on December 30, 2011 by Melissa Kunze

While my Oak Tree and I have not embarked personally on the path of adoption (yet), my brother and his wife have.

Twice now.

And today, she legally became my niece!  Woo-hoo!  Yipee!! Praise the Lord!!

My sister-in-law has written beautifully about the path to today on her blog.  Take a moment to hop on over to Living to Welcome and read her post today.  I promise you will smile through the tears of pure joy.

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2011…A year in review.

Posted on December 23, 2011 by Melissa Kunze

Wow! What an incredible and blessed year we have had here.  And just think, there are still two more weeks left. :)

My Oak Tree has kept himself so busy, between work, hunting, and while laid off for several months, he worked a lot with one of our church’s programs.  He’s built not one, but two temporary chicken coops (we’ll build a better one in the spring), and he’s built a fence for our garden to keep the “friendly” rabbits out as well.  He’s also started blogging ~ you can read his stuff here at Christian Frontiersman.

Our Travis Tree became a bonafide, legal adult ~ gasp! How did that happen?!?!  I was not ready for him to grow up this quick, graduate from high school and have a life that does not always include me!  Okay, pity party over.  He’s had an amazing year as well, between graduating from high school, working (a lot), he shot two deer (his first two) and went to the Jesus Culture Awakening conference where God healed his eyes!  So awesome!

Cactus Conor became a teenager!  And again, I say NO!!!  Why do my kiddos have to grow up so fast!  He has had a crazy year as well ~ sadly, he buried three of his pets this year, however, he also gained the Village Idiot, aka: Ivan the dog (who turns one on Christmas Day).  Cactus Conor also shot his first deer this year.  God has also done a mighty work in him as well ~ no longer is my middle child an introvert, but he has become so outgoing.  Wow!

My Opulent Orion turned 12 and is still as big a book worm as ever.  He devours books faster than I can come up with them for him.  He has been such a wonderful help with the chickens and he is still attached at the hip to his Jackie kitten. While he didn’t get to hunt this year, he was outside for more of the hands-on aspect of hunting than I expected.  He is such a beautiful, tender heart.

With all these young men in my house I have been challenged in many directions.  No longer am I raising little boys, but young men, young adults and it is an adventure.  It is so interesting these adjustments in the seasons of my life.  Not just one season, but several.  I love looking to see where the Lord is leading me…and us.  We embarked on so much this year: chickens, a full garden, canning, increased blogging and I have re-ignited my joy in sewing…and so much more.

We made a trip to North Carolina this year to see my brother and his family and even that, as wonderful as it was, brought forth another season of adjustment.  Our Travis Tree stayed home and keep things running smoothly…a huge adjustment for both he and I.

As I begin to say good-bye to 2011, I can not help but stop and review all of the amazing blessings the Lord has given my family.  His provision has been astounding, surprising and awe-inspiring.  Have there been trials ~ absolutely!  However, we count them as joy because we know that our dear Father in Heaven is (and has been) using these situations for our good.

May 2012 find everyone blessed beyond measure, life full of adventures that Lord has planned for you and peace that surpasses all understanding.

God Bless you all!

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I’ve been MIA…

Posted on December 21, 2011 by Melissa Kunze

Sorry about that.  We got some pretty harsh news three weeks ago and I’ve sort of withdrawn.

From everyone…and everything.

I have chosen to draw closer to my Lord, my Jesus.

I needed to.

My Dad was diagnosed December 2nd with Stage 4 Colon Cancer (incurable, and inoperable).

This is a tough pill to swallow.

He started chemo last week.

This is a roller coaster ride to say the least, and I know we are in for twists and turns, ups and downs that we can not even begin to image.

If it seems like I’m overly absent, this is probably why.

I plan to go once a month for my Dad’s chemo.  He lives in another state and he is currently scheduled for treatment every 14 days.

I’m trying to understand how the Lord wants me to adjust the navigation of our lives with this new piece.

I am unsure.

However, my confidence is in the Lord, Who is holding me and my family up safely in the palm of His hand.  I am resting in the knowledge that my Lord has a perfect plan in place.  My responsibility, and I do it gladly, is to trust in Him.

This is not my family’s first dance with a cancer patient in the family.

My Mother-in-law had cancer.  She gracefully lost her battle almost 16 years ago.

I am blessed to have a wonderful support network in place.  An amazing husband who knows exactly how I am feeling and what I am going through.

An awesome brother of whom I am so grateful to have in my life.  Thankful that the Lord stepped in both our lives, lifted us up out of miry clay, and healed our relationship.

My “sister” who has known me, and my family, my whole life.

My sister-in-law (and also one of my besties) of whom I have battled with, cried with, laughed with and been sad with and of course, have been sassy with. :)

My Mom…thanks Mom!

There are more, but these are my core and I am so blessed and thankful.

But I am blessed and thankful for all of you too.

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