Weekly Update: 7.6.24
For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;
my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. SelahPsalm 32:4, ESV
One of the difficult but unavoidable circumstances of homesteading is life. It goes on, in all it's social complexity. With the unending work, there are perpetual human interactions -- among ourselves and also out in the world. There are conversations to process, choices to make, compromises to discern. Prayer is vital, as we try to follow God's will for where we invest our time and attention.
It was a week full of such life, even as we struggled to maintain our sanity as the first heat waves of summer set in. We were prepared, as we remember how hard it was last year. The heat has a way of humbling all of us, as we find our patience wearing thinner than we would like to think possible.
We kept muddling through, as we always say, despite the difficulties. We made some adjustments to our ever fluctuating schedule -- as the garden requires less time now that it is in its maintenance phase, and we want to get into the bunkhouse earlier in the mornings.
Speaking of which, we harvested our first produce this week -- a couple cucumbers and some serrano peppers. My brother's kids especially were elated. They have spent a lot of time helping with the garden, and their faces lit up to see their hard work paying off.
In the bunkhouse, Grace continued drilling holes to run our electric. She is loving our new Kobalt right-angle drill.
On Monday, several of us went to Springfield for groceries. We also made a quick trip to Menards for a few plumbing supplies. We hope to get our cold water turned on in the next week or two, as we want to have our outdoor spigots functioning. We have a leaky make-shift spigot where we are getting our drinking water, as it is difficult to keep our garden hoses as clean as we would like. Once our new spigots are installed, it will make life a bit easier.
On our way to town, we stopped by King Barrel Plus to pick up a new burn barrel. The small business has a wide variety of handy used containers, and we purchased a few food-grade 6-gallon buckets as well, for much less than we would have paid new. I have a feeling we will be making them a regular stop for buckets, crates, and barrels in the future!
Jeremiah also headed up a project to rearrange our little office building. Repurposing some materials previously used for dog crate tables, Jeremiah built a new desk with shelving to go along a wall, so we can better fit appliances, battery chargers, and a computer. We sisters offered assistance wherever we could. He works in the office Monday through Friday, but he shares space with any of us who need a quite place to work. It also houses our chest freezer, refrigerator, and ice maker.
We didn't plan much for Independence Day, as it was supposed to rain. We were surprised to have the sun come out. Levi took his family to Dadeville's annual 4th of July parade and picnic, which the kids very much enjoyed. I stayed home with a migraine that, thankfully, got better later in the day. In the evening, we had a festive dinner of cold deli sandwiches and potato salad. We lit some sparklers and a few fountains. As the last fountain waned, we sang the national anthem. With so much social and political upheaval, it helps to refocus on the blessings of being an American. Our country isn't perfect, but we have so much to be thankful for.
For years, our traditional Independence Day dessert has been strawberry cobbler. We tried one last year in the slow cooker, and it turned out a soggy mess. This year, we opted to make my Memaw's strawberry shortcake, which she always made out of the 1953 Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book. She gave my mom a reproduction of the cookbook when I was a girl, and we have treasured it ever since. Grace and I mixed up the shortcake in the office, and she baked individual cakes in the air fryer. They turned out perfectly. When I bit into one, it took me back to the first time I remember my mom fixing them. I was probably 10, and I remember eating my strawberry shortcake on the front porch steps of our little '20s bungalow. The cake was rich and not too sweet, the strawberries sticky and delicious. I can already tell it is going to be a new favorite.
It was a long week, and I'm glad to be moving on to a new one. This week should be both productive and a lot of fun. A bunch of us are taking a trip to Springfield today, where both Bass Pro and Costco are on our list of stops. We will have everyone home for several days, so hopefully we can make some real progress on the bunkhouse. We have some cooler evenings in the forecast, which will make a world of difference in our quality of life.
One evening this week, we enjoyed a little summer storm. As it waned, rainbows appeared behind it. God knows what we need -- even if what we need is a disappointing situation. He is faithful to show us what we need to see and lead us into the green pastures of His will. It is such a comfort that He is working all things together for good (Romans 8:28). We can trust Him who gives both the storm and the rainbow.