Finding Joy on the Homestead

I've been thinking about Joy lately…

What does it mean?

Where can I  find it?

 What does it looks like in my life.?

 I think the Joy that I have found in my life may look a bit different than the Joy in your life.  And perhaps this is why Joy seems to be so mysterious to me.

Babies and puppies......Joy!!!

I know that all good things come from God.  (James 1:17) 

But I also think that sometimes, we can miss the good things He has in store for us because we are so focused on the busyness and trials of this life. 

We live life in an unconscious state! 

To say the least, life can be hard. 

It can be difficult.

Watching my man enjoying work around
the homestead gives me joy!

 We often times make bad decisions that come back to bite us. 

 Other people make decisions that impact us-badly. 

 Accident and illness come our way.  

We have to work endlessly (sometimes at a job we hate) to pay the bills. 

 There are rules and regulations, responsibilities and commitments at every turn.  Strife and conflict seem to surface at every turn….

I am happy to say that I am enJOYing 9 years of
recovery!

  Let’s face it, just getting through day to day is HARD WORK!  

And life may just leave you asking the question,

JOY……..WHAT JOY!

Chickens.....JOY!

BUT joy is out there my friend.

It doesn't knock at your door.

The summer landscape.....Joy!

It often hides in the small, insignificant moments of life. 

It can frequently be found when and where you least expect it!

Often times though

Joy can be missed.

A good friend......JOY!

When we are focused on the hurts of yesterday

And the worries of tomorrow

We miss it. 

A new head of Hair.....Joy!

Now I’m not saying don’t learn from the past, or plan for the future.

But I am saying that sometimes we just have to

LIVE IN THE MOMENT….

Watching father and son.....Joy!

Hanging with the grandbabies......Pure Joy!

LOOK FOR JOY IN THE SEEMINGLY INSIGNIFICANT MOMENTS OF LIFE. 

Holding a new grand child for the
first time just leaves you speechless......JOY!!

Perhaps we need to be more Child-like!

These little morsels of joy can refresh us so we are better able to cope with the storms of life when they arrive. 

They are like little winks from God. 

They are a reminder that He is there….

even the smallest and simplest moments of life.

 As I scroll through the pages and pictures contained in this blog, I am reminded of how BLESSED I am, because in my life, even a midst the trials of life...

I have a joy-filled life.

And for that I'm thankful to God above-

The Giver of all good things.

How about you....

Are you blessed....

Can you find the joy that is hidden in the corners of your busy and sometimes frantic life??   I'd love to hear about it!!

Living Simply and deliberately...

Keeping my eyes open looking for JOY...

Tammy

Enjoy some more snippets of the things that bring me joy from around our little homestead!

All things Home grown and Home made

Home keeping and redecorating

Playing with my grandkids

Jack loves to play train  (and so do I:)

Aww, the smiles.....JOY!

Sharing my faith with the grand babies..JOY!

Crafting

I love card making....but most of all, I enjoy
blessing others with a homemade card

Creating treasure from trash gives me great JOY!
(a brooch made from soda cans)

Cooking with the sous-chefs

Enjoying the camaraderie of my Y friends

Miss Josie brings me much joy

CHICKENS!!!!!

 I love the wonder and amazement of children!

Nature

 Watching my kids grow up

Celebrating with the family!

And of course.....

All things Chocolate

Linked up to
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2013/04/clever-chicks-blog-hop-32-crayon.html

http://www.thismindbeinyou.com/2013/04/farm-girl-blog-fest-30.html

Chicken Love....a Sign of Spring

What is it about these little creatures that make them so lovable?

It is a sure sign of spring when you hear their sweet chirping when you walk through the doors of your local farm store.  

They are so cute, you just can't get one.

Oh no, you have to get as many as you can.

And choosing the variety you desire is no small task. 

This year, however, I chose chicks according to their egg's size and color, and according to their arrival date at my local farm store. 

I wanted the chicks to all be the same age to avoid the older ones pecking on the younger ones.  So that narrowed down my choices.  

Even though I didn't get every chick on my chick wish list ,

I am delighted with the choices I made....

4 Ameraucanas

4 Welsummers

1 Black Jersey Giant

 ( we have a white one and

 she lays LARGE eggs:)

1 Buff Brahma

and 

1 Silver laced Wyandotte

( okay, so I chose her for her beauty, I admit it!)

My daughter bought 4 little chicks too, and added them to our little table top brooder.  

I quickly made this Fresh Eggs Daily inspired

brooder.  It was easy to do. Check it out.

She tried to mark hers with a Sharpie.
 It didn't work out so well.
 The markings were gone by the end of the day!

For the first week, everyone enjoy watching the chicks.  

Even the dog.  She was fascinated by all that cheeping.

Of course the grand babies loved them.

It's amazing how fast  chicks  grow.  By the end of the first week they had lots of feathers and were trying to use them by flapping all over the place.  They reminded me of the Wright Brothers.  

I had to move them from their little brooder into this large crate.

(and to the laundry room)

After just 1 week, little tail feathers were emerging. 

ca-ute!

After 2 weeks, I moved them yet again.

This time to the tractor coop.  

Hubs brought the coop portion (minus the run) to the garage. So I could closely watch them, and make certain they are warm enough. (He's a sweet hubby)

At 2 1/2 weeks old, you can see they are growing and changing quickly.  They have officially become awkward looking teenagers- but still very adorable!

So while we're talking chickens.......

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

WARNING......

This story is not for those with a weak stomach or anyone who may be eating breakfast!

But if you're a tough ol' bird like me...

Keep Reading....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Everyday, 

for more than a week,

every morning when I went to the chicken house,

I would find this....

It's a little nest, made my a little creature in a "nesting" box.

So every morning, I swooshed it out. 

This went on for at least a week.   

Until one morning, when I swooshed it out of the box,

little pink baby mice fell out!

Sorry to say, that within seconds,

the baby mice were

GONE!  

The Girls are still smacking their beaks!

The next day, 

Ms. Mouse had built a new nest.  

Why? 

Well, I had to get ugly with Ms. Mouse.  

(I'll spare you the details)

She's gone now.....at least I think she is.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'll leave you with this final picture I snapped the other day....

a wonderful reminder that spring is near!  YEAH!!

linked to

http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2013/03/clever-chicks-blog-hop-25-polka-dot.html