Hope you feel better soon! Lots of upheaval in a short period of time can certainly take the stuffing out of a person. At a recent meeting of my quilt group, they asked how I was so prolific in my quilting. I told them “I don’t cook (my husband is amazing in this department) and by the looks of my dust collection, I apparently don’t do that either”.
If you don’t take time to do the things that sustain you, you become no good to anyone. It’s just something I’ve learned the hard way over the years. When asked what I plan to do with my weekends, the answer is usually “Hide out and hang out with my sewing machine”. Gets me through the work week!

Maureen

PS I eradicated the dust collection on the main level of the house, but it’s alive and well upstairs!

Oh Alex, I sure hope you are on the mend. The flu is not fun at all and especially on the heels of a move. What is it with ” stuff” anyway? It breeds like rabbits… I bet we spend an hour a day purging papers, recycling containers, old household items. Somehow we just seem to be skimming the surface all the time. Not to worry! You’ll get there… little by little.. I do think once you share your home with children it’s much harder to maintain ” clear space” for very long. Sometimes I can accept it and other times I want to call that company called ” Got Junk” and let em loose in my basement while I’m out for a pedicure!
Best to your little family in your new ” digs”.
Hugs!
Deb ( the Beach Farmgirl )

Sorry to hear about you sickness. I hope you feel better real soon. I’ll be sending healthy vibes your way! I couldn’t agree with you more on how much stress moving causes. I have moved 3 times in the last 4 years and strictly lived out of our cardboard boxes. It wasn’t until we finally bought our house that I began to unpack them. I will even admit that we have been here 2 years now and still have about 5 boxes that remain unpacked. All of which are labeled “stuff”. Thank goodness there is not rule for how quickly those boxes need to be emptied. Hope all is well for your family and you will feel back on track in no time.

We are glad you are over the hump, with the actual move and starting to mend with the flu. It’s going to be interesting to see what your life is going to be like. Keep up the good work!

Rest, rest, rest.
And remember that old poem….

“Cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow,
For babies grow up, we’ve learned to our sorrow,
So quiet down cobwebs and dust go to sleep,
Im rocking my babies and babies don’t keep”.

You have the rest of your lives to get settled in, enjoy your moments now!!
Hugs from the Ozarks, Diana, Noel, Mo

I agree with you whole heartedly. If we eat meat, we should raise it humanely and butcher it ourselves. It used to be part of everyday life.

This was a very timely and intetesting post for me, as tou are just a few steps further along the path I am walking.

I agree that anyone who eats meat should be willing and able… but not sure I can bring myself…

Thank you for this post. It helps me understand how folks struggle with life and death. It also helps me (as Alexandra said) to appreciate the folks who help to get it done for me. Processing meat was and is a family affair in our household. The people who have to do the killing (usually my husband and sons, me sometimes) have a sense of duty and also of the blessing they provide for the rest of the family. Our well being was preserved by the death of a chicken or a rabbit or a pig or a lamb countless times. It has given everyone a deep respect and a humane consideration for the animal itself, and a thankfulness for God’s provision (which is established on sacrifice).

Absolutely beautiful post, Alex.

So glad you are okay – especially glad you didn’t have Ava to worry about while you were worrying about yourself.

Things happen in the blink of a second don’t they? So very scary.

Big hugs…

– Dori –

P.S. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that cliff jumping picture!!!

I am always involved in some way during our fall butchers. To just think “thank-you” for the meal you will provide for our family helps mentally. Sounds like you did what you needed to do. To know the source of your food is a wonderful thing you provide for your family. We raise our own beef, pork, & poultry, & a milk cow for our family in a small hobby farmer’s 5 acre plot. I enjoy your blog a lot, Mary Jane’s are the only one’s I read, to busy enjoying the farm- life. It is very real & satisfying, and when the animals are alive i enjoy them on a personal level. Even organic & free-range farms don’t always raise in the most humane ways. Keep up the good writing.

I loved your post. It was real life and you told us how you felt. I can not kill either, but was so glad you showed us how you feel and deal with it the best you can. I know homesteading is not all perfect veggies and meat in the freezer without the tragic and hard work that go into it.I cried inside knowing how you felt with your first killed chicken. I tried like that once too. I just could not do it. Once my grandpa did the dirty work, I plucked, dressed and canned. But taking life was just too hard. Thank you for such a good read.