Hoping for a better day today!!

Although I got a TON of things done yesterday... It really wasnt a good day!!

I did manage to get all of my carrots cut, blanched and frozen!  Which was A LOT of work!!  At that point a headache was setting in.
When I went to move on to the beets, I realized I didnt have all of my ingredients... SOOO... off to the grocery store I went!  And, while I was heading all the way to town... I decided to do my full monthly trip (yes, I shop for an entire MONTH when I go to the grocery store! I plan a months worth of meals at a time. I makes life easier for me.)  I got all the way to Josh's place and realized that since I wasnt driving my truck... I didnt have my store club card.  I ended up visiting with Josh for awhile, in hopes to waste some time so Stacy could meet up with me at the store so I could swipe his card! 
By this time my head was POUNDING!

With shopping DONE, we head home... had to put away a boat load of groceries.  Oh joy.  While making room on the counters... I slammed my hand into the blade of my brand new food processor!!!  Good thing my hubby was around and we always have a supply of super glue!  UGH!

Once groceries were put away... it was back to my beets.  AND, slicing my green tomatoes.  To get the tomatoes ready for pickling, they have to sit in pickling salt over night.  WELL... while packing them in salt...the salt back flipped open weird and I ended up with both eyes full of salt!!  BURN does not even begin to describe it!!  And boy did I have blurry vision for a bit.

I was so done after that.  But, I really wasnt, unfortunately!  I didnt get done with my beets until about 9:30 last night!!

Ok... that was my little "complaint" session.

ON A POSITIVE, PRODUCTIVE NOTE---  I am almost sure I have picked the name for my grooming shop!!  And I am thinking about taking an 'unconventional' twist with picking out my equipment... and I really hope it works out for me!!  Something to really think about...before I start putting money out.  Since I am really hoping to fund this "adventure" with the sales of this summer's Love Duck Farm products! 
SOOOOO..... CHECK OUT--  http://www.loveduckfarm.com/  and let me know what you would like to try!!
And I will continue making my goodies... and planning my shop!!! 

I am truly blessed to have an amazing husband and children!!  I am getting soooooo much support from them all!!  I am such a lucky lady.

Ok... on with my day.  MUST get my green tomatoes processed... and clean my kitchen!! 

A short, much needed break...

It is official... Hubby successfully planned a last minute camping trip!!  He is good like that!!  He made sure to find a campground near a ghost town, with a creek front spot... in the shade, with electricity and near the bathrooms!  I have the BEST hubby EVER!!
I wasnt real excited about this trip... when Stacy first mentioned it... BUT, now that he made the reservations and I started to pack... I am really looking forward to it!! 
I have been pretty busy in the kitchen... and grooming school will be starting in less then 2 weeks!  I need to enjoy some time with my family... while I can!!
I guess this mean we wont be attending the family reunion...  Hmmm.... maybe my hubby did that on purpose...?!?  LOL

I sat down today and editted and ordered some photos that I took recently!  I am pretty excited to get them... and see what I can managed to do with them!!
Tomorrow I MUST order my Thirty-One add on kits!!!  So I can show the latest and greatest!!  I think some of the new patterns are growing on me... I guess I was stuck in the fun and bright spring/summer colors.  The sad truth is... Fall and winter are fast approaching!!  BLAH!  BUT... this year I will busy myself with my goals... and grooming!!  I am hoping to be able to start planning out my grooming shop, once I get about a month into my classes.  By then... all of the other projects should be done around the house... and I will have the focus and the space... and the professional oppinions of ppl already in the business, to help me figure out exactly what I do and dont need!!  I am soooooo excited!!!!
Wow... I just went from Thirty-One bags to Grooming... all in the same paragraph!!  LOL!

Just so  many fun and exciting things going on around here!!
I am soooo very blessed to have an awesome, supportive husband... and amazing semi-cooperative kids!!  LOL!!  They all want to see me better myself and achieve my goals... and that is ALL that matters!!!  :-)

So... I will get done what I can with my tomatos... and my green beans... and everything else popping in the garden... and the rest will just have to wait until our return on Saturday afternoon!!
Hmmmm... I bet we can find at least one old cemetery... because THAT is what we do! 

I sure hope everyone has a wonderful weekend also!!

Done with one thing... On to the next!

Today I finished up the last of my pickles.  The heat took a real toll on our cucumber vines... and I dont think I will get enough to make anymore. 
BUT... I did pick a major amount of TOMATOES tonight!!  Ya know what that means...?!?!?  SALSA!!  I will be starting on my homemade salsa!!  I will be making NON CHUNKY... and CHUNKY!

As I may have mentioned... We added 2 new fur babies to our "ark"!  A Malti-Poo and a Shorkie!!  Two adorable lil things...that LOVE to be held and cuddles!  I am lovin them!

I am also thinking about putting together some "prints" of photographs I have taken so far this summer... and adding an artsy twist... and maybe getting a couple of bucks for them... We shall see.  My plate is pretty full right now... but, typical of me... I am looking to add to it!

My husband has decided that we need a mini vacation... and is trying to plan a weekend camping trip!!  FOR THIS WEEKEND!  UGH!!
Oh well... I LOVE to spend time with him, and our kiddos!!  And doing it out in nature is even cooler!!

HOT HOT HOT!

This major heat wave we are suffering through is NOT doing good things around here!  Even with nightly watering... the garden is looking wilty, and I am really praying we dont loose anything.  We lost all but 2 bunnies... and the remaining 2 have been moved into our dining room.  I am worried we wont have baby bunnies for Easter next year.  The dogs have been pretty miserable too.  They dont want to be inside... Dont want to be outside.  I did brush ALL 5 of my fur babies out today... but that was a MAJOR task!!  I gave Sprocket an adorable new doo!  I started to pull is fur up and out of his face... and tying it up with a tiny hair band.  He looks soooo cute!!!  I cant wait to start grooming school... and get more "ideas" for his crazy fur!  AND... there may be a new fur baby in the mix... shhhh!  LOL

I will be finishing up and canning my 2nd batch of Sweet Gherkin pickles tomorrow.  I dont know if our cucumber vines are going to make it through this heat wave... so I dont know if I will be making any other kids of pickles.
I managed to get my first 2 PERFECT tomatoes today!!  I cant wait to get started on Salsa and Spag Sauce!!
And I think I got enough garden beans today to freeze enough for another meal... to be made during the winter months!

I did move on to starting my jerky making.  I have my first batch marinating in the fridge over night tonite... and they will be put in the dehydrator tomorrow morning.
Other things on tomorrow's list...  More corn to freeze.

I spent all last week cleaning out our other house... for Josh to be able to move it.  I LOVE having him closer!!  The previous tenants left the house one hell of a mess!  TONS of damages!  But, I did get the horrible smell out... and I am pretty thankful for that!!  We got Josh all in and settled and he seems to be a happy camper!  I am so glad we are able to provide Josh with a place... away from us, on his own... but close!

I truly do have an amazing husband and my kids have an amazing father!

I pray that the heat wave breaks! 

Another weekend passes...

Here I sit... Mid Sunday morning.  I cant help but to wonder where the time went! 
I am gong over today's "list" (getting my first batch of pickles canned, laundry, dried herbs need bagged up, kitchen clean up...etc).  Let me just say... I am soooo THANKFUL to be blessed with another amazing garden this year!! 

We had a pretty good weekend around here!  I am still benefitting from Friday's Dr appt... and I couldnt be happier!  Nathan went to spend the weekend with his Aunt Debbie.  Brittany had Crystal over for 2 nites.  Courtney had Angelina here for the day yesterday.  And Stacy and I got to work on getting Josh things he will need to live on his own... we also did some running for parts for Josh's car.  I cant say enough... I am sooo glad to be where we are with our relationship with Josh!!  Last year was soooo hard... but I guess we need to experience those hard times, to get to the good ones!!
(If anyone has any household items they are looking to rehome, please let me know... Josh is in need of EVERYTHING!)

I am hard at work on myself lately... I am determined to retrain my brain!  LOL!!  I am going to do the best I can to think POSTIVE... no matter what!  Even today... Laundry is on my list of "chores"... I hate laundry!  BUT... I am going to look at it like this:  I am blessed with my children that make that big pile of dirty laundry!  Without my kids, I wouldnt have that pile... so in reality, I would be lost without that laundry!  :-)

I still have PLENTY of jams available for anyone interested!!  And the launch of our website (http://www.loveduckfarm.com/) has made a surprising increase in my jam sales!  I am sooo happy with this!!

Ok... enough blogging for one day... must get to my 'to-do' list!!
I hope everyone enjoys their Sunday!

My busy time... and LOVIN it!!!

Here we are... making our way into the middle of JULY!  WHICH MEANS--- My busy time of the year!!
I have been hard at work on my jams... and other yummy things as I pick my way through the garden!  Herbs are being dried... tomatos are beginning to ripen... and of course the cucumbers vines are popping out future pickles every day!
I couldnt be happier with our harvests and all of the goodies I make!!  I will soon be adding all of these treats to my sales lists on loveduckfarm.com!!  OR, anyone interested in anything can always drop me a line by email or FB message!!

I live for this time of year!!!  It brings me sooo much happiness!!

Emotional crap AND fibro

So I have come to realize that the more bullshit I am dealing with... the more my fibro flares up!
I am on a mission to simplify our life.  I am on a big DE CLUTTERING kick!  If we havent used it in 6 months, and I dont see us using it in the future... it is GONE!  I am on a mission to get some of our projects DONE around here...I have weekend goals set every weekend.
I am downsizing our "fleet".  We traded in our Expedition for a new car for Stacy...which he is VERY happy with.  We gave Josh Stacy's cavalier (since Josh's car is a piece of shit... we are fixing it and getting rid of that heap).  I am selling the Bronco 2.  We are also selling the motorcycle. 

I have a HUGE need to just make life a lot more simple... so I can continue on with other goals. 
I start Grooming School in a month... and I want to go into that a clear mind, and less clutter.  I want to be able to get the "green room" done up for my own grooming business. I also want all of the unfinished projects around our house to get DONE!

So... my list for the upcoming weekend and week:
-DECLUTTER
-Continue with jams and jellies (blueberry is next)
-Finish ALL bedroom floors
-Get our bedroom in order and move our "office" up there
-Get rid of at least 3 more bags of donation items and/or trash

I also want to be able to launch http://www.loveduckfarm.com/ by the end of next week!! 

I am so glad I have this place to put all of my goals out there... so I cant just tuck them into the back of my head and forget about them!!!  I am determined to make progress... and this really helps!

Now to talk about the week we just had...
All in all... it has been a very good week.  Yes, I have been a bit more painful than usual... but I have pin pointed the cause, and am in the process of eliminating it from my life!!  Even if we will take a slight financial hit.... to me, it is worth it in the long run!  I can handle the pain it is causing me. 
Again, I am glad we opted OUT of the 4th of July "family" picnic.  That is just another energy sucking ordeal.  It seems to just bring us down with all of the negative energy we are faced with.  I cant stand the fakeness of some... and the flat out stupidity of others.  And, it isnt just me... My husband feels the same.  We had our own, drama free, celebration with the kids.  And I know it pissed some ppl off... but, it's OUR life... so it IS all about us!! 
Yesterday I took the kids to Little Buffalo swimming with Jen and the girls.  We had a GREAT, stress free day!!   Too bad a storm hit... and we had to cut it short!  I have hopes of planning another trip there before the summer is over.
Other stuff this week...  Stacy gave Josh his cavalier.  I have to add that we are seeing A LOT of growth in Josh lately.  We are both very proud of him... and LOVE spending time with him!!  AND... I cant wait to get rid of his previous EVIL car!!!
Stacy got a new car!  Right out of the show room!!  We traded the Expedition... and got a GREAT deal!  I am more then pleased about that!  And Stacy is tickled with his brand new car!!
Britt and I had our first experience with a rotten egg.  LMAO!!  That is all I want to say about that.
I got rid of 3 more bags of "clutter."
And.... Stacy started to let Sprocket sleep curled up with us in bed every nite!  LOL

Soooo... all in all... a very good week.  Yes, we have been dealing with some "old house" bullshit... but that is on its way out... and I have learned yet another valuable lesson!

Ok... on to get things ready to make more progress this weekend!!!

Wow... July 1!!

Ok... it has been a few days since my last blog!  I am slacking...LOL!!  Well, actually not slacking... just been soooo super busy with life!
Our business endeavor has been put on hold temporarily... things just didnt jive with the bank and such.  But, like I ALWAYS say... everything happens for a reason!!  I am signed up for Grooming School... beginning in August.  I am sooo excited!!  The woman that runs it seems WONDERFUL... and will teach me all I need to know about grooming, and starting my grooming business!  I am soooo very excited!!  I like taking steps in the right direction!!

I am sitting here... rushing through this blog... It is shortly after 11 am... and my day has already been extremely crazy!!  Josh is having more car trouble... and I made some executive decisions on that!!! (Oh yes, we all know how I am with those!!LOL) 
Actually... the past week has been FULL of those decisions for me!  I am on a mission to simplify our life!!  And make the lives of our kids even better.  Baby steps!

I am also sitting here thinking... actually I have been thinking all morning.  Isnt it funny...  I never had anyone I could depend on growing up... but MYSELF!!  And now... EVERYONE depends on ME!!!  Crazy.  Of course I dont mind when my kids come to me... that is my job as a mother... and Stacy's as a father.  But we also have other ppl needing us.  My bitter side wants to know where these ppl were when I needed them!?!?  NO WHERE TO BE FOUND!  So why in the hell am I helping them??  Am I being used... or taken advantage of??  It is possible... but still I do what I can for those ppl.  To an extent.  And I am coming to the point where I just say screw them all... and take care of me, my kids and my hubby!!

Oh well... not worth the energy it is taking me to type this.

Ugh... the past few days have been HORRIBLE Fibro days!!  I didnt sleep at all last nite... and I hurt like hell ALL OVER!!  I dont complain much... but days like today really get to me.  I will still keep moving.. and never give in to this pain or bullshit!  If I do... it will consume my life... and that wuold be the beginning of the end!  NO WAY... NOT ME!!!  POSITIVE THOUGHTS...POSITIVE ENERGY!!  I will keep going forward!

I have all intentions of getting back to LOVE DUCK FARM business next week!  I have some magic potions to whip up!!  And my jams and jellys are waiting to be made.  I am going to pick blueberries tomorrow!! 
I am also working on our goal to SIMPLIFY LIFE... getting rid of unneccessary things that clutter up our space!! 
Bronco 2 is getting sold.  Stacy's car is getting sold (to Josh, now).  Our motorcycle is getting sold.  The Expedition is getting traded in on a newer car for Stacy.  2 of the tractors we have sitting outside are being sold.  And that is just the beginning!!  Tidying up life and our surroundings has been LONG over due!!!  I am really feeling the motivation to get these things done!! 
Tomorrow there will be a scrap run too!!!

Ok... I must be getting out of here... time to go save the day of my son...

There are always "detours"...

Just got home from a WONDERFUL camping trip with my kids and hubby!!  We packed up and headed to Pine Grove Furnace State Park... it has an awesome camp ground!!  While camping we headed over to Wishing Well Equestrian Center and took a very nice, relaxing trail ride!!  I want to mention our guides were awesome young ladies... who made the trip even more pleasant!!  I am thinking they will be seeing us again.  Stacy took the kids to the lake while we were there... they have a very nice beach!!  The kids put TONS of miles on their bikes (I think Nathan's had well over 20 miles on his by the end of the weekend).  They made new friends... and we got to cook over an open fire, relax and enjoy eachothers company!

Of course... our trip ended far too soon... and I had to come home to deal with reality.  Seems we ran into some issues with the bank... and I am not yet ready to give up.  That is really all I can say about that... I am not real happy about the situation right now.  It really sucks that we cancelled a summers worth of camping trips and day trips for something that is hanging on a thread...Not to mention I gave up last weekends camping trip and a week of time with Stacy...   Talk about pissed off!!  Oh well... all things worth having take time and hard work... and patience!  I just dont understand why when I put so much into things... they never go as I hope.  UGH! 

Stacy heads back to work on Monday... and I am going to miss having him around.  Not a damn thing got done around the house.  My living room is still unliveable... we still dont have a front porch... our bathroom is still not done either.  Life can be so freakin frustrating at times. 
I am so ready to pack up and move to the middle of nowhere... where I wont have neighbors, I can have my horses and alpacas...  and just enjoy life.  Instead I am here surrounded by idiots who let their preteen girls smoke and have boys sleep over... and who annoy me with their ignorance and stupidity. 

Oh well... maybe I need a day or 2 to refocus... get back on track.  I have also put off making my raspberry and strawberry jams!!  So, this week... that is what I shall be doing!!! 

Time to get some dinner... and get some laundry started... THEN... I am going the hell to bed.  I am exhausted!!!

All kinds of new and exciting things!

As I just launched http://www.loveduckfarm.com/ and hope and pray for the best... I also just stumbled on a great business opportunity!!
Over the weekend, while trying to get my dogs into the boarding kennel... it was explained to me that the founders/owners were in need of help, and have to sell the kennel.  Well, anyone that knows me knows that I didnt even hesitate to offer my help!!!  I soooo very much miss working with dogs!!  Of course, as I explained the situation to Stacy... and the wheels started to turn.  I quickly decided that I WANTED to have the business!!!  I want it so bad!!!  And that was before I even spent any time in there working!!!  LOL!!  Since that phone call... and a few hours of helping out at the kennel... I want it even more!!!  I cant even tell you how much I enjoy it.  I realized that I miss dog training more then I had thought... and I miss all of the rescue dogs I had taken in and found forever homes for over the years  (234 dogs over a 5 yr time frame... which may not seem like many, but considering I did it on my own and from my home... that is quite a bit of dogs!!)
So, needless to say... Stacy and I are in full swing of trying to make this happen.  I have only ever organized and started a Non-Profit before.  This is a whole new ball game!!  And, as frustrtated as I feel at this moment... I REFUSE to give up!  I am so determined to make this happen!!
If anyone has any suggestions, or can point us in the right direction... I will be forever greatful!!

Even with this "Kennel Adventure"... We are still very much determined to make Love Duck Farm a success as well!
Keep checking back for updates...and I hope to have the website up and looking better real soon!