Weekend Wanderings {The Forgotten Homes}

It’s been a while since my last Weekend Wanderings post because of rainy afternoons and my husband being out of town most of May with his job. But I’m glad to share what we’ve come across while driving around and enjoying our time together. This week, the Weekend Wanderings {THE FORGOTTEN HOMES} edition.

On this particular trip, we hit the jackpot on old houses and buildings. Every old house I see out here, I wonder what kind of family lived there and what their lives must have been like. I can't begin to imagine what the winters were like with no REAL heating in the early 1900's.

How cute is this old house with a rock front? My husband stopped so I could get a look at this one. I can imagine children playing in the yard with a couple of dogs; a rope swing hanging in the old tree. LOVE it!

To some, the scenery here is not beautiful. To me, it's pretty, but not as pretty as what you will see when you get closer to the middle of the state and beyond.

While we were out, my husband used the opportunity for his benefit. We watched for green signs similar to this one, these tell hunters the private land is opened for hunting. When hunting this kind of land, you sign in with your hunting license info and the owner's receive a small stipend for allowing hunting on their land.  A win-win for both!

You can pretty much be guaranteed to see a runaway cow anytime you are driving. Evidently the grass IS GREENER and tastier on the other side of the fence.

We drove up one road to check for those green signs and look what I spotted...

GREE PINE TREES!!!!!! There's a little hope for me, yet. If I remember correctly, this area is only a couple of miles from our house and open for public hunting. I know where I'll be during turkey season. ;)

My first wildflowers of the year. The day I took this picture, the wind was blowing close to 40 mph, so the flowers were facing the wrong way, oh well.

If your wanderings have led you to interesting places, I'd love to hear about them.

A Sacrifice I'm Thankful For {Thankful Thursdays}

This week, Americans celebrated Memorial Day, a day where we remember those who gave their lives while serving this great nation. I’m thankful for the 1.3 million+ men and women who sacrificed their lives so I could live and sleep in peace; talk about a SACRIFICIAL SACRIFICE. Men and women who believed in the cause of FREEDOM not only for themselves and their families, but for everyone who lives within our country, today I’m thankful for that great sacrifice.

A Sacrifice I'm Thankful For

I want my son to know the real meaning of Memorial Day. Like I said earlier this week, it is not about picnics and BBQ, it is about the lives of those who fought and died for the United States.  I want my son to remember how his great-great uncle died in the USS QUINCY at the Battle of  Savo Island. I want him to know that sacrifice along with many others is the reason we have the freedoms we do and I don’t want him to ever forget it.

Encouraging our children to have a hero in life is sometimes a good thing, depending on who that hero is. Those who serve our country should be someone our children can look up to. Those who gave their lives for our country should be labeled a hero.

Today, I’m thankful for the gracious sacrifice of those who gave their lives for our country.

Custer National Cemetery and Little Bighorn

On Monday, we visited the Custer National Cemetery at Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument. We walked through the cemetery during our previous visits to the park, but Monday was special with it being Memorial Day. There were many veterans along with family members who have loved ones buried there. We even watched several families place small wreaths beside headstones of their ancestors who were scouts for the Calvary during the Indian Wars.

Custer National Cemetery Little Bighorn Memorial Day 2015

I’m not going to retell the story of the Battle of Little Bighorn since everyone knows this is where George Custer died while fighting the Sioux and Northern Cheyenne tribes. When you are standing on the battlefield and looking out across the plains, you have to wonder what exactly was going through Custer’s mind – there were thousands of warriors they were up against.

I am sharing pictures from the museum and parts of the battlefield. I called and talked with the historian at the park yesterday and he was kind in answering my questions about the cemetery and the history of the battle.

There are almost 4,300 grave sites. He did tell me that count is only for the sites because at one time they stacked people for burial, so there is no known number of people. The cemetery is closed for new burials except for the last remaining reserved plots. The reason for this closure is encroachment lines for the battlefield. This cemetery is NOT listed on the VA website because it is owned by the National Parks.

The cemetery has 8 Medal of Honor recipients. Some of these have been newly found within the past 10 years because research is ongoing to verify and locate all recipients of this great honor. One recipient, Joseph Cable has a plaque, but is not buried there. He was wounded while fighting the Nez Perce and was being sent back to Ft. Keogh and died on the way. They believe he is buried somewhere along the Missouri River since wounded soldiers were transported by boat at that time. The historian did say, if Cable’s remains were found then he more than likely would have been labeled an Unknown Soldier and sent on to Ft. Keogh.

The next pictures are from inside the museum. I wish the sun would have been a little higher, because the two cases of Custer’s clothing and other items had a crazy glare for pictures. Elizabeth Custer donated the items in the museum, so others could enjoy them.

There were two cases with models of both battles.

Sitting Bulls' Bow and Arrows

These are the faces of the war. I have LINKED to a larger picture so you can see who each of the men were. When the link opens, click on the picture and then the + sign at the bottom.

The two political leaders behind the battle.

All the information about the attack is from the Indian warriors. The men who were with Reno did tell how everything looked and where everyone laid when they returned to the area; they were in complete shock of what they found. They are the ones who buried Custer and the other soldiers.

This monument is at the top of Last Stand Hill.  The remains of all the soldiers were reburied here in a mass grave and the names of the known soldiers are listed. Many do not realize that Custer and some of the other officers were transferred to other locations for reburial. Custer is buried at West Point.

The  remains of  the 7th Calvary horses were moved to a mass grave in 1881.

One of the many markers where warriors died. They are not buried here, they were given tribal burials.

I came across these graves when walking through the cemetery. I love her name - Pretty Medicine Pipe, her husband White Man Runs Him is pictured in the Little Big Horn Faces picture above, he is on the right side down at the bottom.

Homeschooling moms, be sure to download the teacher’s guide, so you can teach about the Battle of Little Bighorn.

I'd like to thank my husband for allowing me to share his pictures with you.

Memorial Day 2015

I hope you all have a wonderful and safe Memorial Day. While you're doing whatever your family does to celebrate this holiday, please remember the REAL reason why we are celebrating. It's not about BBQ and get togethers, but remembering those who have died during their service to our country.

My family and I will be visiting the Custer National Cemetery at Little Big Horn in honor of this holiday.

In Me Ye Might Have Peace {John 16:33}

Every morning we face a new day and because we live in the world, those days are never perfect. While some days only have minor bumps and our day seems peaceful, there are others where the world seems to crash in on top of us. During those rough moments, it is easy to see the worst in everything and not keep our focus on the Lord. But, we can be sure the Lord is right there with us and in control of the situation. In fact, He has gotten the victory over everything that we will go through in our lives. "In me ye might have peace" I love those words, don't you? Six words we can depend on at anytime.

In Me Ye Might Have Peace

I love the way Amy Carmichael wrote about having peace in her book Edges of His Ways.

Our Lord did not say, “These things I have spoken unto you, that in your circumstances ye might have peace,” or “These things I have spoken unto you that in the love of others ye might have peace; but He did say, “These things” – things of wonder, joy, sorrow, preparation, “I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace.” Is there any surprise of grief that our dear Lord has not forseen? “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me, ye might have peace." We have people in our lives who will disappoint us, yes those moments hurt because we’ve trusted in them. But they are not the ONE who we are to put all of our trust in.

We can’t allow those disappointments to keep us from staying close to the Lord and enjoying the peace we have in Him.

 Remember those problematic moments are only temporary because Christ has overcome the world.

Two Simple Words: Thank You

When I was growing up, I remember hearing my parents say Thank You for whatever it was needed for; their words and attitude were truly grateful in the situation. I was taught to say those two simple words, even if it was for something that I deep down inside did not care for; I smiled and said “Thank you” for those jelly beans. It wasn’t about the jelly beans; it was about being thankful for the generosity of the giver. The spirit of gratefulness and saying TWO SIMPLE WORDS was drilled into me while growing up.

There were times when THANK YOU did not roll from my tongue and I was lectured on making sure I remember to say it the next time. It has happened with my son, I’ve had to tell him afterwards to always be sure he says THANK YOU. To this day, I ask him if he said THANK YOU and if he didn’t, I tell him to be sure he says it.

I’ll never forget a little blonde haired girl in one of my kindergarten classes. The family was far from wealthy and I knew they were doing everything they could to pay the tuition for a Christian education on top of providing for their family. On the day before Christmas break that year, this precious girl brought me a half eaten turkey sandwich wrapped in a napkin after our party. She told me that they were not able to buy a present, but that she wanted to be able to give me something for Christmas, after seeing the other children bring presents to my desk that morning. While I knew I would be throwing that little party sandwich away, my heart was greatly touched with gratitude because of the love behind a little shared sandwich. This little girl gave all she had that day because she loved me and didn’t want to feel bad about not buying a gift. Of all the presents I received during my teaching years, that little sandwich is what I remember most and I’m grateful for the generosity behind it.

The attitude of being thankful is something that is quickly diminishing from our society because parents are raising children with an attitude of entitlement. Our children need to be taught that hard work is what provides their needs and wants and that they should ALWAYS be THANKFUL for what is given to them.

I’ve read several articles about where grandparents have stopped giving gifts for this reason. Giving gifts is NOT a requirement, but AN ACT of GENEROSITY. I have a relative who has stopped giving gifts to some of their grandchildren because there was NEVER a THANK YOU spoken for the generosity over the years.

When generous people are burned by ungratefulness, the generosity comes a lot less for those who don’t show gratefulness. It becomes easier to focus more of our generosity on those who send a note, make a phone call, or send an email thanking us for what we’ve done.

As parents, our children need to hear us say THANK YOU and know we are truly THANKFUL for the generosity. We need to be sure they understand why they say Thank You and they are saying those TWO SIMPLE WORDS.

Answered Prayers {Thankful Thursdays}

We've all been to the Lord in prayer about certain areas in our lives. Whether we were praying about healing, protection or provision, God heard our prayers. He may not answer them according to how we want or when we want, but He does answer prayers. God doesn't always answer with a YES, sometimes He answers with a NO. God’s timing is always perfect, even when we don’t realize it. There are times when we are left waiting for an answer; even after waiting, that answer could still be No. We have a Heavenly Father who is with us always (Hebrews 13:5) and hears our prayers.(Jeremiah 33:3, Luke 11:9) Whether the answer is YES, NO or WAIT, God knows what is best for each of us.

Answered Prayers

As a parent, we provide our children’s needs; we even give the desires they may have. The Lord does the same for us – He provides our needs and He will give of our desires. (Mark 11:24) While the Lord may not provide a trip around the world, He will give things we desire when we ask Him. I love driving around the parking lot, praying for a close parking space and BOOM there it is. I love that!

We have a God who provides more than what we need because He can, because He cares, and because He will. We serve a God who created the universe, the beauty we see daily and sent His son as payment for our sin, why would we not want to draw close to Him?

I’m thankful for answered prayers, even when they are not answered the way I expect. I’m thankful for a God who hears, answers and provides.

Another Week for Another To Do List

This week begins our summer break from school. I can’t believe another school year has come to a close and has been recorded in the books and on the computer. My deep cleaning schedule is all about school this week because I’m working on TRANSCRIPTS, filing paperwork, and getting used books ready to sell. Of course, that is not all on my list for this week as you can see.

One extremely important thing I had to do this week was to change my hosting company. (That's why this post is a day late.) While the company I had was okay to work with, I needed someone that would help me by doing what they were being paid to do – help me when I called them without leaving me alone to swim the shark infested waters of self hosting. The new company I went with is still new to me, but had been recommended by several of my blogging friends, I’ll keep you updated on how I like using them.

On Friday, my sweet husband returns home after an almost two-week absence; I’ll be so glad to see him walk in the door. I did use this time to deep clean his side of the closet, his chest of drawers and his little treasure trove of goodies he had stored in several places. I know he will not be able to find anything when he gets home, but at least all the hoarded little receipts and scraps of paper with notes scribbled on them have been shredded. I took all his hunting clothes and boots and stored them in the laundry room closet, something I wanted done since the end of hunting season. YAY! They are all stored away and not taking up valuable space in our closet.

On my last grocery trip, I learned something astounding... I shopped for two people and splurged on a little more junky type foods for Jamie and me. Would you believe I spent almost the same amount of money and didn’t even buy ½ of the fruits, vegetables and meat I normally buy for three people. Paying for a convenience is not something I want to do again for a long time. This week’s grocery list will be back to normal with good, healthy food items listed.

I would like to say I’m coming right along on my quilt, but I can’t. I just replaced the blade in my Fiskars Rotary Cutter in January and bought a new self-healing mat in March to cut on and it seems that the blade can’t stay sharp, so I’m scissor cutting those squares – LOTS. AND. LOTS. OF. SQUARES. I’m thinking I may have to upgrade to a better quality cutter to get this project done.

I’m working on the sleeve of THIS sweater for me, I love the look, but I don’t care for the time consuming stitches. I like to know what I’m knitting while watching TV without spending every minute reading a pattern.

What is your week looking like? Do you have any special projects planned?