Did I Do the Right Thing?

 I was obeying my husband's orders, so it must have been the right thing to do...

I put our new puppy on Craigslist. She has been such a burden to us. So, why do I feel so, so guilty? If only I could be sure that she would go to a Good home, I would not feel so bad. The biggest reason we took the dog was so that we would not have to post her on Craigslist for my FIL... not knowing who would take her away. Now - we face that dilemma anyway. Argh.

I think I better go read my other post and see all the very good reasons for getting rid of her. Oh... if only she wasn't so stinkin' cute! I saw her sleeping in a ball today, it just about melted my heart.

Here's her going away picture Craigslist picture. I said she was "Free to a good home."

Why do I feel so, so guilty? Really, I think I might cry.

Problems with the Puppy

Laugh with me.

I mentioned in a previous post that we would be getting a Great Pyrenees puppy from my FIL last week. We took her on a trial basis... and for this I am glad!

The puppies were named "Laddy" and "Lassy" by my MIL. I like original names. So, we decided to change our girl dog's name to "Diamond" (which means "bright shepherd"). Only thing is - the dumb dog will not respond to her new name OR her old name! Do you know how vexing that is? My kids are more obedient than this dog!

But, I am jumping ahead... Let's start from the beginning. My in-laws decided to buy two pure bred dogs from an Amish man who buys their hay. The dogs were born around March and my in-laws adopted them in May - one boy and one girl. Paul and I kindly pointed out some of the reasons that having two such dogs might present. But, my in-laws seemed to want both dogs.

As time passes, the dogs got bigger. One day they ran off together. No significant harm done... luckily. But, from that point on, my FIL decided to tie up one dog at all times. We felt sorry for the dogs, but had no interest in doing anything about the situation.

Then, a few weeks ago, Paul's dad asked us to put the girl dog on Craigslist to give her away. I liked the dog just enough to want to see it go to a good home - and not to a dog fighting ring. (Large breed dogs are often going missing in our area...) So, Paul and I discussed whether or not to bring the dog here. My pros and cons list was very lop-sided... with the CONS getting the majority. We knew that having a puppy around would be trouble.

But, what we did not realize:
- The puppy is already larger than our full grown lab
- The puppy will NOT respond to any name (including "hey, stupid!")
- The puppy does not like to stay at home, like my FIL bragged about, but rather she runs away
- The puppy wants to live inside, though it never has before!, and she likes to force her way in the door - nearly knocking over full-grown humans in the process
- The puppy would set a bad example for our old dog. Suddenly our six year old lab is chewing up baseball gloves too!!! We expected it from the puppy and kept everything out of reach (we thought). But, we did not expect Daisy to become puppy-like!

All in all, this new puppy is a pain in the neck. Since she runs away and does not respond to any name, we have been forced to tie her up. OH - did I mention that she is not yet fixed?! Yeah - we got troubles. Today a boy dog was in the yard and I ran out quickly to sequester the puppy into the locked garage... you know, just in case the boy dog is so determined that he learns to turn the door knob ; )

I still want to see this dog go to a good home. But, I do not think that our house is the good home. I think this beast puppy needs many acres to roam and some livestock to keep her from getting bored. (Hmmm, I think that these are two of the reasons we counseled Paul's folks not to get two herd dogs!)

So, there you have it... don't ever get a second dog.

Now, in typical Bob Barker fashion - "I'm Bethany, reminding you to have your pet spayed or neutered. Good bye."

I Join in the Song

I Know to Whom She is Singing

As she perches in the tree outside my window, her song is immaculate. The wren is never off-key. She never starts on the wrong pitch. I humor myself thinking that she knows I am listening and she is singing just for me. Her home is in the clothesline pole. She cheers me while I hang out my laundry to dry. The task used to rank among the menial and mundane. But, with Mrs. Wren to serenade me, I rejoice to hear the washer finish its spin cycle. Fortunately for me, I do not have to attempt to generate extra laundry as an excuse to go outside for a few minutes alone. There is always a laundry pile of generous proportions awaiting me.

I hear Mrs. Wren singing and something inside me wants to sing too! I know to whom she is singing! She is rejoicing in her creator. She is glad to be alive. Yes, perhaps the only tasks that await her are the very same she completed just yesterday – feed her babes, gather yet more nesting supplies, fly to and fro gathering feed for her growing family – but she seems to awake with eagerness to perform these tasks. She even sings as she is moving along. The mother in my takes notice… does she not see that the task would be completed faster if she did not stop to sing her song three times on that branch, before heading to another branch to do it again, before returning to her home? But, she sees things a different way. She knows that she has this whole day ahead of her made just for her to sing and work, sing and work, sing and work. She does not stop to consider whether or not singing takes time away from her chores… she simply answers the call in her to rejoice in the Lord always.

The Lord has used the sweet song of the wren to stir my heart. He wants to hear me praise. He gave me this day to sing and work, sing and work, sing and work. He wants me to take time to sing and praise in the midst of the chores I am attending too. This is what I am created for.

The wren’s song brings The Creator glory.
My song brings The Creator glory.
The wren’s song brings a smile to The Father’s face.
My song brings a smile to The Father’s face.

I choose to join in the song, because I Know to Whom She is Singing!

Finding the Good in the Bad

Reposted 11-04-2011

Sometimes you really gotta work to find the good hidden amongst the bad. Some days it hits you in the head.

Well, I did not whine about it mention it earlier, but our kitchen faucet broke this past week. We have been turning the hot water on and off at the valve below the sink. It has been frustrating, but I realize that in the grand scheme of things - this was nothing! I have a friend in Africa who probably does not have running water (do you?). There are folks all over the world who have to boil water, rather than find it coming easily from the tap.

So, firstly, I am grateful to be reminded that hot water/indoor plumbing is a luxury that we should praise God for!

Secondly, when Paul replaced the faucet he found something. Under the sink was a metal plate. The plate was supposed to be covering a large hole, but had been dislodged. Paul said, "This is where the rat probably came in." And, in typical hero fashion, he nailed the metal plate down over the hole.

Thank you, Lord, for giving me cause to appreciate running water. And, thank you for showing us a very large how where rodent and potentially snakes could come in.

Farm Photos

My FIL's farm:

The horse's wind break. Dad keeps the hay in this barn.

The hay rake - a day off!


Josey, Rebecca's favorite horse.



Organized chaos! My father in law's work bench.

What? Don't you store once fancy chandeliers in the barn? No? Well, my father in law does.

How does this help?

Hahaha! Just found this photo from July 2010! Hysterical! How did this help keep mice out? Oh, that's right..it didn't!

My House is Plagued

Reposted 11-04-2011: No change to content, only grammar/spelling

I won't deny it - I am discouraged. I just keep thinking my house is plagued. Only, there is no prophet coming to me to tell me what it all means. (I am being a little cheeky here. But, to read the real story of God using Plagues in the Bible, read Exodus 7-12.)

My plagues:
1- Poisonous Brown Reckluse Spiders
2- Snakes (non-venomous, so far)
3- Mice (usually, just in the duct-work being noisy. But, this month they got in. Not only am I mouse-a-phobic, but if a mouse can get in...)
4- Black Mold
5- Flies (Not just a few... we had THOUSANDS. I have never seen so many flies in a house in my life... gross.)

Let's hope this list does not get any longer before we move... whenever that will be.

First Snake of Spring

That's right, folks... we have found our first snake of 2010! It was in the cellar... indoors, but not exactly in my house. Paul found it when he went down to change the furnace filter. He is on the handle of our softball bat.

It took us well over an hour to identify it, as it is a juvenile. We finally concluded that it is Eastern Yellow-Bellied Racer, also known as a Blue Racer. I identify many of my snakes using the Missouri Department of Conservation website. We are very relieved that this little guy is non-venomous! And, we are happy that he eats mice... though I would rather live in a house that is both mouse free and snake free! Living in an old farm house in MO is a homeschool mother's dream... sort of.

I had to take it outside for a better look. 

 Comparing it to the pictures on the computer.

I know what you are thinking, "look how calm she is." Well, what you don't see is my reaction to when the snake starts climbing up the glass. I know it is a tiny thing... and I had the jar covered... but still, I lost my ability to reason for a time. I went frantically through the house screaming, "Paul's it's moving. Help, he's moving." Paul made fun of me... but was really none to eager to take it from me. He somehow managed to get him into a large mason jar for better examination. (That jar had a real lid!)

There were no snakes harmed in the writing of this blog post. The snake was re-deposited back into the cellar (by Paul... I wanted him put out in the shed). He is likely just one of twenty babies hatches last fall... oh the joys of being a country homeschooling mom.

God's Glory in His Creation

Today we saw an enormous group of Snow Geese. I wish I had gad my camera/recorder! (Click the link and you can see some pics and a video.) The geese covered at least 40 acres of farm land (as judged by my farmer husband). One of the neat things about snow geese is that when they are flocking together on the ground they look like snow! And, when we drove the van right into the midst of them they flew into a tornado pattern! We sat in the van beneath thousands of these gorgeous birds! We enjoyed seeing their formations. Up close it just looks like the center of a tornado. But, from a distance Nelson thinks they look like ocean waves. Rebecca thought it looked like a swarm of bees or butterflies. I sat and wept for the sheer joy of it all. Paul (our family theologian) calmly said that it was the "glory of God."

The heavens declare His righteousness, And all the peoples have seen His glory. Psalms 97:6 (NASB)
For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. Romans 1:20 (NASB)

We all agreed that the show of birds was "better than TV!" In fact, I would say there cannot even be any comparison! How can you set TV beside the glorious works of the Lord? And, those were just birds! If only I could fathom how much more The Father thinks of us. How much more He has done for us than creating these birds. How much greater is His Glory in the death of His only begotten Son?

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. "For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. John 3:16-17 (NASB)
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. Romans 5:8-9 (NASB)

A Story that Really Slithers

Warning: If you have an aversion to slithering things skip this post!

If you followed my old blog, Grace in Bloom, then you know that this house has given rise to many varmint stories! We have had 'possums, snakes, poisonous spiders, and more! (I started a label called "critters") But, this story is not about this house...

We lived in South Florida for a short time in the year 2006. We saw a lot of neat reptiles while we were there... I think I saw a baby shark in the ocean... I even had a slight run-in with sea lice (after the season was supposed to be over). But, one thing I never saw in Florida was a snake.

BUT, Nelson had quite the opposite experience. He had his own little bedroom and his own big closet. We could not afford beds, so he slept on an air mattress. And, when it popped, he slept on the floor. He would come into out bedroom every night crying and screaming... every night! We thought he was scared of the new environment... scared of the storms (every night)... scared of his own shadow. Then, he started screaming and crying about the hissing sound he heard in his room. I went to his room (every night) and looked for the proverbial monster in the closet... never, never saw a thing! Then, he began to say he actually SAW a snake. I went to the room, I saw nothing. All this time, Paul was very weary with a job he hated, so I tried anything to get Nelson to be quiet. I let him bring his air mattress to our room. A few times I slept in his room on the floor. But, we never saw anything in his room other than the enormous cockroaches that anyone who has lived in Florida will understand! Paul and I were very unsympathetic, because we thought he was lying. We thought he was just having a hard time adjusting. Sure, we prayed for Nelson to sleep at night, but I never believed there was a snake in his room.

Fast forward a few years...
I bought a book for the kids (which I highly recommend) called The Encyclopedia of North American Animals, by Bryan Richard. I often read it out loud to the kids, and they also love to look at it in their spare time. Well, one afternoon Nelson cries out, "MOM! It's the snake that was in my room in Florida!" I went to look at the book, and I see the Eastern Coral Snake on the page... it makes its home in Florida! What's more - it is venomous and fatal to humans! Nelson told us there was a snake in his room, and we accused him if lying. He told me there was a snake IN HIS BED, and I accused him of lying. I was wrong... I could have been dead wrong!

The moral of this story is: If your child tells you there is a snake in his room.... coiled up on his floor... sleeping next to him in his bed... you might want to pray for his safety... and seal off any holes in the walls/ceiling/closet!