Together

"We may not have it all together, but together we have it all!"

I read the above quote this past week and it really stood out to me, because it is just so true.  You may or may not know how much time our family spent separated this year, but it was a lot.  There was only one weekend from Christmas 2012 until June 8th, 2013 that Brian was home with us and not working in Quincy.  As the year progressed and the time to move was closing in he was working out there more and more, and finally the last month before we moved he lived there in order to work on the house at every waking opportunity.

I'd just like to take a moment to pause and reflect on what an awesome man I have for a husband and father for our children.  He worked through fatigue, sickness, lack of food, lack of money, sometimes lack of proper tools and materials.  A lot of people helped - a LOT, and I don't mean to minimize that, but Brian did the lion's share of the work on this old house.  I am so thankful for him and his dedication to the care and provision of our family.

Okay, back to the story of our lives. :)  I know that since we moved the few days leading up to the eviction date of June 13, I have not updated the blog except with some pictures from the first week.  Well, folks, things have been pretty busy, and pretty chaotic.  But that brings me back to the quote at the top.  It could have been pretty easy for us to wallow in our situation - that first week we had no washer, dryer, dishwasher, microwave, water softener, drinking water filter, etc.  It took us about 5 trips to get everything from Noblesville to Quincy.  By the time we got here our time and energy were spent, and our money was gone.  And this house, she still needed a lot of work!  But we are together again, and that has made all the difference.  The separation of our family was by far the biggest challenge.  We are so thankful to be together, to be living under the same roof (even if it does leak! lol)

All the kids seemed to come down with a bit of a cold, which we decided was from lack of sleep and changes in the allergens of the environment.  Nolan, however, was getting more and more sick the longer we lived here.  The middle of the second week here we began giving him two breathing treatments a day, along with two nasal rinses daily and his usual daily antihistamine and asthma preventative medications.  We also decided the boys' room would need to take priority over other repairs, so that having the room sealed up would hopefully eliminate Nolan's exposure to allergens while he slept.  We accomplished that task last weekend, the 22/23rd.  He is now down to one treatment and nasal rinse a day, so that is progress.  

The rest of the house needs the same work - sealing up the walls/trim, etc, painting (to seal in odors, etc).  Trying to clean/dust the place is sort of like putting a cork in a firehouse with the walls still open to the rooms, allowing drywall dust, mouse "stuff", and who-knows-what-else into the room.

Also last weekend we found that mice or a mouse had been eating out of our potato crate.  We found about 1/3 of a sweet potato gone, and the scat as evidence of the thief.  Andrew set a trap and the next morning we caught a very well-fed mouse.

So the next most immediate priority became making the pantry mouse-proof.  I wish I had taken a before-photo, but those of you who saw it will remember the shape it was in.  Brian tore out the shelves, fixed the walls, put in some leftover laminate we had for the floor, sealed up with caulk and baseboards, and cut and installed new shelves from wood we have out in the barn.  It is almost finished!  In the meantime, our "pantry" has been grocery bags on the floor.  :)

Another thing that kept us busy the first couple of weeks was learning to live with ticks!  Mia, Nolan and Gabriel all had attached ticks, which was no fun.  Nolan's had a nice "meal" before I found it.  That was a little scary.  Fortunately they were all dog ticks, not the black-legged deer ticks which carry Lyme Disease.  So checking for ticks whenever we come inside quickly became routine.  I also made a great herbal bug spray that has really helped with all bug bites.  Clearing the land is really the biggest project for which we don't have time, money or equipment.  If you read anything about ticks, you'll learn that keeping a "tick safe zone" is really important.  Clearing tall grass back away from the house so that the kids have a safe place to play.  Eliminating leaf litter.  Trimming away the dead trees.  These are all things that need to be done, but we do not have the equipment to do it.  We have a push-mower and are keeping the area right next to the house and under the tree swing mowed but the thing is on it's last leg.  So, we're just doing the best we can.  Watching for a super great deal for a brush mower on craigslist.  :)

We also got some cats this past Monday, hoping they will help with the mice population.

 We were connected through my mom with someone she works with, and ended up with a mother cat and her 4 kittens.  The mother has already caught a chipmunk, so she's a good hunter.  We hope she develops a pallate for mice! :)  Her name is Fanta.  She is an orange Tabby.  The kids named the kittens.  There are 3 grey females named Hot Shot, Tigress, and Molly Boots.  And a ginger colored male, named Ginger.  :)  They have taken up residence in the barn.

So, that's life in the country for the last 3 weeks.  At least, the major parts.  Lots of laughs and fun in between (like when I was startled by a vulture near our mailbox and jumped sky high and shouted Holy Crap!)  LOL  It's hard, but it's fun and the kids love it.  And, best of all, we're doing it together.

If you find yourself without much to do and want something to keep yourself busy, come on out.  There'll be plenty of work to do for quite a while to come, I'm sure!  Especially landscaping!  Bring your tools!!  :)  Seriously, just because we've moved, doesn't mean the work is done!  It's been fun having helpers around, Brian especially misses you all.  ;)