Vaughnshire Farm

Here is an interesting look at how well the government schools have done in indoctrinating our nation in the politically correct ideas of the War Between the States.

Ron Paul has said that Lincoln was wrong to invade the south and press the war.  Do you agree?  Here is your chance to vote.

http://news.aol.com/political-machine/2007/12/26/hot-seat-lincoln-wrong-to-fight-civil-war/

It is a very interesting social study if nothing else….  As the numbers stand at this moment I’m actually fairly impressed that a good number of folks seem to at least grasp the idea that 618,000 dead American’s is bad.  I doubt that most of them are voting on the basis of states rights or other principles, but it is a much closer poll at this moment than I would have imagined.  A majority of people in at least most of the traditional southern states and some confederate minded people in the north west, with the exceptions of the liberal coastal states, agree with Paul’s statement.

Check it out and place a vote.

On the last day of the year, we set aside time to reflect on the year and give thanks to God for His Sovereign hand upon our lives.   We remember the joys and trials of the year. We talk about the Providential hand of God moving in our life and marvel at His mercy and grace even amidst trials.  We remember activities and projects we worked on, accomplishments, things most memorable, things that were hard, things most blessed, things that were sad and things that brought much laughter….It is a time of remembrance and thanksgiving for everyone in our entire family. 

We have found that this little exercise is a great way to peak inside the hearts and minds of our children.  When our children are able to write…even if that means in scratch…..we require them to pen some of their own thoughts on paper.  First is a paper about reflections:  ”Write what you learned, experiences you had, things you did, things you are thankful for and other memories of this year.”  Second is a paper about intentions:  ”Write a list of goals you would like to accomplish for the upcoming year.” 

For those that can not write, we usually have them dictate to us (or an older sibling) their goals and we write them down for them.   For those who do not yet talk coherently, we usually make up a goal they will be pursuing whether they like it or not (i.e. potty training, learning how to sit on a blanket during family worship time and church, etc…).   How wonderful it is to look back over the years and see goals set by our oldest children, like “I want to learn how to read”, and compare that to where they are now or to see their memory goals and hear them recite chapters in the Bible they have learned! 

We each work on our reflections and goals in preparation for our time of celebration on New Year’s Eve. 

Our 10 year old completed his list of 2007 reflections today.  I will for brevity sake only highlight a few of his page long most memorable reflections.  He states: 

• In 2007, we bought our cow named Bonnie Blue and we also moved to the farm. 
• In 2007, I caught my first coon!
• I grew my first crop of corn and my brothers and dad and I got to castrate a pig. 
• My brother and I raised a 40 lb turkey and we learned how to breed rabbits.
• I also learned how to milk a cow and I did more school work this year too.  Everybody turned 1 year older. 
• In 2007, I did more work for less pay. 

He wrote in all seriousness and after he was finished, he handed it to me to see if he had written enough.  I agreed it was sufficient all the while chuckling to myself about the “more work for less pay” reflection.  I did notice on his goal’s paper he had a plan to make $500 this year.  Such are the lessons learned by a 10 year old from serious reflections on his past year of life. 

Our 7 year old’s list of reflections was highly entertaining and enlightening.  As with all the children, the impacting influence of farm life was highly evident….more than I realized.  A few of the (newly turned) 7 year old’s reflections were:  

• I helped work on the milk barn.
• I started learning how to read.
• I learned that a chicken will die without water. 
• I learned NEVER to put a chicken in with a dog cus’ the chicken gets killed.
• I learned that a castrated cow won’t breed with a milk cow. 

And I learned that moving to a farm teaches children way more than you will ever think they will learn and it is only through teaching them to reflect and remember things in their life, even from a young age,  that you find out some of those little known facts that were bouncing around in their little heads. 

I have followed the German persecution of home schooling families over the last couple of years.  Recently, I  found these articles closer to home to be especially disturbing about a home schooling mom who has fled the state of Utah after a judge ordered her to enroll her children in public school.  This is on our home land…not in some foreign land once dictated by Nazi rule. 

You can read the full story here on World Net Daily and follow the updates on the situation: 

Mom threatened with jail for teaching kids at home

Woman abandons home to escape public school

Her response, “…But my kids are not going to public school. They are not going where Jesus isn’t welcome.”   She went on to say, “I’m not going back unless the judge removes the threat of arrest.  I’ll fight for the cause but I’m not going to be a martyr.”

Any statist government despises parents who believe that their children are THEIR children and because of that belief, seek to teach and train them how they (the parents) see fit….not how the state thinks fit.  (Ps.2)

In this such case, it was a paper glitch that launched this family into the gripping hands of the state. 

Threats and actions such as these are more common in Germany where home schooling is illegal under an old Hitler era law.  In fact, Germany considers home schooling equal to child endangerment and has no problem persecuting families who dare to defy such an unjust law.  World Net Daily states in a recent article:

Wolfgang Drautz, consul general for the Federal Republic of Germany, has commented… the government “has a legitimate interest in countering the rise of parallel societies that are based on religion or motivated by different world views and in integrating minorities into the population as a whole.”

Drautz said home school students’ test results may be as good as for those in school, but “school teaches not only knowledge but also social conduct, encourages dialogue among people of different beliefs and cultures, and helps students to become responsible citizens.”

At least the man is honest and admits that public state education is not just concerned with knowledge.  What social conduct standards does American public school education hold too?  We have all been assured that they are not anywhere close to anything Biblical and in fact are in direct opposition to the Word of God.  Shall we rehash the recent fiasco in California… or for that matter any myriad of reports pouring out of the news regarding the latest happenings in American government schools. 

What dialogue does the statist system encourage?  Acceptance of everyone no matter what false religion or god they serve or don’t serve….except those who hold to standards and declare there is but one Lord, the true and living God.  Culture is to be left up to the personal interpretation of each individual person.  Two mommies, no daddy, no matter:  acceptance of those things the Lord hates is the only normal social conduct approved. 

Helping students to become responsible citizens is code for “you will never question anything we say and you will owe your allegiance to the all powerful state or else.”  Government education has goals and agendas to produce cogs that properly fit into the system flawlessly. 

The beginning of public education in this country is an interesting study and one I think is a must study for home educators.  In the late 1800’s, Rev. R.L. Dabney warned of the evils of government education and sadly his warnings were unheeded by the church at large.  For they swallowed a bill of goods hook, line and sinker and fell into the lie that public school was “Christian”.  Gary North points out in his lectures on The Unknown History of the 20th century:  The public school system was NEVER Christian.  It was all a pseud to lure Christians into the statist frog pot.  And it worked. 

We have come a long way and many parents are understanding the importance of home education.  However, far too many times, home schoolers get caught up in this competition game with public education.  Many are consumed with focusing on producing academically superior, well-socialized children all the while forgetting the number one reason why we are commanded as Christians to teach our children from a distinctly Biblical approach!  Many still idolize what so called “experts” say and follow the same patterns and theories of schooling made up by the social darwinians. 

R.C. Sproul Jr. in his book, When You Rise Up:  A Covenantal Approach to Homeschooling, says, “The true expert on education, is the very One who gave you these children.” 

When You Rise Up is the most influential, hard hitting, Biblically based book I have ever read on the subject of homeschooling.  If you are a home schooling family, you must read this book and then keep it on your shelf for periodic refreshment!  It will encourage and put focus and purpose on what God says true education is. 

It’s not about purely academics.  Like our German Nazi thinking fellow said:  schooling isn’t only about knowledge.  And for the Christian, it is first and foremost teaching our children about the one, true, Holy God.  All other academics flow out of that truth.  Let us never swallow the lie that education is neutral.  It never has been and never can be neutral!   (Ps.1, Ps.78, Deut.6, Prov.1-4)

We recently watched the moving film The Monstrous Regiment of Women.   WOW!   It was a very shocking and sobering look at the monster of feminism and the destruction that follows in its wake.  Many reviews have already been written regarding the film, but we would add that you must see this film!  The Gunn family did an amazing job.  The film is well researched and covers a variety of topics showing just how monstrous this regiment of feminists is……from birth control, planned parenthood, the horrific abortion industry to daycare, the military, politics and education; feminism has infected and infested our lives to the core.  As Christians, it is imperative that we recognize this beast for what it is.  We defeat it by returning to the Biblical pattern of family life and standing up for the standards found in God’s Word. 

The section on the abortion industry is beyond words.  It shows how horrific the industry is with footage of an actual abortion and the incredible interview by Carol Everett, now a God-fearing Christian, who is working to help women instead of hurt them like she once did running abortion mills.  She tells the real truth about planned parenthood’s agenda and gives insider information that is shocking to say the least.  The brief yet brutal section which shows the truth about abortion is not the “safe, humane, simple, medical procedure” the feminist before says it is.  It shows the clear, non compromising truth the feminists have been lying about for years. 

We especially enjoyed the historical foundation laid with the story of John Knox, the Scottish Reformer who not only stood against anti-biblical thinking in his day, but staunchly opposed the monstrous regiment of women in his day and exposed them for what they were! 

If you are interested in ordering the film, click here. 

You might also want to check out the DVD Heartstringsproduced by home schoolers HueMoore.  It is an excellent family film with the added bonus of having a packed full bonus section on the DVD.  Heartstrings is appropriate for all ages. 

Like R.C. Jr. stated in his latest Kingdom Notes we too rejoice that God sent His Son!  In like manner, as R.C. is grateful for the Puritans and the good they did for the Kingdom of Heaven, we are grateful for R.C. Sproul Jr and the good he has done for the Kingdom of Heaven.  However, like R.C. disagrees with the puritans on Christmas, so must we disagree with R.C. on Christmas.

I agree with so much of what R.C. stands for and what he has given the church in this generation.  The entire idea of being “simple, separate, and deliberate” for the sake of the Kingdom is something that resonates within my very being.  So it is with inner turmoil that I even voice a dissent.  I will endevor to be as gracious as possible, while still seeking the truth on this important matter.  I have been asking questions on the issue of Christmas for several years as evidence by the postings from last year on December 25th and the summary post in march.

There are many points to this fairly deep theological discussion, many of which I have mixed feelings about.  But for this posts there are two points I’d like to address.  These are two particular items that seem to be ignored by my Presbyterian friends, which I would welcome an answer to.

First, the puritans where not alone in their rejection of the holiday. The Scotch-Irish Presbyterians where in league with them, along with many other reform minded groups.  In fact according to many of the articles and videos studied most of these groups did not embrace Christmas until the mid to late 1800’s; the obvious exceptions being the Anglicans and Lutherans.  (See section 6 on this article for one reference.)

Secondly, no one seems to address the issue of the second commandment as it relates to this subject and the regulative principle of worship.  Specifically I am thinking of the 109th question in the Westminster Larger Catechism.

Q. 109 What are the sins forbidden in the second commandment?

A. The sins forbidden are all devising, counseling, commanding, using, and any wise approving, any religious worship not instituted by God himself; all superstitious devices, corrupting the worship of God, adding to it, or taking from it, whether invented and taken up of ourselves, or received by tradition from others, though under the title of antiquity, custom, devotion, good intent, or any pretence whatsoever.

There seem to be some pretty strong points here against Christmas or other church sanctioned holidays that I have not seen my Christmas celebrating friends address.

I’ll grant some additional complexity to the issue as we look at jurisdictions or spheres of authority.  How do we answer the question of Christmas as it relates to family government, church government, and civil government?  Each of these are distinct jurisdictions created and ordered by God.  As such, he speaks to how each of these should operate.

I think most of those in the reformed faith would agree the civil government does not have the authority to establish a religious holiday other than specific days of fasting and thanksgiving.  If I remember my David Barton studies correctly this was a 3 day debate in the Continental Congress when it finally concluded in the affirmative, specifically and only, for days of fasting and thanksgiving.  In the story that David Barton relates the body drew heavily from the book of Ester, and ultimately concluded the matter with the following resolution: (- which I quote more for the separation of church and state folks than for the Christmas discussion.)

IN CONGRESS DECEMBER 11, 1776.
WHEREAS, the just War into which the United States of America have been forced by Great-Britain, is likely to be still continued by the same Violence and Injustice which have hitherto animated the Enemies of American freedom:

And, whereas it becomes all public Bodies, as well as private Persons, to reverence the Providence of GOD, and look up to him as the supreme Disposer of all Events, and the Arbiter of the Fate of Nations:

Therefore the CONGRESS hereby RESOLVE,

That it be recommended to all the States, as soon as possible to appoint a Day of solemn Fasting and Humiliation, to implore of Almighty GOD the Forgiveness of the many Sins prevailing among all Ranks, and to beg the Countenance and Assistance of his Providence in the Prosecution of this just and necessary War.  The Congress do also in the most earnest manner recommend to all the Members of the United States, and particularly to the Officers civil and military under them, the Exercise of Repentance and Reformation; and further, do require of the said Officers of the military Department, the strict Observation of the Articles of War in general, and particularly that of said articles which forbids profane Swearing, and all other Immoralities; of which all such Officers are desired to take Notice.  It is left to each State to issue Proclamations fixing the Day that appear most proper for their several Bounds.

Extract from the Minutes,
CHARLES THOMPSON, Secretary.
Hartford: Re-Printed by EBEN. WATSON.

All of that really to say the civil government can not “Biblically” declare a religious holiday other than days of fasting and thanksgiving. 

In the matter of family government, I’ll readily grant that a father has the right within his home to set aside special days throughout the year to help catechize his family.  The question for each head of household would then be one of wisdom and prudence in what he is communicating and the time he is communicating it.  It seems that by choosing December 25th to study the incarnation he would be promoting the publicly understood and culturally normal idea of the holiday.  There is a strong possibility that no matter what truth was read or stated it would appear the culture was driving it because of the events taking place outside of the home.  But all of this seem to me to be a matter of conscience for the heads of household to wrestle with.  As R.C. said we would not require one to violate their own conscience for the sake of conformity in this matter.  (There is a great summary of the challenges for the heads of households in this matter and additional considerations here.) 

This does lead us to the final sphere of authority, that is the church.  How is it that a church could have a Christ-mass service such as the Romans do and not infringe upon a man’s conscience who descents from embracing these very activities?  We are absolutely commanded to attend church and to partake of the divine benefits of the teaching of the Word and of the sacraments practiced.  What then becomes of a man who for matters of conscience does not wish to embrace the culture of Christmas but finds his church, his very place of worship, decorated in the themes or participating in the practices that he finds objectionable?

The second objection in this sphere goes back to the regulative principle and how God commands us to worship him.  If we are free to impose devices of our own choosing within the church service then why do reformed churches not practice drama and other such follies in the midst of a church service?  (We will let alone the traditional Christmas plays that take place during the normal weekly church service in much of American Christendom today and just focus on those of a reformed belief that embrace the regulative principle of worship.  See this post if this idea is new to you.)  If we are free to add seasonal decorations of Christmas trees and holly then on what grounds does one deny strobe lights in the church?  If we are free to leave off our normal order of service to focus on a specific seasonal theme or aspect of the Scriptures in December then what rule is there to keep us faithful the remainder of the year?  Why not just adopt the entire Roman church calendar?  Lastly, where are we a) commanded or allowed to set the time of Christ’s birth and b) commanded or allowed to make a hollowed day out of it, as a person, a church, or a civil government?  I’m sure there are other aspects of the 2nd commandment to be considered, but I’d be happy if someone could just answer these few questions.

I’ll close with yet another thing we agree with R.C. Jr. on.  We agree that indeed there is ”something worth celebrating in the birth of Jesus”.  However, we would say that God’s Word commands us to celebrate it 52 times a year in our regular Lord’s Day service.  It is also true, as R.C. said, that God does not “require” us to celebrate a special day as the day of his birth.  However, the real issue, that R.C. does not address, is that neither does God command it.

While we may be confused by our Presbyterian brothers who seem to depart from orthodoxy in the matter of Christmas, we still are very excited about the good work they do.  Specifically I would give an endorsement to anything R.C. has recorded or written.  If you don’t have the basement tapes, I think no library is complete without them.  If you have not read R.C.s books then I would recommend that you get some as soon as possible.  If you are a home school family I couldn’t recommend a more encouraging book than, “When You Rise Up, A Covenantal Approach to Homeschooling“.  And by the way, just for the record, I don’t think I have seen someone do as much justice to the santa hat as R.C. does.  Simply as a winter fashion statement, it works for R.C.

I’m about to post an article or two that reference the regulative principle of worship.  Realizing that this is mainly a reformed doctrine I thought I’d make a post with some links about the principle itself.  For those familiar with the principle you might find these refreshing.  For those not familiar with the principle you might find these challenging.  But either way I pray they bring you closer to Christ. 

This principle is stated in the Westminster Confession Chapter 21 paragraph 1 and in the London Baptist Confession in Chapter 22 paragraph 1.

The light of nature showeth that there is a God, who hath lordship and sovereignty over all, is good, and doth good unto all, and is therefore to be feared, loved, praised, called upon, trusted in, and served, with all the heart, and with all the soul, and with all the might.[1] But the acceptable way of worshiping the true God is instituted by himself, and so limited by his own revealed will, that he may not be worshiped according to the imaginations and devices of men, or the suggestions of Satan, under any visible representation, or any other way not prescribed in the Holy Scripture.[2]

1. Rom. 1:20; Psa. 19:1-4a; 50:6; 86:8-10; 89:5-7; 95:1-6; 97:6; 104:1-35; 145:9-12; Acts 14:17; Deut. 6:4-5
2. Deut. 4:15-20; 12:32; Matt. 4:9-10; 15:9; Acts 17:23-25; Exod. 20:4-6, John 4:23-24; Col. 2:18-23

The London Baptist Confession also adds these scriptural references with close to the same wording as the Westminster. 
Jeremiah 10:7; Mark 12:33; Deuteronomy 12:32; Exodus 20:4-6

In a very basic sense it says that the Creator alone can define how he desires to be worshipped by the creatures he created.  This revelation, of how he desires to be worshipped, is only to be found in the Word of God.  In short, we can’t put on pink robes and go out among the pine trees singing Mary Had a Little Lamb and call it worship.  Neither can we bring the pink robes into the church, no matter how it might make us feel inside.  If that makes sense and you’d like a less absurd and more relevant application check out the following links:

http://www.apuritansmind.com/PuritanWorship/McMahonRegulativePrinciple.htm

http://www.apuritansmind.com/PuritanWorship/YoungWilliamPuritanRegulativePrinciple.htm

http://www.reformedonline.com/view/reformedonline/xmas.htm

http://www.reformedprescambridge.com/articles/ICRC_RPW_Final.pdf

http://www.banneroftruth.org/pages/articles/article_detail.php?418

http://www.mctsowensboro.org/blog/?p=227

In addition here is a link to an on-line version of the London Baptist Confession of Faith.

http://www.vor.org/truth/1689/1689bc00.html

Our good friends over at Top Of The World Farm sent this to us last week.  I just got around to checking it out and thought I’d share since we have the recent posts on Lard.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22116724/from/ET/

This is a fairly exhaustive review of some of the leading studies that have been done on saturated fats in the past.  Here is a quote to wet your appetite.  (Some pun intended)

“I was disappointed that we didn’t find something more definitive,” says Lee Hooper, Ph.D., who led the Cochrane review. If this exhaustive analysis didn’t provide evidence of the dangers of saturated fat, says Hooper, it was probably because the studies reviewed didn’t last long enough, or perhaps because the participants didn’t lower their saturated-fat intake enough. Of course, there is a third possibility, which Hooper doesn’t mention: The diet-heart hypothesis is incorrect.

Now go out and get you some fresh bacon to be put in the freezer next fall!  You won’t be sorry.

Oh yea, that reminds me.  We are in the process of curing our bacon.  We found a recipe we are going to try….We’ll post it soon and let you know how it goes.

What is a free giveaway?  Occasionally, we will be hosting free giveaways on our blog for this upcoming new year. 

This week, we are giving away a free doll carrier from Vision Forum to one of our blog readers.  

 I will draw a winner and post who won the baby carrier on Tuesday afternoon, December 18th. 

 Made of soft, cozy material and with adjustable straps, your daughter will love this pretty, lightweight version of your own carrier. Machine-washable. Fits all 15″ dolls.  Ages 3 yrs and up…

Edit:  See comments to see who won!

As we have been making a huge transition this year in regards to living on a farm, I have had to make huge adjustments in how I grocery shop. 

I wrote a concise book on how to save a ton of money on groceries using simple tips and tricks that will dramatically reduce your grocery bill, however, that is dependant on you living in an area where stores and coupons are available!  It can be done!  We were a family of 9 and I was spending anywhere from $300 to $400 a month on all of our groceries and household supplies and most of the spending was focused on building a massive pantry stockpile. 

However, move an hour or two away from normal stores and your life changes dramatically!  Jim’s Food Market just isn’t the same as a chain grocery store like Publix.  While I have been able to do a few small deals at some of the smaller grocery markets– using their sales combined with coupons; my rate of massive stockpiling and grocery savings has changed dramatically!  The majority of my grocery savings and stockpiling now comes in new forms. 

My milk, cream, buttermilk and butter come from our cow.  I have not figured up the actual expenses of keeping a family cow, but we do know that the benefits of having fresh raw milk outweigh the alternatives.  I know it is difficult to get raw milk when you live in an area that is not rural.  I struggled with wanting to switch completely to raw dairy products years before I was able to.  Some things you just have to deal with until a better resource is found.  We know of many places where you can get fresh cow or goat milk and that would require a commitment and a drive for those closer to city life. 

Our meat completely comes off the farm or other friend’s farms.  We have completely switched over to grass fed or pastured raised meats and with that comes either the expense of buying quality meat or the work involved in raising your own meat.  That was also a gradual switch that took lots of patience on my part.  We started out with raising our own chickens and grew from there.  Our boys raised 237 lbs of pork and we paid about 62 cents a pound for it.  That is a whole lot cheaper than anything in the grocery store and the meat is far superior in quality, health and flavor.  However, we also just paid over $4 a pound for grass fed beef.  While this wasn’t “cheap” by any means, the health and quality of the food is beyond comparison to any grain fed beef.  Plus, we had the added benefit of supporting our local farmer friends.  Next years beef is wandering in the pasture so we will eventually save even more money by raising our own beef. 

While I do not buy all organic fruits and vegetables, I have found that living in a rural area provides an easier outlet for buying in bulk.   Large families need to buy in 50 lb bags, bushels and gallons.  Thinking large and planning long range goals for pantry storage will affect how you spend your money.  Several times late summer and throughout the fall, I bought apples by the bushel or brought home a bushel of potatoes.  This year I hope to take advantage of those seasonal bushel finds like peaches in the summer and apples in the fall, so that I can put up dried fruits, jams, sauces and freezer fruit.  Amazingly, we use a lot of food and will continue to use even more as the children grow. 

While I would love to grow most of our fruits and vegetables, that area has been a difficult thing to accomplish.  One thing is for sure, large families do benefit greatly from being able to produce at least a portion of their food themselves.  To have to buy every single food item…be it meat, eggs, dairy, vegetables, grains etc… it becomes a huge expense as the family grows.  It isn’t cheap to feed a family with 10 or more members and as they grow into young adults and their appetites grow drastically.  Add the fact that young men need to be exerting lots of energy in productive work, and their appetite demands a lot of food! 

For a homemaker of many children to manage and provide the food necessary for her growing family, evaluating quantities, prices, storage availability and rate of usage is a necessary part of the job.  The hard part is adjusting your budget to be flexible enough to be able to buy 1/2 a cow one month or scheduling your life to raise a 25 or 50 meat birds.  Buying organic oats in bulk or organic corn meal is much cheaper than the smaller quantities at store prices, however, finding that chunk of money to output on several 25 lb or 50 lb bags of food at one time might be difficult at first.  I like to use the end of the year as my evaluation time. 

50 lbs of oats separated out in gallon size bags for easier storage

Other evaluation checks I have on my list:

• Evaluated grains and quantity needed- cornmeal, prairie gold, oatmeal, rice.  What is the total cost on 25 and 50 lb bags of each.  When should I purchase these items? 
• Find source for purchasing a gallon or more of honey at a time.
• Plan month to buy/raise meat chickens, pig, sheep, calf, turkey. 
• Evaluate egg production and make necessary adjustments to enable us to have a plenteous supply of eggs. 
• Evaluate the garden areas and plan for a more intensive garden because last years plantings were not near enough to sustain us through multiple meals. 
• Buy seasonal and plan on canning and freezing. 

As for grocery shopping with coupons?  I look for deals on paper products like paper plates, toilet paper, paper towels as well as things like ziplock type baggies, trash bags, laundry soap, razors, toothbrushes, diapers and wipes.  Sometimes, making a trip to Costco is the best option we have for things like laundry soap, dish soap, trash bags and a few other things.   I haven’t been able to beat their prices on the large number 10 cans.   I like to have extra food on hand in storage for emergency. Razors and toothbrushes are always cheap or free with coupons and/or rebates at pharmacy type stores like Walgreens, CVS or Rite-Aid.  Diapers, I usually buy twice a year in bulk at around .10 cents or less a diaper from a grocery store sale or Target using coupons and sales.  It pays to learn which stores to buy what from.  The trick in living rural is to gage your pantry and household stockpile so that you are not running out of necessary items and having to buy them always out of need at the local expensive Jim’s Market

As I mentioned in the previous post about our expanding farm, we did indeed acquire a for real coon hound dog last week in an unexpected way.   Ever since our boys have read the Henty book, “In Freedom’s Cause”, where the king has hunting hounds as well as listening to me read the “Where the Red Fern Grows” book and watching the movie, hound dogs have been the topic of many a conversation.   Add to that the fact that since we moved to the farm, the boys have been trapping predators like possum—The greatest catch being the raccoon they caught last summer.  Well, it is just in them—and they have been making plans to get a coon hound. 

The other evening after supper, we heard a knock at our door.  It was a man who said that his truck had died in the middle of the road in front of our house.  My husband offered him use of our phone and then helped him move the truck out of the road.  They stood outside talking as the man waited for his ride to come get him. 

My husband and two older boys came inside with some exciting news about who the man was.   I wasn’t sure how exciting this news should be.  It was definitely exciting boy news. 

The man, Mr. Gene, had a dog kennel in the back of his truck that my husband inquired about.  One thing led to another and the chat turned into a very exciting conversation for the boys.  Mr. Gene just so happened to be a coon hunting national champion the last 4 years and had a coon dog that he wanted to give the boys.  He told the boys he had been hunting in the hollows and hills around here since he was a boy.  He raises and handles coon hounds and had an extra hound that wasn’t quite up to par for his game, but would be a great hound for some young boys to train and hunt with. 

Within a few days, Mr. Gene brought over the young Treeing Walker Coon Hound and handed her over to the boys.

She is a beautiful dog, I have to say, but once she got the scent of the cat and went baying after it like she couldn’t stop herself, I was thinking this isn’t my kind of dog.  My husband and the boys took off, literally, with her while the rest of us went inside.  After a while, they came back grinning ear to ear and talk of how great that was! 

Ever since then, the boys’ farm chores have increased.  Taking care of a coon hound is a big chore…especially when they have a mother with absolutely no nerve for howling, barking dogs.  “It’s for the them”, my husband reminds me and he is right.  A young boy with responsibility grows to be a man with greater responsibility.  At this age, they need chores and jobs to train self-discipline and self-control in them on a daily basis.  Farm life has offered that to us for sure!

I’ll stick to organizing my closets  and trying to figure out how to make cheese out of all our extra raw milk!