I haven't come up with a blog name I love for our new boy. Some of our kiddos have food names and I thought about what he likes. Jerky and Oreos seem to be some of his favorites but could be offensive blog names.
Our children have asked why I haven't blogged recently and especially why not about our new boy. My answer to them was to protect his safety and privacy until we could further assess the situation with his family. Living in a small community has its perks in that everyone knows each other and often times it feels like a large family. On the flip side, knowing everyone and their business can be a challenge when information at times should be kept discreet and respectful.
I didn't appreciate the saying "It takes a village to raise a child" for a long time. When I was a little girl I knew I wanted to be a Mom. I knew I wanted to marry and have a family. I knew happiness could be found in that. When that opportunity came for me I was thrilled and amazed I could be a mom. With each child born into our family I learned more about motherhood. I gained skills. I tried hard, read books and magazines on parenting, and asked lots of questions. The "village idea" to me was strange in that these are my kids and I have stewardship over them. I didn't see the examples of the many people that had contact with us as having an influence on us. Having the opportunity for many years to stay home with my kids, home school them and be in small isolated communities it was easy for me to think I was on my own. It wasn't until my children got older and when they went to high school did I see the influence of others on their lives. I truly love that our children come home and discuss with Hubby and I the differences they see in people. My mind has been opened to what they are seeing daily at school. Now I see how the village idea works. Each day my older children go to school. They are in the care and tutoring of many different personalities, belief systems and values. Those influences have a powerful effect. How grateful I am for the foundation they have gained from home as they go out into the world each day.
In my mind this ties back to our new boy. He has come to our home at an age of maturity. So much of his growing and learning has already been achieved. I shared with him one night that his parents had him for most of his childhood. We gained him in our home just months before he goes out into the world as an adult. He has chosen his college, worked towards scholarships all before coming to us. We have enjoyed the excitement of seeing him be awarded scholarships and grants for college, assisted him in his search for college housing, watched his nervousness as he bought his first vehicle and applied for employment. He is learning how to navigate his own finances. These are overwhelming for him and for us. He has so much to learn at the same time as finishing high school and grieving the lost relationships of his family. We are grateful to the local high school teachers, administrators and community leaders that have stepped in to assist him and us in continuing towards his graduation and college preparations. We are grateful for the "village" in assisting as we navigate this new aspect of our lives.
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Valentine's Day celebrations were kept simple out of respect for our new family member. We just didn't know what he was familiar with and didn't want to create stress for him. We did enjoy baking cookies and flowers.
Easter was bittersweet this year. The children are older and gone is the magic of the younger years. Our weekend was full of many of us working. Our new boy was a bit melancholy as this was his first big holiday away from his family. Our hearts ached for him as he worked through the weekend. To be honest I have been more overwhelmed than I thought. We are finishing raising another woman's child. We are examples to him. I pray our efforts are worthy. I was grateful to the girls and little boys for decorating the house and making the cookies. On the last day of Spring Break we went for a drive and enjoyed a picnic lunch in the hills. The kids rolled their eggs. This year we brought the BB guns and 22's. The kids got practice shooting the colored eggs that didn't break from rolling them. Not sure this was in the theme of Easter, but it turned out to be a fun family event where good memories were made. Chicadee, Cowboy and New Boy were working and unable to attend.
Our milk cow has been a tender mercy in providing us with a ready supply of fresh milk each day. The kids are enjoying all the milk they can drink and especially eating home made ice cream. We have had some stress in finding room in the fridge for food as there at times is a lot of milk in it.
I googled how to make butter with a Bosche mixer and was quite pleased with my new ability. After the first three batches Hubby and I penciled out the savings in our grocery bill and decided it was a good idea to keep making butter and ice cream. I did try one batch of cheese making and was impressed with how easy it was. The kiddos were not too thrilled with the cheese sampling but had no problem eating it shredded in their dinner that night. I would like to try yogurt but the kiddos have decided they are over their yogurt craze for the time being.
Bread making has been added to the weekly list and is working out to be a yummy endeavor. The chicken's have started laying again and we are enjoying the eggs.
One of the "village" concerns was if we had the resources to manage an additional child. We have truly been blessed with our farm and jobs providing for our needs.
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