WOOD WORKING

Just finished making THIS shelf for my dining room and THIS table, which I'm not sure where it will end up yet.  I originally made it for my entryway, but it is too big.  Now I have plans to make a smaller version for in there and a narrow one for alongside my fridge.  (Note, these are not my photos -- you all know how good I am at actually posting pictures!)  We also finished a bunkbed for the boys room, and all these things still need stain or oil!

Still to come is THIS farmhouse table with benches (and a few minor changes).

BARN/BUILDING PROGRESS

As always, things move slow when you do your own work and have a busy life, but we have managed to make a little bit of progress on our building project. We are grateful for a few extra hands who have helped out as well. We are scheduled to have the concrete poured tomorrow, and the materials for the framing will be delivered next Wednesday!




Only God knows what all His plans are for this building, but it's exciting to think about all the possibilities. It will have some living quarters on the second floor, with a bathroom. So, if you have ever thought about visiting here, once this is built, our visitors will have their own space, and there will be plenty of room for larger families! :) It will also be nice to have for the mission teams that visit us from Indiana!!!

SCHOOL ROOM PICTURES... FINALLY!

Some of you have been asking, and I finally got around to cleaning up this room enough to take a few pictures! This is where we will do "school" this year. I'm so thankful to finally have a place to help me be better organized! As a former teacher, I have a lot of "stuff" that I just couldn't part with, but didn't have room for until now.

In this corner, we plan to build a built-in bookshelf.

My messy school closet! I think I'm going to make curtains instead of putting doors on.

Kids' school desk -- I love the cubbies!

FIRE

We burned our fields this weekend. The grass was so old, the horses wouldn't eat much of it, and it was so thick that new stuff had a hard time growing. Our good friends Aaron & Jamie spent the weekend here with us to help, along with Dwight & Rachel when they could get some time away to come over. I helped a little, but was much more help inside with the 7 kids. I was too nervous outside.

HOME IMPROVEMENT UPDATE

With the exception of closet doors and paint on the entry door, our entry is FINISHED!! Now, after a little break, we'll hopefully dive into the school room! We've also been working very hard on our interior trim in our living room, dining room and hallway. Everything just takes so much time, especially when you have a busy family! The framed cards in the last picture, which are hard to see, were made in Thailand by some girls who were freed from sex slavery and have now come to know Jesus. They make these cards as an income for their families. They were so beautiful, I just had to frame them. It reminds me to pray for them.

This is what it looked like at one time: