Farewell to a Dear Grandmother

Dear Friends,

Yesterday marked the first anniversary of my mother-in-law's going on to her eternal reward. It was also the day that her mother joined her there, after suffering for many years. Her husband has been gone for 15 years, so I'm sure there was a wonderful reunion for their family on the other side of the veil!

The magnolias and daffodils are just starting to open their eyes around town, reminding us of the Savior's promise of new life and hope in times of loss. How grateful we are to know that there is much more than this life, and that if we hold out faithful until the end, we shall see our loved ones again and hear the words, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."

Love,

Marqueta

Happy Spring!

Dear Friends,

I'm sure that I am not alone in my celebration of the first day of Spring today. It has been a long, cold winter, so we all are hoping for a beautiful, warm (but not too hot) spring! Evangeline has been begging for a cat for a quite now, so we relented and got her one, whom she named "Puff" after the Dick and Jane kitten. Puff is quite the male cat already, trying to kill birds and having his first fight in the front yard. Oh, the joys of cat-parenting!

We've had a few snow days that have brought the birds in to have their portraits taken, which makes the darkness easier to handle.

We were given six Leghorn chicks that needed a home, and we're still waiting to see what sex they are. Roosters aren't allowed in town, so hopefully they're all hens.

Hyrum is enjoying his amber resin teething necklace, which seemed to be working more at first than now. Perhaps they wear out after a while? We'll have to do more research to find out!

I used my Christmas money to buy an ALICE pack to use for a bug-out (emergency prepardness) bag. It's been fun filling it with all the fun "girly" things like fire-starters, head lamps, and wind-up radios that you never know when you'll need (I still need a hatched and folding saw. . . ). I am passionate about preparing everyone in the family to handle various emergencies, so we spent lots of time watching survival programs and invest in tools and accessories to help everyone be prepared and confident in any situation.

I bought several native wildflower starts at a native plant sale recently, and have lots of pea, fava bean, and other early veg seeds to get in the ground within the next few days. Thankfully today is nice and sunny, so we can all go out and get our vitamin D while doing so!

Blessings to you and your family today~

Love,

Marqueta

The Young Lady's Guide to Natural Health — Revised Edition

Dear friends,

     We have recently updated our first eBook, The Young Lady's Guide to Natural Health. We added a few sections, and clarified things that were not explained very well in the previous version. Those of you who have purchased the first edition are entitled to a free copy of the new one! We hope that this book will be an encouragement to those who are seeking a more natural approach to health. 

     All credit of the promotional video (below) goes to Audrey~

 To purchase this book, click on the link on this blog's sidebar. 

     Thank you, and to God be the glory!

~ Marqueta 



PS. To win a free copy of this eBook, leave a comment & like us on Facebook.  

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{I am linking up with A Wise Woman Builds Her Home}

Ingesting the Wild

Dear Friends,

We haven't done a wild edibles post for a while, so I thought I'd list all of the wild things we've nibbled and/or feasted on in 2013. Some of these were only a taste, while others like Lambs-quarters were daily fare for a while. The most exciting foods were paw paws, which we had never tried before, and only sampled at a wild edibles class at the local nature center.


I hope to encourage each of my friends to make it a goal this year to learn a few wild edible plants (make 100% sure you know what they are first!) and sample them in a simple receipt. A salad with a few greens or flowers is a wonderful way to start experimenting. You will be rewarded for your efforts with foods that are undefiled by modern farming practices, and thus are much more nutritional than anything you could find in the shops.

I hope to be getting a video out for you soon, once the snow has abated~ I know that a picture speaks one thousand words!

Asiatic Dayflower
Autumn Olive
Cat-briar Tendril
Cattail
Chickweed
Clover
Curly Dock

Dandelion


 
Daylily
Dryad's Saddle Mushroom



Elm Leaves/Seeds



Golden Rod
Grape Leaf/Tendril
Indian Strawberry Leaves
Lambs-quarters
Maple Leaves/Seeds
Mulberry Leaf/Fruit
Parsnip
Paw Paw
Persimmon
Plantain 

Poke



Red and White Clover
Rose
Shaggy-Mane Mushroom
Shepherd's Purse
Smartweed
Sumac

Violet
 
 
Wild Carrot
Winter Cress



Wood-Ear Mushroom
Wood Sorrel

Love,

Marqueta

The Best of Times is Now!

Dear Friends,

As each day passes in a whirlwind of activity with a houseful of rambunctious youngin's (and beautiful young ladies), I try to "pull focus" and remember how fleeting these times are, and how precious time at home is.

One of the greatest joys in my life is watching my children grow and develop into their own personalities, and seeing them invent stories and re-enact their favorite characters.

Here are the oldest three girls outside the theatre where Mr. Graham took them to see "The Desolation of Smaug." It took some thrift-store shopping and sheepskin-chopping, but we pulled together Bilbo, Fili, and Kili outfits to dress up in. AnnaMarie tried handing the attendant her swords for safe-keeping. She said, "Careful with these, I just had them sharpened" a la Fili, but he told her she could keep them instead. I love having such "socially-deprived" homeschooled girls! ☺

AnnaMarie has written an original feature-length film, which we all helped make. Audrey did an amazing job on the editing, adding sound effects and music. Everyone become very good at playing several roles!



Of course little Hyrum is still the king of the household however, taking up our days and filling our hearts with lots of endorphins.

"Now offering Baby-Hugging Therapy services"

We could play with his feet all day!

Most of our days are spent doing this and that, learning and sharing, fussing and making up, nourishing body and soul and seeking to build up the kingdom of God on this earth. At the end of the day I'm usually too tired to write it all down in my journal, but I hope that the lives of my children and children's children will be a testimony to my love for the Lord and desire to live a life that glorifies Him in all things.

So much to learn, so little time!

We are grateful to be able to share with you, our dear friends, our little happenings and joys, and pray for God's blessings upon your own family.

Love,

Marqueta

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The best of times is now
What's left of summer but a faded rose
The best of times is now
As for tomorrow, well, who knows
Who knows, who knows

So hold this moment fast, hold it fast
And live and love as hard as you know how, 

 And make this moment last, moment last
Because the best of times is now
Is now, is now

~As sung by Perry Como