Fernnook Farmgirl

2009-05-27T05:29:00.000-07:00

From the Fernnook Times:

(Paraphrased)

A 2007 Supreme Court Ruling on automobile emissions has
an endangerment finding that will affect other sectors of
the economy, including agriculture.

The bottom line is that a fee or tax of $175 per dairy cow,
$87.50 per beef animal, and $20 per hog could be assessed
to the farmers and ranchers. (Apparently this will not
affect those with less than 25 dairy cows, 50 beef cattle,
or 200 hogs). As these producers are forced out of business,
one wonders where the food will come from.

Is it yet time to say that our court system and legislature
are run amuck?

2009-05-22T04:29:00.000-07:00

Life is always busy, but Spring has got to be the busiest
of all. How can it help but be with all the life that is
bursting out around us.

True conversation (which has nothing at all to do with the
above sentences.)

Laurie: I am not stubborn.

Dad: Laurie, as Mom always said, "Arguing with you is like
arguing with a road sign."

Laurie: Do you mean Mom always said that about me, or G'ma Opal
always said that about me?

Dad: Neither. My Mom always said that about me. But, it applies
to you as well!

Laurie: Humpfh!!

And so, I offer another of G'ma Opal's witticisms. "Arguing with
you is like arguing with a road sign."

2009-05-15T13:54:00.000-07:00

I love Psalm 19 with its emphasis on both general and
particular revelation.

Verses 1-6 have been on my mind lately, especially during
the night time hours. This is the time of year when it
is almost painful to go to bed.

The soft velvety air is pierced by the flashes from the
fireflies. The frogs (sorry Uncle Jim) are raucous. The
crickets keep time as best they can with the frogs. Our
whippoorwill wakes us up at all hours of the night and
early morning. The full moon, or the half-moon, or the
sliver of a moon lends its magic to the whole.

Truly:

"The heavens declare the glory of God;
And the firmament shows His handiwork.
Day unto day utters speech,
And night unto night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech no language
Where their voice is not heard.
Their line has gone out through all the earth,
And their words to the end of the world."

2009-05-14T06:45:00.000-07:00

We birthday partied yesterday again. This time for Kent.
Cousin Mary, who was promised a game of High Five for coming,
came in the morning to give her regrets. She found out that
Blue had a dr. appointment at the same time as the party, but
she was kind enough to drop off lettuce and onions from her
garden. Everyone else was there. Uncle Jim, Aunt Jenny,
Papa, Tandy, and Stacey and the kids.

Kent, of course, requested quiche.

The Menu:

Quiche Lorraine (but with ham instead of bacon, and with
mushrooms added in)
Crustless Spinach Quiche
Roasted Veggies (a hodge podge)
Green Beans
Hot Dogs (for the kids who might not like quiche)
Campbell Peaches (from the freezer)
Salad (from Cousin Mary)
Hot Bread
Three Layer Cherry Cobbler (really a glorified pie, with
cherries from Aunt Jenny's tree)
Vanilla Ice Cream

It took me from lunch to dinner to cook it all, but it was
delicioso.

2009-05-12T06:02:00.000-07:00

Do Whippoorwills, the ones which are whipporrwilling at 5 AM,
ever stop to breathe? Kent, Billy, Tyler, and I would like
to know.

2009-05-05T05:14:00.000-07:00

Up and Down the Gravel:

Uncle Jim has had some interesting adventures with birds lately.
A month or so ago a little bird keep hopping closer and closer to
him and finally hopped onto his head. He was thrilled.

But...the other day a little bird did the same thing. It kept
eying him from a little distance and then hopped onto his head.
This time, though, it began to dig in his hair with its little
feet. I don't know if it was trying to nest or possibly trying
to get some material for nesting. I do know this, according to
Uncle Jim, it hurt! He finally shooed it away and yet, within
a few minutes, it hopped right back again. He tried to slowly
reach his hand up and catch it, but he spooked the little guy
and it flew away. But it stayed within an easy hop of him and,
as soon as Jim stood still, right back it came again.

Tyler started drinking coffee. Now, that may seem like a strange
item to note, however, the way it happened was interesting.

I started to drink coffee to get me through college all-night
study sessions. Kent got to liking the brew when he was driving
a bus for the Hope youth group home from Wisconsin and, as was
normal for any trip to and from WI, the bus broke down. As he
was waiting for the bus to be repaired, he had a cup of coffee,
and that was it, he was a full-fledged coffee drinker. Billy
started to drink it last summer during his internship. Work
was slow sometimes and the coffee kept him awake and going.

Tyler is different. No circumstances of the moment could drive
him to such a step. He is much more deliberate. Months ago
he told us, "I am going to start drinking coffee, black, on
the 20th of April." And he did. Why, you may wonder, did he
choose the 20th of April 2009 to start drinking coffee? The
answer is very obvious, at least to him. April 20 was the first
day of Turkey Season. A man needs a little pick-me-up if he is
going to hit the woods in the wee hours of the morning for three
weeks straight.

It's been a rough year for turkeys, in case you were wondering.
Tyler said the other day, "I love turkey hunting, Mom, but I
wish I'd get my turkey so I could stop."

Hattie reminds me of me. The other day she said, "Mom, there are
two words that I just love that I don't think people use often
enough. They are 'latter' and 'vexed'. Aren't those two words
just delicious?" I guess I never thought of "latter" as being
so delicious, but I can quite see her point on "vexed".

2009-05-05T05:13:00.001-07:00

I forgot to mention that the New Fern Nook calendar,
compliments of Uncle Jim, is posted below...that is
at the bottom of the whole page.

2009-05-05T04:56:00.000-07:00

Life in Fern Nook is busy. The hummers help to keep it so.
First there was one; he sat on the Mock Orange bush and
looked in the kitchen window waiting to be noticed so we
would drag a feeder out of the shed and fill it. In a day
or two the one turned into three. Then the group grew to
five; and they have now become seven. There will be more.
It takes awhile for them to all make the long journey.

The little guys are extremely entertaining. Of course the
bullies keep the show at top billing. Even when there were
just three, a bully rose to the top. Because of that, we
hiked out to the shed to pull out, dust off, and fill feeder
number two. That helped for a day or two. But with the
increase in numbers comes an increase in bullies.

We now have what I affectionately have named The Bully and
The Bully Indeed. The Bully guards the feeder on the left
(as you look out the door to the porch). He will keep five
other birds from eating. As any approach he will buzz at
them and shoo them away. Why all five can't gang up on him
at one time is beyond me. But he is just The Bully because
every so often he lets down his guard and you will see the
five able to swoop in for a little sugar water.

The Bully Indeed weaves quite another little drama. He acts
nonchalant, but beware, his guard is never down. Usually he
sits on the drain pipe. Sometimes he perches on the vine that
covers our bell. Occasionally he will even fly into the
Tulip Poplar that is 30 or 40 feet away. But he never rests.
His back might be turned to his feeder, but nothing escapes
his notice. At the slightest whim of interest from another
bird he is on the attack. No bird, ever, gets to feed from
him feeder but himself.

Sometimes I think I should go knock him over the head to
let the others have their share. I guess it would be nice
and sweet if they all got along; but it wouldn't be nearly
so entertaining, and it wouldn't be nearly so hummingbirdish.

2009-04-29T05:17:00.000-07:00

Max is on duty these days. He will not leave the baby geese
and duck when they are in sight. His inbred herd instincts
keep them from wandering out of range.

It is loud on the farm these days. When we lay our heads
on our sweet pillows at night there are crickets, bullfrogs
(which are just now starting up, but haven't yet reached levels
that drive Uncle Jim bonkers), whippoorwills, distant dogs,
and coyotes. When I get up and sit on the couch with the
window open behind me waiting for the coffee to brew there
are dozens of birds calling, twittering, and tweeting. There
is also the loud buzz of the hummers as they zip around. Added
to that is the crowing of Joel's rooster, which we can hear even
though it is a field away.

I know these are sounds that can drive a person from the city
to distraction...but they are life and breath to us. They are
part of God's common grace to mankind and we love it. Add to
that sauteed zucchini, mushrooms, and onion, and once again we
say, copying the old puritan, "All this and heaven too!"
Amazing.

2009-04-25T21:08:00.000-07:00

Up and Down the Gravel:

It is not that there is a lack of goings on in Fern Nook...
but some of the oomph is lacking right now. So many things
I think to write about make me tear up and I do not want this
to be a place of sorrow.

The list of items and events that bring on the sadness is
amazing. The other day I was down in Dad's basement putting
something away and I saw a jar of G'ma Opal's pickles. I was
glad to be alone, so that I could be back under control before
I went upstairs sometime later.

Today I was dusting our family picture from 2000, and seeing
Mom brought the sorrow all over again. I really, really miss
those two.

However, life at Fern Nook has been full. We have been playing
musical garden with Aunt Jenny's tiller. Uncle Jim is the
official keeper of the tiller, and we all ask his permission to
use it. Joel has the biggest garden, I think. He'll probably
keep me busy freezing and cooking all his produce.

Joel has been hatching out all kinds of critters. He has a baby
duck and four geese right now. He brings them down in a bucket
and then lets them out to wander the yard. Max, his German
Shepherd, lives up to his name and shepherds the little birds.
It is fun to watch them cuddle up to such a huge monster of a
dog.

Billy graduates in a couple of weeks, that is if he survives his
senior EE project. It is much more involved than the senior
Comp. Eng. project he did last year. He has been gone from home
a lot this semester. We all miss him. Tyler is having withdrawl
symptoms I think. Really he has been having some sort of hive
thing going on. We can't pinpoint the reason for the hives,
but he is on a short dose of steroids to clear them up.

Tyler is also busy with school, work, and most important of all,
Turkey Hunting. He said the other day, "Mom, I love turkey
hunting, but I wish I'd get my turkey so I could stop hunting
and get some sleep." The gobbling has been scarce this year.

We have Iris, Columbine, Johnny Jump-Ups, and Clematis in bloom.
In a day or two my peonies will start opening up. We have three
early bird Hummers that have arrived. I imagine it will be a week
or two before the whole passel gets here. The other day we had
two Cattle Egrets by our little pond. Nearly every year we see
them for a day or two. They are snow white and look a little
bit like a heron. And most delightful of all, tonight I heard
a Whipporwill for the first time this year, though Joel told me
he'd already been hearing them.

The full burst of spring is here, and I want to hug it so it won't
fly by so fast.

Dad, Joel, Tyler, Jenn, and Hattie-cakes went to the river today.
Hattie went swimming. Kinsey has nothing on her now.

2009-04-15T17:22:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, when the Martins were down, we spent the day at
Cave Springs. We have been going there all our lives.
G'ma Opal loved Cave Springs. She wanted to go every spring
to collect watercress from the fresh, cold water.

Dad gathered some cress, and he cut a few wild onions, and we
added them to our hotdogs. Hotdogs are good with watercress
and wild onion. I was reminded of the year I borrowed an
Irish Cookbook from the library and read about the Irish adding
anything green they could to their diet. They (at a certain
point in history) were short of veggies and would add cress
to their potato soup when they could. Aha, thought I, I can
do that. So I gathered the greens, went home, and made the soup.
The watercress really didn't affect the flavor much at all, but
all the kids turned up their noses at the green color.

This last Saturday turned out to be a sparkly day. The sun was
warm and bright, there was just a hint of a breeze, the fire
added to the fun, the water was cold (just ask Kinsey who went
all the way in...yes in the spring water and yes in April). The
cave was damp and echoey, just as a cave should be, the hiking was
fun, and the napping in the sun and getting a wee bit of a tan
was delightful. A good day.

2009-04-15T17:10:00.000-07:00

Straight from the Fernnook Times (AKA The Prospect News)
last week:

"Both candidates for Naylor Alderman in the North and
South Wards were running unopposed for their seats.
Barbara Bell received 10 votes in the North Ward and
Barney Hornocks took in 14 in the South Ward.

All results from this election are unofficial until
they are certified by Ripley County Clerk Becky York
on Thursday, April 9."

(That one sent Sister Becky into a laughing fit. She is
not always used to our country ways....I think it was
the fact that an unopposed candidate garnering 10 votes
could still have an unofficial count.)

Also from the Fernnook Times this week is an ad. See if
you can figure this one out.

"For Sale
Catfish
Pond
You Seine,
By the pound
or by the pond."

2009-03-26T05:49:00.000-07:00

Bob Skaggs, husband of first cousin once removed Jetty,
was talking to me at G'ma Opal's funeral. The conversation
was more or less the following:

Bob-"I haven't been back to the home place (meaning his
family's home place, not ours, tho' they are catty-corner
to one another) for a long time. There used to be a lot
of frogs in the pond there."

Me-"There still are a lot of frogs. Just ask Uncle Jim.
He calls them maniacal."

A few years ago Jim began to be bothered by a loud noise
whenever he was outside after dark. (NOTE: he lives a
quarter of a mile down the gravel from us.) Finally he
could stand it no longer and he hopped in the car,
windows rolled down, on a quest to find the source of
the racket. When he hit our place he bingoed. It was
our frogs. I admit they are raucous. The peepers are
loud in themselves, but the bullfrogs are deafening.

The bullfrogs haven't gotten into their full swing yet. Last
night Kent, Ty, Hattie, and Jenn were outside playing 21 in
basketball. After they came in, Jenn said, "The frogs were
so loud we could hardly hear each other." The key word there
is "hardly", because after the bullfrogs get into full swing
you won't at all be able to hear each other. Then you just
sit in the yard and smile at one another and think deep
thought, or if you are Uncle Jim, murderous thoughts.

But, back to Cousin Bob's comments. He said, "I was just
wondering if there were any frogs left, because one year when
I was a kid and came to visit Grandpa, he put me to work shooting
frogs for a frog fry."

I said, "They're still there." I love my peepers, and I love my
bullfrogs, but I think a frog fry is on the agenda this July or
August. We must keep peace in the family, and Uncle Jim rates
even higher than the frogs.

2009-03-25T05:12:00.000-07:00

On the Finished Pile:

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austin. This is the cutest of her
books. I don't think Catherine has the depth of character
and development that is seen in Emma, Lizzy, Anne, Fanny,
or Eleanor, but she is a darling of a girl.

I especially enjoyed the biographical notes before the Oxford
edition of this book. In a letter, written just a few weeks
before her death, Miss Austin spoke to a friend of a domestic
problem she was facing. She wrote the following words which
speak to her strength and sweetness, "But I am getting too
near complaint. It has been the appointment of God, however
secondary causes may have operated."

Also on the pile is:

Redemption Accomplished and Applied by John Murray. This gem
of a book was on our bookshelf, as it has been for 25 or so years,
but I had never taken the time to read it. It is an excellent
treatise on redemption. The last two chapters, which covered
union with Christ and glorification, were especially moving.

This book is on Monergism's top 40 all time list of books to
read.

2009-03-24T18:59:00.000-07:00

Fernnook Farm has been bursting with life lately.

The new calves: PeDunk, Jogi, and Jughead.

The triplets. Their names are Tickle, Trickle, and Nickel.
Don't even ask. I can't tell them apart, but the rest of
the family can. They are all nannies. If one had been a
male it would have been named Pickle. Apparently Pickle is
masculine, but Nickel is feminine. That is why I am not
asked to name the animals. I don't quite understand the
finer etiquette of such things.

2009-03-19T05:20:00.000-07:00

From Solomon comes a wise political commentary in regard
to the current situation in which our country finds itself.

Better is a little with righteousness,
Than vast revenues without justice.
Proverbs 16:9

2009-03-18T05:20:00.000-07:00

On the Finished Pile:
Mansfield Park by Jane Austin and
Lovers Vows (which is the play that forms such a large
part of Mansfield Park) from the German of Kotzebue and
translated by Mrs. Inchbald

Jane Austin always soothes the heart. Lately a little soothing
has been needful.

But today is a nice warm day and we are taking the day off to
go visit Mingo Wildlife Area.

2009-03-15T15:45:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Pi Day. (3/14)

Billy requested, and I made Shepherd's Pie for dinner.
For Kent I made Spinach and Artichoke Pie.
For the rest of us I made Cherry Cobbler (with three
layers of pie (pi) crust). I had to make the cobbler,
because, you know, sometimes pi R rectangular.

2009-03-15T15:34:00.000-07:00

It is not possible to sum up on one page the life of
Opal Fleetwood who lived 98 years, 4 months, and 6 days.
She was born Hattie Opal Faye Simon on October 26, 1910
and lived a very full and fruitful life. She Married
Marion Fleetwood in 1929 and raised five children:
Paul (Bob) Fleetwood, Billy Fleetwood, Kenneth Fleetwood,
Jenny (Fleetwood) Starkey, and Jimmy Fleetwood. She had
12 grandchildren, 23 great grandchildren, and
5 great great grandchildren.

Opal loved her family and extended family and enjoyed dining,
visiting, and playing together. She loved to garden, fish, and
playing card games. High Five was her all time favorite game.
She loved to talk about the old days with her mom and dad and
brothers and sisters when they lived in Fern Nook on the farm
by the Little Black River. She liked to remember the trips she
went on to Hawaii, Nova Scotia, Colorado, New Mexico, and
Lake of the Ozarks where the fishing was good but fun with
daughter's-in-law Shirley, Wanda, and Ann was even better.

The "Little General" as she was affectionately known had an
amazing memory right up until she died. She didn't need a
calendar to remember her kids, grandkids, and great grandkids
birthdays because the dates were all in her head. Just recently
she repeated the entire preamble to the constitution which she
had learned in Grade school.

She always had a birthday card with a dollar in it for her grandkids:
Mike, Tandy, Terry, Joseph, Sandy, Kelly, Laurie, Ricky, Kenneth,
Becky, Scott, and Stacy. She always wrote in the card, "Remember
Old Granny loves you".

Her favorite work was gardening. She loved and tended every
little shoot and fought the bugs like a warrior. Oh! How she
(and the whole family) loved her fresh vegetables. She had a
green thumb, and her house was always full of plants and flowers.

Opal was a believing Christian. She kept her well worn Bible next
to her on the couch and read from it daily. She trusted the Lord
for eternal life and spoke gratefully of it shortly before she died.
She will be missed terribly.

Praise the Lord for giving her to us all for such a long time.

2009-03-04T05:04:00.000-08:00

G'ma Opal came home from the hospital Monday afternoon.
The extra time and care for her have taken my attention
and I haven't had the time or energy to think of items
of interest to blog about. She is weak, but (as they
say in Ripley County) she is proud to be home.

I decided next time she is in the hospital I will volunteer
for the nighttime weekend shift. The two nights I slept
there her roommate kept the T.V. going the entire night.
The two nights Becky spent with her she had no roommate.
I realized that because surgeries are scheduled M-F the
census is lower over the weekend.

On the home front we have had two out of three calves born
this past week. One of them is eventually to be destined for
the freezer. I always feel a nice warm fuzzy knowing we have
a calf in the wings for the freezer. I get the same warm fuzzy
knowing I have a huge pile of crossword puzzles to be worked.
I worry about running out of beef and crosswords. We are still
waiting on Hattie's goat to kid.

The big 6 inch snow we enjoyed on Saturday is nearly melted.

Joel went to the Bluff during the snow to check out the
babies at Orscheln's, and he came home with turkeys, chicks,
and ducks. Hopefully he can keep the 'possums away from
these little guys. Of course, they will enjoy deluxe
accommodations in his living room for a while.

We are looking forward to having Billy home for Spring Break
starting this evening. I think one of the items to be
accomplished while he is here is the burning of one of the
huge brush piles accumulated from ice-broken limbs. The fire
should be so big that aliens on the moon will be able to see
it. Wish all you ex-pats and wannabes could be here to watch
it burn.

Hasn't Venus been lovely lately?

2009-02-25T05:16:00.000-08:00

Up and Down the Gravel:
It's been busy here in Fernnook. February is birthday month.
Tonight I'll host the third party in as many weeks. Tandy
wants spaghetti and meatballs and chocolate Butterfinger
ice cream cake. She is leaving the rest up to me.

Sunday evening Hattie noticed an ambulance speeding down the
gravel. We called down to G'ma Opal's house and Uncle Jim
told us that he had called it for G'ma. She had another
heart attack. Apparently it has done quite a bit of damage.
She was in ICU for several days, but yesterday evening was
moved to a regular room. Hopefully after they monitor her for
a few more days and tweak her meds a bit more she'll be able
to come home. Her middle name is still feisty.

We are expecting any day now for three cows to calve and one
goat to kid. Kent noticed yesterday that for two of the cows
have bags that are beginning to fill out. I'm excited. It's
been a while since we've had a calf. We are still tossing around
the idea of getting a Jersey again.

Hattie wants to hang some of her clothes in the goat sheds. The
idea is that the human smell will deter predators from bothering
(that would be eating) the kids when they are born. That is
probably a good idea since Tyler saw a bobcat by our swingset
last night when he arrived home from the Bluff.

Bill's Birthday.

Jim's Birthday

2009-02-25T05:08:00.000-08:00

On the Finished Pile:
Jane Austin: The Minor Works

What needs to be said. This is Jane Austin mainly in her youth.
It is funny, insightful, unpolished, but good. Included at the
back are notes she recorded about the reactions of her friends
and family to various of her main novels. It was so interesting
to see how different were the viewpoints on which were their favorite
heroines or story lines. I am now reading my least favorite of her
novels. I'll tell you which one that is when I am finished.

2009-02-17T05:51:00.000-08:00

Wasps have been a large part of Fernnook this past week. I
was on the phone with my father-in-law when I saw a poor wasp
trying to fly across the living room. Poor thing, he was having
a hard time. Somehow (I sure don't know how) he had picked up
a huge dust bunny and it was trailing down from him. I guess
the weight of it kept him from being able to zip along. He
couldn't get more than 18 or so inches off the floor. As I caught
my breath from laughing, my dear father-in-law wondered why we
had a wasp in the house in February anyway. I don't know. We
have a lot of wasps that come in Billy's bedroom, especially on
warm winter days. I guess they have nests between the walls or
something.

Then G'ma was getting dressed a few days ago and a wasp was inside
her clothes as she was pulling them on. It stung her, according to
her, several times. She looked around the bathroom and all she
could find that looked mediciny was some vapor rub. She put that
on the stings and she had no swelling or pain. Now we know. Vapor
Rub for wasp stings. Who would have thunk?

Hattie and I went to sit with G'ma last night. She wasn't feeling
very well when we got there, so we just sat quietly and chatted
about things. After a bit she was telling me some stories that
included convoluted connections of various relatives. I was trying
to find my way through the maze, but I think I got a little lost.
But--the thing that was so interesting to me last night was a new
recipe she came up with. She loves hominy, but, having no teeth,
it is hard to eat. She can swallow it whole, but the flavor is lost
when you do that. So, she had a brainwave. She fried some bacon and
then dumped a can of hominy, juice and all in the pan with the bacon
and grease. She added a tich of salt. Then she transferred the whole
panful (bacon, grease, and hominy) into a food processor and made a
mush out of it. The mush ended up being quite thick. She took the
mush and made patties out of it and fried them in more bacon grease.

What can I say. They were delicious. She ate one and Aunt Jenny ate
one and she had enough mush left over to fry up some for her breakfast
this morning.

Now that it brilliant. I tasted the mush. It did taste like hominy.
It was delicious, if you like hominy that is.

2009-02-15T14:16:00.000-08:00

For all current, former, and wishful Fernnookians--I have news.
Uncle Jim has graciously agreed to let me post his monthly
calendar. It has birth dates and anniversary dates and other
items of note. It it BIG and so the only place to put it is
at the bottom of the page. Scroll down and check it out.

2009-02-11T17:11:00.000-08:00

From JT at Between Two Worlds

The President said: "There is no God who condones taking the life of an innocent human being. This much we know."

Doug Wilson:

This is chutzpah on stilts and steroids. . . . If anyone
were to attempt to call him on this, that person and not
Obama would be called down by just about everyone for being
a troublemaker and small-minded garroter of words. Obama
is not about to be challenged for his deft exclusion from
this question all those millions of innocent lives that don't
count anymore. He is saying, by implication, that "there is
no God who condones taking the life of an innocent human being,
except for those millions of lives we have found convenient to
take on the threshold of life, and those lives we find it too
expensive to not take among our most senior seniors. This much
we know." To speak this way is tantamount to saying, and far
more simply, "there is no god."

2009-02-10T05:21:00.000-08:00

On the Finished Pile:

"Covenant Theology: The Key of Theology in Reformed Thought
and Tradition" by Peter Golding.

Covenant Theology is a combo of a history of the development of
Covenant Theology through the years of church history and a
definition of Covenant Theology itself.

I loved the following quote from Geerhardus Vos that Golding puts
towards the end of the book.

"Only when the believer understands how he has to receive everything
from the Mediator, and how God in no way whatever deals with him
except though Christ, only then does a picture of the glorious
work that God wrought through Christ emerge in his consciousness
and the magnificent idea of grace begin to dominate and form in his
life. For the Reformed, therefore, the entire ordo salutis...is
bound to the mystical union with Christ....Now the basis for this
order lies in none other than in the covenant of salvation with
Christ."

2009-02-09T08:36:00.000-08:00

My family know me. They know me well. Last night Joel left to
go home. As soon as the door closed though, he opened it and
said, "Mom, come here or you might miss it."

I stepped out and he said, "Listen, there's a peeper."

I hugged him, and kissed him, and just about squeezed his head off.

Peepers. Ah, the relief. The delight. The lying awake and just
listening.

True, there was only one, and later, when I went out before I slipped
between the sheets for the night, there was still only one, or maybe
two at the most...but still. Peepers.

2009-02-07T19:07:00.000-08:00

Day 11 and the electricity was turned on. It was nice to
be able to play the piano after dark and to run the dishwasher.
The past 11 days haven't been too bad though. The electric
company had a lot of lines to fix.

Perhaps you have wondered how G'ma Opal (98) did through the 11
days of outage. She did just fine. She probably handled it as
well or better than anyone else. She wouldn't even leave her
warm, dark cave until day number 9. Then she went to Dad's house
and took a bath, and then she traipsed off to town for a haircut and
some grocery shopping.

Uncle Jim is going to have plenty to keep him busy through the
next few months. I've included a few pics of their yards and
pole.

2009-02-05T07:13:00.001-08:00

FYI: Nine days and no line men in sight yet.

2009-02-03T09:32:00.000-08:00

I have been know to brag. We used to live on the prettiest
road in Ripley County. Now there are no pretty roads in
the county. By the way, we are on day seven of being without
electricity, and there are no linemen in sight.

The above three pictures show why it took two days to
clear the gravel.

Three pictures from the lane going back to the old homeplace.

Four pictures of our front yard.

Movement of one of the Harding utility poles.

Lines down and out of commission.

Joel's backyard.

Melting snow to flush the toilets.

Beauty in the midst of the storm and the hope of better things
to come.

"For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly,
but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the
creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of
corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with
birth pangs together until now. Not only that, but we also
who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves
groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption,
the redemption of our body." Romans 8:20-23

2009-01-25T17:56:00.000-08:00

January is creeping to an end. I like January, but I anticipate
getting a lot more sleep in February. More sleep is good.

For those who think it is only the parents of babies and small
children who lose sleep, you have interesting days ahead.

Last night (as has happened once or twice or more times a week
since the guys got the boat rigged for gigging season)the guys
were out gigging. It was after 3:00 am before the fish were all
safely gigged, cleaned, scored, and stored in the freezer.
They have all the fun, and they do all the work. I just stay awake
until everyone is safely tucked in bed.

I'll get more sleep in February because the season ends January 31st.
Don't tell them I'm throwing a party. It'll be a sleepover.

Look at Joel's beautiful giant.

2009-01-24T15:01:00.000-08:00

On the finished pile...

"Pierced for our Transgressions: Rediscovering the
Glory of Penal Substitution" by Steve Jeffery, Mike
Ovey and Andrew Sach

Highly recommended.

For a full book review see Challies review on Discerning Reader

2009-01-20T05:03:00.000-08:00

Recently Overheard Conversation at Fernnook Farm.

Man: I really miss that fresh milk we used to have.

Woman: Oh, man! What about the butter, and the cream for
our coffee? I dream about those things.

Man: We could get another milk cow.

Woman: We could.

Man: You feel like milking her?

Woman: Nope. You?

Man: Nope. But I sure do miss that milk.

I walked down to visit G'ma Opal a few days ago. She was
up on a stool fooling with one of her shades. We worked
and took both shades off and fixed the strings for them and
then washed them.

While we were working we started talking about milking cows.
G'ma started milking when she was six years old. Her folks
bought her a little shiny milk bucket that was wider at the
top than it was at the bottom. She told me some stories about
her milking days and then the conversation took this turn.
(This is a paraphrase, my memory these days is slippy.)

G'ma: I miss the milk, but I do not miss milking.

Laurie: Boy, can I relate to that.

G'ma: The horseflies were the worst.

Laurie: There are about one or two days a year when milking
is lovely, romantic, a fun thing to do. The rest of
the time....

G'ma: Yes! When it is dry out and pleasantly warm.

Laurie: Every once in a while you would be sitting there by the
cow, on the stool, and the sunlight would filter in just
right through the slats in the barn. There would be dust
dancing in the rays of light. The cow would be relatively
clean and quiet and you could rest your head on her side
and milk. Of course, it would be 72 degrees out. Just
lovely.

G'ma: Usually though you'd be dripping sweat and she would dip her
tail in the bucket and then slap you with it.

Laurie: Or your hands would be red and chapped and there would be
mud (and worse) caked all over the cow that you just couldn't
get off.

G'ma: I sure do miss that milk though.

Laurie: Sure do!

2008-10-28T05:44:00.000-07:00

She's 98, but who's counting?

The Cherry Cobbler complete with three layers of crust.

G'ma and Cousin Mary lost. Dad and Jenn won. High Five of course.

A little jig to end the evening.
Happy Birthday Grandma Opal!

2008-10-21T08:48:00.000-07:00

Kent and I walked down to G'ma's Sunday afternoon. Uncle Jim
was outside working in The Park. We wandered around in The
Park for awhile and then he showed me the whole set-up for
his outside shower. I hadn't really had a chance to see the
whole thing put together yet.

After sitting with G'ma for awhile she wanted to play cards.
Now that was a surprise. There were only three of us, so we
played Rummy. Kent beat us. But the funny thing was that I
kept saying, "Humpf" every time someone would lay down a card.
I think it was getting a little irritating and soon Kent began
saying it and then Grandma. She would lay her card down and
then pick it up again and say "Humpf" and when she did her little
head would bob up and down and her curls would shake and then we
would all giggle. Before leaving we got into a circle and hugged
each other and humpfed as loud as we could.

At least we finally got settled her meal for her birthday (98) which
is coming up this weekend. It will be Pork Roast, Mashed Potatoes,
either Sweet Potatoes or Squash (maybe as a casserole) and Cherry
Cobbler (with lots of crust). I'm sure I'll add a few more things,
but that gives me something to start with.

2008-10-20T19:32:00.000-07:00

This is a wonderful video posted at Ladies For Life.

2008-10-03T08:22:00.000-07:00

At Watts Up With That Is this story about an NBC crew
trying to document climate change and being blocked by
too much ice.

Tip of the bonnet to Challies.

2008-10-03T06:18:00.000-07:00

Up and Down the Gravel

Actually I've still been somewhat out of commission and
don't have a lot of tidbits to share. However these things
I know:

1. Grandma Opal wants me to make a cherry cobbler for her 98th
birthday party. I, since I am the one who got in trouble for
taking so many cherries back in the spring, have plenty in the
freezer for a cobbler or two. She doesn't really care what the
main meal consists of; it was just important to nail down the
dessert.

2. The Kirk's horse, Katie, has been missing for 4 or 5 days.
Joel has been helping to scour the woods round about, but he's
not seen any sign of her.

3. We bought a new fridge. The old one was leaking and had big
cracks in it. It was a double hand me down and had lived a long
and happy life. Probably it was going on 24 or so years old. The
new one is tall and clean and simple. It has no gadgets, no ice
maker, and no water dispenser. The more bells and whistles a thing
has the greater its chance of developing PROBLEMS. I don't like
PROBLEMS.

4. We are headed to The Big City this weekend for some R & R. I am
really looking forward to it.

5. Tyler finished the bush hogging. Kent is working hard on the new
well house. I keep trying to get up the energy to divide peonies and
irises. Maybe next week...after the R & R.

6. Uncle Jim is working on a cool new path down to Aunt Jenny's place.
Hattie told me all about it, but I've not seen it yet.

7. Oh, this is not really a part of Up and Down the Gravel, but Billy
got to see the VP debate at WUSTL last night. He knew he was in the
top 300 lottery picks, but they weren't sure how many tickets they'd
have for students. At the last debate there they only handed out 150
to WUSTL students. This time they let in closer to 500. He really
enjoyed having the chance to be there.

2008-10-01T07:41:00.001-07:00

Rules for marrying. These are funny but good.

2008-10-01T07:03:00.000-07:00

This, from Against Heresies, is for those who love doctrine
...and...for those who don't.

2008-09-30T14:31:00.000-07:00

It's not easy getting ready for bowseason. Actually this
is a late post as the season started 2 weeks ago here in
the foothills.

There are skills to be honed.

There are four-wheelers to be fixed.

There are things to be bought.

There are clothes to be aired-out.

And there are a myriad of other things to do...food plots to keep
up...freezer space to free up...the list continues.

2008-09-30T06:53:00.000-07:00

"Idolatry begins in the imagination by conceiving of God
in one's own likeness." A.B. Caneday from Veiled Glory:
God's Self-Revelation in Human Likeness--A Biblical
Theology of God's Anthropomorphic Self-Disclosure an essay
in Beyond the Bounds

2008-09-11T08:23:00.000-07:00

Joel's Chinese ducks, Ping and Pong, keep coming to visit.
They will walk all the way down Joel's lane to the gravel,
turn left and walk down the gravel to our driveway, then
they hang another left and come duckily waddling up the drive.

It's hilarious.

Yesterday as we were driving down the gravel we met them on
the road. Kent said, "The road is dangerous; they should cut
through the field."

I asked him, "Do you want me to tell them that?"

2008-09-03T08:56:00.001-07:00

Today we saw geese headed south. Soon our hummingbirds
will leave us as well. Tyler has probably mixed up a
hundred gallons of sugar water for the little guys this
summer. They are an endless source of entertainment.

We will miss them.

2008-08-31T17:24:00.001-07:00

Thanks to Amy, who has now moved to her dream "forty acres and a mule", for this article on why the middle class should have larger
families.

2008-08-31T16:48:00.000-07:00

Between G'ma Opal's illness and then peaches (from a road trip
with Dad to Campbell) and grapes (from Cousin Mary's yard) to
work up, and between starting school and the normal workings
of the home and business it has been a good thing to take a
time of rest from the computer.

But today Kent and I walked down to see G'ma and had a lovely
meander down the gravel. This morning Sister Becky and her
family were visiting her and G'ma said, "I wonder if I'll get
to play cards before I die." Well, they did play two games of
High Five with her and they were both nail biters. G'ma won
one of them.

While we were visiting Aunt Jenny came in and so we decided that
where there are four people there should be a game of High Five.
Jenny and I creamed Kent and G'ma the first game, and then they
came back and beat us the second. So all in all G'ma had a lovely
day!

When we were talking about the rubber game she said, "We'll let
the rain settle it for us." If you live on a gravel road that is
a profound statement.

2008-08-31T16:39:00.000-07:00

Shirley Joan Fleetwood

“Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband
also, and he praises her: 'Many women have done excellently,
but you surpass them all.' Charm is deceitful, and beauty is
vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.”
Proverbs 31:28-30

Shirley was always there for her husband, Paul (Bob), and
her children and children-in law, Mike, Debby, Tandy, Kent,
Laurie, Derrill, and Becky, and her grandchildren and
grandchildren-in-law, Paul, Carolyn, Daryl, Emily, Andy,
Bobby, Joel, Billy, Tyler, Hattie, D.Jay, Julie, Anne, and
Kinsey. When they got up in the morning, when they went to
bed at night, if they came home sick, if their heart was
breaking, if they had a joke that needed telling, when there
was a triumph to report, Shirley was there to listen, console,
laugh, rejoice, and pray with them.

She and Bob were teenage sweethearts, and they had
a lifelong love affair. During their 55 years of marriage,
they taught strong Biblical and family values to their
children and grandchildren. Their relationship has been
a model Christian marriage and a picture of the relationship
between Christ and His Church.

Shirley taught all four of her children to read and write
before they entered school. She taught them to play games,
and she did her best to beat them every time. The Famous
Shirley Shuffle will go down in family lore. She spent hours
without number sewing doll dresses, clothes, and dance
costumes, cooking wonderful meals, and creating a beautiful
and clean home, so that her family would feel the love she
had for them.

Traveling was always fun for Shirley. One of her favorite
places to visit was the home of her brother David and his
wife Dori. They enjoyed driving up and down the California
coast together and chatting about childhood days.

Her family by marriage, the Fleetwoods, became through the
years her own family. She considered Opal to not only be her
mother-in-law but to be her friend. Jim, Jenny, Ken, Bill,
and their families were a big part of her life. Together
they all shared both tears and laughter.

She made friends wherever she went, knew no stranger, and
her emotions were open, upfront and honest. Shirley was a
walking icebreaker. Everyone's day was brightened because
of her.

She loved spending time with her church family and Pastor
John. John and Shirley had a White Elephant joke that
lasted for years. The girls at the sewing circle have
also been her fun companions. Perhaps not a lot of sewing
has been accomplished, but certainly a lot of friendship
has been shared.

Shirley loved to give her time and money to important
causes. She was a faithful member of the Hwy K Firehouse
and the Sheltered Workshop Board. She donated freely to
anyone she knew that had a need. But her great love and
consuming passion was God and His work of salvation,
therefore her time spent in volunteering at church and
in missions was very precious to her. Through the years
she has hosted dozens of missionaries in her home, but
it wasn't until she was 69 that she took her first official
Mission Trip. After returning home she said, “I can't
believe I waited until I was this old to start going on
Mission Trips.”

Since trusting in Christ as her Savior and Lord, Shirley
has been looking forward with anticipation, confidence,
and joy to her first moment of being able to finally see
Christ face to face. We miss her, but we rejoice with her
in entering this reality.

“For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face.
Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also
am known.” I Corinthians 15:12 “Then the King will say to
those on His right hand, 'Come, you blessed of My Father,
inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation
of the world.'” Matthew 25:34

2008-07-09T08:43:00.001-07:00

I am not gone forever, just for a season.

To paraphrase Solomon in Ecclesiastes:

There is a time for writing and a time for silence;
there is a time for sorrow and a time for rejoicing.

Meanwhile know that there are few fireflies this year but
many ticks and very loud frogs.

2008-06-23T08:36:00.000-07:00

Between getting ready for the 40 plus relatives that are descending
on Fern Nook Gravel Road next week, and having my mother in the
hospital, things are quiet on the blog-front.

2008-06-23T08:30:00.000-07:00

Today I found this and this on nationalizing oil as is being
called for by some politicians.

2008-06-19T07:31:00.000-07:00

This speaks for itself.

Tip of the bonnet to Challies.

2008-06-18T05:25:00.000-07:00

And so, I relearned yesterday why I play golf so seldom.

I also realized that golf is a very spiritual game.

To some (read me) it is a LONG lesson in 'umility.

To some (read those with me) it is a LONG lesson in
patience.

2008-06-17T07:33:00.000-07:00

I always feel bad when the foliage on the sides of the gravel
gets dusty. The freshness of spring has worn off and it looks
old and worn. How delightful when a rain comes and washes it
all clean again.

Cousin Sandy was down for a visit last week with Brandon and
Kayona. She absconded with a jar of cherry jelly I sent down
for Aunt Jenny. Sandy said, "Jenny doesn't like cherries and
she doesn't like jelly, so I'm taking it back to The Big City
with me."

Fern Nook Farmhouse has a new roof. Kent and Billy are glad
that job is over.

This morning I had to walk down to Joel's house to attend to
a small chore. What a beautiful morning it is. On the way
back up the driveway I saw that one of the small nannies had
escaped, so Kent and I had fun chasing her back into her field.

The wildflower colors right now are orange and white. Orange
from the Butterfly Weed and white from the Queen Anne's Lace.

Brother Mike and Sister-in-law Debby are due in today or
tomorrow for a month's stay.

Uncle Jim wants to construct an outdoor shower and an outhouse.
Sounds fun to me. Think how it will save on the air-conditioning
when the kids don't have to run in every time they need to attend
to their needs. He has big plans for solar heating the water so
the shower isn't COLD from the well water.

We are gearing up for the big family reunion we are hosting over
the 4th of July for Kent's side of the family.

Yesterday one of our myriad hummingbirds was being chased by a
bully hummer. It banged right into the side of the house and
was knocked loco. Tyler rescued it and put it in a box and fed
it every 20 minutes or so until it could fly again. Who needs
TV when you can stand and watch the hummer drama all day long
through the front door window?

2008-06-16T08:23:00.000-07:00

Who would've thunk that the easy living in the Summertime
wouldn't leave me enuff time to breathe, much less to
blog.

I found this though on Global Warming, it's just as my
Paw said yesterday. There is one group of people who
are lovin' these gas prices.

2008-06-12T09:38:00.000-07:00

Dave Ramsey on Drive Free, Retire Rich.

Tip of the Bonnet to Challies.

2008-06-12T06:16:00.000-07:00

It started with Sister Tandy picking a small bowlful of
cherries and pitting them and asking me to make a pie.
There really wasn't enough for a pie, but I said I'd do
my best. Then G'ma Opal sent down a bag of cherries
pitted, sugared and frozen. Now, with the combo, there
was enough for one small pie.

A day or so later Aunt Jenny and Cousin Mary came by with
a bowlful of cherries they had picked. So I pitted them
and stuck them in the freezer. Good. Now there was enough
for two small pies/cobblers.

Then Tyler heard that Aunt Jenny's tree still had cherries,
so he went, he picked, and he came home, over the course of
two days, with about 8 gallons of cherries.

I am thankful for a 10 year old girl who is a super cherry
pitter, else I'd have thrown about 4 gallons of cherries
out.

Now we have two batches of jelly, 8-10 bags of frozen cherries
for smoothies/shakes and 8 or so bags of cherries in the freezer
waiting to be made into pies/cobblers.

Won't we be grateful in the deeps of January for some June
Cherries to brighten our dreary days!

2008-06-11T09:16:00.000-07:00

Words, Words, Words has an interesting analysis on the price
of oil.

2008-06-11T08:50:00.000-07:00

This blog is (a little) about life in Mayberry in Missouri.
Here is a post in defense of Mayberry-by-the-Sea.

Tip of the Bonnet to Amy.

2008-06-10T09:53:00.000-07:00

So, after Carbon, which element should we tax next?

Tip of the bonnet to Challies.

2008-06-10T07:40:00.001-07:00

Sorry for the silence. I've been up to my head (which, granted,
isn't very high) in cherries.

Meanwhile this post and this post by Wittingshire are fascinating.

2008-06-03T08:22:00.000-07:00

Interesting (read disturbing) article about gospel-free zones
in the U.K.

Interesting (read thought-provoking) article talking about the
first interesting (read disturbing) article.

2008-06-02T13:04:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we hosted our annual church BBQ at our home. In
the middle of the night, before the BBQ, storms began rolling
through the area and Hattie came into the bedroom worrying
because she was afraid we would cancel the shindig. We assured
her that we try to never cancel.

It cleared up and though, just as people started arriving, a
large storm went just to the North of us, it avoided our place.

We had a hot and lovely time. There was an amazing amount of
food. If we had any more food I'd have to enlarge my kitchen
and build longer counters. It took awhile to get the 100 people
through the food line, but nobody went hungry.

But, shame on me, I forgot something important. Hattie had made
a surprise forme a few days before. I knew she was closeted with
her Grandma working on a project, but I didn't know what it was.
She gave it to me on Saturday and I used it to cook the food for
the picnic, but I forgot to wear it yesterday at the BBQ. I wanted
to show it off for everyone...so I'll just do that here instead.
She made one for herself as well. Aren't we just duckie?

2008-05-31T05:58:00.000-07:00

In one of my first ever posts I quoted from Chesterton's
Orthodoxy.

I tend to put down a lovely quote from a book and call it
a review. I'm lazy like that.

John Piper has a much better review of the book.

2008-05-29T09:24:00.001-07:00

Up and Down the Gravel

There used to be a commercial where a pretty lady with gorgeous
hair that she was swishing all over the place said, "Don't hate
me for my beautiful hair."

That's the way I feel about my gravel road. We just happen to
live on the most beautiful gravel in the county. Please don't
hate me for it.

Anyway the summer is quickly filling in. We have our yearly
big church BBQ at our home this Sunday afternoon.

Hopefully next week we'll get in the hay.

My brother and his wife are coming in the middle of June for a
month.

Uncle Ken and Cousin Kenny are coming at the end of June.

Nephew D.Jay, from PA, and his sisters are coming at the
beginning of July.

The entire 4th of July holiday, plus a day or two on either side,
is given over to the Family Reunion on Kent's side of the family
that we host. The them is Hillbilly this year. There will be
a Hillbilly fireworks display, a Hillbilly golf tournament, and
a Hillbilly canoe trip as the big draws this year.

Add in several softball games a week and other odd events and it
looks to be a lovely summer.

2008-05-28T07:25:00.000-07:00

For the men in my life.

How to be a modern Renaissance Man.

2008-05-28T06:44:00.000-07:00

Subway and Homeschooling.

Jube Dankworth at American Thinker Blog posted on it.

Amy, as usual, has some solid comments worth reading as well.

Of course there's a problem here. Mayberry doesn't have a Quiznos
and my boys love to get their Pa to take them to Subway. I think
we'll just take this one on the chin.

2008-05-27T11:52:00.000-07:00

On the Finished Pile:

Faith Beyond Feelings by Jonathan Edwards.

Here is a quote that sums up the book:

"The more a true saint loves God with a gracious love,
the more he desires to love Him. His uneasiness
concerning his lack of love for God will increase. The
more he hates sin, the more he will want to hate it.
He will regret that he still has so much remaining love
for it. The more his heart is broken, the more he will
want it to be broken further. The more he thirsts and
longs after God and His holiness, the more he will long
and breathe out his very soul in more longings after
God. Like a kindled flame that rises higher, the more
ardently it burns, the more it will continue to burn."

2008-05-26T08:46:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I walked down to G'ma Opal's house for a good,
long visit. We started out in the screened in porch, which
is where I found her when I arrived. We sat down and she
read some funnies to me from some old magazines. They were
funny sayings by kids that were sent in by their parents
or grandparents. The one I remember the most is the little
girl who looked at herself in the mirror after losing 7 teeth
and said, "My mouth is bald." G'ma can relate to that.

After a while we wandered out into the yard because Uncle Jim
came out and had the Cardinal game on the radio. By this time
Kent had wandered down the road also and so we were a cozy
foursome sitting in the shade on a hot and humid day.

G'ma's feet started to swell from sitting in the lawnchair, so
she and I went into the living room where she could sit in her
recliner for a bit and rest her feet. Finally I said I needed
to go, and she said, "But you haven't eaten yet."

We headed to the kitchen where there was a pot of beans and
a pan of meatloaf. After adding a piece of bread and a glass
of milk, I made a pretty good meal. Hattie, who was popping
in and out all day, had a big bowl of beans as well. Kent
then came in and ate several helpings.

Then Hattie proposed a game of High Five...it was Kent and Hattie
against G'ma and me. We (G. Opal and I) won. We took the last
bid and went out at 53, and, even though Kent and Hattie actually
ended up at 54, we won because G'ma had taken the bid. Jim says
you can't make more than 52 in the game. That is new to me, but
even with his reckoning, it would be 52 to 52 and we still won
because we took the last bid.

I only made one really stupid play. Clubs was trump and Kent led
off with the Q. of spades. I was holding the five of spades. For
some reason I was thinking spades was trump and the five was the
last trump I had, so I plunked it right down. Hattie then countered
with the Ace of clubs. So she caught my five when I didn't even need
to play it. That's why my 97 year old G'ma doesn't prefer me as a
partner. I am easily distracted.

2008-05-26T08:34:00.000-07:00

Today Challies featured an incredible testimony by Richard Ganz.
You ought to read it.

2008-05-21T05:03:00.000-07:00

Last night, at about 9:30, Kent and I walked down to the
middle of our driveway and watched the moonrise. It started
with a glow of orange over the trees and moment by moment
the brightness increased as Mr. Moon raced up from behind the
treeline to finally shine forth in all his glory alone in
the sky. Then Kent spoke, "Then God made two great lights:
the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to
rule the night."

I'd been hearing rumors that the fireflies were beginning
their nightly show, but I'd not seen any yet. As we turned
and began to walk back to the house I saw them. Little bits
of twinkling magic scattered throughout the field and yard.
They aren't thick yet, as they will be one night soon; then
it will look as though all the stars of heaven have fallen
into my field. But, they were there.

It was a lovely way to end the day. Kent and I celebrate our
26th anniversary tomorrow. He fulfills my definition of
romance. Romance is being there. It is being there when I
wake in the morning, when I am crabby, when I am cute, when
I am in distress, and when I am tired. That moonrise was our
anniversary gift to each other. What else is needed?

2008-05-20T08:05:00.000-07:00

Last week was Kent's birthday. Since we were all busy on Tuesday,
which was the actual date of his birthday, we put off having his
birthday dinner until Thursday.

When I asked him (I don't know why I did, I know what he wants)
what he wanted for his dinner he said, "Quiche and pie, please."

So I planned on making Asparagus Quiche, Quiche Lorraine, salads,
side dishes, and both an Apple and a Peach Pie.

We were at G'ma Opal's house the Sunday before and we invited her
to the birthday bash. She offered to make the Apple Pie because
she was planning on baking one that week anyway.

So on Tuesday I got this phone call. "Laurie, this is your
Grandma. I thought that we were having the dinner today since
it IS Kent's birthday and I already baked his Apple Pie. You
better come get it so it doesn't go bad."

So I sent Billy to get it and it was delicious.

Then on Thursday she called and offered to make a Banana Pie.
We said, "Yes!"

So, Kent got two Quiches and three Pies for his Birthday. Spoiled,
ain't he?

2008-05-19T08:28:00.000-07:00

Reviews of Caspian by Stand to Reason and Brandywine Books.

Some of the main themes in the Books of Narnia are discussed by Leland Rykan in Tabletalk.

2008-05-17T19:43:00.000-07:00

Here's a sneak preview at my favorite sentence from Kent's
sermon for tomorrow (which is based on I Thess. 4:9-12).

"Make it your ambition not to be too ambitious."

If I have time, energy, and enguogh thought provoking ideas,
I'll write more on this later. If not, you'll just have to
think it through for yourself.

2008-05-16T15:41:00.000-07:00

Bits and Pieces

Two days ago there were only two of them. We were wondering
if they would all come back, but they have. There are a dozen
or more hummingbirds happily buzzing around my porch. At least
two of them are major bullies, and it provides us never-ending
entertainment to watch them. It also keeps Tyler quite busy
filling the three feeders.

Overheard at Kent's birthday party was this statement by Uncle
Weatherman Jim, "Last year we had May in March and this year
we have March in May."

Billy, Kent, Dad, Hattie, and Tyler took the boat out for the
first time this afternoon to see if it was in working order.
Either it is and they are having a grand time, or it isn't and
they are desperately trying to paddle the river.

Billy starts his internship at CMS Monday. He has had a good
rest.

Joel is loving being in the junk business. He is cleaning up
Ripley County and putting a few dollars in his pocket at the
same time.

I've wanted Crepe Myrtle bushes for at least 16 years, but we
never got around to getting any. This year we got some with
a vengeance. We bought 10 of them and Kent has been planting
them for me.

We're enjoying fresh lettuce and onions from Dad and Mom's
garden. Tonight they are bring a wilted lettuce salad to
our house for dinner. Yes!

2008-05-15T07:39:00.000-07:00

When Liberals become Conservatives.

2008-05-13T07:11:00.000-07:00

Been gone. Up to The Big City. Off to ballgames.

But in between all the goings and doings we snuck down
to G'ma Opal's house on Sunday and played a game or two
of High Five. What Grandma said while we were playing
will only resonate with those who are Fern Nook Ex-pats
or Fern Nook Wannabees.

Kent and Dad were partners and G'ma and I were partners.
It was G'ma's turn to bid and Kent (the dealer) came after
her. That was when she said, "If I bid 9, he'll bid 10.
If I bid 10, we'll go set."

So, she bid 10, and we went set.

2008-05-08T11:20:00.001-07:00

Christmas comes early. This is great fun!

2008-05-08T04:40:00.000-07:00

"It is a reasonable affirmation then that the basis of a
true love for God is His intrinsic worth, for He is
worthy to be loved for His own sake. It is this that
makes Him so worthy of love. His divine excellence is
so glorious. This is why God is God: to be loved for
His own sake."

Jonathan Edwards in Faith Beyond Feelings

2008-05-07T05:01:00.000-07:00

Up and Down the Gravel

1. Mom and Dad got back from a trip to The Big City for Mom's
latest chemo treatment. So far, so good.

2. Billy comes home today from his 3rd year of college in The Big
City. He is flying high! He will be working in The Big City
this summer, but only Monday-Wednesday, then he'll head home
to dear-to-his-heart Fern Nook for the rest of the week. He
has a full week and a half break before starting his internship.

3. Joel's geese, Amanda and Abagail, have gone missing. Some of
the ducks and chicks are gone also. He's suspecting a dog or a
pack of dogs is getting them. No worry though...the man at work
he got his goose eggs from told him he could have more to
incubate.

4. Joel has also gone into the scrap metal business. If you have
anything you want hauled off then he's the man for you.

5. Aunt Jenny is going to make garden in our old garden spot again.
Kent and Tyler have been working at putting up electric fence to
keep the rabbits and deer out.

6. Yesterday G'ma Opal called me to see if Dad and Mom had made
it back from The Big City. Before we got off the phone she said,
"I have to tell you my big problem." It seems her favorite pair
of shoes had gone missing. She'd had them just the day before.
They are the ones she cut the toes out of and has been wearing
for over a year. She loves those shoes. She looked all in the
house and all outside, but nary a sight of them did she see. Then,
just as I was going to offer to go down and look she said, "Oh, I
just lifted the dust ruffle at the side of the bed and there
they are!" (She'd already looked under the bed.) She hung up a
happy camper.

7. The goats and the cows are fat and happy.

8. Hattie is cooking up a storm. Yesterday she made Lemon Pound
Cake Muffins. They are delicious.

9. Tyler is almost at the end of his spring ball season. One
more regular season game and then they're off to districts.

10. This is not from The Gravel, but it is interesting. Niece
Kinsey is going to be in one of the productions for the Muny
in The Big City again this year. It is the one called, "90
Years at the Muny" (or something like that.)

11. Uncle Jim has The Park looking just lovely. He is not
complaining about the water tables being low right now. Last
week we got another 3+ inches of rain (which washed all our new
grass seed down towards Montgomery's place) and we're fixing to
get more today and tomorrow.

2008-05-06T05:05:00.001-07:00

You know you live in Mayberry when at dinner one night your
oldest son calmly picks 3 or 4 ticks off himself during
the course of the repast, and you further confirm your
residency when no one else even pauses in their eating and
talking.

Everyone was hoping that the long, cold winter we had would
cut back on the bugs, but I think that is it is an old wives
tale that this happens. The bugs are just there--always and
ever and forevermore.

2008-05-02T05:00:00.000-07:00

Hattie's Art Lesson yesterday was on form. Somehow it
formed itself into her creation of this...

and then this.

2008-05-01T04:54:00.000-07:00

Sometime ago I posted about judging a book by how hungry it
makes me get while reading it. There is one other very
important criteria I have for reading a book. The author
has to be able to write better than I do. If they can't
then they are not worth my time.

Before you judge me as a silly goose, listen to my reasoning.

Years ago, many, many years ago, I was sixteen. It is hard to
be sixteen and not be full of yourself. I remember writing
in my diary one day (thankfully that diary is hidden in a
deep, dark place, hopefully never to see the light of day again)
but, I remember writing something horribly gushy in the following
vein--Not an exact quotation by any means, but close in the main
idea---

"Dear Diary,

I know I am destined for some great thing. I have considered the
ways and have come to the conclusion that my destiny is to do
something that will contribute to mankind and beautify this world.
Maybe it will be singing, or dancing, maybe art, but I think it
most likely to be with words. Words make me feel alive." blah,
blah, blah, ad nauseam.

Oh, how I love being closer to fifty than forty. I wouldn't take
sixteen back again for all the tea in China. (Never use such cliches
they PROVE you are not a good writer.)

Well, it is obvious to all that know me that singing could not
be the great thing I do. I am the only one in my immediate family,
meaning by immediate my husband and four children, who cannot
sing. The poor ole' girl can't carry a tune in a bucket (there
I go again). However my dear niece in The Big City is going to
be singing The National Anthem for the River City Rascals in June.
Go Annie!

Dancing is also out of the question. Although I took dance lessons
for nine years sister Becky falls into the cockroach laughing position
when she remembers trying to teach me some basic dance moves
when I was a teenager. My lack of rhythm has continued to plague
Kent to this day. He has this dance step he loves and has had to
resort to dancing with Hattie-girl. Dancing does run in the family
though, as proven by niece Kinsey who will be dancing Sleeping Beauty with the St. Louis Ballet Company the same weekend Annie
is singing for the Rascals.

Art-now there is a field with great possibilities. There are several
professional artists in my family. Uncle David is a professional
artist in California, and niece Carolyn Fleetwood-Blake is one in
Florida (she even has a website devoted just to her artwork for sale).
My home is decorated with artwork by the two of them. Even son Billy
and daughter Hattie are rather artistic. But once again, the talent
fairy passed me by at birth.

You can easily see why I quickly narrowed my options to making a
splash in the world down to writing. Everyone can write. At least
they think they can. But what I've come to discover over the years is that, sure, anyone can write, but only a few
deserve the title of "Author worthy to be read".

I can easily be grammatically correct. I can even, once in a great
while, write a lovely sounding sentence. But to put together a whole
string of interesting sentences, page after page, and to connect those
sentences to a plot or idea worth continuing writing about, that is a
gift that relatively few people through the ages have been given.

In the long run, my writing is stilted and boring...even to myself.
If I cannot hope to amuse my own ego, how can I hope to amuse
others for any extended length of time?

Besides, there is something bewitching in the idea of having to make
a great impression on the world. God has given me my little spot and
it is His grace to me to be surrounded by my own little set of
circumstances. What I can be good at is doing the next job that is
set before me (kudos to Elizabeth Elliot). I can cook the next meal,
make the next bed, wash the next load of towels, attend the next
ballgame, teach the next VBS class, care for the next sick person,
share Christ with the next person I meet and enjoy the life I have
been blessed with.

Maybe I lack drive or intensity, but at least I am a happy and
contented little soul as I plod along through my allotment of days.

2008-04-30T06:14:00.000-07:00

Signs of Spring keep popping out. On Sunday we saw our first
turtle of the season crossing the road.

Our first Clematis bloomed.

Hattie took some pictures at G'ma Opal's house yesterday. Here
are my two favorite.

2008-04-29T04:48:00.001-07:00

Mayberry (sometimes known as Doniphan) is the best known
little town in the USA. Everywhere you go, if you mention
the name Doniphan, people will say something like, "Oh, I
know where that is." or "My grand-uncle's second cousin's
brother-in-law is from Doniphan...do you know so-and-so?"

Just last week another such story happened.

Taleana and Dan, a couple from our church, escorted one of
the high school bands to Six Flags up near The Big City. They
were both wearing their Doni-fan shirts (you have to live
here to have one!) As they were wandering around the park a
security guard came up to them and asked, "Are you from Doniphan?

"Why, yes we are."

Guard said, "I know some people in Doniphan. My son's in-laws
live there. Do you know the Fleetwoods?"

"Why, yes we do. We go to the same church as their daughter
and son-in-law (that's US)."

It was my sister's father-in-law and one of my parent's best
friends...fun!

Small world.

2008-04-29T04:42:00.000-07:00

From Contentment: A Godly Woman's Adornment

We will never know contentment in Christ if we seek him as
a divine referee, however unfairly we may have been treated.
His work in our lives is not about making sure we get the
maximum benefits in the here and now, even when we are
entitled to those benefits. In fact, real contentment often
comes when we willingly embrace the loss of them.

The second thing Jesus does is reveal the spirit of
covetousness that underlies most of our prayers about
obtaining our share. […] We will never find contentment—
freedom from that angry feeling of unfairness—by getting
the things that are rightfully ours. We will find it by
letting go of our entitlement to them.

Tip of the Bonnet to Amy

2008-04-24T05:03:00.000-07:00

Did I mention clematis and hoot owls?

Turkey Season started this week. The practical implications
of this at our house are one boy (man) who gets up at 4:00 am
every morning to sneak out of the house and go hunting. He
was going to get up at 3:00 am to cook sausage and biscuits
for breakfast, but I talked him into cooking it the night
before and reheating it in the microwave. Since I am a rather
light sleeper, I thought that might gain a tich more sleep
for myself. The pictures are of Tyler preparing for T.S. by
checking out his gun.

2008-04-23T16:29:00.000-07:00

I forgot to mention the peonies that are ready to pop,
the redbuds, the dogwood, the 20 shades of green in the
forest, the mayapples, the butterflies, and the April full
moon. It has all been rather distracting.

2008-04-22T11:40:00.000-07:00

Whew! Go Lars.

2008-04-22T09:49:00.000-07:00

Lilacs in full bloom (and I didn't even know they were ready to
bloom yet), and whippoorwills, and thunderstorms, and green-green
grass, and the hummingbirds that arrived this morning, and the
baby leaves and oh my, more than I can keep up with. Spring
just plum makes me dizzy.

2008-04-22T04:44:00.000-07:00

A Series of Unfortunate Events:

Yesterday morning was smashing. Probably it was the loveliest
morning we've had yet this year. I know because I spent most
of the morning outside. It was all a result of a series of
unfortunate events.

Tyler came in from the Turkey woods at about 7:30 and told
me that Katie, the horse down the road was in our garden
area and couldn't get out. She had jumped the fence to get
in, but now was running in circles looking for a way out.
Kent told him to catch her (she's quite tame) and take her
into the big field, through a gate and then out onto the
road through another, so that she could be walked home.

I went out to help, but I misunderstood which gate he was
bringing her through. I went to the yard gate. Since I
wasn't there Tyler had to let go of her to open the road
gate. She wandered away and found the cows and then she
went loco and started chasing them. She was having a great
time, but they were frightened.

I ran to the house to get some apples to help in catching
her again and while I was inside the phone rang. It was
cousin Mary. She lives behind us. She said, "Blue says
he saw a cow go racing by the house a full speed a minute
ago."

Oh boy. Now a cow was loose. By this time Tyler had caught
Katie and was walking her down the road. Kent, Hattie and
I went cow looking. Not just one, but all the cows except
for the calf were gone. We found two behind the small field
and they were easy to get back in, but the the calf's mamma
was missing.

We tracked her for quite a ways, she was headed towards the
Greenwood's place, traveling back behind the Crow's fence.
Our neighbors came out to help and between everyone we were
finally able to round her up and get her home. Meanwhile
her calf had gone into a depression. The mamma cow was cut
in several places. She was the one who had burst, in her fear,
through the barbed wire fence, but her calf was cut and
bleeding on the nose. I guess between fear of being chased,
and the pain from the cut, and missing her mother, she had lain
down and wouldn't get up. But once she was reunited with
mom she perked up and was fine.

So it was an exciting morning for us and for several of the
neighbors. Just another in a string of adventures here on
Fernnook Farm.

2008-04-21T05:12:00.000-07:00

Joel brought his week-old geese visiting Sunday morning
before church. They have been named Amelia and Abigail.
Of course it is Hattie and Tyler that have named them.
They don't really know that they are both female geese,
but I think the names will stick even if they aren't.

Joel said yesterday that he'd like to get a monkey and
name her Abigail. When I asked why, he said, "If it is an
orangutan it should just be named Abigail, because Abigail
is a name for a redhead."

I wasn't really asking why he would name her Abigail, I wanted
to know why he wanted a monkey. "For tax reasons," he said.
"I could claim it as a child on my taxes." Purely Joel reasoning.

2008-04-20T04:11:00.000-07:00

John Piper says in the Appendix of A God Entranced Vision
of All Things: The Legacy of Jonathan Edwards:

As a hell-deserving sinner I never could have dreamed of
spending eternity with God in ever-increasing joy in the
ever-increasing revelation of God himself. All I could
expect was destruction and misery. But wonder of wonders,
"Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the
unrighteous, that he might bring (me) to God" (I Pet. 3:18).

2008-04-19T04:30:00.000-07:00

An interesting thing happened yesterday as I was on the phone
with my sister who lives in The Big City. Of course earlier
in the morning we had experienced The Earthquake. We were
chatting away and then Becky said, "We are having another
earthquake." She paused, then added, "It's still going on."

I hadn't yet felt anything, but then after another second
or two I was able to tell her, "I feel it now." Just then
Kent came running out of the office and Hattie came scrambling
down the hallway. It was very noticeable to us.

And so, there is my scientific proof that the quake was located
nearer to The Big City (St. Louis) than it was to SE Missouri.

2008-04-18T04:57:00.000-07:00

Two new and interesting blogs have caught my attention. For
my men readers I recommend The Art of Manliness. In it you
will find information on Manly Skills, Dress and Grooming and
Relationships and Family.

For the the Theology Buffs in my life I recommend the blog
Theological Word of the Day. Now you too can know what the big words mean.

2008-04-17T07:22:00.000-07:00

Having a headache takes the thrill out of life. There are so
many things that usually give me a thrill, yet when I have a
headache I notice them but really could care less. Even
on dark days, sad days, and difficult days the thrills
break through...but NOT on headache days.

Going over the two spots on the major highway to Mayberry
where the redbuds crowd up to the bridge and seem to hug
the road is worth a thrill.

Seeing herons and hawks and having Hattie point out "The most
beautiful bird ever" through the window ought to give me a
delicious shiver.

Lying on the couch at 5:30 in the morning whilst the coffee is
brewing and listening to the cacophony of songbirds is most
often a wonderful comfort...but not this morning and not yesterday
morning either.

Waking in the middle of the night to hear the soft breathing of
Hattie on the floor next to our bed, and the peepers in the pond,
and the dogs running the woods next to our bed is supposed to be
a joy, but it wasn't last night.

Watching the Mayberry Dons play an exciting game where the other
coach got thrown out and Tyler placed a sweet bunt for one of the
few hits the Mayberry Dons made was more of a chore than a thrill.

Having the first hummingbird of the year looking in at Hattie through
her bedroom window yesterday should have sent me scooting for the
feeders, but it didn't.

These things pass however, and then life will become full and rosy
again. Meanwhile, God is in His Heaven, so all must be right with
the world; the thrills are there, my feelings actually have nothing
to do with it.

2008-04-16T05:02:00.000-07:00

A funny thing happened on the way home from The Big City
yesterday. Dad and I took Mom up to Barnes to have a
catheter put in for draining fluids out of her tummy. While
she was there they drained off 2 liters of fluid. That
is not the funny part, but it helps lead up to it.

Partly because of all the fluid she has been carrying around,
Mom has not been able to eat more than a tablespoon or so at
a time. But after the surgery she was hungry, so we stopped
at Cracker Barrel to eat.

She and I decided to split a meal. It had grilled chicken
strips covered in cheese and peppers, corn, potatoes, greens,
and biscuits. Mom ate a small helping of everything, and
then she had a taste for a bite of biscuit with some honey
on it. The waitress had set a little container with honey
on the table. Mom carefully cut open her biscuit and poured
the honey on top. She looked up. "This is sure thin honey,"
she said.

Brilliant daughter replied, "Maybe it is syrup and not honey."

Mom took a bite and got a very funny look on her face. "That
is NOT honey;" she exclaimed, "THAT is vinegar!"

2008-04-14T06:14:00.000-07:00

They never told me that daily conversations such as the one
I just had with Hattie would be part of my job description
as a mother.

Hattie: "Mommy, guess what page I'm on." (She is currently
reading Jo's Boys by Louisa Mae Alcott.)

Mommy: "200."

Hattie: "More."

Mommy: "210." (Stupid guess. Not at all scientific; I know
better than that.)

Hattie: "More."

Mommy: "250."

Hattie: "Less."

Mommy: "230."

Hattie: "Less."

Mommy: "220."

Hattie: "Less."

Mommy: "215."

Hattie: "More."

Mommy: "217."

Hattie: "Less."

Mommy: "216."

Hattie: "Yes!"

2008-04-13T16:11:00.000-07:00

I've got to love a site that has the following quote at
the top.

Good things, when short, are twice as good.
Tom Stoppard

2008-04-10T05:07:00.001-07:00

Farm Update:

We can't find Samantha (Sam). She is the littlest of the
three triplets. Hattie and I divided up the field and
tramped all over it. Later Hattie took Max, Joel's German
Shepherd, to look again. Probably a coyote or bobcat got
her.

2008-04-10T05:00:00.000-07:00

A Thunderstorm
by Emily Dickinson

The wind begun to rock the grass
With threatening tunes and low, -
He flung a menace at the earth,
A menace at the sky.

The leaves unhooked themselves from trees
And started all abroad;
The dust did scoop itself like hands
And throw away the road.

The wagons quickened on the streets,
The thunder hurried slow;
The lightning showed a yellow beak,
And then a livid claw.

The birds put up the bars to nests,
The cattle fled to barns;
There came one drop of giant rain,
And then, as if the hands

That held the dams had parted hold,
The waters wrecked the sky,
But overlooked my father's house,
Just quartering a tree.

A Thunderstorm
By Archibald Lampman

A moment the wild swallows like a flight
Of withered gust-caught leaves, serenely high,
Toss in the windrack up the muttering sky.
The leaves hang still. Above the weird twilight,
The hurrying centres of the storm unite
And spreading with huge trunk and rolling fringe,
Each wheeled upon its own tremendous hinge,
Tower darkening on. And now from heaven's height,
With the long roar of elm-trees swept and swayed,
And pelted waters, on the vanished plain
Plunges the blast. Behind the wild white flash
That splits abroad the pealing thunder-crash,
Over bleared fields and gardens disarrayed,
Column on column comes the drenching rain.