Our Christmas Letter

Yes, I've neglected the blog.  This is what happens with a new baby and a growing farm.  So this will get you caught up for all the happenings in our home in 2010:

Daddy:  Daddy (aka Mr. P) has had a fairly eventful year.  He has been the main caretaker of the animals and although he would appreciate more sleep, I think he enjoys it more than he lets on.  He had to have knee surgery about 3 weeks before my due date because he tore his meniscus delivering a baby goat.  Try explaining that injury to an orthopedic surgeon!  He tore it on a Saturday, and the following Friday he had his surgery, almost unheard of turn-around.  The Doctor kindly noted my condition and sped up the process for him.  He was recovered and walking without crutches about 2 days after surgery!  We've also done some improvements on the farm in between our regular duties.  He probably had a more memorable birthday this year - he spent it in the hospital holding his newborn son!  Yes, B and Daddy share a birthday.  What a great present!

  Daddy on crutches with the goat he delivered

Me:  Well, my big accomplishment this year was surviving my pregnancy :)  I had a fantastic delivery and enjoyed my vacation, err... stay in the hospital.  My baby boy has grown and changed and I've enjoyed (almost) every minute of being a mother of two.  I started homeschooling R in June and I have really enjoyed helping and watching her learn.  It's been a learning process for both of us, but we are halfway through her Kindergarten year, and I can say that I've learned a lot!  I also opened an internet soap business this summer.  I've been making and using soap for about a year, and thought I'd see if I could find a market to sell some.  My little store is doing very well and I'm enjoying this little entrepreneurial venture.  My store is www.crimsoncleansoap.com.

R (Big Sister): R is growing and changing every day.  I can't believe how fast she's changing!  We started Kindergarten in June and she has memorized 18 Bible verses, knows more countries on the map than I did in high school, and can R.E.A.D.  Like really read.  Like sounding out words and reading thick story books.  This development has been a huge step for her and she can now entertain herself for hours reading books.  I love that she's a bookworm like her mama :)  She loves reading anything she can get her hands on!  She is also a fantastic big sister to B.  Learning to read and having a captive audience (aka: baby brother) work very well together.  B loves to listen to stories, and R always has someone to listen to her.  She is very helpful and we've have very few transition problems from being the only to being the big sister.  Our biggest problem seems to be that she's a little too in love with him at times :)

 

B (Baby Brother): Our baby boy was born on Daddy's birthday at the end of April.  He was 7lbs 15oz and 19.5 inches long.  These past months have just flown by and I can't believe he's almost 8 months old!  He is a pretty laid back dude until meal time, then he's a little impatient :)  He loves his big sister, and tolerates her "loves" well.  They couldn't be more opposite though.  He's cut 4 teeth so far, can crawl like a master, and is pulling himself up and cruising the furniture like a pro.  I don't think it'll be long before he's walking!  He is a great sleeper and all-around just a happy guy.  We are so blessed to have him in our family.

The Farm:  Well, this year has been fun on the farm :)  We delivered 4 baby goats this spring/summer, including a set of twins 3 days before B was born!   We began milking goats and although it is a lot of work, we really enjoy the process and the milk!  We've learned a lot this year about goats.  We recently bought 2 registered dairy goats.  We have 4 girls now - Tianna, Jasmine, Spaddle, and Twizzler - all pregnant and all due in April!  Lots of babies in the spring.  

  Jasmine, when she was a baby

 Little Man, our first baby goat

We added more chickens to our flock and are hoping to breed them in the spring.  We also hatched our own eggs with the first chick hatching on Easter morning.  It was amazing to watch this miracle of life with R.  We  added another dog, Aspen, a Livestock Guardian Dog (LGD) to our crew.  He's a Great Pyrenees and will guard the goats and chickens from predators.  We still have Sydney, she completed her Intermediate Dog Training class this spring.

The garden did better this year.  We had an abundance of squash, until the squash bugs heard about the buffet and took over.  The chickens cleaned them up pretty well though, and we're hoping to do even better next year.  I'll be starting my seeds in January and I'm already drooling over seed catalogs, trying to decide what I want to try.  We'll be doing a lot of tomatoes, squash, carrots, potatoes, cucumbers, and winter squash/pumpkins.  We should also have a decent crop of peaches and apricots too.  Our fruit trees went crazy this year, but we didn't even know we had them until it was too late.  The bugs found that buffet too!

All in all, we've had a wonderfully blessed year.  We've made new friends, strengthened old friendships, and grown closer as a family.  We pray that you have had a blessed year as well, and that God continues to bless you in the coming new year.

 
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!