People who know me well and some who have been following my blog for a while could probably tell you that I believe that a plan is not complete unless it comes with a plan-b. I believe in having an alternative for everything from flushing the toilet when the water has been shut off, to what we will have for dinner, and who I would call if my car broke down. Going through life with plan-b’s has save me a lot of time, energy and STRESS.
My plan for Monday, December 23 was to begin baking desserts for our Christmas Day celebration, a couple of pumpkin pies and sugar cookies (that are a treat that I normally only make at Christmas time). We also had gifts that needed to be wrapped. Then On Tuesday I would bake the ham and dinner rolls leaving the oven available for roasting the turkey on Christmas morning.
Monday morning I set out the butter, that I would use to make sugar cookies, to soften and took two containers of pumpkin out of the freezer to thaw. This things should be ready for me to begin baking after lunch.
The weather was outside was unseasonably warm and sunny, a stark contrast to the cold and gray days that we had experienced throughout the month of November and into December. During that time I longed for sunshine, so when my husband called from the farm, as I was eating my lunch, and asked me if I wanted to come out I could not refuse. I could at least get out for a walk and to soak up some of that glorious sunshine that I have missed for so long.
There was still a thin layer of ice on the pond as the overnight temperatures have been below freezing.
But it felt more like springtime than the second day of winter.
The maple trees seem to be confused by the weather. The buds are swelling as if wanting to open, and last week when my husband cut a low hanging branch from one of the trees the sap began to flow. We had no idea that they would produce sap this time of year.
The bees were out in full force. Sadly, and for reasons that remain a mystery, we have lost several hives over the past six weeks. We currently have three hives.
Since there was nothing in bloom for them to forage my husband set out some frames of honey for them to eat and a shallow pan of water with some stones in it so they could drink.
The chickens were also out and about, happily scratching and pecking.
After taking a walk around the back field with Trooper I just wasn’t ready to return home. My husband was going to work on cutting firewood, so I decided to help out by cutting kindling.
During the 3 hours we were working, and relishing the lovely weather, at the farm I was reformulating my plans for the day. Upon my return home I could still bake pumpkin pies and wrap presents, but making sugar cookies is very time consuming so I would find a simpler alternative. It was because I knew I had alternatives that I was able to enjoy the day.
Trooper enjoyed being at the farm with us and Peanut found it a fine day for a visit.
Once we returned home I began making pumpkin pie. It was around 3:30 and I should be able to get them in the oven and then throw together a quick dinner. As I opened up one of the containers of pumpkin that I had thawed I realized it wasn’t pumpkin – it was apple sauce. Oh No! I wasn’t making pumpkin pie today either. I went to the freezer and took out two containers that I was sure were pumpkin and told my husband I wouldn’t be baking pies until Tuesday (plan-b).
I then got out my Betty Crocker cookbook and found a recipe for toffee bars (plan-b). They had a cookie type crust with melted chocolate chips on top then sprinkled with chopped nuts. They took less than an hour to make and while they were baking I worked on wrapping gifts. My husband decided to have a pizza delivered for dinner (that was his plan-b), and I was most appreciative.
As I write the pumpkin pies are cooling on the counter the ham is baking, the rolls are rising while they await their turn in the oven and I should still have time to bake the birthday cake for Jesus.
In this case my alternative plans including making a change in menu that freed up some of my time and doing something at a different time than was planned, but truthfully if one or even two of those desserts were missing I don’t think that anyone would notice. I could have just decided not to make so much.
As I close this post I am happy to tell you that that the ham, the rolls, and the cake have all been baked and I couldn’t be happier that I changed my plans.
From our hearts to yours we wish you love, peace and joy this holiday season and into the new year.
I have to admit that writing this post has been very challenging for me. As I thought about what our prayer garden is and what it represents my thoughts ran deep, and at times it seems like the answers to what it is, why it exists and how it came to be have turned into questions that that I can not definitively answer. As I struggle to convey the information about our prayer garden I can only pray that God will give me the words I need and that they will perhaps be a blessing to someone who reads them.
Flowers offer more praise to God than man ever shall. ~ Ninian Riley
What Is A Prayer Garden?
When I typed that question into my internet browser this was but one of the definitions that showed up. I selected it because it does seem fitting.
It said: “Used as a quiet place to relax and recharge, a meditation or prayer garden is a place of peace and tranquility. It’s personal space with no right or wrong design elements. A prayer garden can be a small, private corner of a larger garden, or an entire section of your landscaping may be designed around a theme of thoughtful serenity. Planting perennials helps to avoid stress from constant garden maintenance chores, and including beautiful accents — natural or manmade – helps you focus on positivity.”
What Is Our Prayer Garden?
It could be called a flower garden or and herb garden because of the vast array of both flowers and herbs that we grow there. It could be called a rock garden because many rocks were used in it’s construction. It could be called a pollinator garden because bees, butterflies and many other pollinating insects are attracted to the various flowers when in bloom. It could be called a memorial garden since we have planted flowers in memory of my mother, my husband’s mother and my Aunt Shirley. It could also be called a friendship garden since many of the plants have been given to me, some by my children, others by my sisters and some that were added this year were sent by a lady who my husband met this year while working at his landscaping job, and when the plants in the garden need to be thinned I often dig the roots and pass them on the family, friends or neighbors who will give them a new home. Our prayer garden is all of these things combined.
Walking up the driveway
It is the center piece of our farm from which everything else seems to radiate. It is bordered to the west by the pond and the east by the driveway with the barn standing on the other side of the drive. The windmill stands directly to the north of the prayer garden, only a few feet outside the garden edge, and the apiary is just a short distance from there. It is not visible from the road so when in bloom it can be a glorious view as you round the bend in the driveway and are greeted buy the colorful display.
A View of Our Farm From the Road
Honestly while it is this “center piece” that we refer to as the prayer garden, it is the entire farm that evokes feelings of peace and serenity and elicits the desire to pray – to commune with God. While it may seem contradictory, we find that even while working on the farm we are often able to recharge.
In Our Beginning
When we first bought our farm, the property had been unused (by humans) for many years. The previous owner had planned to build a house there so he had done some excavating, put in somewhat of a driveway and the well, but it seemed that it had been at least few years since those things had been done. What I’m trying to say is that things were growing wild. We spent a lot of time exploring, discovering and deciding.
We wanted to be good stewards of the piece of earth that God had given to us, so there were many decisions to be made. We wanted to make the land useful, that we may grow our food and raise livestock, while utilizing all of what the land could offer and preserving much of it’s natural beauty. Through exploring the land we discovered that God had given us much more than we had prayed for.
One of our early priorities was having access to water. There was a well on the property but at that time there was no pump to retrieve the water – it was simply a capped well. Since there was no electricity on the property, and that was not a priority, we purchased a hand pump suitable for deep wells and then had the company that drilled the well come out to install the pipes that were needed to hook up the hand pump.
Another thing we needed to do was to protect the well head. It was in an open area and we feared it was at risk of being hit and damaged by some type of vehicle. We purchased a galvanized metal ring and placed it around the outside of the well head then filled the rest of the ring with white stone. It then seemed to be a good area for a flower garden so in the fall we planted tulip bulbs.
The pictures below are what it looked like one spring day in 2012.
The following day when I arrived at the farm the deer had eaten all of the blossoms off of the tulips and all that remained were stems and leaves. I wanted to cry.
In the fall of 2012 we decided to have a pond dug. My husband and I have done the majority of the landscaping and building on the farm. Only twice have we called in professionals to do work which was beyond our abilities. The first was digging the pond. The second was building the barn last June.
While it was necessary to have excavators do the digging, the design of the pond was ours. We spent hours talking about the layout, measuring, staking, then cording off the area that was to be dug out. They needed to stay a certain distance from the tree line on the west side of the property and a certain distance from the well. They were given explicit instructions and my husband was on-site most of the time the work was being done to assure that our expectations were met.
The above photo was taken in the spring of 2013.
After the pond was dug my husband and I worked together to landscape the area. He brought in top soil with the tractor bucket and we raked it out. We used rocks that we found on the farm to build a retaining wall to prevent soil erosion. I can’t remember exactly what plants we put in at that time but I know they included lavender, salvia and thyme (all deer resistant plants by the way). We then purchased mulch and spread it.
The large rock was one that was unearthed when the pond was being dug. My husband and I found it appealing so we decided to display it in the garden.
We ordered the windmill that spring. It was a bit pricey but would serve dual purposes. The first would be to pump life sustaining oxygen into the pond. The second was for watering plants during dry spells; so along with the windmill we purchased a pump that would pump water out of the pond. You can read about our off grid irrigation process here. After the windmill arrived my husband and I worked together to assemble it. We then invited family over for a windmill raising party.
Over the past few years the garden has continued to evolve. Many new plants have been added and most of what we have planted there has flourished. I sometimes find it necessary to remove plants as well.
The photos below were taken over the past two years.
Why A Prayer Garden?
Now that I have covered the “what is our prayer garden” and told you how it came to be I will address the Why. This is where I was most challenged when putting together this post.
I am not sure when the idea of a prayer garden first came to me or where I even first heard the term. It was likely something that I read about online because that is how we get a lot of information nowadays. I do remember that it was around the time when we were working on landscaping the garden area that I decided that making garden stepping stones was a craft I might enjoy. I experimented with making a couple that I gave away and one that I made that I wanted to place in our garden.
On the stone I made for our garden I imprinted one of my favorite Bible verses. For we walk by faith, not by sight. 2 Cor 5:7. I have found this verse meaningful for many years but even more so after our experience with buying our farm and the blessings we received by waiting on God’s timing. I place the stone in the garden as a continual reminder of how God is always working behind the scenes and if we follow His lead we will be blessed. I think it was around this time that I decided to call this our prayer garden.
I have grown to see the prayer garden as an offering to God – a way to honor and glorify Him, so I was struck when I read the quote at the beginning of this post. These words – Flowers offer more praise to God than man ever shall, were spoken by my Great, Great, Great, Great, Great, Great Grandfather, Ninian Riley, who lived from 1725 – 1814. It was while contemplating this post that I received an email from lady named Kathy Strawn, a third cousin that I have never met, and the family historian. She sent some documents that she had created regarding family history and one of the documents contained the above quote.
Upon reading those words I felt an immediate, yet somewhat eerie, connection to this ancestor who lived so long ago. I wondered where did they come from? Where were they documented? Kathy had referenced the Diary of Nancy (Riley) Clarke Salt as the source and an internet search led me to this site where I was able to read Nancy’s diary. Indeed within the pages Nancy explained that as a hobby her grandfather, Ninian, enjoyed tending to flowers a she attributed that quote to him.
This information led me to some questions: is this just coincidence, finding that my distant ancestor had a love of flowers like I do and that his words that were documented more than 1 1/2 centuries ago would so accurately define my feelings? or is there something more – some type of divine inspiration perhaps? These are questions that will certainly not be answered in this lifetime.
While writing this post it also occurred to me that God would likely be pleased with a garden that was built and maintained in His honor. I draw this assumption from the realization that in Genesis 2:8 “The Lord had planted a garden in the East, in Eden; and it was there that he put the man.” God Himself was a gardener and thought the garden to be a fitting place for His greatest creation – man.
I think I will conclude this post by answering a question that may have been on your mind throughout your time reading this – “Do you pray in the garden?” you ask.
Yes, I do pray in the garden, but not as you might imagine. It is when I am on my hands and knees in the dirt, working the soil or pulling weeds, that I feel God’s presence and am moved to converse with him. I offer prayers of thanksgiving and pray for those in need. I pray for friends and family and if you come to mind I will likely say a prayer for you as well.
I know this post was longer than most of my posts and if you have read to the end I am grateful.
I know at least a couple of my readers are waiting for my post dedicated to our prayer garden, but I wanted to give a little background, kind of an introductory post.
When my husband and I got married in 2007 we were living in a manufactured home community (where we still live today). We knew we wanted more, a place of our own where we could grow our own food, raise chickens and bees (and maybe goats) and let our dog(s) run; things we just couldn’t do on our little leased lot. If you live in the US you may remember that in 2007 the economy was on the verge of collapsing – the 2008 “subprime” mortgage crises was just around the corner. This was no time to make our move.
We continued to bide our time in the manufactured home park as the country went into crises. We were blessed that my husband had continuous work during those years so we were able pay down our debt and put some money away. We were also able to do some gardening in raised beds in our small courtyard, and as we outgrew that space my sister and brother-in-law offered up garden space at their place so we were able to grow a lot of our own produce. I also preserved a lot of it.
It was probably sometime in 2009 after housing/property prices had dropped and the market was being flooded with foreclosures that we started talking about what we wanted to buy. We decided that our minimum requirements were between 5 and 10 acres, half wooded, half open field, with a source of water. We wanted it to be in a rural area and we set a price per acre that we were willing to pay. We also began praying about it.
I’m not sure when we really began looking for property, but I’m sure it was well over a year that we searched realtor.com, talked to realtors (who really weren’t much help) and drove around three counties looking at pieces of land (some with houses) for sale. None being exactly what we wanted.
While we continued to pray and search we were becoming antsy. We were also becoming frustrated with not having our own place to let the dogs run. When we first got Scout in 2007 we would take him in the woods behind our house and let him off the leash where he could run around and sniff and chase a squirrel up a tree or go for a swim – all the things that dogs like to do. Then one day my husband and Scout came across a neighbor who was walking his dog in the woods. Although there was no incident this neighbor complained to the park management that Scout was not on a leash, so we received a citation and were told that he must be kept on a leash.
Over the next few years we found some opportunities to allow the dogs to run off-leash. First a friend who had a sawmill on eighty acres nearby allowed us to bring the boys to walk in the woods and swim in his pond. This became a daily routine and went on for well over a year until one day when his neighbors complained that the dogs were scaring the deer away.
It was around this time that we discovered the newly open Columbus Park. I wrote about the park last year in this post. The old homestead turned park offered over 400 hundred acres of fields and woods, a valley with a river running through and wonderful walking paths. In the early days of visiting the park it was a perfect place to take the boys and let them off leash as we were often the only visitors. Over time that began to change. A sign with park rules was posted which stated that dogs were required to be kept on leashes and more often than not there were other visitors at the park. While we continued to visit the park the boys were often restricted to being on leashes.
It was a day in early April 2011, after finishing a walk at Columbus Park, that my husband decided to take a different route home. As he pulled out of the parking lot he made a left hand turn pointing the vehicle in the opposite direction from our house. He then made a righthand turn on the next road we came to. Crawford Road, a gravel backroad that neither of us knew where it would lead. It had been years, perhaps even decades, since I had traveled this road and my husband said he had never been down that road before. We had driven a few miles and as we approached a stop sign and an intersection where Crawford Road ended my husband suddenly said “What was that?” as he stopped the vehicle then backed up. I didn’t know what he spotted until he pointed to a “for sale” sign that was sticking out of the snow bank that despite the warmer spring temperatures was taking it’s time to melt.
My husband pulled into the driveway and hopped out to read the sign. It Said: For Sale By Owner, 7.6 acres, $39,500 and a phone number to call. There was no house on the property so I got out of the vehicle and we decided to have a look around. There were many mature trees on the property but as we walked to the end of the driveway, which extended maybe a couple hundred feet in, we realized that the rest of the property was overgrown with unidentified bushes and shrubs. Though our path had ended we continued to make our way though the thicket, thankfully there was no foliage on the bushes so we could at least see the ground and where we were walking. We continued to walk perhaps a few hundred more feet where the property adjoined to an open field. We assumed this was the property line. As we made our way back to our vehicle my husband called the phone number on the sign. He left a message inquiring about the property and we went home anxiously awaiting a return call.
The call came and we set up a time to meet the owner at the property the following day. At the meeting we learned that we were wrong in our assumption of where the property ended. Instead it included that open field which nearly doubled the size of what we thought was the parcel. It also had a well. The well had been dug within the last few years, it was eighty feet deep and I think it was rated at something like 25 gallons per minute. (WOW!)
This property was everything that we had prayed for. We left that meeting certain that it would be ours. We were so certain in fact that my husband removed the “for sale” sign before we pulled out of the driveway. Within a few days we had negotiated a price and the property owner was arranging to have the paperwork drawn up and scheduling a closing date.
While we waited for that we went shopping for fruit trees. I think we bought nine trees and my husband asked the property owner if he could plant the trees one the property. The owner agreed and my husband drug a small rototiller through the thickets and back to the ridge that divided the front of the property from the back field. It was there he planted our first fruit trees.
Less than four weeks after we first spotted the property, that has since become known as our farm, we signed the paperwork and exchanged a cashiers check for the deed to the property. To this day we are still in awe of how God answered our prayers.
Below are the few photos I have of the farm when we first bought it.
Earlier this week I finished my “do-over” project that I told you about in my “Sisters Day” Post and thought it only fair that I show you the results.
TA DA!
No, it wasn’t really magic. In fact it took me at least eight hours over the course of two days to complete, but I am so pleased with the way this shirt turned out. It is the same pattern as the ones from my previous post, but since the pattern has three different options for lengths of the shirt I opted to make the longer “shirt length” version rather than the “crop length” that I had made before.
This time around I also went with a different type of fabric. This fabric is a performance knit, a type of fabric commonly used for making sportswear. I was a little nervous about using it but found it to be very easy to work with. It is also comfortable to wear.
My next sewing project will be a fleece bath robe, and if life goes as planned (does it ever?) I will get it started sometime next week.
Thank for stopping by and until next time – be well. 🙂
Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge. When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable. All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind. They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster. You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart. Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together… Author Unknown
Friday morning, November 22, 2019 our beloved Scout went to wait for us at the rainbow bridge.
I am speaking for both my husband and myself when I say there are now Scout-shaped holes in are hearts. It is through the grieving process, which has only just begun, that I have realized that we would not be suffering this pain had it not been for the joy that Scout brought to our lives. So much joy that no amount of money could have purchased. Thus the precious memories we have will mitigate the pain.
Monday November 18, 2019. The Last photo I took of Scout.
I could fill a very large book with stories of our life with Scout over the past 12 1/2 years, but I have decided to share just one. The first one.
The Beginning Of A Love Story
Though we loved dogs we hadn’t had one in our home for several years. We just weren’t home enough to give a dog the kind of attention they deserved, but 2007 was a year of many changes for us. In February my husband and I got married. In March I lost the hearing in my left ear. In April we decided that my husband’s job could more than support our family and I left work to be a stay-at-home mom and full-time home manager.
It wasn’t long after I left my job that I began to think about getting a dog. I could now see many pros to having a dog. During the week days the kids were at school and I spent much time alone. It would be nice to have a companion. My hearing loss was also a concern. Depending on where I was in the house when someone came to the door I may not hear them. A dog could alert me of things like this. At the time my husband worked a job that took him away from home for weeks at a time. A dog could offer some security while he was away.
We began having discussions about what type of dog would be best. While puppies are fun and adorable there is also a lot a lot of work involved in training a puppy. Perhaps an mature dog would be better if we could find a good match. We were pretty open as far as breeds and didn’t have a problem with a mixed breed dog. I did want a larger size dog – one with a big bark.
It was June 16, 2007 when my husband, our three daughters, and I piled in the van to search for our new family member. I always remember the date as it was our daughter Hanna’s birthday. Our first stop was what I thought was an animal rescue. From their website I was under the impression that they had several puppies and dogs up for adoption. When we arrived what we found was a doggy day care. When we asked about their adoptable dogs they only had one puppy who seemed to be a wild little thing. We all agreed it was not the dog for us. We then went over to the Macomb County Animal Shelter. I think they had two adoptable dogs that day, but again they did not seem to be a good fit.
Needless to say we were disappointed and weren’t really sure where to look next. My husband suggested the Saint Clair County Animal Shelter. I thought it was worth a try but it would probably take us an hour to get there. Since it was a time before everyone had a computer phone (I still don’t have one) I called my mom and asked her find out what time they closed that day. I don’t remember what time she said, but we had enough time to get there before they did.
I’ll never forget my husband’s words as he drove on I-94 heading for Port Huron “Lord, please help us find the perfect dog,” he prayed. I suspect my reply was “Amen” because it is my usual response when he prays aloud.
When we walked into the Saint Clair County Animal Shelter there was a reception desk to the right and to the left there was a room with a large window. On the other side of the window were the kennels where the adoptable dogs were housed. I could see and hear that there were several dogs up for adoption. While I was taking in the whole scene at once, including workers and other people who seemed to be there looking for pets, my husbands attention was immediately drawn to a dog. He said, despite being in a kennel on the other side of the window, this dog looked directly at him and barked as if speaking to him. He knew then that we had found our dog.
We stood by the window looking at the dogs for a few minutes before a worker told us we could go into the area where the kennels were. As we walked though the door towards the kennels we passed though a room where another family was being introduced to a dog. It was the dog who had caught my husbands attention. While we walked down the hall looking at the 4 or 5 other dogs that were awaiting adoption, that dog was returned to his kennel. We quickly approached a worker and asked to meet that dog. When the worker brought him in and let him off the leash he immediately rolled over on his back and wanted his belly rubbed. As the girls crouched around him rubbing his belly, and he wagged his tail in joy, I knew that we had found our “perfect dog”.
After filling out paperwork and paying the adoption fee we were told that we would have two weeks in which we could return him if thing didn’t work out. After that his license would be mailed to us.
When we left the building to get into the van I don’t know that I had ever seen a more enthusiastic dog. He jumped into the van and sat on the seat in-between the girls where he got lots of attention.
I think it was about five days later when my husband called the animal shelter and told them that we would not be returning Scout. They could sent out his license anytime. God had answered our prayer.
While it was necessary to have excavators do the digging, the design of the pond was ours. We spent hours talking about the layout, measuring, staking, then cording off the area that was to be dug out. They needed to stay a certain distance from the tree line on the west side of the property and a certain distance from the well. They were given explicit instructions and my husband was on-site most of the time the work was being done to assure that our expectations were met.
Don't Eat It! Soap and Skin Care 