Hummingbirds!

I am extremely thrilled with the pictures I got tonight.  

 

 I think this is the burnt orange one I keep seeing.  This is using flash but it IS different. 

Favorite Mom Status

Today it seems I might not win that prize.   I know such a shock.   The sad part is it all started innocently on my part.  I went up stairs today to get some pictures of a couple of things I want to get rid of.  Stuff that was upstairs collecting dust.   I decided to see how big the chicks are since I was up there.   Yesterday MN played musical cages to get a bigger cage for her guinea pigs.  

It seems that the girls might be hoarders of junk, (much nicer word than I am thinking).   Every surface that was almost flat and wasn't slept on was COVERED, STACKED, and PILED oh I would say 18 inches to 2 ft.   I know bad mommy for believing them when they say they clean.  So much for trust, but then that would be another post.   Being the kind mom I am I considered my options.   I then came down stairs where they were doing school.  

In my calmest voice I gave them two choices.  One get it clean before dad got home, or two not worry about it and I will have dad back the trailer up against the house under their window and I will clean it when he gets home....... OUT the window!   Yes, I am serious!  Yes, I will do it!   I then walked off. 

It seems I might have motivated them.  First MN came down with a box of trash and sweetly looked at me and said, "I threw away all my old poems."   She knows I would like her to keep them.   I looked at her and told her it was "Your choice."   So she continued to the trash.   Am I sad she threw them away, (If she did)?  Yes, many we do have copies of, but not all.  Sadly I am not in the mood for the guilt card to be played.  

Then T came down with a load of books and in her most tacky voice ask, "Do you want me to just get rid of the books!  They won't fit in the book shelf!"   Errr no we don't throw books away.   After that she gave me the big brown eyes swimming in unshed tears.   I ask her what she needed?  

Then she came down and announced, "Do we put the escape ladder on the sea container too?"   I wasn't thrilled with that attitude either.  It isn't winning them brownie points for sure. 

I have told them they may have their beds and bedding.   I think the bed frames may need to come out a while also.  That just makes it easy to stuff stuff under the bed.    I haven't share that information yet.  I am not being a total bear.  They have been giving the option of the stuff they value to box it up and put their name on it and it will go on the sea container.   That way over time they can have it back.   I have been told they don't have much to do that with.  We will see. 

In case you are wondering it isn't a new issue.  It has just gotten out of hand again while I tried trusting them that when ask or when it was on their chore list they really did clean.   Oh well at least it is just their room, not the whole upstairs trashed.   That is a huge improvement.   We started the family closet idea to solve that problem.   They would carpet the whole upstairs with clean and dirty clothes.   Baby steps I guess.  

I did laugh at one point.  Yesterday I had them cleaning school areas.  The girls had two desk areas piled high.   So today MN brought all her donkey stuff she had stuffed on the desk and take upstairs and stuffed back down and STUFFED it back on the SAME desk!   She wasn't thrilled when I stood in the door going, "I don't think so!".  After the, "WHAT?"   she went and got it and took it to the barn.   I would guess it is thrown/tossed/stuffed somewhere out there now.   Wonder what happens if we tackle the barn in my cleaning?  

I will leave the desk they had in their room in the family room for now.  If they can't respect that then I will be blessing someone with some desk.   I am wanting to do something different with the family room.  That was the issue that started it all!  

I am also working on most favorite status with my 10 yo.  Today he has supper assigned to him.  He decided we have enough leftovers, (we don't).  That he would just do the leftover steamed veggies from church.   I ask if there was enough left over meat for lunch and supper, or if we were just doing vegetarian supper.   He "liked" that idea.   He announced to everyone we were doing a vegetarian supper.   I was behind him letting kids know not to worry about it.   :)   Steaks are laid out!   He will get his "planned" meal, of which he only likes the potatoes.   The cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli he would rather skip.   I think each child at one point or another had to have at least one experience of choosing to not do supper or "forgetting".    I will excuse it a little but when it keeps happening or you flat plan to NOT do it then you get to reap what you sow.   He will be less than happy tonight.  I will be sad for him.   He will have the chance to plan a bit more careful later in the week.  I think he has it one other day this week.  







Oh and the boys rooms?   They were clean.  Not spotless, but clean enough to make me happy.  I really am easy to make happy.  That is the sad part.  I do not command perfection, or even tidy.  I do complain when there isn't a space that isn't piled at least a foot deep with stuff.  Especially when most of it is trash and junk and books they are to lazy to bring back down.  

L-Theanine

What is L-Theanine?   Theanine is an amino acid commonly found in tea, and also in the basidiomycete mushroom Boletus badius. Theanine is related to glutamine, and can cross the blood-brain barrier .Because it can enter the brain, theanine has psychoactive properties. Theanine has been shown to reduce mental and physical stress, may produce feelings of relaxation and improves cognition and mood when taken in combination with caffeine.

This link has a lot of info. on L-Theanine. http://www.ltheanine.net/

Why am I posting this?   Because a friend suggested some vit. called Relax-a-Saurus, L-Theanine Blend to me for D10.   We have almost completed a 30 day supply taking one of a morning.   Results?   He told me the other day that he doesn't talk as much as he use to.  I agreed!  That is something he sees.  I see a lot more.  I see a 10 yo with normal 10 yo behaviours.  I see a 10 yo who failed a quiz yesterday, because he didn't read his lessons (again).  He had to write the problems he missed, find the right answers then redo not only the quiz but the lessons.  Once it was checked that he found the right answers those were tossed in the trash.  He announced after he had redone everything that he memorized the answers to the quiz and had made a 100.  Not bad for a child that when we got him almost 3 years ago was labeled border line MR.   I see focus where it wasn't before.  I see a calm that wasn't there.  

He does still take magnesium, but I allow him to choose when he needs it.  He takes it every few days.  He ask each morning for his vit. 

He has started cooking dinner.  He is accomplishing it without to many issues.  I supervise and sit on my hands so to speak to make sure nothing burns (to bad) and he doesn't get hurt or catch the house on fire.   He has made taco meat twice now.  He has sliced squash and onions and green chili's and cooked them for the veggies.  It isn't done perfect but it is done eatable.  I see a lot less arguments with everyone.  He is able to act nice with the littles when the littles aren't nice.  He tattles a LOT less than the kid that tattled on the chickens for throwing dirt.   :)  

I really suggest that anyone and everyone do some research on this amino acid.  It has something for everyone.  Not sure if you could get enough of this from green tea or not.   I just know it is one more building block to having a mentally stable 10 yo. 

Playing with my Camera Just for Fun

This morning I was trying to get a picture of a hummingbird.  I am sure it is a migratory bird as I have never saw one this color.   His back is about the same color orange as a monarch butterfly.   Never did even see him this morning.  I did become distracted and just took some of other things. 



 Black cat!  I have been told it is Ghosty.  He was gray when he was little.   He is a funny cat.  He is sweet when you are sweet, but MN loves to make him purr and then he chases her around the house trying to climb her.  She seem to think he might hurt her.   Usually she ends up on the couch squealing like a sissy girl while the cat sits there flopping his tail back and forth.

 Lazy dog!   Freckles is very laid back and would rather snooze or let her ears be pulled than move.  She LOVES the littles, the younger the more she loves them.  9 month old is at the top of her list. 

 This is tiny dog, Grizzly, he is about 100 lbs, maybe more.   He loves to be petted.  Like Freckles he loves the kids.  

 Love this picture.  I was trying to  do burst of pictures.  It is hard to see the grasshopper he is dancing with.  

 More dancing cat.  Oh this is El Gato and the black cat is Spitfire. 

 This pretty bob tail cat is Simba who has extra toes even!   He has become such a beautiful cat that really lives up to his name.  

 Gourds in the garden.  Looks like the vines have about had it.  There are a few really pretty ones this year.  Now to figure out what to do with them.   Maybe I can sell them on some of the local FB swap pages.  

 Really sad looking butterfly.  It was the only one that would sit still to be photographed!

 More playing, there IS a butterfly on the sunflower!

Guinea nest, in the yard in the sunflowers!   I hope they hatch!  

That is all the playing for today. 

Work Weekend

Most of our new bathroom will be cement floor.  Yesterday they poured 1/2 of it and today they finished.

 You can see yesterday's half nicely set up in the background.  

 Notice the specks of "stuff" on his face. 

 Beyond specks here, he had more on him than in the forms almost!

 Working at making it smooth. 

 Life skill training!  He may never need it but he will have an idea how to pour concrete if the need arises. 

Next step????  I am thinking roof and walls and finishing the floor in the part you can't see.  That is the part that will be wood and have plumbing.

Early Morning...

I have been curious as to if my little cow was still feeding her babies and if so how much milk she was producing.  I had MN separate her about noon yesterday.   Then this morning she was more than ready to see her babies.  Judging by the size and how tight her udder was she is giving LOTS of milk to her babies.   I think there are 11 kids left, not sure how many are still nursing, but this little group were waiting.  I plan on selling most of them this week and leaving just enough to keep her fresh.

While I was doing the cow I discovered the sun rise.  It was beautiful!

Not sure which is my favorite picture.  It was such a pretty sunrise, think it was God's gift, since this same sun is going to be extremely HOT all day.   Sorry for those of you who slept in and missed it, and the early morning nice temps that made setting on the porch drinking coffee oh so nice.  We could surely use some prayers for rain and a break in temps.   The thermometer seems to be stuck just below 110 every day. 

In other news we have a new adoption worker!  Ours retired after 25 years with CPS.   I pray she enjoys her retirement!   I haven't met our new worker yet.  I have emailed her three times and received THREE emails back!   That is impressive.   Please keep her in prayer as she tackles the job of adoption.  It can't be an easy job.   Specific personal prayers is she is large family friendly, homeschool friendly and likes us!  

Heavy Heart

Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always in every way. The Lord be with you all. 2 Thessalonians 3:16
I pray this for everyone who's lives have been touched and forever changed by the death of Josh Mitchell deputy Sheriff for Reagan County.

This was my facebook status this morning. This is my heart this morning, and all through the night.  Last night about 7:30 ish I heard a scanner call.   It went something like this, "A Reagan County Deputy has been shot.  They are transporting by ground and have ask that we escort and block intersections".  Us being Tom Green Country Sheriff's Office.   Instantly started praying, praying praying.   I passed it on to others to pray.  I stayed glued to the scanner, I can't hear Reagan County, but knew from what I was hearing it was BAD.   Finally found some info. on FB about a standoff.  By 10:00 PM,  I heard, again on FB that the news of the officer wasn't good.  My heart hurt for the family, for the officers, for the EMS, for the small towns involved.  This doesn't just impact a few people, it is much like the old poem, "Drop a Pebble in the Water"

Drop a pebble in the water:
just a splash, and it is gone;
But there's half-a-hundred ripples
Circling on and on and on,
Spreading, spreading from the center,
flowing on out to the sea.
And there is no way of telling
where the end is going to be.

Drop a pebble in the water:
in a minute you forget,
But there's little waves a-flowing,
and there's ripples circling yet,
And those little waves a-flowing
to a great big wave have grown;
You've disturbed a mighty river
just by dropping in a stone.

Drop an unkind word, or careless:
in a minute it is gone;
But there's half-a-hundred ripples
circling on and on and on.
They keep spreading, spreading, spreading
from the center as they go,
And there is no way to stop them,
once you've started them to flow.

Drop an unkind word, or careless:
in a minute you forget;
But there's little waves a-flowing,
and there's ripples circling yet,
And perhaps in some sad heart
a mighty wave of tears you've stirred,
And disturbed a life was happy
ere you dropped that unkind word.

Drop a word of cheer and kindness:
just a flash and it is gone;
But there's half-a-hundred ripples
circling on and on and on,
Bearing hope and joy and comfort
on each splashing, dashing wave
Till you wouldn't believe the volume
of the one kind word you gave.

Drop a word of cheer and kindness:
in a minute you forget;
But there's gladness still a-swelling,
and there's joy circling yet,
And you've rolled a wave of comfort
whose sweet music can be heard
Over miles and miles of water
just by dropping one kind word.

~By James W. Foley~

 The ripples from this tragedy go on and on!  It touches lives that never new this man.  Me for one!  I am grieved, I didn't know him.   I pray that somehow some way we changes this ripple of grief into a circling of faith, of community, of prayer, of heart felt respect and appreciation for those that put their lives on the line to keep us safe, of those that pay the ultimate sacrifice so that we can live in freedom.  Freedom is NOT free!  Josh Mitchell paid for your freedom last night!   Today thank a person that wears a badge for what they do!  Today they are hurting!  

Please pray for the Community of Big Lake today!  Please pray for all the communities and counties that surround Reagan County, as they are all connected.  This impacts everyone of them!