Mom things I never thought I'd say.....

• Who's been poking holes in my bags of flour?
• Who threw corn across the dining room?
• What's that smell?
• Who farted?
• Where are my FOUR calculators?
• WHAT is that on your FACE?
• BOY!!! Where are your underwear?!?!?

Mini-update on the garden

I snapped a few pics in the garden tonight. Just a few of the plants fruiting! Now I pray that there's enough time left in the season for them to ripen on the vines!!!

Burgundy Beans:

Bloody Butcher Corn:

Crookneck Squash:

Sugar Baby Pumpkin:

Mystery Pepper:

Squash & Melons climbing the trellis:

Baby Maters:

Too cheap to buy a screen!!!!

I didn't want to buy a sprouting screen. Not to mention it would be at least a couple of weeks before I rec'd one anyway & since I was so anxious to start sprouting, I was going to go for a sprouting bag (make my own with those dreadful sheers I mentioned awhile back). As I was looking through my craft stash for the sheers fabric, I came across some 10-gauge plastic canvas..... OOO OOO, yes, you can imagine what happened next, as I re-purposed an item on hand.....








And I tell you it seems to be working quite well. See the itty bitty sprouts already?!

Those cast iron pans.....

Remember those cast iron pans I found at a thrift shoppe? I FINALLY got around to cleaning them up.....



And I must have done something right, because when I made fried taters tonight, nary a one stuck!!!



They were delicious, by the way ;)

One more science experiment.....

I forgot to include my new Kombucha SCOBY in the pictures yesterday. When I realised this yesterday afternoon, I went to get a picture of it & noticed it's ALREADY GROWING!!! It hadn't even been in the tea 48 hours (I took the pics around 3 yesterday & I just batched it up late Wednesday night).

The opaque part is the part Millie gave me, the cloudy part is where it's already a "film" across the whole top of the liquid. The boys were in bed when I moved the baby from the starter tea jar to the brew jar, but they can't wait til next time so they can touch the SCOBY. I believe when I told them about it being squishy & slimy but firm in the middle, the word was "COOL!!!" LOL

The annihilation of an ice cream cone.....

About us

We are 5 for the Glory of Jesus Christ. We haven't always been this way. We haven't always practised our beliefs.


I am Michaela, homeschooling Mom of 3 boys. I am wife & helpmeet to my Husband, Robert & am a homekeeper for the Glory of Christ. I am 31 years old. I grew up all over. My Dad was in the Air Force. He married an English woman. I was born in England, and I have lived there twice. My Mum & I were actually born in the same hospital room. How cool is that?!? I've also lived in Nebraska, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia & Virginia. We now make our home in beautiful Wyoming. I've spent my life in & out of the church. When I was a kid, I'd go to church with my Grandma (when we visited her) or my friends & their families. I never really understood the "whole Christianity thing."

When my youngest was born in January 2004, Robert & I decided it was time for me to stay home with the children. I had considered going back to my job after Keenan was born, but a month before he came, the store closed. Obviously that closing answered the question for us. It could be, now that I think about it, a sign from God. My first day as a stay at home Mom was December 31, 2003. It has been a wild ride, but the benefits are sweet.

I began to do what I could to save money, going from 2 incomes to 1. I trolled the WWW looking for tips & stories. I began to coupon lightly. I frequented the sales, used the money-saving shopper's cards & I stockpiled when things were on a good sale. We began to thrift heavily, finding new & like new name-brand items at a fraction of the prices new. I also began selling a bit on ebay to supplement the income.

I began to notice that my housekeeping skills were not in any particular order. Sure, I kept a clean house, clean laundry, and we didn't have bugs or rodents. However, there was no method. When I was working for Uncle Sam, I had my 2 days off per week. I used 1 of those days to clean my house from top to bottom. It was a scheduled type of clean. But with no days off, I was falling behind. Top that with having a new baby, 2 older boys & a recent surgery- let's just say, I was a dust bomb waiting to explode.

Once again, I turned to google. I began searching for terms such as "housekeeping," "housekeeping inspriration," "organising," etc. I stumbled upon treasure trove after trove of information, inspiration and..... GODLY HOMEKEEPING!!!!! Godly?!?! What was that? I mean I knew what the word meant. But as in HOMEKEEPING?!? No, I didn't understand.

I read, I devoured, I printed, I re-read, I studied. I started feeling things I'd never felt before. I joined some Christian Women's groups online. I gleaned skills of their postings. I found recipes for homemade convenience mixes, home-baked goodies, homemade cleaning solutions, recipes on a budget. I found information on being a helpmeet, a good & godly steward of our home, finances & children & above all, I learned to be a God-fearing Christian.

Then I began to read about this thing they called..... homeschool. By this time, my oldest son, Seb, was well into his 2nd grade year in public school. But it sounded so cool, so neat, so FUN!!! And it sounded as though the reward for the both of us were excellent. I went, no... I RAN for google again. I read, I devoured, I printed, I re-read, I studied. At this point in my life, I prayed. My heart had a hunger for homeschooling. I asked Robert about it & he rolled his eyes & said no. I asked again a little while later & the response was the same. I begged, I pleaded, I cried, each time getting the same response. And then I remembered the virtue of a helpmeet. I asked silently. I begged & pleaded & cried silently. I prayed silently. Several months after praying and sending news stories of the atrocious things happening in public schools, I very calmly asked my Husband if we could homeschool our children.

Yada, yada, yada.......

Fast forward to 2008, several wild rides later.....

Hubba was miserable at his job, we couldn't afford living in Atlanta anymore. We got together & began a list of states that were acceptable for homeschooling (laws). Once we had that info together he began the online search for a new job. He found an opening that was in one of 3 places- 2 locations were in Wyoming, 1 was in Maryland & 1 was in Shreveport. We immediately ruled out MD, decided if he got the position in LA, we'd live JUST across the border in TX. We had no qualms living in Wyoming, so he applied & we waited. And prayed. And waited. And prayed. And waited.....

And THREE months later we had the answer..... WE WERE HEADED OUT WEST!!!!

We moved here in August 2008. We bought our first home. We became a part of a small & beautiful town.

In less than a year, our lives have continued to take wild & crazy turns.

We began a traditional foods diet in January '09, learning that one of our children has a sensitivity to food dyes, preservatives & other toxic additives. We saw the difference, and AMAZING difference. We also started noticing a huge difference in one of our others when exposed to the toxic additives after being without for some time. It wasn't just one, it was BOTH of them. I've managed to lose the rest of my goal weight (about the same amount in just 6 months as it did 3 years) on this new lifestyle. Hubba is noticing when he eats out, he gets sick from it.

This past spring we acquired BABY CHICKS!!!

We have a HUGE organic garden.

We are lovin' life!!! Well, for the most part..... In June, Hubba began a new promotion at work, and he's been having a time of it..... But God always prevails, and we'll get through this, just as we always have!!!

The cast of characters in our daily life are as follows:

Myself, as previously mentioned

The Wonderful Hubba. Rolls his eyes at all of my shenanigans & smiles sweetly as he says "Yes, Dear..."

Sebastion, aged 12. The book nerd....


Tristen, aged 9. Ornery, hands-on learner....



Keenan, aged 5. All rambunctious Momma's boy....

Maya- sweet & sassy Siamese/calico mix. Saved from the Animal Shelter, partially deaf.



Mokey- not so very bright black lab mix, but protective & loves to give kisses

Nutmeg, the psycho pastel torti kitty....





21 chicks, which should drop down to around 8 soon










Stick with us on our journey. We look forward to sharing it!

What's cookin' good lookin'?!?!?

Here's what's going on in my kitchen today. Well some of it anyway!

L-R: Amish Friendship Bread Starter, sourdough starter, rye sourdough starter, freshly drained water kefir & in the covered container- a new batch of water kefir I just got going. Why is it in a container, surrounded & covered with towels? I've heard that, though it's rare, they can shatter the glass jars from pressure.....

In the blender- drinkable yoghurt. In the crockpot- homemade yoghurt:

Draining the whey off the yoghurt to make yoghurt cheese, also known as labneh:

Lunch today was buttered whole wheat pasta & Parmesan with choice of pickles or carrot sticks (yuck to pasta & pickles, but that's what they wanted):

What's cookin' in your kitchen?

Only 4 pounds and a few left to go!

The tally so far:

• 10 pints jarred blueberries
• 5 pints blueberry jam
• 16 banana-blueberry smoothie-sicles
• LOTS & LOTS of snacking on blueberries (I even sent about a pint's worth home with one of my little daycare girls)

And, yes, I'll get more if they still have them next time I go in.... Yup, I'm a sucker for abuse.....